Al-Ghazali: The Inner Dimensions of Prayer

[Blessed]

Salaams ,

 

Nomads, this article is long but you simply have to read it, you'll thank yourself for it. The Inner Dimensions of Prayer

 

 

I've read it a few weeks back and Masha Allah, it's really changed that way that I pray. It's one of those you have to read and re-read. I'm going to get the book, insha Allah. Has anyone read it? What were your thoughts on it...

[Socod_badne]

I don't like the dude (Al-Ghazali).

[Pi]

SB and his regular BS. Whatever you say, dude.

[Socod_badne]

Originally posted by Pi:

SB and his regular BS. Whatever you say, dude.

Hey man, anyone who says Aveccina was wrong on cause and effect principle in his book Incoherence of Philosophers, is as good as duds in my books. Not to leave out, a thinker/philosapher not worthy of my attention.

 

Can anyone tell me if it was Ghazali who invented Islamic Kalam school of thought/philosphy.

[Blessed]

Salaams

 

AlGhazali as with all scholars has many critics but since I haven't read that book, can't and won't comment. I think a scholar can get an issue wrong and be right about others, so don’t be so quick to dismiss him, SB.

 

I've read his book on the purification of the soul and excerpts from this one. I found both to be excellent as I’m concerned with improving my inner self. I’ve wasted too much time worrying about the secondary issues.

[Cumar]

As-salaam Alaikuum

 

Al-Ghazaalee (May Allaah have mercy on him) was indeed one of the imaams of Ahlus-Sunnan. However, his book, where this chapter (The inner dimensions of prayer) is an exerpt from, has been critized by many of the imaams. For example, adh-Dahaabi wrote regarding the Ihyaa ul-Uloom:

'There are many weak Ahadeeth in this book. If this book did not contain traditions and etiquettes of Soofism and philosophers it would be considered a good book'.

 

Many books have been written that identify the errors in the Ihyaa and it's best to approach these books first before you attempt to approach Ihyaa ul-Uloom

 

As-salaam Alaikuum

 

Thus it's best if one ones to approach

[Blessed]

^Wassalaam,

 

Jizaak Allah for your imput bro, please elaborate if you can and also tell me the names of those books. The above links to an abridged translation- I'll certainly look more into it.

 

Again, thank you.

[Cumar]

As-salaam Alaikuum

 

Imaam Zayd ad-Deen al-Iraqee (The shaykh of Imaam Ibn Hajar) wrote several books of takhreej regarding Ihyaa and they are available and usually printed alongside the Ihyaa. All have been incorporated in a final book called Takhreejul (verifier) Ihyaa ul-Uloom.

 

Wasalaam Alaikuum

[Nur]

Imam Ghazali may Allah accept his good deeds and forgive his sins, like all of us has contributed imensely to many sciences in Islam, specially the science of Maqaasidul Shariica, like the famous Shiekh who lived in the third or fourth century, Sheikh Tirmidhi Al Hakeem, who wrote a book on the Maqaasidul Salaat, I remember two great passages in that book that I can translate from memory as follows:

 

Dhiker ( rememberance of Allah) is for the heart like water is for a tree, a well watered tree has green leaves and if you pull one of its branches it is flexible, when the tree is not watered, its leaves dry up, and if you try to pull one of its branches it will break up out of dryness, so the best thing you can do with such a branch is to use it as a piece of wood to place in fire to burn, likewise, when the heart is full with Dhiker, it makes all other parts of the body soft and vivacious, if you order that person to do good, she/he is flexible, but when there is no Dhiker in the heart, the persons senses will dry up, if you ask them to do good they will resist and as a result break up, the best thing that can be done with a person who broke away from his lord is to place them in a bigger fire.

 

Every Prayer is like a new repentance, standing up in front of Allah is like pulling yourself away from disobedience, Takbeer means that you belittle everything that kept you away from Allah.

 

 

Nur

[Blessed]

Assalamu Alaikum,

 

Brothers, May Allah reward you both greatly for your input, you've been very helpful. My Arabic is still a little rusty but I'll look for those books Suleyman. Mahadsanid

 

Nur,

I've just stumbled upon your thread on this very topic, very informative. Keep it up walaal. Without prayer what is your faith? And what is is ritual prayer if it isn't from the heart. As they say; 'it's the thought that counts most' ...

 

Here's another interesting article that I found.

 

 

The Prayer and Its Effect in Removing Sins and Purifying the Soul

Author: Hussain al-Awaa'ishah

Source: As-Salaat Wa-Atharuhaa (trans. Abu Iyaad)

 

Allaah the Sublime said:

 

Indeed prayer restrains from the obscene and evil deeds.[ 1]

 

Allaah has explained in this verse that a correct prayer, performed with khushoo' undoubtedly prevents its performer from obscene and evil deeds and leads him to goodness. Therefore, you will see that the people of the mosque are the most superior of mankind and the best amongst them. The sins and shortcomings of others are many times more than the sins and shortcomings of these people.

 

If the prayer does not prevent us from obscene and evil deeds then it is necessary to carefully scrutinize the deficiency within it and to correct it. There is no escaping from correcting one's prayer and there is no fleeing from bringing about khushoo' within it. So let us look at the causes and let us strive to treat them with the cure. Just like we treat our bodies for their diseases, the treatment of the souls is more appropriate and comes first. And this is what will help us to understand the saying of the Messenger (sallallaahu alaihi wasallam): "The first thing for which a servant will be held to account for is his prayer. If it is correct and sound, all the rest of his actions will be correct and sound and if it is corrupt then all the rest of his actions will be corrupt."[2]

 

So in the correction of the prayer lies the corection of all the other actions. The position of the prayer (relative to all the other actions) is like that of the head to the body. This is because the servant is nearest to his Lord during his prayer, he calls upon his Lord and seeks forgiveness from Him. He returns to Allaah and cries to Him, the Sublime.

 

The prayer cannot be corrected except with the correction of the aqeedah (belief), being observant of Allaah, having fear of Him, bringing oneself to account in front of Him, and trembling out of fear of His Fire. When he finishes his prayer and is put to trial with sins and disobedience, he finds strength in his heart to repel them. This is because he looks at the the temporary and vanishing pleasures and then at the bliss and joy which never ends and the happiness which is never cut off. So he puts the good which will remain (and last forever) ahead of that which is only transitory and vanishes.

 

The prayer of the servant is corrupted due to lack of the careful observance of Allaah and weakness in taqwaa[3]. He is, therefore, not able to produce such awe which will come in between him and his acts of disobedience.

 

There also occurs in the hadeeth: "Indeed there is in the body a morsel of flesh which if it be sound and wholesome, the whole body will be sound and wholesome and which if it be corrupt, the whole body will be corrupt. Indeed it is the heart."[4]

 

In the correction and purification of the heart lies the correction of the whole body and in the corruption of the heart lies the corruption of the whole body. If the heart is corrected, the hand will be corrected so that it does not steal or strike anyone or commit zina by touching what is unlawful. The feet will also be corrected so that they do not walk towards what is unlawful. The ears will be put straight so that they do not listen to musical instruments, slander or backbiting. The situation of the tongue will improve so that it does not speak except what is good. If the heart is corrupted, the whole body becomes corrupt and the limbs will not depart except towards evil conduct and mischief.

 

The matter of the heart is either set aright or corrupted by the prayer. If the prayer is good it is an indication that the heart has benefitted and that it is sound and wholesome. If it is not good, it is an indication of the heart receiving little benefit and of its corruption. Evil deeds then become manifest and overtake the limbs.

 

Know that every prayer which is performed with awe and humility enlivens the heart and stimulates it to do good deeds and also makes it adapt to good deeds, just as every good action which is performed outside of the prayer increases ones khushoo within the prayer. In a hadeeth there occurs: "Upon you is the Night Prayer (Tahajjud) as it was the habit of the righteous people before you, is a means of nearness to Allaah the Exalted, a prevention from evil deeds and an expiation for sins."[5]

 

The Messenger (sallallaahu alaihi wasallam) has made it clear that the Night Prayer is a prevention from sins in that it stops the one who performs it from evil deeds and incites him to do good deeds. Therefore, it is necessary for us to establish the prayer and to increase in it and likewise we must perform the Night Prayer, standing awe-struck, humble and submissive to Allaah the Sublime. Our hearts weeping over what we have neglected and fallen short of while hoping for the mercy of our Lord. We seek nearness to him by calling Him by His Names and Attributes, asking Him by them that he establishes us (upon His path) and that He gives us benefit from our prayer and standing at night.

It was said to the Prophet (sallallaahu alaihi wasallam): So and so prays the whole of the night, yet when he reaches the morning he steals! He (sallallaahu alaihi wasallam) said: "What you say (i.e. about his prayer) should prevent him from that" or he said: "His prayer will prevent him (from that)."[6]

 

When the prayer of the servant reaches it's goal in preventing him from sin and disobedience it is written for him in Iliyyeen as is mentioned in the hadeeth: "If a prayer is performed after another prayer and there is no foolishness (vain talk) between them, it is written in Illiyyeen."[7]

 

Do not, therefore, let it escape you that the prayer will prevent you from entering your house towards sin or going out towards it because it has been reported from Abu Hurairah (ra) that the Prophet (sallallaahu alaihi wasallam) said: "When you leave your house, pray two rakahs, they will prevent you from going out towards evil and when you enter your home pray two rakahs, they will prevent you from entering into evil."[8]

 

NOTES

 

[1] Surah Ankaboot 29:45

[2] Reported by at-Tabaraanee in [al-Awsat] and [ad-Diyaa] from Anas (ra). It is also in [saheeh ul-Jaami'], no. 2570.

[3] The taabi'ee, Talq ibn Habeeb was asked to define taqwaa. He said: "Taqwaa is to act in obedience to Allaah, hoping for His Mercy upon a light from Him and taqwaa is to abandon acts of disobedience to Allaah, out of fear of Him upon a light from Him." Reported by Ibn Abi Shaibah in his [Kitaab ul-Eemaan], no. 99. Ibn al-Qayyim (rh) explained the phrase "...upon a light from Him..." to mean pure and correct Eemaan, that nothing but pure Eemaan initiated the servant to perform the action. [Translators note]

[4] Reported by Bukhaaree, Muslim and others from an-Nu'maan ibn Basheer (ra).

[5] Reported by Ahmad in his Musnad, at-Tirmidhee and others. It is also in [saheeh ul-Jaami'], no. 3957.

[6] Reported by Ahmad, Bazzaar and others. Shaikh al-Albaanee declared it Saheeh in his Silsilat ul-Aahaadeeth id-Da'eefah, Vol. 1, p. 16, in relation to the false hadeeth: "Whoever is not prevented by his prayer from committing obscene and evil deeds does not increase except in distance from Allaah."

[7] Reported by Abu Daawood and others. It is also in [saheeh ul-Jaami'], no. 3731.

[8] Reported by al-Bazzaar and al-Bayhaqee in [shu'ab ul-Eemaan. It is also in [saheeh ul-Jaami'], no

 

Source

[Viking]

Blessed,

I was reading this in his book and it was quite instructive. Thanks.

 

 

Originally posted by Suleyman:

As-salaam Alaikuum

 

Al-Ghazaalee (May Allaah have mercy on him) was indeed one of the imaams of Ahlus-Sunnan. However, his book, where this chapter (The inner dimensions of prayer) is an exerpt from, has been critized by many of the imaams. For example, adh-Dahaabi wrote regarding the Ihyaa ul-Uloom:

'There are many weak Ahadeeth in this book. If this book did not contain traditions and etiquettes of Soofism and philosophers it would be considered a good book'.

 

Many books have been written that identify the errors in the Ihyaa and it's best to approach these books first before you attempt to approach Ihyaa ul-Uloom

 

As-salaam Alaikuum

 

Thus it's best if one ones to approach

Suleyman,

Ghazzali, in this book, is very critical of some Sufi practices and very harsh in his criticism towards philisophers. He is basically the person who singlehandedly put an end to speculative philosophy in Islam. How can it be that he is accused of it?

[Cumar]

Originally posted by Viking:

As-salaam Alaikuum brother Viking

 

Yes, Imaam Ghazaalee (may Allaah have mercy on him) was at one point very critical of the philosophers and he refuted them and shortly before he passed away, he went back to the madhhab of the Salaf and died with Saheeh Bukharee on his chest.

 

However, his refutations regarding the people of kalaam were writen in his last book the Iljaam and that was his last stage and I presume that you’re referring to that stage.

 

The book Ihyaa was written when he was still an Asharee Soofee. He narrated many false reports about the early Soofees (who were on a path of moderateness) and this has been identified by his contemporaries and the imaams after his death. The Imaam had an extensive knowledge in Fiqh but he was very weak in the sciences of hadeeth and hence reported anything without any sanad.

 

Imaam Ibn al-Jawzee said in al-Muntazeem:

 

"He began to write the book al-Ihyaa in al-Quds and finished it in Damascus, however, he wrote it upon the way of the Soofis and did away with the rules of Fiqh in it. For example, regarding effacing of honour and fighting the self, he mentions that a man wished to efface his own honour, so he entered a public bath and put on someone else's clothes, then he put his own clothes on top of them and went out walking slowly so that the people could catch him. So they took them back from him and called him 'The Thief of the Public Baths'.

 

Shaykh-ul-Islaam ibn Tamiyyah says in Majmoo’ul-Fataawaa:

 

"Aboo Haamid mentions in al-Ihyaa the saying of those philosophers who interpret away that they went too far in their interpretation, and that the Hanbalees went too far in sticking to the textual wording, and he quotes Ahmad Ibn Hanbal as saying that which he did not say. And he did not know what Ahmad said, nor what others of the Salaf said about this, nor what occurs in the Qur’aan and the Hadeeth about it!"

 

 

Imaam Ibn Katheer says in al-Bidaayah wan-Nihaayah:

 

"And in this period he wrote his book Ihyaa ‘Uloomud-Deen and it is an amazing book

containing many of the branches of the knowledge of the Sharee‘ah, and mixed with it are some agreeable things from Soofism and actions of the heart. However, it contains many ahaadeeth unheard of, and those which are weak and contradict authentic ones as well as fabricated ahaadeeth, just as there are in other books about those, used as evidence for things which are Halaal or Haraam; and the book which is written for softening the hearts and for inciting to good and inspiring fear of the evil, then their matter is easier compared to other books. Abul-Faraj Ibnul-Jawzee, and then Ibnus-Salaah denounced him very strongly, and al- Maazaree wanted his book to be burnt, and likewise did the people in the West, and they said, "This book is a revival of the knowledge of his Deen. However, for our Deen, then its revival is that of its knowledge in the Book of Allaah and the Sunnah of His Messenger", as I have reported in his biography in at-Tabaqaat, Ibn Shukr declared many parts of Ihyaa ‘Uloomud-Deen to consist of false reports and he showed their falsity in a useful book, and al-Ghazzaalee used to say, "I have only a small stock regarding Hadeeth...."

 

 

And these are some statements of the Imaams.

 

As-salaam Alaikuum

[Viking]

Suleyman,

Can you give please me examples of fabricated hadiths and those that contradict authentic hadith in this book? I would appreciate it.

[Cumar]

As-salaam Alaikuum

 

I must first mention that the reports he mentioned in the al-Ihyaa have no chain of narrations (sanad). He simply reports them.

 

To name a few examples, the hadeeth about Salaatur-Raghaa’ib, the hadeeth that the sahabas are the station of the stars in the sky so whichever of them you take, you will be guided. The hadeeth about the salaah for the middle of Sha'baan. The Qudsi hadeeth: ""Neither My Heaven nor My earth can contain Me, but the soft humble heart of my believing servant can contain Me"

 

Imaam al-‘Iraaqi discusses all the reports found in the Ihyaa and whether they are authenthic or not in his takhreej of Ihyaa.

 

As-salaam Alaikuum

[Khayr]

Originally posted by Suleyman:

As-salaam Alaikuum

 

I must first mention that the reports he mentioned in the al-Ihyaa have no chain of narrations (sanad). He simply reports them.

 

To name a few examples, the hadeeth about Salaatur-Raghaa’ib, the hadeeth that the sahabas are the station of the stars in the sky so whichever of them you take, you will be guided. The hadeeth about the salaah for the middle of Sha'baan. The Qudsi hadeeth: ""Neither My Heaven nor My earth can contain Me, but the soft humble heart of my believing servant can contain Me"

 

Imaam al-‘Iraaqi discusses all the reports found in the Ihyaa and whether they are authenthic or not in his takhreej of Ihyaa.

 

As-salaam Alaikuum

As for his blame of the Ihya for al-Ghazzali's indulgence in some narrations: it is known that the latter did not have skill in the hadith, and that most of the narrations and stories of the Ihya are taken from his predecessors among the Sufis and jurists. The man himself did not provide a single isnad, but one of our companions [Zayn al-Din al-'Iraqi] took care to document the narrations of the Ihya, and only a small amount were declared aberrant or anomalous (shâdhdh). I shall cite them for the sake of benefit ... Nor is al-Ghazzali's phrasing 'the Prophet said' meant as a definitive attribution to him but only as an attribution that appears definite. For if he were not assuming it true, he would not say it. The matter was not as he thought, and that is all. As for al-Turtushi's statement concerning the forgeries found in the Ihya, then ( I ask you ) is al-Ghazzali the one who forged them so that he may be blamed for them? To blame him for them is certainly nothing more than inane fanaticism. It is an attack which no serious examiner can accept. " End of Ibn al-Subki's words from Tabaqat al-Shafi`iyya al-Kubra.

 

Ibn al-Jawzi ( a detractor of Sufis ) similarly dismisses the Ihya in four of his works: I'lam al-Ahya. bi Aghlat al-Ihya ('Informing the Living of the Mistakes of the Ihya), Talbis Iblis, Kitab al-Qussas, and his history al-Muntazam fi Tarikh al-Muluk wal-Umam. His views influenced Ibn Taymiyya and others.

The basis of their position was also that al-Ghazzali used too many weak or baseless hadiths. Other moderate hadith masters documented almost every single hadith in the Ihya without questioning its usefulness as a whole, accepting its immense standing among Muslims and contributing to its embellishment and spread as a manual for spiritual progress. Among these scholars:

 

More importantly, the majority of hadith masters hold it permissible to use weak hadiths in other than the derivation of legal rulings, such as in the encouragement to good and discouragement from evil (al-targhûb wa al-tarhûb), as countless hadith masters have indicated as well as other scholars, such as Imam al-Safadi.

It must be understood that al-Ghazzali incorporated all the material which he judged of use to his didactic purposes on the bases of content rather than origin or chain of transmission; that most of the Ihya consists in quotations from Quran, hadith, and the sayings of other than Ghazali, his own prose accounting for less than 35% of the work; and that three quarters of the huge number of hadiths cited are authentic in origin.

 

The Hanafi hadith master Murtada al-Zabidi began his great commentary on the Ihya with an explanation that al-Ghazzali's method of hadith citation by conveying the general meaning without ascertaining the exact wording, had a basis in the practice of the Companions and Salaf:

 

'The verification of the wording of narrations was not an obligation for al-Ghazzali ( may Allah have mercy on him!) He would convey the general meaning, conscious of the different significations of the words and their mutual conflict with one another avoiding what would constitute interpolation or arbitrary rendering of one term with another.

 

'A number of the Companions have permitted the conveyance of Prophetic hadiths in their meanings rather than their wordings. Among them: 'Ali, Ibn 'Abbas, Anas ibn Malik, Abu al-Darda., Wathila ibn al-Asqa', and Abu Hurayra ( may Allah be wellpleased with them! ) Also, a greater number of the Successors, among them: the Imam of imams al-Hasan al-Basri, al-Sha'bi, 'Amr ibn Dinar, Ibrahim al-Nakha'i, Mujahid, and 'Ikrima.

Ibn Sirin said: 'I would hear a hadith from ten different people, the meaning remaining one but the wordings differing.' Similarly, the Companions' wordings in their narrations from the Prophet have differed one from another. Some of them, for example, will narrate a complete version; others will narrate the gist of the meaning; others will narrate an abridged version; others yet replace certain words with their synonyms, deeming that they have considerable leeway as long as they do not contradict the original meaning. None of them intends a lie, and all of them aim for truthfulness and the report of what he has heard: that is why they had leeway. They used to say: 'Mendacity is only when one deliberately intends to lie.'

'In the hadith master al-Suyuti's commentary on [al-Nawawi's] al-Taqrib, in the fourth part of the twenty-sixth heading, the gist of what he said is as follows:

 

'If a narrator is not an expert in the wordings and in what shifts their meanings to something else, there is no permission for him to narrate what he has heard in terms of meaning only. There is no disagreement concerning this. He must relate the exact wording he has heard. If he is an expert in the matter, [opinions have differed:] a large group of the experts of hadith, fiqh, and usûl said that it is not permitted for him to narrate in other than the exact same words.

This is the position of Ibn Sirin, Tha'lab, and Abu Bakr al-Razi the Hanafi scholar. It is also narrated as Ibn 'Umar's position. But the vast majority of the Salaf and Khalaf from the various groups, among them the Four Imams, permit narration in terms of meaning in all the above cases provided one adduces the meaning. This dispensation is witnessed to by the practice of the Companions and Salaf, and shown by their narrating a single report in different wordings.

 

Source