Sharh · explanationclick to expand
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ was sent to all people, of different skin colors and ethnicities,Arabs and non-Arabs, and he ﷺ did not single out any given people for compliance with certain provisions of the religion. Allah, Most, High, says: (interpretation of meaning): {O Messenger, announce that which has been revealed to you from your Lord, and if you do not, then you have not conveyed His message.} [Quran 5: 67]. In this hadeeth, ‘Alee ibn Abee Taalib (may Allah be pleased with him) stated that he did not have any (written) rulings of Islam except the Quran, and a sheet of paper on which some rulings were documented, and none of these rulings was made exclusive to him, but rather applied to all Muslims. TheProphet ﷺnever concealed any part of the religion from peopleor singled out some of his family members for its knowledge. Then he (may Allah be pleased with him)mentioned some of the rulings that wereon this sheet, saying: “The Prophet ﷺsaid: ‘Al-Madeenah is a sanctuary from ‘Aa’ir Mountain to such-and-such place.’ Another hadeeth reads: ‘Al-Madeenah is a sanctuary from ‘Ayr Mountain to Thawr Mountain.’ [Al-Bukhaaree and Muslim]. The two names ‘Aa’ir and ‘Ayr are names of the same mountain. In the same vein, It was narrated on the authority of Aboo Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet ﷺ said: “Al-Madeenah is a sanctuary between its two harrahs.” [Al-Bukhaaree and Muslim]. The Arabic word ‘laabah’ or ‘harrah’ (used in the previously cited hadeeth) means a stony tract or lava field, whose stones are black, as if they were burned with fire. Al-Madeenah, may Allah perpetuate its security and honor, is located between two harrahs; the harrah of Waaqim to the east, where the Qubaa’ Mosque and Waaqim fortress are situated, and the Harrah of Wabarah to the west, where Masjid Al-Qiblatayn (Mosque of the Two Qiblahs) is located. ‘Ayr Mountain, about 8.5 km from the Prophet’s Mosque, straddles the southern outskirts of Al-Madeenah, and constitutes its southern boundary., and Thawr Mountain, around 8 km from the Prophet’s Mosque, is located in the northern outskirts and constitutes the northern boundary. A Saudi official committee has defined the limits of Al-Madeenah sanctuary, and the Madeenah Municipality hasinstalled architectural signs in the shape of the arcs of the Prophet's Mosque to mark the limits of the sanctuary. The sacredness of Madeenah entails that whatever lies within its boundaries is declared inviolable (as per the laws of Islam). No animal may be hunted and no tree may be cut down, except those planted by people; it is permissible for them to cut down and eat from such trees only. Even though it is forbidden to hunt in Al-Madeenah (just like in Makkah), there is no prescribed punishment (expiation) for hunting in Al-Madeenah, because, unlike Makkah,it is not a place for performing Hajj or ‘Umrah rituals. He ﷺ also made mention of the prescribed punishment for performing any act that contravenes Islam (or a religious innovation) or provides support for someone who does so in Al-Madeenah. This includes whoever performs an act that contravenes Islam, commits an offence, does an act of injustice, commits a sin warranting the Hadd (a corporal punishment prescribed by the Sharee`ah), or offers support or refuge toa perpetrator or offender to protect him from his opponent and prevent retaliation. It also possible that the Arabic word used in the hadeeth is Muhdath, meaning the religious innovation itself (rather than Muhdith, meaning the one who commits it). Whoever is content with religious innovations, approves of the actions of those who commit them, and does not forbid them, has provided support for those who introduce religious innovations (and therefore the hadeeth applies to him). Whoever does so has incurred the curse of Allah, i.e., expulsion from His mercy, and the curse of the angels and all people, meaning their supplications against him to be denied the divine mercy. This is a stern warning against such acts, but the intended meaning of the hadeeth’s wording is the prescribed punishment incurred by committing such sin, the first and foremost of which is the expulsion from Paradise. However, this curse is not similar to that incurred by the disbelievers, for they are absolutely denied any chance of receiving the mercy of Allah. Moreover, Allah does not accept from such a person any ransom to ward off or shield himself from the tormenton the Day of Judgment. Moreover, ‘Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) added that the sheet also included: “\The protection granted by one Muslim is as binding as the one given by them all; men and women, free and slaves alike; there is no difference between them in the slightest. Whenever a Muslim grants protection to someone, it is incumbent on all Muslims to protect him and grant him security. If someone assaults such a person, or breaches a covenant made by a Muslim with him, he has incurred the curse of Allah and thus deserved the punishment of being cursed and rejected, as previously explained. It is also deduced from the hadeeth that whoever gives his Walaa’ (loyalty, i.e., maintaining a relationship of patronage without bondage with one’s manumitter) to other than his real master and manumitter, incurs the curse and rejection as well, because the bond of Walaa’ in Islam is like the bond of lineage, and it is not permissible to forge it. His saying: “Without the permission of his masters” apparently indicates that it is a condition, but it is not actually a condition, because it is not even permissible for him to do so, even if his manumitter gave him permission to offer his Walaa’ to others. Rather, it denotes emphasis on the prohibition of such an act, warning of its invalidity, and underlining the reason for it. This is because were he to seek the permission of his manumitter to give his Walaa’ to another person, he would prevent him, and he would comply. Shorter and longer versions of the information written in this sheet have been reported.Some of them underlinethe (rulings on the) following topics: blood money, the release of the prisoners of war, that no Muslim may be killed in Qisaas (i.e., retribution) for killing a disbeliever, that the curse of Allah is incurred on those who curse their parents, and many other topics. To reconcile between these hadeeths, it could be said that there was one sheet that included all these narrations and that each of the narrators reported the narrations that they had memorized therefrom. This hadeeth also refutes the claim of Shiites that ‘Ali ibn Aboo Taalib (may Allah be pleased with him),was someone whom the Prophet ﷺ singled out and entrusted with many secrets of knowledge, rulings of Islam, and treasures of the religion, and that he ﷺdisclosed to the members of his household secrets of knowledge that were exclusive to them! It is also deduced from the hadeeth that acting in contravention of the Islamic laws in Al-Madeenah is considered a major sin. .