Massoud Vahedi

My Arabic travelogue, مُذَكِّرَاتِي فِي الهِنْدِ وَتُرْكِيَا, has now been published and is available for download on my Academia page (link below). https://www.academia.edu/165626604/%D9%85%D8%B0%D9%83%D9%91%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%AA%D9%8A_%D9%81%D9%8A_%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%87%D9%86%D8%AF_%D9%88%D8%AA%D8%B1%D9%83%D9%8A%D8%A7?source=swp_share Extending over sixty pages, the work is a modest contribution to the longstanding tradition of adab al-rihla literature in Islam. It brings together reflections from my time in Istanbul, Türkiye, as well as my visits to Ahmadabad and Delhi in India: encounters with scholars and students, engagement with libraries and manuscript cultures, and visits to historical sites that continue to function not merely as remnants of the past, but as active centers of learning in the Muslim world. In addition to its reflective dimension, the travelogue also aspires to serve as a resource of historical value, preserving observations of people, places, and scholarly cultures that remain insufficiently documented yet deeply significant. The volume concludes with an appendix: a tribute to our teacher, the great hadith master of India, Shaykh Muhammad Yahya al-Mongeri al-Nadwi (d. 2023). It is hoped that these reflections may encourage other students of knowledge to undertake similar journeys and to document their experiences. This work is dedicated to a teacher who taught me how to write with purpose: Shaykh Nadhir Ahmad Nadwi. Any clarity or force found in these pages is, in no small part, a reflection of his enduring influence. May Allah enshroud him with His mercy.

#إتحاف_ذوي_الرسوخ_بما_في_القرآن_من_منسوخ أرجوزة مختصرة من ٢٠ بيتًا جمعت فيها الآيات التي نسخت حكمًا وبقيت رسمًا في القرآن الكريم، وألحقت بها الآيات تيسيرًا على دارسيها رابط النظم بصيغة pdf: https://t.me/dawrat_qaraat/1051 نظمها لنفسه ولمن أراد الانتفاع بها د. محمد سعد السكندري

✵ التتمة: من باب تجديد المناط؛ قد فرَّق بعض الأصحاب كابن قاسم في ((حاشية الرَّوض))، ومرعيُّ في ((غاية المنتهى)): اعتبار كون حائل سميكًا غليظًا؛ وعليه فإنَّ جميع الحوائل المستحدثة لا تُعتبَر في شيءٍ من الأحكام، والترجيح في هذه المسألة صعب.

