—straight—so follow it, and do not follow other paths, lest they lead you away from His path.”
‘Abd Allāh ibn Mas‘ūd said: “The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, drew a line for us, then drew other lines to its right and left. He then said: ‘This is Allah’s path. These are other paths, each with a devil calling people to it.’ Then he recited: ‘And this is My path, which is straight, so follow it, and do not follow other paths, lest they lead you away from His path.’”
Allah Most High has also said:
“The first forerunners among the Emigrants and the Helpers, and those who followed them in righteousness—Allah is pleased with them, and they are pleased with Him.”
Thus, Allah declared His pleasure with the forerunners unconditionally, and His pleasure with those who follow them in righteousness.
‘Abd Allāh ibn Mas‘ūd said: “Allah looked into the heart of Muhammad and found his heart to be the best of His servants’ hearts, so He chose him to bear His message. Then He looked into the hearts of people after his and found the hearts of his Companions to be the best of His servants’ hearts. Whatever the believers consider good is good in Allah’s sight, and whatever they consider bad is bad in Allah’s sight.”
‘Abd Allāh ibn Mas‘ūd also said: “Whoever among you wishes to follow an example should follow those who have died, for the living cannot be considered immune to trials. Those were the Companions of Muhammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace: the most righteous of this community in heart, the deepest in knowledge, and the least given to affectation. They were people whom Allah chose to accompany His Prophet and uphold His religion. So recognize what is due to them and hold fast to their guidance, for they followed straight and true guidance.”
Anyone with practical knowledge of the realities of religion and of the hearts’ spiritual states, understanding, inward experiences, and ecstasies knows that listening to whistling and handclapping brings hearts no benefit or good without also entailing harm