The Shaykh's opinion on Salman al-Oudah, Safer al-Hawali, and Nasser al-Omair.
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The Shaykh : This is our brother Safer, and likewise Salman al-Oudah.
The student: Yes.
The Shaykh : I have always believed, and still do, that there is good in them, but this good is mixed with great evil.
The student : There is no power or might except with Allah. To Allah we belong, and to Him we return.
The Shaykh : This truly reminds us of the many consecutive, and perhaps I would say mass-transmitted, hadiths regarding the Khawarij.
The student : Yes, there is no power or might except with Allah.
The Shaykh : How the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) described them, as in his saying (peace and blessings be upon him):, Sahih Muslim 1068a there is good in them.
The questioner : If Allah wills.
The Shaykh : But this good.
The questioner : Is mixed with evil.
The Shaykh : Great evil.
The questioner : By Allah, the danger they are in now is great.
The Shaykh : And the truth is, I wished that during my consecutive visits.
The questioner : And praise be to Allah, yes.
The Shaykh : To Makkah.
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : For Hajj and 'Umrah, that I would meet these two young men, but it appears they were still young at the time.
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : Then it was not possible for me to go to those lands, so I imagine, and Allah knows best, I imagine if they were given a calm, scholarly session.
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : And a calm, serious one, that their error would become clear to them.
The questioner : May Allah will it, we ask Allah.
The Shaykh : That their error becomes clear to them.
The questioner : We ask Allah.
The Shaykh : For them and many others like them who follow them.
The questioner : O Shaykh, through the youth, is it possible to send them... something specific for them.
The Shaykh : How?
The questioner : Through the youth from Saudi Arabia, from Najd, for example, brother Abu Ibrahim, Abu 'Abdullah, send them something so they might be aware, I mean.
The Shaykh : This requires hours and sessions.
The questioner : Subhan Allah, and something.
The Shaykh : Hours and sessions, because the answers are filled with many doubts, and very many indeed.
The questioner : Yes, but Shaykh, if you allow me now, there is a group from the forum in London, Muhammad Suroor, who is pushing this issue inside Iraq, this matter.
The Shaykh : Is it Muhammad Suroor, apart from these people?
The questioner : Ah, this is the fatigue we suffer, they put out people for declaring others disbelievers, and they come to us.
The Shaykh : Allah is the Helper.
The questioner : They come to us, and by Allah, they tire our hearts, I mean, they are our students, and they want to break free from us, I mean, I want to help them and I fear for them, I mean, I fear for them from the people if they learn that they are declaring others disbelievers...
The student : He first, our Shaykh, may Allah reward him with good, said a good word, if it were possible for us.
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : Allah is the Helper.
The questioner : Allah is the Helper.
The student : If he met them, that would be a good opportunity, because these young men are truly among the best of the youth.
The questioner: Yes.
The student : And among the best of them in character, religion, and knowledge.
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : And our Shaykh testified to that for them in the past, and he has a tape about these two young men.
The questioner: Yes.
The student : But I add and say that the ailment did not come from these people, but rather from other quarters that should have been noticed before it became so.
The questioner : Glory be to Allah.
The student : Because people like Safer, Salman, and Nasser al-Omair, Nasser, you know him.The Shaykh : He came here, yes.
The Shaykh : And he read to me his book, Fiqh al-Waqi' (Jurisprudence of Reality), and I expressed my observations to him.
The student : And he accepted them.
The Shaykh : And he divided the observations into two categories: one category he immediately set about correcting, and one category he promised to look into, and I considered this to be fairness on his part.
The student : Yes, exactly.
The Shaykh : Because he did not act hypocritically.
The student: No, no.
The Shaykh : He did not act hypocritically, and this is part of the perfection of the group, I mean, the truth is that frankness brings about good.
The student : And this will not happen.
The Shaykh : ... the hearts are pure.
The student : I support your words, but.The Shaykh : The other thing is that these young men were subjected to a very harsh attack from some of the other side, those who are said to have, if it is said that these people went to extremes, then those people went to extremes, and the truth is that there was no understanding between the two parties on a principle they could meet on, on one principle or on one methodology, and I truly know, I do not know Safer or Salman, I mean, I have no direct knowledge of them, perhaps I saw Safer once, but I have not seen Salman, but I always praise them for their wisdom in da'wah, and especially Salman, Salman has a book, "The Dialogue," a calm dialogue with al-Ghazali, and perhaps you have read it, our Shaykh, this is considered one of the best books in da'wah, and perhaps you would agree with me in that.
The Shaykh : But there is one observation: he was very soft with the man, and the man needed strength.
The student : True, but our Shaykh, are you not with me in that softness sometimes takes the place of harshness and severity, and vice versa, hehehe, the lesson is in the results, the lesson is in the results, and the result was truly that he toppled the man, so he no longer has the ability to raise his voice before someone like Salman, and this appeared later when he wrote in praise of Safer, and he mentioned matters that should not have been overlooked by him, but al-Ghazali is a man of limited vision, so I say that among the reasons that made this mixture, which became difficult later and became severe between the two parties, I mean, inside the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, this was made by the lack of wisdom in those who were responding to people like Safer and...
The Shaykh: The Messenger of Allah spoke the truth.
The student : (Peace and blessings be upon him).
The Shaykh, and the old Arab proverb says, "You bray and I bray, so how can we agree?"
The student : "So how can we agree?" You have spoken the truth.
The student: Yes.
The Shaykh : I have always believed, and still do, that there is good in them, but this good is mixed with great evil.
