'ilm al-yaqin

[abdarrashid]

Salam
I found these on the net:
http://www.sunniforum.com/forum/show...)-and-debating
http://www.ijma.org.uk/features/Ilm-al-Yaqin.html
http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=u...ed=0CFIQ6AEwBg

I have heard in the past, a student of knowledge mention that everybody apart from the elite are at the level of 'ilm al-yaqin with the acceptance of all the naqli and aqli proofs, is this correct?
What are the proofs both from from aql and naql?
I mean which books can a person read to find these proofs, from both aql and naql?

Also there is a famous anecdote, i mean, i dont know how true it is (the one i heard is a bit different to the one in the second link).
That near his wisal, Imam Fakhr al-Din al-Razi rahmatullah alayh was outdone by iblis in his 101 or 1001 arguments for the existence of the Creator Azza wa Jall. But at the time Imam Najm al-Din al-Kubra was making his wudhu, (which was hundreds of miles away, and whom Imam al-Razi had previously visited), he saw his situation and sprinkled water in his direction so as to bring him out of this state of mind and told him to say i just believe.
My question was: is this the way of the siddiqin radiullah ta'la anhum?
Sayyidinna Siddique al-Akbar radiullah ta'la anhu being the greatest, is this an indication that they believe without proof?

[abdarrashid]

Imam Abd al-Haqq Muhaddith al-Dehlewi rahmatullah alayh:

Can thoughts of hesitation exist where there is true love and surrender, or perfect faith? For those who truely believe it is sufficient only to hear; and belief follows. [a: Sayyidinna] Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, recieved his epithet, Siddiq, or Faithful witness of the Truth, the day he attested to the truth of the Prophet's [a: sallallahu alayhi wa alihi wa sahbihi wa baraka wa salam] M'iraj without the least hesitation; while a good many muslims had such doubts that a number of them apostated. Similarly, [a: Sayyidinna] Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, when he first accepted Islam did so without asking for any proofs or miracles. At that time the light of the Prophet's [a: sallallahu alayhi wa alihi wa sahbihi wa baraka wa salam] miracles and signs had already begun to shine, yet [a: Sayyidinna] Abu Bakr asked for nothing. Rather, he accepted Islam without a second thought.[1]

[a: Sayyidinna Abu Turab 'Ali ibn Abi Talib Asad Allah karamallah wajh ul karim radiullah ta'la anhu]:

Even if the veil was lifted, my certainty could not possibly increase over what it is at present.[2]

***
[1] p. 99, Perfection of Faith and its Commentary Fortification of Conviction, trans. Yusuf Talal ‘Ali-2000]
[2] p.112, ibid

[naqshbandijamaati]

I once read in a book on tassawuf a long time ago the following explanation of ilm al yaqin, haqq al haqin and ayn al yaqin:

ilm al yaqin: someone tells you about a fire in the forest.
haqq al yaqin: you see the fire in the forest.
ayn al yaqin: you are the fire in the forest.

wAllahu wa Rasuluhu Alam.

[abdarrashid]

Imam Abd al-Haqq Muhaddith al-Dehlewi rehmatullah alayh:

63. The Almighty substantiated the claims of His Prophets with manifest miracles and clear signs, each in itself a call to faith.

A claim, in order to be accepted, must be supported by proof. Likewise, a claimant must be able to present convincing evidence. The evidence used by the Prophets of Allah, upon whom be peace, in establishing the truth of their claims to be Prophets and the ambassadors of Allah to His creation was their performance of miracles (M'uijiza).

A M'ujiza is anything that does not allow duplication by others and occurs contrary to the ordinary course of affairs at the hands of one who claims to be a Prophet in apparent support of his claim.

The meaning of contrary to the ordinary course of affairs is that the All-Wise has assigned a cause for every action that takes place in this world. It is not the way of Allah to create an action without assigning to it some sort of apparent cause. This is what is meant by the ordinary course of affairs. Sometimes, however, through the exercise of His power, the Almighty "breaks through" the ordinary course of affairs by bringing about at the hands of His Prophets, upon whom be peace, actions and events that have no tangible causes, as evidence of their prophethood.

Miracles are the doing of Allah, not of His Prophets. This is because it is impossible for any man to cause anything to go contrary to the normal laws of nature appointed for it by Allah. Then the miracle is an indisputable proof of a Prophet's truthfulness.