✵ اعتبار الحائل في الوطء عند الحنابلة: ← قد اضطرب كلام الأصحاب في اعتبار الحائل في أبواب مختلفة؛ فبعضهم يعتبره في بعض المسائل دون بعض، مما يترتب عليه أحكام عظيمة. فأردت أن أُلخِّصَ ممَّا قيدتُه في هذه المسألة على العجالة أثناء قراءتي على مشايخي الفضلاء. ← قال لي شيخنا الفقيه عبد الرحمن الأهدل -حفظه الله- في بيته: أنَّ الأصل عند الحنابلة اعتبار الحائل في الوطء في جميع المسائل غير الحيض؛ لعموم النَّهي في قول الله تعالى: ﴿وَيَسْأَلُونَكَ عَنِ الْمَحِيضِ ۖ قُلْ هُوَ أَذًى فَاعْتَزِلُوا النِّسَاءَ فِي الْمَحِيضِ ۖ وَلَا تَقْرَبُوهُنَّ حَتَّىٰ يَطْهُرْنَ﴾. ⇦ قلتُ كلامُ شيخِنا الكريم يتَّسقُ مع قواعدِ المذهب، مع أنني وجدتُ اضطرابًا شديدًا في كتب الأصحاب. ⤴ وقد حصرتُ تلك المسائل على نحو الآتي: ١- في باب الاغتسال = اعتبار عدم وجود الحائل لوجوب الغسل على قول الأكثر. ٢- في باب الحيض = عدم اعتبار وجود الحائل لوجوب الكفَّارة لوطء الحائض ولو كان جاهلًا عن الحكم أو عن أنَّها حائضٌ؛ قاله البهوتيُّ في ((كشَّاف القناع))، ولا أعلم خلافًا معتبرًا في هذه المسألة. ٣- في باب النُّسك = عدم اعتبار وجود الحائل لفساد النُّسك -وهو الصَّحيح-. ٣- في باب الصَّوم = عدم اعتبار وجود الحائل لوجوب الكفَّارة خلافًا لمرعيِّ في ((غاية المنتهى)) حيثُ قال: ويتَّجه احتمالٌ: لا شيءَ على مَن جامَع بحائل -حال صومِه- ولم ينزل. ٥- في باب حدِّ الزنا: أ- عدم اعتبار وجود الحائل لكون الشَّخص محصنًا -وهو ظاهر كلام ((المنتهى))-. ب- اعتبار عدم وجود الحائل لإقامة الحدِّ؛ على قول الشيخ منصور في ((كشَّاف القناع))، ومرعيُّ في ((غاية المنتهى))؛ خلافًا لابن عوض في ((فتح وهَّاب المآرب))، واللبدي في ((حاشية نيل المآرب))، وغيرهما، فإنَّهم قالوا: أنَّه يُحدُّ ولو كان بحائل؛ مع أنَّهم يتَّفقون على أنَّ الحكم التَّكليفي: هو التَّحريم ولو كان بحائل؛ والصَّحيح قول الشيخ منصور؛ لأنَّ الحدَّ تدرأ بالشُبهة. ← قلتُ: هذه المسائل تحتاجُ إلى إعادة نظر وتحرير؛ وقد اكتفيتُ بذكر ما قيدتُ خلال قراءتي على المشايخ، ولعلِّي قصَّرتُ في فهم كلامهم، والله تعالى أعلم بالصواب. كتبه/ فهد قاضي الحنبلي

"The shrillness of the invective applied by a detractor does not necessarily indicate an unfaithful reading [of the other side]; nor does school-affinity guarantee reliability." - David Bennett

الترجيح بالمقاصد: قال ابن قدامة في ترجيح نوع إطعام المساكين بالحنث باليمين بعد أن ذكر أقوال العلماء: "ويحتمل أن يكون إخراج الخبز أفضل؛ لأنه أنفع للمسكين، وأقل كلفة، وأقرب إلى حصول المقصود منه بغنيته، والظاهر أن المسكين يأكله، ويستغني به في يومه ذلك، والحب يعجز عن طحنه وعجنه، فالظاهر أنه يحتاج إلى بيعه، ثم يشتري بثمنه خبزا، فيتكلف حمل كلفة البيع والشراء، وغبن البائع والمشتري له، وتأخر حصول النفع به، وربما لم يحصل له بثمنه من الخبز ما يكفيه ليومه، فيفوت المقصود مع حصول الضرر".(المغني9/541). وهذا الذي ذكره ابن الإمام قدامة ليس مجرد ترجيحٍ جزئيٍّ بين صورتين من صور الإطعام، بل هو تنزيلٌ واعٍ لمقاصد الشريعة على محلّ النزاع؛ إذ بنى اختياره على تحقيق مقصود الإغناء العاجل للمسكين، ورفع الحرج عنه، وتقليل الوسائط التي تُفضي إلى تأخر النفع أو نقصه. فاعتبر مآلات الفعل، وما يكتنفه من كلفةٍ ومعاناةٍ واحتمال غبنٍ أو فوات كفاية، فرجّح ما كان أقرب إلى تحصيل المقصود، وأبعد عن تفويته أو تنقيصه، وهو عين النظر المقاصدي الذي يوازن بين الوسائل والنتائج، ويقدّم ما تتحقق به مصلحة المستحق على وجهٍ أتمّ وأيسر. وهذا المسلك يكشف عن رسوخ قدمه في المقاصد، وإحكام الصنعة الفقهية والإحاطة بها؛ حيث لا يقف عند ظواهر الصور، بل ينفذ إلى حقيقة المقصود الشرعي من الإطعام، فيجعل الترجيح تابعًا له وجودًا وعدمًا، قوةً وضعفًا. وقد ملأ كتابه المحرر "المغني" بمثل هذه الترجيحات المقاصدية العالية.

