Criticizing the Rulers and the Belief That It Serves the Interest of Preserving the Ummah
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Question:
Honorable Shaykh, if you would be so kind as to say a word to the brothers here regarding those who criticize the rulers when they see that they have not done what they consider to be necessary, while believing that this serves the interest of preserving the integrity of the Muslim community and maintaining what remains of good within it, and they think that this is due to the collusion of the rulers with the enemies of the state.
Answer:
We have answered this. We said that it is obligatory for the Muslim to pray for the rulers to be righteous, guided, and successful. That is one aspect. The other aspect is that if he is able to advise them in private, between them and him, he should advise them and convey to them matters that may be hidden from the ruler.
The ruler does not know the unseen. There may be a defect or a mistake among the people that he is unaware of, and he is informed of it. It is said that such and such a violation occurred in such and such a place, and he is informed of these matters. This is part of cooperating in righteousness and piety. So the Muslim should be an instrument of reform and an instrument of good, not an instrument of evil, corruption, spreading errors, and concealing virtues. This is not to be done. This is the conduct of the hypocrites. This is the conduct of the hypocrites; they are the ones who conceal virtues and spread errors among the Muslims. Yes.
The presenter:
May Allah reward you with good.
Honorable Shaykh, if you would be so kind as to say a word to the brothers here regarding those who criticize the rulers when they see that they have not done what they consider to be necessary, while believing that this serves the interest of preserving the integrity of the Muslim community and maintaining what remains of good within it, and they think that this is due to the collusion of the rulers with the enemies of the state.
Answer:
We have answered this. We said that it is obligatory for the Muslim to pray for the rulers to be righteous, guided, and successful. That is one aspect. The other aspect is that if he is able to advise them in private, between them and him, he should advise them and convey to them matters that may be hidden from the ruler.
The ruler does not know the unseen. There may be a defect or a mistake among the people that he is unaware of, and he is informed of it. It is said that such and such a violation occurred in such and such a place, and he is informed of these matters. This is part of cooperating in righteousness and piety. So the Muslim should be an instrument of reform and an instrument of good, not an instrument of evil, corruption, spreading errors, and concealing virtues. This is not to be done. This is the conduct of the hypocrites. This is the conduct of the hypocrites; they are the ones who conceal virtues and spread errors among the Muslims. Yes.
The presenter:
May Allah reward you with good.
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، محاضرات في العقيدة والدعوة-33-حقوق الراعي والرعية|صالح الفوزان|العام|كبار العلماء — youtube.com (49:50)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.