“Slaughtering animals for anybody other than Allah is
harâm. When they slaughter animals with this intention, just as the hypocrites
of this umma did in order to approach the stars, they will become murtadds
(apostates) even if they say the Basmala while slaughtering. It is not halâl to
eat what they butcher. Az-Zamakhsharî [Abu ’l-Qâsim Mahmûd Jârullâh
al-Mu’tazilî, who died in Jurjâniyya in
in the name of a person other than Allah are of this
kind. Mentioning the name of that person, for example, saying, ‘This is for
sayyida so-and-so,’ or ‘for sayyid so-and-so,’ [even if said long] before
slaughtering animals, does not make any difference. Saying ‘Bismi’llâh’ when
cutting such nadhrs is of no use. Vowing food and drink for persons other than
Allah to approach them is another example of this. Taking food and drink to
tombs and giving it to the poor there for the benefit of the dead or to receive
blessings from them is also equal to performing nadhr for somebody other than
Allah, for example, for idols, for the sun, the moon or graves, or swearing in the
name of a person other than Allah. Both are polytheistic. It is a sin by the
unanimity of Muslims that some heretics vow candles or oil for lamps at tombs.
Vowing to give some goods to the poor who serve at tombs is like vowing for
servants of idols in a church. These deeds are of worship, but are polytheistic
when done in someone else’s name other than Allah. Shaikh Qâsim, a Hanafî
scholar, writes in his book Durar: ‘Some ignorant people, whose friends or relatives are
travelling in a far country or are ill or who have lost something, visit graves
of pious Muslims and vow to give them that much gold coins or candles or this
much food or drink if Allâhu ta’âlâ makes the traveller return safely or the
sick recover or the lost thing be found. Such vows are superstitious. Vowing is
an ’ibâda to be performed for nobody but Allah. The dead do not possess
anything and nothing can be given to them. Only Allah does everything. The dead
cannot do anything. It is kufr to believe that they can.’ Ibn Nujaim says in his
book Bahr, ’Such hereises are often committed at Ahmad
al-Badawî’s tomb. Hanafî scholar Shaikh Sun’-Allâh al-Halabî[1]
said that it was not permissible to slaughter animals or to make a vow for
awliyâ’. Ahmad al-Badawî’s tomb is in the city of Tanta. He was a spy of the
Mulassama State, which was near Morocco. This spy deceived Muslims with tricks
and lies. His tomb is like a church now. People vow for him. They worship him.
Three hundred thousand people go on pilgrimage to this idol every year.’ “
When the above lines of his book are carefully
analysed, it is
[1] Sun’-Allâh al-Halabî al-Makkî al-Hanafî passed away in 1117 A.H. (1705). His work Saif-Allâh ’alâ man kadhdhaba ’alâ awliyâ’illâh narrates the karâmât of awliyâ’ (rahimahum-Allâhu ta’âlâ) in detail.
seen that he first cheats Muslims by quoting âyats and
hadîths and invaluable statements from the ’ulamâ’ of for Ahl as-Sunna and then
lists harâms, makrûhs, even mubâhs as for polytheism and unbelief. He likens
the beloved pious servants of Allâhu ta’âlâ to idols, and their tombs to
churches. He proclaims the awliyâ’ of Ahl as-Sunna (rahimahum-Allâhu ta’âlâ)
and the pure, faithful Muslims to be unbelievers or polytheists under the
pretext of critizing the unbecoming and corrupt deeds of the ignorant and
stupid people of the seventy-two heretical groups. To protect Muslims from
being deceived by such tricks and from deviating from the right path conveyed
by the ’ulamâ’ of Ahl as-Sunna, we will translate ten pages of the Arabic work Ashadd al-jihâd fî ibtâli dâ’wa ’l-ijtihâd[1]
by Dawûd ibn Sulaimân al-Baghdâdî, which will enable the reader to understand
that the Wahhâbîs are lying.
Before the translation, it is proper to give a short
biography of Ahmad ibn ’Alî al-Badawî (rahmat-Allâhi ’alaih), whom that author
called an idol and who passed away in Tanta, Egypt, in
[1] This work was reproduced with the book Minhat al-Wahbiyya in one volume many times by Hakikat Kitabevi, Istanbul.
knowledge just as he is ignorant in the sciences of
tafsîr and hadîth. Because Arabic is his mother tongue, he gives corrupt
meanings with a swift pen to âyats and hadîths and to the quotations from the
’ulamâ’ of Islam. He reads these statements, which are full of subtle and high
knowledge, much like the way he reads a newspaper and thinks that they mean
what he himself understands with his empty head and short reasoning. Sayyid
Qutb, who was one of such lâ-madhhabî men ignorant of Islam and who was killed
upon the fitna he started in Egypt in
Sayyid Dâwûd ibn Sulaimân (rahmat-Allâhi
’alaih) wrote:
“Some people say that it is unbelief and polytheism to
make a vow and slaughter animals for Allâhu ta’âlâ, to give their meat to the
poor and to send the resultant thawâb as gifts to prophets
(’alaihimu ’s-salawatu wa ’t-taslîmât) and awliyâ’ (rahimahum-Allâhu ta’âlâ).
