In the Name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful
Praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds, may the blessings and peace be upon our beloved master Muhammad, the last of Prophets, on his family, and all his companions.
Dear brothers and sisters! In this our time filled with confusion and misguidance, some Facebook and TikTok accounts have appeared claiming to call people to the Qur’an only — but in reality, wallahi they are attacking Islam from within.
One such misguided individual, a man named Yahaya Masussuka from Katsina state, frequently posts videos calling people to follow the Qur’an alone, falsely claiming that the Prophetic Hadiths are from Shaitan, and openly rejecting the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him).
I personally reached out to him and presented clear evidence from the Qur’an itself showing the importance of the Sunnah (Hadith). However, he completely rejected the truth and insisted on his views, even mocking those who hold firmly to the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him).
Let us all remember that the Qur’an itself commands us to follow the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him), and denying the Sunnah is an attack on the foundation of Islam and a doorway to distorting the religion.
We strongly warn everyone against following such social media accounts. These ideas are misleading and based on misguidance, falsehood and ignorance, with no foundation in authentic Islamic knowledge.
Hadith or Sunnah refers to all that has been reported of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him), whether the reports are sayings, actions, or tacit approvals. It is the second source of Islamic legislation that comes right after the Qur’an. This is affirmed by the Islamic scholar’s consensus (Ijma’).
Hadith or Sunnah are words, actions, consents and characteristics of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him). There are many Qur’anic verses that command us to obey Allah and His Messenger, Prophet Muhammad. Obeying the Prophet means following everything that he has commanded and abstaining from everything that he has forbidden. There are also many verses in the Qur’an that convey to us the Prophet’s task of clarifying what is unclear to us in the Qur’an. Examples of such Qur’anic verses are these:
“O you who believe! Obey Allah, and obey the Messenger and those of you who are in authority; and if you have a dispute concerning any matter, refer it to Allah and the Messenger if you are (in truth) believers in Allah and the Last Day. That is better and more seemly in the end.” [Qur’an, 4:59]
And:
“Whoso obey the Messenger obey Allah, and whoso turn away: We have not sent you as a warder over them.” [Qur’an, 4:80]
And:
“And whatsoever the Messenger gives you, take it. And whatsoever he forbidden, abstain (from it). And keep your duty to Allah. Lo! Allah is stern in reprisal.” [Qur’an, 59:7]
And:
“Make not the calling of the Messenger among you as your calling one of another. Allah knows those of you who steal away, hiding themselves. And let those who conspire to evade orders beware lest grief or painful punishment befall them.” [Qur’an, 24:63]
And:
“With clear proofs and writings; and We have revealed unto you the Remembrance that you may explain to mankind that which has been revealed for them, and that haply they may reflect.” [Qur’an, 16:44]
And:
“But nay, by your lord, they will not believe (in truth) until they make you judge of what is in dispute between them and find within themselves no dislike of that which you decided, and submit with full submission.” [Qur’an, 4:65]
These Qur’anic verses clearly command us to obey the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him). Obeying him means to follow his Sunnah (authentic Hadith). Even though it is undeniable that there are a number of Hadiths that are weak (Da’if) or even fabricated (Mawdu’), the stress here is to follow his Sunnah. The Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) would not speak or act independently without guidance from Allah.
There was never any argument among the Islamic scholars past and present on the status of Sunnah as the second source of Islamic law after the Qur’an.
Those who deny the status and position of Sunnah as the second source of Islamic law, or who reject it altogether, are actually denying the Qur’an as well. This is because the Qur’an commands us to obey and follow the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) through his Sunnah. Thus the consensus (Ijma’) among the Islamic scholars is that those who reject the Sunnah as the second source of Islamic Law are considered as apostates. Their status as Muslims will be automatically revoked.
Rejecting the Sunnah is considered a rejection of Islam because the Qur’an explicitly commands Muslims to obey the Prophet Muhammad, and the Sunnah is how his teachings and example are conveyed. This rejection is considered apostasy (Ridda) because it directly contradicts the Qur’an, which states that obedience to the Messenger is obedience to Allah, and those who turn away do not believe in truth.
Rejecting the Hadith is like rejection of one scripture of Islam. In Islam, it is widely known we have two scriptures. The Qur’an and the Hadith and the Qur’an is direct words from Allah while the Hadith is the action, speeches and silent approval of the messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him).
Allah Almighty says in many places of the Qur’an to follow the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) and his judgement, and whatever he commands us.
And anyone who does not abide by the judgement of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) is a disbeliever (Kafir).
The Hadith was written after the Prophet and memorised and passed from generations until today. Imam Malik wrote Muwatta, Imam Ahmad Ibn Hanbal wrote the Musnad and Imam Shafi’i wrote Al-umm and the rest.
All the previous Islamic scholars and salaf took their worship from Qur’an and the Hadith (Sunnah).
But today, some so-called Muslims claimed the Hadith is a culture or tradition of Arabs.
Subhanallah! The Hadith is not a culture of any Arab as those who compiled the Hadith majority were not Arabs, like Imam Bukhari, Imam Muslim, Imam Tirmidhi, Imam Abu Dawud, Imam Nisa’i, they were all Persians.
So how can one make such a blunder?
The Hadith is learnt as we have those expert in it to verify the fabrication, lies and weak Hadith.
Yes, according to mainstream Islamic scholarship, rejecting the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) is considered a rejection of Islam itself. The Sunnah is the second source of Islamic law after the Qur’an, and to reject it is to reject the authority of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him), which is a fundamental aspect of the faith.
The Sunnah provides the practical application and understanding of the Qur’an’s teachings. For example, the Sunnah details the specifics of how to perform daily prayers, which are commanded in the Qur’an but not detailed there.
Rejecting the Sunnah implies a rejection of the Prophet Muhammad’s authority, as he is the one who “explains the Book” (Qur’an) to the people.
As mentioned earlier, there is a consensus (Ijma’) among Islamic scholars that a denial of the Sunnah (Hadith) as a source of religious law is a form of disbelief (Kufr), putting the individual outside the fold of Islam.
No doubt, rejecting the Sunnah is considered a rejection of Islam itself because the Prophet Muhammad’s Sunnah is a source of Islamic law and guidance, as commanded by Allah in the Qur’an. Those who reject it are often seen as rebelling against Islam, as this stance contradicts Qur’anic verses that explicitly command Muslims to obey the Prophet, which is framed as obeying Allah. According to Islamic teachings, this rejection is not the same as questioning the authenticity of specific Hadith after proper research, which is a different issue.
Respected brothers and sisters! There are eleven (11) commonly recognised books of Hadith named after their authors and are classified into 4 categories:
(A) The most authentic books, sihah: Sahih Al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim.
(B) Sunan are books arranged according to the chapters of the law books, abwabul fiqh, and contain only legal matters without issues of aqidat and siyar: Sunan Abu Dawud, Sunan Al-Tirmidhi, Sunan Al-Nisai, Sunan Ibn Majah, Sunan Al-Darimi.
(C) Muwattat: Muwatta of Imam Malik.
(D) Masanid: Musnad of Imam Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, Musnad of Zaid Bin Ali, and Musnad of Al-Tayalisi.
Hadith collections can also be classified as Jawami’u, Mustakhraj, Mustadrak:
(A) Jawami’u: Collections that combine aqa’id, ibadat, muamalat, and siyar are called Al-jami’u, for example Al-jamiu Al-sahih li Al-Bukhari.
(B) Ma’ajim: These are books in which Hadiths are classified according to the name of the Shaikh or teacher usually in alphabetical order, for example Al-mu’ujam Al-kabir, Al-mu’ujam Al-awsat, and Al-mu’ujam Al-saghir, by Al-Tabrani.
(C) Mustakhraj is a collection in which the author gets a different chain of a narration for a Hadith in any book of Hadith. This increases the credibility of the Hadith.
(D) Mustadrak is a book that collects Hadiths using the criteria of an author like Bukhari and those Hadiths were not documented by Bukhari.
Finally, here are the four (4) sources of Islamic law (Masaadir At-Tashri’):
The main sources of Islamic law (Masaadir at-Tashri’) are: the Qur’an, the Sunnah/Hadith (the Prophet Muhammad’s teachings and practices), Ijma’ (scholarly consensus), and Qiyas (analogical reasoning). The Qur’an is the supreme source, followed by the Sunnah, which provides details and examples from the Prophet’s life. Ijma’ and Qiyas are used to address issues not explicitly covered in the first two sources.
1. The Qur’an
The primary and most important source of Islamic law, believed to be the literal word of Allah revealed to the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him).
It is a comprehensive guide that covers moral, philosophical, social, political, and economic principles.
2. The Sunnah
The traditions, practices, and sayings of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him).
It clarifies and elaborates on the general principles found in the Qur’an.
The Sunnah is recorded in the Hadith literature, as mentioned above.
3. Ijma’
The consensus of opinion among Islamic legal scholars on a specific issue.
It is used to solve problems not directly found in the Qur’an or Sunnah.
4. Qiyas
Analogical reasoning, which involves using logic to derive a ruling for a new issue by comparing it to a similar case with a known ruling in the Qur’an or Sunnah.
This source is applied when a solution is not explicitly found in the primary sources.
May Allah protect us from trials, both apparent and hidden, and keep us firm upon the Qur’an and the authentic Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him), ameen.
Wassalamu alaikum wa rahmatullah wa bara ka tuh
All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of the worlds. Prayers, peace and mercy are upon our beloved master, Muhammad, the son of Abdullah (Peace be upon him), his family and Companions.
Murtadha Muhammad Gusau is the Chief Imam of Nagazi-Uvete Jumu’ah and the late Alhaji Abdur-Rahman Okene’s Mosques, Okene, Kogi State, Nigeria. He can be reached via: gusauimam@gmail.com or +2348038289761 or +2348024192217.
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