What is the position of the committed Muslim regarding the patterns and forms of contemporary life called civilization?

The questioner : The second...

The Shaykh : As for the second, is there a distortion in diminishing this second?

The questioner : That was the first. What is your advice to the new committed person regarding his culture concerning the outside world, the other civilizations that live around us? May Allah reward you. And to what extent should he be well-versed in these civilizations?

The Shaykh : By Allah, what I believe is that it is obligatory for the Muslim not to be deceived by what they call civilization today. And although I know, with great regret, that many Muslims have been deceived and have become insistent on urging Muslims to become civilized, meaning to adopt the means that the West adopted to achieve this civilization; I do not see it as correct for the Muslim to be concerned with this material civilization, because the Muslim was created for a purpose in this worldly life, and he must strive to achieve it, which is to worship Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He), implementing the saying of Allah (Mighty and Majestic): And there is no doubt that this worship is not a matter of form, in the sense that every human being, regardless of whether he is a Muslim or a non-Muslim—now, speaking in general terms about humanity— The intention behind this worship is not that every individual among human beings should worship Allah however it is convenient for him, or however it occurs to his mind, or as he inherited it from his fathers and forefathers. Rather, he must worship Allah as Allah has prescribed. When we realize that worship should be subject to this condition: so that they may worship Me in accordance with what I have prescribed for them, and this will not be the case unless he is a Muslim to Allah and His Messenger. This is the first point. Second: this Islam will not be realized in that Muslim who wishes to achieve this profound wisdom of Allah the Exalted in the creation of the jinn and mankind, unless he gives the utmost attention to understanding how the worship of Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) is to be performed in order to realize this Quranic wisdom. In my opinion, if the Muslim directs himself to achieving this purpose for which the two groups were created, that will not leave him room to think about what is called today Western civilization. Especially since this civilization, in its concept, has not been limited to the great and noble services it has provided to humanity, which cannot be denied in matters of medicine, facilitating roads, and the like. So speak of this type, and there is no harm in it. But civilization does not mean only these material benefits; rather, it means a specific logic that led them to this specialization, apart from their statement and declaration of the necessity of separating religion from the state. And so many Muslims, who naturally did not understand their Islam and their religion, became involved in this. We often read such claims in Islamic newspapers: they wanted to imitate the European and American Muslims in separating religion from the state, religion from governance, and they cite what is transmitted from the Gospel: "Render unto Caesar what is Caesar's, and unto God what is God's." The truth, and this is a fact not hidden from the scholars of this age, is that the Europeans did not achieve this material rise except when they distanced themselves from their religion. I do not say when they distanced themselves from religion in general, but when they distanced themselves from their specific religion. And they had the right to do so, because their religion, in which distortion had entered from the original Torah and Gospel, led them astray from the dictates of sound reason and from benefiting from cosmic and natural sciences. Therefore, they saw that they had no choice but to distance themselves from the texts of their religion and to act according to the dictates of their minds. They succeeded in one aspect, which is the material aspect they call civilized science, and many Muslims are deluded by it. Knowing that many European writers admit that the origin of their beneficial civilization and scientific and medical advancement, and the like, was derived from Muslim scholars. These Muslims acquired those sciences in response to the Book and the Sunnah. The Sunnah and the Book do not fight each other, nor do they fight the science that relies on the guidance of Allah the Exalted for what benefits people. How so? From the texts of the Sunnah, his saying (peace and blessings be upon him):, and His saying: Therefore, in brief, I say that Islam commands taking all possible means that bring happiness to humanity, such as preserving health, preserving wealth, and maintaining order, and so on, but with the condition that this is within the limits of Islam, and not a departure from Islam as is the case with the Westerners; therefore, it is not permissible for us to be deceived by Western civilization, or Western culture; because it contains what is beneficial, and it contains what is harmful, and the harmful is the majority. Their evil is greater than their good. If a believer follows their path, that is one thing; but if he takes from them and leaves what is harmful, taking only what does not contradict or oppose Islam, then that is a good and fine matter. Islam has planned for us something that guides us to this, while leaving their misguidance, disbelief, their tabarruj (display of adornment), their nakedness, their lack of concern for morals and honor, and so on. There is what came from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that may be related to some aspects of this answer. It is narrated in Sahih al-Bukhari from the hadith of al-Mughirah ibn Shu'bah, This jacket was described as Roman, meaning it was made by the Romans. That did not prevent the Messenger (peace be upon him) from wearing a garment of this type. Why? Because it does not involve adopting all the customs and traditions of the disbelievers, as some people today—those who have not understood their religion, or who have disavowed their religion—want us to adopt Western civilization, or Western culture, from A to Z. As we have said, based on this hadith, we take what benefits us in our worldly affairs. As for what concerns intellectual and mental culture, we must stand at the limits of the Shari'ah, as came in the story of "Make for us a Dhat Anwat as they have a Dhat Anwat." The Messenger (peace be upon him) passed by a large tree on a journey with his Companions, on which the polytheists used to hang their weapons. Some of his Companions, who apparently had recently embraced Islam and had not yet understood its rules and principles, said: "O Messenger of Allah, make for us a Dhat Anwat as they have a Dhat Anwat." He (may Allah's prayers and blessings be upon him) said: And in another narration: Look at the difference between what the Jews said to Moses and what some of the Messenger’s companions said to the Messenger. The Jews were asking to establish shirk (associating partners with Allah): “Make for us a god to worship other than Allah, just as they have gods.” As for the Messenger’s companions, this group among them did not go beyond saying, “Make for us a tree,” like if someone were to say, “Make for us a wardrobe to hang our clothes on or put them in.” Yet the Messenger (peace be upon him) was not pleased with this word, because in its wording, this is verbal shirk; in its wording, it resembles the saying of those [Jews]. as indicated in the hadith in Sahih al-Bukhari: So, it is not permissible for us to follow the Europeans in their civilization, for it is not merely a scientific and industrial civilization; rather, it is built upon disbelief and the abandonment of all religions. And they have the right to distance themselves from their religions, for those religions are distorted and do not lead to the happiness of people in this world, let alone their happiness in the Hereafter. Therefore, we conclude this speech with the words of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) to 'Umar ibn al-Khattab when he saw him holding a document in his hand. He said:, he said: "This is a document written for me by a man from among the Jews," he said (peace and blessings be upon him): So, we do not follow a system, a civilization, or anything else; rather, our sufficiency is in the Book of our Lord and the Sunnah of our Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and in that lies all good, if Allah wills.

The questioner : Here is a very small note. The question includes the study of European civilizations, not studying them for the sake of...

The Shaykh : If the intention of the question is also the study...

The questioner : Excuse me, it includes only. No harm. May Allah reward you with good.

The Shaykh : No problem, I am speaking of studying Western civilization, as a study of the books they call by other names, the sacred books. We approve of this study, yes, we approve of it, but with a condition that is rarely met. This study of Western civilization, with its ideas, history, and methodology, and so on, let alone studying the distorted books they have, is not permissible for a Muslim to study unless he is proficient in his understanding of the Shari'ah of his religion, otherwise he exposes himself to danger. And if the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) addressed 'Umar al-Farouq with his saying: to the end of the hadith, what do we say about a young man who has not studied the Shari'ah at all, but rather studied a high school certificate, a master's degree, or obtained a doctorate, for example, in economics or another of the worldly sciences? We do not deny these sciences, but they must be in the light of the Book and the Sunnah, and this is the furthest thing from reality in the Muslim world today. Therefore, I believe that studying these civilizations is a collective obligation. But who performs it? The one who is proficient in his knowledge of his religion and the rulings of its Shari'ah. And may Allah's peace and mercy and blessings be upon you.

The questioner : May Allah reward you with good.