> From the words of Sheikh Abdullah Azzam

[Ibn Al Akwa]

Originally taken from Abu Sabaya over on IA...

this is a must read, may Allah allow us all to read all of this, and benefit from these words, bi'ithnillah...

This is a thread I've been working on on the other forums for quite some time. I thought I'd transfer it over to here, for the added benefit:

This thread will consist of various quotations of al-Imam 'Abdullah 'Azzam - a man who truly deserves the title of 'Imam,' if anyone does. In addition to being a scholar and Mujahid, he also fulfilled the seldom-fulfilled role of being a brilliant murabbi - his immensely deep insight, coupled with his decades of experience in the fields of both Da'wah and Jihad, made him a priceless asset to the youth of his time and beyond.

So, we will present here various words of advice and stories of remembrance taken from his works - both written and recorded - so that we may benefit from his legacy, if Allah Wills.

[Ibn Al Akwa]

The Qur'an:

"So, it is upon you to tend to the Qur'an - the pillar of the heart, the light of the chest, the remover of sadness. And this time period is the period of memorization of the Qur'an. I started in and benefited greatly from the days of training in 1969 (when fighting in Palestine). I benefited greatly from the memorization of the Qur'an, and it was the period of golden purity of the heart and spirit. So, it is easy for you to memorize here; very easy...yes. I had a large-print Mushaf, and during the time in which I would stand guard at night, I would repeat what I had memorized during the day. So, if I mispronounced a word, I opened it, and I would read it using the light of the Moon. As for now, I cannot even see using the light of the Sun, so, we ask Allah to strengthen our eyesight...

So, try to memorize five verses of the Qur'an everyday, and start with 'al-Anfal.' Everyday, after the morning prayer, make for yourself a sitting with the Noble Qur'an. Memorize five verses of 'al-Anfal,' and review the five verses from the previous day. You can memorize it in fifteen days: seventy-five verses, five verses each day...this should be very easy on you...

Our brother, Khalid Qablan - who was martyred two days ago in Khost, Abu al-Walid, from Riyad - was martyred on Friday, at 2:30 p.m. I visited his brothers after his martrdom, not knowing that he had been martyred, and everyone who was around him said that everything about him indicated that he was preparing for the Hereafter. They said that he would choose to stand guard from midnight to 1:00 a.m., then he would stay up in prayer until the Fajr. He would make the adhan for Fajr, then pray. After that, he would begin his adhkar. He would fast every Monday and Thursday - continuously - and the White Days (13th, 14th, 15th day of each month), and the six days of Shawwal. They also said that on the night before Friday - and it was the final night of his life - he stood guard from midnight to 1:00 a.m., stayed up in prayer until the Fajr, made the adhan for Fajr, prayed, made his morning adhkar, then we moved to the location of the battle for that day. On the way there, he recited 'al-Kahf,' and increased in his invoking of peace and blessings upon the Prophet. When we arrived - his companion from Yemen narrates - "I asked him if he had finished his recitation of 'al-Kahf,' and he said: "Yes." Then, we started firing the mortar rounds, and the nineteenth shell exploded inside the mortar, and many pieces of shrapnel entered his body. He gasped only twice, then he submitted his soul to the Lord of the Worlds.""

['Fi at-Tarbiyah al-Jihadiyyah wal-Bina''; 2/40-42]

[Ibn Al Akwa]

Give People the Credit They Are Due:

"And the labels fill your pockets. Every pocket is labelled with a characteristic or title; this pocket is filled with labels that say 'Disbeliever,' and everytime you see someone that you don't like, you hand him a label. Another pocket is filled with labels that say 'Innovator,' and a third pocket is filled the labels that say 'Poor,' and another says 'Ignorant,' etc. This way, you have given everyone a label from one of your labels...

There are families in Peshawar who cannot find enough Clorox bleach in the marketplaces, so, they send off to Islamabad to purchase this bleach, so that they can use it to clean their clothing and the clothing of their families. So, you are also in need of searching for bleach; you are in need of success in finding that which will clean your heart and purify your insides. If you are part of a particular Islamic group, then beware of assuming that all of the truth rests with that group, and that all falsehood rests with everyone else, as some of the earlier zealous people said: "All of our statements are correct, with a possibility of a mistake, while all the statements of others are mistaken, with a possibility of being correct." This is the destructive type of allegiance! How many groups have been torn apart, and how many people who were close to each other became divided because of such a mindset?!

Pay attention to your heart, beware of raising yourself above others, and beware of belittling others. How many of these people have given for the sake of this Religion - but have kept it secret between them and the Lord of the Worlds - from he whose statement is belittled and his appearance mocked, and he might even have given more for this Religion than an Earthful of people like you ever would? So, pay attention to yourself, and may Allah have Mercy on a man who knows his limits and stays inside those limits. The virtuous people are those who acknowledge the virtue of the people of virtue, especially the scholars, and especially those who are old in age, and especially the parents...

So, my brother, it is enough for your good deeds to be annulled that you look to your actions as if they are great, as Allah Said:

{"Woe to al-Mutaffifin! Those who, when they have to receive by measure from men, demand full measure, and when they have to give by measure or weight to men, give less than their due."} [al-Mutaffifin; 1-3]

So, if he mentions himself, he only mentions his good deeds, and if he mentions the others, he only mentions their mistakes, as the Prophet said: "One of you sees a small speck of dirt in the eye of his brother, but fails to see the large piece of dirt in his own eye." ['at-Targhib wat-Tarhib'; 3/236]...

Just because you are part of a particular group doesn't mean that you are better than the people. Just because you read a particular book doesn't mean that you are better than the people. There is some good with the Ikhwan, and there is some good with the Tabligh, and there is some good with the Salafiyyah; every one of them has a portion of the good, so, try - if you are able - to collect all of the good from these groups. They used to study from a large group of the scholars, so, his Hadith instructor is different from his Tafsir instructor , and his instructor in spiritual nurturing is different from his Arabic language instructor. Take from the Tabligh their manners...and imagine if we were to follow their path in respecting the people, and their manners with the scholars... The Tabligh have very good speech, as they convey what they say and work magic on the hearts with their manners, and cause any envy one might have against them to vanish. Take from the Ikhwan their historical movements and revolutionary ideas, and take from the Salafiyyah their beliefs. Collect within yourself all that is good, become a student, and do not restrict the truth to your own shaykh... Take from this person, and take from that person; respect the people, and give them the credit they are due, and put them in their proper categories..."

[From a khutbah entitled 'an-Nas Asnaf' (People Are of Various Types), given on September 26, 1986]

[Ibn Al Akwa]

Let Them Find Harshness In You:

"...And because of this, they said to Ibn Hajar al-Haythami: "Is it allowed for the Muslim to extend his hand when greeting a Christian, so that he could shake it?" He answered: "No, because the Christian will feel at peace when he is shaking your hand. So, it is not allowed for you to extend your hand for him to shake."

...It was narrated to me by the leader of the Islamic Movement in Jordan - our teacher, Muhammad 'Abd ar-Rahman Khalifah:

"I learned the meaning of honor from a story. When I was young, the judge of as-Salt (a town in Jordan) became ill. I was in my sixth year of elementary school, and I decided to go visit him. So, I went and rang the doorbell. He came to the door, and I said to him: "I am the son of 'Abd ar-Rahman Khalifah, and my father has sent me to come visit you." The judge said to me: "Please come in, my son."

So, I entered to find that the heads of the Christian community had all come to visit him because of his illness. There was the priest of the Orthodox Church, and the Latin Church. Anyway, these were two churches in as-Salt. When I entered the room - and I was only a young boy at the time - he said to the head pastor: "Get up and sit over there," and he said to me: "Come, my son, and sit next to me." He then looked to the pastor and said to him: "This is how my religion commands me to behave with you, so, if I come to visit you, then behave with me as your religion commands you."

Muhammad Khalifah then told me: "At that moment, I realized that the Muslim is noble, and that he is the most honorable of people.""

[From a lecture given in a camp on the Afghan-Pakistani border, October 29, 1987]

[Ibn Al Akwa]

Give Advice Without Causing Offense:

"...and because of this, the Prophet exposed for us those who please us with their tongues, when he said: "Throw dirt in their faces," meaning, the faces of those who praise people to their faces. Likewise, he said to the one who praised his brother to his face: "You have broken your brother's back." So, praising your brother to his face is disliked - if not forbidden - except in the case that you are trying to point out some of his faults. In such a situation, there is no problem in you mentioning some of his praiseworthy traits, such as saying to him: 'Brother, you are very intelligent, and you are a man who is loved by the people, and you are a person who is considered a leader. However, I see in you such-and-such a fault, so, is it possible for you to correct these faults?' And if the person that you wish to advise has a position of authority over you, is older than you, or is your parent, then there is no problem in sending him a message, for example.

Hasan al-Banna - may Allah have Mercy upon him - said: "We used to follow this way of commanding the good and forbidding the evil. We had a shaykh who used to teach us and guide us, so, one day, I saw him praying between the pillars of the mosque. So, I wanted to advise him that praying between the pillars of the mosque is disliked (makruh). So, I wrote him a letter, and addressed it on behalf of 'A Doer of Good,' saying: "O Shaykh, I saw you praying between the pillars of the mosque, and this is disliked, as the Prophet said." I then signed it 'A Doer of Good,' and sent it to him by mail. He got the letter and read it, then he said: "O youth! I have received a letter from a man who advised me not to pray between the pillars of the mosque, and I did not previously know that this is disliked, so, don't do it.""

Hasan al-Banna added: "I was amongst the youth that he was addressing. So, we were able to fulfill a good action without causing any insult or offense to our teacher...."

Therefore, commanding the good and forbidding the evil requires a person who loves the people; a person who looks at the bigger picture; a person with a gentle tongue. Do not come to one and say: 'I hate you for the Sake of Allah because you do this or that.' Are you not able to say, instead: 'I love you for the Sake of Allah, my brother! However, I saw a simple and small mistake from you.'

By Allah, a brother described to me the following: "Someone came up to me and said: "I hate you for the Sake of Allah."

So, I said to him: "Why? Why do you hate me for the Sake of Allah?"

He replied: "Because your father is from the Ikhwan al-Muslimin.""

There is no might nor power except with Allah. What Islam is this? I hate him for the Sake of Allah - for what? Because his father is from the Ikhwan al-Muslimin. Sufficient is Allah as the Disposer of our affairs, and this person considers this to be commanding the good and forbidding the evil and a proclaimation of the truth, and he thinks that he will have some reward as a result of this, as a result of his putting off the Muslims..."

['Fi Dhilal Surat at-Tawbah'; p. 75]

[Ibn Al Akwa]

Zeal Alone Is Not Enough:

"By Allah, one of the youth came to me, and he would always visit me. He loved me, and he was Jordanian. He took Shukri Mustafa as a leader, and became fascinated by his ideas. I never saw a youth holding onto his faith as tightly as this one. He was a pharmacy student, and he would sometimes come to break his fast with me in Cairo.

One day, after he met Shukri Mustafa, he came to visit me. He started to speak, and I began to enter into a discussion with him. Suddenly, it was time to pray. I noticed that he was reluctant to pray behind me, so, I said to him: "Please, lead us in the prayer." So, he stepped forward and led us. Afterwards, everytime I would step forward to lead the prayer, he would say that he was travelling (so that he would lead, instead). So, I asked him, in a straightforward manner, "What do you think of me?"

He asked: "Do you want me to be frank with you?"

I said: "Yes, be frank."

He said: "I consider you to be a disbeliever."

I asked: "Why, son? What is the issue?"

He replied: "You are from the Ikhwan al-Muslimin."

I said: "OK."

He went on: "Everyone in the Ikhwan al-Muslimin is a disbeliever."

I asked: "Why?"

He said: "Because they do not make takfir of al-Hudaybi, the disbeliever [*]."

Imagine! With such ease! I said to him: "Come, let me tell you: ash-Shafi'i and Ahmad bin Hambal differed over the disbelief of the one who abandons the prayer out of laziness. ash-Shafi'i said that he is not a disbeliever, and Ahmad said he is a disbeliever, and then they debated over it, with none of them declaring the other to be a disbeliever."

Subhan Allah! Because of his extreme zeal and emotion, he said to me, in his exact words: "If I was present, and had debated ash-Shafi'i, and he had refused to make takfir, I would have declared ash-Shafi'i to be a disbeliever."

I said: "There is no might nor power except with Allah. We are finished. Get out of here. If it has gotten to this point, then we are finished."

And yes, he eventually became entagled with Shukri Mustafa, and received a fifteen-year sentence, and he is still in jail until now. They, because of their lack of knowledge, are simply youth with much zeal, and the hearts of these youth were made to follow their desires."

['Fi Dhilal Surat at-Tawbah'; p. 104]

[*] al-Hudaybi (may Allah have Mercy on him) was a scholar from the Ikhwan who was arrested by 'Abd an-Nasir. Although he himself considered 'Abd an-Nasir to be a disbeliever, when he was being tortured in prison, and was asked if 'Abd an-Nasir was a disbeliever, he would reply: "What would we gain if we did or didn't declare him to be a disbeliever?" - saying this out wisdom, in order to avoid having anything damning recorded against him by his own tongue. So, Shukri's group made takfir of al-Hudaybi because of the answer he gave, which didn't contain explicit takfir of 'Abd an-Nasir. They then went even farther, declaring the Ikhwan to be kuffar for not making takfir of al-Hudaybi.

[Ibn Al Akwa]

How to Respect Your Elders:

"O Allah, teach us manners! O Allah, teach us manners! One person is sitting next to his father, one leg on the other, sitting with his feet facing his father! Why?

By Allah, one of our teachers in the Islamic Movement in Jordan entered a gathering and saw one of the youth sitting back, one leg over the other. He said to him: "Why are you sitting like this? Is this the Sunnah?"

Does it make sense that Islam tells you to do this? Is it possible? It is reported in the 'Sahihayn' that when Fatimah would enter the dwelling of the Messenger of Allah, he would get up for her, hug her, and spread a mat on the ground for her to sit on. Fatimah was a fourteen year-old girl!

Because of this, I wish that we and our youth would read the fatawa. Whatever Ibn Taymiyyah says, we accept. Ibn Taymiyyah is the shaykh of the Salafiyyin; we accept whatever he says. Ibn Taymiyyah says: "It is allowed to stand up out of respect for those who are people of position and righteousness." Likewise, an-Nawawi wrote a book on this topic, titled 'at-Tarkhis bil-Qiyam,' (The Allowance of Standing) which is a full book in which he brought many authentic ahadith, and said that this is what such-and-such scholars agreed on - including Ahmad bin Hambal and Malik - that they would stand up in such situations.

So, gatherings require an attitude of respect. One of our brothers said to me: "I never in my life relaxed in the presence of my father, because I consider this to be bad manners in respecting the parents. If he would order me to do something, or speak to me about anything, I would stand between his hands until he would finish what he wanted to say. Then, I would wait either for he or my mother to allow me to leave."

Manners! O Allah, teach us manners!"

['Fi Dhilal Surat at-Tawbah'; p. 79]

[Ibn Al Akwa]

The Scale of Good and Bad Deeds:

"And Ibn al-Qayyim confirmed a principle, saying that the human being, if his righteous deeds and benefit in the society are a lot, then he is forgiven for things that others might not be forgiven for, and mistakes of his may be overlooked that would not be overlooked for others, because the Messenger of Allah said: "If water reaches two qullahs (measuring unit), then it will not become impure by impurity." So, a large volume of water, if some small impurity falls into it, does not have its impurity affected, and it can still be used for ablution and bathing. Likewise, the human being, if his good deeds are many, then one turns a blind eye to some of his bad deeds that are drowning in his ocean of good deeds.

Because of this, when 'Umar was bursting with fury at Hatib bin Abi Balta'ah, the one who carried out the great crime of treason - the crime of spying on the Islamic state and sending secret messages to Quraysh - and said: "O Messenger of Allah! Let me strike his neck, as he has become a hypocrite," the Messenger of Allah took the opportunity to teach them this basic principle by way of real-life experience, saying: "And how do you know, 'Umar? He took part in the Battle of Badr, and it might be that Allah Looked to the participants of Badr and Said: 'Do what you wish, as I have Forgiven you.'""

['at-Tarbiyah al-Jihadiyyah wal-Bina''; 2/79]

[Ibn Al Akwa]

Do you wish to exchange the lands of Jihad for the most evil lands on Earth?:

"The Western society is one that is quite dull, in every sense of the word. The church...imagine that in some places, a woman will marry another woman, and a man will marry another man! Such evil! Because of this, Sayyid Qutb mentioned in his book 'The America I Saw' - which has never been printed, as it is said that the American embassy stole it from the printing press and burned it - that the unmarried youth who would wish to meet his girlfriend would meet her in church! An evil, wasted society! Because of this, separation from the disbelievers, and not living with them, is something clearly intended in the Shari'ah, and is supported by logic and emotion, as the Prophet said: "I am free of anyone who lives with the disbelievers," and: "Whoever lives with a disbeliever and dies with him, then he is like him."

There are many, many ahadith to this effect...four or five about living with the disbelievers. Because of this, the Western life, living between the disbelievers, is a very, very, very difficult life. One of the youth - of course, the stories are many, and I am unable to tell them all here - came to me at a conference - and he was one of my students in Jordan - and said to me: "That's it. If I do not get married, I will commit fornication. I am unable to survive," and he repeated it again: "I am unable to survive. I am being serious with you, and whoever says other than this, then he is a liar."

Tell me, by Allah, an unmarried youth in the extreme heat, and at the college, a girl is sitting right next to him, with her skirt ten centimeters above her knees! And our Lord Said, about Prophet Yusuf: {"And indeed she did desire him and he would have inclined to her desire, had he not seen the evidence of his Lord."} [Yusuf; 24] Were it not for him seeing a sign from his Lord, he would have inclined to her - Yusuf, the pure, purifying, noble son of the noble son of the noble son of the noble. So, how can this be?

One of the sons of the Islamic movement came and asked me: "I am living with a family - and he was single, no wife with him - in order to study medicine in Britain. Is this permissible for me?"

I said to him: "No, this is not allowed for you. What are your living conditions?"

He replied: "I live in a room in the same apartment as the family."

I asked: "And the kitchen?"

"We share the kitchen, as well as the bathroom and toilet."

I asked him: "Does her husband stay out for long?"

He replied: "He sometimes leaves and spends the night outside the house."

"And you and her stay alone in the house?"

He replied: "Yes."

I said to him: "This is not permissible, not permissible, not permissible for you!"

He said: "How? We wish to study medicine, and produce Muslim engineers and Muslim doctors!"

I said: "After seven years, what is left of your Islam? What is left?"

He asked: "Should I abandon the rest of my studies? If so, what am I supposed to do?"

I said to him: "Sell beans and tomatoes, but, do not live this life."

I declare it forbidden for the youth to study in the West, except if they are married. Hear it from me: it is forbidden for a youth to study in the West, unless he is married. Relay on my behalf, even if it is one fatwa: it is not allowed, not allowed, not allowed. How can one protect himself? It is impossible to protect oneself, except through marriage. It is impossible, impossible, impossible for the unmarried person to live there, unless he is abnormal. If he is abnormal, then he might be able to live there. As for the normal human being, then how, my brother? Sex is available like water, and it is allowed, according to the law, in the street, everywhere! The stories are many, and those who came to us from Italy and Sweden know very well the disasters lurking in the Western societies. So, what would we say about a youth who was in the land of Jihad, then he decided to travel to Sweden? Why do you wish to go? He said: "To get a passport from there."

May Allah not bless you, and may He not bless your passport. Do you wish to exchange the lands of Jihad for the most evil lands on Earth?"

['Fi Dhilal Surat at-Tawbah'; p. 12]

[Ibn Al Akwa]

Let Nobody Have Any Favor Over You:

"al-Imam Ahmad - may Allah have Mercy upon him - would not accept any gifts from the people, so that they would not have any favor over him. He would reject the gifts of the rulers. One time - and the people loved to present him with gifts - he sent one of his sons to buy a loaf of bread. So, when the baker asked the boy who he was, he replied: "I am the son of Ahmad bin Hambal." So, instead of filling the bag with bread, the baker filled it with gold and silver, and gave it to him. When Ahmad bin Hambal opened the bag and found gold and silver, he told his son: "Go back to him." When he gave the bag back, the baker called out to him: "Come, at least take the bread that you paid a dirham for!" Imam Ahmad's son said: "My father commanded me to return everything."

They would wish that they could give him some gift, but, he was honorable in the face of such a reality, as the Prophet said: "Abstain from the dunya, and Allah will Love you. Abstain from what is with the people, and the people will love you."

Then came the tribulation of the creation of the Qur'an. al-Ma'mun adopted this belief, and came to torture Ahmad bin Hambal, so that he would do the same. al-Ma'mun died, al-Mu'tasim continued in torturing him, and he took a stand for Allah - the Mighty and Exalted - in which he honored this religion. Eighteen years, and three rulers who tortured him so that he would accept and endorse the belief of the Qur'an being created, but, he refused. Then came al-Wathiq, who reversed all that had happened in terms of the affair of the creation of the Qur'an. He wanted to honor Ahmad bin Hambal publicly, but, Imam Ahmad refused. So, he sent for his sons and showered them with gifts, which they accepted. When Ahmad bin Hambal learned that his sons had accepted the gifts of al-Wathiq, he built a wall between his home and theirs, boycotting them.

One day, Ahmad bin Hambal became sick. So, his doctor instructed him to roast a ear of corn in the oven and eat it. So, he bought the corn, and asked that it be roasted. So, it was taken to the oven of his uncle, Salih. When it was brought back to Ahmad, he asked: "Where did you roast it?" They said: "In the oven of your uncle, Salih." He said: "I will not even taste it, as his wealth has been mixed with the gifts of the ruler."

As a result, it got to the point that even the jinn would fear him!

A crazed girl was brought to al-Wathiq, so, he said: "Send her to Ahmad bin Hambal." When she was brought to Ahmad, they asked him: "Please cure this crazed girl for us!" So, he began to speak to the jinni that had possessed this girl, saying: "Get out of this girl! Get out of this girl!" But, it didn't come out. He continued, saying: "Get out, or I'll - and Ahmad began to threaten the jinni - " and the jinni came out, saying: "O Ahmad! You feared Allah, so, everything is afraid of you! You feared Allah, so, everything is afraid of you!"

The jinni waited until Ahmad bin Hambal eventually died, and it returned to possess the girl once again. So, they brought the girl to a shaykh - who, as it was said, is more like us than Ahmad bin Hambal - and he began to speak to the jinni, saying: "Get out, or I'll..." Suddenly, the jinni began to laugh, saying: "Ahmad bin Hambal has died; Ahmad bin Hambal has died...""

"Abstain from the dunya, and Allah will Love you. Abstain from what is with the people, and the people will love you."

['Fi Dhilal Surat at-Tawbah'; p. 195-196]