Re: Approx size of Hazrat Adam A.S
Pick and choose from hadiths? Sure, why not? TLK bhai mentioned the word aqeedah in one of his posts. There are certain things a Muslim is required to believe in with absolute certainty, and believing in the authenticity of every single hadith is not a part of the aqeedah. I am open to debating the authenticity of hadiths because they were put together by man, and to err is human afterall. Attributing lies to Prophet saw is a major sin and if I continue to ignorantly believe in and spread a bunch of possibly fabricated hadiths then that is pretty irresponsible of me as a muslim. So I do not rely on hadiths with 100% certainty. If there’s room for debate, I’ll debate with an open mind.
Since the Quran, as per my belief, is the word of God, not a man-made book, and the only holy book to not have been corrupted by man, there’s no question about believing in the miracles mentioned in the Quran, however illogical they may be in the light of science. But I do study various interpretations of certain verses with an open mind. I do not associate myself with a certain “fiqh” or school of thought. For example, some people say that Prophet saw wasn’t physically ascended to heaven on the night of Miraj, rather it was a spiritual journey. I accept both interpretations … perhaps stuff like this wasn’t meant to be crystal clear, perhaps stuff like evolution was left open-ended for us on purpose. The stuff that really matters is pretty clear and that’s all I like to focus on. That is my faith, simple as that. I have a very simple understanding of my deen and I’d like to keep it that way, without indulging in the nitty gritty details like the height of Hazrat Adam a.s.
The Quran is the same today as it was on day 1 of its revelation. What’s changed is people’s interpretation of it, hence the various schools of thought, sects and whatnot, that was predicted and bound to happen. What’s NOT fardh/wajib/compulsory/obligatory but allowed does not have to be followed depending the requirements of the time. There’s a difference between what you CAN do and what you HAVE to do. For example, there’s no need for a certain number of witnesses to prove a crime has occurred when we have forensics today. Stoning to death is allowed as a form of capital punishment but I do not condone it. Because people back in the day lived in a tribal culture and shariah law was most suited at the time, we live in democracies that should be governed by the modern justice system. Just 2 centuries ago, over 200 crimes were punishable by death in Britain and public executions were a norm, something we’d consider barbaric today. So you can imagine how different the world culture must have been 14 centuries ago. The political/cultural/societal norms of the time don’t apply today, our justice system could never have been upheld back then and vice versa.