Explaination Of An Important Hadeeth, The Hadeeth Of Najd

[PASHTUN WARRIOR]

The Hadeeth of Najd
by Brother Abû Rumaysah


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The Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu alayhi wa sallam, said,
"O Allaah bestow your blessings on our Shaam. O Allaah bestow your blessings on our Yemen." The people said, "O Messenger of Allaah, and our Najd." I think the third time the Prophet, sallallaahu alayhi wa sallam, said, "There (in Najd) will occur earthquakes, trials and tribulations, and from their appears the Horn of Satan."
Reported in al-Bukhaaree [Book of Trials, Chpt. 'The afflictions will come from the East' 9/166 no. 214 Eng. Trans]



A hadeeth which has some controversy surrounding it due to obvious sectarian reasons. A hadeeth which has been (deliberately) misunderstood by certain groups of people in order that they may spread their misguidance and deceive ignorant Muslims.

This because upon research and investigation and looking to the words of our early scholars we find that this hadeeth does not refer to the Najd that is famously known in Saudi today, but rather it refers to Iraaq.

About two years ago I read a book entirely devoted to this hadeeth entitled, "an-Najd Qarnu ash-Shaytaan" [I cannot remember the author as I do not have the book on me anymore.] I will quote in general from what I remember from this book, and refrain from mentioning precise quotes except from those references that I have on me.

Amongst the scholars that are mentioned who referred this hadeeth to Iraaq were: al-Khattaabee, al-Kirmaanee, al-Aynee, an-Nawawee, ibn Hajr and others. The reasons behind this are numerous and clear:


The Generality of the Hadeeth Pertaining to the Fitna Coming from the East.
Al-Bukhaaree includes this hadeeth in the chapter: "The affliction will appear from the East"
212) From the father of Saalim: The Prophet, sallallaahu alayhi wa sallam, stood up besides the pulpit (and pointed towards the east) and said: "Afflictions are there! Afflictions are there! From where appears the horn of Satan" or he said, "the horn of the Sun"

213) From ibn Umar that he said: I heard the Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu alyahi wa sallam, saying while facing the east: "Indeed Afflictions are there, from where appears the Horn of Satan."

214) The hadeeth of Najd under discussion.

Similar hadeeth can be found in Saheeh Muslim (volume 4 no.'s. 6938+). Hadeeth that give the same meaning can be found in Saheeh Muslim (volume 1 no.'s 83+)


That the Generality of the Early Trials and Tribulations arose from the East, many of them actually in Iraaq itself.
Ibn Hajr al-Asqalaanee said after quoting the words of al-Khattaabee explaining the meaning of Qarn (horn), "and others have said that the People of the East were disbelievers at that time and the Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu alayhi wa sallam, informed us that the trials and tribulations would arise from that direction and it was as he said. And the first of the trials that arose, arose from the direction of the east and they were the reason for the splitting of the Muslim ranks, and this is what Satan loves and delights in. Likewise the innovations appeared from that direction." [Fath al-Baaree 13/58 in commentary to the hadeeth of Najd]
Amongst the trials that arose in Iraaq and the east was the martyrdom of Alee, the martyrdom of the grandson of the Prophet, sallallaahu alayhi wa sallam, the first battle between the Muslims occurred in Iraaq, and many more.

Imaam Nawawee mentions that one of the greatest trials to appear from the East will be the appearance of the Dajjaal. [Sharh Saheeh Muslim 2/29]

From the innovations that appeared in the east and specifically Iraaq, was many of the early deviant sects amongst them the Qadariyyah (as the first hadeeth in Muslim shows), the Jahmiyyah and their offshoots etc...

That at the time of the Prophet, sallaahu alayhis wa sallaam, there were 13 places known as Najd [according to 'Najd Qarnu ash-Shaytaan'] depending on where one was. This because Najd linguistically means a raised/elevated land. Therefore the Arabs referred to lands that were elevated with respect to them as Najd. One of the most commonly referred to areas at that time as Najd was Iraaq.


The Najd for those people living in Madeenah in the direction of the East would be Iraaq.
Ibn Hajr said: "al-Khattaabee said: 'the najd in the direction of the east, and for the one who is in Madeenah then his Najd would be the desert of Iraaq and it's regions [baadiya al-Iraaq wa Nawaaheehaa] for this is to the east of the People of Madeenah. The basic meaning of Najd is that which is raised/elevated from the earth in contravention to al-Gawr for that is what is lower than it. Tihaamah [the coastal plain along the south-western and southern shores of the Arabian Peninsula] is entirely al-Gawr and Mecca is in Tihaamah.'"
Ibn Hajr continues, "by this [saying of al-Khattaabee] the weakness of the saying of ad-Daawodee is understood that 'Najd is in the direction of Iraaq' [min Naahiya al-Iraaq] for he suggests that Najd is a specific place. This is not the case, rather everything that is elevated with respect to what adjoins it is called Najd and the lower area called Gawr." [Fath al-Baaree 13/58-59]

Al-Mubaarakfooree endorses these words in his commentary to Sunan at-Tirmidhee (10/314 no.4212)


The Hadeeth in Saheeh Muslim [4/1505 no.6943]
Saalim bin Abdullaah bin Umar said: O people of Iraaq, how strange is it that you ask about the minor sins but commit the major sins? [The killing of al-Husayn] I heard my father, Abdullaah bin Umar narrating that he heard the Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu alayhi wa sallam, saying while pointing his hand to the east: "Indeed the turmoil would come from this side, from where appear the horns of Satan and you would strike the necks of one another..."

The Variations in Wording of the Hadeeth of Najd that Leave no Doubt Whatsoever as to what it refers to.
The hadeeth of ibn Umar Reported by Abu Nu'aym in al-Hilya (6/133), "O Allaah bestow your blessings on our Madeenah, and bestow your blessings on our Mecca, and bestow your blessings on our Shaam, and bestow your blessings on our Yemen, and bestow your blessings in our measuring (fee saa'inaa wa muddinaa)." A person said, " O Messenger of Allaah and in our Iraaq" and so he turned away from him and said, "there will occur earthquakes, trials and tribulations and there will appear the horn of Satan."
Shu'ayb al-Arna'ut declares it's isnaad to be saheeh as in his footnotes to 'Sharh as-Sunnah' (14/206-207 fn. 2) and he too endorses the words of al-Khattaabee quoted above.

The hadeeth of ibn Umar reported in at-Tabaraanee in 'al-Awsat' that the Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu alayhi wa sallam prayed Fajr and then faced the people and said, "O Allaah bestow your blessings on our Madeenah, O Allaah bestow your blessings in our measuring, O Allaah bestow your blessings in our Shaam and our Yemen." A person said, "And Iraaq O Messenger of Allaah?" He said, "from there arises the horn of Satan and the trials and tribulations would come like mounting waves."

Ibn Hajr al-Haythamee says in his 'Mujma az-Zawaa'id' (3/305 - chapter 'collection of du'aas made for (Madeenah)'): 'its narrators are trustworthy and precise.'

[This hadeeth could possibly considered to be the same as b) above, but I have included it separately due to the slight difference in wording. Allaah knows best.]

The hadeeth of ibn Abbaas reported by at-Tabaraanee in 'al-Kabeer' that the Prophet, sallallaahu alayhi wa sallam, supplicated and said, "O Allaah bestow your blessings on our Shaam and Yemen." A person from amongst the people said, "O Prophet of Allaah and Iraaq?" He said, "indeed there is the Horn of Satan, and the trials and tribulations will come like mounting waves, and indeed harshness/coarseness is in the east."

Al-Haythamee says: "it's narrators are trustworthy and precise." (ibid.)


The Virtues of Bani Tameem
Bani Tameem constitute the majority of the inhabitants of the Najd that is in Saudi Arabia.
The hadeeth of Saheeh Bukhaaree reported by Abu Hurayra (RA): "I have loved the people of the tribe of Bani Tameem, ever since I heard three things the Messenger of Allaah , sallallaahu alayhi wa sallam, said about them. I heard him saying, 'these people (of the tribe of Bani Tameem) would stand firm against the Dajjaal.' When the Saddaqat from that tribe came, the Messenger of Allaah , sallallaahu alayhi wa sallam, said, "these are the Saddaqat (charitable gifts) of our folk." Aa'ishah had a slave girl from that tribe, and the Prophet , sallallaahu alayhi wa sallam, said to Aa'ishah, 'manumit her as she is a descendant of Ismaa'eel, alayhis salaam.'"

[Hadeeth no. 2543, 4366 of al-Fath] Ibn Hajr al-Asqalaanee said, "this hadeeth also contains a clear mention of the excellence and superiority of Bani Tameem." [Fath 5/217]

The hadeeth of Ikrimah from one of the Companions reported in the Musnad of Imaam Ahmad and in it occurs, "do not say of Bani Tameem anything but good, for indeed they are the severest of people in attacking the Dajjaal."

Al-Haythamee says: "its narrators are those of the Saheeh." [Mujma 10/48 chpt: What is reported concerning Bani Tameem]

It is not strange that Bani Tameem would be the most severe against the Dajjaal, because the tools required to combat him are none but a correct and firm belief and proper beneficial knowledge. Alhumdolillaah many of the scholars of Saudi are from the most noble and skilled scholars on the face of this earth today, firmly upon the way of our noble Messenger, sallallaahu alayhi wa sallam.

This is what Allaah has allowed me to very quickly put together. And our Lord Most High Knows best.

[FollowerOfMuhammad]

http://www.sunnah.org/aqida/puncturing_the_devil.htm

Puncturing the Devil’s Dream
about the Hadiths of Najd and Tamim

Kerim Fenari

bismi’Llahi’r-Rahmani’r-Rahim
The land known as Najd, which for two centuries has been the crucible of the Wahhabi doctrine, is the subject of a body of interesting hadiths and early narrations which repay close analysis. Among the best-known of these hadiths is the relation of Imam al-Bukhari in which Ibn Umar said: ‘The Prophet (s.w.s.) mentioned: "O Allah, give us baraka in our Syria, O Allah, give us baraka in our Yemen." They said: "And in our Najd?" and he said: "O Allah, give us baraka in our Syria, O Allah, give us baraka in our Yemen." They said: "And in our Najd?" and I believe that he said the third time: "In that place are earthquakes, and seditions, and in that place shall rise the devil’s horn [qarn al-shaytan]."’

This hadith is clearly unpalatable to the Najdites themselves, some of whom to this day strive to persuade Muslims from more reputable districts that the hadith does not mean what it clearly says. One device used by such apologists is to utilise a definition which includes Iraq in the frontiers of Najd. By this manoeuvre, the Najdis draw the conclusion that the part of Najd which is condemned so strongly in this hadith is in fact Iraq, and that Najd proper is excluded. Medieval Islamic geographers contest this inherently strange thesis (see for instance Ibn Khurradadhbih, al-Masalik wa’l-mamalik [Leiden, 1887], 125; Ibn Hawqal, Kitab Surat al-ard [Beirut, 1968],18); and limit the northern extent of Najd at Wadi al-Rumma, or to the deserts to the south of al-Mada’in. There is no indication that the places in which the second wave of sedition arose, such as Kufa and Basra, were associated in the mind of the first Muslims with the term ‘Najd’. On the contrary, these places are in every case identified as lying within the land of Iraq.

