The Impact of the Proliferation of Modern Writings on the Care Given to the Books of the Salaf

Question:
Your Eminence the Shaykh, in recent times there has been a proliferation of writings, and the libraries are overflowing with them. These are works dealing with the Islamic Shari'ah. Does Your Eminence think that they have an impact in distracting people from the previous writings of the scholars of Islam? And what is your guidance (may Allah preserve you) regarding them?

Answer:
The writings contain both the worthless and the valuable, whether old or new. So the advice for the student of knowledge is to focus on the books of the righteous Salaf, and on those who followed their path in clarifying the methodology of the righteous Salaf, and in directing students to the Salafi creed, and to the understanding of the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). As for the other books that may deal with other matters, one should not be pleased with them; rather, the student of knowledge should focus on the books of the Salaf and those who followed their path, which concern the Book and the Sunnah, and explain what the Salaf of the Ummah practiced, and clarify the stronger opinion among disputed views with evidence. These are the ones whose books should be focused on, whether they are hadith scholars or early scholars. As for the other books that deal with something else, one should turn away from them so that they do not distract from what is more important.