The Sunnah is the tradition of the Abrahamic religion which the Prophet ﷺ established as a religion after its renewal and reform, with some additions. In the Quran, you are commanded to follow the Abrahamic community. Allah Almighty says:
(ثُمَّ أَوْحَيْنَا إِلَيْكَ أَنِ اتَّبِعْ مِلَّةَ إِبْرَاهِيمَ حَنِيفًا ۖ وَمَا كَانَ مِنَ الْمُشْرِكِينَ)
Reference: (Surah An-Nahl:123)
Translation: Then We revealed to you to follow the religion of Abraham, the upright one who was not of the polytheists. And this Abrahamic Sunnah consists of only twenty-six Sunnahs!
Allah Almighty said:
(ثُمَّ أَوْحَيْنَا إِلَيْكَ أَنِ اتَّبِعْ مِلَّةَ إِبْرَاهِيمَ حَنِيفًا ۖ وَمَا كَانَ مِنَ الْمُشْرِكِينَ)
Reference: (Surah An-Nahl:123)
Translation: Then We revealed to you to follow the religion of Abraham, the upright one who was not of the polytheists.
As far as reasoning from this verse of the Quran is concerned, it is not correct because the word Sunnah is also applied to the details of religion, but the word Millah is not applied to the details. For example, it can be said that folding hands in prayer is Sunnah, but it cannot be said that folding hands in prayer is Millah! Thus, it is established that the Millah mentioned in the verse does not mean Sunnah but the Millah of Ibrahim refers to the overall form (quality) of the religion of Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him), which are the fundamental teachings of Islam, especially avoidance of all kinds of polytheism, disassociation from polytheists, obedience and submission to Allah Almighty, etc., which were the prominent characteristics of Imam al-Hanifah, the father of the prophets, Khalil al-Rahman (peace be upon him).
① First point
First of all, the definition of Sunnah that has been given in doubt should be established from the companions of the Prophet (may Allah be pleased with them all) and the consensus of the Ummah.
② Second point
The term does not belong to an individual but to a group. It can rarely be attributed to an individual, but its terminology cannot be considered definitive. For example, if someone says that the Book of Allah, meaning the Holy Quran, refers to the Holy Scripture, would this terminology be accepted? Similarly, when we mention Sunnah, the image of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ comes to our minds, not that of Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him).
③ Third Point
Scholarly integrity demands that the word "Sunnah" should not be used for the aforementioned definition of Sunnah; rather, it should be called "Ibrahimi Sunnah" because that is the true Sunnah!
④ Fourth Point
According to the aforementioned definition of Sunnah, the twenty-six Sunnahs attributed to Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) should be proven by the consensus of the Companions and practical mutawatir (continuous) transmission, because for these claimants, Sunnah is not established by report or hadith.
⑤ Fifth Point
The Sunnahs that were attributed to Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) should have been attributed to Prophet Adam (peace be upon him) because attributing matters like marriage and divorce, prayer, zakat, fasting, Hajj, menstruation and postpartum bleeding in relation to husband and wife to Prophet Ibrahim affects the previous prophets. This is because it implies, God forbid, that before Prophet Ibrahim there was no concept of marriage and divorce in the relationship between husband and wife!
⑥ Sixth Point
The Companions (may Allah be pleased with them all) gave great importance to Hadith as a practical manifestation of their belief that it was an essential part of the religion, and without it the concept of religion would remain incomplete. Dozens of real exemplary examples of this manifestation can be presented from their lives.
⑦ Seventh Point
In Muslim terminology, change actually means denial.
