What is the other extraordinary situations in islam? What is the karamah?
1) Karamah
Karāmah lexically means dignity, honor, goodness, and beauty. As a term, it means wondrous acts and states that occur at the hands of some friends of Allah, who meticulously abide by the rules of the true divine religion, who are devoted to their prophet, and who have earned the love of Allah. These acts are called “karāmah”.[1] An example of karāmah is when the Companions of the Cave, who were persecuted for their beliefs and left their towns to take shelter in a cave, were brought back to life by Almighty Allah years later as if they had been hibernating.[2] At the request of Solomon, it was a karāmah that a servant of God was able to bring the throne of Balqis in the blink of an eye.[3] Moreover, that three people trapped in the cave were saved by citing their past good deeds is also an example of karāmah.[4]
Furthermore, during the caliphate of Umar (ra), when he was delivering the Friday sermon in Medina, he called out to his commander Sāriye, who was fighting in Nihawand, saying, “O Sāriye, climb the mountain!” and both those who were in Friday prayer in Madinah and his commander, Sāriye, hundreds of kilometers away, heard this call and this warning led him to win the war. This event is known as the karāmah of ‘Umar (ra) and Sāriye.[5]
The following is stated in the hadith: “There are many men who have attained perfection. Among the women, there is no one who attained perfection except Maryam bint Imran and Asiya, the wife of the Pharaoh.”[6] The majority of Muslim scholars are of the view that prophets did not come from among the women. For that reason, they argue that Maryam, taking into account her long conversations with angels and the fact that she was inspired by Allah, was a “friend of Allah (awliya/saints)”[7] whose wondrous acts are confirmed by the verses of the Qur’an.[8]
There are various verses in the Qur’an about the friends of Allah, which are expressed with the word “walī-awliyā”. In these verses, it is emphasized that the friend of Allah should have a firm belief and ṭaqwā.[9] This is because they have attained the knowledge of Allah (maʿrifatullah) with faith and superior morality embellished with ṭaqwā. For that reason, they are free from all kinds of fear, anxiety, and hopelessness.
The characteristics of those who have ṭaqwā are listed as follows in a Qur’anic verse: a) They believe in Allah, the Last Day, angels, the book, and the prophets, b) Spend their wealth (or despite the love of property) for the sake of Allah and for relatives, orphans, the poor, the wayfarer, the beggars, the slaves and to free prisoner, c) perform their prayers properly, d) offer their zakāt, and e) show patience and resistance in times of distress, illness, and war.[10]
According to the narration from Said Ibn Jubayr (ra), the Prophet, in response to a question, described the friends of Allah as follows: “They are such people that when they are seen, Allah is remembered.”[11] This characteristic is also indicated in the Qur’anic verse “.. On their faces are their marks, (being) the traces of their prostration…”[12]
According to what is reported from ‘Umar, the Prophet (saw) explained the state of the friends of Allah, whom even prophets and martyrs would envy on the Day of Judgment, as follows: “These are such a community that they love each other only for the sake of Allah and in the way of Allah, without any kinship or interest. I swear by Allah that their faces are like a light and they are on a pulpit of light. When people are afraid, they are not afraid. When people are sad, they are not upset.”[13] The Messenger of Allah (saw) continued after this to recite the following verse: “Behold! verily on the friends of Allah there is no fear, nor shall they grieve; Those who believe and (constantly) guard against evil; For them are glad tidings, in the life of the present and in the Hereafter…”[14]
2) Inspiration
It is the knowledge that appears in the heart. Revelation and inspiration are different. Namely, revelation comes to the prophet. It reaches the prophet under the protection and supervision of Allah. The prophet is conscious while receiving the revelation. Inspiration, on the other hand, is not preserved, has a possibility of error, and is unconsciously brought into the hearts of Allah’s beloved servants. The case of Moses’ mother can be given as an example of such an inspiration. Moses’ mother, who had a dream that Pharaoh had all the newborn boys killed after Moses was born, placed him in a basket and left him in the Nile river. This event is described in the Qur’an as follows: “So We sent this inspiration to the mother of Moses: “Suckle (your child), but when you have fears about him, cast him into the river, but fear not nor grieve: for We shall restore him to you, and We shall make him one of Our messengers.””[15] This happened through inspiration or a dream. Although inspiration is not considered a religious source per se of knowledge according to Muslim theologians, it may carry “authority that may be acted upon necessarily” only for the one who receives the inspiration. This does not have the characteristic of the prophethood of the prophets, but it is like the wondrous acts of the saints. This inspiration came to Moses’ mother after he was born, and it is reported that his mother nursed him for three months before the river event.[16]
3) Irkhās
These are the extraordinary acts seen by the prophets before they were given the duty of prophethood, and are considered as evidence that he is destined to be a prophet. The fact that Jesus spoke in the cradle is an example of such extraordinary acts.[17]
4) Ma‘ūnah
It means help and convenience. It is an extraordinary state occurring to some believers whose deeds, behaviors, and morals are good. It is the extraordinary way by which Almighty Allah saves a Muslim servant who is not a saint from distress and hardship.
5) Istidrāj
It literally means to give time or to give respite. They are extraordinary states and phenomena that take place by the wishes of individuals whose unbelief and sin are evident and clear to the people. Allah Almighty gives this ability to such a person who will carry out such extraordinary acts only to plunge him into more disbelief and sin. It is istidrāj that Satan’s prayer was accepted, allowing him to do evil until the Day of Judgment, and the reigns of Pharaoh, Nimrod, and the like on earth for a while in their own way is also istidrāj. Moreover, the fact that some of the oppressors and infidels have, and experience, good worldly affairs is also related to istidrāj.
The following is stated in the Qur’an: “Those who reject Our signs, We shall gradually visit with punishment, in ways they perceive not; Respite will I grant unto them: for My scheme is strong (and unfailing).”[18], and “Then leave Me alone with such as reject this Message: by degrees shall We punish them from directions they perceive not. A (long) respite will I grant them: truly powerful is My Plan.”[19]
The word istidrāj mentioned in these verses denotes that as long as a servant continues his sins, Allah Almighty increases his health, prosperity, state, and blessings, making him forget to show gratitude, repentance, and forgiveness, thus bringing him gradually closer to Allah’s torment and wrath, and finally seizing him abruptly.[20] It is reported that ‘Umar prayed when the booty was brought to Medina after the conquest of Persia: “My God… I seek refuge in you from these treasures being istidrāj.”[21]
6) Iḥānah
While istidrāj takes place in accordance with the wishes of those whose disbelief and rebellion are openly displayed, iḥānah is a realization of extraordinary acts against the wishes of this person. This ironically takes place at the same hands of those whose disbelief and rebellion are openly displayed. For example; Musaylama, who falsely claimed to be a prophet, anointed a child, who was blind in one eye so that his eye would see again but instead the child lost sight in the other eye as well. Moreover, Musaylama made an entreaty to increase the water of a well, but instead, the well went completely dry. Such acts are also called “khidhlān”.
Some strange events fall into the type of magic and art, which are carried out by tools, causes, and means, and may even actually occur in accordance with the laws of nature. Anyone who knows these causes and the conditions can always demonstrate such strange feats. Yet, such acts are not actually extraordinary because they have natural explanations.
[1] Al-Taftaẓānī, Sharḥ al-Maqāṣid, Istanbul 1305, II, 203[2] See al-Kahf, 18: 9-12.[3] Al-Naml, 27: 38-40.[4] Al-Bukhari, Ijarah, 12.[5] Gölcük, ibid, p. 171.[6] Al-Bukhari, Anbiya, 32, 46; Muslim, Faḍā’il al-Ṣaḥāba, 70; Al-Tirmidhī, Aṭ’ima, 31.[7] See Āl ʿImrān, 3: 37.[8] Al-Bukhari, Anbiya, 32, 46; Muslim, Faḍā’il al-Ṣaḥāba, 70; Al-Tirmidhī, Aṭ’ima, 31.[9] See al-Baqara, 2: 257; al-Aʿrāf, 7: 196; Yunus, 10: 62-64.[10] Al-Baqara, 2: 177.[11] Elmalılı, Hak Dini Kur’an Dili, IV, 2731.[12] Al-Fatḥ, 48: 29.[13] Tāj al-’Uṣūl fi Aḥādith al-Rasūl, V, 83.[14] See Yunus, 10: 62-64; al-Rāzī, Mafātiḥ al-Ghayb, Istanbul, 1307, V, 14; Ibn Kathir, Tafsīr, II, 422; Elmalılı, ibid, IV, 2731.[15] Al-Qaṣaṣ, 28: 7.[16] See Elmalılı, commentary of chapter al-Qaṣaṣ (28) verse 7.[17] Al-Mā’ida, 5: 110-115.[18] Al-Aʿrāf, 7: 182-183.[19] Al-Qalam, 68: 44-45.[20] H. B. Çantay, ibid, III, 1078, footnote 68.[21] Ömer Nesefi, Akaid, p. 170; Gölcük, ibid, p. 175.
Source: Basic Islamic Principles (ʿilmi ḥāl) According to the Four Sunni Schools With Evidence From The Sources of Islamic Law, Prof. Hamdi Döndüren, Erkam Publications