Habashis and the Issue of Qiblah

• Introduction

• The Direction of the Qiblah

• Who are the Habashis? What are their beliefs?

• Important Notice!

• Footnotes (Click on footnotes number within text to jump to them)

Muslims Everywhere! Beware.

We are grateful to Allah Who has distinguished us with the great religion of Islaam, a fact which prompts the enemies of Islaam to mobilize their forces against Muslims everywhere. Indeed, the enemies of Islaam try their best to lead Muslims astray by various evil schemes. The Messenger of Allaah, , foretold that his ummah would be divided into seventy-three sects, and that all of them will end in hellfire except for one group. The Messenger of Allah, , named the delivered group Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jama'ah. One must always remember that the best of all Muslim generations were the first three. Therefore Muslims must adhere to the beliefs of those first three generations only. According to the teachings of the Messenger of Allah, , every belief not upheld by the first three generations of the ummah is to be rejected. Based on this fact, every other group accepting any such belief is deviant sect.

Ever since the death of the Messenger of Allah Muhammad, deviant sects have been emerging, one after another. Some sects went into oblivion, while others are merely off-shoots of old ones. Allaah emphasizes His Book that only truth will ultimately prevail.

Many of us have, by now, heard of the death of Rashad Khalifah, who was killed some months ago. The devil inspired R. Khalifah to devise his hoax of the No.19, to tamper with the meaning of the Qur'an, to allege, flippantly, that "the Sunnah is a work of Satan," and finally, to proclaim himself a messenger. Allaah the Almighty gave him a just punishment in this world, and the punishment of the Hereafter is harsher and more lasting, Insha'Allah.

Many of us also remember another hoax, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, who challenged a Muslim leader to prove his veracity, but Allaah proved his falsehood by death. Most, if not all, of the leaders of deviant sects have one thing in common: they usually do not introduce their deviant objectives and bid'ah at the beginning of their da'wah.. Rather, the deviant leaders try to penetrate gradually into the community, and, once they gain a foot-hold, their true beliefs begin to unfold. Mirza Hassan Ali of the Bahai's started his mission as a reformer, changed the religion, and claimed, at the end, to be a god. Mirza Ghulam Ahmad too, began as a reformer, changed the religion, and finally claimed to be a prophet. Rashad Khalifah announced his hoax of the of No. 19, changed the religion, and finally claimed to be a messenger. Allaah the Almighty dealt with them all justly.

Today, we are witnessing the appearance of another sect, which evolved from the deviant batini, mother of Shiism and of all other deviant sects. This new sect is moving about and making a racket to make itself heard. Its members are the followers of Abdullah al-Habashi, an Ethiopian of obscure background who lives in Lebanon. The Habashis crept into our community unnoticed. Before coming to Vancouver they were kicked out of Montreal, as they were kicked out of Tampa, Florida, when they tried to change the Qiblah direction from North-East to South-East.

We have no reason to doubt the intention of the majority of those who succumb to the scheme of the Habashis. We do, however, have reasons to believe that this sect's leaders have more in mind than meets the eye. One of the Habashi leaders assumes the character of a Shaikh, while another was able to enter Canada only after the United Church sponsored him.

The deviant sects starts off with one issue, usually a minor one, and so did the Habashis. But, once they rally around them a few supporters, they begin to infuse in them the sense of separatism, and fence them off from the rest of the community. The Habashis hold private meetings for the trapped victims in order to preach their true tenets and beliefs. That is exactly how every deviant sect operates. Thus, the Habashis are by no means different from the other sects. We know that Abdullah bin Saba', a Jew who pretended to be Muslim, rallied some simpleminded Muslims and convinced them that Ali was to be the Guardian of the Muslim ummah after the death of the Messenger of Allaah, Abdullah! bin Saba' launched his attacks on Islaam by raiding Madinah and assassinating Uthman bin Affaan, the third Khalifah,

The majority of Habashis came from Lebanon as students on scholarships from a benevolent Saudi society, viz. The Al-Hariri Society. Oddly enough, the Habashis impute kufr (disbelief) to the same Saudis who were kind to them and granted them scholarships. The Messenger of Allah, said: "He who is not grateful to people is not grateful to Allah."1 [TOP]


The Direction of the Qiblah
Just recently, an engineer from Montreal sent a letter to His Eminence, Shaikh Abdul-Aziz bin Baaz, the Mufti of Saudi Arabia, complaining about a group of people who claim that the Qiblah of Muslims in North America is toward the South-East, thus alleging that the Qiblah Muslims in North America are facing, (i.e. the North-East) is incorrect. Earlier on, the same group tried to raise a commotion within the Muslim community in Tampa, Fl. over the direction of the Qiblah. Their attempts, however, were foiled, and they were driven out of that city as a result.

There is no doubt that Muslims must pray in the direction of the Ka'bah as a precondition for the validity of prayer. But, the Qiblah for those who live in the West does not have to be necessarily in the East. The Qiblah may be in the West, North, South or East, depending on the place in which a Muslim happens to be. What is East to those in North America is not East to those who are in the Middle East or elsewhere.

If we set an imaginary straight line extending from where we are to the Southeast (taking into consideration that Saudi Arabia is located beyond the horizon from North America on the globe), our Qiblah would have to be the South-East corner of the United States, namely, the coast of Georgia or the Carolinas. We also have to bear in mind that the world is round, not flat. To pray according to the Qiblah of the Habashis means praying facing the coastal line of Georgia or Carolinas. By looking at a flat map, say facing the world directly over the Americas, you can see only North and South America. You cannot see both the Americas and the Middle East simply because the world is round. Therefore the only way to determine the correct direction of our Qiblah is to take the shortest distance between where we are and Makkah, as you can see the figure 

When the Habashis realized that their argument, which is based on the assumption that the earth is flat, was groundless, they presented another argument far weaker than the first. They claimed that the East is the Qiblah for those in the West, and the West is the Qiblah for those in the East. The Habashis base their argument on the Prophetic tradition: "Between the East and the West there is the Qiblah." This hadeeth, or tradition, was compiled by At-Tirmidthi. The mentioned tradition may sound vague to people who do not possess enough religious knowledge, so its interpretation by renowned scholars becomes a must older to understand its connotation.

lmam As-Suyooti, a renowned Hanafi scholar, commented on the above hadeeth saying: "This hadeeth does not apply to every country In tile world. It applies only to Madīnah and those cities aligned with it (in the region).'"2

Imam Al-baihaqi elaborated on the same hadeeth: What is meant by this hadeeth, Allah knows best, is tile people of Madīnah and the cities aligned with Madinah.3

Al-baihaqi's statement is also approved by Imam Ash-Shawkani, Ahmad bin Khaiawaih, Imam Ahmad, Ibn AbdelBerr, and others. The latter also said:

People living elsewhere (i.e. other than Madīnah) should face the qiblah whether it is in the North. South, East or West.4

Abdullah bin U'mar, , commented on the above-mentioned tradition, with regards to the residents of Madīnah: If you keep the West on your right! hand, and the East. on your left hand, the Qiblah is in between.5

This interpretation is substantiated by the following authentic hadeeth: The Prophet, , said: When you sit to relieve yourselves, neither face the Qiblah nor keep it behind you. Either face the East or the West.6

All of the honorable imams mentioned above agreed that the Messenger of Allaah, , addressed the people of Madīnah and the cities aligned with it in the above ahaadeeths,

Obviously, no person with a sound mind would think that the above hadeeth applies to B,C, or any other city in North America for that matter. The Qiblah that we are facing now was designated as a result of researches approved by Sunni scholars. A certain deviant sect would like Muslims to face in prayer the city of Makkah, in Palestine, another would like us to face Qadian, and another would like us to face Qum in Iran. The Habashis have not been with us long enough for us to discover their true motives behind the Qiblah decoy. [TOP]

Who are the Habashis? What are their Beliefs?


The Habashis, as mentioned earlier, are the followers of Abdullah Alharrari Alhabashi, an Ethiopian of obscure background. He came to Lebanon under mysterious circumstances, and has capitalized on the unstable political and social situation in Lebanon. Later on, he chose Beirut, the capital of Lebanon, as a permanent base for his dubious activities. Like the dead Rashad Khalifah preceding him, Al-Habashi thrives on raising controversial issues as a means of capturing people's attention.

The following is an excerpt from Abdullah Ash-Shami, a man who has accompanied the Habashis long enough to know their order inside out. He is the author of the illustrious book, Ar-Radd Ala Abdullaah al-Habashi: Refutation of Alhabashi's beliefs:

The Habashis create commotion and arguments in mosques. They call many imams kafirs, and many scholars fasiqs or disobedient. Rarely is a Muslim safe from their tongues, unless he walks quietly along their way.[p.2]

The following are some of the Habashis beliefs:

Abdullah al-Habashi calls the great Sahabi (companion) of the Messenger of Allah, , Mu'aawiyeh bin Abi Sufyan , a fasiq, or disobedient and one of the people of Hell-Fire.

The Prophet, , loved Mu'aawiyeh. In fact the Messenger of Allah, , said: Revile not my companions. By the One in Whose hand is my life, were one of you to expend in charity an amount of gold equal to Mount Uhud, he would not accrue the reward that a companion gets for expending in charity [the amount] of a mudd (approx. 1 kg).7

Mu'aawiyeh was one of the greatest companions of the Prophet, . He used to write down the Qur'ānic revelation for the Prophet, . Is it conceivable then, to believe that the Messenger of Allah, , would appoint a fasiq or one of the people of Hell-Fire to write the Qur'ānic Revelation for him? The four Imams, Abu Hanifah, Malik, Ahmad, and Ash-Shafi'ee, may Allah grant them His mercy, respected Mu'aawiyeh and used to say "-Radhya Allahu anhu (with whom Allah is pleased)", whenever Mu'aawiyeh's name was mentioned The Prophet Muhammad made du'a for Mu'aawiyeh saying: "O Allah guide him to the right guidance." In another hadeeth, the Prophet, , said: "O Allah, make him well-Guided, and guide others through him."'8 Both Imam Bukhari and Imam Muslim compiled traditions narrated by Mu'aawiyeh in their Sahihs of authentic traditions.

To begin with, Allaah, the Exalted, would not approve of Mu'aawiyeh as one of His Messenger's scribes had he been a fasiq. Besides being the scribe of the Messenger of Allaah, , Mu'aawiyeh also acquired the title "The Uncle of the Believers," due to the fact that his sister, Umm Habibah, was the wife of our beloved Prophet, , and she is the Mother of the Believers. Now, who deserves the Hell-Fire, the great Sahaabi, Mu'aawiyeh , or the Habashi himself?

Abdullah al-Hahashi considers Imam Abu Hanifah, may Allah grant him His mercy, a philosopher.9

Since Al-Habashi bases all of his beliefs on philosophy, he therefore forges statements against Imam Abu Hanifah and claims falsely that this Imam was a philosopher. The fact of the matter Is that Abu Hanifah abhorred philosophy and condemned philosophers. Abu Hanifah, may Allah grant him His Mercy, said: I have found those who study philosophy and engage in its discussions [to be] a group of people who do not follow the path of the pious predecessors, the companions of the Prophet, . I found their hearts to he hard, for they do not care if they go against the Book of Allaah, the Sunnah of His Messenger, , and the pious predecessors. with whom Allah is pleased. They [the philosophers] are impious.10

Abu Yusuf, may Allah grant him his mercy, was the closest to Abu Hanifah. He said: "Who ever learns the religion through philosophy is a Zindiq 11."12

Al-Bazzaz reported that Abu Hanifah forbade his sons and students from discussing philosophy. In fact, Abu Hanifah said: May Allaah curse Amr bin Ubaid. He opened the gate of philosophy to people.13

Abu Hanifah and the other imams considered philosophy to be kufr, i.e. disbelief. Now, who would you believe, Imam Abu Hanifah, may Allaah grant him His mercy, or the Habashi, who considers philosophy as his religion and the foundation of his belief in Allaah?

The majority of Muslims in the Indian subcontinent adhere to the Hanafi Madthhab. Therefore the Habashi implies, indirectly, that the majority of the Muslims in the Indian sub-Continent are kafirs. In light of Abu Hanifa's opinion of philosophy, there is no other interpretation to the Habashis' statement.

The Habashis impute blasphemy to everyone who disagrees with them, or whom they hate.

To prove this, the Habashis do not pray behind any Sunni Imaam or a scholar who faces the North-East in prayer, because they consider him and those who pray behind him as kafirs. The Messenger of Allah, said: "Who ever calls a Muslim a kafir, becomes a disbeliever."14

The Habashis deny many of Allaah's beautiful names.15

They claim that the names and attributes of Allaaah differ from Allaah Himself.

Imam Ash-Shafi'ee said: "If you hear a man saying that the attribute of Allaah is different from Allaah then judge him as zindiq, because Allaah says: And to Allah belong the perfect attributes. So call on Him by these [names] and stand aloof from those who deviate from the right course in respect of the attributes of Allah.16

The Habashis interpret the Qur'an by their opinions.

None of the companions of the Prophet, , ever dared to interpret the Qur'an by personal opinion, nor did any of the tabi'een or their followers do so. Interpreting the Qur'an by opinion is definitely haram, (unlawful) The Messenger of Allah, , said: Who ever interprets the Qur'an by his opinion, or without knowledge, let him assume his seat in Hellfire. l7

In fact deliberate misinterpreting the Qur'an is the practice of all deviant sects, because they sanction their subversive beliefs by teaching that the Qur'an has apparent and hidden meanings.

The Habashis believe that Eemaan is only a matter of belief in the heart and utterance by the tongue, and does not necessitate good deeds. 18

There is no doubt that a creed such as this discourages Muslims from fulfilling their duties towards Allaah and performing the five pillars of Islam.

The Qur'an contains over forty verses that combine Eemaan and good deeds. If the belief of the Habashis would be true, then Abu Jahl, the most wicked enemy of the Messenger of Allaah. , should go to Jannah, because he believed that the Prophet, , was sent by Allaah. Akhnas bin Shuraiq asked Abu Jahl on the day of the battle of Badr: "Aba al-Hakam!19 Tell me about Muhammad. Is he truthful or a liar? There is no one of the Quraish other than the two of us here listening to our conversation.' Abu Jahl said: "Woe to you! By Allaah, he is truthful. He never told a lie in his life. But if the Family of Qusai 20 enjoyed the privileges of leadership, guardianship of the Sacred House, the honor of providing pilgrims with water and the honor of Prophethood, what would be left for the rest of Quraish to beproud of?'21

This, as you can see, is a clear confession and recognition from Abu Jahl's heart and tongue, that Muhammad, , is a true Prophet. Rut, his belief did not save him from the eternal torment of Hell-Fire. Yet, logically, according to the Habashis, there is no difference between Abu Jahl, the enemy of Allaah, and Abu Bakr As-Siddiq, , the best man of the Muslim ummah, next to the Prophet, . Both Abu Bakr and Abu Jahl believed in the Messenger of Allaah, , but the difference between them is quite clear: Abu Bakr combined belief with good deeds, whereas Abu Jahl combined his belief with defiance, jealousy, and evil deeds. In other words, the difference between the two is application, thus proving that Eemaan without application is void, just as application is void without Eemaan.

Some characteristics of the Habashis:

• It is very easy for them to impute disbelief to any Muslims who do not adhere to their beliefs.
  

• It is not hard to spot the Habashis, if they ever attend congregational prayer in the mosque. When they recite the Qur'an they produce whistling sounds when pronouncing some Arabic letters. They also overly stress pronouncing other letters to the  point of spitting them out rather than pronouncing them. It was not the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah, , to be eccentric in reading the words of Allaah. It is easy to recognize a Habashi once one becomes aware of the way they recite the Qur'an.
  

• Their leader, Abdullah al-Habashi, has devised a trick to help his followers avoid praying Jum'ah prayer, or attending congregational prayers in mosques. Al-Habashi issued a fatwa that anyone who wishes to exempt himself from attending Jum'ah prayer should eat onion or garlic, whereas the command of the Prophet, , is that neither of these two plants should be eaten prior to coming to the masjid. The command of the Messenger of Allah, , constitutes a prohibition of eating onion or garlic prior to coming to the masjid. Al-Habashi twists this prohibition around, however, and endorses it as an evasive permission for missing Jum'ah prayer.

There are many ahaadeeth, or Prophetic traditions, that give a warning to those who neglect attending Jum' ah prayer. The Prophet, , said: "If anyone neglects Jum'ah prayer for three consecutive weeks, Allah seals his heart."22 Also, the Prophet, , said: Let those who neglect in attending Jum'ah prayer, stop doing so. Otherwise Allaah will seal their hearts, and they will be of the heedless.23

Evasion in religion is condemned by Allaah, the Exalted. The Jews practiced evasive methods and were cursed by Allaah as a result. In fact, employing evasion in religion gives excuses to many to avoid praying, fasting, paying Zakat, or going for Hajj; Those who equivocate in matters of religion think that they deceive Allaah, but in fact, they only deceive themselves without being aware of it. Allaah certainly is aware of what they conceal and what they reveal.

Finally, we ask Allaah the Exalted to protect us from the evil schemes of all the deviant sects, and to keep us in the body of Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jama'ah, the only saved group; and may Allah guide all those who have strayed from the right path. Aameen. [TOP]

Notice

The Habashis are currently functioning under the name of al-Furqan Islamic Foundation , stationed in Bellevue, WA. They also publish Al-Muhajir.


Footnotes

1. Abu Dawood, At-Tirmidthi & others

2. Imam Abdullah Muhammad Mubarakpuri. Tuhfat al-Ahwadthi. Vol. 3 p.318-1

3. Ibid.

4. Ibid.

5. Ibid. Reported by al-Baihaqi

6. Imam Ahmad, Abu Dawood, Ibn Majah and others.

7. Sahih Al-Bukhari, Sahih Muslim, Abu Dawood & At-Tirmidthi

8. At-Tirmidthi [TOP]

9. The above is stated by al-Habashi in his book, Ad-Dalil al-Qaweem p.4

10. The History of the Islamic Madth-habs, Vol. 2 p. 132

11. Zindiq , originally a Persian word meaning deviator from the right religion of Islaam, or an impugner of it, and one who denies the Oneness of Allaah. It also means the one who conceals unbelief and makes an outward show of belief.

12. As-Suyooti, Sawn al-Mantiq, p.60

13. Sawm al-Mantiq, p. 60

14. Imam al-Bukhari, Imam Muslim & AtTirmidthi

15. Al-Habashi, Ad-Dalil al-qaweem, p.78

16. Q. 7.180

17. At-Tirmidthi & An-Nasaa'ee

18. A. Al-Habashi's book, Al-Intifaa', p.34

19. A nickname for Abu Jahl.

20. Qusai is the great grandfather of the Prophet, peace be upon him.

21. Hidayat al-Hayara, p. 48

22. Imam Ahmad, At-Tirmidthi, and others

23. Imam Muslim & An-Nasaa'ee [TOP]