to strive against both groups, saying in two verses of the Quran:

“Strive against the disbelievers and the hypocrites, and be stern with them.”

If hypocrites introduce innovations that contradict the Book and mislead people about them, and these innovations are not explained to people, the authority of the Book is undermined and the religion is altered—just as the religion of the People of the Book before us was corrupted through alterations whose perpetrators went unchallenged.

There may also be people who are not hypocrites but readily listen to the hypocrites. They have become so confused about them that they suppose their statements to be true, even though they contradict the Book, and become advocates of the hypocrites’ innovations. As Allah Most High says:

“Had they gone forth with you, they would only have added to your confusion and would have hurried about in your midst, seeking to sow discord among you. And among you are those who listen to them.”

The condition of these people must therefore also be explained. Indeed, the confusion caused by such people is greater, for they possess faith that requires loyalty toward them, yet they have embraced some of the hypocrites’ innovations that corrupt the religion. It is therefore essential to warn against those innovations, even if this requires mentioning these people and identifying them by name. Indeed, even if they had not received that innovation from a hypocrite, but had propounded it thinking it to be guidance, goodness, and part of the religion, when it was not, its true nature would still have to be explained.

For this reason, it is obligatory to explain the condition of those who err in hadith and its transmission, and those who