Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

Dawoodi Bohra Helpline

1. In your reply dated 25^th June, 2001, to my questions dated 18^th June, you have given the following answers to my questions as under:

Question 1: Further in this matter what was the belief in Dawoodi Bohra faith upto the 46^th Dai? Correct or otherwise? I have already clarified that I do not believe in the Najmi faith.

In your reply you have accepted as under:

"Allah alone knows best what was the belief of Bohras upto 46^th Dai, or even beyond, Brother, Obviously nothing is mentioned in the Quran about the Dawoodi Biohra or the Najmi faith, And thus we neither have any knowledge about it, nor are we able to comment on it"

2. Brother, my intention of this question was only because of the use of the word Dawoodi by you.

My first question as repeated by you was

" The word Dawoodi in the belief of Bohras, is used since Hijri 1000 with reference to the Name of the Haadi in comparison to Suleman. Today is there any Dawoodi by birth? Can any one be a Dawoodi or today who is the one in accordance with Dawoodi faith? What is the belief? Is the Dawoodi Bohra Faith of today the same as that of Hijri 1000 or what is the difference? If this question is posed in a Court proceeding, with which documentary evidence can it be proved?

3. My question was only on the word Dawoodi, are you a Dawoodi or not ? The word Dawoodi came to be known in Hijri 1000 and not in the year Hijri 10. Therefore no such word as Dawoodi can be seen anywhere in the Quran.

4. In your reply you have exaggerated about Sunnis and Shias. If you would have studied this aspect of religion, then you could have know from the Ayats of the Quran. Your have narrated various Ayats, but without relevance to my question. There is only one Quran and one Nabi, but who are Muslims? According to Quran Musalmans were very much there even before the revelation of Quran as it will be seen in Ayat-78 of chapter-22 about the dignity of Maulana Ebrahim Saheb as Muslim. If you are in possession of any copies of Taurat or Injil of that time, which is impossible but it is obligatory on you to believe in what is revealed (Verse-3, Chapter-3)

5. You may be having whatever knowledge of the verses of Quran, your contention on the words Muslim-Shia and Sunni, but the main aim of the Shias as per Verses 67 and 3 of Chapter 5, is the event of Gadhir-e-Khum, if you believe in Ayat-10 of Chapter-5. On the other hand the main aim of the Sunnis is as per Ayat-1 and 3 of Chapter-66 and Ayat-59 of Chapter-4. Therefore, the question is -there were how many believers and of what kind?

6. Concerning the word ‘Dawoodi’ perhaps you may be aware of the Mogul Emperors Akbar and Aurangzeb. During the regime of Aurangzeb, the Haadi of Haq of the Dawoodi Bohra faith had to bear Shadat-sacrifice life as Shahid. So be it! You are not interested in these historical events. Whatever verses are there in Quran and whosoever are the believers, but it is meaningless to narrate the verses of Quran without any purpose. So be it! One may believe as he wishes.

7. In regard to Sajda, your contnetion that Sajda can be offered to Rab or Allah, but who was Maulana Adam Saheb, Allah or Rab? The word of Sajda is mentioned in Quran. But if someone tries to imply some other meaning such as Reverence(A’dab) , Ibadat, Thanksgiving(Shukurguzari), such interpretation would be the work of renegades(munkirs). Any believer in Quran cannot add or alter in the original words which are narrated in Quran. Sajda was for Allah or Rab and if Maulana Adam Saheb was described as Allah or Rab then it would have been proper - but Maulana Adam Saheb is described as Bashar.

My aim is on Dawoodi Bohra faith ,in case you are really inclined and if you have true knowledge then I am interested.

There has been a delay in replying to your mail dated 25.6.2001 as I was out of station. I hope you will reply to my specific queries.

(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)

ANSWER:

You have exaggerated about Sunnis & Shias.

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and who-ever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Your comment: My question was only on the word Dawoodi, are you a Dawoodi or not ?

Although we were born in a family who claimed to be Dawoodi Bohras, Allah guided us to read and understand the Quran. Thus today, we left all the names and ‘deens’ created by man, and are proud to be called and recognized by the name that Allah has bestowed on the believers: Muslims. We thus worship and invoke Allah Alone, and obey and follow only Allah and His Messenger (saws).

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 22 Surah Hajj verse 77-78: O you who have believed, do ‘rukooh’ (bow down) and do ‘sajdah’ (prostration), and worship your Lord Allah Alone, and do righteous deeds: it may be that you attain true success! Exert your utmost for the cause of Allah, as one should. He has chosen you for His service, and has not laid on you any hardship in your religion. Therefore, be steadfast in the religion of your father Abraham. Allah had named you ‘muslims’ before this, and has named you (muslims) in this Quran also, so that the Messenger may be a witness in regard to you, and you may be witnesses in regard to the rest of mankind. Therefore, establish the ‘salaat’ and pay the ‘zakaat’, and hold fast to Allah. He is your ‘Maula’: what an excellent ‘Maula’ and what an excellent Helper!

Your comment: In your reply you have exaggerated about Sunnis and Shias. If you would have studied this aspect of religion, then you could have know from the Ayats of the Quran. Your have narrated various Ayats, but without relevance to my question. There is only one Quran and one Nabi, but who are Muslims? According to Quran Musalmans were very much there even before the revelation of Quran as it will be seen in Ayat-78 of chapter-22 about the dignity of Maulana Ebrahim Saheb as Muslim. If you are in possession of any copies of Taurat or Injil of that time, which is impossible but it is obligatory on you to believe in what is revealed (Verse-3, Chapter-3)

There is absolutely no place for Shias or Sunnis in the deen of Islam. We all belong to One Ummah and Allah has called us ‘muslims’! There is indeed only One Allah, and He revealed the Holy Quran to the Last Messenger, Mohamed ibn Abdulla (saws). The ‘deen’ of Islam was brought by the first man on this earth, Hadrat Adam (a.s.) and all the subsequent prophets of Allah brought the same deen. That is: To worship the One Lord and associate no partners with Him! Thus whoever followed this deen, submitted to their Creator and were all thus ‘muslims’. We absolutely agree with you that muslims existed long before the Revelation of the Quran, as those who truly followed the Prophets and believed in Allah Alone were muslims.

Your comment: You may be having whatever knowledge of the verses of Quran, your contention on the words Muslim-Shia and Sunni, but the main aim of the Shias as per Verses 67 and 3 of Chapter 5, is the event of Gadhir-e-Khum, if you believe in Ayat-10 of Chapter-5. On the other hand the main aim of the Sunnis is as per Ayat-1 and 3 of Chapter-66 and Ayat-59 of Chapter-4. Therefore, the question is -there were how many believers and of what kind?

Firstly, lets analyze the aayahs you have quoted and see if what you say is indeed true.

You say the Shias base their beliefs on these aayahs:

Chapter 5 aayah 3: You are forbidden carrion and blood, the flesh of swine and of that animal which has been slaughtered in any other name than that of Allah, and of the strangled animal, and of that beaten to death, or killed by a fall or gored to death or mangled by a beast of prey; save of that you duly slaughtered while it was still alive, and all of that which is slaughtered at (un-godly) shrines. It is also unlawful for you to try to find your fortune by means of divining devices, for all these are sinful acts. Today the disbelievers have despaired of (vanquishing) your deen; therefore do not fear them but fear Me. Today, I have perfected your religion for you and completed My blessing on you and approved Islam as the way of life for you. If however, one, dying of hunger, eats of any of these forbidden things, provided that he is not inclined towards sin, he will find Allah Forgiving and Compassionate.

Use your commonsense and tell me on what basis can this above aayah be used for the basis of forming the deen of Islam? This aayah consists of ‘shariah’ commandments, of what is legal and illegal. Where is the event of the Ghadir-e-Khum and the appointment of Hadrat Ali (r.a.) and his descendants as the Prophet’s successors in the above aayah? Brother, it is nothing but mis-guidance to take out a few words from the middle of an aayah and form a deen on it. The whole Quran is a book of guidance, and the whole Quran forms the deen of Islam!

Chapter 5 aayah 67: O Messenger, convey to the people whatever has been sent down to you from your Lord; for, if you do not do this, you will not be doing justice to His Message. Allah will protect you from the mischievous deeds of the people. Rest assured that He will not show the disbelievers the way to success.

Again, where is the event of Ghadir-e-Khumm and the appointment of Hadrat Ali (r.a.) and his descendants as the Successors in the above aayah? There is absolutely no reference in the Holy Quran to the events quoted by the Shiite scholars. And if one reads the Quran in context, and reads the aayahs before and after aayah 67, (65,66, & 68) you will soon realize that Allah is admonishing the Jews and the Christians, rather than allowing some unscrupulous people to break up their Ummah of Islam into sects from this one or two aayahs of the Quran.

Chapter 5 aayah 68: (Tell them): “O people of the Book, you have no valid ground to stand on unless you observe the Torah and the Gospel and the other Books which have been sent down to you from your Lord.” It is certain that the foregoing decree which has been sent down to you from your Lord, will increase all the more the rebellion and disbelief of many of them, but you should not grieve for the disbelievers.

Chapter 5 aayah 10: As for those who disbelieve and treat the Revelations of Allah as false, they shall go to Hell.

Again, how can the Shiites form a belief from the above aayah regarding the appointment of Hadrat Ali (r.a.) and his descendants as the Successor of the Prophet (saws). Brother, we must realize and understand it well, that the Quran is the Book of guidance from Allah. The whole Book is a book of guidance and it leaves no room at all for taking out one or two aayahs and forming a deen on it, and leaving the rest of this Glorious Book alone! This is nothing but mis-guidance. This is exactly what happens when unscrupulous people try to give evidence for their false beliefs from the Holy Quran, when there is none available. For the Shias the appointment of Hadrat Ali (r.a.) as the First Khalifa is paramount, and then after Hadrat Ali (r.a.) his descendants. It would have no difference to Islam and its followers if Hadrat Ali (r.a.) had been chosen as the first Khalifa. Islam was completely revealed before the death of the Prophet (saws), and nothing could be added or subtracted from the deen of Islam. And the thing to note here was that if the appointment of Hadrat Ali (r.a.) and his descendants was so pivotal to Islam as some sects believe, Allah could have mentioned it clearly in the Quran. Brother, Allah did not and does not forget anything, and He is Far Exalted and Above what these people associate with Him.

Your Comment: On the other hand the main aim of the Sunnis is as per Ayat-1 and 3 of Chapter-66 and Ayat-59 of Chapter-4.

Chapter 66 aayahs 1-3: O Prophet, why do you make unlawful that which Allah has made lawful for you? (Is it because) you seek the goodwill of your wives? Allah is All Forgiving, All Merciful. Allah has already appointed a way to absolve you from your oaths. Allah is your Master, and He Alone is the All Knowing, All Wise. The Prophet had confided a matter to a wife in secret. Then, when she disclosed the secret, and Allah informed the Prophet, the Prophet made known part of it and overlooked part of it. So when the Prophet told her, she asked, “Who informed you of this?”. The Prophet said, “I was informed by Him Who knows everything and is the All Wise.”

I am really at a loss here to understand how could these aayahs form the belief of any sect of Islam!!!!! The Whole Quran was revealed for our guidance and the whole Quran has to be used in context to form the deen of Islam.

Chapter 4 aayah 59: O believers, obey Allah and obey the Messenger, and those entrusted with authority from amongst you. Then if there arises any dispute about anything, refer it to Allah and the Messenger, if you truly believe in Allah and the Last Day. This is the only Right Way and will be best in regard to the end.

The command of Allah to obey Him and His Messenger is related by Allah in several places in the Quran. This aayah was an injunction to the believers to obey Allah, obey His Messenger, and those who are entrusted with authority from among them. And if there was any dispute with this authority, they must all refer back to the Quran and Sunnah if they indeed believed in Allah and the Last Day. And Allah says that this is the only Right Way; ie. To obey Allah and His Messenger, and no muslim can deny that.

Your comment: Therefore, the question is -there were how many believers and of what kind?

During the time of the Prophet (saws) there was only one kind of true believers… Those who believed in Allah and the Messenger (saws), and they were all muslims. There were no Shias, no Sunnis, no Ismaelis, no Dawoodi Bohris, nothing! Just muslim. All these sects were created long after the death of the Prophet (saws), against the direct command of Allah Subhanah in the Quran.

Allah says in Chapter 30 Surah Rum aayat 31-32: "This (Islam) is the right and true faith, but most people do not know. (Be steadfast on this) turning wholly and sincerely towards Allah Alone, and fear Him, and establish the Salat, and do not be like the mushriks, who have set up their separate creeds and divided themselves into sects, each sect rejoicing in what it has."

Allah says in Chapter 45 Surah Al-Jathiyah aayat 17

"Then they differed amongst themselves after the knowledge (of Islam) had come to them, only because they wanted to wrong one another. Your Lord will judge between them on the Day of Resurrection concerning the matters in which they have been differing."

Just look at the Anger and Wrath of Allah described on those who break up their religion into sects:

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 23 Surah Mu’minoon verse 52-54: And you all belong to one and the same ummah, and I (Allah) am your Lord; so fear Me Alone! Yet afterwards the people divided themselves into different sects, and each sect rejoicing in what it has. Well, leave them deeply involved in their heedlessness up to an appointed time.

This Ummah of Islam is One Ummah, and Allah is our Lord. Thus to answer your question directly: There were only one kind of believers and they were all muslims.

Your comment: Concerning the word ‘Dawoodi’ perhaps you may be aware of the Mogul Emperors Akbar and Aurangzeb. During the regime of Aurangzeb, the Haadi of Haq of the Dawoodi Bohra faith had to bear Shadat-sacrifice life as Shahid. So be it! You are not interested in these historical events. Whatever verses are there in Quran and whosoever are the believers, but it is meaningless to narrate the verses of Quran without any purpose. So be it! One may believe as he wishes.

Whoever is a true believer, believes and follows Allah and His Messenger (saws). Whatever happened after the death of the Prophet (saws) is the history of the muslims. Allah was a witness to those events, and he will judge each according to his deeds, and He will not ask us about them.

Allah says extremely clearly in Chapter 2 Surah Baqarah verse 134: They were a people who passed away. They shall receive the reward of what they earned, and you shall have the reward of what you will earn. And you will not be questioned as to what they did.

Your Comment: One may believe as he wishes.

Indeed, Allah has given each individual common-sense and intelligence and has given him the freedom to choose what he wishes to believe. Whoever believes in the guidance sent down by Allah is Rightly guided. Whoever follows other Personalities and forms his ‘deen’ on his wishes and whims, strays away from the Straight Path and will be accountable to Allah on the Day of Judgement.

Your Comment: In regard to Sajda, your contnetion that Sajda can be offered to Rab or Allah, but who was Maulana Adam Saheb, Allah or Rab? The word of Sajda is mentioned in Quran. But if someone tries to imply some other meaning such as Reverence(A’dab) , Ibadat, Thanksgiving(Shukurguzari), such interpretation would be the work of renegades(munkirs). Any believer in Quran cannot add or alter in the original words which are narrated in Quran. Sajda was for Allah or Rab and if Maulana Adam Saheb was described as Allah or Rab then it would have been proper - but Maulana Adam Saheb is described as Bashar.

There is absolutely no doubt that Hadrat Adam (a.s.) was a human being, created by Allah Subhanah. The sajdah done to him was not done by humans, but rather by the angels and jinns on the specific command of Allah Subhanah. It was neither done is respect, nor in shukr, nor in worship! It was done because Allah Subhanah commanded the angels and the jinns to do sajdah to Adam, and they all obeyed except Iblis.

The other place where a sajdah was done to humans in the Holy Quran is to Hadrat Yusuf (a.s.) by his brothers. The commentators have given many explanations for this sajdah done. Some say it was just like a little bowing down as some people in the East do even today. Some say that maybe in the ‘shariah’ of Hadrat Yusuf (a.s.), this was allowed.

But in the ‘shariah’ of Islam, and in the context of the Holy Quran, a believer must do sajdah only to His Creator. There is absolutely no room in the ‘shariah’ of Islam to do this act of worship to anyone or anything else, and the Holy Quran is very specific about this issue. No one loved and respected the Holy Prophet (saws) more than his noble companions…. But there is not a single instance whereby any of the noble companions ever did this rite of sajdah to the Prophet (saws). Sajdah in Islam is due only to the Lord of the Worlds.

We absolutely agree with you that if anyone does this rite of sajdah to anybody or anything else, they are renegades in Islam, and have shared the exclusive Right of Allah with others.

Your Comment: My aim is on Dawoodi Bohra faith ,in case you are really inclined and if you have true knowledge then I am interested.

Brother, honestly, we have no knowledge of the Dawoodi Bohra faith. Our basis and field of study in Islam is only the Quran and Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (saws). There is neither a third source, nor is it needed for one to formulate the Straight Path.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

May Allah guide you and us all to the Siraat al-Mustaqeem

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your brother and well wisher in Islam,

Burhan