Sharh as-Sunnah : Lesson 55: Point 97
Shaykh Fawzan | Dawud Burbank [Audio|English]
Imaam Barbahaaree rahimahullaah said:
And acknowledge the excellence of the Banu Haashim due to their kinship to Allaah’s Messenger sallAllaahu `alayhi wa sallam and acknowledge the excellence of the Quraysh and of the Arabs and of the branches of the tribes. Acknowledge their station and their rights in Islaam. And the freed slave who belonged to a people is one of them. And acknowledge the rights of the rest of the people in Islaam.
Shaykh Fawzan’s Explanation:
His saying, “acknowledge the excellence of the Banu Haashim (clan of Haashim),” the Banu Haashim; clan of Haashim ibn `Abd Manaaf (the son of `Abd Manaaf) because `Abd Manaaf had a number of sons and they were:
(1)Haashim who is the grandfather of the Messenger sallAllaahu `alayhi wa sallam and (2)`Abdu-Shams who is the grandfather of `Uthmaan ibn Affaan radiyAllaahu `anhu and (3) Nawfal ibn `Abd Manaaf who is the grandfather of Hakeem ibn Hizaam radiyAllaahu `anhu and (4) al-Muttalib ibn `Abd Manaaf who is the grandfather of Banu Muttalib.
They are all the sons of `Abd Manaaf. And the Messenger sallAllaahu `alayhi wa sallam was raised amongst the Banu Haashim (clan of Haashim), the son of `Abd Manaaf; so he was a Haashimee Qurayshee (larger tribe of Quraysh from the clan of Haashim; children of Haashim). And he sallAllaahu `alayhi wa sallam said:
“Allaah chose Kinaanah from the descendants of Ismaa’eel and he chose from Kinaanah, the Quraysh and he chose from the Quraysh, Banu Haashim and he chose me from the Banu Haashim.”[1]
So they are the qaraabah (kinfolk) of the Messenger sallAllaahu `alayhi wa sallam; the believers from Banu Haashim. They are the qaraabah (kinfolk) who have the right upon the Muslims. It is forbidden for them to accept charity (sadaqah) but it is permissible for them to accept a gift (hadiyyah).
As for other than the believers then they have no worth even if they are from Banu Haashim. Rather, it is only when qaraabah (close kinship) comes along with eemaan (true faith) then in that case, there is no doubt that they have distinction over other people and they have the right that they be shown honour and respect and they have the right to be respected and given precedence since this is a part of the respect of the Messenger sallAllaahu `alayhi wa sallam. However, if they are not believers (mu’mineen) then all that is the case is that they are from Banu Haashim and they are disbelievers so there is no honour for them. And the same goes to everyone who ascribes themselves to the Banu Haashim who is not upon the way of the Ahlus-Sunnah W`al Jamaa`ah and not upright then he has no worth. So, it is not just being merely closely related on its own that brings about the right. Rather, it is kinship along with having eemaan (true faith). He, the Most High, said:
قُل لَّا أَسْأَلُكُمْ عَلَيْهِ أَجْرًا إِلَّا الْمَوَدَّةَ فِي الْقُرْبَىٰ
Say, I do not ask you for any reward for conveying the truth to you but I enjoin you to show love towards me by respecting my close relatives (qurbaa). (Sooratush-Shoorah (42), aayah 23)
Meaning, the close relatives of the Messenger sallAllaahu `alayhi wa sallam in one saying. And Allaah appointed for them a share of the khumus (fifth part of booty). He, the Most High, said:
وَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّمَا غَنِمْتُم مِّن شَيْءٍ فَأَنَّ لِلَّهِ خُمُسَهُ وَلِلرَّسُولِ وَلِذِي الْقُرْبَىٰ
And you should know that whatever you take as booty then one fifth of it is assigned for Allaah, the Messenger and the close relatives of the Messenger. (Sooratul-Anfaal (8), aayah 41)
Thil-Qurbaa-The close relatives of the Messenger sallAllaahu `alayhi wa sallam.
