Praise be to Allaah,
blessings and peace be upon the noblest of Allaah’s creation and upon his
family and companions and those who follow him.
The word kawthar in Arabic refers to great abundance.
In Islamic terminology it has two meanings:
1 – It is a river in Paradise which Allaah has given to His
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). This meaning is
what is meant in the verse where Allaah says (interpretation of the
meaning):
“Verily, We have granted you (O Muhammad) Al-Kawthar (a
river in Paradise)”
[al-Kawthar 108:1]
This is how the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) interpreted it. It was narrated by Muslim in his Saheeh
(607) that Anas (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: Whilst we were with
the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), he dozed off
then he raised his head and he was smiling. We said, “Why are you smiling, O
Messenger of Allaah?” He said: “A soorah has been revealed to me.” And he
recited (interpretation of the meaning):
“Verily, We have granted you (O Muhammad) Al-Kawthar (a
river in Paradise)…”
[al-Kawthar 108:1]
to the end of the soorah. Then he said: “Do you know what is
al-Kawthar?” We said: Allaah and His Messenger know best.” He said: “It is a
river that my Lord has promised to me in which there is much goodness. And
it is a cistern to which my ummah will come on the Day of Resurrection.”
Al-Tirmidhi (3284) narrated from Ibn ‘Umar (may Allaah be
pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) said: “Al-Kawthar is a river in Paradise. Its banks are made of
gold and its bed is of pearls and rubies…” al-Tirmidhi said: It is hasan
saheeh; it was classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh Sunan
al-Tirmidhi, 3/135.
2 – It is a great cistern – a tank for holding water – which
will be set up in the place of gathering on the Day of Resurrection, to
which the ummah of Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
will come. The water of this cistern will come from the river of al-Kawthar
which is in Paradise, hence it is called the Cistern of al-Kawthar. The
evidence for that is the hadeeth narrated by Muslim in his Saheeh
(4255) from Abu Dharr, that “into the Cistern will flow two pipes from
Paradise.” The apparent meaning of this hadeeth is that the Cistern will be
next to Paradise so that the water from the river that is inside Paradise
will be able to flow into it, as Ibn Hajar said in al-Fath 11/466.
And Allaah knows best.
But is it only for the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) to the exclusion of other Prophets, or not?
With regard to the river of al-Kawthar from which water will
flow into the Cistern, there is no report of any other Prophet having
anything like it, apart from our Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him). Allaah states that He has blessed him with it in Soorat
al-Kawthar, so it is likely that this is only for our Prophet (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and not for any other Prophet.
With regard to the Cistern of al-Kawthar, it is well known
among the scholars that it is only for our Prophet (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him). Among those who stated this was al-Qurtubi in
al-Mufahhim. But al-Tirmidhi (2367) narrated that Samurah said: The
Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said:
“Every Prophet will have a cistern and they will be looking to see who has
the largest number of followers coming to him, and I hope that I will have
the largest number.” All the isnads of this hadeeth are weak (da’eef), but
some of the scholars ruled that it is acceptable because it has so many
isnads, as al-Albaani said in al-Saheehah, 1589. Some of them ruled
that it is weak (da’eef). Even if this hadeeth cannot be proven, it is not
unlikely that the Cistern will also be only for our Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) to the exclusion of others. And Allaah
knows best.
The characteristics of the river that is in Paradise and the
Cistern that will be set up in the place of gathering were narrated in the
saheeh Sunnah. The characteristics of the river of al-Kawthar that will be
in Paradise include the following:
Al-Bukhaari narrated in his Saheeh from Anas (may Allaah be
pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) said: “Whilst I was walking in Paradise, I saw a river whose banks
were domes of hollow pearls.” I said, “What is this, O Jibreel?” He said:
“This is al-Kawthar which your Lord has given to you.” The angel struck it
with his hand and its mud or its perfume was of the most fragrant (or pure)
musk.
In al-Musnad (12084) it was narrated from Anas (may
Allaah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) said: “I have been given al-Kawthar, and it is a river
that flows on the face of the earth. Its banks are domes of pearls and it is
not covered. I struck its dust with my hand and its dust was the most
fragrant (or pure) musk, and its pebbles were pearls.” Classed as saheeh by
al-Albaani in al-Saheehah, 2513.
According to another report narrated in al-Musnad
(12827) also from Anas, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) was asked about al-Kawthar and he said: “That is a river which
Allaah has given to me, in Paradise. It is whiter than milk and sweeter than
honey, and in it are birds whose necks are like the necks of camels.” ‘Umar
said: “Those are soft birds.” The Messenger of Allaah (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Eating them is even softer, O
‘Umar.” Classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh al-Targheeb
wa’l-Tarheeb, 3740.
With regard to the features of the Cistern that will be in
the place of gathering, they include the following:
Al-Bukhaari (6093) and Muslim (4244) narrated that
‘Abd-Allaah ibn ‘Amr said: The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) said: “My Cistern is (as big as) the distance of a month’s
(journey). Its length and width are equal and its water is whiter than milk
and its scent is better than musk. Its drinking vessels are like the stars
of the sky and whoever drinks from it will never thirst again.”
In Saheeh Muslim (4261) it is narrated from Anas (may
Allaah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) said: “In it can be seen vessels of gold and silver
whose number is as the stars of the sky.” According to another report, “More
than the number of stars in the sky.”
It is also narrated in Saheeh Muslim (4256) from
Thawbaan (may Allaah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) was asked about its drink and he said: “It
is whiter than milk and sweeter than honey. Two pipes feed into it from
Paradise, one of gold and the other of silver.”
There is no doubt among the scholars that the ahaadeeth about
the Cistern reach the level of being mutawaatir (i.e., narrated by so many
people from so many people that it is inconceivable that they could all
agree upon a lie). It was narrated from the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) by more than fifty of his companions.
Al-Haafiz ibn Hajar listed the names of the Sahaabah who narrated these
ahaadeeth in al-Fath (11/468). And al-Qurtubi said in al-Mufahhim
Sharh Saheeh Muslim: “Every Muslim has to understand and believe that
Allaah has singled out His Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) to be given the Cistern, the name and features of which
and its drink are mentioned in the well known saheeh ahaadeeth which, when
taken together, constitute definitive knowledge.
With regard to where the Cistern will be located in the land
of gathering:
The scholars differed concerning this matter. Some said that
it will be after the Siraat (bridge across Hell). Others said that it will
be before the Siraat. This is the view of the majority and is more likely to
be correct – and Allaah knows best – because some of those who come to it
will be taken to Hell, and if it were after the Siraat they would not be
able to reach it because they would already have fallen into Hell – we seek
refuge with Allaah.
We must also draw attention to a very important and serious
matter which is that not everyone who belongs to the ummah of Muhammad
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) will attain the honour of
drinking from the Cistern of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him). The ahaadeeth clearly state that there are some people among
this ummah who will be driven back harshly from the Cistern – we ask Allaah
to keep us safe from that. Who are the ones who will drink and who are the
ones who will be pushed away?
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
has answered this question clearly in such a way that no one has any excuse.
Muslim narrated in his Saheeh (367) from Abu Hurayrah that the
Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) came to
the graveyard and said: “Peace be upon you, O habitation of believing
people. We will join you soon, if Allaah wills. Would that we had seen our
brothers.” They said, “Are we not your brothers, O Messenger of Allaah?” He
said: “You are my companions. Our brothers are those who have not yet come.”
They said: “How will you recognize those among your ummah who have not yet
come, O Messenger of Allaah?” He said: “If a man has a horse with a white
blaze and white feet among horses that are all black, don’t you think that
he will recognize his horse?” They said: “Of course, O Messenger of Allaah.”
He said: “They will come with white foreheads and white hands and feet
because of wudoo’. I will have reached the Cistern ahead of them and men
will be driven away from my Cistern as stray camels are driven away. (I will
say), ‘Let them come,’ and it will said to me, ‘They changed after you were
gone,’ so I will say, ‘Away with them!’”
In al-Bukhaari (6528) and Muslim (4243) it is narrated that
Abu Haazim said: I heard Sahl say: I heard the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) say: “I will reach the Cistern ahead of
you. Whoever comes to it will drink and whoever drinks from it will never
thirst again. Some people will come to me whom I will recognize and they
will recognize me, but then a barrier will be placed between me and them.”
Abu Haazim said: al-Nu’maan ibn Abi ‘Ayyaash heard me narrating this hadeeth
and said: “Is that how you heard Sahl say it?” I said, “Yes.” He said: “I
bear witness that I heard Abu Sa’eed al-Khudri add: and he [meaning the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)] said: ‘They are
from me.” And it will be said; “You do not know what they did after you were
gone.” And I will say, “Away with those who changed after I was gone!”’”
It was narrated by al-Bukhaari (2194) and Muslim (4257) from
Abu Hurayrah that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) said: “By the One in Whose hand is my soul, I will drive men away from
my Cistern as strange camels are driven away from a cistern.”
Al-Qurtubi (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: Our scholars
(may Allaah have mercy on them) said: Everyone who apostatizes from the
religion of Allaah or who introduces innovations with which Allaah is not
pleased and did not give permission for is one of those who will be driven
away from the Cistern. Those who will be most forcibly driven away will be
those who differed from the majority of Muslims and split from them, such as
the Khaarijis and Raafidis of all stripes, and the Mu’tazilis and anyone who
followed their ways. The same applies to the evildoers and oppressors who
tried to extinguish the truth and kill its followers and humiliate them, and
those who openly committed major sins and took the matter of sin lightly,
and all those who followed deviant whims and desires and innovation.
Al-Tadhkirah by al-Qurtubi, 306.
So we must strive to
follow the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and not
go against him in any way, in the hope that Allaah will honour us by
allowing us to drink from this blessed Cistern. Otherwise what regret can be
greater than the regret of the one who is pushed away from before the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and suffers
unbearable thirst but is not allowed to drink that cool water, then his loss
is further compounded by the prayer of the Prophet (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) that he be driven far away? We seek refuge with
Allaah. Imagine this torment – what if you were actually to experience it?
We ask Allaah to bless us and our Muslim brothers will
guidance to follow the Sunnah and to avoid bid’ah (innovation) and sin.
Ameen. Praise be to Allaah, the Lord of the Worlds.
See al-Qiyaamah al-Kubra, 257-262; al-Jannah
wa’l-Naar, 166, 167 – both by Shaykh ‘Umar al-Ashqar. Fath al-Baari
by al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar, 11/466.
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