Tahir Munir 📚

As for the books, my studies and family preoccupations have prevented me from focusing on them for a long time. In Sha Allah as time proceeds, I will release the shorter works at least so the people can benefit.

As for the longer books, they will take some time, but will be a quality reading experience.

Have you ever stopped to think about why Israel grew stronger after the 1979 Iranian Revolution? This is the truth nobody talks about.

​Today, people claim that Arabs are cowards who never fought a war against Israel. That stands as the single biggest lie in history.

​From 1948 until 1979, the Arab world stood as an iron wall against Israel:

• ​The 1948 War: Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Lebanon joined forces to attack Israel.
• ​The 1956 War: Egypt stood alone, fighting off Israel, Great Britain, and France.
• ​The 1967 War: Egypt, Jordan, Syria, and Iraq fought against Israel.
• ​The 1973 War: Egypt and Syria inflicted severe losses on Israel [driving them to desperation]; Saudi Arabia used oil as a powerful weapon and broke the back of the United States; while Algeria, Morocco, Kuwait, Libya, and Tunisia sent military forces to the front lines.

​During that era, Israel lived in constant fear because the Arabs stood united.

​Then came the 1979 Revolution led by [Āyatullāh Rūḥullāh] Khomeini—and Israel's luck changed completely.

​After the Revolution, Iran declared, "We will erase Israel and free al-Quds [Jerusalem]." But what did Iran actually do in practice?

​Iran never fired a single bullet at Israel. Instead, it began setting up its own armed proxy groups inside every Arab country that had previously fought against Israel:

1. ​Look at Lebanon—which fought against Israel in 1948: [Iran] created Ḥizbullāh there. Today, the Lebanese national army lies weakened, Ḥizbullāh acts as a state within a state, Lebanon is ruined, and Israel remains safe.
2. ​Look at Syria—which fought three major wars against Israel: [Iran] flooded the country with the Zaynabiyyūn, Fāṭimiyyūn, and Ḥizbullāh. One million Sunni Muslims were killed in Syria, five million were made homeless, and the Syrian national army collapsed. Today, Israel bombs Syria every day without facing any response.
3. ​Look at Iraq—which fought against Israel in 1948, 1967, and 1973: After 2003 [and the American invasion], [Iran] set up the Badr Brigade, ʿAṣāʾib Ahl al-Ḥaqq, and Katāʾib Ḥizbullāh there. Today, Iraq remains trapped in civil war while Israel stays safe.
4. ​Look at Yemen—which once formed a core part of the Arab alliance: [Iran] built up the Ḥūthīs there. Yemen now lies ruined, and today those same Ḥūthīs fire missiles at Saudi Arabia and friendly nations like Pakistan—never at Israel.
5. ​Look at Saudi Arabia itself—which helped fight Israel in 1948 and 1973 with troops and oil: Today, these very same proxy groups attack Saudi Arabia.

​Understand the underlying pattern:

• ​First, the Arabs used to fight Israel together.
• ​After the Iranian Revolution, the Arabs started fighting among themselves.
• ​Iran set fire to every single country that had ever fought a war against Israel.

​What was the end result? The Arab nations grew weak, Iran's proxy groups grew strong, and Israel became safer than ever before.

​Today, Ghazzah [Gaza] burns, and forty thousand children have been martyred; yet not a single missile from Iran's proxies causes real damage to Israel. All their missiles target Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, and the sea routes near Pakistan.

​The most telling part is that Israel never destroys these proxies—because Israel knows they serve as the single best tool for keeping the Arab world divided and weak.

​This is Iran's true role in the Middle East: acting as a guard for Israel's safety.

​Israel was once threatened by strong Arab armies; Iran destroyed those Arab armies from within.

​Now ask yourself: was Israel less safe before 1979, or after 1979?

​Look at the game unfolding right now: Israel stays safe and protected, while Saudi Arabia and the entire Gulf—including the Two Holy Sanctuaries [of Makkah and Al-Madīnah]—are dragged into war zones, all while high-level meetings between Israel and the United States continue as planned.

Aḥmad narrated to us, saying: ʿAlī ibn Khashram narrated to us, saying: ʿĪsā ibn Yūnus narrated to us, saying: Mūsā al-Juhanī narrated to me, on the authority of Zādhān, on the authority of ʿĀbis al-Ghifārī, who said:

I heard the Messenger of Allāh (may Allāh send blessings and peace upon him) say that he fears six corruptions for his community:

1️⃣ The rule of reckless youths

2️⃣ The proliferation of oppressive guards

3️⃣ Judicial corruption through bribery

4️⃣ The severing of family ties

5️⃣ The cheapening of human life

6️⃣ And a rising generation who treat the Qurʾān like musical flutes, appointing a man to lead them who is neither their most knowledgeable in jurisprudence, nor their most learned, nor their most virtuous, simply so that he can entertain them with his song.

📚 Al-Muʿjam al-Awsaṭ 785; its chain of transmission is authentic.

حَدَّثَنَا أَحْمَدُ قَالَ: نا عَلِيُّ بْنُ خَشْرَمٍ قَالَ: نا عِيسَى بْنُ يُونُسَ قَالَ: حَدَّثَنِي مُوسَى الْجُهَنِيُّ، عَنْ زَاذَانَ، عَنْ عَابِسٍ الْغِفَارِيِّ قَالَ:

سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ، يَقُولُ: يَتَخَوَّفُ عَلَى أُمَّتِهِ سِتَّ خِصَالٍ:

«إِمْرَةَ الصِّبْيَانِ، وَكَثْرَةَ الشُّرَطِ، وَالرَّشْوَةَ فِي الْحُكْمِ، وَقَطِيعَةَ الرَّحِمِ، واسْتِخْفَافٌ بِالدَّمِ، ونَشْءٌ يَتَّخِذُونَ الْقُرْآنَ مَزَامِيرَ، يُقَدِّمُونَ الرَّجُلَ لَيْسَ بأَفْقَهَهُمْ، وَلَا أَعْلَمَهُمْ، وَلَا بأَفْضَلَهُمْ، يُغَنِّيهِمْ غَنَاءً» .

📚 المعجم الأوسط للطبراني ٧٨٥؛ وسنده صحيح.

Ibrāhīm ibn Hāniʾ said:

"Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal stayed in hiding at my house for three days. Then he said to me, 'Find another place for me so that I may move there.'

I replied, 'I fear for your safety, O Abū ʿAbdullāh.'

He said, 'If you do so, I will share a valuable lesson with you.'

So I found another refuge for him. As he stepped outside to leave, he said to me:

'The Messenger of Allāh (may Allāh bless him and grant him peace) sheltered in the cave for three days, and then he moved on. It is not fitting that we follow the Messenger of Allāh (may Allāh bless him and grant him peace) in times of ease, only to abandon his way in times of hardship.'

📚 Ḥilyat al-Awliyāʾ wa-Ṭabaqāt al-Aṣfiyāʾ (al-Saʿādah edition), 9/180.

It is chilling to realize that the brothers of Yūsuf (peace be upon him) actually possessed a self-justification for what they did. Their action was not merely blind malice; it was evil cloaked in the guise of virtue: {Kill Yūsuf or cast him out to some distant land} (Sūrah Yūsuf 12:9).

Why, brothers?

{So that your father’s favor may be devoted solely to you, and after that, you can become righteous people} (Sūrah Yūsuf 12:9). Consider the deep irony of that logic: the ultimate objective behind murdering their own brother was to achieve righteousness!

Misguidance is far more insidious and terrifying than absolute evil. This is precisely why, in every single prayer, we seek refuge from it through the supplication: {Not of those who have evoked Your anger, nor of those who are astray} (Sūrah Al-Fātiḥah 1:7).

A truly malicious person consciously chooses evil over good. But a misguided person walks the path of destruction while genuinely believing it to be the path of righteousness.

Allāh Almighty highlights this exact human trap: {Say, "Shall we inform you of those who are the greatest losers in respect to their deeds? They are those whose effort was lost in the worldly life, while they assumed that they were doing good work"} (Sūrah Al-Kahf 18:103-104).

Read this text carefully to understand who our real enemy actually is.

The word nafs (lower self) is a crucial and dangerous term that appears in many verses of the Holy Qurʾān. Allah says in Sūrah Qāf: {And We have already created man and We know what his nafs (lower self) whispers to him, and We are closer to him than his jugular vein.} (Qāf 50:16)

We believe in Allah, remember Him, pray, read the Qurʾān, and give charity. So why do we still fall into sin and wrongdoing?

Because we turned away from our real enemy and went after a weak one instead. As Allah says in the Qurʾān: {Indeed, the plot of Satan has ever been weak.} (An-Nisāʾ 4:76)

Our true enemy is the nafs (lower self). It is like a ticking bomb living inside every single person.

1⃣ Allah says in Sūrah Al-Isrāʾ: {Read your record. Sufficient is your nafs (soul) this Day as an accountant against you.} (Al-Isrāʾ 17:14)

2⃣ And He says in Sūrah Ghāfir: {This Day every nafs (soul) will be compensated for what it earned. No injustice today! Indeed, Allah is swift in account.} (Ghāfir 40:17)

3⃣ And He says in Sūrah Al-Muddaththir:{Every nafs (soul), for what it has earned, will be retained.} (Al-Muddaththir 74:38)

4⃣ And He says in Sūrah An-Nāziʿāt: {But as for he who feared the position of his Lord and prevented the nafs (lower self) from inclination...} (An-Nāziʿāt 79:40)

5⃣ And He says in Sūrah At-Takwīr: {A nafs (soul) will know what it has brought forward.} (At-Takwīr 81:14)

Notice how all these verses focus on the nafs (lower self). So what is it?

Scholars explain it this way: History's famous idols—like Al-Lāt, Al-ʿUzzā, Manāt, Suwāʿ, Wadd, Yaghūth, Yaʿūq, and Nasr—were all smashed and destroyed. But one false god remains today, still being worshipped alongside Allah.

Allah says: {Have you seen he who has taken his own desire as his god?} (Al-Jāthiyah 45:23)

When someone lets their selfish desires control them, they stop listening to religious guidance or moral advice. They just do whatever their heart wants.

When Qābīl (Cain) killed his brother Hābīl (Abel), Allah said: {And his nafs (lower self) encouraged him to kill his brother...} (Al-Māʾidah 5:30)

The Prophet Muḥammad (peace be upon him) used to pray in his opening sermon (khuṭbat al-ḥājah): "We seek refuge in Allah from the evil within our nufūs (lower selves) and the bad results of our actions."

