Gifts of Knowledge

Fahd al-Bakraan said, “A funny situation which showed his humbleness and joviality, may Allaah have mercy on him, was when we were with his eminence [i.e., Ibn Baaz], may Allaah have mercy on him, and another one of the major scholars.

We were coming out of the Office for Religious Verdicts in [the city of] Taif, so his eminence, may Allaah have mercy on him, was joking with that other Shaikh, saying, ‘O Shaikh so and so, are you still only with one?’ i.e., only one wife?  That Shaikh replied saying, ‘Yes.’  So Shaikh Ibn Baaz said, ‘Why haven’t you taken more than one … you scared of her?’ and the Shaikh started laughing and so did we.

Mawaaqif Mudee’ah, p. 132.

Abdullaah ibn Muhammad al-Mu’taaz said, “A man who was angry came to Shaikh Ibn Baaz, trembling and foaming [at the mouth out of anger], so the Shaikh calmed him down, rubbing his head saying to him, ‘Say, ‘Subhaanallaah,’ say, ‘Subhaanallaah,’ remember Allaah, seek refuge with Allaah from the Devil,’ until he calmed him down and gave him what he needed.

Mawaaqif Mudee’ah, p. 225.

Shaikh Muhammad al-Musaa said, “Once when we were in Makkah, the Shaikh was called to participate in a da’wah gathering in Jeddah by someone dear to him, and he insisted that his eminence be present immediately after maghrib prayer, so the Shaikh said, ‘Good, inshaa Allaah.’

When the Shaikh prayed maghrib he felt it difficult upon himself to leave his established sitting with the people from maghrib to Ishaa, so he said, ‘We won’t go now and leave the people.  I have to sit with them up until Ishaa and tend to their needs and their demands,’ so he remained with them [in his house].

Then the mu’adhhin pronounced the call to prayer for ishaa and he went to the mosque, and delivered his regular [short] lesson before ishaa [i.e., between the iqaamah and the adhaan] and answered some questions.  Then he prayed ishaa and headed to Jeddah, and he was overjoyed and pleased at having sat with the people and not having left them behind.

[When he got to Jeddah] he listened to a detailed explanation of the da’wah project and its activities and then entered the lecture hall which was teeming with people and listened to all of the speeches and poetry that was read.  He then gave a lecture and after that had dinner and returned to Makkah.

On our way to Jeddah and back to Makkah, I, Dr. ash-Shuwai’ir, and the brother Saalih took turns to read to him, with not a single minute wasted.

When we got to his house in Makkah it was midnight and it was from the Shaikh’s habits to stand to pray the night prayer at about three in the morning.  He would always wake me and Shaikh Abdul-Aziz ibn Naasir, wake us for the night prayer so that we could have our share of [prayer during] the night.  So this time [it having been a long day] we were sure that he would not wake up and would leave us to sleep.  Yet the set time for him to stand to pray hadn’t come except that he was there waking us up to stand for the night prayer.

He continued to pray, and supplicate and recite until the call to prayer for fajr and then went to the mosque, the al-Qattaan mosque which was next to us, and this was before the Shaikh’s own mosque was built.

The Imaam was late and so Shaikh Ibn Baaz led us in prayer with a voice more beautiful and more humble than which you will not have heard.  When he gave salaam he turned to face the people and thanked Allaah and extolled Him and then gave them a talk.  Upon finishing he went home and we said, ‘The Shaikh is exhausted and has been up all night, maybe he will not sit after fajr.’

He went to his sitting room, put his scarf and hat to the side, sat down and said, ‘Bismillaah.  What do you have?’  So I started to read the requests/matters he had to deal with to him, and I could see comfort, energy and joy in him that would cause one to wonder in amazement. I carried on reading to him until 7:20 a.m. approximately,  and thought that he would thereafter have a long sleep, when instead he said, ‘Set the alarm clock for 8:20.’

So we woke him up at 8:20 a.m. and took him to Raabita al-Aalam al-Islaamiyyah to attend some lengthy symposiums and meetings.  He got home at his regular time of 2:30 pm.

We were all about to fall on our faces out of exhaustion and fatigue but we didn’t notice any of that on him.  May Allaah, the Most High, have mercy on him.”

Mawaaqif Mudee’ah, p. 149.

Here is a recording of the Shaikh reciting:

The Shaikh’s driver, Shaaheen, said, “There were about three occasions when I was late in getting to the car to take the Shaikh for the morning prayer.  Each time he would smile and not say a single word about my lateness even though he would be standing there waiting by the car before me.  This was how he was with all of his workers, may Allaah have mercy on him, he would never complain about anyone.”

Mawaaqif Mudee’ah, p. 199.

Abdur-Rahmaan al-Hirfi said, ‘And it is not known that the Shaikh [i.e., Ibn Baaz] ever sought revenge for himself. In fact, I heard a man say to him, ‘O Shaikh! I’ve backbitten you, so free me from it [i.e., forgive me].’ So the Shaikh, may Allaah have mercy on him, said, ‘My back is halaal for every Muslim.’ Indeed, in one of his general talks it was said to him, ‘Shaikh so and so says you are an innovator. What do you say?’ So he said, ‘He is a mujtahid scholar!’

Mawaaqif Mudee’ah, p. 116.

Shaikh Abdullaah ibn Ibrahim al-Fantukh said, ‘From that which is relevant to mention is that a guest, one of the Shaikh’s noble students, from Africa but who had acquired Saudi nationality, spent the night in the Shaikh’s house.

His eminence, the Shaikh, got up during the last part of the night to pray the night prayer.  The guest’s room was far from the place where the water was, and at that hour it was rare for anyone to be awake and the Shaikh disliked disturbing anyone [by asking them to get water for the guest].

So he went himself to where the water was with a jug, even though he was blind, filled it and brought it to the door of the guest’s room, then woke him gently [from outside] because he knew the guest wanted that.

Then he went away from the door so that the guest would not feel embarrassed, who came out quickly and saw that the Shaikh had turned away and left the jug outside his door.  And this guest is trustworthy, from the people of knowledge.’

Mawaaqif Mudee’ah, p. 232.

Dr. Naasir ibn Misfir al-Zahraani said, “Shaikh Abdur-Rahmaan ibn Atiq, who was in charge of the Shaikh’s finances, was asked, ‘Did the Shaikh ever ask you when his wage comes?  Which day it arrives? Or any such question?  And did he ever ask you about the amount of his wage, how much it was?’ So he replied, ‘Wallaahi!  He never once asked about that.

He only used to ask about other people’s wages–encouraging that their wages not be delayed.’”

Mawaaqif Mudee’ah, p. 223.