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:

Assalam-o-Alaikum,

I am Shia muslim, today on a site I read abstract from address fo Haq Nawaz Jhangvi, in which he said that Shia are not muslims, because they have Masla-e-Bidaa (in asool-e-kaafi, book 1, page 148), that Allah can forget something (Naoozo billah), he also said that Shia doesn`t

agree on any event/problem with other muslims, like they have daifferent way of Namaaz, time difference in fasting in Ramazan, marriage, hajj, zakaat and Talaaq.

Please reply me soon in detail, that these differences make any difference?

(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:

Shia are not Muslims

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever 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.

Beloved brother in Islam, when one declares the ‘shahaadah’ or testimony of faith, believes in Allah Subhanah as the One and Only Lord and Creator, believes in Mohamed (saws) as the Last and Final Messenger, believes in the Message of the Glorious Quran as the Last and Final Revelation and believes in the advent of the Last Day; he will be recognized and honored as a believer by the other believers, and all the rights that are due to a believer will be accorded to him in full.

No matter what he does, short of openly declaring that he himself wishes to leave the fold of Islam, the person with the above beliefs will remain a muslim in sight of Shariah and the believers.

Sunan of Abu-Dawood Hadith 2526 Narrated by Anas ibn Malik

The Prophet (saws) said: “Three things are the roots of faith: to refrain from (killing) a person who utters, "There is no god but Allah" and not to declare him unbeliever whatever sin he commits, and not to excommunicate him from Islam for his any action.”

No matter what the person does, the true believers and muslims are bound to stay within the limits declared by Allah and His Messenger (saws), and we are commanded in the above authentic tradition of the Messenger of Allah (saws) never to declare one who utters the Shahaadah an unbeliever no matter what sins he commits, and never ever to ex-communicate him from Islam for any of his actions.

Allah Subhanah, on the Day of Judgment will decide who amongst mankind truly followed His Guidance and obeyed His Messenger (saws). He will Judge with Justice and only on that Day one will find out who is a true muslim, and who is not. Allah Subhanah will not Judge man according to whether he called himself a Shia, or a Sunni, or a Hanafi, or a Malaki, or a Ismaili, or a Bohra, etc.

Anyone who declares the testification of faith that there is no god except Allah, and Mohamed (saws) is His Messenger (saws) will be deemed a believer in the sight of Shariah and Islamic Law; and all the rights that are due to a muslim will be accorded to him.

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 49 Surah Hujaraat verses 10: The believers are the brothers of one another; so set the relations right between your brethren and fear Allah. It is expected that you will be shown Mercy.

In these trying times for the Muslim Ummah, it is our duty and responsibility as believers in Allah and His Messenger (saws) that instead of going to the extremes in the deen and declaring or siding with people who call each other ‘kaafirs’ or disbelievers because of small differences, we must follow the commandment and guidance of our Merciful Lord and ‘set the relations right between your brethren and fear Allah.’

For one sect in Islam to accuse the other sect in Islam of ‘kufr’ and ‘shirk’ will do nothing, but weaken and destroy the Brotherhood of Islam, which is exactly what is happening today in our Ummah. How is it possible that both profess solemn belief in Allah and His Messenger (saws), and then declare each other as disbelievers???

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.

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.

My dear and beloved brother in Islam, no matter how many shortcomings one might think the other has, our only duty and responsibility is to invite them to the Truth of Islam from the Quran and Sunnah with wisdom and in the best possible manner, and leave the Judgement to Allah Subhanah.

Allah says in the Holy Quran: Chapter 16, Surah An-Nahl Ayat 125: Invite to the way of your Lord with wisdom and excellent admonition and argue with people in the best manner. Your Lord knows best who has gone astray from His Way and who is Rightly guided.

May Allah Subhanah have mercy on the Ummah of Islam, and guide them to be united in the One Brotherhood of Islam. May Allah Subhanah save us from the prevailing ‘fitnah’ created by some people who accuse each other of disbelief, and propagate one muslim to fight against his brother muslim in the name of ‘Islam’! May Allah Subhanah forgive us our shortcomings, and save the Ummah from being weakened and broken up into our own self-invented sects and creeds, and unite us all in the worship of the One and Only True Lord of the Worlds.

If one trusts, obeys, and follows the guidance and commands of Allah and His Messenger (saws), he can be assured of never ever being misled; but if one believes, obeys and follows any other guidance, other than that of Allah and His Messenger (saws), he can be assured of being led astray.

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 in Islam,

Burhan