Significations and Inference

’Umm ‘Atiyyah al-Ansāriyyah (may Allah be pleased with her) reports that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) prohibited women from walking with funeral processions. This was due to concerns about potential temptation for them and through them and their limited patience. However, she (may Allah be pleased with her) also mentioned that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) did not emphasize this prohibition as strongly as he did with other forbidden matters.

1. Women are prohibited from following funeral processions—this is a general ruling that applies to following the deceased to where the body is prepared and prayed over, and the cemetery where burial occurs.
2. The reason for the prohibition is that women often cannot endure such sorrowful scenes and emotionally intense situations, as they might exhibit distress and anxiety contrary to the required patience.
3. The default ruling of prohibition is that it signifies strict forbiddance. However, ’Umm ‘Atiyyah (may Allah be pleased with her) understood from contextual evidence that the Prophet's prohibition against women following funeral processions was not absolute or emphatic. Nonetheless, there are other Hadīths that indicate stronger restrictions on attending funerals than what this particular Hadīth suggests.

صحيح البخاري (2/ 78) (1278). صحيح مسلم (2/ 646) (938). تيسير العلام شرح عمدة الأحكام، لعبد الله البسام (ص285). تنبيه الأفهام شرح عمدة الأحكام، لابن عثيمين (2/ 366).

The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) mentioned that the Shariah rulings fall into three categories: what is left unaddressed, prohibitions, and commands. As for the first: It is what the Shariah has left unaddressed, as there is no ruling, and things, in principle, are not obligatory. During the Prophet's lifetime, it was a must not to ask about something that had not occurred for fear that it might become obligatory or forbidden through revelation, as Allah has left it unaddressed out of mercy towards His slaves. After the Prophet's death, on the other hand, if the question is posed by way of seeking legal opinion or learning about what one needs of the religion, then it is not only permissible but also commanded. However, if the question is posed by way of obstinacy and affectation, then this kind of question should be avoided, and this is what the Hadīth refers to, as it could lead to what happened to the Children of Israel when they were commanded to slaughter a cow. It was sufficient for them to obey the command by slaughtering any cow; however, when they acted obstinately, things were made hard for them. Second: The prohibitions: It is whatever one is rewarded for abandoning and is punished for doing. So, all prohibitions must be avoided. Third: The commands: It is whatever one is rewarded for doing and punished for abandoning. The commands must be carried out to the best of one's ability.

1. People should be occupied with what is important and necessary, leaving what is not immediately needed, and they should not be preoccupied with asking about what has not occurred.
2. It is prohibited to ask questions that may lead to the complexity of issues and open the door to suspicious matters that lead to wide divergence.
3. Commanding that all prohibitions be avoided because avoiding them entails no hardship, and this is why the prohibition here is general.
4. Commanding that orders be carried out according to the ability, as it could entail hardship or one could be unable to do it. Hence, the command here depends on the ability.
5. Forbidding the act of asking too many questions. Scholars divided questions into two categories: First: Questions that are meant for learning what one needs of the religion, and this kind of question is required, and an example of this is the Companions' questions. Second: Questions that are asked by way of obstinacy and affectation, and this is the kind of forbidden question.
6. Warning this Ummah of disobeying their Prophet as what occurred in the previous nations.
7. Asking frequently about what is not necessary and disagreeing with the prophets lead to destruction, especially when the questions are about what is unattainable, like matters of the unseen, which none knows except Allah, and the events taking place on the Day of Judgment.
8. Forbidding the act of asking about extremely difficult matters. Al-Awzā‘i said: When Allah chooses to deprive His slave of the blessing of knowledge, He makes him speak fallacies, for I noted that those were the least among people in terms of knowledge. Ibn Wahb said: I heard Mālik say: Arguing about knowledge turns off the light of knowledge in one's heart.

صحيح البخاري (9/ 94) (7288). صحيح مسلم (2/ 975) (1337). بهجة الناظرين شرح رياض الصالحين، لسليم الهلالي (1/ 236). نزهة المتقين شرح رياض الصالحين، لمجموعة من الباحثين (1/ 181). شرح رياض الصالحين، لابن عثيمين (2/ 268).

The Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) informed us that if he forbade us from something, we must avoid it without exception, and if he ordered us to do something, we have to do it as much as we can. He then warned us against being like some of the previous nations, who asked their prophets excessive questions and disagreed with them, so Allah punished them with different types of destruction and ruin. We should therefore avoid being like them, so we will not be destroyed in the ways that they were.

1. It enjoins compliance with the commands and prohibitions.
2. We are not permitted to do anything of the prohibitions. With regard to the commands, however, we are required to comply according to our abilities. This is because the abandonment of something falls within one’s capacity, whereas taking a certain action requires ability.
3. It is prohibited to ask a lot of questions. The scholars divided questions into two types, one of which aims at learning things needed in the religion. This type is required, and it applies to questions the Companions used to ask. The other type is such questions that are posed by way of obstinacy and affectation, which is prohibited.
4. It warns the Ummah of disobeying the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him), as happened in the past nations.
5. When something is prohibited, this applies to any part of it, great or small, for avoiding it requires avoidance of the action altogether. For example, we are prohibited from usury, and this applies to any amount of it, big or small.
6. We are required to shun the means conducive to something prohibited, for this falls under the meaning of avoidance.
7. Man has certain capacity and ability, as indicated by his words: “As much as you can.” This refutes the claim by the Jabriyyah (Determinism) doctrine that man has no ability because he is forced to do whatever he does; even when a person moves his hand during his speech, this, according to them, is out of his control and he is compelled to do so. This view is undoubtedly wrong, and it results in great evils.
8. When a person hears a command from the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him), he should not ask whether it is obligatory or recommended; for he said: “Do it as much as you can.”
9. Whatever the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) commanded or prohibited is part of the Shariah, whether it exists in the Qur’an or not. We should observe the Sunnah if introduced something not in the Qur’an, be it a command or a prohibition.
10. One of the means to ruin is posing a lot of questions, especially about things that cannot be realized, like matters related to the unseen, the names and attributes of Allah, and the events on the Day of Judgment. Do not ask a lot about such matters, lest you ruin your life and become an obstinate and unnecessarily inquisitive person.
11. The past nations were ruined due to their frequent questioning and disobeying their prophets.

-التحفة الربانية في شرح الأربعين حديثًا النووية، مطبعة دار نشر الثقافة، الإسكندرية، الطبعة: الأولى، 1380 هـ. -شرح الأربعين النووية، للشيخ ابن عثيمين، دار الثريا للنشر. -فتح القوي المتين في شرح الأربعين وتتمة الخمسين، دار ابن القيم، الدمام المملكة العربية السعودية، الطبعة: الأولى، 1424هـ/2003م. -الفوائد المستنبطة من الأربعين النووية، للشيخ عبد الرحمن البراك، دار التوحيد للنشر، الرياض. -شرح الأربعين النووية، للشيخ صالح آل الشيخ، دار الحجاز، الطبعة: الثانية، 1433هـ. -الأربعون النووية وتتمتها رواية ودراية، للشيخ خالد الدبيخي، ط. مدار الوطن. -الجامع في شروح الأربعين النووية، للشيخ محمد يسري، ط. دار اليسر. -صحيح البخاري، نشر: دار طوق النجاة (مصورة عن السلطانية بإضافة ترقيم ترقيم محمد فؤاد عبد الباقي)، الطبعة: الأولى، 1422هـ. -صحيح مسلم، تحقيق: محمد فؤاد عبد الباقي، نشر: دار إحياء التراث العربي – بيروت.