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RajabEI.pdf Radjab, the seventh month of the Islamic calendar, was observed as a holy month in
the period of the DjÄhiliyya in spring. It was the month of the sacrifices of the Ê¿atÄʾir offered to the pagan deities as a token of gratitude for the augmentation of their flocks and herds. It was also the time of invocations of their deities to increase the number of their flocks. It was as well the month of the sacrifices of the furuÊ¿, the firstlings of the flocks and herds. The owner of the flock had to sacrifice one ewe out of fifty (or hundred) of his herd. The holy month of Radjab was also the month of peace in the Arab peninsula; the tribes refrained from raids and warfare. The month was called al-aá¹£amm âthe deafâ because no sound of weapons was heard during that month and al-aá¹£abb âthe pouringâ because the unbelievers of Mecca used to say that the mercy is pouring forth in this month. Another by-name of Radjab was al-radjm âthe stoningâ because the Satans were stoned in that month and were expelled from the dwellings of the tribes. Other bynames attached to Radjab were: al-muḳīm âthe constant,â because its sanctity was a firm one, since Radjab is one of the four ḥurum months; al-harim âthe agedâ because the sanctity of the month was an ancient one, dating from the time of Mu ar b. NizÄr; as the tribes of Mu ar venerated this month, it was also named radjab Muá¸ar. Because of the comprehensive peace among the tribes and their abstaining from hostilities, the month was called muná¹£il al-all and muná¹£il al-asinna, pointing to the fact that the spearheads were removed, weapons laid down and no fighting among tribes was launched. The name al-muÊ¿allÄ âthe elevatedâ was attached to Radjab because it was a month highly respected among the Arab tribes. The name al-mubriʾ âthe clearing [from fault]â was given to the month because warlike activity was given up, no iniquity was committed and no act of hypocrisy was perpetrated during the month. A peculiar name granted to Radjab was al-muḳashḳish âthe exonerating,â denoting that Radjab distinguished between the people who stuck to the tenets enjoining abstention from
fighting during the month and those who violated the sanctity of the month by fighting. Finally, the month was called al-Ê¿atÄ«ra because the sacrifices of the Ê¿atÄ«ra were carried out during this month. According to tradition, the month of Radjab was a time of devotional practices, exertions and fasting. Invocations against the iniquitous and the wrong-doers in this month were especially efficacious. The opinions of the scholars of Islam as to the permission to continue these practices in Islam were divergent, controversial and even contradictory. The differences in their opinions are clearly exposed in the utterances attributed to the Prophet in the collections of ḥadÄ«th. An utterance attributed to the Prophet and recorded in the early collection of ÉAbd alRazzÄḳ (d. 211/826) says that the Prophet approved of the sacrifice of the Ê¿atÄ«ra which the people used to practice in Radjab. The Prophet said, âDo it, and name it al-radjÄ«ba.â The utterance of the Prophet enjoining sacrifice of the Ê¿atÄ«ra and naming it the radjÄ«ba is opposed by an utterance attributed to the Prophet enjoining annulment of the sacrifice of the firstlings and the sacrifice of the RadjabÄ« Ê¿atÄ«ra. It is recorded in the same collection and is formulated plainly: lÄ faraÊ¿a wa-lÄ Ê¿atÄ«ra âthere is no [sacrifice] of the firstlings nor of the Ê¿atÄ«ra.â This prohibitive tradition was, however, changed by the interpretation given to it by alShÄfiÉÄ«: there is no sacrifice of the Ê¿atÄ«ra nor of the faraÊ¿a âas an obligatory practiceâ, adds al-ShÄfiÉÄ«. This comment of his changes, of course, the meaning of the tradition and its significance.
In the same way was interpreted the utterance of the Prophet Ê¿alÄ ahl kull bayt an yad̲h̲baḥū shÄt fÄ« kull radjab wa-fÄ« kull aá¸á¸¥Ä shÄt . The expression Ê¿alÄ kull ahl bayt
an i in i an i i in
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is, however, interpreted not as an enjoinment but only as a recommendation. The utterance has to be understood as recommendation for every family group to sacrifice a ewe during every month of Radjab and to sacrifice a ewe on every aá¸á¸¥Ä celebration. An utterance of the Prophet about the Ê¿atÄ«ra permits the sacrifice of the Ê¿atÄ«ra in any month of the year and enjoins the practice of charity, dividing among the poor the meat of the slaughtered beasts. It is obvious that the sanctity of Radjab was, according to this tradition, fairly limited, or even abolished, while the advice of charity was especially stressed. A tradition reported on the authority of ÉÄÉisha says that the Prophet enjoined the slaughter of the firstling of the herd numbering fifty, which tallies with the prevalent DjÄhilÄ« practice. But another tradition attributed to the Prophet says, âPractice the sacrifice of the faraÊ¿a if you wantâ. Thus the sacrifice was left to the discretion of the believer. A peculiar utterance of the Prophet turns the sacrifice of the faraÊ¿a into a voluntary practice, with a special reservation of the Prophet changing the aim of the practice. The Prophet permitted the practice but remarked that it would be preferable to feed the camel until it grows up and to ride it on expeditions and raids for the cause of God; similarly, it is preferable to feed the ewe until it grows up, to sacrifice it and to divide the meat among the poor. Similarly, the utterance of the Prophet in which he is said to have approved of the faraÊ¿a, saying al-faraÊ¿a ḥaḳḳ, was considerably changed by the added reservation that it would be better to feed the destined sacrificial animal until it grows up and can be used
to ride on it in a raid for the cause of God (in the case of a camel) or to slaughter it (in the case of a ewe) and give the meat as charity to a needy widow. Scholars of Islam stress that the slaughter of animals in Rad̲j̲ab was continued in the first period of Islam and was only later abrogated. Al-Ḵh̲aá¹á¹ÄbÄ« (d. 388/998) considered the Ê¿atÄ«ra compatible with the principles of Islam: it was in the period of Islam sacrificed to God in contradiction to the j̲ÄhilÄ« Ê¿atÄ«ra, which was sacrificed to the idols. There is
indeed a report saying that Ibn SÄ«rÄ«n (d. 110/729) used to slaughter the Ê¿atÄ«ra in Radjab. Strictly orthodox scholars stressed that there is no valid tradition concerning the virtues of Radjab. There were, however, scholars, especially from among the pious and devoted, who favoured the widely-circulated popular traditions allegedly uttered by the Prophet, emphasising the virtues of Radjab and encouraging the carrying out of the various practices considered laudable and right. The Prophet is said to have named Radjab âthe month of Godâ, s̲h̲ahr AllÄh, because it was the month of the people of the ḥaram (i.e. the people of Mecca) who were called Äl AllÄh. The problem of the sacrifices during the month of Radjab was only one aspect of the disputes among the Muslim scholars as to the ritual practices performed in the Muslim community in that month. A significant tradition ascribed to the Prophet singled out the peculiar sanctity of three months of the year: âRadjab is the month of God, ShaÉbÄn is my month and Rama Än is the month of my people.â As the month of Radjab was put on par with the two other months there was an obvious tendency to competition between these holy months regarding the rewards of the ritual practices performed during these months, the exceptional position of certain nights of the months and the prayers during these months. The competition between Radjab and ShaÉbÄn is clearly presented in a tradition reported on the authority of Zayd b. Aslam. The Prophet was informed about people fasting during Radjab. He remarked, âHow far are they from the virtues of the people
fasting during ShaÉbÄn!â Zayd observed, âMost of the fasting of the Prophet, except in Rama Än, was in ShaÉbÄn.â The partisans of Radjab quoted a report of Ibn al-ÉAbbÄs saying that the Prophet used to fast so many days in Radjab that his Companions did not think that he would break his fast; and he used to break his fast so that they doubted whether he would resume it. As against the people venerating ShaÉbÄn, the partisans of Radjab had recourse to utterances attributed to the Prophet in which the fasting of Radjab was recommended and very high rewards were promised to people who were fasting in it. The Prophet is said to have stated that the month of Radjab is of a high position and that the good deeds of the believer gain multiple rewards. He who fasts one day in Radjab is in the position of a believer who would fast a year. He who fasts nine days, for him the gates of Hell are closed; he who fasts eight days, for him the eight doors of Paradise are opened; he who fasts ten days, God will fulfill for him every wish; he who fasts fifteen days, a herald will announce from Heaven that god forgave him every sin which he had committed in the past. In the month of Radjab God carried Nūḥ (Noah) in the ark; he fasted during Radjab, and bade his people to fast during it, thus expressing their gratitude to God for their salvation. Aḥmad b. Ḥanbal said that he had in his possession a tradition recording the rewards for fasting of every day of Radjab; he considered, however, the ḥadÄ«th a forged one. The fasting of the whole month of Radjab was nevertheless frowned upon and sometimes forbidden in order not to create a similarity with Rama Än. The practices of fasting during Radjab were censured by AbÅ« Bakr, ÉUmar and people of the á¹£aḥÄba, says Ibn Taymiyya. Some nights of Radjab are considered to be replete with God's graces. In the first night of Radjab, God will grant every supplication of the believer. It is one of the five chosen
nights in the year. Another prayer strongly censured by Ibn Taymiyya was the prayer practised in the midst of Radjab called á¹£alÄt Umm DÄwÅ«d. A night highly praised by those who observed Radjab was the night of the á¹£alÄt alraghÄʾib âthe night of the prayer for extensive and desirable giftsâ; it starts on the eve of the first Friday of Radjab; the prayers and supplications contained hundreds of invocations, prostrations, rakÊ¿as and recitations of some sÅ«ras of the ḲurÉÄn. The believer is requested to fast on the Thursday preceding this night. A night of Radjab distinguished by the rich rewards is the night of the twenty-seventh of Radjab. The believer spending this night in vigils: praying; thanking God; repeating a hundred times the various phrases of gratitude, the oneness of God, invocations and supplications; performing prostrations and rakÊ¿as; and reading a sÅ«ra of the ḲurÉÄn and fasting the next day, will be highly rewarded by God; he will attain God's grace as if he fasted a hundred years and practiced vigils for a hundred years. On that night, Muḥammad was sent as a prophet. The significant events connected with the life of the Prophet which allegedly happened in Radjab turn the month into one of the most distinctive periods of the year. According to a tradition, the mother of the Prophet conceived him on the first evening of Radjab; another tradition claims that he was born in Radjab. Some traditions assert that the event of the laylat al-miÊ¿rÄdj occurred in Radjab. Other traditions claim that the date of the isrÄʾ was the twenty-seventh day of Radjab. The struggle of the orthodox scholars against those practices of Radjab widely approved by pious ascetics and ṢūfÄ«s was not entirely successful. These practices have survived and form until the present time an essential part of Muslim popular belief and ritual. (M. J. Kister)
Bibliography ÉAbd al-RazzÄḳ, al-Muá¹£annaf, ed. ḤabÄ«b al-RaḥmÄn al-AÉáºamÄ«, Beirut 1391/1972, iv, 342, no. 8000, iv, 341, no. 7998, iv, 341, no. 7999, iv, 340, no. 7997, iv, 337, no. 7989, iv, 337, nos. 7990-1, iv, 340, no. 7996, and see ibid., iv, 338, nos. 7992-3, iv, 292, no. 7858, iv, 317, no. 7927 Ibn AbÄ« Shayba, al-Muá¹£annaf fi ʾl-aḥÄdÄ«th wa ʾl-ÄthÄr, ed. ÉAbd al- Ḵh̲Äliḳ AfghÄnÄ«, repr., n.p. n.d., viii, 64-7 AbÅ« YaÉlÄ al-Mawá¹£ilÄ«, al-Musnad, ed. Ḥusayn SalÄ«m Asad, Damascus-Beirut 1407/1987, x, 282, no. 5879 (and see the abundant references of the editor) SubkÄ«, ṬabaḳÄt al-shÄfiÊ¿iyya al-kubrÄ, ed. ÉAbd al-FattÄḥ Muḥammad Ḥulw and MaḥmÅ«d Muḥammad al-ṬannÄḥī, Cairo 1383/1964, ii, 111 MunÄwÄ«, FayḠal-ḳadÄ«r, sharḥ al-djÄmiÊ¿ al-á¹£aghÄ«r, Beirut 1391/1972, vi, 435, no. 9914, iv, 321, no. 5457, iv, 375, no. 5674, iii, 454, no. 3953 ÉAbd al-RaḥmÄn al-á¹¢affÅ«rÄ«, Nuzhat al-madjÄlis wa-muntakhab al-nafÄʾis, Beirut, n.d., 189-95 Ibn Taymiyya, Iḳtiá¸Äʾ al-á¹£irÄá¹ al-mustaḳīm mukhÄlafat aṣḥÄb al-djaḥīm, ed. Muḥammad ḤÄmid al-Fiḳī, Cairo, ÉÄbidÄ«n 1369/1950, 293, 302 AbÅ« ÉUbayd al-ḲÄsim b. SallÄm al-HarawÄ«, GharÄ«b al-ḥadÄ«th, ed. Muḥammad ÉAáºÄ«m alDÄ«n, Ḥaydarabad 1385/1966, ii, 4-6 ÉAbd AllÄh b. Muḥammad b. DjaÉfar b. ḤayyÄn, Abu Él-Shaykh al-Aná¹£ÄrÄ«, ṬabaḳÄt almuḥaddithÄ«n bi-Iá¹£bahÄn wa ʾl-wÄridÄ«n Ê¿alayhÄ, ed. ÉAbd al-GhafÅ«r ÉAbd al-Ḥaḳḳ Ḥusayn al-BalÅ«shÄ«, Beirut 1407/1987, i, 279-82, nos. 27-9 (and see the references of the editor)
ÉUmar b. Badr al-Mawá¹£ilÄ«, al-MughnÄ« Ê¿an al-ḥifẠwa ʾl-kitÄb, Cairo 1342, 33, 36 Ḳurá¹ubÄ«, al-DjamiÊ¿ li-aḥkÄm al-ḲurʾÄn = TafsÄ«r al-Ḳurá¹ubÄ«, Cairo 1387/1967, vi, 326 Ibn ÉAsÄkir, TaʾrÄ«kh DimÄshḳ, ed. ÉAbd al-ḲÄdir BadrÄn, Beirut 1399/1979, vi, 246, vii, 347 inf.-348 sup. Bayhaḳī, Faá¸Äʾil al-awḳÄt, ed. ÉAdnÄn ÉAbd al-RaḥmÄn MadjÄ«d al-ḲaysÄ«, Mecca 1410/1990, 89-90, no. 7, 106-7, 311-12, no. 149, 95-8, nos. 11, 12 WadjÄ«h al-DÄ«n ÉAbd al-RaḥmÄn b. KhalÄ«l al-AdhruÉÄ«, BishÄrat al-maḥbÅ«b bi-takfÄ«r aldhunÅ«b, ed. MadjdÄ« al-Sayyid IbrÄhÄ«m, Cairo n.d., 41, no. 98 Bayhaḳī, al-DjÄmiÊ¿ li-shuÊ¿ab al-Ä«mÄn = ShuÊ¿ab al-Ä«mÄn, ed. ÉAbd al-ÉAlÄ« ÉAbd al- ḤamÄ«d ḤÄmid, Bombay 1409/1988, vii, 382- 3, no. 3520, 390-3, no. 3529, 393-5, nos. 3530-1 Khaá¹Ä«b al-BaghdÄdÄ«, TaʾrÄ«kh Baghdad, Cairo-BaghdÄd 1349- 1931, viii, 331, no. 4421 ÉAbd al-RaḥmÄn al-SuhaylÄ«, al-RawḠal-unuf, ed. ÉAbd al-RaḥmÄn al-WakÄ«l, Cairo 1387/1967, i, 70 NÅ«r al-DÄ«n al-HaythamÄ«, MadjmaÊ¿ al-zawÄʾid wa-manbaÊ¿ al-fawÄʾid, Beirut 1967, iii, 188, 191 Murta Ä al-ZabÄ«dÄ«, ItḥÄf al-sÄda al-muttaḳīn bi-sharḥ asrÄr iḥyÄʾ Ê¿ulÅ«m al-dÄ«n, Beirut n.d., iii, 422-5 Ibn Ḥadjar al-ÉAsḳalÄnÄ«, TabyÄ«n al-Ê¿adjab bi-mÄ warada fÄ« faá¸l radjab, ed. AbÅ« AsmÄÉ IbrÄhÄ«m b. IsmÄÉÄ«l Äl ÉAá¹£r, Beirut 1408/1988 Ibn HimmÄt al-Dimashḳī, al-TankÄ«t wa ʾl-ifÄda fÄ« takhrÄ«dj aḥÄdÄ«th khÄtimat sifr al-saÊ¿Äda, ed. Aḥmad al-Bazra, Beirut 1407/1988, 96-7, 112-13
MaḳrÄ«zÄ«, al-Khabar Ê¿an al-bashar, ms. DÄr al-Kutub 947, TaÉrÄ«k̲h̲, p. 444 ÉIzz al-DÄ«n b. ÉAbd al-SalÄm al-SulamÄ«, KitÄb al- FatÄwÄ, ed. ÉAbd al-RaḥmÄn b. ÉAbd al-FattÄḥ, Beirut 1406/1986, 117 ÉAbd al-WÄsiÉ b. YaḥyÄ al-WÄsiÉÄ«, al- Mukhtaá¹£ar fÄ« targhÄ«b wa-tarhÄ«b ḥadÄ«th sayyid albashar, Cairo 1345, 26 ult.-27 al-Ḥasan b. Muḥammad al-KhallÄl, Faá¸Äʾil shahr radjab, ed. ÉAmr ÉAbd al-MunÉim, Ṭaná¹Ä 1412/1972 ÉAlÄ« b. Sulá¹Än al-ḲÄrÄ«, al-Adab fÄ« radjab, ed. ÉAmr ÉAbd al-MunÉim, Ṭaná¹Ä 1412/1992, also ed. ÉAbd AllÄh ÉAwda in JSAI, forthcoming Badr al-DÄ«n ShiblÄ«, MaḥÄsin al-wasÄʾil fÄ« maÊ¿rifat al-awÄʾil, ms. B.L., Or. 1530, fol. 56b ÉAlÄ« MaḥfÅ«áº, al-IbdÄÊ¿ fÄ« maá¸Ärr al-ibtidÄÊ¿, Cairo 1388/1968, 296-7 Muḥammad b. Aḥmad b. Djubayr al-KinÄnÄ«, Riḥla, Beirut 1388/1968, 98-104 Muḥammad b. ÉAlÄ« b. ṬūlÅ«n al- Dimashḳī, Faṣṣ al-KhawÄtim fÄ«-mÄ á¸³Ä«la fi ʾl-walÄʾim, ed. NizÄr AbÄáºa, Damascus 1402/1982, 92-4. For additional bibl., see M. J. Kister, Radjab is the month of God, in IOS, i (1971), repr. Variorum, London 1980, Studies in JÄhiliyya and early Islam, no. XII. [Print Version: Volume VIII, page 373, column 2] Citation: Kister, M. J. âRad̲j̲ab.â Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition. Edited by: P. Bearman; Th. Bianquis; C. E. Bosworth; E. van Donzel; and W. P. Heinrichs.
rajab.pdf "RAJAB
IS THE MONTH OF GOD ... "
A Study in the Persistence of an Early Tradition
M. J. KISTER
in memory ofmy student
DAVID
S.
ELLER
The holy month of Rajab was observed during the period of the Jahiliyya in spring.1 It was the month of the `umra and of offering of the sacrifices of the `ata'ir to the pagan deities.2 The people of the Jahiliyya kept the sanctity of the month by refraining from raids and warfare.3It is said to have been a month of devotional practices and of fasting.4 According to some traditions swearing
1 See EI, s.v. "Radjab" (M. Plessner); S. D. Goitein, Studies in Islamic History and Institutions (Leiden 1966), pp. 92-93; J. Wellhausen, Reste arabischen Heidenturns (Skizzen und Vorarbeiten) (Berlin 1887), pp. 74, 93; G. E. von Grunebaum, Muhammadan Festivals (New York 1951), p. 36; W. Gottschalk, Das Geliibde nach iilterer arabischer Auffassung (Berlin 1919), pp. 106-107; K. Wagtendonk, Fasting in the Koran (Leiden 1968), p. 106; M. Gaudefroy-Demombynes, Le Pelerinage ala Mekke (Paris 1923), pp. IV, 192-198; C. Rathjens, Die Pilgerlahrt nach Mekka (Hamburg 1948), p. 66. [The above books are quoted by the names of their authors.] 2 See EI2 s.v. '''Atira'' (Ch. Pellat); F. BuhI, Das Leben Muhammeds (Heidelberg 1955), p. 88 (and see note 246, ibid.); al-Anbiirl, Shar/.l al-q~ii'id al-sab' al-(iwiil, ed. 'Abd al-Saliim Hdriin (Cairo 1963), pp. 294, 484; Ibn Qutayba, al-Ma'iinl al-kahlr (Hyderabad 1949), I, 67; al-NuwaYrl, Nihiiyat ai-arab (repr. Cairo 1964), III, 120; Ibn Durayd, al-Ishtiqiiq, ed. 'Abd aI-Salam Hdriin (Cairo 1958), p. 280 (with a divergent version: inna 'alii kulli muslimin Ii kulli 'iimin 'atiratan, wa-hiya shiitun kiinat tudhba/.lu Ii I-mu/.larrami la-nasakha dhalika I-at/bii. The month of sacrifice here is Mul;larram, not Rajab); J. Wellhausen, pp. 94, 115-116; W. Gottschalk, p. 119; W. Robertson Smith, Lectures on the Religion 01 the Semites (London 1914), pp. 227-228; K. Wagtendonk, p. 36; al-Jal;liz, Kit. al-lzayawiin, ed. 'Abd al-Saliim Hariin (Cairo 1965), I, 18. 3 See J. Wellhausen, p. 94; al-Farra', al-Ayyiim wa-I-Iayiill wa-I-shuhur, ed. Ibrahim alIbyiirl (Cairo 1956), pp. 12-13; al-Marziiql, al-Azmina wa-I-amkina (Hyderabad 1332 AH), 1,282,90,278; al-Jumal;lI, Tabaqiit lu/.lul al-shu'arii', ed. MaJ;unud Mul;l. Shakir (Cairo 1952), p. 61; VA,s.v. "~mm, ~/, rjb"; al-Turtushl, Kit. al-/.Iawiidith wa-I-bida', ed. Mul;l. al-Tiilibl (Tunis 1959), pp. 123, 125; 'All al-Qari', al-Adab Ii rajah, Paris, Bibliotheque Nationale, Ms. Arabe 6084, Majmu'a, fol. 65a (wa-yuqiilu rajabun al-~ammu li-annahu Iii yuniidii lihi "yii qaumiih" wa-"yii ~abiibiih" wa-li-annahu Iii yusma'u lihi /.Iissu I-silii/.li Iii Ii I-~abiibi wa-lii Ii I-rawii/.li); Ibn Qutayba, Tatsir gharib al-Qur'iin, ed. Al;lmad ~aqr (Cairo 1958), p. 185. 4 See S. D. Goitein, pp. 92-93; K. Wagtendonk, pp. 117, 120-122.
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against the iniquitous and wrong-doers in this month was especially efficacious. 5 The veneration of this month seems to have continued in the period of Islam and to have survived until recent times. Contradictory traditions attributed to the Prophet, recommending some practices of Rajab or interdicting it, bear evidence of divergent opinion on this subject in the Muslim community during the early centuries of Islam. Heated discussions among Muslim scholars concerning different aspects of these practices make it possible to understand them better. These Rajab traditions are to be surveyed in the following pages of this paper.
I
The widely circulated utterance of the Prophet Iii fara'a wa-lii "atirata, "no sacrifice of the firstlings (of the flock) nor of the animals slaughtered in Rajab",« indicates explicitly the interdiction to perform the sacrifices of Rajab. This hadith is however contradicted by a tradition reported by 'Amr b. Shu'ayb.? The Prophet, when asked about the 'aqiqa, the fara'a and the 'atira, stated concerning the "atira: al-' atiratu haqqun, "the "atira is 0bligatory" (verbatim: the 'atira is an obligation). The word "atira is explained in the tradition as a sacrifice of a ewe, which the people of the Jahiliyya used in Rajab to slaughter, cook, and whose meat they used to consume and feed from (scil. the needy and poor).s More explicit about the obligatory character of the 'atira, the sacrifice of Rajab, is the tradition reported on the authority of Mikhnaf b. Sulaym.? "Upon the people of every house, stated the Prophet, there is an obligation every
5 See al-Kala'I, al-Iktifii' maghiizi l-mustafd wa-l-thaliithati l-khulafd'; ed. H. Masse (Alger 1931), I, 123-124; al-Jtlant, al-Ghunya li-fiilibi tariqi l-haqqi 'azza wa-jalla (Cairo 1322 AH), I, 196. 6 Ahmad b. Hanbal, Musnad, ed. Ahmad Muh. Shakir (Cairo 1949-1956), XII, 104, No. 7135 and XIV, 171, No. 7737; al-Suyutl, al-Jiimi' al·~aghir (Cairo 1320 AH), II, 202; L 'A, s.v. "fr'"; comp, W. Robertson Smith, pp. 227, note 3, and pp. 462-465; al-Shaukiini, Nayl al·aufar(Cairo 1347 AH), V, 119; AbU I-Mabiisinal-:aaniifI,al-Mu'ta~ar min al-mukhtasar (Hyderabad 1362 AH), I, 274; Abu Da'ud, $a/;li/;l unan al-mustafii (Cairo 1348 AH), II, 8; s al-Hakim, al-Mustadrak (Hyderabad 1342 AH), IV, 236; al-Muttaql al-Hindl, Kanz al'ummiil (Hyderabad 1954), V, 48, No. 428; al-Tirmidhi, $al;li/;l(Cairo 1931), VI, 311-312; Muslim, $a/;li/;l(Cairo 1285 AH), II, 159; al-'Azizi, al-Siriij al-munir (Cairo 1957), III, 473, ult.; al- Tibrizi, Mishkdt al-masdbib (Karachi), p. 129. 7 See on him al-Dhahabl, Miziin al-i'tiddl, ed. 'Ali Muh, al-Bijiiwi (Cairo 1963), III, 263268, No. 6383; Ibn I;iajar, Tahdhib al-tahdhib (Hyderabad 1326 AH), VIII, 48-55, No. 80. S Ahmad b. Hanbal, XI, 4-7, No. 6713; al-Shaukani, Nayl, V, 119; al-Suytltl, al-Jiimi' al-saghir, II, 67; al-Muttaqi al·Hindi, V, 48, No. 427; al- 'Azizi, II, 467, info 9 See on him Ibn 'Abd al-Barr, al-Istt'ab, ed. 'Ali Muh, al-Bijawi (Cairo, n.d.), p. 1467. No. 2534; Ibn I;iajar, Tahdhib, X, 78; idem, al-Isiiba, VI, 72, No. 7842.
n
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"Rajab is the Month of God ... "
year (to slaughter) a victim (scil. of the Sacrificial Feast) and a "atira", The "atira is glossed in the tradition as "al-rajabiyya", ('Alii kulli ahli bay tin fi kulli 'iimin UfJ/.liyyatun10 wa- "atiratun: hal tadriina mii 1-'atiratu? hiya l-rajabiyyatu).l1
It is evident that these traditions are contradictory and reflect two diverse attitudes towards the continuation of the practices of the sacrifices of Rajab in Islam: the one approving of the rajabiyya and incorporating it into the body of Islamic sacrifices, authorized by the utterance of the Prophet; the other one aiming at the abolition of the Rajab sacrifice, it too basing its arguments on the utterances of the Prophet. The two contradictory traditions tld fara'a wa-lii 'atirata and inna 'alii kulli ahli bay tin) are discussed by AbU 'Ubayd (d. 224 AH). Stressing the Jahill character of the 'atira, he remarks that this sacrifice was abolished by Islam. In his opinion, the hadith of "Iii fara'a" abrogates the hadith of "'alii kulli ahli bay tin ... " iwa-l-hadithu l-awwalu niisikhun li-hiidhii}.12 Al-Khattabi (d. 388 AH) records the opinion of AbU Da'ud (d. 275 AH) about the tradition of Mikhnaf b. Sulaym, which is identical with the opinion of Abu 'Ubayd, "The "atira, says Abu Da'ud, is (an) abrogated (practice)", al- 'atiratu mansiikhatun.tt Al-Khattabi emphasizes the difference between the meaning of 'atira in the times of the Jahiliyya and that of Islam. In the period of the Jahiliyya "atira denoted a ewe sacrificed for the idol; its blood was poured on the head of the idol - argues al-Khattabi. But in this hadith (i.e. in the hadith of Mikhnaf b. Sulaym) it denotes the sacrifices of an animal in Rajab. This, says al-Khattabt, fits the intent of the hadith and is compatible with the prescription of the religion.t+ Al Khattabi does not consider the
In some traditions "ar/./:Iiitun". Ibn Hajar, al-Isdba, VI, 72; AbU Nu'aym, Akhbiir Isfahan, ed. S. Dedering (Leiden 1931). 1,73; al-Shaukani, Nayl, V, 117; L'A, s.v. '''atr''; AbU l-Mahasin al-l;IanafI, I, 274; 'Abd al-Ghant al-Nabulsi, Dhakhii'ir al-mawdrtth (Cairo 1934), III, 95; al-Suyiitl, al-Jdmi' alsaghtr, II, 60 (with a slightly different version: 'alii ahli kulli bay tin an yadhbahu shdtan ft kulli rajabin wa-ft kulli ar/./:Iiihtitan); al-Muttaql al-Hindl, V, 48, No. 429 and V, 57, No. s 500-502; al-Bayhaql, al-Sunan al-kubrii (Hyderabad 1356 AH), IX, 260; Muslim, II, 159; Abu Da'ud, II, 2; Ibn al-Athlr, al-Nihdya, ed. al-Tana1).i (Cairo 1963), III, 178 ('alii kulli muslimin at!/:Iatun wa-'atiratun); Ibn al-Athlr, Jiimi' al-usa; min al;liidith al-rasid, ed. MuI;1. l;Iiimid al-Fiqql (Cairo 1950), IV, 121, No. 1624. 12 Abu 'Ubayd, Gharib al-hadith, ed. MuI;1. 'Azim al-Dln (Hyderabad 1964), I, 194-195; VA, s.v. "tatr" (where the opinion of Abu 'Ubayd is recorded differently: wa-l-hadithu I-awwalu a~a/:l/:lu); nd see the note of the editor in Ibn al-Athlr's Jiimi' al-usid IV, 122 (Abu a 'Ubayda stated that the hadlth: "ld faraa ... " abrogated the hadlth: '''alii ahli kulli baytin ... "). 13 Hamd b. MuI;1.al-Khattabt, Ma'iilim al-sunan (Balab 1933), II, 226. 14 lb., ( ... al- "atiratu tafsiruhd Ii l-hadithi annahd shdtun tudhbahu Ii rajabin wa-hddhii huwa lladhi yushbihu ma'nd l-hadithi wa-yaliqu bi-hukmi l-dtn: [in text: l-tadayyunii); L'A, s.v. "'atr" (correctly: l-dini}; Ibn al-Athlr, al-Nihdya, III, 178 (correctly: l-dini).
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'atira as abrogated; he seems to consider it lawful, although he has some reservations in connection with one of the transmitters of the hadith.t> The opinion that the "atira was abrogated by the Sacrificial Feast is plainly reflected in the hadith reported on the authority of This date is given as well by some ShI'I sources.46 Some traditions assert that the event of laylat al-mi'riij occurred in Rajab.s? The Prophet gathered the people in Rajab, according to a tradition reported
Ibid., p. 29. See Muh. b. Pattal, Raudat al-wa'iztn (Najaf 1966), p. 396; Ibn Babuyah, p. 52. 40 G. E. von Grunebaum, "The Sacred Character of Islamic Cities", Melanges Taha Husain, ed. Abdurrahman Badawi (Cairo 1962), pp. 26-27. 41 Al-Zurqant, Sharh 'ala l-mawdhib al-Iadunniyya (Cairo 1325 AH), I, 131, line 4; Ibn Hajar al-Haythaml, al-Ni'ma al-kubrii 'alii 1-'iilam bi-maulidi sayyidi bani Adam, Ms (in my possession), fol. 19a, line 1. 42 Al-Zurqant, I, 132, line 19 (quoted from 'Abdari's Mudkhal); and see Ibn Hajar alHaythamI, al-Ni'ma al-kubrii, fol. 19a, lines 3-6; al-Majlisl, Bibiir al-anwiir, XX, 113, line 25 (lithogr. ed.); and comp. al-Suyiitl, al-Hiiwi, I, 305 sup. 43 Ibn l,Iajar al-Haythamt, al-Ni'ma al-kubrd, fol. 12b; al-Shatibl, al-Jumdn It akhbar al-zamdn, Ms. Br. Mus., Or. 3008, fol. 48a. 44 Al-Halabt, Insiin al-'uyun (Cairo 1932), I, 68; al-Zurqanl, 1,105, line 10. 45 Al-Suyutl, al-Durr al-manthiir (Cairo 1314 AH), II, 235 ult.; Ibn Qayyim al-Jauziyya, Zad al-ma'iid (on margin of Zurqanl's Sharb I, 58); Ibn al-Jauzl, Sifat al-safwa (Hyderabad 1355 AR), I, 27; al-Ghazall, Ibya' 'ulum al-din, (Cairo 1933), I, 328. 46 Ibn Babiiyah, p. 57; al-Tiisi, Amdli (Najaf 1964), I, 44; al-Bahranl, al-Hadii'iq anniit/ira ft ahkdm al- 'itra al-tdhira (Najaf 1384 AH), XIII, 362-363; al-Majlisl (Teheran 1386 AH), XVIII, 189. 47 Al-Zurqanl, I, 306, 308; al·'Abdari, al-Mudkhal (Cairo 1929), I, 294, line 10; see alDirini, Taharat al-quliib (Kafr al-Zaghara 1354 AH), p. 93, line 11; EI, s.v. "Mi'radj"; Abii Talib al-Makkt, I, 93; al-Ghazzall, I, 328; 'Ali al-Qari', al-Adab, fol. 66a.
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on the authority of Ibn 'Abbas, and informed them about the virtues of his All the rivers of the world visit in Rajab the well of Zamzam according to a tradition reported by Wahb b. Munabbih.s? The sanctity of Rajab was assessed in comparison with that of the other months in a peculiar utterance attributed to the Prophet. The Prophet said: "Rajab is the month of God, Sha 'ban is my month, Ramadan is the month of my people. "50 Close to this tradition is a hadith counting the rewards for the believers observing Rajab, Sha'ban and Ramadan and reported on the authority of Anas b. Malik. It is recorded in al-Bayhaqi's (d. 458 AH) Fadd'll al-auqdt and quoted by Ibn Hajar, "The month chosen by God is Rajab" - says the Prophet. "He who honours the month of Rajab - honours the order of God and he who honours the order of God - God will introduce him into the Gardens of Paradise and grant him His favour", etc.S1 Al-Bayhaqi marks the hadith as munkar, but Ibn Hajar differs, classifying it as "forged with obvious features of forgery" (bal huwa maudii'un ziihiru l-wad'i) and attributes the forgery to one of the transmitters, Nul). al-Jami', "Nul). the Collector", about whom people used to say that "he collected everything except truth."s2 Nevertheless al-Suyutl (d. 911 AH) recorded this tradition in his commentary of the Qur'an.53 A peculiar sun tradition sheds some light on the similarity of growth of pro-Rajab tenets in Sunni and Shi'I societies as well as on the manner of casting of the Shi'I traditions in this matter. 'Ali, says the tradition, used to fast the whole month of Rajab, and he used to say: "Rajab is my month, Sha'ban is the month of the Messenger of God, Ramadan is the month of God."S4 It is evident that this is a Shi'i re-moulding of the hadith "Rajab is the month
pedigree.sf
al-Qandilzl, Yandbi' al-mawadda (Najaf 1965), p. 16. Al-Dlrinl, p. 93. 50 AI-SahmI, Ta'rikh Jurjdn (Hyderabad 1950), p. 184; al-Sakhiiwi, al-Maqdsid al-hasana fi bayiin kathir min al-a/;liidith al-mushtahira, ed. 'Abdallah Muh, al-Sadlq (Cairo 1956), p. 224, No. 510; al-Jarrahl, Kashf al-khafii' wa-muzil al-ilbds (Cairo 1351 AH), I, 423, No. 1358; al-Suyutl, al-Jiimi' al-saghir, II, 21 inf.; Ibn Hajar, Tabyin al- 'ajab, p. 10 sup.; alJllanl, I, 200; al-Shaukanl, al-Fawii'id al-majmu'a fi l-ahddtth al-maudii'a, ed. 'Abd alRahman al-Mu'allamt al-Yamant (Cairo 1960), p. 439, ult.; idem, Nayl, IV, 210; Ibn Biibiiyah, p. 52; al-Pattanl, Tadhkirat al-maudii'iit (Cairo 1343 AH), p. 116 inf.; and see a divergent tradition: sha'biin shahrt wa-ramaddn shahru lliihi... , in al-Jarraht's Kashf II, 9, No. 1551 and in Ibn Biibiiyah's Amalt, p. 13; and see 'Ali al-Qari', al-Adab, fol. 65a inf.; idem, Risdlat al-a~iidith al-maudii'a, Majmu'a, fol. 61a. 51 Ibn Hajar, Tabyin al- "ajab, p. 13. 52 See on Nub al-Jami": a1-Dhahabi, Mizdn al-i'tiddl, IV, 279, No. 9143. 53 Al-Durr al-manthiir, 111,236 sup.; (and see Qasim al-Qaysl, Ta'rikh al-tafsir (Baghdad 1966), p. 132, about weak: and forged traditions in the commentaries of al-Suyiitl). 54 Al-Bahrant, XIII, 381 inf.; cp, Ja'far Mansnr a1-Yaman, Ta'wil al-zakdt, Ms. Leiden
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"Rajab is the Month of God ... " of God, Sha 'ban is my month (i.e. of the Prophet), Ramadan is the month of my people". Another assessment of Rajab in relation to other months is reported in a hadith recorded on the authority of Anas b. Malik. The Prophet said: "The superiority of Rajab over other months is like the superiority of the Qur'an over other speech; the superiority of'Sha'ban over other months is like my superiority over other prophets; the superiority of Ramadan over other months is like the superiority of God over (His) believers."55 The scale of qualities is, in this hadith, rather different. The highest rank is, like in the Shi'I tradition mentioned above, given to Ramadan,
III One of the most controversial practices of Rajab was the practice of fasting. Just as in the case of the sacrifices of Rajab, the partisans of fasting in Rajab took recourse to alleged utterances of the Prophet56 pointing to the merits of fasting and the efficacy of fasting during some particular days in this month. The antagonists rejected the sanctity of the month altogether, basing their arguments again on alleged utterances of the Prophet and marking the traditions in favour of fasting in Rajab as weak, untrustworthy or even forged. The lines of discussion on fasting resemble those of the discussion about the sacrifices. "In Paradise there is a river called Rajab" - says a tradition attributed to the Prophet. "This river is whiter than milk and sweeter than honey.
Or. 1971, fol. 38a: wa-qdla rajabun shahru lldhi wa-sha'biinu shahri wa-ramadanu shahru "aliyyin. 55 Al-Samarqandi, Tanbth al·ghiifilin (Cairo 1347 AH), p. 116; Ibn Hajar, Tabyln al-'ajab, p. 14; al-Pattanl, p. 116 inf.; al-Sakhawi, p. 299, No. 740; Ibn al-Dayba', Tamyiz al-tayyib min al-khabtth flma yadiiru 'alii alsinati l-ndsi min al-I;zadith (Cairo 1324 AH), p. 137; alShaukanl, al-Fawii'id, p. 440 sup.; and see an interesting shrt tradition in al-MajlisI's Bi/:liir XXXVII, 53 (newed.): Muhammad among his believers is like Ramadan in relation to other months, the family of Muhammad among the believers is like Sha'ban in relation to other months, "Ali among the family of Muhammad is like the best of the days of Sha "ban, i.e. the fifteenth day of this month. The believers of the family of Muhammad are like Rajab in relation to Sha 'ban. 56 Comp. J. Goldziher, "Neue Materialien zur Litteratur des Oberlieferungwesens bei den Muhammedanem", ZDMG L (1896), p. 482: "allerdings haben die Theologen mit seltener Ktihnheit in jedem auftauchenden Falle, den sie zu entscheiden hatten, ihre eigene Ansicht oder die der Lehrpartei der sie angeherten als Spruch des Propheten ausgegeben, zuweilen Spruche die lange Zeit als Urtheile angesehener Leute aus der Gemeinde des Islam bekannt waren, an den Propheten selbst angelehnt urn dadurch grossere Authoritiit fUr dieselben zu erlangen."
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He who fasts one day of the month of Rajab - God will give him to drink from that river."57 "In Paradise" - asserts another tradition - "there is a palace (prepared) for the people fasting in Rajab."58 The obligation of fasting in Rajab is motivated by miracles of God, His aid and deliverance of the righteous after plight and distress and His favour and grace granted to His believers in this month. Fasting is in fact an act of gratitude. God bade Nuh to set out on his ark in Rajab. He fasted this month, thanking God for His grace and ordered the people of the ark to fast this month according to some traditions. 59In Rajab God split the sea for Moses; Ibrahim and 'Isa were born during Rajab. God forgave the people of Yiinus their sins in Rajab; in this month too God forgave Adam.6o Rajab is nicknamed "the Deaf" (al-asammy; because the wrath of God was never heard of during this month; God punished peoples in other months, but never in Rajab.s! Rajab was also nicknamed al-asabb, "the Pouring", because the mercy of God poured forth during this month and flooded His servants; God bestows on them in this month graces and rewards which never an eye has seen, nor an ear heard, nor had it occurred to the mind of a man.62 Special rewards were promised, according to some traditions, for fasting on some particular days in Rajab. One of these especially venerated days is the twenty-seventh day of Rajab. On this day Muhammad was granted his prophethood. "He who fasts on the twenty-seventh day of Rajab will be granted by God the reward (otherwise) due for fasting sixty months", says a tradition reported on the authority of Abii Hurayra and attributed to the Prophet.O In another version of this hadith, he who fasts the twenty-seventh day of Rajab, and spends the preceding night awake (praying) will be rewarded just
57 Al-Jllanl, I, 200; al-Suytitl, al-Jami' al-saghir, I, 91 inf.; aI-'AzizI, I, 513; al-Dhahabl, Miziin al-i'tidiil, IV, 189, No. 8797; al-Bahrani, XIII, 381; Ibn Biibiiyah, p. 52; Ibn l;Iajar, Tabyin al-iajab, pp. 5-8; MuQ.. b. FattiiI, p. 401; al-Muttaql aI-Hindi, VIII, 360, No. 2646; al-Zurqanl, VIII, 128; al-Turttlshl, p. 125; 'Ali al-Qari', al-Adab, fol. 65a; al-Suyntt, alHdwt li-l-fatiiwl, ed. MuQ.. Muhyl l-Dln 'Abd al-Hamld (Cairo 1959), I, 145; and comp, alAsyiiti, al-Kanz al-madfiin (Cairo 1288 AH), p. 74. 58 Ibn 'Asakir, Ta'rikh (Tahdhib), ed. Ahmad 'Ubayd (Damascus 1351 AH), VII, 137; al- 'Azrzr, I, 513; al-Suyutt, al-Durr al-manthiir ,III, 235; al-Muttaql al-Hindl, VIII, 409, No. 2967-2968; al-Dlrlnl, p. 93, line 3; al-Zurqanl, VIII, 128; AbU Shama, al-Bd'ith. 'ala inkari l-bida'i wa-l-hawiidith; ed. Mahmud Fu'iid Minqara al-Tarabulsi (Cairo 1955), p. 55. 59 Al-Jtlant, I, 197; Ibn Hajar, Tabyin al- "ajab, p. 17; al-Suyutt, al-Durr al-manthiir, III, 235; and see aI-ShaukiinI, al-Fawii'id, p. 440, line 12; 'All al-Qari', al-Adab, fol. 65a. 60 Ibn Hajar, Tabyin al-'ajab, p. 17. 61 Al-Jiliini, I, 196 info 62 Ibid., I, 197. 63 Ibn Hajar, Tabyin al- "ajab, p. 28; aI-Jiliini, I, 205.
200
"Rajab is the Month of God ... " as if he fasted one hundred years and spent the nights of a hundred years awake.s+ According to a tradition reported on the authority of 'Ali b. Abl Talib, the Prophet promised forgiveness of ten years (of sins) to the man who would fast that day and would supplicate at the breaking of the fast (da'ti 'inda l-if!tir).65 It is noteworthy that 'Abdallah b. 'Abbas - according to a tradition reported on the authority of al-Hasan al-Basrl - used to practice the i'tikiif on the twenty-seventh day of Rajab, and recite (among other sura's of the Qur'an) the sura of Laylat al-Qadr.66 This may, of course, point to the continuity of the Jahiliyya practice of i'tikiif during Rajab in the period of Islam and support the proposition of Wagtendonk about the link between the laylat al-qadr and the twenty-seventh day of Rajab.s" The link between laylat al-qadr and the month of Rajab is indicated in some comments on Sura XIII, 39. Mujahid relates this verse to the former, while Qays b. 'Ubad refers it to the tenth of Rajab.67a Of special merit was also fasting on the first day of Rajab. The Prophet, according to a tradition reported by Abu Dharr, said: "He who fasts the first day of Rajab, will get the reward equivalent to the fasting of a month." The seven gates of Hell will remain closed - continues the tradition - for a man who fasts seven days of Rajab; he who fasts eight days - the eight gates of Paradise will be opened for him. God will turn into good deeds the wrong ones of a man who would fast ten days of Rajab. He who fasts eighteen days - a herald will call from Heaven: "God already forgave you (your sins), so start work (soil, of worship) again".68 Slightly different is the scale of rewards in a Shi'I tradition. Nub embarked on his ark on the first day of Rajab and ordered the people of the ship to fast this day. The fire of Hell will keep a distance of one year's journey from a man who fasted this day. The seven fires of Hell will be closed to a man who fasted seven days of Rajab. The eight gates of Paradise will be opened in the face of a man who fasted eight days of Rajab. The wishes of a man who fasts ten days of this month will be fulfilled. The sins of a man who fasted twenty five days will be forgiven and he will be told: "start again your (Pious) work". He who adds (days of) fasting - his rewards will be augmented.69 A tradition reported on the
64 Ibn I,Iajar, Tabyin al-tajab, p. 27; al·Suyuti, al-Durr al-manthar, III, 235 inf.; al-Jtlant, 1,205; 'All al-Qiiri', al-Adab, fol. 65a. 6S Ibn I,Iajar, Tabyin al- 'ajab, p. 28. 66 Al-Jtlanl, I, 205. 67 K. Wagtendonk, pp. 117-118. 67a AI-TabarI, Ta!sir, ed. Mahmud Mul,l. Shakir, XVI, p. 479, No. 20471 and p. 489, No. 20505. 68 AI·JUiini, I, 201. 69 Al-Bahranl, XIII, 381; al-Suytltl, aI-La'iili I-masnu'aft l-a/,liidlthi l-mauda:« (Cairo n.d.) II, 115; see Ibn I,Iajar, Tabyin al-tajab, p. 23.
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M.l. Kister authority of Ibn 'Umar records as reward for fasting on the first day of Rajab the equivalent of fasting a year. If the believer would fast seven days, the seven gates of Hell would be closed for him. If we hould fast ten days, a herald would announce from Heaven: "Ask (anything you like) and you will be granted (it)"70. A gradually decreasing list of rewards is given in a tradition reported on the authority of Ibn 'Abbas: God will forgive the sins of three years for fasting on the first day of Rajab, two years for fasting on the second day of Rajab, one year for fasting on the third day of Rajab, then fasting on every following day will be counted with reward of one month."! A considerable reward is promised for fasting on the first day of Rajab in another tradition: God will forgive sixty years' sins to the man who fasts on the first day of Rajab; God will bring a mild judgment upon a man (I;zasabahu hisiiban yasiran) who fasts fifteen days; God will grant His favour to a man (kataba lliihu lahu rir}wanahu) who fasts thirty days of Rajab and He will not punish him.72 Some versions of the traditions quoted above do not mention the first day of Rajab, but mention only the rewards of fasting "a day of Rajab". Unusual in its generosity is a list of rewards reported on the authority of 'Ali. The Prophet said: "The month of Rajab is a great month; he who fasts one day of this month - God will count for him (the reward of) fasting a thousand years. He who fasts two days - God will count for him (the reward of) fasting two thousand years. He who fasts three days of this month God will count for him (the reward of) fasting three thousand years. He who fasts seven days - the gates of Hell will be closed for him ... "73 Among the fourteen nights of the year, which the faithful are urged to spend awake, there are three nights of Rajab: the eves of the first, of the fifteenth and of the twenty seventh of Rajab.74 The eve of the first day of Rajab is counted among the five nights in the year; if its practices are properly observed by the believer he will enter Paradise.T' Of special merit is also fasting on the first Thursday of Rajab (connected with the vigils of the eve of Friday and saldt al-raghd'ib], the fifteenth and the last day of Rajab.76
AI·Muttaqi al-Hindt, VIII, 360, No. 2648. Ibid., VIII, 360, No. 2647; al-Suyutt, al-Jiimi' al-saghir, II, 45; al- 'Azizi, II, 391. 72 Al-Jtlant, I, 201 info 73 See Ibn al-Jauzl, Kit. al-maudu'at, ed. 'Abd al-Rahman MuQ.. 'Uthman (Cairo 1966), II, 206-207. 74 Al-Jllanl, I, 202; AbU Tiilib al-Makkl, I, 93; al-Ghazall, I, 328. 75 Al-Jiliini, I, 202. 76 Ibid., I, 204.
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"Rajab
is the Month of God ... "
A current tradition about fasting in Rajab reported on the authority of Sa'id al-Khudri gives a detailed account of the rewards of fasting on every day of the month. "Rajab is the month of God, Sha'ban is my month, Ramadan is the month of my people" - says the Prophet. Therefore he who fasts one day?? of Rajab out of belief and piety (imdnan wa-htisdbany deserves God's greatest favour (istaujaba ridwdna lliihi l-akbara) and God will lodge him in the upper part of Paradise. He who fasts two days of Rajab will get a double reward; the weight of every single reward will be like the mountains of the world. He who fasts three days God will put between him and between the fire (of Hell) a ditch extending for a distance of a year's journey.78 He who fasts four days of Rajab, will be healed from madness, elephantiasis, leprosy, the trial of the false Messias (fitnat al-masihi l-dajjali) and the chastisement of the grave Cadhiib al-qabr). He who fasts five days, will be protected from the chastisement of the grave (wuqiya "adhiiba l-qabri).79 He who fasts six days, will step out from his grave, his face shining more than the moon at the night of full-moon. He who fasts seven days - God will close for him the seven gates of Hell (closing for every day of fasting one gate). He who fasts eight days of Rajab, God will open for him the eight gates of Paradise (opening for every day of fasting one gate). He who fasts nine days, he will step out from his grave proclaiming lii iliiha illd lliihu and his face will not be turned away from Paradise. He who fasts ten days - God will lay for him at every mile of the path to heaven bedding (fariish) on which he might rest. As for him who fasts eleven days - there will be at the Day of Resurrection no believer superior to him except a believer who would fast the same number of days or more. He who fasts twelve days - God will bestow upon him two garments, one of which would be better than the world and all that is in the world. He who fasts thirteen days - a table will be put up for him in the shade of the Throne (of God) and he will eat from it, while other people will remain in distress (wa-l-niisufi shiddatin shadidatin). He who fasts fourteen days - God will grant him a reward which no eye has seen, no ear has heard, and which has not occurred to the mind of men twa-ld khatara 'alii qalbi basharin). He who fasts fifteen days - God will raise him on the Day of Resurrection in the stand (mauqif) of the believers.w He who fasts sixteen days - he will be among the
"Youman" omitted in Ibn al-Jauzt's Maur!u'iit and in Suyfitf's La'iili. Compo MuQ.. b. al-Hasan al-'Amili, al-Jawiihir al-saniyya fi I-al)iidith al-qudsiyya (Najaf 1964), p. 140. 79 The reward of five days is not mentioned in Ibn Jauzi's Maur!u'iit and in SuyiitI's La'iili. 80 Here the tradition stops in Ibn al-Jauzl's Maur!u'iit II, 206, in Ibn Hajar's Tabyin p. 12 and in Suyiitt's La'ali II, 115, line 2 (there is however an additional phrase in Jnani's Ghunya I, 198: fa-ld yamurru bihi malakun muqarrabun wa-ld nabiyyun mursalun iIIii qdla ruba laka anta min al-iiminin); it is continued in Jllanl's Ghunya with the remark: wa-ft lafzin dkhara ziyiidatun 'alii khamsata 'ashara wa-hiya ... ; and see Ibn l;Iajar, Tabyin al- 'ajah, p.12 info
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M. J. Kister first who would visit the Merciful, look at Him and hear His speech. He who fasts seventeen days - God will arrange for him at every mile of the path to Heaven a resting place.s! He who fasts eighteen days - God will build for him a palace opposite the palace of Ibrahim and Adam; they would greet him and he would greet them. He who fasts twenty days - a herald will proclaim for Heaven: "God has forgiven you what passed, begin thus anew your (Pious) work."82 Some descriptions of the rewards of people who fasted the whole month of Rajab are of the type of stories of the qu~~ii~ describe the palaces in Paradise, and the meals and the /:tiiris awaiting these people in Paradise.83 A Shi'I tradition gives the following vivid description of the Day of Resurrection. "At the Day of Resurrection - says the tradition reported on the authority of Ja'far al-Sadiq - a herald will call from the interior of the Throne: "Where are the Rajabis (people fasting in Rajab) 1" Then will stand up people with faces shining for the gathered (crowds), on their heads will be crowns of kingdom inlaid with sapphires and pearls. On the right side of every man of them will be a thousand angels and on the left side a thousand angels. They will say: "0 servant of God, mayest thou enjoy the grace of God". Then will follow the call from God, the Exalted: "My servants and My maidens, I swear by My majesty and power: I shall honour your residence and I shall bestow upon you gifts in bounty. I shall introduce you into apartments in Paradise under which rivers will flow and you will be for ever in it. How good is the reward of the pious. You volunteered to fast for Me a month which I sanctified and whose observance I bade. My angels, Introduce My servants and maidens into Paradise". Then Ja'far b. Muhammad said: "That concerns also people who fasted a part of Rajab, even one day at the beginning of the month, in its midst or at its end". 84 One of the most discussed topics involving the Rajab fast was fasting during the whole month.8s The opponents of fasting in Rajab based their argument
See above the reward for fasting ten days. AI-Jiliini, I, 198-199; al-Suyutl, al-La'iili, II, 114-115; Ibn I;Iajar, Tabyin al-lajab, pp. 10-12,29-30; comp. Ibn Biibiiyah, pp. 52-57 sup. (continued until the thirtieth of Rajab); Muh. b. Fattiil, 396-400 (continued until the thirtieth of Rajab); and see al-Sahml, pp. 56 inf., 302 info 83 J. Goldziher, Muh. Studien (Halle 1890), II, 160; al-Babrsnr, XIII, 400; al-ZajjiijI, Amiili (Cairo 1935), p. 134. 84 Al-Bahranl, XIII, 401 (and see ibid., pp. 381, 396 about rewards for fasting of the first and the fifteenth of Rajab). 8S See K. Wagtendonk, p. 121.
81 82
204
"Rajab is the Month of God ... " on the well-known hadith reported on the authority of Ibn 'Abbas: "The Prophet forbade fasting in Rajab".86 Later scholars transmitted this tradition with the addition of the word "whole" (nahii 'an saumi rajabin kullihi).87 Partisans of fasting in Rajab criticized this tradition, emphasizing that two of its transmitters were "weak". The two weak transmitters were Da'ud b. 'Ata'88 and Zayd b. 'Abd al-Hamtd.s? They argued further that the word "nahii" was erroneously inserted into the text, as the tradition referred originally to the actions of the Prophet; it was the transmitter who changed erroneously the word into prohibition twa-innamd l-riwdyatu fihi min fi'Ii I-nabiyyi salld lliihu 'alayhi wa-sallama fa-harrafa l-riiwi l-fi'la ilii l-nahyi). If this version (i.e. nahii) is correct, the interdiction indicates merely a preventive measure (thumma in $abIJafa-huwa mahmidun 'alii I-tanzihi). It has to be interpreted according to the opinion of al-Shafi't. AI-Shari'i stated that he would disapprove of fasting a whole month like the fasting of Ramadan, or fasting on a peculiar day. He was afraid that some ignorant person might imitate such practices considering it obligatory.w This opinion of al-Shafi'I is quoted by al-Subki (d. 771 AH),91 (like by Ibn Hajar), from al-Bayhaqi's (d. 458 AH) Fa(lii'il al-auqdt. Al-Bayhaqi records the opinion of al-Shafi'I with a remarkable phrase: "wa-in fa'ala fa-hasanun", and comments that as it is common knowledge among the Muslims that the only obligatory fast is Ramadan, the idea of reprehensibility (connected with fasting a whole month, in this case Rajab) is accordingly lifted (fa-'rtaja'a bi-dhdlika ma'nd /kariihiyyati). Consequently it can be deduced from the arguments of al-Bayhaqi that the tradition of Ibn Majah merely expresses disapproval of fasting the whole of Rajab if this fast is put on an equal footing with Ramadan as obligatory. As the Muslim community is aware of the fact that the only month of mandatory fasting is Ramadan, there is no reprehensibility in fasting a whole month (in this case Rajab); if the believer fasts this month - it is a good deed. Although al-Subki could not find the additional phrase wa-in faala jabasanun in other sources - he accepts the version recorded by al-Bayhaqi
86 Ibn Miijah, I, 531 (anna I-nabiyya ~allti lldhu 'alayhi wa-sallama nahd 'an saumi rajabin); aI-Shaukiini, Nayl, IV, 210; comp, about the interdiction of fasting of the whole month of Rajab: Ahmad b. l;Ianbal, I, 231, No. 181; al-Turtushi, p. 130; ai-Khatib al-Baghdiidi, II, 227; K. Wagtendonk, p. 121 (and note 4). 87 Ibn Hajar, Tabyin al- 'ajab, p. 33; al-Dhahabl, Miziin al-i'tiddl, II, 104, No. 3015. 88 See on him Ibn l;Iajar, Tahdhib, III, 193, No, 370; al-Dhahabi, Mizdn, II, 12, No. 2631. 89 See on him Ibn Hajar, Tahdhib, III, 417, No. 764. 90 Ibn Hajar, Tabyin al- 'ajab, p. 31 inf.-32 sup.; and see al-Shaukani, Nayl, IV, 210, line 8 from bottom. 91 Tabaqdt al-Shdfi'iyya al-kubrii, ed. al-Hilw, al-Tanahl (Cairo 1966), IV, 12-13.
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as sound. As the interdiction of fasting of the whole month of Rajab is not a sound one - it has to be considered, states al-Subki, as mustahabb, desirable (wa-idha lam yakun al-nahyu 'an takmili saumihi $abiban baqiya 'ala asl! l-istihbiib); the utterance of al-Shafi'I indicates that fasting the whole month of Rajab is good (hadha l-nassu lladhi rawiihu l-Bayhaqiyyu 'an alShaji'iyyi fihi daliilatun bayyinatun 'ala anna sauma rajabin bi-kamdlihi hasanuny. This, al-Subkl states, confirms the opinion of 'Izz al-Dln b. 'Abd al-SaHim92 that he who forbids to fast in Rajab is ignorant of the principles of the Law
(man nahii 'an saumi rajabin fa-huwa jdhilun bi-ma'khadhi ahkdmi l-shar'Ii. Al-Shaukanl (d. 1250 AH) discusses the problem of fasting in Rajab in
connection with fasting the whole month of Sha 'ban and concludes that the traditions enjoining fasting during the holy months (al-ashhur al-burum) include the recommendation of fasting of the month in Rajab. There are no traditions stating that fasting in Rajab is reprehensible (makruh).93 Al-Qastallani discusses the contradictory traditions about fasting during the whole month of Sha 'ban.94 The reference to fasting on Sha 'ban is indicated in the hadith reported on the authority of Usama b. Zayd in which the Prophet said: "That (i.e. Sha'ban) is a month neglected by the people, (a month) between Rajab and Ramadan, It is a month in which the deeds are brought before the Lord of the Worlds, and I want therefore that my deeds be brought before Him when I am fasting."95 Al-Qastallani remarks that many people think that fasting in Rajab is preferable to fasting in Sha 'ban, because Rajab is one of the holy months (al-ashhur al-hurumy; but it is not so (i.e. fasting of Rajab is not preferable to the fasting of Sha 'ban). Al-Zurqani supports the opinion of al-Qastallani, quoting the hadith reported on the authority of 'A'isha, that when people fasting Rajab were mentioned to the Prophet, he said: "How (poor are) they (in their reward compared to those fasting in) Sha 'ban."96 Nevertheless al-Qastallanl admits that some of the Shafi'tyya considered fasting of Rajab as more meritorious than fasting of other months. Fasting in Rajab is recommended as Rajab is one of the holy months; the fast of these months is indicated in the tradition recorded by AbU Da'ud. 'Abdallah b.
See below, p. 207. Al-Shaukanl, Nayl, IV, 209-210. 94 Al-Zurqanl, VIII, 124-125. 95 Ibid., VIII, 126; and see al-Shaukanl, Nayl, IV, 210 sup.; al-Haythaml, Majma' alzawa'id, III, 192. 96 Al-Zurqanl, VIII, 126; this tradition is recorded by Ibn Hajar, Tabyfn al- 'ajab, p. 33 with the following story: "A woman entered the home of 'A'isha and mentioned that she fasted Rajab. 'A'isha said: fast Sha'ban, as the merit is in (fasting) Sha'ban." She then quoted the utterance of the Prophet.
92 93
206
"Raiab
is the Month
of
God ... "
'Umar stated that the Prophet used to fast in Rajab and honoured this month. Although the hadith of Ibn Majah forbidding the fast of the whole month of Rajab is a weak one - the Hanbalis considered it as valid. They concluded on the basis of this tradition, says al-Zurqani, that it was reprehensible to single out the month of Rajab as a month of fasting (yukrahu ifrdduhu bi-l~aumi).97
A significant passage quoted from a book of al-Damlri (d. 808 AH) by 'Ali b. Ahmad al-'Azizi (d. 1070 AH)98 records the favourable opinion of two scholars of the seventh century of the Hijra towards fasting in Rajab. Abu 'Amr b. al-Sala1;t99was asked whether fasting the whole month of Rajab was a sin or whether it was a rewarded practice. He answered that there was no sin in it at all. None of the Muslim scholars, argued Abu 'Amr b. alSalah, considered it as sin. It is true that some scholars of hadith stated that there were no sound hadiths about the merits of fasting Rajab; that does not however imply any sin in fast; traditions about fasting in general and about fasting in the holy months in particular indicate that this fasting (i.e. in Rajab) is meritorious. The tradition of Ibn Dihya claiming that the fire of Hell is kindled every year for the people fasting Rajab is not sound and its transmission is unlawful.100 Tzz al-Dln b. 'Abd al-Salamlv! was asked about the opinion of scholars who denounce the fast of Rajab and its observance and whether fasting the whole month as a vow was lawful. 'Izz al-Dln gave permission to vow fasting the whole month arguing that none of the scholars of Islam included Rajab among the reprehensible periods of fasting (fima yukrahu saumuhuy; on the contrary: it is a pious deed (qurba) as indicated by sound traditions and it is recommended. He who honours Rajab in a different way than the people of the Jahiliyya, the argument says, does not imitate them. Besides, not everything practised by the people of the Jahiliyya is forbidden to follow (in Islam), unless it is interdicted by the Law (wa-laysa kullu md fa'alathu l-jdhiliyyatu manhiyyan 'an muldbasatihi illii idhii nahat al-shari'atu 'anhu wadallat...). Truth should not be abandoned on the ground that people of falsehood practised it, says 'Izz al-Dln. Furthermore, he gives his statement about the ignorant scholar who forbids fasting on Rajab as quoted above from Subki's Tabaqat. Al-Damirl sums up the two fatwds in a poem of ten verses, concluding that
Al-Zurqanl, VIII, 127. Al-Sirii] al-munir, II, 391-392. 99 See on him al-Dhahabl, Tadhkirat a/-l;lUffa?, IV, 1430, No. 1141. 100 See this fatwd in Fatdwd Ibn a/-Sa/ab (Cairo 1348 AH), p. 21. 101 See on him al-Kutubl, Fawat al-wafayat, ed. Muh. Muhyl I-Din 'Abd al-Hamtd (Cairo 1951), I, 594, No. 234.
97 98
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M.J. Kister
fasting the whole month of Rajab is recommended. A vow of fasting in the month is binding (wa-bi-l-nadhri yajib). In the opinion of Ahmad (b. Hanbal) singling out the month for fasting is reprehensible, but the opinion that forbids it should be rejected. The prohibition of fasting was reported by Ibn Majah, but the badith. proved to be weak because of its (weak) isndd. The shaykh 'Izz al-Din stated that he who forbade fasting in any case is heedless. He strongly rejected the opinion of scholars who forbade fasting, and stated that they should not be consulted for fatwii. The transmitters of the Shart'a did not reprehend fasting the whole (month). The recommendation of fasting (in this month) is included in the recommendation of fasting in general and there is no sin upon the fasting (person). Ibn al-Salah stated that the haditb about punishment for fasting in Rajab was not a sound one, and it was not permissible to attribute it to the Prophet. The merits of fasting in general, as stated in (valid) texts, indicate that it is even desirable (mustahabbi in particular - this is how al-Damirl concludes his poem. Ibn 'Asakir (AbUI l-Qasim 'Ali b. al-I;Iasan)102 devoted a special chapter in his Amiili to the merits of Rajab. He composed some verses in which the river Rajab in Paradise is mentioned: a drink from Rajab in Paradise, If you desire it - fast for God in Rajab And pray the prayer of the longing103 and fast Because everyone who exerts himself in (deeds of) obedience will not be disappointed. 104 Orthodox scholars denied any merit to fasting in Rajab, basing their argument on the tradition reported on the authority of Sa'id b. Jubayr.l05 When Sa'Id b. Jubayr was asked about the merits of fasting in Rajab, he said: "I was told by Ibn 'Abbas that the Prophet used to fast (to an extent) that we thought that he would never break his fast, and he used to break his fast (so often) that we thought that he would not (start again to) fast." 106 Al-Qastallani remarks rightly that this tradition indicates that fasting in Rajab is neither forbidden nor recommended (wa-l-zdhiru anna murdda Sa'idin - i.e. Sa'Id b. Jubayr bi-hiidhii l-istidldlu 'alii annahu Iii nahya 'anhu wa-lii nadbafihi, bal lahu hukmu biiqi l-shuhftri).107 The opponents of fasting in Rajab argue that this tradition
See on him C. Brockelmann, GAL, SI, 566. "Saldt al-riighibtna": the ~aliit al-raghii'ib is here, of course, alluded to. 104 AbU Shiima, pp. 55-57. 105 See on him Ibn Khallikan, Wafayiit al- a'yiin, ed. Ahmad Fartd Rifii'i (Cairo n.d.) VI, 127-136. 106 Al-Turtiishl, p. 128; Ibn l;Iajar, Tabyin al-tajab, p. 32. 107 Al-Zurqanl, VIII, 127; and see al- 'Azizi, II, 392, line 23 (the opinion of aI-Nawawi).
102 103
o he who wants
208
"Raiab is the Month of God ... " points clearly to the fact that the Prophet used to fast during different months of the year. It is accordingly evident that the Prophet did not single out any month for fasting, and therefore no special merit can be attached to the fasting of Rajab; the only meritorious month of fasting is Ramadan, There is a version of the tradition of Sa'Id b. Jubayr quoted above, reported on the authority of 'A'isha. "The Prophet used to fast (to an extent) that we thought... etc." This hadith has however a significant addition: "And I did not see the Prophet, states 'A'isha, completing the fast of any month at all except Ramadan, and I did not see him fasting more (in any month - K) than in Sha'ban."108 Two points in this tradition are noteworthy: the one stressing that the Prophet did not complete fasting in any month except Rama<;lan. his implies that it is not permitted to fast a whole month except in RamaT <;lan. he other point emphasizes that he used to fast in Sha 'ban more than in any T other month. One may not be surprised to find a contradictory tradition, reported on the authority of 'A'isha, stating that the Prophet used to fast the whole month of Sha'ban (kii.na yasianu sha'biina kullahu).109 Another tradition, reported on the authority of Abu Hurayra, gives a different version: "The Prophet did not complete the fast of any month besides Ramadan except for Rajab and Sha'ban "(anna rasiila lldhi ~alla lldhu "alayhi wa-sallama lam yutimma sauma shahrin ba'da ramaddna illd rajaba wa-sha'biina).110 Ibn Hajar classifies the tradition as "munkar",l11 because of the transmitter Yusuf b. 'Atiyya,112 who is considered as "very weak".113 It is not surprising, however, that the hadith on which opponents of fasting in Rajab based their argument is also reported on the authority of 'A'isha: "The Prophet did not single out any month of the year for fasting" (inna l-nabiyya sallii lldhu "alayhi wa-sallama mii kana yakhussu shahran min al-sanati bi-saumin ).114 Opponents of fasting in Rajab attempted to prove that the Companions, like the Prophet, disapproved of fasting Rajab, did not attach any sanctity to the month and considered fasting during Rajab as adherence to Jahiliyya observ-
9949), II, 77 ult., No. 711. 108 Muh, Fu'iid 'Abd al-Baql, al-Lu'lu' wa-l-marjdn fimd ttafaqa "alayhi l-shaykhdn (Cairo 1949), II, 22 ult., No. 711; Ibn Haiar, Bulugh al-mariim, ed. Muh, I;Iiimid al-Fiqql (Cairo 1933), p. 137, No. 701. 109 Al-Haythaml, Majma' al-zawii'id (Cairo 1352 AH), III, 192; and see ibid.: kiina yasiimu sha'bana wa-ramaddna yasiluhumd. 110 Al-Haythaml, III, 191 penult.; Ibn Hajar, Tabyln al-tajab, p. 9 info .111 See about the definition of "munkar" Muh, 'Abd aI-I;Iayy al-LuknawI, al-Raf" wa-l-takmil, ed. 'Abd al-Fattah AbU Ghudda (I;Ialab, n.d.), pp. 92-99. 112 See on him al-Dhahabt, Miziin al-i'tidal, IV, 488, No. 9877. 113 Ibn I;Iajar, Tabyin al-' ajab, p, 10, line 1. 114 A1-TurtiishI, p. 128.
