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And you should be amazed at a people who recognize the words of Allaah's Messenger (), "Beware of the newly-invented matters, for every such matter is a bid'ah and every bid'ah leads astray, and everything that leads astray is in the Fire,"¹ and they know that his words, "... every bid'ah ..." are complete, comprehensive and universal, being encompassed by the strongest grammatical particle used to make a noun universal and all-encompassing, i.e., kullu (which means everything), and (the know that) the one who used this word, may Allaah's salawaat and salaam be upon him, knew what this word indicated and he was the most eloquent of all (in the Arabic language) and he was the sincerest of the creation towards the creation.  Hence he would not use a word unless its meaning was that which he intended.  Hence (they know that) when the Prophet () said, "... every Bid'ah leads astray ..." he knew what he was saying and he knew its meaning and this saying of his emanated as a result of complete sincerity and concern for the Ummah.

(They know that) when these three characteristics were all present in his words, i.e., complete sincerity and good wishes, complete clarity and eloquence and complete knowledge and understanding - then it is clear that what he said was what he wanted to say in order to convey his desired meaning.  So (you should be amazed, that such a people, after recognizing all this) think that bid'ah can be of three or five categories?  Can this be correct?  Never!  And what some scholars do claim is that there exists the good innovation.  But if this is so, then they can only be referring to two cases:

1. that it is not an innovation but they do consider it to be one, or

2. it is an innovation, and hence it is something evil, but they do not know of its evil

(And these are the only two possibilities, bearing in mind that the Prophet () said, "... every bid'ah leads astray ...")

The Sharp Sword Against the People of Innovation

So for everything that is used to claim that here exists a good bid'ah, then the answer for it is all the above.  Thus there can be no room for the People of Innovation to claim that their innovations are good while we have in our hand the sharp sword that Allaah's Messenger () gave us - i.e., his saying that "... every innovation leads astray." Indeed, his sharp sword was forged in the steel-works of Prophethood and Messengership.  It was not forged in some second rate iron-mill, rather in the steelworks of the Prophet () and he () forged it so eloquently, that anyone who has the likes of this sharp sword in his hand would never be dumb-founded by someone claiming that bid'ah is good, for the Messenger of Allaah () said that, "... every bid'ah leads astray."

¹ Reported by Aboo Daawood, Tirmidhee and others, no . 2549 in Saheehul-Jaami' without, "... every thing that leads astray is in the Fire ...", and hadeeth no. 28 in an-Nawawee's Forty Hadeeth.