by Mufti Taqi Usmani

Sha'ban is one of the meritorious months for which we find some particular instructions in the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (saw). It is reported in the authentic ahadith that Prophet Muhammad (saw) used to fast most of the month in Sha'ban. These fasts were not obligatory on him but Sha'ban is the month immediately preceding the month of Ramadan. Therefore, some preparatory measures are suggested by Prophet Muhammad (saw). Some of these are given below:

1. The blessed companion Anas (ra) reports that Prophet Muhammad (saw) was asked, "Which fast is the most meritorious after the fasts of Ramadan?" He replied, "Fasts of Shaban in honor of Ramadan."
2. The blessed companion Usama ibn Zaid (ra) reports that he asked Prophet Muhammad (saw): "Messenger of Allah, I have seen you fasting in the month of Sha'ban so frequently that I have never seen you fasting in any other month." Prophet Muhammad (saw) replied: "That (Sha'ban) is a month between Rajab and Ramadan which is neglected by many people. And it is a month in which an account of the deeds (of human beings) is presented before the Lord of the universe, so, I wish that my deeds be presented at a time when I am in a state of fasting."
3. Ummul Mu'mineen 'Aishah (ra) says "Prophet Muhammad (saw) used to fast the whole of Sha'ban. I said to him, 'Messenger of Allah, is Sha'ban your most favorite month for fasting?' He said, 'In this month Allah prescribes the list of the persons dying this year. Therefore, I like that my death comes when I am in a state of fasting."
4. In another Tradition she says, "Prophet Muhammad (saw) would sometimes begin to fast continuously until we thought he would not stop fasting, and sometimes he used to stop fasting until we thought he would never fast. I never saw the Messenger of Allah (saw) fasting a complete month, except the month of Ramadan, and I have never seen him fasting in a month more frequently than he did in Sha'ban."
5. In another report she says, "I never saw the Messenger of Allah (saw) fasting in a month so profusely as he did in the month of Sha'ban. He used to fast in that month leaving only a few days, rather, he used to fast almost the whole of the month."
6. Ummul-Mu'mineen Umm Salamah (ra) says: "I have never seen the Messenger of Allah fasting for two months continuously except in the months of Sha'ban and Ramadan."

These reports indicate that fasting in the month of Sha'ban, though not obligatory, is so meritorious that Prophet Muhammad (saw) did not like to miss it.

But it should be kept in mind that the fasts of Sha'ban are for those persons only who are capable of keeping them without causing deficiency in the obligatory fasts of Ramadan. Therefore, if one fears that after fasting in Sha'ban, he will lose strength or freshness for the fasts of Ramadan and will not be able to fast in it with freshness, he should not fast in Sha'ban, because the fasts of Ramadan, being obligatory, are more important than the optional fasts of Sha'ban. That is why Prophet Muhammad (saw) himself has forbidden the Muslims from fasting one or two days immediately before the commencement of Ramadan. The blessed Companion Abu Hurairah (ra) reports Prophet Muhammad (saw) to have said, "Do not fast after the first half of the month of Sha'ban is gone."

According to another report Prophet Muhammad (saw) has said: "Do not precede the month of Ramadan with one or two fasts."

The essence of the above-quoted ahadith is that Prophet Muhammad (saw) himself used to fast most of the month of Sha'ban, because he had no fear of developing weakness or weariness before the commencement of Ramadan. As for others, he ordered them not to fast after the 15th of Sha'ban for the fear that they would lose their strength and freshness before Ramadan starts, and would not be able to welcome the month of Ramadan with enthusiasm.

