to obtain a card or a certificate. Real knowledge, by contrast, is the knowledge that sinks into the heart and becomes an instinctive faculty. A person whom Allah favors with this sort of learning is scarcely presented with a question before he knows how to trace it back to proofs from the Qur’an, the Sunnah, and sound analogy. In short, knowledge must be firmly grounded.

People in our age are in dire need of this level of knowledge, for the darkness of innovation has begun to spread in our land after it had long been free of it. Because we have opened ourselves to others and they to us—some of us travelling abroad and others coming here with unsound beliefs—innovations have started to appear and their gloom is proliferating. These innovations must be met with the light of knowledge that illuminates the path, so that our country is not struck by the grave, detestable innovations that have overtaken other lands, some of which reach the level of unbelief—Allah’s refuge is sought. It is therefore imperative to strive against the people of innovation and hypocrisy through knowledge and clear exposition, demonstrating the falsity of their positions with compelling evidence from the Book of Allah, the Sunnah of His Messenger ﷺ, the statements of the righteous forebears—Companions and their followers—and the Imams of guidance who came after them.

The second form of striving against others is armed struggle. This concerns fighting those enemies who openly profess enmity toward Islam, such as the Jews and the Christians who call themselves “Christians,” while the Messiah, peace be upon him, is utterly free of their claims. Were the Messiah to return, he would fight them even though they claim affiliation with him. Allah the Exalted says: “And [mention] when Allah will say, ‘O Jesus, son of Mary, did you say to the people, “Take me and my mother as two deities besides Allah”…’” (Al-Ma’idah 5:116).