Light On the Muhammadan Sunnah Or Defence of the Hadith
Forms of Tashahhud:
Ibn Mas’ud’s Tashahhud: In the two Sahihs, Abd Allah ibn Mas’ud is reported to have said: The Messenger of Allah has taught me the witness (tashahhud) from hand to hand as teaching me the Qur’anic verse in this form (which is reported too by the authors of Sunan):
التحيات لله و الصلوات و الطيبات ، السلام عليک آيها النبي و رحمة الله و برکاته، السلام علينا و علي عباد الله الصالحين ، اشهد ان لا اله الا الله و ان محمدا عبده و رسوله. {dir="rtl"}
In another narration, he added: “And he dictated it to me word by word.” Again in another one: If you say this thing or perform that, you have in fact performed your prayers. This form was chosen by Abu Hanifah, Ahmad, and most of the traditionists and ulama.
Ibn Abbas’s Tashahhud: Muslim and authors of Sunan have reported on the authority of Ibn Abbas, beside al-Shafi’i in his book al-Umm, that he (Ibn Abbas) said: The Messenger of Allah used to teach us the following as if teaching us a surah of the Qur’an, saying: Say:
التحيات المبارکات الصلوات الطيبات لله . السلام عليک ايها النبي و رحمة الله و برکاته. السلام علينا و علي عباد الله الصالحين . اشهد ان لا اله الا الله و اشهد ان محمدا رسول الله. {dir="rtl"}
Tashahhud of Umar ibn al-Khattab: In al-Muwatta’, Malik reported from Ibn Shahab, from Urwah ibn al-Zubayr, from Abd al-Rahman ibn Abd al-Qari that he heard Umar ibn al-Khattab declaring from over the pulpit: Say:
التحيات الزاکيات لله. الطيبات الصلوات لله. {dir="rtl"}
Al-Sarakhsi in al-Mabsut reports:
التحيات الصلوات الطيبات. السلام عليک ايها النبي و رحمة الله و برکاته. السلام علينا و علي عباد الله الصالحين. اشهد ان لا اله الا الله و اشهد ان محمدا رسول الله. {dir="rtl"}
Malik says: The best tashahhud is that of Umar ibn al-Khattab, since he uttered it on the minbar (pulpit) in the presence of the Companions, who didn’t disapprove that of him unanimously. This tashahhud is reported also by Abu Dawud and Ibn Mardawayh through a chain of narrators.
Tashahhud of Abu Sa’id al-Khudri:
Abu Sa’id then said: We used not to write but the Qur’an and tashahhud. 133
Tashahhud of Jabir: In Jabir’s hadith (confirmed by al-Hakim), that is reported by al-Nasa’i, Ibn Majah and al-Tirmidhi in al-‘Ilal, he said: The Messenger of Allah used to teach us tashahhud in the same manner as teaching a surah of the Qur’an:
باسم الله و بالله ، التحيات ... الح . {dir="rtl"}
Tashahhud of A’ishah:
In al-Muwatta’, Malik reports from A’ishah, the Prophet’s wife, that she used to say in tashahhud:
(التحيات الطيبات لله الزاکيات لله) {dir="rtl"}
dropping the word (Allah) after (التحيات و الصلوات) contrary to what is cited in the hadith approved by Umar and Ibn Mas’ud, which is supported by sanad. She even added to hadith of Umar the words (وحده لا شريک له) which she confirmed too in the hadith of Abu Musa that was reported by Muslim.
Tashahhud of Abu Musa al-Ash’ari: Muslim and Abu Dawud reported that Abu Musa was citing tashahhud in this way: 134
(التحيات الطيبات الصلوات لله وحده لا شريک له). {dir="rtl"}
Tashahhud of Samurah ibn Jundab:
(التحيات الطيبات و الصلوات و الملک لله ... الخ). {dir="rtl"}
Tashahhud of Ibn Umar: In al-Muwatta’, Malik reported on the authority of Nafi’ that Ibn Umar used to say in tashahhud:
بسم الله التحيات لله الصلوات لله، السلام علي النبي ... الخ) . {dir="rtl"}
(with dropping the letter (kaf) of addressing and the word (ayyuha). Then Nafi’ said: When finishing his tashahhud and intending to say taslim, he would say:
السلام علي النبي و رحمة الله و برکاته، السلام علينا و علي عباد الله الصالحين. {dir="rtl"}
Which has reiteration of tashahhud, and was reported by al-Bukhari on the authority of Ibn Mas’ud under “bab al-isti’dhan” (asking permission) stating that he said at the end of it: “and I witness that Muhammad is His servant and apostle.” When he (S) was alive, but after his demise we used to say: “peace be upon the Prophet.”
In his comment on this, Ibn Hajar said: Through the chains of transmission of Ibn Mas’ud’s hadith we can observe words indicating a kind of separation between his (S) lifetime, that was expressed by terms of addressing, and the post-obit period when it was referred to him by expressions of third person singular (absent). Under “bab al-isti’dhan” in Sahih al-Bukhari, it is reported on the authority of Abu Mu’ammar, from Ibn Mas’ud who, after citing hadith of tashahhud, said: We used to say this when he (S) was still alive, but after his demise we would say: “peace be upon the Prophet.”
Al-Sabki in Sharh al-Minhaj is reported to have said: If what is reported from the Sahabah be true, it would indicate that to address the word salam (peace) after the word al-Nabi (the Prophet) is not obligatory. So it
should be said ‘peace be upon the Prophet’. Al-Hafiz said: This is undoubtedly correct.
Abd al-Raziq said: Ibn Jarih told us saying: ‘Ata’ informed us and said: The Companions used to read, during the lifetime of the Prophet: Peace be upon you O Prophet (al-salam alayka ayyuha al-Nabi). When he passed away they started to say: peace be upon the Prophet, and this being a veracious isnad.
(التحيات لله السلام عليک ايها النبي و رحمة الله. السلام علينا و علي عباد الله الصالحين. اشهد ان لا اله الا الله و اشهد ان محمدا عبده و رسوله ... (او) اشهد ان محمد رسول الله ). {dir="rtl"}
Regarding this diversity, al-Qadi 135 said: This indicates that when one drops a word that is already dropped in some narrated tashahhudat, his tashahhud would be correct. Based on this, it is permissible to say: The least satisfactory words to be uttered in tashahhud being:
These were nine forms of tashahhud 136 reported from the Companions that having differed in the words. Had they been among the verbal traditions reported by meaning, we would have said, maybe! But they are among the mutawatir (successive) acts that were performed several times everyday by all the Companions, who were numbering tens of thousands. The noteworthy point here is that every narrator of each tashahhud claims that the Messenger used to teach him tashahhud as teaching the Qur’an, and that tashahhud of Umar was uttered by him from over the Minbar of the Messenger of Allah, before all the Sahabah without being disapproved by any of them, as reported by Malik in al-Muwatta’.
What is noteworthy too being the fact that these tashahhudat, despite divergence in their words, multiplicity of their forms and abundance of their narrators, were all devoid of sending benediction upon the Prophet. The Companions, as reported by Ibrahim al-Nakha’i, were sufficed with saying tashahhud and: peace be upon you O Prophet and mercy of Allah. There was
disagreement among the Sunnah leaders regarding the obligation of sending benediction upon the Prophet in the obligatory (daily) prayers: Abu Hanifah and his followers never consider it obligatory while al-Shafi’i made it a provision (for accepting the prayers)!
In al-Bahr al-zakhir, Ibn Nujaym says: The obligation implied in the holy verse: “Send blessings on him”, being prescribing it only once throughout the whole life whether during the salat or in any other time, as the ordinance never necessitates any repetition. This opinion got the agreement and concurrence the of all ulama’. It is held by al-Sarakhsi in al-Mabsut, Ibn Hammam in Sharh Fath al-Qadir, al-Qastallani in Irshad al-sari, and al-Qadi ‘Iyad in al-Shifa’. The only exception from this, being al-Shafi’i who reported that the Prophet said: Whoever sends not blessing on me, his salat is verily invalid. But he has neither authority for proving this saying, nor a sunnah to be followed. And he was reviled by a group of ulama’ among whom being al-Tabari al-Qushayri, with being disapproved by a follower of his same school of thought, called al-Khitabi who said: It is not obligatory, and I have no knowledge of any other example (qudwah) confirming this. Besides, the tashahhudat reported from the Sahabah were devoid of this saying. And in regard of the hadith: “Invalid is the salat of that who never sends blessing on me”, it was considered weak by the traditionists. Also the hadith narrated by Ibn Mas’ud: “Whoever performs any prayer without sending benediction on me and my household, his salat shall not be accepted.” Al-Daraqutni said: It is an excerpt from a saying of Abu Ja’far Muhammad al-Baqir ibn Ali ibn al-Husayn, the full text of whose statement being thus: If I perform any salat without sending benediction on the Prophet (may God’s peace and benediction be upon him and his Progeny) and on his household I am sure it shall never be completed.” 137
Al-Khatib al-Baghdadi, Taqyid al-'ilm, p. 93.
Hattan ibn Abd Allah al-Raqqashi is reported to have said: I have performed prayers with (behind) Abu Musa al-Ash'ari. After completing the salat he said: Don't you know what to say in your salat? The Messenger of Allah has addressed us once, explaining for us our Sunnah, and teaching us how to pray, stating the tashahhud thus: The good greetings and benedictions be to Allah, and peace be upon you … etc (al-tahiyyat al-tayyibat, al-salawat li Allah, al-salam alayk … etc.), Sahih Muslim, vol. II, p. 13.
135 Al-Mughni, vol. I, p. 575, and al-Sharh al-kabir.
These were the tashahhuds I could enumerate. And the leaders of fiqh have not concurred on one of them, but disagreed regarding them, with Abu Hanifah and Ahmad choosing tashahhud of Ibn Mas'ud, while Malik selecting tashahhud of Umar ibn al-Khattab, and al-Shafi'i preponderating that of Ibn Abbas.
Al-Shifa', vol. II, p. 55.