knowledge, (al-rasikhun fi al-'ilm). He further said, "We walked in their steps, followed their sayings, relied on their conduct and emulated their methods." 14

As mentioned earlier, the basic sources in formulating legal opinions used by Jabir b. Zaid were the Qur'an, Sunnah, 'Athar then individual reasoning, ra'y.

Sunnah, in the sense of the sayings of the Prophet, his deeds, and his approval of certain actions or sayings of his Companions, was familiar to the early Ibadhi authorities in its widest sense. According to Schacht, "The earliest, certainly authentic, evidence of the use of the term 'Sunnah of the Prophet' referring to its original political use which provided a doctrinal link between the 'Sunnah of the Prophet', the Sunnah of Abu Bakr, 'Umar, and the Qur'an, appeared in the letter addressed by 'Abdullah b. Ibadh to 'Abd al-Malik b. Marwan about 76 H/695 A.D. However, Ibadhi authorities used this term in its technical sense from the early period of the foundation of their school. The term is used by Jabir b. Zaid in two of his letters. In a letter to 'Uthman b. Yasar, Jabir wrote: "As go what you have written to me asking about the slave, whether he can pray though uncircumcised - circumcision for the Muslim is an obligatory Sunnah (Sunnah wajibah) and must not be neglected. We dislike (nakrahu) that you should leave a slave of yours uncircumcised, and he must not pray unless he is circumcised." 16 In another letter to al-Harith b. 'Amr, Jabir again wrote: "As for what you mentioned regarding a man who prays Maghrib, 'Isha', and Subh prayers not reciting anything of the Qur'an (in these prayers), what I prefer concerning this, is that he pray again those prayers and recite Qur'an (in them), for he has neglected the Sunnah, unless he is an illiterate person who cannot read, as God would not charge a soul except according to its capacity." 17 Jabir also mentioned the term Sunnah in his letter to Tarif b. Khulaid in the following statement: "As for what you have mentioned regarding an Imam leading people in obligatory prayers, who omitted to make the ruku', the people following him in that, I prefer that those people pray again what they have performed contrary to the Sunnah." He further added, "Nothing of people's affairs in which they oppose Sunnah can be right." 18 The latter two quotations are reported also in K. Jabir b. Zaid, narrated by Habib b. Abi Habib from 'Amr b. Harim from Jabir b. Zaid. 19

Salim b. Dhakwan, a contemporary of Jabir b. Zaid, when discussing the attitude of the extreme Kharijites said, "We have nothing to do with those who claim that today they have gained better knowledge of the Qur'an and Sunnah and achieved supremacy over them (i.e. early Muslims)." 20 The role of Sunnah as a second source of Ibadhi jurisprudence was clearly stated by Abu 'Ubaidah Muslim b. Abi Karimah, the successor of Jabir b. Zaid, in numerous statements:

1. The Imam (leader) of the Muslim is the Qur'an, and his guide is the