The benefits derived from the saying of the Exalted: “O you who believe! Let those whom your right hands possess and those who have not yet reached puberty ask your permission” three times
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The reciter: [Surat al-Nur: 61].
The Shaykh : I seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Shaytan. It has been established that Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, clarified, or rather made obligatory, that the young ones and the slaves must ask for permission at three times: the first is before the Fajr prayer, the second is when you remove your clothes at midday, and the third is after the Isha prayer. And Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, explained the wisdom behind this, stating that these three times are the times of exposure for a person. Perhaps someone might enter without asking permission and find him in a state of exposure, meaning in a state that is ugly to see and reprehensible. I believe we have not yet discussed the benefits. It was also previously mentioned that there is no blame on them or on their guardians if they enter without asking permission after these three times. And Allah explained the wisdom behind this as well, stating that they move about among us, some of us moving about among others in a recurring manner, and making it obligatory to ask for permission every time they move about would be a burden and hardship.
Now, let us begin with the benefits. First, the address is directed to the believers, and the ruling for others indicates that they are responsible for them.
Second, it is obligatory for these two categories of people, the young ones and the slaves, to ask for permission at only three times, which are the ones mentioned. As for others, they must ask for permission at all times.
The third benefit: The apparent meaning of the verse is that it is not obligatory for him to ask for permission because he is young and does not concern himself with matters.
The student: ...
The Shaykh : Yes, perfume.
And in it is evidence for the reasoning behind rulings. I hope no one asks questions while we are deriving benefits, because I may have something in mind, and this question would prevent me from getting to it, as the place for questions and discussion is the lesson.
What is the third benefit? We said it is the reasoning behind rulings, meaning that all the rulings of Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, are based on wisdom. The proof for this is the verse, where Allah reasoned the first ruling and the second ruling. The first ruling is the obligation to ask for permission at three times because they are times of exposure. The second ruling is the non-obligation of asking for permission at other times because they move about among you.
The fourth benefit is the prohibition of looking at the exposed parts of the body. What is the proof? If it is obligatory to ask for permission at these three times out of fear of finding them in a state of exposure, then one who intentionally looks at an exposed part is even more blameworthy. Therefore, it is derived from this that looking at the exposed parts of the body is forbidden, whether the one looking is young or old. As for the negligence of some people regarding a young child looking at the exposed parts, this is an error. Some people do not care if a child of six or seven years old looks at the exposed parts. This is not permissible, because this image must be imprinted in his mind, and perhaps he will remember it on some day. The result is that this contains evidence for the prohibition of looking at the exposed parts of the body for both the young and the old. However, the young one referred to is the one who has discernment, because the phrase “ask your permission” indicates that he is one who has discernment and is commanded to ask for permission, so he asks. As for the young one who does not have discernment, he does not know anything.
The fifth benefit is the removal of hardship and burden from people. Where do we take this from?
The student: ...
The Shaykh : From the removal of hardship in not asking for permission at times other than these three, because they move about among them in a recurring manner, and asking for permission would be a hardship.
The sixth benefit is that the guardian is sinful for the sin or violation committed by his ward if he was negligent in his upbringing and discipline, due to His saying:[An-Nur 24:58]
The seventh benefit is the purity of the child’s body, even if it is presumed to be impure. Where do we take this from?
The student: They move about.
The Shaykh : How?
The student: ...
The Shaykh : That which contradicts... asking for permission.
The student: ...
The Shaykh : And He reasoned this by saying that they are among those who move about, and these are among those who move about. Perhaps it can be derived from this that the child’s body is pure, and that he is pure as long as impurity is not confirmed. If impurity is confirmed, that is a different matter.
And the eighth benefit in this verse is the favor of Allah, the Exalted, upon the servants in explaining the cosmic and legal signs, so that no argument remains for people against Allah after this explanation. Likewise, Allah explains to you the signs.
The ninth benefit is that no one is able to bring forth a legislation like the legislation of Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, and His system. Where is this taken from?
