❓ Question
🏛️ hanefiCould you explain the pillars of faith?
📗 Ruling
My dear brother, may our Lord illuminate our hearts with the light of faith and keep us steadfast on the straight path. We can summarize the pillars of faith, which are the foundation of the Islamic religion, in light of the Maturidi understanding—the theological line of the Hanafi school—and our classical jurisprudential sources as follows: Faith, linguistically, means to confirm, to trust, and to submit. In terminology, it is the confirmation with the heart and the declaration with the tongue of the revelations brought by our Prophet (pbuh) from Allah, which are known with certainty. The Six Pillars of Faith: As stated in the Holy Quran (Al-Baqarah, 285; An-Nisa, 136) and the famous Hadith known as the Hadith of Gabriel, there are six pillars of faith: 1. Belief in Allah: To believe in the existence, oneness, and uniqueness of Allah, and that He is endowed with all attributes of perfection. 2. Belief in Angels: To believe in the luminous beings created by Allah from light, who do not commit sins and only worship Him. 3. Belief in Books: To believe in the books revealed by Allah to His prophets. The Holy Quran is the last and uncorrupted of these books. 4. Belief in Prophets: To believe in the messengers chosen by Allah to guide humanity. The first is Prophet Adam, and the last is Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). 5. Belief in the Day of Judgment: To believe that the Hour will come, that people will be resurrected to account for their deeds, and that Paradise and Hell are true. 6. Belief in Qadar (Destiny) and Decree: To believe that everything, good or evil, occurs by Allah’s knowledge, will, and creation. Classical Sources and the Hanafi View: Imam Abu Hanifa’s work 'al-Fiqh al-Akbar' is our primary reference. In Hanafi jurisprudence, the nature of faith is addressed as follows: The Pillars of Faith: According to Hanafi scholars, the essence of faith is 'confirmation by the heart.' Declaration by the tongue is a condition for one to be treated as a Muslim. As stated in al-Marghinani’s 'al-Hidayah' and Ibn Abidin’s 'Radd al-Muhtar' (commentary on Durr al-Mukhtar), for a person who has no excuse like muteness, verbal declaration is a condition for the application of worldly rulings. The Relationship Between Deeds and Faith: According to the Hanafi school, deeds are not a part (pillar) of faith. Therefore, a Muslim does not leave the fold of Islam even if they are deficient in their worship; they are considered a sinful believer. This is one of the fundamental points of divergence from the Shafi'i and Maliki schools. According to them, deeds are part of the perfection of faith, and faith can increase or decrease. For Hanafis, the essence of faith (confirmation) does not increase or decrease, though there may be differences in terms of certainty and strength. Brief Mention of Jurisprudential Differences: All Sunni schools (Hanafi, Shafi'i, Maliki, Hanbali) are in agreement regarding the six pillars of faith. The primary disagreement lies in the definition of faith and whether deeds are included in it. As stated by Imam al-Nawawi in his work 'al-Majmu', the Shafi'is consider deeds to be a part of faith; therefore, according to them, 'faith increases with worship and decreases with sin.' Hanafis, viewing faith as an unshakable confirmation, argue that it does not change in its essence. With peace and prayer.