Sunnah of the prophet can be seen as a unerning guide to man in respect to all that is permissible and all that is prohibited in the eyes of God. Without this belief in Muhammad, belief in God would become a mere theoretical proposition.
The definition of Sunnah in Arabic means “a way to be followed” or “an example to be imitated”, as mentioned previously before. In Islamic terminology the word “sunnah” can have several meanings depending on the subject being discussed, as shown below:
- All of the actions and sayings of Prophet Muhammad, every situation where he approved of an action or saying by someone else, and his personal traits and manners.
- For Fiqh scholars, the word Sunnah is sometimes used o describe mustahab (recommended) actions as opposed to farad (obligatory) actions.
When the prophet Muhammad in general gives glad tidings to those who do a certain action or does a certain action himself regularly, it is considered by the Fiqh scholars to be recommended.
It is obligatory for the whole of the Muslim nation to follow the Sunnah of the prophet Muhammad, as well as to refrain from all that he asked Muslims to stay away from. This statement is further enforced from Allah Himself.
In Arabic, the full wording of the Sunnah is known as the “Hojjiyat As-Sunnah”. The Sunnah can also be used as evidence in the shariah, and that Allah has ordered Muslims to follow the Sunnah and avoid anything it has prohibited for them. In other words, this means that it is a duty on every Muslim to believe in what the Sunnah tells us. Also it enforces Muslims to act according to the Sunnah in all aspects of their life, as well as to ensure that they do not commit any actions that contradict the Sunnah.
The Qur’an is the last book of Allah sent for the guidance of humanity through the last prophet, Muhammad. The Qur’an according to the Muslims is considered to be the eternal miracle of Islam. It is the complete guide for Muslims living one’s life and seeking Allah’s pleasure. To the Muslims, the Qur’an provides rules and regulations that create proper relations between man and Allah and man and man. It leads the Muslims to understand their role in this world, encourages them to think and ponder, and guides them in the usage of natural resources. Muslims say that the Qur’an enlightens man soul, purifies his morals, and condemns all wrong, orders good deeds and calls for the establishment of justice and fraternity through obeying Allah as the
The Qur’an itself was given to Muslims in a chain from Allah to the angel Jibrael (Gabriel) to the prophet Muhammad. The message was given to the prophet in pieces over a period spanning approximately twenty three years. The prophet received the first revelation in 610ce, in the cave of Hira in the mountain of Light (Jabele-Noor), two and a half miles away from the house of Allah in the city of Makkah in Arabia.
Muhammad was forty years old when the Qur’an began to be revealed to him, and he was sixty three when the revelation was completed.
The Qur’an is divided into thirty equal divisions, which are known as “Juz” in Arabic. There are one hundred and fourteen chapters of varying length. The longest chapter is known to be Al-Baqara consisting of two hundred and eighty six verses and the shortest chapter is Al-Kawthar consisting of three verses only. The chapters revealed before the migration of the prophet to Medina are called Makkan, whereas those sent down after the migration is called Madinan.
The Makkan chapters contain brief sentences which are full of enthusiasm and also poetical. They stress the unity and Majesty of Allah as well as to remind Muslims of the past prophets and events of their time.
The Madinan chapters are lengthy and the verses are more prosaic. They outline ritualistic aspects of Islam such as Zakah, Fasting and Hajj. They also contain descriptions of some of the early battles of Islam, condemnation of hypocrites, emphasis on the unified basic message of all the prophets.
The Qur’an was preserved in two ways; firstly it was through the memorization. There were a number of early Muslims who would memorize each revelation as soon as it was revealed and thus had the whole Qur’an memorised at the time of the final revelation.
Secondly, the Qur’an was preserved through writing. Whenever any revelation took place, it was written at once on tablets, shorn of leaves, palm branches or animal skin.
Some Muslims, in various sects will disagree with the above statement. Some of the Muslim sects claim that the Qur’an is sufficient and that Muslims do not need the Sunnah at all. They say that the Qur’an is the main source from Allah and that they are only going to accept that.
However nearly all of the Muslims will agree with the above statement. The Qur’an is one leg of the two which forms the basis of Islam. The second leg is the Sunnah of the prophet. The Qur’an and the sunnah are different primarily due to its form. Unlike the Sunnah, the Qur’an is quite literally the word of Allah, whereas the Sunnah is inspired by Allah but the wording and action are of the prophets.
The Sunnah’s place in relation to the Qur’an can be divided into three parts. The first part is known as the “confirming sunnah”. This is the par of the Sunnah that confirms what is in the Qur’an and reinforces it.
The second part is known as the “Explanatory sunnah”. This part of the Sunnah explains the Holy Qur’an and the various Shariah injunctions that come in the Holy Qur’an. It includes four parts: expanding on what is mentioned only briefly in the Holy Qur’an, explaining difficult verses or issues, putting limits on general statements in the Qur’an and finally specifying generalities in the Qur’an.
The third part is known as the “Sunnah that brings new legislation”. That part of the Sunnah is the one that brings new legislation and new shariah that is not in the Holy Qur’an.
Sunnah establishes the framework for the Muslim praxis and also for reading the Qur’an, since the prophet’s life is deemed the best exegesis of its teachings, hence the aphorism that “the Qur’an has more need of the sunnah than the Sunnah has of the quran.”
