Originally Posted by Tee
Give up will ya whats your grievance were you experiencing some racism or something.
Take a break ......deep breath..................... relax.
Re: Read "A White Complexion According to the Arabs of the Past"
Give up will ya whats your grievance were you experiencing some racism or something.
Take a break ......deep breath..................... relax.
Re: Read "A White Complexion According to the Arabs of the Past"
To the mods: I think the poster of this thread has made his point clear and others who replied with counter arguement also made their point. Dont you think time for this thread to be locked. I m quite sure nothing good is going to come out of future discussions. Might even have a lot of negative effects rather. Please let this thread be locked.
Role of Imam Nawawi in Shafi'i Madhab: http://www.sunniforum.com/forum/show...Usool-and-Fiqh
Re: Read "A White Complexion According to the Arabs of the Past"
Says enough, really. These are their beliefs, on their website, stated openly. You can find columns by Louis Farrakhan endorsing "Master Fard Muhammad" written as recently as February 2011. This is plain, clear, open, and obvious.
Re: Can MODS allow me to make one last comment?
السلام عليكم
please go ahead and make you last comment here. I will thereafter move it to the mentioned thread.
شكرا جزيلا
Has anyone spoken to them and debated them and shown them the incorrectness of what they say? Did anyone show them how Islam is against what they say and they said: no we don't believe what Islam says, but believe what we say here? Or are they just ignorant of what Islam says they can say and can't say? In the quote from them that you posted about resurrection:
"5. WE BELIEVE in the the resurrection of the dead--not in physical resurrection--but in mental resurrection. We believe that the so-called Negroes are most in need of mental resurrection; therefore they will be resurrected first."
Are they saying here that they don't believe in physical resurrection or are they saying that they are not talking about physical resurrection in point 5 but are talking about a mental resurrection in this life? Is it a play on words, so to speak?
These are all questions that need to be answered.
Concerning their saying that interracial mixing should be prohibited, should I call them kuffar because I disagree with them? It sounds like that's their personal opinion. I disagree with them and I also disagree with people who call themselves mainstream Muslims and who are from and still live in Middle Eastern countries - I disagree with them when they say that dark-skinned Arabs in Arab countries shouldn't marry red-skinned (white in today's terms) Arabs. They say that it's better for society and is better for the kids of the couple. The forums in Arabic are full of people discussing this topic and full of people saying that dark-skinned Arabs should not marry red-skinned Arabs and in fact, it's rare to find it happening. Should I call them kuffar because they feel this way?
And what you say that they believe here:
"12. WE BELIEVE that Allah (God) appeared in the Person of Master W. Fard Muhammad, July, 1930; the long-awaited "Messiah" of the Christians and the "Mahdi" of the Muslims.
We believe further and lastly that Allah is God and besides HIM there is no god and He will bring about a universal government of peace wherein we all can live in peace together."
Is not consistent with what I hear Farrakhan say here about the Mahdi (watch from 4:15 until the end and excuse the short part with music):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38I55mZuSOY
بارك الله فيك أخي الفاضل
The Meaning of Abyad (White) To the Arabs
Reliable scholars of the past have made it very clear to us that when the Arabs of the past described someone as white (abyad), they did not mean what people mean today when they describe someone as white (abyad). One way that the Arabs of the past used the word abyad (white) was to describe not a person’s complexion, but to describe his/her honor or dignity. Abyad (white) meant to the Arabs of the past that a person had a clean reputation and unblemished dignity and honor.
Tha'alab, the Arabic language scholar of the 9th century AD said:
"The Arabs don't say that a man is abyad (white) because of a abyad (white) complexion. Abyad (White) to the Arabs means that a person is pure, without any faults.”
العرب لا تقول : رجل أبيض من بياض اللون إنما الأبيض عندهم الطاهر النقي من العيوب
Al-Azhari, the well-known Arabic language scholar who was born in 895 A.D., said:
“When the Arabs described a person as abyad (white), it meant that the person had a clean reputation and unblemished honor.”
إذا قالت العرب فلان أبيض، وفلانة بيضاء، فالمعنى نقاء العرض من الدنس والعيوب
“…They don’t mean an abyad (white) complexion, but they mean to praise the person for his/her noble nature, clean reputation, and unblemished honor. And when they said he/she had an abyad (white) face, they meant that he/she had a clean complexion without blotches and ugly dark spots.”
