Dumb Questions???

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Dumb Questions???
Zara
01/11/01 at 11:52:46
[B]Salaams all[/B]

I have begun this thread for any questions.
No matter how dumb they may seem.  After all one should not be shy in religion.  For it is better to be corrected than to continue making the same mistakes.  You know what is said about mistakes..
[B] Making a mistake is good if you learn from it. It is bad if the mistake becomes a habit [/B]

Here is the first scenario
(I shall add more later - insha'allah) :

Saying salaams on meeting people

A hadith narrates that Omar used to go to the market just so he could say his salaams to people and get the reward.

The brother who was speaking about this advocates that one should say salaams more to their university friends and any muslim that one meets.

The sister participating in the discussion says what is the ruling for sisters giving their salaams to any muslims namely the brothers.

The response was I was advocating brothers exchanging salaams because they are out of the house and women are at home alot.

Is it wrong to declare that one does not believe in the existence of pious men/women like pir/fakir??

Would anyone like to attempt to answer the sisters query before I give my take on the scenario??

[B]Wasalaam[/B]

Zara
Re: Dumb Questions???
h_m_r00
01/12/01 at 14:21:35
Salaam
I think sisters should say salaam to sisters only...It's in a hadeeth plus the fact that a woman's voice is aoura...Brothers should say to sisters, not the other way around...
                                         Hiyan
Re: Dumb Questions???
jannah
01/12/01 at 16:57:02
Which hadith?  If you mean the etiquette, yes it's true a brother should be the first to give salams to a woman. BTW there is a difference of opinion on the whole voice/aura thing...
Re: Dumb Questions???
chachi
01/12/01 at 21:55:26

Salaam

      hmm forgive me if i'm wrong but something like more than half of the major authorities on hadith were women in the early islamic period
what do you mean womens voice shouldn't be heard?
Re: Dumb Questions???
Asim
01/14/01 at 01:55:38
Assalaamu alaikum,

On a different note, can someone recommend a book that has the biography of early muslim women (sahabiyaat, early women scholar or other women of note, etc)?
Re: Dumb Questions???
chachi
01/17/01 at 20:28:36

Theres one mentioned in Imam Hamza yusuf' s talk on the revival of religious knowledge
Unfortunately the cassette was given to somebody and subsequently never returned
Re: Dumb Questions???
Zara
03/08/01 at 12:07:06
Salaams

I think that we need some hadith on whether muslim sisters/brothers are allowed to give their salaams to each other.

It is a recommended sunnah (way, tradition) to greet the muslim; it is fard (obligatory) to reply.  

Exceptions are that women are not expected to have to speak to non-mahram men.

Although having said this in society today where often at work we have to work in a mixed environment.  it may be acceptable to offer your Muslim colleagues a Salaam greeting rather than the mushrik greeting of [B] "Hi how are you?" [/B]

The generally expected greeting is "As sala'amu alaikum" (peace be upon you) and the generally expected reply is "walaikum as
sala'am" (and unto you also, peace).  

Adding "wa rahmatullahi" (and mercy) and/or "wa barakatuhu" (and blessings) is a commendable act.  If someone adds mercy
and/or blessings in their salaams to you, you should reply with the same or add more goodness to it (i.e. if someone says "As
sala'amu alaikum wa rahmatullahi", you should reply with "As sala'amu alaikum wa rahmatullahi" or also add "wa barakatuh

However saying your Salaams has many virtues as shown in the ahadith below:
**********************************************

Hadith - Sahih Bukhari 8.251, Narrated Abu Hurayrah


Allah's Apostle  said, "The riding one should greet the walking one, and the walking one should
greet the sitting one, and the small number of persons should greet the large number of persons."

Hadith - Malik's Muwatta Book 53, Number 53.1.1

Yahya related to me from Malik from Zayd ibn Aslam that the Messenger of Allah,  said, "The
one riding greets the one walking, and when one of a group of people gives a greeting, it is enough for
all of them."


