Islam

IslamDK ønsker alle læsere god Eid i anledningen af Eid Al-Ghadir (festlighederne i anledningen af ghadir-begivenheden) – her fandt profeten Muhammads sidste tale sted ved lokationen Ghadir Khumm, d. 18 Dhu al-Hijjah år 10 AH.

Begivenheden ved Ghadir Khumm er berettet fra talrige berettere, og der er enstemmig enighed om dens autoritet både blandt shia og sunni muslimer. Det er kun dog førstnævnte afgrening der anser begivenheden ved Ghadir Khumm som en festlighed, der på årlig basis fejres på lige fod med de to andre Eid:

1. Eid Al-Fitr (Afslutningen på fasteperioden). Denne festlighed finder sted efter fastemåneden Ramadan – traditionsmæssigt løber denne festlighed over tre dage. Dog er Eid dagen kun den første. Denne Eid kendes også som al-idul-saghir ‘Den Lille Fest’ i modsætning til
2. Eid Al-Adha ‘Den Store Fest’ (også kendt som Offerfesten). Denne festlighed bliver afholdt d. 10 i den sidste måned af den islamiske kalender, Dhu al-Hijjah. Denne festlighed symboliserer offer ritualet opført af profeten Abraham (som også kendt fra bibelsk historie) samt afslutning på pilgrimsrejsen til Ka’baen i Mekka, Saudi Arabien.

Således er det den sidste Eid i løbet af det islamiske kalenderår – eftersom 1) Eid Al-Fitr falder på den første dag af den 10. måned, måneden efter fastemåneden Ramadan, 2) Eid Al-Adha falder på den sidste måned, i forlængelse af ritualer, der afholdes ved pilgrimsrejsen til Ka’baen og otte dage efter fejres 3) Eid Al-Ghadir, hvor profeten Muhammad var på sin hjemrejse fra sin sidste pilgrimsrejse; her stoppede han op ved en oase og tiltalte sine følgere med sin sidste offentlige tale.

Begivenheden ved Ghadir Khumm har så stor en betydning, at flere koranvers og koran eksegeser har forbundet forbindelsen mellem disse, primært er der tale om følgende tre vers fra koranen:

Sura 5 (Bordet) vers 67

“Udsending! Beret om det, der er blevet sendt ned til dig fra din Herre! Hvis du ikke gør det, får du ikke Hans budskab ud. Gud vil beskytte dig mod menneskene. Gud retleder ikke de vantro folk.”

Sura 5 (Bordet) vers 3

“I dag har Jeg fuldkommengjort jeres religion for jer og fuldbyrdet Min nåde over jer. Jeg finder velbehag i overgivelsen til Gud som religion for jer.”

Sura 70 (Himmelstigerne) vers 1

“Nogen spørger om en uafvendelig straf;”

Mere om selve talen, koraneksegese af versene, begivenheden og de forskellige retsskolers position omhandlende begivenheden ved Ghadir Khumm kan bl.a. læses i bogen, ‘Verses of Ghadir’, oversat af Badr Shahin.

Hermed ønsker islamDK alle Eid Mubarak for sidste gang dette år!

Der er beretninger i både sunnitiske og shiitiske kilder (hadith) omkring tolv kaliffer eller efterfølgere af profeten Muhammad. Alle fem sunni traditionssamlinger – al-Bukhari, al-Muslim, al-Tirmidhi, Abu Dawud og Ahmad ibn Hanbal har rapporteret igennem forskellige kæder af beretter fra Jabir b. Samurah at de hørte profeten Muhammad sige:

Islam vil forsætte i sin værdighed, så længe der er tolv efterfølgere (eller ‘der er tolv prinse’, i ordene af al-Bukhari). Derefter hørte han [beretteren] noget som han ikke kunne forstå, hvorefter han spurgte sin fader; som svarede at profeten [Muhammad] sagde, ‘De er alle fra [stammen] Quraysh’.

I en anden tradition (hadith) er proften Muhammad citeret for at sige:

“Denne sag vil aldrig udløbe før tolv kaliffer har tråd frem – alle er fra Quraysh.”

