Lesson 19: Takfeer - Some Principles Regarding Declaring Someone to be a Disbeliever

Question 1

Takfir in the Quran

Answer 1

• <aside>
  
  > **لَّقَدْ كَفَرَ ٱلَّذِينَ قَالُوٓا۟ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ ثَالِثُ ثَلَـٰثَةٍۢ ۘ وَمَا مِنْ إِلَـٰهٍ إِلَّآ إِلَـٰهٌۭ وَٰحِدٌۭ ۚ وَإِن لَّمْ يَنتَهُوا۟ عَمَّا يَقُولُونَ لَيَمَسَّنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا۟ مِنْهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ**
  >
  >
  > They have certainly disbelieved who say, "Allāh is the third of three."1And there is no god except one God. And if they do not desist from what they are saying, there will surely afflict the disbelievers among them a painful punishment.
  >
  > -Maidah 73
  >
  
  ---
  
  - The issue is doing Takfir on someone who claims Islam. The issue is not doing Takfir on a Christian, Buddhist, etc., but a person who claims to be a Muslim.
  - Based on this ayah, Takfir is a Hukm Shar’ee.
  </aside>

Question 2

Danger of Takfir/speaking about the religion of Allah when one has no right in the Quran:

Answer 2

• First 2-3 pages of Surah Nur (24th Surah).
  
  • These few pages deal with an accusation or a response to accusing someone of Zina. Look at the severeness Allah threatens curse, punishment, anger, upon those who falsely accuses someone else of Zina, so how about falsely accusing someone of Kufr? Rather it is more severe.
  <aside>
  
  > **وَلَا تَقۡفُ مَا لَيۡسَ لَكَ بِهِۦ عِلۡمٌۚ إِنَّ ٱلسَّمۡعَ وَٱلۡبَصَرَ وَٱلۡفُؤَادَ كُلُّ أُوْلَٰٓئِكَ كَانَ عَنۡهُ مَسۡـُٔولًا**
  >
  >
  > **And do not pursue that of which you have no knowledge. Indeed, the hearing, the sight and the heart - about all those [one] will be questioned.**
  >
  > Surah Isra 17:36
  >
  </aside>

<aside>

> **يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّاسُ كُلُواْ مِمَّا فِى ٱلۡأَرۡضِ حَلَٰلًا طَيِّبًا وَلَا تَتَّبِعُواْ خُطُوَٰتِ ٱلشَّيۡطَٰنِۚ إِنَّهُۥ لَكُمۡ عَدُوٌّ مُّبِينٌ**
>
>
> **إِنَّمَا يَأْمُرُكُم بِٱلسُّوٓءِ وَٱلْفَحْشَآءِ وَأَن تَقُولُوا۟ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ مَا لَا تَعْلَمُونَ**
>
> **O mankind! Eat of that which is lawful and good on the earth, and follow not the footsteps of Shaitan (Satan). Verily, he is to you an open enemy.**
>
> **He only orders you to evil and immorality and to say about Allāh what you do not know.**
>
> -Baqrah 168-169
>

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- Speaking about Allahs judgment, his revelation, his religion, in a way that you do not know is following the footsteps of Shaytan
- Speaking about Allah without knowledge is considered the worst of the major sins according to a large number of scholars.
</aside>