The evasion of this early understanding of the term in order to exclude Najd, as usually understood, from the purport of the hadith of Najd, has required considerable ingenuity from pro-Najdi writers in the present day. Some apologists attempt to conflate this hadith with a group of other hadiths which associate the ‘devil’s horn’ with ‘the East’, which is supposedly a generic reference to Iraq. While it is true that some late-medieval commentaries also incline to this view, modern geographical knowledge clearly rules it out. Even the briefest glimpse at a modern atlas will show that a straight line drawn to the east of al-Madina al-Munawwara does not pass anywhere near Iraq, but passes some distance to the south of Riyadh; that is to say, through the exact centre of Najd. The hadiths which speak of ‘the East’ in this context hence support the view that Najd is indicated, not Iraq.

On occasion the pro-Najdi apologists also cite the etymological sense of the Arabic word najd, which means ‘high ground’. Again, a brief consultation of an atlas resolves this matter decisively. With the exception of present-day northern Iraq, which was not considered part of Iraq by any Muslim until the present century (it was called ‘al-Jazira’), Iraq is notably flat and low-lying, much of it even today being marshland, while the remainder, up to and well to the north of Baghdad, is flat, low desert or agricultural land. Najd, by contrast, is mostly plateau, culminating in peaks such as Jabal Tayyi‘ (4,500 feet), in the Jabal Shammar range. It is hard to see how the Arabs could have routinely applied a topographic term meaning ‘upland’ to the flat terrain of southern Iraq (the same territory which proved so suitable for tank warfare during the ‘Gulf War’, that notorious source of dispute between Riyadh’s ‘Cavaliers’ and ‘Roundheads’).

Confirmation of this identification is easily located in the hadith literature, which contains numerous references to Najd, all of which clearly denote Central Arabia. To take a few examples out of many dozens: there is the hadith narrated by Abu Daud (Salat al-Safar, 15), which runs: ‘We went out to Najd with Allah’s Messenger (s.w.s.) until we arrived at Dhat al-Riqa‘, where he met a group from Ghatafan [a Najdite tribe].’ In Tirmidhi (Hajj, 57), there is the record of an encounter between the Messenger (s.w.s.) and a Najdi delegation which he received at Arafa (see also Ibn Maja, Manasik, 57). In no such case does the Sunna indicate that Iraq was somehow included in the Prophetic definition of ‘Najd’.

Further evidence can be cited from the cluster of hadiths which identify the miqat points for pilgrims. In a hadith narrated by Imam Nasa’i (Manasik al-Hajj, 22), ‘A’isha (r.a.) declared that ‘Allah’s Messenger (s.w.s.) establised the miqat for the people of Madina at Dhu’l-Hulayfa, for the people of Syria and Egypt at al-Juhfa, for the people of Iraq at Dhat Irq, and for the people of Najd at Qarn, and for the Yemenis at Yalamlam.’ Imam Muslim (Hajj, 2) narrates a similar hadith: ‘for the people of Madina it is Dhu’l-Hulayfa - while on the other road it is al-Juhfa - for the people of Iraq it is Dhat Irq, for the people of Najd it is Qarn, and for the people of Yemen it is Yalamlam.’

These texts constitute unarguable proof that the Prophet (s.w.s.) distinguished between Najd and Iraq, so much so that he appointed two separate miqat points for the inhabitants of each. For him, clearly, Najd did not include Iraq.

There are many hadiths in which the Messenger (s.w.s.) praised particular lands. It is significant that although Najd is the closest of lands to Makka and Madina, it is not praised by any one of these hadiths. The first hadith cited above shows the Messenger’s willingness to pray for Syria and Yemen, and his insistent refusal to pray for Najd. And wherever Najd is mentioned, it is clearly seen as a problematic territory. Consider, for instance, the following noble hadith:

Amr ibn Abasa said: ‘Allah’s Messenger (s.w.s.) was one day reviewing the horses, in the company of Uyayna ibn Hisn ibn Badr al-Fazari. [. . .] Uyayna remarked: "The best of men are those who bear their swords on their shoulders, and carry their lances in the woven stocks of their horses, wearing cloaks, and are the people of the Najd." But Allah’s Messenger (s.w.s.) replied: "You lie! Rather, the best of men are the men of the Yemen. Faith is a Yemeni, the Yemen of [the tribes of] Lakhm and Judham and Amila. [. . .] Hadramawt is better than the tribe of Harith; one tribe is better than another; another is worse [. . .] My Lord commanded me to curse Quraysh, and I cursed them, but he then commanded me to bless them twice, and I did so [. . .] Aslam and Ghifar, and their associates of Juhaina, are better than Asad and Tamim and Ghatafan and Hawazin, in the sight of Allah on the Day of Rising. [. . .] The most numerous tribe in the Garden shall be [the Yemeni tribes of] Madhhij and Ma’kul.’ (Ahmad ibn Hanbal and al-Tabarani, by sound narrators. Cited in Ali ibn Abu Bakr al-Haythami, Majma al-zawa’id wa manba‘ al-fawa’id [Cairo, 1352], X, 43).

The Messenger says ‘You lie!’ to a man who praises Najd. Nowhere does he extol Najd - quite the contrary. But other hadiths in praise of other lands abound. For instance:

Umm Salama narrated that Allah’s Messenger (s.w.s.) gave the following counsel on his deathbed: ‘By Allah, I adjure you by Him, concerning the Egyptians, for you shall be victorious over them, and they will be a support for you and helpers in Allah’s path.’ (Tabarani, classed by al-Haythami as sahih [Majma‘, X, 63].) (For more on the merit of the Egyptians see Sahih Muslim, commentary by Imam al-Nawawi [Cairo, 1347], XVI, 96-7.)

Qays ibn Sa‘d narrated that Allah’s Messenger (s.w.s.) said: ‘Were faith to be suspended from the Pleiades, men from the sons of Faris [south-central Iran] would reach it.’ (Narrated in the Musnads of both Abu Ya‘la and al-Bazzar, classified as Sahih by al-Haythami. Majma, X, 64-5. See further Nawawi’s commentary to Sahih Muslim, XVI, 100.)

Allah’s messenger said: ‘Tranquillity (sakina) is in the people of the Hijaz.’ (al-Bazzar, cited in Haythami, X, 53.)

On the authority of Abu’l-Darda (r.a.), the Messenger of Allah (s.w.s.) said: ‘You will find armies. An army in Syria, in Egypt, in Iraq and in the Yemen.’ (Bazzar and Tabarani, classified as sahih: al-Haythami, Majma, X, 58.) This constitutes praise for these lands as homes of jihad volunteers.

‘The angels of the All-Compassionate spread their wings over Syria.’ (Tabarani, classed as sahih: Majma, X, 60. See also Tirmidhi, commentary of Imam Muhammad ibn Abd al-Rahman al-Mubarakfuri: Tuhfat al-Ahwadhi bi-sharh Jami‘ al-Tirmidhi, X, 454; who confirms it as hasan sahih.)

Abu Hurayra narrated that Allah’s Messenger (s) said: ‘The people of Yemen have come to you. They are tenderer of heart, and more delicate of soul. Faith is a Yemeni, and wisdom is a Yemeni.’ (Tirmidhi, Fi fadl al-Yaman, no.4028. Mubarakfuri, X, 435, 437: hadith hasan sahih. On page 436 Imam Mubarakfuri points out that the ancestors of the Ansar were from the Yemen.)

‘The people of the Yemen are the best people on earth’. (Abu Ya‘la and Bazzar, classified as sahih. Haythami, X, 54-5.)

Allah’s Messenger (s) sent a man to one of the clans of the Arabs, but they insulted and beat him. He came to Allah’s Messenger (s.w.s.) and told him what had occurred. And the Messenger (s) said, ‘Had you gone to the people of Oman, they would not have insulted or beaten you.’ (Muslim, Fada’il al-Sahaba, 57. See Nawawi’s commentary, XVI, 98: ‘this indicates praise for them, and their merit.’)

The above hadiths are culled from a substantial corpus of material which records the Messenger (s.w.s.) praising neighbouring regions. Again, it is striking that although Najd was closer than any other, hadiths in praise of it are completely absent.

This fact is generally known, although not publicised, by Najdites themselves. In an attempt to circumvent or neutralise the explicit and implicit Prophetic condemnation of their province, some refuse to consider that the territorial hadiths might be in any way worthy of attention, and focus their comments on the tribal groupings who dwell in Najd.

The best-known tribe of Central Arabia are the Banu Tamim. There are hadiths which praise virtually all of the major Arab tribal groups, and to indicate the extent of this praise a few examples are listed here:

Allah’s Messenger (s) said: ‘O Allah, bless [the tribe of] Ahmas and its horses and its men sevenfold.’ (Ibn Hanbal, in Haythami, Majma X, 49. According to al-Haythami its narrators are all trustworthy.)

Ghalib b. Abjur said: ‘I mentioned Qays in the presence of Allah’s Messenger (s) and he said, "May Allah show His mercy to Qays." He was asked, "O Messenger of God! Are you asking for His mercy for Qays?" and he replied, "Yes. He followed the religion of our father Ismail b. Ibrahim, Allah’s Friend. Qays! Salute our Yemen! Yemen! Salute our Qays! Qays are Allah’s cavalry upon the earth."’ (Tabarani, declared sahih by al-Haythami, X, 49.)

Abu Hurayra narrated that Allah’s Messenger (s) said: ‘How excellent a people are Azd, sweet-mouthed, honouring their vows, and pure of heart!’ (Ibn Hanbal via a good (hasan) isnad, according to Haythami, X, 49.)

Anas b. Malik said: ‘If we are not from Azd, we are not from the human race.’ (Tirmidhi, Manaqib, 72; confirmed by Mubarakfuri, X, 439 as hasan gharib sahih.)

Abdallah ibn Mas‘ud said: ‘I witnessed Allah’s Messenger (s.w.s.) praying for this clan of Nakh‘.’ Or he said: ‘He praised them until I wished that I was one of them.’ (Ibn Hanbal, with a sound isnad. Haythami, X, 51.)

On the authority of Abdallah ibn Amr ibn al-As, who said: ‘I heard Allah’s Messenger (s.w.s.) saying: "This command [the Caliphate] shall be in Quraysh. No-one shall oppose them without being cast down on his face by Allah, for as long as they establish the religion."’ (Bukhari, Manaqib, 2.)

The hadith which appears to praise Tamim is hence not exceptional, and can by no stretch of the imagination be employed to indicate Tamim’s superiority over other tribes. In fact, out of this vast literature on the merits of the tribes, only one significant account praises Tamim. This runs as follows: Abu Hurayra said: ‘I have continued to love Banu Tamim after I heard three things concerning them from Allah’s Messenger (s.w.s.). "They will be the sternest of my Umma against the Dajjal; one of them was a captive owned by ‘A’isha, and he said: ‘Free her, for she is a descendent of Ismail;’ and when their zakat came, he said: ‘This is the zakat of a people,’ or ‘of my people’."’ (Bukhari, Maghazi, 68.)

This hadith clearly indicates that the rigour of the Tamimites will be used for, and not against, Islam in the final culminating battle against the Dajjal; and this is unquestionably a merit. The second point is less significant, since all the Arabs are descendents of Ismail; while the variant readings of the third point make it difficult to establish its significance in an unambiguous way. Even the most positive interpretation, however, allows us to conclude no more than that the Messenger (s.w.s.) was pleased with that tribe at the moment it paid its zakat. As we shall see, its payment of zakat proved to be short-lived.

Far more numerous are the hadiths which explicitly critique the Tamimites. These hadiths are usually disregarded by pro-Najdite apologists; but traditional Islamic scholarship demands that all, not merely some, of the evidence be mustered and taken as a whole before a verdict can be reached. And a consideration of the abundant critical material on Tamim demonstrates beyond any doubt that this tribe was regarded by the Messenger (s.w.s.) and by the Salaf as deeply problematic.

An early indication of the nature of the Tamimites is given by Allah himself in Sura al-Hujurat. In aya 4 of this sura, He says: ‘Those who call you from behind the chambers: most of them have no sense.’ The occasion for revelation (sabab al-nuzul) here was as follows:

‘The "chambers" (hujurat) were places enclosed by walls. Each of the wives of Allah’s Messenger (s.w.s.) had one of them. The aya was revealed in connection with the delegation of the Banu Tamim who came to the Prophet (s.w.s.). They entered the mosque, and approached the chambers of his wives. They stood outside them and called: "Muhammad! Come out to us!" an action which expressed a good deal of harshness, crudeness and disrespect. Allah’s Messenger (s.w.s.) waited a while, and then came out to them. One of them, known as al-Aqra‘ ibn Habis, said: "Muhammad! To praise me is beautiful, and to criticise me is shameful!" And the Messenger (s.w.s.) replied: "Woe betide you! That is the due of Allah."’ (Imam Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Juzayy, al-Tashil [Beirut, 1403], p.702. See also the other tafsir works; also Ibn Hazm, Jamharat ansab al-‘Arab [Cairo, 1382], 208, in the chapter on Tamim.)

In addition to this Qur’anic critique, abundant hadiths also furnish the Umma with advice about this tribe:

On the authority of Imran ibn Husayn (r.a.): ‘A group of Tamimites came to the Prophet (s.w.s.), and he said: "O tribe of Tamim! Receive good news!" "You promise us good news, so give us something [money]!" they replied. And his face changed. Then some Yemenis came, and he said: "O people of Yemen! Accept good news, even though the tribe of Tamim have not accepted it!" And they said: "We accept." And the Prophet (s.w.s.) began to speak about the beginning of creation, and about the Throne.’ (Bukhari, Bad’ al-Khalq, 1.)

An attribute recurrently ascribed to the Tamimites in the hadith literature is that of misplaced zeal. They are associated with a fanatical form of piety that demands simple and rigid adherence, rather than understanding; and which frequently defies the established authorities of the religion. Imam Muslim records a narration from Abdallah ibn Shaqiq which runs: ‘Ibn Abbas once preached to us after the asr prayer, until the sun set and the stars appeared, and people began to say: "The prayer! The prayer!" A man of the Banu Tamim came up to him and said, constantly and insistently: "The prayer! The prayer!" And Ibn Abbas replied: "Are you teaching me the sunna, you wretch?"’ (Muslim, Salat al-Musafirin, 6.)

Perhaps the best-known of any hadith about a Tamimite, which again draws our attention to their misplaced zeal, is the hadith of Dhu’l-Khuwaysira:

Abu Sa‘id al-Khudri (r.a.) said: ‘We were once in the presence of Allah’s Messenger (s.w.s.) while he was dividing the spoils of war. Dhu’l-Khuwaysira, a man of the Tamim tribe, came up to him and said: "Messenger of Allah, be fair!" He replied: "Woe betide you! Who will be fair if I am not? You are lost and disappointed if I am not fair!" And Umar (r.a.) said, "Messenger of Allah! Give me permission to deal with him, so that I can cut off his head!" But he said: "Let him be. And he has companions. One of you would despise his prayer in their company, and his fast in their company. They recite the Qur’an but it goes no further than their collarbones. They pass through religion as an arrow passes through its target."’ Abu Sa‘id continued: ‘I swear that I was present when Ali ibn Abi Talib fought against them. He ordered that that man be sought out, and he was brought to us.’ (Bukhari, Manaqib, 25. For the ‘passing through’ see Abu’l-Abbas al-Mubarrad, al-Kamil, chapter on ‘Akhbar al-Khawarij’ published separately by Dar al-Fikr al-Hadith [Beirut n.d.], pp.23-4: ‘usually when this happens none of the target’s blood remains upon it’.)

This hadith is taken by the exegetes as a prophecy, and a warning, about the nature of the Kharijites. There is a certain type of believing zealot who goes into religion so hard that he comes out the other side, with little or nothing of it remaining with him. One expert who confirms this is the Hanbali scholar Ibn al-Jawzi, well-known for his hagiographies of Ma‘ruf al-Karkhi and Rabi‘a al-Adawiya. In his book Talbis Iblis. (Beirut, 1403, p.88) under the chapter heading ‘A Mention of the Devil’s Delusion upon the Kharijites’ he narrates the hadith, and then writes: ‘This man was called Dhu al-Khuwaysira al-Tamimi. [...] He was the first Kharijite in Islam. His fault was to be satisfied with his own view; had he paused he would have realised that there is no view superior to that of Allah’s Messenger (s.w.s.).’

Ibn al-Jawzi goes on to document the development of the Kharijite movement, and the central role played by the tribe of Tamim in it. Hence (p.89) ‘The commander of the fight [against the Sunnis, at Harura] was Shabib ibn Rab‘i al-Tamimi’; also (p.92) ‘Amr ibn Bakr al-Tamimi agreed to murder Umar’. All this even though their camp sounded like a beehive, so assiduously were they reciting the Qur’an (p.91).

The Kharijite movement proper commenced at the Siffin arbitration, when the first dissenters left the army of the khalifa Ali (k.A.w.). One of them was Abu Bilal Mirdas, a member of the tribe of Tamim (Ibn Hazm, 223), who despite his constant worship and recitation of the Qur’an became one of the most brutal of the Kharijite zealots. He is remembered as the first who said the Tahkim - the formula ‘The judgment is Allah’s alone’ - on the Day of Siffin, which became the slogan of later Kharijite activism.

In his long analysis of the Kharijite movement, Imam Abd al-Qahir al-Baghdadi also describes the intimate involvement of Tamimites, and of Central Arabians generally, noting that the tribes of Yemen and Hijaz contributed hardly anyone to the Kharijite forces. He gives an account of Dhu’l-Khuwaysira’s later Kharijite activism. Appearing before Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib (k.A.w.) he says: ‘Ibn Abi Talib! I am only fighting you for the sake of Allah and the Afterlife!’ to which Imam Ali replies: ‘Nay, you are like those of whom Allah says, "Shall I inform you who are the ones whose works are most in loss? It is they whose efforts are astray in the life of this world, but who think that they are doing good!" [Kahf, 103].’ (Imam Abd al-Qahir al-Baghdadi, al-Farq bayn al-firaq (Cairo, n.d.), 80; see the note to p.76 for the full identification of Dhu’l-Khuwaysira.)

As Imam Abd al-Qahir gives his account of the early Kharijite rebellions, replete with appalling massacres of innocent Muslim civilians, he makes it clear that the leaders of each of the significant Kharijite movements hailed from Najd. For instance, the Azariqa, one of the most vicious and widespread Khariji movements, were led by Nafi‘ ibn al-Azraq, who was from the Central Arabian tribe of Banu Hanifa (Abd al-Qahir, 82). As the Imam records, ‘Nafi and his followers considered the territory of those who opposed them to be Dar al-Kufr, in which one could slaughter their women and children. [. . .] They used to say: "Our opponents are mushriks, and hence we are not obliged to return anything we hold in trust to them.’ (Abd al-Qahir, 84.) After his death in battle, ‘the Azariqa pledged their allegiance to Ubaydallah ibn Ma’mun al-Tamimi. Al-Muhallab then fought them at Ahwaz, where Ubaidallah ibn Ma’mun himself died, along with his brother Uthman ibn Ma’mun and three hundred of the most fanatical of the Azariqa. The remainder retreated to Aydaj, where they pledged their allegiance to Qatari ibn al-Fuja’a, whom they called Amir al-Mu’minin.’ (Abd al-Qahir, 85-6.) The commentator to Abd al-Qahir’s text reminds us that Ibn Fuja’a was also of Tamim (p.86).

The Azariqa, who massacred countless tens of thousands of Muslims who refused to accept their views, had a rival in the Najdiyya faction of the Kharijites. These were named after Najda ibn Amir, a member of the tribe of Hanifa whose homeland is Najd; Najda himself maintained his army in Yamama, which is part of Najd. (Abd al-Qahir, 87.)

As is the way with Kharijism in all ages, the Najdiyya fragmented amid heated arguments generated by their intolerance of any dissent. The causes of this schism included the Kharijite attack on Madina, which came away with many captives; and different Kharijite ijtihads over sexual relations with Muslim women who, not being Kharijites, they had enslaved. Three major factions emerged from this split, the most dangerous of which was led by Atiyya ibn al-Aswad, again of the tribe of Hanifa. Following Najda’s death, his own faction split, again into three, one of which left Najd to raid the vicinity of Basra (Abd al-Qahir, 90-1).

The last major Kharijite sect was the Ibadiyya, which, in a gentler and much attenuated form, retains a presence even today in Zanzibar, southern Algeria, and Oman. The movement was founded by Abdallah ibn Ibad, another Tamimi. Its best-known doctrine is that non-Ibadis are kuffar: they are not mu’mins, but they are not mushriks either. ‘They forbid secret assassinations [of non-Ibadis], but allow open battles. They allow marriages [with non-Ibadis], and inheritance from them. They claim that all this is to aid them in their war for Allah and His Messenger.’ (Abd al-Qahir, 103.)

The best-known woman among the Kharijites was Qutam bint ‘Alqama, a member of the Tamimite tribe. She is remembered as the one who told her bridegroom, Ibn Muljam, that ‘I will only accept you as my husband at a dowry which I myself must name, which is three thousands dirhams, a male and a female slave, and the murder of Ali!’ He asked, ‘You shall have all that, but how may I accomplish it?’ and she replied, ‘Take him by surprise. If you escape, you will have rescued the people from evil, and will live with your wife; while if you die in the attempt, you will go on to the Garden and a delight that shall never end!’ (Mubarrad, 27.) As is generally known, Ibn Muljam was executed after he stabbed Ali to death outside the mosque in Kufa.

Muslims anxious not to repeat the tragic errors of the past will wish to reflect deeply upon this pattern of events. Tens of thousands of Muslims, absolutely committed to the faith and outstanding for their practical piety, nonetheless fell prey to the Kharijite temptation. The ulema trace the origins of that temptation back to the incident of Dhu’l-Khuwaysira, who considered himself a better Muslim than the Prophet himself (s.w.s.). And he, like the overwhelming majority of the Kharijite leaders who followed in his footsteps, was a Tamimi. Of the non-Tamimi Kharijites, almost all were from Najd.

There is a final issue which Muslims will wish to consider when forming their view of Najd. This is the attitude of the Najdis following the death of the Messenger (s.w.s.). The historians affirm that the great majority of the rebellions against the payment of zakat which broke out during the khilafa of Abu Bakr (r.a.) took place among Najdis. Moreoever, and even more significantly, many of the the Najdi rebellions were grounded in a strange anti-Islamic ideology. The best-known of these was led by Musaylima, who claimed to be a prophet, and who established a rival shari‘a which included quasi-Muslim rituals such as forms of fasting and dietary rules. He also prescribed prayers three times a day, a view that may have influenced the similar ruling in Twelver Shi‘ism. As leader of a rival religion, he and his Najdi enthusiasts were in a state of baghy, heretical revolt against due caliphal authority, and Abu Bakr (r.a.) sent an army against them under Khalid ibn al-Walid. In the year 12 of the Hijra Khalid defeated the Najdis at the Battle of al-Aqraba, a bloody clash that centred on a walled garden which is known to our historians as the Garden of Death, because many great Companions lost their lives there at the hands of the Najdis. (See Abdallah ibn Muslim Ibn Qutayba, Kitab al-Ma‘arif (Cairo, 1960), p.206; Ahmad ibn Yahya al-Baladhuri, Futuh al-buldan (repr. Beirut, n.d., 86.) An indication of the continuity of Najdi religious life is given by the non-Muslim traveller Palgrave, who as late as 1862 found that some Najdi tribesmen continued to revere Musaylima as a prophet. (W. Palgrave, Narrative of a year’s journey through Central and Eastern Arabia [London, 1865], I, 382.)

The other ringleader of Najdi rebellion against the khilafa was a woman known as Sajah, whose full name was Umm Sadir bint Aws, and who belonged to the tribe of Tamim. She made claims to prophethood in the name of a rabb who was ‘in the clouds’, and who gave her revelations by which she succeeded in uniting sections of the Tamim who had argued among themselves over the extent to which they should reject the authority of Madina. Leading several campaigns against tribes who remained loyal to Islam, the Najdi prophetess is said to have thrown in her lot with Musaylima. Other than this, little is known of her fate. (Ibn Qutayba, Ma‘arif, p.405; Baladhuri, Futuh, pp.99-100.)

To all of this evidence, we may add the striking fact that not one of the great muhaddiths, mufassirs, grammarians, historians, or mujahids, has emerged from the land of Najd, despite the extraordinary and blessed profusion of such people in other Islamic lands.



CONCLUSION
A good deal of material concerning Najd and Tamim has been preserved from the time of the Salaf. If we reject the method of some Najdi apologists, a method based on the highly selective quotation of hadiths coupled with the blind imitation of opinions expressed by late-medieval commentary writers, we may reach some reasonably settled and authoritative conclusions regarding Central Arabia and its people. The Qur’an, the sound Hadith, and the experience of the Salaf overwhelmingly concur that Central Arabia is a region of fitna. The first of all fitnas in Islam emerged from that place, notably the arrogance of Dhu’l-Khuwaysira and his like, and also the apostasy and fondness for false prophets which caused such difficulty for Abu Bakr. Subsequently, the Kharijite heresy, overwhelmingly Najdi in its roots, cast a long shadow over the early history of Islam, dividing the Muslims, distracting their armies from the task of conquering Byzantium, and injecting rancour, suspicion, and bitterness among the very earliest generations of Muslims. Only the most determined, blinkered and irresponsible Najdi sympathiser could ignore this evidence, transmitted so reliably from the pure Salaf, and persist in the delusion that Najd and the misguided, literalistic rigorism which it recurrently produces, is somehow an area favoured by Allah.

And Allah knows best. May He unite the Umma through love for the early Muslims who refused bigotry, and may He preserve us from the trap of Kharijism and those who are attracted to its mindset in our time. Amin.

[Debater]

The way you are posting articles and categorising people into salafis and non salafis wouldn't help unite Ummah. Do something positive, if you think you are on the right path and others are wrong then prove it, blaming others and propagating sectarianism would label you a mischief maker only.

[FollowerOfMuhammad]

The way you are posting articles and categorising people into salafis and non salafis wouldn't help unite Ummah. Do something positive, if you think you are on the right path and others are wrong then prove it, blaming others and propagating sectarianism would label you a mischief maker only.

Well dont the salafis categorise Muslims into salafis and Mushriks, y dnt u ask them first. I haveeven seen salafis who refuse to attend sunni marriages treting them as totally non Muslims yet you people speak of unity, hypocritically

[Debater]

Don't use stereotyping; fanatics are everywhere, among all schools of thoughts, hanafis, deobandis, barelvis etc are also not so innocent, they also have mischief makers, as salafis might have.
The truth is that majority of our Muslims are blind fools, who follow their sectarian scholars and propagate sectarian views to join Iblees in splitting this Ummah.

[PASHTUN WARRIOR]

most islamic sects (SHIAS AND SUFIS) came from najd (IRAQ AND IRAN)
the great scholar ibn hajar explained this hadeeth and he lived during bukharis time, 800 adish. so who knows better about the hadeeth, ibn hajr, or some grave worshipping mushrik sufi who doesnt even speak arabic.

the shias are like the christians as they have the trinity (ALLAAH ALI HUSSEIN)

the sufis are like the jews as they worship their scholars.

so i urge all muslims to keep away from that. i was myself a sufi. i am glad that i left sufism. from mushrik to muslim. this is how allaah guides people. MAY ALLAH GUIDE US ALL.

[FollowerOfMuhammad]

most islamic sects (SHIAS AND SUFIS) came from najd (IRAQ AND IRAN)
the great scholar ibn hajar explained this hadeeth and he lived during bukharis time, 800 adish. so who knows better about the hadeeth, ibn hajr, or some grave worshipping mushrik sufi who doesnt even speak arabic.

the shias are like the christians as they have the trinity (ALLAAH ALI HUSSEIN)

the sufis are like the jews as they worship their scholars.

so i urge all muslims to keep away from that. i was myself a sufi. i am glad that i left sufism. from mushrik to muslim. this is how allaah guides people. MAY ALLAH GUIDE US ALL.


Ibn Hajar Asqalani rahmatullahi alai was himself a sufi as well as Muqallid
Besides your crappy info of sufis is due to your lack of knowledge, Sultan Salahuddin Ayyubi was also a sufi , so you mean to say that he is a Jew also

[FollowerOfMuhammad]

frm Imam al Ghazalis Muqashifatul Quloob : Chapter : Sama

Hazrat Imam Asqalani’s interest in Sama:

Hazrat Abul Hasan Asqalani rahmatullahi alai who is the leader of the awliya, expressed great interest in Sama and during the Sama he used to experience ecstasy , has written a book regarding sama in which he has rejected the munkireen of the sama and similarly a large group has written books rejecting those who opposed sama.