لا يريدون به بياض اللون، ولكنهم يريدون المدح بالكرم، ونقاء العرض من العيوب. وإذا قالوا: فلان أبيض الوجه، وفلانة بيضاء الوجه، أرادوا نقاء اللون من الكلف والسواد الشائن
Who are these two great scholars of the Arabic language that just told us what the Arabs of the past meant by abyad (white)? They are Aba Al-Abbas Tha’lab and Al-Azhari , two great sources of the Arabic language whom Ibn Mandhour himself quotes so often in his book Lisan Al-Arab.
Al-Hafidh Al-Dhahabi says the following about Tha’lab in his book Siyar A’laam Al-Nubalaa:
“The learned one
(العلامة), the muhaddith, the Imam of grammar… ”
Al-Khateeb said :
“He (Tha’lab) is reliable, proof, religious, righteous, and known for his ability to memorize.“
Al-Mubarrad said:
“Tha’lab is the most knowledgeable of the people of Kufa.“
Abu Bakr ibn Mujaahid said:
“Tha’lab said to me:
‘The people of the Quran busied themselves with the Quran and they won. The people of Hadith busied themselves with Hadiths and they won. The people of Fiqh busied themselves with Fiqh and they won. I have busied myself with Zaid and ‘Amru (meaning the Arabic language and literature). If only I knew how my situation is going to be.’
“After I left from where we were together, later that night I saw the Prophet (SAWS) in a dream and he (SAWS) said to me: Give Aba Al-Abbas (Tha’lab) my salaam and tell him that he is the possessor of MUSTATEEL KNOWLEDGE (meaning the source of all the other knowledge – the Arabic language).”
Who is this Abu Bakr ibn Mujaahid? He is the one who chose the seven different readings of the Quran that are used until today.
What about Al-Azhari, the other great scholar of the Arabic language? Al-Hafidh Al-Dhahabi says the following about him in his book Siyar A’laam Al-Nubalaa:
“The learned one (العلامة)… he (Al-Azhari) was a leader in the Arabic language and fiqh. He was reliable, firm, religious…”
As you can see, these two Arabic language expert scholars of the past who were used as sources by other Arabic language experts of the past said that when the Arabs of the past described a person as abyad (white), they DID NOT mean an abyad (white) complexion.
Let’s now see what Imam Al-Hafidh Al-Dhahabi said that abyad (white) means. Al-Imam Al-Hafidh Al-Dhahabi says in his book Siyar A’laaam Al-Nubalaa :
“When the Arabs say that a person is white-skinned, they mean that he/she has a wheat (hinti) complexion with a black appearance (hilya).”
"إن العرب إذا قالت: فلان أبيض ، فإنهم يريدون الحنطي اللون بحلية سوداء"
Let’s take a close look at what a hinti complexion with a black hilya means. The people in the pictures below are simply hinti complexioned:
http://www.rewardsforjustice.net/images/quso1.jpe http://www.alriyadh.com/2010/04/13/img/513193034297.jpg
Re: The Meaning of Abyad (White) To the Arabs
Ibn Mandhour says in Lisan Al-Arab that the hilya of a person is what is apparent in his/her color or appearance. Ibn Mandhour describes hilya (حلية) as:
والحلية هي ما يرى من لون الشخص وظاهرهِ وهيئتهِ
"A hilya is what is apparent in a person's color and his/her appearance and form."
Therefore a person with a black hilya has a black appearance and people described as abyad (white) by the Arabs of the past had a black hilya, so they had a black appearance.
Hilya is also described by Ibn Mandhour in Lisaan Al-Arab as:
قال ابن منظور في لسان العرب
"والحِلْيَةُ الخِلْقة. والحِلْيَةُ: الصفة والصُّورة. والتَّحْلِيةُ: الوَصْف. وتَحَلاَّه: عَرَفَ صِفَته. والحلْية: تَحْلِيَتُك وجهَ الرجلِ إذا وصَفْته."
"Hilya is the outward appearance, the description, the image. "Tahallaahu" means he knew his description. "Tahliyatuka" the face of a man is said if you described him."
Remember that the people in the picture above are simply hinti complexioned and remember that abyad means hinti complexioned with a black hilya, so abyad is darker than hinti complexioned.
Who is this learned one who has informed us of what the Arabs of the past meant when they described someone as abyad complexioned? He is Imam Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn `Uthman ibn Qaymaz ibn `Abd Allah, Shams al-Din Abu `Abd Allah al-Turkmani al-Diyarbakri al-Fariqi al-Dimashqi al-Dhahabi al-Shafi`i, known as Al-Dhahabi (1274–1348), a Shafi'i Muhaddith and historian of Islam.
