Requesting the Shaykh to offer advice to a man studying in a land of disbelief at a university that contains many evils.
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : I am a young man studying in Europe.
The Shaykh : May Allah assist you.
The questioner : And the calamity is that I live in a pre-Islamic age of ignorance, a disbelieving society.
The Shaykh: Allahu Akbar.
The questioner : And in the university, you cannot imagine what is going on inside the university.
The Shaykh: Allahu Akbar.
The questioner : What is your advice?
The Shaykh : My advice is: escape, escape—(laughs)—and what are you studying?
The questioner : I am pursuing postgraduate studies in computer science.
The Shaykh : In computer science, and how many years have passed for you?
The questioner : Right now, I have six months of studying the Swedish language.
The Shaykh : And were you able to live in this hell?
The questioner : I am isolated from this hell.
The Shaykh : How?
The questioner : Isolated, I do not go out much.
The Shaykh : How are you isolated?
The questioner : From the study to the house or to the mosque.
Abu Malik: Sweden, O Shaykh, is considered the most corrupt land in the world. The most corrupt land in the world.
The Shaykh: Allahu Akbar.
Abu Malik: I mean, every corruption on the face of the earth and every deviation in corruption that the human mind can imagine exists there.
The questioner : And it is the strongest state in this science called data; it is the strongest state in the world. It is considered the third state, along with America and Japan; it is the third.
The Shaykh : It appears, O Abu... what is your name?
The questioner : Abu Uthman.
The Shaykh : Abu Uthman?
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : It seems, O Abu Uthman, that you did not know that this land, as the professor here says, is the most corrupt land in the world.
The questioner : I knew it.
The Shaykh : You knew it?! Allahu Akbar. And how did you know and yet deviate?
The questioner : I have a friend who is a doctor there; he paved the way for me for the studies.
The Shaykh : What do you mean by the word "paved"?
The questioner : He prepared everything for me and provided me with all the conditions so that I could enroll in the university.
Abu Malik: I mean, is enrolling there difficult?
The questioner : Yes, exactly.
Abu Malik: He facilitated his enrollment. I mean, he facilitated the evil for him.
The Shaykh : Do you not see that this falls under the previous rule: the end justifies the means?
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : Oh Allah, there is no power and no strength except with Allah. Well, and after you graduate, what do you imagine your job will be? Lawful or unlawful?
The questioner : This is a duty upon me.
The Shaykh : You did not answer me.
The questioner : Lawful, I suppose.
The Shaykh : How, for example? You will be an employee in a bank, for example.
The questioner : No, this is not for a bank; this is for managing institutions, and this is something that is lacking.
The Shaykh : No, please, without explanation. I thought you would be an employee in a bank. You said no, so where will you be an employee?
The questioner : I will manage transactions; managing transactions, and this is something that is lacking.
The Shaykh : And these transactions, I mean, are they running without computers? And they have no connection to banks.
The questioner : They have no connection to banks; rather, it is about developing computers. Now, it is possible for me to connect to Japan without a telephone via the computer. I can talk to any company in Japan or in America without a telephone. We can talk, and they can provide me with prices or anything else of this kind...
The Shaykh : Yes, this is known, but I ask: will the transaction be lawful?
The questioner : Yes, why would it not be lawful?
The Shaykh : Do you know if the company is established on a Sharia basis?
The questioner : No, there is no company established on a Sharia basis.
The Shaykh : Then why did I ask you why it would not be? You have now known why it would not be.
The questioner : This is something obligatory upon us to take all the information from Europe and present it to our homelands and to any Arab country.
The Shaykh : This is correct, may Allah bless you, but according to the previous statement, without burning oneself, without contradicting one's religion...
The questioner : Now, in Sweden, everything is scientific, a modern scientific tool. The first state to adopt it is Sweden, and it is the richest state in the world. And all the research, the first state to obtain it is Sweden. I take these researches from them and present them to my country. There are some young brothers who are programming for the future for works in Algeria.
The Shaykh : We said, may Allah bless you, every knowledge. We said just now, and it is not long since we spoke to you, that every knowledge from which Muslims benefit is a collective obligation for some Muslims to acquire. Did we not say this?
