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 |  موضوع: The prophet’s consulting PBUH with his companions  الإثنين فبراير 11, 2013 4:54 pm | |
| Praise be to Allah, the Lord of Creations, and Peace and
blessings be upon our prophet Muhammad, the faithful and the
honest.
Oh, Allah, we know nothing but what You teach us. You are
the All- Knower, the Wise. Oh Allah, teach us what is good for us,
and benefit us from what You taught us, and increase our knowledge.
Show us the righteous things as righteous and help us to do them,
and show us the bad things as bad and help us to keep away from
them.
O Allah our Lord, lead us out from the depths of darkness
and illusion, unto the lights of erudition and knowledge, and from the
muddy shallows of lusts unto the heavens of Your Vicinity.
Praise be to Allah! Peace and blessings to
Sayyidina Muhammad, the trustful and faithful. O ’God we have no
knowledge except what You have taught us, You the Omniscient and the
All-Wise.
Teach us what is beneficial to us and let us benefit from it and increase our knowledge.
Show us the truth and help us follow it, and
show us the untruth and help us avoid it. Let us be among those who
listen and follow the best of what is said. Admit us by Your Mercy among
Your righteous slaves.
Dear brothers, we are in the lesson 23rd of
the series: “Prophetic traits”. In our last meeting we have reached the
topic of consulting the companions by the prophet PBUH, and you should
know that this topic is one of the most serious issues that are related
to our daily life, Allah the Almighty said addressing the prophet PBUH:﴾ and consult them in the affairs ﴿ [Aal-’Imran, 159]
prophet PBUH to consult his companions, let me ask: who is the
prophet? He is the master of mankind, the most beloved creature to
Allah, the one who is gifted with shrewdness, the best of Adam’s sons,
the one whom revelation was descended upon, and he is the infallible,
yet, and despite all these characters and privileges, he was asked by
Allah to consult his companions, Allah said:﴾ Then when you have taken a decision, put your trust in Allah, certainly, Allah loves those who put their trust (in Him). ﴿ [Aal-’Imran, 159]
What does concern us in all that?
What is the wisdom behind consulting?
Why, despite the endless wisdom that is included in Allah’s Words, Allah asked the prophet PBUH to consult his companions?
The reason to that is to sooth their souls by consulting them,
namely, when you order someone and he has to carry out your orders, he
will feel himself as a means in your hands, however, on the other hand,
when you consult him, you give him the feeling that he is your partner,
and this is one of the educational tactics.
The prophet used to consult his companions
in all Ghazawat (battles), and consequently, when the companions
recommended meeting the enemy and went out with the prophet PBUH to
fight them, they won’t feel as means rather than partners.
Therefore, consulting soothes the souls of the consultants.
When you ask your wife for her opinion on
something you are intending to do in your house by saying: What do you
think of that matter? Then she says: Yes I see this a right thing to do,
and you start doing it, she will never feel being bossed by you, rather
than being treated as a partner to you.
Hence, the first wisdom the prophet gained by consulting his companions is soothing their souls
Wisdom behind consulting:
Whenever Allah orders his believers of
something, he will show them the wisdom behind this order, and by doing
so, Allah is soothing their hearts, and this exactly what was meant by
the prophet PBUH when he said to Abu Bakr and Umar:
((If you two are agreed upon a counsel, I would not oppose you)) [Ahmad, by Abu Bakr and Omar] What does this mean? It means that when the
prophet PBUH said those words, he was then choosing the wise and the
prudent among his companions to ask for their opinion (or else he won’t
say: “I would not oppose you”), and by this act, he was supporting his
opinion by theirs. Al Nu’man Ibn Basheer said: the prophet PBUH said on
the pulpit: ((He who is not grateful for a little cannot be
grateful for the abundance, and he who is not grateful to people cannot
be grateful to Allah [whereas]to talk about Allah’s blessings is
gratitude, and leaving it is ingratitude (kufr). The community (jama'ah)
[leads to]mercy, and dissension
[leads to]debasement.))
[Ahmad, by Nu’man Ibn Basheer] When you prefer an opinion which you see is
right and evidence-based, and then you consult another person who
recommends the same opinion, you will pluck up strength by that.
