Speaking about sectarian fanaticism and its negative effects

The Shaykh : In fact, among some of the famous imams of the Shafi'i school, we find today in the world of publications a treatise titled "The Right School," meaning the school of Imam al-Shafi'i. The author presents whatever evidence he wishes to support the school he has adopted. There is no harm in a person expressing his opinion and supporting it, provided he is free from fanaticism and personal bias. However, when one reads this book, one finds that it is not free from bias. It mentions the following story: A ruler from the Shi'ah in Cairo wanted to become a Sunni and enter the school of the People of the Sunnah and the Community. The famous scholars of both schools, such as the Hanafis and the Shafi'is, surrounded him. Each of them tried to draw the prince to his own school, telling him, "You must adopt this school, now that Allah has guided you to the Sunnah." This is exactly what happened in Japan in the modern era. You probably all know that Islam is currently spreading among various peoples on this earth, albeit slowly. Among these peoples are the Japanese. A large portion of them entered Islam decades ago. There were, without a doubt, people from all Islamic categories, including Shafi'is and Hanafis. There were the Indians, who are predominantly Hanafi, and the Javanese, who are predominantly Shafi'i. These groups surrounded the Japanese who were converting to Islam and said, "You must become a Hanafi, because the Hanafi school is the school of the Great Imam." The Javanese Shafi'is, for example, would say, "You must adopt the school of Imam al-Shafi'i, because Muhammad ibn Idris al-Shafi'i al-Mutalibi is an Arab." Everyone claimed a connection to Layla. This became a cause for the Japanese to nearly apostatize from their new religion, Islam, due to the conflict and contradiction they found among Muslims themselves. However, there was someone whom Allah (Mighty and Majestic) blessed with deliverance from narrow sectarianism, moving from the narrow school to the broad arena of the Salafi school. He wrote a question to one of the distinguished scholars in Mecca who had emigrated long ago from Russia due to the Red Revolution. The question presented the problem of these Japanese who had converted to Islam and were told they must adopt a specific school. The Hanafis said they must follow the Hanafi school, and the Shafi'is said they must follow the Shafi'i school. The question was: Is it obligatory for a Muslim to adopt a single school? As a result, he authored a treatise, may Allah reward him well, and sent it to them. It is known by the title "Guidance of the Sultan to the Land of Japan." The author is Shaykh al-Ma'sumi. We printed it in Damascus a few years ago, specifically the second edition, under the title: "Is it obligatory for a Muslim to adopt a specific school?"