Why Shab E Barat and Fasting on Barat Is a Bidah
03/08/2019
Shab e barat or known simply as barat is an innovated and deviant festival and practice that is popularly celebrated especially in the South Asian regions and elsewhere and it is seriously celebrated by people who mainly in the Sufi,Tabligh Jamath,Deobandi and Shias sects who are famous for innovating in Islam.
In this article, I'll answer all the false arguments that are being used to defend the innovation called Shab e Barat InshaAllah. Some Muslims who are Sufis and others celebrate the mid of Shaban as Shab e Barat and by fasting and cooking food such as rotti or bread and even give the rotti with one plantain and a date to people thinking that it resembles an umbrella. All of these are innovations and has no basis in Islam. The prophet (Sal) said,
"Every innovation is misguidance and every misguidance is to hell fire"
(Sahih Muslim)
Narrated by Anas(Rali),
The prophet (Sal) said,
“Verily, Allah blocks the repentance of all who commit heretical innovations.”
In another narration, the Prophet said, “Until he abandons his innovation.”
(Al-Mu’jam al-Awsaṭ 4204-Graded Sahih by Albani)
Narrated by Aisha(Rali):
Allah's Messenger (Sal) said,
"If somebody innovates something which is not in harmony with the principles of our religion, that thing is rejected."
(Bukhari)
Aisha reported Allah's Messenger (Sal) as saying:
"He who innovates things in our affairs for which there is no valid (reason) (commits sin) and these are to be rejected."
(Muslim)
Aisha (Rali) narrated,
The prophet (Sal) said,
“Whoever performs a deed that is not from this Religion of ours will have it rejected.”
(Sahih Muslim)
Answering the false arguments on Shab e Barat
The first argument that is put forward by those who try to defend the innovation of Barat is by referring a verse in the Quran.
Allah(Swt( says,
“We sent it (the Quran) down during a blessed night. We are truly warners. In that night is made distinct every affair of wisdom”
(Al-Quran-44-:4)
The above verse is used to bring out a false argument that what is meant from the above verse “We sent it (the Qur’an) down during a blessed night" is to mean that the Quran was sent on the day of Barat. This argument has no basis whatsoever because Imam Ibn Kathir in his authentic tafsir clearly sayas that the meaning of this verse is that the Quran was sent down on laylat ul qadr and not the mid of Shaban. The proof for this is in the below verse in the Quran."
"The month of Ramadan in which was revealed the Qur'an "
(Al-Quran- 2:185)
In another verse,Allah(Swt) says,
"Verily, We have sent it down in the Night of Al-Qadr"
(Al-Quran-97:1)
It is clear that the meaning of this verse is twisted to mean that the Quran was revealed on the day of Barat which has no authentic basis. The Quran was sent down by Allah(Swt) in the month of Ramazan and not Shaban. The other arguments are all based on weak and fabricated hadiths. Let me explain them.
Aisha(Rali) narrated,
I missed the Prophet one night so I went out to al-Baqi` (and found him). He said: "Were you afraid that Allah would wrong you and that His Prophet would wrong you?" I said: "O Messenger of Allah, I thought that you might have gone to visit one of your wives." He said: "Allah Glorious and Exalted descends to the nearest heaven on the night of mid-Shaban and He forgives to more people than the number of hairs on the hides of the sheep of the tribes of Kalb
(Ibn Majah,Tirmidhi and Ahmed-Imam Tirmidhi said that Imam Bukhari graded this hadith as weak because one of the narrators known as Yahya bin Abi Kathir did not narrate from the Urwa)
Aisha(Rali) narrated,
"The Prophet stood up in prayer during part of the night and made his prostration so lengthy that I thought his soul had been taken back. When I saw this I got up and went to move his big toe, whereupon he moved, so I drew back. When he raised his head from prostration and finished praying, he said: "O `A'isha, O fair little one (Humayra')! Did you think that the Prophet had broken his agreement with you?" She replied: "No, by Allah, O Messenger of Allah, but I thought that your soul had been taken back because your stayed in prostration for so long." He said: "Do you know what night this is?" She said: "Allah and His Prophet know best." He said: "This is the night of mid-Sha`ban! Verily Allah the Glorious and Majestic look at His servants on the night of mid-Sha`ban, and He forgives those who ask forgiveness, and He bestows mercy on those who ask mercy, and He gives a delay to the people of envy and spite in their state."
