7.7. (PROPHET) MUSA ON CONTENTMENT
There are also weak reports in the book, like the following suspended (muallaq) one: ‘Musa said: ‘My God! Show me an action which, if I do it, will make You pleased with me!’ He (Allah) said: “You cannot bear it.’ Thereupon, Musa fell prostrate, imploring, so Allah revealed to him: ‘O son of Imran! My acceptance lies in your contentment with Me.’
This story from Banu Isra’il is questionable as one may say that such things should not be related to Musa, the son of (Imran. Furthermore, it is well-known that these Jewish reports have no chain of narrators and as such cannot be accepted as valid proof regarding religious matters. It is a different case if they have sound chains like the reports from Banu Isra’il that the Prophet related to us, but some reports like the aforementioned report are known to be lies.
Musa was one of the greatest of the Messengers of determination and a major Muslim figure. How could it then be said that he could not bear to do the actions that please Allah? After all, if Allah is pleased with the very first of the Emigrants and the Helpers and those who followed them in goodness, why would he not be pleased with Musa the son of Imran, the one whom the Most Merciful Himself spoke to? Allah, Most High, says:
“Indeed, they who have believed and done righteous deeds are the best of creatures. Their reward with Allah will be gardens of perpetual residence beneath which rivers flow, wherein they will abide forever, Allah being pleased with them and they with Him.” (al-Bayjinah (98): 7-8)
It is a well-known fact that Musa the son of ‘Imran was among the best of those who believed and did righteous deeds. Moreover, Allah granted Musa a special status above mere contentment:
“And I bestowed upon you love from Me that you would be brought up under My eye.” (Taha (20: 39)
It should also be noted that the statement “O son of ‘Imran!’’, as occurs in the report, contradicts Allah’s way of addressing Musa in the Qur’an which says: “O Musa!” instead. The expression in the report, as we can see, is also less respectful.
In yet another beautiful report mentioned by him, ‘Umar Ibn al- Khattab (radiyAllahu (anhu) writes to Abu Musa al-Ash‘ari (radijAllahu ‘anhu) and says: ‘All good is in contentment. Be content if you can, and if you cannot, have patience.’This is a fine statement even though there is no knowledge about its chain.
It is thus clear that he mentions connected (musnad), expedient (mursal),and suspended (mu’allaq) reports, some of which are sound and some of which are not. This particular statement of Abu Sulayman is but expedient, and nothing can be attributed to Abu Sulayman through such a chain by the agreement of the people. Yes, it has been said that an expedient report is acceptable, but the person who said this did not know that the expedient report is like a hadith that is weak and not weak; if a person knows this, there remains no dispute over the fact that it is rejected, just like when one knows that a narrator sometimes memorizes the chains (of the hadiths he narrates) and sometimes errs regarding them.
By Shaykhu’l-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah
Comments
John Doe
23/3/2019Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.
John Doe
23/3/2019Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.
John Doe
23/3/2019Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.