[PASHTUN WARRIOR]

salam alykum,
show me evidence that ibn hajr al askalani was a sufi.

this is the thing with you sufis. u make claims without showing evidence. you probably saw a dream. my sufi friend saw ali in his dream and from now on he is worshipping ali, wallahi this is true.

may ALLAAH curse all the sufis.

[Al-muthanaa]

Praises be upon those who follow the guidance.

Firstly I would like to say to "slave of muhammad", that you may worship prophet Muhammad (SAW) and we worship Allah alone. But the prophet is dead and Allah never dies.

So what if najd is not in Iraq? Does that mean that everyone from najd is bad? Just because prophet muhammad said a particular region wil have bad things. Does that mean that everyone from that region is bad. Did not prophet Muhammad say that most of the inhabitants of the hellfire will be women. Does that mean women that all women are bad? huh?

So it doesnt matter where najd is? People get judged by the actions not where they come from? And who said iraq is not a place of fitnah? Certainly, the sahabah understood the ahadith of fitnah to relate about Iraq.

Iraq where the first civil war between the muslims took place. Iraq where Ali was killed. Iraq where Hussain was killed. Iraq where the khawarij, jahmiyah, sufis, and practically all the sects emerged (apart from ahlul sunnah wal jamaah and a few others). Iraq where the most evil of people (the shia) started to swear at the sahabah and wives of the prophet. Iraq where muslims fought, plotted and killed each other.

BUT, iraq is also where the scholors of hadith and fiqh emerged. Iraq is where the sahabah fought some of their best wars against the persions. Iraq is the home of the abbasid khilafah. Iraq is where some of the greatest rulers (starting from Imam Ali) ruled and brought freedom and the light of Islam to many nations around the world.

So even though a place may be a place of fitnah doesnt mean everything about it is bad.

:ahb: :ahb: :ahb:

[FollowerOfMuhammad]

Praises be upon those who follow the guidance.

Firstly I would like to say to "slave of muhammad", that you may worship prophet Muhammad (SAW) and we worship Allah alone. But the prophet is dead and Allah never dies.



I can understand that you have never read the quran or hadith properly :hidban:

Neither have your other salafi friends of whom one said my neck deserved to be cut etc

Read Tafsir ibn abbas and Jalalyn www.altafsir.com , surah azzumar
U will find my id sufficiently justified.
But if you want to follow ibn wahab najdi and not hazrat Abdullah ibn Abbas radhiallahu taa'la anhu, its upto U. besides one type of shirk defined in kitabut ut tawheed is following false scholars in makin permissible as impermissible etc, you may be falling in same line, Beware

[FollowerOfMuhammad]

IBN HAJAR AL-`ASQALANI- a Shadhili Akbari Sufi?:

Ibn Hajar all his life kept in touch with the Shadhili Shaykh Muhammad al-Hanafi and the latter's biographer, al-Battanuni in al-Sirr al-Safi (1:7) describes Ibn Hajar as sitting on his knees before al-Hanafi, taking care not to raise his eyes at him, then kissing his hand before walking backwards to exit the room.

Ibn Hajar in Lisan al-Mizan (5:315) praises the Futuhat al-Makkiyya. He received from Abu Hurayra Ibn al-Dhahabi, from his father Imam al-Dhahabi, the Sufi cloak of Shaykh Muhyi al-Din Ibn `Arabi according to Abu al-Mahasin al-Qaraqji (d. 1205) in Kitab Shawariq al-Anwar al-Jaliyya fi Asanid al-Sadat al-Shadhiliyya ms. Damascus 1522 fol. 59b.

Ibn Hajar wrote a partial commentary of Ibn al-Farid's Sufi poem al-Ta'iyya.
He clearly sides with the Sufi consensus over the fact that al-Khidr is alive and well as he narrates his meeting with many of his own teachers in his monograph al-Zahr al-Nadir fi Naba' al-Khadir and in the Isaba. His student al-Sakhawi said in al-Jawahir wal-Durar fi Tarjimat Shaykh al- Islam Ibn Hajar (1:111) that the Dhikr-beads (sibha) never left his hand in post-`Isha gatherings and lessons.
================================================== ========

In addition i had previous put data frm Mujadid al Islam, Saiful Imaan, Imam AL Ghazali's (radhiallahutaa'la anhu) book , which u refused to believe

[FollowerOfMuhammad]

salam alykum,
show me evidence that ibn hajr al askalani was a sufi.

this is the thing with you sufis. u make claims without showing evidence. you probably saw a dream. my sufi friend saw ali in his dream and from now on he is worshipping ali, wallahi this is true.

may ALLAAH curse all the sufis.


I can show u a Hindu temple made by Salafi Daaiees in my city. So what do you mean to prove , by saying u have crazy friends ?

[abuhariyah]

Don't use stereotyping; fanatics are everywhere, among all schools of thoughts, hanafis, deobandis, barelvis etc are also not so innocent, they also have mischief makers, as salafis might have.
The truth is that majority of our Muslims are blind fools, who follow their sectarian scholars and propagate sectarian views to join Iblees in splitting this Ummah.


And you make the mistake of asumeing unity amougn the muslims is the purpose of Islam. it woudl seem.

The purpose of islam and the obligation of the muslims is to destroy the evil [salaafis/whahabies, ikwan,magians,hindus,jews,aethists,christians,apol ogists,ahmediyyah, etc etc...] and to enjoyen the good[correct teachings of the propeht muhammad salalahu alaayhi wa salaam, the CORRECT AQQEDAH, etc etc]

What does muslim unity have to do with that? the only way to achive muslim unity is to teach muslims correct Aqqedah, somethign a VAST MAJORITY of muslims do NOT have. Sadly.

This ummah will not unit untill al-mahdi, which is inevitable, becasue it was prophizised. And thus that is how it will be.

[Al-muthanaa]

Salam upon those who follow the guidance.

So clever guy, what is the correct aqeeda?

:ahb: :ahb: