How to Interact with the Shia
- Muiz As-Siddeeqi
- Jun 27
- 1 min read
How to Interact with the Shia
Question to Shaykh Ibn Baaz:
I work as a teacher, and we have teachers who are Shīʿah. I work with them—what advice do you have for how I should deal with them?
Shaykh Ibn Baaz Answer:
You should advise them and direct them towards goodness. Teach them that Rafḍ (rejection of the rightly-guided Companions) is not permissible, and that it is obligatory to love ʿAlī and invoke Allah’s pleasure upon him (radiyallāhu ʿanhu), but without going to extremes. It must not be said that he knows the unseen, or that he is infallible, or that he should be supplicated to besides Allah, or that help is sought from him. The same applies to al-Ḥasan, al-Ḥusayn, Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq, and others—you should teach them that this is what is required.
Advise them. If they persist in their innovation, then you must boycott them—even if they work with you. Boycott them, do not return their salām, and do not initiate salām with them.
However, if they do not openly display their innovation and outwardly agree with you, then their ruling is the ruling of the hypocrites. You may treat them like the Prophet (peace be upon him) treated the hypocrites in Madīnah: whoever outwardly displays Islam and refrains from evil is treated as a Muslim, and his inner reality is left to Allah.
Source: From the questions of Ḥajj, year 1415 AH, tape 49/6 — Majmūʿ Fatāwā wa-Maqālāt al-Shaykh Ibn Bāz, vol. 28, p. 266.
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