Excerpt from the book “Aḥkām wa Masāʾil fī Ḍawʾ al-Kitāb wa al-Sunnah” by Shaykh Mubashir Ahmad Rabbānī
Shaykh Muḥammad bin ʿAbd al-Wahhāb, in Kitāb al-Tawḥīd (Chapter 38: Obeying Scholars and Rulers in Making Halāl What Allah Made Harām and Making Harām What Allah Made Halāl is to Take Them as Lords Besides Allah), quoted a statement attributed to ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAbbās رضي الله عنهما wherein he said:
“Stones from the sky are about to fall upon you! I narrate to you the statement of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and you respond with the statement of Abū Bakr and ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما?”
Is this narration authentic? If so, please provide its reference.
Shaykh Muḥammad bin ʿAbd al-Wahhāb رحمه الله, in the above-mentioned chapter, clarifies that obedience is one of the types of worship—rather, it is the essence of worship. Allah has equated obedience to His Messenger ﷺ with obedience to Himself, as the Messenger only conveys what Allah has commanded.
Thus, obedience to anyone in opposition to Allah’s command is not allowed. The context here is specific: it concerns obeying others in making lawful what Allah has declared unlawful, or vice versa. Whoever follows another in defiance of Allah’s law in these matters is guilty of shirk (associating partners with Allah).
This is precisely what the Jews and Christians did when they took their scholars and monks as lords besides Allah, as mentioned in the Noble Qur’an:
﴿اتَّخَذُوا أَحْبَارَهُمْ وَرُهْبَانَهُمْ أَرْبَابًا مِّن دُونِ اللَّهِ وَالْمَسِيحَ ابْنَ مَرْيَمَ﴾
“They took their rabbis and monks as lords besides Allah, and [also] the Messiah, son of Mary. Yet they were commanded to worship only one God. There is no deity except Him. Exalted is He above whatever they associate with Him.”
[Sūrat al-Tawbah: 31]
This verse refers to how the Jews and Christians gave their scholars and monks the authority to make ḥalāl (permissible) what Allah had made ḥarām (prohibited), and vice versa—and this was considered worship of them.
The ḥadīth of ʿAdī ibn Ḥātim رضي الله عنه confirms this interpretation. When he said to the Prophet ﷺ, “We did not worship them,” the Prophet ﷺ replied:
“Did they not make unlawful what Allah made lawful, and you followed them? And did they not make lawful what Allah made unlawful, and you followed them?”
The Prophet ﷺ clarified that this following of their rulings in contradiction to divine law was a form of worship.
Detailed commentary on this verse can be found in the exegesis of al-Ṭabarī, Ibn Kathīr, and other major Qur'anic scholars.
In this context, Imām Muḥammad bin ʿAbd al-Wahhāb quotes an athar (statement of a Companion) from ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAbbās رضي الله عنهما. The background of the narration is as follows:
Sayyidunā ʿUmar رضي الله عنه had once prohibited the practice of Tamattuʿ during Ḥajj. However, ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAbbās رضي الله عنهما stated:
“The Prophet ﷺ performed Tamattuʿ.”
Upon this, ʿUrwah ibn al-Zubayr said:
“But Abū Bakr and ʿUmar forbade it.”
Hearing this, Ibn ʿAbbās رضي الله عنهما responded:
“What is this 'ʿUrayyah' (diminutive of ʿUrwah) saying?”
They told him: “He says Abū Bakr and ʿUmar forbade Tamattuʿ.”
So Ibn ʿAbbās replied:
“I see they will soon be destroyed! I say: The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, and he says: Abū Bakr and ʿUmar forbade it?”
This narration has been transmitted in several authentic ḥadīth and knowledge collections:
These various chains and narrations elevate the report to at least the level of ḥasan (reliable).
However, the exact wording mentioned in the question—
“Stones from the sky are about to fall upon you...”
—has not been found verbatim in the known primary sources, but it reflects the spirit and meaning of the authentic narration from Ibn ʿAbbās رضي الله عنهما.
Shaykh Ibn Bāz رحمه الله states:
“This narration proves that it is not permissible to oppose the command of Allah and His Messenger ﷺ by citing the statements of Abū Bakr and ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما.”
If this is the case with the most superior men after the Prophets, then obedience to anyone else in contradiction to divine legislation is even more unacceptable.
For further details, refer to:
✔ The narration from Ibn ʿAbbās رضي الله عنهما is authentic (ḥasan) and well-established.
✔ It demonstrates that the words of any individual—no matter how great—cannot override the command of the Messenger ﷺ.
✔ Obedience in matters of declaring ḥarām as ḥalāl or vice versa constitutes a form of taking others as lords besides Allah, which is an act of shirk if done knowingly and deliberately.
❖ Question:
Shaykh Muḥammad bin ʿAbd al-Wahhāb, in Kitāb al-Tawḥīd (Chapter 38: Obeying Scholars and Rulers in Making Halāl What Allah Made Harām and Making Harām What Allah Made Halāl is to Take Them as Lords Besides Allah), quoted a statement attributed to ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAbbās رضي الله عنهما wherein he said:
“Stones from the sky are about to fall upon you! I narrate to you the statement of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and you respond with the statement of Abū Bakr and ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما?”