He also told Ḥuṣayn ibn ʿUbayd (may Allah be pleased with him): "Accept Islam, and I will teach you words that will help you." Once Ḥuṣayn accepted Islam, the Prophet (peace be upon him) taught him to say: "O Allah, guide my mind and protect me from the evil of my nafs (lower self)."

If you do not protect yourself from your nafs (lower self), you cannot get close to Allah, because it stands directly between you and Him. People fall into two groups:

1⃣ Those who let their nafs (lower self) conquer them, rule them, and ruin them.

2⃣ Those who conquer their nafs (lower self) and master it until it follows what is right.

Allah describes both groups in Sūrah An-Nāziʿāt: {So as for he who transgressed and preferred the life of the world, then indeed, Hellfire will be his refuge. But as for he who feared the standing before his Lord and restrained the nafs (lower self) from desire, then indeed, Paradise will be his refuge.} (An-Nāziʿāt 79:37–41)

O Allah, grant our nufūs (lower selves) true piety (taqwā) and cleanse them. You are the best to cleanse them, and You are their Protector and Master. O Allah, protect us from the evil within ourselves and from the whispers of the devils.

O Allah, make the Qurʾān the joy of my heart, the light of my chest, the healer of my sadness, and the cure for my worries.

Mūsā said this when he was homeless and traveling. On that same day, his marriage was set, he got a job (rizq), and he found a home.

Look for the "blessing" hidden inside the trial:
Sick? That wipes out your sins. Poor? Your account on Judgment Day will be lighter. Marriage delayed? Allah kept you free to worship Him and serve your parents. Every trial comes with Allah's mercy.

8. A saying that cools the heart

Imām Ibn al‑Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
"If Allah pulled back the curtain and showed His servant how He runs his affairs, and how Allah is kinder to him than his own mother, the servant's heart would melt with love for Allah and shatter with gratitude."

Submitting and being content (taslīm wa riḍā)—"bowing your head to Allah's decision"—is Paradise in this world. When you truly believe that everything is by Allah's will and wisdom, you sleep at peace, wake up satisfied, and live with calm.

{And I hand over my affair to Allah. Truly, Allah sees His servants fully.} (Sūrah Ghāfir 40:44)

Say this, and leave your matters to the All‑Seeing (al‑Baṣīr), the All‑Wise (al‑Ḥakīm), and the All‑Aware (al‑Khabīr).

{So be patient. Allah's promise is true. And don't let those who lack certainty (yaqīn) make light of you.} (Sūrah al‑Rūm 30:60)

O Most Merciful! Make every turn in our lives easy. If any hardship comes, give us the best patience and firm certainty (yaqīn).

O Most High! Always treat us with goodness, safety, mercy, and kindness. All our unfinished and broken matters—fix them with Your unseen help. And bless us with the pure joys of this world and the eternal wins of the Hereafter.

Āmīn, O Lord of all the worlds!
(Conveyed)

Everything in the universe is linked to Allah's will and His wisdom. This includes the things we see as "bad," "delayed," or "hard."

1. Four verses to reassure your heart that everything happens by Allah's will and wisdom:

{And it may be that you dislike a thing while it is good for you, and it may be that you love a thing while it is evil for you. And Allah knows, while you do not know.} (Sūrah al-Baqarah 2:216)

You see only one step ahead. Allah sees your whole life from start to finish.

2. {He is not questioned about what He does, but they will be questioned.} (Sūrah al-Anbiyāʾ 21:23)

Allah is the All‑Wise (al‑Ḥakīm) and the All‑Aware (al‑Khabīr). He never does anything pointless. Even a leaf falls from a tree only by His permission and wisdom.

3. {Indeed, my Lord is Subtle (Laṭīf) in what He wills.} (Sūrah Yūsuf 12:100)

Laṭīf means the One who brings you good from places you would never guess. Yūsuf (peace be upon him) was thrown into a well—so that he could become the king of Egypt.

4. {Doer of what He wills.} (Sūrah al‑Burūj 85:16) + {All‑Wise (Ḥakīm), All‑Aware (Khabīr).} (Sūrah al‑Anʿām 6:18)

Allah's will + His wisdom = nothing is random, and nothing is actually wrong.

5. Why does Allah delay giving you what you want?
Five reasons:

1. To protect you from harm you don't see:
That job you missed—maybe it would have ruined your faith (dīn). That person you didn't marry—maybe they would have broken your heart. {And He turns away evil from you.}
2. To prepare you for something better:
A delay in having children = so you get righteous kids at the right time. A delay in income (rizq) = so you get ḥalāl and blessed income.
3. To raise your stations:
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "If Allah wants a high rank for His servant that the servant cannot reach through his own deeds, Allah tests him with trials." A trial is really an elevator to Paradise.
4. So you come to know Him:
When life is easy, people often forget Allah. But when they are broken, they remember Him, pray, and beg. And Allah loves hearing His servant's voice.
5. To teach you true certainty (yaqīn):
When every door shuts and help comes from the Unseen (ghayb), your heart shouts: "By Allah! No one supports me except Allah."

6. Stories from the Qurʾān – outward "evil" is actually inward "good":

· The boat of the poor being damaged (Sūrah al‑Kahf): It looked like injustice and loss, but the wisdom was protection—to save it from a tyrant king who was seizing every sound boat by force.
· The killing of the boy (Sūrah al‑Kahf): It looked like a huge disaster for his parents, but the wisdom was mercy—so he wouldn't grow up and distress his parents through rebellion and disbelief.
· Yūsuf (peace be upon him) thrown into the well: It looked like betrayal by his brothers, but the wisdom was empowerment (tamkīn)—he ended up as the minister of Egypt.
· Mūsā (peace be upon him) cast into the river: It looked like a mother throwing her baby into danger, but the wisdom was upbringing—he was raised in Pharaoh's palace so he could later become a prophet.

