Hamzah Raza

From Mufti Taqi Usmani’s autobiography. When his father had a heart attack and he was in the hospital, and the famous Shia scholar, Rasheed Turabi, was in the hospital across the hall from him

The Place of the Imams of the Ahlul Bayt within Ahlus Sunnah according to Imam Dhahabi “As for Mawlana Imam Ali, he is from the rightly guided caliphs who are guaranteed Jannah, may God be pleased with them. We love him with the most intense of love. We do not call to his infallibility nor that of Abi Bakr Al-Sidiq. And his two sons, Hasan and Husayn رضي الله عنهما, are the grandsons of the Prophet ﷺ and the two masters of the youth of paradise. Had the caliphate come to that, we would have welcomed it. And Imam Zaynul Abidin, he was a man of great stature from the honored scholars and practitioners of the religion. He was fit for the caliphate, and had numerous admirable qualities. He has more fatwas and narrations related from him than anyone one else. And like that is his son Imam Baqir, the father of Imam Jafar. He was a master, imam, faqih, and fit for the caliphate. And just like that was his son, Imam Jafar. He had a high status and was of the imams of knowledge. He had more right to be Caliph than Abi Jafar Al-Mansur(the Abbasid caliph of his time). And his son Musa Al-Khadim was a man of great stature. He was good in his knowledge and had more right to be Caliph than Harun Al-Rashid. He has numerous admirable qualities in terms of his honor and virtue. And his son, Ali Al-Ridha had a high status, strong knowledge, eloquence. Al-Mamun appointed him as his successor because of his eminence. He died in the year 203 AH. And his son Muhammad al-Jawad was one of the leaders of his people. He did not reach the rank of his forefathers in knowledge and jurisprudence. And similarly was the case for his son who was known as Hadi. He was a noble and honorable man. And similarly was the case of son Hasan Al-Askari. May Allah have mercy on them.” Source: Siyar A'lam al-Nubala

Mawlana Zakariyya Kandhlawi mentions in his autobiography that he would do 40 khatms of the Quran during the month of Muharram, and donate the reward to the martyrs of Karbala.

*On the Hanafi position that touching one’s genitals does not break Wudu* Imam Uthman Zaylai, the great Somali Hanafi, mentions that this was the position of Umar b. Al-Khattab RA, Ali b. Abi Talib RA, Abdullah b. Masud RA, Abdullah b. Abbas RA, Zayd b. Thabit RA, and other giants from the Mujtahidin of the Sahaba, as well as Tabiyeen such as Hasan Al-Basri, Saeed b. Musayyib(the student and son-in law of Abu Hurairah RA), and Sufyan Al-Thawri He then quotes from Imam Tahawi who says “I do not know of a single Sahabi who gave fatwa that touching one’s genitals breaks one’s wudu, except for Abdullah b. Umar and the majority of the Sahaba opposed him on that.” … He further states that [Those who say the Quranic verse of that refers to purifying oneself after touching one’s wife] have no proof in the verse; because what is intended by it is sexual intercourse. This is because touching (al-lams) is sometimes mentioned while meaning intercourse. Abdullah b. Abbas interpreted the verse as intercourse, and he is the interpreter (translator) of the Qur’an[meaning the chief Mufassir amongst the Sahaba], and this agrees with what the linguists say. Ibn al-Sikkit even said: when “touching” is mentioned in connection with a woman, it means intercourse. The Arabs say: “I touched a woman,” meaning “I had intercourse with her.” So interpreting it as intercourse is more appropriate.” What strong evidence the Hanafi madhabb has. قَالَ - رَحِمَهُ اللَّهُ - (وَمَسُّ ذَكَرٍ) أَيْ مَسُّهُ لَا يَنْقُضُ الْوُضُوءَ، وَهُوَ مَعْطُوفٌ عَلَى غَيْرِ النَّاقِضِ، وَهُوَ مَذْهَبُ عُمَرَ بْنِ الْخَطَّابِ وَعَلِيِّ بْنِ أَبِي طَالِبٍ وَابْنِ مَسْعُودٍ وَابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ وَزَيْدِ بْنِ ثَابِتٍ وَغَيْرِهِمْ مِنْ كِبَارِ الصَّحَابَةِ وَصُدُورِ التَّابِعِينَ مِثْلُ الْحَسَنِ الْبَصْرِيِّ وَسَعِيدِ بْنِ الْمُسَيِّبِ وَالثَّوْرِيِّ وَقَالَ الطَّحَاوِيُّ لَمْ نَعْلَمْ أَحَدًا مِنْ الصَّحَابَةِ أَفْتَى بِالْوُضُوءِ مِنْهُ غَيْرَ ابْنِ عُمَرَ، وَقَدْ خَالَفَهُ أَكْثَرُهُمْ وَ … وَلَا حُجَّةَ لَهُمْ فِي الْآيَةِ؛ لِأَنَّ الْمُرَادَ بِهَا الْجِمَاعُ؛ لِأَنَّ اللَّمْسَ يُذْكَرُ وَيُرَادُ بِهِ الْجِمَاعُ، وَفَسَّرَ الْآيَةَ ابْنُ عَبَّاسٍ بِالْجِمَاعِ وَهُوَ تُرْجُمَانُ الْقُرْآنِ وَهُوَ مُوَافِقٌ لِمَا قَالَهُ أَهْلُ اللُّغَةِ حَتَّى قَالَ ابْنُ السِّكِّيتِ اللَّمْسُ إذَا قُرِنَ بِالْمَرْأَةِ يُرَادُ بِهِ الْجِمَاعُ، تَقُولُ الْعَرَبُ لَمَسْت الْمَرْأَةَ أَيْ جَامَعْتهَا فَكَانَ الْحَمْلُ عَلَى الْجِمَاعِ أَوْلَ

On the Hanafi position that touching one's genitals does not break Wudu. Imam Uthman Zaylai, the great Somali Hanafi, mentions

Can we pray behind a person with heretical beliefs? As long as those beliefs do not take one out of Islam, in the Hanafi school, this is Makruh Tanzihi, as relayed to me by Shaikh Ali Salih, Shaikh of the Hanafis in Egypt. On top of that, it is preferable to pray behind such a person than to pray alone so one can get the reward of praying in congregation. The great Egyptian Hanafi scholar, Ibn Humam mentions in Fath Al-Qadeer, لَوْ صَلَّى خَلْفَ فَاسِقٍ أَوْ مُبْتَدِعٍ أَحْرَزَ ثَوَابَ الْجَمَاعَةِ، لَكِنْ لَا يُحْرِزُ ثَوَابَ الْمُصَلِّي خَلْفَ تَقِيٍّ اهـ. يُرِيدُ بِالْمُبْتَدِعِ مَنْ لَمْ يُكَفَّرْ وَلَا بَأْسَ بِتَفْصِيلِهِ: الِاقْتِدَاءُ بِأَهْلِ الْأَهْوَاءِ جَائِزٌ إلَّا الْجَهْمِيَّةَ وَالْقَدَرِيَّةَ وَالرَّوَافِضَ الْغَالِيَةَ وَالْقَائِلَ بِخَلْقِ الْقُرْآنِ وَالْخَطَابِيَّةَ وَالْمُشَبِّهَةَ. وَجُمْلَتُهُ أَنَّ مَنْ كَانَ مِنْ أَهْلِ قِبْلَتِنَا وَلَمْ يَغُلَّ حَتَّى لَمْ يُحْكَمْ بِكُفْرِهِ تَجُوزُ الصَّلَاةُ خَلْفَهُ، He starts by quoting from Burhani who said "If a person prays behind a fasiq(open-sinner) or person of Biddah(a person with heretical beliefs that expel him from Sunni Islam but not heretical enough that he is still a Muslim) will attain the reward of praying in congregation(Meaning he will get the 27 times the reward) but he will not get the reward of praying behind a Person of taqwa." Then Ibn Humam says "The person of Biddah is the one who we do not declare to be non-Muslims. There is no problem in detailing it. Following the people of whims is permissible except for the Jahmiyya, the Qadariyya, the extremists amongst the Shi'as, those who say that the Quran is created, the Khattabiya, and the Mushabihhah. The gist of it is that whoever is from the people who face Mecca in prayer and has not gone too far to the point that he is judged to be a non-Muslim, it is permissible to pray behind him."

