involve essential principles is treated in the same way as legal rulings. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said:

“Shall I tell you of something higher in rank than fasting, prayer, charity, enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong?” They replied, “Yes, O Messenger of Allah.” He said, “Mending relations between people, for discord is the razor. I do not mean that it shaves off hair; rather, it shaves away religion.”

Abū Dāwūd narrated this from al-Zubayr ibn al-‘Awwām, may Allah be pleased with him. It is also authentically reported that the Prophet said:

“It is not lawful for a Muslim to shun his brother for more than three days: they meet, and each turns away from the other. The better of the two is the one who greets the other first.”

It is true, however, that he authentically is reported to have shunned Ka‘b ibn Mālik and his two companions—may Allah be pleased with them—when they stayed behind from the expedition to Tabūk, their disobedience became apparent, and there were fears that they might fall into hypocrisy. He therefore shunned them and commanded the Muslims to do likewise, even ordering them to live apart from their wives without divorcing them. The shunning lasted fifty nights, until the acceptance of their repentance was revealed from heaven.

Likewise, ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, commanded the Muslims to shun Sabīgh ibn ‘Isl al-Tamīmī when he saw that he was among those who pursue the ambiguous passages of the Book. This continued until a year had passed and his sincerity in repentance became clear; ‘Umar then commanded the Muslims to resume relations with him. On this and similar grounds,