As soon as a miracle is witnessed, one's heart accepts the truth of the Prophet's claim, and one's inner being is forced to acknowledge its truth. Thus, there can remain no possibility of denial.

When the claim is great, its proof must equally be as great. A miracle is a sign of the power and glory of Allah, and in front of its onslaught nothing can hold its ground.

On the other hand, the logical proof is nothing more than a few nots in a thread of reasoning. To defeat. an opponent, or at least silence him, with such equipment is extremely difficult; with the result that an argument might go on forever. Philosophy and scholastic theology are based on this kind of proof. Finally, whoever witnessed a miracle and afterwards remained an unbeliever, did so out of obstinacy and for no other reason. [1]

***
Mawlana Hujjat al-Islam Imam Abu Hamid al-Ghazzali rahmatullah alayh:



THE TRUE NATURE OF

PROPHECY AS A UNIVERSAL HUMAN NEED


Humankind was created originally with an empty and simple mind, unaware that God had other worlds known only to Him. No one knows the armies of the Lord, save He alone." Man comes to know the world only through his senses, formed to provide him with contact with the world and its different sorts of creatures.

The first sense is that of touch, by which one can feel, for example, hot and cold, wet and dry, smooth and rough, etc. But with this sense alone one could not experience colors or sounds, which do not exist so far as touch is concerned. Next is the sense of sight, which allows one to perceive colors and shapes. It is the most extensive of the sensible worlds. Then comes hearing, which allows one to hear sounds and melodies. Next comes the sense of taste.

At the age of seven years, one reaches the age of discernment and passes beyond the frontiers of the world of senses. One has reached a new stage where one can perceive new things unknown to the senses.
Then one proceeds to another stage, that of intelligence, at which one is able to appreciate what is necessary, what is possible, what is impossible, and things which he could not understand during the earlier stages.
After the stage of intelligence, there comes another realm, a new faculty, which permits him to see hidden things, future events, and many other things which are as unknown to the intellect as this realm is to childish discernment, and as childish understanding is, in turn, to the world of senses.

When confronted with things intelligible to the intellect, a person who has reached only the age of childish discernment will balk and call them improbable. In the same way, certain people who have remained at the stage of intellect have rejected as improbable what they have heard about prophecies. This attitude is pure ignorance, for not having reached the suprarational stage (which does not exist for them personally) these skeptics conclude that it does not exist for anyone. If someone had been born blind and never heard of colors or shapes, but then suddenly heard of them, he would not at all understand what they were and would not believe in them.

In order to make it possible to understand such difficult things, in the experience of sleep God has given His creatures an example of prophecy. A sleeper may have dreams of what will happen, sometimes clear in meaning, sometimes symbolic, which can be explained by interpretation. If someone had never had any personal experience of sleep and it was described to him -- some people become lethargic or unconscious, lose their sense of hearing and their sense of sight, and then see things which are hidden -- he would say that this was beyond belief and would justify his skepticism by saying, "We perceive things by means of the senses. If someone does not see certain things when he is awake, how will he see them when he is asleep. It is impossible." Yet we have experienced sleep and dreams, so we know that in fact this apparently logical argument by analogy is not valid.

In human life, the intelligence is only one stage in which a person gains a new faculty of perception which allows him to take in all kinds of rational knowledge and things unknown to the realm of the senses. It is similar with prophets, who have, as it were, an extra eye which can perceive things which are invisible and beyond rational understanding. Some people doubt the possibility of prophecy, or doubt its existence, or its realization in a given person. The fact that it exists answers the first doubt whether it is possible. Moreover, everyone knows that there are more things that can be understood by the intellect alone. This is the case in medicine and astronomy. One who studies either of these soon sees that he needs the help of inspiration and guidance from God the Almighty, and that he cannot gain this knowledge from his own experience! There are laws in astronomy that are verifiable only once every thousand years; how could one verify these personally? It is similar with the properties of medicines.
This shows that there are ways of knowing these phenomena in addition to perceiving them with one's own intellect, and that is precisely what prophecy is. But knowledge of things unknowable to the intellect is only one of the numerous aspects of prophecy, only one drop from its ocean. I mention this aspect because I was using the example of dreams, and I mentioned two analogous cases: medicine and astronomy, which enable us to accept the miracles of the prophets which are equally beyond the grasp of the intellect.

