Principles of the Salafi Manhaj – Abu Iyad

Principles of the Salafi Manhaj – Abu Iyad Amjad Rafiq

Overview

Summarised explanation of the principles of the Salafi Dawah, citing the permanent committee and Shaykh Saalih al-Fawzan
Broad principles from a lecture by Shaykh Ubayd al-Jaabiree
Treatise by Shaykh Abdusalaam Burjis
Treatise by Shaykh Abdullah Bukhari

What is Salafiyyah?

It is the way Messenger of Allah and the companions and to call to it with wisdom and call to that which is best while striving oneself in acting upon what he calls others to.

It is the balanced middle way

“Thus We have made you, a balanced nation, that you be witnesses over mankind and the Messenger be a witness over you.” 2:143

Shaykh Fawzan said the word Salafi does cause a split, between the Salafis who are upon the way of the Salaf (the Messenger of Allah, his companions and those who followed them) and the people of innovation and misguidance. This is a praiseworthy distinction.

“And I followed the religion of my fathers Ibrahim, Ishaaq and Ya’qoob, it is not for us to associate anything as partner with Allah” (12:38).

We ask Allah to make us from those upon the Madhab of the Salaf.

We do not just gather people, but we call them to the book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger, in accordance to the undersanding of the Salaf and the sound creed.

“And the first to embrace Islam of the Muhajirun and the Ansar and also those who followed them exactly (in Faith). Allah is well-pleased with them as they are well-pleased with Him. He has prepared for them Gardens under which rivers flow (Paradise), to dwell therein forever. That is the supreme success.” 9:100

“ihsaan” in this verse means “itqaan” means being precise in following them and reference to those who follow them in knowledge and action. So it is upon you to learn the madhab of the salaf and so you can hold fast on to it.

Shaykh Ubayd was asked about the principles of the Salafi Dawah:

O my children, it is from the wisdom of Allah that in every age and every place Allah prepares certain people who will aid His religion and who will make His word and who shall call to this way upon Baseerah. Just as it is also from the wisdom from Allah that there will be those from the people of desire who will set up enmity and hatred upon the those who are on the way of the Salaf.

The one who seeks a way other than the way of the prophets and Messengers will waste himself.

Q2. When the people of the sunnah become strange and their opposers become large in number, what will console and reassure the people of the truth?

Shaykh Ubayd gives us three things:

There are times which come upon the people here the desires overwhelm the people and misguidance increases and the people of the truth become small in number and they feel strange.

And whosover obeys Allah and the Messenger (Muhammad SAW), then they will be in the company of those on whom Allah has bestowed His Grace, of the Prophets, the Siddiqun (those followers of the Prophets who were first and foremost to believe in them, like Abu Bakr As-Siddiq), the martyrs, and the righteous. And how excellent these companions are! 4:69

You will not be swayed by those who fall in to destruction, nor by the many who oppose you.

The long hadith about the 70,000 who will enter paradise without reckoning. In that hadith, the messenger said. I saw a prophet with a small group of people and a prophet with 1 or 2 men and a prophet with no one with him at all.

These are prophets, who are superior to us, sent to whole nations of tens of thousands. So if these are the prophets whose prophethood was established with miracles and signs, despite that some had very few followers. So how about us?

The hadith of the splitting, and those who enter paradise are the Jamaa’ah, which ibn Mas’ood explained as “those who are upon the truth, even if you are on your own”.

There are people who try to undermine these texts to support their false beliefs.

This knowledge will be carried by the trustworthy of ones of every generation, they will remove the distortions of the distorters, fabrications of the falsifiers and the false interpretations of the ignorant ones.

In our time we have Shaykh ibn Baaz, Al-albaani, Ibn Uthaymeen, Muqbil, Zayd al-madkhalee, Ahmed an-Najmee and other scholars that we can turn to.

Hadith: “There was no prophet to a nation before me except that there was amongst his nations, helpers and companions, they take from his sunnah and follow his command, then after them there appeared generations who would say things they would do, and they would do things they were not commanded with. Whoever strives against them with his hand is a believer and whoever strives against them with his tongue is a believer and whoever strives against them with his heart is a believer and besides that there is not a mustard seed of Imaan”

Q3. Is it possible to explain some of the princples of the Salafi Methodology

The shaykh mentions 4 points

Ascribing oneself to Salafiyyah – it disturbs many of those who claim ahlu sunnah wal Jamaa’ah, when you ascribe yourself to the Salaf. It is one of the distinguishing points of the people of truth.

Why do they dislike Salafiyyah?

Shaykh – because it’s not just a label or description. It is to be sincere to Allah and to be sincere in following the Messenger of Allah.

Men are known by the truth and we do not know the truth by men.

A men is ascribed to the Sunnah when he is upon the truth and he is not upon innovation. We evaluate him by way of the truth, not the other way round. We look at his speech and actions and judge it against the text and consensus.

Loving and hating for the sake of Allah. Many claim to call to Allah and you see clearly a flaw and mistake in this. This is an indication that they are not sincerely upon the truth. It is one of the great principles in the sunnah and was implemented by the companions.
Refuting the opposer. To refute the one who opposes and deviates is from the great foundation of Islam, in the Qur’an, in the Sunnah and the methodology of the Salaf.

Q4. What is the foundation of unity?

It is to make the religion purely and sincerely for Allah, which the Tawheed of Allah and the rights of Tawheed follow from that, the obligations. Then warning against everything Allah hates and is displeased with. The greatest of that is shirk and then against the major sins and innovations. The jamaa’ah is of the hearts first then the bodies.

Shaykh Abdus-Salaam Burjis

The Salafi Dawah is based on principles that distinguish it from all the other groups that have left the straight path. The reason why it’s necessary to write about this, is because there are so many false claimants who say they are Ahlu Sunnah and who say they are upon the way of the Salaf today. So that the people upon Salafiyyah can be distinguished from the false claimants. The shaykh mentions a few

They give great concern with seeking knowledge and gaining an understanding of the religion. The other groups are pre-occupied away from this. For example, they say why do you constantly teach Kitaab at-Tawheed?

The salafi dawah gives great importance to it. It is in fact the central axis of life. Society can not be established except upon Islamic knowledge.

“People are more in need of knowledge than they are in need of food or drink, because a man needs food and drink once or twice a day. However, his need for knowledge is in accordance to the number of breaths he takes.” Imam Ahmed

Eagerness to practically implement what we know.

Acting upon ones knowledge saves one from the severe threat reserved for those who do not act upon the knowledge they acquired.

“O you who believe! Why do you say that which you do not do? Most hateful it is with Allah that you say that which you do not do!” 61:2-3

“A scholar never ceases to be ignorant until he acts upon his knowledge. When he acts upon it, he then becomes an Aalim” Fudayl ibn Iyaad

Calling to Allah upon Baseerah (insight)
To give great concern to the Aqeedah of the Salaf, in terms of knowledge and action and teaching it.
To give great concern to the Sunnah and be eager to act upon it and call to it.
A strong connection to the scholars of the Sunnah
Keeping away from the so-called “Islamic” groups such as the Muslim brotherhood, Hizb at-Tahreer and Jamaa’at Tableegh
To stick to the guidelines from the Book and Sunnah in how we conduct ourselves with the scholars and rulers
To shun the people of innovation and to warn against them
Adhere to the book and Sunnah in all our affairs

What is Salafiyyah? Shaykh Abullah al-Bukhari

To actualise servitude to Allah, the Mighty and Majestic
To call people to make sincere following of the Messenger, peace be upon him
To stick to the understanding of the Salaf in all evidence and not to deviate and fall outside of that.
To be cautious and warn against the people of innovation
To be in moderation between exaggeration and neglect.
To be firm upon the truth
To be eager upon unity and being together upon truth in truth [upon the correct methodology]
To keep away from splitting and separation and the causes of splitting among ourselves
To be eager to gain beneficial knowledge and spreading it among the people and calling them to it while having patience with any difficulties.
To act upon the knowldge