209
M.l. Kister ances. 'Umar, says the tradition, used to beat the hands of people fasting in Rajab when they lifted them from (dishes of) food and compelled them to put them into it. He used to say: "Eat because Rajab was merely adored by the people of the Jahiliyya."llS In another version of this tradition, 'Umar used to flog people who fasted the whole month of Rajab.116 Another tradition states that Ibn 'Umar disliked to see people prepare for fasting Rajab. He told them: "Fast (some days) of it (i.e. of the month) and break the fasting; it is merely a month which the people of the Jahiliyya revered" .117 According to these traditions fasting on some days of Rajab, just as fasting some days of other months, is not forbidden; but fasting for the whole month and attaching sanctity to the month itself are not lawful. The adoration of Rajab might endanger the position of Ramadan, This is reflected in a story about Abu Bakr. When he saw his people prepare for fasting Rajab he said: "Do you make (i.e. observe) Rajab like Ramadan 7" (a-ja'altum rajaban ka-ramat/ana).1l8 Ibn 'Abbas insisted that Rajab be not established as an obligatory feast ("id) like Ramadan, Al-Turtushi concludes that these traditions indicate that "the honouring of Rajab by some people is a vestige of the bonds of the Jahiliyya" (dallat hddhihi l-dthiiru 'alii anna lladhi
fi aydi l-niisi min ta'~imihi innamii hiya ghabariitun min baqdyii "uqiidi l-jiihi/iyyati).119 In summary al-Turtushi states that fasting in Rajab is not obligatory, it is not a sunna of the Prophet and is not meritorious; it is reprehensible.120 A special treatise against fasting in and veneration of Rajab, named Adii'u mii wajab min bayiini wad'i l-waddd'Ina fi rajab, was compiled by Ibn Di1;tya,121 From this treatise the following hadith is with all probability quoted: "The Prophet said: 'Hell is kindled from year to year for the people fasting in Rajab'. "122 One of the main arguments of the opponents of the Rajab fast was the tenet
us Al-Shaukant, Nayl, IV, 210 (here the tradition is quoted from Ibn AbI Shayba's al-Musannaf. The remark of Wagtendonk, p. 121, note 3 that "these are late traditions" can hardly be accepted.); al-Turtusht, p. 129; Ibn Hajar, Tabyin al-tajab, p. 32; al-Haythaml, Majma' al-zawii'id, III, 191; Jamal al-Dln al-Qasiml, I#ab al-masdjid min al bida'i wa-I'awa'id (Cairo 1341 AH), pp. 76-77; al-Muttaql ai-Hindi, VIII, 409, No. 2966; AbU Shama, p. 38; al-Manbijl, Kit. al-samii'i wa-l-raqs in Majmu'at al-rasii'il al-kubrd It-Ibn Taymiyya (Cairo 1323 AH), II, 360 inf, 116 Al-Turtusht, p. 129. 117 Ibid., p. 129. 118 Ibid., p. 129; al-Qasimi, p, 77; AbU Shama, p. 38. 119 Al-Turtnsht, p. 129 ult.-130 sup. 120 Ibid., pp. 130-131; Ibn Hajar, Tabyin al- 'ajab, pp. 34-35; al-Qasiml, pp. 77-78; AbU Shama p. 38 (all quoting al-Turtusht). 121 See on him al-Dhahabl Tadhkirat al-buifa? (Hyderabad 1958) IV 1420 No. 1136. 122 Al-'Azizi, II, 391, line 6 from bottom; and see abovep. 207.
210
"Rajab
is the Month of God ... "
that the believer is not entitled to establish days or months of religious practices to which particular merits may be attached; this privilege is exclusively reserved for the Lawgiver (fa-l-/:zii~i/u anna l-mukallafa laysa lahu mansibu l-takhsisi bal dhiilika i/o. l-shari'i).123 As the tradition reported by Sa'Id b. Jubayr (stating that the Prophet used to fast through the whole year) refutes the traditions about fasting in Rajab, as the Companions repremanded this fasting, as the traditions about fasting in Rajab are weak and untrustworthy - the view that the Rajab fast may be included into the category of good deeds has to be rejected. Good deeds necessitate the approval of the Prophet, which the fasting of Rajab did not get. As the traditions about fasting in Rajab are lies, the fast is, of course, unlawful (fa-in qila- a-laysa hddhii huwa isti'mdla khayrin? qila
lahu: isti'miilu khayrin yanbaghi an yakima mashrii'an min al-nabiyyi salld lldhu "alayhi wa-sallama; fa-idhii "alimnd annahu kadhibun kharaja min almashru'iyyati).124
Opponents of Rajab tried to show the weakness or the forgery of the proRajab traditions, revealing the weakness of the isndd. AbU Shama (d. 665 AH), who devoted a good deal of his Bii'ith to the rebuttal of pro-Rajab hadiths, and Ibn Hajar (d. 852 AH) in his Tabyin al-lajab, a treatise with the same aim, both used the same method of scrutinizing isniids. The tradition about the Rajab river in Paradise was rejected by AbU Shama125 on the ground that Musa al-Tawil126 was a liar. The hadith: "Rajab is the month of God, Sha'ban is my month etc." was discarded because the transmitter was al-Naqqash al-Mausilt.t-? a famous liar and forger of hadith. The hadith:
"kana rasiilu lliihi salla lliihu "alayhi wa-sallama idhd dakhala rajabun qdla lldhumma biirik lana Ii rajabin wa-sha'biina ... etc."128 was rejected on the
ground that Ziyad b. Maymun129 was considered as "discarded" (literally: "abandoned", "matriik"). Ma'mun b. Ahmad al-Sulamlrw and Ahmad b. 'Abdallah al-Juwaybari,l3l transmitters of pro-Rajab hadiths, were known as notorious liars; 132Ibn al-Jauzi counts both Ma'mun b. Ahmad and Ahmad
Abu Shama, p. 37. Ibid., p. 38. 125 Ibid., p. 55 penult. 126 See on him al-Dhahabl, Mizdn al-i'tidiil, IV, 209, No. 8888. 127 See on him al-Dhahabl, Miziin al-i'tiddl, III, 520, No. 7404. 128 See Ibn al-Sunnl, 'Amal al-yaum wa-l-layla (Hyderabad 1358 AH), p. 178; al-Suyutt, al-Jiimi' al-saghir, II, 105; ai-Khatib al-Baghdadl, Miir!i/:l auluim, II, 473; al-Jarraht, I, 186, No. 554; 'Ali al-Qari', al-Adab, fol. 65a, inf.; al-Majlisl, Bibtir, XX, 338 (lithogr. edition). 129 See on him al-Dhahabl, Mizdn al-i'tiddl, II, 94, No. 2967. 130 See on him al-Dhahabl, Mizdn al-i'tiddl, III, 429, No. 7036. 131 See on him al-Dhahabl, Mizdn al-i'tiddl, I, 106, No. 421. 132 AbU Shama, p, 55.
123 124
211
M. I. Kister
b. "Abdallah in the list of "big liars" .133Both are accused of the transmission of the forged hadith, in which the Prophet foretold: "Among my people will be a man called Muhammad b. Idris; he will be more harming for my people than Iblis"; one of them invented the badith.134 By Muhammad b. Idris, the imam al-Shafi'I is meant. It is quite plausible that al-Shafi'I's assessment of the personality of Ma'mun b. Ahmad was concise: Ma'miin ghayru ma'mun.135 The hadith: "He who fasts the twenty seventh day of Rajab, God will write for him a reward of sixty months; it is the first day when the angel Gabriel brought the Prophet the Message" is marked by AbU Khattab (i.e. Ibn Dihya) as a spurious tradition. The tradition that the date of the Isrii' was the twenty seventh day of Rajab is marked as "the essence of lie". 136One of the transmitters of the tradition: "He who fasts three days of Rajab - God will count for him (the reward of) fasting of a month ... etc." was Aban (b. abl 'Ayyash).137 Ibn al-Jauzl rejects the tradition as unsound because of Aban, He quotes negative opinions of scholars about Aban, and records the saying of Shu 'ba138 that he prefers adultery to transmission of the traditions reported by Aban.139 The scholars opposing the fasting of Rajab faced the hostile attitude of the common people who practised fasting and special devotions in some nights of Rajab. They faced the pressure of the rulers as well. A peculiar case of this kind is reported in connection with the activities of Tzz al-Djn b. 'Abd alSalam, whose favourable opinion about Rajab fasting was mentioned above. In the year 637 AH 'Izz al-Dln acted as preacher and imam of the mosque of Damascus; he was a very learned and pious man, strictly following the sunna. Just before the beginning of Rajab, he preached in the mosque on Friday, and stressed that the $aliit al-raghd'ib was a bid'a and that the badtth. enjoining the practice of this prayer was a lie. 'Izz al-Din compiled a treatise in which he expounded his view and warned the people against the practice of this bid'a; he named it "al-tarhib 'an saldti l-raghii'ib". He was however compelled by the common people and the sultan to change his mind and to compile a treatise which contradicted his former treatise. In his second treatise he issued a favourable judgment about the $aliit al-raghii'ib.140 The orthodox permission of the popular Rajab fast in the tenth century of the Hijra is fairly exposed in the treatise of the HanafI scholar "Ali al-Qari'
133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140
Al-Shaukanl, al-Fawd'id, p. 426. Ibid, p. 420; see al-Dhahabl, Miziin, III, 430; al-Suyutl, al-La'iilt, I, 457. Abu Shiima, p. 55, line 5 from bottom. Ibid., p. 56 sup. See on him al-Dhahabl, Miziin I, 10-15, No. 15. See on him al-Dhahabt, Tadhkirat al-/.Iuffiiz, I, 193, No. 187. Ibn al-Jauzl, al-Maur!u'iit, II, 206. And see his assessment of isndds, ibid., pp. 207-28 AbU Shiima, pp. 32-33.
212
"Rajab
is the Month of God ... "
"al- Adab fi rajab". Although he follows strictly the path of orthodox assessment of the hadith concerning fasting Rajab, he nevertheless gives his consent to
fasting Rajab and regards it rewardable. The interdiction of fasting Rajab in the hadith of Ibn Majah - argues 'Ali al-Qari' - has to be considered as an interdiction of its obligatory character, as it was in the period of the Jahiliyya
(wa-ammii md rawiihu Ibn Miijah. annahu 'alayhi l-saliimu nahd 'an siyiimi
rajabin fa-mahmidun 'ala "tiqiidi wujiibihi kama kdna fi l-jahiliyyati).141 Except that (i.e. this reason for the reprehensibility of fasting) none of the scholars said that fasting in Rajab was reprehensible (wa-illii fa-lam yaqui ahadun min al- 'ulamd' bi-kariihati ~aumihi).142 The opinion that every hadith about fasting Rajab and prayers in some nights of Rajab is a forged one deserves to be re-examined. It is true that there are some forged traditions, but traditions about fasting in Rajab are numerous and they, although weak, strengthen each other.143 Scholars agree, argues al-Qari', that it is permissible to perform pious deeds having recourse to "weak" traditions (wa-ajma'a 1- 'ulamd'u bijawiizi l- 'amali bi-l-abddithi l-da'ifati l-wdridati fi farjii'ili l-a'mdli). The interdiction of fasting Rajab by some scholars and considering it a bid'a is therefore not plausible (wa-lii ma'nii li-nahyi...). What is required from the believers is worship and obedience according to their ability. Rajab, as can be deduced from tradition, is a month surpassing other months in merits.144 Radical and uncompromising scholars rejected all the traditions about the virtues of Rajab and the merits of its fast. Ibn Taymiyya states that all the traditions about fasting in Rajab, fasting on the first Friday of Rajab and other merits are lies according to the consensus of the scholars. The best hadith on this subject is, of course, the hadith recorded by Ibn Majah, stating that the Prophet forbade the fast of Rajab.14S
IV Among the distinctive features of Rajab are the special prayers and supplications connected, of course, with the fasting. These special prayers, devotions and supplications were the subject of fervent discussions and were strongly reproved by orthodox scholars. Rajab is a month of repentance, of refraining from sin and of doing pious
'Ali al-Qari', al-Adab, fol. 65b. 'Ali al-Qari', al-Al;uidith al-maudu'a, fol. 61a. 143 Ibid., fol. 61a. 144 Idem, al-A dab, fol. 65b. 145 Al-Manbijl, II, 306; Ibn al-Jauzl, al-Maudii'iit, II, 208 (mii ~aMa ft fadli rajabin wa-ft #yiimihi 'an rasidi lliihi ~allii lldhu 'alayhi wa-sallama shay'un); al-Jarrahl, II, 421.
141 142
213
M.l. Kister deeds. This idea of Rajab is expounded in a tradition attributed to the Prophet. In a speech delivered a week before Rajab, the Prophet stated that the rewards for good deeds in this month were doubled, supplications responded to by God and distress relieved by Him. The Prophet bade the believers to fast the days of Rajab and to keep vigilance in its nights. He who prays during some days of Rajab fifty prayers, reciting in every rak'a passages from the Qur'an - God will grant him rewards for his good deeds as much as the number of his hairs. He who fasts one day - God will reward him with the reward of fasting of a year. He who keeps his tongue (from bad speech)God will tutor him in arguments of his defence when the two angels Munkir and Nakir would come to question him (in his grave). He who would give some alms - God will save his neck from the fire of Hell. He who does good deeds to his people - God will treat him kindly in this world and in his life to come, and will help him against his enemies during his lifetime. He who visits a sick person - God will order the noble of His angels to visit him and greet him. He who prays in a funeral ceremony during this month, is as one who revives a buried girl-child. He who gives food to a believer - God will lodge him on the Day of Resurrection at a table where Ibrahim and Muhammad will be sitting. He who clothes a believer during this month - God will put on him a thousand of the suits of Paradise. He who bestows a favour upon an orphan and strokes his head - God will forgive him as many of his sins as the number of the hairs (scil. on the head of the orphan) upon which his hand passed. God will grant forgiveness to the believer who asks it. He who praises God once - will be counted in God's presence among the people mentioning God many times. He who completes in this month the reading of the Qur'anGod will crown him and his parents with crowns inlaid with pearls and he will be assured not to be inflicted with the horrors of the Day of Resurrection. 146 'Abdallah b. al-Zubayr is said to have stated: "He who comforts a believer in his hardship during the month of Rajab, 'the Deaf', the month of God God will grant him a palace in Paradise as big as his gaze can reach. Therefore, urges the tradition, venerate Rajab and God will bestow upon you a thousand graces."147 He who gives alms once in Rajab - says a hadith attributed to the Prophet - God will keep him away from the fire of Hell, at a distance equivalent to that which a crow flies during its lifetime (literally flight of a crow since flying as a chick until its death in decrepitude - a crow lives five hundred years).148 A hadith reported on the authority of Salman al-Farisi records the following utterance of the Prophet:
146 Ibn Hajar, Tabyin, pp. 25-26; al-Shaukanl, al-Fawd'id, p. 439, lines 9-12 (the beginning of the tradition). 147 'Abd al-Qadir ai-JUan!, I, 200. 148 Ibid., I, 200.
214
"Rajab is the Month of God ... " "He who fasts one day of Rajab is (considered) as if he had fasted a thousand years. He who grants alms (once) is (considered) as if he would give alms of a thousand dinars and God will credit him for every good deed with a number of rewards equal to the number of his hairs. God will raise him a thousand steps, erase a thousand of his sins and credit him for every donation of alms with (the reward of) a thousand pilgrimages and of a thousand 'umras and build for him in Paradise a thousand courts and a thousand palaces and a thousand apartments; in every apartment there will be a thousand enclosures, in every enclosure a thousand /:zUris, who are a thousand times more beautiful than the sun.149 According to a Shi'i tradition, an angel called al-Da'I proclaims every night of Rajab from the seventh Heaven on the order of God: "Blessed are those who remember (Me), blessed are the obedient." God the Exalted says: I am the Companion of (the believer) who would sit by Me, I obey him who obeys Me, I forgive (the believer) who asks My forgiveness; the month is Mine, the servant is Mine, the mercy is Mine; he who would call Me - I shall respond to him; he who supplicates Me - I shall give to him, he who will ask my guidance - I shall guide him. I made this month a rope between Me and My servants; he who will hold fast by it will reach Me.1so Al-Shaukani points out as a reprehensible innovation in Rajab and Sha 'ban, that people use to exert themselves in acts of obedience and adhere to religious prescriptions during these months, but neglect these actions during the rest of the year.1S1 Of interest is an Isma'ili exhortation stressing the sanctity of Rajab (called al-asamm, al-fard, al-asabb) and summoning the faithful to practise fasting, repentance and submission to God. The rewards of good deeds in this month are multiplied.tss The main point in the fervent discussion about Rajab devotions is the topic of sald: al-raghd'ib, a prayer performed on the eve of the first Friday of Rajab.1S3 To this saldt al-raghd'ib the Prophet referred in a /:ladith reported on the authority of Anas b. Malik. The Prophet, when asked why the month of Rajab was nicknamed "the. month of God", answered: "It is because it is singled out (makh$u$) with (the quality of) forgiveness. In this month bloodIbid., I, 201. Al-Majlisl, XX, 338 (lithogr. ed.). 151 Al-Fawd'id, p. 440. 152 Al-Majdlis al-mustansiriyya, ed. MuI.).. Kamil Husayn (Cairo, n.d.), p. 112. 153 But saldt al-raghd'ib was formerly called the prayer of the midst of Sha'biin; see Abu Shama, p. 29, line 8 from bottom.
149 150
215
M. J. Kister shed is prevented. God forgave his prophets in this month and rescued his saints (au/iya') from the pains of punishment." The Prophet further counted the rewards of fasting in Rajab and recommended to an old man, who had complained that he would not be able to fast the whole month, that he restrict his fasting to the first day of Rajab, to the middle day of Rajab and to its last day. "Do not be heedless - continued the Prophet - about the eve of the first Friday of Rajab; it is a night called by the angels al-rahgii'ib, "the large (desirable) gifts"." This (is so) because after passing of the first third of this night no angel on Earth or in Heaven remains who does not gather in the Ka'ba or around it. God the Exalted has a look (at them) and says: "My angels, ask Me whatever you want", and they answer: "Our need is that Thou mayest forgive the people fasting Rajab". Then God the Exalted says: "I have done it already". The Prophet enjoined the believers to fast the day of the first Thursday of Rajab and to pray in the first third of this night (i.e. the eve of Friday) twelve rak'as reciting in every rak'a the fali/;la once, the sura "innii anzalndhu fi laylati l-qadri" three times, the sura "qui huwa lldhu ahadun" twelve times; between every rak'a a taslima has to be recited. After this prayer the believer has to recite seventy times "lliihumma salli 'ala l-nabiyyi l-ummiyyi wa-'ala iilihi". Then he has to perform a prostration during which he has to say seventy times "sabiihun, quddiisun, rabbu l-mald'ikati wa-l-riihi", Then he would raise his head and say seventy times "rabbi ghfir wa-rham wa-tajdwaz "ammd ta'lamu, innaka anta t:'azizu l-a'samu", Then he should prostrate a second time repeating the supplication quoted above (in the first sajda). Then he pleads for his needs and his plea will be responded to by God. Every servant of God with no exception - says the tradition - praying this prayer, God will forgive him all his sins even if they were (as much) as the foam of the sea and numbering the number of leaves of the trees, and he will intercede for seven hundred of his people at the Day of Resurrection. At the first day of his stay in his grave, he will be visited by the Reward of this prayer. The Reward will greet him with a bright countenance and tell him: "0 my beloved, rejoice because you were delivered from every woe". He will then ask: "Who are you, as 1have not seen a face finer than yours and 1 have not smelled a smell more fragrant than yours". Then Reward will reply: "0 my beloved, 1 am the Reward of the prayer, which you prayed that night of that and that month; 1came this night to you in order to fulfil the obligation towards you and to cheer you up in your loneliness. When the Horn will be blown, 1 shall be the shade above your head. Rejoice, because you will receive bounty from your Lord."154
154 Ibn l:Iajar, Tabyin, pp. 19-21; AbU Shama, pp. 29-32; 'Abd al-Qadir al-mani, I, 204205; al-Suyutt, al-La'ali, II, 55-56; al-Shaukant, al-Fawa'id, pp. 47 inf.-50; al-Majlisi, XX, 344 (lithogr. ed.); Ibn al-Jauzt, al-Mau4u'at, II, 124--125.
216
"Rajab is the Month of God ... " Al-Nawawi classifies the saldt al-raghii'ib as a shameful bid'a (hiya bid'atun qabihatun munkaratun), which has to be abandoned, reprehended and prevented. In his fatwd he points out that although many people observe this prayer and that the hadith about the merits of the prayer was recorded in AbU Talib al-Makkt's Qut al-quliib and in al-Ghazall's Il;zya'155- it is nevertheless a futile bid'a tbid'atun biitilatun).156 Ibn Hajar classifies this hadith as forged. 'Ali b. 'Abdallah b. Jahdam is accused of the forgery of this l;zadith,157Al-Turtusht mentions as the $alat alraghii'ib the prayer of fifteenth Sha'ban158 and Rajab. The prayer of Rajab was introduced for the first time in Jerusalem: it happened after 480 AH,159 AI- "Abdari refutes in a special chapter, 160the opinion that the $alat al-raghd'ib is meritorious or even lawful. He records the fatwd of 'Abd al-Aziz b. 'Abd al-Salam161 strongly condemning this prayer. It is evident that this fatvii is the firstjatwa of 'Izz al-Dln mentioned by AbU Shama. 'Izz al-Din was compelled, as quoted above, to compile a fatwd with a contradictory opinion about this prayer. Beside the detailed refutation of the lawfulness of this prayer in the special chapter - al-'Abdarl stresses the reprehensible features of the performance of the prayer: men and women mix together in the mosque during the $alat al-raghii'ib. If somebody claims that there exists a I;zadith recommending this prayer quoted by al-Ghazall - then the prayer has to be performed by the believer privately (fi khiissati najsihi), not as a common prayer in the mosque. Further it is reprehensible to tum it into a continuous and obligatory sunna (sunna da'ima Iii budda minjrliM). The traditions about "merits of actions" (faqa'il al-a'mdl) have weak isndds - argues al-" Adbart; although Muslim scholars permitted believers to act according to these hadiths, they allowed it on the condition that the practice would not be a continuous one. Thus if the believer acts according to such a tradition even once in his life, he would be considered as obeying the (recommendation of)
155 I/;Iya' (Cairo 1289 AH), I, 182 (al-Ghazall remarks that the people of Jerusalem are eager to perform this prayer). 156 Al-Nawawi, Fatiiwd al-imdm al-Nawawi (al-masii'il al-manthiira), ed. 'Ala l-Dln b. al-'Attar (Cairo 1352 AH), p. 28; aI-'AbdarI, IV, 259. 157 See AbU Shama, pp. 30-31; al-Shaukani, al-Fawii'id, p. 49, n. 1; al-Suyiltl, La'ali II, S6inf.,aI-Dhal;labi,Miziin al-i'tidiil,III,142,No. 5879; Jamal ai-Din al-Qasiml, pp. 105-106; al-Pattanl, pp. 43 ult.-44; 'Ali al-Qari', al-A/;Iiidith al-mauda'a, fol. 61 a. Ibn Jahdam is said to have confessed to the forgery of this tradition before his death; cf. Sibt Ibn al-Jauzl, Mir'at al-zamdn, Ms. Karacelebi 284, fols. 272b-273b. 158 See above, note 153. 159 Al-Turtusht, pp. 121-122; and see ibid., note 4 of the editor, M. Taibi. 160 Al-Mudkhal IV, 248-282. 161 Ibid., pp. 277-282 (he is, however, mentioned as Abii Muhammad b. 'Abd aI-'Aziz 'Abd al-Salam b. Abi Qasim al-Sulami al-Shafi't).
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M. J. Kister tradition - if it is indeed a sound one; if, however, the tradition has an isniid which is dubious and open to dispute (wa-in yakun al-hadithu fi sanadihi mat'anun yaqdahu fihi) - his action (performed according to this !)adfth) would not harm (him) as he performed a good deed (li-annahu fa'ala khayran) and did not turn it into a publicly performed rite (sha'iratun ?
Review of Kitab al-Hawadith.pdf REVIEWS detailed examination in a lengthy article 'which, it is hoped, will appear in the near future elsewhere. In the opinion of the present writer the examples of variant readings from Neofiti i given by the author do not in any way prove a pre-Masoretic origin of the text of that manuscript; but it may well be that an early dating can be claimed on other grounds. Afinalview on this very important problem cannot be reached until the whole text is made available to the scholarly world at large in the edition, so eagerly awaited, by A. D. Macho himself. The volume under review has no indexes. There are a number of misprints; for example, some of the figures in the table of contents are wrong. There are some linguistic errors in the articles by A. D. Macho, S. Segert
and I. EngnelL p. WERNBERG-MOLLER
ABU BAKR MUHAMMAD B. AL-WAIJD AL-TURTUSHI, Kitab al-Hawdditb
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va"l-Bida', ed. Muhammad al-Talibl. 19j 9. Pp. 227. (Al-Matba'a alRasmiyya li'1-Djumhuriyya al-Tunisiyya.) This scholarly edition of the work by the famous Spanish theologian al-Turtushi (d. A.H. 520/A.D. 1126) is a contribution of considerable importance for the study of bid'a "innovation", one of the most important problems of Islam. The book reflects faithfully the struggle of the Orthodox 'ulamd' against bid'a. Al-Turtushl quotes the Kur'an, brings evidence from the Hadlth for the refutation of innovations and cites for this purpose the opinions of scholars of Muslim law and jurisprudence. This collection of traditions about innovations which originated in Islam in the course of time is a valuable source for Muslim social life and the penetration of foreign influences.1 Al-Turtushi includes in his book innovations of past centuries and innovations introduced in his time as well; in this review only a few points of his comprehensive work can be discussed. In the traditions about the adornment of mosques we can trace the opinions of early orthodox scholars. A characteristic tradition is told about Ibn Mas'ud2 one of the first companions of the Prophets Ibn Mas'ud held important administrative posts in the period of TJmar, and was celebrated for his moral integrity; he fought corruption, and was a champion of the traditional way of life, conforming with the surma of the Prophet.4 Passing by the adorned mosques of Kufa Ibn Mas'ud remarked "The person who built it spent the money of Allah in His disobedience". This negative opinion about the adornment of mosques was accepted by Muslim scholars: Malik b. See the passage by the editor, Introduction, p. 10 and cf. the statements of the translators of the Vorksungen of Goldziher into Arabic about the bid'a, giving the view of contemporary Muslim scholars on this subject, p. 226. 2 al-Turtushi, p. 95. » Ibn Hadjar, Tabdbib al-Tabdtnb, vi, 27-8. ⢠See al-Baladhurl, AnsSb al-Asbrif, ff. 915 £-919*; al-Kak% al-Iktifa, 1, 376; al-Tirmidhl, xm, 213-1^, Maita&b Ibn Mas'ud; the article 'Ibn Mas'ud' in the EJ. 137
1
REVIEWS Anas (d. A.H. 179) opposed the adornment of mosques; he based his view on the fact that adornments distracted the believer from concentration in prayer.1 It is of interest to know that the pious 'Umar II (717-20) intended to remove the embellishments from the mosques of al-Madina and Damascus.2 Other statements in connexion with the adornment of mosques are of interest: the adornment of mosques heralds the decline of the people and corruption.3 Ibn 'Abbas predicted that the Muslims would in course of time adorn their mosques like the Jews and Christians.4 In a later work, the Tadbkira of al-Kurtubl,' the embellishment of mosques is mentioned as one of the symptoms of the period preceding the Day of Judgement (also1*). The practice of the Jews in adorning their synagogues is illustrated by a tradition of Wahb b. Munabbih: God revealed to Isaiah: "Tell the Ban! Isra'u, they are asking my favour through slaughter of sheep; butfleshwill not reach me, nor its eater; they are requested to seek my favour through piety and abstaining from killing the souls which I forbade to kill; they raise buildings and adorn the temples {masadjid), but what need is there to raise buildings in which I do not dwell and to adorn temples into which I do not come? I commanded only to build them in order to be remembered in them and praised."6 There were, however, different opinions in Muslim society about this subject This is evident from the chapter dealing with this problem in the Bustdn al-'Arifin of al-Samarkandl.7 A group of scholars was of the opinion that embellishment increased the honour of the mosque, and based t^^ir opinion on the Kur'an (xxiv. 36). This group mentioned the beautiful mosques built by the Caliphs and recalled the building of the Temple by Solomon. One of the champions of this view was Abu Hanifa. A remarkable tradition reports that the Prophet ordered his mosque to be built like the booth of Moses.8. This tradition seems to belong to an early layer of traditions omitted in later collections of Hadlth, and deserves special attention. The opponents of the adornment of mosques quoted a tradition of the Prophet recommending the whitewashing of mosques (bayjidu masadjid Allah).9 Of interest as well is another tradition of the Prophet forbidding embellishment of mosques with dentils.10 To the same stratum of old traditions seem to belong the traditions about 1 al-Turtushi, op. at. pp. 96, 97. * Ibid. 3 Ibid. p. 95. * Ibid. * As quoted in the Mukbtasar of al-Sha'ranl, p. 134. 6 al-Turtushi, p. 98. 7 Died A.D. 983âthis book printed on the margin of TanbJb al-Gbdfilin of the same author, p. 127. 8 al-Turtushi, p. 94. ⢠Bustdn al-'Arifin, p. 128; and cf. al-Turtushi, p. 95. 10 Button, p. 128; about two houses built with dentils see: al-Mas'udi, Mjtrudj, n, 222, 223âthe houses of Sa'd b. Abl Wakkas and al-Mikdad b. al-Aswad. An explanation of the tradition is given in al-Madja\ataJ-Nabaa^ya of al-Sharif al-Radiyy, p. 82, no. 66. 138
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REVIEWS the mibrab. Al-Dahhak b. Muzahim (see Tabdbtb al-Tabdbib, rv, 45 j) called the mibrab "the first sign of polytheism [shirk] of the people of prayer".1 Some of the pious men refrained from entering the mibrab for prayer.2 A peculiar detail which stresses the puritanical approach of Muslim scholars is their opposition to the decoration of the walls of mosques with inscriptions from the Kur'an; that was the opinion of Malik.3 It may be noted that he maintained his view in a period when the writing of sentences from the Kur'an on the walls of mosques was already one of the main features in their decoration. All these traditions about the embellishment of mosques seem to reflect faithfully the views of die early Muslim scholars. The retention of these views in a later period shows the conservatism of the orthodox 'ular%a; they persisted in their opposition to adornment at a time when splendid mosques, with mibrabs and rich ornamentation, were already built in all the centres of the Muslim Empire. Of importance are the few traditions quoted by al-Turtushl about relations between scholars and rulers. Here the early attitude of Islam is evident: relations with rulers endanger the moral integrity and independence of the scholar.4 The fierce controversy with the Shu'ubiyya is reflected in two traditions of Sufyan al-Thauri and of Malik b. Anas.5 Sufyan is reported to have said: "Knowledge was with Arabs and noble men; when knowledge passed from them to these peopleâi.e. Nabateans and men of lower classesâreligion changed." His face changed when he saw Nabateans recording religious knowledge. Malik considered it reprehensible to talk in foreign languages in the mosque. 6 Of quite different origin was the innovation of fasting during Radjab and of the introduction of various prayers for the nights of Radjab. The tradition of Radjab is a pre-Islamic one and the chapter included in the book of alTurtushl stresses the fact that the fast during this month was observed in the Djahiliyya. It is interesting to find that already in the first days of Islam Radjab created a problem: TJmar used to flog the "radjabiyyin", who fasted during this month. Abu Bakr in astonishment asks people who made preparations to fast during the month of Radjab: "Are you going to make Radjab like Ramadan?" 'Umar used to oblige people to take their meals in Radjab, stressing that Radjab was a sacred month of fasting in the Djahiliyya.7 The sanctity of Radjab in the times of the Djahiliyya is further
1 ' al-Turtushl, p. 94. Ibid. 1 Ibid. p. 97., ⢠Ibid. pp. 72, 7 j ; and cf. the article of S. D . Goitein "The attitude towards Government in Islam", Tarbi^, xrx, 157 in Hebrew. s al-Turtushl, pp. 72, 104; and see al-Djahiz, al-Bayan, 1, 284 about the explanation of the Kur'an in Persian in the mosque; and cf. 'Uyun al-Akbbdr, nr, 91; and 'Abd al-Salam Harun, Navddir al-Makhtutdt, m , the introduction of the editor. 6 Cf. Sira Halabiyya, 1, 21. A man knowing Arabic is not allowed to speak Persian; this causes mischief. 7 al-Turfushl, p. 129.
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REVIEWS stressed in the words of Ibn tJmar and explained in the commentary of the author.1 Orthodoxy was apparently unsuccessful in combating this Djahiliyya custom. It was as late as A.H. 480 that a new prayer was introduced for the Radjab festivities.2 A special treatise about the virtues of Radjab, MS. Bodley, Thurst 9, is an additional proof of this trend; it contains, of course, many traditions attributed to the Prophet about the sanctity of Radjab. It is curious to find that Radjab was in the same way respected in Fatimid circles.3 A comprehensive chapter is devoted to innovations in prayers (pp. 43-60) and to the behaviour of the believers in mosques (pp. 103-14). Various activities in the mosque are discussed: eating, drinking, teaching, sleeping, commercial activities, begging, paring of nails, etc.* In all the traditions the idea is stressed that the mosque is a place of worship and that the believer has to refrain from worldly activities there. With the social life in the mosque the problem of the fassds is closely connected. They were accused of inventing traditions about the Prophet and corrupting religion.' Al-Turtushl devotes a special chapter to the problem of thefcuss&f(pp. 99-103). Thefirstfoissis said to have been in the mosque of the Prophet; he was a mundfi^fi The opinion of orthodox circles is reflected in the saying of Abu Idris al-Khaulanl: "I prefer to see in the corner of the mosque a blaze offirethan to see there a ^ass."^ The information that thefirstiffsds appeared in thetimeof the struggle between 'All and Mu'awiya8 is of peculiar importance: it emphasizes the role of thefyusasin the political struggle of the community. It was Ka'b who acted as &pss for Mu'awiya,8 and it was TJbayd b. 'Umayr al-Lathi, thefirstfyissappointed by 'Umar,» who was reproached by the Syrian troops during the campaign of al-Husayn b. Numayr in the following manner: "Do not speak ill about the Caliph of die Prophet, because he is more respectable than the mosque in Mekka."10 The al-Turtushl, p. 130. About the sanctity of Radjab in the Djahiliyya see the article of M. Plessner in E.I. "Radjab"; Buhl, Das Leben Mubammeds, p. 88; Wellhausen, Reste, p. 93; al-Mufaddaliyydt (Lyall), p. 229; Nibdyat al-Arab, xv, 68; al-Asyiitl, al-Kan% al-Madfun, p. 74; Wellhausen, Skrf^en, 1 [Lieder der Husailiten], p. 53. * al-Turtushl, p. 122. 3 al-Madjdlis al-Mustansiriyya, ed. Muh. Kamil Husayn, p. 112. ⢠Cf. the chapter: Munkardt al-Masddjid in Ibyd 'U/um al-Dln, 11, 294.
s Cf. Goldziher, Mui. Studien, n, 161, and Mez, Die'Renaissance,Ax. transL, 11,87.
