This excerpt is taken from A Research Review of Mirza Muhammad Ali Engineer's Objections and Issues, authored by Haroon bin Shabbir Ahmad, may Allah preserve him, and revised by Fazilat al-Sheikh Maulana Muhammad Rafiq Tahir, may Allah preserve him.
Hazrat Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, being the scribe of revelation and Mirza Sahib's objections
Chapter on the Virtues of Muawiyah رضي الله عنه states that Sayyiduna Muawiyah رضي الله عنه also had the honor of being a scribe of revelation, and this is a matter of great virtue. Not only we, but also the great hadith scholars consider this a distinction and honor of a companion. Therefore, it is impossible that this fact could escape Engineer Sahib’s scrutiny. Hence, here too, as usual, you have cast doubt on his being a scribe of revelation through various means. In fact, it is Mirza Sahib’s habit that whatever is in favor or virtue of Sayyiduna Muawiyah رضي الله عنه, he turns it against him. Before Mirza Sahib’s objections, understand this: initially, you yourself used to admit that Hazrat Muawiyah رضي الله عنه was among the scribes of revelation. Your blessed words are:
“The Holy Quran was compiled in written form within twenty-five years. First of all, during the time of the Prophet ﷺ, the revelation was written down. The Prophet ﷺ used to have the revelation written, and among them, Hazrat Zaid bin Thabit رضي الله عنه was top of the list, the Prophet’s ﷺ scribe of revelation. Sayyiduna Muawiyah was also among them رضي الله عنه, and there were other companions as well.”
Islam ki dictionary Kia Hai - 32:10
This is one of Mirza Sahib’s old videos. It is before you that Mirza Sahib himself not only acknowledged Hazrat Muawiyah رضي الله عنه as a scribe of revelation but also used to address him with great respect by saying “Sayyiduna” along with his name. But today, far from using the word Sayyiduna, he often does not even like to mention his name. Rather, like the Shia, they refer to him as Amir-e-Sham, although Hazrat Muawiyah رضي الله عنه is also Amir al-Mu'minin. So if you are truly sincere from the heart, why do you not call him Amir al-Mu'minin? Anyway, the point to mention here is that initially Engineer Sahib himself used to admit that Sayyiduna Muawiyah رضي الله عنه was a scribe of revelation, but today, in the present era, you deny the same Muawiyah رضي الله عنه being a scribe of revelation through various excuses and pretexts.
Engineer Sahib's Excuses and Doubts:
In response to the objection raised against him that "Muhammad Ali Engineer denies that Hazrat Muawiyah رضي الله عنه was a scribe of revelation," he says:
"(You people say) Ali denied the scribe of revelation. My clip was shown half. When have I denied it? I say that in the hadith of Muslim which you refer to, there is no mention of a scribe of revelation; those are the words of the scribe. The words of the scribe of revelation are present in 'Dala'il al-Nubuwwah,' and the hadith in Muslim is also authentic, and I have recorded issue 116c on it. I say, tell the entire hadith of Muslim about how the scribe of revelation was appointed? وَمَا يَنْطِقُ عَنِ الْهَوَى Oh brother, this is about the Quran, not about every word of the Prophet being from Allah's revelation. Otherwise, the ijtihadi mistakes of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم would also be included. The funeral prayer of the hypocrites—was that recited by the Prophet by Allah's revelation? It was forbidden there! The confirmation of revelation was obtained later, there is no doubt about that, but the issue is how that appointment was made. Abu Sufyan said: Neither do people look towards me, meaning he kept harming Islam his whole life. He did not read the entire hadith of Muslim; if he had read the whole hadith, he would have known. And in it, the narrator's words are that if Abu Sufyan himself had come and requested the Prophet for his son, the Prophet would not have appointed him as his secretary. This is your consolation! Further words are that it was your habit not to refuse. You were kind-hearted, weren't you, O Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم? So you accepted out of pity and gave him such a big title and then took him to the other side. And I have explained the entire appointment; read the full narration."
157-a-Mas’alah (Part-1): 100-Questions on SUNNI & SHIAH Issues with Engineer Muhammad Ali Mirza - 1:31:41
Regarding the video (Issue 116) referred to by the respected person, any listener or reader would feel that Mirza Sahib did not at all deny that Hazrat Muawiyah رضي الله عنه was a scribe of revelation; rather, in this video, he must have defended it and accepted him as a scribe of revelation. But the matter is exactly the opposite, and the entire video is a web of objections and criticisms. Accordingly, in this video, he says:
"It is surprising that during the blessed era of Sayyiduna Abu Bakr Siddiq, when the Battle of Yamama took place, according to the international numbering in Sahih Bukhari, hadith number 4986, and in Mishkat 2220, Sayyiduna Umar Farooq رضي الله عنه and عليه السلام, the master Umar عليه السلام, advised: O Commander of the Faithful! During the blessed era of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم, the Quran was not in a combined form in one place... So they advised that it should be compiled in one place... So they accepted your advice, and then they called Sayyiduna Zaid ibn Thabit رضي الله عنه and assigned him the responsibility and said two sentences. Sayyiduna Abu Bakr Siddiq رضي الله عنه said: Zaid, you are a wise young man; you bear no blame. You used to write revelation for the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم, so compile the Holy Quran in a combined form in one place."
Then Mirza Sahib says:
"So Hazrat Muawiyah was not called because if he was a scribe of revelation, he would have been called or a committee would have been formed for him, just like political committees are formed here where one person is put from here, another from there, and another from there. They assigned the duty to only one person—Zaid ibn Thabit رضي الله عنه—and said: You bear no blame of any kind, meaning you are a true believer, i.e., you have been with the Prophet from the beginning and you used to write revelation."
Then later in the same video, he says: "Oh, which revelation did he write? At the time of the conquest of Mecca, when 99.99 percent of the Quran had already been revealed, which revelation was written after that? And if it was written and he was a reliable personality, then Hazrat Abu Bakr Siddiq رضي الله عنه would have assigned him the duty. You became his advocate fourteen hundred years later. Or he would have been included in the committee."
116-c-Mas'alah: Was Hazrat Muawiyah r.a a Scribe of Revelation? 10:00
Scholarly Points of Mirza Sahib's Videos and Their Research Analysis:
Our researcher has proven through this entire discussion that I do not deny that you, may Allah be pleased with you, were a scribe of revelation, but any sane and just person can easily decide after reading that it is this very denial that is being made, though the wording and firmness are such that it seems as if the matter is being argued with great evidence. Anyway, if the conversations made in both videos are put in the form of points, they are as follows:
(1) The real fact is that he was appointed to this position only on the basis of recommendation, and that too was accepted by the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, out of pity for Hazrat Abu Sufyan, may Allah be pleased with him, and Mirza Sahib called it "recommended recruitment."
(2) When the decision was made to compile the Quran in an organized form, Hazrat Zaid bin Thabit, may Allah be pleased with him, was selected for this task. So if Hazrat Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, was really a scribe of revelation, then why was this responsibility not given to him? This proves that he was an unreliable person because he told Hazrat Zaid, may Allah be pleased with him, that you bear no blame, and he repeated this many times and finally openly stated that if Hazrat Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him (a reliable personality), were trustworthy, then Hazrat Abu Bakr Siddiq, may Allah be pleased with him, would have assigned him this duty.
(3) Which revelation was Hazrat Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, a scribe of? While you, may Allah be pleased with you, became Muslim at the conquest of Mecca, by which time 99.99 percent of the Quran had already been revealed.
Now the question to Mirza Sahib's admirers is that if this is not called denial of something, then what is called denial? No one denies something by clearly saying "I do not believe," rather, the one who does not want to believe makes various excuses and weaves a web of doubts and objections, through which denial also occurs while the truth remains intact.
Anyway, Mirza Sahib's statement that your being a scribe of revelation was only because of the recommendation made by Hazrat Abu Sufyan, may Allah be pleased with him, and that this was not by Allah's decision or revelation, but the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, accepted it out of pity, and the verse of the Quran which states that the Prophet, peace be upon him, only decides or speaks on the basis of revelation, was answered by saying that it was only about the Quran that the Prophet recited, it was not by his own will but all was revelation. The simplest and clearest answer to this objection is found in the hadith itself, narrated by Hazrat Abu Musa Ash'ari, may Allah be pleased with him:
كَانَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ إِذَا جَاءَهُ السَّائِلُ أَوْ طُلِبَتْ إِلَيْهِ حَاجَةٌ، قَالَ اشْفَعُوا تُؤْجَرُوا وَيَقْضِي اللَّهُ عَلَى لِسَانِ نَبِيِّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ مَا شَاءَ۔
"When someone came to the Prophet, peace be upon him, or a need was presented before him, he, peace be upon him, would say to the companions: 'Make a recommendation so that you may receive its reward, but Allah Almighty will issue the command from the tongue of His Prophet as He wills.'"
Reference: (Sahih Bukhari:1432)
It is understood that even if someone makes a recommendation in the presence of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, if he accepts it, it will be from Allah, by Allah's command, and by Allah's revelation! Therefore, it is obligatory for Mirza Sahib to provide evidence that accepting this recommendation happened without Allah's revelation and command, merely because the noble Prophet, peace be upon him, had the habit of never refusing anyone. Although Hazrat Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, was assigned the writing of revelation after the recommendation, the one who accepted this recommendation is Allah, and this decision and selection was made by Allah's permission, because no one can recommend or impose their will without His permission, and indeed there is virtue in that Allah chose him for this blessed task after the recommendation was made for him, although Mirza Sahib dismisses it as recommended recruitment.
The second objection raised by the engineer is also an example of his foolishness that if Hazrat Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, was also a scribe of revelation, then why did Hazrat Abu Bakr Siddiq, may Allah be pleased with him, not assign him the responsibility of compiling the Quran and only assigned Hazrat Zaid bin Thabit? This objection is answered in the same video from which Mirza Sahib's quote was taken. He said: "They assigned the duty to only one person - Zaid ibn Thabit, may Allah be pleased with him - and said you bear no blame of any kind, meaning you are a true believer, i.e., 'with the Prophet from the beginning,' and you write revelation... So Mirza Sahib! When Hazrat Zaid bin Thabit was with the Prophet, peace be upon him, from the beginning and was assigned the writing of revelation and often performed the task of writing revelation himself, and then Hazrat Zaid bin Thabit, may Allah be pleased with him, is superior to Hazrat Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, then considering these things, if he was chosen instead of Hazrat Muawiyah, does this prove that Hazrat Muawiyah was not a scribe of revelation or not a reliable personality? Only an ignorant and completely irrational person can say such things.
Imam Ibn Hazm, may Allah have mercy on him, mentioned several companions as scribes of revelation, including Sayyiduna Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, and then said: "وكان زيد بن ثابت من ألزم الناس لذلك" and Hazrat Zaid bin Thabit, may Allah be pleased with him, was the most important personality in writing revelation.
Reference: (Jami' al-Sirah:27)
Mirza Sahib himself has admitted in his old videos that Hazrat Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, was also a scribe of revelation but the top of the list was Hazrat Zaid bin Thabit, as referenced at the beginning. So when Hazrat Zaid bin Thabit, may Allah be pleased with him, had the greatest role in writing revelation, what result can be drawn from Hazrat Abu Bakr Siddiq, may Allah be pleased with him, assigning him the task of compiling the Quran? Does this negate other scribes of revelation or make them suspicious?
This is the result of bias and hatred towards Hazrat Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, that Mirza Sahib only remembers Hazrat Zaid bin Thabit and Muawiyah, and when he removes the name of Hazrat Muawiyah, only Sayyiduna Zaid remains. But is it really true that only Hazrat Zaid bin Thabit, may Allah be pleased with him, was a scribe of revelation? While the engineer himself clearly admitted in his video "What is the dictionary of Islam" that:
"The Prophet, peace be upon him, had revelation written during his time, and among them Zaid bin Thabit, may Allah be pleased with him, was top of the list of your scribes, scribes of revelation, Sayyiduna Muawiyah was also among them, and there were other companions as well. Anyway, Zaid bin Thabit was top of the list."
Now, in Mirza Sahib's court, the question is who were those other companions? The scholars of hadith count Sayyiduna Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, Ali, Zubair, Ubayy bin Ka'b, may Allah be pleased with them, and others among the scribes of revelation.
Reference: (Jami' al-Sirah:26, Tahdhib al-Asma' wal-Lughat:29/1, Talqih Fahum Ahl al-Athar:58, Minhaj al-Sunnah:428/4, Fath al-Bari:22/9)
Also, Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik, may Allah be pleased with him, said:جَمَعَ الْقُرْآنَ عَلَى عَهْدِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، أَرْبَعَةٌ، كُلُّهُمْ مِنَ الْأَنْصَارِ: مُعَاذُ بْنُ جَبَلٍ، وَأُبَيُّ بْنُ كَعْبٍ، وَزَيْدُ بْنُ ثَابِتٍ، وَأَبُو زَيْدٍ۔
"During the time of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, four companions compiled the Quran, and all of them were from the Ansar: Hazrat Mu'adh bin Jabal, Hazrat Ubayy bin Ka'b, Hazrat Zaid bin Thabit, and Hazrat Abu Zaid, may Allah be pleased with them."
Reference: (Sahih Muslim:2465)
But according to your logic, all these either were not scribes of revelation or not reliable personalities! Because Hazrat Abu Bakr Siddiq, may Allah be pleased with him, neither assigned any of them the responsibility of compiling the Quran nor formed a committee including them. But if despite this, these persons were also scribes of revelation and reliable personalities, then with what face does Mirza Sahib raise objections against Hazrat Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him?
The third objection and deception is that which revelation did Hazrat Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, write? He became Muslim at the conquest of Mecca when 99.99 percent of the Quran had already been revealed, i.e., almost the entire Quran had been revealed. To Mirza Sahib, it is asked what is the evidence for this? Or has any of the Imams made such a claim? Yes, it is possible that the devils of the engineer whispered such a revelation to him which he is unable to reference. Anyway, we do not consider it necessary to respond to Mirza Sahib's nonsense, but for the sake of his admirers, we guide them to a door of research that the period between the conquest of Mecca and the death of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, is about two and a half years. So did no revelation come down on the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, during these years? And remember! All these objections and doubts of Mirza Sahib are not upon us but upon Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both, who explicitly stated: "كان يكتب الوحي" He (i.e., Hazrat Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him) used to write revelation. But Mirza Sahib himself repeatedly mentions this in his own videos without paying attention to it, so what is he doing in his hatred of Hazrat Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, while the words of Hazrat Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both, "كان يكتب" indicate that this work continued regularly and continuously (i.e., writing revelation).
Anyway, Mirza Sahib finally gave a taunt that "You became an uncle and after fourteen hundred years you are pleading their case," meaning calling Hazrat Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, a scribe of revelation is a false advocacy and this is a fourteenth-century invention. But if this is false advocacy, then in this false advocacy, Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both, is foremost included, and this crime has also been committed by the scholars of hadith, may Allah have mercy on them.
The Imams have specifically counted Sayyiduna Muawiyah رضي الله عنه among the scribes of revelation:
Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal, may Allah have mercy on him, was asked what he says about the person who says that he does not consider Hazrat Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, as a scribe of revelation. He, may Allah have mercy on him, replied: "This is a bad and rejected statement; one should avoid such people and not sit with them, and we will warn the common people against such people."
Reference: (As-Sunnah lil Khallal:659)
Imam Ibn Hazm, may Allah have mercy on him, counted him among the scribes of revelation and said: "Hazrat Zaid bin Thabit and Hazrat Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with them, were appointed to write down the revelation and other (letters and writings, etc.) in the presence of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him; besides this, they had no other responsibility."
Reference: (Jawaami' as-Seerah:27,26)
Imam Abu Bakr al-Ajri, may Allah have mercy on him, wrote that he was a scribe of revelation.
Reference: (Ash-Shari'ah lil Ajri:2431/5)
Imam Ibn Asakir, may Allah have mercy on him, said about him: "Scribe of the revelation of the Lord of the worlds."
Reference: (Tarikh Dimashq:55/59)
And he said that the most authentic narration regarding the virtue of Hazrat Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, is that he was a scribe of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him.
Reference: (Tarikh Dimashq:106/59)
Imam Abu Zakariya al-Nawawi, may Allah have mercy on him, mentioned Hazrat Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, saying: مُعَاوِيَةُ بْنُ أَبِي سُفْيَانَ الْخَلِيفَةُ أَحَدُ كُتَّابِ الْوَحْيِ "Caliph Muawiyah bin Abi Sufyan is among the scribes of revelation."
Reference: (Al-Majmu':70/1)
And in another place he said: وكان أكثرهم كتابة زيد بن ثابت، ومعاوية، رضي الله عنهم "And most of the writing of revelation was carried out by Zaid bin Thabit and Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with them."
Reference: (Tahdhib al-Asma' wal-Lughat:29/1)
Imam Qurtubi, may Allah have mercy on him, also wrote that he, may Allah be pleased with him, was a scribe of revelation.
Reference: (Al-Mufhim:473/4)
Imam Ibn al-Jawzi, may Allah have mercy on him, mentioned him among the scribes of revelation and further said that most of the responsibility for writing revelation was carried out by Hazrat Zaid bin Thabit and Hazrat Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with them.
Reference: (Talqih Fahum Ahl al-Athar:58)
Imam Dhahabi, may Allah have mercy on him, said in the description of the virtues of Sayyiduna Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him:
وَقَدْ صَحَّ عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ قَالَ: كُنْتُ أَلْعَبُ، فَدَعَانِي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى الله عليه وآله وَسَلَّمَ وَقَالَ: ادْعُ لِي مُعَاوِيَةَ وَكَانَ يَكْتُبُ الْوَحْيَ۔
"And it is authentically narrated from Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both, that he said: I was playing when the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, called me and said, 'Bring Muawiyah,' and he used to write the revelation."
Reference: (Tarikh al-Islam:309/4)
Mirza Sahib criticizes us for narrating this tradition partially and hiding the latter part, but this objection is incorrect. You can see that Imam Dhahabi, may Allah have mercy on him, also only indicated the narration similarly, and this is a method where the relevant part of a lengthy narration is briefly stated. If this leads to concealing the truth, then what should be thought about Imam Dhahabi, may Allah have mercy on him? You have also read the commentary of Imam Ibn Asakir, may Allah have mercy on him, who said under the virtues of Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him: The most authentic hadith regarding the virtue of Hazrat Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, is that he was a scribe of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him... Now, he too did not narrate the entire hadith. Imam Abu Bakr al-Ajri, may Allah have mercy on him, also mentioned this hadith under the virtues of Hazrat Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, but only wrote the part "وَكَانَ كَاتِبَهُ"
Reference: (Ash-Shari'ah:1937)
. Now, whatever accusations Mirza Sahib levels against us, let him level them against the noble muhaddithin as well!Also keep in mind that the noble scholars do not hide this part but mention it elsewhere and explain it properly, so do not fall for Mirza Sahib's deceptions.
Hafiz Ibn Hajar, may Allah have mercy on him, declared Sayyiduna Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, a scribe of revelation.
Reference: (At-Taqrib:6758)
Imam Ibn Kathir, may Allah have mercy on him, also counted him among the scribes of revelation.
Reference: (Al-Bidayah:21/8, Al-Fusool fi as-Seerah: p.255)
Allama Qastalani, may Allah have mercy on him, also wrote that he was a scribe of revelation.
Reference: (Hadi as-Sari:170/1)
Imam Abu Mansur Muammar bin Ahmad (d. 428 AH) stated the consensus belief of the earlier and later noble imams, saying: "And Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, is a scribe and trustworthy of Allah's revelation."
Reference: (Al-Hujjah fi Bayan al-Mahjah:248/1)
They present it as a consensus issue that he, may Allah be pleased with him, was a scribe of revelation, and some even clarify that after the conquest of Mecca, most of the writing of revelation was carried out by Hazrat Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him. But we have an engineer who claims that the Quran was completed only up to the conquest of Mecca and asks which revelation he wrote last. Now consider the objections of Mirza Sahib and think whether all these accusations were made against us or against the muhaddithin? To prove Hazrat Muawiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, as a scribe of revelation was called a false advocacy after fourteen hundred years, while from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both, until today, the muhaddithin have always called him a scribe of revelation. But the false interpretations through which you denied Hazrat Muawiyah's being a scribe of revelation—did anyone before you in fourteen hundred years ever show such malice?
Mirza Sahib often says to deceive people that in Sahih Muslim's narration only the word "scribe" is mentioned, not "scribe of revelation," and then he himself cites the narration from Dala'il an-Nubuwwah in which the explicit mention of "scribe of revelation" is present. So on what basis is the distinction between "scribe" and "scribe of revelation" made? While Muslim's narration is just concise and does not negate being a scribe of revelation; rather, the word "scribe" is comprehensive. And when the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, is called a scribe, what is the evidence for interpreting this as "only one who writes letters and messages"? Why cannot the one who writes revelation be meant by "writer"?
