The Ruling on Excusing Ignorance in Matters of Creed
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Q: What is your opinion, Your Eminence, regarding the issue of excusing ignorance? Specifically in matters of creed? Please clarify this matter for us. May Allah reward you with good.
A: Creed is the most important of matters, and it is the greatest obligation. Its reality is: faith in Allah, His angels, His books, His messengers, the Last Day, and the divine decree, its good and its evil; and faith that He, Glorified and Exalted is He, is the sole one worthy of worship, and the testimony to that, which is the testimony that there is no god but Allah. The believer testifies that there is no true object of worship but Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, and the testimony that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, whom Allah sent to the two groups, the jinn and mankind, and he is the Seal of the Prophets. All of this is necessary, and this is the core of creed. It is necessary for both men and women alike, and it is the foundation of the religion and the foundation of the faith. Just as it is obligatory to believe in what Allah and His Messenger informed us of regarding the Day of Resurrection, Paradise and Hellfire, the Reckoning and the recompense, the spreading of the records, and taking them in the right hand or the left hand, and the weighing of deeds... and so on, from what the Qur'anic verses and Prophetic hadiths have brought.
Therefore, ignorance of this is not an excuse. Rather, it is obligatory for him to learn this matter and to look into it carefully. He is not excused by saying, "I am ignorant of such matters," when he is among the Muslims and the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) have reached him. This is called being a turner away, and being heedless, and being willfully ignorant of this great matter. So he is not excused. As Allah, Glorified and Exalted, said: [Al-Furqan: 44]. And He, Glorified and Exalted, said: [Al-A'raf: 179]. And He, the Exalted, said about their like: [Al-A'raf: 30], up to these great verses in which He, Glorified and Exalted, did not excuse the wrongdoers for their ignorance, turning away, and heedlessness.
As for the one who is far from the Muslims in the outlying regions where there are no Muslims, and the Qur'an and Sunnah have not reached him, then he is excused. His ruling is the ruling of the people of the period of ignorance (ahl al-fatra) if he dies in this state. They will be tested on the Day of Resurrection. So whoever responds and obeys the command will enter Paradise, and whoever disobeys will enter the Fire. As for the issues that may be hidden from some people at times, such as some rulings of prayer, or some rulings of zakah, or some rulings of Hajj, these may be excused by ignorance. There is no blame in that; because they are hidden from many people, and not everyone is able to understand the jurisprudence of them. So the matter of these issues is easier.
And it is obligatory for the believer to learn and understand the religion, and to ask the people of knowledge. As Allah, Glorified and Exalted, said: [An-Nahl: 43]. And it is narrated from him (peace and blessings be upon him) that he said to a group who issued rulings without knowledge: Sunan al-Bayhaqi 1:995. And he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sahih Muslim 1037a.
So it is obligatory for the men and women of the Muslims to understand the religion, and to ask about what is difficult for them, and not to remain silent in ignorance, and not to turn away, and not to be heedless. Because they were created to worship Allah and obey Him, Glorified and Exalted is He, and there is no way to that except through knowledge. And knowledge is not attained through heedlessness and turning away; rather, it is necessary to seek knowledge, and it is necessary to ask the people of knowledge until the ignorant one learns.
A: Creed is the most important of matters, and it is the greatest obligation. Its reality is: faith in Allah, His angels, His books, His messengers, the Last Day, and the divine decree, its good and its evil; and faith that He, Glorified and Exalted is He, is the sole one worthy of worship, and the testimony to that, which is the testimony that there is no god but Allah. The believer testifies that there is no true object of worship but Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, and the testimony that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, whom Allah sent to the two groups, the jinn and mankind, and he is the Seal of the Prophets. All of this is necessary, and this is the core of creed. It is necessary for both men and women alike, and it is the foundation of the religion and the foundation of the faith. Just as it is obligatory to believe in what Allah and His Messenger informed us of regarding the Day of Resurrection, Paradise and Hellfire, the Reckoning and the recompense, the spreading of the records, and taking them in the right hand or the left hand, and the weighing of deeds... and so on, from what the Qur'anic verses and Prophetic hadiths have brought.
Therefore, ignorance of this is not an excuse. Rather, it is obligatory for him to learn this matter and to look into it carefully. He is not excused by saying, "I am ignorant of such matters," when he is among the Muslims and the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) have reached him. This is called being a turner away, and being heedless, and being willfully ignorant of this great matter. So he is not excused. As Allah, Glorified and Exalted, said:
Or do you think that most of them hear or reason? They are not except like livestock. Rather, they are [even] more astray in [their] way.
أَمْ تَحْسَبُ أَنَّ أَكْثَرَهُمْ يَسْمَعُونَ أَوْ يَعْقِلُونَ إِنْ هُمْ إِلا كَالْأَنْعَامِ بَلْ هُمْ أَضَلُّ سَبِيلًاAnd We have certainly created for Hell many of the jinn and mankind. They have hearts with which they do not understand, they have eyes with which they do not see, and they have ears with which they do not hear. Those are like livestock; rather, they are more astray. It is they who are the heedless.
وَلَقَدْ ذَرَأْنَا لِجَهَنَّمَ كَثِيرًا مِنَ الْجِنِّ وَالْإِنْسِ لَهُمْ قُلُوبٌ لا يَفْقَهُونَ بِهَا وَلَهُمْ أَعْيُنٌ لا يُبْصِرُونَ بِهَا وَلَهُمْ آذَانٌ لا يَسْمَعُونَ بِهَا أُولَئِكَ كَالْأَنْعَامِ بَلْ هُمْ أَضَلُّ أُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْغَافِلُونَIndeed, they had taken the devils as allies instead of Allah while they thought that they were guided.
إِنَّهُمُ اتَّخَذُوا الشَّيَاطِينَ أَوْلِيَاءَ مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ وَيَحْسَبُونَ أَنَّهُمْ مُهْتَدُونَAs for the one who is far from the Muslims in the outlying regions where there are no Muslims, and the Qur'an and Sunnah have not reached him, then he is excused. His ruling is the ruling of the people of the period of ignorance (ahl al-fatra) if he dies in this state. They will be tested on the Day of Resurrection. So whoever responds and obeys the command will enter Paradise, and whoever disobeys will enter the Fire. As for the issues that may be hidden from some people at times, such as some rulings of prayer, or some rulings of zakah, or some rulings of Hajj, these may be excused by ignorance. There is no blame in that; because they are hidden from many people, and not everyone is able to understand the jurisprudence of them. So the matter of these issues is easier.
And it is obligatory for the believer to learn and understand the religion, and to ask the people of knowledge. As Allah, Glorified and Exalted, said:
So ask the people of the message if you do not know.
فَاسْأَلُوا أَهْلَ الذِّكْرِ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ لا تَعْلَمُونَDid they not ask when they did not know? The cure for ignorance is asking.
ألا سألوا إذ لم يعلموا إنما شفاء العي السؤالHe upon whom Allah intends to bestow goodness, He confers upon him an insight in religion
من يرد الله به خيرا يفقهه في الدينSo it is obligatory for the men and women of the Muslims to understand the religion, and to ask about what is difficult for them, and not to remain silent in ignorance, and not to turn away, and not to be heedless. Because they were created to worship Allah and obey Him, Glorified and Exalted is He, and there is no way to that except through knowledge. And knowledge is not attained through heedlessness and turning away; rather, it is necessary to seek knowledge, and it is necessary to ask the people of knowledge until the ignorant one learns.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.