Shaykh Muqbil (rahimahUllaah) and his abandonment of worldly things (Story)

...We will relate an incident which shows how much Shaykh Muqbil (rahimahUllaah) used to abandon worldly pleasures and did not know anything about the modern worldly things and gadgets that interest many of us nowadays. Once he was invited to a feast at a French brother‟s house in Dammaj so he accepted the invitation and went to the brother‟s house. He was then asked to sit in the hall while the brother began readying the food. In the hall our Shaykh (rahimahUllaah) saw a glass box containing moving fish. He thought it was a television and he did not like sitting in a place where there is sin or a thing that promotes sin (such as a television as it  displays pictures and many other evils). He did not like this because of the following Hadith as narrated by Ali ibn Abi Taalib (radhiAllaahu 'anhu): “I once invited the Prophet (sallAllaahu 'alayhi wa sallam) to my house, but when he saw some pictures inside, he left. Then I asked him why he left the house? He (sallAllaahu 'alayhi wa sallam) said: “Because the Malaaikah (angels) do not enter a house in which there is pictures.” (Reported by Ibn Majah, Abu Ya'laa & authenticated by Shaykh Al Albani (rahimahUllaah) and Shaykh Muqbil (rahimahUllaah) himself)


So he walked out of the house without the host knowing, just like the Prophet had done when he (sallAllaahu 'alayhi wa sallam) saw something evil. Then the host came to the hall and saw that Ash Shaykh had left, so he followed him until he found the Shaykh and he asked him why he left. Ash Shaykh (rahimahUllaah) replied by saying that he saw a television in the house. The host swore that he did not have a television in the house and he asked Ash Shaykh, rahimahUllaah, to show him where he saw the television. So Ash Shaykh showed him the glass box containing moving fish. The host informed the Shaykh that it is a fish tank or aquarium containing live fish and not a television. Then Shaykh Muqbil ate at the man's house.


May Allaah 'AzzawaJal have mercy upon Shaykh Muqbil bin Hadee, aameen!
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