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Quran Revealed In Truth, Quran Descended In Truth

[Quran – 17:105] “We have sent down the Qur’an with the Truth, and it is with the Truth that it has descended.”

QUR’AN Described by Ali (May ALLAH Be Pleased with him), the 4th Caliph of Islam

“Kitabullah (The Book of ALLAH) is the way, for it contains information of what happened before you, news of what will come after you a decision regarding matters that will occur among you. It is the Distinguisher and is not jesting. If any overweening person abandons it, Allah will break him, and if anyone seeks guidance elsewhere ALLAH will lead him astray. It is ALLAH’S stalwart rope, the wise reminder, the straight path; it is by which desires do not swerve nor the tongue becomes confused, and the learned cannot grasp it completely. It is not worn out by repetition nor its wonders ever cease. It is that of which the jinn did not hesitate to remark when they heard it: ‘We have heard a wonderful recitation which guides to what is right, and we believe in it; he who utters it speaks the truth, he who acts according it is rewarded, he who pronounces judgment according to it is just, and he who invites people to it guides them to the straight path” [At-Tirmidhi, Sunan, Fada’il al-Qur’an:14, Hadith #2906]

Fear Allah Wherever You Are

Abu Dharr al-Ghifari and Mu`adh b, Jabal relate that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Fear Allah wherever you are. Follow up a bad deed with a good deed and it will blot it out. And deal with people in a good manner.” [ Sunan al-Tirmidhi ]

The importance of this hadith:

Ibn Rajab says: “This is powerful advice, bringing together the rights of Allah and the rights of His servants..”

The fear of Allah
The Arabic word for the “fear of Allah” is taqwa. It comes from the root word meaning “to protect from something, to prevent”. Indeed, a person exhibits the fear of Allah by seeking to prevent Allah’s punishment by carrying out what Allah has commanded of him and abstaining from what Allah has prohibited him.

Allah had called upon all people in every era to fear Him. Allah says: “And We had enjoined upon those who were given the Scripture before – as well as yourselves – to fear Allah.” [ Surah al-Nisa’ : 131]

It is Allah’s right over His servants that they fear Him as He ought to be feared. Allah says: “O you who believe! Fear Allah as He ought to be feared and do not die except as believers.” [ Surah Al `Imran : 102]

Ibn Mas`ud explained what it means to fear Allah as He ought to be feared by saying: “It means that He is to be obeyed not disobeyed, remembered not forgotten, and shown gratitude, not ingratitude.”

The fear of Allah is the path to forgiveness, salvation, and the attainment of Allah’s mercy. Allah says:

“Indeed, Allah is with those who fear Him and those who do good.” [ Surah al-Nahl : 128]

“And My mercy encompasses all things, and I shall decree it for those who fear Me.” [ Surah al-A`raf : 156]

“He is worthy of being feared and worthy of granting forgiveness.” [ Surah al-Muddaththir : 56]

“And whoever fears Allah – He will pardon him his sins and grant him a great reward.” [ Surah al-Talaq : 5]

“Indeed, those who fear Allah will be among gardens and rivers, in a seat of truth near an All-Powerful Sovereign.” [ Surah al-Qamar : 54-55]

Allah promises those who fear Him that He will provide for their needs and grant them a way out of their worldly difficulties. Allah says: “And whoever fears Allah, He will make for him a way out, and provide for him from whence he could never imagine.” [ Sûrah al-Talaq: 2-3]

This is Allah’s promise. We should draw strength from it when we are tired in life with difficulties that tempt us to resort to what Allah has forbidden.

The relationship between knowledge and the fear of Allah
Allah says: “It is only those who have knowledge among Allah’s servants who fear Him.” [ Surah Fatir: 28]

There are two ways in which knowledge and the fear of Allah are related. The first is that true fear of Allah comes about as the result of having proper knowledge of Allah and His perfect attributes.

Ibn Abbas said about this verse: “They are those who know that Allah is capable of all things.”

He also said: “The verse means: The only people who fear me are those who know my power, my might, and my dominion..”

Ibn Kathir says in his commentary of this verse: “The only people who fear Allah in the true sense are those who are knowledgeable about Allah. This is because the more knowledge a person has about the Almighty, the All-Powerful and All-Knowing, who possesses the attributes of perfection and the best of names – the more perfect and complete this knowledge is – the greater and more total his fear of Allah will be.” [ Tafsir Ibn Kathir ]

The second way that the fear of Allah and knowledge are related stems from the fact that the fear of Allah is to seek to prevent Allah’s punishment by carrying out Allah’s commands and abstaining from His prohibitions. Consequently, a Muslim needs to have knowledge of these matters in order to fear Allah properly. An ignorant Muslim may have a sense of fear, but he will not be able to fully carry out what that fear requires of him.

Ibn `Abbas said: “To have knowledge of the Most Merciful is to be someone who associates nothing as a partner with Him, who deems lawful what He has made lawful, who prohibits what He has prohibited, who preserves what He has enjoined upon him, and who has certainty that he shall meet Him and that his actions will be accounted for.”

Follow up a bad deed with a good deed
The Prophet (peace be upon him) tells us that performing a good deed wipes away the sin incurred from perpetrating an evil one. Scholars have disagreed whether the “good deed” being referred to here refers specifically to the context of repentance or whether it is general for all good works.

The strongest view is that all good deeds can wipe away evil deeds. Allah says: “And establish prayer at the two ends of the day and at the approach of the night. Indeed, good works do away with evil deeds. That is a reminder for those who take heed.” [ Surah Hud: 114]

A man once came to the Prophet (peace be upon him) and informed him that he had contact with a woman like a husband has with his wife, except that he did not go so far as to fornicate with her. This man had just prayed the Fajr prayer. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Have you prayed with us the Fajr prayer?” When he replied that he had, the Prophet (peace be upon him) recited: “Indeed, good works do away with evil deeds.” [ Sahîh al-Bukhârî (526) and Sahîh Muslim (2763)]

However, a believer should always repent for his sins. Allah says: “And those, who when they commit an indecency or wrong themselves, remember Allah and seek forgiveness for their sins – and who forgives sins except Allah – and then do not knowingly persist in what they have done, for them is forgiveness from their Lord and gardens beneath which rivers flow, wherein they shall abide forever. How great is the reward for those who work righteousness.” [ Surah Al `Imran : 135]

A believer should follow up his sincere repentance with the performance of good works. This is what Allah wants from us. He says: “Indeed, I am Most Forgiving to whoever repents, believes, and works righteous deeds and then continues upon guidance.” [ Surah Taha: 82]

Allah also tells us: “Except for those who repent, believe, and work righteous deeds. For those, Allah will change their evil deeds into good deeds, and Allah is Most Forgiving, Most Merciful.” [ Sûrah al-Furqan: 70] This is especially true for major sins. A Muslim must never leave a major sin to go without repentance, for Allah’s promise of forgiveness is for those who turn to Him in sincere repentance. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “A servant, if he acknowledges his sin and then repents, Allah will forgive him.” [ Sahih al-Bukhari (4141) and Sahîh Muslim (2770)]

And deal with people in a good manner
Allah tells us repeatedly in the Qur’ân to observe good manners in our dealings with others. He says: “Keep to forgiveness (O Muhammad), and enjoin kindness, and turn away from those who are ignorant.” [ Surah al-A`raf : 199]

Allah says: “Nor can goodness and evil be equal. Repel (evil) with what is better. Then he between whom and you there had been hatred will become as though he were your dear friend.” [ Sûrah Fussilat : 34]

The Prophet (peace be upon him) is the perfect example of what it means to possess good manners. Allah says, describing him: “Indeed you are of a great moral character.” [ Surah al-Qalam : 4]

The Prophet (peace be upon him) emphasized how good manners are of paramount importance in Islam when he said: “I was sent only to perfect good manners.” [ Musnad Ahmad (8952)]

Indeed, he tells us those good manners are part of faith. He said: “The believers with the most complete faith are those who have the best manners.” [ Sunan al-Tirmidhi (1162) and Sunan Abî Dawud (4682)]

Among the good manners that we should cultivate is to be sensible in our dealings with others and not to react hastily when they do that which displeases us. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said to Ashajj `Abd Qays: “You possess within yourself two qualities that Allah loves: discernment and forbearance.” [ Sahîh Muslim (17)]

Convey From Me Even If It Be One Ayah

The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Convey from me even if one ayah (verse) for it may be that the one being informed will comprehend better than the one listening (at present).” (Al-Bukhari)

We learn from these words of wisdom that this Hadith encompasses the entire religion of Islam with respect to speech, belief, and actions. Likewise, from the perspective of acting upon it with knowledge and from the perspective of calling towards it as much as one is able to. The Prophet (peace be upon him) implemented all of this – by speech, action, belief, and giving Da’wah, i.e. his entire life was based on knowledge, acting on knowledge, and calling towards it.

Regarding this, Allah said: “Invite (mankind, O Muhammad, peace be upon him) to the way of your Lord (i.e. Islam) with wisdom (i.e. with the Divine Revelation and the Qur’an) and fair preaching, and argue with them in a way that is better. Truly, your Lord knows best who has gone astray from His path, and He is the Best Knower of those who is guided.” (Qur’an, 16:125)

Da’wah was the mission of all Prophets, from the first to the last of them. All of them called people to Allah’s religion. Their Minhaj (methodology) was knowledge, implementation, application, and propagation. They called people by their speech and by their actions because people are such that if you call them by speech which your actions contradict, they will not accept that Da’wah.

When you give Da`wah and your actions agree with what you are calling to, then people will accept the message.

Can Non-Muslims Enter Mosques?

It is noteworthy that Islam encourages tolerance and peaceful co-existence between Muslims and non-Muslims. If non-Muslims enter a mosque to deliver speeches that may lead to a better understanding, then it is welcomed and religiously recommended. Islam is the religion of constructive dialogue in the fullest sense. The history of Muslims is a very good example of this.

In this regard Al-Azhar scholar Sheikh `Atiyyah Saqr points out the opinions of Muslim jurists on the issue as follows:

Allah Almighty says: O you who believe (in Allah’s Oneness and in His Messenger, peace be upon him)! Verily the Mushrikun (polytheists, pagans, idolators, disbelievers) are Najasun (impure). So let them not come near Al-Masjid Al-Haram (at Makkah) after this year; and if you fear poverty, Allah will enrich you if He wills. Surely, Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise. (9: 28)

And He says: O you who believe! Approach not As-Salat (prayer) while you are in a drunken state until you know the meaning of what you utter, nor when you are in a state of Junaba ( i.e. in a state of sexual impurity, and have not taken a bath) except while on the way (through a mosque) until you wash your whole body. (4: 43)

Relying on these verses, the majority of Muslim Jurists, including those from the Maliki, Shafi`i, and other schools of fiqh (Islamic Jurisprudence), maintain that the polytheists are not allowed to enter the Sacred Mosque in Makkah. However, they state that there is nothing wrong if Christians and Jews enter it. They state that this ruling applies to the Holy Mosque in Makkah as well as its precincts. Abu Hanifah, however, views that even a polytheist can enter the Holy Mosque in Makkah as long as he will not stay or reside there. He interpreted impurity to mean spiritual impurity (shirk).

As for other mosques than the Holy Mosque in Makkah, the Madinan jurists forbade non-Muslims from entering them because non-Muslims are regarded by the Qur’an as impure. Imam Ahmad is reported to have said that they can only enter these mosques with the permission of Muslims. This is supported by the report that the Prophet (peace be upon him) permitted the people of At-Ta’if to stay in the mosque prior to their embracing Islam. He also received the Christians of Najran in his mosque in Madinah. When the time of their prayer was due, they prayed in the mosque in the eastern direction. Thereupon the Prophet (peace be upon him) said (to his Companions), “Leave them (to perform prayer).”

Under the title ‘A Polytheist Entering the Mosque’, Al-Bukhari, in his Sahih mentioned that Thamamah ibn Athal (despite that he was a polytheist) was tied up in the mosque.

In Fath al-Bari, Ibn Hajar mentioned that there are different opinions concerning this issue. The Hanafi jurists gave unconditional permission while the Maliki scholars and al-Mazni are reported to have forbidden it absolutely. The Shafi`i scholars differentiated between the Holy Mosque and other mosques. There is an opinion that the permission is restricted to the People of the Book but this is refuted by the case of Thamamah mentioned above.

A prominent Saudi scholar Sheikh M. S. Al-Munajjid states that:

It is forbidden for Muslims to allow any non-Muslim to enter Al-Masjid Al-Haram in Makkah and its sacred precincts, because Allah says: O you who believe (in Allah’s Oneness and in His Messenger, peace be upon him)! Verily the Mushrikun are Najasun (impure). So let them not come near Al-Masjid Al-Haram (at Makkah) after this year; and if you fear poverty, Allah will enrich you if He wills. Surely, Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise. (9: 28)

Concerning other mosques, some Muslim jurists maintain that it is permissible for non-Muslims to enter them because there is nothing to indicate the unlawfulness of such an act; others say that it is not permissible, by analogy to the case of Al-Masjid Al-Haram.

The correct view is that it is permissible if it serves the interests of Shari`ah or meets a valid need, such as if a non-Muslim needs to enter a mosque to hear something that may encourage him to embrace Islam, or because he needs to drink water, or the like. This is pursuant to the way of the Prophet (peace be upon him) on this issue; he tied up (his prisoner) Thamaamah ibn Athal Al-Hanafi in the mosque before he became a Muslim, and the delegations of Thaqif and the Christians of Najran stayed in the mosque before they embraced Islam. Actually, many benefits were accrued from this: they were able to hear the speeches and sermons of the Prophet (peace be upon him) to see people praying and reciting the Qur’an, etc. (Fatawa Al-Lajnah Al-Da’imah – The Standing Committee for Islamic Research and Ifta’)

Therefore, if non-Muslims seek permission to enter the mosque in order to see how Muslims perform the prayer, there is nothing wrong with that, as long as they have nothing with them that could defile the mosque, and their women are not dressed in a provocative fashion, or any other reason that bars them from entering the mosque. So they can enter and sit behind the Muslims to see how they pray.

Based on the above Fatwas, we can say that non-Muslims, including Christians and Jews, are allowed to enter mosques, but they should abide by the following conditions:

1- Non-Muslims are allowed to enter mosques – other than the Sacred Mosque in Makkah – with the prior permission of Muslims.
2- They must have a sound reason for entering the mosque.
3- They should respect the decorum of the mosque and keep in mind that it is a sacred place of worship.
4- Both men and women are not allowed to uncover their `Awarah (parts of the body which should not be exposed in front of others) when entering the mosque.

Allah, The Exalted, Commands Endurance

[ALLAH’S Quran – 3:200] “O believers! Patiently endure, persevere, stand on guard, and be mindful of Allah, so you may be successful.”

The Prophet (peace be upon him) has said:
[Muslim, Book #007, Hadith #3181] “Yuhannis, the freed slave of Zubair, narrated that when he was sitting with Abdullah b. ‘Umar (Allah be pleased with him) during the days of turmoil, his freed slave-girl came to him. After saluting him she said: Abu Abd al-Rahmin, I have decided to leave (Medina) for the time is hard for us, whereupon Abdullah said to her: Stay here, foolish lady, for I have heard Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: For one who shows endurance on the hardships and rigor of it (of Medina) I would be an intercessor or a witness on his behalf on the Day of Resurrection.”