As for the other aspects of prophecy, these can be perceived only by suprarational experience had through following the mystic way. Knowledge beyond the grasp of the intellect could be explained to you only by using the example of sleep. How could one believe in other aspects of prophecy if one has no personal experience with which to compare them, for no one will assent to anything until one understands what it is.

In the case of prophecy, it is necessary to set out on the mystic Way, for one attains some first sense of its suprarational capability by exercising it; the result is based on the analogy with what has been attained in assent to things that are beyond logical argument. The fact of that unique unprovable quality of prophecy should make one believe in the principle of prophecy.

Should you doubt the divine inspiration of this or that particular prophet, the solution is to examine his powers, either from your personal experience, or from authentic tradition and hearsay. When you embark on a study of medicine or jurisprudence, for example, you have some idea of doctors and lawyers; you hear them speak, even if you do not know them personally. Nothing prevents you from knowing that al-Shâfi'i -- God be pleased with him -- was a jurist, or that Galen was a physician, and knowing this in actual fact, not because someone orders you to believe it. It is sufficient to study a little jurisprudence and medicine and to read the works of these two authors in order to know how they thought.
In the same way, if you have come to understand what prophecy is and if you often read the Qur'an and the tradition you will realize with great certainty that Muhammad -- peace be upon him -- reached the highest level of prophethood. You should also make things easier for yourself by adopting his suggestions for religious practices and the effect they have on the purification of hearts. How right he was to say, if a person acts according to what he knows, God will give him knowledge of things which he does not know; "A tyrant's servant will become his slave"; and "If a person devotes all his care to one thing (i.e. the fear of God), God will accept that as payment for (that is, save him from) all the cares of this world and the next." Test these sayings a thousand times, and another thousand times, and you will have acquired a certitude which leaves no room for any doubt.


It is in this way that we seek certainty about prophecy, not by the way of changing a stick into a serpent, or breaking the moon in half. Taken out of context, these could lead to magic, illusion or even a trap set by God, "For he leads astray those that He will, and guides those that He will."
Now one comes to the question of miracles. It may be that you believe in a miracle, basing your belief on a sound argument which proves its existence. It is also possible that your faith in it would be destroyed by another type of reasoning which emphasizes exterior features and the ambiguity of the phenomenon. The example of these unusual actions should be regarded as only one section of your overall reasoning. In this way you will acquire a knowledge that is certain, though you cannot explain its specific basis. This is like someone who acquires information from several different sources and is not able to say precisely which source made him certain. He is certain of the fact, without knowing the precise origin of his certainty; it forms part of a whole, but is not based on this or that statement. That is what we mean by solid and scientific belief. "Personal experience", however, is like "seeing" which consists of "taking by the hand"190 and can be found only in the mystic way. [2]

***

[1] p. 84-85, Perfection of Faith and its Commentary Fortification of Conviction, trans. Yusuf Talal ‘Ali-2000
[2] al-Munqidh min al-Dalal trans. Muhammad Abu laylah http://www.ghazali.org/books/md/IIA-02main.htm

***

questions:

So basically is there a difference of opinion with regard to what the two Imams have mentioned about miracles, and the approach needed to reach ilm al-yaqin?
Imam al-Ghazzali rahmatullah alayh is saying that one should have multiple references to attain ilm al-yaqin, all merging for the objective, is my reading correct?
Someone asked Shaykh Sayyid Abu al-Huda al-Yaqoubi hafidhullah, whether he could give Iman, and he said, no he could not.
and about yaqin he said it is your own.
How does one attain yaqin?
What are the resources and steps for this?

[abu Hasan]

wa billahi't tawfiq.

[abdarrashid]

Is the above definition by Imam Abd al-Haqq rahmatullah alayh, in general the understanding a of Muijiza, according to the aqida of ahl al sunna?

What does the Imam mean by” tangible causes”?

Does it mean there is absolutely no cause for the muijiza/karamat visible or invisible other then Allah Azza wa Jall ordering it to occur, i mean without any sabab/or just "breaks through" the ordinary course of affairs, in other ways aswell?

references would be appreciated.