Unpopular opinion: Unless the teacher is well-experienced and knows where to add supplementary points to fill in the 'gaps', most classes explaining al-Bayquniyyah in hadith sciences are hardly worth the time and money. You will not progress in hadith sciences significantly by studying this text. Main issue: quite a few of al-Bayquni's definitions for hadith terms are inaccurate or lack precision.

✵ فلو اجتمع أكثر من موجب للحدِّ ونحوه؛ فإنَّه لا يخلو من صورتين: ١- أن يكون فيها حقٌّ للآدمي كالقذف = فلا بدَّ من استيفائه كلِّه على الحدة وجوبًا. ٢- أن يكون كلُّه حقوقًا لله؛ فلا يخلو من صورتين: أ- أن يكون الحدُّ من جنسٍ واحد؛ كما لو سرق مرارًا = فإنَّها تتداخل ب- أو يكون من أكثر من جنس = فله حالتان: فيها قتلٌ؛ كالرَّجم = فإنَّه يستوفى القتل فقط. أو ليس فيها قتل = فإنَّها لا تتداخل؛ فَيُستَوفَى جميعُها وجوبًا.

Ibn al-Qayyim, Ibn Muflih, al-Tufi, and Ibn Qadi al-Jabal are the most important students of Ibn Taymiyyah, according to Shaykh Hamad ibn Salih al-Marri. Note: Contrary to what is commonly claimed, Ibn Rajab was * not * a student of Ibn Taymiyyah, and in fact, he was born after Ibn Taymiyyah passed away.

After noting how a number of critical reports and points of disparagement were transmitted against Imam Abu Hanifah in al-Khatib's Tarikh Baghdad and similar works, Shaykh 'Abdullah ibn Jibrin said: "...what is likely to be correct is that these reports are predominantly inauthentic or fraught with embellishments (against Imam Abu Hanifah), for (Imam) Abu Hanifah was a great scholar reputed for his knowledge of jurisprudence, worship, and observance of supererogatory prayers, as noted in his biographical entries in books of history."

١١١٤/ #الروض_المربع: #كتاب_الطهارة  جاء في الروض المربع:

"(فَخالَطَتْهُ نَجَاسَةٌ) قليلةٌ أو كثيرةٌ، (غَيرُ بَولِ آدَميٍّ أَوْ عَذِرَتِه المائِعَةِ) أو الجامدةِ إذا ذابت، (فَلَمْ تُغَيِّرْهُ)؛ فطَهورٌ"

