Allah mentions in the holy Quran
“And Like that We have made you a moderate nation so that you be witnesses over mankind and the Messenger (i.e. Muhammad Sallallaahu Alaihi Wasallam) be a witness over you”.
(Surah Al-Baqarah, verse: 143)
Furthermore, our beloved Prophet Sallallaahu Alaihi wasallam has mentioned in the Hadeeth Shareef :
“Verily Deen is easy and whoever is extreme in Deen, he will be overpowered. So be moderate in your actions, and gain the proximity of Allah Ta’ala through them and give glad tidings. Use a portion of the morning, the evening and the night for the obedience of Allah Ta’ala”. (Bukhari)
Through these two guides viz. The Quraan and the Hadith Shareef, we establish that our Deen is a perfect code of life wherein there is no extremes. This is further understood by the personal aamaal (actions) of the Prophet Sallallaahu alaihi Wasallam who said: “I fast also, I eat also, I get married but I fear Allah Ta’ala….”
will not be adequate for one wishing to study Medicine to become a doctor and similarly for an Engineer or for that matter any other profession. Yet it is surprising that many of the so called ’Intellectuals’ find it unnecessary to consult qualified teachers of the Qur’aan and the Sunnah (i.e. the Ulama) in order to fully understand the Divine Book. This attitude is one type of “guloo” [exaggeration in Deen] which is prohibited.
Another type of “guloo” in which many ordinary laymen are also involved, is the blind and indiscriminate selection of just anyone as their Religious leader and thereafter following him recklessly without ascertaining whether the person who is being accepted as one’s Religious Mentor, has proper Islamic Knowledge, and whether he has Taqwa, etc. Furthermore, there is no check made to verify whether the teachings of such mentors are Islamic or not, i.e. whether it is contrary to the Qur’aan and Ahaadith or not.
Islam has stressed that mankind should save itself from both these types of “gulouw” by adopting a moderate, Middle Course. This can easily be acquired by studying and understanding the Qur’aan and the Sunnah, by consulting the men of Allah, who can be recognised by means of the Book of Allah, i.e. through the clear-cut popular teachings of the Qur’aan and the Sunnah, identifying those who are sincerely involved in the study of the Qur’aan and the Hadith and whose lives reflect the colour of the Qur’aan and the Sunnah. Thereafter, every difficult Verse or concept of Deen should be understood by their explanation and then practiced upon accordingly.
