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Salaf (Arabic: سلف, "ancestors" or "predecessors"), also often referred to with the honorific expression of al-salaf al-ṣāliḥ (السلف الصالح, "the pious predecessors"), are often taken to be the first three generations of Muslims.[1] This comprises companions of the Islamic prophet Muhammad (the Sahabah), their followers (the Tabi'un), and the followers of the followers (the Taba al-Tabi'in).[2] Their religious significance lay in the statement attributed to Muhammad: "The best of my community are my generation, the ones who follow them and the ones who follow them",[3] a period believed to exemplify the purest form of Islam. The generations of Muslims after the third are referred to as the Khalaf.[4]
- ^ Lacey, Robert (2009). Inside the Kingdom, Kings, Clerics, Modernists, Terrorists, and the Struggle for Saudi Arabia. New York: Viking. p. 9.
- ^ "The Meaning of the Word "Salaf" – Abu 'Abdis-Salaam Hasan bin Qaasim ar-Raymee". AbdurRahman.org. 2014-09-29. Retrieved 2019-11-30.
- ^ Wood, Graeme (20 December 2016). The Way of the Strangers: Encounters with the Islamic State. Penguin Books Limited. ISBN 9780241240120.
- ^ Brown, Jonathan A. C. (14 December 2009). "Islamic Studies: Salafism". Oxford Bibliographies. Oxford University Press. Retrieved 21 September 2023.