It is necessary to answer them immediately. They are the lâ-madhhabî people.
They follow neither the imâms of madhhabs nor any of the ’ulamâ’ of Islam. They
make statements out of their own short sight and deficient logic. Here, we
shall first refute them and then present what the ’ulamâ’ of Islam have
written.
“Allâhu ta’âlâ declares, ‘Allâhu ta’âlâ knows the alms you give to
the poor and the nadhrs you vow,’ in
the 272nd âyat al-karîma of Sûrat al-Baqara and, ‘They should perform their nadhrs!’ in the 29th âyat al-karîma of Surat al-Hajj. He
praises those who vow nadhr by declaring, ‘They perform what they have vowed,’ in the seventh âyat al-karîma of Sûrat ad-Dahr. In
these âyats, Allâhu ta’âlâ means that He knows those who vow nadhr and praises
them. He declares that nadhr is the livelihood (nafaqa) for the poor. It was
asked of Rasûlullâh (sall-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’alaihi wa sallam): ‘If a man or
a woman vows to cut a camel somewhere outside Mecca, will it be like the camels
that were slaughtered in front of the idols in the time of Jâhiliyya?’ He said,
‘No, it will not be so! He
or she should perform that nadhr! Allâhu ta’âlâ is present at and sees every
place. He knows what intention
everybody has.’ This hadîth
sharîf is sufficient as a refutation to
heretical words. It is permissible to slaughter an animal, which has been vowed
as nadhr for the sake of Allâhu ta’âlâ, near the grave of a pious person, to
give the meat as alms to the poor who are there and to send the resultant
thawâb to the soul of that pious person. It is not sinful. The animal vowed to
be slaughtered for Allah’s sake should no doubt be cut. Slaughtering an animal
for Allah’s sake is an ’ibâda. And giving the meat as alms to the poor is
another ’ibâda. Each of these two ’ibâdas will be rewarded separately.
“That author’s likening nadhr for the dead and
slaughtering animals near graves for Allah’s sake to idolatry is a great
slander against Muslims. He should have proven this by documenting it with
âyats and hadîths, but he has not been able to provide such a proof against
nadhr. He presents Muslims as the subject of the âyats which were revealed
about unbelievers and polytheists. Mentioning the things which are reported to
be harâm or makrûh or even jâ’iz (permissible) in the books of fuqahâ’, he
raises the outcry, ‘This is kufr and that is shirk!’ In fact, he does not
respect the imâms of madhhabs and fuqahâ’. He quotes passages which suit his
interests or help his wrong proofs to deceive and to delude the Muslims of Ahl
as-Sunna. However, he follows what he himself understands from âyats and
hadîths. He puts forward the 173rd âyat al-karîma of Sûrat al-Baqara: ‘Polytheists commit ihlâl (calling loudly the name) of someone other than Allah.’ He always puts forward this âyat karîma as a basis
for his arguments. He says that anyone who slaughters an animal with the
intention of it being for someone other than Allâhu ta’âlâ becomes an
unbeliever or a polytheist. Then, according to his statements all Muslims
become unbelievers, for millions of animals are butchered in Muslim countries
everyday not for Allâhu ta’âlâ’s sake or with the intention of worship but just
for commercial or nutritional purposes. What will he say about this while he
says that anyone who slaughters an animal for any being other than Allah becomes
an unbeliever?
“The lâ-madhhabî say that it is permissible to
slaughter animals away from graves and send the thawâb to the souls of the
dead. But this, too, should be unbelief and polytheism according to them. They
say that they cut animals for Allah and give the meat to the poor and send the
thawâb to the souls of the dead. We say, ‘We, too, cut with this same intention
for prophets and awliyâ’. How do you know that the one who cuts
animals for them
has a wrong intention? Only Allâhu ta’âlâ and the one
to whom He reveals it can know someone’s intention. No one else can ever know.’
The world ihlâl in the above âyat al-karîma, used frequently by them,
means ‘calling loudly.’ During the time of Jâhiliyya, idolaters would shout
‘for al-Lât’ or ‘for al-’Uzzâ’ when they cut animals. Muslims say ‘Bismi’llâh’ or ‘Allâhu akbar’ when they cut, whereas the idolaters called the names
of the idols instead of Allah. If a Muslim says ‘for ’Abd al-Qâdir al-Jîlânî’
(rahmat-Allâhi ’alaih) or ‘for Ahmad al-Badawî’ (rahimah-Allâhu ta’âlâ) instead
of mentioning Allah while cutting and if he says this intentionally, this deed
of his is harâm. If he said so because he is ignorant, the ’ulamâ’ should teach
him to correct his intention. He cannot be said to be an unbeliever at once. We
shall give further explanation on this subject.
