A Summary of the Concepts of Ahl al-Sunnah
The Meaning of *Firqah* (Sect)
The term *firqah*
is synonymous with the term *ta'ifah* (group/faction),
which refers to a group united by a single ideology.
This is clarified by the statement of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) in the hadith of schism:
"The Jews split into seventy-one or seventy-two sects,
and the Christians split into seventy-one or seventy-two sects,
and my Ummah will split into seventy-three sects."
Narrated by Abu Dawud, al-Tirmidhi, and Ahmad,
all from the hadith of Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him).
And in the narration of 'Awf ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) of the hadith,
he added at the end of it:
"One will be in Paradise,
and seventy-two will be in the Fire."
It was said, "O Messenger of Allah, who are they?"
He said, "The *Jama'ah* (main body)."
Narrated by Ibn Majah and authenticated by al-Albani.
So this single saved sect
is the sect and faction of Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jama'ah,
who have remained upon what the Messenger (peace be upon him)
and his Companions adhered to in belief and action.
Anyone besides them belongs to the misguided sects,
being among the people of desires and innovations.
Their innovation may be an act of major disbelief that expels them from the fold of Islam,
such as the innovations of the Batinites and the extremist polytheistic Sufis.
And it may not amount to disbelief,
such that its adherents are merely
outside the fold of Ahl al-Sunnah,
yet remaining within the fold of the religion and the people of the Qiblah.
They are the followers of the Book and the Sunnah,
according to the understanding of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them).
They do not give precedence over that to intellect or analogical reasoning,
nor to subjective spiritual tastes or political expediency.
They act upon the entire Book,
not setting one part of it against another.
They refer its ambiguous verses back to the decisive ones,
and they do not suspend an overarching decisive principle
on account of a subsidiary matter or an isolated incident.
They venerate the texts of the two revelations and submit completely to them,
just as Allah Almighty said:
"And those firm in knowledge say, 'We believe in it; all [of it] is from our Lord.'"
“He it is Who hath revealed unto thee (Muhammad) the Scripture wherein are clear revelations - they are the substance of the Book - and others (which are) allegorical. But those in whose hearts is doubt pursue, forsooth, that which is allegorical seeking (to cause) dissension by seeking to explain it. None knoweth its explanation save Allah. And those who are of sound instruction say: We believe therein; the whole is from our Lord; but only men of understanding really heed.” (3:7)
"And none will be reminded except those of understanding."
The Designation of *Hashwiyyah*
It is a derogatory label used by some people of innovation and scholastic theologians,
such as the Mu'tazilites and the Ash'arites,
against Ahl al-Sunnah.
They intend by it that the discourse of Ahl al-Sunnah is mere superfluous, useless padding, according to their claim.
The Ash'arites
They are those who ascribe themselves to Abu al-Hasan al-Ash'ari,
who died in the year 324 AH.
He was originally a Mu'tazilite,
then he first recanted Mu'tazilism for the doctrine of Ibn Kullab,
and subsequently recanted that to adopt the way of Ahl al-Sunnah,
as he made clear in his book
*Al-Ibanah 'an Usul al-Diyanah*.
In its early stages, the Ash'arite school diverged from Ahl al-Sunnah only in the chapter of Allah's Names and Attributes;
then their doctrines evolved until they diverged across numerous chapters of theology.
Below are their most significant divergences:
First:
They allegorically interpret Allah's attributes, except for seven which they affirm through rational deduction;
and regarding the rest of the attributes, they adopt two approaches:
allegorical interpretation (*ta'wil*) or consigning the meaning entirely to Allah (*tafwid*).
Second:
Although they affirm the attribute of speech for Allah Almighty among the seven attributes,
they mean by it an internal mental speech devoid of sound or letter.
Third:
They lean toward the doctrine of Irja' in matters of faith (*iman*).
Fourth:
They diverged regarding divine decree (*qadar*) and were influenced somewhat by the determinist (*Jabriyyah*) belief,
innovating the concept that deeds are created by Allah and merely "acquired" (*kasb*) by the servant.
Fifth:
They give precedence to reason over revelation in their methodology of deduction.
Sixth:
They reject solitary narrations (*ahad* hadiths) in matters of creed.
Seventh:
They deny divine wisdom, teleology, and causality in the acts and rulings of Allah Almighty,
and they declare anyone who attributes effects to causes or reasons to be a disbeliever.
Eighth:
Many of them adhere to certain Sufi orders in innovated acts of worship.
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah refuted them in his monumental book,
*Dar' Ta'arud al-'Aql wa al-Naql* (Averting the Conflict Between Reason and Revelation).
The early authority of the Ash'arites was Abu Bakr al-Baqillani,
their intermediate scholar was Fakhr al-Din al-Razi, and their later authority was Ibrahim al-Laqani,
the author of the book *Jawharat al-Tawhid*, which is taught and relied upon at Al-Azhar University.
Thus, due to these divergences from Ahl al-Sunnah in matters of creed, the Ash'arites are not from Ahl al-Sunnah,
except for those among them who did not adopt all or most of their foundational principles
and only diverged in one or two issues;
such a person may be said to be from Ahl al-Sunnah in general,
while acknowledging his separation from them in whatever he diverged.
Despite all this, the Ash'arites remain closer to Ahl al-Sunnah than the philosophers, the Batinites,
the Jahmites, the Mu'tazilites, and the Rafidites.
Yet their doctrine suffers from internal contradiction and inconsistency,
unlike the doctrine of Ahl al-Sunnah, which is definitive, consistent, and balanced,
owing to its adherence to infallible revelation.
It may also be said that the Ash'arites are of the Sunnis in contrast to the Shi'ah;
that is, they are not Rafidite Shi'ites.
The Kharijites are a sect that emerged during a time of discord among the Muslims;
they declared 'Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) a disbeliever for accepting arbitration,
and declared the Companions disbelievers, except for the two elders, Abu Bakr and 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with them).
Then, ultimately, they declared the general body of Muslims disbelievers on account of major sins,
which necessitated by their premise that no Muslim remained on earth except themselves.
Their false doctrine eventually led them to deem lawful the shedding of Muslim blood and the confiscation of their wealth.
Their historical progenitor was Dhu al-Khuwaysirah al-Tamimi,
who objected to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) regarding his division of the spoils of war
and said, "O Messenger of Allah, be just!"
Whereupon the Prophet (peace be upon him) replied, "Woe to you! Who would be just if I were not just?"
Then the Prophet (peace be upon him) said to 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), "Leave him,
for he will have companions whose prayer any of you would despise compared to their prayer, and his fasting compared to their fasting.
They will recite the Qur'an, but it will not pass beyond their collarbones;
they will pass through Islam just as an arrow passes completely through the game target."
Agreed upon.
The scholars differed as to whether they are deemed disbelievers,
and one of the scholars described them as a people who combined ignorance with harshness;
hence, they splintered among themselves and declared each other disbelievers.
A Note of Caution:
There are those today who deliberately confuse the Muslims,
labeling the mujahideen who fight against the invading occupiers of Muslim lands—
such as the Russians, the Zionists, and the Americans—as Kharijites.
They also label anyone who calls for jihad, loyalty and disavowal regarding the disbelievers, and enmity toward them,
as being from the Kharijites.
Furthermore, they apply this label to anyone who disavows the leaders of disbelief and tyrants (*tawaghit*)
who have legitimized what Allah forbade, rejected the law of Allah, allied with Allah's enemies, and opposed Allah's allies,
whereby the legitimacy of their rule has been utterly nullified,
and the label of Kharijite is invalidated for whoever disavows them.
Therefore, all these accusations leveled against callers and mujahideen
are sheer injustice against them and manifest slander.
The Murji'ites
They are a sect that arose and was considered a counter-reaction to the Kharijites and their stances.
Just as the Kharijites pursued a path of extreme excess in takfir,
the Murji'ites pursued a path of extreme negligence.
Thus, they countered the Kharijite doctrine of declaring people disbelievers for sins
with a doctrine of dilution in defining the meaning of faith (*iman*),
claiming that it is merely internal assent (*tasdiq*),
and they excluded righteous deeds from the reality of faith.
The Murji'ites were named as such
because of their postponement (*irja'*) of actions from the definition of faith.
The effects of Irja' have reached some who ascribe to the doctrine of the salaf (early generations) in our present day,
as they have restricted disbelief and apostasy strictly to deeming the forbidden lawful (*istihlal*) or denial (*jahd*),
not viewing actions indicative of refusal, arrogance,
mockery, and hatred of Allah and His law as acts of disbelief.
And the Murji'ites,
based upon their doctrine regarding faith and its definition,
do not acknowledge that faith increases with obedience and decreases with disobedience,
nor do they allow saying "I am a believer, if Allah wills" (*istithna'*).
They are of various categories:
among them are the extremists,
who claim that faith is merely knowledge (*ma'rifah*);
among them are those who restrict it to internal assent (*tasdiq*) alone;
among them are those who claim it is the assent of the heart and the verbal statement of the tongue only,
without admitting actions into it;
and among them are those who say,
"Whoever says 'There is no deity worthy of worship except Allah' is a believer,
regardless of whatever deeds he commits,
so long as he does not deem them lawful,"
despite the fact that deeming a sin lawful is a prerequisite for only some sins, not all of them,
in order to rule that the perpetrator has committed disbelief.
The trial of the Murji'ites has led to the dilution of religion,
the spread of corruption,
and the weakening of the obligation of enjoining good and forbidding evil,
as well as the duty of jihad in the path of Allah.
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
"Others among the Murji'ites and people of wickedness
may advocate abandoning enjoining good and forbidding evil,
presuming that to be a way of avoiding civil strife."
And among their gravest trials
is that they do not consider the apostasy of one who rejects the law of Allah
and aids the enemies of Allah against the Muslims.
Thus, the field was cleared for heretics and tyrants by these religious rulings from the leaders of the Murji'ites,
and they wreaked havoc on earth with corruption,
and disbelief was legitimized for the people under the pretext of public interest and other excuses;
yet they remained believers in the eyes of the Murji'ites,
simply because they say, "There is no deity worthy of worship except Allah."
How delighted the tyrants are with this doctrine!
For this reason, it was said that the Murji'ites follow the religion of kings.
The Murji'ite jurists (*Murji'at al-Fuqaha'*) are those who say that action is obligatory,
and that people vary in merit regarding it,
but they do not incorporate it into the defined essence and reality of faith.
This view is attributed to the school of Abu Hanifah (may Allah have mercy on him),
and it is the mildest form of Irja'.
The Mu'tazilites
The origin of the Mu'tazilites traces back to Wasil ibn 'Ata',
who differed with Imam al-Hasan al-Basri (may Allah have mercy on him) regarding the perpetrator of a major sin,
where al-Hasan said concerning him:
"He is a believer on account of his faith,
and a transgressor on account of his major sin,"
which is the doctrine of Ahl al-Sunnah.
But Wasil said,
"He is in an intermediate state between the two states:
neither a believer nor a disbeliever."
As a consequence of that,
Wasil ibn 'Ata'
and some who shared his view withdrew
from the study circle of al-Hasan al-Basri,
and so they were named the Mu'tazilites (the Withdrawers).
Later, their ideas evolved and branched out,
incorporating Jahmite views and adopting the doctrine of the Qadarites,
who deny divine decree (*qadar*)
as well as the precedence of Allah's knowledge of events prior to their occurrence.
Likewise, they deny that Allah creates evil or wills it,
failing to distinguish between the legislative will and the universal existential will.
Their innovation eventually settled upon five foundational principles:
First: "Divine Justice" (al-'Adl),
by which they mean denying Allah's predetermination and creation of human actions,
claiming instead that people create their own deeds.
Second:
"Divine Oneness" (al-Tawhid),
which in reality signifies their negation of Allah's attributes,
under the pretext of declaring Him, Exalted and Majestic, free from any resemblance to His creation.
Third:
"The Intermediate State" (al-Manzilah Bayn al-Manzilatayn),
which was the original heresy of the Mu'tazilah, as previously mentioned.
Fourth:
"The Promise and the Threat" (al-Wa'd wa-l-Wa'id),
which according to them means
that Allah, Glorified is He, is obligated to execute His threat,
just as He bound Himself to fulfill His promise.
Consequently, they consign the perpetrator of a major sin to eternal Hellfire,
just as the Kharijites maintain,
except that they place him in a less severe tier than that of the disbeliever.
Fifth:
"Enjoining Good and Forbidding Evil" (al-Amr bi-l-Ma'ruf wa-l-Nahy 'an al-Munkar),
whose true meaning according to them
is armed rebellion against tyrannical rulers
and splitting away from the collective body of Muslims who have gathered around them,
rebelling against the ruler as soon as he engages
in any form of sin or injustice whatsoever.
When the leading scholars of the salaf (early generations) confronted the Mu'tazilah
with the evidence of the Book and the Sunnah
that refuted their baseless fundamentals
and demolished their flimsy arguments,
they resorted to another innovation
that they turned into one of their foundational principles of deduction,
namely the innovation of prioritizing reason over revelation,
and allegorically interpreting the texts of the Book and the Sunnah
whenever they contradicted the dictates of their corrupt intellects.
Likewise, they rejected solitary hadiths (ahad)
that conflicted with their creedal fundamentals.
Today, the Mu'tazilah are echoed in their sanctification of reason
and its prioritization over sacred texts
by a fringe group of rootless agitators
who label themselves modernists,
or rationalists,
or enlightenment thinkers,
and who refer to the Mu'tazilah as an enlightened rationalist school.
By doing so, they have served secularists
in dismantling the creeds and rulings of the religion.
The Pure Determinists (al-Jabriyyah al-Khalisah)
are those who assert that man is entirely compelled in his actions,
so no blame attaches to him for what Allah has decreed upon him
in terms of sins and acts of disobedience.
Through this understanding,
they stand in direct opposition to the Qadariyyah, the deniers of divine decree.
This sect, with this specific creed,
has virtually become extinct.
The Jahmiyyah
are the followers of al-Jahm ibn Safwan,
who absolute-negated the names and attributes of Allah, Exalted and Majestic.
In this regard, they were even more extreme than the Mu'tazilah,
who affirm the names of Allah
while stripping them of their inherent attributes and meanings.
They were also influenced by the doctrine of the Sumaniyyah,
who maintained that faith consists solely of knowledge.
The Jahmiyyah sect, through its ideas
and false creeds, exercised a major influence
upon many of the innovative sects,
whether regarding the divine names and attributes
or concerning the definition and true nature of faith.
Among those influenced by them
were the Ash'aris and the Kullabis.
The Karramiyyah
are the followers of Ibn Karram,
and they are anthropomorphists regarding the divine names and attributes,
likening the Creator to the creation.
They adopted—or were forced by scholastic theologians to adopt—the assertion
that Allah is a body, though not like other bodies.
The salaf condemned these ambiguous terms
that can carry both truth and falsehood.
Furthermore, they claimed that faith
is merely verbal affirmation with the tongue.
The Shia Rafidites:
Shi'ism originated during the era of 'Ali, may Allah be pleased with him,
amid the civil discord between him and Mu'awiyah, may Allah be pleased with him.
Initially, it was restricted to loving 'Ali
and aligning oneself with his faction, party, and supporters,
without directing toward the caliphs before him
any censure, revilement, or disparagement,
until 'Abdullah ibn Saba' the Jew emerged among them.
He feigned Islam,
claimed love for the Prophet's household,
went to extremes regarding 'Ali,
and alleged that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, had explicitly designated him
as successor to the caliphate,
eventually elevating him to the station of divinity.
Later, the Shia splintered into numerous sects,
the most famous of which is the Twelver Shia,
who maintain explicit text-based designation
of twelve caliphs after the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
the last of whom is the alleged Muhammad ibn al-Hasan al-'Askari,
whom they claim to be the Awaited Mahdi
who disappeared into a subterranean cellar in Samarra
and will emerge, according to their claim, at the end of time.
Other apostatizing doctrines also spread among them,
including worshiping the Prophet's household and seeking deliverance from them,
asserting infallibility for their twelve imams,
claiming that they possess knowledge of the unseen,
distorting the Qur'an
or asserting that the Qur'an in our hands represents no more than a third of the original Qur'an,
which they call "the Mushaf of Fatimah," may Allah be pleased with her,
claiming it is concealed with their imams,
declaring the vast majority of the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, to be disbelievers
with the exception of only seven of them,
referring to Abu Bakr and 'Umar, may Allah be pleased with them,
as "al-Jibt" and "al-Taghut"—
may Allah humiliate them
and take retribution upon them for their misguidance and slander—
believing in the return (al-raj'ah) and the occultation (al-ghaybah),
and reviling and slandering the Mother of the Believers 'A'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her—
may Allah fight them!
These are the ones whom Ahl al-Sunnah and the Zaydiyyah designate as
the Rafidah.
They are currently prevalent in Iran, Iraq, Lebanon,
and the eastern Arabian Peninsula.
The Zaydiyyah
are a sect of the Shia
who followed Zayd ibn 'Ali
during the Abbasid Caliphate.
This occurred when the Shia questioned him concerning the two elders, Abu Bakr and 'Umar, may Allah be pleased with them,
so he showed loyalty to them and said:
"They were the viziers of my grandfather, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him."
Thereupon, a group among the Shia rejected him,
and Zayd said to them:
"You have rejected me (rafadtumuni)! You have rejected me!"
Thus they were called the Rafidah,
and they are the ones mentioned in the previous concept.
Another group followed him,
and they are the Zaydiyyah, named in attribution to him, may Allah be pleased with him.
Their innovation is milder than that of the Rafidah,
as they do not revile the Companions
and view the imamate as established by description
rather than by explicit designation like the Rafidah.
Later, another extreme sub-sect broke away from the Zaydiyyah,
adopting the doctrine of the Twelver Rafidah
and endorsing most of their foundational principles;
they were named the Jarudiyyah,
and they are the ones who call themselves today
the Houthis.
The Batiniyyah
is a major branch among the Shiite sects,
characterized by heresy (zandaqah),
claiming that the Shariah possesses both an outward and an esoteric, hidden dimension.
It is also called the Sab'iyyah and the Khurramiyyah.
The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, is according to them an outward imam,
accompanied by an esoteric, hidden imam.
From this misguided sect branched out
numerous other sects,
such as the Isma'ilis,
who call themselves the Makarimah
and are found in Najran in the Arabian Peninsula
as well as various other parts of the world;
the Druze in Lebanon and the Golan Heights;
the Agha Khanis in India;
the Nusayris in Syria,
who call themselves the Alawites;
and the Brethren of Purity (Ikhwan al-Safa), who were based in Persia,
present-day Iran.
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allah have mercy upon him, counted the Batiniyyah
among the philosophical Sabians who strayed outside
the following of the Messengers and the fold of the Muslims,
because their doctrines contain numerous acts of disbelief.
Among them is major polytheism (shirk),
due to their sanctification and worship of their imams besides Allah,
their claiming infallibility for them along with the prerogative of legislation besides Allah,
their distortion of the Qur'an,
their assertion that every text in it has an outward and an esoteric meaning,
and their revilement of the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them all.
The Brethren of Purity (Ikhwan al-Safa)
are a sect among the Batini Shia
outside the pale of Islam.
They translated Greek philosophy
and made it the bedrock of their creed,
naming these translated treatises
*Rasa'il Ikhwan al-Safa* (Epistles of the Brethren of Purity),
which took place in the fourth century of the Hijrah.
The Isma'ilis
are an apostate Batini Shia sect
that claims lineage to Isma'il ibn Ja'far al-Sadiq.
Among them were the Ubaydis,
who called themselves the Fatimids,
and they were the ones who ruled Egypt, the Levant,
and the Arabian Peninsula for an era,
during which they subjected the Muslims to devastating calamities,
wreaked corruption and ruin across the lands,
and openly displayed disbelief and heresy therein.
The Isma'ilis are currently present
in Najran and Yemen,
Most of their followers are ignorant and misguided people.
Among their well-known books
is *Da'a'im al-Islam*.
The Qarmatians (Qaramitah)
are one of the esoteric (Batini) Shiite sects
that broke away from the Isma'ilis.
They established their state in eastern Arabia,
intercepted the pilgrim routes, and slaughtered the pilgrims.
They stole the Black Stone from the Ka'bah
and carried it off to the region of Hajar,
present-day al-Ahsa'.
It remained there for twenty-two years,
during which the Hajj was disrupted out of fear of them
and because of their interception of the pilgrim routes.
Then they returned it to the Ka'bah
and restored the Hajj season.
It is said they did so after a truce and agreement with the Abbasid Caliphate,
in exchange for being left undisturbed in the territories under their control.
It is also said they did so in submission to threats made against them by the Fatimid Ubaydi ruler.
The Qarmatians ruled most of the Arabian Peninsula and the Levant,
which occurred during the period of weakness of the Abbasid Caliphate.
They trace their lineage to the Batini Shiite Ibn Qarmat,
named Hamdan Qarmat
ibn al-Ash'ath al-Baqqar—
may he receive from Allah what he deserves.
Among their most blatantly blasphemous doctrines
is deifying other than Allah the Exalted
and claiming infallibility for their Imams.
They are characterized by reviling the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them,
and they hold blasphemous beliefs concerning Allah, Mighty and Majestic,
His names, His attributes, and His actions—
exalted is Allah far above that!
The Nusayris
are a sect belonging to the Batini Shiites.
They are followers of Muhammad ibn Nusayr,
and they still exist in Syria today.
They deify 'Ali, may Allah be pleased with him,
and currently call themselves the Alawites (Alawis).
They possess blasphemous books and rituals.
Among their blasphemous texts is their saying:
"I bear witness that there is no god but Haydarah, the Receding-Haired and Stout-Bellied."
The Aga Khanis
are another sect of the Batini Shiites.
They are followers of the Aga Khan, who resides in the West.
Among their rituals is weighing him against gold every year on his birthday
and handing it over to him.
They are present today in Kenya, India, Yemen, and elsewhere.
They deceive the general public by building mosques,
such as in Egypt and other places,
while holding the very same blasphemous Batini beliefs.
The Druze
are an esoteric (Batini) sect.
They are followers of Muhammad ibn Isma'il al-Darzi,
an attribution linked to *awlad darzah*,
meaning a tailor.
He deified the Ubaydi ruler al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah.
The Druze still exist today
in the mountains of Lebanon and in the occupied Golan.
They have a book called *al-Hikmah*.
They are divided into the *'Uqqal* (initiated),
who are their sages and elders,
and the *Juhhal* (uninitiated),
who are their commoners.
They possess esoteric rituals and secrets,
and they believe in much of what is found in Hinduism,
particularly the doctrine of the transmigration of souls,
which they call *taqammus* (reincarnation).
They refer to themselves as the *Muwahhidun* (Unitarians).
The Baha'i faith
is another esoteric (Batini) sect,
founded by Mirza Husayn
in Iran
during the nineteenth century CE.
They venerate the number nineteen very highly.
They have a presence in the West
and in the Jewish state in occupied Palestine.
Qadianism,
also known as the Ahmadiyya,
is an esoteric sect
led by Ahmad al-Qadiani.
He laid claim to prophethood
and claimed that revelation was sent down to him from London.
He abolished jihad
and called the Muslims of India and Pakistan
to submit to the occupation,
namely British imperialism.
Today, they have an active presence in the West,
which would never have gained ground
were it not for the spiritual void among Westerners.
Qadian,
from which Ahmad al-Qadiani emerged,
is a town in Pakistan,
and that is why they are named after it.
Tasawwuf and Sufism:
Tasawwuf, to which the Sufis ascribe themselves,
is a doctrine holding that the knowledge of Allah the Exalted
is attained through experiential tasting (*dhawq*) and ecstasy (*wajd*),
not through rational deduction.
Most of them lean toward the Hindu method
of mortifying the self
to qualify it for union with the Divine,
which they term *al-fana'* (annihilation).
Sufism came to attract
some Muslims
after the fourth century AH.
They introduced dancing and musical listening (*sama'*) into religion,
and they adopted newly invented, deviant terminologies
and innovations, some of which bring the practitioner
to the point of apostasy from Islam,
while others fall short of that.
In its early beginnings, the emergence of Sufism
was due to historical factors,
including the weakening of the central Caliphate
or its deviation,
along with people immersing themselves in luxury and indulgence,
forgetting the Hereafter,
and straying from walking its path.
The reaction to this
was hostility toward worldly life and the renunciation of it.
That was followed by
being influenced by Indian asceticism
or Christian monasticism.
Among the traits of the Sufis
is being influenced by the doctrine of the Jabriyyah (determinists)
and abandoning reliance on practical means.
Their deviant terminologies are numerous and varied;
we will present the most prominent in the following concepts:
Tasting (*al-dhawq*):
What is meant by *dhawq* according to the Sufis
is that which a person comes to believe
without relying on textual transmission or intellect.
It is a type of unveiling (*kashf*) according to them,
consisting of an internal sensation
coupled with intuition.
Unveiling (*al-kashf*):
According to the Sufis, it is
the direct, self-derived apprehension of realities without instruction.
It is their counterpart to reason among the Mu'tazilah,
closely resembling the aforementioned concept of *dhawq*.
According to them, it occurs through divine opening
or direct divine teaching, as they claim.
Direct address (*al-mukhatabah*):
According to the Sufis, it is Allah the Exalted speaking directly to one of His creation.
They have a book dedicated to this:
*al-Mawaqif wa-al-Mukhatabat*
by 'Abd al-Jabbar al-Niffari,
in which every section begins with the phrase:
"The Truth made me stand and addressed me."
The path (*al-tariqah*):
According to the Sufis, it is
following a specific master in the method of remembrance and worship,
and it is among the things that distinguish Sufism from others.
This is an innovation that contradicts the methodology of the salaf (early generations),
who had no one to follow
except the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
and the Rightly Guided Caliphs after him,
whom the Messenger himself, peace be upon him, instructed
to adhere to their Sunnah.
In tracing their chain of transmission to the shaykh, the Sufis rely
on the patched cloak (*al-khirqah*), in which they take great pride,
as one of them said:
"If they confront us with the knowledge of paper,
we confront them with the knowledge of patched cloaks."
Divine indwelling (*al-hulul*):
This is a station among the extremist Sufis,
meaning according to them
that Allah the Exalted indwells whomever He wills among His creation.
In this, they are influenced by the Christian doctrine,
which asserts that Allah the Exalted indwelt the Messiah, peace be upon him,
claiming that divinity (*al-lahut*) indwelt humanity (*al-nasut*).
Exalted is Allah far above all that they say!
Unification (*al-ittihad*):
This is likewise a term among the extremist Sufis,
by which they mean the possibility of the Creator and the creation unifying
so as to become one single entity.
As mentioned earlier, this is an influence of the Christian doctrine
that asserts the unification of Allah, Mighty and Majestic,
with the Messiah, peace be upon him—
exalted is Allah far above what they claim!
Unity of existence (*wahdat al-wujud*):
This is the doctrine of those who claim that the Creator and the creation
are a single reality with no duality,
and that there is not a Creator and a separate creation distinct from Him.
Many European thinkers came to believe in it
to escape the Church's doctrine of the Trinity.
Indwelling and unification among the extremist Sufis are of two kinds:
General indwelling, as held by those who say that Allah is present everywhere,
or that His existence is identical to the existence of created things;
and specific indwelling, as held by those who say that Allah indwelt certain members of the Prophet's family,
such as 'Ali and others.
The ruling on the proponents of indwelling and unification:
Whoever embraces this doctrine among the Batiniyyah and extremist Sufis
has apostatized from the religion of Islam.
His disbelief is like that of the Christians
who affirm the Trinity
and the indwelling of Allah in Jesus, peace be upon him.
Devout ascetics among the salaf and Sufism:
Sufism, with its deviations and ecstatic utterances, did not emerge
except after the fourth century AH.
Before that, however,
the devout worshippers belonging to the first three favored generations
were known for their diligence in worship, asceticism in worldly matters, and scrupulous piety,
following therein the guidance of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
and his noble Companions.
Among these venerable worshippers were
Ahmad ibn Hanbal,
Ibn al-Mubarak,
Sufyan al-Thawri,
al-Fudayl ibn 'Iyad,
and others.
None of them had any part in the ecstatic utterances or innovations of the Sufis,
for Sufism did not even exist during their era.
Even so,
the Sufis claim that these virtuous worshippers were of their ranks,
and they attribute them to their own order;
but the truth is that they are entirely innocent of all of that.
The Jews.
The name "al-Yahud" (the Jews)
is derived from "al-hawd",
which linguistically means
returning and turning back,
and what is meant by it
is returning in repentance to Allah Almighty;
from this comes the saying of the Almighty:
"Indeed, we have turned back to You in repentance."
The Jews who were followers of the Prophet of Allah, Moses, peace be upon him, in his era
were monotheistic Muslims,
just like all followers of the prophets throughout the ages.
As for the Jews after the sending of Jesus, peace be upon him, and after him Muhammad, peace be upon him,
who did not believe in either of them,
they are disbelievers,
even though they are singled out for the rulings governing the treatment of the People of the Book.
The Jews during the era of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
were in al-Madinah al-Munawwarah,
and only a few of them believed in him, peace be upon him.
The rest persisted in following the distorted Torah
and the rabbis who corrupted it,
who concealed the truth about Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
despite knowing him completely,
as the Almighty said:
"Those to whom We gave the Scripture know him just as they know their own sons."
“Those unto whom We gave the Scripture recognise (this revelation) as they recognise their sons. But lo! a party of them knowingly conceal the truth.” (2:146)
The hypocrites were their close confidants,
taking refuge with them and allying with them.
After the Jews betrayed the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and the Muslims,
the Prophet, peace be upon him, expelled from among them
Banu al-Nadir and Banu Qaynuqa',
and fought Banu Qurayzah until they surrendered to his judgment;
so their combatants were executed and their women were taken captive as a consequence of their treachery.
Those Jews who were expelled went to Khaybar
and remained there until they were expelled from it to the Levant by
'Umar ibn al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him.
Christian Europe waged war against them,
and they found no refuge except in the lands of the Muslims,
who treated them according to the rules for the People of the Book,
with justice and fairness,
in their status as protected subjects (dhimmi).
In general, the Jews are people who spread corruption across the earth
and persist in disobedience to the Lord,
as the Almighty said:
“The Jews say: Allah's hand is fettered. Their hands are fettered and they are accursed for saying so. Nay, but both His hands are spread out wide in bounty. He bestoweth as He will. That which hath been revealed unto thee from thy Lord is certain to increase the contumacy and disbelief of many of them, and We have cast among them enmity and hatred till the Day of Resurrection. As often as they light a fire for war, Allah extinguisheth it. Their effort is for corruption in the land, and Allah loveth not corrupters.” (5:64)
"And they strive to spread corruption across the land."
“The Jews say: Allah's hand is fettered. Their hands are fettered and they are accursed for saying so. Nay, but both His hands are spread out wide in bounty. He bestoweth as He will. That which hath been revealed unto thee from thy Lord is certain to increase the contumacy and disbelief of many of them, and We have cast among them enmity and hatred till the Day of Resurrection. As often as they light a fire for war, Allah extinguisheth it. Their effort is for corruption in the land, and Allah loveth not corrupters.” (5:64)
Many of them harmed the Prophet of Allah, Moses, peace be upon him,
during his lifetime and disobeyed him,
as the Almighty said.
“O ye who believe! Be not as those who slandered Moses, but Allah proved his innocence of that which they alleged, and he was well esteemed in Allah's sight.” (33:69)
“O ye who believe! Be not as those who slandered Moses, but Allah proved his innocence of that which they alleged, and he was well esteemed in Allah's sight.” (33:69)
“O ye who believe! Be not as those who slandered Moses, but Allah proved his innocence of that which they alleged, and he was well esteemed in Allah's sight.” (33:69)
And after Moses, peace be upon him,
they continued spreading corruption across the land,
and they killed Allah's prophets, Zechariah and John, peace be upon them.
Allah subjected them to humiliation throughout their history,
until He willed in His wisdom, Mighty and Majestic is He,
that they should be enabled in recent decades to occupy Palestine and Bayt al-Maqdis (Jerusalem).
Allah, Mighty and Majestic is He, gathered them from their dispersion across the earth
in order to execute His final decree upon them by destroying them and ridding the earth of them at the end of time,
at the hands of the Victorious Group of Muslims,
just as the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, foretold.
Perhaps this is what is meant by the words of Allah Almighty at the end of Surat al-Isra':
"And We said after him to the Children of Israel, 'Dwell in the land...'"
“And We said unto the Children of Israel after him: Dwell in the land; but when the promise of the Hereafter cometh to pass We shall bring you as a crowd gathered out of various nations.” (17:104)
Among the Jewish sects is a sect known as the 'Isawiyyah,
named after Abu 'Isa al-Isfahani,
who appeared in Persia in the second century AH.
They claimed signs and miracles on his behalf,
and many Jews followed him.
Among their positions was that Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
and Jesus, peace be upon him,
were sent only to their own peoples,
and were not sent to abrogate the law of Moses, peace be upon him.
That is a claim that is easily refuted,
for they are obligated to believe in the truthfulness of those whose messengership they acknowledge,
and within the message of Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
the word of Allah Almighty has come:
“And We have not sent thee (O Muhammad) save as a bringer of good tidings and a warner unto all mankind; but most of mankind know not.” (34:28)
as well as His saying:
“We sent thee not save as a mercy for the peoples.” (21:107)
Furthermore, the news of his calling Chosroes, Caesar, and all the non-Arab kings has been mutawatir;
therefore, their claim is impossible and self-contradictory.
The Torah.
The Torah is the Book revealed by Allah to His Prophet Moses, peace be upon him.
The Almighty said:
“Lo! We did reveal the Torah, wherein is guidance and a light, by which the prophets who surrendered (unto Allah) judged the Jews, and the rabbis and the priests (judged) by such of Allah's Scripture as they were bidden to observe, and thereunto were they witnesses. So fear not mankind, but fear Me. And My revelations for a little gain. Whoso judgeth not by that which Allah hath revealed: such are disbelievers.” (5:44)
“Lo! We did reveal the Torah, wherein is guidance and a light, by which the prophets who surrendered (unto Allah) judged the Jews, and the rabbis and the priests (judged) by such of Allah's Scripture as they were bidden to observe, and thereunto were they witnesses. So fear not mankind, but fear Me. And My revelations for a little gain. Whoso judgeth not by that which Allah hath revealed: such are disbelievers.” (5:44)
Today, despite the corruption within it, it is called within what is known as the Holy Bible:
the Old Testament.
This corrupted book has been translated into several languages,
yet no translation agrees with another,
notwithstanding the distortion, misguidance, and acts of disbelief found in all of them,
which are entirely unbecoming of Allah Almighty's description,
such as their assertion
that Allah, Glorified is He, regretted and grieved,
along with other distortions and delusions.
The Talmud.
It is the other book of the Jews,
compiled by their rabbis,
and it serves as the Jewish fiqh.
Their racism is plainly evident in it,
as is their hatred toward everyone other than the Jews.
It is a book the Jews believe in,
sanctifying it even more than the Torah.
It consists of two parts:
the Babylonian Talmud
and the Jerusalem Talmud.
Christianity.
Just as the Jews who were followers of Allah's Prophet Moses, peace be upon him, in his era were Muslims,
the Christians who followed Jesus, peace be upon him, in his era were monotheistic Muslims,
like all followers of the prophets throughout the ages.
As for the Christians after the sending of Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, who did not believe in him,
they are disbelievers,
even though they are singled out for the rulings governing the treatment of the People of the Book.
When the Jews plotted against Jesus, peace be upon him, and attempted to kill him,
Allah, Mighty and Majestic is He, raised him up to Himself in heaven.
The Christians differed after him and split into numerous sects,
distorting the Gospel just as the Jews distorted the Torah.
Major shirk became manifest across most of their sects
through their claim that the Prophet of Allah, Jesus, peace be upon him, is Allah,
or the son of Allah,
or the third of three alongside his mother Mary and Allah, Mighty and Majestic is He;
and they remain upon this shirk to this day.
Most people today refer to them by the name "Christians" (Masihiyyun),
but this is mistaken because the Messiah, peace be upon him, is innocent of them on account of their shirk;
the correct approach is to call them "al-Nasara" (the Nazarenes), just as the Qur'an named them.
The Gospel.
It is the Book that was revealed to Jesus, peace be upon him,
as the Almighty said:
"And We sent, following in their footsteps, Jesus, the son of Mary..."
“And We caused Jesus, son of Mary, to follow in their footsteps, confirming that which was (revealed) before him in the Torah, and We bestowed on him the Gospel wherein is guidance and a light, confirming that which was (revealed) before it in the Torah - a guidance and an admonition unto those who ward off (evil).” (5:46)
“And We caused Jesus, son of Mary, to follow in their footsteps, confirming that which was (revealed) before him in the Torah, and We bestowed on him the Gospel wherein is guidance and a light, confirming that which was (revealed) before it in the Torah - a guidance and an admonition unto those who ward off (evil).” (5:46)
However, the Christians, after Jesus, peace be upon him, was raised up,
distorted most of it in both wording and meaning,
until they ended up with four gospels
that differ from one another;
these are the gospels of Matthew, Luke,
Mark, and John.
They contain some of the speech of Allah,
and to them they append the epistles of Paul and the epistles of Peter,
calling these gospels together with the epistles the New Testament.
All of these gospels are corrupted,
and their writing dates back to the second century CE.
In them, of disbelief and disrespect toward Allah, Mighty and Majestic is He,
there is a great deal.
The Christians combined into one single book
the Torah and its appended books,
the Old Testament,
along with the Gospel and the epistles,
the New Testament,
and named it the Holy Bible.
Churches differ in counting its books and recognizing their canon;
some churches consider them to be forty-nine books,
while others count fewer.
The most prominent edition of this book
is the English King James Version,
which was printed in the seventeenth century CE.
The Trinity.
It is the Christian doctrine concerning the Deity,
wherein they claim that Allah Almighty is three, not one;
and that is disbelief and shirk with Allah Almighty,
as the Mighty and Majestic said.
“They surely disbelieve who say: Lo! Allah is the third of three; when there is no Allah save the One Allah. If they desist not from so saying a painful doom will fall on those of them who disbelieve.” (5:73)
“They surely disbelieve who say: Lo! Allah is the third of three; when there is no Allah save the One Allah. If they desist not from so saying a painful doom will fall on those of them who disbelieve.” (5:73)
“They surely disbelieve who say: Lo! Allah is the third of three; when there is no Allah save the One Allah. If they desist not from so saying a painful doom will fall on those of them who disbelieve.” (5:73)
“They surely disbelieve who say: Lo! Allah is the third of three; when there is no Allah save the One Allah. If they desist not from so saying a painful doom will fall on those of them who disbelieve.” (5:73)
The Trinity is an ancient pagan doctrine
espoused by the Indians, the Pharaohs, and others,
and among the philosophers it was held by Plato.
The Trinity remains the religion and creed of the Christians to this day,
which is why Western thinkers and philosophers disbelieved in Christianity
and did not place faith in it.
Catholics.
A widespread Christian denomination
that acknowledges the leadership of the Pope of the Vatican.
They are found in large numbers in France, Italy,
Southern Europe in general,
and the Philippines,
while they constitute a minority elsewhere.
Among their doctrines is deifying Jesus and his mother, peace be upon them.
The Orthodox.
The second major Christian denomination.
They do not acknowledge the leadership of the Pope of the Vatican,
and are concentrated in Eastern Europe, Russia, and the East in general.
They have a hierarchical order of clergy,
and among them are the Copts of Egypt,
to whom the Orthodox papacy shifted
after the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia and what was known as the Soviet Union.
Protestants.
The third major Christian denomination.
It is relatively recent compared to the previous two,
and it acknowledges neither the leadership of the Pope of the Vatican nor the Orthodox patriarch.
It was founded by Martin Luther
in the sixteenth century CE.
The term "Protestantism"
Its meaning is protestation and objection.
What distinguishes them is their protest against the popes' monopolization of the right to interpret the Holy Scriptures.
They are widespread in Britain, America, and elsewhere.
Among the Protestants are those called Evangelicals.
Unitarian Christians:
They are a sect among the Christian sects,
who assert that Allah is one, not three.
They were originally in Europe,
and later migrated to America.
Today, they have merged into what is known as the Universal Church,
which believes in universal salvation for all human beings.
They currently align with Protestants in rejecting the supremacy of the Pope.
Someone might ask:
"Are they not considered Muslims as long as they profess the oneness of Allah Almighty?"
The answer is that Islam is not merely
the acknowledgment that Allah is one alone.
Rather, this is only one pillar among the pillars of faith.
Among the remaining pillars is
belief in the messengers,
which inherently necessitates belief in Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
the Seal of the Prophets and Messengers,
who was sent to all mankind.
And they do not believe in that;
hence, they are disbelievers.
As the Prophet, peace be upon him, said:
"By the One in Whose hand is the soul of Muhammad,
no one of this nation hears of me,
whether a Jew or a Christian,
and then dies without believing in that with which I have been sent,
except that he will be among the companions of the Fire."
Narrated by Muslim.
Moreover, their purported monotheism is itself fundamentally flawed.
The Jesuits:
The Jesuits are a French monastic order.
At its inception, it rejected the authority of the Pope,
but later conceded to it
and acknowledged papal supremacy.
It has followers in the East,
particularly in Lebanon,
and they are also known as the Society of Jesus.
Some researchers have proven that it is a Masonic organization,
and they harbor the same polytheism and disbelief as other Christian sects.
It is a non-Arabic term,
translated as "person," "hypostasis," "attribute,"
"nature," or "substance."
In Christian terminology, it refers to
one of the three components of the divine essence.
Thus they say:
the Hypostasis of the Father, the Hypostasis of the Son, and the Hypostasis of the Holy Spirit,
as one God.
Exalted is Allah high above what they say!
Baptism:
According to Christians, it consists of
immersing an infant in water,
marking their entry into the religion, as they claim.
They call this the "new birth."
It is also a widespread practice among Christians in America
for those who newly embrace the faith.
Indulgences:
This is the greatest historical farce among the Christians,
the likes of which have never been witnessed among any other religious community in human history.
It refers to
the power claimed by priests and popes to grant whomever they wish
certificates for the forgiveness of sins and admittance into Paradise.
These were bought and sold for exorbitant sums
pocketed by these priests and popes.
Thus, it truly became
a colossal travesty,
and one of the many dark chapters of their superstitious myths.
How utterly brazen is their insolence toward the Originator of the heavens and the earth!
And how utterly contemptuous they are of human intellect!
All praise is due to Allah, Who guided us to the blessing of Islam.
Buddhism:
It is a religion widespread in China, Japan,
Korea, India,
and the neighboring countries.
Scholars of Buddhism state
that it does not concern itself with divinity,
but is rather a philosophy and ethical wisdom—
some of which is derived from Islam,
while much of it consists of delusions and myths.
Buddhists nowadays possess
a text they call the "Gospel of Buddha,"
which is replete with polytheistic, idolatrous rituals and worship.
A Summary of the Doctrines of Ahl al-Sunnah: