Fiqh of Celebrations

Bismillah Alhamdulillah wa salatu salam ala Rasulillah what are the early he will be he woman wala Hammerberg. So this is going to be in sha Allah with the other our last halacha for this year of 2018. And I thought that inshallah Tada, I'll continue what I had done two weeks ago, or three weeks ago when we did the reality of beta. And I went over a number of important categories, a number of issues. So please, for those of you that haven't listened to part one, this is actually part two. For those of you that haven't listened to that, please go back and listen to the reality of Buddha. This is actually a continuation from where we left off, and we're going to be utilizing some of the

material from that lecture as well, I'm not going to be going over it again. So today's topic is about essentially celebrations. But in order to understand celebrations, we have to link it to another topic. And that is the topic of imitating the kuffaar. Tisha boville kuffaar. And that is because one of the main reasons why some of our scholars prohibit certain types of celebrations is because they link it to the issue of imitating the kuffaar. And they say that because it is haram to imitate the kuffaar, therefore, celebrations become haram. So today's topic, even though it's about celebrations and the filco celebrations, because it is so deeply entrenched with the issue of the

Chabot, we also have to briefly talk about that, obviously, I always make this disclaimer every single time and I do so because a lot of times, even if you've seen my comments in Facebook and Twitter and whatnot, a lot of people they say, Oh, you missed this point, you missed that point. I have one lecture. And this topic can easily be many, many lectures, I can't do everything. So I always make this disclaimer still doesn't matter if people say I haven't covered this or that and shall anyway, so let us begin. Today's topic is a very, very sensitive one, that some people, some people get very emotionally charged up about, they have made up their minds. They're firmly

entrenched in their opinions. And in reality they have, whether they understand it or not linked their identity really, with this issue of making something haram such that when somebody comes along and says, Oh, maybe it's not haram, they literally feel as if their identity has now been completely destroyed as if they are no longer religious or practicing Muslims. And that is why it is difficult to have a dialogue. Even I myself for many, many, many years I haven't given this is the first time I'm actually giving a lecture about this, because I know the backlash that is caused in the minds of some practicing Muslims. I'm merely asked you to set aside your preconceived notions or prejudices

and listen with an open mind to listen with an Eman filled mind. I'm going to quote you evidences from the Quran and Sunnah This isn't coming out of far left field, I'll quote you our own aroma. And I will explain to you that in fact, a very easy argument can be made to defend both positions again, it's not as if it's a clear cut pottery issue, there are two opinions as they are usually the case. And the fact of the matter is that in this case, one of the opinions clearly seems to be more rooted in academic knowledge, then the other button sha Allah let us begin with our preliminaries. So what is Eid? What is a celebration? The word Eid is a noun that comes from the verb either you do. And

read signifies two things, a regular return at a time interval and a congregation of people. So read is called Read our religious read is called Read, because it happens every year at the same time and because people gather together at that time, so read means to repeat to come again and again Are they are overdue, and also HDMI out on us people come together. So the reason why our Holi festivals are called Read is because number one, they occur regularly every day, the first every year, the first show was going to be our either filter and the 10th of July there's going to be our either alters a set in stone every year, and then also what happens on each team out on us people come

together. So celebration, it is something that people do. This is why an EAD is called EAD, and we see the and this is the technical term. And we see the linguistic meaning of this in the famous Hadith of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, which says in Arabic, sunnah who would love to reach out to carbery, reader, lethargy, or poverty or either don't make my cover and read don't make my cover and read. Now, this hadith, people easily misunderstand it. The processor is saying, Don't make my cover read. And Muslim reads this hadith and says, How could anybody be happy and festive at the cover of the poem?

First of all Salam. When the Hadith says don't make my cover and read, and when you say read and the Muslim mind you think happiness celebration sweets Metalla How can the cover become an aid, but the linguistic meaning of read is not festival per se. linguistic meaning of read is what? To come repetitively, right to make it a frequent point to come there. So the Profit System is saying, Don't make my cover, a regular place of visitation I eat, don't add to your Udo, don't keep on coming back to my cover and make it the goal rather than the masjid or the house of ALLAH SubhanA wa so using the word beat over here, and of course, we know we have two aids in Islam. The two primaries that we

have either filtered they do not have and this is something much more I did hamdulillah there is no afterlife. Amongst all the scholars our Prophet system entered Medina, the first year of the hijra, as we know and he saw the people celebrating two days and he said, Allah subhanho wa Taala has substituted your two days for two better days or you don't filter and he will have ha okay, this is an important Hadith memorize it. He has substituted your two days with two better days riddled filter and and or you don't have to have so this hadith clearly indicates that we have two primary reads and it is something that is well known. Also we have the word eid and another Hadith we'll

come back to this hadith as well. I'm going to quote it now. And this is the Hadith reported also a widowed and was sent by Muhammad where a man came to the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, and said O Messenger of Allah. I made a promise of vow another to Allah to sacrifice a camel at a place called Bwana. Bwana is a small coastal village close to yesterday on the on the Red Sea, so I made another to Allah to sacrifice a camel at buana. So the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said, was this place Bwana a place where there was an idol, or an Eid of the deeds of Jaya Helia. And the man said, No. So the process of said in that case, fulfill your vow go and sacrifice the Campbellford

buena. Okay, so he asked was that land and Eid. And what does read over here mean people coming there celebrating a religious festival. And the concept therefore of a place and a time being read is something well known and understood. And there are the Hadith we already mentioned of the Prophet system saying Allah has given you to better aids, so he's abrogating other aids, and we have as the statement of the sahabi this isn't a hadith, Abdullah bin Ahmed Abdullah Al said, Whoever lives in the land of idolatry, and builds his house in the land of idolatry, and celebrates their Nehru's no rose is a pagan festival it is still common in lands that used to be Zoroastrian. It used to be a

Zoroastrian Festival, the Medusa, they had no rules. No rules, the daisies, because now rose New day, new year, right? No roses nail rose the new year, new day, so no, Rose was the festival of Zoroastrians. And with the coming of Islam, the Zoroastrians basically left their Zoroastrianism they embraced Islam, but by and large the festival remained and it still remains to this day in that region. And it is a festival of just a holiday a new year now, right. So Abdullah, Mohammed Abdullah Al said, Whoever lives with them wishes he can build his house with them, which should again, celebrates their no Ruse and their festivals. He shall be resurrected with them. So we have over

here the author or the statement of the sahabi that the Muslim should not celebrate no ruse, okay. But do keep in mind, we're going to come back to this point. When is he speaking he is speaking one note whose is a religious festival. This is in the time where there's restaurants are everywhere and no rules has a clear religious element to it, it is the festival of Zoroastrianism. So, the issue therefore comes that what is the Islamic verdict on celebrating festivals other than the two festivals of Edo filter and Riedel abhart. So, two primary reasons are given by those scholars who say that we should not celebrate festivals, as you can already tell. There are two opinions on this

issue as always the case and we're going to mention both of them. Those scholars that say one should not celebrate any festival other than filter on alcohol. They have a number of excuses primarily to number one, they say, any festival other than the tour, EADS will constitute a bidder in Islam. Okay, so they say any festival is an innovation into the religion. And last Halaqa that I gave on beta, we went over the types of beta categories a bit, and we explained what is a beta

And we say and I say very clearly, any festival that is done without the intention of getting Allah's reward cannot be called a bitter, a bitter it has to be in the matter of the religion. Okay, so some scholars were a little bit

in encompassing they stretched the definition of Buddha. And they basically argued that a festival is always associated with holiness and religiosity. And so introducing any festival inherently is going to be linked to VEDA. And this is a stretch that belies experience. It goes against the common experience of the world that we live in, that there are religious festivals, everybody knows them. And then there are secular festivals that people do that are not of any particular faith. So that is a bit of a stretch. And we already talked about but I'm not going to go down that basically today, it's already been there. Essentially, any non religious festival cannot be argued as being Bidda. It

is nonsensical, but I can only be done when you do a festival, and you think it is Islamic. And even then we talked about the categories and we went over the dialogue fee and all of that I mentioned that last class in any case, the next thing that they say, all celebrations are haram because it is imitating the kuffaar This is the second reason they say the Cheb Buble kuffaar imitating the kuffaar this is where we need to now pause the issue of celebration spend around 2530 minutes talking about this issue of imitating the kuffaar and inshallah this is basically half of today's lecture so it's going to be two birds with one stone celebrations and imitated liquefier because

they are linked together and inshallah as well. The concept of imitating the fall will benefit us what does it mean? What is haram and what not?

