The Hadith
Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) reported that the Messenger of Allah said:
“Whoever introduces into this matter of ours that which is not from it, it is rejected.”
In another narration:
“Whoever performs an action that is not in accordance with our affair, it is rejected.”
Reference
Reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim. The second narration is Muslim’s wording.
Explanation (From Shaykh Salih al-Fawzan)
In this hadith the Prophet laid down an important principle regarding the religion of Islam: every act that is introduced into the religion without evidence from the Qur’an or the Sunnah is rejected.
The statement:
“Whoever introduces into this matter of ours”
refers to the religion of Islam. It means introducing something into the religion that Allah did not legislate.
The phrase:
“that which is not from it”
means something that has no basis in the Qur’an or the Sunnah. If an action has no evidence from the revealed sources, then it is not part of the religion.
The statement:
“it is rejected”
means that such an action is invalid and not accepted by Allah, even if the person who performs it believes it to be a good deed.
This hadith shows that acts of worship must be based upon evidence. A person cannot invent forms of worship or introduce practices into the religion according to his own opinion or desire.
The second narration of the hadith states:
“Whoever performs an action that is not in accordance with our affair, it is rejected.”
This wording is more general. It includes both the one who introduces an innovation and the one who acts upon an innovation introduced by someone else.
Therefore, any act of worship that is not supported by the guidance of the Prophet is rejected and not accepted.
This hadith shows that the religion of Islam is complete and that nothing can be added to it after the message of the Prophet.
It also shows the obligation of following the Sunnah and avoiding innovations in matters of religion.
References
The Explanation of Imam an-Nawawi’s 40 Hadith: Shaykh Salih al-Fawzan. Dar Makkah International.
Verified on 2026-10-21 against: The Explanation of Imam an-Nawawi’s 40 Hadith (Shaykh Salih al-Fawzan), Hadith:.