quote:

I have been asked this question so many times. However, tonight we wish to pose the question in a different manner. [The questioner asked,] "Is it lawful for a Muslim to take the methodology of the Salaf? Thus if we said, "Is it lawful for a Muslim to take a method other than the method of the Salaf?" And that is because the origin is that the Muslim should take the methodology of the Salaf who preceded him - the Messenger (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) and his companions.   quote: If a person said, "Is it lawful for a Muslim to follow the Messenger of Allaah (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) and his companions," this would be a very strange question.    Rather it is obligatory to follow the Messenger of Allaah (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) and his companions. Why did Allaah send His Messenger (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam). In order that he (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) be obeyed - bi idhnillaah (by Allaah's Permission). And that he (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) be followed. And Allaah has commanded us to follow him. Allaah, The Exalted, says: يَاأَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا أَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ O you who believe! Obey Allaah, and obey the Messenger (Muhammad, salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam)... (Muhammad, ayah 33) مَنْ يُطِعِ الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطَاعَ اللَّهَ He who obeys the Messenger (Muhammad, salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam), has indeed obeyed Allah... (An-Nisa, ayah 80) قُلْ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ تُحِبُّونَ اللَّهَ فَاتَّبِعُونِي يُحْبِبْكُمُ اللَّهُ وَيَغْفِرْ لَكُمْ ذُنُوبَكُمْ وَاللَّهُ غَفُور ٌ رَحِيم Say (O Muhammad, salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam, to mankind): "If you (really) love Allaah then follow me, Allaah will love you and forgive you of your sins. And Allaah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful." (Aali 'Imran, ayah 31) quote: Therefore, following the Prophet (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) is obligatory. It is obligatory on each and every Muslim to follow the Messenger of Allaah. Follow him in what? In his 'aqeedah (beliefs, creed), in his manhaj (methodology), in his acts of 'ibadah (worship), in his character and etiquette and behavior (and dealings). He should follow the Messenger (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) - in everything.    Allaah says: لَقَدْ كَانَ لَكُمْ فِي رَسُولِ اللَّهِ أُسْوَةٌ حَسَنَة ٌ لِمَنْ كَانَ يَرْجُو اللَّهَ وَالْيَوْمَ الآخِرَ وَذَكَرَ اللَّهَ كَثِيرا Indeed in the Messenger of Allaah (Muhammad, salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam), you have a good example to follow for him who hopes in (the Meeting with) Allaah and the Last Day and remembers Allaah much. (Al-Ahzab, ayah 21)   Allaah made him (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) exempt and protected from mistakes, and suitable to be followed in each and every thing. Therefore, it is obligatory upon us to follow him (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam), and to follow his companions, and imitate their way. And this is something Allaah has commanded us with, and threatened the one who does not follow the companions (radiallaahu 'anhum ajma'een). In the statement of Allaah, The Exalted: وَإِذَا قِيلَ لَهُمْ آمِنُوا كَمَا آمَنَ النَّاسُ   And when it is said to them (hypocrites): "Believe as the people (companions of Muhammad - Al-Ansar and Al-Muhajiroon) have believed"... (Al-Baqarah 2:13) There were no believers in the time of the Messenger of Allaah (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) except the sahaabah. Allaah, The Exalted, also says:   فَإِنْ آمَنُوا بِمِثْلِ مَا آمَنتُمْ بِه ِِ فَقَدِ اهْتَدَوا وَإِنْ تَوَلَّوْا فَإِنَّمَا هُمْ فِي شِقَاق ٍ فَسَيَكْفِيكَهُمُ اللَّهُ وَهُوَ السَّمِيعُ الْعَلِيمُ So if they believe in the like of that which you believe, then they are rightly guided, but if they turn away, then they are only in opposition. So Allaah will suffice you against them. And He is the All-Hearer, the All-Knower. (Al-Baqarah, ayah 137) Speaking to who? The sahaabah, because when the Qur`an was sent down, there were no other Muslims besides the sahaabah. Allaah, The Exalted says: كُنْتُمْ خَيْرَ أُمَّةٍ أُخْرِجَتْ لِلنَّاسِ You [true believers in Tawheed, real followers of Prophet Muhammad and his Sunnah] are the best of peoples ever raised up for mankind... (Aali 'Imran, ayah 110) Who is - كُنْتُمْ -  (you are)? The nation of Muhammad (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam). And who were the original seeds from which [this] Muslim nation came? The sahaabah (radiallaahu 'anhum ajma'een).   And Allaah, 'azza wa Jall, has also threatened those who follow the path and method other than the path of the sahaabah. Allaah, The Exalted, says: وَمَنْ يُشَاقِقِ الرَّسُولَ مِنْ بَعْدِ مَا تَبَيَّنَ لَهُ الْهُدَى وَيَتَّبِعْ غَيْرَ سَبِيلِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ نُوَلِّه ِِ مَا تَوَلَّى وَنُصْلِه ِِ جَهَنَّمَ وَسَاءَتْ مَصِيرا And whoever contradicts and opposes the Messenger (Muhammad) after the right path has been shown clearly to him, and follows other than the believers' way. We shall keep him in the path he has chosen, and burn him in Hell - what an evil destination. (An-Nisa, ayah 115) وَمَنْ يُشَاقِقِ الرَّسُولَ (And whoever contradicts and opposes the Messenger) ---> Meaning the Messenger is saying one thing and you are here saying something else. If a person said, "I wish to hold fast to the Book and the Sunnah even if I don't hold fast to that which the companions of the Prophet were upon. Isn't it sufficient? The Book and the Sunnah. Why do you require me to be upon that which the companions were upon?" quote: Because in the Book and the Sunnah, we have been commanded to follow the sahaabah. If we really wanted to adhere to the Book and the Sunnah - truly - then in the Book and the Sunnah, we have been commanded to follow and take the example of the companions.    The Prophet (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said: Alaykum bi Sunnati (hold fast to my Sunnah). He didn't say that and keep silent. Rather, he (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said: Alaykum bi Sunnati wa Sunnah al-Khulafa ar-Rashideen al-Mahdiyeen min ba'dee (hold fast to my Sunnah and the Sunnah of the rightly-guided caliphs after me). Therefore, he (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) commanded for the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allaah [and the sahaabah] to be followed and held fast to. He (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said, "Hold fast to it and bite down upon it with your molar teeth." So this is a command of the Messenger of Allaah (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam). He (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) also said: "And my Ummah will split up into seventy-three sects - all of them will be in the Hellfire, except one." They said: "Which one is it, o Messenger of Allaah?" He said: "It is that which I and my Companions are upon." And he didn't just say, "That which I am upon today." Rather, he said, "and my companions." Therefore, it us upon us to understand and memorize this well. In Bukhari and Muslim, on the authority of Ibn Mas'ood (radiallaahu 'anhu) who reported from the Messenger of Allaah (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) a famous hadeeth: "Allaah curses the woman who trims her eyebrows and the woman who does it for her." So there was a woman whose name was Umm Ya'qoob who heard of this. And she used to read the Qur`an. So she came to Ibn Mas'ood and said, "O Abu 'Abdur-Rahman. What is that I hear from you that Allaah curses the woman whose eyebrows are trimmed (or shaved), and the one who does it?" Ibn Mas'ood said, "And what is the matter, why wouldn't I curse someone whom the Messenger of Allaah cursed, and it is mentioned in the Book of Allaah?" When he said, "it is mentioned in the Book of Allaah," she said, "I swear by Allaah, I read all of the Qur`an, and I didn't find it. There's no verse in the Qur`an stating that Allaah or His Messenger curses the  woman who trims her eyebrows and the one who does it for her." Ibn Mas'ood said, "No, it's in the Book of Allaah." She said, "It's not in the Book of Allaah. Wallaahi, I read it from front to back, I did not find it." Ibn Mas'ood said, "If you were to read it (with reflection and pondering), you would find it. Have you not read the statement of Allaah, 'azza wa Jall: وَمَا آتَاكُمُ الرَّسُولُ فَخُذُوه ُُ وَمَا نَهَاكُمْ عَنْهُ فَانْتَهُوا ...And whatsoever the Messenger (Muhammad) gives you, take it, and whatsoever he forbids you, abstain (from it)... (Al-Hashr, ayah 7) She said, "Of course, this is a verse in the Qur`an - Suratul Hashr." And Ibn Mas'ood said, "And I've heard this from the Messenger of Allaah." And thus do we say: following the companions, following the Salaf of this nation is something that Allaah and His Messenger (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) commanded us to do. So this is from the command of Allaah and His Messenger (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam). The sahaabah (companions) were the physical application of the Book and the Sunnah. And they were the scholars of this nation, and the scholars are the inheritors of the Prophets. However, because they have passed, they are called "Salafu" (which means they have preceded). The verb "Salafa" means that which has passed, and old, that which has preceded. And so they are called "As-Salaf," because they have preceded. And they are called "As-Salafu Saleh" (pious and righteous predecessors) because they were pious and righteous. So therefore - based upon the Qur`an and the Sunnah - it is obligatory upon us to follow them. And according to your following of them, this determines how upright and steadfast you will be, and who will deserve most to be saved and delivered from the fire on the Day of Judgment. The one who understands this, he hopes and wishes from Allaah, the Mighty and Majestic, that Allaah will give him the success to be of the followers and adherents of the Salaf. So whoever truly understands these words, is it possible for him to dislike to be from the followers of the Prophet (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) and the followers of Abu Bakr, 'Umar, 'Uthman, 'Alee, and the followers of the (rest of the) Muhaajireen and the Ansaar, those whom Allaah is pleased and they are pleased with Allaah? And from them are those who were given glad tidings of Paradise, (and they are) the best of this nation. Who is this person who would dislike this, or refuse or reject this, except for a great ignoramus who doesn't understand the meaning of following the Salaf. Some people think that as-Salaf is a group of people who are alive today (that the people who follow the Salaf follow people who are alive today).     Also, not everybody claiming to be "Salafee" today is truly a follower - an adherent - of the Salaf. However, they vary greatly in their levels. Of them are those who truly follow the Salaf, such as the major, prominent, well-known scholars. And others are less and less and less and so on and so forth. And there are some people who have a total false claim and ascription to the Salaf. And there are some who are greatly deviant, and he claims he is following the Salaf in that deviation. Anyone can make a claim and say what he wants. [There are] those who are ignorant, violent and harsh, hasty. People vary. For example, the statement "As-Salafiyeen" (Salafees, in English): let's compare it to the word "Muslimeen" (or Muslims). Are all the Muslims equal in their beliefs, their character, their acts of worship, in their dealings and actions? They vary a great deal. However, that which we wish to understand that it is totally encumbant and obligatory upon us to hold fast to the Sunnah. To hold fast to that which the Prophet and the companions were upon. To hold fast to that which the Salaf of this Ummah were upon. To believe in the 'Aqeedah that they professed. To tread their path and methodology upon which they proceded and followed, to worship Allaah, 'azza wa Jall, in the manner they worshipped Allaah subhanahu wa ta'aala, that we take and adopt their character and moral conduct and behavior. They are our example, our Salaf. If we don't follow them, if we don't take their example, then whose example will we take? Whose guidance do we take? Don't you know that Allaah says in His Book: فَمَاذَا بَعْدَ الْحَقِّ إِلاَّ الضَّلاَلُ So after the truth, what else can there be, save error (falsehood, misguidance)? (Yunus, ayah 32) Were the Messenger of Allaah (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) and his companions upon the truth? There's no doubt about this; rather, this is the only option, the only answer you can give. So whoever comes after them and opposes them, he is upon misguidance and we have no doubt about this. quote: So all beliefs, all methods, all ways and paths, all schools of thought: their closeness to the truth, their closeness to the falsehood is only according to their closeness and remoteness from that which the Salaf of this nation were upon.    Upon us is to give advice - not to reject and criticize the Salaf and Salafiyah and the obligation of following them because of the mistakes of some Salafees, or because there are some who ascribe themselves to the Salaf in falsehood and lying. If we do this, then we would be like those who look down upon Islam because of the mistakes of some Muslims. What do we say to this person? We tell him (that) the shortcomings and deficiencies are the shortcomings and deficiencies of those mistaken Muslims - not the religion of Islam. Thus do we say (that) the creed of the Salaf has no shortcomings. The methodology of the Salaf has no deficiency. Instead, the 'Aqeedah of the Salaf is nothing other than the Qur`an and the Sunnah. The Creed of the Salaf is Ma'sooma (perfect, protected from mistake). Allaah sent it down in His Book. And the Messenger of Allaah (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) and the sahaabah believed in it. And the Prophet (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) never approved of any falsehood. Even if it was a small simple thing of falsehood, opposing the Sunnah, he would criticize and reject it. Any word - even a letter that a person erred in - the Prophet would refute him for it. If a person said, "What Allaah had willed, and what you had willed,' he said, "Say, 'What Allaah had willed alone.'"   If a person - a small child - ate with his left hand, the Prophet (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said to him, "Say Bismillaah, eat with your right hand, and eat from that which is in front of you." A small young girl who said, "And amongst us is the Messenger of Allaah (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam). He knows what will happen tomorrow." He (salallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) said, "Don't say this. None except Allaah knows what's going to happen tomorrow."   This is an 'Aqeedah which is Perfect and exempt from mistakes. This is a Manhaj which is Perfect and exempt from mistakes. This is a complete and perfect Religion. الْيَوْمَ أَكْمَلْتُ لَكُمْ دِينَكُمْ وَأَتْمَمْتُ عَلَيْكُمْ نِعْمَتِي وَرَضِيتُ لَكُمُ الإِسْلاَمَ دِينا This day, I have perfected your religion for you, completed My Favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islām as your religion... (Al-Ma`idah, ayah 3)   Work hard to the best of your ability to be Salafee, to be one who follows the Salaf, one who loves them, one who supports them, one who draws himself near to Allaah by loving them, to not oppose them to the best of your ability, do not separate yourself from them, neither generally nor specifically. ...