Hence, you will feel supported when you see
an opinion and consult a friend who agrees upon what you are going to
do, thus, you will feel the rightness in your opinion, and this is
called “strengthening”.
Therefore, the first wisdom behind
consulting is soothing the souls, whereas the second wisdom is that the
prophet PBUH feels strength because of his companions’ opinion.
We should ally with the opinion of scholars’ majority:
I for one, when I am asked a question, which I know its answer, and I
give it to the inquirer supported by evidence from Quran or Sunna or
the opinion of schools of thoughts, will be relieved when another
scholar gives me the same answer as I gave to that person. Man sometimes
feels stronger because of his brothers, as when they support his
opinion, that makes him feel relieved, still among the herd, and still
one of the believers’ group.
Accordingly, one should never choose the
weak opinion, the solitary one, the poor in evidence, and the odd, yet,
he should ally by the majority of scholars and Muslims. It was reported
by Anas Ibn Malik, he said: I’ve heard the prophet PBUH saying:
((My nation will never gather upon misguidance, and if you witness any conflict, then follow the majority of my nation)) [Ibn Majah, by Anas Ibn Malek] You should know that the prophet PBUH is
exclusively infallible by Allah, while his nation is inclusively
infallible through Muslims’ gathering, and they never gather on
something wrong.
Whenever you read interpretation books, they
say in it most of the time: The majority of scholars said so and so,
hence, be with the majority (of course not the majority of mobs rather
than the majority of scholars) of the believers, as the Majority of mobs
are most likely astray.
﴾ And most of them follow nothing but conjecture ﴿ [Yunus, 36] The majority I am pointing to is the
majority of Muslims, and I might say in other occasions: be with the
minority, and by this I mean: be with the minority of believers when the
majority of people don’t have faith.
Hence, firstly: consulting soothes the
souls, secondly: it strengthens the consultee, assuring him that he is
on the right path, as consulting gives strength and self-confidence.
The prophet set up a good example by consulting his companions: The delicate point in the whole matter is
that when the prophet PBUH consulted his companions carrying out Allah’s
order to him, he lied down a law by this act, in order to be carried
out by his nation after him.
Given he is a prophet who is infallible and
never errs, is guided by revelation, is supported by Allah, is protected
by the divine providence, and is gifted by unlimited wisdom, what about
generations of rulers and scholars to come after him of his nation?
They don’t level up with Him, thus, if they are doubtful in respect of
any matter, they will be in dire need to resort to consulting. Hence, he
made consulting a Sunnah and he set up an example for them.
Given the prophet PBUH is in no need for
consulting his companions because of his wisdom and his infallibility,
he consulted them though in order to set up an example for scholars and
rulers, who will come after his death. Thereby, he lied down a law in
consulting others.
All of you remember the incident when the
prophet PBUH performed only two rak’at in a four Rak’at’s prayer, and
then he was told by his companions:((O Messenger of Allah, has the salah been shortened
or have you forgotten [part of it]?' The Prophet said: 'It has not been
shortened, nor did I forget any part of it." He said: 'Yes, O Messenger
of Allah, you did forget.' Thereupon the Prophet asked (the people) and
they confirmed to him that he offered only two rak’at, so he PBUH said: I
forgot to make this sunnah that should be followed)) [Bukhari by Abu Huriara, without the last part “I forgot…] If the prophet PBUH were never to forget,
not even once, through out his mission, how would he lie down the law of
Sujood Al Sahoo? The only way to do so is to forget, and for that Allah
said:﴾ We shall make you to recite (the Qur'an), so you (O Muhammad) shall not forget (it), Except what Allah, may will ﴿ [Al- A’la, 6-7] Out of profound wisdom, Allah said: “except
what Allah may will”, which means that the prophet PBUH should forget
once to lie down the law of Sujood Al Sahoo, and his superiority
protects him from forgetting, yet, Allah made him, for the wisdom of
law-giving.
Again, the prophet PBUH consulted his
companions to sooth their souls and get strength from their opinion, but
definitely, he is in no need for their opinion and recommendation, as
he is infallible, supported with revelation, and is gifted with wisdom,
hence, he can do without their reasoning, yet he did so in order to set
up a good example for them.Allah ordered the prophet to be an example and law-giver:
You all remember that the prophet PBUH
borrowed money from a Jew from people of the book, and to this, a narrow
minded person might say: Is it rational that the prophet took money
from a Jew, whereas he was surrounded with his companions who were ready
to sacrifice their souls and hearts for him? The answer to that is so
easy: The prophet PBUH didn’t borrow money from a Jew out of need, or
because his companions were negligent to his needs, rather than he meant
to lie down a law that you can deal with people of the book (buy from
them and sell them).
If the prophet PBUH never dealt with people
of the book, you would not be allowed to do so, hence he set up an
example for you and lied down a law by such an act.
Another example to clarify this idea: what do you think of the prophet’s courage? He was described by his companions as follows:
((When the battle used to become fierce and the
eyes seemed to be coming out of the sockets, we were to look for the
Prophet in order to find a shelter behind him, as he was the closest one
among us to the enemy)) This means that the courage of all the
companions wasn't up to the prophet’s courage PBUH, yet, how did he
migrate from Mecca to Madinah?
He did that undercover, hid in the cave of Thawr, asked someone to
bring him news, asked another to bring him food, and a third to wipe off
his traces, why do you think he did that?
Why didn’t he migrate like our Master Umar who challenged all the infidels? Umar said:((Whoever wants to cause grief for his mother and leave his children orphaned, then let him meet me behind that valley)) One might wonder: O Lord, who had more courage, your messenger, or this noble companion? The companion
(Umar) was challenging the infidels, whereas
the prophet PBUH was sneaking out of Mecca and hiding in the cave of
thawr spending three days in it.
The answer to this is very easy: If the
prophet migrated as Umar did, then daring perils would be a mandatory
for a Muslim, and cautious would be impermissible, hence, all nation
will be doomed after him.
Given the prophet’s acts are laws till the
Day of Judgment, the prophet was cautious, he considered the causes, and
he didn’t challenge Quraish, he resorted to the cave of Thawr, he
stayed in it for three days, he asked someone to bring him news, another
to wipe off his traces, and a third to bring him food, not to mention
that he hired a non-Muslim expert in trace tracking (he preferred
expertise).
You can’t say: “I don’t deal but with
Muslims”, when you are afflicted with an intractable disease, and a
Non-Muslim Doctor is the only expert to cure it.
The master of mankind (the Prophet PBUH) hired a non-Muslim expert in
trace tracking; therefore, you should seek expertise per se even if it
is owned by a non-Muslim doctor, when you have a health problem, or an
intractable disease that bewildered the other doctors, and since life is
priceless, you should make use of his expertise for your own benefit.The prophet PBUH is a good example to his nation:
Anyhow, the prophet PBUH is a law-giver, and
when he consulted his companions, he lied down a law for us, for rulers
after him, and for scholars, in order to consult in our matters.
In another incident –similar to the two
Ruk’at’s incident- the prophet PBUH set up a practical example. It was
in Badr Battle, as he had chosen a spot for it. One might say: O Lord,
wasn’t it better that You sent Gabriel to the prophet to choose the
right spot for Badr? Well, it is possible, but why did not Allah send
Gabriel? Was it possible that the prophet was inspired in his heart in
the respect of the most suitable spot for Badr? Well, it is possible as
well, but why none of this had happened? After the prophet PBUH had
chosen a spot according to his own judgment, a polite enthusiastic
companion of best quality asked the prophet:"Has Allâh inspired you to choose this very spot or is it stratagem of war and the product of consultation?"
Pay attention to the accuracy of the companion, as, if this spot was chosen by Revelation, he wouldn’t have said a word
The Prophet (PBUH) replied
"It is stratagem of war and consultation." The man said: "This place is no good” As simple, humble, spontaneous, and
friendly as he was, and without neglecting, bashing or dismissing the
adviser, the prophet never considered that question as an act of
discrediting to his judgment. The prophet asked:
Where is the best place? And the man pointed to
the perfect place and the Prophet (PBUH) approved of his plan and agreed
to carry it out, and he moved the army to that spot. This is leadership, and this is how the prophet PBUH set up an example for his nation after him.
