Part 1

According to the Aqeedah of the Salaf

By Shaykh Muhammad Saeed al‐Qahtani

Preface to First Edition 07

2 - The Declaration of Faith 16

3 - The Prerequisites of the Declaration of Faith 23

4 - Love and Hate and the Declaration of Faith 33

5 - The Declaration of Faith: On the Tongue and in the Heart 38

6 - The Effects of the Declaration of Faith on the Heart 43

7 - What Negates the Declaration of Faith 46

8 - Disbelief in Action and Conviction 59

9 - What Negates Islam 66

Glossary of Arabic Terms 75

This book was originally submitted in the form of a thesis for a Master's

Degree to the Department of Aqeedah of the Umm al‐Qorah University in

The examining committee comprised the following: Muhammad Qutb,

the supervisor, as chairman; Shaykh Abdur Razzaq Afifi as a member; and Dr.

Abdul Azeez Obeid as a member.

The author was granted a Master's Degree, with excellence, on Saturday

evening, the 4th of Shaban 1401.

I am grateful to Shaykh Abdur Razzaq Afifi for writing the Foreword to

Thanks are also due to Omar Johnstone for translating the book into

English, to Ahmad Thomson for editing and typesetting the text and compiling

the Glossary, and to Yusuf Islam for both his moral and financial support in its

It is impossible to provide a literal translation in English of the words al‐

wala' wa'l‐bara', but the meaning of this Arabic term indicated, on the one hand,

drawing near to what is pleasing to Allah and His Messenger and, on the other

hand, withdrawing from what is displeasing to Allah and His Messenger, may

Allah bless him and grant him peace.

In the Name of Allah, the Merciful, the Compassionate

Praise belongs to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may the blessings and

peace of Allah be on our Prophet Muhammad and on his family and on all his

The subject matter of this work is of paramount importance and utmost

interest for two major reasons:

Firstly, it is concerned with one of Islamʹs main foundations, namely the

qualities of al‐walaʹ waʹ1‐baraʹ, which are two major prerequisites of true faith:

al‐walaʹ is a manifestation of sincere love for Allah, His prophets and the

believers; al‐baraʹ, on the other hand, is an expression of enmity and hatred

towards falsehood and its adherents. Both are evidence of iman.

Secondly, it has been written at a very crucial time: everything has become

so mixed up that some Muslims are no longer aware of those qualities which

distinguish the believers from the non‐believers; their faith has become so weak

that they have adopted patterns of behaviour that are absolutely repugnant to a

sincere believer; they have taken the disbelievers as their friends, while

displaying enmity towards many of the believers by disparaging their character

The importance of writing such a book as this in the present time is

The author has investigated the various aspects of al‐walaʹ waʹ1‐baraʹ,

quoting, along with explanatory notes and comments, many scholarsʹ statements

and arguments. He has also backed up his arguments with numerous verses

from the Qurʹan, authentic traditions from the Prophet, may Allah bless him and

grant him peace and many of the sayings of his companions and the early pious

Muslim scholars, may Allah be pleased with all of them. The author has also

verified the reliability of these sources, recording the numbers of the Qurʹanic

verses and the chapters in which they are to be found, and the books in which

the prophetic traditions and sayings are contained, as well as the degree of their

The authorʹs grasp of his subject, his immense erudition and the

thoroughness of his research, are all clearly apparent in this work.

I pray that this book will benefit the Muslims. I also pray that Allah the

Almighty will provide our Ummah with writers who will follow in the footsteps

of its author. There is great hope that the younger generation of Muslims will be

brought up to honour the deen of Islam and to revive those parts of it that have

been obliterated, for my Lord and your Lord is the Hearer and Answerer of our

(His Eminence Shaykh Abdar‐Razaq Afifi is Deputy‐President of the

Departments of Guidance, Ifta, Call and Scholarly Research in Saudi Arabia; he is

also a member of the Board of Great Ulamaʹ of Saudi Arabia.)

In the name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful

All praise is due to Allah. We praise Him and seek His assistance. We ask

for His forgiveness and take refuge in Him from the evil within ourselves and

from the evil of our deeds. He whom Allah guides will never be diverted yet

whomever He sends astray will never find his way. I bear witness that there is no

God but Allah, Alone, He has no partner, and I bear witness that Muhammad is

His servant and Messenger, may the blessing of Allah be upon him, his Family,

his Companions, and upon those who followed his guidance.

Allah has bestowed upon us His Mercy and Kindness by sending His

Messenger Muhammad and His Message as the final heavenly message. He has

sent this Message pure and complete. No one, except the deviated people, could

be diverted from it. He has promised happiness in this world and in the

Hereafter for the followers of His Shariʹah; those who have fully appreciated its

value and devoted themselves to convey it in accordance with Allahʹs Wishes

and the guidance of His Messenger. Allah has called them His friends and party.

He has also promised misery and degradation for those who have deviated from

His Shariʹah and His Right path. He has called them the friends and party of

The foundation of this eternal Message is the affirmation of Tawhid,

There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah. Ibn al‐

Qayyim said that the Word of Tawhid is the reason for which: Balances of

Justice are set up, records of deeds are registered, the day of Paradise and Hell

is appointed, creatures are divided into believers and disbelievers, pious and

evildoers, the religion of Islam is established and swords are unsheathed for

Jihad. The Word of Tawhid is Allahʹs right over all His creatures.

The reality of this Word consists of: The knowledge of what the Prophet

has brought, belief of the heart, confirmation of the tongue, obedience with love

and submission, its practice inwardly and outwardly, its application and the call

of other people to it according to oneʹs ability. Its perfection is the love for Allahʹs

sake and hate for His sake, offer and prevent for His sake, and that Allah, alone,

should be oneʹs God and Lord.

The way to achieve Tawhid is: The full following of the Prophet, inwardly

and outwardly, and the restraint of the heart from pursuing other than Allah and

1 Ibn al‐Qayyim, ʹAl‐Fawaʹid, revised by Jabir Yussef, p.143.

This great Word (Tawhid), with all the meanings and requirements it

entails, has been absent in peopleʹs life, except a few. One of the most important

subject of these requirements is the doctrine of Al‐Walaʹ Wal Bara.

However, although this crucial principle of faith has vanished from

peopleʹs life, it does not change a thing about its plain reality. The doctrine of al‐

Walaʹ Wal Baraʹ is the real image for the actual practice of this faith. It has a

tremendous significance in the mind of the Muslim, as much as the greatness and

significance of the faith. Therefore, Tawhid will never be achieved on earth until

we apply the doctrine of al‐Walaʹ Wal Baraʹ. Some people think that the principle

of faith is a matter of secondary importance, but in reality it is the opposite.

It is a matter of belief and disbelief, as Allah says:

"O You who believe! Do not take your fathers or your brothers as

protectors if they prefer disbelief to faith. Whoever among you takes

them for protectors will only be wrongdoers. Say, If your fathers, your

sons, your brothers, your wives, your kinsmen, the wealth which you

have acquired, the commerce in which you fear a decline, or the houses

you love ‐ if these are dearer to you than Allah and His Messenger, and

striving hard and fighting in His cause, then wait until Allah brings

about His Decision (torment). Allah does not guide those who are Al‐

Faasiqun." (Surat at‐Tawbah: Verses 23 ‐ 24)

"O you who believe! Take not the Jews and the Christians as Awliyaʹ

(friends, protectors), they are but Awliyaʹ to one another. And if any

amongst you takes them as Awliyaʹ, then surely he is one of them.

Verily, Allah guides not those people who are the Zaalimun

(polytheists, wrong‐doers)" (Surat al‐Maʹidah: Verse 51)

Sheikh Hamad Ben Ateeq, may Allah have mercy upon him, has said:

"In the Book of Allah (Qurʹan) there is no ruling more apparent and

significant than the ruling of al‐Walaʹ Wal Baraʹ, after the requirement of

Tawhid and the prohibition of its opposite" 2

The Muslim Ummah had led humanity for centuries. It disseminated

Islam throughout the world, and liberated people from the worship of other

people to the worship of the Lord of people, and from oppression to freedom.

What has happened after that?

• The Muslim Ummah has fallen behind, after it abandoned Jihad, which

is the top of Islam, and followed pleasures of the world.

• It imitates other nations and become engrossed in luxuries and comfort.

• Its thoughts have been confused because it mixed up the pure principles

of Islam with heresy of human beings and philosophies of Jahiliyyah.

• It has obeyed the disbelievers and preferred worldly gains to its religion

(Islam), but it lost both this world and the Hereafter.

Aspects of association are manifested in different matters:

1. Loving, honouring and helping the disbelievers against the Muslims,

and removing the shariʹah of Allah and stigmatising Islam and the Muslims as

reactionaries, fossils and relics of a former age, left behind by the march of

2. Importing laws of the disbelievers and forcing them on Muslims against

their wills, and calling any Muslim, who wants Allahʹs Shariʹah to be

implemented, an extremists and a reactionary.

3. Casting doubt about the Sunnah of the Prophet, attacking its records

and disparaging the scholars who devoted their lives for the protection of the

4. Calling for the new religion of Jahiliyyah which is considered a new

apostasy in the Muslimsʹ life, like Turanian Nationalism, Arab Nationalism,

5. Corrupting Muslim society by means of education, media and instilling

western thoughts and ways of life into the minds of Muslims.