Monday, October 23, 2017

Islamic Scholar Javed Ahmad Ghamidi in Silicon Valley

Pakistan's pre-eminent Islamic scholar Javed Ahmad Ghamidi sahib recently visited San Francisco Bay Area as part of his tour of the United States in October, 2017. Viewpoint From Overseas host Ali Hasan Cemendtaur had a conversation with him at his hotel to ask some questions. Here are some of the key points that emerged from this interview:

Riaz Haq (R) with Ghamidi sahib (L)
1. Islamic state:

How can a state be Islamic state? The states we have today are nation-states that are defined by territorial boundaries, not by religion or color or ethnicity.  All of the inhabitants of a nation-state are its citizens with equal rights. Pakistan is a nation-state. Nation-states are governed by the majority of their citizens with their will expressed through a political and electoral process.

2. Ahmadiyya:

The state has no business deciding who is a Muslim and who is not.

3. Blasphemy:

There is nothing Islamic about blasphemy laws. You can not force people to respect your religion or your prophet at gun-point.

Viewpoint From Overseas Team with Ghamidi sahib

4. Weapons of Mass Destruction:

Weapons of mass destruction are immoral. Islam prohibits attacking non-combatants in war. Use of weapons that destroy civilians, schools and hospitals is a war crime.

5. Sectarianism:

Sectarianism is rooted in ignorance. Dividing people along sectarian lines is wrong.

6. Interfaith Marriages:

There are no restrictions on interfaith marriages as long both the man and the woman reject "shirk" (polytheism).

7. Istikhara:

Istikhara is merely a prayer to ask Allah for guidance in making important life decisions.

8. Hadith:

After the formal recorded interview concluded, I asked Ghamidi sahib about the authenticity of the Hadiths. He said Hadiths are a historical record, and like any history it is subject to constant investigation to establish its authenticity.

Summary:

Javed Ahmad Ghamidi sabib is among the most progressive scholars of Islam in the world today.

If religious reform ever comes to Pakistan, it’ll be because of people like Ghamidi sahib, not from “secular liberals” who attack Islam and Pakistan on a daily basis.

 I know from personal knowledge that Ghamidi sahib's message resonates with a lot of ordinary people in Pakistan who are tired of the violence committed by a small minority in the name of Islam.

Ghamidi sahib has a lot of following in Pakistan and it’s growing by the day through both mainstream and social media. His being away from Pakistan for most of the year to do his job does not seem to have hurt his efforts at bringing about reform.

Here's the recorded video interview:

https://youtu.be/2Nsiqtr4JVA




Related Links:

Haq's Musings

Malaysia's Ex-PM Mahathir Stirs up Hadith Controversy

Riaz Haq's Sermon on Interfaith Relations

Misaq e Madina Inspired Quaid e Azam's Vision of Pluralist Pakistan

Riaz Haq's Ramadan Sermon

Alam vs Hoodbhoy: Clash of Ideas in Islam

Talk4Pak Youtube Channel

Riaz Haq's Youtube Channel

25 comments:

Ahmad F. said...

Is Javed Ahmad Ghamidi phenomena a New Fitna?
December 30, 2015
By Mushtaq Ul Haq Ahmad Sikander

http://twocircles.net/2015dec30/1451454476.html

"Recently a book release function was held in Kashmir Valley in which a book Fikr e Ghamidi: Ek Tajziyati wa Tahkeeki Mutala (The Weltanschauung of Ghamidi: An Analytical and Researcher’s Reading) written by a Pakistani scholar Hafiz Zubair was released at a local college. The new edition of the book has been published by a local publisher with new additions and revision by the author. The scholars belonging to different schools of thought, organizations and shades of opinion were present on this occasion. It was a rare event, because most of those present declare each other deviant and prefer not to offer prayers behind or besides each other. But this gathering proved that only reactionary religiosity can bring them together because it was a joint concern as all the interpretations, monopolization over religious knowledge and sectarianism was being challenged, that certainly can lead to their sectarian shops being closed down and they becoming out of fashion. Otherwise no such joint consultation, unity or shared platform can be witnessed for issues of joint concern like ecology, sectarian strifes, domestic violence, terrorism, state sponsored terrorism and lack of democracy in the Muslim world."


Tashee Z. said...

OPINION
The Ghamidi crime

Try him first, hang him later
AJAZ UL HAQUE
Srinagar | Posted : May 7 2017 2:16AM | Updated: May 7 2017 12:14AM

http://m.greaterkashmir.com/news/opinion/the-ghamidi-crime/248591.html

I am not a Ghamidi follower as he doesn't ask me to follow him. He urges me to follow my own sense. And if that makes me his fan by default, so I am and so be it. I take it as an honour. Javed Ahmad Ghamdi (a public intellectual of Pakistan) is a line of distinction between sense and non-sense. Period.

I wrote it once and I am writing it once more. Ghamdi is guilty of an unpardonable crime. Orwell called it `thoughtcrime', which - by our glorious standards of mediocrity - is punishable by hanging. Long live mediocrity.

The space is too small to explain the Ghamdi phenomenon. I am one of those `misled' millions to whom Ghamdi is a hope. Hope that thinking is allowed, hope that life has a value and hope that silence of knowledge is still louder than the rants of ignorance.
His unorthodox views about some contentious issues regarding religion, history, ideology and politics have given birth to many ideas and rendered many more dead. He enlivens one set of thinking and invalidates the other. He is not a sensation, he is a sense. His appeal is not popular in the cheap sense of the word, but profoundly intellectual which to a slogan-crazy mob sounds dull and uninspiring. The beauty of his thought lies in the fine harmony he strikes between the tradition and fresh thinking.

The man does nothing. He just lifts the veil and lets you see for yourself. Ghamidi does to religion what Einstein did to physics and Descartes to philosophy. He problematises the very pattern of thinking thereby preparing a human mind to accept the risk of a creative thought. He is not a cult, he is a spirit. His philosophy is not identified with his person, but with any such person's mind who bothers to take a leap.


Mayraj said...

Check out Wahhabi view of him:

https://www.scribd.com/document/25710598/Exposing-the-Evil-of-Javed-Ahmed-Ghamidi


We should ALL refrain ourselves and instruct others to refrain from the writings,speeches and programs of Javed Ahmed Ghamdi who is the head of Al MawridInstitute Lahore, Renaissance, Understanding Islam, Islamic Issues ets.The gentleman and his affiliates are deviants to the extreme of rejecting the Nasoosof the Quran let alone the Hadith. He is a follower of Ghulam Ahmed Parvez who is awell known hadith rejector.Javed Ahmad Ghamidi, together with his disciples Khalid Zaheer, Moiz Amjad andothers is spreading ULTRA-MODERNIST & DANGEROUS ideas in Pakistan throughGeo TV and AAJ Tv etc.His disciple Khalid Zaheer depicts Ghamidi's Philosphy of Criticizing everythingexcept Quran.These people just reject Hadith for the sake of it without any reference. KhalidZaheer categorizes a Saheeh Hadeeth as daeef (weak) and says that its Sanad(chain of narration) is not valid! He has no concept of what Sanad Means and Ilm urRijal (to distinguish authentic from unauthentic hadith)They have also set up various 'institutes' to impart religious education to the masses.
Amongst the dangerous ideas that they believe in and promote are thefollowing:
1. Questioning the validity and authenticity of hadiths, in imitation of goldziher andschacht & other orientalists.2. Denying in the descent of Sayyidna 'Isa bin Maryam (alayhis salaam).3. Denying the trial of the Dajjal.5. Denying the concept of hijab in Islam.6. Music and Dancing of all sorts is permissibleApart from this these gentlemen also hold the view that there is no concept of wirtrprayers in Islam.
These people get their support from three four places:
1. The Civil Bureacracy in Pakistan fully supports Ghamidi2. Ghamidi is on the advisory panel of Qadiyanis led by IA Rehman, Asma Jahangir3. Military Support from the existing president, Ghamidi is an advisor to President of Pakistan on Islamic Issues4. The secular, apostate business class. ( I suggest that people take a look at theteam members of the Al Mawrid Institute, this who live in Pakistan will know how

Ahmad F. said...

That is a great list of topics. Please see my comments below.

1. Islamic state:

How can a state be Islamic state? The states we have today are nation-states that are defined by territorial boundaries, not by religion or color or ethnicity. All of the inhabitants of a nation-state are its citizens with equal rights. Pakistan is a nation-state. Nation-states are governed by the majority of its citizens with their will expressed through a political and electoral process. Ahmad: The official name of the country is the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, not just the Muslim Republic of Pakistan; it is not the Republic of Pakistan. It was created as a homeland for the Muslims of British India. So the religion of its inhabitants played a key role it in its creation. It could have become a secular republic but it chose to go down the road of religion. With every passing year, the role of religion in private, social and public life in Pakistan continues to rise. The Genie of Religion is out of the bottle. Putting it back in the bottle is no easy task.


2. Ahmadiyya:

The state has no business deciding who is a Muslim and who is not. Ahmad: But the state has decided, going back to 1974, if I am not mistaken. Did he share any ideas on how to get the state to repeal the law? I suspect any legislator who votes for repeal will be killed. More to the point, what is his scholarly opinion about a person who subscribes to the doctrines of Ghulam Ahmad? Is that person a Muslim?

3. Blasphemy:

There is nothing Islamic about blasphemy laws. You cannot force people to respect your religion or your prophet at gun-point. Ahmad: So why are so many prominent religious scholars in Pakistan solidly behind the blasphemy law? They have read the same scripture and traditions and arrived at a conclusion that is 180-degrees removed from his statement. More to the point, the people are the ones carrying out the enforcement of the law in the streets and villages of Pakistan. It has bred lawlessness, lynchings and burnings. It is a total meltdown of social mores.


