REASONS FOR A MUSLIM'S MISGUIDANCE OR DEVIATION

Bismillahir rahmaanir raheem. Allahumma Sallai wa Baarik 'Ala Muhammad wa 'ala Aaali Muhammad 

 ‘Imam al Barbahaaree in his Sharh as-Sunnah said “ And ‘Umar Ibn khattab (r.a) said,
“there is no excuse for anyone going astray, thinking that he is upon Guidance, nor for abandoning Guidance thinking it is to be misguidance, since the affairs have been made clear, the proofs have been established and the excuse has been cut off

[Quoted in the explanation of sharh al sunnah by shaikh saleh al fawzaan hafidhahullah ]

Now there are various reasons for a Muslim's deviation. They could be discussed at length. However, i will keep it brief and align it in short bullet points

Table of Contents

REASON # 1 : NEGLIGENT PARENTS 

REASON # 2 : LACK OF KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THE RELIGION

REASON # 3 :  FOLLOWING THE DESIRES

REASON # 4 :  WIFE, CHILDREN & WEALTH:

REASON # 5 : EVIL OR NON-ISLAMIC/NON RELIGIOUS FRIENDS

REASON # 6 : ELDERS OR THE ARROGANCE TO STICK TO FOREFATHERS EVEN WHEN TRUTH IS PRESENTED.

REASON # 7: FAKE OR IGNORANT POSING TO BE SCHOLARS

REASON # 8: USING LOGIC OR ANY OTHER REASON TO DEFY , DISOBEY OPPOSE ALLAH AND HIS MESSENGER (s.a.w)

REASON #9 : IMITATING THE KUFFAR/WESTERN OR NON ISLAMIC CULTURE


REASON # 1 : NEGLIGENT PARENTS

How many times have we seen children develop the love for gambling, partying, drinking, not praying, not knowing the rules of their religion Islam, only due to the negligence of the parents . This negligence is further dependent on other reasons such as desires which make the parents far from Islam and thus become negligent or lack of proper knowledge and source to learn from

The prophet (s.a.w) said : "There is no person to whom Allaah has given people to take care of, and he fails to take care of them properly, but he will not smell the fragrance of Paradise."

[Saheeh Bukhari no. 6731; Saheeh Muslim, no. 142]

Abdullah bin Umar reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said, “Every one of you is a shepherd and is responsible for his flock. The leader of the people is a guardian and is responsible for his subjects: a man is the guardian of his family and is responsible for his subjects, a woman is the guardian of her husband’s home and of his children and is responsible for them, and the slave of a man is a guardian of his master’s property and is responsible for it. Surely, everyone of you is a shepherd and responsible for his flock.”

[Sahih Muslim, Book 20, Number 4496]

The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “It is sufficient sin for a man to neglect his dependents.”

[Narrated by Abu Dawood; classed as saheeh by Shaykh al-Albaani]


 {When it is said to them: "Follow what Allaah has sent down." They say: "Nay! We shall follow what we found our fathers following." (Would they do that!) even though their fathers did not understand anything nor were they guided?} [Surah al-Baqarah (2):170]


Shamsuddeen Muhammad bin Abee Bakr Ibn Qayyim aj-Jawzeeyah (d.751 A.H.) -Rahimullaah- said:

'Allaah's advice for fathers with their children precedes advice for children with their fathers.

So whoever was careless and negligent of educating his son, and leaves off benefiting him and leaving him useless, then he has been evil to him, extremely evil.

Indeed most children being corrupt is due to their fathers, and then being neglectful of them.

Them leaving their education of the Faraid (obligations) and the Sunnan (practices of the Sunnah) of the religion, so they caused them to be lost when they were young. Then the fathers did not benefit from them when they were older.

Just like some fathers held it to be shameful that their children were disobedient, so the child says, O my father you showed disobedience to me when I was young,  so now I'm being disobedient to you now that I am older. You caused me to be lost when I was a boy,  so I caused you to be lost in your old age.'

[From 'Tuhfat al-Mowdood bi Ahkaam al-Mowlood' p.387 also see page 229]


Imam Ibn Qayyim al-Jauziyyah:

“How many people have caused misery to their own children, the apples of their eyes, in this world and in the Hereafter, by neglecting them, not disciplining them, encouraging them to follow their whims and desires, thinking that they were honoring them when they were in fact humiliating them, that they were being merciful to them when in fact they were wronging them. They have not benefited from having a child, and they have made the child lose his share in this world and in the Hereafter. If you think about the corruption of children you will see that in most cases it is because of the parents.” 


