Obey Allah and Obey the Messenger; One or Two Sources?
First we must summarise what has been learned in the other
documents: -
- The Qur’an is complete and detailed for our guidance. This implies that anything not in the Qur’an (by virtue of its completeness) is not binding upon us (45:6).
- The excellent example of the prophet can be found in the Qur’an in the same way it can for Ibrahim. External sources are not defined or needed.
- The only revelation/inspiration given to Muhammad was the Qur’an. That is, it is the only guidance from Allah that reaches him. Those who do not judge by what is REVEALED are unbelievers/wrong doers/rebellious (5:44-50).
The major argument of the followers of hadith for the need
for and validity of hadith can be found in the “obey Allah and obey the
Messenger” type ayahs.
The obey phrase actually mean obedience to Allah by obeying
the Qur’an as transmitted from the messenger.
However, proponents of hadith choose to understand these to mean that we
must obey what Allah says (Qur’an) and obey what the messenger independently says
(Hadith etc.). Given that we may only
take as guidance what is revealed, and the messenger only received the Qur’an,
then this understanding is actually not possible. It will however be analysed in more detail in
this document.
قُلْ
أَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَالرَّسُولَ ۖ
فَإِن تَوَلَّوْا فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يُحِبُّ الْكَافِرِينَ
“Say, ‘Obey Allah and the Messenger.’
Then if they turn away, Allah does not love the disbelievers.”
(3:32)
This and similar ayahs tells us
that not obeying what Allah and the messenger say/command makes you a
disbeliever. It is therefore critical to
obey, and critical to know what this phrase means.
وَأَطِيعُوا
اللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ وَاحْذَرُوا ۚ
فَإِن تَوَلَّيْتُمْ فَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّمَا عَلَىٰ رَسُولِنَا الْبَلَاغُ
الْمُبِينُ
“And
obey Allah and obey the messenger and be cautious; but if you turn back, then
know that obligated on our messenger is (only) the clear delivery (of
the Qur’an)”
(5:92)
قُلْ أَطِيعُوا
اللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ ۖ
فَإِن تَوَلَّوْا فَإِنَّمَا عَلَيْهِ مَا حُمِّلَ وَعَلَيْكُم مَّا حُمِّلْتُمْ ۖ وَإِن تُطِيعُوهُ
تَهْتَدُوا ۚ وَمَا
عَلَى الرَّسُولِ إِلَّا الْبَلَاغُ الْمُبِينُ
Say,
"Obey Allah and obey the Messenger; but if you turn away - then upon him
is only that [duty] with which he has been charged, and upon you is that with
which you have been charged. And if you obey him, you will be [rightly] guided.
And nothing is obligated on the messenger other than the clear
deliverance (of the Qur’an)."
(24:54)
وَأَطِيعُواْ ٱللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُواْ
ٱلرَّسُولَ فَإِن تَولَّيْتُمْ فَإِنَّمَا عَلَىٰ رَسُولِنَا ٱلْبَلاَغُ
ٱلْمُبِينُ
“And
obey Allah and obey the messenger, but if you turn back, then obligated on
our messenger is (only) the clear delivery (of the Qur’an)”.
(64:12)
وَإِن تُكَذِّبُوا
فَقَدْ كَذَّبَ أُمَمٌ مِّن قَبْلِكُمْ ۖ
وَمَا عَلَى الرَّسُولِ إِلَّا الْبَلَاغُ الْمُبِينُ
And
if you reject (the truth), nations before you did indeed reject (the truth);
and nothing is obligated on the messenger other than the clear
deliverance (of the Qur’an).
(29:18)
These verses make clear that the only
obligation on the messenger is the clear deliverance of the Qur’an. In fact these verses nicely juxtapose the
‘obey Allah and the messenger’ phrase with the fact that the messenger’s only
obligation was the clear delivery of the message (the Qur’an). These two points taken together clearly
indicate that obeying Allah and the messenger is the obedience of the message
of Allah through the messenger.
As a reminder of what the
revelation given to Muhammad was:
وَمَا
عَلَّمْنَاهُ الشِّعْرَ وَمَا يَنبَغِي لَهُ ۚ
إِنْ هُوَ إِلَّا ذِكْرٌ وَقُرْآنٌ مُّبِينٌ
لِّيُنذِرَ
مَن كَانَ حَيًّا وَيَحِقَّ الْقَوْلُ عَلَى الْكَافِرِينَ
“And We have not taught him poetry, nor is
it befitting for him; it is only a reminder and a clear Qur’an,
that it may warn him who would have life, and (that) the word may prove true
against the unbelievers”.
(36:69-70)
The only thing taught
to the Messenger, is the message he was to deliver, and that is the Qur’an.
This understanding follows clearly
not only from the above verses which explain it, but also from the words used
in them. Obey Allah and obey the
messenger; we are told to obey the messenger, not Muhammad. The function of the messenger of Allah is to
transmit the message to mankind, not to become an independent source of
guidance, but merely to transmit guidance.
Of note is the fact that we never read in the Qur’an words like
"Obey Allah and obey Muhammad", there is something instructive in
this, as it is not Muhammad the man that was to be obeyed, it was the messenger
that was to be obeyed, this is to emphasise that what is to be obeyed is the
"message" of God and not the words, ideas or views of the man
Muhammad.
The following verses explain this
again, we are told that Allah has sent Muhammad as a messenger and he tells
mankind that the one who has obeyed the messenger has obeyed Allah. This is because what the messenger is
transmitting is the word of Allah, if there was any difference then you have
not obeyed Allah by obeying the messenger, you have merely obeyed the
messenger.
مَّا أَصَابَكَ مِنْ
حَسَنَةٍ فَمِنَ اللَّهِ ۖ وَمَا أَصَابَكَ مِن
سَيِّئَةٍ فَمِن نَّفْسِكَ ۚ وَأَرْسَلْنَاكَ
لِلنَّاسِ رَسُولًا ۚ وَكَفَىٰ بِاللَّهِ شَهِيدًا
مَّن يُطِعِ الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطَاعَ اللَّهَ ۖ وَمَن تَوَلَّىٰ فَمَا أَرْسَلْنَاكَ عَلَيْهِمْ حَفِيظًا
What
comes to you of good is from Allah, but what comes to you of evil is from
yourself. And We have sent you to the people as a messenger, and
sufficient is Allah as Witness.
He
who obeys the Messenger has obeyed Allah; but those who turn away -
We have not sent you over them as a guardian.
(4:79-80)
The following verse in the style of
the above (and other) verses, demonstrates by substitution that when people are
obeying Allah and the messenger they are obeying the messenger when he recites
the Qur’an.
وَأَنْ أَتْلُوَ
الْقُرْآنَ ۖ
فَمَنِ اهْتَدَىٰ فَإِنَّمَا يَهْتَدِي لِنَفْسِهِ ۖ وَمَن ضَلَّ فَقُلْ إِنَّمَا أَنَا مِنَ الْمُنذِرِينَ
“And to recite the Qur’an: and if any
accept Guidance, they do it for the good of their own souls; and if any astray,
say: ‘I am only a warner”.
(27:92).
The next verse again clarifies how
the phrase ‘Allah and his messenger’ is referring to one thing, the message of
Allah (Qur’an) through the messenger. We
are told to respond to Allah and his messenger (dual) when the messenger
(singular) is calling them to that which gives them life, which is the
Qur’an. The Qur’an is the only
speech that can be attributed to both the messenger and Allah.
يَا أَيُّهَا
الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اسْتَجِيبُوا لِلَّهِ وَلِلرَّسُولِ إِذَا دَعَاكُمْ
لِمَا يُحْيِيكُمْ ۖ وَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّ اللَّهَ
يَحُولُ بَيْنَ الْمَرْءِ وَقَلْبِهِ وَأَنَّهُ إِلَيْهِ تُحْشَرُونَ
O
you who have believed, respond to Allah and to the Messenger when he
calls you to that which gives you life. And know that Allah intervenes
between a man and his heart and that to Him you will be gathered.
(8:24)
The next verse tells us of an
announcement from Allah and his messenger.
The first point is that what is announced here is the Qur’an as it is
recorded (9:3 etc.). The second point is
that Allah has announced this through his messenger’s mouth; hence ‘Allah and
the messenger’ have announced it. Allah
does not directly speak to the generality of mankind, he speaks through his
messengers. This is the clear indication
of the meaning of the obey Allah and obey the messenger phrases in the Qur’an.
وَأَذَانٌ مِّنَ اللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ إِلَى النَّاسِ يَوْمَ الْحَجِّ
الْأَكْبَرِ
أَنَّ اللَّهَ بَرِيءٌ مِّنَ الْمُشْرِكِينَ ۙ وَرَسُولُهُ ۚ فَإِن تُبْتُمْ فَهُوَ خَيْرٌ لَّكُمْ ۖ وَإِن تَوَلَّيْتُمْ فَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّكُمْ غَيْرُ مُعْجِزِي اللَّهِ ۗ وَبَشِّرِ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا بِعَذَابٍ أَلِيمٍ
And
[it is] an announcement from Allah and His Messenger to the people on the
day of the greater pilgrimage that Allah is disassociated from the
disbelievers, and [so is] His Messenger. So if you repent, that is best for
you; but if you turn away - then know that you will not cause failure to Allah
. And give tidings to those who disbelieve of a painful punishment.
(9:3)
Think about it, why have ‘Allah and
the messenger’ and not just ‘the messenger’?
It is because ‘Allah and the messenger’ reminds us clearly of the source
of the message and the medium for it (the messenger). Obedience to the messenger independent of the
exact words of the Qur’an does actually exist in the Qur’an, but it is local,
conditional and societal; not global, absolute and religious.
The following verses demonstrate that there is a distinction made between following
Muhammad (making him the leader who judges by the Qur’an and uses consultation)
because they love Allah, and obeying Allah and the messenger (The verbatim word
of Allah). If obey Allah and the
messenger referred to separate sources of guidance, then 3:31 would be
redundant as ‘following’ is a subset of ‘obedience’. However ‘following’ does not imply complete ‘obedience’.
قُلْ إِن كُنتُمْ تُحِبُّونَ ٱللَّهَ فَٱتَّبِعُونِى
يُحْبِبْكُمُ ٱللَّهُ وَيَغْفِرْ لَكُمْ ذُنُوبَكُمْ وَٱللَّهُ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ
قُلْ أَطِيعُواْ ٱللَّهَ وَٱلرَّسُولَ
فإِن تَوَلَّوْاْ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ لاَ يُحِبُّ ٱلْكَافِرِينَ
“Say: If you love Allah, then follow
me, Allah will love you and forgive you your sins, and Allah is
Forgiving, Merciful
Say: Obey Allah and the
Messenger; but if they turn back, then surely Allah does not love the
unbelievers.”
(3:31-32)
The next verse clearly helps us
understand the distinction between obeying the messenger the man, and the
messenger the mouthpiece. Here Allah is
telling Muhammad that the women that are given refuge with the Muslims must
pledge to obey him (Muhammad, the messenger) in what is good. We never have this leniency in terms of
obeying Allah and obeying the messenger, because to obey Allah is absolute,
whereas to obey his messenger the man is not.
يٰأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّبِىُّ إِذَا جَآءَكَ
ٱلْمُؤْمِنَاتُ يُبَايِعْنَكَ عَلَىٰ أَن لاَّ يُشْرِكْنَ بِٱللَّهِ شَيْئاً وَلاَ
يَسْرِقْنَ وَلاَ يَزْنِينَ وَلاَ يَقْتُلْنَ أَوْلاَدَهُنَّ وَلاَ يَأْتِينَ
بِبُهُتَانٍ يَفْتَرِينَهُ بَيْنَ أَيْدِيهِنَّ وَأَرْجُلِهِنَّ وَلاَ
يَعْصِينَكَ فِى مَعْرُوفٍ فَبَايِعْهُنَّ وَٱسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُنَّ
ٱللَّهَ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ
“O Prophet! when believing women come to you giving you a pledge that
they will not associate aught with Allah, and will not steal, and will not
commit fornication, and will not kill their children, and will not bring a
calumny which they have forged of themselves, and will not disobey you in
what is good, accept their pledge, and ask forgiveness for them from
Allah; surely Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.”
(60:12)
وَأَنَّهُ
لَمَّا قَامَ عَبْدُ اللَّهِ يَدْعُوهُ كَادُوا يَكُونُونَ عَلَيْهِ لِبَدًا قُلْ
إِنَّمَا أَدْعُو رَبِّي وَلَا أُشْرِكُ بِهِ أَحَدًا
قُلْ
إِنِّي لَا أَمْلِكُ لَكُمْ ضَرًّا وَلَا رَشَدًا قُلْ إِنِّي لَن
يُجِيرَنِي مِنَ اللَّهِ أَحَدٌ وَلَنْ أَجِدَ مِن دُونِهِ مُلْتَحَدًا
إِلَّا
بَلَاغًا مِّنَ اللَّهِ وَرِسَالَاتِهِ ۚ
وَمَن يَعْصِ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ فَإِنَّ لَهُ نَارَ جَهَنَّمَ خَالِدِينَ
فِيهَا أَبَدًا
حَتَّىٰ
إِذَا رَأَوْا مَا يُوعَدُونَ فَسَيَعْلَمُونَ مَنْ أَضْعَفُ نَاصِرًا وَأَقَلُّ
عَدَدًا قُلْ إِنْ أَدْرِي أَقَرِيبٌ مَّا تُوعَدُونَ أَمْ يَجْعَلُ لَهُ رَبِّي
أَمَدًا
“When the servant of Allah stands calling on
Him, they almost swarm all over him. Say: 'I call only upon my Lord and do not
associate anyone else with Him.' Say: 'I possess for you no harm or guidance
to the right direction.' Say: 'No one can protect me from Allah and I will
never find any refuge apart from Him –only in transmitting from Allah and His
Messages. As for him who disobeys Allah and His Messenger, he will have the
Fire of Hell, remaining in it timelessly, for ever and ever.' So that when
they see what they were promised, they will know who has less support and smaller
numbers. Say: 'I do not know whether what you are promised is close or whether
my Lord will appoint a longer time before it.'”
(72:19-25)
If we study the two underlined statements in this ayah we
very clearly get an understanding of what it means to say ‘Obey Allah and his
messenger’. The first statement: -
Say: 'I
possess for you no harm or guidance to the right direction.
This very clearly indicates that the messenger CANNOT of
himself guide us correctly. It is within
the context of verses where he is made to proclaim that he calls only upon
Allah and that no one other than Allah can protect him. The context is clarifying that the Messenger
is just a man like them.
Yet the next statement says: -
As for him who
disobeys Allah and His Messenger, he will have the Fire of Hell, remaining in
it timelessly, for ever and ever.
And it implies that Obeying Allah and the messenger is
a guide for us! Therefore as the messenger
cannot guide us, but Allah and the messenger can guide us, it follows that
Allah and his messenger does not refer to the separate obedience of the messenger
and Allah for our guidance, but instead to the obedience of Allah through the
obedience of the Messenger when he recites the Qur’an .
وَمَا كَانَ لِمُؤْمِنٍ وَلاَ مُؤْمِنَةٍ
إِذَا قَضَى ٱللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُ أَمْراً أَن يَكُونَ لَهُمُ ٱلْخِيَرَةُ
مِنْ أَمْرِهِمْ وَمَن يَعْصِ ٱللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ فَقَدْ ضَلَّ ضَلاَلاً
مُّبِيناً
“When Allah and His Messenger have decided something
it is not for any man or woman of the believers to have a choice about it. Anyone
who disobeys Allah and His Messenger is clearly misguided.”
(33:36)
إِنِ ٱلْحُكْمُ إِلاَّ لِلَّهِ أَمَرَ
“Surely the Hukm
(Law and Judgment) is for none but Allah”
(12:40)
لاَ يُشْرِكُ فِى حُكْمِهِ أَحَداً
“He does not make anyone His associate in His Hukm (Law
and Judgment)”
(18:26)
أَفَغَيْرَ ٱللَّهِ أَبْتَغِى حَكَماً
وَهُوَ ٱلَّذِيۤ أَنَزَلَ إِلَيْكُمُ ٱلْكِتَابَ مُفَصَّلاً
“Shall I seek a
Law-giver other than Allah? When He it is Who has revealed to you the Book
distinctly elucidated.”
(6:114)
It is obvious from these verses that the Messenger will
decide whatever Allah decides, and hence there cannot be any separation in this
regard (that is, that you would obey the decisions of Allah in the Qur’an, and
separately obey the decisions of the Messenger even if they have no Qur’anic
basis). The verses clarify that it is
only Allah who judges anything and not the messenger. That is why the messenger can make no
judgement unless it is Allah’s. This is
yet another clear indication that to obey Allah and the messenger is strictly
the obedience of Allah in the Qur’an.
The fact of messengers being obeyed
as part of their societal and religious roles is made clear in the Qur’an, it
is however limited to that role. It is
only to the guidance of Allah as transmitted through the messenger (Qur’an)
that is due complete and eternal obedience.
4:64 educates us that obedience to
the messengers as societal figures (see paper on the role of the messenger),
apart from obedience to ‘Allah and the messenger’ (which is fundamental and
revelatory), is something extra (“by Allah’s permission”). No permission needs granting when it comes to
obeying the revelation. So with 4:64,
Allah is establishing their societal role as the leaders of their people apart
from their religious roles of transmitting the message clearly.
وَمَآ أَرْسَلْنَا مِن رَّسُولٍ أِلاَّ
لِيُطَاعَ بِإِذْنِ ٱللَّهِ وَلَوْ أَنَّهُمْ إِذ ظَّلَمُوۤاْ
أَنْفُسَهُمْ جَآءُوكَ فَٱسْتَغْفَرُواْ ٱللَّهَ وَٱسْتَغْفَرَ لَهُمُ ٱلرَّسُولُ
لَوَجَدُواْ ٱللَّهَ تَوَّاباً رَّحِيماً
“We sent no Messenger except to be obeyed by Allah’s
permission.
If only when they wronged themselves they had come to you and asked Allah’s
forgiveness and the Messenger had asked forgiveness for them they would have
found Allah Ever-Returning, Most Merciful.”
(4:64)
For some
examples:
إِذْ قَالَ لَهُمْ أَخُوهُمْ نُوحٌ أَلَا تَتَّقُونَ إِنِّي لَكُمْ رَسُولٌ
أَمِينٌ فَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُونِ
When
their brother Noah said to them, “Will you not fear Allah? Indeed, I am to you a
trustworthy messenger. So fear Allah and obey me”.
(26:106-108.
See also 26:124-126, 26:142-144, 26:161-163)
The obligatory and singular role of
the messenger is to clearly transmit the message, the societal role that
follows as part of this task is secondary and temporal. Lest we forget:
وَإِن تُكَذِّبُوا
فَقَدْ كَذَّبَ أُمَمٌ مِّن قَبْلِكُمْ ۖ
وَمَا عَلَى الرَّسُولِ إِلَّا الْبَلَاغُ الْمُبِينُ
And
if you reject (the truth), nations before you did indeed reject (the truth);
and nothing is obligated on the messenger other than the clear
deliverance (of the Qur’an).
(29:18)
To fulfil his temporal role, the
messenger was not given anything else, no other revelation or inspiration (as
the proponents of hadith claim). Rather,
his central role remained (29:18) and his societal role merely aided in that
regard. For this reason we read:
قُلْ مَا كُنتُ بِدْعاً مِّنَ
ٱلرُّسُلِ وَمَآ أَدْرِى مَا يُفْعَلُ بِى وَلاَ بِكُمْ إِنْ أَتَّبِعُ إِلاَّ
مَا يُوحَىٰ إِلَىَّ وَمَآ أَنَاْ إِلاَّ نَذِيرٌ مُّبِينٌ
“Say: ‘I am nothing
new among the Messengers. I have no idea what will be done with me or you. I
only follow what has been revealed to me. I am only a clear
warner.’”
(46:9)
إِنَّا
أَنزَلْنَا إِلَيْكَ الْكِتَابَ بِالْحَقِّ لِتَحْكُمَ بَيْنَ النَّاسِ بِمَا
أَرَاكَ اللَّهُ ۚ وَلَا تَكُن
لِّلْخَائِنِينَ خَصِيمًا
“Surely We
have revealed the Book to you with the truth that you may judge between
people by means of that which Allah has taught you; and be not an advocate
on behalf of the treacherous.”
(4:105)
And so we see that the societal
role of the messenger becomes merely a medium for him to transmit the
guidance/revelation of Allah to the people.
The following verses summarise all
of this:
قُلْ أَطِيعُوا
اللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ ۖ
فَإِن تَوَلَّوْا فَإِنَّمَا عَلَيْهِ مَا حُمِّلَ وَعَلَيْكُم مَّا حُمِّلْتُمْ ۖ وَإِن تُطِيعُوهُ تَهْتَدُوا
ۚ وَمَا
عَلَى الرَّسُولِ إِلَّا الْبَلَاغُ الْمُبِينُ ...
وَأَقِيمُوا
الصَّلَاةَ وَآتُوا الزَّكَاةَ وَأَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ لَعَلَّكُمْ
تُرْحَمُونَ
Say,
"Obey Allah and obey the Messenger; but if you turn away - then
upon him is only that [duty] with which he has been charged, and upon you is
that with which you have been charged. And if you obey him, you will be
[rightly] guided. And nothing is obligated on the messenger other
than the clear deliverance (of the Qur’an)." …
And
establish prayer and give zakah and obey the Messenger - that you may
receive mercy.
(24:54,56)
From this we learn to obey Allah
and the messenger (The recited Qur’an).
The only obligation of the messenger is the clear
deliverance of the Qur’an (recall 4:105, 46:9).
We must obey the messenger as the societal leader. Following on from this, we have the guidance
that transitions us from the time of the messenger to the time he is gone.
يَا أَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ آمَنُواْ أَطِيعُواْ
ٱللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُواْ ٱلرَّسُولَ وَأُوْلِى ٱلأَمْرِ مِنْكُمْ فَإِن
تَنَازَعْتُمْ فِى شَيْءٍ فَرُدُّوهُ إِلَى ٱللَّهِ وَٱلرَّسُولِ إِن كُنْتُمْ
تُؤْمِنُونَ بِٱللَّهِ وَٱلْيَوْمِ ٱلآخِرِ ذٰلِكَ خَيْرٌ وَأَحْسَنُ
تَأْوِيلاً
“O ye who believe! Obey Allah and obey the Messenger, and
those charged with authority among you. If ye differ in anything among
yourselves, refer it to Allah and His Messenger, if ye do believe in
Allah and the Last Day: That is best, and most suitable in the end.”
(4:59)
Here we get the template for how
the societal leader(s) must be obeyed.
They must rule/lead based upon the guidance of Allah, it is for this
reason that Allah tells us that if there is contention, then ‘Allah and the
messenger’ (The Qur’an) is to be referred to.
To end this, lets accept the words that the messenger was made to
recite:
أَفَغَيْرَ
اللَّهِ أَبْتَغِي حَكَمًا وَهُوَ الَّذِي أَنزَلَ إِلَيْكُمُ الْكِتَابَ
مُفَصَّلًا ۚ
وَالَّذِينَ آتَيْنَاهُمُ الْكِتَابَ يَعْلَمُونَ أَنَّهُ مُنَزَّلٌ مِّن رَّبِّكَ
بِالْحَقِّ ۖ فَلَا تَكُونَنَّ مِنَ الْمُمْتَرِينَ
“"Am I to
desire someone other than Allah as a judge when it is He Who has sent down the
Book explained in detail?"
Those We have given the Book know that it has been sent down from your
Lord with truth, so on no account be among the doubters”
(6:114)
Allah has told us
that the Qur’an is detailed, clear and complete for our guidance, what sense
does it then make to say that Allah is telling us to follow more/separate
guidance from Muhammad?
أَوَلَمْ يَكْفِهِمْ أَنَّآ أَنزَلْنَا
عَلَيْكَ ٱلْكِتَابَ يُتْلَىٰ عَلَيْهِمْ إِنَّ فِى ذٰلِكَ لَرَحْمَةً وَذِكْرَىٰ
لِقَوْمٍ يُؤْمِنُونَ
“Is it not enough for them that We
have revealed to you the Book which is recited to them? Most surely there is
mercy in this and a reminder for a people who believe.” (29:51)
In order for the Qur’an to be without contradiction, ‘obey
Allah and the messenger’ cannot mean to obey two separate sources for guidance. As this would imply that in fact, it is not
enough that Allah has revealed the Book which is recited to them, the Qur’an.
كِتَابٌ
أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ فَلَا يَكُن فِي صَدْرِكَ حَرَجٌ مِّنْهُ لِتُنذِرَ بِهِ
وَذِكْرَىٰ لِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ
ٱتَّبِعُواْ مَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكُمْ
مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ وَلاَ تَتَّبِعُواْ مِن دُونِهِ أَوْلِيَآءَ قَلِيلاً مَّا
تَذَكَّرُونَ
[This is] a Book revealed to you, [the
messenger] - so let there not be in your breast distress therefrom - that you
may warn thereby and as a reminder to the believers.
Follow what has been
revealed to you from your Lord (Qur’an) and do not follow guardians besides
Him, how little do you.
(7:3)
This is general in scope, so we should not even take
Muhammad/Messenger as a guardian other than Allah when it comes to
guidance. This is the clear command of
Allah to follow what has been revealed.
Not what the prophet says, not what he does, but what is revealed.
تِلْكَ آيَاتُ ٱللَّهِ نَتْلُوهَا
عَلَيْكَ بِٱلْحَقِّ فَبِأَىِّ حَدِيثٍ بَعْدَ ٱللَّهِ وَآيَاتِهِ
يُؤْمِنُونَ
These are the
verses of Allah which We recite to you in truth. Then in what statement (hadith)
after Allah and His verses will they believe?
(Qur’an, 45:6)
What is the answer of Muslims? Will they answer “The Hadith, Sunnah, figh
and ijma’!!!!” or will they answer “Nothing other than your Qur’an my Lord!!!”
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