Tasbīḥ
The Ruling on Using Prayer Beads? (Q/A)
(Arabic: تسبيح) is a form of Dhikr that involves the repetitive utterances of short sentences glorifying Allah, in Islam. To keep track of counting either the phalanges of the right hand or a misbaha is used. The misbaha is similar to the prayer rope of the Eastern Church and the rosary in the Roman Catholic Church.
The term tasbih is an irregular derivation from subhan, which is the first word of the constitutive sentence of the first third of the canonical form of tasbih. The word literally means, as a verb, "to travel swiftly" and, as a noun, "duties" or "occupation." However, in the devotional context, tasbih refers to Subhana Allah, which is often used in the Qur'an with the preposition 'an (عن), meaning "'God is [de]void' [of what they (polytheists) attribute to Him]" (Al-Tawba: 31, Al-Zumar: 67 et al.). Without this preposition, it means something like "Glory be to God."
Tasbih of Fatima
In the early years of the Ali and Fatima marriage, Ali earned a little money. So he could not get servant for Fatima. Fatimah’s hands were blistered from constant grinding; her neck had become sore from carrying water; her clothes would become dirty from sweeping the floor. One day Ali was aware that prophet got some servants. Ali advised Fatima that asked a prophet’s servant. Fatima went, but she could not speak about it. Finally Ali with Fatima went to prophet house. Prophet did not accept their request. Prophet said “there is many orphan (starved), I have to sell these servants for feeding them”. Then prophet said “I give you one thing better than helping of servant”. He thought them a special manner of dhikr which is known as ‘’ tasbih of Fatima’’. The following is manner of it:[1]
Subhan'Allah (سبحان الله) (Glory be to Allah) – repeated 33 times.
Alhamdulillah (الحمد لله) (Praise be to Allah) – repeated 33 times.
Allahuakbar (الله أكبر) (Allah is the Greatest) – repeated 34 times.
After this adventure, Muslims have used to tasbih of Fatima after his prayer.
In an Hadith Narrated by Abu Huraira: Some poor people came to the Prophet and said, "The wealthy people will get higher grades and will have permanent enjoyment, and they pray like us and fast as we do. They have more money by which they perform the Hajj and 'Umra, fight and struggle in Allah's Cause and give in charity." The Prophet said, "Shall I not tell you a thing upon which if you acted you would catch up with those who have surpassed you? Nobody would overtake you, and you would be better than the people amongst whom you live except those who would do the same. Say "Sub-han-al-lah", "Alhamdu-lillah" and "Allahu Akbar" thirty three times each after every (compulsory) prayer." We differed, and some of us said that we should say "Subhan-al-lah" thirty three times and "Alhamdu lillah" thirty three times and "Allahu Akbar" thirty four times. I went to the Prophet, who said: "Say, "Subhan-al-lah" and "Alhamdu lillah" and "Allahu Akbar" all together for thirty three times." (Book #12, Hadith #804)
Dhikr is of great importance to the Muslims and believe that it has to be done as taught. However, adherents of the Salafi sect shun the use of Misbaha (prayer rope) as an innovation, preferring to stick to use of the fingers. the exact method believed to have been used by Muhammad. Muhammad is recorded to have ordered to count Dhikr on fingers and that the fingers in an accepted book of Hadith (sayings of Muhammad). (Abu Dawood 1501).
Misbahah
An Ottoman Marbled Faturan Prayer Bead
A Misbahah (Arabic: مسبحة), subhah (Arabic:سبحة), tasbih (Persian and Hindi-Urdu), or tespih (Albanian, Turkish and Bosnian) is a string of prayer beads which is often used by Muslims to keep track of counting in Tasbih. Also, it is the Arabic word for a prayer rope used by Christians to say the Jesus Prayer.
The Misbaḥah is also known as tasbih—not to be confused with Tasbih, a type of dhikr—in non-Arab Muslim regions, or subhah in Arabic. In Turkey, the beads are known as tespih.
Made of A Misbaḥah is a tool used to perform dhikr, including the 99 Names of Allah, and the glorification of God after regular prayer.
It is often made of wooden beads, but also of olive seeds, ivory, amber, pearls or plastic. A misbaha[4] usually consists of 99 beads (corresponding to the 99 Names of Allah), or sometimes 33 beads (in which case one cycles through them 3 times to equal 99).
History
It is thought that in the early Muslim era, loose pebbles were used or that people counted on their fingers.
According to the 17th-century ʻAllāmah Muhammad Baqir Majlisi, after the Battle of Uḥud, Fāṭimah would visit the Martyrs' Graveyard every two or three days, and then made a misbaḥah of Ḥamzah ibn ʻAbd al-Muṭṭalib's grave-soil. After that, people started making and using misbaḥahs.[citation needed]
According to a book written by Sidi Gabalza, the first who used misbaha is sufism, which combined the thought between Islam, Jews, Catholic, Manawi, Majus, Hindu and Buddha, along with the mystical philosophy of Pythagoras. However some hadiths state the benefit of using the fingers of the right hand to count tasbīḥ.
What is the Ruling on Using Prayer Beads?
Praise be to Allah
Some scholars say that it is permissible to use the masbahah (prayer beads), but they say that it is preferable to do tasbeeh (count praises) on one’s fingers; others say that it is bid’ah (reprehensible innovation).
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah said in al-Fatawa (22/187): “Some of them might show off by putting their prayer-mats over their shoulders and carrying their masbahahs in their hands, making them symbols of religion and prayer. It is known from the mutawatir reports (reports in such large numbers that they couldn’t be forged) that neither the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) nor his Companions used these as symbols. They used to recite tasbeeh and count on their fingers, as the hadeeth says: “Count on your fingers, for they will be asked, and will be made to speak.” Some of them may count their tasbeeh with pebbles or date stones. Some people say that doing tasbeeh with the masbahah is makrooh (disliked), and some allow it, but no one says that tasbeeh with the masbahah is better than tasbeeh with the fingers.” Then he (may Allah have mercy on him) goes on to discuss the issue of showing off with the masbahah, saying that it is showing off with regard to something that is not prescribed by Islam, which is worse than showing off with regard to something that is prescribed.
Al-Shaykh Muhammad ibn Salih al-‘Uthaymeen (al-Liqa al-Maftooh, 3/30) was asked whether using the masbahah for tasbeeh is bid’ah, and his reply was: “It is better not to do tasbeeh with the masbahah, but it is not bid’ah, because there is a basis for it, which is the fact that some of the Sahabah (Companions) did tasbeeh with pebbles. But the Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) taught us that tasbeeh with the fingers is better, as he said, ‘Count with the fingertips, for they will be made to speak.’ Doing tasbeeh with the masbahah is not haram (impermissible) or bid’ah, but it is better not to do it, because the one who does tasbeeh with the masbahah has shunned something better. Using the masbahah may also be contaminated with some element of showing off, because we see some people carrying masbahahs that contain a thousand beads, as if they are telling people, ‘Look at me, I do a thousand tasbeehs!’ Secondly, those who use the masbahah for tasbeeh are usually absent-minded and not focused, so you see them doing tasbeeh with the beads, but their gaze is wandering all over the place, which indicates that they are not really concentrating. It is better to do tasbeeh with one’s fingers, preferably using the right hand rather than the left, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) used to count his tasbeeh on his right hand. If a person counts his tasbeeh using both hands, there is nothing wrong with that, but it is better to use the right hand only.”
Al-Shaykh Muhammad Nasir al-Deen al-Albani said in Al-Silsilat al-Da’eefah (1/110), where he quotes the (weak) hadeeth “What a good reminder is the subhah [masbahah],”
“In my view, the meaning of this hadeeth is invalid for a number of reasons:
Firstly, the subhah [masbahah] is bid’ah and was not known at the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). It happened after that, so how could he (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) have encouraged his Sahabah to do something that was unknown to them? The evidence for what I have said is the report narrated by Ibn Waddah in Al-Bid’ wa’l-Nahy ‘anha from al-Salt ibn Bahram, who said: ‘Ibn Mas’ood passed by a woman who had a [masbahah] with which she was making tasbeeh, and he broke it and threw it aside, then he passed by a man who was making tasbeeh with pebbles, and he kicked him then said, “You think you are better than the Sahabah, but you are following unjustified bid’ah! You think you have more knowledge than the Companions of Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)!”’ Its isnad (chain of transmission) is saheeh (authentic) to al-Salt, who is one of the trustworthy (thiqah) followers of the Tabi’een (Successors).
Secondly, it goes against the guidance of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). ‘Abd-Allah ibn ‘Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) said, ‘I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) counting the tasbeeh on his right hand.’”
He also said (1/117): “If there is only one bad thing about the masbahah, which is that it takes the place of the Sunnah of counting on the fingers, even though all are agreed that counting on the fingers is preferable, then that is bad enough. How rarely I see people counting their tasbeeh on their fingers!
Moreover, people have invented so many sophisticated ways of following this bid’ah, so you see the followers of one of the [Sufi] tareeqahs (orders) wearing the masbahah around their necks! Or some of them counting with the beads whilst talking or listening to you! Or another one – the like of whom I have not seen for some time – riding his bicycle through a street crowded with people, with the masbahah in one of his hands! They are showing the people that they are not distracted from the remembrance of Allah for even an instant, but in many cases this bid’ah is a cause of their neglecting what is obligatory (wajib). It has happened many times – to others as well as myself – that when I greet one of these people with salam, they answer only by waving and not by saying the words of the greeting. The bad results of this bid’ah are innumerable, and no one can say it better than the poet:
‘All goodness is in following that which went before (the salaf)
All badness is in the innovations of those who came later.’”
Ruling on tasbeeh using the “electronic masbahah” program
Question:
Internet chat rooms the electronic masbahah for tasbeeh has become widespread. The way it is used is simple; it helps one to remember Allah and, to be honest,I like it. These days every time I turn on the computer, I open this program and I sit reciting tasbeeh (“Subhaan Allah – Glory be to Allah”) and tahleel (“La ilaaha ill-Allaah – there is no god but Allah”), and I make myself do it, and I do not close the page until I am done, without anything to distract me or make me forget. I know that tasbeeh (counting on) the hand is better, but I am busy on the Internet, so this is better for me. But I want to ask about the ruling on it, because I heard that they are saying that it comes from the Sufis, and I did not intend to imitate them; I only want to remember Allah. I would like to find out the ruling?
Answer:
Praise be to Allah.
Firstly:
The scholars differed concerning the ruling on the masbahah. Some of them said that it is an innovation (bid‘ah), and others said that that is not the case.
What there should be no dispute about is the following:
1.That counting tasbeeh on the fingers is better, because it is what the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) taught us.
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
Counting tasbeeh on the fingers is Sunnah, as the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said to the women: “Glorify Allah (by saying Subhaan-Allah) and count on your fingers, for they will be questioned and will speak.” End quote.
Majmoo‘ al-Fataawa, 22/506
Shaykh Muhammad ibn Saalih al-‘Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
But better than that [i.e., better than the masbahah] is for a person to count the tasbeeh on his fingers, because they will speak, as the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) taught. End quote.
Fataawa ash-Shaykh al-‘Uthaymeen, 13/173
2.Counting tasbeeh openly with the masbahah in order to show off is forbidden
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
With regard to adopting that – i.e., counting tasbeeh with the masbahah – unnecessarily or in order to show off to people, such as hanging it around one’s neck or wearing it like a bracelet on the arm, and so on, that is either showing off to people or is likely to be thought to be showing off and imitating those who show off unnecessarily. The former is haraam and the latter is, at the very least, makrooh, because showing off to people in doing private acts of worship such as prayer, fasting, dhikr and reading Qur’an, is one of the gravest of sins.
Majmoo‘ al-Fataawa, 22/506
3.Tasbeeh with the fingers when there is no focus of the heart or tongue on dhikr is invalid tasbeeh, which brings no reward to the one who does it.
Al-Mannaawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
As for what heedless people used to do, of holding a masbahah which is very ornate and costly, and carrying it without any presence of mind or thought, and talking or listening to people, or talking to them whilst moving its beads through his fingers, when his heart and tongue are distracted by worldly matters, this is blameworthy and is makrooh, and it is one of the worst of reprehensible deeds.
Fayd al-Qadeer, 4/468
Ibn al-Haaj al-‘Abdari (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
Some of them hold the masbahah in their hands, so that people can see it, and they move the beads one by one, as if they are counting their dhikr, and in fact they are talking and gossiping with people about what happened to this one and that one. Obviously a person has only one tongue, so his counting on the masbahah in this manner is worthless, because he does not have another tongue so that he could be reciting dhikr with one tongue and talking about whatever he wants to do with the other. So he can only be using the masbahah in this manner for the purpose of showing off and as an innovation.
Al-Madkhal, 3/205
Secondly:
We have looked at the program referred to in the question, and it seems to us that it is less serious than saying tasbeeh using the masbahah; if it is said that the masbahah is permissible, then by the same token this program may also be permissible. That is because some of the objectionable matters that are present in the case of the masbahah are not present in this program, such as showing off to people by using the masbahah, or counting tasbeeh on the hand when the heart and tongue are distracted by worldly matters or talking to people.
However, we should point out a number of things:
1.In the case of adhkaar for which no specific number was narrated from the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), it is not prescribed to adhere to a particular number in reciting them; rather the Muslim may remember his Lord however he likes, a little or a great deal.
The scholars of the Standing Committee for Issuing Fatwas said:
The basic principle with regard to dhikr and acts of worship is tawqeef (i.e., adhering to what is mentioned and prescribed in the Qur’aan and Sunnah and not worshipping Allaah in any way except that which has been prescribed on the lips of the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)). Based on this, in cases where a certain time, number of times, place or manner has been specified, we must worship Allaah in the way that has been proven in sharee’ah. But when Allaah has prescribed dhikrs, du’aa’ and other kinds of worship in general terms without specifying a particular time, number, place or manner, then it is not permissible for us to set limits with regard to the manner, time or number of times. Rather we should worship Him in general terms as it was narrated.
Shaykh ‘Abd al-‘Azeez ibn Baaz, Shaykh ‘Abd ar-Razzaaq ‘Afeefi, Shaykh ‘Abdullah ibn Ghadyaan, SHaykh ‘Abdullah ibn Qa‘ood
Majallat al-Buhooth al-Islamiyyah, 21/53; Fataawa Islamiyyah, 4/178
2.In the program there is a icon called “The Beautiful Names of Allah”, the author of which relied on a report narrated by at-Tirmidhi to list ninety-nine names of Allah. But this is a da‘eef (weak) report according to the consensus of hadeeth scholars.
We should also point out that it is not prescribed to remember Allah, may He be exalted, by repeating His name on its own; so it is not prescribed to remember Allah by saying “Ya Allah, Ya Allah, Ya Allah” or “Ya Quddoos, Ya Quddoos, Ya Quddoos (O Most Holy…)” and so on.
The Ruling on Using Prayer Beads? (Q/A)
(Arabic: تسبيح) is a form of Dhikr that involves the repetitive utterances of short sentences glorifying Allah, in Islam. To keep track of counting either the phalanges of the right hand or a misbaha is used. The misbaha is similar to the prayer rope of the Eastern Church and the rosary in the Roman Catholic Church.
The term tasbih is an irregular derivation from subhan, which is the first word of the constitutive sentence of the first third of the canonical form of tasbih. The word literally means, as a verb, "to travel swiftly" and, as a noun, "duties" or "occupation." However, in the devotional context, tasbih refers to Subhana Allah, which is often used in the Qur'an with the preposition 'an (عن), meaning "'God is [de]void' [of what they (polytheists) attribute to Him]" (Al-Tawba: 31, Al-Zumar: 67 et al.). Without this preposition, it means something like "Glory be to God."
Tasbih of Fatima
In the early years of the Ali and Fatima marriage, Ali earned a little money. So he could not get servant for Fatima. Fatimah’s hands were blistered from constant grinding; her neck had become sore from carrying water; her clothes would become dirty from sweeping the floor. One day Ali was aware that prophet got some servants. Ali advised Fatima that asked a prophet’s servant. Fatima went, but she could not speak about it. Finally Ali with Fatima went to prophet house. Prophet did not accept their request. Prophet said “there is many orphan (starved), I have to sell these servants for feeding them”. Then prophet said “I give you one thing better than helping of servant”. He thought them a special manner of dhikr which is known as ‘’ tasbih of Fatima’’. The following is manner of it:[1]
Subhan'Allah (سبحان الله) (Glory be to Allah) – repeated 33 times.
Alhamdulillah (الحمد لله) (Praise be to Allah) – repeated 33 times.
Allahuakbar (الله أكبر) (Allah is the Greatest) – repeated 34 times.
After this adventure, Muslims have used to tasbih of Fatima after his prayer.
In an Hadith Narrated by Abu Huraira: Some poor people came to the Prophet and said, "The wealthy people will get higher grades and will have permanent enjoyment, and they pray like us and fast as we do. They have more money by which they perform the Hajj and 'Umra, fight and struggle in Allah's Cause and give in charity." The Prophet said, "Shall I not tell you a thing upon which if you acted you would catch up with those who have surpassed you? Nobody would overtake you, and you would be better than the people amongst whom you live except those who would do the same. Say "Sub-han-al-lah", "Alhamdu-lillah" and "Allahu Akbar" thirty three times each after every (compulsory) prayer." We differed, and some of us said that we should say "Subhan-al-lah" thirty three times and "Alhamdu lillah" thirty three times and "Allahu Akbar" thirty four times. I went to the Prophet, who said: "Say, "Subhan-al-lah" and "Alhamdu lillah" and "Allahu Akbar" all together for thirty three times." (Book #12, Hadith #804)
Dhikr is of great importance to the Muslims and believe that it has to be done as taught. However, adherents of the Salafi sect shun the use of Misbaha (prayer rope) as an innovation, preferring to stick to use of the fingers. the exact method believed to have been used by Muhammad. Muhammad is recorded to have ordered to count Dhikr on fingers and that the fingers in an accepted book of Hadith (sayings of Muhammad). (Abu Dawood 1501).
Misbahah
An Ottoman Marbled Faturan Prayer Bead
A Misbahah (Arabic: مسبحة), subhah (Arabic:سبحة), tasbih (Persian and Hindi-Urdu), or tespih (Albanian, Turkish and Bosnian) is a string of prayer beads which is often used by Muslims to keep track of counting in Tasbih. Also, it is the Arabic word for a prayer rope used by Christians to say the Jesus Prayer.
The Misbaḥah is also known as tasbih—not to be confused with Tasbih, a type of dhikr—in non-Arab Muslim regions, or subhah in Arabic. In Turkey, the beads are known as tespih.
Made of A Misbaḥah is a tool used to perform dhikr, including the 99 Names of Allah, and the glorification of God after regular prayer.
It is often made of wooden beads, but also of olive seeds, ivory, amber, pearls or plastic. A misbaha[4] usually consists of 99 beads (corresponding to the 99 Names of Allah), or sometimes 33 beads (in which case one cycles through them 3 times to equal 99).
History
It is thought that in the early Muslim era, loose pebbles were used or that people counted on their fingers.
According to the 17th-century ʻAllāmah Muhammad Baqir Majlisi, after the Battle of Uḥud, Fāṭimah would visit the Martyrs' Graveyard every two or three days, and then made a misbaḥah of Ḥamzah ibn ʻAbd al-Muṭṭalib's grave-soil. After that, people started making and using misbaḥahs.[citation needed]
According to a book written by Sidi Gabalza, the first who used misbaha is sufism, which combined the thought between Islam, Jews, Catholic, Manawi, Majus, Hindu and Buddha, along with the mystical philosophy of Pythagoras. However some hadiths state the benefit of using the fingers of the right hand to count tasbīḥ.
What is the Ruling on Using Prayer Beads?
Praise be to Allah
Some scholars say that it is permissible to use the masbahah (prayer beads), but they say that it is preferable to do tasbeeh (count praises) on one’s fingers; others say that it is bid’ah (reprehensible innovation).
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah said in al-Fatawa (22/187): “Some of them might show off by putting their prayer-mats over their shoulders and carrying their masbahahs in their hands, making them symbols of religion and prayer. It is known from the mutawatir reports (reports in such large numbers that they couldn’t be forged) that neither the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) nor his Companions used these as symbols. They used to recite tasbeeh and count on their fingers, as the hadeeth says: “Count on your fingers, for they will be asked, and will be made to speak.” Some of them may count their tasbeeh with pebbles or date stones. Some people say that doing tasbeeh with the masbahah is makrooh (disliked), and some allow it, but no one says that tasbeeh with the masbahah is better than tasbeeh with the fingers.” Then he (may Allah have mercy on him) goes on to discuss the issue of showing off with the masbahah, saying that it is showing off with regard to something that is not prescribed by Islam, which is worse than showing off with regard to something that is prescribed.
Al-Shaykh Muhammad ibn Salih al-‘Uthaymeen (al-Liqa al-Maftooh, 3/30) was asked whether using the masbahah for tasbeeh is bid’ah, and his reply was: “It is better not to do tasbeeh with the masbahah, but it is not bid’ah, because there is a basis for it, which is the fact that some of the Sahabah (Companions) did tasbeeh with pebbles. But the Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) taught us that tasbeeh with the fingers is better, as he said, ‘Count with the fingertips, for they will be made to speak.’ Doing tasbeeh with the masbahah is not haram (impermissible) or bid’ah, but it is better not to do it, because the one who does tasbeeh with the masbahah has shunned something better. Using the masbahah may also be contaminated with some element of showing off, because we see some people carrying masbahahs that contain a thousand beads, as if they are telling people, ‘Look at me, I do a thousand tasbeehs!’ Secondly, those who use the masbahah for tasbeeh are usually absent-minded and not focused, so you see them doing tasbeeh with the beads, but their gaze is wandering all over the place, which indicates that they are not really concentrating. It is better to do tasbeeh with one’s fingers, preferably using the right hand rather than the left, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) used to count his tasbeeh on his right hand. If a person counts his tasbeeh using both hands, there is nothing wrong with that, but it is better to use the right hand only.”
Al-Shaykh Muhammad Nasir al-Deen al-Albani said in Al-Silsilat al-Da’eefah (1/110), where he quotes the (weak) hadeeth “What a good reminder is the subhah [masbahah],”
“In my view, the meaning of this hadeeth is invalid for a number of reasons:
Firstly, the subhah [masbahah] is bid’ah and was not known at the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). It happened after that, so how could he (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) have encouraged his Sahabah to do something that was unknown to them? The evidence for what I have said is the report narrated by Ibn Waddah in Al-Bid’ wa’l-Nahy ‘anha from al-Salt ibn Bahram, who said: ‘Ibn Mas’ood passed by a woman who had a [masbahah] with which she was making tasbeeh, and he broke it and threw it aside, then he passed by a man who was making tasbeeh with pebbles, and he kicked him then said, “You think you are better than the Sahabah, but you are following unjustified bid’ah! You think you have more knowledge than the Companions of Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)!”’ Its isnad (chain of transmission) is saheeh (authentic) to al-Salt, who is one of the trustworthy (thiqah) followers of the Tabi’een (Successors).
Secondly, it goes against the guidance of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). ‘Abd-Allah ibn ‘Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) said, ‘I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) counting the tasbeeh on his right hand.’”
He also said (1/117): “If there is only one bad thing about the masbahah, which is that it takes the place of the Sunnah of counting on the fingers, even though all are agreed that counting on the fingers is preferable, then that is bad enough. How rarely I see people counting their tasbeeh on their fingers!
Moreover, people have invented so many sophisticated ways of following this bid’ah, so you see the followers of one of the [Sufi] tareeqahs (orders) wearing the masbahah around their necks! Or some of them counting with the beads whilst talking or listening to you! Or another one – the like of whom I have not seen for some time – riding his bicycle through a street crowded with people, with the masbahah in one of his hands! They are showing the people that they are not distracted from the remembrance of Allah for even an instant, but in many cases this bid’ah is a cause of their neglecting what is obligatory (wajib). It has happened many times – to others as well as myself – that when I greet one of these people with salam, they answer only by waving and not by saying the words of the greeting. The bad results of this bid’ah are innumerable, and no one can say it better than the poet:
‘All goodness is in following that which went before (the salaf)
All badness is in the innovations of those who came later.’”
Ruling on tasbeeh using the “electronic masbahah” program
Question:
Internet chat rooms the electronic masbahah for tasbeeh has become widespread. The way it is used is simple; it helps one to remember Allah and, to be honest,I like it. These days every time I turn on the computer, I open this program and I sit reciting tasbeeh (“Subhaan Allah – Glory be to Allah”) and tahleel (“La ilaaha ill-Allaah – there is no god but Allah”), and I make myself do it, and I do not close the page until I am done, without anything to distract me or make me forget. I know that tasbeeh (counting on) the hand is better, but I am busy on the Internet, so this is better for me. But I want to ask about the ruling on it, because I heard that they are saying that it comes from the Sufis, and I did not intend to imitate them; I only want to remember Allah. I would like to find out the ruling?
Answer:
Praise be to Allah.
Firstly:
The scholars differed concerning the ruling on the masbahah. Some of them said that it is an innovation (bid‘ah), and others said that that is not the case.
What there should be no dispute about is the following:
1.That counting tasbeeh on the fingers is better, because it is what the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) taught us.
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
Counting tasbeeh on the fingers is Sunnah, as the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said to the women: “Glorify Allah (by saying Subhaan-Allah) and count on your fingers, for they will be questioned and will speak.” End quote.
Majmoo‘ al-Fataawa, 22/506
Shaykh Muhammad ibn Saalih al-‘Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
But better than that [i.e., better than the masbahah] is for a person to count the tasbeeh on his fingers, because they will speak, as the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) taught. End quote.
Fataawa ash-Shaykh al-‘Uthaymeen, 13/173
2.Counting tasbeeh openly with the masbahah in order to show off is forbidden
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
With regard to adopting that – i.e., counting tasbeeh with the masbahah – unnecessarily or in order to show off to people, such as hanging it around one’s neck or wearing it like a bracelet on the arm, and so on, that is either showing off to people or is likely to be thought to be showing off and imitating those who show off unnecessarily. The former is haraam and the latter is, at the very least, makrooh, because showing off to people in doing private acts of worship such as prayer, fasting, dhikr and reading Qur’an, is one of the gravest of sins.
Majmoo‘ al-Fataawa, 22/506
3.Tasbeeh with the fingers when there is no focus of the heart or tongue on dhikr is invalid tasbeeh, which brings no reward to the one who does it.
Al-Mannaawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
As for what heedless people used to do, of holding a masbahah which is very ornate and costly, and carrying it without any presence of mind or thought, and talking or listening to people, or talking to them whilst moving its beads through his fingers, when his heart and tongue are distracted by worldly matters, this is blameworthy and is makrooh, and it is one of the worst of reprehensible deeds.
Fayd al-Qadeer, 4/468
Ibn al-Haaj al-‘Abdari (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
Some of them hold the masbahah in their hands, so that people can see it, and they move the beads one by one, as if they are counting their dhikr, and in fact they are talking and gossiping with people about what happened to this one and that one. Obviously a person has only one tongue, so his counting on the masbahah in this manner is worthless, because he does not have another tongue so that he could be reciting dhikr with one tongue and talking about whatever he wants to do with the other. So he can only be using the masbahah in this manner for the purpose of showing off and as an innovation.
Al-Madkhal, 3/205
Secondly:
We have looked at the program referred to in the question, and it seems to us that it is less serious than saying tasbeeh using the masbahah; if it is said that the masbahah is permissible, then by the same token this program may also be permissible. That is because some of the objectionable matters that are present in the case of the masbahah are not present in this program, such as showing off to people by using the masbahah, or counting tasbeeh on the hand when the heart and tongue are distracted by worldly matters or talking to people.
However, we should point out a number of things:
1.In the case of adhkaar for which no specific number was narrated from the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), it is not prescribed to adhere to a particular number in reciting them; rather the Muslim may remember his Lord however he likes, a little or a great deal.
The scholars of the Standing Committee for Issuing Fatwas said:
The basic principle with regard to dhikr and acts of worship is tawqeef (i.e., adhering to what is mentioned and prescribed in the Qur’aan and Sunnah and not worshipping Allaah in any way except that which has been prescribed on the lips of the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)). Based on this, in cases where a certain time, number of times, place or manner has been specified, we must worship Allaah in the way that has been proven in sharee’ah. But when Allaah has prescribed dhikrs, du’aa’ and other kinds of worship in general terms without specifying a particular time, number, place or manner, then it is not permissible for us to set limits with regard to the manner, time or number of times. Rather we should worship Him in general terms as it was narrated.
Shaykh ‘Abd al-‘Azeez ibn Baaz, Shaykh ‘Abd ar-Razzaaq ‘Afeefi, Shaykh ‘Abdullah ibn Ghadyaan, SHaykh ‘Abdullah ibn Qa‘ood
Majallat al-Buhooth al-Islamiyyah, 21/53; Fataawa Islamiyyah, 4/178
2.In the program there is a icon called “The Beautiful Names of Allah”, the author of which relied on a report narrated by at-Tirmidhi to list ninety-nine names of Allah. But this is a da‘eef (weak) report according to the consensus of hadeeth scholars.
We should also point out that it is not prescribed to remember Allah, may He be exalted, by repeating His name on its own; so it is not prescribed to remember Allah by saying “Ya Allah, Ya Allah, Ya Allah” or “Ya Quddoos, Ya Quddoos, Ya Quddoos (O Most Holy…)” and so on.
Be My witness Oh Allah That I have conveyed the message!!!
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