The innovation is more severe because innovation is worse than disobedience, and innovation is more beloved to Shayṭān than disobedience because the disobedient one may repent.
Al-ʿAllāmah Ṣāliḥ ibn Fawzān al-Fawzān[Q]: We hear about what are called Islamic Jamaa’aat in this age in various parts of the world. So what is the basis of this term? Is it permissible to go along with then and assist them if they do not have an innovation?
[A]: The Messenger ﷺ informed and explained to how we must interact. He did not leave anything that brings his Ummah closer to…
So the soundness of manhaj – or lack thereof – determines a person’s entry into Paradise or the Fire.
[Q]: Is entry into Paradise or the Fire dependent upon the soundness of manhaj (methodology)?2
[A]: Yes, if the manhaj is sound, then the person will be from amongst the people of Paradise; since he will be upon the manhaj of the Messenger ﷺ and manhaj of the Salaf al-Ṣāliḥ. He will be from amongst the people of Paradise by the permission of Allāh. If he traverses a misguided methodology, then he will be an innovator in the Fire.”3 So the soundness of manhaj – or lack thereof – d…
Abū Umāmah (raḍī Allāhu ʿanhu) reported that the Messenger of Allāh (ﷺ) said: “Whoever recites Āyat al-Kursī following every obligatory prayer, nothing prevents him from entering Paradise except dying.”
Ibn Masʿūd (raḍī Allāhu ʿanhu) reported that the Messenger of Allāh (ﷺ) said: “Whoever recites the last two verses of Sūrah al-Baqarah in a night, they will suffice him.”
Anas (raḍī Allāhu ʿanhu) reported that the Messenger of Allāh (ﷺ) said: “Whoever recited: (Qul Yā ayyuh al-Kāfirūn) it will be equal to a quarter of the Qurʾān for him, and whoever recites (Qul hu Allāhu Aḥad) it will be eq…
So the Ashāʿirah for example, say, ‘We are Ahl al-Sunnah wa-al-Jamāʿah,’ yet this is not correct because that which they are upon is other than the manhaj of Ahl al-Sunnah wa-al-Jamāʿah.
Shaykh Ṣāliḥ al-Fawzān
Question
What is Salafīyyah? Is it obligatory to traverse its manhaj (methodology) and to hold onto it?
Answer1
Salafīyyah is to traverse upon the methodology of the Salaf from the Companions, the tābiʿīn and the virtuous generations in ʿaqīdah, understanding and manners. It is obligatory upon the Muslims to traverse this manhaj (methodology).2 Allāh the Exalted said,
وَالسَّابِقُونَ ا…
And it is from the likes of such weeping souls that we have inherited the knowledge of our Religion!
The Best of Both Worlds
ʿAbdullāh Ibn Masʿūd (raḍī Allāhu ʿanhu) said that the Messenger of Allāh (ﷺ) would supplicate:
“O Allāh, I ask You for guidance, piety, safety and well-being and contentment and sufficiency.” [اللهم اني أسالك الهدى والتقى والعفاف والغنى]1
Imām as-Saʿdī (d.1376H) – raḥimahullāh – said:
“This duʿāʾ (supplication) is from the most comprehensive and beneficial duʿāʾs (supplications), since it involves asking Allāh for well-being in regards to both the Religion and the…
So it is clear that openly opposing the innovators is of general benefit to the Muslims and is considered one of the types of jihād (struggle) in the path of Allāh. Since purifying the religion of Allāh and defending it from their attacks is a collective obligation – as is agreed upon by the scholars.
Defending the Religion
Imām Aḥmad Ibn Ḥanbal (d.241H) – raḥimahullāh – said:
“All praise is due to Allāh who, in every age and interval between the Prophets, raises up a group from the people of knowledge, who call the misguided to guidance, patiently bearing ill-treatment and harm…
Indeed all praise is for Allāh. We praise Him, we seek His aid and we ask for His forgiveness. And we seek refuge in Allāh from the evils of our own souls, and our evil actions. Whosoever Allāh guides, then none can misguide him; and whosoever Allāh misguides, then none can guide him aright. I bear witness that none has the right to be worshipped except Allāh alone, having no partners, and I bear witness that Muḥammad ﷺ is His servant and Messenger. After that:
Indeed, in patiently bearing their tyranny lies the wiping away of sins and…
This especially refers to someone delving into that which does not concern him regarding someone else’s religious or worldly affairs. Thus, such a person may speak out of envy or desire for position; or act either with deliberate oppression, or foolish scorn and sarcasm. How often does Shayṭān make such an act seem like commanding the good or prohibiting the evil, or Jihād in the path of Allāh, whereas it is actually an act of injustice and transgression!
A Fact About People and Groups
Imām Jamāl al-Dīn al-Qasimī (d.1288H) – raḥimahullāh – said:
“From that which is well-known abou…