1
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al-Turtushl, p. 100; cf. about the first fyiss in Basra, al-Aswad b. Sari*, Ibn Sa'd's Tabakgt, vn, i, 28; and see Ansab al-Asbraf, MS. f. 1030*. 7 al-Turt&shl, p. 99; it may however be remarked that this Abu Idds himself, one of the leading men of tradition, whose traditions were reported by authorities like al-Zuhrl, Makhul, Shahr b. Haushab and others, was appointed by 'Abd al-Malik as judge and was a &pss of the people of Syna.(aJ-Isdba,v, 57; Tabdblb al-Tabdblb, v, 85). He died in A.H. 80. 8 al-Turtusbl, p. 100 and Djami' b. Wabb, ed. J. David-Weill, p. JIO. Io « Goldziher, Mub. Studien, n, 162. al-Baladhud, Ansab, vrb, 52. 140
6
REVIEWS anecdote about al-A'mash, who attended a lecture of a feus and was compelled to deny traditions told on his authority also recurs in our text.1 Another important problem is the use of public baths by Muslim women in the company of women of the Ahl al-Dhimma; the problem discussed is whether it is lawful for them to enter without a waist-wrapper (r^ar).2 This problem is discussed in a special treatise by Ibn a l - i m i d : Addb Dukhul alHammam* and forms a part of the general problem of relations between Muslims and the Ahl al-Dhimma.* The impact of Christian influence on the Muslim population in Spain is fairly attested: they observe the Christian New Year (i&amat Yarfr), and the Christian Easter (KhamJs Abril).* The details given by the author about the innovations introduced in his own tunes are of peculiar importance. In A.H. 448 a man from Tarabulus called Ibn Abi Hamra prayed in the mosque of al-Aksa the prayer of mid Sha'ban and was joined during his prayer by the people of the mosque. Since then this prayer spread among the masses and it was considered a prayer belonging to the smnafi The author himself attended the prayer of the Day of al-'Arafa in Jerusalem. People from Jerusalem and neighbouring villages stood in prayer facing Mekka, raising their voices in the du'd, just as if they were attending the wukytf of al-'Arafa.7 The common opinion was that the standing of four wul$fifs in Jerusalem was equivalent to the pilgnmmage to Mekka.8 The prayer, of Radjab, as already mentioned, was introduced in Jerusalem in A.H. 480. Raising of hands and loud prayer were peculiar features of this worship.? The book of al-Turtushl is comprehensive and contains a mass of information about burial, mourning, the attendance of women at prayers, the reading of the Kur'an and various items of personal and communal life. It was a useful vademecum for the believer who wanted to refrain from harmful innovation. The book is based on the tradition of Surma scholars and is well documented. The editing of al-Talibl is admirable. In his Introduction the editor discusses works on bid'a (pp. 5-6), opinions of scholars about the author, the contents of the book and its importance (pp. 7-12). A short biography of the author is supplied (pp. 3-4). The editor s criticism of scholars too eager in their 1 Cf. the stories in Mub. Studien, n, 160; al-Turtushl, p. IOZ. 3 Ibid. p. 142. MS. owned by me, f. 24. ⢠See E. Strauss, "The social isolation of Ahl al Dhimma", HirscbJer Mem. Book (1949). 5 See the important notes of the editor about the observance of this feast in Muslim communities in contemporary times, p. 140; the problem of buying cheese from Christians seems to have disquieted the author and he devoted a special treatise to the problem: Tabrim djubn aJ-RJim, see p. 4 of the Introduction of the editor. 6 al-Turtushl, p. 121. 1 About the standing in 'Arafa see v. Grunebaum, Mub. Festivals, p. 32. 8 al-Turtushl, pp. 116-17. » Cf. al-Turtushl, p. 100; and a tradition of Wahb b. Munabbih in MS. Bodley, Thurst. 9 about prayer with raising of the hands.
2
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141
REVIEWS pursuit of bid'a seems to be too severe (pp. 11-12). The different readings of the manuscripts are recorded and a very useful appendix on the tradMonists mentioned in die book is added (pp. 170-214). Dr TalibI deserves our gratitude for his excellent work. Errors are few; some of them may be mentioned: p. 71, L 12 read "fima"; p. 64,1.5 read"haddu";p. 3,1.18 read"istautana";p. 108,L 1 read"nudar".
M. J. KISTER
A. J. ARBERRY, Oriental Essays: Portraits of Seven Scholars, i960. Pp. 261.
(Allen and Unwin, London. Price: 28/.) In this attractively written and presented book, Professor Arberry gives us a series of short biographical sketches of scholars who have been eminent principally in the Islamicfield:Simon Ockley, Sir William Jones, E. W. Lane, E. H. Palmer, E. G. Browne, R. A. Nicholson and the author himself. Although nothing in the title or introduction hints at a principle of selection, it can be seen by a glance at this list that it has a heavy Cambridge bias; Jones is the only Oxford name included, and all the others (except for Lane, who owed allegiance to no university) are Cambridge alumni. An Oxonian may permit himself a tinge of regret that place in this gallery could not be found for men like Pococke, White and NicolL The professional orientalist, already familiar with these names, will yet find much to interest and fascinate him in the details given of the careers of these men, and in the copious extracts from their writings. To readers who are not orientalists, these pages give a most revealing and valuable insight into the motives and outlooks of those who have devoted their lives to this too often materially unrewarding cause. And the book closes with an eloquent plea for oriental studies which deserves to be widely and attentively read. A. F. L. BEESTON Atlas of the Arab World and the Middle East, with Introduction by C F. BECKINGHAM. i960. Pp. iv+68, incl. 40 pp. of maps, 42 photographs, index, plan, and 2 end-papers. (Macmillan, London. Price: 35/.) In this work the Middle East is divided into sub-regions, largely based on political frontiers, and in each instance there are maps to illustrate not only topography, but also climatology, natural vegetation, and industrial and rural economy. In addition, there are smaller-scale maps which deal with the ethnology and physical and historical geography of the area as a whole, and some special town plans on a much larger scale. The technical finish of the atlas is of high quality, and, except that the red trace of the railways sometimes dashes with that of the frontiers, the system of colouring is used effectively. The maps, however, are of uneven value. Sometimes, as with the end-paper map of medieval industries, they attempt too much and become confused. In other cases, the cartography fails to show what is really significant; on page 28, for instance, the overwhelming importance in Iraq of the date-groves of the Shatt-el-Arab is quite obscured, and on page 3 3 the pattern of the Arabian oases and their relation to the topography are nowhere evident dose examination of the maps, moreover, reveals so many discrepancies and mistakes that faith in the value of the book as a work of reference is seriously weakened. To take a few examples, the railway to Tatvan is absent 142
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shaban.pdf "SHA'BAN A
STUDY
IS
MY
MONTH ... "
TRADITION
OF AN EARLY
"Sha'ban is my month": this utterance attributed to the Prophet is widely current and usually coupled with his statement about the status of Rajab and Ramadan.1 A corroborative utterance, linking the month of Sha'ban with the person of the Prophet, evaluates the status of Sha'ban in relation to other months as follows: "The superiority of Sha'ban over other months is like my superiority over other prophets".2 Peculiar is the commentary of Sura 28:69: "Thy Lord creates whatsoever He will and He chooses ... ", stating that this verse refers to the month of Sha'ban: "God adorns everything by something and He embellished the months by the month of Sha'ban".3 In numerous utterances attributed to the
1 AI-Munawi, Fayd al-qadir, sharb al-jami' al-saghir, Cairo 1391/1972, IV, p. 162, no. 4889; al-'Azizi, al-Siraj al-munir, Cairo 1377/1957, II, p. 369; 'Abd ai-Qadir aIJilllni, al-Ghunya li-!alibi lariqi I-baqq 'azza wa-ja/la, Cairo 1322 A.H., I, p. 211; al-Suyiili, al-La'ali al-masnu'a, Cairo n.d., II, p. 114; al-MajIisi, BiMr ai-an war, Tehran 1388 A.H., XCVII, pp. 68-69, 71, 75-77, 181-183; al-Saffiiri, Nuzhat al· majalis, Beirut n.d., pp. 190, 195 ult.; Ibn Oayba', Tamyiz al-!ayyib min al-khabith, Cairo 1382/1963, p. 81 (and see ibid., p. 91, 1. 1); Ibn Babiiyah, Thawab al-a'mal, Tehran 1375 A.H., p. 60; Id., Amali, Najaf 1389/1970, p. 17; al-Zandawaysiti, Raudat al-'ulama', Ms. BM, Add. 7258, fol. 255b; and see Kister, lOS, 1 (1971), p. 198 note 50. 2 Al·Oaylami, Firdaus al-akhbdr, Ms. Chester Beatty 3037, fol. 109b, penult.; al-Zandawaysiti, op. cit., fol. 255b; cf. al-SuYiili, al-Durr al-manthur, Cairo 1314 A.H., III, p. 236: ... sha'banu shahri fa-man 'a â¢â¢ ama shahra sha'bana fa-qad 'a â¢â¢ ama amr; wa-man 'a â¢â¢ ama amr; kuntu lahu farlan wa-dhukhran yauma I-qiyamati ... (the badith is marked as munkar); and see Abmad b, 1:Iijazi, Tubfat al-ikhwan fi fada'il rajab washa'bdn wa-ramadan, Cairo 1308 A.H., p. 41: ... kana rasulu /lahi ($) yaqi1lu idha dakhala sha'bdnu: !ahhiru anfusakum li-sha'bana wa-absinu niyyatakum fihi, fa-inna lIaha 'azza wa-ja/la faddala sha'bdna 'ala sa'iri l-shuhi1ri ka·fadli 'alaykurn ... ; and see lOS, I, p. 199, note 55. 3 AI-Zandawaysiti, op. cit., fol. 255b: qala fi tafsiri hddhih; l-ayati: wa·rabbuka yakhlllqu rna yasha'u wa-yakhtaru rna kana lahurnu l-khiyaratu, inna lIaha ta'ala zayyana ku/la shay'in (on marjin: bi-shay'in) wa-zayyana l-shuhi1ra bi-sha'bdna;fa·kama zayyalla bihi l-shuhi1ra ka-dhalika yatazayyanu l-'abdu bi-l-ta'ati fihi li·l-ghufrani .â¢â¢
Prophet, he is said to have recommended the devotional practice of fasting, prayer, vigil and supplication during this month, especially on the eve ofthe 15th ofSha'biin (= the night of the 15th of Sha'ban) , Practices of the night of the 15th of Sha'ban, closely resembling those of laylat al-qadr, were scrutinized by A.J. Wensinck, who regarded these two nights as determining a New Year's period of six weeks to two months. This was challenged by K. Wagtendonk, who considered the 15th of'Sha'ban to be "a starting day of a voluntary fast, which arose out of the ascetic tendency of extending the fast of Ramadan". 4 A survey of the traditions on the virtues of the month of Sha'ban may clarify some of the controversies in reports of practices performed during this month, explain diverse tenets of certain circles of Muslim scholars and aid in gaining insight into the ideas of the virtuousness of Sha'biin.
I
The traditions on the Prophet's fast during the month of Sha'ban are controversial. It is not clear whether the Prophet would fast throughout the entire month of Sha'ban, or whether he would fast only part of the month. The reports on this subject are often vague; some say merely that he used to fast during this month (... kiina yasionu sha'biina); others, ambiguous in style and cast, assert that he would fast most of the month, or the entire month (... kiina yasiimuhu kullahu ilIii qaltlan, hal kiina yasiimuhu kullahu ... ). Still others, unequivocal but contradictory, relate that he fasted the entire month of Sha'ban or, on the contrary, that he never completed an entire month's fasting except in Ramadan (... kiina yasianu sha'biina kullahu ... confronted by: ... wa-lii $iima shahran kiimilan qauu ghayra ramadiina ... ).5
4 EI2 Sha'biin (A.J. Wensinck); A.J. Wensinck, Arabic New Year and the Feast of Tabernacles, VKAW, Afd. Let., N.R. XXV, 2, Amsterdam 1925; K. Wagtendonk, Fasting in the Koran, Leiden 1968, pp. 100-105; S.D. Goitein, Studies in Islamic History, Leiden 1968, pp. 90-110: Ramadan the Muslim Month of Fasting. 5 AI-Nasii'i, Sunan, Beirut n.d. (reprint) IV, pp. 151-153, 199-201 (and see e.g. other versions ibid., in lama shahran maliiman siwa ramaddna batta mar/a li-wajhihi ... ; wa-lam yasum shahran tdmman mundhu atd l-madinata ilia an yakiina ramaddnu etc.); al-Tahawl, Sharh ma'ani I·athar (ed. Muhammad Zuhri l-Najjar), Cairo 1388/1968, II, pp. 82-83; al-Tirmidhl, $abib, Cairo 1350/1931, III, p. 273; Ibn Abi Shayba, al-Mulannaf(ed. 'Abd al-Khaliq al-Afghanl), Hyderabad 1388/1968, III, p. 103 (and see ibid., another version: ... kana yasumu sha'bdna ilia qalilan); Abii Diiwiid, $abib sunan al-mustafti, Cairo 1348 A.H., I, p. 381 inf. -382 sup.; al-Saffurl, op. cit., p. 198; al-Qastallani, Irshdd al-sdri, Cairo 1323 A.H., III, pp. 401-403; 'Abd al-Razzaq, al-Musannaf (ed. Hablb al-Rahman al-A'zaml), Beirut 1392 A.H., IV,
16
SHA'BAN
IS MY
MONTH
Debate turned on the word kullahu in the tradition relating that the Prophet fasted the entire month of Sha'biin. Muslim scholars tended to limit the connotation of "wholeness" in the word, making it mean a major part. This was the explanation of 'Abdallah b. al-Mubarak (d. 181) as recorded by al-Tirmidhl.f The phrase that the Prophet fasted the entire month (kullahu) conveys in fact that he would fast for the major part of the month (akthara l-shahri), argues Ibn al-Mubarak, basing himself on the Arab manner of speech: when a man says that he spent the whole night in vigiI, he means in fact to say that the major part of the night was spent in vigil. This interpretation indeed clears away the contradiction inherent in the two traditions: the one that the Prophet would fast the entire month (kullahu), and the other that 'A'isha never saw him completing an entire month's fast (... istakmala siyiima shahrin ... ) save Ramadan." The contradiction can thus be removed on the basis of Ibn al-Mubarak's interpretation: the only complete month during which the Prophet would fast was Ramadan; he also fasted for the major part of Sha'ban, Al-Qastallani could rightly remark that the Prophet did not complete an entire month's fasting during Sha'ban, so as to dismiss any thought that the fast of Sha'ban was obligatory.f This interpretation of kull cannot, however, be applied to other traditions in which the Prophet's Sha'ban fast was coupled with that of Ramadan, and in which the account was preceded by a verb or noun denoting wholeness and referring to both months. Certain haduhs relate
pp. 292-293, nos. 7858-7861; Ibn Hajar, Fatb at-bart, Cairo 1301 A.H., IV, pp. 186188; Ibn Rajab, Latd'if al-ma'tirif, Cairo 1343 A.H., pp, 127-142; Nur al-Dln alHaythaml, Majma' al-zawd'id, Beirut 1967, III, p. 192; al-Mundhiri, al-Targhlb wa-ltarhib (ed. Muhammad Muhyl ai-Din 'Abd al-Hamid), Cairo 1379/1960, II, pp, 241243, nos. 1481-1486; al-Hakirn, al-Mustadrak, Hyderabad 1342 A.H., I, p. 434; alMuttaqi l-Hindl, Kanz I-'ummtil, Hyderabad 1380/1960, VIII, p. 409, no. 2969; alZurqant, Sharb al-mawdhib al-laduniyya, Cairo 1328 A.H., VIII, pp. 124--126; alBayhaql, al-Sunan al-kubrd, Hyderabad 1352 A.H., II, p. 210; al-Shaukanl, Nayl al-autar, Cairo 1372/1953, IV, pp. 274--277; al-Zurqanl, Sharh muwatta'i mdlik, Cairo 1381/1961, pp. 451-460; aI-Khatib al-Baghdadl, Ta'rikh, Cairo 1349/1931, IV, p. 437; Ibn Wahb, Juz', Ms. Chester Beatty 3497, fol, 37a, inf, (... wa-kdna #ytimuhu fl sha'btin); Ahmad b.l:lijazi, op. cit., p. 42; al-Ghazall, Mukdshafat al-quliib, Cairo n.d., p. 249; Mahmud Muhammad Khattab al-Subkl, al-Manhal al-radhb al-mauriid, sharh' sunan abi dawUd (ed, Amin Mahmud Khattab), Cairo 1394 A.H., X, p. 55. 6 AI-Tirmidhi, op. cit., III, p. 273. 7 'Abd al-Razziiq, op, cit., IV, p. 293, no. 7861; al-Qastallanl, op. cit., III, pp. 401-403; al-'Ayni, 'Umdat al-qart, Cairo 1348 A.H., XI, pp. 82-85; Ibn l:Iajar, Fatb, IV, p, 187. 8 Al-Qastallanl, op. cit., III, p. 401 (... /i'allti yuzanna wujubuhu),
17
that the Prophet did not fast an entire month (shahran komi!an) except Sha'ban, which he concatenated with (the fast of) Ramadanj? other badtths, on the authority of 'A'isha, say: "I did not see the Prophet fasting two consecutive months except Sha'ban and Ramadan't.tv As it was out of the question that the Prophet would fast for only the major part of Ramadan, the interpretation of kull or komi! as "a greater part" (scil. of the month) had to be abandoned. Scholars accepted the explanation of kull as "entire", but found another way to reconcile the contradictory traditions: the Prophet would sometimes fast the entire month of Sha'ban, and sometimes only a part of it. Another explanation tending to soften the contradiction was that the Prophet would fast during different periods of the month of Sha'ban, sometimes at the beginning, sometimes in the middle and sometimes at the end.U It is evident that scholars sought to draw a clear line between the obligatory fast of the entire month of Ramadan and the voluntary fast of Sha'ban, adjusting the controversial traditions to the orthodox view, which approved of fasting for only a part of Sha'ban. Certain reports give the reasons for the Prophet's fast during Sha'biin. The Prophet, says one tradition, would fast during Sha'ban to replace the days of voluntary fast which he had missed over the course of the year. 12 Another tradition held that, as a person's fate is decided in Sha'ban, the Prophet said he would prefer the decision of his fate to be made while he was fasting.t! Slightly different is the utterance of the Prophet in which he defined Sha'ban as a month straddled by the two significant months of Rajab and Ramadan, and remarked that people were heedless of the virtues of this month. It is in Sha'biin that the deeds of men are brought before the Presence of God, and the Prophet said he would prefer his
9 Abu Dawud, op. cit., I, p. 368; al-Dariml, Sunan (ed. 'Abdallah Hashim Yamant), Medina 1386/1966, I, p. 350: ... Umm Salama: md ra'aytu rasiila lldhi (~) sama shahran tdmman illd sha'bdna, fa-innahu kdna yasiluhu bi-ramaddna li-yakiind shahrayni mutatdbi'oyni wa-ktina ya siimu min al-shahri battd naqill ... ; Murtada l-Zabldl, ItM! alsddati l-muttaqin bi-sharhi asrdri ibyd'i 'ulumi l-dtn, Cairo 1311 A.H., IV, p. 257, II. 1-2; ai-Muttaqi I-Hindi, op. cit., VIII, p. 410, no. 2972; Mahmud Khattab al-Subkl, ibid. 10 Al-Tirmidhi, op. cit., III, p. 272; Ibn Majah, SUI/an al-mustafd, Cairo 1349 A.H., I, pp. 505-506: ... kdna yasiimu sha'bdna kullahu battd yasilahu bi-ramaddna. II Al-'Ayni, op. cit., XI, p. 83; al-Qastallanl, op. cit., III, pp. 401-402. 12 Ibn Rajab, op, cit., p. 141; al-Zurqanl, Sharh. al-mawdhib, VIII, p. 125; 13 Al-Khatlb al-Baghdadl, op. cit., IV, p. 437; Ibn Abl Hatim, 'Ilal al-hadtth, Cairo 1343 A.H., I, p. 250, no. 737 (the badith is marked as munkar); Ibn Rajab, op. cit., p. 140; al-Zurqanl, Sharh al-mawdhib, VIII, p. 126; al-Suyiitl, Sharh al-sudar bi-sharh Mli l-mautd wa-l-qubiir, Cairo n.d., p. 22.
18
SHA'BAN IS MY MONTI!
deeds to be brought before God while he was fasting.I+ The month of Sha'ban, says one story, complained before God that He had placed it between the significant months of Rajab and Ramadan; God consoled Sha'ban, ordering the reading of the Qur'an during that month. Sha'ban was indeed called "The Month of the Qur'an Readers" (shahr al-qurrii'); during it pious scholars would redouble their efforts in reading the Qur'an.15 As is usual in the "literature of virtues" (al-far/.ii'il), the qualities and merits of deeds, places, times and devotional practices are measured and assessed, and a scale of merit is established. In an utterance attributed to the Prophet, the voluntary fast of Sha'ban is unequivocally set over the fast of Rajab. When he heard of persons fasting in Rajab, the Prophet said: "How far are they from those who fast in the month of Sha'ban" (scil. in rewardjlw This, however, faced a reported statement of the Prophet that the most meritorious fast (apart from Ramadan) was that during Muharram. Scholars explained that the Prophet received knowledge of the superiority of the fast of Muharram only in the last period of his Iife; and though he expressed the preference, there was no time to put fasting in Muharram into practice, or he may have been held up by current affairs.!" The virtue of fasting during Sha'ban was closely linked with the
14 Al-Shaukanl, Nayl, IV, p. 276; ai-Muttaqi I-Hindi, op. cit., VIII, p. 410, no. 2973; al-Mukhallis, Majdlis, Ms. Zilhiriyya, majmu'a 60, fol. 108a; Ibn Qayyim alJauziyya, ['Iiim al-muwaqqi'in (ed. Tahil 'Abd al-Ra'uf Sa'd), Beirut 1973, IV, p. 297; Ibn Rajab, op. cit., pp. 127 inf., 136 ult. - 137 sup.; al-Zurqani, Sharh al-mawdhib, VIII, p. 126 sup.; al-Ghazall, Mukdshafa, p. 249; al-Zandawaysiti, op. cit., fol. 255b; Abu Nu'aym, Hilyat al-auliyd", Beirut 1387/1967 (reprint), IX, p. 18; Mahrnud Khattab al-Subkl, ibid. 15 Ibn Rajab, op. cit., pp. 141 inf. - 142 sup.; cf. al-Zandawaysiti, op. cit., fol. 256a {... 'an anas b. miilik (r) annahu qiila: kiina a shabu rasilli lldhl ($) idhii nazarii ilii hi/iili sha'biina nkabbii 'alii l-masdhifi yaqra'Iinahd wa-akhraja l-mttslimiina zakiita amwtillhlm /i- yataqawwd bihd 1-da'Ifu wa-l-miskinu 'alii siytimi rama ddna wa-da'd l-wuldtu ahla l-sujiini fa-man kdna 'alayhi haddun aqdmii 'alayhi, wa-illd khallau sabtlahu wa-ntalaqa I-tujjiiru (above the line: al-sujjdn) fa-qadau md 'alayhim wa-qtadau md lahum. 16 'Abd al-Razzaq, op. cit., IV, p. 292, no. 7858; al-Shaukanl, Nayl, IV, p. 277; al-Zurqanl, SharI; muwatta' maltk, II, p. 458; Id., Sharh al-mawdhib, VIII, p. 126; Ibn Abi Shayba, op. cit., III, p. 102; Ibn Babuyah, Thawiib, p. 59; al-Majlisl, op. cit., XCVII, p. 77; and see [OS, I, p. 206, note 96. 17 Al-Qastallanl, op. cit., III, p. 402; Al-f.Aynl, op. cit., XI, p. 84; al-Zurqanl, SharI; al-muwatta', II, p. 458; Ibn Hajar, Fath, IV, p. 187 inf.; cf; Ibn Rajab, op. cit., p. 29; al-Shaukani, Nayl, IV, 271 sup.; Nur al-Dln al-Haytharnl, op. cit., III, pp, 190-191; al-Tirmidhl, op. cit., III, pp. 276-277; Ibn Abi Shayba, op. cit., III, p. 103.
19
veneration of Ramadan: to fast in Sha'ban was held to be a means of honouring Ramadan.tf All the traditions but one,19 stress the superiority of Ramadan - the month of obligatory fast - over the other months. Consequently a clear line had to be drawn between Ramadan and the virtuous months of voluntary fast, and a distinction made between Sha'ban and Ramadan. The Prophet indeed is said to have prohibited fasting on the day or two days preceding Ramadan, In other traditions this concept was defined slightly differently: the Prophet is said to have forbidden fasting to be carried over uninterruptedly from Sha'ban to Ramadan; accordingly, a pause in fasting (fasl) between these two months was to be observed.w Some sources record an utterance of the Prophet in which the period forbidden for fasting, between Sha'ban and Ramadan was extended considerably: fasting in Sha'ban was to be suspended from the 15th of the month until the 1st of Ramadan.st The interdiction against fasting on the days immediately preceding Ramadan was, however, affected by the dispensation (ruklz$a) for those who were continuing a fast begun earlier in Sha'ban.22
18 Al-Shaukant, Nayl, IV, p, 275 inf.: ... su'ila rasillu lldhi (~) ayyu l-saumi afdalu ba'da ramaddna; fa-qdla: sha'btinu Ii-tazimi ramaddna; al-Daylarnl, op, cit., Ms. Chester Beatty 4139, fol. 93b; al-Zurqiini, Sharh al-muwatta', II, p, 458; Ibn Abi Shayba, op, cit., III, p, 103; al-Jilanl, op, cit., I, p. 210; al-Munawl, op. cit., II, p, 42, no. 1277; ai-Muttaqi l-Hindl, op. cit., VIII, p. 348, no. 2535; al-Mukhallis, Majdlis, Ms. Zahiriyya, majmii'a 60, fol. 110b; Ibn Biibiiyah, Thawdb, p. 59; al-Majlisl, op, cit., XCVII, p, 77; al-Tahawl, Sharb ma'tini, 11,83 inf.; cf. al-Daylaml, op. cit., Ms. Chester Beatty 4139, fol. 130a: alldhumma bdrik lana fi rajab wa-sha'bdn wa-ballighnd ramat!tin â¢.. 19 Al-Jllanl, op. cit., I, p, 211: ... wa-khttira min al-shuhiiri arba'atan: rajaba wa-sha'bdna wa-ramaddna wa-l-muharrama, wa-khtdra minhti sha'btina wa-ja'alahu shahra l-nabiyyi (s): fa-kama anna l-nabiyya (~) afdalu l-anbiyd"! ka-dhtilika shahruhu afdalu l-shuhiai, 20 'Abd al-Razzaq, op. cit., IV, pp. 158-160; Ibn Abi Shayba, op. cit., III, pp. 21-22; Niir al-Dln al-Haytharnl, op. cit., III, p. 148; al-Bayhaql, al-Sunan, IV, pp. 207-208; al-Muttaql l-Hindl, op. cit., VIII, p. 310, nos. 2140-2141, 2144; cf. Ibn Qayyim al-Jauziyya, Badd'i' al-fawii'id, Beirut n.d. (reprint), III, p. 96. 21 Ibn Abi Shayba, op. cit., III, p. 21; 'Abd al-Razzaq, op. cit., IV, p. 161, no. 7325; al-Sakhawl, al-Maqd sid al-hasana (ed. 'Abdallah Muhammad al-Siddlql), Cairo 1375/1956, p. 35, no. 55; al-Dariml, op, cit., I, p. 350; al-Murtada I·Zabidi, op, cit., IV, p. 256; al-Suyutl, Jam' al-jawdmi', Cairo 1391/1971, I, p. 430, nos. 489-490,445 no. 540, 745-746, nos. 1517-1519,760, no. 1566; al-Munawl, op. cit., I, p. 304, no. 494; al-Tirmidhi, op. cit., III, p. 274; Abii Dawud, op. cit., I, p. 368; al-Saffurl, op. cit., p. 198; al-Shaukiini, Nayl, IV, pp. 290-292; al-Bayhaql, al-Sunan, IV, p. 209; Mahmud Khattab al-Subkl, op, cit., X, p. 56. 22 Al-Daraqutnl, Sunan (ed. 'Abdallah Hashim Yamanl), Medina 1386/1966, II, p. 191, no. 57; Ibn Abi Shayba, op. cit., III, p. 23; al-Dariml, op. cit., I, p. 336; Abii
20
SHA'BAN IS MY MONTH
The traditions explicitly recommending fasting in the final days of Sha'ban were controversial.U The Prophet is said to have made the folIowing utterance: "He who fasts on the Iast Monday of Sha'ban, God will forgive him for his sins".24 Another tradition of the Prophet promises those who fast on the first and last Thursdays of'Sha'ban entrance into Paradise.25 God will protect from hellfire the body of a believer who fasts even a single day of Sha'ban and he will be granted the company of Yusuf in Paradise and given the reward of Dawiid and Ayyub, If he completes the entire month in fasting, God will ease the pangs of his death, remove the darkness of his grave and hide his shame on the Day of Resurrection.26 Especially stressed were the virtues of devotional observance of the first night of Sha'ban. "He who performs on the first night of Sha'ban 12 prostrations (rak'a), reading during the first of them thefiitil;1a and repeating five times qui huwa ahad, God will grant him the reward of 12,000 martyrs and he will be absolved of his sins, as on the day his mother bore him, and no sin will be reckoned against him for eighty days",27 says a tradition attributed to the Prophet. The month of Sha'ban was considered by the Prophet as protection from the fires of Hell; he enjoined those who sought to meet him in Paradise to fast at least three days in Sha'ban.28
Diiwiid, op. cit., I, p. 368; al-Shaukanl, Nayl, IV, pp. 290-292; al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan, IV, p. 210; ai-MuttaqI I-HindI, op. cit., VIII, p. 310, nos. 2142-2143; Ibn Miijah, op. cit., I, p. 506; al-Tahawl, Sharh ma'iini, II, p. 84; Ahmad b. Hanbal, Musnad (ed. Ahmad Muhammad Shakir), Cairo 1373/1953, XII, p. 188, no. 7199, XIV, 192, no. 7766; Mahmud Khattab al-Subkl, op. cit., X, p. 54. 23 See al-Bahyaqi, Sunan, IV, pp. 210-211; al-Shaukani, op, cit., IV, p. 291; al-ZamakhsharI, al-Fa'iq (ed, 'All Muhammad a~ijiiwI, Muhammad Abii I-FaQI Ibrahim), Cairo 1971, II, p. 171. And see Ibn Rajab, op, cit., pp. 149 inf. - 150 (... wa-kharraja abt; dawud fi biibi taqaddumi ramaddna min hadithi mu'iiwiyata annahu qiila: innt mutaqaddimun al-shahra fa-man shii'a fa-l-yataqaddam: fa-su'ila 'an dhiilika fa-qdla: sami'tu l-nabiyya (~) yaqiilu: ~uma l-shahra wa-slrrahu ..⢠fa-yakiinu l-mana: ~amu awwala l-shahri wa-dkhirahu, fa-Ii-dhdlika amara mu'iiwiyatu bi- #yiimi iikhirJ l-shahri ... ); Mahmud Khattab al-Subkl, op. cit., X, pp. 45-49; see Lisiin al-t Arab, s.v. srr. 24 Al-Daylaml, op. cit., Ms. Chester Beatty 3037, fol. 143a; al-Jllanl, op. cit., I, p. 210 (AI-JIIiinI adds the reservation that this utterance does not apply when this Monday coincides with the last days of Sha'biin during which fasting is forbidden). 25 AHlaffiirI, op. cit., p. 195. 26 Ibid., p. 196. 27 Ibid., p. 195; cf. al-Nazill, Khazinat al-asrdr al-kubrd, Cairo 1349 A.H. (reprint), p. 43 inf. 28 Al-Saffur], op. cit., p. 195.
21
Shi'i tradition does not differ from Sunni in content; it is, however, richer in jarj{J'il - Iore and its stories are of course marked by specific Shi'i features. A lengthy report on a victory of a Muslim expedition against unbelievers during Sha'ban contains an account of a miracle wrought for the Ieaders of the expedition - Zayd b. Haritha, 'Abdallah b. Rawaha and Qays b. 'A~im al-Minqari - on account of their pious deeds at the beginning of Sha'biin. The Prophet, who welcomed the victorious expedition on its return, expounded to the people the virtues of pious deeds on the first day of Sha'biin: aIms-giving, reading the Qur'an, visiting the sick, reconciling husbands and wives, parents and children, praying and fasting and performing other deeds of piety and devotion. Such deeds would afford a hold on a branch of the Paradise-tree of Tubii, to appear on the first day of Sha'biin. Those who perpetrate evil deeds on that day will grasp the branches of the Hell-tree of Zaqiim, which will emerge from Hell. On the first day of Sha'ban God dispatches His angels to guide the people and summon them to perform good deeds, while Iblis sends his accomplices to Iead them astray. The faithful are to be alert and to revere the month of Sha'biin in order to gain happiness.29 Detailed lists of rewards for fasting each day of this month, compiled after the pattern of the lists of rewards for fasting in Rajab, record the graces and rewards to be granted to the pious who exert themselves in the Sha'biin fast.3o Even serious crimes will be forgiven those who fast during Sha'ban.U The two months of fasting prescribed in cases of incidental killing (Sura 4:92) were interpreted as synonymous with the two consecutive months of Sha'ban and RamaQiin.32 The idea of intercession Iinked with the rewards of fasting during this month is remarkable. According to tradition, the Prophet will intercede on the Day of Resurrection for him who fasts even one day of Sha'biin.33 The month itself is called "The Month of Intercession", for the Prophet is to intercede for those who utter the prayer of blessing for the Prophet during this month.w
~9 Al-Majlisl, op. cit., XCVII, pp. 55-65 (from the Tafsir of the Imam aI·'AskarI). 30 AI-Majlisi, op. cit., XCVII, p. 65 ult. - 70; Ibn Biibiiyah, Thawdb, pp. 60-61; Id., Amdlt, pp. 20-22. 31 Al-Majlisl, op. cit., XCVII, p. 74. 32 AI·'Ayyiishi, Tafsir (ed, Hashim al-Rasiili l-Mahallatl), Qumm 1380 A.H., I, p. 266, nos. 232, 235; Ibn Biibiiyah, Thawdb, pp. 57-58. 33 AI·Majlisi, op. cit., XCVII, p. 81, no. 49; Ibn Biibiiyah, Amalt, pp. 17,486. 34 AI-Majlisi, op. cit., XCVII, p. 78: ... wa-summiya shahru sha'btina shahra /. shafii'atl li-anna rasiilakum yashfa'u likulli man yusalli+alayhi flhi.
22
SHA'BAN IS MY MONnI
Like Sunnl scholars, Shi'i scholars were concerned with the permissibility of uninterrupted fasting over the two consecutive months of Sha'ban and Ramadan, And as in Sunni sources, the traditions in the Shi'i sources are contradictory or divergent. According to one Shi'i report, the Prophet would fast over the two months without pause (fa$l) between them; however he forbade believers to do this.35 A means of breaking the fast, thus discontinuing a fast of two consecutive months, was provided by advice given by the Imam, to desist from fasting for a single day after the 15th of Sha'ban, and then to continue fasting uninterruptedly.se Some Shi'i traditions recommended fasting the Iast three days of Sha'ban, continuing uninterruptedly into the fast of Ramadan.s? others report that the Prophet would fast three days at the beginning of Sha'ban, three days mid-month, and three days at the end.38 Later Shi'i scholars quoted early traditions concerning Sha'ban, traced back to the Shi'i Imams, in an attempt to reconcile the controversial reports and to establish fixed patterns for the observances and devotions of this month.w Both Shi'i and Sunni traditions are imbued with sincere reverence for Sha'ban and its devotional observances and recommend almost without exceptions? fasting during the month and performance of pious deeds. The only controversy was over the period of fasting during the month and the pause separating the voluntary fast of Sha'ban from the obIigatory month of fasting of Ramadan. II The eve ofthe 15th of Sha'ban is the holiest time of the month and it is recommended to spend the night in vigil prayer and supplication, and the
35 Ibn Biibiiyah, Thawdb, p. 58; al-Majlisl, op. cit., XCVII, p. 76 (from Ibn Biibiiyah). 36 AI-MajIisi, op. cit., XCVII, p. 72, no. 13: ... mii taqiilu fl ~aumi shahri sha'biina? qiila: sumhu, qultu: fa-l-faslul qiila: yaumun ba'da l-ni sfi, thumma stl. 37 AI-MajIisi, op. cit., XCVII, p. 72, no. 16; p. 80, no. 47. 38 Ibn Biibiiyah, 'Uyiin akhbdr al-Ri dii, Najaf 1390/1970, II, p. 70, no. 330; alMajlisi, op. cit., XCVII, p. 73, no. 18. 39 See e.g. al-Bahranl, al-Hadd'iq al-nddira fT ahkdm al-'itra l-tdhira (ed. Muhammad Taqiyy al-Ayrawiini), Najaf 1384 A.H., XIII, pp. 382-386. 40 But see al-Bahranl, op. cit., XIII, p. 383 (quoted from Kulini's al-Wasii'il): ... annahu su'ila ['alayhi I-saliim] 'anhu fa-qdla: md ~iimahu [i.e. Sha'biin - K] rasiilu lliihi (~) wa-lii ahadun min iibii'! ... ; and see the interpretation given by al-Kulinl, ibid.; and see the contradictory traditions, al-Majlisl, op, cit., XCVII, p. 76, nos. 32-33; p. 82, no. 51.
23
morrow in fasting."! At sunset, says a tradition, God would descend to the Iowest heaven, grant His forgiveness to those seeking it, food to those begging for it and health to the sick, and would respond to those imploring His aid for other needs until the break of day.42 A version (recorded in the early compilation of 'Abd al-Razzaq) holds that on the night of mid-Sha'ban God would look upon His servants and grant forgiveness to all people on earth save unbelievers and those bearing a grudge against others. Other versions include drunkards, wizards, prostitutes and sinners of other varieties in the Iist of those denied forgiveness.O The prayers and supplications on the night of mid-Sha'ban are connected with the idea that this is the night when the life and death of all creatures in the world are decided. Some commentators on the Qur'an took verses 2-4 of Sural al-Dukhiin (44): "We have sent it down in a blessed night. . . therein every wise bidding determined as a bidding from Us ... " to refer to the night of the l Sth of Sha'biin. They consequently interpreted the pronominal suffix in anzalniihu, "We have sent it down", as relating to "the bidding", "the order", "the decree". This
41 But see the hadith, reported on the authority of Abii Hurayra, forbidding fasting on the 15th of Sha'ban, al-Suyutl, Jam' al-jawtimi', I, p. 760, no. 1566. 42 Ibn Majah, op. cit., I, p. 421; Ibn Khuzayma, Kittib al-tauhtd (ed. Muhammad Khalil Harras), Cairo 1387/1968, p. 136; al-Suyutl, Jam' al-jawdmi", I, p. 761, no. 1568 (cf. ibid., no. 1567); Id., al-Durr al-manthiir, VI, p. 26 inf.; Ahmad b. Hijazl, op. cit., p. 51; Ibn Rajab, op. cit., pp. 143, 145; al-Zurqani, Sharb al-mawdhib, VII, pp. 412-413; aI-Jamal, al-Futiihdt al-ildhiyya, Cairo n.d., IV, p. 100; al-Fakihl, Ta'rikh Makka, Ms. Leiden Or. 463, fol. 418b; al-Khazin, Tafsir, Cairo 1381 A.H., VI, p. 120; al-Baghawi, Tafsir, VI, p. 119 (on margin of al-Khazin's Tafsir); al-Mundhiri, op. cit., II, p. 244, no. 1491; ai-Muttaqi I-Hindi, op. cit., XVII, p. 143, no. 467; al-Majlisi, op, cit., XCVIII, p, 415; al-Turtushi, al-Hawddith wa-l-bida' (ed. Muhammad al-Talbi), Tunis 1959, p. 118; al-Sha'rani, Lawtiqih al-anwdr al-qudsiyya, Cairo 1381/1961, p. 185; cf. al-Malati, al-Tanblh wa-l-radd 'alii ahli l-ahwti'i wa-l-bida' (ed, Muhammad Zahid al-Kauthari), n.p. 1388/1968, p. 113; Abii Shama, al-Bd'ith 'alii inkdri l-bido'i wa-l-hawddith (ed. Muhammad Fu'ad Minqara), Cairo 1374/1955, p. 26. 43 'Abd al-Razzaq, op. cit., IV, p. 316, ult. no. 7923; Ibn Majah, op. cit., I, p. 422; cf, al-Suyutl, Jam' al-jawiimi', I, p. 761, no. 1659; al-Mundhiri, op. cit., V, p. 123, no. 4007 (and see nos. 4009-4010); Ibn Rajab, op. cit., p. 143 (and see p. 144: the list of sinners, and p. 146: the explanation of the grave sins); Ahmad b. I:Iijazi, op, cit., p. 50; cf. al-Munawl, op. cit., II, p. 316, no. 1942; IV, p. 459, no. 5963; al-Zurqani, Shar/:z al-mawdhib, VII, p. 410 ult. - 411 sup.; Ibn Hajar, al-Kdfi l-shiif fi takhriji a/:ziidithi l-kashshdf, Cairo 1354 A.H., p. 148, nos. 380-381; al-Sha'ranl, op. cit., p. 185; alNaysaburi, Gharii'ib al-Qur'iin (ed. Ibrahim 'Atwa 'AwaQ), Cairo 1393/1973, XXV, p. 65; al-Razl, Tafsir, Cairo 1357/1938, XXVII, p. 238; ai-Muttaqi I-Hindi, op. cit., XVII, p. 143, no. 467; XIII, pp. 269-270, nos. 1481-1482, 1485, 1489, 1491.
24
SHA'BAN IS MY MONTH
interpretation was vehemently rejected by commentators asserting that the verses refer to the "laylat al-qadr" and the pronominal suffix to the Qur'an, sent down in Ramadan+t But the widespread popular belief was indeed that the night of the 15th of Sha'ban was the night of decrees concerning Iife and death. Those destined to die would plant trees, set out on pilgrimage, beget children, not knowing that they were to die in the course of the year.s> On this night God would order the Angel of Death to seize the souls of those upon whose death during the following year He had decided.w As the Angel of Death is thus occupied in receiving the decrees of death from God, no one dies between sunset and nightfall of this eve.s? This night is indeed called laylat al-hayiit, laylat al-qisma wa-l-taqdir, laylat al-rahma,
44 See Ahmad b. Hijazf, op. cit., p. 47 inf. - 48; cf. al-Zurqani, Sharh al-mawdhib, VII, p. 414; al-Qurtubi, Tafslr, Cairo 1387/1967, XVI, pp. 126-127; Hasan alMadabighi, Risdla fImd yata'allaqu bi-Iaylati l-nisfi min sha'bdn, Ms. Hebrew University, AP Ar. 80 439, fol. 9b-lOa; al-Luddl, Faydu l-hanndn fi fadli laylati l-nisfi min sha'bdn, Ms. Hebrew University, AP Ar. 80479, fol. 4a: .. .fa-l-hii' fi anzalnd damiru l-amri, ay innd anzalnd amran min 'Indind fl hddhihi l-laylati, qadayndhu wa-qaddarndhu min al-djdli wa-l-arztiqi ... And see contradictory explanations Ibn al-'Arabi, Ahktim al-Qur'dn (ed. 'Ali Muhammad al-Bijawi), Cairo 1388/1968, p. 1678: ... fi laylatin mubdrakatin ... ya'ni anna lldha anzala l-qur'tina bi-I-Iayli ... wa-jumhiiru l-t ulamd"i 'alii annahd laylatu l-qadri, wa-minhum man qtila innahd laylatu l-nisfi min sha'bdna, wa-huwa btitilun ... ; Ibn Kathir, Tafsir, Beirut 1385/1966, VI, p. 245; al-Turtushi, op. cit., pp. 118-121; cf. al-Razl, op. cit., XXVII, p. 238. 45 'Abd al-Razzaq, op. cit., IV, p. 317, nos. 7925-7926; cf. al-Tabarl, Tafsir (Bulaq), XXV, p. 65; al-Muttaql l-Hindi, op. cit., XVII, p. 143, no. 468; al-Madabighi, op. cit., fol. 15a-b. 46 Al-Munawl, op, cit., IV, p. 459, no. 5964; Ibn Rajab, op. cit., p. 148, ll. 1-2: al-Suyutl, al-Durr al-manthilr, VI, p. 26; ai-Muttaqi I-Hindi, op. cit., XIII, p, 269, no. 1483. The story of the tree in Paradise (see G.E. von Grunebaum, Muhammadan Festivals, New York 1951, pp. 53-54, quoted from Lane's Manners and Customs of the Modern Egyptians) is recorded by al-Luddl, op. cit., fol. 5b: The tree at the side of the Throne (al-'arsh), resembling a pomegranate-tree, has as many leaves as there are human beings in the world. On each leaf is written the name of a person. The Angel of Death watches the leaves; when a leaf yellows he perceives that the date of the death of the person is imminent and he dispatches his helpers; when the leaf falls the Angel of Death catches his soul. According to a version of this tradition, when the leaf falls on its back, it denotes a positive decree for the person (I}usn al-khiitima); if it falls on its underside, it denotes an unfortunate decree. Al-Suytitl records the tradition on this tree on the authority of Muhammad b. Juhada in al-Durr al-manthiir, III, p. 15 (commenting on Sura 6:60) and in his compilation Sharh al-sudar, p. 22. 47 Ahmad b. Hijazl, op. cit., p. 48 inf.; al-Luddl, op. cit., fol. 5b inf. - 6a sup.; al-Madabighl, op. cit., fol. 17a.
25
laylat al-ijdba, laylat al-takftr.s» In reference to the forgiving of sins, the current popular name of this night is laylat al-sukiik or laylat al-barii'a, "the night of acquittance".49 It is the "feast of the angels" ('id almala'ika)50 and the "night of intercession" (Iaylat al-shafii' ay; on the 13th of Sha'ban the Prophet pleaded for intercession for a third of his people and this was granted; on the 14th he was granted intercession for a second third and on the 15th of Sha'ban he was granted intercession for his entire people.t! An exceptional night, indeed, distinguished by peculiar virtues. 52 A Iengthy report, recorded on the authority of 'A'isha, gives us details of the origin of the devotions of this night. 'A'isha missed the Prophet in her bedchamber that night and sought him eagerly; she found him prostrated in supplication, praying a most moving prayer. The Prophet explained to 'A'isha the importance of this night, conveying to her the good tidings that God would grant His forgiveness to a countless multitude of believers, as many as the hairs of the flocks of the tribe of Kalb. 53
48 See ai-Jamal, op. cit., IV, p. 100; Ahmad b. l:Iijiizi, op. cit., pp. 48-49; alGhaziili, Mukdshafa, pp. 249-250; al-Luddi, op. cit., fol. 5b-6a. 49 For the expression barii'a as "acquittance", "discharge of sins", see the story about the letter sent by God and found on the breast of'Umar b. 'Abd al-'Aziz during his burial: Ps. Ibn Qutayba, al-Imdma wa-l-siytisa (ed. Tiihii Muharnmad al-Zayni), Cairo 1378/1967, II, p. 102: bi-smi lldhi l-rahmdni l-rabtm, kitabun bi-l-qalami I-jalil, min alldhi 1-'azizi 1-'alim, bard' atun Ii-'umara bni 'abdi 1-'aziz min al-' adhdb i l-alim, And see al-Madiibighi, op. cit., fol. 17b: " .fa-fi laylati l-bard'ati mithlu dhdlika yu'!a l-wdhidu barii'atan, fa-yuqtilu aufayta l-haqqa wa-qumta bi-shara'iti l-'ubudiyyati fa. khudh bard'atan min al-ndri; wa-yuqdlu li-wdhidin istakhfafta bi-haqqi wa-Iam taqum bi-shard'iti l-t ubildiyyatlcfa-khudh barii'ataka min al-jindni. 50 AI-Jiliini, op. cit., I, p. 216; al-Luddi, op, cit., fol. 6a; Ahmad b.l:Iijiizi, op. cit., p. 48 inf.; al-Ghazall, Mukiishafa, p. 249; al-Madiibighi, op, cit., fol. 17a-b. 51 AI-Jamal, op. cit., IV, pp. 100; Ahmad b. Hijazl, op. cit., p. 49; al-Ghaziili, Mukdshafa, p, 250; al-Naysiibiiri, op. cit., XXV, p. 65; al-Riizi, op. cit., xxvn, p. 238. 52 'Abd al-Razzaq, op. cit., IV, p. 317, no. 7927; Ibn 'Asakir, Tahdhib ta'rlkh (ed. 'Abd al-Qadir Badriin), Damascus 1330 A.H., I, p. 47; III, p. 296; Ibn Rajab, op. cit., p. 144 inf.; al-Suyuti, al-Durr al-manthiir, VI, p. 26; al-Zandawaysiti, op. cit., fol. 259a; aI-Jiliini, op. cit., I, p. 215; Ahmad b. Hijazl, op. cit., pp. 48, 51; Ibn Hajar, al-Kdfl l-shdf, p. 148, no. 382; al-Wassabt, al-Baraka fi fadli l-sayt wa-l-haraka, Cairo n.d., p. 78; al-Madabighi, op. cit., fol. 17a. 53 See Ibn Majah, op. cit., I, pp. 421-422; al-Mundhiri, op. cit., II, p. 243, nos. 1488, 1490; V, p. 124, no. 4008, 126, no. 4012; al-Suyuti, al-Durr al-manthiir, VI, pp. 26-27; al-Jllanl, op. cit., I, pp. 213-215; Ibn Rajab, op. cit., p. 143; Ahmad b. l:Iijiizi, op. cit., p. 49; al-Zurqanl, Sharh al-mawdhib, VII, pp. 410-411; al-Majlisi, op. cit., XCVII, pp. 88-89 (no. 16); XCVIII, pp. 416-419 (and see XCVII, p. 86, no. 8): al-
26
SHA'BAN IS MY MONUI
Special prayers and supplications were recommended and precious rewards promised to those who would exert themselves in devotion and prayer during this night. Among the numerous rewards were forgiveness of sins and entry into Paradise. Orthodox scholars sharply criticized these hadtths, often branding them as weak or forged.sShi'i sources outdo the Sunni in propagating the virtues of the night of the 15th of Sha'ban; they emphasize that the Imams were singled out by the blessings of this night. God granted the Prophet laylat al-qadr, while He granted the Imams (ahl al-bayt) the night of the 15th of Sha'ban, according to a report transmitted on the authority of al-Baqir.55 A tradition attributed to the Prophet says that the position of 'Ali within the family of the Prophet (iilu muhammadint is like that of the best of the days and nights of Sha'ban, i.e. the night of the 15th of Sha'ban.56 Noteworthy is the tradition recommending a visit to the grave of Husayn on this night; forgiveness of sins will be the assured reward.s? Orthodox Muslim scholars emphasized the superiority of laylat al-qadr over the night of the 15th of Sha'ban, laylat al-barii'a. Although some scholars opined that there is no fixed date for laylat al-qadr and that it
Dhahabl, Mtzan al-i'tiddl (ed. 'Ali Muhammad al-Bijawi), Cairo 1382/1963, IV, p. 262, no. 9081; al-Zandawaysitl, op. cit., fol. 259b-260b; al-Razl, op. cit., XXVII, p. 238; al-Madabighl, op. cit., fols. 18a-20b; al-Muttaql I-Hindi, op. cit., XIII, p. 270, nos. 1486-1488, 1491. 54 Al-Suyutr, al-Durr al-manthiir, VI, p. 27 inf. - 28 sup.; Abil Talib al-Makkl, Qut al-qullib, Cairo 1351/1932, I, p. 93; al-Muttaql l-Hindl, op. cit., XVII, p. 144, no. 469; Ahmad b. I:Iijazi, op. cit., p. 52 inf. - 53; al-Jilanl, op. cit., I, p. 216; alShaukanl, al-Fawd'id al-majmira fi I-al;liidithi l-maudtra (ed. 'Abd al-Rahman alMu'allamt l-Yamanl), Cairo 1380/1960, pp. SO-51, no. 106; Id., Tuhfa: al-dhakirin bi·'uI#ati I-Min al-hastn min kaldmi sayyid al-mursalin (ed. Muhammad Zabara alHasanl al-San'anl), Cairo 1393/1973, pp. 182-183; al-Saffurl, op. cit., p. 197; aI-Jamal, op. cit., IV, p. 100; al-Majlisl, op. cit., XCVII, pp, 85-86 (nos. 5, 7), 87 (no. 13), 89 (no, 17); XCVIII, pp. 408-418; Ibn Babuyah, 'Uyun akhbiir al-Ridd, I, p. 228; Id., Amalt, p. 24; al-Tusl, Amdll, Najaf 1384/1964, I, p. 303; Ibn al-Jauzl, al·MaurJu'iit (ed. 'Abd al-Rahman Muhammad 'Uthman), Medina 1386/1966, II, pp. 127-130; al-Suyutl, al·La'dli al-masnii:a fi l-ahddithi l-maudaa, Cairo n.d., II, pp. 57-60; Ibn Hajar, alK4fi al-shdf, p. 148, no. 379; al-Wa$$abi, op. cit., pp. 76-78; Ma' al-'Aynayn, Na't al-bidiiyiit wa-taustf al-nihdydt, Fas(?) 1312 A.H" pp. 184-185; al-Nazill, op. cit., pp. 43-44; al-Razl, op. cit., XXVII, p. 238. 55 AI-Tilsi, Amiili, I, p. 303; al-Majlisi, op, cit., XCVII, p. 85, no. 5 (from the Am4/i). S6 AI-Majlisi, op. cit., XCVII, p. 87, no. 9 (from the Tafslr of' al-Imam al·'Askari). 57 AI-Majlisi, op. cit., XCVII, p. 85, no. 4, p. 87, nos. 10-11.
27
can occur on any night throughout the entire year,S8 the majority held that laylat al-qadr is a night of Ramadan, thus inherently excelling any night of the inferior month of Sha'bii.n. The early scholar and judge Ibn Abi Mulayka-? is reported to have sharply rebuked those scholars who held that the reward for observance of the night of the 15th of Sha'ban equals that of laylat al-qadrsv This report indicates that orthodox scholars were reconciled to the veneration of the night of the 15th of Sha'bii.n, and merely stressed the inferiority of this night (laylat al-barii' a) in comparison with laylat al-qadr. Legitimization of laylat al-barii' a was linked with the elaboration of the idea of its virtues and merits as compared with those of laylat al-qadr. Scholars stressed the difference between the two nights, as well as their relationship: the date of laylat al-barii'a was announced and fixed, but that of laylat al-qadr (referring to that during Ramadan - K) is not revealed, for laylat al-barii' a is the night of judgement and decree, while laylat al-qadr is the night of mercy. Were the date of laylat al-qadr divulged and precisely determined, people would abstain from every exertion and rely upon the mercy of GOd.61 A report, recorded on the authority of Ibn 'Abbas, defines the mutuaI, complementary functions of the two nights: God issues His decrees on laylat al-barii'a, but delivers them for execution on lay/at al-qadr/a In another, more detailed version, the copying from the Preserved Tablet commences on laylat al-barii'a and is completed on laylat al-qadr, when the list of sustenances is handed over to the angel Mikii.'il, the list of earthquakes, lightning and wars to Jibril, and the list of deeds (a'miil) to the angel Ismii.'ilwho is in charge oflower Heaven and is an angel of very high rank.63
58 See al-Tahawl, Sharh ma'iini, II, p. 92: ... anna bna mas'iidin qiila: man qdma l-sanata kullahd asdba laylata l-qadri ... (see the contradictory opinion of Ubayy b. Ka'b, ibid.); Ibn 'Asakir, op, cit., II, p. 324; al-'Amili, al-Kashkiil (ed. Tahir Ahmad al-Zawl), Cairo 1380/1961, I, p. 405: ... wa-minhum man qiila: hiyafi majmiri l-sanati, Iii yakhtassu bihd shahru ramaddna wa-ld ghayruhu; ruwiya dhiilika 'ani bni mas' iidin, qdla: man yaqumi l-haula yusibhd. 59 See on him Ibn Hajar, Tahdhib al-tahdhib, V, p. 306, no. 523; Ibn Sa'd, Tabaqdt, Beirut 1377/1957, V, p. 472; al-Fasl, al-t Iqd al-thamin (ed, Fu'ad Sayyid), Cairo 1385/ 1966, V, p. 204, no. 1570; al-Dhahabi, Tadhkirat al·buffii;, Hyderabad, I, p. 101; Waki', Akhbdr al-quddt (ed. 'Abd al-'Aziz al-Maraghl), Cairo 1366/1947, I, p. 261. 60 'Abd al-Razzaq, op. cit., IV, p. 317, no. 7928; al-Turtushi, op. cit., p. 119. 61 Al-Jllani, op. cit., I, p. 216; al-Saffurl, op. cit., p. 198; cf. al-Zandawaysitl, op. cit., fo1. 273b. 62 AJ-Baghawi, Ta!sir, VI, p. 120, 1. 7; al-Jamal, op. cit, IV, p. 100, 11. 25-26; al-Majlisl, op. cit., XCVIII, p, 414. 63 Al-Jamal, op. cit.,IV,p. 100 inf.; Ahmad b.l:lijazi, op. cit., p. 48 sup.; al-Luddl, op. cit., fol 5b; al-Naysaburl, op, cit., XXV, p. 65; al-Madabighi, op. cit., fol, lOb.
28
SHA'BAN IS MY
MONTI!
The beginnings of the devotional observance of laylat al-barii'a seem to go back a long way. A legendary report of an expedition sent by Abu 'Ubayda, during his conquest of Syria, contains an interesting passage on laylat al-barii'a. The commander of the expedition, appointed by Abu 'Ubayda, was 'Abdallah b. Ja'far, son of the uncle of the Prophet, the famous martyr Ja'far al-Tayyar, Among the warriors of his troop was the pious Wathila b. al-Asqa'.64 When the troop was about to set out, 'Abdallah noticed the brightness of the moon. Wathila declared that it was the night of the 15th of Sha'ban, the blessed night of great virtue. On that night, he said, sustenances and decrees concerning life and death are set down, sins and wrong deeds are forgiven. Wathila stressed that, regardless of his desire to spend the night in vigil (wa-kuntu aradtu an aqiimahii, scil. in devotional observance - K), setting out to fight for God's sake was preferable. Consequently the troop indeed marched out.65 Some reports relate that certain tiibi'iin in Syria would perform the devotional practices of this night, mentioning specifically Maki}.ii166 Luqman b. 'Amir67 and Khalid b. Ma'dan.68 The well-known scholar Ishaq b. Rahawayhs? adopted their view and was favourable toward the observance of laylat al-bariia. 'Ata' b. Abi Rabai}.,7oIbn Abi Mulayka"! and the majority of the scholars of al-Hijaz opposed these practices; Maliki and Shafi'I scholars followed in their path, severely criticizing the obser64 See on him Ibn Hajar, Tahdhib, XI, p. 101, no. 174; Abu Nu'aym, op. cit., II p. 21, no. 120; Ibn Hajar, al-Isdba (ed. 'Ali Muhammad al-Bijawl), Cairo 1392/1972, VI, p. 591, no. 9093; Ibn 'Abd ai-Barr, al-Istl'tib (ed. 'Ali Muhammad al-Bijawl), Cairo 1380/1960, p. 1563, no. 2738. 65 Ps. Waqidi, Futid: al-Shdm, Cairo 1348, I, p. 57. 66 See on him Sezgin, GAS, I, p. 404, no. 5; Safiyy al-Dln al-Khazrajl, Tadhhib tahdhib al-kamdl (ed, Mahmud 'Abd al-Wahhab Fayid), Cairo 1391/1971, III, p. 54, no. 7178. 67 See on him Ibn Hibban al-Bustl, Kitdb al-thiqdt (ed. 'Abd al-Khaliq al-Afghanl, Hyderabad 1388/1968, p. 229; Safiyy al-Dln al-Khazraji, op. cit., II, p. 372, no. 6005. 68 See on him Ibn Hibban al-Bustl, op. cit., p. 55; Ibn Hajar, Tahdhib, III, p. 118, no. 222; al-Bukharl, Ta'rtkh, III, no. 601; Safiyy al-Dln al-Khazrajl, op. cit., I, p. 284, no. 1802. 69 See on him al-Dhahabl, Tadhkirat al-huffd z, p. 433; Ibn Hajar, Tahdhib, I, p. 216, no. 408; Ibn Abl Hatim, al-Jarh wa-l-tadtl, Hyderabad 1371/1952, II, p. 209, no. 714; al-Dhahabi, Miziin al-i'tiddl, r, p. 182, no. 733; al-$afadi, al-Wdfi bi-l-wafaydt (ed. Muhammad Yusuf Najrn), Wiesbaden 1391/1971, VIII, p. 386, no. 3825 (and see the references of the editor); al-Subkl, Tabaqiit al-shdfi'tyya (ed. al-Hulw - al-Tanahl), Cairo 1383/1964, II, p. 83, no. 19. 70 See on him Sezgin, GAS, I, p. 31; al-Fasl, al-t Iqd al-thamtn, VI, pp. 84-93. 71 See on him above, note 59.
29
vances, branding them as bid'a. Amongst the Syrian scholars advocating the devotions there were certain differences of opinion concerning the forms of observance: some of them would wear fine garments, scent themselves with incense, anoint their eyes with collyrium and spend the night in the mosque praying and supplicating publicly. Others preferred solitary prayer and devotion in the privacy of their homes. Some persons, says the tradition, refrained from observing this night when they learned that the shcolars and pious men who advocated such veneration based their belief of Isrii'iliyyiit traditions.F There were some extremist opinions, which totally denied the basis of the traditions on the virtues of laylat al-barii'a and branded the reports as forged.P But generally orthodox circles merely reproved the manner of these devotions. A Iate report vividly describes them as practiced in the seventh century of the Hijra. Mosques were lavishly lit and the governor would come to the courtyard of the mosque; firebrands were kindled and the seated governor would act as judge. People would submit complaints against the unjust and wicked, and those convicted were punished on the spot. The adversaries shouting their arguments, the cries of the punished, the barking of the guards (janiidira) and the noise of the crowd turned the mosque into a poI ice-station (diiru shurta), as noted by Ibn aI-I.HiJJ,74The Iatter especially denounced processions to cemeteries, performed on this night by mixed crowds of men and women. Some women sang, some beat tambourines; a sort of cupola-shaped canopy (ka-l-qubba 'alii 'amiid), surrounded by lamps (qanadtt) was carried in the crowd and so the people arrived at the cemetery. Wooden posts were set up on the graves and hung with the clothes of the dead. Relatives sat down on the graves and talked to the dead about their troubles and sorrows, or complained at the graves of scholars and the righteous. Ibn al-Hajj stresses that some of these practices resemble those of the Christians, who would dress their statues and pray before their images.75 A rather Iate date for the introduction of the prayer of the night of the
72 Al-Zurqanl, Sharh al-mawdhib, VII, p. 413; Ibn Rajab, op. cit., p. 144; Ahmad b I;Iijazi, op. cit., p. 52; 'Ali Mahfuz, al-Ibda'li ma ddrr al-ibtidd', Cairo 1388/1968, p.295. 73 See e.g. Ibn 'Arabi, op. cit., IV, p. 1678: ... wa-Iaysa Ii laylati l-nisfi mill sha'bdna badtthun yu'awwalu 'alayhi, la Ii fat/liM wa-Id Ii naskhi I-ajali filla, fa-hi tal/a/ita ilayhd. And see note 44 above. 74 Ibn al-Haj], al-Madkhal, Beirut 1972, I, pp. 302-303. 75 Ibid., pp. 304-307.
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SIlA'BAN IS MY MONTII
15th of Sha'ban in Jerusalem is recorded by al-Turtushi, According to his report, a man from Nabulus came to Jerusalem in 448 A.H. and performed this prayer in the mosque of al-Aqsa. From then onward the prayer became current and was held in al-Aqsa and in homes, coming to be considered a sunna.l» III The reports on the early origin of the observance of laylat al-barii'a seem to be trustworthy. The favourable attitude of the Syrian tiibi'fm (in the second half of the first century of the Hijra) towards these practices probably points to an earlier tradition, to be traced back to some of the Companions, such as Wathila b. al-Asqa"; indeed Makhul, who championed the observance of laylat al-barii'a, was a student of Wathila and transmitted hadtth on his authority.?? These practices were, as we have said, attributed to the Prophet himself. The observance of the night of the 15th of Sha'ban was not confined to Syria; so much can be deduced from the utterance of Ibn Abi Mulayka, quoted above. Ibn Abi Mulayka was a Qurashite appointed by 'Abdallah b. aI-Zubayr as judge in Ta'if and in Mecca. It is implausible that his utterance (in which he vigorously opposed the idea of granting laylat al-barii'a equal rank with laylat al-qadr) was directed solely against the people of Syria; more probably it was aimed at the people of Mecca and Ta'if, Furthermore, the transmitter of this report is Ayyiib (al-Sakhtiyani)78 who Iived in Basra and may have been interested in knowing the opinion of his teacher on a practice observed in his town, or country, al-Traq. It is to be remarked that the utterance ofIbn Abi Mulayka was directed against a qii$$;79it is well known that the qussiis were obliged to edify and encourage people to exert themselves in devotional practices such as laylat al-barii'a. Finally, a short passage in the biography ofIbn
76 Al-Turtushl, op, cit., p. 121; Abii Shama, op. cit., p. 24 (from al-Turtushi); 'Ali Mahfuz, op. cit., pp. 296-297 (from al-Turtushl); Jamal al-Dln al-Qasiml, l~laf;t al-masdjid min al-bida'i wa-l-iawd'id, Cairo 1341 A.H., p. 106 (from al-Turtusht). 77 Al-Dhahabi, Tadhkirat al·f;tuffli+, I, p. 108, no. 96. 78 See on him Sezgin, GAS, I, p. 87, no. 12. 79 'Abd al-Razzaq, op. cit., IV, 317, no. 7928: ... 'an ma'mar, 'an ayyidr qdla; qila ti-bni abi mulaykata inna ziyddan al-minqariyya (probably: al-namariyya; see alSuyut], Tahdhlr al-khawdss (ed. Muhammad al-Sabbagh), n.p. 1392/1972, p. 179; al-Dhahabi, Miztin al-t'tiddl, II, p. 90, no. 2945), wa-kdna qdssan, yaqiilu inna ajra Iaylati l-ni sfi min sha'bdna mithlu ajri laylati I-qadri, fa-qala: lau sami'tuhu yaqiilu dhdlika, wa-fi yadi 'asan, la-darabtuhu bihli; Abii Sharna, op. cit., p. 25 sup.
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Abi Mulayka, recorded by Ibn Sa'd, may serve to illuminate his disapproval of putting laylat al-barii' a on a par with laylat al-qadr: Ibn Abi Mulayka used to Iead the prayers of the people in Mecca during RamaQan.80 It is thus clear why he would stress the superiority of laylat al-qadr, celebrated during Ramadan, over the night of the 15th of Sha'ban. The charge that the celebration of the night of the 15th of Sha 'ban was based on Isrii'iliyyiit81 should be taken with reserve; it was not uncommon for scholars to discredit their opponents by ascribing bid'a ideas to them, or accusing them of adopting Isratliyyat traditions. In the same category was the accusation that the lavish lighting of mosques on the night of the 15th of'Sha'ban was an innovation of the Barmakids, who were thus actually advocating fire-worship.V The data stating that the majority of Hijazi scholars objected to the observance of the night of the 15th of Sha'ban seem to be inaccurate, at least as far as the third century of the Hijra is concerned. The account given by al-Fakihi is a detailed and vivid description of the devotional practices performed at Mecca on that night. The entire population of Mecca, says al-Fakihi, would go out to the mosque and spend the night reading the Qur'an, so as to finish the recitation of the entire Qur'an and perform the tawdf; some of them would perform a hundred rak'a, reciting Siirat al-Hamd (i.e. the Fatiha - K) and qui huwa lldhu ahadun (i.e. Siirat al-Ikhliis - K) at every prostration. They would drink the waters of Zamzam, wash (their faces - K) in it and take a supply of the water home to heal their ills through the blessings of this night (combined, of course, with those of the waters themselves - K).83 We have here, indeed, the first reliable information on the prayers of the night of the 15th of Sha'ban, as recorded in the sources.s+ and as performed in
80 Ibn Sa'd, op. cit., V, p. 473 sup. 81 Al-Zurqanl, Sharh al-mawtihib, VII, p. 413: ... wa-'anhum akhadha l-ndsu ta' zimahd, wa-yuqdlu innahum balaghahum fi dhdlika iithiirun isrd'Iliyyatun, fa-Iammd shtahara dhiilika "anhumu khtalafa l-ndsu fihic fa-minhum man qabilahu minhum, waminhum man abiihu .â¢â¢ 82 Abii Shama, op. cit., p. 25 inf. 83 Al-Fakihl, op. cit., fol 418b: dhikru 'amali ah/i makkata laylata l-ni sfi min sha'biina wa-jtihiidihim fihii li-fadlihd. wa ahlu makkata fimii madd ila l-yaumi, idhii kdnat laylatu l-nisfi min sha'biina kharaja 'ammatu l-rijdli wa-l-nisd'i ua l-masjidi fasallau wa-tdfii wa-ahyau laylatahum /:Iattii 1-~abii/:li bi-l-qirti' ati fi l-masjidi l-hardmi batta yakhtimii I..qur'dna kullahu wa-yusallii, au man $allii minhum tilka l-Iaylata mi'ata rak'atin, yaqra'u fi kulli rak'atin bi-l-hamdi wa-qul huwa lldhu ahad 'ashra marrdtin, waakhadhii min mii'i zamzama tilka l-laylata fa-sharibiihu wa-ghtasalii bihi wa-khaba'lihu 'indahum li-l-mar dd yabtaghiina bi-dhiilika l-barakatafi hddhihi l-laylati. 84 See above note 54; and see Abii Shama, op. cit., pp. 27, 29.
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SHA'BAN IS MY MONTIl
the haram in the third century A.H. The prayer mentioned here is one of the prayers recommended for the night of the 15th of Sha'ban, recorded by Ibn aI-Jauzi and branded by him as forged. Needless to say, the tawiif and drinking of Zamzam water are features peculiar to certain devotional practices and feasts in Mecca. A tradition of the "reward promise" type, recorded by al-Fakihi, belongs to the Iore of current traditions on this subject and is reported by Ibn aI-Jauzi; He who recites a thousand times within a hundred rak'a: qui huwa lldhu ahad, on the night of the 15th of Sha'ban, will not die before God sends him a hundred angels: thirty to bring him good tidings that God is to introduce him into Paradise; thirty to shield him from God's chastisement; thirty to deter him from sin, and ten to aid him against his enemies.s' This indicates how widespread the traditions concerning the virtues of the night of the 15th of Sha'ban were in Mecca and Mecca scholars were considered orthodox and were said to be opposed to public observance of this night. The continuity of the observance of the night of the 15th of Sha'ban can be traced from the second half of the first century A.H. It is attested in. the second century in the traditions recorded by 'Abd al-Razzaq, The passage in al-Fakihi's Ta'rtkh Makka gives a description of the celebration in Mecca in the third century. AI-Zandawaysiti records the virtues of this night in the fourth century. Al-Turtiishi's account refers to the practices witnessed in the fifth century, and Ibn al-Hajj's description depicts the observance at the end of the seventh century. A rich polemical literature concerning this night was produced over the centuries, and numerous !af/a'il treatises were compiled. The night of the 15th of Sha'ban is revered even today, and modern compilations still attack the popular observance, branding it as bid'a and quoting, as usuaI, early sources. The continuity of custom and usage during these celebrations can be illustrated by example. At the end of the seventh century A.H. Ibn all;Iajj mentions the sittings of the governor in the courtyard of the mosque on the night of the 15th of Sha'ban, at which he would judge and punish the guilty. In the fourth century aI-Zandawaysiti includes among the Iaudable deeds of the various classes during Sha'ban the sessions of the rulers, who would summon the imprisoned, punish the guilty and free the innocent.w This practice seems to reflect the idea of God's judgment
85 Al-Fakihl, op. cit, fol. 418b; Ibn al-Jauzl, al-Mau dirdt, II, p. 128; al-Naysaburf op. cit., XXV, p. 65; al-Razl, op. cit., XXVII, p. 238. 86 See above note 15.
