How do we know that Shaykh hasn't already tried? I would definitely not be surprised if this is the case. Especially when we have big ulema like Allama Azmi giving wishy washy appeasing statements about Palestine
How do we know that Shaykh hasn't already tried? I would definitely not be surprised if this is the case. Especially when we have big ulema like Allama Azmi giving wishy washy appeasing statements about Palestine
There is changes on the ground the Ummah has effected. We need to carry this on and effect greater changes. Israel will be eliminated within 9 years..was an initial military intel calculation, however one of the American military intel analysts (iirc D Mcgregor) has said those 'in charge of people' want this episode to be over so they can carry on with restoring normality (their power over the people) - which is the treachery to the Palestinian people. Involvement is required, campaigning, refuting, providing assistance is required and if we are persecuted, we are persecuted - Allah is the Greatest, if we die we die - Allah is the Greatest This is not one of those situations that can be ignored. The pain of the Ummah will come out in the pious. It does trump many other issues. I think on the sectarian front this is a totally new competition - the winner of which may not be the winner of previous sectarian issues. It's an open front for Allah, did we say or did the Jews say: They said, “O Moosa! We will never enter it whilst they are there, so you and your Lord go and fight - we shall remain seated here.” Previous normality no longer exists, it was a dream, a deep sleep.
If i can add to this, and i hope this will be of some benefit: As a young Arab from a Sunni background, and before i knew anything about what/who Barelvis were (just normal Desi Sunnis as i later saw), i had no idea there was another form of Desi Islam than the Tablighi Jamaat. I had seen Barelvis somewhere, but their overattachment to things which are purely Desi, and not Sunni, are what put a huge barrier between me and them, to the point where i thought it was just another weird sect. A lot of Arabs will integrate the TJ, but not Barelvi circles. From my own experience, when i met Barelvis after, and spent almost a year in their circles, i realized that most only have an attachment to the Desi form, keeping everything as pristinely as it was back home from the outward, without even seeking to adapt to the context within the broadness of Hanafi fiqh. Cultural aspects are seen as sacred, Urdu is considered sacrosanct, and isolationism is policy. The issue is that my generation and the next are not from 'back home', and we don't identify with 'back home' as much as our parents do, culturally, even if we love our heritage and our respective cultures. I realized there was no effort to integrate people into the circle, as people have to culturally warp to be able to even benefit remotely from the activities. How do you keep people engaged if they don't even understand why they came to a particular event? I was told to come to Gyarween shareef, i didn't even know what it was, and when i asked, they said: it means eleven. When i attended, i understood it was just a normal dhikr gathering. If one Barelvi group changes and becomes popular, it will force all the other ones to change. If someone on this forum has any power to change just one community, i pray Allah gives you tawfiq. The most popular group is the wahhabis without a doubt. They provide: 1- Cultural relevance 2- a serious culture of seeking knowledge 3- a community These 3 things i believe are the axes through which impact is brought. As long as people who have no understanding of their context are put in charge, things will never change, and will only get worse. Wa biLlahittawfiq
From what I know from UK imams and Ulema, their concern isn't that someone becomes a wahabi etc but that they completely abandon Islam and sometimes become anti Islam promoters. Maybe the situation is different elsewhere.
This is because, in the age of social media, people can directly access information. The narrative is now shaped by individuals sharing news, disrupting traditional propaganda methods. Not only are some distancing themselves from Barelwism, but a few are even renouncing the religion itself. In another case, a Muslim girl from the Barelwi shareef named Farah has apostatized by marrying a Hindu guy. This marks the third such case in the last couple of months. While Barelwi Muftis have commendably taken a clear stance on Aqaid, Iman, and Kufr, they have struggled to effectively promote their Dawah or allow others like DI/SDI to do so. An institutional problem persists as many Barelvi scholars refuse to acknowledge it. Some vehemently criticize fellow scholars of their maslak, fostering an environment that discourages questioning practices. Those who do so face ad hominem attacks.
Shyakh Asrar Rashid in his book Islam answers Atheism, page 340. The reason why it makes a difference is because it is a narration which is qarīb bi'l mutawātir, and if we begin rejecting reports which are of such strength, then this is a dangerous move. "Feminist Muslims" already interpret various Hadiths regarding patriarchy in a similar manner; they often reject these Hadiths outright. Moreover, classical Sunni scholars mentioned there is agreement upon Age of A'isha رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُ. He may have his own methodology and approach to dawah, but I don't believe an apologetic approach is the way to go.
ulama should stick to teaching the deen. the most ulama can engage in politics is to clarify for the people what is right or wrong in actions etc according to shariah. popularity and public opinion is not permanent. the most popular speaker today will be gone tomorrow. popularity also has a cost - one will have to dilute one's opinions to make it acceptable to a larger audience. and one will have to sit with all types of people and listen to their opinions even if one doesn't like them or agree with them. --- why is israel losing the info-war? because propaganda that worked on their parents is not working on gen-z. while we may be sympathetic to sh. asrar's sharing platform with shady characters, the next generation may not be so forgiving. unless sh. asrar desires to be remembered for his talks on palestine and his tete-a-tete with hijab or yasir qadhi. --- the responsibility of ulama is to clarify the stance of ahl al-sunnah. hundreds of thousands lads are leaving 'barelwism'? let them. so where are the "tens of thousands" or even "thousands" who have been saved by sh. asrar due to his new image/approach of not openly refuting deviants and appearing on all platforms? who's counting anyway? --- there are many contradictions in this approach which i find difficult to digest. for example: we vociferously condemn those who do not allow alcohol based sanitisers and openly berate them, even though it is just a fiqh issue. whereas we are willing to ignore or refuse to talk about the aqidah issues of devbandis. we can make excuses of how we have to be broad minded to bring people towards the truth. great, but why does such broad mindedness disappear when it is about barelwis? the chuff chuff peer is a charlatan. it is all about himself - how great he is and therefore, give him money. there ends his act. whereas people who support and sell ibn taymiyyah - prepare you for what you may hear elsewhere about iT's aqayid. so their danger is greater. but when you bring up this topic, we are lectured on how bad the situation is in the UK. look false pirs. look naat-singing and blah blah assemblies. here we become very strict and demand people to be strictly observant about the shariah. but we can be much more lenient about a dozen things when we are talking to social media stars. after a few years, people will ask: 'what exactly do you stand for? what is your USP? what is it that you offer - or we have to come to you for - which is not found elsewhere?' we need to think this through.
Sadly Sh Asrars following both offline and online is but a fraction of someone like MH. From the common folk, he, Sh Asrar, has become more well known amongst salafi/deo types and is respected for his firm view on the issue of the occupation unlike perhaps some of their own scholars who say, just be patient and only make dua. Have a look at some of threads on Salafi/Deo forums about him. It is risky though as how many of sunnis will see someone the calibre of Sh Asrar sharing the stage with MH and then will see that some kind of approval of MH. Certainly the warm words Sh Asrar exchanged with MH referring to him as his Athari, Hanbali brother would make it seem so.
A brother here mentioned that he only retweet from individuals who are true Sunni. If we consider this approach, we should ask ourselves what would happen if the person you are retweeting is not as devoutly Sunni as you. What if they occasionally retweet or endorse posts from those who hold deviant beliefs? What if a newly joined follower sees this and starts following your followers, eventually leading them to follow individuals with deviant beliefs? Is there anything stopping him there? Perhaps if you stop retweeting or deactivate Twitter and remove yourself from all social media, you may not attract another Sunni layman to follow a deviant path. I don't distrust your intentions! I'm simply taking your idea to its logical conclusion. I feel that many Barelvis who witnessed the spread of Tableeghi, Ahlul Hadiths in the subcontinent, and saw their loved ones being influenced by these deviant beliefs, became insecure about our own creed. We, Ahle Sunnah wa Jamaat, will remain the majority. However, where Sunnis in the subcontinent have failed is in encouraging scholarship, building madrasas, and training scholars and hadith experts. Over the past three decades, Sunnis have countered deviant beliefs by promoting visits to dargahs, increasing acts like gyarvi , or organizing naat gatherings.This is not to make a hasty generalization fallacy, but rather to highlight the approach taken by many scholars at the local level. We should not disregard the giants who wrote books that never reached Sunni Muslims. Unfortunately, no one has made an effort to teach these laypeople even a basic understanding of Aqeedah Tahawiyyah.As a result, most Sunnis have never even heard of it. Nowadays, people have access to a wide variety of content. Whether it is shared or not, once they become curious, they will eventually try to watch a controversial video. For example, there might be a Zakir Naik video on their Facebook timeline, where he criticizes the trinitarian view of Christianity. They might become impressed by that short clip. As observers, there is not much we can do in this situation. However, what we can do is support and encourage scholars who speak out against harmful traditions within our community. We need scholars who criticize Sunni Muslims for their ignorance (jahalat) and are not afraid to speak against fake pirs by name. It is known that these pirs also engage in lobbying activities. They take the place of their respected fathers and establish connections with ulama. Only Allah knows what they might present to them (similar to the Zionist lobby). Once these pirs cross the line and cause fitna, the scholars are hesitant to call them out and warn the public. All they can say is that fake pirs do not represent our Mashlak. While this is true, it is important to identify and name some of the major pirs, especially if they have a sizeable audience and deviant friends. It is necessary to denounce their influence and call them out directly, rather than just giving vague clues.
He is evidently influenced by Ibn Taymiyyah, possibly consider him as Shaykh ul Islam. However, in an interview with Yasir Qadi, it seemed that he does not agree with Ibn Taymiyyah's heretical beliefs, such as the notion that Hellfire will vanish. He also doesn't associates himself with the name Taymi, unlike Yasir Qadi. Over the past two years, he has shown a growing fascination with Imam Ghazali and has even endorsed the book Ihya uloom id din. It's important to note that these insights are based on videos, and his actual beliefs may differ. Allahu alam.
I believe Mohammed Hijab follows or at the least influenced by Ibn Taymiyyah in most of his theology except the anthropomorphism.
It's essential to prioritize principles over associations, perhaps by selectively engaging with a focus on shared values and common causes that benefit the entire Ummah. Determining parameters for engagement involves assessing shared values and common goals. Scholars and community leaders often play a role in guiding such decisions. While everyone can contribute and voice their opinion if they disagree, it is important to refrain from calling a scholar a "sulah kulli enabler" or making hasty comments by quoting the end of time hadith about how a person leaves their home a believer and comes back as a kafir. Such statements are preposterous for senior sunni scholar and can be considered defamatory, in my opinion. Yes, one can argue about the significance of programs where people discuss Palestine. However, I believe there is value in sharing inspiring stories of Gaza Mujahideens and highlighting the perseverance of the people, as it boosts faith. Perhaps the youth who listen to these stories will share them on their Instagram, Twitter, or WhatsApp stories. This, at the very least, will generate conversations about the issue at hand. In countries like Pakistan or India, the general public often remains indifferent, perceiving it as just another conflict between two nations, similar to what they have witnessed over the past two decades. They have become desensitized. I contend that winning the social media game and shaping our own narrative is crucial at this moment. In these programs, hosts can encourage Muslims to vote for candidates who did not support a ceasefire in Parliament. This will help them realize the importance of their votes. Fundraising for Palestinians can be another motivating factor. Muhammad Hijab is a YouTuber, more like a showman. While he may be well-versed in Islamic knowledge and geopolitical issues, he doesn't come across as a Najdi scholar to his audience. He has never claimed to follow the Ahlul Bid'ah Wahhabi Aqeedah. I once saw him defending people who criticized Imam Abu Hanifa and Abu Hasan Ashari (may Allah be pleased with them). He never reveals his true Aqeedah because he wants to present himself to a wider audience. As a result, he now has over a million subscribers. Coming to his wahabi friend, Ali Dawah. I saw him defending Abdul Wahab and many Salafi scholars. He is a straight-up red flag. But since Hijab collaborates with him from time to time, that must be a red flag too, I agree. One might argue that these YouTubers care more about their showmanship than who they collaborate with. If tomorrow Chuf Chuf says he will give an interview to Mr. Hijab, he will definitely see this as an opportunity to feature him and bring in Chuf's audience, while giving his existing audience a fun interview by making fun of him. These are just assumptions to make one more point.
I don't doubt Shaykh Asrar's intentions. But we are the majority. We have more to lose as it'll be Sunnis who start lending an ear to Hijab and his group. Shaykh Asrar can do one of two things: 1. Go to deviant and sulh platforms and appeal to their crowd. 2. Stick to Sunni platforms and fortify and solidify Sunnis. What's our priority? To bring deviants to us whilst risking diluting our brand or stay amongst Sunnis and create an unadulterated brand? Shaykh Asrar is of that calibre that even if he chooses the second, which he must, deviants will be forced to listen. If they want to come in, the door is open. But we won't dilute our words or actions to appease them. Alahazrat never diluted and today he is the standard of Ahl al-Sunnah.
Shaykh Asrār Rashid has already refuted as did Mufti Munib ur-Rehman, if the people dont listen whos fault is that. The fatawas agains TUQ and Irfan Shāh are out from Major ʿulamā' yet people still flock to them. The Awam itself is doing damage by not listening to the scholars or at the very least studying the basics as to not get dragged in or fooled by them. @Aqdas Is it possible that Shaykh Asrār maybe with Mohammed Hijab maybe to get a wider audience, as he almost a million subscribers on youtube. Might be a way for people to listen to Shaykh Asrār for those who never have and become intrigued by his Dawah.
how did you come at this figure? it is just ONE lad in the video. how can we extrapolate to hundreds of thousands? and even if so, how can you say that it is only chuff chuff responsible for this? which well-known scholar or pir among sunnis has attested chuff chuff? --- that is not because of chuff chuff - but because anything fishy is shamelessly attributed to imam ahmad rida khan. unfortunately, even some well-meaning scholars could not escape this lazy - and unfair - characterisation. what effect has the palestine "programs" of sh. asrar or anyone else had on the palestinian issue per se? sorry to burst your bubble, but the criminal israeli army didn't stop a bit - in spite of the numerous protests (more effective than mere talk shows) worldwide. jewish academics like finkelstein, gabor mate, chomsky and fussaq like bassem yousef - even israelis like ilan pappe and gideon levy have contributed more to highlight the palestinian cause in the media. and of c, the most articulate and passionate are the palestinians themselves - mustafa barghouti, husam zomlot, hanan ashrawi etc. while it is a good thing to have someone speak - frankly just holding a conference is not going to change a bit. the real change is coming on the ground by the palestinian warriors and their allies among houthis and hezbollah (howsoever we may distance ourselves from their shiyi beliefs). personally, i think that our turn to do something for palestinians will come soon after they achieve independence from the occupier. perhaps those of us who can contribute in terms of money, service, teaching or even labour to help rebuild palestine. apart from that, i don't think we can do anything much at the moment. may Allah ta'ala forgive us. ---
You should focus on the tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of youth, males and females, like the young lad in the video below who are distancing themselves from the beliefs of practises of Imam Ahmad Rida Khan