Et tredje sted læser vi:

“Denne nation (ummah) har tolv beskyttere; dem som forlader dem har ikke skadet dem og de er alle fra Quraysh.”

Der findes en lang række ligende traditioner som er berettet med en anden ordlyd, og igennem historiens gang ser det ud som om ingen har stillet spørgsmål ved jf. autoritet. Hvad der har skabt forvirring blandt de retslærde er identiteten og navene af disse tolv efterfølgere.

I sin eksegese af Sunan af al-Tirmidhi indrømmer Ibn al-Arabi, at meningen med denne hadith ikke kunne forstås. Han skriver:

“Vi har talt herskerne [eller: lederne] efter profeten Muhammad; de er Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, Ali, Hasan, Mu’awiyah, Yazid, Mu’awiyah b. Yazid, Marwan, Abd al-Malik, ….” hvor han fortsætter optælling med de efterfølgende 33 herskere. Han siger derefter, “Hvis vi skulle tage de første tolv kronologisk, så ville den tolvte være Sulayman ibn Abd al-Malik, men hvis vi har den sande mening af en kalif i sindet, efterlader det os kun med fem [kaliffer]; disse er de fire Retledte Kaliffer (al-khulafa al-rashidun) plus Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz; Jeg kan [således] ikke finde nogen mening med denne hadith.”

På den anden hånd er al-Suyuti uenig med denne konklusion. Ifølge hans holdning er hensigten med denne hadith klar, nemlig at der eksisterer tolv retfærdige kaliffer indenfor Islam, som tidsmæssigt er spredt fra bortgangen af profeten Muhammad til dommedag. Her hentyder han, at de tolv retfærdige kaliffer ikke nødvendigvis vil komme i en kronologisk rækkefølge, og at den tolvte kalif vil være den ventede Mahdi fra ‘Husets Folk’.

Det kan være interessant at belyse de forskellige holdninger af denne beretning yderligere – dette vil dog kræve en separat artikel, eftersom enhver fortolker af hadith har sit eget personlige syn.

Shiaislam har på den anden hånd ingen tvetydighed i forståelsen af denne hadith. Her forbindes denne gruppe af traditioner med et andet sæt af beretninger, hvor profeten Muhammad udtrykker vigtigheden af sine efterfølgeres og families status – disse refereret til som ‘Husets Folk’ (ahlul bayt).

Det er berettet under flere forskellige omstændigheder, at profeten Muhammad har sagt at Guds Bog [Koranen] og sine ‘Husets Folk’ er to værdigfulde ting som han efterlader sig, disse vil aldrig adskilles og sin nation (ummah) ville aldrig gå afveje så længe de holder fast ved dem.

I kommentarer til denne hadith, læser vi bl.a. at Ibn Hajar konstanter at traditionen er berettet i talrige kæde af beretter fra mere end 20 fæller, nogle som hørte det i Arafah, andre i Medina ved profeten Muhammads dødsleje, andre ved Ghadir Khum og stadig nogle andre i returrejsen af profeten Muhammad fra al-Ta’if. Efterfølgende siger han:

Der er ingen modsætninger mellem disse beretninger – i henhold til vigtigheden af statusen af Bogen [Koranen] og Husets Folk har profeten Muhammad understreget denne erklæring i alle ovenstående lokationer.

Selvom disse og mange andre traditioner af ligende karakter er berettet i både sunni og shia traditionssamlinger, er det kun shiamuslimer der tager disse erklæringer til dens fulde konklusion. Shiisme har bl.a. altid fordømt de grupperinger, der vender det døve øre til udledningen af disse beretninger.

Der er berettet, at profeten Muhammad sagde:

“Eksemplet af min ahlul bayt er ligesom det af Noas Ark; Dem der går ombord på det er reddet, og dem der bliver tilbage drukner.”

Den fjerde kalif Ali ibn Abi Talib har bl.a. sagt:

Hav din øjne på ahlul bayt af din profet og tag deres retningen og følg i deres fodspor; for de leder dig aldrig uden vejledning og tager dig ikke tilbage for ødelæggelse. Således, hvis de sætter sig, sætter du dig og hvis de rejser sig op så rejser du dig op; gå ikke i forkøbet af dem og fald ikke bagved dem for det vil være din fortabelse.

