317—Ali ibn Muhammad ibn Abd Allah al-Sukkari informed us. He said: Uthman ibn Ahmad ibn Abd Allah ibn Burayd al-Daqiqi related to us. He said: Abu Muhammad ⦗176⦘ al-Hasan ibn Abd al-Wahhab, Abu al-Anbar, read to us from his book in Rabi al-Awwal of the year 293 AH. He said: Abu Jafar Muhammad ibn Sulayman al-Minqari related to us at Tinnis. He said: Abdus ibn Malik al-Attar related to me. He said: I heard Abu Abd Allah Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Hanbal say:
The foundations of the Sunnah according to us are: holding fast to that which the Companions of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, followed; taking them as examples; abandoning religious innovations, for every innovation is misguidance; refraining from disputes, from sitting with the people of vain desires, and from contentious argumentation, debate, and disputation concerning the religion.
According to us, the Sunnah consists of the reports from the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him. The Sunnah explains the Quran and provides evidence for its meaning. The Sunnah is not subject to analogical reasoning, nor are parables coined for it. It is not grasped by intellects or vain desires; rather, it consists solely in following and forsaking personal desire.
Among the binding matters of the Sunnah is that whoever abandons even one of them—neither professing it nor believing in it—is not among its people: belief in divine decree, its good and its evil; affirming the hadiths concerning it; and believing in them without asking, “Why?” or “How?” Rather, it is simply to affirm them and believe in them.
Whoever does not understand the explanation of a hadith, and whose mind cannot encompass it, has been spared that burden, and it has been made clear for him. He must believe in it and submit to it, such as the hadith of the Truthful and Trustworthy One, and whatever is similar to it concerning divine decree; and such as all the hadiths concerning the vision of Allah. Even if they seem unfamiliar to the ears and cause the listener unease ⦗177⦘, all that is required of him is to believe in them and not reject a single part of them, or of the other transmitted hadiths reported by trustworthy narrators.
One must not dispute with anyone, debate him, or learn dialectical argumentation. For speculative theological discourse concerning divine decree, the vision of Allah, the Quran, and other matters of the Sunnah is reprehensible and prohibited. Even if one who engages in it happens to conform to the Sunnah in what he says, he is not among the people of the Sunnah until he abandons disputation, submits, and believes in the transmitted reports.
The Quran is the speech of Allah and is not created. Do not hesitate to say, “It is not created,” for the speech of Allah is from Him, and nothing that is from Him is created. Beware of debating one who introduces innovations concerning it, one who makes assertions concerning its wording or otherwise, or one who suspends judgment concerning it and says, “I do not know whether it is created or not created.” It is the speech of Allah and is not created.
And there is belief in the vision of Allah on the Day of Resurrection, as related from the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, in authentic hadiths; and that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, saw his Lord. This is soundly transmitted from the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him: Qatadah reported it from Ikrimah, from Ibn Abbas; al-Hakam ibn Aban reported it from Ikrimah, from Ibn Abbas; and Ali ibn Zayd reported it from Yusuf ibn Mihran, from Ibn Abbas. According to us, the hadith is understood according to its apparent meaning, as it came from the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him. Speculative discussion concerning it is an innovation; rather, we believe in it as it came, according to its apparent meaning, and we do not debate anyone concerning it. ⦗178⦘
And there is belief in the Balance, as has been reported: the servant will be weighed on the Day of Resurrection, yet he will not weigh as much as a mosquito’s wing. The deeds of the servants will also be weighed, as related in the transmitted report. It must be believed and affirmed, while turning away from whoever rejects it and abandoning argument with him.
Allah, Exalted is He, will speak to His servants on the Day of Resurrection, with no interpreter between them and Him. This must be believed and affirmed.
And there is belief in the Basin: the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, will have a basin on the Day of Resurrection, to which his community will come. Its width is equal to its length, the distance of a month’s journey, and its vessels are as numerous as the stars in the sky, according to reports authentically established through more than one route.
