Safeguarding One's Salafeeyah

[bamalli]

Safeguarding One's Salafeeyah*

Shaykh Saalih ibn Fowzaan al-Fowzaan

*Reference*: Al Muntaqaa Min Fataawa As Shaykh Saalih Al Fawzaan:1/460



What are the legislative principals which the Muslim can use to safeguard
and maintain his adherence and steadfastness to the Manhaj of the Salaf- as-
Saalih and refrain from deviating from it or being affected by other
extrinsic Manaahij (methodologies) ?

The legislative principals are understood in light of all that has preceded
and they are:

The individual should:

1) Return to the people of knowledge and Baseerah (insight) and learn from
them and seek their counsel in that which preoccupies his thinking from
(different) affairs, in order to obtain their opinion in it.

2) Contemplate and deliberate over the affairs and not be rash and hasty in
making verdicts upon the people. Rather it is upon him to verify as Allaah
says:

*"O you who believe! If a Faasiq (liar-evil person) comes to you with any
news, verify it, lest you should harm people in ignorance, and afterwards
you become regretful for what you have done"* [49/6]

and Allaah said:

*"O you who believe when you go out to fight in the cause of Allaah, verify
(the truth), and say not to anyone who greets you (by embracing Islaam):
"You are not a believer" seeking the perishable goods of this worldly life.
There are much more profits and booties with Allaah. Even as he is now so
were you yourselves before till Allaah conferred His favors upon you (i.e.
guided you to Islaam), therefore, be cautious in discrimination, Allaah is
Ever Well aware of what you do"* [4/94]

Meaning verify that which reaches you.

3) When it is affirmed (mistake), then it is upon you to handle the
situation with methods that would guarantee rectification and not with those
methods which entail harshness nor those methods which cause disorder and
chaos. As the messenger (saw) said:

*"Give glad tidings and don't chase the people away"* (Bukharee)

He also said:

*"Indeed you have only been sent to give glad tidings and not to run the
people away" *

He said to some of the most prestigious of his companions:

*"Indeed there are from amongst you those who chase the people away, so
whomever from you leads the people (in salaat) then let him be moderate
because behind him are the weak and those who have (other) business (to
attend to)."* (Bukharee)

In any case it is not appropriate for anyone to just intermeddle in these
affairs while he doesn't know how to properly conduct himself in them.

4) From these principals is that the individual equips himself with
beneficial knowledge, by sitting with the people of knowledge and listening
to their views and like wise reading the books of the Salaf us Saalih and
the history of the reformists from the salaf of this Ummah and it's 'Ulamaa;
how they used to deal with the affairs and how they used to give the people
admonition and order with the good and forbid the evil and how they use to
judge things. All of this is collected in the history and in their
biographies, their narrations and in the stories of the people who were upon
good from the past and the people of rectification and sincerity. Allaah
says:

*"Indeed in their stories, there is a lesson for men of understanding. "*[12/111]

So, a person is an individual form this Ummah and the Ummah is the mass of
Muslims from the first emergence of Islaam up until the establishment of the
hour. And the Muslim refers back to the biography of the Salaf us Saalih and
their narrations and how they used to rectify affairs and their methodology
in that so that he can traverse upon their Manhaj, without looking at the
statements of the ignorant; those who incite and arouse the people upon
other than Baseerah (sound knowledge). And most of these small books today,
lectures and articles emerge from the those who are ignorant of the
legislative affairs, they incite the people and order them with that which
neither Allaah nor His messenger (saw) has ordered them with, even if it
emanated from them based upon good intention and for good purposes, because
that which is significant is not based upon intent nor purpose but based
upon what is correct. The Haqq (truth) is that which coincides with the
Kitaab and the Sunnah upon the understanding of the Salaf. As for everyone
else other than the Messenger of Allaah (saw),then they are mistaken (at
times) and correct (at others) and what they are correct in is accepted and
they are mistaken in is rejected.