From the Principles of the People of the Sunnah and the Community
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What are the principles of the issues such that whoever opposes them has opposed the methodology of the People of the Sunnah and the Community?
These principles were mentioned by Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) in *Al-'Aqeedah al-Wasatiyyah*. *Al-'Aqeedah al-Wasatiyyah* is a well-known, concise book among most students of knowledge; however, it is a blessed book containing much good.
He (may Allah have mercy on him) mentioned, when he finished speaking about the intention of the Sunnah, that: The People of the Sunnah and the Community are a middle path among the sects of this Ummah, just as the Ummah is a middle path among the nations.
So our Ummah—praise be to Allah—is a middle path between the nations; between the Jews and the Christians, in creed and in deeds.
First: In creed: We find that the Jews belittled Allah (Mighty and Majestic) until they described Him with the despicable attributes of the created.
What did they say? [Al-Imran: 181],And they said: [Al-Ma'idah: 64],And they said: That Allah became tired, so He rested on the day of Saturday after creating the heavens and the earth, thus equating the Creator with the created.
And the Christians are the opposite; they equated the created with the Creator and made 'Isa ibn Maryam a god alongside Allah. [Al-Ma'idah: 116].
Second: In deeds:In the messengers: The Jews lied to the prophets and killed the prophets without right, while the Christians exaggerated regarding the prophets and made 'Isa a god.
As for this Ummah—praise be to Allah—They opposed them in these two principles and said: Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) is described with attributes of perfection, and there is nothing like Him, and no one among the created has reached what is specific to Allah in terms of attributes.
In the messengers: This Ummah said: The servants of Allah and His messengers have no right to lordship or to divinity, and they are truthful and verified.
In the lawful and the forbidden: We find that Allah the Exalted restricted the foods for the Jews. [Al-An'am: 146].
And the Christians permit every foul thing and eat whatever moves, while for this Ummah, Allah has made lawful the good things and forbidden the bad things.
In the issue of the menstruating woman: We also find that the Jews do not approach the menstruating woman, do not eat with her, and do not gather with her in a house, while the Christians are the opposite and do not care about ritual impurities.
And this Ummah—praise be to Allah—is a middle path; they eat with the menstruating woman, sit with her, and a man may have physical contact with his menstruating wife in everything except intercourse.
In conclusion: That this Ummah is a middle path between the nations.
Likewise, the People of the Sunnah and the Community are a middle path between the sects of the Ummah in the five principles mentioned by him (may Allah have mercy on him).
The first principle: In the chapter of Names and Attributes: They are a middle path between the *Mumaththilah* (those who liken Allah to creation) and the *Mu'attilah* (those who deny the divine attributes),The one who is likened: One group says: The attributes of Allah the Exalted are like our attributes; so the Face of Allah is like our faces, His Eye is like our eyes, His Hand is like our hands, and so on.
And the *Mu'attilah* are the opposite; they deny what Allah described Himself with,And they say: saying that Allah has no Face, no Hand, no Eye, and so on, and [An-Nisa: 46] in these matters.
The second principle: In the matter of divine decree: Likewise, the People of the Sunnah and the Community are a middle path in the divine decree,There are two lost sects in the issue of divine decree: The first group: the *Jabriyyah* (determinists),She says: They say that man is compelled in his actions and has no choice or will,And the other sect: The *Qadariyyah* (those who deny divine decree),She says: They say that man is independent and Allah has no connection to him; he acts without the will of Allah and without His creation.
And the people of the Sunnah and the community said: The People of the Sunnah say that man acts by his choice and is a chooser; but whatever action he performs is by the will of Allah the Exalted and His creation.
The third principle: In the names of faith and religion: So in the names of faith and religion, we find among the opposing sects: the *Mu'tazilah* and the *Khawarij* on one side, and the *Murji'ah* on the other side.
The Mu'tazilah and the Khawarij said: They say that if a man commits zina, he exits from faith, so he is not a believer, and it is not true that he is a believer ever.
And the Murji'ah, who are their opposites, said: They say that even if a man commits zina and steals, he is a complete believer, and his faith is like the faith of the most obedient of people to Allah.
And the people of the Sunnah and the community said: The People of the Sunnah say that if a man commits zina or steals, he is a believer with deficient faith, or a believer in his faith but an open sinner in his major sin.
The fourth principle: In rulings: So in the rulings of a man regarding his action, what happens if he commits a major sin?The Mu'tazilah and the Khawarij said: They say that he will remain in the Fire forever with the hypocrites; with Abu Jahl, Abu Lahab, and others,And the Murji'ah said: No.
Rather, the doer of a major sin will not enter the Fire at all, and it is not possible.
And the people of the Sunnah and the community said: He deserves punishment, but Allah may forgive him.
The fifth principle: Regarding the Companions of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him): This is the fifth principle mentioned by Shaykh al-Islam. So the People of Innovation divided regarding the Companions of the Messenger into two groups: A group that declared them disbelievers and misguided them, like the *Rafidah*, except for the Household of the Prophet, in whom they exaggerated and elevated them above their station,So they became lost regarding the Companions in two respects: From the side of declaring disbelievers and misleading, except for the Household of the Prophet, and from the side of exaggeration regarding the Household of the Prophet.
And there is a group opposite them called: The *Khawarij*, who are the *Nawasib*, declared 'Ali ibn Abi Talib a disbeliever, rebelled against him, fought him, and made his blood lawful.
As for the people of the Sunnah and the community, they said: The Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) are the best of generations and the best of the Ummah, and they have their right which is obligatory upon us. And the Household of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) have the right of kinship with the believers in him, along with faith and companionship, if they are among the Companions; but we do not exaggerate in them as the *Rafidah* did, nor do we defect in them as the *Khawarij* did, but we give them their right without exaggeration or shortcoming.
Likewise, among the principles in which the People of the Sunnah and the People of Innovation differ is: Rebellion against the rulers: The *Haruriyyah*, these *Khawarij*, rebelled against the Imam of the Muslims, declared him a disbeliever, fought him, and made the blood of the Muslims lawful because of that.
And as for the people of the Sunnah and the community, they say: It is obligatory upon us to hear and obey the one in authority in whatever he does of major sins and open sinfulness, as long as it does not reach the limit of open disbelief. Then, at that time, we fight him if fighting him does not lead to evil and fitnah. This is because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade rebellion against the rulers except with conditions, and he said: (Except if you see open disbelief with which you have proof from Allah),Four conditions: The first condition: That you see,Meaning: With your own eyes, or you know of it.
The second: Disbelief, not open sinfulness,Meaning: Even if you see that he commits zina, or steals, or kills the soul protected by Allah without right, without making it lawful, he is not a disbeliever but an open sinner among the open sinners, and it is not permissible for us to rebel against him,So the Messenger said: Disbelief.
The third: Open, meaning: Explicit, where no figurative interpretation is possible. If figurative interpretation is possible, then we do not declare him a disbeliever, and we do not rebel against him.
The fourth: With which you have proof from Allah,Meaning: The disbelief we see as open is not disbelief by analogy or the like; rather, we must have proof and clear evidence from the Book and the Sunnah regarding it.
These are four conditions, and there is a fifth condition taken from other evidences,And it is: That we have the ability to remove this disbelieving ruler who has committed explicit disbelief with which we have proof from Allah, so that we have the ability to do so. If we do not have the ability, the evil we want to remove becomes greater than if we left it as it is, and then we try to reform what we can by one means or another.
And for this reason, some of the brothers who have—praise be to Allah—Islamic zeal and religion make a mistake when they rebel against those whom Allah the Exalted has appointed over them. Allah is Wise, so He is the One who appoints some oppressors over others. Do not think that if the rulers oppress or transgress, this is a decree from Allah the Exalted merely by the will of Allah, but it is for a wisdom;Because Allah said: [Al-An'am: 129].
And the rulers do not dominate the subjects except because of the subjects. (As you are, so will you be ruled over), So some of the people who try to rebel against those whom Allah has appointed over them, even by force, are actually making a mistake from several aspects: The first: That it is necessary to know what happened from this one whom Allah has appointed over them, so we must know. Mere reports that are transmitted should not be believed, and how many false statements have been transmitted to us, whether regarding the rulers or those below the rulers. If we verify, we find that they have no basis,For this reason, the hadith came: (Except if you see disbelief).
The second: If we see this thing with our own eyes, or it reaches us as mass-transmitted from trustworthy people, we must present it to the Book and the Sunnah and look to see if it is disbelief or open sinfulness?The third: It must be open. If we think it is disbelief, we must look to see if there is proof from Allah? Is it explicit disbelief that does not allow for figurative interpretation? Because it may be disbelief; but the person is excused in it from the side of figurative interpretation.
So it must be open, explicit, and clear, not allowing for figurative interpretation.
The fourth: We must have proof from Allah regarding it, which is the decisive and clear evidence.
And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) restricted that,Meaning: Rebellion against the rulers with these restrictions which some people may think are difficult; because what results from rebellion is more harmful than what they are currently in.
And you are witnessing now what has happened with the revolutions; were the peoples happier after the revolution than they were before? Absolutely not.
On the contrary, and there is no need to specify certain countries in this place, because the matter is clear.
So the important thing is that we advise our Muslim brothers not to be hasty.
These principles were mentioned by Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) in *Al-'Aqeedah al-Wasatiyyah*. *Al-'Aqeedah al-Wasatiyyah* is a well-known, concise book among most students of knowledge; however, it is a blessed book containing much good.
He (may Allah have mercy on him) mentioned, when he finished speaking about the intention of the Sunnah, that: The People of the Sunnah and the Community are a middle path among the sects of this Ummah, just as the Ummah is a middle path among the nations.
So our Ummah—praise be to Allah—is a middle path between the nations; between the Jews and the Christians, in creed and in deeds.
First: In creed: We find that the Jews belittled Allah (Mighty and Majestic) until they described Him with the despicable attributes of the created.
What did they say?
who said, "Indeed, Allah is poor
قَالُوا إِنَّ اللَّهَ فَقِيرٌThe hand of Allah is chained
يَدُ اللَّهِ مَغْلُولَةٌAnd the Christians are the opposite; they equated the created with the Creator and made 'Isa ibn Maryam a god alongside Allah.
And [beware the Day] when Allah will say, "O Jesus, Son of Mary, did you say to the people, 'Take me and my mother as deities besides Allah?'"
وَإِذْ قَالَ اللَّهُ يَا عِيسَى ابْنَ مَرْيَمَ أَأَنْتَ قُلْتَ لِلنَّاسِ اتَّخِذُونِي وَأُمِّيَ إِلَهَيْنِ مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِSecond: In deeds:In the messengers: The Jews lied to the prophets and killed the prophets without right, while the Christians exaggerated regarding the prophets and made 'Isa a god.
As for this Ummah—praise be to Allah—They opposed them in these two principles and said: Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) is described with attributes of perfection, and there is nothing like Him, and no one among the created has reached what is specific to Allah in terms of attributes.
In the messengers: This Ummah said: The servants of Allah and His messengers have no right to lordship or to divinity, and they are truthful and verified.
In the lawful and the forbidden: We find that Allah the Exalted restricted the foods for the Jews.
And to those who are Jews We prohibited every animal of uncloven hoof; and of the cattle and the sheep We prohibited to them their fat, except what adheres to their backs or the entrails or what is joined with bone. [By] that We repaid them for their injustice. And indeed, We are truthful.
وَعَلَى الَّذِينَ هَادُوا حَرَّمْنَا كُلَّ ذِي ظُفُرٍ وَمِنَ الْبَقَرِ وَالْغَنَمِ حَرَّمْنَا عَلَيْهِمْ شُحُومَهُمَا إِلَّا مَا حَمَلَتْ ظُهُورُهُمَا أَوِ الْحَوَايَا أَوْ مَا اخْتَلَطَ بِعَظْمٍ ذَلِكَ جَزَيْنَاهُمْ بِبَغْيِهِمْ وَإِنَّا لَصَادِقُونَAnd the Christians permit every foul thing and eat whatever moves, while for this Ummah, Allah has made lawful the good things and forbidden the bad things.
In the issue of the menstruating woman: We also find that the Jews do not approach the menstruating woman, do not eat with her, and do not gather with her in a house, while the Christians are the opposite and do not care about ritual impurities.
And this Ummah—praise be to Allah—is a middle path; they eat with the menstruating woman, sit with her, and a man may have physical contact with his menstruating wife in everything except intercourse.
In conclusion: That this Ummah is a middle path between the nations.
Likewise, the People of the Sunnah and the Community are a middle path between the sects of the Ummah in the five principles mentioned by him (may Allah have mercy on him).
The first principle: In the chapter of Names and Attributes: They are a middle path between the *Mumaththilah* (those who liken Allah to creation) and the *Mu'attilah* (those who deny the divine attributes),The one who is likened: One group says: The attributes of Allah the Exalted are like our attributes; so the Face of Allah is like our faces, His Eye is like our eyes, His Hand is like our hands, and so on.
And the *Mu'attilah* are the opposite; they deny what Allah described Himself with,And they say: saying that Allah has no Face, no Hand, no Eye, and so on, and
distort words from their [proper] usages
يُحَرِّفُونَ الْكَلِمَ عَنْ مَوَاضِعِهِThe second principle: In the matter of divine decree: Likewise, the People of the Sunnah and the Community are a middle path in the divine decree,There are two lost sects in the issue of divine decree: The first group: the *Jabriyyah* (determinists),She says: They say that man is compelled in his actions and has no choice or will,And the other sect: The *Qadariyyah* (those who deny divine decree),She says: They say that man is independent and Allah has no connection to him; he acts without the will of Allah and without His creation.
And the people of the Sunnah and the community said: The People of the Sunnah say that man acts by his choice and is a chooser; but whatever action he performs is by the will of Allah the Exalted and His creation.
The third principle: In the names of faith and religion: So in the names of faith and religion, we find among the opposing sects: the *Mu'tazilah* and the *Khawarij* on one side, and the *Murji'ah* on the other side.
The Mu'tazilah and the Khawarij said: They say that if a man commits zina, he exits from faith, so he is not a believer, and it is not true that he is a believer ever.
And the Murji'ah, who are their opposites, said: They say that even if a man commits zina and steals, he is a complete believer, and his faith is like the faith of the most obedient of people to Allah.
And the people of the Sunnah and the community said: The People of the Sunnah say that if a man commits zina or steals, he is a believer with deficient faith, or a believer in his faith but an open sinner in his major sin.
The fourth principle: In rulings: So in the rulings of a man regarding his action, what happens if he commits a major sin?The Mu'tazilah and the Khawarij said: They say that he will remain in the Fire forever with the hypocrites; with Abu Jahl, Abu Lahab, and others,And the Murji'ah said: No.
Rather, the doer of a major sin will not enter the Fire at all, and it is not possible.
And the people of the Sunnah and the community said: He deserves punishment, but Allah may forgive him.
The fifth principle: Regarding the Companions of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him): This is the fifth principle mentioned by Shaykh al-Islam. So the People of Innovation divided regarding the Companions of the Messenger into two groups: A group that declared them disbelievers and misguided them, like the *Rafidah*, except for the Household of the Prophet, in whom they exaggerated and elevated them above their station,So they became lost regarding the Companions in two respects: From the side of declaring disbelievers and misleading, except for the Household of the Prophet, and from the side of exaggeration regarding the Household of the Prophet.
And there is a group opposite them called: The *Khawarij*, who are the *Nawasib*, declared 'Ali ibn Abi Talib a disbeliever, rebelled against him, fought him, and made his blood lawful.
As for the people of the Sunnah and the community, they said: The Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) are the best of generations and the best of the Ummah, and they have their right which is obligatory upon us. And the Household of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) have the right of kinship with the believers in him, along with faith and companionship, if they are among the Companions; but we do not exaggerate in them as the *Rafidah* did, nor do we defect in them as the *Khawarij* did, but we give them their right without exaggeration or shortcoming.
Likewise, among the principles in which the People of the Sunnah and the People of Innovation differ is: Rebellion against the rulers: The *Haruriyyah*, these *Khawarij*, rebelled against the Imam of the Muslims, declared him a disbeliever, fought him, and made the blood of the Muslims lawful because of that.
And as for the people of the Sunnah and the community, they say: It is obligatory upon us to hear and obey the one in authority in whatever he does of major sins and open sinfulness, as long as it does not reach the limit of open disbelief. Then, at that time, we fight him if fighting him does not lead to evil and fitnah. This is because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade rebellion against the rulers except with conditions, and he said: (Except if you see open disbelief with which you have proof from Allah),Four conditions: The first condition: That you see,Meaning: With your own eyes, or you know of it.
The second: Disbelief, not open sinfulness,Meaning: Even if you see that he commits zina, or steals, or kills the soul protected by Allah without right, without making it lawful, he is not a disbeliever but an open sinner among the open sinners, and it is not permissible for us to rebel against him,So the Messenger said: Disbelief.
The third: Open, meaning: Explicit, where no figurative interpretation is possible. If figurative interpretation is possible, then we do not declare him a disbeliever, and we do not rebel against him.
The fourth: With which you have proof from Allah,Meaning: The disbelief we see as open is not disbelief by analogy or the like; rather, we must have proof and clear evidence from the Book and the Sunnah regarding it.
These are four conditions, and there is a fifth condition taken from other evidences,And it is: That we have the ability to remove this disbelieving ruler who has committed explicit disbelief with which we have proof from Allah, so that we have the ability to do so. If we do not have the ability, the evil we want to remove becomes greater than if we left it as it is, and then we try to reform what we can by one means or another.
And for this reason, some of the brothers who have—praise be to Allah—Islamic zeal and religion make a mistake when they rebel against those whom Allah the Exalted has appointed over them. Allah is Wise, so He is the One who appoints some oppressors over others. Do not think that if the rulers oppress or transgress, this is a decree from Allah the Exalted merely by the will of Allah, but it is for a wisdom;Because Allah said:
And thus will We make some of the wrongdoers allies of others for what they used to earn.
وَكَذَلِكَ نُوَلِّي بَعْضَ الظَّالِمِينَ بَعْضاً بِمَا كَانُوا يَكْسِبُونَAnd the rulers do not dominate the subjects except because of the subjects. (As you are, so will you be ruled over), So some of the people who try to rebel against those whom Allah has appointed over them, even by force, are actually making a mistake from several aspects: The first: That it is necessary to know what happened from this one whom Allah has appointed over them, so we must know. Mere reports that are transmitted should not be believed, and how many false statements have been transmitted to us, whether regarding the rulers or those below the rulers. If we verify, we find that they have no basis,For this reason, the hadith came: (Except if you see disbelief).
The second: If we see this thing with our own eyes, or it reaches us as mass-transmitted from trustworthy people, we must present it to the Book and the Sunnah and look to see if it is disbelief or open sinfulness?The third: It must be open. If we think it is disbelief, we must look to see if there is proof from Allah? Is it explicit disbelief that does not allow for figurative interpretation? Because it may be disbelief; but the person is excused in it from the side of figurative interpretation.
So it must be open, explicit, and clear, not allowing for figurative interpretation.
The fourth: We must have proof from Allah regarding it, which is the decisive and clear evidence.
And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) restricted that,Meaning: Rebellion against the rulers with these restrictions which some people may think are difficult; because what results from rebellion is more harmful than what they are currently in.
And you are witnessing now what has happened with the revolutions; were the peoples happier after the revolution than they were before? Absolutely not.
On the contrary, and there is no need to specify certain countries in this place, because the matter is clear.
So the important thing is that we advise our Muslim brothers not to be hasty.