THE CONCEPT OF BIDAH IN THE LIGHT OF SUNNAH

There are always two ways of understanding the Aquida (Islamic faith) , one way is to keep our mind initially empty and try to understand the concept in its total reality with proper comprehension, directly from the holy Quran and Sunnah of holy Prophet (SAW), by removing all kinds of apparent contradictions, then by taking the guidance from the books of world renowned classic Islamic scholars and finally, studying all the authoritative Islamic material relevant directly or indirectly, to the topic of concern. Then we will be able to form our own concept based on holy Quran & Sunnah of holy Prophet (pbuh). The other way to understand an Islamic concept can be, with a mind, which is already preoccupied with self concocted or fabricated concepts. Once, our mind is filled with a self fabricated idea, then, we choose only specific Quranic verses or few selected hadith, which substantiate our self concocted ideas, due to our defective or incomplete knowledge. In this way, we are considering ourselves to be the authority of Islam, which is totally unfair and can be very dangerous for our Iman (Islamic faith). Some people either, due to lack of deep understanding of Islamic concepts or due to lack of comprehensive knowledge of Islam, hide many hadiths of holy Prophet (pbuh), which deal with subject of Bidah, from their audience. Unfortunately, the same problem is with the concept of Shirk. The word Shirk is applied on many Islamic acts, which specifically or technically speaking, do not come under the category of shirk, they can be right or wrong but, do not fall under the category of Shirk. By declaring those acts to be Shirk, which are not Shirk, they are declaring the person performing those acts to be Mushrik (a non-believer), which means, you are kicking him out of the ambit of Islam and out of ummah of holy Prophet (SAW). In other words, you are throwing him into hell fire and this is a very bad act in Isalm. Same problem is with the concept of Bidah, when the so-called scholars with incomplete knowledge of Islam, speak to their audience, regarding the Islamic concepts, the audiences, who are not well verse with Islamic literature, think that the speaker has proved his point through Quran and Sunnah but, they cannot differentiate between right and wrong interpretation of holy Quran and Sunnah of holy Prophet (pbuh). They dont know that, there are several other verse of holy Quran & hadith of holy Prophet (pbuh) on the same subject, which the speaker is neglecting or hiding due to his partial knowledge of the subject. They dont know that he is inferring the same concept as established by classical Islamic scholar in the light of holy Quran & Sunnah or he is making his own new concept, which is opposing to the authentic Islamic literature of centuries. The word Bidah is used in holy Quran, as far as its root is concern. The meaning of Bidah, in general, is an innovation, creation, novelty or any new act. The word Mohdasa in Arabic has the same meaning as Bidah. The subject of Bidah has been discussed in the following verse of holy Quran (ch:2, vs:117) He is the One Who has created the heavens and the earth, which means, Allah is one, who has originated the heavens and the earth, He created everything from nothing, which is a Bidah. We infer one legal point from this literal discussion that, the words Badah and Bidah, in its lingual meanings primarily, has nothing wrong with it, it is not an evil word, had it been an evil word, in its origin, then almighty Allah would never have used Badie for himself in the holy Quran. Literally speaking Bidah is a very vast subject. The verse of holy Quran in which, the Prophet-hood (pbuh) of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and His (pbuh) raising has been introduced to the disbelievers of Makkah (vs: 9 and ch: 46) is Qul ma kuntu bidam mina rusuli, which means Say: I am not the first Messenger (towards mankind

that no precedent of Messengership exists before me), the Prophets and Messengers have also been coming before me. The verse of holy Quran, which gives a comprehensive appreciation of the concept of Bidah is in chapter Al-Hadih and verse 27 Then in the footsteps of these Messengers we sent (other) Messengers and We sent Isa son of Maryam (Jesus son of Mary) after them and gave him the Injeel (the Gospel). And We created kindness and mercy in the hearts of those who were (the true) followers (of Isa [Jesus]). And they themselves invented the innovation of monasticism (living the life of a recluse and committing to asceticism and austerity). We did not prescribe it for them. But they (introduced this innovation of monasticism) merely to seek Allahs pleasure. Then they could not practically keep and maintain that check which was its due (i.e. could not continue its spirit and discipline). So We paid those of them their reward who believed (and continued the innovation of monasticism to seek the pleasure of Allah). And most of them (who left it and changed their ways) are disobedient. the above verse of holy Quran not only mentions about the Bidah of Monasticism, introduced by the true followers of Jesus but, it als o specified three important things regarding this Bidah. 