The Meaning of the Hadith: (Whoever wants to know if he has been afflicted with fitnah (trial, discord or temptation), let him look...)

The Shaykh : There is a report from Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman that is very strange. I mentioned it in some of the tapes when we spoke about the Gulf War. We saw people who, until recently, were saying one thing, and then they turned around and said the opposite. They were supporting a person, and then they abandoned him. And they were abandoning a person, and then they supported him. I was amazed by Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman, and there is no wonder in that, for he was the keeper of the secret of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). He used to say—and this text is far from me, but at least I will try to recall the meaning, and perhaps my brother Ali or one of our other brothers will recall the exact wording: "If one of you wants to know whether he has been afflicted with fitnah (trial, discord or temptation) or not, let him look. If he is saying something different from what he used to say before, then he has been afflicted with fitnah." Do you remember the wording?
Al-Halabi : It is as I said, the first generation, but it is: "Let him look at what was halal (lawful) yesterday that he used to forbid, and what was haram (forbidden) that he has made halal (lawful) today."

The Shaykh : This is true for many people today.
Al-Halabi : In a more general report from Hudhayfah (may Allah be pleased with him): "True misguidance is that you know what you used to deny, and you deny what you used to know."

The Shaykh : Allahu Akbar, yes.

The questioner : Our Shaykh, at this time