Fadālah ibn ‘Ubayd reported that the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—said:
“There are three about whom no inquiry will be made: a man who breaks away from the community, disobeys his leader, and dies in disobedience…”
He then related the rest of the hadith (1).
Abū Hurayrah—may Allah be pleased with him—reported that the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—said:
“Each obligatory prayer expiates what occurs between it and the next; likewise, one Friday prayer to the next and one month to the next—meaning Ramadan—expiate what occurs between them.”
He then said, “Except for three things.” I realized that this concerned something that had happened, and he said:
“Except associating partners with Allah, breaking the pledge of allegiance, and abandoning the sunnah—and pledging allegiance to a man with your right hand, then turning against him and fighting him with your sword. Abandoning the sunnah means breaking away from the community.” (2)
Al-Nu‘mān ibn Bashīr reported: The Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—addressed us, saying:
“May Allah brighten the face of one who hears my words and conveys them (3), for many a bearer of understanding
(1) This hadith is reported from Fadāla ibn ‘Ubayd—may Allah be pleased with him—in al-Mustadrak, 1/119. Al-Hākim said: “This hadith is authentic according to the criteria of al-Bukhārī and Muslim: both relied on all its narrators, yet neither included it in his collection. I know of no defect in it.” Al-Dhahabī concurred.
(2) This hadith is reported from Abū Hurayra—may Allah be pleased with him—in al-Mustadrak, 1/119–120, with the wording: “Except for three things.” I realized that this concerned something that had happened. He said: “Except associating partners with Allah, breaking the pledge of allegiance, and abandoning the sunnah.” I said: “O Messenger of Allah, we understand associating partners with Allah, but what are breaking the pledge of allegiance and abandoning the sunnah?” He said: “Breaking the pledge of allegiance means pledging allegiance to a man with your right hand, then turning against him and confronting him with your sword. Abandoning the sunnah means breaking away from the community.” Al-Hākim then said: “This hadith is authentic according to Muslim’s criteria, for he relied on ‘Abd Allāh ibn al-Sā’ib ibn Abī al-Sā’ib al-Ansārī. I know of no defect in it.” Al-Dhahabī concurred.
(3) m: fa-wa‘āhā (and retained and understood it).