In sum, if the known, reliably preserved statements of al-Junayd transmitted with chains of narration show that he—may Allah have mercy on him—did not commend this innovated listening, enjoin it, or praise it, and indeed his preserved statements indicate the contrary, then it is impermissible to take an ambiguous statement attributed to him without a chain of narration and interpret it as praise for this newly introduced listening.

Some people have reported that al-Junayd attended such listening gatherings early in his life, then abandoned them. His attendance was an action, and an action may or may not serve as evidence of a person’s position. Hence people disagree over whether a person’s position can be ascertained from his actions.

One of the early generations said, “The weakest knowledge is observation,” meaning someone’s saying, “I saw so-and-so do this.” A person may do something out of habit and conformity, after having formed a belief concerning it. He may act forgetfully, not out of conviction concerning it or to encourage it. He may do something without knowing that it is a sin, then subsequently learn that it is a sin, and then do it despite its being a sin. No one is immune from committing a sin. The prophets, however, are protected from being left uncorrected in their sins. Thus, their actions that were allowed to stand are followed as examples, because allowing them to stand entails that they are not sinful. This does not apply to anyone other than the prophets. How much less, then, can one rely on the action of someone who did something and then abandoned it?

At most, it may be said that al-Junayd initially engaged in this listening by way of