Continuation of the discussion on the obligation to refer to the understanding of the righteous Salaf in understanding the Book and the Sunnah.

The Shaykh : From here, this point becomes clear in the saying of Allah the Exalted: This is a verse, and there are hadiths that confirm and clarify this meaning, as is always the case with the Sunnah and the Noble Qur'an. Do not forget the previous verse: And Allah, Mighty and Majestic, revealed to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) two types of revelation: the recited Qur'an, by which one draws near to Allah, Mighty and Majestic, through its recitation, and the unrecited revelation, which is the hadith of the Messenger (peace be upon him). As you know, his hadith is divided into three categories: speech, action, and approval. Therefore, the scholars describe it as unrecited revelation. Thus, the Qur'an is distinguished from this revelation by being recited. The evidence is that the Sunnah contains what confirms this blessed phrase: Among this is the hadith of the sects. We have mentioned the hadith of the sects repeatedly, so we will not lengthen the session by reciting it, but I will remind you of its ending. When it was said to him (peace be upon him), "What is the saved sect out of the seventy-three sects?" He said: Here, the hadith mentions the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), what he was upon, and then he did not stop there but added: So here is a third thing in addition to the Book and the Sunnah, as we understood from the verse: Similarly, here the Messenger (peace be upon him) mentioned what he was upon and added to that what his Companions were upon. Why? Because the Companions were the first to receive the Qur'an fresh and new from the mouth of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), and then they received it explained and interpreted, either by his speech, his action, or his approval. Do we have any way to know these three things except through the path of the Companions? If so, we have no way to understand the Book of Allah and the verbal Sunnah of His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) except as the Companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) understood it. For this reason, it was a characteristic of the saved sect that they be upon what the Messenger and his Companions were upon. He (may the prayer and peace of Allah be upon him) confirmed this meaning with the hadith of al-'Arba' ibn Sariyah. I will not lengthen the session by reciting the hadith, but I will bring its evidence. He (peace be upon him) said: We also say here, as we said regarding the hadith of the saved sect, that he (peace be upon him) said, "Adhere to my Sunnah," and not just that, but he added: Why? You know the answer, for it is not possible for those who came after the first Salaf to understand the Book of Allah and the hadith of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), especially what was of his action or approval, except through the path of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him).