Bid'ah and the law against innovation in Islam

Contrary to mainstream opinion, Islam of itself, by itself, invented little to nothing. Only in astrology can we find some contributions from Arab-Moslems or Persian-Moslems. In everything else it was either the Dhimmi population with Moslem names who carried on progress – stunted as it was under a dogmatic fascism post 1000 AD – or nothing occurred. Why wasn't the blast furnace, optical lenses, the scientific method, chimneys, modern mirrors, gravity-based machines, water mills, or wind mills created in Dar-al-Islam ? Innovation is not embraced that is why.

From Imam Bukhari's chapter on Ihtisam I learnt that innovation was anti-Islamic. The concept is called Bid'ah or a new thing. Muhammad commanded his followers to be knaves and slaves following his orders.

“…so cling to my Sunnah and the Sunnah of the rightly guided caliphsafter me, even if it be with your teeth” [Bukhari]

and

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And among the worst deeds is to invent new things and every innovation is misguidance. [source]

This is clearly a problem for Islam. Innovation is not to be embraced.

Moslems now of course 'parse' the word 'Bid'ah' to give it 2 meanings, namely, 'good innovation' and 'bad innovation'. But these modern appellations are not what you find in Mein Hadith from Bukhari, nor indeed in Mein Koran. What the reader finds in the foundational texts are commands to follow Muhammad's every word, deed and path or Sunnah. In this vein Muhammad supersedes Jesus Christ who told his followers 'I am the way' and 'No one gets to the Father but through me'. Thus Christology is replaced with Muhammadology. And this is definitely part of the Koran's main and central themes. Muhammad usurps Christ.

In Bukhari's Hadith and in the writings of many other Imam's there is the story of Muhammad and his friends, sitting around, making promises to the Allah-thing [Baal the moon deity]. The 'great man' Muhammad was listening. One of his friends apparently said: 'I will make prayers (Salaah) all night long.' A second promised: 'I will fast (sawm) all the time.' The third offered: 'I will never marry.' Muhammad was unimpressed. Apparently he stated: 'I am the most God conscious of Allah (Ta`ala) than any of you. I pray (Salaah,) I fast (sawm) as well, and I do marry woman too. And who so turns his face from my Sunnah, cannot be of my Ummah'. 

If you don't follow my way, you cannot be in my community. The implication is clear. Don't do anything that I have not commanded or allowed. In other words, innovations in and around the Koran, Hadith, ritual, practices or culture are not permitted in Islam. This indicates that those hoping for an Islamic Reformation are deluded.

Bukhari's Hadith chapter Ihtisam goes even further into neutering innovation. He writes that innovations make a person a Murtad (a non believer.) A few examples given are a person claiming to be a Prophet, deny giving Zakaat [centralized tax to the Moslem state], performing the pilgrimage [Hajj] at a place other than the Ka'ba shrine in Mecca, or to introduce any other new belief which is in opposition to Qur'an or Ahadith. In other words the entire corpus of Christianity makes its followers Murtad, and by Koranic definition they must be killed [see Suras, 9, 5, 4, 8 and 2].

Bid'ah is a 'law' which prohibits any idea from being implement, which is contrary to the Koran, or the way of Muhammad. This ossifies the cult of Islam and paralyses it. No Giotto, no Vivaldi, no invention of steam or combustion, no innovations in medicine, chemistry or electro-magnetism. No art to speak of. Simply the theft of other civilization's artifacts and the pronouncement that 'Moslems did it'. Meagre, pathetic, untutored.

More Info on Bidah