Question:

Some youth feel a sense of embarrassment or hesitation in saying, “I am a Salafi.” What is your guidance regarding such a person?

Answer:

Why should he feel embarrassed? Does he view affiliation with Salafism as a defect or a shortcoming? Is it not an affiliation with the Companions of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and those who followed them from among the scholars, the jurists, the scholars of hadith, and the exegetes—the adherents of the correct creed (‘aqīdah) in every time and every place; those who follow the truth from the Book of Allah and from the authentic Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) based upon the understanding of the Righteous Predecessors (al-Salaf al-Sālih)? Could affiliation with such as these be a defect, such that they feel embarrassed by it?! Truly, to Allah we belong, and truly, to Him we shall return.

However, if an individual consciously pursues the methodology (manhaj) of the Salaf, follows it, and says, “I am a Salafi”—then this, if Allah wills, is something for which we hope good for him. But if he feels embarrassed by this, then perhaps he might be penalized or disciplined on account of this hesitation.