Recently, the Minister of Islamic Affairs of Saudi Arabia, Shaykh ‘Abdullatīf Āl Shaykh directed the preachers at mosques where Salālātul Jumu’ah will be held across Saudi Arabia on 5/6/1443 AH to warn against the Jama’tu Tableegh and the Da’wah group called Al-Ahbāb for their dangers, misguidance and deviation.
Since the direction of the Minister had made headlines, members of Ikhwaanul Muslimeen and many other ignorants had been vituperating against the land of Tawheed with emotion and ignorance, and they claim that why would the Saudi scholars leave people who are organizing music concerts and shaking strange women but warn against Jama’tu Tableegh. This claim is borne out of pure ignorance, deceit and false emotion, and we should all know that the religion is based on knowledge, not ignorance, it is based truth, not deceit and it is based on evidence from Qurān and Sunnah, not just emotion.
Firstly, a Muslim should know that it is a must that our Da’wah Methodology must be the same as the Da’wah Methodology of the prophets of Allah, because Allah placed them as models to follow, and discussed their Methodology in the Qurān for us to know their ways and to follow it. Allah says:
لَقَدْ كَانَ لَكُمْ فِيهِمْ أُسْوَةٌ حَسَنَةٌ لِّمَن كَانَ يَرْجُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ وَٱلْيَوْمَ ٱلْءَاخِرَ ۚ وَمَن يَتَوَلَّ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ هُوَ ٱلْغَنِىُّ ٱلْحَمِيدُ
Certainly, there has been in them an excellent example for you to follow, for those who look forward to (the Meeting with) Allah (for the reward from Him) and the Last Day. And whosoever turn away, then verily, Allah is Rich (Free of all wants), Worthy of all Praise.¹
Warning against Jama’tu Tableegh and all other sects with corrupt beliefs and Methodology is from the way of purifying people’s Aqeedah and this is the main objective of the Da’wah of all the prophets of Allah has sent to mankind. Allah says:
وَلَقَدْ بَعَثْنَا فِى كُلِّ أُمَّةٍ رَّسُولًا أَنِ ٱعْبُدُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ وَٱجْتَنِبُوا۟ ٱلطَّـٰغُوتَ
And verily, We have sent among every Ummah (community, nation) a Messenger (proclaiming): “Worship Allah (Alone), and avoid (or keep away from) Taghut (all false deities, etc. i. e. do not worship Taghut besides Allah).”²
Jama’tu Tableegh is a Da’wah group that opposes the correct creed of Islam because it is founded upon the deviation of the Sufi, and it opposes the correct Methodology of the prophets of Allah by not placing the rectification of Aqeedah as their foremost aim and breeding and encouraging ignorants to call to the way of Allah.
By the way of Jama’tu Tablīgh, a lot of fabricated narrations has been spread among people through their books and less importance has been given to the rectification of people’s Aqeedah. Thus, you would see a man that has been with going on outings with the Jama’ah for Twenty years and he would not know that the Quran wasn’t created!
To know more about Jama’tu Tableegh, click here, here and here.
With these serious threats that Jama’tu Tableegh places to people’s beliefs, it is a must that we clarify their misguidance to people in following the Methodology of the prophets as they would start their Da’wah with rectifying the aqeedah of people.
Secondly, to buttress the point that rectifying the aqeedah comes first and it is more important than warning against Music Concerts; we should know that when Allah raised our prophet ﷺ, he was at Makkah for 13 years calling to rectification of people’s belief and he made that his utmost priority for those 13 years. And he went to Madīnah and people have gotten the correct belief, he then proceeded to warn against other things and he started punishing for offences. It is a must that we follow this Methodology of Da’wah, only by this method we can achieve rectification.
When the prophet ﷺ sent Mu’aadh bn Jabal radiyallahu anhu on a Da’wah mission to Yemen, even though there are several social vices present in the society, yet the prophet ﷺ commanded him to begin with rectifying people’s belief. The prophet ﷺ said to Mu’aadh bn Jabal radiyallahu anhu that:
“You are going to some people among the People of the Book (Jews and Christians). Call them to bear witness that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah, and that I am the messenger of Allah. If they obey that, then tell them that Allah has enjoined upon them five prayers every day and night. If they obey that, then tell them that Allah has enjoined upon them charity (Zakāt) from their wealth, to be taken from their rich and given to their poor. If they obey that, then beware of taking the best of their wealth. And beware of the supplication of the oppressed, for there is no barrier between that and Allah.”³
Like Shaykh Salih Fawzān Al Fawzān حفظه الله تعالى mentioned in the preface he wrote to the book of Shaykh Rabee’ bn Haadi حفظه الله تعالى, Manhajul Anbiyaa, he said:
“Then another jamaa’ah affiliates itself with da’wah, except that its methodology is also at variance with the methodology of the Messengers. They give no importance to correct ‘aqeedah, rather they give importance to worshipping and practising some dhikr (remembrance of Allaah) in the way of the Sufis.
They concentrate upon going out( for outing ) and touring the lands, and what is important to them is that they manage to attract the people to join them, without caring about their beliefs and creed (‘aqeedah). All of these are innovated ways, taking as their starting point matters which were left until last in the call of the Messengers. This is just like the case of one who seeks to cure a body whose head has been cut off since the place of ‘aqeedah in the religion is like the head with regard to the body. So these groups must correct their concepts and understanding by referring back to the Book and the Sunnah to know the methodology of the Messengers in calling to Allaah.”
We should know that rectifying people’s beliefs comes first, and any Jama’ah that does not place it first and most important, like Jama’tu Tableegh and Ikhwaanul Muslimeen, are not upon the correct Methodology of the prophets and they should not be cooperated with.
Thirdly, apart from the fact that rectifying the aqeedah is the most important and it must come first, warning against Bid’ah generally is more important than warning against sins because Bid’ah is more beloved to Shaytān than sins and warning against Bid’ah saddens Shaytān more than warning against sins. Like Imām Sufyān Ath Thawri mentioned that:
“Innovations are more beloved to Shaytaan than sin since a sin may be repented from but an innovation is not repented from.”⁴
This is because the innovator believes that he is worshipping Allah by his Innovation and he does not see the need to repent from it, he would even be expecting rewards from Allah by his ways of Innovation without knowing that painful torment awaits Innovators on the Day of Qiyaamah. An ignorant man who had been going out with Jama’tu Tablīgh for 10 years would think he will be rewarded for his giving Da’wah with ignorance without knowing that it opposes the Methodology of the prophets and he would see any reason to repent from it, for this reason, Shaytān loves him from not repenting for that and even more, than he loves the one attending the music concerts, because the latter already knows that he is on the wrong way and even feel remorse of his attention is called to his wrongdoing.
So, it is more important that we warn against innovations and misguidance, even more than we warn against sins.
Lastly, it is a lie to claim that the scholars of Saudi Arabia abandon warning against music and free-mixing. Scholars of sunnah, may Allah blessed them all, have never been silent on warning against music, free-mixing and other social vices and the misguided Ikhwaanul Mufsideen knows this, but what they want is to see people of sunnah waging war against rulers of the land and that is against the commandment of Allah. As people of sunnah, we do not rebel against leaders, we listen to and obey them, we pray to Allah to rectify their mistakes, forgive their sins and guide them to the right path. The prophet ﷺ said:
“Whoever sees from his leader something that he dislikes, then let him be patient with him because whosoever separates from the jamā’ah (i.e. the body of Muslims in a country) even by a handspan, and then dies in that condition, he will die the death of pre-Islamic ignorance (jāhiliyyah).”⁵
We advise Muslims not to be carried away by the false cries laced with emotion by the Ikhwaanul Mufsideen, we should know that their cries are not because they love Allah and His Prophet ﷺ, it is not because they want to command righteousness and forbid evil, it is based on the love of leadership, they want Muslims to rebel against their rulers and cause chaos on the Muslim lands.
If truly the Ikhwaanul Mufsideen are concerned about the righteousness on the land, why are they not happy that the land of Tawheed is warning against the corruption of Aqeedah?
If truly they hate music concerts and they do not want it to hold, why have their leaders permitted Music in the first place? Or is the Ikhwani not aware that his leader, Yusuf bn Abdillah Al Qaradawi outrightly permitted music in his wretched book Al Halal Wal Haram? Has the Ikhwani burnt that book that permitted music for Muslims?
Is the Ikhwani not aware that it was his leader, Yusuf bn Abdillah Al Qaradawi that brought the fatwa that shaking the opposite sex is permissible? Why is the Ikhwani angry about it now? Why has the Ikhwani spared Qaradawy but wants Muslims to fight against their rulers?
Ikhwanis are callers to fitnah and chaos, don’t be deceived by them. We ask Allah to save us from their misguidance and preserve the rulers and scholars of Saudi Arabia upon goodness. We ask Allah to rectify their mistakes.
May Allah ease our affairs.
Mubaarak Olayemi Ismail Abu Muhsinah
