A story with Shaykh Al-Albani and Shaykh "Muhammad Zahiri al-Najjar".

The Shaykh : There is a man named "Muhammad Zahiri al-Najjar"; perhaps some of the attendees remember this name, because he later became a student at al-Azhar, graduated from al-Azhar, and began annotating some hadith books. Among those was that he printed the book "Sharh Ma'ani al-Athar" by "Abu Ja'far al-Tahawi," which had been printed in India, so he printed it in Egypt in volumes and added some annotations to it. I did not know this man, "Muhammad Zahiri al-Najjar," previously. The first meeting between me and him was at a book seller in Damascus, whom I used to visit often. So when I went to him one time, I found he had customers, and among them was a person who offered me a book he was selling to the owner of the bookstore. It was a book by "al-Qasimi," that Najdi who later became an innovator. What was the name of the book? I am trying to recall the name now.
The point is: he offered it so I would buy it. My heart flew toward the book because I had information about this man before he deviated, that he was a Salafi and a strong debater. He has a book called "Shuyukh al-Azhar" in which he refutes them with scholarly responses. The point is: I did not see this book and the author's name without telling the bookstore owner: if I buy it from him, I will buy it from you. He heard this word from me, took me aside from the shop, and began advising me. I was a young man at the time, as they say, my beard and mustache had not yet grown in, just a bit scruffy here, this is better than me now, see? ... completely. He said to me: these are Wahhabis, these are a group that denies tawassul (seeking nearness to Allah through a means) and such. And he began listing for me what? Some of their defects in his view. And I started to respond to him, and he was impressed with me. He was a student of knowledge wearing a black robe and a white turban, and indeed he was a strong student of knowledge, Hanafi in madhhab (school of jurisprudence). He was surprised by my response to him, of course I silenced him.
The second meeting was in front of my brother "Abu Ja'far Mansur"'s shop... = -- And upon you be peace -- = The occasion arose regarding the addition after the adhan (call to prayer) and the prayer upon the Messenger - peace be upon him -. And this man, as I later learned, was a neighbor of this elderly Shaykh with an iron temperament, named "Abd al-Fattah al-Imam." He has some books, and in the "Tailors' School" in Damascus, this school has a mosque, the school has rooms above rows of rooms for students. Shaykh "Abd al-Fattah al-Imam" took a room, of course this means its effect and system went; it became given to some people, students of knowledge as individuals. Shaykh Abd al-Fattah took an eastern room, and this "Muhammad Zahiri al-Najjar" took what? A western room, and between them was a disagreement that forged iron. "Abd al-Fattah al-Imam" was a Salafi Haruri, that one... and Hanafi and Shadhili... but there was no separation between them, but there was no agreement or harmony. It appears, or certainly, I later learned that when Shaykh "Muhammad Zahiri" met me twice after that, I and he, he said to Shaykh Abd al-Fattah: I found for you a young Wahhabi who will please you, O Shaykh Abd al-Fattah, and he will add to you if you bring him a hadith, he will say to me: authentic, and I don't know what? And he confused me!!

Another questioner: How old is he?

The Shaykh: I mean younger than you; how old are you?

Another questioner : .