A talk on Islamic Liberation Theology I did with Imam Jihad Abdul-Mumit, one of the last living members of the Black Panther Party The latter part of a talk is an interview I did with him on his journey from Black Panther to Muslim as well as his journey as a Muslim https://youtu.be/EXo4cz48L20?is=0-O5O26zXqCGh4Uz

How many mutawattir Hadith are there? An interesting answer that Dr Abdullah Hasan b. Muhammad Al-Qasim mentions in his Tahqiq of Nuzhat Al-Nazar of Ibn Hajar “The quantity of mutawatir (mass-transmitted) hadiths: The truth is that what has been mentioned in the specialized books on mutawatir is not much. Al-Kattani mentioned about (311) hadiths in his book Naẓm al-Mutanāthir min al-Ḥadīth al-Mutawātir, and al-Suyuti’s book before him contains fewer than this number. However, the reason— in my view— for this small number is the condition upon which each of them based the definition of mutawatir. For example, al-Kattani collected in his book only those narrations for which he found ten or more chains of transmission. However, there is another piece of evidence used to indicate the abundance of mutawatir hadith. It is what Imam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) mentioned, namely that the majority of the hadiths in the two Sahih collections are mutawatir or definitively authentic, due to the Ummah’s acceptance of them. He mentioned this in several places, including: Introduction to the Principles of Tafsir (pp. 66–67), and Majmūʿ al-Fatāwā (18/17).” ^٣)في الأصل حاشية بخط المصنف ونصها:"بلغت قراءة بحث علي.كتبه مؤلفه".(^٤)مقدار الأحاديث المتواترة: الحق أن ما ذكروه في الكتب الخاصة بالتواتر ليس كثيرا؛ فقد ذكر الكتاني نحو(٣١١)حديثا في كتابه:"نظم المتناثر من الحديث المتواتر"، وكتاب السيوطي قبله أقل من هذا العدد، ولكن السبب-في رأيي- في هذه القلة هو الشرط الذي بنى عليه كل من هؤلاء تحديد المتواتر؛ فالكتاني مثلا جمع في كتابه ما اجتمعت عنده له عشرة طرق، فأكثر من الروايات.لكن، هناك دليل آخر يستدل به على كثرة الحديث المتواتر ذكره الإمام ابن تيمية، ﵀، وهو أن جمهور أحاديث الصحيحين؛ متواتر، أو ثابت قطعا؛ لتلقي الأمة لهما بالقبول، ذكر هذا في عدد من المواضع، منها:"مقدمة في أصول التفسير"، ٦٦ - ٦٧، و"مجموع الفتاوى"، ١٨/ ١٧.

Dr Abdullah Hasan b. Muhammad Al-Qasim mentions in his Tahqiq of Nuzhat Al-Nazar of Ibn Hajar “The quantity of mutawatir (mass-transmitted) hadiths: The truth is that what has been mentioned in the specialized books on mutawatir is not much. Al-Kattani mentioned about (311) hadiths in his book Naẓm al-Mutanāthir min al-Ḥadīth al-Mutawātir, and al-Suyuti’s book before him contains fewer than this number. However, the reason— in my view— for this small number is the condition upon which each of them based the definition of mutawatir. For example, al-Kattani collected in his book only those narrations for which he found ten or more chains of transmission. However, there is another piece of evidence used to indicate the abundance of mutawatir hadith. It is what Imam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) mentioned, namely that the majority of the hadiths in the two Sahih collections are mutawatir or definitively authentic, due to the Ummah’s acceptance of them. He mentioned this in several places, including: Introduction to the Principles of Tafsir (pp. 66–67), and Majmūʿ al-Fatāwā (18/17).” ^٣)في الأصل حاشية بخط المصنف ونصها:"بلغت قراءة بحث علي.كتبه مؤلفه".(^٤)مقدار الأحاديث المتواترة: الحق أن ما ذكروه في الكتب الخاصة بالتواتر ليس كثيرا؛ فقد ذكر الكتاني نحو(٣١١)حديثا في كتابه:"نظم المتناثر من الحديث المتواتر"، وكتاب السيوطي قبله أقل من هذا العدد، ولكن السبب-في رأيي- في هذه القلة هو الشرط الذي بنى عليه كل من هؤلاء تحديد المتواتر؛ فالكتاني مثلا جمع في كتابه ما اجتمعت عنده له عشرة طرق، فأكثر من الروايات.لكن، هناك دليل آخر يستدل به على كثرة الحديث المتواتر ذكره الإمام ابن تيمية، ﵀، وهو أن جمهور أحاديث الصحيحين؛ متواتر، أو ثابت قطعا؛ لتلقي الأمة لهما بالقبول، ذكر هذا في عدد من المواضع، منها:"مقدمة في أصول التفسير"، ٦٦ - ٦٧، و"مجموع الفتاوى"، ١٨/ ١٧.