The person coming or going, should first offer the salutation (salaams):

Hadith - Abu Dawood 5189, Narrated Abu Hurayrah

The Prophet  said: When one of you comes to an assembly, he should give a salutation and if he
feels inclined to get up, he should give a salutation, for the former is not more of a duty than the latter.

The pious muslims is anxious to give salaams first

Hadith - Abu Dawood 5178, Narrated Abu Umamah

The Prophet  said: Those who are nearest to Allah are they who are first to give a salutation.

Wasalaam

Zara
Re: Dumb Questions???
BrKhalid
03/08/01 at 16:59:13
Asalaamu Alaikum ;-)

Our Imam was talking about Asalaamu Alaikum the other day. For those Arabic speakers, what I’m going to post is probably old hat but this was news to me so I thought I would share.


He was saying that as Muslims we say Asalaamu Alaikum….Peace be unto you

Now in Arabic “kum” means “you” in the plural sense. Hence when we greet each other we are in fact greeting more than one person. Now I thought this was something to do with respect, like you have in other languages such as French where you use vous instead of tu if you want to give respect to someone.

But apparently not for (as those of you familiar with Arabic grammar will know) in Arabic, there is a different word for “you” in the singular form, the double form (ie addressing two people) and the plural form (ie addressing more than two people)

When we say “kum” we are addressing more than 2 people. So how can this be when we sometimes meet only one brother or sister? Answer is that when you say salaam, you don’t know whether that person is worthy of salaam so our greeting not only sends peace on the person (whether he/she deserves it or not) but also on the two recording angels accompanying him (who do deserve it). Hence three things are being addressed and hence why the plural is used and not the double or singular which in Arabic is Asalammu Alaika

Wisdom of our greeting is such then, that we use the *same* greeting when we are addressing many people or only one  ;-)

One final point, when you know for sure that the person you send salaam to is worthy of it (ie Our Beloved Prophet [saw] ), then there is no need to send salaam in the plural form but just the singular. This is why we say Asalaamu Alaika in Tashahud when we send salaam to our Prophet [saw]


Sorry for going on but the post reminded me of this ;-)
Re: Dumb Questions???
Kathy
03/08/01 at 18:17:57
slm
Thanks I did not know that.
Re: Dumb Questions???
bhaloo
03/08/01 at 18:21:59
slm

Jazak Allah khairen brother Khalid for the beneficial information.
Re: Dumb Questions???
meraj
03/08/01 at 18:29:49
slm,

good hadith :)

Muslim (54), Ahmad (2/391), and al-Tirmidhi (2513) narrated from Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said:
'You will not enter Paradise until you believe, and you will not believe until you love one another. Shall I not tell you about something which, if you do it, you will love one another? Spread salaam amongst yourselves.'

ma'salaam :)
Re: Dumb Questions???
PacificBreeze
03/08/01 at 19:33:43
salaams,
yeah br khaled but the weird thing is some arabs seem not to know that (kum re the angels) and insist on doing the singular form...

zara u already answered the q havne't u?

it's not expected for women to respond to a male since sometimes doing so is just an invitation for him to start a conversation etc (and dude, have i experienced that!!!) and that since it's a nonmahram it's not important to etc..so it's divided among the scholars..some say that it's emphasized that it's a fard so you should reply back etc..and others say you don't need to respond to a ghair mahram..(nonmahram)

re the aurah issue..well accord to the four madhabs, a woman's voice is not an awrah not considered as an awrah..as the women during the companions day used to speak up and ask qs in front of them etc...however, speaking in a soft and alluring voice/manner etc and anything that leads to fitnah or is done in a fitnah manner is haraam etc..and then one shouldn't listen to a female's voice etc...and some other scholars believe it to be considered as part of a woman's awrah..

so in conclusion, it's pretty much the same deal...don't interact with those you dont need to unless if it's important to..and not done in a fitnaish manner..anything that creates a fitnah situation (even if it by itself can be harmless) is to be avoided then etc..as anything that leads to haraam is haraam etc..and ofcourse, better to be safe than to be sorry etc..

hmmm..i think that was it...i know we went over it some months back..
wa salaams..
Re: Dumb Questions???
Mona
03/08/01 at 20:01:25
Assalamu alaikum,

Thanks for sharing that br Khalid.  I did not know, and I speak Arabic fluently.  Never even wondered about it, until you brought it up now.

