connotations on which people have recently agreed—by the later scholars; otherwise the exegete who relies on such meanings will fall into error and, without noticing, will end up speaking falsely about Allah and His Messenger. I have already given the term karāha (dislike) as an example of this.

Here is another example: the word sunna. In ordinary Arabic it simply means “way” or “path,” and therefore encompasses everything of guidance and light upon which the Prophet ﷺ was, whether obligatory or voluntary. In later technical usage, however, it has been restricted to that part of his guidance that is not compulsory. Hence it is impermissible to explain the word sunna, when it appears in certain noble hadith, according to this technical sense—for instance, in his statement, “…and hold fast to my sunna…,” and in his words, “…whoever turns away from my sunna is not of me.”

Related to this is the report some later shaykhs cite to urge adherence to the sunna in its technical meaning: “Whoever abandons my sunna shall not receive my intercession.” They have erred twice over.

First, they attribute this report to the Prophet ﷺ, whereas, to the best of our knowledge, it has no authentic basis.