157.’Irbā bin Sāriyah رضي
الله عنه
reported:
One
day the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ delivered us a very
eloquent Khutbah on account of which
eyes shed tears and hearts were full of tears. A man said: “O Prophet of Allāh, this is as if
it were a parting advice. So advice us.” He ﷺ
said, “I admonish you to
fear Allāh , to listen and obey
even if an Abyssinian slave is appointed as your leader. Because whoever among you shall live after me, will see much
discord. So hold fast to my Sunnah and the examples of the Rightly-Guided
Caliphs who will come after me. Adhere to them and hold to it fast. Beware of
new things (in Deen) because every Bid’ah is a misguidance.” [Abū Dāwūd and At-Tirmidhī]
Commentary: This Hadīth stresses piety, obedience to the leader, following in the footsteps of the Prophet ﷺ
and the first four
noble caliphs. It strictly forbids innovation in Deen.
This Hadīth also reveals the prediction of the Prophet ﷺ
that the Muslim Ummah
will become a victim of dissension. He also prescribed the right means to
counteract it. The remedy that he has proposed for this problem is that Muslims
should never deviate from the path laid for them by him and his righteous
successors. This is the touchtone for discovering the truth from the mess of
different views. All the troubles of Muslims world would come to an end if they
accept this as the one singular criterion of right and wrong.
Source: Riyād-us-Saliheen, Volume 1., Chapter 16 (under Observing the Sunnah and the Manners of its Obedience) page. 166 Compiled by Al-Imām Abu Zakariya Yahya bin Sharaf An-Nawawi Ad-Dimashqi, Commentary by Hafiz Salahuddin Yusuf, Translated by Dr. Muhammad Amin Abu Usamah Al-Arabi bin Razduq, Darussalam.