Lesson: {And Allah knows, while you do not know.} (Sūrah al‑Baqarah 2:216)

If you could see the final scene of your life's movie, you would fall prostrate in thanks over the very scene that once made you cry.

7. What to do when things look bad:

Say: "Qadar Allāh wa mā shāʾa faʿal" (This was Allah's decree, and He did what He willed).

The Prophet Muḥammad (peace be upon him) said: "If something bad happens, don't say, 'If only I had done this, that would have happened.' Instead say, 'It was Allah's decree, and He did what He willed.' Because the word 'if' (law) opens the door for Satan." (Muslim)

Keep Allah's name al‑Ḥakīm in your heart. Say "Yā Ḥakīm" a hundred times a day. Al‑Ḥakīm puts everything in its exact right place.

Say Mūsā's (peace be upon him) prayer:
{My Lord, I am truly in need of any good You send down to me.} (Sūrah al‑Qaṣaṣ 28:24)

Admitting you are weak + thinking well of Allah (ḥusn al‑ẓann) = immediate relief.

Al-Ḥasan ibn al-Ṣabbāḥ narrated to us, Makkī ibn Ibrāhīm narrated to us, Mūsā ibn ʿUbaydah narrated to us, on the authority of ʿAbd Allāh ibn Dīnār, on the authority of Ibn ʿUmar, that the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) said:

"O people, the women are in your care, like captives entrusted to you; they have no control over any good or harm that comes to them. You took them under Allāh's trust, and you made their intimacy lawful through Allāh's decree. Their obligation to you is this: that they do not allow anyone into your beds, and that they do not defy you in what is good and fair. If they uphold that, they have the right to their food and clothing in a reasonable manner. And do not hit them; but if you must, let it be a light blow that leaves no mark or injury."

📚 Al-Nafaqah ʿalā al-ʿIyāl of Ibn Abī al-Dunyā 485; Ṣaḥīḥ.

حَدَّثَنَا الْحَسَنُ بْنُ الصَّبَّاحِ، حَدَّثَنَا مَكِّيُّ بْنُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ، حَدَّثَنَا مُوسَى بْنُ عُبَيْدَةَ، عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ دِينَارٍ، عَنِ ابْنِ عُمَرَ، أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ قَالَ:

«أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ النِّسَاءُ عِنْدَكُمْ عَوَانٍ لَا يَمْلِكُونَ لِأَنْفُسِهِمْ نَفْعًا وَلَا ضَرًّا أَخَذْتُمُوهُنَّ بِأَمَانَةِ اللَّهِ وَاسْتَحْلَلْتُمْ فُرُوجَهُنَّ بِكَلِمَةِ اللَّهِ عَلَيْهِنَّ حَقٌّ فَمِنْ حَقِّكُمْ عَلَيْهِنَّ أَنْ لَا يُوطِئْنَ فُرُشَكُمْ وَلَا يَعْصِينَكُمْ فِي مَعْرُوفٍ فَإِذَا فَعَلْنَ ذَلِكَ فَلَهُنَّ رِزْقُهُنَّ وَكِسْوَتُهُنَّ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَلَا تَضْرِبُوهُنَّ فَإِنْ ضَرَبْتُمُوهُنَّ فَاضْرِبُوهُنَّ ضَرْبًا غَيْرَ مُبَرِّحٍ»

📚 النفقة على العيال لابن أبي الدنيا ٤٨٥؛ صحيح.

Ibn Numayr narrated to us, saying: Hishām narrated to us, on the authority of al-Ḥasan, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said:

“Knowledge is of two kinds: knowledge within the heart, which is the knowledge that truly benefits; and knowledge only on the tongue, which stands as Allah’s proof against His servants.”

📚 Musannaf Ibn Abī Shaybah: 34361; Ṣaḥīḥ.

ابْنُ نُمَيْرٍ قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا هِشَامٌ، عَنِ الْحَسَنِ، قَالَ: قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ:

الْعِلْمُ عِلْمَانِ: عِلْمٌ فِي الْقَلْبِ فَذَاكَ الْعِلْمُ النَّافِعُ، وَعِلْمٌ عَلَى اللِّسَانِ فَتِلْكَ حُجَّةُ اللَّهِ عَلَى عِبَادِهِ

📚 مصنف ابن أبي شيبة ٣٤٣٦١؛ صحيح.

Al-Ḥasan ibn Sufyān informed us, saying: Ibrāhīm ibn Yaʿqūb al-Jūzajānī narrated to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Wahhāb ibn ʿAṭāʾ narrated to us, saying: Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr narrated to us, from Abū Salamah, from Abū Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), from the Prophet (peace be upon him) who related that his Lord, Majestic and Exalted, said:

“By My might, I never make My servant experience two fears or two states of safety. If he fears Me in this world, I will give him total safety on the Day of Resurrection. But if he feels safe from Me in this world, I will make him experience fear on the Day of Resurrection.”

📚 Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Ḥibbān, 665; Ṣaḥīḥ.

أَخبَرنا الْحَسَنُ بْنُ سُفْيَانَ، قَالَ: حَدثنا إِبْرَاهِيمُ بْنُ يَعْقُوبَ الْجُوْزَجَانِيُّ، حَدثنا عَبْدُ الْوَهَّابِ بْنُ عَطَاءٍ، حَدثنا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عَمْرٍو، عَنْ أَبِي سَلَمَةَ، عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، عَنِ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ فيما يَرْوِي عَنْ رَبِّهِ جَلَّ وَعَلَا، أنه قَالَ:

«وَعِزَّتِي لَا أَجْمَعُ عَلَى عَبْدِي خَوْفَيْنِ وَأَمْنَيْنِ، إِذَا خَافَنِي فِي الدُّنْيَا أَمَّنْتُهُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ، وَإِذَا أَمِنَنِي فِي الدُّنْيَا أَخَفْتُهُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ».

📚 صحيح ابن حبان ٦٦٥؛ صحيح

14. The Jews said to the Prophet (peace be upon him), "Death be upon you," and ʿĀʾishah (may Allah be pleased with her) replied, "Death be upon you, and may Allah curse you!" And he said: "Be calm, O ʿĀʾishah! Be kind and lenient, and beware of harshness and obscenity... I replied to them, and my invocation against them will be accepted, while theirs against me will be rejected" (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 6030).

15. "The strong one is not the one who throws others down; rather the strong one is the one who controls himself at the time of anger" (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 6114).

16. "I remember seeing the Prophet (peace be upon him) telling the story of a prophet who was beaten by his people, and he wiped the blood from his face, saying: O Allah, forgive my people, for they do not know" (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 6929; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 1792).

The Revelation's response to being insulted is to keep your composure, and the Prophet's response (peace be upon him) to being struck was to pray for guidance.

🍓 The Fruits of the Prophetic Method:

If we follow the Prophetic method, the fruits come quickly. The caller's reputation rises through gentleness, and his heart stays protected from the poison of quarrels that pollute teaching and religious rulings, and he keeps his time his own, and the agenda of the troublemaker loses its pull over him.

As for the community, it receives pure knowledge, and its measure of a scholar becomes the method of the word and the clarity of the knowledge, and even the troublemaker might hear the call of "Peace be upon you" (Sūrah al-Qaṣaṣ 28:55) and his heart might open. And as for the religion, it gets presented on its own foundations, and the applause fades away, and the guided heart is what counts as success with Allah, and Allah does not show mercy to someone who does not show mercy (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 7376; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 2319).

🎗️What Should We Do?

Simple steps everyone can hold to:

1. Before sharing a clip, ask yourself: what did I actually gain from it? {And do not pursue that of which you have no knowledge} (Sūrah al-Isrāʾ 17:36).

2. Do not help the troublemakers' platforms grow, because turning away from them is obedience, and it kills the falsehood at its root.

3. Judge a scholar by the gentleness of his method and the depth of his knowledge, and by the words that remain when the crowd has gone.

4. Share the benefit without sharing the fighting parts.

5. Thank the scholar by praying for him, and leave the troublemaker to Allah.

And to the speaker: deliver the truth clearly, through a written statement or a controlled recording, then turn away. There is a difference between arguing with someone who wants guidance and wrestling with someone who tells lies. Let your victory be measured by how many people learn, and let the clapping be the crowd's own affair.

We want to raise the standards. May Allah preserve our scholars and guard their hearts. The triumph of Islam is a clear truth, an educated audience, and a gentle heart. We ask Allah to make us among those who deliver the message with gentleness and win by what the Revelation counts as winning.

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🖊️ Ṭāhir Munīr | Student at the Faculty of Ḥadīth — The Islamic University in Lahore

30/08/2026 CE

Debating just to beat the other person ruins the whole point of the argument, and the goal of argumentation is to lift up the word of Allah and keep it high before the people. And a crooked goal ruins the means: knowledge used for quarreling is a poisoned weapon, and knowledge used for showing off is an empty display:

1. "No people went astray after guidance they had been upon except that they were given disputation. Then he recited: 'They did not strike to you except for dispute; nay, but they are a quarrelsome people'" (Jāmiʿ al-Tirmidhī: 3253; the recited verse is Sūrah al-Zukhruf 43:58).

2. "Do not learn knowledge to boast before scholars or to dispute with fools, or to choose the best seats in gatherings by it. Whoever does so—the Fire, the Fire" (Sunan Ibn Mājah: 254).

3. "Whoever seeks knowledge to compete with scholars or dispute with fools or draw people's faces toward himself, Allah will admit him to Hell" (Sunan Ibn Mājah: 260).

4. "The most hateful of men to Allah is the quarrelsome opponent" (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 2457).

These reports protect the caller's heart before his tongue, and the check is three questions: am I saying this to compete with the scholars, or to argue with the foolish, or to draw the eyes of the gathering to myself? and if any of the three is the aim, then the heart has lost the aim of the seeking.

🔐 The Missing Character: Gentleness

I wish we would go back to the guidance of the Qurʾān and the Sunnah, because gentleness is the strategy of this religion and its core. A harsh person has never brought an ignorant person back from his error through harshness. Rather, Allah Almighty said: {Then the one between you and whom there was enmity becomes as though he were a devoted friend} (Sūrah Fuṣilat 41:34), and this only happens through softness. The prophets wiped blood from their faces and prayed for the people who hit them, and true strength is controlling your anger:

1. {Take to forgiveness, enjoin what is good, and turn away from the ignorant} (Sūrah al-Aʿrāf 7:199).

2. {And the servants of the Most Merciful are those who walk upon the earth gently, and when the ignorant address them harshly, they say: Peace} (Sūrah al-Furqān 25:63).

3. {And when they hear vain talk, they turn away from it and say: To us our deeds and to you your deeds; peace be upon you; we do not seek the ignorant} (Sūrah al-Qaṣaṣ 28:55).

4. {Call to the path of your Lord with wisdom and good admonition, and argue with them in the manner that is best} (Sūrah al-Naḥl 16:125).

5. {And speak to him a gentle word, that perhaps he may remember or fear} (Sūrah Ṭā Hā 20:44).

6. {And do not argue with the People of the Book except in the manner that is best, except for those who do injustice among them} (Sūrah al-ʿAnkabūt 29:46).

7. {And among the people is one who argues about Allah without knowledge, and follows every rebellious devil} (Sūrah al-Ḥajj 22:3).

8. {And by a mercy from Allah you were gentle with them; had you been harsh and hard-hearted, they would have dispersed from around you} (Sūrah Āl ʿImrān 3:159).

9. "The Prophet (peace be upon him) was not obscene nor given to obscenity, and he used to say: The best of you are the best in character" (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 6035).

10. "Gentleness is not present in anything except that it adorns it, and it is not removed from anything except that it disgraces it" (Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 2594).

11. "Indeed Allah is gentle and loves gentleness, and He gives for gentleness what He does not give for harshness" (Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 2593).

12. "The believer is not one who insults or curses, nor is he obscene or vulgar" (Jāmiʿ al-Tirmidhī: 1977).

13. "The merciful ones will be shown mercy by the Most Merciful. Show mercy to those on the earth, and the One in the heavens will show mercy to you" (Jāmiʿ al-Tirmidhī: 1924).

14. {He grants wisdom to whom He wills, and whoever is granted wisdom has been granted abundant good} (Sūrah al-Baqarah 2:269).

15. {And those firmly grounded in knowledge say: We believe in it; all of it is from our Lord} (Sūrah Āl ʿImrān 3:7).

My only goal is that the way we do things matches the honor of our faith, and it is the outer frame around the argument that has gone off track.

⚠️ Where the Problem Lies:

The whole scene has become a show about taking down the opponent, and the truth itself goes unshown. The scholar answers, and the crowd treats his answer like a boxing match, with a slogan for the winner. And the result? The troublemaker gets a second round of attention and new fame, and a minor doubt gets promoted into a big issue where the viewer can no longer tell the difference between truth and falsehood. We have forgotten the method of the Qurʾān and Sunnah about turning away from empty arguments and keeping our speech within its limits:

1. {And when you see those who engage in vain discourse about Our verses, turn away from them until they enter into another conversation, and do not sit with them} (Sūrah al-Anʿām 6:68).

2. {...Then do not sit with them until they enter into another topic, lest you become like them} (Sūrah al-Nisāʾ 4:140).

3. {And it has been revealed to you and to those before you that if you should exaggerate, your people would certainly go astray, and upon you is only the clear conveyance} (Sūrah al-Furqān 25:31).

4. {And do not pursue that of which you have no knowledge; indeed the hearing, the sight, and the heart—each of these will be questioned} (Sūrah al-Isrāʾ 17:36).

5. "Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day, let him speak good or remain silent" (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 6018).

The slogan "He shut him down!" comes from the gap between the scholar's eloquence and the crowd's emotions.

🚧 The Standard of the Revelation:

The scholar's job is to deliver the message clearly, and guiding the hearts belongs to Allah. The messengers were sent to give good news and warnings, and Noah stayed with his people for nine hundred and fifty years, and his calling only made them run away more, but his truth was never belittled, because applause was never the measure of success. The Qurʾān repeats this idea over and over until it is settled: delivering the message is on the messenger, and judgment is on Allah. And the practice of delivering the message and then turning away as commanded gets ruined by wrestling in debates and then claiming victory, and the one who wins by the crowd's slogan walks away with a trophy and a moment of pride, and he has not turned away as he was commanded:

1. {Upon the messenger is only the conveyance, and Allah knows what you reveal and what you conceal} (Sūrah al-Māʾidah 5:99).

2. {Upon you is only the conveyance, and upon Us is the reckoning} (Sūrah al-Raʿd 13:40).

3. {And if they turn away, We have not sent you as a keeper over them; upon you is only the conveyance} (Sūrah al-Shūrā 42:48).

4. {And obey Allah and obey the Messenger; but if you turn away, then upon Our messenger is only the clear conveyance} (Sūrah al-Taghābun 64:12).

5. {So remind; you are only a reminder, and you are not a controller over them} (Sūrah al-Ghāshiyah 88:21–22).

6. {Indeed you do not guide whom you love, but Allah guides whom He wills} (Sūrah al-Qaṣaṣ 28:56).

7. "Let the one present convey to the one absent, for the one present may convey to one who understands better than him" (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 67).

8. "Convey from me even a single verse, and narrate from the Children of Israel, for there is no harm in it" (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 3461).

9. "The religion is sincere counsel. We said: To whom? He said: To Allah, His Book, His Messenger, the leaders of the Muslims, and their common people" (Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 55).

We have crowned the winner, but the Revelation crowned the delivery—and the two crowns are worlds apart!

🗓️ Knowledge Is Not for Winning Fights:

📖 Reflections on the Culture of "Victorious Debates"

In the name of Allah, the Ever-Merciful, Always-Merciful.

May Allah's peace and blessings be upon our noble Prophet, his Companions, and all those who follow him in goodness till the day of Judgment.

To proceed:

From what I know, I see no real benefit in this growing trend in Pakistan: scholars (may Allah preserve them) debating certain ignorant troublemakers, followed by crowds cheering with slogans like "Islam has won!" and "He shut him down!" This has become a whole industry. A scholar is put in front of someone who is only famous for being loud, in a gathering where people's emotions have already picked a side. If the scholar answers with the truth, the crowd turns his answer into a "fight," the other person into a "defeated enemy," and the religion into a "winning team." Then the clips get shared on phones, and a young person takes the shape of his religion from the face of a man who was fighting, and the light of the Qur'an and Sunnah stays behind the noise of the clips.

I am writing this as a reminder to myself and to everyone who celebrates these clips, and as sincere advice to the scholars out of respect for them, because using the wrong measuring stick causes harm even when the person means well, and we have been measuring scholars by something other than the standard of the Revelation. And a young person gets his first impression of his religion this way, and that impression stays with him for life.

💡 The Bright Side:

I am not doubting the eagerness of the scholar who defends the truth. He may step forward because falsehood has gotten loud and has slipped its doubts to young Muslims in sweet-sounding words, and the scholar sees staying silent as giving up the field, and in his mind silence means defeat. I do not claim to judge anyone's heart, and Allah knows the secret glances and what is hidden in the chests. The Sacred Law has told us to call people to good, forbid evil, strive with the Qurʾān and Sunnah, bear witness for justice, and show the value of knowledge and its people:

1. {And let there be among you a community calling to good, enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong} (Sūrah Āl ʿImrān 3:104).

2. "Whoever among you sees a wrong, let him change it with his hand, and if he cannot, then with his tongue, and if he cannot, then with his heart, and that is the weakest of the faith" (Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 49).

3. {So do not obey the disbelievers, and strive against them with it a mighty striving} (Sūrah al-Furqān 25:52).

4. {O you who believe, be steadfast in upholding justice, bearing witness for Allah} (Sūrah al-Nisāʾ 4:135).

5. {You are only a warner, and for every people there is a guide} (Sūrah al-Raʿd 13:7).

6. {O you who believe, avoid much suspicion, for some suspicion is sin} (Sūrah al-Hujūrāt 49:12).

7. {So know there is no god but Allah, and seek forgiveness for your sin. And Allah knows your deviation and your direction} (Sūrah al-Baqarah 2:275).

8. {Have you not considered the one who argued with Abraham about his Lord, when Abraham said, "My Lord is the One who gives life and causes death," and he said, "I give life and cause death"? Abraham said, "Indeed, Allah brings the sun out from the east, so bring it out from the west," and the disbeliever was baffled} (Sūrah al-Baqarah 2:258).

9. "The superiority of the scholar over the worshipper is like my superiority over the least of you, and Allah and His angels and the inhabitants of the heavens and the earth, even the ant in its hole and the fish, send blessings upon the one who teaches people good" (Jāmiʿ al-Tirmidhī: 2685).

10. {Allah will raise those among you who believe and those who have been given knowledge by degrees} (Sūrah al-Mujādilah 58:11).

11. {Only those among His servants who have knowledge fear Allah} (Sūrah Fāṭir 35:28).

12. "The best of you is the one who learns the Qurʾān and teaches it" (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: 5027).

13. "Whoever travels a path seeking knowledge therein, Allah makes easy for him thereby a path to Paradise" (Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: 2699).

The Reason Behind Preachers' Popularity

Human beings have two sides to their nature: a spiritual side and an animal side. In some people, the animal instinct dominates; in others, the spiritual side leads; in some, both are equal; and in many, a constant tug-of-war between the two goes on all the time. Still, no human is ever completely without either side. That is why even people driven by evil tendencies occasionally do good deeds, while deeply spiritual people can still make mistakes and sin.

Since humans are temporary guests on this earth—where selfish and base desires existed long before us—the influence of these worldly instincts is extremely strong. As a result, spirituality remains weak in most people, while base instincts grow very powerful.

Whichever side is stronger in a person is the side they naturally lean toward. Actions aligned with that stronger side feel easy, appealing, and enjoyable to them.

The divine knowledge revealed by Allah (ʿilm al-waḥy) feeds the spirit, waters its seeds, wakes it up, and helps it grow. Therefore, the more a person is guided by spirituality, the more peace and comfort they feel in purely educational gatherings (majālis) and in learning and living out sacred knowledge (ʿilm wa ʿamal). They feel naturally drawn to those settings.

You will notice that in the learning circles and lectures of senior scholars (kibār al-ʿulamāʾ), most of the audience consists of these spiritually minded people. They attend every learning circle faithfully. But if these same people go to the speeches of ordinary preachers (wāʿiẓīn) or debate-focused speakers (munāẓirīn), they quickly get bored, annoyed, and tired.

On the other hand, because of our basic physical nature, humans love rhythm and melody (tarannum). Humming tunes and listening to melodic voices is a basic human urge. Everyone satisfies this urge in their own way: some listen to music, some listen to rhythmic poems and nasheeds (naẓm), and others listen to rhythmic recitations of the Qurʾān. One way or another, people satisfy this natural desire. Because of this trait, huge crowds—especially women—fill the halls to hear preachers who recite with rhythmic, melodic voices.

In the same way, human base instincts push people to talk bad about others, look down on them, and enjoy seeing opponents humiliated. Some satisfy this urge through backbiting and gossip; others do it through jokes and sarcasm; and others do it under a religious disguise through public debates and arguments. This desire is what packs the venues for debater-style preachers, where young people flock just to hear their rivals get crushed in arguments.

Also, because of their base instincts, people love praise. They like hearing about their own virtues and rights over and over again, because it makes them feel superior to others. That is why you will notice popular preachers rarely give talks about personal duties (farāʾiḍ). Instead, they always talk about rights (ḥuqūq)—like the rights of parents or children. Every listener absorbs these speeches thinking only about what others owe them, even though those very rights are duties (farāʾiḍ) that someone else has to fulfill!

Finally, humans naturally admire power and strength, and try to get it however they can. The secret behind the appeal of jihadi organizations, activist movements, and political groups is that they tap into this desire for power among the youth. The more fiery and emotional a speaker is, the larger the crowd he pulls in.

In the end, whichever preacher satisfies more of these basic human desires will always be the most popular.

Assigning a specific day for a special act of worship is an innovation (bidʿah). For instance:

1. ​Setting aside the 10th of Muḥarram just for giving out water.

2. ​Setting aside the 15th of Shaʿbān just for fasting.

3. ​Setting aside the 27th of Rajab (the Night of Ascension) just for staying up in night prayer.

4. ​Setting aside the last Wednesday of Ṣafar just for worship.

​In the exact same way, setting aside the 12th of Rabīʿ al-Awwal just to host conferences or talk about the Prophet’s life (sīrah) is also an innovation (bidʿah).

​Those who refuse to accept this as an innovation—do they not consider talking about the Prophet’s life to be a good deed or an act of worship (ʿibādah), or is there some other reason?

​The main rule for worship (ʿibādah) is simple: the act itself must come from the Noble Prophet (peace be upon him), and the way it is done must also come from him.

​Think of the three Companions who came to the Prophet: one wanted to fast every day for the rest of his life, the second wanted to pray all night long, and the third wanted to never marry. Their intention was purely to worship (ʿibādah), yet the Prophet (peace be upon him) stopped them.

​This proves that for anything to truly be worship (ʿibādah), it must first be proven from the Prophet (peace be upon him).

Eat less… and break free from digestive powders!

Nāfiʿ (may Allah have mercy on him) narrated that a man brought a digestive powder to ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar (may Allah be pleased with him).

He asked, “What is this?”

The man replied, “It aids digestion.”

Ibn ʿUmar said, “I do not eat my fill for an entire month—so what need have I for this?”

📚 Ṭabaqāt Ibn Saʿd 4/150; its isnād is authentic [ṣaḥīḥ].

Muḥammad ibn al-Munādī told us, Isḥāq ibn Yūsuf al-Azraq told us, Zakarīyā ibn Abī Zāʾidah told us, from Abū Isḥāq, from Masrūq, who said:

The Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) said, "O Bilāl, give us something to eat." So Bilāl brought a handful of dates. The Prophet said, "Give us more," so he gave him more. Then he said again, "Give us more," and he gave him more. Then he said a third time, "Give us more." Bilāl answered, "There is nothing left, O Messenger of Allāh, except some dates I saved just for you." So the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) said, "Spend, O Bilāl, and do not fear that the Owner of the Throne will make you poor."

📚 Muʿjam Shuyūkh Ibn al-Aʿrābī 120; Ṣaḥīḥ.

نا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ الْمُنَادِي، نا إِسْحَاقُ بْنُ يُوسُفَ الْأَزْرَقُ، نا زَكَرِيَّا بْنُ أَبِي زَائِدَةَ، عَنْ أَبِي إِسْحَاقَ، عَنْ مَسْرُوقٍ

قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ: «يَا بِلَالُ أَطْعِمْنَا»، فَأَتَى بِقَبْضٍ مِنْ تَمْرٍ فَقَالَ: «زِدْنَا» فَزَادَهُ ثُمَّ قَالَ: «زِدْنَا» فَزَادَهُ، ثُمَّ قَالَ: «زِدْنَا» قَالَ: لَيْسَ شَيْءٌ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ، إِلَّا شَيْئًا دَخَرْتُهُ لَكَ، فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ: «أَنْفِقْ بِلَالُ، وَلَا تَخْشَ مِنْ ذِي الْعَرْشِ إِقْلَالًا»

📚 معجم شيوخ ابن الأعرابي ١٢٠؛ صحيح

ʿAlī ibn Ḥujr narrated to us: Ismāʿīl ibn Jaʿfar narrated to us: Sharīk narrated to us, on the authority of ʿAṭāʾ, that:

A woman in dire need came to ʿĀʾishah's door. ʿĀʾishah told her maid, "Give her something to eat." The maid brought out what she was going to offer, holding it up for ʿĀʾishah to see. At that, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "ʿĀʾishah, don't keep such close count of what you give—or Allāh will keep just as close a count of what you've done."

📚 Ḥadīth of ʿAlī ibn Ḥujr, from Ismāʿīl ibn Jaʿfar, 406; Ṣaḥīḥ.