Title:
The Obligatory Religious Practices of Islam
Article:
روي أنه قال رجل من أصحاب رسول
الله صلى الله عليه وسلم: نهينا أن نسأل رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم عن شيء
فكان يعجبنا أن يجيء الرجل من أهل البادية العاقل فيسأله ونحن نسمع. فجاء رجل إلى
رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم من أهل نجد ثائر الرأس يسمع دوي صوته ولا يفقه ما
يقول حتى دنا فإذا هو يسأل عن الإسلام فقال: يا رسول الله، أخبرني ماذا فرض الله
علي من الصلاة. فقال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم:
خمس صلوات في اليوم والليلة.
فقال: هل علي غيرها؟ قال:
لا،إلا أن تطوع
.
فقال: أخبرني ما فرض الله علي من
الصيام. قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم:
صيام شهر رمضان.
قال: هل علي غيره؟ قال: لا، إلا
أن تطوع.
فقال: أخبرني بما فرض الله علي
من الزكاة. قال: وذكر له رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم الزكاة قال: هل علي غيرها؟
قال: لا، إلا أن تطوع.
قال: فأدبر الرجل وهو يقول:
والله لا أزيد على هذا ولا أنقص منه. قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم:
أفلح إن صدق.
It is reported that one of the companions1
of the Prophet (pbuh) said: “We were directed to refrain from asking any
questions2 from the Prophet (pbuh). Due to this, we were glad when
an intelligent Bedouin would come to the Prophet (pbuh) and ask him questions
[about Islam], while we could hear [the Prophet’s answers]. So, one day [while
we were present,] a man from the Naj’d came to the Prophet (pbuh). His
hair was tangled and he had a rumbling sound in his voice. We could not
understand what he was saying, till he came near us. It was then that we
realized that he was asking about [some of the obligatory practices of]
Islam. He asked: ‘Prophet of God, tell me, what has God prescribed upon me
in the case of Sala’h?’ The Prophet (pbuh) replied: ‘Five prayers
during a day and night [are obligatory upon you]’. He asked: ‘Is there any
thing else in this regard that is obligatory upon me?’ The Prophet replied:
‘No, except that you desire to offer supererogatory prayers’.
He continued: ‘Tell me, what has God prescribed
upon me in the case of fasting?’ The Prophet (pbuh) replied: ‘Fasting during
the month of Ramadan.’ He asked: ‘Is there anything else in this regard
that is obligatory upon me?’ The Prophet replied: ‘No, except that you offer
supererogatory fasting.’
Then he asked: ‘Tell me, what has God prescribed
upon me in the case of Zaka’h?’ The Prophet (pbuh) told him about the
law relating to Zaka’h. He asked: ‘Is there anything else that is
obligatory upon me, in this connection?’ The Prophet (pbuh) replied: ‘No,
except that you wish to offer supererogatory charity.’
At this the man turned around to leave3,
saying: ‘By God, I [shall fulfill these obligations, but] shall neither offer
anything of my own accord nor reduce anything from these [practices].’ The
Prophet (pbuh) said: ‘He shall be successful [in the hereafter], if he can do
as he says’.
***************
General Notes:
-
According to Muslim, narrative no.
13, this companion is named is Anas ibn Malik (ra).
-
This is a reference to the directive of the
Qur’an given in Al-Maaidah 5: 101. In the referred verses, the Qur’an
has actually directed the companions of the Prophet (pbuh) to refrain from
asking unnecessary questions relating to directives of Islam (as had been the
case with the Israelites, when they were directed to slaughter a cow). This is
because of the reason that if such questions were answered, it would make it
difficult upon them and all the Muslims to come to carry out the directives of
the Shari`ah. It seems that in view of this directive of the
Qur’an, the companions of the Prophet (pbuh) became overly conscious and
would, sometimes, even avoid asking questions, which they thought to be
necessary.
-
According to Muslim, narrative no.
13, and Ahmad ibn Hanbal, narrative no. 2142, the person also asked
about Hajj.
Notes on the Text of the Narrative:
This narrative or a part of it, with some variations, has
been reported in Bukhariy (narrative no. 46, 1792, 2532 and 6556),
Muslim (narrative no. 11, 12), Tirmidhi (narrative no. 619),
Nasaiy (narrative no. 458, 2090, 2091, 5028), Abu Dawood (narrative
no. 391, 392, 3252) Ahmad ibn Hanbal (narrative no. 1390, 2254, 2380,
12479, 13034, 13842), Malik ibn Anas (narrative no. 423), Daarmiy
(narrative no. 650, 651, 652, 1578), Nasaiy’s Sunan al-Kubraa (narrative
no. 319, 2400, 2401, 5863, 11759), Ibn Khuzaymah (narrative no. 306,
2074), Bayhaqiy (narrative no. 1572, 2057, 4235, 4237, 7692, 8394),
Ibn Hibban (narrative no. 155, 1724, 3626), Abu Ya`laa (narrative no.
