How do we reconcile the Prophet's (peace and blessings be upon him) command to his Companions to stay in their homes, remain silent, and not engage in trials when they appear, with what is mentioned in the hadith of Hudhayfah?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : May Allah reward you, he saysThe questioner : How do we reconcile the Prophet's (peace and blessings be upon him) command to his Companions to stay in their homes, remain silent, and not engage in trials when they appear, with what is mentioned in the hadith of Hudhayfah, where when he was asked of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) Sahih al-Bukhari 3606?
The Shaykh : I do not know this wording. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) did not say to Hudhayfah "the sword," but rather he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: This is what I remember of the hadith, and the questioner should provide the wording he mentioned.
Narrated Hudhaifa bin Al-Yaman: The people used to ask Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) about good, but I used to ask him about evil for fear that it might overtake me. Once I said, "O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)! We were in ignorance and in evil and Allah has bestowed upon us the present good; will there by any evil after this good?" He said, "Yes." I asked, "Will there be good after that evil?" He said, "Yes, but it would be tained with Dakhan (i.e. Little evil)." I asked, "What will its Dakhan be?" He said, "There will be some people who will lead (people) according to principles other than my tradition. You will see their actions and disapprove of them." I said, "Will there by any evil after that good?" He said, "Yes, there will be some people who will invite others to the doors of Hell, and whoever accepts their invitation to it will be thrown in it (by them)." I said, "O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)! Describe those people to us." He said, "They will belong to us and speak our language" I asked, "What do you order me to do if such a thing should take place in my life?" He said, "Adhere to the group of Muslims and their Chief." I asked, "If there is neither a group (of Muslims) nor a chief (what shall I do)?" He said, "Keep away from all those different sects, even if you had to bite (i.e. eat) the root of a tree, till you meet Allah while you are still in that state."
أيكون بعد هذا الخير من شر؟ قال: نعم قلت: فما العصمة؟ قال: السيفThe Shaykh : I do not know this wording. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) did not say to Hudhayfah "the sword," but rather he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: