Ahle hadeeth movement What and Why?

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Ahle Sunnat wal Jama‘at  (أَهْلُ السُّنَّةِ وَالْجَمَاعَةِ) :

The followers of Sunnah of the Prophet (sm) and of the Jama‘at of Sahabis and Tabe‘iis are known as Ahle Sunnat wal Jama‘at. To identify the Ahle Sunnat wal Jama‘at, the world-famous scholar of Spain, the 5th century's Imam Abu Muhammad Ali Ibnu Ahmad Ibnu Hazm Andalusi (d.456 A.H.) said,

وَأَهْلُ السُّنَّةِ الَّذِيْنَ نَذْكُرُهُمْ أَهْلَ الْحَقِّ وَ مَنْ عَدَاهُمْ فَأَهْلُ الْبَاطِلِ فَإِنَّهُمُ الصَّحَابَةُ رَضِىَ اللهُ عَنْهُمْ وَ كُلُّ مَنْ سَلَكَ نَهْجَهُمْ مِنْ خِيَارِ التَّابِعِيْنَ رَحْمَةُ اللهِ عَلَيْهِمْ ثُمَّ أَهْلُ الْحِدِيْثِ وَ مَنْ تَبِعَهُمْ مِنَ الْفُقَهَاءِ جَيْلاً فَجَيْلاً إِلى يَوْمِنَا هذَا وَ مَنِ اقْتَدَى بِهِمْ مِنَ الْعَوَامِ فِى شَرْقِ الْأَرْضِ وَ غَرْبِهَا رَحْمَةُ اللهِ عَلَيْهِمْ-

‘Ahle Sunnah, whom we called Ahlul Haq (righteous) and their oppositionists as Ahlul Batil (followers of untrue) are : (a) The Sahaba (b) Their followers of best Tabe‘iis (c) The Ahle hadeeth (d) The followers of them among Faqeehs (jurists) through ages till today (e) The general people irrespective of the east and the west, who became their followers'. [1]

Through this it has been understood that, not only the honoured Sahabis, Tabe‘iis, Muhadditheen and the Faqeehs, who followe the Hadeeth, were titled as Ahle Sunnat wal Jama‘at or Ahlul H-adeeth; but the general mass, who follow their path, were also used to be reckoned in all ages as Ahle hadeeth and still today they are being called by the same name. Allah says, وَمِمَّنْ خَلَقْنَا أُمَّةٌ يَهْدُوْنَ بِالْحَقِّ وَ بِهِ يَعْدِلُوْنَ ‘And of those whom we have created, there is a community who guides (others) with truth and establishes justice therewith’ (A‘raf 7/181). He says in another place,  قَلِيْلٌ مِنْ عِبَادِىَ الشَّكُوْرُ  ‘The few of my slaves are grateful’ (Saba 34/13).

Those verses of the Quran show that, there had always been a group of righteous people amongst the Ummah of every Prophet, and likewise they are also today; though a few in number. Some Prophets would be recognized as true only by a single man of his Ummah.[2] The Prophet (sm) made a forecast about his Ummah and said,

عَنْ ثَوْبَانَ قَالَ قَالَ رَسُوْلُ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَ سَلَّمَ: لاَ تَزَالُ طَائِـفَةٌ مِنْ أُمَّتِى ظَاهِرِيْنَ عَلَى الْحَقِّ لاَ يَضُرُّهُمْ مَنْ خَذَلَهُمْ حَتَّى يَأْتِىَ أَمْرُ اللهِ وَ هُمْ كَذَالِكَ، رَوَاهُ مُسْلِمٌ-

(La tazalu taefatum min Ummati Zahireena ‘alal haqqi la yazurruhum man khazalahum hatta yatia amrullahi wahum kazalika)

Meaning: ‘A group among my Ummah will remain ever victorious on truth. The givers up will not be able to cause any harm to them, thus the Day of Resurrection will arrive, but they will remain in that position.[3] That means, though very few in number, there shall exist a righteous group who will remain on the route of truth till the Day of Resurrection and they are the victorious group. This is to note that in the hadeeth, the victorious group has meant those who are victorious in the Day of Requital, not that worldly victory as per general sense. None among Nooh, Ibraheem, Musa, ‘Isa (peace be upon them) were victorious in this world. Yet they were the real victors, righteous, and the most ideal men of Universal humanism. Now where will be available this truth? Almighty Allah declares in this regard, وَقُلِ الْحَقُّ مِنْ رَبِّكُمْ فَمَنْ شَاءَ فَلْيُؤْمِنْ وَمَنْ شَاءَ فَلْيَكْفُرْ إِنَّا أَعْتَدْنَا لِلظَّالِمِينَ نَارًا- (Oh Prophet! say, the truth comes from your Lord. Thereafter, whoever desires he may believe or whoever desires he may disbelieve. We have prepared Fire (Hell) for the infidels’ (Kahf 18/29). In the light of the above verse, we believe that any Ism, Mazhab or Tareeqa which is a brain child of man, can never give the source of ultimate truth. This truth can only be found in the revelations of almighty Allah, which have been preserved in the holy Quran and saheeh Hadeethes. Pointing towards it, Shah Waliullah Dehlavi, the preceptor of India said, فَلَيْسَ لِلْعَقْلِ حُكْمٌ فِى حُسْنِ الْأَشْيَاءِ وَ قُبْحِهَا  ‘Knowledge has no power to decide the ultimate goodness or badness of things’.[4] So, in exchange of everything, those who will follow the holy Quran and saheeh Hadeeth in all steps of life, will be according to the forecast of the Prophet (sm) the righteous among the Ummah and they are the Naji group i.e. who attains salvation at the Day of Judgement. As the Prophet (sm) says,

عَنْ عَبْدِ اللهِ بْنِ عَمْرٍو قَالَ قَالَ رَسُوْلُ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: لَيَأْتِيَنَّ عَلَى أُمَّتِى مَا أَتَى عَلَى بَنِى إِسْرَائِيلَ حَذْوَ النَّعْلِ بِالنَّعْلِ حَتَّى إِنْ كَانَ مِنْهُمْ مَنْ أَتَى أُمَّهُ عَلاَنِيَةً لَكَانَ فِى أُمَّتِى مَن يَّصْنَعُ ذَلِكَ وَإِنَّ بَنِى إِسْرَائِيلَ تَفَرَّقَتْ عَلَى ثِنْتَيْنِ وَسَبْعِيْنَ مِلَّةً وَتَفْتَرِقُ أُمَّتِى عَلَى ثَلاَثٍ وَسَبْعِينَ مِلَّةً كُلُّهُمْ فِى النَّارِ إِلاَّ مِلَّةً وَاحِدَةً قَالُوا وَمَنْ هِىَ يَا رَسُوْلَ اللهِ قَالَ مَا أَنَا عَلَيْهِ وَأَصْحَابِى رَوَاهُ التِّرْمِذِىُّ وَ فِىْ رِوَايَةٍ لِّلْحَاكِمِ فِىْ مُسْتَدْرَكِهِ: مَا أَنَا عَلَيْهِ الْيَوْمَ وَ أَصْحَابِىْ، حَسَّنَهُمَا الْأَلْبَانِىُّ-  

‘As was the condition of Banu Israeel, similar will be the condition of my Ummah, same as a pair of shoes. The Banu Israeel were divided into 72 groups and my Ummah will be divided into 73 groups. Each of those groups will lead to the Hell except one.’ The Sahabis asked ‘which one is that group?’ The Prophet (sm) replied, ‘the group, who will be on which I myself and my Sahabis belong to’. In a narration of Hakem, it is said, ‘on which I myself and my Sahabis are today’. [5] In another narration it is said, وَهِىَ الْجَمَاعَةُ ‘That is the Jama‘at.’[6] What is meant by that Jama‘at, Ibnu Mas‘ood (R) says in answer, الْجَمَاعَةُ مَا وَافَقَ  الْحَقَّ وَإِنْ كُنْتَ وَحْدَكَ  ‘Which is belong to the Truth is called Jama‘at, even you would be alone’.[7] Now we shall hear the opinions of the past religious scholars and Salaf-i-Saleheen i.e. pious predecessors about which one is that righteous Jama‘at or the Naji group.

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