Source: Fatāwā ʿIlmiyyah (Tawḍīḥ al-Aḥkām), Vol. 2, p. 199
Have the Ahl al-Ḥadīth participated in armed jihād (jihād bi-s-sayf) in ancient times and in the present era?
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu wa-s-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, Ammā baʿd:
Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah رحمه الله classified the term “Ahl al-Ḥadīth” into two categories:
➊ The noble ḥadīth scholars (muḥaddithīn).
➋ Those who act upon the ḥadīth of the Messenger ﷺ and avoid blind following (taqlīd).
(Refer to Majmūʿ al-Fatāwā, Vol. 4, p. 95; Vol. 20, p. 40)
Even opponents of the Ahl al-Ḥadīth used the title “Ahl al-Ḥadīth” for the muḥaddithīn, as found for example in Masʿūd Aḥmad B.Sc.’s book al-Jamāʿah al-Qadīmah bi-Jawāb al-Firqah al-Jadīdah (pp. 5, 7).
In this context, all the Companions (Ṣaḥābah), the Tābiʿīn, and their successors were regarded as Ahl al-Ḥadīth. Their participation in jihād is well-known:
❀ The battles of Badr and Uḥud.
❀ The battles of Yamāmah and Qādisiyyah.
In every battlefield, they offered their lives for the sake of Islam.
The later transmitters of ḥadīth also did not refrain from armed jihād.
Example: Shaykh al-Islām ʿAbdullāh ibn al-Mubārak رحمه الله:
❀ One year he would be on the battlefield against the enemies of Islam.
❀ The next year he would be narrating the aḥādīth of the Prophet ﷺ.
May Allah have mercy upon him, a vast mercy.
The historic and well-documented combat against the Mongols under the leadership of Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah رحمه الله remains a preserved chapter of Islamic history.
In the Indian subcontinent, the armed jihād of Ahl al-Ḥadīth scholars and the general public is a golden chapter in history whose light still shines today.
❀ The fatwā against the British read:
“Under the mentioned circumstances, jihād is an individual obligation (farḍ ʿayn).”
❀ The first signature on this fatwā was by:
The leader of Ahl al-Ḥadīth, the muḥaddith and jurist, Sayyid Muḥammad Naẓīr Ḥusayn Dehlawī رحمه الله.
(ʿUlamāʾ-ye-Hind kā Shāndār Māẓī, Vol. 4, p. 179)
This signature came at a time when:
❀ Some were heedless and complacent.
❀ Some claimed to have seen Khidr عليه السلام in the British army. (Shāndār Māẓī, ibid., p. 280)
❀ Some were fighting against the opponents of the British, calling the British government a “merciful government”. (Tadhkirah al-Rashīd, Vol. 1, pp. 75–76)
❀ For some, the tasbīḥ (prayer beads) in hand was their only weapon. (ibid.)
In every era, a group from the Ahl al-Ḥadīth remained active in armed jihād.
❀ Whether in writing or in speech, they never hesitated to support jihād.
❀ Even today, there is a pressing need to effectively counter the ongoing propaganda against Ahl al-Ḥadīth and clarify the facts so that truth and falsehood can be distinguished.
Hādhā mā ʿindī, wallāhu aʿlam biṣ-ṣawāb.
Question
Have the Ahl al-Ḥadīth participated in armed jihād (jihād bi-s-sayf) in ancient times and in the present era?
Answer
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu wa-s-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, Ammā baʿd:
Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah رحمه الله classified the term “Ahl al-Ḥadīth” into two categories:
➊ The noble ḥadīth scholars (muḥaddithīn).
➋ Those who act upon the ḥadīth of the Messenger ﷺ and avoid blind following (taqlīd).
(Refer to Majmūʿ al-Fatāwā, Vol. 4, p. 95; Vol. 20, p. 40)
Even opponents of the Ahl al-Ḥadīth used the title “Ahl al-Ḥadīth” for the muḥaddithīn, as found for example in Masʿūd Aḥmad B.Sc.’s book al-Jamāʿah al-Qadīmah bi-Jawāb al-Firqah al-Jadīdah (pp. 5, 7).
Companions, Tābiʿīn, and Jihād
In this context, all the Companions (Ṣaḥābah), the Tābiʿīn, and their successors were regarded as Ahl al-Ḥadīth. Their participation in jihād is well-known:
❀ The battles of Badr and Uḥud.
❀ The battles of Yamāmah and Qādisiyyah.
In every battlefield, they offered their lives for the sake of Islam.
Muḥaddithīn and Jihād
The later transmitters of ḥadīth also did not refrain from armed jihād.
Example: Shaykh al-Islām ʿAbdullāh ibn al-Mubārak رحمه الله:
❀ One year he would be on the battlefield against the enemies of Islam.
❀ The next year he would be narrating the aḥādīth of the Prophet ﷺ.
May Allah have mercy upon him, a vast mercy.
Ibn Taymiyyah’s Combat Against the Mongols
The historic and well-documented combat against the Mongols under the leadership of Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah رحمه الله remains a preserved chapter of Islamic history.
Ahl al-Ḥadīth Jihād in the Indian Subcontinent
In the Indian subcontinent, the armed jihād of Ahl al-Ḥadīth scholars and the general public is a golden chapter in history whose light still shines today.
The 1857 War of Independence and the Fatwā of Jihād:
❀ The fatwā against the British read:
“Under the mentioned circumstances, jihād is an individual obligation (farḍ ʿayn).”
❀ The first signature on this fatwā was by:
The leader of Ahl al-Ḥadīth, the muḥaddith and jurist, Sayyid Muḥammad Naẓīr Ḥusayn Dehlawī رحمه الله.
(ʿUlamāʾ-ye-Hind kā Shāndār Māẓī, Vol. 4, p. 179)
The Historical Context of This Signature
This signature came at a time when:
❀ Some were heedless and complacent.
❀ Some claimed to have seen Khidr عليه السلام in the British army. (Shāndār Māẓī, ibid., p. 280)
❀ Some were fighting against the opponents of the British, calling the British government a “merciful government”. (Tadhkirah al-Rashīd, Vol. 1, pp. 75–76)
❀ For some, the tasbīḥ (prayer beads) in hand was their only weapon. (ibid.)
Ahl al-Ḥadīth Role in Every Era
In every era, a group from the Ahl al-Ḥadīth remained active in armed jihād.
❀ Whether in writing or in speech, they never hesitated to support jihād.
❀ Even today, there is a pressing need to effectively counter the ongoing propaganda against Ahl al-Ḥadīth and clarify the facts so that truth and falsehood can be distinguished.
Hādhā mā ʿindī, wallāhu aʿlam biṣ-ṣawāb.