Ved at sammensætte disse informationerne om de tolv kaliffer og Husets Folk, er den logiske konklusion at de tolv kaliffer vil være fra profetens familie. Selvom mainstream sunniislam har udviklet sig i en helt anden retning, ses det fra spredte rapporter, at en ligende konklusion også er blevet draget i visse sunnitiske kilder. Eksempelvis fra den velkendte Imam Ibrahim ibn Muhammad ibn Hummawayh al-Juwayni (d. 730 AH), som havde succes med at reverterer den daværende mongolske konge Ghazan Shah til islam – han rapporterede fra vegne af Ibn Abbas at profeten sagde:

“Jeg er hoved [eller: øverste instans] af alle profeter og Ali ibn Ali Talib er hoved [eller: øverste instans] af efterfølgerne, og efterfølgerne efter mig er tolv – hvoraf den første er Ali ibn Abi Talib og den sidste er al-Mahdi.”

Han beretter yderligere fra profeten:

“Ali og jeg og Hasan og Hussain og ni andre fra Hussains slægt er alle renset og pletfrie.”

Shiaislam har ingen yderligere reservationer i at forbinde disse to sæt af beretninger sammen. Her konkluderes der ikke kun at tolv efterfølgere eller kaliffer fra profeten familie, Husets Folk, vil komme – men slægtlinjen, deres navne og personlige attributter klargøres. I henhold til disse beretninger er kalifferne efter profeten Muhammad, altså Imamerne, fra en smallere gruppe af stammen Quraysh; dette er gennem profetens datter Fatima og hendes mand Ali ibn Abi Talib. Efter Ali er det deres to sønner Hasan og Hussain, hvor det herfra er ni personer fra slægtlinjen af Hussain. Disse er: Ali søn af Hussain, Muhammad søn af Ali, Jafar søn af Muhammad, Musa søn af Jafar, Ali søn af Musa, Muhammad søn af Ali, Ali søn af Muhammad, Hasan søn af Ali, og den tolvte Muhammad, søn af Hasan; også kendte som Mahdi som stadig er i okulation. Sådanne kilder findes i en række shiitiske traditionssamlinger.

Udover talrige beretninger fra profeten Muhammad indenfor shiitiske traditionssamlinger, rapporterer bl.a. al-Khazzaz mange traditioner fra mere end 20 fæller i samme aspekt. I en af disse traditioner beretter han fra Masruq (døde 63) som sagde:

Vi var sammen med Abdullah ibn Mas’ud og sammenlignede vores kopi af koranen med hans, da pludselig en ung mand spurgte: ‘Har jeres profet informeret jer om hvor mange efterfølger der vil være efter ham?’ Ibn Mas’ud, som klart var blevet overrasket, både over spørgsmål og vovemodig af manden, svarede: ‘Du er ung og uerfaren; dette er et emne som ingen har spurgt mig om før. Ja, vores profet har informeret os, at der vil være tolv efterfølger efter ham, det samme nummer som cheferne af Israels børn.’

Det ikke særlig tit vi poster noget materiale på engelsk på denne webside, men efter at have læst den officielle eid al-adha meddelelse igennem – vil jeg for en undtagelses skyld gøre akkurat dette. For de læsere der måtte have svært ved engelsk, kan i oversætte hele talen med google oversætter. Selvom talen er skrevet af Sayyed Ali Khamenei, synes vi at den er målrettet meget bredt for alle muslimer og i det nedenstående kommende den i sin fulde længde:

The Leader of the Islamic Revolution has honored the advent of the Hajj in a message to millions of devout Muslims gathering in Mecca to perform the rituals.

The following is the full text of Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei’s message to pilgrims:

In the Name of God, the Beneficent, the Merciful

Once again the Land of Revelation has gathered legions of true-believers for its annual banquet. In the birthplace of Islam and the Holy Qur’an, eager hearts from throughout the world are now engaged in such rites which indeed show a sign of the eternal lesson of Islam and the Holy Qur’an to mankind: symbolic steps for implementing and applying such a lesson.

