PREFACE
Let us begin the book
in the name of Allah!
The best protection is the name of Allah!
His blessings are beyond all means of measure;
All Merey He is, forgiving His pleasure!
Allâhu ta’âlâ, having mercy upon all people on the earth, creates useful things and sends them to us. In the Hereafter, He will forgive those guilty Believers who are to go to Hell, and will bring them to Paradise. He alone creates every living creature, keeps every being in existence every moment, and protects all against fear and horror. Trusting ourselves to the honourable name of Allâhu ta’âlâ we begin to write this book.
Hamd[1] be to Allâhu ta’âlâ. Peace and blessings be on Rasûlullah, the Prophet Muhammad (sall-Allâhu ’alaihi wa sallam). Benedictions be over his pure Ahl al-Bait and over all his just and devoted companions (radiy-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’anhum ajma’în).
Islamic scholars, who are called Ahl as-Sunna, wrote thousands of valuable books that state the beliefs, commands and prohibitions of Islam correctly. Many of them have been translated into foreign languages and circulated throughout the world. On the other hand, malevolent, short-sighted people have attacked Islam’s beneficial, bountiful and luminous way; tried to blemish the scholars of the Ahl as-Sunna (radiy-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’anhum ajma’în), and attempted to change Islam and thereby deceive Muslims. This struggle between Muslims and the irreligious has taken place in every century, and it will continue till the end of the world. Allâhu ta’âlâ willed in eternity that this be so.
Muslims consist of scholars (hawâs) and laymen (awâm). The Turkish book Dürr-i Yektâ writes, “Laymen are those who do not know the rules of Arabic grammar and literature. They are unable to grasp the books of fatwâ. It is fard for them to look for and learn the knowledge relating to Islamic belief and ’ibâdât. On the other hand, it is fard for scholars to teach, by preaching and writing, first the belief and then the five tenets of ibâdât, which make up the foundation of Islam. It is stated in the books Zahîra and Tâtârhâniyya that teaching the fundamentals of îmân and the belief of Ahl as-sunna is of primary importance.” That is why the great scholar ’Abd-ul-hakîm-i-Arwâsî ‘rahmatullahi ’aleyh’, an expert in the religious and experimental sciences, said towards the termination of his blessed life, “For thirty years, I have endeavoured to explain the Islamic belief, the i’tiqâd (credo, tenets) of Ahl as-sunna, and Islam’s beautiful ethical teachings in Istanbul’s mosques.” Therefore, in all our books, we too, have tried to explain the i’tiqâd of the Ahl as-Sunna and the good morals of Islam, stressing the importance of being kind to everybody and obeying and helping the State. We do not approve of the writings of some lâ-madhhabî people, who are unaware of the religion and who provoke people against the State and set brothers at loggerheads. Stating, “The religion is under the shadow of swords,” Rasûlullah (sall-Allâhu ’alaihi wa sallam) explained that Muslims could live in comfort under the protection of the State and its laws. As the State becomes stronger, the people enjoy more happiness and peace. Muslims living happily and carrying out their religious duties with freedom in non-Muslim countries, such as those in Europe and America, should not revolt against the State and the laws which give them freedom; they should not be tools for instigation (fitna) and anarchy. This has been a commandment of scholars of Ahl as-Sunna.
It has been observed with gratitude that, men of religious authority in almost all Muslim countries strive to promulgate and defend this right way of Ahl as-Sunna. However, some ignorant people, who either have not read or have not understood the books written by scholars of Ahl as-sunna, make some ignorant oral and written statements, though without having any effect except betraying their own ignorance and wretchedness against Muslims’ firm îmân and the brotherly love they have for one another.
Harmful separatist movements among Muslims attack books of ’ilm-i-hâl and try to vilify the ’ulamâ’ of Ahl as-Sunna and great men of tasawwuf (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’alaihim ajma’în). ’Ulamâ’ of Ahl as-Sunna wrote necessary answers against them and protected the true meanings which Rasûlullah (sall-Allâhu ’alaihi wa sallam) derived from Qur’ân al-kerîm against their attempts to change it. We entreat Allâhu ta’âlâ that, by studying this book carefully with their common sense and pure conscience, our valuable readers will judge it fairly and stick together in the right and true way of the Ahl as-Sunna and avoid lying, slanderous and heretical people. By doing this, they will escape eternal damnation.
Explanations added afterwards to some parts of our book are written in brackets [...]. All these explanations also have been borrowed from authentic books.
