A call from Hasan al-Suqaf and the Shaykh's refusal to debate him
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The phone rang.
The questioner : Peace be upon you
The Shaykh : And upon you be peace
The questioner : Hasan: I am speaking with you, Hasan al-Suqaf. I insist on sitting with you. You may set a date or find a time for us to sit together. I want to discuss some matters with you and ask you questions.
The Shaykh : You have not given us the opportunity, so we must meet persistence with persistence. I do not have time, because the experience I have had with our brothers does not encourage anyone to waste their time with you. If you had shown any fairness and detachment from following desires, fathers, and ancestors, perhaps a person would sacrifice some of his time for the sake of understanding someone who appears sincere and a seeker of the truth. But I am sorry to say that this has not appeared in all those sessions.
Hasan al-Suqaf: But I am the one who proves...
The Shaykh : And so, I am sorry again. I do not say that I have no willingness to meet you, because my time is tighter than this meeting.
Hasan al-Suqaf: But no problem, I want to draw your attention to a point.
The Shaykh: Go ahead.
Hasan al-Suqaf: It is that I am the one who proves that wherever I find the truth, I follow it. The Sufis in this town are all upset with me because I do not agree with them on what they say out of ignorance and misguidance, such as their claims of divine indwelling and union.
The Shaykh : For us to accept this statement of yours, write us a treatise, even a small one, that clarifies the defects of the Sufis as you say. Then this would be a white spot in your record. It is not enough that you are just hearing me say this because you know that between us and the Sufis there is a lot of conflict. That is not sufficient to clear your name. Rather, you must write a treatise, especially...
Hasan al-Suqaf: That is not my goal...
The Shaykh : I am telling you, especially since half of your speech has no answer, and especially since, may Allah protect you, you have excessive energy in responding to those you claim are innovators, who are the callers to the Sunnah and those who revive the Sunnah. You write a treatise in order to respond to those who issue rulings based on his saying (peace and blessings be upon him):Sunan Ibn Majah 1726Hasan (Darussalam) with this energy that goes to waste, because you are like one who strikes with cold iron. You contradict the hadith of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) simply by saying here or there, and we do not know if you understood it or not. You may rush to weaken an authentic hadith out of ignorance or negligence. Allah knows best, and Allah is your reckoner. As for writing a treatise as you are saying now, that the Sufis are not pleased with you, publish this opinion of yours so that we can see it, so that there may be a rapprochement between us and you. This is all I have, and peace be upon you. Because our time is as tight as it can be, and we have some attendees now, so the time does not allow. If you wish to think about what you heard and call me again by phone, I have no objection. Perhaps Allah (Mighty and Majestic) will guide whoever among us is astray. And peace be upon you and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
Abu Layla : Abu Layla: Oh Shaykh, I loved it, may Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh : I do not want it, my brother. What do you want? Is it not enough that you did not speak with them there?
Abu Layla : Abu Layla: Do you know why, our Shaykh?
The Shaykh : No, I do not know what you want to tell me.
Abu Layla : Abu Layla: Because this is recorded, and it must reach his hands, so I do not want him to say that he is the same...The Shaykh : Abu Layla: recording these matters, meaning I am present at...The Shaykh .
The Shaykh : Okay, what do you want me to do? If you want to speak with him, what does it mean? Did you separate the issue?
Abu Layla : Abu Layla: I mean, I know now that it was recorded, our Shaykh. When he speaks about the Sufis and that he is innocent of them, this is an opportunity for me to publicize this tape and distribute it.
The Shaykh : Okay, distribute it.
Abu Layla : Abu Layla: Okay, but he may now think that...The Shaykh : Abu Layla: placed the recorder to record the questions and answers, and I do not know that I am present at...The Shaykh .
The Shaykh : Do you mean you recorded it?
Abu Layla: Yes.
The Shaykh : Abu Layla: Put it on my neck - laughsAbu Layla : AndThe Shaykh : (may Allah have mercy on him) - this is not a big problem.
The questioner : Peace be upon you
The Shaykh : And upon you be peace
The questioner : Hasan: I am speaking with you, Hasan al-Suqaf. I insist on sitting with you. You may set a date or find a time for us to sit together. I want to discuss some matters with you and ask you questions.
The Shaykh : You have not given us the opportunity, so we must meet persistence with persistence. I do not have time, because the experience I have had with our brothers does not encourage anyone to waste their time with you. If you had shown any fairness and detachment from following desires, fathers, and ancestors, perhaps a person would sacrifice some of his time for the sake of understanding someone who appears sincere and a seeker of the truth. But I am sorry to say that this has not appeared in all those sessions.
Hasan al-Suqaf: But I am the one who proves...
The Shaykh : And so, I am sorry again. I do not say that I have no willingness to meet you, because my time is tighter than this meeting.
Hasan al-Suqaf: But no problem, I want to draw your attention to a point.
The Shaykh: Go ahead.
Hasan al-Suqaf: It is that I am the one who proves that wherever I find the truth, I follow it. The Sufis in this town are all upset with me because I do not agree with them on what they say out of ignorance and misguidance, such as their claims of divine indwelling and union.
The Shaykh : For us to accept this statement of yours, write us a treatise, even a small one, that clarifies the defects of the Sufis as you say. Then this would be a white spot in your record. It is not enough that you are just hearing me say this because you know that between us and the Sufis there is a lot of conflict. That is not sufficient to clear your name. Rather, you must write a treatise, especially...
Hasan al-Suqaf: That is not my goal...
The Shaykh : I am telling you, especially since half of your speech has no answer, and especially since, may Allah protect you, you have excessive energy in responding to those you claim are innovators, who are the callers to the Sunnah and those who revive the Sunnah. You write a treatise in order to respond to those who issue rulings based on his saying (peace and blessings be upon him):
Do not fast on Saturdays apart from days when you are obliged to fast
لا تصوموا يوم السبت إلا فيما افترض عليكمAnd either we or you are on the right path or in clear error
وإنا أو إياكم لعلى هدى أو في ضلالٍ مبينAbu Layla : Abu Layla: Oh Shaykh, I loved it, may Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh : I do not want it, my brother. What do you want? Is it not enough that you did not speak with them there?
Abu Layla : Abu Layla: Do you know why, our Shaykh?
The Shaykh : No, I do not know what you want to tell me.
Abu Layla : Abu Layla: Because this is recorded, and it must reach his hands, so I do not want him to say that he is the same...The Shaykh : Abu Layla: recording these matters, meaning I am present at...The Shaykh .
The Shaykh : Okay, what do you want me to do? If you want to speak with him, what does it mean? Did you separate the issue?
Abu Layla : Abu Layla: I mean, I know now that it was recorded, our Shaykh. When he speaks about the Sufis and that he is innocent of them, this is an opportunity for me to publicize this tape and distribute it.
The Shaykh : Okay, distribute it.
Abu Layla : Abu Layla: Okay, but he may now think that...The Shaykh : Abu Layla: placed the recorder to record the questions and answers, and I do not know that I am present at...The Shaykh .
The Shaykh : Do you mean you recorded it?
Abu Layla: Yes.
The Shaykh : Abu Layla: Put it on my neck - laughsAbu Layla : AndThe Shaykh : (may Allah have mercy on him) - this is not a big problem.
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.