Excessive Questioning

“On the authority of Abu Huraira Abdul Rahman ibn Sakhr (may Allah be pleased with him) who said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) saying, ‘What I have forbidden you, stay away from. What I have ordered you [to do], do as much of it as you can. Verily, the people before you were destroyed only because of their excessive questioning and their disagreeing with their Prophets.” (Recorded in al-Bukhari and Muslim)

“Verily, the people before you were destroyed only because of their excessive questioning”

As we saw illustrated in the hadith of Jibreel, when the angel came to the Prophet (s) to ask him (s) important questions about the religion of al-Islam, some types of questioning can be very beneficial. Indeed, the questions that one must ask as they seek to understand their religion are actually considered obligatory upon us. We should seek knowledge and we must ask questions to do this.

So what then is excessive questioning and how can we avoid it? To assist us in understanding this we should first turn to the Qur’an, where Allah (swt) says:

“O believers! Ask not about things which, if made plain to you, may cause you trouble. But if you ask about them while the Qur’an is being revealed they will be made plain to you. Allah has forgiven that, and Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Forebearing.” (Surah al-Maidah:101)

The reference here is to questions for which answers are not in fact needed, they are more hypothetical, or seeking ridicule. These kinds of questions are not allowed. They are the type of questions that were put forward by the hypocrites and disbelievers. During the time of the Prophet (s) in particular it was disliked to ask too many questions about permissible and impermissible acts, because it was feared that due to someone’s excessive questioning an act may become forbidden. We should therefore preoccupy ourselves with questions relating to the understanding and application of the religion, and not hypothetical situations that may occur. It is reported that if one of the companions was asked about a hypothetical situation, they would say ‘Has it happened?’ and if the answer was negative they would say, ‘Leave it until it happens’.

We can see here that the key lies in having the right intention in our seeking understanding and in our use of questions. We should have the intention of getting closer to Allah (swt) through a deeper understanding and practice of His (swt) religion. If we do that, Allah (swt) will guide us and show us the Straight Path.

Let’s make dua that we become of those truly knowledgable people who Allah (swt) spoke of in the Qur’an:

“It is only those who have knowledge among His slaves that truly fear Allah.” (Surah al-Faatir:28)