(Baihaqi Shuaib al Iman)
Baihaqi said that this hadith is Mursal which means it is stopping from a tabeen and there is not evidence t prove it reached a companion hence it did not reach the prophet(Sal) and Imam Baihaqi speculates that this hadith was narrated by al-Ala’ibn al-Harith took it from Makhul but it is not proven by him hence his grading this hadith as Jayyid (Good) is unacceptable because for it to be Jayyid it has to be supported by other narrations but a Iraaqi said.The hadeeth about the prayer on Laylat al-Nisf (mid-Sha‘baan) is false and this hadith of Imam Baihaqi is weak because there is an interruption and there is no other authentic narration to strengthen it. All the scholars say that there is nothing authentically narrated regarding Shab e Barat.
Al-Fatni (Rahimaullah) said, after the comments quoted above
" The common folk are so infatuated with this prayer that they stored up a lot of fuel for it and many evils resulted from it, and many transgressions are committed which we do no need to describe. (It is so bad that) the close friends of Allah feared His punishment and fled into the wilderness. The first time this prayer occurred was in Bayt al-Maqdis (Jerusalem) in 448 AH. Zayd ibn Aslam said: We never saw any of our shaykhs or fuqaha’ saying that Laylat al-Baraa’ah (15 Sha‘baan) had any superiority over other nights. Ibn Dihyah said: The hadeeths about the prayer on Laylat al-Baraa’ah are fabricated and one has an interruption in the isnaad. Anyone who acts upon a report which is known to be false is a servant of the Shaytaan."
(Tadhkirat al-Mawdoo‘aat by al-Fatni, Page-45)
Ali(Rali) narrated,
The prophet (Sal) said,
“When the night of ‘nisf Sha‘baan’ (mid-Sha‘baan) comes, spend the night in prayer and fast on that day”
(Ibn Majah-Muhashiyyah said: (It was also narrated) in al-Zawaa’id. Its isnaad is da‘eef (weak) because of the weakness of Ibn Abi Basrah, of whom Ahmad and Ibn Ma‘een said: He fabricates hadith)
Ali (Rali) narrated,
The prophet(Sal) said,
“The night of mid-Shaban, let all of you spend in prayer and its day in fasting, for Allah descends to the nearest heaven during that night beginning with sunset and says: ‘Is there no one asking sustenance that I may forgive them? Is there no one asking sustenance that I may grant them sustenance? Is there no one under duress that I may relieve them? Is there not such-and-such, is there not such-and-such, a so forth until dawn rises’”
(Ahmed,Ibn Majah and Baihaqi)
In the above hadith, one of it's narrators,Abu Bakr Ibn Abi Saburah whose narrations cannot be relied upon and Imam Bukhari said that he cannot be relied upon.
Some try to argue that the prophet(Sal) fasted during the month of Shaban and try to legitimize Barat. The hadiths that say that the prophet(Sal) fasted during Shaban does not say specifically that he prayed on the mid of Shaban. The hadith is as follows.
Aisha(Rali) narrated,
"The prophet (Sal) used to fast all of Sha’baan, he used to fast Sha’baan except a few days.”
(Bukhari and Muslim)
This hadith does not say anything about fasting specifically during Barat.The prophet(Sal) forbade fasting after the mid of Shaban. In a hadith narrated by Abu Hurayrah in which the prophet(Sal) said, “When Sha’baan is half over, do not fast.”
(Tirmidhi,AbuDawud,Ibn Majah-Graded Sahih by Albani)
The fasting of Shaban after the mid of it is allowed only for the one who fasts hanitually. Abu Hurayrah (Rali) narratedthat the prophet(Sal) said,
“Do not anticipate Ramadaan by fasting one or two days before it begins, but if a man habitually fasts, then let him fast.”
