Correcting others

[DanyalSAC]

Asalaamu alaikum -

Yesterday I posted about seeing a couple brothers at the masjid who pray with their hands folded over their left breast instead of on their chest or stomach. I asked a bro at the masjid last night before isha if he's ever seen that. He said "yes, it's a bid'ah". Then he said "Why didn't you correct the brother?"

Good question.

How does one correct someone who has such a visible error? Yesterday during the bro's halaqa I saw another bro come into the masjid and at the takbirat ihram instead of raising his hands to chest or ear level as per the sunnah he grabbed his head like it was a basketball.

Should I pull these brothers aside and be the 'salaat police' and show them the correct way? Should I ignore them? What is expected in these cases? There are so many mistakes in our masjid that our past shaykh, the one who left for Jordan last October (sad face) use to have lectures every Friday night on the correct way of salaat as per the sunnah. Unfortunately those brothers with the worst bad habits were the ones who wouldn't attend.

JazakAllah khair for your help

Ma salaama
d

 

[Libinette]

Wa'aleika salaam,

You're raising a very important question & it's very good/wise that you are asking this question before you do something. Knowledge or asking precedes actions and doing things.

How to advise someone? I'm myself struggling with this issue as much as you are if not more and I reckon there are different ways of going about it:

1) You approach that individual with the best of manners and ask along the lines of:
'Excuse me brother, I have seen you doing such and such action. Would you know whether there is any evidence for this'?

In this way, firstly perhaps that person has a daleel upon which they are acting and you're unaware of it. And secondly, it doesnt look like you're trying to overcome them but rather, it shows humility. If the person doesn't have a daleel, then you can tell them what you know regarding that action they're doing wrong.. once again in a nice way. If they mention a daleel but it's a weak version or fabricated, tell them there's a more authentic narrations.

2) If it's something that a lot of poeple are doing, then perhaps you can ask the Imam or someone to dedicate a class or a khutbah on that specific issue.

3) Lastly, if the action that is being performed incorrectly like prayer for example, then why not pray in front of these people, not for showing-off purposes- but to demonstrate the proper way to do it.

That's all I could think of- but hopefully more people will contribute to the thread inshAllaah.

All the best!

 

[IHearIslam]

Assalaamu alaikum.......

This is a perfect question!! I was wondering it too and would LOVE to know answers to it.

Also what if someone is Shai and you know it......is it obliged for you to correct them?? How do you go about doing that? what is the best approach?

 

[alf2]

I dont see whats wrong with correcting someone as long as you do it in a nice and tactful way. To correct your brother and sister in Islam shows you care about their iman. Its a very beautiful thing.

 

[DanyalSAC]

I dont see whats wrong with correcting someone as long as you do it in a nice and tactful way. To correct your brother and sister in Islam shows you care about their iman. Its a very beautiful thing.

Thank you sister - I'm not actually saying its wrong to correct someone, I'm asking what would be the best way to do so.

 

[DanyalSAC]

That's not a bid`a! There are many hadeeths that tell of different positions on the chest, all of them valid. There is even a hadeeth that says to put the right hand over the left arm. Narrated by Sahl ibn Sa`d and reported by Al-Bukhaari, Ibn Hanbal and Maalik and judged Marfoo` (raised to the Prophet, PBUH).

The only definite Sunna here is to place the right hand over the left one, not the other way around.

So in this case you're saying there's no error, as long as they're folded "on the chest" its ok? Picture the way the Americans pledge allegiance to the flag (right hand on left breast). Now picture the left hand underneath the right. I've never seen this one before, but if there's hadith supporting it I will disregard it.

This one is a bid`a. The authentic Sunna is to raise the hands, separated, and parallel to the shoulders. How high, it's not certain. But Ash-Shaaf`i combined all narrations and ruled that the palms should be cupping the ears, with the thumb behind the earlobe.

Its my understanding is that there are NO hadith that says to touch the earlobe.

 

[sister herb]

:salam2:

Correcting others is not easy. Some people come to pray with others and are unsure how to pray. Some need help, some others feel others think they are stupid if they can´t make everything correct.

You need a lot of life experience to know how to help someone who need kind of help just from you and he just might feel embarrassment and maybe never come again to masjid.

Better talk with imam.

 

[msmoorad]

Asalaamu alaikum -

Yesterday I posted about seeing a couple brothers at the masjid who pray with their hands folded over their left breast instead of on their chest or stomach. I asked a bro at the masjid last night before isha if he's ever seen that. He said "yes, it's a bid'ah". Then he said "Why didn't you correct the brother?"

Good question.

How does one correct someone who has such a visible error? Yesterday during the bro's halaqa I saw another bro come into the masjid and at the takbirat ihram instead of raising his hands to chest or ear level as per the sunnah he grabbed his head like it was a basketball.

Should I pull these brothers aside and be the 'salaat police' and show them the correct way? Should I ignore them? What is expected in these cases? There are so many mistakes in our masjid that our past shaykh, the one who left for Jordan last October (sad face) use to have lectures every Friday night on the correct way of salaat as per the sunnah. Unfortunately those brothers with the worst bad habits were the ones who wouldn't attend.

JazakAllah khair for your help

Ma salaama
d

salaams to all

bro, this is what i do when i see anyone doing something wrong:
i speak to the imam-whos quite young but very learned.
he discusses the issue later on during Jumuah or during any other talk. we have reading of hadith and discuss fiqh after Esha most days & sometimes he brings up the issue there. he does it in a very diplomatic way(unlike me) and still gets his message across.

i would suggest you do the same- speak to the imam & tell him these are the things you have observed and if its possible, please discuss the issue during a talk so that people will learn.
sometimes there is a communication problem as the ones guilty speak urdu or bengali or arabic and the imam does not speak that language- this is common amongst the older people- they are also more "stubborn" and still cling to their old ways despite being educated as to what is correct.

its very good to have concern for others but be careful you dont feel proud that youre better than them etc and dont approach them directly- some might get defensive and say that you know nothing as u have only accepted islam recently etc.

ans make lots of duaah for them

and Allah ta'ala knows best
jazakallah

 

[sister herb]

:salam2:

When I went to masjid to pray with sisters first time I was very unsure can I make it right way and hoped I won´t be on the first row but hoped be back that nobody see my mistakes.

:shymuslima1:

When we started I found me at first row and realised I just know how to do it and if I make some move wrongly Allah forgives me as I tried my best.

So if you see someone make something wrong, be as mercifull. They may try they best.

 

[thariq2005]

There are many hadeeths that tell of different positions on the chest, all of them valid.

Could you kindly give me some reference to the above please, baarakAllaahu feek

 

[thariq2005]

Assalaamu `alaykum

What is authentic from the sunnah of the Messenger of Allaah :saw2: is that the person raises his hand till his shoulders or till his ears and this is the madh-hab of the Sahaabah.

Ibn `Umar radiyAllaahu `anhumaa narrated: "The Prophet :saw2: used to raise his hands (parallel) to his shoulders when he started the prayer, when he uttered the Takbeer to bow and when he raised his head from the Rukoo`"[Agreed upon, i.e narrated by both Bukhaari and Muslim]

Imaam Muslim narrated on the authority of Maalik al-Huwayrith radiyAllaahu `anhu, who narrated a similar hadeeth to Ibn `Umar's, but Maalik narrated: ".... He (the Prophet :saw2 raised his hands (parallel) to his ears"

 

[DanyalSAC]

Our masjid has no permanent imam/shaykh. He left for Hajj last year and didn't return to us, he went home to Jordan afterwards instead.