The Mawlid Papers Part 17 – Refuting the Sufi, Asrar Rashid Bareilwee – Making Inkaar of the Munkar & Understanding the Crime of Tamyi Upon Salafiyyah

Compiled by

Abu Abdul Barr

All praise is due to Allaah the Most High, the Lord of the Great Arsh. May the Peace and Blessing of Allaah (swa) be upon His Final slave and Messenger, the Master of all the Prophets, the Seal of Prophethood, Muhammad.

Assalaam Alaiykum Wa Rahimathullah Wa Barakaathu

Dear Brothers, after listening to the ranting of the Neo Jahmi Asharee Asraar Rashid As-Soofee Barelawi, we can see that he has clear hatred for the dawah of the Ahlul Hadeeth, for its beliefs and principles, its methodology and guidelines, for its call and its callers, and for everyone else that promotes the Dawah to Salafiyyah.

Allaahs Messenger (Sallalahu Alayhee Wasallam) said

“Indeed, the scholars are the inheritors of the prophets” (Jami at-Tirmidhi, Sunan Abu Dawud and Ibn Hibban)

so it is our duty to defend the deen of Allaah (swa) and the inheritors of this deen from the slanderous speech of Ahlul-Bid’ah and silence the barking dog that is Asraar Rashid.

He (Sallalahu Alayhee Wasallam) also said

“If Allaah wants to favour someone, He grants him comprehension (understanding) of this religion.” (Sahih Bukhari vol.1:71, Tirmidhi and Musnad Ahmad)

Yet there are some brothers amongst us that feel that we must withhold our tongues and be gentle to those that ridicule the inheritors of the Prophets (Peace Be Upon Them All). We need to fear the Wrath of Allaah that He may take away this blessing from us through the death of our scholars if we do not make Jihad by the pen and by the tongue against those who oppose the Sunnah of RasoolAllaah (Sallalahu Alayhee Wasallam)

Shaykh Ahmad an-Najmee (Rahimahullah) said

“The one who refutes the Ahlul-Bid’ah (people of innovation) is a mujaahid, and there is no doubt about this. Since when Imaam Ahmad ibn Hanbal was told about a man who fasts, and offers salaah, and gives in charity, and performs the i’tikaaf, and does (other) good deeds, and was (then) told about a man who refutes the innovators – implying which of the two was better? He (Imaam Ahmad) said, “Whoever offers salaah and fasts and gives in charity and performs i’tikaaf, then (all of) this is for himself, and as for he who refutes the innovators, then this is for (the benefit of) the people.” (Al-Fataawa al-Jaliyyah ‘anil-Manaahij ad-Da’wiyyah – Page 24, Question 29)

Ibn Taymiyyah (Rahimahullah) said:

“The one who refutes the innovators is a mujaahid.”

And Ibn al-Qayyim (Rahimahullah) said:

“The jihaad with decisive proofs (from the Book and the Sunnah) and the tongue takes precedence over the jihaad with the sword and the spear.” (Al-Jawaab as-Saheeh of Ibn Taymiyyah (1/237)

The illustrious Shaykh Al-Humaidee (Rahimahullah), the Shaikh of al-Bukhaaree (Rahimahullah), said:

“By Allaah, that I war against those who reject the Hadeeth of the Messenger (salallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is more beloved to me than that I should war against the same number of Non-Muslims.” ( Al-Harawi in Dhamm ul-Kalaam)

Shaykh ‘Abdul-‘Azeez Ibn ‘Abdullaah Aalush-Shaykh said

“The refutations upon the people of innovation are from Jihaad in the path of Allaah. They are from safeguarding the Sharee’ah from having other than it attached to it. So writing the books, publishing them and spreading them is the truth and it is a call to the truth and Jihaad in the path of Allaah. So whoever claims that publishing and spreading the books that contain refutation upon the innovators is an innovated affair, then he is upon error, because Allaah the Sublime and Exalted said: O Prophet! Strive hard against the hypocrites and be harsh with them. (Sooratut-Tawbah 9:73)” (Taken from: ar-Riyaadus-Sa’oodiyyah Newspaper (issue no. 12674), dated Friday, the 4th of al-Muharram)

My dear brothers, we are facing this fitnah because we have allowed people like Asraar Rashid to promote the Mushrik aqeedah of Ahmad Ridda Khan and other such deviants, fearing that by naming them or being harsh against them we would repel people from the masjids and the madrassas. What we have done in actual fact is water down the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allaah (Sallalahu Alayhee Wasallam) and so Allaah swa has punished us with this fitnah where Ahlul-Bid’ah mock us at any available opportunity. We should not fear criticizing and being harsh with those who oppose the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allaah (Sallalahu Alayhee Wasallam) as

“When some people said to Imaam Ahmad Ibn Hanbal (rahimahullaah) that they felt uneasy about criticizing people, he replied, ‘If you remain silent and I remain silent, then who will make the ignorant person aware of the authentic from the defective?’” (Majmoo’-ul-Fataawaa of Ibn Taimiyyah (28/231))

Ibn Qudama Al Maqdisi (Rahimahullah) was a stern defender of the Sunnah and he said

“The innovator whose innovation does not make him a disbeliever, then the affair between himself and Allaah is less severe than the situation of the Kaafir without doubt. But in terms of (him being criticised and) detesting what he does (in terms of his innovation) then this is dealt with more severity than the Kaafir. This is because the evil of the Kaafir does not extend (to the Muslims) as none of the Muslims would pay attention to his speech. And this is different than the innovator who calls toward his innovation because he thinks that what he is calling toward is the truth. He therefore becomes a reason for the misguidance of the creation and his evil extends (to the Muslims). Therefore openly displaying enmity toward him, boycotting him, being an enemy towards him, humiliating him, being harsh upon him because of his innovation and running the people away from him becomes more severe.” (Ibn Qudama Al Maqdisi, Minhaaj Al Qaasideen pg. 123, Maktabah Al Islami Print)

So we must take heed of this lesson and implement this principle so that Allaah swa may bestow His Mercy on us once again, and grant us victory against all those who oppose the dawah to Salafiyyah.

The great Imam of Ahlus Sunnah Al-Hasan Al-Basree (Rahimahullah) once said:

“There is no backbiting with regard to (talking about) the innovator or the sinner who openly professes his evil.” ( Al-Laalikaa`ee (1/140, no 279)

As long as we are harsh to Ahlul-Bid’ah for the sake of Allaah (swa), and we do not seek fame or status from the people then we are traversing the path of the Prophets (as) as mentioned by Abdus-Salaam as-Suhaymi (hafidhahullaah) who wrote that Shaykh ul-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (Rahimahullah) said, as he was explaining the permissibility of backbiting an open innovator, that

“two conditions should be fulfilled before doing so:

1.Knowledge

2. Sincerity

Ibn Tamiyyah said: A person who takes up the task of backbiting an (open) innovator should be knowledgeable and sincere. If a person takes part in backbiting an (open) innovator, but the cause of him taking part in backbiting is to raise his own status in the eyes of the people, or to cause corruption, it doesn’t matter if he is correct in his criticism. He is like a warrior who goes out to fight in a fit of rage (due to his lack of knowledge), showing off (due to his lack of sincerity). On the other hand, if he is backbiting an (open) innovator, sincerely for the sake of Allaah, he is like the inheritors of the Prophets (the Scholars), the successors of the Messengers, (honorably) fighting in the path of Allaah”

Those who came before us would not give up doing so at any cost, even to the extent that Imam Abu Ismaa’eel al-Ansaari (Rahimahullah) said that

“Whilst in Haraah: ‘The sword was put to my neck five times (and each time) it was not said to me, ‘Leave your madhhab’ but it was said to me, ‘Remain silent about those who are in opposition to you’. So I would say, ‘I will not remain silent.’”(Aadaab us-Sharee’ah (1/207) of Ibn Muflih al-Maqdisi al-Hanbali)

Imaam of the Sunnah Shaykh Barbaharee (Rahimahullah) said

“There is no permit for anyone to do anything which has been introduced, which the Companions of Allaah’s Messenger (sallallaahualaihi wa sallam) were not upon, nor for any man to call to anything innovated before him by people of innovation; he would then be just like the one who innovated it. So anyone who claims that, or speaks according to it, has rejected the Sunnah, opposed the truth and the Jamaa’ah and has made innovation lawful. He is more harmful to the Ummah than Iblees” (Kitaab Sharh us-Sunnah by Abu Muhammad Al-Hasan ibn ‘Alee ibn Khalaf Al-Barbahaaree (Rahimahullah) (p38))

So I say we have been too lenient as it is by calling them dogs as they have been referred to by those more knowledgeable and pious then us as more harmful then Iblees (may the curse of Allaah be upon him).

The hatred held by the pious predecessors for these innovators due to their opposition to the Sunnah can be seen by their opinions in regards to them such as Al-Fudayl ibn ‘Iyaad (Rahimahullah) who said that

“Whoever sits with a person of innovation, then beware of him and whoever sits with a person of innovation has not been given wisdom. I love that there was a fort of iron between me and a person of innovation. That I eat with a Jew and a Christian is more beloved to me than that I eat with a person of Innovation.” (Reported by al-Laalikaa’ee, no. 1149.)

Al-Layth ibn Sa’d (d. 175H) said,

“If I saw a person of desires (i.e. innovations) walking upon the water I would not accept from him.”

So Imaam ash-Shaafi’ee then said,

‘He (al-Layth) has fallen short. If I saw him walking in the air I would not accept from him.” (Reported by as-Suyooti in Al-Amr bil ‘lttibaa wan-Nahee ‘anil-lbtidaa. Refer to Chapter Eight.)

We have merely responded by then pen to these barking dogs, the Imaams of Ahlus Sunnah were even sterner and physically beat the mubtadis as it is narrated about Abdullaah bin Abee Ja’far ar-Raazee (Rahimahullah) from Saalih bin ad-Darees who said

“Abdullaah began beating the head of a relative of his who held the view of Jahm. So I saw him beating him on his head with a sandal whilst saying, “No (I will not stop), (not) until you say Ar-Rahmaan ascended above the Throne, separate and distinct from His creation (ar-Rahmaanu ‘alal-arsh istawaa, baa’inun min khalqihi).” (Mukhtasar al-Uluww of adh-Dhahabee, (p. 172)

Imaam ash-Shaafi’ee (d. 204H) said,

“My ruling regarding the people of theological rhetoric is that they should be beaten with palm leaves and shoes and be paraded amongst the kinsfolk and the tribes with it being announced, ‘This is the reward of the one who abandons the Book and the Sunnah and turns to theological rhetoric (kalaam).” (Sharh ‘Aqeedatit-Tahaawiyyah of lbn Abil-’Izz, p. 75)

If anything, we are doing them a favour as one of the Salaf used to say

“We are more merciful to them (Ahlul-Bid’ah) than their mothers. We are even merciful to them when they are in their graves. We refute them and expose their bid’ah, and by doing so, their sins are lessened”

In conclusion, it is my humble opinion that we, myself first and foremost, are not doing enough to silence these rabid dogs that fight against the Quran and the Sunnah and we must be harsh against those who oppose the dawah to Salafiyyah, and Allaah knows best.