(Bukhari and Muslim)
Regarding the Shab e Barat hadith Graded Sahih by Albani
Some Sufi's like Tahir al Qadri try to bring the hadith authenticated by Shiekh Albani to prove that Shab e Barat is not haram. Let me explain the hadith. Abu Musa(Rali) narrated that the prophet(Sal) said,
"Allah turns towards his creation in the Night of mid Shaban and He forgives all of them except for a Mushrik and the one who keeps grudges"
(Ibn Abi Asim in his Sunan and Graded Sahih by Albani in Silsilat ul-Ahadith-as Sahiha, Volume No. 3, Page No. 135 Hadith no1144 and Sahih al-Jaami‘, hadeeth no. 1819 and also narrated in Ibn Majah-1390 was also Graded Sahih by Albani)
Many scholars including Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali and others have clearly said that the hadiths that quote about Shab e Barat is daif or fabricated. The above hadith was graded daif by imam Ad-Dhahabi in Takhlees 184 and even Sheikh Albani graded this hadith as weak by stating,
"With regard to the hadeeth of Abu Moosa, it was also narrated by Ibn Luhay‘ah from az-Zubayr ibn Sulaym from ad-Dahhaak ibn ‘Abd ar-Rahmaan from his father who said: I heard Abu Moosa (narrate) something similar from the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him).
It was narrated by Ibn Maajah (1390) and Ibn Abi ‘Aasim al-Laalkaa’i.
I say: This is a da‘eef isnaad, because of Ibn Luhay‘ah and ‘Abd ar-Rahmaan, who is Ibn ‘Arzab and the father of ad-Dahhaak, is unknown. Ibn Maajah regarded him as weak when he narrated from Ibn Luhay‘ah."
(As-Silsilah as-Saheehah-3/218)
What Sheikh Albani did was that he assumed the hadith of Abu Musa to be authentic with corroborating hadiths but Sheikh Albani's view that this hadith is authentic is wrong because all the other scholars clearly refute this hadith and declare it to be weak. Abu Hatim al-Razi said - and he told you about it - from the hadeeth of Mu'ath ibn Jabal: "This is a munkar hadith" to Abu al"
(Ibn Abi Hatim-no- 2012)
From this even the narrations of Muadh bin Jabal(Rali) and AbuTalha(Rali) stating the above same hadith is also very weak because the isnad is weak. Imam Ibn Khuzaymah in his book -2/637 graded this hadith as having a broken chain of narrator. One of the narrators, Hayi bin Abdullah was a liar as mentioned by Ibn 'Uday and Ibn Hajar. It is evident that many scholars graded this hadith as weak and Sheikh Albani's grading of this hadith as Sahih using corroborating evidence is a weak argument. Some try to bring the argument of Sheikh ul Islam Ibn Taymiyah (Rahi)'s statement on Barat in which he said,
"If one prays on this night alone or in a select company of people as many groups amongst the Salaf did, “then it is good”.
(Fatawa Ibn Taimiyyah Volume 23, Page 131-132)
Some after acknowledging that thare are no authentic hadiths to prove the practice of Shab e Barat, they try to come up with excuses to follow this innovation by telling that some scholars allowed the following of daif hadiths. This argument is totally wrong because you are required to follow only the authentic hadiths ad not the weak or fabricated hadiths and there is clear evidence from the prophet (Sal) and the rightly guided khalifs that you have to accept only a news or narration only if it is reliable. Allah(Swt) says in the Quran,
"O you who believe! If a rebellious evil person comes to you with a news, verify it, lest you harm people in ignorance, and afterwards you become regretful to what you have done."
(Al-Quran-49:6)
Some try to go to such foolishness, they even try to say that if the intention is good then Barat is halal. They quote the below hadith.
Umar(Rali) narrated,
The prophet(Sal) said, "Actions are according to intentions, and everyone will get what was intended"
(Bukhari and Muslim)
This argument is a foolish argument because what is meant by the action is what is legislated in Islam and there is no room to justify something that had no basis in in Islam.
It should be understood that after it is clear that there is no authentic hadiths to prove Shab e Barat, trying to rely on a scholars personal opinion or some flimsical evidence is unacceptable.
Shab e barat or known simply as barat is an innovated and deviant festival and practice that is popularly celebrated especially in the South Asian regions and elsewhere and it is seriously celebrated by people who mainly in the Sufi,Tabligh Jamath,Deobandi and Shias sects who are famous for innovating in Islam.
In this article, I'll answer all the false arguments that are being used to defend the innovation called Shab e Barat InshaAllah. Some Muslims who are Sufis and others celebrate the mid of Shaban as Shab e Barat and by fasting and cooking food such as rotti or bread and even give the rotti with one plantain and a date to people thinking that it resembles an umbrella. All of these are innovations and has no basis in Islam. The prophet (Sal) said,
"Every innovation is misguidance and every misguidance is to hell fire"
(Sahih Muslim)
Narrated by Anas(Rali),
The prophet (Sal) said,
“Verily, Allah blocks the repentance of all who commit heretical innovations.”
In another narration, the Prophet said, “Until he abandons his innovation.”
(Al-Mu’jam al-Awsaṭ 4204-Graded Sahih by Albani)
Narrated by Aisha(Rali):
Allah's Messenger (Sal) said,
"If somebody innovates something which is not in harmony with the principles of our religion, that thing is rejected."
(Bukhari)
Aisha reported Allah's Messenger (Sal) as saying:
"He who innovates things in our affairs for which there is no valid (reason) (commits sin) and these are to be rejected."
(Muslim)
Aisha (Rali) narrated,
The prophet (Sal) said,
“Whoever performs a deed that is not from this Religion of ours will have it rejected.”
(Sahih Muslim)
Answering the false arguments on Shab e Barat
The first argument that is put forward by those who try to defend the innovation of Barat is by referring a verse in the Quran.
Allah(Swt( says,
“We sent it (the Quran) down during a blessed night. We are truly warners. In that night is made distinct every affair of wisdom”
(Al-Quran-44-:4)
The above verse is used to bring out a false argument that what is meant from the above verse “We sent it (the Qur’an) down during a blessed night" is to mean that the Quran was sent on the day of Barat. This argument has no basis whatsoever because Imam Ibn Kathir in his authentic tafsir clearly sayas that the meaning of this verse is that the Quran was sent down on laylat ul qadr and not the mid of Shaban. The proof for this is in the below verse in the Quran."
"The month of Ramadan in which was revealed the Qur'an "
(Al-Quran- 2:185)
In another verse,Allah(Swt) says,
"Verily, We have sent it down in the Night of Al-Qadr"
(Al-Quran-97:1)
It is clear that the meaning of this verse is twisted to mean that the Quran was revealed on the day of Barat which has no authentic basis. The Quran was sent down by Allah(Swt) in the month of Ramazan and not Shaban. The other arguments are all based on weak and fabricated hadiths. Let me explain them.
Aisha(Rali) narrated,
I missed the Prophet one night so I went out to al-Baqi` (and found him). He said: "Were you afraid that Allah would wrong you and that His Prophet would wrong you?" I said: "O Messenger of Allah, I thought that you might have gone to visit one of your wives." He said: "Allah Glorious and Exalted descends to the nearest heaven on the night of mid-Shaban and He forgives to more people than the number of hairs on the hides of the sheep of the tribes of Kalb
(Ibn Majah,Tirmidhi and Ahmed-Imam Tirmidhi said that Imam Bukhari graded this hadith as weak because one of the narrators known as Yahya bin Abi Kathir did not narrate from the Urwa)
Aisha(Rali) narrated,
"The Prophet stood up in prayer during part of the night and made his prostration so lengthy that I thought his soul had been taken back. When I saw this I got up and went to move his big toe, whereupon he moved, so I drew back. When he raised his head from prostration and finished praying, he said: "O `A'isha, O fair little one (Humayra')! Did you think that the Prophet had broken his agreement with you?" She replied: "No, by Allah, O Messenger of Allah, but I thought that your soul had been taken back because your stayed in prostration for so long." He said: "Do you know what night this is?" She said: "Allah and His Prophet know best." He said: "This is the night of mid-Sha`ban! Verily Allah the Glorious and Majestic look at His servants on the night of mid-Sha`ban, and He forgives those who ask forgiveness, and He bestows mercy on those who ask mercy, and He gives a delay to the people of envy and spite in their state."
