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In Surah Al Ahzab, verse 21, the Qur’an declares:

 

لَقَدْ کَانَ لَکُمْ فِیۡ رَسُوۡلِ اللہِ اُسْوَۃٌ حَسَنَۃٌ لِّمَنۡ کَانَ یَرْجُوۡا اللہَ وَالْیَوْمَ الْاٰخِرَ وَذَکَرَ اللہَ کَثِیۡرًا ﴿ؕ۲۱﴾

 

“Undoubtedly, you have the best (example) in the following of the Messenger, for him who hopes for Allah and the Last Day and remembers Allah much.”

 

There is no doubt that the world will come to an end one day and therefore, we should spend this important time in fulfilling and following the Sunnah of the Holy Prophet – may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him. We have no idea which action of ours would be accepted in the Divine Court of Allah Almighty and through this single action we will receive salvation in the Hereafter. That nation which forgets the behaviour and actions of their Prophet is a nation that will eventually destroy itself. This is the reason that the Qur’an commands us to obey the Holy Prophet – may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him – and to refrain from those things which he has prohibited.

 

A Sunnah is such an important act and without it, the Fard itself remains incomplete. Even a person who claims to read the Salaah, cannot not fulfil a Fard if he does not perform the Sunnah. In Salaah, standing (Qiyam), Ruku and Sajdah are Fard, yet without performing the Sunnah such as reading the Tasbeeh in these actions, how will it be complete?

 

We also see that the Fard actions only become compulsory on a person when he or she becomes mature, yet, the performance of Sunnah commences from the time the person is born. When we read the Azaan for the new born, when we shave the head of the new born, the performance of circumcision, the Aqeeqah, all these are considered as Sunnah.

 

This is one of the reason that we are called “Ahle Sunnah” and not Ahle Waajib or Ahle Fard. Even though the performance of the Fard and the reward attached to it is far superior to the reward for the performance of a Sunnah, but we will see that without the Sunnah being completed, many Fard actions remain incomplete. When we enter the Masjid to perform the Fard of Salaah, we clearly come to realise that we have to perform the Sunnah first. If one does not perform Nikah, which is a Sunnah, the child born from any couple would be considered as illegitimate.

 

Every Sunnah is to be performed, but it is not possible to practise on every Hadith. This is the reason that we are called “Ahle Sunnah.” As for those others who call themselves Ahle Hadith, we like to see them practise on every Hadith. As a matter of fact, we would appreciate if they spend their entire life trying to practise on every Hadith, and in this way, at least they will be so busy that they will not have the time to insult the Ahle Sunnah wa Jamaah.! Let us give you an example of this.

 

It is a Hadith Shareef which tells us that the moon was split into two. It is Hadith Shareef which tells us that the sun retreated its steps as per the command of the Holy Prophet – may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him, the stones read the Kalimah, etc. Can these please practise on this first and when they are finished, they will have the time to insult others. Those who accept every Hadith Shareef and practise upon every Sunnah, they are called the “Ahle Sunnah wa Jamaah.”

 

Yes, if you perform any action without practising on Sunnah, the action would be performed but the reward for practising upon the Sunnah would not be achieved. If you drink water while sitting, looking at the glass while drinking and holding it in your right hand, this is Sunnah. If you read the “Bismillah,” drink in three gulps and after drinking, you say “Al hamdu lillah”, then all of these acts would be considered as Sunnah and you will receive manifold reward for this!

 

In one Hadith Shareef, it is mentioned that, “In whichever time my Sunnah is forgotten, to reawaken that Sunnah of mine would achieve for the person the reward equal to a hundred martyrs.”

 

At times, it may seem that the person has omitted a single Sunnah, but through this action, he may sometimes rob himself the reward of many other Sunnah. If a person does not have a beard, then he would be robbing himself the reward of putting oil in his beard, the reward of combing his beard and the reward of passing his fingers through his beard. The great Awliya state that, “If a person has a nap during midday (Qaylulah) with the intention that this is a Sunnah, then this is considered as more rewarding than performing a thousand Nawafil. If a person eats food on the day of Eid, then it is considered as more rewarding than keeping a thousand Nawafil fast.

 

When a child is born, he cries. The doctor thinks that it is because the child is hungry, yet, we know that a human has his entire life to eat. Actually, the child is not crying for food, it is crying to because it wishes to listen to the Azaan which it used to listen to in the world from where it came!

 

There is no doubt that following the Holy Prophet – may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him – is the ultimate path of salvation. Hadrat Shaikh Muhiy’yudeen states that, “I have managed to practise on nearly all the Sunnah of the Holy Prophet – may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him – except one. And that is, if I had a daughter, I would have allowed her to marry a beloved friend of mine.” Such is the importance that the great Awliya placed on the performance of Sunnah.

 

Hadrat Imam Ahmed bin Hambal – may Allah be pleased with him – narrates, “I was once in the company of a few people when they entered the public bath without any clothes. However, as per the Sunnah of the Holy Prophet – may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him – I tied a cloth around my waist so that the lower part of my body could be concealed. During the night, I heard someone declared, ‘O Ahmed! Allah Almighty has pardoned your sins and will make you an Imam among people because of your practise upon one single Sunnah.’ When I asked who the person was to have declared these words, the reply came that it was Jibra’eel Ameen.”