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in this month or during this night. The custom of visiting cemeteries on this night (Shi'i sources promoted visits to the tomb of Husayn) may be related to the hadith' according to which 'A'isha found the Prophet praying in the cemetery of Baqi' al-Gharqad on this night; it was at this spot that he explained to her the virtues of the night of the 15th of Sha'ban, The observances and celebrations of the night of the 15th of Sha'ban seem to be rooted in Jahiliyya belief and rituaI, as rightly assumed by Wensinck.t? When the month of Ramadan became the month of the obligatory fast, however, the night of the 15th of Sha'ban apparently lost its primacy: laylat al-qadr was fixed by the majority of Muslim scholars within Ramadan (usually as the night of the 27th of Ramadans") and became one of the most venerated nights of the Muslim community. But esteem of the night of the 15th of Sha'ban survived and, lacking the support of official scholars, it became a favoured occasion for devotional practices in pious and ascetic circles, as well as a night of popular celebration (including practices disapproved of by zealous conservative scholars). Moderate orthodox scholars strove to reconcile the traditions of the two nights, granting Iegitimacy to the devotions of laylat al-barii'a but establishing the superiority of laylat al-qadr. Also conciliatory was the idea of a division of functions between the two nights: laylat al-bariia was considered as the night of decrees, laylat al-qadr as the night in which God's biddings (or His mercy) were carried out. All this is, of course, a later development; hence Wensinck's theory of two genuine New Year's nights seems to be untenable. Orthodox Muslim scholars, though disapproving of the public celebrations, agreed to private devotional observances on the night of the 15th of Sha'ban.s? On these conditions laylat al-bard'a could gain their approval and became a recommended night of devotional exertion. The fasting of the Prophet over the two consecutive months of Rajab and Sha'ban may be linked with the tahannuth, which he was wont to
87 See Wensinck, op. cit., p. 6 ("This belief is already recorded by Tabarl; it is probably pre-Islamic"). 88 See Wagtendonk, op. cit., pp. 106, 112, note 5. 89 See thefatwa of Abu 'Amr b. !;>aliib,as recorded by Abu Sharna, op. cit., p. 32, 1.5: ... wa-ammd laylatu l-nisfi min sha'biina fa-lahd fa dilatun wa-i/.!ya'lIhd bi-I-'ibddati mustahabbun, wa-ldkin 'ala l-infirtidi min ghayri jamd'atin; wa-ttikhiidhu l-ndsi laha wa-Iaylata l-raghii'ibi mausiman wa-shi' iiran bid'atun munkaratun.
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SHA'BAN IS MY MONTH
observe in the following month of Ramadan.w The tahannuth is said to have been initiated by the Prophet's grandfather, 'Abd al-Muttalib/" and was observed by some people of Quraysh.Ps This socio-religious observance combined the element of charitable deeds with a practice of veneration toward the haram of Mecca. It was observed on Mount Hira' and is sometimes referred to as i'tikaf or jiwdr in the story of the first revelation of the Prophet. Some reports say that the Prophet sojourned on Mount Hira' in solitude, but others explicitly state that he stayed there in the company of his wife Khadija.P! Some details on the jiwiir of the people of Mecca and its purpose are given by al-Azraqi: the Qurashites would leave Shi'b al-Sufiyy and sojourn on Jabal al-Raha "out of veneration of the haram". This practice was followed in summer.sThe place of the jiwiir of 'A'isha95 and its duration are indicated in a report recorded by al-Fakihi. 'A'isha sojourned for two months at a spot between Mount Hira' and Thabir. People would visit her there and converse with her. In the absence of 'Abdallah b. 'Abd al-Rahman b. Abi Bakr the prayer was headed by her servant, Dhakwan.ss The two
90 See Goitein, op. cit., p. 93 sup.; Wagtendonk, op. cit., pp. 32-35. 91 See BSOAS, 31 (1968), pp. 232-233. 92 See al-Baliidhuri, Ansdb I, p. 105, no. 192: kdnat qurayshun idhii dakhala ramat!anu kharaja man yuridu l-tahannutha minhd ila hird'«. 93 See BSOAS 31 (1968), p. 225, note 15; p. 227, notes 26-27; and see al-Muttawi'I, Man sabara zafira, Ms. Cambridge, Or. 1473(10), fol. 43b: ... /:latta idhd kana l-shahru lladhi ardda lldhu fihi bihi md ardda min kardmatihi wa-rahmatihi I-'ibiida mill al-sanatl llati ba'athahu lldhu tabdraka wa-taald lihii, wa-dhdlika l-shahru ramaddnu, kharaja rasulu lliihi (i) Ua /:lirli'a kamli kana yakhruju Ii-jlwdrihi wa-maahu ahluhu khadijatu ... A significant version is recorded by al-Fiikihi, op. cit., fol. 499b, ult. - 500a, 11.1-2; the Prophet sojourned on Hira', Khadlja used to come to him from Mecca in the evening. The Prophet descended from the mountain and stayed with her in (the place in which later) the mosque of Shi'b Qunfudh twas erected. - K). In the morning they used to depart. (. .. anna I-nabiyya (i) kdna yakiinu fl birli'a bi-l-nahdri fa-idhd (the verb is missing; perhaps: atli, jd'a or another similar verb has to be supplied) l-laylu nazala mill Mra'a fa-atd I-masjida lladhi Ii l-shi'bi lIadhi khalfa ddri abt 'ubaydata yu'rafu bi-l-khalafiyytn wa-ta'tihi khadijatu (r) min makkata fa-yaltaqiytini Ii l-masjidi lladhi Ii l-shi'bi, fa-idhd qaruba 1-labii(l/I ftaraqd, au nahwahu). About the place, Shi'b iii Qunfudh, see al-Azraql, Akhbiir Makka (ed. F. Wtlstenfeld), p. 491 penult. - 492. 94 Al-Azraql, op. cit., p. 482 inf.: '" Ii-anna qurayshan kdnat Ii l-jdhiltyyatl takhruju min shi'bi l-sufiyyl fa-tabitu f'ihi (the suffix hi refers to al-rdha - K) Ii l-sayfi ta' ziman li-I-masjidi l-hardmi, thumma yakhrujiina fa-yajlisilna fa-yastarlhilna Ii I-jabali ... 95 See Wagtendonk, op. cit., p. 35. 96 Al-Fakihl, op. cit., fol. 486b: ... 'alii bni abt mulaykata qtila: inna 'a'ishata (r) jdwarat bayna Mrli'a wa-thabtrin shahrayni, fa-kunnd na'tihli wa-ya'tlhd ndsun min
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reports may help us in the evaluation of the jiwiir of the Prophet (apparently identical with tahannuthi: the Prophet, like the people of Shi'b al-Sufiyy, used to leave his home in summer and sojourn on Mount Hira'. Like them h~ did it "out of veneration of the haram of Mecca"; Iike 'A'isha he sojourned there for some fixed time. None of the reports mentions fasting explicitly. The duration of the Prophet's fast during Rajab and Sha'ban was not fixed; it was sporadic and the Prophet broke fast arbitrarily. The hadiths reporting this manner of the Prophet's fastingv? seem to be trustworthy. The reports of his fasting during the month of Sha'ban recorded in early sources are not questioned anywhere, nor doubted by any authority; they are certainly as reliable as the reports of his fasting during Rajab.98 It may be stressed that there were no rules of fasting, nor any regulations; the Prophet's fast was a voluntary, pious observance, the duration of which he fixed at his own discretion. In Medina, after his hijra, the Prophet was faced with the task of establishing a code of Iaw and ritual. One of the injunctions of this code was to fast. The verses of the Qur'an imposing the fast of Ramadan upon the emerging Muslim community were revealed against the background of the confrontation with the Jewish community.P? the encounter with the hostile Meccan unbelievers and their allies and the victory won on the battlefield of Badr. Even if affected by Jewish, Christian or other influences, these rules formed a genuine independent trend in the nascent body of Iaw for the Muslim community.l00 The injunction of the fast of Ramadan did not, however, abolish voluntary fasting during Rajab or Sha'ban, Some of the controversial traditions concerning the change in the Prophet's fast during Sha'ban after his arrival in Medina may facilitate a better insight into the persistence of this voluntary fast. Some scholars asserted that the Prophet, while in Mecca, fasted only some parts of the month of Sha'ban; after his arrival in Medina, however, he fasted the entire month. Al-Qastallani refutes this report, basing himself on the hadtth of 'A'isha, who stated
qurayshin yatahaddathiina ilayhti, fa-idhti lam yakun thamma 'abdu lldhi bnu 'abdi l-rahmdni bni abt bakrin (r) ~a/la biha ghulamuha dhakwdnu abii 'amrin (r); Ibn Sa'd, op, cit., V, pp. 295-296. 97 See e.g. al-Nasa'I, op, cit., IV, pp. 150-151: ... kdna rasiilu /Iiihi (~) yasiimu batta naqillu Iii yuftiru, wa-yuftiru batta naqiilu Iii yasiimu ... 98 See Goitein, op. cit., pp. 93-94. 99 See ibid., pp. 95-102. 100 See Wagtendonk, op. cit" p. 144 inf.
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SHA'BAN IS MY MONTII
that the Prophet, after his arrival in Medina, never fasted any full month, except Ramadan." 01 This tradition transmitted on the authority of 'A'isha deserves our trust. The phrase in this haduh of 'A'isha "mundhu qadima l-madtnata" gives us a clue in assessing the change at Medina. 'A'isha is indeed a reliable witness of the Prophet's Iife in Medina, and her hadtth with the quoted phrase, limiting it to Medina, is apparently sound. The voluntary fast of Sha'ban was now transfigured into an obligatory fast, that of Ramadan, the month of the Prophet's own devotional exertions, the month of his tahannuth in Mecca. This fast became a distinctive mark of the Muslim community and one of the pillars ofIslam. The importance of the fast during Sha'ban consequently declined, but it never Iost its virtuous position as a recommended voluntary fast, observed over the ages and revered especially by pious and devout Muslims; the night of the 15th of Sha'ban became the culmination of the month's devotions. The observances of Sha'ban were finally approved of and legitimized by moderate orthodox scholars. The high esteem of Sha'ban was clearly expressed in the utterance attributed to the Prophet: "Rajab is the month of God, Sha'ban is my month, Ramadan is the month of my community".
101
Al-Zurqani,
Sharh al-mawdhib, VIIJ, p, 125.
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concessions.pdf On 'Concessions' and Conduct A Study in Early Hadith
Traditions about early ritual practices and customs reported on the authority of the Prophet, of his Companions isahaba) or their Successors (tabi'un) are often divergent and even contradictory. Early compilations of haditb occasionally record these traditions in separate chapters with headings which point out their differences; they also enumerate the scholars who held these divergent views. So, for example, the chapter Man kana yutimmu l-takbir is followed by the chapter Man kana la yutimmu l-takbir ; the chapter Man qala laysa 'ala man nama sajidan wa-qa'idan w u d u' is followed by Man kana y aqisl u i d h a nama ta-t-yatawaddo'. Traditions arranged under headings Man kariha ... followed by Man rakhkhasa [i ... are of a similar type. It is obvious that these diverse traditions reflect differences in the opinions of various circles of Muslim scholars and indicate that in the early period of Islam many ritual prescriptions were not yet firmly established. The rukhas or "concessions," i.e., the changes in ritual prescriptions designed to soften their harshness, were indeed an efficient tool in adapting the prescriptions to the real conditions of life and its changing circumstances. They established practices that were in keeping with the new ideas of Islam. Yet it is evident that the concession, rukhsa, had to acquire authoritative sanction and legitimacy; this could be achieved only through an utterance of the Prophet. As a matter of fact, the following haditb is attributed to the Prophet: "Truly, God desires that His concessions be carried out [just] as He desires His injunctions to be observed" tinna llaha
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yuhibbu an tu'ta rukhasuhu kama yuhibbu an tuta 'azaimuhui: This tradition was interpreted in manifold ways. According to one interpretation it implies a whole view of life; al-Shaybani (died 189/805) states that the believer who restricts himself to the most basic means of subsistence acts according to the prescriptions, whereas pleasant life and delights are for him a concession, a rukhsa? The purchase of the arable kharaj land in Iraq by Muslims was approved by 'Umar b. 'Abd al-'Aziz on the ground of a rukhsa interpretation of a Qur'anic verse; grants of land in the Sawiid, given to Muslims, were also based on rukhsa precedents?
'Abd al-Razzaq, al=Musanna], ed. Habib al-Rabman al-A'zami (Beirut: 11: 291, no. 20569 i=Liimi' Ma'rnar b. Riishid: ... an yu'mala bi-rukhasihi); Ibn Balban, al-Ihsan [i taqrib sahihi bni Hibban, MS. Br. Mus., Add. 27519, fol. 90a; al-Suyiiti, al-Durr al-manthiir [i l-taf sir bi=l=ma'thur (Cairo: 1314), 1: 193; Abu Nu'aym, Hilyat al=awliyh' (Beirut: 1387/1967, reprint), 6: 191 inf., 276, 2: 101 info C, an tuqbala rukhasuhu); al-Miiwardi, al-Amthal wa-l-bikam, MS Leiden, Or. 655, fol. 87b c.. an yu'khadha bi-rukhasihi kama yuhibbti an yu'khadha bi=farii'i dihi), al-Mundhiri, al-Targhib wa-l-tarhib, ed. Muhammad Muhyi l-Din 'Abd al-Hamid (Cairo: 1279/1960), 2: 261, no. 1541 (and see ibid. no. 1539: ._ an tu'ta rukhasuhu kama yakrahu an tu'ta masiyatuhu ; another version: ... kama yuhibbu an tutraka masiyatuhu); al-Muniiwi, Fayd al=qadlr; sharb al- jami' al-saghir (Beirut: 139111972),2: 292, no. 1879, 293, no. 1881(; an tuqbala rukhasuhu kama yuhibbu l+abdu maghfirat rabbihi ; 2: 296, no. 1894: ... Kama yakrahu an tu'ta ma'siyatuhu); al-Daylami, Firdaws al=akhbiir, Chester Beatty 4139, fo1. 53a; aI-Khatib al-Baghdiidi, M uq.ib awham at-jam' wa-l-tafriq (Hyderbad: 1379/1960), 2: 10 c.. an tu'ta mayasiruhu kama yuhibbu an tu'ta 'azdimuhu); cf. al-Kulayni al-Kiifi, ed. Najm al-Din al-Amuli (Tehran: 1388),1: 208-209, no. 4. 2 al-Shaybiini, al-Ikiisab [i l-rizqi l-mustaiab, Talkhis Muhammad b. Sama'a, ed. Mahrnud 'Arniis (Cairo: 1357/1938), p. 81: ... fa-sara l-basilu anna l-iqtisara 'ala adna ma yakfihi 'azimatun, wa-ma zada 'ala dhaiika min at-tana''umi wa-l-nayli min al-ladhdhiui rukhsatun, wa-qala sallii llahu 'alayhi wa-sallam: inna llaha yuhibbu an yu'ta bi-rukhasihi _. 3 Abu 'Ubayd, Kitab al-amwal, ed. Muhammad l:liimid al-Fiqi (Cairo: 1353), pp. 84-85; cf. al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan al-kubra (Hyderabad: 1356), 9: 140-1: "... bab man kariha shiraa ardi l-khara] ._" And see the traditions against buying of khara] land: Ibn Zanjawayh, al-Amwat, MS. Burdur 183, fols.
1392/1972),
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The Prophet is said to have denied believers perrmssion to enter baths, but later granted them a rukhsa to enter them, provided they wore loincloths, ma'iuir: There were in fact two contradictory attitudes in the matter of baths: the one disapproving' and the other
29a-32a (and see e.g. ibid., fol. 3Oa, inf., ''; sami'a l=hasana yaqidu: man khalda ribqata muiihidin fa-jdaiaha [i 'unuqihi [a-qad istaqala hijraiahu wa-walla l-islama zahrahu wa-man aqarra bi-shayin min al-jizyati [a-qad aqarra bi-babin min abwabi l-kufri'). 4 al-Shawkani, Nayl ai-awrar, sharb muntaqa l-akhbar min ahadithi sayyidi i-akhyar (Cairo: 1372/1953), 1: 299; Ibn Abi Shayba, al-Musannaf, ed. 'Abd al-Khaliq Khan al-Atghani (Hyderabad: 1386/1966), 1: 109-110; 'Abd al-Razzaq, 1: 290-296, nos. 11l6-1136; l-Fakihi, Ta'rikh Makka, MS. Leiden a Or. 463, fol. 412a; al-Mundhiri, 1: 118-122,nos. 267-278; al-Sharishi, Sharb maqiimiu al-Hariri, ed. Muhammad 'Abd al-Mun'im Khafaji (Cairo: 1372/1952), 3: 74; aI-Muttaqi I-Hindi, K anz al-tummii! (Hyderabad: 138111962),9: 231-234, nos. 1978-2010;cf. al-Hakim, Marifai 'uiion ai-hadith, ed. Mu'azzam I;Iusayn (Cairo: 1937),p. 98. 5 See e.g. al-Munawi, 2: 54, no. 1311: ... uffin li-l-hammam ..." enjoins husbands " to forbid their wives to enter baths, stresses the filthiness of their water and confines the entrance of men to those wearing the ma'Iizir ; cf. al-Tayalisi, Musnad (Hyderabad: 1321), p. 212, no. 1518:'A'isha reproaches the women from Hirns for entering baths. And see Niir aI-Din al-Haythami, Majmd al-zawdid wa-manbd a/-fawa'id (Beirut: 1967, reprint), 1: 277-278 (the prohibition for women to enter baths; and see ibid., p. 114:the bath is the abode of the Devil); al-Tabari, Dhayl al-mudhayyal (Cairo: 1353/1934), 10: 246; al-Dhahabi, Mizan al-Itidal, ed. 'Ali Muhammad al-Bajawi (Cairo: 1382/1963), 3: 631, no. 7889; al-Daylami, MS. Chester Beatty 3037, fol. 90b (the prohibition to enter baths by women is preceded by a prediction of the Prophet that the Muslims will conquer the lands of the 'ajam and will find there "buildings called baths"; a concession at the end of the haditn is granted to women who are ill, or after confinement). And see al-Kattani, Juz', MS. Chester Beatty 4483, fol. 9b ("; bi'sa l-bayt al-hammam'; the Prophet permitted, however, men to enter the bath wearing the maazir, after being told of the importance of the bath for the cleanness of the body and the treatment of the sick). Cf. Ahmad b. I;Ianbal, al-Tlal wa-marifat ai-rijai, ed. Talat Kocyigit and Ismail Cerrahoglu (Ankara: 1963), I: 266, no. 1716 (the prayer in a bath is disliked), 271, no. 1745 ("ai-arq.u kulluha masjidun illa l-hammam wo-l-maqbara'), And see the story of Ibn 'Umar who was shocked when he saw the naked men in the bath (Ibn Sa'd,
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recommending them," Accordingly scholars are divided in their opinion as to whether the water of the bath can be used for ritual washing, ghus/, or whether, on the contrary, ghusl has to be performed for cleaning oneself from the very water of the bath? The knowledge of rukhas granted by the Prophet is essential for the proper understanding of the faith and its injunctions. The misinterpretation of the verse: "Those who treasure up gold and
Tabaqiu (Beirut: 1377/1957), 4: 153-154);and see the various Shi'i traditions in Yiisuf al-Bahrani's al-Haddiq ai-nadira [i ahkam al-'itra al-tahira, ed. Muhammad Taqiyy al-Ayrawani (Nadjaf: 1378),5: 528-540. 6 See al-Khatib al-Baghdadi, 2: 311, 11.4-5; Ibn al-Sunni, 'A mal ai-yawm wa-Hayla (Hyderabad: 1358),p. 85: "ni'ma l-bayt al-hammam yadkhuluhu l-rajulu l-muslim ..."; al-Daylarni, MS. Chester Beatty 3037, fol. 174b; al-Wassabl al-Habashi, al-Baraka fi [adli l-sdyi wa-l-haraka (Cairo: n.d.), p. 268; Niir al-Din al-Haythami, 1: 279 (a bath was built on the spot approved of by the Prophet). The tradition that the Prophet used to frequent the bath is vehemently refuted by al-Qastallanl, as recorded in a l-Zurqani's Shari) ai-mawiihib al-laduniy ya (Cairo: 1327), 4: 214. Al-Qastallanl, quoting the opinion of Ibn Kathir, states that there were no baths in the Arabian peninsula in the time of the Prophet. Al-Khatib al-Baghdadi, discussing the tradition of Umm al-Darda' about her entering a bath in Medina (Muq.ilJ 1: 359), states that there were no baths in Medina in the period of the Prophet; in that period baths existed only in Syria and Persia (Muq.ii) 1: 362-364). Cf. al-Suyiiti, al-Hiiwi li=l=i atiiwi, ed. Muhammad MulJyi I-Din 'Abd al-I:Iamid (Cairo: 1378/1959), 1: 526-528; Ibn 'Asakir, Ta'rikn (Tahdhib) (Damascus: 1329), 3: 380; Murtada al-Zabidi, ItlJiif al-siida al-muttaqin bi-sharh asrar iIJy1i 'ulum al-din (Cairo: 1311) (reprinted Beirut), 2: 400. On the building of baths in Basra in the early period of Islam and the profits gained from them see al-Baladhuri, Ansiib al-ashra], 1, ed. Muhammad Hamidullah (Cairo: 1959): 502; al-Tha'alibl, Thimar al-quliib, ed. Abii l-Fadl Ibrahim (Cairo: 1384/1965), p. 318,no. 476. 7 See Ibn Abi Shayba, 1: 107-108; 'Abd al-Razzaq, 1: 295-298 (see e.g. the answer of Ibn 'Abbas, "innama ja'ala llahu l-mii'a yutahhiru wa-la yutahharu.' ibid., no. 1142; and see the answer of al-Sha'bi when asked, on leaving the bath, whether one is obliged to perforn the ghusl (to clean oneself) from the water of the bath: "So why did I enter the bath?", ibid., no. 1146); and see the outspoken answer of Ibn 'Abbas when he entered a bath in the state of ihriim: "Mii ya'ba'u lliihu bi-awsakhinii shay'an.' al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan al-kubra, 5: 63 info
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silver, and do not expend them in the way of God -- give them good tidings of a painful chastisement ..." (Qur'an 9:34) by Abu Dharr is explained by the fact that Abu Dharr met the Prophet and heard from him some injunctions of a severe character (yasma'u min rasidi llahi [s] l-amra fihi l-shiddatur; he then left for the desert. The Prophet, in the meantime, alleviated the injunction (yurakhkhisu [ihi) and people adopted the concession. But Abu Dharr, unaware of this, came back and adhered to the first (scil, severe) injunction," In later periods of Islam the practice of rukhas was presented as the attitude of the first generations of Islam. The righteous predecessors (ai-saiat), argues Abu Talib al-Makki, were in the habit of alleviating (yurakhkhisitna) the rules of ritual impurity, but were strict in the matter of earning one's li ving by proper means alone as well as in the moral aspects of behavior like slander, futile talk, excessive indulgence in rhetoric etc., whereas contemporary scholars, Abu Talib continues, are heedless in problems of moral behavior, but are rigid tshaddadii) with regard to ritual impurity," Sufyan al-Thawri speaks about rukhsa in the following terms: "Knowledge in our opinion is merely [the knowledge of] a rukhsa [reported on the authority] of a reliable scholar; the rigid, rigoristic practice can be observed by everyone?" The pious 'Ata' al-Sulaymi asked for the traditions of rukhas ; they might relieve his grief, he said." The rukhas-traditions were of great importance for the strengthening of belief in God's mercy for the believers thusnu l-zanni bi-llah).12 Sulayman b. Tarkhan asked his son to tell him rukhas-traditions in order to come to the Presence of God (literally: to meet God) with hope for God's mercy,"
8 al-Suyiiti, al-Durr al-manihiir, 3: 243. 9 Abii Tiilib al-Makki, QUt al-quliib (Cairo: 1351/1932),2: 46. 10 Ibn 'Abd aI-Barr, Jami' b ayii» ai-t ilm wa-f adlihi (a l+Mad ina al-munawwara: n.d., reprint), 2: 36: innama l-'ilmu 'indana l-rukhsatu min thiqatin ; [a-amma l-tashdidu [a-yuhsinuhu kullu ahadin. 11 Abii Nu'aym, 6: 217. 12 See Ibn Abi l-Dunya, Majmu'at al-rasiiil (Cairo: 1354/1935), pp. 39-72: kitabu husni l-zanni bi-llah. 13 Ibid., p. 45, no. 29; Abii Nu'ayrn, 3: 31.
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In a wider sense rukhas represent in the opinion of Muslim scholars the characteristic way of Islam as opposed to Judaism and Christianity. The phrase "... and he will relieve them of their burden and the fetters that they used to wear" (Qur'an 7:157) is interpreted as referring to the Prophet, who removed the burden of excessively harsh practices of worship'? and of ritual purity," The rigid and excessive practices of worship refer to Jews and Christians alike. The Prophet forbade his believers to follow the harsh and strict way of people who brought upon themselves destruction. The remnants of these people can be found in the cells of monks and in monasteries; this, of course, refers to Christians." These very comments are coupled with the haditb about the rukhas mentioned earlier: inna llaha yuhibbu ... It is thus not surprising to find this rukhas tradition together with an additional phrase: ... ia-qbalic rukhasa llahi wa-Ia takiinic ka-bani israila hina shaddadii 'ala anfusihim ta-shaddada llahu 'alayhiml' The ruk hs a tradition is indeed recorded in chapters condemning hardship in the exertion of worship and ritual practices," stressing the benevolence of God for His creatures even if they commit grave sins, reproving cruelty even towards a cat,"
14 ... al-t athqitu lladhi kana [i dinihim ... al-tashdl du fi l-'ibadati ... al-shadii'idu llati kiinat 'alayhim ... tashdidun shuddida 'ala l-qawmi, [a-iao Muhammadun (s) bi-l-taiawuzi 'anhum. 15 al-Suyiiti, al-Durr al-manthlir, 3: 135; al-Tabari, Taf sir, ed. Mahmiid and Ahmad Shakir (Cairo: 1958), 13: 167-168; al-Qurtubi, Tat sir. (Cairo: 1387/1967), 7: 300; Hashim b. Sulayman al-Bahrani al-Tawbali al-Katakani, al-Burhan [i tafsiri l-qur'an (Qumm: 1393),2: 40, no. 3. 16 al-Suyiitl, al-Durr ol-manthia, 1: 193. 17 al-'Amili, al-Kashkid, ed. Tahir Ahmad al-Zawi (Cairo: 1380/1960), 1: 221. 18 See Ibn Balban, fol. 90a-b, the headings: ... dhikru t-ikhbari 'amma yustahabbu li=lrmari min qubidi ma rukhkhisa lahu bi-tarki l-tahammuli 'ala l-naf si ma la tuiiqu min aHa'ati _ ; ai-ikhbaru bi-anna 'ala l-mar'i qubida rukhsati llahi lahu fi ta'atihi diina l-tahammuli 'ala l-najsi ma yashuqqu 'alayha hamluhu ... ; ... mii yustahabbu li-l-mar'i l-tarafiuqu bi-l-taiui wa-al-amru bi-l-qaSdi fi Ha'ati diina an yuhmala 'ala l-naisi ma la tutiqu. 19 See 'Abd al-Razzaq, 11, no. 20549. The authenticity of the story of the woman who was put in Hell because she caused the death of a cat, was
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and recommending leniency, moderation and mildness towards the believers. Rukh sa is rukhsatu llah; God's concession for His community; it imposes on the believers kindness and moderation towards each other. Rukhsa is in this context associated with riiq, yusr, samaha and qasd?" In a different context a concession, rukhsa, is meant to ease the burden of the decreed prescription (al-hukm) for an excusable reason ilir'udhrin hasala); the acceptance of rukhsa is almost obligatory in such a case (yakiidu yulhaqu bi-l-wujub); the believer must act according to the rukh sa, subduing his pride and haughtiness." Breaking the fast of sawm al-dahr is such a rukhsa ; continuing the fast is stubborness." Commenting on the haditb "The best of my people are those who act according to the rukhas,' al-Munawi stresses that the rukhas apply to specific times only; otherwise one should follow the incumbent prescription." The haditb "He who does not accept the concession of God will bear a sin as heavy as the mountains of 'Arafat" 24 was quoted in connection with a concession according to which it is recommended
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22 23 14
questioned by 'A'lsha, She asserted that the woman was an unbeliever, a kalira. The believer is more respected by God iakramu 'inda [[jihi) than that He would chastise him because of a cat, she argued. She rebuked Abii Hurayra, the transmitter of the hadlth, and bade him to transmit the tradition more accurately. See al-Zarkashi, al+l jaba li-Iriidi rna st adrakat-hu 'A'ishatu 'ala I-sahaba (Cairo: n.d.), p. 61; Niir al-Din al-Haythami, 1: 116; and see Ibn 'Abd al-Hakam, Futuh misr, ed. C. Torrey (Leiden; 1920), p. 292; Hanniid b. al-Sariyy, Kitab al-suhd, MS. Princeton, Garret 1419,fo!. lOla, inf. -lOlb. See 'Abd al-Razziiq, 11: 282-288, nos. 20546; 20559 (Bab al-rukhas wa-l-shadiiid) and 11:290-292, nos. 20566-20574 (Bab al-rukhas [i l-'amal wa-l-qasd). al-Muniiwi, 2: 296-297; and see ibid., pp. 292-293 (see the commentary: the 'azima, injunction, order, has an equal standing with the rukhsa. According to the circumstances the ordained wu4u' is as obligatory as the rukhsa 0 f tayammum). And see ibid., p. 293: the concessions have to be carried out according to the circumstances for which they were given. Abii Tiilib al-Makki, 1: 11l. al-Muniiwi, 2: 51, no. 1300;al-Daylami, MS. Chester Beatty 4139, fo!. 94b. Ibn 'Abd al-Hakam, p. 292; al-Muniiwi, 6: 225, no. 9031; al-Daylami, MS.
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to break the fast when on a journey. The core of the discussion was whether the breaking of the fast during a journey is obligatory or merely permitted. Some scholars considered it as a rukhsai? The phrase in Qur'an 2:187 "... and seek what God had prescribed for you" (fa-i-i.zna bashiriihunna wa-btaghii ma kataba llahu lakum) indicates, according to one interpretation, God's concession concerning the nights of Ramadan." The phrase in Qur'an 2:158 .,. io-ta junaha 'alayhi an yattawwaja bihima ... ("... it is no fault in him to circumambulate them ..."), referring to the circumambulation of al-Safa and Marwa, gave rise to the discussion whether it indicated an order or a concession." The bewailing of the dead by hired women, the niyaha, is forbidden; but the Prophet granted the afflicted relatives the rukhsa to mourn the dead and to weep over a dead person's grave,"
Chester Beatty 3037, fol. 158b. 25 al-Suyiiti, al-Durr al-manthiir, 1: 193; Ibn 'Abd al-Hakam, p. 265; Ahmad b. Hanbal, Musnad, ed. Shakir (Cairo: l368/1949), 8: 238, no. 5392; al-Dhahabi, 2: 483; Ibn Kathir, Taf sir (Beirut: l385/1966), 1: 382; cf. al-Tabari, Tafsir 3: 461-469 (see p. 460: al-iftaru [i l-maradi 'azmatun min alliihi wajibatun wa-laysa bi-tarkhis ; and see p. 464: al-iitaru fi l-saf ari rukhsatun min allahi tdala dhikruhu, rakhkhasaha li=ibadihi wa-l-fardu l-sawmu ...); Ibn Balban, fol. 9Ob, sup; al-Sha'rani, Lawaqin al-anwar (Cairo: 138111961), p. p 716-717; al-Mundhiri, 2: 258-262; Ibn Qutayba, Ta'wil mukht ali] al-badith (Cairo: 1326), pp. 307-308; al-Zurqani, Sharb al-muwatta (Cairo: 1381/1961), 2: 415-420. 26 al-Tabari, Tafsir, 3: 500 ult., 508; Ibn Kathir, Tafsir, 1: 390, line 5 from bottom; al-Suyiitl, al-Durr al-manthiir, 1: 199, line l. 27 See al-Tabarl, Tafsir, 3: 230-246; al-Qurtubi, 2: 182 (and see ibid., about the reading: fa-lii junaha 'alayhi an la yattawwaf ar; al-Majlisi, Bihar al-anwar (Tehran: 1388),99: 235, 237-8, 239 line 2; al-Zarkashi, al-/ jaba, pp. 78-9; al-Fakihi, fols. 374b-380a; al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan al-kubrii, 5: 96-8; Amin Mahmiid Khattjib, Fatb al-malik at-mabiid, takmilat al-manhal al-'adhb al-mawriid, sharh. sunan abi dawitd (Cairo: 1394/1974), 1: 243-50, 2: 15-16. 28 al-l;Iakim, al=Mustadrak (Hyderabad: 1342), 1: 203; aI-Khatib al-Baghdadi, Mit(j.ih, 2: 12 sup.; al-Zajjjiji, Amali, ed. 'Abd aI-Salam Hariin (Cairo: 1382), p. 181 L wa-kadhalika al-naqu: raf'u l-sawti bi-l-bukiii ; wa-hadha kana manhiyyan 'anhu [i awwali l-islami+ani l-bukita 'ala l-mayyit, thumma rukhkhisa [ihi ... ; al-Raghib al-Isfahanl, MuhMarat al-udabd (Beirut: 1961),
9
In some cases the choice between the prescription and the rukhsa has been left to the believer: such is the case of the ablution of the junub. Three traditions about how the Prophet practised wudu' ablution, when in the state of janaba contain contradictory details: two of them state that he, being a junub, performed the wudu' before he went to sleep, while the third one says that he went to sleep without performing wudu'. Ibn Qutayba, trying to bridge between the contradictory traditions, states that in a state of janaba washing before one goes to sleep is the preferred practice (afejal); by not washing the Prophet pointed to the rukhsa?" The believer may choose one of the two practices. In some cases the rukhsa completely reverses a former prohibition. The Prophet forbade the visiting of graves, but later changed his decision and granted a rukhsa to visit them: naha rasidu llahi [S] 'an ziyaraii l-qubkri thumma rakhkhasa fihlz bddu/" Cupping during a fast was forbidden by the Prophet; both the cupper and the person whose blood was drawn were considered to have broken their fast. The Prophet, however, changed his decision and granted a rukhsa ; cupping did not stop the fast," Lengthy chapters contain discussions of the problem as to whether kissing one's wife while fasting is permitted. Some scholars considered kissing or touching the body of the wife as breaking the fast, others considered it permissible. Both parties quote traditions in support of their arguments. The wives of the Prophet, who
4: 506; Ibn Abi Shayba, 3: 389-395; al-Tabarani, al-Mujam al-saghir, ed. 'Abd al-Rahrnan Muhammad 'Uthman (al-Madina al-munawwara: 1388/1968), 2: 82 (noteworthy is the report of Ibn Abi Shayba 3: 391 about the faqih Abu I-Bakhtari: ... kana rajulan [aqihan wa-kana yasmau l-nawh); Mahrniid Muhammad Khattab al-Subki, al-Manhal alradhb al-mawriid, 8: 281-4; al-Zarkashi, al-/ jaba, pp. 34, 50-1. 29 Ibn Qutayba, pp. 305-6. 30 a l+Hji z i m I, at-F't ibiir f i b a yiini l=niisikh' wa-l=mansickk min al-akhbar (Hyderabad: 1359),pp. 130-1, 228; al-Fakihi, fol. 478b, 479 penult. 31 Ibn Daqiq al-'Id, al-Ilmam bi-ahadithi l-ahkam, ed. Muhammad Sa'Id al-Mawlawi (Damascus: 1383/1963), p. 244, no. 592; al-Zurqani, Shorb al-muwatta, 2: 428-30; al-Hazimi, pp. 137-42.
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testified as to their experience, were not unanimous about the problem. 'A'isha's evidence was in favor of kissing. The statement that old and weak people may kiss their wives, while men may not, is an obvious attempt at harmonization." A similar problem was whether kissing one's wife imposes wudu, Scholars were divided in their opinions. 'A'isha testified that the Prophet used to kiss his wives and set out to pray without performing ablution. Many scholars stated that kissing or touching one's wife does not require wudu', but others argued that it does. Some scholars found a compromise: wucj.u' is required if the kiss is accompanied by a feeling of lust," The rukhas, apparently, were exploited by scholars attached to rulers and governors. As usual precedents of wicked court-scholars in the period of banii isra'il were quoted: they frequented the courts of kings, granted them the required rukhas and, of course, got rewards for their deeds. They were happy to receive the rewards and to have the kings accept their
32 al-Tahawl,
Sharb maani l-iuhar, ed. Muhammad Zuhri l-Najjir (Cairo: 2: 88-96; Ibn Abi Shayba, 3: 59-64; al-Bayhaqi, Mc'rif at al-sunan wa-l-iuhar, ed. Ahmad Saqr (Cairo: 1969), 1: 21 sup.; Ibn Qutayba, pp. 308-9; al-Dhahabi 2: 398 sup.; Abu Nu'aym, 7: 138;al-Zarkashi, al-[ jaba, p. 54; al-Zurqanl, Sharh al-muwatta, 2: 410-15; 'Abd al-Razzaq, 4: 182-94, nos. 8406-8456. See e.g. nos. 8412, 8418; kissing during the fast was considered as rukhsa ; against the rigid prohibition to look at a woman (see e.g. nos. 8452-8453) there are traditions permitting much more than kissing (see e.g. no. 8444 and the extremely permissive tradition no. 8439); and see Abu Nu'ayrn, 9: 309 (kuliu shay'in laka min ahlika haliilun [i l-siyami ilia ma bayna l-rijlayn); and see this tradition al-Daylami, MS. Chester Beatty 3037, fol. 120b, 1.1;al-Muttaqi I-Hindi, 8: 384-5, nos. 2787-2793; Ibn Daqiq aI-'id, pp. 243-4, nos. 590-1; al-Kattiini, MS. Chester Beatty 4483, fol. 3a; al-Shafi'I, al-Umm (Cairo: 1321 reprint), 2: 84 sup.; Mahmiid Muhammad al-Subki, al-Man hal al-tadhb al-mawrisd, sharb sunan abi dawud (Cairo: 1390), 10: 109-13, 115-16;Ibn Abi l:liitim, 'Ilal al-I;!adith (Cairo: 1343 reprint), 1: 47, no. 108. 33 Ibn Abi Shayba, 1: 44 (man qala: laysa fi l-qubla wu4u'), 45 (man qala: fiha l-wudli'); 'Abd al-Razziiq, 1: 132-6, nos. 496-515; al-Hakirn, al+Must adrak, 1: 135; al-Shawkani, Nayl, 1: 230-3; al-Zurqani, Sharh ai-muwauo', 1: 129-30; Ibn Abi l:liitim, 1: 48, nos. 109-110,63 no. 166.
1388/1968),
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concessions. The verse in Qur'an 3:189 "Reckon not that those who rejoice in what they have brought, and love to be praised for what they have not done -- do not reckon them secure from chastisement ..." refers, according to one tradition, to these scholars," Orthodox, pious scholars fiercely criticized the Umayyad court-jurists and muhaddithiin= The [uqaha' seem to have been liberal in granting rukhas, as can be gauged from a remark of the pious Sulayman b. Tarkhan (who himself very much appreciated the granted rukhas, see above note 13) that anyone who would adopt every rukhsa of the [uqaha would turn out a libertine." In order to assess the actions of rulers it became quite important to find out to what extent they made use of rukhas. 'Umar is said to have asked Muhajirs and Ansaris in his council what their opinion would be if he applied rukhas in some problems. Those attending remained silent for a time and then Bishr b. Sa'id said: "We would make you straight as we make straight an arrow." 'Umar then said with approval: "You are as you are" (i,e, you are the proper menl.'? When al-Mansur bade Malik b. Anas to compile the Muwatta' he advised him to stick to the tenets agreed upon the Muslim community and to beware of the rigoristic opinions of Ibn 'Umar, the rukhas of Ibn 'Abbas and shawadhdh (readings of the Qur'an) of Ibn Mas'iid.38
34 al-Suyiiti, al-Durr ai-manthia, 2: 109 inf. 35 Ibn 'Asakir, 6: 218: ... [a-ataw l-umara'a [a-haddathiihum [a-rakhkhasii lahum, wa-atawhum [a-qabilii minhum ...; al-Qadi 'Iyiid, Tartib al-madarik, ed. Ahmad Bakir Mahmiid (Beirut: 1387/1967), 1-2, 616 (Sahniin): ... wa-baiaghani annahum yuhaddithunahum min al-rukhas ma yuhibbiina, mimma laysa 'alayhi l-'amalu ...; al-Dhahabi, 1: 14 inf.: '" ila kam tuhaddithu l-nasa bi-l-rukhasil ... and see al-Suyiiti, al-Durr ol-mamhia, 3, 139. ; 36 Abii Nu'aym, 3:32; al-Raghib al-Isfahani, 1: 133:... man akhadha bi-rukhsati kulli [aqihin kharaja minhu fasiq. And See Ahmad b. Hanbal, 'Ilal, 1: 238, no. 1499: Malik, asked about the rukhas of singing granted by some people of Medina, said: "In our place the libertines behave in this way." 37 Mus'ab b. 'Abdallah, Hadith, MS. Chester Beatty 3849/4 (majmu'a), fol. 44b, inf.-45a (the text: antum idhan antum); al-Muttaqi al-Hindi, 5: 405 inf., no. 2414 (the text: antum idhan antum idhan). 38 'Abd al-Malik b. Habib, Tarikh, MS. Bodley. Marsh. 288, p. 167: ... wa-qala
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Many a rukhsa indeed served to regulate relations between people, establish certain privileges for the weak and disabled, to alleviate some rigorous practices and finally, in some cases, to turn Jahili practices into Muslim ones by providing them with a new theoretical basis. Al-Hakim al-Naysabiiri" says that the Prophet's command to Zayd b. Thabit to learn the writing of the Jews ikitaba; al-yahiui) in order to be able to answer their letters, serves as the only rukhsa permitting the study of the writings of the People of the Book. Weak and disabled people were given special instructions on how more easily to perform certain practices during the pilgrimage.'? The Prophet enjoined that the ritual ablution (wutju') should start with the right hand; but a rukhsa was granted to start from the left." The cutting of trees and plants was forbidden in the haram of Mecca, but the Prophet allowed as a rukhsa the idhkhir rush ischoenanium) to be cut since it was used in graves and for purification." A special rukhsa was given by the Prophet to take freely the meat of animals sacrificed by him; the nuhba (plunder) of sugar and nuts at weddings was also permitted by the Prophet," A rukhsa was issued by the Prophet allowing use of gold and silver for the embellishment of swords, for the repair and fastening of damaged cups and vessels, for a treatment in
39 40 41
42
43
abi: ja'farin al-mansiiru li-maliki bni anasin hina amarahu bi-wad'i muwauaihi: ya abii 'abdi lliihi ttaqi shaddida bni 'umara wa-rukhasa bni 'abbasin wa-shawadhdha bni mas'iidin wa+alayka bi-l-amri l-mujtamdi 'alayhi. al-Hakim, al-Mustadrak, 1: 75. al-Tahawi, Sharb mdani, 2: 215-218. al-Bayhaqi, ai-Sunan al-kubra, 1: 86-87. al-Baliidhuri, Futul; al-buldiin, ed. 'Abdallah and 'Umar al-Tabba' (Beirut: 1377/1958), p. 58, 1.3. Abu 'Ubayd, Gharibu l-hadltl: (Hyderabad: 1384/1965), 2: 54; al-Tai)iiwi, Sharb mdani, 3: 49-50; al-Zurqani, Sharb al-mawahib ; 4: 325 inf. -326; al-Fasawi, al-Mdrifa wa-l-tarikh; MS. Esad Ef. 2391, fol. 32a, sup. ('an ibni mas'iidin annahu kariha nihaba l-sukkar).
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dentistry and for the restitution of a cut nose." The Prophet uttered a r uk h s a about the nabi dh of jars;45 the use of jars for nabidh (steeping of dates) was forbidden before that. The muttering of healing incantations, the ruqya, a current practice in the Jahiliyya period, was forbidden by the Prophet. Later he fixed the formulae of these healing incantations for various kinds of illnesses, bites from snakes and scorpions, and the evil eye, giving them an Islamic character." This was, of course, a rukhsa of the Prophet. It is also a rukhsa to denounce Islam in case of danger to one's life. Two Muslims were captured by a troop of Musaylima and were ordered to attest the prophethood of Musaylima. One of them refused and was killed; the other complied and saved his life. When he came to the Prophet, the Prophet said that he had chosen the way of the rukhsa:" The discussion of a rukhsa could, in certain circumstances, turn into a bitter dispute. 'Uthman disapproved of the tamattu' pilgrimage." 'Ali, who was at the council of 'Uthman, opposed this opinion fiercely, arguing that tamattu' was a sunna of the Prophet and a rukhsa granted by God to his servants. 'uthmdn
44 al-Tahawl, Mushkil al-iuhiir (Hyderabad: 1333), 2: 166-179; Niir al-Din al-Haythami, 5: 147-151;al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan al-kubra, 1: 28-30. 45 al-Hakim, Ma'rifat 'uliim, p. 196 sup.; al-Hazimi, pp. 228-230. 46 Ibn Wahb, Jami, ed. 1. David-Weill (Cairo: 1939), pp. 103-106; al-Tahawl, Sharb mdiini, 4: 326-329; Niir aI-Din al-Haythami, 5: 109-114;al-Zurqani, Shorb ai-muwatta', 6: 348-350; idem, Sharb al-mawahib, 7: 68-82; al-Wa$$iibi, al-Baraka; pp. 268-270; Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya, al-Tibb al-nabawi, ed. 'Abd aI-Ghani 'Abd al-Khaliq, 'Adil al-Azharl, Mahrniid Faraj al-'Uqda (Cairo: 1377/1957), pp. 127, 131 inf.-147; idem, Zad al-ma'Iid (Beirut: n.d.), 3: 116-125; al-Damiri, Hayiu. al-I;ayawan (Cairo: 1383/1963), 2: 139-140;al-Tha'alibi, Thimar oi-quliib, pp. 126, no. 672, 431, no. 690. 47 al-Suyiiti, al-Durr al-manihiir, 4: 133. 48 On the tamauu pilgrimage see e.g. Ibn Hazm, Haj]at al-wada', ed. Mamdiib Baqqi (Beirut: 1966), pp. 49, 89, 90, 102; Niir aI-Din al-Haythami, 3: 236; al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan al-kubra, 5: 15-26. .
14 excused himself saying that he had merely expressed his personal opinion which anybody could accept or reject. A man from Syria who attended the council and disliked 'Ali's argument said that he would be ready to kill 'Ali, if ordered to do so by the Caliph, 'Uthman, He was silenced by Habib b. Maslama'" who explained to him that the Companions of the Prophet knew better the matter in which they differed." This remark of Habib b. Maslama is a projection of later discussions and represents the attitude of orthodox circles which recommend refraining from passing judgement on the contradictory arguments of the sahaba. However the passage also reflects the contrasting ways in which the pilgrimage was performed. It is noteworthy that Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya wrote lengthy passages in which he examined in a thorough manner the contradictory opinions of the scholars about the tamattu' pilgrimage," Close to the concept of rukhsa was the idea of naskh. abrogation, total change, referring to hadith. Such a case of naskh is the practice of wudii' after the consumption of food prepared on fire. The Prophet is said to have uttered a hadith: tawadda'ii mimma massat al=nar. A great number of traditions assert that the Prophet later used to eat cooked food and immediately afterwards prayed without performing the wudii, The traditions concerning this subject are found in some of the compendia arranged in two separate chapters, recording the opinions and deeds of the righteous predecessors who respectively practised wudu' or objected to it.52
49 See on him al-Fasi, al-T qd al-thamin [i tarikhi l-baladi l-am in, ed. Fu'ad Sayyid (Cairo: 1384/1965), 4: 49-52; Nasr b. Muzahim, Waq'at Siffin, ed. 'Abd al-Salam Harlin (Cairo: 1382), index; Ibn Hajar, al-Lsiiba, ed. 'Ali Muhammad al-Bajiwi (Cairo: 1392/1972), 2: 24-26, no. 1602. 50 Ibn 'Abd aI-Barr, Jiimi' bayan, 2: 30; cf. al-Zurqani, Sharb al-muwaua; 3: 52 (and see pp. 48-51); ai-Muttaqi l-Hindi, 5: 83, no. 678, 88, no. 704. 51 Zad ol-maad. 1: 188-191,203-18. 52 'Abd al-Razzaq 1: 163-171(man qala ia yutawaddau mimma massat al-nar), pp. 172-174 (ma ja'a fimi: massat al-nar min al-shidda); Ibn Abi Shayba, 1: 46-52 (man kana ia yatawadddu mimma massat ai-nar ; man kana yara lrwudiia mimma ghayyarat al-nar); al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan al-kubra, 1: 153-158; al-Hazimi, pp. 46-52; Nlir ai-Din al-Haythami, 1: 248-249 (ai-wu4u'
15
The arguments brought forth by the partisans of both groups and toe traditions reported by them may elucidate some aspects of the problem under discussion. According to a tradition, reported by al-Hasan b. 'Ali, the Prophet was invited by Fatima and was served the shoulder of a ewe. He ate and immediately afterwards started to pray. Fatima asked him why he had not performed the wudii' and the Prophet answered, obviously surprised, "[To wash] after what, 0 my daughter?" She said, "[To wash] after a meal touched by fire." Then he said, "The purest food is that touched by fire."53 A similar tradition is recorded on the authority of 'A'isha, When she asked the Prophet why he did not perform the wudu' after eating meat and bread he answered, "Shall I perform the wudis' after the two best things: bread and meat?"54 There is a tradition on the authority of Umm Habiba, the wife of the Prophet, who had ordered the performance of wudii' after having eaten gruel of parched barley tsawiq) on the grounds of the hadith: Tawaddaii mimma massat al-nari? but traditions recorded on the authority of Safiyya, Umm Salama and the Companions of the Prophet affirm that the Prophet prayed after eating cooked food without performing the wu4it'.56 The scholars who deny the obligation of wudis' after the consumption of meals state that the principle established by the Prophet was that wudii' is obligatory
53 54 55 56
mimma massat al-nar), pp. 251-254 (tarku I-wut/u' mimma massat al-nar); al-Tahawi, Sharb maani, 1: 62-70; Ahmad b. Hanbal, al+Llal, 1: 305, nos. 1984-1985, 317, no. 2062, 366, no. 2424; al-Shawkani, N ayl, 1: 245-247, al-Fasawi, fo1. 229a; Abu Yiisuf, Kiiab al-iuhar, ed. Abu I-Wafii (Cairo: 1355), pp. 9-11, nos. 41-50; al-Hakim, Ma'rifat 'uliim, pp. 30, 217; al-Bayhaqi, Mo'rif at al=sunan, 1: 401; Ibn Sa'd, 7: 158; al-Bukhiiri, at-Ta'ri kb al-kabir (reprint), I, 2 no. 1543, III, 2 nos. 2361, 2805; Abu Nu'ayrn, 5: 363; Ibn 'Asakir, 6: 125, 174, 321;al-Khatib al-Baghdadi, Tarikh Baghdad (Cairo: 135111931), 3: 100; Ibn l;Iajar, al-Isaba, 3: 263, no. 3701, 8: 248, no. 12125;Ibn 1 l;Iibbiin, Kitab al-majriihin; ed. 'Aziz aI-Qiidiri (Hyderabad: 1390/1970), 2: 173. Nur aI-Din al-Haythami, 1: 252 inf.-253. al-Dhahabi, 3: 243, no. 6270. Ibn Abi l-Jawsa', Hadith; al-Zahiriyya, Majmii'a 60, fo1. 64b. al-Tabiiwi, Shark mdiini, 1: 65.
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after what comes out (of the body) not after food taken in.57 Ibn 'Abbas, who authoritatively stated that there is no injunction of wuqil after food prepared on fire, argued that fire is a blessing; fire does not make anything either forbidden or permitted." On the authority of Mu'adh b. Jabal, a Companion of the Prophet and a very indulgent person in matters of ablutions, who stated that no ablution is needed in case of vomiting, bleeding of the nose or when touching the genitalia, the following philological explanation is given: people had indeed heard from the Prophet the utterance: tawaddaii mimma massat ai-niir, but they did not understand the Prophet's meaning. In the time of the Prophet people called the washing of hands and mouth wudk' ; the Prophet's words simply imply the washing of hands and mouth for cleanliness (ii-i-tan?if); this washing is by no means obligatory (wiijib) in the sense of ritual ablution." There are in fact traditions stating that the Prophet ate meat, then rinsed his mouth, washed his hands and started to pray." Another tradition links the abolition of the Prophet's injunction of this wudu' with the person of Anas b. Malik, the servant of the Prophet, and puts the blame for the persistence of wudii' after the consumption of cooked food on authorities outside Medina. Anas b. Malik returned from al-Iraq and sat down to have his meal with two men of Medina. After the meal he came forth to perform the wudii'. His companions blamed him, asking: "Are you
57 Niir al-Din al-Haythami, 1: 252; al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan ai-kubra, 1: 157 inf.; 'Abd al-Razzaq, 1: 170-171,nos. 658, 663; al-Tabawi, Sharb maiini, 1: 69. S8 'Abd al-Razzjiq, 1: 168-169, nos. 653, 655-656; al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan al-kubrii, 1: 158, lines 4-5; al-Tahawi, Sharb mdimi, 1: 70 sup. 59 al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan al-kubra; 1: 141; Niir ai-Din al-Haytharni, 1: 252 ult.-253, line 1; al-Sharif al-Murtada, Amali, ed. Muhammad Abii l-Fadl Ibrahim (Cairo: 1373/1954), 1: 395-3%. 60 al-Tahawi, Sharb maiini, 1: 66, 68; al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan al-kubra, 1: 157; Niir al-Din al-Haythami, 1: 252, lines 12-15, 254, line 8 and line 18; Muhammad b. Sinan al-Qazzaz, Hadith, al-Zahiriyya, Majmii'a 18, fol. 2a; Muhammad b. Ahmad al-Qattan, al-Fawdid, al-Zahiriyya, Majrnii'a 18, fol. 24a info
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following the Iraqi way?,,61This story implies that in the practice of Medina no wudii' was observed after eating cooked meals. The emphasis that Anas's practice was Iraqi is noteworthy. It can hardly be conceived that the Iraqis stuck to the earlier practice of the Prophet which was later abrogated by him. It is more plausible to assume that Anas adopted an Iraqi usage observed there since the Sasanian period. The severe reproach which Anas faced seems to indicate that it was a foreign custom, considered as a reprehensible innovation by the Muslim communityf? The lenient character of the abrogation of wu(jil after eating food prepared on fire is exposed in a tradition reporting that the Prophet ate roast meat, performed the wu(ju' and prayed; later he turned to eat the meat that was left over, consumed it and set to pray the afternoon prayer without performing wu(ju' at all.63 It is evident that his later action (akhiru amrayhi) is the one to be adopted by the community, as it constitutes an abrogation, naskh, of the former tradition, although some scholars consider it as rukhsa. The problem of wudii' mimma massat al-nar was left in fact to the inventiveness of the [uqaha' of later centuries; it becomes still more complicated by an additional hadith according to which the Prophet enjoined wu(ju' after the consumption of the meat of camels, but did not regard wudii as necessary after eating the meat of small cattle (ghanam).64 The two chapters in the Musannai of Ibn Abi Shayba about wuQ.u' after consuming meat of
61 al-Tahawi, Sharf) maani, 1: 69; al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan al-kubrii, 1: 158 (Anas regrets his mistake and wishes he had not done it: laytani lam af'al); 'Abd al-Razzaq, 1: 170, no. 659; al-Zurqiini, Sharf) al-muwaud, 1: 88 inf.-89. 62 See 'Abd al-Razzaq, 1: 170, no. 659: ... ma hiidhihi l-'iraqiyyatu llatl ahdathtaha ._? 63 al-Shawkiini, Nayl, 1: 247; al-Hakim, Marif at 'uliim, p. 85; al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan al-kubrii, 1: 156; al-Tahawi, Sharf) mo'ani, 1: 67; al-Bayhaqi, Marifai al-sunan, 1: 395, 401, lines 1-2; Ibn 'Asakir, 6: 321. 64 Ibn Abi Shayba, 1: 46-7; al-Tahawi, Sharf) maani, 1: 70-1; al-Shawkiini, Nayl, 1: 237-9; al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan al-kubra, 1: 158-9; idem, Ma'rifat al-sunan, 1: 402-6; Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya, I'lam al-muwaqqiin 'an rabbi l-'alamin, ed. Tiihii 'Abd al-Ra'iif Sa'd (Cairo: 1973), 2: 15-16, 106; Niir aI-Din al-Haythami, 1: 250.
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camels, contradictory as they are, bear additional evidence to the diversity of practice and usage, and to the divergencies in opinions held by the scholars of hadith. 'No less divergent are the views of the scholars about the wuq.u: before the consumption of food, 65 the confinement of wudii', as an obligatory act, before prayer only, the question whether ablution before every prayer was obligatory for the Prophet only,66 and whether the wuq.u' may be replaced as a concession by cleaning the mouth with a toothpicks? The great number of diverse traditions, merely hinted at above, clearly indicate that the formation of a normative code of ritual and usage began relatively late. A survey of some traditions about the t aw at, the circumambulation of the Ka'ba, and certain practices of the haji may shed some light on the peculiar observances and customs followed in the early period and may explain how they were later regulated, transformed or established. The tawaf was equated by the Prophet with prayer isaliu). In an utterance attributed to him the Prophet said, ''The tawai is indeed like a prayer; when you circumambulate diminish your talk."" In another version of this haditb the Prophet, making
65 See al-Zurqani, Shorb al-mawahib, 4: 352 barakat al-tdiim al-wuq,u' qablahu ; and see the interpretation). 66 See al-Zurqani, Sharb al-mawahib, 7: 247, lines 24-30 [aaltuhu ya 'umaru-rydni li-bayani I-jawazi Ii-I-nasi wa-khawfa an yu'taqada wujiibu mii kana yaf'alu min al-wudiii li-kulli saiiuin ; wa=qila innaha nasikhun li-wujiibi dhiilika, wa-taaqqaba bi-qawli anasin: kana khassan bihi diina ummatihi wa-annahu kana ya(aluhu li-I-faq,ila _). 67 Ibid., 7: 248, line 1 seq. Concerning the concept of Sufi rukhas cf. M. Milson, A Sufi Rule for Novices, Kitab adab al-muridin (Harvard: 1975), pp. 72-82; and see his discussion on the subject in the Introduction, pp. 19-20. 68 'Abd al-Razzaq, 5: 496; al-Qastallani, [rshad al-sari, (Cairo: 1323),3: 173-4; al-Nasa'I, Sunan, ed. Hasan al-Mas'iidi (Beirut: n.d.), 5: 222; al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan al-kubra; 5: 85; Yiisuf b. Miisii al-Hanafi, al-Mu'tasar min al-mukhtasar (Hyderabad: 1362), 1: 174; al-Muniiwi, 4: 292-3, nos. 5345-5347; al-Muttaqi l-Hindi, 5: 24, nos. 220-222; cf. al-Azraqi, Akhbar Makka, ed. F. Wiistenfeld, p. 258; Muhibb al-Dln al-Tabari, al-Qira li-qasidi ummi l-qura, ed. Mustafa I-Saqii (Cairo: 1390/1970), pp. 306, 331;al-Tabiiwi, SharI)
c..
c..
19
tawat equal to prayer, bade the faithful confine their conversation to good talk. During the tawai the Prophet invoked God saying, "Our Lord, give to us in this world and in the world to come and guard us against the chastisement of Fire" (Qur'an 2:201).This verse was recited as an invocation by some of the Companions," Some of the invocations were extended and included praises of God, assertion of His oneness and omnipotence as they were uttered by the angels, by Adam, Abraham and the Prophet while they went past various parts of the Ka'ba during the tawai?" The pious Ibn 'Umar and Ibn 'Abbas are said to have performed the tawat refraining from talk altogether." Tawfis and Mujahid circumambulated in solemnity and awe "as if there were birds on their heads."> This was, of course, in the spirit of the imitatio prophetarum; Wahb b. Munabbih reported on the authority of Ka'b that three hundred Messengers (the last among whom was Muhammad) and twelve thousand chosen people tmustaian) prayed in the hi jr facing the maqam, none of them speaking during the tawa], except to mention the name of God.73 When 'Urwa b. al-Zubayr approached Ibn 'Umar during the tawat, asking him to give him his daughter in marriage, Ibn 'Umar did not reply. After some time 'Urwa came to Medina and met 'Abdallah b. 'Umar. The latter explained that he had not been able to answer him because
mdiini , 2: 178 info 69 al-Azraqi, p. 258; al-Fiikihi, fols. 292a, 296a; 'Abd al-Razzaq, 5: 50, 52; al-Muttaqi I-Hindi, 5: 90, nos. 717-719, 722; al-Waqidi, Maghazi, ed. M. Jones (London: 1966), p. 1098; al-Bayhaqi, at-Sun an al-kubra, 5: 84; Ibn Zuhayra, al-Jiimi' al-latif (Cairo: 1357/1938), p. 124; Ibn Kathir, Tajsir, 1: 432-3. 70 See e.g. al-Fiikihi, fo. 296a, sup. (The Prophet urges the people to praise God and to extol Him during the tawiif ; and see ibid., similar reports about some Companions); al-Azraqi, pp. 259 inf.-26O; 'Abd al-Razzaq, 5: 51, nos. 8964-8965; al-Qastallani 3: 170; al-Harbl, ai-Manasik wa-amakin turuqi l-haj], ed. Hamad al-Jasir (al-Riyiid: 1389/1969), pp. 431-3; Mubibb ai-Din al-Tabari, pp. 305-6; al-Shawkiini, Nayi, 5: 53-4. 71 al-Fiikihi, fol. 292a; 'Abd al-Razzaq, 5: 50, no. 8962. 72 al-Fiikihi, fol. 292a-b; cf. Mubibb ai-Din al-Tabari, p. 271. 73 al-Fiikihi, fol. 292a, inf.
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he "conceived that he faced God" during the tawat (wa-nahnu natakhayalu llaha 'azza wa-ialla bayna dyunina). Now he replied and gave him his daughter in marriage." Merriment and joviality were, of course, forbidden and considered as demeaning. Wahb b. al-Ward," while staying in the hiir of the mosque of Mecca, heard the Ka'ba complain to God and Jibril against people who speak frivolous words around it.76 The Prophet foretold that Abii Hurayra would remain alive until he saw heedless people playing; they would come to circumambulate the Ka'ba, their iawat would, however, not be accepted." The concession in the matter oj speech granted during the tawai was "good talk."" Pious scholars used to give guidance, exhort, edify and recount hadiths of the Prophet." Common people made supplications during the tawai, asking God to forgive them their sins and to grant them Paradise, children, and wealth. It was, however, forbidden to stand up during the (awiif, and to raise one's hands while supplicating. "Jews in the synagogues practise it in this way," said 'Abdallah b. 'Amr (b. al-'As) and advised the man who did it to utter his invocation in his council, not to do it during the fawiif.80 The fact that large crowds were gathered during the t awat was, however, exploited by the political leaders. Ibn al-Zubayr stood up in front of the door of the Ka'ba and recounted before the people the evil deeds of the Umayyads, stressing
74 al-Zubayr b. Bakkar, Jamharat nasab quraysh, MS. Bodley, Marsh 384, fol. 160b; al-Fakihi, fol. 292b; Mubibb ai-Din al-Tabari, p. 270. 75 See on him Abii Nu'aym, 8: 140-61; al-Pasl, al-Tqd, 7: 417, no. 2678. 76 al-Azraqi, p. 259; Abii Nu'aym, 8: 155 (the tafakkuh is explained as talking about women and describing their bodies during the (awaf); Muhibb al-Din al-Tabari, p. 271. 77 al-Fakihi, fol. 292b. 78 See Muhibb al-Din al-Tabarl, p. 271, line 1: ... wa-anna hukmahu hukmu l-saliui, ilia fima waradat [ihi l-rukhsaiu min al-kalam. 79 See e.g. al-Fakihi, fols. 311a-312a;'Abd al-Razzaq, 3: 377, no. 6021. &0 al-Fakihi, fol. 296b; and see al-Azraqi, p. 257; Amin Mahrniid Khattab, Fat/:! al-malik al-mdbiid, 1: 200-2; Ibn Abi Shayba, 4:96; al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan al-kubra, 5: 72-3.
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especially the fact that they withheld their payment of fay'.8! 'Ali b. al-Husayn cursed al-Mukhtar, after his death, at the door of the Ka'ba.82 Some traditions narrate details of the behavior of certain persons in the tawat who did not conform to this requirement of awe and solemnity in the holy place. Sa'id b. Jubayr used to talk during the (awllf and even to laugh," 'Abd al-Rahman b. 'Awf was seen to perform the tawaf wearing boots and singing hida' tunes. When rebuked by 'V mar he replied that he had done the same at the time of the Prophet and so 'V mar let him gO.84 Al-Fakihi records certain frivolous conversations which took place during the tawat, which may indeed be considered coarse and were certainly out of place in the sanctuary." But groups of people engaged in idle talk during the tawat were reprimanded. 'Abd al-Karim b. Abi Mukhariq" strongly reproved such talk; al-Muttalib b. Abi Wada'a" was surprised when he came to Mecca after a period of stay in the desert and saw people talk during the tawat. "Did you turn the tawaf into a meeting place," he asked," The "arabization" of the tawat is evident from an utterance attributed to the Prophet making it unlawful to talk in Persian during circumambulation. 'Vmar gently requested two men who held a conversation in Persian during the tawat to turn to Arabic," Reciting verses of the
81 82 83 84 85
86 87 88 89
al-Fiikihi, fol. 296b. al-Fakihi, fol. 296b. al-Azraqi, p. 259; Mubibb aI-Din al-Tabari p. 273; al-Fakihi, fol. 293b, sup. Niir al-Din al-Haythami, 3: 244. See al-Fakihi, fol. 293a (the remark of Husayn b. 'Ali about the buttocks of Mu'awiya during the (awaf ; and see fol. 294a: al-Sa'ib b. Sayfi and his talk with Mu'awiya about Hind). See on him Ibn I:Iajar, Tahdhlb, 6: 376-378, no. 716; aI-Fast, al-Tqd, 5: 480, no. 1856. See on him al-Fasi, al-'/qd, 7: 218, no. 2469. al-Azraqi, p. 260; Mubibb al-Din al-Tabari, p. 278. al-Fakihi fol. 291b (dhikru karahiyati l-kaliimi bi-l-farisiyyati [i l-(awaf); see the tradition about 'Umar: 'Abd al-Razzaq, 5: 496, no. 9793; cf. al-Turtiishl, al-Hawaditb wll-l-bida', ed. Muhammad Talbi (Tunis: 1959), p. 104.
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Qur'an during the t awaf in a loud voice was disliked and considered a bad innovation tmuhdath): the Prophet is said to have asked 'Uthman to turn to dhikru llah from his qirixa. Nevertheless certain groups of scholars permitted the recitation of verses from the Qur'an.?" The problem of the reciting of poetry during the tawat is complicated. The Prophet is said to have told Abii Bakr who recited rajaz verses during the circumambulation to utter allahu akbar instead. This injunction of the Prophet seems to have been disregarded. Ibn 'Abbas, Abii Sa'id al-Khudri and Jabir b. 'Abdalliih used to talk during the (awaf and recite verses," A report on the authority of 'Abdallah b. 'Umar says that the Companions used to recite poetry to each other ty at an ash adicn) during the circumambulation/" The argument in favor of the lawfulness of the recitation of poetry during (a wa] was based on the precedent of 'Abdallah b. Rawaha who had recited his verses during the Prophet's tawat in the year A.H. 7 ('umrat al-qadii): Khallii bani Lrkutfiu: 'an sabilih ...3 Also during the fawaf 'A'isha discussed with 9 some women of Quraysh the position of Hassan b. Thiibit and spoke in his favor, mentioning his verses in defense of the Prophet; 94 Hassan, some traditions say, was aided by the angel Jibril in composing seventy verses in praise of the Prophet." Al-Nabigha al-Ja'di recited his verses in the mosque of Mecca, praising Ibn al-Zubayr and asking for his help at a time of drought." Ibn al-Zubayr asked, during the tawat, a son of Khiilid
90 Ibn Abi Shayba, 4: 10; Al-Azraqi, p. 258; al-Fakihi, fols, 295b-296a; and see the survey of the different opinions: Ibn Zuhayra, pp. 129-30; al-Majlisi, 99: 209, no. 19. 91 al-Fiikihi, Col.307b. 92 al-Fakihi, Col.307b. 93 al-Wiiqidi, p. 736; Niir aI-Din al-Haythami, 8: 130; al-Fiikihi, Col. 307a; al-Muttaqi l-Hindi, 5: 95, no. 745. 94 al-Azraqi, p. 257; Ibn 'Abd al-Barr, al=l stl'ab, ed. 'Ali al-Bajiwi (Cairo: 1380/1960), 1: 347; al-Fiikihi, Col.307b. 95 al-Fiikihi, Col.307b. 96 Maria Nallino, Le Poesie di an-Niibigah al-Ga'di (Rome: 1953), p. 137 (IX) (and see the references of the editor); al-Fakihi, Col.307b inf, 308a.
