Is It Necessary to Take Bay‘ah?

Question

What is the ruling on taking a spiritual guide? Is it fard, wajib, or sunna? If a person does not take a guide and lives according to the way of the sunna, in accordance with the commands of the Lord, will he then not enter Paradise?

Answer

A spiritual guide is taken because, through his companionship and by acting upon his guidance, following the way of the sunna and living according to the commands of the Lord becomes easier. But if Allah, the Pure, has granted someone this wealth [of righteousness] without his taking a guide, why then would he not be worthy of Paradise?

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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