Mîlâdî - Hijrî Shamsî - Hijrî Qamarî
2001 – 1380 – 1422
A Warning: Missionaries are striving to advertise Christianity, Jews are working to spread out the concocted words of Jewish rabbis, Hakîkat Kitâbevi (Bookstore), in Istanbul, is struggling to publicize Islam, and freemasons are trying to annihilate religions. A person with wisdom, knowledge and conscience will understand and admit the right one among these and will help to spread out that for salvation of all humanity. There is no better way and more valuable thing to serve humanity than doing so.
1 - MA’LÛMÂT-I NÂFI’A (USEFUL INFORMATION)
This booklet was written by Ahmed Cevdet Pâşa (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’aleyh), who rendered a great service to Islam by putting the rules of Qur’ân al-kerîm into a code of law in his valuable book Majalla. In addition, he wrote The Ottoman History in twelve volumes, the most dependable book in its field, and the famous Qisâs-i Anbiyâ’ (The History of Prophets). He was born in Lofja in 1238 (1823 A.D.); he passed away in 1312 (1894 A.D.) and was buried in the graveyard of the Fâtih Mosque in Istanbul.
This ’alâm, that is, everything, was nonexistent. Allâhu ta’âlâ created existence out of nothing. He wished to enrich this world with human beings until the end of the world. Creating Âdam (’alaihi ’s-salâm) out of soil, He ornamented the world with his children. To show people the things necessary for them in this world and the next, He honoured some of them by making them prophets (’alaihimu ’s-salâm). He distinguished them from other people by giving them high ranks. He conveyed His commands to prophets through an angel named Jabrâ’îl (Jibrîl, Gabriel). And they conveyed these commands to their ummas exactly as Jabrâ’îl (’alaihi ’s-salâm) brought them to them. The first prophet was Âdam (’alaihi ’s-salâm) and the last one was our master Muhammed Mustafâ (’alaihi ’s-salâtu wa ’s-salâm). Many prophets came between these two. Only Allâhu ta’âlâ knows their number. The following are the ones whose names are known:
Âdam, Shîs (or Shît), Idrîs, Nuh (Noah), Hûd, Sâlih, Ibrâhîm, Ismâ’îl, Is’hâq(Isaac), Ya’qûb (Jacob), Yûsuf (Joseph), Eyyûb, Lût, Shu’aib, Mûsâ (Moses), Hârûn(Aaron), Dâwûd (David), Sulaimân, Yûnus (Jonah), Ilyâs (Elijah), Alyasa’, Dhu’l-kifl, Zakariyyâ (Zechariah), Yahyâ (John), ’Îsâ (Jesus), Muhammad Mustafâ (’alaihimu ’s-salâtu wa ’s-salâm). Twenty-five of these Prophets, with the exception of Shîs (’alaihis-salâm), are named in Qur’ân al-kerîm. The names of ’Uzair, Luqmân and Dhu ’l- qarnain are also mentioned in Qur’ân al-kerîm. Some ’ulâmâ’ of the Ahl as-Sunna said that these three, and Tubba’ and Hidir, were prophets, while some said they were Awliyâ’.
Muhammad (’alaihi ’s-salâm) is Habîb-Allah (Allah’s Most Beloved). Ibrâhîm (’alaihi ’s-salâm) is Khalîl-Allah (the Beloved of Allah). Mûsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) is Kalîm-Allah (one with whom Allah spoke). ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) is Rûh-Allah (one whom Allah created without a father). Âdam (’alaihi ’s-salâm) is Safî-Allah (one whose fault was forgiven by Allah). Nûh (’alaihi ’s-salâm) is Najî-Allah (one whom Allah saved from danger). These six prophets are superior to other prophets. They are called Ulu ’l-’azm. The most superior of all is Muhammad (’alaihi ’s-salâm).
Allâhu ta’âlâ sent one hundred suhuf (pl. of sahîfa, booklet) and four books down to the earth. All of them were brought by Jabrâ’îl (’alaihi ’s-salâm). Ten suhuf descended to Âdam (’alaihi ’s-salâm), fifty suhuf to Shîs (’alaihi ’s-salâm), thirty suhuf to Idrîs (’alaihi ’s-salâm), and ten suhuf to Ibrâhîm (’alaihi ’s-salâm). [Sahîfa, (in this context), means ‘a small book’, ‘a booklet’. It does not mean ‘one face of a sheet of paper’, which we know]. Of the four books, the Tawrât esh-sherîf [Torah] was sent to Mûsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm), the Zabûr esh-sherîf [the original Psalms] to Dâwûd (’alaihi ’s-salâm), the Injîl esh-sherîf [latin ‘Evangelium’] to ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) and Qur’ân al-kerîm to the Last Prophet, Muhammad (’alaihi ’s-salâm).
During the time of Nûh (’alaihi ’s-salâm) the Flood took place and water covered the entire world. All people and animals on the earth were drowned. But the Believers who were on board with him were rescued. Nûh (’alaihi ’s-salâm), when boarding the ship, had taken one pair of every kind of animal, from which today’s animals multiplied.
Nûh (’alaihi ’s-salâm) had his three sons on board the ship: Sâm (Shem), Yâfas (Japheth) and Hâm (Ham). People on the earth today are their descendants. For this reason, he is called the Second Father.
Ibrâhîm (’alaihi ’s-salâm) was Ismâil’s and Is’hâq’s (alaihima ’s-salâm) father. Is’hâq (’alaihi ’s-salâm) was Ya’qûb’s father. Ya’qûb (’alaihi ’s-salâm) was Yûsuf’s (’alaihi ’s-salâm) father. Ya’qûb (’alaihi ’s-salâm) was called “Isrâ’îl.” For this reason, his sons and grandsons were called “Banî Isrâ’îl” (the Children of Isrâ’îl). Banî Isrâ’îl increased in number and many of them became prophets. Mûsâ, Hârûn, Dâwûd, Sulaimân, Zakariyyâ, Yahyâ and ’Îsâ (alaihimu ’s-salâm) are among them. Sulaimân (’alaihi ’s-salâm) was the son of Dâwûd (’alaihi ’s-salâm). Yahyâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) was the son of Zakariyyâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm). Hârûn (’alaihi ’s-salâm) was Mûsâ’s (’alaihi ’s-salâm) brother. The Arabs are the descendants of Ismâ’îl (’alaihi ’s-salâm), and Muhammad (’alaihi ’s-salâm) was an Arab.
Hûd (’alaihi ’s-salâm) was sent to the ’Âd tribe, Sâlih (’alaihi ’s-salâm) to the Thamûd tribe, and Mûsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) was sent to Banî Isrâ’îl. Also Hârûn, Dâwûd, Sulaimân, Zakariyyâ and Yahyâ (’alaihimu ’s-salâm) were sent to Banî Isrâ’îl. Yet none of them brought a new religion; they invited Banî Isrâ’îl to Mûsâ’s (’alaihi ’s-salâm) religion. Though the Zabûr was sent down to Dâwûd (’alaihi ’s-salâm), it did not have commandments, rules or ’ibâdât. It was full of sermons and advice. Therefore, it did not abrogate or invalidate the Torah but emphasized it, and this is why the religion of Mûsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) lasted up to the time of ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm). When ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) came, his religion abrogated that of Mûsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm); that is, the Torah became invalid. So it was no longer permissible to follow Mûsâ’s (’alaihi ’s-salâm) religion. From then on it was necessary to follow ’Îsâ’s (’alaihi ’s-salâm) religion until Muhammad’s (’alaihi ’s-salâm) dispensation. However, the majority of Banî Isrâ’îl did not believe ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) and persisted in following the Torah. Thus Jews and Nasârâ separated. Those who believed ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) were called Nasârâ, who are today’s Christians. Those who disbelieved ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) and remained in disbelief and heresy were called Yahûd (Jews). Jews still claim that they follow Mûsâ’s (’alaihi ’s-salâm) religion and read the Torah and the Zabûr; the Nasârâ claim that they follow ’Îsâ’s (’alaihi ’s-salâm) religion and read the Injîl. However, our master, Muhammad (’alaihi ’s-salâtu wa ’s-salâm), the master of both worlds and the prophet of all human beings and genies, was sent as the prophet for all ’âlams (worlds of beings), and his religion, Islam, invalidated all previous religions. Since this religion will remain valid till the end of the world, it is not permissible in any part of the world to be in any religion other than his religion. No prophet will succeed him. We are, thanks to Allâhu ta’âlâ, his Umma. Our religion is Islam.
Our Prophet, Muhammad (’alaihi ’s-salâm), was born in Mekka on the Monday morning of Rabî’ al-awwal 12, which coincided with April 20, 571 (mîlâdî). He passed away in Medina in the 11th year of the Hegira (m. 632). At the age 40, the angel called Jabrâ’il (’alaihi ’s-salâm) revealed to him his prophethood. He emigrated (hijra) from Mekka to Medina in 622; his arrival at the Kubâ village near Medina on Monday, September 20, marks the beginning of the Muslims’ Hijrî Shamsî (solar) calendar,[2] while Muharram 1 of the same year marks the beginning of the Qamarî (lunar) calendar.
