Explanation of the 'Aqeedah of Sufyan bin 'Uyaynah

explained by: Muhammad bin Shams ad-Deen (وفقه الله)

prepared by: Abu Hudhaifa al-Athari (غفر الله له وللمسلمين)

https://t.me/abuhudhaifa

Translator's Note

In the Name of Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful. All Praise be to him, exalted, and may He send blessings and peace upon our beloved Prophet Muhammad, his followers and his companions.

In front of you is a short text written by the great scholar of Tabi'i at-Tabi'een, Sufyan bin 'Uyaynah, may Allah show mercy to him. He was born in Kufa, Year 107 AH, and eventually settled in Mecca. He sought hadith at a young age, met the elders in knowledge, acquired from them a great deal of knowledge and mastered it. He lived a long life and people used to crowd to him, travelling to him from different countries. Many students of hadith used to feel lazy to travel to Hajj, but regardless, they would come to Mecca to meet Sufyan Bin 'Uyaynah.

Among his close students were: Imam ash-Shafi'i, Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal, 'Ali bin al-Madini, and others. ash-Shafi'i once said: “Were it not for Malik and Sufyan Bin 'Uyaynah, knowledge in Hijaz would be gone.”

He had great knowledge in Quran and Hadith. He used to memorize everything he wrote. He was once holding a piece of bread in his hand and told Harmala bin Yahya: “This has been my food for the last sixty years.” When he was asked, he would say a lot of times “I can't answer. Ask the scholars, and ask Allah for guidance.” Sufyan ath-Thawri said that there was nobody like him.

He was a follower of the Sunnah. When he was asked about the Quran, he said: “It is the Speech of Allah. From Him it comes, to Him it will return.” When it was mentioned to him that Bishr al-Marisi, the head of the Jahmiyyah at his time, was gathered in Mina, a valley near Mecca, he stood up angrily and said: “They have repeated the speech of the Qadariyyah and the Mu'tazilah whom we were told to stay away from! These are our scholars: This is 'Amr bin Dinar, this is Muhammad bin al-Munkadir...” and he mentioned multiple scholars. He then said: “None of them ever heard that the Quran was anything but the Speech of Allah. We never knew it was anything but the Speech of Allah. Whoever believes other than this, then may Allah's curse be upon him! May Allah's curse be upon him! How similar is this to the belief of the Christians! Do not sit with them.”

He lived for ninety-one years, preserving the Sunnah and carrying on his shoulders the responsibility of delivering it to the new generation of Muslim scholars. He died, may Allah show mercy to him, in year 198 AH, an honorable scholar of Islam, and a light of truth for the following generations of the Muslim Ummah that were in the darkness of Bid'ah and misguidance. When it was told to az-Zuhri that Sufyan's teeth were falling because of his age, he said: “His teeth may fall, but he will remain.”

After this little we've learned of him from his biography[1], let's proceed to reading his text, by Allah's Permission.

The Text

Bakr bin al-Faraj – Abu al-'Alaa' – said: I heard Sufyan bin 'Uyaynah say[2]:

The Sunnah (i.e. Correct Belief) is of ten [principles], so whoever has them has completed the Sunnah, and whoever leaves out any of them has left out the Sunnah:

  1. Affirming Qadar.
  2. Giving precedence to Abu Bakr and 'Umar.
  3. [Believing in] al-Hawdh (The Pool),
  4. ash-Shafaa'ah (Intercession),
  5. al-Mizan (The Scale),
  6. and as-Siraat (The Bridge).
  7. That Iman consists of sayings and actions.
  8. That the Quran is the Speech of Allah.
  9. Affirming the torment of the grave and the torment of resurrection on the Day of Resurrection.
  10. Do not certainly witness [Paradise nor Hellfire] for a Muslim.

The Sharh

This is the Text in 'Aqeedah that was narrated from Sufyan Bin 'Uyaynah, may Allah show mercy to him. It is a very summarized text, and in those few points, he summarized the important issues in 'Aqeedah that usually nobody but a Sunni affirms entirely, because some People of Innovation can affirm them but oppose other aspects of 'Aqeedah that were not mentioned in this Text. Whoever denies any of these points is not from Ahl as-Sunnah, but from Ahl al-Bid'ah (People of Innovation).

The first principle

He, may Allah show mercy to him, said:

  1. Affirming Qadar.

That is, affirming Qadar for Allah (Exalted), and it is affirmed in four levels:

The First level is that you affirm knowledge for Allah (Exalted), that Allah knows everything: What has happened, what will happen, even what did not occur – He knows how it would have happened/occured. For example, So-and-so died, we affirm for Allah (Exalted) that He knows what that person will do if he continued to live. Allah knows all of that, because He affirmed all of that by himself.

