Many young people have delved into and become lost in the issue of excusing ignorance: when is the ignorant person excused for his ignorance, what are the references on this issue, and has there been a disagreement?
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The questioner : Among the questions of this questioner, the honorable Shaykh says: "Many young people have delved into and become lost in the issue of excusing ignorance. When is the ignorant person excused for his ignorance? Point us to references on this issue that has been raised. And has there been an old disagreement among the Salaf, and is it considered valid or not? May Allah reward you with good."
The Shaykh : The excuse of ignorance is established by the Qur'an and also by the Sunnah, and it is the requirement of the wisdom and mercy of Allah, Mighty and Majestic. Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He, says:[Al-Qasas 28:59] And Allah the Exalted says: [An-Nisa 4:163] up to His saying: [An-Nisa 4:165] And by the saying of Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He: [Al-Isra 17:15] And by the saying of Allah the Exalted: [At-Tawbah 9:115] The verses on this are numerous, all indicating that there is no disbelief except after knowledge. This is the requirement of the wisdom and mercy of Allah, for the ignorant person is excused. How would Allah, Mighty and Majestic, hold him accountable, when He is the Most Merciful of the merciful, and He is more merciful to the servant than a mother is to her child, for something he did not know?
So one of the conditions for declaring someone a disbeliever, based on the word or deed that makes them a disbeliever, is that it be done with knowledge, and that it be done with intention as well. So if a person did not intend it, but his tongue rushed ahead of him due to intense anger, or intense joy, or an interpretation he interpreted it with, then he is not a disbeliever in the sight of Allah, Mighty and Majestic. This is indicated by the fact that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: This is a great error, and it is itself disbelief, but the man did not intend it. Rather, due to the intensity of his joy, his tongue rushed ahead to this, and he was not thereby a disbeliever because he did not intend what he said.
Likewise, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) informed about a man who was extravagant with himself and feared that Allah the Exalted would punish him, so he ordered his family that when he died, they should burn him and scatter his ashes in the sea, thinking that he would be hidden from the punishment of Allah. But Allah the Exalted gathered him together and asked him why he did this. He said, "O my Lord, out of fear of You." So Allah forgave him, even though he was doubting the power of Allah, and doubting the power of Allah is disbelief, but he was one who interpreted it and was ignorant, so Allah pardoned him.
And it must be known that the issue of declaring someone a disbeliever, its foundation and its conditions, is not something a person takes from his intellect, his thought, or his taste, declaring whomever he wishes a disbeliever and protecting whomever he wishes. The matter of declaring someone a disbeliever and not declaring them a disbeliever belongs to Allah, Mighty and Majestic, just as the ruling of obligation or prohibition or permissibility belongs to Allah alone, as He said:[An-Nahl 16:116] So the matter of declaring someone a disbeliever and protecting them belongs to Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He. And by "protecting" I mean the Islam by which a person's blood and wealth are protected; it belongs to Allah, to Allah alone. So it is not permissible to declare a person a disbeliever if the conditions for declaring them a disbeliever have not been established for them. And it is established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that whoever calls a man a disbeliever, or says "O enemy of Allah," when he is not, this word returns to its speaker; he becomes the disbeliever and the enemy of Allah. So let a person beware of declaring someone a disbeliever whom Allah and His Messenger have not declared a disbeliever, and let him beware of declaring someone an enemy of Allah who is not an enemy of Allah and His Messenger. Let him hold his tongue, for the tongue is the calamity of calamities. For this reason, when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) informed Mu'adh ibn Jabal about what he informed him about regarding Islam, he said to him (peace and blessings be upon him): Sunan Ibn Majah 3973Hasan (Darussalam) He said, "Yes, O Messenger of Allah." So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) held his own tongue and said: Meaning, do not let it go; hold it back and restrain it. He said, "O Messenger of Allah, are we indeed held accountable for what we speak?" Meaning, are we held accountable for what we speak? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: As-Sunan al-Kubra lil-Nasa'i 65:415 For this reason, it is obligatory for a person to restrain his tongue from what Allah has forbidden, and not to say anything when he speaks except good, by the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): Jami` at-Tirmidhi 2500Sahih (Darussalam)
And the summary is that the issue of declaring someone a disbeliever and protecting them is not up to us, but it belongs to Allah and His Messenger. So whoever Allah and His Messenger have declared a disbeliever is a disbeliever, and whoever Allah and His Messenger have not declared a disbeliever is not a disbeliever, even if his sins are great in our understanding and in our tastes. The matter is not up to us; the matter in these things belongs to Allah and His Messenger.
And there must be known conditions for declaring someone a disbeliever, known to the people of knowledge. And the broadest thing I have read on this is what Shaykh al-Islam (may Allah have mercy on him) wrote in his fatwas and in his independent books. So I advise the questioner and those other than the questioner to refer to the words of Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, for he is, and I say this as a testimony before Allah, the most comprehensive in speech on this great issue that I have seen. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah reward you, honorable Shaykh Muhammad, for this explanation.
The Shaykh : The excuse of ignorance is established by the Qur'an and also by the Sunnah, and it is the requirement of the wisdom and mercy of Allah, Mighty and Majestic. Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He, says:
And never would your Lord have destroyed the cities until He had sent to their mother a messenger reciting to them Our verses. And We would not destroy the cities except while their people were wrongdoers.
وَما كانَ رَبُّكَ مُهلِكَ القُرى حَتّى يَبعَثَ في أُمِّها رَسولًا يَتلو عَلَيهِم ءاياتِنا وَما كُنّا مُهلِكِي القُرى إِلّا وَأَهلُها ظالِمونَIndeed, We have revealed to you, [O Muhammad], as We revealed to Noah and the prophets after him
إِنّا أَوحَينا إِلَيكَ كَما أَوحَينا إِلى نوحٍ وَالنَّبِيّينَ مِن بَعدِهِ[We sent] messengers as bringers of good tidings and warners so that mankind will have no argument against Allah after the messengers
رُسُلًا مُبَشِّرينَ وَمُنذِرينَ لِئَلّا يَكونَ لِلنّاسِ عَلَى اللَّهِ حُجَّةٌ بَعدَ الرُّسُلِAnd never would We punish until We sent a messenger.
وَما كُنّا مُعَذِّبينَ حَتّى نَبعَثَ رَسولًاAnd Allah would not let a people stray after He has guided them until He makes clear to them what they should avoid. Indeed, Allah is Knowing of all things.
وَما كانَ اللَّهُ لِيُضِلَّ قَومًا بَعدَ إِذ هَداهُم حَتّى يُبَيِّنَ لَهُم ما يَتَّقونَ إِنَّ اللَّهَ بِكُلِّ شَيءٍ عَليمٌSo one of the conditions for declaring someone a disbeliever, based on the word or deed that makes them a disbeliever, is that it be done with knowledge, and that it be done with intention as well. So if a person did not intend it, but his tongue rushed ahead of him due to intense anger, or intense joy, or an interpretation he interpreted it with, then he is not a disbeliever in the sight of Allah, Mighty and Majestic. This is indicated by the fact that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
Allah is more joyful with the repentance of His servant than one of you who was in a desert with his mount, on which was his food and drink, and he lost it, meaning it was lost from him. So he sought it but did not find it, so he lay down under a tree waiting for death, having lost hope of it. Then he found his mount with him, so he took its bridle and said, "O Allah, You are my slave and I am your Lord." He erred out of the intensity of his joy.
لله أشد فرحا بتوبة عبده من أحدكم كان في فلاة من الأرض ومعه راحلته عليها طعامه وشرابه فأضلّها أي ضاعت منه فطلبها فلم يجدها فاضطجع تحت شجرة ينتظر الموت أيس منها فإذا براحلته عنده فأخذ بخطامها وقال اللهم أنت عبدي وأنا ربك أخطأ من شدة الفرحLikewise, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) informed about a man who was extravagant with himself and feared that Allah the Exalted would punish him, so he ordered his family that when he died, they should burn him and scatter his ashes in the sea, thinking that he would be hidden from the punishment of Allah. But Allah the Exalted gathered him together and asked him why he did this. He said, "O my Lord, out of fear of You." So Allah forgave him, even though he was doubting the power of Allah, and doubting the power of Allah is disbelief, but he was one who interpreted it and was ignorant, so Allah pardoned him.
And it must be known that the issue of declaring someone a disbeliever, its foundation and its conditions, is not something a person takes from his intellect, his thought, or his taste, declaring whomever he wishes a disbeliever and protecting whomever he wishes. The matter of declaring someone a disbeliever and not declaring them a disbeliever belongs to Allah, Mighty and Majestic, just as the ruling of obligation or prohibition or permissibility belongs to Allah alone, as He said:
And do not say about what your tongues assert of untruth, "This is lawful and this is unlawful," to invent falsehood about Allah
وَلا تَقولوا لِما تَصِفُ أَلسِنَتُكُمُ الكَذِبَ هذا حَلالٌ وَهذا حَرامٌ لِتَفتَروا عَلَى اللَّهِ الكَذِبَShall I not tell you of the basis of all that?
ألا أخبرك بمِلاك ذلك كلهHold your tongue.
كفّ عليك هذاMay your mother mourn you, O Mu’adh! Do people not fall into the Fire on their faces, or he said, on their snouts, except for the harvest of their tongues?
ثكلتك أمك يا معاذ وهل يكُب الناس في النار على وجوههم أو قال على مناخرهم إلا حصائد ألسنتهمAnd whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day, then let him say what is good or remain silent.
من كان يؤمن بالله واليوم الأخر فليقل خيرا أو ليصمتAnd the summary is that the issue of declaring someone a disbeliever and protecting them is not up to us, but it belongs to Allah and His Messenger. So whoever Allah and His Messenger have declared a disbeliever is a disbeliever, and whoever Allah and His Messenger have not declared a disbeliever is not a disbeliever, even if his sins are great in our understanding and in our tastes. The matter is not up to us; the matter in these things belongs to Allah and His Messenger.
And there must be known conditions for declaring someone a disbeliever, known to the people of knowledge. And the broadest thing I have read on this is what Shaykh al-Islam (may Allah have mercy on him) wrote in his fatwas and in his independent books. So I advise the questioner and those other than the questioner to refer to the words of Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, for he is, and I say this as a testimony before Allah, the most comprehensive in speech on this great issue that I have seen. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah reward you, honorable Shaykh Muhammad, for this explanation.