Ibn Bazz: What is the ruling on traveling to non­Muslim countries just for study?

What is the ruling on traveling to non­Muslim countries just for study?

 A: 

Traveling to non­Muslim countries is critically dangerous, so warning against it is necessary except in cases of extreme necessity, according to what the Prophet (peace be upon him) s a i d : I am not responsible for any Muslim who stays among polytheists. It is a danger, against which warning is necessary. Governments should not send people to non­Muslim countries except in cases of extreme necessity. Great care should be taken that those who are allowed to travel to non­ Muslim countries should be well learned, good and pious citizens. There should be a supervisor with those delegated students to take care of them. It is also permissible, if they are sent there as Du'ah to Allah (Glorified be He) for propagating Islam among non­Muslims, since it is legally necessary and there is nothing wrong with it. 

Sending youth to non­Muslim countries without meeting the conditions mentioned above or freely allowing them to travel there is Munkar (that which is unacceptable or disapproved of by Islamic law and Muslims of sound intellect) and involves great risks. The travel of traders to these countries is also extremely risky, since these countries are countries of Shirk (associating others with Allah in His Divinity or worship) in which both kinds of shirk; major Shirk (associating others with Allah in His Divinity or worship) and minor Shirk (associating others with Allah in His Divinity or worship), sins, and corruption are abundantly available. Man is easily exposed to the dangers of Satan, his desires and lusts, and bad friends. Great attention must be paid to this topic. 

Q 8: 

What is your opinion on extreme estimation of the Prophet (peace be upon him) to the extent that some people say the Prophet is the First (nothing is before him) and the Last (nothing is after him), the Most High (nothing is above him) and the Most Near (nothing is nearer than him)? What is your opinion on such beliefs in the Prophet (peace be upon him)? 

A: 

The First (nothing is before Him) and the Last (nothing is after Him), the Most High (nothing is above Him) and the Most Near (nothing is nearer than Him) is Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) Who says in Surah (Qur'anic chapter) Al­Hadid (The Iron): He is the First (nothing is before Him) and the Last (nothing is after Him), the Most High (nothing is above Him) and the Most Near (nothing is nearer than Him). And He is the All­ Knower of every thing. 

( Part No : 7, Page No: 292) 

The Prophet himself (peace be upon him) said in his Du`a' (supplication): O Allah, You are the First, there is nothing before You, and You are the Last and there is nothing after You, and You are Evident and there is nothing above You, and You are Innermost and there is nothing beyond You. Remove the burden of debt from us and relieve us from want. Related by Imam Muslim in his Sahih. 

Whoever says that the Prophet is the First, the Last, the Most High, the Most Near and that he is the All­Knower of every thing is a Kafir (disbeliever) because he gives the Prophet (peace be upon him) four attributable Names of Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) which can never be attributed to or deserved by any creature. No sane person says such nonsensical utterances. The First and the Most High is Allah (Exalted be He) alone, for nothing was before Him and nothing is after Him (Glorified and Exalted be He). He is the Most High (nothing is above Him of His creatures) and the Everlasting, Who knows everyone's affairs while the Prophet (peace be upon him) does not know anything except what Allah has taught him. The Prophet (peace be upon him) has died, he was first created after he was nothing and was destined to be born in Makkah a human being through the marriage of his mother Aminah and his father `Abdullah. He was nothing before that, then he was created from despised water (semen) and so were all humans. Whoever says that he (the Prophet) was the First (nothing is before him) and the Last (nothing is after him), the Most High (nothing is above him) and the Most Near (nothing is nearer than him) is deviant and a Murtad (apostate) if he is originally a Muslim.