-Continuing a discussion about the woman covering her face-
Shaikh al-Albaani:
“Ibn `Abbaas and Ibn `Umar, from the major Companions, explained the verse {except what appears therefrom}[1] to be the face and hands. And they (those who say that a woman must veil her face) do not have a single authentic narration from the Companions with which they can support their opinion that a woman’s face must be covered.”
Q: “Is the Friday bath (ghusl) obligatory upon a woman?”
Shaikh al-Albaani:
“If the Friday prayer fundamentally is not obligatory upon her, then how can the subsidiary issue (the bath) be obligatory when the fundamental (the prayer) isn’t?”[1]
[1] Shaikh Bin Baaz, Shaikh Ibn al-`Uthaimeen and Shaikh Fawzaan likewise said that the Friday bath is specifically for men – those who must attend the Friday prayer – not women.
[al-haawee min fataawaa ash-shaikh al-albaani p. 447 / asaheeha translations]
Q: “Is it best for a woman to pray in her house or in a mosque near her house?”
Shaikh al-Albaani:
“It is best for her to pray in her house, unless there is a class or exhortation in the mosque from which the woman would benefit, then here the ruling switches: it becomes best for her to pray in the mosque. But if there is just prayer (in the mosque), then (her praying) in the house is better. Meaning, if there isn’t anything in the mosque except the congregational prayer, then her praying in her house is better for her than her praying in her mosque – contrary to if there was a class or exhortation in the mosque, then her praying in the mosque is better for her.”
[silsilat ul-hudaa wa nnoor 4/2 / asaheeha translations]
Questioner: “If the Day of ‘Arafah coincides with Friday, and if a woman becomes pure from menstruation on Thursday or a traveler returns home on Thursday, is it allowed for such a person to fast on Friday alone for the Day of ‘Arafah?”
Shaikh al-Albaani: “No. Is it obligatory to fast on the Day of ‘Arafah?”
Questioner: “No.”
Shaikh al-Albaani: “And is it allowed to fast on Friday alone?”
Questioner: “No.”
Shaikh al-Albaani: “So then, if the prohibition conflicts with the allowance, then the prohibition is given precedence over the allowance. So the answer (to your question) is that it is not allowed.”
[silsilatul-hudaa wa-nnoor 484/5 / asaheeha translations]
~Reconciling between the two hadeeths:
‘Don’t fast on Saturday unless it is obligated upon you, and even if you don’t find anything but a bark of a tree, chew on it’[1]
&
‘Don’t fast on Friday except by also fasting a day before it or a day after it’[2]~
Shaikh al-Albaani:
“The one who has in his mind this general prohibition of all fasts that fall on Saturdays except those that are obligatory which must be done, we say to him: don’t fast on Friday to thereafter fast on Saturday. As for the one who fasts on Friday (alone) because he doesn’t have knowledge of this prohibition, then we say to him: fast Saturday along with Friday.
There is still the generality of the hadeeth: ‘Don’t fast on Saturday unless it is obligated upon on.’ It does not contradict with the command to fast on Saturday with Friday for the one who has already fasted on Friday. In such a case, his fasting on Friday singly is prohibited, so to be free from falling into this prohibition, he is obligated to fast on Saturday.
Whoever fasts on Friday not knowing that it is forbidden to fast on it alone, then he (also) fasts on Saturday, because he is obliged to fast in this situation. But the one who knows, then he is not allowed to fast on Friday except if he had already fasted on the Thursday before it.”
[1] Saheeh at-Tirmidhee 744, Saheeh Ibn Maajah 1413
[2] Saheeh al-Bukhaari 1985
[silsilatul-hudaa wa-nnoor 495/4 & 669/24 / asaheeha translations]
Q: “What is the ruling of fasting on the Day of ‘Aashooraa or ‘Arafah if it coincides with Saturday?”
