Episode 13: Among the types of allegory of the Sunnah from (The Holy Quran) 2/5

The third type: that which gives an indication on the duty to obey him - peace and blessings of Allah be upon him - and this type enlists under it these illustrations:

The first illustration: Allah’s necessitation to obey the Apostles and its indication on allegory:

1 – Allah, Glorified and Exalted He be, said: (We sent not an apostle, but to be obeyed, in accordance with the will of Allah) [An-Nisa’ /64].

2 - And the Almighty said: (But you are truly a warner, and to every people a guide) [Ar-Ra’d /7].

3 - And the Almighty said: (We send the apostles only to give good news and to warn: so those who believe and mend (their lives), upon them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve) [Al-An’am/48].

In these verses and the like, Allah shows that the highest goals of sending the Apostles - peace be upon them – are confined to their obedience, to heed their orders, to yield to what they preach from their Lord of what He streamed on them of science and knowledge, and Allah lifted the cover off both to them; they knew what they knew from the science of certainty, until whence they reached the law of their Lord, they were afraid of nobody and were not fearful of informing about Him a despot or a tyrant. The Almighty said: those who preach the Messages of Allah, and fear Him, and fear none but Allah) [Al-Ahzab /39].

Obedience of the Apostles - peace be upon them - is the purpose of sending them, therefore Allah instructed to obey them, without exception to any Apostle, but rather made their obedience His universal practice, the Almighty said: (We sent not (of) an apostle, but to be obeyed, in accordance with the will of Allah).

Whether (of) in the verse is a redundant link, according to Az-Zajjaj, to serve the purpose of universality of that practice and its steadiness, or that the overall issue has been deducted from the undefined term (Apostle), placed in the context of negation, and signifies universality and duration; as if He is saying: We sent not of this kind someone but to be obeyed. So, the steadiness of obedience to the Apostles is Allah’s purpose of sending them, according to both views, certain and stable, although the exaggeration of duration of negation more complete than making (of) redundant link, as said by the interpreters, especially Imam Ar-Razi (1) at his interpretation of Almighty Allah’s saying (We sent not (of) an apostle, but to be obeyed, in accordance with the will of Allah).

So, every Messenger sent to a people, it is a duty upon them to obey him, as whoever repelled from them, disobeyed them or turned away from their rule, was a rebel and obstinate to the steady wisdom of Allah and His universal practice in sending them, an obstructer to their mission and oblivious to the wisdom from sending them to people.

Our Apostle and master (Mohammed) - peace and blessings of Allah be upon him – an Apostle among Apostles: he is in this respect included in the universal code established for the Apostles in general, and is applicable on him the divine steady approved practice, which is the necessitation to obey and heed all his orders in order to be sent to the people, the Almighty said: (Say: "I am no bringer of new-fangled doctrine among the apostles) [Al-Ahqaf/ 9].

Our Apostle- peace and blessings of Allah be upon him – there was evidence of the sincerity of his message. Ash-Shaatibi said(1): ((The application of the Sunnah and reliance on it, is but indicated by the Book, because the evidence of the sincerity of the Apostle - peace and blessings of Allah be upon him – is the miracle, and he restricted - peace and blessings of Allah be upon him – his miracle in the Quran, saying: (that which I have been given, was but a revelation, Allah revealed it to me) (3), although that he had too many miracles, a fraction like it make humans believe, but his miracle the Quran is much greater than all of that)).

If the obedience to the Apostles was a duty, or rather it is the universal divine practice, which does not lag behind every Apostle He sent, despite their code being specific to a party, rather some of them Allah sent as a reformer to the code of a previous Apostle, and if obedience was prescribed to the Apostles; the obedience is of firmer and greater necessity to the Apostle - peace and blessings of Allah be upon him - that Allah wanted his code to be universal to mankind and make it the seal of all messages.

Rather if the obedience was necessary to the Apostles, and among them who was sent to his nation, and Allah did not reveal to him a book to be read, recited and used in worship, such as Noah - peace be upon him -, obedience to Noah is a duty, in accordance with the universal steady code, and Allah did not except him from the necessary obedience to His Apostles.

If this was the standard established, so how do we then see he who says: "The obedience of our Apostle and master (Mohammed) - peace and blessings of Allah be upon him - should be in relation to what he preaches of the Holy Quran only, although Almighty Allah says in His Holy Book: (We sent not (of) an Apostle, but to be obeyed).

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(1) The interpretation of pride Ar-Razi (3 /258).

(2) Congruences of Ash-Shaatibi (3 / 42).

(3) Part of a Statement narrated by Bukhari, Book of Virtues of the Quran, section on how revelation came down and the first of what was revealed, No (4981).

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