Explanation of the words of Imam al-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) regarding what he quoted: "

The Shaykh : In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
The author (may Allah have mercy on him) stated, in what he quoted from Abu Bakrah, Nafi' ibn al-Harith (may Allah be pleased with him), that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) delivered a sermon to them on the Day of Sacrifice, and that was during the Farewell Pilgrimage. He informed them, may the prayers and peace of Allah be upon him, meaning: that although time had been altered and changed, as they used to do in the pre-Islamic age of ignorance, practicing the postponement of the sacred month, making the forbidden permissible and the permissible forbidden, meaning they would shift the sacred months to other months, making the forbidden month permissible and the permissible month forbidden, but that particular year the postponement coincided with what Allah (Mighty and Majestic) had legislated regarding the sacred months. Then he, may the prayers and peace of Allah be upon him, clarified that the number of months is twelve, and they are: Muharram, Safar, Rabi' al-Awwal, Rabi' al-Thani, Jumada al-Ula, Jumada al-Thaniyah, Rajab, Sha'ban, Ramadan, Shawwal, Dhu al-Qi'dah, and Dhu al-Hijjah. These are the twelve months that Allah made for His servants since He created the heavens and the earth. In the pre-Islamic age of ignorance, they would make Muharram permissible and forbid Safar. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) clarified that of these twelve months, four are forbidden: three consecutive and one separate. The three consecutive ones are: Dhu al-Qi'dah, Dhu al-Hijjah, and Muharram. Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) made them forbidden months in which fighting is forbidden and no one may transgress against another, because these months are the months when people travel to perform Hajj at the House of Allah, so Allah (Mighty and Majestic) made them forbidden so that fighting would not occur in these months while people are traveling to the Sacred House of Allah. This is part of the wisdom of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). The correct view is that fighting remains forbidden and that it has not been abrogated to this day, and that initiating fighting in them is forbidden. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said this. The fourth: In the pre-Islamic age of ignorance, they would perform the lesser pilgrimage in it, making the month of Rajab for the lesser pilgrimage and the three months for the major pilgrimage. So this month became forbidden, and fighting is forbidden in it just as it is forbidden in Dhu al-Qi'dah, Dhu al-Hijjah, and Muharram. Thus, the annual months that Allah made for worship are twelve, of which four are forbidden, as in the Noble Qur'an: Dhu al-Qi'dah, Dhu al-Hijjah, Muharram, and Rajab. Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) asked them: Which month is this? Which land is this? Which day is this? He asked them about this in order to rouse their spirits and alert them, because the matter is a great one. So he asked them: because they found it unlikely that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would ask about the month, since it was known to be Dhu al-Hijjah. But out of their good manners, may Allah be pleased with them, they did not say: The matter is known, this is the month of Dhu al-Hijjah. Out of their good manners, they said: Allah and His Messenger know best. Then he remained silent, because when a person speaks and then falls silent, people pay attention: what caused him to be silent? This is a method followed in public speaking: when a person sees that the people around him are not listening, he falls silent until they pay attention, because if the speech is continuous, negligence may occur, but if he pauses, they will ask why he stopped.
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) remained silent. Abu Bakrah says: just as they had said before. He said: "Is it not the Day of Sacrifice?" They said: "Yes, O Messenger of Allah." And they knew that Makkah is sacred, that the month of Dhu al-Hijjah is sacred, and that the Day of Sacrifice is sacred, meaning they are all sacred and respected. So he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Thus, he (peace and blessings be upon him) emphasized the prohibition of these three: blood, wealth, and honor, and that they are forbidden Wealth is also forbidden; it is not permissible to take the wealth of a Muslim except with his willing consent. Honor is respected; it is not permissible for a Muslim to backbite his brother or to falsely accuse him. In fact, if an accuser accuses a chaste person who is far from suspicion and says: "O fornicator," or "You are a fornicator," or "You are a sodomite," or the like, then either he must bring four witnesses who testify explicitly to the act of zina, or he will be punished with three punishments. This accuser is punished with three punishments. The first punishment is that he is to be flogged eighty lashes. The second punishment is that his testimony is never accepted; whenever he testifies before the judge, his testimony is rejected, whether he testifies regarding wealth, blood, sighting the crescent moon, or anything else; the judge rejects and returns his testimony. The third punishment—may Allah have mercy on you—the third punishment is that he becomes an open sinner (fasiq) after having been just. He is not to marry off his daughter or his sister, nor is he to be appointed as an imam among the Muslims, according to many scholars, nor is he to be given any authority, because he has become an open sinner. This is the punishment for one who accuses a person of zina or sodomy, unless he brings four witnesses. Allah the Exalted said: Even if this man were among the most truthful of people, if he does not bring four witnesses, he is to be flogged eighty lashes. Because it became clear that they were liars and the third one was released. Therefore, honor is among the most sacred of things. For this reason, as you heard, Allah the Exalted said: This is one. Two. Three. Meaning, they should not be open sinners, but with the condition of repentance and reform. Is it sufficient for him to say: "I am repentant," so that we look to see if the man has reformed or not? If so, he is worthy of what he was. This is the state of his condition. It is fitting that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) should emphasize this in this great sermon, in the presence of the Companions, on the Day of Sacrifice in Mina. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Then he said: Because if Muslims started striking each other's necks, they would become disbelievers. Disbelievers, because only a disbeliever considers the blood of a Muslim permissible. Can a Muslim draw a weapon against his brother? No, but a disbeliever draws a weapon against a Muslim. For this reason, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) described Muslims when they fight each other as disbelievers. And this issue, according to other texts, has details: If a Muslim fights while considering the killing of his brother permissible without a legal permission, he is a disbeliever with disbelief that takes him out of the religion. And if he fights him based on interpretation, or for the sake of leadership, or for the sake of power, this does not make him a disbeliever with the disbelief of apostasy, but it is a disbelief less than disbelief. And the evidence for that is His saying, the Exalted: And this is the reconciliation between this verse and the hadith. It is said: If Muslims fight each other, each considering the blood of his brother permissible, he is a disbeliever with disbelief that takes him out of the religion. And if it is for leadership, tribalism, or passion, or the like, he is not a disbeliever with the disbelief of apostasy, but his disbelief is a disbelief less than disbelief, and he must repent and reform. Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: He asked the Companions, and they said: So reflect on how the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) affirmed that he had conveyed the message in the many great gatherings, the gathering at 'Arafah, his sermons to them (peace and blessings be upon him), and he said: Meaning, bear witness against them that I conveyed it to them. And likewise, I bear witness to my Lord that I conveyed it to my Ummah, and they acknowledged that on the Day of Sacrifice. And we bear witness, and we bear witness to Allah and His angels and those of His creation who have heard us, that our Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) conveyed the clear message, and that he left his Ummah upon the white, clear path, and that nothing remained from the matters of religion or the world that the Ummah needs except that he explained it (peace and blessings be upon him). But the error lies with the one to whom the news is conveyed, who is deficient in his understanding, or who may have a bad intention and thus forbids the truth, or there may be other reasons. Otherwise, the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) conveyed a complete and perfect message. Then he (peace and blessings be upon him) ordered that the present convey to the absent, meaning that whoever witnessed and heard his sermon should convey it to the Ummah. And he (peace and blessings be upon him) informed that perhaps the one who conveys the hadith is more understanding than the listener. And this advice from the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) is an advice to those who were present on that day and an advice to those who heard his hadith until the Day of Resurrection. So it is upon us, when we hear a hadith from the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), to convey it to the Ummah. It is upon us; we are burdened with the duty to convey. We are forbidden to be like the Jews who carried the Torah but did not carry it. And Allah described them with the ugliest description, saying: If a donkey carries books, does it benefit from them? The answer: Does it benefit?
The student: No.

The Shaykh : It does not benefit. If a donkey carries books and does not benefit from them, then the one who carries the Qur'an or the Sunnah and does not benefit from them is like the donkey that carries books. We ask Allah to grant us and you beneficial knowledge and righteous deeds.