Wishing that Muslim dies as disbeliever out of hatred

6-3-2016 | IslamWeb

Question:

If a person wants others to disbelieve or die on disbelief out of envy, does it come under approval and being pleased with kufr (disbelief)? Does this cause apostasy? Does he have to re-enter Islam? Please answer in full detail and do not recommend other questions as I have already seen them.
Answer:

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah and that Muhammad sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) is His slave and Messenger.

It is impermissible to wish that a Muslim commits an act of disbelief. However, some scholars held that such wishing does not cause the apostasy of the wisher. Az-Zarkashi may Allaah have mercy upon him wrote:

"If a Muslim bears a grudge against a disbeliever and this disbeliever embraces Islam and accordingly the Muslim felt sad for his conversion and wished that he would revert back to disbelief out of hatred, that Muslim is not declared a disbeliever because his wish was not based on his approval of disbelief; rather, it was based on finding disbelief ugly and evil, and thus he wished that evil would afflict the person that he hates, and on finding belief beautiful and good, and thus he wished that good would not reach him. Wishing for disbelief is only considered disbelief if the person approves of it. Evidence of this is the supplication made by Prophet Moosa (Moses) may Allaah exalt his mention against Pharaoh and his people as mentioned in the verse: {...Our Lord, obliterate their wealth and harden their hearts so that they will not believe until they see the painful punishment.} [Quran 10:88] Moosa wished that they would not believe and even supplicated Allaah to that effect. Shaykh ʻIzz Ad-Deen was asked, 'If a Muslim's enemy was wrongfully murdered and he rejoiced at his killing, will he bear a sin for that?' He answered, 'If he rejoiced because the one who slained his enemy had disobeyed Allaah by killing him, then he bears a sin for it. But if he rejoiced because he has been relieved of his enemy's evil, then there is no harm in that. If he is not sure what the exact reason for his joy is, then he bears no sin because a person naturally rejoices at the calamities that befall his enemies because he would be relieved of their evils." [Al-Manthoor]

Al-Kharshi may Allaah have mercy upon him wrote, "When a Muslim supplicates against a fellow Muslim to die as a disbeliever, he is not declared a disbeliever himself according to the sounder of the two (scholarly) views in this regard because his intention is to strongly curse him, he does not desire disbelief itself." [Sharh Mukhtasar Khaleel, 8/65]

ʻUlaysh may Allaah have mercy upon him wrote:

"According to the author of Ath-Thakheerah (book), a Muslim is not declared a disbeliever for supplicating against himself or against someone else to die as a disbeliever. His student, Ibn Raashid, corrected this view by referring to it as the most likely sound view in this regard because he (the supplicant) intended the severe harm by abiding eternally in Hellfire and not approval of disbelief. The less likely sound view is that the supplicant is declared a disbeliever, according to the fatwa of Al-Karki, because he wished that he or another person disbelieves in Allaah. It has been stated in Ath-Thakheerah that among the examples of acts of disbelief taking the doer out of the fold of Islam is delaying the conversion of a disbeliever who came wishing to embrace Islam." [Sharh Al-Mukhtasar]

Al-Khaadimi may Allaah have mercy upon him wrote:

"As for supplicating against a person that he dies as a disbeliever, some scholars held that this is an absolute act of disbelief regardless of whether the supplicant approves of disbelief or not. Others held that it only counts as an act of disbelief if the supplicant wished it out of his approval of disbelief; however, if he only wished that the person he supplicated against dies as a disbeliever to receive severe punishment, then it is not considered an act of disbelief. If he wishes for an evil person, who wrongs and oppresses others, to die as a disbeliever so as to receive the punishment of Allaah, then it does not count as an act of disbelief. This is evidenced by the supplication of Prophet Moosa may Allaah exalt his mention in the verse: {...Our Lord, obliterate their wealth and harden their hearts so that they will not believe until they see the painful punishment.} [Quran 10:88] Hence, if a Muslim supplicates against an oppressor that he dies as a disbeliever or to be deprived of faith because that person boldly disobeyed his Lord, transgressed, and wronged others, then this does not count as an act of disbelief. It has been narrated on the authority of Abu Haneefah may Allaah have mercy upon him that the approval of disbelief is an act of disbelief with no exceptions or conditions, as reported on the authority of Al-Bazzaazi may Allaah have mercy upon him..." [Bareeqah Mahmoodiyyah]

Hence, it is deduced that the person wishing that a Muslim commits disbelief or dies as a disbeliever is not obliged to re-enter Islam and proclaim the shahaadah (two testimonies of faith) again. But there is no doubt that repeating the shahaadah often is a meritorious and rewardable act.

Allaah knows best.

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