The student: ...
The Shaykh : Not from the fact that He made it one of the signs. The meaning of the signs of Allah is that they are not suitable for anyone other than Him. If they were suitable for anyone other than Him, they would not be a sign for Him. This indicates that the legislation of Allah cannot be matched by anyone. Otherwise, it would not be valid as a sign, and it would not be a sign.
And in it is also evidence for the establishment of the right of ownership over slaves for humans, and that Islam came with slavery, due to His saying: But as is well known, Islam protected the rights of these slaves, encouraged their manumission and freeing, and established multiple causes for manumission.
The eleventh benefit is the permissibility of placing the garment when sleeping, and that a person may cover himself with a blanket, due to His saying:[An-Nur 24:58] The restriction to midday in His saying: [An-Nur 24:58]
The student: ...
The Shaykh : Meaning they know...
The student: ...
The Shaykh : This is one thing, and the second thing is
The student: ...
The Shaykh : It appears that, as Muhammad said, not everyone has a time of exposure at midday. It is not a time of exposure for him unless he is the one who removes his clothes to sleep at midday. Some said that because the midday nap is not long, some people do not undress. For this reason, He restricted it by saying:[An-Nur 24:58] Unlike the night sleep, where people remove their clothes because its duration is long.
The student: ...
The Shaykh : And we do not ask about the permissibility of placing the garment; we ask about the wisdom in restricting midday by saying: your clothes, and not restricting it at night. This is not a question of whether it is permissible or not. The answer is that it is permissible.
Now, in it is also evidence for the twelfth benefit. It contains evidence for the care of Allah, the Glorified and Exalted, for His creation, and that even if they are satisfied with what is ugly, Allah will not be satisfied with it. Perhaps someone might say, “I do not care if my child enters on me at these three times.” We would say to him, but Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, has cared for you and prohibited entry upon you at these three times.
The thirteenth, we mentioned it, I don’t know, and it is the permissibility of entering without asking for permission at times other than these three. We mentioned it.
The student: ...
The Shaykh : Now, there is a discussion: Is this verse decisive (muhkam) or abrogated, or was its practice left off due to the removal of the need for it? And what did we say yesterday?
The student: ...And it is established from Ibn Abbas that he said...
The Shaykh : And no curtains or anything.
The student: And no curtains... The correct thing to say is...
The Shaykh : Meaning, then, the verse is decisive (muhkam), and it is so. And we must know that it is not permissible to say about a verse or hadith that it is abrogated until what? Until it becomes impossible to reconcile it with what is claimed to be the abrogating text, and until it is known by the date that the abrogating text came later. Otherwise, if you cannot reconcile them, all knowledge belongs to Allah. As for starting with abrogation, because the meaning of abrogation is invalidating this text, and invalidating a text is difficult. Therefore, a person must be scrupulous about declaring abrogation in matters where abrogation has not been established. Then, leaving off the practice of it does not indicate that it is actually abrogated, because how many things are decisive (muhkam) and people have left off practicing them. People leaving off the practice of it is either due to negligence or due to the removal of the cause that necessitates asking for permission. And now, the author
And in the verse is also the fifteenth benefit. In the verse is also the establishment of knowledge and wisdom for Allah from these two names:[An-Nisa 4:26] And wisdom, as we have previously mentioned, means placing things in their proper places. Indeed, we have previously mentioned that the Wise does not mean only the one who possesses wisdom, but also the one who possesses rulings and wisdom. And what do you say, Abd al-Rahman?
The student: ...Hardship brings about ease?
The Shaykh : Yes, in it is that hardship brings about ease. Let us look at the author’s words, because he has a comment on this verse. He said: “And the verse of asking for permission was said to be abrogated, and it was said no, but people are negligent in leaving off asking for permission” These are the two opinions we referred to. The correct one is that the verse is decisive (muhkam) and remains, and that leaving off asking for permission is either due to negligence or due to the removal of the cause that necessitates asking for permission. As for saying that the legal rulings are abrogated because people left off practicing them, this has no basis.
