Question:
As-salamu `alaykum.
I once talked with some ahl al-Hadith person and was surprised to get to know their way of thinking. According to them, we can be Muslims without accepting prophets’ teachings, because they think that if prophets die, then their doings also die with them. They think if they did good acts, then that was for them; their deeds have no impact on us.
They also do not accept to go to great scholars mazars because they consider it shirk (polytheism). I tried so many times to convince them but I think I can never convince them like you. So, please help me and answer me on this topic.
Allah Hafiz.
Answer:
Salam, Sumera.
Thank you for your question.
This is really quite weird and strangely challenging! The question intrigues me— are we really in need of prophets and are we in need of following their example?
I wonder how this person calls himself one of the ahl al-Hadith (the people of hadith or followers of hadith) while he completely denies Hadith and places the final pin in its coffin. The Sunnah of the Prophet will always remain as strong and bright as it is.
Let’s start with posing an important question, if we are in no need of prophets’ examples, deeds, and teachings, then what is the job of a prophet other than being an ordinary person living with other people?
Islam teaches us that prophets are the chosen servants of Allah selected to convey the message of the Creator to His creatures. Apart from this, prophets should themselves be actual examples and real manifestations of the guidance and the message they bring to people. How can a prophet give guidance to people while he himself is unable to apply this guidance?
Here, we should note that the deeds and the actions of prophets are to be divided into two main categories: deeds that are of a personal nature, such as those deeds relating to the prophet himself as a person, and other deeds that are of legislative nature, i.e., those deeds in which he is to be followed.
If we agree with you that the deeds of prophets are buried with them, then we will abolish many basic and important parts of Islam, including Prayer (salah). The Qur’an tells us nothing about the number of daily Prayers and the way of performing them. All of that is known only through the actions of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), who said, “Perform Prayer the way you saw me performing it.”
Many teachings of Islam are known through the Sunnah (sayings and deeds) of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Denying the Sunnah is surely tantamount to disbelief and takes the person totally out of the fold of Islam. If you bury the deeds of the prophets with them, then you bury the whole religion and destroy it.
I would like to cite here the following words of Sheikh Yusuf Al-Qaradawi:
Actually, some people claim that the Qur’an is so inclusive that there is no need for the Sunnah. They support their claim by citing the Qur’anic verse that says what means:
*{And We reveal the Scripture unto thee as an exposition of all things…}* (An-Nahl 16:89).
However, this claim is completely wrong and rejected by the Qur’an itself. Allah Almighty says what means:
*{… and We have sent down unto thee (also) the Message; that thou mayest explain clearly to men what is sent for them, and that they may give thought}* (An-Nahl 16:44).
In addition, Allah declares that obeying the Prophet is obligatory, as it is part of obedience to Allah Himself (see 3:31; 4:80; 33:36; 47:33, etc.). Therefore, it is not proper for a Muslim who knows Islamic Law to make such a claim.
By and large, the Qur’an sets the general rules without details. For example, there is no mention in the Qur’an that there are five obligatory Prayers to be performed daily. Nor is the number of rak`ahs of each Prayer specified. The same is true of the percentage to be paid in zakah, the details in the rituals of Hajj, and other such ordinances and dealings. All of these details are profoundly dealt with in the Sunnah.
As for the second part of your question concerning going to great scholars, your meaning is not entirely clear to me. If you mean to go to a scholar to ask a question or to ask him or her to pray for you, there is no problem. But if you mean to visit the grave of a scholar or “saint” to ask him or her to intercede for you or grant some request, this is clearly shirk. We say 17 times daily in our Prayers what means *{You alone we worship and from You alone we seek assistance}* (Al-Fatihah 1:5).
http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/S...=1123996016424