| eT Jamaal al-Din M. ZarabozoThe Authority and Importance of the Sunnah Chapter One: The Meanings of the Words “Sunnah” and “Hadith” The first step that must be taken is to define the terms “sunnah” and “hadith” in a very clear manner. This is particularly important with respect to the word “sunnah.” Indeed, one of the first sources of confusion concerning the sunnah and its importance is the different usages of the word “sunnah.” The word “sunnah” is used in different ways by scholars of different disciplines. Each discipline defines and uses the word in the manner that is most appropriate for its needs and purposes, As shall be noted, not realizing this fact can be quite disastrous for one’s overall perception of the place of the sunnah in Islam. The Meanings of the Word “Sunnah” When used in its most general and common sense, the word sunnah is a reference to the overall teachings and way of life of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). However, to be more precise, the word sunnah is used by different types of scholars to connote very different concepts.! This is because the purpose and goals of the various disciplines are ' The different usages of the word “sunnah” are discussed in a number of works, including: Mustafa al-Sibaa'ee, Al-Sunnab wa Makaanatubaa fi al-Tashree al- Islaami (Beirut; al-Maktab al-Islaami, 1982), pp. 47-49; Muhammad Lugmaan al-Salafi, A-Sunnab: Hujiyyatubaa wa Makaanatuhaa fi-l-islaam wa al-Radd ala Munkireehaa (Madinah: Maktabah al-Imaan, 1989), pp. 11-18; Al-Husain Shawaat, Hujtyyat al-Sunnab (Falls Church, VA: American Open University, n.d.), pp. 14-25.he Authority and Importance of the Sunnah different. In particular, one needs to differentiate the meaning of the word as it is used in general parlance and how it is used as a technical term by specialists in ageedah (creed and beliefs), jurisprudence, Islamic legal theory and scholars of hadith. Lexical Definition of the Word Sunaah Lane gives the lexical definition for the word “sunnah” (4) (whose plural is sunan ¢~) as , “A way, course, rule or manner, of acting or conduct of life or the like... whether good or bad; approved or disapproved... a way that has been instituted or pursued by former people and has become one pursued by those after them.”’ As Lane noted, a conduct of life may be a praiseworthy way of life or a blameworthy way of life. Lexically, the word “sunnah” could be used for either one. However, in parlance it is usually used for a praiseworthy way of life; in fact, when used in a negative sense, that is customarily made explicit by the context or an additional adjective. It is not surprising to find this lexical usage of the word in the Prophet’s own speech. In fact, in the following hadith, the word “sunnah” is used in this sense: Soy A OEM Ge hae WU alll ve gf a wel et Eb stall pee le le nah SO al 2 whi Gita bb en oe EE ts ' B. W. Lane, Arabic-English Lexicon (Cambridge, England; Islamic Texts Society, 1984), vol. 1, p. 1438.-The word “sunnah” has other lexical meanings that shall not be discussed here. As Shawaat notes, all of the other meanings have some integral relationship with the term as defined above. Cf., Lane, vol. 1, p. 1438; Shavaat, p. 17.LAN 5 EG OS Jess BOR ee jis BE EES BTA GE yy by Se Ste he ch ie HS i ages oe te SAS as oy ob SE OLY tfe ’ DEY Be Shy ne eid La we Le We do oA hy Je ab a Wii Uy te sich a yp La On the authority of Jaabir ibn Abdullah who said: “A group of bedouins came to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) wearing woolen clothing. The Prophet (peace be upon him) noticed their harsh situation and that they had been afflicted with need. He then exhorted the people to give charity but they were slow in doing so, until they saw the signs on anger on his face. Then a man from the Ansaar came with a container of silver. Then another came. These were followed by others until the signs of happiness could be seen on his [the Prophet’s] face. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) then said, “Whoever introduces a good practice (sunnah) in Islam that is acted upon after him shall have written for him a reward similar to the one who acted upon it without the reward of either of them being lessened in any way, And whoever introduces an evil practice (sunnah) into Islam that is acted upon after him shall have the burden of the ones who acted upon it recorded for him without the burden of either of them being reduced in any way.”” (Recorded by Muslim. 1) ' Note that this particular hadith could be misunderstood to imply that there is such a thing as “good innovations.” From the Shareeah point of view, all innovations and heresies are definitely acts taking one away from the straightThe Authority and Importance of the Sunnah Before discussing the definition of the word “sunnah” as _used by different scholars, it should be noted that the Quran speaks about “the sunnah of Allah.” For example, Allah says, 2 ¢ ot de a 3 a. Sug a ss fy 8 be Gulp ah “The sunnah of Allah among those who passed before. And you will not find in the sunnah of Allah any change” (al- Ahzaab 62; see also al-Fath 23 and al-Israa 77), “Sunnah of Allah” refers to the decisions, laws, commands and decrees of Allah that are unchanging and apply to all peoples and times, such as the sunnah to destroy those beforehand when they persistently refused to adhere to the revelations that Allah sent. A common usage that stretches across the different disciplines is the use of the word sunnah in juxtaposition to the Quran, In other words, one speaks about “the Quran and sunnah,” or “the Book of Allah and the sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him)." In this sense, it refers to the guidance received via the Prophet (peace be upon him) other than what he conveyed from the Quran. Defi ition of the Word Suanaf As Used by the Jurists Among all the different disciplines discussed here, the way the jurists use the word sunnah is closest to its lexical definition. This usage, meaning “a praiseworthy way of action,” has actually turned out to be a source of confusion concerning the status and importance of the sunnah. ! path. The action that the Prophet (peace be upon him) was referring to in this particular hadith is an. action sanctioned by the Shareeah and followed by others—the action of giving for the sake of those in need. This type of deed is not considered an innovation because it is directly based on explicit evidences of the Quran or sunnah. "The jurists definitely also use the term “sunnah” as a reference to one of the sources of Islamic law. When doing so, though, they are in essence borrowing the jegal theorists’ definition of the term. The above discussion is concentrating on their use of the term sunnah as a technical term specific to them as jurists. 10Jurists, for the most part, are concerned with the rulings of particular actions. In general, an act may be classified into one of five categories: obligatory, recommended, permissible, reprehensible or forbidden. In addition, an act may be sound and valid or it may be void and non-effective. The scholars use a myriad of terms to describe the category of recommended acts. These terms include mandoob (Wyk), mustahabb (>) and so on. In some cases, each term has a slightly different connotation.! However, without a doubt, one of the most common terms used for that category is the word “sunnah.” Therefore, for example, the jurists will say that that two rakats of prayer before the obligatory Fajr (Dawn) Prayer are “sunnah.” This means that they are not obligatory. Yet they carry a certain status or reward for them such that they are definitely more than merely permissible.2 ‘ Cf, Abdul Ghani Abdul Khaalig, Hujjiyab al-Sunnah (Beirut: Daar al-Quran al- Kareem, 1986), pp. 51-68. The most detailed discussion of this topic (recommended acts, the terms used for them and their different implications) available in English is Ahmad Hasan, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence (islamabad, Pakistan: Islamic Research Institute, 1993), vol. 1, pp. 78-109. ? Some books try to give an example of this usage in the Prophet’s own words. Unfortunately, the hadith most often quoted (such as by Hasan, p. 82) is, “Allah has obligated upon you fasting Ramadhaan. And I have established (sanante) for you (as a virtuous act) its night prayers [known as faraweeb]. Whoever fasts it and prays [those prayers during] it, with faith and hoping for a reward, will have his sins removed from him like the day on which his mother gave birth to him.” ‘This hadith was recorded by al-Nasaai, ibn Maajah and others. Unfortunately, this hadith is reported through a weak chain and is declared weak by scholars such as ibn al-Qattaan, al-Albaani and Shuaib al-Arnaoot. Abdul Qaadir al-Arnaoot considers it hasan due to its corroborating evidence; however, he may have been referring only to the concept that whoever prays the nights of Ramadhaan shall have his previous sins forgiven, which is recorded in authentic hadith. Cf, Ali ibn Muhammad ibn al-Qattaan, Bayaan al-Wabm wa al-Eehaam alan een fi Kitaab al-Abkaam (Riyadh: Daar Taibah, 1997), vol. 3, pp. 55-58 and 5; Muhammad Naasir al-Deen al-Albaani, Dhaeef Sunan al-Nasaai (Beirut: al- Maktab al-Islaami, 1990), p. 76; Shuaib al-Arnaoot, et al., footnotes to Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Musnad al-lmaam Ahmad ibn Hanbal (Beirut: Muassasat al-Risaalah, 1997), vol. 3, p. 199 and 217; Abdul Qaadir al-Arnaoot, footnotes to al-Mubaacak: il* ‘The Authority and Importance of the Stunnah In general, the jurists define this category of acts, that they call “recommended” or “sunnah,” in a number of ways:! (1) A sunnah act is one whose performance is indicated or encouraged by the law; however, the law falls short of declaring it to be obligatory or required. (2) A sunnah act is one that when performed a person is rewarded for it, but for which he is not punished if he fails to perform it; or, in other words, it is an act that a person is praised for doing and, on the other hand, he is not to be blamed or censured if he does not perform the act. This is a common definition among the Malikis of North Africa and the Hanbalis, (3) A sunnah act is an action that one is requested to perform but not ina strict sense. This is a common definition among the Malikis of the Eastern regions (non-North Africans) and among the Shaafi’ees. (4) A sunnah act is what the Prophet (peace be upon him) performed on a continual basis, although he would sometimes not perform it with no particular apparent reason for not performing it. This is a definition given by the Hanafis.2 In such definitions, it seems that the jurists were trying to present the most concise “legalese” definition. As a general concept, one may need to go beyond such a strict legal definition. Perhaps it would be better to consider “recommended” acts as those acts that are becoming of a Muslim and anyone who desires to complete his Islam and his faith would be best served to perform those acts as much as he feasibly can—without them taking on the position of obligatory acts. Furthermore, it should never be forgotten that “sunnah” acts are definitely pleasing to Allah and they area means of getting closer to Allah. ibn al-Atheer, Jaami al-Usool fi Abaadeeth al-Rasool (Maktabah al-Hilwaani, et al., 1972), vol. 9, p. 441. ‘CE, Shawaat, p. 22; Hasan, Principles, vol. 1, pp. 78-80. * Technically speaking, this is a Hanafi definition for what is known as “non- emphasized sunnah.”The Authority and Importance of the Sursuahi There is also another important point to keep in mind concerning the overall category of those acts considered only recommended or sunnah, Dhumairiyyah notes, Some people are lax with respect to what has been established as sunnah in the usage of the jurists. [They are lax] based on the claim that sunnah acts are those for which one is rewarded for doing them but is not punished for not doing them. But that is in general. At the same time, the scholars have stated, based on numerous hadith that encourage one to follow and adhere to the sunnah, that one who customarily leaves the sunnah acts is to be punished or castigated. He is doing wrong and committing a sin. The Companions would eagerly perform those acts in a manner similar to how they would perform the obligatory deeds,’ al-Laknawi has quoted many texts to that effect in his book Tuhfah al-Akhyaar. As for the jurists’ distinction between obligatory and sunnah, that is concerning individual instances and not with respect to leaving the sunnah acts completely” ' Tt may be an exaggeration to claim that they performed them in a manner similar to their adherence to the obligatory deeds. Indeed, to treat a recommended deed like an obligatory deed and to insist on it for oneself and others would, in itself, be a type of innovation. The statement in the quote must be understood to mean that they gretaly disliked missing the recommended deeds, although they recognized that they were not obligatory, ? Uthmaan ibn Jumuah Dhumairiyyah, Madkbal h-Diraasab al-Ageedah al- Islaamiyyah (Jeddah; Maktabah al-Suwaari, 1993), p. 93. Furthermore, among the sunnah acts, there are some which are described as “emphasized sunnah.” For the Hanafis, in particular, an emphasized sunnah takes on almost the same status as an obligatory act. For example, ibn Abideen, a leading Hanafi jurist, wrote, “The strongest opinion is that it is a sin to leave an emphasized sunnah like it is a sin to leave an obligatory act.” For more details on this point, see Muhammad Abu al-Fath al-Bayaanooni, Al-Hukwrn al-Takleefi fi al Sharecah al Islaamiyyab (Damascus: Dar al-Qalam, 1988), pp. 171-178.The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah Another commion usage of the word sunnah among the jurists is anything which is juxtaposed with an innovation or heresy (Ar., bfdah 45u). In this sense, the word sunnah may refer to anything that is sanctioned by the shareeah. That would include whatever is derived from the Quran, practice of the Prophet (peace be upon him) or even the collective action of the Companions.! For example, the jurists may refer toa divorce which is done according to the sunnah (talaag al- sunnah) vis-a-vis a divorced that is done not completely in accord with the sunnah (talaag al-bidah). Sometimes, even though the act is not done completely in accord with the sunnah, the act may still have legal effect and implications but the person has done wrong for performing the act in that fashion. Hence, they make this distinction. Definition of the Word Suanahas Used by the Scholars of Hadith The topic of study for the scholars of hadith is everything that has been narrated or reported concerning the Prophet (peace be upon him), They desire to gather all of that information to determine what of it is sound and acceptable and to distinguish that from what has been narrated through untrustworthy or unacceptable means. Hence, first and foremost, they concentrate on anything narrated about or from the Prophet (peace be upon him). All of the information about the Prophet (peace be upon him) that one could imagine was passed on and recorded in detail, the extent of which is not comparable to anyone in the history of mankind. The purpose of study or goal of the scholars of hadith has greatly affected their technical definition of the word “sunnah.” Indeed, their definition of the word “sunnah” is the broadest of all definitions, trying to encompass everything that ' ALSibaa’ee, p. 48. i4The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah was passed on concerning the Prophet (peace be upon him). In general, the definition of “sunnah” from the scholars of hadith perspective is: “What has been passed down from the Prophet (peace be upon him) of his statements, actions, tacit approvals, manners, physical characteristics or biography, regardless of whether it was before he was sent as a prophet or afterwards.” To make this definition clearer, examples of each category shall be given: An example of one of his statements is the hadith narrated by Umar ibn al-Khataab that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, AS pb SF U Os A JS Uy Sy SUEY wie 3b 5 oh AY i ugh hy alll dh Sous cheng asta Si 3 iva! GU Wap “Surely, all actions are but driven by intentions and, verily, every man shall have but that which he intended. Thus, he whose migration was for Allah and His Messenger, [then] his migration was for Allah and His Messenger; and he whose migration was to achieve some worldly benefit or to take a woman in marriage, his migration was for that which he migrated.” (Recorded by al-Bukhari and Muslim.) An example of one his actions is the following report recorded on the authority of Aishah: seed le abel oc ib Ail a5 Le ow * Al-Salafi, p. 15; Shawaat, p. 20, 15The Authority ard Importance of the Sunnah “When he [the Prophet (peace be upon him)] would perform the two [non-obligatory] rakats of Fajr in his house, he would then lie on his right side.”! An example of the Prophet’s tacit approval is found in the hadith from Sahih Muslim in which Anas was asked if the Prophet (peace be upon him) ever performed the two rakais of prayer before the Maghrib (Sunset) Prayer. He replied, “He used to see us performing them and he would neither order us to do them or forbid us from performing them.” An example of a report describing the Prophet's manner or behavior is: GB shyslall Gye oe ABTA alle aglll Le (dl ots - Jos oe yoo sory 3 olds OK ES of WG ae “The Prophet (peace be upon him) was more bashful than the virgin girls kept in their private compartments. If he saw anything he did not like, we would recognize it by [the expression on] his face.” (Recorded by al-Bukhari and Muslim.) Reports describing the Prophet’s physical characteristics are numerous. They are reports about his height and physical appearance, For example, ibn Umar narrated that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) had approximately twenty gray hairs.2. Another example is the report from Jaabir ibn Saumurah that the Prophet (peace be upon him) had a full beard. (Recorded by Muslim.) ‘ With this wording, this is recorded by al-Tirmidhi. According to al-Albaani, it is Sabih. See Muhammad Naasir al-Deen al-Albaani, Sabeeb Sunan al-Tirmidhi (Riyadh: Maktab al-Tarbiyyah al-Arabi Li-Duwal al-Khaleej, 1988), vol. 1, p. 132. * Recorded by al-Tirmidhi in a/-Shamaail, According to al-Albaani, this report is sabib, See Muhammad Naasir al-Deen al-Albaani, Saheeh al-Jaami al-Sagheer (Beirut: al-Maktab al-Islaami, 1986), vol. 2, p. 873. These kinds of reports demonstrate the amount of information that has been preserved and passed on concerning the final prophet and Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). 16De Authority and Importance of the Sunnah Reports concerning his biography include the report that he married Khadeejah when he was twenty-five years old while they were living in Makkah and before he had received his first revelation. Also included in this category would be the reports that he lived in Makkah for thirteen years after receiving revelation and then migrated to Madinah. Again, these types of reports all fall under the hadith specialists’ definition of the word “sunnah,” even though some of them may have no direct bearing on Islamic law. For the hadith specialists they are important because those scholars are concerned with everything that has been narrated from or about the Prophet (peace be upon him). Definition of the Word Sunnah as Used in Islamic Legal Theory One of the goals of the Islamic legal theorists is to determine what is or is not an authority in Islamic law. They are not concerned with the details of the actual law but they are concerned with the sources and methodology of that law. When they define the word sunnah, they are defining it from that perspective. Therefore, when it comes to the reports that have been narrated about or from the Prophet (peace be upon him), they try to distinguish what is an authority and what is an example for the Muslims to follow from that which does not fall into that category. Their definition will definitely differ from that of the scholars of hadith, being much less broad in scope. Perhaps the most common definition given for the sunnah from Islamic legal theory perspective is: Whatever comes from the Prophet (peace be upon him), other than the Quran itself, in the form of his speech, actions or tacit approvals. His speech includes what he commanded, recommended, permitted, disapproved or forbade. The Prophet's actions are considered an authority in Islamic law 7because the Muslims have been ordered to take him as their example. His tacit approvals are considered an authority in Islamic law because it would not be right for the Prophet (peace be upon him) to remain silent in the presence of something wrong; hence, his silence implies his approval while his approval implies that the act is correct according to the Shareeah. In this definition, the legal theorists have obviously excluded the Quran from part of the definition—but the definition is inclusive of hadith qudsi.! By referring to him as “the Prophet (peace be upon him)” they are thereby excluding what the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, did or approved of before he received revelation. Such would not be considered an authority in Islamic law. Although “actions” of the Prophet (peace be upon him) is mentioned in the definition given above, in reality, the scholars of Islamic legal theory mean “selected actions” of the Prophet (peace be upon him). That is, there are certain actions that are not considered as examples for others to follow. For example, it is narrated that the Prophet (peace be upon him) used to snore lightly. Note that the definition of the word “sunnah” as given by the scholars of hadith would encompass this report as part of the sunnah. However, since this act has no legal bearing—in the sense that no Muslim is requested to follow that act—it would not fall under the Islamic legal definition of the word sunnah.2 Furthermore, there were some ' Hadith qudsi are statements that the Prophet (peace be upon him) attributed to Allah yet they do not form part of the Quran. For example, they would include any hadith in which the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “The Lord, Exalted and Perfect, said..." * ‘The above is not meant to imply that there are some acts of the Prophet (peace be upon him) that have no bearing whatsoever upon the shareeab. Except for those laws specific to the Prophet (peace be upon him) alone, anything he did indicates, at the very least, that said act is permissible. There are some who try to divide the Prophet's sunnah into what is meant to be part of the shareeab and what is not meant to be part of the shareeab. Unfortunately, many times this is done as a way to remove much of the sunnah from the shareeab. For a completeThe Authority and Importance of the Surmatt laws that were special for the Prophet (peace be upon him) only and that are not to be followed by the Muslims. An example of this type would be his marrying more than four wives. That was allowed for the Prophet (peace be upon him) and not for anyone after him. By the hadith scholars’ definition, these would fall under the term “sunnah,” while, strictly speaking, it would not be a “sunnah” in the legal theorists’ point of view since no one is allowed to follow him in that action. , Examples Illustrating the Difference Between the Jurists’ and the Legal Theorists’ Usage Of the Term “Sunnah” In this author’s experience, one of the major reasons for confusion about the status of the sunnah is a failure to distinguish between the word sunnah as used in its different contexts and disciplines. In particular, the usage of the jurists has led many to believe that, as some have explicitly said, “Whatever comes from the Quran must be applied. If one also applies the sunnah, that is good but is not mandatory.” Some have also expressed that only the Quran can establish something as obligatory and the sunnah can only establish something as recommended. It is important, therefore, to give some examples that may remove this misunderstanding. The first example deals with Allah’s statement in the Quran, 2 jee z 4 e BB cod Jel SN lou 2ulas 1a) 1ST Gall GIG ? ee . “O you who believe! When you deal with each other in transactions involving future obligations ina fixed period of time reduce them to writing” (a/-Bagarah 283). According to the majority of the scholars, the command here to record the discussion and refutation of those claims, see Fathi Abdul Kareem, Ad-Sunnab: Tashree Laazim... Wa Daaim (Maktabah Wahbah, 1985), passin, 19The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah transaction is one of recommendation and not obligation. Hence, the recording of such a transaction is considered, in the jargon of the jurists, a “sunnah” or non-obligatory but recommended act, even though the source for the act is found in the Quran.! Another example comes from later in the same verse, al-Baqarah 283: (BSNS 15) 1ghhgtsly “Take witnesses whenever you make a business dealing” (al- Bagarah 283).This command from the Quran is, once again, for an act that is recommended and not obligatory. Hence, even though the source for the act is a Quranic verse, that does not necessarily imply that the act is obligatory.2 On the other hand, one can note the example of the beard. There is no explicit verse in the Quran referring to the beard. Yet it is covered in the sunnah or statements of the Prophet (peace be upon him). The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, for example, am Behl Oe eee aU piel y Golf) LSI “Trim the mustache down and leave the beard.” (Recorded by al-Bukhari.) Based on this statement and many others of the Prophet (peace be upon him), the majority of scholars consider the beard to be obligatory. In this case, therefore, one finds ' For the ruling concerning the recording of debts and future obligations, see Kuwaiti Ministry of Religious Endowments and Religious Affairs, A/-Mausooab al- Fighiyyah (Kuwait: 1992), vol. 21, p. 123. It is true that al-Tabari, ibn Haz and some others interpret the command to mean one of obligation. Their conclusion does not affect the point above: the scholars understood that simply because something is found in the Quran, that does not automatically make that act obligatory; it could possibly be only recommended or “sunnah”. ? The evidence for the non-obligatory nature of taking witnesses for business transactions is in the practice of the Prophet (peace be upon him) himself. Cf, Mustafa Salaamah, Al-Tasees fi Usool al-Figh ala Dba al-Kitaab wa al-Sunnab (Cairo: Maktabah al-Haramain Ji-J-Uloom al-Naafiah, 1415 AH), p. 42. 20The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah something only in the sunnah or statements of the Prophet (peace be upon him) but the ruling for that act is not “sunnah” in the jurists’ use of the word. Instead, the ruling is that the act is obligatory or, in the terminology of the jurists, waajib.! Another example of this nature is zakaat al-fitr or the zakaat that is paid at the end of the month of Ramadhaan. Al- Bukhari and Muslim record from ibn Umar that the Prophet (peace be upon him) obligated the Muslims to pay the zakaat al-fitr at the end of Ramadhaan. Based on this narration and others similar ‘to it, there is a consensus that zakaat al-fitr is obligatory (waajib). There is absolutely no reference to zakaat al-fitr in the Quran but there is still a consensus that it is obligatory.2 In essence, the source or text for an act is irrelevant with respect to the ruling of the act—whether it be obligatory or recommended (“sunnah” in the usage of the jurists). A verse in the Quran may describe a specific act and that act may only be considered “sunnah.” On the other hand, a statement of the Prophet (peace be upon him), which one could call a “sunnah,” could determine that an act is obligatory. The source of the common confusion on this point is that the word “sunnah” is being used with two implications or according to two different technical definitions. ' For a discussion of the ruling concerning the beard, see Umar al-Ashqar, Thalaath Sha‘aair (Kuwait: al-Daar al-Salafiyyah, 1985), pp. 33-46. He notes (p. 45) that Ali Mahfoodh stated (and quoted his sources) that the four schools of fiqh all agree that it is forbidden to shave the beard. * Saadi Abu Jaib, after stating that there is a consensus on the obligation of zakaat al-fitr, notes a couple of scholars who considered it to be an abrogated practice, Abu Jaib notes that their evidence is weak, to say the least. Hence, their opinions on this issue are considered anomalies, See Saadi Abu Jaib, Mausooab al-Jjmaa fi al-figh al-Islaami (Beirut: Daar al-Arabiyyah, n.d.), vol. 1, p. 519. 21The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah Definition of the Word Sunnah As Used by the Specialists in Ageedah By the third Hijri century, the specialists im the field of ageedah (dogma, creed and faith) use the term sunnah to refer to the foundations of the faith, the well-established obligatory deeds, the matters of creed and the definitive rulings of Islam. This terminology became popular as more and more sects appeared.! Some scholars would use the term “sunnah” to refer to the established articles of faith and to distinguish them from the beliefs of the newly-formed heretical groups.2 Ibn Rajab noted, “Many of the later scholars [meaning after the first couple of generations] used the word ‘sunnah’ to specifically refer to what is related to creed, because that forms the foundation of the religion and the one who contradicts it is ina very dangerous situation.”3 Some used the word “sunnah” in a_ very comprehensive sense to basically include everything that forms the essential parts of the faith—this is acceptable because everything that forms part of the faith was either believed in, practiced or preached by the Prophet (peace be ‘ Naasir al-Aql, Mafboom Abl al-Sunnab wa al-jamaab Ind Abl al-Sunnab wa al-Jamaab (Riyadh: Daar al-Watan, n.d.), p. 42. * ‘As noted, this was a very common usage of the term by the third century, Many of the scholars wrote works on the beliefs and foundations of the faith and entitled their works, The Sunnah, There are from ten to twenty works of such nature, For example, there was a/-Sunnab by Anmad ibn Hanbal (d. 241 AH), al-Surnab by ibn Abi Asim (d. 287 AH.), a/-Sunnab by Ahmad ibn Muhammad al-Khalaal (d. 311 AH), @/-Sunnah by Abu Bakr ibn al-Athram (d. 273 A.W), al- Sunnah by Abdullah ibn Ahmad ibn Hanbal (d. 290 AH.), af-Sunnab bi Muhammad ibn Nasr al-Marwazi (d, 292), al-Sunnab by al-Asaal (d. 349), Shar! al-Sunnab by ibn Abi Zamanain and Sareeb al-Sunnab by Abu Jafar al-Tabari. Again, these works are not collections of hadith but are all works dedicated to the discussion of beliefs and fundamental issues of creed. Cf, Dhumairiyyah, pp. 96- 99; Uthmaan ibn Hasan, Minthaj al-Istidlaal ala Masaail al-ftigaad Ind Abl al- Sunnah wa al-Jamaab (Riyadh: Maktabah al-Rushd, 1992), vol. 1, pp. 31-32; Muhammad al-Hamad, Ageedab Abt al-Sunnah wa al-Jamaab: apenas, Khasaaisubaa, Khasaais Ablubaa (yadly. Dar al-Watan, 1416 A.H.), p. 16, > Quoted in al-Aql, p. 46. 22The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah upon him) himself. For example, sunnah is defined by some as, “The guidance upon which the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his Companions were, [encompassing all aspects of] knowledge, belief, statement and deeds.”! In this definition, the practices and beliefs of the Companions are considered part of the sunmah because they followed the same methodology as that taught by the Prophet (peace be upon him)—as opposed to some members of later generations who devised their own methodologies contrary to that of the Prophet (peace be upon him). For the specialists in the field of ageedah, sunnah is also used as the opposite of heresy (Ar., bidah 4¢~2). In this respect, one says, “So and so is upon the sunnah (or following the sunnah).” This means that with respect to his beliefs, overall methodology and behavior, he is following the way established by the Prophet (peace be upon him) and passed on to his Companions and those who followed in their path. Again, it is important to note that in this sense, the word “sunnah” also encompasses that way of life and belief that the Companions followed as a continuation of what they learned directly from the Prophet (peace be upon him). Ifa person refuses to follow the way of the Companions in their understanding and practice of the religion, they are, in essence, turning away from the sunnah itself. On the other hand, one says, “So and so is upon an innovation,” if he has some beliefs or methodology that contradicts with the pure teachings of Islam. Those who follow the way of the Prophet (peace be upon him) are known as ah/ al-sunnah or the people of the sunnah. Those who follow any ' Cf, Naasir al- sal Mabaabith fi ger? Abl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamaah wa Muwagi if al-Harakaat al-Islaamtyyab al-Muaasirah Minba (Riyadh: Daar al- Watan, nd), p. 13, This usage mostly started after the time of the Companions and Followers. However, some quotes exist to imply that the earliest generations also used the term in this sense. For example, ibn Umar is quoted as saying, herer leaves the sunnah has committed a blasphemy." See ay -Aql, Mafhoorn, pp- 42-43.Dhe Authority and Ineportance of the Sunnah of the myriad of differing ways are known as afl al-bidah or people of heresy. Hence, sunnah means the correct belief and understanding of the religion.! Abu al-Qaasim al-Asbahaani said, “So and so is upon the sunnah or from the people of the sunnah means that he is in accord with what has been revealed and also what has been passed on [from the Companions and others] with respect to his actions and belief. This is so because the sunnah cannot possibly [be present] when one is in contradiction to Allah and contradiction to His Messenger.”2 Shawaat notes that it is in this sense of the word that hadith such as the following are to be understood:3 The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, oe of wt eee 6 Oot Se dl ee oF OE) “Whoever turns away from my sunnah [my way] is not from me.” (Recorded by al-Bukhari and Muslim.) The Prophet (peace be upon him) also said, ' This distinction was, obviously, not made until heretical beliefs and groups appeared in Islam. In. particular, it was used after the killing of the third caliph and companion Uthmaan ibn Affaan (may Allah be pleased with him), during which time the Muslim community started to divide into sects. Muhammad ibn Seereen's statement is well-known, “They did not use to ask for the chain of authorities [for reports]. But when the ftnab [the killing of Uthmaan and the subsequent civil war] occurred, they would say, ‘State the names of your men [meaning sources].' They would look for the people of the sunnah and take their hadith. They would look for the people of heresy and not take their hadith.” Ibn Seereen’s statement is found with its complete chain in Muslim's introduction to his Sabih, Cf., Yahya al-Nawawi, Sharb Sabeeb Muslim (Beirut: Daar al-Marifah, 1996), vol. 2, p. 44. * Abu al-Qaasim Ismaaeel al-Asbahaani, al-Hugjab fi Bayaan al-Mubijjab wa Sharh Ageedab Abl al-Sunnab (Riyadh: Daar al-Raayah, 1990), vol. 2, pp. 384-5. } Shawaat, p. 23. 24The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah By Bi RE er OI ed Ke Lal Be ew % oe stl, infty giles I fae Sagal Sasi oe ass com is op 5 NI wind; “Certainly, the one who will live among you will see lots of differences. So stick to my sunnah and the sunnah of the right- principled and‘ rightly-guided successors. Bite onto that with your molar teeth. And avoid newly-introduced matters. Verily, every heresy is a going astray.”! This meaning is also apparent in many of the statements of the early scholars. For example, Abdullah ibn Masood said, “For one to be moderate in practicing the sunnah is better than for him to exert himself in heresies.”2 Muhammad ibn Shihaab al-Zuhri said, “Our scholars who have passed on would say, ‘Adhering to the sunnah is salvation,’"3 Some of the earlier scholars take this definition even further and use the word “sunnah” to apply to all of the guidance that the Prophet (peace be upon him) brought and passed on to his Companions and them to their followers, whether related to the foundations of the religion or specific issues. This is a very broad definition. Sunnah is the straight path, with all of its general aspects and detailed points. In fact, in this usage, the word “sunnah” becomes equivalent to Islam itself. According to al-Aql, this is the meaning of the word “sunnah” as found in quotes from many of the early scholars. ' This hadith is s@bsh. It was recorded, with slightly different wordings, by Ahmad, Abu Daawood, al-Tirmidhi, ibn Hibbaan, ibn Abi Aasim, al- -Baihagi, al- Hakim and anumber of others from al-Waleed ibn Muslim from Thaur ibn Yazeed from Khaalid ibn Madaan from both Abdul Rahmaan ibn Amr al-Sulami and Hujr ibn Hujr al-Kalaai from al-irbaad. This chain is of sabib quality as all of the narrators are well-known trustworthy narrators. ? Quoted in Shawaat, p. 24 > Quoted in Shawaat, p. 24. 25Tie Authority and Importance of the Surah For example, Abu Bakr is quoted to have said, “The sunnah is the firm handhold of Allah.”! The Meaning of the Word Hadith Lexically speaking, the word “hadith” (424>, whose plural is ahaadeeth £22\>}) is, New, recent... existing newly, for the first time, not having been before... Information, a piece of information, intelligence, an announcement... a thing, or matter, that is talked of, told, or narrated...” In both the Quran and hadith, the word has been used in reference to a religious communication, a story of a general nature, a historical story and a current story or conversation. As a technical term, a hadith is basically any report of the Messenger of Allah’s (peace be upon him) saying, action, tacit approval, manners, physical characteristic or biographical data. In other words, it is any report about the “sunnah,” as defined by the scholars of hadith.’ ' AL-Aql, Mafhoom, p. 26. > A strict transliteration of the word would actually be badeeth, However, it has become well-known and pronounced correctly as hadith; hence, this author leaves the word as hadith in all of his writings, except in the transliteration of Arabic titles. Furthermore, this author prefers to use the word hadith for both the singular and the plural, like the word deer in English, rather than the Arabic plural ahaadeeth. Lane, vol. 1, p. 529. * Cf, Mustafa Muhammad Azami, Studies in Hadith Methodology and Literature (Indianapolis, IN: American Trust Publications, 1977), pp. 1-2. * There are two other important terms that are closely related. One is khabar (+) and the other is athar (1). The word kbabar literally means “a report, news.” It is used by some scholars of hadith as a synonym for hadith. However, others use the word hadith for what is attributed to the Prophet (peace be upon him) and what is attributed to other than the Prophet (pase be upon him) would be called Rhabar. Hence, a person specializing in the sunnah is called a muhaddith while someone concerned with history and other narrations is called ikbbaari. Al-Suyooti notes that when the word “hadith” is used by itself, without 26The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah Every hadith is composed of two parts: (a) isnaad (21), or chain of authorities, and (b) matn (¢), or the actual text of the hadith. Both of these parts have to meet stringent requirements for the hadith to be accepted and considered true. In general, one can divide all hadith into five basic categories: (a) sahih (p>) or authentic hadith; (b) hasan (¢——-) or “good” hadith; (c) dhaeef (4) or weak hadith; (d) dhaeef jiddan (\A—> —4...5) or very weak hadith and (e) maudhoo ( -—) or fabricated, forged hadith.’ Actually, these can be broken down into two even more basic categories: accepted hadith (sahih or hasan) and rejected hadith (dhaeef, dhaeef jiddan and maudhoo). To be a source or authority of Islamic law, a hadith must be from the categories of sahih or hasan. In order for a hadith to be sahih or Aasan on its own merit, it must meet the following five criteria:? (1) The chain or isnaad must be unbroken. In other words, each source must have received the hadith directly from the one on whose authority he is relating it all the way back to the Prophet (peace be upon him). If there are any missing any additional adjective describing its source, it should only be used in reference to hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him). Azhar literally means the remnants or remains of something. Technically, it is used for what is narrated from the Prophet (peace be upon him), his Companions, their followers and other early scholars. A person who studies these ee and follows them is referred to as athari. Al-Suyooti says that athar should be used only for what is narrated from the Companions and the Followers and not for what comes from the Prophet (peace be upon him), which should be termed hadith. Cf., Muhammad Dhiyaa al-Rahmaan al-Adhami, Mujam Mustalabaat al-Hadeeth wa Lataaif al-Asaaneed (Riyadh: Adhwaa al-Salaf, 1999), pp. 8 (for atbar) and 148 (for khabar); Muhammad al-Manshaawi, Qaamoos Mustalabaat al-Hadeeth al- Nabawi (Cairo: Daar al-Fadheelah, n.d.), pp. 16 (for athar) and 56 (for khabar). 1A fabricated or forged hadith is one which can be traced to an actual fabricator of hadith. When discussing hadith, many scholars do not even consider it a type of hadith. * This brief introduction is not meant to be extensive or detailed. The interested reader should consult this author's “Sahih Hadith,” a/-Basheer (Vol. 3, No.4, Noy.-Dec. 1989).The Authority and lrportance of the Sunnali authorities, the chain would be considered broken and unacceptable. (2) Every narrator in the chain must be of acceptable righteousness and character; in other words, each narrator must be morally fit. Impious people are not accepted for their impiety is a sign that they do not fear Allah and, hence, they cannot be trusted to take extreme care in narrating the statements of the Prophet (peace be upon him). If just one narrator in the chain does not meet this criterion, the hadith will have to be rejected, (3) Moral characteristics are not sufficient. Each narrator must also be proficient and exact when it comes to narrating hadith. Ifa person is known to make lots of mistakes when narrating hadith, either from his memory or from his writings, his hadith will not be accepted. (4) Both the chain and the text of the hadith must be such that they do not contradict what has been narrated through stronger means. (5) Upon inspection of the different ways a hadith is narrated, it must be the case that no mistake or defect is spotted in either the chain or the text of the hadith. If any of these conditions are not met, the hadith will be rejected as either weak (dhaeef) or very weak (dhaeef jiddan}, depending on the magnitude of the weakness. Hadith which are graded dhaeef or weak may be raised to the level of hasan if sufficient corroborating evidence is found for them. Hadith which are dhaeef jiddan may never be raised because the nature of their weakness prevents them from being considered as supporting evidence or as being supported by other similar evidence. Of course, fabricated hadith are ina different category completely and would never, under any circumstances, be considered an authority or acceptable in Islamic law. 28The Authority and tmportance of the Sunnah The Relationship Between Sunnah and Hadith Now that the terms sunnah and hadith have been defined and discussed, the relationship between sunnah and hadith can be given. The sunnah is the reality or the actual statement, act or tacit approval of the Prophet (peace be upon him)—what he actually did, said or approved of. There is no such thing as a “weak sunnah” or a “rejected sunnah,” However, that actual sunnah is captured in the reports that have come down from the Prophet (peace be upon him), which constitute the hadith literature. As just noted, not every report is correct and substantiated—indeed, some reports are even blatant fabrications. In other words, the entire hadith literature does not represent the sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him). Only the acceptable hadith represent and portray the real sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him).! * Sulaimaan al-Nadwi has, to this author, an unacceptable and unprecedented differentiation between sunnah and hadith, In his work, Tahgeeq Mana al- Sunnah wa Bayaan al-Haajab laibaa, he wrote (pp. 52-53), “Hadith is every incident ascribed to the Prophet (peace be upon him), even if he just did it once in his noble life or if it is narrated by just one person from him. Sunnah, on the other hand, is, in reality, the name for the deeds passed on in mutawaatir fashion. In other words, it is how the Prophet (peace be upon him) performed his deeds, passed on to us through a continuous transmission of practice—as the Prophet (peace be upon him) performed it, then the Companions after him performed it, and then the Followers and so forth. It is not necessary that it be mutawaatir with respect to its wording [in its text; It is sufficient to be mutawaatir with respect to its rabanitgtes, This mutawaatir practice and transmission is what is called the sunnah. And this is what is mentioned in conjunction with the Book in the Prophet's saying, ‘I have left among you two matters that, if you adhere to them, you will never go astray: the Book of Allah and the sunnah of His Messenger.”" Later (p. 60), he writes after quoting the same hadith, “The meaning of that sunnah mentioned in conjunction with the Book is the ruelawaatir practice of the Messenger (peace be upon him) and his path and guided way that is the correct, practical interpretation of the Quran. It does not mean every narration of speech that is narrated by so and so on the authority of so and so.” What he seems to be implying ts that portions of the sunnah that have been transmitted via non-mulawaatir means, and which maybe were only known to some Companions and not all, are not part of that sunnah that is referred to in the above hadith, This implies that if someone does 29‘The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah Tbn Taimiyah wrote, for example, The sunnah that is a must to be followed, for which one is praised upon following it and blamed for going against it, is the sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) in matters of beliefs, matters of worship and the rest of the affairs of the religion. And that is known only by knowledge of the hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him) that are confirmed on his authority.! Al-Albaani also wrote, The sunnah that has such importance in the law is the confirmed sunnah from the Prophet (peace be upon him) via methodological means and well-known sound chains according to the people of knowledge of hadith and its narrators. It is not the one that is found in the various books of Quranic commentary, books of figh, books of exhortation and admonishing, not abide by those sunnah, he will still be rightly guided and his religion is not affected in any negative sense because they are not what are actually meant by the sunnah. This implies that it is perfectly acceptable to refuse to abide by a hadith simply because it is not mutaweatir or because its implications were not practiced by the Muslims in a mutawaatir sense. What al-Nadwi claims to be the definition of the sunnah was not the conception of the Companions and those who followed them. It is known and established, even with respect to the earliest caliphs, that sometimes they would be ignorant of some portion of the sunnah. Once they heard the appropriate hadith, they immediately applied that hadith, regardless of whether it was known on a wide scale or not. iples of that nature will be given in the section entitled, “The Companions’ View of the Sunnah.") What is very perplexing to this author is that the referred to work by al-Nadwi was annotated by all of Muhammad Rasheed Ridha, Muhib al-Deen al- Khateeb, Muhammad Naasir al-Deen al-Albaani and Zuhair al-Shaweesh and none of them commented on the obvious errant implication of what al-Nadwi was saying (while this author is certain that they do not agree with such an npleaon, Allah alone is the true source of guidance. Cf., Sulaimaan al-Nadwi, Tabgeeq Mana al-Sunnah wa Bayaan al-Haajab Hathaa (Beirut: al-Maktab al- Islaami, 1994), pp. 52-60. * Ahmad ibn Taimiyyah, Majmoo Fataawa Shaikh al-Islaam ibn Taimiyyah (Riyadh: Daar al-Ifta, n.d.), vol. 3, p. 387.The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah books of stories to make the heart soft and admonitions and so forth. In those books are many weak, rejected and fabricated hadith, some of them that Islam has absolutely nothing to do with... It is incumbent upon the people of knowledge, especially those whose opinions and statements are spread among the masses, to not be so bold as to argue by hadith until after they certify its truthfulness.' Once the role and the importance of the sunnah in Islam is made clear, as it hopefully will be in the remainder of this book, the importance of the hadith should be very obvious. One needs to know what the sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him) was. One also needs to know where to look to find the statements of the Prophet (peace be upon him). By the grace of Allah, unlike the messengers who preceded the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), Allah has preserved for Muslims the actual statements and actions of His last Prophet (peace be upon him). The Prophet’s statements, actions and even his physical appearance are all captured in the body of literature known as the hadith literature. Virtually nothing has been lost from his noble life. A Muslim can know exactly how he prayed, fasted, and participated in daily matters with his fellow companions or with his wives. He can visualize how he ate, drank and sat. Such a miraculous and complete record cannot be found for any other historical figure since the creation of man.2 ' Muhammad Naasir al-Deen al-Albaani, Manzilah al-Sunnah fi al-slaam (Kuwait: al-Daar al-Salafiyyah, 1980), pp. 13-14. * ‘This is actually another sign of the truth of the prophethood of Muhammad, peace be upon him, and of the fact that he is the final prophet, after whom no prophet is needed.The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah The Meaning of the Words “Authority” and “Sunnah” in the Expression: The Authority of the According to Islamic legal theory, Allah is the only lawgiver. This right rests solely with Him and none of the creation has the right to lay down any legislation over other humans—unless it be something sanctioned or permitted within the bounds of what Allah has revealed. Allah says, fe ,e,e 6 as YY pSodi Oo “The command [and rule] is only for Allah” (Yoosuf 40 and 67). However, Allah’s law and rule is known by different means or indicators. Among them is the Quran or Allah's speech. Among them also is the sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). In Arabic, the word hujjah (42>, “authority”) means “an indication, definitive proof.” As a technical term in the expression, “the authority of the sunnah,” it means that the sunnah is a legitimate evidence in Islamic law that leads one to the ruling of Allah, It also means that it is part of the worship of Allah to fulfill what the sunnah commands and refrain from what the sunnah prohibits. Furthermore, it means that one must believe in what the sunnah comprises and one must act upon what it requires in all realms of one’s life.! The exact meaning of the word “sunnah” used in this expression also needs to be specifically identified. Table 1 reviews the different definitions discussed earlier. Basically, the word sunnah here is the definition of the Islamic legal theorists (which is, more or less, inclusive of the definition given by the ageedah specialists). However, it is conditional upon the fact that the report of that sunnah be an acceptable ' Shawaat, p. 236. 32The Authority and Importance of the Sunnati hadith. In other words, it refers to the Prophet’s statements, selected actions, tacit approvals and general guidance that the Prophet (peace be upon him) passed on to his Companions and which is captured in the authentic’ (sahih and hasan) hadith literature. 33MMe Authority and Importance of the Sunnah Type of | Main Concern of | Definition of Sunnah Comments Scholar _| the Discipline Jurist The value of | An act which is between | This definition is (Fageeh | deeds or actions, | obligatory and permissible; a | irrelevant to the Aegfd) whether they be | recommended act; an act for | discussion of the obligatory, which one is rewarded for | authority of the recommended and | performing and not punished | sunnah so forth for not performing Scholar Any report | What has been passed down | This definition is of hadith | conceming any | from the Prophet (peace be | too broad and (muhad- aspect of the | upon him) of his statements, | includes some dith Prophet's life; | actions, tacit’ approvals, | matters that do DOS) | goat i to judge | manners, physical | not fit into the which of those | characteristics or biography, | concept of reports are | regardless of whether it was | “authority” authentic and | before he was sent as a which are not prophet or afterwards. Legal Determination of | What comes from the Prophet | This is the exact theorist | what is an | (peace be upon him) in the | meaning of the (usooli authority in | form of speech, action or tacit | word “sunnah” $2!) | Islamic law and | approval, other than the | in the expression . hhow that authority | Quran itself, “the authority of is used to derive the sunnah" Jaws Specia-~ What a Muslimis | The foundations ofthe faith, | Too restricted a lists in | supposed to belief | the obligatory deeds, the | definition, leaves Aqeedah | and related | matters of creed and the | out many facets (Ques- matters definitive rulings of Islam. that are tions necessary to be related to part of the faith and definition creed) Table 1. Review of the Different Definitions for the Word “Sunnah” waeThe Authority ancl Importance of the Surah Conclusions In this chapter, the term “sunnah” has been defined. Among the most important points to note is that the jurists’ usage of the word should never be confused with the meaning of the word in the phrase, “the authority of the sunnah.” Their usage of the word implies that a specific act lies somewhere between obligatory and permissible; that is, it is recommended. That usage is much closer to the lexical meaning of the word “sunnah” and it essentially has nothing to do with the meaning of the word “sunnah” in the expression, “the authority of the sunnah.” The definition of the word “sunnah” as used by the scholars of hadith is too broad to be considered the meaning of the word “sunnah” in the expression, “the authority of the sunnah.” This is because they include in their definition aspects of the “sunnah” that have no legal authority or bearing, such as acts that the Prophet (peace be upon him) performed before receiving revelation, The definition of the word “sunnah” as used by the legal theorists is: the statements, actions and tacit approvals of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). This definition is, in essence, inclusive of the definition given by the specialists in ageedah. It is the definition that is meant when speaking about the authority and importance of the sunnah. The sunnah is captured in the authentic hadith literature. Hence, in order to know what the sunnah is, one must turn to the authentic hadith literature. Thus, “the authority and importance of the sunnah” directly means, “the authority and importance of the authentic hadith.” 35The Authority and Importance of the Surnah Chapter Two: Proofs Establishing the Authority and Importance of the Sunnah Introduction The proofs concerning the importance of the sunnah may be divided into four categories: proofs from the Quran, proofs from the sunnah itself, corroborating evidence in the statements of the Companions of the Prophet, and conclusions of the leading scholars of Islam.! Obviously, if somebody denies the importance of the sunnah in toto, hadith cannot be used as arguments to prove the importance of the sunnah. Instead, one must derive some proof from the Quran itself concerning the position of the sunnah in Islam. There exist many verses in the Quran that point to the importance of the sunnah. In fact, many verses give a clear indication that it is obligatory fora person who believes in Allah to follow the sunnah.2 Many of these verses ' OF course, these last two are not stand alone proofs—anless they reach the level of a consensus. Herein, they are first quoted as supporting arguments and then to note that they do reach the level of consensus. (Actually, the authority of a statement of a Companion is a disputed issue among legal theorists.) Yet other proofs establishing the authority and indispensability of the sunnah shall be noted throughout this work. ? Ibn Taimiyyah stated that the position of the sunnah has been confirmed in over forty places in the Quran. Cf, Ibn Taimiyyah, Majmooat al-Fataawa ibn Taimiyyab, vol. 19, pp. 93f. A study of the appendix will demonstrate that what he stated is not an exaggeration. 37are so emphatic that no conscientious person can deny their implications concerning the authority and importance of the sunnah. The first section of this chapter shall be a discussion of only some of the relevant Quranic verses. The Quranic Verses Related to the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him) The Quran points to the importance and necessity of the sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him) in numerous places.! Indeed, they are so numerous that they can be casily broken down into separate categories or types of commands for following the sunnah. These different verses, therefore, will be discussed under their appropriate subheadings. Obedience to the Prophet (peace be upon him) is Obedience to Allah Allah revealed te His Prophet (peace be upon him), prgele Sula hab Se ay Ul ¢ WEE a Oh abs 8 Toe “Whoever obeys the Messenger verily obeys Allah; but if any turn away, We have not sent you to watch over their (evil deeds)” (a/-Nisaa 80). In this verse, Allah clearly states that obedience to the Messenger (peace be upon him) is nothing less than obedience to Allah. The verse is so clear it cannot be construed in any other manner. ' The verses of the Quran pointing to the importance and place of the sunnah are actually sprinkled throughout this work and not all contained in the following section. Hence, in order to have a complete listing that the reader may reference and research, an appendix has been added which includes all of the relevant verses referred to in this work. 38The Authority and Importance of the Surrah In the Sahihs of al-Bukhari and Muslim it is recorded that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, e 4 Pe oY, 8 e A fab Lb lab oy al p LI olbl 2 “Whoever obeys me, obeys Allah. Whoever disobeys me, disobeys Allah.” Not following the sunnah or the commands of the Prophet (peace be upon him) is exactly the same as not following the. commands of Allah. Ibn Katheer noted that it is the Prophet’s job only to convey the message and it is up to each person to accept or to reject his message, The one who follows his message will be saved. Hence, whoever obeys Allah and His Messenger is guided; whoever disobeys Allah and His Messenger harms no one except himself. Al-Shaukaani points out that this verse proves that anything that comes from the Messenger (peace be upon him) actually originated with Allah.2 In another verse, Allah describes the swearing of allegiance to the Prophet (peace be upon him) as swearing allegiance to Himself in the following verse, ae iad ogell Gib 25 al pad wat ea fad ath &y din dle sae we Sy yey ees le SY ah OK Vegas Vel aati “Lo those who swear allegiance to you (Muhammad), swear allegiance only unto Allah. The Hand of Allah is above their hands. So whosoever breaks his oath, breaks it only to his soul’s hurt; while whosoever keeps his covenant with Allah, on him will He bestow immense reward” (al-Fath 10). Here ' Ismaaeel Ibn Katheer, Tafseer al-Quran al-Adbeem al-Maroof bi Tafseer thn Katbeer (Riyadh; Maktabah Daar al-Salaam, 1998), p. 345. ? Muhammad ibn Ali al-Shaukaani, Fath al-Qadeer (Mustafa al-Babi al-Halabi, 1964), vol. 1, p. 489. 39Die Authority and Importance of the Surmah Allah describes the making of an oath of allegiance to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) as being the same as swearing allegiance to Allah. This clearly implies that obeying the Messenger (peace be upon him) is the same as obeying Allah. Allah Orders Obedience to the Prophet (peace be upon him) and Warns Against Disobeying Him Allah says in the Quran, whe AN ty Dill Ah abl LAE ST Gil ly Meee or 26 (2 2 8t ex, ete ee Os AS OL Spi Ny WN dh 09958 coe Bb pcb st OW Ssh hy Ye WS 29 pdhy aby “O you who believe, obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you. And if you are in dispute over any matter, refer it to Allah and His Messenger if you are actually believers in Allah and the Last Day. That is better for you and more seemly in the end” (a/-Nisaa 59), Many important points may be deduced from this one verse of the Quran. First, it must be noted that Allah explicitly uses the command “to obey” (Ar., afeew) not only for Himself but also for the Messenger (peace be upon him), that is, “obey Allah and obey the Messenger.” (The same verb or command does not directly precede “those in authority among you.”!) This establishes the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) as an independent object of obedience while obedience to anyone else is conditional upon consistency with the Quran or sunnah. * Of course, this is not proper according to English syntax which requires that the items in the position following obey be the objects of obey, But in Arabic, such a construction can be done to emphasize the obedience to those stated directly after the command. 40The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah Second, this implies that obedience to the Messenger (peace be upon him) is, in — sense, something different than obedience to Allah. It is true that obedience to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) is obedience to Allah. What is meant here is that obedience to the Messenger (peace be upon him) differs from simply obeying the Messenger (peace be upon him) in what he has conveyed from the word of Allah or the Quran. (This closes the door to the argument that some have tried to use which claims that obeying the Messenger only means obeying him in what he has conveyed from Allah as part of the Quran.) Third, Muslims are commanded to take any dispute that they may have to only two arbiters: Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him). The Companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and later scholars have understood “refer it to Allah” to mean “to refer it to the Book of Allah.” And referring the matter to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) means to refer it directly to him during his lifetime and to his sunnah after his death. Note also that the two, the Book of Allah and the sunnah of the Messenger (peace be upon him), are placed together here and the verse does not say, “refer the matter to Allah and then to the Messenger of Allah,” nor does it say, “refer the matter to Allah and if you do not find the answer there, refer the matter to the Messenger.” Fourth, Allah states that the true believers are the ones who refer their disputes not only to Allah but to Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him). Fifth, the believer knows that the important life is that of the Hereafter. It is better in the end (that is, in the Hereafter), when the person must face Allah, for the believer to refer any dispute to both Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) and to not deny the position of the sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him). Sixth, one should realize that this verse refers to all types of disputes, whether concerning matters of worship, 41The Authority and importance of the Surah business or other worldly affairs. Some scholars mention that this verse was revealed with respect to some of the deputies of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). Before the time of the Prophet (peace be upon him), the Arabs had no real idea of governmental authority and, hence, this led to disputes concerning which, Allah states, the solution was to refer the matter to Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him). Ibn al-Qayyim noted about the phrase, “if you dispute about anything,” that the Arabic phrase is a word in the indefinite, “anything,” being used as part of a condition. This implies generality. In other words, it refers to anything that the Muslims may dispute about concerning their religion, whether it be a small matter or a large matter. They must refer that matter to the Book and the sunnah, This implies that the solution for that matter—any matter—must be found in the Quran and sunnah. It would be an impossibility for Allah to order the Muslims to refer the matter to these two sources while the resolution to their dispute is not found therein.1 Finally, ibn al-Qayyim also noted that Allah says in this verse, “refer it to Allah and His Messenger,” and He did not say, “refer it to Allah and to His Messenger.” (In other words, the word (J! “to” is used only once.) He says that such is the case because whatever Allah decides is exactly the decision of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). And whatever the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) decides is exactly the decision of Allah, Hence, when Musims dispute over a matter and take it back to Allah (His book), they are in essence taking it back to the Messenger (peace be upon him). And when they take it back to the Messenger (peace be upon him), they have in fact taken it back to Allah. This is one of the very subtle and intricate points that one can find in the Quran.2 Allah says in another verse, Ibn al-Qayyim was quoted in Abdul Khaalig, p. 301, ? Cf, Ali al-Saalihi, 4+-Dbau al-Muneer ala al-Tafseer (Riyadh: Maktabah Daar al-Salaam, .d.), vol. 2, p. 235. It was quoted from ibn al-Qayyim's a/-Risaalah al-Tabookiyyah. 42The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah 4 ae ge BET rene ote OLE Oe) SS U5) at abl “Obey Allah and the Messenger that you may attain mercy” (ali-Imraan 132). In this verse, Allah states that the Mercy in the next life will be showered upon those who obeyed Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him). It should be noted that the same words, “obey Allah and the Messenger,” also occur in ali-Jmraan 32. Furthermore, the phrase, “obey Allah and His Messenger,” occurs four times in the Quran (a/-Anjaal 1, al-Anfaal 20, al-Anfaal 46 and al- Mujaadalah 13). For example, Allah says, - Gone ge get of ¢ godly es iy gles all ABET Gull ity feo g “Q you who believe! Obey Allah and His Messenger, and turn not away from him while you hear (what he spoke)” (a/-Anfaal 20). Ibn Katheer said that the last part of that verse means, “That is, after you know what it is the he is calling you to.” In other words, once a Muslim knows what the Prophet (peace be upon him) has said, it is not acceptable for him to turn away from it or to ignore it. Finally, the phrase, “obey Allah and obey the Messenger” occur an additional five times in the Quran (al- Nisaa 59, al-Maaidah 92, al-Noor 54, Muhammad 33 and al- Taghaabun 12). An example using this phrase is found in the verse, Je ale wi gs Op Oot bh dh aot os Cd My Dyin wy ey ops Oy gilts v AK, ba “Say: Obey Allah, and obey the Messenger. Butif you tum away, he is only responsible for the duty placed on him and ‘Tbn Katheer, p. 574. 43The Authority and Importance of the Surah chosen, and land him in Hell, what an evil refuge” (a/-Nisaa 115). Usmani explains this phenomenon of always mentioning obedience to the Messenger (peace be upon him) while only sometimes mentioning obedience to Allah: The reason for so much stress upon “the obedience of the Prophet” is that “obedience to Allah” cannot be carried out except through “obedience of the Prophet.” Allah does not address each and every individual to tell him what He requires from him... [T]he obedience of the Prophet (peace be upon him) represents the obedience of Allah and the reference to the former always includes the latter. That is why the Holy Quran [sic] in some verses deemed it sufficient to refer to the obedience of the Messenger only, for the practical way to obey Allah is only to obey the Prophet. On the contrary, the Holy Quran [sic] did not deem it sufficient to refer to the “obedience of Allah” without referring to the “obedience of the Messenger,” to remove even the Temotest excuse for ignoring the “obedience of the Prophet” and to leave no doubt whatsoever in the fact that the “obedience of Allah” is not complete unless the “obedience of the Prophet” is fully observed with all its implications.' The emphasis that Allah has given to this command is clear from its repetitions. No Muslim should have any doubt in his mind_ that it is obligatory upon him to obey and follow the Prophet (peace be upon him). This aspect is further emphasized by the numerous verses (a/-Nisaa 13, al-Nisaa 69, al-Noor 52, al-Ahzaab 71, al-Fath 17) in which Allah describes the reward that will come to those who obey both ‘Usmani, pp. 16-17, 46Authority and linportance of the Sunnah Allah and the Messenger (peace be upon him). For example, Allah says, SEN Ges 5 Bri oe eet Wy all ab LAs oral ‘a S's Geb Gwe “Those who obey Allah and His Messenger will be admitted to Gardens with rivers flowing beneath, to abide therein (forever) and that will be the supreme achievement” (al/-Nisaa 13). Allah also says, wot gle i gaol Guat gs eu E115 ah abl oy bay aud 3 Coy Coens stg & eased y Sol “All who obey Allah and the Messenger are in the company of those on whom is the Grace of Allah, of the Prophets, the sincere, the martyrs, and the righteous. Ah! What a beautiful fellowship” (al-Nisaa 69). Furthermore, part of the description of the true believers is that they obey Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him). These are the people who can look forward to Allah’s mercy. The Lord says, Syipaly Osta ol pa OY osaally AN & ghaa’y ISB gly Sead 0 yorily Keel 6 © oe Sue all 0 ab ger auf, “The believers, men and women, are protectors one of another. They enjoin what is right and forbid what is evil. They establish the prayers, give the zakaat, and obey Allah and His Messenger. On them will Allah pour His Mercy, for Allah is Exalted in power, Wise” (al-Taubah 71). However, in addition to that, in three places in the Quran (al-Nisaa 14, al-Ahzaab 36 and al-Jinn 23), Allah describes the negative and fatal results of deciding to disobey a7‘The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah Allah or His Messenger (peace be upon him). Al-Salafi notes that specifically mentioning the negative results of disobeying the Prophet (peace be upon him) leaves a stronger impact then what is simply understood from the command to obey the Prophet (peace be upon him).1 Among such verses is, Vaal eb Gul wee SNOUT YL), Al oki Ly “For any who disobeys Allah and His Messenger, for them is Hell: they shall dwell therein forever” (a/-Jinn 23). One also finds verses specifically describing the plight and remorse of those who refused to follow and obey the Messenger c of Allah (peace be upon him). Allah says, abi, a abi EI Og gai 1 aby Cie oy Je “The Day that their faces will be turned upside down in the Fire, they will say: “Woe to us! Would that we had obeyed Allah and obeyed the Messenger’” (al-Ahzaab 66), Another verse reads, 4 hs BA BOTA) 204 Were ¢ Ie bee pete PIN free SSF SN Mab 19a Gull og sy Bae a OAS Vy “On that day those who reject faith and disobey the Messenger will wish that the earth were made one with them [so they may escape punishment]. But never will they hide a single fact from Allah” (@/-Nisaa 42). Just conspiring or discussing intentional disobedience of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) is forbidden and a sin: Kasay ols oy "pus 38 pes 13 Vga G osiabd oS gall dh yl, 6G Su Gees * ALSalafi, p. 34. 48The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah “Q you who believe! When you hold secret counsel, do it not for iniquity and hostility, and disobedience to the Messenger; but do it for righteousness and self-restraint; and fear Allah, to whom you shall be brought back” (al-Mujaadalah 9). After all of the above, it seems a logical conclusion that only a hypocrite or one whose faith is truly diseased would turn away from what the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, commanded or instituted. Indeed, Allah describes the turning away from what Allah has revealed and what the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) has presented to be a characteristic of the hypocrites. Soorah al- Nisaa, verse 61 reads: casi Cat, Shih hy Uh Oph a A Vl ol Gs 51s Io sito Cie 0 yitlaj “When it is said to them, ‘Come to what Allah has revealed, and to the Messenger,” you see the hypocrites avert their faces from you in disgust.” Allah has also stated another warning for those who insist on going against the orders and commands that come from His Messenger (peace be upon him): ese 8? weber 1129 aimed Of 9 ah he Oped Guill jad wal Gui “Let those who oppose his orders beware lest a calamity or painful punishment should befall them” (a/-Noor 63). Al-Qurtubi said that jurists point to this verse as a proof that it is obligatory to follow the commands and orders that come from Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him). In this verse Allah has given a warning to anyone who decides not to pollow His Prophet’s commands that a punishment shall befall them. " Al-Qurtubi, vol. 12, p. 322.The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah In yet other verses, Allah says, le Gull 68 gas J Rt Ja eo id soly SEN SB Lo 8 8 Gath od an sits hy Syoyy ab ic a CHS OU IS Ge a] tues al oy Ueoyy “Remember your Lord inspired the angels (with the message), ‘I am with you. Give firmness to the believers. I will strike terror into the hearts of the unbelievers. Smite above their necks and smite all their fingertips off them.* This because they defied and disobeyed Allah and His Messenger: if any defy and disobey Allah and His Messenger, Allah is strict in punishment” (a/-Anfaal 12-13). Accepting the Prophet’s Decisions and Rulings Is Part of Faith Allah also states in the Quran, \phend Yo tl Bad DyKod & OLY Oy Veooad \ eg Ig etd vey ee eg oe “But no, by your Lord, they will not actually believe until they make you the judge of what is in dispute between them and find within themselves no dislike of that which you decide and they submit with full submission” (a/-Nisaa 65). The occasion for the revelation of this verse—or, at least, a case that it explicitly applies to—is recorded in Sahih al-Bukhari as: Al-Zubair quarreled with a man from the Ansaar because of a natural mountain stream at al-Harra. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “O Zubair, irrigate your land and then let the water flow to your 50Tite Authority ancl Importance of the Sunnah neighbor.” The Ansaar said, “O Allah’s Apostle, (is this because) he is your cousin?” At that the Prophet’s face became red (with anger) and he said, “Zubair, irrigate your land and then withhold the water until it fills the land up to the walls and then let if flaw to your neighbor.” So the Prophet (peace be upon him) enabled al-Zubair to take his full right after the Ansaari had provoked his anger. The Prophet (peace be upon him) had previously given an order that was in favor of both of them. Al-Zubair said, “I do not think that this verse, ‘No, by your Lord... [al-Nisaa 65, quoted above]’, was revealed except on this occasion.” Al-Shaukaani points out that one’s belief is not perfected until one completely accepts the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) as the decider of affairs. By the word haraj (translated above as “dislike”) is meant, according to some authorities, doubt concerning any decision made by the Prophet (peace be upon him); others say that it means “sin”—- by finding in their hearts the desire to reject the decision of the Prophet (peace be upon him). The last part of the verse means that the true Muslim will have no doubt concerning what the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said or ordered and will submit and accept his authority without any hesitation, Tationalization or false excuses. In conclusion, a Muslim cannot truthfully call himself a believer until, in his heart, he completely accepts the decisions of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and his way of life, his sunnah, ! Another point that deserves attention is that Allah begins this verse by swearing. This is fairly common in the Quran, but in this particular instance Allah swears by the Lord of the Prophet (peace be upon him). This swearing is much greater than any other found in the Quran, and it is after this 1 al-Shaukaani, Fath, vol. 1, p. 483 51The Authority arid Importance of the Sunnah great swearing that Allah informs the believers that it is necessary for them to completely accept the authority of the Prophet (peace be upon him). In commenting on this verse, Ibn Katheer quotes a hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him) which further emphasizes what this verse implies, “None of you truly believes until his desires are subservient to what I have come with.”! Allah also revealed, aS OF AT Spy Un ad 51 aa Vy at OW ty oR fo ab yy ail ay ea al by Hel dl Lanes “It does not become a believing man or believing woman, when Allah and His Messenger have decided a matter that they should (after that) claim any say in their affair, and whoever is disobedient to Allah and His Messenger has certainly gone astray in manifest error” (a/-Ahzaab 36). If Allah or His Messenger has made a decision on any matter, then the believer has no choice but to submit himself to the decrees of Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him), Al-Suyooti has recorded the occasion for the revelation of this verse: Qataadah narrated that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) asked Zainab to marry Zaid, but instead she wished to marry the Prophet (peace be upon him) himself. Therefore, she refused to accept the Prophet’s choice. This verse was then revealed, and she became pleased and submitted to the Prophet’s decision. This was also narrated ‘ Ibn Katheer, p. 339. Unfortunately, there is a difference of opinion concerning this hadith. Some of the scholars, for example, al-Albaani, consider it weak while others, such as al-Nawawi, consider it hasan. This author has concluded that it is weak. Cf, Jamaal al-Din Zarabozo, Commentary on the Forty Hadith of al- Nawawi (Boulder, CO: Al-Basheer Company for Publications and Translations, 1999), vol. 3, pp. 1564-1570.he Authority and Importance of the Sunnah through a couple of chains on the authority of ibn Abbaas.! Ibn Katheer stated a number of authorities who mentioned this incident as the occasion behind the revelation of this verse. If these narrations are correct, a couple of points should be noted with respect to this verse. First, it was revealed in connection with a decision made by the Prophet (peace be upon him). No Quranic commandment had been revealed about this request of the Prophet (peace be upon him); yet Allah describes the Prophet's decision as coming from both Allah and His Messenger, “when Allah and His Messenger have decided a matter.” This clearly proves that the Prophet's commands were not from himself but were inspired by Allah. Second, and even more profound, is that this verse was revealed with respect to marriage and the personal desires of the heart. Allah states that even in these delicate matters one must completely submit to the commands of Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him), Thus the obedience to the Messenger (peace be upon him) must permeate even the most private aspects of our lives. Allah calls people to be judged by Himself and by His Messenger (peace be upon him). It is one of the signs ofa diseased heart for one not to accept what Allah or His Messenger (peace be upon him) have ordered or decided, Allah says, . . , pea se ia (G1 V3) fod SSE Wyong alll dy Lyho aly dy ol Lo paral Al Ged ah vb Goll Ko, 0 yaa oh Gay ayy ole Cis Oi ol ‘ Jalaal_al-Deen al-Suyooti, Lubaab al-Naqool fi Asbaab al-Nuzool (Beirut: Daar thyaa al-Uloom, 1980), p. 174. The incident was recorded by al-Tabaraani with a sabih chain back to Qataadah. Qataadah, however, was not a Companion of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and, hence, that chain is broken back to the Prophet (peace be upon him). The narrations from ibn Abbaas all have some weakness to them. Other narrations state that it was revealed with respect to a different woman; however, the gist of that story is the same as the one presented above and would not affect the conclusions made above. 53The Authority and Intportance of the Sunnah woah pS alpha al J \ gb 15] Gace i ad iy lit gb abl ae “When they are summoned to Allah and His Messenger, in order that he [the Prophet (peace be upon him)] may judge between them, behold, some of them decline (to come), But if the right is on their side, they come to him with all submission. Is it that there is a disease in their hearts? Or do they doubt, or are they in fear, that Allah and His Messenger will deal unjustly with them? Nay, it is they themselves who do wrong. The answer of the believers, when summoned to Allah and His Messenger, in order that he may judge between them, is no other than this: they say, ‘We hear and we obey.’ It is such as these who will attain felicity. It is such as obey Allah and His Messenger, and fear Allah and do right, who will win (in the end)” (al-Noor 48-52). Verse seven of soorah al- Hashr states, oy aby 1 dS | 9b RE GS tg at a lid dyad al “Whatsoever the Messenger gives you, take it; and whatsoever he forbids for you, abstain from it. And be aware of Allah. Verily, Allah is severe in punishment.” This verse was revealed specifically with respect to the spoils of war. In other words, “what the Messenger gives you of the spoils, take it; and what he does not give you of the spoils, abstain from it.” No scholar has argued that this verse pertains only to the spoils of war, Ibn Juraij said that its meaning is general, that whatever the Messenger (peace be upon him) orders you to do, you must do; and whatever he shuns for you, you must also shun, Al-Shaukaani said that the wording of the verse is general and the occasion behind the revelation does not‘The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah confine the ruling of the verse. He said that the verse has a general application and applies to all of the regulations, commands or prohibitions that come from the Prophet (peace be upon him).! This verse contains a warning, “And be aware of Allah.” This is a clear warning to those who do not respect the limits laid down by the Prophet (peace be upon him). And Allah ends this verse with, “And Allah is certainly severe in punishment.” This, notes Shawaat, is an implication that the one who does not abide by what the Prophet (peace be upon him) says becomes a disbeliever because such a threatened punishment could only be for disbelievers.2 Following the Messenger (peace be upon him) Is a Key to Allah’s Love, Real Life and Guidance Another verse in the Quran States, 3 Sb ais ah 9 Ws bd AAG DO sod AAS Oy Fuad werd te ay “Say (O Muhammad): Ifyou truly love Allah then follow me and Allah will love you and forgive your sins. Allah is the Forgiving, the Merciful” (ali-Jmraan 31). The one who truly loves Allah will seek to find the actions that will lead Allah to love him. According to this verse, in order to gain Allah’s love one need only follow and obey the Messenger (peace be upon him) and then Allah will love him and forgive his sins. Al-Shaukaani wrote that “to love Allah” implies to desire to obey Allah completely and to do anything that Allah orders. He quoted al-Azhaari, who said, “The love of Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) by a human (lit., slave) means (that the human) obeys the two completely and follows them in eS a ' Al-Shaukaani, Fath, vol. 5, p. 198. * Shawaat, p. 283. 55his actions.”! Ibn Katheer adds that this verse makes it a fact that anyone who claims to love Allah yet iene to obey or follow the Messenger (peace be upon him) is a liar.2 One can also find the following verse in the Quran, peered Uh Ses 13 Jil 4 ay \yraetiol | gil pdb lig “O you who believe, respond to Allah and His Messenger when they call you to that which gives you life” (a/-Anjaal 24). Al-Shaukaani commented that “to respond to” means “to obey” Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) when they make a command. The Shareeah, which is embodied in the Quran and sunnah, are the proclamations of Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him). It is this Shareeah that gives true meaning and true life to this worldly existence. Ignoring or not responding to this call and guidance is, in fact, a type of death, Al-Shaukaani pointed out that this verse proves that it is obligatory for every Muslim to obey any command (that is, call) that he hears from Allah or His Messenger (peace be upon him), even if the command should go against his own desires, opinion or against popular opinion. The manner in which one should respond to the commands of Allah or His Prophet (peace be upon him) has been exemplified in the story of Abu Saeed ibn Mualla, as recorded by al-Bukhari. While Abu Saeed was praying, the Prophet (peace be upon him) summoned him, but he did not respond until he had finished the prayer. Upon finally coming to the Prophet (peace be upon him), the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) recited the above verse to him showing his behavior towards the call of the Prophet (peace be upon him) was incorrect.3 Furthermore, it is by truly believing in the Prophet (peace be upon him) and by following him that one can hope to be guided. Allah makes this point in the verse, yak Shaukaani, Fath ai-Qadeer, vol. 1, p. 338. * Ibn Katheer, p. 236. 3 Al-Shaukaani, Fath, vol. 2, p. 299-300. 56The Authority and Importance of the Sunriah Yala Ply Ord Sh gal C NN fp ah fy “Say: O mankind! J am sent unto you all, as the Messenger of Allah, to Whém belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth; there is no god but He. It is He who gives both life and death. So believe in Allah and His Messenger, the unlettered Prophet, who believed in Allah and His Words. Follow him that you may be guided” (a/-Araaf 158). Note that in this verse there is an indication as to why the Prophet (peace be upon him) should be followed. Allah describes him as “the unlettered prophet.” In other words, the wonderful guidance that he was conveying was not from his own study and research. On the contrary, it could have only come from Allah as an inspiration to him (peace be upon him). The Revealing of the Mikmah Allah has stated, 1 ele Yt ad AE 5y Gls le A Ca CSE bYy HBr Sh ale gk UT pele ort Die ii JS ees “Allah has clearly shown grace to the believers by sending unto them a Messenger of their own who recites unto them His revelations, and causes them to grow and teaches them the 57Book and the Hikmah,! although before they were in flagrant error” (ali-Imraan 164), This is a beautiful verse from which may be derived many important points,2 but, unfortunately, the discussion here will have to be quite brief. One important phrase of this verse is, “he teaches them the Book and the Hikmah.” What, in addition to the Book or the Quran, was also revealed to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)? Allah says, wis 85d wea ely es i th Glee tle al fend OS", “Allah has revealed to you the Book and the Hikmah and taught you what you knew not (before): and great is the Grace of Allah unto you” (a/-Nisaa 113). Allah also says, sey SI yo Ge Ul wy pS ahh Sas 5 woe sigh JS a Of aker ah 1 gaily as lags “Solemnly recall Allah’s favors on you, and the fact that He sent down to you the Book and the Hikmah for your instruction. And fear Allah, and know that Allah is well- acquainted with all things” (a/-Bagarah 231), Al-Salafi notes that at no time is the word hikmah used for the Book or the word Book used for the hifanah. They are two separate and distinct entities.3 Again, the question that flows directly from these verses and this fact is: What else was ' The word bikmab literally means wisdom. However, in these verses it refers to what was revealed along with the Book. It is understood to refer to the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and, therefore, it has been left untranslated as bikmab. ? This verse is an answer to Abraham's prayer that is recorded in soorab al-Bagarab verse 129. The words “of their own” refer to the fact that the Prophet (peace be upon him) was a human being and could, therefore, be a perfect example for the rest of mankind. Cf, ibn Katheer, p. 127. For example, according to the Christian doctrine of trinity, it would be ridiculous to consider Jesus (peace be upon him) as a perfect example for the humans to follow. * ALSalafi, p. 53.Dhe Authority and importance of the Sunnah revealed to the Prophet (peace be upon him)? The answer can only be the sunnah. It is part of the blessing upon the believers that the Prophet taught them both the book (the Quran) and the Hikmah (the sunnah). Commenting on the place of the sunnah, Imam al-Shaafi’ee recorded the following verses: " 22 ete oo ve ete tora to Sy a7 0 a te 48" SN galas GLUT gle gS ate Vy) gd Cally ° et 216 oe “ : $5529 UeSodly “(Abraham said,] ‘O our Lord! Raise up in their midst a Messenger from among them who shall recite unto them Your tevelations and shall instruct them in the scripture and in the Hikmah and shall make them grow in purity’” (al-Bagarah 129). Ly oe bets Saco ben Sop eb, te oe oe eS iby VOUT SEE (1 Rie pny KH Ut OS” ye OT ne eee re O solid 13 55S fo) Silay HSodly GEN). “Even as We have sent unto you a messenger from among you, who recites to you Our revelations and causes you to grow, and teaches you the scripture and the Hikmah and teaches you what which you knew not” (al-Bagarah 151). eee ma ot, feeds fy a 2 HL, ee ah oe eS Hey OUT pogele gl gle Vy GA B Cai eilll gah She A IB Se 9h Oy HEI OU eles “He it is who has sent among the unlettered ones a messenger of their own to recite to them His revelations and to make them grow, And to teach them the Book and the Hikmah, though heretofore they were indeed in error manifest” (a/-Jumuah 2), iaSoaty GSI oy Ste Uipl iy gle al tas 156515The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah “Remember Allah’s grace upon you and that which He has revealed unto you of the Book and the Hikmah, whereby he does exhort you” (al-Baqarah 231). ASodly MI OUT oy Gye gd es BO S31y “And recite that which is rehearsed in your houses of the revelations of Allah and the Hikmah” (al-Ahzaab 34). After quoting these verses, al-Shaafi’ ee wrote, So God mentioned His Book—which is the Quran— and Hikmah, and I have heard that those who are leamed in the Quran—whom I approve—hold that Hikmah is the sunnah of the Apostle of God. This is like what [God Himself] said, but God knows best! For the Quran is mentioned [first], followed by Hikmah; [then] God mentioned His favor to mankind by teaching them the Quran and Hikmah. So it is not permissible for Hikmah to be called here [anything] save the sunnah of the Apostle of God. For [Hikmah] is closely linked to the Book of God, and Gad has imposed the duty of obedience to His Apostle, and imposed on men the obligation to obey his orders, So it is not permissible to regard anything as a duty save that set forth in the Quran and the sunnah of His Apostle. For [God], as we have [just] stated, prescribed that the belief in His Apostle shall be associated with belief in Him.' ' Majid Khadduri, Isiamic Jurisprudence: Shafi'i's Risala (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press, 1961), pp. 111-112. Heretofore referred to al-Shaafi'ee. Note that Khadduri had translated the word Aikmab into wisdom in the above passage but it bas been changed here for the sake of consistency. 60The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah Proper Etiquette for the Prophet (peace be upon him) Indicative of His Position and Authority In soorah al-Hujuraat, Allah says, ee ae ae eo 2 we ot ole OY AUN gif apg aD cel Goh La YS Gl hls ipo Sip Sargel gig yBT Gall ly we Aa ai 4 uk Ce er ae en es ee 4 oS OF ahd ath aS Sly G1 eed Vy Ct . 4. see, 2 ° 2 of 2 of ° Oy rss ofl ly psitest “QO you who believe, be not forward in the presence of Allah and His Messenger. O you who believe, lift not up your voices above the voice of the Prophet, nor speak aloud to him in talk as you speak loudly one to another, lest your deeds be rendered vain while you perceive not” (a/-Hujuraat 1-2). Al-Qurtubi stated in his commentary to this verse, Do not be forward with any statement or action in the presence of Allah or the statements of His Messenger and his actions in those things that you should take from him regarding your religion or worldly life. Whoever prefers his speech or actions over that of the Messenger (peace be upon him) also puts his speech over that of Allah as the Messenger (peace be upon him) is only ordering what Allah has ordered.! The latter part of these two verses states that just Taising one’s voice above the Prophet’s voice may lead to the destruction of one’s deeds. If that is the case with just raising one’s voice above the Prophet's voice, what might be the case of the person who turns away from the Prophet’s words, refuses to listen to the commands of the Prophet (peace be * Al-Qurtubi, vol. 16, p. 300. 61The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah upon him) or puts his opinion above the statement of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him)? In another verse, AJlah says, PA de baa gh Uy a gryy aby 1yoaT Gull 0 sSph agate & iyi a ve “Only those are believers who believe in Allah and His Messenger and when they are with him on some common matter, they do not depart until they have asked for his permission” (al-Noor 62). Commenting on this verse, ibn al- Qayyim stated, Allah has made it a requirement of faith that they do not leave if they are with him except with his permission, ‘Therefore, first and foremost, this requires that they do not follow any statement or view except with his permission—and his permission is recognized by it being indicated in [the teachings] that he brought. [If something is consistent with what he (peace be upon him) taught, it means] that he approves.' Allah’s Guidance of the Prophet (peace be upon him) Mention has already been made of the Hilonah as being the sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and as being a type of revelation from Allah. There is ample evidence in the Quran itself that the Prophet (peace be upon him) was receiving revelation and guidance from Allah, other than the Quran, It was obligatory upon him (peace be upon him) to follow that guidance and he also conveyed that guidance to his followers. For example, Allah says, ' Muhammad Ibn al-Qayyim, Waam al-Muwagqieen an Rabb al-Alameen (Beirut: al-Maktabah al-Asriyyah, 1987), vol. 1, pp. 51-52.The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah ee Sei OB o old Sy ge OS gh aha cee ey Us cste Gud le Yy SGI CU yy aceae le Cais CS ey yet ity di O1 Sie aad dl oO aes Us tei sh a ging li peal all las “We appointed the giblah [direction] to which you used to follow only to test those who followed the Messenger from those who would turn on their heels (from the faith). Indeed it was (a change) momentous, except for those guided by Allah. And never would Allah make your faith [that is, your prayers] of no effect. For Allah is to all people most surely full of Kindness, Most Merciful. We see the turning of your face (for guidance) to the heavens. Now shall We turn you to a qiblah that shall please you. Turn then your face in the direction of the Sacred Mosque...” (al-Bagarah 143-144), These words are in reference to the Muslims facing toward Jerusalem before the direction of the prayer was changed to Makkah, Allah explicitly states that it was He who had appointed that original direction of prayer. However, this inspiration and command to the Prophet (peace be upon him) to face Jerusalem never formed a portion of the Quran, Hence, the Prophet (peace be upon him) must have received another type of revelation from Allah that was binding upon him and his followers.! A. set of verses usually used as a proof that the sunnah is divinely inspired are, ‘ Cf, Abdul Khaaliq (pp. 334-339), al-Salafi (pp. 55-61) and Usmani (pp. 23-29) for more examples and a more in depth discussion of this concept. In particular, Usmani gives sixteen examples of this nature, 63‘The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah ve 2 ‘ beet et et eee Hee 3 WAY Sl Ye GEE Ge by SE Jou sr # “Your companion errs not nor is he deceived. Nor does he speak out of his own desires. It is only an inspiration that is being revealed to him” (al-Najm 2-4), However, this author is not completely convinced that these verses may be used as an evidence for the importance of the sunnah because there is a difference of opinion over whether they refer to everything the Prophet (peace be upon him) said or specifically to only the Quran. Concerning these verses from a/-Najm, Ai-Saadi said, “This [verse] points out that the sunnah is a revelation of Allah to His Messenger (peace be upon him)... And he is protected {from making a mistake] in what he relates about Allah and His law as his speech is not derived from his own desires but it is derived from what is being revealed to him.” Al-Saadi, whose Quranic commentary is meant to be brief, never mentions that other scholars do not agree with this interpretation. Al-Qaasimi mentions both opinions—the opinion that the pronoun “it” in “It is only an inspiration...” refers only to the Quran and the opinion that “it” refers to everything the Prophet (peace be upon him) stated. He concludes that the stronger opinion is that the pronoun (Auwa, “it”) refers only to the Quran, “The object is the Quran, as can be understood from the context as the people who were rejecting [the mission] were referring to the Quran.” Al-Raazi has_ the longest discussion on this point, and he also concludes that the verses refer to the Quran.! Note that these verses are not needed to prove that sunnah is also divinely inspired; the * Cf, Abdul Rahmaan al-Saadi, Taiseer aJ-Kareem al-Rabmaan fi Tafseer Kalaam _al-Mannaan (Riyadh: Al-Muasassah al-Saeediyyah), vol. 7, p. 204, Jamaal al-Deen al-Qaasimi, Mahaasan al-Ta’weel (Beirut: Daar al-Fikr, 1978), vol. 15, pp. 222-23; Fakhr al-Deen al-Raazi, Tafseer al-Kabeer (Beirut: Daar Thyaa al-Turaath al-Arabi), vol. 28, pp. 282-83. 64The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah verses quoted earlier concerning the revelation of the Hikmah, for example, are sufficient to prove this point. Conclusions from the Quranic Verses Through numerous means, Allah has clearly established and emphasized the importance of following the sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him). Allah has done this by ordering obedience to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and prohibiting disobedience to him.! He has also done so by giving tidings of the positive results of obeying the Messenger (peace be upon him), while at the same time intimidating and warning those who would consider disobeying the Prophet (peace be upon him). Before continuing on to discuss some of the hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him), what one must conclude from the above verses should be stated. Based solely on the texts of the Quran, one may conclude:2 a. It is Allah Himself who has ordered the Muslims to follow and to obey the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). This notion was not an innovation of later jurists, nor is it something open to debate or discussion. b. If anyone claims to follow the Quran, then he must also follow the sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him), as ‘ Among the verses of the Quran indicating the obligation to follow the sunnah, some scholars also mention all of the verses that require one to believe in the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). They include these verses because they say that imaan (belief) means “to submit, affirm and follow.” Furthermore, the Prophet (peace be we him) was ordered to convey everything that he had. received from Allah, implying both the Quran and the sunnah (note verses al- Maaidab 67 and al-Anaam 106). This command to convey implies a command for the one to whom it is conveyed to follow and obey what has been conveyed. Hence, a number of other verses indicating the importance of the sunnah could beaded to those discussed above. ? There are yet other verses of the Quran that touch upon. the place of the sunnah, Some of them are found in Chapter Three, “The Roles of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him)” and in the Appendix. 65‘The Authority and Importance of the Surnat it is the Quran itself that orders the Muslims to follow the Prophet (peace be upon him). Therefore, it is inconsistent to claim to follow the Quran while denying one’s obligation to follow the sunnah, ce. Allah has stated severe warnings for anyone who refuses to follow the Messenger (peace be upon him); on the other hand, Allah has promised guidance, mercy and forgiveness for those who do follow the way of the Prophet (peace be upon him). Verses Used As Arguments Against the Authority of the Sunnah Before concluding this section discussing the importance of the sunnah in the light of the Quran, it is imperative to discuss those verses that are quoted as Quranic evidence against the authority of the sunnah.! From the above, it should already be clear to the reader that the place of the sunnah is definitively established by numerous verses of the Quran. The only thing that could possibly stand up to those verses would be something that is as clearly definitive in its repudiation of the importance of the sunnah. Subjective conclusions from some verses certainly would not be sufficient to deny what all of the above verses have established. Those who argue against the sunnah cannot offer any such clear cut verses of the Quran. Instead, they can only refer to a couple of verses that could possibly support their position. The only verses that they can offer in support of their contention are the following: ' Some opponents of the sunnah even have the audacity to quote some hadith to support their claim that the sunnah and hadith are not to be followed, However, this demonstrates a logical error since one cannot use something that is not an authority, as they claim, to prove that it is not an authority. Furthermore, they usually rely on fabricating hadith to prove their allegation.The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah One verse quoted as an argument against the authority of the sunnah is: sigh te ES 3 b's iv} “Nothing have We omitted from the book” (a/-Anaam 38); a Second verse usted is: to JS vas is Cush & athe oi Si fi “We have sent down to you a book explaining all things” (al- Nahi 89). ‘ The argument from these verses is that all necessary Quidance is contained in the book, the Quran, itself. In fact, everything has been explained with clarity and detail. There is no need to turn to any other source, as that would imply that something is missing from the Quran—thus, contradicting what these verses state. Anything other than the Quran must, therefore, be superfluous, not meant to be followed by the Muslims and certainly not a source in Islamic law.! The response to this argument is rather straightforward. For example, the verse from soorah al-Anaam has to be read in its entirety to get a better understanding of what t exactly the verse is referring to. The entire verse reads, Shusl at 1 ae olay ts abl fb Yy yes! ho by Uy ayia ay gd Sigh oo us J bs “There is not an animal (that lives) on the earth, nor a being _ that flies with its wings, but (forms part of) communities like you. Nothing have We omitted from the book, and they (all) shall be gathered to their Lord in the end.” One interpretation of this verse is that the mentioned “book” is not in reference to the Quran, but it refers to the preserved tablet that has recorded ' These verses were offered as arguments against the sunnah by Muhammad Taufeeq Sidgi in his article “A-Islaam buwa al-Quraan Wabdabu" in the famed Journal a/-Manaar, Cf., Abdul Khaalig, p. 383. 67The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah on it everything that will occur until the Day of Judgment.! In other words, that tablet has all of the lives and sustenance of all of the creatures recorded on it, and nothing has been left out of that book, According to this interpretation, the meaning of this verse is very much similar to another verse which states, ee. Ua olay Uj) A EY BSN Bo Uy ct PS gb IS Yeah, “There is no moving creature on earth but its sustenance depends on’ Allah: He knows the time and place of its definite abode and its temporary deposit: all is in a clear book” (Hood 6). However, a second, although less plausible, interpretation given for this verse is that “the book” refers to the Quran.2 Even if this interpretation is accepted, it does not necessarily imply that the sunnah is not an authority and obligatory upon Muslims to follow. As shall be demonstrated in the next chapter, it must be admitted that the details concerning the prayer, zakat, fasts and other acts of the shareeah are not all spelled out in the Quran. Hence, in order for this interpretation to be accurate given the reality of the situation, it must mean the following, as ibn al-Jauzi explained it, “It isa general statement that has a particular intent behind it. The meaning therefore is: We have not omitted anything which you would be in need of except that it has been made clear in the book, either by clear text, undetailed statement or indication,”3 In other words, everything is mentioned in the * This interpretation has been recorded by ibn Abi Talha on the authority of ibn Abbaas. It was also the understanding of Qataadah and ibn Zaid. In addition, it is the only interpretation mentioned by al-Baghawi as the meaning of the verse. Cf., Abdul Rahmaan ibn al-Jauzi, Zaad al-Maseer fi Im al-Tafseer (Beirut: Daar al- Fikr, 1987), vol. 3, p. 24; Al-Husain al-Baghawi, Ta/seer al-Baghawi; Maalim al- Tanzeel (Riyadh: Daar Taibah, 1989), vol. 3, p. 142. ? This has been narrated by Ataa on the authority of ibn Abbas. Cf,, ibn al-Jauzi, vol. a 26, ‘thn al-Jauzi, vol. 3, p. 26. 68The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah Book in either direct detail or by reference to the source where the necessary detail can be found. Hence, the book itself does not contain the details of the prayers, fasts and so forth, but the book points the believer to where those details can be found: the sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him). When understood in this manner, this verse is not an argument against the authority of the sunnah but it is another verse indicating the indispensability of the sunnah itself. , As noted, a second verse quoted as an argument against the authority of the sunnah is: ws Ft a ogt, aban Pl sig JS Us OS ents dy, “We have sent down to you a book explaining all things” (al- Nahl 89), Commenting on this verse, ibn Katheer noted that ‘the Quran contains all of the beneficial knowledge of what has passed and what will occur, what is lawful and what is unlawful, and what humans need for their well-being in both this life and the Hereafter.! There is no question that such is “the case. The question is only related to the manner by which Allah does so in the Quran. It is obvious that Allah does not do that by spelling out all of the details of worship, law and life in the Quran itself. Instead, the Quran points the believer to all that is needed to be truly guided, Included in this is the sunnah itself as well as other aspects, such as contemplating creation and so forth. Again, this verse cannot be used as an argument against the authority of the sunnah because its implication is that the Quran clarifies all that one needs in one’s life and part of what is needed in one’s life is adherence to the sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). As was demonstrated earlier in this chapter, itis the Book itself that ‘makes this fact abundantly clear. bn Katheer, p. 751. 69The Authority and Importance of the Surnak The Prophet’s Own Statements Concerning the Importance of the Sunnah Besides the above verses that point to the necessity of obeying the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and the importance of his sunnah, the Prophet (peace be upon him) himself clearly stated the importance of his own sunnah and warned about abandoning his sunnah. Now that it has been established that the Quran itself tells Muslims to follow the sunnah, it will be acceptable to use the statements of the Prophet (peace be upon him) himself as further proof of the importance of the sunnah in Islam and of the obligation to follow the sunnah, What follows are some examples from the hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him). . The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, og 4 a oh Aah Kf ist waltally ’ on ES aD eS BUG Ug NY bi Me EY “[ had better not find anyone of you reclining on his bed and there comes to him one of my commandments or one of my prohibitions and he says about it, ‘I do not know, what we find in the book of Allah (only) do we follow.”"! In a similar hadith, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) is reported to have prohibited the flesh of domestic donkeys and said, ' Recorded by al-Baihaqi, al-Shaafi'ee, al-Humaidi, Ahmad, Abu Daawood, al-Tirmidhi, Ibn Maajah, [bn Hibbaan and al-Haakim with a sabih chain. According to al-Albaani, it is sabéh, See Muhammad Naasir al-Deen al-Albaani, Sabeeh al-Jaami al-Sagheer (Beirut: al-Maktab al-Islaami, 1986), vol. 2, p. 1204.The Authority and Importance of the Surah dye sh UI GS 9 all Gus SEH aS ose 3 - a rd Ge ofy VPLS oS Le ad UI Uy OEE Joe gee - p “Soon it will be that a man will recline on his couch and will be told a hadith of my hadith! and will say, ‘Between us and you is the Book of Allah. What we find allowed therem, we allow. What we find prohibited therein, we prohibit.’ But truly, what the Messenger of Allah has forbidden is similar to what Allah has forbidden,”2 In these two hadith, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) has warned Muslims about people who will neglect the sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and claim that they need only live by the injunctions of the Quran. In the second hadith, he has stated that what he pronounces as illegal should be treated in the same way as that which Allah has declared illegal. In the latter hadith, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) prohibited the eating of donkey flesh as an example of the type of legislation that comes from only him and which must be obeyed by all Muslims. Nowhere in the Quran is such a prohibition found. But, from the Quran itself, it is known that it is sufficient for the Prophet (peace be upon him) to declare it illegal; no one may consider it legal simply because it is not mentioned as illegal in the Quran. In these two hadith, one should take note of how the Prophet (peace be upon him) described those who refused to follow his sunnah. The implication as given by the scholars of ' Here the meaning of the word “hadith” is actually its linguistic meaning, implying, a statement or communique of the Prophet (peace be upon him). * Recorded by al-Baihaqi, Ahmad, al-Tirmidhi and ibn Maajah. According ¢o al- Albaani, it is authentic, See al-Albaani, Sabeeb al-Jaami, val, 2, p. 1360. 71The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah the words, “one who is reclining on his bed or couch,” is one who is “interested in luxuries and heresies in the religion, who stays at home and remains away from seeking knowledge and hadith,” or it is one “who is arrogant and wanting to be in charge”! There is no doubt that the Prophet (peace be upon him) meant a certain impression by those specific words. The impression is not a positive one. It is a characteristic of those who refuse to submit to the obligation of following the sunnah and who—undoubtedly falsely—claim that they are following the Quran. In fact, it might even give another clue as to why some people refuse to follow the sunnah: out of Jaziness and desire for ease and luxury. The sunnah makes specific requirements upon a person which one could avoid by claiming to just follow the general teachings of the Quran. Due to their unwillingness to sacrifice, learn and exert efforts, they flee from the sunnah, The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, vo a7 7 at fog das dey OES Gah J vi “Verily I have been given the Book and something similar to it with it...”2 Badr al-Badr said, There can be two meanings for this [hadith]: (a) The meaning is that the Messenger of Allah has been given a batin (hidden) revelation that is not recited, in the same way that he has been given an apparent [revelation] that is recited. (b) Another meaning it carries is that he has been given the Book which is a revelation that is recited and he has been given its explanation, That is, he has been given the permission to explain what is in the Book, what has ' Al-Husain al-Teeby, Sharh al-Teebi ala Mishkaat al-Masaabeeh (Makkah: Maktaba Nazaar Mustafa al-Baaz, 1997), vol. 2, p. 629. * Recorded by Abu Daawood with a sabib chain. The rest of the hadith is similar to the first hadith mentioned above. 72The Authority and Importance of the Surrak general and specific application, and he can increase upon its legislation in matters not mentioned by the Quran. In that manner lies his duty to order and for others to obey his orders in exactly the same manner in which [it is obligatory] to follow the clear recitation of the Quran.' This hadith can be read together with the verses ‘recorded above concerning the Hikmah. This hadith supports ‘the view of al«Shaafi’ee that the Prophet (peace be upon him) ‘was not only given the Book but he was also given along with it another type of revelation: the Hikmah or sunnah. Hasaan ‘ibn Attiyah said, “Jibreel would reveal the sunnah to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) like he would reveal the Quran to him. He would teach him it like he would teach the Quran.”2 Ibn Hazm also recorded Imam Malik as saying, “If the Prophet (peace be upon him) were asked about “something, he would not respond until he received revelation from heaven.”3 ! Commentary by Badr al-Badr in Jalaal al-Deen al-Suyooti, Mifaab al-Jannab. al-tbtijaaj bi al-Sunnab (Kuwait: Daar al-Huda al-Nubuwwa, no date), p. 22, fn, #7, Most of the hadith and other statements found in this chapter may be found ‘In this excellent work by al-Suyooti. Note, however, that many of the reports he _{ises have weak chains; those have not been used in this work. ' Recorded by al-Daarimi and al-Baihagi. According to ibn Hajr, the chain for this Ly ort is sabih back to Hasaan. (Ahmad ibn Hajr, Fath al-Baari Sharh Sabeeh a-Bukbaari (Makkah: Maktabah Daar al-Baaz, 1989), vol. 13, p. 361.) Hasan pas 8 trustworthy narrator who learned from many of the Followers, including. Saeed. ibn al-Musayyab (the son-in-law of Abu Huraira) and Naafi (the freed slave of ibn Umar), See Ahmad ibn Hajr, Tahdheeb al-Tahdheeb (Beirut; Muassasal al- jaalah, 1996), vol. 1, p. 382. Unfortunately, the chain between him and the het (peace be upon him) is obviously broken, Hence, it is not known if this Wis Hasaan's own personal reasoning (ijfibaad) or something that he had learned from his teachers among the Followers. Many scholars quote this report. It seems that they believe that such a statement could not be the result of his Wn personal reasoning, Therefore, he must have learned it from his teachers must have received it from a Companion who learned that fact from the het (peace be upon him) himself. Allah knows hest. ibn Hazm, AL-hkaam fi Usool al-Abkaam (Zakariyyah Ali Yoosuf publisher, nl), vol. 1, p. 176. 73“The Authority and Importance of the Suntah The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, during the farewell pilgrimage, sb Gu hy eas what gol Sa rg Ye toa Beg hwy “T have left among you two matters that if you adhere to them you will never be misguided: the Book of Allah and the sunnah of His prophet,”1 In another version he stated, “O mankind, listen to what I say and_ live by it.’2 These hadith and other similar hadith have been narrated by a large number of Companions, and there is, therefore, no doubt about their authenticity. In this hadith the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) gave Muslims clear advice: if they wish never to be misguided they need only follow the Book of Allah and the sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him). Note that he gave this advice during his final pilgrimage when he knew that his death was near and it was a farewell advice to the thousands who thronged around him. (Note also that if his sunnah was only to be followed during his lifetime it would have been his duty to tell that to his followers. Otherwise, he would not be fulfilling his mission of conveying the message. Instead, at a time when he knew his death was near he reiterated that Muslims must cling to both the Book of Allah and the sunnah of His Prophet.) The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, SH NEA NS oad 3d 5 Jy 5,8 Jor JS ells nas GUS pe Nich CHIT oye y Creal sad ' Recorded by Maalik, al-Haakim and. al-Baihaqi. It is sabid, Cf, al-Albaani, Saheeh al-Jaami, vol. |, p. 566. ? Recorded by al-Baihaqi with a hasan chain. 74The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah “Every action has its period of extreme activity and every action has its period of inactivity. Whosoever keeps his period of inactivity within the limits of my sunnah has been guided aright; whoever goes beyond this limit will, in fact, be destroyed.”! In this hadith, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) has pointed to the fact that the ones who are truly guided and who will be saved in the Hereafter are those whose periods of inactivity—in doing good deeds, voluntary work and so on—are within the limits of the sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him). It is often the case that some people are very active for a period of time and then experience a lack of enthusiasm, and their deeds begin to diminish. If the low points are beyond the limits established by the sunnah (for example, the person completely stops praying in congregation) then these low points will lead to destruction. According to this hadith, for a person to be rightly guided he must always stay within the limits established by the sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Actually, even in periods of enthusiasm the person must be careful to stay within the limits set by the Prophet (peace be upon him), since his sunnah is the standard by which acts are judged. Thus, at either extreme, of activity or inactivity, the Muslim must stay within the sunnah. This is a clear warning for those who abandon the sunnah altogether and for those who introduce new concepts into the religion and try to add to the sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him). In_ the following hadith the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) referred to his own judgment as “judging by the Book of Allah.” Abu Hurairah and Zaid ibn Khaalid Juhani reported that two people quarreled and came to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), One said, “O Messenger of Allah, decide between us in accordance with the Book of ' Recorded by Ahmad, ibn Hibbaan and others with a sabih chain. According to al-Albaani, it is sabib. See Muhammad Naasir al-Deen al-Albaani, Sabeeb al- Targheb wa al-Tarheeb (Riyadh: Maktabah al-Maarif, 1988), vol. 1, p. 98. 75The Authority and Importance of the Surtiah Allah.” The other, who was more sensible, said, “Yes, Messenger of Allah, decide in accordance with the Book of Allah and permit me to speak,” The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) allowed him to speak. He said, “My son was employed by this man and he [my son] committed adultery with his wife. The people said that my son deserves to be stoned. I gave the man one hundred sheep and a slave girl as a ransom on my son's behalf. I then asked the learned men and they said that my son should be whipped a hundred times and exiled for a year and that his wife is liable to be stoned to death as a punishment for her action.” The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, “I will make a decision for you both in accordance with the Book of Allah. Your sheep and the slave girl are your property; take them back. The son shall be whipped a hundred times and exiled for a year.” He then asked Unais Aslami to go to the other man’s wife and see if she admitted to the crime, in which case he should have her stoned. She confessed and was stoned to death. (Recorded by al-Bukhari and Muslim.) This judgment, whipping a hundred times with an exile for a year, is not to be found in the Quran; yet the Prophet (peace be upon him) called it “deciding in accordance with the Book of Allah.” This is because the commands of the Prophet (peace be upon him) are, in fact, on the same level in Islamic law as the Quran with respect to implementation (both of them being revelations from Allah). This is a result of the legislative authority of the Messenger (peace be upon him) that comes from Allah Himself in the Quran. Al-Bukhari records the following moving hadith: pS ha pli ale & nab Le (5 J Be Lee over ae Cai, tay ogsll O) pata we 4 peasy Jus J SG Sil fob 5G a Std Oy hs Ohi 76The Authority ard Iniportance of the Surinah Onis Bh as ah at 08) HU) eta ai aol Gy ees Vo co Joe Ja Us Js nay ate Ge ST, Ou (Jeo Gert Gal ys eb iis wath Go ot iy Si Joy 9S Ye Cal 5 a ots, oe Oy pats Oey a rats ab ia ita Jyf ous al Has 1 us otha iy tay oi rel te so Vile Ub ley a lt he Mod rel lie Ss ab ay ahh pt db iy phn’ ale pel Le Mey ah ab i oles ae sl oe a Some angels came to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) while he was sleeping. Some of the angels said, “He is sleeping [therefore leave him].” The others answered, “His eyes sleep but his heart is alert.” They said, “Your companion is like this” and they propounded a similitude. They said, “His similitude is like a person who builds a house and provides a tablespread filled with provisions and calls the other people to it. Those who respond to his cali enter the house and eat from the tablespread. Those who do not respond to his call do not enter the house nor do they eat from the tablespread.” Some of the angels said, “Give him its interpretation.” Others replied, “He is sleeping.” They were answered by others who said, “His eyes sleep but his heart is alert.” So they explained the parable to him, saying, “The house is Paradise and the one inviting is Muhammad (peace be upon him), Whoever obeysThe Authority and Importance of the Sunnah Muhammad (peace be upon him) has verily obeyed Allah. Whoever disobeys Muhammad (peace be upon him) has verily disobeyed Allah. And Muhammad (peace be upon him) is a separator of humanity.” In this hadith one can see the mistake committed by those who deny the sunnah or who give it little importance. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) with his perfect example, his orders and prohibitions, has made the way clear for Muslims and has called them to the path to Paradise in the same way that a person invites another to dinner. By ignoring this call a person would be ignoring, in fact, the path to Allah. The end result for those who do not bother to pattem their lives after the sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him) is that they will not be allowed to enjoy the fruits of Paradise. Lastly, the angels said that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) separates mankind, That is to say that his message distinguishes the believers from the unbelievers and it distinguishes the people of Paradise from the people of Hell—that is, those who accept his invitation by following him and those who reject his invitation by rejecting his sunnah and way of life. This hadith, therefore, establishes the following of the sunnah as one of the vital signs of faith. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, Boe! to Me ah tt AMY) Bed) Ogbas al I “All of my nation will enter Paradise except those who refuse.” His companions asked, “Who would refuse?” He answered, aoe or ee ar Ah ee las slab cay deal eo el o “Whoever obeys me will enter Paradise; whoever disobeys me has refused (to enter Paradise).” (Recorded by al-Bukhari and others.) Here again one can see the true and simple beauty of 78The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah. the Prophet’s role, The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), by his sunnah or way of life, showed the path for Muslims that leads them directly to Paradise. If the Muslim accepts to follow him, he will not be refusing the invitation to Paradise. If the Muslim refuses to follow him, he is, in effect, refusing to enter Paradise. Note that the Prophet (peace be upon him) was referring to the people who believe in him (“his nation”), thus showing, as in other hadith, that Allah had informed the Prophet (peace be upon him) that there would exist people from his own nation who would refuse to follow his sunnah. In another moving hadith, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, UB OS A) JES Ah os Ge ge outa Sit By ie eh oh A eat wee oe Wallis 1 Ahb wid ty tan ebb ied (oa EK al at 2 dal LIAS, tind baie aly pai ES SL Ch Gyo oy Ee Oy OS piled Bp Jy gy “My example and the example of that with which I have been sent by Allah is like aman whom came to a people and said, ‘O people! I have seen an army with my own eyes. I am the naked warner,! so protect yourselves.’ A group of his people ‘ The words, “naked warner,” imply how serious the matter is, that the warned incident is very close and there is no reason to suspect the one who is giving the warning. The source for this expression comes from the concept of someone going out naked in order to get his people’s immediate attention before the enemy Is about to strike. Cf, al-Teebi, vol. 2, p. 612, Al-Teebi notes that there are three aspects of emphasis in the Prophet's statement: the mention of the naked 73The Authority and Importance of the Sunaaf obeyed him and fled during the night, proceeding stealthily until they were saved. Another group did not believe him and stayed in their places until the morning, when the army came upon them. They destroyed and ruined them completely. That is the example of the one who obeys me and follows what I have brought and the example of the one who disobeys me and denies what I have brought of the truth.” (Recorded by al- Bukhari and Muslim.) Note that after giving the parable, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “That is the example of the one who obeys me and therefore follows what I have brought,” juxtaposed with, “one who disobeys me and denies what I have brought.” This implies that the obedience is preceded by belief’ and affirmation in his message while denial and rejection is then followed by disobeying the Prophet (peace be upon him).! Indeed, the only reason imaginable why anyone would ever refuse2 to follow what the Prophet (peace be upon him) brought is if he is somehow lacking in his faith. He is lacking when it comes to his complete belief in the Prophet (peace be upon him) and all what the Prophet (peace be upon him) taught. That is the real source of one’s refusal to follow the sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him), as so subtly implied in this hadith, Finally, in a hadith describing the comprehensiveness of the Prophet’s guidance, thereby indicating the need to turn to his sunnah and the lack of need to tum to other supposed sources of guidance, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, warner, the mention of seeing with his own eyes and repeating the word, “I.” This implies the closeness and seriousness of the matter that the Prophet (peace be upon him) is warning about. Al-Teebi, vol. 2, p. 613. * Refuse as opposed to accepting and willing to submit but sometimes slipping and going against his commands.The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah ce By YY SW gs tele Soh et a SS “There is nothing left that takes one closer to Paradise or distances one from the Fire except that I have made it clear to you.” In another narration, it states, of pS aelny BE oe pS ek oe od a tll Lal DS op SB est ot dy & pS pl aby YU) te Sgiek by VA ot pT ely “O people, there is nothing that takes you closer to Paradise or that distances you from the Fire except that I have ordered it for you. And there is nothing that takes you closer to the Fire and distances you from Paradise except that I have prohibited it for you.”! Many more hadith can be added to the ones mentioned above but for the sake of brevity it will be best to stop here. The following are the conclusions that can be made from the hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him): (a) The Prophet (peace be upon him), in conveying the message as he was commissioned to by Allah, made it explicitly clear on many occasions that the Muslim must follow his sunnah in order to be rightly guided. "The first narration is from al-Tabaraani in al-Mujam al-Kabeer. The second narration is from Hunaad ibn al-Sirti in al-Zuhd. Al-Albaani concludes that the first narration is sabib, but in his discussion he does not discuss the second narration, Muhammad al-Khairabaadi concludes that the second narration is sabib due to its corroborating evidence. See Muhammad Naasir al-Deen al- Albaani, Silsilat al-Abaadeeth al-Sabeebab (Kuwait; al-Daar al-Salafiyyah, 1983), vol. 4, pp. 416-417; Muhammad al-Khairabaadi, Footnotes to Hunaad ibn al-Sirri, Al-Zubd (Published by the Ameer of Qatar, n.d), vol. 1, pp. 584-585,The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah (b) Allah vouchsafed to the Prophet (peace be upon him) the knowledge that in later times there would come people who would reject his sunnah and refuse to follow his way of life. Therefore, the Prophet (peace be upon him) warned his followers about such people and about such concepts. (c) From the hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him) a Muslim can be certain that if he is following the Prophet’s sunnah he is, in fact, on the straight path, the path leading directly to Allah's pleasure, forgiveness and Paradise. The Prophet’s Companions’ View of the Sunnah Next to the Messenger of Allah, it was his Companions who best understood the true meaning of the Quran and who best understood in what manner a believer should behave. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) himself described his generation as the best of all generations: ae tee @iekews tes AO ok oh etives wth Sal ie gil all os Sb A “The best of you [my nation] is my generation, then the one that follows them, then the one that follows them.” (Recorded by al-Bukhari.) Indeed, it was through the Companions (may Allah be pleased with all of them) that Allah safeguarded the Quran, and it was through them that the following generations learned vital and detailed aspects of Islam. Below are mentioned some of the most prominent and knowledgeable Companions and their positions toward the sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him). Even before getting to some of the statements of the Companions about the sunnah, there is one thing that can be noticed about their behavior: The best generation immediately imitated and followed the Prophet (peace be upon him), without hesitation or questioning why the Prophet (peace beDie Authority and Importance of the Sunnah upon him) did a specific act. For example, Al-Bukhari records on the authority of ibn Umar that the Prophet (peace be upon him) used to wear a gold ring, so the people also started wearing gold rings. Then the Prophet (peace be upon him) discarded it and said, “I will never wear it.” So the people also immediately discarded their gold rings. On another occasion, the Prophet (peace be upon him) was praying and during his prayer, he removed his shoes. When the Companions saw him doing that, they all did the same. Afterwards, he asked them why they removed their shoes. They replied, “Because we saw you remove your shoes.” He explained to them, “[The Angel] Gabriel had informed me that there was some filth on them.”2 This behavior of the Companions and the fact that they were never reprimanded or corrected by either Allah or the Messenger (peace be upon him) is yet another evidence for the authority of the sunnah. This falls under a category known as the “tacit approval of Allah.” It is inconceivable that Allah would allow them to continue to behave in this fashion without the slightest sign from Him indicating that what they were doing was wrong. Besides their actions, the Companions stated their belief in the authority of the sunnah, Among the many quotes from them are the following: Abu Bakr, the most virtuous of the Companions of the Prophet and therefore of this entire nation after the Prophet (peace be upon him) himself, stated, “I have not left anything that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) used to do except that I also act upon it. I fear that if 1 were to leave any of his commands, I would become deviated."3 “Gh, ai Sibu Bb 53-54; Abdul Khaalig, pp. 283-291. * Recorded by Ahmad and Abu Dawood. According to al-Albaani, it is sabib. See Muhammad Naasir al-Deen al-Albaani, Sabeeh Sunan Abi Dawood (Riyadh: Maktab al-Tarbiyyah al-Arabi li-Duwal al-Khaleej, 1989), vol. 1, p. 128. § Quoted in Ubaidullah ibn Battah al-Akbari, al-Ibaanab an Shareeab al-Firg al- Naajiah (Riyadh: Daar al-Raayah, 1988), vol. 1, p. 246. Commenting on Abu Bakr’s statement, {bn Battah (Ibid., vol. 1, p. 246) stated, “This, my brothers, was 83The Authority and lrportance of tle Surah Al-Bukhari and Muslim record in their Sahihs that the companion Abdullah ibn Masood said, “Allah curses the one who tattoos, the one who asks to be tattooed, the one who plucks the eyebrows and the one who files her teeth in order to change the creation of Allah.” This statement reached Umm Yaqoob, who came to him and said, “It has come to me that you said such and such.” He answered her, “What is wrong with me if I curse what the Messenger of Allah has cursed and is to be found in the Book of Allah.” She told him, “I have tead [the Quran] from cover to cover yet I did not find [in there what you have stated],.” Abdullah told her, “If you have read it you would have found it there. Did you not read, “Verily, what the Messenger gives you, take; and what he forbids for you, abstain from’ [al-Hashr 7]?” She said, “Yes.” He replied, “He [the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him)} forbade these things.” In this incident there is a Companion mentioning a ruling of the Prophet (peace be upon him) as a tuling of Allah. The lady, Umm Yaqoob, misunderstood Abdullah and thought that he was referring to a specific verse wherein the actions he stated were specifically mentioned. In Abdullah’s explanation he shows that what the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) prohibited has, in fact, the same status as something that Allah explicitly prohibited in the Quran. His proof was the seventh verse of seorah al-Hashr. Abu Daawood recorded from Saeed ibn al-Musayyab that Umar said, “The widowed wife is not entitled to any inheritance out of the blood money [paid’due to] her husband [having been killed}.” Al-Dhuhaak ibn Sufyaan told Umar that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) had once written to him that the wife of Ashyam al-Dhahabi was to be given an inheritance from the blood money of her husband, Umar then the greatest truthful one fearing for himself that he would deviate if he contradicted anything that his Prophet (peace be upon him) ordered. And what could possibly be the case with an era whose people openly ridicule their Prophet (peace be upon him) and his commands and boast about going against him and ridicule his sunnah?”The Authority aru Importance of the Surntah reversed his decision and gave a portion of the blood money to the widow. This incident reveals the view of the sunnah held by Umar ibn al-Khattaab, the second caliph of Islam, who was known for his knowledge and insight into the religion. Unknowingly, he had taken a position that was contrary to the decision of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). Upon finding out that his decision contradicted the sunnah, he immediately abandoned his opinion and completely submitted to the decision of the Prophet (peace be upon him). In another situation involving Umar! a certain decision was made because one Companion reported a hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him) concerning a similar incident. After this, Umar stated, “If we did not hear this [hadith] we would have given a different judgment. We would have judged according to our opinions.” Here again, as al-Shaafi’ee commented, Umar’s decision would not have been the same as the decision of the Prophet but since he was informed of the decision of the Prophet (peace be upon him), Umar knew that there was no say for him in the matter and, furthermore, he knew that the believer must accept the decision of the Prophet (peace be upon him) even if it goes against his own opinion. In an incident recorded in the Sahihs of al-Bukhari and Muslim, it is reported that Umar had the intention to travel to al-Shaam (“Greater Syria”), where a plague had broken out. When he came upon the Companion Abdul Rahmaan ibn Auf, Abdul Rahmaan told him that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “If you hear that there is a plague in a certain land, do not set out for that land; and if you happen to be in that land, do not depart from that land.” Upon hearing this Umar knew that it would not be right for him to proceed to al-Shaam; so he returned to Madinah. In another incident, also recorded by al-Bukhari, it is said that Umar abstained from taking the jizyah (the poll tax) from the Magians until Abdul Rahmaan ' Quoted in al-Suyooti, Miftaab al-Jannah, pp. 49-50.The Authority and Importance of the Surah ibn Auf bore testimony that the Prophet (peace be upon him) took it from them. This incident demonstrates that even the most important affairs of government are subservient to the commands and sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him). By hesitating in accepting the jizyah from the Magians (until he could confirm that the Prophet had actually done so), Umar was adversely affecting the budget of the expanding Islamic state, Al-Baihaqi and al-Haakim record, with sahih chains, that Taawoos used to pray two units (Ar., rakah) after the obligatory afternoon prayer. Ibn Abbaas told him to refrain from doing so. He replied that he would not abandon them, Ibn Abbaas then said, “The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) forbade praying after the Asr (afternoon) prayer. Therefore I do not know if you will be punished or rewarded [for this prayer that you perform]. Verily Allah said, ‘It is not becoming of a believing man or believing woman, after Allah and His Messenger have decided an affair, that they should have any choice in the matter’ [a/-Ahzaab 36].” From this incident one can see the importance of the commands of the Prophet (peace be upon him). Even in the virtuous acts of worship one must be aware of the regulations laid down by the Prophet (peace be upon him). Ibn Abbaas told Taawoos, “I do not know if you will be rewarded or punished” for the prayer Taawoos performed. How could it be that he might be punished for praying? It is because he was, in fact, violating the commands of the Prophet (peace be upon him). This shows that all deeds, no matter how virtuous they may seem, must be approved by the Quran or sunnah to be acceptable. Abdullah ibn Umar narrated that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, “Permit your women to go to the mosques at night.” One of Abdullah’s sons stated that he would not do so, Upon hearing this Abdullah condemned him in a very harsh manner, struck his chest and said, “I relate a 86The Authority and lnportance of the Sunnah hadith of the Messenger of Allah to you and you say, ‘No.’””! In this incident Abdullah ibn Umar, the son of Umar ibn al-Khattaab, who was also one of the most knowledgeable of the Companions, struck his son’s chest because his son showed some inclination not to abide by a command from the Prophet (peace be upon him). In Abdullah’s statement it is clear that he was implying, “I am telling you a statement of the Messenger (peace be upon him) and you think you have some say in the matter. Indeed, you do not.” The following incident was recorded by al-Bukhari and Muslim (the wording of the report is Muslim’s): Qataadah narrated, “We were sitting in a group with Imraan ibn Husain and Bushair ibn Kaab, Imraan narrated to us that on a certain occasion the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, ‘Modesty is a virtue through and through,’ or said, ‘Modesty is completely good.’ Upon hearing this Bushair ibn Kaab said, ‘We find in certain books or books [of wisdom] that it is God-inspired peace of mind or sobriety for the sake of Allah and there is also some weakness in it.’ Imraan was so much enraged that his eyes became ted and he said, ‘I am narrating to you a hadith of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and you are contradicting it.” Abdul Hamid Siddique commented on this hadith, saying, This hadith explains the status of a Prophet. The source of prophetic knowledge is divine; it is, therefore, perfect and free from all kinds of error. Human wisdom is based on observation, experience and inference and can, therefore, be never infallible. This is the reason why humanity has always been exhorted to follow the commands of the Prophets and not those of the philosophers, This hadith also clearly brings into light the position of the Hadith. It is a part ' This was recorded by Ahmad, Muslim and Abu Daawood.The Authority and Importance of the Surmah of divine knowledge and, therefore, it should be accepted with religious devotion.’ In this hadith Bushair is referring to some of the old books of the Arabs which contained their “wisdom.” But how can it be wisdom when it contradicts what the All-Wise has revealed? How could it be considered wisdom when the Messenger (peace be upon him) has stated the opposite to be true? How can one respect any contradictory statement after the Prophet (peace be upon him) has spoken?2 In fact, there are numerous examples of this nature of harsh treatment, such as people refusing to speak to others, because someone refused to accept a hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him) or made some kind of negative comment. Such behavior in defense of the sunnah has been narrated from the Companions Abdullah ibn Mughafal, Ibaadah ibn al- Saamit, Abu al-Dardaa and Abu Saeed al-Khudri. Similar examples come from later scholars.3 This harsh treatment can only be explained in one way: It is inconceivable for any Muslim to object to or reject any statement of the Prophet (peace be upon him). There is no room for such behavior and, therefore, the response to such an action must correspond to the gravity of the sin committed. Al-Bukhari recorded that Ali and Uthmaan were on the road between Makkah and Madinah, At the time Uthmaan was preventing, for specific reasons, people from performing muta ' Abdul Hamid Siddiqui, trans. and commentator, Sahib Muslim (Lahore: Sh. Muhammad Ashraf, 1972), vol, 1, p. 28, fn. 87. * Unfortunately, one can find Muslims who follow ideas that contradict what the Prophet (peace be upon him) has stated, For some, especially from lesser developed countries, anything that comes from the “scientific West” is considered superior to what they have of “traditional wisdom." This may be due to some kind of inferiority complex. However, a Muslim, one who worships and submits only to Allah, should never feel inferior to anyone or any civilization that is void of the great guidance from Allah, $f, Abdul Qayyoom al-Sihaibaani, Tadbeem al-Sunnah wa Muwagafal-Salaf miman Aaric a att Istabza bi-Shain Minhaa (Madinah; Maktabah ibn al- Qayyim, 1414 AHL), pp. 35-41. 88The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah (that is, combining the Aaj/ and wimrah under one visit but with a break between them and with only one intention), Ali had made the intention: “We are coming for hajj and umrah together with a break in between them.” Uthmaan said to him, “You see that 1 am preventing the people from doing so yet you do it?” Ali answered him, “I cannot leave the sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) for the statement of anyone of mankind.” In this incident one again sees that the Companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) would accept no authority save that of Allah or His Messenger (peace be upon him). In this case Ali found Uthmaan’s juristic reasoning to be wrong, as he noted that Uthmaan did not correctly understand the sunnah concerning muta. One point that should be noted is that this incident occurred while Uthmaan was the caliph of the Islamic state. This incident demonstrates that the Companions knew that even the highest authority in the land, as pious as he might be, cannot impose a law that goes against the sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him). It is recorded concerning many Companions, through a number of authentic chains, that if any problem arose they would seek its solution, first, in the Book of Allah. If they did not find the solution there, they would search the sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him) for the answer.! Failing to find a solution, then, and only then, would they resort to personal reasoning, This was the way of Abu Bale, the first caliph, and of Umar, Abu Bakr’s successor, and, in fact, of all of the Companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him).? From the above one may conclude the following: ' Whether the Quran should be looked to first and then the sunnah or if both of them should be taken together is a matter of dispute. A complete and detailed discussion of this question shall come later. However, it is clear that the above reports do not mean that the sunnah does not explain and further clarify the meaning of the Quran. One can find no report whatsoever of any Companion who did not bebsave in this manner.The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah (a) There was a consensus of opinion among the Companions (the best and most knowledgeable of all generations) that it was obligatory for them to follow the sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him), and none of them ever claimed to be frce of this obligation. (b) After the death of the Prophet (peace be upon him), Muslims still agreed that they must follow the sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him), (c) The sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him) is to be applied to all aspects of life, from worship to government, and even the leader of the state does not have the right to rule in contradiction to the sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him). Scholarly Opinion Regarding the Sunnah In this section, commentary will be kept to minimum. After the preceding discussion, lengthy comments should not be necessary. Here will be recorded statements from some of the leading scholars throughout the ages to show that the great scholars of Islam have agreed that it is obligatory for all Muslims to follow the sunnah, or way, of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).! Ibn Khuzaimah said, “No one can say anything if the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) has already spoken [on a topic] and it comes to us through a sound chain.” The famous scholar Mujaahid said, “We accept some sayings and reject others of everybody save the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him).” In other words, all of the Messenger’s statements are to be accepted. Urwah said, “Following the sunnah is to establish the teligion.” ' Unless otherwise noted, the following statements can be found in al-Suyooti, Miftah al-Jannah, pp, 74f. The interested reader should also consult Abdul Khaalig, pp. 345-382. 90The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah Abu Sulaimaan al-Daarimi said, “Perhaps there pricks my heart the problems and discussions of my day and J never accept anything except with the testimony of the two just witnesses: the Book and the sunnah.” Ahmad ibn Abu al-Huwari said, “Whoever does a deed that is not in accordance with the sunnah has, in fact, done a vain deed.” Abu Qilaabah said, “If you speak to a person with the sunnah and he says, ‘Leave that from me and bring the Book of Allah,’ then you should know that he is misguided.” In fact, the authority of the sunnah is an issue that one can conclude that there is a unanimous opinion among the scholars. Shawaat noted, The authors writing on the topic of Islamic legal theory, like ibn Hazm, al-Baaji, al-Ghazaali, al- Amadi, al-Bazdawi and others, have discussed this issue [of the authority of the sunnah] and they have stated that there is a unanimity of the nation of Islam on this question. They do not mention in their books, either in a clear fashion or even by allusion, that there exists any difference of opinion concerning the authority of the sunnah. And these are the people who have scanned the books of their predecessors of their schools of figh and who followed up differences of opinion, whether reasonable or outlandish, and have taken the time to refute [rejected opinions]. How can anyone imagine that there could be a dispute among the Muslims on an issue that is from the fundamentals of the religion, which is known by necessity to be part of the religion of Islam and conceming which, if anyone disputes it, he is an apostate, outside the fold of the religion... Imam al- Shaafi’ee wrote in Jimag al-{1m in his book al-Umm, ' Quoted from Tabagaat ibn Saad in al-Sihaibaani, p. 25,The Authority and Importance of the Surah “I have never heard of anyone who the people consider knowledgeable or who he considers himself knowledgeable differing about the fact that Allah has obligated the following of the orders of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and submitting to his rules and that Allah has not left open for anyone after him any other option except following him...” Even the sects who ascribed themselves to the Muslim community, although they have swerved from the truth and gone astray on this issue, none of them have been so bold as to reject the authority of the sunnah as a principle, for they knew that such would take them out of the religion. Note that although all of the above scholars (and thousands of other scholars) lived after the death of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), none of them ever even remotely hinted at the possibility that the sunnah was only to be obeyed during the Prophet's lifetime and not for all time until the Day of Judgment. Indeed, such a thought is an innovation of recent times that has no foundation whatsoever, as can be seen from the preceding sections. One important aspect that can be concluded from the statements of the Companions and other scholars: They all agreed that whatever comes from the Prophet (peace be upon him) must be accepted and whatever comes from anyone else can only be accepted if it is not in conflict with what is stated in the Quran or sunnah. Every other human is subject to err while the Prophet (peace be upon him) was guided by Allah and protected from committing error. In other words, if one is presented with an authentic hadith of the Messenger of Allah " Shawaat, pp. 272-3. Abdul-Khaaliq, pp. 248-250 has a very similar passage with quotes from the leading legal theorists. Al-Shaafi'ee himself, in his works, debated with someone who seemed to reject the sunnah, However, as Abdul Khaaliq (pp. 260-266) has shown, he was questioning the attributing of the hadith to the Prophet (peace be upon him) and not objecting to the obligation of following the sunnah. Allah knows best. 92The Authority and Importance of the Surah (peace be upon him), he has no choice but to follow that hadith.! He must give up his own personal opinion in favor of what the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said. He must give up the opinion of his school of fiqh, culture or traditions in favor of what has been authentically reporied from the Prophet (peace be upon him). Issues are no longer open to debate, discussion or opinion once the Prophet (peace be upon him) has stated something unequivocally. The Four Imams and Their View of the Sunnah Over time, four schools of figh grew and flourished among the Muslims. To this day, those schools still hold a great deal of influence, These schools are2: (1) The Hanafi school: This school developed in Kufah, where the Companions Abdullah ibn Masood and Ali ibn Abi Taalib lived. It is named after Abu Haneefah al- Numaan ibn Thaabit (80-150 A.H.). He has been recognized by all as one of the greatest juristic minds in the history of Islam. Along with Abu Haneefah himself, his students Abu Yoosuf, Muhammad ibn al-Hasan and Zafar, greatly contributed to the formation and development of this school. The Hanafi school is stil] dominant in modern-day Pakistan, India, Turkey, the ex-Soviet states and other parts of the Muslim world. (2) The Maliki school: This school developed in Madinah, the adopted home of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and the residence of many of his Companions. The school is named after Maalik ibn Anas (95-179), a noted scholar of hadith and a jurist. This school spread quickly to North Africa, ' This is assuming, of course, that he has no other equally strong evidence to show that the particular hadith has been abrogated, particularized and so on. * The historical discussion here is meant to be extremely brief. Those desiring to learn more about the history of the schools of figh may consult Bilal Philips, 7he Evolution of Figh (Riyadh: International Islamic Publishing House, 1995), pp. 52-90,