The aim of this great lesson is to ensure the eternal salvation and dignity of mankind by training righteous people and establishing a righteous society; people who worship the One and Only God in their hearts and in practice and cleanse themselves from polytheism, moral impurities and deviant desires, and a society built out of justice, freedom, faith, vitality and all the other signs of life and progress.

The main elements for such personal and social training are incorporated in the Hajj. Going into ihram and leaving individual distinctions behind, abstaining from many carnal joys and desires, circumambulating around the symbol of monotheism and praying in the Place of Ibrahim the Idol-breaker and the Self-Sacrificing, the hurrying between the two hills, finding tranquility in Arafat among the great numbers of monotheists from every color and ethnic background to passing the night in prayer and supplication in al-Mash`ar al-Haram with a fondness for God in one’s heart, devoting one’s heart and soul to God the Almighty in such a congested crowd, being present in Mina and stoning the satanic symbols, the meaningful concretization of sacrificing and feeding the poor and the wayfarer are all aimed at training, practicing and reminding us of it.

In this perfect ritual, sincerity, purity of heart and disentanglement from materialistic engagements, endeavor, resilience, intimacy and seclusion with God, unity, concordance, homogeneity, adorning the soul and heart, committing the heart to solidarity with the great body of the Muslim Ummah, humility before the Ultimate Truth, firmness against falsehood, soaring in the desire for the hereafter and the firm resolution to adorn the world are all interwoven and constantly practiced: And among them there are those who say, “Our Lord, give us good in this world and good in the Hereafter, and save us from the punishment of the Fire.”

This way, the Honored Kaaba and the Hajj rituals contribute to the resilience and the uprising of human societies and are filled with benefit and enjoyment for all mankind: Allah has made the Kaaba, the Sacred House, a means of sustenance for mankind… That they may witness the benefits for them, and mention Allah’s Name during the known days.

Today, Muslims from all countries and races should appreciate the value of this great ritual more than before and benefit from it, for the horizon is brighter than ever in the eyes of the Muslim Ummah and the hope for reaching the goals Islam has envisaged for individuals and societies is greater than ever. If, in the last two centuries the Muslim Ummah got disintegrated and was defeated in the confrontation with the Western materialistic civilization and the atheist schools of thought of both the right and the left, today, in the 15th century of the Lunar Hegira, it is the economic and political theories of the West that are paralyzed and fading away. Today, as a result of the Muslims’ reawakening and the retrieval of their identity and with the resurgence of monotheistic ideas and the logic of justice and divinity, a new dawn of prosperity and glory has begun for Muslims.

Those who, in the not-so-distant past, were singing the tune of despair and believed that not only Islam and Muslims but also the foundations of spirituality and religiosity had been lost in the invasion of the Western civilization, are now today witnessing the resurgence of Islam and the revival of the Holy Qur’an as well as the gradual debilitation and collapse of those invaders, confirming all this with their tongues and hearts.

I say with full confidence that this is only the beginning and the complete fulfillment of the divine promise of the victory of truth over falsehood, the reconstruction of the Ummah of the Qur’an and the new Islamic civilization are on the way: Allah has promised those of you who have faith and do righteous deeds that He will surely make them successors in the earth, just as He made those who were before them successors, and He will surely establish for them their religion which He has approved for them, and that He will surely change their state to security after their fear, while they worship Me, not ascribing any partners to Me. And whoever is ungrateful after that it is they who are the transgressors.

