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Tazkiyah & Tasawwuf
Posted by Moosaa ibn John Richardson

The term “tazkiyah” is from the verb “zak-kaa yuzak-kee” and the idea of making “tazkiyah of one’s nafs” is mentioned in the Qur’aan with two different ideas:

[1] Purifying one’s self (or others)from shirk, insincerity and/or disobedience. (see Soorah ash-Shams, an-Naazi’aat, ‘Abasa 2x, and al-A’laa for self-purification; for purifying others through teaching see: Soorah al-Jumu’ah the first verse and Aali Imraan:164)

[2] Claiming purity or piety, claiming that someone is “zakee” (see an-Najm: 32 – meaning “Do not claim that you are pure!” and Nisaa’:49)

It is also used in the books of fiqh (and some angles of tafseer may support it from some verses) to refer to the payment of zakaat, fulaan yuzakkee i.e. somebody pays zakaat. This may be included in the general meaning of the first one above, since the payer of zakaat actually gets his wealth purified by the payment of the zakaat, and Allaah knows best.

So, in brief: a newsletter or or website called “tazkiyyah” is most likely claiming to pass on the teachings of the messenger of Allaah sallallaahu ‘alayhe wa sallam, teachings that purify people of impure beliefs and practices, so there is no problem in that name, in shaa’ Allaah.

As for the issue of “tasaw-wuf” then it comes from “fulaan tasaw-wafa ithaa labisa as-soof” somebody who does tasawwuf is someone who wears a woolen garment, so the people who live in cold places and wear wool jackets are mutasawwifoon, people who wear soof (wool). This was done in the early years of Islaam by ascetic Muslims who gave little concern for worldly possessions. Many of them were people of Sunnah upon the ‘aqeedah of the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu ‘alayhe wa sallam), nothing to do with what we call today “soofees” – sects of deviation differing from the creed of the Messenger (sallallaahu ‘alayhe wa sallam). They wore wool because there was little to no use for the material in hot climates and thus it was extremely cheap as a material or even free. As time went on, people who were ascetic commonly wore wool, and thus it took on a linguistic meaning that asceticism could be known by tasawwuf (the wearing of wool), and then the word tasawwuf became used to refer directly to indifference to wordly matters. It became a synonym for “zuhd” (asceticism, or indifference to or distace oneself from worldly pleasures).

So the scholars of Ahlus-Sunnah who praised someone for tasaw-wuf, they meant zuhd, not heretic beliefs, may Allaah bless you.

Now in later times, when a person leaves Ahlus-Sunnah and deviates into one of the Soofee cults, we say fulaan tasaw-wafa (taban-naa math-habas-soofiyyah), like we say tajah-hama when someone adopts the dogma of the jahmiyyah. I hope this provides some insight, and Allaah knows best.

Source

Related Links:

• Tazkiyah – Purification of Soul

Dream of the King of Greater Syria and his Trip to Madeenah

Source : Transcribed by Muhammad Shahzad min Hind from the lecture of Dr. Saleh As-Saleh.

You can listen to lecture here

Bismillah hirrahamanirraheem , Alhamdu lillahhi Rabbil Aalameen

We begin by relating to you the story of the just king Nooruddin Mahmoud zunki , May Allah’s mercy be upon him, that took place in the year 557 after hijra. He was ruling the Greater Syria area and he saw a magnificent dream, which made him go to the city of Madina. He saw Prophet Muhammad sallahu alaihi wassalam three times in one night and in every time Prophet Muhammad sallahu alaihi wassalam telling him O’ Mahmoud save me from these two individuals while pointing towards to blond individuals in front of him. So the king summoned his minister before dawn and told him about this so the minister said this is a matter which may have taken place in Madina, the Madina of Prophet Muhammad sallahu alaihi wassalam.

So he prepared himself and quickly hastened over 1000 mounts and horses and other than that until he entered in Madina quietly and secretly with his minster and he came to Prophet Muhammad sallahu alaihi wassalam’s masjid not knowing what to do. So the minister said do you recognize these two individuals if you see them ?. He said yes .So he summoned the people to give them charity and distributed to them plenty of gold and silver and he said that no one in Madina should stay except, known in madina should stay but rather should come to receive the charity. Only two people didn’t come to collect the Sadaqa. They remained close by the masjid from Andulisya (currently Spain), in a place which in the direction of the qibla from the side of the apartment of Prophet Muhammad sallahu alaihi wassalam close to the house of Umar Ibn Al Khattab that is where they stayed so they came or he summoned them to come for the sadqa, they refused and they said that “what we have is sufficient. We don’t accept anything”. So he stressed they should come and insisted and so they were brought. When the minister saw them, he said to him are they the same individuals? So he asked them on their condition and what brought them here .they said “we came to be close by the Prophet Muhammad sallahu alaihi wasalam” . He said you should speak the truth and repeated the question several times until they confessed that they were christians and that they were on a mission to remove the body of the Prophet Muhammad sallahu alaihi wassalam in agreement with their teams and he found that they dug a tunnel from the side of the qibla by the wall of the masjid in the direction of the Prophet Muhammad sallahu alaihi wassalam’s apartment and they collected the dust of the soil in a well inside their residence. So he beheaded them outside the masjid and returned to as shams and he commanded that the area around the Prophet Muhammad sallahu alaihi wassalam’s site of burial be dug and he commanded that lead be poured around lest some enemies or to prevent anyone from reaching Prophet Muhammad sallahu alaihi wassalam’s site of burial .

Check other [Inspirational]

Have patience and read the below interesting dream and take heed.

The Interesting Dream of the Prophet Sallalahu Alahi wa Sallam

Sahih Bukhari Volume 9, Book 87, Number 171: [Interpretation of Dreams ] : Narrated Samura bin Jundub:

Allah’s Apostle very often used to ask his companions, “Did anyone of you see a dream?” So dreams would be narrated to him by those whom Allah wished to tell.

One morning the Prophet said,
“Last night two persons came to me (in a dream) and woke me up and said to me, ‘Proceed!’
I set out with them and we came across a man Lying down, and behold, another man was standing over his head, holding a big rock. Behold, he was throwing the rock at the man’s head, injuring it. The rock rolled away and the thrower followed it and took it back. By the time he reached the man, his head returned to the normal state. The thrower then did the same as he had done before. I said to my two companions, ‘Subhan Allah! Who are these two persons?’ They said, ‘Proceed!’

So we proceeded and came to a man Lying flat on his back and another man standing over his head with an iron hook, and behold, he would put the hook in one side of the man’s mouth and tear off that side of his face to the back (of the neck) and similarly tear his nose from front to back and his eye from front to back. Then he turned to the other side of the man’s face and did just as he had done with the other side. He hardly completed this side when the other side returned to its normal state. Then he returned to it to repeat what he had done before. I said to my two companions, ‘Subhan Allah! Who are these two persons?’ They said to me, ‘Proceed!’

So we proceeded and came across something like a Tannur (a kind of baking oven, a pit usually clay-lined for baking bread).” I think the Prophet said, “In that oven there was much noise and voices.” The Prophet added, “We looked into it and found naked men and women, and behold, a flame of fire was reaching to them from underneath, and when it reached them, they cried loudly. I asked them, ‘Who are these?’ They said to me, ‘Proceed!’

And so we proceeded and came across a river.” I think he said, “…. red like blood.” The Prophet added, “And behold, in the river there was a man swimming, and on the bank there was a man who had collected many stones. Behold. while the other man was swimming, he went near him. The former opened his mouth and the latter (on the bank) threw a stone into his mouth whereupon he went swimming again. He returned and every time the performance was repeated, I asked my two companions, ‘Who are these (two) persons?’ They replied, ‘Proceed! Proceed!’

And we proceeded till we came to a man with a repulsive appearance, the most repulsive appearance, you ever saw a man having! Beside him there was a fire and he was kindling it and running around it. I asked my companions, ‘Who is this (man)?’ They said to me, ‘Proceed! Proceed!’

So we proceeded till we reached a garden of deep green dense vegetation, having all sorts of spring colors. In the midst of the garden there was a very tall man and I could hardly see his head because of his great height, and around him there were children in such a large number as I have never seen. I said to my companions, ‘Who is this?’ They replied, ‘Proceed! Proceed!’

