What is the importance of the Sixth Kalima (Radde Kufr)?
The sixth kalma, also referred to as radde kufr or radde-e-kuffer, meaning words of rejecting or disbelief.
This Kalima teaches the important Islamic concept of kufr. This in itself is a lengthy topic, but generally kufr is not believing in the faith or rejecting the faith, i.e. being a non-believer.
The word Kufr translates to “conceal” or to “hide”, so a kuffar is anyone who denies and conceals the truth. The truth being the tawheed, that Allah is the one and only, there is no deity but Allah, and Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) is his messenger.
The various kinds of Kufr that we need to be aware of are:
- Denial and Rejection – disbelief in the heart. An outward rejection.
- Turning away in arrogance – the best example would be iblees (shaitan). In Surah Al-Noor ayah 47 it says, “They (hypocrites) say: ‘We have believed in Allah and in the Messenger, and we obey, then a party of them turn away thereafter, such are not believers”.
- The Kufr of hiprocrisy – those that outwardly have the appearance of being believers but do so for show and to signal virtue. They may say they believe in Allah and the last day, their actions may show it, but in there hearts they conceal it.
- Kufr of doubt – not being sure or showing hesitancy. This is similar to agnosticism, those who say they don’t know. A person who claims neither faith nor disbelief in God.
The Quran mentions these all these types of Kufr in various verses in the Quran. Here’s just a few,
“But verily, a party of them conceal the truth while they know it”
Surah Al-Baqarah Ayah 146
“… except Iblees (Satan), he refused and was proud and was one of the disbelievers (disobedient to Allaah)”
Surah Al-Baqarah Ayah 34
“And they belied them (those Ayat) wrongfully and arrogantly, though their ownselves were convinced thereof”
Surah Al-Naml Ayah 14
The sixth Kalima should be learned and said by those who understand the dangers of Kufr and want to protect themselves from committing shirk (associating others alongside Allah).
Let’s jump and learn what the sixth and final kalma is.
Sixth Kalma Radde Kufr in Arabic:
In Arabic, the sixth kalima is read:
اَللّٰهُمَّ اِنِّیْٓ اَعُوْذُ بِكَ مِنْ اَنْ اُشْرِكَ بِكَ شَيْئًا وَّاَنَآ اَعْلَمُ بِهٖ وَ اَسْتَغْفِرُكَ لِمَا لَآ اَعْلَمُ بِهٖ تُبْتُ عَنْهُ وَ تَبَرَّأْتُ مِنَ الْكُفْرِ وَ الشِّرْكِ وَ الْكِذْبِ وَ الْغِيْبَةِ وَ الْبِدْعَةِ وَ النَّمِيْمَةِ وَ الْفَوَاحِشِ وَ الْبُهْتَانِ وَ الْمَعَاصِىْ كُلِِّهَا وَ اَسْلَمْتُ وَ اَقُوْلُ لَآ اِلٰهَ اِلَّا اللهُ مُحَمَّدٌ رَّسُوْلُ اللهِؕ
Transliteration
Allahumma Inne A’udhu-bika Min An Ushrika Bika Shay-awn Wa-ana A’lamu Bihee Wa-astaghfiruka Limaa Laaa A’lamu Bihee Tubtu ‘Anhu Wata-barraatu Mina-l Kufri Wash-shirki Wal-kidhbi Wal-gheebati Wal-bid’ati Wan-nameemati Wal-fawahishi Wal-buhtaani Wal-m’aasi Kulli-haa Wa-Aslamtu Wa-aqoolu Laaa Ilaaha Illa-llaahu Muhammadur Rasulullah.
The English Translation of This Kalima
The english translation of this supplication is,
“O Allah! I seek refuge in You from that I should ascribe any partner with You knowingly. I seek Your forgiveness for the sin of which I have no knowledge. I repent from it. And becoming disgusted of disbelief and idolatry, lying and backbiting, innovation and slander, lewdness and abomination and all other acts of disobedience, I submit to Your will. I believe and I declare that there is none worthy of worship except Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.”
Hadiths that mention Kufr:
To claim that someone is a kufr is a serious accusation, Sahih Bukhari hadith 6103 highlights this. Narrated Abu Huraira:
Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) said, “If a man says to his brother, O Kafir (disbeliever)!’ Then surely one of them is such (i.e., a Kafir). “
And in Sahih hadith in Sunan An-Nasa’i 4113 it says,
It was narrated that ‘Abdullah said: “Fighting a believer is Kufr and defaming him is evildoing.”
Commiting shirk is a tremendous wrong, in the Sahih hadith 3067 from Jami At Tirmidhi Vol. 5 it was Narrated ‘Abdullah:
“When (the following) was revealed: It is those who believe and confuse not their belief with Zulm (wrong) (6:82) – That bothered some Muslims, so they said: ‘O Messenger of Allah! Which of us has not wronged himself?’ He said: ‘It is not that, it is only Shirk, have you not heard what Luqman said to his son: O my son! Do not commit Shirk with Allah. Verily Shirk is a tremendous Zulm (wrong) (31:13).'”
From this we see the seriousness of kufr. It is the exact opposite of having a strong Iman (faith) which is necessary for a believing Muslim.
Allah says, in Surah Baqarah Ayah 153, ya ayyuhallazina amanu ta’eenoo bissabri was Salaah; innal laaha ma’as-saabireen
“O you who have believed, seek help through patience and prayer. Indeed, Allah is with the patient.”
May Allah grant us patience and give us the strength and fortitude to stay resilient in the face of adversity.
Reciting the sixth kalima can be something we can do deliberately to show Allah how we feel and to keep us safe from kufr. May Allah increase us in faith and make us among those who are guided. Ameen.