“The book Radd al-muhtâr, derived
from Qâsim ibn Qatlûbugha’s commentary to Durar al-bihâr,
and the books Bakhr
ar-râ’iq and Nahr al-fâ’iq write: ‘If the nadhr that ignorant people vow and the
candle-oil or candle and money taken to tombs to approach awliyâ’ are only for
the dead, then these deeds are superstitious and harâm and are not acts of
unbelief or polytheism. They are permissible if done with the view of giving
them to the poor and sending the thawâb to the souls of awliyâ’. Qâsim ibn
Qatlûbugha [al-Misrî al-Hanafî, who passed away in
the above statement belongs to Qâsim, who was the
disciple of Kamâl ad-dîn Muhammad ibn al-Humâm [b.
“In summary, three intentions are kept together in
mind while vowing to cut an animal for awliyâ’, the beloved servants of Allâhu
ta’âlâ: to cut the animal for Allâhu ta’âlâ; to give its meat and other parts
as alms to the poor; to send the resulting thawâb to the soul of the walî.
Every Muslim vows to cut animals with this composite intention. Performing such
a vow is better than cutting an animal for guests, because, guests may be rich
and it may not
[1] It is written in Durr al-mukhtâr, a book of fiqh, that this âyat karîma is about the action of slaughtering and burying animals and not giving them to the poor. Therefore, it is ihlâl to bury and not to allow the hungry and needy poor in Minâ to take the animals slaughtered during the season of hajj. Those who do so might become polytheists or unbelievers.
[2] The information about nadhr in Shams ad-dîn Muhammad al-Qonawî’s commentary to Durar al-bihâr is explained in Radd al-muhtâr by Ibn ’Âbidîn.
be permissible for them to accept alms. However,
cutting an animal for a sultan or statesman or one’s expected travelling
visitor on their arrival, without distributing it to the poor but leaving it to
rot, is like the idolaters’ slaughtering animals for their idols. In fact, this
is harâm according to the Shâfi’î madhhab.
“People asked ’Allâma Ibn Hajar al-Makkî
(rahmat-Allâhi ’alaih): ‘Is it permissible to vow nadhr for a living walî? Is
it necessary to give the things vowed to that walî or to a poor person? Is it
permissible to vow nadhr for a dead walî? Is it necessary to give the property
vowed to the walî’s children and relatives or to the ones who follow him, his
students? Is it sahîh to vow a nadhr to construct domes, walls or banisters
over the grave or to plaster it?’
“He answered: It is sahîh to make a vow for a living
walî. It is wâjib to give the goods vowed to him. It is not permissible to give
it to anybody else. As for making a vow for a dead walî, it is false and
non-sahîh if one intends the thing vowed to be for the dead; the vow is sahîh
when intended for charity, for example, to be given to the walî’s children,
students or the poor who live near his tomb or somewhere else, and it is wâjib
to give the things vowed. If the one who vows has not determined the way he
will perform his vow, he will act according to the customs of his contemporary
Muslims. Almost every Muslim thinks of giving it to one of the above-mentioned
kinds of people and sending the thawâb as a present to the dead when he vows
saying ‘this be my nadhr’ for a dead person, and, since the one who vows knows
the firmly established customs, he will have vowed according to the customs.
His nadhr is sahîh like it is in waqf; if the one who devotes something to a
waqf does not mention any condition, he will have devoted under the conditions
of the conventional customs. Vowing to construct or to plaster tombs is bâtil
(supersititious). To al-Imâm al-Izra’î [Ahmad ash-Shâfi’î, who passed away in
Damascus in
The source of these fatwâs were the articles written
about the nadhr made for al-Imâm ar-Rafi’î’s [’Abd al-Karîm ash-Shâfi’î, who
passed away in Kazvin in
[In the book Durar wa Ghurar, one of
the most valuable books of fiqh in the Hanafî madhhab, Molla Muhammad Husrev
(rahmat-Allâhi ’alaih), who passed away in Bursa in
sharîf prohibits the performance of supererogatory
salât as the fulfilment of an absolute vow, too. As it is understood,
performing an ’ibâda for a conditional vow is in no way a payment for the
fulfilment of the condition, but it is a thanksgiving to Allâhu ta’âlâ like
performing sajdat ash-shukr (prostration meant to thank Him); Allâhu ta’âlâ’s
Mercy is asked through that ’ibâda and through the prayers of the pious person
to whom the thawâb of the ’ibâda is sent as a present.]