3333). Except where otherwise specified, the preferred text is the one reported
in Bukhariy, narrative no. 46.
The opening part of the narrative,
“نهينا أن
نسئل رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم… ونحن نسمع. فجاء” (i.e., ‘We
were directed to refrain from asking… so, one day a man came’) has been reported
in Muslim, narrative no. 12, but has been omitted in Bukhariy’s
narrative no. 46. In Bukhariy, narrative no. 46, the phrase
“فجاء”
has been reported as
“حاء”, as the narrative starts with
this word. There are a few other differences as well in the reporting of the
incident, as recorded in some narratives of Muslim, Tirmidhi,
Ahmad ibn Hanbal etc. Ahmad ibn Hanbal, narrative no. 2380 gives the
most comprehensive picture of this alternative reporting. The complete narrative
is given below:
روي أنه بعثت بنو سعد بن بكر ضمام بن ثعلبة وافدا إلى رسول
الله صلى الله عليه وسلم فقدم عليه وأناخ بعيره على باب المسجد ثم عقله ثم دخل
المسجد ورسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم جالس في أصحابه. وكان ضمام رجلا جلدا أشعر
ذا غديرتين. فأقبل حتى وقف على رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم في أصحابه. فقال:
أيكم بن عبد المطلب؟ فقال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم:
أنا بن عبد المطلب. قال: محمد؟ قال:
نعم. فقال: ابن عبد المطلب، انى سائلك ومغلظ في
المسألة فلا تجدن في نفسك. قال: لا أجد في نفسي فسل عما
بدا لك. قال: أنشدك الله الهك واله من كان قبلك واله من هو كائن بعدك آلله
بعثك إلينا رسولا؟ فقال: اللهم نعم. قال: فأنشدك
الله الهك واله من كان قبلك واله من هو كائن بعدك آلله أمرك ان تأمرنا ان نعبده
وحده لا نشرك به شيئا وان نخلع هذه الأنداد التي كانت آباؤنا يعبدون معه؟ قال: اللهم
نعم. قال: فأنشدك الله الهك واله من كان قبلك واله من هو كائن بعدك آلله
أمرك ان نصلى هذه الصلوات الخمس؟ قال: اللهم نعم.
قال: ثم جعل يذكر فرائض الإسلام فريضة فريضة الزكاة والصيام والحج وشرائع الإسلام
كلها يناشده عند كل فريضة كما يناشده في التي قبلها، حتى إذا فرغ، قال: فإني أشهد
أن لا إله الا الله واشهد أن سيدنا محمدا رسول الله وسأؤدي هذه الفرائض وأجتنب ما
نهيتني عنه ثم لا أزيد ولا أنقص. قال: ثم انصرف راجعا إلى بعيره. فقال رسول الله
صلى الله عليه وسلم حين ولى: ان يصدق ذو العقيصتين يدخل
الجنة.
It is reported that the tribe of Banu Sa`d ibn
Bak’r sent Damaam Ibn Tha`labah as their representative to the
Prophet (pbuh). He sat his camel at the entrance of the mosque and tied it.
Then he entered the mosque. At that time, the Prophet (pbuh) was sitting among
his companions. Damaam was a strong man with long hair. He was wearing
his hair in two plaits. He approached us till he reached where the Prophet (pbuh)
was sitting among his companions. Then he asked: ‘Who, among you, is the son
of Abd al-Muttalib?’ The Prophet (pbuh) replied: ‘I am the son of
Abd al-Muttalib.’ He asked: ‘Is your name Muhammad?’ The Prophet replied
in the affirmative. He said: ‘Son of Abd al-Muttalib, I am going to ask
you a few questions very bluntly. Do not be offended by my questions.’ The
Prophet replied: ‘I will not be offended. You may ask what you desire’. He
said: ‘Then I ask you in the name of the one God – your God, the God of those,
who have passed before you and the God of all those, who are to come after you
– Has God made you a Messenger to us?’ The Prophet replied: ‘By my God, yes
[He has].’ He said: ‘I ask you in the name of the one God – your God, the God
of those, who have passed before you and the God of all those, who are to come
after you – Has God directed you to tell us that we should worship Him alone
and that we should not ascribe partners to Him and that we should leave the
gods – held as equals – that our ancestors used to worship?’ The Prophet
replied: ‘By my God, yes [He has]’. He said: ‘I ask you in the name of the one
God – your God, the God of those, who have passed before you and the God of
all those, who are to come after you – Has God directed you to tell us to
offer these Five [obligatory] prayers?’ The Prophet replied ‘By my God, yes
[He has]’. Then he started asking about the obligatory practices of Islam, one
after the other. [He asked about] Zaka’h, fasting, Hajj and all
the laws of Islam, every time he put the Prophet under oath, just as he had
done in his previous questions. This went on till he had asked all his
questions. Then he said: ‘I bear witness that there is no god, besides the One
God and that our leader – Muhammad – is a messenger of God. I shall carry out
all these obligatory practices and shall refrain from all that you have
stopped me from, but I shall neither add any thing to these practices of my
own accord, nor shall I reduce anything from these.’ Then he turned, walking
towards his camel. When he turned, the Prophet said: ‘If this man with two
plaits can do as he says, he shall enter the [everlasting bliss of] Paradise.’
