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The
meaning of the Prophetic statement: ((All of them will be
in the Fire, except one))
Question:
What is the meaning of the following hadeeth:
((My
ummah will be divided into seventy three sects. All of them
will be in the Fire except one?)), [Saheeh
Muslim, no.976]
Who
is that sect ? And will the seventy two sects live forever
in the Fire, as the mushrik
will or not? And does the term "ummah"
of the Prophet (sal-Allaahu
`alayhe wa sallam) apply to thos who follow him
as well as those who do not, or is it to the former only?
Response:
What is meant by the term "ummah"
in this hadeeth
is the ummah of response (ummatul-ijaabah - those who responded
to the call to Islaam after having been invited), which shall
be divided into seventy three sects; seventy two of which
are deviant, who practice innovated religious practices that
do not constitute apostacy. Each shall be punished in accordance
to the innovations and deviation (it practiced), except for
those who Allaah pardons and forgives. Their final abode will
be Jannah.
The only sect that will be safe is Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jamaa'ah,
who adhere to the Sunnah
of the Prophet (sal-Allaahu
`alayhe wa sallam) and hold fast to what he and
his companions (radhi-yallaahu
'anhum) were holding to. It is they about whom the Prophet
(sal-Allaahu
`alayhe wa sallam) said:
((A
group of my ummah shall remain steadfast, on the truth, victorious,
unharmed by those who oppose them, and do not support them,
until the death or until the Day of Resurrection)),
[Saheeh
al-Bukhaaree, nos.71 and 3641, and Saheeh
Muslim,
no.1920]
As
for those whose innovation casts them out of Islaam, they
belong to the ummah
of invitation (ummatud-da'wah - those to whom the Prophet
(sal-Allaahu
`alayhe wa sallam) was sent to invite to Islaam),
not the ummatul-ijaabah. They shall remain in the Hell Fire
forever, and this is the most valid opinion.
It
is also said that the term "ummah"
in this hadeeth
means ummatud-da'wah, which is a general term indicating all
those to whom the Prophet (sal-Allaahu
`alayhe wa sallam) was sent (i.e. mankind) those who believe
and those who do not believe. Whereas the term "the saved
sect" is the ummatul-ijaabah, which strictly applies
to those who believe in the Prophet (sal-Allaahu
`alayhe wa sallam), truthfully and
die in such a state (of belief). This is the sect that whill
be saved from the Fire; either by prior punishment or without
prior punishment, and their final abode will be Jannah,
(inshaa.-Allaah).
As
for the seventy two sects (in the second opinion) they are
all, excluding the saved sect, disbelievers who will live
forever in the Fire. Hence, it is clear that the ummatud-da'wah
is more general in connotation than the ummatul-ijaabah. That
is to say, whoever belongs to the ummatul-ijaabah belongs
to the ummatud-da'wah, while not everyone of the ummatud-da'wah
belongs to the ummatul-ijaabah.
And
with Allaah lies all success and may Allaah send prayers and
salutations upon our Prophet (sal-Allaahu
`alayhe wa sallam) and his family and his companions.
The
Permanent Committee for Islaamic Research and Fataawa
Fataawa Islaamiyyah - Volume 1, Page 16
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