Some people say: What do we have to do with the Companions? They are men and we are men, and they differed among themselves.

The questioner : It is observed that many of the questions raised have been posed in previous sessions, such as the issue of a woman driving a car, the issue of rebelling against contemporary rulers, the issue of covering the face for women, and matters related to prayer. Therefore, we are deferring these matters because they have been addressed in other sessions, and they can be obtained from the previous tapes.
There are some new questions, and the general theme of the questions revolves around the virtue ofThe Shaykh : You said that we must follow the Book and the Sunnah, but some people say: What do we have to do with the Companions? They are men and we are men, and they differed among themselves; so how can we refer to them when they differ among themselves on multiple matters?

The Shaykh : I indicated in my previous speech that if the Companions are on a single interpretation, it is not permissible to deviate from them. However, if it is as in the questionThe questioner : If the Companions themselves differed, then it is obligatory for the scholars to verify a text from the texts of the Noble Book, namely His saying - Blessed and Exalted is He - : .
Our previous discussion was - our brothers, you must understand well what we present to you of advice and knowledge - we say: The verse was interpreted by the exegetes in the past, the Companions, the Tabi'un, and the mujtahid imams, and they based some jurisprudential rulings on it, holding that its intended meaning is jihad in the path of Allah. Another opinion of Imam Ahmad is that it also includes Hajj in the path of Allah. No one among the Companions contradicted this at all. Therefore, this question does not apply to what we are discussing; it may apply elsewhere. The answer is that if they differed, then it is correct at that time to say, "We are men and they are men." But what is the weight in knowledge of the one who says, "We are men"? Is he the one we said issues fatwas based on what Allah said, what the Messenger of Allah said, studies the sayings of the Salaf, and knows whether this issue has two opinions or only one? If so, it may be permissible for a person to say, "They are men and we are men." And if this contains some self-praise, that is naturally prohibited by the Shari'ah. But in any case, if he does not say it with the tongue of speech, he can say it with the tongue of reality. Who is it permissible for among the later generations to say about himself with the tongue of reality, "We are men"? And when is it permissible for him to say, "We are men just as they are men"? The answer is: First, it is only permissible for the one who says, "The Companions are men and we are men," among the later generations, if he followed their path, their line, and their methodology in terms of not issuing fatwas based on opinion, but only on what came in the Book and the Sunnah. If the one who says, "They are men and we are men," followed the methodology followed by those men, then it is permissible for him to say - even with the tongue of reality - "We are men just as they are men."
This is first. Second: When does he say this? He says this if they differed. But if they agreed, he is not a man; rather, his saying "We are men" is proof that he is not among the men. Because Allah - Mighty and Majestic - mentioned in the previous verse, which I used as evidence that it is not permissible for anyone today to bring a new interpretation of a text from the old Qur'an of Allah that was previously interpreted in a specific way, that it is not permissible for us now to interpret this text with a new interpretation that has not been preceded.
This would be deviating from what those Companions were upon. And there, the saying of Allah - Mighty and Majestic - and the saying of the Messenger - peace be upon him - is known. As for the saying of Allah, it is the previous verse: . Why did Allah - Mighty and Majestic - mention in this verse ? Why was the verse not: "And whoever opposes the Messenger after the guidance has become clear to him, We will turn him to what he has turned to"? Why did He add this clause conjoined to the Messenger and say: ? That is for what we mentioned earlier: that the Companions who received the knowledge - meaning the Qur'an and the Hadith - directly from the Messenger - may Allah's prayers and blessings be upon him - were the most understanding of people in intellect, the purest of people in hearts, and the most noble of people in souls. Therefore, they were the first to apply the rulings of Allah - Mighty and Majestic - no matter how severe they were on the self, especially if they were newly converted to Islam. These Companions are the ones who received the Qur'an and the Sunnah, understood it, and applied it. If we come at the end of time and contradict them in their understanding and their practice, that verse applies to us: , and we will have followed a path other than the path of the believers. The example is now before you. If there is no one among the Salaf who said: includes all charitable projects; then the meaning of the one who issues a fatwa and interprets the verse with this generality is that he has contradicted the path of the believers. But if they differed as mentioned in the question, then at that time we have a second answer, which is also stated in the Noble Qur'an, and what is it?

The questioner : It is better for you.

The Shaykh : Yes?

The questioner : That is better for you and better in interpretation.

The Shaykh , yes.
And a new problem today is that many people know that there is actually disagreement in the issue, so how do they adopt an opinion and prefer it over another? Not by relying on this divine command and executing it they do not return to Allah and the Messenger. The meaning of the verse, as is known to everyone, is returning to the Book of Allah and to the Hadith of the Messenger of Allah - peace and blessings be upon him. So to what do they return? By Allah, this is the easiest, this is the best, and this means encouraging people to hold fast to the religion. Is this the command of the Lord of the Worlds in the verse? No, . So whoever does not return to this reference, there is an indication in the verse that there is confusion in his heart and weakness in his faith!
Therefore, we, all Muslims in both categories, should: if one is truly among the scholars, his path is to return to the Book of Allah, the Hadith of the Messenger of Allah, and what the Companions of the Messenger of Allah agreed upon. If they disputed, he returns to the Book of Allah and the Hadith of the Messenger of Allah by the ruling of this verse. And if one is among the common people and not among the scholars, the previously mentioned verse applies: . Who are the people of knowledge? We know clearly, as Ibn al-Qayyim said: "Knowledge is what Allah said and what His Messenger said." The people of knowledge are the people of knowledge of the Qur'an and the Sunnah. As for this question, it is about what they disputed. The Companions disputed much in some secondary issues, and they did not differ, praise be to Allah, in anything of the creed, unlike the later generations. When they disputed, the Muslim scholars, especially the mujtahids among them, returned to the Qur'an and the Sunnah, and each preferred what became clear to him as the stronger position.
So I hope that the matter does not become confused for any of the attendees between the obligation of following the Companions in what they agreed upon and not deviating from them with a new opinion, and the fact that if they differed, then at that time we say or they say: "They are men and we are men," with the previous condition: that they refer to the Book of Allah and the Hadith of the Messenger of Allah - peace and blessings be upon him and his family.