The Ruling on One Who Does Not Judge by the Law of Allah, and Whether Denial Is a Condition
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
The questioner asks: Honorable Shaykh, did you say that one who does not respect, or rather, one who does not follow the law of Allah, is not a disbeliever until we know what is in his heart? If he denies the law of Allah, he is a disbeliever, but if he does not, he is not a disbeliever? And is this considered in the case of the children of the angels?
Answer:
The scholars have spoken at length about the ruling on judging by other than what Allah has revealed, detailing the matter. If one judges by other than what Allah has revealed because he is ignorant and does not know what Allah has revealed, then he is undoubtedly in opposition, mistaken, and misguided, but he may be excused due to ignorance until he knows the truth. However, it is not permissible for him to judge between people while he is ignorant. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said to the judges:
This is a very serious issue: judging by other than what Allah has revealed. Judging by other than what Allah has revealed is a grave matter, and people are lax about it. If someone says that it is the same whether we judge by other than what Allah has revealed or by the laws, the matter is clear, because the intent is to settle disputes between people. It is all the same, whether it is the law or the Qur'an. All of this is explicit disbelief, a clear departure from the religion. What do we have to do with the heart or what is in the heart? We judge based on the statement and say it is the same, whether judging by the law or by the Shari'ah. Do we intend to settle disputes between people?
Whether we judge by this or that, we say this is true disbelief. We do not go to the King, nor do we care about the statement: is he a believer or a denier? We judge based on the statement. Our position is what appears to us, like the one who prostrates to a grave or calls upon other than Allah. We say he is a disbeliever, and we do not go searching for his heart. That is not our concern. We judge based on the external indicators, while the hearts are a matter for Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He). So, if one explicitly states that judging by other than what Allah has revealed is permissible, he is a disbeliever, and no one doubts it; it is disbelief that expels one from the religion. Or if he says it is the same, he is a disbeliever, a disbelief that expels one from the religion, and it is not a condition.
The questioner asks: Honorable Shaykh, did you say that one who does not respect, or rather, one who does not follow the law of Allah, is not a disbeliever until we know what is in his heart? If he denies the law of Allah, he is a disbeliever, but if he does not, he is not a disbeliever? And is this considered in the case of the children of the angels?
Answer:
The scholars have spoken at length about the ruling on judging by other than what Allah has revealed, detailing the matter. If one judges by other than what Allah has revealed because he is ignorant and does not know what Allah has revealed, then he is undoubtedly in opposition, mistaken, and misguided, but he may be excused due to ignorance until he knows the truth. However, it is not permissible for him to judge between people while he is ignorant. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said to the judges:
Three judges
ثلاثة قاضيانin the Fire, and a judge in Paradise. As for the one who knew the truth and judged by it, he is in Paradise. As for the one who knew the truth but did not judge by it, he is in the Fire. As for the one who judged in ignorance and did not know the truth, he is in the Fire.
في النار وقاضي في الجنة، أما من عرف الحق وقضى به فهو في الجنة، وأما من عرف الحق ولم يقض به فهو في النار، وأما من قضى في جهل ولم يعرف الحق فهو في النار.This is a very serious issue: judging by other than what Allah has revealed. Judging by other than what Allah has revealed is a grave matter, and people are lax about it. If someone says that it is the same whether we judge by other than what Allah has revealed or by the laws, the matter is clear, because the intent is to settle disputes between people. It is all the same, whether it is the law or the Qur'an. All of this is explicit disbelief, a clear departure from the religion. What do we have to do with the heart or what is in the heart? We judge based on the statement and say it is the same, whether judging by the law or by the Shari'ah. Do we intend to settle disputes between people?
Whether we judge by this or that, we say this is true disbelief. We do not go to the King, nor do we care about the statement: is he a believer or a denier? We judge based on the statement. Our position is what appears to us, like the one who prostrates to a grave or calls upon other than Allah. We say he is a disbeliever, and we do not go searching for his heart. That is not our concern. We judge based on the external indicators, while the hearts are a matter for Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He). So, if one explicitly states that judging by other than what Allah has revealed is permissible, he is a disbeliever, and no one doubts it; it is disbelief that expels one from the religion. Or if he says it is the same, he is a disbeliever, a disbelief that expels one from the religion, and it is not a condition.
Source
شرح الكافية الشافية في الانتصار للفرقة الناجية [ القصيدة النونية ] [ صالح الفوزان ]، فصل : في نكتة بديعة تبين ميراث الملقبين والملقبين من المشركين والموحدين — islamhouse.com (1:09:33)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.