The Night of Bara'ah

Another significant feature of the month of Sha'ban is that it consists of a night which is termed in Shariah as "Laylatul-bara'ah" (The night of freedom from Fire). This is the night occurring between 14th and 15th day of Sha'ban. There are certain traditions of Prophet Muhammad (saw) to prove that it is a meritorious night in which the people of the earth are attended by special Divine mercy. Some of these traditions are quoted as follows:

1. Ummul-Mu'mineen 'Aishah (ra) is reported to have said, "Once Prophet Muhammad (saw) performed the Salah of the night (Tahajjud) and made a very long Sajdah until I feared that he had passed away. When I saw this, I rose (from my bed) and moved his thumb (to ascertain whether he is alive). The thumb moved, and I returned (to my place). Then I heard him saying in Sajdah: 'I seek refuge of Your forgiveness from Your punishment, and I seek refuge of Your pleasure from Your annoyance, and I seek Your refuge from Yourself. I cannot praise You as fully as You deserve. You are exactly as You have defined Yourself.' Thereafter, when he raised his head from Sajdah and finished his salah, he said to me: 'Aishah, did you think that the Prophet has betrayed you?' I said, 'No, O Prophet of Allah, but I was afraid that your soul has been taken away because your Sajdah was very long.' He asked me, 'Do you know which night is this?' I said, 'Allah and His Messenger know best.' He said, 'This is the night of the half of Sha'ban. Allah Almighty looks upon His slaves in this night and forgives those who seek forgiveness and bestows His mercy upon those who pray for mercy but keeps those who have malice (against a Muslim) as they were before, (and does not forgive them unless they relieve themselves from malice).'"
2. In another Tradition Sayyidah' Aishah (ra) has reported that Prophet Muhammad (saw) has said, "Allah Almighty descends (in a manner He best knows it) in the night occurring in the middle of Sha'ban and forgives a large number of people more than the number of the fibers on the sheep of the tribe, Kalb."
   Kalb was a big tribe the members of which had a very large number of sheep. Therefore, the last sentence of the hadith indicates the big number of the people who are forgiven in this night by Allah Almighty.
3. In yet another Tradition, she has reported Prophet Muhammad (saw) to have said, "This is the middle Night of Sha'ban. Allah frees in it a large number of the people from Fire, more than the number of the hair growing on the sheep of the tribe, Kalb. But He does not even look at a person who associates partners with Allah, or at a person who nourishes malice in his heart (against someone), or at a person who cuts off the ties of kinship, or at a man who leaves his clothes extending beyond his ankles (as a sign of pride), or at a person who disobeys his parents, or at a person who has a habit of drinking wine."
4. Sayyidna Mu'adh ibn Jabal (ra) reports that Prophet Muhammad (saw) has said: "Allah Almighty looks upon all those created by Him in the middle Night of Sha'ban and forgives all those created by Him, except the one who associates partners with Him or the one who has malice in his heart (against a Muslim)".
   Although the chain of narrators of some of these traditions suffers with some minor technical defects, yet when all these traditions are combined together, it becomes clear that this night has some well founded merits, and observing this night as a sacred night is not a baseless concoction as envisaged by some modern scholars who, on the basis of these minor defects, have totally rejected to give any special importance to this night. In fact, some of these traditions have been held by some scholars of hadith as authentic and the defects in the chain of some others have been treated by them as minor technical defects which, according to the science of hadith, are curable by the variety of their ways of narration. That is why the elders of the ummah have constantly been observing this night as a night of special merits and have been spending it in worship and prayers.

What Should be Done in this Night?

In order to observe the Night of Bara'ah, one should remain awakened in this night as much as he can. If someone has better opportunities, he should spend the whole night in worship and prayer. However, if one cannot do so for one reason or another, he can select a considerable portion of the night, preferably of the second half of it for this purpose, and should perform the following acts of worship:

• Salah. Salah is the most preferable act to be performed in this night. There is no particular number of Rak'at but preferably it should not be less than eight. It is also advisable that each part of the Salah like qiyam, rukoo' and sajdah should be longer than normal. The longest surahs of the Holy Qur'an one remembers by heart should be recited in the Salah of this night. If someone does not remember the long surahs, he can also recite several short surahs in one rak'ah.
• Tilawa. The recitation of the Holy Qur'an is another form of worship, very beneficent in this night. After performing Salah, or at any other time, one should recite as much of the Holy Qur'an as he can.
• Dhikr. One should also perform dhikr (recitation of the name of Allah) in this night. Particularly the following dhikr is very useful:
  One should recite Salah (durood) on Prophet Muhammad (saw) as many times as he can. The dhikr can also be recited while walking, lying on bed and during other hours of work or leisure.
• Dua. The best benefit one can draw from the blessings of this night is prayers and supplications. It is hoped that all the prayers in this night will be accepted by our Lord, insha-Allah. Prayer itself is an 'Ibadah, and Allah Almighty gives reward on each prayer along with the fulfillment of the supplicator's need. Even if the purpose prayed for is not achieved, one cannot be deprived of the reward of the prayer which is sometimes more precious than the mundane benefits one strives for. The prayers and supplications also strengthen one's relation with Allah Almighty, which is the main purpose of all kinds and forms of worship.
  One can pray for whatever purpose he wishes. But the best supplications are the ones made by Prophet Muhammad (saw). These are so comprehensive and all-encompassing prayers that all the human needs, of this world and the Hereafter, are fully covered in the eloquent expressions used in them. Actually, most of the prophetic prayers are so profound that human imagination can hardly match their greatness.
  Several books in various languages are available which provide these prophetic prayers, and one should pray to Allah Almighty in accordance with them, whether by reciting their original Arabic text or by rendering their sense in one's own language.
• There are some people who cannot perform any additional Salah or recitations for any reason, like illness or weakness or being engaged in some other necessary activities. Such people also should not deprive themselves completely of the blessings of this night. They should observe the following acts:
  1. To perform the Salah of Maghrib, 'Isha' and Fajr with Jama'ah in the mosque, or in their homes in case of their being sick.
  2. They should keep reciting the dhikr, particularly the one mentioned in para (c) above, in whatever condition they are until they sleep.
  3. They should pray to Allah for their forgiveness and for their other objectives. One can do so even when he is in his bed.
• The women during their periods cannot perform salah, nor can they recite the Qur'an, but they can recite any dhikr, tasbeeh, durood sharif and can pray to Allah for whatever purpose they like in whatever language they wish. They can also recite the Arabic prayers mentioned in the Qur'an or in the hadith with the intention of supplication (and not with the intention of recitation).
• According to a hadith, which is relatively less authentic, Prophet Muhammad (saw) went in this night to the graveyard of Baqi' where he prayed for the Muslims buried there. On this basis, some of the fuqaha hold it as mustahabb (advisable) in this night to go to the graveyard of the Muslims and recite Fatihah or any other part of the Qur'an, and pray for the dead. But this act is neither obligatory nor should it be performed as regularly as an obligatory act.
  

What Should Not be Done in This Night

1. As mentioned earlier, the Night of Bara'ah is a night in which special blessings are directed towards the Muslims. Therefore, this night should be spent in total submission to Allah Almighty, and one should refrain from all those activities, which may displease Allah. Although it is always incumbent upon every Muslim to abstain from sins, yet this abstinence becomes all the more necessary in such nights, because committing sins in this night will amount to responding to divine blessings with disobedience and felony. Such an arrogant attitude can invite nothing but the wrath of Allah. Therefore, one should strictly abstain from all the sins, particularly from those mentioned in the Hadith No. 3 quoted earlier in this article, because these sins make one devoid of the blessings of this night.
2. In this night some people indulge in some activities which they regard as necessary for the celebration of the Night of Bara'ah, like cooking some special type of meal, or illuminating houses or mosques, or improvised structures. All such activities are not only baseless and innovated in the later days by ignorant people, but in some cases they are pure imitation of some rituals performed by non-Muslim communities. Such imitation in itself is a sin; performing it in a blessed night like the Night of Bara'ah makes it worse. Muslims should strictly abstain from all such activities.
3. Some people spend this night in holding religious meetings and delivering long speeches. Such activities are also not advisable, because these acts can easily be performed in other nights. This night requires one to devote himself for the pure acts of worship only.
4. The acts of worship like Salah, recitation of the Qur'an and dhikr should be performed in this night individually, not collectively. The Nafl Salah should not be performed in Jama'ah, nor should the Muslims arrange gatherings in the mosques in order to celebrate the night in a collective manner.

On the contrary, this night is meant for worshipping Allah in solitude. It is the time to enjoy the direct contact with the Lord of the Universe, and to devote one's attention to Him and Him alone. These are the precious hours of the night in which nobody should intervene between one and his Lord, and one should turn to Allah with total concentration, not disturbed or intermitted by any one else.

