Questioner: We have with us some youth at the beginner level. They find comfort, for example, with one Scholar, and a second group finds comfort with…
Shaikh: Another?
Questioner: with Another. Then the affairs progressed until parties formed. That is: each group has partisanship towards this Scholar. Until they began to have hostility between each other and began not sitting with each other.
Shaikh: Of course this is not allowed in Islam. We always say that there is no partisanship in Islam. This bigotry is haram in Islam because this one holds fast to this opinion of Scholar ‘so and so’ and that one holds fasts to the opinion of another Scholar. They are not infallible like the Prophets and Messengers. So like that, it is necessary for the Muslims to live with love, advise, and not have bigotry to anyone in the worldly life except one person and it is the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). The most a Muslim can do is trust a Scholar in his knowledge, uprightness, and his far removal from the destruction of the worldly life and from governmental jobs which are often a cause for the deviation from knowledge which the people call towards. So if a Muslim sees this Scholar more knowledgeable than this other Scholar and more pious than this one etc. there is no preventative from taking his statement without criticizing the other Scholar or another person who builds his opinion on the opinion of the other Scholar. Next, it is upon them to be, as it was said:
المؤمنون نصحة ينصح بعضهم بعضا
The believers are advisers. They advise one another
If one of them sees ‘so and so’ as a Scholar and more knowledgeable than ‘so and so’ and he puts forward his evidence and proofs over the other, [considering] that both are similar and not different. What is important that partisanship in Islam is prohibited according to the text of the Noble Quran. This is because it leads to what I mentioned of division, hatred, and enmity, and Allah the Exalted said:
لا تَكُونُوا مِنَ الْمُشْرِكِينَ – نَ الَّذِينَ فَرَّقُوا دِينَهُمْ وَكَانُوا شِيَعًا كُلُّ حِزْبٍ بِمَا لَدَيْهِمْ فَرِحُونَ
Be not of Al-Mushrikun (the disbelievers in the Oneness of Allah, polytheists, idolaters, etc.). Of those who split up their religion (i.e. who left the true Islamic Monotheism), and became sects, [i.e. they invented new things in the religion (Bid’ah), and followed their vain desires], each sect rejoicing in that which is with it [30:31-32]
And in some Ahaadith in Saheeh Muslim and others:
لاَ تَبَاغَضُوا وَلاَ تَحَاسَدُوا وَلاَ تَدَابَرُوا وَكُونُوا عِبَادَ اللَّهِ إِخْوَانًا
Do not hate one another, nor be jealous of one another; nor turn your backs to one an another, but be servants of Allah, brothers!
Or as the Prophet (ﷺ) said. So it is obligatory that the Muslims live like this, especially under this system which tries hard to deviate the Muslims from their religion and their manners”.
[Silsilatul-Huda wan-Nur no. 573]
Translated by
Faisal bin Abdul Qaadir bin Hassan
Abu Sulaymaan
