The Meaning of 'Umar's Statement: "This is a Good Innovation"
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Question:
Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success. A questioner says: Regarding 'Umar's statement when he gathered the people behind a single imam for the tarawih prayers, "This is a good innovation," is there such a thing as a good innovation and a bad innovation?
Answer:
There is no good innovation; rather, all innovations are bad, as the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sunan an-Nasa'i 1578Sahih (Darussalam). So there is nothing good in innovations; rather, there is a good recommended practice (sunnah), a good recommended practice, when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) encouraged charity on the occasion of the arrival of some hungry people.
A man came, and another man hastened to bring a bag of silver, carrying it, his hand having become too weak to bear it. He placed it before the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and the face of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) brightened with joy at it, and he said:Sahih Muslim 1017a. So 'Umar, regarding the tarawih, means the good recommended practice. Yes.
Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success. A questioner says: Regarding 'Umar's statement when he gathered the people behind a single imam for the tarawih prayers, "This is a good innovation," is there such a thing as a good innovation and a bad innovation?
Answer:
There is no good innovation; rather, all innovations are bad, as the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
The worst of matters are their innovations
شر الأمور محدثاتهاand every innovation is going astray, and every going astray is in the Fire
وَكُلَّ بِدْعَةٍ ضَلاَلَةٌ وَكُلَّ ضَلاَلَةٍ فِي النَّارِA man came, and another man hastened to bring a bag of silver, carrying it, his hand having become too weak to bear it. He placed it before the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and the face of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) brightened with joy at it, and he said:
He who sets a good precedent in Islam, there is a reward for him for this (act of goodness) and reward of that also who acted according to it
من سن في الإسلام سنة حسنة فله أجرها وأجر من عمل بها
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، 103 من 108/شرح كتاب إغاثة اللهفان في مصائد الشيطان/أبطل الباطل/صالح الفوزان/العقيدة/كبار العلماء — youtube.com (1:04:05)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.