1. Those who adopted this Bidah, were originally the true follower of Esa (Jesus) (as). It was new practice, which they adopted on their own but not based on the holy commandment. 2. Holy Quran says that they adopted this Bidah of Monasticism just for the sake of pleasure of God. If a Bidah as a whole was totally to be rejected, then almighty Allah would have never said that, they did it just to seek the pleasure of Allah, in the holy Quran. 3. Quran says once they adopted this Bidah of Monasticism, then, it was necessary for them to fulfill all its conditions. But, holy Quran says that, most of them could not fulfill all the necessary conditions of Monasticism, it was their own failure. 4. Then, holy Quran states that some of them who fulfill the necessary requirement of the Bidah of Monasticism, and continue to seek the pleasure of almighty Allah, were rewarded. This way, almighty Allah declared this Bidah to be Bidah Hasana, which means good Invention. So, those who fulfilled the requirements of Bidah of Monasticism, got their reward from almighty Allah, it means, a Bidah does not necessarily mean a bad Bidah, it can also be a good Bidah. Imam Al-Kurtabi Al-Maliki (ra) explains in his book of Tafseer Al-Kurtabi, regarding the above verse of holy Quran. He says As, this Bidah of Monasticism was created by the poise people of the ummah of Esa (as) and those who fulfilled all the conditions of this Bidah, got their reward from almighty Allah. The above verse of holy Quran clarifies that the hadith which says all new innovations are Bidah and every Bidah is an evil act has some exceptions. This Quranic verse gives us a basic principle that, if anybody invents a good Bidah, then, it is mandatory on him to fulfill all its requirements, in order to get the reward from it, the one who deviates from it, will lose his reward. This is the religious concept of Bidah, directly from the holy Quran, which is the highest authority in Islam. He said No hadith (in its interpretation) can be against any verse of the holy Quran; in fact hadith always verifies and clarifies the holy Quran. Some people claim that every new act in Islam is a bad Bidah and to support their claim, they quote the hadith that The truest of speech is the Book of Allah, the best guidance is that of Muhammad (pbuh) and the worst of things are those which are newly invented. Every newly-invented thing is a Bidah, every Bidah is an evil act, and every evil act will lead to the Hel fire, these people are completely unaware of the

concept of Bidah, they simply quote a single hadith and fail to study or understand the rest of the authentic materials available in the form of holy Quran, Sunnah of holy Prophet (pbuh) and books of hundreds of great Islamic authorities, on this subject of Bidah. For example, the revelations of new verses of holy Quran in response to the situations, that used to arise, is termed as Bidah by holy Quran itself. It comes in holy Quran that (ch:26 & vs:5) And there does not come to them any new admonition (Mohdasin) and guidance from the Most Kind (Lord) but they turn away from it. The words Mohdas, Mohdasin, Mohdasa, Al-Ehdaas, Hadas & Bidah comes from the same root word, if these words were evil words, in its origin, then almighty Allah would have never used them in the holy Quran. Even the word Hadith has the same root as Hadasa, it means speaking about new things, which is again a Bidah. If we neglect the classification of Bidah into good & bad and deny the existence of good Bidah, then results are going to be very dangerous? Because, this word (Bidah) has been applied in the holy Quran. Bidah can be bad or good, it depends on various factors like, is it against the basic commandments of holy Quran or in favor of it. There is nothing wrong with the word of Bidah, it is just a new thing, as every new thing can wrong or right, it depends on its nature, its impact and the intension of the performer. Thats why; all the classical Islamic scholars classify the Bidah into two types, good and bad. Even Allama ibn Taimiyea, who holds the status of an authority of Islam, near Salafi brothers, differentiated the Bidah into two kinds, i.e. Bidah Lughwiyea and Bidah Sharaiyea. If, without created any exception, we say that every new act is a Bidah and every Bidah is an evil act, then why Allama Ibn Taimiyea divided the Bidah into two types? If anyone asks us, why do you classify Bidah into good and bad? Then, we must say, from where did Allama ibn Taimiyea got the concept of classification of Bidah into two? Did holy Prophet (pbuh) classify the Bidah into Bidah Lughwiyea and Bidah Sharaiyea? If holy Prophet (pbuh) did not classify the Bidah into two types, th en this classification of Allama ibn Taimiyea itself becomes a Bidah, because none of the companions (as) classify the Bidah into Bidah Lughwiyea and Bidah Sharaiyea, then how can you classify it? If your classification of Bidah, based on genuine reasoning, into Bidah Lughwiyea and Bidah Sharaiyea is acceptable, then the classification of Bidah, based on Quran and hadith, into Hasana and