The preoccupation of those who are not qualified for da'wah with da'wah, and considering the interest of da'wah.

The questioner : ... .

The Shaykh : How?

The questioner: I think.

Another questioner : ... .

The Shaykh: Yes, the issue is close.

Another questioner: Yes.
...

The Shaykh: In this issue, there is a degree of precision. I believe that the current perspective of the present age is the preoccupation of those who are not qualified for da'wah with da'wah. And we did not stop there; we also said that there are female da'iyah—also—who know only a little of Islam. This term, whether it applies to males or females, has become a fitnah (trial, discord or temptation); because if a person lives with the meaning of "standing" in his mind, he is affected by this meaning throughout his life. This reminds me of a joke I read in one of the books of literature about Ash'ab al-Ta'ib (Ash'ab the greedy one). He wanted to tease the children on the road one day, so he said to them: "Look at this palace, there is..." The children ran, and he saw their lie, so he ran with them. He was asked: "How can you run with them when you lied to them?" He said: "Perhaps it is true." So it is that some people who call themselves da'iyah, let alone those who call themselves da'iyah, assume that it is true that they are in a position that deserves this name. They get involved, and they also get involved, and they speak about Islam without knowledge. Of this kind is leaving some of the rulings of the Shari'ah in the name of the interest of da'wah. I cannot deny that this statement has a basis, but who is able to apply it? Are these da'iyah who it is correct to say are a name without a referent? As for the scholar who is firmly established, first in his knowledge, and second in his religion which ties him to the taqwa (mindfulness of Allah) of his Lord; he does not show off and does not boast, but rather he truly wants to realize the interest of da'wah. And this interest, if it is given its due weight and placed in its proper place, the people of hadith are the most deserving of it. I do not say the people of fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence); rather, the people of hadith; because they are, in reality, the people of fiqh. And I cannot imagine a faqih (a jurist) who is not a muhaddith, although I can imagine a muhaddith who is not a faqih. As for a faqih who is not a muhaddith, that is almost non-existent. So the people of hadith are more knowledgeable about this rule, but it must be placed in its proper place, and that is something only the people of knowledge can do. Imam al-Bukhari excelled in his "Sahih" with a chapter—its meaning, if not its wording—saying: "Chapter on what not every hadith should be narrated to the general public." Then he narrated under this chapter the hadith of Mu'adh ibn Jabal (may Allah be pleased with him), in which it is mentioned that he was riding behind the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and he said: . He said: "At your service, O Messenger of Allah," three times. Then he said (peace be upon him): . The narrator of the hadith about Mu'adh said: So Mu'adh did not narrate this hadith until his death out of caution.
This is considering the interest of da'wah. But where is one like Mu'adh in knowledge, understanding, righteousness, and taqwa (mindfulness of Allah)? Others besides Mu'adh also followed this path. There is in "Sahih Muslim" from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that when his death approached, he said: "Were it not for a verse in the Book of Allah, I would not have narrated to you." Then he recited His saying (Glorified and Exalted is He): to the end of the verse. I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say: . Muslim also narrated a similar hadith and this meaning, stopping at 'Abadah ibn al-Samit. So from here, the da'iyah should truly consider the position of the people, and note that not every ruling and every hadith is narrated to them; they may fall into a problem that the hadith did not revolve around, but rather it intended to establish a correct belief. If the people misunderstand it, then at that time, either the people are narrated this hadith with the reasons for detailing it, or attention is diverted from narrating it.
This is what I have as an answer to that question.

The questioner: The hadith of 'A'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) ... : .

The Shaykh: Yes, this is correct. From this hadith, it is taken that if the maslahah (public benefit) conflicts with the mafsadah (harm), and the mafsadah outweighs the maslahah, the maslahah is postponed to avoid the mafsadah. There is no doubt that this is one of the rules of Islam. But as we said, one who has no knowledge of Islam should not get involved with it. Most da'iyah today, first, it has become a job, and most of them have not studied Islam extensively. If they had spoken within the limits of what they learned and stopped at their limits, there would have been nothing but good in that. But we see that this da'wah you asked about came from people who have no knowledge; I mean they have no knowledge, meaning they do not have mature fiqhi (jurisprudential) knowledge based on the Sunnah. And an example in your country, by mentioning it... now, is al-Ghazali.