The Paradigm Shift of the Salafi Dawah in the West

All praise is for Allah and may His peace and blessings be upon His final prophet and messenger, Muhammad Ibn Abdullah, and upon his family and companions. Allah says in His noble Book:

And We have made some of you a trial for others will you have patience and your Lord is ever AllSeer of everything (25:20) Due to the recent turn of events and the continued propaganda surrounding my situation by those who prefer to indulge in he said she said, from which we have been forbidden, rather than prepare themselves for the blessed Month of Ramadan and busying themselves with sound elevating knowledge, and Allah says:

O You who believe concern yourselves with yourselves! If you follow right guidance no harm can come to you from those who are in error. The return of you all is to Allah, then He will inform you about all that which you used to do. (5:105) I decided that before closing this chapter in my life, I would detail the chain of events that have led up to our situation being as it is, as a means of clarifying what took place, so as to leave no doubt in the minds of the people regarding the blatant and continued injustice and partiality that continues to take place, and that, if left unchecked, will undoubtedly impede the progress and development of the dawah in the West, as we have already begun to see manifestations of it. Allah says in the Quran:

Let there arise out of you a group of people inviting to all that is good, enjoining good and forbidding evil and it is they who will be successful. (3:104) And to further highlight and emphasize this, so as not to appear biased in doing so, Allah mentioned in another verse:

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O you who believe! Stand out firmly for justice, as a witness to Allah, even if it is against your own selves, or your parents or your relatives, be he rich or poor, Allah is a better guardian for them both. So follow not the lusts of your hearts least you avoid justice and if you distort your witness or refuse to give it, verily Allah is Ever Well- Acquainted with what you do. (4:135) The Prophet (sallahu alaihi wa salam) mentioned in a authentic hadeeth collected in Sahih Al Bukhari on the authority of Abu Hurairah (radiyallahu anhu): Whoever from amongst you sees an evil then let him change it with his hands, and if he does not have the ability then let him change it with his tongue (i.e. by saying something about it) and if he does not have the ability then to hate it in his heart and this is the weakest level of Iman (i.e. faith) I have hated in my heart, from the time that Allah graciously guided me to Islam, up until today, the way that many of the students of knowledge and duaat handle the affairs of those who are involved with the dawah here in the West. Although I had yet to formally study the religion of Islam, thus rendering me unqualified to speak on what I saw, I hated it in my heart. Now, after having graduated from the Islamic University with a degree in Islamic studies and a concentration in Prophetic Traditions (i.e. Hadeeth), I feel as though it is an obligation upon myself to speak out against what is taking place here, even if it is at the expense of my honor:

Indeed Allah defends those who believe and Allah likes not any treacherous ingrate. (22:38) I desire my reward from Allah and hope, by this humble effort, to open the eyes of many brothers and sisters who continue to be coerced and bullied by the dissemination of broad-spectrum and dubiously obtained fatawah (i.e. religious verdicts). These verdicts are many times void of any detailed academic study, thus preventing the brothers and sisters from comprehending the matter in light of the proofs and evidences. This is coupled with constant threats of being put off the minhaj for going against the scholars if you don't follow the 'fatwah'. Even this term 'the scholars' is, all too often, used as a catch phrase that may not represent a majority opinion on any given issue, much less constitute proof in Islam. As the scholars have taught us: we use the scholars to understand the daleel (i.e. proofs and evidences) and not as daleel. This is the status quo which many have been made to reluctantly accept by individuals who appear to have an agenda other than uplifting and educating the masses of Muslims here in the West; those regular Muslims who struggle daily dodging the perils of the sacrilegious and immoral societies they live in, trying to become better slaves to Allah and productive members of their respective communities. It also prevents them from having a substantial grasp of the religion to make rudimentary decisions for the well-being of their families. 2|Page

I have never claimed, nor do I claim to be the most knowledgeable or the most intelligent whether in religious matters or those pertaining to life in general. I dont claim to have all the answers to the numerous problems and ills that our communities are afflicted with, May Allah rectify our affairs. And although I may come across this way unintentionally, I believe my confidence and assertiveness has long been mistaken for arrogance and impudence. This is one of the reasons that I documented some of my biography in the last book He Came to Perfect Moral Character to give the brothers and sisters a glimpse at the kind of lifestyle I came from in order to understand why I am the way I am. So after this brief introduction I would like to say that the content of what I am about to mention is going to upset some, but the context in which I am mentioning it should undoubtedly satisfy the enumerable cries and complaints from those who have not been afforded the opportunity to address such delicate matters in the manner which I intend to address them. I pray that Allah the Most High, Al Raqeeb (i.e. Ever-Watcher) over His creation, guides my tongue to say that which is pleasing to Him and to avoid transgressing the boundaries regarding the honor of His slaves. I ask Allah to give me sincerity and accuracy in what I disclose for indeed He is the Wali (i.e. Gardian) of success, and may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon Muhammad, his family and companions. As to what proceeds:

The First Incident:

In the summer of 2009, at Masjid Rahmahs annual conference I had a meeting with Abu Hassan Malik regarding my relationship with www.madeenah .com and my position regarding the brothers at Salafi Publications, May Allah preserve them all. This was after the conversation that Hassan Somali (may Allah preserve him) had with Sheikh Ubayd Al Jabiree (may Allah preserve him) regarding me. Hassan was confronted with numerous inquiries from the brothers regarding him being on some of the same programs as myself while knowing my position regarding the brothers from Salafi Publications! So Hassan contacted Sheikh Ubayd and mentioned to him that some of the brothers in America have a problem working with Shadeed Muhammad, so sheikh Ubayd reportedly said: what issues does he have in Aqeedah (i.e. creed)? So Hassan reportedly said: none that I know of sheikh. Sheikh Ubayd reportedly said: Well what issues does he have in Minhaj (i.e. methodology)? So Hassan reportedly said: none that I know of sheikh. So Sheikh Ubayd said: Then they are personal issues between them and they can work them out amongst themselves This was per the conversation I had with Hassan Somali as well as the brothers on the administration at Masjid Rahmah and not he said, she said. When I spoke to Abul Hassan Malik during that meeting I walked away thinking that everything between us was ok but in fact it wasnt as we will come to know. Lets fast forward to May of 2010, Abul Hassan Malik came to Saudi Arabia and during his visit he stopped in Medina. He along with Abdul Wali Nelson from Philadelphia went to Sheikh Muhammad Ibn Hady to ask him the question, which is available on the website salafitalk.net, ironically one of the affiliate websites of the brothers from Salafi Publications.

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I spoke to Abul Hassan days prior to him going to Muhammad Ibn Hady and nothing of this clandestine meeting with the sheikh was communicated to me. When I asked Abul Hassan Why didnt you call me and say Shadeed Im in Medina and I want you to come so we can both sit with the sheikh because there are some things I need clarity on? His response to me was: I told you before there were some things I needed to discuss with the scholars! Allah says in the Quran:

There is absolutely no good in most of their secret meetings except those that involve ordering with sadaqah (I.e. charity) or all types of good or reconciliation between people and he who does this seeking the good pleasure of Allah, We shall give him a great reward. (4:114) With all due respect, I dont know if the first two were discussed, but we know undoubtedly that reconciliation was not discussed because I would have been informed prior to the meeting that a meeting was going to take place and that I was going to be the subject of discussion, and Allah knows best. Even the mode of the question was deceptive and not entirely accurate. He said: So when we noticed his speech regarding our brothers we took a position that we will not cooperate with him in lessons and lectures until he holds back from his speech How could this be accurate when we (I.e. myself, Abdul Hassan Malik and Hassan Somali) have been on the same programs since 2006? Even if we said for the sake of argument, that they were avoiding me because of my supposed attacks on the brothers (i.e. Salafi Publications), then why didnt the brothers take the speech of Sheikh Ubayd that was communicated to Hassan Somali previously in 2009 and work out whatever personal differences we had amongst ourselves? This is coupled with the fact that I visited the brothers from Salafi Publications in the United Kingdom in February of 2010, which Abul Hassan was completely aware of, in a personal attempt to rectify the situation for the sake of the dawah. When I left the meeting it appeared that we had reached a small level of cooperation, but I was to find out the hard way that this was not the case at all. Allah says in the Quran:

And Allah knows he who means mischief from he who means good and if Allah had willed He could have put you into difficulties, truly Allah is All Mighty, All-Wise. (2:220) After speaking with Sheikh Muhammad Ibn Hady (may Allah preserve him), Abul Hassan contacted Abdul Jaleel Meekins from Philadelphia, whom I and others have advised Abul Hassan about affiliating himself with and exposing him to affairs regarding the students of knowledge. Abdul Jaleel, as anticipated, went as far as warning the brothers in Philadelphia against buying my books, which is something the Sheikh never mentioned. This is the danger of exposing the laymen to major affairs such 4|Page

as those being discussed here. Only after that did I receive a phone call from Abul Hassan Malik informing me of the situation which had already taken place. Abdul Jaleel then informed Dawud Adib who in-turn informed Anas from Philadelphia (may Allah preserve him) who boldly stood in front of the community at Masjid Ar Razzaq in Wilmington, DE and announced to the brothers and sisters publicly that the scholars have warned against Shadeed Muhammad until he retracts and if he doesnt, to stay away from his tapes, lectures, books and CDs! As far as I could read from what was posted on Salafitalk.net there was no mention of my name, my tapes, my books or my CDs! Allah says:

When there comes to them a matter regarding public safety or fear they rush to spread it amongst the people. If only they had referred it to the Messenger and those charged with authority amongst them (i.e. the leaders and the scholars) the proper individuals would have understood it directly from them. Had it not been for the grace and mercy of Allah you would have followed Shaytan except a few of you. (4:83) So finally I was told: I just spoke to the Sheikh and he said you have to make a bayan (i.e. clarification) However, my name was never mentioned in the question specifically, nonetheless, I was contacted and told I have to make a bayan. This totally goes against the statement of Sheikh Muhammad Bin Hady himself some years ago, the title of which is Phone calls from the West (posted on madeenah.com in Arabic and English) regarding those who ask general questions and apply them to specific individuals. And if I recall correctly, the Sheikh said that these individuals were liars and that if they were truthful they would mention their names specifically. Nonetheless, I wrote the bayan, not out of fear of being warned against (as this was being done already), but because I sincerely believed that some of the things I was involved with in the past could have been handled better and in a manner that would have been more pleasing to Allah. I did not intend by the bayan a blanket condemnation of every article on madeenah.com nor the brothers that translated them. Rather, what I intended was to clarify that some of the articles were counterproductive, and were being used to fuel the fire of dissent between Salafis. I felt that the bayan would demonstrate that Salafis who may differ on some issues could have a mature working relationship, even if only on the surface, since there are those who use the way that Salafis handle their differences as an excuse to reject this illustrious da'wah. I contacted Sheikh Abdullah Bukhari (may Allah preserve him) who said to me that he didnt see anything wrong with writing the bayan and that it would be nice to allow people to see that you all have a working relationship with one another. So I wrote the bayan and, alhamdulilah, I believe it achieved the desired affect; at least none of us would be responsible in front of Allah for chasing people away from the dawah because of our differences and the way we handle them. However, the bayan was still not enough to satisfy the situation. Musa Richardson (may Allah preserve him) posted the bayan on

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Salafitalk.net and it was taken down immediately. By Allah! I ask, is this the methodology of rectification?? Sheikh ul Islam Ibn Taymiyah (Rahimahullah) said about Ahlus Sunnah:

They are the most knowledgeable of the people regarding the Creator and the most merciful of the people to the people. However, it appears to me that rectification is never what was desired and Allah, the All-Knower, knows best. If I ever held any position(s) regarding the brothers from Salafi Publications or directed any criticism towards them, I was preceded by a scholar!!! Whether it was Sheikh Khalid Radaadee who said they were biased in the information they put out to the people and they had fallen into Ghuloo (i.e. excessiveness) and giving fatawah and being hasty in posting things on their site (www.salafitalk) without consideration of the harm it would cause to the communities in the West, or Sheikh WaseeAllah Abbas who singled one of them out as being ignorant and unworthy of giving dawah in the West, or Sheikh Muhammad Ibn Hady who instructed them to agree and sign the ten point bayan, or Sheikh Abdullah Bukhari (may Allah preserve them all) who said they have made many mistakes in their minhaj, or any of the other scholars who openly and privately criticized the brothers from Salafi Publications themselves. This situation is all too reminiscent of the position I and others took regarding Sheikh Falih Al Harbi (may Allah forgive me and him and rectify his affairs) after taking the advice Sheikh Abdul Muhsin Al Abad (may Allah preserve him) which he gave to his students publicly approximately one year prior to the refutation of Sheikh Rabee' (may Allah preserve him). When we took that position we were boycotted by the same brothers because the affair of Falih was not clear to them yet, even though a mountain like Sheikh Abdul Muhsin Al Abbad had already spoken. After the bayan, I along with some of the brothers on the administration of Masjid Rahmah asked Abul Hassan Malik and Hassan Somali (may Allah preserve them both) if there was anything else that needed to be cleared up between myself and the brothers? If there is anything else, please lets bring it out now and deal with everything while we are here. They both replied in the negative and assured me that we will have a working relationship from now on. However, we will see that this was not the case, as the aforementioned brothers were well aware of the next situation!!!

The Second Incident:

Back in April of 2010, a brother named Yusuf Diab, who is responsible for Muwahideen Publications, invited me to do a seminar in Trinidad/Tobago. I considered the brother to be a decent individual and Allah knows him better, but this would change dramatically after this unfortunate incident. My family and I were obliged, as always, to accommodate his request. Unfortunately, after the seminar, we got stuck in Tobago for 4-5 days due to the volcanic ash that clouded the European skies. Prior to this, when I first arrived in Tobago, the brother Yusuf began to ask me questions regarding the brothers from Salafi Publications, as Abu Khadeejah had mentioned to him that I came to visit them 6|Page

back in February. I dont know what else was mentioned to Yusuf, but it goes back to the same issue of exposing the laymen to the affairs that take place between the students and putting them in a position to harm others as well as their own selves, and more importantly the dawah of Islam which affects masses of Muslims in the West. The scholars have a saying: Not everything that is known is uttered, and not everything that is uttered is said in front of everyone (i.e. everything is not for everybody) - but I guess when you share the same interests as the other, the principle is not applicable. Neglecting this principle only perpetuates the fitnah that is between the brothers. The conversation I had with the brother Yusuf was confidential, at least I thought at the time. He went back to Abu Khadeejah as well as Hassan Somali in the UK and Abul Hassan Malik in the USA (may Allah preserve them) and discussed with them the conversation I had with him. Unfortunately, Yusuf completely counteracted the efforts of the brothers to bring some closure to the situation that had previously existed between them. If I said anything that needed to be corrected during that conversation it should have been communicated to me directly. The way of the salaf was to protect your brother from falling into anything that would anger Allah or cause separation between brothers in faith. Yahya Ibn Maeen, one of the contemporaries of Imam Ahmad (Rahimahullah), made a very profound statement:

