Q & A about Ibadism and Prayer

 "Q & A about Ibadism and Prayer" is a booklet that presents an easy summary through a Q & A approach about Ibadhis in general and about their prayer in particular.

You may download the booklet from the following link:

The Eternal Truth in Islam

"Unlike human beings Islam provides facts rather than theories and Allah the Exalted clearly stated them in the holy Quran. These facts include man’s relationship with God, the unseen, the Last Day.

The holy Quran also provides solid facts involving man’s relationship with the past and the future as well his conceptions about the existence.

Such are the Quranic facts upon which Muslims can rely and to which they submit their thoughts, being the words of God these facts are unchangeable as He is the one who knows the secrets of earth and heaven.

When the unbelievers denied that the holy Quran was revealed by God alleging that it was a mere invention of the messenger, came the words of God : (Say, [O Muhammad], “It has been revealed by He who knows [every] secret within the heavens and the earth. Indeed, He is ever Forgiving and Merciful.)" By HE Shaikh Ahmed al Khalili

Reference:

http://omanobserver.om/the-eternal-truth-in-islam/

Q & A about Prayer

Some prayer issues with the lbadis

1. Why do lbadis apply the guidance expression or 'Tawjeeh' before they utter 'Takbeerat al-Ihram' to start the prayer?

They depend on the hadeeth narrated by the books of the Sunnah, such as "Sunan Abi Dawood, Ibnu Majah, Tirmidhi, Al-Hakem and others from Al-Sayyida Aisha, Mother of the Believers, may Allah be pleased with her, that when the Prophet (PBUH) stood for prayer, he used to say: "Subhanaka Al-lahumma wa bihamdika, Tabaraka'smuka wa ta'ala jadduka wa la ilaha ghayruka." Abu Ghanim Al-Khurassani narrated that this was also the expression applied by Abi Bakr, Omar and lbn Masoud before they uttered Takbirat Al-lhram and 'Atta'audh'.

2. Why do lbadis not raise their hands at Takbirat Al-lhram'?

They do not raise their hands as they rely on many hadeeth that forbid hand-raising, which were narrated by hadeeth imams like

Al-Rabee and by those imams approved by Sunnis like Muslim, Al-Nissai and Abi Dawood.

3. Which hadeeth indicates the prohibition of raising the hands in Prayer?

The hadeeth came in several versions, such as Al-Imam Al-Rabee's version: narrated Abu Ubaida from Jabir bin Zeid from lbn Abbas from the Prophet (PBUH): "Some people will come after me and raise their hands in prayers like horse tails."

Narrated Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shaybah and Abu Kuraib, and this was Imam Muslim's version: "Narrated Abu Mu'awiya from Al-A'mash from Al-Musayyab bin Rafe' from Tamim bin Turfa from Jabir bin Samra, said: "The messenger of Allah appeared before us and said, "How does it come, you are raising your hands like horse tails? Be settled down in your prayers," he said, then he appeared before us and he saw we were dispersed. He said, "How does it come, you are dispersed?" And then he added, "Don't you line up like angels that line up before their Lord?" And we said, "O Messenger of Allah, how do angels line up before their Lord?" He said, "They complete the first rows and come close to each other." Narrated Abu Said Al-Ashajj, narrated Wakee' and narrated lshaq bin lbraheem, told us lssa bin Yunus, and all of them said Al-A'mash narrated with this reference."

4. What do dissentients say about these hadeeth that forbid hand- raising in prayer?

They objected that the hand lifting is prohibited at the end of the prayer (Assalam). But 'Assalam' was not mentioned in this hadeeth at all. It was mentioned in another one. So it is impossible for the two hadeeth to be the same, and there was no restriction as the hadeeth absolutely forbids the lifting of hands in prayer, including the lifting at 'Assalam'.

5. On which hadeeth is the prayer based on for the lbadis and others?

It is the hadeeth famous for the name of "the abuser in his prayer", which was narrated by Al-Bukhari and Muslim from Abi Huraira and others that the messenger of Allah (PBUH) entered the mosque then a man came in and prayed and greeted the prophet (PBUH). He replied and said: "Go and pray as you haven't prayed yet." He went back and prayed as he did at the first time. Then, he came and greeted the prophet (PBUH). He said: “Go back and pray as you haven't prayed yet. (Three times)" The man said: "In the name of the Lord who sent you with the right, teach me." He said: "When you stand for prayer, say Allahu Akbar then recite what you can from the Quran then kneel until you are really kneeling then rise until you are really standing up then kneel down until you are really kneeling on your knees then rise and keep seated, and repeat the same for the whole prayer." This hadeeth is the main source on which the accuracy of the prayer is based. Therefore, some scholars said: "What is stated in this hadeeth is an obligation and what is not mentioned is not."

As it is evident, the hand-raising was not mentioned in this hadeeth. The placing of the right hand on the left was not mentioned either. And if they had been an obligation, the prophet (PBUH) would have made them clear to the man.

6. What is understood from other hadeeth that described the Prayer of the Prophet (PBUH) without mentioning the hand-raising at Takbirat Al-lhram?

As it is understood from those hadeeth, the hand-raising is not an essential deed of the prayer. And those who do not raise their hands at Takbirat Al-Ihram are not contradictory to the Sunnah or denying it, as it has sometimes been said. But it is feared that those who raise their hands might be violating the Sunnah because the hand-raising is prohibited according to the evidence that we have mentioned.

7. What is the judgment upon those hadeeth narrated in books of Sunnah, which reported hand-raising in the prayer?

If narrated that the Prophet (PBUH) raised his hands in prayer, and also narrated that he prohibited hand-raising, then it is worthwhile to follow the prohibition as prohibition comes first and is confirmed against commandment, and this is one of the well-known jurisprudence rules as the Prophet (PBUH) said: "lf I tell you to do something, do it as far as you can and if l tell you not to do something, just give up."

Besides the many hadeeth about hand-raising, scholars admitted that hand-raising is not a requirement for the prayer or an obligation, and they may leave it as it is not considered one of its requirements or one of the confirmed deeds. Many scholars mention hand-raising among desirable deeds, or it is better for a man to leave a desirable thing than to do a prohibited one.

8. What can we deduce from these versions and the scholars' feedback on them?

We conclude that the lbadi prayer method is considered correct unanimously by all Muslim scholars of all doctrines since lbadis perform their prayers exactly as reported from the Prophet (PBUH) and approved by Muslim scholars of all doctrines as complete with all requirements and without any deficiency.

9. What do lbadis say about the issue of placing the right hand over the left one in prayer and about the hadeeth that are attributed to the Messenger (PBUH)?

From the earliest era, lbadis do not hold in their hands in prayer as they have proved that the hadeeth on hand-holding were not explicit enough to be considered as one of the requirements for the prayer. And also those who adopt hand-holding themselves have different views when and how it should be performed.

Some of them said that it is applied in voluntary prayers or "nawafil", and some said it is applied in both compulsory and voluntary prayers, and some said it is applied neither in compulsory prayers nor in voluntary ones.

And regarding the hands position, some of them said the right hand is placed on the left one over the chest. And some of them said they are placed over the navel. And some of them said they are placed below the navel.

As far as the hand-raising is concerned, it is said to be applied only once, and it is said to be applied in four positions , and it is said to be in more than that, etc...

Also, there is not a single hadeeth free from criticism among all the hadeeth they mentioned as some trusted non-lbadl scholars report.

10. What is the indicator of their large differences in the hand-raising and hand-holding issues and the divergence in their versions?

This indicates that the hand-raising and hand-holding in prayer are not to be considered as prayer requirements and an inherited characteristic of the Prophet's prayer (PBUH), and if it had been the case, there would not have been all this controversy and confusion, because the prayer was one of the most activities performed by the Prophet (PBUH) before his companions five times a day for many years. So it is inconceivable that the companions did not learn the prayer requirements accurately!

11. Are free-hand keeping and non-hand-holding limited to the lbadis only?

Free-hand keeping is not restricted on the lbadis as this exists with the Maalikis, one of the four sunni doctrines, as well. Although Imam Malik narrated hadeeth on hand-holding in his book "Al-Muwatta", he himself did not perform it and most of his followers did not do so, either. The earliest Maaliki scholars disagreed on hand-holding, and what is certain is that they did not perform it as they admitted that it is reviled in compulsory prayers, but the Imam performed it in the voluntary "qiyam" prayers.

And so the majority of the people of Egypt, Sudan, African countries, Andalusia and other Islamic countries did not perform hand-holding in the past. However, this has become a practice in modern times because of the media and politics, and the Maalikis have written more than one book in the criticism of hand-holding in prayer.

12. Are free-hand keeping and non-hand-holding in prayer reported from the Companions and followers?

Yes, it was narrated from the Companion Abdullah bin Zubair that he kept his hands free in prayer as narrated by lbn Abi Shaybah. It was also narrated from many great followers including Saeed bin Musayyib, Saeed bin Jubair, Mujahid, Al-Hasan Al-Basri, Al-Nakha'i and lbn Sirin, and was also narrated by lbn al-Mundhir, suggesting that hand-holding was not known among them as they lived with the Companions (May AIlah be pleased with them).

13. Why do lbadis not say "Amen" after reading "AI-Fatiha" in Prayer?

Because it is an extra word and is not part of Al-Fatiha" at the consensus of all Muslim scholars. It is part of the people's speech, and speaking in prayer is forbidden, as proven from the Prophet (PBUH), and because the hadeeth quoted by those who claim the legitimacy of 'Amen" after 'Al-Fatiha" are not firm and doubts hover around them, as they are weak, uncertain or fabricated. And if something of this kind is true, it should be referred to the pre-editing era of the hadeeth on the prayer. Ibn Al-Arabi said there is not an accurate hadeeth on "Amen". And those who say it consider it desirable but not obligatory. That's why the lbadis do not say it and come to absolute certainty, following the hadeeth narrated by Ahmad, Al-Shafei, Al-Nissai, A|- Tabarani, Abu Dawood and others. Narrated lbn Mas'ood that the Prophet (PBUH) said: "Allah creates whatever he wants with His commandment, and He ordered that you should not speak in the Prayer."

14. Why do lbadis not read anything from the Quran after "Al-Fatiha" in the compulsory prayers of Al-Zuhr" and "Al-Asr"?

Because they rely on several evidence such as that narrated by hadeeth holders themselves like Abi Dawood in his "Al-Sunan", from Ibn Abbas (May Allah be pleased with them) that they came to him and said: "Did the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) read in "Al-Zuhr" and "Al-Asr" prayers? He said: "No." They said: "Perhaps he read silently?" He said: "This is worse than the first one!" He was an instructed man and he conveyed what he was told. And Al-Nissai narrated the same.

This is a clear and assertive version but those versions that mention the reading after "Al-Fatiha" in the compulsory prayers of "Al-Zuhr" and "Al-Asr" lack certainty and they depend on intuition but not certainty. So the lbadis do not rely on them.

15. Why do lbadis not raise their fingers in "Al-Tashahhud" during "Al-Tahiyat" and not move them like in other doctrines?

Being a deed in prayer contradicts with the required worship, and this action was not confirmed from the Prophet (PBUH). And those who apply it differ in how and when it should be done. Al-Albani talked about these practices in his book "Tamam Al-Minna" and said: "These definitions and modes do not have any support in the "Sunnah".

16. Why do lbadis say one "Taslima" upon completion of the Prayer?

lbadis depend on the hadeeth narrated by Hadeeth books, such as Al-Tirmidhi, lbn Majah, Ahmad lbn Hanbal, Al-Tabaraani and Al-Baihaqi, from Aisha Mother of the Believers, Anas bin Malik, Salamah ibn Al-Akwa' and Sahl bin Sa'd (May Allah be pleased with them) that the Prophet (PBUH) performed one "Taslima", and the Immigrants or "Al-Muhajireen" performed one Taslima.

Note that the lbadis allow two "Taslimas". Arguments among others are whether there is one "Taslima" or there are two or three! But Imam Al-Nawawi reported the scholars‘ consensus which indicates that there should be only one "Taslima".

17. Does politics play a role in the conduct of Jurisprudence and in obliging people to adopt a certain doctrine?

Yes, politics has a big role in the conduct of the doctrines. The successive states that ruled the Muslim countries adopted certain doctrines and applied laws accordingly. For example, the doctrine of Abu Hanifa was widespread in the Orient because the Abbasid state sponsored and enabled it while the doctrine of Maalik was widespread in the Maghreb because the successive states there also adopted it, and the Fatimids deployed the Ismaili doctrine during their rule of Egypt and other areas, and they banned the doctrine of Abu Hanifa as it was the doctrine of the Abbasid state. The Umayyads in Andalusia worked to spread the Maliki doctrine, and the Ayyubids installed the Shafi'i doctrine. Although the doctrines of Malik and Abu Hanifa were the most widespread in the past, Wahhabism has spread in many Islamic countries in the last few years due to the materialistic and media powers of some countries and institutions.

Reference:

Q & A about Ibadism and Prayer; by Hamad bin Suleiman Al-Miwali, translated by Ahsan Ibrahim Oudjana