K

j[ g bVn WZ uchncu as uislclicl, ingiaiiiuuc, oi aiiogani

iccciion ol iiuih, ii has many oihci nuanccu mcanings in ihc
Qui`an anu Sunnah. Thc Qui`an mcniions ihai whcn man is
iioullcu ly iiuih, hc lcgins io ihinI nIIn.n) aloui anu uciciminc
qnnnn.n) whai is ihc lcsi aioach io usiily his iccciion ol ihc iiuih.
Thus, uislclicl anu clcvcincss aic iclaicu. Aiisioilc uchncu inicl-
ligcncc as ihc mcan lciwccn siuiuiiy anu clcvcincss oi cialiincss.
Dislclicl Iu.) is a icsonsc io iiuih ihai involvcs covciing u ihc
iiuih. Scmaniically, ihc iooi ol Iu. is Inn.n, which liicially mcans
io covci ovci.` Onc woiu loi laimci` in Aialic is I., lccausc
a laimci covcis ihc sccu wiih soil. 1u. is also conccalmcni,` as in
Iu. nI-rInLio conccal llcssings). 1u. is uscu in ihc Qui`an as an
anionym loi laiih Ir), anu I. uislclicvci) is uxiaoscu wiih
u`Ir lclicvci) as onc ol iwo ossillc icsonscs io Gou`s signs. Ii is
also uscu in oosiiion io giaiiiuuc` LuI.).
Thc icim Iu. has scvcial uillcicni uchniiions Lnnn). Iln IuiaI
uchncs Iu. as, Ignoiancc conccining Gou, conccining His aiiii-
luics, anu a ucnial anu iccciion ol ihai is unucisioou io lc incluucu
in ihai ignoiancc.`
&
Whai ihis uchniiion imlics is ihai a man who
ucnics Gou oi associaics somcihing clsc wiih Gou is ignoiani ol Gou,
anu his ignoiancc has lcu him io iccci whai is iiuc aloui Gou. Iln
IuiaI quoics Alu al-Hasan al-Ashai, quoiing Alu Husayn al-Salih as
saying,
1u. is an ignoiancc ol Gou , anu ii is onc qualiiy ihai is ihc oosiic
ol Inowlcugc ol Gou. Ii icsiucs in ihc human hcaii anu is in unuci-
sianuing anu noi in aciion. Moicovci, ihc ignoiancc ol Gou is a haiicu
ol Gou anu a ullcu u aiiiiuuc iowaiu Gou, a mocIing ol Gou, anu
a iccciion.
'
Alu al-Baqa` uchncs Iu. as a singlc sysicm ol lclicl ooscu io ihc
unuouliculy iiuc sacicu law ol Muhammau .` Hc cxlains luiihci:
Who aic ihc
Dislclicvcis.

Hamza Yusul

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Pcolc aic caicgoiizcu inio iwo gious:
ihosc who accci Muhammau`s way, anu
ihcy aic callcu lclicvcis u`Irur),
anu ihosc who iccci ii, anu ihcy aic
callcu uislclicvcis I.ur). Iiom ihis
oini ol vicw, ihc I.ur comiisc onc
giou cvcn il ihcy uillci among ihcm-
sclvcs, in ihai way, ihcy aic liIc ihc scc-
iaiians among ihc Muslims: ihai is, ihcy
havc uillcicni lclicls wiihin ihc icligion
ol Islam. 1u. iiscll can lc loih in woiu
anu in uccu. A woiu is onc ihai ncccs-
siiaics Iu.: ihai is, a iccciion ol somc-
ihing agiccu uon ly conscnsus among
ihc Muslims ]is Iu.|, iiicscciivc ol
whcihci ii is liom a lclicl, icsisiancc,
oi uciision. An aciion ihai icsulis in a
uugmcni ol Iu. woulu lc onc ihai was
uonc inicniionally anu inuicaics clcai
conicmi loi ihc icligion, such as ios-
iiaiing io an iuol oi ihiowing a Qui`an
in ihc gailagc.
(

This uchniiion is consonani wiih mosi
moucin Muslim unucisianuings ol Iu.. Ii
is simlisiic, llacI anu whiic, anu assumcs
ihai cvciyonc has hcaiu ihc mcssagc,
ihoughi aloui ii, anu mauc a hnal uccision
on ii. Thc lcgal icim Iu. mcans a iccc-
iion ol whai is ncccssaiily Inown liom ihc
icligion ol Muhammau -ihai is, ]Iu.
is| io iccci ihc cxisicncc ol ihc Cicaioi oi
ihc iohciic mission ol Muhammau
oi ihc iohiliiion ol loinicaiion anu any-
ihing similai in cnoimiiy.` This uchniiion,
acccicu ly all loui schools ol uiisiu-
ucncc, uchncs Iu. as a iccciion ol somc
csscniial aii ol Islam ihai is Inown ly all
who aic lamiliai wiih ii. Iogically, il iccci-
ing an csscniial aii is Iu., ihcn iccciing
ihc wholc is a iioii Iu.. Ioi ihis icason,
Muslims havc iiauiiionally sccn non-Mus-
lims as Iu. uislclicvcis), as ihcy aic noi
aii ol ihc lolu ol Islam.
Thc lcgal siaius ol a I. is imoiiani io
ascciiain, as a I. uocs noi inhciii liom
Muslims, noi uo Muslims inhciii liom
a I..
)
Moicovci, a I. is noi luiicu
accoiuing io Islamic luncial iiics, noi is hc
oi shc iaycu loi alici ucaih ly Muslims.
Moic iolounuly, ihc uugmcni ol Iu.
uon somconc mcans ihai hc is iclcgaicu
io a siaic ol ciuiiion in his alicililc. Thc
cnoimiiy ol ihai uugmcni on a cison is
so gicai ihai ii is lcgally iohiliicu io say
ihai anyonc is ucsiincu loi ihc Hcllhic
unlcss a clcai vcisc oi a hauiih wiih mulii-
lc iiansmissions inuicaics such. Whai ihis
iohiliiion imlics is ihai onc cannoi con-
siuci a cison`s innci siaic wiih Gou, only
his oi hci ouiwaiu siaic wiih colc. Thc
Qui`an siaics in uncquivocal icims ihai
ihc innci icaliiy ol Iu. ncccssiiaics a siaic
ol ciuiiion, anu ihai ]Uliimaic| uner
I Con` nIore +:*,). Thc iolounu imli-
caiions ol ihis musi noi lc losi on Muslims.
Thc Piohci Muhammau claiihcu ihis
whcn hc saiu, I was commanucu io uugc
ly ihc ouiwaiu, anu io Gou is lcli ihc
]maiici ol uuging| innci icaliiics.`

Thus,
ouiwaiuly, a cison may havc a iuling ol
Iu., lui only Gou Inows his inwaiu siaic,
anu ihcicloic Gou alonc ucicimincs his
uliimaic ucsiinaiion.
Accoiuing io ihc Qui`an, Iu. is a iccc-
iion ol Gou`s signs anu is accomanicu
SOME PEOPLE MAY NOT CONSIDER
THEMSELVES MUSLIMS AND MAY
NOT KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT ISLAM,
BUT THEY ADHERE TO MANY OF
THE MORAL PRECEPTS OF ISLAM AND
VIEW EVENTS IN THE WORLD
METAPHYSICALLY, AS
A MUSLIM SHOULD.
ly scvcial qualiiics, incluuing ullcu u
iiuc III!.), uciision IIL.`), ucni-
al nInL.!), ingiaiiiuuc Iu.r), ciucliy
qn.nL), zcaloiiy LnI,,nL), imciu-
ousncss anu ignoiancc nLI), vaingloii-
ousncss nIL.), wanionncss !nn.), anu
cnvy Lnnn). Many ol ihcsc vilc qualiiics
aic lounu in Muslims anu aic alscni in
many colc ol oihci laiihs anu ciccus.
Somc colc may noi consiuci ihcm-
sclvcs Muslims anu may noi Inow anyihing
aloui Islam, lui ihcy auhcic io many
ol ihc moial icccis ol Islam anu vicw
cvcnis in ihc woilu mciahysically, as a
Muslim shoulu-ihai is, ihcy vicw cvcnis
as occuiiing ly Gou`s will wiih an inhci-
cni wisuom olicn conccalcu liom human
lcings. On ihc oihci hanu, somc Muslims
aic moially lanIiui anu mciahysically
llinu lui noncihclcss consiuci ihcmsclvcs
Muslim. Thc qucsiion ihai aiiscs loi many
Muslims, csccially ihosc living in non-
Muslim lanus, is ihis: Whai hacns io
colc ol oihci laiihs whcn ihcy uic.
Thai is, how aic non-Muslims who livcu
goou livcs anu iicaicu oihcis wcll, who
wcic chaiiiallc anu scll-saciihcing, caicgo-
iizcu. Bcloic ihis qucsiion is answcicu, ii
is imoiiani io looI ai ihc iycs ol Iu.
mcniioncu in ihc Qui`an.
ineZh d[ `j[g ^ c i]Z fjg Vc
Thc Qui`an iucniihcs scvcial iycs ol Iu.
anu liom ihcsc, mosi scholais uisiill loui
gcnciic iycs anu consiuci any onc ol ihc
loui io lc sulhcicni causc loi ciuiiion:
hu[r nhur, hu[r juhud, hu[r muunudu, anu
hu[r n[uq.
Thc hisi iyc ol uislclicl is hu[r nhur,
in which Gou is nciihci iccognizcu noi
acInowlcugcu. Ii cniails a iccciion ol
Gou`s signs wiih loih hcaii anu ionguc
anu an inaliliiy io iccognizc ihc uniiy
ol Gou whcn ii is icscnicu. This is ihc
iyc ol Iu. iclciicu io in ihc Qui`anic
vcisc,
A o. Loe .Lo .ee Ialaiu), I I Le ne
o. Le .LeLe. ,ou .n.r Le o. ro-Le,
no ro !eIIe.e. Con Ln enIen LeI. Len.;
nrn LeI. Len.Ir nrn LeI. eeIr n.e o.e.en
o.e.; nrn Le.e I n Lo..ernou o.er o.
Le. ':+-,)
Thc scaling ovci ol ihcii hcaiis is luiihci
cxlaincu in anoihci Qui`anic vcisc ihai
says, VLer LeI. Len. u.ren nrn ne.Inen,
Con nuen Le o ne.Ine u.Le. ':+-,).
Thc scconu iyc ol uislclicl is hu[r
juhud, in which Gou is iccognizcu lui noi
acInowlcugcu, in siic ol cciiainiy aloui
Him. Ii icsulis liom ihc hcaii`s iccogni-
iion ol ihc iiuih ol whai is icscnicu, anu
ihc ionguc`s ucnial ol ihai iiuih. Ii is mcn-
iioncu in ihc Qui`anic vcisc, VLer Le .uL
ne o Le nrn Le, .eorI.en I, Le, nerIen
I Ialaiu lhi) ':-.). This iyc ol Iu. is
ucsciilcu in scvcial vciscs in ihc Qui`an.
Ioi cxamlc,
Bu .Ler Ou. Ir ne o Le ]Phaiaoh
anu his colc| o nIe Le ee, Le, nIn,
TLI I o!.Iou o.e.,` Arn Le, .eeen
Le ahauu liha) ..oruII, nrn n..o-
nrI,, LouL LeI. ouI .e.e e.nIr o Le;
ee Lo. Le Io.nI ern u. ',:&(-&))
This vcisc uncquivocally siaics ihai ihc
Iu. ol ihcsc colc aiosc liom a iccciion
ol whai ihcy wcic cciiain was iiuc. This is
ihc csscncc ol Iu. uLun anu is olviously a
mosi ouious iyc.
Many Muslims lclicvc ihai Iu. uLun is
ihc singlc univcisal iyc ol Iu., ihcy icau
cciiain vciscs ihai ucsciilc ihis aiiiculai
ascci ol uislclicl anu aiiiiluic ii io cvciy-
onc ouisiuc ihc lolu ol Islam. Somc icau
ihc vcisc, TLe, ]somc cws| Iro. LI IIIe
Le, Iro. LeI. o.r or ':&)+), anu con-
cluuc ihai all cws aic awaic ol ihc Piohci
Muhammau anu, in siic ol ihai, iccci
him. Accoiuing io iiauiiional commcniai-

