Some questions answered by Shaykh Ali al-Halabi (may Allah have mercy on him), regarding the Sufis, letting the garment hang below the ankles, whether it is permissible to pray behind him, and describing the beard.

The questioner : Here in the book "Tathir al-Jinan wa al-Arkan," at the beginning of the introduction, it says: "Islam has been under attack ever since its dawn broke," and so on. They say—may Allah forbid it—: "And the most deadly of them, the most vile in propaganda, and the most widespread is the propaganda of the Kharijites, the Quburiyyun, and the invalidating Sufis." Yes, he says.
onAl-Halabi : This is imprecise speech; dividing the Sufis into those who are right and those who are wrong is imprecise. I know this is not the commentator; it is the author himself.

The questioner : No, this is his commentary.
onAl-Halabi : I know, my brother—may Allah guide you—this is the author's own speech, not the speech of an author whose first edition I have, which is before this commentary. The Sufis are originally one, but what does he say? There are people who claim affiliation with the Sufis but are not Sufis in their beliefs; so he seems to be referring to them. But these people should not be, or it is not permissible for them to be, a fundamental basis for dividing the Sufis into two categories: invalidators and those who are right. In that case, there are no Sufis on earth who say: "I am an invalidating Sufi." They all say: "I am a Sufi who is right," and this does not exist in reality.

The questioner : All right; what is the decisive word on this matter?
onAl-Halabi : It is what you heard, so I will not repeat it.

The questioner : Applying the absolute to the restricted, which is the fatwa on letting the garment hang below the ankles; the fatwa on letting the garment hang below the ankles did not go beyond the ankles only.
onAl-Halabi : It is well known, but the statement is incorrect, and the refutation of it is from several angles. The first is that there is a hadith of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in which he says:

The questioner : Is letting the garment hang below the ankles in trousers and the like?
onAl-Halabi : Letting the garment hang below the ankles in the general term; the term is general, whatever it is. Therefore, look at the broader text, it came: , and it has no words of generality; do you see?

The questioner : He applied the absolute hadith to the restricted one in the hadith: ... .
onAl-Halabi : Look at Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him).

The questioner : Is this fatwa incorrect?
onAl-Halabi : It is incorrect, of course = -- and peace be upon you and Allah's mercy -- = Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him), and he is who he is in knowledge and religion = -- and peace be upon you and Allah's mercy, may Allah welcome you, my brother, and peace be upon you and Allah's mercy, may Allah welcome you -- = and he is who he is in knowledge, religion, and precedence in Islam. He feared for himself, so he said: "O Messenger of Allah, am I among them?" He said: . Who said: ? The Messenger, the one guided by revelation, and yet his garment was not hanging below the ankles, but it was loose and he would check it. So in reality, this statement is incorrect. Therefore, here in reality there are two sins: the first sin—may Allah bless you—is the sin of letting the garment hang below the ankles itself, and the second sin is the sin of arrogance. So whoever has one of the two sins commits a sin, and if he has both, he is among those about whom the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: , and he mentioned among them: .

The questioner : And the hadith: ?
onAl-Halabi : This is what I mentioned to you, of course, it is an authentic hadith.

The questioner : All right; is it permissible to pray behind one who lets his garment hang below the ankles?
onAl-Halabi : In terms of validity, it is permissible, without doubt or hesitation, it is valid. As for the hadith: , it is not authentic.

The questioner : Abu Dawud narrated it with a sound chain: .

Another questioner : This is incorrect; this is the statement of al-Nawawi in "Riyad al-Salihin," and in it there is a narrator whose kunya is Abu Ja'far al-Madani, who is unknown, but al-Nawawi did not notice it.

The questioner : Regarding the report of 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar.
onAl-Halabi : Which report?

The questioner : About trimming the beard; we see a hadith in "Sahih Muslim" that his beard was from here to here, and they recognized his (peace and blessings be upon him) recitation.
onAl-Halabi : As for this from here to here, I do not know it.

The questioner : In the abundance ... the abundance.

Another questioner : He had a thick beard.
onAl-Halabi : Yes, a thick beard, this is correct.
-- Another questioner : Peace be upon you.Those present : And upon you be peace and the mercy of Allah --
onAl-Halabi : This is correct, does it necessitate length?

The questioner : Then?
onAl-Halabi : It might be the width, for example ... their beards, may Allah will it, are not the length and width of a fist; this is while we say: the best of guidance is the guidance of Muhammad. Our Shaykh—may Allah reward him with good—says that it is obligatory to take it to the fist, but I myself, with my respect for my Shaykh and my exaltation of him, do not see this obligation.

The questioner : Is 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar interpreting the Hajj, O Shaykh?

Another questioner : Ibn 'Umar and others, not just Ibn 'Umar.