The Essential Role of the Sunnah in Islam: Why the Prophet’s Teachings Complement the Quran

Name: 31-01-2026 Shaikh Assim Al-Hakeem "No Islam Without The Sunnah (PISC 2026)
Uploaded: 2026-02-01T15:32:52.474770+00:00
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Feb 01, 2026

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Introduction

The opening of PC 2026 introduced Sheikh Al‑Hakim, a well‑known speaker from Saudi Arabia who inspired the first international convention in 2023. His lecture focused on the indispensable nature of the Sunnah – the Prophet Muhammad’s (peace be upon him) words, deeds, approvals and physical characteristics – as the living explanation of the Qur’an.

The Five Pillars and the Need for Guidance

Shahada – declaration of monotheism.
Salah – five daily prayers.
Zakat – obligatory charity.
Sawm – fasting in Ramadan.
Hajj – pilgrimage to Mecca.

While the Qur’an mentions these pillars, it does not detail the exact methods (e.g., prayer positions, zakat rates, Hajj rites). The Sunnah fills these gaps, providing the practical framework for each pillar.

Defining the Sunnah

The speaker highlighted three scholarly perspectives: 1. What the Prophet said (spoken words). 2. What the Prophet did (actions and habits). 3. What the Prophet approved (tacit consent to others’ actions).

He explained that some scholars differentiate between wājib (obligatory) and sunnah (recommended), leading to varied definitions, yet all agree the Sunnah is essential for proper worship.

Qur’an and Sunnah: A Complementary Relationship

The Qur’an commands believers to follow what the Messenger enjoins and to avoid what he forbids (Qur’an 33:36).
Obeying the Prophet is equated with obeying Allah; the Prophet’s clarification is the only means to fully understand the Qur’an.
Numerous verses repeatedly urge adherence to the Prophet’s guidance, underscoring its divine endorsement.

Consequences of Rejecting the Sunnah

The lecture warned that denying the Sunnah while claiming to follow only the Qur’an leads to: - Misinterpretation of Qur’anic verses. - Fragmentation of the Muslim community into deviant sects. - Spiritual loss, as the Qur’an alone cannot convey the complete way of life.

Scholars cited (e.g., Ibn Hazam Al‑Usi) state that anyone who rejects the Sunnah is a clear kafir, because the Qur’an itself commands adherence to the Prophet’s teachings.

Practical Illustrations

Prayer: Number of rak‘ahs, hand placement, recitation of surahs – all detailed in the Sunnah.
Zakat: Rates for cash (2.5 %), crops (5‑10 %), livestock (e.g., 40 sheep, 30 cows) are specified by the Prophet.
Hajj: Rituals such as Tawaf, Sa’i, and the stoning of the jamarat are Sunnah‑based.
Daily Conduct: Eating, sleeping, interacting with non‑Muslims, and personal hygiene are modeled in the Sunnah.

The Call to Action

The speaker urged Muslims to: - Study both the Qur’an and the Sunnah together. - Implement the Prophet’s character traits – honesty, patience, forgiveness. - Guard against sects that dismiss the Sunnah, as they risk dismantling Islam. - Seek Allah’s love by faithfully following the Prophet in all aspects of life.

Conclusion

Understanding Islam requires the Qur’an plus the Sunnah. The Prophet’s example is the key that unlocks the Qur’an’s meaning, shapes proper worship, and preserves the unity and authenticity of the faith.

The Qur’an and the Sunnah are inseparable; only by living according to the Prophet’s teachings can Muslims truly comprehend and practice Islam, safeguarding its purity and attaining Allah’s love.

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Helpful resources related to this video

If you want to practice or explore the concepts discussed in the video, these commonly used tools may help.

