Question:
Assalamualaikum Dato’ Seri Mufti. I once heard about Tariqat Mufarridiyah. Is it permissible for us to follow and practice it?
Answer:
Alhamdulillah, praise and thanks to Allah for the countless blessings He has blessed us all with. Blessings and salutations to the Prophet Muhammad PBUH, his wives, his family, companions and all those that follow his teachings to the day of judgement.
Before we answer this issue, we would like to emphasize that there are many tariqat which is good and sahih, and permitted to be practised. This can be seen stated in accredited books in Sufism. The same when we find that Lajnah Jilsah Sufiyyah which are established by The Mufti’s Office of Negeri Sembilan to filter and a real distinguisher between accredited permissible tariqat and the deviated ones.
Pertaining to the above issue, Tariqat Mufarridiyah was taught by Syeikh Makmun bin Yahya. We state some introductory points on the tariqat and its founder:
- Sheikh Makmun bin Yahya comes from Tanjung Pura, Langkat, North Sumatera. He stayed in Mecca, but did not learn from many scholars except from only one sheikh.
- The name of this tariqat is taken from a phrase of the Prophet PBUH’s hadith which says: سبق المفردون defined by Syeikh Makmun as: Precede! (wins in a race) those who always recite ‘Allah...Allah’ many times.
- This tariqat was founded in 1375 H or 1955/56M in Tanjung Pura after Syeikh Makmun came back to his hometown from Mecca. At first, he opened a religious class which he instilled with weird teachings and ilmu kebal (a certain knowledge to be invincible). This is successful in influencing people and makes them eager to learn from it. According to the book فيض القدير شرح الجامع الصغير, al-Mufarridun means those who isolate themselves by being away from humans. It comes from the root word farrada (فرد) which means being away and isolates oneself to worship Allah in order to achieve union and elevate one’s rank. When more people accept his idea, his lawn was made as a ‘Rubat’ to expand his teachings and the tariqat.
- Many times when he was asked, he will first hold a tasbih, then he will ask something invisible to the eyes of others which he called Mawlana. Then, when the tasbih rocks, he will give the answer. He may decide one as being kafir (disbeliever) merely by doing so. He once cut his hand with parang (a Malayan machete), but did not bleed. Since then, his influence expands.
- This tariqat started in Malaysia in the late 60s after Syeikh Ma’mun visited Malaysia and Singapore. He was able to influence the army and police in Singapore before the teachings spread to Malaysia through Johor.
- The peak of the teachings in this tariqat is, it is unnecessary for one to perform the five daily obligatory prayers, but it is enough with only dhikr. The same when one wants to get something, he just needs to perform dhikr. Among the army and police, they believe that weapons are not needed to defend themselves from the enemy. In fact, it is enough to only practice this tariqat. One will automatically be invincible and no bullet will wound him.
- In the early 1970s, the influence of this tariqat declined in Malaysia and Indonesia [1]
Among their teachings are believing that every sins and istighfar to Allah must be made through an angel named Karanaz as an intermediary. One who befriends this angel will reach the rank of the fifth mass in his tariqat. This person’s mass is Allah and his soul is Allah’s soul. He may also shield the dead from the torments of the grave. Hence, who wants to save his dead family member should make a payment to Syeikh Makmun.
The Ruling of Tariqat Mufarridiyah
Fatwa issued by Federal Territories Islamic Religious Council (MAIWP) on 10th December 1987 states: “that Tariqat Mufarridiyah is not an Islamic teaching. Hence, Muslims are forbidden to follow and practice it.”
This fatwa is the same as the decision of the 117th Conference of Rulers on 21st February 1980 which agrees to the opinion of the National Fatwa Council and decided that this teaching contradicts the Islamic teachings. Those who are involved in this teaching shall repent.
May Allah always give us taufiq and hidayah to follow true Islamic teaching.
We close this with a du’a:
اللَّهُمَّ أَرِنَا الْحَقَّ حَقًّا، وَارْزُقْنَا اتِّبَاعَهُ، وَأَرِنَا الْبَاطِلَ بَاطِلًا، وَارْزُقْنَا اجْتنِاَبَهُ، وَلَا تَجْعَلْهُ مُلْتَبِسًا عَلَيْنَا فَنَضِلَّ، وَاجْعَلْنَا لِلْمُتَّقِينَ إِمَامًا
“O Allah! show us the truth as true, and inspire us to follow it. Show us falsehood as falsehood, and inspire us to abstain from it. And protect us from being confused that we are led astray. And give us from our leader people who are righteous”
End Notes:
[1] See Warta Kerajaan Negeri Selangor, Sel. P.U. 49 Enakmen Pentadbiran Perundangan Islam, 1989 Fatwa Tentang Tarikat Mufarridiah Ajaran Syeikh Makmun Bin Yahya En. 21/1989.
[2] JAKIM, Tarekat Mufarridiyyah Satu ajaran Sesat (Tarekat Mufarridiyyah A Deviant Teaching) (Malaysia: JAKIM), 7-11