The Path To Guidance
THE METHODOLOGY OF A MUSLIM
Know, may Allaah have mercy upon you, that the methodology a Muslim adopts in reaching his Lord, safe and secure, is suspended between two matters.
(i) Holding fast to the Sunnah and its people, its aiders, allies
and supporters and
(ii) avoiding all innovation, its people, its aiders, allies and
supporters, those "deceiving, surmising, cheating, lying, beautifiers
of speech." 37 This is the Straight
Path of Allaah, that which leads to Him and in which there is no
crookedness, neither to the left, nor to the right.
Imaam as-Shaatibee (may Allaah have mercy on him) said, "And 'Umar ibn Salamah al-Hamdaanee said, ‘We were sitting in the circle of Ibn Mas'ood in the mosque, which was still plain ground, before it had been covered with gravel. 'Ubaidullaah ibn 'Umar ibn al- Khattaab, who had just returned from an expedition, said to him, ‘What is the straight path, O Aboo 'Abdur-Rahmaan? 'He replied, ‘By the Lord of the Ka'bah, it is that which your father was firmly established upon until he entered Paradise,’ and then he swore firmly upon that three times. Then he drew a line in the ground with his hand and also drew lines to either side of it and said, ‘Your Prophet (PBUH ) left you upon this end and its other end is in Paradise. So whoever remains steadily upon it will enter Paradise and whoever takes any of these lines will be destroyed."
And in another narration (he was asked), ‘O Aboo 'Abdur-Rahmaan, what is the straight path?’ He said, ‘The Messenger (PBUH) left us upon the nearest end of the line and its other end is in Paradise. And to its left and right are roads in which there are men who invite those who pass by them, saying, ‘Come this way! Come this way!’ So whoever is taken by them to those paths will end up in Hell-Fire and whoever remains steadfast upon the great path will end up, through it, in Paradise.' Then Ibn Mas'ood recited:
And verily, this is my Straight Path, so follow it, and follow not (other) paths, for they will separate you away from His Path. This He has ordained for you that you may become al- Muttaqoon.” [Soorah al-Anam (6):153].
And Mujaahid said about the saying of Allaah, “…and follow not (other) paths..” “The innovations and doubts.” And Bakr ibn al- Alaa said about the saying of Allaah, “... for they will separate you away from His Path ...” "He meant the devils amongst men, and these are the innovations and Allaah knows best." [Imaam ash- Shaatibee in Al-I'tisaam (1/40~45)].
The Aider of the Sunnah and Destroyer of Innovations, Imaarn Ahmad (d.241 H) (may Allaah have mercy on him) said, "The fundamental principles of the Sunnah with us are:
(i) Holding fast to what the Companions of Allaah's Messenger (
PBUH) were upon.
(ii) Seeking them (and their way) as a model of guidance.
(iii) Abandoning innovation, for every innovation is misguidance.
(iv) Abandoning controversies and abandoning sitting with the People of
Desires.
(v) And abandoning quarrelling, argumentation and controversies in the
religion."[Reported by al-Laalikaa'ee in his Sharh Usoolul-
I'tiqaad (1/152)].
Aboo Haneefah (d.159H) (may Allaah have mercy on him) said, "Stick to the narration (athar) and the way of the Salaf and beware of newly invented matters, for all of it is innovation." [Related by as-Suyootee in Sawnul-Mantaq wal-Kalaam (p.32)].
Imaam al-Awzaa'ee (d.157H) (may Allaah have mercy on him) said, "Hold fast to the narrations of the Salaf, even if people were to abandon you. Beware of the opinions of the people, no matter how much they beautify it with their speech." [Related by al-Khateeb al- Baghdadee in his Sharaf Ashaabul-Hadeeth (p.7)].
And Imaam al-Laalikaa'ee (d.418H) (may Allaah have mercy on him) said, "That which is most obligatory upon a Muslim is knowledge of the aspects of the creed of the Religion and what Allaah has obligated upon His Servants including the understanding of His Tawheed and of His Attributes, and believing in His Messengers with evidences and with certainty. And arriving at (all of) that and seeking evidences for them with clear proofs.
Among the mightiest of statements and clearest of proofs and understandings is:
(i) The Book of Allah, the Manifest Truth.
(ii) Then the saying of the Messenger of Allaah (PBUH ).
(iii) And of his Companions, the Chosen, pious ones.
(iv) Then that which the Salafus-Saalih were unanimously agree upon.
(v) Hen holding fast of all of that and remaining firm upon it till he
Day of Judgement.
(vi) Then turning away from the innovations and from listening to
them-from amongst those things the astray people have invented.” [Sharh
Usool-I’tiqaad (1/9)].
37 The saying of Aboo Haatim ar-Raazee (d. 264H) as quoted by al-Laalikaa'ee in Sharh Usoolul-I'tiqaad Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jamaa'ah (2/176~182).