The Sunnah explains the Quran

The Sunnah holds a great position in Islam, as it is the practical application of what is in the Quran. It supports its verses, clarifies its mysteries, elucidates its meanings, explains its words, and expounds its implications. It also brings forth rulings that are not mentioned in the Quran, without contradicting its principles and objectives. Therefore, it cannot be dispensed with in any way, due to its great importance in understanding and practicing the religion of Allah

The scholars have explained the aspects of Sunnah in relation to the Quran, and they are of three types:

The first type is that it comes confirmed by verses from the Quran, and an example of this is the Hadiths of the obligation of prayer, charity, fasting, and pilgrimage, such as the saying of the Prophet in the Hadith of Ibn Umar, may Allah be pleased with him: "Islam is built on five pillars: testifying that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, establishing prayer, giving charity, performing pilgrimage, and fasting Ramadan," narrated by Bukhari. This Hadith confirms the saying of Allah regarding prayer and charity: "And establish prayer and give zakah" (Quran 2:83), and regarding fasting: "O you who have believed, decreed upon you is fasting as it was decreed upon those before you that you may become righteous" (Quran 2:183), and regarding pilgrimage: "And to Allah belongs the obligation to the people for the pilgrimage to the House - for whoever is able to find thereto a way. But whoever disbelieves - then indeed, Allah is free from need of the worlds" (Quran 3:97)

Type two: To come clear to the Book of Allah, He, may He be glorified, said: "And We have sent down to you the Reminder so that you may make clear to the people what has been sent down to them, and perhaps they will give thought" (An-Nahl 44). The explanation of the Sunnah to the Qur'an is manifested in several aspects, including:

1- General explanation: Many of the practical rulings of the Qur'an came in general terms, so the Sunnah clarified them as a whole. For example, Allah commanded the performance of prayer without specifying its times, pillars, units, and so on. The Sunnah clarified all of that through the actions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his teaching to his companions. Similarly, the Sunnah clarified the payment of Zakat, its amounts, timings, recipients, and what is eligible or ineligible for it. The Sunnah also detailed the rituals of Hajj without specifying them in the Qur'an. It also clarified the rulings of fasting, purification, sacrificial animals, hunting, marriage, trade transactions, criminal punishments, and other matters that are mentioned generally in the Qur'an.

2- Specific explication of the general: The Qur'an contains general rulings, and the Sunnah specified them. For example, Allah says: "Allah instructs you concerning your children: for the male, what is equal to the share of two females" (An-Nisa 11). This verse is general in its application, and the Prophet (peace be upon him) provided the specification that it applies to everyone except the prophets, saying: "We (prophets) do not leave inheritance, whatever we leave is Sadaqah" (reported by Al-Bukhari).

3- Limiting the absolute: The Qur'an contains some absolute verses, and the Sunnah limited them. For example, Allah says: "After any bequests he [may have] made or debt" (An-Nisa 11). This verse instructs to pay off the bequest from the deceased's property without specifying its amount, so the Sunnah specified it to be one-third

4- Clarifying the ambiguous: Some verses puzzled the companions, and the Prophet (peace be upon him) explained what was unclear to them. This is exemplified by the incident when the companions were puzzled by the verse: "Those who believe and do not mix their belief with injustice" (Al-An'am 82). They asked, "Who among us does not mix his belief with injustice?" The Prophet (peace be upon him) clarified that the injustice referred to in the verse is the greatest form of injustice, which is associating partners with Allah

These two types, the confirmed Sunnah and the clear Sunnah, in which no one from the people of knowledge has disagreed.

The third type is when the Sunnah comes with rulings that are additional to what is in the Quran, requiring an action that the Quran is silent about, or prohibiting something that the Quran is silent about prohibiting. Examples of this type include the hadiths that prohibit marrying a woman and her paternal aunt, marrying a woman and her maternal aunt, the prohibition of domestic donkeys, all carnivorous beasts with fangs, and so on. Although this type is additional to what is in the Quran, it is legislation from the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, and it is obligatory to obey it and it is not permissible to disobey it in obedience to what Allah has commanded of obeying His Messenger, as Allah, the Exalted, says in the Quran: "Whoever obeys the Messenger has obeyed Allah..." (Surah An-Nisa, 80). In this way, we understand the status and position of the Sunnah in the Sharia, and it is impossible to do without it in any way. It is also impossible to understand the Quran without the Sunnah, and any call to separate one from the other is a call to misguidance and deviation. In reality, it is a call to destroy the religion and undermine its pillars, and ultimately eliminate it from its foundation