لماذا فرق الحنابلة رحمهم الله بين بول الآدمي وعذرته وغيره، ولم يجعلوهما كسائر النجاسات، فلو سقطت قطرة بول آدمي في ماء بلغ أربع قلال ولم يتغير قالوا أنه نجس، ولو سقطت قطرة بول من كلب في ماء بلغ أربع قلال ولم يتغير قالوا طهور؟ الجواب/ أولا: يقال أن هذه المسألة فيها عند الأصحاب روايتان، تفصيلها كالآتي: الأولى: أن الماء الكثير وهو ما تجاوز القلتين فأكثر فهذا المذهب عند أكثر المتقدمين والمتوسطين أنه ينجس ببول الآدمي وعذرته ؛ كما قال المؤلف، ونص عليه في رواية صالح والمَرُّوذي وأبي طالب، قال في الكافي»: «أكثر الروايات أن البول والغائط ينجِّسُ الماء الكثير، قال في المغني وتبعه ناظم المفردات»: «الأشهَرُ أنه ينجس»؛ كذا قال ابن عُبَيْدان وقال: «اختارها الشريفان والقاضي»، وقال: «اختارها الخرقي، وشيوخ أصحابنا»، قال في تجريد العناية هذا أظهر عنه»، قال الزركشي : أشهر الروايتين عن أحمد نقلا واختارها الأكثرون، وقال الشيخ تقي الدين: اختارها أكثر المتقدمين قال الزركشي وأكثر المتوسطين ؛ كالقاضي والشريف، وابن البنا، وابن عبدوس، وغيرهم»، وقدَّمه في «الفصول». دليل هذه الرواية: حديث أبي هريرة يرفعه: «لَا يَبُولَنَّ أَحَدُكُمْ فِي المَاءِ الدَّائِمِ الَّذِي لَا يَجْرِي، ثُمَّ يَغْتَسِلُ مِنْهُ». وأثر على رضي الله عنه: سُئِلَ عن صبي بال في بئر، فأمرهم بنزحها. الرواية الثانية : لا ينجُسُ ؛ وهو الصحيح من المذهب عند المتأخرين، وقال الشيخ تقي الدين اختاره أكثر المتأخّرين»، قال في «المستوعب»: «والتفريع عليه»، قال في المُذْهَبِ»: «لم ينجُسٌ في أصح الروايتين»، قال ابن منجى في «شرحه على المقنع»: «عدم النجاسة أصح»، واختاره أبو الخطاب وابن عَقِيل، والشيخ الموفّق، والمجد، والناظم، والمرداوي، وغيرهم. دليل هذه الرواية: عموم حديث القلتين، وأيضا فإن نجاسة بول الآدمي لا تزيد على نجاسة بول الكلب  وهو لا ينجسها، وهذه الرواية الثانية هي الموافقة لمذهب الحنفية والمالكية والشافعية فهم لا يفرقون بين نجاسة الآدمي وغيرها. ثانيا: وجه التفريق على الرواية الأولى الذي يظهر لي من كلام الأصحاب والله أعلم ما جاء من أحاديث وآثار في التشديد في بول الآدمي في الماء الراكد فاستثني لهذا النص، ووجه آخر محتمل أن التغليظ في الكلب تعبدي (في كيفية التطهر منه) فملاحظة هذين الأمرين وغيرهما جعلت من تقدم من الأصحاب يفرقون، والله أعلم. ــــــــــــــــــــــــــــ مشروع جلاء العلمي: 📚فقه الحنابلة 📚أصول الفقه وقواعده 📚علوم الحديث 📚تفسير القرآن وعلومه 📚العقيدة

Ibn Muflih: A Loyal But Critical Student of Ibn Taymiyyah "...Considering Ibn Muflih’s long association with Ibn Taymiyyah, it is to be expected that he would have been influenced by him to a considerable degree, but it would be incorrect to consider him a blind follower of his sheikh. For the most part, his interest was in transmitting, rather than supporting, the jurisprudential rulings of Ibn Taymiyyah... ...certain opinions attributed by Ibn Taymiyyah to the Hanbali School are questioned by Ibn Muflih. On several issues, he describes the attribution of opinions by his sheikh to the School as ‘strange’. He suggests that Ibn Taymiyyah’s ‘strange opinions’ are caused by a misunderstanding of general statements uttered by either Ibn Hanbal or some of the leading Hanbali scholars. Occasionally, Ibn Muflih appears to reject Ibn Taymiyyah’s claim concerning the existence of certain opinions in the Hanbali School. He studies the possible legal ground upon which this claim is founded. Thereafter, he cites clarifications made by Hanbali scholars of those grounds, in a manner that does not support the claim of his sheikh. On other issues, also, he declares clearly that what Ibn Taymiyyah mentioned as zahir al-madhhab (the predominant opinion within the School) he himself had not found to be mentioned as such by Hanbalis. Indeed Ibn Muflih sometimes asserts that the opinions found in the School on a certain issue do not include those Ibn Taymiyyah claims the existence of. In some places, Ibn Muflih even states that his sheikh’s opinions are ‘disorderly’ or that his sheikh seems to hesitate in his rulings. In other places, he calls Ibn Taymiyyah’s opinions regarding some jurisprudential issues ‘strange’ and goes on to suggest reasons for the existence of these strange rulings. He sometimes considers Ibn Taymiyyah’s ruling to be ‘questionable’ (fihi nazar), or he argues that the opinion of certain Hanbali scholars is more likely to be correct than that of his sheikh. On other occasions, although Ibn Muflih does not expressly state his view on the opinion of his sheikh, it is nevertheless clear that he is not in agreement with him. This can be deduced from his citation without criticism of various evidences that are contrary to his sheikh’s opinions. Ibn Muflih occasionally observes that although the evidence seems to suggest certain conclusions, Ibn Taymiyyah does not hold them. On certain issues, Ibn Muflih considers some of the legal evidence cited by Ibn Taymiyyah to be weak and he occasionally quotes Ibn Hanbal in support of the view that some hadiths employed by Ibn Taymiyyah are unsound." - Abdul Hakim I. Al-Matroudi

One day you wake up and it suddenly clicks you: you're not young anymore. You are already aging, and the signs are revealing themselves, however small they may be. You no longer have infinite waves of energy like you once did. You get more tired easily and it's no longer possible to just depend on your storehouses of energy to complete the next life task or assignment. Such a discovery should spur one to action. It's a moment that calls for serious introspection. Time is a currency that increases in value the more your life passes. You have less time than you think. You need to be more selective in what you do, what events you attend, and who you are hanging out with. You will find out that most of the people who you considered friends and family don't actually care about you - in this time and age, a lot of meetings and "family time" is just pointless dressing shows, chatter, and people complaining that they don't have enough money to buy a house or crying that their stocks are going down. These meetings are pointless and should be avoided, or at the minimum, should be attended infrequently. Stop wasting your time on podcasts. Most of them are useless. Their purpose is to dumb down the discourse and keep you mediocre. Most of the guys running them don't care about you or respect you, and they depend on you for paying and fuelling their dramas through your donations and reposts. Read books, and read the same book multiple times. You will get different epiphanies every time. Practice self-control and discipline against the attention span deficits that dominate in this era. If you start watching a video, don't stop watching it after 2-3 minutes. Force yourself to watch it until the end, even if it is an hour long. That forces yourself to be disciplined, a person of high priorities, and making sure that you pick the right and relevant content before pressing "play" the next time. Punish yourself a few times so the next time you pick wisely. A lot of people fail in pursuing their goals and meta life plans because of their inability to concentrate and give them the attention they deserve. The stronger your attentiveness and mindfulness becomes, the more likely you will be able to successfully undertake your life goals. Successful people don't have attention spans that wander off after 10 seconds. They keep their eye on the prize for hours and days non-stop. They prioritize that paper, project, or life plan with an unabating flame of desire. Follow that model. Start today.

The American peasant cries about “living paycheck to paycheck,” but the Muslim servant thanks Allah for being able to make ends meet with pure income and no monthly debt incurred, a blessing in and of itself. So much of our perceptions and sentiments here in the West are influenced by godless ways and entitlements, yet we are oblivious to Allah’s blessings that shower us every moment. Being able to live a decent life without regularly incurring debt is a blessing, but if you call it “living paycheck to paycheck,” a host of negative connotations become associated with it. Sure, the goal is not to remain in this state for the rest of your life, but when it is decreed upon you by the Most High, you can cherish it! May Allah bless us and all Muslims and enable us to offer thanks for His bounties. Amin, ya Rab!

The Hanbali scholar al-Buhuti says in al-Rawdh al-Murbi' regarding the Mushaf': "It is reprehensible [makruh] to stretch one’s legs towards it [i.e. the Mushaf], to have it behind one’s back, or walk over it." "The author [al-Buhuti] says all these acts are reprehensible because they run contrary to veneration of the Qur'an. Without any doubt, if the Qur'an were venerated in the heart, without reading any books of fiqh or the statement of the author, one would say, 'Do not extend your legs towards the Mushaf.' Wallahi, if a person that you respect was in front of you, you would not stretch your legs in front of them. So let not someone come and say: 'Give me the dalil [evidence] for why I can't stretch my legs towards the Qur'an.' We would say: Oh Miskin, you likewise don't stretch your legs towards your friend, why don't you do that? Come and bring the dalil for that! Obviously this would anger your friend [and you would not do that]. But the Qur'an is the lightest and lowliest of things for you; you would not extend your legs towards your friend, but for the Qur'an you will! For the issue of the Qur'an, you need the dalil, but for the case of your friend, you don't!" - Dr. Muhammad Bajabir

"Shah Wali Allah [al-Dehlawi] advocated direct engagement with the text of scripture. Breaking with the near unanimous view that the Qur’an, being in the language of God, was untranslatable, he translated the Islamic holy book into Persian – for the benefit, he said, of ‘the sons of craftsmen and soldiers’, who, being able to read Allah’s word for themselves, would be protected against the arguments of heretics, unbelieving philosophers, and Hindus. Applying the same principle, his son would later translate the holy book into Urdu, an Indo-Islamic language heavily influenced by Persian and in increasingly wide use since the sixteenth century. Alongside the Qur’an, Shah Wali Allah also advocated going back to the Hadith. ‘No nobler task can one set oneself,’ he wrote in The Spiritual Effusions of the Two Sanctuaries, ‘than to try to become a scholar of Hadith.’ Inspired by his time in Medina, the overall message of Allah’s Conclusive Argument was that if the study of Hadith could be revived, then so too could Islam. For Shah Wali Allah, however, the return to the Qur’an and Sunna meant something more than just studying the texts. It also involved recapturing the spirit of the prophetic message, and this entailed retaining, reforming, and reconciling the best of the Islamic intellectual heritage. Key to that heritage was Sufism. Like Ibn Taymiyya and Ibn ‘Abd al-Wahhab, Wali Allah was opposed to the more popular kinds of mysticism. The worship of ‘Allah’s friends’, he wrote, was ‘a sin graver than murder or adultery; indeed, it is equivalent to unbelief (kufr)’. Yet Wali Allah was also a Naqshbandi Sufi, who accepted Sirhindi’s claim to be the ‘renewer’ of Islam, and presented his Naqshbandi predecessor as the ‘pedestal’ (irhas) on which he was now standing. Like Sirhindi, part of Wali Allah’s revivalist project involved reformulating the teachings of Ibn ‘Arabi to show how they – and Sufism more generally – were consistent with the Shari‘a and the fundamental scriptural sources. Fiqh, or the study of the law, was another noble part of the Islamic heritage, and it too needed renewal. To counter the factionalist attachment to the legal schools, Wali Allah emphasized that each of the Sunni madhhabs had something beneficial to offer... this being the case, Wali Allah attempted to create a new legal method that utilized what was best in each of the schools of law. Like other reformers, he stressed the importance of ijtihad – the jurist’s rational derivation of the law from the fundamental sources – and condemned taqlid – the blind emulation of others’ opinions. ‘The time has come,’ he wrote in Allah’s Conclusive Argument, ‘when every order of the Shari‘a and every teaching of Islam should be presented before the world in a rational way.’" - Fitzroy Morrissey, A Short History of Islamic Thought

We often hear that coffee was prohibited by Muslim jurists in what is commonly known as the Makkan Assembly of 1511. But is this narrative correct? In actual fact, the claim is largely inaccurate and opposes a number of established historical facts. One could further argue that quite to the contrary, the majority of the attending jurists believed that coffee was a permissible substance. Taken from my paper "Coffee was once Ḥarām?: Dispelling Popular Myths regarding a Nuanced Legal Issue". To read the full paper: https://www.academia.edu/64106863/Coffee_was_once_%E1%B8%A4ar%C4%81m_Dispelling_Popular_Myths_regarding_a_Nuanced_Legal_Issue

قال أبو الأسود الدؤلي: «ليس شيء ٌ أعزَّ من العلم. الملوك حكام على الناس، والعلماء حكام على الملوك»