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In the Name of Allah, the All-Merciful... ]
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The
sixth one: Whoever mocks anything from
the Religion of the Messenger or Allah's
reward or punishment has disbelieved. [2]
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The
sixth kind of apostasy is mockery of what Allah sent down
or of anything that the Messenger came with, even things from
the Sunnahs (of the Prophet, sallallaahu 'alayhe wa sallam)
or recommended things like siwaak, trimming the moustache,
removing armpit hair, or trimming the nails. If a person makes
mockery of any of these things he becomes a disbeliever. The
evidence for this is found in the Statement of Allah the Most
High:
"And
if you were to ask them, they would say: 'Surely we were
only jesting and playing.' Say: 'Was it Allah, His
Verses,
or His Messenger you were mocking? Make no mistake,
verily you have disbelieved after your belief.' "
[3]
So
then the one who mocks anything that the Messenger came with,
be it obligatory or recommended, he is an apostate from the
Religion of Islam. So then what do you think about the one
who says, "Growing the beard, trimming the moustache,
removing armpit hair, washing the knuckles, these are insignificant
things!" This is exactly what is meant by mockery
of the Religion of Allah, the Mighty and Majestic. When they
say this thing, and if they know (it is from the Religion),
then they have apostated, since this is belittling what the
Messenger (sallallaahu 'alayhe wa sallam) came with.
It is obligatory to have great reverence for the Sunnah of
the Messenger (sallallaahu 'alayhe wa sallam) and to
respect it.
Even
if a person falls into some kind of opposition (to the Sunnah)
due to his desires, then surely he still must respect the
way of the Messenger (sallallaahu 'alayhe wa sallam),
respect his Sunnahs, and respect the narrations. He must not
say, "These are insignificant things."
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The
proof is the Statement of Allah the Most High:
"Say: 'Was it Allah, His Verses, or His Messenger
you were mocking? Make no mistake, verily
you have disbelieved after your belief.' "
[4]
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The
event that led to the revelation of this Verse was what happened
with a group of people who were with the Messenger (sallallaahu
'alayhe wa sallam) during the Battle of Tabook. They were
Muslims. During a gathering they began to say, "We
have not seen the likes these reciters of ours, the most untruthful
tongues, the greediest stomachs, the most cowardly in the
face of the enemy…" They were referring to the
Messenger of Allah (sallallaahu 'alayhe wa sallam)
and his Companions.
Amongst
them was a young man from the Companions who became enraged
at this speech and went to convey what this group was saying
to the Messenger of Allah (sallallaahu 'alayhe wa sallam).
He found that the revelation had preceded him (in informing
the Messenger).
So
then the group came apologizing once they heard that the Messenger
had become aware of what happened in their gathering. One
of them was hanging on to the front harness of the Prophet's
she-camel while he (sallallaahu 'alayhe wa sallam)
was riding it, saying, "O Messenger of Allah! We were
just talking loosely to help pass the time during the journey!
We did not intend mockery, rather we only intended to joke."
The Messenger (sallallaahu 'alayhe wa sallam) would
not even look at him, he only recited upon him this Verse:
"And
if you were to ask them, they would say: 'Surely we were
only jesting and playing.' Say: 'Was it Allah, His
Verses,
or His Messenger you were mocking? Make no mistake,
verily you have disbelieved after your belief.' "
[3]
Notice
His Statement, "Verily you have disbelieved after
your belief." This proves that before
they had uttered words (of mockery) they were Muslims, and
that when they uttered them they apostated from Islam, even
though they were saying that it was a joke. This is because
the affairs of the Religion are not to be played with, so
Allah had declared them to be disbelievers after their faith.
We ask Allah for safety. [4]
This
is also proof that whoever insults Allah, His Messenger, His
Book, anything from the Quran, or anything from the Sunnah
of the Messenger (sallallaahu 'alayhe wa sallam) apostates
from Islam, even if he was joking. [5]
Where
are those who say that he does not apostate unless he intends
it in his heart? They say, "If a person insulted Allah,
the Messenger, or the Quran, we do not pass a judgement upon
based merely on his utterance or his action." Where
do they get these statements and these specifications from?
Allah has judged them with apostasy while they were saying:
"We
were jesting and playing." [3]
They
were believers in Allah and His Messenger, people of tawheed,
however, once they uttered those words, Allah said:
"Verily
you have disbelieved after your belief." [3]
And
He did not say, "If you had truly believed that."
We ask Allah for safety.
So
it is obligatory that things are put in their proper places
and that we do not add things, take them away, or specify
the texts from our own selves. Allah did not ask about what
they believed, nor did He mention that they believed (what
they said), rather He ruled on them with apostasy after having
faith:
"Verily
you have disbelieved after your belief." [3]
He
based this (ruling) on a statement. He based this (ruling)
on mockery, and He did not specify it with these specifications.
If a person speaks with a word of disbelief without being
forced into it, then he is judged with apostasy. However,
if he was forced [6], then he has not apostated in this case.
This
article was taken from BAKKAHnet (www.bakkah.net)