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L. Ja'far al-Kilabi to recite some verses of his father against Zuhayr (b. Jadhima al-'AbsD. "But I am in a state of ihram; argued the son of Khiilid. "And so am I," said Ibn al-Zubayr and urged him to recite the verses. He responded and quoted the verse: "And if you catch me, kill me _" tPa-tmma takhudhiini ja-qtuliini: wa-in aslam [a-laysa ilii l-khuliaii). Ibn al-Zubayr sadly remarked that this verse suited his position in relation to the Banii Umayya,?? Sa'id b. Jubayr recalled having heard during the iawa] the verses of a drunkard who prided himself on the fact that he would not refrain from drinking wine even in old age," An old woman recalled verses composed about her beauty in her youth." There are moving verses composed by devoted sons, who carried on their backs their old mothers during the tawat and supplications by women asking God to forgive them their sins. Poets had the opportunity to watch women doing their tawa] and composed verses extolling their beauty.l'" The wearing of a veil by women performing the fawiit was the subject of a heated discussion among scholars who used as arguments the contradictory utterances attributed to the Prophet and quoted as precedents the fawiit of his wives.'?' Another important problem was whether men and women could lawfully perform the tawat together. According to one tradition women used to perform the fawiit together with men in the early period. The separation of women from men was first ordered by Khiilid b. 'Abdallah al-Qasri.l'? Al-Fakihi remarks that this injunction was
aI-Fiikihi, fo1. 307b; and see a different version of this verse Aghani (Biiliiq), 10: 12. 98 al-Fakihi, fo1. 308a; and see the verses: Yiiqiit, Mu'jam al-buldan, s.v. Amaj; and see Ibn Abi l-Dunya, Dhamm al-muskir, al-Zahiriyya, Majmii'a 60, fo1. 8a (Sa'Id b. Jubayr changes the text of the verse from wa-kana kariman fa-lam yanzi into wa-kana shaqiyyan fa-lam yanzi). 99 aI-Fiikihi, fo1. 308a. 100 aI-Fiikihi, fols. 307b-3IOa. 101 al-Shiifi'i, 2: 127; al-Azraqi, p. 260; aI-Fiikihi, fols. 296a-297a; Niir aI-Din al-Haythami, 3: 219-20; Ibn Zuhayra, pp. 133 uIl-I34. 102 aI-Azraqi, pp. 265-6; aI-Fiikihi, fols. 299a ult.-299b; Muhibb al-Din al-Tabari, pp. 319-20; al-Qastallani, 3: 172-3; Ibn Hajar, Fath al-bari, 3: 384-5; Ibn Zuhayra, p. 127; al-Fasi, al-T qd, 4: 273.
97
24 received with approval and people conformed to it until al-Fakihi's own time. Two other decrees of al-Qasri continued to be observed by the people of Mecca: takbir during the ceremony of tawai in the month of Ramadan and a special arrangement of rows of men around the Ka'ba.103 The separation between men and women in the mosque of Mecca was carried out by the governor 'Ali b. al-Hasan al-Hashimi as late as the middle of the third century by drawing ropes between the columns of the mosque; the women sat behind the ropes,'?' At the beginning of the third century (about 209) the governor of Mecca under al-Ma'miin, 'Ubaydallah b. al-Hasan al-Tiilibi.l'" ordered a special time to be set apart for the women's tawilf after the afternoon prayer; men were not allowed to perform the tawa] at that time. This regulation was implemented again by the governor of Mecca, Ibrahim b. Muhammad about A.H. 260.106 These changes in the ceremony of the iawat seem to point to a considerable fluctuation of ideas and attitudes among the rulers and the orthodox in connection with the sanctuary and the form of the
tawa].
The new arrangements, which were apparently meant to grant the haram more religious dignity and sanctity and to turn the tawilf into a solemn ceremony with fixed rules, may be compared with some peculiar customs practised in the early t awa], as recorded by al-Fakihi, The passage given by al-Fakihi begins with
103 al-Fakihi, fol. 432a (and see ibid., fol. 439b, lines 5-7 and fol. 354b: dhikru idiirati l-saffi [i shahri ramadana wa-awwalu man [dalahu wa-awwalu man ahdatha l-takbira bayna t-t ariiwibi hawla l-bayti fi shahri ramadana wa-tatsiru dhiilika); al-Zarkashi, I'lamu l-saiid bi-ahkami l-masiiiid, ed. Abii I-Wafii Mustafa I-Mariighi (Cairo: 1385),p. 98; al-Fiisi, al-'Jqd, 4: 272, 276 sup; al-Shibli, Mal;lasin al-wasdll [i mdrifaii I-awa'il, MS. Br. Mus., Or. 1530,fols.38b-39a, 41b-42a. 104 al-Fakihl, fol. 443a; al-Fiisi, al-'J qd, 6; 151, no. 2050 (quoted from al-Fiikihi); idem, Shifa' al-gharam (Cairo), 2: 188 (quoted from al-Fiikihi); Ibn Zuhayra, p. 300 inf. (quoted from al-Fakihi), 1J5 See on him Waki', Akhbiir al=qudiu, ed. 'Abd al-'Aziz Mustafa al-Mariighi (Cairo: 1366/1947), 1: 257-258; Ibn Zuhayra, p. 297. 106 al-Fiikihi, fol. 443a; al-Fasi, al-Tqd, 3: 247-8, no. 720 (quoted from al-Fiikihn.
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a rather cautious phrase: wa-qad zaama badu ahli makkata, which clearly expresses a reservation on the part of the compiler. In the old times (kanu fima mada) when a girl reached the age of womanhood her people used to dress her up in the nicest clothes they could afford, and if they were in possession of jewels they adorned her with them; then they introduced her into the mosque of Mecca, her face uncovered; she circumambulated the Ka'ba while people looked at her and asked about her. They were then told "This is Miss so and so, the daughter of so and so," if she was a free-born person. If she was a muwallada they said: "She is a muwallada of this or that clan." Al-Fakihi remarks in a parenthetical phrase that people in those times had religious conviction and trustworthiness iahlu dinin wa-amanatin) unlike people of his day, whose manner of belief is obnoxious (laysu 'ala ma hum 'alayhi min al-madhahibi l+makriiha), After the girl had finished her tawat she would go out in the same way, while people were watching her. The purpose of this practice was to arouse in the people the desire to marry the girl (if she was free-born) or to buy her (if she was a muwallada). Then the girl returned to her home and was locked up in her apartment until she was brought out and led to her husband. They acted in the same way with slave-maidens: they led them in the tawa; around the Ka'ba clad in precious dresses, but with their faces uncovered. People used to come, look at them and buy them. Al-Awza'I asked 'Ala' (apparently Ibn Abi Rabah) whether it was lawful to look at maidens who were led in tawaf around the Ka'ba for sale; 'Ala' objected to this practice except for people who wanted to buy slave-girls,"? This report is corroborated by a story recorded by Ibn Abi Shayba, according to which 'A'isha dressed up a maiden, performed the iawat with her and remarked: "We may perhaps succeed in catching (literally: hunting) a youth of Quraysh" (scil, for
107 al-Fiikihi. fol. 309b.
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the girO.los 'Umar is said to have encouraged the selling of slave-maidens in this manner.l'" All these reports - al-Fakihi's reference to "people with religious conviction and trustworthiness," al-Awza'i's inquiry, 'Ata"s answer, 'A'isha's story - seem to reflect t awai customs prevailing in the early period of Islam, in all likelihood during the first century of the Hijra. The reports indicate a certain informality and ease of manners. All this was bound to change if the haram was to acquire an atmosphere of sanctity and veneration. The early informality and intimacy can be gauged from a number of traditions concerned with the daily behaviour of the faithful in the mosque of Mecca. Ibn al-Zubayr passed by a group of people who were eating their meal in the mosque and invoked upon them his benediction. Abu Nawfal b. Abi 'Aqrab"? saw Ibn 'Abbas there eating roasted meat with thin bread; the fat dripped from his hands. A broth of crumbled bread used to be brought to Ibn al-Zubayr in the mosque. One day a boy crawled towards it and ate from it; 'Abdallah b. al-Zubayr ordered the boy to be flogged. The people in the mosque, in their rage, cursed Ibn al-Zubayt/" A similar problem was whether it is lawful to sleep in the mosque of Mecca. Scholars arguing for it quoted the precedent of the Prophet whose isrii took place (according to the report of Anas b. Malik) from the mosque of Mecca where he had slept'" Another
108 al-Musannaf, 4: 410; Lisan al+Arab, s.v. sh-w-f; Ibn al-Athir, al-Nihaya, s.v. sh-w-f. 109 Ibn Abi Shayba, 4: 411 ('Umar remarks, however, that girls should not be compelled to marry ugly [or mean; in text dhamim ; but probably damiml men; "the girls Iike in this matter what you like," he said}, cf. Ibn Ra's Ghanama, Maniiqil al-durar Ii mana bit al-zahar, MS. Chester Beatty 4254, fol. 19b: qala 'umaru: ia yuzawwijanna l-rajulu bnatahu l-qablha [a-innahunna yarghabna lima targhabiin. 110 See on him Ibn I:Iajar, Tahdhib, 12: 260. Ill al-Fiikihi, fo!. 355b: dhikru l-akli fi l- masjidi l-harami wa-l-ghada flhi ; and see al-Turtfishl, pp. 106-8; al-Zarkashi, l'liim al-sajid, pp. 329-30. 112 al-Fiikihi, fol. 355b.
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argument in favor of sleeping in mosques was mentioned by Sulayman b. Yasar,"" when questioned by al-Harith b. 'Abd al-Rahman b. Abi Dhubab: 114 "How do you ask about it, said Sulayman, knowing that the ashab al-suita slept in the mosque of the Prophet and prayed in it." 115 Ibn 'Umar used to sleep in the mosque (of Medina) in the Prophet's Iifetime.'" When Thabit (al-Bunani) consulted 'Abdallah b. 'Ubayd b. 'Umayr"? whether to turn to the amir in the matter of the people sleeping in the mosque of Mecca, 'Abdallah bade him not to do that, quoting the opinion of Ibn 'Umar who considered these people as 'akifun, people praying in seclusion. The pious Sa'id b. Jubayr used to sleep in the mosque of Mecca. 'Ata' b. Abi Rabah spent forty years in the mosque of Mecca, sleeping there, performing the tawat, and prayingJ" In a conversation with his student Ibn Jurayj he expressed a very favourable opinion about sleeping in mosques. When 'Ata' and Sa'id b. Jubayr were asked about people sleeping in the mosque of Mecca who have night-pollutions they nevertheless gave a positive answer and advised them to continue to sleep in the mosque. In the morning, says a tradition, Sa'id b. Jubayr used to perform the tawiif, wake up the sleepers in the mosque, and bid them recite the talbiya. These reports quoted from a chapter of al-Fakihi entitled Dhikru l-nawmi fi I-masjidi l-harami wa-man rakhkhasa iihi wa-man karihahu'" give some insight into the practices in the
113 114 115 116
See on him Ibn Hajar, Tahdhib, 4: 228, no. 381. See on him ibid.⢠2: 147, no. 249; al-Dhahabi, 1: 437, no. 1629. al-Turtiishi, p. 105. al-Zarkashi, l'liim al-sajid, p. 307; al-Turtiishi, p. 105;al-Mariighi, Tahqiq ai-nusra bi-talkhis mdiilim diiri l-hijra, MS. Br. Mus.⢠Or. 3615, fo1. 50a. 117 See on him al-Bukhiiri, al-To'rikn al=kablr, 31, no. 430; Ibn Hajar, Tahdhib, 5: 308, no. 524. 118 Cf. al- Turtiishi, p. 105. 119 Ta'rikh Makka, fo1. 355b-356a; al-Zarkashi, I'liim al-saiid, pp. 306-8, 317-18; Mubibb al Din al-Tabari, pp. 659-60, nos. 30-31; al-Majlisi, 99: 240, no. 1; about the odious impurity which causes bad smells see al-Fakihi, fo1. 357b, ult.-358a idhikru irsiili l=rihi [i l-masiidi l-harami); al-Zarkashi, l'lam ai-sajid, pp. 313-14; cf. about a superstitious belief
28
mosque of Mecca in the early period of Islam and help us to understand the ideas about ritual and the sanctity of the haram current at the time. Of special interest are some customs of t aw a] and include hardships, rigid self-exertion and self-castigation. Tradition tells about people who vowed to perform the fawaf while crawling's? or fastened to each other by a rope,'?' or being led with a rope threaded through a nose-ring.F' Tradition reports that the Prophet and his Companions unequivocally condemned these practices, prohibited them and prevented the people from performing the tawat in this way. It is obvious that these usages reflected the Jahiliyya ideas of self-imposed harshness, of vows of hardship and severe practices. These went contrary to the spirit of Islam which, while transforming it into an Islamic ritual, aimed to give the tawat its own religious values. Ibn Hajar is right in tracing back the prohibited forms of (awat to their Jahili source,'> Similar to these vows of self-exertion during the tawa! are the vows of hardship during the hajj. The traditions tell about men who vowed to perform the hajj on foot. Some women vowed to perform the hajj walking, or with faces uncovered, or wearing coarse garments, or keeping silent.124 The Prophet passed censure on
h a i j which
120 121
122 123 124
among common people in Egypt: 'Ali Mahffiz, al-Ibdii' fi (Cairo: 1388/1968), p. 454. al-Fakihi, fol, 297a; al-Azraqi, p. 261; 'Abd al-Razzaq, 8: 457, no. 15895. al-Pakihi, fol, 297b; al-Azraqi, p. 261; 'Abd al-Razzaq, 8: 448, no. 15862; al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan al-kubra, 5:88; al-Qastallani, 3: 173-4; al-Hakim, al-Mustadrak, 1: 460; Ibn l;Iajar, Fath al-bari, 3: 386-7; Muhibb aI-Din al-Tabari, p. 319, no. 73. al-Fakihi, fo!. 297b; 'Abd al-Razzaq, 8: 448, nos. 15860-15861,11:292, no. 20572; Lisan al-'Arab, s.v. z-m-m-, kh-z-m. Fath al-bari, 3: 386. al-Tabawi, Sharb maani, 3: 128-132; Yiisuf b. Miisii al-l;Ianafi, 1: 260-2; al-Suyfiti, al-Durr al-manthiir, 1: 351-2; idem, Ta'rikn al-khulaia', ed. Muhammad Muhyi I-Din 'Abd al-Hamid (Cairo: 1371/1952), p. 99; al-Shatibl, al-I'tisam (Cairo: n.d.), 2: 52; Bahshal, Ta'rikn Wasil, ed. current
madarr al-ibtidii
29
these practices, emphasizing that God does not heed (literally: does Lot need) vows by which people cause harm and suffering to themselves. These practices recall certain customs observed by the Bums which therefore had to be abolished in Islam. It may however be remarked that some early Muslim ascetics or pious men used to perform the hajj on foot, or vowed not to walk under a shade during their hajj.125 It is true that the outer form of these practices recalls the old Jahiliyya ones; there is however a clear line which has to be drawn between them: the devotional practices of the pious Muslims are different in their content and intention; they are undertaken out of a deep faith and performed for God's sake. These practices of the pious gained the approval of the orthodox circles and were considered virtuous. This attitude is clearly reflected in a haditb attributed to the Prophet: 'The advantage of the people performing the hajj walking over those who ride is like the advantage of the full moon over the stars."126 Fasting on the Day of 'Arata gave rise to another important controversy. The contradictory traditions and reports are arranged in Fakihi's compilation in two chapters: the one encouraging the
Gurguis 'Awwiid (Baghdad, 1387/1967), p. 231; Ibn Sa'd, 8: 470; al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan al-kubra, 10: 76; al-Fasawi, fol. 157b; Ibn 'Abd al-Hakarn, p. 294; aI-Muttaqi l-Hindi, 5: 341, no. 2265, 449, no. 2507; Ahmad b. Hanbal, Musnad, 11: 7, no. 6714; al-Tayalisi, p. 112, no. 836; al-Tahawl, Mushkil at-iuhar, 3: 37-41; 'Abd al-Razziiq, 8: 438, no. 15825, 448, no. 15863; al-Fiikihi, fols. 315a-b; Ibn Daqiq al-'ld, pp. 310-11,nos. 791-793. (And see al-Fiikihi, fol. 511b:the story of the woman who vowed to perform the pilgrimage in silence if God would help to reconcile the fighting factions of her tribe. Abu Bakr, ordering her to discontinue her silence, remarked: takallami, fa-inna I-islam a hadama ma kana qabla dhalika); al-Tusi, Amali (Najaf: 1384/1964),1: 369. 125 Ibn Abi I-Dunyii, al-Tawba, MS. Chester Beatty 3863, fol. 17b; Bahshal, p. 167; al-Khuwiirizmi, Mukhtasar ithiirati l-targhib wa-l-tashwiq ila l-masiijidi l-thaliuhati wa-ila l-bayti l-'atiq, MS. Br. Mus., Or. 4584, fol. 8a-b. 126 al-Fiikihi, fols. 321b-322a idhikru l-mashyi fi I-hajji wa-f adlihi): al-Khuwiirizmi, fol. 8b: wa-li-l-mashi [adlun 'ala l-rakibi ka-fadli laylati l-qadri 'ala sa'iri l-layali,
30
faithful to fast on this day, the other reporting about Companions who refrained from fasting,'?" According to a tradition of the Prophet the sins of a man who fasts on the Day of 'Arafa will be remitted for a year;128 another version says two years,"? a third version a thousand days.130The list of persons who did fast includes also 'A'isha, who emphasized the merits of fasting on that day. The opponents who forbade fasting on that day based their argument on accounts and evidence that the Prophet had broken the fast on the Day of 'Arafa,!" 'Umar,132 his son 'Abdallah and Ibn 'Abbas prohibited fasting.l" In another version Ibn 'Umar stressed that he performed the pilgrimage with the Prophet and the three first caliphs; none of them fasted on the Day of 'Arafa, He himself did not fast, but did not explicitly enjoin either eating or fasting.P' The
127 aI-Fiikihi, fois. 528a-529a (dhikru sawmi yawmi 'araf a wa-f adli siyamihi ; dhikru man lam yasum yawma 'arafa makhiifata l-du'fi 'ani l-du'a); Ibn Abi Shayba, 4: 1-3, 21, 3: 104; al-Tahawi, Mushkil, 4: lll. 128 aI-Fiikihi, fol. 528a, ult.; al-Mundhiri, 2: 236, no. 1463; Ibn Abi Shayba, 3: 97; al-Tahawi, Shorb maiini, 2: 72; al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan al-kubra, 4: 283. 129 aI-Fiikihi, fois. 528a, inf., 528b; al-Tabaranl, I: 255, 2: 71; Bahshal, p. 276; al-Mundhiri, 2: 236; 7 nos. 1461-1462,1464-1465, 1467-1468; Muhibb aI-Din al-Tabari, p. 403; Ibn Abi Shayba, 3: 96-97; al-Tahawl, Sharb maiini, 2: 72; idem, Mushkil, 4: 112; al-Shawkiini, Nayl, 4: 267, no. 2; al-Bayhaqi, ai-Sunan al-kubra, 4: 283, 130 al-Mundhiri, 2: 237, no. 1466; aI-Fiikihi, fol. 528b; al-Suyiltl, al-Durr ai-manthia, 1: 231 (another version 1,000 years). 131 Mus'ab b. 'Abdallah, Hadith, MS. Chester Beatty 3849/4, fol. 4Oa; Abu 'Umar, GhuIiim Tha'Iab, Juz', MS. Chester Beatty 3495, fol. 97a; aI-Fiikihi, fol. 528b; al-Shawkiini, Nayl, 4: 267, no. 4; al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan al-kubra, 4: 283-4; al-Suyiiti, al-Durr al-manthia, 1: 231. 132 al-Bukhiiri, al-Ta'rikh al-kabir, 32, no. 1600. 133 al-Fakihi, fol. 529a; Ahmad b. Hanbal, al-Tlal, 1: 286, nos. 1849, 1852; aI-Khatib al-Baghdiidi, Mudil), 2: 338-9; al-Pasawi, fol. 61a; cf. Abu Nu'aym, 7: 164; Mubibb aI-Din al-Tabari, p. 404. 134 Abu 'Ubayd, Gharib al-haditn 3: 4; aI-Khatib al-Baghdiidi, Mudil), 1: 434; al-Tahawl, Shorb mdiini. 2: 72; Muhibb al-Din al-Tabarl, p. 404 (and see ibid., p. 405 inf.); al-Shawkiini, Nayl, 4: 268; al-Suyiitl, al-Durr al-manthiir, 1: 231; Ibn Kathir, al-Bidaya wa-l-nihaya (Beirut, al-Riyad: 1966), 5: 174.
31
conciliatory interpretation assumed that the prohibition of fasting referred to the people attending 'Arafa; but people not present on that Day of 'Arafa may fast, and are even encouraged to fast.!35 The reason given for not fasting on that day in 'Arafa was the care for the pilgrims, who might be weakened by the fast and prevented from properly performing the du'ji' and dhikr, which are the most important aims of the pilgrims staying at 'Arafa.136 The transfer of some rites performed at 'Arafa to the cities conquered by the Muslims is of special interest. This practice was introduced in Basra by 'Abdallah b. 'Abbas'" and by 'Abd al-'Aziz b. Marwan in Fustat.138 the Day of 'Arafa people used to gather On in the mosques to invoke and to supplicate. When Ibn 'Abbas summoned the people to gather in the mosque he argued that he wished that the supplications of the people may be associated with those attendant at 'Arata and that God may respond to these supplications; thus they would share God's grace with the attendants
135 al-Tahawi, Sharb mdimi, 2: 72; idem, Mushkil 4: 112; Abii Nu'ayrn, 3: 347; al-Fasawi, fol. 32b; al-Shawkiini, Nayl, 4: 267, no. 3; al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan al-kubra 4: 289; Yiisuf b. Miisii al-Hanafi, 1: 152; al-Suyiiti, al-Durr al-manthiir, I: 231. 136 al-Fakihl, fol. 529a; cf. Muhibb al-Dln al-Tabari, p. 405, lines 3-7 '(fasting on the Day of 'Arafa is not favored for people performing the pilgrimage; it is however encouraged for people not performing the hajj. See the compromise-recommendations of al-Mundhiri, 2: 238: "; there is nothing wrong in fasting, if it does not weaken him in his du'a' ... for the pilgrims it is preferable to break the fast ...â¢.See the story of Ibn Wahb, who broke the fast at 'Arafa because he was occupied by the thought of breaking the fast: al-Qadi 'Iyiid, Tartib al-madiuik, 1, 430; and see on this subject: al-Shawkiini, Nayl 4: 269). 137 See al-Quda'i, Ta'rikh, MS. Bodley, Pococke 270, fol. 67b (quoted from al-Jahiz's Nazm al-qur'iinr; al-Qalqashandi, Ma'athir ai-inaia [i maalim al-khilafa, ed. 'Abd al-Sattiir Ahmad Farriij (Kuwait: 1964), 1: 129; Muhibb al-Dln al-Tabarl, pp. 387 inf.-388 sup; al-Fasawi, fol. 16a: ._ haddathanii abu 'awana, qiil a: ra'aytu I-has an a kharaja yawma 'oraf a min al-maqsiirau ba'da I-'asri [a-qaada fa-'arrafa; al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan al-kubra 5: 117 inf.; see S.D. Goitein, Studies in Islamic History and Institutions (Leiden; 1966),-p. 137. 138 al-Kindi, Wulat ut», ed. Husayn Nassar (Beirut: 1379/1959),p. 72.
32 at 'Arafa.P" Mus'ab b. al-Zubayr introduced this innovation in Kiifa.140 Some pious Muslims participated in these gatherings, others considered them as bid'ar" The tarit in Jerusalem is linked in some sources with 'Abd al-Malik, who is accused of having built the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem in order to divert the pilgrimage from Mecca to Jerusalem, since 'Abdallah b. al-Zubayr, the rival caliph in Mecca, forced the pilgrims to give the oath of allegiance. When the Dome of the Rock was built people used to gather there on the Day of 'Arafa and performed there the wuqufr" So the bid'a of wuqid in Jerusalem arose. Al-Turtiishi describes a gathering of the people of Jerusalem and of its villages in the mosque, raising their voices in supplications. They believed that four "standings" twaqafiu) in Jerusalem were equal to a pilgrimage to Mecca.r" Ibn Taymiyya, of course, strongly censured this innovation.r" It is evident that the idea behind the ta'rit is that it is possible to transfer sanctity from 'Arafa to another sanctuary where the rites of 'Arata are being performed on the same day, or that one may share in the blessing of 'Arafa through the performance of certain devotions at the same time as they are done at 'Arafa (as is the case with the supplications in the tdrit mentioned in note 139 above), or the notion that two sanctities may be combined as indicated in the tradition about Zamzam visiting Sulwan on the night of 'Arafa.!" The idea of transfer of sanctity is clearly reflected in a
139 al-Mawsili, Ghiiyat al-wasiiil ila mdrifati l-awail, MS. Cambridge Qq 33 (10), fol. 153a. 140 al-Suyiiti, al-Durr al-manthia, 1: 231 inf. 141 Ibn Kathir, al-Bidiiya, 9: 307; al-Turtiishi, pp. 115-16;al-Suyiiti, al-Durr al-manthiir, 1: 231 info 142 al-Quda'I, fol. 67b; al-Qalqashandi, 1: 129. 143 al-Turtiishi, pp. 116-17. 144 Majmu'at al-rasall al-kubrii (Cairo: 1323), 2: 57; Jamiil a-Din al-Qiisimi, I slab- al-masaiid min al-bidd wa-l-'awa'id (Cairo: 1341), p. 215 (from Ibn
Taymiyya),
145 al-Muqaddasi, line 11.
Ab-san al-taqasim, ed. M.J. de Goeje (Leiden: 1906), p. 171,
33
Shi'i tradition in which a Shi'i adherent asks the imam Ja'far al-Sadiq whether he may perform the to'rii on the grave of Husayn if the opportunity to perform the hajj (scil, to Mecca) escapes him. The imam enumerates in his answer the rewards for visiting the grave of al-Husayn on common days and those for visits on feasts, emphasizing that these rewards are multiplied for a visit on the Day of 'Arafa, This visit is equal in rewards with a thousand pious pilgrimages to Mecca and a thousand 'umr a accepted by God and a thousand military campaigns fought on the side of a prophet or a just imam. The adherent then asked, how he could get a reward similar to that of the mawqii (of 'Arata), The imam looked at him as if roused to anger and said: "The believer who comes to the grave of al-Husayn on the Day of 'Arafa, washes in the Euphrates and directs himself to the grave, he will be rewarded for every step as if he had performed a hajj with all due rites." The transmitter recalls that the imam did say: "and [took part in] a military campaignr" Some changes of ritual were attributed to the Umayyads and sharply criticized by orthodox scholars. A number of innovations of this kind are said to have been introduced by Mu'awiya, It was he who refrained from the takbir on the Day of 'Arafa, because 'Ali used to practise it.147 He forbade the loud recitation of the talbiya at 'Arafat, and people obeyed his order; then Ibn 'Abbas ostentatiously came forth and uttered the talbiya loudly,':" It was Mu'awiya who transformed a place where the Prophet had urinated into a place of prayer.v" and invented iahdatha) the adhan in the saliu a[-'idayn.150 He changed the order of the ceremony of the 'id
peculiar
146 Ibn Biibawayh, Amali i-sadiu; (Najaf: 1389/1970),pp. 126-7. 147 aI-Fiikihi, fol. 529a. 148 Mubibb al-Din al-Tabari, p. 403; al-Hakim, al-Mustadrak, 1: 464 inf.-465; al-Muttaqi aI-Hindi, 5: 79, nos. 646, 648. 149 Muhibb al-Din al-Tabari, p. 417; Amin Mahmiid Khattab, Fatb al-malik al-mdbisd, 2: 59 inf.-60, lines. 1-7; aI-Fiikihi, ·fol. 531a,sup. 150 al-Suyiiti, Ta'rikh al-khulafa', p. 200.
34 al-adha and ordered the khutba to be delivered before the prayer.P' He was also the one who banned the tamattu' pilgrimages.P? Changes of this kind were recorded as wicked innovations of the impious Umayyad rulers. The inconsistencies of the usages, customs and ritual practices of the early period of Islam are reflected in almost every subject dealt with in the early sources of hadith. Opinions divergent and contradictory are expressed about the sutra which has to be put in front of the praying Muslim and whether a dog or a donkey or a woman passing by invalidates the prayer-" Scholars differ in their opinions as to whether the form of sitting during the prayer called iq'a' is permitted.P' whether the prayer by a believer clad in one garment ithawb) is valid.!" and whether counting of the tasbib by pebbles is allowed!" Some of the subjects dealt with in the early hadiths lost their actuality and relevance. It is however a special feature of Muslim haditn literature and haditn criticism that some of these themes reappear and are discussed even in our days. Thus, for instance, the contemporary scholar Nasir al-Din al-Albani examines
151 al-Shibli, Maf)asin al-wasdil, fol. 120a; al-Suyiiti, Ta'rikh al-khulafd, p. 200. 152 al-Muttaqi aI-Hindi, 5: 88, no. 708; al-Shibli, MahQsin al-wasdil, fol. 119b (and see above notes 48, 50); and cf. the wicked innovations of al-Hajjij Abii Tiilib al-Makki, 2: 53-4. 153 al-Hakirn, al=Mustadrak, 1: 251-2; Niir al-Din al-Haytharni, 2: 59-62; al-Fakihi, fol. 481a inf.; al-Fasawi, fol. 217b; Ibn Abi Shayba, 1: 276-83; 'Abd al-Razzaq, 2: 9-38, nos. 2272-2396; al-Tahawi, Sharf) maani, 1: 458-64; al-Muttaqi l-Hindi, 8: 132-8, nos. 946-989; al-Zarkashi, al=l iaba, pp. 66, 84. 154 Ibn Abi Shayba, 1: 285; 'Abd al-Razzaq, 2: 190-7, nos. 3024-3053; and see Ibn al-Athir, al-Nihiiya, s.v. q-'-a, '-q-b. 155 al-Tal)iiwi, Sharf) maani, 1: 377-83; al-Shawkiini, Nayl, 2: 83-4; Ibn Abi Shayba, 1: 310-15. 156 Ibn Abi Shayba, 2: 389-91; Ibn Abi I-ijadid, Sharf) nah] al-balagha, ed. Muhammad Abii l-Fadl Ibriihim (Cairo: 1964), 18: 164; and cf. Ahmad b. Hanbal, al-Ttal, 1: 325, no. 2122; Sa'Id b. Jubayr throws out the pebbles with which a woman counted her circlings during the the tawa].
35
the tradition prohibiting fasting on the Day of 'Arafa for people attending 'Arata,"? He carefully analyzes the isnads, finding out their faults; he harshly reprimands al-Hakim for his heedlessness in considering the haditb sound and states that the haditb is in fact weak. He argues that the haditb about the forgiveness of sins for a period of two years for him who fasts on the Day of 'Arafa is a sound tradition; but the attached phrase about the rewards for fasting on every day of Muharram is a forged one.ISS An exhaustive scrutiny of hadiths about the counting of tasbih by pebbles is included by al-Albani in the examination of the haditb about the rosary (ai-subha).IS9 Of interest are certain traditions in which some social and cultural, as well as religious, trends are exposed. Of this kind are the traditions in which the Prophet predicted that his community would erect sumptuous mosques in the manner of Jewish synagogues and Christian churches, adorn them richly and embellish them with inscriptions. This will be the sign of decline of the Muslim community and portend the End of the Days. Traditions of the very early period of Islam reflect the opposition against arched mihrab« "Beware these altars" tittaqii hadhihi l-madhabih), followed by an explanatory comment, "he meant the mahiirib' (ya'ni l-maharib), says a tradition attributed to the Prophet,"? "My people will fare well as long as they will not build in their mosques altars
157 Na s ir aI-Din aI-AIbiini, Silsilat al=ah a d i t n al+d a'Lf a wa-l-mawdiia (Damascus: 1384),no. 404. 158 Ibid., no. 412. 159 Ibid., no. 83. 160 al-Daylami, MS. Chester Beatty 4139, fo1. 27a (al-Daylami adds: wa-kana ibriihlmu l-taymi la yusalli [i (aqi l-mihrab); al-Suyiiti, ai-Khasii'is ai-kubrii; 3: 189; al-Muniiwi, 1: 144-5, no. 153 reviews the different meanings of the word mihrab. And see the peculiar story of the Christian youth in the mihrab: al-Khatib al-Baghdadi, To'rikh Baghdad, 9: 45; al-Turtiishl, p. 94; al-Bahranl, 7: 281-5; Mahmiid Mahdi al-Miisawi al-Khawansiiri, Tuhfat al-siijid fi ahkiim al-masiijid (Baghdad: 1376), pp. 111-16.And see R.B. Serjeant, "Mii)riib," BSOAS (1959):pp. 439-53.
36
like the altars of the Christians," the Prophet foretold/?' Pious men usually refrained from praying in these mihrabs.162 Of the same kind were traditions against the adornment of mosques.'" prayers in the maqsiaa of the mosque,164 and against writing Qur'an verses on the walls of the mosque, or in the qibla of the mosque.'" These traditions should, of course, be studied against the background of the reports about the sumptuous buildings which were erected by the impious rulers and their governors and the richly decorated [ami' mosques in which delegates of the rulers led the prayer. Many a time a pious Muslim had to ask himself whether he should pray behind them, as can be deduced from the numerous traditions dealing with this subject. The few traditions reviewed in this paper clearly demonstrate the fluidity of certain religious and socio-political ideas reflected in the early compilations of hadith; as already proved by I. Goldziher. The diversity and divergence of traditions expose the different opinions of various groups of Muslim scholars. The divergent traditions are faithfully recorded in the compilations
161 al-Suyiiti, al-Khasdis al-kubra; 3: 188-9; Ibn Abi Shayba, 2: 59; and see the careful evaluation of this hadith' by Albiini, Silsila, no. 448. 162 'Abd al-Razzaq, 2: 412, no. 3898-3902; the tradition about the altars of the Christians, no. 3903; Ibn Abi Shayba, 2: 59-60 (ai-saiat Ii i-taq, man rakhkhasa l-saliu Ii Haq); Ahmad b. Hanbal, al-Tlal, 1: 64, no. 373. 163 al-Suyiiti, al-Khasdis al-kubrii, 3: 56-7; Ibn Abi Shayba, 1: 309; al-Suyiitl, al-Durr ai-manihiir, 3: 217 inf.; al-Shaybani, pp. 77-8; Abii 'Ubayd, Gharib al-hadlth, 4: 225; al-Shawkanl, No yl, 2: 167-70; idem, al-Fawii'id al-majmiia, ed. 'Abd al-Wahhab 'Abd al-Latif (Cairo: 1960), pp. 25-7; Abii Talib al-Makki, 2: 51 inf; Ibn Abi Jamra, Bahjat al-nufiis (Beirut: 1972 reprint), 1: 183; al-Sarnarqandl, Bustan ai-'arilin (on margin of Tanbih al-ghafilin) (Cairo: 1347), pp. 127-8; Yiisuf b. 'Abd al-Radi, Thimar al-maqasid [i dhikri t-masaiid, ed. As'ad Talas (Beirut: 1943), pp. 166, 170; al-Bahrani, 7: 277; al-Zarkashi, I'liim al-siijid pp. 335-8; Muhammad Mahdi al-Miisawi, pp. 87-92. 164 See 'Abd al-Razzaq, 2: 414-16, nos. 3907-3913; al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan al-kubra, 3: 238; Abii Talib al-Makki, 2: 51 inf.; Ibn Sa'd, 7: %. 165 Ibn Abi Shayba, 2: 46; al-Turtiishi, p. 97; al-Zarkashi, I'lam al-saiid, p. 337; cf. Yiisuf b. 'Abd al-Hadi, p. 170.
37
of the second century of the Hijra with no obligatory conclusions imposed and no prescriptions issued. This activity reflects a sincere effort to establish the true path of the Prophet, the Sunna, which the believer should follow.
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M. J. KisterJerusalem Studies in Arabic and Islam 24 (2000): 217-45
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