Is it permissible to divide religious innovation (bid'ah) into good and bad?
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Question:
The questioner says: We have heard people say that bid'ah (religious innovation) is divided into two categories: good bid'ah and bad bid'ah. Is this statement correct?
Answer:
This statement is not correct, and it is from the one who says it, with no evidence for it. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Every newly invented matter is an innovation," and he said:Sunan Abi Dawud 4607Sahih (Al-Albani) and every misguidance is in the Fire. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) did not make anything of the innovations good; rather, he said that every innovation is misguidance. So the one who says that bid'ah is divided into two categories, good bid'ah and bad bid'ah, this contradicts the saying of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him).
The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said that every innovation is misguidance, and you say, "No, some of the innovations are good." What is this statement? We ask Allah for safety. Yes.
The questioner says: We have heard people say that bid'ah (religious innovation) is divided into two categories: good bid'ah and bad bid'ah. Is this statement correct?
Answer:
This statement is not correct, and it is from the one who says it, with no evidence for it. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Every newly invented matter is an innovation," and he said:
Avoid novelties, for every novelty is an innovation, and every innovation is an error.
واياكم ومحدثات الامور فان كل محدثه بدعه وكل بدعه ضلالهThe Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said that every innovation is misguidance, and you say, "No, some of the innovations are good." What is this statement? We ask Allah for safety. Yes.
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، هل يجوز تقسيم البدعة إلى حسنة وسيئة؟ للشيخ الفوزان — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.