[quote]yeah br khaled but the weird thing is some arabs seem not to know that (kum re the angels) and insist on doing the singular form... [/quote]
Well, that is odd. I have lived among "arabs" for a good portion of my life and am one and never heard salams being said in the singular form.  

wassalam
Re: Dumb Questions???
jannah
03/08/01 at 22:02:29
wlm,

there's a book called women of madina. it's not really full biographical accounts, but more like historical accounts, but it is fascinating nonetheless... books like companions of the prophet also include biographies of women


[quote]Assalaamu alaikum,

On a different note, can someone recommend a book that has the biography of early muslim women (sahabiyaat, early women scholar or other women of note, etc)?
[/quote]
Re: Dumb Questions???
Zahra
03/08/01 at 22:13:49
slm

WOW brother Khaled, I am Arab and I never knew that!  That was really nice-Jazak Allah Khair!

Asim-as for a book, There's a book called "Encyclopedia of Muhammed's  (sallahoo alayhe wa salam's) Women Companions and the Traditions They Related"  You can get it at Amazon.com (just take out the salam part when doing the search).  It has biographies of over 600 women companions.  Some are pages long and others are just 1 or 2 lines but it's a pretty good book.  
Re: Dumb Questions???
PacificBreeze
03/09/01 at 00:58:48
[quote]
Well, that is odd. I have lived among "arabs" for a good portion of my life and am one and never heard salams being said in the singular form.  

wassalam
[/quote]

:) c'mon over, and listen to some! i'm sure there has to be atleast one arab who does the same thing where you're at! if not, that's cool...but i DO know some who do..and the thing is...nonarabs look up to arabs but don't realize that alot of arabs are ignorant in their deen and ignorant with their own lang..atleast in fusha.. :P no offense intended. :)

ofcourse this relates to all diff grps but since we're speaking about arabs here...well...there you go..i'm not an arab basher btw..i'm close to them..
Re: Dumb Questions???
Arsalan
03/09/01 at 01:40:37
[quote]
alot of arabs are ignorant in their deen and ignorant with their own lang..atleast in fusha.. :P [/quote]Yeeah!  *Some* of them don't even know what 'ajami' means!!!

:P

Wassalamu alaikum.
Re: Dumb Questions???
PacificBreeze
03/11/01 at 05:17:35
:P
hey! i forgottttt!!! i've used 'ajnabi'..and have had that stressed more.. :P n so i thought it used that word instead, ne ways..i'm rusty now..

i don't think i'll forget it this time though :)
Re: Dumb Questions???
Zara
03/11/01 at 12:09:17
As Salaamu alaikum wahrahmahthullah : - )

I was studying basic arabic a few weeks ago and even i was not taught the singular and plural of saying salaam.  Even though it is such should be basic knowledge for us muslims.

Br.PacificBreeze(u r a brother right???) I agree with you
with regards to voice not being aoura and women not
being required to say salaams to brothers.  However
she should reply if she is given salaams and not stand
around for a chat which could create fitnah.  I am not
giving a fatwa ashagferullah just my 2 cents.

I shall post another scenario soon - insha'allah

Jazahkhum allah khair

Wasalamu alaikum wahrahmahthullah

Zara
Re: Dumb Questions???
meraj
03/11/01 at 20:07:59
slm,

pacbreeze is a sister :-)

ma'salaam :)
Re: Dumb Questions???
Zara
03/12/01 at 10:53:39
Salaams :(

[B]PacificBreeze [/B]

I knew you were a sister ;-D I was j/k...
I wasn't sure...

Wasalaam
Zara


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