(Baihaqi Shuaib al Iman)
Baihaqi said that this hadith is Mursal which means it is stopping from a tabeen and there is not evidence t prove it reached a companion hence it did not reach the prophet(Sal) and Imam Baihaqi speculates that this hadith was narrated by al-Ala’ibn al-Harith took it from Makhul but it is not proven by him hence his grading this hadith as Jayyid (Good) is unacceptable because for it to be Jayyid it has to be supported by other narrations but a Iraaqi said.The hadeeth about the prayer on Laylat al-Nisf (mid-Sha‘baan) is false and this hadith of Imam Baihaqi is weak because there is an interruption and there is no other authentic narration to strengthen it. All the scholars say that there is nothing authentically narrated regarding Shab e Barat.
Al-Fatni (Rahimaullah) said, after the comments quoted above
" The common folk are so infatuated with this prayer that they stored up a lot of fuel for it and many evils resulted from it, and many transgressions are committed which we do no need to describe. (It is so bad that) the close friends of Allah feared His punishment and fled into the wilderness. The first time this prayer occurred was in Bayt al-Maqdis (Jerusalem) in 448 AH. Zayd ibn Aslam said: We never saw any of our shaykhs or fuqaha’ saying that Laylat al-Baraa’ah (15 Sha‘baan) had any superiority over other nights. Ibn Dihyah said: The hadeeths about the prayer on Laylat al-Baraa’ah are fabricated and one has an interruption in the isnaad. Anyone who acts upon a report which is known to be false is a servant of the Shaytaan."
(Tadhkirat al-Mawdoo‘aat by al-Fatni, Page-45)
Ali(Rali) narrated,
The prophet (Sal) said,
“When the night of ‘nisf Sha‘baan’ (mid-Sha‘baan) comes, spend the night in prayer and fast on that day”
(Ibn Majah-Muhashiyyah said: (It was also narrated) in al-Zawaa’id. Its isnaad is da‘eef (weak) because of the weakness of Ibn Abi Basrah, of whom Ahmad and Ibn Ma‘een said: He fabricates hadith)
Ali (Rali) narrated,
The prophet(Sal) said,
“The night of mid-Shaban, let all of you spend in prayer and its day in fasting, for Allah descends to the nearest heaven during that night beginning with sunset and says: ‘Is there no one asking sustenance that I may forgive them? Is there no one asking sustenance that I may grant them sustenance? Is there no one under duress that I may relieve them? Is there not such-and-such, is there not such-and-such, a so forth until dawn rises’”
(Ahmed,Ibn Majah and Baihaqi)
In the above hadith, one of it's narrators,Abu Bakr Ibn Abi Saburah whose narrations cannot be relied upon and Imam Bukhari said that he cannot be relied upon.
Some try to argue that the prophet(Sal) fasted during the month of Shaban and try to legitimize Barat. The hadiths that say that the prophet(Sal) fasted during Shaban does not say specifically that he prayed on the mid of Shaban. The hadith is as follows.
Aisha(Rali) narrated,
"The prophet (Sal) used to fast all of Sha’baan, he used to fast Sha’baan except a few days.”
(Bukhari and Muslim)
This hadith does not say anything about fasting specifically during Barat.The prophet(Sal) forbade fasting after the mid of Shaban. In a hadith narrated by Abu Hurayrah in which the prophet(Sal) said, “When Sha’baan is half over, do not fast.”
(Tirmidhi,AbuDawud,Ibn Majah-Graded Sahih by Albani)
The fasting of Shaban after the mid of it is allowed only for the one who fasts hanitually. Abu Hurayrah (Rali) narratedthat the prophet(Sal) said,
“Do not anticipate Ramadaan by fasting one or two days before it begins, but if a man habitually fasts, then let him fast.”
