Post by maruf on Oct 6, 2004 13:25:46 GMT -5
Bay'ah
The Bay'ah is an obligation upon all Muslims, and it is a right for every Muslim, man or woman. The
evidence for it being an obligation is in many ahadith of the Prophet (saw), in which he said:
"Whosoever dies without having a bay'ah upon his neck he dies a death of jahilliyah."
As for being a right for Muslims, the bay'ah itself indicates that, because the bay'ah is offered by the Muslims to the Khaleefah, and not by the Khaleefah to the Muslims. The bay'ah of the Muslims to the Prophet
(saw) was confirmed in the ahadith. Al-Bukhari reported that 'Ubada ibn as-Samit said: "We made
a bay'ah to the Prophet (saw) to hear and to obey in whatever pleases and displeases us, and we
should not dispute the authority of those who have been entrusted with it, and stand for the truth
wherever we are fearing not the blame of any blamer for the sake of Allah." Al-Bukhari reported on
the authority of Ayub on the authority of Hafsa on the authority of Umm 'Atiya, who said: "We
gave a bay'ah to the Prophet(saw) and then he read to us that we should not associate anything to
Allah and to refrain from weeping, upon which a woman amongst us withdrew her hand and said:
A woman pleased me and I want to reward (repay) her. He said nothing, so she went and then
returned." Abu Hurairah reported that the Prophet (saw) said: "Three persons to whom Allah will
not talk on the Resurrection Day, nor purify them, and they will have severe punishment are:
A person who has an excess of water on the road and prevents the wayfarer of it; and a person who
gives bay'ah to an Imam for his worldly affairs only, so if the Imam gave him that which he wants
he fulfilled (the bay'ah) to him, otherwise he would not; and a person trading a commodity to another in the late afternoon and he swore by Allah that he was offered so and so for it, although he was not, and the person believed him and bought it." 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar said: "When we gave a bay'ah to the Prophet (saw) to hear and obey, he used to say to us: In what you could." Jareer ibn 'Abdullah said: "I gave a bay'ah to the Prophet (saw) to hear and obey and he instructed me: In what you could and to advise every Muslim." Junada ibn Abu Umayyah said: "We entered the house of
'Ubada ibn as-Samit whilst he was ill and we said: May Allah make you a good person, talk to us of
a hadith you heard from the Prophet (saw) and with which Allah benefits you. He said: The Prophet
(saw) invited us and we gave him our bay'ah; and of which he pledged us with is to hear and obey
in what pleases and displeases us, in our ease and hardship and in our selfishness, and not to dispute
the authority of those who are entrusted with, saying unless you see clear (open) disbelief upon
which you have a proof from Allah."
So the bay'ah for the Khaleefah is in the hands of the Muslims, and it is their right; it is they who
give bay'ah, and it is their bay'ah which makes the Khilafah established for a Khaleefah.
The bay'ah can be by shaking hand or by writing, with no difference between man and woman. A woman has
the right to shake hands with the Khaleefah when she gives the bay'ah as men do.
In regard with what 'Urwa reported on the authority of 'A'isha, she said: "The Prophet (saw) used to take the
bay'ah from women by saying this verse. 'Not to associate anything with Allah'." She said: "The
hand of the Prophet (saw) never touched the hand of a woman unless he possessed her." In this
narration 'A'isha talked about her knowledge of the matter. So according to her knowledge the hand
of the Prophet (saw) did not touch the hand of any other woman. But there are other ahadith which
indicate the hand shaking. The hadith reported by Umm 'Atiya in which she says "a woman among
us withdrew her hand" indicates that she was extending her hand forward for the bay'ah, but when
the Prophet (saw) ordered them to refrain from weeping, the woman pulled her hand back from the
bay'ah. The understanding of "a woman among us withdrew her hand" is that other women did not
pull their hands back, which indicates that they gave their bay'ah by hand. This is a sound hadith
reported by al-Bukhari and it is a text about handshaking both in word and in meaning
(conception). So the bay'ah can be given by handshaking and by writing. 'Abdullah ibn Dinar said:
"I witnessed ibn 'Umar where the people gathered around 'Abdul Melik ibn Marwan. Ibn 'Umar
wrote: I agree to listen and obey to the slave of Allah 'Abdul Melik the servant of Allah and the
Amir al-Mo'mineen according to the word of Allah and the Sunnah of His Prophet to the extent that
I can." Moreover, the bay'ah is proper to be by any possible mean.
However, the bay'ah has to be given by the mature person, so it is improper to be given by the
young. Abu Akeel Zahra ibn Ma'bed reported on the authority of his grandfather 'Abdullah ibn
Hisham who witnessed the Prophet (saw), that his mother Zaynab, the daughter of Hameed, took
him to the Prophet (saw) and said: "O Prophet of Allah, take a pledge from him" The Prophet (saw)
said: "He is young", and wiped his head and made a du'a for him.
As for the words of the bay'ah they are not restricted to specific terms. But firstly they must include
the action undertaken by the Khaleefah according to the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His
Prophet. Secondly they must also include a declaration of obedience in hardship and ease and
obedience in that which pleases and displeases on the part of the person who gives the bay'ah to the
Khaleefah. Or if the Khilafah is contracted to the Khaleefah by the bay'ah of other Muslims, then
the bay'ah has become a trust on the neck of the one who gives the bay'ah and he is not allowed to
retract it since it is a right in regard with the Khilafah contract till he gave it, and once he gave it he
must abide by it. If he wanted to retreat from it he would not be allowed to do so. Al-Bukhari
narrated about Jaber ibn 'Abdullah that a bedouin gave the Prophet (saw) his pledge on Islam, and
an illness struck him so he said to the Prophet (saw): "Let me withdraw my bay'ah" but the Prophet
refused, and the man went out. The Prophet (saw) then said: "The town (Medina) is like the bellow
which repels its impurities and purify its goodness." Nafi'a reported saying: " 'Umar said to me that
he heard the Prophet (saw) saying:He who withdraws his hand from the obedience of Allah, he will
meet Allah on the resurrection day without having a proof for himself." To break the bay'ah of the
Khaleefah is withdrawing of one's hand from the obedience of Allah. This is the case if his bay'ah
to the Khaleefah is bay'ah of contract or it is a bay'ah of obedience to a Khaleefah whom the
Muslims accepted and gave their bay'ah to. But if he gave his bay'ah in the beginning to a
Khaleefah and it was not completed because the Muslims as a whole did not accept him as
Khaleefah, then he has the right to withdraw from that bay'ah.
So the prohibition mentioned in the hadith is focused on the withdrawal of a bay'ah to a Khaleefah, not to a man who did not have the Khilafah convened to him.
The Bay'ah is an obligation upon all Muslims, and it is a right for every Muslim, man or woman. The
evidence for it being an obligation is in many ahadith of the Prophet (saw), in which he said:
"Whosoever dies without having a bay'ah upon his neck he dies a death of jahilliyah."
As for being a right for Muslims, the bay'ah itself indicates that, because the bay'ah is offered by the Muslims to the Khaleefah, and not by the Khaleefah to the Muslims. The bay'ah of the Muslims to the Prophet
(saw) was confirmed in the ahadith. Al-Bukhari reported that 'Ubada ibn as-Samit said: "We made
a bay'ah to the Prophet (saw) to hear and to obey in whatever pleases and displeases us, and we
should not dispute the authority of those who have been entrusted with it, and stand for the truth
wherever we are fearing not the blame of any blamer for the sake of Allah." Al-Bukhari reported on
the authority of Ayub on the authority of Hafsa on the authority of Umm 'Atiya, who said: "We
gave a bay'ah to the Prophet(saw) and then he read to us that we should not associate anything to
Allah and to refrain from weeping, upon which a woman amongst us withdrew her hand and said:
A woman pleased me and I want to reward (repay) her. He said nothing, so she went and then
returned." Abu Hurairah reported that the Prophet (saw) said: "Three persons to whom Allah will
not talk on the Resurrection Day, nor purify them, and they will have severe punishment are:
A person who has an excess of water on the road and prevents the wayfarer of it; and a person who
gives bay'ah to an Imam for his worldly affairs only, so if the Imam gave him that which he wants
he fulfilled (the bay'ah) to him, otherwise he would not; and a person trading a commodity to another in the late afternoon and he swore by Allah that he was offered so and so for it, although he was not, and the person believed him and bought it." 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar said: "When we gave a bay'ah to the Prophet (saw) to hear and obey, he used to say to us: In what you could." Jareer ibn 'Abdullah said: "I gave a bay'ah to the Prophet (saw) to hear and obey and he instructed me: In what you could and to advise every Muslim." Junada ibn Abu Umayyah said: "We entered the house of
'Ubada ibn as-Samit whilst he was ill and we said: May Allah make you a good person, talk to us of
a hadith you heard from the Prophet (saw) and with which Allah benefits you. He said: The Prophet
(saw) invited us and we gave him our bay'ah; and of which he pledged us with is to hear and obey
in what pleases and displeases us, in our ease and hardship and in our selfishness, and not to dispute
the authority of those who are entrusted with, saying unless you see clear (open) disbelief upon
which you have a proof from Allah."
