Basic primer on the three fundamental principles of Islam answering:
Who is your Lord?
Who is your Messenger? and
What is your religion?
by Shaikh ul Islam Muhammad Ibn ‘AbdilWahhaab, explained by Sh Uthaymeen.
(translated by Abu Talhah)
rahimahullaah ajma’een.
Download here:
Translation of the book by Sh al-Albaani rahimahullaah.
Beautifully clarifies the correct means of drawing close to Allaah and refutes the innovated means. Clarifies the authentic proofs in this regard and their correct interpretation and application in accordance with the way of the Salaf.
(Translated by Abu Talhah rahimahullaah)
وَلِلَّهِ الْأَسْمَاءُ الْحُسْنَىٰ فَادْعُوهُ بِهَا
And to Allaah belong the Most Beautiful Names so call upon Him by them [7:180]
This is a very beneficial transcript of a lesson by Abu Talhah rahimahullaah where he translated the meanings of Allaah’s 99 Beautiful Names (list compiled by Sh Uthaymeen):
Audio available here:
Summarized notes from the explanation of Sh Uthaymeen. Hadeeth checkings by Sh al-Albaanee. (Translated by Adnaan ibn Salmaan).
(قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ النَّاسِ * مَلِكِ النَّاسِ * إِلَٰهِ النَّاسِ * مِنْ شَرِّ الْوَسْوَاسِ الْخَنَّاسِ * الَّذِي يُوَسْوِسُ فِي صُدُورِ النَّاسِ * مِنَ الْجِنَّةِ وَالنَّاسِ)
Say, “I seek refuge in the Lord of mankind
The King of mankind
The God of mankind
From the evil of the whisperer who withdraws and pulls back –
Who whispers into the hearts of men –
From among the jinn and mankind.”
__________
قُلْ
Meaning: Say O Muhammad
أَعُوذُ
Meaning: I seek shelter with, I resort to and I take refuge in…
بِرَبِّ النَّاس
ar-Rabb: He is the one who takes care of his slaves through his blessings and who nurtures them. And He also takes care of them through sending revelation and beneficial knowledge. So He is their Lord in the sense that He is their King, Lord and the One who controls their affairs.
بِرَبِّ النَّاس
All of Mankind, from the Children of Aadam.
He the Mighty and Majestic said:
مَلِكِ النَّاسِ
This is one of Allaah the Perfect and Most High’s Attributes. So ar-Rabb and al-Malik are from Allaah the Most Glorious’ Names. So they have no true King except Him, the Perfect and Most High and no-one shares in His kingship over all mankind. So they all belong to Him and are His slaves and under His control and authority. Some of them are people who are evil, so one should seek refuge with Allaah the Perfect and Most High that He protects from these evil people, because He is their Lord and He has power over them.
مَلِكِ النَّاسِ
So He is the King, the Perfect and Most High, without any partner, and He has absolute dominion on the Day of Judgement.
As for in this world then there are kings, but their kingship is limited not absolute, and it is weak when compared to the dominion of Allaah the Perfect and Most High. Also their kingship is a privilege from Allaah the Perfect and Most High. He the Mighty and Majestic said:
قُلِ اللَّهُمَّ مَالِكَ الْمُلْكِ تُؤْتِي الْمُلْكَ مَنْ تَشَاءُ وَتَنْزِعُ الْمُلْكَ مِمَّنْ تَشَاءُ وَتُعِزُّ مَنْ تَشَاءُ وَتُذِلُّ مَنْ تَشَاءُ ۖ بِيَدِكَ الْخَيْرُ ۖ إِنَّكَ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ
Say, “O Allah, Owner of All Kingship, You give authority to whom You will, and you take it away from whom You will. You honour whom you will and you debase whom You will. In your Hand is all good. Indeed You are All Powerful over everything.”
