Infalliblity

Prophets are infallible

One of the most fundamental concepts in the Islamic Aqeedah is the Isma of the Prophets, meaning that the prophets and messengers are infallible and immune from making any mistakes when it comes to delivering and conveying the message, and they are immune from committing any sins or violations of the Orders of Allah (swt). Allah (swt) selected the prophets and messengers to perform the function of delivering and conveying His message to human beings. Therefore, if the prophets and messengers err in this regard, then this means that Allah (swt) chose the wrong individuals for the task, which indicates an error on the part of the All-Mighty Creator in selecting the mechanism for delivering His Message and setting the example for human beings. Such a deficiency cannot be attributed to Allah (swt).

Unfortunately, this concept has been misunderstood and as a result of faulty information propagated to the Muslims (either deliberately or ignorantly), many Muslims believe that some prophets did commit some minor transgressions, including the Prophet Muhammad (saaws). One such example of this faulty information stems from incorrect information regarding Surat Abasa. Allah (swt) says in the Quran:

He (the Prophet) frowned and turned away, because there came to him the blind man (Abdullah bin Umm-Maktum). But what could tell you that per chance he might become pure? Or that he might receive admonition, and that the admonition might profit him? As for him who thinks himself self-sufficient, to him you attend. What does it matter to you if he will not become pure. But as to him who came to you running, and he is afraid (of Allah), of him you are neglectful and divert your attention to another.

[Surat Abasa: 1-10]

These verses were revealed after an incident in which the Prophet (saaws) was conveying Islam to some of the chiefs of Quraysh. At this time, a blind Muslim by the name of Abdullah bin Umm Maktum interrupted the Prophet (saaws) and asked him for some advice, and the Prophet (saaws) did not pay attention because he was focused on carrying Islam to the Kuffar. This incident is mistakenly portrayed to indicate that the Prophet (saaws) actually committed a sin and violated the Order of Allah by avoiding the Muslim, but in fact this is not the case because the Prophet (saaws) did not commit any violation of Allah's Command. What the Prophet (saaws) did is commit a TACTICAL MISTAKE in choosing one venue for carrying the Dawah (carrying Islam to a non-Muslim), and Allah (swt) simply informed him that the other option was more preferable at that specific time and place, which was to teach the Muslim about Islam.

As far as adhering to the Order of Allah and conveying the Message, the Prophet (saaws) fulfilled this obligation. However, in carrying this obligation, the Prophet (saaws) was faced with two options, BOTH OF WHICH WERE PERMISSIBLE. The question that faced the Prophet (saaws) was: Based on his assessment of the situation as a human being, which option is more preferable at this time i.e to continue to convey Islam to the Kuffar or to divert his attention to the Muslim and address his concern? The Prophet (saaws) chose the former option, and Allah (swt) informed him that the latter option was more preferable. Perhaps the Prophet (saaws) realized that he could address the Muslim at any time, but this was the only opportunity he had to carry Islam to the Kuffar, and he did not want to be interrupted. However, Allah (swt), who Knows everything, realized that the Kuffar would not respond to the message, and He conveyed this knowledge to the Prophet (saaws).

Similarly, for us, we as Muslims have to convey the Dawah, but in many instances, we are faced with many options and routes to go about fulfilling this obligation. For example, on one Friday evening, there is an interfaith dialogue and a Muslim youth gathering. Which one should we attend? This will depend upon our assessment as to where we think our time and energy will be most productive and where we think the Dawah will have an effect. The only difference is that we will not receive a revelation from Allah (swt) telling us that one option was better than the other, like what happened to the Prophet (saaws).

Infallable, or Masum, means that the Prophets and Messengers cannot commit any mistakes in delivering the message or violate the rules of Allah (i.e. commit any sins, whether big or small), because doing so would affect the credibility of the Prophets and Messengers and cast doubt about the integrity of the contents and delivery of the message itself. The evidence that establishes this are two:

1). Textual

Allah (swt) says:

He does not speak of (his own) desire. It is only a revelation that is inspired.

[An-Najm: 3-4]

Thus, Allah (swt) clearly mentions that the Prophet (saaws) is guided by the revelation, which renders him immune from doing anything that would violate the rules of Allah (swt) or damage the revelation.

2). Intellectual

- As we mentioned before, this concept is directly linked to the belief in Allah (swt). If the Prophets and Messengers could commit any sins or commit errors in delivering the message, then this means that the mechanism that Allah (swt) chose to deliver His message and set the example for humanity is flawed, which would imply that Allah (swt) made a mistake, miscalculated, or overlooked something. Allah (swt) does not make mistakes, does not miscalculate, and does not overlook anything. The Quality Control of Allah (swt) is full-proof and error-free.

That being said, the Prophets and Messengers can make mistakes as far as human errors related to technical, scientific, or administrative issues that are NOT RELATED TO THE REVELATION OR THE MESSAGE. For example, during the Battle of Badr, the Prophet (saaws chose a location for the army to station themselves, and one Sahabi asked him: Is this location a revelation from Allah or your own tactical decision. When the Prophet (saaws) replied that this is his own tactical opinion, then that Sahabi, who was familiar with the layout of Badr, objected and said that they should position the army where the water wells are to prohibit the Kuffar from accessing the water. Also, when the Prophet (saaws) saw some people pollinating date trees manually (this is the only way to pollinate date trees), the Prophet (saaws) told them not to do so. The next year, the date trees yielded no crops, and the people indicated this to the Prophet (saaws), to which he replied: You know better when it comes to your worldly matters. The worldly matters in the hadith is in reference to issues related to the life that is not related to the Deen (such as choosing one's career, scientific or technical issues, etc.).

In conclusion, we have to maintain this concept clear that the Prophets and Messengers of Allah (swt) are infallible and they are free of sin or violating the rules of Allah (swt), but as human beings, they can make mistakes in tactical issues.

May Allah (swt) guide us to the correct understanding and keep us on the Straight Path.

Comments

This issue is related to 2 very important topics

1) The Shiite Doctrine

2)The Completeness of the Deen

Shiite Doctrine

According to Shias,It was a mistake on the part of Allah(swt) to send revelation to the Prophet Muhammad(saw) instead of Imam Ali(ra).

We found that the most effective way to discuss with the Shiites are to point out the fallacies and inconsistencies of their own arguments and their own books. It would be futile to quote hadiths to them because they have a very unique Usul. For example, they will only take hadiths reported by Ahlul Bayt(family of the Prophet). Furthermore, if you mention to them that Iran is not an Islamic State because they dealt with Riba, the answer will be: It is allowed in Shia Fiqh.

For example, the Shiites claim that the Sahabah illegally took the post of Khilafah, yet Ali stood by and did nothing. They will justify this with a concept they believe in called Tuqiyya, or hiding your true intentions due to duress, fear, etc. However, Tuqiyya is just another name for double-standard, deception, etc. Is such a behavior possible for somebody on the character of Ali? Furthermore, if Ali is an Imam according to them, meaning that he is masum (infallible, incapable of making mistakes or disobeying Allah), why did Ali not fight for his right of Khilafah during the time of Abu Bakr, or Umar, or Uthman? If Ali knew that the Khilafah being restricted to Ahlul-Bayt was an order from Allah, then he would not stand idly by and watch the disobedience to Allah's order for so many years, let alone if he were masum. Somebody who truly respects Ali would not stoop down and claim that Ali is capable of double-standard, cowardice, or disobedience.

This cannot happen because Allah (swt) chose the Sahabah as the mechanism to protect His Message, preserve the Quran and the Sunnah, and propagate it to the succeeding generations. In addition, the Sahabah were the ones who were trained and educated by the Prophet (saaws) himself through the guidance that he received from Allah (swt). It is totally ludicrous to even claim that the Sahabah consented to disobey Allah and His Messenger or would even allow such flagrant violations to persist, especially the moment after he died. This means that either all the education and training they received from the Prophet (saaws) went through one ear and out the other, or they had a hidden agenda and were conspiring against him. If this is how Islam started, then what kind of God are we being asked to believe in who would allow His Messenger to be fooled in this way, and what kind of message are we following? Is this is the result of the first generation that was trained and educated under the direct supervision of the messenger? Allah (swt) complemented the Sahabah as a group in the Quran, and He selected the Sahabah as His mechanism for preserving the message of Islam (Quran and Sunnah). If this mechanism is capable of such a gross violation, then there is nothing left of the deen of Islam to believe in.