[Ref: Tuhfat al-Mawlood, pg: 146; Benefited from sayings of scholars page]

See how well the children turned out to be who studied their religion since childhood: http://the-finalrevelation.blogspot.in/2013/03/the-children-who-sought-knowledge-of.html


REASON # 2 : LACK OF KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THE RELIGION



How many Muslims end up praying wrongly or not understanding the very fundamental of Islam i.e Tawheed. How many Muslims have we seen indulging in shirq like intercession via the dead or directly seeking from the dead? How many Muslims have we seen who are subjected to evil so called Scholars, or modern influences which are one of the biggest factors in misleading the Youth or Muslim to speak of. They follow falsehood thinking it is the truth because of either lack of knowledge or desires or arrogance to follow their fore-fathers  or its like.

Anas ibn Malik reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “Seeking knowledge is an obligation upon every Muslim; and one who imparts knowledge to one undeserving is like him who puts jewels, pearls, and gold around the necks of swine.”

[Sunan Ibn Majah, Book 1, Number 224, Hasan]

The Prophet (peace be upon him) stated:

“may allah brighten (the face of) a person who hears a hadith from us (me) and memorizes it to convey it to others; for perhaps a receptor of knowledge is more knowledgeable than a transmitter, and perhaps a transmitter (of knowledge), is not versed in knowledge.”

(Al-Tirmidhy, Sunan, Book on knowledge, no. 2656; Abu Dawud, Sunan, Book on knowledge, no. 3660; Ibn Majah, Sunan, Book on asceticism, no. 4105; Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Musnad, vol. 5, p. 183; and Al-Darimy, Sunan, Introduction, no. 229.)


One should Go step by Step

Abdullaah bin Mas’ood: ”No one is born a scholar, knowledge comes with studies”


[Jaami'ul Bayaan al-'ilm wa fadhlihi volume 1 page 200]

az-Zuhree: ”Whoever wishes to gain ALL knowledge at once and become a scholar over night, that knowledge will leave him quickly, rather take things one step at a time” 
[Jaami'ul Bayaan al-'ilm wa fadhlihi volume 1 page 206]



In the version of Al-Baihaqee: on the authority of Jundub رضي الله عنه that he said: “We were youths around the Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم. He صلى الله عليه وسلم would teach us Imaan before the Qur’aan; and then (later) heصلى الله عليه وسلم would teach us the Qur’aan. And it (the Qur’aan) increased our Imaan. But as for you today, you are taught the Qur’aan before Imaan.”

[Sunan al-Kubraa (5070)]

`Abdullaah ibn `Umar رضي الله عنه said, “We lived during an instant of time in which one of us would receive Imaan (faith) first before receiving the Qur’aan. And when the Surahs were revealed to (Prophet) Muhammadصلى الله عليه وسلم, we would learn what they permitted and what they prohibited and what they commanded and what they forbade and what should be the stance towards them. But I have seen many men, from whom one is given the Qur’aan before Imaan, and he reads it from the opening of the Book to its closing and he does not know what it orders and what it forbids and what should be his stance towards it. He is like someone who is just throwing out dates [i.e., he does not get any benefit from his recital].”

[al-Haakim in his “al-Mustadrak” (101) said: “It is Saheeh as per the condition of the Shaikhain (al-Bukhaaree and Muslim) and I do not know of any defect in it, but they did not record it.” Also reported by al-Baihaqee in “Sunan al-Kubraa” (5073) and the wordings are his.]

Hudhaifah (bin al-Yaamaan) رضي الله عنه said: “We are the (group of) people, who were given Imaan before they were given the Qur’aan. And you are the (group of) people, who were given the Qur’aan before they were given Imaan.

[al-Baihaqee “Sunan al-Kubraa” (5074)]


REASON # 3 :  FOLLOWING THE DESIRES:

 {Have you seen him who takes his own lust (vain desires) as his ilaah (god)? And Allaah knowing (him as such), left him astray, and sealed his hearing and his heart, and put a cover on his sight. Who then will guide him after Allaah? Will you not then remember?} [Surah Al-Jaathiyah (45): 23]

REASON # 4 :  WIFE, CHILDREN & WEALTH:

 {O you who believe! Let not your properties or your children divert you from the remembrance of Allaah. And whosoever does that, then they are the losers.} [Surah al-Munaafiqoon (63):9]

 {O you who believe! Verily, among your wives and your children there are enemies for you (who may stop you from the obedience of Allaah); therefore beware of them! But if you pardon (them) and overlook, and forgive (their faults), then verily, Allaah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.} [Surah al-Taghaabun (64): 14-15]

REASON # 5 : EVIL OR NON-ISLAMIC/NON RELIGIOUS FRIENDS

{And (remember) the Day when the heaven shall be rent asunder with clouds, and the angels will be sent down, with a grand descending. The sovereignty on that Day will be the true (sovereignty) belonging to the Most Gracious (Allaah), and it will be a hard Day for the disbelievers (those who disbelieve in the Oneness of Allaah – Islaamic Monotheism). And (remember) the Day when the Zaalim (wrong doer, oppressor, polytheist) will bite at his hands, he will say: "Oh! Would ( I wish) that I had taken a path with the Messenger (Muhammad [صلى الله عليه وسلم]). "Ah! Woe to me! Would that I had never taken so-and-so as a Khaleel (an intimate friend)! "He indeed led me astray from the Reminder (this Qur'aan) after it had come to me. And Shaitaan (Satan) is to man ever a deserter in the hour of need.} [Surah al-Furqaan (25): 25-29]

 Narrated Abu Hurayrah رضي لله عنه: The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said: “A man follows the religion of his friend; so each one should consider whom he makes his friend.”

[Sunan Abu Dawood (4833) and Tirmidhee (2378), and graded as “Hasan” (good) by Shaikh al-Albaanee]

On the authority of Abu Musa al-Ash'ari (رضي الله عنه ), the Prophet (صلي الله عليه و سلم ) said:

A good friend and a bad friend are like a perfume-seller and a blacksmith: The perfume-seller might give you some perfume as a gift, or you might buy some from him, or at least you might smell its fragrance. As for the blacksmith, he might singe your clothes, and at the very least you will breathe in the fumes of the furnace.

[Sahih al-Bukhari, vol 3, #314 and Muslim]


Another hadeeth says : "A man will be with whom he loves" So one should Love the religion to find people who are religious

It is reported that Sufyaan ath-Thawree (Allaah have mercy upon him) said: There is nothing that corrupts a person or rectifies him more than [his] companions.

(Ibn Battah, Al-Ibaanah al-Kubraa, article 504)

REASON # 6 : ELDERS OR THE ARROGANCE TO STICK TO FOREFATHERS EVEN WHEN TRUTH IS PRESENTED.

 We should respect our elders, and treat them kindly. But we should only obey them as long as they do not oppose Allaah’s Book or the Prophet’s Sunnah.

 {When it is said to them: "Follow what Allaah has sent down." They say: "Nay! We shall follow what we found our fathers following." (Would they do that!) even though their fathers did not understand anything nor were they guided?} [Surah al-Baqarah (2):170]

 {On the Day when their faces will be turned over in the Fire, they will say: "Oh, would that we had obeyed Allaah and obeyed the Messenger (Muhammad [صلى الله عليه وسلم])." And they will say: "Our Lord! Verily, we obeyed our chiefs and our great ones, and they misled us from the (Right) “Way. "Our Lord! Give them double torment and curse them with a mighty curse!} [Surah al-Ahzaab (33): 64-68]

Those who do blind taqleed of their forefathers (Baap Dada or Buzurgaane Deen as they call it in the South Asian continent) give various excuses or reasons such as being from the majority but they don't ponder when Allah said :

 {And if you obey most of those on the earth, they will mislead you far away from Allaah's path. They follow nothing but conjectures, and they do nothing but lie.} [Surah al-An`aam (6): 116]

See our 4 Imaams and 40+ quotes of salaf against Taqleed: http://the-finalrevelation.blogspot.com/2012/08/4-imams-forbidding-taqleed.html


REASON # 7: FAKE OR IGNORANT POSING TO BE SCHOLARS

O ye who believe! There are indeed many among the priests and anchorites, who in falsehood devour the substance of men and hinder (them) from the Way of Allah. And there are those who bury gold and silver and spend it not in the Way of Allah: announce unto them a most grievous penalty. [Quran 9.32,34 ]

Abu Dhar said, "I was with the Prophet (Sallal lahu aliwasalam) one day and I heard him saying: "There is something I fear for my Ummah more than the Dajjal." It was then that I became afraid, so I said: "Oh Rasool Allah! Which thing is that?" He (SAW) said; "Misguided and astray scholars."

(Reference:-Recorded in Musnad Imam Ahmad (no.20335, 21334 and no.21335). Sheikh Shu'ayb al Arna'ut graded it sahih li ghayri (authentic due to corroborating narrations) in his tahqiq of the Musnad (1999 ed., 35:21,296-97)

Abu Huraira reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “There will appear in the later days men who confuse the world with the religion. They will appear harmless as lambs, with words sweet as honey, but they will have the heart of a wolf. Allah will say: They want to deceive me? They want to defy me? I swear by Myself, I will send a tribulation upon them that will cripple the most forbearing among them.”

[Sunan At-Tirmidhi 2404]

Ady said: 

I came to the Prophet (peace be upon him) wearing a cross of gold in my neck. He said, "O `Ady! Take this idol (cross) off your neck." I did so and came to him while he was reciting Surah (Qur'anic chapter) Al-Tawbah in the Ayah which reads: They (Jews and Christians) took their rabbis and their monks to be their lords besides Allâh (by obeying them in things which they made lawful or unlawful according to their own desires without being ordered by Allâh) When he finished it, I told him that we had not worshipped them.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) expounded:

"Did they not prohibit what Allah made lawful and make lawful what Allah prohibited and you followed in their footsteps?" `Ady answered in the affirmative, so that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said,

"THIS IS HOW THEY WORSHIPPED THEM."

(Al-Tabarany, vol. 17, p. 92, no. 218, and the wording is his; Al-Tirmidhy, vol. 5, p. 278, no. 3095


REASON # 8: USING LOGIC OR ANY OTHER REASON TO DEFY , DISOBEY OPPOSE ALLAH AND HIS MESSENGER (s.a.w)


An article refuting the use of logic or opinion or self interpretation of Qur`an and sunnah is published here: http://the-finalrevelation.blogspot.com/2014/02/warning-from-self-interpretation-of.html
 {It is not for a believer, man or woman, when Allaah and His Messenger [صلى الله عليه وسلم], have decreed a matter that they should have any option in their decision. And whoever disobeys Allaah and His Messenger [صلى الله عليه وسلم], he has indeed strayed into a plain error.} [Al-Ahzaab (33): 36]

Allaah تعالى said:

{O you who believe! Raise not your voices above the voice of the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم), nor speak aloud to him in talk as you speak aloud to one another, lest your deeds may be rendered fruitless while you perceive not.} [Surah al-Hujuraat (49):2]

 On the authority of Abu Hurairah رضي الله عنه, who said: I heard the Messenger of Allaah صلى الله عليه وسلم say: “What I have forbidden to you, avoid; what I have ordered you [to do], do as much of it as you can. It was only their excessive questioning and their disagreeing with their prophets that destroyed those who were before you.” [Saheeh al-Bukhaaree (7288) and Saheeh Muslim (2388, 4355)]

Imaam Ibn al-Qayyim رحمه الله said:

“If just raising their voices above the voice of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was a reason to make their deeds fruitless (and futile), then what about those who give precedence to their own opinions, intellects, preferences, politics, and understanding over and above that which the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم came with? Is it not that these are more liable to have their deeds rendered futile?”

[I`laam al-Mooqi`een (1/41)]

Narrated: Ali ibn Abu Talib : If the religion were based on opinion, it would be more important to wipe the under part of the shoe than the upper but I have seen the Messenger of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) wiping over the upper part of his shoes.

[Sunan Abu Dawood, Book of purification, Hadith no. 162, 164 and also see hadith no. 163 last part. Some graded it weak but Albani graded it as saheeh, However the matan is saheeh ]

‘Umar b. Al-Khattâb – Allâh be pleased with him – said:

Verily, the followers of opinion are the enemies of the Sunan (the teachings of Allâh’s Messenger as passed down in hadith): they were unable to preserve them and their meanings escaped them, and when asked [questions] they were too embarrassed to say ‘We don’t know,’ so they opposed the Sunan with their opinions.

[Ibn Abî Zamanîn, Usûl Al-Sunnah article 8; Al-Lâlakâ`î, Sharh Usûl I’tiqâd Ahl Al-Sunnah article 201 et al.]


REASON #9 : IMITATING THE KUFFAR/WESTERN OR NON ISLAMIC CULTURE

Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah:

“The reason why the religion of Allah and its rituals is vanishing, and kufr and sin are prevailing, is because of imitation of the kaafireen, just as the means of preserving all good is by following the ways and laws of the Prophets. “
[REF  : al-Iqtidaa’, 1/413]