POST 102

(Bismillah-ir-rahmaan-irraheem)

Please listen to audio file 57 below or, visit the library:

[Coming soon...Inshallah]

POST 101

(Bismillah-ir-rahmaan-irraheem)

Please listen to audio file 56 below or, visit the library:

As mentioned earlier, we believe that Allah ST's attribute can be classified into two major categories:

• Siffat-e-Zaatiya - (Attributes of His Being, which has no opposing attribute)
• Siffat-e-failee - (Created attributes: His Anger, Benevolence, etc.)

Now, we tackle a third type of attributes: Physical. Shah Saheb RA raises the issue about the physical features of Allah ST, like His eyes, His face, His legs, etc. Shah Saheb

POST 100 - Shah Saheb's take on Allah ST's attributes

(Bismillah-ir-rahmaan-irraheem)

Please continue to listen to audio file 55 below or, visit the library:

Shah Saheb's take on attributes of Allah ST:

Shah Saheb RA write that Allah ST attributes are "la ain wa la ghaib": They are neither part of Allah nor separate from Him. As an example: take the number TWO. "Two" is a number. It is not part of something nor separate from anything. It is known as just TWO. (29.26) It is unique. You cannot add to it nor take away from it. If you add it, it will not remain two. If u take away from it, it won't remain two. Two stands alone! The same way, Shah Saheb RA says that all the attributes are neither part of Allah ST nor can they exist without Allah ST.

How does Allah ST see/hear?

When Shah Saheb RA discusses about Allah's Sama wa Basr (Hearing and Seeing), he does not try to explain the meaning of these attributes. According to him, it is beyond our comprehension and understanding. We cannot understand how Allah ST sees or hears us. Not only His sight and His hearing, all His attributes are beyond our realm of knowledge. All the attributes that have come in Quran and Sunnah like Allah's face, His laughter, His legs, etc. Shah Saheb RA assigns it to Allah ST Himself for the correct explanation. ( "Huminko unke sapurt karte hain.")

Shah Saheb RA: Allah's attributes are all Him:

"wa innal farqa"[text from book]

According to Shah Saheb RA, the way some of Ahle-Sunnah scholars differentiate the attributes is not proven by the Sunnah(30.02) According to him, the attributes are not separate and do not exist without Allah ST (as mentioned above.) Allah ST's being is enough for all these attributes. (33.00) (Wrong translation? Pls help: Allah ki zaat hi in siffat ke liye kafi hai.) All the attributes of Allah ST are "Aine zaat", exist within Himself.

This belief of Shah Saheb RA is in parallel with beliefs of the Ahle-Tashee (Shia) who believe that all the attributes of Allah ST are not separate. They are actually only one that Allah ST possesses and that is the "Knowledge"/Ilm of Allah ST.

(P.S.: This in contradictory to our beliefs of "Aine Zaat" and "Ghair-e-Zaat". Shah Saheb RA differs with us in this issue.)

Shah Saheb RA's argument against classification of Allah ST's attributes:

Shah Saheb RA asks us to think: When people talk about the attributes of Allah ST, do we start to think whether they are with or independent of Allah ST? No. We all know that the attributes are of Allah ST. That's it! "...azyitatun.aw..." [text from book] (37.02) When a person sees a thing that moves and responds to senses, we call it a living being. Period. We do not get into argument about its attributes. We treat it as a living thing. This should be the way we accept Allah ST. He is there and He has His attributes. Why is there a reason to discuss the Philosophical issues of "Aine Zaat" and "Ghair-e-Zaat", some of the Ahle-Sunnah-wa-Jammah does? Why does one need to agree to the classification of 7 (or 8) attributes of Allah ST as "Aine Zaat" to be a part of Ahle-Sunnah-wa-Jammah? He rejects the need of accepting this classification to be part of Ahle-Sunnah-wa-Jammah.

According to Shah Saheb RA, the real Ahle-Sunnah were the those three groups that existed earlier: Sahaba, Tabaiyeen and Taba-Tabaiyeen. These three groups were guaranteed to be on the right path by none other than our Prophet Salalllahu-alaihi-wassalam. They were the real Ahle-Sunnah. However, they never argued about the attributes of Allah ST. They did not indulge in the philosophical arguments about which of the attributes are inherent and which ones are exterior to the Being of Allah ST. None of the scholars of the Aslaaf argued on this topic. Yet you call yourself Ahle-Sunnah and then make it mandatory to define the seven/eight attributes of Allah ST to be "Aine Zaat" etc.

Shah Saheb RA then questions the need to blindly accept the categorizations of the attributes of "Ahle-Sunnah-wa-Jammah" scholars. After all, they were men and so are we (so am I.) "Nahnu rijalon wa hum rijaal." They also had to use rope to fetch water from the well (of knowledge) and so can we. Allah ST has also blessed us (Shah Saheb RA) with knowledge that He blessed others with.

(If anyone, it was Shah Saheb RA who could make such a bold and pompous sounding proclamation. With the Knowledge Allah ST blessed him with, he had the right to make such a statement. (42.00) In actuality, it was his own father who used to make this proclamation.)

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TIDBITS:

• It used to be that all the Hanafi scholars & followers were of Aqeeda "Maturidi". All the Shafi scholars & followers were of Aqeeda "Ashari".
• Shah Anwar RA informed Gandhi during his Dandi march about the hadith of our Beloved Prophet Salallahu-alaihi-wassalam that "salt,water and grass" cannot be treated as a single persons property. Every one has the right on them and cannot be taxed. Gandhi was happy to hear about it and he felt that he had just received a divine help for his march. He even had this quote published on the front page of his "Young India" magazine/newspaper.

POST 99 - Various beliefs regarding Allah's attributes

(Bismillah-ir-rahmaan-irraheem)

Please continue to listen to audio file 55 below or, visit the library:

Various factions and their understanding of attributes of Allah ST:

Now that Shah Saheb RA starts tackling the topic of Allah ST "seeing" and "hearing", we better get an understanding of various factions and their understanding, in brief:

1. No idea:
   One group amongst the Ahle-Sunnah-Wa-Jammat is of the opinion that we do not have any knowledge of what Allah ST means when he speaks about His sight, His hearing power, His seat on the Arsh and so on. Let us not even try to interpret them or classify them. Just read the words as they have been relayed to us and leave them alone.
   
   
2. Assign a meaning:
   Another group is of the opinion that we should try to parse the meaning of the words that are being used. As an example, Allah ST "being on the Arsh" does not mean a literal "sitting", but means Allah ST is "ghalib" over the Arsh. (He has power/oversight of the Arsh.) Similarly, when Allah ST speaks about having a "face", it does mean a literal face. Allah ST intends to explain that He has attributes associated with a face: like listening (ears), sight (eyes), smile etc.
   
   
3. Interpret the word:
   To understand the attributes of Allah ST, some amongst the Ahle-Sunnah-Wa-Jammah suggest that we should take the words that appear in Arabic and try to produce a meaning/understanding that reflects the closest to the word. The attribute should be understood as the meaning of the word and left alone. We do not hold the knowledge of what it really means. So, "Basar" means to see. Allah ST sees. That is it. We should believe that Allah ST sees. We do not know nor should try to understand anything else about it.
   
   
4. All exist within Allah ST:
   All the attributes of Allah ST mentioned do not exist outside of Allah ST, but within Allah ST Himself. They are not independent of each other. This group alleges that the differences between attributes that the Ahle-Sunnah-wa-Jammah are trying to list is not proven by the Sunnah. Even the Sahaba RAnhum never did differentiate.
   
   
5. All But One:
   Another group that exists that say that all the attributes of Allah ST are but ONE: Ilm (Knowledge.) The Ahle-Shia, Abu Hasan Basri and Qawi are amongst those who believe in this explanation.
   
   What does Allah ST achieve by hearing or seeing something -- He just gains information or knowledge. Since everone agrees that Allah ST has "knowledge", and seeing/hearing just adds to the knowledge, the basic attribute of Allah ST is knowledge. (16.36) No attribute of Allah ST is haqeeqi (real), except knowledge. All the other attributes are "perceived" attributes.
   
   (Note: This understanding goes against the grain of our aqeeda where Allah ST has both "Basar" and "Sama" as his real attributes. )
   
   
6. Our belief: Attributes are independent of each other:
   
   Ahle sunnah-wa-Jammat believe that the attributes of Allah ST, though relatable to those of humans, are not dependent attributes. They are distinct, independent and "complete" attributes. For example: if a man sees a small child fall out of a vehicle and hurt himself badly, the man will feel pity towards the child. He runs to pick him up and rushes him to the hospital, if needed. So, what has happened to the man? The man saw a child getting hurt and a feeling of pity arose in his heart. This feeling that swelled up in his heart is one of sympathy (Rehmat.)
   
   So, the attribute of sympathy for the man is revolved around an emotion. The falling of the child was an event that conjured up such feelings. The Rehmat/sympathy was a resultant feeling that the man had.
   
   Ahle sunnah-wa-Jammat believe that Allah ST is above and beyond such "emotional" responses. He does not have a heart that gets effected by the "events". He does not "feel pity" towards his subjects based on certain events and grant them Paradise. (18.55) However, His attributes are like the final "result" that the man faced in the above incident. Allah's Rehmat is just that: pure Rehmat. Not dependant on an emotion or an event. (19.31)

POST 98 - Can we call Allah ST as "Khuda"?

(Bismillah-ir-rahmaan-irraheem)

Please listen to audio file 55 below or, visit the library:

Can we invoked Allah ST by his attributes?

We may invoke Allah ST by his attributes like Ar-Rahmaan, Ar-Raheem etc. These names are called Tauseefi - they have been relayed to us through the Prophets (pbut.) However, we should not delegate other names to Allah ST that have not come to us through the books of Sunnah. (Example: Though Allah ST provides us the water, food and noursihments, we do not call him "Saqi" for his Saqawat. Allah ST never called Himself Saqi in the Quran nor did Prophet Mohammed Salallahu-alaihi-wassalam ever did.)

Can we invoked Allah ST by other names like "Khuda"?

The question that arises is whether we could use words never used earlier? Can we call him Khuda (Farsi word) ?

One of companions of our beloved Prophet Salallahu-alaihi-wassalam from Persia, Salman Farsi RazAnhu used the word "khuda" during the translation of the Quran. No one objected to this. This proves that the Sahaba allowed using an alternative word for Allah ST.

Hadrath Thanvi RA has said in "Amdadul-Fatawa" that sometimes a name in a language reflects high praise (Tauseefi naam) in that language. Such names are allowed to be use in place of "Allah ST".

POST 97 - Right Aqeeda about Allah's attributes

(Bismillah-ir-rahmaan-irraheem)

Please listen to audio file 54 below or, visit the library:

[THE LECTURE IS ABOUT PERSONALITIES WITH WRONG AQEEDA AND THEIR TEACHINGS ]

• Ibn Rush
• Zahidul Al Kausri
• Ibn Jauzi
• etc.

The right Aqeeda:

• It is very important for a person to have the right Aqeeda. Therefore, learning learning about Aqeeda carries more reward than learning about Fiqh!
• Mufti Saheb mentions that (in audio file 55) a slight deviation in our Aqeeda has the potential to lead us astray.
• A quick reminder again on what our aqeeda is with regards to the attributes of Allah ST: Allah ST has eight haqeeqi-siffat or Siffate-e-Zatiya. These attributes are called with various other names. They are considered to be inherent in our Lord and they do not have an "opposing" attribute. They are:
  • 1. Ilm - Knowledge
  • 2. Hayat - Life
  • 3. Khudrat - Power/Ability
  • 4. Sama - Hear
  • 5. basara - Sight
  • 6. Kalam - speech
  • 7. Irada - Decision Making
  • 8. Takween - creation or formation
• Rest of the attributes of Allah ST are considered to be Siffat-e-Failya. These attributes have oppositions. Examples:
  1. The power to feed. Opposite being keeping the creation hungry.
  2. The power to grant success. Opposite of which the power to degrade someone.
  3. Make some one rich. Opposing being make a person poor. etc.
  
  

POST 96 - [SPACE HOLDER] - EOM

SPACE HOLDER ....

POST 95 - OUR FAITH: Aqeeda about attributes of Allah ST.

(Bismillah-ir-rahmaan-irraheem)

Please continue to listen to audio file 53 below or, visit the library:

We know that Khalifa Mamoon became Mutazila and harassed those scholars who did not hold his view of the attributes of Allah ST. He started advocating the "mutazilla" view of the attributes. His view stood in contrast to the belief of Ahle sunnah Wa Jammah.

