This excerpt is taken from the book compiled by Hakim Ajmal Khan Sahib "Recognize Jamaat-e-Islami" .
By Hazrat Maulana Hafiz Abdullah Muhaddith Rupadi, may Allah have mercy on him
How dear are the names of the Muslim Ummah and Jamaat-e-Islami. But what has remained under them is enmity towards Islam. The first sect denies Hadith. They play with the Divine Word according to their own opinion. And Hadith, which is the interpretation of the Quran, they ridicule it. Outwardly they accept, but inwardly they deny.
Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Qadiani made the condition for the authenticity of Hadith that it should be in accordance with his revelation, and Mawdudi has made the condition that it is authentic in his view if it suits his taste. Misguided sects spread misguidance by putting such good labels.
❀ Rafidi are called the Shia of Ali.
❀ Mu'tazila are the people of justice and monotheism.
❀ Mirzai Ahmadis, deniers of the Hadith of the Muslim Ummah.
❀ And Mawdudi, Jamaat-e-Islami, etc.
The sects whose emergence has been for quite some time, their misguidance has been exposed. But Mawdudism has just been born. Its veil of concealment is still intact; not only the public but even many elites and several clerics praise it, which is causing this fitna to gain strength day by day. To the extent that many clerics have joined it. At this time, it is the duty of the true scholars to eradicate it and save people from this misguidance.
[1] Tradition and Understanding:
No sect of Ahl al-Sunnah holds the belief that reasoning (diraayah) and tradition (riwayah) are of equal status; rather, the Hanafis even prefer weak hadith over qiyas (analogical reasoning). For example, according to the Hanafis, laughter breaks wudu (ablution), although qiyas suggests that wudu should not be broken because, in their view, wudu is broken by the emission of an impure substance, such as nasal mucus. Vomiting and laughter are not impure substances, so breaking wudu due to laughter contradicts qiyas. Their evidence is a weak hadith: "The Companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) were praying with him when a blind man fell into a pit; the Companions laughed upon seeing this, and the Prophet ordered them to renew their wudu."
Similarly, the Hanafi belief is that wudu is valid with date syrup, and their evidence is a weak hadith: "The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) performed wudu with date syrup." This also contradicts qiyas. For such purifications, Allah has prescribed water, and the ruling for syrups is not that of water; otherwise, wudu would also be valid with other syrups, like violet syrup. In many such instances, the Hanafis have abandoned qiyas due to weak hadith. Therefore, the Hanafis do not give reasoning (diraayah) the status of tradition (riwayah), as the examples of laughter and wudu with date syrup have already passed. The muhaddithin (hadith scholars) are far from Maududi’s theory because they dislike the people of opinion (Ahl al-Ra’y), so how can they give precedence to reasoning (which is a type of opinion) over tradition?
Maududi’s reasoning is philosophical intellect; philosophical intellect’s faith in the unseen is very weak. It only accepts what fits within it. What is beyond it, it tends either to deny outright or to interpret and distort. Then, there are two types of people found in it.
One type goes to extremes:
For example, when Syed Ahmed Naichari wrote a tafsir, he interpreted all the miracles and extraordinary events of the Quran in a metaphorical way. For instance, the story of Prophet Musa (Moses) striking the rock with his staff and twelve springs gushing forth was explained as meaning that he walked around the mountains with his staff and happened to find twelve springs. The Mi'raj (ascension) of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was interpreted as a dream journey, and angels and devils were understood as good and bad morals. Even Paradise and Hell were considered spiritual matters, meaning the happiness and suffering of souls are Paradise and Hell.
The second type of people are:
Those who have not gone to such extremes but remain half-hearted or indecisive, like the Mirzai sect, for example, they do not accept the bodily ascension of Jesus (peace be upon him). All these matters are denied by those who rely solely on philosophical reasoning.
A new approach regarding history and hadith:
Maududi Sahib believes that history has now expanded greatly. To the extent that all events within its scope encompass the entire world. There is no event that has not been included within it. If there is mention of an event in Hadith, and its evidence is not found in history, then the verdict of tradition and taste is that it is incorrect. On this basis, he boldly mentions the Hadith of Tamim Dari, may Allah be pleased with him, which relates to the Dajjal, and writes with great courage.
Has not thirteen hundred years of history proven that the concern of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, was not correct?
Reference: (Tafheem-ul-Quran, Volume 3, Page 28)
Then the pleasure is that Maududi Sahib himself writes.
There is no collection of past worldly events as authentic as the collection of Hadith.
Reference: (Tafheemaat 261)
Maududi Sahib has acted irrationally here. On one hand, he shows boldness against the Prophet of Islam, and on the other hand, there is contradiction in his writings. If the collection of Hadith is more authentic than all other collections, then what relation does it have with the thirteen hundred years of history?
Maududi Sahib believes that it is not necessary for us to strictly adhere to the rules of hadith scholars regarding the authenticity and weakness of hadiths. While explaining this, he writes:
The standard by which hadiths are considered authentic or inauthentic by them (the hadith scholars) is exactly the standard we should follow. For example, give precedence to the famous over the rare, the marfoo‘ over the mursal, and the continuous over the disconnected. And do not exceed these drawn limits at all. This is the very approach whose strictness has driven many knowledgeable people towards complete opposition to hadith ....................
Reference: (Tafheemaat 118)
Maududi Sahib’s example is like a one-eyed king among the blind. His group, God knows, considers him a great figure in the scholarly field, blindly following him. However, the reality is that he does not know the basic issues of the discipline he is criticizing. The famous is safer compared to the rare, the mursal compared to the marfoo‘, and the connected compared to the disconnected. Since Maududi Sahib is a reformer of the present age, it is necessary for him to innovate in everything. And a voice comes from the group سبحان اللہ!
The real point is that without a perfect teacher, a person’s knowledge does not become firm, and when knowledge is not firm, then their statements do not maintain balance. Maududi Sahib raised the status of hadith as high as possible, but by getting stuck in the quagmire of conjecture, he brought it down just as much. Thus, he writes:
Hadiths reach from a few people to a few people, from whom nothing can be established beyond doubt; what can be established is only probable correctness, not certain knowledge!
Reference: (Tarjuman al-Quran Rabi’ al-Awwal 1365 AH)
Some misguided sects have passed who do not maintain mental balance; they remain stuck in such confusion beyond the events, in which Maududi is involved. For example, one says: The entire Ummah can be gathered on misguidance.
His argument is:
❀ Every person is liable to error.
❀ Another elaborates on this by saying: The number of people through whom the knowledge of the Quran has reached us, no matter how many, were after all just humans!
❀ A third says: Certainty cannot be obtained through transmission.
Thus, in the book of logic by Hamdullah
Reference: p. 222
, in the discussion of the five arts, the beliefs of the Mu‘tazila and the majority Ash‘aris are written, and their argument is mentioned. Firstly, a word is used in many meanings. Then it is difficult to know the speaker’s intention—whether he meant the literal or figurative, general or specific, absolute or restricted meaning. Sometimes there is also doubt whether this ruling has been abrogated and the knowledge of the abrogating verse is not known. Also, the transmitter is sometimes a liar or naturally negligent (by nature slow), yet considered trustworthy, and sometimes even the trustworthy makes mistakes.In short, many such doubts arise; so how can one have certainty in transmission? According to these people, no issue of Arabic sciences is definitive. Nor is any Islamic belief certain. Paradise, Hell, accounting, resurrection—none of these are certain. Similarly, prayer, fasting, Hajj, Zakat, etc., and even the belief that Muhammad, peace be upon him, was a person who claimed prophethood in Arabia and that this book was revealed to him, which is in the hands of Muslims, is not certain. Nor is it certain that Mecca and Medina are the same cities where the Quran was revealed. This also implies that those who have not seen Mecca, Medina, Constantinople, London, etc., should not believe in the existence of these cities, that these cities exist in the world. See, everything has been wiped out.
The highest is neither the root nor the branch
In short, there is no shortage of those who indulge in such mystifications. They build a structure of illusions and imaginations so lofty that it surpasses even poetic imagination, about which Allah Almighty says:
[اَلَمۡ تَرَ اَنَّہُمۡ فِیۡ کُلِّ وَادٍ یَّہِیۡمُوۡنَ] "Indeed, the poets roam in every valley."
Reference: Surah Ash-Shu'ara: 225
Now, Maududi Sahib has entered this field and with a single stroke of the pen has overturned the entire world order. Had he been a worthy student of a capable teacher, he would not have made such a great mistake.The manner in which Maududi Sahib has argued is that of the Hadith deniers. In fact, almost all of his arguments related to religion are misleading. It is his common habit to create conflicts between Ahadith themselves and with the Holy Quran, thereby devaluing them and then refuting them. Besides this, he has severely attacked the Muhaddithin regarding the Ahadith about cupping and clothing, and has failed to understand their correct meaning. Clothing and grooming do not fall under Shariah rulings but are rather a type of custom; the Muhaddithin erred in classifying them as Shariah. Similarly, he calls the Ahadith about the Dajjal speculative and says that the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, did not understand the Dajjal, which is almost like the Murji'ah view. In fact, he has gone beyond even them. Thus, Maududi Sahib’s exact words when mentioning the Hadith of the Dajjal are:
The Dajjal is a myth which has no Shariah status.
Reference: (Risalah Tarjuman al-Quran: 27/3)
In short, he has many such absurdities that cause one’s hair to stand on end upon hearing or seeing them. One should not be captivated by his writing and eloquence. His literature is extremely dangerous for Islam and the pure Shariah. May Allah protect us from him and safeguard our religion.
Maududi Sahib believes that the Muhaddithin and Faqihs collected ahadith regarding the habits of the Prophet as Sunnah. This was a wrong approach on their part because this is not a Shariah matter that we must always follow. Accordingly, Maududi Sahib's exact words are:
I consider the meanings of terms like Uswah, Sunnah, and Bid'ah, as generally prevalent among you, to be wrong and even a cause of distortion in religion.
Reference: (Risalah Tarjuman al-Quran May-June 1945)
This is an attack on the understanding of Muhaddithin and Faqihs. The Quran says, whoever leaves the path of the believers and takes another path,
[نُوَلِّہٖ مَا تَوَلّٰی وَ نُصۡلِہٖ جَہَنَّمَ]
We will turn him to the path he has turned to, and his destination is Hell.
Reference: Surah An-Nisa: 115
And the statement of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) is:
[لن تجتمع أمتي على الضلالة] My Ummah will never unite upon misguidance.
Reference: Al-Mu'jam al-Kabir al-Tabarani: 13623
Rather, one group will certainly remain on the truth, and it is obvious that they are the Muhaddithin and Faqihs (the pious predecessors).
Regarding the Sunnah of the beard, Maududi Sahib says:
But in my view, it is not that this is not the correct definition of Sunnah, rather I hold the belief that declaring such things as Sunnah and then insisting on following them is a severe kind of innovation (bid'ah) and a dangerous distortion of the religion.
Reference: (Risalah Tarjuman al-Quran May June 45)
Here, it is like the thief scolding the police, and not only that, but with generality, all such things are being called a Sunnah-type innovation and a dangerous distortion of the religion. On this basis, a person is free to get any kind of haircut they want, adopt any style they wish, keep English-style hair, and there is no harm in opposing nature and the Sunnah of the Prophets, peace be upon them. There is no harm in opposing the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him. The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: Ten things are part of the nature of Islam: cutting the lips, leaving the beard, using the miswak, putting water in the nose during ablution, cutting the nails, washing the joints of the fingers during ablution, removing armpit hair, taking hair from under the navel, performing istinja (cleaning after relieving oneself), gargling during ablution. In one hadith, instead of the beard, circumcision is mentioned, and in Tirmidhi there is a hadith where the Prophet said four things are from the Sunnah of the Messengers: modesty, circumcision, miswak, and marriage.
If someone, out of zeal for Sunnah, insists on adhering to these things, then according to Maududi Sahib, this would be the most severe innovation and a dangerous distortion of the religion.
Change in the Meaning of Mujaddid:
The Hadith states that at the turn of every century there will be a Mujaddid who will renew the religion. Maududi Sahib has changed the meaning of Sunnah and Bid'ah, and he has also redefined the meaning of Mujaddid. He has tried to attach this Hadith to himself.
I do not expect that he will declare himself as the Mahdi. In fact, he might not even be aware that he is the promised Mahdi. He will establish a new school of thought based on the pure foundations of Islam, change minds, and launch a powerful movement that will be both civilizational and political. Jahiliyyah will try to crush it with all its customs, but ultimately it will overthrow the ignorant rulers and establish a strong Islamic state.
Maulana Sahib has caused so much misguidance by treating the opinions of Muhaddithin and Faqihs as if they were everyday casual talk, that nothing can remain correct in the proper way.
All this is the result of lack of expertise