If you happened to be advised by a sincere
and enthusiastic person, bringing all needed evidence to support his
advice, be ware of going arrogant, rejecting, or turning away from him,
and don’t ever do what breaks him because he dared to advise you, but be
the other way around.
The believer accepts the advice and thanks the adviser:
Dear brothers, pay attention to what I am about to say:
Those who praise you won’t exalt you, on the
other hand, those who criticize you are those who exalt you. Whenever
you are criticized by something to which you avoid doing, you will
sublime, and whenever you are praised by someone, you will be keen on
your recent behavior and will never sublime.
I always recall our Master Umar’s saying: “I love the person who gives me my blemishes as a present”.
This is the way a believer should be, he
should be flexible towards advice, a good listener to it, grateful to
the person who offered it, he should never despise him, nor should he
bash or abandon him, further more, he should never consider the advice
as an act of crossing a red line, yet, he should thank the adviser.
As a law-giver, the prophet PBUH consulted his companions to lie down a law to be Sunnah after his death.
Baihakee reported, by Al Hasan, May Allah be pleased with him, he said in regard of the following Ayah:﴾ and consult them in the affairs ﴿ [Aal-’Imran, 159] Allah is aware that the prophet could
dispense with the need of his companions; however, he wanted to lie down
a law to those who will come later on.
Nowadays, you can make use of this law
practically. If you have a family you can consult your wife in
fundamental matters, and there is no harm in doing so.
Along with the same line, the prophet PBUH
consulted Umm Salamah (his wife) in the Agreement of Hudibiya, and
carried out her opinion, so no harm in consulting your oldest sons in
order to sooth their souls, strengthen your opinion, and make them feel
as partners in the family, and above all you teach them to humble down
in their life, to consult others, and you teach them to accept
consultation and advice.The adviser and the one who is advised are to be rewarded:
Dear brothers, he, who accepts the sincere advice given to him, will attain the same reward of the person who offers it.
When you offer your advice you will get a
reward, and he, who accepts it politely and thank you for it will get a
reward as well.
You should know that you are rewarded when
you offer the advice, likewise you are rewarded when you accept it, and
rehearse saying to the adviser: May Allah reward you for advising me
with goodness.
Reported by Ibn Uday and Baihakee in the Shueb, authenticated by Ibn Abbas, May Allah be pleased with both of them, he said:((When the Ayah “and consult them in the affairs” was
descended, the prophet PBUH said: Allah and his messenger (Muhammad
PBUH) don’t need consulting, however, Allah descended this Ayah out of
mercy on my nation, and whoever consults others will never lack
reasoning, and whoever doesn’t abide by it, might be afflicted with
aberrance)) [Ibn Uday and Baihakee] Do you know that by asking a question to an
expert, you are able to summaries fifty years of his experience? If he
is an expert in commerce or industry, and you are about to start a
business of yours, consult him, and, in general, always consult
believers who are honest and wise.
You give respect to the person you consult with:
Also the wisdom behind consulting someone is
to raise high his self-esteem , to let him feel the importance and
acceptance of his opinion, and to feel that he is contributing through
his opinion to this family, company, school, or hospital.
This is what is called: ”the democratic
management”, it is when a hospital manager for example asks doctors
around him: what do you think of so and so? Considering the following
Ayah:
﴾ and consult them in the affairs Then when you have taken a decision, put your trust in Allah ﴿[Aal-’Imran, 159] In order to avoid turning consulting into
chaos, dispersal, business obstruction, and disputes, we should consult
and brain storm, as leadership sometimes needs people’s opinion, yet, in
the end, you should do what is right, taking into consideration all the
opinions, hence, consulting is for taking hints and it is not a
mandatory to take, is not it? This is because Allah said in the
following Ayah:﴾ Then when you have taken a decision, put your trust in Allah ﴿ [Aal-’Imran, 159] When the consultee is poor in his opinion
in the respect of a jurisprudent matter for example, in that case, the
consultant’s opinion (the scholar who is specialist in jurisprudent
matters) is a mandatory to him, and it won’t be a case of consulting to
take hints.
