Reason for Composing the Treatise
The most recent rift to appear was over a question that touched exclusively the People of Ḥadīth—those who have always stood openly with the Sunnah and prevailed by their adherence to it. They move with prudence in every land without resorting to duplicity; sects conceal themselves from them, yet they themselves do not hide. They proclaim the truth publicly and do not betray it. No one rises in knowledge save the one they raise, and no one is cast down in it save the one they cast down. Caravans travel only in search of those whose names they celebrate—
until Satan ambushed them with an issue that Allah, Exalted be He, has made neither a foundational principle of the religion nor one of its subsidiary rulings: ignorance of it entails no sin, while knowledge of it confers but a modest virtue. Yet its evil spread and its stature grew until it fractured their unity, scattered their discourse, weakened their cause, delighted their enviers, and spared their enemies the cost of combat—doing the work for them with their very tongues and at their own hands. Satan now laughs at them and mocks them, seeing some pronounce others unbelievers and some curse others; he beholds them at variance while seeming united, estranged while outwardly assembled, and rejoices that he has become their stepping-stone after having been their sworn foe.
When I observed people of discernment turning away from addressing this affair from the moment it surfaced—failing to treat it with the remedy when it first appeared, or to expose it when it first sprouted—until its foundation became entrenched, its head towered high, the elder grew accustomed to its error, and the child was reared upon it; when I saw that the healers now found it hard to extract from hearts what had fastened itself to the sinews and around which flesh had grown, I could find no excuse for myself in neglecting what Allah has obliged me to do, given the share of understanding He has granted me concerning a matter grown grave through the negligence of others.
Therefore, according to the measure of my knowledge and the extent of my ability, I have undertaken this work, hoping thereby to discharge part of my duty. May Allah render it beneficial, for He bestows benefit as He wills. One whom Allah empowers to speak is not required to seek people’s leave; his task is to offer insight, and the easing of hearts lies with Allah alone.
Three categories of people will concur with what I say: