The Consequences of Extremism in the Light of the Teachings of the Prophet ﷺ
Source: Fatāwā Amunpuri by Shaykh Ghulam Mustafa Zaheer Amunpuri
❖ Question:
What is said about extremism (ghuluw)?
❖ Answer:
Islam is a religion of balance. It has neither excess nor deficiency. Extremism (ghuluw) and negligence (taqsīr) are two extremes, while Islam is between them. Ahl al-Sunnah wal-Jamā‘ah remain upon moderation in their beliefs and practices. Extremism and negligence generate germs of deviation; the more a person indulges in them, the further he departs from the fold of Islam.
Extremism exists both in beliefs and actions. In beliefs, it leads to shirk and kufr. In actions, it gives rise to innovations and superstitions. Just as shirk, kufr, innovations, and false practices have degrees, extremism and negligence also have levels — all of which are destructive.
To exceed the limits prescribed by Sharī‘ah is ghuluw.
Statements of Scholars
❀ Imām Abū Bakr al-Jaṣṣāṣ al-Ḥanafī (d. 370 AH):الغلو فى الدين هو مجاوزة حد الحق فيه
“Extremism in religion means exceeding the correct and true limits.”
(Aḥkām al-Qur’ān: 2/366)
❀ Imām Qatādah ibn Di‘āmah (d. 118 AH):
إياكم والتكلف والتنطع والغلو
“Beware of affectation, unnecessary depth, and extremism.”
(Ḥilyat al-Awliyā’: 2/336, chain authentic)
❀ Imām Muḥammad ibn Naṣr al-Marwazī (d. 294 AH):
Most of the innovators and followers of desires are between two matters: either they go to extremes in the religion of Allah and exceed the limits until they leave Islam, or they fall short and deny until they fall below the limits set by Allah. The religion of Allah is placed above negligence and below extremism.
(Ta‘ẓīm Qadr al-Ṣalāh: 2/642)
❀ Imām Abū Nu‘aym al-Aṣbahānī (d. 430 AH):
الحسنة بين السيئتين يعني بترك الغلو والتقصير
“Goodness lies between two evils — by abandoning extremism and negligence.”
(Ḥilyat al-Awliyā’: 2/209)
❀ Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah (d. 728 AH):
دين الله بين الغالي فيه والجافي عنه، وخيار الأمور أوسطها
“The religion of Allah is between the extremist and the negligent. The best of matters are those that are moderate.”
(al-Fatāwā al-Kubrā: 6/663)
❀ ‘Allāmah Ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawziyyah (d. 751 AH):
Allah’s religion lies between extremism and negligence. The best people are the middle group — those who rise above negligence yet do not fall into excess. Allah has made this Ummah a middle nation, just, balanced, and between the two condemned extremes. Justice is the middle between injustice and negligence.
(Ighāthat al-Lahfān: 1/182)
Prohibition of Extremism
Extremism is forbidden and destructive. It was the cause of the ruin of previous nations. The Prophet ﷺ forbade it, labeling it as the practice of Jews and Christians. They exaggerated in honoring their Prophets until they elevated them with divine attributes.
The Christians declared ‘Īsā (AS) to be the son of Allah, and the Jews declared ‘Uzayr (AS) to be the son of Allah — all due to extremism. Similarly, exaggeration in the status of the Prophet ﷺ, of ‘Alī (RA), Ahl al-Bayt, or any righteous person falls under extremism. Islam’s path is moderation.
Qur’anic Evidence
يَا أَهْلَ الْكِتَابِ لَا تَغْلُوا فِي دِينِكُمْ وَلَا تَقُولُوا عَلَى اللَّهِ إِلَّا الْحَقَّ
(al-Nisā’: 171)
“O People of the Book! Do not exaggerate in your religion, and do not say about Allah except the truth.”
قُلْ يَا أَهْلَ الْكِتَابِ لَا تَغْلُوا فِي دِينِكُمْ غَيْرَ الْحَقِّ وَلَا تَتَّبِعُوا أَهْوَاءَ قَوْمٍ قَدْ ضَلُّوا...
(al-Mā’idah: 77)
“Say: O People of the Book! Do not exaggerate in your religion beyond the truth, and do not follow the desires of those who went astray...”
Prophetic Warnings
❀ ‘Abdullāh ibn Mas‘ūd (RA):
The Prophet ﷺ said three times:
هلك المتنطعون
“Those who exaggerate are destroyed.”
(Muslim: 2670)
❀ ‘Abdullāh ibn ‘Abbās (RA):
The Prophet ﷺ said:
إياكم والغلو فى الدين فإنما هلك من كان قبلكم بالغلو في الدين
“Beware of extremism in religion, for those before you were destroyed only because of extremism.”
(Musnad Aḥmad: 1/215; Nasā’ī: 3059; Ibn Mājah: 3029 — authentic)
Explanation of Scholars
- Ḥāfiẓ al-Khaṭṭābī (d. 388 AH): The extremist is one who delves into unnecessary, complicated matters, like the theologians who engage in what does not concern them.
(Ma‘ālim al-Sunan: 4/277) - Imām al-Qurṭubī (d. 656 AH): The extremists are those who go beyond proper interpretation without evidence, such as the Bāṭiniyyah and extreme Shī‘ah. Their destruction lies in deviation in this world and punishment in the Hereafter.
(al-Mufhim: 6/700) - Ibn Taymiyyah (d. 728 AH): Extremism applies to all forms — in beliefs and actions. It means crossing limits in praise or blame. The Christians were most excessive in this.
(Iqtiḍā’ al-Ṣirāṭ al-Mustaqīm: 1/238)
He also clarified that exaggeration in saints like ‘Alī (RA), Ḥallāj, or others — attributing divine powers to them, calling upon them instead of Allah, or acts of worship directed to them — is shirk and misguidance.
(Majmū‘ al-Fatāwā: 3/395)
- Ḥāfiẓ al-Dhahabī (d. 748 AH): Exaggeration and overpraise are prohibited, while respect and reverence are obligatory. He warned that overpraising the Prophet ﷺ could lead to disrespect of Allah, just as Christians fell into regarding ‘Īsā (AS) as divine.
(Mīzān al-I‘tidāl: 2/650) - Ibn al-Qayyim (d. 751 AH): Those who exaggerate believe that the more they exaggerate, the closer they become to the Prophet ﷺ, but in reality, they oppose his Sunnah the most. They resemble the Christians in their excess regarding ‘Īsā (AS).
(al-Manār al-Munīf, p. 84)
Conclusion:Extremism (ghuluw) is forbidden and destructive. It caused the downfall of past nations, leading them into shirk, kufr, and innovations. Islam’s path is one of moderation — between negligence and excess.
