In
the Name of Allaah, the All-Merciful, may His Salaah
and Salaam be upon His final Messenger, to proceed:
The
Hadeeth of the Strong Believer
On
the authority of Aboo Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with
him), the Prophet (sallallaahu 'alayhe wa sallam) said:
"The
strong believer is better and more beloved to Allaah than
the weak believer, while there is good in both. Guard over
that which benefits you, seek Allaah's Assistance, wa laa
ta'jiz (don't lend yourself to things devoid of benefit,
and this could carry many meanings), and if something befalls
you, then don't say 'If I only would have done such and such,'
rather say, 'Qaddarallaahu wa maa shaa' fa'al' (Allaah
ordained (this) and He does what He wills), for verily
the phrase 'If I would have' makes way for the work of Shaytaan."
The
Takhreej of the Hadeeth (where it can be found)
As-Suyootee
gathered it in Al-Jaami'us-Sagheer, and Al-Albaanee
numbered it #6650 and called it 'hasan'. He traced
it to Saheeh Muslim, Ibn Maajah, and Ahmad. He brought it
in his summarized Saheeh Muslim #1840 but did not mention
why it is hasan, but he mentions in his takhreej
of As-Sunnah of Ibn Abee 'Aasim that As-Suyootee found
a problem with Rabee'ah bin 'Uthmaan (one of the narrators).
Statements
of the Scholars About the Strong Believer
Shaykh
Al-Islaam Ibn Taymiyyah (may
Allaah have Mercy on him)
Shaykh
Al-Islaam referred to the hadeeth when discussing the prayer
of a sick person standing up, saying: "As for the prayer
of those who can not properly perform it, then their prayer
is acceptable in any way that it is possible for them to perform
it, according to their abilities, as this is what they have
been ordered with in this circumstance, while the one who
is capable of performing his prayers properly is more sound
and more virtuous, as the Prophet (sallaahu 'alayhe wa
sallam) said, 'The
strong believer is better and more beloved to Allaah than
the weak believer, while there is good in both.'"
[2]
So
here we see that Ibn Taymiyyah understood that physical
strength is something found in the strong believer.
Shaykh
Al-Islaam Ibn Al-Qayyim Al-Jawziyyah (may
Allaah have Mercy on him)
"The
one who has insight into the Truth and an awareness of it,
but he is weak and has no strength to implement it or to call
to it, then this is the situation of the weak believer. The
strong believer is better and more beloved to Allaah than
him." [3]
We
can see that Ibn Al-Qayyim understood that courage
is from the strength of the believer.
Imaam
An-Nawawee (may Allaah have
Mercy on him)
"The
intended meaning of strength here is a firm will and a desire
to work for the Hereafter. So the one being described as a
strong believer is more bold and stern against the enemy in
Jihaad, quicker to go out (to fight) and searching for it
(Jihaad), more firm in the way he enjoins the good and forbids
the evil, (more firm) in his patience with the harms he faces
throughout all of that, and stronger in the way he carries
out difficult tasks for Allaah's Sake. He loves to pray, fast,
make thikr, and perform the rest of the acts of worship,
and he is more active in seeking after these affairs, and
he keeps a closer watch over his performance of them."
[4]
Shaykh
Muhammad bin Saalih Al-'Uthaymeen
(may Allaah have Mercy on him)
"'The
strong believer' is regarding his eemaan (faith), as
the intended meaning is not physical strength. [5] This is
because physical strength is harmful to a person who uses
it to disobey Allaah. So physical strength is neither praiseworthy
nor blameworthy in itself. If he uses this strength for what
benefits him in this life and the Next, then it is praiseworthy.
But if he uses it to disobey Allaah, it becomes blameworthy.
So
the meaning of strength in his statement (sallallaahu 'alayhe
wa sallam), 'The strong believer...'
is strength in eemaan, since the word 'strong'
refers to the word 'believer', someone who has eemaan.
Similarly, one would say 'a strong man' if he was referring
to his manhood and masculinity. So the strong believer is
strong in his eemaan, because the strong believer has
the strength to carry out what Allaah ordered him to do, and
to increase upon that by doing extra good deeds however Allaah
likes. As for the weak believer, his eemaan is weak,
and that hinders him from performing his duties and avoiding
what is prohibited, so he is always falling short." [6]
Shaykh
Saalih Al-Fawzaan (may Allaah preserve him)
"The
believer who is strong in his eemaan, body, and actions,
is better than the weak believer, the one who has weak eemaan,
or a weak body or weak actions. That is because the strong
believer is productive and accomplishes things for the Muslims,
and thus they benefit from his physical strength, actions,
and his strong eemaan. They benefit greatly from that
in Jihaad in Allaah's Way, in other affairs that benefit the
Muslims, and in defending Islaam and the Muslims.
He
also humiliates the enemies, and can stand up to their challenges.
This is something the weak believer can not do. So from this
angle the strong believer is better than the weak one, while
there is good in both, since eemaan in its entirity
is good, so there is good in the weak believer. But the strong
believer has more goodness for himself, his Religion, and
his brother Muslims.
So
this hadeeth is an encouragement to have strength, as Islaam
is the Religion on strength, the Religion of honor, the Religion
of prestige! The Muslims are always to be possessors of strength,
as Allaah, the Glorified and Exalted, says [7]:
(
And prepare for them all the might you can gather, including
riding beasts, to threaten Allaah's and your enemies with
)
And
Allaah, Most High, says [8]:
(
And to Allaah belongs all Honor, and to His Messenger, and
to the Muslims )
And
He, Most High, says [9]:
(
And you will be the superior ones, if you are indeed believers
)
So
the strength that is sought from us in Islaam is strength
in eemaan and 'aqeedah, as well as strength
in our actions and bodies, because all of this brings forth
good things for the Muslims. [10]
An
Important Point
If
one looks at the text of the hadeeth itself, he will find
something very interesting. Notice that the Prophet (sallallaahu
'alayhe wa sallam) started by saying, "The
strong believer is better and more beloved to Allaah than
the weak believer, while there is good in both..."
and then it may seem like the subject of the hadeeth shifts
to something else.
Rather, this hadeeth is an encouragement to be a strong believer
from the beginning to the end!
Yes,
after informing us about the superiority of the strong believer,
the Prophet (sallallaahu 'alayhe wa sallam) detailed
some ways to become a strong believer, giving us four pieces
of advice, all of them related to eemaan:
1
- Guard over what benefits you
2
- Seek Allaah's Assistance
3
- Don't lend yourself to things devoid of benefit
4
- Say "Qaddarallaahu wa maa shaa' fa'al"
through calamities
All
these things are matters that will increase you in eemaan,
thus making you a stronger believer. So the Prophet (sallallaahu
'alayhe wa sallam) was not wandering into another topic
here, rather he was giving us some actual steps to take that
will help us become strong believers.
So
the first source of explanation of this hadeeth, the Prophet
(sallallaahu 'alayhe wa sallam) himself, already answered
these natural questions that arise: "What is a strong
believer?" and "How do I become one?"
It's all here in this short and concise hadeeth!
The
strong believer is the one who guards over that which benefits
him, seeks Allaah's Aid, doesn't lend himself to affairs devoid
of benefit, and understands firmly that what happens is from
Allaah's Qadr (Divine Will), saying, "Qaddarallaahu wa
maa shaa' fa'al", among the other things that his
eemaan would necessitate.
Conclusion
The
believer who has strong eemaan is more likely to be
fit and in shape. This is because he understands the importance
of Jihaad and staying in shape in preparation for it, while
the weak believer may easily get fat and out of shape, from
his overeating and laziness. So physical strength is a direct
result of strength in eemaan.
Conversely,
a person could be a topnotch bodybuilder and superb athlete,
but he can't even wake up for Fajr, and Allaah is the
One whose Help is sought! So clearly his strength is not making
him better nor more beloved to Allaah, so how could he be
considered a strong believer?! [11]
And
Allaah knows best.
This
article was taken from BAKKAHnet (www.bakkah.net)
