WHAT DID THE PROPHET CONVEY?

The Prophet Muhammad was commanded with the following:

يَا أَيُّهَا الرَّسُولُ بَلِّغْ مَا أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ مِن رَّبِّكَ وَإِن لَّمْ تَفْعَلْ

فَمَا بَلَّغْتَ رِسَالَتَهُ وَاللَّهُ يَعْصِمُكَ مِنَ النَّاسِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَا

يَهْدِي الْقَوْمَ الْكَافِرِينَ

"O Messenger! Convey what has been sent down to you from your Lord; and if you do it not, then you have not conveyed His Message, and Allah will protect you from the people; indeed Allah will not guide the disbelievers."
{Surah Al-Maeda, 5:67}

The Qur'aan is the Message that was received by the Prophet Muhammad as can be understood through numerous verses, such as in {Surah An-Nahl, 16:89}:

وَنَزَّلْنَا عَلَيْكَ الْكِتَابَ تِبْيَانًا لِّكُلِّ شَيْءٍ وَهُدًى وَرَحْمَةً

وَبُشْرَىٰ لِلْمُسْلِمِينَ

"And We have sent down the Book to you clarifying everything, and a guidance and mercy and good news for those who submit."

And in the following verses we learn that it was the recitation of this Book (the Qur'aan) with which the Prophet was commanded with:

اتْلُ مَا أُوحِيَ إِلَيْكَ مِنَ الْكِتَابِ.

"Recite that which has been revealed to you of the Book."
{Surah Al-Ankaboot, 29:45}

And:

وَقُرْآنًا فَرَقْنَاهُ لِتَقْرَأَهُ عَلَى النَّاسِ عَلَىٰ مُكْثٍ وَنَزَّلْنَاهُ تَنزِيلًا

"And a Qur'aan which We have separated/divided so that you may read/recite it to the people over time, and We have sent it down, descending in stages."
{Surah Al-Isra, 17:106}

To emphasize the authority of the Qur'aan alone, Allah commanded the Prophet to say the following:

وَأُوحِيَ إِلَيَّ هَٰذَا الْقُرْآنُ لِأُنذِرَكُم بِهِ وَمَن بَلَغ.َ

"And this Qur'aan has been revealed to me that I may warn you WITH IT and whomsoever it reaches."
{Surah Al-Anaam, 6:19}

And similarly in {Surah Al-Anaam, 6:51} the authority of the Qur'aan alone is further established:

وَأَنذِرْ بِهِ الَّذِينَ يَخَافُونَ أَن يُحْشَرُوا إِلَىٰ رَبِّهِمْ.

"And warn WITH IT those who fear that they shall be gathered to their Lord..."

This command being revealed after Allah had instructed the Prophet to say:

إِنْ أَتَّبِعُ إِلَّا مَا يُوحَىٰ إِلَيَّ.

"I do not follow except that which is revealed to me."
{Surah Al-Anaam, 6:50}

We also learn from the following verses that the Prophet Muhammad refused the requests of the disbelievers to invent and preach religious statements from other than the Book that was revealed to him:

وَإِذَا تُتْلَىٰ عَلَيْهِمْ آيَاتُنَا بَيِّنَاتٍ قَالَ الَّذِينَ لَا يَرْجُونَ لِقَاءَنَا

ائْتِ بِقُرْآنٍ غَيْرِ هَٰذَا أَوْ بَدِّلْهُ قُلْ مَا يَكُونُ لِي أَنْ أُبَدِّلَهُ

مِن تِلْقَاءِ نَفْسِي إِنْ أَتَّبِعُ إِلَّا مَا يُوحَىٰ إِلَيَّ إِنِّي أَخَافُ

إِنْ عَصَيْتُ رَبِّي عَذَابَ يَوْمٍ عَظِيمٍ.

"And when Our clear verses are recited to them, those who do not hope to meeting (with) us say: Bring a Qur'aan other than this or change it. Say: It is not for me that I should change it of myself; I do not follow except what is revealed to me; Indeed I fear, if I disobey my Lord, the punishment of a mighty day."
{Surah Yunus, 10:15}

And:

وَإِذَا لَمْ تَأْتِهِم بِآيَةٍ قَالُوا لَوْلَا اجْتَبَيْتَهَا قُلْ إِنَّمَا أَتَّبِعُ مَا

يُوحَىٰ إِلَيَّ مِن رَّبِّي هَٰذَا بَصَائِرُ مِن رَّبِّكُمْ وَهُدًى

وَرَحْمَةٌ لِّقَوْمٍ يُؤْمِنُونَ.

"And when you bring them not an ayah they say: Why do you not invent/forge it? Say: I only follow what is revealed to me from my Lord; this is enlightment from your Lord and a guidance and a mercy for a people who believe."
{Surah Al-Araf, 7:203}

And:

وَإِن كَادُوا لَيَفْتِنُونَكَ عَنِ الَّذِي أَوْحَيْنَا إِلَيْكَ لِتَفْتَرِيَ عَلَيْنَا

غَيْرَهُ وَإِذًا لَّاتَّخَذُوكَ خَلِيلًا

"And indeed they almost tempted you from that which We revealed to you, that you invent against Us other than it, and then surely they would have taken you as a friend."
{Surah Al-Isra, 17:73}

❔ What about the Sunnah? Is this also revelation that the Prophet Muhammad conveyed?

After the death of Prophet Muhammad the people began abandoning the Book of Allah and instead attaching themselves to conveying alternative hadith (statements), some which were attributed to the companions and others that were attributed directly to the Prophet. However, It was not until the misguided Muhammad ibn Idris al-Shafi'ee (767–820 CE, 150–204 AH) that these alternative statements (hadith) were considered as being revelation alongside the Book of Allah (Qur'aan). The lies and deception from Shafi'ee paved the way for like minded Persians to invent thousands of hadith which they attributed to the Prophet. Persian scholars such as Muhammad ibn Ismail al-Bukhaari (810 - 870 CE, 194 - 256 AH) and Abu Dawud (817 - 889 CE) compiled books of hadith in which the content, more often than not, contradicts with and is in violation of the Book of Allah. This blatant disregard for the Qur'aan destroys the integrity of such authors and in fact, in accordance with the principles of hadith verification, nullifies the validity of their entire collection of works that were meant to convey the "Sunnah".

A study of the Qur'aan neglects the need or authority for secondary hadith (statements) in relation to the Deen of Islaam because Allah revealed that His Book is a clear, detailed, and explained guidance that should be used as a criterion by mankind. The truth is that there was no separate revelation for which the Messenger Muhammad was obliged to convey and therefore, nor is there an additional "Sunnah" of his that the believers have to follow.

In {Surah Al-Ankaboot, 29:51} Allah revealed:

أَوَلَمْ يَكْفِهِمْ أَنَّا أَنزَلْنَا عَلَيْكَ الْكِتَابَ يُتْلَىٰ عَلَيْهِمْ إِنَّ فِي

ذَٰلِكَ لَرَحْمَةً وَذِكْرَىٰ لِقَوْمٍ يُؤْمِنُونَ

"Is it not sufficient for them that We sent down to you the Book which is recited to them? Indeed, in that is a mercy and a reminder for people who believe."

Mankind should endeavour to learn and teach the Book of Allah (al-Qur'aan) and not spend their efforts in studying and teaching other ahadith for which scholars falsely attribute to the Prophet and for which they equate with and even elevate above the honoured Book of Allah:

مَا كَانَ لِبَشَرٍ أَن يُؤْتِيَهُ اللَّهُ الْكِتَابَ وَالْحُكْمَ وَالنُّبُوَّةَ ثُمَّ

يَقُولَ لِلنَّاسِ كُونُوا عِبَادًا لِّي مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ وَلَٰكِن كُونُوا

رَبَّانِيِّينَ بِمَا كُنتُمْ تُعَلِّمُونَ الْكِتَابَ وَبِمَا كُنتُمْ تَدْرُسُونَ.

"It is not for a human that Allah should give him the Book and the wisdom and prophethood and then he would say to the people, "Be servants to me rather than Allah" but (instead, he would say), "Be pious scholars of the Lord because of what you have taught of the book and because of what you have studied."
{Surah Aal-e-Imran, 3:79}