Al-Dhahabi was born in Damascus in 1274 CE/673 AH, where his family had lived from the time of his grandfather `Uthman. He sometimes identified himself as Ibn al-Dhahabi (son of the goldsmith) in reference to his father's profession. He began his study of hadith at age eighteen, travelling from Damascus to Baalbek, Homs, Hama, Aleppo, Nabulus, Cairo, Alexandria, Jerusalem, Hijaz, and elsewhere, after which he returned to Damascus, where he taught and authored many works and achieved wide renown as a perspicuous critic and expert examiner of the hadith, encyclopedic historian and biographer, and foremost authority in the canonical readings of the Qur'an. He lost his sight two years before he died, leaving three children: his eldest daughter Amat al-`Aziz and his two sons `Abd Allah and Abu Hurayra `Abd al-Rahman. The latter taught the hadith masters Ibn Nasir al-Din al-Dimashqi[3] and Ibn Hajar, to whom he transmitted several works authored or narrated by his father.
Before giving a detailed description of different complexions, Imam Al-Minhaaji Al-Asyouti says in his book Jawaahir Al-‘Uqoud:
“If a witness is called to testify in court and his testimony depends on a person’s physical appearance, he shouldn’t give his testimony hastily. Instead he must first be sure of the correctness of his testimony and then mention it…”
“There are different aspects of appearance. First there is age…”
Imam Al-Minhaaji Al-Asyouti then proceeds to mention different words used to describe different ages. He then says:
“Then there are complexions:
If a person if very black-skinned, his complexion is called haalik.
If a person’s blackness is mixed with red, his complexion is called daghmaan.
If a person’s complexion is lighter than that, his complexion is called as-hamm.
If a person’s blackness is mixed with yellow, his complexion is called as-hamm (with saad).
If there is darkness (kudra) in his complexion, his complexion is called arbad.
If a person’s complexion is lighter than that, his complexion is called abyad (white).
If a person’s complexion has less yellow and inclines more towards black, his complexion is called adam.
If a person is lighter than arbad and darker than adam, his complexion is called shadeed al-udma.
If a person’s complexion is light adam, his complexion is called shadeed al-sumra.
If a person’s complexion is lighter than that, his complexion is called asmar.
If a person’s complexion is even lighter than that, his complexion is called raqeeq al-sumra.
If a person’s complexion is light and inclines toward white and red, his complexion is called light sumra mixed with redness or raqeeq al-sumra with redness.
If a person’s complexion is very light, his complexion is called light sumra – it is not called white because white is leprosy.
If a person’s complexion is pure white, his complexion is called ansah.
If there is a lot of fairness in a person’s whiteness, his complexion is called ashqar.
If a person is even lighter than that, his complexion is called ashkal.
If there is with this additional redness, his complexion is called ashqar.
If this complexion includes freckles, his complexion is called anmash.
If a person’s complexion is light and inclines toward yellowness without illness, his complexion is called as-hab.”
قال الشيخ العلامة محمد بن أحمد بن علي بن عبد الخالق، شمس الدين السيوطي في كتابه جواهر العقود ومعين القضاة والموقعين والشهود:
"في ذكر الالوان
إذا كان الرجل شديد السواد
قيل: حالك.
فإن خالط سواده حمرة
قيل: دغمان.
فإن صفا لونه
قيل: أسحم.
فإن خالط السواد صفرا
قيل: أصحم.
فإن كدر لونه
قيل: أربد.
فإن صفا عن ذلك
قيل : أبيض.
فإن رقت الصفرة، ومال إلى السواد
قيل: آدمي اللون.
فإن كان دون الاربد وفوق الادمة
قيل: شديد الادمة، فإن رق من الادمة
قيل: شديد السمرة.
فإن صفا عن ذلك
قيل: أسمر اللون.
فإن صفا عن ذلك
قيل: رقيق السمرة.
فإن صفا ومال إلى البياض والحمرةقيل: صافي السمرة تعلوه حمرة.
ويقال: رقيق السمرة بحمرة.
فإن صفا لونه جدا
قيل: صافي السمرة، ولا يقال: أبيض
لان البياض هو البرص.
فإن خلص بياضه
قيل: أنصح.
وإن كان في بياضه شقرة
قيل: أشقر.
فإن زاد على ذلك
قيل: أشكل.
فإن كان مع ذلك حمرة زائدة
قيل: أشقر.
فإن كان مع ذلك نمش، قيل: أنمش.
فإن صفا لونه ومال إلى الصفرة من غير علة
قيل: أسحب اللون".
Al-Shaikh Mohamed ibn Ahmed ibn Ali ibn Abdel Khaliq Shams Al-Din Al-Minhaaji Al-Asyouti describes abyad (white) as a complexion near arbad and arbad is a blackish complexion. Ibn Mandhour says in Lisan Al-Arab :
“Abu Ubaida says that arbad is a complexion between black and ghubra (dust-colored)”.
قال أَبو عبيدة: الرُّبْدَةُ لَون بين السواد والغبرة،
Black means black. This man, for example, is black:
http://www.hebrewisraelites.org/images/blksudanman.jpg
And ghubra means dust-colored. This horse, for example, is considered dust-colored:
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_9jr7tboJTa...1600/Sammy.jpg
Re: The Meaning of Abyad (White) To the Arabs
In his book Fiqh Al-Lugha, Imam Al-Tha’alabi lists arbad as one of the colors associated with black. So arbad is a complexion between this ghubra and black. And abyad (white) is a complexion a little lighter than arbad.
So a'afar complexioned was considered abyad (white) to the Arabs of the past. And Al-Sheikh Al-Minhaaji Al-Asyouti says that if a person's complexion is lighter than arbad, he/she is abyad (white) and remember that arbad means between black and ghubra (dust colored) and remember that ghubra (dust colored) is also called a'afar and a'afar is considered a degree of abyad (white). This is why the Prophet's (SAWS) complexion was also described as a'afar. The hadith says:
" كأَني أَنظر إِلى عُفْرَتَيْ إِبْطَيْ رسول الله، صلى الله عليه وسلم "
"It is as if I am looking now at the a’afar color of the armpits of the Messenger of Allah (SAWS)"
Let’s now look at how Imam Abu Mansour Al-Tha'alabi described the term abyad (white) in his famous book Fiqh Al-Lugha.
Imam Al-Tha’alabi (961 A.D. – 1038 A.D.), in his book Fiqh Al-Lugha, gives examples of what abyad (white) is in the section of his book entitled “A Detailed Explanation Of Abyad”. He begins by making it clear that the term amhaq is a different type of abyad and that it is considered by the Arabs an unattractive whiteness. He explains that it is a very light complexion that is compared to leprosy. Unfortunately, people today have taken this abyad as the only abyad and they mistakenly believe that when the Arabs of the past described someone as abyad, they meant a light complexion. This is a big mistake that must be corrected in spite of the fact that many people don’t want this mistake to be corrected. Imam Al-Tha’alabi made it very clear when he mentioned amhaq that amhaq is a separate complexion from the other abyad and that amhaq was considered unattractive. After speaking about the unattractive abyad, which was called amhaq, Al-Tha’alabi then proceeded to speak about the other abyad. Speaking about the other abyad, he mentioned azhar, a’afar, aqhab, and aghthar. I won’t go into what he said about azhar for two reasons. First of all, because Imam Abu Hanifa (699 A.D. — 767 A.D.) said that it is incorrect to say that azhar means abyad because azhar means that a person has a bright, luminous complexion and that a person can be azhar no matter what color he/she is. This makes a lot of sense and it can explain why the Prophet (SAWS) was described as azhar complexioned and at the same time he was described as asmar complexioned. It can also explain why Musa Al-Kadhim was described as black complexioned and at the same time he was described as azhar complexioned. Imam Abu Hanifa’s teacher was Hammad ibn Abu Suleiman and Hammad ibn Abu Suleiman was the student of Anas ibn Maalik (RAA), the Companion of the Prophet (SAWS). This is interesting because it is related that Anas ibn Maalik (RAA) described the Prophet (SAWS) as asmar and it is also related that Anas ibn Maalik (RAA) described the Prophet (SAWS) as azhar.
Another reason I won’t go into Al-Tha’alabi’s explanation of azhar is because it will only confuse readers because he defines azhar as a color mixed with yellowness and yellow also meant black to the Arabs of the past. So what Al-Tha’alabi meant by yellow here is not very clear. Majd Al-Din Mohamed ibn Ya’aqoub Al-Fayrouz Aabaadi says in his book Qaamous Al-Muheet:
“Yellow means black from didd”.
يقول صاحب القاموس المحيط، مجد الدين محمد بن يعقوب الفيروز آبادي، ان الصفرة هي السواد من الاضداد.