<aside>

> **إِنَّآ أَنزَلۡنَا ٱلتَّوۡرَىٰةَ فِيهَا هُدًى وَنُورٌۚ يَحۡكُمُ بِهَا ٱلنَّبِيُّونَ ٱلَّذِينَ أَسۡلَمُواْ لِلَّذِينَ هَادُواْ وَٱلرَّبَّٰنِيُّونَ وَٱلۡأَحۡبَارُ بِمَا ٱسۡتُحۡفِظُواْ مِن كِتَٰبِ ٱللَّهِ وَكَانُواْ عَلَيۡهِ شُهَدَآءَۚ فَلَا تَخۡشَوُاْ ٱلنَّاسَ وَٱخۡشَوۡنِ وَلَا تَشۡتَرُواْ بِـَٔايَٰتِى ثَمَنًا قَلِيلًاۚ وَمَن لَّمۡ يَحۡكُم بِمَآ أَنزَلَ ٱللَّهُ فَأُوْلَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلۡكَٰفِرُونَ**
>
>
> **Indeed, We sent down the Torah, in which was guidance and light. The prophets who submitted [to Allah ] judged by it for the Jews, as did the rabbis and scholars by that with which they were entrusted of the Scripture of Allah, and they were witnesses thereto. So do not fear the people but fear Me, and do not exchange My verses for a small price. And whoever does not judge by what Allah has revealed - then it is those who are the disbelievers.**
>
> -Maidah 5:44
>

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- If we say Takfir is a Hukm Shar’ee then what about those who falsely use it, are they not in danger of falling into this verse?
- This ayah is an evidence against groups like the Khawarij, when they apply rulings of Takfir without the proper Islamic rules and principles, and without caution and fearing Allah, then they are the first of the people to rule by other than Allah. Allah revealed in this issue the most caution, and that it is for Allah to decree and decide, so if we don't have proper rules and regulations, observing Allahs laws, then there is a danger we might fall into the ayah that we accuse others of- ruling by other than Allah
</aside>

Question 3

First principal: Severity and seriousness of Takfir as mentioned in the Sunnah

Answer 3

• <aside>
  
  > **حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو بَكْرِ بْنُ أَبِي شَيْبَةَ، حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ بِشْرٍ، وَعَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ نُمَيْرٍ، قَالاَ حَدَّثَنَا عُبَيْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ عُمَرَ، عَنْ نَافِعٍ، عَنِ ابْنِ عُمَرَ، أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ ‏ "‏ إِذَا كَفَّرَ الرَّجُلُ أَخَاهُ فَقَدْ بَاءَ بِهَا أَحَدُهُمَا ‏"**
  >
  >
  > It is reported on the authority of Ibn 'Umar that the Apostle (may peace and blessings be upon him) observed: When a man calls his brother an unbeliever, it returns (at least) to one of them.
  >
  > -Bukhari and Muslim
  >
  
  ---
  
  - If the person being accused is justifiably being accused, and is truly a Kafir, then the sin of his Kufr will be upon him
  - But if he was unjustifiably accused, then the sin of the accusation, and the sin of declaring your Muslim brother to be a Kafir will go upon the accuser.
  
  ---
  
  In another narration:
  
  > **"‏ أَيُّمَا امْرِئٍ قَالَ لأَخِيهِ يَا كَافِرُ ‏.‏ فَقَدْ بَاءَ بِهَا أَحَدُهُمَا إِنْ كَانَ كَمَا قَالَ وَإِلاَّ رَجَعَتْ عَلَيْهِ ‏"‏‏.‏**
  >
  >
  > **It is reported on the authority of Ibn 'Umar that the Messenger of Allah (may peace and blessings be upon him) said:**
  >
  > **Any person who called his brother: "O unbeliever" (has in fact done an act by which this unbelief) would return to one of them. If it were so, as he asserted (then the unbelief of man was confirmed) but if it was not true, then it returned to him (to the man who labeled it on his brother Muslim).**
  >
  
  ---
  
  - It will either go against person being accused {they are a Kafir}
  - Or the accuser will receive the entire sin of his accusation.
  </aside>

Question 4

Second Principal: Verifying the Truth of What You Hear as mentioned in the Quran

Answer 4

> يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓاْ إِن جَآءَكُمۡ فَاسِقٌۢ بِنَبَإٍ فَتَبَيَّنُوٓاْ أَن تُصِيبُواْ قَوۡمًۢا بِجَهَٰلَةٍ فَتُصۡبِحُواْ عَلَىٰ مَا فَعَلۡتُمۡ نَٰدِمِينَO you who have believed, if there comes to you a disobedient one with information, investigate, lest you harm a people out of ignorance and become, over what you have done, regretful-Hujurat 49:6