The first and foremost sign of this inescapable promise was the victory of the Islamic Revolution in Iran and the establishment of the glorious Islamic system which turned Iran into a strong fortress for the idea of Islamic rule and civilization. The birth of this miraculous phenomenon amidst the height of the materialism and Islamophobia of rightist and leftist politicians and thinkers, and then its resistance against political, military, economic and propaganda strikes coming from all directions, gave rise to the creation of new hope and passion in the hearts of Muslims. With the passage of time and by the grace of God the Almighty, the strength and capabilities of the Islamic Revolution have increased and the hope it created is now more deeply rooted than ever. Over the last thirty years, the Middle East and Muslim countries in Asia and Africa have been the arenas where this victorious struggle is taking place: Palestine and the Islamic Intifada and the emergence of a Muslim Palestinian government; Lebanon and the historic victory of Hezbollah and the Islamic resistance against the arrogant bloodthirsty Zionist regime; Iraq and the establishment of a Muslim and populist government on the ruins of the atheist regime and the dictator Saddam; Afghanistan and the humiliating defeat of the Communist occupiers and their puppet government; the defeat and failure of all the plots hatched by arrogant America to dominate the Middle East; the incurable problems and chaos inside the usurper Zionist regime; the prevalence of the Islam-seeking masses in all or most of the neighboring countries and especially among the youth and intellectuals; the amazing scientific and technological progress in Islamic Iran achieved under severe economic sanctions and embargoes; the defeat of warmongers in America in the political and economic arenas and Muslim minorities’ regaining their true identity and dignity in most of the Western countries. These are all clear indications of the triumph and advancements of Islam in its struggle against its enemies in this century that is the 15th century of Lunar Hegira.

Brothers and sisters! These victories are all the fruits of jihad and sincerity. When the voice of God was heard from the lips of His servants, and the resoluteness and strength of the fighters of the true path were deployed and when the Muslims fulfilled their promise to God the Exalted and the Almighty fulfilled His promise in response, the path of history was changed: Fulfill My covenant that I may fulfill your covenant, and be in awe of Me alone. If you help Allah, He will help you and make your feet steady. Allah will surely help those who help Him. Indeed Allah is all-Strong, all-Mighty.

Indeed We shall help Our apostles and those who have faith in the life of the world and on the day when the witnesses rise up.

But this is still the beginning. Muslim nations still face treacherous roads ahead. One can never survive them unless one is equipped with the power of faith, sincerity, hope and jihad as well as insight and patience. This path cannot be taken with despair and pessimism, apathy and lack of spirit, impatience, lethargy and disbelief in the fulfillment of the divine promise.

The wounded enemy is now resorting to anything and will spare no effort to strike back. We need to be resourceful, wise and to take advantage of opportunities. This way all the efforts of the enemy will fail. In the last thirty years, the enemies, mostly the US and Zionism, have been utilizing all their capacities but have failed miserably. The same thing will happen in the future, too, inshallah.

The severity and intensity of the enemy’s actions usually show just how weak and imprudent he is. Look at Palestine and especially Gaza. The cruel and ruthless acts of the enemy, which are unprecedented in the history of human atrocities, are indicative of his weakness in overcoming the firm resolve of men, women and children who, with their empty hands, are standing against the Occupant Regime and its supporter, the superpower called America; they have spurned its demand which is to reject the Hamas government. May God the Almighty’s blessings be showered upon this resolute and great nation. The people of Gaza and the Hamas government have given meaning to the following everlasting verses of the Holy Qur’an which says: We will surely test you with a measure of fear and hunger and a loss of wealth, lives, and fruits; and give good news to the patient. Those who, when an affliction visits them, say, “Indeed we belong to Allah, and to Him do we indeed return.” It is they who receive the blessings of their Lord and His mercy, and it is they who are the rightly guided. You will surely be tested in your possessions and your souls, and you will surely hear from those who were given the Book before you and from the polytheists much affront; but if you are patient and God wary, that is indeed the steadiest of courses.

Truth will emerge triumphant in its battle with falsehood and it is the oppressed and steadfast nation of Palestine that will ultimately be victorious over the enemy.

And Allah is all-Strong, all-Mighty.

Even today, the enemy has failed to break the resistance of the Palestinians. The claims of freedom and democracy and the slogans of human rights have turned out to be nothing but lies. This has greatly disgraced the US and most European regimes; disgraces from which they will not be able to recover soon. The infamous Zionist regime is more notorious than before and some Arab regimes have lost their honor and reputation which they did not have in this test.

Sayyed Ali Husainy Khamenei

Dhil-Hijjah 4, 1429

December 3, 2008