The student: ...
The Shaykh : In leaving off asking for permission, people are negligent in leaving it off. What should... we say about that is that they were negligent in performing it... And what is the cause of their negligence? We say their leaving off, leaving off asking for permission.
The student: ...
The Shaykh : If he was negligent in his upbringing and discipline. But if he was not negligent, then no.
The student: If he is of age.
The Shaykh : If he is of age, he has become independent. Once he reaches maturity, he is like any other person. If he is capable of changing what is wrong, it is obligatory for him to do so. We also discussed yesterday the issue of the saying of Allah the Exalted:[An-Nur 24:58] We said that the verse has an explicit meaning (manṭūq) and an implied meaning (mafḥūm). There is no problem with its explicit meaning, which is the negation of blame, because there is no blame... But its implied meaning is that there is blame upon them during these three times, upon the guardians and upon the young ones. This is problematic, because the young ones are not accountable, so there cannot be blame upon them for disobedience.
The student: ...in one of the individuals
The Shaykh : In one of the individuals. Yes, he says the implied meaning does not have... it is valid by the existence of a single instance of the general, even if it is just one instance.
There is not upon the blind [any] constraint nor upon the lame constraint nor upon the ill constraint nor upon yourselves when you eat from your [own] houses or the houses of your fathers or the houses of your mothers or the houses of your brothers or the houses of your sisters or the houses of your father's brothers or the houses of your father's sisters or the houses of your mother's brothers or the houses of your mother's sisters or [from houses] whose keys you possess or [from the house] of your friend. There is no blame upon you whether you eat together or separately. But when you enter houses, give greetings of peace upon each other - a greeting from Allah, blessed and good. Thus does Allah make clear to you the verses [of ordinance] that you may understand.
لَيْسَ عَلَى الأَعْمَى حَرَجٌ وَلا عَلَى الأَعْرَجِ حَرَجٌ وَلا عَلَى الْمَرِيضِ حَرَجٌ وَلا عَلَى أَنفُسِكُمْ أَنْ تَأْكُلُوا مِنْ بُيُوتِكُمْ أَوْ بُيُوتِ آبَائِكُمْ أَوْ بُيُوتِ أُمَّهَاتِكُمْ أَوْ بُيُوتِ إِخْوَانِكُمْ أَوْ بُيُوتِ أَخَوَاتِكُمْ أَوْ بُيُوتِ أَعْمَامِكُمْ أَوْ بُيُوتِ عَمَّاتِكُمْ أَوْ بُيُوتِ أَخْوَالِكُمْ أَوْ بُيُوتِ خَالاتِكُمْ أَوْ مَا مَلَكْتُمْ مَفَاتِحَهُ أَوْ صَدِيقِكُمْ لَيْسَ عَلَيْكُمْ جُنَاحٌ أَنْ تَأْكُلُوا جَمِيعًا أَوْ أَشْتَاتًا فَإِذَا دَخَلْتُمْ بُيُوتًا فَسَلِّمُوا عَلَى أَنفُسِكُمْ تَحِيَّةً مِنْ عِنْدِ اللَّهِ مُبَارَكَةً طَيِّبَةً كَذَلِكَ يُبَيِّنُ اللَّهُ لَكُمُ الآيَاتِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَعْقِلُونَThe Shaykh : I seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Shaytan. It has been established that Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, clarified, or rather made obligatory, that the young ones and the slaves must ask for permission at three times: the first is before the Fajr prayer, the second is when you remove your clothes at midday, and the third is after the Isha prayer. And Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, explained the wisdom behind this, stating that these three times are the times of exposure for a person. Perhaps someone might enter without asking permission and find him in a state of exposure, meaning in a state that is ugly to see and reprehensible. I believe we have not yet discussed the benefits. It was also previously mentioned that there is no blame on them or on their guardians if they enter without asking permission after these three times. And Allah explained the wisdom behind this as well, stating that they move about among us, some of us moving about among others in a recurring manner, and making it obligatory to ask for permission every time they move about would be a burden and hardship.
Now, let us begin with the benefits. First, the address is directed to the believers, and the ruling for others indicates that they are responsible for them.
Second, it is obligatory for these two categories of people, the young ones and the slaves, to ask for permission at only three times, which are the ones mentioned. As for others, they must ask for permission at all times.
The third benefit: The apparent meaning of the verse is that it is not obligatory for him to ask for permission because he is young and does not concern himself with matters.
The student: ...
The Shaykh : Yes, perfume.
And in it is evidence for the reasoning behind rulings. I hope no one asks questions while we are deriving benefits, because I may have something in mind, and this question would prevent me from getting to it, as the place for questions and discussion is the lesson.
What is the third benefit? We said it is the reasoning behind rulings, meaning that all the rulings of Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, are based on wisdom. The proof for this is the verse, where Allah reasoned the first ruling and the second ruling. The first ruling is the obligation to ask for permission at three times because they are times of exposure. The second ruling is the non-obligation of asking for permission at other times because they move about among you.
The fourth benefit is the prohibition of looking at the exposed parts of the body. What is the proof? If it is obligatory to ask for permission at these three times out of fear of finding them in a state of exposure, then one who intentionally looks at an exposed part is even more blameworthy. Therefore, it is derived from this that looking at the exposed parts of the body is forbidden, whether the one looking is young or old. As for the negligence of some people regarding a young child looking at the exposed parts, this is an error. Some people do not care if a child of six or seven years old looks at the exposed parts. This is not permissible, because this image must be imprinted in his mind, and perhaps he will remember it on some day. The result is that this contains evidence for the prohibition of looking at the exposed parts of the body for both the young and the old. However, the young one referred to is the one who has discernment, because the phrase “ask your permission” indicates that he is one who has discernment and is commanded to ask for permission, so he asks. As for the young one who does not have discernment, he does not know anything.
The fifth benefit is the removal of hardship and burden from people. Where do we take this from?
The student: ...
The Shaykh : From the removal of hardship in not asking for permission at times other than these three, because they move about among them in a recurring manner, and asking for permission would be a hardship.
The sixth benefit is that the guardian is sinful for the sin or violation committed by his ward if he was negligent in his upbringing and discipline, due to His saying:
There is no blame upon you nor upon them beyond these [periods]
ليس عليكم ولا عليهم جناح بعدهنThe seventh benefit is the purity of the child’s body, even if it is presumed to be impure. Where do we take this from?
The student: They move about.
The Shaykh : How?
The student: ...
The Shaykh : That which contradicts... asking for permission.
The student: ...
The Shaykh :
That they are not impure.
أنها ليست بنجسAnd the eighth benefit in this verse is the favor of Allah, the Exalted, upon the servants in explaining the cosmic and legal signs, so that no argument remains for people against Allah after this explanation. Likewise, Allah explains to you the signs.
The ninth benefit is that no one is able to bring forth a legislation like the legislation of Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, and His system. Where is this taken from?
The student: ...
The Shaykh : Not from the fact that He made it one of the signs. The meaning of the signs of Allah is that they are not suitable for anyone other than Him. If they were suitable for anyone other than Him, they would not be a sign for Him. This indicates that the legislation of Allah cannot be matched by anyone. Otherwise, it would not be valid as a sign, and it would not be a sign.
And in it is also evidence for the establishment of the right of ownership over slaves for humans, and that Islam came with slavery, due to His saying:
And those whom your right hands possess.
والذين ملكت أيمانكمThe eleventh benefit is the permissibility of placing the garment when sleeping, and that a person may cover himself with a blanket, due to His saying:
when you put aside your clothing [for rest] at noon
وحين تضعون ثيابكم من الظهيرةwhen you put aside your clothing
وحين تضعون ثيابكمThe student: ...
