Published:23/06/2012
---
Ibn
al-Qayyim said: “ ‘Uthmaan
ibn Sa’eed al-Daarimi said in his book al-Ru’yah that there was
consensus among the Sahaabah that he [the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)] did
not see his Lord on the night of the Mi’raaj.
Some
of them excluded Ibn ‘Abbaas and said
that he was not one of those who said that.
Our
Shaykh says that
this does not go against the facts, for Ibn
‘Abbaas did not say that he saw Him with the eyes in his head,
and Ahmad relied
upon this in one of the two reports narrated from him, where he says
that he saw Him but
he did not say that that was with the eyes in his head. The
wording used by Ahmad is
the same as that used by Ibn
‘Abbaas (may Allaah be
pleased with them both).
What
indicates that what our Shaykh said
about the meaning of the hadeeth of Abu
Dharr is correct is
the fact that in another hadeeth he said that His
veil is Light. And Allaah
knows best what the Light is that is mentioned in the hadeeth of Abu
Dharr (may Allaah be pleased
with him) where it says, ‘I
saw Light.’” [Ijtimaa’
al-Juyoosh al-Islamiyyah, vol. 1, p. 12]
Quote:
“Shaykh
al-Islam (may
Allaah have mercy on him) said: “Chapter: with regard to seeing
Allaah, what was proven in al-Saheeh from Ibn
‘Abbaas is
that he said: ‘Muhammad saw his Lord with his heart twice, and
‘Aa’ishah
denied that he had seen Him.
Some
people reconciled these two
reports by saying that ‘Aa’ishah
denied that he saw Him with his eyes and Ibn ‘Abbaas affirmed that
he saw Him with his heart.
Some
versions of the report narrated
from Ibn ‘Abbaas refers to
seeing without specifying how, and others indicate that it was with
the heart.
Sometimes he
says that Muhammad saw his Lord, and sometimes he
says that Muhammad saw Him. There
is no clear statement from Ibn ‘Abbaas which says that he saw Him
with his eyes.
Similarly
Imaam Ahmad sometimes says that he saw Him
and sometimes says that he saw Him with his
heart. No one whom Ahmad heard said that he saw Him with his
eyes. But some of his companions heard some of the words that did
not specify how, and understood from that that he had seen Him with
his eyes, just as some people heard the words of Ibn ‘Abbaas
that did not specify how, and understood from that that he
had seen Him with his eyes. But there is nothing in the
evidence to prove that he saw Him with his eyes, and that was not
narrated from any of the Sahaabah.
There
is nothing in the Qur’aan or Sunnah to indicate that, rather the
saheeh texts which indicate that he did not see Him are more
definitive.
In
Saheeh Muslim it is narrated that Abu Dharr said: ‘I asked the
Messenger of Allaah (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him),
“Did you see your Lord?” He said, “He is veiled with Light, how
could I see Him?”’ And
Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): ‘Glorified
(and Exalted) be He (Allaah) [above all that (evil) they associate
with Him] Who
took His slave (Muhammad) for a journey by night from Al-Masjid
Al-Haraam (at Makkah) to Al-Masjid Al-Aqsaa (in Jerusalem), the
neighbourhood whereof We have blessed, in order that We might show
him (Muhammad) of Our Ayaat (proofs, evidences, lessons, signs,
etc.)’ [al-Isra’ 17:1]
If
he had seen Him with his own eyes, that He would have mentioned
that. The same applies to the
words “Will you then dispute with
him (Muhammad) about what he saw [during the Mi’raaj]?” [al-Najm
53:12 – interpretation of the meaning]. If
he had seen Him with his own eyes, that would have been mentioned.
It
is proven from the saheeh texts and from the consensus of the
salaf (first generations)
of this ummah that no one can see Allaah with his eyes in this world,
with the exception of the claim
made by
some that our Prophet Muhammad alone saw Him. But
they are agreed that the believers will see Allaah on the Day of
Resurrection with their own eyes just as they see the sun and the
moon (in this world).” And
Allaah knows best. [Majmoo’
al-Fataawa, vol. 6, p. 509-510.]
----------------
“The
Companions, predecessors and Imams of Muslims believe that Allah will
be seen in the Hereafter only and no one will see Him in this world
except in a dream. Hearts
in this case will find spiritual unveilings and sights that suit
their status. Some
people may have strong spiritual unveilings to the extent that they
think that they saw their Lord with their eyes. But this is not
true. Hearts
unveilings or spiritual unveilings occur according the degree of the
servant’s belief in his Lord.” [Source: Fatwas
of Ibn Taymiyyah, vol.
2, p. 335]
*There
is nothing in the Hadiths of Mi’raj (Ascension
to the heavens)
that denotes that he saw Allah with his eyes. (Permanent
Committee for Scholarly Research and Ifta’: Here )
----------------
Did
The Holy Prophet
صلى الله عليه وسلم
SEE
Allah(SWT)?
---
Also Read:
HERE---
Al
Quran
53.7:
While he was in the highest part of the horizon:
53.8: Then
he approached and came closer,
53.9: And was at a
distance of but two bow-lengths or (even) nearer;
53.10: So
did (Allah) convey the inspiration to His Servant- (conveyed) what He
(meant) to convey.
53.11: The (Prophet’s) (mind and)
heart in no way falsified that which he saw.
53.12: Will ye
then dispute with him concerning what he saw?
---Here in
the 12th Ayah Allah is challenging the whole world that
“WILL
YE THEN DISPUTE WITH HIM CONCERNING WHAT HE SAW”
had
it been seeing Gabriel only then that would not have
been a great challenge because previous Prophets like Moses (Peace
be upon him) had even talked
“DIRECTLY
WITH ALLAH”
which
was a far superior thing than seeing Gibriel, hence the vision
of Allah was
finally reserved for Prophet (Peace
be upon him) as hadith of Ibn Abbas proves (I will
come to it later) meanwhile I will quote detailed Tafsir of it
by Imam Ibn Jawzi (rah), he explains
the 8th and 9th ayah in light of
sahih ahadith and aqwaal in this fashion.
There
are three famous sayings regarding the saying of Allah
Then
he approached and came closer
First:
That
is Allah Azza wajjal as it is narrated
by Bukhari and Muslim in “Sahihayn” the hadith
from Sharik bin Ibn Numayr who heard from Anas
bin Malik (ra) who said:
The
Irresistible, the Lord of Honor and Majesty approached and came
closer till he was about two bow lengths or (even) nearer [Sahih
Bukhari Hadith # 7518, Sahih Muslim Hadith
# 162]
Masbat
(Proof) takes over Nafi
(rejection)
…and
It is narrated by Abu Salama from Ibn Abbas (ra)
that {He approached} refers to Allah coming near,
this is adopted by Maqatil (ra) who said:
Allah
came near to Muhammad (Peace be
upon him) on the night of Isra
And was at a distance of but two bow-lengths or
(even) nearer, however
It is written in the book: Al
Mughni that this coming
nearer does not refer
to coming closer in sense of bodies not distance
as that is the case with bodily creations and Allah is High of such
thing being attributed to him.
The
Second:
That
It was Muhammad(s)(Peace
be upon him) who
went near Allah, this is said by Ibn
Abbas (ra) and Qurzi (ra)
too.
The
Third:
It
was Gibril and
there is Kalaam
in this Qawl!
