A Guiding Address to Steer the Course of the Islamic Awakening
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It is observed, and praise be to Allah, that in recent times the people of the awakening have increased and it has spread in this land, praise be to Allah. However, we observe that many of the youths who commit themselves to the religion reach a certain level of commitment and then stop there, remaining at a weak and fragile level of commitment. With the spread of this phenomenon, there has become a superficiality in commitment, with numbers increasing without results. What is your opinion on the causes that led to this, and the cure?
The reality is that the awakening, praise be to Allah, has spread in these lands and elsewhere. But the awakening is accompanied by a strong impulse driven by religious emotion. Then the person rushes to reach the peak and then falls back. Matters require patience, because intense rushing is like pulling a rope with great force, which is likely to snap. But with slowness and deliberation, the person becomes steady.
So this awakening, in fact, requires wise leadership that has knowledge of the Shari'ah of Allah, and wisdom in dealing with situations and providing proper guidance.
It is possible for the youths in every country to turn to one who possesses these conditions: First: knowledge of the Shari'ah.
The second: Wisdom in conduct.
The third: Wisdom.
If this is achieved, it is good.
Also, it is necessary for the leaders of the youths in every country where the awakening exists to have meetings and discussions on matters, either in Makkah by performing 'Umrah, or in Madinah, or in any country they wish. But the easiest and best thing is in Makkah and Madinah, so that they may discuss the conditions of the youths and guide them properly, so that they do not scatter here and there.
Also, this lethargy that sometimes overtakes a person is a known matter, even in the time of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them). The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would admonish them and speak to them until they were as if they saw the Hereath with their own eyes. But when they went to their families and mingled with women and children, negligence occurred among them. So they complained of this to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), and he said to them: (A time and a time).
So faith in the hearts is like the waves of the sea; sometimes it is calm and sometimes it surges. And Satan is also a lurking enemy,As Allah said about him that he said: [Al-A'raf: 16-17],And he was unable to say: and from above them; because above them is Allah (Mighty and Majestic), so he attacks whenever he finds an opportunity to attack.
And the strange thing is that he attacks in a way that a person may not be aware of. If he sees in a person a holding fast to the religion, he attacks him from the side of extremism, or from the side of obsessive thoughts, until this illness befalls him and he does not perform the acts of worship. Some people, due to the intensity of the obsessive thoughts they see, become unable to pray, may Allah grant us safety, and they are unable to do so. They nearly faint and die when they want to pray. And if Satan sees in a person negligence, he causes him to fail further until he slips out of the religion without realizing it.
And in summary: I see that this awakening should be built on a foundation of knowledge of the Shari'ah, and knowledge of conduct, and how a person should act; because for every situation there is a proper statement.
Look at this example: If your son committed a sin, and your Shaykh committed a sin, would you rebuke your Shaykh as you rebuke your son?Answer: No.
Your son, you shout at him, you reprimand him, you hit him, and you do not care.
But would you, for example, shout at your Shaykh or reprimand him? Never.
Rather, you come to him with gentleness,And you say: saying: You did such and such, and I thought it was forbidden.
You say it like this,So you will not say: saying: You did such and such, and you disobeyed Allah. Fear Allah, if this is truly the case.
And there is no harm in a person saying to the most pious of people: Fear Allah, for here is the Lord (Mighty and Majestic) saying to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him): [Al-Ahzab: 1] at the beginning of Surah Al-Ahzab,And in the middle of it he says: [Al-Ahzab: 37]; but for every situation there is a proper statement.
So if you see, for example, a sin from your Shaykh that your son, whom you reprimanded and hit, committed, you cannot treat your Shaykh with such treatment. Rather, you treat him with gentleness and softness that achieves the objective.
Also, from what I pointed out: It is necessary that the youths in every country take a person as a model to follow, and take their methodology from him, and this person should be of a high degree of knowledge and wisdom in conduct.
Then, these who are chosen to lead the youths should have meetings to research and look into the matter of the youths so that they may correct what is crooked among them; because some youths have a very strong emotion, so strong that if there were a door in front of them, they would break it. And perhaps they come to a person and ask him about a matter,And if he is given a ruling other than what he desires, he says: saying: You are an innovator, you do not know, and then they boycott him.
This is not correct. Rather, it is obligatory for the youth to have proper conduct, and if he is given a ruling other than what he sees, he should discuss it.
And it is obligatory for the scholars who issue fatwas to the youths to consider the youth's circumstances, and to address him in a way that draws his love to them, and to explain to him calmly. The youth who has a religious awakening is sufficient for you to say to him: Allah said, and His Messenger said. The youth who is below that level needs, along with the saying of Allah and His Messenger, another proof from reason, which is the rational proof. So much so that some of the youths now do not benefit from the Qur'an and Sunnah, but benefit from reason, and although this is undoubtedly an error;But I say: it is necessary that the Shari'ah proofs be mixed with the deficient faith with a proof from reason so that he is convinced. For this reason, you find the Qur'an full of rational proofs; because it addresses people who do not have from the religion what carries them to accept the truth from the Book and the Sunnah. But if a person has religion, what is in the Book and the Sunnah is sufficient for him.A woman said to A'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her): [Why does the menstruating woman make up the fast but not the prayer?] The menstruating woman does not fast and does not pray; but it is obligatory for her to make up the fast and it is not obligatory for her to make up the prayer.She says: Why? What is the difference? They are all obligatory, they are all from the pillars of Islam. What did A'ishah say?! She said: [It used to happen to us, so we were ordered to make up the fast and not ordered to make up the prayer] So she derived the proof for it from the Shari'ah: we are ordered to do this and not ordered to do this, and since we were not ordered, our conscience is free.
But is this sufficient for one who has deficient faith?Answer: No.
So this one wants the rational proof.
The scholars said in explaining that rationally: Because the fast does not repeat; it comes once in the year. As for the prayer, it repeats. So from the time the woman becomes pure, you find her starting to pray, so this compensates for that. Therefore, the prayer is not made up, and the fast is made up, and this is a clear explanation.
The reality is that the awakening, praise be to Allah, has spread in these lands and elsewhere. But the awakening is accompanied by a strong impulse driven by religious emotion. Then the person rushes to reach the peak and then falls back. Matters require patience, because intense rushing is like pulling a rope with great force, which is likely to snap. But with slowness and deliberation, the person becomes steady.
So this awakening, in fact, requires wise leadership that has knowledge of the Shari'ah of Allah, and wisdom in dealing with situations and providing proper guidance.
It is possible for the youths in every country to turn to one who possesses these conditions: First: knowledge of the Shari'ah.
The second: Wisdom in conduct.
The third: Wisdom.
If this is achieved, it is good.
Also, it is necessary for the leaders of the youths in every country where the awakening exists to have meetings and discussions on matters, either in Makkah by performing 'Umrah, or in Madinah, or in any country they wish. But the easiest and best thing is in Makkah and Madinah, so that they may discuss the conditions of the youths and guide them properly, so that they do not scatter here and there.
Also, this lethargy that sometimes overtakes a person is a known matter, even in the time of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them). The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would admonish them and speak to them until they were as if they saw the Hereath with their own eyes. But when they went to their families and mingled with women and children, negligence occurred among them. So they complained of this to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), and he said to them: (A time and a time).
So faith in the hearts is like the waves of the sea; sometimes it is calm and sometimes it surges. And Satan is also a lurking enemy,As Allah said about him that he said:
Because You have put me in error, I will surely sit in wait for them on Your straight path. (17) Then I will come to them from before them and from behind them and on their right and on their left
فَبِمَا أَغْوَيْتَنِي لَأَقْعُدَنَّ لَهُمْ صِرَاطَكَ الْمُسْتَقِيمَ * ثُمَّ لَآتِيَنَّهُمْ مِنْ بَيْنِ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَمِنْ خَلْفِهِمْ وَعَنْ أَيْمَانِهِمْ وَعَنْ شَمَائِلِهِمْAnd the strange thing is that he attacks in a way that a person may not be aware of. If he sees in a person a holding fast to the religion, he attacks him from the side of extremism, or from the side of obsessive thoughts, until this illness befalls him and he does not perform the acts of worship. Some people, due to the intensity of the obsessive thoughts they see, become unable to pray, may Allah grant us safety, and they are unable to do so. They nearly faint and die when they want to pray. And if Satan sees in a person negligence, he causes him to fail further until he slips out of the religion without realizing it.
And in summary: I see that this awakening should be built on a foundation of knowledge of the Shari'ah, and knowledge of conduct, and how a person should act; because for every situation there is a proper statement.
Look at this example: If your son committed a sin, and your Shaykh committed a sin, would you rebuke your Shaykh as you rebuke your son?Answer: No.
Your son, you shout at him, you reprimand him, you hit him, and you do not care.
But would you, for example, shout at your Shaykh or reprimand him? Never.
Rather, you come to him with gentleness,And you say: saying: You did such and such, and I thought it was forbidden.
You say it like this,So you will not say: saying: You did such and such, and you disobeyed Allah. Fear Allah, if this is truly the case.
And there is no harm in a person saying to the most pious of people: Fear Allah, for here is the Lord (Mighty and Majestic) saying to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him):
O Prophet, fear Allah
يَا أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ اتَّقِ اللَّهَand fear Allah," while you concealed within yourself that which Allah is to disclose
وَاتَّقِ اللَّهَ وَتُخْفِي فِي نَفْسِكَ مَا اللَّهُ مُبْدِيهِSo if you see, for example, a sin from your Shaykh that your son, whom you reprimanded and hit, committed, you cannot treat your Shaykh with such treatment. Rather, you treat him with gentleness and softness that achieves the objective.
Also, from what I pointed out: It is necessary that the youths in every country take a person as a model to follow, and take their methodology from him, and this person should be of a high degree of knowledge and wisdom in conduct.
Then, these who are chosen to lead the youths should have meetings to research and look into the matter of the youths so that they may correct what is crooked among them; because some youths have a very strong emotion, so strong that if there were a door in front of them, they would break it. And perhaps they come to a person and ask him about a matter,And if he is given a ruling other than what he desires, he says: saying: You are an innovator, you do not know, and then they boycott him.
This is not correct. Rather, it is obligatory for the youth to have proper conduct, and if he is given a ruling other than what he sees, he should discuss it.
And it is obligatory for the scholars who issue fatwas to the youths to consider the youth's circumstances, and to address him in a way that draws his love to them, and to explain to him calmly. The youth who has a religious awakening is sufficient for you to say to him: Allah said, and His Messenger said. The youth who is below that level needs, along with the saying of Allah and His Messenger, another proof from reason, which is the rational proof. So much so that some of the youths now do not benefit from the Qur'an and Sunnah, but benefit from reason, and although this is undoubtedly an error;But I say: it is necessary that the Shari'ah proofs be mixed with the deficient faith with a proof from reason so that he is convinced. For this reason, you find the Qur'an full of rational proofs; because it addresses people who do not have from the religion what carries them to accept the truth from the Book and the Sunnah. But if a person has religion, what is in the Book and the Sunnah is sufficient for him.A woman said to A'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her): [Why does the menstruating woman make up the fast but not the prayer?] The menstruating woman does not fast and does not pray; but it is obligatory for her to make up the fast and it is not obligatory for her to make up the prayer.She says: Why? What is the difference? They are all obligatory, they are all from the pillars of Islam. What did A'ishah say?! She said: [It used to happen to us, so we were ordered to make up the fast and not ordered to make up the prayer] So she derived the proof for it from the Shari'ah: we are ordered to do this and not ordered to do this, and since we were not ordered, our conscience is free.
But is this sufficient for one who has deficient faith?Answer: No.
So this one wants the rational proof.
The scholars said in explaining that rationally: Because the fast does not repeat; it comes once in the year. As for the prayer, it repeats. So from the time the woman becomes pure, you find her starting to pray, so this compensates for that. Therefore, the prayer is not made up, and the fast is made up, and this is a clear explanation.