He (Exalted) said about the people of hellfire:

{وَلَوْ رُدُّوا۟ لَعَادُوا۟ لِمَا نُهُوا۟ عَنْهُ}

{Even if they were to be sent back, they would certainly revert to what they were forbidden.} [Quran 6:28]

That is, they will not be sent back, but Allah (Exalted) knows that if they were to be sent back they will revert to what they were forbidden. Therefore, He (Exalted) knows what they will do if they were sent back.

The Second level is affirming Kitaabah (writing), that Allah created the Pen, and ordered it to write down everything that will happen until the Day of Resurrection[3]. There is also certain writing done by the angel when he comes down to the female's womb, by the permission of Allah (Exalted).

The Third level is affirming Mashee'ah (Will), that Allah willed everything that has happened to happen, and willed everything that will happen in the future to happen.

In 'Aqeedah, Allah's Mashee'ah (Will) is different from His Iradah (Want). Everything in this world: Allah willed it to happen. Nothing in this world exists but that which Allah willed to exist. Nothing ever happens except by His Will (Exalted). We affirm this for Allah (Exalted).

It is also possible for things to occur that which Allah does not love. Allah does not love Disbelief, and is not pleased with Disbelief, but besides all of that: He willed for Disbelief to exist, created Iblees, created Disbelievers, so He willed (Mashee'ah) Kufr to exist, but He is not pleased with it (Iradah).

So we differentiate between Mashee'ah (Will) and Iradah (Want), that Allah (Exalted) may want something (i.e. loves it, orders to do it) but may will something else.

The Fourth level is affirming creation. Absolutely everything that happens in the universe, everything that we see in the universe, all of it was created by Allah. He created all materials we see, He also created all actions, all movements. Everything, therefore, is Allah's creation (Exalted).

If we affirm all of these levels, we will have completely affirmed Qadar for Allah (Exalted).

The second principle

Then he, may Allah show mercy to him, said:

  1. Giving precedence Abu Bakr and 'Umar.

That is, we prefer Abu Bakr then 'Umar over the rest of the Companions, and this is exactly the order of first Caliphs: Abu Bakr, then 'Umar, then 'Uthman, then 'Ali.

The highest companions in rank are the Caliphs then the Ten Promised with Paradise.

He, may Allah show mercy to him, probably only mentioned Abu Bakr and 'Umar in this Text because there was no disagreement among Ahl as-Sunnah that they are preceded. Now, whether 'Uthman is preferred over 'Ali, or 'Ali is preferred over 'Uthman, there is a dispute concerning that:

The first opinion is to prefer 'Uthman over 'Ali. This is the strongest opinion and the choice of the majority of Ahl as-Sunnah.

The second opinion is to prefer 'Ali over 'Uthman. Those who endorsed this opinion would be accused of Shi'ism, such that they would be mentioned with speech like: “So-and-so has some Shi'ism.”

This opinion is weak, but it was chosen by people like 'Abd ar-Razzaq as-San'ani, a major scholar of Islam. Either way, we don't endorse this opinion, nor did the Salaf. Some of the Salaf used to argue that if 'Ali was better than 'Uthman, the companions would've appointed him as a Caliph and not 'Uthman. At the end, they appointed 'Uthman and then 'Ali. Therefore, 'Uthman is preferred. The Salaf did not kick out of Ahl as-Sunnah those who chose this opinion.

Ibn Taymiyyah wrote a detailed analysis of this issue, and the point that indicate 'Uthman is preferred over 'Ali, in his response to al-Hilli, titled Minhaaj as-Sunnah an-Nabawiyyah Fi ar-Radd 'Ala ash-Shee'ah al-Qadariyyah.

The third opinion is to prefer 'Uthman, and be silent about 'Ali. This opinion is considered between Ahl as-Sunnah, because some of the Salaf preferred not mentioning 'Ali alongside the Caliphs, but instead among the Ten Promised with Paradise.

The third principle

The third issue is:

  1. [Believing in] al-Hawdh (The Pool),

That is, you affirm that the Prophet, peace be upon him, will have a pool on the Day of Resurrection which his Ummah gathers to and drinks from. Among the people who denied al-Hawdh are some sects of the Mu'tazilah and the Philosophers.

The fourth principle

And so is:

  1. ash-Shafaa'ah (Intercession),

That you affirm that the Prophet, peace be upon him, intercedes. The Prophet makes multiple intercessions:

The first one is when people will come, as has been mentioned in the known Hadith[4], they come to Adam, so Adam says: Myself! Myself! (meaning: “I am preoccupied with my own problems”) then they come to Nuh, then Ibrahim, then Musa, then 'Isa, then they come to Muhammad, peace be upon him, and they ask him to intercede for them and begin the judgement (due to the difficulty of the situation that day).

The second one is when he intercedes for a certain people from his Ummah by making them enter Paradise.

The third one is when he opens the door of Paradise.

These are from his intercessions, peace be upon him. The Mu'tazilah deny this using weak doubts. For example, they complain and say to you: “Is Allah similar to rulers, where He needs intermediaries between him and His servants?” Glory be to Allah! This intercession shows the status of the Prophet, peace be upon him. Allah himself said:

{وَلَا يَشْفَعُونَ إِلَّا لِمَنِ ٱرْتَضَىٰ}

{and they cannot intercede except on behalf of one whom He approves.} [Quran 21:28]

He also said:

{مَن ذَا ٱلَّذِى يَشْفَعُ عِندَهُۥٓ إِلَّا بِإِذْنِهِۦ}

{Who is it that can intercede with Him except by His permission?} [Quran 2:255]

The intercession of the Prophet is by Allah's Permission, and Allah is pleased with the one being interceded for. Allah shows the virtue of the Prophet, peace be upon him, upon you by making him intercede for you.

Among the intercessors are the prophets, all of them, the Siddiqun (Truthful), the Shuhadaa' (Martyrs), even the believers become intercessors for each other. In the Hadith[5]: They will say: “Our Lord! They are our brothers, they used to pray with us, fast with us and perform Hajj with us, and you have admitted them to Hell.” He will say: “Go and bring forth those whom you recognize among them.” So they will intercede for their brothers. This also includes the virtue of having good friends.

The fifth principle

As of:

  1. al-Mizan (The Scale),

We affirm that the actions of the sons of Adam will be weighed on a scale that has two pans. It is a real scale, and not a metaphor, as it has come to us in the Hadith.

The sixth principle

  1. and as-Siraat (The Bridge).

We affirm as-Siraat, that is the bridge placed above Hellfire which people cross to reach Paradise. Some of them cross it like wind, some cross it as fast as thunder, some cross it as fast as running horses, some of them get injured by certain hooks, but still cross it, and there are among them those who will be caught by the hooks and will be thrown to the Hellfire.

The seventh principle

  1. That Iman consists of sayings and actions.

This is the definition of Iman according to Ahl as-Sunnah, that it consists of sayings and actions. Iman does not consist of only sayings, like what the Murji'ah believe. Some of them believe Iman consists of only belief. Some of them even believe that Iman is merely knowing Allah. Others believe Iman is merely pronouncing La Ilaha Illallah, and others believe Iman consists of belief in the heart and speech in the tongue, but they don't consider actions to be under the definition of Iman.

These are all different sects of the Murji'ah. Rather, some of the Murji'ah believe that Iman consists of sayings and actions (deeds), however, they believe that one who does not do any deeds is not a Disbeliever. So those are still from the Murji'ah and not from Ahl as-Sunnah, because they didn't believe actions are from the pillars of Iman. So according to them, Iman can be valid without any deeds (actions).

Their opinion agrees with the opinion of the Ash'ariyyah and Murji'at al-Fuqahaa'. They simply said: “We have no problem with you considering actions to be under the definition of Iman, but a man's Iman can be valid without any actions. However, those actions increase his Iman.” This is not an opinion of Ahl as-Sunnah! It is an opinion of the Murji'ah that they use to trick Ahl as-Sunnah, they say: “We say actions are a part of Iman like the Salaf did. Why do you call us Murji'ah?” We say: You said that and interpreted it to mean other than what Ahl as-Sunnah and the Salaf believed. (More details on this in the explanation of the 'Aqeedah of Sufyan ath-Thawri. Coming soon, In Sha Allah.)

The eighth principle

  1. That the Quran is the Speech of Allah.

It is the speech of Allah, therefore a characteristic of His, and it is not created. al-Lalaka'i narrated from five hundred scholars that the one who believes other than this has fallen into disbelief. All things that are from Allah (Exalted), such as His Actions and Characteristics, are not created.