So we proceeded till we came to a majestic huge garden, greater and better than I have ever seen! My two companions said to me, ‘Go up and I went up’ The Prophet added, “So we ascended till we reached a city built of gold and silver bricks and we went to its gate and asked (the gatekeeper) to open the gate, and it was opened and we entered the city and found in it, men with one side of their bodies as handsome as the handsomest person you have ever seen, and the other side as ugly as the ugliest person you have ever seen. My two companions ordered those men to throw themselves into the river. Behold, there was a river flowing across (the city), and its water was like milk in whiteness. Those men went and threw themselves in it and then returned to us after the ugliness (of their bodies) had disappeared and they became in the best shape.” The Prophet further added, “My two companions (angels) said to me, ‘This place is the Eden Paradise, and that is your place.’ I raised up my sight, and behold, there I saw a palace like a white cloud! My two companions said to me, ‘That (palace) is your place.’ I said to them, ‘May Allah bless you both! Let me enter it.’ They replied, ‘As for now, you will not enter it, but you shall enter it (one day)

I said to them, ‘I have seen many wonders tonight. What does all that mean which I have seen?’
They replied, ‘We will inform you:

As for the first man you came upon whose head was being injured with the rock, he is the symbol of the one who studies the Quran and then neither recites it nor acts on its orders, and sleeps, neglecting the enjoined prayers.

As for the man you came upon whose sides of mouth, nostrils and eyes were torn off from front to back, he is the symbol of the man who goes out of his house in the morning and tells so many lies that it spreads all over the world. And

those naked men and women whom you saw in a construction resembling an oven, they are the adulterers and the adulteresses;,

and the man whom you saw swimming in the river and given a stone to swallow, is the eater of usury (Riba) and

the bad looking man whom you saw near the fire kindling it and going round it, is Malik, the gatekeeper of Hell and

the tall man whom you saw in the garden, is Abraham and the children around him are those children who die with Al-Fitra (the Islamic Faith).”

The narrator added: Some Muslims asked the Prophet, “O Allah’s Apostle! What about the children of pagans?” The Prophet replied, “And also the children of pagans.”

The Prophet added, “My two companions added,

‘The men you saw half handsome and half ugly were those persons who had mixed an act that was good with another that was bad, but Allah forgave them.’”

Source:Sahih Bukhari Volume 9, Book 87, Number 171: [Interpretation of Dreams ]

Related Links:

• Major Sins (Al Kaba’ir)- Imaam Shamsud Deen ad-Dhahabi – PDF file [Book] [PDF]
• The Major Sins – Al-Kabair (Excellent One)
• Al-Kabair – The Major Sins – [Based on ad-Dhahabi's famous work and The Path to Paradise by M.Tahlawi]

A righteous man was once asked to tell the story of the pivotal moment of his life, the moment in which he first began to apply the teachings of Islam, and the following was his answer:

When I was a young man, I would not hesitate to perpetrate any sin that was made available to me. Then, one day, I saw a young woman who was perhaps the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. Much tempted by her, I indicated to her that I wanted her to approach me. She seemed nervous, but I thought that she would probably agree to satisfy my sexual desires for money. She approached me with what seemed to be a great deal of trepidation, and when she actually stood before me, she looked extremely terrified.

Feeling sorry for her, I said, ‘Do not fear, for I will not harm you.’

But my words did not lessen her terrible fright in the least; in fact, her situation worsened. She began to tremble like a palm tree leaf trembles with the wind.

I said, ‘Tell me your story.’

She said, ‘By Allah, o my brother, never before this day have I offered my body in this way. Dire need is what has driven me to this, for I have three daughters who have not eaten a single morsel of food for three days now. It was pity for them that brought me to this low point in my life.’

For the first time in my life, I felt pity; her story moved me, and I no longer entertained the intention of taking advantage of her. After she told me where she lived, I took a great deal of money, clothing and food to her house. When I returned to my house, I told my mother what had happened.

My mother knew that I had a book in which I would record all of my evil deeds, and so she said to me, ‘My son, you are a man who has never performed a good deed except for the good deed that you performed today. I know that you have a book in which you record your evil exploits, go now and write in it your good deed.’

I stood up, went to my book, opened it, and found that all of its pages were blank- except for the first page on which was written a single line.

إِنَّ الْحَسَنَاتِ يُذْهِبْنَ السَّيِّئَاتِ

Verily, the good deeds remove the evil deeds (i.e. small sins)

[Hud : 114]

At that very moment, I raised my hands to the sky and said, ‘By your Might and Majesty, never again will I disobey You.’ "

The above is taken from Stories of Repentance published by dar-us-salam.com

Related Links:

• Repentance – by Shaykh Muhammad Saleh Al Uthaymeen
• Between The Past And The Future – by Imâm Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah – al-Fawaa’id, pp 151-152 Al-Istiqaamah, No. 2
• Obstacles that Prevent One from Making Repentance – By Shaikh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah [PDF]
  Taken from the Book "At Tawba" – A very beneficial ebook that clarifies the steps that the believer needs to take in order to make a full correct Tawbah to his Lord and Sustainer.
• The State of Repentance - by Imâm Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah

AsSalam Alaikum, beautiful one !!
Don’t miss it !!

~~~~~~

Zaid: As-Salamu ‘Alykum
Abdur-Rahmaan: Wa-Alykum As-salam…..how was your volunteer experience at the seminar?

Zaid: Alhumdullilah. But…. I worked so hard for this event but no one came to me and said any thanks or any words of appreciation!
Abdur-Rahmaan: Perhaps if you niyyah was correct, you wouldn’t be thinking like that. If only you were doing it sincerely for the sake of Allah and expecting reward only from Him. I think you need to see a heart specialist and get some x-rays!

Zaid: What?!?! But I’m not sick?
Abdur-Rahmaan: I am talking about the hidden disease of Riya. Its very hard to recognize. Imagine a black ant over a black road on a dark night; that’s how hard it is to recognize it. Riya means "to perform acts which are pleasing to Allah, with the intention of pleasing other than Allah." You need to x-ray your heart and find the intentions behind your actions.

Zaid: Hmm … how do recognize this disease? What are the symptoms?
Abdur-Rahmaan: The primary cause of riya is a weakness of eman. When a person does not have strong faith in Allah, he will prefer the admiration of people over the pleasure of Allah. Here are some of the symptoms:

1. Love of Parise: You must have heard the hadith about first three people to be thrown into the fire of Hell: the scholar, the martyr and the person who gave his money in charity. All three of these people desired the praise of people, over and above the pleasure of Allah.
2. Fear of Criticism: Some people obey certain commandments of lslam, not for the sake of Allah, but because they fear people will look down on them and criticize them if they does not do it. eg: praying in jam’ah, woman wearing hijab at mosque etc

Lastly, if you discover that you are doing good deeds only in public, and doing evil deeds when you are alone, this is an indication that you are falling into riya! Tell me one thing–what if I ask you to volunteer, for example, in a parking lot, where no one would see you and wouldn’t know about it. Would you do it?

Zaid: Hmmmm … I guess you are right. How do I treat and cure this disease?
Abdur-Rahmaan: Here are some of the best ways:

1. Duaa! The prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wa salam) taught the specific duaa for riya:[O
   Allaah, I take refuge in You lest I should commit shirk with You
   knowingly and I seek Your forgiveness for what I do unknowingly.]
2. Hiding one’s good deeds. Do them where nobody can see!
3. Reflection upon’s oneself’s shortcomings.
4. Accompanying the pious (and good companionship helps with many things).
5. Knowledge of Riya, the evilness of it.
6. Always ask yourself why you’re doing something, and if you’d still do it if nobody but Allah knew about it.

Zaid: Jazakallah khairan bro, any final piece of advice?
Abdur-Rahmaan: Usually when I feel like getting praised or someone praises me, I remind myself of the response of the righteous slave of Allah when they feed people:

إِنَّمَا نُطْعِمُكُمْ لِوَجْهِ اللَّهِ لَا نُرِيدُ مِنكُمْ جَزَاء وَلَا شُكُوراً. إِنَّا نَخَافُ مِن رَّبِّنَا يَوْماً عَبُوساً قَمْطَرِيراً

Translation: We feed you only for the countenance of Allah . We wish not from you reward or gratitude. Indeed, We fear from our Lord a Day austere and distressful. [Surah
Al-Insaan, verses 9-10]

Al-Khushoo’ and al-Khashyah