We believe in all prophets. All of them were prophets sent by Allâhu ta’âlâ. Yet, when Qur’ân al-kerîm descended, all other religions were abrogated. Therefore, it is not permissible to follow any of them. Christians also believe in all past prophets, yet since they do not believe in the fact that Muhammad (’alaihi ’s-salâm) is the prophet for all mankind, they remain in disbelief and diverge from the truth. As for Jews, since they do not believe ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) either, they remain twice as far from Islam.
Since Jews and Christians believe that their present interpolated books are the same today as they were when they were sent down from heaven, they are called ahl al-kitâb (disbelievers with heavenly books). It is permissible [but makrûh] to eat the animals they slaughter [if they mention the name of Allâhu ta’âlâ as they slaughter them] and to marry their daughters with nikâh.[3] Polytheists (mushriks) and apostates (murtads) who do not believe in any prophet or book are called “disbelievers without a heavenly book.” Mulhids, too, are said to be in the same group. It is not permissible to marry their daughters or to eat the animals they slaughter.
’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) chose twelve of his companions to disseminate his religion after him; each of them was called a hawârî [apostle, le Apôrte, Apostel]. They were Sham’ûn [Simon], Peter, [Petros], Johanna [Johannes], the elder Ya’qûb, Andreas [Andrew, Peter’s brother], Philippus, Thomas, Bartholomew [Bartholomaus], Matiyyâ [Matthew], the younger Ya’qûb, Barnabas, Yahûdâ [Judas] and Thaddaeus [Jakobi]. Yahûdâ became an apostate and Matyas [Matthias] took his place. Petros was the chief of the apostles. These twelve believers, after ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) had ascended to heaven at the age of thirty-three, propagated his religion. Yet the true teachings of the religion sent by Allâhu ta’âlâ could hold on only for eighty years. Later, Paul’s fibbed doctrines spread out everywhere. Paul was a Jew and did not believe in ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm). Yet, pretending to be a believer of ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) and introducing himself as a religious scholar, he said that ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) was the son of Allah. He fibbed some other things and said that wine and pork were halâl. He turned Nasârâ’s qibla from the Ka’ba to the East where the sun rises. He said that Allâhu ta’âlâ’s Person (Dhât) was one and His Attributes were three. These attributes were called uqnûm (hypostases). The words of this Jewish hypocrite were inserted into the earliest four books of the Bible (the Gospels), especially into Luke’s book, and the Nasârâ parted into groups. Seventy-two conflicting sects and books appeared. In the course of time, most of these sects were forgotten and now they have only three major sects left.
[’Abdullah ibn ’Abdullah at-Tarjumân, who had been a priest on Majorca, one of the Spanish Balearic Islands, and who changed his name after embracing Islam in Tunisia, writes:
“The four Gospels were written by Matthew, Luke, Mark and John [Johanna]. They were the first books to defile the Injîl. Matthew, a Palestinian, had seen ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) only in the year of his ascent to heaven. Eight years later he wrote the first gospel in which he narrated the extraordinary events witnessed in Palestine when ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) was born and how his mother Hadrat Mariam took him to Egypt when the Jewish King Herod wanted to kill her child. Hadrat Mariam passed away six years after her son had ascended to heaven and was buried in Jerusalem. Luke, who was from Antioch (Antakya), never saw ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm). He was converted to the religion of ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) by the hypocrite Paul long after ’Îsâ’s (’alaihi ’s-salâm) ascent to heaven. After being imbued with the poisonous ideas of Paul, he wrote his gospel, changing Allâhu ta’âlâ’s book (the Injîl) altogether. Mark, too, accepted the religion of ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) after the Ascension and wrote in Rome what he had heard from Petros under the name of the Injîl. John was the son of ’Îsâ’s (’alaihi ’s-salâm) aunt. He had seen ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) several times. In these four Gospels there are many incongruous passages.”[4]
In the two books Diyâ’ al-qulûb and Shams al-haqîqa by Is’hâk Efendi of Harput, who died in 1309 (1892 A.D.); in the Arabic book As-sirât al-mustaqîm by Haydarî-zâda Ibrâhîm Fasîh, who died in 1299; in the Persian book Mîzân al-mawâzîn, by Najaf Alî Tabrîzî, which was printed in Istanbul in 1288, and in the Arabic book Ar-radd al-Jamîl by al-Imâm al-Ghazâlî, which was printed in Beirut in 1959, it is proven that the present copies of the Bible have been interpolated.[5]
A Gospel written by Barnabas, who wrote precisely what he saw and heard from ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm), was found and published in English in Pakistan in 1973. It is written in Qâmûs al-a’lâm: “Barnabas was one of the earliest apostles. He was a son of Mark’s uncle. He was a Cypriot. He believed in ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) soon after Paul came forward, with whom he travelled to Anatolia and Greece. He was martyred in Cyprus in the year 63. He wrote a Gospel and some other booklets. He is memorialized on the eleventh of June by Christians.”
