Very often I am asked by some of our brothers who come to the Kingdom as foreign workers about what my madhhab (school of thought) is – am I a Hanbali or a Shaafa’i, etc.? In fact I am completely ignorant about this matter, and it is sufficient for me to be a Muslim; if I have a problem with regard to some religious matter, I ask the scholars. What is your opinion?
Praise be to Allah.It is sufficient for you to be a Muslim who follows the
sharee’ah. With regard to Hanbali or Shaafa’i madhhabs, you do not have to
restrict yourself to that. Those (four) scholars have a high status that is well known
throughout this Ummah; their words were written down and followed by their companions and
followers, and became madhhabs that were recognized and known, even though they were
agreed on matters of belief and Tawheed. They were also close to one another on minor
issues, but it so happened that one of them might be unaware of some evidence (daleel) or
its correct interpretation, so he made ijtihaad and issued fatwaas based on his ijtihaad.
They did not oblige others to adhere to what they said, but most of those followers
adopted sectarian attitudes and restricted themselves to the views of those imaams even if
they went against the daleel. They went to great length to interpret the texts in such a
manner as to make them agree with what they thought. On this basis, we advise the
“rank and file” to call themselves Muslims and to refer problematic issues to
respectable scholars and to consult the works of scholars who are known for their sincere
devotion to Islam and the Muslims. And Allaah knows best.