The IMMEDIATE Knowledge (^ILMUL-HAAL) a Muslim is Obligated to Learn

اإلقبال على علمالحال

APPROACHINGTHE IMMEDIATE KNOWLEDGE

(^ILMUL-HAL)

THE IMMEDIATE KNOWLEDGE (^ILMUL-HAL)

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INTRODUCTION 4

SESSION ONE: BASIC CREED 5

THE ATTRIBUTES OF ALLAH 6Important pointers about some of the

attributes 9

THE PROPHETS OF ALLAH 11PURIFICATION 12

Ghusl 12

Wudu’ 13

Cleaning after Urination and Defecation

(Istinja’) 14

Removing Filth 15

BASIC PRAYER 16Important cases 18

SECOND SESSION 21

JUDGMENT 22BASICS OF BLASPHEMY (KUFR) 24

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THE OBLIGATIONS OF THE HEART AND SOME OF THE SINS OF THE VARIOUS

ORGANS 26LAST ISSUES 27

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INTRODUCTION

Part of the obligatory knowledge is what is

called the “immediate knowledge (^ilmul-

hal)”. It is more specific than the all of the

necessary religious knowledge contained in the

Summary that we will be taking after

completing this brief document, God willing.

This is the knowledge one needs for the

immediate obedience to Allah, as in the case of

a person who just embraced Islam within the

hour, for instance. Such a person must

immediately learn certain matters of belief,

and learn about matters of purification and

prayer, so to pray before the exiting of the

prayer time. They must also learn about some

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of the sins because it is obligatory to refrain

from them immediately.

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SESSION ONE: BASIC CREED

The most important knowledge is that of

the Creed. One must immediately know

about Allah and His Messenger.

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THE ATTRIBUTES OF ALLAH

It is obligatory to know 13 attributes among the

countless attributes of Allah. They are

1) Existence : Allah is a self attributed with

attributes. His self is His reality and not a

body. The selves of the creations are their

bodies. Allah’s existence is uncreated and

hence is not physical. He exists without

place, space, directions or time. The

existence of the world is proof for the

existence of its creator, for every doing

must have a doer.

2) Eternity : Allah exists without a

beginning, because had He been created,

He would need a creator, and hence

godhood would be invalid for Him. But

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since the creations’ occurrence is

confirmed by senses and natural

disposition (badihah), the Creator’s

existence, and more specifically, His

beginningless existence, is confirmed.

3) Everlastingness : Allah exists without a

beginning, and hence must exist without

end, for whatever comes to an end must

have a beginning. Whatever has a

beginning or end is bound by time, and

whatever is bound by time is an

occurrence; a creation.

4) Independence : Allah is free of need, for

whoever is in need is not god.

5) Oneness : One God is sufficient for the

management of the creation, thus

another creator is not needed, and

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whoever is needless and useless is not

God.

6) Dissimilarity : Allah does not resemble

the creation. He does not resemble the

dense, tangible entities like the rocks,

trees, people, etc., nor does He resemble

the subtle, intangible entities like light,

darkness, etc. He does not have the

characteristics of created things, like

motion, stillness, contact or separation.

7) Life : Allah must be alive, as proven by

the existence of the creation, for the one

who creates must have power, will and

knowledge, and whoever has power, will

and knowledge must be alive. However,

Allah is alive without a body or soul, and

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Allah does not die, so His life is absolutely

different.

8) Power : Allah makes things come into

existence and go out of existence. He is

exclusively the one who can make entities

exist. He can make something from

nothing; without tools or effort, and make

those things vanish.

9) Will : Allah specifies His creations with His

will; He gives them some traits that they

could have instead of other traits that

they could have. Also, Allah is not forced.

He creates by His choice, which is His will.

10) Knowledge : Allah knows what exists

and what does not exist; He knows what

was, is, and shall be, and what shall not

be, and every detail of how it would be

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had it been. He knows His own reality and

the reality of His attributes. No one knows

that but Him.

11) Hearing : Allah hears everything that

exists, but without ears, because He is not

an entity. Deafness is deficiency, and

deficiency is impossible to be an attribute

of the Creator.

12) Sight : Allah sees everything that exists,

but without eyes because He is not an

entity. Blindness is deficiency, and

deficiency is impossible to be an attribute

of the Creator.

13) Speech : Allah speaks without letters,

sounds or language, because He is not an

entity. He orders, forbids, promises,

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threatens, informs and questions by this

attribute.

Important pointers about some of the

attributes

1) All of His attributes have no beginning or

end.

2) In reference to His dissimilarity to the

creation, one must be warned about the

“Likeners” (the Mushabbihah), and

informed briefly about the ambiguous

(mutashabih) verses, out of fear of him

meeting a Wahhabiyy or reading a

mistranslation. It must also be clarified

that Allah exists without a place or

direction.

3) In reference to His hearing and sight, it

must be clarified that they are not eyes

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or ears. Allah does not have a body or

any bodily attributes.

4) In reference to His will and power, it must

be clarified that Allah is the creator of

everything, including the evil and the

deeds of the slaves.

5) In reference to His speech, several points

need to be clarified:

a. Among them is that His speech is not

letters, sounds or languages.

b. Our reason for quoting Arabic verses

after saying, “Allah said”, should be

clarified.

c. Lastly, it must also be clarified that He

orders, forbids, promises and

threatens (questions and informs).

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THE PROPHETS OF ALLAH

Throughout history, Allah sent prophets; men

who receive revelation from Him. They are the

greatest creation of Allah. The first of them was

Adam. The last and greatest was Muhammad.

They all have certain necessary qualities so

that they could successfully fulfill their mission.

Among those qualities is that they are

beautiful, courageous, intelligent, truthful and

trustworthy. They are impeccable; protected

from ever committing blasphemy, major and

small abject sins, they never worshipped

anyone other than Allah. They perform

miracles, which are extraordinary, supernatural

matters created by Allah and performed by he

who claims to be a prophet. They prove his

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truthfulness, comply with his claim, and they

cannot be outdone. Some of the Prophets were

Messengers; they came with a new law. We

follow the laws revealed to Prophet

Muhammad, and believe in what was revealed

to all of the Prophets.

PURIFICATION

The accountable Muslim must pray all prayers

on time, and thus must immediately learn not

only the prayer, but also some of its conditions,

namely four matters of purification:

Ghusl

The first is the full “shower (ghusl)”. It is

defined as making the water run over the

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entire body with an intention (of worship).

There are five reasons for being obligated to

perform this shower before praying. The first

two are for men and women: sexual

intercourse and ejaculation. The last three are

only for women: childbirth and the termination

of both menstrual and postpartum bleeding. It

is performed by making an intention when the

water touches the body, and then washing the

entire body with mere water.

NOTE: It is not an obligation that the ghusl be

in the form of what is commonly known as a

shower. It is only a condition that the entire

body be washed with flowing water, and not

wiped with something wet.

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Wudu’

The second is the ablution (wudu’). It is defined

as the washing of certain organs with an

intention (of worship). There are four things

that break the wudu’:

1) Anything that exits the private parts,

except for ejaculated fluid of men and

women1

2) Touching the skin of a marriageable

woman who reached an age at which

she is normally desired,

1 Sometimes the ejaculation may invalidate the wudu’. Specifying that has details: If that happens without physical contact, such as by mere thought or glance, or seeing a wet dream while firmly seated on the buttocks, the wudu’ is preserved. If it takes place by contact, it is broken.

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3) Touching the penis, anus or vagina of

a human with the inner part of the

bare hand,

4) Losing consciousness, except if one

slept with his buttocks firmly planted.

One performs wudu’ by doing six things:

1) Making the proper intention when the

water touches the face,

2) Washing the face,

3) Washing the hands, forearms and

elbows,

4) Wiping the hair,

5) Washing the feet and the ankles,

6) And keeping the order.

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Cleaning after Urination and Defecation

(Istinja’)

The third matter is istinja’, which is the

obligatory cleaning after anything wet comes

from the private parts, except ejaculated fluid,

for all wet material that exits those organs is

filthy, except for ejaculated fluid; it is pure. It

can be performed in two ways:

1) The first is by water. It is recommended

to pour the water with the right hand,

and to wipe with the left hand until there

is no trace of filth left.

2) The second is by wiping three times with

something pure, dry, uprooting, and

unrespectable. Each wipe must be with a

different side of whatever is used for

wiping.

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Removing Filth

The fourth matter of purification needed for the

validity of Prayer is the removal of other types

of unexcused filth from the body, clothing and

place of prayer. One must use water to remove

filth. If it is undetectable, it is enough to pour

water over it once. If it is detectable, it is

enough to remove the bulk and then pour

water over it until its traces are removed. If the

water were plenty, one could then place the

filth in the water without contaminating the

water, unless it changes.

BASIC PRAYER

If the new Muslim were accountable, he needs

to pray the due prayer before its time goes out.

It is common that the prayer time would soon

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go out after explaining the immediate matters

of belief and purification as swiftly and

concisely as possible. Furthermore, one may

want to consider that the new Muslim is

sometimes weak, not yet having the strength

to be patient with performing certain acts of

worship or avoiding some sins. Our most

important goal is to help this Muslim perform a

valid prayer after having learned the belief and

some of the conditions of prayer. For the

immediate obedience to Allah, we first teach

him the obligatory matters, and delay the

optional matters that take time away from

explaining the obligatory conditions and

integrals. So, while praying the obligatory

prayer, one must:

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1) Cover the unlawful nakedness, face the

Qiblah, stand if able and,

2) Say Allahu Akbar in Arabic if able, while

simultaneously intending to perform the

obligatory prayer,

3) Recite the Fatihah properly, which can

only be done in Arabic, or recite a

replacement (properly).

4) Bow with tranquility2 (being still long

enough to say Subhanallah),

5) Stand upright with tranquility,

6) Prostrate twice, each with tranquility

7) Sit with tranquility between the two

prostrations,

8) From there, a person would do one of

two things:

2 This is called in Arabic “tuma’ninah”

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A. Stand up after that to complete the

rest of his prayer, which would be by

repeating everything already

mentioned, except saying Allahu

Akbar with an intention,

B. Or if one has completed all the cycles

of his prayer, he must sit to end the

prayer,

9) Recite the Tashahhud while sitting to end

the prayer,

10) After that, make Salah on the

Prophet while sitting to end the prayer,

11) Then say, “As Salamu ^alaykum”

to end the prayer.

12) One must observe the order of the

Prayer’s integrals.

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Important cases

1) Whoever does not know the Fatihah by

heart- which is obligatory-, must learn it

before the prayer time exits. If he

cannot, he may read it from a page while

praying, or he may repeat after someone

who prompts him while he is praying. It is

not permissible to abandon these issues;

i.e., saying the Fatihah, unless he has an

excuse. If one is unable, either because

the time will exit before being able to

learn, or because his intellect is slow, he

may replace it with seven other properly

recited verses of the Qur’an, whether

they were in order or not. One absolutely

must not translate the Fatihah for the

prayer in any case, nor would he replace

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it with other than Qur’an when able to

recite the Qur’an. If unable, he may

replace it with words of remembrance,

like saying “Allahu Akbar” 20 times.

Twenty times is sufficient because the

condition of whatever one uses to

replace the Fatihah is that it would not

have fewer letters than the Fatihah itself.

This replacement is valid only for a time

that one needs to be able to learn how to

recite. After that time passes, the

replacement is no longer valid, because

the person fell short of his obligation. If

one is unable to do any of the

aforementioned, then he stands for the

duration of the Fatihah without saying

anything.

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2) Whoever is able to say the Tashahhud

and the Salah on the Prophet in Arabic is

not permitted to translate them. If he is

unable, he may translate them, as

Shaykh Taqiyyud-Din Al-Husniyy said in

his explanation of Abu Shuja^:

ة على النFبEي صلى Iال FالصIد و Nه IشFمن عرف الت

بEيFةE الI يجوز لIهZ أIن يعدل IرIعcالEسلم بIو EهcيIلIالله ع

إEن عجز Iام ف Iر cحE cى ترجمتها كتكبيرة اإلIلEإ

ترجمها

“It is not permitted for whoever knows the

Tashahhud and the Salah on the Prophet in

Arabic to resort to their translations, like the

formula ‘Allahu Akbar’ that initiates the prayer.

If unable, he translates them.”

3) It is important to help the New Muslim

recite the letters properly. If he is an

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English speaker, pay special attention to

his pronunciation of the (ح [ha’]), the (

the ,([dad]ض) the ,([sin]س ) the ,([ayn^]ع

.([sad] ص) and especially the ,([ghayn] غ)

There is another recitation of the Fatihah

in which the ( ص[sad]) is replaced by the

That recitation may be easier .([sin]س )

for him.

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SECOND SESSION

After learning the correct belief and

praying on time, one can inform the new

Muslim about other immediate

information, such as the Islamic belief

about the Afterlife, and the reality of

blasphemy.

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JUDGMENT

All Muslims believe that this life is a trial and

time for working towards the Afterlife. There is

no doubt that the accountable person has his

deeds of this present life recorded by two

angels, that he will die, and except for those

whom Allah spared, will be questioned in his

grave by the angels of questioning. If his body

were among those that decayed, he will be

recreated on Judgment Day and judged for the

deeds of his life. If it is not of that type, his soul

and body will be rejoined without his body

being reconstructed, and he will be judged. If

there were no Afterlife in which the people

would be judged for their deeds, then this life

would be meaningless, and all who did crimes

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and fulfilled their desires would have been the

winners, while those who refrained from

allowing their pleasures to control them would

be the losers. The Qur’an confirms that the

believer will be rewarded/punished for the

good and bad deeds-although Allah may

forgive him despite his deserving torture-, and

that the blasphemer would not have any good

deeds on that day. He will only be punished for

his bad deeds. The good deeds he did in this

life will not be in his favor on that Day, for Allah

will endow upon him in this life for his good

deeds. Whoever doubts about or denies the

Day of Judgment is refuted by his own

existence and created being, for the one who

created him in the first place would definitely

have the power to create him again. One’s

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book of deeds will be presented to him, and he

shall remember all of what he had forgotten of

his deeds. His deeds will be weighed in a scale,

and he will enter Paradise or Hell. The one who

dies as a Muslim is guaranteed to enter

Paradise, and he will never leave it, even if he

enters Hell first, and the blasphemer will never

exit Hell. Paradise, Hell, and the Afterlife are all

real and physical, not just spiritual nor

allegorical. Paradise is everlasting, as well as

Hell, and there is no death or sleep in the

Afterlife.

BASICS OF BLASPHEMY (KUFR)

The new Muslim needs to know that blasphemy

could take place by beliefs, sayings, or doings,

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and it does not require intent. Some examples

of blasphemous beliefs are

Likening Allah to the creation,

Denying His attributes,

Ascribing to the Prophets what does not

befit them,

Doubting about Judgment Day, Paradise,

Hell, or other basic creedal matters after

knowing that they are confirmed in the

Religion,

Believing that a Religion other than

Islam is valid,

Knowing that Muslims deem something

unlawful while believing that it is lawful,

and vice versa,

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Knowing that Muslims deem something

obligatory while believing that it is not

obligatory, and vice versa,

Doubting about whether Islam is valid or

not.

and other matters that one will learn

when acquiring the Personal Obligatory

Knowledge with detail.

Some examples of blasphemous sayings are

Uttering any of the aforementioned

issues,

Literally calling a Muslim a blasphemer

without any confusion or fallacy,

Anything that belittles the religious

matters, like to say, “Paradise is for the

babies”, or “the prescribed prayer is a

waste of time”.

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Some examples of blasphemous doings are

Prostrating to a creation other than a

human with or without the intention of

worship. As for prostrating to a human

with the intent of honor and not as

worship, it is not blasphemy, but still a

sin,

Knowingly throwing respectable religious

material in the trash,

Standing, sitting or spitting on

religiously, respectable material while

realizing what one is doing.

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THE OBLIGATIONS OF THE HEART

AND SOME OF THE SINS OF THE

VARIOUS ORGANS

It is obligatory on the Muslim to believe in Allah

and in what He revealed, and to believe in the

Messenger of Allah and what he conveyed. He

must also do his good deeds sincerely, regret

disobeying His Lord, and fear Him to the extent

that it stops him from sinning. He must refrain

from objecting to Allah with his heart or

tongue, use his endowments in obedience only,

practice the obligatory patience, hate the devil,

and hate the sins. He must not practice the

forbidden envy, not think highly of himself

because of his good deeds, not be arrogant,

nor be happy with sins. He must avoid the

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forbidden food and drink, the forbidden look,

the forbidden touch, gossip, lying and stealing.

He must not abandon the obligations, interrupt

them after initiating them and before

completing them, nor is he permitted to do

them incorrectly. He must bid the good and

forbid the evil whenever able, and all other sins

that will be learned from the summary of

obligatory knowledge.

Repentance from the sin is by ceasing the

sinful act, intending to never return to

something like it, and regretting that one

disobeyed Allah. Repenting from the sin is an

immediate obligation.

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LAST ISSUES

It is beneficial to review the issues of likening

Allah to the creation, and in a wise way, to

warn from reading translations, as the new

Muslim may be eager to read translations of

the Qur’an and hadith. The new Muslim must

be informed of the correct way of acquiring the

knowledge. He must also be taught the Fatihah

immediately. One needs to be clever when

teaching the new Muslim the obligations and

sins, because if his heart is still weak in Islam,

it is possible that telling him about certain

matters would repel him from the Religion. For

example, one should not rush to tell the new

Muslim that wind and string instruments are

forbidden, nor stop him from eating some

forbidden meat if that will break him and make

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him deaf towards hearing more important and

vital things. This is why Imam ^Aliyy said:

، IبFذIكZي cنIأ IونNب EحZتI ا يIعcرEفZونI أ IمEب ، IاسFوا النZثyد Iح

ZهZول Zس IرIو ZهFالل

“Address the people with what is familiar

to them. Do you like for Allah and His

Messenger to be contradicted?”

One can then inform the new Muslim of the

obligatory knowledge and order him to be

diligent in acquiring it,

AND ALLAH KNOWS BEST

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The IMMEDIATE Knowledge (^ILMUL-HAAL) a Muslim is Obligated to Learn

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