Explanation of the Hadith of Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman regarding trials (They used to ask the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) about good, and I used to ask him about evil, fearing that it might overtake me...)
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The Shaykh : And among the matters that merit attention, in connection with the previous discussion on party affiliation and political activity, is that those who establish the current affiliations and parties in the Muslim community do not sing the praises, near or far, of the authentic hadith agreed upon by the scholars, namely the hadith of Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman (may Allah be pleased with him), which is found in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim, in which he said: Sahih al-Bukhari 7084.
I say that this hadith contains a very clear statement regarding the reality of Muslims today, for they do not have an established community with a pledged imam; rather, as I mentioned earlier, there are various parties differing ideologically and methodologically. In this hadith, if a Muslim encounters such a situation, he must not join a party, nor affiliate with any group or faction, as long as there is no community with a pledged imam from among the Muslims.
Therefore, some of the early hadith scholars and memorizers have stated what confirms what this hadith indicates and what I have explained previously. Al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani (may Allah have mercy on him) transmitted in his explanation of this hadith from Imam al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him) that he said: "In the hadith, it is stated that whenever the people do not have an imam and they split into parties, one should not follow anyone in the faction and should withdraw from all of them if he is able to do so, out of fear of falling into evil."
Therefore, it is obligatory for the Salafis in general to remain steadfast in their call to understand the Book and the Sunnah and to follow the methodology of the righteous Salaf, calling all groups and parties to this true call of theirs. They should not form a party themselves, nor establish other parties, as we have read from some Salafis that they establish these affiliations and parties, contrary to the hadith of Hudhayfah mentioned earlier. When we state this fact, we firmly believe that what we mentioned earlier is one thing, and that we do not declare misguided or disbeliever any party or group that disagrees with us on some ideological issues or on our methodology in the call. This is because we want all Muslims to join this true call, which has no alternative, for it is the truth brought by the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), and the Muslims followed it throughout the centuries that have passed. Therefore, we say:
"All good is in following those who came before, and all evil is in innovating those who came after."
We do not want our Salafi brothers to forget their straight path, which they have been walking on since ancient times, influenced by other party affiliations. We are above party affiliations, and Allah (Mighty and Majestic) is with us as long as we are with His Book and the hadith of His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family).
The people used to ask Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) about the good but I used to ask him about the evil lest I should be overtaken by them. So I said, "O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)! We were living in ignorance and in an (extremely) worst atmosphere, then Allah brought to us this good (i.e., Islam); will there be any evil after this good?" He said, "Yes." I said, 'Will there be any good after that evil?" He replied, "Yes, but it will be tainted (not pure.)'' I asked, "What will be its taint?" He replied, "(There will be) some people who will guide others not according to my tradition? You will approve of some of their deeds and disapprove of some others." I asked, "Will there be any evil after that good?" He replied, "Yes, (there will be) some people calling at the gates of the (Hell) Fire, and whoever will respond to their call, will be thrown by them into the (Hell) Fire." I said, "O Allah s Apostle! Will you describe them to us?" He said, "They will be from our own people and will speak our language." I said, "What do you order me to do if such a state should take place in my life?" He said, "Stick to the group of Muslims and their Imam (ruler)." I said, "If there is neither a group of Muslims nor an Imam (ruler)?" He said, "Then turn away from all those sects even if you were to bite (eat) the roots of a tree till death overtakes you while you are in that state."
كان الناس يسألون رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم عن الخير وكنت أسأله عن الشر مخافة أن يدركني فقلت : يا رسول الله إنا كنا في جاهلية وشر فجاءنا الله بهذا الخير فهل بعد هذا الخير من شر ؟ قال : نعم ، قلت : وهل بعد ذلك الشر من خير .؟ قال : نعم وفيه دخن , قلت : وما دخنه ؟ قال : قوم يهدون بغير هدي تعرف منهم وتنكر ، قلت : فهل بعد ذلك الخير من شر ؟ قال : نعم دعاة على أبواب جهنم من أجابهم إليها قذفوه فيها ، قلت : يا رسول الله صفهم لنا , قال : هم من جلدتنا ويتكلمون بألسنتنا , قلت : فما تأمرني إن أدركني ذلك ؟ قال : تلزم جماعة المسلمين وإمامهم ، قلت : فإن لم يكن لهم جماعة ولا إمام ؟ قال : فاعتزل تلك الفرق كلها ولو أن تعض بأصل شجرة حتى يدركك الموت وأنت على ذلكI say that this hadith contains a very clear statement regarding the reality of Muslims today, for they do not have an established community with a pledged imam; rather, as I mentioned earlier, there are various parties differing ideologically and methodologically. In this hadith, if a Muslim encounters such a situation, he must not join a party, nor affiliate with any group or faction, as long as there is no community with a pledged imam from among the Muslims.
Therefore, some of the early hadith scholars and memorizers have stated what confirms what this hadith indicates and what I have explained previously. Al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani (may Allah have mercy on him) transmitted in his explanation of this hadith from Imam al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him) that he said: "In the hadith, it is stated that whenever the people do not have an imam and they split into parties, one should not follow anyone in the faction and should withdraw from all of them if he is able to do so, out of fear of falling into evil."
Therefore, it is obligatory for the Salafis in general to remain steadfast in their call to understand the Book and the Sunnah and to follow the methodology of the righteous Salaf, calling all groups and parties to this true call of theirs. They should not form a party themselves, nor establish other parties, as we have read from some Salafis that they establish these affiliations and parties, contrary to the hadith of Hudhayfah mentioned earlier. When we state this fact, we firmly believe that what we mentioned earlier is one thing, and that we do not declare misguided or disbeliever any party or group that disagrees with us on some ideological issues or on our methodology in the call. This is because we want all Muslims to join this true call, which has no alternative, for it is the truth brought by the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), and the Muslims followed it throughout the centuries that have passed. Therefore, we say:
"All good is in following those who came before, and all evil is in innovating those who came after."
We do not want our Salafi brothers to forget their straight path, which they have been walking on since ancient times, influenced by other party affiliations. We are above party affiliations, and Allah (Mighty and Majestic) is with us as long as we are with His Book and the hadith of His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family).
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