(Bukhari and Muslim)
Regarding the Shab e Barat hadith Graded Sahih by Albani
Some Sufi's like Tahir al Qadri try to bring the hadith authenticated by Shiekh Albani to prove that Shab e Barat is not haram. Let me explain the hadith. Abu Musa(Rali) narrated that the prophet(Sal) said,
"Allah turns towards his creation in the Night of mid Shaban and He forgives all of them except for a Mushrik and the one who keeps grudges"
(Ibn Abi Asim in his Sunan and Graded Sahih by Albani in Silsilat ul-Ahadith-as Sahiha, Volume No. 3, Page No. 135 Hadith no1144 and Sahih al-Jaami‘, hadeeth no. 1819 and also narrated in Ibn Majah-1390 was also Graded Sahih by Albani)
Many scholars including Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali and others have clearly said that the hadiths that quote about Shab e Barat is daif or fabricated. The above hadith was graded daif by imam Ad-Dhahabi in Takhlees 184 and even Sheikh Albani graded this hadith as weak by stating,
"With regard to the hadeeth of Abu Moosa, it was also narrated by Ibn Luhay‘ah from az-Zubayr ibn Sulaym from ad-Dahhaak ibn ‘Abd ar-Rahmaan from his father who said: I heard Abu Moosa (narrate) something similar from the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him).
It was narrated by Ibn Maajah (1390) and Ibn Abi ‘Aasim al-Laalkaa’i.
I say: This is a da‘eef isnaad, because of Ibn Luhay‘ah and ‘Abd ar-Rahmaan, who is Ibn ‘Arzab and the father of ad-Dahhaak, is unknown. Ibn Maajah regarded him as weak when he narrated from Ibn Luhay‘ah."
(As-Silsilah as-Saheehah-3/218)
What Sheikh Albani did was that he assumed the hadith of Abu Musa to be authentic with corroborating hadiths but Sheikh Albani's view that this hadith is authentic is wrong because all the other scholars clearly refute this hadith and declare it to be weak. Abu Hatim al-Razi said - and he told you about it - from the hadeeth of Mu'ath ibn Jabal: "This is a munkar hadith" to Abu al"
(Ibn Abi Hatim-no- 2012)
From this even the narrations of Muadh bin Jabal(Rali) and AbuTalha(Rali) stating the above same hadith is also very weak because the isnad is weak. Imam Ibn Khuzaymah in his book -2/637 graded this hadith as having a broken chain of narrator. One of the narrators, Hayi bin Abdullah was a liar as mentioned by Ibn 'Uday and Ibn Hajar. It is evident that many scholars graded this hadith as weak and Sheikh Albani's grading of this hadith as Sahih using corroborating evidence is a weak argument. Some try to bring the argument of Sheikh ul Islam Ibn Taymiyah (Rahi)'s statement on Barat in which he said,
"If one prays on this night alone or in a select company of people as many groups amongst the Salaf did, “then it is good”.
(Fatawa Ibn Taimiyyah Volume 23, Page 131-132)
Some after acknowledging that thare are no authentic hadiths to prove the practice of Shab e Barat, they try to come up with excuses to follow this innovation by telling that some scholars allowed the following of daif hadiths. This argument is totally wrong because you are required to follow only the authentic hadiths ad not the weak or fabricated hadiths and there is clear evidence from the prophet (Sal) and the rightly guided khalifs that you have to accept only a news or narration only if it is reliable. Allah(Swt) says in the Quran,
"O you who believe! If a rebellious evil person comes to you with a news, verify it, lest you harm people in ignorance, and afterwards you become regretful to what you have done."
(Al-Quran-49:6)
Some try to go to such foolishness, they even try to say that if the intention is good then Barat is halal. They quote the below hadith.
Umar(Rali) narrated,
The prophet(Sal) said, "Actions are according to intentions, and everyone will get what was intended"
(Bukhari and Muslim)
This argument is a foolish argument because what is meant by the action is what is legislated in Islam and there is no room to justify something that had no basis in in Islam.
It should be understood that after it is clear that there is no authentic hadiths to prove Shab e Barat, trying to rely on a scholars personal opinion or some flimsical evidence is unacceptable.