What are these organizations based on? "Indeed, in the Messenger of Allah is an excellent example for you."

The Shaykh : What are these organizations based on?

The questioner : According to what they say, according to their claim, they say, yes.

The Shaykh : Is this the answer to my question?

The questioner : You are asking for my opinion.

The Shaykh : Or not?

The questioner : Not their opinion. I know this.

The Shaykh : Did you know? And you know and you are neutral?

The questioner : I am not neutral, if Allah wills.

The Shaykh : Then why do you speak of their opinion? And you know that I want your opinion.

The questioner : The problem, O Shaykh, is that I clarified to you at the beginning, if Allah wills, that I sit before you as a student, if Allah wills.

The Shaykh : Look, my brother, may Allah reward you, we do not like this language, that you sit before me as if you are a pupil and obedient, may Allah be pleased with you, and so on. We do not like this language at all. We like frankness. There is no difference between me, an old Shaykh as you see me, and you, a young man, may Allah be pleased with you, as he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: But we like frankness. Your question was, what is your opinion of the organization? So I gave a lecture that the organization is of two types, and so on. We finally reached the point, and the discussion was about the existing organizations. And this last question is directed to you, not to them.

The questioner : Fine, go ahead.

The Shaykh : What is your opinion of the other organizations? We left the Muslim Brotherhood, which requires a separate study. Are the other organizations based on ?

The questioner : My answer is I do not know, because I do not know what they study, meaning, what do they study, for example, I do not know, meaning, perhaps, for example.

The Shaykh : Okay, fine, you do not know. Did I not say you do not know? The word "I do not know" needs explanation; there is no explanation.

The questioner : Okay, I thought.

The Shaykh : The word "I know" is what needs explanation, as for.

The questioner : I thought that I would only mention the evidence.

The Shaykh : That you do not know.

The questioner : That I do not know.

The Shaykh : No

The questioner : Meaning, why do I not know about...
Al-Halabi : O Shaykh, there is an important point in the same topic, meaning, regarding your question and its answer and what is built upon it. Your question, O our Shaykh, was very precise, as is your custom, praise be to Allah.

The Shaykh : Excuse me.

The questioner : That does this group begin as the Messenger (peace be upon him) began with tawhid (the oneness of Allah)? So our brother—may Allah reward him with good—answered that they study the book of Faith by Muhammad Naim Yasin, who is Salafi in creed, and so on. And this is not the answer to your question.

The Shaykh : No problem, may Allah reward you. We have told him more than once, we will leave it aside and return to it later. We want the other groups.
Al-Halabi : ...

The questioner : We leave the answer to the honorable.The Shaykh : , so that he may judge based on the book of Dr. Muhammad Naim Yasin and about the group.

The Shaykh : Look, my brother.

The questioner : If the book agrees with the creed of the people of the Sunnah and the community, that is not the research.

The Shaykh : First, as you said, you are sitting with us for the first time.

The questioner : Authentic

The Shaykh : So leave the Ikhwan-style methods to me.

The questioner : Well, okay.

The Shaykh : Do not say "the honorable" to me.The Shaykh : , because we consider this an innovation. Do you understand? Have you heard, in what you have learned, that anyone from your righteous predecessors, from Abu Bakr to the Imams, used to say "the honorable" to any of them?The Shaykh ؟

The questioner : I have not read and I have not heard.

The Shaykh : I have not read.
Abu Layla : Do you know, O our Shaykh, "the honorable"?The Shaykh ...

The Shaykh : The point is, you do not know, and I, like your story, do not know that any of them used to call the honorable scholar, the righteous Caliph, "the honorable."The Shaykh : This is a later dialect against the Salafi method. If they are satisfied with it, it is their affair. As for us, we do not like this. For example, they may like that when the head of the group or the doctor of the group or the Shaykh of the group enters such a gathering, they stand up for him, right or not?

The questioner : Yes, you are correct.

The Shaykh : As for us, we do not like this, because we always want, as the poet said:
"So imitate them, even if you are not like them, *** For imitating the noble ones is success."
We want to imitate the righteous predecessors, and we are not of them, do you see? But the Messenger's glad tidings encourage us to be like them, due to the generality of his (peace and blessings be upon him) saying: Or the hadith that is more authentic in chain: Do you know this hadith?

The questioner : Yes.

The Shaykh : Do you know its cause?

The questioner : No

The Shaykh : Yes, its cause is very wonderful. Anas ibn Malik said, "We did not ask the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) out of politeness in the etiquette of the Qur'an . Therefore, they liked it when a man from the Bedouin, not raised in the manner of the school of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), a Bedouin, would come and ask, 'O Messenger of Allah, where is Muhammad?' in a Bedouin dialect. They liked it when a man from these Bedouins would come and ask the Messenger, so that they would be safe from violating the etiquette of the Qur'an, and at the same time learn through the question of the stranger about the school of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). They liked this. So a man came and said, 'O Messenger of Allah, I am not one of those who fast much, pray much, or worship much, but I love Allah and His Messenger.' So he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: . Then Anas ibn Malik said: 'By Allah, we did not rejoice over anything as we rejoiced over this man's question to the Messenger and the Messenger's answer in his saying: .' So we love the righteous predecessors and try to imitate them, and we will not be like them, but as I mentioned to you just now.
"So imitate them, even if you are not like them, *** For imitating the noble ones is success."
Do you see, is it imitating the righteous predecessors, O honorable?The Shaykh : No. O Abu 'Abd al-Rahman, this is how the righteous predecessors would say. As for "the honorable,"The Shaykh : , "the excellency of so-and-so," and so on, there is none of that. When "the honorable" entered, they stood up for him. Was this how Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), the master of mankind, and his Companions, who are the best of mankind after the prophets and messengers all, did? Did they stand up for the Messenger? No. Do the groups that you are singing about and asking about their organizations do so? I think you can say "no" here?The Shaykh : They stood for him in standing, just as Muhammad (peace be upon him), the master of mankind, was treated by his Companions, who were the best of mankind after the prophets and messengers all together. Did they stand for the Messenger in standing? No. Do the groups you are prattling about and asking about their organizations do the same? I think you can say no here?

The questioner : I do not know.

The Shaykh : Or can you not say "I do not know"?

Another questioner : One of them did not stand up when the Amir entered, so he was judged.

The Shaykh: Yes

Another questioner : Judged.

The Shaykh : Judged?
Al-Halabi : Yes, Allahu Akbar,

The Shaykh : Allahu Akbar, yes, by Allah, the people of Makkah know its valleys best. The point, may Allah reward you, is that this book, the Book of Faith, who wrote it, Dr. So-and-so? Okay, before this book, what was the book they were reading? You do not know, but others know. Even if you had said "no book," you would have known the truth. How old is the Muslim Brotherhood as a group?

The questioner : ...

The Shaykh : No details, how old are they? Say fifty, sixty, seventy, yes?

The questioner : ... in Jordan ...

The Shaykh : Why now? Subhan Allah, at first it started with Hassan al-Banna and you ended up in Jordan. What is this far contradiction?

The questioner : ...

The Shaykh : I said the Muslim Brotherhood, not the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan. Seventy years? Approximately.

The questioner : And I did not understand, meaning, where do you want the Muslim Brotherhood?

The Shaykh : Ah, look, you are going to make me change my opinion of you. Do you understand why?
Al-Halabi : It is invalid, O our Shaykh, it is invalid.

The Shaykh : It is invalid, because now you have started to enter into argumentation.

The questioner : No, I seek refuge in Allah.

The Shaykh : That is why I tell you, you have started to make me change my view of you. What was my question to you?

The questioner : When, meaning, when did the Muslim Brotherhood emerge, or when was their movement?

The Shaykh : How long has it been since the Muslim Brotherhood? Okay, are the Muslim Brotherhood one group or groups?

The questioner : One group.

The Shaykh : And one methodology or methodologies?

The questioner : One methodology, if Allah wills.

The Shaykh : Okay, so if my question is about one group with one methodology, how long has it been? Why are you philosophizing on me?

The questioner : I seek refuge in Allah

The Shaykh : I did not understand, are you talking about the Jordan group or Syria or what? What do you want with these details? My question is, how long has it been for the Muslim Brotherhood? May Allah forgive what has passed. Good? May Allah forgive what has passed.

The questioner : May Allah honor you.

The Shaykh : How long? How long has it been for the Muslim Brotherhood?

The questioner : Approximately seventy years.

The Shaykh : Well done. In these seventy years, did they study the creed of tawhid (the oneness of Allah)? In what you know.

The questioner : I do not know anything except in the present time, and about the group also in Zarqa. Meaning, specifically, I want to specify for you so that I have judged them by what I know.

The Shaykh : I am asking you a question now: Is it permissible for a Muslim to join a group whose methodology he does not know, whose history of life he does not know, whose idea he does not know, whose call he does not know? Of course, the answer will be no. Is there a possibility that it is yes?

The questioner : Yes, he must know their methodology and their creed.

The Shaykh : Okay, so are you now speaking about the Muslim Brotherhood as an individual from them or as one outside of them?

The questioner : I am speaking about the Muslim Brotherhood as a complete group.

The Shaykh : Be neutral.

The questioner : Be neutral?

Another questioner : Are you one of them or outside of them?

The questioner : Me?

The Shaykh : And I? No, it is not me.

The questioner : I am not one of them; I am not inside the Muslim Brotherhood organization.

The Shaykh : Yes?

The questioner : I am not from within the Muslim Brotherhood organization.

The Shaykh : So you do not know them.
Abu Layla : Our Shaykh, many young people say, "We are not with the Brotherhood, but as they say, our hearts are attached to them and our emotions..."

The Shaykh : My brother, as long as you are not of the Brotherhood, you will not be able to speak about them, may Allah reward you. Because the Brotherhood member is pure and genuine. I do not say that a person cannot speak about the Muslim Brotherhood. I am going to tell you something now.

The questioner : Please go ahead.

The Shaykh : Because the Muslim Brotherhood here is one group and one methodology. That is not the case.

Another questioner : ...

The Shaykh : Yes?

Another questioner : That is the truth.

The Shaykh : I do not do what he did. I may be a son of the Muslim Brotherhood, but I am not one of them. Why? Because I mixed with them, lived with them, knew their inner thoughts, and knew the reality of their call, and so on. The Muslim Brotherhood in Syria are two sects. I am presenting you with actual facts, not imagination. The Muslim Brotherhood in Damascus, the Levant, are Salafi in thought and in scientific methodology, but they are political Muslim Brotherhood members. The Muslim Brotherhood in Aleppo and Deir al-Zor are Sufis who believe in the Sufi shaykhs. If they see a man walking naked in the streets, they say, "Leave him alone; this is one of the people of Allah." The Muslim Brotherhood. The president of the Muslim Brotherhood party in Deir al-Zor, remind me, what is his name? The author of the book *Risalat Ghayrah* (Message of Jealousy) about what?
Al-Halabi : Al-Huwaidi.

The Shaykh : Al-Huwaidi. No, no, Hasan. Is that not it? Hasan. What is the name of the book? *Al-Wujud* (Existence). May Allah have mercy on you, this book has a story. Our old friend Zuhayr al-Shawish printed it. I said to him, "What is the value of this book?" This book establishes the creed of the polytheists. It does not add anything except that it means it proves the creed of the Muslims, which confirms the creed of the polytheists. So I said to that man, "Tell the author that this book is of no benefit unless you add to it the oneness of worship, the oneness of the names and attributes, and what else? Do you prove that Allah is the Creator of the universe?" All of humanity, except for the deviants among the materialists and atheists, believe in this by their fitrah (innate natural disposition) with which Allah created them. Why this effort and what! This president, there was a man in Deir al-Zor walking with his saliva dripping. Perhaps he was wearing a dishdasha that exposed his 'awrah (part of the body that must be covered). Do not disapprove of him. We know a great deal from these facts. And the Muslim Brotherhood in Damascus read the book *Fiqh al-Sunnah* by Sayyid Sabiq. You probably know that Sayyid Sabiq was one of the close associates of Hasan al-Banna (may Allah have mercy on him). This book is read in Damascus. Why? Because the Salafi call in Damascus is established on a firm foundation and supported by those who call to the Salafi call, namely Al-Albani. But in Aleppo and Deir al-Zor, those who read this book are Wahhabis.

The questioner : Oh Allah.

The Shaykh : The same Muslim Brotherhood are at two opposite extremes.
Al-Halabi : Abu Ghuddah

The Shaykh : What is it? Once I was in Deir al-Zor. I am telling this story so you know that the organization we are talking about now has something much more important than that. Tawhid (the oneness of Allah) means The masses of Muslims, from the Muslim Brotherhood and others, do not know the meaning of this beautiful word. I was once awake at night in a town mentioned earlier, Deir 'Atiyyah. Instead of someone knocking on the door, they knocked on the window, which was on the main street. The host, who was sitting with us, went out to see who was knocking. We heard a loud voice of welcome: "Welcome, welcome, and so on." We were sitting here, and we could hardly believe who this noble guest was who wanted to enter. When he entered, I was surprised by him just as he was surprised by me.

The questioner : Glory be to Allah.

The Shaykh : He sat opposite me, without tashbih (likening Allah to creation), just as I told you. But what did he do? He did not do what you did, like asking a question. He began to prostrate, prostrating on the ground, making the people sitting there think that he was not in this world that you live in. He was with Allah, bowing and prostrating, and so on. And on top of this foolishness, which they call in the Levant, he started speaking words that have no meaning: "Eggs, eggplant," and these words, what do the grammarians say? An incomplete sentence, an incomplete sentence.

Another questioner : It has no place in the grammar.

The Shaykh : Ah?

The questioner : It has no place in the grammar.

The Shaykh : It has no place in the grammar. I knew the man was deceiving the attendees, and he was my neighbor. I had a shop where I repaired watches next to me. There was a mosque next to him, and he never entered the mosque. He always sat in the corner of the mosque, in the corner. I mean, a nut. He sat with his eyes yellow, God knows from what he was smoking, hashish. In Ramadan, he would openly smoke a cigarette, and no one objected to him at all. Why? He is one of the men of the unseen.

The questioner : And he is connected, meaning.

The Shaykh : Connected, connected, yes, but to Hellfire.

The questioner : May Allah protect us from that.

The Shaykh : The point is, he knew me and I knew him. So when he saw me, he acted as if he was absent. I improvised a word at that moment, the title of which was the noble verse:

The questioner :

The Shaykh : Yes, indeed. What?

The questioner :

The Shaykh Who? And I started saying, "Who are the believers and the righteous deeds," and so on, a very long speech. After I finished the lecture, I understood that the owner of the house, the host, was deluded and deceived by this man. He believed that he was truly a righteous man. After I delivered the lecture, what did he say to me? He said to me, "By Allah, our teacher, we used to believe before, but we have a shaykh here whose name wasThe Shaykh : 'Abd al-Qadir. What is 'Abd al-Qadir? By Allah, I forgot, by Allah. The important thing is, he studied at Al-Azhar al-Sharif for twenty years, my teacher. How long is that, according to your friend? He would have become a jurist. Twenty years, then he came to Deir 'Atiyyah and started preaching to the people, guiding them, and teaching them. He would give lessons in the mosque and gatherings in the councils, and so on. Once, he gave us a lesson and said to us, "If you see a person cursing Allah, cursing the religion, not praying, with a cross hanging on his head, wake up and disapprove of him. This will be one of the men of Allah. And the stone that does not please you will break you. The stone that does not please you will break you. Wake up and criticize it." And he told them, among the strong proofs he used to convince the misguided public like this,The Shaykh : He said, "There was a man, one of the great and noble scholars, who would patrol the markets as a muhtasib (market inspector), enjoining good and forbidding evil. So he stopped at a grocer's shop and saw him selling hashish, a narcotic. He disapproved of him and rebuked him, and so on: 'Do you not fear Allah? Do you not have taqwa (mindfulness of Allah)?' and so on. He had not finished his words when the man became like a beast, understanding nothing. His students were present and were surprised by this strange phenomenon. They dragged him as a beast is dragged. This noble scholar, because he ordered that man to do good and forbade him from evil, was stripped of his mind. Naturally, his students were jealous of their shaykh and wanted to find a cure for him. They started asking around. They directed them to a man called "The One with Two Wings," meaning one of the people of the apparent and the people of the hidden. Do you know anything about them? These people?

The questioner : No

The Shaykh : No, do you know the people of the apparent or the people of the hidden? They went to him and told him the story: "You have been struck by a man from the people of Allah. This grocer is one of the awliya (close friends of Allah), and that is why your scholar was struck as he was. You must go back and go to this wali to appease him so that his heart may be pleased with your scholar. Then his condition will return." Now, this grocer, this one, said that he is a wali. I call him the "Hashish Wali." So they took the scholar to the Hashish Wali, the seller of hashish. I mean, it is enough that he sells it; it is not permissible linguistically to say

Another questioner : It is permissible, teacher...

The Shaykh : It is permissible. The point is, they started intervening with him and begging him: "You know that our shaykh is a scholar, a judge, and so on, one who enjoins good and forbids evil. But do not take it out on him. He does not know your status." That is what they said to that "One with Two Wings." They kept at it until the heart of the Hashish Wali was pleased with the noble scholar, like someone who was asleep and woke up. And they knew his karamah (a miracle granted to a righteous person) by his placement. So he, in turn, started apologizing to the Hashish Wali. The story is not finished yet. The Hashish Wali returned and said to the shaykh, "Shaykh, do you think that I am really selling hashish, a narcotic? I sell hashish, a narcotic, in appearance. But in reality and in the hidden, any person who is high actually takes a small piece of hashish and it stops him from being high."
He said to them, "There was a shaykh from the village of Dayr 'Atiyyah. Have you seen this man? The scholar saw him as a hashish dealer. It is not permissible; it is forbidden. But the reality is contrary to appearances. Therefore, do not rebuke these groups of dervishes. The head of the Muslim Brotherhood in Dayr al-Zur used to believe in one of these ecstatics who claimed to be among the awliya (close friends of Allah). And today in the Islamic world, there are many, very many, of these people. Where is the organization that educates Muslims first in the knowledge of the testimony that there is no god but Allah and the second testimony that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah? And that the first testimony necessitates worshipping Allah alone, having no partner, and that what they dedicate to the awliya and the righteous—lighting candles, seeking nearness to Allah through them (tawassul)—is not permissible, let alone being occupied with them. None of these issues are discussed in the centers of the Muslim Brotherhood or in those they call...

Another questioner : Their people?

The Shaykh : Their people. Yes, absolutely. These issues are not discussed.

Another questioner : And in the zawiyahs (Sufi lodges)?

The Shaykh : So what is the benefit, may Allah reward you, of these organizations? That is why I said that the organization today should revolve around teaching Muslims their religion before it becomes infiltrated with deviation, whether in creed, worship, or morals and behavior. These aspects are rarely studied today in the groups and parties. Take, for example, the Tablighi Jama'ah. How active are they?

The questioner : Very active.

The Shaykh : Very active. But what do these people study? Backbiting, talebearing, lying, truthfulness, and so on.

The questioner : ...

The Shaykh : These are things all Muslims know: this is obligatory and that is forbidden. But they need to be reminded and properly aware. However, there is something more important than that: making them understand things they have completely misunderstood, such as tawhid (the oneness of Allah), and the meaning of "There is no god but Allah, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah." We said that the testimony "There is no god but Allah" necessitates believing that He is the Creator alone, having no partner, and that He is the Worshipped alone, having no partner in worship, and that He has the supreme names and attributes befitting His greatness and majesty, in which no one shares with Him. And that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, and no one is followed except him. Just as Allah is made unique in these types of tawhid, so the Messenger of Allah is made unique in following; no one is followed alongside the Messenger of Allah. Where are these meanings in these groups? They are anomalous and loose. If there is someone among them who understands these aspects, it is not because he benefited from his party or his group, but rather because this knowledge came from outside the group.

The questioner : Or from his own study.

The Shaykh : Yes?

The questioner : Or from his own study.

The Shaykh : Or from his own study. Yes, not from the group.

The questioner : ... Our Shaykh ...

The Shaykh : May Allah reward you with good. Yes.

The questioner : May Allah (Mighty and Majestic) bestow His favor upon the Muslims by your presence.

The Shaykh : Excuse me.