4. Weapons of Mass Destruction:

Weapons of mass destruction are immoral. Islam prohibits the use of weapons to attack non-combatants in war. Use of weapons that destroy civilians, schools and hospitals is a war crime.

5. Sectarianism:

Sectarianism is rooted in ignorance. Dividing people along sectarian lines is wrong. Ahmad: I am not sure that is correct. There are very knowledgeable scholars of the scripture and traditions who support only their viewpoint and curse everyone else. They will not compromise, and even if they did, how do you get their adherents to become more tolerant of each other?

6. Interfaith Marriages:

There are no restrictions on interfaith marriages as long both the man and the woman reject "shirk" (polytheism). Ahmad: Can Muslims marry atheists who believe in no god at all? But they can’t marry Hindus? Clearly, both are happening in large numbers these days.

7. Istikhara:

Istikhara is merely a prayer to ask Allah for guidance in making important life decisions. Ahmad: Why did this issue come up? I could use some context here.

8. Hadith:

After the formal recorded interview concluded, I asked Ghamidi sahib about the authenticity of the Hadiths. He said Hadiths are a historical record, and like any history it is subject to constant investigation to establish its authenticity. Ahmad: But I thought the six authentic books of prophetic traditions had already been vetted beyond dispute. Did he think they also needed to be authenticated? And how does one go about authenticate information from 1400 years ago?

Riaz Haq said...

Ahmad: "That is a great list of topics. Please see my comments..."

If you watch the entire show you might get some of your answers.

It has taken decades for Pakistan to reach the current level of intolerance and radicalization. Any significant reversal will probably take as long or longer but it's good to see scholars like Ghamidi sahib challenge the status quo.

My own view of Ghamidi sahib is summed up well in a piece Tashee Z. shared earlier:

http://m.greaterkashmir.com/news/opinion/the-ghamidi-crime/248591.html

"I am not a Ghamidi follower as he doesn't ask me to follow him. He urges me to follow my own sense. And if that makes me his fan by default, so I am and so be it. I take it as an honour. Javed Ahmad Ghamdi (a public intellectual of Pakistan) is a line of distinction between sense and non-sense. Period."

Hope many others will reach the same conclusion in due time.

Riaz Haq said...

Here's an excerpt of a piece " Fundamentals of Ḥadīth Interpretation" by Amin Ahsan Islahi, the main teacher and mentor of Javed Ahmad Ghamidi:

Those seeking to ponder over aḥādīth have to remain on guard. The condition of alertness and vigilance in studying aḥādīth is as important for the student of the prophetic knowledge as in any other discipline. Our great scholars and muḥaddithūn have, using their abilities, with utmost perfection and quality, accomplished the task of ḥadīth investigation. They have compiled the ḥadīth works and established the discipline of ḥadīth criticism. The scholars in the present day can improve this discipline in the light of the principles set by the muḥaddithūn. They can add to them some other natural principles. The only obligation on the scholars, however, is that they should not think that the process of ḥadīth criticism and analysis has been perfected and accomplished fully by these great pioneers and that we have only to study the content of aḥādīth. The scholars should, on the contrary, target improving on the accomplishment of these great scholars of the past.


http://www.javedahmadghamidi.com/books/view/primary-sources-of-hadiith-study

Riaz Haq said...

ISIS and Al Qaeda and other extremist groups are known to use Hadiths to justify violence. It's alarmed the Saudis and the Turks and others to more closely scrutinize Hadiths.

Malaysia's Ex PM Mahathir has been stirring up a debate on the subject:

http://www.riazhaq.com/2015/05/malaysias-ex-pm-mahathir-stirs-up.html

#SaudiArabia to ‘vet and verify’ authenticity of #hadiths to counter #extremism in #Islam

https://tribune.com.pk/story/1534811/saudi-arabia-vet-verify-authenticity-hadiths-counter-extremism/

Saudi Arabia is to monitor interpretations of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) teachings to prevent them being used to justify violence or terrorism, the Culture and Information Ministry has said.

In a decree, King Salman bin Abdulaziz al Saud ordered the establishment of an authority to scrutinise uses of the hadith – accounts of the sayings, actions or habits of the Prophet (PBUH) that are used by preachers and jurists to support teachings and edicts on all aspects of life.

The ministry said late on Tuesday that the body’s aim would be to “eliminate fake and extremist texts and any texts that contradict the teachings of Islam and justify the committing of crimes, murders and terrorist acts”.

The body will be based in Madina and overseen by a council of senior Islamic scholars from around the world, according to the decree. The ministry offered no specific details of how it would work in practice.

Terrorist groups such as Islamic State and al Qaeda have used their own interpretations of hadiths – numbered in the thousands and pored over by scholars for centuries – to justify violence and to urge supporters to carry out attacks.

Senior clergy have denounced militant doctrines such as those of al Qaeda or Da’ish, while the government, which vets clerics in Saudi Arabia’s 70,000 mosques, has sacked many for encouraging violence or sedition.

Turkey’s Hadith Project: Diyanet Presents Prophet’s Sayings For The 21st Century

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/22/turkey-hadith-project-diyanet-presents-prophets-sayings-for-the-21st-century_n_3319657.html

By Tom Heneghan, Religion Editor

ANKARA, May 22 (Reuters) - Scholars around the Muslim world were alarmed five years ago by news reports that Turkey planned a new, possibly heretical compilation of the Prophet Mohammad’s sayings that might scrap those it thought were out of date.

Turkish religious leaders and theologians received anxious calls asking about Western media reports they would edit a “radical” new set of hadiths, scriptures that are second only to the Koran in Islam.

“Will you write a new Koran next?” one irate Arab scholar asked a baffled Turkish academic.

The new work, finally ready after six years in the making, is nothing like the 95 Theses in which Martin Luther condemned practices in the Roman Catholic Church and launched the Protestant Reformation.

Instead, its 100 authors have selected a few hundred of the about 17,000 reported quotes from Mohammad to examine Islamic views on God, faith and life in terms that the average modern Turk can understand.

“We don’t live in the 20th century anymore,” said Mehmet Ozafsar, director of the project and vice-president of Ankara’s Religious Affairs Directorate, or Diyanet, a state agency.

“We needed a new work with Islamic beliefs in the perspective of today’s culture.”

Majumdar said...

Brof sb,

If religious reform ever comes to Pakistan

Why do you need religious reform in Pakistan. True Muslims believe Islam is perfect, where is the need to reform it?

Regards

Riaz Haq said...

Amin Ahsan Islahi on difference between Hadith and Sunnah:

Difference Between Hadith and Sunnah
Imam Amin Ahsan Islahi January 1 1998

Hadith and Sunnah are generally taken as synonymous terms. This is not a correct impression. The words Hadith and Sunnah have entirely different connotations, and each one holds a different status in the Shari`ah. If we assign the same meaning to both the terms, it would create a lot of complications. For a proper understanding of the science of Hadith, therefore, it is necessary to know precisely the difference between Hadith and Sunnah.

Hadith
Hadithimplies the narration of a saying, or of an act, or of an approval (Taswib) of the Prophet (sws), irrespective of whether the matter is authenticated or still disputed. The Muhaddithin (the scholars of Hadith) use the word Taqrir to express Taswib. It implies that while doing something in the presence of the Prophet (sws), a Muslim acted in a particular manner and the Prophet (sws) observed it and did not disapprove it. In this way, that person received the tacit approval of the Prophet (sws) regarding that particular action.

The Muhaddithin employ the term, Khabar for Hadith. A Khabar bears the possibility of being either right or wrong. In other words, the Muhaddithin believe that a Khabar may be authentic or it may be false. On this account, the A%hadith(plural of Hadith)are also termed as Zanni (presumptive or undefined). This means that a Hadith could be anything ranging fromSahihto Hasan, Da`i$f, Mawdu`, or Maqlub*

Therefore each one of these categories should be treated on its own merits.

Classification of Hadith or Khabar

The Muhaddithin divide Hadith or Khabar into two main classes:

1. Khabar-i-Tawatur (multiple evidence Hadith)

2. Khabar-i-Wahid (single evidence Hadith)

KHABAR-I-TAWATUR
Khatib Baghdadi, the author of "al-Kifayah fi`ilm al-Riwayah"** defines Khabar-i-Tawatur as follows:

It is that Khabar which is quoted by such a large number of persons that in normal circumstances it is impossible that on a manifest subject so many people would, at one and the same time, agree on a false matter, when there is no evidence of any pressure on them too.
To my knowledge, no Hadith exists which satisfies the definition of Khabar-i-Tawatur. Sometimes a Hadith is assigned the status of a Khabar-i-Mashhur***. However, on investigation, it is discovered that during a span of three periods only one or two narrators could be established, whereas their number was found to increase during the period of the third or fourth period. Likewise, in my opinion, such A^hadithas have been declared as Khabar-i-Mutawatir stand in need of investigation. If they come up to the prescribed standard, only then should they be accepted as Mutawatir. Without this investigation, it would not be correct to accept anything as Mutawatir. It must, however, be remembered that so far as the Sunnah is concerned, it does hold the status of Tawatur (continuity), as we shall explain further. And this Tawatur is not verbal, but practical.

KHABAR-I-WAHID
Khabar-i-Wahidis that Khabar which is not as authentic as Khabar-i-Tawatur. Even though the narrators in this case too be more than one, their number is not so large that one is able to assert that there is no possibility of doubt or falsehood in the Khabar. It is actually this category of Hadith which has contributed to the greater part of our treasure of Hadith.

http://www.javedahmadghamidi.com/renaissance/view/difference-between-hadith-and-sunnah

Riaz Haq said...

The Classification Of Hadith: According To The Number Of Reporters Involved In Each Stage Of The isnad

Mutawatir & Ahad

Depending on the number of the reporters of the hadith in each stage of the isnad, i.e. in each generation of reporters, it can be classified into the general categories of Mutawatir ("consecutive") or Ahad ("single") hadith. A Mutawatir hadith is one which is reported by such a large number of people that they cannot be expected to agree upon a lie, all of them together.29

Al-Ghazali (d. 505) stipulates that a Mutawatir narration be known by the sizeable number of its reporters equally in the beginning, in the middle and at the end.30 He is correct in this stipulation because some narrations or ideas, although known as Mutawatir among some people, whether Muslims or non-Muslims, originally have no tawatur. There is no precise definition for a "large number of reporters"; although the numbers four, five, seven, ten, twelve, forty and seventy, among others, have all been variously suggested as a minimum, the exact number is irrelevant (some reporters, e.g. Imams of Hadith, carry more weight anyway than others who are their contemporaries): the important condition is that the possibility of coincidence or "organised falsehood" be obviously negligible.31

Examples of Mutawatir practices are the five daily prayers, fasting, zakat, the Hajj and recitation of the Qur'an. Among the verbal Mutawatir ahadith, the following has been reported by at least sixty-two Companions from the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), and has been widely-known amongst the Muslims throughout the ages: "Whoever invents a lie and attributes it to me intentionally, let him prepare his seat in the Fire."

Ahadith related to the description of the Haud Kauthar (the Basin of Abundant Goodness) in the Hereafter, raising the hands at certain postures during prayer, rubbing wet hands on the leather socks during ablution, revelation of the Qur'an in seven modes, and the prohibition of every intoxicant are further examples of verbal Mutawatir ahadith.32

A hadith ahad or khabar wahid is one which is narrated by people whose number does not reach that of the Mutawatir case. Ahad is further classified into:

Gharib, `Aziz & Mash'hur

A hadith is termed Gharib ("scarce, strange") when only a single reporter is found relating it at some stage of the isnad. For example, the saying of the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace),

"Travel is a piece of punishment" is Gharib; the isnad of this hadith contains only one reporter in each stage: Malik --- Yahya b. Abi Salih --- Abu Hurairah --- the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). With regard to its isnad, this hadith is Sahih, although most Gharib ahadith are weak; Ahmad b. Hanbal said, "Do not write these Gharib ahadith because they are unacceptable, and most of them are weak."33

A type of hadith similar to Gharib is fard ("solitary"); it is known in three ways:

similar to Gharib, i.e., a single person is found reporting it from a well-known Imam;
the people of one locality only are known to narrate the hadith;
narrators from one locality report the hadith from narrators of another locality, such as the people of Makkah reporting from the people of Madinah.34
If at any stage in the isnad, only two reporters are found to narrate the hadith, it is termed `Aziz ("rare, strong"). For example, Anas reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said, "None of you (truly) believes until I become more beloved to him than his father, his son, and all the people."

http://www.islamic-awareness.org/Hadith/Ulum/asb3.html

Riaz Haq said...

Majumdar: "True Muslims believe Islam is perfect, where is the need to reform it?"

Islam doesn't need reform but its interpretation and practice does.

Riaz Haq said...

#SaudiArabia to turn to moderate #Islam, says Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman. #violentextremism

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5012533/Conservative-Saudi-Arabia-returning-moderate-Islam.html

Saudi Arabia will 'return to moderate Islam and destroy extremism', declares modernist Crown Prince as he tries to sever country's ties to terror
Mohammed bin Salman said that Saudi Arabia will 'end extremism very soon'
He said Saudi Arabia shouldn't spend decades dealing with 'destructive ideas'
The powerful Crown Prince has pushed reforms since his June 21 appointment
He's regarded as being the force behind lifting country's driving ban for women

Saudi Arabia's powerful Crown Prince on Tuesday vowed to restore 'moderate, open' Islam, breaking with ultra-conservative clerics in favour of an image catering to foreign investors and Saudi youth.
'We are returning to what we were before - a country of moderate Islam that is open to all religions and to the world,' Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said at an economic forum in Riyadh.
'We will not spend the next 30 years of our lives dealing with destructive ideas. We will destroy them today,' the 32-year-old, who was appointed Crown Prince in June, added. 'We will end extremism very soon.'
Saudi Arabia has recently started to loosen its ultra-conservative rules, including allowing women to drive and hosting a mixed-gender national day. But it has long been blamed for backing terror organisations around the world.


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5012533/Conservative-Saudi-Arabia-returning-moderate-Islam.html#ixzz4wTkeGXGN
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

Najam H. said...

The purpose of Jawed Ghamdi and his mentor Maulana Islahi has been to create doubts in the established teachings and sayings of Prophet SAWS,and present their own distorted (and likeable for secular/liberal people)who find Ahadees of Prophet SAWS as main hindrance to their ulterior motives.They want Islam of convenience to suit their thinking and lifestyle.Fortunately a fantastic work has been done by Muhaditthen by doing unbelievable hardwork for years and each and every act and sayings of Prophet SAWS has been preserved.Their is no confusion in the minds of followers and the utterance of Maulana Islahi and Mr Ghamdi have been totally rejected.Each and every aspect has been addressed.They confuse by giving long sermons and creating doubts that there have been fabricated Ahadees.Yes , there have been but questions is why.It is because Sir, the Ummat follows Ahadees and to put in own views fabrication was done.But the Muhadditthen have defined clear boundaries where it is very easy to identify False and Fabricated Ahadees from True ones.The system of tracking the text upto Prophet SAWS has been defined and only people wanting to denounce Islam can argue with it.Maulana Islahi when fell from grace went to lowest level and declared SahabasR/A as Ghundas (Nauzubillah) and a Sahabia R/A as professional running Brothel House(Nauzubillah)Only to declare Rajam (Stoning to death) of rapists.
This space doesn't permit to give complete details how Ghamdi has distorted the entire Islamic structure but those who are interested can refer to books of Salahuddin Yousaf, Deen Muhammad Qasmi and Rafiq Ahmed which are in simple Urdu language More detailed literature is also available
But for people whose hearts have been sealed by Allah, nothing works till one day they have to answer about all their acts.
Still there is time to repent

Riaz Haq said...

Najam: "The purpose of Jawed Ghamdi and his mentor Maulana Islahi has been to create doubts in the established teachings and sayings of Prophet SAWS,and present their own distorted (and likeable for secular/liberal people)who find Ahadees of Prophet SAWS as main hindrance to their ulterior motives."

Amin Ahsan Islahi studied at Deoband and taught at Madrasa Islah in Azamgarh. He was one of the founders of Jamaat e Islami along with Maulana Maududi but left due to differences with Maulana Maududi over participation in politics. Islahi has all the credentials of an Alim and wrote dozens of books many of which are still read by Jamaat and Madrassa students

Najam H. said...

That doesn't permit Maulana Islahi to change Shareat.Was he more learned and knowledgeable than Imam Bukhari/Imam Ibne Taimia/Imam Ibne Qayyam/Imam Abdulillah Bin Baz amongst 1000 others.

Riaz Haq said...

Najam: "That doesn't permit Maulana Islahi to change Shareat.Was he more learned and knowledgeable than Imam Bukhari/Imam Ibne Taimia/Imam Ibne Qayyam/Imam Abdulillah Bin Baz amongst 1000 others."

Islahi did not change Shariah. He did his job as an Alim and researcher to study, research and analyze the Hadith centuries after the people you mention to reach his conclusions and then explained the whole process very lucidly. Not all Ahadith included in Bukhari and Muslim are equally reliable. There's a big difference between hadith wahid and hadith mutawatir. Islahi explains it very well in his writings.

Khawar S. said...

And sirs how come some one from Bukhara, a non native Arabic speaker, after 200 years collect and verify all ahadees? And how come majority of ahadees are narrated by Abu Huraria who was a young lad during the Prophet's time? And how come tehre are so few ahadees narated from the people closest to the Prophet like Abu Bakr, Umar, Osman and Ali?

The best way to treat Ahadees is to take each one on its merit and remember that history can not be separated by choice.

Anonymous said...

Many Muslims and non-Muslims who study Islam are overwhelmed by the number of Ahadiths narrated by or attributed to Abu Hurayra. The corruption that entered traditional Islam came through many false hadiths. Thousands of these hadiths were narrated by Abu Hurayra. Next to QURAN, the word of God, Abu Hurayra is the second source for many religious matters for traditional Muslims.

Who is Abu Hurayra any way?

Islamic history books have enough about him to support the commandment in the Quran to accept no hadiths but the Quran. See Quran 7:185, 45:6, 77:50, 39:23, 50:45......etc.

Abu Hurayra, came from Yemen in the seventh year of Hijra and converted to Islam. He stayed in the company of the Prophet Muhammed less than two years

He narrated more than 5000 hadiths, about 5374 hadiths, from this two years company, (Compare this with the few hadiths narrated by Aisha, Abu Baker, or Omar after very long company of the prophet) .

" Taken from a book entitled Hadith Literature: It's Origin, Development, & Special Features by Muhammed Zubayr Siddiqui:

1. Abu Hurayra narrated 5374 hadiths

4. 'Aisha Umm al-Mu'minin, 2210 hadiths

10. Umar Ibn al-Khattab, 537 hadiths

11. Ali Ibn Abi Talib, 536 hadiths

31. Abu Bakr al-Siddiq, 142 hadiths

First number indicates rank among all of those who narrated hadiths,...second number indicates number of Ahadith given.

Compare the numbers of Hadiths given by Abu Baker by that of Abu Hurayra while keeping in mind that Abu Baker accompanied our beloved Prophet for about 23 years, while Abu Hurayra accompanied the Prophet for less than 2 years. 142 hadiths for 5374 hadiths.

Most of Abu Hurayra's narrated hadiths are called the "Aahad" hadiths, i.e. hadiths only witnessed by one person, this one person was Abu Hurayra himself. ( where is the rule of two witnesses for the truth, disregarded for the sake of Abu Hurayra).

Some of the Prophets companions (Sahaba) accused him of being a liar, telling lies about the prophet just to make up more hadiths and gain some status. Omar Ibn Al-Khattab, the second guided Khalifa threatened Abu Hurayra to send him to exile if he does not stop telling hadiths about Muhammed, he did stop until Omar's assassination then started again.

He kept telling hadiths to please the Khalifa of the Muslims then, all the time, including the time he lived in the royal palace of Muawaya in Syria. Abu Hurayra told his audience that he is telling them hadiths that if he ever mentioned when Omar was alive, he would be given several lashes.

Abu Jaafar Al Iskafy mentioned that the Khalifa, Muawaya, chose some of the people, including Abu Hurayra to tell fabricated stories and hadiths about Ali Ibn Abu Talib, the Prophet's cousin, to degrade him. Abu Hurayra lived in Mu'aawiyah's royal palace then and served him including serving his political views. He produced some of the hadiths that demean Ali, insult him and at least make him in a lower grade to Abu Baker, Omar and Othman, only for the pleasure of Mu'aawiyah. Abu Hurayra's stomach was more important than the trtuh, then.

During Mu'aawiyah's rule, many hadiths, with the help of Abu Hurayra were invented that support the view that the Imam or Khalifa, should be obeyed just like God or the messenger. Contradicting the rule of the Quran that all the matters should be democratic by consultation.(Do not forget that Abu Hurayra was living in the Khalifa's royal palace at the time.)

Many of the hadiths that were narrated by Abu Hurayra contradict other hadiths, including his own narrated hadiths and other people's hadiths and contradict the Quran and contradict common sense.

Abu Hurayra narrated hadiths after Kaab Al Ahbar, who was a Jewish convert who tried to explain the Quran by using the corrupted books of the Jews. He produced some of the most outrageous hadiths that is full of contradiction to the Quran, taken from false stories in the Torah.


http://submission.org/Abu_Hurayrah.html

Riaz Haq said...

Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman: "Do you mean the Prophet was not a Muslim?”

Mohammed bin Salman said: “Do not write that we are ‘reinterpreting’ Islam — we are ‘restoring’ Islam to its origins — and our biggest tools are the Prophet’s practices and [daily life in] Saudi Arabia before 1979.”

At the time of the Prophet Muhammad, he argued, there were musical theaters, there was mixing between men and women, there was respect for Christians and Jews in Arabia. “The first commercial judge in Medina was a woman!” So if the Prophet embraced all of this, Mohammed bin Salman asked, “Do you mean the Prophet was not a Muslim?”

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/23/opinion/saudi-prince-mbs-arab-spring.html

Riaz Haq said...

Javed Ahmad Ghamidi on #Ahmadis: We have to accept anyone who calls himself or herself #Muslim as Muslim. Allah does not give us the right or the authority to declare him or her #kafir. #Islam #Ahmadiyya https://youtu.be/kPNTdourHEw

Riaz Haq said...

Islam and the State: A Counter Narrative
by Javed Ahmad Ghamidi

http://www.al-mawrid.org/index.php/articles/view/islam-and-the-state-a-counter-narrative

The situation which has been created today for Islam and Muslims in the whole world by certain extremist organizations is an evil consequence of the ideology taught in our religious seminaries, and also propagated day and night by Islamic movements and religious political parties. The true understanding of Islam, in contrast to this, has been presented by this writer in his treatise Mizan.[1] This understanding actually constitutes a counter narrative. It has been repeatedly pointed out by this writer that when in a Muslim society anarchy is created on the basis of religion, the remedy to this situation is not advocacy of secularism. On the contrary, the solution lies in presenting a counter narrative to the existing narrative on religion. Its details can be looked up in the aforementioned treatise. However, the part of it which relates to Islam and the state is summarized below.

1. The message of Islam is primarily addressed to an individual. It wants to rule the hearts and minds of people. The directives it has given to the society are also addressed to individuals who are fulfilling their responsibilities as the rulers of Muslims. Hence, it is baseless to think that a state also has a religion and there is a need to Islamize it through an Objectives Resolution and that it must be constitutionally bound to not make any law repugnant to the Qur'an and Sunnah. People who presented this view and were successful in having it implemented actually laid the foundations of a permanent division in the nation states of these times: it gave the message to the non-Muslims that they are in fact second rate citizens who at best occupy the status of a protected minority and that if they want to demand anything from the real owners of the state must do this in this capacity of theirs.

2. It can be the dream of every person that countries in which Muslims are in majority should unite under a single rule and we can also strive to achieve this goal but this is not a directive of the Islamic shari'ah which today Muslims are guilty of disregarding. Certainly not! Neither is khilafah a religious term nor its establishment at the global level a directive of Islam. After the first century hijrah, when celebrated jurists of the Muslims were among them, two separate Muslim kingdoms, the Abbasid kingdom in Baghdad and the Umayyad kingdom in Spain had been established and remained so for many centuries. However, none of these jurists regarded this state of affairs to be against the Islamic shari'ah. The reason is that there is not a single directive found on this issue in the Qur'an and the Hadith. On the contrary, what everyone, including this writer, does say is that if at any place a state is established, rebelling against it is a heinous crime. Such is the horrific nature of this crime that the Prophet (sws) is reported to have said that a person who does so dies the death of jahiliyyah.[2]

Unknown said...

Brother, you have just written what my heart is telling me. May Allah give Ghamidi sb reward for what he has done.

Riaz Haq said...

Acceptance of pluralism is part Islam:



“And insult not those whom they (disbelievers) worship besides Allah, lest they insult Allah wrongfully without knowledge. Thus We have made fair-seeming to each people its own doings; then to their Lord is their return and He shall then inform them of all that they used to do”

Al Quran al-An‘aam 6:108

------

"Lakum Deenukum Waliyadin" (To you your religion, to me mine)

Al Quran Al Kafirun 6:109

Riaz Haq said...

#Muslim Convert Prof Jeffrey Lang : 97% of the #Quran teaches #ethics, relationship between #God and humans, faith and reason. Only 3% emphasizes rules but we are obsessed with them but all sermons are about rules, not the essence of #Islam https://youtu.be/kvomfF0Pjn4 via
@YouTube

Riaz Haq said...

Saudi documenting Hadith to stop misuse by Islamic radicals, terrorists

https://www.awazthevoice.in/world-news/saudi-documenting-hadith-to-stop-misuse-by-islamic-radicals-terrorists-22442.html

The Hadith documentation project is ordered by Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman who believes that in the absence of this, the plethora of hadith in circulation are liable to be misused by terrorists and extremists.

The outcome of this project will have far-reaching implications in the Islamic world. It may be recalled that the death punishment for blasphemy prevalent in countries like Pakistan and radicals asking for beheading people for the same in India is justified by them on the basis of Hadith as Quran doesn’t ordain these harsh retributions.

A year ago in an interview with The Atlantic, an American magazine, MBS claimed that the misuse of hadith had become the key reason for division in the Muslim world into extremist and peaceful people.

“You have tens of thousands of Hadith. And, you know, the massive majority, are not proven and are being used by many people as the way to justify doing what they are doing. For example, Al-Qaeda followers, ISIS followers, they are using Hadith which are very weak, not proven to be true Hadith, to propagate their ideology.” The Crown Prince said.

Explaining it, he said: God and the Qur’an tell us to follow the Prophet’s teachings. At the Prophet's time, people were writing down the Qur’an, and also the Prophet's teachings. At this, the Prophet ordered that his teachings should not be written down to make sure that the main base of Islam remains the Holy Quran. So when we go to Prophet’s teaching, we have to be very careful.

MBS explained that the Hadith falls into three categories: The first one is called mutawatir. It means several people heard it from the Prophet, a few people heard from those few people, and a few people heard (it) from (those) few people. And that has been documented. Those are almost super strong, and we have to follow them.

According to MBS, there are around 100 Hadith in this category and these are the strongest.

In another interview with the Saudi television channel, MBS explained, “So, when we talk about a Mutawatir hadith, i.e., narrated and handed down from one group to another group to another starting with the Prophet, PBUH, these hadiths are very few in number, but they are strong in terms of veracity, and their interpretations vary based on the time and place they were revealed and how the hadith was understood at the time.”

He said, “The second category is what we call the individual Hadith. So, one person heard it from the Prophet and another person heard it from that person, all the way to the one who documented it. Or a few people heard it from the Prophet, a few people heard it from the Prophet, and one person heard it from those few people. So, if there is a one-person link in the lineage of the Hadith, we call it one-person hadith.”

“And this type of hadith, called ahad, is not as compelling as the mutawater hadiths; the ones narrated by a chain of groups, unless paired with clear Quranic stipulations and a clear mundane or worldly good to be had, especially if it’s a correct ahad hadith,” MBS explained.

The Crown Prince said this category needed a lot of sifting and research. ‘One should study whether it is true, whether it goes with the teachings of the Qur’an if it goes with the teachings of mutawatir, and if it goes with the interest of the people. And based on that, you use it or not.”

The third one was called Khabar. Someone heard it from the Prophet, etc, etc., and among the links are some that are unknown. Those are the tens of thousands of Hadith, and that you shouldn't use at all, except in one case: