Sayyidunah Abdullah bin Mas’ood’s narration condemning the Soofi way of Dhikr and inventing new styles of remembering Allaah

# 002

Q: What is the ruling on that Athar of Abdullah bin Mas'ood where he condemned some people sitting in circle doing Dhikr?

A:

Imaam Abu Muhammad Abdullah bin Abdur Rahmaan ad-Daarimi rahimahullah (D. 255) narrates:

أَخْبَرَنَا الْحَكَمُ بْنُ الْمُبَارَكِ، أَنبَأَنَا عَمْرُو بْنُ يَحْيَى، قَالَ: سَمِعْتُ أَبِي، يُحَدِّثُ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ قَالَ: كُنَّا نَجْلِسُ عَلَى بَابِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ مَسْعُودٍ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ، قَبْلَ صَلَاةِ الْغَدَاةِ، فَإِذَا خَرَجَ، مَشَيْنَا مَعَهُ إِلَى الْمَسْجِدِ، فَجَاءَنَا أَبُو مُوسَى الْأَشْعَرِيُّ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ فَقَالَ: أَخَرَجَ إِلَيْكُمْ أَبُو عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ قُلْنَا: لَا، بَعْدُ. فَجَلَسَ مَعَنَا حَتَّى خَرَجَ، فَلَمَّا خَرَجَ، قُمْنَا إِلَيْهِ جَمِيعًا، فَقَالَ لَهُ أَبُو مُوسَى: يَا أَبَا عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ، إِنِّي رَأَيْتُ فِي الْمَسْجِدِ آنِفًا أَمْرًا أَنْكَرْتُهُ وَلَمْ أَرَ - وَالْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ - إِلَّا خَيْرًا. قَالَ: فَمَا هُوَ؟ فَقَالَ: إِنْ عِشْتَ فَسَتَرَاهُ. قَالَ: رَأَيْتُ فِي الْمَسْجِدِ قَوْمًا حِلَقًا جُلُوسًا يَنْتَظِرُونَ الصَّلَاةَ فِي كُلِّ حَلْقَةٍ رَجُلٌ، وَفِي أَيْدِيهِمْ حصًا، فَيَقُولُ: كَبِّرُوا مِائَةً، فَيُكَبِّرُونَ مِائَةً، فَيَقُولُ: هَلِّلُوا مِائَةً، فَيُهَلِّلُونَ مِائَةً، وَيَقُولُ: سَبِّحُوا مِائَةً، فَيُسَبِّحُونَ مِائَةً، قَالَ: فَمَاذَا قُلْتَ لَهُمْ؟ قَالَ: مَا قُلْتُ لَهُمْ شَيْئًا انْتِظَارَ رَأْيِكَ أَوِ انْتظارَ أَمْرِكَ. قَالَ: «أَفَلَا أَمَرْتَهُمْ أَنْ يَعُدُّوا سَيِّئَاتِهِمْ، وَضَمِنْتَ لَهُمْ أَنْ لَا يَضِيعَ مِنْ حَسَنَاتِهِمْ»، ثُمَّ مَضَى وَمَضَيْنَا مَعَهُ حَتَّى أَتَى حَلْقَةً مِنْ تِلْكَ الْحِلَقِ، فَوَقَفَ عَلَيْهِمْ، فَقَالَ: «مَا هَذَا الَّذِي أَرَاكُمْ تَصْنَعُونَ؟» قَالُوا: يَا أَبَا عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ حصًا نَعُدُّ بِهِ التَّكْبِيرَ وَالتَّهْلِيلَ وَالتَّسْبِيحَ. قَالَ: «فَعُدُّوا سَيِّئَاتِكُمْ، فَأَنَا ضَامِنٌ أَنْ لَا يَضِيعَ مِنْ حَسَنَاتِكُمْ شَيْءٌ وَيْحَكُمْ يَا أُمَّةَ مُحَمَّدٍ، مَا أَسْرَعَ هَلَكَتَكُمْ هَؤُلَاءِ صَحَابَةُ نَبِيِّكُمْ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ مُتَوَافِرُونَ، وَهَذِهِ ثِيَابُهُ لَمْ تَبْلَ، وَآنِيَتُهُ لَمْ تُكْسَرْ، وَالَّذِي نَفْسِي بِيَدِهِ، إِنَّكُمْ لَعَلَى مِلَّةٍ هِيَ أَهْدَى مِنْ مِلَّةِ مُحَمَّدٍ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ أوْ مُفْتَتِحُو بَابِ ضَلَالَةٍ». قَالُوا: وَاللَّهِ يَا أَبَا عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ، مَا أَرَدْنَا إِلَّا الْخَيْرَ. قَالَ: «وَكَمْ مِنْ مُرِيدٍ لِلْخَيْرِ لَنْ يُصِيبَهُ، إِنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ حَدَّثَنَا أَنَّ» قَوْمًا يَقْرَءُونَ الْقُرْآنَ لَا يُجَاوِزُ تَرَاقِيَهُمْ "، وَايْمُ اللَّهِ مَا أَدْرِي لَعَلَّ أَكْثَرَهُمْ مِنْكُمْ، ثُمَّ تَوَلَّى عَنْهُمْ. فَقَالَ عَمْرُو بْنُ سَلَمَةَ: رَأَيْنَا عَامَّةَ أُولَئِكَ الْحِلَقِ يُطَاعِنُونَا يَوْمَ النَّهْرَوَانِ مَعَ الْخَوَارِجِ

Al-Hakam bin al-Mubaarak informed us that Amr ibnYahyaa informed us, he said I heard myfather narrating from his father who said:

We used to sit in front of Abdullah ibn Mas’ood's house before the Fajr prayer waiting to go with him to the Masjid. Aboo Moosa al-Ash'aree came and asked us:

'Did Abu Abdurrahman (i.e. Ibn Masoud) leave yet?'

We answered: 'No.'

So Aboo Moosa Al-Ash'aaree sat with us waiting for him. When he came out, we all stood up. Aboo Moosa told him:

"Oh, Abu Abdurrahman! I recently saw something in the Masjid which I did not approve."

Ibn Masoud then asked: "What was it?"

Aboo Moosa said: "You will see it if you stay alive. In the Masjid, I saw a group of people sitting in circles waiting for the Salat. Each circle is led by a person. And every person in these circles carries small stones.

The leader of a circle would say: 'Say 'Allah-u Akbar' a hundred times,' they will say Allah-u Akbar a hundred times; then he says 'Say 'La ilaha Illa Allah', a hundred times" they will say La ilaha ill Allah a hundred times; he they says: 'Say 'Subhan Allah', a hundred times, they will say Subhana Allah a hundred times.

Then Ibn Masoud said: "What did you tell them?"

He said: 'I didn't say anything, I wanted to wait for your opinion."

Abdullah ibn Masoud said: "Could you not order them to count their sins, and assured them of getting their rewards."

Then Abdulah ibn Masoud went ahead and we accompanied him. As he approached one of the circles, he said: "What is this that you are doing?"

They said: "Oh! Abu Abdurrahman, these are pebbles to count the number of times we say Allah-u Akbar, La ilaha Ill Allah, and Subhana Allah."

He said: "Count your own sins, and I assure you that you are not going to lose anything of your rewards (Hasanat).. Woe unto you, people of Muhammad, how fast you will be doomed. Those are your Prophet's companions available, these are his clothes not worn out yet, and his pots are not broken yet. I swear by Whom my soul is in His Hands that you are either following a religion that is better than the Prophet's religion or you are opening a door of aberration."

They said: "We swear by Allah, oh, Abu Abdurrahman, that we had no intention other than doing good deeds."

He said: "So what? How many people wanted to do good deeds but never got to do them? The Prophet of Allah has told us about people who recited the Qur'an with no effect on them other than the Qur'an passing through their throats. I swear by Allah, I am almost sure that most of you are from that type of people. Then he left them.

Amr Ibn Salamah said: "We saw most of the people of those circles fighting us with the Khawarij in the battle of An-Nahrawan."

[Sunan al-Imaam Ad-Daarimi (1/286 H. 210) also narrated by Imaam Aslam bin Sahl al-Waasiti (D. 292) in Taareekh Waasit (1/198) from the route of Amr bin Yahya bin Amr bin Salamah al-Hamdaani]

This narration is Authentic. The details of the reliability of its narrators are as follows:

First: Al-Hakam bin al-Mubaarakal-Baahili, Abu Saalih al-Balkhee al-Khaashiti (D. 213)

Imaam al-Jarh wat Ta'deel Shams ud-Deen adh-Dhahabi (D. 748) said:

“ثقة”

“Thiqah”

[Al-Kaashif (1189)]

Second: Amr bin Yahya bin Amr binSalamah al-Hamdaani

Imaam Yahya bin Ma’een (D. 233) said:

“ثِقَةٌ”

“Thiqah”

[Al-Jarh wat Ta’deel by Ibn Abi Haatim (6/269), Chain Saheeh]

Third: Yahya bin Amr bin Salamah al-Hamdaani

Imaam Shu’bah narrated from him and he only narrates from Thiqah narrators according to him.

[See, Al-Taareekh al-Kabeer lil Bukhaari (3046) & Al-Jarh wat Ta’deel by Ibn Abi Haatim (9/176)]

Imaam Abu al-Hasan al-Ijlee (D. 261) said:

“يحيى بن عَمْرو بن سَلمَة كوفى ثِقَة وَأَبوهُ كوفى تَابِعِيّ ثِقَة”

“Yahya bin Amr bin Salamah Koofi is Thiqah, and his father is also Koofi Taabi’ee Thiqah”

[Ath-Thiqaat (1990)]

Imaam Ya’qoob bin Sufyaan al-Fasawi (D. 277) said:

“لَا بَأْسَ بِهِ”

“There is nothing wrong in him”

[Al-Ma’rifah wal Taareekh (3/104)]

Fourth: Amr bin Salamah al-Hamdaani

Haafidh Ibn Hajar al-Asqalaani (D. 852) said:

“ثقة”

“Thiqah”

[Taqreeb (5041)]

From this detail, it is clear that the chain of this narration is at least at the level of Hasan if not Saheeh.

Moreover, a similar supporting narration is also narrated by Imaam Tabaraani in al-Mu’jam al-Kabeer (8636) from Amr bin Salamah. And another narration with another chain is also narrated in Mu’jam al-Kabeer (8633) from Ataa bin as-Saa’ib.

Hence, there should not remain a question on this hadeeth being Saheeh.