Shaikh al-Albaani:
“With regard to (the hadeeth) ‘Don’t fast on Saturday,’ some people are under the false impression that if we leave off fasting on Saturday due to it coinciding with the Day of ‘Aashooraa or the Day of ‘Arafah or the like, then we would lose the excellence of fasting on one of these two days that coincided with Saturday. No, we would not lose, (rather) we would make two gains.
The first gain is that we have submitted our hearts and souls to the statement of our Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam): ‘Don’t fast on Saturday unless it is obligated upon you, and even if you don’t find anything but a bark of a tree, chew on it’ [1]. Hence we have followed this hadeeth because fasting on the Day of ‘Arafah and fasting on the Day of ‘Aashooraa are not obligatory. The Messenger (‘alayhi ssalaam) only made obligatory fasts an exception – if they coincide with Saturday, it is allowed to fast them, (but) those fasts other than the obligatory ones, we were prohibited from fasting them (if they coincide with Saturday).
The second gain is that we are included in the likes of his (‘alayhi ssalaam) statement: ‘Whoever leaves something for Allaah’s Sake, Allaah will replace it for him with something better’[2]. So we have left fasting on the Day of ‘Arafah due to it coinciding with Saturday. We have not lost the fast of the Day of ‘Arafah. Why? Because we have left it for the sake of Allaah, so Allaah will replace it for us with something better. The same thing is said even more so regarding the fast of the Day of ‘Aashooraa.”
[1] Saheeh at-Tirmidhee 744, Saheeh Ibn Maajah 1413
[2] Shaikh al-Albaani graded it authentic in Hijaabul-Mar.ah p.49
[silsilatul-hudaa wa-nnoor 211/6 / asaheeha translations]
IS A MUHADDITH ALSO A FAQEEH? AND WHAT EXACTLY IS FIQH?
al-asalaah 7, p. 71/3
asaheeha translations
Q: “What relation does the science of fiqh have with the science of hadeeth? And is it necessary for a muhaddith (scholar of hadeeth) to be a faqeeh (scholar of fiqh), or just a muhaddith?”
Shaykh al-Albaani:
“A faqeeh must be a muhaddith, but a muhaddith does not have to be a faqeeh because a muhaddith is naturally a faqeeh. Did the Companions of the Prophet (sallAllaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) used to study fiqh or not? And what was the fiqh that they used to study? It was what they used to take from the Messenger of Allaah (sallAllaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam), hence they would study hadeeth.
As for these fuqahaa who study the statements of the scholars and their fiqh, but don’t study the hadeeth of their Prophet who is the very source of fiqh, then it is said to such individuals: it is obligatory for you to study the science of hadeeth as we truly cannot imagine sound fiqh without knowledge of hadeeth in terms of hifdh, and knowing that which is authentic and that which is inauthentic; and at the same time we cannot imagine a muhaddith who is not a faqeeh.
So the Qur’aan and the Sunnah are the source of fiqh – all fiqh. As for the fiqh that is common these days, then this is the fiqh of the scholars and not the fiqh of the Book and the Sunnah. Yes, some of this fiqh is taken from the Book and the Sunnah, and some of it is merely opinions and ijtihaads, but in much of these (opinions and ijtihaads) they oppose the hadeeth because they did not have comprehensive knowledge of it.”
THE MOST BELOVED NAMES
source: nudhum al-faraaid, 202
asaheeha translations
Jaabir bin ‘Abdillaah (radhiAllaahu ‘anhu) narrated: “A son was born to a man amongst us, so they said: ‘What shall we name him?’ And the Prophet (sallAllaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) replied: ‘Give him the name that is most beloved to me: Hamza bin ‘Abdil-Muttalib.’”
Hasan. As-Saheehah no. 2878
Shaikh al-Albaani (rahimahullaah):
“This (being said), his statement ‘the name that is most beloved to me’ was before he received revelation of the hadeeth: ‘The most beloved of names to Allaah are ‘Abdullaah and ‘Abdurrahmaan.’”
