Discussion of the Maliki school's position on moving the index finger to the right and left during the tashahhud.
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The Shaykh : We were on the topic of how the movement is done, so where is this?
The student: It is in Khalil's Mukhtasar and its commentaries!
The Shaykh : Yes.
The student: It says: "Chapter on the Virtue of the Fingers: One moves them to the right and left, not up and down".
The Shaykh : Is that so?
The student: Yes, exactly as the text states.
The Shaykh : Have you reviewed other books?
The student: I reviewed *Al-'Utiyyah* by Malik. He holds—this is a rare text from Malik—he holds the view of moving the finger, but generally, without detail.
The Shaykh : Without detail?
The student: Without detail regarding the manner of the movement.
The Shaykh : Meaning he simply states the movement.
The student: He simply states the movement, yes. And his statement on this is actually rare from Malik, whereas Ibn al-'Arabi warns against it in *Al-'Aridhah*. He says: "Beware of what is in Al-'Utiyyah", meaning he spoke very strangely, meaning, glory be to Allah! If al-Saqaf had stopped to clarify something like this, he would have gone to every extreme in warning the servant!
The Shaykh : Yes, I do.
The student: Our Shaykh has a lengthy response to him on this issue regarding the chains of the hadith of Wail.
The Shaykh : Who responded?
The student: I wrote on the chains of the hadith of Wail, and by the grace of Allah, I gathered something good.
The Shaykh : What Allah willed, may Allah reward you with good.
The student: And you as well.
The Shaykh : Oh, Allah!
The student: Yes, it is a response to al-Yamani, who said that it is only pointing, the one for whom Muqbil wrote an introduction?
Another student: Yes, of course. The Shaykh referred to his thesis in a Sudanese magazine, was it published?
The student: By Allah, we have it, we have a copy, I don't know!
Another student: I wish you would send it.
The student: If Allah wills.
Another student: May Allah reward you with good.
The student: Of course, I am telling you I have a copy, not a printed version. I have a copy of a complete version.
Another student: From the magazine?
The student: No, no, from the research.
Another student: His research in a magazine, was it published by a publishing house?
The student: I don't know, I have it in my mind now as a photocopy.
Another student: The Shaykh says: It was narrated by eleven people from Asim, the hadith.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The student: But by the grace of Allah, I came across twenty-five narrators who narrated it from Asim.
You pointed out, our Shaykh, a very exquisite point, which is: that the hadith of Wail is unique in mentioning four or five matters. This is a very exquisite point that everyone who criticized the hadith for being anomalous overlooked!
The Shaykh : Yes, may Allah reward you with good, O Professor, and may He benefit through you.
The student: May Allah bless you.
Another student: But it seems you indicated that the Hanbalis have only pointing!
The student: In their fiqh books.
Another student: In some of their branches.
The student: My Shaykh, come down here!
The Shaykh : I say: I have seen some of the brothers doing the movement to the right and left, and it seems they were relying on a transmission like this.
Since we are not obligated to a specific manner of movement—and this is one of them—I see no obligation to adhere to this manner for the reason I mentioned earlier, and I see it better to adhere to what is theoretically and deductively stronger than that movement.
That! Once, or more than once, I saw some young men, as if it is their nature or fitrah, instead of placing it like this, they tilt their hand like this. You must have noticed with me.
The student: Yes.
The Shaykh : So I drew his attention, my brother, that the Sunnah is facing the qiblah, so now you are deviating with your finger from the qiblah.
So taking it to the right or left is a deviation from the qiblah, whereas this movement, which is first directed with the finger toward the qiblah and then moved like this, has no deviation.
The student: If one holds the hand steady, our Shaykh, and does this: right and left.
The Shaykh : This is what we are talking about.
The student: Yes.
The Shaykh : Right and left means deviation, and everything is relative, meaning.
You are now doing this and this, a little bit, but if you exaggerate now, the difference in the deviation I claim becomes apparent.
The student: Yes.
The Shaykh : So if the matter comes down to this movement, whether it is apparent or hidden, and this stable movement of the finger toward the qiblah, and since there is nothing that obligates us in these matters, and the matter comes down to opinion, then this opinion is preferable. Because the generality that you want to circle around when you take the opinion of the Malikis that you transmitted, is not taking the generality.
The student: No, my statement was, meaning, what occurred to me!
The Shaykh : Ah
The student: That this and that, meaning, just as this is called movement, that is also called movement, and it is not restricted to this or that.
The Shaykh : Very good, but will we say: by any movement, even the one the Malikis do?
The student: That is a departure from facing the qiblah.
The Shaykh : That is it!
The student: Yes.
The Shaykh : So this departure has weight in consideration and must be taken into account. So whichever movement, in its appearance or manifestation, is closer to the etiquettes of the Shari'ah, especially in this prayer, is the stronger one. With that, we do not deny, as long as we do not have a text that obligates us to adhere to a specific manner of movement.
The student: Some people, our Shaykh, err and shave with it, thinking like this, meaning this is one of the anomalies.
The Shaykh : Yes, it is one of the anomalies.
The student: Anomalies.
Another student: Is it over or not?
The student: Yes?
Another student: Is the question over, O Shaykh?
The student: It is in Khalil's Mukhtasar and its commentaries!
The Shaykh : Yes.
The student: It says: "Chapter on the Virtue of the Fingers: One moves them to the right and left, not up and down".
The Shaykh : Is that so?
The student: Yes, exactly as the text states.
The Shaykh : Have you reviewed other books?
The student: I reviewed *Al-'Utiyyah* by Malik. He holds—this is a rare text from Malik—he holds the view of moving the finger, but generally, without detail.
The Shaykh : Without detail?
The student: Without detail regarding the manner of the movement.
The Shaykh : Meaning he simply states the movement.
The student: He simply states the movement, yes. And his statement on this is actually rare from Malik, whereas Ibn al-'Arabi warns against it in *Al-'Aridhah*. He says: "Beware of what is in Al-'Utiyyah", meaning he spoke very strangely, meaning, glory be to Allah! If al-Saqaf had stopped to clarify something like this, he would have gone to every extreme in warning the servant!
The Shaykh : Yes, I do.
The student: Our Shaykh has a lengthy response to him on this issue regarding the chains of the hadith of Wail.
The Shaykh : Who responded?
The student: I wrote on the chains of the hadith of Wail, and by the grace of Allah, I gathered something good.
The Shaykh : What Allah willed, may Allah reward you with good.
The student: And you as well.
The Shaykh : Oh, Allah!
The student: Yes, it is a response to al-Yamani, who said that it is only pointing, the one for whom Muqbil wrote an introduction?
Another student: Yes, of course. The Shaykh referred to his thesis in a Sudanese magazine, was it published?
The student: By Allah, we have it, we have a copy, I don't know!
Another student: I wish you would send it.
The student: If Allah wills.
Another student: May Allah reward you with good.
The student: Of course, I am telling you I have a copy, not a printed version. I have a copy of a complete version.
Another student: From the magazine?
The student: No, no, from the research.
Another student: His research in a magazine, was it published by a publishing house?
The student: I don't know, I have it in my mind now as a photocopy.
Another student: The Shaykh says: It was narrated by eleven people from Asim, the hadith.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The student: But by the grace of Allah, I came across twenty-five narrators who narrated it from Asim.
You pointed out, our Shaykh, a very exquisite point, which is: that the hadith of Wail is unique in mentioning four or five matters. This is a very exquisite point that everyone who criticized the hadith for being anomalous overlooked!
The Shaykh : Yes, may Allah reward you with good, O Professor, and may He benefit through you.
The student: May Allah bless you.
Another student: But it seems you indicated that the Hanbalis have only pointing!
The student: In their fiqh books.
Another student: In some of their branches.
The student: My Shaykh, come down here!
The Shaykh : I say: I have seen some of the brothers doing the movement to the right and left, and it seems they were relying on a transmission like this.
Since we are not obligated to a specific manner of movement—and this is one of them—I see no obligation to adhere to this manner for the reason I mentioned earlier, and I see it better to adhere to what is theoretically and deductively stronger than that movement.
That! Once, or more than once, I saw some young men, as if it is their nature or fitrah, instead of placing it like this, they tilt their hand like this. You must have noticed with me.
The student: Yes.
The Shaykh : So I drew his attention, my brother, that the Sunnah is facing the qiblah, so now you are deviating with your finger from the qiblah.
So taking it to the right or left is a deviation from the qiblah, whereas this movement, which is first directed with the finger toward the qiblah and then moved like this, has no deviation.
The student: If one holds the hand steady, our Shaykh, and does this: right and left.
The Shaykh : This is what we are talking about.
The student: Yes.
The Shaykh : Right and left means deviation, and everything is relative, meaning.
You are now doing this and this, a little bit, but if you exaggerate now, the difference in the deviation I claim becomes apparent.
The student: Yes.
The Shaykh : So if the matter comes down to this movement, whether it is apparent or hidden, and this stable movement of the finger toward the qiblah, and since there is nothing that obligates us in these matters, and the matter comes down to opinion, then this opinion is preferable. Because the generality that you want to circle around when you take the opinion of the Malikis that you transmitted, is not taking the generality.
The student: No, my statement was, meaning, what occurred to me!
The Shaykh : Ah
The student: That this and that, meaning, just as this is called movement, that is also called movement, and it is not restricted to this or that.
The Shaykh : Very good, but will we say: by any movement, even the one the Malikis do?
The student: That is a departure from facing the qiblah.
The Shaykh : That is it!
The student: Yes.
The Shaykh : So this departure has weight in consideration and must be taken into account. So whichever movement, in its appearance or manifestation, is closer to the etiquettes of the Shari'ah, especially in this prayer, is the stronger one. With that, we do not deny, as long as we do not have a text that obligates us to adhere to a specific manner of movement.
The student: Some people, our Shaykh, err and shave with it, thinking like this, meaning this is one of the anomalies.
The Shaykh : Yes, it is one of the anomalies.
The student: Anomalies.
Another student: Is it over or not?
The student: Yes?
Another student: Is the question over, O Shaykh?