Exhortation to Adhere to the Creed of the Salaf and to Distance Oneself from the Creed of the People of Innovation and Desires

The Shaykh : Therefore, my brothers, may Allah bless you, you will not find a school of thought that contradicts the school of the Salaf without it being, in its contradiction of the Book and the Sunnah, always contradictory. Contradictory means that it negates itself. But the path of the Salaf is consistent, clear, and distinct; it does not differ or contradict itself. For this reason, I advise myself and you to adhere to the school of the Salaf and to take your creed not from the book of so-and-so and so-and-so, but from the Book of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) and the Sunnah of His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). I have looked through some books on creed, and there is no need to specify them, and I found that most of them rely on doubts that they consider rational. It is very rare to find a book that says, "The evidence is the saying of Allah the Exalted, or the saying of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), such and such." Rather, they are rational doubts that they consider arguments, but in reality, they are delusions, not arguments. Or as it was said:
"Arguments that collapse like glass, you think them *** truth, and every broken one is broken".
But the school of the Salaf is clear, pure, and distinct. This clarity and distinctness is made clear by the statement of al-Razi, who is one of the scholars of the people of kalam. Al-Razi says: "I have examined the philosophical methods and the rational paths, and I did not see them quenching thirst or curing illness. And I found the closest path to be the path of the Qur'an — pay attention, my brother — I found the closest path to be the path of the Qur'an. I read in affirmation

The Most Merciful [who is] above the Throne established.

الرحمن على العرش استوى

[Taha 20:5]

To Him ascends good speech

إليه يصعد الكلم الطيب

[Fatir 35:10]

and I read in negation

There is nothing like unto Him

ليس كمثله شيء

[Ash-Shuraa 42:11]

but they do not encompass it in knowledge.

ولا يحيطون به علما

[Taha 20:110]

. And whoever has experienced what I have experienced knows what I know".
Allahu Akbar. Listen to this speech; it has a great meaning. "I read in affirmation

The Most Merciful [who is] above the Throne established.

الرحمن على العرش استوى

[Taha 20:5]

To Him ascends good speech

إليه يصعد الكلم الطيب

[Fatir 35:10]

" What do I affirm? If you read this, what do you affirm? You affirm the Highness and the rising above the Throne. Now, does this rising resemble the rising of a man on a bed or on a camel? Where did he take it from? He said: "And I read in negation

There is nothing like unto Him

ليس كمثله شيء

[Ash-Shuraa 42:11]

but they do not encompass it in knowledge.

ولا يحيطون به علما

[Taha 20:110]

" And so the believer reads in affirmation and affirms, and reads in negation and negates. And he himself, who is one of the scholars of kalam, indeed one of their leaders, says: "And whoever has experienced what I have experienced knows what I know" Because he says that he examined "the paths of kalam and the philosophical methods, and I did not see them quenching thirst or curing illness". And he is truthful, by Allah. The philosophical methods and the paths of kalam do not quench thirst and do not cure illness; rather, they increase the disease until its owner perishes, and they do not quench the thirst. From what thirst? Huh? Yes. Where did you know that the thirst is intense thirst? From his saying "quenching." This is a good method: to know a thing by its opposite. If someone said to you, "Allah the Exalted said: What is the meaning of 'thabit' (standing alone)? How do you know it? From His saying: So a thing is known by its opposite. In any case, I say, may Allah bless you, the Salafi creed is clear; it has no contradiction or difference. But as al-Razi said, admitting his own error, he says: "I read in affirmation

The Most Merciful [who is] above the Throne established.

الرحمن على العرش استوى

[Taha 20:5]

To Him ascends good speech

إليه يصعد الكلم الطيب

[Fatir 35:10]

and I read in negation

There is nothing like unto Him, and He is the Hearing, the Seeing.

ليس كمثله شيء وهو السميع البصير

[Ash-Shuraa 42:11]

" So most people, and I can say, and I am, if Allah wills, in the clear, that those who interpret the attributes of Allah and affirm certain attributes and interpret others, you will find them contradictory. They have no straight law at all. And the strange thing is that some of them say: "We were not able to refute the Mu'tazilah and the philosophers except by this method" which is the path of interpretation. And I say that this path is what opens the door for the philosophers and the Mu'tazilah to enter into distortion. Because when those people interpret, they say to these people, "Why do you permit yourselves to interpret and not permit us to interpret? And why do you contradict yourselves, interpreting in what you wish and leaving the text on its apparent meaning in what you wish? Is this not arbitrary handling of the evidence of the Book and the Sunnah? Arbitrary handling. Any person says, 'By Allah, I accept this text and I do not accept the other text.' This is not correct. He says, 'The text regarding will says that Allah wills; I accept that Allah wills. I do not accept that Allah is angry. Allah is not angry. Anger means He wants to take revenge, not that He is angry, but that He wants to take revenge.' We say, since you affirm will, why do you not affirm anger? If you affirm a will that does not resemble the will of the created beings, then affirm an anger that does not resemble the anger of the created beings. Otherwise, follow the path consistently, either affirmation or negation in all of it. As for contradicting, this is not a scientific path nor a sound methodology. Finally, we end with this amount of speech on what concerns the attributes, which is an important chapter. It is obligatory for the student of knowledge to refer to what? To the Book and the Sunnah. As for the composed creeds that are not accompanied by the Book and the Sunnah, these are dry and mislead the person. And the arguments mentioned in them are delusions that drown, and the person does not benefit from them. And success is from Allah. And may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad and upon his family and all his Companions. Now the questions. Come, read.

The questioner : In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may peace and blessings be upon the noblest of the prophets and messengers. And after that: