The Fitnah of Modernism

Bismi Llāhi r-Raḥmāni r-Raḥīm

“إِنْ هَٰذَا إِلَّا أَسَاطِيرُ الْأَوَّلِينَ”

(Qur’ān 08:31)

“In hādhā illā asāṭīru l-awwalīn”, “This is not but tales of the former peoples.” Ṣadaqa Llāhu l-‘Aẓīm.

It is said in Qur’ān ‘Aẓīmu sh-Sha’n, they say, “It is like old stories.” When prophets said something, they objected saying, “These are old stories.”

Many times, Mawlānā Shaykh Nāẓim used to laugh a lot at those people; at what they did, what they said and what they wrote. In his sight, everything they do is ridiculous. They called it “Çağdaş (Shadash)”; modernity. Mawlānā used to call Çağdaş, Shay-dash. He used to joke about that. He meant it’s something useless. Çağdaş means modern. It means being modern.

That is nothing new. It’s been there since old times. They would tell the ‎prophets, “You’re telling old stories. You’re saying old things.” They would object. Unbelievers and kāfirs didn’t like what they did. But unfortunately, nowadays – Allāh ﷻ created all people the same. For two hundred years, what shayṭān has embedded inside the Islāmic world is: “You are stuck behind. Your mind is so backward. Look at the kāfirs, they’ve surpassed you! They are modern. They surpassed you. Don’t keep those old principles in your religion. Let’s renew that religion. Let’s be innovators. New things. Don’t accept those old ones. Look how the Europeans live. Look how they do things.” There was an admiration. When you say Europe, the admiration for kāfirs was at its peak. Whatever they did was very beautiful in people’s eyes.

They’ve done more and more, until we reached this day. Eventually, they saw that there was no difference. But still, people would directly go to them with their ideas. They go because “There is money”, they say. But normally, people never have to. Allāh ‘Azza wa-Jalla created mankind. Wherever they are, their sustenance will come. No one is superior to anyone else. There is no need to be subject to anyone. They subject to them. They lost their dignity. They lost their personalities. They lost their honor. They fell into pieces. They play with them as they want. So modernity is not a skill. It’s not modernity – If you are not smart, be a thousand modernists, it is of no use. There is harm not benefit. They robbed you by calling it modernity. They took everything, leaving you nothing. They took their hometowns. They killed, cut and reaped. Then, you follow them in the name of modernity.

That’s not important about normal people. But what’s more dangerous: those claiming to be scholars, those claiming to be ‘ulamā’, don’t love the Mashāyikh. They don’t like them. They say, “They are reactionary, backward. They are not intellectuals like us. We look at the orientalists in Europe. Look how beautifully they talk and what good ideas they have.” Their ideas are to make people without īmān, to take them away from Islām and to make them enemies to our Holy ‎Prophet ﷺ the companions; nothing else. These are the modernists. It is more dangerous than the admiration for the life of the Europeans. It is more dangerous because they are striving directly with the intention of disrupting the society; nothing else. They have nothing. Those who follow them are either fools or traitors; nothing else. One of the two; there is no third.

Therefore, watch out for that. Our way, the way of our Mashāyikh is the right way. Don’t leave their feet. Hold onto it tightly so that they don’t make you a toy and play with you with their hands. May Allāh ﷻ protect us from evil. Wa min Allah at-Tawfiq.

Al-Fatiha.

• Mawlana Sheikh Muhammad Adil ar-Rabbani

21 January 2025/ 21 Rajab 1446

Lefke, Cyprus