Does Ignorance Excuse a Person who Believed Something Contrary to the Qur'an and was Unaware of the Ruling of Disbelief?
Question: Assalamu Alaikum Sheikh. I want to know one thing. Many years ago when I was 14 years old, I made a mistake. I knew that something was written in the Quran but I thought and i believe that the opposite of what was written in the Quran would happen in the future. I did not realize that my idea and believe was completely wrong. Is this my ignorance? I did not know what kufr was at that time. Do I have to be held accountable and are my salah and supplications at that time valid and accepted? Another question is if someone is ignorant of the ruling that knowingly denying or disbelieving in something in Islam is kufr, and he knowingly denies or disbelieving in something in Islam, will he be guilty of kufr and will he be held accountable? jazakallah khair
Summary:
If what occurred when you were fourteen years old resulted from ignorance, mistake, and misunderstanding, and you did not intend to deny the Quran or reject what the Prophet ﷺ brought, but merely thought that the matter would occur differently from what you understood from the verse, then this falls under ignorance and error in belief and understanding. It is not, by itself, kufr that expels a person from Islam. The fundamental principle is that a Muslim is not judged to be a disbeliever until the Islamic proof has been established against him and all impediments have been removed. Among the greatest impediments are ignorance, misinterpretation, and error. Accordingly, this does not necessitate the invalidity of your prayers or supplications. Rather, the basic principle is that your acts of worship remain valid so long as you remained a Muslim and no certain kufr occurred from you. As for one who denies something from Islam while being ignorant that such denial constitutes kufr, this matter requires further detail. Not everyone who falls into an act of kufr is automatically judged to be a disbeliever. Rather, the necessary conditions must be fulfilled and the impediments must be absent.
Answer:
First: The Ruling on What Occurred During Your Youth
From the Qur'an:
- Surah Al-Baqarah 2:286
“Our Lord, do not take us to account if we forget or make a mistake.”
From the Qur'an:
- Surah Al-Baqarah 2:284
“Whether you reveal what is within yourselves or conceal it, Allah will call you to account for it.”
From the Sunnah:
- Sahih MuslimAbdullah ibn Abbas رضي الله عنهما narrated,
When the verse was revealed: “Whether you reveal what is within yourselves or conceal it, Allah will call you to account for it.” [Surat Al-Baqarah 2:284], the Companions felt distressed by it. The Prophet ﷺ said: “Say: We hear and we obey.” Then Allah placed faith into their hearts and revealed: [Surah Al-Baqarah 2:286] “Allah does not burden a soul beyond its capacity. It will have what it has earned, and against it will be what it has acquired. Our Lord, do not take us to account if we forget or make a mistake.” Allah said: “I have done so.” And He said: “Our Lord, do not place upon us a burden as You placed upon those before us.” Allah said: “I have done so.” And He said: “Pardon us, forgive us, and have mercy upon us. You are our Protector.” Allah said: “I have done so.”
From the Qur'an:
- Surah Al-Ahzab 33:5
“There is no blame upon you for that in which you have erred, but only for what your hearts deliberately intended.”
Therefore, if you believed something contrary to reality due to ignorance or misunderstanding, and you did not intend to deny the Quran or reject its truth, then this falls under error and ignorance, not deliberate rejection. Ahl al-Sunnah have affirmed that the ignorant person, the mistaken person, and the one who interprets incorrectly are excused until the proof is established against them.
From the Scholars:
- Ibn Taymiyyah رحمه الله said:
“I am among the people who most strongly prohibit declaring a specific individual to be a disbeliever, sinner, or evildoer unless it is known that the prophetic proof has been established against him.”
- He (Ibn Taymiyyah رحمه الله) also said:
“Not everyone who errs in a matter of belief becomes a disbeliever.”
Second: Were Your Prayers and Supplications During That Period Accepted? The apparent ruling is that they were valid and accepted, if Allah wills, because you remained a Muslim in principle and it has not been established that you left Islam. Acts of worship are not judged invalid merely because of ignorance or error in certain matters of belief when the person did not intentionally deny revelation or reject it. Rather, Allah is more merciful to His servants than to hold them accountable for mistakes and ignorance that they did not deliberately intend. Third: Does Ignorance of the Ruling of Kufr Prevent the Application of Kufr? This matter requires detail. Whoever denies something necessarily known to be part of the religion after the proof has been established against him, after knowing it, and deliberately rejects it, then he is a disbeliever. As for one who is ignorant, newly converted to Islam, raised in a place where knowledge is scarce, or falls into a misconception or mistaken interpretation, then he is not judged merely by falling into a statement or action until the Islamic proof has been established against him.
From the Qur'an:
- Surah Al-Isra 17:15
“And We never punish until We have sent a messenger.”
- Surah Al-Nisa 4:165
“Messengers as bringers of good tidings and warners so that mankind would have no argument against Allah after the messengers.”
From the Scholars:
- Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab رحمه الله said:
“If we do not declare as disbelievers those who worship the idol upon the grave of Abd al-Qadir and the idol upon the grave of Ahmad al-Badawi because of their ignorance and because no one has informed them, then how can we declare a person a disbeliever who has not associated partners with Allah merely because he did not migrate to us or did not declare others disbelievers and fight?”
This indicates that ignorance is taken into consideration when judging a specific individual.
Fourth: The Difference Between Ignorance of the Ruling and Ignorance of the Matter Itself There is a difference between: A person who knows that the Quran states something and then deliberately denies and rejects it. And: A person who thinks a verse means something else, misunderstands it, or believes something due to ignorance and misunderstanding. The first is deliberately rejecting the truth. The second is mistaken or ignorant and is in need of education and clarification. For this reason, the Salaf distinguished between falling into kufr and declaring a specific individual to be a disbeliever. Final Answer: What you described regarding yourself at the age of fourteen does not appear to be kufr if it was merely ignorance, misunderstanding, or an incorrect belief that did not involve intentional denial of the Quran or rejection of it. Ignorance, mistake, and misinterpretation are among the impediments that prevent accountability and prevent a specific individual from being judged a disbeliever until the proof has been established against him. The basic principle is that your prayers, supplications, and acts of worship during that period were valid, and you are not required to repeat any of them. Not everyone who falls into a statement or belief of kufr is immediately judged to be a disbeliever. Rather, the necessary conditions must be fulfilled and the impediments must be absent. It is obligatory upon a Muslim, once the truth becomes clear to him, to believe in what is contained in the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger ﷺ, and to repent from every error and false belief. Allah accepts repentance and pardons mistakes and ignorance.
And Allah knows best.
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