1542 - Issue: He said: (And if a boy is ten years of age and possesses the intellect of Islam, and he accepts Islam, he is a Muslim.)
The entirety of the matter is that the Islam of a boy is valid in general. This is the opinion of Abu Hanifa, his two companions, Ishaq, Ibn Abi Shaybah, and Ayyub. Al-Shafi'i and Zufar said: His Islam is not valid until he reaches puberty, based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): "The pen is lifted from three: ...from the child until he reaches puberty." It is a hasan (good) hadith. Furthermore, it is a statement by which legal rulings are established, so it is not valid from a child, just like a gift (hibah); and because he is one of those from whom the pen is lifted, his Islam is not valid, like the insane person or the sleeper, and because he is not legally accountable (mukallaf), so he resembles an infant. Our evidence is the generality of his (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) saying: "Whoever says 'There is no god but Allah' enters Paradise." And his saying: "I have been commanded to fight the people until they say: 'There is no god but Allah.' So if they say it, their blood and wealth are protected from me except by its right, and their reckoning is with Allah." And he (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "Every newborn is born upon the fitra (natural disposition), then his parents make him a Jew or a Christian, until his tongue expresses itself, either gratefully or ungratefully." These reports include the child within their generality, and because Islam is an act of worship.
(1) In copies B and M: "And Abu Ayyub". His biography was previously mentioned in: 2/126. (2) Its documentation was previously mentioned in: 2/50. (3) Recorded by al-Bukhari in: The Chapter of White Garments, from the Book of Clothing, Sahih al-Bukhari 7/192, 193. Also by Muslim in: The Chapter of Whoever Dies Without Associating Anything with Allah..., from the Book of Faith, Sahih Muslim 1/95. Also by al-Tirmidhi in: The Chapter of Whoever Dies While Testifying That There Is No God But Allah, from the Books of Faith, Aridat al-Ahwadhi 10/105, 106. And by Imam Ahmad in: Al-Musnad 3/467, 5/166, 391, 6/442. (4) Omitted from: M. (5) Its documentation was previously mentioned in: 4/6. (6) In the original manuscript: "wa-yunasiranihu" (they make him a Christian). (7) Recorded by al-Bukhari in: The Chapter of If a Boy Accepts Islam, and The Chapter of What Is Said Regarding the Children of the Polytheists, from the Book of Funerals; also in: The Chapter of Interpreting Surat al-Rum, from the Book of Tafsir; and in: The Chapter of Allah Knows Best What They Were Doing, from the Book of Decree, Sahih al-Bukhari 2/125, 6/143, 8/153. Also by Muslim in: The Chapter of the Meaning of 'Every Newborn Is Born Upon the Fitra', from the Book of Decree, Sahih Muslim 4/2047, 2048. Also by Abu Dawud in: The Chapter of the Offspring of the Polytheists, from the Book of Sunnah, Sunan Abi Dawud 2/531. Also by al-Tirmidhi in: The Chapter of What Has Been Said Regarding 'Every Newborn Is Born Upon the Fitra', from the Books of Decree, Aridat al-Ahwadhi 8/303. Also by Imam Malik in: The Chapter of Collected Funerals, from the Book of Funerals, Al-Muwatta 1/241. And by Imam Ahmad in: Al-Musnad 2/233, 275, 282, 315, 3/353, 4/24.
