Completing the previous lecture by explaining and clarifying the meaning of the other testimony, which is: I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.

The Shaykh : In the name of Allah, and may prayers and peace be upon the Messenger of Allah, his family, his Companions, and whoever follows them.
I return to completing my previous lecture before the 'Isha' prayer, and I say:
It has become clear from what has preceded that we, the people who adhere to the Salaf al-Salih, have a special concern for calling Muslims in general to understand the correct tawhid (the oneness of Allah) and to believe in it with firm faith, on the basis that this is the cause of salvation in this world and the Hereafter. We have explained this to a sufficient and adequate extent, if Allah wills.
I add to what has preceded that the testimony "La ilaha illa Allah" is not sufficient, by the consensus of the scholars of Muslims, nor does it compensate for its completion; that is, the testimony to our Prophet (may the prayers and peace of Allah be upon him) with prophethood and messengership. If we assume that a person believes in Allah with correct, firm faith, in the detailed and summarized manner mentioned previously, but does not believe in the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) as a Prophet and Messenger, then that first testimony benefits him in nothing. Therefore, or to confirm what we are saying, it came in "Sahih Muslim" and others from the hadith of Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: ; therefore, this second testimony is the completion of the first testimony by the consensus of all Muslims, and praise be to Allah.
But just as the testimony to Allah (Mighty and Majestic) with oneness has a correct meaning, and this correct meaning must be accompanied by firm faith; so too, the testimony to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he is the Messenger of Allah requires us to be aware of the implications of this testimony. We praise Allah that no misunderstanding has occurred in this second testimony like the misunderstanding that occurred among a group of Muslims regarding the first testimony. However, they have been in a state of severe distraction and negligence regarding the implications of this other testimony, which is that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah. This testimony has implications; if they are absent from the one who testifies with it, perhaps—and I say perhaps—this testimony will not benefit him in anything, or it will benefit him only a very little. This is because the testimony of the truly monotheistic Muslim to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he is the Messenger of Allah necessitates complete submission to what the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) brought. The firm faith of the believer who believes that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah necessitates from this believing believer submission to everything the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) brought. Here, another difference appears between the Salafi Muslims today and other Muslims. This is because the Salafi Muslim is imprinted with this submission, which is a condition of faith in the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), from the softness of his nails, by the explicit text in the Qur'an; that is, His saying (Mighty and Majestic): , .
Today, with great regret, the masses of Muslims are not raised, educated, or disciplined with this great Qur'anic discipline: ; rather, they are on various schools of thought, all of which do not align with this implication of the testimony to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) with messengership. Some of them—and they are the majority—were raised and educated to submit to what the school of thought says. When it is said to them: "Allah said, the Messenger of Allah said," they do not lift their heads for it, due to doubts and Satanic whispers that have no connection to the Islamic Shari'ah. "We do not understand the Qur'an, we do not understand the Sunnah; those who understood have passed away, and they are the Imams." I do not want to enter into the details of these problems and respond to them either; rather, I am making a quick, urgent presentation. So some of them do not submit to the Book and the Sunnah, but rather submit to the school of thought. And worse than that are those who submit to the sheikhs of the Sufi orders, and those—I mean these sheikhs—who raise those they call "murids" (disciples) to say in their lessons and sermons: "Whoever says to his sheikh: 'Why?' will never succeed," and "The murid is in the hands of the sheikh like a dead person in the hands of the washer"; so he turns him however he wishes, and there is no movement from him, as is clear.
The submission that our Lord (Mighty and Majestic) made in the Noble Qur'an a special attribute of our Prophet, the Master of the Messengers, they transferred from him to their sheikhs and to their schools of thought.
I do not miss this opportunity to remind you that there is a fundamental difference between the schools of thought and the Sufi orders. The Imams of the schools of thought, the four of them, are among the great scholars of Muslims and among their scholars, and among those who follow the Book and the Sunnah, although as humans they make mistakes and hit the mark. But they did not raise their followers or compel their adherents to imitate them blindly; rather, they ordered them to take from where they took from the Book and the Sunnah. This is also a point where there is no room for detail now, especially since there are known writings among many of you.
Then, among their followers, there are those who did not reach this blind submission, but their masses are as we described earlier. As for the Sufi orders, there is a report about the evil, and there is no harm in it; they are those who still raise their followers and disciples to this imitation, indeed to this blind submission. Until some of them in Sham—and I think this happens in every time and place—explicitly say before the present masses: "If one of you sees the cross hanging around the neck of his sheikh, it is not permissible for him to disapprove of it, and disapproving of the sheikh is the key to exiting the etiquette of the order; because the order is built on this blind submission." These are a group who submitted either to the narrow sectarianism of the later scholars or to the deviant Sufi orders that stray from the straight path from the sheikhs of the orders. And it is said to these people from the masses of people today, especially from the educated youth who apply their minds to what came from Allah and His Messenger: when you mention to one of them a text from the Book of Allah or a hadith from the hadiths of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), he rushes to say: "This is not reasonable, this contradicts the public interest, this does not fit with the present time," and so on, all expressions that align with the two previous groups in not submitting to the Lord of the Worlds.
This is a widespread affliction among the ranks of Muslims today, and no one addresses these serious matters, all of which align with the other testimony that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, which necessitates submission to everything that came to us from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him); of course, in the manner of the people of hadith; that is, what is authentic from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him).
So this path, which is understanding the testimony with the correct meaning and firm faith, and applying that in the source of the tongue in his life, in that he does not worship except Allah alone, having no partner, and this acknowledgment to the Messenger (peace be upon him) of the messengership, which necessitates firm, sincere faith in everything that came from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) that is authentic from him; this methodology—with great regret—is not followed, not entered, and not walked upon except by those who adhere to the call of the Book and the Sunnah on the methodology of the Salaf al-Salih (may Allah be pleased with them).
As for the masses who are active in Islamic da'wah, they are undoubtedly working for Islam and calling to Islam. However, we see and firmly believe that any call that is not first established on the basis of the correct understanding of the two testimonies, as we have mentioned, even briefly, and on the understanding of Islam according to the methodology of the righteous Salaf, as we have always explained; any call that is not based on this foundation is destined for certain failure. This is because it contradicts the primary principle for which Allah (Mighty and Majestic) sent the messengers and sent down the books, such as His saying (Glorified and Exalted is He): and . This tawhid (the oneness of Allah) necessitates worshipping Allah alone, as we have mentioned, and this testimony to the Messenger regarding his prophethood and messengership necessitates submission to his rulings, and to nothing else—neither to a madhhab (school of jurisprudence), nor to a path, nor to reason. Following these matters contradicts tawhid al-uluhiyyah (oneness of worship) on one hand, and tawhid al-risalah (oneness of the message) on the other. Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, and there is no message with him other than his; so whoever follows a madhhab, or follows a path, or prefers reason... or follows a teacher or guide over what came in the Book and the Sunnah, has not believed with sincere faith in the Book and the Sunnah, nor in Muhammad being the Messenger of Allah.
How is it that Allah revealed to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) in His Book, informing about the People of the Book, specifically the Christians, saying: ? His saying (Glorified and Exalted is He): was not revealed merely as a story about a group of the People of the Book for us to be entertained by, but rather for us to take a lesson from it regarding tawhid (the oneness of Allah) or what contradicts it in the form of shirk (associating partners with Allah). When Allah (Mighty and Majestic) said regarding the Christians: to the end of the verse, the meaning of this, as explained in the tafsirs (exegesis) based on narration and athar (reports from the Companions or successors), is that they used to follow their monks and scholars in what they made lawful and what they made forbidden, because whenever they forbade them something lawful, they forbade it, and whenever they made lawful something forbidden, they made it lawful. The Messenger said: .
There is no difference between a Muslim who testifies that there is no god but Allah and falls into shirk (associating partners with Allah), and another who does not testify that there is no god but Allah and falls into shirk; this is shirk, whether it comes from Zayd, or Muhammad, or Ahmad, from those who claim Islam, or from George, or Antonius, or their like, from those who do not claim Islam. Shirk is shirk. And among this shirk is following the shaykhs (scholars) in what they make lawful and what they make forbidden without a text from the Book of Allah or from the hadith of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). Therefore, the verses and hadiths all encourage the Muslims, always and forever, to submit to the Messenger and to no one else.
This is also a long discussion, and I am only reminding... only of these differences that exist today between those who claim Islam and what they call to.
So, to realize these two testimonies, which are the foundation of Islam, it is obligatory for the Islamic da'wah workers to realize this in the hearts of all the people they are in charge of, and then it does not concern them whether many or few respond to them; because Allah (Mighty and Majestic) addressed His Prophet (peace be upon him) saying: . And the Messenger (may Allah's prayers and blessings be upon him) informed that the nations were presented to him; so he was presented with a prophet and with a group of nine or fewer, and a prophet with one or two men, and a prophet with no one with him. This hadith gives us an important benefit by which we respond to some Muslims who boast to us that their number is large and our number is small, as it came in the poetry:
"They reproach us that our number is few"
Then what?

