al-Qawl al-Muharrar fi al-Amr bil-Maruf wal-Nahy an al-Munkar
- Author died
- 1413 AH
- Editions
- Mu’assasat al-Nūr lil-Ṭibā‘ah wal-Tajlīd
al-Qawl al-Muharrar fi al-Amr bil-Maruf wal-Nahy an al-Munkar (The Refined Discourse on Enjoining Good and Forbidding Evil) is a treatise by the Saudi scholar Hammud ibn Abdullah al-Tuwayjiri (1334–1413 AH / 1915–1993 CE) on the obligation of enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong, the religious ramifications of neglecting it, and the distinction between illicit religious compromise and permissible tactfulness .
Purpose and Motivation
Al-Tuwayjiri composed the work as a concise treatise intended to encourage Muslims to uphold the communal obligation of enjoining good and forbidding evil and to warn against abandoning it . He noted that the primary impetus for compiling the work was the widespread negligence and disregard that Muslims in contemporary times showed toward this duty . Drawing upon the prophetic hadith narrated by Tamim al-Dari, الدين النصيحة ("Religion is sincere counsel"), he positioned the book as an act of advice directed to both Muslim authorities and the general public .
Structure and Contents
The work is organized into distinct thematic sections (fuṣūl) addressing the scriptural, theological, and practical dimensions of the subject:
- Consequences of Neglect: Al-Tuwayjiri argues that laxity regarding enjoining good and forbidding evil is among the chief causes for the gradual erosion of religion, citing traditions related to the Israelites who discarded their religious obligations incrementally . He observes that the duty had been effectively abandoned across most Muslim lands, attributing this to the spread of Western notions of unrestricted personal freedom, while pointing out that even where it was practiced, it suffered from selective enforcement that exempted dignitaries and officials while censuring the weak .
- Eschatological Connections: The author links the decline of enjoining good to the portents of the Day of Judgment (ashrāṭ al-sāʿah), examining traditions transmitted by companions such as Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman, Ali ibn Abi Talib, Anas ibn Malik, and Ma'qil ibn Yasar concerning the inversion of moral values and the emergence of unqualified figures who assume religious authority .
- Critique of Contemporary Practices: The text contains extensive criticism of various widespread societal practices of the author's era, including the neglect of congregational prayer in favor of listening to the radio, the shaving or plucking of beards, smoking tobacco, playing card games for money, competitive ball games, clapping in public assemblies, and wearing wristwatches in a manner resembling women's bracelets .
- The Upright Scholars: Al-Tuwayjiri discusses the concept of the continuous preserved group (al-ṭāʾifah al-manṣūrah / gharas Allāh), defining them following classical authorities like Ibn al-Qayyim and the early traditionists as the scholars of hadith who combine correct knowledge with practice and transmit it faithfully across generations .
- Compromise versus Tactfulness: The book delineates the legal boundary between prohibited flattery or compromise (mudāhanah) and permissible tactfulness (mudārāh) . Citing jurists such as Ibn Battal, al-Qadi Iyad, al-Qurtubi, and Abd al-Latif ibn Abd al-Rahman ibn Hasan, he defines mudāhanah as withholding required religious censure and fraternizing with wrongdoers for worldly gain, whereas mudārāh constitutes using gentleness in teaching the ignorant or correcting the transgressor without relinquishing the religious duty .
Publication
The work was printed by Mu'assasat al-Nur, with correction and supervision of its printing carried out by Ali al-Hamad al-Salihi .
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