Both of them mean utter debasement in front of Allaah the Mighty and Majestic and total submission to Him, openly and in secret. This comes along with perfect love for Allaah the Blessed and Exalted. Due to this, the Scholars divided between al-khashyah (dread) and al-khawf (fear). They said, “Indeed, al-khashyah is fear accompanied by glorification, whereas al-khawf can be accompanied by glorification and it can occur without glorification as well.” And this is true, since a person can fear an enemy. However, his fear of the enemy does not mean that he glorifies him. And he could fear a predatory animal, but his fear of that animal does not mean that he glorifies it. However, al-khashyah cannot be applied unless it is accompanied by glorification.

Allaah the Mighty and Majestic said,
“And they stand in awe for fear of Him.” [Sooratul-Anbiyaa‘ 21:28]

Likewise, Allaah the Mighty and Majestic said about the Scholars who are the best of the creation,
“Indeed, those who fear Allaah the most from amongst His creation are the Scholars.” [Soorah Faatir 35:28]

That is, the Scholars of the Sharee’ah, the Scholars of the Book of Allaah and the Sunnah of His Prophet (’alayhis-salaatu was-salaam) who act upon their knowledge. So whoever observes this khashyah for other than Allaah, then he has committed Shirk. Allaah the Blessed and Exalted warned against that in His statement,

“So do not fear them, but fear Me.” [Sooratul-Baqarah 2:150]

Khasyah (awe) is fear founded upon knowledge of the greatness of the one whom you fear.
It is something more particular than khawf. For example, if you fear someone but don’t know whether he is able to catch you or not, then this is khawf. But when you fear someone and know that he is fully able to seize hold of you then this is khashyah.

Taken from the below:
1. THE PATH TO ATTAINING CLARIFICATION CONCERNING THE THREE FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES
BY THE NOBLE SHAYKH ZAYD IBN MUHAMMAD IBN HAADEE AL-MADKHALEE
PREPARED BY FAWAAZ IBN ’ALEE AL-MADKHALEE

2. A Gift For The Intellect In Explanation Of The Three Fundamental Principles Of Islaam : By Sheikh Ubaid Al-Jaabiree (Hafizahullah)

Related Links:
Obstacles to Khushoo` and Virtues of Prayer at Home and In the Mosque – Hussain Al-Awaaishah [PDF]

Man is fickle when Ease comes to Him after Difficulty

Source: Tafsir Ibn Kathir

(49. Man does not get tired of asking for good; but if an evil touches him, then he gives up all hope and is lost in despair.) (50. And truly, if We give him a taste of mercy from Us, after some adversity has touched him, he is sure to say: "This is due to my (merit); I think not that the Hour will be established. But if I am brought back to my Lord, surely there will be for me the best with Him. "Then, We verily will show to the disbelievers what they have done, and We shall make them taste a severe torment.) (51. And when We show favor to man, he turns away and becomes arrogant; but when evil touches him, then he has recourse to long supplications.)

Allah tells us that man never gets bored of asking his Lord for good things, such as wealth, physical health, etc., but if evil touches him — i.e., trials and difficulties or poverty –

(then he gives up all hope and is lost in despair.), i.e., he thinks that he will never experience anything good again.

(And truly, if We give him a taste of mercy from Us, after some adversity has touched him, he is sure to say: "This is due to my (merit)…”) means, if something good happens to him or some provision comes to him after a period of difficulty, he says, `this is because of me, because I deserve this from my Lord.’

(I think not that the Hour will be established.) means, he does not believe that the Hour will come. So when he is given some blessing, he becomes careless, arrogant and ungrateful, as Allah says:

(Nay! Verily, man does transgress. Because he considers himself self-sufficient.) (96:6)

(But if I am brought back to my Lord, surely there will be for me the best with Him.) means, `if there is a Hereafter after all, then my Lord will be generous and kind to me just as He was in this world.’ So he expects Allah to do him favors in spite of his bad deeds and lack of certain faith. Allah says:

(Then, We verily will show to the disbelievers what they have done, and We shall make them taste a severe torment.) Thus Allah threatens punishment and vengeance to those whose conduct and belief is like that.

