Light On the Muhammadan Sunnah Or Defence of the Hadith

Ka’b Al-ahbar: 245

He is Ka’b ibn Mani’ al-Himyari, from Al Dhi Ra’in, and it is said that he belongs to Dhu al-Kila’. His surname was Abu Ishaq, and he was one of the eminent rabbis of the Jews, known with the title Ka’b al-Ahbar. He embraced Islam during the time of Umar, and settled at al-Madinah in the period of his caliphate, keeping his company during the conquest of Quds. Then he shifted to the Sham during the reign of Uthman, when Mu’awiyah chose and appointed him as one of his consultants, due to his abundant knowledge. 246 Also they were claiming that it was Mu’awiyah who ordered

him to relate tales in the land of Sham,

247 becoming thus the first of Akhbaris in respect of the Jewish and Islamic traditions.”

Through Ka’b and Ibn Munabbih and others from among the Jews who embraced Islam afterwards, some of the Talmud tales (Isra’iliyyat) crept into the hadith, turning to be so soon part of the religious and historic reports.

About him al-Dhahabi, in Tadhkirat al-huffaz, writes: “He came from Yemen during the caliphate of Umar, when the Companions and others began to take and report from him, with some of the Followers (Tabi’un) reporting from him without referring to the chain of narrators. He died at Hams 248 (Syria) in 32 or 33 or 37 (Hijrah), after disseminating throughout the Sham and other Islamic and Jewish countries his narrations and tales derived from Akhbar, as done by Tamim al-Dari in the Christian reports.

249

Reason Behind his Embracing Islam:

A surprising reason was invented by this priest (Ka’b) for his adoption of Islam, in order to penetrate and occupy the Muslims’ minds and hearts! Ibn Sa’d, through a reliable sanad, reported from Sa’id ibn al-Musayyab, that he said:

Al-Abbas said to Ka’b: What kept you from embracing Islam during the lifetime of the Prophet and that of Abu Bakr? He replied: My father wrote me a letter (quoting it) from the Torah, saying: Hasten in conveying it! Then he sealed all his books, conjuring me with the right the father has upon his son not to break the seal of them. As soon as witnessing advent of Islam, I said to myself: Maybe my father has kept from me some knowledge! So I unsealed the letter seeing in it the characteristics of Muhammad and his Ummah! Only then I became Muslim!

Abd Allah ibn Umar 250 reported that One of the Yemenis came to Ka’b al-Ahbar and said to him: The Jewish Rabbi so and so sent me to hand you a letter. Ka’b said: Give it. The man said: He says to you: Weren’t you an honourable influential master! So what brought you out of your religion

toward Ummah of Muhammad? Ka’b replied: Do you intend to return to him? He said: Yes. Ka’b said: When you go back to him, catch him from his garment skirt so as not to let him flee, and say to him: He says to you: I beg you by That Who split the sea for Moses, and I ask you by Allah Who gave Musa ibn Imran the tablets which containing the knowledge of everything! don’t you find in Allah’s words that the Ummah of Muhammad are three thirds: one third of them will verily enter paradise without reckoning. The second third will be subjected to slight reckoning, and enter paradise afterwards. And the other third will enter the heavens through the intercession of Ahmad, he will verily reply: Yea. Then say to him: Ka’b says to you: Make me within any of these thirds that you wish!”

In al-Isabah, Ibn Hajar says that he related from the Prophet mursal traditions, and from him (Ka’b) some of the Companions reported, like Ibn Umar, Abu Hurayrah, Ibn Abbas, Ibn al-Zubayr and Mu’awiyah beside others. 251

Al-Dhahabi, in Siyar A’lam al-nubala’, writes: From him hadith was reported by Abd Allah ibn Hanzalah, 252 Aslam mawla of Umar, Tubay’ al-Himyari and Abu Salam al-Aswad. Also from him a number of the Followers, like ‘Ata’ ibn Yasar and others, reported some mursal traditions (with no reference to chain of transmitters). Some of his narrations appeared in Sunan of Abu Dawud and of al-Tirmidhi and al-Nasa’i. 253

  1. Professor Sa'id al-Afghani, in an article published in al-Risalah Journal, stated that the first Zionist being Abd Allah ibn Saba'. In reply to this I wrote an elaborated article proving in it that the first (staunchest) Zionist being Ka'b al-Ahbar. This reply appeared in issue No. 656 of al-Risalah.

  2. Al-Islam wa al-hadarah al-Arabiyyah, p. 164. How can't Ka'b al-Ahbar be described as having abundant knowledge, while it was him who said to Qays ibn Kharshah al-Qausi: "No  span of the earth but was recorded in the Torah, which Allah revealed to His prophet Musa (peace be upon him), with whatever will be on it and whatever goes out of it till the Day of Resurrection." This hadith was reported by al-Tabari and al-Bayhaqi in al-Dala'il, beside Ibn Abd al-Barr in al-Isti'ab, Vol. II, p. 533.

  3. Al-Isabah, vol. V, p. 323.

  4. Though Ka'b al-Ahbar died and was buried in Hams, but in Egypt a tomb was made with a high dome over it, with people paying tribute to it, seeking blessing through it. This dome is nowadays erect inside a big mosque on al-Nasiriyyah street in Cairo, with all its expenses being shouldered by the Ministry of Endowments (Awqaf) from its treasury. Hams, in which Ka'b was buried, differs from other Muslim cities, as a hadith is reported in its regard, ascribed to the Prophet (S), reading thus: "Verily Allah will on the Day of Resurrection resurrect from a city in the Sham, called Hams, seventy thousand men who will never be subject to reckoning or torment". Undoubtedly, all this is due to blessings of the body of Ka'b … and he has right on Allah!! What is surprising here the fact that they ascribed this hadith to Umar!! Refer to al-Jami' al-saghir of al-Suyuti. Also Ibn Jubayr, in his Rihlah (p.25), said that there is a tomb for Ka'b al-Ahbar in al-Jizah.

  5. Duha al-Islam, vol. II, p. 97.

  6. Hayat al-hayawan, vol. I, p. 266.

  7. Al-Isabah, vol. V, p.323. See also my book Shaykh al-mudirah.

  8. Siyar a'lam al-nubala', Vol. III, p. 218.

  9. Ibid., p. 322.