A discussion between Shaykh al-Albani and al-Halabi regarding the attribution of a phrase
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Al-Halabi: Peace be upon you.
The Shaykh : And upon you be peace and the mercy of Allah.
Al-Halabi: Here, my Shaykh, I am saying here, "And there is no difference in acting upon a hadith in rulings or in virtues, for all of it is Shari'ah."
The Shaykh: Okay, what edition do you have?
Al-Halabi: I have the edition from al-Maktabah al-Salim al-Hadithah.
The Shaykh: It is the same one I have. Get the second edition.
Al-Halabi: The second edition.
The Shaykh : Yes.
Al-Halabi: Yes, just a moment. I haven't found it yet, my Shaykh, but I remembered something.
The Shaykh: Go ahead.
Al-Halabi: That the second edition, I can say, is ninety-nine percent taken from the first edition, which is this one in our hands.
The Shaykh: As for this one, it is not the first edition.
Al-Halabi: I do not mean that this is the first edition, because the brother who edited it is an Egyptian brother whom I met in Egypt when I traveled there about five years ago.
The Shaykh : Yes.
Al-Halabi: His work was on this one, except that, of course, if he found something new and edited it based on a manuscript or something like that, then I will search again and call you, if Allah wills.
The Shaykh: May Allah reward you with good. I want to draw your attention to the fact that I had in Damascus an edition different from this one.
Al-Halabi: Yes.
The Shaykh: And it is shorter in size than this one by about a centimeter.
Al-Halabi : Yes.
The Shaykh: Then its paper is bright white.
Al-Halabi: Subhan Allah.
The Shaykh: As for this one, perhaps the one you have is like the one I have, brownish.
Al-Halabi: Correct.
The Shaykh: Ah, so this is not the first edition.
Al-Halabi : Yes.
The Shaykh: I do not remember now who started printing the first edition.
Al-Halabi : Yes.
The Shaykh: So the important thing is that I do not remember if this phrase was present in that edition. I doubted it, so it is our concern to obtain a manuscript if there is one.
Al-Halabi: No, by Allah, I do not have a manuscript, my Shaykh.
The Shaykh : There is none.
Al-Halabi : No, by Allah.
The Shaykh: Okay, regarding al-Shawkani's phrase, in which book?
Al-Halabi: Just a moment, it is close to me.
The Shaykh: Yes.
Al-Halabi: Just a moment, my Shaykh, peace be upon you.
The Shaykh: And upon you peace.
Al-Halabi: It is in the book *al-Ghamam 'ala Shifa' al-'Awam*, my Shaykh. But as I mentioned to you, it is a manuscript, and I think the brother who quoted this word from it quoted it from the manuscript or indirectly, but I do not know it.
The Shaykh: Yes, yes, you remember well that I quoted al-Shawkani's opinion in some articles I was writing, and you reminded me of it. Even though he has an explicit phrase, it is abhorred, if we are to be frank, by my non-Arabness.
Al-Halabi : Yes.
The Shaykh: Because he says that the legal rulings are equal in stature.
Al-Halabi : Yes, that is correct.
The Shaykh: Do you remember this phrase?
Al-Halabi: Perfect, by Allah, it is the same phrase here.
The Shaykh: So I quoted this one, but I do not know if I quoted it from *Nayl al-Awtar* or from something else; I no longer remember.
Al-Halabi: By Allah, my Shaykh, it is the same thing, "equal in stature," but of course within a long discussion of about two and a half pages.
The Shaykh: So, in the future, if Allah wills, I will look for where I quoted this phrase. It may be that the same phrase is found in more than one source for the author.
Al-Halabi: Yes, my Shaykh, but the phrase you are referring to in your quotation, I think, is two lines.
The Shaykh: Yes.
Al-Halabi: One and a half lines, small, I mean.
The Shaykh: Correct.
Al-Halabi: But this one, what Allah willed, is about two pages or more.
The Shaykh: Okay, in any case, as I said, the research will continue.
Al-Halabi: May Allah make it easy.
The Shaykh : May Allah reward you with good.
Al-Halabi : May Allah preserve you, O our professor.
The Shaykh: Peace be upon you.
Al-Halabi : And upon you be peace, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
The student: My Shaykh, it seems it is in... Allah knows best, in the first volume.
The Shaykh : What?
