[1] These people are either unaware of or concealing some realities regarding the legacy of Erudite Salafi Imam, Abdul Azeez Bin Baaz
In The Name of Allah, The Most Merciful, The Bestower of Mercy.
Allah [The Exalted] said:
يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓاْ إِذَا قِيلَ لَكُمۡ تَفَسَّحُواْ فِي ٱلۡمَجَٰلِسِ فَٱفۡسَحُواْ يَفۡسَحِ ٱللَّهُ لَكُمۡۖ وَإِذَا قِيلَ ٱنشُزُواْ فَٱنشُزُواْ يَرۡفَعِ ٱللَّهُ ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ مِنكُمۡ وَٱلَّذِينَ أُوتُواْ ٱلۡعِلۡمَ دَرَجَٰتٖۚ وَٱللَّهُ بِمَا تَعۡمَلُونَ خَبِيرٞ
O you who believe! When you are told to make room in the assemblies, (spread out and) make room. Allah will give you (ample) room (from His Mercy). And when you are told to rise up [for any obligatory matter, or for any other good deed], rise up. Allah will exalt in degree those of you who believe, and those who have been granted knowledge. And Allah is Well-Acquainted with what you do. [Surah Al-Mujaadilah. Ayah 11]
The anonymous writers at Wikipedia stated, “Sheikh Abd al Aziz ibn Abdullah ibn Baz (Arabic: عبد العزيز بن عبد الله بن باز, romanized: ʿAbd al ʿAzīz bin ʿAbdullāh bin Bāz, 21 November 1912 – 13 May 1999) was a Saudi Arabian Islamic scholar who served as the Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia from 1993 until his death in 1999. According to French political scientist Gilles Kepel, ibn Baz was a “figurehead” whose “immense religious erudition and his reputation for intransigence” gave him prestige among the population of Saudi Arabia. He “could reinforce the Saud family’s policies through his influence with the masses of believers”. His death left the government without a comparable figure from amongst Salafi scholars to “fill his shoes”. He was a leading proponent of the Salafi school of thought”. [End of quote]
Response:
First of all, this great Imam’s [may Allah have mercy upon him] reputation was well-known not only in Saudi Arabia but also in the rest of the Muslim world. Read below:
The-Life-of-Imam-Abdul-Aziz-Ibn-Baz_PDF
There is no question that this Imam was among the greatest Salafi scholars of his time. However, instead of saying that he had a reputation for intransigence, it should be said that he was well-known for upholding the sound Aqeedah and Manhaj of the pious predecessors despite the opposition of those deviated callers who opposed him. As a result, his refusal to alter his viewpoint or behaviour was based on the clear guidance of the Qur’an and authentic Sunnah as understood by the Sahaabah and not prejudice, blind allegiance, or illegal partisanship.
They stated: He “could reinforce the Saud family’s policies through his influence with the masses of believers”. [End of quote]
Response:
He made decisions based on the Qur’an and the Sunnah as it was understood by the Sahaabah rather than passively supporting anyone’s policies. He issued rulings in favour of virtue when the rulers asked for anything that did not conflict with the Qur’an and the Sunnah, which is why he was praised for his honesty and steadfastness. He interacted with the Saudi Royal Family in accordance with what Allah commands the rulers and the Scholars to do. Allah (The Exalted) says:
[يَـٰٓأَيُّہَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓاْ أَطِيعُواْ ٱللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُواْ ٱلرَّسُولَ وَأُوْلِى ٱلۡأَمۡرِ مِنكُمۡۖ – O you who believe! Obey Allah and obey the Messenger (Muhammad, and those of you (Muslims) who are in authority. [Surah An-Nisaa’ Ayah 59]
The verse encompasses both scholars and those in positions of power. The scholars propagate Allah’s Shariah, teach the people, and issue rulings to the people and rulers, and the rulers implement the rulings – implement the knowledge that the scholars possess and propagate. [(1)]
They stated: His death left the government without a comparable figure from amongst Salafi scholars to “fill his shoes”. [End of quote]
Response:
There is no question that Imam Abdul Azeez Bin Baaz [may Allah have mercy upon him] was one of the greatest Scholars in the world during his lifetime, but his passing does not imply that the outstanding scholars of this blessed Ummah will no longer exist. The Prophet [peace and blessings be upon him] said, “Allah will raise for this Ummah at the end of every hundred years the one who will revive its religion for it”. [(2)]
“Allah will raise for this Ummah at the end of every hundred years”. That is, at the end of every hundred years, when there is little knowledge of the Shariah and the authentic Prophetic Sunnah, and when ignorance and religious innovation are rampant. “One who will revive its religion for it”. That is a scholar who is alive and well known. He will clarify the authentic Prophetic Sunnah and distinguish it from the religious innovations. knowledge will be abundant again and its adherents will be aided, and the proponents of religious innovations will be overcome and degraded. This reviver is none else but a scholar who has a sound understanding of the religious sciences that deal with acts of worship, the underlying wisdoms of the religion and the texts that deal with beliefs of the heart. [(3)]
They stated: “He was a leading proponent of the Salafi school of thought”. [End of quote]
Response:
What is a school of thought? They say that it is “a set of ideas or opinions that a group of people share about a matter”. [(3.1)] “a way of thinking”. [(3.2)] “A set of ideas or opinions which a group of people share about a matter. Also a point of view recognised as held but not necessarily accepted”. [(3.3)]
Salafiyyah is not a school of thought because it is not based on ideas or opinions, but rather on the way of Muhammad’s [peace and blessings of Allah be upon him] companions, which is based on the infallible Qur’an and authentic Sunnah. Shaikh Abu Khadeejah [may Allah preserve him] stated: “To be a Salafi means adhering to the Creed, Methodology and the way of life of the Salaf As-Sālih (the Pious Predecessors). The earliest Salaf were the generation of our Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) and his Companions. Then after them came the three virtuous generations of believers who held fast to the Sunnah (Path) of the Prophet and his Companions. The person who understands this path correctly, follows it exactly, without introducing anything into it and nor deviating from it is a Salafi. To be a Salafi is not merely to imagine that one is upon the true path of the Salaf, but Salafism is to study the religion of the Companions and follow it — it was they who understood best the meanings and intent of the speech and actions of the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم)….” [(4)]
Shaikh Abu Iyaad [may Allah preserve him] said: The “Salafi Way” is not something new, invented or innovated. By definition, it is the pure Islaam which the Companions of Allaah’s Messenger (sallallaahu alayhi wasallam) held onto. When the sects foretold by the Messenger (sallallaahu alayhi wasallam) appeared, those who took knowledge from the Companions began to verbally express the obligation of holding onto the way of (السلف الصالح), “The Righteous Predecessors.” From such statements is the saying of Imaam al-Zuhree (d. 124H), “Adhere to the tracks of the Salaf, even if the people reject you. And beware of the opinions of men, even if they beautify it for you with speech.” Hence, Salafiyyah is not a later innovation. Salafis are the target of sectarian bias and bigotry for many factions, from them the Raafidah, Soofiyyah, Kharijites and Takfiris, the blind-followers of the madhaahib, Secularists, Modernists and many others. As such there is a lot of propaganda in the field which is unfortunately entered into what is claimed to be “objective research”. To make matters more confusing is the presence of numerous orientations falsely ascribing to Salafiyyah despite their deviations from it in their foundations and methodologies. Many of the takfiri, and Khariji groups make this false ascription. This adds another layer of confusion to anyone wanting to research and understand Salafiyyah and leads to Salafis being wrongly attributed with the iniquities of the Takfiris and Kharijites. In light of all of these realities, this website aims to provide relevant information and critical evaluation and analysis of the various views and opinions that are being scattered in books, journals, blogs, websites, audios and videos in relation to “Salafis” and “Salafiyyah”. [(5)]
To be continued…InShaaAllah
[(1)]: An Excerpt from “Marhaban Yaa Taalibal Ilm”. pages 58-60. slightly paraphrased
[(2)]: Sunan Abee Daawud. Hadeeth Number 4291. Declared authentic by Imaam Al-Albaanee [rahimahullaah] in Saheeh Abi Daawud. Publisher, Maktabah Al-Ma’aarif.
[(3)]: An Excerpt from Awnul Ma’bood Sharh Sunan Abee Daawud. Vol 11. Pages 259-260. Publisher: Daaer Al-Kutub Al-Ilmiyyah. 1st Edition 1419AH (Year 1998). Slightly paraphrased]
[(3.1)]: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/school-of-thought
[(3.2)]: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/school%20of%20thought
[(3.3)]: https://www.collinsdictionary.com/submission/8221/School+of+thought
[(4)]: https://abukhadeejah.com/what-is-salafism-and-salafiyyah/
[(5)]: http://www.salafis.com/index.cfm