How should one respond to those who say, "You Salafis deny taqlid (following a scholar without knowing his evidence), yet you follow Al-Albani by saying he authenticated, graded as good, or weakened a hadith, even though he sometimes disagrees with the masters of hadith such as Ibn Hajar, al-Dhahabi, and others?"
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The questioner : He asks how one should respond to those who say, "You Salafis deny taqlid (following a scholar without knowing his evidence), yet you follow Al-Albani by saying he authenticated, graded as good, or weakened a hadith, even though he sometimes disagrees with the masters of hadith such as Ibn Hajar, al-Dhahabi, and others?"
The Shaykh : Look at this question; I think you have heard it. What should a Muslim do if he finds that scholars have disagreed regarding a hadith, with some authenticating it and others weakening it? Following the questioner's approach, he must follow (taqlid) either the one who authenticated it or the one who weakened it. However, he has no one before him to help him or guide him in preferring one of the two opinions over the other. But there is a man who was afflicted by people and people were afflicted by him; he dedicated his life to this knowledge, and some Muslim youth became convinced that this man has some knowledge of this science. The questioner, or whoever refers to him, calls these young people in the entire Islamic world "Salafis" who do not follow scholars blindly, yet here they are following Al-Albani. So who are they following? They are following those who have died and left us with this disagreement. They must adopt one of the two opinions, whether it is authentic or weak. So if a person is found who brings the point of disagreement closer to them, explains the reason for the weakening and the reason for the authentication, and then performs a process of preference, is this not better? May Allah the Mighty and Majestic have provided them with a person who revives this knowledge for them, guides the Muslim youth, and moves them to act upon the science of hadith. I am not saying I am commanding something or hiding a secret, as it is said. Thirty years ago, there was no scholar, writer, or orator in the entire Islamic world who would mention a hadith in his sermon, in his book, or in any field of knowledge and say, "Al-Bukhari narrated it" or "Muslim narrated it" or "So-and-so narrated it and So-and-so authenticated it," or if he brought a hadith, he would also say, "Its chain is weak." This had no mention whatsoever in the entire Islamic world a third of a century ago. But today, praise be to Allah, you find activity in caring for hadith and tracing it to its sources, and even some try to authenticate it without having reached the stage of authentication and weakening. This means there is a very wonderful scientific movement in the Islamic world. The elderly among us, like myself, know this, but you are living now in a state of abundance in this noble science, which is the science of hadith. To conclude, we return to this question. They say they follow Al-Albani. We said that following (taqlid) is necessary, in my expression. But the scholars of usul al-fiqh (the principles of jurisprudence) and fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence), particularly among them Imam al-San'ani, the Amir al-San'ani, has a treatise he titled "Taysir al-Ijtihad" or "Fi Taysir al-Ijtihad". He mentions there that when a man hears a scholar say that a certain hadith is authentic, or that a certain hadith is weak, then one who has no knowledge should follow him, and this following is not taqlid (following a scholar without knowing his evidence) but rather itba' (following). He elaborates on this based on the science of hadith. The summary of that is: if a man tells you about someone you do not know that he is a man of good conduct, there is no harm in associating with him, and you obey him in this and go to associate with him. This is not called taqlid, but rather itba'. Taqlid is when you surrender the leadership of your mind and thinking to the one you follow without exerting effort. Do you see this man as a scholar? Is he truthful in what he transmits? That is taqlid. When you close your eyes, because the scholars say that taqlid is derived from what? From the qaladah (necklace), as if he is taking the necklace from your neck and putting it on his neck, and everything is over. And this is the nature of the what? The muqallids (those who follow blindly). And so, on the occasion of the previous research, in the verse[At-Tawbah 9:60] we heard from one of the scholars that there is no objection to us taking out the zakah (the obligatory alms) and giving it for the construction of mosques or hospitals. He mentioned a well-known athar (a report from a Companion or successor), and I mentioned it in the series of weak and fabricated hadiths . So what did he do? He followed this scholar. The moment he said it was like that, it was done, as if he was with the text and they surrendered completely. That is not the case for one who tries to be discerning. He tries to verify the man who says this is haram (forbidden) or says it is halal (lawful) or says a hadith is authentic or weak. He tries to verify if he is proficient in this science? Is there a room for discussing it or is there no room? Of course, he does not feel at ease, so he follows him. So it is not said that he is a muqallid, as came in the questioner's question. But if he is not convinced of this because he is not from the people of knowledge, naturally, I say to him, what do you do? You follow, and these people follow, but these people follow with some discernment. As for you, as we see many people today saying, "We follow the saying of this scholar without evidence," and tomorrow saying, "We follow the saying of that scholar without evidence." But the evidence (dalil) leads you to following the truth, whether it is for you or against you. This is what has been facilitated in answering the questions presented. And I ask Allah the Mighty and Majestic to make us and you successful in the truth and following it wherever it is and with whomever it is. And may peace and mercy of Allah be upon you.
The questioner : In the end, we ask Allah the Mighty and Majestic to benefit us with what we have heard. We say that if there are distinctive features of da'wah (calling others to Islam), then the Salafi da'wah (calling others to Islam) is distinguished by being the only one that has written about tawhid (the oneness of Allah) and explaining shirk (associating partners with Allah) and deviations. It is also the only one whose scholars, both past and present, have written about authentication and weakening. We have not read for any of the other existing da'wahs (calls) a book that is considered authoritative in matters of tawhid (the oneness of Allah) and shirk (associating partners with Allah) or in matters of authentication and weakening. This is from the favor of Allah the Mighty and Majestic upon us. May Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh : Look at this question; I think you have heard it. What should a Muslim do if he finds that scholars have disagreed regarding a hadith, with some authenticating it and others weakening it? Following the questioner's approach, he must follow (taqlid) either the one who authenticated it or the one who weakened it. However, he has no one before him to help him or guide him in preferring one of the two opinions over the other. But there is a man who was afflicted by people and people were afflicted by him; he dedicated his life to this knowledge, and some Muslim youth became convinced that this man has some knowledge of this science. The questioner, or whoever refers to him, calls these young people in the entire Islamic world "Salafis" who do not follow scholars blindly, yet here they are following Al-Albani. So who are they following? They are following those who have died and left us with this disagreement. They must adopt one of the two opinions, whether it is authentic or weak. So if a person is found who brings the point of disagreement closer to them, explains the reason for the weakening and the reason for the authentication, and then performs a process of preference, is this not better? May Allah the Mighty and Majestic have provided them with a person who revives this knowledge for them, guides the Muslim youth, and moves them to act upon the science of hadith. I am not saying I am commanding something or hiding a secret, as it is said. Thirty years ago, there was no scholar, writer, or orator in the entire Islamic world who would mention a hadith in his sermon, in his book, or in any field of knowledge and say, "Al-Bukhari narrated it" or "Muslim narrated it" or "So-and-so narrated it and So-and-so authenticated it," or if he brought a hadith, he would also say, "Its chain is weak." This had no mention whatsoever in the entire Islamic world a third of a century ago. But today, praise be to Allah, you find activity in caring for hadith and tracing it to its sources, and even some try to authenticate it without having reached the stage of authentication and weakening. This means there is a very wonderful scientific movement in the Islamic world. The elderly among us, like myself, know this, but you are living now in a state of abundance in this noble science, which is the science of hadith. To conclude, we return to this question. They say they follow Al-Albani. We said that following (taqlid) is necessary, in my expression. But the scholars of usul al-fiqh (the principles of jurisprudence) and fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence), particularly among them Imam al-San'ani, the Amir al-San'ani, has a treatise he titled "Taysir al-Ijtihad" or "Fi Taysir al-Ijtihad". He mentions there that when a man hears a scholar say that a certain hadith is authentic, or that a certain hadith is weak, then one who has no knowledge should follow him, and this following is not taqlid (following a scholar without knowing his evidence) but rather itba' (following). He elaborates on this based on the science of hadith. The summary of that is: if a man tells you about someone you do not know that he is a man of good conduct, there is no harm in associating with him, and you obey him in this and go to associate with him. This is not called taqlid, but rather itba'. Taqlid is when you surrender the leadership of your mind and thinking to the one you follow without exerting effort. Do you see this man as a scholar? Is he truthful in what he transmits? That is taqlid. When you close your eyes, because the scholars say that taqlid is derived from what? From the qaladah (necklace), as if he is taking the necklace from your neck and putting it on his neck, and everything is over. And this is the nature of the what? The muqallids (those who follow blindly). And so, on the occasion of the previous research, in the verse
for the cause of Allah
وفي سبيل اللهWhoever follows a scholar will meet Allah in a safe state.
من قلّد عالما لقي الله سالماThe questioner : In the end, we ask Allah the Mighty and Majestic to benefit us with what we have heard. We say that if there are distinctive features of da'wah (calling others to Islam), then the Salafi da'wah (calling others to Islam) is distinguished by being the only one that has written about tawhid (the oneness of Allah) and explaining shirk (associating partners with Allah) and deviations. It is also the only one whose scholars, both past and present, have written about authentication and weakening. We have not read for any of the other existing da'wahs (calls) a book that is considered authoritative in matters of tawhid (the oneness of Allah) and shirk (associating partners with Allah) or in matters of authentication and weakening. This is from the favor of Allah the Mighty and Majestic upon us. May Allah reward you with good.