بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
The Questioner: Among the customs and traditions in our city (is that) when one completes the Book of Allāh, they bring various types of food and drink (in celebration). Is this established in the Sunnah or is it a bid’ah (innovation)? And is there (such a thing) as good innovations (bid’ah hasanah) and bad innovations (bid’ah sayyi’ah)?
The Shaykh: Praise be to Allāh, Lord of the worlds, and I send salāh (praise) and salām (peace) upon our Prophet Muhammad and upon his family and companions and those who follow them in good until the Day of Judgment.
Nothing of this sort is legislated upon completing the Book of Allāh, The Mighty and Majestic. So no celebrations, food, or anything else (of that sort) is legislated.
So if a person reads the entire Qur’ān and then wanted upon its completion to prepare a banquet/feast to which he invites people, or to give charity (in the form of) food to the poor, or to hold a ceremony with speeches and sermons— then indeed all of this is not from the Sunnah.
And when (something) is not from the Sunnah and is done on a religious occasion – here being the completion of the Qur’ān – then it becomes from the bid’ah (innovated matters).
The one most knowledgeable of the creation regarding Allāh’s Sharī’ah, the most sincere of creation towards Allāh’s servants, and the most eloquent of creation in clear expression and speech—Muhammad, the Messenger of Allāh (ﷺ) —said:
كل بدعة ضلالة
“Every innovation is misguidance” And “every” (kull: كل) denotes generality, and the Prophet (ﷺ) did not exempt any innovation from being (considered) “good”.
By this comprehensive and restrictive universal (statement), we know that dividing innovations into good innovation and bad innovation is a great error and a statement about Allāh without knowledge.
There is no innovation that is ever good, and whoever thinks that among innovations there is that which is good, does so in two aspects:
The first aspect: His incorrect assumption that it is good, because once we verify/confirm that it is a innovation, then it is (by default) bad.
The second aspect: His erred assumption that it is an innovation — so he thinks it is an innovation when (in reality) it is not an innovation.
But if we verify/confirm that it is an innovation, then we are certain that it is bad, and not good.
This is what this great statement from the speech of the master of messengers, Muhammad (ﷺ) necessitates: “Every innovation is misguidance.”
The division by some scholars of innovation into bad innovation and good innovation is understood according to what I mentioned previously: either this thing is not innovation and they (mistakenly) thought it to be an innovation, or this thing is not good and they (mistakenly) thought it to be good.
But with certainty that this thing is an innovation, it will never be good.
If someone says: Did not the Commander of the Believers ‘Umar ibn al-Khattāb, may Allāh be pleased with him, when he gathered the people in Ramadān under one imam, say: “What an excellent innovation this is”?
We say: Yes, he said this, but did ‘Umar mean that it was innovation in Allāh’s religion? No, he did not mean this.
‘Umar was among the most strictest of people in adherence to the Sunnah and most eager (in following it), but he intended that it was innovation in relation to the previous time only (i.e. hadn’t been done for some time).
That is because the Prophet (ﷺ) stood with his companions in Ramadān for two or three nights [1], praying with them in congregation, then he left that out of fear that it would be made obligatory upon his ummah. So the congregational prayer was legislated in the night prayer of Ramadān [2] but he left it out of fear of a greater harm, which is making this congregational prayer obligatory upon the people. When the Messenger of Allāh (ﷺ) died, there was safety from this harm of making this night prayer obligatory upon people because revelation had ceased—there was safety from that. But the caliphate of Abū Bakr al-Siddīq, may Allāh be pleased with him, did not last long, as it was two years and some months, and he was occupied with the affairs of jihād and re-organising the Islamic ummah after what happened from some of them in terms of violations/rebellions that arose after the death of the Messenger (ﷺ).
When it was the time of ‘Umar and such obstacles were removed and people become somewhat free (i.e. Community was more settled), he went out one day, may Allāh be pleased with him, and found people praying scattered —a man praying alone, two men (praying together), and three (men praying together). ‘Umar, may Allāh be pleased with him, saw fit to gather the people under one imām, so he gathered them under one imām. Then he went out one night while they were gathered under their imām, praying with his prayer, and he said: “What an excellent innovation this is.” So it is innovation in terms of the preceding time, and it is not innovation in terms of its legislation, since its legislation had already been established in the time of the Prophet (ﷺ).
Accordingly, calling it innovation is a relative application—that is, it is innovation in relation to the preceding time. And by this, the rope that the people of innovations hold onto is severed, who innovate in Allāh’s religion what is not from it and legislate in His religion what He did not permit, and who argue with such expressions that have a meaning other than what they intend. Directing it to the meaning I mentioned is in accordance with the Prophet’s saying (ﷺ): “Every innovation is misguidance.” For it is not befitting for the Commander of the Faithful ‘Umar ibn al-Khattāb to praise an innovation that the Prophet (ﷺ) described as misguidance by saying “what an excellent innovation it is.”
Indeed, doors of evil and innovations – which fall under the category of the prohibited things – have been opened by this argument, which is the division by some scholars—may Allāh pardon and forgive them—of innovation into good innovation and bad innovation. If we had held fast to the saying of the infallible (ma’sūm) Muhammad (ﷺ): “Every innovation is misguidance,” it would have been more appropriate for us to be followers of the Messenger of Allāh (ﷺ) than if we divided innovation into good and bad. (Fatāwā Nūr Alā al-Darb 5/2 #236 of Shaykh al-‘Uthaymīn)
[1] Hadīth is in Sahīh al-Bukhārī 2012 and others. ‘Urwah informed narrated that ‘Ā’ishah, may Allāh be pleased with her, informed him that the Messenger of Allāh (ﷺ) went out one night from the middle of the night and prayed in the mosque (masjid), and men prayed following his prayer (i.e. prayed with him). When morning came, people talked about it, so more of them gathered and prayed with him. When morning came, people talked about it, so the people of the mosque (masjid) increased from the third night. The Messenger of Allāh (ﷺ) came out and prayed, and they prayed following his prayer. When it was the fourth night, the mosque was (full and) unable to contain its people, until he came out for the dawn prayer. When he finished the dawn prayer (fajr), he turned to the people and gave the tashahhhud, then said: “As for what follows, indeed your position was not hidden from me, but I feared that it would be made obligatory upon you and you would be unable to fulfill it.” So the Messenger of Allāh (ﷺ) passed away while the matter remained thus (i.e. people prayed individually).
[2] There are many other narrations which prove the legislation of the night prayer in congregation – from them what Imām al-Nasā’ī collected in his Sunan 1365, Abū Dawūd 1375, Ibn Khuzaymah 1206 and others:
Abū Dharr narrated: “We fasted Ramadān with the Messenger of Allāh, and the Prophet did not lead us in Qiyām until there were seven days left of the month, then he led us in Qiyām until one-third of the night had passed. Then, when there were six days left, he did not lead us in Qiyām. When there were five days left, he led us in praying Qiyām until half the night had passed. We said: ‘O Messenger of Allāh, why don’t you lead us in praying Qiyām for the rest of the night?” He said: ‘If a man prays with the Imām until he leaves, that will be counted for him as if he spent the whole night in prayer.’ Then, when there were four days left, he did not lead us in praying Qiyām. When there were three days left he sent for his daughters and women, and gathered the people, and he led us in praying Qiyām until we feared that we would miss Al-Falah. Then he did not lead us in praying Qiyām for the rest of the month.”
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