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Kitaab At-Tawheed, Chapter: 28

Allah (swt ), says:

" And instead [of thanking Allah] for the provision He gives you, on the contrary, you deny [Him] by disbelief" (Qur'an 56:82)

Allah (swt ), Most Glorified, Most High, rebukes those who reject His Blessings upon them, such as the rain which gives life to the land, causing the crops and fruits of the earth to grow; instead, they attribute it to the movements of the stars which can neither harm nor benefit, saying: "We have been given rain by virtue of the movement of the moon and the stars."

1. That good and evil are ordained by Allah.

2. That the rain is a blessing from Allah.

3. Attributing blessings to other than Allah is an act of disbelief in Him.

That it proves that whoever attributes blessings such as the rain to the movements of the moon and stars is a disbeliever.

That it rejects the claims of those who attribute blessings to other than Allah (swt ), such as the sending of the rain, because such a belief is shirk.

..ooOOoo..

It is reported on the authority of Ibn Malik Al-Ash'ari (ra ) that the Messenger of Allah (saas ) said:

"There are four traits remaining from the Jaahiliyyah to be found in my Ummah, which they will not abandon: (i) Pride in the nobility of one's ancestors, (ii) defaming the ancestors of others, (iii) seeking rainfall from the stars and excessive mourning and wailing for the dead." And he (saas ) added: "The wailing woman, if she does not repent before she dies, will be raised on the Day of Resurrection with a dress of liquid tar and a cloak of mange or scabies." (Narrated by Muslim)

It being the intention of Islam to cut off every connection with the iniquitous customs of the Jahiliyyah, the Messenger of Allah (saas ) informs us in this Hadith, in a spirit of censure and rebuke, that four customs of the Days of Ignorance will remain in this Ummah: The first is pride in the nobility of one's lineage for this leads to slackness and idleness, as one rests on the laurels of one's forebears; the second is the disparagement of the ancestry of others which leads to a situation in which people spend their time in seeking out weaknesses and defects in each others' backgrounds which causes the reputation of Islam and the Muslims to suffer and results in division and enmity amongst them; the third is seeking rainfall from the stars because it causes the hearts to become attached to other than Allah (swt ) and humility before His creations which possess no power to benefit or harm; and the fourth is excessive mourning and bewailing of the dead and eulogising them in loud voices for this suggests non-acceptance of Allah's Ordainments, and adversely affects the deceased's family and spreads depression and despair; because of this, the Prophet (saas ) stressed the punishment of such wailing women, should they not repent to Allah (swt ) before they die.

1. The refutation of the evil customs practised during the Jahiliyyah.

2. The prohibition of pride in one's ancestry, of defaming the lineage of others, and of excessive mourning and bewailing of the dead.

3. That those who seek rain from the stars in the belief that they can, of their own accord send rain, are disbelievers, while those who believe that the stars are the cause of rain, but that Allah (swt ) made them so, are guilty of an act of disbelief, without being considered disbelievers.

4. The acceptance of repentance as long as it is before the death of the penitent.

5. Confirmation of the miracle of the Prophet (saas ), since his prophesy has proved true in every respect.

6. Confirmation of the reality of the Resurrection and the Requital.

That the Hadith proves the forbiddance of seeking rain from the movements of the stars.

That the Hadith rejects seeking rain from the stars as this necessitates requesting blessings from other than Allah (swt ), which is shirk.

It is permissible to mention a person by a nickname such as "the son of the tall one" or "the son of the thin man" or "the son of the lame one" etc., even though the person so named may dislike it, if it is the only way in which he can be identified.

..ooOOoo..