Christian religious officials are called clergymen. The highest ranking Orthodox clergyman is the Patriarch. Clergymen of an intermediate grade are called pastors. Those who read the Bible are called qissîs (gospellers). Above the qissîs are uskufs (presbyters), who act as muftîs. Uskufs of higher grades are bishops, above whom are archbishops or metropolitans, who act as qâdîs (judges). Those who conduct the ritual prayers in church are called jâselîk (cleric), below whom are the curés or the shammâs (deacons), and those who serve in church are called eremites (hermits) or shamâmisa (coenobites), who also act as muezzins. Those who have devoted themselves to worship are called monks. Head of Catholics is the Pope (father of fathers) in Rome. His advisory prelates are called cardinals.
All these men of religious authority of the past forgot the Oneness of Allâhu ta’âlâ. They invented the Trinity. After some time, in the era of the Roman Emperor Claudius II (215-271), Yûnus Shammâs, the Patriarch of Antioch, declared the Oneness of Allâhu ta’âlâ. He brought many people round to the right course. Yet later priests succeeding him relapsed to worshipping three gods. Constantine the Great (274-337) introduced idolatry into the religion of ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm). In 325, he convened 318 priests in a spiritual council in Nicea (Iznik) and made up a new Christian religion. In this council, a presbyter named Arius said that Allâhu ta’âlâ is one and ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) is His creature. Yet, Alexandrius, chief of the council and the then Patriarch of Alexandria, dismissed him from the church. Constantine the Great declared that Arius was a disbeliever and established the principles of the Malakâiyya (Melchite) sect; this fact is written in the book Al-milal wa ’n-nihal and in a history book by Jirjis Ibn al-’Amîd, a Byzantine Greek historian who lived through 601-671 A.H. (1205-1273, Damascus). In 381, a second council was held in Constantinople (Istanbul), and Makdonius was accused of blasphemy because he had said that ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) is not the Rûh al-quds [the Holy Ghost] but he is a creature. In 395, the Roman Empire split into two. In 421, a third council was held in Constantinople to scrutinize a book by Nestorius, the Patriarch of Constantinople, who said, “Îsâ was a man. He cannot be worshipped. There exist only the two uqnûms. Allah is one. Of His attributes Existence, Life and Knowledge, the attribute ‘Life’ is the Rûh al-quds; the attribute ‘Knowledge’ penetrated into ’Îsâ and he became a god. Mariam was not the mother of a god. She was the mother of a man. ’Îsâ was the son of Allah.” These ideas of his were accepted. The sect of Nestorius spread in oriental countries. Those who were in this sect were called Nestûrîs (Nestorians). In 431, a fourth council was held in Ephesus, where Dioscorus’s ideas were accepted and Nestorius (d. 439, Egypt) was accused of blasphemy. Twenty years later, 734 priests assembled at a fifth council in Kadıköy in 451, and the writings of Dioscorus, the Patriarch of Alexandria, were repudiated. Dioscorus’s ideas, which were based on ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) being a god, formed the Monophysite, which was also called the Ya’qûbiyya sect, derived from the real name of Dioscorus, Ya’qûb (Jacob). Mercianus, the Byzantine emperor of the time, announced the decision of repudiation everywhere. Dioscorus fled and preached his beliefs in Jerusalem and Egypt. His followers worship ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm). Today’s Suryânîs (Syriac speaking Christians) and Maronites in Iraq, Syria and Lebanon belong to the Ya’qûbiyya sect.