The student: The word I mentioned a moment ago.
The Shaykh: No, we... it is quoted in my copy, but we are concerned about the two pages I am talking about, oh Allah.
The Shaykh : And peace be upon you.
The student : How are you, our Shaykh.
The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah, I am well.
The student : May Allah bless you.
The Shaykh : May Allah preserve you.
The student: How is your health? Are you well?
The Shaykh: We praise Him—Blessed and Exalted is He—constantly.
The student : Praise be to Allah.
The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah.
The student: We are your brothers, students of knowledge from Yemen, who came to visit you specifically, my Shaykh.
The Shaykh: As for your coming to visit specifically.
The student: Yes.
The Shaykh: It should have been that before you moved.
The student : Yes.
The Shaykh: You should have inquired about my circumstances.
The student : Yes.
The Shaykh: Are we ready to receive you or not?
The student: We actually received news through Shaykh Mashhur.
The Shaykh: And why not through Shaykh Mashhur's Shaykh?
The student : Yes.
The Shaykh: And why was it not directly with us?
The student: Perhaps you are always busy, my Shaykh, may Allah bless you.
The Shaykh: And now we are not busy, and you are talking to us.
The student: Yes, you are busy, but in any case, we are submissive to what you order.
The Shaykh: No, I am saying for your benefit, if you came from Yemen for the sake of visiting me.
The student : Yes.
The Shaykh: Then your journey was wasted.
The student : Yes.
The Shaykh: I am saying for your sake.
The student : Yes.
The Shaykh: And I am not ready to receive every visitor with good.
The student : May Allah reward you with good, O Shaykh.
The Shaykh: And in any case, the meeting will be on Friday if you remain at the Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi Mosque.
The student: At the Salah al-Din mosque.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The student: In the evening, or.
The Shaykh: No, no, on Friday.
The student: In the evening, ah.
The Shaykh: On Friday after the prayer.
The student: Okay, may Allah reward you with good, my Shaykh.
The Shaykh : And may Allah protect you, if Allah wills.
The student: I ask Allah to make us and you successful in His obedience.
The Shaykh : May Allah grant that, O Lord of the worlds.
The student: Peace be upon you.
The Shaykh : And upon you be peace, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
The Shaykh : And upon you be peace and the mercy of Allah.
Al-Halabi: Here, my Shaykh, I am saying here, "And there is no difference in acting upon a hadith in rulings or in virtues, for all of it is Shari'ah."
The Shaykh: Okay, what edition do you have?
Al-Halabi: I have the edition from al-Maktabah al-Salim al-Hadithah.
The Shaykh: It is the same one I have. Get the second edition.
Al-Halabi: The second edition.
The Shaykh : Yes.
Al-Halabi: Yes, just a moment. I haven't found it yet, my Shaykh, but I remembered something.
The Shaykh: Go ahead.
Al-Halabi: That the second edition, I can say, is ninety-nine percent taken from the first edition, which is this one in our hands.
The Shaykh: As for this one, it is not the first edition.
Al-Halabi: I do not mean that this is the first edition, because the brother who edited it is an Egyptian brother whom I met in Egypt when I traveled there about five years ago.
The Shaykh : Yes.
Al-Halabi: His work was on this one, except that, of course, if he found something new and edited it based on a manuscript or something like that, then I will search again and call you, if Allah wills.
The Shaykh: May Allah reward you with good. I want to draw your attention to the fact that I had in Damascus an edition different from this one.
Al-Halabi: Yes.
The Shaykh: And it is shorter in size than this one by about a centimeter.
Al-Halabi : Yes.
The Shaykh: Then its paper is bright white.
Al-Halabi: Subhan Allah.
The Shaykh: As for this one, perhaps the one you have is like the one I have, brownish.
Al-Halabi: Correct.
The Shaykh: Ah, so this is not the first edition.
Al-Halabi : Yes.
The Shaykh: I do not remember now who started printing the first edition.
Al-Halabi : Yes.
The Shaykh: So the important thing is that I do not remember if this phrase was present in that edition. I doubted it, so it is our concern to obtain a manuscript if there is one.
Al-Halabi: No, by Allah, I do not have a manuscript, my Shaykh.
The Shaykh : There is none.
Al-Halabi : No, by Allah.
The Shaykh: Okay, regarding al-Shawkani's phrase, in which book?
Al-Halabi: Just a moment, it is close to me.
The Shaykh: Yes.
Al-Halabi: Just a moment, my Shaykh, peace be upon you.
The Shaykh: And upon you peace.
Al-Halabi: It is in the book *al-Ghamam 'ala Shifa' al-'Awam*, my Shaykh. But as I mentioned to you, it is a manuscript, and I think the brother who quoted this word from it quoted it from the manuscript or indirectly, but I do not know it.
The Shaykh: Yes, yes, you remember well that I quoted al-Shawkani's opinion in some articles I was writing, and you reminded me of it. Even though he has an explicit phrase, it is abhorred, if we are to be frank, by my non-Arabness.
Al-Halabi : Yes.
The Shaykh: Because he says that the legal rulings are equal in stature.
Al-Halabi : Yes, that is correct.
The Shaykh: Do you remember this phrase?
Al-Halabi: Perfect, by Allah, it is the same phrase here.
The Shaykh: So I quoted this one, but I do not know if I quoted it from *Nayl al-Awtar* or from something else; I no longer remember.
Al-Halabi: By Allah, my Shaykh, it is the same thing, "equal in stature," but of course within a long discussion of about two and a half pages.
The Shaykh: So, in the future, if Allah wills, I will look for where I quoted this phrase. It may be that the same phrase is found in more than one source for the author.
Al-Halabi: Yes, my Shaykh, but the phrase you are referring to in your quotation, I think, is two lines.
The Shaykh: Yes.
Al-Halabi: One and a half lines, small, I mean.
The Shaykh: Correct.
Al-Halabi: But this one, what Allah willed, is about two pages or more.
The Shaykh: Okay, in any case, as I said, the research will continue.
Al-Halabi: May Allah make it easy.
The Shaykh : May Allah reward you with good.
Al-Halabi : May Allah preserve you, O our professor.
The Shaykh: Peace be upon you.
Al-Halabi : And upon you be peace, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
The student: My Shaykh, it seems it is in... Allah knows best, in the first volume.
The Shaykh : What?
The student: The word I mentioned a moment ago.
The Shaykh: No, we... it is quoted in my copy, but we are concerned about the two pages I am talking about, oh Allah.
The Shaykh : And peace be upon you.
The student : How are you, our Shaykh.
The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah, I am well.
The student : May Allah bless you.
The Shaykh : May Allah preserve you.
The student: How is your health? Are you well?
The Shaykh: We praise Him—Blessed and Exalted is He—constantly.
The student : Praise be to Allah.
The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah.
The student: We are your brothers, students of knowledge from Yemen, who came to visit you specifically, my Shaykh.
The Shaykh: As for your coming to visit specifically.
The student: Yes.
The Shaykh: It should have been that before you moved.
The student : Yes.
The Shaykh: You should have inquired about my circumstances.
The student : Yes.
The Shaykh: Are we ready to receive you or not?
The student: We actually received news through Shaykh Mashhur.
The Shaykh: And why not through Shaykh Mashhur's Shaykh?
The student : Yes.
The Shaykh: And why was it not directly with us?
The student: Perhaps you are always busy, my Shaykh, may Allah bless you.
The Shaykh: And now we are not busy, and you are talking to us.
The student: Yes, you are busy, but in any case, we are submissive to what you order.
The Shaykh: No, I am saying for your benefit, if you came from Yemen for the sake of visiting me.
The student : Yes.
The Shaykh: Then your journey was wasted.
The student : Yes.
The Shaykh: I am saying for your sake.
The student : Yes.
The Shaykh: And I am not ready to receive every visitor with good.
The student : May Allah reward you with good, O Shaykh.
The Shaykh: And in any case, the meeting will be on Friday if you remain at the Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi Mosque.
The student: At the Salah al-Din mosque.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The student: In the evening, or.
The Shaykh: No, no, on Friday.
The student: In the evening, ah.
The Shaykh: On Friday after the prayer.
The student: Okay, may Allah reward you with good, my Shaykh.
The Shaykh : And may Allah protect you, if Allah wills.
The student: I ask Allah to make us and you successful in His obedience.
The Shaykh : May Allah grant that, O Lord of the worlds.
The student: Peace be upon you.
The Shaykh : And upon you be peace, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.