And there is belief in the punishment of the grave: this community will be tested in their graves and questioned concerning faith and Islam, concerning who their Lord is and who their Prophet is. Munkar and Nakir will come to them in whatever manner Allah, Exalted is He, wills and intends. This must be believed and affirmed.
And there is belief in the intercession of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, and in people who will emerge from the Fire after they have been burned and become charcoal. They will then be commanded to go to a river at the gate of Paradise, as related in the transmitted report, however Allah wills and whenever He wills. It is simply to believe in this and affirm it.
And there is belief that the Dajjal, the False Messiah, will emerge, with “disbeliever” written between his eyes; belief in the hadiths that have come concerning him; and belief that this will indeed take place, ⦗179⦘ and that Jesus, son of Mary, will descend and kill him at the gate of Ludd.
Faith consists of speech and action; it increases and decreases, as stated in the report: “The believers most complete in faith are those best in character.” Whoever abandons the prayer has disbelieved. No other deed, when abandoned, constitutes disbelief except the prayer: whoever abandons it is a disbeliever, and Allah has made his killing lawful.
The best of this community after its Prophet is Abu Bakr al-Siddiq, then Umar ibn al-Khattab, then Uthman ibn Affan. We give precedence to these three, just as the Companions of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, gave them precedence; they did not differ concerning this. After these three come the remaining five members of the consultative council: Ali ibn Abi Talib, Talhah, al-Zubayr, Abd al-Rahman ibn Awf, and Sad. All of them were fit for the caliphate, and all of them were imams.
We follow the hadith of Ibn Umar: “While the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, was still alive and his Companions were numerous, we used to rank them: Abu Bakr, then Umar, then Uthman, and then we would remain silent.”
After the members of the consultative council come the veterans of Badr among the Emigrants, then the veterans of Badr among the Helpers, from among the Companions of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, according to the priority of their migration and their precedence in Islam, one after another.
Then, after them, the most excellent people are the Companions of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him—the generation ⦗180⦘ among whom he was sent. Whoever accompanied him for a year, a month, a day, an hour, or merely saw him, is among his Companions. He possesses the rank of companionship in proportion to how long he accompanied him, how early he preceded others in following him, what he heard from him, and even a single look he cast upon him. The Companion who spent the least time with him is superior to the generation that did not see him, even if they were to meet Allah with every kind of righteous deed. Those who accompanied the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, saw him, heard from him, or saw him with their own eyes and believed in him—even for an hour—are, by virtue of their companionship, superior to the Successors, even if the latter performed every righteous deed.
Hearing and obeying the imams and the Commander of the Believers are required, whether he is righteous or wicked. This applies to whoever assumes the caliphate and the people unite behind him and accept him, as well as to whoever gains mastery over them by the sword until he becomes caliph and is called Commander of the Believers.
Military expeditions under the command of rulers, whether righteous or wicked, are to continue until the Day of Resurrection and are not to be abandoned. The distribution of public revenue and the establishment of the prescribed legal punishments belong to the imams and remain in force. No one may impugn them or contend with them. Giving alms to them is valid and effective: whoever gives them to the rulers has discharged his obligation, whether the ruler is righteous or wicked. ⦗181⦘
Friday prayer behind them, and behind whomever they appoint, is valid and complete as two units of prayer. Whoever repeats it has introduced an innovation, abandoned the transmitted reports, and opposed the Sunnah. He receives none of the merit of Friday prayer if he does not regard prayer behind the imams as valid, whether they are righteous or wicked. The Sunnah is that you pray two units with them. Whoever repeats them is an innovator. You must hold that it is complete, without any doubt in your heart concerning this.
Whoever rises against the imam of the Muslims after the people have united behind him and acknowledged his caliphate—whether this occurred through consent or through force—has split the Muslims’ unity and contradicted the transmitted reports from the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him. If the one who rises against him dies, he dies a death of the Age of Ignorance.
It is not lawful for anyone to fight the ruler or rise against him. Whoever does so is an innovator, departing from the Sunnah and the proper path.
It is permissible to fight robbers and Kharijites if they attack a man in his person or property. He may fight in defense of himself and his property, repelling them by every means within his power. But if they leave him or depart from him, he may not pursue them or follow their tracks. This belongs to no one but the imam or the Muslim authorities. He may only defend himself where he stands, and he should intend, to the utmost of his ability, not to kill anyone. If the assailant is killed while he is defending himself, then may Allah cast the slain aggressor far away. If he is killed in that situation while defending his life and property, I hope that he will attain martyrdom, as stated in the hadiths and all the transmitted reports concerning this matter. He has only been commanded to fight them; he has not been commanded to kill them or pursue them. Nor should he finish off one who has been struck down ⦗182⦘ or wounded. If he captures one as a prisoner, he may not kill him or administer the prescribed punishment to him; rather, he should refer his case to the one whom Allah has placed in authority, who will judge concerning him.
No one should testify that any of the people of the qiblah will enter Paradise or the Fire on account of a deed he performs. One hopes for the righteous person, yet fears for him; one fears for the sinful wrongdoer, yet hopes for Allah’s mercy for him. Whoever meets Allah having repented, without persisting in a sin that would otherwise make the Fire due to him, Allah, Exalted is He, accepts his repentance. He accepts repentance from His servants and pardons evil deeds. Whoever meets Him after the prescribed punishment for that sin has been carried out upon him in this world, then it is an expiation for him, as reported from the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him. Whoever meets Him while persisting without repentance in sins for which he has deserved punishment, his matter rests with Allah, Exalted is He: if He wills, He will punish him, and if He wills, He will forgive him. Whoever meets Him as a disbeliever, He will punish him and will not forgive him.
Stoning is an established right for an adulterer who is muhsan, one who has been lawfully married, if he confesses or if evidence is established against him. The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, carried out stoning, and the rightly guided imams also carried it out.
Whoever disparages any of the Companions of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, hates him because of something that occurred on his part, or mentions his faults, is an innovator until he invokes mercy upon all of them and his heart is free of rancor toward them.
Hypocrisy is disbelief: that one disbelieves in Allah, worships other than Him, and outwardly displays Islam, like the hypocrites who lived during the time of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him.
As for the hadiths that have come ⦗183⦘ saying, “There are three qualities; whoever possesses them is a hypocrite,” this is by way of stern warning. We narrate them as they have come and do not interpret them. Likewise is his saying: “Do not become astray disbelievers after me, striking one another’s necks”; and: “When two Muslims meet with their swords, both the killer and the slain are in the Fire”; ⦗184⦘ and: “Insulting a Muslim is sinful defiance, and fighting him is disbelief”; and: “Whoever says to his brother, ‘O disbeliever,’ then it returns upon one of the two”; and: “It is disbelief in Allah to disclaim one’s lineage, even if it is insignificant.” Similar authentic and preserved hadiths are accepted in submission, even if their explanation is not known. Nothing is said or disputed concerning them, and these hadiths are not explained except in the terms in which they have come. Nor do we reject them in favor of anything more deserving of acceptance.
Paradise and the Fire are created; they have already been created, as related from the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him: “I entered Paradise and saw a palace; I saw al-Kawthar; I looked into Paradise and saw such-and-such for its inhabitants; and I looked into the Fire and saw such-and-such, and I saw such-and-such.” Whoever claims that they have not been created has rejected the Quran and the hadiths of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him. I do not consider such a person to believe in Paradise and the Fire.
Whoever among the people of the qiblah dies affirming Allah’s oneness, the funeral prayer is offered for him and forgiveness is sought for him. Nor is it to be omitted ⦗185⦘ because of a sin he committed, whether minor or major. His affair rests with Allah, Mighty and Majestic.