Green Lane Masjid

Praise be to Allaah.




The basic comprehensive principle of sharee’ah is that it is not permitted to remove an evil by means of a greater evil; evil must be warded off by that which will remove it or reduce it. Warding off evil by means of a greater evil is not permitted according to the scholarly consensus (ijmaa’) of the Muslims.

If this group which wants to get rid of this ruler who is openly committing kufr is able to do so, and can bring in a good and righteous leader without that leading to greater trouble for the Muslims or a greater evil than the evil of this ruler, then that is OK. But if rebellion would result in greater trouble and lead to chaos, oppression and the assassination of people who do not deserve to be assassinated, and other forms of major evil, then that is not permitted.

Rather it is essential to be patient and to hear and obey in matters of good, and to offer sincere advice to the authorities, and to pray that they may be guided to good, and to strive to reduce evil and increase good. This is the correct way which should be followed, because that is in the general interests of the Muslims, and because it will reduce evil and increase good, and because this will keep the peace and protect the Muslims from a greater evil.

 Majmoo’ Fataawa wa Maqaalaat Mutanawwi’ah li Samaahat al-Shaykh al-‘Allaamah ‘Abd al-‘Azeez ibn ‘Abd-Allaah ibn Baaz (may Allaah have mercy on him), vol. 8, p. 202

Tawassul in Arabic means seeking to draw close. Allaah says in the Qur’aan (interpretation of the meaning): “…[they] desire means of access to their Lord…” [al-Isra’ 17:57], i.e., means of drawing close to Him.

There are two types of Tawassul, correct Islamic tawassul and forbidden tawassul.

Correct Islamic Tawassul:


This means seeking to draw close to Allaah through acts of worship which He loves and which please Him; these may be waajib (obligatory) or mustahabb (encouraged), and may take the form of words, actions or beliefs. Some types are as follows:

Seeking to draw close to Allaah by means of His names and attributes. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): “And (all) the Most Beautiful Names belong to Allaah, so call on Him by them, and leave the company of those who belie or deny (or utter impious speech against) His names. They will be requited for what they used to do.” [al-A’raaf 7:180]. So when a person makes du’aa’ to Allaah, he begins by calling on Allaah with the name that is most apt, such as “al-Rahmaan” (the Most Merciful) when seeking mercy and al-Ghafoor (the All-Forgiving) when asking for forgiveness, and so on.

Seeking to draw close to Allaah by means of faith and Tawheed. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): “Our Lord! We believe in what You have sent down, and we follow the Messenger, so write us down among those who bear witness (to the truth).” [Aal ‘Imraan 3:53]


Seeking to draw close to Allaah through righteous deeds, whereby a person asks Allaah by virtue of the best deeds that he has done, such as salaah, fasting, reading Qur’aan, avoiding haraam things, and so on. An example of this is the saheeh hadeeth narrated in the Saheehayn about the three people who entered a cave, and a rock fell and blocked their way out. They asked Allaah by virtue of their best deeds (to save them). A person may also ask Allaah by virtue of his total dependency upon Him, as Allaah mentions in the Qur’aan (interpretation of the meaning): “[Ayyoob said:] ‘Verily, distress has seized me, and You are the Most Merciful of those who show mercy.’ [al-Anbiya’ 21:83]; or by admitting his own wrongdoing and his need for Allaah, as Yoonus is described as saying (interpretation of the meaning): “ ‘None has the right to be worshipped except You (O Allaah). Glorified (and exalted) are You. Truly I have been of the wrong-doers.’” [al-Anbiya’ 21:87]


The rulings on Islamically correct tawassul vary according to its type. Some types are waajib, such as seeking to draw close to Allaah through His names and attributes and through Tawheed (believing in His absolute Oneness), and some are mustahabb, such as seeking to draw close to Him by virtue of all kinds of righteous deeds.

Tawassul that is bid’ah and therefore forbidden:


This is the attempt to draw close to Allaah by means of things that He does not like and that do not please Him, whether they be words, deeds or beliefs. One example of this is trying to draw close to Allaah by calling on the dead or people who are absent, asking them for help, and so on. This is a form of major shirk (shirk akbar), which goes against Tawheed and means that a person is no longer considered to be a Muslim. Calling upon Allaah, whether it is for a purpose such as asking Him to grant some benefit or to ward off some harm, or as an act of worship to express humility and submission before Him, can only be addressed directly to Allaah. If du’aa’s or prayers are addressed to anything or anyone else, this is shirk. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): “And your Lord said: ‘Invoke Me (and ask Me for anything), I will respond to your invocation. Verily! Those who scorn My worship [i.e., do not invoke Me and do not believe in My Oneness], they will surely enter Hell in humiliation!” [Ghaafir 40:60]. In this aayah, Allaah explains the punishment of those who arrogantly refuse to call on Allaah, whether they call on someone other than Allaah or they do not call on Him at all, out of pride and self-admiration, even if they do not call on anyone else.
Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): “Invoke your Lord with humility and in secret…” [al-A’raaf 7:55]. Allaah commands His slaves to call on Him and not anyone else.
Allaah says of the people of Hell (interpretation of the meaning): “[They say:] ‘By Allaah, we were truly in a manifest error when we held you (false gods) as equals (in worship) with the Lord of the Worlds.” [al-Shu’ara’ 26:96-97]


Anything that results in equating something other than Allaah with Allaah in worship or acts of obedience is shirk, the crime of associating partners with Him. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): “And who is more astray than one who calls (invokes) besides Allaah, such as will not answer him until the Day of Resurrection, and who are (even) unaware of their calls (invocations) to them? And when mankind are gathered (one the Day of Resurrection), they (false deities) will become enemies for them and will deny their worshipping.” [al-Ahqaaf 46:5-6]
Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): “ And whoever invokes (or worships) besides Allaah, any other god, of whom he has no proof, then his reckoning is only with his Lord. Surely, al-kaafiroon (the disbelievers in Allaah and in the Oneness of Allaah) will not be successful.” [al-Mu’minoon 23:117].

Allaah states that anyone who calls on anything other than him is taking that thing as a god, as He says (interpretation of the meaning): “…And those, whom you invoke or call upon instead of Him, own not even a qitmeer (the thin membrane over a date-stone). If you invoke (or call upon) them, they hear not your call, and if (in case) they were to hear, they could not grant it (your request) to you. And on the Day of Resurrection, they will disown your worshipping them. And none can inform you (O Muhammad), like Him Who is the All-Knower (of everything).” [Faatir 35:13-14].
In this aayah, Allaah explains that He is the only One Who deserves to be called upon, because He, and no one else, is the Sovereign who is directing everything.

Those things that are worshipped cannot hear du’aa’s, let alone respond to the one who invokes them, and even if they were able to hear, they cannot respond, because they do not have the power to either benefit or harm.


The mushrik Arabs whom the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) was sent to call were disbelievers because of this shirk. They would call upon Allaah sincerely at times of difficulty, but they became disbelievers at times of ease and plenty, when they would call on others besides Him. Allaah says (interpretation of the meanings):
“And when they embark on a ship, they invoke Allaah, making their Faith pure for Him only, but when He brings them safely to land, behold, they give a share of their worship to others.” [al-‘Ankaboot 29:65]
“And when harm touches you upon the sea, those that you call upon besides Him vanish from you excpet Him (Allaah Alone). But when He brings you safely to land, you turn away (from Him)…” [al-Isra’ 17:67].
“… till when you are in the ships and they sail with them with a favourable wind, and they are glad therein, then comes a stormy wind and the waves come to them from all sides, and they think that they are encircled therein, they invoke Allaah, making their Faith pure for Him Alone…” [Yoonus 10:33]



The shirk of some people nowadays goes even further than the shirk of people in the past, because they direct some acts of worship to something other than Allaah, calling upon them and asking them for help even at times of distress; laa hawla wa laa quwwata illa Billaah (there is no strength and no help except in Allaah). We ask Allaah to keep us safe and sound.
To sum up our response to what your friend mentioned: asking the dead for anything is shirk, and asking the living for anything that no one except Allaah is able to do, is also shirk. And Allaah knows best.

Praise be to Allaah.

Firstly:
The hadeeth about Adam committing a sin and seeking to draw closer to Allaah by the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) is a fabricated hadeeth which is falsely attributed to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and to Adam (peace be upon him).

Scholars including Imam al-Dhahabi (may Allaah have mercy on him).
Al-Bayhaqi (may Allaah have mercy on him) did not narrate this hadeeth in his Sunan, rather he narrated it in Dalaa’il al-Nubuwwah (5/489), where he classed it as da’eef (weak). After quoting the hadeeth, he said: “It was narrated only by ‘Abd al-Rahmaan ibn Zayd ibn Aslam, and he is da’eef.”
What makes it most likely that the text is false is the fact that the du’aa’ by which Allaah accepted Adam’s repentance is what is mentioned in Soorat al-A’raaf, where Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“They said: ‘Our Lord! We have wronged ourselves. If You forgive us not, and bestow not upon us Your Mercy, we shall certainly be of the losers’”
[al-A’raaf 7:23]
This is the supplication of Adam and Hawwa’, in which they called upon Allaah alone, and sought to draw close to Him (tawassul) by His names and attributes, and by mentioning their situation. These are words which Adam received from his Lord, then he said them and Allaah accepted his repentance, as Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“Then Adam received from his Lord Words. And his Lord pardoned him (accepted his repentance). Verily, He is the One Who forgives (accepts repentance), the Most Merciful”
[al-Baqarah 2:37]

 Secondly:
What is meant by the word waseelah [means of approach] in the verse, (interpretation of the meaning):
“O you who believe! Do your duty to Allaah and fear Him. And seek the means of approach to Him, and strive hard in His Cause (as much as you can), so that you may be successful”

[al-Maa’idah 5:35]
is the way of reaching Allaah, and there is no way of reaching Him except the way that Allaah loves and is pleased with, which is by obeying Him and not disobeying Him.
Ibn Katheer (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:
Allaah commands His believing slaves to fear Him (taqwa). When this word is accompanied by mention of obedience, it means refraining from haraam things. After that Allaah says, “And seek the means of approach to Him”.

Sufyaan al-Thawri said, narrating from Talhah, from ‘Ata’, from Ibn ‘Abbaas: i.e., drawing close to Him. This was also stated by Mujaahid, Abu Waa’il, al-Hasan, Qataadah, ‘Abd-Allaah ibn Katheer, al-Saddi, Ibn Zayd and others. Qataadah said: i.e., draw close to Him by obeying Him and doing that which pleases Him, and Ibn Zayd recited (interpretation of the meaning):
“Those whom they call upon [like ‘Eesa (Jesus) ‑ son of Maryam (Mary), ‘Uzayr (Ezra), angels and others] desire (for themselves) means of access to their Lord (Allaah)”
[al-Isra’ 17:57]



 There is no difference of opinion among the mufassireen concerning what these imams said.
Means of approach or means of access means that by means of which one reaches one’s goal. End quote.

Tafseer Ibn Katheer, 2/53, 54.

 Al-Shanqeeti (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:
Note that the majority of scholars are of the view that what is meant by waseelah here is drawing close to Allaah by obeying His commands and avoiding that which He has forbidden, in accordance with the teachings brought by Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), doing that sincerely for the sake of Allaah alone, because this is the only path that leads to the pleasure of Allaah and attaining what is with Him and what is good in this world and in the Hereafter.
The basic meaning of the word waseelah is a path that brings one near to something. Here it means righteous deeds, according to scholarly consensus, because there is no other way of drawing close to Allaah apart from following the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). Based on this, there are many verses which explain the meaning of waseelah, such as the following (interpretation of the meaning):
“And whatsoever the Messenger (Muhammad) gives you, take it; and whatsoever he forbids you, abstain (from it”
[al-Hashr 59:7]
“Say (O Muhammad to mankind): ‘If you (really) love Allaah, then follow me’”
[Aal ‘Imraan 3:31]
“Say: Obey Allaah and obey the Messenger”
[al-Noor 24:54]

And there are other similar verses.

It was narrated from Ibn ‘Abbaas that what is meant by waseelah is need.
Based on this, the words narrated from Ibn ‘Abbaas, “Seek with Him al-waseelah” mean, seek your needs from Allaah, for He alone is the one who is able to meet them. This is further explained by the verses in which Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“Verily, those whom you worship besides Allaah have no power to give you provision, so seek your provision from Allaah (Alone), and worship Him (Alone)”
[al-‘Ankaboot 29:17]
“and ask Allaah of His Bounty”

[al-Nisa’ 4:32]
And by the hadeeth: “If you ask, then ask of Allaah.”
Then al-Shanqeeti (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: The correct view concerning the meaning of waseelah is that of the majority of scholars, that it means drawing closer to Allaah by worshipping Him alone, in accordance with the teachings of the Messenger (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him).

The tafseer of Ibn ‘Abbaas comes under this heading, because calling upon Allaah (du’aa’) and praying humbly to Him when asking for one’s needs is one of the greatest forms of worship which is waseelah or seeking to draw closer to Him and attain His pleasure and mercy.

From this it may be understood that what many of the heretics and followers of ignorant men who claim to be Sufis say, which is that what is meant by waseelah in the verse is the Shaykh who has the power of mediation between him and his Lord, is ignorance, blindness and obvious misguidance; it is toying with the Book of Allaah.

Taking intermediaries is the essence of the kufr of the kaafirs, as Allaah clearly stated when He said concerning them (interpretation of the meaning):
“[They say:] We worship them only that they may bring us near to Allaah”
[al-Zumar 39:3]
“and they say: ‘These are our intercessors with Allaah.’ Say: ‘Do you inform Allaah of that which He knows not in the heavens and on the earth?’ Glorified and Exalted is He above all that which they associate as partners (with Him)!”

[Yoonus 10:18]
Every one who is accountable must understand that the way to attain the pleasure of Allaah and His Paradise and His mercy is to follow His Messenger (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). Whoever deviates from that has gone astray from the straight path.
“It will not be in accordance with your desires (Muslims), nor those of the people of the Scripture (Jews and Christians), whosoever works evil, will have the recompense thereof”
[al-Nisa’4:123]

 The meaning of waseelah that we have explained here is also the meaning in the verse where Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“Those whom they call upon [like ‘Eesa (Jesus) ‑ son of Maryam (Mary), ‘Uzayr (Ezra), angels and others] desire (for themselves) means of access to their Lord (Allaah) as to which of them should be the nearest”
[al-Isra’ 17:57]


Another meaning of waseelah is the status in Paradise which the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) told us to ask Allaah to grant to him, and we hope that Allaah will give it to him, because only one person will be entitled to it, and he hoped that he would be the one. End quote.
Adwa’ al-Bayaan, 2/86-88
And Allaah knows best.

Response: Whoever invites to (the path of) Allaah, then he is a muballigh (one who conveys the message (of Islaam)), (as the hadeeth mentions):
((Convey from me, even if it be a (single) Aayah));

However, the Jamaa'ah at-Tableegh (originally) from India have many deviations. They have some aspects of bid`ah and shirk, so it is not permissible to go (out) with them, except for a person who has knowledge and goes (out) with them to disapprove of what they are upon and to teach them (the truth).

If, however, he goes (out) to follow and adhere to them, then no.
That is because they have deviations, mistakes and lack of knowledge.



However, if there was a Jamaa'ah doing tableegh other than them, from the people of knowledge, then (it is permissible to) go out with them for daw'ah purposes.
If there was a person of knowledge who goes out with them to enlighten and guide them, along with teaching them such that they leave their falsehood and embrace the way of Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jamaa'ah, (then that is good).




This fatwa was extracted from the tape: 'Fatwa Samaahatush-Shaykh 'Abdul 'Azeez Ibn Baaz concerning the Jamaa'ah at-Tableegh' which was published in Ta'if about two years before the Shaykh's death.



The tape refutes the cover-up of the Jamaa'ah at-Tableegh and the old statement of the Shaykh which was published before their reality and manhaj was made clear to him.

Praise be to Allaah.

It is permissible for the person who is not traveling to combine two prayers if it will be too difficult for him to perform the second prayer on time. Permission to join prayers is broader than permission to shorten them, because shortening them is allowed only to travelers, but both travelers and non-travellers are permitted to join prayers when it will be difficult to perform the second prayer, whether on time or in congregation.

Based on this, it is permissible for you to bring ‘Asr forward and pray it with Zuhr in your home city, if you think it most likely that you will not be able to pray it on time because of traveling.
If the airport is outside your city, you can pray in the airport and shorten your prayers. If you live near the airport, then you can join the prayers but you cannot shorten them.



Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:

Question:
If a person is in Qaseem and goes out to the airport, can he shorten his prayers in the airport?
Answer:
Yes, he may shorten his prayers, because he has left the built-up area of his town, and all the villages that are around the airport are separate from the town. But if a person lives near the airport, he should not shorten his prayer, because he has not yet left the built-up area of his town.
Al-Sharh al-Mumti’, 4/514
It was narrated that Ibn ‘Abbaas said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) prayed Zuhr and ‘Asr together in Madeenah, at a time when there was no fear and he was not travelling. Abu’l-Zubayr said: I asked Sa’eed [i.e., ibn Jubayr], Why did he do that? He said, I asked Ibn ‘Abbaas the same question, and he said, He did not want anyone among his ummah to suffer hardship.
Narrated by Muslim, 705.

Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah said:
The specific reason for shortening the prayers is travelling, and it is not permissible to shorten prayers when not travelling. With regard to joining prayers, the reason for it is if there is a need or an excuse. So if a person needs to do so, he may join prayers whilst travelling, whether he is travelling a long distance or a short one, and he may join prayers because of rain etc., or because of sickness etc., or for any other reason, because the point is to spare the Muslims any difficulty or hardship.
Majmoo’ al-Fataawa, 22/293; published by King Fahd Complex.

Praise be to Allaah.



You should note that one of the ways in which Allaah deals with His chosen slaves is to test them according to the level of their faith, to show who is sincere and who is not.

Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):


“Alif-Laam-Meem.
[These letters are one of the miracles of the Qur’aan, and none but Allaah (Alone) knows their meanings.]

 2. Do people think that they will be left alone because they say: ‘We believe,’ and will not be tested.


 3. And We indeed tested those who were before them. And Allaah will certainly make (it) known (the truth of) those who are true, and will certainly make (it) known (the falsehood of) those who are liars, (although Allaah knows all that before putting them to test)”
[al-‘Ankaboot 29:1-3]

Those who are most severely tested are the Prophets, then the next best and the next best, as it says in the saheeh hadeeth of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him).

If you study the seerah (biography) of the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), you will see that he went through severe tests; he was even accused of being a liar, a sorcerer and a madman; garbage and filth were thrown on his back; he was expelled from Makkah; and his feet bled in al-Taa’if. This was the situation of all the Prophets who were rejected before him (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him).

 Shaykh al-Islam Muhammad ibn ‘Abd al-Wahhaab (may Allaah have mercy on him) suffered the same as other sincere scholars and daa’iyahs, but in the end the message of truth that he brought prevailed. How could it be otherwise? How could the light of truth be extinguished? Think about this man and how Allaah helped him to sow the seeds of Tawheed throughout the Arabian Peninsula and put an end to all kinds of shirk. If this indicates anything, it indicates that he was sincere in his call and made sacrifices for that cause as far as we can tell, and of course his efforts were supported and helped by Allaah.
But the enemies of this call have spared no effort to make false accusations concerning it. They claimed – falsely – that the Shaykh claimed to be a prophet, and that he did not respect the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) properly, and that he condemned all the ummah as kaafirs… and other fabrications and lies that were told about him. Anyone who examines these claims will realize for sure that they are all lies and fabrications.

The books of the Shaykh which are widely circulated bear the greatest witness to that, and his followers who answered his call never mentioned anything to that effect. If the matter were as they claim, his followers would have conveyed the same ideas, otherwise they would have been disloyal to him. If you want to know more details about this and to clarify the matter, you should read the book Da’aawa al-Manaawi’een li Da’wah al-Shaykh Muhammad ibn ‘Abd al-Wahhaab by Dr ‘Abd al-‘Azeez al-‘Abd al-Lateef, which will answer all your questions, if Allaah wills.




With regard to calling his followers Wahhaabis, this is just another in a long series of fabrications made up by the enemies of his call, to divert people away from the call of truth and to place a barrier between his call and the people so that the call will not reach them. If you study the story of how al-Tufayl ibn ‘Amr al-Dawsi (may Allaah be pleased with him) became Muslim, you will see the parallels with what happened in the case of Imam Muhammad ibn ‘Abd al-Wahhaab.

Ibn Hishaam narrated in his Seerah (1/394) that al-Tufayl set out towards Makkah, but Quraysh intercepted him at the gates of the city and warned him against listening to Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). They made him think that he was a sorcerer who could cause division between man and wife… they kept on at him until he took some cotton and put it in his ears. Then when he saw the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), he thought to himself that he would take out the cotton and listen to him, and if what he said was true then he would accept it from him, and if he what he said was false and abhorrent, he would reject it. When he listened to him, all he could do was become Muslim on the spot.

Yes, he became Muslim after putting cotton in his ears. Those who oppose the call of Shaykh Muhammad ibn ‘Abd al-Wahhaab fabricated lies the same way Quraysh did. Quraysh understood full well that the call of Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) had the power to reach people’s hearts and minds, so they exaggerated in their lies about the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) in an attempt to stop the truth reaching people. Similarly we see that those who speak against Shaykh Muhammad ibn ‘Abd al-Wahhaab and his followers repeat the same lies that were told against the original call.
You should – if you follow the truth – not pay any attention to these lies and fabrications.

You should look for the truth of the matter by reading the books of Shaykh Muhammad ibn ‘Abd al-Wahhaab, for his books are the greatest proof that these people are lying, praise be to Allaah.

There is another subtle point that should be noted, which is that the Shaykh’s name was Muhammad, the attributive of which is Muhammadi. The word Wahhabi is the attributive derived from al-Wahhaab (the Bestower), who is Allaah, as He says (interpretation of the meaning):

 “Our Lord! Let not our hearts deviate (from the truth) after You have guided us, and grant us mercy from You. Truly, You are the Bestower [al-Wahhaab]”
[Aal ‘Imraan 3:8]

As al-Zajjaaj said in Ishtiqaaq Asma’-Allaah, p. 126, al-Wahhaab “is the One Who gives a great deal. This form (fa’’aal) in Arabic is indicative of something that is done to a great extent. Allaah is al-Wahhaab (the Bestower) Who gives to His slaves one after another.”
Undoubtedly the path of al-Wahhaab is the path of truth in which there is no crookedness or fabrication, and His party is the one that will prevail. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):


“And whosoever takes Allaah, His Messenger, and those who have believed, as Protectors, then the party of Allaah will be the victorious”
[al-Maa’idah 5:56]

 “They are the party of Allaah. Verily, it is the party of Allaah that will be the successful”
[al-Mujaadilah 58:22]

 Long ago they accused al-Shaafa’i of being a Raafidi (Shi’ah) and he refuted them by saying:
“If being a Raafidi means loving the family of Muhammad, then let the two races (of mankind and the jinn) bear witness that I am a Raafidi.”
We refute the claims of those who accuse us of being Wahhabis by quoting the words of Shaykh Mullah ‘Imraan who was a Shi’a but Allaah guided him to the Sunnah. He said:
“If the follower of Ahmad [the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)] is a Wahhaabi, then I affirm that I am a Wahhaabi
I reject the association of any other with Allaah, for I have no Lord except the Unique, the Bestower (al-Wahhaab)
Those who were called by the Prophet accused him of being a sorcerer and a liar.”
(See: Manhaaj al-Firqat al-Naajiyah by Shaykh Muhammad Jameel Zayno, p. 142-143.

 And Allaah knows best.

Praise be to Allaah.

Firstly:

The followers of the madhhabs are not all the same. Some of them are mujtahids within their madhhab, and some are followers (muqallids) who do not go against their madhhabs in any regard.

Al-Buwayti, al-Muzani, al-Nawawi and Ibn Hajr were followers of Imam al-Shaafa’i, but they were also mujtahids in their own right and differed with their imam when they had evidence. Similarly Ibn ‘Abd al-Barr was a Maaliki but he differed with Maalik if the correct view was held by someone else. The same may be said of the Hanafi imams such as Abu Yoosuf and Muhammad al-Shaybaani, and the Hanbali imams such as Ibn Qudaamah, Ibn Muflih and others.
The fact that a student studied with a madhhab does not mean that he cannot go beyond it if he finds sound evidence elsewhere; the only one who stubbornly clings to a particular madhhab (regardless of the evidence) is one who lacking in religious commitment and intellect, or he is doing that because of partisan attachment to his madhhab.


The advice of the leading imams is that students should acquire knowledge from where they acquired it, and they should ignore the words of their imams if they go against the hadeeth of the Prophet SAWS (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him).
Abu Haneefah said: “This is my opinion, but if there comes someone whose opinion is better than mine, then accept that.” Maalik said: “I am only human, I may be right or I may be wrong, so measure my words by the Qur’aan and Sunnah.” Al-Shaafa’i said: “If the hadeeth is saheeh, then ignore my words. If you see well established evidence, then this is my view.” Imam Ahmad said: “Do not follow me blindly, and do not follow Maalik or al-Shaafa’i or al-Thawri blindly. Learn as we have learned.” And he said, “Do not follow men blindly with regard to your religion, for they can never be safe from error.”

No one has the right to follow an imam blindly and never accept anything but his worlds. Rather what he must do is accept that which is in accordance with the truth, whether it is from his imam or anyone else.




Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah said:
No one has to blindly follow any particular man in all that he enjoins or forbids or recommends, apart from the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). The Muslims should always refer their questions to the Muslim scholars, following this one sometimes and that one sometimes. If the follower decides to follow the view of an imam with regard to a particular matter which he thinks is better for his religious commitment or is more correct etc, that is permissible according to the majority of Muslim scholars, and neither Abu Haneefah, Maalik, al-Shaafa’i or Ahmad said that this was forbidden.
Majmoo’ al-Fataawa, 23/382.



Shaykh Sulaymaan ibn ‘Abd-Allaah (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:
Rather what the believer must do, if the Book of Allaah and the Sunnah of His Messenger (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) have reached him and he understands them with regard to any matter, is to act in accordance with them, no matter who he may be disagreeing with. This is what our Lord and our Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) have enjoined upon us, and all the scholars are unanimously agreed on that, apart from the ignorant blind followers and the hard-hearted. Such people are not scholars.
Tayseer al-‘Azeez al-Hameed, p. 546

Based on this, if there is someone who is a a follower of a certain madhhab, and it becomes clear to him that the truth (concerning a given matter) is different from the view of his madhhab based on authentic hadeeth of the prophet peace be upon him, then he must follow the truth.

And Allah knows best

Praise be to Allaah.

Shaking hands when meeting and saying salaam is part of the etiquette of Islam and its good morals. It is an expression of love between the two who shake hands, as it dispels hatred, rancour and grudges among the Muslims. There is a great hadeeth which speaks of its virtue, in which the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “There are no two Muslims who meet and shake hands with one another, but they will be forgiven before they part.” Narrated by Abu Dawood (5212); classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh Abi Dawood.

Shaking hands was a custom that was well known among the Sahaabah (may Allaah be pleased with them).
It was narrated that Qataadah said: I said to Anas ibn Maalik: Did the companions of the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) shake hands with one another? He said: Yes. Narrated by al-Bukhaari (6263).

Ibn Battaal said: Shaking hands is good according to most of the scholars. Al-Nawawi said: Shaking hands when meeting is a Sunnah on which there is consensus – as stated in Fath al-Baari (11/55).



 Secondly:
Shaking hands happens when one man places his hand in the hand of his companion; this is what is implied by the Arabic word musaafahah (handshaking), as stated in Mu’jam Maqaayees al-Lughah (3/229) and elsewhere. Based on this the apparent meaning of the ahaadeeth quoted above about handshaking may be understood.
Hence most of the scholars are of the view that shaking hands with one hand is the Sunnah, and this is the usual custom among the Muslims and the Sahaabah (may Allaah be pleased with them).


Shaykh al-Albaani said in al-Silsilah al-Saheehah (1/22), mentioning what is to be learned from some ahaadeeth:
Taking hold of one hand when shaking hands. This is mentioned in many ahaadeeth, and it is what is implied linguistically.
I say: In some of the ahaadeeth referred to this meaning may also be understood, such as the marfoo’ hadeeth of Hudhayfah: “When the believer meets a fellow believer and he greets him with salaam and takes him by the hand and shakes hands with him, their sins will fall like the leaves of a tree.” Al-Mundhiri said (3/270): It was narrated by al-Tabaraani in al-Awsat and I do not know of anyone who is majrooh (unacceptable) among its narrators.

I say: And it has corroborating evidence which raises it to the level of being saheeh.
These ahaadeeth all indicate that the Sunnah in shaking hands is to use just one hand. End quote.

As for the view of some Hanafi and Maaliki fuqaha’, that it is mustahabb to shake hands using both hands, putting the palm of the left hand over the back of one’s brother’s hand, this is not proven to be Sunnah from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) or from his companions. Rather the most that can be said concerning some ahaadeeth that refer to it is that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) took the hand of one of his companions in both of his hands as a sign of extra care in teaching, guiding and so on, as it says in Saheeh al-Bukhaari (6265) and Saheeh Muslim (402) that Ibn Mas’ood (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) taught me the tashahhud, holding my hand between both of his.


But that is not the usual habit, based on the evidence of the previous report which says that the basic principle is shaking hands with one hand, which is stated clearly in some reports. This hadeeth indicates that too, because if the custom among the Sahaabah had been to shake hands using both hands, Ibn Mas’ood would not have mentioned that. The fact that he mentions it indicates that it was not the usual habit of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) with his companions.


Nevertheless, shaking hands using both hands should not be described as a bid’ah (innovation), rather it is something that is permissible, but the Sunnah, which it is better to adhere to, is to shake hands using just one hand.
It was narrated from Hammaad ibn Zayd that he shook hands with ‘Abd-Allaah ibn al-Mubaarak using both hands, as is stated in a mu’allaq report in Saheeh al-Bukhaari (p. 1206).
It says in Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa’imah (24/125):
As for shaking hands using both hands, we do not know anything about that, but it should not be done; it is better to use just one hand.
End quote.
See also al-Mawsoo’ah al-Fiqhiyyah: entry on Musaafahah (shaking hands); Tuhfat al-Ahwadhi (7/431-433)

And Allaah knows best.