Quran With English Translation Paperback Recommended

Provides the full Qur’an text and translation, essential for understanding the verses discussed and how the Sunnah clarifies them

Amazon →

Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith Collection Paperback

Contains authentic hadiths that form the basis of the Sunnah, helping readers study the Prophet’s sayings and actions

Amazon →

Islamic Prayer Rug With Compass Design

Facilitates proper performance of Salah as taught in the Sunnah, supporting the practical aspects highlighted in the lecture

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Full Transcript YouTube

Who is our is going to be our first
speaker for this whole convention?
Brother Fisad,
>> our very first speaker for PC 2026 will
be shehim al-Hakim. So she al-Hakim is
from Saudi Arabia and many of you would
have known him from many different Q&A
channels such as ask Huda. So just
sharing some history with you brothers
and sisters. She assim was the one who
in fact inspired Bi back in 2023. He
came all the way to Peris to give a talk
and it was melt with overwhelming
response. Mashallah a lot of people came
and that sparked a conversation in
Makkah and this conversation consisted
of many individuals including Sahibu
sahama mutles and rajamura ples and they
came up with an idea why don't we do an
international convention inviting
international speakers to come all the
way to ples and that idea came to
fruition in the form of pc 2024 and
today we are in the third puldham
with that let us welcome brothers and
sisters our very first speaker
Alim,
>> please welcome.
[singing]
[singing]
Alhamdulillah.
Islam
was built was based was founded
on five pillars. We all know this.
And the first pillar is
the testimony of truth.
The declaration
of monotheism to believe that there is
no god worthy of being worshiped except
Allah. and that Muhammad
sallallahu alaihi wasallam is his
servant and messenger.
Many of us are born Muslims.
So sometimes we fail to contemplate and
think about our beliefs.
So it's more of a cultural thing.
We are with the herd, with the crowd.
They pray, we pray. They fast, we fast.
They make bida, we make bida. They make
shik.
Watch out. So we try our level best to
come back to our beliefs to our true
religion through these conventions
through these conferences
where we get to relate to our religion
and have a better understanding. When we
say
what does this mean?
It has a profound meaning.
It means that you
believe
whatever the prophet says
unconditionally.
You don't use your head to analyze it
because this is above your pay grade.
Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him.
He was asleep in his home when it was
early morning.
Thank you. Then the idol worshippers
came to him and said, "Didn't you hear
what your friend said?"
He said, "I was asleep. How would I
know?" He didn't have any WhatsApp
messages, nothing.
So they said he claims that he traveled
from Mecca to Jerusalem which is usually
a month long journey on back on on on
the camel's back and then ascended to
the seventh heaven
then came back to Jerusalem and
flew or drove or whatever back to Mecca
in less than couple of hours. Abu Bakr
said, "I believe."
This is true belief. [snorts]
This is real conviction. No questions
asked.
So to believe that the prophetat
wasallam is the messenger and the
servant of allahel entails that you
believe in whatever he says
and to obey him in whatever he orders
and to refrain from whatever he
prohibits you to do and not to worship
Allah except through his teachings.
things.
Therefore, following the sunnah is not
an option. It is one of the pillars of
Islam. But what is the sunnah?
And here is where we have
some ambiguity among us because we're
Muslims by birth.
The Sunnah is defined differently
when defined by the people of Hadith,
the scholars of Hadith.
And it's defined differently when
defined by the scholars
and it's defined differently by the
jurors the
for example
when we say sunnah it means the way
linguistically.
So whatever the prophet wasallam did is
a sunnah.
Did the prophet pray five times a day?
Yes. Is it a sunnah?
say no it's not a sunnah is this is this
is waj
sunnah means if you do it you're
rewarded if you don't do it no problem
like entering the masjid with my right
foot this is sunnah said yes
it's not waj
but praying five times a day is a waj so
each group of scholars define sunnah
differently
and all of them have the good intention
of praising and holding the sunnah in a
very high place.
So what is the definition of sunnah?
The sunnah collectively
is all what the prophetatam
said
deeds are
