Issues of Controversy
Bismillah,
Assalamu alaikum.
Marifah.net recently uploaded a very beneficial and educational translation of a text written by Shaykh al-Habib Zayn bin Sumayt (may Allah preserve him) dealing with what seem to be controversial topics nowadays such as tawassul, istighatha, visiting graves of Prophets and Saints, and much more. Please click [here] to read the translation.
Ma’salama.
Sufyan Yunus
As’salamu ‘alaykum,
Masha’Allah, a great piece written by the Shaykh.
However, the problems with these types of articles or books are:
- They will mainly be read by the convinced. i.e those who already accept the principals mentioned in the article
- The small percentage (of those who reject these principals) who do read the article will:
A) Due to stubbornness and possibly also their arrogance, will blindly reject the article
B) Will be told by their elders that the author who wrote this article is fake, a liar and so on.
C) If the evidences (in the article) are shown to their elders or scholars, they will be told that the evidences are weak and/or fabricated
What we need is our Scholars giving talks on the big stage, such as TV or major events. In the UK, many converts are being led astray due to the incorrect teachings preached on the county’s only English Islamic Channel.
At the moment we have NoorTV in the UK but it’s 95% Urdu, which means the non-Urdu speaking Muslims cannot understand whats going on. Hence why most people switch to the other channel and get fed the wrong information.
Alhamdulillah, Shaykh al Ninowy appears on NoorTV sometimes, and soon the channel will be showing lectures by Shaykh al Ya’qoubi. Insha’Allah.
Bismillah,
Wa alaikum assalam wa rahmatullah Sidi,
You have made some good and valid points. However, I think having large scale events on television or lectures would not be sufficient to change some individuals understandings because they will look at the scholar as wrong, deviant, or just doesn’t hold any worth. These individuals would want evidence from the Qur’an and/or Ahadith in order to be convinced that their understanding is incorrect, and not from the words of scholars. Therefore, I feel as if these types of texts, such as the one above written by Habib Zayn al-Sumayt, would be a good starting point because the evidence for the teachings and understandings of Ahlus Sunnah wal Jama’ah are in the very texts that these particular individuals look to.
Khayr, may Allah guide us all on the Straight Path. Ameen.
Ma’salama
Sufyan Yunus