Build Mosques Only in Needed Areas

As-Salāmu ‘Alaykum wa RaḥmatuLlāhi wa Barakātuh. A‘ūdhu BiLlāhi Minash-shayṭāni r-rajīm. BismiLlāhi r-Raḥmāni r-Raḥīm. Wa ṣ-Salātu wa s-Salāmu ‘alá Rasūlinā Muḥammadin Sayyidi l-Awwalīna wa l-Akhirīn. Madad yā RasūlAllāh, Madad yā Sādāti Aṣḥābi RasūliLlāh, Madad yā Mashāyikhinā, Dastūr Mawlana Sheikh Abdullāh al-Fā’iz ad-Dāghistāni, Sheikh Muḥammad Nāẓim al- Ḥaqqānī. Madad. Ṭarīqatunā aṣ-Suḥbah wa l-Khayru fi l-Jam‘iyyah.

Mawlānā Shaykh Nāẓim was asked, “What is justice?” He used to say: Justice is placing everything in its proper place. It is placing what is right where it belongs; placing everything in its appropriate spot—putting things exactly where they ought to be. When everything—even the smallest details, things that might not even cross one’s mind—is placed in its proper position, justice is realized. And when there is justice, everything becomes beautiful.

Of course, when one speaks of rights and justice, people might wonder what the connection is; they might ask, "What does placing things in their proper place have to do with justice?" But there is certainly a connection. Allāh ‘Azza wa-Jalla established an order and created things in, “’Aĥsani Taqwīmin”, “The most excellent form.” (Qur’ān 95:04). Allāh ‘Azza wa-Jalla created them in the most beautiful way and placed them in the most beautiful positions. Yet, people failed to respect this order. Consequently, everything fell into disarray.

That is why justice no longer exists in the world; there is no such thing as justice anymore. There is no need to delude ourselves; everyone knows this. There are very few who are truly deceived by the illusion—there is simply no justice in the world. Everyone needs to know their place. They must recognize the proper places of Allāh’s ﷻ creations. When people start shifting things around—moving a stone here or there—justice ceases to exist. Of course, even if people want to establish justice, the world often prevents them from doing so; they cannot achieve it, because such things are rare—almost non-existent. Doing good is difficult, whereas destroying what has been built is far easier.

As we have said, the responsibility lies with you: to determine where to place things and what actions to take. Your intention should be, “I will do this for the sake of Allāh ﷻ,” hoping it will bring benefit—to us, to people, and to Muslims. You consider whether it will truly be beneficial; you make inquiries, and if it promises real benefit, you proceed. If there is no benefit, then there is no need to do it.

The religion of Islām has shown us everything—what needs to be done and how to go about it; it has outlined the proper methods and etiquette. Therefore, there is no need to waste time, effort, or money unnecessarily. For instance, building a massive mosque in the middle of the desert where no one comes or goes—that is completely unnecessary. If you need to pray, you can simply set up a tent or lay down a prayer rug and perform your prayer there. There is no need to erect large mosques in places where there is no congregation—that is, where there are no Muslims. Instead, you can build one in the actual locality where people live and where there is a genuine need. It does not even have to be a formal mosque structure; you could set up a room—like this one—as a masjid or a dergah; that suffices, as it meets the need.

The Qur’an speaks of Shura—consultation. You must engage in consultation: “Is a mosque, a dergah, or something else suitable for this location?” You act based on that. As for non-Muslim areas—if you spend millions to build a mosque where there are absolutely no Muslims, what is the benefit? It yields no benefit at all. Allāh ﷻ has granted us intellect; you must use it to consider whether or not a project is appropriate for a given place. Of course, Allāh ﷻ is Qādir, All-Capable to change the state in the coming days; so if people there become Muslims, they will naturally build them. However, simply setting out to build one without cause is not a command from Allāh ﷻ nor from our Prophet ṣallá Llāhu ‘alayhi wa-sallam. No such unnecessary mosques were built by Muslims in the past. When our Holy Prophet ﷺ arrived, after leaving Makkah—even in Makkah, no mosque was built. It was only after reaching Madinah that the Quba Mosque was constructed first. They prayed there initially, and later, the Prophet’s Mosque, Al-Masjid an-Nabawi was built in Madīnah Munawwarah. Mosques were gradually built in places where Islām spread.

Shukr to Allāh ﷻ, the number of Muslims has grown here and elsewhere. Mosques are multiplying too, but they should be built where there is a genuine need. Building a mosque is a significant act and a source of great reward; Allāh ﷻ grants homes and palaces in Paradise to those who build them. However, regarding unnecessary mosques—during the time of our Prophet ṣallá Llāhu ‘alayhi wa-sallam, hypocrites built a mosque. Because they were hypocrites and intended to use it for evil purposes, our Prophet ṣallá Llāhu ‘alayhi wa-sallam ordered that it be demolished.

Therefore, one must be careful. As we have said, the priority is justice, fairness, and fulfilling actual needs. Building something where it is not needed is not justice; the opposite of justice is oppression. Justice means placing everything in its proper place and acting where there is a genuine need—not building in unnecessary locations where no need exists. That is why Mawlānā Shaykh Nāẓim’s title is “Haqqani”—meaning one who gives everything its due right and fulfills the Truth.

In shā’a Llāh, many mosques will be built—beautiful ones, constructed in the right places where there is a need. For instance, there are locations where it becomes apparent that a need will arise in the future, and so a mosque is built there. In Cyprus, during the time of Mawlānā Shaykh Nāẓim, we went to lay the foundation for a mosque in Nicosia. Hajj Bahauddin gave a land for a mosque to be built upon it. At the time, it was just a field; there was nothing to be seen. Shukr to Allāh ﷻ, we laid the foundation stone and Mawlānā made du’ā’ for this place to come to life. There were no buildings or anything else around; it was completely empty. People would ask, “Why are they building here? There is no one around; where will the congregation come from?”—some even criticized that. Shukr to Allāh ﷻ, before it was even finished, the surrounding area filled up with factories, workplaces, offices, and the like. Now, every Friday, a congregation of 500 to 600 people gathers, and the place fills to capacity. The interior space isn’t enough, so people pray outside as well. That place, in fact, was with Mawlānā Shaykh Nāẓim’s barakah and was clear that there’s a need there for a mosque so they built one. In fact, because that wasn’t enough, another mosque was constructed just five hundred meters or so away.

As we said, it was done in the right place. When something is done in the right place, it becomes beneficial, and one earns reward for it. As we mentioned, there is no need to build something that will simply sit empty. Since they are not Muslims—if there were Muslims, they would build it themselves. May Allāh ﷻ enable us all to have many dergahs and mosques built in the right places, in shā’a Llāh.

Wa min Allāhi t-Tawfīq. Al-Fātiḥa.

Mawlana Sheikh Muhammad Adil ar-Rabbani 26 September 2026/ 15 Rabih Al-Akhir 1448 Ozean der Weisheit, Naqshbandi Dergah – Berlin, Germany