Part 2

In the Quran, Allah has revealed the machinations of the hypoctites, He has unveiled their beliefs, their qualities, and made their goals clear so that the believers can be aware of them.’ He

' Allah, Exalted is He says, “The hypocrites are in the lowest level of Hell and you will not find anyone to help them.” [an-Nisd’ (4): 145]

Sifat al Mundfigin 17

divided mankind into three groups in the beginning of Sarah alBagarah: the believer, the disbeliever, and the hypocrite. He mentioned four verses concerning the believers, two verses concerning the disbelievers, and thirteen verses concerning the hypocrites due to their plenitude and the great harm and tribulation they bring to Islim and the Muslims.* The harm they cause to Islam is truly severe for they claim to be Muslims, they claim to aid and support Islam, whereas in reality they are its enemies seeking to destroy it from within, covertly spreading their corruption and ignorance such that the unwary thinks that what they are upon is knowledge and right action.

By Allah! How many strongholds of Islam have they destroyed; how many fortresses have they rendered to ruin; how many signposts of Islam have they effaced; how many raised flags have they lowered; and how many seeds of doubt have they attempted to sow in order to uproot the religion!

Islam and the Muslims have always faced trial and tribulation from them, wave after wave of doubts do they assault at it, all the while thinking that they are doing right,

ME REY SH SA 2518 IT No indeed! They are the corrupters but they are not aware of it. [al-Bagarah (2): 12]

? Allah, Exalted is He says, “The hypocrites are afraid that a chapter may be sent down about them, informing them of what is in their hearts. Say: ‘Go on mocking! Allah will expose everything you are afraid of?” {at-Tawbah (9): 64]

> As stated by Mujahid amongst others. Refer to as-Suyiiti, ad-Durr al-Manthirr

18 Characteristics Of The Hypocrites

2 Ae Abst of cette Ae a 5523 abe Slabplabios) They desire to extinguish Allah’s light with their mouths but Allah will perfect His light though

the disbelievers hate it.

having agreed to abandon the revelation and follow a course other than the one directed by it,

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But they disagreed and split up, dividing into sects, each party exulting in what it had. [alMu’minin (23): 53}

means of specious words.

and because of this,

4 as-Sa‘di, Taysir al-Karim ar-Rabman said, “It is Allah who has undertaken the task of aiding His religion, perfecting the truth with which He sent His Messengers, and manifesting its light in all regions of the earth, even though the disbelievers hate it. Even though they strive to the utmost of their abilities to extinguish His light, defeat and failure is their fate. They are like a person who blows air with his mouth in the direction of the sun in the hope that he can extinguish its fite: never will he be able to do so, rather he just imputes his own intellect with deficiency and doltishness.”

..they took this Qur’an as something to be ignored.

The characteristics of faith are not to be found in their hearts and hence they do not know them; oblivious are they to its pillars and hence do not take care of them; extinguished are the brilliant lights of its stars in their hearts and they do not try to relight them, and the darkness of their thoughts and beliefs has eclipsed the sun of faith such that they no longer see it. They do not accept the guidance of Allah with which He sent His Messengers, they attach no importance to it, and they see nothing wrong in leaving it for their own opinions and beliefs. They have wrenched the texts of revelation of their true status, they have detached them of their importance and definitiveness, and they have submerged them in the obscurity of false interpretations. Subterfuge after subterfuge do they launch against these texts, and it is as if they face them in the same way an unwilling host meets malevolent guests: devoid of acceptance and generosity, all the while forcing himself to host them, yet keeping his distance. They say to these texts, “You have no way to pass by us,’ and if they find no option but to accept them, they do so by prtopounding multifarious plots and concocting various principles. When these texts find way past theit doors, they say, “What have we to do with their literal meanings, they give us no certainty whatsoever!’ and the general masses amongst them say, ‘Sufficient for us is what we find the latter people upon for they were more knowledgeable than the Righteous Predecessors, and firmer and more rightly guided in knowing the proofs and evidences!’ In their view the way of the Salaf is the way of simplicity and soundness of heart because they did not busy themselves with investigating and laying out the principles of rhetoric; instead they merely devoted themselves to doing the

20 Characteristics Of The Hypocrites

obligatory and leaving the prohibited. Therefore the way of the latter people is more deeply rooted in knowledge and wiser whereas the way of the Salaf is greater in ignorance but safer.>

They treat the texts of the Book and Sunnah like the Khalifah is treated in these times: while his name is written on coins and gains superficial mention in the Friday sermons, he has no real authority and it is other men who govern, his judgment is neither heard nor adhered to. They have donned the robes of the people of faith which cover their hearts of misguidance, deception and disbelief. Their tongues are the tongues of Muslims but their hearts are the hearts of those fighting them. They say,

iret hts IL ls Shears ‘We have faith in Allah and the Last Day’ - but they are not believers.

Their capital is deception and scheming, their merchandise is lies and treachery, and their intellect is one that is employed just for this world: believers and disbelievers alike are happy with them and they live in security amongst both,

5 Allah, Exalted is He says, “Look how they invent lies against Allah. That suffices as an outright felony!” [an-Nisd (4); 50)

This verse then describes the first characteristic of hypoctisy: lying, They say with their tongues that which is not in their hearts. This quality is so entrenched in them that even when they spoke words that were true, Allah still called them liars because what they said did not conform to what they believed, “When the hypocrites come to you they say, ‘We bear witness that you are indeed the Messenger of Allah.’ Allah knows that you are indeed His Messenger and Allah bears witness that the hypocrites are certainly liars.” \al-Munéfigin (63): 1]. Refer to the commentary of ibn Kathir to this verse.

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The disease of desites and doubts has consumed their hearts and destroyed them, and evil objectives have permeated their motivations and intentions and corrupted them. Their corruption is so severe that they ate flung to perdition, and the doctors of the religion are unable to cure them,

At-Tabari mentions that Allah deceives them in this world, “The disbelievers should not imagine that the extra time We grant them is good for them. We only allow them more time so they will increase in evildoing. They will have a humiliating punishment.” [Ali ‘Imran (3): 178] and in the Hereafter, “That Day when the men and women of the hypocrites will say to those who have faith, Wait for us so that we can borrow some of your light.’ They will be told, ‘Go back and look for light!’ And a wall well be erected between them with a gate in it, on the inside of which there will be mercy and before whose exterior lies punishment.” |al-Hadid (57): 13]

22 Characteristics Of The Hypocrites

abe BLN AIS Pongo 8g OBKBR ELIE Bs There is a sickness in their hearts and Allah has increased their sickness. They will have a pain-

ful punishment on account of their lies. {al-Bagarab (2): 10}*

Whoever falls prey to the claws of their doubts will have his faith shredded to pieces; whoever allows his heart to open to their vile tribulations will find himself in a burning furnace; and whoever lends an ear to their deceptions will find them coming between him and firm belief. Indeed the corruption they cause on earth is great but most people are unaware,

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At-Tabari gives an example of how this verse was actualised by stating that each time a siirah was revealed of the Quran containing new injunctions, this increased them in their doubts and hence their disease increased, “Each time a st rah is revealed there are some among them who say, Which of you has this increased tn faith?’ As for those who believe, it increases their faith and they rejoice at it. But as for those with sickness in their hearts, it adds defilement to their defilement and they die as disbelievers.” |at-Tawbah (9): 124-125]