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4
ly chuua ha Icvi, Maimoniucs, anu
Nahmaniucs, wcic iciiciaicu ly many
cnlighicncu iallis ol laici iimcs. Thcsc
oini oui ihai loih ihc Chiisiian anu
Mohammcuan naiions lclicvc in ihc
samc Gou anu His icvclaiion io man,
in ihc uniiy ol ihc human iacc, anu in
ihc luiuic lilc, ihai ihcy havc sicau ihc
Inowlcugc ol Gou ly a sacicu liiciaiuic
lascu uon oui Sciiiuic, ihai ihcy havc
iciaincu ihc Divinc Commanumcnis
csscniially as ihcy aic hiascu in oui
Dccaloguc, anu havc iaciically iaughi
mcn io lulhll ihc Noahiiic
+
laws ol
humaniiy. On accouni ol ihc lasi laci, ihc
mcuicval cwish auihoiiiics consiucicu
Chiisiians io lc hall-iosclyics, whilc ihc
Mohammcuans, lcing uic monoihc-
isis, wcic always siill closci io uuaism.
,
This unucisianuing is almosi non-cxisicni
among Chiisiians anu unusual among cws
iouay. Thc Qui`an siaics,
Arn no ro ore Le eoIe o Le .Iu.e,
urIe .IL .Ln I !ee., e:e Loe o
Le .Lo Ln.e !eer uru: n,, Ve !eIIe.e
Ir .Ln .n .e.enIen o u, nrn .Ln .n
.e.enIen o ,ou; o. ou. Con nrn ,ou. Con
I ore, o .Lo .e nquIee.` Fo. Lu Ve
Ln.e .e.enIen Le BooI o ,ou, o Loe o
.Lo .e Ln.e I.er .Iu.e !eIIe.e Ir I;
nrn oe o Lee eoIe !eIIe.e Ir I oo; nrn
ro ore .ee yahauu) Ou. Ir e:e Le
ur.neuI. '.:)+-),)
This vcisc is aiiiculaily iclcvani, loi ii
clcaily siaics ihai onc icason loi ihc icvcla-
iion ol ihc Qui`an is loi ihc colcs ol ic-
vious iohciic uiscnsaiions io lcain ol ii
anu accci ii. Thc vcisc iclcis io ihc cws
anu Chiisiians who woulu comc io Inow
ol ihc mcssagc ol Islam anu cmliacc ii as
anoihci uiscnsaiion liom ihc samc Gou
ihai icvcalcu ihc Toiah anu ihc Goscl.
Thc Qui`an siaics, 1 I ro n Ir o Le Ln
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ics on ihis vcisc, ihcy` iclcis io cciiain ial-
lis who wcic awaic ol ihc Piohci`s ucscii-
iion in ihc Toiah as wcll as his auvcni on
ihc Aialian Pcninsula. Dcsiic ihai Inowl-
cugc, ihcsc iallis Ici ii hiuucn liom ihc
common cws. Thc scconu aii ol ihc vcisc
claiihcs ihc hisi: Bu oe o Le no orenI
Le .uL e.er LouL Le, Iro. I ':&)+). In
laci, Iln uzayy says ihc ucvicc is aciually
ihcioiical hycilolc io siicss ihc oini ihai
Muhammau`s iohccy shoulu havc lccn
clcai io ihc iallis anu says ihc Qui`an is
iciiciaiing anu cmhasizing ihc woius anu
cxamlc ol Ralli Alu Allah l. Salam, who
lccamc Muslim whcn hc saiu, Wc iallis
Inow his ucsciiiion in ihc Toiah liIc wc
Inow oui own sons.`
*

Inuccu, scvcial mcuicval iallis consiu-
cicu ihc Piohci Muhammau io lc a
lulhllmcni ol somc cwish iohcsics in
ihc Toiah. Kaulmann Kohlci, a ialli, ihco-
logian, anu Picsiucni ol ihc Hclicw Union
Collcgc in ihc caily &.%%s, wiiics,
Thc lcauing siiiis ol uuaism havc
iccognizcu ]ihai Islam was lulhlling a
iohcsy in Zachaiiah|, ucclaiing loih
Chiisiianiiy anu Mohammcuan icligions
io lc agcncics ol Divinc Pioviucncc,
cniiusicu wiih ihc hisioiical mission ol
coociaiing in ihc luiluing u ol ihc
Mcssianic Kinguom, ihus icaiing loi
ihc uliimaic iiiumh ol uic monoihc-
ism in ihc hcaiis anu livcs ol all mcn anu
naiions ol ihc woilu. Thcsc vicws, voiccu

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(*
Le LoIn. o Le T.I!e o 1.neI nIro.Ienen
I: '+:&.,). Two cwish scholais uuiing
ihc lilciimc ol ihc Piohci Muhammau
iccognizcu his mcssagc as iiuc, Alu Allah
l. Salam anu MuIhayiiq, who loih loughi
alongsiuc ihc Piohci ai Uhuu.
This scconu iyc ol uislclicl Iu. uLun)
can lc luiihci caicgoiizcu as somciimcs
unicsiiicicu uInq) anu oihci iimcs
icsiiicicu uqn,,nn). Unicsiiicicu iccc-
iion mcans a ucnial ol ihc cniiic icligion,
incluuing Gou`s icvclaiion anu His mcs-
scngci . Thc scconu caicgoiy is limiicu
in iis iccciion anu involvcs ucnying onc oi
moic asccis ol ihc icligion. Ioi insiancc,
somconc who acInowlcugcs Gou`s uniiy,
ihc iayci, anu ihc oihci hvc illais lui
ucnics ihc iohiliiion ol souomy is in a
siaic ol Iu. uLun lccausc hc Inows, in
icaliiy, ihai ii is wiong, as ii is unamligu-
ously iohiliicu in loih ihc Qui`an anu in
ihc wcll-Inown hauiih, lui hc has choscn
io lollow his caiicc in accciing ii.
In his uiuaciic ocm, Jn.Ln.nL nI-
Tn.L.n, Imam al-Iaqqan says ihai ihosc
who ucny Lnnn) somcihing Inown ly all
in ihc icligion havc cnicicu inio uislclicl
Inn.n). Commcniing on ihis linc, ShayIh
BaIi Raal says,
Evciy sanc, icsonsillc, auuli Muslim
musi lclicvc in cvciyihing ihai Gou has
olligcu Muslims io lclicvc in liom all
ihosc maiicis ihai aic conhimcu cai-
cgoiically anu ncccssaiily. This incluucs
ihc olligaiion ol hvc iaycis a uay,
lasiing, anu ihc oihci illais, as wcll as
ihc iohiliiion ol auuliciy, loinicaiion,
souomy, anu inioxicanis. Hcncc, who-
cvci icccis a clcai inunciion oi io-
hiliiion, uccming ii lcss ihan linuing,
oi who lcgalizcs whai Gou has uccmcu
illcgal has lcli Islam Inn.n).
-
Thc ihiiu iyc ol uislclicl is hu[r muunudu,
in which a cison iccognizcs Gou, acInowl-
cugcs Him wiih woius, lui icmains in a
siaic ol uislclicl uuc io cnvy, haiicu, oi
somc ciccivcu lcai ol loss in wcalih oi
osiiion. This is ihc uislclicl ol Hciaclcs,
ihc Byzaniinc iulci anu ol Alu Talil, ihc
Piohci's unclc. Ii uillcis liom Iu. uLun
only in ihai ihc cison sullciing liom ihis
iyc ol uislclicl aciually acInowlcugcs ihai
hc iccognizcs ihc iiuih ol Islam lui cannoi
liing himscll io lccomc a Muslim. Whcihci
ihis giou will icmain in a siaic ol ciuiiion
is Gou`s ioviucncc. Somc scholais havc
aigucu ihai Alu Talil will noi icmain in ihc
Hcllhic loicvci.
Thc louiih anu hnal caicgoiy is hu[r n[uq,
in which onc ionounccs ihc lclicl wiih ihc
ionguc lui ucnics ii in onc`s hcaii. This is
ihc uislclicl ol ihc hyociiics urqur)
anu is consiucicu ihc woisi loim ol uislc-
licl. Thcsc colc aic ioiccicu anu con-
siucicu Muslims, ihcy aic cvcn washcu anu
luiicu as Muslims, anu Gou alonc Inows
ihcii icaliiy. Ii is noi cimissillc loi colc
io icsumc ihai somconc is oi is noi a hyo-
ciiic. Bchavioi, howcvci, is a ciiiciion, anu
hyociiics havc uisccinallc signs in ihcii
woius anu uccus. This iyc ol uislclicl can
cxisi in vaiying ucgiccs.
^ Wc fVnn^ b Va" _ Vlo^ nnV] h
XViZ\dg^ Zh d[ Y^ hWZa^ Z[
Thc iolihc scholai Imam Iln Qayyim al-
awziyyah hau only iwo lasic caicgoiics ol
uislclicl ihai incluuc vaiious sulcaicgoiics.
EVERY SANE, RESPONSIBLE,
ADULT MUSLIM MUST BELIEVE
IN ALL THAT GOD HAS OBLIGED
MUSLIMS TO BELIEVE IN FROM ALL
THOSE MATTERS THAT ARE CON-
FIRMED CATEGORICALLY
AND NECESSARILY.
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Hc consiucicu ihc alovc-mcniioncu loui
io lc uillcicni in ucgicc lui noi in iyc,
anu ihus, accoiuing io him, all culminaic
in ciuiiion. Hc callcu ihis Iinu ol Iu.
nI-nI!n.` ihc gicaici`) anu ihc scconu
nI-n;Ln.` ihc lcssci`). In ihc asi, as a
icsuli ol ignoiancc ol ihis lcssci caicgoiy
ol uislclicl, somc Muslim auihoiiiics mis-
iniciicicu vciscs liom ihc Qui`an anu
hauiih ol ihc Piohci , anu wionglully
cxcommunicaicu somc Muslims.
Ku[r uI-usghur. Thcic aic scvcial ossillc
cimuiaiions ol ihis Iinu ol uislclicl. Onc
is ucsciilcu in ihc Qui`an: VLoe.e. noe
ro .uIe !, .Ln Con Ln .e.enIen I nor Le
nI!eIIe.e. Iahiun) *:))). This vcisc was
icvcalcu whcn a giou ol cws lioughi an
auulicici io ihc Piohci anu asIcu him
io uugc ihc man.
.
Gou icvcalcu io ihc
Piohci , Ho. nr Le, nI ,ou o une
.Ler Le, Ln.e Le To.nL, ]anu| Ir I I IIL
nrn uInnre: *:))). This cxiiaoiuinaiy
anu iolounu vcisc lcli ihc Piohci no
iccouisc lui io uugc ihcm accoiuing io
ihcii own BooI, ihc Toiah.
Thus, accoiuing io ihc Qui`an, anyonc
who icccis a law icvcalcu ly Gou is in
a siaic ol uislclicl. Howcvci, Iln Allas
icsiiicicu ihc alicaliliiy ol ihis vcisc,
saying, This uislclicl is lcss ihan alsoluic
uislclicl anu uocs noi icmovc a cison
liom his icligious communiiy,`
&%
which
is whcic Imam Iln Qayyim uciivcu his
unucisianuing ol a lcssci Iu.. Onc who is
noi iaciicing ihc law is icmovcu liom ihc
communiiy ol laiih only il such a cison
ucnics ihc law oi iis lcgally linuing siaius.
Il, howcvci, onc uocs noi lollow a law ol
Gou oui ol lazincss, lcai, oi any oihci
icason ihai aiiscs liom wcaIncss anu noi
conscious iccciion, such a cison is noi
consiucicu a uislclicvci.
Hcncc, iulcis in ihc lanus ol Islam who
uo noi aly ihc shaiiah aic noi consiucicu
uislclicvcis unlcss ihcy ocnly ucny ihc
sacicu law. Accoiuing io a sounu hauiih,
as long as iulcis csiallish iayci, uo noi
commanu anyihing ihai licachcs sacicu
law iiscll, anu uo noi manilcsi any oihci
loim ol clcai uislclicl Iu. !u.L), ihcii
siaic auihoiiiy is io lc iccognizcu anu hon-
oicu.
&&
Ioi ihis icason, ihc assassinaiion ol
Egyiian Picsiucni Anwai Sauai in &.-&
uuc io a laiwa` lalcling him a I. is an
cxamlc ol ihc immcnsc cvil anu inusiicc
ihai aiiscs liom such ignoiancc. I visiicu
ihc noiallc Tunisian scholai anu mulii,
ShayIh Shauhili Naylai, in ihc immcuiaic
waIc ol ihai assassinaiion, anu hc saiu io
mc, Whai ihosc ciiminals uiu was a hci-
nous ciimc againsi Islam anu ihc sacicu
law.`
Somc hauiih mcniion oihci cxamlcs
ol aciions ihai aic ol ihis iyc ol Iu.,
which uo noi cxcommunicaic a cison.
Accoiuing io a sounu hauiih iclaicu ly
Muslim, ihc Piohci saiu, Two qualiiics
in my communiiy unL) aic a iyc ol
Iu. in ihosc who manilcsi ihcm: ciiiiciz-
ing ihc lincagc ol oihcis anu wailing ovci
ihc ucau.`
&'
Anoihci hauiih iclaicu ly
Imams al-BuIhai anu Muslim says, Do
noi icvcii io lccoming uislclicvcis Iu.)
alici I am gonc ly Iilling onc anoihci
]in civil wai|.`
&(
Alihough ihc Piohci
uscs ihc woiu Iu. hcic, commcnia-
iois havc agiccu ihai ihis mcans uo noi
uo ihc aciions ol ihc Iu. ly Iilling onc
anoihci.`

Thc vciscs in chaici loiiy-ninc

ol ihc Qui`an ihai claiily iulcs ol cngagc-
mcni shoulu Muslims hghi onc anoihci aic
uccisivc in ucicimining ihc mcaning hcic.
Thai is, hghiing oihci Muslims uocs noi
unconuiiionally iaIc a Muslim oui ol ihc
lolu ol Islam. Unucisianuing ihis nuanccu
ascci ol Iu. is csscniial loi Muslims iouay
who aic lai ioo quicI io anaihcmaiizc ihcii
lcllow Muslims. Thc hauiih ihai shoulu lc
loicmosi in oui hcaiis, which is alsoluicly
sounu, is, Il a Muslim calls anoihci Muslim
a I., ihcn ihc siaicmcni is iiuc aloui onc
ol ihcm.`
&)
Thai is, ihc vciy aci ol calling a

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cison a I. is Iu. iiscll il ihc siaicmcni
is noi iiuc.
Ku[r uI-uhbur. Thc scconu caicgoiy,
accoiuing io Iln Qayyim, is gicaici Iu.`
Iu. nI-nI!n.), which hc luiihci suluiviucs
inio hvc caicgoiics: uislclicl aiising liom
incicuuliiy Iu. nInL.!), uislclicl aiising
liom aiiogancc Iu. III!.), uislclicl aiis-
ing liom ncglcci Iu. I.(), uislclicl aiis-
ing liom uouli Iu. LnII), anu uislclicl
aiising liom hyociisy Iu. rIq).
Dislclicl ihai aiiscs liom incicuuliiy Iu.
nInL.!) is a iclusal io lclicvc ihc Mcsscngcis
ol Gou on ihc giounus ihai ihcy aic lying.
Iln Qayyim says ihai ihc numlcis ol ihcsc
uislclicvcis is insignihcani simly lccausc
Gou hclcu ihc Mcsscngcis wiih miiaclcs
anu clcai iools ol ihcii vciaciiy. Thc
Qui`an says aloui ihc colc ai ihc iimc ol
ihc Piohci , Su.eI,, Le, no ro InI ,ou
n.e n IIn. yuIauhilunaIa), !u .nr.eo.
ner, yahauuna) Le Ir o Con +:(().
Dislclicl ihai aiiscs liom aiiogancc Iu.
III!. .n I!`) involvcs a iclusal io accci
ihc souicc uuc io iis ciccivcu alccincss.
Accoiuing io Iln Qayyim, ihc maoiiiy ol
ihosc who ooscu ihc Piohci in his
lilciimc lall unuci ihis caicgoiy. This iyc
ol Iu. is also ihc uislclicl ol Phaiaoh, who
saiu, SLouIn .e !eIIe.e Ir .o o.nI IIIe ou.-
eI.e .Loe eoIe n.e ou. e..nr:` '(:),).
Ills also sullcicu liom ihis iyc ol Iu.,
uislaycu in his iclusal io low uown io
Auam . Thc Qui`an siaics, He .n n..onr
isiaIlaia)(-:,)).
Dislclicl ol ucicliciion oi ncglcci Iu.
I.() icicscnis a sloihlul inuillcicncc
iowaiu icvclaiion anu a lailuic io invcsiigaic
ihc iohciic claims. This coiicsonus io
ihc sin ol sloih oi accuia in Caiholicism. Ii
involvcs a comlcic lacI ol inicllcciual anu
siiiiual cuiiosiiy. Siiiiual sloih is aiiicu-
laily insiuious lccausc ii is vciy olicn vcilcu
in a cloaI ol usclul woiluly aciiviiy such as
mcuical iaciicc oi cvcn chaiiiy woiI. Ii is
noi ncccssaiily lazincss ol louy oi minu lui
iaihci ol siiii. Thc comings anu goings
ol ihc woilu ioviuc mosi colc wiih an
cxcusc loi noi loihciing wiih icligious
qucsiions ol uliimaic conccin, lui such
an aiiiiuuc consiiiuics a iyc ol uislclicl, a
iuining away` I.() liom Gou.
Dislclicl aiising liom uouli Iu. LnII)
is a lacI ol commiimcni, in which onc
nciihci ucnics noi alhims ihc iiuih ol ihc
iohcis, lui chooscs io icmain ncuiial.
In ihc cuiicni vcinaculai, such a cison
is an agnosiic. Accoiuing io Iln Qayyim,
ihis is similai io ihc uislclicl ol ucicliciion
Iu. I.() lccausc il a uoulici unuciiooI
a sciious invcsiigaiion, ihc uouli woulu lc
iclaccu wiih lclicl.

Hcncc, again, such a

cison is iuining away liom ihc signs ol
Gou anu iclusing io consiuci ihcm scii-
ously.
Iinally, ihc lasi sulcaicgoiy ol gicaici
uislclicl is ihai which aiiscs liom hyociisy
Iu. rIq). This is ihc woisi loim ol uis-
lclicl anu cniails ihc scvcicsi unishmcni
in ihc hcicalici. This luiihci classihcaiion
auus somc nuanccs noi icscni in ihc iioi
onc. Boih aic usclul in lully unucisianu-
ing ihc hcnomcnon ol uislclicl in ihc
Qui`an.
&*
cZXZhhVgn XdcY^ i^ dch [dg
VcVi]ZbVi^ o^ c\ Vc ^ cY^ k^ YjVa
Whilc uliimaic ucsiiny can only lc ucici-
mincu ly Gou, ucicimining a cison`s
lcgal sianuing vis-a-vis icligion is csscniial
in ihis woilu lccausc ol ihc olvious consc-
l
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qucnccs ol such lcgal sianuing wiih icgaiu
io maiiiagc, liiih, ucaih, anu inhciiiancc,
io namc a lcw. Whai ucicimincs whcihci
a cison is a I. oi a lclicvci is a ciiiical
maiici. Thc uiisis ol Islam ihus ucvclocu
a coua ol guiuclincs ncccssaiy io lollow
lcloic a uugc coulu consiuci a cison
a I.. Six conuiiions havc io lc lulhllcu
in oiuci loi a uugc io iulc conccining
a cison`s laiih: Inicniion, Alscncc ol
Cocicion, Icvcl ol Knowlcugc, Alscncc ol
Esoiciic Iniciiciaiion, Mcnial Aliliiy io
Rcason, anu, Piool ol Iaiih.
Intcntion. Pcolc's inicniion musi lc
unucisioou lcloic ihcii aciions oi woius
can lc uugcu. Ioi insiancc, whcn Haiil
lciiaycu ihc Piohci ly icvcaling his
lans ol aiiacI io ihc Quiaysh, hc was ca-
iuicu anu his iicachciy cxoscu, anu ihc
comanions wanicu io Iill him loi iicason.
Thc Piohci inquiicu inio his inicniion,
anu whcn hc lcaincu ihai Haiil was in laci
conccincu aloui his lamily in Mccca anu
ihcii wcll-lcing, ihc Piohci acccicu
his cxlanaiion anu uiu noi consiuci his
iicason an aci ol uislclicl.
&+
Thc Qui`an
says, TLe.e I ro Ir uor ,ou o. ,ou. InIe
((:*).
Abscncc of Cocrcion. Thc Qui`an
says, Arn Loe .Lo nI!eIIe.e ne. Le, Ln.e
!eIIe.en-urIe Le, n.e oeIIen .LIIe LeI.
Len. n.e . Ir nIL-!u Loe .Lo rn
ene Ir nI!eIIe, or Le I ..nL .o Con
&+:&%+). In oihci woius, ii is imoiiani
io uciciminc whcihci a cison who oncc
lclicvcu was comcllcu oi cociccu inio
uislclicl oi whcihci a cison cnicicu inio
uislclicl simly lccausc ii was convcnicni.
Lcvcl of Knowlcdgc. This conuiiion
holus much wcighi in lighi ol ihc wiuc-
sicau ignoiancc in oui communiiics
iouay. Many ignoiani colc usc oaihs
ihai aic iohiliicu, somc ciicumamlulaic
iomls, somc saciihcc animals io sainis,
anu somc iic icccs ol cloih io shiincs. All
ol ihcsc aciions aic alsoluicly iohiliicu,
lui ihcy uo noi consiiiuic uislclicl unlcss
ii is ascciiaincu ihai a cison is cngaging
in ihcm ucsiic Inowing ihai ihcy aic
iohiliicu anu consiiiuic iuolaiiy. A clcai
iool loi ihis is ioviucu in ihc Qui`an,
in Moscs` icsonsc io ihc cws whcn ihcy
asIcu loi iuols liIc ihc iuols ol oihci
naiions: Thcy saiu, AnIe o. u InoI IIIe
Le, Ln.e oo.` He .eIIen, Su.eI, ,ou n.e nr
Iro.nr eoIe` ,:&(-).
This mcaning is wonucilully iciiciaicu
in ihc sounu hauiih in Tiimiuh, in which
somc comanions ol ihc Piohci asIcu
him io sclcci a iicc io which ihcy coulu
aiiach cloih lcloic laiilcs in ihc way ihc
iuolaicis ol Mccca uiu. Hc iclicu,
Gloiy io Gou, ihis is cxacily liIc Ban
Isia`l`s icqucsi, AnIe o. u InoI IIIe Le,
Ln.e oo.` By ihc Onc in whosc Hanu
icsis my soul, you will lollow ihc ways ol
ihosc who wcni lcloic you.
&,

Thc Piohci uiu noi call ihcm uis-
lclicvcis, iaihci, hc cxlaincu io ihcm
ihcii ciioi anu cxcuscu ihcm loi ihcii
ignoiancc, as ihcy wcic unawaic ol ihc lull
imlicaiions ol ihcii icqucsi.
Somc scholais, such as Imam al-Qaial,
consiuci ignoiancc an cxcusc in uciailcu
maiicis ol ihc sacicu law u.u) lui noi in
maiicis ol lclicl oi Inowlcugc.
&-
Howcvci,
commcniing on Imam al-Qaial`s osiiion,
Imam Sauiq al-Ghiiyan says,
Whai Imam al-Qaial says conccining ihc
incxcusaliliiy ol ignoiancc is unsounu
lccausc ii woulu lcau io unlcaiallc
icsonsililiiics on colc nII. I
,uq). Thcic aic many cogcni iools
ihai icluic his osiiion. Ioi insiancc,
ihcic is ihc sounu hauiih in which a man
oiucicu his sons io cicmaic his louy anu
ihcn ulvciizc ihc icmains anu scaiici
ihc ashcs on a winuy uay ovci ihc occan.
Accoiuing io ihc hauiih, hc iclls his

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sons, I swcai ly Gou, il my Ioiu gcis
holu ol mc qnnn.n nIn,,n), Hc will un-
ish mc in a way Hc has ncvci unishcu
anyonc lcloic mc.`
Thc Piohci saiu, Thcy uiu ihai io
him, anu Gou saiu io ihc caiih, `Rcsioic
whai you havc iaIcn liom him,` anu suu-
ucnly, ihcic ihc man was sianuing lcloic
his Ioiu. Gou ihcn saiu io him, `Whai
causcu you io uo such a ihing.`
`I was so aliaiu ol you, my Ioiu!` ihc
man cxlaincu.`
Ioi ihai,` ihc Piohci saiu, hc was
loigivcn.`
This hauiih, which is in ihc iwo sounu-
csi collcciions ol hauiih, icvcals clcai
uislclicl: ihc man uiu noi lclicvc ihai
Gou was omnioicni oi hc woulu noi
havc uonc such a loolish uccu. Hc also
uoulicu ihc icsuiicciion. This is wiihoui
a uouli Iu.. Hc was ignoiani, lui his
ignoiancc was accomanicu ly a sinccic
lcai anu awc ol Gou, anu so Gou loigavc
him.
&.

This hauiih inuicaics ihai onc`s unuci-
sianuing anu inicniion aic ciucial maiicis
in how onc will lc uugcu on ihc Day ol
uugmcni.
In anoihci sounu hauiih, a man ic-
scnicu ihc Piohci wiih a asI ol winc.
Thc Piohci cxlaincu io him ihai
uiinIing winc was iohiliicu. Thc man
ihcn whiscicu somcihing io his coman-
ion, hanuing him ihc asI. Thc Piohci
asIcu whai ihc man hau whiscicu io
his liicnu, anu was iolu ihai ihc man hau
usi insiiucicu his comanion io scll ihc
asI. Thc Piohci ihcn saiu, Thc Onc
who iohiliicu iis consumiion also io-
hiliicu iis salc.` Thc man ihcn sillcu ihc
winc oui.
'%
In his TnL.n, Iln Alu al-Baii
says ihai ihis hauiih is icxiual iool ihai a
sin is icmovcu liom onc who is ignoiani
ol a iuling unlcss hc was allc io lcain anu
ncglccicu io uo so.
'&
Abscncc of Esotcric Intcrprctation
(tu`uiI). A cison whosc woius oi aciions
inuicaic somc uislclicl may lc cxcuscu il
ihai uislclicl icsulis liom a lalsc iniciicia-
iion in an aiicmi io aiiivc ai ihc iiuih. This
is uillcicni liom uislclicl ihai icsulis liom
lollowing onc`s whims anu caiicc. Ioi
insiancc, Imam Iln Taymiyyah, accoiuing
io somc ol his wiiiings, aaicnily lclicvcu
ihai ihc Iiic ol Hcll woulu cvcniually lc
cxiinguishcu, anu ihosc in ii woulu no lon-
gci sullci. This can lc consiiucu as Iu. in
iis aaicni ucnial ol unamliguous vciscs
in ihc Qui`an ihai uislclicvcis uwcll in
ihc Inlcino loicvci ILIIn.rn .L n!nnnr)
):&+. anu oihcis). Iln Taymiyyah lascu
his iuiosynciaiic iniciiciaiion on vciscs
ihai hau icccucncc among a lcw ol ihc
comanions ol ihc Piohci , as hc shows
in his aigumcni. Howcvci, hc uiu noi iccci
ihc Qui`anic vciscs on ihc ciciniiy ol Hcll
lui lcli ihai ihcy wcic io lc unucisioou
in ihc lighi ol oihci vciscs sccilying ihc
gcncial alicaliliiy, anu icsiiiciing ihcii
aaicnily unicsiiicicu alicaiion.
Alihough Iln Taymiyyah`s oinion on
ihis maiici is noi sccn as noimaiivc oi cvcn
as valiu ly ihc maoiiiy ol scholais, vciy
lcw scholais aciually anaihcmaiizcu him
lccausc hc uscu iniciiciaiion n`..I) in
A PERSON WHOSE WORDS OR
ACTIONS INDICATE SOME DISBELIEF
MAY BE EXCUSED IF THAT DISBELIEF
RESULTS FROM A FALSE
INTERPRETATION IN AN ATTEMPT
TO ARRIVE AT THE TRUTH. THIS IS
DIFFERENT FROM DISBELIEF THAT
RESULTS FROM FOLLOWING ONES
WHIMS AND CAPRICE.
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ihc maiici, which mcani hc uiu noi icuui-
aic ihc vciscs ihai ouiwaiuly coniiauicicu
his conclusions.
Duc io ihis conuiiion, mosi scholais
uo noi anaihcmaiizc ihc Raiionalisis
nI-un.IInL) oi mcmlcis ol oihci sccis
who iniciici vciscs uillcicnily ihan uiu
ihc oiihouox scholais ol Islam. Iimiis,
howcvci, uo cxisi ihai csiallish whai is
lcyonu ihc alc anu whai is noi. Accoiuing
io Imam al-Ghazzal, cvcn il an iniciicia-
iion is lai-lcichcu, as long as ii icmains
wiihin ihc aiamcicis ol icasonallcncss
in accoiuancc wiih ihc Aialic languagc,
ii shoulu noi lc consiucicu Iu.. Alu al-
Baqa` al-Kallaw wioic,
Gou says, Su.eI,, Con o.I.e Ir-nII o
Le ](.:*(|, anu alihough uislclicl is
an unloigivallc sin, ihc iclciicu osi-
iion ol ihc maoiiiy ol colc ol oiiho-
uoxy is ihai nonc ol ihc colc who lacc
iowaiu Mccca in ihcii iaycis shoulu
lc callcu I. among ihc innovaiois
u!nnIn) anu ihc csoiciic iniciicicis
u`n..IIn), as long as ihcii iniciicia-
iions uo noi conccin csscniial maiicis
ol laiih ]such as n.L.n,
''
iayci, anu
ihc iohiliiion ol alcohol| uuc io ihc
icscncc ol olluscaiion Lu!LnL) in ihc
maiici.
'(
Mcntal Ability to Rcason. Thc Piohci
saiu, Thicc among my communiiy aic
noi icsonsillc: ihc slccci uniil hc waIcs,
ihc chilu uniil ii icachcs ulciiy, anu ihc
uciangcu cison uniil hc iccovcis his
saniiy.`
')
Proof of Faith. A him iool ol laiih anu
iis icquisiics musi lc csiallishcu lcloic
a siaic ol iis ucnial can lc consiucicu
Iqnu nI-LunL nIn,L.). Accoiuing io
ShayIh Sauiq al-Ghiiyan,
A iuling ol uislclicl cannoi lc csial-
lishcu conccining anyonc uniil a clcai
iool ol laiih anu his oi hci iccciion ol ii
is csiallishcu, in which casc such a cison
is asIcu io iccni. ]In ihc casc ol somc-
onc ouisiuc ol Islam, his cniciing Islam
is iccniancc.| This is clcaily unucisioou
ly ihc Qui`anic vciscs, Aeere. !.Ir
oon re. nrn n .n.rIr o Ln eoIe n,
Ln.e ro n.uer nnIr Con ne. Le e-
ere.. Arn Con I AIIL,, Ao VIe
):&+*), anu Ve no ro urIL n eoIe urII
.e Ln.e er n eere. o Le &,:&*). A
iool is csiallishcu ihiough an inviiaiion
io Islam, in which ihc uniiy ol Gou is
cxlaincu anu ihc mission ol ihc Piohci
Muhammau .
'*
In ihc casc ol a cison who has saiu oi
uonc somcihing ihai cvinccs uislclicl, a
scholai musi show such an inuiviuual why
ii consiiiuics uislclicl anu why iccniancc
is ncccssaiy loi a icsioiaiion ol laiih. Il ihai
cison uocs inuccu iciuin io ihc lolu ol
oiihouoxy, hc is noi consiucicu a I.. Oi,
il hc cxlains ihai his osiiion is lascu uon
a uillcicni iniciiciaiion ihai has valiuiiy,
oi icscnis his own souiccs using sounu
mcihous io aiiivc ai his own conclusions,
such a cison is noi uccmcu io lc in a
siaic ol uislclicl. Ii mighi, howcvci, con-
siiiuic a hciciouox anu innovaiivc lclicl
!InnL) ihai, whilc invaliu, uocs noi cniail
uislclicl.
i]Z hiViZ d[ Y^ hWZa^ Z[ VcY
l]Vi ^ i ZciV^ ah
Accoiuing io ihc Qui`an, iuolaiiy is ihc
gicaicsi sin againsi Gou. Su.eI, Con .III ro
o.I.e InoIn.,, !u He .III o.I.e nr,LIr
Ie Lnr I o. .Lo He Iene ):&&+). Thc
maoiiiy ol oiihouox scholais uo noi aly
ihis vcisc io iuolaiious colc who havc
ncvci hcaiu a iiuc mcssagc aloui Gou. Thc
iool ol ihis is ihc Qui`anic vcisc: Ve no
ro urIL n eoIe urII Ve ern n eere.
&,:&*). Commcniing on ihis vcisc, Imam
Iln uzayy al-Kall wiiics,

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gious: onc is ihc communiiy ol accc-
iancc unL nI-II!nL), which incluucs
ihosc who answci his call ol sulmission
io Gou, anu ihc oihci is ihc communiiy
ol inviiaiion unL nI-nn.nL), which
incluucs ihosc who aic inviicu lui havc
noi icsonucu yci.
Thc scconu imoiiani oini is ihai ihc
hnal uugmcni on a cison`s siaic cannoi
lc ucicimincu uniil ihc cnu ol ihai ci-
son`s lilciimc. In ihis hauiih, ihc Piohci
saiu, no onc.will hcai ol mc anu ihcn
uic wiihoui having lclicvcu..` In oihci
woius, oncc ihc mcssagc is hcaiu, a cison
has ihc icsi ol his lilc io accci oi iccci ii.
This unucisianuing is cnloiccu ly scvcial
vciscs in ihc Qui`an, such as Su.eI, Loe
.Lo nI!eIIe.e Ialaiu) nrn Ler nIe Ir n ne
o nI!eIIe, uor Le I nnrnIor .o Con,
HI nreI, nrn nII o LunrI, ':&+&). Thc
Qui`an clcaily siaics ihai onc musi uic in
a siaic ol uislclicl io lc in a siaic ol ciui-
iion. Thcii uislclicl is noi in Gou lui in a
mcsscngci ol Gou, anu uislclicl in Islam is
uchncu as ucnial ol Gou oi ucnial ol any
ol His mcsscngcis anu whai ihcy lioughi.
In auuiiion io ucclaiing ihai iuolaiiy
LI.I) is ihc only unloigivallc sin, ihc
Qui`an also says ihai Iuqman saiu
io his son, Dor` noIne nr,LIr .IL
Con, o. u.eI, InoIn., I nr ero.ou e..o.
zulm)` (&:&(). Thc woiu uscu hcic
Onc oinion aloui ihis vcisc is ihai ii
conccins ihis woilu anu ihai Gou will
noi ucsiioy a colc uniil a mcsscngci
is scni io wain ihcm, ]as ihcn| ihcy
]will| havc no cxcusc. Anoihci oinion
holus ihai ihc vcisc alics io loih ihis
woilu anu ihc ncxi-ihai Gou uocs noi
unish colc in ihc alicililc unlcss a
mcsscngci hau lccn scni io ihcm in ihis
lilc whom ihcy hau icccicu.
'+
This scconu oinion is siicngihcncu ly
anoihci Qui`anic vcisc:
E.e., Ie n .ou I L.o.r Iro I ]ihc
Iiic|, I Ieee. .III nI Le, DInr` n
.n.re. oe o ,ou:` TLe, .III .eI,, Ye, n
.n.re. ne, !u .e oen nrn nIn, Con
re.e. er nr,LIr no.r-,ou n.e .e.,
uL InIer.`` +,:--.)
Scholais uillcicniiaic lciwccn iuolaiiy
LI.I) anu uislclicl Iu.). Evciy LI.I is
Iu., lui noi cvciy Iu. is LI.I. Ioi insiancc,
in ihc uominani osiiion ol ihc scholais,
nciihci ihc cws noi ihc Chiisiians aic
consiucicu iuolaicis, ihcy aic, howcvci,
consiucicu uislclicvcis oncc ihcy hcai ol
ihc mcssagc ol ihc Piohci Muhammau
anu iccci ii. Thc sounu hauiih in Muslim`s
collcciion is clcai on ihis maiici:
By ihc Onc in whosc Hanu is
Muhammau`s soul, no onc liom ihis
communiiy unL), whcihci cwish oi
Chiisiian, will hcai ol mc anu ihcn uic
wiihoui having lclicvcu cxcci ihai hc
is aoiiioncu among ihc ucnizcns ol
ihc Inlcino.
Two cxiicmcly imoiiani oinis aic clic-
iicu liom ihis hauiih. Thc hisi is ihai
whcn ihc Piohci says, liom ihis com-
muniiy,` hc is iclciiing io all colc ol
ihc cniiic woilu liom ihc iimc his mcssagc
lcgan. His communiiy is uiviucu inio iwo
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lccausc a man`s scal is unInown io oihci
mcn, ii shoulu ncvci lc assumcu ihai hc oi
shc is a I. wiih Gou. Ioi cxamlc, whilc
his aciion was ouious io Gou, ihc man
Umai l. al-Khaiial was lclovcu io Gou
cvcn whcn iosiiaiing io iuols lccausc
in ihc cicinal Inowlcugc ol Gou, Umai
was noi ihc iuolaici lui ihc calih ol
Islam anu a maiiyi. Thc Moioccans havc a
iovcil: Holu no onc in conicmi, loi hc
may lc a liicnu ol Gou.` Whaicvci wc may
scc in a cison, ii may noi iccci his aciual
siaic wiih Gou. Thc Piohci saiu ol ihc
colc ol Baui, Who Inows-cihas
Gou looIcu inio ihc hcaiis ol ihc colc
ol Baui anu saiu, `Do as you will liom ihis
uay loiih, loi I havc loigivcn you.``
',
Thc
Piohci mauc ihis siaicmcni in iclci-
cncc io a man who hau loughi on his siuc
ai Baui anu ihcn laici commiiicu a iica-
sonous aci ihai ihc Piohci loigavc.
l]d ^ h YZhi^ cZY [dg i]Z
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Thc Qui`an sccihcally siaics ihai uislc-
licvcis will lc in Hcll. Bccausc ihcic is
a conscnsus ihai cws anu Chiisiians aic
lcgally caicgoiizcu as uislclicvcis noi
in Gou anu icvious iohcis lui in ihc
Piohci Muhammau ), mosi Muslims
iaIc ihis io mcan ihcy will lc in Hcll
lccausc ol ihc many Qui`anic vciscs siai-
ing ihai ihc uislclicvcis will lc in Hcll.
Iuiihcimoic, vciscs cxisi ihai inuicaic
ihai Chiisiians who auhcic io ihc iiiniiy
will also lc in Hcll. Thc Qui`an says,
TLoe .Lo n, Con I Le AeInL, Sor o
An.,, Ln.e e.nIrI, !InLeen: .Le.en
Le AeInL nIn, CLIIn.er o 1.neI, .o.-
LI Con, , 1o.n nrn ,ou. 1o.n.` Fo.
.Loe.e. noIne nr,ore .IL Con, Con
Ln o.!Inner Le Cn.ner; LI Ine I Le
FI.e. Arn Le.e I ro n.Io. o. Loe .Lo no
..or. TLoe .Lo n, Con I ore LI.n o n
.IrI, Ln.e e.nIrI, !InLeen, o. Le.e I
ucsciiling ihc sin ol iuolaiiy is ihc vcilal
noun ihai also ucnoics oicssion.` In
scvcial vciscs, ihc Qui`an ucsciilcs ihc
ucnizcns ol Hcll as oicssois zIIur).
Scholais concui ihai anyonc who uocs noi
lollow ihc icligion ol Islam-incluuing
cws, Chiisiians, anu olyihcisis-has ihc
lcgal iuling ol uislclicl. Howcvci, lccausc
all colc alivc iouay aic consiucicu liom
ihc communiiy ol Muhammau anu aic
uiviucu inio ihc iwo gious as mcniioncu
alovc, ii is incumlcni uon Muslims io
inviic io Islam all ihosc who aic in ihc
communiiy ol inviiaiion anu io coniinuc
io uo so loi ihc lilciimc ol cach cison in
ihai communiiy. Ici us noi loigci ihai Alu
Sulyan loughi ihc Piohci loi almosi
iwcniy ycais, yci ncvci uiu ihc Piohci
ucsaii ol ihc ossililiiy ihai Alu Sulyan
woulu accci laiih. Thc Piohci Noah
callcu his colc io Gou loi almosi a ihou-
sanu ycais anu iaycu loi ihcii ucsiiuciion
only alici Gou icvcalcu io him ihai ihcy
woulu ncvci lclicvc: Arn I .n .e.enIen o
NonL, Nore o ,ou. eoIe .III !eIIe.e !u Loe
.Lo !eIIe.e nI.enn,. So no ro !e .Ie.en o.e.
.Ln Le, Ln.e !eer noIr` &&:(+).
Thc maoiiiy ol scholais havc iohiliicu
uamning an inuiviuual, whcihci Muslim oi
noi, lccausc only Gou Inows a cison`s
uliimaic siaius. uiisis ucicimincu ihai
THE MAJORITY OF SCHOLARS HAVE
PROHIBITED DAMNING AN INDIVIDUAL,
WHETHER MUSLIM OR NOT, BECAUSE
ONLY GOD KNOWS A PERSONS
ULTIMATE STATUS. JURISTS DETER-
MINED THAT BECAUSE A MANS SEAL
IS UNKNOWN TO OTHER MEN, IT
SHOULD NEVER BE ASSUMED THAT
HE OR SHE IS A KAFIR WITH GOD.

