I advise you to fear Allah and to hear and obey, even if an Abyssinian slave. You will see after me great discord. So, hold fast to my Sunnah and the Sunnah of the rightly guided Caliphs
Chapter: Following the way of the Rightly Guided Caliphs
Al-‘Irbād ibn Sāriyah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported:
One day, the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) gave us an eloquent admonition that caused hearts to become afraid and eyes to shed tears. Someone then said: O Messenger of Allah, this is the admonition of someone who will soon part; so, advise us. He said: "I advise you to fear Allah and to hear and obey, even if an Abyssinian slave. You will see after me great discord. So, hold fast to my Sunnah and the Sunnah of the rightly guided Caliphs. Bite onto it with the molar teeth. Beware of newly invented matters (in religion), for every newly invented matter is misguidance."
Reported by Ibn Majah (No. 42), Abu Dawud (No. 4607), At-Tirmidhi (No. 2676), Ahmad (No. 16521, 16522) and Ad-Darimi (No. 95).
The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) delivered an eloquent sermon that filled the Companions' hearts with fear and filled their eyes with tears. They said: O Messenger of Allah, it seems as if it is an admonition by one who will soon leave us - seeing his earnest effort in doing so. Hence, they asked him to give them advice that they would hold onto after him. He said: I advise you to fear Allah Almighty by carrying out duties and avoiding prohibitions. And to hear and obey, i.e., hear and obey the rulers, even if your ruler or the one who seized authority over you is a slave. In other words, if the most inferior among people became your ruler, you should not disdain to obey him, out of fear of turbulence and strife, for whoever lives from you after me will see a great discord. Then, he (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) clarified that the way out of this discord is by adhering firmly to his Sunnah and to the Sunnah of the rightly guided Caliphs after him, namely Abu Bakr as-Siddīq, ‘Umar ibn al-Khattāb, ‘Uthmān ibn ‘Affān, and ‘Ali ibn Abi Tālib (may Allah be pleased with them all), and by biting onto it with the molar teeth, i.e., by strictly observing and holding fast to the Sunnah. He (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) also warned them against the newly introduced matters in religion, as every religious innovation is a misguidance.
Lessons
The importance of following and adhering to the Sunnah.
Attention should be given to admonitions and softening of hearts.
The commandment to follow the four rightly guided Caliphs, namely Abu Bakr, ‘Umar, ‘Uthmān, and ‘Ali (may Allah be pleased with them all), after the Prophet.
The prohibition of introducing new things into the religion, and the fact that all religious innovations are misguidance.
Hearing and obeying whoever is in charge of the believers without disobeying Allah.
The importance of fearing Allah Almighty at all times and in all situations.
Discord will inevitably occur in this Ummah and when it occurs, Muslims must refer and adhere to the Sunnah of the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) and to that of the rightly guided Caliphs.
Explanation in Arabic
وَعَظَ النبيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم أصحابَه مَوعظةً بَلِيْغَةً خافتْ منها القلوبُ ودَمَعتْ منها العيونُ،
فقالوا: يا رسول الله كأنها مَوعظةُ مُودِّعٍ لِمَا رأوا مِن مبالغتِه صلى الله عليه وسلم في الموعظة، فطلبوا وصيةً ليتمسكوا بها مِن بعده،
قال: أوصيكم بتقوى الله عز وجل، وذلك بفعل الواجبات وترك المحرمات،
والسمع والطاعة، أي: للأمراء، وإنْ تَأَمَّر عليكم عَبْدٌ أو استولى عليكم، أي صار أدنى الخَلْقِ أميرًا عليكم فلا تَسْتَنْكِفُوا عن ذلك وأطيعوه، مخافةَ إثارةِ الفتن، فإنه مَن يعِش منكم فسيرى اختلافًا كثيرًا،
ثم بَيَّنَ لهم المَخْرَجَ مِن هذا الاختلاف، وذلك بالتمسُّك بِسُنَّتِهِ وسُنّةِ الخلفاء الراشدين المهديين مِن بعده، أبي بكر الصديق، وعمر بن الخطاب، وعثمان بن عفان، وعلي بن أبي طالب رضي الله عنهم أجمعين، والعَضُّ عليها بالنواجذ أي –الأضراس الأخيرة-: يعني بذلك الجِدُّ في لزوم السنة والتمسك بها،
وحَذَّرَهم من الأمور المُحدَثة المُبْتَدَعة في الدِّين، فإنِّ كلَّ بدعةٍ ضلالةٌ.
أهمية التَّمَسُّكِ بالسُّنّة واتباعها.
العناية بالمواعظ وترقيق القلوب.
الأمر باتباع الخُلَفاء الراشدين المهديين الأربعة مِن بعده، وهم أبو بكر وعمر وعثمان وعلي رضي الله عنهم.
النهيُ عن الابتداع في الدِّين، وأنّ كل البدع ضلالة.
السمع والطاعة لمَن تولَّى أمر المؤمنين في غير معصية.
أهمية تقوى الله عز وجل في كل الأوقات والأحوال.
الاختلاف واقع في هذه الأمة، وعند حدوثِهِ يلزم الرجوعُ إلى سُنّة رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم والخلفاء الراشدين.
"I advise you to fear Allah, and to listen and obey even if a slave is appointed as your leader. Whosoever among you shall live after me will see much discord. So hold fast to my Sunnah and the Sunnah of the Rightly-Guided Caliphs, and cling to them firmly. Beware of new things (in religion)…
الثاني: عن أبي نجيح العرباض بن سارية رضي الله عنه قال: "وعظنا رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم موعظة بليغة وجلت منها القلوب وذرفت منها العيون، فقلنا: يا رسول الله كأنها موعظة مودع فأوصنا. قال: "أوصيكم بتقوى…