I never saw a mistake in someone except I concealed it and I would advise him in private just me and him. If he accepted my advice, then this is what was appropriate and if he didnt, I would leave him. This action and much of what takes place amongst the brothers is called nameemah (i.e. tale carrying), no matter how you dress it up. The Shaytans Minhaj is to call something by other than its name to make it appear fair seeming in the eyes of the perpetrator, similar to what he did with Adam (Alaihis salam). He called the tree Adam and Hawwa were forbidden from the tree of everlasting life. But the reality of it is that it was still the same tree they were forbidden to eat from!!! Nameemah is used to cause discord between two people and there is never any good that comes out of it and this is why the Prophet (Sallahu alaihi wa salam) said:

The one who carries tales will not enter into paradise. Umar Ibn Al Khattab (Radiyallahu anhu) said:

If your brother mentions something to you in private then walks away it is a trust even if he didnt instruct you not to inform anyone. (mentioned in Ibn Muflihs Adaab ush Sharee'ah)

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We are all aware of these narrations and we quote them when its convenient for us however, the practical application of it within ourselves is almost non-existent or completely absent. Preservation of brotherhood in Islam is top priority in any situation and not to be considered a treasured commodity because of the interests you share with others. The legislation of Islam has prohibited certain acts because of the discord it has the potential to cause between two brothers/sisters in Islam. The Prophet (Sallahu alaihi wa salam) said: Do not raise the price over one another, do not undercut one another and do not propose to a woman that your brother has proposed to (Collected in Saheeh Al Bukhari) The Prophet (Sallahu alaihi wa salam) said in his final sermon (i.e. Khutbah) to this ummah: Dont be jealous of one another, dont hate one another and dont turn your backs on one another but be, o slaves of Allah, as brothers (Collected in Saheeh Al Bukhari) The other incident that took place while I was in Tobago, one which I make no excuses for and one which I am utterly ashamed of, is that I took my family to the movies. I realize that this was inappropriate, and as some of the Salaf used to say:

May Allah have mercy on the one who avoids putting himself in situations where people will backbite him. I would have rather avoided mentioning this in such a public fashion. However, this disclosure was already carefully executed by individuals who know no boundaries regarding the honor of others. So even though this should have been concealed, it was made public by the brother Yusuf from Trinidad as well as our brother Abdulilah Lahmani from the UK who now resides in Medina. This is something that has tarnished my honor and the Shaytan has achieved his goal by way of the brothers who aided and assisted him. After I returned back to Riyadh, the brother Yusuf who invited me to Trinidad called Abu Khadeejah, Hassan Somali, Abul Hassan Malik as well as Muhammad Al Maliki in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia informing them of what happened. This was done without any consideration of what potential effect this could have on my honor specifically or even the da'wah generally. The brother Yusuf was advised by Hassan Somali to refrain from calling all over about the issue and to contact me and advise me personally if, in fact, he felt as though it was wrong, which he never did. The brother was also advised by Muhammad Maliki (may Allah preserve him) that he was wrong in calling everyone regarding what I did and to refrain from doing so, but by this time it had already reached the corners of the dunya! Abu Qilaabah (Rahimahullah) said:

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If something detestable reaches you regarding your brother then you should exert every effort to find an excuse for him. And if you can find an excuse for him then you should say to yourself: Perhaps my brother has an excuse! (sifat tus safwah Vol.3 Pg. 238) But I fear that those involved in spreading this matter may have fallen into the statement of Allah:

Indeed those who love to see that indecency be propagated amongst those who believe, they will have a painful torment in this world and in the hereafter and Allah knows and you know not. (24:19) Ali Ibn Abi Talib (Radiyallahu anhu) said:

The one who says something indecent and the one who spreads it share in the same sin (Mentioned in Imam Bukharis Adab Al Mufrad and Sheikh Albani graded it as saheeh) And the Prophet (Sallahu alaihi wa salam) said: Whoever covers the fault of a Muslim, then Allah will cover his faults on the Day of Resurrection (Collected in Saheeh Al Bukhari on the authority of Abu Hurairah) And in another narration he (Sallahu alaihi wa salam) said: Allah will cover his faults in this life as well as in the hereafter And all of the numerous statements of the Prophet (Sallahu alaihi wa salam) regarding this matter which we seem to have forgotten, especially as it relates to someone who is involved with calling to Allah in the West where the Muslims are a minority and those who hold fast to what is correct in Aqeedah and Minhaj are even less in number and strength. As for myself, I sincerely apologize to the brothers and sisters I have hurt in all of this. I am far from perfect, but what I have given of information regarding this religion should not be dismissed or disregarded because of a sin I committed in my personal life. The information was sound insha Allah and we will all be held accountable for what we hear and what we act upon or neglect to act upon. I dont want the people using the situation surrounding me as an excuse to be negligent regarding the rights of their Lord over them. Use this situation to make you a stronger slave of Allah and stay away from the trickery of the Shaytan which he is employing by way of our brothers, may Allah guide them and rectify their affairs. 9|Page

The Third Incident:

In Jun of 2010 some of the brothers from the UK went to Saudi Arabia to make Umrah. One of the brothers, whom I have no hard feelings towards, reluctantly mentioned some things about me to Abdulilahthere in Medina. The brother mentioned to me in July of 2010, after I found out that he was the one who made the statement initially that Abdulilah from the UK began to ask him all sorts of questions about Shadeed Muhammad as well as warning the brothers that I was evil and they should stay away from me. He also mentioned to me that he had no idea that Abdulilah was going to take what he said back to Sheikh Ubayd and Sheikh Rabee'. So Abdulilah, along with Abdul Wali Nelson from Philadelphia and Hasaan Somali, went to Sheikh Ubayd and told him that I went to the movies and apparently mentioned other things which, come to find out, were blatant lies. Sheikh Ubayd said that I should not be giving dawah. When I spoke to Hassan Somali about the incident he said: Wallahi Shadeed I was not there when Abdulilah asked the question! However, he admitted that he was aware of what the sheikh said shortly thereafter (the same night). I said to Hassan Somali: Either you agree with what he did, and if you do, then there is nothing else to talk about, or you disagree with what he did, but you didnt say anything to him, which makes you just as guilty! His reply to me was: I have my own personal feelings about it but that is neither here nor there right now! So my statement to him was: I dont want your personal view on it, I want you to tell me Islamically was it right to do such a thing or not? He responded, Like I said, I have my own personal views about it! I asked him Did you even advise him about the malicious act that he perpetrated? He said: I havent seen Abdulilah. However, we find that Hassan Somali himself went with Abdulilah and Abdul Wali Nelson from Philadelphia to Makkah to speak to Sheikh Rabee' about the same incident shortly thereafter. The funny thing about all of this is that when Hassan Somali returned to America In July of 2010, he acted as if he didnt know about the incident and definitely concealed the fact that he was there!!! Either the response of Sheikh Ubayd was not enough to satisfy his inquiry or they wanted to strengthen the word when it got back to America and the UK. And as Abul Hassan Malik hinted at in his post on Salafitalk.net Those who Accuse Their critics of Jealousy this dawah is not about personalities. Whether it was sheikh Ubayd or Sheikh Rabee' (May Allah preserve them both) one statement would have sufficed me as well as the brothers and sisters in the West so as long as it was coupled with proofs and evidences. The words of a scholar is not given credence because of who he is, rather his words are given credence and validity based upon its closeness to the haqq (i.e. truth). The truth is known by the truth and not by individuals! This is what the scholars themselves teach us. But what was apparent is that if they could get Sheikh Rabees statement coupled with the statement of Sheikh Ubayd they could end my career as a daee once and for all. And I dont believe that if the scholars themselves knew that this was being perpetrated, as merciful as they are, and based upon what I know of them, that any of them would agree with the malicious and spiteful method that was employed.

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So Sheikh Rabee' (may Allah preserve him) supposedly said the same thing as Sheikh Ubayd and abundant calls were made all over the West proclaiming that the scholars have said that Shadeed Muhammad is not fit to give dawah!!! Allah says in the Quran:

nd let not your hatred of others cause you to avoid justice. Be just for it is closer to taqwah (i.e. A piety) Verily Allah is Well-Acquainted with what you do (5:8) I mentioned this verse because going to the movies was not the matter Sheikh Rabee' was concerned with, as is apparent from the e-mail that was sent out on my website inadvertently. When the administration of Masjid Rahmah sent our brother Ashraf Bayoomi (may Allah reward him immensely)to speak to Sheikh Rabee', in order to give him a clear view of who I was and to find out what exactly was said to him, and in an attempt to rectify the growing situation in our communities, you the reader will be surprised to know what was actually said to the Sheikh!!! Sheikh Rabee' asked Ashraf: What are the fatawah that Shadeed Muhammad gives in America?! Ashraf replied, "Shiekh I have known brother Shadeed for years and I have never known him to give fatawah! Sheikh Rabee' replied: Are you sure Ashraf? Ashraf said: Yes Im sure. As far as I know the brother reads the fatawah of the scholars like Ibn Baz, Uthaymeen and the likes. Then the Sheikh asked Ashraf What is the additional speech he adds to the speech of the scholars when he reads from their books of the scholars? Ashraf replied: Sheikh I dont know of anything additional he adds other than trying to bring modern day examples to better clarify the speech of the scholars. Sheikh Rabee' asked Ashraf: Are you sure about this? Ashraf replied: Yes Sheikh. This I am sure of. So the Sheikh said, "Well it appears that he has a love for being in the forefront and the chair (i.e. sitting in front of the people)." Ashraf replied, I dont know the brother to be as such! Any reader with an inkling of intelligence can see the picture that was painted to the Sheikh about me. And, ironically enough, he never even asked about the movies - which shows that the movie was not the real issue here. In my own defense, and the people know me better, I would like to address these things:

Firstly: I have never given any fatawah from myself. It is not even my method to mention fatawah from
the scholars in my lectures or classes, as I believe that the matters of the religion should be studied from their origin with proofs and evidences and not disseminated by way of broad open-ended fatawah that if understood inaccurately could cause a lot of problems for the communities of Muslims in the West. Sheikh Salih Ali Sheikh said: The knowledge of Fiqh (i.e. Islamic Jurisprudence) in Islam is far richer than to be studied by way of fatawah Nonetheless, if there were any fatawah that I quoted, they were the fatawah of the scholars, as the brother mentioned to Sheikh Rabee' (may Allah protect him from the malicious manipulation of those who come to him.)

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Secondly: That I have a love to put myself forward in the dawah. By Allah, I can only say that this is
totally inaccurate. Furthermore, the love of status is a matter of the heart, the claim of which requires solid proof and evidence. And according to Islam, the proof is upon the claimant. But if I was guilty of this, then it was only because I was trying to help fill a void and not because I wanted additional responsibilities on my plate. Giving dawah to the religion of Allah is a tremendous responsibility and the only perks are to see people transition from one state to the next in a manner that is pleasing to Allah and the tremendous reward in the hereafter, both of which, are not even guaranteed unless it be the will of Allah!!! When I graduated from the Islamic University in June of 2007 the only person who was traveling around America for the purpose of Dawah was Abu Muhammad Al Maghrabi (may Allah preserve him). I was extended a few offers from some of the communities to travel for the purpose of dawah as well, and I responded due to the void that was very apparent, especially regarding those communities that didnt have the luxury of having students of knowledge and Duaat. I never felt myself worthy of even standing in front of the people due to my lack of knowledge and experience and was quite sure that I would make a ton of mistakes, may Allah forgive me. Nonetheless I believe this is an individual observation and cannot possibly be the general opinion of everyone. I moved to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to try and escape some of the unwanted and unwarranted popularity. And for those who went to Sheikh Rabee' and accused me of loving the chair (i.e. sitting in front of the people) and loving to put myself at the forefront of the dawah, then I remind them of the famous hadeeth of Usama ibn Zaid (collected by Muslim) and I say to them, "Did you tear open his chest so that you could see what lie therein?"

Thirdly: The additional speech that I give to the speech of the scholars when I am reading from their
books. The only additional speech I give is to try and bring modern-day examples to the material so as to make the information relevant. Relevancy regarding the texts from the Quran and the Sunnah is important because it allows the listener to put the information he/she is receiving in its proper perspective and context and I dont believe that any of the duaat are free from this. So long as the speech of the scholars is not taken out of its context, this shouldnt have been an issue. My objective while teaching is for the people to grasp the information that is being disseminated in light of the statement of Ali Ibn Abi Talib (radiyallahu anhu) who said:

Speak to the people in a manner they can understand At any rate, this is what I found out regarding what was said to Sheikh Rabee' and Allah knows best what else was said. Allah mentioned in the Quran:

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When you were propagating it with your tongues, and uttering it with your mouths that whereof you had no knowledge. And you considered it a minute thing while it was something great with Allah (24: 15) I want to remind myself and the brothers and sisters of a very profound statement of Ibn ul Qayyim (Rahimahullah) in a passage he wrote called The Seven Evils of Shaytan If the Shaytan is unable to get the slave to succumb to these two levels of evil (i.e. the first level was shirk and the second was bidah )I.e. innovation), and he is someone who Allah had previously favored with following the Sunnah and showing enmity and hatred towards the people of innovation and perversion, then he takes him to the next level of evil which is that of committing major sins, in any of its many forms. The Shaytan is extremely diligent in trying to get him to fall into one of them especially if he is a scholar that is followed by many. The Shaytan is diligent about this in order to chase the people away from him, by spreading his sins and acts of disobedience amongst the people, seeking assistance with those who will spread them and make a public notice of them. He deems it to be a religious act or something that will bring him closer to Allah, when in fact he is the advocate of Iblees and he doesnt even realize it. Allah says:

Indeed those who love to see that indecency be propagated amongst those who believe, they will have a painful torment in this world and in the hereafter and Allah knows and you know not. (24:19) This is only for those who love to see it spread publicly, so how about if they shoulder the task of spreading it themselves. Making it public without any sincere concern for the one it is being spread about, rather it is done out of obedience to Iblees and on his behalf. This is all done with the purpose of chasing the people away from him. The sin of this person, even if it reached the clouds of the sky, is in no way comparable to the sin of the individuals who spread it!!! As for the one who committed the sin, it is oppression from himself to himself. And if he seeks Allahs forgiveness and repents to Him, Allah will accept his repentance and change his evil deeds into good deeds. As for the sin of those who engaged in spreading his sins, these individuals have oppressed the believers and pursued their mistakes with the intention of exposing them, and Allah is waiting in ambush!!! Nothing escapes Him, not even the secrets of the heart or the clandestine plots of the individual. (Found in his book BadaaI ul Fawaaid Vol. 2 Pg. 220-222) This matter has perpetuated and continues to incite the believers to have bad manners with one another, indulge in gossip, tale carrying and backbiting, and has busied many of the slaves of Allah from His remembrance. It has caused them to forget about the preparations they should be making for the near approaching blessed month of Ramadan and, even worse, has caused separation and division amongst the believers. The Prophet (Sallahu alaihi wa salam said: 13 | P a g e

whoever initiates an evil practice, then he will have the sin of it and the sins of those who partake in it and nothing will be diminished from their sins This matter has provoked many to expose the sins of the perpetrators themselves as well as others who were not even involved with this incident. This could, in fact, be the fulfillment of the hadeeth mentioned previously (may Allah forgive us and them) but as He says:

And the recompense of evil is an evil like thereof (42: 40) This matter also caused people to criticize and disparage the judgment of the scholars involved, which we never ever condone. However, due to the hastiness, thoughtlessness and lack of consideration on the part of the perpetrators (i.e. Abdulilah from UK, Abdul Wali from Philadelphia and Hassan Somali) it has taken place. And as the scholars mention: the one who is the cause for a sin shares in the sin. It also emboldened laymen from amongst the Muslims in the West to engage in and involve themselves with matters that dont concern them. Rather when the individual came to the Prophet (Sallahu alaihi wa salam) and asked for advice, he said to him:

Say: I believe in Allah and then afterwards be upright. This is what the believers should be instructed with, similar to what Imam Ash Shafiee (Rahimahullah) said to one of his students when he asked him about a matter regarding Allah. So Imam Ash Shafiee asked him five questions about Wudhu and the student couldnt answer any of them. Imam Ash Shafiee said to him:

Something that you are in need of 5 times a day, and you leave the knowledge of it and burden yourself with knowledge of the Creator [that is beyond human comprehension]?!... (Siyar Aalam An Nubalaa Vol.10 Pg.31) My point in this is that the brothers i.e. Abdulilah, Abdul Wali Nelson from Philadelphia and Hassan Somali (may Allah preserve them all), in their haste to spread this matter, were not conscious of the harms that it would cause to the Salafi communities in the West. This is the type of situation that has the potential to push people away from the dawah of Salafiyah and has actually led some, due to their recent acceptance of Islam and lack of knowledge, to question Islam as a whole or the validity of the dawah that is being propagated!!! 14 | P a g e

This is why in Islam we have the principle of taking the lesser of two evils, which obviously was not considered before this act was embarked upon. We should be the first to avoid and repel any fitnah (i.e. trials) that comes to our communities. Zayd Ibn Wahb (Rahimahullah) mentioned that when Uthman (radiyallahu anhu) sent for Abdullah Ibn Masud (radiyallahu anhu) to come to Medina to help extinguish the fitnah that had emerged there, the people gathered around him and encouraged him not to get involved but instead stay in Iraq. Abdullah Ibn Masud said:

He has a right over me that I obey him! Indeed there is going to be some detestable affairs and great fitan (i.e. trials and tribulations) and I would hate to be the first one to open that door (i.e. by not doing his part to assist in repelling it)." (mentioned in Seeyar Aalam An Nubalaa Vol.1 Pg. 489)

The Fourth Incident:

There is a brother from Wilmington, DE by the name of Abdul Mateen (may Allah rectify his affairs and forgive me and him for our shortcomings). He listened to a lecture I gave entitled The Four Principles for a Successful Community in May of 2010. He concluded that there were mistakes that I made on the lecture and took it upon himself to expose these mistakes. My statement was as follows:
The Prophet (Sallahu alaihi wa salam) understood that his community was made up of a variety of people coming from different backgrounds. Some of them were slaves and some of them were slave owners who were not totally just with their slaves. Some of them were idolaters, some of them were Christians and some of them were Jews. They came from all different walks of life. So he assessed their religious problems as well as their social issues , their social problems and social ills and when you do this it allows you to gauge the challenges you are inevitably going to encounter as the Imam while trying to rectify their situation. You cant be the Imam of a community and to think that everybody is on the same level (just) because we are in the same community or because we all attend the same Masjid that everybody is on the same level and this is not the case. Even their background and ethnicity, you have people that come from different cultures. Some people were raised in the south and some were raised in the north and that brings a whole different dynamic to the community. So as the Imam and leader of the community you have to be able to look at your community (and) assess what their social ills are. You have some communities where, I have been in the particular community, they are faced with racism whether they are Arab and nonArab or light skin and dark skin. There are levels of racism that exist in certain Islamic communities in the West and as an Imam, a good leader, it's not for you to overlook that and focus on teaching kitab ut Tawheed or usool ath thalathah or focus on teaching this and that without addressing the issues Then I mentioned the hadeeth of Aisha (Radiyallahu anha) found in Saheeh al Bukhari to support this point.

The underlined portion of this statement is the one that stirred the recent controversy. Abdul Mateen went to Philadelphia to speak with someone who was of my caliber in order to advise me about this statement! The thing I find ironic is that Abdul Mateen never came to me to discuss what he heard to 15 | P a g e

determine if the statement was conveniently taken out of context or, in fact, a legitimate mistake on my part. Upon arriving in Philadelphia he met with Abul Hassan Malik, Hassan Somali, Abdul Jaleel Meekins and whoever else decided to partake in the infelicitous meeting, knowing that my relationship with the aforementioned brothers had taken a turn for the worse (due to the events detailed previously). Allah says:

Indeed secret counsels (conspiracies) are only from Shaytan in order that he may cause grief to the believers. But he cannot harm them in the least, except as Allah permits. And in Allah let the believers put their trust. (58:10) To make matters worse, Abdul Mateen began sending text messages to the brothers and sisters stating that Shadeed Muhammad warns against Kitab ut Tawheed and Usool ul Thalatha! Subhanallah! There is nothing further from the truth. It is my love for tawheed that attracted me to the religion of Islam i.e. the Religion of Tawheed. I've even compiled a book on Tawheed in 2009 called Essential Matters of Tawheed for the New Muslim. Many of the lectures on youtube are related to Tawheed, and from them: Ibrahims fight to establish Tawheed, and a five-part lecture called the importance of Tawheed. In 2008 I did a 3 day seminar at Montclair State College titled The Key to Paradise wherein I elaborated on everything from the conditions of La Ilaha Ilalah to the things that nullify your shahadah (i.e. testimony of faith) and other such lectures which emphasize the importance of Tawheed. The point I was making in the above statement, which I thought was clear, is that these social issues need to be addressed and should not be overlooked. Too many imams/du'aat seem to forget that the Prophets themselves, after inviting their people to tawheed, addressed their social issues. One such example is that of Shu'aib (alaihis salam), who firmly addressed the issue of cheating in the market place which was one of the social ills his society faced. Allah says:

And to Madyan [We sent] their brother Shu'ayb. He said, "O my people, worship Allah; you have no deity other than Him. And do not decrease from the measure and the scale. Indeed, I see you in prosperity, but indeed, I fear for you the punishment of an all-encompassing Day. And O my people, give full measure and weight in justice and do not deprive the people of their due and do not commit abuse on the earth, spreading corruption (11: 84-85) Likewise, the Prophet Lut (alaihis salam) addressed the issue of homosexuality. Allah says: 16 | P a g e


And [remember] Lot when he said to his people, "Do you commit such immorality as no one has preceded you with from among the worlds? Indeed, you approach men with desire, instead of women. Rather, you are a transgressing people." And there are many other examples in the Qur'an and sunnah. So if it was not clear before, then let me clearly state now that I advocate the teaching of both Kitab ut Tawheed and Usool ul Thalatha, just as I advocate that our social ills be addressed. It is obvious that those who concocted and perpetrated this fitnah had no consideration for the fact that the Prophet (Sallahu alaihi wa salam) said to Muath Ibn Jabal:

Are you being a fitnah (i.e. source of trial and tribulation) for the people O Muath?! And this was related to him prolonging the salat while there were sick and elderly people there and those who had other business to attend to. If this was the case with prolonging the salat and he (Sallahu alaihi wa salam) considered it to be a fitnah for the people, then how about the individual who intentionally goes from person to person within the community in order to turn the people away from him, thus causing a greater fitnah amongst the people? Allah also says:

Indeed those who put to trial the believing men and women and then do not turn in repentance to Allah then they will have a torment of hell and they will have the punishment of the burning fire. (85:10)

I ask the question: When will the people have peace? When will the 'brothers' realize that the people just want to be good Muslims, raise and support their families, and are tired of the fitnah? When will the communities in the West stop being subjected to personality worship and truly grasp the noble legislative objectives of Islam? As for myself, I have no malice in my heart for any of the brothers. The Prophet (Sallahu alaihi wa salam) said when he was harmed:

May Allah have mercy on Musa (i.e. Moses) for indeed he was harmed with greater than this and he was patient! 17 | P a g e

And even though Allah gives us the option to seek retribution and revenge for being oppressed:

And whosoever takes revenge after he has suffered a wrong on such there is no blame. Indeed the blame is only against those who oppress men and rebel in the earth without justification. For such there will be a painful torment. (42: 41-42) I seek Allah's aid in remaining patient with the harms that I receive from my brothers. I make dua for them and not against them, hoping that they will be guided to seeking Allah's forgiveness and rectifying their affairs:

And whoever is patient and forgives - indeed, that is of the matters worthy of firm resolve. (42:43) I ask Allah to bring about rectification between the brothers and to soften our hearts towards one another. And I ask Allah to protect the Muslims who were burdened with hearing these issues from abandoning what they know of the haqq (i.e. truth) because of the selfish actions of a few from amongst us, including myself. Indeed Allah is the Granter of success, and may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon His Prophet Muhammad and upon his family and companions. Written by: Abu Azzubayr Shadeed Muhammad July 29, 2010

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