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This uocs noi ncgaic ihc lcgal siaius ol
ihosc who lclicvc in ihc iiiniiy as I.ur,
lui iaihci suscnus uugmcni on ihcii
inicniion sincc many ol ihcm may lc
unawaic ihai ihcy aic in a siaic ol llas-
hcmy. In all ihicc Aliahamic laiihs, llas-
hcmy-which is iiicvcicni ialI conccin-
ing Gou, His iohcis, anu oihci sacicu
maiicis-is consiucicu anaihcma only il
uonc inicniionally. Thcic`s ihc iul. Il
Chiisiians aic simly iccaiing whai ihcy
wcic iolu ly ihcii iicsis anu chuich insii-
iuiions, ihcy aic noi llashcming inicn-
iionally. Many may lc uccly ucvoicu io
ihcii laiih anu aciivcly sccIing ihc giacc
ol Gou. Thcsc aic ihc vciy colc whom
ihc Qui`an is auuicssing, as much ol ihc
Qui`an is auuicsscu io colcs ol oihci
laiihs as wcll as colc wiihoui laiih in ihc
hocs ihai ihcy will lclicvc.
Whai ihcn is ihc laic ol ihosc who uo
noi lclicvc in ihc Qui`an anu ihc mcssagc
ol Muhammau . Aic ihcy conucmncu
io ihc Inlcino loi all ciciniiy. Imam
al-Ghazzal, Inown as ihc Piool ol Islam`
anu onc ol ihc mosi auihoiiiaiivc ihcolo-
gians anu lcgal ihcoiisis in ihc hisioiy ol
Islam, hau a uillcicni oinion. Hc wioic
a shoii iicaiisc cniiilcu Fn,;nI nI-n.IqnL
claiilying ihc uangcis ol anaihcmaiizing
oihci Muslims, lui in ii hc also auuicsscs
ro neI, !u ore Con. So I Le, no ro o
.Ln Le, n.e n,Ir, n nIruI ernI, .III
.IIe Loe o Le .Lo !InLee Ialaiu).
*:,'-,()
Thcic aic a lcw imoiiani oinis ihai
shoulu lc mauc: hisi ol all, ihc uislclicl
iclciicu io is noi uislclicl in Islam lui
uislclicl in ihcii own icligion. Thai is,
ihosc who oiiginally saiu ihai Gou is a
iiiniiy llashcmcu. Thc asi icnsc is uscu
in ihcsc vciscs, anu ihis is siicngihcncu a
lcw vciscs laici whcn ihc Qui`an says, O
eoIe o Le .Iu.e, no ro o.e.no ,ou. .eII-
Ior ur.enIIInII,, ,e no ro oIIo. Le neI.e
o eoIe .Lo nI.enn, .er n.n, !eo.e, .Lo
IIen nr, nrn .n,en .o Le !nInren .n,
*:,,). Thosc who iniiially innovaicu ihc
iiiniiy, which was a agan lclicl lounu in
ancicni Egyi, Balylon, anu Inuia, wcic
ihc oncs who llashcmcu againsi Gou anu
cnicicu inio a siaic ol Iu.. Howcvci, ihc
Qui`an is saying ihai oncc onc Inows ihis,
onc musi ucsisi liom saying such ihings oi
lc luini ly ihc Hcllhic.
In ihc lasi oiiion ol ihc vcisc ciicu
alovc, ihc usagc ol ihc icosiiion Ir
liom) is a aiiiculaily noicwoiihy con-
siiuci: So I Le, no ro o .Ln Le, n.e n,-
Ir, n nIruI ernI, .III .IIe Loe o Le
.Lo !InLee. In ihc Aialic, using Ir io
say ol ihosc who llashcmc` inuicaics
ihai ii is ihosc who aic in a siaic ol Iu.
liom among ihcm who will lc luini ly ihc
Iiic. This imlics ihai noi all ol ihcm aic
in a siaic ol Iu.. This can only lc unuci-
sioou whcn wc icmcmlci whai Iu. is
accoiuing io ihc ihcologians:
A iclusal io lclicvc lascu uon a Inowl-
cugc ol whai io lclicvc n.InL) anu
a uiosclul iclusal io uo so I.(nL),
cvcn il ii is conccining only a oiiion ol
whai ihc Piohci convcycu io us, ]as
long as ii is| iiansmiiicu in a clcai man-
nci, lacIing amliguiiy.
'-
IF CHRISTIANS ARE SIMPLY
REPEATING WHAT THEY WERE TOLD
BY THEIR PRIESTS AND CHURCH
INSTITUTIONS, THEY ARE NOT
BLASPHEMING INTENTIONALLY.
MANY MAY BE DEEPLY DEVOTED TO
THEIR FAITH AND ACTIVELY SEEKING
THE GRACE OF GOD.
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ihc issuc ol non-Muslims anu ihc vasi
mcicy ol Gou. Hc oinis oui ihai alihough
ihcic is a sounu hauiih ihai siaics ihai
only onc oui ol cvciy ihousanu colc will
cnici Paiauisc, ihis uocs noi mcan ihc icsi
will cnici cicinal uamnaiion, iaihci ihcy
will scnu a uiilying ciiou in ihc Iiic.
Whai ii mcans, accoiuing io al-Ghazzal, is
ihai ihc sinlcss aic only onc in a ihousanu.
Hc ihcn siaics ihai ihc Muslims in ihc Iiic
will uliimaicly lc icmovcu anu, cvcn moic
asionishingly, ihai,
Thc uivinc mcicy, howcvci, will also
cmliacc many ol ihc lygonc naiions,
cvcn ihough mosi ol ihcm will lc
cxoscu io ihc Iiic, ciihci slighily-loi
a momcni oi loi an houi-oi a gicaici
ciiou ol iimc, so ihai onc may aly io
ihcm ihc cxicssion ihc ucnizcns ol
ihc Iiic.` I woulu cvcn go as lai as io say
ihai mosi ol ihc Chiisiians among ihc
Euiocans anu TuiIs in ihis iimc ol ouis
will lc cmliaccu ly ihc samc mcicy, il
Gou mosi high wills. I mcan sccihcally
ihosc who aic among ihc icmoic inhal-
iianis ol Euioc anu Ccniial Asia whom
ihc call ol Islam has noi icachcu ]will lc
cmliaccu ly ihis uivinc mcicy|.
Chiisiians can lc uiviucu inio ihicc
classcs. Onc comiiscs ihosc whom
ihc namc ol Muhammau has ncvci
icachcu ai all: ihcy aic cxcuscu ]loi
ihcii uislclicl|. Thc scconu caicgoiy
comiiscs ihosc who havc hcaiu his
namc anu ucsciiiion, anu ]havc hcaiu|
ol his miiaclcs. Thcsc colc livc along-
siuc Muslims anu iniciaci wiih ihcm oi
aciually livc among ihcm. Thcy aic ihc
uislclicving ucnicis Iu. uILInur).
Thc ihiiu caicgoiy is ihc class comiis-
ing ihosc in lciwccn ihc oihci iwo.
Thc namc ol Muhammau has inuccu
icachcu ihcii cais, lui ihcy uo noi Inow
his iiuc ucsciiiion anu his chaiacici.
Insicau, ihcy hcaiu liom ihc iimc ihcy
wcic young ihai a uccciilul liai namcu
Muhammau claimcu io lc a iohci,
in ihc samc way oui own chiluicn hcai
ihai a liai namcu al-Muqanna claimcu
io lc a iohci. As lai as I am con-
ccincu, such colc aic ]cxcuscu| liIc
ihosc in ihc hisi caicgoiy, loi whilc ihcy
havc hcaiu ol his namc, ihcy hcaiu ihc
oosiic ol his iiuc qualiiics. Anu hcai-
ing such ihings woulu ncvci aiousc onc`s
ucsiic io hnu oui ]who hc was|.
'.

Imam al-Ghazzal`s insighi comcs liom his
ucc unucisianuing ol human naiuic anu
ihc vcils ihai cxisi ovci human hcaiis as a
icsuli ol lacIgiounu anu iioi social conui-
iioning. Hc icmaiIs in his looI DeII.e.nre
.o E..o.
(%
ihai mosi colc, incluuing
Muslims, simly lollowcu ihc icligion ol
ihcii aicnis. Hc noicu ihai lcw Muslims
aciually luml ihc ucihs ol any maiici ol
icligion io ascciiain loi ihcmsclvcs whcih-
ci ihc lclicl is iiuc oi noi. Alici cxlaining
his lclicl aloui colcs ol oihci icligions,
hc laici iciiciaics his oini wiih cxcc-
iional claiiiy:
As loi ihc oihci naiions, ]consiuci
ihc cison| who imuics lying io ihc
Piohci alici hc has hcaiu ol ihc
imcccallc anu unucniallc iiansmis-
sions ol his acaiancc, his qualiiy, anu
his miiaclcs ihai suscnucu noimal laws,
such as his sliiiing ihc moon, ihc cl-
llcs iaising Gou in his hanu, ihc wcll-
ing u ol waici liom lciwccn his hngcis,

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anu ihc miiaculous Qui`an icvcalcu io
him, ihai challcngcu ihc cloqucni io
iival ii lui ]all who iiicu| lailcu. Il all ol
ihis ]inloimaiion| has icachcu his cais,
yci hc shuns ii, iuins his lacI, uocs noi
consiuci ii oi iccci on ii, anu uocs noi
hasicn io lclicvc in ii, ihcn such a ci-
son is inuccu a ucnici LIn) anu a liai,
anu hc is inuccu a uislclicvci I.).
Howcvci, such a cison uocs noi hi
ihc ucsciiiion ol mosi ol ihc Euiocans
anu Ccniial Asians who livc lai away
liom ihc lanu ol ihc Muslims. In laci, I
woulu aiguc ihai whocvci uiu hcai ihcsc
ihings aloui ]ihc Piohci | woulu
havc io havc wanicu io hnu ihcm oui in
oiuci io ascciiain ihc icaliiy ol whai is
claimcu. ]Such a cison woulu havc io
lc| a icligious cison who uiu noi ic-
lci woiluly maiicis io oihciwoiluly oncs.
Il hc lcli no uigc io hnu oui ]ihc iiuih|,
ii coulu only lc uuc io ihc laci ihai hc
was comlaccni, inclincu iowaiu ihis
woilu, anu lcicli ol iciy anu a scnsc ol
ihc momcniousncss ol icligion, anu ihai
is whai uislclicl Iu.) is.
Howcvci, il a cison lcli a ucsiic io
hnu oui ]ihc iiuih| lui ncglccicu io
uo so, ihai ncgligcncc is also uislclicl.
Inuccu, anyonc ol laiih in Gou anu ihc
Iasi Day liom any icligion will inuc-
laiigally sccI ihc iiuih alici hc has sccn
ihc acaiancc ol signs ihai suscnu
ihc noims ol cxciicncc miiaclcs). Il
somconc scis oui anu aiicmis io ascci-
iain ihc icaliiy lui uics lcloic lcing
allc io comlcic his invcsiigaiion, hc is
also loigivcn anu ihcn gianicu ihc vasi
mcicy anu giacc ol Gou. So havc a vasi
vicw ol ihc mcicy ol Gou, ihc cxalicu,
anu uo noi mcasuic uivinc maiicis wiih
limiicu oiuinaiy sianuaius. Anu Inow
wcll ihai ihc alicililc is similai io ihis
lilc, loi ]ihc Qui`an siaics|, You. .e-
nIor nrn ,ou. .eu..eIor I n ore ouI
(&:',).
Mosi colc in ihis woilu cnoy icla-
iivc sccuiiiy anu casc oi a siaic ihai
maIcs lilc cnoyallc, loi ihai icason, il
mosi colc wcic givcn a choicc lciwccn
lilc anu ucaih, loi cxamlc, ihcy woulu
choosc lilc. As loi ihosc sullciing io such
a ucgicc ihai ihcy woulu iclci ucaih,
such cascs aic iaic. Thosc conucmncu
cicinally io ihc Iiic in ihc alicililc will
also lc iaic, loi ihc aiiiiluic ol uivinc
mcicy uocs noi changc uuc io ihc uivci-
siiy ol oui ciicumsianccs, anu ihis lilc`
anu ihc alicililc` aic simly iwo cxics-
sions ucsignaiing ihc uivcisiiy ol oui cii-
cumsianccs. Wcic ii noi so, ihcic woulu
lc no mcaning io ihc siaicmcni ol ihc
Piohci whcn hc saiu, Thc hisi ihing
ihai Gou wioic in ihc hisi BooI was, `I
am Gou. Thcic is no uciiy lui Mc. My
mcicy iaIcs icccucncc ovci My wiaih,
so hc who wiincsscs ihai ihcic is no gou
lui Gou anu Muhammau is His scivani
anu His aosilc, loi him is ihc Gaiucn.``
(&

Thcic is no uouli ihai ihc uislclicvcis aic
in ihc Inlcino, lui Imam al-Ghazzal is
cxlaining ihai Iu. is an aciivc ucnial, noi
a assivc siaic ol ignoiancc. Thai is, ucnial
musi lollow a clcai unucisianuing ol whai
onc is ucnying. Moicovci, loi ihosc who
aic sinccic, ii is noi only unucisianuallc
lui ncccssaiy ihai ihcy woulu scaich loi
ihc iiuih.
Imam al-Suyui siaics in his laiwa aloui
ihc Piohci`s laihci anu moihci anu ihcii
lacc in ihc hcicalici,
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Hc ]ihc Piohci`s laihci| was living uui-
ing a iimc in which ignoiancc civaucu
ihc woilu liom ihc Easi io ihc Wcsi, ihc
scholais ol ihc Pcolc ol ihc BooI wcic
scaiicicu in vaiious lanus, such as ihc
Icvani, anu lcw among ihcm Incw ol
sacicu laws anu coulu convcy ihc uivinc
mcssagc coiiccily. Nciihci ol ihc iwo
]ihc Piohci`s moihci anu laihci| was
accusiomcu io iiavcling, wiih ihc cxcc-
iion ol iiavcling io Mcuina, noi uiu
ciihci ol ihcm livc vciy long, living longci
woulu havc cnallcu ihcm io uisuc ihc
iiuih anu cxaminc maiicis, lui, in laci,
loih livcu vciy shoii livcs. Imam al-Hahz
Salah al-Dn al-Ala` says in his looI
nI-Du..nL nI-nrI,,nL ihai ihc Piohci`s
laihci Alu Allah was usi cighiccn ycais
olu whcn Amina lccamc icgnani, hc
iiavclcu io Mcuina io liing somc uaics
lacI io his lamily anu uicu whilc ihcic
wiih his cousins liom Ban Naai.
('

Hcncc, accoiuing io ihc imam, ihc
Piohci`s aicnis uiu noi livc long cnough
io consiuci maiicis ol uliimaic conccin,
anu ihis lacioi musi lc iaIcn inio consiu-
ciaiion loi ihcm anu loi oihci colc. In
auuiiion, a wcll-Inown sounu hauiih iclls
ihc sioiy ol a mass muiucici who soughi
iccniancc anu was iolu ly a scholai io go
io such-anu-such lanu whcic ihcic wcic
goou colc who woishicu Gou. Thc
man sci oui lui uicu on ihc way. Thc angcl
ol mcicy wishcu io claim him lccausc hc
hau iccnicu anu his hcaii was hllcu wiih
coniiiiion. Thc angcl ol wiaih, on ihc
oihci hanu, aigucu ihai ihc man hau ncvci
uonc anyihing goou in his lilc. To sciilc
ihc uclaic, ihc iwo angcls wcic insiiucicu
io mcasuic ihc lanu anu uciciminc il hc
was closci io ihc lacc ol uislclicl ihai hc
hau lcli lchinu oi ihai ol lclicl io which
hc was hcaucu. Accoiuing io ihc hauiih,
Gou shoiicncu ihc uisiancc lciwccn ihc
man anu ihc lanu ol lclicl, so ihc angcl
ol mcicy iooI him. This is a clcai hauiih
showing ihai a man can lc on a ouincy
ol laiih anu noi aiiivc ai his ucsiiny lcloic
uying, lui lc savcu noncihclcss ly Gou`s
mcicy.
((

Accoiuing io Imam al-Shah, il a cison
Iills anoihci cison lcloic Islam was ic-
scnicu io him uccisivcly uqIn nIn,L. nI-
Lun),
()
ihc muiucici musi ay ihc lloou
moncy anu cxiaic In.nL) lui noi sul-
lci lcx ialionis lccausc ihc man was noi a
Muslim lcgally lui was onc csscniially .
nr nI-uII). Iln Rila commcnicu on
ihis in nI-1I,nL saying, ]Hc is unucisioou
io lc a Muslim| lccausc hc was loin wiih
inhcicni naiuic .nL) anu no ouiwaiu
sign ol olsiinacy hau lccn uislaycu.`
(*
In
oihci woius, Iln Rila also siaics ihai uislc-
licl is aciivc anu noi assivc. Iuiihcimoic,
Imam al-Nawaw says in his commcniaiy on
Imam Muslim`s hauiih collcciion aloui ihc
chiluicn ol olyihcisis,
Thc iclciicu anu sounucsi school ol
ihoughi aloui ihcm anu ihc onc mosi ol
ihc auihoiiiaiivc scholais havc inclincu
iowaiu is ihai ihcy aic in Paiauisc lascu
uon Gou`s woiu, Ve no ro urIL n eoIe
urII n eere. oe o Le ]&,:&*|. So
il Gou uocs noi unish an auuli lccausc
no mcssagc has icachcu him, olviously,
chiluicn woulu lc cvcn moic sccuic.
(+

Imam al-Suyui commcnis:
Docs ihis incluuc all ol ihc colc uui-
ing ihc ic-Islamic ciiou. No. I woulu
say ii comiiscs only ihosc who wcic noi
icscnicu wiih a iohciic mcssagc ai
all. As loi ihosc who wcic givcn a io-
hciic mcssagc lcloic anu coniinucu on
in ihcii uislclicl, ihcy aic cciiainly liom
among ihc ucnizcns ol ihc Iiic.
(,

In ihcii cxicnsivc commcniaiy, SLn.L
n.Ln.n nI-n.L.n, ihc iwo ihcologians,

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ShayIh Alu al-Kaim Taian anu ShayIh
Muhammau Aul al-Klan, concui wiih
Imam al-Ghazzal on ihc maiici:
In ihc hauiih in which ihc Piohci
saiu, By ihc Onc in whosc Hanu lics my
soul, anyonc, whcihci cw oi Chiisiian,
who hcais ol mc liom ihis communiiy
anu uics wiihoui lclicving in mc is liom
ihc ucnizcns ol ihc Iiic.` Accoiuing
io ihc scholais, ihcic aic ihicc laciois
involvcu hcic:
A cison hcais ol ihc Piohci , anu
ihis incluucs his mcssagc anu ihc iools ol
iis vciaciiy.
A cison icluscs io lclicvc in whai was
givcn io ihc Piohci .
A cison uics in ihai siaic.
Hcncc, a cison who ncvci hcaiu ol ihc
Piohci , such as somconc living in a lai
oll lacc, anu ]who| was noi mauc awaic
ol ihc iiuihlulncss ol his claims, is noi
accouniallc..Anu somc scholais sulmii-
icu ihai il ihc mcssagc aiiivcs io somconc
in a uisioiicu oi lalsc anu unacaling
loim hllcu wiih ihc ciiois ol ihosc who
lcau oihcis asiiay, ihcn ihc iuling ol such
a cison is ihc samc as ihough ihc mcssagc
ncvci aiiivcu io him, unlcss hc is allc io
scc ihiough ihc smoIcsciccn ol lics lui
siill iuins away.
(-
Iln MuIanuii, onc ol Imam MaliI`s icach-
cis anu a gicai scholai liom among ihc
!I.r
(.
saiu, I am shy lcloic Gou io say
ihai His mcicy will lail anyonc among ihc
uisolcuicni, anu hau ii noi lccn loi ihc
clcai icvclaiion conccining ihc olyihc-
isis, I woulu noi havc icmovcu ihcm liom
inclusion in ihc vcisc, A, e., erone
nII LIr.` Also, Imam al-Munaw quoics
onc ol ihc scholais as saying,
Thc uivinc icscncc is alsoluic, anu
Gou uocs in ii whaicvci Hc lcascs. No
onc among ihc lclicvcis has any guaian-
icc ol sccuiiiy liom uivinc iciiiluiion loi
his oi hci sins. Bui colc will lc cling-
ing io such ihings as ]Gou`s siaicmcni|,
A, e., nIe .eenere o.e. A, ..nL.
)%

Boih ShayIh Muhy al-Dn l. al-Aial anu
Iln Taymiyyah hclu hciciouoxic vicws con-
ccining ihc Hcllhic as a icsuli ol ihcii
aiicmis ai icconciling uivinc mcicy wiih
ihc iuca ol inhniic unishmcni loi hniic
sins. In onc iiansmission consiucicu sounu,
ShayIh Iln Taymiyyah inclincu iowaiu an
Annihilaiionisi vicw, which holus ihai cvcn-
iually ihc Iiic is cxiinguishcu. Thc hciciic
ahm l. Salwan also shaicu ihis vicw, anu
ii is common among somc cwish cihicisis.
ShayIh Muhy al-Dn l. al-Aial hclu ihai
cvcniually ihc colc ol ihc Iiic lccomc
hic-liIc anu no longci lccl ain lui aciu-
ally comc io cnoy ihc Iiic.
)&
Ii was Imam
al-Ghazzal, may Gou icwaiu him, who
was allc io cluciuaic an oiihouox icsolu-
iion io ihc ihoiny ihcological iollcm ol
ihcouicy ly iniiouucing ihc clcmcni ol
conscious iccciion ol Gou oi any ol His
mcsscngcis as ihc ncccssaiy anu sulhcicni
causc loi ciuiiion. Inuccu, accoiuing io
al-Ghazzal, many colc will cnici ihc
Iiic loi ihcii vaiious sins ihai ihcy lailcu io
uigc oi aionc loi in ihis woilu, lui Gou`s
THE DIVINE PRESENCE IS ABSOLUTE,
AND GOD DOES IN IT WHATEVER
HE PLEASES. NO ONE AMONG THE
BELIEVERS HAS ANY GUARANTEE
OF SECURITY FROM DIVINE
RETRIBUTION FOR HIS OR HER SINS.
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mcicy will iaIc icccucncc, anu ihc maoi-
iiy will cvcniually lc liccu ol ihc Iiic.
Thc Qui`an uocs maIc mcniion ol ihosc
who icmain loicvci in ihc Iiic. ShayIh
Hasan al-HalannaIah al-Mayuan says,
Thc Qui`an is uncquivocal ihai ihc uis-
lclicvcis who havc no cxcusc loi ihcii
uislclicl LnI.u nI-nnLu. !I Iu.ILI)
aic liom ihc ucnizcns ol ihc Iiic in ihc
ncxi lilc anu will uwcll ihcicin loicvci in
unishmcni. Moicovci, Gou will noi loi-
givc ihcm loi ciihci ihcii uislclicl Iu.)
oi ihcii associaiion wiih Him LI.I),
whilc Hc will loigivc ihosc among ihc
sinlul lclicvcis, loi Gou`s mcicy will
cncomass ihcm wiih loigivcncss anu
aiuon oui ol uivinc gcnciosiiy anu
giacc, il Gou so wills.
)'

Thc ociaiivc hiasc hcic is ihosc who
havc no cxcusc loi ihcii uislclicl.` Thcsc
aic ihc colc who willlully icccicu ihc
iiuih, liIc Ills, oui ol aiiogancc, noi igno-
iancc. Thosc who wcic iiuly unawaic may
scnu iimc in ihc Hcllhic, lui ihcy will
cvcniually lc showcicu in uivinc giacc, as
Imam al-Ghazzal inuicaics. Thc Qui`an
iclcis io uislclicl accomanicu ly cciiain
chaiaciciisiics ihai inuicaic ihc vilc naiuic
ol ihosc who Inowingly anu willlully iccci
ihc mcssagc.
Thc Piohci ucsciilcu ihc uislclicv-
cis in ihc sounu hauiih in al-BuIhai as ihc
ucnizcns ol ihc Iiic,` saying, Shall I noi
icll you who ihc ucnizcns ol ihc Iiic aic.`
His comanions iclicu, Inuccu, icll
us.`
Hc ihcn saiu, Evciy ciucl, haish, ullcu
u, miscily, aiiogani onc.`
)(
In auuiiion, a lamous hauiih, which is
ihc hisi hauiih iiansmiiicu io siuucnis ol
hauiih, siaics, Whocvci shows no mcicy
will havc no mcicy shown ]io him|.`
))
Anu
in anoihci sounu hauiih, a iosiiiuic is loi-
givcn loi liinging waici io a ihiisiy uog.
)*

gZaVi^ dch]^ e d[ bjha^ bh l^ i]
eZdeaZh d[ di]Zg [V^ i]h
Thc Gou ol Islam is ihc Gou ol humaniiy-
ihc Gou ol ihc cws, Chiisiians, Salians,
Magians, anu Polyihcisis. Hc lccus anu
nuiiuics ihcm all loilcaiingly anu giacc-
lully. Hc allows ihosc who cvcn ucny His
cxisicncc icsiic ihai cihas ihcy may ic-
iuin.` Hc has challcngcu ihosc who lclicvc
in Him anu honoi Him io inlusc ihcmsclvcs
wiih ihc qualiiics ihai Gou has choscn io uc-
sciilc Himscll wiih: mcicy, comassion, loi-
givcncss, aiicncc, loilcaiancc, anu lovc.
Oui Piohci saiu, Nonc ol you iiuly
lclicvcs uniil hc lovcs loi his lioihci whai
hc lovcs loi himscll.` Imam al-Nawaw saiu
in his commcniaiy,
This shoulu hisi anu loicmosi lc unuci-
sioou as univcisal lioihcihoou so ihai ii
incluucs ihc Muslim anu ihc non-Muslim
I.). A man shoulu wani loi his lioih-
ci, ihc non-Muslim, ihai hc cnicis inio
a siaic ol sulmission wiih his Ioiu. As
loi his Muslim lioihci, hc shoulu wani
ihai his siaic ol sulmission coniinuc. Ioi
ihis icason, iaying loi ihc guiuancc ol
non-Muslims is lclovcu anu icwaiucu ]ly
Gou|. Thc hauiih shoulu lc unucisioou
io ncgaic comlcic laiih anu noi laiih
cniiicly loi ihc onc who uocs noi lovc
loi his lioihci whai hc lovcs loi himscll.
Moicovci, ihc mcaning ol lovc hcic is
ihai onc ucsiics goou anu lcnchi loi
oihcis. This is a siiiiual lovc anu noi a
naiuial lovc. Ioi human naiuic is such
ihai colc loaihc goou oi uisiinciion
loi oihcis ovci ihcmsclvcs. Bui man musi
go againsi ihis naiuic anu oosc ii anu
iay loi his lioihci anu ucsiic loi his lcl-
low man whai hc lovcs loi himscll. Anu
whcncvci hc is unallc io uo ihai, ii is
lccausc hc is cnvious.. So man shoulu
iicai himscll anu loicc his cgo io lc con-
icni wiih ihc uccicc ol Gou anu oosc
his own cgo ly iaying loi his cncmics.
)+

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Only whcn wc icach ihis lcvcl ol laiih
anu chaiiiy ihai Imam al-Nawaw ucsciilcs
will oui conuiiion changc. Wc aic in an
oicsscu, lowly siaic lccausc ii is whcic
wc lclong in oiuci io lcain ihc lcssons
wc nccu io lcain. Muslims loigci ihai oui
Piohci was cisccuicu in Mccca loi
ihiiiccn ycais, yci hc siill iaycu loi his
colc`s guiuancc. Hc was aluscu on ihc
laiilchclu in Uhuu yci siill callcu oui io
his Ioiu, O my Ioiu, loigivc my colc
loi ihcy uo noi Inow whai ihcy uo.`
),
This
shoulu lc oui icsonsc io colcs ol oihci
laiihs. Oui conccin shoulu ncvci lc aloui
whcic oihci colc aic going, noi shoulu
wc cvci ucsiic loi oihcis whai wc uo noi
ucsiic loi ouisclvcs. Raihci, oui conccin
shoulu lc ihc qucsiion Gou asIs us all:
VLe.e Ler n.e ,ou oIr.`
cdiZh
& Alu BaIi l. IuiaI al-Islahan, 1I! nI-Lunun
. nI-u;uI Bciiui: Dai al-Ghail al-Islam,
&...), &&%.
' Iliu.
( Alu al-Baqa` al-Kallaw, nI-1uII., Bciiui:
Mu`assasai al-Risalah, &..(.), ,+).
) This is a nuanccu lcgal uugmcni lascu
uon ihc sounu hauiih. Ii uocs noi mcan
ihai Muslims cannoi accci lcgal lcqucsis
liom non-Muslim iclaiivcs, ihcy can. Bui
ihcy cannoi, gcncially, accci a uisiiiluiion
sysicm in inhciiiancc laws oihci ihan ihc will
ol a cison, such as siaic uivision in inicsiaic
siiuaiions. Each sccihc casc shoulu, how-
cvci, lc iclciicu io a valiu mulii.
* Iln uzayy al-Kall, TnL.I II uIu nI-nr..I,
Bciiui: Dai al-Qalam, n.u.), ':&%%.
+ Noahiiic laws aic ihosc ihai Gcniilc naiions
aic icquiicu io iaciicc. Accoiuing io somc
iallis, ihc cws, who aic choscn ly Gou
as ihc law-lcaicis, musi lollow +&( sacicu
icccis anu aic io icach ihc Gcniilcs only
scvcn as a mcicy io ihcm. Thcy aic: &)
iohiliiion ol llashcmy, ') iohiliiion ol
iuolaiiy, () iohiliiion ol muiuci, )) io-
hiliiion ol ihcli, *) iohiliiion ol scxualiiy
ouisiuc maiiiagc incluuing loinicaiion, lcs-
iialiiy, anu homoscxualiiy, +) iohiliiion ol
consumiion ol lloou oi mcai iaIcn liom a
livc animal, anu ,) olligaiion ol csiallishing
couiis ol law anu aoinimcni ol uugcs io
cnsuic colc havc iccouisc io usiicc anu
ihc icuicss ol wiongs. Alihough hlial uuiy io
aicnis is cncouiagcu, ii is noi a commanu-
mcni io Gcniilcs.
, K. Kohlci, Je.IL TLeoIo,: S,enInII, nrn
HIo.InII, CorIne.en Ncw YoiI: MacMillan,
&.&-), )',.
- ShayIh BaIi Raal, Tn.(IL LIn,n nI-u..n
II Ln.L n.Ln.n nI-n.L.n Bciiui: Dai al-
Khayi, &..)), &''.
. Alu al-Hasan Al al-Wahiu, A!! Nu.uI
nI-Qu.`r, Bciiui: Dai al-Kuiul al-Ilmiyyah,
&..-).
&% Scc Tn.. nI-Tn!n.. anu Tn.. I!r 1nL...
&& SnL.L AuII, BooI '%, No. )*,( 8 )*,).
&' SnL.L AuII, BooI ), No. '%((.
&( SnL.L BuIL.., Vol. ., BooI --, No. ++',.
&) SnL.L BuIL.., Vol. -, BooI ,(, No. &'*,
SnL.L AuII, BooI &, No. %&&,.
&* Alu al-Rahman l. Malluh, cu. Anun rn(
.n nI-rn., cuuah: Dai al-Wasla, &...),
Vol. ', *, ))*.
&+ SnL.L BuIL.., Vol. ), BooI *', No. '-%. 8
'-,'.
&, Sunan al-Tiimiuh, Vol. ', BooI &, No. &))+.
&- Imam al-Qaial says in nI-Fu.uq, Know ihai
ignoiancc is noi an cxcusc loi siaicmcnis
ihai coniain uislclicl in ihcm. Thc icason
loi ihis is ihai a uiisiic iincilc siaics, `Any
ignoiancc ihai can lc icmovcu on ihc aii
ol ihc ignoiani, sanc, auuli Muslim cannoi
lc uscu as a iool loi him.` Gou has scni
io His cicaiion mcsscngcis io icmovc ihis
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ignoiancc liom ihcm. Iuiihcimoic, Gou
olligcu all ol ihcm io lcain ihc mcssagc anu
io aci in accoiuancc wiih ii. Hcncc, whocvci
alanuons lcaining anu iighi aciion, anu
icmains in a siaic ol ignoiancc has sinncu
uoully, ncglcciing io lcain, anu lailing io
aci accoiuing io ihc icaching. Il hc lcains
lui lails io aci, his sin is only ihc lailuic io
aci on his Inowlcugc. Howcvci, whocvci
lcains anu acis is ihc onc in a siaic ol giacc.`
Scc ShayIh Muhammau al-Baqqui, Tn..!
nI-u.uq .n IILI;.IL, Casallanca: al-Awqal,
&..+), ':(,).
&. Sauiq al-Ghiiyan, F. nI-nq.nnL .n nI-IrL
Bcnghazi: Dai al-Kuiul, '%%'), &%+. Thc six
conuiiions wcic also iaIcn liom ihis scciion,
an cxccllcni looI, wiih somc auuiiions.
'% Rcoiicu ly al-Hamu in his Aurnn.
'& Iln Alu al-Baii, nI-TnL.n al-Muhammaui-
yyah: al-Maila`ah al-Iauiliyah, &.--).
'' Oncncss ol Gou.
'( al-Kallaw, nI-1uII.,, ,+*.
') Surur nI-TI.InL., Vol. ', BooI &, No. &))+.
'* al-Ghiiyan, F. nI-nq.nnL, &%).
'+ Iln uzayy al-Kall, TnL.I, &:)-).
', SnL.L BuIL.., Vol. ), Book *', No. '-%. &
'-,'.
'- ShayIh Alu al-Rahman Hasan al-Hala-
nnaIah al-Mayuan, nI-Aq.nnL nI-1II,,nL
.n UuuL Damascus: Dai al-Qalam, &..,),
+&*.
'. Alu Hamiu al-Ghazzal, Anun .n`II
nI-CLn..I. Bciiui: Dai al-Kuiul al-Ilmiyyah,
&..)), .+.
(% Iliu.
(& Iliu., .,.
(' Imam alal al-Dn al-Suyui, nI-H.. II nI-n..
Bciiui: Dai al-Kiial al-Aial, n.u.), ':)%..
(( Imam Yahya l. Shaial al-Nawaw, SLn.L .I,(
nI-;IIL.r, iians. anu commcniaiy, Hahz Salah
al-Dn Yusul Riyau: MaIialai Dai al-Salam,
&..-), &:('.
() This mcans ihai ihc iools ol Islam havc
lccn icscnicu in an inconiiovciiillc man-
nci. Ii uocs noi mcan simly iclling ihcm
ihcy shoulu lccomc a Muslim. Onc woulu
ihinI ihai usi sccing ihc Piohci was
iool cnough, lui ii iooI scvcial ycais
lcloic somc ol his comanions icalizcu ihc
iiuih. Alu Iahal, on ihc oihci hanu, woulu
ncvci icalizc ii, anu ihus his laic was scalcu
liom ihc ouisci.
(* al-Suyui, nI-H.. II nI-n.., ':)%-.
(+ Imam Yahya l. Shaial al-Nawaw, SnL.L
AuII !I-Ln.L nI-Nn.n.. Caiio: Mailaah
Hiaz, &.(%), Vol. &+, '%..
(, al-Suyui, nI-H.. II nI-n.., ':)%-.
(- ShayIh Alu al-Kaim Taian anu ShayIh
Muhammau Aul al-Klan, SLn.L n.Ln.n
nI-n.L.n Damascus: Dai al-Basha`ii, &..)),
&:&)+.
(. Thc scconu gcnciaiion ol Muslims who mci
ihc comanions ol ihc Piohci lui noi
ihc Piohci .
)% Imam Muhammau Alu al-Raul al-Munaw,
Fn,( nI-qnn.. Bciiui: Dai al-Islam, &..+),
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