Hadith 178
أَخْبَرَنَا أَخْبَرَنَا عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ سَعِيدٍ، أَخْبَرَنَا أَبُو أُسَامَةَ، عَنْ هِشَامِ بْنِ حَسَّانَ، عَنْ مُحَمَّدٍ، عَنْ أَبِي عُبَيْدَةَ بْنِ حُذَيْفَةَ، قَالَ: قَالَ حُذَيْفَةُ رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ: "إِنَّمَا يُفْتِي النَّاسَ أَحَدُ ثَلَاثَةٍ: رَجُلٌ عَلِمَ نَاسِخَ الْقُرْآنِ مِنْ مَنْسُوخِهِ"، قَالُوا: وَمَنْ ذَاكَ ؟، قَالَ: "عُمَرُ بْنُ الْخَطَّابِ، قَالَ: وَأَمِيرٌ لَا يَجِدُ بُدًّا، أَوْ أَحْمَقُ مُتَكَلِّفٌ"، ثُمَّ قَالَ مُحَمَّدٌ: فَلَسْتُ بِوَاحِدٍ مِنْ هَذَيْنِ، وَأَرْجُو أَنْ لَا أَكُونَ الثَّالِثَ.
Sayyiduna Hudhayfah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: One of three can give a fatwa. The one who has knowledge of the abrogating and abrogated. The people asked: Who is such a person? He replied: Sayyiduna Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him), or such a leader who has no choice but to give a fatwa, or a foolish person who takes it upon himself. Then Muhammad ibn Sirin (may Allah have mercy on him) said: I am not among those two (i.e., the ruler or governor), and I hope not to become the third (the foolish self-imposer) either.