Is this narration authentic? If so, please provide its reference.
✿ Answer:
Shaykh Muḥammad bin ʿAbd al-Wahhāb رحمه الله, in the above-mentioned chapter, clarifies that obedience is one of the types of worship—rather, it is the essence of worship. Allah has equated obedience to His Messenger ﷺ with obedience to Himself, as the Messenger only conveys what Allah has commanded.
Thus, obedience to anyone in opposition to Allah’s command is not allowed. The context here is specific: it concerns obeying others in making lawful what Allah has declared unlawful, or vice versa. Whoever follows another in defiance of Allah’s law in these matters is guilty of shirk (associating partners with Allah).
This is precisely what the Jews and Christians did when they took their scholars and monks as lords besides Allah, as mentioned in the Noble Qur’an:
◈ Quranic Evidence
﴿اتَّخَذُوا أَحْبَارَهُمْ وَرُهْبَانَهُمْ أَرْبَابًا مِّن دُونِ اللَّهِ وَالْمَسِيحَ ابْنَ مَرْيَمَ﴾
“They took their rabbis and monks as lords besides Allah, and [also] the Messiah, son of Mary. Yet they were commanded to worship only one God. There is no deity except Him. Exalted is He above whatever they associate with Him.”
[Sūrat al-Tawbah: 31]This verse refers to how the Jews and Christians gave their scholars and monks the authority to make ḥalāl (permissible) what Allah had made ḥarām (prohibited), and vice versa—and this was considered worship of them.
The ḥadīth of ʿAdī ibn Ḥātim رضي الله عنه confirms this interpretation. When he said to the Prophet ﷺ, “We did not worship them,” the Prophet ﷺ replied:
“Did they not make unlawful what Allah made lawful, and you followed them? And did they not make lawful what Allah made unlawful, and you followed them?”
The Prophet ﷺ clarified that this following of their rulings in contradiction to divine law was a form of worship.
Detailed commentary on this verse can be found in the exegesis of al-Ṭabarī, Ibn Kathīr, and other major Qur'anic scholars.
◈ The Narration from Ibn ʿAbbās رضي الله عنهما
In this context, Imām Muḥammad bin ʿAbd al-Wahhāb quotes an athar (statement of a Companion) from ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAbbās رضي الله عنهما. The background of the narration is as follows:
Sayyidunā ʿUmar رضي الله عنه had once prohibited the practice of Tamattuʿ during Ḥajj. However, ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAbbās رضي الله عنهما stated:
“The Prophet ﷺ performed Tamattuʿ.”
Upon this, ʿUrwah ibn al-Zubayr said:
“But Abū Bakr and ʿUmar forbade it.”
Hearing this, Ibn ʿAbbās رضي الله عنهما responded:
“What is this 'ʿUrayyah' (diminutive of ʿUrwah) saying?”
They told him: “He says Abū Bakr and ʿUmar forbade Tamattuʿ.”
So Ibn ʿAbbās replied:
“I see they will soon be destroyed! I say: The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, and he says: Abū Bakr and ʿUmar forbade it?”
◈ References for This Athar:
This narration has been transmitted in several authentic ḥadīth and knowledge collections:
- Musnad Aḥmad (1/252, ḥadīth no. 2277)
- al-Faqīh wal-Mutafaqqih (1/145)
- Jāmiʿ Bayān al-ʿIlm wa Faḍlihi (ḥadīth no. 1248)
- al-Aḥādīth al-Mukhtārah by Ḍiyā’ al-Maqdisī (10/331, ḥadīth no. 307)
These various chains and narrations elevate the report to at least the level of ḥasan (reliable).
However, the exact wording mentioned in the question—
“Stones from the sky are about to fall upon you...”
—has not been found verbatim in the known primary sources, but it reflects the spirit and meaning of the authentic narration from Ibn ʿAbbās رضي الله عنهما.
◈ Commentary of Shaykh Ibn Bāz رحمه الله:
Shaykh Ibn Bāz رحمه الله states:
“This narration proves that it is not permissible to oppose the command of Allah and His Messenger ﷺ by citing the statements of Abū Bakr and ʿUmar رضي الله عنهما.”
If this is the case with the most superior men after the Prophets, then obedience to anyone else in contradiction to divine legislation is even more unacceptable.
For further details, refer to:
- Maʿnā al-Murīd (6/2375)
- al-Taʿlīq al-Mufīd, p. 195
Conclusion:
✔ The narration from Ibn ʿAbbās رضي الله عنهما is authentic (ḥasan) and well-established.
✔ It demonstrates that the words of any individual—no matter how great—cannot override the command of the Messenger ﷺ.
✔ Obedience in matters of declaring ḥarām as ḥalāl or vice versa constitutes a form of taking others as lords besides Allah, which is an act of shirk if done knowingly and deliberately.
