It says in Kitaab at-Tawheed by al-Allaamah
Shaykh al-Islaam Muhammad ibn ‘Abdul-Wahaab [May Allaah have Mercy on him and
purify his soul]:
Title: What has Come about Seeking Rain
through the Constellation or the Stars
On the authority
of Zayd ibn Khaalid al-Juhanee [May Allaah be Pleased with him] who said: “The
Messenger of Allaah [Peace and Blessings of Allaah be upon him] led us in
praying Fajr at al-Hudaybiyah, following rainfall during the night. When he had
finished praying, he turned to the people and said, ‘Do you know what your Lord
has said?’ They said, ‘Allaah and His Messenger know best.’ He said, ‘This
morning one of My slaves became a believer in Me and one became a disbeliever.
As for the one who said, “We have been given rain by virtue of Allaah and His
mercy,” he is a believer in Me and a disbeliever in the stars. But as for the
one who said, “We have been given rain by such and such a star,” he is a
disbeliever in Me and a believer in the stars.’” So the one who attributes rain
to the stars is saying that the stars caused the rain.
[Narrated by al-Bukhaaree (801)
and Muslim (104)]
It says in Fath al-Majeed by Shaykh
‘Abdur-Rahmaan bin Hasan aal ash-Shaykh [May Allaah have Mercy on him] in
explanation:
If a person believers that the rain comes from a
certain star or constellation (and they have the ability to make it rain and
not Allaah), then this is disbelief or Shirk in the Lordship of Allaah. This
person is a Mushrik and a Kaafir. However, if one doesn’t believe that the rain
came from a star or a constellation (but believes that the rain comes from
Allaah but the star or the constellation is the cause), then this person is not
a disbeliever or a Mushrik but has fallen into minor Shirk (a very severe and
major sin). This is because this person attributes rain to the stars or the
constellation as being a cause but maintains that the One Who Controls the rain
is Allaah, therefore it rains from His Mercy and Bounty.
This Hadeeth is proof that it is not permissible
to attribute whatever is solely for Allaah to other than Allaah, even if one
is using it as a metaphor. It is not permissible to attribute cause to
other than Allaah for these act nor is it permissible to seek protection in
them (because this solely for Allaah Alone as well).
Once one realizes that attributing rain to other
than Allaah is false then one must also belie the one who predicts rain,
because rain may come or it may not as this person is merely making a
prediction. However it is Allaah Who is the Cause of bringing the rain at a
particular time. It comes with the Will of Allaah, by His Mercy, Wisdom and
Bounty. So whoever believes that there is a cause other than Allaah, then this
is false and corrupt.
As a result, even mere wording which may
dictate such a meaning is not permissible to use.
Those who say that it rained from the Mercy and
the Wisdom of Allaah and His Bounty, then this person is affirming (Tawheed via)
some of the Attributes of Allaah.
Ahl as-Sunnah affirm that Allaah has Names and
Attributes and whatever He Affirms for Himself or His Messenger, must be
affirmed and attributed to His Essence. For example, He is Alive, He is
all-Knowing, He does Actions and has Attributes. For Example, He has the name
ar-Rahmaan (the all-Merciful and Compassionate) and He Acts by being Merciful.
All of what can be affirmed for Him returns to His Essence and it is not
permissible to say that the Mercy of Allaah is separate to Him, for example.
This is how the groups of deviation deviated.
Also in this Hadeeth there is proof that the
Favours of Allaah must be attributed to Allaah Alone and not to any other than
Him. Therefore, He is the Only One that must be Praised (by saying
al-Humdulillah we are praising Him in giving thanks). This is the situation of those who have
at-Tawheed. Because of this, some of the scholars even forbade using mere
wording which could be interpreted that the speaker is attributing favours to
other than Allaah, this is in order to prevent all vices that lead to Kufr
(disbelief/ingratitude). Allaah, the Most High, says:
“They recognise
the Grace of Allah, yet they deny it (by worshipping others besides Allah) and
most of them are disbelievers (deny the Prophethood of Muhammad
).” [an-Nahl 16:83]
Imaam al-Qurtubee [May Allaah have Mercy on him]
explained the Hadeeth and he said:
The pre-Islaamic Arabs used to believe that if a
particular star rose from the east and a separate star had set in the west,
this would mean that the rain and wind was about to come. So some of them
attributed the rain and wind (being provided by the) the stars, whilst others
attributed rain and wind to the eastern and western directions. This is what is
being addressed in the Hadeeth. So the Sharee’ah has prohibited using such
wording so that it doesn’t settle in the beliefs of a person. End quote.
The fact that they used to attribute the rain or
the wind to directions or aspects of the creation, seems to suggest that they
didn’t actually believe that the creation had the power to make it rain, as
Allaah the Most High, says;
“If you were to
ask them: "Who sends down water (rain) from the sky, and gives life
therewith to the earth after its death?" They will surely reply:
"Allah." Say: "All the praises and thanks be to Allah!"
Nay! Most of them have no sense.” [al-Ankaboot 29:63]
So this Aayah is proof that they didn’t deny the
fact that Allaah Alone had the power to make it rain, however their false
beliefs in which they were rebuked for was that they believed that the creation
(such as stars and constellation) were the cause of the rain. This is what
al-Qurtubee explained above.
Ibn ‘Abbaas [May Allaah be Pleased with him] said
about the Aayaat:
“75. So I swear by Mawaqi (setting or the mansions, etc.) of the stars (they traverse).
82. And instead (of thanking Allah) for the provision He gives you, on the
contrary, you deny Him (by disbelief)!” [al-Waaqi’ah
56:75-82]
That some people believed that the rain came
because of such and such a star, and that it sets in the west. So these Aayaat
were revealed because it rained and some people were saying such things, so the
Prophet [Peace and Blessings of Allaah be upon him] said, “Some people have
become thankful and others ungrateful. Those who are grateful said, ‘It has
rained by the Mercy and Bounty of Allaah’ whilst those who were ungrateful
said, ‘such and such star has fallen in the west’.”
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