All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds. Peace
and blessing be upon whom Allah sent as a mercy to the Worlds, upon his Family,
his Companions and his Brothers till the Day of Resurrection.
The Islamic nation is currently subject to a major assault launched
by the other nations, through their religions, languages, cultures and their different
morals and behaviors. In fact, the dependence of our nation, which is defeated,
reveals a dire weakness and humiliation. And as it is universally known, the
strong one colonizes the weak and humiliates him.
The danger that hangs over our nation is due to its going
away from its religion and principles, its patrimony and religious values. It
disintegrated in the civilizations of the others, because of the cultural and
mass media effect and the expansion of the activities and campaigns of evangelization;
the latter, if it is not taken seriously will bring our nation to annihilation,
as the previous nations were annihilated.
However, the way out for this nation and the means of
success lie in going back to religion as the Salaf (the Pious
Predecessors) used to be, because “The last generations of this nation will
never be reformed except with what the first ones used to be reformed”. In
addition, the preaching of truth can never stand except by following the Salafi
Way, which is founded on worshiping Allah perfectly, following His Prophet
correctly and purifying oneself by good morals and manners, because keeping
away from deviation, going astray and dependence is commensurate to following
and adhering to this way.
The major personalities of the Salaf outstripped the
others, among the people who adhere to sects and groups, in various domains,
whether regarding the major affairs concerning Allah, the All-Mighty, and His
creatures in life and in the universe, or concerning the Islamic tenets and the
values coming from it, which they used to face the scientific and dogmatic
challenges raised during their time, or the basic conception they established
in understanding Islam and adhering to it practically and spiritually, or the
way they interact with the events and new facts they faced and challenged.
All that indicates that this divinely inspired way is
perfect, whether in terms of conceptions, values, tenets, practice, reform,
education, behavior or purification. Accordingly, Allah illuminated with it the
way of the guided people, gave light to the hearts of the scholars, everywhere
in the world, protected His religion with this Salafi Way and
preserved His Book through the adherence of the prominent Salafi figures
to it, generation after generation, from the beginning of Islam till our times.
The reason is that the Salafi Way is the pure path of Islam itself,
whose traits are clear and end is sure. It follows clear rules and it is
characterized by comprehensive attributes. Among its rules: inferring from [the
texts of] the Quran and Sunna, seeking guidance in the understanding of the Salaf
of this nation, rejecting the scholastic interpretation, abstaining from
opposing the texts of the Sharia, either by an opinion, analogy or other things
and giving them (the texts of the Sharia) preponderance over reason while
refuting the existence of contradiction between them (i.e. between the sane
reason and the authentic texts); in addition to repelling the existence of
contradiction between the texts of the Sharia, and taking only the Book and
Sunna as criteria of acceptation and rejection.
Among the comprehensive attributes it includes also: its exhaustiveness,
moderation compared with the others’ ways, struggle and warning against
heresies, avoidance of the blamed religious argumentations and repelling [people]
from them, disregarding intellectual stagnation and doctrinal fanaticism and its
accordance with the sane innate nature, correct creed and sane reason.
Such important occasions constitute, for our
nation and its men, real opportunities for evaluation, correction and
self-criticism. Moreover, they provide large possibilities to think how to
preach this pure religion everywhere in our land and widespread, by educating
people on the bases of their true religion, inviting them to apply its rulings,
abiding by its good manners and keeping them away from all kinds of polytheistic
errors, intellectual deviations and various heretic vanities which blemished
and stained the beauty of Islam, prevented the Muslims from progressing and was
the reason behind the calamity the Muslims are experiencing nowadays.
However, this way, whose aims are noble, will not
find an echo in the hearts except by adopting leniency and good preaching, and
keeping away from blame, harshness and immaturity; because leniency in education,
information, advising, predication and preaching good, is one the most important
causes and motives to make people benefit from the preachers’ call and accept
their recommendations and instructions; Allah تعالى says:
﴿ادْعُ إِلِى
سَبِيلِ رَبِّكَ بِالْحِكْمَةِ وَالْمَوْعِظَةِ الْحَسَنَةِ وَجَادِلْهُم
بِالَّتِي هِيَ أَحْسَنُ ﴾ [النحل: 125]
Translation of the meaning :
﴾Invite
(mankind, O Muhammad) to the Way of your Lord (i.e. Islâm) with wisdom (i.e.
with the Divine Inspiration and the Qur'ân) and fair preaching, and argue with
them in a way that is better
﴿ [An-Nahl (The Bees) : 125].
Thereupon, it is not wise for one to preach when he has
little knowledge, because it is particularly harmful. It is also by no means
appropriate in terms of good preaching and argumentation to call people by
using brutality and rudeness, because the harm these things cause is far more significant
than their benefit. The reason is that people do not bear the brutal and
harmful manners. Moreover, they might be turned away from the religion due to
that. Hence, one should be patient, forbearing and lenient when calling to the
way of Allah, except if the person called shows stubbornness and transgression,
then it is permissible to deal harshly with him; because Allah تعالى says:
﴿يَا
أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ جَاهِدِ الْكُفَّارَ وَالْمُنَافِقِينَ وَاغْلُظْ عَلَيْهِمْ وَمَأْوَاهُمْ
جَهَنَّمُ وَبِئْسَ الْمَصِير﴾ [التحريم:9]
The meaning of the verse:
﴾O
Prophet (Muhammad)! Strive hard against the disbelievers and the hypocrites,
and be severe against them
﴿ [At-Tahrîm (The Interdiction):
9].
Allah تعالى also says:
﴿وَلَا تُجَادِلُوا
أَهْلَ الْكِتَابِ إِلَّا بِالَّتِي هِيَ أَحْسَنُ إِلَّا الَّذِينَ ظَلَمُوا مِنْهُمْ
...﴾ [العنكبوت:46].
The meaning of the verse:
﴾And
argue not with the people of the Scripture (Jews and Christians), unless it be
in (a way) that is better (with good words and in good manner, inviting them to
Islamic Monotheism with His Verses), except with such of them as do wrong﴿ [Al-`Ankabût (The Spider): 9].
This kind of manners to which the Sharia called
are established to realize the aim of the preaching to the way of Allah, which
consists of bringing people out from obscurities into light; Allah تعالى says:
﴿اللَّهُ وَلِيُّ
الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا يُخْرِجُهُمْ مِنَ الظُّلُمَاتِ إِلَى النُّورِ﴾ [البقرة:275].
The meaning of the verse:
﴾Allâh
is the Walî (Protector or Guardian) of those who believe. He brings them out
from darkness into light﴿ [Al-Baqara (The Cow): 275].
In fact, achieving this aim is the reason behind sending
prophets. The preachers to the way of Allah target this very aim and apply
themselves to do it in order to bring people from the obscurity of disbelief to
the light and guidance, from the obscurity of sin to the light of obedience and
from the obscurity of ignorance to the light of knowledge; that knowledge which
is required when preaching to the way of Allah; Allah تعالى says:
﴿قُلْ هَذِهِ سَبِيلِي
أَدْعُو إِلَى اللَّهِ عَلَى بَصِيرَةٍ ﴾ [يوسف: 108].
The meaning of the verse:
﴾Say
(O Muhammad): "This is my way; I invite unto Allâh (i.e. to the Oneness of
Allâh – Islamic Monotheism) with sure knowledge, I and whosoever follows me
(also must invite others to Allâh i.e to the Oneness of Allâh - Islamic Monotheism)
with sure knowledge﴿ [Yûsuf (Joseph): 108].
For this, the most important thing the Muslim should strive
for, spend money and time in, is to acquire the knowledge of the Qur'ân and
Sunna, because they are the source of happiness and success here and in the hereafter.
Therefore, one should aspire to realize the aim behind the call to the way of
Allah by providing its means sincerely. Let not weakness and laziness discourage
him [from going forward], because these two attributes are evil. Let not also
vanity and conceit prevent him from benefiting and getting more knowledge,
because they are one of the major and devastating things that prevent from
reaching [human] perfection, now and in the future.
However, and in light of the said educational conception and
in presence of trials, and regarding what the Salafi Way was confronted
with in this country i.e. adversities and calamities, brotherhood established
according to the Sunna could unite prominent personalities in different meetings;
the latter were full of orientation and remembrance about the obligation of
abiding by moderation and uprightness, and avoid both exaggeration and
negligence, in all times and domains. As for the one who is upright, suffice to
tell him that Allah تعالى says:
﴿وَأَلَّوِ
اسْتَقَامُوا عَلَى الطَّرِيقَةِ لَأَسْقَيْنَاهُمْ مَاءً غَدَقًا ﴾ [الجن: 16].
The meaning of the verse:
﴾If
they (non-Muslims) had believed in Allâh, and went on the Right Way (i.e.
Islâm) We should surely have bestowed on them water (rain) in abundance ﴿ [Al-Jin (The Jin): 16].
Allah also says:
﴿
إِنَّ الَّذِينَ قَالُوا رَبُّنَا اللَّهُ ثُمَّ اسْتَقَامُوا فَلَا خَوْفٌ عَلَيْهِمْ
وَلَا هُمْ يَحْزَنُونَ ﴾ [الأحقاف: 13].
The meaning of the verse:
﴾Verily,
those who say: "Our Lord is (only) Allâh," and thereafter Istaqâmû
(i.e. stood firm and straight on the Islamic Faith of Monotheism by abstaining
from all kinds of sins and evil deeds which Allâh has forbidden and by performing
all kinds of good deeds which He has ordained), on them shall be no fear, nor
shall they grieve﴿ [Al-Ahqâf (The Dunes): 13].
I ask Allah عزّ وجلّ to support and hold higher His religion and back those who
preach to the way of Allah to reform their faith and nation. I do not miss to
think deeply my brothers, the seekers of knowledge. I ask Allah to reward them
in the best way.
Our last prayer is all praise be to Allah, the Lord of
the Worlds.
Taken
from the introduction of Madjâlis Tadhkîriyya `Ala Massâ'il Manhajiyya
1424H/2003G.
