It is narrated from Sayyiduna al-Irbad bin Sariyah (may Allah be pleased with him) that one morning the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) stood among us and gave us an admonition from which hearts trembled and eyes flowed with tears. We said: O Messenger of Allah! You have admonished us like one bidding farewell, so give us some counsel. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Fear of Allah is binding on you", and I think he (peace and blessings be upon him) also said: "and listening and obeying (the leader). After me people will see intense disagreement, so hold fast to my Sunnah and the Sunnah of the rightly guided caliphs (al-Khulafa' al-Rashidun); grip it firmly with your molar teeth, and beware of new matters, for every innovation is misguidance." I have made every effort, according to my ijtihad, in establishing the authenticity of this hadith, and my state regarding it is the same as that of Imam Shu'bah regarding a hadith which he searched for in Basrah, Kufah, Madinah and Makkah, and then said: If such a hadith were established for me from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), it would be dearer to me than my parents, my children and all people. And this hadith has indeed been established as sahih (authentic), and all praise is for Allah.