The questioner : ... .

The Shaykh : "So I said to them: The noble are few"
And then?

The questioner : "And what harm is there to us..."

The Shaykh : "And what harm is there to us that our number is few"

The questioner : "That our visitation is few"

The Shaykh : "And our neighbor is noble, and the neighbor of the many is lowly"
What harm is there to us in this small number? Why? Because of what you heard from the previous hadith: the prophets were presented to the Messenger (peace be upon him) with a group; meaning nine people or fewer, and a group of eighteen or fewer, and a prophet with one or two men, and a prophet with absolutely no one with him. So what does this hadith indicate to us? Does it indicate that that prophet whom no one followed at all, or the prophet above whom a few followed, or the prophet whom a group and a larger group followed, that his call was invalid, or that his method of da'wah was invalid? By no means. It can be said about any da'wah worker who is not a prophet that his call is invalid; this is possible because he is not protected from error, and that his method is not correct and not sound; that can be said because he is not protected from error either. But to say this and that regarding a prophet who was not connected to the revelation from the heavens, that is disbelief in Islam. So why did that prophet who no one believed in not succeed, or why did the followers of those prophets not increase, but were few?
That is because the land was not suitable, whereas the fruit was good fruit; because it was revelation from the heavens. So if it is said: The Salafi da'wah has passed a certain amount of time and the people belonging to it are few, while another da'wah has many followers; we do not take the criterion in our da'wah to be reaching the truth by the number of followers, whether large or small; no, this is not a criterion for Islam at all. Therefore, we insist on calling these millions of Muslims to follow the Book and the Sunnah; and especially to understand the two testimonies as we have explained the correct understanding, and then to make that our methodology in our lives; in our private lives first of all, and then in our public lives. If we follow this path, we are certain that Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He) will support us, even if after a while; because the support of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) is not within the capacity of humans to determine by time. And among the ignorance of some people who claim that they call to Islam is that they predict that the Rightly Guided Caliphate will be established after so many years, after five years, after ten years, after nine years; we have heard something of this, and this is ignorance of Islam in a dangerous place. And they see that the Muslims today are as the Messenger (peace be upon him) described them with the most eloquent and truest description when he said: . They said: Are we few at that time, O Messenger of Allah? He said: Eight hundred million Muslims!! . They said: And what is the weakness, O Messenger of Allah? He said: .
We and they see this weakness has taken control of the masses of Muslims, in addition to the radical deviations in the understanding of Islam in the two testimonies as previously explained. Despite all this, some of us believe that the state of Islam will be established after five years. Far be it from what you are promised. Therefore, the truth is that it is obligatory for us to start by understanding Islam and applying it in ourselves, then in our children, then in our neighbors, and those around us, and so on until the correct Islam spreads. And this spread will have as one of its effects the existence of the mass that many Islamic da'wah workers strive to gather and form and make a reality, but it will be a structure and image without a heart and without the knowledge that we seek and sing about.
So the issue is not an issue of a gathering based on a large number, but rather it is like the foam of the flood in knowledge, action, and morals.
Therefore, I agree with a saying often attributed to one of the Islamic preachers of the present era. Out of my admiration for it, I say: it is as if it were inspired from the heavens, and it is undoubtedly a profound wisdom. It is the saying: "Establish the state of Islam in your hearts, and it will be established for you in your land." This is among the most beautiful words we hear in this time, and its meaning is great and very great, because it necessitates two things. I say that these two are the foundation of the reform that Islamic preachers must build upon: the two words "purification and education." This noble man who says, "Establish the state of Islam in your hearts"—Islam today has many concepts. If we go back to ancient history and its aftermath, which we find today in the studies at al-Azhar and elsewhere, and if we go back to the past centuries, we find that Islam has dozens of concepts in creed, let alone in worship and legal rulings.
And today, as well, we still live in this much and very much disagreement, whose effects appear in the mosques, in the homes, in the clubs, and the like. So when this person says, "Establish the state of Islam," is it with one concept, the concept that was upon the righteous Salaf as we claim, or with any concept, even if it is a concept deviating from the Book and the Sunnah? I do not think, and I do not suppose, that a Muslim with a decent culture in the Islamic Shari'ah would answer: "With any Islam." I do not think anyone would say this. Rather, he would say: "Islam drawn from the Book and the Sunnah," and this is what we profess to Allah. So where are the Islamic preachers who call upon the eight hundred million Muslims on the face of the earth, who are scattered in these distant regions and countries, and scattered among these millions, all calling Muslims to return to the understanding of the Book and the Sunnah with a correct understanding, and upon the methodology of the righteous Salaf? There are only a few individuals who are lost, and their voices are lost in the midst of this vast sea of the large number.
