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Which Madhab Should I Follow – Sunni , Ahle hadees or Tableegh?

Answered as per Hanafi Fiqh by Askimam.org

My Question Is Which Madhab Should I Follow – Sunni , Ahle hadees or Tableegh

Right Now Iam Following Sunni Jamat , But My Some Friends Gave Me Proof And I Too Did Some Research on youtube and Shahih Bukhari

They All say That Our Prophet Muhammed SAWS Did Rafaidan And Ahle hadees Also Do Rafadain , So Iam Confused , I Went To Sunni Jamat Mosque Imam , He Said That is your Friend A Alim , I Said No , He Said Thats All Wrong , Iam Alim I have Studied More I Know So I Should Follow Sunni

But in Sahih Bukhari I Didnt Find Any Hadees Which Sunni jamat Do In Praying . So What Should i do , Please Help Me

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh.

Brother in Islam,

We would like to clarify a few points:

  • A Sunnī typically refers to one who ascribes to the Ahlus Sunnah wal Jamā‘ah, many a times in contrast to the Shī‘ah. It has been reported in Tirmidhī[1] that Nabī (ŝalla Allahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said: “My ummah will divide into seventy three groups, every one of them will be in the fire except one.” The Ŝaĥābah asked, “Which group will that be?” He (ŝalla Allahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) replied, “The group which will tread my path and that of my companions.” It is from this ĥadīth that the term Ahlus Sunnah wal Jamā‘ah is derived. Meaning, “Those who follow the way of Nabī (ŝalla Allahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) and his Companions.” In certain parts of the world the term “Sunni” may refer to other sects as well. We are unaware of your exact whereabouts. Perhaps if you provide more details we may direct you to learned people in your area.
  • A “madh-hab”, more often than not, refers to one of the four commonly followed schools of fiqh; Ĥanafī (ascribed to Imam Abū Ĥanīfah), Mālikī (ascribed to Imam Mālik bin Anas), Shāfi‘ī (ascribed to Imam Muĥammad bin Idrees Al Shāfi‘ī), and Ĥanbalī (ascribed to Imam Aĥmad bin Ĥanbal).
  • Tablīgh means to propagate and spread the message of Islam. Tablīgh is not restricted to a certain group or people, nor is it a madh-hab. If you are referring to the Tablīghī Jamā‘at, as is famously know today, we advise you to join their efforts and assist them. This will be a great means of bringing you closer to Allah Ta‘ālā. 
  • Ahlul Ĥadīth (Ahl e Hadith) in the early centuries of Islam referred to[2]:
    • Ø Those ‘ulamā’ who were predominantly involved in narrating aĥādīth and in the various branches of ĥadīth which assist in determining and classifying ahādīth as per their reliability.[3] Or,
    • Ø The followers of the Mālikī or Shāfi‘ī schools of fiqh (Each of the four famous schools of fiqh mentioned above, and every other school of fiqh, relied upon aĥādīth and were engrossed in its study. However, some become famous with the term Ahlul Ĥadīth. This does not discredit the other schools’ involvement in ĥadīth). Or,
    • Ø Ahlus Sunnah wal Jamā‘ah (Meaning, it was synonymous to Ahlus Sunnah wal Jamā‘ah)

However, roughly in the last two centuries the term Ahlul Ĥadīth, especially in the Indian sub-continent, has been used for non-mujtahids (A mujtahid is[4] an erudite scholar who has deep insight in the sacred subjects and their various branches; fiqh, uŝoolul fiqh, hadīth, usoolul ĥadīth, tafsīr, etc., capable of extracting laws from Qurān and Sunnah, and has a sound chain of teachers leading to Nabī ŝalla Allahu ‘alaihi wa sallam[5]) who despite having insufficient knowledge of the Qurān and Sunnah do not follow one of the four famous schools of fiqh.[6]

  • YouTube is not a recognized source of deenī knowledge; anyone may upload videos as he/she wills. One must be very careful in acquiring Islamic knowledge. Imām Muslim quotes the famous scholar ‘Allāmah Ibn Sīreen in the introduction of his Al Ŝaĥīh, “Verily this knowledge is dīn, be cautious in choosing who you take your dīn from.” To make it clearer and simpler, if a patient wants medicine, he will consult a qualified doctor. He will not simply go to YouTube or Google and follow the guidance there. He will have to see a doctor who will examine him and advise him according to his specific condition.
  • Ŝaĥīĥul Bukhārī is one of the many collections of aĥādīth. It is insufficient and unscholarly to establish raf‘ul yadain or to negate it by merely looking in one book. From the time of the Ŝaĥābah there has been a difference in the ummah regarding raf‘ul yadain. As such, this difference has carried on until today. However, the issue of raf‘ul yadain is one of istiĥbāb. Meaning, some scholars say that it is better to practice raf‘ul yadain and others differ. The issue is not of ĥalāl and ĥarām.

We advise you to follow the predominantly practiced madh-hab (in light of what was explained earlier) in your area. You may forward details of your whereabouts to admin@daruliftaa.net so that we may guide you to reliable scholars.

And Allah Ta’āla Knows Best

Hisham Dawood

Student, Darul Iftaa
Chicago, USA

Checked and Approved by,
Mufti Ebrahim Desai.

www.daruliftaa.net


[1]

جامع الترمذي ج-٢ ص-٩٣، قديمي

[2]

 تحقيق اهل حديث من رسائل أعظمي لمولانا حبيب الرحمن الأعظمي ص-٢٦٦، زمزم

[3]

 درس ترمذي للمفتي تقي عثماني ج-١ ص-٨٧، مكتبة دار العلوم كراتشي

[4] This is a very general definition; the books of usoolul fiqh may be referred to for details.

[5]

 أنظر المعلم الثامن المسمى ضرورة تلقي العلم من الشيوخ في الكتاب معالم إرشادية للشيخ محمد عوامة

[6]

 تحقيق اهل حديث من رسائل أعظمي لمولانا حبيب الرحمن الأعظمي ص-٢٦٦، زمزم

This answer was collected from Askimam.org, which is operated under the supervision of Mufti Ebrahim Desai from South Africa.

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