Gifts of Knowledge

Previous post here.

To proceed:

So you see that Imaam Ibn al-Qayyim, rahimahullaah, makes the absolute following of the Messenger ﷺ the path [leading] to the true reality of faith, and there is nothing strange about that, rather, it is entirely logical as you will see. [For] if you claimed that you loved and appreciated a certain scholar, and that you had the utmost appreciation and respect for him, yet at the same time you did not value his words and paid no attention to them, it would be entirely natural for someone to confront you, and say, “Why do I see you claiming to love that scholar, even claiming absolute devotion to him, yet you do not give the slightest attention to his words or speech and his knowledge?” This is a question that reason and logic necessarily demand [be answered]. And I do not know what your answer could be!

Would you say in response, “In reality, I do not harbour any love for him. It is merely a claim I have made because of certain circumstances, and I do not mean anything more than that by love?” Or would you say, “I truly do love and esteem him, but my desires and Satan … but my friends … but the hardness that has afflicted my heart, all of this has prevented me from paying attention to his words, benefiting from his statements, and taking him as an example?”

You must give one of these two answers. So which one will you put forward and choose? And whichever you do choose, the sweeter of the two answers is still bitter [i.e., both answers are bad]. And Allaah is the One whose help is sought.

And this scenario applied to the Messenger ﷺ and his Sunnah is even greater and more serious. And how could it not be? We only came to know Allaah, believe in Him, and worship Him Alone through the call that he ﷺ conveyed to us within the Sunnah that was transmitted to us by the trustworthy scholars of the Muslims, from among the Companions and those who came after them, those whom Allaah appointed for this task and honoured by allowing them to serve it. It was through the Sunnah that they explained the Quraan and interpreted it and in its light that they established the rulings of the Sharīʿah one by one, formulated its principles, and laid down its governing rules, to which we refer back whenever a new matter arises, an incident occurs, or circumstances develop.

Anyone who claims to believe in Allaah and His Messenger ﷺ and then has the audacity to deny the Sunnah of the Messenger ﷺ or to deny its authority, or to deny that it yields certain [unequivocal] knowledge—then he is blatantly contradicting himself, is severely confused in his speech and floundering blindly in his conduct.

Let him read, if he so wishes, the saying of al-Hasan al-Basri, rahimahullah, “Eemaan is not [attained] by mere wishing or by outward adornment, but rather it is what becomes firmly settled in the heart and is verified by action.” And no deed is accepted without conforming to the Sunnah, “Whoever performs a deed not in accordance with our way then it will be rejected.” [Muslim]

And the true reality of things will become clear on the Day when secrets will be laid bare, and Allaah is the One whose help is sought.

سَوْفَ تَرَى إِذَا انْجَلِي الغُبَارُ … أَفَرَسٌ تَحْتَكَ أَمْ حِمَارُ
“You will see, when the dust clears, whether there is a horse beneath you or a donkey.”

[A proverb used for someone who rushes matters, disregards advice, and stubbornly insists on having their own way. It points out to them that the outcome of their action and the reality of their stance will become fully apparent once the ambiguity clears and the results are unveiled. Only then will they know whether they were in the right, a noble horseman, or in the wrong and ignorant, a donkey.]