(And when We show favor to man, he turns away and becomes arrogant;) means, he turns away from doing acts of obedience and is too proud to obey the commands of Allah. This is like the Ayah:

(But ﴿Fir`awn﴾ turned away along with his hosts) (51:39).

(but when evil touches him,) means, difficulties,

(then he has recourse to long supplications.) means, he asks at length for one thing. Long supplications are those which are long on words and short on meaning. The opposite is concise speech which is brief but full of meaning. And Allah says:

(And when harm touches man, he invokes Us, lying on his side, or sitting or standing. But when We have removed his harm from him, he passes on as if he had never invoked Us for a harm that touched him!) (10:12)

Source :
Quran : Tafsir Ibn Kathir : Surah List : Surah No.41 :(Fussilat) :Man is fickle when Ease comes to Him after Difficulty

Some sayings of the Salaf

Mâlik ibn Dînâr (rahimahullâh) said,

“Whoever proposed to the world, then the world would not be satisfied until he gave up his Deen as dowry.”

Bakr ibn ‘Abdullâh al-Muzanî (rahimahullâh) said,

“If you see someone older than you then respect him saying, ‘He has beaten me to Islâm and righteous action.’ If you see someone younger than you then respect him saying to yourself, ‘I have beaten him in sins.’ If the people honour you then say, ‘That is from the grace of Allâh, but I do not deserve it.’ If they degrade you then say , ‘This happened as a consequence of a previous sin.

Sufyân ath-Thawrî (rahimahullâh) said,

“Whoever’s knowledge makes him weep, then he is a scholar (‘âlim). Allâh the Most High said, ‘Verily those who were given knowledge before it, when it is recited to them they fall down on their faces in humble prostration.’ [Sûrah Banî
Isrâ’îl (17):107] He also said, ‘When the verses (âyât) of Ar-Rahmân (The Most Merciful) is recited to them they fall in prostration weeping.’ ”

Fudayl ibn ‘Iyâd (rahimahullâh) said,

“A believer plants a palm tree and fears that thorns will grow. The hypocrites plant thorns expecting ripe dates to grow!”

Once ‘Umar ibn ‘Abdul ‘Azîz (rahimahullâh) was advised,

“O ‘Umar, beware of being the ally of Allâh in open, while being His enemy in secret. If one’s nature in open and secret do not equate then he is a hypocrite, and the hypocrites occupy the lowest level in Hellfire.”

Ahmad ibn Harb (rahimahullâh) said,

“There is nothing more beneficial to a Muslim’s heart than to mix with the righteous and to watch their actions, while nothing is more harmful to the heart than mixing with the sinners and watching their actions

Ahmad ibn Harb (rahimahullâh) would say,

“If six mannerisms are gathered in a woman, her goodness is perfected: Guarding the five prayers, yielding to her husband, pleasing her Lord, guarding her tongue from backbiting and gossip, forsaking worldly possessions, and being patient following a tragedy.”

Yahyâ ibn Mu‘âdh (rahimahullâh) said,

“Renew your hearts with the remembrance of Allâh because it rushes into forgetfulness.”

‘Abdullâh ibn Mubârak (rahimahullâh) would say,

“The world is the believer’s prison. The best action in the prison is patience and control of one’s anger. The believer has no country in the world, His land will be there tomorrow in the Afterlife.”

One of the Salaf used to say,

“If you want to be close to Allâh then put an iron wall between yourself and your desires.”

Fudayl ibn ‘Iyâd (rahimahullâh) said,

“If Iblîs conquers the son Âdam with one of the three [things] he says: I will not seek anything else from him – 1) being fond of himself, 2) deeming his deeds to be plentiful, and 3) forgetfulness of his sins.”

Al-Hasan (rahimahullâh) said,

“If shaytân saw you consistently obeying Allâh he will seek you time and time again. If he sees your consistency he grows weary of you and rejects you. If you changed, however, each and every time, then he begins to have hope in you.”

Ash-Shâfi‘î (rahimahullâh) said,

“Whoever spread gossip for you spreads gossip against you. Whoever relates tales to you will tell tales about you. Whoever when you please him says about you what is not in you, when you anger him will say about you what is not in you.”

Fudayl ibn ‘Iyâd (rahimahullâh) said,

“Whoever’s admonition is much, his friends will be few.”