Reference:
[Imam Ibn Jawzi in Zad al Maseer fi Ilm at Tafsir, Volume No. 8, Page
No. 65-66]
Hence
From Quran and Sahih ahadith of Bukhari and Muslim which give best
sharah of 8th and 9th Ayahs
It
is proven that Prophet (Peace be upon him) saw
Allah (this itself is enough to say that Aisha ra’s
qawl is not to be taken as
absolute authority and even Anas bin Malik who
is claimed to have rejected sight of Allah is proving in
these ahadith that Prophet Peace be upon him saw Allah, It is
fundamental Usool of Hadith that If
same sahabi says 2 contrary things then “Masbat (proof)” takes
over “Nafi (i.e. rejection)”, so according to this Usool
itself It is soundly established that the Prophet Peace be upon him
did indeed see Allah and the Nafi of this has to be rejected)
Some
people use the ayah (Surah al Araaf: 143) to claim
that Prophet (Peace be upon him) could not see Allah as in that
Ayah Allah said to Moses that
you cannot see me!
We
will see how this verse actually proves that Allah’s sight is
possible.
Let’s
look at tafsir Al jalalayn and Al Qurtubi.
Imam
Jalal ud din Suyuti (rah) said:
Translation: {You
shall not see Me}, which means you do not have
the capability to see me THE USE OF THE WORDING (LAN
TARANI) RATHER THAN LAN URA (I.E. I
SHALL NOT BE SEEN) IMPLIES THAT IT IS POSSIBLE TO SEE
ALLAH {But gaze at the mountain} which is
stronger than you are, {And if it stands still in its place} then you
shall see Me’, that is, [then] you shall remain fixed [able] to see
Me, otherwise, you will not have the capacity [for it]. {And when his
Lord revealed (His) glory to the mountain} i.e. When he
manifested his light, equivilant to half a nail of little finger as
this is mentioned in the sahih hadith of Hakim [Tafsir al
Jalalyn, Page No. 167, Published by Dar Ibn Kathir, Damascus]
Explanation
by Imam Qurtubi;
The
Anbiya never ask
for Impossible!
In
the Ayah Musa (a.s) said in the end: And
Moses fell down in a swoon. When he recovered his senses he said:
“Glory be to Thee! to Thee I turn in repentance, and I am the first
to believe.”(7:143)
Imam
Qurtubi (rah) explains it as:
The
Imams are unanimous that (Musa (a.s)) asking for Tawba does not refer
to sins because the Anbiya are infallible/Masoom, and
in the opinion of Ahlus Sunnah Wal Jammah the Sight of
(Allah) is possible [Tafsir al Qurtubi, Under 7:143]
Hence
it is decisively proven from Quran itself that Anbiya never ask for
something Impossible, had sight of Allah not been possible
then Musa (a.s) would not have asked for it and nor would have Allah
linked it to the condition of mountain staying at its place (because
Allah does not do illogical things either .. Naudhobillah), the
thing is that Musa (a.s) was not capable of seeing Him but Prophet
Muhammad (Peace be upon him) was and the vision was only reserved for
him. (SubhanAllah)
Hadith
of Aisha (ra) cannot supersede the
overwhelming other ahadith which prove contrary
to it.
The
hadith of Aisha (ra) which Usman used has
this wording: Whoever
among you says that Muhammad (upon whom be Allah’s peace) had seen
his Lord and Sustainer, tells a
lie
This
hadith and specific wording of Aisha (ra) is itself
proof that other Sahaba differed with her and many believed in sight
Of Allah, plus Aisha (ra) getting
very angry upon it is proof of her doing it in opposition of Ibn
Abbas (ra) who was actually a far superior
commentator of Quran than Aisha (ra)
herself…
Knowing
from Best commentators of Bukhari/Muslim
…some
people would be eyeing for this to start accusing on Sahaba but what
I am saying has absolutely no accusation on Sahaba because Sahaba
were not infallible and this
is opinion of Ahlus Sunnah (contrary
to Shi’ites who
see these mistakes of sahaba as excuses to accuse them and the great
thing is that Shi’ites themselves reject the sight of
Allah but Alhamdulillah Ahlus Sunnah are the
saved group so our viewpoint is Haqq and Indeed our beloved Prophet
has seen Allah)
I
will present the most revered and authentic Sharh of
this hadith in words of the great Imam Ahmed bin Hanbal as
cited by the leading commentator of Bukhari :
Imam
Ibn Hajr al Asqalani (Rahimuhullah) says in his Fath
ul Bari: Maruzi
(rah) said to Imam Ahmed (rah): People say
that Aisha (ra) used to say that whosoever says that the
Prophet (saw) saw his Lord has attributed a lie to Allah, so how
shall this be answered? (Imam Ahmed)
replied: From the saying of Prophet
(saw) [himself] i.e. I saw my Lord, this will be an answer to Aisha
(ra)’s
Qawl because the saying of Prophet (s) is far superior than saying of
her (i.e. Aisha ra) [Fath
ul Bari, Sharah Sahih ul Bukhari, Volume No. 8, Page No. 494]
The
2nd Ahadith of Muslim actually prove “Sight”
Imam
Nawawi (rah) the leading commentator on Sahih Muslim sheds
more light on this
He
presents the case beautifully as: When
it is proven from Sahih ahadith of Ibn Abbas (ra) then we cannot
assume that he said it according to his own thinking, definitely he
said it due to his hearing from Prophet (saw), Ma’mar bin
Rashid (rah) said regarding the difference
between Aisha (ra) and Ibn Abbas (ra)
that Aisha (ra) was not aware about this
(completely) whereas Ibn Abbas (ra) was, So when Ibn
Abbas (ra) is proving it while some others are doing Nafi of
it then It is a (Principle) that Masbat (Proof) takes over Nafi
(rejection) [Sharah Sahih Muslim, Kitab al Iman, Chapter in meaning
of :He saw him at the second descent].
Yet
another great Sharh of Bukhari !
Translation: Ibn
Abbas (ra) said that Muhammad (salallaho alaihi wasalam) saw
his Lord, (Ikrama) asked: Hasn’t Allah said that Eyes cannot
“COMPREHEND” him, at this (Ibn Abbas) replied: Strange
that you have not understood, this is when Allah shows
glimpse of his own Nur (which cannot be
comprehended), so Prophet (s) saw Allah
twice [Sunnan Tirimdh, Tafsir of Surah al-Najm, Hadith No.
3201] – Imam Tirimdhi declared this hadith as “Hassan”
Sheikh
Muhadith Haq Dhelvi (rahimuhullah) writes: Ibn Umar(ra)
turned to Ibn Abbas (ra) regarding this matter and asked whether the
Prophet (saw) has seen his Lord, Ibn Abbas replied in affirmative,
Ibn Umar (ra) accepted this and did not reject it [Ashaat ul Lamaat,
Volume No. 4, Page No. 431]
Imam
Badr ud din Ayni (Rahimuhullah) the commentator of Bukhari
said:
Ibn
Khuazaima narrated with “strong
chain” from Anas bin Malik (ra) that he
said: Muhammad (salallaho alaihi wasalam) saw his
Lord, same is narrated from Ibn Abbas (ra)
and his disciples like K’ab al Ahbar (ra), Zuhiri (rah) and Ma’mar
(rah), Imam Abdur Razzaq (rah) narrates from Ma’mar who quotes Imam
Hassan Basri (rah) who used to say: I Swear that
Muhammad (salallaho alaihi wassalam) saw his Lord, Ibn
Khuzaima (rah) has also proven it (sight of
Allah) from Urwa bin Zubayr (ra) [Umdat
al Qari, Sharah Sahih al Bukhari, Volume No. 19, Page No. 198]
Imam
Badr ud din Ayni (rah) also explains:
Imam
Tabarani (rah) narrates in his (Al Awsat) with “Strong
chain” from Ibn Abbas (ra) who said
that Prophet (s) saw his Lord twice, the
reason for this saying is that Muhammad (s) saw his Lord with
his eyesight,
because Musa (as)
talked to Allah directly,
Ibrahim (a.s) was taken as His
friend and Muhammad (salallaho
alaihi wasalam) was chosen for
sight (no other Prophet
was), apparently what Ibn Abbas (ra) means to
say is that Prophet (s) saw Allah with his eyes [Umdat al
Qari, Sharah Sahih al Bukhari, Volume No. 17, Page No. 30]
Imam
Nasai’i (Rahimuhullah) and Hakim (Rahimuhullah)
narrate with Sahih Isnad: Ibn
Abbas (ra) narrates: Are you surprised at friendship
of Ibrahim (a.s) [with Allah], The Speech of Musa
(directly with Allah) and Sight of Muhammad (Salallaho alaihi
wasalam)? [Sunnan
Nasai’I al Kubra in Amal al Yawm wal Laylah , Volume No.6, Hadith
No.11539, Mustadrak ala Sahihayn, Volume No. 1, Hadith No. 216]
Imam
Hakim (rah) after narrating it said: This
Hadith is Sahih on the criteria of Bukhari [Ibid, Hadith No.
216]
Imam
Ibn Hajr al Asqalani (Rahimuhullah) said: It
is narrated by Nasai’i with “Sahih
Isnad” and Hakim also declared
it “Sahih” the narration with the chain
from Ikrama (rah) who heard Ibn Abbas (ra) say
(and he quoted the above hadith) [Fath ul Bari, Sharah Sahih
al Bukhari, Volume No. 8, Page No 493]
Imam
Nawawi (Rahimuhullah) writes under the hadith of Ibn
Masud (ra) that (Prophet’s (s) heart did not lie
of what it saw means that he saw Jibril (a.s); This
is the saying of Abdullah Ibn Masud (ra) and his Madhab, but
the Madhab of vast majority of Mufasireen (including Ibn
Abbas) is that Prophet (s) saw Allah Subhanahu Wa
Ta’la [Sharah Sahih Muslim by Imam Nawawi, under Kitab al
Iman, The mention of Sidra til Muntaha, Hadith No. 254]
Imam
Nawawi further states: The
result of all (proofs which have been shown) is that it is pre
dominantly established amongst many ulama that Prophet (s) saw Allah
with his eyes on the night of Ascension as the hadith from Ibn Abbas
(ra) and others have been mentioned before, the proof of which comes
from Prophet (s) hence there should be no doubt about it [Sharah
Sahih Muslim, Kitab al Iman, Chapter in meaning of :He saw him at the
second descent]
Imam
Nawawi (rah) also said about Aisha (ra) hadith: The
Proof which Aisha (ra) took (to reject sight of Allah)
i.e. {Eyes cannot comprehend him} the
apparent answer to this will be that there cannot be Idraak (i.e.
complete comprehension, to gather all around, to see all aspects) of
Allah, so the Nass (of Quran) does Nafi of Al-Ihaat but this
does not do Nafi of sight without Ihaata (i.e. complete
comprehension) [Ibid]
Imam
Ibn Jarir (rah) writes under: The (Prophet’s) (mind and)
heart in no way falsified that which he saw. (53:11); Sa
bin Ubaid (rah) said: Ikrama (rah) was
questioned about Muhammad (salallaho alaihi wasalam) seeing
the Lord? He said: YES! HE SAW HIS
LORD [Tafsir at Tabri under 53:11]
Marfu'Hadith: A Hadith which
is traced back to Rasulullah Sallallahu Alayhi
Wassallam directly.
Imam
Tabri proves from Prophet (Peace be upon
him) himself as: From Ata (rah)
who narrated from Ibn Abbas (ra) who said
that Prophet (Salallaho alaihi wasalam) said: I
saw Allah in his best of form (which
Allah and Apostle know best) [Tafsir at Tabri under
53:11]
Another
hadith from Tirmidhi which has been authenticated
as hasan sahih by both Imam Bukhari and Imam
Tirmidhi; … Lo
I found myself in the presence of my Lord, the Blessed and the
Glorious, in the best form. He said: Muhammad! I said: At Thy
service… [Sunnan
Tirimdhi, Volume No. 5, Page No. 966, Published by Maktabba al
Asriyyah, Beirut, Lebanon]
All
these narrations prove that the Prophet peace unto him indeed saw
Allah Almighty.
---
" No
vision can grasp him" ?
Question:
Is'nt
it our belief that Muhammad sallallahu alaihi wa sallam saw Allah on
the night of miraj, and also that he has been granted the knowledge
of the unseen by Allah.
However
i have been made aware that a hadith in either Bukhari or Muslim
shareef narrated by Masruq:
Aisha said,
"if anyone tells you that Muhammad has seen his lord, he is a
liar, for Allah says:"No vision
can grasp him"(6.103) and if
anyone tells you that Muhammad has seen the unseen, he is a liar, for
Allah says:"None has the knowledge of the unseen but Allah."
Please
give me detailed explanation as well as evidences with full reference
to help and me understand.
Answer:
First of
all, ‘Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) was not
married to the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allah be upon him) at the time of Miraj.
**
In fact, she may not have been born at
the time of the Night Journey, (as there are minor disputes
as to which year the Isra and Mir’aj took place).
Hence,
she did not witness this night and must have heard the event from
someone else. For this reason, preference is given to the other
Companions, of which most assert he
did see his Lord.
Also, ‘Aisha(ra) never
slept with the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allah be upon him) until Madina,
and the Isra and Mi’raj happened when
the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was
in Makka Sharif.
Allah
says in the Qur’an,
‘So
Allah revealed to His beloved servant what He revealed. The heart
lied not in what the Prophet’s eye saw. Do you then dispute with
him about what he saw?
This
issue has been disputed since the time of the Companions (may Allah
be pleased with them).
‘Aisha
(ra), for example, was of the opinion that the Prophet (peace
and blessings of Allah be upon him) did not see
his Lord.
Ibn
Abbas(ra), on the other hand, was adamant
that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)
was bestowed with this honour on the night of Isra and Mi’raj.
There
are two sides to the argument.
Opinion
One:
‘The
Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allah be upon him) did not see
his Lord.’
In
the commentary of the verses:
‘Till
there was a distance of two-bow lengths or even less’,
‘The
heart lied not in what the Prophet’s eye saw’ and ‘Certainly he
saw the great signs of his Lord’
Ibn
Mas’ud (may Allah be pleased with him) said that all refer
to when the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon
him) saw Jibrael (peace be upon him) in
his original, created form with six-hundred wings.
In
other words, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be
upon him) did not see Allah on this night, but Jibrael in his
original form for the first time.
(pp.
527-8. Zia al-Nabi. Pir Muhammad Karam Shah al-Azhari.(vol. II; 4th
ed.) Zia al-Quran Publications, Lahore,1420 A.H.)
• Imam
Muslim narrates from Masruq, who
said,
‘Once
I was in the presence of ‘Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her)
when I asked her if the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon
him) saw Allah.
She replied,
‘there are three
comments which –if are spoken- constitute a great lie against
Allah.’ I asked, ‘what are they?’ She replied, ‘Whoever
assumes that Muhammad saw his Lord, then he has invented a lie
against Allah.’
I
was lying down, and sat up [due to astonishment] and said to her, ‘O
Mother of the Faithful! Look at me and do not be haste! Did not Allah
say in the Qur’an ‘And verily he saw him at the clear horizon’
and ‘And indeed he saw that splendid vision for the second time’?
She replied,
‘I was the first from this Ummah to ask the Prophet about this. He
said, ‘It is merely [referring to] Jibrael (peace be upon him). I
did not see him in his original form except twice…’ ‘Aisha
(may Allah be pleased with her) then said to Masruq, ‘did not Allah
say in the Qur’an, ‘No vision can grasp Him; But His grasp is
over all vision; And He is Subtle, Well-Aware’…’ (p. 8.
Sahih Muslim bi Sharh al-Imam al-Nawawi.
(Book
of Iman; Chapter, the proving of the vision of Allah). Vol II; Part
I. Dar al-Fikr; Beirut. n.d. on publication. See also p. 531, Zia
al-Nabi. Pir Muhammad Karam Shah al-Azhari. (vol. II; 4th ed.) Zia
al-Quran Publications, Lahore,1420 A.H.)
Opinion
Two:
‘The Prophet (peace
and blessings of Allah be upon him)
did see his Lord.’
• Imam
Ahmad narrates
from Ibn
‘Abbas (may
Allah be pleased with him), that the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allah be upon him) said, ‘I
saw my Lord, most Powerful and Grand.’
(Cited
in al-Isra wa al-Miraj, Dr. ‘Abd al-Halim Mahmud. (p. 49) Dar
al-Ma’arif, Cairo, Egypt. 9th edition, n.d. on publication.)
This
Hadith is in essence sufficient on the issue; the Prophet (peace
and blessings of Allah be upon him) himself clearly stated here
that he did see his Lord.
• Ibn
‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) is considered the
most authoritative Companion on the commentary of the
Qur’an. Regarding the verse The
Prophet’s eye did not wander, nor it trespassed the limit of
respect. Certainly he saw the great signs of his Lord from Surah
Najam,
Ibn
‘Abbas said, ‘The
Prophet saw Allah with his
heart twice.’
(Cited
in Zia al-Nabi. Pir Muhammad Karam Shah al-Azhari. (p. 532) (vol. II;
4th ed.) Zia al-Quran Publications, Lahore,1420 A.H.)
Al-Tabrani writes
in al-Awsat with
an authentic chain from Ibn
‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with
him) that ‘verily Muhammad saw
his Lord twice; once with
his eyes and once
with his heart.’
(Cited
in al-Isra wa al-Miraj, Dr. ‘Abd al-Halim Mahmud. (p. 48) Dar
al-Ma’arif, Cairo, Egypt. 9th edition, n.d. on publication. See
also, p. 362, al-Sharh al-Qawim fi Hill Alfaz al-Sirat al-Mustaqim.
‘Abd Allah al-Harawi. Dar al-Masami’; Beirut, Lebanon, 2004.)
•
Imam al-Nisa’i records a Hadith with a sound chain
from Ikrama that Ibn
‘Abbas said,
‘Are
you surprised that friendship was
granted to Ibrahim, direct
dialogue to
Musa and vision to
the Muhammad (peace
and blessings of Allah be upon him)?’
(Cited
in Zia al-Nabi. Pir Muhammad Karam Shah al-Azhari. (p. 533) (vol. II;
4th ed.) Zia al-Quran Publications, Lahore,1420 A.H.)
• Imam
‘Abd al-Razzaq narrated
from Ma’mar that Hasan
Basri would
take an oath upon insisting that the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allah be upon him) saw
his Lord.
(p.
534. Ibid.)
•
Ata’ believes
that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) saw
him with his heart. (p.
118. al-Shifa bi Ta’rif Huquq al-Mustafa. Allama Qadi Abu
al-Fadhal ‘Ayadh ibn Musa (d. 544 A.H. /1149 C.E.). Dar Ibn Hazm
Publications, Beirut, 2002)
• Ibn
Khuzaima narrates
with a strong chain ‘that
Muhammad (peace
and blessings of Allah be upon him) saw
his Lord.’
(Cited
in al-Sharh al-Qawim fi Hill Alfaz al-Sirat al-Mustaqim. (p. 362)
‘Abd Allah al-Harawi. Dar al-Masami’; Beirut, Lebanon, 2004)
• In
response to the saying of ‘Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her),
the scholars have offered numerous answers.
-Firstly, al-Maruzi once
asked Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal ‘the
people say that ‘Aisha said that whoever assumes Muhammad saw his
Lord has invented a lie against Allah. How
do you respond to this?’
He
replied, ‘I respond with the saying of the Prophet (peace
and blessings of Allah be upon him)
that ‘I saw my Lord’.
And the saying of the Prophet (peace
and blessings of Allah be upon him) is
stronger than her opinion.’
(p.
534-5. Zia al-Nabi. Pir Muhammad Karam Shah al-Azhari. (p. 532) (vol.
II; 4th ed.) Zia al-Quran Publications, Lahore,1420 A.H.)
On
another occasion, Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal was asked if
the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) saw his
Lord. He said, ‘he saw him, he
saw him’ until he became breathless. (p. 537 Ibid.)
The
verse ‘No vision can grasp Him; But His
grasp is over all vision; And He is Subtle, Well-Aware’…’
seemingly suggests that no one can see Allah.
However,
Qadi ‘Ayadh writes that it in theory, it must be
possible to see Allah. This is
because Musa asked Allah to honour him with His vision (Araf:
143). And prophets do not ask Allah for matters that are
impossible. (p. 119. al-Shifa bi Ta’rif Huquq al-Mustafa.
Allama Qadi Abu al-Fadhal ‘Ayadh ibn Musa (d. 544 A.H. /1149 C.E.).
Dar Ibn Hazm Publications, Beirut, 2002. See also, p. 4. Sahih Muslim
bi Sharh al-Imam al-Nawawi. Vol II; Part I. Dar al-Fikr; Beirut. n.d.
on publication).
-Secondly, Ibn
Hajr answers the claim
that ‘Aisha (may
Allah be pleased with her) asked the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allah be upon him) about the meaning of the verse, upon which he
asserted that he saw Jibrael. He
writes that ‘Aisha asked about the
verse ‘And
surely he saw him on the bright
horizon’. This
verse is undoubtedly referring to the Prophet’s (peace and
blessings of Allah be upon him) vision
of Jibrael. This is because
this actual verse is from Surah Takvir, which does refer to Jibrael.
Allah
says in the Qur’an,
‘This
[Qur’an] is the word (brought) by an honoured Messenger- who is
powerful and dignified with the Lord of the Mighty Throne- There he
is the obeyed one (of the angels) and trustworthy. And this companion
of yours is not mad. And surely he saw the messenger on the bright
horizon.’ (Takvir 19-23)
This
refers to when the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon
him) saw Jibrael in his original form, with six-hundred wings on
the bright horizon.
But
the verse in Surah Najam refers to the highest
horizon, which is beyond the Sidra al-Muntaha.
‘Aisha(ra) asked
the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allah be upon him) about Surah Takvir, but
that does not refer to the Isra. It
is Surah Najam that
refers to the Isra.
Ibn
‘Abbas (May Allah be pleased with him) narrates that
the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allah be upon him) said.
I
saw my Lord in the most beautiful form [in a dream]. He
asked me, ‘O Muhammad! Do you know what the exalted angels argue
over?’ I replied ‘I do not know’. Hence He placed his hand
between my shoulders and I felt coolness in my chest. Hence [as
a result] everything became apparent to me
and I knew everything…”
[Imam
Tirmidhi in Sunan al-Tirmidhi. Hadīth no. 3158. Chapter; the Tafseer
of the Qur’ān. Book; from Surah Swadh].
Physical Me'raj
Sayyidah
Aishah (ra) saying that I didn't find him leave the house
all night during the Miyraj is not talking
about the Physical Me'raj -
it's about one of the 33 other Me'raj that
occurred in his(s) dreams.
In
fact, Rasul Allah (s) hadn't even
married her (ra) at the time of
the Physical Me'raj that's
mentioned in the Qur'an.
Imam
Abd al-Wahhab Sha'rani mentions one
physical and thirty
three spiritual in his 'al-Yawaqit wa'l Jawahir'.]