So, what is the belief of the Ahle-Sunnah-wa-Jammah with regards to the attributes of Allah ST?

Belief of Ahle-Sunnah:

It is our belief that Allah ST has two types of attributes:

• Siffat-e-Zaatiya.
• Siffat-e-failee

Siffat-e-Zaatiya:

We believe that Allah ST has eight attributes which are with his Being. They are "personal" attributes. These are called "Siffat-e-Zaatiya" (Attributes of His Being) (32.00)

1. Ilm - Knowledge

2. Hayat - Life

3. Khudrat - Power/ability/capability

4. Sama - Listen

5. basar - Sight

6. Kalam - speech

7. Irada - Decision Making

8. Takween - creation or formation

If anyone rejects any of the above listed attributes, his Imaan is not considered to be complete. These attributes do not have any opposing attribute. Like His Life - It does not have an opposite. He will never Die.

Siffat-e-failee:

Besides the above 8 attributes, all of His attributes are called the "failee". These are called the "created" attributes. The difference between the "zaatiye" siffat and "failee" siffat are that His own "Zaati" siffat do not have a competing or opposing attribute. Like His Life - It does not have an opposite. He will never Die. His "Sight" - there is no opposing attribute of Him being Blind. However, his created attributes will have opposing attributes, like his anger. His Anger is opposed by His Benevolence.

Mutazila did not disvow attributes as part of Allah ST. Doing so would label them Kafir immediately. Instead they argued that all the attributes are within His "Ilm" (knowledge.) They don't exist outside his Ilm.

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Abu Hasan Al'Ashari RA:

Abu Al Hasan Ashari RA was initially a mutazilli. His step-father had paid for his education and had brought him up studying Philosphy under great scholars of their time. Abu Al Hasan Ashari RA used to argue for the mutazilla and against the Ahle Sunnah. However, as he grew up, he started pondering on his beliefs. (38.00) He started paying more attention to the beliefs of Mutazila and those of Ahle sunnah. Soon, he rejected the beliefs of the mutazila and declared them to be a misled group. He started providing arguments against the beliefs of Mutazila. As a result, Ahle Sunnah Wa Jammah started adopting Abu Hasan Al-Ashari RA's arguments.

Abu Hasan Al'Ashari RA's opposition to the Mutazilla's became a little extreme. He used to oppose every belief of Mutazilla. This may have led him to disvow some beliefs which are held to be true by Ahle-Sunnah Wa Jammah. These beliefs, however, are not major and do not effect the "Imaan" of a person.

Since Abu Hasan Al'Ashari RA was in Baghdad and surrounding people were Shafi or Hambali, his followers were mostly of the Shafi and Hanafi sect.

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Muhammad Abu Mansur al-Maturidi RA:

Muhammad Abu Mansur al-Maturidi RA [URL:] was the third person who was influential in countering the beliefs of the Mutazilla. He was a Hanafi scholar from the area of Samarkand, Uzbekistan. Muslims residing in and around Samarkand areas were all of Hanafi Fiqh, they followed his preachings and read his arguments.

This way, among the Ahle Sunnah Wa Jammah, two groups of people were formed: those who followed the teachings of Ashari RA and the other that followed Maturidi RA. (41.36)

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Ashari : Followers are mostly Shafi and Hambali Maslaks.

Maturidi : Followers are mostly Hanafi folks. (41.54)

So, we identify ourselves as : Maslak: Hanafi and Aqeeda as: Maturidi.

Though Muhammad Abu Mansur al-Maturidi RA has a huge following, very little is known about his personal life. These people spent their entire lives for the sake of Islam but never sought any personal Glory.

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TIDBITS:

• Hambali scholars reached a zenith in their work against the Mutazila. This was because some people within the Hambali school of thought had started going stray. They started attributing physical features to Allah ST. They had started preaching that Allah ST sits on the Arsh, and has a back, has legs, hands and fingers. To counter the wrong influences, Hamabli scholars started writing about the right Akheeda.
• Ibn Jozi RA is one such Hambali scholar who wrote strongly against the Mutazilla within the Hambali sect.
• Currently, in Saudi Arabia, on the power of the oil money, some of the Saudi scholars have started spreading the wrong aqeeda again. They have started labeling all Ashari and Maturidi as Kafir!

POST 94 - HISTORY: ABBASYIAN DYNASTY - A brief intro.

(Bismillah-ir-rahmaan-irraheem)

Please continue to listen to audio file 53 below or, visit the library:

Continuing from last time, after Muawiya RazAnhu, Yazeed and his descendants faced opposition from two factions:

• the progeny of Hussain RA. They decided that they did not want anything to do with the Khilafat and stopped opposing the Ummayad Khalifa. Among the descendants were great Imams and scholars like Zain ul Abadeen, who was the son of Hussain RazAnhu, Imam Baki, Jafar Khadiq and Moosa Qasim RA.
• the progeny of Hasan RA. The descendants of Hasan RA wanted to get back the Khilafat. However, the Banu-Ummayya started chopping the heads of all the descendants of Hasan RA who dared raise a voice against them. Their bodies used to lie in the streets and people would recognize that these were the ones who opposed the Ummayyids.

ABBASYIS:

People were getting sick and tired of the atrocities of the Ummayyids. The descendants of Abbas RazAnhu, who happened to be the paternal uncle of our Beloved Prophet Mohammed Salallahu-alaihi-wassalam raised an army and attacked the Ummayids. Soon, they killed and beheaded the majority of the royal family. It is said that the Abbasyis had their first lunch on the bodies of the Ummayads.

A few Ummayads princes, who were away on a picnic near a river, got wind of the attack and ran away to Africa. They took over the army stationed in those areas and they started heading north. This led to the next generation of Ummayads who captured areas like Spain, southern France and so on.

This way, we now had two Khulafa: One in Baghdad (Abbasyis) and the other in Spain (Umaayads)

The Ummayads in Spain were very educated and had a culture of education. A lot of stress was given to education. (18.20)

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The Abbasyis in Baghdad also gave importance to education. A few of the initial Abbasyis Khalifa can be found here. They were

Al-Khulafaul Abbasiyyun (132-923 AH; 750-1517 CE)

Khalifah Abul-‘Abbas As-Saffah (750-54)

Khalifah Abu Ja’far Al-Mansur (754-75)

Khlaifah Al-Mahdi (775-85)

Khalifah Al-Hadi (785-86)

Khalifah Harun Ar-Rashid (786-809)

Khalifah Al-Amin (809-813)

Khalifah Al-Ma’mun (813-33)

Khalifa Haroon Abdul Rasheed was also very knowledgable and educated person. He also stressed on education for his children. He appointed the best teachers for the education of his sons Amin and Mamoon.

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Khalifa MAMOON:

Mamoon studied under scholars in Baghdad. Later he was sent to Medina Munawarah to learn hadith under Imam Malik RA. Later he learnt Fiqh and other topics under Imam Mohammed and Imam Yusuf in Koofa. Besides the Islamic Fiqh, he learned one more topic: Philosophy. Later when he became the Khalifa, no one in the court could match his knowledge of Islamic Fiqh or Philosophy.

Like others before him, Mamoon also stressed on education and knowledge. He got books from all over the world. He created a University for translation of these books. He sent people all over the world to search for books of various subjects and send them to this University. Books were sent from America too, and this was before America was "discovered" by Columbus. This way Baghdad became the "library" for the books of the world.

Philosophy:

Mamoon, in his quest to get all the books, also ordered for books from Italy on the topic of Philosophy. This introduced Philosophy to the muslim scholars. The Christians in Europe had already gone through a phase where Philosophy was studied and then shelved because it was creating fissures between Christian scholars. It was also chopping away at the roots of their faith. They happily turned over the source of their aliments, the books on Philosophy, to the muslims.

The influence of Philosophy led Mamoon to become a Mutazila. He started rationalizing every belief of the Shariah and Laws of Islam. Whichever beliefs he could not rationalize, he rejected.

This way Philosphy was introduced in the stream of Islamic Knowledge and it took roots within the muslim scholars. A huge number of books were written for and against a topic. These books were then studied and taught. (30.40)

Mamoon's atrocities:

The belief of the Ahle sunnah wa Jammat is that all the attributes of Allah ST are within Himself. They are not outside and independent of Him.(27.26) Also these attributes will not cease to exist with time.

Now Mutazila liked to argue. They said that if the Attribute of Allah ST existed throughout along with Allah ST that means now we have two Lords: Allah and His Attributes. They have existed forever. That means Allah was never Alone. He existed along with His Attributes. This belief leads to Kufr, according to Mutazila. (28.36)

Mamoon being a Mutazilla also believed that believing Allah ST and His attributes existed forever is Kufr. Hence, he ordained that anyone who held a different belief should be caught and jailed. This order led some great number of pious people of very high caliber to "unwillingly" accept Mamoon's beliefs. As an example: Ali Ibn Madeeni RA (whom Imam Bukhari RA used to call a "fountain of knowledge" in whose presence Imam Bukhari felt like an empty vessel.) Ali Ibn Madeeni RA when asked about signing off on Mamoon's belief said that he was not afraid to be caught and put in jail but was afraid that the knowledge of hadeeth that he held would disappear from this world. He had still to teach a lot to his students. (29.00)

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Imam Ahmad bin Hambal RA:

Imam Ahmad bin Hambal RA was one scholar who rejected Mamoon's interpretation and did not sign the Royal dictate. He was jailed for this. Imam Ahmad RA however did not wish to face the Khalifa. He used to say that he felt ashamed to face a student of knowledge who had studied under great Imams like Imam Malik RA and Imam Mohammed RA. He prayed to Allah ST that he should never have to face Mamoon. Allah ST accepted his Dua. Pretty soon Mamoon Rasheed passed away. (29.51)

POST 93 - HISTORY: UMMAYAD DYNASTY - A brief intro.

(Bismillah-ir-rahmaan-irraheem)

Please listen to audio file 53 below or, visit the library:

Shah Saheb RA now speaks about issues that have been raised in the Shariah but not clearly explained nor expounded. Because the issues were not clearly explained, scholars and philosophers have jumped in to fill the void. Most people agreed on the basic premise as mentioned in the Shariah but when the details and explanations were being derived, they disagreed with each other. As an example, everyone agreed that Allah ST can both see and hear. But disagreements popped up while explaining how Allah ST sees and hears.

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One group argued: We need to understand the real reason for accepting the various attributes of Allah ST? Why does Allah ST need to "see" and "hear"? Surely, he does see and hear. However, there is no difference between the seven attributes (hearing/listening etc.) of Allah ST and His Rehamat and His anger and His Elegance (4.00) This is because Sunnah did not highlight the difference. So, who are we to differentiate between the attributes.

Another group said: Everyone agreed on other attributes of Allah ST like him being present in Arsh and also His smile, happiness and Him having a face etc. By Allah ST having a presence in the Arsh actually meant, He had dominance over the Arsh (not necessarily a physical presence?)

A third group said: We all agree on the features and attributes of Allah ST as described by Him and our Most beloved prophet Mohammed Salallahu-alaihi-wassalam. We will accept the facts on their face value and not try figure out how, why or where.

Shah Saheb RA mentions about all the three groups and discusses their views.

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A LITTLE HISTORY:

Before we understand Shah Saheb RA's discussions, let us understand the background a little. Understand the dynasties and who introduced Philosophy to Islam and how. Who all rose up against these illicit introductions of philosophy within the religion.

Usually, the Khulafa (rulers) were a well educated and knowledgeable lot. We are not even considering the Khulafa-e-Rasheedeen (the first four rightly guided Khalifa who came after our beloved Prophet Mohammed Salallahu-alaihi-wassalam.) In real terms, our beloved Prophet Mohammed Salallahu-alaihi-wassalam had informed us, the Khilafat will exist 30 years after his passing away. Khilafat of Ali RA ceased to exist after 29yrs and 6 months of the passing away of our most beloved and blessed Prophet Mohammed Salallahu-alaihi-wassalam. For the next 6 months Hasan RA was the Khalifa. Hasan RA faced an opposition from Muawiya RA.

When Khalifa Hasan RA realized that his army and the army of Muawaiya RA faced an imminent battle, he took a decisive step. When the two armies came face to face on the battlefield, he approached Muawiya RA and asked of him to accept certain conditions. (9.20) If Muawiya RA accepted those conditions, Hasan RA would return back with his army. He did not want muslims to fight with each other.

Muawiya RA was such a humble hearted and trust worthy person that he took a blank sheet of paper and stamped the seal of his Khilafat on it and handed off to Hasan RA. Hasan RA then wrote all the conditions he wanted adhered to on the paper. (Amongst the conditions, Hasan RA asked for a stipend of more than ten thousand dirham monthly for his brother and himself.) Muawiya RA signed the conditions off without any argument.

Muawiya RA passed away during the 60th Hijri. After his death, the Battle of Karbala happened to pass! We all know the atrocities of Yazid (who was the son of Muawiya RA) and his army. After Yazid came his son as the new Khalifa. During his inaugural speech, he wondered what it meant to be the Khalifa. If Khilafat was a good thing and was a blessing then, he claimed, the Khilafat of the grand father (Muawiya RA) was enough for his whole family. If it was indeed a curse then the whole family still had to pay for the deeds of his father, according to him. Therefore he renounced his Khilafat. Soon after, he fell sick and passed away withing a few months.

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UMMAYADS DYNASTY:

After his passing away, two people took over the Khilafat: Marwan ibn Hakim in Medina and Abdullah-ibn-Zubair in Mecca. The Khilafat of the Marwan Ibn Hakim started the Umayyad Dynasty. Marwan had two sons: Abdul Aziz and Abdul Malik.

Before Abdul Aziz could inherit the Khilafat, he passed away paving way for Abdul Malik. Then the descendants of Abdul Malik continued being the Khalifa. Read the following post to get an idea of the years and lineage of Khalifa. After Abdul Malik, Walid became the Khalifa for some time before passing on the throne to Sulaiman.

Umar Bin Abdul-Aziz RA:

When Khalifa Solaiman was in his death bed, he realized that all his children were underage and could not be appointed as the next Khalifa. They could not handle the burdens of the Khilafat. (He even tried passing them of as older than they were by asking them to wear bigger clothes and brandishing bigger swords. He soon realized its futility and gave up.) He asked for advise from his confidant and a pious man, Raja RA. Raja RA recommended that Umar bin Abdul Aziz RA (who also happened to be the husband of Khalifa Solaiman's sister) be appointed the next Khalifa. To make sure that the lineage came back to Khalifa Solaiman's children, an agreement be signed with Umar bin Abdul Aziz (RA).

(After the death of Solaiman there was a chance of revolt and mutiny. So when Khalifa Solaiman passed away Raja RA did not announce the passing away of the Khalifa. Instead he declared that the Khalifa has chosen the successor. He made the all influential members and next of kin of the Khalifa Solaiman pledge to be loyal to whoever is picked as the next Khalifa. Only after getting their promises did he declared the death of Solaiman the named Umar bin Abdul Aziz RA as the next Khalifa. He knew people would not favor Umar bin AbdulAziz for his straight forwardness, fairness and piety.)

This way the path was paved for one of the best Khalifa the muslim Ummah was blessed with.

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Remaining Ummayeds:

After the passing away of Umar bin Abdul Aziz RA, the Khilafah returned back to the children of Abdul Malik. The Khulafa that followed Abdul Aziz RA started troubling their subjects. Soon, their atrocities of the Ummayeds reached a zenith. A lot of these atrocities can be read in the history books. A lot of scholars and descendants of our Prophet Salallahu-alaihi-wassalam were harassed and killed.

Soon the Ummayeds faced an uprising from the Abbasyis and were uprooted from Baghdad. Abbasyis were the direct descendants of our Prophet Salallahu-alaihi-wassalam's uncle (chacha - father's brother.) (14.44) The Ummayeds ran from Baghdad and continued their dynasty in Spain.

Though they were very unjust and cruel rulers, the Ummayads Khulafa were highly educated. They also stressed on having their children taught by best scholars.

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TIDBITS:

• If we observe, we see that Allah ST combined the Knowledge of the Book (of Sunnah) and the Khilafat (Governance/Rule) together. (7.45) As an example, Allah ST combined these two during the rule of Dawood alaihi-assalam. Not only was he a Prophet, but also the ruler of his people.