“If you can be unknown, be so; it doesn’t matter if you are not known and it doesn’t matter if you are not praised. It doesn’t matter if you are blameworthy according to people if you are praiseworthy with Allah, the Mighty and Majestic.”

Al Fudayl ibn Ayyadh, Al Bayhaqi, Al Zuhd Al Kabir p100.
Source: Siyar ‘Alam al Nubala’ of Imaam ad-Dhahabee

Taken from : http://theclearsunnah.wordpress.com/2010/01/22/some-sayings-of-the-salaf/

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The Difference between Taubah and Istaghfar
Ibn Qayyim Al-Jawziyah (751H)

There are two types of Istaghfar;
1. Istaghfar that is mentioned alone.
2. Istaghfar that is mentioned with Taubah.

The Istaghfar that is mentioned alone is found in the words of Nuh (peace and blessings be upon him) :

“I said (to them): ‘Ask forgiveness from your Lord; Verily, He is Oft-Forgiving; ‘He will send rain to you in abundance [ nuh 10-11]

and in the words of Salih (peace and blessings be upon him) :

Why seek you not the Forgiveness of Allah, that you may receive mercy?” [ an-naml 46]

Allah also said,:

“…and ask Allah for His Forgiveness. Truly, Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most-Merciful.[ Al-Baqarah 199]

“And Allah would not punish them while you (Muhammad) are amongst them, nor will He punish them while they seek (Allah’s) Forgiveness[Al-Anfal 33]

Istaghfar mentioned with Taubah is found in the following verses from the Most Merciful’s speech.

Seek the forgiveness of your Lord, and turn to Him in repentance, that He may grant you good enjoyment, for a term appointed, and bestow His abounding Grace to every owner of grace [ Hud 3]

Ask forgiveness of your Lord and then repent to Him, He will send you (from the sky) abundant rain.[Hud 52] .

Also Prophet Salih’s words to his people have Taubah and Istaghfar mentioned together

He brought you forth from the earth and settled you therein, then ask forgiveness of Him and turn to Him in repentance.[ Hud 61]

and Shuaib’s speech as well has these two actions joined together.

“And ask forgiveness of your Lord and turn unto Him in repentance. Verily, my Lord is Most Merciful, Most Loving.” [ Hud 90]

Al-Istaghfar is like Taubah and in reality it is. Contained in Istaghfar is the request of Allah’s forgiveness. Allah’s forgiveness is the removal of the sin, its affect and protection from the sin’s harm…

Al-Istaghfar contains At-Taubah and vice versa. Both of these actions are included in each other. Whenever both of these words are mentioned together Al-Istaghfar is protection from the consequence of any previous evil. At-Taubah on the other hand is to return to Allah obediently and the search of His protection from the sin’s effect in the future.

There are two sins. The sin that was committed. Hence a person does Al-Istaghfar- seeking protection from its harm and evil. And then there is the second sin which is the one that is feared to occur in the future.

At-Taubah is the resolution to avoid the sin and penitence to Allah. Penitence to Allah holds two things. The first is the act of returning to Allah in order to be protected from the result of previous sin and evil. The second thing held in At-Taubah is the search for protection against evil that might befall you in the future resulting from the evil of yourself and deeds.

The sinner is like a driver who takes a road that leads to his death. That road doesn’t take him where he intended to go. He is ordered to take alternative route and travel the road that leads to his safety. That alternative route takes him where he wanted to go and as a result he is successful.

Therefore in this instance there are two things that are necessary.;

1. Separation from something
2. Recourse to a different way

At-Taubah is the recourse and Al-Istaghfar is the separation. Whenever these words are mentioned separately one is included in the other. Allah knows best, but that’s why He said, “”And ask forgiveness of your Lord and turn unto Him in repentance “ [ Hud 90]

This is the recourse to the path of truth after separation from the path of falsehood.

In conclusion, Al-Istaghfar is from the chapter of the removal of harm. And At-Taubah is from the chapter of requesting a good outcome. Therefore Al-Maghfirah is protection against sin’s evil and At-Taubah is the obtainment of good after the protection is sought. Each one is included in the other when mentioned alone. Allah knows best

