In the name of God, The Most Compassionate and The Most Merciful.

On the authority of the mother of the faithful, Aisha (may God be pleased with her), who said: The Messenger of God (God’s peace and blessings be upon him) said, “He who innovates something in this matter of ours (i.e., Islam) that is not of it will have it rejected (by God)” (Bukhari and Muslim). In another version in Muslim it reads: “He who does an act which we have not commanded, will have it rejected (by God).”

What is an innovation?

Combining the two narrations

There are two chains of narration that are written in Imam Nawawi’s 40 hadith collection. The first is found in Bukhari, the second in Muslim. The first is where we gain the understanding of innovation that is typically misconstrued today. An understanding that says any action that is innovated is to be rejected by God. In the second narration found only in Imam Muslim’s compilation we find the term ‘amilah which lends the meaning of doing. In this second narration, there is no mention of the term innovation.

In the case of these two narrations, the understanding that is procured is more general than at first glance. Regardless of whether one is the innovator themselves or one who followed the action that was innovated, the action will be rejected.

This general understanding is what has been disseminated amongst the masses and is generally agreed upon by Islamic scholarship.

However, the question remains. How do we understand these two narrations in light of actions that have arose throughout our communities? It is the job of scholars of hadith (whom by default should have robust knowledge of the Arabic language) that when presented with multiple narrations use these various narrations to clarify the greater meaning for the masses and also to denote when the sanctity of God’s laws has been infringed upon. It is a travesty when those with very little or poor proficiency of the science of hadith, dismal understanding of the nuances of the Arabic language, and those who have not attained prowess in extrapolating Islamic legal injunctions, take it upon themselves to illuminate for others what they themselves are still blind to. One of the most dangerous of mistakes one can do is to deduce an Islamic judgement based on their understanding, and then place this ruling in a situation where it does not belong. This is the case with a large segment of Muslims who comfortably lambast their fellow Muslims with the title of innovator without first investigating with soundness the sciences of hadith, language, and fiqh which are all paramount for one to make such a statement and claim.

What comes next is where much of the obstacle begins in regard to those who wear the garbs of scholarship without the knowledge and erudition.

An innovation as understood by scholars of fiqh is any action that is contrary to the Divine Law. While the innovation of vehicles, technology and other additions to our modern world have come, these are only innovations in the linguistic sense. Islamic Law is not derived from a word’s linguistic meaning, but rather scholars peruse scriptural evidence to come to the words meaning according to the Divine Law.

Imam Shafiee (May God have mercy on him) explains that the meaning of innovation according to Islamic law is, “that which contradicts the book of God and the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad (God’s peace and blessings be upon him), the actions of the companions and those who came after them, or what has been established by general agreement of the scholars. This is what is to be known as an innovation that is falsehood. As to the second meaning of innovation, then [if this form of innovation is] good and does not contradict any of the above mentioned, then this is not an innovation that is blameworthy. It was said by Umar ibn Al-Khattab after he established the Taraweeh as a communal affair that ‘the best of innovations is this,’ meaning that this innovation was not found prior to him, and if it had been found earlier then there would be nothing in it to be rejected” (Manaqib Al-Shafiee 1/469). Note that this is a definition agreed upon by the likes of Imam Al-Bayhaqi, and Shaykh Al-Islam ibn Hajar Al-Asqalani.

This seeking of knowledge that is obligatory on a person should be the benchmark, and when one does a level of ignorance that plagues the greater Muslim community will be lifted and the ascent to heights of brilliance and greater aptitude will begin.

The sacred scripture of God is clear and that which is not understood by the masses is for those of knowledge to assess and disseminate. Innovation (that contradicts the religion) is a sin that holds with it a great punishment, but to lay a claim upon a person who utilizes wooden beads in an effort to praise their Lord, or those who may supplicate upon the completion of an obligatory prayer or other modern contentious subjects, these are not to be understood as contradictory to the faith and as such should not be connected with egregious actions that undoubtedly oppose the sacred law of God. Our duty is to learn, and to inculcate knowledge until it manifests upon our limbs (i.e. through our actions). We should continually seek to ensure that the knowledge we propagate is legitimate and aligned with our faith in the Divine, just as He tells us, “And believe in what I have sent down confirming that which is [already] with you, and be not the first to disbelieve in it. And do not exchange My signs for a small price, and fear [only] Me” (Quran 2:41).