Saiyeea is also permissible. Let us apply a uniform principle to all the Islamic concepts. Either we should completely neglect the classification to Bidah, if this is the case, then all the minarets of Mosques are to be demolished, because they come under the category of good Bidah, or we should accept the classification of Bidah, given to us by the great classical Islamic authorities. Now, let us understand the religious & technical meaning of Bidah. The Religious meaning of Bidah can be explained by Imam Ibn Rajab Al-Hambili (ra), a great Imam of Fiqh Al-Hambili. He (ra) quotes in his (ra) book Jame al-uloom wal-hikam (pg:345) that, Bad Bidah is that particular act, which has no root or evidence or reference from the holy Quran, Sunnah of holy Prophet (pbuh) and companions (ra) ,which is either directly or indirectly in support of it. He did not say that the act which was not performed by holy Prophet (pbuh) or companions (ra) is a bad Bidah. If someone ask you did companions (ra) celebrated birthday of holy Prophet (pbuh)? Ask him a question; did holy Prophet (pbuh) or companions (ra) build domes and minarets of Mosque? If we go with their definition of Bidah, then we have to demolish all the minarets of Mosques, because neither holy Prophet (pbuh) nor companions (ra) build it. Imam

Ibne Rajab (ra) mentions a hadith of holy Prophet (pbuh) that if anybody innovates anything, which is misguiding in its nature and against seeking the pleasure of Allah and His Messenger (pbuh), is a bad Bidah. It is reported in Bukhari that One night in the month of Ramadhan, when Umer-Ibn-Khattab (ra) entered the Mosque-of-Nabivi (saw), he (ra) saw all the companions (ra) were offering the prayers of Taravhi (special prayers in the month of Ramdhan) separately or in the form of small groups, He (ra) said how good it would be, If I appoint a single Imam for all of you, so, he (ra) appointed Obai-bin-kaab (ra) as the Imam of Salat-ut-Taravhi (Prayers of Tahavhi). Next night, when he (ra) entered the Mosque-of-Nabivi (saw), he (ra) said how good is this Bidah! So, Umer (ra) was the first person in the ummah of holy Prophet (pbuh), who divided the Bidah into two types, Namal Bidah (Good Bidah) and Sayyial Bidah (Bad Bidah). Imam Rajab (ra) said sometimes, an act may be a new act but, it can be good for us. It is reported in Sahi Bukhari that Sayyedna Uthamn (ra) innovated the second azhan of Friday prayers, which is another example of good Bidah. When hazrath Abdullah (ra) saw this innovation of second azhan, he (ra) said that this is a Bidah (good Bidah). This means, every new act can be called as Bidah, but cannot be called as a bad Bidah. Again, Imam Rajab (ra) quotes a hadith of Bukhari that the good Bidah of compilation of holy Quran into one single book was done by Sayyedna Uthman (ra). When hundreds of huffaz (the one who memorize the holy Quran) were martyred in defensive wars of Islam, Sayyedna Umer (ra) came to Sayyedna Abu Bakr (ra) and asked, O Caliph of Muslims, hundreds of huffaz have been martyred, if it goes in this way, then we cannot preserve the holy Quran (in their hearts), let us compile the holy Quran in the form of one single book, Sayyedna Abu Bakr said O Umer (ra), how can we do an act which holy Prophet (pbuh) did not do, Sayydna Umer (ra) said By Lord, this act is for good and it is the requirement of today, then Abu Bakr (ra) said Umer (ra) continued saying those words, until almighty Allah opened my heart for it, then both of them went to Zaid bin Sabit (ra) and asked him to take the responsibility of compilation of holy Quran into one single book, he (ra) responded in same way, by saying how can I do an act which holy Prophet (pbuh) did not do?, they both kept saying By God, this is for good, finally almighty Allah opened his (ra) heart, as He opened the hearts of Abu Bakr (ra) and Umer (ra) (Ref: Chapter : Kitab-ut-Tafseer & hadith # 40679) When some half cooked scholars of Islam, who claim to be authority on Islam, quote the hadith that, every innovation is a Bidah and every Bidah is an evil act and include even celebration of Moulid-un-Nabi (pbuh), celebration of birthdays and kissing hands of Shaykhs into the category of Bidah, it means, they are throwing the one who is celebrating Moulid-un-Nabi (saw) into hell fire, which is totally unfair. Some Shayks say, everything which holy Prophet (pbuh) did not do, is a Bidah. They say it because of their inefficient knowledge of Islam and lack of proper guidance. This is called wrong interpretation of Quran and Sunnah. We must ask them, how many books you have studied about Islam?, In order to comprehend the religion of Islam. There is a hell lot of difference between a teacher and a student of Islam. A student is in learning phase, even if he studies a single book, it is a good achievement for him, but, the one who claims to be an authority of Islam, needs to study hundreds of thousands of books on various subjects of Islam, before claiming to be an authority of Islam. Some people claim to be Salafi today, to declare that Salafi is a school of thought itself is a Bidah, because it never existed in the period of holy Prophet (pbuh).

