And when they come together with someone whose spiritual state comes from the Most Merciful, their own states lose their effect and their devils flee. They gain prominence only among unbelievers and the ignorant, just as performers of extraordinary feats gain prominence among the Tatars, the Bedouins, peasants, and other ignorant people who know neither the Book nor the Sunnah. But when the followers of Muhammad, who adhere to the Book and the Sunnah, are present, these people’s states lose their effect. And Allah knows best.

What do the leading scholars of religion say about the Prophet’s worship, may Allah bless him and grant him peace: what was its nature, and how did he worship before his mission? Give us your ruling; may you be rewarded.

He answered:

Praise be to Allah. This is a question we have no need to resolve under our revealed law. Our duty is simply to obey the Messenger in what he has commanded us and to follow his example after he was sent to us.

As for what preceded that, such as his worship in the cave of Hirā and similar practices, these are not prescribed practices for the Muslim community to follow. Thus, after embracing Islam, none of the Companions would go to the cave of Hirā or deliberately seek out anything similar. Since the advent of Islam, it has not been prescribed for us to seek out mountain caves or withdraw into seclusion there. Rather, the prescribed practice for us is to observe devotional retreats in mosques. As for deliberately seeking seclusion in mountain caves and caverns and travelling to a mountain