So now we begin? Is it true that our religion tells us to not imitate the kuffaar response? There are verses and a hadith that do seem to suggest some type of principle is not coming out of thin air. For example, the Quran says Surah Baqarah verse 121, Turbo uncle, Yahoo dweller, Nosara habitat, a tabby army letter home, the hood and the Nosara will not be fully content with you. Real law is the highest level of contentment. They're not going to be fully content with you until you follow their milah Okay, now what does middle mean?

So some would say their middle means anything to do with them. So they make the argument that anything that does that is related to their ways their lifestyle, their custom is their Mila. So therefore, Allah azza wa jal is saying they are who then the Nosara will not have real dog with you until you follow their Mila, which means you shouldn't be following their Mila. Is that clear? It's very they make a generic argument from this verse and the most explicit Hadith. There's nothing explicit in the Quran that says don't make the showboat kofod as generic stuff like this, but the Hadith there is a very explicit Hadith and it is authentic isn't a Buddha, it's not in Bukhari

Muslim, but it's in Abu Dhabi. And that hadith is mentorship by habit, Coleman, for whom in whom this is the simple Hadith that everybody should memorize. It is the fundamental Hadith that talks about imitation mentorship by Herbie Holman for whom in whom, whoever to Shabbat, and a Shabbat means to imitate to be similar to Whoever imitates a group of people shall be counted as amongst them. Mentorship by habit, Coleman, for whom in whom, Whoever imitates a group of people shall be counted amongst them. And this is the most explicit Hadith that seems to indicate. If you're to Chabahar with Zoroastrians, then you will be counted amongst his restaurants. If you are Chabahar.

With Buddhists, you will be counted amongst the Buddhists. So this hadith makes a generic argument whoever to Chabahar Whoever imitates a people shall be counted amongst them. We also have two dozen Hadith a lot of a hadith there's quite a lot that specifically prohibit or allow things based on not imitating the others. Okay, can anybody think of any Hadith that comes to mind? There is there's a lot

What about it?

Selim?

Excellent example, simple example. The issue of Muharram fasting one day, when he was told that you had fast that one day What did he say?

I'm going to fast two days then shows you what?

Doing something different, okay? The process for example, said that be different from the holy Kitab let your beards grow and trim your mustache because they would let their views grow and grow their mustache.

said be different from them, let your beards grow and trim your mustache the process that I'm said be different from the who they don't pray in their shoes. So you pray in their your shoes, they hold back then we'll take their shoes off and the process instructed Muslims to pray with their shoes. Ironically, the situation has changed 180 now and they would wear their shoes when they pray by and large and we are all barefooted over here okay but that we're going to get back to this point. So when the process of said this hadith, they are who would would be barefoot when they prayed, but the point is, he said be different from the hood. Pray in your shoes, okay. And the Sahaba for their

entire lives with praying their shoes, the messenger, they will walk into their shoes as you know, they would pray with their shoes on back then. And there are so many other things the process was had be different from the heavy Kitab put henna Isbell of your beard espouses to put hand on your beard, and you dye your beard when your beard goes white. It is sunnah to dye the beard, we should not keep it fully white, as was the custom of the sorry, not that he's a high level Machine sorry, be different from the machine. Because then we chicane would like to have full white beard when you become older and the process and said that's not the sooner the sooner is to have the Isbell or the

hen died in and the Hadith of our workers father as well is mentioned over here. So don't imitate the kuffar dye his beard dye the beard. So we have many other instances, as I said, around 20 ahaadeeth, where the processing says be different from do this be different from don't do that. So we have a whole bunch of a hadith that clearly say that we should not be following the ways of other peoples. And also we have the Hadith and Timothy were the prophets or some criticize later Muslims and he said, you're going to follow the ways of those before you footstep by footstep and inch by inch, so much so that if they enter the lizard hole, YouTube will enter the lizard hole. Now there

are so many of these are Hadith. We should also mention one other Hadith before we move on. And that is that all of these Hadith came in late Madani timeframe, not in Makkah and not in early Medina. And there is a clear reason for this. And Ibn Abbas narrows Sahih Bukhari sahih. Muslim Ibn Abbas narrates that the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam loved to agree with the allocator in all those matters that he was not prohibited from doing so. And so when he migrated to Medina, he parted his hair in the middle like the Hindi Kitab did Hadith in Bukhari and Muslim.

Though Allah Kitab, the hood had their hair in a certain way, he followed them. Then, at some time in the Madani stage, he began to make Mahadeva. Okay, so this hadith shows us that at one phase of the serum, in fact, the entire McCann phase, and some of the early modernity phase, there was no Mahadeva there was no command to make no to Chabot, this came later on. And this is a key point. Because our profit system would never have done something that is intrinsically evil. He never drank alcohol. He never worshipped idols, things that are intrinsically evil, he could never have done. The fact that at some stage, he was wanting to copy Aliki tab shows that intrinsically, it's not at

all times at all places evil, rather, at certain point something happened. And what was it that happened? Well, I'll just mentioned it now. And this is what very few scholars point this out. The majority of scholars, they just go with the flow, and they just say, Oh mojado from ohada. But the fact of the matter isn't, some scholars did point out this switch occurred. And that switch indicates there was a reason and what is the reason? The reason is the political landscape changed.

Islam became dominant and powerful, it became its own civilization. When Islam became its own civilization, then we should set the standard and not follow other standards. When Islam was being persecuted, when Islam was the the one that's not you know, at the top at this stage right at that stage, it did not make sense to make Mahadeva it would have been problematic to to oppose, and the Prophet system did not propose at that time. So the concept and one can also say by the way, one can one can also say that, at that stage, the processor wanted to

copy the allocate tab, because the allocate tab were closer to the truth than the pagans. So by copying the allocate tab, he is still closer to the truth than paganism. Now that Islam has become dominant. He doesn't need to show that anymore at all. And he can now set the standard and move on from that. So the

issue of Mahara photographer of being different from the Kufa is one that is yes, it is something that does exist in our tradition. And that many, many scholars have written books about it. And perhaps the most famous book ever written and definitely one of the most thorough books ever written.

Is the book by shareholders, I'm even Taymiyah, which is called equity.so Ratan was Musa theme, the Mahadeva teach us how to build your him following the Serato. Musa team by going against the people of Jehane. The title of the book tells you following the Serato Musa team, by making Mohalla by being different of the people going to Jehane, whoever is going to Jehane we don't want to be like them, we should be other than them. And that's how we're going to be on. So Dalton will stop him. Okay, and he establishes in this book, a two volume book, it's a nice chunky volumes two volume book, he has a very detailed Booko PhD has been written as well in some university about this, I

came across it. And the book is available in Arabic and a summarized version of somewhere in English a very summarized version, not the whole book at all. And in this book, he establishes a psychological and theoretical foundation to make the argument that the Shabbat is wrong. The Shabbat is detrimental to one's Eman and to one's faith. And he basically says I'm summarizing the entire two volumes in three minutes. He basically says that it is healthy for a community to be associated in each and every way possible outwardly and inwardly. You want to be associated with the people of the truth with the people of your own faith of your own religion. It is he calls it a share out a

sign of Islam, that you demonstrate your Islam and others see your Islam and he gives examples like you know you feel a camaraderie when you see somebody dressed up like you automatically there's a connection, right? If you're in a strange land wearing your clothes, you know, just imagine a Pakistani comes into Archimedes early America 67 years it doesn't have any other clothes, he sees another Shabbat commies in the crowd, what are you going to do? Automatically, there's going to be that connection, right? That connection of intent he is saying is good to have for people of iman, what's wrong with it? If you're human, and you have other people of your mind, you should strengthen

one another in that regard. And he mentioned that this is why our dress indicates our internal attitude. Why do we dress up? When we go to an event when we go to an interview? We're not going to go in our pajamas, it indicates something why is there a gear or a

code of dress for specific things? So the army, the military, why do they dress in a certain manner, when they dress up in those army fatigues they actually get in the spirit of doing and marching and whatnot, it has an impact, okay, I go scuba all the time when I dress up in my scuba gear, even if I'm not in the water, I just waiting to get into the water. It's just there. It's human nature that you want to do that. So his point is, of course, that Muslims should have that collective feeling and let people of other faith look dressed in their manner, let them be different and dressed in their manner and let people of Islam dress in their manner as well. And of course, he quotes the

famous

decree of Ramadan hottub

which is the the famous decree which has been obviously criticized roundly by many people, because it goes against modern, you know, the modern nation state and secularism, it definitely does go against it from that regard. And that is that model the Allahu Allah, he made a decree that people of different faiths should wear different clothing. This was in his Khilafah Muslim should dress like this. And it is not allowed for them to wear the clothing of the holy kitab. They had to Kitab dress like this. That's their clothing, that's their clothing, they shouldn't dress the way Muslims dress. So he made a ruling in this regard. And it is called the ruling of Omar, and he had a long

list of issues. And by the way, the ruling of Omar was not universally applied throughout Islam. Okay, it is very clear. Anybody who says to the contrary, is simply wrong. The bulk of Islamic history was not applied. Whether you agree with that being valid or not is a separate issue. I'm just saying, as a factual statement, for the majority of the Omaze existence. Civilizations did not enforce these types of codes of conduct, even though yes, socially, it was understood, but there was no enforcement on this. This was something that very rarely took place, but even Taymiyah quotes this as well. And he then spends one volume out of two, talking about celebrations. Basically, 40%

of the book is about celebrations, even though it's about the Chabot. But where does most of the Tisha boo occur in these celebrations, and he specifically mentioned the no rules and the various Christian festivals, and he claimed and of course it says that it is not allowed to celebrate them at all.

I'm Ben Tamia, by the way, he makes a very interesting tidbit he just mentioned and then moves on. And it shows you that his argument is much more nuanced than many of his later followers make out. He says that these laws are contextual, even Taymiyah says, and he says that at some times, and some places to shove bull with kuffaar becomes MOBA, or maybe even wajib, or Mooster hub. This is a Ben Tamia who has two volumes against the Shugborough. He just has one paragraph and then moves on. But it is that one paragraph that interests us. And he mentioned at some times, at some occasions, to Chabot might be MOBA might even be Mr. Howe, maybe even it is wajib. And he gives only three or four

examples. And then he moves on because that's not the purpose of his book, and of the examples he gives. For example, if a Muslim is living in Dowdell Cofer, or Dar Al Harb, and it is gonna cause an issue for him to dress differently. In that case, it becomes most to have to dress like the people. This is even Taymiyah, who overall was very strict that Muslims should have their dress code. But see, here's the problem. And I keep on I've said this many times before, that many of the followers of Ibn Taymiyyah they actually tarnish the image of him even Taymiyah. And they just copy and paste his fatawa without understanding where he's coming from. Ibn Taymiyyah is writing in Damascus of 700

digital, he is writing when there is a powerful Mameluke civilization, he is writing when there is glory, when 90% of the city is going to be Muslim, so very different time and place, and for his followers to copy and paste snippets, and then apply them in modern secular humanistic democracies in a very different time in place to simply wrong and that was one of my main arguments in today's lecture, that some of these fatawa might be valid when they were uttered by whom they were uttered. But fatwas are contextual, they are not permanent. They're not the speech of Allah. Allah did not forbid certain things, certain times and places might have done so. So

anyway, the point is that Ben Timmy does have this book you should be aware of it. Many other books were written as well. I'm not going to go over a history of these books written however, realize one point for most of Islamic history. Muslims lived in Muslim majority lands that were ruled by Islam. There was a philosopher, a sultanate an empire, whether it was the Mughal empire, whether it was the Ottoman lands, whether it was the mud blue, most of the time Muslims are living in Muslim dominant countries or not even countries and are called countries. The nation state is a modern construct. As you know, it is a European construct. But the point is that the concept of Muslims living as a

thriving minority in a lawn Muslim land was very, very rare, almost unheard of before modernity, as well. The advent of colonisation changed the dynamics of Muslim non Muslim interaction. So, when the colonizers came, and they didn't come, they invaded Muslim lands. When the colonizers invaded Muslim lands, the issue of imitating the kuffaar once again was brought up.

Think about it. You have people of other faiths coming in, pillaging your country raping literally and metaphorically, your peoples and your lands, okay, acquiring destroying this and that, in that context for the last 250 years. Basically, Napoleon basically invaded Egypt in 1790 1780s of the 90s and that's the beginning of column D at the beginning of official colonization before this, you have unofficial colonization, where you know, if anyone was going to their Anyway, where was it? Colonization began unofficially 1600s Officially it's late 1700s. And at that point in time, the issue of the sharp bubble could fall once again was brought to the forefront. Why can anybody tell

me why

imitating the golfer at this point in time, quickly quick we don't have time Hurry up.

Okay, so there's a sense of identity here. Against the against them. What else?

Is a valid point? What else?

Recognize who's Muslim who's not okay, what else?

You are being invaded? Do you want to copy the image invaders?

What does it show about your own self Riza if the people that have raped and pillaged you are the same people you want to emulate? Think about that.

There is dignity,

dignity. It's your dignity at stake here. Have you no shame.

Have you no dignity, that the very people that have destroyed your civilization, you will then put them on a pedestal. Okay, this notion of there is of Islam came to the forefront. And that is why in the last 250 years, the issue of the Shabaab al kuffaar came to the forefront of discussions in medieval Islam. It's there, here and there. Ben Tamia wrote one book on it is two volumes, but it is not the majority. He wrote, literally hundreds of volumes. It is not a major source of books and writings in medieval Islam. It's there. But it's, you know, it's not a big deal. But in the last 250 years, and especially in the era of colonization, and now we're talking about this all the time, it

changes a lot of things. And of course, the issue comes as we said, of dignity, and there is and this is across so this isn't just an event or a meal or a selfie issue. This transcends any one trend. So for example, the famous African scholar Earthman, dan Fodio, who died in 1817. With man dan Fodio, was a great alum from from Africa from the Fulani tribe, and he founded this cultural Empire under so culture Empire was a magnificent empire in Africa that was lasting for 200 something years, and he fought his his empire, not him himself fought against the British. And this is a very amazing legacy of the Sukkot Empire, the founders Earth man, dan Fodio, and he's writing at a time

when the British are invading and they're colonizing and they're, you know, doing their things whatnot. He writes a treaties called Tahira Hillel eemaan. Mentor shabu kofod, you will see on warning the people of eemaan from imitating the kuffaar and the evil people another warning book, and he at this stage, he writes that Muslims should not be dressing in the style of the colonizers of the people that are basically taking us over. And of course, it makes complete sense. I mean, these are the people that are literally killing you, literally. And you're going to abandon your culture and abandon your people and a sense of inferiority complex and you're going to dress like

them. Okay, complete makes completely sense. And of course, Earth man, dan Fodio. As we said, it's not just any one trend of Islam. He's a Maliki scholar of the HRD School of Theology, Kadri Sufi, and he's writing in a way that very much allies with him and Tamia very much, it's really the same spirit. And it's not just Maliki called the The Ashanti in India, when the British came. Again, there was a very strong movement to oppose the British in everything that the British had to do. This was something that was very well known, and in particular, the the urban school and of course, our Indian brothers all know that the urban school and we should all understand that the urban the

school is a direct reaction to the British invasion that the urban madrasa was founded after the mutiny of 1857. Literally, it is literally caused by the collapse of the Mughal empire. So the Deobandi tradition overall and I say this with respect, I'm not Deobandi, so it's awkward whenever I talk about another tradition, but I'm equally critical of all and respectful of all now inshallah no big deal. Point is that one needs to understand what is the mindset of the Deobandi tradition that they opened, is being established literally, after the British have kicked out and exiled the last Mughal emperor, and the beautiful dynasty of Islamic India has collapsed. And the British have now

taken over completely. What do you think is going to be the mindset of the Roma? It's going to be a very closed very angry with the British legitimate, how would of course they're going to be angry with the British, of course, there's going to be this somewhat of a self ism mentality like I'm not going to do anything with the British. And so many fatwas were given at the time that it is haram impermissible to dress like the British act like the British eat like the British, learn the British language, go to British schools and why should they not give such a fatwa? You understand that this is now a sense of we are Muslims, they have come and taken us over and so far towards were given.

And at the time even it was considered haram by this group of Rolla ma to study in the British schools, and of course, the British schools at the time were missionary schools. So think of that as well. There was an element of conversion wanting to take place as well. So completely understandable. Okay. My criticism is not to 1857 duben is that 1918 The Open hasn't changed much. That's the criticism. It's not that it happened. It wouldn't happen but the mindset is still the same. And booklets were written. I came across one. Maulvi Abdul hai a surah. T. He wrote a booklet warning the Muslims of India from shaving their beards and from wearing coats and pants and from

wearing ungrazed on Ketopia

In

the heart of the anger is okay this is he get this is something is It is haram to wear the hat of the British, you should wear the Muslim topi and not unreasonably topi, okay, not the heart of the British. And again, I mean, this was written 100, whatever, 100 years ago, more than that, what of course, put yourself in the shoes of Indian Muslims? Why would you give up your land, your civilization, your culture, and want to emulate a group of people that have destroyed them on Emperor empire? Think about that makes 110% sense. And this guy, of course, is a Hanafy. Deobandi would not he's not some, you know. And the reason I say that because some people say, Oh, this is

just a selfie thing, the invitation to confer No, it's universal in Islam. And another last example, when a tattoed came along, this enemy of Islam, he came along he abolished the caliphate, and he forbade Muslims from wearing their Islamic headgear. And he mandated in the 1923 or four he mandated all men must wear English cap, English hats, because you know in that day, Westerners all wore their their hats.

This is well known when you look up any any black and white movie any Westerner wants your movie. Why are they wearing hats? It was the custom of the day to wear that cap. So I took you should know this utter total legislated that every Turkish male must wear European hat. What do you think the alumni are gonna say? Tell me.

Haram is haram. We are Turks. We have our Who are you to come and tell us to wear. And so a certain Haji octave Hoja. He wrote a pamphlet in which he claimed that wearing such a hat is a sign of the one who is morally bankrupt. No EMA note.

So the hat becomes the sign of moral bankruptcy. And you know what? I agree with that, for the time in place, very legitimate for to complete. Makes sense, okay. And, by the way, he himself in hudgell Haji art of Hajah, he writes in his pamphlet that he is one of the few that mentions that the Prophet says that, um, he was the one who initially he wants to to copy that had to Kitab, then when the power balance shifted in the favor of Islam, then he wanted to be different from the ALI kitab. What he's implying is that the Torah is doing the opposite, that the power balance is the opposite now, now you have an inferiority complex, and you want to do the other way. And so we have these

types of treatises written in Egypt, in Damascus, in India, in Istanbul, and it makes complete sense. But the issue we need to ask ourselves is,

is it Islamic, to copy and paste those photos from those times in places and then put them and bring them into our time and place? Once upon a time, dressing like a European was something that only Europeans did? No Muslim dress like that. And there were no Muslims in Europe in large quantities, and it was a Muslim land. So for Muslims in Muslim lands, to give up their culture, their habits, their language, and take on the language of the colonizer. Wallahi there is no doubt this is inferiority complex. And we worry about inferiority complex of eemaan. And not just a fairly complex of civilization. Okay, this is very clear. But that was over a century ago, more than a century ago.

And since that time and place, obviously, much has changed, much has changed. And based on that, therefore, our scholars themselves have also begun to change, realize that it wasn't just coats and hats. fatwas were given at the time, believe it or not, that wearing watches was haram too, because it was not something that Muslims did, okay for towards the guna many different natures in this regard. But as we said, one needs to understand at that time and place to do something different from your people indicated something, even Taymiyah himself writes, and I quote that paragraph, if a Muslim is endowed with how to boil the land of non Muslims, then in that case, he is not required to

appear differently from the people. And then he mentioned reasons and whatnot. And this is something that again, was understood. The famous Egyptian scholar Muhammad Abdul as well. He was asked more than 100 years ago, Muslims in South Africa, South African Muslims, I spoke about them a few months ago as well. Muslims from South Africa, they were wearing the European style hat, and he was asked this fatwa Is it helpful to wear the European style hat in

South Africa, and he gave the fatwa that it is permissible for them to do that, because it shields them from the sun, because the situation is different, et cetera, et cetera. Now, we see therefore, that we do have these rules of not imitating the kuffaar. But looking at the texts and the context, we can derive four principles. Okay. And these are the four principles that we'll use before I move on to the final point, which is the issue of celebrations. Firstly,

the primary prohibition of imitating the kuffaar deals with rites of worship and religious festivals, therefore, anything that is religious of another religion, the default is that it is haram, any ritual, any worship that they do, any festival that they do, if a person does the religious ritual that is unique to that ritual, there is no doubt they have fallen into haram. And if they do it thinking Allah will reward them, then it is haram and vida, if they do it from a religious perspective, it is haram and Buddha. And if you now go back to those 20 Hadith I mentioned, almost all of them deal with specific rituals. Some of them are customs, but almost all

of them deal with ritual. So, the first rule, the default is that imitating the religious rituals of other faiths is haram and this is what those are Hadith primarily referred to. Secondly, the Shugborough imitation can only occur to that which is unique and specific to a particular faith or civilization, not when it is generic to large groups of mankind.

The Shugborough has to be done for something whether it is an action or it is a Libous or it is a festival that is unique to one group of people, if it is done by large segments of different civilizations, there is no to Chabot, because it is generic and many examples are here any type of cuisine, any type of technology, any type of mechanism that people live by, that they adopt from other civilizations and cultures, there is no to Chabot when it is not unique to one civilization. If large segments of the world are doing something such that it is not recognizable to be one civilizations. Then there is no Tisha Bo Manta Chabahar, Bill Coleman, for whom in whom there has to

be a comb that you're making fish above. And there are many examples of this. You know, this salamander the law, one suggestion to build a ditch, where did it come from?

The Persians did the President say, Oh, I'm not going to do that. No. The issue came up the process of wearing a ring with a stiff stamp on it. The first time he wrote a letter to Heraclius. They said to Him, the Sahaba said, yeah rasool Allah, it is the custom of those people that they will never accept us a letter from a ruler, except that there's a wax seal on it. So the President didn't say, Oh, the Sharpeville kuffaar I can't do it. He said, Okay. Make us ring for me. Mohammad Rasool Allah as we know so I said he made that ring. He put the wax seal, he sent it to Heraclius. There is no to Chabot. This is the culture of the world. That's what everybody does. So he did it. Okay. And so

many other things as well. I mean, cuisine wise or processing never ate rice in his whole life. He never ate rice, is somebody going to say is the Shugborough to eat rice? No, eating rice is not of one civilization. It's generic food, nothing to shortbow in this as well. So, we said that the issue of the Shugborough it must be something that is unique to a specific faith, a specific civilization. Also, it is very important to note antimonopoly him himself mentions this, that the whole issue of looking different needs to be taken into the context that are promises of himself did not look radically different from his own people.

This is something that a lot of those who talk about the show Buble kuffaar They ignore

when the process and said don't make the show Buble kuffaar. What was he wearing

the same clothes as the Croatia of Makkah the exact same clothes. He did not bring about a Fashion Revolution. Think about this as something that the more stricter strand for example that they always want to say don't don't don't they don't understand the context even of the original a hadith the Arabs dressed in a certain manner, our process some was out of. Here's the point Mentha Cheb Baba comin for who among whom is not necessarily evil all the time.

Whoever imitates a group is of them. The process of imitated the out of Is he an out of yes or no. Whoever imitates the outcomes of them has an outcome. Is that a problem? No. See, this is the point that some group of scholars, again, this is personal. I mean, they they try their best, but you have to be a little bit more broad in your understanding of what's coming going on here. If not by him himself. Maybe this isn't some left wing progressive talk, he'll tell you himself mentions in his book.

This is not an amulet that will come to me. No, I think in welcoming, he mentioned that the apostle when it comes to the clothing, the base default and the Sunnah is that the person wears the clothes of his people, as long as it is halal to do. So. Obviously, if you're in a land that doesn't have clothes, it's not sooner to go naked. So as long as it is halal to do so, our Prophet CISM dressed in the clothing of his people,

and he dressed up in accordance with the clothing of his people.

Hadith that when the process of visited when dignitaries visited, he had a special Yemeni cloak he would wear for them. This is dressing up now who told our process that a Yemeni cloak is considered dressing up? did he invent that? Or was that the custom of the time? You see, it was the custom of the time, Yemen was a better civilization that he was at that time. And Yemen had better cloth and better, you know, embroidery. So the Yemeni cloth, the Yemeni shawl on top was a better garment. So when delegations would come he would wear Yemeni, the Yemeni shawl on top, he is dressing up in accordance with the culture of his time.

So once again, the problem comes these are Allama who talks about the Shelbyville kuffaar. There is nothing wrong with the Chabot with your own people when the peoples are generic, like the process of himself. If we want to dress up, we will wear a jacket or coat a suit. This is our culture and that is why I say it is Sunnah, meaning sunnah, in the sense of what a process and would do it is sunnah to dress in accordance with the culture of your peoples. And it is a problem that some of our ulama make it something embedded in the minds of the people that anybody who dresses like this cannot be a person of knowledge. He must be dressed. And here's the irony, if you want to look at where a person

is coming from, look at the clothing of their dilemma.

So, people of certain persuasion will dress in the kurta shall wore white with the turban, you know and they go back to 1700 India and that's the Sunnah for them. Others are going to be dressing in a Moroccan, you know, faux with the type of turban and that's basically 1800 Morocco, others are going to dress like the Saudi sounds of the 1700s they think that is the Sunnah. And each one of their Sooners is essentially their founders have their own tradition. And they think this is the default. And they don't see the process and himself never wore the clothes that they think is the Sunnah. Never, not even the thought that they were because that fine cotton that they're wearing with the

nice buttons Made in Italy with the beautiful salwaar that they want and the underwear. Let's not forget that as well. Right? Because again, let's be honest here, see, and again, I have to some to be a little bit facetious a little bit sarcastic because it is irritating that the very people who tell us don't struggle don't they fall into it. Men hate hula didn't make a decision without even understanding. Okay, look at the watches that they're wearing. Okay, look at the pens that they have look at Where's it coming from? The small things, you know, the jacket even on the phone, there's gonna be a jacket. Where did that come from? So, in their own way, they are taking even as they tell

us living in western lands, to follow them in their clothes thinking it is the Sunnah. No, it is not the Sunnah. And if you understand this point, then as we said, the Shabbat can only take place rule number two and something that is unique and specific to a particular faith or a particular civilization, pants and shirts are now no longer a part of one civilization. In 1700 50, mobile India, yes, it was. Why would an Indian in 1700 Delhi will dress like the Congress? Why? No reason. But times have changed. And that footwork is no longer applicable. There is no inferiority complex anymore. We dress up because this is the way we dress up. There is no notion of that us and them

anymore. The younger years have not only left India, we are in their lands now. Okay, this whole Hungary's is the British. The angrezi are no longer in India. Well, indirectly at least but they're not directly in India. We are now in their lands whole situation has changed. So this is the second rule. This

Third rule here

is that there is no to Chabot without an intention for to Chabot, you cannot have the Shugborough without wanting to have the Shabbat. In other words, something that's just happening, something that you just do can never be the Shabbat. How two points are actually I would say three points number one, the word the Chabot means there is an extra effort, because little bit advanced Arabic here but just bear with me. There Shep bahala was Anita far too far old means you did something to get there. The SHA bow means to be similar, intentionally or unintentionally. To Chabot, you want it to be similar. The word used is the Shugborough, not the shadow. And the shadow means to be similar. Our

process of did not forbid to Szabo he forbade to Chabot the Shugborough means you go out of your way. And you intend, I want to copy that person. Anything that you do, just because you're doing it, because everybody's doing it. That's not to show also we say in them and I'm open the yards, actions about intentions. And so if there is no intention for Tisha than it is not to Shabbat, and of course, there's something some of the classical scholars as well said even Aberdeen, a famous Hanafi alum. He mentions in his book that the Shabbat is only mcru. When the issue itself is blameworthy and when the intention is to imitate when the intention is to imitate when the intention is not to

imitate and the issue is generic. Well, Claudio, what food you're going to eat. There's no tissue book in this regard. Therefore, that which occurs naturally, amongst any groups of people, this might be the SHA bull, but it is not the Chabot and Tasha bow is not haram to Chabot is haram. Fourthly,

that which is no longer unique to non Muslims, is no longer haram to imitate something that might have been unique in the past, but is no longer unique now. It is no longer haram to imitate. And this is something again, this isn't something I'm inventing. Classical Garuda mentioned many examples in medieval times the problem comes in I say this with utmost respect. Many of our ulama still their mindset is in medieval times, they cut and paste those fatawa. And they stick to them without allowing their own intellects to think about the context those will fatawa and brought in not all of them, but some or many of them are like this. And this is unfortunately, in my humble

opinion, listen to my lectures enough to know this is one of the reasons why unfortunately, there is a disconnect between many of the scholars and between the populations of Muslims, a lot of times the scholars with my utmost respect to them, they are operating in their own little circles of influence amongst their very practicing very hardcore conservative Muslims, and the rest of the OMA is disconnected from them. And there are reasons for this one of them being again, anyway, so this is why my criticism here, when the situation changes, and it is no longer unique to the kuffar, then it is no longer prohibited to imitate. And this is why you see me dressed up in this manner over here.

Whereas I, myself 200 years ago would have fully agreed with the fatwas that it is haram to dress like this, because dressing up like this 200 years ago would imply something very different.

In India, in Ottoman Turkey, in Damascus, whereas now times and places have changed. And again, this isn't anything new. For example, there are many paths out of the sahaba. Some even say there's a lot of Hadith but there are a thought of the Sahaba there are definitely you know statements.

Were

wearing a certain type of cap, which is called a toy Elisa was considered to be something not good to do. However, this style is a cap was worn by the Jews of a certain place, however, and it resembles the type of frankly frankly, the Shema that some of those Rudy's wear these days, something similar to that, okay, and many other cultures were okay, it resembles like that. But the Triada was considered to be forbidden or mcru by many of the classical aroma their first two, three generations because it was something that Yahoo did, slowly but surely the Muslims kept on wearing wearing wearing until it became something they themselves did. Even hedger comments on this

prohibition, and he says, this would only have been forbidden when the toilets or was something that was only worn by the Jews, but that is no longer the case. Now, so it is permissible to wear it.

This is even hedger writing, not some left field progressive guy. And in fact, one of the famous scholars of Hadith was called Imam Ali see, because he was

was known from a family of this, he was called a mama play Odyssey. And the same goes for many other issues. Imam Ahmed, for example. And some of the earliest scholars, many of the other scholars, even some Sahaba. They insisted that Muslims were their turbans with technique and technique means you take it over here and you take it under your beard, and you throw it behind. Okay, so this is the Titanic, it goes underneath it. And they said that it is Makrooh it shouldn't be done that you don't practice the technique. This is the first generation this was the Hejazi style of wearing the turban let's say, well as Islam spread, people wore turbans in different manners, and people would, you

know, cut off the tail and we're only the turban and that version, in the time of the first generations was not done by the Arabs. It was done by the iGEM or other people. And they are a thought from the early Sahaba and Tabby rune to not dress with a turd. There's not no Hadith, there's no Ideapaint it's just Sahaba the entire beer owner Imams to have Danique later scholars said no big deal if you do a handshake, no tag, no big deal. What happened, people just kept on wearing wearing until finally it became something that is permitted. So therefore,

it is very, very clear that our scholars understood that something might be the Chabot in one time or one place or one land, but it is not the Chabot in another time or another place or another land. And that is I think where unfortunately, a lot of times when you hear these, how long fatwas those scholars are not following this simple rule. Certain things might have been to Chabot they're no longer to Shabbat. Now, this is pretty clear. But let's get to the final issue before we get to the actual law, the actual, we haven't even done the reads yet. We're going to do that in a while on the show. Don't worry, we'll get it done today show. Let's get to the final issue. We talked about a

culture ceasing to be unique to non Muslims like the Libous. What if a religious ritual ceases to be a religious ritual? You see the difference between the Libous and the ritual? What is something that used to be from the Dean of the non Muslims? slowly over time, stopped to be from their deen and became something from their culture?

This is the key point here. Okay.

Does the ruling

is it related to the origin such that no matter what happens, we will go back to the origin? Or is the ruling related to how people perceive it such that if it's ritual, it will be ritual. And if it is custom, it will be custom. Remember, rule number one was rituals or haram to imitate? That's rule number one, right? Well, what if it used to be a ritual but it is now a custom and no longer ritual? Okay, here is where we have two camps. Here's where we had two schools of thought.

A well known position, and this is the one that basically makes the celebrations Haram is that it doesn't matter how people view it, we go back to the origin. And if the origin is pagan, then the ritual will be pagan, even if it is no longer practice has paganism.

And this is the basis of which many celebrations are considered to be haram. And you will read this and any fatwa that makes it haram they will go back to his origin, the look up some book, a lot of times it's not even true. Sometimes there might be true, it's not it's irrelevant, whether it's true or not. But the point is that the heading is based on its origin. And they say Ah, what is the origin of birthdays? What is the origin of Nowruz? What is the origin of New Years? What is the origin of this and that, and they will go and link it to something pagan, the famous photo, you've all heard of what is the origin of the ties, even though this is a myth, the origin of the ties is

not the crossbow, it's still the photo was given. And so it's still common in art your days to hear it, the ties used to be a Christian symbol, and therefore it is haram because the origin is

you know, a Christian symbol, so they will link it to the origin. However,

I respectfully disagree with that. And I say that it is very clear looking at the Sharia and that lived realities. And I'll explain it is very clear. And in my mind, personally, it is crystal clear. And this is the position of frankly, frankly, the majority of scholars of the world beyond one strand of Islam. There's one strand that is very hardcore on this, but the majority of scholars the world beyond that strand, they they don't view it this way. They say that what is considered to be a custom is a custom regardless of its origin being a ritual. You look

Nia in normal amount of money yet you look at the NEA and they actually bring the evidence of the hadith of one. Remember this the slaughter of the camel. They bring that back as an interesting point here. In one version when the man comes and says to the process, I want to slaughter Campbell in Rwanda. In one version, Ibn Marja. The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam says, do you find something of Jahangir still in your heart in Botswana? And the man says, No. So the Prophet said in that case, go to one.

Notice what he linked it to do you find some of the feelings of J Helia. Do you still have that veneration? Is that something why Bwana? What is there? Is that something you're linking to JD said no. In that case, then go. So ni matters not that Bwana might have been a pagan land 1000 years ago, the man did not feel any attachment, religiously to born. Do you have anything in your heart to Jehovah? No. Okay, then go to it. This hadith isn't it weird mantra. And from this? I would say the majority of scholars beyond that one strand that thinks they're following Ubuntu me but I don't think they're following had been Tamia that one strand they beyond that one strand, they basically

say, we don't look at the origin 15,000 years ago, 5000 years ago, 2000 years ago, we look at the lived reality. And based on that, therefore, they say, if the people don't view this as being a ritual, and they view it as being a custom, then we will view it as being a custom and not a ritual. And this is I would say the lived experiential reality of human beings. Let us look at the issue of birthdays. Who in the world celebrates a birthday? Thinking of some type of paganism? Nobody, even pagans who do pagan stuff, don't do birthdays with the Neo paganism. They go to the woods and do whatever they do. They don't do birthdays, rituals of paganism are gone. By the way, I don't even

know if it is true. Because to be brutally honest, a lot of times these photos they find hotchpotch type of things, and they bring them in academic studies need to be done that are a little bit more thorough. Is it really something that is 100% solely coming out of paganism, but even if it is, even if it is, it doesn't change, the fact that it is no longer done? So those scholars who say let's look at the origin, they will also say for example, you cannot buy Nike, Nike is haram. It's a well known fatwa. Why is Nike haram according to this group? Because the guy who you know made Nike where's the Nike guy who works here? Where's our Nike guy? He's not here.

We have three people from Nike university, my shoulder, do you not know that? They should get free free free Nike gifts Alhamdulillah as well. If you if you if you know them, well, they give you a free Nike shoe. Give them your shoe size, size. So they say Nike is haram Why is Nike haram because that swoosh is the symbol of

what is the symbol of

which one? You're the Nike guy? Yeah, see, here we have the Nike guy, okay?

No, don't worry, I'm not gonna say It's haram. Don't worry, you can raise your hand.

You should know the symbol of your own company.

It is the Greek god of victory. It is the Greek god of victory. Now,

to believe that somebody is going to buy Nike to venerate the Greek god of victory, and to put the God on his shoe to venerate it. I mean, you tell me Does this make sense to you?

But see, this is again, the problem of May Allah bless all of our OMA but I have to say, see these types of fatwas. Unfortunately, what they do, they disconnect the masters from their ulama This is the problem. They disconnect the masters from the Roma and the fatwa is baseless. It's not based in academic training of Islam. Somebody is going to put a symbol of a God on his shoe to respect the god. What type so that's their photo. They said, Allah said comes from there. But you see the same people that say wearing Nike is haram. The same groups of people, they will have no problems talking about the days of the week and the days of the month, which are all variations of gods. Sunday is

the sun god Monday, the moon god, Thursday, the god of Thor, the Nordic God, Wednesday is Walden Odin, the God of the Nordics Warden is Wednesday, every single day of the week, and I'm not this is the reality look it up

the month as well. Every month, June, July, August is veneration of somebody, veneration of a false god. And we are using this all the time. From their perspective, it should be haram to say Monday.

But who says that? Because they can't. And so again, because we have to look at the reality of how the cause

culture is done, not the origin. And again, I mean there are rituals in every single religion that have faded out and become culture without exception. And I'll give you example from our own cultures, the Mandy, right? The Mende that happens in the weddings. Okay. And for the non Desi folks here, there's a it is it is mandatory in our culture wajib

no farther and Hanafi furred, you cannot have and this is something that even the most practicing ultra conservative Deobandi Salafi Shaadi, whatever they will all do, it doesn't matter.

They will do the Mandy, what is the Mandy it is a celebration where henna is put in elaborate designs on the body of the and the hand and the face and the feet of the of the bride, okay. Now, it is well known that the origin of the Mende is Vedic Hindu practices. It is well known looked this up, that the origin is to venerate the sun by drawing symbols of the sun. That's why these intricate things are done in the color of the sun, the yellow and whatnot right and the tumeric and all of this is done there. It is coming straight out of Vedic practices in ancient Hinduism. But even Hindus these days don't even do it with that is gone. And Bangladeshis have it as well. Right. The

Mandy and Nepali is and Pakistanis and Indians. We all are doing it.

And we are Sikhs, Buddhists, Muslim Hindu is all gone now. The ritual has lost its ritual meaning and has become something that is cultural. So the verdict will be based on the culture and not on the origin. Man, these are halal.

What happens in that might be haram, that's something else. But demand itself is halal. Okay. See, that's the point. So we look at what is going on over here. So based on all of this, I mentioned four rules. We can summarize the issue of the Shabbat and then move on to celebrations. In reality, the Shabbat applies in two and only two scenarios. That's it. That the Shabbat that is haram, only two things. Number one, when there is something unique to a religion, and the only thing that's unique to religion is the rituals and festivals of a religious nature. Wearing a cross is a religion. Okay, having the skullcap is a religious thing, that type of skullcap. Okay, the Buddhist

yellowish thing. Okay.

menorah is a particular religion. So that's or going to the church or synagogue. This is a religious ritual, the Shabbat and that is clearly not something we do.

