What is the obligation regarding the errors attributed to scholars and preachers

The Shaykh : As for what happens or what is attributed to some preachers or some scholars, our obligation is to follow three matters. Our obligation is to follow three matters: The first is verification. The first is verification. How many sayings have been transmitted to us, and when we inquired about them, we found they had no truth? Sayings are attributed to us that we did not say, and we disavow them. Likewise, sayings are attributed to others, and when we investigate them, we find they have no truth. So, above all else, verification is necessary, especially in the age of desires. Second: Discussion. Discussion with whom? With the one to whom the saying was attributed. We ask him, "Did you say this?" If he says, "Yes," we discuss it. He may be mistaken because he relied on evidence that is not evidence. He may be mistaken because he understood the evidence in a way other than its intended meaning. Often, a person relies on a weak hadith, and after discussion, the weakness of the hadith becomes clear to him, and he retracts. And often, a person relies on his own understanding of a correct text, whether a verse or a hadith, and after discussion, the error in his understanding becomes clear, and he retracts. Is that not so? So, once what was transmitted from a person is verified, contact him. "We heard such and such from you. Is this correct?" If he says, "Yes," we discuss it. And the obligation after discussion is to follow the truth, whether it is with him or with you. Do not be biased toward your opinion. Do not distort the texts for the sake of your opinion. Follow the truth. And praise be to Allah. Returning to the truth is better than persisting in falsehood, as the Commander of the Faithful, 'Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him), said: "Returning to the truth is better than persisting in falsehood". Who is the highest of people in status?
The student: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him).

The Shaykh : The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). And if it became clear to him that the matter was contrary to what he said, he retracted. And he is the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). He entered Madinah. He entered Madinah from where? From Makkah. And Makkah is not a place of cultivation. There are no date palms or crops. When he entered Madinah, he found that the people of Madinah were pollinating the date palms. Do you know what pollination is?
The student: Pollination.

The Shaykh : Pollination. That is, he takes from the flower of the male palm and places it in the fruit of the date palm. He saw that there was hardship in it. And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was compassionate and merciful to the believers. What is the hardship? He climbs to the male palm, brings the fruit with the pollen from it, then climbs to the date palm to pollinate it. And perhaps it is not enough to pollinate it once; perhaps twice or three times. So he said: Meaning, there is no need for this thing. And the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) were the most obedient people to the Messenger of Allah. They were the most obedient and the most God-fearing people. They said, "Yes, we will leave it. We will leave the pollination." They left it for a year, and the fruit spoiled. What was it? It was dry husks. It was dry husks. So they came to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), and he retracted. Retracted means he said: Meaning, so pollinate. So, if a person becomes aware of an error, he must retract, especially in religious matters. It is obligatory for every person, if it becomes clear to him that his statement was wrong, to retract from it. And if he had previously announced his wrong statement, he must announce what? The retraction from it. And there is no harm; rather, this is the obligation. So, first, discuss with the one to whom the saying was attributed. Then, it is obligatory for each of you to follow the truth. The third level: We said three levels. The third level: If he persists in his error. If he persists in his error after it has been clarified to him, then at that time, it is obligatory to clarify his error to the people and to warn the people from his error. To warn the people from his error. Because arguing for the truth after it has become clear that he is opposing and resisting the truth, it is obligatory to clarify his error in what he got wrong and to warn the people from following him in this error. But does this error cover all his correctness? Meaning, do we deny all the correctness and all the benefit that came from this person? Of course, of course, no. Yes.
The student: Of course, no.

The Shaykh : Answer, everyone.
The student: No.

The Shaykh : No. If he made a mistake once, that does not mean that all what he got right is invalid and rejected. We said that the truth is accepted from whoever brings it. If this man erred in one issue and was correct in other issues, we accept his correctness. And how excellent is the phrase said by Zayn al-Din Ibn Rajab, one of the students of Ibn al-Qayyim. And Ibn al-Qayyim is known to have been a student of whom? Of the Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him). He said in his book *Al-Qawa'id al-Fiqhiyyah* (The Jurisprudential Rules), which is a good book that I recommend to everyone who wants jurisprudence in a proper manner. He said: "Allah refuses infallibility to any book other than His Book, and the fair one is he who forgives a little error of a person in much of his correctness". The fair one is he who forgives a little error of a person in much of his correctness. And this is correct. As for the person who holds a man accountable if he makes one mistake and erases all his good deeds, this resembles whom? It resembles our mothers, meaning women. If you do good to them all their lives and they find one sin from you, they say, "I have never seen any good from you." This is bad behavior. This is bad behavior, without a doubt. The fair person who fears Allah is the one who is just. Be just. Even if it is against yourselves. Be just. That is closer to righteousness. And fear Allah. So, our obligation regarding this disagreement that occurs between students of knowledge or between preachers or the like, our obligation is to follow the truth wherever it is, and not to take this disagreement as a cause for bias, enmity, and partisanship. Because Allah says in the Qur'an: So, the fact that this disagreement spreads among us is undoubtedly one of our harms. It is a harm to the call, a harm to the awakening. It causes the youth to stand confused as to whom to follow. It causes people to dispute among themselves. And all of this has no justification. Rather, reason and the Shari'ah require avoiding it and staying away from it. I ask Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) to unite our word entirely upon the truth, and to make us among those who saw the truth as truth and followed it, and saw the falsehood as falsehood and avoided it.