If the ruler forbids the qunut for the mujahideen in Chechnya, is he to be obeyed?
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The questioner : May Allah reward you, O Shaykh. I have previously read the call of the mujahideen brothers in Chechnya, appealing to Muslims in the Islamic world to perform the qunut. You also know, O Shaykh, that this was prohibited except with the permission of the ruler. What is the obligatory duty regarding this call, as they are appealing to Muslims to make du'a, and how does this conflict with the prohibition? What is the answer to this? May Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh : Fine, whom are you obligated to obey? Your ruler or other people?
The questioner : The ruler.
The Shaykh : Fine, then no question is needed as long as the ruler has said no, except with permission. Praise be to Allah. Then, are the doors closed except for the door of qunut, meaning in du'a? Answer.
The questioner : No.
The Shaykh : No, you make du'a for them in the prostration after the tashahhud, in the last part of the night, between the adhan and the iqamah. The doors are open, and praise be to Allah.
The questioner : O Shaykh, this revives the hearts.
The Shaykh : Yes
The questioner : This qunut revives the hearts of the people and the reality of the Muslims there.
The Shaykh : Yes, indeed. But as long as we have a ruler who has said no, we say, praise be to Allah, we hear and obey Allah, not the ruler, because we are commanded by Allah to obey our rulers except in disobedience. Leaving off the qunut for them is not disobedience. This is one point.
Second, did you not know that the Hanbali jurists say that the qunut is for the Grand Imam only, for the Grand Imam only? Other people do not perform the qunut. And the Grand Imam in our case is...
The questioner : The King
The Shaykh : ...King Fahd ibn Abdulaziz only. They said this because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was the one who performed the qunut when the reciters were killed, and he did not order anyone to perform the qunut in the mosques of Madinah. Nor do we know that anyone in the mosques of Madinah performed the qunut. Therefore, the qunut is for the ruler who has authority over all Muslims. And the Grand Imam in our time... there is no Grand Imam. Why? The Grand Imam is the one who has authority over all Muslims, and this has been extinct for a long time. Do you understand or not? They say "the Grand Imam" and cite as evidence that only the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) performed the qunut. This is from the perspective of the athar (reports). From the perspective of reasoning, the Grand Imam is the one responsible for the Muslims in general, whereas individuals are not.
But no, I mean that some people now object, asking why we do not perform the qunut. And we say, we make du'a for them even in the obligatory prayers and on Friday in the khutbah, which is a place of response and a time of response. We ask Allah to relieve them. But it should not be made into a bell that is rung to blame the government and blame people, because praise be to Allah, du'a in the khutbah, du'a in the prostration, in every place. I have heard from some of them that they said, when people were performing the qunut for us in Ramadan, we were strong and powerful. Is the qunut of people in Ramadan in the obligatory prayers? In the prescribed qunut of the witr?
Second, from a physical perspective, they are stronger in Ramadan than they are today. In Ramadan, they have strength in their bodies, they have money, and they have supplies. And in their capital, they must be stronger than now. Now they are stripped of weapons except for a little. And I asked someone who has contact with them, why did you leave the capital? He said, the ammunition ran out... but the Russians are holding them like holding birds in a cage, it does not work. And this retreat to safety occurred in the time of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them), in the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), in the story of Khalid ibn al-Walid, and in the story of 'Umar when he said, "O Sariyah, the mountain." So we retreated to these mountains so that we would not be killed, because we had nothing with which to defend ourselves. So their retreat, praise be to Allah, was a victory, and their surpassing of the three rings that the Russians, may Allah kill them, had encircled the capital, Grozny, became a victory. So I hope my Muslim brothers will help them with du'a in the places of response, and that the preachers will make du'a for them in the sermons. Also, in donating money, if the one carrying it is a trustworthy hand that will deliver it to them. Yes.
The questioner : Our Shaykh, may Allah reward you. Some mosques did not receive the circular.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : Some mosques did not receive the circular. They are performing the qunut. Is it permissible for them to do so?
The Shaykh : No.
The questioner : And if it did not reach them, and if they did not know about it.
The Shaykh : Yes, they may be excused due to ignorance. But they know, because the fact that some people perform the qunut and some do not is a problem. People will say that those who do not perform the qunut do not love the victory of the Muslims, and they will accuse them. Whereas those who do not perform the qunut left it off to draw closer to Allah the Exalted, because Allah commanded them to obey the rulers. This is a matter that many enthusiastic people overlook, even though it is contrary to the guidance of the Companions.
Anas ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) and others of the Companions, when the rulers were contradicting the Prophetic Sunnah in some matters during Hajj, they would clarify the Prophetic Sunnah and say, "Do what your rulers do, do what your rulers do," so that no disagreement would occur. Do you understand? For example, in Hajj, the Sunnah is that people pray the Zuhr prayer in Mina on the eighth day. Some rulers would delay and not pray except in Makkah. The Companions would say, "Do what your rulers do," and they would clarify the Sunnah. This is evidence that the issue of contradiction is not trivial. Yes, indeed.
The questioner : Your Eminence, may Allah reward you.
The Shaykh : With the right hand, with the right hand.
The Shaykh : Fine, whom are you obligated to obey? Your ruler or other people?
The questioner : The ruler.
The Shaykh : Fine, then no question is needed as long as the ruler has said no, except with permission. Praise be to Allah. Then, are the doors closed except for the door of qunut, meaning in du'a? Answer.
The questioner : No.
The Shaykh : No, you make du'a for them in the prostration after the tashahhud, in the last part of the night, between the adhan and the iqamah. The doors are open, and praise be to Allah.
The questioner : O Shaykh, this revives the hearts.
The Shaykh : Yes
The questioner : This qunut revives the hearts of the people and the reality of the Muslims there.
The Shaykh : Yes, indeed. But as long as we have a ruler who has said no, we say, praise be to Allah, we hear and obey Allah, not the ruler, because we are commanded by Allah to obey our rulers except in disobedience. Leaving off the qunut for them is not disobedience. This is one point.
Second, did you not know that the Hanbali jurists say that the qunut is for the Grand Imam only, for the Grand Imam only? Other people do not perform the qunut. And the Grand Imam in our case is...
The questioner : The King
The Shaykh : ...King Fahd ibn Abdulaziz only. They said this because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was the one who performed the qunut when the reciters were killed, and he did not order anyone to perform the qunut in the mosques of Madinah. Nor do we know that anyone in the mosques of Madinah performed the qunut. Therefore, the qunut is for the ruler who has authority over all Muslims. And the Grand Imam in our time... there is no Grand Imam. Why? The Grand Imam is the one who has authority over all Muslims, and this has been extinct for a long time. Do you understand or not? They say "the Grand Imam" and cite as evidence that only the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) performed the qunut. This is from the perspective of the athar (reports). From the perspective of reasoning, the Grand Imam is the one responsible for the Muslims in general, whereas individuals are not.
But no, I mean that some people now object, asking why we do not perform the qunut. And we say, we make du'a for them even in the obligatory prayers and on Friday in the khutbah, which is a place of response and a time of response. We ask Allah to relieve them. But it should not be made into a bell that is rung to blame the government and blame people, because praise be to Allah, du'a in the khutbah, du'a in the prostration, in every place. I have heard from some of them that they said, when people were performing the qunut for us in Ramadan, we were strong and powerful. Is the qunut of people in Ramadan in the obligatory prayers? In the prescribed qunut of the witr?
Second, from a physical perspective, they are stronger in Ramadan than they are today. In Ramadan, they have strength in their bodies, they have money, and they have supplies. And in their capital, they must be stronger than now. Now they are stripped of weapons except for a little. And I asked someone who has contact with them, why did you leave the capital? He said, the ammunition ran out... but the Russians are holding them like holding birds in a cage, it does not work. And this retreat to safety occurred in the time of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them), in the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), in the story of Khalid ibn al-Walid, and in the story of 'Umar when he said, "O Sariyah, the mountain." So we retreated to these mountains so that we would not be killed, because we had nothing with which to defend ourselves. So their retreat, praise be to Allah, was a victory, and their surpassing of the three rings that the Russians, may Allah kill them, had encircled the capital, Grozny, became a victory. So I hope my Muslim brothers will help them with du'a in the places of response, and that the preachers will make du'a for them in the sermons. Also, in donating money, if the one carrying it is a trustworthy hand that will deliver it to them. Yes.
The questioner : Our Shaykh, may Allah reward you. Some mosques did not receive the circular.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : Some mosques did not receive the circular. They are performing the qunut. Is it permissible for them to do so?
The Shaykh : No.
The questioner : And if it did not reach them, and if they did not know about it.
The Shaykh : Yes, they may be excused due to ignorance. But they know, because the fact that some people perform the qunut and some do not is a problem. People will say that those who do not perform the qunut do not love the victory of the Muslims, and they will accuse them. Whereas those who do not perform the qunut left it off to draw closer to Allah the Exalted, because Allah commanded them to obey the rulers. This is a matter that many enthusiastic people overlook, even though it is contrary to the guidance of the Companions.
Anas ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) and others of the Companions, when the rulers were contradicting the Prophetic Sunnah in some matters during Hajj, they would clarify the Prophetic Sunnah and say, "Do what your rulers do, do what your rulers do," so that no disagreement would occur. Do you understand? For example, in Hajj, the Sunnah is that people pray the Zuhr prayer in Mina on the eighth day. Some rulers would delay and not pray except in Makkah. The Companions would say, "Do what your rulers do," and they would clarify the Sunnah. This is evidence that the issue of contradiction is not trivial. Yes, indeed.
The questioner : Your Eminence, may Allah reward you.
The Shaykh : With the right hand, with the right hand.