The Meaning of Bid'ah and 'Umar's Statement: "What a Good Bid'ah" and Establishing a Good Sunnah

The questioner:
Those who attribute to Allah the exaltation of the migration to a few years, and those who attribute to Allah what is in your minds of the Fire.

The Shaykh:
All bid'ah (religious innovation) is bad, as evidenced by the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) . This refers to bid'ah in religion. As for bid'ah in customs, there is no harm in it. For example, wearing clothes that did not exist before, or riding in cars when there were no cars previously, or speaking into microphones which were not available in the past. These are not included in bid'ah; they are among the customs and benefits that Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) created for us. Are these not innovations?
As for 'Umar's statement when he gathered the Companions for the tarawih prayer behind Abu ibn Ka'b (may Allah be pleased with him) as a single imam, saying, "What a good bid'ah this is," he meant the linguistic bid'ah, not the religious bid'ah. This is because the tarawih prayer is not an innovation, and the tarawih prayer in congregation is not an innovation, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did it. 'Umar merely revived the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). His intention was the new thing that people had forgotten, and then 'Umar reminded them of it. So it is a linguistic bid'ah, not a Shari'ah bid'ah. This is because 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) was among the most severe people in avoiding bid'ah and newly invented matters. So he did not intend the Shari'ah bid'ah. There is never a good bid'ah in religion, because the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said . So whoever comes and says, "No, not every bid'ah is misguidance," this means it is specific to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). There is no power or strength except by Allah. If someone among the scholars said this as an exercise of their independent legal reasoning (ijtihad), but the truth is the truth that is followed. And if, for example, al-Izz ibn 'Abd al-Salam or other scholars said it as an exercise of their independent legal reasoning, this is their opinion. But their opinion is presented to the Book and the Sunnah. We worship by the Book and the Sunnah, not by the opinion of al-Izz ibn 'Abd al-Salam or others. And Allah, al-Izz ibn 'Abd al-Salam mentioned this (may Allah have mercy on him) in his book *Qawa'id al-Ahkam*, but this is rejected. This is a statement they are pleased with. Yes. The naming of al-Izz, "al-Izz al-Din," is like "Taqi al-Din." Is there anything in it? Yes. "Sultan al-'Ulama" (Sultan of the Scholars) they say because of his strength (may Allah have mercy on him). He was strong and had influence with the rulers, so they called him Sultan al-'Ulama because of his strength (may Allah have mercy on him).

The questioner:
And some of them argue with his statement, "Sunnah." Yes.

The Shaykh:
The people of the Sunnah, a good Sunnah. Good, so he encourages them to the good Sunnah, the good Sunnah. As for bid'ah, no, it is not good. Yes.

The questioner:
There is no problem with the security.

The Shaykh:
Meaning, he acted according to the Sunnah, so the people followed him. This is the meaning of Sunnah in Islam, a good Sunnah. It means performing a prescribed act that people had forgotten, just as 'Umar did by gathering the Companions. This is a good Sunnah. And the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said . The occasion was that he encouraged charity. Men from the tribe of Mudar appeared, showing the ugliness of poverty since they had passed through the Namar region. So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was affected by their appearance, poverty, and need. When he ordered Bilal to call the adhan, the Muslims gathered, then he prayed with the people, then he delivered a sermon (khutbah) (peace and blessings be upon him) and encouraged charity. So a man from the Ansar stood up and brought a purse of gold that almost the camel could not carry, or it almost could not bear it. When he placed it before the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), the people all rushed forward and brought what they had, until piles of clothes, money, and food gathered before the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). So the face of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) brightened, and he said .
He meant this noble, virtuous man who brought this purse. When the people saw him, they rushed forward and did as he did. This is the meaning of a good Sunnah: acting according to a Sunnah that people had turned away from, so they remembered it and rushed to it. So he became the cause for reviving the Sunnah.