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Tuesday, September 23, 2014

Suspicious of Intentions of person Who Gave Him Food

177054: Suspicious of Intentions of person Who Gave Him Food

My question is the following: If you are presented with food or drink by somebody whom from experience or objective judgment you suspect is more likely to inflict you harm (such as sihr/blackmagic or physical harm), what should you do? Is rejecting the food or drink a sign of lack of true faith or Yaqiin in Allah or what is it? What is the limit of Yaqinn (if there is any)? How is this question related to the Prophet being poisoned by a Jewish woman and he did not stop eating the piece of meat even after realizing it contained poison' (if am correct). I look forth to a comprehensive answer.

Praise be to Allaah.

Firstly:

The basic principle is that the Muslim is to be thought of in the best terms and one should regard him in the most positive light in everything that he says and does, and not think negatively of him or suspect him, because suspicion is the falsest of speech. This applies unless he actually does something that is contrary to that. The Muslim is the brother of his fellow Muslim; he should love for him what he loves for himself of good, and hate for him what he hates for himself of bad. If a Muslim offers you food or drink, the basic principle is that you should think positively of him unless you clearly see something to the contrary. No attention should be paid to waswaas (devilish whispers or notions that the Shaytaan may put in one’s mind) or doubts that are not based on sound proof.

Al-Bukhaari (5144) and Muslim (2563, 4917) narrated from Abu Hurayrah that the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “Beware of suspicion, for suspicion is the falsest of speech. Do not seek out one another’s faults; do not spy on one another; do not compete with one another; do not envy one another; do not hate one another; do not turn away from one another. Be, O slaves of Allah, brothers.”

In ‘Awn al-Ma‘bood (9/2195-2196) it says:

“Beware of suspicion” means: beware of following suspicion or beware of negative thinking, for suspicion is an accusation that comes to mind without any evidence. End quote.

Al-Bayhaqi narrated in ash-Shu‘ab (8344) that Ja‘far ibn Muhammad said: If you hear something about your brother that you dislike, then look for excuses for him, from one to seventy excuses; if you find an excuse for him (all well and good), otherwise say: Perhaps he has an excuse that I do not know of.

Al-‘Allaamah Ibn Baaz (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

What is prescribed for the believer is to respect his brother if he offers an excuse to him, to accept his apology if possible, and to think positively of him as much as possible, striving to keep hearts free of resentment and aiming to bring about unity and co-operation in doing good. It was narrated from ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: Do not think badly of any word uttered by your brother when you can find a good interpretation for it.

End quote from Majmoo‘ Fataawa Ibn Baaz, 26/365

So eat and drink from what your brother offers you, and do not pay any attention to waswaas and suspicion; do not think badly of him unless you see clear proof to the contrary or you think it most likely that that is the case, on the basis of corroborating evidence that you say you have, if there is a reason to be cautious.

As for mere waswaas and suspicion, there is no doubt that this is due to lack of certain faith and following the troubles that the Shaytaan tries to stir up among the believers.

Secondly:

Certainty (yaqeen) in general means basing one’s view on clear evidence with regard to whatever man may be faced with of academic or practical issues, and casting aside doubts and speculation. Hence the fuqaha’ (jurists) said the famous words: “Certainty cannot be dispelled by doubt.”

It says in al-Mawsoo‘ah al-Fiqhiyyah (45/287):

Yaqeen (certainty) from a linguistic point of view means having knowledge, dispelling doubt, understanding a matter as it is; it is the opposite of doubt. One will attain certainty about a thing when it is proven and becomes clear.

Yaqeen (certainty) according to the scholars means reassurance in the heart that something did or did not happen.

Thirdly:

With regard to the report of the poisoned sheep, there is no proof that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) carried on eating from it after he realised that it was poisoned. The reports narrated from him indicate the contrary.

Abu Dawood (4512) narrated that Abu Salamah said: The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) used to accept gifts but he did not eat (that which was given in) charity. And he added: A Jewish woman in Khaybar gave him a roasted sheep that she had poisoned, and the Messenger of Allaah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) ate from it as did the people. He said: “Lift up your hands (i.e., stop eating), for it has told me that it is poisoned.”

Classed as saheeh (authentic) by al-Albaani. See also al-Bukhaari, 3169 and Muslim, 2190

Ar-Daarimi (8) narrated: A Jewish woman from Khaybar gave him a roasted sheep and he ate from it, as did Bishr ibn al-Bara’, then the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) stopped eating, then he said: “It has told me that it is poisoned.”

According to al-Bazzaar (6675) he said: “One of its legs has told me that it is poisoned.” So the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) stopped eating, as did those who were with him.

According to Ibn Ishaaq: When she placed it in front of him, he picked up the foreleg and took a bite from it, but he could not swallow it.

Al-Bidaayah wa’n-Nihaayah, 4/240; see also: Dalaa’il an-Nubuwwah, 4/353

For more information please see the answer to questions no. 112196 and 130499

And Allah knows best.

130499: Putting one’s trust in Allah and taking measures

There was a discussion about the issue of putting one’s trust in Allah (tawakkul) and taking measures; the trust of some of the righteous is like that of Maryam, to whom summer fruits used to come in the winter and vice versa without her taking any measures; rather she focused completely on worship. Please advise us about that, may Allah bless you.

Praise be to Allaah.

Putting one’s trust in Allah involves two things:

(i) Depending on Allah and believing that He is the One Who causes measures to be effective; His decree comes to pass; He has decreed all things, counted them out and ordained them, may He be glorified and exalted.

(ii) Taking appropriate measures; putting one’s trust in Allah does not mean refraining from taking measures; rather part of putting one’s trust in Allah is taking appropriate measures and striving to do so. The one who refrains from doing so has gone against the laws and decree of Allah. Allah has commanded us to take appropriate measures and He encourages us to do so; He commanded His Messenger (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) to do that.

So it is not permissible for the believer to refrain from taking appropriate measures; in fact he is not truly putting his trust in Allah unless he takes appropriate measures. Hence it is prescribed to get married in order to have a child, and it is enjoined to have intercourse. If someone were to say: I shall not get married and I shall wait to have a child without getting married, he would be regarded as insane; this is not the way of those who are wise and rational. Similarly, he should not sit in his house or in the mosque seeking charity and waiting for provision to come to him; rather he should strive hard and work to seek to earn halaal provision.

Maryam (may Allah have mercy on her) did not forgo taking measures. Allah said to her (interpretation of the meaning): “And shake the trunk of date-palm towards you, it will let fall fresh ripe-dates upon you” [Maryam 19:25]. So she shook the palm tree and took appropriate measures until the dates fell. Her action is not contrary to taking measures and the fact that she found provision with her and that Allah honoured her and gave her some provision does not indicate that she refrained from taking appropriate measures; rather she devoted herself to worship and also took appropriate measures.

If Allah bestows upon some of His close friends some miracles (karaamaat), this is by His grace and bounty, but that does not indicate that we should forgo taking appropriate measures. It is proven that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “Strive to do that which will benefit you and seek the help of Allaah, and do not feel helpless.” Narrated by Muslim, 2664. And Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning): “You (Alone) we worship, and You (Alone) we ask for help (for each and everything)” [al-Faatihah 1:5].

Shaykh ‘Abd al-‘Azeez ibn Baaz (may Allah have mercy on him).

147639: What do the words hulool (incarnation) and ittihaad (union with the divine) mean?

When I read books about belief (‘aqeedah), I often come across refutations of those who believe in ittihaad (union with the divine), refutations of those who believe in wahdat al-wujood (“unity of being”), and so on. What is meant by hulool (incarnation) and ittihaad (union with the divine)?

Praise be to Allah.

Hulool (incarnation) and ittihaad (union with the divine) – which includes the term wahdat al-wujood (“unity of being”):

These two terms are often mentioned in books on beliefs (‘aqeedah). They are esoteric and Sufi terms, and these concepts are also frequently mentioned in the books of false religions such as those of the Brahmins, Buddhists and others.

1. Hulool (incarnation)

(a)

What this word means in general terminology is when one of two things is absorbed into or incarnated into another.

This is complete mixing.

Al-Jarjaani (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

Complete hulool is the union of two bodies in such a way that pointing to one is also pointing to the other, such as the juice in an orange.

Incomplete hulool is when one of the two entities acts as a vessel containing the other, such as water in a jug.

At-Ta‘reefaat, p. 92.

This is what is meant by hulool: affirmation of two entities, one of which is present in the other.

What is meant by this word as used by Sufis and others is the incarnation or presence of Allah – may He be glorified and exalted – in His creation or in some of His creation.

(b)

Types of hulool

Hulool may be divided into two types:

i. General hulool, which is the belief that Allah, may He be exalted, is present in all things.

But this hulool is similar to the idea of the incarnation of the divine (i.e., the Creator God) in the human (i.e., the created being), whilst affirming that the two entities are distinct and separate; in other words, He is not unified with the one in whom He is present, rather He is everywhere yet separate. Thus this is confirmation of two separate entities.

This is the view of the Jahamis and their ilk.

ii. Specific hulool, which is the belief that Allah – may He be glorified and exalted – is present in some of His creation, whilst believing that there is a Creator and a created being.

This is like the belief of some of the Christian sects, that divinity – meaning Allah, may He be glorified and exalted – is incarnated in humanity – meaning ‘Eesa (Jesus, peace be upon him) – and that ‘Eesa (peace be upon him) has two natures: the divine nature when he was speaking words of revelation, and a human nature when he was crucified (according to their belief).

This is also similar to the belief of some of the extreme Raafidis, such as the Nusayris, who believe that Allah – may He be glorified and exalted – was incarnated in ‘Ali ibn Abi Taalib, who was God (according to their belief); thus divinity was incarnated in him. This is one of their basic beliefs.

2. Ittihaad (union with the divine)

(a)

What is meant by ittihaad is that two things are one thing.

Al-Jarjaani (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

Ittihaad means the mixing of two things until they become one thing.

At-Ta‘reefaat, p. 9

(b)

what is meant, according to those who believe in this notion, is that Allah – may He be glorified and exalted – becomes one with His creation or with some of His creation, in the sense that all created beings or some of them are the exact essence of Allah, may He be exalted.

(c)

Types of ittihaad:

i. Ittihaad in a general sense – which is also called wahdat al-wujood (“unity of being”). This is the belief that everything that exists is God Himself. In other words, the Creator is one with all of His creation. This is the meaning of wahdat al-wujood; those who believe in it are called al-ittihaadiyyah or ahl wahdat al-wujood, such as Ibn al-Faarid, Ibn ‘Arabi and others.

ii. Ittihaad in a specific sense, which is the belief that Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, became one with some created beings but not others.

Those who believe in this exclude from it the idea of His being one with filthy and abhorrent things; they say that He became one with the Prophets, the righteous, the philosophers or others, and thus they became the exact essence of Allah, may He be glorified and exalted.

This is like the view of some Christian sects who believe that divinity became one with humanity, and they became one thing. This is unlike those who believe in incarnation, who believe that he (i.e., Christ) has two natures, divine and human.

Those who believe in ittihaad say one nature, and those who believe in hulool say two.

(d)

The difference between hulool and ittihaad

The difference between them may be summed up as follows:

i. Hulool affirms two entities, unlike ittihaad which affirms one entity.

ii. Hulool accepts that they are separable, whereas ittihaad does not accept that.

(e)

Examples that explain the difference between hulool and ittihaad:

There are many such examples, including the following:

If you put sugar into water without stirring it, this is hulool, because they are still two separate entities. But if you stir it until it is absorbed by the water, then they become one, because they cannot be separated again.

But if you put something different into the water, such as pebbles, then this is called hulool, not ittihaad, because the pebbles are one thing and the water is something else, and they can be separated.

(f)

Ruling on which of these two beliefs is worse

There is no doubt that believing in hulool or ittihaad is one of the greatest kinds of disbelief and heresy – Allah forbid.

But ittihaad is worse than hulool, because it is belief in one essence, unlike hulool. Moreover, the belief that He is one with everything is worse than the belief that He is one with some of His creation.

To sum up, belief in hulool and ittihaad is obviously false. Islam came to erase it from people’s minds, because it is a belief that is taken from the teachings, philosophies and idolatry of the Hindus, Greeks, Jews, Christians and others, so it is based on fabrications and myths.

Taken from Mustalahaat fi Kutub al-‘Aqaa’id by Shaykh Muhammad ibn Ibraaheem al-Hamad, p. 42-47

And Allah knows best.

211871: There is no contradiction between the fact that Allah is more merciful to His slaves than a mother to her child and the fact that the disbeliever will abide in Hell for eternity

How are we to understand the words of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), “Allah is more merciful than this woman to her child”? For the Muslim woman is merciful towards her son, even if he is a disbeliever, so will Allah show mercy to His disbelieving slave? Does the fact that Allah will never bring the disbeliever out of Hell contradict the mercy of Allah?

Praise be to Allah.

Undoubtedly Allah, may He be exalted, is the most merciful of those who show mercy; His mercy encompasses all things, and He is more merciful to His slave than a mother to her child; indeed He, may He be glorified, is more merciful to a person than he is to himself.

For more information, please see the answer to questions no. 10127 and 20468.

This does not contradict the belief that the disbeliever will be punished and will be doomed to Hell for eternity on the Day of Resurrection. Discussion of this matter is based on three points:

Firstly:

Differentiation between the general mercy of Allah in this world, and His specific mercy in the Hereafter. In this world He, may He be glorified, bestows mercy in a general sense upon all His slaves, believers and disbelievers, obedient and disobedient. Thus He bestows provision upon them, gives them food and drink, heals them and grants them well-being, and other, innumerable types of mercy. Were it not for the mercy of Allah, no one would find air to breathe or water to drink, or any food or clothing. When he falls sick, were it not for Allah, he would never recover. In such terms people, in general, are equal. This is mercy in a general sense, which He grants to both His friends and His enemies.

As for His specific mercy in the Hereafter, it will be only for the believers, and the disbelievers will have no share of it.

Secondly:

The One Who made the mother merciful must inevitably be more merciful than her. Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said: “Allah is more merciful to His slaves than the most merciful of mothers to her child, for the One Who made her merciful must be more merciful than her.

End quote from Majmoo‘ al-Fataawa, 16/448

Reason dictates that Allah should be more merciful than every merciful individual among His creation, no matter how great a person’s mercy may be, because He, may He be glorified, is the One Who instilled mercy in their hearts. Al-Bukhaari (6000) and Muslim (2752) narrated that Abu Hurayrah said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) say: “Allah made mercy in one hundred parts; He kept ninety-nine parts with Him and He sent one part down to earth. By virtue of that part, all creatures show compassion to one another, and even the mare lifts her hooves lest she harm her foal.”

Thirdly:

There is no contradiction in the names and attributes of Allah, may He be exalted; rather they affirm one another and some imply others.

As He is merciful, He is also just. If someone were to say that He must show mercy to the disbeliever, for He is the most merciful of those who show mercy because mercy is His attribute, our response is: that would imply that He should not be just, but justice is also His attribute. Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Or do those who earn evil deeds think that We shall hold them equal with those who believe (in the Oneness of Allah Islamic Monotheism) and do righteous good deeds, in their present life and after their death? Worst is the judgement that they make”

[al-Jaathiyah 43:21]

“Shall We treat those who believe (in the Oneness of Allah Islamic Monotheism) and do righteous good deeds, as Mufsidoon (those who associate partners in worship with Allah and commit crimes) on earth? Or shall We treat the Muttaqoon (pious), as the Fujjar (criminals, disbelievers, wicked, etc)?”

[Saad 38:28]

“Shall We then treat the (submitting) Muslims like the Mujrimoon (criminals, polytheists and disbelievers, etc.)?

What is the matter with you? How judge you?”

[al-Qalam 53:35, 36].

By His perfect wisdom and justice, Allah, may He be glorified, differentiates between His friends and His enemies, those who obey Him and those who disobey Him, those who worship Him and those who worship something other than Him. Otherwise, treating all of these people as equals would come under the heading of injustice that is contrary to justice and wisdom. If people do not treat their enemies and their friends equally, and they regard that as foolishness, ignorance and injustice according to human understanding, concepts and customs, then how about in the case of Allah, the Lord of the Worlds, may He be glorified?

Allah, may He be exalted, the most merciful of those who show mercy, created mankind, granted them provision and bestowed upon them innumerable blessings, then He sent the Messengers to them, and He sent down the Books, and guided them to faith and guidance; undoubtedly this is far greater than the mercy of a mother to her child.

When the believer obeys Him and the disbeliever disobeys Him, it is impossible for Him to treat them equally, because of the dictates of His wisdom, His knowledge, His justice, His promise (of reward) and His warning (of punishment); the disbeliever puts himself beyond the bounds of deserving this mercy which is only for some in the Hereafter.

Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):

“He said: (As to) My Punishment I afflict therewith whom I will and My Mercy embraces all things. That (Mercy) I shall ordain for those who are the Muttaqoon (pious), and give Zakat; and those who believe in Our Ayat (proofs, evidences, verses, lessons, signs and revelations, etc.)”

[al-A‘raaf 7:156].

“Surely, Allah’s Mercy is (ever) near unto the gooddoers”

[al-A‘raaf 7:56].

Ibn al-Jawzi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

One of the signs of the general nature of His mercy is His sending the Messengers, and giving respite to the sinners. When the disbeliever denies Him, he displays stubbornness and so he is not deserving of mercy.

With regard to the specific nature of His mercy, it is for His believing slaves; He shows kindness towards them at times of hardship and of ease, which is greater than the kindness of a mother towards her child.

End quote from Kashf al-Mushkil, 1/94

To sum up: The special mercy of Allah in the hereafter will only be for His close friends and loved ones among those who to affirmed His oneness. As for those who died in a state of disbelief, stubbornness and arrogance, they will have no share of the mercy of Allah; rather they will be subject to His justice. And the Word of your Lord has been fulfilled in truth and in justice (cf. 6:115), the disbelievers will be surrounded by the very thing that they used to deny and mock at (cf. 6:10).

Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

Allah, may He be exalted, will say to them – i.e., the disbelievers – when they ask Allah to bring them forth from the Fire, and they seek to appeal to Allah, may He be exalted, by virtue of His Lordship and their admission against themselves, “Our Lord! Bring us out of this; if ever we return (to evil), then indeed we shall be Zalimoon: (polytheists, oppressors, unjust, and wrong-doers, etc.)” [al-Mu’minoon 23:107], no mercy will reach them; rather justice will catch up with them, and Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, will say to them: “Remain you in it with ignominy! And speak you not to Me!” [al-Mu’minoon 23:108].

End quote from Majmoo‘ Fataawa wa Rasaa’il al-‘Uthaymeen, 8/28

And Allah knows best.

175551: Is it permissible for the imam to say the basmalah (i.e., the phrase “Bismillah ir-Rahmaan ir-Raheem) out loud so as to soften the hearts of the worshippers?

Recently I was appointed as an imam in a mosque, temporarily, and I started to lead the people in prayer. According to the best of my knowledge, there are two opinions regarding the matter of saying the basmalah (i.e., the phrase “Bismillah ir-Rahmaan ir-Raheem (In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful)”) out loud in the prayer, and the more correct opinion is that it is not to be said out loud, so I did not say it out loud. But the people are upset about that and they have started to talk about this and complain behind my back; they are saying: “Why does this imam not say the basmalah? He should do the same as the other imams who came before.” They also criticise me for not reciting some soorahs that are customarily recited on certain days, such as reciting Soorat al-Falaq and an-Naas in Maghrib prayer on Fridays. I am trying to ignore such matters, but I do not want to stir up trouble or be a cause of trouble being stirred up. I can easily resign from this position and delegate it to someone else, because it is a temporary post after all.
Please advise me:
Can I say the basmalah out loud in the prayer or not? Can I recite those soorahs that they are used to hearing? Or should I give up this post altogether?

Praise be to Allah.

Firstly:

We appreciate your keenness to follow the Sunnah of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) in his prayer, and we appreciate your asking for the ruling on going along with the worshippers in that which they are used to. You have done well, because some of those who follow the Sunnah think that they do not need to be gentle or kind when advising people! Even if the application of the Sunnah – according to what they think is more correct – causes trouble and creates enmity and division among the Muslims, they do not hesitate to insist on applying it, no matter what the negative consequences to which that may lead. Undoubtedly this is wrong and it is not the way of the leading scholars of Ahl as-Sunnah, in the past or more recently, as we shall see below.

Secondly:

Undoubtedly saying the basmalah out loud in al-Faatihah in the prayer is permissible; it is not a bid‘ah (innovation) or haraam. But most of the time in his prayer, the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) did not pronounce it out loud; rather he recited it quietly.

It was narrated from Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), and Abu Bakr and ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) began the prayer with the words “Al-hamdu Lillahi Rabbi l-‘Aalameen (Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds).”

Narrated by al-Bukhaari (743)

According to a report narrated by Ahmad (12868), “They did not recite out loud the words ‘Bismillah ir-Rahmaan ir-Raheem (In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful).’”

This is the view of the Hanafis and Hanbalis. The Shaafa‘is differed from them and said that it is Sunnah to recite it out loud, even though the proven Sunnah is not to recite the basmalah out loud. But there is nothing wrong with reciting it out loud, especially if their madhhab is that it is to be recited out loud, so as to soften their hearts.

Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

… Nevertheless the correct view is that it is not to be recited out loud, although it is prescribed to recite it out loud if that serves a definite interest. Hence it is prescribed for the imam to do that – sometimes – for example, to teach the people who are praying behind him. It is permissible for the worshippers to recite a few words out loud sometimes, and it is also permissible for a man to forego something that is preferable, in order to soften hearts and unite people, lest they be put off from what is in their best interests. For example, the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) decided not to rebuild the Ka‘bah on the foundations of Ibraaheem, because Quraysh had only recently left Jaahiliyyah behind (and were new in Islam), and he was worried that they may be put off by that. He thought that the issue of uniting people and softening their hearts took precedence over the issue of rebuilding the Ka‘bah on the foundations of Ibraaheem. Ibn Mas‘ood said, when he offered the prayer in full behind ‘Uthmaan, although he disliked that and objected to him about it, and he was questioned about that: “Dissent is evil.” Hence the imams or leading scholars, such as Ahmad and others, stated that the same applies in the case of the basmalah, and praying Witr as three continuous rak‘ahs, and other issues in which one may turn from that which is preferable to that which is permissible in the interests of softening the hearts or the obligation of teaching them the Sunnah, and so on.

End quote from Majmoo‘ al-Fataawa (22/436, 437).

He (may Allah have mercy on) also said: One may refrain from doing that which is preferable in one’s own opinion, lest the people be put off. The same applies if a man thinks that the basmalah should be recited out loud, but he is leading some people in prayer who do not think that that is recommended, or vice versa; if he goes along with them, that is fine.

End quote from Majmoo‘ al-Fataawa (22/268, 269).

Shaykh Muhammad ibn Saalih al-‘Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) was asked:

What is the ruling on reciting the basmalah out loud?

He replied:

The more correct view is that the basmalah should not be recited out loud, and that the Sunnah is to recite it quietly, because it is not part of al-Faatihah. But if it is recited out loud sometimes, there is nothing wrong with that. In fact some of the scholars said that it should be recited out loud sometimes, because it was recited from the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) that he used to recite it out loud. But what is proven from him (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) is that he did not recite it out loud, and this is the preferred view, that he did not recite it out loud.

But if (the imam) recites it out loud in order to soften the hearts of people whose madhhab says that it is to be recited out loud, then I hope that there is nothing wrong with that.

End quote from Majmoo‘ Fataawa ash-Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (13/109)

Based on that, it is permissible for you to recite the basmalah out loud for those people, either all the time or occasionally, in order to achieve the greater interest, which is to soften their hearts, bring them together and unite them. You could also make the most of this opportunity to teach them something which is more important than practical matters of fiqh, namely Tawheed (affirmation of the Oneness of Allah) and that which nullifies it, and shirk (association of others with Allah) and that which lead to it. Your staying and reciting the basmalah out loud is undoubtedly better for the people than leaving them and letting your place be taken by an ignorant imam who may mislead the people, lead them into ignorance and divert them from sound Islamic knowledge.

Thirdly:

There is nothing wrong with always reciting certain soorahs and verses in certain prayers, in two cases:

1. If it is proven that it is prescribed to always recite them in certain prayers, such as Soorat as-Sajdah and al-Insaan in Fajr prayer on Friday. Based on that, there is nothing wrong with always reciting these prayers in Fajr every Friday.

Please see the answer to question no. 121175

2. When there is no proof that it is prescribed to always recite them, such as if the imam always recites the final verses of Soorat al-Baqarah in Maghrib. The Sunnah is that it is not prescribed to always do that, because that is contrary to the practice of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), which was to vary the soorahs recited – please see the answer to question no. 148634 – and lest the ignorant think that this was mustahabb – let alone obligatory – in every Maghrib prayer.

Even though this is the Sunnah, there is no reason why you should not recite what they are used to and always do that for a while, in order to unite the worshippers and not cause division among them, and in order to close the door to any leader of bid‘ah who may seek to misguide them, and in order to endear you and the methodology that you follow to them, so that you may teach them to love the Sunnah and act in accordance with it. With the passage of time, you will be able to phase out that continual practice, as other seekers of knowledge have done in similar cases with worshippers who go against the Sunnah.

Please see the answers to questions no. 111223 and 152874

And Allah knows best.