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« : 06 Şubat 2009, 15:08:51 » |
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Raising the index finger in the sitting posture
Question: While reciting the prayer “Attahiyyâtu” in the sitting posture in namâz, is it jâiz [permissible] for us to raise our index finger and make a sign (when saying the word of shahâdah)? Some people raise their index finger basing this practice on a hadîth sharîf. Is it permissible?
ANSWER
Raising your index finger is sunnat in the Shâfi’î Madhhab, but it is not permissible in the Hanafî Madhhab. Concerning one’s raising the pointing finger, some mujtahid scholars declared it to be makrûh while some others declared that it was sunnat. In such cases, there is a guiding principle in our religion: It is necessary to avoid doing something which is said to be sunnat or makrûh. When the fatwâs disagree with one another, that is, when the disagreement between fatwâs is in the manner of “jâiz and not jâiz or halâl and harâm,” it is essential to follow those fatwâs which say “not jâiz or harâm.” Thus, you will have abstained from committing a harâm or makrûh act. In the same way, that it is necessary to avoid doing an act which is said to be sunnat or bid’at is written in the books Barîqa, Hadîqa, and Ibni ‘Âbidîn.
Some statements from valuable books about raising the index finger are as follows:
As it is said that it is sunnat to make a sign, there are also those (savants) who say that it is mustahab. In actual fact, it is harâm. (Fatâwâ-i gharâib)
It is makrûh to make a sign with the index finger. The book Kubrâ affirms this. The fatwâ has been given in agreement with this, too. For it is necessary to sit calmly, without moving in namâz. (Fatâwâ-i sirâjiyya)
One should not make a sign with one’s pointing finger. This is what the fatwâ says. (Ghiyâsiyya, Bazzâziyya)
One should not make a sign or bend one’s pointing finger. The fatwâ also has been given in agreement with this. It is written so in the books Mudmarât, Walwâljiyya, Khulâsa and others. (Jâmî’ur-rumûz)
One should not make a sign with one’s pointing finger when saying the word of shahâdat in the sitting posture. The fatwâ says so. (Durr-ul-mukhtâr)
When Abussu’ûd Effendi was asked which one was better between raising and not raising one’s finger, he gave the following fatwâ: “Both are good, yet obviously, it is better not to raise the finger.”
As it is declared by all the savants unanimously, it is sunnat to do one’s best to keep one’s fingers pointing towards the Qibla. It is ordered openly by the following hadîth-i sharîf: “During namâz, do your best to keep all your limbs pointing towards the Qibla!”
As it is seen, there are savants who say that it is harâm to
make the sign. There are also fatwâs informing that it is makrûh. There are many (savants) who say that one does not make the sign and bend one’s finger because information of usûl states so. Then, it is not appropriate for us, the imitators, to attempt to make the sign by saying that there is a hadîth confirming it, thus doing something which has been said to be harâm or makrûh by the fatwâs of many mujtahids. A Muslim should think so: If those superiors had not had the documentary evidence showing that it would be harâm or makrûh to make a sign with the finger, they would not say that it would be harâm or makrûh. After communicating the reports informing that it is sunnat or mustahab to make the sign, they would not say, “Though they have said so, the truth of the matter is that the sign is harâm.” This means that maybe they inferred that not those pieces of information communicating that the sign was sunnat or mustahab but those evidences showing that it was prohibited were right.
Muslims in the Hanafî Madhhab cannot raise their finger thinking it is sunnat in the Shâfi’î Madhhab. It cannot be called “imitating another madhhab,” either. Because imitating another madhhab is permitted only when there arises a necessity.
Question: Is it necessary for people imitating Shâfi’î Madhhab to raise their index finger in the sitting posture?
ANSWER
Those imitating Shâfi’î Madhhab do not raise their finger, for they are not considered to have left the Hanafî Madhhab. The index finger, in its turn, is not raised in the Hanafî Madhhab.
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