as Allah Almighty has said: ﴿وَإِذَا قِيلَ لَهُمْ تَعَالَوْا يَسْتَغْفِرْ لَكُمْ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ لَوَّوْا رُءُوسَهُمْ وَرَأَيْتَهُمْ يَصُدُّونَ وَهُمْ مُسْتَكْبِرُونَ﴾[1]; “And when it was said to them: ‘Come so that the Messenger of Allah may seek forgiveness for you,’ they turned their heads side, and you saw them hindering (people) while seeking greatness.” Yes, after the Prophet , going to him to request his supplication and his seeking Allah’s forgiveness does not seem possible. Therefore, there is no choice but to go to his caliph for this purpose. Accordingly, it is obligatory for Muslims to go to his caliph in their time and ask him to supplicate and seek Allah’s forgiveness for them—and it is clear that his supplication and his seeking Allah’s forgiveness are like those of the Prophet .

Third: Sources of Islam

From the foregoing, it became clear that Islam means submission to the will of Allah. It is clear that the will of Allah has been manifested in His commands and prohibitions; because, by virtue of His perfection, He has commanded whatever contributes to the human being’s perfection, prohibited whatever leads to his imperfection, and conveyed these commands and prohibitions to him through His Prophet. Therefore, the sources of Islam are things by referring to which the commands and prohibitions of Allah are known—namely, the Book of Allah and His Prophet.

The Book of Allah

The first and most important source of Islam is the Book of Allah. It is the manifestation of His will in words, cast from Him—with or without the mediation of an angel—upon the heart of His Prophet, recited by His Prophet to hundreds of Muslims without addition or omission, narrated by them to thousands of Muslims without any disruptive variation, and reached present-day Muslims in a written and widely transmitted manner. Therefore, it is definitely authoritative.