And number two, when a Muslim intentionally goes out of his culture and civilization, in order to feel a sense of pride in a non in a civilized history or culture other than his own, this has an inferiority complex that is haram because you should take it as in his own people. Simple as that. If he happens to be of those people, like the profits of some was out of like we are Americans, there is no to Shugborough when we dress like our own people,

we're not going out of our way to dress like someone but somebody else in order and also, as even Taymiyah said, even if a Muslim were to be visiting their lands, that he's not doing it to get Riza he's doing it to get bike through customs without be pulled aside, being dressed in a job in a turban or something. No problem there. Islam is not that strict. This is Ibn Taymiyyah writing the same guy who wrote two volumes on if that almost stopped him, but again, his followers don't really read him, they cut and paste from him. They don't read him as I criticize those groups of people that they only read Ibn Taymiyyah they don't think Ibn Taymiyyah they just you know, they don't

really understand they've been Tamia in any case. So now we get to after all of this the conclusions of the actual aids Okay, so with that very necessary prelude of the show before we get to the issue of celebrations eat and we'll mention for

four aspects number one, celebrating a celebration yourself celebrating a celebration yourself. There are four types of celebrations. The first, any celebration that is personal and private. That is something that is not communal, and something that is not religious. Any personal or private celebration that has nothing to do with the religion has nothing to do with Islam. Islam is not making it haram or halal or Makarova. The celebration is neutral. The Shediac did not

dictate personal celebrations. There's nothing in the Sharia that dictates anything about personal celebrations. There are Hadith about Allah substituting tour aids, as we're going to come to if anything, it is a communal, a personal celebration cannot be a bit because there's no religion involved and

the shady or did not dictate when you can be happy. And when you can throw a party and invite friends over, there's nothing in the Sharia for or against this, it is neutral. So if you graduate and you want to have a festival, go ahead. If you get a new house wine festival, go ahead. If you're bored, and you want to have a festival, go ahead.

If you think it is the day you were born, or whatever your birthday and you want to have a festival, go ahead, the Sharia is not telling you anything about this,

there is nothing in and of itself that forbids it. And therefore these personal celebrations, and in particular, the two most famous ones are birthdays and anniversaries. There is nothing in the Shediac to forbid them. Now, the group says it has been we say

with utmost respect, this is the weakest argument it cannot be better. Because when you celebrate the birthday of your five year old kid, do you expect Allah to reward you for that? Is it a part of the religion? No, you have not understood the meaning of beta with my utmost respect, even though you might be more knowledgeable than me and Emily, one feels it can't be bitter. This is just wrong. Number two, they're going to say Oh, this is the Chabot with the kuffaar.

So, we got rid of the issue is better the same number two is to show Bucha kofod. Well, we already we already explained in a lot of detail that there can be no to Chabot when it is something that is done by large groups of people transcending any civilization. And we said that even if the origin was pagan, if nobody is understanding paganism, and it is a generic ritual, there is no to Shabbat. So, the Shabbat cannot be there. There is no to Shabbat in eating hamburgers and french fries. There is no to Shabbat and liking cheesecake there is not the Shabbat and dressing like this and speaking English there is no treasure bow and celebrating birthdays cannot be the Sherpa we understood this

point with that then they say oh but the origin is pagan we already explained the origin is pagan means nothing because Tuesday's also pagan and we all know what Tuesday is okay? Then they say oh but birthdays and anniversaries have intermixing and shut up and hold on things. What do we say to this?

Drink water

don't make something haram because of something that is obviously haram in something else. Don't mix and match. Don't pick and choose like this way. Okay? Make it halal, keep it halal, then do that. Then they say oh, but there's a Seraph and waste of money.

To which we say who amongst us is safe from that? Why are you picking and choosing this one bottle and ignoring the Seraph in your wardrobe, the Seraph and going out to restaurants, the Ostroff and this and that. And then you want to prohibit the five year old birthday if I real child's birthday is like this stuff, be fair.

Birthdays are halaal because there's nothing to make them out. Because I clear. The default everything Helen, you have to prove It's haram, and anything they throw at you. And I've been saying this for more than a decade is nothing new that you're hearing from me, but because people are so sensitive in this regard, it cannot be to Chabot and it's ironic. You're speaking to me in English wearing pants and shirt living in America and you're talking about birthdays being fishable What do you mean again, think about this. It's not the Shugborough it's a generic thing that everybody is doing. It's nothing to do with any paganism on top of this on top of this. Certain types of these

celebrations can actually bring a positive goal that the Shetty eye wants love between families.

Anniversaries are of the most easiest ways to win your wife's heart back mashallah Tabata Cola, please don't forget your anniversaries. I say it is sunnah meaning meaning not Sunday. So now here meaning the goals of the Shetty are so not the process and obviously, it is of the goals of the Sharia to celebrate your anniversary quote me on that no problem. It is of the goals of the Sharia to celebrate your anniversary why not have the goals of the Sharia to bring love between a couple and Allah created women that way they love these dates us we don't even think about the days that's the problem right? Make sure you put the date in your calendar 10 times the put it right now like

whatever is your anniversary like there and then surprise go out have a nice party do something Halal obviously no Shut up. Just drink some some grape juice. No problem. Keep it hello

But celebrate, why not? What is wrong? How can the Shediac forbid, a celebration between a husband and wife that will increase their love think about, again those aroma that make it haram based on what? So we say all of this is completely, there is no basis to make it hot. I'll tell you, we talked about the four types of celebration, number one, personal celebrations, number two celebrations that are of a communal nature, but our non religious, Fourth of July, or national days and Muslim lands or whatnot. So a group of scholars say that it is how long again, as we, as we said, and they quote the Hadith, Allah has given you two days better than those two days.

I understand where they're coming from. And frankly, let me be frank here, when it comes to joint communal, civilizational holidays, they have a better point because the Hadith can be understood to apply to communal holidays. Their hadith of Allah has given you to it is better than those periods cannot be used for birthdays. Because it's not an Eid where people come together, it's your personal house, or your whatever you get. It's not a communal holiday, which is an eight. It's not the gathering of people is the gathering of your friends, a National Secular day, I can understand the argument nonetheless. And therefore some elements say haram, other Allama say mcru. And that makes

sense to me. And yet others say that in and of itself, as long as there's no religion involved, it cannot be better because there is no religion, right? And if it is done for any other goal or whatnot, it becomes MOBA or whatnot or even mcru. But the point is, to argue that it is haram is simply a big word. Where did you get haram from even the Hadith? Allah has substituted your two days for to better days does not indicate the headin substitution does not indicate to him if the process of had wanted to. He could have said very easily. Allah has forbidden any reads other than our tour EADS and that would have it that wording we could have forbidden any national secular holiday, that

wording but he didn't. He talked about two religious festivals of Jamelia. And he said those two religious festivals, get rid of them. And Allah has given you two better religious festivals. So religious festivals, we already agreed we're going to come to this as well. So bottom line, generic. And by the way, we're talking about you celebrating meaning you doing it if you are the president of the country, should you endorse a secular this we're talking about? We're going to come to number two which is attending. We don't do it the fourth of July. We are we are witnessing there's a difference between the two. We don't do Thanksgiving we're witnessing there's a difference. We're

talking about you instituting that. Maybe it's mcru. Maybe it's MOBA. Definitely not haram and definitely not watch it. Okay. We can eliminate those two mcru to MOBA is where I would say a secular holiday you instituting it? Okay. Number three, a holiday that is uniquely religious. Here. We have no problem saying this is where the Shetty I says, no.

We do not celebrate Diwali.

We do not celebrate a festival to another God.

And we do not celebrate Christmas. As Muslims. We do not Institute those celebrations. We don't bring the tree into our house and hang but we don't do that. It's not our religion to do that. That's what they do. We have ours. So clearly that's religious celebrations, which is haram. Number four is a celebration that is in between two and three. That's the problem. Okay, or one and three, little bit of this little bit of that, such as Thanksgiving, such as Halloween. It's not clear cut secular, Fourth of July.

And it's not clear cut. What I said Thanksgiving sorry, let me take the by Thanksgiving, I would say a secular sorry, let me take that back. Because Thanksgiving, there's no, there's no particular religion per se. That was a mistake, a slip of the tongue. I didn't mean to say Thanksgiving. Halloween is the example I have in mind. Because Halloween clearly has certain religious connotations.

And it was meant as a religious festival. And to this day, segments of mankind celebrate that day as a religious festival.

To this day, not only that, but the issue comes of intentionally wanting to dress like Sheldon and whatnot. And there it's not clear cut because you know, 99% of the people who celebrate Halloween have no religion in mind. But that 1% Is there and there is that connotation with shayateen and whatnot. And really because of this

I cannot say clear cut haram. And I cannot say clear cut MOBA. It's something that is. And here's another question. We gave the example of Halloween. But in some lines and I predict in America even in 50 years Halloween might become a secular festival.

When it does, there is no question that the ruling will be based upon how people perceive perceive it. And now and not how its origins were. But right now.

Right now Christmas is a

Christmas is a religious festival. Right now, by and large still in America, by the way, I mean, Europe is different. Some places of Europe is already becoming secular. Okay? Hmm. Oh, no, no, I meant Christmas. Sorry. Take that back. Christmas. I meant to Christmas.

Christmas is category three.

In 50 years, Christmas might become category two, is what I meant to say scrap that scrub that rewind. I was saying that. Right now Halloween is category four, Christmas is category three. Is that clear? Category three is pure religion, four is vague. Maybe in 50 years, Christmas might become another category.

That's what I'm saying. When it does, then the ruling will be based upon that. If a time comes when Christmas no longer has anything to do with the birth of Jesus Christ. Just like the men, they no longer celebrates the sun.

Our sisters did not even know until I said to them that this is celebrating the Sun God didn't even know it. And I know some of they're gonna feel guilty when they do it. But they don't need to feel guilty. nothing to feel guilty about is no big deal. So if Christmas were to leave all Christian connotations, and it seems like that's heading that way, then at that time, the verdict will be different for Christmas. And in the interim, there's going to be a great era that we are currently seeing. So this is the first thing you celebrating. The second thing, you attending the celebration, you're witnessing the celebration, this is much more easier, because you're not doing it, you are

seeing it and attending. So we're talking about now only religious because we already said personal private, nothing of the *tier going to birthday parties, nothing wrong with there's nothing to Shady has nothing to do with that. Unless the Haram is going on there then it's true at the Haram now with the birthday party. So we're talking about attending religious festivals. Now. There are a number of artha of the stabby rune and the self that discouraged attending festivals and they even interpreted a verse of the Quran, well, Edina, Elijah Luna zoo, they don't attend religious festivals. And there's no question that Muslims should not be going to holy sites and participating

in rituals of other faith traditions, there is no question about this, we do not go to the Ganges River have the disgusting, you know, things happen there, as we know, they burn bodies, and they leave them there, you know, is filled for us not just and

and that thing is very, not very clean, we do not go and dip ourselves thinking is going to be holy, do we? We don't do that. Okay, we don't go to a temple and give puja to the gods, I would have been there. So to go on their holy day, of course, it's not going to be something we do. So that's very clear. We do not go to the festival locations. However, how about going to family festivals that are meant to be reminiscent of the religious one, going to a church on Christmas to celebrate, you know, the festival, religiously. It's not the same as going to a family's house that is having a family event okay. Not the same thing. How about going to that family event? There is no question that

Muslims should not institute these festivals in their houses, we said this. And generally speaking, generally speaking, we should avoid these types of festivals, even on a private scale because they are primarily religious still. But a number of our scholars and this is am Joe, which has a very conservative body have also said that if a convert wants to attend the festival of their family on that day, the ruling is not the ruling of the Muslim born and raised here and he's making a Christmas in his house. Big difference between the two, a convert. That's the one day of the year their whole family comes together. Right? You're a second cousin and your third on twice removed and

your Matilda odd whatever they come as the one day of the year, they're all going to come from across the country, and they're going to sit together and you're the only Muslim what a great opportunity to be yourself and show them who you are. It is foolish to forbid a convert to go to their families festival, but with the condition that they don't participate in. And what in the actual ritual. And the photo is from Amgen many bodies that the Convert can go to their personnel now, how about Office festivals? Office festivals are not religious

Even if they occur around religious holidays, and everybody who works in an office knows this, only some onomah who have never worked in corporate America think otherwise brutally honest, I'm just being. Anybody who works in the real world knows that festivals at Christmas time in your office have nothing to do with Christmas, even if the icons are there, but Jews, Buddhists, Hindus, atheists, agnostics, it is a festival of the office it's not worshipping Jesus Christ.

So there's nothing wrong with you being in that environment and there are no rituals it's not even allowed in America for them to have rituals haunt the employees over there you can actually you know, take cause them into trouble so no problem being a part of a generic festival that happens to coincide with their one that is not religious is that clear? And Imam Ahmed very strict item generally speaking, great scholar said and this is in the book of Halal via the Mohana about witnessing Christian celebrations by going to the bazaar there's a Christian celebration going on. The bazaar is a festive place there's going to be you know things going on whatever you can imagine

jugglers whatever going and witnessing Imam Ahmed said, if they're in the bazaar and they don't go to the church, I don't see a problem with that.

This is your mama

fireworks on the Fourth of June not not even religion. Nothing wrong with that. Okay, we are walking in the bazaar in the Macy's Parade is going on on the 25th there they have the tree I say oh, just the tree and the light you're just looking at it. Nothing wrong with that, per se. You're just seeing it you're not being a part of the of the ritual. And in fact we can even say therefore there's nothing wrong with taking advantage of Christmas sales.

No problem. Lynch Islamically is no problem anymore. Muhammad was asked about this use you can buy it and Tamia was said you can buy on their holy days even payment was a big trick Street. He said don't sell to them on their holidays. Because he was in his mind. He was saying if you sell they're going to use it in their shirt, but in these days who does that anymore so anyway, that was his fifth one, disregard five so that's attending a festival number three, congratulating them on their festival I know where they traveled will be done in 10 minutes, but this is as you know, a very important lecture and it needs to be given. Number three, congratulating them on their celebrations.

There is nothing explicit from the Quran and Sunnah or any of the four Imams that allows or forbids congratulating them on their celebrations.

If no claim in his famous book kemalism He has a very harsh comment in which he says that and he's against this he says that to congratulate them for their celebrations is worse than congratulating them for drinking or congratulating them for committing murder.

Because he views it as shirk their celebration. So if you're congratulating them for their shipwreck then you are congratulating them for a sin that is worse then

drinking and murder Okay, now this will tell you in wrote

a few years ago, some adolescent simple to neophyte on YouTube, these these overzealous youngsters he's in his fiery voice he said ignore them says that celebrating No What is it saying Merry Christmas is worse than murder.

And that YouTube clip went viral across the internet. And like it's this is you know, even MLK minute Tamia, their own followers have done more damage to them than anything they themselves have ever done. Their own followers are just so into their own bubble and whatnot. They did not say that I'm not I am wrote a very precise and actually had to clarify and you know, explain that to defend him to him even if I politely disagree with him no claim but even no claim is very academic. He did not say saying Merry Christmas is worse than murder. He said congratulating them for their holy days is worse than congratulating them for Hamid and murder. There's a big difference between the two

alright? And this neophyte just literally anyway so you you know my anyway so where was I? So yes, so even though clay definitely says you should not congratulate them for their and you know, I understand it makes sense. Listen to the logic is very straightforward. They say that believing in another god is * because paganism is the worst of all sins. And what is a holy day other than venerating that other god whatever that God might be. Hence, they say to congratulate them on their festival is essentially congratulating them on their belief in another god and worshiping another God. So it is a logically constructed argument. It's not far left field and we respect that

argument. We say okay, you have made a valid point. Do realize that it is one opinion and there aren't many