Ali Ibn Abi Talib - Volume 1 of 2

'Ali ibn Abi Trilib 391
will stop me for fear of me."z79 'Utbmin said something with the
same meaning: "If you find in the Book of Allah (B) that you should
put my leg in chains, then put my leg in chains."z80 This is how the
caliphs acted in the era of the Rightly Guided Caliphs. They
submitted to the right of the Ummah to watch over the rulers, and no
one objected, which indicates that there was agreement on this.28'
The consensus of the Companions - as rulers and subjects -
at the time of the Rightly Guided Caliphs can only mean one thing,
which is a sound understanding of the Qur'an and the proper way of
acting upon the Snnnah. They were there at the time when the Book
was being revealed, and they witnessed the way that the Prophet (a)
told the people to live in accordance with the Qur'an. They are the
ones who best understood the spirit of this religion, were most
knowledgeable about the aims of Sharia and were most able to
distinguish between truth and falsehood. It is most unlikely - rather
it is impossible -that they would agree on falsehood, because the
Prophet (g) -, said: "My Ummah will never unite on misguidance."282
Hence their consensus is regarded as evidence to which attention
must be paid and that should be included in the sources of the Islamic
constitution. The consensus of the Ummah may be on the
understanding of a text, or they may agree on an analogy, and that
becomes evidence.283
During his caliphate, Amir al-Mu'mineen 'Ali encouraged the
people to enjoin what is good and forbid what is evil. One day he
gave a speech in which he praised and glorified Allah, then he said:
"0 people, what destroyed those before you was that they committed
sins, and the devoted scholars and rabbis did not stop them, thus they
were seized by punishment. So enjoin what is good and forbid what
is evil before there befalls you the like of what befell them, and
remember that enjoining what is good and forbidding what is evil
does not stop provision and does not bring one closer to death."284