The Shaykh: I mean around that age.
The point is: that one did not believe Shaykh Abd al-Fattah heard of such a person, especially when he heard about the virtue of the hadith. And one day he came to me in the shop, I was at my hours, and I was seeing him for the first time. Peace be upon you, and upon you be peace. He looks at a pocket watch from his pocket, a pocket watch, today pocket watches are gone except for wristwatches. He said to me: look at this watch for me, I have fixed it repeatedly and they did not advise me on it. I, as usual... took the watch and took the knife with which I open the cover, and put on the "loupe." From the sharpness of his character, he said to me: put this watch here now, I am not coming for it [The Shaykh laughs!], yes, good, if Allah wills? He said: I heard things about you, I want to verify them. Please. He said to me: what is your opinion on mawlid? I said to him: . And so he did not prolong the matter, meaning he verified that he was as he had heard and more. He said to me: I heard that you have a study in hadith? I said to him: by Allah, some of it. He said to me: I have a book called "The Voice of Nature Calls to the Greatness of Allah," a printed book, this is indeed, a beautiful modern style, but I have no value for it; because with this voice he proves tawhid al-rububiyyah (oneness of lordship), tawhid al-rububiyyah is something people are created with, and we need tawhid al-uluhiyyah (oneness of worship) and tawhid al-asma' wa al-sifat (oneness of the names and attributes), but the book means it is beneficial and does not harm. He said to me: I have this book, and I have hadiths, I want to hold sessions with you so we can trace them to their sources, and as they say in our land in Syria "without long stories," we agreed with him every Friday after the prayer to meet at his place. And here is the point, we put the table and we sit, him and us, the table between me and him, and he reads in the book. Shaykh "Muhammad Zahiri al-Najjar" comes out of his room and walks around, he is in these rooms like this on one side and like this on the other, the second floor, and here is a complete open space, below is a courtyard, in the old way, he goes around like this a circle and comes out to the market, but when he sees us sitting here together, he looks at us with a look that has meaning; as if in his heart he is saying: what have we done, we were in one calamity and became in two calamities!! [The Shaykh laughs!].
But the point is: ... when I see Shaykh Abd al-Fattah passing by, I call him; I say to him: please, O Shaykh Muhammad, he smiles like this a cold smile; meaning he is not pleased... he makes do with it and leaves. Shaykh Abd al-Fattah when he hears me say to him... what does he say to me? Leave him, there is no benefit in him, it has been six months for me working on him, there is no benefit in him, leave him, and he shouts at the top of his voice... I say to him to Shaykh Abd al-Fattah: O Shaykh, the matters... and they need patience and they need long temper. With my frequent visits to Shaykh "Abd al-Fattah"... repeatedly the Shaykh passes by us and I call him the first time and the second time and the third time, in the end I hung the net, and when he came with us, and he began to attend with us, and we sit, what do we do? We discuss, Shaykh "Abd al-Fattah" with his shouting, and I with my cold blood, and so on. The man, as I told you, is a man Hanafi in madhhab, and a strong student of knowledge, then he is a follower of the Shadhili method, his Shaykh is "Muhammad al-Hashimi" the Tlemcenian Moroccan. We began to talk to him about the path and the dhikr (remembrance of Allah) that takes place in it.
= -- ... ... ... -- = The discussion began between us and Shaykh Zahiri, above all, the path and the dhikr, we said to him: O Shaykh Muhammad, you are a student of knowledge, and a responsible Hanafi... "Hashiyat 'Abidin" says, by the right of those who dance in the dhikr, that the earth in which they remember Allah in the mosque must have its soil dug up and thrown away, and then.

Another questioner : This...

The Shaykh: No... the later scholars... .

Another questioner : ... .

The Shaykh: Yes.
And then I reminded him or taught him, I don't know, I said to him: there is a treatise by Shaykh "Muhammad al-Halabi," the author of the book "Halabi Saghir" in Turkish expression, a Hanafi jurist, his style is completely different from the jurists; because he brings the issue and brings its evidence from the madhhab, even if he is not free from taqlid (following a scholar without knowing his evidence), but... he brings the evidence. This man is of Halabi origin, by his grace he authored a treatise whose title suffices for its content: "Dancing and Stomping for the One Who Permits Dancing." With such quotations and long temper with "Muhammad Zahiri al-Najjar," the man turned around, and became with us, but he appeared to be slow, and he had the right to that, he was attending the dhikr circle of Shaykh "Muhammad al-Hashimi," and these Shadhilis stand and hold each other's hands and the circle works, going right and left, you find the whole circle what? Going back and forth right and left. When we showed him that this is play in the remembrance of Allah, and ... .