“Whoever performs an act for which we have given no command, it is rejected” (1); another wording states: “Whoever introduces into our affair something that is not part of it, it is rejected” (2). Thus every act of worship must agree with what the Messenger ﷺ brought. Personal preferences, intentions, or goals are worthless if the Sharia provides no evidence for them; they are innovations (bid‘a) that bring no benefit but rather harm, for they are acts of disobedience—even if their practitioner claims to seek nearness to Allah. Accordingly, worship hinges on two conditions: ikhlas (sincerity) and mutaba‘a (conformity to the Messenger ﷺ). Should shirk infiltrate the act, it is nullified; if it becomes an innovation unsupported by proof, it is likewise invalid. Without these two conditions worship is fruitless, for it deviates from what Allah has legislated, and Allah accepts only what He Himself has prescribed in His Book or on the tongue of His Messenger ﷺ. No created being deserves unconditional obedience except the Messenger ﷺ. Others—rulers or scholars—are obeyed only when they obey the Messenger; if they oppose him, no obedience is due. Allah says: “O you who believe, obey Allah, obey the Messenger, and those in authority among you” (al-Nisa 59). “Those in authority” are the rulers and the scholars; when they obey Allah, following them is obligatory, but if they contradict Him, it is forbidden. Thus no one is obeyed independently except the Messenger of Allah ﷺ; anyone else is followed only insofar as he follows him. This is sound worship. (1) Sahih Muslim, no. 1718, Book of Judgments, chapter “Revocation of invalid rulings and rejection of innovations,” from the hadith of Aisha. (2) Sahih al-Bukhari, no. 2697, Book of Reconciliation, chapter “If they agree to an unjust settlement it is rejected,” and Sahih Muslim, no. 1718, from the hadith of Aisha.