The sect accepted in the Kadıköy council and ratified by King Mercianus is called Malakâiya (Melchite). It is similar to the sect accepted in the first ecumenical council held in Nicea. Their chief is the Patriarch of Antioch. They term the attributes Knowledge and Life as “Kalima” (Word) and “Rûh al-quds” (the Holy Ghost), respectively, which are called ‘uqnûm’ when they unite with man. They have three gods: ‘Father’, the uqnûm of existence, is one of them; Jesus is the ‘Son’; Mary (Mariam) is a goddess. They call ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) Jesus Christ.
The seventy-two Christian sects are described in detail in the Arabic book Izhâr ul-haqq and in the Turkish book Diyâ’ ul-qulûb.[6]
All these sects were loyal to the Pope in Rome until 446 [1054 A.D.]. All of them were called Catholic. In 1054, Michael Cirolarius, Patriarch of Constantinople, broke away from the Pope and began to administer the Eastern churches independently. These churches are called Orthodox. They follow the Ya’qûbiyya sect. In 923 (1517 A.D.), the German priest Luther revolted against the Pope in Rome and a number of churches followed him. They are called Protestants.]
As it is seen, most Christians are baser than Jews, and they will be punished more severely in the Hereafter because they both disbelieve Muhammad (’alaihi ’s-salâm) and trespass against the subject of Ulûhiyya (Divinity); they believe in the Trinity and worship ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) and his mother Hadrat Mariam and divinize them; they also eat maita flesh.[7] As for Jews, they reject two prophets; but they know that Allâhu ta’âlâ is one, and they do not eat maita flesh. Nevertheless, Jews are more hostile towards Islam. Although a few Jews became polytheists like Christians by saying, “’Uzair (Ezra) was Allah’s son,” they are all called ahl al-kitâb. The Orthodox, Catholics and Protestants read different versions of the Bible and claim that they follow ’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm). However, each sect has many conflicting principles on creed and practice. All of them are called Nasârâ, Christians or ahl al-kitâb. Jews think of themselves as being in Mûsâ’s (’alaihi ’s-salâm) religion.[8]
When our Prophet (’alaihi ’s-salâtu wa sallam) honoured the Hereafter with his presence in the eleventh year of the Hegira, Abû Bakr as-Siddîq (radiy-Allâhu ’anh) became the Khalîfa, who, 13 years after the Hegira, passed away at the age of sixty-three. After him, ’Umar al-Fârûq (radiy-Allâhu ’anh) became the Khalîfa. He was martyred at the age of sixty-three, in 23 of the Hegira. After him, ’Uthmân Dhu’n-Nûrain (radiy-Allâhu ’anh) became the Khalîfa. He was martyred at the age of eighty-two, in the year 35 after the Hegira. Then, ’Alî (radiy-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’anh) became the Khalîfa. He was martyred in 40 A.H. when he was sixty-three. These four Khalîfas are called al-Khulafâ’ ar-râshidîn. Exactly as in the ’Asr as-Sa’âdâ, the rules (ah’kâm) of the Sharî’a were carried out and righteousness, justice and freedom flourished everywhere during their caliphates. Rules of the Sharî’a were carried out without any misapplications. These four Khalîfas were the most exalted among all the as-Sahâbat al-kirâm (’alaihimu ’r-ridwân) and their superiority to one another was as in the order of the sequence of their caliphates.
In the time of Abû Bekr ‘radiy-allâhu anh’ Muslims went out of the Arabian Peninsula. They suppressed the tumults that had broken out in the peninsula, and struggled for the suppression of proselytes. After our Prophet (sall-Allâhu ’alaihi wa sallam) honoured the Hereafter with his presence, rebellions broke out on the Arabian Peninsula. Abû Bakr (radiy-Allâhu ’anh) quelled the rebellions and struggled to correct the apostates during his caliphate and re-established Muslim unity as had been the case during the ’Asr-as-Sa’âda. ’Umar (radiy-Allâhu ’anh), when he became the Khalîfa, delivered a speech:
“O Companions of the Messenger! ‘radiy-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’anhum ajma’în’. Arabia can supply only the barley for your horses. Yet, Allâhu ta’âlâ has promised His Beloved (the Prophet) that He would give Muhammad’s (’alaihi ’s-salâm) Umma lands and homes in all parts of the world. Where are the soldiers to conquer those countries promised and to attain booties in this world and honours of ghâzî and martyr in the Hereafter? Where are the ghâzîs who will sacrifice their lives and heads and leave their homes to rescue the human slaves of Allâhu ta’âlâ from the paws of the cruel for the sake of Islam?”. With these words, he encouraged the Sahâbat al-kirâm (’alaihimu ’r-ridwân) to go for jihâd and