Dr. Nabil ibn Ahmed Balhi
In the Name of Allah, the All-Merciful, the All-Compassionate
All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the Worlds; may Allah’s Peace and Blessings be upon Prophet Muhammad, his family, and companions.
It can’t be denied that denying the Prophetic Sunnah publicly has become a common feature of our time. Though the companions and followers projected the fact of this attitude and its anti-Sharia goals and objectives, those deniers, who claim that they mainly aim to glorify the Quran, take the Sharia rulings from it only, and apply its rulings to the reality of Muslims, might deceive some contemporaries. This claim may thus indicate that those people truly want to live in accordance with the Quran’s legislation and laws.
As a result, it was necessary to expose this attitude’s deception and explain the true objectives of those who deny the Prophetic Sunnah, as well as the dangers of this ideology on Islam, Sharia, and the lives of Muslims. Before delving into this topic, I decided to start by highlighting the goals promulgated by the deniers of the Sunnah after which I should discuss in detail the genuine goals of those people, with the intention of giving advice to the Ummah and revealing the truth in light of the well-established evidence.
In actuality, the deniers of the Sunnah pretend that they want to show compassion to the Muslim Ummah under the pretext that they want to save it from the darkness of illusion to the light of science and certainty. In doing so, they utilize impressive words, such as renewal, coping with the time, doing service to man, utilization of the intellect, refraining from imitation, etc. Besides, they wear the cloaks of scholarly criticism, claiming that they want to edit the Islamic heritage and to remove anything that was incorrectly introduced to it and that distorts the image of Islam reflected in the Glorious Quran only, as they claim.
Ahmed Subhi Mansou said: "Though we firmly believe that the Quran is the only source of the Prophet’s Sunnah, the Sharia of the All-Merciful, Allah the Almighty’s Religion, we place these Hadith narrations in their due positions. The human history of the Prophet and the Muslims and the repercussions of their culture and thoughts, regardless of whether they agree with the Quran or not. We are so sad to find that these narrations include poisons (i.e. unauthentic, unreliable narrations) that distort the biography of the great Prophet who disseminated a Daʿwah, established an Ummah, built a state, and influenced the world’s history."Ahmed Mansour, Al-Qur’an Wa Kafa Massdarn Li Al-Tashriʿ Al-Islami, p. 107. (1)
A point of interest to highlight in this context is that criticism of the Islamic heritage is originally a lawful matter, a point that is evidenced by the fact that scholars of Hadith duly fulfilled this task. However, we maintain that the main goal of those people (i.e. deniers of the Sunnah) is to undermine the heritage, not to purify it in line with the well-established scholarly rules. The following lines will reveal the genuine goals of those people.
Removing the Sunnah from their Path since it Hinders them from Pursuing their So-called Modernization Project
Deniers of the Sunnah want to apply a modernization project of Islam in light of the principles of western civilization or, as they put it, they want Islam to cope with the cultural development and human advancement that reached their peak in this age. For them, traditional Islam is totally against their renewal project, not to mention that the Prophetic Sunnah, which reflects the correct understanding of the Quran and the practical application of Islam, prevents them from understanding Islam in light of the modern givens. As a result, the existence of the Sunnah shatters their dreams of producing a new version of Islam that copes with the western view of life, a point that is clearly recorded by the advocates of this attitude.
Muhammad Shahrur said: "This shows why there was a dire need for the science of Hadith, especially if we take into account that it emerged as a reaction to this conflict. In this way, the Sunnah, with its traditional, legalistic concept and definition, stood in the way of all kind of free, enlightened, critical thought. Furthermore, Muslims believed that Muhammad (r) solved all of humanity’s problems, from his demise to the establishment of the Hour."Muhammad Shahrur, Al-Kitab Wa Al-Qur’an, p. 569. (2)
However, though advocates of this attitude publicly claim that their objectives stem mainly from the principles of criticism, careful scrutiny, refrainment from imitation, and pushing the modernization and renewal project of Islam forward, their actions reveal another kind of imitation and submissiveness to the ideologies and thoughts imported from the West. Especially the idea of the distorted production of unsuitable philosophical thoughts that are of no avail.
On that, the scholar of Islamic studies Jonathan Brown said: "The approach (of the Quran alone) is not the solution to the jail of imitation. It is not a selective reliance on it [i.e. imitation]. None of those thinkers was able to methodically disconnect from the past or reread the Quran apart from it. In general, the approach (based solely on the Quran) reflects a desire for Islam that is compatible with modern rationalism and Western sentiments. It is the product of: 'How does a certain class of society want the religion to look like?'"Jonathan Brown, Al-Nizaaʿ ʿAla Al-Sunnah, p. 323. (3)
Strangely enough, those deniers claim that the prophetic Sunnah is an obstacle before progress and the making of civilization, though our predecessors controlled large part of the world, from east to west, while adhering to the Quran and the Sunnah in terms of creed and deeds. History testifies that the Islamic civilization reached its climax when the Islamic caliphate relied on the Quran and the Sunnah as its main references.
