The Shaykh’s relationship with Shu’ayb al-Arna’ut.

The Shaykh : Do you have any news about a meeting where Nizam and Da’bul gathered? Do you have any news?
Al-Halabi : By Allah, I have no one else to tell me; Jamilah told me.

The Shaykh : They opened up with this issue. How is this with Shu’ayb? Because a man from Lebanon came, apparently a prominent figure, especially since the country had become desolate. So he came here, and I do not rule out that his coming was at the request of Zuhayr al-Shawish. He called me on the phone. I am amazed at people’s perceptions; they think that every person... For example, in Saudi Arabia, how many people have I met? Hundreds, if not thousands. You will find, simply, that I do not remember them. No, by Allah, I do not remember you. I am the one who attended your lesson in such-and-such a place. There is no power nor strength except with Allah. By Allah, I apologize. I am an old man, and you... and so on. In any case, this man came from Lebanon, either by chance or by planning from Zuhayr, Allah knows best. He called me. I said, "Peace be upon you," and he said, "And upon you peace." He said, "I am so-and-so." I said, "Welcome. I do not know who so-and-so is. No, by Allah, but his accent is strange." He said, "If possible, I need an appointment to meet with you, and Da’bul and Shu’ayb al-Arna’ut are with me." I said, "I apologize, my time does not allow for it."

The questioner : When did this happen?

The Shaykh : Recently. He came here recently for a period of two weeks, no more. After that, I do not know how Da’bul called Nizam. Then Nizam told me that the group wanted an appointment with you. I said, "I will meet with them after Maghrib until 'Isha'." This was at the end of Ramadan. It was a short session to gauge their intentions. Is it, as they said, a visit for Allah, or is it a prelude to entering into a problem with Zuhayr? If you feel that is the case, let them come after 'Isha', meaning a short session. And if you feel that the issue is not explosive, meaning that my time does not allow for entering into such a discussion that is neither useful nor beneficial, and if they take it as a night session until ten o'clock, I will know that the issue is entering into a heated discussion. Da’bul will say to his brother-in-law Nizam, "We requested from..."The Shaykh : ...to visit, and this is his old friend. He said, "He used to attend my lessons." This Lebanese man used to attend my lessons in Damascus when he was a university student. I did not memorize his name. In any case, yes.
Al-Halabi : Rashid Miqati or something like that?

The Shaykh : By Allah, I do not remember.
Al-Halabi : As for the name Miqati, I remember it perfectly.

The Shaykh : Yes, that is correct.
The point is, why...The Shaykh : ...he did not allow it. He said to him, "My brother, first you need to know..."The Shaykh : ...his circumstances and his time, and so on. Second, he no longer has the willingness to research a topic that mentions Zuhayr al-Shawish and his problems. And he thought that perhaps this has some connection to that topic. Third and finally, what is Shu’ayb al-Arna’ut’s coming to...The Shaykh : ...Al-Albani, when he studied from his books and became prominent through his books, and he is still resentful and envious, and he is still benefiting from his knowledge and stealing from his writings and comments, and he is deaf and dumb, and so on. What was his answer? Did he say to you, "This is Nizam?"
Al-Halabi : I forgot.

The Shaykh : He said, "Professor, or my brother, we have an investigation committee. Did he mention it to you?"
Al-Halabi : Yes.

The Shaykh : An investigation committee. Everyone has a role. The head of the committee is Shu’ayb. One of the members is studying a hadith and its tracing, and he returns to the books of...The Shaykh : ...and naturally, the books of...The Shaykh : ...are a reference for everyone engaged with the Sunnah. So they like a research and they transfer it as it is. Meaning, this is not Shu’ayb’s work; this is the work of the one under him. Yes, but Nizam said to him, "Well, Shu’ayb is the head, whether in form or in reality. It will not come out that perhaps the transfer is correct or not correct, and whether he agrees with it or does not agree with it. This must be reviewed. So your saying that this is not Shu’ayb’s work does not exonerate him. May Allah guide us. Allah is the Helper."
Al-Halabi : This Shu’ayb, in some of his books that... some of the brothers who have it say that he criticizes...The Shaykh : ...after he criticized him, he said, or he answered a criticism from...The Shaykh : ...of him, then he mentioned a challenge from him, saying, "And I challenge...The Shaykh : ...Nasir al-Din al-Albani to sit in a dictation session in the manner of the preservers, and narrate ten hadiths with their chains, and speak about them as al-Hafiz al-'Iraqi, Ibn Hajar, and al-Suyuti did, and so on." So I said, "Subhan Allah, this is a strange thing. By Allah..."The Shaykh : ...Shu’ayb, I mean, I have known him for five years, and I am with him. By Allah, he barely knows the things that ordinary people know. A man’s knowledge, by Allah, is to master the book, and precision and verification are his effort. But in the science of hadith, as a man who has a talent in the science of hadith, this is what I have not felt and what I have not touched, our professor.

The Shaykh : This, or is he a resentful man who transfers, meaning he speaks contradictory words? I do not know. Did you transfer to me, or who transferred to you, that the Saudi state...
Al-Halabi : ...mentioned to me. By Allah, with my own ears, he said, "By Allah, if I were asked who deserves the King Faisal Prize for serving the Sunnah, I would say there is no one but..."The Shaykh : ...Nasir. Who is this al-A'zami? Who is so-and-so and who is so-and-so?The Shaykh : ...Nasir is the only one who deserves this and that. I heard this from him with my own ears.

The questioner : This is Shu’ayb?
Al-Halabi : Yes, with my own ears. And another time, look at the strange contradiction. Meaning, when he confirms the words of...The Shaykh : ...again about his book *Wailakum A'man* of... al-Attar. I have a picture of it from long ago. He says, "Shaykh Shu’ayb, in this, so-and-so. The book writes about..."The Shaykh : ...Look, the author of *Wailakum A'man* said, "They went out." Look, Subhan Allah al-Azim, meaning it is strange, by Allah. Subhan Allah.

The Shaykh : Subhan Allah, yes, how...

The questioner : ...Abd al-Qadir?

The Shaykh : What about him?

The questioner : Like Shu’ayb, or less resentful?

The Shaykh : Less.

The questioner : Less.

The Shaykh : Yes, that is right.
Al-Halabi : Subhan Allah al-Azim, our Shaykh. He once mentioned Shu’ayb. I do not know, by Allah, I liked to verify this, perhaps I had asked you but it went away. He said that for two or three years, he was frequenting you at the Syrian University Mosque, studying or reviewing some hadiths with you, or reading in the science of hadith.

The Shaykh : Shu’ayb?
Al-Halabi : Shu’ayb, between Dhuhr and 'Asr. He said, "For two or three years, and I do this."

The questioner : No, he was in enmity with...The Shaykh : He was in severe enmity.

The Shaykh : Yes, that is right.

The questioner : The days of Abd al-Qadir...

The Shaykh : Yes, that is right.

The questioner : Abd al-Qadir, is his situation better, or not?

The Shaykh : Yes, gentler. Meaning, what is gentler than him?

The questioner : Our Shaykh, this is in mention of...The Shaykh : ...Abd al-Qadir. There is a book written by two Syrians, one is Muhammad Muti' al-Hafiz and another with him named *History of the Scholars of Damascus in the Twentieth Century*. It mentioned a biography of your father, our Shaykh, and it said, quoting from...The Shaykh : ...Abd al-Qadir al-Arna’ut. The biography is for the father of...The Shaykh The Shaykh : ...Nuh and so on. Then it mentioned that it was an oral interview with...The Shaykh : ...Abd al-Qadir al-Arna’ut.

The Shaykh : Meaning, the entire biography was taken from Abd al-Qadir.

The questioner : With him, from his school of thought.
Al-Halabi : The entire biography. So this means, at least, that the man has a type of objectivity, meaning more than Shu’ayb, our professor.

The Shaykh : No, this does not indicate that.

The questioner : In the sense of fame, he is like this now. He says, "If I did this, I would have made his son famous." That Shu’ayb does not do this, not from near or far.

The Shaykh : No, Abd al-Qadir is from Yugoslavia, and Shu’ayb is from some villages in Albania, or specifically the old Turkish capital, Shkodra, where we are. He was in a village. So where is Albania and where is Yugoslavia? There is no kinship.