THE JINN, A SHORT ISLAMIC PERSPECTIVE PART 4.

From the layman's (Nasir Ali) Desk:

THE JINN -Part 4 Continued:

Many Islamic authorities have mentioned in their books an interesting fact which is also mentioned by Imam Suyuti in Khasais al-Kubra on the strength of the narration of Umar ® which is summarized here as follows:   Once when the Holy Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wasallam) was residing in Makkah a very old man came to visit the Holy Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wasallam).  This old man spoke in the language of Jinn so Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wasallam) asked him which tribe of Jinn did he belong to.  He replied that he was the grandson of Iblis (Satan).  When asked about his antecedents he replied that he was Hamm the son of Heem who was the son of Lakhis who was the son of Iblis.  When the Holy Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wasallam) inquired about his age the old man replied that as a kid he had seen Qabeel (Cain) murdering his brother Habeel (Abel) both of whom were the sons of Adam (a.s.).  During Ibrahim's (a.s.) time he embraced his faith and was also a witness when the prophet was thrown into the fire which he tried to extinguish.  Then he embraced the faith of Moosa (a.s.) who taught him the Torah.  Then he embraced the faith of Isa (a.s.) who taught him about the Bible.  The old man had a very important message to deliver to the Holy Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wasallam) who said, “Give me the message”. He said “Jesus (pbuh) said to me that “after my demise, Holy Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wasallam) will come as the last Messenger of God to this world, you will be alive at that time and you will get a chance to meet him (sal Allahu alayhi wasallam). When you meet holy Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wasallam), convey my salutations to him.” On hearing this from Hamm the Holy Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wasallam) felt very happy and with tears in his eyes thanked Almighty Allah.  He (sal Allahu Alayhi wasallam) said: “Peace be upon you and my brother Jesus .” Then holy Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wasallam) asked Hamm “do you want anything from me?” Hamm said,  “O Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wasallam) I want to embrace Islam at your hand, please teach me some chapters of holy Quran.” The Holy Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wasallam) taught him ten chapters of holy Quran.” The Surahs included Surah Waqiya, Surah Naba, Surah Takweer, Surah Kafiroon, Surah Falaq and Surah Naas.  After narrating this whole scenario, Umar-e-Farooq ® said: ”after that day, we never saw him again.”

A frequent activity associated with the Jinn is foretelling the future.  It was a common feature before the advent of the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wasallam) for people to seek the help of soothsayers and fortune-tellers who in turn would turn to the Jinn for help.  According to a hadith:  Narrated A’isha (RA), I heard Allah's Apostle saying, "The angels descend from the clouds and mention this or that decreed in the Heaven. The devils listen stealthily to such matter, come down to inspire the soothsayers with it, and the latter would add to it one-hundred lies of his own." [Sahih Al-Bukhari, Volume 4, Hadith Number 432].  The Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wasallam) himself described how the jinn tried to steal the messages in the heaven. Abu-Huraira reported that the Prophet (peace be upon him) informed him, “When Allah decrees a matter in heaven, the angels move their wings in submission to His word which is like a chain on a smooth stone. When their hearts are delivered from fear they say, ‘What did your Lord say?’ and receive the reply, ‘That which He said is the truth and He is the Most High and the Greatest.’ Then those who listen by stealth hear it (i.e., the jinn), and they are like this, some above others (and Sufyan a narrator, illustrated this point by turning his hand over and separating the fingers). Then one who hears the word passes it on to the one below him, and so forth until one of them passes it to the tongue of a soothsayer or diviner. Often a flame catches him before he is able to pass it on. He then mixes with it one hundred lies. People then ask, ‘Isn’t it true that he did not make such a statement on a specific date,’ and he is believed because of that one word which was heard from the heavens.” (Recorded by al-Bukhari in his Sahih)

The sins of omission and commission and the punishments and rewards are applicable to both in the next life since Jinn too, as humans, have free will whether to obey or disobey.  According to Surah Jinn, (72:11): And among us, there are righteous folks and among us, there are far from that. We are sects having different rules. Regarding the righteous and believing Jinn: And when we heard the guidance, we believed therein, and whoso believeth in his Lord, he feareth neither loss nor oppression (Surah Jinn, 72:13).  And there are among us some who have surrendered (to Allah) and there are among us some who are unjust. And whoso hath surrendered to Allah, such have taken the right path purposefully (Surah Jinn 72:14).

The Jinn, like any other living creature, will also die. This is mentioned in the Qur’an:  "Allah will say, ‘Enter you in the company of nations who passed away before you, of men and Jinn, into the Fire." (Qur’an 7:38).  Only Iblis has been granted respite as already stated.  In Surah al-Saffat, verse 158 it is stated: And they have invented a blood-relationship between Him and the Jinn: but the Jinn know (quite well) that they have indeed to appear (before his Judgment- Seat)!  So it is stated in Surah Anam, 128:  One day will He gather them all together, (and say): "O ye assembly of Jinns! Much (toll) did ye take of men." Their friends amongst men will say: "Our Lord! we made a profit from each other: but (alas!) we reached our term - which Thou didst appoint for us." He will say: "The Fire be your dwelling-place: you will dwell therein forever, except as Allah willeth." for thy Lord is full of wisdom and knowledge.  In Surah Al-Araf v.179, it is stated:  Many are the Jinns and men we have made for Hell: They have hearts wherewith they understand not, eyes wherewith they see not, and ears wherewith they hear not. They are like cattle,- nay more misguided: for they are heedless (of warning).   Allah the Almighty stated in Surah al-An’aam v.130. "O ye assembly of Jinns and men! came there not unto you apostles from amongst you, setting forth unto you My signs, and warning you of the meeting of this Day of yours?" They will say: "We bear witness against ourselves." It was the life of this world that deceived them. So against themselves will they bear witness that they rejected Faith.  Allah says in Surah Hud, verse 119:  Except those on whom thy Lord hath bestowed His Mercy: and for this did He create them: and the Word of thy Lord shall be fulfilled: "I will fill Hell with jinns and men all together."

According to the author of Rashahat ‘Ain al-Hayat (Beads of Dew from the Source of Life), Mawlana Jami said: “The truth of the matter is that the father of the jinn is other than Satan, although Satan does belong to the species of the jinn. The father of the jinn is a hermaphrodite [khuntha]…There is no benefit in spending time with them, and their company is positively harmful. Since they are created from fire and air, their principal attributes are pride and rebelliousness. Those who frequent them are thereby infected with arrogance and conceit…Warfare amongst them is not rare, since their essential attributes are boastfulness, asserting superiority over one another, arrogance, and overbearing tyranny…On the Day of resurrection, those of them who deserve punishment are thrown into the cold hell, since they are not affected by the fire.”   In other words, the Jinn have communities and families and social classes on the lines of humans with kings and rulers, armies and courts, indulging at times in wars and negotiations and creating treaties.   

The believing and righteous Jinn would be in Paradise as explicitly stated in Surah Rahman: “(Maidens) whom no man or Jinn before them has deflowered” (55:74). These “Maidens” are the Hoor al-Ayn whose abode is only Paradise.  Another popularly held belief held by some scholars such as Imam Malik, Imam Shafi’i, Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal and Abu Yusuf is that the Jinn will be in the outskirts of paradise, where humans can see them (but they cannot see the humans).  According to Imam Abu Hanifa, their reward is to be saved from the Hellfire.  Ibn Katheer points out that a better proof of the Jinn entering the Paradise is Allah’s statement in Surah Rahman:  Whoever fears the judgment of his Lord there will be two gardens.  So which of your Lord’s favours will you both deny?”  (55:46-47).  As indicated before, here “Both” refers to mankind as well as the Jinn.  Allah has blessed Jinn and humans by rewarding the righteous among them admission to Paradise.                                                                  

Continued in Part 5.

NASIR

Part 2: There's Baraka in the Awliya Allah's Graves.

Part 2: THERE’S BARAKA IN THE AWLIYA-ALLAH GRAVES.

From the Layman’s Desk: Islamic Article No.17:

        

In the Name of Allah, Most Beneficent, Most Merciful.

Praise be to Allah, Lord of all the worlds, and blessings and peace of Allah upon His Prophet and Messenger Muhammad (sal Allahu alayhi wasallam), his Family and all his Companions.

Allah has bestowed upon His favorites, a great importance, and therefore, our Shariah urges Muslims to be in touch with the pious persons and wants to remain this connection till the last moment of life.  It is the consensus of the Muslim scholars that the miracles of saints are absolutely true and correct.  In various places the Qur’an has pointed out the miracles, and the Ahadith of the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wasallam) have mentioned them, and only innovators and their followers are the people who deny the miraculous power of saints.  [al-Mukhtasar al-Fatawa al-Masriyya by Ibn Taimiyya]

Imam Sawi, while commenting on the verse "And seek a means of approach to him" ( 5:35 ), writes: "To say that Muslims who visit the graves of the saints are Kaafir because you believe they are worshipping other than Allah is a sign of clear heresy. To visit the saints is not worshipping other than Allah, rather it is a sign of loving those whom Allah loves" (Tafseer Sawi, vol.1 p.245).  Therefore, from the commentary of Imam Sawi we learn that visiting the graves of the saints is permissible, and that it is not worshipping other than Allah but it is loving those whom Allah loves.  As Shah Waliyullah states: “To love the symbols of Allah the Exalted, means to love the Qur’an, the Prophet (Salla Allahu Ta’ala Alayhi Wa Sallam) , and the Ka’ba, or to love anything that reminds us of Allah the Exalted. To love the Awliya of Allah is the same.”  [Hujjat Allahi’l Baaligha;  Altaaf al-Quds – The Sacred Knowledge (Persian)]

Shaykh Abdul Haq Dehlwi (d. 1052 H.) writes: "To visit graves is by consensus a mustahab (preferable) action" (Ashi'atul Lum'aat, vol.1, p.715)  He also writes: "When visiting the dead, respecting them is Wajib (necessary) especially where the pious are concerned. As it was necessary to respect them whilst they were alive, similarly, it is important to show them respect at their graves. This is because the help which the pious give depends on the respect that people who visit them show to them". (Ashi'atul Lum'aat, vol.1 p.720).  From these writing, it is absolutely manifest that the belief of Shaykh Abdul Haq was that to visit the graves is neither Shirk nor Bid'ah. Moreover, it is a preferable act and the visitor is blessed with the help of the inmate of the grave.

Shah Waliullah Dehlvi in his book Faizul Haramain, Page No: 57  states:  "If someone achieves mystical knowledge then his soul become so powerful that Tariqah, Maslak, Saintly chain, Lineage, Genealogy, Relations and everything connected with that person comes into the range of his favor and inclination.  The favor of Allah reflects through his spiritual attention".  And in his Persian book, Hama’at:  "This guarantees for the regular attending on death anniversaries (Urs) of the saints.  Regular visits to their  shrines  to recite Fatiha there, distribution of charity, to honor his offspring, relations and relics are lawful in Shariah; and also these are supererogative (Nafl and Mustahab) actions."

To say that Shah Waliullah muhaddith (rh) criticized those who visited the mazaars is but attributing lies to him.  According to the experts,    the deviants have attributed false books (such as al-balagh al-mubeen), as well as carried out mass fabrications, interpolations, extrapolations and deletions in Shah Waliullah Dehelvi’s books such as the Persian book al-Tafhimat al-Ilahiyya. This was done with a view to making his works agree with the teachings of the Najdi Shaykh as well as Shah Ismail whose followers were in the forefront in committing these forgeries.    However, even a staunch Wahhabi such as Suleiman Nadwi has, in his own books, admitted to these fabrications.  The fact remains that Shah Waliullah followed the Naqshbandi silsila,  celeberated mawlid, visited graves of awliya often for maraqaba, used to recite dua ( supplication) having words of Istighatha, did fatiha on food , used to give amulets containing verses from Qu'ran and Hadith.  And so did his more famous son, Shah Abdulaziz Muhaddith al-Dehlwi.

Therefore, when we track the Islamic hagiography including the Classications and Generations (Tabaqaat), Remembrances, Recollections (Tadhkira), Marvellous Deeds or Feats (Manaqib),  Spiritual qualities (Fadhail) of Prophets and Saints, and Life Story (Sira) of Hadith Masters (Muhaddithun) and persons of religious knowledge (Ulama’) we do come across instances in many of them that the burial place of so and so Wali-Allah or a Hadith scholar or a pious person, is full of Baraka where the dua’ is accepted by Allah.

The graveyards become more blessed when pious people are buried there.  This in turn strengthens the motive to visit such a graveyard to participate in and obtain some of those blessings and divine mercy.  That’s the reason why some graveyards such as Jannatul Baqi and Jannatul Mua’la are held in highest esteem.  In his book "al-Hisn-ul-Hasin" and its summary "Uddat-ul-Hisn-il-Hasin", Hafiz, Muhaddith, the Shaykh of the Qurra' (Reciters of al-Qur'an) and student of Ibn Kathir, Shams-ud-Din Ibn al-Jazari,   mentioned that the graves of the righteous are among the places of having the dua' fulfilled.

A Hadith which demonstrates the existence of blessing at the graves of the righteous is the one wherein the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wasallam) says that every person'a grave would either be a garden from Paradise, or a pit from the pits of Hell.

[Tirmidhi (Kitab Sifat al-Qiyama, #2384) with a Da'if chain, Bayhaqi in his Shu'ab (1:360) and 'Adhab al-Qabr, Tabarani in his Kabir (from Abu Sa'id) and Awsat (8:273 #8613), Abu Nu'aym (8:87), Ibn 'Asakir (42:497), Ibn Abi Dunya (K.Qubur, #122), Ibn Mandah, and Daylami (Firdaws, 1:438 #1445, 3:283 #4717, 4:471 #6861).]  Cf. Sakhawi's Maqasid (#758), where he says it is Da'if. However, there are numerous supporting narrations that strengthen the meaning of this Hadith (such as Abu Ya'la #6644, Ibn Hibban #3122, Muslim #5110).

Sayyidi Arwaasi (reh) informs us that 'Allama Shams ad-din ibn an-Nuaym (rahmat-Allahi 'alaih), a Hanafi scholar, wrote in Kitab ar-Ruh: 'Souls may be in a different state other than when they are in their bodies. The souls of awliya' are at Rafiq al-ala and also have a relation with their dead bodies. If a person visits such a wali's grave and greets him, his soul at Rafiq al-ala answers that person.' This is also noted in al-Imam as-Suyuti's Kitab al-Munjali. All these proofs show that awliya' have powerful tasarruf (disposal) and influence after their death in a way which we may not know.  It is necessary to believe that the tasarruf (disposal, possession) of their souls is by Allahu ta'ala's tasarruf on them.

Imam Maalik stated: “I have learned that souls are free. They come and go wherever they wish.” [Narrated by Ibn Abi-al-Dunya in his book Dhikr al-Mawt and confirmed by Ibn-Taymiyyah in his Majmu al-Fatawa 4/294].

The soul can and does come. Events and observations bear witness to this fact.   According to Salman al-Farsi ® “The Arwaah of Mum’inin live between heaven and earth (i.e. the dimension of Barzakh) and they can go wherever they want.” [Narrated by Ibn-al-Qayyim in Kitab-ar-Ruh, p. 144).

This is also confirmed by Ibn Hajar Haytami and Imam Suyuti – among many others. Ibn Hajar Haytami states in his Fatawa Hadithiyya (Pg: 393): “Imam Yafi`i said: ‘… And they [the awliya] saw the Prophets (Allah bless them all) … which was like the vision of our Prophet (Allah bless him and grant him peace) towards the congregation of Prophets in the heavens – and he heard and spoke to them. Verily, whatever is permitted for the Prophets as a miracle is permitted for the Saints as a miracle also.’ 

Ibn Mulaqin said: ”There have been numerous visions of the Prophet (Allah bless him and grant him peace), both in a state of wakefulness and sleep. The narrations in connection to this regarding [the vision of] the Friends of Allah are extremely plentiful and none denies them except one who is stubborn and dead.”  Ibn Hajar goes on to discuss the modality of such a vision, the permission of the souls of the Prophets to leave their graves, the fact that the vision of numerous people of a given prophet at a given moment is possible (he contrasts it to the sun), and how this does not make one a companion.  This is the position of those spiritually realized… They have removed the veils from their eyes within this world such that their “vision is piercing” (Quran) and therefore witness and see what many of us cannot.

Allamah Alusi (reh.) has proven that many pious people have seen the Holy Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wasallam) in the state of wakefulness and received knowledge from him. In Ruh al-Ma’ni he mentions such instances and the references that involved Hadrat Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani ®, Shaykh Ibn Ataullah and Shaykh Abul Abbas al-Mursi. Imam Ghazali (reh) stated: “Countless matters were disclosed to me during these seclusions. What I will mention though for the benefit of others is that I realized for sure that the Sufis are the seekers in Allah's Way, and their conduct is the best conduct, and their way is the best way, and their manners are the most sanctified....and indeed they witness the Angels and the SOULS OF THE PROPHETS while awake, and they hears their sounds, and derive benefits from them." (al-Munqidh min al-Dalal, p. 131).

Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani writes: Abd al-Wajid says that I saw the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), in a dream with his companions waiting at this place, like they were waiting for someone. I said, "As Salaam 'alaykum," after the reply to the salaam I asked "what or who are you waiting for?" The reply was we are waiting for Imam Bukhari, and that was the day Imam Bukhari passed away. [Fath al Bari, chapter on the death of Imam Bukhari, and Tarikh Baghdad by Hafidh Asqalani and Khateeb Baghdadi] 

In Tarikh ibn Kathir in the Chapter on Karbala, Hafidh Ibn Kathir writes: Abdullah Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with Him, said that in his dream he saw the Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), and upon him there was dust from travelling. In his hand’ was a bottle in which there was blood, I asked him: “what is this?” He replied, “My grandson Hussain and his companions have been martyred, and I have collected the blood spilt by them and I shall present this blood to Allah Ta'ala.” This is an authentic narration.   Ibn Kathir also mentions that Ummul Mu’ mineen Salma states: I saw the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), in my dream, there was dust upon his hair and beard, I asked him: “O Messenger of Allah why is there dust on you?” He replied: 'I am returning from Kerbala. Of course, there are many such instances right from the time of the Sahaba, as is evident from the many ahadith and other Islamic litertures.

Incumbent upon all Muslims to respect the Awliya-Allah:

The scholars list tormenting or troubling the Awliya-Allah as a major sin since doing so can lead to kufr and is foreshadowed with a dire threat. Imam Dhahabi writes in his book Kitabul-Kabair, "The 51st major sin is tormenting the Awliya-Allah and bearing malice against them. Allah says: Verily, those who annoy Allah and His Messenger, Allah has cursed them in this world, and in the Hereafter, and has prepared for them a humiliating punishment. And those who annoy believing men and women undeservedly, bear on themselves the crime of slander and plain sin. (Ahzaab 57:58) The Blessed Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wasallam) stated that Allah said, "I have declared war upon him who makes an enemy of my wali." (Bukhari) And in another narration of Bukhari, "He invites Me (Allah) to war." And really, what could be a greater threat than the fact that one is inciting war with Allah? Nothing indeed is so damning as to declare war against Allah except for the person who deals in usury. It is obvious that a person whom Allah declares His enemy can never succeed (may Allah I save us). The consequences of declaration of war against Allah Subhanahu Ta’la can be nothing less than dying in kufr. May Allah save us from this through his infinite kindness and mercy.

It is incumbent upon all Muslims to respect the sanctity of the Awliya-Allah and not to disregard their relics. One day shortly after the insurrection began against him, Uthman (R) was delivering a Khutbah in Masjid Nabawi.  A Ghafari man stood up, snatched the staff from the hand of Uthman ® and snapped it in half on his knee. Not a year had passed after that the the lost the sensation in his leg and died soon thereafter. (Sunan Saeed Bin Sakan)

In his Jami’ul Karamat il-Awliya Imam Nabhani mentions that Imam `Abdul Wahab Sh`arani stated, “Our brother Shaykh Salih al-Hajj Ahmed Halabi [may Allah sanctify his secret] informed me that his house was in the vicinity of the blessed mausoleum of Shaykh Muhyuddin ibn `Arabi.  It was visible from his house.  One night after the `Isha prayer, a person advanced towards the tomb with a fiery torch in his hand, with the intention of burning the bier.  When he was 8-9 metres away from the grave, he started sinking into the ground, so much so that he disappeared in the ground. Late night, when his family members could not find him anywhere, they started looking out or him. When the shaykh narrated them the entire incident, they reached the place where he had sunk. When they dug up the place, they found his head. But as they went on digging, his body kept sinking on further. After much digging up, they finally gave up, covered his body with mud and went away.”

Hazrat Khwaja  Moinuddin Hasan Chishti Sanjari ® has narrated:

“There was a man who hated the Awliya.  When he died, and was placed in the grave, the people tried to turn his face towards the Qibla, but it would always turn away from that direction. The people were astonished at this action.  There was a voice from nowhere announcing, ‘It would be a futile  exercise to try to turn his face toward the Qibla, because he used to turn  his face away at seeing the Awliya, and that he who would turn his face in disgust from My friends, I will turn My face on him.  He is a condemned soul, and on the day of judgement, such people will appear with faces of donkeys.” 

A miscreant relieved himself on the grave of Hasan (R).  Right after that he went mad and died.  (Endless Bliss, 5the facs.)  

The above are just a very incidents that warn us against harbouring evil thoughts or insults towards Allah Awliya.  But they are enough to show that the wrath of Allah does visit on the enemies of Awliya-Allah. 

As an Islamic scholar states:  The hearts that are in Allah rememberance are alive even when they depart to the barzakh, they are like fish in water, and the aura/radiation of certain dead awliya are so profound and strong, that even lay people when visiting them in their graves, feel their personality qualities and characteristics when they were in this world, for example sayidina Moinuddeen Chisti, those who visit his grave in Ajmer, find a dominating effect of parental love, attention and care directed at them in that place, which was a character of Sayidina Chisti to those around him when he was present in this world.

Continued in Part 3.

NASIR