Leopold Weiss (Muhammad Asad) said about this issue: "The Sunnah served as the key to understand the Islamic Renaissance more than three centuries ago, so why should it not be the key to understand our current decline? Applying the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (r) means to safeguard the entity and progress of Islam, while refraining from the Sunnah means the decline of Islam. The Sunnah represented the metal structure upon which the edifice of Islam is established. If you remove the structure of a building, would it be a surprise that the entire building would collapse as though it were a paper house!"Muhammad Asad, Al-Islam ʿAla Muftaraq Al-Turuq, p. 55. (4)
Reliance on the Glorious Quran Alone and the Interpretation of its Meanings in line With the Human Desires
From the viewpoint of these contemporary groups, this is considered a strategic goal. Admittedly, the Glorious Quran has a high rank in the life of Muslims since it is the sacred revelation that falsehood cannot approach from before it or from behind it; it is a revelation from a Lord who is All-Wise and All-Praiseworthy. The Quran is all good and replete with blessings; it is the guide to what is best in this worldly life and the hereafter. This is a fact recorded in the Saying of Allah the Exalted: "Indeed, this Quran guides to that which is most just and right, and gives good tidings to the believers who do righteous deeds that they will have a great reward." [The Quran, 17:98] Accordingly, it is impossible to alter this Quran or directly remove it from the hearts of Muslims. However, the alternative solution is to eradicate the Sunnah that clarifies the true meanings of the Quran and then interpret the Quran as per people’s inclinations and desires, away from the well-established rules of exegesis necessary for understanding the Book of Allah and the Prophetic Hadiths that help us correctly understand its meanings.
This point may be crystal clear in Shahrur’s following quotation reading: "Everyone will thus read the Quran in light of these levels and problems he is concerned with, and thus will find results not discovered by others and understand points not grasped by others."Muhammad Shahrur, Nahwa Usul Jadidah Li Al-Fiqh Al-Islami, p. 55. (5)
As a result, their primary goal is to interpret the Quran in accordance with modern theories and western approaches in order to produce a new understanding. In other words, they want western thoughts and ideologies, such as that man is the center of the universe and freedom is an original and general objective, to serve as the pivot, while the Quran shall follow it. They will then twist the meanings of verses to link them with these so-called principles.
Shahrur’s principle of freedom may serve as a case in point. He clarifies it, as follows: "Freedom is the essence of worshipping Allah alone. Fighting for the sake of promoting people’s freedom of choice and opinion is the essence of fighting for Allah’s Cause, in order for Allah’s Word to be the highest. This is perfectly clear in the Saying of Allah the Almighty, 'And the word of your Lord has been fulfilled in truth and in justice. None can alter His words, and He is the All-Hearer, the All-Knowing.' [The Quran, 6:115]"[Muhammad Shahrur, Al-Islam Wa Al-Iman, p. 159. (6)
Well-versed Muslim intellectuals fully realized the purpose of those people and their desire to have the Quran as the only main source of legislation, to misinterpret its meaning. On that, Muhammad Asad may be quoted as saying: "They tried to obviate the necessity of following the Sunnah. That is because if they managed to do so, they could superficially interpret the meanings of the Quran as per their inclinations and ways of thinking. But, this approach would result in undermining the excellent rank of Islam as a moral, practical, personal, and social system."Muhammad Asad, Al-Islam ʿAla Muftaraq Al-Turuq, p. 97. (7)
As such, denial of the Prophetic Sunnah is the door through which those people would twist the meanings of the verses of the Quran, so that it may be accepted by the westerners who view their civilization as superior to that of the East with its religion and heritage, which is but a degradation of our religion.
Asad, for his part, states that the reason for those people’s action is that the Prophetic Sunnah totally contradicts the Western ideas. He said: "The Prophetic Sunnah explicitly contradicts the basic opinions upon which the Western civilization is founded, to the extent that the advocates of the second The second means the Western Civilization (8) (i.e. the Western civilization) find no outlet for them except to reject the Sunnah under the claim that Muslims are not obligated to follow it as it is established on unauthenticated Hadiths. After this short trial, interpolation of the teachings of the Glorious Quran to cope with the spirit of western civilization would be easier."Muhammad Asad, Al-Islam ʿAla Muftaraq Al-Turuq, p. 98. (9)
Replacement of Islamic Values with Western Ones and Melting into Western Civilization
This is another objective of the intellectual currents, which deny the authenticity of the Prophetic Sunnah. Mostly, those people are overtaken by the slogans and values of western civilization, such as freedom, humanism, democracy, and equality. Besides, they believe that the Prophetic Sunnah neither reflects nor focuses on these values. For this reason, they opine that it is a stumbling block before the application of these values, which is why they view it as necessary to remove the true values of Islam laid down by the Quran and the Sunnah and to move towards establishing the western values instead. In doing so, they rely on some verses whose meanings they intentionally distort.
For those people, man is the center of the universe, which means that the building of civilization, the creation of cultures, and subjecting everything in the universe to man’s service represent the most important duty.
When it comes to the Islamic values, they are manifested clearly in the fact that man is created to worship Allah, that salvation in the Hereafter is the most important thing for the Muslim. Even if he sacrifices the adornments of this worldly life for this sake, and that the construction of this life is a means to safely reach the Hereafter.
Here is one example of how Western civilization understands the principle of humanity (i.e. serving man’s desires under all conditions) and how deniers of the Sunnah attempt to theorize this understanding from the Glorious Quran.
On that, Samer Islamboli commented: "Out of this principle of belief, Quran is considered the only source of Divine Revelation that shows no nepotism or flattery to any other community; rather, it is a universal human law. As such, the prohibition is what is prohibited by Allah in His Book, and the lawful is what is declared lawful by Allah in His Book."Samer Al-Islambolli, Tahrir Al-ʿAql Mina Al-Naql Wa Qira’h Naqdiay Li Majmouʿaten Min Ahadith Al-Bukhari Wa Muslim, p. 37. (10)
The Islamic values established by the Quran and the Sunnah, on the other hand, are fixed, and thus could not be altered. Besides, they are derived from the Revelation and are based on the fact that man is Allah’s slave, not to mention the fact that they realize the ultimate objective behind man’s existence: worshipping Allah the Exalted alone and associating no partner with Him in worship. They also prioritize the affairs of the afterlife over the affairs of this life. The Prophetic Sunnah is the practical application of these values and their real reflection. To realize their project of replacing these Islamic values, the Prophetic Sunnah should be first removed and the applications of the first Muslim generations should be ignored, after which the Western alternative would be introduced as an inextricable necessity to cope with the developments.
Undermining Trust in the Religious Texts and Giving Priority to what Intellects Approve
That is because deviant rationalism is the basis upon which deniers of the Sunnah establish their approach. Out of the extremist approach they adopt in adhering to what is approved by the intellect and following their desires, they contempt the Prophetic Hadiths and disregard the scholars of Hadith’s efforts to record and purify the Sunnah, to the extent that they view the Hadith-based heritage as the main reason for the civilizational backwardness of the Ummah.
Islamboli said about this issue: "In truth, the intellect is found before Al-Naql (i.e. narration). As such, narration is the product of the intellect’s interaction with reality, which stresses the fact that the intellect is superior to narration. This position cannot be reversed, since the product cannot be the master of the producer. Had this happened, this would have been some kind of farce."Ibid., p. 7. (11)
They, on the other hand, view their approved thoughts as the certainty that should be sought after, citing as evidence the Saying of Allah the Exalted inviting people to contemplate and ponder over things: "We have certainly sent down to you a Book in which is your mention. Then will you not reason?" [The Quran, 21:10]
In truth, the Quran refers to those people’s so-called sacred reasonable matters as inclinations and desires, which is why it warns against them. As a result, whoever forsakes the Prophetic Sunnah in favor of his intellect’s produce will be as though placing the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger behind his back in neglect. Allah the Almighty said: "But if they do not respond to you - then know that they only follow their [own] desires. And who is more astray than one who follows his desire without guidance from Allah? Indeed, Allah does not guide the wrongdoing people." [The Quran, 28:50]
Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah commented: "All these intellect-based opinions, which go against the Sunnah of the Messenger, are from the issues of desires and the pre-Islamic period of ignorance. Even though the advocates of this attitude portray these opinions as decisive and conclusive, they exactly act like the polytheists who called their idols gods and the hypocrites who want to spread mischief in the earth and turn people’s hearts away from faith under the pretext of good conduct and accommodation."
Ibn Al-Qaiyem, Al-Sawaʿiq Al-Mursalah, 2/674. (12)
As such, the Quranic verse demonstrates that disobeying Allah’s Messenger’s commands will only lead to disfavored desires. Those people (i.e. deniers of the Sunnah) want the truth to follow their deisres, which they call "reasonable matters". This is however far away from the truth. On that, Allah the Exalted said: "But if the Truth had followed their desires, the heavens and the earth and whoever is in them would have been ruined. Rather, We have brought them their message, but they, from their message, are turning away." [The Quran, 23:71]
Create a New Islam that Keeps with the Age’s Developments and Responds to Reality’s Pressures
Whoever carefully examines the writings of the deniers of the Sunnah, the ideas recorded in their books, and what their tongues reveal will realize that those people aim, first and foremost, to replace this religion. Something that they call "imitation", with a new one that responds to reality’s requirements, which copes with the spirit of the age, and is characterized by continual change to be compatible with the time’s and the people’s needs. However, we maintain that this act is the essence of alteration the disbelievers requested from the Prophet (https://www.haseenkwt.com/article/72) who replied to them that he could not do this on his own accord. On that, Allah the Exalted said: "And when Our verses are recited to them as clear evidences, those who do not expect the meeting with Us say, "Bring us a Qur'an other than this or change it." Say, [O Muhammad], "It is not for me to change it on my own accord. I only follow what is revealed to me. Indeed I fear, if I should disobey my Lord, the punishment of a tremendous Day." [The Quran, 10:15]
Commenting on this verse, Ibn Jarir Al-Tabari said: "As for (the essence of) the change they asked the Messenger of Allah for, it was to change the verses on warning into verses of glad tidings and vice versa. They also requested that he change what is prohibited to be lawful and vice versa. So, Allah the Exalted commanded His Prophet (r) to tell them that this was not his own affair; rather, it was the affair of Allah the Exalted: the One Whose Judgment cannot be revoked. As for him (r), he is only a Messenger commanded to communicate the Divine Message of his Lord."Al-Tabari, Jameʿ Al-Bayan ʿAn Ta’wil Ayi Al-Qur’an, 12/136 (13)
Since the Prophetic Sunnah represents the practical application of the Quran, those people want to prevent Muslims from having a correct understanding of the Quran and properly applying it to reality, with the aim of replacing it with new applications and explanations that cope with the requirements of our age. We can even put it, as follows: "They want to invent a new religion that is different from the religion of Prophet Muhammad (https://www.haseenkwt.com/article/72)."
Highlighting the books promulgating the deniers of the Sunnah’s misconceptions, Anwar Al-Jundi said: "The invitation of those books to arouse misconceptions about the Prophetic Hadiths and to suffice with the Qur’anic text is undoubtedly a dangerous work that tries to separate the text from application. In truth, application in Islam is the most dangerous aspect, taking into account that the most important aspect of them all is to follow the approach adopted by the Messenger of Allah (https://www.haseenkwt.com/article/72) in applying the Qur’anic text. Thus, it is clear that the Qur'anic text alone is insufficient for Muslims; we maintain that it cannot enable them to be true Muslims."
Anwar Al-Jundi, Al-Sunnah Fi Muwajahat Al-Istishraq, pp. 8 – 9. (14)
Since the beginning of the current of denying the Prophetic Sunnah, it has been clear that its advocates’ principle is to demonstrate defeat before Western civilization and to twist the meanings of Allah’s religion to accommodate people’s inclinations. This is demonstrated by orientalists who are well-versed in both Western and Islamic civilizations, such as Asad, who once explained this phenomenon, stating: "Total or partial rejection of the authentic Hadiths is not - as we previously stated - but an issue of taste; an issue that did not manage to manifest itself as a scholarly research devoid of desires. The reason for this is related to the impossibility of reconciling our current declining way of life and thinking on the one hand with the spirit of correct Islam on the other, as the Prophet’s Sunnah is reflected in one system."Muhammad Asad, Al-Islam ʿAla Muftaraq Al-Turuq, p. 97. (15)
In conclusion, we can briefly state that today’s civilizational conflict is that of flashy concepts and ideologies presented to humans. Among the poisonous ideas that some persons try to clothe in a Quranic garment is that of rejecting the Prophetic Sunnah and relying solely on the Quran. This is another call for the rejection of Islamic Sharia and another face for the soft war against the sources of religion under the guise of supporting the Quran and its Sharia. This is evidenced by the fact that these ideas and thoughts come from beyond the Muslim Ummah and that they are funded by imperialist and orientalist money, after which people who speak our language are chosen to disseminate them under the pretext that they are a renewal idea within the Islamic system. So, beware of these new techniques used to combat Islam and turn it into a meaningless religion. Let this generation be fully aware of the nature of truth and falsehood at this stage, because knowledge of the sources of these ideas and their genuine goals represents the essence of awareness that protects youths from falling into the traps of those people’s misconception.
May Allah exalt and send blessings to our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his companions.