Despotism abolishes reasoning and free choice:
Some have said a nice statement in this respect: “Despotism in opinion wastes the sane, and obliges the choosers”.
When someone acts autocratically despite the
fact of being surrounded by wise guys, he will cancel their reasoning
by such an act. Hence, Despotism abolishes reasoning of wise guys and
turns the free choice of choosers to obligatory, and thereby, the sane
will turn into foolish when he acts autocratically.
Reported by Al Shaf’ee, by Abu Huraira, May Allah be pleased with him, he said:
((I've never seen someone keener on consulting his companions than the prophet PBUH))Consultation is a crucial part of the believer’s life:
We have missed an important point. As we
said before that the wisdom behind consulting others (either you were a
principal, hospital manager, company owner, father, business manager, or
merchant) is to sooth their hearts, strengthen your opinion, and raise
high their self-esteem , we still have another wisdom which unfolds a
great educational purpose, as when you consult others you have the
chance to get to know their reasoning, their points of view, and you can
sift the narrow minded from the wise, the short-sighted from the
long-sighted, and the sincere from the unfaithful, hence, when you are
consulting, you are testing people in the process without their
knowledge.
Consulting is a crucial matter, and Allah
the Almighty described the believer saying: they conduct affairs by
mutual consultation, Allah said:﴾ and who (conduct) their affairs by mutual consultation ﴿ [Ash-Shura, 38] And Allah ordered the prophet PBUH in the following Ayah:﴾ and consult them in the affairs ﴿ [Aal-‘Imran, 159] This means that Shuraa (Consulting) should be part of the believer’s life.Consultee is a subject of help and the consultant is trustworthy:
When he, whom you offer your advice to,
accepts it, makes use of it, and praises you for it, he will be
encouraging this righteous behavior which is enjoined by the noble
Sunnah, and mentioned in Quran.
The prophet PBUH encouraged his companions to
consult each others, and aroused the interest in it, and Aisha, May
Allah pleased with her, said: The prophet PBUH said: ((The consultee is aid seeker, and the consultant
must be trustworthy, so whenever you are consulted, you should consult
of the same opinion you would consult yourself with))[Kashf Al Khafa’a, by Aisha] Allow me to mention the following example:
If someone asked about your opinion in regard of a young man, and you
said to him: He is good or excellent, to which he said to you: Do you
think I should accept him as a husband to my daughter? And you answered:
yes, then he said: I ask you by Allah to tell me, will you accept him
as a husband to your own daughter? At that moment, if you felt deep in
yourself that you won’t accept that young man as a husband to your
daughter, then you should say that to him, therefore, tell the truth and
don’t be diplomatic, as the consultant should be trustworthy. The
prophet PBUH said:((The consultee is aid seeker, and the consultant
must be trustworthy, so whenever you are consulted, you should consult
of the same opinion you would consult yourself with)) [Kashf Al Khafa’a, by Aisha] I know some merchants who wear pants made
of stagnant color of stock fabric just to tell their customers when they
ask if this fabric is good or not: Don’t you see that I wear it. So he
is wearing those pants in order to sell the fabric, and this is
dishonesty.
Others will use the thing they are selling
in order to tell their customers when they are asked about it: I myself
use it in my house. One should consult others with the same thing he
will consult himself with, and that should be for real not just to
display the goods, or out of malice.By consulting we draw out the best of opinions:
Scholars
said: Consulting draws out the sweetest of opinions, and the best of
what hidden in chests, exactly like when we take honey from the bee
hive.
Therefore, when you consult a believer, you are bringing out his wise opinion.
Two days ago in Tawoosyah mosque I was asked
by a brother about a land he bought, but after a while someone claimed
to own part of it and he filed a suit case, and when he asked the owner
about that matter, his papers weren’t complete, and though this brother
won the case and became the owner of the whole land, yet he was not
comfortable that part of it is not owned by the main owner who sold it
to him, and kept feeling worried for three years. The main owner of the
land died and this brother asked me what to do? I said: it is easy, sell
the part that you doubt owning and spend it on the poor as Sadaqah, in
that case if the land was yours then you paid Sadaqah and will be
rewarded for it on the Day of Judgment, and if it wasn’t yours, then it
was kept for its owner to be rewarded in the hereafter (because he is
now dead and if he were alive he would have given it to him), and by
doing so you will be worries free. This man was touched deeply by this
solution which he couldn’t figure out himself, as he was worried that he
has eaten ill-gotten money, given that he who transgresses a p of land
will be in hell, so how about 2000 sq. m. (half acre) of land?