2) Completeness of the Deen

The infallibility of the Prophets also imply the comprehensive nature of the Deen.But there are some who claim that there are some issues which Shariah does not address and hence they are permitted by default. To support their argument they refer to the hadith:

On the authority of Jurthum bin Nashir the Messenger of Allah(saw) said:

Allah the Almighty has laid down religious duties, so do not neglect them. He has set boundaries, so do not over step them. He has prohibited some things so do not violate them. He was silent about some things out of compassion for you, not forgetfulness, so do not seek after them.

[Darqutni, Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah, & Hakim]

This understanding holds that where there is no explicit text, then the concept of permissibility (ibaha) exists. This opinion is weak, for a number of reasons. The shariah hasn't left anything without a ruling from the Quran or the sunnah. The Islamic shariah encompasses all the actions of man, completely and comprehensively, at every time and place. Allah(swt) states in an ayah, with definite meaning:

''And We have sent down to you the Book (the Qur'an) as an exposition of everything, a guidance, a mercy, and glad tidings of those who have submitted for those who have submitted themselves to Allah''

[ Al-Nahl: 89].

Hence, no Muslim has the right to claim that there are situations devoid of a shariah rule, where the shariah has completely disregarded such a situation and has not established an evidence for it. To hold this view is to say that there was no evidence from the Book or the sunnah, or that the book and the sunnah have not given an indication through a legitimate illah (shariah reason) which the text has mentioned either explicitly or by indication, or which is known through deduction or by analogy - to illustrate what the rule is, whether wajib (compulsory), mandub (recommended), haram (forbidden), makruh (offensive) or mubah (permitted). No Muslim should hold this view because he would be slandering the shariah by claiming that it is imperfect and he would be making it legitimate to refer judgements to other than the shariah, thereby contradicting Allahs(swt) saying:

"No by your God, they shall not become true believers until they make you judge in matters that are of dispute amongst them and find within themselves no dislike of that which you have decided, and submit with full submission"

[ Al-Nisaa: 65].

If the shariah did not come with a rule, and the Muslim adopted a rule that the shariah had not come with, he would have referred a judgement to other than the shariah and this is forbidden. Because he would be claiming that the shariah has not come with the rules for all situations. So claiming that there is a permission to refer to other than Islam under the pretext that the shariah has not come with a particular rule would be a false and erroneous claim. Therefore, it is inconceivable to state that whatever the shariah has kept silent over is mubah, since it would be a slander against the shariah to claim that it has kept silent over certain rules and has not established them. This is also contrary to reality, because the shariah has not in fact kept silent over anything at all.To claim that Allah (swt) sent an incomplete message or that Allah (swt) forgot to include everything in Islam not only contradicts these ayat but directly conflicts with the Islamic aqeedah. Allah (swt) is beyond the capacity to forget or to make a miscalculation.

Perhaps the main reason that the idea of Islam as a system frightens many Muslims today is because this generation of Muslims, along with the previous generations, are the only ones who never lived under Islamic rule. As a result, the Muslims find it difficult to picture life under Islamic rule, and they rush to the existing systems and ideas simply because there is nothing else. Also, the Islamic State was a reality for about 1300 years, and none of the scholars of the past ever mentioned in their books of Fiqh the methodology for re-establishing the Islamic State because they never imagined themselves living in the absence of the Islamic systems. As such, the idea of re-establishing the Islamic systems never materialised. The idea of establishing the Islamic State only existed during the time of the Sahabah (ra), after which Islam remained established as a superpower for thirteen centuries, and the idea of re-establishing the Islamic State remained dormant.Only now, after 1400 years, is the idea reviving again, and it will take time for the Muslims to absorb a concept that was never discussed for so many centuries.