[abdarrashid]

apologies look to the next post

[abdarrashid]

Mawlana Hujjat al-Islam, Imam Abu Hamid al-Ghazzali rahmatullah alayh:

As to dispelling doubts, revealing truths, knowing things as they really are, and comprehending the mysteries (asrar) which the words of this creed signify, there is no way to attain any of them except through self-mortification (mujahadah) and the subduing of passions, through seeking God wholeheartedly and persisting in thoughts which are free from the blemishes of disputation. They are a mercy from God which comes to those who expose themselves to its beneficence according to what God ordained to them and the extent to which they had exposed themselves to it as well as the capacity of their hearts and the degree of their purity. This is the sea the depth of which cannot be sounded and the waters of which can not be traversed. [1]



The first among the pillars of belief is the knowledge of the essence of God and that He is one and it involves ten principles.
The first principle is the knowledge of the existence of God. The first light which should be used for illumination and the first thing to be followed on the road of admonition are the instructions of the Qur'an, since no explanation is better than that of God. Thus He said,
　
"Have We not made the Earth a couch? And the Mountains its tent-stakes? We have created you of two sexes, and ordained you sleep for rest, the night as a mantle, and the day for gaining livelihood. We built above you seven solid heavens, and placed therin a burning lamp; 　and We sent down waters in abundance from the rain-clouds, that We might bring forth by it corn and herbs, and gardens thick with trees" Surah LXXVIII : 6-16.　

And again,　

"Assuredly in the creation of the Heaven and of the Earth; and in the alternation of night and day; and in the ships which pass through the sea with what is useful to man; and in the rain which God sendeth down from Heaven, giving life by it to the earth after its death, and by scattering over it all kinds of cattle; and in the change of the winds, and in the clouds that are made to do service between the Heaven and the Earth; - are signs for those who understand." Surah II 164.　

He also said, "

"See ye not how God hath created the seven heavens one over the other? 　And he hath placed therein the moon as a light, and hath placed there the sun as a torch; and God hath caused you to spring forth from the earth like a plant; hereafter He will turn you back into it again, and will bring you forth anew." Surah LXXI:14-17.　

And again, "

"What think ye? The germ of life-is it ye who created them? or we their creator? Is it we who have decreed that death should be among you; yet are we not thereby hindered from replacing you with others, your likes, or from producing you again in a form which ye know not. Ye have known the first creation: will ye not then reflect ? What think ye ? That which ye saw-. Is it ye who cause its upgrowth, or do we cause it to spring forth? If we pleased we could so make your harvest dry and brittle that ye would ever marvel (and say), ‘Truly we have been at cost, yet we are forbidden harvest.’ What think ye of the water ye drink? Is it ye who send it down from the clouds, or send we it down? Brackish could we make is, if we pleased : Will ye not then be thankful ? What think ye? The fire which ye obtain by friction-is it ye who rear its tree, or do we rear it? It is we who have made it a memorial and a benefit to the wayfarers of the deserts." Surah LVI:58-72.

Any one with the least traces of brain in his head will, upon reflecting upon the import of these verses and examining the wonders of God's handiwork, in Heaven and on earth as well as the beauties of nature in animal and plant, realizes that this wonderful [universe] with its consummate order requires a creator to direct it and a maker to govern it and watch it over. Human nature, in tact, testifies that it is subject to the will of God and governed in accordance with His law. For this reason God said, "

Is there any doubt concerning God, maker of the Heavens and of the Earth?" SurahXIV:11.　

The prophets were, therefore, sent in order to call men to monotheism, that they may say, "There is no god but God." They were not, however, commanded to say, We have a god and the world has another," because such a thing is inborn in their minds from the time of their birth. For this reason God said, "

"If thou ask them who hath created the heavens and the earth, they will certainly reply ‘God’."SurahXXXI:24.　

And again,

Set thou thy face then, as a true convert (hanif), towards the faith which God hath made, the native [religion] whereon God constituted man."SurahXXX:29.　

Therefore there is in human nature and the testimonies of the Qur'an what will render the task of citing proofs unnecessary. Nevertheless, by way of preparation and following the example of the learned theologians, we say:
　 　 　One of the accepted axioms of the mind is that an originated phenomenon can not come into existence without a cause. Since the world is an originated phenomenon, it can not, come into existence without a cause. That originated phenomena can not come into existence without a cause, is obvious. For every originated phenomenon belongs to a certain definite time the precedence or the subsequence of which may be assumed. Its being definite in time and distinct from what preceded it and what succeeded it, will naturally require one who renders things definite [in time]. As to one saying that the world is an originated phenomenon, its proof is found in the fact that bodies are not independent of motion and rest. Both states are originated phenomena; and whatever is not independent of originated things is itself originated. [2]

***
The tenth principle is that God sent [a:Sayyidinna] Muhammad [a: sallallahu alayhi wa alihi wa sahbihi wa baraka wa salam] as the last of the prophets [a:alayhim salawatu wa salam] and as an abrogator of all previous Laws before him; the laws of the Jews and the Christians and the Sabians; He [a:Subhanu wa ta’la] upheld him with unmistakable miracles and wonderful signs such as the splitting of the moon, the praise of the pebbles and causing the mute animal to speak, as well as water flowing from between his fingers and the unmistakable sign of the glorious Qur’an with which he challenged the Arabs SurahXVII:90. For the Arabs, in their struggle with the Prophet [a: sallallahu alayhi wa alihi wa sahbihi wa baraka wa salam], did everything to check mate himbut despite their distinguished ability and excellence in eloquence and rhetoric, they were not able to oppose him with anything like the Qur’an, because it was not within the power of human beings, [in their writings], to combine the succinctness of the phrases of the Qur’an and the smoothness of its style (notwithstanding the richness of the Qur’an in narrativesof early history and the fact that the Prophet himself was unlettered (ummi and unfamiliar with books) with the prediction of unknown future events the subsequent occurrence of which established the truthfulness of the Prophet [a: sallallahu alayhi wa alihi wa sahbihi wa baraka wa salam]. Examples of this are found in the words of God when He said, "

Ye shall surely enter the sacred Mosque, if God will, in full security, having your heads shaved and your hair cut;"SurahXLVIII:27

and again,

"Alif, Lam, Mam. The Greeks have been defeated in a land hard by; but after their defeat, they overthrow their foes in a few years." SurahXXX:1-3.

The reason why a miracle attests the truthfulness of apostles is because everything which human beings can not do must be the work of God. Whatever is linked by the Prophet with a challenge enjoys the same position as that to which God says You are right. This is like the case of the person who, standing before the king announces to the subjects that he is the king’s messenger, and in order to prove that he is right asks the king to stand upon his throne and sit down three times contrary to his usual practice. The king obliges and the subjects know, beyond the shadow of doubt, that the king’s action takes the place of his saying You are right. [3]

***
[1] The Kitab Qawa'id al-Aqa'id, Ihya’Ulum al-Din, trans. Nabih Amin Faris, reprinted 1999. http://www.ghazali.org/works/gz-faith.htm
[2] ibid
[3] ibid

[abdarrashid]

Sunset over the mountains of Makkah

[a:someone asked:] We are taught as muqallid 'ammi our obligation is taqlid. Why then, when it comes to the actual argument for taqlid itself, do we tend to follow proofs/evidences? Is this not a double-standard?

[a: the answer:]

In actual fact, it is a no and a yes to the statement that “the obligation of the ‘ammi is to do taqlid”.

Since it is a NO in matters of iman/faith: there is no obligation for taqlid, rather on the contrary, no one should trust (or ‘do taqlid blindly’ of) someone else even a specialist, if one has not achieved certainty/yaqin concerning God’s existence or of one of His attributes for example.

Whereas it is a YES in matters of furu‘/practice: it is only with regards to the immense details of the Law that it becomes a practical necessity to trust the judgement of ‘a large group of specialists from different times’ when one does not have certain knowledge of WHY [which amounts to knowledge of the ta‘arrud adilla for X and also the ‘illa behind X] one must act in a particular way in a given mas’ala X. So the ‘taqlid’ you have in mind is the taqlid in matters of ‘amal/fiqh.

The actual argument for the necessity of taqlid of such kind is itself empirically established and derives from a type of reasoning that every person of fitra could see (i.e., an argument from the laws of nature and the Sunnatullah; just as in the favourite illustration supplied by our jurists throughout the Middle Ages of its being akin to a relationship between a physician and a patient—where the muhaddith, for example, is merely the pharmacist in that association) without the need to seek recourse even to the most well known scriptural evidence for taqlid in the Qur’an.
In any case, the ‘ammi does not in fact need to know (or even ask to learn, and nor is it a part of Fard ‘Ayn to know) the scriptural arguments/proofs/evidences for the ‘need’ to do taqlid. He only needs to learn HOW [which includes knowledge of the rules (shart/rukn) and kayfiyya] to do the ‘amal, that is to say, follow (or ‘do taqlid’ with) someone else, the natural choice for whom is the teacher who taught him his Din (in the same way that someone learning arithmetic needs to learn the hows of it by following his teacher who taught him his M3).

The certain knowledge pertaining to the existence of our Creator (from the command: awwalu d-dIni ma‘rifatu Llahi!), which must not be through blind taqlid but originate instead from one’s own deep conviction, should in fact lead us to taste something of taqwa and help us not to waste time when it comes to doing our ‘amal, so that we adopt an attitude that can be described as: ‘it is the doing of it that is important, not the investigation (i.e., knowledge of the legal processes) of it.’ At the end of the day, as we and the other alien, the jinns, have only been created to do that one thing, what really matters therefore is that the ukhrawi accounts of our ‘amal will be dependent on how MANY brownie points we have acquired in this world, not how LONG it took us to understand them through knowledge of the proofs behind them. For those who understand, this is precisely the meaning of the saying of our own Mujtahid Imam: “laysa l-‘ilmu mA HafiZa al-‘ilmu mA nafa‘a” [Knowledge is what benefits, not what one has memorized].

That is why those who are unable to free themselves from drowning in the deep abyss of proofs, talk and investigation of the Ocean of ‘Amal have been described by our teachers as among those who are deluded and in the state of ghurur al-‘ilm to which every person who has laid a claim to knowledge, the ahl al-‘ilm and the ulema, is especially vulnerable in the Next World. Thus how true and how incalculably valuable are the reminders and how immense are the benefits we are now able to reap from this single but striking verse, composed by someone who followed the path of our Mujtahid, Imam Ibn Ruslan (may Allah be pleased with him and well pleased with the one he was following!):

fa-‘Alimun bi-‘ilmihi lam ya‘malan #
mu‘adhdhabun min qabli ‘ubbAdi l-wathan!
[Someone who knows but does not act on what he knows:
will be punished even before the idol worshipers!]

O Lord, we seek refuge from useless knowledge, and from knowledge that does not benefit the one who possesses it, and from knowledge that will become a Hujja against us in the Next World! [1]

***
[a: someone asked: "There is no taqleed in regards to aqidah"-What does this mean?

[a: the answer:]

إِذْ كُلُّ مَنْ قَلَّدَ فِي التَّوْحِيدِ إِيمَانُهُ لَمْ يِخْلُ مِنْ تَرْدِيدِ

- Because anyone who bases their faith on mere following, their faith is not bereft of doubt.

(Jawhrat Al Tawhid, Verse 11)

meaning: Anyone who basis faith on mere following (taqlid) is bound to have doubt. By mere following we mean "i know because my dad believes" although they do believe but not for the right reasons.

(Not bereft of doubt) meaning is not bereft of the possibilty of doubt.


Minimum proof : creation needs creator. They dont have to express the meaning.

The least level of faith is that which is based on mere following. Imam Sawi quotes ibn arabi that there are 5 levels of faith:

1. Lowest level - of Taqlid or mere following. Taqlid meaning you have no clue why you believe but none the less you do believe in these things firmly.

2. Faith based on some knowledge - knowng and beliving in what must be belived in and having some sort of basis to support it.

3. Having faith conjoined with being watchful of allah : to have living faith, having sense of Allahs watchfulness

4. Reality of faith: To behold Allah with ones heart

5. Realization of Allah: To be realize in ones beholding of Allah

The last3 are more spiritual which i cannot expound on.

He further warns abt mere following

-12) فَفِيهِ بَعْضُ الْقَومِ يَحْكيِ الْخُلْفَا وَبَعضُهمْ حَقَّقَ فِيهِ الْكَشْفَا

- Some theologians have even mentioned difference of opinion regarding their belief, while others confirmed and clarified this.