“According to the Mâlikî madhhab, as
written in the annotation of Mukhtasar-i Khalîl, ‘A
person who takes an animal, e.g. a camel or a sheep, to a place out of Mecca,
for example, to Rasûlullâh’s (sall-Allâhu ’alaihi wa sallam) or a walî’s grave
with a verbal or non-verbal intention of slaughtering shall slaughther it and
give its meat as alms to the poor. If a person wishes to send things such as
clothing, money or food to such a tomb with the intention of distributing them
among the servants there, he shall send it to them even if they are wealthy. If
he intends to present the thawâb to them, he distributes them among the poor in
his own country. If he has not determined a certain intention, or if he dies
before communicating his intention, it is carried out according to the customs
of his country.’ Ibn ’Arafa [Ahmad al-Andalusî, who died in Morocco in
“As for the Hanbalî madhhab, Mansûr
ibn Yûnus al-Bahutî [d. in Egypt in
“Making a vow to slaughter an animal for a prophet
or walî means to slaughter for Allâhu ta’âlâ’s sake and to offer the
thawâb to him. The hadîth ash-sharîf declares, ‘May Allah damn the one who slaughters
animal for someone other than Allah!’
Ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawziyya, in his book Kitâb al-kabâ’ir, Imâm
Muhammad az-Zahabî [d. in Egypt in
“We stated above that it is harâm to slaughter animals
to curry favour with the sultan or a statesman when he comes. It is permissible
to slaughter when one becomes happy for their arrival or for the birth of one’s
child or for the purpose of calming the anger of a person. Conciliating someone
is different from currying favour with that person. And slaughtering for idols
is a completely different deed. As for the animals slaughtered for genies, it
is permissible to slaughter for Allah and to expect that Allah will thus
protect one against genies. It is harâm to slaughter without this expectation.
“It is seen that the ’ulamâ’ of Islam have dealt with
every matter and have left nothing to be added by anybody. In their books,
everybody has found answers to his problems. If a stupid and ignorant man comes
out to disseminate corrupt ideas with a view to divide Muslims, to bring
discord, to blame the ’ulamâ’ of Islam and to disfavour the ones who work on
the right path, it will be understood that he is a heretic or zindîq, and a
wise person will not believe or be deceived by him. Only those who resemble the
Dajjâl’s soldiers will believe such a stupid man and say ‘wrong’ for what is
right and ‘ugly’ for what is beautiful.
“Muslims touch their closed eyes with the nails of
their thumbs and say, “You are the light of my eyes, oh Rasûl-Allâh! when they
hear the muadhdhin (müezzin) call out Rasûlullâh’s (sall-Allâhu
ta’âlâ ’alaihi wa sallam) name. This is written by some ’ulamâ’, for example
ad-Dairabî in his book Mujarrabât. We have not seen any hadîth sharîf about
this before, but the hadîth
ash-sharîf, ‘Rahmat (Allah’s Mercy) descends
where the pious persons are mentioned,’
indicates that
this deed is permissible. Imâm Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Ibn al-Jawzî and Ibn Hajar
confirmed the authenticity of this hadîth sharîf, which is also
quoted by al-Imâm as-Suyûtî in his Jâmi’ as-saghîr. Our Prophet
(sall-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’alaihi wa sallam) is certainly the highest of all prophets
and the pious. And Allâhu ta’âlâ shows Mercy and Grace when His name is
mentioned. Prayers said when Allâhu ta’âlâ shows Mercy will be accepted. It is
a prayer for one’s happiness in this world and the hereafter to say, ‘My eyes
gain light and my heart is joyful with you, oh Rasûl-Allâh!’ when the adhân is
heard. Such a prayer is compatible with Islam. Hanafî scholar at-Tahtâwî,
writes on the authority of al-Quhistânî in his annotation of Marâq al-falâh: It is mustahab to put the thumbs on one’s eyes and
say, ‘Qurrat ’aynayya bika
yâ Rasûl-Allâh! Allâhumma matti’nî bi ’s-sam’i wa ’l-basari,’ when the muezzin recites Rasûlullâh’s (sall-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’alaihi wa sallam) name for the second time in
the adhân, because Rasûlullâh will take the one who does so to Paradise. In his
annotation of the tafsîr by al-Baidâwî, Shaikh-zâda [Muhammad al-Hanafî, who
passed away in Istanbul in
and to say, ‘Qurrat ’aynayya bika yâ Rasûl-Allâh!’ upon hearing that blessed name being repeated and then to put the two thumbs on one’s eyes and to say, ‘Allâhumma matti’nî bi ’s-sam’i wa ’l-basari!’ before removing one’s thumbs; our master Rasûlullâh (sall-Allâhu ’alaihi wa sallam) will take this person to Paradise.”