OH Muslims! Beware of the SICKULARISTS, the MUTTERATES & the FOOLARISTS Within the Muslim Community Who Are IN SYNC With the Western World To WATER DOWN Islam to Meet the Standards Set By the West. They DO NOT Have the Wellbeing of the Muslim Community at Heart. They ONLY Want to Serve Their Non Muslim Masters for Their OWN Personal Benefits. Recognizing the ENEMY WITHIN is NOT Always an EASY Task. AB But There Is No Such Thing As Wahhabi http://ourdialogue.com/answers/articles.php?action=show&showarticle=1573 Question I am writing in regard to the movement known as Tabligh, which has been active in India over the years. They are also known as Wahhabis and sometime addressed as the number 24, although what this number signifies remains a mystery to me. They have their own mosques where they do not use microphones for prayer and they advocate many other things in the name of Islam. When I visited my home country recently, my father told me that they frequently visit him and that arguing with them is futile. He feels confused by some of the ideas they try to disseminate. May I say that in my parents home, we never visit any shrine, attend death anniversaries, etc., but we give Fatihah and Niyaz and celebrate the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him. When I told my family that I have stopped these practices as well, they started to call me Wahhabi and 24. Another hot issue is that they claim that saying Ya Rasoolullah is prohibited. May I request your explanation of all such matters & what is permissible and what is not? Answer I have never thought that the Tabligh and the Wahhabis movements could be ever confused or thought to form one group or movement. Their ideas and methods are wide apart. But perhaps this is part of the confusion that the readers father has felt. Tabligh is a movement dedicated to carry the message of Islam to the farthest corners of the world. Its members travel and speak to people about Islam. Many scholars have expressed disagreement with some of their methods, but they are certainly sincere people, who wish to serve Islam, even though they may be mistaken in some respects. There is no such thing as Wahhabis movement, or doctrine, or group. The name is derived from a great reformer, Muhammad ibn Abdul Wahhab, who lived in Arabia over 200 years ago. He was a scholar of clear knowledge and strong determination. He devoted the efforts to purging the faith of the people from all elements that are alien to the pure Islamic faith, as preached by the Prophet, peace be upon him, and practiced by his companions. He launched an unwavering attack on superstitions and erroneous beliefs that crept into peoples minds during a long period of ignorance that saw the majority of Muslim people illiterate. Because people initially resent being told that they have been following wrong ideas, they coin nicknames for those who tell them that. Hence the name Wahhabis came into being. Perhaps it is also the reason for the appellation 24, which I have never heard before. Let me say this to you: every thing advocated by Muhammad Ibn Abdul Wahhab aimed to get people to return to the Islamic faith in its purest form. This applies to the celebrations people do at so-called shrines, which are no more than the graves of men who are thought to be saints. The whole idea of sainthood is alien to Islamic teachings. It also applies to wearing charms, seeking mediation of dead people, celebrating various occasions, etc. The practice known in India [& Pakistan] as Fatihah is also an innovation that has no basis in Islam. I do not know what is meant by the expression Niyaz. I cannot pass an opinion on it. One thing that he emphasizes is that we must never address our appeals or prayer to anyone other than God Himself. That applies to the Prophet, peace be upon him, as well. On the Day of Judgement the Prophet, peace be upon him, will be granted a special favor of interceding on behalf of his followers, but that is only then. As for life in this world, he cannot be of benefit to us, other than for having taught us the right faith and shown us how to follow it. But he cannot mediate with God now on our behalf. Hence to appeal to him, as people do when they say, Ya Rasoolullah, is a form of polytheism, making him a partner with God. He made no claim to such partnership and he would be the first to reject it. It is only to God that we should appeal. The word Ya is a form of appeal or calling upon someone. Having said that, it remains for me to say that some of the things that the reader mentions as practiced by those people may not be right. Their refusal to use microphones is one such thing. A microphone and public address system is a machine, which may be used for the very good purpose of making the call to prayer. It is used in the Haram in Makkah and in the Prophets mosque in Madinah. The reader specifically asks about celebrating Shab-e-Bar'at, which I think is the middle night of the month of Shaban. If I am correct, then I tell him that there is nothing to suggest that the Prophet, peace be upon him, or his companions ever marked that night with any special action. Hence, to mark it or associate it with any great fortunes [or blessings] is an innovation. AB [EMAIL PROTECTED] First They Came for the EXTREMIST, FUNDAMENTALIST & MODERATE Muslims. And I DIDNT Speak Out Because I Wasn't An Extremist, Fundamentalist or a Moderate Muslim. Then FINALLY They Came for Me the NON-PRACTICING Muslim And NO Muslims Were Left to Speak Out for ME.
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