“We found our forefathers doing so” – errors in Dua

When Ibrahim alayhis salaam confronted his people about their idolatry, their response was, “We found our forefathers doing so.” [ash-Shu‘araa: 74] In other words, custom and tradition of society and that which has been handed down and what we do is of greater gravity than divine authority and truth. Whilst we might be saved from the evil of idolatry, the sad fact is that our attitudes are hardly much different from the Babylonians who at least had the decency to be frank about it.

So fixed are we in transmitting and perpetuating our customs, that often the learned practise what they learnt as children from society instead of authentically teaching society what Allah and His Rasul sallallahu alayhi wa sallam command. A case in point is Dua. Instead of rectifying people who innocently make mistakes in their recitations, Dua booklets and textbooks are printed which perpetuate these mistakes. Why? Because we found our forefathers doing so and perhaps we are too lazy to change. Even more amazing is when “references” are quoted yet the error is continuously printed instead of what is actually in the mentioned source book.

Below is my mail mentioning some examples. Names are omitted because this is not a personal issue. Many have fallen into this error. Our aim should be to rectify ourselves and society.

       

Muhtaram Mufti Sahib

السلام عليكم

As per our telephonic conversation Tuesday morning, I have perused the _______’s __________ and noted places which need attention. Whilst nothing earth-shattering in nature, these are the sacred words of Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. Surely Ulama should take extra care in their narrations, especially when printed and passed onto the youth to learn (incorrectly). These errors have become institutionalised upon the tongues and hearts of the public and instead of being rectified, they are perpetuated.

Kindly pass onto those responsible for the printing dept. For the record, what I note below is not “new” research from my feeble mind, but have been noted by esteemed Asaatizah at Zakariyya and Azaadville.

1   Dua before eating

Page __ states it to be بسم الله وعلى بركة الله

[bismillahi wa ala barakatillahi] Reference is given as Haakim. The reality is that the word على  does not occur in al-Mustadrak lil-Haakim, which only states:  بسم الله و بركة الله (see below)

Even more authentic of course would be simply بسم الله  as narrated by al-Imaam al-Bukhaari rahimahullah:

ياغلام سم الله وكل بيمينك وكل مما يليك" رواه الإمام البخاري

وإنما الموجود في المستدرك : من حديث ابن عباس رضي الله عنهما ...أتوا بيت أبي أيوب فلما أكلوا و شعبوا قال النبي صلى الله عليه و سلم : خبز و لحم و تمر و بسر و رطب إذا أصبتم مثل هذا فضربتم بأيدكم فكلوا

بسم الله و بركة الله
هذا حديث صحيح الإسناد و لم يخرجاه
تعليق الذهبي قي التلخيص : صحيح . 4/107 و 7163 من إخراج الوادعي .
ومثله في شعب الإيمان4604 : ...رواه أبو مجاهد عبد الله بن كيسان عن عكرمة عن ابن عباس فذكر الحديث بزيادات و قال أبو أيوب بدل أبي الهيثم و مما زاد قال : فهذا النعيم الذي تسئلون عنه يوم القيامة فكبر ذلك على أصحابه فقال : بلى إذ أصبتم مثل هذا فضربتم بأيديكم بسم الله و بركة الله فإذا شبعتم فقولوا : الحمد لله الذي هو أشبعنا و أروانا وأنعم علينا و أفضل فإن هذا كفاف هذا ... اهـ
فالله أعلم .

2   Dua after Eating

Page ___ states this to be :

الحمد لله الذى أطعمنا و سقانا و جعلنا من المسلمين

[alhamdu lillahillazi atamanaa wa saqaanaa wa ja’alanaa minal muslimeen]

Reference is given as Tirmizee.

However, the words “min al-” is not to be found in the Hadith in Tirmizee.

باب  ما جاء فى قول رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم قبل الطعام وبعد ما  يفرغ منه

It is instead:

الحمد لله الذى أطعمنا و سقانا و جعلنا مسلمين