weighed by intention.
This is what he said. What is this
sunnah? It's a hadith or something the
prophet didatam.
So the prophet sallallahu alaihi
wasallam did so and so.
Abu Malik,
may Allah be pleased with him says that
the prophet sallall alaihi wasallam and
he explained this physically before
standing
from a witter in his salat to the second
or to the fourth he used to pause known
as in the so this is his doing he didn't
say it we've noticed it so that is a
sunnah whatever the prophet said
sallallahu alaihi wasallam or did or
approved.
He saw people doing it. He didn't deny
them. The Abbassinians from Habasha
used to play with their spears in the
masjid.
And he did not comment. He allowed Aisha
to put her
chin on his shoulder to watch. And every
time he said, "Have you had enough?" She
said, "No,
she wants everybody else, her w his
wives, to see her putting her chin on
his shoulder and eat your hearts out."
So the prophet approved them. They can't
play with the spears because this is
training on jihad.
what he said, what he did, what he
approved,
or his physical description. How he
walked, how he talked, how he slept, how
he ate, how he dealt with the
non-Muslims. This is something physical,
something attributed to him sallallahu
alaihi wasallam. How tall he was, what
kind of skin he had, his beard, how big,
how wide, how long. This is from his
sunnah.
The sunnah
was mentioned a lot in the Quran.
Allahel and and there's no enough time
for us to mention it all but I'll give
you a glimpse for you to take home.
Allahel says,
"Whatever
the messenger has given you, take and
whatever he has forbidden you, refrain
from and fear Allah." So why would Allah
say to us, "Whatever the prophet gives
or refrains or prohibits you from doing,
you have to refrain." If this is
attributed to the Quran, Allah would
have said, "Whatever I tell you in the
Quran, do it. And whatever I deny you
from doing, don't do it." Enough. But
when he emphasizes that whatever the
prophet sallallahu alaihi wasallam tells
you to do, you have to do. This means
that the sunnah here is mentioned.
Allahawel even explained this further by
saying that obeying the prophet
is part of obeying Allahawel.
He who obeys the messenger has obeyed
Allah.
Now no one would say he who obeys the
messenger meaning the Quran.
This is the obedience of Allah. I don't
have to be a rocket scientist to know
this, but this is referring to the
Sunnah. This is separate from the Quran
and no one can understand
the Quran. Whoa, this is a very bold
statement Hassam. No one will ever
understand the Quran fully
unless he learns it through the
teachings of the prophetatam.
Why? Listen. Allah says, "And we
revealed to you, oh Muhammad,
the message that is the Quran, that you
may make clear to the people what was
sent down to them and that they might
give thought." How would the prophet
make clear to us
what what was sent to him the Quran? By
explaining it. So if he doesn't explain
it, we will not understand the Quran
fully.
And allahel mentions the sunnah again
and again and again. Allah addresses the
mothers of the believers, our mothers,
the wives of the prophet when he says,
"And remember what is recited in your
houses of the verses of Allah and
wisdom."
The verses of Allah Quran. What is the
wisdom? Immaf mentioned in his great
book
that the people of knowledge that I've
learned from say that the verses of the
Quran is the Quran and the wisdom is the
sunnah of the prophetatam.
In the past centuries in the history of
Islam, no one has dared to reject the
sunnah of the prophetatam
unless they are from the extreme
or from the extreme
or whomever followed their footsteps
among the full-fledged hypocrites
who nowadays
beautify their sect and cult.
by calling it
and this is a blatant lie. They have
nothing related to the Quran. They say
we are the Quranis.
We don't believe in the Sunnah. We
believe only in the Quran. It is without
doubt. Anyone who rejects the Sunnah has
gone astray. Anyone who rejects the
Sunnah is a blatant
No questions asked. Why? Because when he
claims that he believes in the Quran,
he's actually kafir of the Quran that
tells him to believe in the Sunnah. He
is an enemy of Islam.
He knows anyone knows that if someone
comes to this stage and says the Quran
is false, the Quran was made up, the
Quran is not certain. It's ambiguous.
It's doubtful. Maybe it's authentic.
Maybe it's not. Maybe it's from Allah.
Maybe it's not. He would immediately be
shut down
with a U. Huh? We're not terrorists.
He would be immediately shut down.
Some countries it's with an O.
He will be shut down
for doing this for the Quran. But if
