Part of Lives of the Salaf — the Pious Predecessors (series completed)
· Lesson 20 of 72
A summary of the life of the Salaf between words and deeds | Episode (20) | The condition of the predecessors with the rulers
0:000:00
Transcript
Machine translation — may contain errors
0:00
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
0:04
The life of the salaf between word and deed.
0:11
The conduct of the salaf regarding matters of authority.
0:14
Their obedience and their urging to remain with the community.
0:19
A man wrote to Ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him),
0:24
"Write down for me all of knowledge."
0:27
So he wrote back to him:
0:29
"Knowledge is vast,
0:32
but if you are able to meet Allah
0:35
with a light back, free from the blood of the people,
0:38
an empty stomach, free from their wealth,
0:41
a restrained tongue, free from their honor,
0:44
and adhering to the command of their community,
0:47
then do so."
0:49
Abu Zur‘ah al-Razi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
0:53
"Friday prayer and Jihad are, in our view, to be performed with
0:56
the righteous and the wicked
0:58
among those who hold authority."
1:04
Dealing with them with diplomacy, gentleness, and kindness.
1:10
It was said to Usamah Ibn Zayd (may Allah be pleased with him):
1:14
"Will you not visit ‘Uthman Ibn ‘Affan (may Allah be pleased with him)
1:18
and speak to him?"
1:20
He replied:
1:22
"Do you think that I do not speak to him
1:25
unless I let you hear me?
1:27
By Allah, I have spoken to him privately between me and him,
1:31
without opening a door
1:34
that I would be the first to open."
1:36
"And I am not one to say to a man,
1:40
after he has become a leader over even two people,
1:43
'You are the best,'
1:45
after I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) say:
1:51
'A man will be brought and cast into the Fire,
1:55
and he will be ground therein as a donkey grinds with its millstone.
2:00
The people of the Fire will gather around him
2:03
and say:
2:04
'O so-and-so,
2:06
were you not one who commanded the good and forbade the evil?'
2:11
He will say:
2:12
'I used to command the good but not do it,
2:17
and I used to forbid the evil but do it myself.'"
2:21
On the authority of Ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), he said:
2:25
"I entered upon Hafsah and said:
2:28
'You see what has happened to the people,
2:31
and nothing of this affair has been entrusted to me.'"
2:35
She said:
2:36
"Join them, for they are waiting for you,
2:40
and I fear that your staying away from them will cause division."
2:45
He did not hesitate until he went.
2:48
When the people dispersed,
2:50
Mu‘awiyah gave a sermon and said:
2:53
"Whoever wishes to speak about this matter,
2:57
let him show us his head;
3:00
for we are more entitled to it than he and his father."
3:04
Habib Ibn Maslamah said:
3:07
"Why did you not answer him, may my father and mother be sacrificed for you?"
3:11
Ibn ‘Umar replied:
3:13
"I loosened my garment,
3:15
and I intended to say:
3:17
'The one more entitled to it than you
3:19
is he who fought you and your father for the sake of Islam.'
3:23
But I feared saying a word that would divide the community
3:27
and lead to the shedding of blood,
3:30
so I remembered what Allah has prepared in the Gardens of Paradise."
3:36
Speaking the truth openly,
3:38
and not being sycophantic in advising them.
3:42
‘Ubayd Allah Ibn Ziyad visited
3:45
Ma‘qil Ibn Yasar (may Allah be pleased with him)
3:48
during the illness in which he died.
3:51
Ma‘qil said to him:
3:54
"I will narrate to you a hadith I heard from the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him).
4:01
I heard the Prophet (peace be upon him) say:
4:05
'There is no servant whom Allah places in charge of subjects,
4:09
and he does not look after them with sincere advice,
4:12
but that he will not smell the fragrance of Paradise.'"
4:16
Muhammad Ibn Wasi‘ (may Allah have mercy on him) was
4:19
with Yazid Ibn al-Muhallab in Khurasan, participating in a military campaign.
4:24
He asked his permission to go for Hajj,
4:26
and he granted it.
4:27
He then said to him:
4:29
"Shall we order a provision for you?"
4:31
He said:
4:32
"Order it for the entire army."
4:35
He said: "No."
4:37
He said:
4:38
"Then I have no need of it."
4:41
On the authority of Zayd Ibn Aslam, he said:
4:43
"I was with Abu Hazim (may Allah have mercy on him) during the summer campaign,
4:48
and ‘Abd al-Rahman Ibn Khalid sent to Abu Hazim:
4:52
'Come to us so that we may ask you and you may speak to us.'
4:57
Abu Hazim said:
4:59
'I seek refuge in Allah!
5:01
I met the people of knowledge,
5:03
and they did not carry their religion to the people of the world,
5:06
so I will not be the first to do that.
5:10
If you have a need, then come to us.'"
5:14
‘Abd al-Rahman came to him and asked him,
5:17
and said to him:
5:19
"You have only increased in our estimation by this."
5:23
It was said to Imam Malik (may Allah have mercy on him):
5:27
"You enter upon the ruler,
5:29
and they oppress and act unjustly."
5:32
He said:
5:34
"May Allah have mercy on you,
5:35
then who will speak the truth?"
5:39
Imam Ahmad (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
5:42
"If I am threatened with the sword, I will not answer,"
5:46
meaning: I will not give them an answer that contradicts the religion of Allah,
5:51
which the governor or the prince desires,
5:53
to please them or out of fear of them.
5:56
He said:
5:58
"If the scholar answers out of dissimulation (taqiyyah),
6:01
and the ignorant person answers out of ignorance,
6:03
then when will the truth be made clear?"
6:07
Guidance and advice of the salaf
6:10
for those who wish to engage with them.
6:13
On the authority of Hudhayfah Ibn al-Yaman (may Allah be pleased with him), he said:
6:18
"Beware of the places of fitnah (strife)."
6:21
It was said:
6:22
"And what are the places of fitnah, O Abu ‘Abd Allah?"
6:26
He said:
6:27
"The doors of the rulers.
6:30
One of you enters upon the ruler,
6:32
and confirms his lies,
6:35
and says what is not in him."
6:38
Muslim Ibn ‘Umar (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
6:42
"It is appropriate for one who serves the ruler
6:44
not to be deceived by them when they are pleased with him,
6:48
nor to change toward them when they are angry with him,
6:52
nor to find burdensome what they entrust to him,
6:54
nor to be persistent in asking them."
6:57
Al-Awza‘i (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
7:01
"Whoever is present with a ruler
7:03
and he commands something that is not right,
7:06
and there is no fear of missing an opportunity,
7:09
then do not speak to him about it at that moment.
7:13
Rather, speak to him in private.
7:15
But if you see him commanding something where there is a fear of missing an opportunity,
7:19
then you must speak to him,
7:22
whatever may befall you as a result."
7:25
Patience regarding their oppression
7:29
and not rebelling against them,
7:32
and condemning those who do so.
7:34
‘Abd Allah Ibn Mas‘ud (may Allah be pleased with him) said in his sermon:
7:40
"O people,
7:42
you must adhere to obedience and the community,
7:45
for it is the rope of Allah, the Almighty and Majestic, which He has commanded.
7:50
What you dislike in the community is better than what you love in division."
7:56
Ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said when the pledge of allegiance to Yazid came to him:
8:01
"If it is good, we are pleased,
8:04
and if it is a trial, we are patient."
8:07
On the authority of Nafi‘ (may Allah have mercy on him), he said:
8:12
"When the people of Madinah deposed Yazid Ibn Mu‘awiyah,
8:16
Ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) gathered his family and children
8:20
and said:
8:21
'I heard the Prophet (peace be upon him) say:
8:26
'A banner will be raised for every traitor on the Day of Resurrection.'
8:31
We have pledged allegiance to this man upon the pledge of Allah and His Messenger,
8:36
and I do not know of any treachery
8:39
greater than pledging allegiance to a man upon the pledge of Allah and His Messenger,
8:44
and then raising a fight against him.
8:47
I do not know of anyone among you who has deposed or pledged allegiance in this matter
8:53
but that it will be the deciding factor between me and him.'"
8:58
It was said to al-Hasan al-Basri (may Allah have mercy on him):
9:01
"O Abu Sa‘id,
9:03
a Khariji has rebelled in al-Khuraybah,"
9:06
which is a neighborhood near Basra.
9:09
He said:
9:10
"The poor man saw an evil and denounced it,
9:14
but he fell into something even more evil."
9:17
Abu al-Harith said:
9:19
"I asked Imam Ahmad (may Allah have mercy on him) about a matter that had occurred in Baghdad,
9:25
where a group intended to rebel.
9:28
I said:
9:29
'O Abu ‘Abd Allah,
9:31
what do you say about rebelling with these people?'
9:35
He denounced that against them
9:38
and began saying:
9:39
'Subhan Allah!
9:41
The blood! The blood!
9:43
I do not see that, nor do I command it.
9:46
Patience with what we are in is better than fitnah,
9:50
in which blood is shed,
9:53
wealth is made lawful,
9:55
and sacred things are violated.
9:58
Do you not know what the people were in?'
10:01
meaning the days of the fitnah.
10:04
I said:
10:05
'And the people today,
10:07
are they not in a fitnah, O Abu ‘Abd Allah?'
10:10
He said:
10:12
'Even if they are,
10:14
it is a private fitnah.
10:17
But if the sword is drawn,
10:19
the fitnah becomes widespread and the paths are cut off.
10:22
Patience with this,
10:25
and your religion remains safe for you, is better for you.'
10:28
I saw him denouncing rebellion against the leaders,
10:32
He said:
10:33
[Regarding] bloodshed,
10:34
I do not hold that view, nor do I command it.
10:39
Hanbal said regarding the reign of al-Wathiq:
10:42
The jurists of Baghdad gathered to see Abu 'Abd Allah [Ahmad ibn Hanbal].
10:46
They came to Abu 'Abd Allah,
10:49
and I sought permission for them to enter.
10:51
They said:
10:52
"O Abu 'Abd Allah,
10:54
this matter has become grave and widespread,"
10:58
referring to his public proclamation that the Qur'an is created and other such matters.
11:02
Abu 'Abd Allah said to them:
11:05
"What is it that you intend?"
11:07
They replied:
11:08
"We wish to consult you, for we are not pleased with his leadership or his authority."
11:15
Abu 'Abd Allah debated with them for a while,
11:18
and said to them:
11:20
"You must reject this in your hearts,
11:23
but do not withdraw your hand from obedience,
11:26
do not break the unity of the Muslims,
11:29
and do not shed your blood or the blood of the Muslims along with you.
11:34
Consider the consequences of your actions,
11:37
and be patient until a righteous person finds relief,
11:40
or one is relieved of a wicked person."
11:44
[This includes] praying for them and refraining from praising them except for what is true.
11:51
Al-Fudayl ibn 'Iyad, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
11:54
"If I had a prayer that was guaranteed to be answered,
11:57
I would not use it except for the leader,
12:00
for the righteousness of the leader is the righteousness of the lands and the servants."
12:04
On the authority of 'Umar ibn al-Fadl, he said:
12:08
"I asked Abu al-'Ala', may Allah have mercy on him,
12:11
while al-Hajjaj was in his cloak,
12:14
and I said, 'O Abu al-'Ala',
12:17
shall I curse al-Hajjaj?'
12:19
He replied, 'Pray for his righteousness,
12:22
for his righteousness is better for you.'"
12:25
Other benefits:
12:30
'Umar ibn al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, said:
12:33
"No one should assume this authority,"
12:37
meaning the affairs of the people,
12:39
"except a man who possesses four qualities:
12:42
gentleness without weakness,
12:45
firmness without violence,
12:47
restraint without stinginess,
12:50
and generosity without extravagance.
12:53
For if one of these is lost,
12:56
the other three are corrupted."
12:58
'Abd Allah ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him, said:
13:02
"If the leader is just,
13:05
then he has the reward and you have the duty of gratitude.
13:08
And if he is tyrannical,
13:10
then he bears the burden of sin and you have the duty of patience."
13:15
'Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
13:19
"Be fair to us, O subjects!
13:22
You desire from us the conduct of Abu Bakr and 'Umar, may Allah be pleased with them both,
13:27
yet you do not conduct yourselves, nor do you treat one another,
13:31
according to the conduct of the subjects of Abu Bakr and 'Umar."
13:34
We ask Allah to assist everyone in every matter.
13:38
On the authority of Ibn Hisham, he said:
13:42
"Al-Ma'mun, may Allah have mercy on him, said to me:
13:45
'O 'Ali, kings tolerate everything from their subjects,
13:50
except for three things.'
13:53
I said, 'And what are they, O Commander of the Faithful?'
13:57
He said, 'Attacking the king's legitimacy,
14:00
divulging secrets,
14:03
and violating the sanctity of the harem.'"
14:05
The life of peace,
14:08
between speech and age.