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Refutation of Following Other Than The Messenger
“And We did not send from a Messenger except to be obeyed by God's Permission.” The Qur'an 4:64
In The Name of God, The Vastly Merciful, The Merciful
God, The Exalted, said,
قُلْ يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّاسُ إِنِّى رَسُولُ ٱللَّهِ إِلَيْكُمْ جَمِيعًا ٱلَّذِى لَهُۥ مُلْكُ ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ لَآ إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ يُحْىِۦ وَيُمِيتُ فَـَٔامِنُوا۟ بِٱللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ ٱلنَّبِىِّ ٱلْأُمِّىِّ ٱلَّذِى يُؤْمِنُ بِٱللَّهِ وَكَلِمَٰتِهِۦ وَٱتَّبِعُوهُ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَهْتَدُونَ
“Say (Muhammad), ‘O mankind, indeed I am The Messenger of God to you all, to whom belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth. There is no god except Him, He gives life and causes death. So believe in God and His Messenger, the unlettered prophet, who believes in God and His Words, and follow him that you may be guided.”
And He said, Free is he from imperfection,
وَمَآ أَرْسَلْنَا مِن رَّسُولٍ إِلَّا لِيُطَاعَ بِإِذْنِ ٱللَّهِ
“And We did not send from a Messenger except to be obeyed by God’s Permission.”
And He said, The Exalted,
ٱتَّبِعُوا۟ مَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكُم مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ وَلَا تَتَّبِعُوا۟ مِن دُونِهِۦٓ أَوْلِيَآءَ قَلِيلًا مَّا تَذَكَّرُونَ
“Follow what has been sent down to you from your Lord and do not follow besides Him allies. Little do you remember.”
God, The Exalted, has commanded in very Clear Verses with following His Messenger, and yet today there are many who have taken to following other than him.
They turn aside from The Clear Ayat in God’s Book about following only what He sent down, to obey Him and obey The Messenger, that when we differ to refer it back to God and The Messenger, to follow The Messenger that we might receive mercy, and God knows best how many other Clear Ayat.
And this is with their knowledge that the Companions of God’s Messenger would follow The Messenger, ﷺ, and would not follow other than him from the believers; when they were from them were the best of mankind after The Prophets and The Messengers.
And in actuality, it was from the way of The Hypocrites in the time of The Messenger, those who claimed belief but who were inwardly Disbelievers, that they would turn aside from The Revelation to the statements of the people.
God, The Exalted, said,
وَمِنْهُم مَّن يَسْتَمِعُ إِلَيْكَ حَتَّىٰٓ إِذَا خَرَجُوا۟ مِنْ عِندِكَ قَالُوا۟ لِلَّذِينَ أُوتُوا۟ ٱلْعِلْمَ مَاذَا قَالَ ءَانِفًا أُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ ٱلَّذِينَ طَبَعَ ٱللَّهُ عَلَىٰ قُلُوبِهِمْ وَٱتَّبَعُوٓا۟ أَهْوَآءَهُمْ
“And among them (the Disbelievers) are those who listen to you (Muhammad) until when they depart from you, they say to those who have received knowledge, ‘What did he say just now?’ They are the one God has sealed over their hearts and they follow their desires.”
And strange it is that the Polytheists in the time of The Messenger, ﷺ, were more knowledgeable about the necessity of following what God had sent down than some of the Muslims today, when they said as a futile argument,
وَقَالُوٓا۟ إِن نَّتَّبِعِ ٱلْهُدَىٰ مَعَكَ نُتَخَطَّفْ مِنْ أَرْضِنَآ
“And they say, ‘If we were to follow the guidance with you, we would be swept from our land.’”
So even despite their disbelief and argumentation, the Polytheists knew clearly that they had to follow the guidance which God was sending down, and to not follow instead knowledgeable ones from the believers, for example.
In reality, those who have taken to following other than The Messenger are often following the methodology of the Disbelievers past, as God, The Exalted, has informed us,
وَإِذَا قِيلَ لَهُمْ تَعَالَوْا۟ إِلَىٰ مَآ أَنزَلَ ٱللَّهُ وَإِلَى ٱلرَّسُولِ قَالُوا۟ حَسْبُنَا مَا وَجَدْنَا عَلَيْهِ ءَابَآءَنَآ أَوَلَوْ كَانَ ءَابَآؤُهُمْ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ شَيْـًٔا وَلَا يَهْتَدُونَ
“And when it is said to them, ‘Come to what God has sent down and to The Messenger,’ they say, ‘Sufficient for us is what upon we found our fathers upon.’ Even though their fathers knew nothing, nor were they guided?”
So when it is said to them, “God said, The Messenger of God, ﷺ, said…”, they pay no attention and suffice themselves with what their fathers were upon.
Many of them have grown up in societies where following a particular person other than The Messenger, ﷺ, or a Madhab, despite both being innovations, have become the norm. They know that if they were to return to following what God sent down and to not take besides Him allies (as the Sahabah did), that people may break away from them and leave them.
And there are those who have knowledge among them who know that if they were to openly proclaim the truth, that following other than God and His Messenger is an innovation, not permissible and is going astray, that the people may break away from them and they would lose their position with them.
So out of ignorance or desires people remain silent to refute what must be refuted, or worse they try and prop up following other than God and His Messenger, ﷺ, when it is common knowledge that to enter into Islam one must bear witness that there is no god except God and Muhammad is The Messenger of God!
Doubts
And these individuals are, as God, The Exalted, has informed us,
هُوَ ٱلَّذِىٓ أَنزَلَ عَلَيْكَ ٱلْكِتَٰبَ مِنْهُ ءَايَٰتٌ مُّحْكَمَٰتٌ هُنَّ أُمُّ ٱلْكِتَٰبِ وَأُخَرُ مُتَشَٰبِهَٰتٌ فَأَمَّا ٱلَّذِينَ فِى قُلُوبِهِمْ زَيْغٌ فَيَتَّبِعُونَ مَا تَشَٰبَهَ مِنْهُ ٱبْتِغَآءَ ٱلْفِتْنَةِ وَٱبْتِغَآءَ تَأْوِيلِهِۦ وَمَا يَعْلَمُ تَأْوِيلَهُۥٓ إِلَّا ٱللَّهُ وَٱلرَّٰسِخُونَ فِى ٱلْعِلْمِ يَقُولُونَ ءَامَنَّا بِهِۦ كُلٌّ مِّنْ عِندِ رَبِّنَا وَمَا يَذَّكَّرُ إِلَّآ أُو۟لُوا۟ ٱلْأَلْبَٰبِ
“It is He who has sent down to you (Muhammad) The Book; in it are verses precise - they are The Mother of The Book - and others unspecific. So as for those who in their hearts is a deviation, they follow what is unspecific from it, seeking tribulation and seeking its interpretation. And no one knows its interpretation except God. And those firm in knowledge say, "We believe in it. All are from our Lord." And none will be reminded except those of understanding.”
Asking The People of The Remembrance
And from their doubts is that they will recite The Sayings of God, The Exalted,
وَمَآ أَرْسَلْنَا مِن قَبْلِكَ إِلَّا رِجَالًا نُّوحِىٓ إِلَيْهِمْ فَسْـَٔلُوٓا۟ أَهْلَ ٱلذِّكْرِ إِن كُنتُمْ لَا تَعْلَمُونَ
“And We did not send before you except men to whom We inspired. So ask the People of The Remembrance if you do not know.”
وَمَآ أَرْسَلْنَا قَبْلَكَ إِلَّا رِجَالًا نُّوحِىٓ إِلَيْهِمْ فَسْـَٔلُوٓا۟ أَهْلَ ٱلذِّكْرِ إِن كُنتُمْ لَا تَعْلَمُونَ
“And We did not send before you except men to whom We inspired. So ask the People of The Remembrance if you do not know.”
Not realising, or not wanting to realise that this These Noble Ayat are proofs against them. For in these, God, The Exalted, has commanded those addressed that if they do not know, to ask the People of The Remembrance about The Revelation past.
So if they already knew, they were to act upon that knowledge. And if they did not know, they were to ask the People of The Remembrance about The Revelation.
God did not command them to follow the People of The Remembrance besides what He sent down, which He, The Exalted, clearly prohibited in His Sayings,
ٱتَّبِعُوا۟ مَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكُم مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ وَلَا تَتَّبِعُوا۟ مِن دُونِهِۦٓ أَوْلِيَآءَ قَلِيلًا مَّا تَذَكَّرُونَ
“Follow what has been sent down to you from your Lord and do not follow besides Him allies. Little do you remember.”
And His Saying,
اتَّخَذُوا أَحْبَارَهُمْ وَرُهْبَانَهُمْ أَرْبَابًا مِّن دُونِ اللَّهِ وَالْمَسِيحَ ابْنَ مَرْيَمَ وَمَا أُمِرُوا إِلَّا لِيَعْبُدُوا إِلَٰهًا وَاحِدًا ۖ لَّا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ۚ سُبْحَانَهُ عَمَّا يُشْرِكُونَ
“They took their learned ones and their monks lords besides God, and The Messiah son of Mary (they also took as a lord). And they were not commanded except to worship One God, there is no god except Him. Free is He from what they associate.”
Rather, He, The Exalted, commanded those addressed to ask the People of The Dhikr about The Revelation.
Not to ask them about their opinions and not to follow them as Messengers, all of which He, The Mighty and Majestic, has prohibited clearly.
So we say to those who have misunderstood these Ayat that if you take a general lesson from these Ayat, then let it be that if you do not know about The Revelation then ask the People of The Remembrance, then follow what God has sent down.
And to cease saying that this is permissible and this is impermissible and when asked why they say “So and so said.” How do you know, maybe they erred? Rather, only speak about your Lord upon knowledge, as He said,
قُلْ إِنَّمَا حَرَّمَ رَبِّىَ ٱلْفَوَٰحِشَ مَا ظَهَرَ مِنْهَا وَمَا بَطَنَ وَٱلْإِثْمَ وَٱلْبَغْىَ بِغَيْرِ ٱلْحَقِّ وَأَن تُشْرِكُوا۟ بِٱللَّهِ مَا لَمْ يُنَزِّلْ بِهِۦ سُلْطَٰنًا وَأَن تَقُولُوا۟ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ مَا لَا تَعْلَمُونَ
Say, "My Lord has only forbidden immoralities - what is apparent of them and what is concealed - and sin, and oppression without right, and that you associate with God what He has not sent down authority for, and that you say upon God what you do not know."
And He said,
وَلَا تَقْفُ مَا لَيْسَ لَكَ بِهِۦ عِلْمٌ إِنَّ ٱلسَّمْعَ وَٱلْبَصَرَ وَٱلْفُؤَادَ كُلُّ أُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ كَانَ عَنْهُ مَسْـُٔولًا
“And do not pursue what you do not have knowledge of. Indeed, the hearing, the sight and the heart, each of those about which will be questioned.”
So if you wish to speak about your Lord, what He has made permissible and impermissible, then this is only know by His Revelations - so speak with it or remain silent.
God, The Exalted said,
عَٰلِمُ ٱلْغَيْبِ فَلَا يُظْهِرُ عَلَىٰ غَيْبِهِۦٓ أَحَدًا
“Knower of The Unseen, and He does not disclose His unseen to anyone.”
إِلَّا مَنِ ٱرْتَضَىٰ مِن رَّسُولٍ فَإِنَّهُۥ يَسْلُكُ مِنۢ بَيْنِ يَدَيْهِ وَمِنْ خَلْفِهِۦ رَصَدًا
“Except whom He has approved of Messengers, and indeed, He sends before and behind him watching guards.”
And He said,
وَلَا تَقُولُوا۟ لِمَا تَصِفُ أَلْسِنَتُكُمُ ٱلْكَذِبَ هَٰذَا حَلَٰلٌ وَهَٰذَا حَرَامٌ لِّتَفْتَرُوا۟ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ ٱلْكَذِبَ إِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ يَفْتَرُونَ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ ٱلْكَذِبَ لَا يُفْلِحُونَ
“And do not say about what your tongues assert of untruth, 'This is lawful and this is unlawful,' to invent falsehood upon God. Indeed, those who invent falsehood upon God will not succeed.”
Understanding The Revelation
And from their doubts then, is that they say, “But we are simple people and cannot understand what God sent down, so we follow so and so.” Or more evil and repugnant is their implication that The Revelation cannot be understood except by some particular person who is required to be followed.
Rather, God, The King, The Omnipotent, said,
ٱتَّبِعُوا۟ مَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكُم مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ وَلَا تَتَّبِعُوا۟ مِن دُونِهِۦٓ أَوْلِيَآءَ قَلِيلًا مَّا تَذَكَّرُونَ
“Follow what has been sent down to you from your Lord and do not follow besides Him allies. Little do you remember.”
God has commanded us to follow only what He sent down and to not follow besides him allies. And He, The Exalted, has made it easy for us to do that, having made our Religion clear for us, as He said,
وَأَنزَلْنَآ إِلَيْكَ ٱلذِّكْرَ لِتُبَيِّنَ لِلنَّاسِ مَا نُزِّلَ إِلَيْهِمْ وَلَعَلَّهُمْ يَتَفَكَّرُونَ
“And We have sent down to you (Muhammad) The Remembrance that you make clear to the people what was sent down to them and that they might give thought.”
So The Religion has been made clear in The Qur’an and The Way of The Messenger.
If we don’t know an affair, we seek knowledge of what God sent down. If we don’t understand a particular word, then we learn its meaning from what God sent down if it is defined in The Revelation or if it is not then its meaning in the Arabic Language at the time of revelation.
And there are from the people those who differ in their understanding of what God has sent down. So spending time with those whom God has granted greater understanding is something good, and conveying to them narrations to see what they understand from it seeking understanding in the Religion is something good. So when they are correct in their understanding then take it and when they are incorrect then leave it.
However, we do not claim that The Revelation has not been made clear such that only some are able to understand it and that the people are required to follow them besides what God sent down.
Rather, the one who knows conveys to the one who doesn’t and if they are greater in understanding and they narrate to you what is correct of its understanding then take it and if they err then leave it.
In reality, those who spread the doubts that people are required to follow other than The Revelation are in fact seeking to approve of the methodology of The Hypocrites about whom God has informed us,
وَمِنْهُم مَّن يَسْتَمِعُ إِلَيْكَ حَتَّىٰٓ إِذَا خَرَجُوا۟ مِنْ عِندِكَ قَالُوا۟ لِلَّذِينَ أُوتُوا۟ ٱلْعِلْمَ مَاذَا قَالَ ءَانِفًا أُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ ٱلَّذِينَ طَبَعَ ٱللَّهُ عَلَىٰ قُلُوبِهِمْ وَٱتَّبَعُوٓا۟ أَهْوَآءَهُمْ
“And among them (the disbelievers) are those who listen to you (Muhammad) until when they depart from you, they say to those who have received knowledge, ‘What did he say just now?’ They are the one God has sealed over their hearts and they follow their desires.”
And from them are those who are seeking to approve of the way of the Disbelievers who,
اتَّخَذُوا أَحْبَارَهُمْ وَرُهْبَانَهُمْ أَرْبَابًا مِّن دُونِ اللَّهِ وَالْمَسِيحَ ابْنَ مَرْيَمَ وَمَا أُمِرُوا إِلَّا لِيَعْبُدُوا إِلَٰهًا وَاحِدًا ۖ لَّا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ۚ سُبْحَانَهُ عَمَّا يُشْرِكُونَ
“They took their learned ones and their monks lords besides God, and The Messiah son of Mary (they also took as a lord). And they were not commanded except to worship One God, there is no god except Him. Free is He from what they associate.”
So they abandon seeking knowledge of The Religion which God has obligated upon every Muslim, as it’s narrated from His Messenger, ﷺ, that he said,
طلب العلم فريضة على كل مسلم
“Seeking knowledge is obligatory upon every Muslim.”
Reported by Ibn Majah (223, page 92) and Considered Authentic by Al-Albani, Chains of Narration Discussed in Takhrij al-Mushkilat Al-Faqr (87, page 48)
And they abandon their intellects to following so and so and so and so.
So you will see them give those who the have taken titles such that they do not even given the Companions of God’s Messenger. And they say that we are Shaf'i, we are Maliki we are Hanbali, etc.
Rather, this is the prohibited splitting up and becoming sects that God prohibited us when He said,
وَلَا تَكُونُوا۟ مِنَ ٱلْمُشْرِكِينَ
“…and do not be of the Polytheists.”
مِنَ ٱلَّذِينَ فَرَّقُوا۟ دِينَهُمْ وَكَانُوا۟ شِيَعًا كُلُّ حِزْبٍۭ بِمَا لَدَيْهِمْ فَرِحُونَ
“From those who split up their religion and became sects. Each faction at what is with them rejoicing.”
So it is clear that being a part of these groups and madhabs are innovations. Rather, we are obligated to be from The Jama’ah, The Main Body of Muslims as it was in the time of The Prophet, ﷺ, and its prohibited to become groups and split away.
And God said, The Exalted,
إِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ فَرَّقُوا۟ دِينَهُمْ وَكَانُوا۟ شِيَعًا لَّسْتَ مِنْهُمْ فِى شَىْءٍ إِنَّمَآ أَمْرُهُمْ إِلَى ٱللَّهِ ثُمَّ يُنَبِّئُهُم بِمَا كَانُوا۟ يَفْعَلُونَ
“Indeed, those who have divided their religion and were sects, you (Muhammad) are not from them in anything. Their affair is only to God, then He will inform them about what they used to do.”
Argumentation
So then after realising that they have opposed what God has sent down, you may find that the people become groups, those who return to the truth by their Lord’s Permission, those who may begin to attack those who call them to what God has sent down and those who remain silent and try to adopt a way between.
As is often the case, the attackers will begin to attack The Jama’ah by accusing them of the opposite of their exaggeration.
So they say, “They are trying to turn the people away from what our fathers were upon”.
And this is similar to the way of Fir’aun and those with him when they said to Musa (Moses),
قَالُوٓا۟ أَجِئْتَنَا لِتَلْفِتَنَا عَمَّا وَجَدْنَا عَلَيْهِ ءَابَآءَنَا وَتَكُونَ لَكُمَا ٱلْكِبْرِيَآءُ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ وَمَا نَحْنُ لَكُمَا بِمُؤْمِنِينَ
“They said, ‘Have you come to us to turn us away from what we found our fathers upon and there be for you two (Moses and Aaron) greatness in the land? And we are not believers in you two.’”
Or they say, “ You are trying to turn us away from our Knowledgeable Ones!”
Rather, we are calling people to have the correct relationship with the knowledgeable of this ‘Ummah (Nation) and to give them their right and not the right of The Messenger, ﷺ.
God, The Exalted and Free from imperfections, said,
ٱتَّبِعُوا۟ مَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكُم مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ وَلَا تَتَّبِعُوا۟ مِن دُونِهِۦٓ أَوْلِيَآءَ قَلِيلًا مَّا تَذَكَّرُونَ
“Follow what has been sent down to you from your Lord and do not follow besides Him allies. Little do you remember.”
And He said,
يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓا۟ أَطِيعُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُوا۟ ٱلرَّسُولَ وَأُو۟لِى ٱلْأَمْرِ مِنكُمْ فَإِن تَنَٰزَعْتُمْ فِى شَىْءٍ فَرُدُّوهُ إِلَى ٱللَّهِ وَٱلرَّسُولِ إِن كُنتُمْ تُؤْمِنُونَ بِٱللَّهِ وَٱلْيَوْمِ ٱلْءَاخِرِ ذَٰلِكَ خَيْرٌ وَأَحْسَنُ تَأْوِيلًا
“O you who have believed, obey God and obey The Messenger and those in authority over you. And if you disagree among yourselves in anything then return it back to God and The Messenger if you truly believe in God and The Last Day. That is better and the most excellent outcome.”
And this Ayah addressed the Sahabah, who were the most knowledge of this Nation after The Messenger, ﷺ. So it is clear is that when we, the knowledgeable ones among us and the less knowledgeable ones among us, differ in anything, then we refer it back to God and His Messenger.
And it is narrated that His Prophet, ﷺ, said,
ان العلماء هم ورثة الانبياء ان الانبياء لم يورثوا دينارا ولا درهما انما ورثوا العلم فمن اخذه اخذ بحظ وافر
“Indeed, the Knowledgeable, they are the inheritors of the Prophets. Indeed, The Prophets do not leave gold coins or silver coins as inheritance, they only leave knowledge as inheritance. So whoever takes it has taken an abundant portion.”
Reported by Ibn Majah (222, page 92) and Considered Authentic by Al-Albani, Chains of Narration Discussed in Saheeh Al-Targheeb wal-Tarheeb (70, page 138)
The Knowledgeable are the inheritors of The Prophets. We go to them to take from that inheritance, not to take them as lords besides God or to follow them besides the one who God sent to us to be followed.
To Conclude
God, The Exalted and Free from imperfections, said,
قُلْ إِن كُنتُمْ تُحِبُّونَ ٱللَّهَ فَٱتَّبِعُونِى يُحْبِبْكُمُ ٱللَّهُ وَيَغْفِرْ لَكُمْ ذُنُوبَكُمْ وَٱللَّهُ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ
"Say, ‘If you should love God, then follow me, God will love you and forgive for you your sins. And God is Forgiving, Merciful.’”