explain this hadeeth sufi use to justufy dancing and singing

[al-gharib]

Imam Ahmad relates from Anas (Allah be well pleased with him), with a chain of transmission all of whose narrators are those of Bukhari except Hammad ibn Salama, who is one of the narrators of Muslim, that
the Ethiopians danced in front of the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace); dancing and saying [in their language], "Muhammad is a righteous servant." The Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) said, "What are they saying?" And they said, "‘Muhammad is a righteous servant’"

(Musnad al-Imam Ahmad. 6 vols. Cairo 1313/1895. Reprint. Beirut: Dar Sadir, n.d.., 3.152).

[Abuz Zubair]

Most of the ahadeeth do not mention dancing (raqs). What is mentioned is that they were playing with the spears which comes under military training, and since the nature of their movements resembled dancing, there came one narration mentioning that they were 'dancing', whereas in actual fact they were playing with spears.

This is what al-Nawawi says:

وحمله العلماء على التوثب بسلاحهم ولعبهم بحرابهم على قريب من هيئة الراقص لأن معظم الروايات إنما فيها لعبهم بحرابهم فيتأول هذه اللفظة على موافقة سائر الروايات

[Abuz Zubair]

And Ibn Hajar;

واستدل قوم من الصوفية بحديث الباب على جواز الرقص وسماع آلات الملاهي وطعن فيه الجمهور باختلاف المقصدين فإن لعب الحبشة بحرابهم كان للتمرين على الحرب فلا يحتج به للرقص في اللهو والله أعلم

[Abuz Zubair]

Ibn Hajar quotes al-Qurtubi in his Fath saying that dancing and singing of the Sufis are from the remnants of Zanadiqa:

قال وأما ما ابتدعه الصوفية في ذلك فمن قبيل ما لا يختلف في تحريمه لكن النفوس الشهوانية غلبت على كثير ممن ينسب إلى الخير حتى لقد ظهرت من كثير منهم فعلات المجانين والصبيان حتى رقصوا بحركات متطابقة وتقطيعات متلاحقة وانتهى التواقح بقوم منهم إلى أن جعلوها من باب القرب وصالح الأعمال وأن ذلك يثمر سني الأحوال وهذا على التحقيق من آثار الزندقة وقول أهل المخرفة والله المستعان أه

[abu hafs]

could u translate the exact words ....please :)

[Abuz Zubair]

There is a good book on this topic by Safi al-Din al-Hanafi, a Syrian Hanafi scholar of the 12th Islamic century, called: al-Raqs al-Dawran 'Ind al-Mutasawwifa... may be I will translate bits and pieces from it inshaaAllah.

[Abuz Zubair]

I am sure someone can translate it inshaaAllah... Unfortunately, I am a bit busy nowadays... :(

[AbuZakariyya]

This is a response from Yasir Qadhi:


Salaam Alaikum

This is a good question and gives us the oppurtunity to illustrate a number of points:

Firstly I agree with Br. Alex (nice to see you back on the forums akhi!) that this would not be an issue of theology per se, but it is an issue of ibaadah, and ibaadah, by the unanimous consensus of scholars, is tawqifi (which means that it is based upon texts, and cannot be invented at whim). Hence, if someone does wish to dance while doing dhikr and believes that this is an act that Allah will reward them for, they must bring proof for it. In other words, the burden of proof is on the one who legislates an act of worship, not the one who negates it.

Secondly, the hadith is authentic, hence it can indeed be used as proof. It is reported in the Musnad of Imam Ahmed and in the Sahih of Ibn Hibban, with the same isnad. Other ahadith in the Musnad mention that the Abbysinians were moving their bodies and 'dancing' at the advent of the Prophet salla Allahu alayhi wa salam to Madinah, but does not mention this phrase. In any case the fact that this narration adds this phrase is not in the least problematic; we put the various narrations together and get more details of the incident.

Note: the Arabic used is raqas - modern Arabic restricts this word to what we call in English 'dancing', but in classical Arabic it meant swaying the body and moving it; the only reason I'm making this point is that the English word 'dancing' has - for me at least - a very negative connotation, which would not be implied in the Arabic.

Thirdly, Br. Alex is again correct in that these Abyssinians are to be considered Companions, as they were Muslims, hence the silent approval of the Prophet salla Allahu alayhi wa salam is an evidence for the permissibility of their actions. Had what they were doing been prohibited, they would have been prohibited from doing so.

Fourthly, one must be careful in taking such an incident and extrapolating matters that are not related to it from it. This narration merely states that the Abyssinians were moving around and displaying their skills (as was their wont and custom) while saying 'Muhammad is a righteous servant'. So they were doing something from their customs, and praising the Prophet salla Allahu alayhi wa salam while doing it. From this, we can derive that it is permissible to praise Allah and to praise the Prophet salla Allahu alayhi wa salam in many different circumstances, including war 'dances' and other such maneuvers. So in a Muslim boy scout team, or an army in a Muslim nation, instead of saying 'Hut...two...three..four' etc, one can instead write out a ryhme with some religious praises in it. Or, when people are doing manual labor, like the Companions were when they were building the trench or the masjid, one can also say religious phrases.
The Abysinnians were not intending to do an act of worship per se, meaning that they did not invite one another to come to do dhikr, and then stand in a circle or dance with the sole intention of dhikr. That is very clear from the narration itself, and also from the question that was asked. Rather, they were doing what they were doing, and saying praises at the same time.
To extrapolate from this incident the legality of group dhikr, or dancing for the sake of the dhikr, is simply not correct. The incident does not allude to that.

Lastly, when in doubt, always return to the understanding of the earliest generations. 'Had their been any good in it, they would have preceded us in it'.
Did the Companions understand from this incident that they should convene a gathering of Muslims and jump up and down, saying 'Hu, Hu, Hu'? Or would any of the Successors stand in a circle, holding hands, and swaying side to side, chanting praises of the Prophet salla Allahu alayhi wa salam? Has it been narrated from any of the scholars of the first few generations of Islam - from the muhadithun like al-Bukhari and Muslim, to the qurra like Asim and Ibn Kathir and Nafi', to the fuqaha like Malik and Abu Hanifa, to the (true) ascetics like al-Hassan al-Basri and al-Muhasibi - that they would condone, much less participate, in such acts?

If not, then the question arises: why? Are we more knowledgeable than them? Or do we love Islam more than they did? These questions should always be in the minds of the Muslims, especially those who claim to be 'Sunni', and 'traditionalist', as this means that they consider the Companions to be the best generation ever created by Allah, and their 'tradition' to be the most correct.

Take the Companions and their students as your role models in understanding the Quran and Sunnah, and you will always be succesful.

Once again, jazak Allah for the question...

Yasir

[Bassam Zawadi]

http://www.ahlalhdeeth.com/vbe/showthread.php?t=1130