Islam > Hadiths > The creed > Leave me as I leave you. Verily, what destroyed those before you was their asking question…
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Updated on 24 September 2026 at 12:34 AM
📖 2 min readعَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ رضي الله عنه عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ: «دَعُونِي مَا تَرَكْتُكُمْ، إِنَّمَا هَلَكَ مَنْ كَانَ قَبْلَكُمْ بِسُؤَالِهِمْ وَاخْتِلَافِهِمْ عَلَى أَنْبِيَائِهِمْ، فَإِذَا نَهَيْتُكُمْ عَنْ شَيْءٍ فَاجْتَنِبُوهُ، وَإِذَا أَمَرْتُكُمْ بِأَمْرٍ فَأْتُوا مِنْهُ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُمْ».
The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) mentioned that the Shariah rulings fall into three categories: what is left unaddressed, prohibitions, and commands.
As for the first: It is what the Shariah has left unaddressed, as there is no ruling, and things, in principle, are not obligatory. During the Prophet's lifetime, it was a must not to ask about something that had not occurred for fear that it might become obligatory or forbidden through revelation, as Allah has left it unaddressed out of mercy towards His slaves. After the Prophet's death, on the other hand, if the question is posed by way of seeking legal opinion or learning about what one needs of the religion, then it is not only permissible but also commanded. However, if the question is posed by way of obstinacy and affectation, then this kind of question should be avoided, and this is what the Hadīth refers to, as it could lead to what happened to the Children of Israel when they were commanded to slaughter a cow. It was sufficient for them to obey the command by slaughtering any cow; however, when they acted obstinately, things were made hard for them.
Second: The prohibitions: It is whatever one is rewarded for abandoning and is punished for doing. So, all prohibitions must be avoided.
Third: The commands: It is whatever one is rewarded for doing and punished for abandoning. The commands must be carried out to the best of one's ability.
Categories : Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence · Significations and Inference · The Creed · Jurisprudence and Juristic Principles · Belief in the Messengers · Pre-Islamic Prophets and Messengers, peace be upon them