There is a solution for any problem, but you need to seek it in order to find it.
It was mentioned in the relic:“Polish your minds by deliberation, and seek an aid in your matters through consulting” Best of times is when you deliberate
knowledge with others, consult them, ask for their evidence to support
the matter in question, ask for their hints, and swap notes between your
opinion and theirs, in that case, you are polishing your mind by
deliberation, and seeking aid in your matters through consulting.
However, don’t consult just any one; rather you should know who to
consult.﴾ and obey not him whose heart We have made heedless of
Our Remembrance, one who follows his own lusts and whose affair (deeds)
has been lost.﴿ [Al- Kahf, 28]The criteria of the consultant:
You
should consult the believers. Scholars said: the consultant should be
trustworthy, respectful, adviser, steadfast, non self-absorbed, non
hesitant, no liar, and he should not be fond of the matter he is
consulting with (there is no conflict of interests).
Namely, if the matter of consulting is a
garden, then you shouldn’t ask someone who is fond of gardens by saying:
this garden is for me and for my neighbor, so what should I do? In this
case, he might say to you: take it, out of his love to gardens, and he
will be carried away by his love instead of being just. Same goes for he
who is ascetic about worldly life matters, like when you say to him:
there is a disagreement between me and the owner of this store, what
should I do? As he might say to you: leave it to him, because he is not
interested in tangible things, and by this he is giving an opinion that
might be not just for you if you have kids and the store should be yours
according to law. Both men will be giving
opinion very far from rightness, as the fond of the first will blind him
from the truth, and the distance of the second will do the same.
Also don’t consult a stingy person in money
related matters, as he will say to you: keep your money for a rainy day,
hence, the stingy can’t be a consultant.
Instead, you should consult the trustworthy,
respectful, adviser, steadfast, non self-absorbed, non hesitant, and
who is not a liar.
Abu Mas’ood, May Allah be pleased with him, reported that the prophet PBUH said:((The consultee is an aid seeker, and the consultant
must be trustworthy, so whenever you are consulted, you should consult
of the same opinion you would consult yourself with)) [Kashf Al Khafa’a, by Aisha] You are at liberty to pardon yourself from
giving any opinion, and going silent might be the answer, and remember
that you are trusted if consulted, hence, if a great conflict occurred
because of consulting, you should pardon yourself from giving any
opinion and this is better than giving an opinion that you are not
convinced with, or give an opinion opposite to what you know, as this is
a major sin, so be ware of consulting others with the opposite of what
you know.Guidance is sought from Allah and consulting from experts:
At-Tabaranee reported by Anas Ibn Malek, that the prophet PBUH said:((There will be no disappointing in performing
Istikharah Salah (seeking guidance from Allah by performing two
Ruka’at), and there will be no regret in consulting)) [At-Tabaranee by Anas] Istikharah is all about seeking aid form Allah, whereas consulting is sought from experts among believers.
Being a believer only is not enough, and
being an expert only is not enough, you should have both to be
consulted. If the consultant was not a believer, then he won’t be a good
adviser, as in his advice, he might have a conflict of interests, so he
will hinder it from you, whereas the inexperienced believer will give
you his opinion out of ignorance. Therefore, Guidance is sought from
Allah and consulting is sought from experts.
Finally: “Whoever consults wise men will be borrowing their minds”.
You can gain fifty years of experience from
someone by asking him nicely: What do you think of this matter Master?
And remember, he who consults wise men will be borrowing their minds.
I hope that we make use of this lecture
practically in our daily life, and get yourself used to consulting
others, to asking, to brain storming, to resorting to experts, to the
pious, and to the believers, either in you trading or traveling, and
beware of acting autocratically, as this will lead you to the worst of
your deeds.Translation : Noora Al SharabiEdited by : Rana Saraqbi
Source
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