Dought & clear - A brief glimpse at the Ahl al-Hadeeth (Ahl-e-Hadeeth) movement in India

I always go to the mosque now, and it is a mosque of Ahl al-Hadeeth.
The people in my area say that they are more Ahl al-Hadeeththan
Muslims, and the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)
said that the groupof his ummah who will enter Paradise is the group
that follows the Qur'an and Sunnah. I would like to know more about
them.
Praise be to Allah.
There follows a brief glimpse at Jamaa'at Ahl al-Hadeeth in India, so
that you may become more keen to stay close to them. It says
inal-Mawsoo'ah al-Muyassarah li'l-Adyaan wa'l-Madhaahib wa'l-Ahzaab
al-Mu'aasirah:
Jamaa'at Ahl al-Hadeeth is the oldest Islamic movement in the Indian
subcontinent. Itis based on calling people to follow the Qur'an and
Sunnah, and to understand them in the light of the understanding of
the righteous early generations, namely the Sahaabah and Taabi'een,
and those who followed them in righteousness. They give precedence to
them (the Qur'an and Sunnah) over any other opinion or practice,
whether that has to do with beliefs, acts of worship, interactions
with others, morals and manners, or politics and social issues, in
accordance with the way of the scholars who combined the knowledge of
fiqh andhadeeth. They are alsoopposed to practices and beliefs of
shirk and innovation, and myths of all kinds. End quote.
Then they said – discussing the ideas and beliefs of Jamaa'atAhl al-Hadeeth:
The belief of Ahl al-Hadeeth is the same as the belief of the
righteous early generations, based on the Qur'an and Sunnah. The
academic and methodological principles of Jamaa'at Ahl al-Hadeeth are
based on:
1.
Tawheed (affirmation of the Oneness of Allah). Ahl al-Hadeeth believe
that Tawheed is the foundation of Islam. They give precedence in their
da'wah efforts to spreading the message of pure Tawheed and instilling
it in people'shearts, whilst explaining the three types of Tawheed,
especially Tawheed al-Uloohiyyah (Oneness of divinity), concerning
which many people make mistakes. They also believe in Tawheed
ar-Ruboobiyyah (oneness of the divine Lordship) and what it implies,
that sharee'ah should rule the lives of the Muslims. They are not
content only to affirm and implement the Islamic political system;
rather they believe that the rules and regulations ordained by Allah,
may He be glorified and exalted, should shape the individual's
attitude, conduct and all his worldly affairs, including legislation
and promulgation of laws.
2.
Following the Sunnah.Ahl al-Hadeeth focus on following that which is
narrated in saheeh reports from the Prophet (blessingsand peace of
Allah be upon him) in the light of the understanding of the righteous
early generations. Hence they do not believe in rigid imitation that
calls for adhering to a particular fiqhi madhhab without asking about
the evidence. Rather they call for opening the gate of ijtihaad to
everyone who fulfils the conditions of ijtihaad, and they call for
respect to the mujtahid scholars who follow in the footsteps of the
Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) in
particular.
3.
They give precedence to reports over reason, as they give precedence
to sharee'ah, then they subject reasoning to it, because they believe
that sound reasoning is in harmony with the saheeh Islamic texts,
hence it is not valid to oppose sharee'ah on the basis of reasoning or
to give reasoning precedence over it.
4.
Tazkiyyah shar'iyyah, i.e., purification of the soul in the manner
prescribed in Islam, using all the means mentioned in the Qur'an and
Sunnah. They object to innovated means of purification, whether they
are advocated by the Sufis or others.
5.
Warning against innovation, because they think that innovation is in
fact trying to make up what Allah omitted and introducing practices on
the basis of one's opinion and reason. Hence they advocate adhering to
the Sunnah and avoiding all types of innovation.
6.
Warning against weakand fabricated hadeeths, because these kinds of
hadeethpose a great danger tothe ummah; hence it is essential to
examine the hadeethsthat are attributed to the Prophet (blessingsand
peace of Allah be upon him), especially with regard to matters of
belief and rulings. End quote.
See:al-Mawsoo'ah al-Muyassarah li'l-Adyaan wa'l-madhaahib wa'l-Ahzaab
al-Mu'aasirah, p. 173-185
And Allah knows best.