(Ibid)


-13) فقال إنْ يَجْزِمْ بِقَوْلِ الْغَيْرِ كَفَى وإلا لَمْ يَزَلْ فِي الضَّيْرِ

-Saying: if they are firm in their belief this is sufficient, otherwise they remain in harm.

(ibid)

Some theologians said you have to know why you believe. Relied upon position as stated by Imam Subki said that mere following is sound if based on firm conviction. The sign of firm conviction is if the one you follow leaves belief you still follow and are not effected by his decision.[2]

***
[a: someone asked:] As Sunni Muslims we adopt Taqlid in matters of Fiqh & Sharia by adhering to one of the four traditional schools. Would the same apply in matters of Aqidah - namely adopting Taqlid in it? Certain people hold it haram to adopt Taqlid in Aqidah matters due to the incumbency for every Muslim to know Allah Most High on an individual level. In summary they disparage the schools of Imam al-Ashari and Imam Maturidi because "they delved into the unclear verses" when Allah Most High forbid it (according to Surah al-Imran - "Only the disbelievers delve into the unclear verses")

[a: the answer:]

The question contains two different issues. The first is the claim of taqlid in belief, the second is the charge that the two Sunni Schools mentioned "delved into the unclear verses."

First, the claim of taqlid in belief. There is no taqlid in belief. An adult Muslim that enquires or learns about the tenets of belief is not committing taqlid in belief - which is not acceptable but rather [1] learning something basic which he or she did not know about the Divine Attributes but must believe and/or [2] formulating and clarifying what he or she already believes.

The end of Imam Abu Hanifa's foundational doctrinal text titled al-Fiqh al-Akbar (The Supreme Knowledge) states that when a person is boggled by something which they must resolve on pains of losing their faith, they must immediately ask a learned source to clarify it for them. An example: a person knows that Allah forgives all sins except shirk, and remembers that at one time in their life they committed that horrible sin, then starts wondering: "but can Allah forgive me then? Does He not say that He forgives all except that?" Such a person risks kufr by not immediately asking someone knowledgeable who will tell him that Yes, Allah forgives shirk for the repentant sinner and that the gates of repentance are open until the last moments of death. This is not taqlid but necessary `ilm and ta`lim.

As for the second question: The Sunni Schools of the Ash`aris and Maturidis addressed need. They did not "delve". That is an expression that connotes something superfluous, unnecessary, more dangerous than useful, and all the other trappings of heresy that characterized the way of philosophers and the non-Sunni sects that are keen to discuss whether Allah "can" put the universes inside an egg or how many angels can stand on the head of a needle. See, to this effect, the fatwas of the great Ash`ari Masters on the necessity of speaking out in matters of `Aqida in certain cases and the sin incurred by not doing so, such as al-Qushayri, Ibn `Asakir, al-Bayhaqi, al-Subki, and others which I have all quoted in full in the chapter on Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal in my forthcoming book The Four Imams -- Allah have mercy on them and continue to benefit us with them. [3]

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[1] On the Tafsil of Taqlid(s) Barring the Dalils, Shaykh Muhammad Afifi al-Akiti, http://www.livingislam.org/maa/ttbd_e.html
[2] edit mod [deobandi link]
[3] Following another in matters of faith (Taqlid in Aqidah), Shaykh Gibril F Haddad, http://spa.qibla.com/issue_view.asp?...D=3211&CATE=24

[abdarrashid]

The crescent moon of Shaban appeared over the plains of Arafah. Ramadan 1430AH.

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Imam Ahmad Taj al-Din ibn Ata 'illah al-Iskandari rahmatullah alayh:

The Muslim is unable to arrive at the knowledge of certitude (`ilm al-yaqin) nor at certitude itself (`ayn al-yaqin) of which the Qur'an speaks unless he evacuates his heart from whatever distracts it in the way of wordly cravings and center himself on inward contemplation. Then the outpourings of Divine reality will fill his heart, and from there will spring his sustenance. The real sufi is not the one who derives his sustenace from asking and begging people for alms. The only one who is sincere is he who rouses his heart and spirit to self-obliteration in Allah by obedience to Allah.[1]

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[1] http://sunnah.org/tasawwuf/scholr25.htm