APPENDIX J
GLOSSARY
áādī Common occurrence; things according to laws of nature. abadi Everlasting, never ceasing. abdāl A group of pious and righteous Muslims; a rank among Awliyā’a, the Friends of Allāh.
adhāb Divine Punishment. afáāl Pl. of fiýl: action. afđal Superior. Ahl al-Bayt The Noble Household; the descendants of the Prophet ﷺ. Ahl al-Sunnah The saved sect. ahl e kitāb / kitabi The People of the Book; i.e. Jews and Christians. aĥwāl Pl. of ĥāl: state. ájb al-dhanab The indestructible particle/portion of the human body, from which Allāh táālā will recreate the entire body of the human in the Hereafter.
ajr Reward. See Endnote 29.
Álawī The descendants of Mawlā Álī رضي الله عنه. al-maqām al-maĥmūd The Praised Station. al-sawād al-aáżam The largest group – i.e. the Ahl al-Sunnah wa’l Jamāáh. al-şifāt al-dhātiyyah The Attributes of Allāh which do not have opposites. al-şifāt al-fiýliyyah The Attributes of Allāh related to Divine Action. al-şifāt al-salabiyyah The Attributes of Negation. al-şifāt al-thubūtiyyah The Attributes of Affirmation.
áqīdah Creed, belief, articles of faith. áqlī Rational. aqwāl Pl. of qawl: saying, speech. ársh The Divine Throne. ásharah al-mubash’sharah The ten Companions who are given the good news of attaining Paradise. ashrāţ al-sā’áh The portents of the Hour; signs that indicate Judgement Day draws near. áţāyī Bestowed; given. áwām Laity; common people; non-scholars. awliyā’a The Friends of Allāh.
azalī Pre-eternal, without beginning. baáth Resurrection, life after death. bāligh Pubert or adult Muslim. başar Vision. bāţil False, invalid. baýah al-riđwān The Pledge of (Divine) Pleasure. bi’l ittifāq By common agreement. bidáh Innovation; usually used to mean deplorable innovation or heresy. bi't tadrīj Slowly, little by little. dajjāl Lit. ‘liar’.
This refers to mini-dajjāl, false claimants of prophethood; or the masīĥ al-dajjāl, the one-eyed antichrist – who will appear close to Judgement
Day; he will claim to be god – but will eventually be killed by Ýīsā عليه السلام.
dalālah or dilālah ةلالد Evidence, that which proves. đalālah ةلالض Misguidance, heresy. đarūrī Necessary aspect. Deobandi A Wahābī influenced heretical sect in India; claims adherence to the Ĥanafī madh’hab and the Māturīdī school, though they take Mútazilī positions and follow the Wahābīs in almost all of their positions that depart from Ahl al-
Sunnah.
dhanb Sin. dhanab Tail (as in: the tail of an animal). dhāt Essence. dhāti Belonging to the Essence. dhikr Remembrance of Allāh, litanies. dukhān The Smoke. durūd Blessings upon the Prophet ﷺ. farđ áyn Individual obligation; obligatory for every individual, such as five daily prayers. farđ kifāyah Collective obligation; if a few people in the community discharge this, everyone is absolved of the due.
Such as funeral prayer.
fasiq mujāhir One who openly announces his sins. fāsiq múlin Open sinner; openly disobedient. One who does not hide his sins. fatāwā Pl. of fatwā: Religious edict. fawāĥish Pl. of fāĥishah: indecency, profanity. firqah al-nājiyyah The Saved Sect; i.e. Ahl al-Sunnah wa’l Jamāáh.
ghayr mubram Irrevocable Decree. ghayr muqallid A person who rejects following a madh’hab and deludes himself that it is possible to know rulings directly from the Qur’ān and ĥadīth.
ghilmān Cherubs in Paradise. ĥaqīqah Reality. ĥarām مارح Forbidden, impermissible. ĥaram مرح The Sanctuary (of Makkah or Madīnah). harmayn The Two Sanctuaries (Makkah and Madīnah). hāshimi A person belonging to the Hāshimi clan; descendants of RasūlAllāh ﷺ through
Sayyidah Fāţimah, and descendants of Mawlā Álī, Áqīl, Jaáfar, Ábbās رضي الله عنهم.
hashr The Grand Assembly on Judgement Day when every human being and jinn who has ever lived will be resurrected and gathered to stand before the Creator.
