Madkhali’s criticism of Sayyid Quṭb: a critique of the critique

From the 60s of the 20th century, the works of Sayyid Qu ṭ b have enormous influence on the thought of Muslim youths and Islamists. The core message of his works is establishing the supremacy of Islamic law in all facets of life and outright condemnation of the subsisting order of the day concerning the political and socio-economic operations in Muslim nations. The effect of his thoughts on Muslim youths is visible in the resurrection of Islamists who have become a thorn in the flesh of political dictators and autocratic monarchs in Arabia. As part of efforts to neutralize the effects of Qu ṭb’s works on the ever -increasing Muslim youths in Saudi particularly and the Muslim world at large, Rabi’u Madkhali, a senior Salafi diehard with much influence in Madinah, kickstarted the project of refuting what he termed as "theological deviations” and “rebellious approach” in Quṭb’s thoughts. His works have given birth to a large number of Muslim youths who dedicate an extraordinary commitment to pathological hatred for Qu ṭ b, his works, associates, and students. This article aims to criticize some submissions of Madkhali on Qu ṭb’s thought. The article which is library -based adopts an analytical method of research. Two issues, which include law enactment in a Muslim state and the abolition of the slavery system, are selected. The paper found that Madkhali’s refutations are highly characterized by accusations that need


Introduction
The works and thoughts of Sayyid Quṭb (1906Quṭb ( -1966) ) have largely influenced the awakening of Muslims in the contemporary world.The summary of his thoughts is the total condemnation of the Western-dominated system and agitation for the Islamization of the current system.He used the weapon of high-powered literary skills and religious zeal, which characterized his works to appeal to a very large number of Muslim youths and Islamists.The new concepts promoted by his works include Jāhiliyyah (referring to the current system as a pre-Islamic replica), Ḥākimiyah IJISH (International Journal of Islamic Studies and Humanities) E-ISSN 2615-7403 Vol 6, No. 2, pp. 131-144 132 Nafiu Ahmed Arikewuyo (Madkhali's criticism of Sayyid Quṭb …) (referring to the supremacy of the Islamic system), Thawrah (referring to revolution as a means of changing the current system), Takfῑr (referring to the contemporary society as un-Islamic).All the terms have constituted the orbit around which the advocacy of the modern violent Jihadists and insurgents in Arabia revolves.Hence, the thoughts and works of Quṭb have received special attention from the constituted authorities, who are the victims of his thoughts as well as the Western researchers who are committed to establishing the link between the thoughts of Quṭb and the various blocs of militant Jihadists.It is worthy of note that Muslim scholars, either from among Quṭb's adherents who are willing to spare him of the implications of his thoughts on the global world or those who seem to defend the Islamic theology against the militants who address Quṭb as their ideologue, are not left out in the literature surrounding the discourse about the thoughts of Quṭb.
The post-Arab Spring has featured the circulation of Rabi'u Madkhali's refutation books on Quṭb.Madkhali is a diehard Salafi cleric with much influence in the Islamic University of Madinah where he retired as a Professor of Hadith.He had been known as an unrepentant supporter of the Saudi's establishment and monarchy during and after the religious polemics surrounding the Gulf War at the beginning of the 90s (Madkhali, 1992).His works which aim to destroy the arguments of Quṭb's theories and concepts have negatively influenced the hostile position of modern Salafi adherents towards the works, thoughts, adherents, and admirers of Sayyid Quṭb (Arikewuyo, 2019).Sayyid Quṭb's works were considered the spring for political orientation, opposition and check in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia where Madkhali resides as one of the leading and elderly scholars.Hence, Madkhalī launched an academic attack on those works and came out to publicize what he described as fundamental heresies contained in the works.Among the heresies alleged by Madkhalī against Quṭb are abusing the companions, calling for uniformity of religion, revolutionary approach, etc. (Madkhali, 2001).
Before the publication of his submissions on Quṭb's works, Madkhalī sought the consent and review of another high-ranked scholar of the Kingdom, Bakru Abū Zaydi.The latter after reading the manuscript replied in a written letter that the work did not worth being published and accused Madkhalī of twisting the views of Quṭb in all the alleged heresies (Mushāri, 2019).Abū Zayd furthered that Quṭb was a great scholar who died for the cause of Islam and that even if he had committed a religious mistake, the unethical approach adopted by Madkhalī did not suit him.The manuscript, however, was published with the commendation of another Salafi scholar in the person of Nāsirudeen al-Albāni (d. 1999).Against this background, the present article attempts to critique some submissions made by Madkhali in his work, titled "al-'Awāṣim mimmā fῑ kutub Sayyid mina'l Qawāṣim" (The Safety from the Blunders Contained in the Works of Sayyid Quṭb).Because of the limitation of articles such as the present one, two issues which include law enactment in a Muslim government, abolition of war captive, and slavery system, were selected for analytic study.
Previous works on Quṭb are largely focused on appreciating his modern style of interpreting the Glorious Qur'an, as epitomized in his "Fi Ẓilāl al-Qur'ān" (Under the Shades of the Qur'an).Yusuf submits that, "the focus of Quṭb in Fi Ẓilāl al-Qur'ān revolves around two major themes, namely: al-ḥākimiyyah or sovereignty, and da'wah (Yusuf, 2009).Asyraf et.al conclude that, "the content of Zilal that revolve around Quṭb's treatment of the social and political problems facing Egyptian society and the Muslim ummah based on the Quran attracted both Muslim and Western scholars attentions to consider his view and his influence upon the new Muslim generation in particular on the socio religious concern and commitment towards their religion and nation (ummah) as a whole" (Ab Rahman et al., 2011).Also, Asyraf and Nooraihan have postulated how Quṭb used his new style of Tafsir as an alternative solution for the contemporary economic and social quagmires.
However, the work of Sayyid Quṭb that has attracted more attention is his Ma'ālim fῑ aṭ-Ṭarῑq (Milestone).The work has assumed universal reference for the friends and foes of the author.
Steven has considered Milestone as the solid foundation for the Arab Spring which took off in 2010 (Zenishek, 2013).Ilman and Septi have also accused Quṭb of being the source of Islamic fundamentalism in the contemporary world (Nafia & Gumiandari, 2019).James has also labeled Quṭb as a radical intellectual (Toth, 2013).Another Western scholar who has a negative view of Milestone is Thameem who asserts that "Re-reading Milestones and other writings, it is clear that Quṭb articulated a bold, unapologetic conception of Islam that denies the authority of "foreign life conceptions," claims for Islam universal validity and decries the economic injustices which the masses have to endure (Ushama, 2007).Quṭb argued that the dominant socio-political system of the contemporary Islamic and non-Islamic world is that of jahiliyyah -a condition of sinfulness, injustice, suffering, and ignorance of Islam's divine guidance (Yoyo et al., 2012).All societies that do not follow the rule of Allah (SWT) are in a state of jahiliyyah."It is worth mentioning that aside from the scholars who have berated the thoughts promoted by Quṭb in Milestone, there are other scholars from among his group-Muslim Brotherhood-who are also critics of his revolutionary approach.In the Second Guide of the Ikhwan, Hasan Hudaybi condemns the attempt of labeling the contemporary Muslim community as un-Islamic.In the same vein (Hudaybi, 1972), Qaradawi asserted that Quṭb does not have supporters from among the senior adherents of the Muslim Brotherhood over his revolutionary method (Qaradawi, 1994).However, some scholars have come to the defense of Quṭb against the previous accusation made by his friends and foes alike.
Bahansawi spares Quṭb of the guilt of radicalization of Muslim youths and puts the onus on Muhammad Quṭb-junior brother of Sayyid-who, according to him, was responsible for preaching radical thoughts after the death of the senior Quṭb (Bahansāwi, 1989).Interestingly, Muhammad Quṭb is one of the teachers and mentors of Osama bin Laden through 'Abdullah bin 'Azzam, another mentee of junior Quṭb.'Ubayd also maintains that the blank labeling of the Muslim community as an un-Islamic society by Quṭb is not intentional, and it is only aimed to awaken the Muslim community from the slumber of adopting the un-Islamic system (Ubayd, 2006).Comparing Quṭb's thoughts with others and tracing his ideologies to the likes of Mawdūdi and al-Bannā, the founder of the Muslim Brotherhood is another field of research that has been filled up by previous researchers.Soage traces Quṭb's theories of ḥākimiyyah and jāhiliyyah to the Pakistani scholar, Mawdūdi (Soage, 2009).In the same vein, Asyraf and Nooraihan established the influence of Mawdūdi in the Quṭb's writings (Ali & HJ Ab Rahman, 2012).According to them, Quṭb is an intellectual product of Mawdudi's thoughts.While making a comparison between al-Bannā and Sayyid Quṭb, Tommy submits that, "Hassan al-Bannā laid the foundation for the idea of an Islamic order through socio-moral reform and activism, Quṭb intellectualized Islamism and developed the concept further, deeming everyone not following his specific view of Islam as enemies -belonging in the realm of jāhiliyyah" (Tommy, 2017).Tommy's submission has been corroborated by Soage (Soage, 2009).It is given the foregoing literature review that one can identify a leap in the attention given to the refutations of Madkhali by previous researchers.One major factor that may be responsible for this manifestation is that Madkhali's refutation of Quṭb is written in the Arabic language with a conservative style and narrow-minded approach of modern Salafism, which may not likely attract the partial attention of an objective researcher.Be it as it may, the current attempt is willing to fill the gap.The article is segmented into an introduction, a brief background about Sayyid Quṭb and Rabi'u Madkhali, an overview of Madkhali's al-'Awāsim, legislation in a Muslim state, abolition of slavery, and a conclusion.

Brief Account about Sayyid Quṭb
Sayyid Quṭb bin Ibrahim bin Husayn al-Shādhili was born in 1906 in Moshe village in the Asyut district (Yusuf, 2009).As characteristic of Egyptian parents, his father, Ibrahim, not only gave him sound home training but also encouraged him to devote his time to the Qur'an, which he was able to memorize at the age of eleven before he went to public school (Yoyo, 2017).Sayyid joined the famous Egyptian Centre for Arabic and Islamic Studies, Dar al-Ulum; and having acquired basic knowledge he proceeded further and registered in the tertiary section of Dar al-Ulum for specialized studies in Arabic Language and Literature.At the age of 27, he graduated in 1933 and obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree with a Graduate Certificate in Education (Ashmawi, 1969).
Shortly after his graduation, he worked briefly with the famous Egyptian newspaper, al-Ahram.
He also freelanced for two magazines, namely: al-Risalah and ath-Thaqafah.He later joined the services of the Egyptian Ministry of Education Headquarters.Throughout this period, Sayyid's

IJISH (International Journal of Islamic Studies and Humanities)
E-ISSN 2615-7403 Vol 6, No. 2, pp. 131-144 Nafiu Ahmed Arikewuyo (Madkhali's criticism of Sayyid Quṭb …) 135 Islamic direction was hardly noticed, it was through his book entitled Social Justice in Islam that people began to take note of his devotion to the promotion of Islamic ideology.In 1948, Sayyid was among the youths who were sent to the United States to undergo a close study of the modern educational system of that country (Yusuf, 2009).
In 1949, his second year in the United States, he was chopping in a store when he saw both white men and women jubilating over the news of the death of Hasan al-Banna, the founder of the Muslim Brotherhood.From that incident, he developed a passion for searching the activities and missions of the Muslim Brotherhood.Thus, when Sayyid returned to Egypt in 1952, he disappointed his sponsors by criticizing the very system that he was asked to go and understudy.
He went further to criticize Egyptian educational administrators whom he accused of being over-Americanized (Yusuf, 2009).He requested his retirement from public service in 1953 at the age of 47 years to be fully committed to the Da'wah activities under the shade of the Muslim Brotherhood.As a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, Sayyid Quṭb assumed the role of theorist and ideologue as well as a source of inspiration for the largest number of the group's members (Qaradāwi, 1999).His write-ups became the reference point for all Islamists across the globe.His activism along with other senior members of the group subjected them to incarceration in 1954 and 1965 respectively.Most of his works that are replete with excessive zeal for change in the governance system and labeling the current order of the day across Muslim nations were penned down in prison.In 1965 when the Egyptian President, Gamal Nasser was on an official visit to the Union of the Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR), he announced in Moscow that his government had uncovered a plan by the Muslim Brotherhood to stage a coup and cause a chaotic situation in Egypt and Sayyid was to lead the coup.Hence, after their arraignment, Sayyid and some prominent members of the group were sentenced to death by hanging on Sunday, 22 August 1966 (Yusuf, 2009).137 comment, no doubt, is used by the author to further justify his attack on Sayyid Quṭb.The author's introduction is replete with labeling, emotion, and accusation, which propels one to conclude that the work is not done with academic spirit.The preamble is opened, after the quotation of prophetic traditions regarding being truthful, with labeling those promoting Quṭb as betrayers.There is a strong probability that the author is referring here to Bakru Abū Zayd (d. 2008), another senior Salafi scholar in Saudi, who disapproved of the publication of the refutation work, on the basis that Madkhali has been beclouded by emotional submissions of other than academic assessment.The author quotes from Ibn Taymiyah (d.1328) who regards the refutation against the arrowhead of heretic sects as a great Jihad in Islam.He concludes, even from his preamble, that Sayyid Quṭb, being a sheer heretic in the status of the notorious Khawarij, Jahmiyah, and Shi'ah, deserves more than the attack he launches on him (Madkhali, 2001).That the author's conclusion has been known before reading his refutation is sufficient to rule out his work as an academic work.

Brief Account about Rabi'u Madkhali
The following sections are characterized by the title of the mistake committed by Sayyid Quṭb based on the interpretation of the author, and then following it up with refutation.Some of the mistakes titled by the author include the adoption of socialism and the abolition of slavery, Islam being a mixture of Christianity and Communism, the thought of the internationality of Islam, giving license to other religions under the Islamic government, freedom of faith, worship should not be taken as life preoccupation, making jest of Muslim clerics and labeling Muslim scholars as religious entrepreneurs, etc.While the author may be right in his interpretation of Quṭb's texts in some areas, he is not free of bias in some respects.The author is accurate in describing some statements made by Quṭb as mocking the Muslim scholars.For instance, Quṭb has adopted two words, namely 'men of religion' and 'dervish' for Muslim scholars, a style which is known with the socialists.He has also declared that the jobless men of God in the Muslim community shall-when the Islamic state becomes a reality-be dedicated to a more productive business other than the seclusion in the place of worship.He also allayed the fear of some people perceiving Islamic rule as a system where the clerics and dervish take over the governance by stating that such a perception is flawed and has no historical antecedent, coupled with the fact that even the outfit worn by some Muslim clerics-that makes them special-is not a dictate of Islam.Sayyid Quṭb further claims a disconnection between Islam as a faith and its clerics.He submits that no one is farther than Islam as the so-called Muslim scholars who deceitfully appear as representatives of the faith.These and other statements provoked Madkhali to conclude that Sayyid Quṭb is a mockery of religious authorities who are very key stakeholders in the Islamic state being agitated for by Quṭb.It is worth stating that the statements of Quṭb could not be disconnected from the context and circumstances under which he made them.Generally, during his time the so-called Muslim clerics were lifeless and non-effective because of the colonial legacy being in operation in Egypt.Muslim scholars generally and Azhar University, which was the mainstay of Islamic scholarship, according to Yusuf (Yusuf, 2009) and Qaradawi (Qaradāwi, 1999) have become a tune in the hands of its piper.The resurgence of the Muslim Ummah could not be placed in the hand of such a directionless set of people.That someone in the age of Hasan al-Banna in 1928 could conceive the missions he set for himself is a testimony that Muslim clerics in Egypt where Sayyid Quṭb made the statements were helpless.Hence, the target of Quṭb's statements is the handicapped Muslim scholars in his community, and not a mockery of Muslim authorities across the ages, as interpreted by Madkhali.
The areas where Madkhali has misinterpreted the statement of Sayyid Quṭb abound.For instance, when Sayyid Quṭb states the following: "Islam should rule (the world) because it is the only faith that contains the positive features and missions of Christianity and Communism, and it also supersedes the duo with balance, moderation, and synergy."Madkhali alleges that the content is very proximate to the thought of Waḥdat al-Wujūd (pantheism) which entails the uniformity of all faiths (20).The context under which Sayyid Quṭb speaks justifies his submission, as asserting the positive sides of Christianity and Communism does not amount to approving them as acceptable divine faiths.The Qur'an, despite condemning the trinity feature in Christendom, praises its positive side when it provides, "Strongest among men in enmity to the believers wilt Thou find the Jews and Pagans; and nearest among them in love to the believers wilt Thou find those who say, "We are Christians": because amongst these are men devoted to learning and men who have renounced the world, and They are not arrogant."(Q5:82).Generally, al-'Awasim mimma fi kutub Sayyid mina'l Qawasim is highly characterized by accusations that need unequivocal proof, misinterpretation of Quṭb's statements, and emotional submissions.All the traits have been raised even before its publication by Bakru Abu Zayd.However, Madkhali is accurate in his description of Sayyid Quṭb's style of presentation as revolutionary.This allegation has been confirmed through the Quṭb's statements about change in leadership and substitution of current Muslim scholars whom he described as men of religion, dervish, and religious entrepreneurs.

Legislation under the Islamic State
An Islamic state otherwise known as the caliphate has been defined by the foremost Muslim political theorist, Al-Māwardi as an act of representing the prophethood in preserving the faith and governing the mundane with the Shari'ah provision (Al-Mawardi, 2005).The objectives of an Islamic state, according to 'Imarah include the sustenance of Islamic unity, ensuring the defense of Islamic territories, and preserving the implementation of Shari'ah.Legislation is a core component of any government, and the Islamic system is not an exception (Imārah, 2011).Khallāf submits that Islamic governance from the prophetic era till date has an element of three components of government which are the executive, legislative, and judiciary (Khallaf, 2014).

IJISH (International Journal of Islamic Studies and Humanities)
E-ISSN 2615-7403 Vol 6, No. 2, pp. 131-144 Nafiu Ahmed Arikewuyo (Madkhali's criticism of Sayyid Quṭb …) 139 However, the conventional and dominating thought has always been that the Shari'ah, with its major sources including the Qur'an, Sunnah, Ijmā', etc. constitutes the legislative basis in an Islamic state.This is the point from where Sayyid Quṭb's statement and its criticism by Madkhali become appealing.Sayyid Quṭb states, "After being through with the means of intellectual orientation, then we shall face the means of legislative enactment to actualize a valid Islamic way of life that will guarantee an overall social justice.At this juncture, we will not limit ourselves to the legislative antecedents in the previous era of Islamic history.Rather, it is pertinent to benefit from all available means allowed by the general principles of Islam.We should not hesitate to borrow a leaf from all the achievements that have been made by human beings in terms of legislation, social systems, provided they are not in collision with the general principles of Islam, and they can ensure a legal interest or preventing an expected harm on the populace."(Quṭb, 1998).While refuting the foregoing submission, Madkhali reacts, "Sayyid Quṭb seems to view Islam as an incomplete system that has not made sufficient provision for the needs of the Muslim Ummah.His statement also approves for any state ascribing itself to Islam to adopt what suits its whims from the man-made laws, all on the pretense of actualizing a certain interest or preventing harm and relying on the fact that it does not contravene the general principle of Islam."(Madkhali, 2001).
The comment made by Madkhali over Quṭb's statement fails to address the issues at hand, but resorts to giving it an interpretation the author of the statement never made.The two forms of a misinterpretation made by Madkhali cannot hold water as there abound other statements of Sayyid Quṭb that discredit the insinuations.More so, Sayyid Quṭb is the foremost advocate of Islamic supremacy in the contemporary world.What Madkhali did here is tantamount to calling a dog a bad name to justify its killing.The statement of Sayyid Quṭb can be viewed through three different aspects which are all related to the Islamic political system discourse.There are various sources of legislation in Islam, of which Ijtihād (juristic effort) is one.Ijtihād has been defined as "the intellectual endeavor by individual jurists to extract solutions to individual and societal problems that are not explicitly addressed in the texts of the Qur'an or Sunnah" (Nigeria, 2019).
According to Kamali, Ijtihād is the most important source of Islamic law next to the Qur'an and the Sunnah (Kamali, 2003).The main difference between Ijtihād and the revealed sources of the Shari'ah lies in the fact that Ijtihād is a continuous process of development whereas divine revelation and prophetic legislation discontinued upon the demise of the Prophet.In this sense, Ijtihād continues to be the main instrument of interpreting the divine message and relating it to the changing conditions of the Muslim community in its aspirations to attain justice, salvation, and truth.
The submission made by Madkhali wrongly portrays Islam as a system whose entire problem has been addressed by explicit texts of the Qur'an and Sunnah.Even during the formative stage of Islam, there was a need to employ the intellectual endeavor of jurists for addressing new emerging problems.Khallāf submits that Ijtihād played a major role during the times of the Companions and their successors in reacting to the new emerging matters affecting the Muslim community (Khallaf, 2014).Dawalibi argues that the collections of Ijtihād made by Muslim jurists at different points in time have become part and parcel of the Shari'ah (Dawālῑbi, 2002).Hence, the submission of Sayyid Quṭb is in tandem with the admission of Ijtihad as a Shari'ah tool to address peculiar problems at every point in time.Another discourse through which the submission of Sayyid Quṭb can be appreciated is the place of Ra'y al-Imām (proclamation of the leader) in Islamic legislation.
The leader in this context means either the overall executive head or anyone delegated by him for legislative exercise (Qaradawi, 2005).The proclamation of the leader is entitled to the masses' obedience, according to the provision of the Qur'an that provides, "O ye who believe! obey Allah, and obey the Messenger, and those charged with authority among you if ye differ in anything among yourselves, refer it to Allah and His Messenger, if ye do believe in Allah and the Last Day: that is best, and most suitable for final determination." (Q5: 59).
According to Ibn Kathῑr, the phrase "Ulū al-Amr" refers to the constituted authority (Ibn Kathῑr, 1999); they deserve to be obeyed if they give a proclamation that is not in contravention with the textual dictates."The three areas where the proclamation of the leader is needed include matters that do not have textual provisions in Islam, matters that have divergent interpretations of religious texts, and matters that require the consideration of public interest (Qaradawi, 2005).It is glaring from the foregoing illustration that the government under Islamic rule is tasked with abundant responsibilities of making laws suitable to the peculiarity of its people, environment, and time.Hence, Madkhali's seeming limitation of legislation in an Islamic state to the textual provision is not only baseless, but also not practicable.The culture of borrowing from other civilizations has been misconceived by Madkhali.While Islam rejects the emulation of non-Muslims in core ritual aspects, as stated by the Prophet, that, "anyone who copies other nations would be regarded among them" (Abū Dāud, 2006), there is no barrier to cultural exchange in political-economic and other pure mundane affairs.The Muslims copied the Persian style of fighting in the battle of Khandaq by digging holes around the Madinah, as suggested by Salmān al-Fārisi (Rahim, 1981).Also, the Prophet has given a blank order for the Muslims to conduct themselves in mundane affairs as evident in the following prophetic statement, "You know better about your mundane affairs" (Muslim, 2006).

Abolition of Slavery System
The slavery system precedes the era of Prophet Muhammad.The global convention before the advent of Islam was to turn war captives into slaves.Hence, the major drive and source of slaves was wars.At the advent of Islam, Muslim leader was given the discretion of choosing among three IJISH (International Journal of Islamic Studies and Humanities) E-ISSN 2615-7403 Vol 6, No. 2, pp. 131-144 options about war captives.The three options include amnesty, swap, and termination, as provided by the Qur'an.Therefore, when ye meet the unbelievers (in a fight), smite at their necks; at length, when ye have thoroughly subdued them, bind a bond firmly (on them): thereafter (is the time for) either generosity or ransom: until the war lays down its burdens.Thus (are ye commanded): but if it had been Allah's will, He could certainly have exacted retribution from them (Himself); but (He lets you fight) to test you, some with others.But those who are slain in the way of Allah, -He will never let their deeds be lost.(Q47:4).
All three options have been practiced by Prophet Muhammad (Sābiq, 1983).That Islam allows other means of dealing with war captives other than enslaving them was a new development and policy witnessed by the then global world regarding the administration of war captives.Another feature that distinguishes Islam from other cultures in the slavery system is the prescribed manners of relating with slaves.The Qur'an admonishes about being nice to the slaves, "Serve Allah, and join not any partners with him; and do good-to parents, kinsfolk, orphans, those in need, neighbors who are near, neighbors who are strangers, the companion by your side, the wayfarer (ye meet), and what your right hands possess: for Allah loveth not the arrogant, the vainglorious."(Q4: 36).The Prophet forbids labeling a slave with a derogatory name, "No one should call others as his slave, but he should say: my boy or girl."The Prophet also orders that the slave should be fed from what the master feeds himself (Muslim, 2006).He also encourages the master to educate the slave girl and get married to her; such an act attracts Paradise (Sābiq, 1983).
In a clear style that accurately describes how Islam is opposed to slavery, it adopts various measures aimed at eliminating or minimizing the rate of slaves in society.In not less than three rulings, Islam adopts freedom from slavery as a penalty.The three rulings include unintentional killing, expiation of a false oath, and expiation of calling one's wife a mother (ẓihār).Emancipation of slaves is also one of the Zakah expenditures.Islam also encourages the Master to free his slave on a monetary obligation to be paid by the slave.Against the foregoing background, Sayyid Quṭb states that Islam adopts the slavery system being in operation across the globe because there was no alternative to the system.Hence, according to him, Islam will shift ground if the global world migrates from the system (Quṭb, 1997).While commenting on the foregoing statement, Madkhali states, "Sayyid is advocating for an international system that will abolish what is admitted by Islam in the Qur'an and Sunnah, and what Muslims are unanimous over in the rulings about Jihad, Zakah, expiations and emancipation (Madkhali, 2001).
The insinuation of Madkhali is inclined towards the view of the prohibition of revisiting any matter contained in the Qur'an; even such a matter has to do with the administration of mundane affairs.This view has been discredited by antecedents of Caliph 'Umar who, during his regime as the Muslim leader, revisited the application of some Qur'anic provisions.Q9: 60 mentions the non- Muslims whose influence deserves to be placated as legal beneficiaries of Zakah.During the regime of 'Umar, he discontinued the practice of giving Zakah to the above, relying on the fact that Muslims were now powerful and did not need the influence of their opponents (Qaradawi, 2005).In the same direction, the practice during the time of the Prophet was to share the land of conquered territory.However, 'Umar discontinued such practice because of the public interest of the Muslim community which needed many revenue sources (Qaradawi, 2005).The penalty for committing theft in Islam is amputation of the arm, as provided by Q5: 38 "As to the thief, male or female, cut off His or Her hands: a punishment by way of example, from Allah, for their crime: and Allah is Exalted In power."Despite the mentioned verse being an unequivocal provision for thieves, 'Umar, considering the high rate of theft in the year of drought, temporarily stopped the execution of the penalty (Qaradawi, 2005).
The above-mentioned examples signify that religious texts cannot apply themselves in disconnection from humans who will give the contextual meaning and implementation.Madkhali's style is devoid of rationalization of the religious text and such style can render religion abstract with much insensitivity to a variety of human problems.Sayyid Quṭb has been able to appeal to the intellect of modern humans living in the 21st century.The abolition of the slave trade is a monumental success recorded by the United Nations, with Muslim nations as members.It is too barbaric, as Madkhali's submission implies, to re-call for the launch of the slave trade in the contemporary world, all because we want to actualize a Qur'anic provision.It is worthy of note that Islam had prepared the Muslims long before the final termination of the slave trade.This submission can be proven by the fact that all the rulings where the emancipation of slaves is required are optional, as Islam has provided other means of compliance aside from emancipation.This suggests that Islam has foreseen the abolition of slavery long ago.

Conclusion
From the foregoing discussion, it can be deduced that al-'Awāṣim mimmā fῑ kutub Sayyid mina'l Qawāṣim is highly characterized by accusations that need unequivocal proofs, misinterpretation of Quṭb's statements and emotional submissions.All the traits have been raised even before its publication by Bakru Abū Zayd.This article has therefore confirmed the allegation from the assessment of the two cases analyzed in this paper.However, Madkhali is accurate in his description of Sayyid Quṭb's style of presentation as revolutionary.This allegation has been confirmed through Quṭb's statements about change in leadership and substitution of current Muslim scholars whom he described as men of religion, dervish, and religious entrepreneurs.It is glaring from the foregoing illustration that the government under Islamic rule is tasked with abundant responsibilities of making laws suitable to the peculiarity of its people, environment, and time.Hence, Madkhali's seeming limitation of legislation in an Islamic state to the textual provision is not only baseless, but also not practicable.The insinuation of Madkhali on Quṭb's view of abolishing slavery is inclined towards the view of the prohibition of revisiting any matter contained in the Qur'an; even such a matter has to do with the administration of mundane affairs.This view has been discredited by antecedents of Caliph 'Umar who, during his regime as the Muslim leader, revisited the application of some Qur'anic provisions.The research recommends further investigation into other Madkhali's refutation of Sayyid Quṭb.Such investigation will assist to discredit other refutations made by Madkhali.
Rabi'u bin Hadi bin 'Umayr al-Madkhali was born in 1351 A.H. to the famous clan of Madakhilah located in the Southern part of Saudi.He lost his father at the tender age of one and a half, thus, was raised by his mother who took care of his educational and spiritual growth.Madkhali attended the local religious schools of his village where he received elementary aspects of the Qur'an, hadith, morphology, syntax, rhetoric, and prophetic biography(Arikewuyo, 2019).His formal education began with the Educational Institute of Samitah where he graduated before enrolling into the Shari'ah College of Riyadh.He could not stay long as the reputable Islamic University of Madinah was created in 1963.Thus, Madkhali was among the pioneer students of the new IJISH (International Journal of Islamic Studies and Humanities) E-ISSN 2615-7403 Vol 6, No. 2, pp.131-144 136 Nafiu Ahmed Arikewuyo (Madkhali's criticism of Sayyid Quṭb …)University.He was opportune to receive training as a student from prominent religious authorities such as Abdul-Azeez bin Baz, Muhammad al-Amin Ash-Shinqiti, and Muhammad Nasirudeen al-Albani.Madkhali later did his Master's and doctoral degrees at the King Abdul-Azeez University, Makkan branch with a specialization in Hadith.He returned to the Islamic University of Madinah as a lecturer and later as the Head of the Department of Sunnah where he was privileged to teach and supervise many Postgraduate students of hadith and Sunnah.Madkhali, as a lecturer at the University, along with other scholars such as Muhammad Aman al-Jami, Ubayd al-Jabiri, and Suhaymi, have greatly influenced the products of the University in terms of ideological and methodological position in religious discourses.Their students are distinguishable from other blocs of Saudi's salafism with utter obedience to the establishment, ultra-conservative positions, hatred for scholars and clerics outside their orientation, and extraordinary commitment to the refutation of Muslim organizations and movements, most especially the Muslim Brotherhood.Madkhali had been an influential scholar with much concentration in Madinah before the 90s.However, his fame beyond the Madinah was attributed to his role during the polemics surrounding the event of the Gulf War at the beginning of the 90s.He spearheaded the traditional scholars who supported the position of the Monarch and declared the Sahwah progressives who condemned the government position as a political threat to the interest of the dynastic rule in the Kingdom (Arikewuyo, 2022).Since Sayyid Quṭb's works were considered the spring for the political orientation of the new Sahwah, Rabīcu al-Madkhalī launched an academic attack on those works and came out to publicize what he described as fundamental heresies contained in the works.Hence, he is credited with the highest number of refutations works against Sayyid Quṭb.Some of his works against Sayyid Quṭb include Adwa'u Islamiyyah 'Ala 'Aqidat Sayyid Quṭb Wa fikrihi (Shed light on the doctrines and thought of Sayyid Quṭb), Mata'in Sayyid Quṭb fi Ashab Rasulullah (Sayyid Quṭb's Discreditation of the Prophet's Companion) and al-'Awasim mimma fi kutub Sayyid mina'l Qawasim (The Safety from the Blunders Contained in the Works of Sayyid Quṭb).An Overview of al-'Awāṣim mimmā fῑ kutub Sayyid mina'l Qawāṣim The work, which is 167 pages, contains two chapters, with the first chapter focusing on Sayyid Quṭb's thoughts on legislation (Tashrῑ').The first chapter is classified into eight sections.The second chapter focuses on Quṭb's blackmailing of Muslim clerics and scholars with twelve sections under it.The work's first page contains the comment of an admirable mentor of the author, in the person of Muhammad Nasirudeen al-Albani (d.1999), which reads thus, "All your refutation against Sayyid Quṭb is accurate.It is crystal clear to the audience who is partially conscious of the basics of Islam that Sayyid is a first-class ignoramus about the fundamentals and nonfundamentals of Islam.May Allah reward you my dear brother, Rabi'u for discharging the responsibility of exposing the ignorance and deviation of Sayyid Quṭb"(Madkhali, 2001).ThisIJISH (International Journal of Islamic Studies and Humanities)E-ISSN2615-7403  Vol 6, No. 2, pp.131-144    Nafiu Ahmed Arikewuyo(Madkhali's criticism of Sayyid Quṭb …)