What is the ruling on traveling abroad to study law?

The questioner : The questioner says: I am a committed young man, and praise be to Allah for His blessing. I graduated from one of the universities in the Kingdom from the Department of Law, and I currently work in a government agency. The agency requires me to travel abroad to continue my higher studies in law. What is your advice to me?

The Shaykh : We mentioned in a previous session on these days that we do not see traveling abroad as permissible except with three conditions. I hope whoever has them in mind will count them for me.

Another questioner : They have a religious foundation that prevents them from bowing. In matters of desires, then a safeguard against their knowledge that they possess a degree of knowledge that prevents them from falling into doubtful matters. The third is the need for it.

The Shaykh : Well done. We said we do not see traveling abroad as permissible except with three conditions: that the traveler has knowledge with which he can repel doubts, because he will find there enemies of Islam who will bring upon him doubts that make him hesitant and doubtful in his religion, whether regarding Allah (Mighty and Majestic), His Book, His Messenger, or the state of the Muslims. For the disbelievers, my brothers, the disbelievers today argue against Islam with the actions of Muslims. They say, "Where is the Islam you speak of? Where is the Islam that commands truthfulness, giving advice, keeping promises, and trustworthiness, and the like of what is known from the religion of Islam?" So when they look at the Muslims and their reality, they find that their state contradicts their religion, and that they are greatly involved in lying, treachery, betrayal, consuming wealth unjustly, foolishness, and other things. So these disbelievers, when the young man comes to them and they take him in and embrace him, they make him doubt Allah, or His Book, or His Messenger, or the religion of Islam, as represented by whom? By the people of Islam in the present time. And by Allah, if we had returned to the state of our righteous predecessors in our adherence to our religion, in the rights of Allah and the rights of His servants, hearts would have opened to us before countries opened to us. But in reality, we were negligent in our worship, our manners, our morals, and our strength, until we became what you see. I say it is necessary that he have knowledge with which to repel [doubts], and that he have religion with which to repel sexual desires, intoxication, gambling, and other things. And the third is that he needs the travel such that this specialization does not exist in our country. But if it exists in the Kingdom, then there is no need to travel. And I only stipulated these conditions because I found danger in those who travel abroad. And that danger or deviation is not general in everyone who traveled. Among those who traveled is a righteous group who judge by truth and call to truth, and they were, praise be to Allah, a bright light by which a person is pleased when he hears of their actions. Among those who went to study are people who established Islamic associations, some of them speaking to one another, until some of them establish magazines that they distribute and publish among the people there. And not everyone who goes abroad deviates. No, but the matter is dangerous. And so I say to this brother the questioner: if you know from yourself that you are committed to these three conditions, then there is no blame on you in traveling. Otherwise, think about your matter a second time. What he said, what he said, what he said.

Another questioner : He is going to study law. Studying law is a new situation.

The Shaykh : Yes, studying positive law is not free from two states: either a person studies it to apply it, and that is among the most dangerous things, as it may lead to disbelief. Or he studies it to refute it and show its invalidity, and bring what opposes it from the system of Islam. This is permissible, and it may even be obligatory. Because whoever does not know falsehood cannot refute it. If you do not know falsehood, you cannot refute it. So if a person studies these laws to know their invalidity and refute them, and bring what is better than them from the systems of Islam, then there is no harm in that, and it may even be obligatory. Is that possible? What is your opinion?