Series of Answers by the Eminent Scholar Ata Bin Khalil Abu Al-Rashtah, Ameer of Hizb ut-Tahrir, to the Questions of the Visitors to his Facebook page "Fiqhi"
Answer to a Question
To Bakr Sa'id
Question:
Assalamu Alaikum Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuhu Wa Maghfiratuhu. I ask Allah to grant you success in every good, for He is the Guardian of that.
My question is: If the scholars agreed that whoever denies the Basmalah being a verse of Al-Fatihah does not commit kufr because its status was established via ahad (singular) reports and not tawatir (consecutive mass narration), then how can it be numbered in some of the Masahif (copies of the Quran) at the beginning of Al-Fatihah today? When was it included as a verse in Al-Fatihah? Is Al-Fatihah seven verses or six without the Basmalah, as the numbering in the Masahif varies? Does this conflict with Allah’s preservation of the Noble Quran? And what is the position of the coming Islamic State, if Allah wills, regarding the presence of what is not mutawatir in the Mushaf, such as the Basmalah and the supplications (duas) at the end of the Mushaf?
Barakallahu Feekum.
Answer:
Walaikum Assalam Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuhu,
We have previously answered a question regarding the Basmalah on 21 Rabi’ al-Akhir 1432 AH - 26/03/2011 CE, which stated the following:
"Regarding the Basmalah, it is part of the Noble Quran as a fragment of a verse in Surah An-Naml:
إِنَّهُ مِنْ سُلَيْمَانَ وَإِنَّهُ بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ
'Indeed, it is from Solomon, and indeed, it reads: In the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.' (QS An-Naml [27]: 30)
As for its position at the beginning of Al-Fatihah or the beginnings of other Surahs, there is a difference of opinion as to whether it is a verse of the Surah or merely a separation between the Surahs... This difference does not cause harm because both groups acknowledge that it is part of the Quran in Surah An-Naml. The disagreement is over its placement at the start of the Surahs except for At-Tawbah; whether it is a verse at the beginning of the Surahs, or a verse at the beginning of Al-Fatihah, or not a verse at all at the beginning of the Surahs or Al-Fatihah... So long as everyone acknowledges it is a verse of the Quran in Surah An-Naml, the disagreement regarding it at the beginning of the Surahs only affects its recitation in prayer at the start of Al-Fatihah or other Surahs—whether it is recited aloud, silently, or not at all—according to the Sharia rulings derived by the mujtahidin." End quote.
For further clarification and to answer the other points in your question, I mention the following matters:
- It is stated in The Islamic Personality (Al-Shakhsiyya) – Volume 1 – pp. 159-160: "Jibril used to recite everything that was revealed of the Quran to the Messenger ﷺ once every year. In the year in which the Messenger of Allah passed away, Jibril recited the entire Quran to the Messenger twice. On the authority of Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, from Fatima, peace be upon her:
أَسَرَّ إِلَيَّ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ إِنَّ جِبْرِيلَ كَانَ يُعَارِضُنِي الْقُرْآنَ كُلَّ سَنَةٍ مَرَّةً وَإِنَّهُ عَارَضَنِي الْعامَ مَرَّتَيْنِ وَلَا أُرَاهُ إِلَّا حَضَرَ أَجَلِي
'The Prophet ﷺ whispered to me: Jibril used to review the Quran with me once every year, but he reviewed it with me twice this year, and I think it is only because my time has come.' (Reported by Al-Bukhari). And on the authority of Abu Huraira, he said:
كَانَ يَعْرِضُ عَلَى النَّبِيِّ ﷺ الْقُرْآنَ كُلَّ عَامٍ مَرَّةً فَعَرَضَ عَلَيْهِ مَرَّتَيْنِ فِي الْعَامِ الَّذِي قُبِضَ فِيهِ
'He (Jibril) used to review the Quran with the Prophet ﷺ once every year, but he reviewed it with him twice in the year he passed away.' (Reported by Al-Bukhari).
Jibril reviewing the Quran with the Messenger every year once means reviewing the arrangement of its verses relative to each other and the arrangement of its verses within their Surahs, because reviewing a book means reviewing its sentences, words, and arrangement. Reviewing it twice in the year the Messenger passed away also means reviewing the arrangement of its verses relative to each other and their arrangement within their Surahs. It can also be understood from the hadith as reviewing the arrangement of its Surahs relative to each other. However, other authentic ahadith have been reported specifically regarding the arrangement of the verses; they stipulate the arrangement of the verses relative to each other and within their Surahs:
ضَعُوا هَذِهِ الآيَاتِ فِي سُورَةِ كَذَا بَعْدَ آيَةِ كَذَا
'Place these verses in such-and-such Surah after such-and-such verse.'
ضَعُوا هَؤُلَاءِ الْآيَاتِ فِي السُّورَةِ الَّتِي يُذْكَرُ فِيهَا كَذَا وَكَذَا
'Place these verses in the Surah in which such-and-such is mentioned.'