It is narrated by Bukhari and Muslim, on the authority of Zaid Ibn Khalid Al-Juhani (ra ) that he said: "Allah's Messenger (saas ) prayed the morning prayer with us in Al-Hudaibiyyah after it had rained during the night, and when he had finished, he addressed the people, saying: "Do you know what your Rabb said?" They said: "Allah (swt ) and His Messenger (saas ) know best!" He (saas ) said: (Allah swt said:) "Some of My slaves this morning are true Believers in Me and others are disbelievers: As for those who say: "We have received rain from the Bounty of Allah (swt ) and His Mercy," they are Believers in Me and disbelievers in the stars, while those who say: "We have received rain from the movements of such-and-such a star," are disbelievers in Me and believers in the stars."

Zaid Ibn Khalid (ra ) tells us in this Hadith that the Prophet (saas ) led the people in fajr prayer in the area known as Al-Hudaibiyyah, after a night of rain. After the prayer, facing the people, He (saas ) addressed them, wishing to encourage them to do good and to increase their knowledge; He (saas ) told them that Allah (swt ) had revealed to him that regarding the rain, the people are divided into two categories: (i) Those who thank Him and (ii) those who are ungrateful to Him. As for those who are grateful and believe in Him, they are the ones who attribute the blessing of rain to Allah (swt ); and as for those who are ungrateful and disbelieve in Him, they are the ones who attribute the rainfall to the positions of the planets and stars.

1. The virtue of the Imam addressing the congregation after finishing the prayer.

2. The virtue of infusing knowledge by asking: "Do you know.?"

3. Confirmation of Allah's Divine Attribute of Speech.

4. The correct manner of responding to a question in religious matters when one does not know the answer.

5. The forbiddance of rejecting Allah's Blessings.

6. Confirmation of Allah's Divine Attribute of Mercy.

7. That attributing Allah's Blessings to other than Allah is kufr.

8. The forbiddance of saying: "We have received rain due to the position of such-and-such a star."

That the Hadith proves that attributing rainfall to the movements or positions of stars is forbidden.

That the Hadith shows that whoever attributes rainfall to the stars' movements is a disbeliever because he has attributed blessings to other than Allah (swt ), Who is the Source of all blessings.

..ooOOoo..

It is reported by Bukhari and Muslim, on the authority of Ibn `Abbas (ra ) a Hadith carrying the same meaning as the previous Hadith: "Some (of the people) said: "The promise of rain of such-and-such a star has come true." Then Allah (swt ) revealed the following verses:

" Furthermore, I call to witness the setting of the stars - and that is indeed a mighty oath, did you but know it - that this is indeed a Qur'an most honourable, in a Book well-guarded, which none has touched except the pure ones [i.e. the angels]: A Revelation from the Lord of the worlds. Is it such a Message as you would deny? and instead [of thanking Allah] for the provision He gives you, on the contrary, you deny [Him] by disbelief" (Qur'an 56:75-82)

In these verses, Allah (swt ), Most High, swears by the setting of the stars concerning the greatness of the Qur'an and its blessings, that it is preserved in a Book, which is in the hands of the angels, touched by none but the angels, and that it was revealed from the Owner of creation and the Director of its affairs, and that it is not, as the disbeliever's claimed, poetry, or magic. Then Allah (swt ) rebukes those who support the disbeliever's in the Qur'an and abet them by attributing to the stars that which is for Allah (swt ), Alone, i.e. the rain, for this is a denial of the Qur'an which clearly states that it is Allah (swt ) Who sends the rain.

1. That it is for Allah (swt ) to swear by anything He Wills, but it is not permissible for His slaves to swear except by Allah (swt ), or one of His Divine Attributes.

2. Confirmation of the greatness of Qur'an and that Allah (swt ) has preserved it from all corruption and change.

3. That the Qur'an was revealed, not created.

4. Confirmation of Allah's Divine Attribute of being Above His creation.

5. The forbiddance of friendly relations at the expense of religion.

6. The prohibition of attributing the rain to the movements of the heavenly bodies.

That it proves that whoever attributed blessings to other than Allah (swt ) is a disbeliever.

That the verse rejects the claim that blessings come from other than Allah (swt ); this includes attributing the rain to the movements of the stars and planets, because this is shirk.

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