Don't Speak Without Knowledge - Shaykh Zakaullah Saleem

Khutbah Opening

إِنَّ الْحَمْدَ لِلَّهِ نَحْمَدُهُ وَنَسْتَعِينُهُ وَنَسْتَغْفِرُهُ وَنَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنْ شُرُورِ أَنْفُسِنَا وَمِنْ سَيِّئَاتِ أَعْمَالِنَا مَنْ يَهْدِهِ اللَّهُ فَلَا مُضِلَّ لَهُ وَمَنْ يُضْلِلْ فَلَا هَادِيَ لَهُ أَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ وَأَشْهَدُ أَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُولُهُ

أَمَّا بَعْدُ، فَإِنَّ خَيْرَ الْحَدِيثِ كِتَابُ اللَّهِ وَخَيْرَ الْهَدْيِ هَدْيُ مُحَمَّدٍ صَلَّى اللَّهُ تَعَالَى عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ وَشَرَّ الْأُمُورِ مُحْدَثَاتُهَا وَكُلَّ مُحْدَثَةٍ بِدْعَةٌ وَكُلَّ بِدْعَةٍ ضَلَالَةٌ وَكُلَّ ضَلَالَةٍ فِي النَّارِ

The Question of Jibreel and the Signs of the Last Hour

My dear respected brothers and sisters in Islam, our Nabi صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ was asked a question by Jibreel عَلَيْهِ السَّلَام — a question that is mentioned in a very famous hadith that is known as Hadith Jibreel:

"When is the Last Hour?" He صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ said:

(Sahih Muslim, Book 1, Hadith 1 — Hadith Jibreel)

"The one who is being questioned has no knowledge more than the one who is asking the question." Then Jibreel عَلَيْهِ السَّلَام asked the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ about the signs of the Last Hour, and he صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ made mention of some of those signs.

The scholars have divided the signs of the Last Hour into two main categories: the minor signs and the major signs. When we study the ahadith of Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ, we come to know that most of the minor signs we have already witnessed and they are already present. The scholars have written books on this particular subject — the signs of the Last Hour.

And one of the greatest signs — which is also one of the greatest trials and tribulations of our time — is the carelessness of the people when it comes to the matter of religion. When it comes to the matter of religion, people take no care, and the vast majority of the Muslims are careless when it comes to uttering something about the religion of Allah.

The Spread of Ignorance — A Prophetic Warning

Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ had said in a hadith: among the signs of the Last Hour, the time will come when knowledge will be very little, ignorance will be widespread, and people will have very little knowledge but everyone will try to speak about the religion.

Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ also said: Allah will take away knowledge from amongst the people — and Allah will not take it away from the hearts of the people, rather He will take it away by the death of the scholars; those who are very careful when it comes to the matter of religion and when issuing any statement, fatwa, or verdict about the religion of Allah. Then he صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ says: until the time will come when Allah will not leave any scholar, and then people will end up making the most ignorant ones their leaders. And these ignorant so-called scholars, whenever they are approached and whenever they are asked a question about the religion of Allah, they will be very quick in issuing the fatwa and their statement — they will utter statements without knowledge, they themselves will be astray, and they will lead people astray.

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 100; Sahih Muslim, Book 47, Hadith 13)

And unfortunately, this is probably a time we are getting very close to — the true scholars are very few, and unfortunately the vast majority of Muslims are disconnected and have no link with the scholars. Some of them even believe or think that there is no need to approach the scholars, and that we can derive our own rulings from the Quran and the Sunnah of Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ directly.

Yes, the base and the foundation of the religion is the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ. But when it comes to the matter of religion — particularly when you are asked any question — someone might approach you believing or thinking that you are a pious person, a righteous person, that you have good knowledge of the religion of Islam. And when you are asked a question, you are quick to issue a statement, quick to utter something about the religion of Allah. Bear in mind, Allah has said in the Quran:

The Prohibition of Speaking Without Knowledge

"Do not say — whatever your tongues describe as falsehood — 'this is halal and this is haram', so that you may forge lies against Allah." When you say something is halal or haram, it is a matter of the religion — this is something very, very serious. Allah did not give direct authority even to His Nabi صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ to make anything halal or haram out of his own desire — so who are you to say "this is halal and this is haram"?

Allah also says in Surah Al-A'raf:

"Say: Indeed my Lord has forbidden all shameful acts — whatever are committed in public and whatever shameful act is committed in secrecy and privacy — and the sin, and aggression and transgression, and that you associate anything with Allah for which He has not revealed any evidence, and that you say something about Allah that you have no knowledge for."

When you say "this is halal" or "this is haram", it is as if you are saying: "this is what Allah has made the law." But if you have no knowledge and no evidence, then you must be careful. Don't say anything about the religion of Allah out of your desire, without having solid evidence from the Quran and from the Sunnah of Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ — unless you have understood the issue and the ruling carefully and in detail.

The Example of Imam Malik — "I Do Not Know"

Imam Malik رَحِمَهُ اللَّهُ was once asked about a ruling — a particular matter — and he simply said:

"I do not know." The person who asked him said: هَذِهِ مَسْأَلَةٌ خَفِيفَةٌ وَسَهْلَةٌ — "O Imam, this ruling and this issue is very minor and easy, so why did you say 'I do not know'?" Imam Malik رَحِمَهُ اللَّهُ got very upset. He said: لَيْسَ شَيْءٌ أَخَفُّ فِي الْعِلْمِ — "There is nothing light when it comes to the matter of knowledge and the religion of Allah."

One of the companions and students of Imam Malik رَحِمَهُ اللَّهُ says: "I myself witnessed Imam Malik رَحِمَهُ اللَّهُ — he was asked 48 questions, and out of 48 questions he said about 32: لَا أَدْرِي — 'I do not know.'" And this is Imam Malik رَحِمَهُ اللَّهُ — the Imam of Dar al-Hijrah, the leader of the people of Medina and the lover of the Sunnah of Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ, someone who taught the hadith of Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ while sitting in the Masjid of Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ.

And unfortunately, nowadays we find amongst ourselves that we have one of the best platforms — social media, Facebook and Twitter — so that we can say whatever we want.

Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ has warned us: if you say something about the religion, if you say something about the Sunnah and the hadith of Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ — you say something that Allah and His Messenger have said this or that, but you have no evidence for it — it is as if you have forged lies against Allah and His Messenger صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ.

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 110; Sahih Muslim, Book 1, Hadith 4)

"Whoever ascribes any lies to me, then he should take his place inside the Fire of Hell." Whoever says anything about me that I have not said — he صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ said — he should take his place in the Fire. This is something very serious. But unfortunately, because of the trials and tribulations and the fitna — and as we get closer to the Last Hour and the Qiyamah — people have become very, very careless when it comes to the matter of the religion of Allah.

Two Evidences from the Sunnah

My dear brothers and sisters in Islam, when it comes to uttering a statement or saying something about the religion of Allah, you must be careful — otherwise it can cause big damage in the community, in the society, amongst the Ummah. I would like to present two evidences for this.

First Evidence: The Man Who Killed 99 People

The first is the hadith reported by Imam Muslim under the chapter of Tawbah, narrated by Abu Sa'id Al-Khudri رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ. He says that the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ said: a person amongst the people of the past had murdered 99 people, and he had the desire in his heart — after killing and murdering 99 people — to repent to Allah and to find out what is the best way of asking Allah for His forgiveness.

He asked around and was guided towards a person who was known as a pious and righteous person within the community. He approached him and asked: "I have murdered 99 people, and now I want to repent to Allah — is there any way for me to seek repentance?" This pious person said: "Are you asking this question after killing 99 people? No — there is no repentance for you, there is no forgiveness for you." This person got very upset, killed him, and completed 100.

Then Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ says: after a while, he asked again about someone who could guide him towards the way of repenting to Allah. This time he was guided towards a scholar — someone who had knowledge of the religion of Allah. When he approached him, he said: "Why not? The door of the repentance and forgiveness of Allah is always open. Just make sincere tawbah to Allah, and Allah will definitely forgive you."

And this is the difference between asking someone who is apparently known as a righteous and pious person but has no knowledge — and approaching a person who has the knowledge of the religion of Allah.

(Sahih Muslim, Book 49, Hadith 20 — The Story of the Man Who Killed 99 People)

Second Evidence: The Companion Who Died Due to a Wrong Fatwa

Sayyiduna Abdullah Ibn Abbas رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ and Jabir Ibn Abdullah رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ — both of them narrate: once during the time of Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ we the companions were on a journey, and amongst us was a person who had some injuries in his head. He slept at night and had a wet dream. When he woke up in the morning, he asked us how to perform ghusl and whether tayammum was permissible for him. We all said: "No, you have to perform ghusl because ghusl is wajib upon you." This person made the ghusl and then he died.

Jabir رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ and Abdullah Ibn Abbas رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ say: the news came to the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ and he was informed about this incident. He صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ got very upset and said: "They killed him — may Allah kill them!" Then he صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ said:

(Sunan Abi Dawud, Hadith 336; Ibn Majah, Hadith 572)

"Is it not enough for the person who is ignorant to simply ask, rather than uttering his own statement without knowledge?" Allah says in the Quran:

"Ask the people of knowledge if you do not have knowledge." But don't consider yourself to be the knowledgeable person and act as a scholar. If you have learnt some ayat of the Quran and some ahadith of Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ and you are eloquent in your speech, it does not mean that you are a scholar. Knowledge is something different.

The true scholars are always very, very careful in issuing statements and fatwas. But unfortunately, the most ignorant ones are always quick to pass their judgment when it comes to the religion of Allah.

May Allah give us tawfiq and ability to understand our religion, and to be careful when it comes to the matter of the religion of Allah, and not to say anything without verifying and without having solid knowledge and evidence from the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ.

The Example of the Companions — Their Carefulness in Narrating Hadith

My dear brothers and sisters in Islam, in order to understand this particular subject, we should look at the seerah of the companions رِضْوَانُ اللَّهِ عَلَيْهِمْ أَجْمَعِين. Who does not know Abu Bakr Siddiq رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ? Who does not know that Abu Bakr was the first one who accepted Islam, the one who was always with the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ, who took part in the battles and made the hijrah with the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ always? He is the only one about whom Allah declared in the Quran:

Allah declared him as the companion of Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ — always with the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ. But when it comes to narrating the ahadith of Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ, he was very careful. There is a very famous statement of Abu Bakr رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ:

"Which land is going to bear me, and which heaven is going to shelter me, if I say anything about the Book of Allah that I have no knowledge for?"

When you look at the collections of the ahadith of Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ, the scholars have said that there are altogether around 140 ahadith only that Abu Bakr رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ narrated — and this is because of his great fear of saying something about Allah and the Messenger صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ that was not actually said. In Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim combined, we find only 12 ahadith narrated and reported by Abu Bakr Siddiq رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ.

And who was Abdur Rahman bin Abi Layla — one of the great tabi'een? He says: "I met 120 companions of Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ, and I saw each one of them — whenever they were asked any question, each one of them would say: 'Please go and ask someone else.' And when you approach someone else, he would say: 'Please ask someone else' — to the level that you would come back to the very first person." They were very careful; they were very careful when it comes to the matter of the religion of Allah.

The Ruwaybidah — A Prophecy Being Fulfilled

Sayyiduna Anas رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ says that the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ said:

(Musnad Ahmad, Hadith 14905; Ibn Majah, Hadith 4036)

"Before the appearance of Dajjal, there will be a few years that will be very deceitful — the truthful person will be seen as a liar, and the person who is one of the biggest liars will be trusted and considered as truthful."

And then he صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ also said in a hadith:

(Musnad Ahmad, Hadith 7912; Ibn Majah, Hadith 4036)

"The Ruwaybidah will be speaking about the whole matter of the Ummah." The companions asked the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: "O Messenger of Allah, what do you mean by Ruwaybidah?" He said: "A little wicked one who has no knowledge of the religion of Allah, but he will be talking about the whole matter of the Ummah."

SubhanAllah — this is the prediction of Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ, and apparently we see nowadays this is exactly what is happening.

Closing — The Du'a for Knowledge

May Allah give us tawfiq and ability to learn the true knowledge of the religion of Allah, to study the Book of Allah and to study the hadith of Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ, and to truly benefit from the scholars — from the people of knowledge, the people who have spent their lives in learning and understanding the Book of Allah and the Sunnah and the hadith of Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ.

I would like to conclude with the final suggestion, and this suggestion is based on the commandment of Allah. Allah said in Surah Taha, directly addressing His Nabi صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ:

Muhammad Rasulullah صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ — who received all the knowledge directly from Allah — was still instructed by Allah to make du'a: "Rabbi zidni ilma" — "O my Lord, increase me in my knowledge." And this is a du'a that every one of us needs to make on a daily basis: O Allah, increase us in our knowledge, so that when we worship You, we worship based on knowledge — not based on ignorance.

May Allah give us tawfiq and ability.

Du'as of the Khutbah