Ahlus Sunnah wal-Jamaa'h

Ahl as-Sunnah wa’l-Jamā‘h (Arabic: أهل السنة و الجماعة‎) is an Arabic phrase which literally means "the adherents to the Sunnah and the community". The phrase could refer to followers of the any of the major schools of thought within the Sunni sect of Islam, although in terms of usage the phrase is most commonly now used by followers of the Salafi sub-sect.

The phrase proclaims their adherence to the sunnah, or code of conduct they believe to have been established by Muhammad, as recorded in the hadith, or oral traditions, recognized as authoritative by the Sunni. Sunnis are the majority group among Muslims.

1 Meaning of the phrase
2 The Concept of Taqlid
3 Shi'a and Ahl as-Sunnah wa'l-Jama`ah
4 Meaning of Sunna
5 References

[edit] Meaning of the phrase

The term Ahl as-Sunnah wa'l-Jama`ah applies to all the Muslims who follow any one of the four prominent and sahih Fuqaha (muslim jurists): 1) Imam Malik ibn Anas, 2) Imam Abu Hanifah 3) Imam Shafi`i 4) Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal, for these four Imams were the topmost scholars of that time described in the hadith in Sahih Muslim: "The best century is my century, then the one following it, then the one following that."

All the scholars understood by that hadith that the true Salaf were the models of human behavior and correct belief for Muslims and that to follow them was to follow the Prophet, and that to follow the Prophet was to fulfill Allah's order: "Whoever obeys the Prophet obeys Allah" (4:80) and thus achieve God's pleasure in this life and the next.

It is generally agreed upon by Ahl as-Sunnah wa'l-Jama`ah that "all of the four Imams of fiqh are acceptable, difference is only regarding what is preferred (afdaliyyah) not of right or wrong, because all of these four Imams of Jurisprudence strove to attain the correct rulings based on the knowledge available to them and their rulings were then constantly reviewed and upgraded as further information came to light. However the Shia, the Wahabis/Salafis and Ahl-e-Hadith differ on this (who considers themself capable of deriving all ahkamats from Quran and Sunnah).

Similarly, in the area of `aqeedah (Islamic religious doctrine or beliefs), Ahl as-Sunnah wa'l-Jama`ah believe one may follow one of the two Imams of this science from the time of the Salaf: Imam Abu al-Hasan al-Ash'ari or Imam Abu Mansur Al Maturidi.

Ahl as-Sunnah wa'l-Jama`ah believes that the common Muslim, and even today's scholars are not capable of deriving all rulings directly from Quran and Sunnah because they do not have required knowledge to do so. Therefore it is obligatory wajib upon such to follow one of the prominent scholars of Ummah who do have all required knowledge of Quran, Sunnah and Arabic etc.

This concept can be understood from a simple example that if someone falls ill, there are two ways of treatment: one way is to take a book of medicine and try to diagnose our own disease and determine a cure and take it, while the second is that to consult an expert doctor who knows far better than us about disease and its treatment.

This example applies in the case of Ahl as-Sunnah wa'l-Jama`ah in that they consulted experts who do possess the required knowledge to derive the rules of Sharia and Fiqh from Quran and Sunnah, Consensus and Qiyas (Analogy).

The term Ahl al-Sunnah is reported from Ibn `Abbas and Ibn `Umar by al-Lalika'i in Sharh Usul I`tiqad Ahl al-Sunnah; Muslim narrates it from Muhammad ibn Sirin in the Muqaddima to his Sahih; and al-Darimi in his Musnad from al-Hasan al-Basri. This is not to mention the Mujtahid Imams and those of the generation-layer immediately preceding them.

[edit] The Concept of Taqlid

The obligation to follow the opinion of those more knowledgeable than us is reported by Ibn Qayyim in his discussion of the different kinds of taqlid. He said: "There is an obligatory (wajib) taqlid, a forbidden taqlid, and a permitted taqlid... The obligatory taqlid is the taqlid of those who know better than us, as when a person has not obtained knowledge of an evidence from the Qur'an or the Sunnah concerning something. Such a taqlid has been reported from Imam al-Shafi`i in many places, where he would say: "I said this in taqlid of `Umar" or "I said that in taqlid of `Uthman" or "I said that in taqlid of `Ata'." As al-Shafi`i said concerning the Companions -- may Allah be well pleased with all of them: "Their opinion for us is better than our opinion to ourselves."" ^[1]

This is the meaning of Imam Ahmad's frequent warning in his answers: "Beware of speaking on a matter regarding which you don't stand on an imam (as your precedent)": iyyaka an tatakallama fi mas'alatin laysa laka fiha imam.^[2]

[edit] Shi'a and Ahl as-Sunnah wa'l-Jama`ah

Shi'a also can mean Jamaa'h in Arabic. But Shi'a are known to be the group who adhered to Ahlul-bayt in political history and jurisprudence. They are also called Shi'at Ali or the Group of Ali. Shi'a claim to be the true followers of As-Sunnah, the code established by the Prophet Muhammad, upon whom be God's peace and blessings, but they do not refer to themselves as Sunnis in the same way that many Sunnis claim to be followers of Ahlul-bayt while not referring to themselves as Shi'a. The Shi'a believe they received the true Sunnah from the source of trustees whom they claim are Ahlul-bayt.

[edit] Meaning of Sunna

Sunna or sunnah in Arabic means an oral tradition and code of conduct of a person. It can also mean law. As Sunnah, in Arabic, usually refer to the sunna of Muhammad with some details that follow. Muslims, both shi'a (i.e shi'is) and sunna (i.e. sunnis) regards as-Sunnah as their personal religious law. The difference between Shi'a and Sunnis and the variety of the madhaheb is on the chain of authorities. While Shi'a consider the sunna of their Imams as part of As Sunnah, many Sunnis believe that the sunnah of the four caliphates is part of As-Sunnah. Furthermore, some Sunnis believe that the sunnah of the other companions and even the Taba'een and Taba'een of Taba'een.