The Obligation to Follow the Prophet's Commandments

Furthermore, the obligation to follow His command is strongly emphasized in the words of the Almighty: "Do not treat the Messenger's summons amongst you like you would one another's. Allah is indeed aware of those of you who sneak away. Let those who oppose his command beware lest they be struck by hardship or suffer a severe punishment" [(59)].

He also said, "Whatever the Messenger gives you, accept it; and whatever he forbids you from, abstain" [(60)]. There are other verses of the Qur'an that indicate the obligation to follow his command and the importance of adhering to his obedience.

As Al-Shafi`i said, His - High is His Praise - obligation is the same for those who saw the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, and those who come after, until the Day of Judgement. This obligation entails that everyone is bound to obey him. The only way for those who didn't witness the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, to know his commands is through reports about him.

Two Types of Reports:

1. General reports are from the masses who reported from Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him. These reports contain the main obligations Allah, the Exalted, has imposed upon His servants. They are expected to comply with them through their words and actions, and they utilize part of their selves and their wealth in doing so. Ignorance of these duties is inexcusable. Scholars and commoners are on equal footing regarding these obligations. Among these are: the number of prayers, fasting in the month of Ramadan, pilgrimage to Mecca, forbidden indecencies, and the right of Allah over their wealth and similar duties.

2. Special reports contain detailed rules that most people are not required to comply with as they did with the first type of reports. This knowledge, however, is obligatory for those who are qualified enough to function instead of the masses. Examples include matters that nullify prayer, requirements of prostration for unintentional errors during prayers, factors that nullify Hajj, and the necessity of penalties and expiations for certain actions. Scholars are obliged to accept truthful information about these actions and they cannot reject it because Allah made obeying His prophet necessary.

The venerable sheikh and imam, may Allah have mercy on him and brighten his grave, said, "If not for the validation of the argument by the report - this wouldn't have been said in a sermon by the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, after instructing those witnessing the matters of their religion: "Let the one who is present convey to the one who is absent, for it could be that the informed is more understanding than the hearer." (61)

Informed us Abu al-Hussein: Muhammad bin Hussein bin Muhammad bin al-Fadl al-Qattan in Baghdad said: "We were told by Ismail bin Muhammad al-Saffar, narrated to us by Abbas bin Muhammad, narrated to us by Ishaq bin Mansour, who said: Huraim bin Sufyan informed us - from Abdul Malik bin Umayr, from Abd al-Rahman bin Abdullah bin Masood, from his father, who said, "The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: "May Allah brighten a man who heard a hadith from us and delivered it as he heard it, perhaps the deliverer is more understanding than the hearer." (62)

Al-Shafi'i said: So, when the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, encouraged a man who hears his talk and conveys it - and a "man" is a singular individual - it indicates that he does not command to convey from him except what there is a valid argument for. (61)

The hadith is brought out by al-Bukhari (3) in his chapter on knowledge (9), which states the proverb of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, "Perhaps a deliverer is more understanding than a hearer", it can be found in Fath al-Bari (1: 157-158), Muslim in his chapter on oaths (28), and Imam Ahmad in his "Musnad" (5:4), and Ibn Maja in his introduction, hadith number (233), page (1: 85).

(62) It was brought out by al-Tirmidhi in his chapter on knowledge, hadith (2657), page (5: 34), through the channel of Shuba from Simak bin Harb, and by Ibn Maja in his introduction (18), chapter on who delivers knowledge, hadith (232), page (1: 85), through the channel of Shaba from Simak, and also by al-Darimi in his introduction through the channel of Israel, from Abd al-Rahman bin Zbeid al-Yami, from Ibn Ajlan, from Abi al-Dardaa (1: 66), and by Imam Ahmad in his "Musnad" (1:427), and Ibn Haban in his "Sahih", hadith number (66), page (1: 163) according to our analysis, from the narration of Abdullah bin Masood, mentioned by Ibn Abdul Barr in his comprehensive explanation of knowledge (1: 40), and narrated by Abu Dawood in his chapter on knowledge with a slight difference, through the channel of Shaba, hadith (3660), page (3: 323).

(63) It means: So when he ordered a servant to deliver what he heard, and the address was to an individual, who is a single person.

"Informed us Abu Abdullah Al-Hafiz, among others, they said: Abu Al-Abbas informed us, Rabi told us, Shafai told us, Sufian bin Ueneih said: Salem Abu Al-Nazr told me that he heard Ubaid Allah bin Abi Rafi recount from his father. The message from Allah's prophet, bless and peace be upon him, said: 'I wouldn't incline to anyone of you, resting on his couch, who ignores the matters from my teachings that I commanded or prohibited saying: “I don't know; whatever we found in the book of Allah, we followed” ' (65)."

Sufian said: "And Ibn Al-Munkadir told me, a relayer from the prophet, bless and peace be upon him."

Sheikh said: "We narrated in the Hadith of Al-Mu’kleem bin Ma'an Yekirb: that the prophet, bless and peace be upon him, prohibited some things on the day of Khyber, including domestic donkeys (66) among others (67). Then the prophet, bless and peace be upon him, said: 'Soon a man from amongst you might be seated on his couch. When he narrates from my teachings, he says: between (64)...'

The phrase in “The Message” page (402-403) and its continuation: “Because what he carries from him is a lawful and forbidden that he avoids, a punishment to be enforced, a wealth to be taken and given, and advice in religion and life, and it indicates that non-jurisprudence may carry jurisprudence, he becomes a preserver for it, and there is no jurisprudence in him”.

(65) The effect in “The Message” for Al-Shafai, page (403-404), and it was mentioned by Abu Dawood in the book of Sunnah, (Chapter) on the indispensability of Sunnah, Hadith (4605), page (4: 200)

(66) In the original (H): "domestic donkey".

(67) The Hadith was mentioned by Abu Dawood in The Foods, from the narration of Al-Muqaddam with the phrasing: 'Aware, it is not lawful to eat predators, nor a domestic donkey, nor a lost treasure of a contractee's wealth.'

"The book of Allah is between us. What we found to be permissible in it, we have allowed, and what we found prohibited, we have forbidden. And indeed, what the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, forbade is just as Allah the Almighty has forbidden."

This narrative comes from the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, addressing what may follow after his tradition and has found validation in what followed. We were informed by Abu Taher the Jurist, came to us from Abu Bakr al-Qattan, as told by Abu al-Azhar, who was informed by Muhammad bin Aliya al-Ansari. He said: I have been told by A'Sard bin Abu Al Manzil that he heard Sheyeb bin Abu Fadla al-Maliki saying:

When the mosque was being built- the Jami' Mosque - I was sitting when 'Imran bin Husayn' was mentioned. They spoke to Imran about intercession, and then a man among the people said: "O Abu Al Najid, you narrate to us Hadiths that we find no basis for in the Quran?"

Imran got angry and asked the man: "Have you read the Quran?" The man answered "Yes". Imran asked: "Did you find in it that the Isha prayer is four Rak'ahs, the Maghrib three, the Fajr two Rak'ahs, the Dhuhr four, and the Asr four?"

The man said "No", to which Imran responded: "From whom then have you learned this matter? Have you not taken it from us? We took it from the Prophet of Allah, peace be upon him."

He then asked, "And you found in every forty dirhams, one dirham, and in each such and such amount, a sheep, and in each such number, a camel such and such. Did you find this in the Quran?"

The man again said "No", to which Imran replied: "Where did you get this from? We took it from the Prophet, peace be upon him, and you from us."

Then he asked, "Did you find in the Quran: 'Let them circumambulate the Ancient House' or 'Make Tawaf seven times, and perform two Rak'ahs behind the Maqam'? Have you found this in the Quran? From whom have you taken it? Have you not taken it from us, and we took it from the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, and you took it from us?"

The reply came: "Yes."

Note: [ The cited Hadith had previously been mentioned in the margin (65). The Ayah is verse (29) from Surah Al-Hajj. ]