[3:26]
So they do not compare to the dominion of Allaah the Perfect and Most High. However in the next life then Allaah the Mighty and Majestic says:
يَوْمَ هُمْ بَارِزُونَ ۖ لَا يَخْفَىٰ عَلَى اللَّهِ مِنْهُمْ شَيْءٌ ۚ لِمَنِ الْمُلْكُ الْيَوْمَ ۖ لِلَّهِ الْوَاحِدِ الْقَهَّارِ
The Day when they will come forth, nothing from them will be hidden from Allaah at all. To whom belongs all kingship on that Day? To Allaah, the One, the Overwhelming Subduer.
[40:16]
إِلَٰهِ النَّاسِ
This is the third Attribute. al-Ilaah means something which is worshipped, and it is of two categories:
So we find the three categories of tawheed being mentioned in this soorah:
And all of these instances of seeking refuge are a protection from the evil of shaytaan, may Allaah curse him.
Allaah the Mighty and Majestic said:
مِنْ شَرِّ الْوَسْوَاس
al-Waswaas, with a fat-hah on the waw is shaytaan. As for al-Wiswaas then this is the verbal noun derived from ‘to whisper’.
الْخَنَّاسِ
He is the one who withdraws and pulls back, and that is because shaytaan withdraws and pulls back when Allaah is remembered. And when Allaah is not remembered, then he whispers and draws close. So he whispers to one who is heedless and he withdraws from one who remembers Allaah the Perfect and Most High.
From Anas radiyAllaahu’anhu from the Prophet (ﷺ) who said:
“Indeed shaytaan places his snout upon the heart of the son of Aadam, so if he remembers Allaah then he withdraws, and if he forgets, then he swallows it up. So that is the whisperer who withdraws.”
[Da’eef, Silsilat-ul-ahadeeth ad-Da’eefah 1367]
And from Ibn Abbaas radiyAllaahu’anhu regarding His statement (الْوَسْوَاسِ الْخَنَّاسِ) he said:
“When someone is born then shaytaan perches upon his heart. So when he reaches the age of understanding and remembers Allaah, then he withdraws, and if he is heedless then he whispers”
[Saheeh according to Sh al-Albaanee, al-Mishkaat 2221]
And from Abu Hurairah radiyAllaahu’anhu: the Messenger of Allaah (ﷺ) said:
“Shaytaan comes to one of you and says ‘Who created this? Who created that?’ up until he says ‘Who created your Lord?’ So if this happens then he should seek refuge with Allaah and stop (thinking such thoughts).”
[Saheeh-ul-Bukhaaree 3276]
Then Allaah the Perfect and Most High explains (the above) with His the Mighty and Majestic’s statement:
الَّذِي يُوَسْوِسُ فِي صُدُورِ النَّاسِ
That he whispers into their hearts, so whoever is afflicted with whispering then he should hasten to seek refuge with Allaah the Perfect and Most High from shaytaan, for he will then leave him alone – with the permission of Allaah.
And he should not pay attention to such whispering and not be affected by it, because any whispering which occurs to him, can occur to anyone, and it even happened to the Companions radiyAllaahu’anhum and they disliked it.
So if someone dislikes being whispered to in this manner, and he dislikes bad thoughts in relation to Allaah the Perfect and Most High or in relation to His Messenger (ﷺ) or in relation to the Religion, then he should not verbalize (these bad thoughts), for this is a sign of his faith. As for if he were to verbalize such thoughts, then this is what would cause him harm.
And may Allaah extol and send perfect peace and security upon our Messenger Muhammad and his family and his Companions.
[From maa tayassara wa tahassala min duroos il Qur’aan Vol 2 p541. Translated by Adnaan ibn Salman]
From the Foreward by Sh ibn Baaz rahimahullaah:
All praise is due to Allaah alone, and may He extol and send perfect peace and security on the final Prophet and upon his family and his Companions. To proceed:
So I came across this valuable concise creed, which our brother the great scholar, the noble shaikh Muhammad ibn Saalih al-‘Uthaymeen compiled. I listened to all of it and found that it comprises an explanation of the creed of Ahl-us-Sunnah wal-Jamaa’ah in the topic of the Oneness of Allaah and His Names and Attributes, and in the topics of belief in the Angels, the Books, the Messenger, the Last Day and in Pre-decree, its good and its bad.
