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Bismillaah wa -Alhamdulillaah wa Salaatu wa Salaam ‘alaa Rasulillaah ‘amma ba’d

On Thursday 17^th January 2013, Muwahhideen Publications hosted a LIVE tele-link lecture with the Noble Shaykh Muhammad Ibn ‘Abdullaah al-Imaam (May Allaah Preserve him) who lectured to us about the hadeeth concerning honouring the elderly Muslim, memorizer of Qur’aan and just ruler.

Listen / Download Mp3 Here or Here (Time 33:02)

Our Shaykh Muhammad al-Imaam (hafidhahullaah) started by saying, it has been narrated by nine of the companions (radhiyAllaahu ‘anhum) that the Messenger (sallAllaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said,

“Verily Allaah has given everyone their due right.”

This great hadeeth shows us there is not a single creation of Allaah except that it has rights in the Sharee’ah of Islaam; even the animals have rights. So how about the rights of the believers upon one another. If you want to ask for your rights in full, then ask for them in accordance to the Sharee’ah; and research your rights in it.

Firstly, there are the rights of Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta’alaa which must be established, then the rights of the slaves of Allaah. As for the rights ofAllaah, they are well known; that is At-Tawheed and it is to be sincere to Allaah in all actions of worship. So whoever establishes the worship and Lordship for Allaah which includes being pleased with His legislation and to submit to His Decree and Pre-Destiny, then this individual has established the religion and is upon great good from Allaah.

The rights of the creation that were legislated in the Sharee’ah, specifically the rights of the believing men and women upon one another are many. From them is what has been indicated in the hadeeth of Abu Musaa al-Ash’ari (radhiyAllaahu ‘anhu) that the Messenger (sallAllaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said,

“It is out of reverence to Allaah in respecting an aged Muslim, and the one who commits the Qur’aan to memory and does not exaggerate pronouncing its letters not forgets it after memorizing it, and to respect the just ruler.”

The Shaykh then stated that to glorify the rights of the Sharee’ah is in itself glorification of Allaah. He proceeded to say that the mentioning of honouring the elderly from amongst the Muslims is indicative that the elderly in age must be honoured, even if there is no blood relation between you and them. With respect to the elderly who are related to you by blood, it is required that you honour, respect, be humble to and serve them even more. Look to what Allaah has advised us with concerning the rights of the parents and how we are supposed to honour them so how about the elderly from amongst us.

Allaah says in the Qur’aan,

 “And your Lord has decreed that you worship none but Him. And that you be dutiful to your parents. If one of them or both of them attain old age in your life, say not to them a word of disrespect, nor shout at them but address them in terms of honour. And lower unto them the wing of submission and humility through mercy, and say: “My Lord! Bestow on them Your Mercy as they did bring me up when I was small.” [Al-Israa`:23-24]

This honourable ayah has gathered all of the good manners and etiquettes that are binding upon the sons and daughters towards their parents. It includes all of the rights and obligations, which all the laws of this world are incapable of fulfilling or even comprehending, regarding being upon piety toward one’s parents. So praise Allaah, your Lord, Who has sent down the Qur’aan and preserved it till the Day of Judgement.

Likewise, if you were to look at what the Sharee’ah came with regarding the rights of the people of knowledge you would find that they have been given a right and position after that of the Prophets and Messengers.

 As Allaah says,

“And whoso obeys Allaah and the Messenger (Muhammad sallAllaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam), then they will be in the company of those on whom Allaah has bestowed His Grace, of the Prophets, the Siddiqoon (those followers of the Prophets who were first and foremost to believe in them, like Abu Bakr As­Siddiq), the martyrs, and the righteous. And how excellent these companions are!” [An-Nisaa`:69].

And the siddiqoon are the people of knowledge; they are the inheritors of the Prophets.

The status of the scholars of the Sunnah is a great and honourable one and their rights upon the Muslims are numerous. It is upon us to deal with them in accordance to the guidelines of the Sharee’ah without being extreme or negligent.

Our Shaykh (hafidhahullaah) then proceeded to say, may Allaah have mercy on a person that rectified himself, feared his Lord, and gave the rights to whomever it is due to before he meets his Lord while he has prevented the rights from its people and thus he is chained with what he has done. So it is incumbent upon us to advise one another with birr and taqwa, to warn each another from falling into innovation, evil or anything that has been warned against and we must rectify our affairs by being upon steadfastness in the Deen.

Wa Billaahi Tawfeeq

Wa SallAllaahu wa Sallaama wa Barak ‘alaa Nabiyanna Muhammad wa ‘alaa ‘Alyhi wa Sahbyhi wa Sallam

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