The student : There is no power or might except with Allah. To Allah we belong, and to Him we return.
The Shaykh : This truly reminds us of the many consecutive, and perhaps I would say mass-transmitted, hadiths regarding the Khawarij.
The student : Yes, there is no power or might except with Allah.
The Shaykh : How the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) described them, as in his saying (peace and blessings be upon him):
One of you considers his prayer insignificant compared to their prayer, and his worship insignificant compared to their worship, and his fasting.
يحقر أحدكم صلاته مع صلاتهم ، وعبادته مع عبادتهم وصيامهThey would pass clean through their religion just as the arrow passes through the prey.
يمرقون من الدين كما يمرق السَّهم من الرميةThe questioner : If Allah wills.
The Shaykh : But this good.
The questioner : Is mixed with evil.
The Shaykh : Great evil.
The questioner : By Allah, the danger they are in now is great.
The Shaykh : And the truth is, I wished that during my consecutive visits.
The questioner : And praise be to Allah, yes.
The Shaykh : To Makkah.
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : For Hajj and 'Umrah, that I would meet these two young men, but it appears they were still young at the time.
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : Then it was not possible for me to go to those lands, so I imagine, and Allah knows best, I imagine if they were given a calm, scholarly session.
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : And a calm, serious one, that their error would become clear to them.
The questioner : May Allah will it, we ask Allah.
The Shaykh : That their error becomes clear to them.
The questioner : We ask Allah.
The Shaykh : For them and many others like them who follow them.
The questioner : O Shaykh, through the youth, is it possible to send them... something specific for them.
The Shaykh : How?
The questioner : Through the youth from Saudi Arabia, from Najd, for example, brother Abu Ibrahim, Abu 'Abdullah, send them something so they might be aware, I mean.
The Shaykh : This requires hours and sessions.
The questioner : Subhan Allah, and something.
The Shaykh : Hours and sessions, because the answers are filled with many doubts, and very many indeed.
The questioner : Yes, but Shaykh, if you allow me now, there is a group from the forum in London, Muhammad Suroor, who is pushing this issue inside Iraq, this matter.
The Shaykh : Is it Muhammad Suroor, apart from these people?
The questioner : Ah, this is the fatigue we suffer, they put out people for declaring others disbelievers, and they come to us.
The Shaykh : Allah is the Helper.
The questioner : They come to us, and by Allah, they tire our hearts, I mean, they are our students, and they want to break free from us, I mean, I want to help them and I fear for them, I mean, I fear for them from the people if they learn that they are declaring others disbelievers...
The student : He first, our Shaykh, may Allah reward him with good, said a good word, if it were possible for us.
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : Allah is the Helper.
The questioner : Allah is the Helper.
The student : If he met them, that would be a good opportunity, because these young men are truly among the best of the youth.
The questioner: Yes.
The student : And among the best of them in character, religion, and knowledge.
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : And our Shaykh testified to that for them in the past, and he has a tape about these two young men.
The questioner: Yes.
The student : But I add and say that the ailment did not come from these people, but rather from other quarters that should have been noticed before it became so.
The questioner : Glory be to Allah.
The student : Because people like Safer, Salman, and Nasser al-Omair, Nasser, you know him.The Shaykh : He came here, yes.
The Shaykh : And he read to me his book, Fiqh al-Waqi' (Jurisprudence of Reality), and I expressed my observations to him.
The student : And he accepted them.
The Shaykh : And he divided the observations into two categories: one category he immediately set about correcting, and one category he promised to look into, and I considered this to be fairness on his part.
The student : Yes, exactly.
The Shaykh : Because he did not act hypocritically.
The student: No, no.
The Shaykh : He did not act hypocritically, and this is part of the perfection of the group, I mean, the truth is that frankness brings about good.
The student : And this will not happen.
The Shaykh : ... the hearts are pure.
The student : I support your words, but.The Shaykh : The other thing is that these young men were subjected to a very harsh attack from some of the other side, those who are said to have, if it is said that these people went to extremes, then those people went to extremes, and the truth is that there was no understanding between the two parties on a principle they could meet on, on one principle or on one methodology, and I truly know, I do not know Safer or Salman, I mean, I have no direct knowledge of them, perhaps I saw Safer once, but I have not seen Salman, but I always praise them for their wisdom in da'wah, and especially Salman, Salman has a book, "The Dialogue," a calm dialogue with al-Ghazali, and perhaps you have read it, our Shaykh, this is considered one of the best books in da'wah, and perhaps you would agree with me in that.
The Shaykh : But there is one observation: he was very soft with the man, and the man needed strength.
The student : True, but our Shaykh, are you not with me in that softness sometimes takes the place of harshness and severity, and vice versa, hehehe, the lesson is in the results, the lesson is in the results, and the result was truly that he toppled the man, so he no longer has the ability to raise his voice before someone like Salman, and this appeared later when he wrote in praise of Safer, and he mentioned matters that should not have been overlooked by him, but al-Ghazali is a man of limited vision, so I say that among the reasons that made this mixture, which became difficult later and became severe between the two parties, I mean, inside the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, this was made by the lack of wisdom in those who were responding to people like Safer and...
The Shaykh: The Messenger of Allah spoke the truth.
The student : (Peace and blessings be upon him).
The Shaykh
Gentleness has never been in anything except that it adorned it, and harshness has never been in anything except that it disfigured it.
ما كان الرِّفق في شيء إلا زانه ، وما كان العنف في شيء إلا شانهThe student : "So how can we agree?" You have spoken the truth.
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.