That is why Prophet Muhammad (saw) observed the acts of worship in this night in total seclusion, not accompanied by anyone, not even by his favorite life companion Sayyidah 'Aishah (ra) and that is why all forms of the optional worship (Nafl Ibadah), are advised by him to be done in individual, not in collective manner.

Fast of the 15th Sha'ban

On the day immediately following the Night of Bara'ah, i.e. the 15th of Sha'ban, it is mustahabb (advisable) to keep fast. Prophet Muhammad (saw) is reported to have recommended this fast emphatically. Although the scholars of hadith have some doubts in the authenticity of this report, yet it is mentioned earlier that the fasts of the first half of Sha'ban have special merits and Prophet Muhammad (saw) used to fast most of the days in Sha'ban. Moreover, a large number of the elders (salaf) of the Ummah have been observing the fast of the 15th of Sha'ban. This constant practice indicates that they have accepted the relevant hadith as authentic.

Therefore, it is advisable to fast the 15th of Sha'ban as an optional (nafl) fast. One can also keep a fast of qada on this day and it is hoped that he can also benefit from the merits of this fast.

[Courtesy of al-balagh.net]

By Muhammadullah Qasmi

Many believe that Islam has banned critical thinking and introduced a kind of stagnation in the field. So, I want to answer the common question "Does Islam permit critical thinking?"

People state, "Most Muslim schools focus on rote memorization of religious texts and discourage independent thinking". There are two different things; critical thinking and rational or independent thinking. There are categories where the mind should play its role and where it should not poke its nose. The clear and apparent meanings of the Glorious Qur'aan and the Hadith, which are called "Mansusaat" or 'Nusoos-e-Qatiyah' in Islamic terms, have no place for criticism. Here, rational thinking to find out the depth is not only permissible but also encouraged in Islam. The principle beliefs, obligatory practices are from this category where the human mind is allowed to explore the reasons and the facts of the matters, but it is not allowed to criticize since the mind has its own limitation as other human faculties have.

For instance, what the hearing faculty can do the smelling faculty cannot, and what the eyes can see the others cannot. As we see a plane flying in the sky, looks very little, if we use only our eyes and not mind, it will be that the plane is small like a bird. But here, we use our mind and say 'no' since the plane is at a certain height that is why we see it small otherwise it is huge. As in this example, there comes one point where the boundary of eye's action ends and the boundary of mind's action begins. Likewise, there is one point where certainly the human mind fails. This is a common idea every sane believes in.

But ahead of this, there is difference between Muslims and others. Muslims believe in 'Wahy', which can be translated as 'revelation' which is by Allah almighty to his messengers and prophets through different ways. The action of 'Wahy' begins from where the action of human mind comes to an end. The 'Wahy' tells us specially about the things which generally a mere human mind cannot find out. The existence of Allah, His attributes, the hell, the paradise, Day of Judgment etc are known only by 'Wahy'. Since, these matters are out of the reach of human mind so the human beings are asked just to believe in. The issue of 'wahy' is based on a principle that every action of human being is poised with error, it is only Allah and His Messengers who are free from human mistakes. That is why there is no possibility of error and criticism in their matters. The human body is temporal and mundane so the parts of the body are also mortal. They cannot have the feeling of things which belongs to another permanent and eternal world. This even we observe in our day-to-day life that if a villager is told about the facts of astronomy he nearly denies all the same.

Besides, Islam allows critical thinking in other matters. The four major schools of thought in Islamic Fiqh i.e. Hanafi, Shaf'ee, Maliki, Hanbli are the clear proof of the claim. The scholars, having deep knowledge of the Glorious Qur'aan, Hadith and Islamic sciences, discussed the matters, which were not explicitly mentioned in the Qur'aan and Hadith, and they perform Ijtihad. In this course, they many times contradicted each other and had different opinions about same issue. But, after all, there opposition was barely not an opposition to play down the other but sincere and concrete opposition based on proofs and evidences. That is why today nearly all of the Ummah follows any of the four schools and none of them deny the other, each of them believes that all are on right path.

