The ruling on a Muslim traveling to lands of disbelief and the conditions for doing so
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The Shaykh : For this reason, we say—and indeed we hold that—it is not permissible for a Muslim to travel to lands of disbelief except under three conditions: listen to them, O man—except under three conditions:
The first: that he possess knowledge with which to refute doubts, that he possess knowledge with which to refute doubts, because the Christian will bring up doubts against you.
The second: that he possess a religion that restrains him from desires, because in lands of disbelief, every free person does whatever he wishes. He commits zina, he commits sodomy, he drinks intoxicants, he does whatever he wishes. You must have, what is it, a religion that protects you from these desires. If your religion is weak, do not tear it apart; stay in the lands of Islam.
The third condition: that there be a need to travel to lands of disbelief, a religious or worldly need, such as a merchant who goes to bring in goods, or a person who wants to specialize in sciences that are not available in his Islamic land; otherwise, let him stay to protect his religion and preserve it. For if you examine those who went to lands of disbelief, you will find that many of them have strayed. Some of them continue in their straying, and some, when they return to the Islamic lands, bring up the doubts that occurred to them to the scholars of knowledge so that they may sweeten them for him.
The first: that he possess knowledge with which to refute doubts, that he possess knowledge with which to refute doubts, because the Christian will bring up doubts against you.
The second: that he possess a religion that restrains him from desires, because in lands of disbelief, every free person does whatever he wishes. He commits zina, he commits sodomy, he drinks intoxicants, he does whatever he wishes. You must have, what is it, a religion that protects you from these desires. If your religion is weak, do not tear it apart; stay in the lands of Islam.
The third condition: that there be a need to travel to lands of disbelief, a religious or worldly need, such as a merchant who goes to bring in goods, or a person who wants to specialize in sciences that are not available in his Islamic land; otherwise, let him stay to protect his religion and preserve it. For if you examine those who went to lands of disbelief, you will find that many of them have strayed. Some of them continue in their straying, and some, when they return to the Islamic lands, bring up the doubts that occurred to them to the scholars of knowledge so that they may sweeten them for him.