Wahabis

[mansoor]

Why people hate Wahabis?
Only because they follow the path of Quran and Sunnah. Is it wrong?

[Adbulmalick]

Mansoor, That’s what the Wahabis would like the average muslim to believe!

Here’s a link to the topic started by Logical a while back; pls read to understand aspects of their beliefs; how the prophet foretold of the greatest FITNA that will arise - referring to the Wahabis/SAlafis; how they have influenced the Deobandis and moulded them in their image.
http://www.pak.org/gupshup/Forum13/HTML/000825.html

Later, I 'll re-summarize what the Wahabis are all about!

[iqadeer]

The reason they are disliked so much is their attitude regarding the muslims in general and specifically muslims of Indian subcontinent. They charge them of commiting shirk and blindly following madhab of imam Abu Hanifa (RA). Taqleed of madhabs has been accepted throughout islamic history by ijma of scholars. To charge it with innovation or kufr is to charge all the scholars of past and majority of muslims with heresy and innovation. Keep in mind that majority of muslims today follow one of the four imams such as Abu Hanifa (RA), Shafi'e (RA), Malik (RA), Ahmad (RA) in matters of fiqh. Muslims in countries such as Pakistan, India, Malaysia, Egypt, Indonesia, Turkey, Bosnia, Algeria, Morroco and others follow these imams. In their zeal wahabis sometimes don't refrain from attacking the scholarship of said imams specially imam Abu Hanifa in hadith and fiqh as well. They believe that they are the only ones who understand the concept of tauheed while hanafis are ignorant in this respect. The topic of taqleed and wahabism is discussed among the scholars belonging to both sides many times. Up until now it has achieved nothing but dissension among muslims. I personally believe that taqleed has always been accepted by great scholars in the past and is not something that came up recently. Besides that they charge muslims from subcontinent of indulging in innovations, to which I agree with them to a certain extent. Its not their intention but their attitude and approach marked by hostility which is disliked by many. I'll give you an example. Whenever you will meet a wahabi, he will ask you where is Allah? What is this supposed to mean? The most basic fact is that Allah is One, the Self-Sufficient, does not begets nor is He begotten, and there is nobody equal to Him. This is enough to ascertain somebody's belief but the wahabis make it a philosophical discussion and then pronounce judgements of kufr on common people.

[Jaawan]

Well people do commite shirks people do things which are not in islam...people creat things in islam which islam does not approve of...in pakistan alone...people celebrate birthday of mohammad which is totally wrong..in pakistan people go on graves and bow to them which a muslims should nkow that its WRONG...only we should bow down to allah and only allah...people in pakistan and islam do thing which were part of hindus and jews...people do some stupid things that they dont realize they cant SEE that if they are making a sin or doing something good...i can sit here and talk and rave and rant about what is right and what is wrong...but stupidity can never be cured once its in some thick heads it stays until they face fire...so may allah help you see the right paths and may all open your minds and eyes to see whats right and whats wrong...not just whats right.
I have nothing to say...

Jaawan

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Till next time**Keep_It_Simple_Stupid**©

[mansoor]

You mention that wahabbis don't like taqleed of four madhabs, and also the majority of Muslim scholars accept it.
So can you tell me first four caliphs followed which path? They only did taqleed of Prohpet Mohammad (pbuh). They followed Quran and Sunnah and by doing so they are known as Khulfa e Rashdeen.
All four Imams were also following Quran and Sunnah, they never said in their life to follow them. Infact Imam Abu Haneefa said that if you find a Hadeeth against my decision, then follow the Hadeeth and throw my decision on the wall.
In his last sermon Prophet Mohammad (pbuh) said that today deen is completed. What does this mean? Its mean that there is no room for any Bidat, any idea or practice which we do under the influence of non-Muslims are wrong.
I have never seen any Wahabbi labeling Kufar to others, but can you justify being a Muslim doing sajda to graves, and ask help other than Allah.
My intention is not to create difference between Wahabbis and others (which is already there), may be some one gets a ray of right and follow the right path.

[mansoor]

Sorry I forgot to put iqadeer name in my reply.

iadeer,You mention that wahabbis don't like taqleed of four madhabs, and also the majority of Muslim scholars accept it.
So can you tell me first four caliphs followed which path? They only did taqleed of Prohpet Mohammad (pbuh). They followed Quran and Sunnah and by doing so they are known as Khulfa e Rashdeen.
All four Imams were also following Quran and Sunnah, they never said in their life to follow them. Infact Imam Abu Haneefa said that if you find a Hadeeth against my decision, then follow the Hadeeth and throw my decision on the wall.
In his last sermon Prophet Mohammad (pbuh) said that today deen is completed. What does this mean? Its mean that there is no room for any Bidat, any idea or practice which we do under the influence of non-Muslims are wrong.
I have never seen any Wahabbi labeling Kufar to others, but can you justify being a Muslim doing sajda to graves, and ask help other than Allah.
My intention is not to create difference between Wahabbis and others (which is already there), may be some one gets a ray of right and follow the right path.

[Kaleem]

Jawwan,

Bravo man. I hope our brother Abdulmalick would open his eyes and see the other side. Abdulmalick sahib, Wahabbis believe in Quran and Sunnah nothing else, and this is not what they will have an average Musilm believe. Please post an article from a neutral person, not another person like yourself who does not want to understand and comprehend the other side.

Wahabbis, do not go Mizar's, they do not believe that these dead people(no matter how pious they were) have any special rank in the eyes of Allah, hence they do not engagge in the practise commonly known as "Mannat Mangna". Allah has clearly said that nop body is allowed to ask him for any favors(including Prophet Muhammad) PBUH untill he allows the person to speak.

Wahabbi's do not celebrate 12th Rabi-ul-Awal, because Muhammad(PBUH) never celebrated this day.

Wahabbis are not the group that is dividing the Muslim community, it is people who start following in the footsteps of their elders without researching or trying to find out if certain action is actually a part of Islam or not.

So please do not call other Muslims Kafir or Fitna, because you and I(no body elese) knows who is right or who is wrong. Its Allah who will judge. BTW if you follow Quran and Sunnah I think you have a better chance of passing on the judgement day as compared to following traditions that cannot be proven by Islamic teachings (Khattma) included.

Allah Hafiz

Kaleem

[2PaK]

Jawan,
who the hell are you to tell them that they're wrong. I'd like you to say that to their face and laugh myself to death when you get your ass kicked by them.

[STRONGMAN]

Jawan - Strange you can say all that, at the same time mention our beloved Prophet Muhammad's (S.A.W.) name without saying (S.A.W.) or (PBUH), just something I noticed.
:)

if you just forgot, my apologies.......
Salaam

[Jaawan]

2PAK i happen to know a thing or 2 about islam unlike you..who is peethu of god knows who...its my duty to tell people when they are wrong in case of islam...its my duty to spread RIGHT words of god to people who do things wrong way...if you see someone praying, which is not according to hadith and quran, its my duty to tell that person that he or she is wrong...as matter of getting my ass kicked? you know i would really want to kick your ass...i can really kick have you got an ass or you use your face to sit? Yeah i figured. ;)
Strong man...my bad next time i ll keep that in mind thank you for letting this gunaa gar know his mistake.

Jaawan

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Till next time**Keep_It_Simple_Stupid**©

[Roman]

Alright guys, calm down now. Let's not start profane bickering here, save your kicks and asses.

[Asif]

I agree totally with Abdul Malick…

Wahabism is the biggest fitna ever to hit this Ummah–they argue and label as shirk and bidah things which Muslims have been AGREED UPON for 1400 years!

Then they say “we follow Qur’an and Sunnah”–this is their excuse for following their own desires and not the scholars of Islam who based all their rulings on the Quran and Sunnah after a lifetime’s study of these two sources unlike these wahaabis who memorise a couple of hadith from an english translation of bukhari and think they are world experts on Islam..and they are ARROGANT AS HELL…

e.g. Jawaan saying that wobbs [wahaabis] dont celebrate milaad shareef…
well it has been celebrated for a thousand years and ALL of the scholars BEFORE the Wahaabis with the exception of only ONE or TWO (like Ibn Taymiyya) have said it is mubaaH and permissible to celebrate the blessed prophet’s birthday sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam. e.g. Imam Suyuti -one of the greatest scholars of this Ummah ever who lived hundreds of years ago and much before the heresy known as wahaabism came about–has written BOOKS about the permissibility of celebrating milaad. Now, before a wahaabi tells you it is wrong ask him how many hadiths by by heart he knows with their isnaad–Imam Suyuti alayhirahmat knew 100,000! So, wohm shall we beleive a silly pompous wahaabi or one of the great scholars of islam (who incidentally base their rulings on real understanding of hadith and qur’an).

It is known that the Holy Prophet sal allahu alayhi wa sallam used to fast on Mondays as it was the day he blessed the world with his presence.

Allah says also in the Qur’an we should rejoice at his blessings. What greater blessing is their than the Day Our Master honoured this world?

In a hadith it is written that a man [sahabi?] saw Abu Jahal in a dream in Hell. He asked him how Allah had treated him. He replied that he was in great torment but on Mondays Allah lessened the punishment and allowed him to drink some water BECAUSE HE HAD REJOICED WHEN RASOOL ALLAH ALAYHI SALAATO SALAAM HAD BEEN BORN AS HE WAS HIS UNCLE.

The ulama have said on this hadith that if a kaafir like Abu Jahil who was the biggest enemy of Islam can be given a drink just becoz he celebrated the birth of his nephew [Our Master Rasool Allah alayhi salaato salaam) how will Allah reward those who celebrate his beloved’s birth and are Muslims.

Wahaabis are the only ones who say it is bidah. The truthi s they do not understand Islam and not even what the proper definitions of bidah are!

They are pathetic and it is no secret that all of the fanatics and extremists who terrorise innocent people and thuis give Islam a bad name are ALL wahaabis.

The Blessed Messenger predicted the appearance of a fitna from Najd [the Wahabis] in the famous hadith of Najd when the Prophet prayed for Yemen and Hijaz (?) and a Companion said ‘and in our Najd’ yet our Rasool alayyi salaato salaam igonred him thrice and in the end when asked why he refused to pray for Najd answered that from Najd will emerge ‘al Qarn as-Shaytaan’ --the horn of the Devil or, a satanic fitna. ALL of the ulama of Ahle Sunnah * have said that this hadith refers to the wahabi fitna of the 18/19th century which was started in…NAJD.

forget them. the site www.sunnah.org is enough to silence all their arguments with evidences from Qur’an, hadith and the sayings of the pious predecessors.

Everybody read: http://ds.dial.pipex.com/masud/ISLAM/nuh/salafi.htm

and
http://ds.dial.pipex.com/masud/ISLAM/nuh/studyh.htm

and
http://ds.dial.pipex.com/masud/ISLAM/nuh/madhhab.htm

[This message has been edited by Asif (edited May 04, 2000).]*

[STRONGMAN]

Asif, I am not Wahabi but is there really that much of a difference? You make it sound just as bad as a shia/sunni differece. They pray at our mosques. They follow Quran and sunnat so why are they looked at so harshly?
'al Qarn as-Shaytaan'???????????
Ok, lets keep it simple, I myself am Ahle sunnat as well but have not gone deep into these differences. Do the scholars of Ahle Sunnat consider Wahabi as Muslim?? Kafir?
or just misguided muslims?

[This message has been edited by STRONGMAN (edited May 04, 2000).]

[2PaK]

Jawan, You think Mohammad(pbuh) talked like so he could spread the word of Islam. If Mohammad acted like there would be no Islam. If you tell people that your belief is right and that theirs is wrong than you're just being rascist. If you tell them that they're wrong, they'll say you're wrong and then where will you go from there? Allright here's somthing for you: Prove to all of us that celebrating the Prophet's birthday is haram(even though every muslim in the whole damn world celebrates it). If you actually prove it then we'll see.

[This message has been edited by Roman (edited May 04, 2000).]

[Jaawan]

Oh well some people will never learn...asif i dont wana debate with stupidity of your mind and try to change it..i would waste my time on something more usefull and intelligent...
2nd thing...following quran and hadith and telling other to follow the same is not fitna my friends its RIGHT thing to do...you follow what yourr ancestor did which is fine you are honoring your ancestors and elders...but to my honoring allah is more important than honoring my grandfather...if my grandfather or father or some elder is WRONG about something in islam which does nto exist in islam and is not part of islam its my duty to call that elder of mine that he or she is WRONG and this is whats right...i am VERY strong follower of ONLY quran and hadith and if anyone one you THINKs that following those 2 things is wrong may allah bless you with hell!
Other thing about Milad-un-nabi its a innovation in islam people do it THINKING its a good deed but its not its bad thing to do and if was a good thing to do companions of mohammad(PBUH)would have done it...because they loved him more than we and muslims of our era ever will...if it was necessary to do such idiotic acts it would have been done by the khalifas(Abu bakar, Umar etc) WHO THE HELL ARE YOU TO DECIDE WHATS RIGHT OR WRONG IN ISLAM WHEN THE RIGHT AND WRONG IS ALREADY GIVEN TO YOU BY ALLAH AND HIS MESSENGER IN QURAN AND HADITH...WHO THE HELL ARE YOU TO DECIDE WHATS NEEDED IN ISLAM AND WHATS NOT NEEDED IN ISLAM...??? you are no better than dirt on the shoes of Mohammad(PBUH) and his companions if something like the things you people would be NEEDED in islam it would be clear in quran and added but they do no exist in islam and have islam has no place for innovation and people who think like complete idiots..may allah burn them in fire on earth and on day of judgement..and also may allah open their eyes and minds so they can see the truer side of islam...

What you THINK does NOT matter in islam...what should be done and what should NOT be done is already in quran and hadith..there is NO need for adding or subtractign stuff islam is a complete religion and the things you people do are part of hinduism and jews cultures....NOT ISLAM!!!
Show me ONE hadith where it says that celebrating birtydays are OK in islam?
Show me ONE hadith or ayat where allah says that you need a connection contacting him through dua..like most people in pakistan do they go to darbaars and they ask DEAD for their forgiveniss from allah...THAT IS JUST STUPID!!! allah says you do NOT need any connection contacting or asking him for anything..no matter how bad the person is he is alowed and he is being listen by allah for his requests and his asking for forgivness...i can sit here and write the MERE facts about what islam is but in your case if would be talkign to an OX....may allah show you the right path....

*boy longest reply i have ever written. :)

Jaawan

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Till next time**Keep_It_Simple_Stupid**©

[Asif]

Jawaan–oh..forget it. it is evident you haven’t even read my post..to you your religion, to me mine. BTW, Allah says in the Qur’an that on Qiyaamat people will be called with their IMAMS–you guys with your parrot-like repetition of the phrase “we only follow Qur’an and Sunnah”(which is a deception as you really only follow Muhammad ibn Abd al Wahaab) don’t have an Imam–so who are YOU going to be with? (There is a well known saying ‘he who has no shaykh, his shaykh is satan.’ BTW, who the hell gives YOU the right to say that all the millions of Muslims who for the past 1300 years HAVE been following a madhhab are all wrong and only YOU WAHAABIS with your (fake) ‘Quran and Sunnah’ mantra who are less than 100 years old as a movement are right?!

For brother Strongman: brother, yes, the differences between the Ahle Sunnah and the neo-kharijite movement known as ‘salafis’ or ‘wahaabis’ is VAST. They do not do taqleed and they have major defects in their aqeedaH as well. Although the ulama have not said outright that they are kaafirs–they HAVE declared them to be DEVIANT Muslims and GUMRAAH and the technical term is ‘ahl ul bida’ or ‘laa-madhhabi’-they are one of the heretical sects yet they are still Muslims and we cannot say ‘kaafir’ for them generally.

Here is a fatwa about them written by a top scholar of Ahle SunnaH wa Jama’aH:

******** Shaykh Murabtal Haaj’s Fatwa on Following
One of the Four Accepted Madhhabs
Translated by Hamza Yusuf Hanson

               [Note: Hyperlinks within this document are links to footnotes at the bottom of the page]
                         In the name of Allah, the Merciful, the Compassionate.

  Amongst the most important replies that I have given, is my reply concerning the one who has deviated to
  the point where he censures the importance of studying the branches [furu'] of jurisprudence, and we seek
  refuge in Allah from the deviation of such a wandering deviant. Would that he simply had claimed
  independent reasoning (ijtihad) for himself only, and Allah is his reckoner, but abandoned the call of
  Muslims to leave that which is incumbent upon them. In our reply to such a one, we make mention what
  the scholars of the methodological bases of Islamic jurisprudence (usuli’un) and the Imams of jurisprudence
  themselves have said about such a matter. As for my labelling him a deviant, it is only because he has
  desired to impose upon common people the precious rank of absolute independent reasoning [ijtihad],
  about which Muhammad an-Nabigha  said,   

       And ijtihad in the land of the Moroccans,   
       The western phoenix has taken to flight with it. 

  I say in reply, that the following of qualified scholarship (taqlid) is an obligation on anyone other than an
  absolute mujtahid. I shall make mention of all his prerequisites if Allah wills. [Sidi Abdullah Ould Hajj
  Ibrahim] has said in his Maraqi as-Sa’ud:   

  “[taqlid] is necessary for other than the one who has achieved the rank of absolute ijtihad. Even if he is a
  limited [mujtahid] who is unable [to perform absolute ijtihad].”   

  Commenting on this line, [Sidi Abdullah] said in Nashru al-bunud,  

  “It means that taqlid is an obligation on anyone who is not an absolute mujtahid, even if he has achieved the
  limited rank of ijtihad muqayyad . . . [until he says], ‘And ask the people of the reminder, if you yourselves do
  not know.’”   

  By using the line of Muhammad an-Nabigha above, I am in no way claiming that all ijtihad has been
  severed in every land; how [could I say such a thing] when [Sidi Abdullah] says in Maraqi as-sa’ud:   

  “The earth will never be void of a mujtahid scholar until its very foundations shake.”   

  He also said,   

  “[Regarding] the necessity of binding to a specific madhhab, the [scholars] have mentioned its obligation
  upon anyone falling short [of the conditions of ijtihad].”   

  He says in Nashru al-bunud,   

  “It means that it is incumbent for whoever falls short of achieving the rank of absolute ijtihad to follow a
  particular madhhab.”   

  Again, in Maraqi as-Sa’ud, Sidi Abdullah says,   

  “The consensus today is on the four, and all have prohibited following [any] others.”   

  He says in Nashru al-bunud,   

  “This means that the consensus of the scholars today is on the four schools of thought, and I mean by the
  schools of Malik, Abu Hanifa, Shafi’i and Ahmad. Indeed, all of the scholars have prohibited following any
  other school of an independent and absolute mujtahid since the eighth century when the school of Dawud
  adh-Dhahiri died out and until the 12th Century and all subsequent ones.”   

  In the chapter concerning inferential reasoning, from Maraqi as-sa’ud, [Sidi Abdullah] says,   

  “As for the one who is not a mujtahid, then basing his actions on primary textual evidence [Qur’an and
  hadith] is not permissible.”   

  He says in Nashru al-bunud,   

  “It means that it is prohibited for other than a mujtahid to base his actions upon a direct text from either the
  Book or the Sunna even if its transmission was sound because of the sheer likelihood of there being other
  considerations such as abrogation, limitations, specificity to certain situations, and other such matters that
  none but the mujtahid fully comprehends with precision. Thus, nothing can save him from Allah the
  Exalted excepted following a mujtahid. Imam al-Qarafi1 says,   

  ‘And beware of doing what some students do when they reason directly from the hadith, and yet they don’t
  know their soundness, let alone what has been mentioned [by the Imams] concerning the subtleties
  involved in them; by doing this, they went astray and led others astray. And whoever interprets a verse or
  hadith in a manner that deviates from its intended meaning without proof [dalil] is a kafir.’”   

  As for the conditions of the absolute and independent ijtihad, they are mentioned in the Maraqi as-sa’ud in
  the following line and what follows:   

  “And that [word ‘faqih’2]  is synonymous with the [word] ‘mujtahid’ coupled with those things which bear
  upon [him] the burden of responsibility,   

  Such as his being of extreme intelligence by nature, and there is some debate about one who is known to
  reject juristic analogy [qiyas]   

  He knows the [juristic] responsibilities through intellectual proofs unless a clear transmitted proof indicates
  otherwise.   

  [Sidi Abdullah] says [in his commentary] Nashru al-bunud,   

  “This means that among the conditions of ijtihad is that [the mujtahid] knows that he must adhere to the
  intellectual proof which is the foundational condition [al-bara’atu al-asliyya3]  until a transmitted proof from
  a sacred law indicates otherwise.”   

  He then goes on to mention the other conditions of a mujtahid:   

  [The sciences of] grammar, prosody, philology, combined with those of usul and rhetoric he must master.   

  According to the people of precision, [he must know] where the judgements can be found without the
  condition of having memorized the actual texts.   

  [All of the above must be known] according to a middle ranked mastery at least. He must also know those
  matters upon which there is consensus.   

  [Moreover, he must know] things such as the condition of single hadiths and what carries the authority of
  great numbers of transmissions; also [knowledge of] what is sound and what is weak is necessary.   

  Furthermore, what has been abrogated and what abrogates, as well as the conditions under which a verse
  was revealed or a hadith was transmitted is a condition that must be met.   

  The states of the narrators and the companions [must also be known]. Therefore, you may follow anyone
  who fulfils these conditions mentioned above according to the soundest opinion.   

  So, consider all of the above-mentioned, and may Allah have mercy upon you, and [may you] see for
  yourself whether your companion is characterized by such qualities and fulfils these conditions—and I
  highly doubt it. More likely, he is just pointing people to himself in his demands that the people of this age
  take their judgements directly from the Book and Sunna. If, on the other hand, he does not possess the
  necessary conditions, then further discussion is useless.   

  In Muhammad ‘Illish’s, Fath al-‘Ali al-Malik, there are many strong rebukes for those who wish to force
  people to abandon the study of the judicial branches and take directly from the Book and the Sunna. The
  actual text of the question put to him is as follows:   

  “What do you say about someone who was following one of the four Imams, may Allah the Exalted be
  pleased with them, and then left claiming that he could derive his judgements directly form the Qur’an and
  the soundly transmitted hadiths, thus leaving the books of jurisprudence and inclining towards the view of
  Ahmad bin Idris? Moreover, he says to the one who clings to the speech of the Imams and their followers,
  “I say to you ‘Allah and His Messenger say’, and you reply ‘Malik said’ and ‘Ibn al-Qasim said’ or ‘Khalil
  said.’”   

  To this, Imam ‘Illish replies:   

  “My answer to this all this is as follows: Praise be to Allah, and Prayer and Safety be upon our Master
  Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah. It is not permissible for a common person to abandon following the
  four Imams and take directly from the textual sources of the Qur’an and the hadiths for the simple reason
  that this entails a great many conditions that have been clarified in the books of usul. Moreover, these
  conditions are rarely met by the great scholars, especially in these last days in which Islam has become a
  stranger just as it began a stranger.”   

  Ibn ‘Uyyana, may Allah be pleased with him, has said,   

  “The hadiths are a source of error except for the jurists.”   

  What he means is that people, other than the scholars, might interpret a tradition based on an apparent
  meaning, and yet [the hadith may] have another interpretation based on some other hadith that clarifies the
  meaning or some proof that remains hidden [to the common people]. After a long discussion, he remarks,   

  “That as for their saying, ‘How can you leave clear Qur’anic verses and sound hadiths and follow the
  Imams in their ijtihads, which have a clear probability of error,’”   

  His answer to them is as follows:   

  “Surely the following of our [rightly guided] Imams is not abandoning the Qur’anic verses or the sound
  hadiths; it is the very essence of adhering to them and taking our judgements from them. This is because
  the Qur’an has not come down to us except by means of these very Imams [who are more worthy of
  following] by virtue of being more knowledgeable than us in [the sciences of] the abrogating and abrogated,
  the absolute and the conditional, the equivocal and the clarifying, the probabilistic and the plain, the
  circumstances surrounding revelation and their various meanings, as well as their possible interpretations
  and various linguistic and philological considerations, [not to mention] the various other ancillary sciences
  [involved in understanding the Qur’an] needed.   

  “Also, they took all of that from the students of the companions (tabi’in) who received their instruction
  from the companions themselves, who received their instructions from the Lawgiver himself, may Allah
  bless him and grant him peace, divinely protected from every mistake, who bore witness that the first three
  generations of Muslims would be ones of virtue and righteousness. Furthermore, the prophetic traditions
  have also reached us through their means given that they were also more knowledgeable than us through
  their means given that they were also more knowledgeable than those who came after them concerning the
  rigorously authenticated (sahih), the well authenticated (hasan), and the weak (da’if) channels of
  transmission, as well as the marfu’u4, mursal5, mutawatir6, ahad7, mu’dal8 and gharib9 transmissions.   

  “Thus, as far as this little band of men is concerned, there is only one of two possibilities: either they are
  attributing ignorance to Imams whose knowledge is considered by consensus to have reached human
  perfection as witnessed in several traditions of the truthful Lawgiver, upon him be prayers and peace, or
  they are actually attributing misguidance and lack of din to Imams who are all from the best of generations
  by the testimony of the magnificent Messenger himself, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. Surely, it
  is not the eyes that are blind, but blind are the hearts in our breasts.   

  As for their saying to the one who imitates Malik, for example, “We say to you ‘Allah says’ or ‘the
  Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, says’ and you reply, ‘Malik says’, or ‘Ibn
  al-Qasim says’, or ‘Khalil says’, for example,” our response is that the follower who says, “Malik says . . .
  etc.,” means that, “Malik says based on his deep understanding of the Word of Allah, or of the words of
  the Messenger, or of those firmly adhering to the actions of the companions, or of the tabi’in who
  understood clearly the Word of Allah and the word of the Messenger of Allah or took their example from
  the actions of His Messenger.” And the meaning of [a follower] saying “Ibn al-Qasim said . . .” is that he
  has [faithfully] transmitted what Malik said based on his understanding of the Word of Allah or of what Ibn
  al-Qasim himself understood from the word of Allah the Most Exalted. And the meaning of him saying,
  “Khalil said . . . .”, for example, is that he is transmitting only from those [Imams] aforementioned. As for
  Malik and Ibn al-Qasim, they are both Imams whose spiritual and judicial authority is agreed upon by
  unanimous consensus of this Umma; and they are both from the best of generations.   

  As for the one who leaves their leadership and says, “Allah said and His Messenger said . . . ,” he has relied
  solely on his own understanding despite the fact that he is incapable of having any precision in the verses
  and hadiths that he quotes since he is unable even to provide chains of transmission [with any authority],
  let alone that he lacks knowledge concerning the abrogated, the absolute and the conditional, the
  ambiguous and the clarifying, the apparent and the textual, the general and the specific, the dimensions of
  the Arabic and the cause for revelation, the various linguistic considerations, and other various ancillary
  sciences needed. So, consider for yourself which is preferable: the word of a follower who simply quotes
  the understanding of Malik, an Imam by consensus—or the word of this ignoramus who said “Allah said
  and His Messenger said . . . .” But it is not the sight that goes blind, but rather the hearts in our breasts.   

  Furthermore, know that the origin of this deviation is from the Dhahiriyya10 who appeared in Andalucia
  [Muslim Spain] and whose power waxed from a period until Allah obliterated all traces of them until this
  little band of men set about to revive their beliefs. Imam al-Barzuli said, “The first one ever to attack the
  Mudawwana11 was Sa’id bin al-Haddad .”   

  If you consider carefully the above-mentioned texts, you will realize that the one who censures you from
  following [the Imams] is truly a deviant. And I am using the word “deviant” to describe them only because
  the scholars [before me] have labelled this little band and their view (madhhab) as deviant. Moreover, you
  should know that those who condemn your adherence to the Imams have been fully refuted by Muhammad
  al-Khadir bin Mayyaba  with the most piercing of refutations, and he himself called them, in his book, “the
  people of deviation and heterodoxy.” He called his book, Refuting the people of deviation of heterodoxy
  who attack the following [taqlid] of the Imams of independent reasoning, and I used to have a copy but no
  longer do. So, my brother, I seriously warn you from following the madhhab of these people and even from
  sitting in their company, unless there is an absolute necessity, and certainly from listening to anything they
  have to say, because the scholars have declared their ideas deviant. Ibn al-Hajj  says in his book,
  al-Madkhal,   

  “Umar ibn al-‘Aziz said, ‘Never give one whose heart is deviant access to your two ears, for surely you
  never know what may find fixity in you.’”   

  I ask Allah to make you and me from those who listen to matters and follow the best of them.  
                                                                Murabtal Haaj, Mauritania
                                                                    

  Footnotes  

    1.Ahmad ibn Idris Shihabudin as-Sanhaji al-Qarafi al-Maliki was born in Egypt in the seventh Century, and died there in
       the year 684. He was one of the greatest Maliki scholars who ever lived and is especially known for his work in methodology
       and law (usul al-fiqh). He was a master of the Arabic language and has remarkable works in grammar. His book adh-Dhakhira is
       a magisterial 14 volume work recently published in the Emirates, that looks at Maliki fiqh with proofs from usuli sources. He
       is buried in Qarafi in Egypt near Imam as-Shafi’i. May Allah have mercy on them both. 
    2.Sidi Abdullah says in his commentary on this line that the faqih is synonymous with mujtahid in the science of usul.
       There are different types of faqih. A faqih according to the scholars of usul is anyone who has achieved the rank of
       ijtihad. According to the scholars of furu’u, a faqih is anyone who has reached the level of knowledge in which he can
       give valid juristic opinion. This latter definition is important considering endowments that are given to fuqaha. See
       Nashur al-bunud `ala maraqi as-sa’ud, kitab al-ijtihad fi al-furu’u (1409 Hijrah. Beirut: Maktabat al-Kutub. p.309)
        
    3.The foundational condition is that a human being is not asked by Allah to do anything other than those things which
       have a firm proof through the transmission of the prophets, peace be upon them, and that the human being is only
       accountable for those things in which there is clear responsibility. All other matters are considered permissible because
       of the lack of a proof indicating their impermissibility.  
    4.The transmission (sanad) goes to the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) the hadith came from the Prophet
       (Allah bless him and give him peace). 
    5.A tabi’i related it from the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace); a companion (sahabah) is missing from the
       line of the transmission.   
    6.The hadith comes from so many sources that it is an absolute proof.  
    7.A hadith, that at some point in the line of transmission, has only one narrator. 
    8.Two people in a row are missing in the chain of narrators.   
    9.The narrator of the hadith is trustworthy, but no one else related the hadith. 
   10.The Dhahiriyya followed Daw’ud ad-Dhahiri’s madhhab.   
   11.Mudawwana: Imam Malik’s work of fiqh.      

(from website: http://ds.dial.pipex.com/masud/ISLAM/misc/mhfatwa.htm))

[Kaleem]

Asif

Can you please quote the Ayah where Allah says that people will be called by their Immams ?

thanks

Kaleem

[AliAbbas]

bismihi Ta'ala
assalam o alaikum ...

the aya is 17:71 ...

regards

abu Kumayl!

[Asif]

Assalamu alaa manitaba al Huda

Thanks Ali Abbas bhai :)
Yes this is the ayat I was talking of:

The translation by Shakir is:

[quote]

Surat Israa:Ayat 71

Remember) the day when We will call every people with their Imam; then whoever
is given his book in his right hand, these shall read their book; and they shall not be dealt with a
whit unjustly.
[/quote]

[Kaleem]

How can you guys be sure that Imam refers to Imam that you believe in ? Could not it be referring to Prophets (Paygambar's).
Just something to think about.

Kaleem