How do we respond to those who say that the necktie is no longer specific to the dress of the disbelievers?

The questioner : What do you say, O Shaykh, may Allah reward you with good, about this knot? For those who say it is no longer a specific dress of the disbelievers, so that we would say it is imitating them? It has become a dress for them and for others?

The Shaykh : Do not eat with your left hand. I have seen you repeatedly and over and over drinking coffee with your left hand, but I wondered in my heart, perhaps the man has pain in his right hand, may Allah forbid it. So I delayed and delayed, and I said, should I speak or not?

The questioner : This is his Shaykh, Abu Ahmad!
The audience : Hehehehe.

The questioner : May Allah reward you with good. If you would clarify the issue of the necktie for us with a clear explanation.

The Shaykh : Insha'Allah, be assured of all good.

The questioner : May Allah honor you and reward you with good, and may He bless you.

Another questioner : It is said that when the disbeliever sees the Muslim wearing the suit and the tie, that it encourages him to enter Islam.

The Shaykh : What Allah willed.

The questioner : That is what they say, that it is a door for da'wah.

The Shaykh : I want to say that the issue of the necktie, or the knot, the answer to it from the perspective of Sunni jurisprudence is from two sides. One is the chapter of imitating the disbelievers, and the other is opposing the disbelievers. So whoever understands these two principles from the principles of jurisprudence, not only will he stay away from wearing this knot, but he will intend to oppose the disbelievers in everything he does not need. As for the first principle, it is what is explicitly indicated by the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) Then many hadiths followed in succession confirming this meaning, as in "Sahih Muslim," where a man came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and greeted him, and he (peace and blessings be upon him) said to him And many hadiths came on this basis, and I do not want to lengthen the discussion on them. I only want to mention that the rule of imitation is that the Muslim does the action of the disbelievers. It is true that not every action the disbelievers do are we forbidden from doing on the basis that it falls under imitating the disbelievers. This is an agreed-upon matter that this generalization is not applicable. But the decisive point in the issue is not for some of those afflicted with imitating the disbelievers to say that this has become a general dress, so it is no longer imitating the disbelievers. Those who should say this are first those who have not been afflicted with what those people were afflicted with, and second, they are those who are people of knowledge. Because distinguishing whether this is still from the dress of the disbelievers or has ceased to be from the dress of the disbelievers is a ruling that not every person can issue and judge. It must be a scholar and an expert in the conditions, customs, and traditions of nations. Therefore, it is not permissible for any person afflicted with wearing one of the clothes of the disbelievers to remove it and argue with this word that this has become a general dress, because we will say, where is the general dress? Here we are Muslims, like in your story, and some of us are wearing this knot. So who judges that this has become a general dress? The afflicted or the healthy? Without doubt, first, it is the healthy, and second, it is the scholars who know the distinction between what is specific to the disbelievers and what is comprehensive for all people, with no difference between a Muslim and a disbeliever. This is what relates to the issue of imitation. But the true Muslim, even if he is not a scholar, and even if he is afflicted with imitating some of the disbelievers, he will find a very wide space for escape from the problem. If it is still from the dress of the disbelievers, it is imitation; or if it has ceased to be from the dress of the disbelievers, it is not imitation. Even so, he will find in the other principle, which is opposing the disbelievers, a wide space for escape from doing their action, even if their action is from the general customs, meaning it is not imitation. So we have two things: imitation, and if imitation is not present, then the intention of opposition should be present. The greatest example of this is where it is true that there is no imitation, and yet opposition applies. It is not possible for the intention of imitation to be realized in it, because imitation is from the action of the imitator, from an action that is of his choice, if he wishes he does it, and if he wishes he does not, like this knot or this cap that we saw today in the mosque on the small child. Did you notice it or not?

The questioner : No, we did not notice.

The Shaykh : You did not notice. The important thing is, a small child, it turned out he was one of our good brothers. I asked, whose child is this? They said, so-and-so. And he came to greet me with all affection and sincerity. So I said to him, this is not appropriate for his youth to get used to the dress of the disbelievers. The point is, this is by his doing, and this is imitation. So the one who tied the knot did an action. Was he forced to do it? The answer is no. This is within the circle of imitation. As for the circle of the intention of opposition, it is exactly the opposite. It is from his action, but he opposes the polytheists in what? In what is not from their action. It is the opposite of the issue of imitation. In imitation, the intention is present from both the imitator and the one being imitated. The disbeliever ties the necktie, and the Muslim ties the necktie. So that is an action, and this is an action like his. This is called imitation because an action came from both the imitator and the one being imitated. As for opposition, it may be in something where there is no intention for the one opposing, but the intention must be present from the Muslim who is opposing. And this is very explicit in the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) Meaning the Jew and the Christian. Allah has decreed for all humans to turn gray at a certain age. Some may be early, and some may be late. So if the disbeliever turns gray, it is not by his action, and if the Muslim turns gray, it is not by his action. With this and that, the Lawgiver says to the Muslim, dye your hair so that you oppose the Jews and Christians who do not dye. Meaning, oppose them in what Allah created them with, which is gray hair, by you dyeing your gray hair. So opposition is something else, much more important and much more precise than imitating the disbelievers. So this one who says, "My brother, the necktie has become a universal dress," as one of the priests said to me, I may mention it to you because of the lesson in it. We say to him, "My brother, if you think this, and your thinking is wrong, and the explanation is as mentioned earlier. But there is a wide Islamic space for you to intend to oppose the polytheists and not to agree with them in anything, even if it is a general thing. And we bring to him this hadith So there are two circles. One is imitation, and this is not permissible. If someone doubts that something is imitation, we put it in the other circle, which is the circle of opposing the polytheists. And this is a very, very wide circle. And with this opposition, the Islamic personality is realized. One of the partisans wrote a letter titled "The Muslim Personality." But where is it from the Muslim personality? They do not look at the outward appearances. They say the criterion is what is in the inner self. But they did not know that the outward appearance is the title of the inner self, and that there is no separation or disconnection between the outward and the inward. And the truth is, I compared the connection of the outward to the inward to an interaction similar to what some of the old philosophers used to talk about, and perhaps they are thinking about it now. And one of them from the Emirates told me that one of them found that, and I did not believe it, and he spoke with me at length. It is the perpetual motion. Do you hear of perpetual motion? Meaning creating something that moves forever by its nature. So I see that perpetual motion is established between the outward and the inward. And this has a basis in what is called today the science of philosophy or the science of psychology. And with this science, the movements in prayer are explained in a very wonderful way. This bowing, and this prostration, and raising the hands, and moving the finger. All of this has effects on the heart. It strengthens the heart, it strengthens the faith, whose abode is the heart. So when the heart is strong, the body is sound, meaning the person increases in movement. He increases in movement, he increases in faith in his heart. And so the perpetual motion that they were thinking about, and could not realize practically, is present in the heart and the self of every person. So this opposition strengthens the faith of the Muslim. So when you raise your finger, you point to Allah, to His Oneness. When you say "La ilaha illa Allah" with your tongue, this testimony with your heart strengthens its effect. This testimony on your tongue strengthens its effect in your heart. When you point to Tawhid with this gesture, it increases the faith in your heart. When you cast your gaze to your finger, this gaze also has its effect on your heart. So when the Muslim intends in all his actions to oppose the polytheists, as he (peace and blessings be upon him) said The meaning of that is that the life of the Muslim becomes a cause for strengthening the faith in his heart. And among that is intending to oppose the polytheists.