Following the Actions of the Companions and Contradicting the Action of the Prophet

Question:
And he said (may Allah have mercy on him): Did the Companions act in matters of writing? In matters of writing. And he said: Otherwise, do not say anything other than the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). And the hadiths were either utilized or their people were prevented, and those among them differed; they differed, my dear. My dear.

Answer:
The one whose words, actions, and approvals are to be followed is the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). As for anyone else, he is only to be followed if he follows the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). But if his action contradicts the action of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), then he is not to be followed in his religion, because the model to be followed is the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). And whoever follows him and adheres to his Sunnah, that is it.
The conclusion in this issue is that, in itself, if he is a mujtahid (scholar qualified to derive rulings) seeking good and he errs, there is no doubt that he is not to be followed in the error. But if he did it intentionally, he is misguided. If he intentionally did something the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) did not do and believes it brings him closer to Allah, that is misguidance. But if he did not intend the error and is a mujtahid seeking good, then he is mistaken, and he is not to be followed in his error, and he must be advised.
"Inna Allaha Rabb al-'Alamin" (Indeed, Allah is the Lord of the worlds) is from this category; it is not a model to be followed in that, because this is something the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) did not do, and the model is the Messenger. 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) did this out of his love for good and his eagerness for it, through ijtihad (independent legal reasoning), but this is an error. This is an error that is not to be followed. His father, 'Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him), contradicted his daughter and forbade following the traces of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). He said: meaning the physical sites. Then he ordered the cutting down of the tree under which the Pledge of al-Radwan took place, and people used to go to it, pray at it, and seek blessing from it. He cut it down to avert fitnah (trial, discord or temptation). There is no doubt that 'Umar, the Rightly Guided Caliph, is the model, as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) recommended him in his saying: after me, and 'Umar is the second of the Rightly Guided Caliphs.