His saying, “and acknowledge the excellence of the Quraysh and of the Arabs,” after the Banu Haashim (clan of Haashim) is the virtue of the Muslims from the Quraysh. They have excellence over the rest of the Arabs; then the Arabs have excellence over the `ajam (non-Arabs). Why? Because Allaah sent down the Qur’aan in their language and He sent the Messenger sallAllaahu `alayhi wa sallam from them and He chose them to convey His message and therefore, He, the Majestic and Most High, said in the Qur’aan:
فَاسْتَمْسِكْ بِالَّذِي أُوحِيَ إِلَيْكَ ۖ إِنَّكَ عَلَىٰ صِرَاطٍ مُّسْتَقِيمٍ
وَإِنَّهُ لَذِكْرٌ لَّكَ
(In an address to the Prophet sallAllaahu `alayhi wa sallam)
So hold fast to this Qur’aan that has been sent down to you. Indeed you are upon a straight and true path and it will be an honour for you. (Sooratuz-Zukhruf (43), aayah 43-44)
Meaning, the Qur·aan will be an honour for you and for your people; meaning the Arabs and you shall soon be questioned concerning it. You people will soon be questioned about the implementation of this Qur·aan and about the call to it and about having conveyed it, because Allaah gave them the duty of bearing it and conveying it to the rest of the world. So this is the aspect for which the Arabs have superiority. They were not given excellence just because they were Arabs alone; rather, they were given superiority on account of what they are specified with by Allaah with regard to the Qur·aan and the Sunnah and the sending of the Messenger sallAllaahu `alayhi wa sallam and because they carry out the duty of conveying this religion. He, the Most High, said:
كُنتُمْ خَيْرَ أُمَّةٍ أُخْرِجَتْ لِلنَّاسِ تَأْمُرُونَ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَتَنْهَوْنَ عَنِ الْمُنكَرِ وَتُؤْمِنُونَ بِاللَّهِ
You are the best nation that has been brought out for mankind, you command the good and you forbid the evil and you truly believe in Allaah. (Soorah Aali `Imraan (3), aayah 110)
And He said:
وَلْتَكُن مِّنكُمْ أُمَّةٌ يَدْعُونَ إِلَى الْخَيْرِ وَيَأْمُرُونَ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَيَنْهَوْنَ عَنِ الْمُنكَرِ ۚ وَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْمُفْلِحُونَ
And let there be from amongst you a group who call the people to the good and they command the good and they forbid the evil and they are the ones who will be successful. (Soorah Aali `Imraan (3), aayah 104)
So this is the aspect in which the Arabs have specific excellence. When they adhere to this religion and they convey it, then they have virtue over others. As for those who do not adhere to this religion then he has no excellence because Allaah, the Majestic and Most High, says:
يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ إِنَّا خَلَقْنَاكُم مِّن ذَكَرٍ وَأُنثَىٰ وَجَعَلْنَاكُمْ شُعُوبًا وَقَبَائِلَ لِتَعَارَفُوا ۚ إِنَّ أَكْرَمَكُمْ عِندَ اللَّهِ أَتْقَاكُمْ
O mankind! We have created you all from a single male and female and we made from you nations and tribes so that you should become acquainted with each other. Indeed the most honourable of you with Allaah are those who have the most taqwaa (the most dutiful to Allaah). (Sooratul-Hujuraat (49), aayah 13)
And the Prophet sallAllaahu `alayhi wa sallam said:
“There is no excellence for an Arab over a non-Arab nor for a white person over a black person except on account of taqwaa (dutifulness to Allaah). All of you are from Aadam and Aadam was from earth.” [2]
So this is the angle from which the Arabs have superiority. If they establish the duty that Allaah has given to them to propagate this religion and to call to it and to explain it to mankind then they will be more excellent than others.
His saying, “and likewise all the branches of the tribes,” Al-Afkhaath means a subsection of the tribes. So first there is the tribe meaning the large unit of the tribe then there are the Afkhaath; branches of the tribe so it is a part of the tribe.