There are two stages in understanding the religion of Islam. First stage is pre-opening of heart (state of confusion) and second stage is opening of heart. Thats why, almighty Allah said in the holy Quran that (O beloved) I opened your heart (for deen-of-Islam) and thats why, Musa (as) requested almighty Allah O Allah, please open my heart for the Deen (religion), He (as) meant that, If my heart is opened, then only I can covey the Islamic teachings to my followers. So, before opening of heart Sayyedna Abu Bakr (ra) & Zaid bin Sabit (ra) were in the stages of confusion. When almighty Allah opened their hearts, they saw the truth in the light of guidance of almighty Allah. So, those people say that every innovation is a Bidah and every Bidah is an evil act, without any exception, they are still in the sages of confusion, their hearts are not opened yet and they are living in the darkness of misguidance. Inshah Allah (If Allah wills), this series of my lectures, will open the hearts of thousands of Muslims around the world. By grace of almighty Allah, we are in the stage of Noor (light) of guidance of Allah and opening of heart. We think, although, some particular act was not performed in the days of holy Prophet (pbuh), yet it based on a daleel (evidence) from the holy Quran and Sunnah. These acts are substantiated with the love of holy Prophet (pbuh). There are two ways of defining the concept of Bidah, either we should define it from our own or we should follow the rules given by the classical authorities of Islam. Before labeling somebody as Bidati (the one who performs a Bidah), let us first stop and understand what actually is a Bidah. Imam Hajr al-Askalani (ra) , who is accepted as an authority, all over the Muslim world, including Saudi Arabia, defines Bidah in his famous book Fath-ul-Bari (vol: 13 & pg: 288). He (ra) says that Any new act which has any kind of daleel (evidence) in Shariya (Quran & Sunnah) cannot be termed as Bidah. Imam Shafai (ra) also gave the same definition of Bidah. Now, let us decide, do you have better understanding of Islam or the great Islamic classical authorities have? Imam Hajr al Askalani (ra) quotes in his book that, Imam Behaki (ra) quotes the definition of Bidah in his book, by Imam Shafai (ra), which says that, Bidah is classified into two types, approved or good Bidah and bad or disapproved Bidah. The Bidah which is not contradicting to Islamic Sharia is good Bidah and the Bidah which is against the basic principles of Isalmic Sharia is condemned or bad Bidah (Ref: pg-2089, vol 13).Imam Behaki (ra) further quotes Imam Shafai (ra) said Bidah are of two types, any innovation which is against any commandment of holy Quran or against any specific hadith of holy Prophet (pbuh) or against the Ijma of companions (ra), is a bad Bidah and any Bidah, which is not against any commandment of holy Quran or against any specific hadith of holy Prophet (pbuh) or against the Ijma of companions (ra) is a good Bidah. So, according to Imam Shafai (as), in order to claim any new act as a bad Bidah, these are the mandatory conditions to be followed. By Concluding all, the innovation would become a bad Bidah only, when it is in contradiction to any specific commandment of the holy Quran or specific hadith of holy Prophet (pbuh), in all other cases, the Bidah is termed as a good Bidah. Celebration of Moulid-un Nabi (SAW), Urs and birthdays comes under the category of good Bidah, they cannot termed as bad Bidah, because, they do not contradict with any of the commandments of holy Quran and Hadith.