The Shaykh al-Halal asked the Shaykh al-Albani to respond to those who overstep against him.

The questioner: I mean, I have looked at some of what some writers have written, those who claim knowledge of hadith and try, I mean, to storm or charge this mountain, I mean, they try to take something from it. But in reality, when I followed what they wrote, I found that they sometimes conceal defects, sometimes they make mistakes, and sometimes the matter was not clear.

The Shaykh: I mean, both interpretations are possible.

The questioner: So I, who hope from the virtue ofThe Shaykh : that he would look at these books that were written, even if they are by people of lower status, no doubt, and during the printing of the new books, especially al-Silsilah al-Sahihah and al-Da'ifah, that we look at them and respond, and clarify that so-and-so here made a mistake, or deviated, or concealed a defect, or such, so that we cut off the root of these oversteppers. So what is your opinion?

The Shaykh: By Allah, the opinion is correct, but first, this is a sea with no shore, that every book that comes out by people who have no knowledge, and we waste our time looking at it and directing our effort to criticizing it, this is a matter that does not end. This is first. And second, it seems to me that you have not looked at the new printings of some of the old volumes, which serve as an example of what I said just now. There are many volumes of the two series, al-Sahihah and al-Da'ifah, that have been reprinted, and they have introductions that, if separated, would be independent dissertations, and in them is what I mentioned just now regarding responding to some of these people. But expanding on this, as you know, requires time and effort. So that we direct this remaining time, and as they say about us in Syria, "there is no more in the vineyard but firewood," so we utilize this time for positive knowledge, which is better than utilizing it in responding to people like these, whose matter does not end at all. And especially since many of them are malicious and not sincere, and there are some sincere ones among them, but they are beginners and not practiced in this knowledge, so they make many mistakes, and very many. So following them is a difficult matter. But in many of the new printings, whether in the introduction or in the body, you must, if you look at such modern printings, find something of what you requested and hoped for, if Allah wills.

The questioner: May Allah honor you and bless you.

The Shaykh: May Allah preserve you.