It
is very evident that the Beloved
Prophet Salla Allahu ta'ala
'alayhi wa 'aalihi wa Sallam experienced Me'raj on numerous
occasions. A few of these where spiritual whilst
only one was physical.
'In
other words it is proven that the Prophet Salla
Allahu 'alayhi wa Sallam had
Me'raj only once physically and numerous
times in a dream and that which took place in the dream, was
the inception and introduction of that which took place physically.'
It is thus proven that the Physical Me'raj
was only once.
Now,
that we have understood the above mentioned explanations, it is
thus clear that the Me'raj that Hadrat
Ameer Muawiyah and Sayyida
Aisha radi Allahu anhuma are referring to is
the spiritual Me'raj
which was in a dream.
Now
this is clear and can not be contested as this is the best of all
explanations and answers to these issues as there is no refuting of
any Hadith in it as well, just as it is evident in
the Hashia Khayali which is the footnotes of Sharah
Aqaaid, on page 406: 'And
it is best that they should be given this answer, that verily the
Prophet Salla Allahu 'alayhi wa Sallam went for Me'raj
twice, once with the body and soul and
once only with the soul.
The
narration of Sayyida Aisha is related to the second type of Me'raj,
in other words the one with only the soul.'
It
is on page 32 of Sharah Fiqh
Akbar as follows:
'It
can be said that the Me'raj occurred on numerous occasions. It
is for this reason that there is difference of opinion
relating to the details of
the Me'raj.
One
statement is that it was up to Jannat and
the other is that it was up to the Arsh and third
is that it was even beyond the Arsh and this will not mean
that because there are numerous narrations, then the issue
of Namaaz being Fard will
be Fard on every such occasion, as the Imam of
the Wahabis; Ibn
Qayyim tried to wrongly imply.
Now
once again, it is evident from all that has been mentioned
that the narrations: of Hadrat Ameer Muawiyah and Sayyida
Aisha refer to the 'Spiritual
Me'raj and not to the actual Physical
Me'raj.
The
Physical Me'raj can thus not be refuted as there is no room for
refutation, as this would lead to much objections and huge situations
which can never be resolved.
Both
the statements of Hadrat Ameer Muawiyah and Sayyida Aisha are correct
and Haq reality/truth] as they refer to the spiritual Me'raj and in
the said context it is totally correct, and neither of them rejects
the physical Me'raj.
It
must be also noted that Sayyida Aisha radi
Allahu anha mentioning that the Prophet Salla
Allahu 'alayhi wa Sallam did not leave her side during Me'raj
can never be referring to the Physical Me'raj as at that time Sayyida
Aisha' was not even born (and thus not yet in
the home of the Prophet Salla
Allahu 'alayhi wa Sallam.)
It
is in Sharah Fiqh Akbar as
follows:
'And
the proper explanation to this is that the Me'raj occurred in Makkah
Muazzamah during the early days after announcement of
Nabuwat [Prophethood] and Sayyida
Aisha radi Allahu anha was not even born at this time.'
Hadrat
Aisha radi Allahu anha says differently and
Hadrat Ibn Abbas radi Allahu anhu proves it and
both are supported by a group of Sahaba-e-Kiraam.
After
them the Tabi'een, then the Tab'be
Taabi'een have also remained in difference in certain issues
relating to the divine vision.
Some
have remained silent and have not said anything.
It
is the most famous and most accepted fact amongst the learned
scholars that the Prophet Salla
Allahu 'alayhi wa Sallam did
see his creator with the eyes of the head.
It
is recorded in Mualimut Tanzeel (pg
148):
Some
Ulama have said that the Beloved Messenger of Allah Salla Allahu
'alayhi wa Sallam saw Allah ta'ala with the eyes of the heart and now
with the eyes of the head, and it must be noted that this opinion is
contrary to the Hadith and the true Mazhab is this, that
he Salla Allahu 'alayhi wa Sallam saw his Creator with the eyes of
his head.' It has been thus
clarified that the Prophet Salla
Allahu 'alayhi wa Sallam saw
Almighty Allah with the eyes of his head and this the correct belief
and the acceptable belief.
-
Sayyidah
Aishah (ra) saying that I
didn't find him leave the house all night during the
Me’raj is not talking about
the Physical Me'raj - it's about one of
the 33 other Me'raj
that occurred in his(s) dreams.
In
fact, RasulAllah (s) hadn't even married her (ra) at the
time of the Physical Me'raj that's mentioned in the
Qur'an. [Imam Abd al-Wahhab Sha'rani mentions one
Physical and thirty three spiritual in
his 'al-Yawaqit wa'l Jawahir'.]
Imam
Ahmad Raza
(Alaihi
Rahmah)
QUESTION:
What
is the Ruling of the Ulama of Islam concerning the Divine Sight of
Almighty Allah?
Did
the Beloved Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, see
Almighty Allah with his naked eye on the night of Me’raaj?
Is
there any proof in the Hadith Sharif concerning this subject?
ANSWERS:
Imam
Ahmad ibn Hanbal in
his Musnad narrates
from Sayyidina Abdullah ibn
Abbas that the Beloved
Messenger, may Allah's peace
and blessings be upon him, said, “I
saw my Sublime Creator.”
Imam
Jalaluddin Suyuti in his Khasaais-e-Kubra and Allama
Abdur Rauf Munadi in his Tafseer Shar’ha Jameh
Sagheer state that this Hadith Sharif is authentic.
Imam
Muhaddith ibn Asakir narrates
from Sayyidina
Jabir bin Abdullah that
the Beloved
Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, states:
“Verily,
Almighty Allah blessed Sayyidina Musa with the privilege of dialogue
and cherished me with his Divine Vision and exalted me with the Crown
of Intercession and the Fountain of Kawthar.”
Imam
Asakir also
narrates from Sayyidina
Abdullah ibn Masud who
reported that the Beloved
Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, states:
“My
Glorious Lord said to me, ‘I gave My friendship to Sayyidina
Ibrahim and spoke to Sayyidina Musa, and O Muhammad! I blessed you
with My Meeting (where you saw My Divine Being without any
obstacles).”
Majma-ul-Bihaar explains
the word ‘ (Ka Fa Ha) ’
as Almighty Allah blessed His Beloved with such a Presence and Vision
that there were no veils as barriers and no intervention of an Angel.
Ibn
Marduwiyya narrates
from Sayyida
Asma bint Abu Bakr that:
the
Beloved Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, was
praising the excellence of Sidratul
Muntaha when
I enquired from him, “Ya
Rasulallah! What did you see at Sidratul Muntaha ?” He
replied, “There I saw the Divine Glory (i.e. of Almighty Allah ).”
Tirmidhi
Sharif narrates
from Sayyidina
Abdullah ibn Abbas states:
“We,
the Bani
Hashim (Ahle
Bait), say that undoubtedly, Sayyidina
Muhammad, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, saw
Almighty Allah twice.”
Ibn
Ishaq narrates from Sayyidina Abdullah ibn Abi
Salma that
Sayyidina
Abdullah ibn Umar enquired
of Sayyidina
Abdullah ibn Abbas to
find out whether the Beloved
Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, saw
Almighty Allah, and he replied, “Yes.”
The
words of Tabrani state:
Sayyidina
Abdullah ibn Abbas said that the Beloved Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, saw Almighty Allah.
Akrama, who
was his student, asked him:, “Did the Beloved Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, see
Almighty Allah ?” He replied, “Yes, Almighty Allah blessed
Sayyidina Musa with Dialogue, Sayyidina Ibrahim with Friendship and
Sayyidina Muhammad, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, with
His Divine Presence”. [Words of Tabrani] “And verily, Sayyidina
Muhammad, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, saw
Almighty Allah twice”.
Imam
Tirmidhi states that this Hadith Sharif is Hasan. Imam
Nisa’e, Imam ibn Hazeema and Hakim all record the following:
Are
you surprised of the Dialogue of Sayyidina Musa, Friendship of
Sayyidina Ibrahim and Divine Sight of Sayyidina Muhammad ?
Hakim
has said that this is a Sahih Hadith Sharif. Imam Qastalani and Imam
Zarqani both acknowledge the authenticity of this Hadith Sharif.
It
is narrated in Tabrani and Moh’jam Awsat:
Sayyidina
Abdullah ibn Abbas says that “Verily, Sayyidina Muhammad, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, saw his Lord twice,
once with his physical eye and once with the eye of his heart.”
Imam
Suyuti, Imam Qastalani, Allama
Shami and Allama Zarqaani all say that
there is no doubts in the authenticity of this Hadith Sharif.
Ibn
Hazeema and Imam Bazaz both narrate
from Sayyidina Anas ibn Malik:
“Verily,
Sayyidina Muhammad, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, saw
his Most Gracious Creator.”
Imam
Ahmad Qastalani and Imam Abdul Baqi Zarqani state
that the
authenticity of this Hadith Sharif is very strong.
Imam
Muhammad ibn Ishaq narrates this Hadith Sharif
from Sayyidina Abu Huraira:
Marwan
asked Sayyidina Abu Huraira if
the Beloved Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, saw
Almighty Allah and he replied, “Yes”.
Imam
Abdur Razzaq, the teacher of Imam
Bukhari, in his
famous Musannaf reports
from his teacher Imam
Mah’mar:
Imam
Mah’mar narrates
from Imam
Hasan Al-Basri who
swore an oath in the Name of Almighty Allah that the Beloved
Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, positively
saw his Creator (Almighty
Allah).
Similarly,
Imam ibn Hazeema narrates
from Sayyidina Urwa bin
Zubair, who is the cousin of
the Beloved Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, and
grandson of Sayyidina Abu
Bakr, that he
also accepts that the Beloved Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, saw Almighty
Allah on the night of Meraj and he
used to get very upset if anyone rejected this.
The
following Luminaries held similar views:
1.
Sayyidina Kaab Ahbar who was a great Aalim of the previous scriptures
2.
Imam ibn Sha’hab Zahri Qarshi
3.
Imam Mujahid Makh’zoomi Makki
4.
Imam Akrama bin Abdullah Madani Hashmi
5.
Imam Ata bin Rabah Qarshi Makki, teacher of Imam Abu Hanifa.
6.
Imam Muslim bin Sabeeh Abu’d-Duha etc. and all the students of
Aalim-ul-Quran Jabrul-Ummah Sayyidina Abdullah ibn Abbas confirm the
Divine Vision.
Imam
Ahmad Qastalani states in Mawahibul Ladunniya:
Imam
Khal’lal in Kitab-us-Sunnah narrates from Imam Ishaq bin
Marozi that Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal accepts this Tradition and confirms
this by saying that:
the
Beloved Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, said,
“I saw my Creator (Almighty Allah)." [briefly quoted]
Imam
Naqqash in his Tafseer narrates from Imam Sanadul Anam that:
He
said, “I accept the Hadith of ibn Abbas that the Beloved
Messenger, may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, saw
his Creator (Almighty Allah) with his eyes, he did see, he did see,
he did see”.
He
repeated this till his breath lasted.
Imam
ibn Khateb Misri states in Mawahib Sharif that:
Mah’mar
bin Rashid Basri bul-Hasan Ash’ari and other Ulema acknowledge
this, and this is the Madhab of the Ahle Sunnah, Imam Abul Hasan
Ash’ari And the majority of his followers.
Allama
Imam Sha’hab Khafaji in his Nasim-ur-Riyaad, the
commentary of Shifa Qazi Ayad, states that:
“The
most correct and pure Madhab is that the Beloved Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, on
the night of Me'raj saw Almighty Allah with his naked eyes as it is
the Madhab and Consensus of the illustrious Sahaba fraternity.”
Imam
Nawawi in Shar’ha Muslim Sharif and Allama Muhammad bin
Abdul Baqi in Shar’ha Mawahib states:
“It
is the consensus of the majority of Ulema that the Beloved
Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, saw
Almighty Allah with
his naked eyes on the night of Meraj.”
QUESTION:
What
is the ruling of the Noble Ulama regarding the Beloved Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, going up to the
Arsh in the night of Meraj?
Is
this an established fact because Zaid says that this is a lie. Is
Zaid’s statement correct or not?
ANSWER:
Indeed
the illustrious Ulema and distinguished Imams of Islam have in their
authentic books expressed great detail regarding this subject. All
these are based on the Ahadith Sharif.
Although
these Ahadith are forwarded () or problematic (), both are
unanimously agreed upon and accepted by the sector of Fada’il
(virtues) by the Muhadditheen. The narrators and presenters are all
trustworthy. It depends solely on the authenticity of solid proof.
Hence, confirmation deplores contradiction.
Imam-e-Ajal
Sayyidi Muhammad Busairi, in his renowned Qasida
Burdah Sharif states:
“the
Beloved Messenger, in the short space of time, travelled from
Masjid-e-Haram to Masjid-e-Aqsa. This sacred journey was bright like
the brilliance of the full moon.
The
Beloved, may Allah's peace and blessings be upon
him, travelled in the night of Meraj until he reached the
station of Qaba Qosain. No creation could reach this height nor
possessed the courage to do so.
The
noble status of the Nabi, may Allah's peace and blessings be
upon him, left everything below him when he proceeded
towards the Divine Height of the Unique Lord (Almighty Allah) on the
Night of Ascension.
The
Beloved enjoyed such excellence that no one can share. He passed such
place where no creation set foot.”
Rasulallah, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, was blessed with
exclusive gifts & secrets and passed all the
heights
without any hindrance, Without doubt, this goes to say that the
Master, may Allah's peace and blessings be upon
him, travelled the secret and timeless regions alone to the
Divine Presence and met & saw Almighty Allah.
Mullah
Ali Qari in
his Shar’ha elaborates on Imam Busairi’s verses:
“the
Beloved Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, passed
all the Secret Curtains and reached the Divine Absolute Presence of
the Supreme Creator (Almighty Allah) as one reaches one’s goal
leaving everyone behind. There was no step of excellence in the
entire universe that the Master, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, did
not surpass. In fact, the Master, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, transcended
above the domain of space & time and entered the Station of
Qaba Qosain and O’adna. Then, Almighty Allah the Supreme spoke to
the Beloved what He had to Say.”
Likewise, Imam
Abu Abdullah Sharfuddin Muhammad states
in Ummul-Qurra:
“The
Master, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, advanced
till Qaba Qosain (Divine Presence) and this is indeed the ultimate.”
These
are the Secret Stations where desires and thoughts cannot contemplate
because there are no paths that lead to them.”
Thus,
Imam Ibn Hajr Makki comments in the Shar’ha of Umm-ul-Qura.
Some
state that there were ten Merajs on the night of Isra. There were
seven in the seven skies, the eighth [Sidratul Muntaha], the ninth in
the Divine Levels and the Tenth to the Arsh.
Sayyedi
Allama Arif-e-Billah Abdul
Ghani Nablusi reaffirms this
in Hadiqa-e- Nadiyyah
Shar’ha Tareeqa-e-Muhammadiya:
“There
were ten Merajs. The tenth was from the Arsh till the Divine
Presence.”
Imam
ibn Hajr Makki states in Shar’ha Hamziyya:
“When
Nabi Suleman was given the wind, it carried him the distance of one
month’s journey in one day. Our Master, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, was
given the Buraq which carried him from the earth to the Arsh in a
fleeting moment. The shortest portion of this journey (between earth
and the seven skies) takes seventeen thousand years. And Almighty
Allah only knows the distance above the Arsh to the Divine Levels
with the Raf Raf (a special creature which transported
Rasulallah, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, to
Almighty Allah).”
It
is also recorded in the same Shar’ha Hamziya:
“Nabi
Musa was blessed with Dialogue (Kalam). Similarly, our Master, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, was
blessed on the night of Isra with Divine Presence. He saw Almighty
Allah from a very close range with his naked eye. You cannot
compare the experiences of Mount Tuur with the experiences of
our Master, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, with Almighty
Allah.”
It
is further recorded in the same Kitab:
“the
Beloved Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, physically
proceeded to the skies on the night of Isra in wakefulness. From
there to the Sidratul Muntaha, to the Divine Levels, to the Arsh and
Raf Raf till he saw the Divine Vision.”
Allama
Ahmad bin Muhammad Sawi Maliki Khal’wati in a marginal
annotation of Umm-ul-Qura writes:
“The
Beloved Habib, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, undertook
the journey of Meraj in wakefulness with his body and soul. He
travelled from Masjid-e-Haram to Masjid-e-Aqsa. Then up to the skies,
then Sidratul Muntaha, to the Divine Levels, to the Arsh and Raf
Raf.”
Imam
Ash-Sheikh Sulayman Al-Jamal states in Futuhat-e-Ahmad
Shar’ha Hamziya:
“The
heights of the Beloved Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, in
the night of Isra was from Bait-ul-Muqaddas to the seven skies. And
from there to wherever Almighty Allah Willed. But, it is reckoned
that he did not go further than the Arsh.”
It
also recorded in the same Kitab:
“There
were ten Merajs on the night of Isra. Seven in the skies, eighth
Sidrat-ul-Muntaha, ninth Divine Levels and tenth, the Arsh. The
research scholars of Meraj say that he did not go further than the
Arsh.”
He
goes on further to say:
“When
the Beloved, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, passed
the seventh sky, the Sidratul Muntaha was raised in front of him. He
passed that and reached the Divine Levels. He was then placed in the
World of Noor (Divine Light). There he passed seventy thousand
Curtains of Light. The distance between each curtain is a distance of (500 Years) five hundred years. Then a green bedding was hung before him. The
Master, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, passed
this and reached the Arsh. He did not go further than this but
reached the station of Qaba-Qosain of his Lord.”
Sheikh
Suleman Al-Jamal gives
preference to the Master, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, not
going above
the Arsh while the words & views quoted of Imam ibn Hajr
Makki and others stress that the Master, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, proceeded
above the Arsh and La-Makaan (Super-Divine Region beyond Time and
Space).
La-Makaan is
indeed above the Arsh.
So, in
reality, there is no contradiction between these two views.
The
boundaries of space (Mayan) end at the Arsh and beyond this are the
region beyond time and space.
A
body needs space (Mayan) for it to be in, but the
Beloved, may Allah's peace and blessings be upon
him, proceeded with his Sacred Soul to the furthest regions
of the Arsh, his Sacred Soul went beyond all limited bounds to
experience the Divine Vision.
The
Creator Almighty Allah who took the Beloved, may Allah's
peace and blessings be upon him, there or the Beloved, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, who went there only
knows these limits. The words of Sayyidi Makashifeen Sheikh-e-Akbar
ibn Arabi points to this fact. Shortly, I will quote his words:
He
says that the Arsh was journey’s limit of the Beloved ’s sacred
feet. Therefore, the journey of the sacred feet ended on the
Arsh. Allah Almighty forbids! This termination does not mean that
there were any faults or mishaps in the sacred journey.
In
fact, the journey terminated because the sacred feet encompassed
every possibility, creation and space.
There
was no space (Makaan) for the Beloved’s, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, feet to reach above
the Arsh. But the journey of the Beloved’s, may Allah's
peace and blessings be upon him, sacred heart terminated
at Qaba-Qosain.
Is
there a doubt in one’s heart of what is beyond the Arsh that the
Beloved, may Allah's peace and blessings be upon
him, proceeded towards?
Then
listen to the words of Imam-e-Ajal
Arif-e-Billah Sayyidi Ali Wafa,
which is quoted by Imam Abdul
Wahab Sha’rani in his
masterpiece,
Al-You’
waqet wal Jawahir Fi Aqa’idil-Akabir:
“A
perfect Man is not he who circumfuses the Arsh and whatever it
encompasses, namely, the skies, Jannah and Jahanam. But, a perfect
Man is he, whose vision surpasses all these dimensions and sees &
appreciates the Glory of the Creator (Allah Almighty) of all these
dimensions.”
Imam
Ahmad Qastalani states in
Mawahibul Ladunniya and Man’hi-Muhammadiya, and Allama Muhammad
Zarqaani in his Shar’ha state:
“It
was the exclusivity of the Beloved Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, that
he saw Almighty Allah with
his physical eyes in wakefulness and this is the preferable Madhab.
Almighty Allah Spoke to His Beloved in those high Divine regions
which was above all
possibilities
and Imaginations.
Imam
ibn Asakir narrates from Sayyidina Anas ibn Malik that the Prophet of
Almighty Allah, may Allah's peace and blessings be upon
him, said, “On the night of Isra, my Lord drew me so close
to Him that we were two bows apart, in fact, even closer.”
It
is also stated in the same Kitabs:
“There
was a difference in opinion amongst the Ulema whether there was one
Meraj or two, one with the body and soul in wakefulness, and the
other in a dream or wakefulness from Masjid-e-Haram to Masjid-e-Aqsa.
Then, from Aqsa, in a dream till the Arsh. The truth is that there
was one Isra and an entire journey from Masjid-e-Haram to the Arsh
was physical and in wakefulness. This
is
the Madhab of the majority of Ulrma, Muhadditheen, Fuqaha and
Mutakallimeen.”
The
same Kitab further states:
“There
were ten Merajs and the tenth was till the Arsh.”
It
is also recorded in the same Kitab:
“It
is reported in Sahih Bukhari by Sayyidina Anas ibn Malik that the
Beloved Rasul of Almighty Allah, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, said,
“Jibra’il proceeded with me till the Sidratul Muntaha. Then, the
Divine Power of the Almighty Lord drew me to a distance of two bows
close to Him (Almighty Allah). In fact, even closer.”
This
closeness was above the Arsh as mentioned in the Hadith Sharif.
Allama
Sha’hab Khafaji in his Nasimur Riyad Shar’ha
Shifa Imam Qadi Ayad states:
“It
is reported in the Hadith of Meraj that when the Master, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, reached
Sidratul Muntaha then, Sayyidina Jibra’il presented the Raf Raf
which carried him to the Arsh.”
It
is noted in the same Kitab:
“The
units of Sahih Ahadith emphasize that the Master, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, visited
Jannah and the Arsh or the boundaries of that region beyond which
lies the extraterrestrial domain (La-Makaan). This all happened
physically and in wakefulness.”
Sayyedul
Mukashifeen Sheikh-e-Akbar Muhyuddin ibn Arabi, in the 216th
chapter of his famous Futuhat-e-Makkiya, states:
“The
Holy Quran was the beautiful character of the Beloved Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, and
the unique characteristics of the Divine Names of Almighty Allah was
found in him. In the Holy Quran, Almighty Allah announces through the
praise of His Attributive Qualities of His appearance on the Sacred
Arsh.
Similarly,
Almighty Allah the Supreme, blessed His Beloved, may Allah's
peace and blessings be upon him, with the reflection of His
Divine Appearance of the sacred Arsh and praised him. The Arsh is
that high station where the Isra of Rasuls end. This proves that the
Isra of the Beloved Messenger, may Allah's peace and
blessings be upon him, was physical because if it was a
dream then Almighty Allah would have not praised his appearance on
the Sacred Arsh.
Only
the unpleasant reject this reality.”
Imam
Allama Arif-e-Billah Abdul Wahab Sha'rani in his Al-Yuwaqet
wal Jawahir, quotes from Muhyuddin ibn Arabi that:
“Verily,
he (Muhyuddin ibn Arabi , may Allah be pleased with him) said that
this statement of praise of the exalted Habib, “And until that time
when I was elevated to the Divine Levels” reflects to the fact that
the termination of the physical feet’s journey was at the Sacred
Arsh.”
Sheikh-e-Muhaqqiq
Imam Abdul Haq Muhaddith Dehlvi states in
his Madarjun-Nubuwah:
the
Beloved Messenger, may Allah's peace and blessings be upon
him, said, “Then a green Raf Raf (Divine Carrier) was laid
for me. Its light was even greater than that of the sun. Its
brilliance brightened my vision. I was seated on it and taken into
the Heavens until I reached the Arsh of Almighty Allah.”
He
further states:
“It
is narrated that when the Beloved Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, reached
the Arsh, it respectfully touched his Sacred Garb.”
He
states in Ash’atul-Lam’aat Sharha Mishkat that:
“No
one else besides the Beloved Habeeb, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, reached
this Height in the Heavens. This was a timeless and spaceless
transcendental region.”
Meraj
surpassed the limits of human nature as Allah’s special Servant was
taken from Masjid-e-Haram
He
reached the Divine Zone that cannot be explained. This zone has no
place, description, name or direction.
Also
Sheikh-e-Muhaqqiq states in the
same Kitab, in the third section, under “Divine
Vision of Almighty Allah”, while
discussing the Hadith Sharif that:
“Indeed,
the Beloved Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, saw
his Sublime Creator twice. First at Sidratul Muntaha and then at the
Arsh.
It
is recorded in the fourth volume, number 283, in
the Maktubat of Hazrat Mujaddid Alf Sani
Sheikh Ahmad Sirhindi that:
“On
the night of Meraj, the Beloved Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, did
not leave the boundaries of time & space and surpassed the
restrictions of human nature.
He
saw the Secrets from Eternity till Eternity combined in a dot of
unity.”
He
further states at number 272 that:
“Sayyidina
Muhammad, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, is
the Most Beloved of Almighty Allah and the most
unique in creation. He was the only creation to be blessed with
physical Meraj. He travelled further than the Arsh, Kursi and
limitations of time & space.”
Imam
Ibnus Salah states in Ma’arifat-e-Anwa’e-Ilmul Hadith
that:
“The
Authors and Jurists say that the Beloved Habib, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, said
so and so (signs). Nobody understood the explanation of the Nabi.
Muhaddith Abu-Bakr
Al-Hafiz named this Hadith “Al-Mursal” in accordance to that
School which classify all the non-Muttasil Ahadith as Mursal.
It
recorded in Tal’weh, etc. that:
“If
the chain of narration have not been mentioned then it will be
regarded as Mursal.”
It
is stated In Musallamul-al-Thuboot that:
“The
Mursal Hadith will be regarded as authentic because it is the words
of the Beloved Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him.”
It
is states in Fawateh-ar-Rahmoot that:
“According
to the Principles of Hadith (Usool), all Mursal Hadith will be
classified as Sahih.”
It
further states:
“If
a Sahaba narrates a Mursal Hadith then it will be unanimously
accepted. If a non-Sahaba narrates it then it will also be considered
as accepted. Imam Abu Hanifa, Imam Malik and Imam Ahmad Ibn Hanbal
say that the Mursal
of a non-Sahaba will be unconditionally accepted if the Narrators are
indisputable.”
It
is recorded in Mirqat Shar’ha Mishkat that:
“There
is no harm to present a Mursal Hadith as proof because a
Hadith-e-Munqata’ah (Hadith with broken chain of narrators) is
accepted as useful in Fada’il (in praise of Luminaries).”
Imam
Qadi Ayad states in Shifa Sharif:
“the
Beloved Messenger, may
Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, informed
of the Shahada of Sayyidina Ali that his attacker is a Jahannami.
(This is an example of a Mursal Hadith).”
It
states in Nasim-ur-Riyad:
“It
is obvious that this information came through the Prophet of Almighty
Allah. All the Muhadditheen accept the above Hadith, besides Imam Ibn
Atheer, who says
that in Nihaya, that Sayyidina Ali said, “I am the distributor of
fire.” Imam Sha’hab Khafaji says that Ibn Atheer is correct in
his decision about what Sayyidina Ali said which is not used as an
opinion. Therefore, this Hadith will be classified as a Marfuh.
Imam
Ibnul Humaam states in Fathul-Qadeer:
“If
a Hadith does not have any narrators, its origin will not be
rejected.”
Q: "If Allah is not above then why did Prophet go up to meet his Lord?"
Question: We
Ahlus-Sunnah Wal Jama’ah negate (like the Salaf) negate direction
for Allah (SWT) but what is the answer to the following question put
forth by the Salafis that, “If
Allah is not above then why did Prophet go up to meet his Lord?”
Answer: This
is a nonsensical question. It is like asking, “why did Aļļaah
will for the Prophet to have his first revelation by Makkah, and not
in China?” You might ask them “why not?”
Aļļaah
had willed for the Prophet to see Aļļaah when the Prophet was in
the skies. That does not mean that it was a physical meeting. No,
Aļļaah is not in a place or direction, and the seeing of
Him is without Him being in a place or direction. This seeing could
occur anywhere, as Aļļaah is not in a place, but Aļļaah willed
for the Prophet to receive the ability to see Aļļaah while in the
Sky.
Question: Please
also provide an explaination to the negation of direction
for Allah from Quraan, Sunnah & Aqeedah Tahawiyyah. In the
past you have answered questions about alleged physical ascension and
descent of Allah if you can shed some light on the above question, I
would be grateful.
---
Shaykh
As-Sawi says the hadith on the
rise (al-Miraj) and declared disbeliever those
who attribute to Allah the place
---
In
his book "Hashiyyatou
s-tafsir al-Sawi ala Jalalayn," the
Shaykh As-Sawi said about the hadith of al-Isra wa-l Miraj:
"قوله"
قال
فرجعت الى ربي "اي
الى المكان الذي ناجيت فيه ربي و ليس
المراد ان الله في ذلك المكان و رجع له
فإن اعتقاد ذلك كفر"
Rough
translation:
"His
word (that is to say the Prophet)" قال
فرجعت الى ربي "(qala
farajatou ila Rabbi)
means the place where I received the revelation of my Lord. And it is
not that Allah is mentioned in there and he (the Prophet) would be
returned to Him. Of course, believing in it is disbelief”
-
The Shaykh Ahmad Ibn Muhammad As-Sawi al-Misri al-Maliki was born in
1175 and died in 1241 of the Hegira (rahimahoul-Lah), that is to say
there are about 200 years. His book "Hashiyyatou s-Sawi" is
a commentary on al-tafsir Jalalayn.
-
He says the word "فرجعت
الى ربي"
(ila Rabbi farajatou) does
not mean that the Prophet would have returned to a place to find God.
The Shaykh As-Sawi says clearly that those
who believe it is a disbeliever.
-
The meaning of the word "فرجعت
الى ربي"
(Rabbi farajatou ila)
is:
"I
went back to where my Lord had revealed to me."
---
more info:
Here
---
(Edited by ADHM)
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