Sheikh El Nayyal Abdel Gadir Abu Groon

Sheikh El Nayyal Abdel Gadir Abu Groon: A descendent of Prophet Muhammad (PBHH), was born in 1948 in Abu Groon, a village established by, and named after, his renowned grandfather (Sheikh Muhammad Abu Groon) to be the home for his Sufi traditional institution.

Sheikh El Nayyal, a descendent of Prophet Muhammad (PBHH)¹, was born in 1948 in Abu Groon, a village established by, and named after, his renowned grandfather (Sheikh Muhammad Abu Groon) to be the home for his Sufi traditional institution.

Unlike many traditional Sufis, Sheikh Muhammad Abu Groon (1860-1936) relied on unwavering adherence to Taqwa (God-conscious) in endeavouring the deep realms of the Divine Truth, empowered exclusively by love of Prophet Muhammad (PBHH) and certainty about his path. His son Sheikh Abdel Gadir (1907-2000), the father of Sheikh El Nayyal, followed the way of his predecessor also through the love of Prophet Muhammad (PBHH). After actualisation of the Divine Love and the love of Prophet Muhammad (PBHH), he developed his own style of relaying the knowledge and wisdom of the Prophet (PBHH) and the beauty of following his path to attain good conduct, in a format of poems and rhymes, easy and perceivable by everybody. He raised his son Sheikh El Nayyal in this climate of the love of Prophet Muhammad (PBHH) and devoted him to learning the pure Message of Islam in their traditional institution besides academic education.

Since his childhood, Sheikh El Nayyal followed the way of his fathers in actualisation of Divine & Prophetic love. Moreover, he started exploring the sources of Islam: the Holy Quran & Sunnah (reports on Prophetic tradition) as well as the major works in Islamic thought and Sufism. His personal library includes thousands of books on the various sources of Islamic knowledge. He graduated from the Faculty of Law, University of Khartoum in 1970 and took a number of positions including Judge in the High Court and Minister of Legal Affairs.

In the early 1970’s the author wrote his first book: Al-Sirat Al-Mustaqeem (The Straight Path), a comprehensive short account on Islamic theology. Many commentators at that time agreed on two points about this book:

1. It was the first rational and convincing argumentation of the core elements of the Religion, viz. Islam (surrendering one’s self to God-Almighty), Iman (faith) and Ihsan (bettering one’s worship) that tackles difficult issues like Qadar (Divine Decree);




2. It’s style was unique in illustrating these subtle religious concepts as each and every word was very carefully chosen to serve the precise meaning intended by the author.

Since then, and empowered by the love of Prophet Muhammad (PBHH) the author started a number of series of writings using his own unprecedented rigorous methodology of research. This included the following criteria for checking the authenticity of the Matn (text) of Sunnah and the accuracy of interpretations of the Holy Quran:

1. The authority of the Holy Quran and the protection of its text from loss and corruption are guaranteed by God Almighty:
   

   “Indeed it is We who revealed the Revelation, and indeed it is We who are guarding it in safety.”

   [15:9]

   Therefore, an alleged text of Sunnah or interpretation of the Holy Quran that conflicts its authority or protection, or contradicts its clear text should be rejected.

   
   

2. The Prophet Muhammad (PBHH) is the standard reference of Islam
   

   “…and whatever the Messenger consigns unto you, take it, and from whatever he forbids you, abstain…”

   [59:7]

   This entails that a believer should not disagree with him or disobey him,

   “And We have not sent forth a Messenger but (for him) to be obeyed in accordance with the Will of God Almighty”

   [4:64]

   Therefore, an alleged text of Sunnah or interpretation of a verse of the Holy Quran that supports objections or disobedience to the Prophet (PBHH) by any one of his followers should be rejected.

   
   

3. The Ismah of the Prophet (PBHH) means that whatever he has said, done, or approved of was not just absolutely right but law, precedence and illustration of perfection,
   

   “Verily, in the Messenger of God Almighty you have a good example (to follow)..”

   [33:21]

   Equally, his sanctity stems from his special relation to God Almighty, being the most beloved to Him of all His creation. This entails that his Ismah and sanctity should be preserved in all interpretations of the Holy Quran and narrations of the Sunnah. Therefore, interpretations or alleged narrations that violate his Ismah and sanctity, or contradict the aim of his Message, should be rejected and no weight should be given to the credibility of the narrators or to the authenticity of their sources. This means that the authenticity of the Isnaad (credibility of the narrators) does not entail authenticity of the Matn (text).

In the late 1970’s, the author launched a series of accounts in religious advice named Al-Wasiyyah (The Kind Advice) on theological conflicts, historical controversies, and contemporary issues in Islam. From the early nineties to 2006, elaborating on the same subject, he wrote a series of books named Al-Rassa’il (The Messages), some of which resulted in hostile confrontations with the religious authorities in the Government of Sudan.

Recently, the author launched a series of books on Revisions of Islamic Thought, the first of which was published in Jordan in July 2008. The Arabic version of his book: The All-Embracing Message of Islam (Fi Rihab Al-Risalah) is included in part one of this series, even though it was published, after being acknowledged by the Ministry of Guidance and Orientation as a unique contribution to interfaith relations, tolerance, and coexistence.