The Shaykh (may Allah have mercy on him) mentioned that "Abdullah 'Azzam" accused him of declaring "Sayyid Qutb" a disbeliever, and how the Shaykh responded to him

The Shaykh: You mention "Abdullah 'Azzam." By the way, did I tell Abu 'Abdullah? Just yesterday he called me from Pakistan. Do you remember when you and he came to my brother-in-law's house and I said to him: "What is the matter? You boycotted us for a year and a half?" He said: "You declared 'Sayyid Qutb' a disbeliever." You know the discussion, perhaps you remember that I said to him: "My brother, you were the only Ikhwan who used to attend, write, and record what Al-Albani was saying. And you know about me that I do not declare a Muslim a disbeliever even if he falls into disbelief. How did you accept that I declared 'Sayyid Qutb' a disbeliever when he has already passed away to the mercy of Allah?!" And there is no room for it to be said to you...

The questioner: ... You say about him that he believes in the unity of existence?

The Shaykh : Yes, yes, yes.

The questioner : I remember this.

The Shaykh: This is something we have acknowledged; he says this, but we do not declare him a disbeliever; because the proof was not established against him. Do you understand this? All our brothers are in this situation.

The questioner: He denied it, saying: "It is not understood from his words." We brought the book, and I read the text.

The Shaykh: Yes, yes, we have no concern with him now. The point is, you know—Professor "Azzam"—that I do not declare a Muslim a disbeliever even if he falls into disbelief, except after the proof is established!

The questioner: His teaching.

The Shaykh : Oh?

The questioner: His teaching, after he learned it...

The Shaykh: This is it. Our brothers know this reality. So how have the situations reversed, and they now attribute to us that if we say that adding to what is established from the Messenger is a religious innovation, then he is an innovator?

The questioner: This is absolutely untenable!

The Shaykh: Absolutely. They know this reality. The important thing is that "Abdullah 'Azzam" called me, I think, last night from Pakistan. "Peace be upon you," and "And upon you be peace." How are you? How is it going? And so on. What is your opinion on the jihad in Pakistan—is it an individual obligation or a collective obligation? And in Afghanistan, is it an individual obligation or a collective obligation? I said to him: "No Muslim doubts that the jihad in Afghanistan and outside Afghanistan is an individual obligation."

The questioner : Very good.

The Shaykh: Yes, indeed. He said: "Do they seek permission from the parents?" I said: "In an individual obligation, the parents are not consulted. However, this obligation should be carried out by the Muslim state, and they should declare this jihad in the path of Allah, and the affairs should be organized and all means taken. At that time, seeking permission is not required." He said: "I am, after Allah, indebted to you; because you were the cause of my guidance to the correct Islamic creed and the correct Sunnah. And your book, 'Sahih al-Jami' al-Saghir,' does not leave me wherever I go or travel, and so on. He said: "And I extracted from the book 'Sahih al-Jami'' five hundred hadiths on jihad and what is related to it; do you permit me to print that in a treatise?" I said: "Not only do I permit it, but I thank you for it. However, it is good for you to take the approval of the Islamic Office in Beirut." He said to me: "Your permission is sufficient for me, considering that you are the author." I said: "Then I have permitted you, with thanks." I no longer remember if I told you anything else? Do you remember?

The questioner: Yes.

The Shaykh : What?

The questioner: Naming the one who...

The Shaykh : Oh?

The questioner: Naming the hadith that was completed with...?

The Shaykh: Yes, "Abu al-Filad" invited me to iftar in Ramadan two or three years ago, and said: "I have 'Abdullah 'Azzam' with me." I said to him: "I will attend on one condition." He said: "Please." I said to him: "On the condition that you let me be with him so that we can discuss the account he wrote in 'Al-Majalla al-Kuwaitiyyah,' three articles in response to Al-Albani declaring who a disbeliever? 'Sayyid Qutb'."

The questioner : There is no god but Allah.

The Shaykh: And that was after that session!! Allahu Akbar!!
"Abu al-Filad" said to me: "You have this condition." And I and he gathered, with no one else present. I said to him: "How is this, Professor? Did you forget our gathering at our brother-in-law's house and the discussion about the issue? And how did you announce the boycott based on the fact that some young men came and said: 'So-and-so declares so-and-so a disbeliever'? And I reminded you, perhaps you remember the verse: , and by his saying (peace be upon him): , how did you do this after that?" He said: "By Allah, I was in Makkah, and some young men, meaning from the Muslim Brotherhood, came and said: 'This Shaykh Al-Albani, such and such, declares 'Sayyid Qutb' a disbeliever.' So it appears that emotion took hold of him and he went and wrote three articles for you. So I said to him: 'Your duty now is to retract what has passed. I do not want anything from you. May Allah forgive what has gone before. But this is a fabrication and a slander, and whoever declares a Muslim a disbeliever has committed disbelief, and these are things you know well,' and so on. He promised me well, and days passed and days came.

The questioner: I have not heard that anything was written against what I said.

The Shaykh: Absolutely not, until the phone call two days ago. He said to me: "Do you remember the session with 'Abu al-Filad'?" I said: "Yes." He said to me—look, the going in circles that we deny in the group—he said to me: "Write what you want—meaning a refutation of what was published in 'Al-Majalla al-Mujtama''—and I will publish it in my own style." I said to him: "Excuse me, I cannot now detach myself from this atmosphere in which I live in service of the Sunnah in jurisprudence, tracing, and verification. This is your duty, you know...

The questioner: You started it, and it is upon you to complete it.

The Shaykh: Yes.

The questioner: And this is a religious obligation upon you, even.

The Shaykh: Without a doubt, he retracts what has passed.

The questioner: Of course, first he clears the page of his brother... teaching the people... the intense hatred from the other side.

The Shaykh: Come, Abu Shaker, what do you have?

The questioner: I mean, now... the summary of the speech from the beginning is that not everyone who opposes the Sunnah is an innovator?

The Shaykh: Of course.

The questioner : Yes.

The Shaykh: ... What do we say about him? ...

The questioner: ... He says—this person—: ... great imams...

The Shaykh: ... It is said about it: innovator? It is not said...

The questioner : ... .

The Shaykh: But we do not look... they say... So-and-so hit the mark, he has two rewards; So-and-so erred... What does al-Shadhili say about him? They want from the people of the Sunnah...


Another questioner: All that is known to me is that growing the beard...

The Shaykh: Do not repeat it, once is enough; we told you: this is a lie and a fabrication, and when you accuse people who are present before you and they tell you.

The questioner : ... .

The Shaykh: Be patient, Abu Shaker, may Allah be pleased with you. Scientific research does not accept one person giving a one-hour lecture and not allowing even one minute for the other!! Now you are asking a question!

Another questioner: I finished the question.

The Shaykh: You finished, do you want to understand what the Salafis are, how did you not finish? Please, I am silencing you for five minutes, ten minutes, as much as you want, but give me a red light, as they say, I finished... the question.

Another questioner: My question is to understand what the Salafis want? What is their viewpoint that they are calling for, which they are present based on? The opinion of the Shari'ah or the famous in the Shari'ah is that the Salafis call for shortening the garment, growing the beard, fighting images, not saying Bismillah al-Rahman al-Rahim, meaning these things.

The Shaykh: What did the last one say?

Another questioner: The Basmala in the prayer!

Another questioner : The Basmala.

The Shaykh : What do you mean?

The questioner: I mean, when one of you prays, he does not mention Bismillah al-Rahman al-Rahim in his prayer!

The Shaykh: That is the complete Shari'ah, okay; what else?

The questioner: He does not mention it aloud, you mean, he does not mention it aloud.

Another questioner: He does not mention it aloud, I am interested in hearing the truth because I do not know.

The Shaykh: Okay; did you finish?

Another questioner: It pleases me to hear this from the source?

The Shaykh: Excuse me, did you finish? So that you do not say I did not complete my speech! I finished, before I answer you...