“If I were to argue with one thousand knowledgeable people I would surely win the debate. But if I were to argue with one fool, I would lose the debate.” -Imam Shaafi

كن مثل إبراهيم في الإيمان حتى تزيل معابد الاوثان -محمد إقبال

An interesting argument on the fiqh ruling of musical instruments Sheikh Al Azhar Mahmud Shaltut said the fitra is naturally attracted to pleasant things and the love for music is a universal one. Thus it stems from the fitra and this is evidence that music is حسن لذاته and thus cannot be intrinsically haram

The Rulings of Hajj in the Hanafi madhabb Fard Hajj: Hajj of Islam Wajib Hajj: Vow or messed up Nafl Hajj Mandub Hajj: An extra Nafl Hajj Makruh Tanzihi Hajj: A Hajj where one left off a bunch Sunnahs or Wajibs(with the niyyah of just paying the jinaaya) for no reason Makruh Tahrimi: Performing Hajj with Haram money Hajj is never Haram, Mubah, or Sunnah Muakada in our madhabb. Some of the Hanafis say Hajj after a vow to do it is Fard, but the majority position is Wajib. A messed up Nafl in the Hanafi school becames Wajib to make up. The other madhabbs do not take this position. Some of the Shaafis say Hajj every year is a Fard Kifaya on the Ummah

Other classes I will be teaching Sundays at 2pm: Introduction to Islamic Logic https://www.hamzahraza.org/classes/logic Sundays at noon: Marriage, Divorce and Business section of Quduri https://www.hamzahraza.org/classes/quduri-pt-2

Will be teaching this class soon. Link to register below iA https://www.mozaic.ing/store/p/mozaic-fiq-class

Imam Jamal Al-Din Zaylai, the great Somali Hanafi, mentions that Imam Abu Hanifa did Hajj 55 times in his life in his book نصب الراية لأحاديث الهداية. Given that Imam Abu Hanifa lived for 70 years, that would amount to him doing Hajj almost every year, على أن أحاديث الحرمين مشتركة بين علماء الأمصار في تلك الطبقات، لكثرة حجهم، وكم بينهم من حج أربعين حجة وعمرة، وأكثر، وأبو حنيفة وحده، حج خمسا وخمسين حجة، وأنت ترى البخاري يقول: ولا أحصي ما دخلت الكوفة في طلب الحديث، حينما يذكر عدد ما دخل باقي الأمصار، ولهذا أيضا دلالته في هذا الصدد

Dhul-Nun said: “Sincerity has three signs: when the praise and blame of the common folk become equal in your eyes; when you become oblivious of your good deeds as you are doing them; and when you forget about your reward [for your good deeds] in the Hereafter.”

Imam Abu Hanifa studied under Hammad b. Abi Sulaiman for 18 years until Hammad passed. Imam Abu Hanifa said “Since Hammad’s passing, I have not prayed a single prayer except that I prayed for his forgiveness with that of my father, and for the forgiveness of everyone that I learned ilm from or taught ilm too.” This shows the importance of praying for our teachers in addition to our parents and anyone who may learn from us.

"The letter nun of [the word] hawan (“humiliation”) is stolen from [the word] hawa (“desire”) Therefore he who succumbs to every passion is subject to humiliation!" From the Risala Qushayriyya