Qar'a 'Ala Khushan read words concerning the imamate and seeking it. Then he commented on these words.

The Shaykh : The research here is on a specific point: if there is a position in which a Muslim fears he will be tempted, and he knows that being in this position means performing an obligation, an obligation related to enjoining good and forbidding evil, making reforms, benefiting the Ummah, and so on, but he fears for himself—what is the position of the author who says all these words? He describes it as an opinion. You read the book from beginning to end; what is your answer?

The questioner : When he mentioned the words of al-Sakhtiyani and al-Thawri, and then said, "And the words of the Salaf are understood in this way," it is about taking on the task. The Salaf took on the task despite their fear of taking the lead, but they did not abandon the call and taking on the task against these innovators and the misguided.

The Shaykh : This is not the topic. May Allah guide you.

The questioner : ...this structure.

The Shaykh : What Allah willed, what is its name?

The questioner : Bara'

The Shaykh : Bara', what Allah willed... I seek refuge for you in the perfect words of Allah from every Shaytan, and from every female jinn, and from the evil eye of an envious person. What...

The questioner : He said: "And he is the one who competes with the people of misguidance and innovation in leading the Islamic societies and directing them, and he benefits from the favorable opportunities in that, with his strong concern for the safety of his self from attachment to the world, status, and position among people, and his struggle against that. But if he finds that his self does not submit to doing this beneficial good that benefits all people, in terms of knowledge, teaching, leadership, direction, and taking the lead, except with some worldly motives, such as acquiring wealth, or a desire for status, or rank, or the like, and the harm of these things is less than the benefit resulting from these actions, with his readiness to abandon these charitable acts out of dislike for what is mixed with them, which indicates his sincerity.

The Shaykh : Dislike for what?
Khushan: Dislike for what is mixed with them, which indicates his sincerity and the goodness of his intention, and his desire for the intention in the work to be completely independent and pure from every impurity. If he engages in these beneficial righteous acts and endures them, while struggling his self for complete sincerity so that the desire does not settle in immediate motives, that is better than his withdrawal and leaving the field to no one, except to the corrupt, the deviants, and the hypocrites, especially when there is no one to perform these obligations, and no one to take on them sufficiently to direct the general public, call them, teach them, enjoin good for them, and forbid evil for them.
And the performance by the people of knowledge and righteousness of the obligation of the call, conveying the message, and forbidding evil, along with what that entails of taking the lead, prominence, and visibility, is beneficial in forbidding the major evils that require, in their forbidding, a strength that surrounds the one who forbids, giving him power and weight, and protecting him from harm reaching him from the people of evil. This is like the common, well-known, established evils that people have become accustomed to and familiar with until they became part of their lives, and the evils behind which stand the hidden hypocrites, whether they are people of authority, influence, and empowerment, or those who surround the people of authority, influence, and empowerment, and the evils behind which stand some of those who claim to be of religion, or knowledge, or the Shari'ah, while in reality they are from the people of zandaqa, ignorance, and desire. And it is what should be noted that Allah the Exalted praised the believers for their supplication and their saying:

The Shaykh: Amen, amen, amen.

The questioner : "So seeking the imamate in religion is something for which one is praised and commended, and there is no blame in it in any way. And likewise, when Uthman ibn Abi al-'As came, he said: O Messenger of Allah! Make me the imam of my people. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to him:

The Shaykh : How did he say it?

The questioner : He said, "Make me the imam of my people."

The Shaykh : The one before that?

The questioner : And likewise, when Uthman ibn Abi al-'As came, he said: O Messenger of Allah! Make me the imam of my people. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to him: , the hadith says: al-Tirmidhi narrated it and he extracts the hadith. So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) approved his seeking the imamate, and did not reprimand him for it; rather, he said to him: , then he advised him with some advices related to the imamate, and the obligation of gentleness with the subjects, and appointing the capable, sincere ones who do not seek reward except from Allah. This is what is related to the religious imamate. As for what is related to the worldly imamate, such as one whose intention is the governorship, for example, or the position, then what is said regarding him is what the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said to 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Samura: , so it is fitting for the caller and the student of knowledge to know the motives and obstacles and their reality, and whether they are lawful, Shari'ah-compliant motives or obstacles? Or are they from the throwings of Shaytan that adorn themselves in the self with the attire of good, while they are the opposite of that? And often these hidden, evil forces ally themselves to tighten the snares of alienation, and spread fitnah, and unite against the Sunnah and its people, and often the rulers and governors who deviate from the Shari'ah and stray from the methodology of the Prophethood find in the customs and habits of people an excuse to abandon the evils; rather, to spread and disseminate them, and to neglect enjoining good and suppress it, and to restrict its people, and deepen their alienation, and they find among those who claim to be of religion, from the Sufis, the mercenaries, the opportunists, and their like, those who rub themselves against it to show their concern for the religion, and their care for it, in exchange for empowering them to spread their misguided paths among the Muslims, and promote them; in verification of the saying of Allah the Exalted: And then he completes around the change by force and that it is not correct.
Abu Malik: I want to ask a question. This speech that I am speaking, a person can know it from himself, but do people know it from him?