And he has excelled in gathering these beneficial topics together, and he has mentioned what every student of knowledge and every Muslim needs to know regarding their belief in Allaah, His Angels, His Books, His Messengers, in the Last Day and in Pre-decree, its good and its bad. And he has included numerous beneficial points which you may not find in many of the books and treatises on ‘aqeedah. So may Allaah reward him with good, and may He increase him in knowledge and guidance, and may He bring about benefit through this book and all of his writings. And may He make us and him, and all of our brothers rightly guided guides and callers to Allaah upon clear knowledge. Indeed He is All-Hearing and Near.
Dictated by the one who is poor and in need of Allaah the Most High – ‘Abdul-‘Aziz ibn ‘Abdullaah ibn Baaz, may Allaah forgive him. And may Allaah extol and send perfect peace and security on our Messenger Muhammad and his family and his Companions.
Download the book here:
References used by Abu Talhah rahimahullaah in compiling explanations of the ahadeeth in Riyaad-us–Saaliheen:
by Abu Muhammad al-Hasan ibn ‘Alee ibn Khalf al Barbahaaree [d.329 H]
Explanation by Shaikh Saalih ibn Fawzaan al-Fawzaan
Showing Kindness and Dutifulness to one’s Parents
And they [Ahl-us-Sunnah wal-Jamaa’ah] command with being kind and dutiful to one’s parents
__________
And this is because of the magnitude of their right.
And Allaah has not made anyone’s right follow His right or the right of His Messenger except that of the parents, so He said:
وَاعْبُدُوا اللَّهَ وَلَا تُشْرِكُوا بِهِ شَيْئًا ۖ وَبِالْوَالِدَيْنِ إِحْسَانًا
Worship Allaah and join none with Him in worship, and do good to parents [4:36]
So the right of the Messenger is included within the command to worship Allaah, because worship cannot be correctly established until it is based upon the right of the Messenger ‘alaihisalaatuwassalaam, through loving him and following his way. That is why it is included in His statement, “Worship Allaah and join none with Him in worship”. How could one worship Allaah except through the way and example of the Messenger sallallaahu’alaihiwasallam? So when one worships Allaah in accordance with the legislation of the Messenger, then one would have fulfilled his right.
Then after this comes the right of the parents. So the parents undergo difficulty because of the child, particularly the mother. Allaah the Exalted said:
وَوَصَّيْنَا الْإِنسَانَ بِوَالِدَيْهِ إِحْسَانًا ۖ حَمَلَتْهُ أُمُّهُ كُرْهًا وَوَضَعَتْهُ كُرْهًا
And We have enjoined on man to be dutiful and kind to his parents. His mother bears him with hardship and she brings him forth with hardship [46:15]
And in another aayah:
وَوَصَّيْنَا الْإِنسَانَ بِوَالِدَيْهِ حَمَلَتْهُ أُمُّهُ وَهْنًا عَلَىٰ وَهْنٍ
And We have enjoined on man (to be dutiful and good) to his parents. His mother bore him in weakness and hardship upon weakness and hardship [31:14]
So the mother encounters difficulty during pregnancy and childbirth, and after childbirth, and the mercy and kindness she shows to her child is greater than that of the father for him. Therefore she is the most deserving of the people for one’s companionship and kind treatment over and above even the father.
A man asked, “O Messenger of Allaah, who is the most deserving of my companionship?”. He said, “Your mother”. He said, “Then who?”. He said, “Your mother”. He said, “Then who?”. He said, “Your mother”. Then on the fourth occasion he said, “Then your father”.[1]
And the father likewise encounters difficulty regarding his children, and he worries about that which troubles them and he is happy with that which pleases them and he strives for everything that would comfort them and put them at ease and which would ensure that they have a good life. He would travel high and low to earn a livelihood for himself and for his children.
So both the mother and the father have a right, whatever you were to do for them in terms of actions, it would not fulfill their right and for this reason Allaah ‘azza wajal said:
وَاخْفِضْ لَهُمَا جَنَاحَ الذُّلِّ مِنَ الرَّحْمَةِ وَقُل رَّبِّ ارْحَمْهُمَا كَمَا رَبَّيَانِي صَغِيرًا
And say: “My Lord! Bestow on them Your Mercy as they did bring me up when I was small.” [17:24]
So their right is from before, in that they raised you when you were small when you were not able to benefit or harm yourself. So it is obligatory to show kindness to them. And being dutiful to one’s parents is an individual obligation by consensus. It is for this reason that the Prophet sallallaahu’alaihiwasallam gave precedence to this over jihaad in the way of Allaah, as in the Hadeeth of Ibn Mas’ood. He said, I said, “O Messenger of Allaah! Which of the actions is most beloved to Allaah?”. He said, “Performing the prayer on time”. I said, “Then what?”. He said, “Being kind and dutiful to one’s parents”. I said, “Then what?”. He said, “Jihaad in the way of Allaah”.[2]
The parents are the mother and the father. As for the grandfather and grandmother, then one must show them kind treatment, but it does not equal that shown to one’s parents. This is because the grandparents don’t undergo that which the parents undergo from difficulty, giving attention to and supervising their children. So showing them [the grandparents] kindness is obligatory in the sense of keeping the ties and they are the relations who are most deserving of this. However, regarding al-Birr, or showing kindness and being dutiful, then this is for the mother and the father.
However, what does ‘al-Birr’ mean?
Al-Birr is to try to bring about good as far as one is able, and to restrict harm. Bringing about good in terms of wealth, serving them, and trying to make them happy by, for example, being cheerful, talking to them nicely and treating them well and trying to do all that one can to please them.
It is for this reason that the correct opinion is that it is obligatory upon the children to serve the father and mother, so long as this does not harm the son. So if it were to harm him, then it would not be obligatory to serve them, except in a case of necessity. And therefore we say: Indeed obedience to them is obligatory in that which benefits them and does not harm the son. As for that which harms him, whether this harm is in terms of the religion, such as their commanding him to leave something which is obligatory or to do something which is forbidden, then there is no obedience to them in this; or if this harm is in terms of the worldly affairs, then it is not obligatory to obey them. As for wealth, then it is obligatory upon him to treat them kindly through spending freely upon them, even if it is a large amount, so long as this does not harm him, and he is not dependent upon it. In addition the father is specifically allowed to take from the wealth of his son as he wishes, so long as it does not harm him.
When we reflect upon the state of people today, we find that many of them do not treat their parents kindly rather they openly disobey them and treat them badly. You would find someone being good to his friends and not tiring of sitting with them. However, if he were to sit with his father or mother for just an hour in the day, you would find him restless as though he were on hot coals. So this is not from kind treatment. Rather the one who shows kindness is one who opens his heart to his mother and father and serves them and is devoted to them and who has the utmost eagerness to please them with everything that he is able to do.
And as it is commonly said, “Al-Birr is an investment”. For indeed if someone is good to his parents], then he will receive a great reward in the next life, and he will even be repaid for it in this life. So good or bad treatment of one’s parents is like, as is commonly said, “an investment”, or a loan. If you had been good to your parents, then your children will be good to you, and if you had been disobedient to your parents, then your children will be disobedient to you.
And there are many reports, that from the people there are those who treated their parents well, and their children then treated them well; likewise regarding disobedience there are reports which show that those whose children are disobedient had likewise been disobedient to their parents.
So Ahl-us-Sunnah wal-Jamaa’ah command with being kind and dutiful to one’s parents.
[Taken from Sharh ul-‘Aqeedat-il-Waasitiyyah by Shaikh Ibn ‘Uthaimeen p673-676; Daaruth-Thurayyaa edition 1421 (2000). Translated by Adnaan ibn Salman.]
__________
[1] Reported by Al-Bukhaaree in the Book of Good Manners, Chapter: Who is the Most Deserving of One’s Companionship; and in Muslim in the Book of Kind Treatment and Keeping the Ties.
[2] Reported by Al-Bukhaaree in the Book of Good Manners, Chapter: Kind treatment and Keeping the Ties and Muslim in the Book of Eemaan.
ittibaa.com 