بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِيْمِ
The sunnah of the prophet (ﷺ) is indivisible from the Qur’an. Narrations on what he (ﷺ) advised us and how he (ﷺ) lived his life is the living interpretation of the Qur’an.
The Qur’an contains the commands of Allah which cannot be understood and interpreted correctly without looking at the prophet’s (ﷺ) life. Let us take prayer as an example; Allah in the Qur’an commands the Muslims to pray:
“The believers, men and women, are protecting friends of one another; they enjoin good and forbid evil, and they establish Salah, and give Zakah, and obey Allah and His Messenger. Allah will have His Mercy on them, and surely, Allah is All-Mighty, All-Wise.” 9:71
However, we cannot know how to pray and carry out these actions accurately if was not for the sunnah. The prophet (ﷺ) is Allah’s perfect role model, a mercy to the world.
“You have an excellent model in the Messenger of Allah, for all who put their hope in Allah and the Last Day and remember Allah much.” 33:21
“There has certainly come to you a Messenger from among yourselves. Grievous to him is what you suffer; [he is] concerned over you and to the believers is kind and merciful.” 9:128
“Allah showed great kindness to the believers when He sent a Messenger to them from among themselves to recite His Signs to them, purify them and teach them the Book and Wisdom, even though before that they were clearly misguided.” 3:164
The Prophet’s (ﷺ) entire life reveals a seriousness, responsibility, and sensitivity of which not even the slightest detail is neglected.
Dangers of abandoning the Sunnah
“The loss of the religion starts with the abandonment of the Sunnah. Just as a rope breaks fibre by fibre, so does religion vanish bit by bit by abandoning the Sunnah.” [al-Darimi]
Not following the sunnah of the prophet (ﷺ) is what leads to different sects in Islam. Many have turned away from the sunnah fabricating their own hadith books and adopted un-islamic practices.
It was narrated from Anas bin Malik that the prophet (ﷺ) said: “The Children of Israel split into 72 sects, and my nation will split into 73, all of which will be in Hell apart from one, which is the main congregation (al jama’ah).” [Ibn Majah]
Abandoning the sunnah also forms false interpretations of the book of Allah. People claiming they read the Qur’an and interpret the meanings for themselves. This is why we see the rise of militant groups and other extremists claiming to be following the deen of Islam.
False interpretation not only results in wrongly following Allah’s commands but also the initiation of bid’a (innovation). The prophet (ﷺ) said: “Every innovation is going astray, and every going astray will be in the Fire.” [Muslim]
Bid’a is any religious act practiced outside the sunnah of the prophet (ﷺ).
The importance of following the prophet (ﷺ) is highlighted many times in the Qur’an, here are a few:
“Indeed, We have sent you as a witness and a bringer of good tidings and a warner
That you [people] may believe in Allah and His Messenger and honour him and respect the Prophet and exalt Allah morning and afternoon.
Indeed, those who pledge allegiance to you, [O Muhammad] – they are actually pledging allegiance to Allah . The hand of Allah is over their hands. So he who breaks his word only breaks it to the detriment of himself. And he who fulfills that which he has promised Allah – He will give him a great reward.” 48:8-10
“He who obeys the Messenger has obeyed Allah ; but those who turn away – We have not sent you over them as a guardian.” 4:80
“…And whatever the Messenger has given you – take; and what he has forbidden you – refrain from. And fear Allah ; indeed, Allah is severe in penalty.” 59:7
It is made very clear; in order for us to obey Allah, we must obey the prophet (ﷺ). The messenger of Allah (ﷺ) with Allah’s guidance may prohibit other things not specifically mentioned in the Qur’an. He (ﷺ) said: “Avoid that which I forbid you to do and do that which I command you to do to the best of your capacity.” [Muslim]
Allah warns us of abandoning the commands of the prophet (ﷺ):
“And whoever opposes the Messenger after guidance has become clear to him and follows other than the way of the believers – We will give him what he has taken and drive him into Hell, and evil it is as a destination.” 4:115
Not only does leaving the sunnah affect our deen it also affects the world around us. The prophet (ﷺ) taught us everything from how we run our businesses to how we deal with the people around us. The Islamic world’s political and economic status fragmented because the Muslims abandoned Allah’s book and the sunnah.
His roles included much more than a prophet: a head of state, an army commander, a soldier, a trader, a father, a husband, a friend.
We as Muslims can only truly fulfil our duties to Allah by following His appointed role model, His messenger Muhammad (ﷺ).
We hear today a great misconception that all sunnah is optional, when in fact within the sunnah there are both obligatory and optional actions, but the sunnah as whole is the only way of Islam.
To end, let us take heed of what Allah tells us in the Qur’an:
“Say, [O Muhammad to the people], ‘If you should love Allah, then follow me [the prophet], [so] Allah will love you and forgive you your sins. And Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.'” 3:31
Allah know best.