Question: can you tell us more about the Shafa3a?
Imam Nasser:
I will speak of the shafa3a from the koran only and show you how much you have been mislead by all those hadith that are used to shake your faith in Allah and take partners with him.
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا مَن يَرْتَدَّ مِنكُمْ عَن دِينِهِ فَسَوْفَ يَأْتِي اللَّهُ بِقَوْمٍ يُحِبُّهُمْ وَيُحِبُّونَهُ أَذِلَّةٍ عَلَى الْمُؤْمِنِينَ أَعِزَّةٍ عَلَى الْكَافِرِينَ يُجَاهِدُونَ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ وَلَا يَخَافُونَ لَوْمَةَ لَائِمٍ ۚ ذَٰلِكَ فَضْلُ اللَّهِ يُؤْتِيهِ مَن يَشَاءُ ۚ وَاللَّهُ وَاسِعٌ عَلِيمٌ
O ye who believe! if any from among you turn back from his Faith, soon will Allah produce a people whom He will love as they will love Him,- lowly with the believers, mighty against the rejecters, fighting in the way of Allah, and never afraid of the reproaches of such as find fault. That is the grace of Allah, which He will bestow on whom He pleaseth. And Allah encompasseth all, and He knoweth all things.
-Al MaaEda
I warn you all. Do not exaggerate in your love to prophet Mohamed solalahu alayhi wassama and i warn my followers also, do not exaggerate in your love to me. For we are all servants of Allah and no one will forgive except him. Nothing will save you except a sound pure heart in line with the ayah:
إِلَّا مَنْ أَتَى اللَّهَ بِقَلْبٍ سَلِيمٍ
"But only he (will prosper) that brings to Allah a sound heart;
so do not exaggerate in your love to the prophets. For all prophets are innocent from those who ask them shafa3a, they will not give it to them.
وَقَالَ الَّذِينَ فِي النَّارِ لِخَزَنَةِ جَهَنَّمَ ادْعُوا رَبَّكُمْ يُخَفِّفْ عَنَّا يَوْمًا مِّنَ الْعَذَابِ
قَالُوا أَوَلَمْ تَكُ تَأْتِيكُمْ رُسُلُكُم بِالْبَيِّنَاتِ ۖ قَالُوا بَلَىٰ ۚ قَالُوا فَادْعُوا ۗ وَمَا دُعَاءُ الْكَافِرِينَ إِلَّا فِي ضَلَالٍ
Those in the Fire will say to the Keepers of Hell: "Pray to your Lord to lighten us the Penalty for a day (at least)!"
They will say: "Did there not come to you your apostles with Clear Signs?" They will say, "Yes". They will reply, "Then pray (as ye like)! But the prayer of those without Faith is nothing but (futile wandering) in (mazes of) error!"
-Ghaafir-
The Shafa3a in the koran is mentioned many times and it has mostly been linked to the fact that ONLY ALLAH WILL FORGIVE and NO ONE ELSE will ask Allah to forgive his servants. However, there are some ayah which state that Allah will only PERMIT shafa3a to some one with certain conditions. This will be discussed IN DETAILS to show you the REAL MEANING of SHAFA3A which has nothing to do with that special servant of Allah pleading Allah to forgive his people (this is again from misundestanding hadith and some weak hadith) I will speak from the KORAN only which has been preserved and to show you again that the sunna of prophet Mohamed salalahu alayhi wasalam MUST be in line with the KORAN since the sunna and hadith can be corrupted, added, subtracted and changed by the human devils who want to divide you and deviate you from the true path. So anything hadith or sunna which is not in line with Koran is not from prophet Mohamed salalahu alayhi wasalam.
The Shafa3a as you speak of sunni and shia is completely misunderstood. How did you think that the servant of Allah will ask him to forgive when Allah is most Merciful? Use your mind, do you really think that the special servant who will ask shafa3a will be MORE MERCIFUL THAN ALLAH?
Did you not know that AL RAHMA(MERCY) is one of the names describing Allah as he is the MOST MERCIFUL.
did you think that those in heaven will have mercy on those in hell more than Allah's Mercy?
وَنَادَىٰ أَصْحَابُ النَّارِ أَصْحَابَ الْجَنَّةِ أَنْ أَفِيضُوا عَلَيْنَا مِنَ الْمَاءِ أَوْ مِمَّا رَزَقَكُمُ اللَّهُ ۚ قَالُوا إِنَّ اللَّهَ حَرَّمَهُمَا عَلَى الْكَافِرِينَ
The Companions of the Fire will call to the Companions of the Garden: "Pour down to us water or anything that Allah doth provide for your sustenance." They will say: "Both these things hath Allah forbidden to those who rejected Him."