Taken from Madarajus Sallikeen
Translated by Abu Aaliyah Abdullah ibn Dwight Battle

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Chatting after ‘Isha’ Salat

Source : The Clarified Ruling Of Mistakes Done In Salat By: Mashhur Hasan Al Salman Translated by: Iman Zakariyah Abu Gazie

Abu Barzah (Radhi Allaahu Anhu) said that ‘The Muhammad (Sallalaahu Alaihi wa Sallam) used to hate sleeping before [performing] ‘Isha’ Salat and chatting after it’.(1)

Abdullah Ibn Mas‘ud (Radhi Allaahu Anhu) narrated that the Muhammad (Sallalaahu Alaihi wa Sallam) said: ‘No one should stay awake late at night after performing ‘Isha’ Salat except a traveler and a praying person’.(2)

According to the aforementioned ahadith, spending the time after performing ‘Isha’ Salat in chatting is detested unless for discussing something needed.

This ruling rests on several rationales:

The first: Not to abandon Qiyamul Lail. Ibn Khuzaimah said: ‘I strongly believe that he (Radhi Allaahu Anhu) detested that one wastes one’s time chatting [after performing ‘Isha’ Salat] because doing so prevents one from performing Qiyamul Lail for one will surely oversleep and will not wake up on time and if one does, one will not be active enough to perform Qiyamul Lail.(3)

The second: If one spends the first hours of the night chatting, then sleeps deeply, one would miss the Fajr Salat(4) or at least miss the Salat with the congregation in the mosque; both are grave sins for missing either is one of the characteristics of the hypocrites. Accordingly, every muslim should be keen to attend the congregation in the mosque when Salat is due and avoid abandoning it. It is incumbent on the Imams of the mosques to encourage muslims to attend the congregational Salat and warn them against Allah’s (Subhanahu wa Taala) punishment and wrath.

(1) Narrated by Al-Bukhari in his “Sahih” (no. 568), Muslim in his “Sahih” (no. 647), Ahmad in “Al-Musnad” (vol. 4 / pp. 420, 423, 424) and Ibn Abi Shaibah in “Al- Musannaf” (vol. 2 / p. 280) and many others.
(2) Narrated by: Ahmad in “Al-Musnad” (vol. 1 / pp. 444, 421, 463 and 375), At- Tayalisi in “Al-Musnad” (vol. 1 / p. 73), Al-Baihaqi in “As-Sunnan Al-Kubra” (vol. 1 / p. 452), Abu Nu‘aim in “Al-Hilyah” (vol. 4 / p. 198) and Al-Marwazi in “Ta‘thim Qadrus Salat” (no. 109). The hadith is authentic.

(3) “Sahih Ibn Kuzaimah” (vol. 2 / p. 292).
(4) “Fathul Bari” (vol. 2 / p. 49).

Shaikh Ibn Baz said: ‘It is impermissible for a muslim to stay awake late at night even for reading Qur’an or seeking knowledge, if doing so makes him miss Fajr Salat with the congregation or miss the Salat itself at its due time. The matter is even worse if one spends the night watching television, playing cards or the like!! Whoever does so has incurred a sin upon himself and deserves Allah’s (Subhanahu wa Taala) punishment and the punishment of those in authority in order to get back to the right path’.(1)

The third: Some of the well-versed scholars believed that the Muhammad (Sallalaahu Alaihi wa Sallam) warned against staying awake late at night after performing ‘Isha’ Salat because after one’s sins are forgiven due to performing Salat, it is not proper to chat with others lest one articulate words that incur sins on oneself. One should preferably go to sleep immediately after being completely free of sins.(2)

Sufyan Ibn ‘Uyaynah said: ‘Having performed ‘Isha’ Salat, I talked [with my companions] then I thought I should not go to sleep as shuch. Accordingly, I performed Wudu’, performed two Rak‘ahs Salat and asked Allah’s (Subhanahu wa Taala) forgiveness. I have not told you this to seek your praise but that you do the same’.(3)

Al-Qasim Ibn Abi Ayyub said: ‘Sa‘id Ibn Jubair used to perform four Rak‘ah Salat after performing ‘Isha’ Salat. Then when I speak to him while being with him at home he would never talk back to me’.(4)

(1) “Al-Fatawa” (vol. 1 / p. 92).
(2) “Ta‘thim Qadris Salat” (vol. 1 / pp. 166-7).
(3) Narrated by: Al-Marwazi in “Ta‘thim Qadris Salat” (no. 113).
(4) Narrated by: Al-Marwazi in “Ta‘thim Qadris Salat” (no. 114).

Khaithamah said: ‘They [i.e. Sahabah] preferred that one goes to sleep immediately after doing Witr Salat’.(1)

(1) Narrated by: Al-Marwazi in “Qiyamul Lail” (p. 102) and “Ta‘thim Qadris Salat” (no. 115).

Related Links:

• Sleeping and going to bed – from Al-Adab al-Mufrad – by Imam Al-Bukhari