Imaam al-Albaanee
(may Allaah have mercy on him) stated:
Firstly: The Sunnah is the sole reference point after the Noble Qur’aan. There
are many well-known aayaat concerning this, and the Ummah has a
consensus upon it.
Secondly: The Sunnah has been protected from error and safeguarded from
misguidance, as the Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alayhi wasallam) said in the farewell
sermon, “O people! Indeed, I have left amongst you two things. If you hold
firmly to them, you will never go astray: The Book of Allaah and the Sunnah of
His Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alayhi wasallam).” The same does not hold true
for the opinions and ijtihaadaat of men. Due to this, Imaam Maalik (d.159H)
–rahimahullaah – said, “I am only a human being. I err and I am correct. So look
into my opinions; everything that you find in agreement with the Book and
Sunnah, then take it. And everything you find that is not in agreement with the
Book and the Sunnah, then leave it off.” Shurayh al-Qaadee said, “Verily the
Sunnah takes precedence over your qiyaas (analogical deduction). So follow
and do not innovate, since you will not be misguided by what you take of the aathaar”
Thirdly: The Sunnah is binding evidence by agreement of the Muslims,
contrary to the opinions of men; since the salaf and other than them
from the researching scholars did not consider them to be binding proofs. Imaam
Ahmad (d.241H) –rahimahullaah- said: “As for the opinions of al-Awzaa’ee,
Maalik and Aboo Haneefah, then all of that is merely opinion. Then evidence is
only found in the aathaar.”
Fourthly: It is not possible for the student of knowledge to know true fiqh,
except by studying the Sunnah. It is the sole source after the Qur’aan that
qualifies along with it, because it helps to deduct a correct qiyaas if
the text is unclear. So the errors that occur here are more likely to occur
with those who are ignorant of the Sunnah, such as the qiyaas of a
subsidiary affair over a subsidiary affair or performing qiyaas despite the existence
of a text. Due to this, Ibn Qayyim (d.759H) –rahimahullaah- said, “The most
correct of the people in qiyaas are the Ahlul-Hadeeth. The closer a man
is to the hadeeth, the more correct his qiyaas will be. And the farther
he is from the hadeeth, the more corrupt his qiyaas will be.
Fifthly: It is not possible to pass judgement against what has entered into
the Muslims from innovations and desires, except by way of the Sunnah, just as
the Sunnah is an obstruction in the path of the destructive madhaahib
and strange opinions which their proponents beautify for the Muslims.
Source: A
Return to the Sunnah, p.37-38 by Imaam Muhammad Naasirud-Deen al-Albaanee,
adapted by Maaz Qureshi.
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