The Surah would be concluded and another would begin by a tawqifi (divine) command from Allah via Jibril. On the authority of Ibn Abbas, he said:
كَانَ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ لَا يَعْلَمُ خَتْمَ السُّورَةِ حَتَّى يَنْزِلَ بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ
'The Prophet ﷺ did not know the end of a Surah until 'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful' was revealed.' And in one narration:
فَإِذَا نَزَلَتْ بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ عَلِمُوا أَنَّ السُّورَةَ قَدِ انْقَضَتْ
'So when 'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful' was revealed, they knew that the Surah had ended.' (Sunan al-Bayhaqi and Abu Dawud). All of this indicates definitively that the arrangement of verses in their Surahs and the form of the Surahs regarding the number of verses and their placement is all tawqifi from Allah Almighty. Upon this, the Ummah transmitted it from its Prophet ﷺ and it was established by tawatur..."
When the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, adopted the Mushaf of Uthman, they included the Basmalah at the beginning of Al-Fatihah and at the beginning of all other Surahs except for Surah Bara’ah (At-Tawbah). However, it was not explicitly clear whether this meant the Basmalah was a verse from every Surah where it was recorded, or if it was for the purpose of separation between Surahs. Therefore, a difference arose among the scholars regarding the Basmalah being a verse of Al-Fatihah and its being a verse of other Surahs. Despite this difference, they all acknowledge that the Basmalah is established in writing in the Mushaf—upon which the noble Companions reached Ijma (consensus)—at the beginning of Al-Fatihah and the beginnings of all other Surahs except for Bara’ah. Thus, the Muslims did not introduce the Basmalah later; rather, it is established in the Uthmanic Mushaf by the consensus and agreement of the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them all.
It is mentioned in the book of As-Siyuti (Al-Itqan fi Ulum al-Quran 1/234):
"Al-Fatihah: The majority say it is seven verses. The Kufi and Makki (scholars of recitation) counted the Basmalah but did not count:
أَنْعَمْتَ عَلَيْهِمْ
'You have blessed them.'
While the others did the opposite. Al-Hasan said: Eight, so he counted both. Some said six, so they did not count either. Others said nine, counting both and:
إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ
'You alone we worship.'
The first view is strengthened by what was narrated by Ahmad, Abu Dawud, At-Tirmidhi, Ibn Khuzaymah, Al-Hakim, Ad-Daraqutni, and others from Umm Salama, that the Prophet ﷺ used to read:
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ * الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ * الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ * مَالِكِ يَوْمِ الدِّينِ * إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ * اهْدِنَا الصِّرَاطَ الْمُسْتَقِيمَ * صِرَاطَ الَّذِينَ أَنْعَمْتَ عَلَيْهِمْ غَيْرِ الْمَغْضُوبِ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلا الضَّالِّينَ
'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful * Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds * The Most Gracious, the Most Merciful * Master of the Day of Judgment * You alone we worship and You alone we ask for help * Guide us to the straight path * The path of those whom You have blessed, not of those who have evoked [Your] anger or of those who are astray.'
So he separated it verse by verse and counted them as the desert Arabs counted, and he counted 'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful' as a verse but did not count '...upon them' ('alayhim). Ad-Daraqutni narrated with an authentic chain from Abd Khayr, who said: Ali was asked about the Sab’ al-Mathani (Seven Oft-Repeated Verses), and he said: 'Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds.' It was said to him: 'It is only six verses,' and he replied: 'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful is a verse.'" End quote.
This means that the difference regarding the Basmalah in terms of it being a verse, etc., falls within the door of ijtihad based on authentic evidences among the mujtahidin and the followers of recognized mujtahidin, which is a legitimate matter.
- As for what has been added to the Mushaf of dotting, vowelization (harakat), placement of stop signs (waqf), and rules of recitation (tajwid)... etc., or what is placed in some Masahif at the end of supplications, or on the margins of interpretation (tafsir) and explanations... all of this does not lead to the Quran being mixed with other than it. The Muslims have taken great care of the Quran, millions have memorized it, and its texts are mutawatir. Therefore, it is impossible for it to be mixed with other than it or for people to become confused. Thus, for hundreds of years, Muslims have introduced certain things into the Masahif to assist in the recitation of the Quran, such as dots and vowels, and this has not affected the text of the Noble Quran... Consequently, the Khilafah State does not prohibit the presence of these vowels and signs of waqf in the Masahif.
In Summary: The occurrence of a difference in ijtihad regarding the Basmalah—whether it is a verse of Al-Fatihah or not, or whether Al-Fatihah consists of 6 or 7 verses... or whether it is recited silently or aloud... all of this does not affect Allah's preservation of the Noble Quran. It is a verse of the Quran in Surah An-Naml, and the Quran has been compiled into a single Mushaf since the era of the Rightly Guided Caliphs, may Allah be pleased with them, just as it was written in the presence of the Messenger ﷺ and as they recited it from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. Allah the Almighty spoke the truth:
إِنَّا نَحْنُ نَزَّلْنَا الذِّكْرَ وَإِنَّا لَهُ لَحَافِظُونَ
"Indeed, it is We who sent down the message [i.e., the Quran], and indeed, We will be its guardian." (QS Al-Hijr [15]: 9)
I hope this is sufficient, and Allah is most Knowing and most Wise.
Your brother, Ata Bin Khalil Abu Al-Rashtah
26 Dhu al-Qi'dah 1443 AH Corresponding to 25/06/2022 CE
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