Another reading of this Ayah is فَتَثَبَّتُوا-establish the truth of it

• Allah commands us to establish the truth of the news that comes to us
  
  • Allah described it as coming from a Fasiq. -an openly disobedient person, but it covers other people as well. The groups this ayah covers are:
    
    • The Fasiq Muslim (the openly disobedient person)
    • The Kafir (more deserving, as the Kafir is worse than the Fasiq)
    • The news of the person who is anonymous (خَبَرُ الْمُبْهَمُ)

This is a principal in Takfir as people base it on

• Anonymous news
• What Non Muslims say
• what disobedient Muslims say

none of these are allowed to base a ruling in the Shari’ah, rather for each of them we are ordered فَتَبَيَّنُوا وَتَثَبَّتُوا- Clarify, find the truth of it, establish the authenticity of it.

Ironically, people who talk about implementing the rules and laws of Allah, are the first people to take news from disbelievers, anonymous sources, non-Muslim news agencies, etc.

Takfir isn’t based on this, it is an issue of judgment, an issue where the Qadi brings witnesses to verify the news.

If you can’t establish if Kufr happened or not, you don’t have the right to make that judgment, be it a Qadi, scholar who is capable of establishing if it happened or not.

Today people make Takfir based on pictures, videos than can be easily alerted and edited, we wouldn’t want to rush to apply this on a murderer-which is the right of the creation, so how about something worse than that, Kufr which is something that deals with the right of Allah?

We wouldn’t want to rush to cut someone’s hand for theft if we can make sure that it didn’t happen, for how about for something more severe than that, that has a severe punishment both in this world and the next?

Establishing what happened is not just stablishing the event, but also establishing the circumstances around the event, if the person was compelled, if the truth was established, if they were under a false impression, if they followed someone knowledgeable who misguided them, all of these need to be verified before judgment.

Question 5

Third Principle: Not Everything Considered Kufr is Actually Kufr as mentioned in the Sunnah with حَاطِبِ بْنِ أَبِي بَلْتَعَةَ

Answer 5

• Hatib betrayed the messenger ﷺ by writing a letter to the Quraysh telling them about the prophet’s plans, which could of even led to the prophet ﷺ being killed, and the Muslims not being able to conquer Mecca, they would all say they would be a Kafir, and yet the Prophet ﷺ didn’t say so, for this instance.
• Many would think this action of Hatib would be Kufr, and even ‘Umar thought so that he was a Munafiq.
• Allah does not forgive the disbeliever by Ijma’ be it if they fought in Badr or otherwise. if Allah were to forgive a Kafir, he would forgive Abu Talib, who has the least punished in the hellfire.
• If this was an act of Kufr in of itself, the Messenger ﷺ wouldn’t have asked Hatib The reason for his Kufr as he would just carry out the ruling of apostasy.
  
  • But because this action could have a possibility of being Kufr, and also not being Kufr, the prophet ﷺ asked him.
  • Response of Hatib shows that what he did could be Kufr, and that it may have also not been Kufr
  ### What makes the incident of Hatib not be Kufr?There is a long discussion regarding this, such as:
  1. He didn’t do it for a religious reason, only for a Dunya reason
  2. Was trying to get a favor for his family to be protected
  and so on.

• There is no justification for what Hatib did رضوان الله عليه it was fundamentally wrong, and Allah forgave him for his participation in Badr.
  
  • We need to establish the reality of the reasoning {of the statement/action of Kufr} why they did it, what they knew, what they didn’t and not to rush to judgement.

Question 6

Fourth Principial: Not Every Individual Who Does An Act Of Kufr Is Necessarily A Kaffir

Answer 6

There are:

• Conditions
• Impediments

lets say there’s a situation where one understands the important and severity of Kufr and Takfeer, knows the action happened, knows the action is Kufr.

This leads to another stage which is:

> Not everyone who does an act of Kufr is necessarily a Kafir

rather there are conditions that have to be fulfilled, and impediments that can stop that ruling from being applied.