Mu'adh b. Jabal reported God’s messenger as saying, “The devil is a wolf to man, like the wolf which harries sheep, catching the one which is solitary, the one which stays far from the flock, and the one which wanders. So avoid the branching paths and keep to the general community.”
Narrated Ibn ‘Abbas reported God’s messenger as saying, “Things are of three categories:
a matter whose right guidance is clear, which you must follow; a matter whose error is clear, which you must avoid; and a matter about which there is a difference of opinion, which you must entrust to God.”
Abu Dharr reported God’s messenger as saying, “He who separates himself a handbreadth from the community has cast off the rope of Islam from his neck.”
Narrated Abu Huraira reported God’s messenger as saying, “The Qur’an came down showing five aspects:
what is permissible, what is prohibited, what is firmly fixed, what is obscure, and parables. So treat what is permissible as permissible and what is prohibited as prohibited, act upon what is firmly fixed; believe in what is obscure, and take a lesson from the parables.”
This is the wording in Al-masabih. Baihaqi transmitted it in Shu’ab al-iman, his wording being, “Act according to what is permissible, avoid what is prohibited, and follow what is firmly fixed.”
