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     | Saturday, March 17, 2001 - 12:47 am This is our Call (The Way of the Salaf) Speaker: Shaikh Muhammad Naasir-ud-Deen Al-Albaanee (rahimahullaah) Source: A cassette with the same title [Hadhihi Da'watunaa: Side A] Comments: This week's discussion is on following the Way of the Salaf As-Saalih (Pious Predecessors). The following article is an edited translation of what occurs in a lecture given by Shaikh Al-Albaanee entitled "This is Our Call" produced by Shoor Lil-Intaaj Al-Islaamee (Side A). The other side of the tape will be sent out later in sha Allaah. Post your comments at: http://www.al-manhaj.com/ubb/Forum14/HTML/000014.html From the Tape [Side A]: Ibraaheem: In the Name of Allaah, all-Praise be to Allaah, and may the peace and blessings of Allaah be on Allaah's Messenger, sallAllaahu 'alayhi wa sallam. To proceed: Indeed, Allaah Ta'ala has bestowed on us the blessing of Eemaan (Faith), and He has blessed the whole Muslim nation with the scholars – who are the ones whom Allaah has honored with knowledge - so that they can guide the people unto the way of Allaah and unto the worship of Allaah, 'azza wa jall. And they are the inheritors of the prophets without a doubt. The reason for our coming here, in sha Allaah, is firstly to please Allaah and secondly to seek knowledge, which will in turn lead us to Allaah's being pleased with us. For by Allaah, this is a joyous occasion – that we can gather with our Shaikh and our scholar and our great teacher, Shaikh Muhammad Naasir-ud-Deen Al-Albaanee. Firstly, on behalf of this community, we would like to welcome our noble Shaikh, and likewise on behalf of everyone listening, especially those students of knowledge, they also all send their welcome and they have the desire to gather today with our noble teacher. And no doubt, all of us have this same desire to listen to the knowledge and wisdom that he has. So let us listen to him in what Allaah has blessed him with from knowledge. Then when our Shaikh decides to close the lecture, the forums for questions will open, but the questions must be written down, and paper is available and being dispersed, in sha Allaah. We repeat again, this is a joyous occasion and we say, Ahlan, welcome, to our noble Shaikh… Shaikh: Ahlan Bikum. Verily all praise is for Allaah, we praise Him, we seek His assistance and we ask for His forgiveness. And we seek refuge in Him from the evils of our selves and the evils of our actions. Whoever Allaah guides, no one can lead him astray and whoever is led astray, no one can guide him. I bear witness that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allaah, alone and with no partner. And I bear witness that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger. To Proceed: Indeed the best speech is the Book of Allaah, and the best guidance is the guidance of Muhammad, sallAllaahu 'alayhi wa sallam. And the worst of matters are those which are newly invented. And every newly invented matter is an innovation. And every innovation is a misguidance and every misguidance is in the Hellfire. I thank the brother, Ustaadh Ibraaheem, for his words and for his praise… And I have nothing to say in response to that except to follow the example of the first Khaleefah, Abu Bakr As-Siddeeq, radyAllaahu 'anhu, who was the first true Khaleefah of Allaah's Messenger, sallAllaahu 'alayhi wa sallam, with due right. But nevertheless, when he would hear someone praise him with something good and he believed that this praise, regardless of who it came from, was done in exaggeration - and this was while he was the Khaleefah of Allaah's Messenger and deserving of it - nevertheless - [some crying occurs] - nevertheless, he would say: "O Allaah, do not hold me accountable for what they say (about me). And make me better than what they perceive (me to be). And forgive me for what they don’t know (about me)." This is what the great As-Siddeeq would say. So what should those of us who come after him say? I say, following his example: "O Allaah, do not hold me accountable for what they say (about me). And make me better than what they perceive (me to be). And forgive me for what they don’t know (about me)." I will add to this by saying that I am not that person that was described in what you just heard previously from our noble brother Ibraaheem. But rather I am only a student seeking knowledge, not anything else. And it is upon every student to abide by the hadeeth of the Prophet, sallAllaahu 'alayhi wa sallam: "Convey from me even if it is only one ayah. And narrate from the (stories) of the Tribe of Israaeel for there is no harm. And whoever lies on me intentionally, then let him find his seat in the Hellfire." So based on this hadeeth and complying with this great prophetic text, as well as other texts from the Book of Allaah and the Hadeeth of Allaah's Messenger, sallAllaahu 'alayhi wa sallam, we take on the task of conveying to the people what they lack knowledge of. But this does not mean that we have turned into something like that which is found in the good thoughts that (some of) our brothers hold for us. The matter is not such. This is the reality that I feel deep down in my heart. Whenever I hear this kind of talk, I am reminded of the old proverb, which is well known amongst the scholars: "Verily, the small bird (bughaath) in our lands has now become an eagle." Some people are unaware of what is intended by this statement or by this proverb. The bughaath is a small bird that is worthless - but this small bird becomes like an eagle to the people - due to their ignorance… This proverb is true about many of the people who call to Islaam, whether upon truth and correctness or upon error and falsehood. But Allaah knows that the entire Muslim world is void - except for very, very few individuals, whom it is correct to say about them that "So and so is a scholar." As is stated in the authentic hadeeth, reported by Imaam Al-Bukhaaree in his Saheeh, from the report of 'Abdullaah Ibn 'Amr Ibn Al-'Aas, radyAllaahu 'anhu, who said: Allaah's Messenger, sallAllaahu 'alayhi wa sallam, said: "Verily, Allaah will not snatch away the knowledge from the chests of the scholars, but rather He will take away the knowledge by taking away the scholars. Until there does not remain any scholar - this is the point - until there does not remain any scholar, the people will take ignorant leaders, who will be asked questions and then give fatwa (religious rulings) without knowledge. So they will go astray and cause others to go astray." When Allaah wants to take away the knowledge, He will not snatch it away from the hearts of the scholars, such that the scholar becomes like someone who never learned anything in the first place, no. This is not from the Sunnah (way) of Allaah when dealing with His servants, especially His righteous servants - to take away the knowledge that they have acquired for the sake of Allaah, 'azza wa jall…. Allaah is just and fair in His rulings - He does not snatch the knowledge away from the hearts of the true scholars. But rather, it is from the Sunnah of Allaah with His creation that He takes away the knowledge by taking away the scholars [i.e. causing them to die], as He did with the chief of all scholars and prophets and messengers, Muhammad, sallAllaahu 'alayhi wa sallam. "…Until there does not remain any scholar, the people will take ignorant leaders, who will be asked questions and then give fatwa (religious rulings) without knowledge. So they will go astray and cause others to go astray." This does not mean that Allaah will leave the earth void of any scholar, through which Allaah's proof can be established upon His servants, but rather it means that the more that time continues to pass, the more that knowledge decreases. And we will continue increasing in this condition of less and deficient knowledge, until there does not remain on the face of this earth, anyone who says: "Allaah, Allaah." You hear this hadeeth many times, and it is an authentic hadeeth: "The Hour will not be established while there remains someone on the face of the earth that says: 'Allaah, Allaah.'" From the likes of those people who were mentioned in the last part of the hadeeth: "until there does not remain any scholar, the people will take ignorant leaders" are those leaders who interpret the Qur'aan and the Sunnah with interpretations that are in contradiction to what the scholars - I will not say those of the past only, but also those of the present - were upon. For indeed they use this hadeeth "Allaah, Allaah" as evidence for the permissibility, rather the recommendation of remembering Allaah (making Dhikr) with single words- Allaah, Allaah, Allaah, and so on [as done by the Sufis]. So that no one remains deceived or unaware when they hear this hadeeth with that misinterpretation, I think its proper, even if incidentally, to remind our brothers here that this interpretation is false, firstly, because the hadeeth's explanation is stated in another report from Allaah's Messenger, sallAllaahu 'alayhi wa sallam. And secondly, if this interpretation were correct, there would be an indication of it in the actions of our pious predecessors (Salaf As-Saalih), may Allaah be pleased with them. So if they did not do it - their rejection of acting on this interpretation indicates the falsehood of this kind of interpretation. So how will it be for you if the other report of the hadeeth is added, and the gist of it, as is commonly said, is that Imaam Ahmad, rahimahullaah, reported this hadeeth in his Musnad with an authentic chain of narration, with the wording: "The Hour will not be established while there remains someone on the face of the earth that says: "Laa Ilaaha Illaa Allaah." So this is what was intended in the first hadeeth, where the word "Allaah" is shown in repetition. The point is that today, the world unfortunately is void of those scholars who used to fill the earth with their extensive knowledge and who would spread it amongst the people. So today it has become like the saying goes: When they were counted they were so few But today they have become less than that few So we hope from Allaah, 'azza wa jall, that He make us from among the seekers of knowledge who truly take from the scholars' example and who honestly follow their way. This is what we hope from Allaah 'azza wa jall - that He make us from among those students who follow that way, about which the Messenger, sallAllaahu 'alayhi wa sallam: "Whoever treads a path, by which he seeks knowledge, Allaah will make a path for him to Paradise." This leads us into discussing the topic of this knowledge, which has been mentioned in the Qur'aan in many, many places, such as Allaah's saying: "Are those who have knowledge equal to those who do not have knowledge?" And Allaah's saying: "Allaah will raise in levels those who believe amongst you and those who have been given knowledge." What is this knowledge for which Allaah has given his praise to those who possess it and act on it and those who follow the way of these people? The answer is as the Imaam, Ibn Qayyim Al-Jawziyyah, rahimahullaah, the student of Shaikh-ul-Islaam Ibn Taimiyyah, rahimahullaah, said: "Knowledge is: (what) Allaah said, (what) His Messenger said, (and what) the Companions said. This is not something false. Knowledge is not that we rush into disagreements foolishly between the Messenger and between the opinion of a Faqeeh (scholar). Nay, and we do not deny and negate the Attributes (of Allaah) just out of fear of falling into tashbeeh and tamtheel." So we take the definition of knowledge from this statement and this poem, which we rarely hear among the verses of the poets, since the poetry of the scholars is not like the poetry of the poets. So this man (Ibn Al-Qayyim) was a scholar, and he also wrote good poetry. So he said: Knowledge is what Allaah said, at the first level, then what the Messenger of Allaah said, at the second level, then what the Companion said, at the third level. The words of Ibn Al-Qayyim remind us of a reality that is extremely important, and which is often neglected by a large majority of Callers who are spread throughout the lands today in the name of calling to Islaam. What is this reality? What is well known to all of these callers is that Islaam consists of: The Book of Allaah and the Sunnah of Allaah's Messenger, sallAllaahu 'alayhi wa sallam. This is the truth and there is no doubt about it, however it is deficient. And this deficiency was noted by Ibn Al-Qayyim in his lines of poetry, which we just mentioned. That is why after mentioning the Qur'aan and the Sunnah, he mentions the Companions. "Knowledge is: (what) Allaah said, (what) His Messenger said, (and what) the Companions said…" Nowadays, it is very rare that we hear someone mention the Companions when mentioning the Qur'aan and the Sunnah. And as we all know, they are at the head of the Salaf As-Saalih (pious predecessors), of whom the Prophet, sallAllaahu 'alayhi wa sallam spoke of in his saying, which has been reported by many Companions: "The best of mankind is my generation…" And do not say what many of the callers nowadays say: "The best of generations." This phrase "the best of generations" has no source in the Sunnah. The authentic Sunnah, which is stated in the two Saheeh collections (of Al-Bukhaaree and Muslim) and other hadeeth references all report the hadeeth with the wording: "The best of mankind is my generation, then those that come after them, then those that come after them." Imaam Ibn Qayyim Al-Jawziyyah has connected these Companions - who are at the head of the three generations that have received testimony for their excellence - to the Book and the Sunnah. So was this connection that he made an opinion of his, or a scholarly deduction and conclusion, which are all prone to error. The answer is no, it is not from his scholarly deduction or his conclusions, of which it is possible that error can come into them, but rather it is based on the Book of Allaah and the Hadeeth of Allaah's Messenger, sallAllaahu 'alayhi wa sallam. As for the Qur'aan, then there is the saying of Allaah, 'azza wa jall: "And whoever opposes the Messenger after the guidance has been made clear to him, and he follows a way other than the way of the believers, We will turn him to what He has chosen and land him in Hell - what an evil destination." "And he follows a way other than the way of the believers" - Our Lord did not stop short in this ayah, and if He would have, the ayah would still be correct and true. He did not say: "And whoever opposes the Messenger after the guidance has been made clear to him, We will turn him to what He has chosen and land him in Hell - what an evil destination." Instead, due to His infinite wisdom, He included: "And he follows a way other than the way of the believers" - and this is what we are focusing on explaining now. "And whoever opposes the Messenger after the guidance has been made clear to him, and he follows a way other than the way of the believers, We will turn him to what He has chosen and land him in Hell - what an evil destination." I hope that this ayah becomes firmly grounded in your minds and in your hearts, and I hope that you don't forget it, because it is the truth. And through it, you will be saved from deviating by drifting away to the right or to the left and you will be saved - even in one aspect or some issue - from falling into one of the sects that are not saved, or one of the deviant sects. This is because the Prophet, sallAllahu 'alayhi wa sallam said, in the well-known hadeeth, which I will abridge in order to get the part relevant to our discussion: "And my ummah will divide into seventy-three sects - all of them will be in the Hellfire, except one". They said: "Which one is it, O Messenger of Allaah?" He said: "It is the Jamaa'ah." The Jamaa'ah here is the “Way of the Believers.” So the hadeeth - if it is not a direct revelation from Allaah to the heart of the Prophet, sallAllahu 'alayhi wa sallam, then it must be derived from the previously mentioned ayah. "And he follows a way other than the way of the believers." So if a person who "opposes the Messenger" and who "follows a way other than the Way of the believers" is threatened with the Hellfire, then the opposite is also correct, so whoever does follow the "way of the believers", then he is promised Paradise, and there is no doubt about this. So when the Messenger of Allaah, sallAllaahu 'alayhi wa sallam, responded to the question about which group was the saved sect, he said: "The Jamaa'ah." So then the Jamaa'ah refers to the group of Muslims. Then there is stated in another narration of this hadeeth, what supports this understanding, in fact, it adds more clarification and explanation to it. The Prophet, sallAllaahu 'alayhi wa sallam said: "It is that which I and my Companions are upon." So "My Companions" is what is meant by the "Way of the Believers." So when Ibn Al-Qayyim mentioned the Companions in his lines of poetry, which we stated before, he took that understanding from the ayah we just stated and this hadeeth. And there is also the well-known hadeeth of Al-'Irbaad Ibn Saariyah, radyAllaahu 'anhu, which I will also shorten to mentioning only the part that is relevant to our discussion, so that we have enough time to take questions later. So he, sallAllaahu 'alayhi wa sallam, said: "So stick to my Sunnah and the Sunnah of the rightly-guided Khaleefahs after me." So here we find the same example as the hadeeth we just mentioned before this one and also, the previous ayah. The Messenger, sallAllaahu 'alayhi wa sallam, did not say "Stick to my Sunnah" only, but rather he connected to his Sunnah, the Sunnah of the rightly guided Khaleefahs. So here we say, especially in these times in which we find conflicting views, and ideologies and madhaahib (schools of thought), and in which there are many parties and groups, such that many of the Muslim youth have begun to live in confusion not knowing which group to ascribe themselves to. So here we have been given the answer from the ayah and the two hadeeth we just mentioned. [The answer is:] Follow the way of the Believers! - The way of those believers from present times? The answer is no, we mean the Believers from the past - the first era, the era of the Companions - the Salaf As-Saalih (pious predecessors). These are the people whom we should take as our example and as the ones whom we follow. And there is absolutely no one equal to them on the face of the earth. Therefore, Our Call is based on three pillars - on the (1) Qur'aan, the (2) Sunnah and (3) Following the Salaf As-Saalih (pious predecessors). So whoever claims that he follows the Qur'aan and the Sunnah, and that he doesn't follow the Salaf As-Saalih, and he expresses in both words and actions: "They (i.e. the Companions) are men and we are also men" [i.e. equal], then this person is in deviance and misguidance. Why - because he did not accept these texts, which we related to you just now. Did he follow the "Way of the Believers"? No. Did he follow the Companions of Allaah's Messenger? No. What did he follow? He followed his desire, and he followed his intellect. Is one's intellect infallible and free from error? The answer is no. So then, he is upon clear misguidance. I believe that the reason for the many inherited differences found in the well-known sects of the past and the differing that has just risen recently today is due to the lack of returning back to this third source, which is the Salaf As-Saalih. So everyone claims to follow the Qur'aan and the Sunnah, and how often have we heard this kind of talk from the youth who are in a state of confusion, when they say: "Ya akhee, these people claim to follow the Qur'aan and the Sunnah and those people claim to follow the Qur'aan and the Sunnah." So what is the clear and decisive distinction? It is the Qur'aan and the Sunnah and the Methodology of the Salaf As-Saalih. So whoever follows the Qur'aan and the Sunnah without following the Salaf As-Saalih, he in fact has not followed the Qur'aan and the Sunnah, rather he has only followed his intellect, if not his desire....[Side B will follow later] Produced by www.al-manhaj.com
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| | Sunday, March 25, 2001 - 10:48 pm Anonymous why anonymous? they didn't pay you enough? take this to the arab sites. nagala tag wahabiyadaada, inta dad, aad naga disheen idinku filan.
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| | Wednesday, March 28, 2001 - 01:51 am thank you "Anonymous"
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