An example of this use of yellow to mean black is found in the following hadith:
Ibn Daab said: Salih ibn Kisaan told me that the Messenger of Allah (saws) asked him: “…Did anyone disapprove of what he did?” And he said: “Yes. A yellow-skinned man of medium height and a tall, red-skinned man. ” Then Umar (ibn Al-Khattab) said: “Oh Messenger of Allah. I swear that I know who the two men are. The first man is my son and his description. As for the second man, he is Saalim the slave of Abu Hudhaifa.” Khalid had ordered everyone who had a captive to execute his captive and Abdella ibn Umar and Saalim the slave of Abu Hudhaifa released the two captives that they had.
و في الحديث: "قال ابن دأب: فاخبرني صالح بن كيسان أن رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم سأله: هل أنكر عليه احد ما صنع؟ فقال: نعم، رجل أصفر ربعة و رجل أحمر طويل. فقال عمر (بن الخطاب): أنا و الله يا رسول الله أعرفهما، أما الأول فهو ابني و صفته، و أما الثاني فهو سالم مولى أبي حذيفة. و كان خالد قد أمر كل من أسر أسيرا أن يضرب عنقه، فأطلق عبدالله بن عمر و سالم مولى أبي حذيفة أسيرين كانا معهما
It’s a known fact that Abdella ibn Umar was very dark-skinned. Abu Ishaaq Al-Sabi’ee said:
I saw (Abdella) ibn Umar adam complexioned (very dark-skinned) with his loin cloth reaching his mid-calf.
قال أبو اسحاق السبيعي: "رأيت ابن عمر آدم جسيما ازاره الى نصف الساقين.”
Adam is a color which means very dark-skinned. Al-Tha’alabi says in his book Fiqh Al-Lugha:
“Chapter 13
The DEGREES OF BLACKNESS in a Human’s Complexion:
If the slightest degree of blackness covers a person, his complexion is asmar.
If his blackness is more intense than this with yellowness covering him, his complexion is as-hamm (with saad).
If his blackness is more intense than asmar, his complexion is adam.
If his blackness is more intense than adam, his complexion is as-hamm.
If his blackness is extremely intense, his complexion is adlam.”
الفصل الثالث عشر (في تَرْتِيبِ سَوَادِ الإنْسَانِ)
إذا عَلاَهُ أَدْنَى سَوَادٍ فَهُوَ أسْمَرُ
فإنْ زَادَ سَوَادُهُ مَعَ صُفْرَةٍ تَعْلُوهُ فَهُوَ أَصْحَمُ
فإنْ زَادَ سَوَادُهُ عَلَى السُّمْرَةِ فَهُوَ آدَمُ
فإنْ زَادَ عَلَى ذَلِكَ فَهُوَ أَسْحَمُ
فإنِ اشْتَدَّ سَوَادُهُ فَهُوَ أدْلَمُ.
When reading these descriptions of the different degrees of black, readers must bear in mind that black means black. For example, the men in the pictures below are black, but the one on the left is lighter than the one on the right and there is a specific word to differentiate his blackness (the blackness of the man on the left) from the blackness of the man on the right:
http://sports.maktoob.com/imgs/News/106455/Feature.jpg http://www.hebrewisraelites.org/images/blksudanman.jpg
As you can see in the first hadith above, Abdella ibn Umar is described as yellow-skinned and in the second hadith he is described as adam (very dark-skinned). This is because yellow-skinned means black to the Arabs.
Another example of yellow being used to mean black is in the description of Sa’eed ibn Misjah, the 7th century Arab singer from Mecca. In his book Kitaab Al-Aghaani , Al-Asfahaani describes Sa’eed ibn Misjah as:
“A black-skinned Meccan”
“مكي أسود”
In another section of the same book Al-Asfahaani describes Sa’eed ibn Misjah as:
“A black-skinned slave”
“مولدا أسود”
And in still another section of the same book – Kitaab Al-Aghaani, Al-Asfahaani describes Sa’eed ibn Misjah as:
“Yellow-skinned with a nice complexion”
“و كان أصفر حسن اللون”
Another example of the term yellow being used to mean black skinned is in the verse in Surat Al-Baqara (the Cow) of the Quran which says:
قَالُواْ ادْعُ لَنَا رَبّكَ يُبَيّن لّنَا مَا لَوْنُهَا قَالَ إِنّهُ يَقُولُ إِنّهَا بَقَرَةٌ صَفْرَآءُ فَاقِـعٌ لّوْنُهَا تَسُرّ النّاظِرِينَ
They said: Call on your Lord for our sake to make it plain to us what her color is. Musa said: He says, Surely she is a yellow cow; her color is intensely yellow, giving delight to the beholders. (Quran, Chapter: The Cow Verse: 69)
Al-Hasan Al-Basri (642 A.D. –728 A.D.) says the following in his explanation of the verse:
“Intensely yellow means very black.”
صَفْرَاءُ فَـاقِع لَوْنُهَا قال: سوداء شديدة السواد
When asmar is described above as having the slightest degree of blackness, it means the slightest degree of the complexion that the men in the pictures above have. The slightest degree of their complexion is called asmar. The men carrying the swords in the picture below are NOT black-skinned according to the Arabs of the past:
http://dc10.arabsh.com/i/01871/ftz6y7u3jlyw.jpg
Re: The Meaning of Abyad (White) To the Arabs
Explaining what abyad means, Al-Tha’alabi says in the section entitled “A Detailed Explanation of Abyad (White)” of his book Fiqh Al-Lugha:
“If a person or an animal has slight redness, his complexion is called aqhab and aqhad.
If a person’s complexion has ghubra (dust color), his complexion is called a’afar or aghthar.”
فإنْ عَلَتْهُ أو غَيْرَهُ مِن ذَوَاتِ الأربَعِ حُمْرَة يَسِيرَة فهوَ أقْهَبُ وأقْهَدُ
فإنْ عَلَتْهُ غُبْرة فهو أعْفَر واغْثَرُ.
Bear in mind that redness here means a dark color, not a light color. This is the true meaning of red – not the DIDD meaning that is given to people who are considered “white” today. The real meaning of red is a complexion like the color of dates or like the color of red soil. Al-Zubaidi (928 A.D. – 989 A.D.) says:
“Dates are called ‘the red’ because of their color”.
"الأحمر : تمر للونه
http://chinese.herbs.webs-sg.com/ima...s-hong_zao.jpg
Al-Zubaidi then says:
“’The red one’ means ‘the white one’ didd (with opposite meaning)”.
Let me explain briefly what is meant by the word “didd”. The Arabs sometimes use words to mean the opposite of what the word really means. This use of words is called “didd” or “addaad”. Al-Zubaidi says that “the red one” means “the white one” didd because red is actually a dark color, but the Arabs used “red” instead of “white” to describe a light-skinned person.
Let me explain briefly what is meant by the statement “didd”. The Arabs sometimes use words to mean the opposite of what the word really means. This use of words is called “didd” or “addaad”. Al-Zubaidi says that “the red one” means “the white one” didd because red is actually a dark color, but the Arabs used “red” instead of “white” to describe a light-skinned person.
Al-Tha’alabi’s explanation of the color asdaa (rust-colored) shows that the true meaning of red is a dark complexion. Al-Tha’alabi says:
“If his redness approaches blackness, then he is asdaa (rust-colored).”
فإذا قَارَبَتْ حُمْرَتُهُ السَّوَادَ، فَهُوَ أَصْدَا مَأَخْوُذٌ مِن صَدَإٍ الحَدِيدِ
Here is the color of rust:
http://watermarked.cutcaster.com/cut...usted-Iron.jpg http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:A...4s6JRcatDvlVIQ
Only a dark color can approach blackness, not a light color. So here red means the true meaning of red, which is a dark color. In another section of his book Fiqh Al-Lugha, Al-Tha’alabi lists asdaa (rust-colored) as one of the colors associated with black.
Do you see the color of the dates in the picture above? As you can see, dates are not a light color. This is the real meaning of red. However, because of their superstition against leprosy, the Arabs of the past didn’t call a light-skinned person “white”, but they called him/her “red” instead. Ibn Mandhour says in his book Lisan Al-Arab:
"الأحمر الأبيض تطيرا بالأبرص”
“A white person” was called “a red person” because of superstition against leprosy.
Back to Al-Tha’alabi’s explanation of abyad (white) being aqhad, let’s look at what Ibn Mandhour says about the word aqhab. Ibn Mandhour says in Lisan Al-Arab:
“Aqhab is abyad (whiteness) mixed with redness and it is said that aqhab is that which has redness inclining to ghubra (dust color). It is also said that aqhab is dark white.
والأَقْهَبُ: الذي يَخْلِطُ بياضَه حُمْرة. وقيل: الأَقْهَبُ الذي فيه حُمْرَة إِلى غُبْرة؛ ويقال: هو الأَبيضُ الأَكْدَرُ
Ibn Mandhour also says:
“Aqhab is a color which inclines toward darkness (kudra) – white which inclines to black.”
قال ابن منظور: والأَقْهَبُ: ما كان لَوْنُه إِلى الكُدْرة مع البياض للسواد.
Bear in mind that this word, aqhab, which is described as inclining to black is described as abyad (white) by the Arabs of the past. Notice that Ibn Mandhour says that it is “whiteness which inclines to black”. This is further proof that what was meant by abyad (white) to the Arabs of the past is not what is meant by white today. It is proof that when the Arabs of the past said abyad (white), they meant a dark color close to asmar and black. The complexion called white today cannot “incline to black”.
So aqhab, which is what Imam Al-Tha’alabi describes as abyad (white), is a color which inclines to black. My question to those who refuse to accept the FACT that abyad (white) meant a dark complexion to the Arabs of the past is, why do we have Al-Tha’alabi calling aqhab, a color which inclines to black, abyad (white)?
Re: The Meaning of Abyad (White) To the Arabs
Let’s now look at how Ibn Mandhour described the color a’afar. Ibn Mandhour says:
“A’afar is ghubra (dust color) mixed with red.”
قال ابن منظور:
والعُفْرة: غُبْرة في حُمْرة
Quoting Abu Zaid and Al-Asma’ee (740 A.D. – 828 A.D.), Ibn Mandhour says:
“A’afar is whiteness, but not extreme whiteness. It is like the color of the surface of the earth. It is mentioned in the hadith which says: ‘It is as if I am looking now at the a’afar color of the armpits of the Messenger of Allah (saws)’. From this word the ‘Afri Gazelles got their name - because their color is a’afar”.
قال ابن منظور:
أَبو زيد والأَصمعي: العُفْرَةُ بياض ولكن ليس بالبياض الناصع الشديد. ولكنه كلون عَفَر الأَرض و هو وجهها؛ ومنه الحديث: كأَني أَنظر إِلى عُفْرَتَيْ إِبْطَيْ رسول الله، صلى الله عليه وسلم. ومنه قيل للظِّباء عُفْر إِذا كانت أَلوانها كذلك.
Here are pictures of ‘Afri Gazelles. In English they are called Dorcas Gazelles:
http://www.seaworld.org/AnimalBytes/images/dorcas.jpg http://www.shoarns.com/Dorcas%20Gazelle%20Web.JPG
Do you see the color of the ‘Afri gazelles? This color is called a’afar and it is classified as abyad (white) by the Arabs. If you saw a person today this color, what color would you call him? The Prophet Mohamed’s (SAWS) armpits (NOT HIS HAIR - HIS ARMPITS) were described as this color.
Al-Tha’alabi also says that aghthar is abyad (white). Let’s look at how Ibn Mandhour describes aghthar in his book Lisan Al-Arab. Ibn Mandhour says in Lisan Al-Arab:
“Aghthar is a color which has ghubra (dust color).”
الأغثرالذي فيه غُبْرة.
He (Ibn Mandhour) also says:
“Aghthar is a color close to ghubra (dust color).”
الأغثر قريب من الأَغْبَر
Al-Tha’alabi also lists aghthar as one of the colors associated with blackness. Ghubra, asdaa, arbad, and aghthar are all colors listed by Al-Tha’alabi as colors associated with blackness.
To get an even clearer understanding of what was meant by ahmar (red) and abyad (white), let’s take a look at another description of the Prophet Mohamed (SAWS) in the following sound hadith:
“While the Prophet (saws) was sitting with his companions, a nomad entered and said:
‘Which of you is the son of Abdel Muttalib (meaning the Prophet Mohamed (SAWS))?’
They said:
‘That man with an amghar complexion who is reclining on his elbow …’
بينما النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم مع أصحابه ، جاء رجل من أهل البادية ، قال : أيكم ابن عبدالمطلب ؟ قالوا : هذا الأمغر المرتفق ! قال حمزة [ راويه ] : الأمغر : الأبيض مشرب حمرة ، فقال إني سائلك فمشتد عليك في المسألة ! قال : سل عما بدا لك . قال أسألك بربك ورب من قبلك ، ورب من بعدك : آلله أرسلك ؟ قال : اللهم ! نعم . قال : فأنشدك به : آلله أمرك أن تصلي خمس صلوات ، في كل يوم وليلة ؟ قال : اللهم ! نعم . قال : فأنشدك به : آلله أمرك أن تأخذ من أموال أغنيائنا ، فترده على فقرائنا ؟ قال : اللهم ! نعم . قال : فأنشدك به : آلله أمرك أن تصوم هذا الشهر من اثني عشر شهرا ؟ قال : اللهم ! نعم . قال : فأنشدك به : آلله أمرك أن يحج هذا البيت من استطاع إليه سبيلا ؟ قال : اللهم ! نعم . قال : فإني آمنت وصدقت ، وأنا ضمام بن ثعلبة
الراوي: أبو هريرة المحدث: الألباني - المصدر: صحيح النسائي - الصفحة أو الرقم: 2093
خلاصة حكم المحدث: إسناده صحيح
Amghar is another color that is classified as “white” by the Arabs. Ibn Mandhour says in Lisan Al-Arab:
“It is said that amghar is red, but not pure red. The hadith says: ‘A nomad entered to where the Prophet (SAWS) was and saw him with his companions and said:
‘Which of you is the son of Abdel Muttalib?’
And they said:
‘He is the amghar man who is reclining on his elbow.’
They meant by amghar, abyad (white) complexioned. Red is also abyad (white). Ibn Al-Atheer said:
‘It means he is the red-skinned man reclining on his elbow. It (the word amghar) is taken from mughra, which is the red soil that is used for painting.’”
وقيل: المَغَرُ حمرة ليست بالخالصة. وفي الحديث: أَن أَعرابيّاً قدِم على النبي، صلى الله عليه وسلم، فرآه مع أَصحابه فقال: أَيُّكُم ابنُ عبد المطلب؟ فقالوا هو الأَمغرُ المرتَفِقُ؛ أَرادوا بالأَمغرِ الأَبيضَ الوجهِ، وكذلك الأَحمرُ هو الأَبيضُ؛ قال ابن الأَثير: معناه هو الأَحمرُ المتَّكِئُ على مِرْفَقِه، مأْخوذ من المَغْرَةِ، وهو هذا المدَرُ الأَحمرُ الذي يُصْبَغُ به.
Re: The Meaning of Abyad (White) To the Arabs
So what is meant by “red” and “white” here? Here are pictures of red soil:
http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:A...sBLU0Eq8DlRKpQ
http://up.alriyadh1.com/files/7303.jpg
Remember that the complexion amghar is taken from mughra, which is this red soil. Here is a picture of mughra:
http://www.heritagemalta.org/museums...llection08.jpg
The color mughra, where the complexion amghar is from, is a shade of brown and it is called ochre in English. The Prophet Mohamed (SAWS) was described as amghar in complexion and his (SAWS) armpits were described as a’afar in color and remember that Ibn Mandhour said that an a’afar complexion is ghubra (dust color) mixed with red. Remember that the true meaning of red is a dark color like the color of dates and remember that dates are called “the red” in Arabic because of their color. Take another look at the color of dates:
http://chinese.herbs.webs-sg.com/ima...s-hong_zao.jpg
Remember that the ‘Afri Gazelle, called the Dorcas Gazelle in English, is called the ‘Afri Gazelle because its color is a’afar. Take another look at the color of the ‘Afri Gazelle:
http://www.seaworld.org/AnimalBytes/images/dorcas.jpg
http://www.shoarns.com/Dorcas%20Gazelle%20Web.JPG
Remember that Imam Al-Hafidh Al-Dhahabi said that abyad (white) means a hinti complexion with a black appearance. Take a look at the color of hinta:
http://www.lahamag.com/getImage.aspx...500&height=500
http://www.satiraq.com/admin/news/sm...55113258nn.jpg
The color of dates, the color of mughra, the color of the ‘Afri Gazelle, the color of ghubra, the hinta color with a black appearance are all basically the same color and as you can clearly see, it is not a light color. As you can plainly see, the complexion abyad (white) to the Arabs of the past was a dark complexion close to what was called asmar. Abyad (White), to the Arabs of the past, DID NOT mean what the term means today.
This lack of understanding of the true meaning of abyad (white) has caused much confusion concerning the appearance of the Prophet Mohamed (SAWS) and the appearance of the Arabs of the past in general. When a person reads that the Prophet (SAWS) was abyad (white), he/she wrongly believes that what is meant is the complexion that is called white today. Both scholars and laypeople alike have a problem with this. There are hadiths that describe the Prophet Mohamed’s (SAWS) as asmar, but many scholars have a problem accepting them for one reason or another. It appears that some people who don’t know the true meaning of abyad (white) to the Arabs of the past see a great contradiction between the hadiths describing the Prophet Mohamed (SAWS) as asmar and those describing him as abyad (white). This is because they don’t know the true meaning of abyad (white) to the Arabs of the past. If they knew the true meaning of abyad (white) to the Arabs of the past, they would understand that there is no great contradiction because abyad (white) meant, to the Arabs of the past, a complexion close to asmar.
I think that all that I have written here CLEARLY illustrates what abyad (white) meant to the Arabs of the past. Is there anything here not clear to anyone?
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