Fanaticism to Individuals in Spite of Error

 Fanaticism to Individuals in Spite of Error

54] Question: Some people, may Allaah guide them, sanctify certain

individuals and fanatically cling to their views. What is your advice

to them?

Answer: It is obligatory to follow the truth whoever it is with, and

not to follow individuals that oppose the truth.

Imaam Ahmad, may Allaah have mercy on him, said: I am amazed by a

people who know the chain of narration (of a hadeeth) and its

authenticity, yet they go by the opinion of Sufyaan.

And Allaah, the Most high, says: So let those who oppose his Command

(i.e. Sunnah) be warned, lest some fitnah (trial) should befall them

or a painful punishment be inflicted on them. [Surah An-Noor: 63]

Ibn Abbaas (radyAllaahu anhu) said: It is imminent that rocks will

descend upon you from the heavens I say Allah said and you say Abu

Bakr and Umar said.

So if this warning and threat is with regard to following the most

virtuous of people after the prophets without proof, then how much

more so for following one who is neither here nor there (i.e. a

nobody), such as those who are not known to have knowledge or virtue

but yet are proficient in rambling speech?

Shaikh Saalih bin Fawzaan Al-Fawzaan

[Al-Ajwibah Al-Mufeedah: pg. 108

(60) Question: What is the ruling on someone who loves a scholar or a

caller and says: I love him very much, I don’t want to hear about

anyone refuting him and I will take his words even if they are in

opposition to the proof because this Shaikh is more aware of the proof

than we are.

Answer: This is ta’asub (fanaticism), which is detested and condemned,

and it is not permissible.

We love the scholars, all praise be to Allaah, and we love the callers

to the way of Allaah. However, if one of them errs in an issue, then

we clarify the truth with regard to this issue, with the evidence. And

this does not detract from the love or status held for the one being

refuted.

Imaam Maalik, may Allaah have mercy on him, said: There is none of us,

except that he can refute or be refuted, except for the one buried in

this gravemeaning Allaah’s Messenger.

So when we refute one of the scholars or one of the noble

personalities, this does not mean that we have a hatred for him or

that we are belittling him. Rather, we are clarifying what is correct.

This is why when one of the scholars saw that one of his colleagues

erred, he said: So and so is our beloved friend, however the truth is

more beloved to us than him. This is the correct way.

And do not understand from the refutation of a scholar in an issue he

erred in to mean that it is a belittling of him or hatred for him. On

the contrary, the scholars have not ceased to refute one other

(throughout history), but in spite of that, they are brothers holding

love for one another.

It is not permissible for us to accept entirely everything an

individual says whether he is correct or wrong because this is

ta’assub (blind fanaticism).

The (only) one whom we can take all of his sayings and not leave off

any of them is Allaah’s Messenger, because he is the conveyer from his

Lord and he does not speak from his own desire. As for those other

than him, then they can err at times and be correct at times. Even if

they are from the most virtuous of people and they are Mujtahids (i.e.

scholars), they can err at times and be correct at times.

There is no one that is protected from error except Allaah’s Messenger.

We must know this. Furthermore, we do not conceal the error out of our

love for such and such individual. Rather it is upon us to expose and

clarify the error. The Prophet (sallAllaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said:

The Religion is Sincerity. We said: To who? He (sallAllaahu ‘alayhi wa

sallam) said: To Allaah, to His Book, to His Messenger, the Muslim

leaders and their common folk.

Clarifying the error falls under Sincerity to everyone. But as for

concealing the error, then this is in opposition to the Sincerity.

Shaikh Saalih bin Fawzaan Al-Fawzaan

[Al-Ajwibah Al-Mufeedah: pg. 120-122]

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