Argument #2 | The Abysinnian King Another example of imaginative evidence is wrongly attributing to the Abyssinian king that he was a Muslim implementing kufr.
First of all to refer to the actions of man is another indication that we are refraining from the only example we must follow i.e. the messenger Muhammad (SAW) and not the Abyssinian King. However for argument’s sake let us consider the claim. It is well known that the Abyssinian king was not a Muslim as far as the Muslims at the time were concerned.
However it has been narrated that when the messenger Muhammad (SAW) declared Salat ul-Janazah for the king the Muslims were informed that he died a Muslim. Hence no one is able to claim that the king embraced Islam during his life or when Allah (SWT) ordered us to rule by Islam or before his death. In addition Islam was completed upon the death of the messenger Muhammad (SAW) and not upon the death of the Abysinnian king. In any case how can anyone imagine a king who hides his belief as a divine example to follow?
The scholars of Hadith classify the sayings, actions and consent of the Sahabi as Hadith Mawoqouf i.e. not Hadith which we are obliged to follow or to take as evidence. How about someone who wasn’t a Sahabi? As for the consent of the messenger Muhammad (SAW) for the actions and sayings of a Muslim they are always derived from Al-Hadith Al- Marfou’ Al-Taqriri which are attributed to the messenger by a Sahabi whereas the king was not known as a Muslim let alone a Sahabi. And the consent of the messenger only applies to actions and sayings which took place in front of him and which he is able to address otherwise one could consider the consent of the messenger for some of the actions of Abu Lahab as divine evidence!!
The king was not a Sahabi or a Muslim for the Prophet (SAW) (our only divine example to follow). Finally if the Abysinnian king was a Muslim why did he keep a relationship between his kingdom and the enemies of Islam i.e. the Quraishi regime and why did the messenger not go to him to seek support to implement Islam instead of seeking the support of e.g. Al- Khazraj, Al-Aws, Banu Sa’ssa’ah, Banu Hanifah etc. I wonder What the relationship is between the actions of Abysinnian king and the prohibited actions of those going to vote for man-made law or sharing power with kufr regimes!! #staymuslimdontvote
