Nabi ﷺ menerima wahyu dari Allah (SWT) dan menyampaikannya kepada seluruh manusia. Kaum Muslimin yang dahulu tinggal dekat dengan beliau ﷺ adalah para Sahabat (RA). Ketika Nabi ﷺ hijrah ke Madinah, mereka pun ikut bersama beliau ﷺ. Kaum Muslimin dari Makkah disebut Muhajirin, dan kaum Muslimin dari Madinah disebut Anshar. Beliau ﷺ menerima Risalah dari Allah (SWT) dan diperintahkan untuk menyampaikannya. Allah (SWT) berfirman dalam Al-Qur'an:

The Prophet (saw) received the revelation from Allah (swt) and delivered it to all the people. The Muslims who used to live close to him (saw) were the Sahabah (ra). When the Prophet (saw) migrated to Madinah they went along with him. The Muslims of Makkah were the Muhajireen and the Muslims of Madinah were the Ansar. He (saw) received the Message from Allah (swt) and was ordered to convey it. Allah (swt) says in the Qur‟an:

"Wahai Rasul, sampaikanlah apa yang telah diturunkan kepadamu dari Rabbmu, dan jika kamu tidak melakukannya, berarti kamu tidak menyampaikan risalah-Nya...." (TMQ Al-Ma‟ida: 67)

“O Messenger, deliver the Message that was sent down to you from your Rabb, and if you did not do it, you did not convey His Message....” (TMQ Al-Ma‟ida: 67)

"Dan Kami turunkan kepadamu Az-Zikr (Al-Qur'an), agar engkau menerangkan kepada manusia apa yang telah diturunkan kepada mereka" (QS. An-Nahl: 44)

“And we sent down to you the Zikr (the Qur‟an), so that you would explain to mankind, that which was sent down to them” (TMQ An-Nahl: 44)

Dengan memperhatikan ayat-ayat ini, ada beberapa poin yang perlu disebutkan:

With these Ayahs in mind, there are certain points that need to be mentioned:

1. Tidak seorang pun akan memberikan fatwa di hadapan Nabi ﷺ, karena mereka tahu bahwa beliau ﷺ adalah otoritas.

1. No one would give a Fatwa in the presence of the Prophet, since they knew that he (saw) was the authority.

2. Terkadang Nabi memberikan suatu perintah kepada para Sahabat (ra), lalu para Sahabat (ra) memahami perintah tersebut dengan dua cara yang berbeda. Lebih dari itu, Nabi ﷺ membenarkan kedua kelompok dalam mengikuti pemahaman mereka. Contoh hal ini telah disebutkan sebelumnya, yaitu peristiwa ketika Nabi ﷺ kembali dari Perang Khandaq (parit) dan memerintahkan para Sahabat agar tidak melaksanakan shalat Asar kecuali di Bani Quraizhah.

2. Sometimes the Prophet would give the Sahabah (ra) an instruction, and the Sahabah (ra) would understand that instruction in two different ways. Moreover, the Prophet (saw) would approve both groups in following their understandings. An example of this has been mentioned earlier regarding the incident when the Prophet (saw) returned from the battle of Khandaq (ditch) and instructed the Sahabah not to pray Asr except in Bani Qurayzah.

Dari sini kita memahami bahwa kedua kelompok Sahabat (ra) membahas perbedaan pemahaman mereka terhadap perintah Nabi ﷺ yang sama, lalu mengembalikannya kepada beliau ﷺ. Nabi ﷺ membenarkan kedua pemahaman tersebut. Penting untuk dicatat bahwa perbedaan itu tidak terjadi karena adanya ketidakjelasan dalam perintah tersebut, melainkan karena kemampuan bahasa Arab untuk menyampaikan berbagai makna dan pemahaman.

From this we understand that both groups of the Sahabah (ra) discussed their different understandings of the same order of the Prophet (saw), and referred it back to him (saw). The Prophet (saw) approved both understandings. It is important to note that the differences did not occur due to an ambiguity in the order; rather it occurred due to the ability of Arabic language to convey various meanings and understandings.

3. Pada masa hidup Nabi ﷺ, ketika para Sahabat (ra) bepergian tanpa Nabi ﷺ, mereka biasa berijtihad, lalu kembali merujuk kepada Nabi ﷺ ketika mereka pulang. Contohnya: Diriwayatkan dari Jabir (ra): “Seorang laki-laki terkena lemparan batu yang memecahkan tengkoraknya. Kemudian ia mengalami mimpi basah. Ia bertanya kepada kawan-kawannya: apakah kalian mendapati adanya keringanan (Rukhsah) bagiku untuk melakukan Tayammum (wudu dengan debu)? Mereka berkata: „Kami tidak mendapati keringanan bagimu, dan engkau tetap harus menggunakan air.‟ Lalu ia mandi dan meninggal dunia. Ketika mendengar hal ini, Nabi ﷺ bersabda:

3. During the lifetime of the Prophet (saw), if the Sahabah (ra) were travelling without the Prophet (saw), they used to conduct Ijtihad, and then refer back to the Prophet (saw) when they returned. For example: It was narrated on the authority of Jabir (ra): “a man was struck by a stone that fractured his skull. Then he had a wet dream. He asked his companions - do you know of a permit (Rukhsa) for me to perform Tayammum (dry ablution)? They said, „we do not find any permit for you and you can use water.‟ He then had a bath and died. When hearing this the Prophet (saw) said:

"Sesungguhnya cukup baginya untuk bertayamum, lalu ikatlah sehelai kain di kepalanya, usaplah di atasnya, dan basuhlah bagian tubuhnya yang lain." Dan Nabi ﷺ bersabda:

“Verily, it would have sufficed for him to make Tayammum, so tie a piece of cloth around his head and wipe over it and wash the rest of his body.” And the Prophet (saw) said:

"Mengapa mereka tidak bertanya ketika mereka tidak tahu? Sesungguhnya obat dari ketidakmampuan dan kurangnya ilmu adalah bertanya." (Abu Dawud, Ibn Majah & Ahmad)

“Why did they not ask when they did not know. Indeed, the cure for inability and lack of knowledge is to ask.” (Abu Dawud, Ibn Majah & Ahmad)

Poin-poin sebelumnya menunjukkan bahwa Al-Qur'an dan As-Sunnah adalah satu-satunya rujukan yang diterima oleh para Sahabat (ra), dan bahwa mereka akan kembali merujuk kepada Nabi ﷺ ketika terjadi keraguan.

The preceding points illustrate that the Qur‟an and the Sunnah were the only acceptable reference points for the Sahabah (ra), and that they would refer back to the Prophet (saw) in cases of uncertainty.