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : So you are now explaining this point and saying, "I will do such and such and present it to the Muslims." We say yes, but on the condition that we do not fall into a religious violation. If you are that man, then you are you.
The questioner : So what do you advise me? Returning to the homeland?
The Shaykh : By Allah, you know best, because you imagine the situation in which you will be. Are you in accordance with the Sharia or in violation of it? If you are in accordance with the Sharia, then acquire this knowledge and, as I said, present it to your Muslim brothers in Algeria. But if you are in violation of the Sharia, the end does not justify the means. Therefore, I cannot say to you, "Continue or do not continue." The people of Makkah know its valleys best, and the owner of the house knows best what is in it. Then I think that the Muslim youth who is eager to acquire modern sciences is, in reality, empty in his mind of the religious rulings. For example, they do not know that settling in lands of disbelief is forbidden. It is very rare among the youth, except in the recent era, that they have some knowledge and awareness, and that they know that it is not permissible for them to travel to America, to Britain, to Sweden, and so on. Because the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said: The intention here is not "university" in the sense of the gender. No. It is the mixing that we were circling around regarding universities meaning that whoever mixes with them and lives with them is like them. And clearer in meaning is his saying (peace and blessings be upon him): Mishkat al-Masabih 3547 And the hadiths with this meaning are many and very many. Why? Because nature is a thief. Do you understand this statement, I think? Man, unconsciously, as they say, acquires the morals of those he sits with, whether these morals are good or bad. And therefore, the authentic hadiths came in succession, circling around the encouragement to sit with the righteous and to avoid sitting with disbelievers and open sinners. Among them is his saying (peace and blessings be upon him): meaning he gives it to you for free So in any case, you benefit from it, either for free, and this is the greatest benefit, or you smell it, and this is the least benefit, or you buy from him and purchase And for this, and to show the effect of the corrupt society on those who live in it, came the hadith that you must have heard, or at least some of you have read, and it is his saying (peace and blessings be upon him): So he said to him, "My story is such and such" So he beheaded him and completed the number of a hundred with him. But the man was sincere, so he kept asking about a scholar until he was directed to a scholar. He came to him and said to him: Here is the point Everyone claims that it is his right This is an example of the effect of the corrupt environment, the corrupt environment spiritually and morally is exactly like the corrupt environment materially and medically. And therefore, he (peace and blessings be upon him) said regarding the plague: So you are now entering the land of the plague, and this plague is much more dangerous than that, and much, much more. For the sake of what? First, I say it is not certainly for the sake of Allah, except for very few individuals. It is for the sake of food and drink only, for the sake of obtaining food and drink, what Allah willed [At-Talaq 65:2-3] Therefore, Muslims should stick to their lands and homelands and not leave them except for dire necessity. And if they are forced to leave for a land infected with plague, then either they must protect themselves completely, just as nurses do when they enter a land infected with plague. What do they do? You find them taking precautions with injections and syringes and masks and the like. All this is for the sake of preserving the safety of the body. So preserving the safety of the heart and the morals is more important and much more important. Now, it is one o'clock minus a third, and perhaps this amount is sufficient, especially since before us—and we do not say "before you," for you are travelers—before us is fasting, as for you, you have the choice. Whoever wishes to fast, and whoever wishes to break the fast, so he said (peace and blessings be upon him).
Another questioner : By Allah, O Shaykh, the Algerian people have longed to see you...
The Shaykh : May Allah bless you. If I saw the permissibility of the image in order to quench the thirst, I would have presented you with an image.
Another questioner : We present to you an invitation to Algeria, and your presence there is beneficial, and very beneficial indeed. This is a request, and we insist on the request.
The Shaykh : May Allah reward you with good. This is a request that is repeated, and many of our good brothers, like yourselves, have directed such a request to us. But I said in the summer, "The milk has been wasted; the time has passed."
"Oh, would that youth return one day, so that I might show it what old age has done."
And Glorified are You, O Allah, and with Your praise I testify that there is no deity but You. I seek Your forgiveness and I repent to You.
The questioner : May Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh : May Allah assist you.
The questioner : And the calamity is that I live in a pre-Islamic age of ignorance, a disbelieving society.
The Shaykh: Allahu Akbar.
The questioner : And in the university, you cannot imagine what is going on inside the university.
The Shaykh: Allahu Akbar.
The questioner : What is your advice?
The Shaykh : My advice is: escape, escape—(laughs)—and what are you studying?
The questioner : I am pursuing postgraduate studies in computer science.
The Shaykh : In computer science, and how many years have passed for you?
The questioner : Right now, I have six months of studying the Swedish language.
The Shaykh : And were you able to live in this hell?
The questioner : I am isolated from this hell.
The Shaykh : How?
The questioner : Isolated, I do not go out much.
The Shaykh : How are you isolated?
The questioner : From the study to the house or to the mosque.
Abu Malik: Sweden, O Shaykh, is considered the most corrupt land in the world. The most corrupt land in the world.
The Shaykh: Allahu Akbar.
Abu Malik: I mean, every corruption on the face of the earth and every deviation in corruption that the human mind can imagine exists there.
The questioner : And it is the strongest state in this science called data; it is the strongest state in the world. It is considered the third state, along with America and Japan; it is the third.
The Shaykh : It appears, O Abu... what is your name?
The questioner : Abu Uthman.
The Shaykh : Abu Uthman?
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : It seems, O Abu Uthman, that you did not know that this land, as the professor here says, is the most corrupt land in the world.
The questioner : I knew it.
The Shaykh : You knew it?! Allahu Akbar. And how did you know and yet deviate?
The questioner : I have a friend who is a doctor there; he paved the way for me for the studies.
The Shaykh : What do you mean by the word "paved"?
The questioner : He prepared everything for me and provided me with all the conditions so that I could enroll in the university.
Abu Malik: I mean, is enrolling there difficult?
The questioner : Yes, exactly.
Abu Malik: He facilitated his enrollment. I mean, he facilitated the evil for him.
The Shaykh : Do you not see that this falls under the previous rule: the end justifies the means?
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : Oh Allah, there is no power and no strength except with Allah. Well, and after you graduate, what do you imagine your job will be? Lawful or unlawful?
The questioner : This is a duty upon me.
The Shaykh : You did not answer me.
The questioner : Lawful, I suppose.
The Shaykh : How, for example? You will be an employee in a bank, for example.
The questioner : No, this is not for a bank; this is for managing institutions, and this is something that is lacking.
The Shaykh : No, please, without explanation. I thought you would be an employee in a bank. You said no, so where will you be an employee?
The questioner : I will manage transactions; managing transactions, and this is something that is lacking.
The Shaykh : And these transactions, I mean, are they running without computers? And they have no connection to banks.
The questioner : They have no connection to banks; rather, it is about developing computers. Now, it is possible for me to connect to Japan without a telephone via the computer. I can talk to any company in Japan or in America without a telephone. We can talk, and they can provide me with prices or anything else of this kind...
The Shaykh : Yes, this is known, but I ask: will the transaction be lawful?
The questioner : Yes, why would it not be lawful?
The Shaykh : Do you know if the company is established on a Sharia basis?
The questioner : No, there is no company established on a Sharia basis.
The Shaykh : Then why did I ask you why it would not be? You have now known why it would not be.
The questioner : This is something obligatory upon us to take all the information from Europe and present it to our homelands and to any Arab country.
The Shaykh : This is correct, may Allah bless you, but according to the previous statement, without burning oneself, without contradicting one's religion...
The questioner : Now, in Sweden, everything is scientific, a modern scientific tool. The first state to adopt it is Sweden, and it is the richest state in the world. And all the research, the first state to obtain it is Sweden. I take these researches from them and present them to my country. There are some young brothers who are programming for the future for works in Algeria.
The Shaykh : We said, may Allah bless you, every knowledge. We said just now, and it is not long since we spoke to you, that every knowledge from which Muslims benefit is a collective obligation for some Muslims to acquire. Did we not say this?
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : So you are now explaining this point and saying, "I will do such and such and present it to the Muslims." We say yes, but on the condition that we do not fall into a religious violation. If you are that man, then you are you.
The questioner : So what do you advise me? Returning to the homeland?
The Shaykh : By Allah, you know best, because you imagine the situation in which you will be. Are you in accordance with the Sharia or in violation of it? If you are in accordance with the Sharia, then acquire this knowledge and, as I said, present it to your Muslim brothers in Algeria. But if you are in violation of the Sharia, the end does not justify the means. Therefore, I cannot say to you, "Continue or do not continue." The people of Makkah know its valleys best, and the owner of the house knows best what is in it. Then I think that the Muslim youth who is eager to acquire modern sciences is, in reality, empty in his mind of the religious rulings. For example, they do not know that settling in lands of disbelief is forbidden. It is very rare among the youth, except in the recent era, that they have some knowledge and awareness, and that they know that it is not permissible for them to travel to America, to Britain, to Sweden, and so on. Because the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
Whoever mixes with the polytheist is like him
من جامع المشرك فهو مثلهWhoever associates with the mushrik (one who associates partners with Allah)
من جامع المشركI am not responsible for any Muslim who stays among polytheists.
أنا بريء من كلّ مسلم مقيم بين ظهراني المشركينThe example of the righteous companion is like that of a seller of musk: either he gives you some
مثل الجليس الصّالح كمثل بائع المسك إمّا أن يحذيكor you smell a pleasant scent from him, or you buy from him
و إمّا أن تشمّ منه رائحة طيّبة وإما أن تشتري منهAnd the example of the companion... either you smell a foul scent from him
و مثل الجليس ... إمّا أن تشمّ منه رائحة كريحةThere was among those before you a man who had killed ninety-nine souls, then he wanted to repent to Allah, so he asked about the most knowledgeable person on earth, and he was directed to a monk, meaning an ignorant worshipper
كان فيمن قبلكم رجل قتل تسعة و تسعين نفسا ثمّ أراد أن يتوب إلى الله فسأل عن أعلم أهل الأرض فدلّ على راهب أي على متعبّد جاهلSo he said to him, "My story is such and such, do I have any chance of repentance?" He said to him, disapproving of his action, "You have killed ninety-nine souls and you ask about repentance? There is no repentance for you"
فهل لي من توبة ؟ قال له مستنكرا فعلته قتلت تسعة و تسعين نفسا و تسأل عن توبة لا توبة لك"I have killed a hundred souls without right, do I have any chance of repentance?" He said, "Who is to stand between you and repentance? But you are in a land of evil"
إني قتلت مائة نفس بغير حقّ هل لي من توبة ؟ قال و من يحول بينك و بين التّوبة و لكنّك بأرض سوءSo go out from it and go to such-and-such a village, whose people are righteous. So he set out toward it, and on the way, death came to him, and the angels of mercy and the angels of punishment disputed over him
فاخرج منها و اذهب إلى القرية الفلانيّة الصّالح أهلها فانطلق إليها في الطّريق جاءه الموت فتنازعته ملائكة الرّحمة و ملائكة العذابSo Allah sent to them an angel and said to them, "Measure the distance between him and each of the two villages, the one he left and the one he intended to reach." So they measured and found him closer to the one he intended to reach by the distance of a man's stride, so the angels of mercy took charge of him
فأرسل الله إليهم ملكا و قال لهم قيسوا ما بينه و بين كلّ من القريتين الّتي خرج منها و الّتي قصد إليها فقاسوا فوجدوه أقرب إلى الّتي قصدها بميل الرّجل في مشيته فتولّته ملائكة الرّحمةAnd when you hear of the plague in a land, do not enter it
وإذا سمعتم بالطّاعون في أرض فلا تدخلوهاAnd whoever fears Allah - He will make for him a way out (3) And will provide for him from where he does not expect.
و من يتّق الله يجعل له مخرجا و يرزقه من حيث لا يحتسبAnother questioner : By Allah, O Shaykh, the Algerian people have longed to see you...
The Shaykh : May Allah bless you. If I saw the permissibility of the image in order to quench the thirst, I would have presented you with an image.
Another questioner : We present to you an invitation to Algeria, and your presence there is beneficial, and very beneficial indeed. This is a request, and we insist on the request.
The Shaykh : May Allah reward you with good. This is a request that is repeated, and many of our good brothers, like yourselves, have directed such a request to us. But I said in the summer, "The milk has been wasted; the time has passed."
"Oh, would that youth return one day, so that I might show it what old age has done."
And Glorified are You, O Allah, and with Your praise I testify that there is no deity but You. I seek Your forgiveness and I repent to You.
The questioner : May Allah reward you with good.
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.