To listen to and obey the Imam
باب السَّمْعِ وَالطَّاعَةِ لِلإِمَامِ مَا لَمْ تَكُنْ مَعْصِيَةً
Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of Judgments (Ahkaam)(view book)
Narrated Anas bin Malik:
Allah's Apostle ﷺ said, "You should listen to and obey, your ruler even if he was an Ethiopian (black) slave whose head looks like a raisin."
حَدَّثَنَا مُسَدَّدٌ، حَدَّثَنَا يَحْيَى، عَنْ شُعْبَةَ، عَنْ أَبِي التَّيَّاحِ، عَنْ أَنَسِ بْنِ مَالِكٍ ـ رضى الله عنه ـ قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ " اسْمَعُوا وَأَطِيعُوا وَإِنِ اسْتُعْمِلَ عَلَيْكُمْ عَبْدٌ حَبَشِيٌّ كَأَنَّ رَأْسَهُ زَبِيبَةٌ ".
Classification
Notes
Al-Allamah Ibn Uthaymeen said: Al-Imam is the leader of the country. It's not a condition for it to be the leader of all the Muslims because this Imamah stopped long time ago. (Sharh al-Mumti', Kitaab al-Jihaad, vol. 8, pg. 9)
حاشية
قال العلامة العثيمين «الإمام» هو ولي الأمر الأعلى في الدولة، ولا يشترط أن يكون إماماً عامّاً للمسلمين؛ لأن الإمامة العامة انقرضت من أزمنة متطاولة - {شرح الممتي كتاب الجهاد ج (٨) ص (٩)}
Narrated Ibn 'Abbas:
The Prophet ﷺ said, "If somebody sees his Muslim ruler doing something he disapproves of, he should be patient, for whoever becomes separate from the Muslim group even for a span and then dies, he will die as those who died in the Pre-lslamic period of ignorance (as rebellious sinners). (See Hadith No. 176 and 177)
حَدَّثَنَا سُلَيْمَانُ بْنُ حَرْبٍ، حَدَّثَنَا حَمَّادٌ، عَنِ الْجَعْدِ، عَنْ أَبِي رَجَاءٍ، عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ، يَرْوِيهِ قَالَ قَالَ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ " مَنْ رَأَى مِنْ أَمِيرِهِ شَيْئًا فَكَرِهَهُ فَلْيَصْبِرْ، فَإِنَّهُ لَيْسَ أَحَدٌ يُفَارِقُ الْجَمَاعَةَ شِبْرًا فَيَمُوتُ إِلاَّ مَاتَ مِيتَةً جَاهِلِيَّةً ".
Classification
Narrated 'Abdullah:
The Prophet ﷺ said, "A Muslim has to listen to and obey (the order of his ruler) whether he likes it or not, as long as his orders involve not one in disobedience (to Allah), but if an act of disobedience (to Allah) is imposed one should not listen to it or obey it. (See Hadith No. 203, Vol. 4)
حَدَّثَنَا مُسَدَّدٌ، حَدَّثَنَا يَحْيَى بْنُ سَعِيدٍ، عَنْ عُبَيْدِ اللَّهِ، حَدَّثَنِي نَافِعٌ، عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ ـ رضى الله عنه ـ عَنِ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ قَالَ " السَّمْعُ وَالطَّاعَةُ عَلَى الْمَرْءِ الْمُسْلِمِ، فِيمَا أَحَبَّ وَكَرِهَ، مَا لَمْ يُؤْمَرْ بِمَعْصِيَةٍ، فَإِذَا أُمِرَ بِمَعْصِيَةٍ فَلاَ سَمْعَ وَلاَ طَاعَةَ ".
Classification
Narrated 'Ali:
The Prophet sent an army unit (for some campaign) and appointed a man from the Ansar as its commander and ordered them (the soldiers) to obey him. (During the campaign) he became angry with them and said, "Didn't the Prophet order you to obey me?" They said, "Yes." He said, "I order you to collect wood and make a fire and then throw yourselves into it." So they collected wood and made a fire, but when they were about to throw themselves into, it they started looking at each other, and some of them said, "We followed the Prophet to escape from the fire. How should we enter it now?" So while they were in that state, the fire extinguished and their commander's anger abated. The event was mentioned to the Prophet and he said, "If they had entered it (the fire) they would never have come out of it, for obedience is required only in what is good." (See Hadith No. 629. Vol. 5)
حَدَّثَنَا عُمَرُ بْنُ حَفْصِ بْنِ غِيَاثٍ، حَدَّثَنَا أَبِي، حَدَّثَنَا الأَعْمَشُ، حَدَّثَنَا سَعْدُ بْنُ عُبَيْدَةَ، عَنْ أَبِي عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ، عَنْ عَلِيٍّ ـ رضى الله عنه ـ قَالَ بَعَثَ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ سَرِيَّةً، وَأَمَّرَ عَلَيْهِمْ رَجُلاً مِنَ الأَنْصَارِ وَأَمَرَهُمْ أَنْ يُطِيعُوهُ، فَغَضِبَ عَلَيْهِمْ وَقَالَ أَلَيْسَ قَدْ أَمَرَ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ أَنَّ تُطِيعُونِي قَالُوا بَلَى. قَالَ عَزَمْتُ عَلَيْكُمْ لَمَا جَمَعْتُمْ حَطَبًا وَأَوْقَدْتُمْ نَارًا، ثُمَّ دَخَلْتُمْ فِيهَا، فَجَمَعُوا حَطَبًا فَأَوْقَدُوا، فَلَمَّا هَمُّوا بِالدُّخُولِ فَقَامَ يَنْظُرُ بَعْضُهُمْ إِلَى بَعْضٍ، قَالَ بَعْضُهُمْ إِنَّمَا تَبِعْنَا النَّبِيَّ ﷺ فِرَارًا مِنَ النَّارِ، أَفَنَدْخُلُهَا، فَبَيْنَمَا هُمْ كَذَلِكَ إِذْ خَمَدَتِ النَّارُ، وَسَكَنَ غَضَبُهُ، فَذُكِرَ لِلنَّبِيِّ ﷺ فَقَالَ " لَوْ دَخَلُوهَا مَا خَرَجُوا مِنْهَا أَبَدًا، إِنَّمَا الطَّاعَةُ فِي الْمَعْرُوفِ ".