-Al Araaf-
so do you think there will be shafa3a and they will ask Allah to forgive those i Hell? What did Jesus/Isa (as) son of Mary say when Allah questioned him about his followers:
إِن تُعَذِّبْهُمْ فَإِنَّهُمْ عِبَادُكَ ۖ وَإِن تَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ فَإِنَّكَ أَنتَ الْعَزِيزُ الْحَكِيمُ
If Thou dost punish them, they are Thy servant: If Thou dost forgive them, Thou art the Exalted in power, the Wise."
-Al Maeda-
So Jesus/Isa (as) returned the shafa3a to the one who is more merciful than him and more merciful than prophet Mohamed salalahu alayhi wasalam and more merciful than the awaited mahdi.
Then we have prophet Nuh/Noah pleading God to forgive his son who did not get on the ark.
وَنَادَىٰ نُوحٌ رَّبَّهُ فَقَالَ رَبِّ إِنَّ ابْنِي مِنْ أَهْلِي وَإِنَّ وَعْدَكَ الْحَقُّ وَأَنتَ أَحْكَمُ الْحَاكِمِينَ
رب إني أعوذ بك أن أسألك ما ليس لي به علم و إلا تغفر لي
وترحمني أآن من الخاسرين
الَ يَا نُوحُ إِنَّهُ لَيْسَ مِنْ أَهْلِكَ ۖ إِنَّهُ عَمَلٌ غَيْرُ صَالِحٍ ۖ فَلَا تَسْأَلْنِ مَا لَيْسَ لَكَ بِهِ عِلْمٌ ۖ إِنِّي أَعِظُكَ أَن تَكُونَ مِنَ الْجَاهِلِينَ
قَالَ رَبِّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ أَنْ أَسْأَلَكَ مَا لَيْسَ لِي بِهِ عِلْمٌ ۖ وَإِلَّا تَغْفِرْ لِي وَتَرْحَمْنِي أَكُن مِّنَ الْخَاسِرِينَ
-And Noah called upon his Lord, and said: "O my Lord! surely my son is of my family! and Thy promise is true, and Thou art the justest of Judges!"
-He said: "O Noah! He is not of thy family: For his conduct is unrighteous. So ask not of Me that of which thou hast no knowledge! I give thee counsel, lest thou act like the ignorant!"
-Noah said: "O my Lord! I do seek refuge with Thee, lest I ask Thee for that of which I have no knowledge. And unless thou forgive me and have Mercy on me, I should indeed be lost!"
-HUD-
from the above Ayah we can see that Noah asked God to forgive his son? yet Noah did not know that his conduct is unrighteous and so God told him not to ask him this since God is ALL KNOWING of what his son did, then NOAH realized his mistake of asking God and pleaded God to forgive him for asking.
Not to mention that on the day we gather them no one will be able to speak to Allah not even the angles or prophets in line with the ayah:
يَوْمَ يَقُومُ الرُّوحُ وَالْمَلَائِكَةُ صَفًّا ۖ لَّا يَتَكَلَّمُونَ إِلَّا مَنْ أَذِنَ لَهُ الرَّحْمَـٰنُ وَقَالَ صَوَابًا
The Day that the Spirit and the angels will stand forth in ranks, none shall speak except any who is permitted by ((Allah)) Most Gracious, and He will say what is right.
-AL NABA-
so please tell me how wil anyone ask shafa3a when no one is even allowed to speak?
Everytime Shafa3a is mentioned in Koran it is always denied with a few exeptions: let us look at how Koran links shafa3a to ALLAH only:
فما تنفعهم شفاعة الشافعين
Then will no intercession(shafa3a) of (any) intercessors(shafee3) help them.
-Al Mudathir-
واتقوا يوما لا تجزي نفس عن نفس شيئا ولا يقبل منها شفاعة ولا يؤخذ منها عدل ولا هم ينصرون
Then guard yourselves against a day when one soul shall not avail another nor shall intercession(shafa3a) be accepted for her, nor shall compensation be taken from her, nor shall anyone be helped (from outside). -Al Baqara-
يا أيها الذين آمنوا أنفقوا مما رزقناكم من قبل أن يأتي يوم لا بيع فيه ولا خلة ولا شفاعة والكافرون هم الظالمون
O ye who believe! Spend out of (the bounties) We have provided for you, before the Day comes when no bargaining (Will avail), nor friendship nor intercession(shafa3a). Those who reject Faith they are the wrong-doers.
وأنذرهم يوم الآزفة إذ القلوب لدى الحناجر كاظمين ما للظالمين من حميم ولا شفيع يطاع
Warn them of the Day that is (ever) drawing near, when the hearts will (come) right up to the throats to choke (them); No intimate friend nor intercessor will the wrong-doers have, who could be listened to.
-Ghaafir-
and many other verses repeat this fact over and over again
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Now let us look at those versus that permit Shafa3a and understand the conditions and HOW it will happen
لا يملكون الشفاعة إلا من اتخذ عند الرحمن عهدا
None shall have the power of intercession, but such a one as has received permission (or promise) from ((Allah)) Most Gracious.
-Maryam-
يومئذ لا تنفع الشفاعة إلا من أذن له الرحمن ورضي له قولا
On that Day shall no intercession avail except for those for whom permission has been granted by ((Allah)) Most Gracious and whose word is acceptable to Him.
-Taha-
ولا تنفع الشفاعة عنده إلا لمن أذن له
No intercession can avail in His Presence, except for those for whom He has granted permission. So far (is this the case) that, when terror is removed from their hearts (at the Day of Judgment, then) will they say, 'what is it that your Lord commanded?' they will say, 'That which is true and just; and He is the Most High Most Great'."
-Saba-
يعلم ما بين أيديهم وما خلفهم ولا يشفعون إلا لمن ارتضى وهم من خشيته مشفقون
He knows what is before them, and what is behind them, and they offer no intercession except for those who are acceptable, and they stand in awe and reverence of His (Glory).
-Al Anbeyaa-
So the Shafa3a has CONDITIONS and they are as follows:
1.it must be from a servant of Allah who's soul is in peace (NAFS MOTMA-INA) and who has no fear in line with the ayah:
وَيَوْمَ يُنفَخُ فِي الصُّورِ فَفَزِعَ مَن فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَمَن فِي الْأَرْضِ إِلَّا مَن شَاءَ اللَّهُ ۚ وَكُلٌّ أَتَوْهُ دَاخِرِينَ
And the Day that they body will be inspired - then will be smitten with terror those who are in the heavens, and those who are on earth, except such as Allah will please (to exempt): and all shall come to His (Presence) as beings conscious of their lowliness.
-Al Naml-
2. It must come from a servant whose is not satisfied with all what Allah gave him from being a Khalifa on earth since his true happiness is in seeing that ALLAH IS PLEASED AND SATISFIED WITH ALL HIS SERVANTS ON EARTH.....this servants does not want to enter paradise when he sees that there are still others who did not please Allah , it is not about helping others but about seeing ALlah pleased with his creations. "how can he allow himself to enter paradise when Allah is still not pleased by many who deviated from him" his main concern is not just that Allah is pleased (RADWAN) about him but that ALLAH is PLEASED WITH ALL HIS SERVANTS....this person's pleasure = to see that Allah is pleased with all, so his pleasure (REDA/RADWAN) derives from the pleasure (REDA/RADWAN) of Allah...and this is how Shafa3a happens, for no servant is allowed to ask god shafa3a for his people since he is never more merciful than ALLAH.
For when Allah grants this servant heaven and keep increasing all sorts of pleasures to him we ask him: did we not appoint you as a Khalifa on earth in this world and the next? the servant answers: i forbade it on myself, till i reach the greatest pleasure that is greater than heaven (Janah) and that is RADWAN ALLAH (the pleasure of Allah/That Allah is pleased with all his servants)....or do you not belief people that:
وَعَدَ اللَّهُ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَالْمُؤْمِنَاتِ جَنَّاتٍ تَجْرِي مِن تَحْتِهَا الْأَنْهَارُ خَالِدِينَ فِيهَا وَمَسَاكِنَ طَيِّبَةً فِي جَنَّاتِ عَدْنٍ ۚ وَرِضْوَانٌ مِّنَ اللَّهِ أَكْبَرُ ۚ ذَٰلِكَ هُوَ الْفَوْزُ الْعَظِيمُ
Allah hath promised to Believers, men and women, gardens under which rivers flow, to dwell therein, and beautiful mansions in gardens of everlasting bliss. But the greatest bliss is the good pleasure of Allah. that is the supreme felicity.
-Tawba
-Imam Nasser Mohamed ElYemeni-
