An observation!

I thought that I could follow Deen on my own. I do not have to follow anyone. I know some English and French. Thus, there is no language problem. I can get the translation of the Qur'aan, Hadith and other resources in these languages. There is no need to follow anyone. But only afterwards did I realise that I was wrong. It is like a kite whose line was broken off from its owner and finally becomes a prey in the hands of children who tear it to pieces. It is quite like "out of the frying pan into the fire".

Normally, a person follows Deen according to the interpretation of one of these 4 Imams, that is, Imam Abu Hanifah (Rahimahullah), Imam Malik (Rahimahullah), Imam Shaafi'i (Rahimahullah) and Imam Ahmad Bin Hambal (Rahimahullah). Now, a person who studied somewhere claims that one must not follow anyone. One must follow the Qur'aan and the Hadith directly. Thus, the person stopped following one of these Imaam. But how will he follow Qur'aan and Hadith by himself? In reality, it is that person who is guiding him. He is following that person based on the fact that the latter knows Deen more than him. But a question arises. Is he not making the same mistake that he made before by following an Imam just as that person had made him understand? This is a perfectly logical question that must arise in the mind of that person. This is because if it is a mistake to follow great Imams such as Imam Abu Hanifah (Rahimahullah), Imam Malik (Rahimahullah), Imam Shafi'i (Rahimahullah) and Imam Ahmad Bin Hambal (Rahimahullah), then how can it be a great merit to follow someone who is somehow at a pre-primary level in front of these professionals? It is obvious that the general public, who claims that they are not following any Imam, are doing even worse by following these preachers. Moreover they are doing so blindly. And it is not exaggerating if one says that these preachers are following blindly someone else other than these 4 Imams. This is how a person cut off from these Imams who are actually professionals to become like a toy in the hands of preachers who are like pre-primary children. All those who refuse to follow one of these 4 Imams, become very easy prey for all kinds of tendencies. It is through this that emanates all type of tendencies such as not accepting any book of Hadith except Bukhari and Muslim or to accept only that which is found in Bukhari and to finally reject all other Hadith to accept only the Qur'aan. Likewise, this gives birth to perverts who have the audacity to legalise a crime such as apostasy without any pinch of bitterness in the heart. All these are the calamities of not following an Imam.

[English version of "Ene constat !" – Al Jamiat – Vol.5 No.14]