ĥaşūr Celibate. One who stays away from women out of piety. ĥisāb Reckoning, Accounting, on the Day of Judgement. houri The damsels in Paradise. ĥādith Accident. Something that did not exist, but came into existence at some point in time. This is opposite of qadīm, that which has always existed and existed without a beginning.
ĥudhūth To come into existence. ĥuffāż Pl. of Ĥāfiż. In common usage, those who memorise the Qur’ān; among ĥadīth scholars, one who has the knowledge of 200,000 ĥadīth.
ĥukm al-áqlī The rational proposition. ĥukm qaţýī Absolute ruling. ifk Calumny, slander. ihanah Humiliation. ijmāá Unanimous agreement of Muslims on an issue. ikhlāş Sincerity. illiyyin The highest level in Paradise. imām Leader, savant. iqāmah Lit. to establish. In Islamic worship, this is the announcement made prior to the obligatory prayer (which is similar to the adhān, the call for prayer).
irādah Will; when said about Allāh táālā, it refers to His Divine Will irhāş Supernatural occurrences, miracles of/for Prophets before their proclamation of prophethood.
íşmah Divine Immunity granted to Prophets such that they are protected from committing sins.
istiáānah Help, aid. These are miraculous things that happen to common Muslims. istidrāj Supernatural occurrence at the hands of corrupt people, sinners or kafirs.
These lead the person and his/her followers further into darkness. False saints and fraud ‘holy men’ or ‘holy women’ who claim to have supernatural powers may be given this once in a while, by which they are deceived.
istikhfāf To consider something light; to denigrate. istimdād To seek help; such as seeking help from Prophets and saints in distress. iýjāz That which renders one powerless; such as the Qur’ān. It is impossible for someone to bring a verse like that of the Qur’ān.
iymān Faith. jahannam Hell. jahl Ignorance. jam’ al-jam Super collection. jamāáh Group. jannah Paradise. jāyiz Permissible. jizyah It is a tax levied on non-Muslims in a Muslim state, under a Muslim sovereign.
Muslims in the state are obliged to pay Zakāt, which every Muslim has to pay on eligible property, livestock and wealth. This is fixed and the rulings are explained in fiqh works. However, jizyah is not imposed on every disbeliever, and usually lesser than the amount paid by Muslims as zakāt comparatively, and this is for the services of the state they utilise.
kabīrah Enormity, major sin. kalām Lit. speech.
In the context of doctrine, it may refer to Divine Speech; because, the earliest deviation from orthodox Islām was on this issue, the science of Islamic doctrine and theology is also known as ílm al-kalām, the science of Kalām.
kalimah Lit. word. The formula – or the sentence – that proclaims oneness of Allāh and belief in Allāh’s Messenger is known as kalimatu’t tawĥīd.
karāmah Miracles of saints. This is different from prophetic miracles known as mújizah. khalīl Close friend. This is the title of Sayyidunā Ibrāhīm Khalīlullāh عليه السلام. khasf To be buried in the earth after it is opened up. khaţa Mistake, error. khaţa ijtihādī Error of judgement. khaţa ínādī Deliberately committing an action that one knows is a sin or error.
khaţa munkar An error that is rejected, repudiated; not accepted because it is proved to be an error and retaining it causes strife.
khaţa muqarrar An error that is accepted as being within admissible limits of difference – and there is no conclusive evidence for its being an error, such as differences among jurists. If there are two opposite opinions, both with proofs, it is possible that either of them could be right – consequently, one of them could be wrong.
However, due to this being inconclusive, both opinions are deemed valid, and thus, even the error (in the eyes of the other party) is retained.
khātimah The end. In the context of Islamic faith, the end of one’s worldly life. We believe that all good deeds are accepted only if one’s end is upon faith and this is the most important aspect of one’s Islām. We must beseech Allāh day and night to bless us with khātimah – the end – or death, upon faith.
khawāriq Disruption of natural laws. Something that defies natural laws. Khulafā al-Rashidūn; The rightly guided Caliphs. These are the first five caliphs: Imāms: Abū Bakr, Khalīfah al-Rāshid Úmar, Úthmān and Álī – and the six months of Imām Ĥasan , the 30 years foretold by RasūlAllāh ﷺ as the period of Rule of the Guided Ones.
kufr Disbelief; rejection of faith. kursī Lit. the chair; in the Qur’ān it is mentioned as a thing next to the Throne. liwa'a al-hamd The Standard of Praise. madh’hab Lit. way. In Islamic terminology, a school – such as the four madh’habs: the four schools of fiqh/jurisprudence: Ĥanafī, Mālikī, Shāfiýī and Ĥanbalī.
mádūm Non-existent. maghfūr One who is forgiven. makrūh Disliked, offensive. manqūl That which is reported. mansūkh Abrogated. marĥūm One who has received mercy. márifah Knowledge, gnosis. máşūm Divinely Protected. maúūnah Divine aid to a common Muslim by way of a supernatural occurrence. mawhūm Imagined; from wahm: imagination, fantasy. mawjūd Existent. mīzān The Scales. mubram Irrevocable. muĥāl Impossible. muĥāl áādī Impossible according to natural laws.
muĥāl sharaýī Impossible as conveyed by the sharīáh. muĥkam In the context of Qur’ānic verses: Plain and easily understood verses. mújizah Prophetic miracle. mujtahid A highly knowledgeable scholar who can derive rulings directly from the
Qur’ān and the Sunnah.
mumkin Contingent, possible. munāfiq Hypocrite. muş-ĥaf A copy of the Qur’ān. musnad A ĥadīth that has a chain of narration – a ĥadīth with a sanad. mustaĥīl Impossible; another way of saying muĥāl. mutashābih Lit. ambiguous; in the context of Qur’ān: Abstruse verses. nafs Oneself; one’s soul or self. najāsah Impurity. nakirayn The two angels that descend in the grave for interrogation: Munkar, Nakīr. nashr Lit. to open up, to spread out.
In the context of Islamic doctrine, refers to resurrection. The graves are opened and the dead are brought back to life and then they spread out towards the Great Assembly, where they will be judged.
nāsikh In the context of Qur’ān: The abrogating verses. naskh Abrogation. naşş Lit. text; scripture. naşş qaţýī Absolute scriptural evidence: Qur’ān or Ĥadīth mutawātir (multiple reports) nubuwwah Prophethood. qabā’iĥ Pl. of qabīĥ: ugly, indecent, unbecoming. qađā Divine Decree. qađā mubram haqiqi Actually Irrevocable Decree qadhaf Accuse a chaste woman or man of adultery.
It is a major sin. qadīm Pre-eternal. qiyāmah Judgement Day. qubĥ áqlī Rationally Ugly. qudrah Power; when mentioned as an attribute of Allāh, Divine Power. qurb Nearness. Rāfiđī A heretical sect of Islām, whose core belief is that excepting a handful, all the
Companions of the Prophet became apostates – including the first three khalifahs; they are fanatical in their love of the fourth khalīfah Mawlā Álī and his progeny – and even harbour outright polytheistic beliefs about them.
risālah Message. In the context of prophethood, it refers to the Divine Message.
However, it can also refer to an epistle or monograph in the context of books.
rukhşah Concessionary ruling. şaghā’ir Small or minor sins. salawāt Pl. of şalāt: Blessings upon the Prophet ﷺ. samāá Lit. To hear; refers to music in general; the samāá permitted by Şūfīs is only vocal and sans musical instruments.
Sayyidu’t Ţā’ifah The Leader of the Group. Title of Imām Junayd al-Baghdādī. shafāáh al-kubrā The Greatest Intercession. shām The Levant. Today, this is the area covering Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine (including Occupied Palestine, which is referred to as Israel by colonialists).
sharaýī According to the sharīáh, i.e. Islamic law. shaykhayn Lit. The Two Sages. When this is said about the companions, it refers to Abū
Bakr and Úmar; when said in the context of Ĥanafī Imāms, it refers to Abū Ĥanīfah and Abū Yūsuf; when said in the context of ĥadīth imāms, it refers to
Bukhārī and Muslim.
shirk Polytheism, idolatory. Any belief (word or action) that associates something or someone with Allāh or assigns partners or rivals or equals. Al-íyādhu billāh.
şifāt Pl. of şifah/şifat. Attribute. siĥr Magic, sorcery. sijjīn The lowest point in Hell; it is also said that it is a well in Hell; it is also said that it is a rock in the lowest depths of Hell. It is also said that it is derived from ‘sijn,’ meaning constricted place, a prison – thus, it is a very narrow cell.
silsilah Chain. sujūd al-taĥiyyah Prostration of respect or greeting. Bowing down to respect someone. sunnah mu’akkadah An action that is proven from the tradition [sunnah] of the Prophet ﷺ. In the Ĥanafī school, an action which was recommended by the Prophet ﷺ and was never omitted by him is known as sunnah mu’akkadah.
tablīgh To deliver the message. tađlīl To rule someone as a deviant. tafaqquh Sound understanding of Islamic law – rulings and jurisprudence. tafdili A deviant sect which believes that Mawlā Álī is superior to all other companions, including the Shaykhayn. However, unlike the Rāfiđīs, they do not insult or slander the Companions.
tafsīq To rule someone as reprobate, corrupt or sinful.
takdhīb To belie. takfīr To consider or rule someone a kāfir; excommunicate. taqdīr Destiny. taqiyyah The Shīáh concept of hiding one’s true belief for expediency; the sharīáh permits one to do so in duress, when one is threatened with death or injury if they do not utter or commit kufr.
taqlīd To follow someone. In common parlance, this refers to following qualified opinion of imāms in fiqh; i.e., one of the four madh’habs: Imām Abū Ĥanīfah,
Imām Shāfiýī, Imām Mālik and Imām Aĥmad ibn Ĥanbal.
tarāwīĥ A special prayer in the month of Ramađān, 20 cycles (rakáh) in 10 units; i.e.
taslīm after every two rakáh. This is sunnah mu’akkadah in the Ĥanafī school.
ţarīqah Lit. ‘way’. This is the şūfī path – and named after the şūfī master whose teachings one follows; such as Qādirī, Chishti, Suhrawardi and Naqshbandi.
There are numerous sub-ţarīqah or schools named after later şūfī masters.
tark al-awlā Choosing something less than better; when faced with two choices, and one chooses the lesser of the two, it is deemed tark al-awlā: omitting the better.
taş’ghīr To micrify; to diminish, to denigrate. taşawwuf The branch of Islamic knowledge – or the discipline – which deals with spiritual improvement and purification of the human soul.
For example, identifying spiritual diseases such as hatred, jealousy, gluttony, envy, love of the mundane world, greed of wealth and fame, love of glory and the numerous outwardly sins that cause hardness of the heart, callousness and in general, pushes one far from the path of Paradise.
Also, doing good deeds and adopting praiseworthy traits such as: patience, thankfulness, contentment, abstemiousness, humility, kindness towards fellow humans, worship and remembrance of the Lord Almighty.
taşdīq To attest and affirm; to believe that something being attested is the truth. tawĥīd To believe in oneness of God. To believe that there is only one God. tawhīn To insult, disparage; to denigrate. thawāb Reward. uđ’ĥiyyah Sacrifice. In the context of sharaýī rulings, it refers to the obligatory sacrifice [on those who are eligible] in the four days – 10th to 13th – of Dhu’l Ĥijjah.
ulūhiyyah Godhood. The Attribute of being God. ulu'l ázm The prominent Messengers of Allāh. uşūl e áqāýid The principles of faith; or fundamental precepts of faith. waád Divine Promise of reward in the Hereafter. waĥy Revelation. wajāhah Prominence.
wājib Necessary, mandatory. In the context of juridical rulings, in the Ĥanafī madh’hab, this is an action that is necessary, and if omitted, must be expiated, such as the three rakáh of witr in the night. See below for other context.
wājib al-wujūd In the context of áqīdah, or faith: necessary existence. Only Allāh táālā is wājibu’l wujūd. Everything else is contingent or impossible to exist.
wajīh Prominent. One given a special place or rank. waliy Friend of Allāh; one who loves Allāh and who is loved by Allah. While every
Muslim can be termed as a waliy, as in the Qur’ānic verse 2:257, in common usage, this title is given to righteous, immensely pious and worshipping individuals.
waýīd Divine Promise of retribution and punishment. wilāyah A state of nearness to Allāh. wujūb al-aşlaĥ The Mútazilī doctrine that it is mandatory for Allāh to do only that which is good for us (i.e. His slaves and creation).
yad-e-bayza A prophetic-miracle given to Sayyidunā Mūsā عليه السلام, when he would place his hand close to his bosom and take it out and the hand would shine brilliantly like the sun. See Qur’ān 27:12 and 28:32.
zaqqūm A kind of tree in Hell, whose roots are in the depths of Hell and this will be the food of the inhabitants of Hell. This is mentioned in the Qur’ān in Sūrah al- Şāffāt 37:62, Sūrah al-Dukhān 44:43 and Sūrah al-Waqiáh 56:52.