Bukhari

Hadith Commentary: The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) used the phrase "the month of Ramadan," and from this, the objective of the chapter is established.

Hadith Commentary:
(1)
With this chapter heading and the presented hadiths, Imam Bukhari has indicated the weakness of a hadith which Ibn ‘Adi narrated from Abu Hurairah (radi Allahu anhu) in marfu‘ form: “Do not say ‘Ramadan’ because Ramadan is one of the names of Allah, the Exalted.”
In its chain of narration, there is a narrator named Abu Ma‘shar who is weak.
In these hadiths, the word “Ramadan” is used alone, without “month” (shahr) or similar words attached to it, whereas “Shahr Ramadan” (the month of Ramadan) is itself used by Allah, the Exalted, in the Noble Qur’an.
It is thus established that the name of this month can be mentioned in both ways.

(2)
Imam al-Nasa’i, in his Sunan, has established a chapter with the following words:
(al-rukhsah fi an yuqalu li-shahri Ramadan)
“Concession regarding saying ‘Ramadan’ for the month of Ramadan.”
Then he narrated a hadith from Ibn ‘Abbas (radi Allahu anhuma) that performing ‘umrah in Ramadan is equal in reward to Hajj (Sunan al-Nasa’i, al-Siyam, Hadith: 2112).
In any case, the majority (jumhur) are of the opinion that it is permissible.

(3)
There are the following two reasons for calling the month of Ramadan simply “Ramadan”:
• “Ramda’” refers to intense heat.
In this month, sins are burned away by fasting.
• The beginning of fasting in Ramadan occurred during days of severe heat.
(Fath al-Bari: 4/146)

(4)
Now the question arises: When the devils (shayatin) are chained during Ramadan, why does disobedience still occur on the face of the earth in this blessed month? The answer is that there are several forces at work that mislead the children of Adam; only one force is rendered powerless, while the remaining forces continue to carry out their work.

Hadith Commentary:
➊
In this hadith, a virtue for the people of faith is mentioned: that the gates of Paradise are opened for them so that, upon their death, they may reach Paradise immediately.
For this, the correction of belief (‘aqidah) and the conformity of actions to the Sunnah are fundamental conditions.
This absolutely does not mean that whoever dies in this month will not be subject to reckoning and will go straight to Paradise.
According to this self-invented formula, then, the accursed Abu Jahl and his wretched companions should not have been subject to reckoning, since they died in Ramadan; but in fact, their reckoning began as soon as they died, when they were dragged and thrown into a blind well in the field of Badr.

➋
Imam al-Bukhari rahimahullah’s purpose in mentioning this hadith is to inform about one of the characteristics of Shaytan in relation to the month of Ramadan: that he is chained up. However, those people whose own souls (nafs) have themselves become like Shaytan are not included in this.

Hadith Commentary:
Here too, the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) himself used the word "Ramadan."
This is the correspondence between the hadith and the chapter heading.

English Commentary: 1؎: ((Maradah al-jinn)) is conjoined to ((al-shayatin)). Some call this an explanatory conjunction (atf tafsiri), while others consider it a conjunction of distinction (atf mughayarah). Here, an objection arises: when the devils (shayatin) and the rebellious among the jinn (maradah al-jinn) are chained, then why does sin still occur? One answer is that the occurrence of sin does not necessarily require the presence or existence of the devils; a person is influenced by the devil for eleven months, and even in Ramadan, that effect remains. Another answer is that the leaders are chained, but the volunteers and ordinary followers remain free.

2؎:
It is the effect of this call (nidā) that, in Ramadan, the attention of the believers towards good deeds increases, and in this blessed month, they become more diligent in recitation of the Qur’an, remembrance (dhikr), acts of worship, charity, repentance, and seeking forgiveness (istighfar).

Urdu marginal note:
"The doors of mercy" — The word 'mercy' allows for the interpretation that the doors of Paradise refer to righteous deeds, although this word does not negate the existence of actual doors, nor is there any need to negate them. It is possible that both meanings are intended.

(1) The aforementioned narration has been declared weak in its chain of transmission by the researcher of the book; however, in principle, this narration is authentic in light of other supporting evidences. Furthermore, other scholars have also declared it authentic based on these supporting evidences. For details, see: (Sahih al-Targhib by al-Albani, Hadith number: 999, and al-Mawsu‘ah al-Hadithiyyah, Musnad al-Imam Ahmad: 2/59)

(2) “The gates of the heavens” refers to their opening either for the reception of Ramadan, or for the acceptance of the righteous deeds of the believers, or it means the abundance of righteous deeds, such that all the gates need to be opened, because even the weakest of believers performs some righteous deeds during this time.

(3) “The gates of Hell or the Fire” are closed out of respect for the arrival of Ramadan, just as undesirable things are covered up upon the arrival of an honored guest. Or it means that the punishment of the grave is suspended, but all of this is for the believers; for the disbelievers, everything remains open.

(4) “Rebellious jinn” means the major devils are chained up. The smaller, mischievous ones remain free, which is why some sins still occur. In reality, not all sins are due to the devils; a person’s own soul (nafs) also becomes a devil, so even though the devils are chained, a soul habituated to sin continues in sin.

(5) “Better than a thousand months.” That is, worship on this night is better than worship during a thousand ordinary months, and this is a special mercy from Allah Ta‘ala for the believers. And this night is not fixed for all time; rather, it alternates among the odd nights of the last ten nights, so that people’s enthusiasm for worship increases and they stand in prayer on multiple nights.

The Binding of the Rebellious Devils in Ramadan

Question: It is mentioned in the hadith that in the month of Ramadan, the devils are bound, whereas the Noble Qur’an, Surah al-Anfal (48), establishes that during the Battle of Badr (which occurred in Ramadan), Shaytan came as a helper with his followers (the polytheists of Makkah), and then fled. How can the hadith and the Qur’an be reconciled?

Answer:

There are three types of devils (shayatin):

➊ The chief devil, i.e., Iblis: who did not prostrate to Adam alayhis salam.

➋ The rebellious devils (maradah al-shayatin): the most defiant devils (who are the leaders of other devils).

➌ The common devils.

* The chief devil, i.e., Iblis, asked Allah Ta’ala for respite until the Day of Resurrection, and Allah Ta’ala granted him this respite, as is established from the Noble Qur’an. [سورة الاعراف:14۔18]

Therefore, Iblis is not bound in Ramadan.

It is narrated from Abu Hurairah that the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said:

«وَتُغَلُّ فِيْهِ مَرَدَةُ الشَّيَاطِينِ»

And in the month of Ramadan, the rebellious devils (maradah al-shayatin) are bound.

[سنن نسائي 4/ 129، ح 2108، وسنده ضعيف، مسند احمد ج 2 ص 230، 385، 425]

All the narrators of this narration are trustworthy. However, the hearing (sama‘) of Abu Qilabah, the Tabi‘i rahimahullah, from Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah radi Allahu anhu is not established. [الترغيب والترهيب ج 2 ص 98]

But there are multiple supporting narrations (shawahid) for this hadith, for example:

«حديث عتبة بن فرقد وفيه:»

«وَيُصَفَّدُ فِيْهِ كُلُّ شَيْطَانٍ مَرِيدٍ»

And in this (Ramadan), every rebellious devil (shaytan marid) is bound.

[سنن النسائي: 2110، و مسند احمد 4/ 311، 312، واسناده حسن]

From these ahadith, it is understood that the rebellious devils (maradah al-shayatin) are bound in Ramadan.

This is also the research of Imam Ibn Khuzaymah. [صحيح ابن خزيمه ج3ص 188، قبل ح 1883]

It is an established fact that the specific (khas) takes precedence over the general (‘amm), and the restricted (muqayyad) over the absolute (mutlaq).

There is no explicit evidence, to my knowledge, regarding the binding of the common devils. From this detail, it is clear that there is no contradiction between the Qur’an and the hadith. And all praise is due to Allah.

……………… Original Article ………………

For the original article, see Fatawa ‘Ilmiyyah by Shaykh Hafiz Zubair Ali Zai rahimahullah (Volume 2, pages 137 and 138)

The following words indicate the lack of direct hearing (sama‘) by Ibn Ishaq, in which Ibn Ishaq merely states that Muhammad bin Muslim al-Zuhri mentioned this narration. In other words, he does not explicitly state that he heard it himself. It should be noted that Ibn Ishaq is a mudallis narrator. Such a narrator’s narration is not valid unless he explicitly affirms direct hearing (sama‘). Ibn Ishaq has made Zuhri’s teacher to be Anas bin Abu Anas, whereas the correct view is that Zuhri’s teacher is Nafi‘ bin Abu Anas, not Anas bin Abu Anas. For this reason, Imam al-Nasa’i has declared Ibn Ishaq’s narration to be erroneous and the narration of others to be correct. And Allah knows best.

(1) "The gates of Paradise"—that is, the actual gates of the heavenly Paradise are opened as a form of welcome. It is also possible that what is meant are those deeds which become a cause for entering Paradise, meaning that performing such deeds becomes easy. In reality, during the blessed month of Ramadan, righteous deeds become very easy for everyone. The first meaning is closer to the actual reality.

(2) The gates of the Fire may also refer to both meanings mentioned above.

(3) "Shaytan"—either the actual Shaytan or the causes of misguidance are almost eliminated. Generally, during the blessed month of Ramadan, righteousness prevails everywhere and committing evil becomes difficult. However, all of this is for the believers; if there is no faith, then Ramadan and other months are the same.

(4) Paradise and Hell are not imaginary things; rather, their existence is real. They also have gates which are opened and closed.

Benefits and Issues:

➊ The month of Ramadan is a month of good deeds. In this month, the major obstacles that hinder the path to good deeds are removed by Allah. If, even after this, a person remains deprived of good deeds or does not attain Allah’s mercy by abstaining from evil, then this is his own fault.

➋ Despite the devils (shayatin) and rebellious jinn being imprisoned, the sins that are committed by humans during the month of Ramadan are due to the fact that, because of continuously committing sins during the other eleven months, people become accustomed to them. Then, in Ramadan, they do not make any effort to reform their souls (nafs): that is, they do not fast, do not recite the Qur’an abundantly, and do not perform Tarawih prayers. Therefore, due to the lack of training and reformation of their souls, they are unable to abstain from sins.

➌ The opening of the gates of Paradise and the closing of the gates of Hellfire can, in reality, mean the actual opening and closing of these gates. And it can also mean that the Muslim society gives special importance to the month of Ramadan; thus, there is a general inclination towards good deeds, and Muslims become eager to perform every kind of good deed and consciously strive to avoid every sin. In other words, these good deeds are the gates of Paradise, and sins are the gates of Hellfire.

➍ The proclamation from Allah to advance in good deeds and to refrain from sins is also so that Muslims may make the utmost effort to perform good deeds and avoid sins.

➎ The freeing of some people from Hellfire every night is also a special honor of the month of Ramadan. By repenting from sins, every person can attain this honor.