BENEFIT 497: A Reliable Person can Make a Mistake

Dr. ʿAbdullāh Aṭ-Ṭayyār said: “One of my students—whom I trust completely—came to me and said: Shaykh Muḥammad ibn ʿUthaymīn was asked during a live program via telephone about a dream. A woman had called in and said: I saw someone circumambulating the Kaʿbah unclothed during the days of Ḥajj. The Shaykh replied: Give her glad tidings, for this indicates the forgiveness of her sins. Then the woman added: That person was you, O Shaykh. At this point—my student continued—the Shaykh wept intensely, and the call ended. So I asked him, Are you certain of this? He replied: Yes, absolutely certain. I then contacted our Shaykh—may Allāh have mercy on him—and said to him: One of the trustworthy has informed me of such-and-such. The Shaykh responded: This has no basis; it is a fabrication. I said: But the one who told me is reliable. He replied: I am telling you it is false, and you insist he is trustworthy? Later, I visited the Shaykh a few days afterward and said to him: Perhaps, O Shaykh, you denied it out of humility, to avoid self-admiration, and so that people would not speak about it. He replied: My son, when the matter became widespread, I personally contacted the program host and asked him whether anything of the sort had taken place. He said: No. Even I had begun to doubt, but I tell you, this is a lie in its entirety. Convey to your friend that he must verify carefully before transmitting such things. Source: Liqaʾātī maʿa Ash-Shaykhayn by Dr. At-Ṭayyār, Part Two, p. 48, Ar-Rushd Library edition.