On the contrary, we hear cries everywhere saying: "The Muslims did not lag behind, nor were they humiliated, nor were they disgraced, except because they abandoned acting upon the Book and the Sunnah." This is a true statement. But who are the ones who understand the Book and the Sunnah? And where is the guidance of the Book and the Sunnah? The Book and the Sunnah must be a tangible reality in the lives of the Muslims.
A man told me recently, less than a week ago, that he traveled to South Africa and went to an Islamic village... after the Muslims from India or Pakistan—I am doubtful. He said: "So I and my wife went to visit them and to get to know them and to look into their conditions. He said: 'I saw something amazing. I saw what I have not seen in the entire Islamic world. I saw an Islamic life that reminds us of the life of the righteous Salaf. You walk in the streets and you do not see a woman displaying her adornment. You walk in the streets—and no blame on our young men who say they shave their beards—you do not find a young man there who is shaven. You find the young adolescent has begun... and he has not touched his beard with anything. He was ashamed, he said, he is my friend who is telling me, from those who grew up in these societies that do not live an Islamic life. So he is not only shaven of the beard, but also shaven of the mustache. We return and say: We are here, and we hide from the police and the intelligence from these excuses for which Allah has not sent down any authority. He said: 'So when I saw this pleasing Islamic appearance, I was ashamed of myself. I said: How is this? We live in Islamic lands, and they live in polytheistic lands?! But there, the rulers seem to have, until now—and we do not hope this will continue—freedom, what they call democracy. Everyone is on his religion, may Allah help him! These Muslims want to live a private life, and they allowed them to do so. I also spoke with my wife. His wife, he says, is veiled. But with what kind of hijab? The Syrian hijab, which tries to please the religion on one hand, and to please this reality and the sweeping current on the other. So she is veiled, but what is her hijab? What they call the scarf. Perhaps less than that, her forelock seems to be... the head and hair. Something of the neck may be visible. And her garment reaches to the middle of the calves, so the lower half is visible, even if it is covered by a stocking, and so on. He said: 'So I was very pleased with this Islamic appearance that these Muslims live in a land that does not rule by what Allah has revealed, but because of the freedom given to individuals there...'"
... ...
"...I am telling you this as an appearance that is certainly pleasing, but I do not rule out—and here is the lesson for whoever takes heed—that these Muslims, for example, might be from the Qadiani sect, and they are not. So what does this phenomenon benefit if the creed is in ruins? Nothing. This sect is from the people of the Sunnah, but are they from the people of the Sunnah upon the methodology of the righteous Salaf? No, they are upon a specific school of jurisprudence. So if these people had combined the application of the outward Islam with the correct Islamic creed that we are talking about, we would have considered them a model of the Islamic state. And this would be an implementation of the command of that reformer when he said: 'Establish the state of Islam in your hearts.'"
So we are now living, and in the home of each of us, where the ruling systems today, which are unjust and impose a system that contradicts the Book and the Sunnah, have not reached; yet until now—and we hope this will continue—they have not interfered in our internal affairs. How do I live in my home? How do I live with my son in the home? Yet today, you do not find the Muslim home except very rarely. Why? For two reasons. First: We have not achieved purification. Second: We have not achieved education. Meaning: Our fathers, whom we succeeded after them, we came after them, and they did not raise us with this education. So if they fell short—and whoever sees the lesson in others, let him take heed—it is upon us then to achieve the understanding of Islam with a correct understanding, and to apply it to the extent that we are able. If we were all trying, each in his own way, to establish the Muslim state, and this requires—as they say in our Syria—shaking the shoulders. Establishing the Muslim state is an easy word, but it requires great and very great things. It is not only organization and clustering without a foundation. Before all this, we need the correct understanding and the correct application to the extent that we can, and no one prevents us from it. As for establishing the Muslim state, all the states of the world are against us, but no one is against us in our homes. So why do we leave the realization of the state in our small, humble homes, and then we call out and declare that we want to establish the Muslim state, despite the tyrants, the oppressors, the disbelievers, and all of them?! This is, in reality, a fallacy from the ways of Satan in his misguidance of the children of Adam, to occupy him with the realization of a very, very beautiful dream, but without reaching it, the stumbling blocks and the twisting of the flax, as they say. He distracts him thereby from realizing what is within his reach and his ability, to realize it himself in his family and his children.
Therefore, I return and say: This word hit the mark, as they say, in treating the problem of the Islamic world today when it said: "Establish the state of Islam in your hearts, and it will be established for you in your land." And establishing the Muslim state, as I said, requires above all that a group of people cluster upon the understanding of Islam with a correct understanding, and upon the education of these people for themselves, their children, their families, and their followers with them upon this foundation. Then after that, the victory of Allah comes .
Perhaps I have been able to clarify the difference between the Salafi Muslims and others. There is no doubt that a talk like this allows for expansion in many of its paragraphs and sentences, but it is not possible to do more than what is feasible given the current time. Therefore, I will now leave this talk to answer some of the questions that our brothers may have, and praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds.