There are those who introduce certain methodologies, calls, and misguided schools of thought, such as the methodology of the Khawarij, into these lands, even though they are upon the methodology of the Salaf. Do you see any justification for this?
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The questioner : Peace be upon you, and Allah’s mercy and blessings.
The Shaykh : And upon you be peace, and Allah's mercy and blessings.
The questioner : Your Eminence, as you know, one of the blessings of Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) upon the people of this land is that they are upon the methodology of the Salaf. However, there are those who introduce certain methodologies or calls, and perhaps some misguided schools of thought, such as the school of the Khawarij. Do you see, Your Eminence, any justification for this, or does it divide the Ummah and scatter the ranks?
The Shaykh : Yes, the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) clarified in his Friday sermons and on other occasions that the best of speech is the speech of Allah, and the best of guidance is the guidance of Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him and his family). When we look at the guidance of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), we find that he wanted the Ummah to be one Ummah, not divided or differing, and for there to be nothing in the hearts of some against the others. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) would even leave what he preferred in order to avert fitnah (trial, discord or temptation). He even commanded patience with the rulers, despite their oppression, their injustice, their favoritism, and their tyranny, and he informed that this would happen. He said to the Ansar (may Allah be pleased with them):, and he said: , and he said: .
There is no doubt that what contradicts the guidance of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is harboring ill will toward the rulers and speaking in a way that necessitates their hatred and aversion. This is because the Islamic Ummah is established upon two types of people:
The scholars and the rulers, who are the "those in authority" about whom Allah the Exalted said:[An-Nisa 4:59]. The exegetes and others from the people of knowledge said: "Those in authority among us are the scholars and the rulers." The scholars are the leaders of the Ummah by the Shari'ah, and the rulers are the leaders of the Ummah by the authority of Allah (Mighty and Majestic).
Without the scholars and the rulers, the Ummah would not be upright, because the scholars lead the people by the Shari'ah, and the rulers lead the people by authority and execution. If someone speaks about the rulers or the scholars in a way that necessitates their enmity and belittles their status, the Ummah is lost, because it will not have scholars whose words it trusts, so the Shari'ah is lost, and it will not have rulers whose actions it trusts, so security is lost.
For this reason, we see that it is a grave error for some people to speak about the scholars or the rulers. By rulers, we mean the authorities in charge of the state. If one sees something from them that contradicts what he believes to be the Shari'ah, it is obligatory for him to give advice, and it is not obligatory to expose this evil or this contradiction. He should give advice in writing. If he cannot do so directly, the writing can be done through an intermediary, giving it to someone who will deliver it to the authorities, whether scholars or rulers. Otherwise, we do not doubt that there are errors from the scholars and errors from the rulers, whether intentional or unintentional. But the cure for a disease is not to create a greater disease, and the removal of evil is never by an even greater evil. Nothing has harmed the Islamic Ummah except its speech about its scholars and its rulers.
What necessitated the killing of Uthman?
It was the speech about him. They spoke about him, saying that he favors his relatives and that he does such and such, so the people harbored ill will toward him in their hearts. Then this harboring gave rise to hatred, aversion, desires, and enmity, until the matter reached the point where they killed him in his house.
What necessitated the killing of the Commander of the Faithful, Ali ibn Abi Talib, except this?
They rose up against him and said that he had contradicted the Shari'ah. They declared him a disbeliever and declared the Muslims disbelievers with him, and the resulting evil occurred.
So it is obligatory upon us, my brothers, and we are, praise be to Allah, in this country, as the brother said,The questioner : a safe and secure country, whose provision comes to it abundantly from every direction, and it is among the best we know of the lands of the Muslims in applying the Shari'ah, and this is observable. We do not say that it is one hundred percent perfect; no, it has many shortcomings, and there is oppression and favoritism. But if you compare the oppression to the justice, you find that it is what?
Nothing. Less than less, nothing. I mean, if we assume that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has ten million people, you cannot find one thousand who are truly oppressed and unable to have their case raised. If that is the case, how can we say that oppression is widespread and abundant? That is not correct.
It is obligatory that a person looks with justice:[An-Nisa 4:135], [Al-Ma'idah 5:8]: "Shan'an" means hatred, and "yajrim" means to cause or lead to.
That is, let not the hatred of a people lead you to not act justly,[Al-Ma'idah 5:8].
So I say: We are, praise be to Allah, in a safe and secure country that is the best we know of the lands of the Muslims in applying the Shari'ah. So it is obligatory upon us to strive to unify the word as much as we can, and to make the disagreement that exists among us a matter of ijtihad (independent legal reasoning), and to discuss among ourselves what some of us thinks is an error until we all reach the truth. And if Allah knows from our intentions that we want the truth, He will make it easy for us and make it easy for us to agree upon it.
This is what I wanted to say regarding this topic. I see that it is obligatory to refrain from spreading the faults of people, especially the scholars and the rulers, and that it is obligatory to correct the error as much as possible, but in a way that achieves the objective and in which we are safe from what is prohibited.
The Shaykh : And upon you be peace, and Allah's mercy and blessings.
The questioner : Your Eminence, as you know, one of the blessings of Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) upon the people of this land is that they are upon the methodology of the Salaf. However, there are those who introduce certain methodologies or calls, and perhaps some misguided schools of thought, such as the school of the Khawarij. Do you see, Your Eminence, any justification for this, or does it divide the Ummah and scatter the ranks?
The Shaykh : Yes, the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) clarified in his Friday sermons and on other occasions that the best of speech is the speech of Allah, and the best of guidance is the guidance of Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him and his family). When we look at the guidance of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), we find that he wanted the Ummah to be one Ummah, not divided or differing, and for there to be nothing in the hearts of some against the others. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) would even leave what he preferred in order to avert fitnah (trial, discord or temptation). He even commanded patience with the rulers, despite their oppression, their injustice, their favoritism, and their tyranny, and he informed that this would happen. He said to the Ansar (may Allah be pleased with them):
You will encounter after me favoritism—meaning: taking precedence over you—so be patient until you meet me at the Pond.
إنكم ستلقون بعدي أثرة -أي : استئثارا عليكم- فاصبروا حتى تلقوني على الحوضWhoever sees from his ruler what he dislikes, let him be patient.
من رأى من أميره ما يكره فليصبرIf they do not fulfill the right of Allah for you, then fulfill the right of Allah for them over you, and be patient with their transgression, and their reckoning is with Allah (Mighty and Majestic).
إذا لم يؤدوا حق الله فيكم فأدوا حق الله لهم عليكم، واصبروا على فرطوا وحسابهم على الله عز وجلThere is no doubt that what contradicts the guidance of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is harboring ill will toward the rulers and speaking in a way that necessitates their hatred and aversion. This is because the Islamic Ummah is established upon two types of people:
The scholars and the rulers, who are the "those in authority" about whom Allah the Exalted said:
O you who have believed, obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا أَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ وَأُولِي الْأَمْرِ مِنْكُمْWithout the scholars and the rulers, the Ummah would not be upright, because the scholars lead the people by the Shari'ah, and the rulers lead the people by authority and execution. If someone speaks about the rulers or the scholars in a way that necessitates their enmity and belittles their status, the Ummah is lost, because it will not have scholars whose words it trusts, so the Shari'ah is lost, and it will not have rulers whose actions it trusts, so security is lost.
For this reason, we see that it is a grave error for some people to speak about the scholars or the rulers. By rulers, we mean the authorities in charge of the state. If one sees something from them that contradicts what he believes to be the Shari'ah, it is obligatory for him to give advice, and it is not obligatory to expose this evil or this contradiction. He should give advice in writing. If he cannot do so directly, the writing can be done through an intermediary, giving it to someone who will deliver it to the authorities, whether scholars or rulers. Otherwise, we do not doubt that there are errors from the scholars and errors from the rulers, whether intentional or unintentional. But the cure for a disease is not to create a greater disease, and the removal of evil is never by an even greater evil. Nothing has harmed the Islamic Ummah except its speech about its scholars and its rulers.
What necessitated the killing of Uthman?
It was the speech about him. They spoke about him, saying that he favors his relatives and that he does such and such, so the people harbored ill will toward him in their hearts. Then this harboring gave rise to hatred, aversion, desires, and enmity, until the matter reached the point where they killed him in his house.
What necessitated the killing of the Commander of the Faithful, Ali ibn Abi Talib, except this?
They rose up against him and said that he had contradicted the Shari'ah. They declared him a disbeliever and declared the Muslims disbelievers with him, and the resulting evil occurred.
So it is obligatory upon us, my brothers, and we are, praise be to Allah, in this country, as the brother said,The questioner : a safe and secure country, whose provision comes to it abundantly from every direction, and it is among the best we know of the lands of the Muslims in applying the Shari'ah, and this is observable. We do not say that it is one hundred percent perfect; no, it has many shortcomings, and there is oppression and favoritism. But if you compare the oppression to the justice, you find that it is what?
Nothing. Less than less, nothing. I mean, if we assume that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has ten million people, you cannot find one thousand who are truly oppressed and unable to have their case raised. If that is the case, how can we say that oppression is widespread and abundant? That is not correct.
It is obligatory that a person looks with justice:
O you who have believed, be persistently standing firm in justice, witnesses for Allah, even if it be against yourselves or parents and relatives
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا كُونُوا قَوَّامِينَ بِالْقِسْطِ شُهَدَاءَ لِلَّهِ وَلَوْ عَلَى أَنْفُسِكُمْ أَوِ الْوَالِدَيْنِ وَالْأَقْرَبِينَO you who have believed, be persistently standing firm for Allah, witnesses in justice, and do not let the hatred of a people prevent you from being just
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا كُونُوا قَوَّامِينَ لِلَّهِ شُهَدَاءَ بِالْقِسْطِ وَلا يَجْرِمَنَّكُمْ شَنَآنُ قَوْمٍ عَلَى أَلَّا تَعْدِلُواThat is, let not the hatred of a people lead you to not act justly,
Be just; that is nearer to righteousness. And fear Allah
اعْدِلُوا هُوَ أَقْرَبُ لِلتَّقْوَى وَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَSo I say: We are, praise be to Allah, in a safe and secure country that is the best we know of the lands of the Muslims in applying the Shari'ah. So it is obligatory upon us to strive to unify the word as much as we can, and to make the disagreement that exists among us a matter of ijtihad (independent legal reasoning), and to discuss among ourselves what some of us thinks is an error until we all reach the truth. And if Allah knows from our intentions that we want the truth, He will make it easy for us and make it easy for us to agree upon it.
This is what I wanted to say regarding this topic. I see that it is obligatory to refrain from spreading the faults of people, especially the scholars and the rulers, and that it is obligatory to correct the error as much as possible, but in a way that achieves the objective and in which we are safe from what is prohibited.