someone wanted to dismantle Islam, to
attack Islam
covertly,
he would attack the sunnah.
I don't know. It wasn't written except
after 300 years lies.
After the prophet died 300 years, they
wrote the sunnah. And there is dispute
whether this is this is I don't like
this nonsense. I just hold by the Quran.
This is how they try their level best.
Then they start to poke the scholars who
gave us this sunnah. The companions Abu
I don't like this man. His name is I
don't know. And the companions fought
against one another. Were they sincere
and genuine? And maybe this and maybe
that. And people of ignorance, cultural
Muslims would usually say, "hm, I'm a
freethinker." Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I agree.
Maybe you're right.
Come to the stage. Let us shut you down.
What are you doing?
Is insulting Allah's religion, not you.
If he insulted your mom, you would have
shut him down. He's insulting Allah.
He's insulting Islam. He's insulting
Muhammad sallallahu alaihi wasallam. And
you're open thinker. Wallah, you're an
open old can. Anyhow, so
they start to talk negatively about the
companions, the and the scholars.
Albkari Albkari is this and that.
Albkari is this and that. Muslim is this
and that. trying to dismantle the
religion little by little but with the
grace of Allah. This is not my religion.
She is committing kufur. Yeah. Wait,
wait until I finish my sentence. This is
not my religion or your religion. Oh,
the sheh now is committing kufur and
giving kufur to everybody else. Yeah,
wait.
This is not my religion or your
religion. It is a religion of Allah. Say
it from the beginning. Why do you have
to cut it into pieces? Because people
are asleep. You can see they just had
breakfast and they have a long day ahead
of them. The good thing is I'm going to
give my lecture and go back and sleep.
You can't afford that anyhow. So you
have to be vigilant, aware, awake,
defending your honor, defending the
sunnah of the prophetatam.
You cannot understand the Quran without
the Sunnah.
Explain. Listen to this ayah.
Allah is telling Muhammad,
"Oh prophet of of Allah, when Gibl is
reciting the Quran, don't recite with
him." The prophet used to listen to the
Quran immediately.
No, no, no, no. Allah said, "Don't do
that." Allah says, "Move not your tongue
with it, oh Muhammad.
To hasten with it." That is the
recitation of the Quran. Indeed, upon us
is its collection in your heart and to
make possible its recitation. So when we
have recited it through Gibl, then
follow its recitation. Listen to this
ayah. Then upon us is its clarification
to you. Who's going to clarify the Quran
to to the prophetam?
Who? Allah.
When Allah clarifies the Quran to the
prophet, who will clarify it to you?
the prophetat wasallam. So without his
clarification you will not be able to
understand it. And this is why Allahawel
tells us in the Quran
there has certainly been for you in the
messenger of Allah an excellent pattern
for anyone who hope for anyone whose
hope is in Allah and the last day.
If Allah made an excellent pattern for
us in the prophet Muhammadat wasam to
imitate
to embrace and to adopt
without the sunnah. How can we do this?
How can we know that he spoke, he did,
he ate, he walked, he approved, he
prohibited?
We can't. So how can we simulate him?
How can we imitate him? It is
impossible.
The prophetat wasallam says, "I have
indeed been given the Quran and
something like it along with it, which
is the Sunnah." He is telling us I'm
given the Quran and the Sunnah as well
similar to it. Then he warns us soon
there will come a time when a man with a
full stomach like you guys just had
breakfast
with a full stomach sitting on his couch
inclined on his couch and he will say
keep to this Quran what you find in it
to be permissible treat it as
permissible and what you find in it to
be prohibited Treat it as prohibited.
Only stick to the Quran. The prophet
saysam, "Verily,
what Allah's messenger has prohibited is
like what Allah has prohibited himself."
The sunnah is
the only thing that you can understand
the Quran by and it's the only thing
with the Quran that is holding this
religion.
Everyone who denies the sunnah or talks
bad about it wants to dismantle and
destroy the religion.
But what is the religion?
The religion is Islam.
What is Islam? It is as defined in the
hadith of Jirel to believe in the
oneness of Allah and the prophet's
message
and to establish salat and to give zakat
and to fast Ramadan and to perform Hajj.
So can there be Islam these five pillars
without sunnah? Can there be Islam only
with the Quran?
The answer is
found in a beautiful statement. One of
the scholars of our early times said his
name is Hazim Alusi.
He says, "And we shall ask those with
this corrupt thinking,
in which Quran do you find that we have
to pray four,
three,
two?"
Okay, let's abandon the sunnah.
The pillars of Islam is to establish
salah. Let's establish salat. How many
salat? M in the Quran five okay fudger
how many raqas what do you mean by raqa
I don't know how many sag
two sagdas in each ra why 4 32 this is
the sunnah ibim says where does it say
that rur has to be like this putting
your hands on your knees sujud has to be
like this on seven limbs
where does it say that When standing up,
you have to recite the fat and a surah.
When you conclude, you have to sit for
and then end your salat with
Hassim says, "Where does it say in the
Quran
a person who fasts must avoid the
following things that nullify his
fasting?" In the Quran, eating,
drinking, intercourse. But what about
the other things?
Where does it say in the Quran?
You have to pay zakat.
Many places it says you have to pay
zakat. How much? Uh uh. What do you mean
how much? How much zakat should I pay?
Why? Because in zakat, in the sunnah, we
know that we can pay on our cash money
2.5%.
On our crops, 5% or 10%.
Depending on the form of irrigation. So,
zakat can be 2.5, 5%, 10%. What about
livestock?
What about livestock? Yeah, you're
speak. Come on. What's wrong with you?
Why are you tripping? What about
livestock? I said, good livestock. I
like uh my steak medium rare. No, not
that. What about the zakat on sheep? I
don't know. The sunnah says 40 sheep.
You zakat is one. Hm. Interesting. What
about the c the cows? Oh, 30 cows or 40
cows. Each has a different category.
What about camels? Well, if you have
five camels, you have to give one one
sheep. No, no, camels. Yeah, five
camels, you get one sheep. Where I'm
going to get the sheep from? I have only
five camels. This is what you HAVE TO
DO. STUDY your religion, your sunnah of
the prophetatam.
And then let's go for the fourth pillar
of we spoke about salat, fasting, zakat.
What about hajj? What about hajj? How do
I know when to stand in
from what time to what time and when to
go to and then when to pray combined
prayers between and shortened and
shortened of only and then how to throw
the pibbles
which they how many pibbles why would I
throw them it's not even mentioned in
the Quran
Why do they have these things? And then
we have to understand how to wear theam
in the Quran. It has nothing to do with
theam. What are the restrictions ofam? I
have no idea. Come on, go and read the
Quran.
You cannot have any Islam without the
sunnah. Then if you cascade down to what
to eat and what not to eat, the
slaughters, what animals can I
slaughter? How to slaughter it? What
about the haram meats? What about the
sacrifice in Hajj? What about the
prescribed punishments?
When to chop the hand, right hand or
left hand? When to flock, when to
execute, when to stone, when nothing.
And then we come to marriage. How to get
married? How to get divorced?
How to have custody of the children? How
to prohibit suckling
when there is suckling between the
children. The transactions the books of
ribba rulings
all of this.
Those who say that we believe in the
Quran would dismantle the books of and
throw them in the garbage. They don't
have a religion. They don't have
anything related. IBM Hassim says if a
man says we take only what we find in
the Quran,
the consensus of all Muslim scholars
that he's a
put this in your head. Anyone who says
I'm an oper Muslim, but I only take the
Quran. I don't believe in the Sunnah.
consensus of all Muslim scholars, he's a
blatant cafir because he does not
believe in the Quran. And if
you follow such an idiot idiot imbeel,
you will destroy Islam. Where in Islam
will we be able to where in the Quran
will we be able to identify five pillars
of Islam, six pillars of iman? In the
Quran, where is it found that an
adulterer, an adulteress must be stoned
until they die? Where will it find that
at the end of time the
the antichrist will come out and stay 40
days and nights on earth corrupting it.
Where will we find that the mai is
coming and Isa peace be upon him is
descending and he will kill the all of
this is not mentioned in the Quran and
so much more.
Every cult in Islam, every sect in Islam
has its portion of rejecting the sunnah
or accepting it. And this is why the
prophetat wasam warned us strongly. The
umah will be divided into 73 sects. All
of them are in hell except one. Say a
mean. May wait.
I told them they telling me how are the
people of Malaysia. They were very fine,
very polite and they laugh. Whatever I
tell them, they laugh. I said, "My mom's
dead."
See,
they're laughing. They're so polite. I
didn't even finish. Say, "Amin, may
Allahel
make me and you among the saved sect,
among the victorious sect that the
prophet sallallahu alaihi wasallam gave
the glad tidings of." But how? Only when
we abide by the Quran and the Sunnah
with our teeth. We would not compromise.
We would not accept being weak.
Allahawel says in the Quran, "But know
by your Lord, they will not truly
believe until they make you, oh
Muhammad, judge, concerning that over
which they dispute among themselves, and
then find within themselves no
discomfort from what you have judged,
and submit in full willing submission."
I do counseling sessions and I see
thousands of people a year. Among them,
I am amazed by the Muslims who come
fighting with their spouses and on the
ver on the verge of divorce. The moment
I speak to them about Quran and Sunnah,
I said you're wrong, he's right, you're
wrong, she's right, they immediately
submit and said kalas and no divorce is
done. And I've seen people who would
say, "I don't give a damn." Excuse my
French. They don't care. Allah said,
Muhammadam said, "I want this. I want
that." And you know, these people don't
have iman in their heart. So finally,
I
give this advice to myself and to you as
well. live on the Quran and the Sunnah
together. They will not separate until
the day of judgment.
Understand the Quran through the Sunnah,
through the way of the prophetatam.
And this is the only way of salvation.
No matter what you think, what you
believe, what you do, you will not be
saved until you attain the love of
Allahawel.
How can we attain the love of Allah?
Allah says in the Quran, say, "Oh
Muhammad, if you should love Allah, if
you should love Allah, then follow me."
So Allah will love you and forgive you
your sins. And Allah is forgiving and
merciful. You will not attain the love
of Allah until you follow the
prophetatam
in every aspect of life. Not in what you
love
only in what you love and what you hate.
In what's easy and what's difficult. You
do it because it's a form of worship and
you want to get closer to Allah by it. I
pray to allahel that he grants me and
you the blessing of following his sunnah
not only in how we look. Long beard th
edit this huh short th
and this is uh also for the brothers.
No, I'm talking about implementing the
sunnah in your character, in the way you
deal with people, in the cleanness of
your heart, in the ability to pardon, in
the ability of being committed to your
word. If you manage to do this, I pray
to allahel that you will be among those
whom Allah loves.
Alhamdulillah. Thank you very much
for a very important
uh topic which is related to our
foundation of this religion with with
which is sunnah is not an option. It is
not just you want to uh choose it or
leave it but it is a foundation of this
religion.
>> What I can see that you take a lot of
notes over there.
>> I try
>> please share with with the with the
crowd.
>> One of my favorite points that she
brought was a quote by Ibn Hazam sorry
Ibn Hazam Alusi who said that if a man
says we only take from the Quran by
consensus of the Muslims this person is
a blatant kafir. So we heard from sheikh
Assim how so many details we can only
know if we listen if we refer to the
sunnah. So I remember there's one
analogy Dr. Abhaf that mentioned that
imagine if a sect says that we follow
textbook A the Quran textbook A says
follow textbook B and they say oh we
don't follow textbook B. This doesn't
make sense.
>> Yes indeed.
>> Oh mah
>> then some people say that we are
sufficed with Quran. We don't need the
the sunnah the of the hadith of the
prophet sallallahu alaihi wasallam while
the Quran itself the Quran itself told
us that we need to obey and follow
because a sunnah itself explain what is
everything mentioned in the alquran so
they contradict each other they
contradict by themselves that they would
say we are following the Quran we don't
want to follow the sunnah and this is
what the topic has just shared by sheh
Aim and he elaborate it very well and I
believe that all of you can benefit a
lot of information throughout that 45 to
50 minutes of lecture
>> and one thing that caught my attention
as well Dr. of his was that um there's a
quote that she assim said every deviant
sect has a form of rejection of the
sunnah. So when he when she said that I
immediately thought hey that's true
every single one you can name it you
know whether it's sh and so on so forth
there is some form of rejection of the
sunnah. So that's one red flag that we
can look out for inshallah.
>> Alhamdulillah.