Reference: “Majmoo’ Fataawaa wa Maqaalaat” (vol. 8/pp. 200-201) quoted from “Tuhfatul-Muslim” (pp. 19-20)
Indeed the companions of the Messenger of Allaah (sal-Allaahu ‘alayhe wa sallam) have preserved all of his Sunnah –both his statements and actions, and conveyed it those who succeeded them. Their followers [at-Taabi’oon] also passed it on to those who succeeded them and thus did the trustworthy scholars, generation after generation, era after era.
They have reported and collected it in their books, distinctively clarified between that which is authentic from that which is weak, and laid down for this great science, principles and rules that are well known amongst them. These principles and rules allow them to determine that which is authentic from the Sunnah from that which is weak and unauthentic.
The people of knowledge have handed down to each other the books of the Sunnah, such as as-Saheehayn [the two authentic books which are Saheeh al-Bukhaaree and Saheeh Muslim] and others [such as al-Muwatta’ of Imaam Maalik, al-Musnad of Imaam Ahmad, as-Sunan of Imaam Aboo Daawood, al-Jaami’ of Imaam at-Tirmidhi, etc…].
They have protected it perfectly, just as Allaah has guarded His Mighty Book from the fooling around of the foolish, deviation of the deviators and distortion of the liars. All of this was done out of actualizing the promise of Allaah to preserve and guard His divine revelation when He said:
{Verily, it is We Who have sent down the Dhikr (i.e. the Qur’aan and the Sunnah) and surely, We will guard it (from corruption).} [Soorah al-Hijr (15): 9]
There lies no doubt in the reality that the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allaah (sal-Allaahu ‘alayhe wa sallam) is divine revelation and that Allaah has certainly protected it just as He has protected His book. He, the Exalted, has facilitated for the Sunnah critical scholars who negate from it the distortion of the liars, false interpretation of the ignorant and defend it from everything that the ignoramuses, fabricators and people of deviation have attributed thereto.
For verily, Allaah, the Sublime, has made it an explanation of His Noble Book, a clarification for the rulings and regulations which have been generally mentioned therein, along with separate rulings that have not been mentioned in the Mighty Book. Such as the rulings of suckling, some rulings of inheritance, the impermissibility of being married to a woman and her aunt at the same time and many other rulings besides these which have come in the authentic Sunnah and not been mentioned in the Mighty Book of Allaah.
حفظ السنة
المرجع: مجموع فتاوى ومقالات متنوعة – 1/216
وقد حفظ أصحاب رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم سنته عليه الصلاة والسلام القولية والفعلية، وبلغوها من بعدهم من التابعين، ثم بلغها التابعون من بعدهم، وهكذا نقلها العلماء الثقات جيلا بعد جيل، وقرنا بعد قرن، وجمعوها في كتبهم، وأوضحوا صحيحها من سقيمها، ووضعوا لمعرفة ذلك قوانين وضوابط معلومة بينهم، يعلم بها صحيح السنة من ضعيفها، وقد تداول أهل العلم كتب السنة من الصحيحين وغيرهما، وحفظوها حفظا تاماً، كما حفظ الله كتابه العزيز من عبث العابثين، وإلحاد الملحدين، وتحريف المبطلين، تحقيقاً لما دل عليه قوله سبحانه:
{إِنَّا نَحْنُ نَزَّلْنَا الذِّكْرَ وَإِنَّا لَهُ لَحَافِظُونَ } الحجر:9
ولا شك أن سنة رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم وحي منزل، فقد حفظها الله كما حفظ كتابه، وقيض الله لها علماء نقاداً، ينفون عنها تحريف المبطلين، وتأويل الجاهلين، ويذبون عنها كل ما ألصقه بها الجاهلون والكذابون والملحدون؛ لأن الله سبحانه جعلها تفسيراً لكتابه الكريم، وبياناً لما أجمل فيه من الأحكام، وضمنها أحكاماً أخرى، لم ينص عليها الكتاب العزيز، كتفصيل أحكام الرضاع، وبعض أحكام المواريث، وتحريم الجمع بين المرأة وعمتها، وبين المرأة وخالتها، إلى غير ذلك من الأحكام التي جاءت بها السنة الصحيحة ولم تُذكر في كتاب الله العزيز.