Why is he a disbeliever who opposes this? There are multiple reasons: Firstly, he would have contradicted clear verses. Secondly, this belief denounces the message of the Prophet, peace be upon him, because that message is Allah's Speech, therefore, according to this belief, the Prophet is delivering to us created speech from other than Allah. Worse than that, he would deny that Allah has a voice. Because all those who believe the Quran is created also believe that Allah has no voice. This is the belief of Jahmiyyah; this is the belief of those who deny Allah's Characteristics. This is the belief of those who compare Allah to the Idols who were told by Ibrahim:

{فَسْـَٔلُوهُمْ إِن كَانُوا۟ يَنطِقُونَ}

{so ask them, if they should [be able to] speak.} [Quran 21:63]

The ninth principle

He, may Allah show mercy to him, said:

  1. Affirming the torment of the grave and the torment of resurrection on the Day of Resurrection.

That you affirm the existence of torment in the grave for disbelievers, and also for the sinners among the Muslims. He is not only not a Sunni who denies this, but not a Muslim, because the Hadiths mentioning the torment of the grave are Mutawaatir (plentiful and mass-narrated), and evidence for it is found in the Quran.

In the grave, there is either torment or pleasure. There will be pleasure in the graves of the people of good and righteousness, and there will be torment in the graves of the people of sins.

There also will be torment in the resurrection. For example, as of the one who does not pay Zakah of his animals, those animals will come on the Day of Resurrection and trample him. Another example is Allah's Saying:

{وَمَنْ أَعْرَضَ عَن ذِكْرِى فَإِنَّ لَهُۥ مَعِيشَةًۭ ضَنكًۭا وَنَحْشُرُهُۥ يَوْمَ ٱلْقِيَـٰمَةِ أَعْمَىٰ}

{And whoever turns away from My remembrance – indeed, he will have a depressed [i.e., difficult] life, and We will gather [i.e., raise] him on the Day of Resurrection blind.“} [Quran 20:124]

This is punishment in the resurrection. Also His saying:

{ٱلَّذِينَ يُحْشَرُونَ عَلَىٰ وُجُوهِهِمْ إِلَىٰ جَهَنَّمَ أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ شَرٌّۭ مَّكَانًۭا وَأَضَلُّ سَبِيلًۭا}

{The ones who are gathered on their faces to Hell – those are the worst in position and farthest astray in [their] way.} [Quran 25:34]

This is punishment in the resurrection too.

The tenth principle

The last principle is:

  1. Do not certainly witness [Paradise nor Hellfire] for a Muslim.

That means we don't say “So-and-so died, he will enter Paradise.” And unfortunately, most laymen fall into this mistake. They would say “So-and-so died, he's resting.” so you say “I don't know if he's resting or not. Perhaps he is being punished?” We don't know.

Yes, we wish good for him, he died upon Islam from what appears, so we wish Paradise for him and wish that he is resting, however, we don't certainly say that he is resting. A lot of people don't understand this principle.

In general, the way of Ahl as-Sunnah is to wish Paradise for So-and-so who has passed away, and to ask that Allah forgives him. It is a hope, not a certainty. We do not say with absolute certainty that he will enter Paradise, except those specifically promised Paradise in the texts, such as the Ten Promised with Paradise.

As of the Polytheist, we certainly say that he will go to Hellfire. You will find this in the old books of Ahl as-Sunnah, not the contemporary ones, that are unfortunately infiltrated with false sayings that affirm this principle for both the Muslim and the Disbeliever. No, it only applies for the Muslim. We certainly affirm Hellfire for the Disbeliever.

You will find the saying of Ahl as-Sunnah: “We wish good for the obedient, and fear punishment for the disobedient.” We don't fear punishment for the Disbeliever! We certainly affirm it upon him. The Prophet, peace be upon him, told a man among the Companions: “Whenever you pass by the grave of a polytheist, give him the tidings of Hellfire.”[6] This is the case for the polytheist.

[1]: This was all found in his biography in adh-Dhahabi's Siyar A'laam an-Nubalaa' (8/454-475). [2]: Sharh Usul I'tiqaad Ahl as-Sunnah wal-Jamaa'ah (1/175) by al-Lalaka'i. [3]: Sunan at-Tirmidhi (3319). Graded “Hasan Ghareeb.” by at-Tirmidhi, and “Sahih.” by al-Albani in Sahih at-Tirmidhi (3319). [4]: Sahih al-Bukhari (4712). [5]: Sunan Ibn Majah (60). Graded “Sahih.” by al-Albani in Sahih Ibn Majah (51). [6]: Sunan Ibn Majah (1573). Graded “Sahih.” by al-Albani in Sahih Ibn Majah (1288). It is considered to be Mursal by other scholars.