Imām Aḥmad b. Ḥanbal said, “According to Ahl al-Sunnah, the fundamental principles of the sunnah are to adhere to what the Companions of Allāh’s Messenger (صلى الله عليه وسلم) were upon…” This is contrary to the People of Innovation who only follow their own desires, relying upon their corrupt intellects, while claiming reliance on the Arabic language (i.e., linguistic arguments) or other false analogies.

As for Imām Aḥmad and those who preceded him from the Companions, the Tābiʿīn (i.e., their successors and students), and the Imams of Islām, the religion they adhered to is based on the Book of Allāh and the Sunnah of His Messenger (صلى الله عليه وسلم). This is especially pertinent to matters of creed in which they never — by Allāh’s will — extrapolated beyond the texts of the Qurʾān and the Sunnah. It is within this methodology that upright guidance truly lies.

Imām Aḥmad says, “Taking them [and their way] as a model to be followed”—that is, taking the companions of Muḥammad (صلى الله عليه وسلم) as models who are followed, for they are the exemplars and role models. He is alluding to the ḥadīth, “You must keep to my Sunnah, and the Sunnah of the rightly-guided Caliphs — bite onto it with your molars, and beware of newly invented matters.”¹ Likewise, he is alluding to the ḥadīth of the saved sect, wherein the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) related to us that this nation would split up into seventy-three sects, all of whom are deserving of punishment in the Fire except for one. The Companions asked, “Who are they, O’ Messenger of Allāh?” He (صلى الله عليه وسلم) responded, “They are those who adhere to what I and my Companions are upon.”² Moreover, the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) also said in another prophetic narration, “I have left you upon clarity. Its night is like its day (in distinctness). No one deviates from it except that he is destroyed.”³

The Companions held firmly to this clear path. We do not find — by the will of Allāh — amongst them anyone who deviated and was thus destroyed — Allāh willing . Towards the end of the companion’s era and the middle of the tābiʿīn’s, deviant groups began to appear. Thereafter, innovations spread far and wide, beginning with the sect of the Khawārij and the extremest Rāfiḍah during the latter part of ʿAlī’s (رضي الله عنه) caliphate. So, he sent Ibn ʿAbbās (رضي الله عنه) to debate them, but they later unsheathed their swords against the Muslims. Hence, ʿAlī waged war against them, as commanded by Allāh’s Messenger (صلى الله عليه وسلم). This war was fought with the approval of the other companions, free of dissension or opposition of any kind.

The crux of this issue is that salvation lies in following the example set forth by the Companions. This is the vehicle of safety and salvation. For they were present at the time of revelation, and learnt the correct understanding of the Qurʾān and Sunnah directly from Allāh’s Messenger (صلى الله عليه وسلم) alongside their implementation of it. Hence, they are the example who we aspire to emulate. Due to this, the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) said, “They (i.e., the Saved Sect) are those who adhere to what I and my Companions are upon”, and, “You must keep to my sunnah, and the sunnah of the rightly-guided Caliphs.”⁴

Translated by: Omar ibn Bilal