The Shaykh : Meaning they know...
The student: ...
The Shaykh : This is one thing, and the second thing is
The student: ...
The Shaykh : It appears that, as Muhammad said, not everyone has a time of exposure at midday. It is not a time of exposure for him unless he is the one who removes his clothes to sleep at midday. Some said that because the midday nap is not long, some people do not undress. For this reason, He restricted it by saying:
when you put aside your clothing [for rest] at noon
حين تضعون ثيابكم من الظهيرةThe student: ...
The Shaykh : And we do not ask about the permissibility of placing the garment; we ask about the wisdom in restricting midday by saying:
And when you take off.
وحين تضعونNow, in it is also evidence for the twelfth benefit. It contains evidence for the care of Allah, the Glorified and Exalted, for His creation, and that even if they are satisfied with what is ugly, Allah will not be satisfied with it. Perhaps someone might say, “I do not care if my child enters on me at these three times.” We would say to him, but Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, has cared for you and prohibited entry upon you at these three times.
The thirteenth, we mentioned it, I don’t know, and it is the permissibility of entering without asking for permission at times other than these three. We mentioned it.
The student: ...
The Shaykh : Now, there is a discussion: Is this verse decisive (muhkam) or abrogated, or was its practice left off due to the removal of the need for it? And what did we say yesterday?
The student: ...And it is established from Ibn Abbas that he said...
The Shaykh : And no curtains or anything.
The student: And no curtains... The correct thing to say is...
The Shaykh : Meaning, then, the verse is decisive (muhkam), and it is so. And we must know that it is not permissible to say about a verse or hadith that it is abrogated until what? Until it becomes impossible to reconcile it with what is claimed to be the abrogating text, and until it is known by the date that the abrogating text came later. Otherwise, if you cannot reconcile them, all knowledge belongs to Allah. As for starting with abrogation, because the meaning of abrogation is invalidating this text, and invalidating a text is difficult. Therefore, a person must be scrupulous about declaring abrogation in matters where abrogation has not been established. Then, leaving off the practice of it does not indicate that it is actually abrogated, because how many things are decisive (muhkam) and people have left off practicing them. People leaving off the practice of it is either due to negligence or due to the removal of the cause that necessitates asking for permission. And now, the author
And in the verse is also the fifteenth benefit. In the verse is also the establishment of knowledge and wisdom for Allah from these two names:
And Allah is Knowing and Wise.
والله عليم حكيمThe student: ...Hardship brings about ease?
The Shaykh : Yes, in it is that hardship brings about ease. Let us look at the author’s words, because he has a comment on this verse. He said: “And the verse of asking for permission was said to be abrogated, and it was said no, but people are negligent in leaving off asking for permission” These are the two opinions we referred to. The correct one is that the verse is decisive (muhkam) and remains, and that leaving off asking for permission is either due to negligence or due to the removal of the cause that necessitates asking for permission. As for saying that the legal rulings are abrogated because people left off practicing them, this has no basis.
The student: ...
The Shaykh : In leaving off asking for permission, people are negligent in leaving it off. What should... we say about that is that they were negligent in performing it... And what is the cause of their negligence? We say their leaving off, leaving off asking for permission.
The student: ...
The Shaykh : If he was negligent in his upbringing and discipline. But if he was not negligent, then no.
The student: If he is of age.
The Shaykh : If he is of age, he has become independent. Once he reaches maturity, he is like any other person. If he is capable of changing what is wrong, it is obligatory for him to do so. We also discussed yesterday the issue of the saying of Allah the Exalted:
There is no blame upon you nor upon them beyond these [periods]
ليس عليكم ولا عليهم جناح بعدهنThe student: ...in one of the individuals
The Shaykh : In one of the individuals. Yes, he says the implied meaning does not have... it is valid by the existence of a single instance of the general, even if it is just one instance.