Besides Ahmad ibn Hanbal, narrative no. 2380, almost
the same version of the narrative is reported in Muslim (narrative no.
12) Tirmidhi (narrative no. 619), Nasaiy (narrative no. 2091)
Ahmad ibn Hanbal (narrative no. 12479, 13034), Daarmiy (narrative no.
650, 651, 652), Nasaiy’s Sunan al-Kubraa (narrative no. 2401, 5863),
Bayhaqiy (narrative no. 8394), Ibn Hibban (narrative no. 155), Abu
Ya`laa (narrative no. 3333).
In some narratives, as for instance, in Bukhariy,
narrative no. 1792, the phrase
“رجل من أهل نجد” (i.e. a man from the
people of Naj’d) is replaced by
“أعرابيا” (i.e. a Bedouin) and by
“رجل من
أهل البادية” (i.e. a man from the people of the desert), as for
instance, in Muslim, narrative no. 12.
The sentence
“فقال يا رسول الله أخبرني ماذا فرض الله علي من
الصلاة” (i.e., He said: ‘Prophet of God, tell me, what has God
prescribed upon me in the case of Sala’h?’) – as reported in
Bukhariy’s narrative no. 1792 – has been reported as a question regarding
Islam, in general, in Bukhariy’s narrative no. 46, in the words
“فإذا هو
يسأل عن الإسلام” (i.e., ‘we realized that he was asking about
Islam.’).
The sentence
“فقال أخبرني ما فرض الله علي من الصيام”
(i.e., He said: ‘Tell me what has God prescribed upon me in the case of
fasting’) has been reported in Bukhariy’s narrative no. 1792.
The phrase
“صيام شهر رمضان” (i.e., ‘fasting
during the month of Ramadan‘) has been reported in Bukhariy,
narrative no. 2532. In Bukhariy, narrative no 46, the phrase
“صيام شهر
رمضان” (i.e. fasting during the month of Ramadan) has been
replaced with
“وصيام رمضان” (i.e. fasting during
Ramadan), while in Bukhariy, narrative no. 1792, the phrase has been
reported as
“شهر رمضان” (i.e. the month of
Ramadan).
The sentence
“فقال أخبرني بما فرض الله علي من الزكاة”
(i.e., He said: ‘Tell me what has God prescribed upon me in the case of
Zaka’h‘) has been reported in Bukhariy’s narrative no. 1792.
In some narratives, as for instance in Bukhariy
narrative no. 1792, the word
“الزكاة” (Zaka’h) has been
replaced by the phrase
“شرائع الإسلام” (i.e. laws of Islam
[relating to Zaka’h]), while in Abu Dawood, narrative no. 391, the
word has been replaced by
“الصدقة” (Sadaqah), which is
also used for Zaka’h.
In some narratives, as for instance in Bukhariy,
narrative no. 1792, the sentence
“لا أزيد على هذا ولا أنقص” (i.e. I
shall neither offer anything of my own accord nor reduce anything from these)
has been reported as
“لا أتطوع شيئا ولا أنقص مما فرض الله علي شيئا”
(i.e. I shall neither offer any supererogatory practices, nor reduce anything
from what God has prescribed upon me).
The words
“منه” after the phrase
“لا أزيد
على هذا ولا أنقص” has been reported in Muslim’s narrative
no. 11.
In some narratives, as for instance in Bukhariy,
narrative no. 1792, the sentence
“أفلح إن صدق” (i.e. If he can do as
he says, then he shall be successful) has also been reported as:
“دخل الجنة
إن صدق” (i.e. If he can do as he says, he shall enter paradise).
While in some narratives, this phrase has been recorded as
“أفلح
وأبيه إن صدق” (If he can do as he says, then he and his father
shall be successful), which, obviously, seems to be a mistake of the narrators.
(This write-up is prepared by the Hadith Cell of
Javed Ahmad Ghamidi)