So the bay'ah for the Khaleefah is in the hands of the Muslims, and it is their right; it is they who
give bay'ah, and it is their bay'ah which makes the Khilafah established for a Khaleefah.
The bay'ah can be by shaking hand or by writing, with no difference between man and woman. A woman has
the right to shake hands with the Khaleefah when she gives the bay'ah as men do.
In regard with what 'Urwa reported on the authority of 'A'isha, she said: "The Prophet (saw) used to take the
bay'ah from women by saying this verse. 'Not to associate anything with Allah'." She said: "The
hand of the Prophet (saw) never touched the hand of a woman unless he possessed her." In this
narration 'A'isha talked about her knowledge of the matter. So according to her knowledge the hand
of the Prophet (saw) did not touch the hand of any other woman. But there are other ahadith which
indicate the hand shaking. The hadith reported by Umm 'Atiya in which she says "a woman among
us withdrew her hand" indicates that she was extending her hand forward for the bay'ah, but when
the Prophet (saw) ordered them to refrain from weeping, the woman pulled her hand back from the
bay'ah. The understanding of "a woman among us withdrew her hand" is that other women did not
pull their hands back, which indicates that they gave their bay'ah by hand. This is a sound hadith
reported by al-Bukhari and it is a text about handshaking both in word and in meaning
(conception). So the bay'ah can be given by handshaking and by writing. 'Abdullah ibn Dinar said:
"I witnessed ibn 'Umar where the people gathered around 'Abdul Melik ibn Marwan. Ibn 'Umar
wrote: I agree to listen and obey to the slave of Allah 'Abdul Melik the servant of Allah and the
Amir al-Mo'mineen according to the word of Allah and the Sunnah of His Prophet to the extent that
I can." Moreover, the bay'ah is proper to be by any possible mean.
However, the bay'ah has to be given by the mature person, so it is improper to be given by the
young. Abu Akeel Zahra ibn Ma'bed reported on the authority of his grandfather 'Abdullah ibn
Hisham who witnessed the Prophet (saw), that his mother Zaynab, the daughter of Hameed, took
him to the Prophet (saw) and said: "O Prophet of Allah, take a pledge from him" The Prophet (saw)
said: "He is young", and wiped his head and made a du'a for him.
As for the words of the bay'ah they are not restricted to specific terms. But firstly they must include
the action undertaken by the Khaleefah according to the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His
Prophet. Secondly they must also include a declaration of obedience in hardship and ease and
obedience in that which pleases and displeases on the part of the person who gives the bay'ah to the
Khaleefah. Or if the Khilafah is contracted to the Khaleefah by the bay'ah of other Muslims, then
the bay'ah has become a trust on the neck of the one who gives the bay'ah and he is not allowed to
retract it since it is a right in regard with the Khilafah contract till he gave it, and once he gave it he
must abide by it. If he wanted to retreat from it he would not be allowed to do so. Al-Bukhari
narrated about Jaber ibn 'Abdullah that a bedouin gave the Prophet (saw) his pledge on Islam, and
an illness struck him so he said to the Prophet (saw): "Let me withdraw my bay'ah" but the Prophet
refused, and the man went out. The Prophet (saw) then said: "The town (Medina) is like the bellow
which repels its impurities and purify its goodness." Nafi'a reported saying: " 'Umar said to me that
he heard the Prophet (saw) saying:He who withdraws his hand from the obedience of Allah, he will
meet Allah on the resurrection day without having a proof for himself." To break the bay'ah of the
Khaleefah is withdrawing of one's hand from the obedience of Allah. This is the case if his bay'ah
to the Khaleefah is bay'ah of contract or it is a bay'ah of obedience to a Khaleefah whom the
Muslims accepted and gave their bay'ah to. But if he gave his bay'ah in the beginning to a
Khaleefah and it was not completed because the Muslims as a whole did not accept him as
Khaleefah, then he has the right to withdraw from that bay'ah.
So the prohibition mentioned in the hadith is focused on the withdrawal of a bay'ah to a Khaleefah, not to a man who did not have the Khilafah convened to him.
