Part 1

© Islamic Online University Explanation of the Nullifiers of Islam

Explanation of the Nullifiers of Islam By Al-Imam Muhammad Ibn Abdul-Wahhab Ibn Sulaiman At-Tamimi An-Najdi (1115 - 1206AH / 1703 - 1792CE)

Notes Based on the Explanation of Abdulaziz Addwesh

Introduction by Abdulaziz Addwesh All praises and thanks are due to Allah (G), who has guided us to Islam, and we could not have found guidance to the Right Path were it not that Allah (G) has guided us. And Peace and Blessings be upon the Last among the Messengers and Prophets who has said:

"I have left you on the White (Clear Path), wherein the night is like the day. None will mislead its way (the clear Path) after me except he who is losing".1

The greatest favour Allah (G) has bestowed on us is the religion of Islam, so the Muslim must praise Allah (G) for it and learn how to guard it. Also, the Muslim must follow in the footsteps of the Companions (V) of the Prophet (N) and learn the actions that may lead him to lose his faith.

Hudhaifa Bin Al-Yaman (S) narrated:

"The people used to ask Allah's Messenger (N) about good, but I used to ask him about evil fearing that it might overtake me".2

My brothers in Islam, here I present to you a brief explanation of Nawaaqid al-Islam (Nullifiers of Islam) written by Imam Muhammad Bin Abdul-Wahhab (W). It has been collected from the words of great scholars in particular, Shaykh Abdullah As-Sa'ad and Shaykh Suliman Al-Olowan, so that you could learn them and avoid falling into kufr (Infidelity) after Allah (G) has saved you from it.

1 Reported by Al-Hakim and Ibn Majah 2 Saheeh Al-Bukhaaree, Volume 4, Book 56, Hadeeth Number 803 and Volume 9, Book 88, Hadeeth Number 206

A Brief Biography of the Author - (Rahimahu-llah) He is al-Imaam al-Mujaddid (Reformer of his era) - Muhammad ibn Abdul Wahhaab ibn Sulaiman ibn 'Alee ibn Ahmad ibn Raashid ibn Buraid at-Tamimi an-Najdee (W). He was born in the city of Uyainah, about 70 kilometres north-west of Riyaadh, in the year 1115 AH. He was from a highly respected religious family known for its scholarship.

He acquired his primary education from his learned father, and completed the memorization of the Qur'aan at the age of ten. He read books of Tafseer (explanation of the Qur'aan), Hadeeth [narrations of the Prophet (N)] and Fiqh (Jurisprudence), and early on became interested in the books of Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (W) and his noble student al-'Allamah Ibnu-l-Qayyim (W).

After reaching the age of puberty, he travelled to Makkah to perform the Hajj, at which time he benefited from the scholars in Makkah. He also travelled to al-Madeenah, Basrah (Iraq) and other lands seeking knowledge of the Deen.

Al-Imaam Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab (W) authored many book, including Kitaab at-Tawheed, Kitaab al-Kabaa'ir (Major Sins), Usool al-Emaan (Fundamentals of Faith), Fadaa'il al-Qur'aan (Virtues of the Qur'aan), al-Usool ath-Thalaatha (the Three Fundamentals), al-Qawaa'id al-Arbaa'a (The Four Principles), al-Usool as-Sittah (the Six Foundations) and many other books, including this small essay under study (Nawaaqid al-Islam).

The Fundamentals of his blessed Da'wah (Call):

1. Calling the people to at-Tawheed, 2. Warning the people against ash-Shirk, 3. Strictly following the Qur'aan and Sunnah, the Righteous Predecessors of this Ummah (Sahaabah, etc.) and that which is relied upon from the sayings of the Four Imaams, 4. Avoiding at-Takfeer (declaring a Muslim to be out of Islam) - except with its proper conditions… 5. Avoiding taking anyone's life - except in accordance with the Sharee'ah [a life for a life, etc.]

The Fruits of his blessed Da'wah (Call):

1. Establishment of an Islamic State, 2. Correction and Purification of the Islamic 'Aqeedah from shirk, bid'ah, etc, 3. Extending the effect of this blessed Da'wah outside of the Arabian peninsular, to Egypt, Morroco, Yemen, Africa, India, etc, 4. Establishment of a scholarly movement and awareness - free from at-Taqleed alA'maa ('blind following'), 5. Activating a movement of authoring and publishing Islamic books.

He died in the year 1206 AH at the age of 91 - May Allah (G) shower him with His Divine Favor, Mercy and Forgiveness!

Guidelines on Takfeer3 Determining whether someone is a kaafir or a faasiq4 is not up to us, rather it is up to Allah, may He be exalted, and His Messenger (N). This is one of the rulings of sharee'ah that is to be referred to the Qur'aan and Sunnah, so we should be very careful and base our judgement on clear proof. No one may be judged to be a kaafir or faasiq except the one whom the Qur'aan and Sunnah indicate is a kaafir or faasiq.

The basic principle is that the one who appears outwardly to be a Muslim of good character is regarded as still being a Muslim of good character, until it is proven that this is no longer the case by means of evidence that is acceptable in sharee'ah. It is not permissible to take lightly the matter of judging someone to be a kaafir or faasiq, because that involves two very serious matters:

1. It implies fabricating lies against Allah (G) with regard to this ruling, and fabricating lies against the one who is being judged.

2. Falling into that which one accused one's brother of, if he is free from that.

In Saheeh Al-Bukhaaree (6104) and Saheeh Muslim (60) it is narrated from 'Abd-Allaah ibn 'Umar (S) that the Prophet (N) said:

"If a man declares his brother to be a kaafir, it will apply to one of them."

"Either it is as he said, otherwise it will come back to him."

Based on this, before ruling that a Muslim is a kaafir or a faasiq, two things must be examined:

1. The evidence of the Qur'aan or Sunnah that this word or this action implies that a person is a kaafir or a faasiq.

3 Taken from http://www.islam-qa.com/en/ref/85102/takfeer 4 Faasiq is an Arabic term referring to someone who violates Islamic law. However, it is usually reserved to describe someone guilty of openly and flagrantly violating Islamic law and/or someone whose moral character is corrupt.

2. Applying this ruling to a specific person who says or does that thing, such that the conditions of judging a person to be a kaafir or faasiq will be met in his case, and there are no impediments.

Among the most important of these conditions are the following:

1. That he should be aware of his transgression that renders him a kaafir or faasiq, because Allah (G) says:

"And whoever contradicts and opposes the Messenger [Muhammad (N)] after the right path has been shown clearly to him, and follows other than the believers' way, We shall keep him in the path he has chosen, and burn him in Hell - what an evil destination!"5

And Allah (G) also says:

"And Allah will never lead a people astray after He has guided them until He makes clear to them as to what they should avoid. Verily, Allah is the All-Knower of everything"6

Hence the scholars said that a person who denies obligatory duties should not be judged to be a kaafir if he is new in Islam, until that has been explained to him.

2. A reason why he cannot be ruled to be a kaafir or faasiq is if he does something that incurs such a judgement involuntarily. This may take several forms such as:

For example, he may be forced to do that, so he does that because he is forced to, not because he accepts that. He is not a kaafir in that case, because Allah (G) says:

5 Soorah An-Nisa' 4:115 6 Soorah At-Tawbah 9:115

"Whoever disbelieved in Allah after his belief, except him who is forced thereto and whose heart is at rest with Faith; but such as open their breasts to disbelief, on them is wrath from Allah, and theirs will be a great torment"7

Another example is when he is not thinking straight, so he does not know what he is saying because of extreme joy or sorrow or fear and so on. The evidence for that is the report narrated in Saheeh Muslim (2744) from Anas ibn Maalik (S) who said: The Messenger of Allah (N) said:

"Allah (G) rejoices more over the repentance of His slave when he repents to Him than one of you, who was on his mount in the wilderness, then he lost it, and his food and drink are on it, and he despairs of finding it. He goes to a tree and lies down in its shade, having lost hope of finding his mount, and whilst he is like that, there it is standing in front of him, so he takes hold of its reins and says, because of his intense joy, 'O Allah, You are my slave and I am your lord,' making this mistake because of his intense joy."

3. Misinterpretation. He may have some confusion and some misinterpretation that he adheres to, thinking that it forms evidence for his beliefs, or he may not be able to understand and comprehend shar'i evidence and proof in the proper way. Therefore, judging someone to be a kaafir is not valid except in the case of one who deliberately goes against the shar'i evidence and who knows that he is wrong.

"And there is no sin on you concerning that in which you made a mistake, except in regard to what your hearts deliberately intend. And Allah is Ever Oft‑Forgiving, Most Merciful"8

Ibn Taymiyah (W) said in Majmoo' al-Fataawa (23/349):

"Imam Ahmad (S) prayed for mercy for them (i.e., the caliphs who were influenced by the view of he Jahamis who claimed that the Qur'aan was created, and supported it) and prayed for forgiveness for them, because he knew that it was not clear to them that they were disbelieving the Messenger (N) and denying what he had brought, rather they misinterpreted and erred, and followed those who said that to them."

And he (W) said in Majmoo' al-Fataawa (12/180):

"With regard to takfeer (judging someone to be a kaafir), the correct view is that a member of the ummah of Muhammad (N) who strives to reach the truth concerning a certain issue, but reaches the wrong conclusion, is not to be deemed a kaafir, rather he will be forgiven for his mistake. But the one who understands the message brought by the Messenger (N), but deliberately goes against the way of the Messenger (N) after true guidance has become clear to him, and follows a path other than that of the believers, is a kaafir. The one who follows his whims and desires and fails to seek the truth and speaks without knowledge is a disobedient sinner, and may be a faasiq, but he may have some good deeds that outweigh his bad deeds."

And he (W) said: (3/229):

However, and those who sit with me know this about me, I am always one of those who most emphatically forbid describing a specific person as a kaafir, faasiq or sinner, unless it is known that shar'i proof has been established against him, and it has been proven whether he is a kaafir, a faasiq or a sinner. I affirm that Allah (G) has forgiven this ummah for its mistakes, which includes mistakes in narrative and practical issues. The salaf continued to debate many of these issues but none of them testified that anyone else was a kaafir or a faasiq or a sinner.

He (W) mentioned some examples, then he (W) said:

"I also state that what has been narrated from the salaf and the imams, stating that the one who says such and such is a kaafir, is also true, but it is essential to differentiate between general rules and specific cases.

Takfeer is a kind of warning; even though the words may be a rejection of what the Messenger (N) said, the man may be new in Islam, or he may have grown up in a remote region. Such a person cannot be ruled to be a kaafir, no matter what he denies, unless proof has been established against him. The man may not have heard of those texts, or he may have heard them but they were not proven to him , or he may have some ideas that are contrary to what he heard, that med him to misinterpret the text.