The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
بَدَأَ الإِسْلَامُ غَرِيبًا وَسَيَعُودُ كَمَا بَدَأَ غَرِيبًا فَطُوبَى لِلْغُرَبَاءِ.
“Islam began as something strange, and it will return to being strange as it began. So glad tidings to the strangers.” These are those who remain steadfast upon the truth when the generality of people abandon it. — Sahih Muslim
It is undeniable that, throughout Islamic history, various intellectual and ideological trends have emerged in different contexts and circumstances. As a result, Muslims have become divided into numerous sects, parties, subgroups, and factions, the bitter consequences of which the Ummah continues to bear to this day.
At present, some of us identify as moderates, others as liberals, and still others as extremists. Some are traditionalists, some rationalists, and others eclectic thinkers. Some are literalists (Ẓāhiriyyah), while others are esotericists (Bāṭiniyyah). Some emphasise activism, others devotionalism. Some are preservationists, while others are modernists. Some are politicians, some social reformers, some unassuming preachers and propagators of Islam, and others reclusive ascetics. Some are activists who struggle and protest, while others serve as sycophants of authoritarian rulers. Some advocate democracy, others monarchy, and still others consultative governance (Shūrā), and so forth. There are, to varying degrees, discernible differences and divisions among these trends and groups in their beliefs, intellectual orientations, and practices.
Whatever our beliefs, activities, or positions may be, almost all of us consider ourselves to be Ahl al-Ḥaqq (the people of truth) and devoted followers of Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamā‘ah. Similarly, many of our groups claim to be the sole authentic representatives of the truth and the exclusive embodiment of Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamā‘ah. Consequently, many of us are inclined to label everyone outside our own circle or group as belonging to Bāṭil (falsehood) or Ḍalālah (misguidance), and, in certain cases, even as disbelievers (kuffār). Moreover, we readily attach labels such as Shī‘ī, Khārijī, and Nāṣibī to one another, often without observing any established principles or scholarly guidelines.
Judging by the prevailing situation, one might conclude that there is hardly any genuine believer or Muslim among us who truly belongs to Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamā‘ah—if all the accusations and labels that we hurl at one another were to be accepted as true. One is branded a Shī‘ī, another a Khārijī, another a Nāṣibī; one is called an innovator (Mubtadi‘), another an adherent of falsehood, and yet another a misguided person, and so on.
The following observation by Ḥāfiẓ Ibn Ḥajar (may Allah have mercy on him) offers a stark portrayal of this grave predicament within the Muslim Ummah:
كلَّ طائفةٍ تدعي أن مخالفيها مبتدعةٌ، وقد تُبالغ فتكفِّر مخالفيها، فلو أُخِذَ ذلك على الإطلاق لاستلزم تكفير جميعِ الطوائفِ.
“Every group claims that those who oppose it are innovators (Mubtadi‘ūn), and some go so far in their exaggeration that they declare their opponents disbelievers. If these claims were accepted without qualification, they would necessarily entail declaring all the groups to be disbelievers.” In other words, such reasoning would leave no one in the world who could be recognised as a believer or a Muslim.
The following couplet by a poet, although intensely satirical and critical, may nevertheless be regarded as reflecting a considerable measure of reality:
مسلمانوں کے ہر فرقے نے ایک دوسرے کو کافر کہا *** بس ایک کافر ہی ہے جو ہم سب کو مسلمان کہا.
“Every Muslim sect has declared the others to be disbelievers; only the disbelievers themselves call us all Muslims!”
Needless to say, adherence to Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamā‘ah is not merely a matter of making a claim. Whether, and to what extent, an individual or group deserves this designation must be determined by examining its overall beliefs, intellectual orientation, and conduct.
We firmly believe that Islam is a comprehensive way of life. It encompasses not only matters of creed and belief (‘Aqīdah), but also worship (‘Ibādāt), transactions (Mu‘āmalāt), social relations and conduct (Mu‘āsharāt), politics (Siyāsah), and other aspects of human life. Therefore, if an individual or group is found to conform to the Sunnah in its beliefs, worship, transactions, social conduct, politics, and other affairs, and if its understanding of and overall position regarding the religion and the Muslim Ummah are shaped by the intellectual and practical legacy of the Companions and the Tābi‘ūn, then it may rightly be regarded as a comprehensive adherent of Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamā‘ah and as belonging to Ahl al-Ḥaqq.
Such people are called Ahl al-Sunnah because they seek to conduct their lives in accordance with the Sunnah. They are also called Ahl al-Jamā‘ah because they collectively adhere to the mainstream of Islam in matters of religion, refrain from factionalism, and follow the positions upon which the Companions and the Tābi‘ūn reached a consensus.
In practice, however, we observe that some among us have sound beliefs but deficient conduct in financial and other transactions. Others may conduct their transactions properly but fail in their social relations. Still others may maintain proper social conduct but have serious shortcomings in their political outlook and activities. There are also many whose shortcomings extend from beginning to end, leaving virtually no aspect of their religious commitment intact.
They may have been born to Muslim parents and may continue to identify themselves as Muslims by name; in practice, however, they may embrace ideologies opposed to religion or live without meaningful religious commitment. Such ideologies and orientations may include liberalism, secularism, humanism, materialism, modernism, postmodernism, feminism, and others.
In fact, the number of Muslims who sincerely strive to observe Islam in its entirety appears to be very small. Some are thoroughly irreligious materialists, while others are ascetics who renounce worldly life. Some devote themselves exclusively to the pursuit of ‘Ilm (knowledge) and Ma‘rifah (spiritual or experiential knowledge), while others concentrate on a limited set of prescribed practices and acts of worship. Some are honest and devout in their personal lives but dishonest and corrupt in their social, economic, and political dealings. Some submit to Allah in the mosque but, outside it, submit to Ṭāghūt (false objects of authority or worship), their own desires, or other worldly interests.
It may therefore be said that comprehensive adherence to Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamā‘ah is exceedingly rare among Muslims. Finding such people is extremely difficult. They are few in number, relatively unknown, and often in a precarious position. In the terminology of the Hadith, they may be described as Ghurabā’—strangers who are rare, unfamiliar, or unrecognised by the generality of people.
Sufyān al-Thawrī (may Allah have mercy on him), the eminent Hadith scholar known as Amīr al-Mu’minīn fī al-Ḥadīth, said:
استوصوا بأهل السنة خيرا فإنهم غرباء
“Treat the adherents of the Sunnah well, for they are strangers.”
On another occasion, he said:
إذا بلغك عن رجل بالمشرق صاحب سنة وآخر بالمغرب فابعث إليهما بالسلام وادع لهما، ما أقل أهل السنة والجماعة
“If you hear of a person in the easternmost part of the world who adheres to the Sunnah, and another in the westernmost part who does the same, convey my greetings to both of them and pray to Allah on their behalf. How few are the people of Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamā‘ah!”
In this connection, the following statement by Imam Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) is particularly noteworthy:
فأهل الإسلام في الناس غرباء والمؤمنون في أهل الإسلام غرباء وأهل العلم في المؤمنين غرباء وأهل السنة الذين يميزونها من الأهواء والبدع فهم غرباء والداعون إليها الصابرون على أذى المخالفين هم أشد هؤلاء غربة ولكن هؤلاء هم أهل الله حقا
“Among humanity, the people of Islam are strangers. Among the Muslims, the true believers are strangers. Among the believers, the people of knowledge are strangers. Among the people of knowledge, those who adhere to the Sunnah and distinguish it from personal whims and religious innovations are strangers. And those who call people to the Sunnah and patiently endure the harm inflicted upon them by their opponents are the greatest strangers of all. Yet these are truly the people of Allah.”
— Madārij al-Sālikīn
In short, a claim does not necessarily reflect a person's actual condition. Someone may claim to be a Muslim but fail to observe Islamic teachings in practical life; in such a case, the claim alone does not establish that the person is a practising Muslim in the full sense of the term. Likewise, someone may claim to follow Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamā‘ah but fail to conform to the guidance of the Sunnah in beliefs, worship, and conduct. Such a person cannot, merely on the basis of that claim, be regarded as a genuine adherent of Ahl al-Sunnah. Nor does the claim alone establish that the person is deserving of the designation Sunnī in its substantive sense.
It is also possible for someone to regard himself—or his preferred group—as an exclusive representative of Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamā‘ah, while the fundamental principles and essential characteristics of this tradition are, in reality, absent from that individual or group.
In actual fact, such a person or group may be wholly devoted to Ahl al-Bid‘ah (the people of religious innovation) and Ahl al-Hawā (those who follow their own whims and desires), or may adhere to the Sunnah in some respects while following religious innovations and personal inclinations in others.
Accordingly, those who fundamentally follow the principles of Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamā‘ah but deviate from them in certain matters depart from the Sunnah to the extent of those particular deviations. In those specific respects, they cannot be regarded as conforming to the principles of Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamā‘ah.
Conversely, if a person or group does not fundamentally follow the principles of Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamā‘ah but possesses one or more of its characteristics, it may be said to conform to the Sunnah to that limited extent. Nevertheless, possessing a few of its characteristics does not, by itself, entitle that person or group to be designated Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamā‘ah as a whole.
In this regard, the following statement attributed to Mawlānā Ashraf ‘Alī Thānvī (may Allah have mercy on him) is significant:
“You must adhere to the principles of Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamā‘ah in every aspect of religion, including ‘Aqā’id (creed), Mu‘āmalāt (transactions), and Mu‘āsharāt (social relations). If you follow the principles of Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamā‘ah only in matters of creed and belief but not in other matters, you cannot be described as a Kāmil Sunnī (a complete or fully committed adherent of the Sunnah).
“Therefore, it is erroneous to think that merely affiliating oneself with a group or identifying oneself with it is sufficient; that following the principles of Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamā‘ah in matters of foundational principles and creed automatically means following them in every other aspect; or that adherence in one area necessarily entails adherence in all areas. Such assumptions are mistaken.”
It should be noted that many misguided groups and groups accused of religious innovation among Muslims identify themselves as Ahl al-Sunnah or Sunnī. Such self-designations may be unfounded when their beliefs, practices, and conduct do not substantiate the claims they make. In some cases, religious innovations have been introduced under the guise of adherence to the Sunnah.
Conversely, throughout history, groups accused of religious innovation have often refused to recognise genuine adherents of Ahl al-Sunnah as followers of the Sunnah. Instead, they have sometimes accused them of dishonesty or false claims.
For example, in earlier periods, the Qadariyyah and Mu‘tazilah referred to adherents of Ahl al-Sunnah as Mujbirah—a term associated with extreme determinism. They used this label because the latter believed that the entire created order is governed by the will and power of Allah, the Exalted.
The Jahmiyyah called them Mushabbihah (those who liken Allah to His creation) because they affirmed the names and attributes of Allah.
The Murji’ah referred to them as Shakkiyyah (those characterised as doubters) and Nuqṣāniyyah (those associated with deficiency or reduction), because they affirmed that faith (Īmān) can increase and decrease and that a believer may say, “If Allah wills, I am a believer.”
The Rāfiḍah called them Nāṣibiyyah. This was attributed to their position that the Imam or head of state should be selected through the agreement and consultation of the community.
The Bāṭiniyyah called them Ḥashwiyyah because they followed the Hadith of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and the way of life of his Companions.
In this manner, adherents of Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamā‘ah were given various labels by other groups according to their own preferences and polemical purposes. Yet none of these labels accurately represented the identity of those to whom they were applied, nor were such designations necessarily appropriate.
Note: This article has been prepared on the basis of a talk delivered at a Mawlid al-Nabī (peace and blessings be upon him) gathering organised by Bangladesh Ahlus Sunnat wal Jamaat, Chattogram, on 7 December 2024.