His saying, “So acknowledge their station and their rights in Islaam.” Each one in accordance with his own virtue and right.
His saying, “And the freed slave who belonged to a people is from them”. This is a hadeeth from the Messenger sallAllaahu `alayhi wa sallam.[3] Meaning al-`ateeq; meaning a slave who has been set free. So a person who has been set free by the Haashimiyyeen (clan of Haashim), he will have the ruling of being from the clan of Haashim; or somebody who was a slave who had been set free by anybody else, he will have the same ruling as them.
Footnotes:
[1] Reported by Muslim (2,276) from a hadeeth of Waathilah ibn al-Asqa` radiyAllaahu `anhu.
[2] Translator’s side point: With regard to this narration, they don’t mention any reference here in the footnotes but Shaykh al-Albaaniyy mentioned this narration occurs in the explanation of At-Tahaawiyyah and Shaykh al-Albaaniyy mentioned in his notes, note no. 461 that this narration is saheeh and that it occurs in the Musnad of Imaam Ahmad especially the first part of the narration and the latter part you can find it also in the Mu`jam al-Awsat of At–Tabaraaniyy and in the Musnad of Al-Bazdaar.
[3] Reported by Al-Bukhaariyy (6761) from Anas ibn Maalik radiyAllaahu `anhu from the Prophet sallAllaahu `alayhi wa sallam that he said:
“The slave set free by a people is from them themselves.”
Translator’s side point: As for the explanation of Shaykh Ahmad an-Najmee rahimahullaah then he said starting off with the point with regard to Banu Haashim he said, “I say Banu Haashim (the clan of Haashim), they have virtue on account of their being close relatives of Allaah’s Messenger sallAllaahu `alayhi wa sallam and Allaah, the Perfect and Most High, said to His Messenger sallAllaahu `alayhi wa sallam:
قُل لَّا أَسْأَلُكُمْ عَلَيْهِ أَجْرًا إِلَّا الْمَوَدَّةَ فِي الْقُرْبَىٰ
Say, I do not ask you for any reward for conveying the truth to you but I enjoin you to show love towards me by respecting the rights of my kinsfolk. (Sooratush-Shoorah (42), aayah 23)
So his saying, “I enjoin you to show love towards me by respecting the rights of my close relatives.” Meaning that that is not counted as taking reward but rather that the Messenger of Allaah sallAllaahu `alayhi wa sallam sought from the nation that they should recognise the rights of his kinsfolk and respect them from their respect for him and that they should show honour to them as a part of their showing honour to him for indeed a Muslim has rights upon the Muslim.
So then a Muslim who is from the Banu Haashim who clings to his religion will have the right of Islaam and he will have the right that is due to a close relative of the Prophet sallAllaahu `alayhi wa sallam and likewise the rest of the branches of the Quraysh except that Allaah has not put the duty upon us to love those who are not upon the correct `aqeedah and who are not upright upon Islaam. And indeed the Prophet sallAllaahu `alayhi wa sallam freed himself from those who are contrary to his way. So he salawaatullaahi wa salaamuhu `alayh said:
“Indeed the people of the father; meaning so and so, they are not my awliyaa (friends and allies). Rather my guardian Lord is Allaah and my allies are the righteous believers.”
[Reported by Muslim and Al-Bukhaariyy.]
His saying, “and the rest of the branches,” meaning, the rest of the branches of the Quraysh and the tribes of the Arabs. Their rights in Islaam should be recognised and Allaah grants success.
Ithaaful-Qaaree bit-Ta`leeqaat `alaa Sharhis-Sunnah
(A Gift To The Reader In Annotation Of Sharh As-Sunnah)
by Shaykh Saalih ibn Fowzaan al-Fowzaan hafizahullaah
Translated by Aboo Talhah Daawood Burbank, rahimahullaah
Transcribed by Saima Zaher.
Posted with kind permission from Dawud Burbank rahimahullaah
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