Sunnah - Alternative Views On Sunnah

Alternative Views On Sunnah

According to the view of some Sufi Muslims who incorporate both the outer and inner reality of Prophet Muhammad, hold the view that the deeper and true Sunnah are the noble characteristics and inner state of Prophet Muhammad. To them the Prophet's attitude, his piety, the quality of his character constitute the truer and deeper aspect of what it means by Sunnah in Islam, rather than the external aspects alone. They argue that the external customs of the Prophet loses its meaning without the inner attitude and also many Sunnah are simply custom of the Arabs, not something that is unique to Prophet. and Khuluqin Azim or 'Exalted Character' in the Quran, real Sunnah cannot be upheld.

According to some scholars, Sunnah predates both the Quran as well as Muhammad, and is actually the tradition of the Prophets of God, specifically the tradition of Abraham. A broad form of Sunnah was already being practised by the Christians, Jews and the Arab descendants of Ismail, when Muhammad reinstituted this practice as an integral part of Islam. Sunnah and Quran both are equally authentic and the former includes worship rituals like Salah, Zakah, Hajj, fasting in Ramadan as well as customs like circumcision