Pages (9, 11, 12) of the First Epistle

For this reason we are genuinely astonished that it could ever occur to any Muslim to accuse those scholars of introducing innovation into the religion—God forbid! On the contrary, they will be rewarded in any case, as we have reiterated time and again. Indeed, it is they who have the merit of directing us to what the Qur’an and the Sunnah require, namely, preferring them over every statement that contradicts them. Here, for example, is Imam al-Shafiʿi, may Allah be pleased with him, who says: “The Muslims are unanimously agreed that once a person becomes aware of a Sunnah from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, it is not lawful for him to abandon it for anyone’s opinion.”

Likewise, we reject another notion some people imagine—that disagreeing with certain imams necessarily implies the dissenter is claiming superiority over them in knowledge and understanding. Never! Such an idea is utterly unfounded. We know with certainty that the Four Imams were more learned than their students and those beneath them, yet those very students differed with them on many issues. This pattern has continued, and will continue, for as long as the Muslim community has scholars who critically verify the evidence. Still, no one ever inferred from those disagreements that the students were declaring themselves superior to their teachers. How, then, could anyone entertain such a thought merely because someone far below those great imams happens to differ with them?

In truth, our stance toward the imams is exactly as has been narrated … ⦗94⦘