The Ruling on Attributing Fatwas to Those Who Did Not Issue Them
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Many people attribute certain statements to certain scholars, and if that scholar is one whose words are accepted among the people,So one of them said: it is permissible for a person to watch a match on television where the men’s thighs are visible, and he says: So-and-so the scholar said that. What is the position of the person who stirs up talk about the scholars?
This issue, as you have mentioned, occurs frequently among some people for multiple reasons.But first: We advise anyone who hears something from any of the scholars that he disapproves of,It is obligatory to contact the scholar and say: to say: I have heard that you said such and such, is this true or not?! Either it is true, in which case he says: If he says: Yes, I said that, then the discussion takes place between the questioner and the scholar.Or he says: If he says: This is a lie, I did not say it,When he says: then the one who heard this statement from a person, which the scholar denied, should contact the one who transmitted this statement from the scholar.And he says: He should say: I asked him and he denied it, so that it is not spread among the people. Also, he should clarify to the one who transmitted it from the scholar that this is not correct. As for if it is true and he discussed it, then the truth of what the scholar says will become clear to the one discussing it.
Second: As for those who transmit from scholars whose fatwas are accepted and whom the people trust,These people are divided into categories: some of them have bad intentions; they want to mislead the people and find no way except to attribute this statement to a scholar that the people approve of, so it is spread as being from so-and-so the scholar.For example, he says: For example, someone says that it is not obligatory for a woman to cover her face from non-mahram men, so he spreads it because he wants the woman not to cover her face.But if he said: Or he says: I said it, or so-and-so who is not trustworthy said it, so he attributes it to a scholar whose words are accepted, and the goal of this transmitter from the scholar is to establish the statement.
Second: Or his goal is bad regarding the scholar to whom the statement is attributed, so that he tarnishes his reputation among the people.And he says: He says: This scholar says such and such, how can he be believed? How can his words be trusted? And the like of that. It is known that if people see a strange and reprehensible statement, their trust in this scholar will drop.
So this transmitter from the scholar,Either his intention is in the first manner: either establishes the bad statement he wants, or his intention is to tarnish the scholar’s reputation so that people do not trust him.
Third: A person may transmit a statement from a scholar whose knowledge is trusted, but this transmitter made a mistake in presenting the question to the scholar. He presented the question in a way that the scholar understood from it something other than what this questioner intended, because he did not express himself well, for example. It is known that the scholar will issue a fatwa based on what he heard.By the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): (I only judge according to what I hear) So the person transmits from this scholar incorrectly based on his question, where he presented it to the scholar in an unsound manner.
Fourth: Or he presents the question to the scholar and the scholar answers according to the question, but the transmitter misunderstands the answer. So the mistake is in the questioner’s understanding, not in his presentation of the question, but rather the mistake is in his understanding of the answer. He transmits the answer from the scholar according to what he understood, and thus the error occurs.
So these are four things, all of which are causes of transmission from scholars.
And for this reason I told you at the beginning: If a person transmits a statement from a scholar whose knowledge is trusted that a person disapproves of, it is obligatory to contact this scholar and clarify things with him.
This issue, as you have mentioned, occurs frequently among some people for multiple reasons.But first: We advise anyone who hears something from any of the scholars that he disapproves of,It is obligatory to contact the scholar and say: to say: I have heard that you said such and such, is this true or not?! Either it is true, in which case he says: If he says: Yes, I said that, then the discussion takes place between the questioner and the scholar.Or he says: If he says: This is a lie, I did not say it,When he says: then the one who heard this statement from a person, which the scholar denied, should contact the one who transmitted this statement from the scholar.And he says: He should say: I asked him and he denied it, so that it is not spread among the people. Also, he should clarify to the one who transmitted it from the scholar that this is not correct. As for if it is true and he discussed it, then the truth of what the scholar says will become clear to the one discussing it.
Second: As for those who transmit from scholars whose fatwas are accepted and whom the people trust,These people are divided into categories: some of them have bad intentions; they want to mislead the people and find no way except to attribute this statement to a scholar that the people approve of, so it is spread as being from so-and-so the scholar.For example, he says: For example, someone says that it is not obligatory for a woman to cover her face from non-mahram men, so he spreads it because he wants the woman not to cover her face.But if he said: Or he says: I said it, or so-and-so who is not trustworthy said it, so he attributes it to a scholar whose words are accepted, and the goal of this transmitter from the scholar is to establish the statement.
Second: Or his goal is bad regarding the scholar to whom the statement is attributed, so that he tarnishes his reputation among the people.And he says: He says: This scholar says such and such, how can he be believed? How can his words be trusted? And the like of that. It is known that if people see a strange and reprehensible statement, their trust in this scholar will drop.
So this transmitter from the scholar,Either his intention is in the first manner: either establishes the bad statement he wants, or his intention is to tarnish the scholar’s reputation so that people do not trust him.
Third: A person may transmit a statement from a scholar whose knowledge is trusted, but this transmitter made a mistake in presenting the question to the scholar. He presented the question in a way that the scholar understood from it something other than what this questioner intended, because he did not express himself well, for example. It is known that the scholar will issue a fatwa based on what he heard.By the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): (I only judge according to what I hear) So the person transmits from this scholar incorrectly based on his question, where he presented it to the scholar in an unsound manner.
Fourth: Or he presents the question to the scholar and the scholar answers according to the question, but the transmitter misunderstands the answer. So the mistake is in the questioner’s understanding, not in his presentation of the question, but rather the mistake is in his understanding of the answer. He transmits the answer from the scholar according to what he understood, and thus the error occurs.
So these are four things, all of which are causes of transmission from scholars.
And for this reason I told you at the beginning: If a person transmits a statement from a scholar whose knowledge is trusted that a person disapproves of, it is obligatory to contact this scholar and clarify things with him.