Clarification of the ruling on religious innovation and its divisions, and that every innovation is misguidance, and there is no good innovation in the religion.
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The Shaykh : Verily, all praise is due to Allah; we praise Him, seek His help, and seek His forgiveness. We seek refuge in Allah from the evil of our own souls and the badness of our deeds. Whomsoever Allah guides, none can misguide, and whomsoever He leaves to misguide, none can guide. And I bear witness that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah alone, with no partner, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His slave and His Messenger. [Ali 'Imran 3:102], [An-Nisa 4:1], [Al-Ahzab 33:70-71].
As for what follows:
Indeed, the best of speech is the speech of Allah, and the best of guidance is the guidance of Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), and the worst of matters are their newly invented ones, and every newly invented matter is a religious innovation, and every religious innovation is misguidance, and every misguidance is in the Fire.
This sermon is what the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) used to begin all his sermons with, especially on Friday. The Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) mentions in *Iqtida' al-Sirat al-Mustaqim Mukhalafat Ahl al-Jahim* (The Straight Path Demanding the Opposition of the People of the Hellfire): "That the repetition by the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) of this opening in all his sermons, which is called the Sermon of Need, was a wisdom in its repetition that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) aimed by this repetition to establish in the hearts of his Companions a fundamental principle of the important, comprehensive Islamic Sharia that admits no exception, namely his saying (peace and blessings be upon him):Sunan an-Nasa'i 1578Sahih (Darussalam)". Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) confirms that such a phrase, which the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) repeated to the hearing of his Companions without introducing any specification or another hadith, confirms that this generality is absolute and comprehensive. Therefore, it is not permissible for a believer who testifies to the oneness of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) and to the prophethood of His Messenger to contradict this universal principle by saying: 'Not every religious innovation is misguidance, and not every misguidance is in the Fire.'
First: Because this general phrase must have a specification, and it has no specification.
Second: Because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), as we mentioned earlier, used to repeat it every Friday. It is inconceivable that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) would repeat this universal principle to the hearing of his Companions and then not follow it up with any specification on any day. This is a proof beyond proof that this rule remains in its universality, comprehensiveness, and generality, especially since the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) repeated it in some of his other sermons, as narrated by the compilers of the Sunan. As for this Sermon of Need that we mentioned, it is from the hadith of Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him) in *Sahih Muslim*, except that the addition:Sunan an-Nasa'i 1578Sahih (Darussalam) is from the narration of Imam al-Nasa'i in his *Sunan al-Sughra*, and its chain of narration is authentic, praise be to Allah.
Then, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) repeated this universal principle on other occasions, among which is what was narrated by the compilers of the Sunan, led by Abu Dawud, and al-Tirmidhi, who graded it authentic, from the hadith of al-'Arba' ibn Sariyah (may Allah be pleased with him). He said:.
So here you see and hear that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) repeated this universal principle in another sermon and a lecture he delivered to his Companions (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), until it came in a narration::
If the matter is such, and the matter with every religious innovation is that it is misguidance, no matter what its status is, and some people think it is good, then that is a clear error, contradicting his saying (peace and blessings be upon him):. Some of the Companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) confirmed this universal principle, some explicitly and some by hint or indication. It is authentic from Ibn 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) a mawquf hadith (a report stopping at a Companion). Ibn 'Umar said, and this is like an explanation of what I mentioned earlier: "Every religious innovation is misguidance, even if people see it as good".
O you who have believed, fear Allah as He should be feared and do not die except as Muslims [in submission to Him].
يا أيها الذين ءامنوا اتقوا الله حق تقاته ولا تموتن إلا وأنتم مسلمونO mankind, fear your Lord, who created you from one soul and created from it its mate and dispersed from both of them many men and women. And fear Allah, through whom you ask one another, and the wombs. Indeed Allah is ever, over you, an Observer.
يا أيها الناس اتَّقوا ربكم الذي خلقكم من نفس واحدة وخلق منها زوجها وبثَّ منهما رجالًا كثيرًا ونساءًا واتقوا الله الذي تساءلون به والأرحام إن الله كان عليكم رقيبًا(70) O you who have believed, fear Allah and speak words of appropriate justice. (71) He will [then] amend for you your deeds and forgive you your sins. And whoever obeys Allah and His Messenger has certainly attained a great attainment.
يا أيها الذين ءامنوا اتقوا الله وقولوا قولًا سَديدًا * يُصلح لكم أعمالكم ويغفر لكم ذنوبكم ومَن يُطِع الله ورسولَه فقد فاز فوزًا عظيمًاAs for what follows:
Indeed, the best of speech is the speech of Allah, and the best of guidance is the guidance of Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), and the worst of matters are their newly invented ones, and every newly invented matter is a religious innovation, and every religious innovation is misguidance, and every misguidance is in the Fire.
This sermon is what the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) used to begin all his sermons with, especially on Friday. The Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) mentions in *Iqtida' al-Sirat al-Mustaqim Mukhalafat Ahl al-Jahim* (The Straight Path Demanding the Opposition of the People of the Hellfire): "That the repetition by the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) of this opening in all his sermons, which is called the Sermon of Need, was a wisdom in its repetition that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) aimed by this repetition to establish in the hearts of his Companions a fundamental principle of the important, comprehensive Islamic Sharia that admits no exception, namely his saying (peace and blessings be upon him):
every innovation is going astray, and every going astray is in the Fire
كلَّ بدعة ضلالة وكلَّ ضلالة في النارFirst: Because this general phrase must have a specification, and it has no specification.
Second: Because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), as we mentioned earlier, used to repeat it every Friday. It is inconceivable that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) would repeat this universal principle to the hearing of his Companions and then not follow it up with any specification on any day. This is a proof beyond proof that this rule remains in its universality, comprehensiveness, and generality, especially since the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) repeated it in some of his other sermons, as narrated by the compilers of the Sunan. As for this Sermon of Need that we mentioned, it is from the hadith of Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him) in *Sahih Muslim*, except that the addition:
and every going astray is in the Fire
وكلَّ ضلالة في النارThen, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) repeated this universal principle on other occasions, among which is what was narrated by the compilers of the Sunan, led by Abu Dawud, and al-Tirmidhi, who graded it authentic, from the hadith of al-'Arba' ibn Sariyah (may Allah be pleased with him). He said:
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) gave us a sermon that made our hearts tremble and our eyes shed tears. We said: "O Messenger of Allah, give us a bequest." He said: "I bequeath to you obedience to Allah and His Messenger, even if a slave is appointed over you. And whoever lives among you will see much disagreement. So hold fast to my Sunnah and the Sunnah of the Rightly Guided Caliphs after me. Bite into them with your molars. And beware of newly invented matters, for every newly invented matter is a religious innovation, and every religious innovation is misguidance."
وَعَظنا رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم موعظةً وجِلَت منها القلوب وذرفت منها العيون، فقلنا: أوصنا يا رسول الله! قال: أوصيكم بالسمع والطاعة وإن ولي عليكم عبدٌ حبشي، وإنه مَن يعش منكم فسيرى اختلافًا كثيرًا، فعليكم بسنتي وسنة الخلفاء الراشدين المهديين من بعدي، عَضُّوا عليها بالنواجِذ، وإياكم ومُحدَثات الأمور فإنَّ كلَّ محدثة بدعة وكلَّ بدعة ضلالةSo here you see and hear that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) repeated this universal principle in another sermon and a lecture he delivered to his Companions (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), until it came in a narration:
Al-'Arba' said: We said: "O Messenger of Allah, it is as if it is the bequest of one who is about to depart, so give us a bequest that we will not need anyone after you forever." He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I bequeath to you the fear of Allah... until he said... and beware of newly invented matters, for every newly invented matter is a religious innovation, and every religious innovation is misguidance."
أن العرباض قال: قلنا: يا رسول الله كأنها وصية مودع فأوصنا وصية لا نحتاج إلى أحدٍ بعدك أبدًا، فقال عليه الصلاة والسلام: أوصيكم بتقوى الله -إلى أن قال- وإياكم ومحدثات الأمور فإنَّ كلَّ مُحدَثة بدعة وكلَّ بدعة ضلالةIf the matter is such, and the matter with every religious innovation is that it is misguidance, no matter what its status is, and some people think it is good, then that is a clear error, contradicting his saying (peace and blessings be upon him):