Likewise, in Islam 'Amr bil Maroof' (enjoining the right) and 'Nahy anil Munkar' (forbidding from wrong) are the basic rules of a social life, which Allah almighty has counted in one of the characteristics of this Ummah as He states:

"You are the best community that has been raised up for mankind. You enjoin right conduct and forbid indecency; and you believe in Allah." (Surah Ale-Imran,  3:110)

This is emphasized by other verses and holy Hadiths, as for example a Hadith says:

"If any of you sees an evil done he/she should stop it by his hand, if he/she cannot he/she should protest against it, if cannot then at least he/she should repulse it by heart, and this is the weakest from of faith." (Sahih Muslim, V 1 p 51)

As another Hadith assets "The best form of Jihad is to utter the truth before an oppressor ruler". You might know the story of a common person who stood before Hazrat Umar Farooq while he was delivering a sermon and said if you will go wrong we will rectify you by our swords, in reply Hazrat Umar thanked Allah that his caliphate enjoys persons determined for truth and justice. Here, one thing should be kept in mind that, though Islam has allowed criticizing, it sternly prohibits backbiting and hurting others.

"O ye who believe! Let not a folk deride a folk who may be better than they (are), nor let women (deride) women who may be better than they are; neither defame one another, nor insult one another by (insulting) nicknames. Bad is the name of lewdness after faith. And whoso turneth not in repentance, such are evil doers. O ye who believe! Shun much suspicion; for lo! some suspicion is a crime. And spy not, neither backbite one another. Would one of you love to eat the flesh of his dead brother? Ye abhor that (so abhor the other)! And keep your duty (to Allah). Lo! Allah is Relenting, Merciful." (Surah Al-Hujrat,  49: 12, 13)

So, this means that criticism should not be for the sake of criticism, and on personal basis but it should be with a good intention, i.e. 'Islaah' based on social etiquettes.

All these things prove that Islam has never discouraged independent thinking and criticizing, it has allowed human mind to function in areas where it can work. Not only this that Islam has allowed independent thinking, but it is The Glorious Qur'aan which has set the tradition of thinking in the creation of Allah and asked its followers to reflect on the natural phenomena. For example the Glorious Qur'aan praises people who think:

"Lo! In the creation of the heavens and the earth and (in) the difference of night and day are tokens (of His sovereignty) for men of understanding. Such as remember Allah, standing, sitting, and reclining, and consider the creation of the heavens and the earth, (and say): Our Lord! Thou created not this in vain. Glory be to Thee! Preserve us from the doom of Fire" (Surah Ale-Imran,  3: 190, 191)

Before Islam, nearly every religion, which existed then, adopted creatures as God. This concept stopped them to think in the reality of the creatures of the heaven and earth. When Islam came it concentrated the human belief only in Allah and regarded the entire universe as the servant of the human beings. Thus, Islam opened the door of independent thinking in Muslims and it led them to a grand era of science.

It is not  correct to write: "they (students) are not allowed to learn about modern scientific ideas such as evolution, secular histories of other nations, or anything which would conflict with the religious tenants of Islam."   There is a vast difference between believing and learning. Islam has fully allowed Muslims to learn scientific education but not to believe in the matters that contradict with established Islamic beliefs. Because, the science is ever-growing and ever-changing. For example, the scientific facts of Newton in 17th century known as 'Gravitation Laws' were so widely believed that those who denied were called as insane. But, later in 20th century Einstein came and the entire theory of Newton turned up side down. So, as a Muslim, one should think whether one is going to change one's beliefs which are told by All-Knowing Allah to the notions that have no concrete ground.

Some one wrote "Some of the religious schools (madrasas) merely propagandize militant Islamic beliefs and indoctrinate little boys into becoming warriors for the next Jihad." I do not know any madrasa, specially in India, where so called 'militant Islamic beliefs' are 'propagandized', and I do not even understand what this 'militant Islamic beliefs' mean. Likewise, the one who made this statement  should point out in which madrasa little boys are indoctrinated to become 'warriors for Jihad'. I will be highly thankful to the one who wrote this to  provide me correct information. Otherwise, let me very plainly say that the above  statement is a lie and some people became habitual to believe in wide spread lies. They have closed their sights and hearing and blocked their minds and now believe blindly in what's being spread by some anti-Islamic elements.

Allah knows the best!