Question:
The statement criticize the mistake without mentioning the one mistaken?
Answer:
Criticizing the mistake is a required affair, in protection of the religion, and advice to the Muslims,
فَلْيَحْذَرِ ٱلَّذِينَ يُخَالِفُونَ عَنْ أَمْرِهِۦٓ أَن تُصِيبَهُمْ فِتْنَةٌ أَوْ يُصِيبَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ
“And let those who oppose the Messenger’s commandment beware, lest some Fitnah befall them or a painful torment be inflicted on them.” [An-Nur: 63]
So opposing the command of the Messenger of Allaah ﷺ and his guidance is exposing oneself to Fitnah, and exposing oneself to punishment, and fitnah in this verse was explained as Shirk in this place,
And this has in it criticizing the mistake and restraining the hands of the one in mistake,
مثل القائم على حدود الله والواقع فيها كمثل قوم استهموا على سفينة، فصار بعضهم أعلاها وبعضهم أسفلها، وكان الذين في أسفلها إذا استقوا من الماء مروا على من فوقهم فقالوا: لو أنا خرقنا في نصيبنا خرقًا ولم نؤذ من فوقنا ، فإن تركوهم وما أرادوا هلكوا وهلكوا جميعًا، وإن أخذوا على أيديهم نجوا ونجوا جميعا
The Prophet (ﷺ) said, “The likeness of the man who observes the limits prescribed by Allah and that of the man who transgresses them is like the people who get on board a ship after casting lots. So some of them are in its lower deck and some of them in its upper. Those who are in its lower, when they require water, go to the people of the upper deck, and say to them : “If we make a hole in the bottom of the ship, we shall not harm you.” If they leave them to carry out their intention they all will perish. But if they restrain them by the hands, all of them will remain safe”.
So this has in it criticizing the mistake and restraining the hands of the one mistaken.
For his statement
وإن أخذوا على أيديهم
“But if they restrain them by the hands”
i.e. restraining the hands of the one mistaken, and withholding the one mistaken, and he is not restrained or withheld from his mistake except by clarifying his mistake and distancing him from that.
And in the Sahih from Anas that the Prophet ﷺ said:
انصر أخاك ظالمًا أو مظلومًا” فقال رجل: يا رسول الله أنصره إذا كان مظلومًا أرأيت إن كان ظالمًا كيف أنصره؟ قال: ”تحجزه -أو تمنعه- من الظلم فإن ذلك نصره
“Help your brother, whether he is an oppressor or is oppressed”. A man said: “O Messenger of Allah! I help him when he is oppressed, but how can I help him when he is an oppressor?” He ﷺ said, “You prevent him from committing oppression. For verily in that is your helping him”.
And refraining him from oppression is not achieve by merely mentioning the mistake, rather by repelling him from the mistake, according to what you’re capable of, for indeed the mistake is Munkar, it’s changed according to the level of capability, due to the Hadith of Abu Sa’id Al-Khudri that the Prophet ﷺ said:
من رأى منكم منكرًا فليغيره بيده ، فإن لم يستطع فبلسانه، فإن لم يستطع فبقلبه وذلك أضعف الإيمان
“Whoever amongst you sees an evil, then let him change it with his hand, if he is not able to, then with his tongue, and if he is not able to, then with his heart; and that is the weakest of Eemaan.”
And the point of benefit from the Hadith is the stages mentioned, and from it by his tongue, and changing it with the tongue is clarifying it and warning the perpetrator so that he doesn’t persist in the likes of it, and Allaah said:
وَكَذَٰلِكَ نُفَصِّلُ ٱلْءَايَٰتِ وَلِتَسْتَبِينَ سَبِيلُ ٱلْمُجْرِمِينَ
“And thus do We explain the Ayaat in detail, that the way of the Mujrimeen (criminals, polytheists, sinners), may become manifest.” [Al-An’aam: 55]
i.e. become clear and for the ways of the criminals to be clear, apparent.
And the Salaf didn’t traverse upon one side leaving off the other, so they criticized the mistake, and they criticized it’s people, they criticized the falsehood, and they criticized the people of falsehood, so they clarified that negating the attributes is not allowed, the attributes of Allaah, and they clarified those who negate the attributes, so if they said for example verily negating this attribute and that attribute of Allaah is not allowed then they remained quiet of Jahm bin Safwaan, and Ma”bad Al-Juhani, and Waasil bin ‘Ataa’ Al-Ghazaal, and the Mushabbihah also Daawud Al-Jawaaribee, and the likes of these ones from the negators, who will know them?
The people will not cease to have good thoughts of them and take from them, and they remain misguiding the people, but instead the mistake is made clear and its people and the ones who propagate it, in order for people to be cautious of the mistake and those who propagate the mistake intentionally, according to the capability of a person.
And this is a subject which it’s clarification is extensive, and its evidences are many, so taking by one side of it and not the other side isn’t correct,
They say for example criticize the mistake and don’t criticize the one mistaken.
I’m going to say some of the narrators of Hadith are liars, some of the narrators of Hadith are abandoned, some of the narrators of Hadith are weak, this Hadith in it is a weak narrator. Tayyib clarify my brother who are they, who is this weak narrator in this chain. This Hadith has in it a liar, I don’t mention his name to you. Tayyib you’re saying in it is a weak narrator, who is it, perhaps you consider him weak and other than you doesn’t, you see him as a liar and others defend him and consider him and Imaam, and clarify to the people that he is indeed a liar.
So if the people traversed upon this way, in oblivion of mentioning the one mistaken, from liars or those who intentionally make mistake, or unintentionally for example, some of them have heedlessness in Hadith, he has bad memory, some Hadith strong in weakness come via him, rather fabricated, so they clarify and say this man is righteous but not from the people of Hadith, knowledge is not taken from him in Hadith.
This statement upon its totality doesn’t clarify the truth from the falsehood, there are situations where you warn from the falsehood and it’s sufficient, there could be some situations where you warn from the falsehood without naming, but upon this totality then no!
Even I believe that the one who stated it will not be able to maintain traversing upon this principle, him himself is not able to traverse upon it, you will find him in one side opposing it, so if a person opposes him in something, perhaps from Ahlus-Sunnah, all of sudden he shouts and says you find him saying this man has such and such with him and such and such and he mentions names, and opposes his principle. He won’t say Wallaahi some people say, no.
So the one who opposes the truth falls into contradiction, you don’t find the truth except precise, it puts the people in check and people are put into check through it, just as falsehood contradicts itself, and it’s people fall into contradiction.
We ask Allaah for safety. We ask Allaah for correctness.
They take one side of a Hadith and leave the other. They take the Hadith
مَا بَالُ أقْوامٍ
“How is it that some people”
The Prophet ﷺ said this about righteous people, he wanted to cover them, from his companions, he wanted to cast light upon that thing without mentioning them, as for when he mentioned the Khawaarij, he made clear. Dogs of the Hellfire, he called them dogs, not even dogs of this Dunyaa, dogs of Jahannam.
And likewise the Qadariyyah, Majoos of this ummah, so when he mentioned the people of falsehood he clarified their condition, as for in regards to a righteous man you cover him, there occurred a mistake from him and the most is that it was a slipup, and he’s known for returning to the truth, this affair is good in the likes of this, you warn form the mistake, mention the mistake, shed light upon it, he will hear the mistake and refrain from it, instead of exposing him amongst the people, spoil his image upon that, perhaps you will make things complicated for him, no! He’s a righteous man, there occurred from him what needs bringing to attention, either in a mistaken statement or action or something like that, if he hears it he benefited, so this is like the Prophet ﷺ with the Sahaabah his students, he’s like them on the level of a father figure and to all, he cultivates them.
Answered by: Shaykh, the Allamah, the Trustworthy Advisor, Abu Abdirrahman Yahya bin Ali Al-Hajuri – may Allah preserve him
Source: https://t.me/sh_yahia_duroos/10047
Translated by: Abū ‘Abdillāh ‘Omar bin Yahya Al-‘Akawi