The questioner : ... .
Abu Malik: Most of the people around me do not know this matter in him. So if this is the case, or that, everyone judges himself by this, and no one can know, as we said, by what he judges himself, then this is a matter that cannot be accomplished in the way he mentioned.The Shaykh : Salman, absolutely, when were they tested with this way? If the others know from him what he knows from himself, he says, O son of the noble, you do not resist. When the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said to 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Samura, when he said to him: , the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) knew from his Companions, even if the intelligence that Allah gave one does not know what the Companions know of themselves, and therefore he understood the psychology of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them). Does this matter mean, with the prevalence of positions and offices and their multitude, and the abundance of wealth that flows under the feet of people, and the expansion of the scope of sustenance for the servants, can all these be judged by a person through others? I think not?
Therefore, this issue, this matter, is treated by the brother Salman as if he is treating it in himself only, he does not treat the others. So if the righteous take on the positions, and let us suppose that the righteous are twenty percent of the total people existing in this country... like this, do you think that these twenty percent, meaning those we think are righteous in what appears to us, are they truly righteous? First and second, can they be patient with the hardships of these positions and stand firm against their temptations? And third, who guarantees us the danger that these will fall into, while they know from themselves what people do not know of them? And fourth, do you guarantee that after they fall into the snares, not the snares of alienation, but the snares of fitnah, wealth, position, and offices, do you guarantee that they will benefit the Muslims in any way? If one or two or three or four remain, we say: By Allah, in such-and-such ministry there is a righteous man named so-and-so, but he has no control over his own affairs at all.

The Shaykh : ...with time they developed. I think you are with me in this.
Abu Malik: My Shaykh, there is no doubt this exists.

The Shaykh : Well, how do we then encourage people to seek ranks and positions? It is an obligation, but one must preserve oneself before others.

Another questioner : To complete... Abu Malik, may Allah reward you with good, I am addressing the same point but in a different form, I think. I hope you will correct my words, as there may be some error or truth in them. I say, O our Shaykh: I ask for the brother Salman, meaning I ask for the prohibition of seeking authority with a worldly intention, while permitting the seeking of leadership with a religious intention. Does this not reflect back on him, such that it is said: there is one who seeks leadership, which is religious, for a worldly intention, and there is one who seeks authority, which is worldly, for a religious intention?
Khushan: This is defective, and he does not permit it.
Al-Halabi : The same statement reflects back on him. Now, his shortening of the statement is not appropriate... When 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Samurah was prohibited, was he prohibited from something purely worldly, while he knew from his companions elevation in faith and highness in piety? O Shaykh.

The questioner : I mean, if now he wants leadership in religion, but it is for the sake of the world, this is certainly blameworthy, unanimously, and it is not permissible for him to do so if his intention is defective.

Another questioner : And the opposite.

The questioner : And the reverse may be true, but rarely. This is, for example, the statement of Yusuf (peace be upon him): .
Abu Malik : No, it is not said here that if it becomes necessary that...

The questioner : No, it is not always the case. Sometimes it may become necessary for one man, with no one else, to perform this task, and there is no one more suitable than him. In that case, it may be him.

Another questioner : This is the reality of the matter...

The questioner : ...We say here... Therefore, we say here a rule first, and it is clarified that matters may overlap and differ. Here, the Muslim must exert his effort to know the harm and the benefit, and which is stronger. If he sees that the benefit is more successful and the benefits he obtains are greater than the harm he will be exposed to, he proceeds. And if he sees that the harm—and in my opinion the harm is greater—he refrains and misses out on some benefits. It is a dangerous matter. The man mentioned from the beginning that this is a dangerous matter. And the one afflicted who can assess that from himself, as Abu Malik said, and Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He) is the one who grants success to everyone. If a person has sincerity and steadiness, and he may be exposed to some harms, but he sees that the benefit is greater, and he tries to steady himself and not fall into the harms, he proceeds... For example, a doctor treats a woman. Not all doctors are the same... A trial may occur for one, and for another it may not occur. But if a trial occurs, with the presence of, for example, safeguards, with the presence of a mahram or... there is no seclusion, there is a safeguard. If... he fears... and she may die in it, and... an operation, fearing that he will look at, meaning, her body, but she dies.
Abu Malik : This is like... O Shaykh.

The questioner : Why is this a reality...
Abu Malik : No, no, ...

The questioner : And this is like this.

The Shaykh : Glory be to You, O Allah, and praise be to You. I testify that there is no god but You. I seek Your forgiveness and I repent to You.