9 - Rashid Rida says:

"I wrote that the taqlid was wrong in the periodical Al-Manar, which I published in 1315 [1898]. I had taken some of those writings from Imam 'Allama Ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawziyya. Gathering them, I published the book Muhawarat."

By writing that the taqlid (following, being a member of, one of the four madhhabs) is wrong, the religion reformer blemishes billions of the Ahl as-Sunnat Muslims who have appeared for fourteen hundred years. He means that they will go to Hell. It must be because the la-madhhabi, mulhids and zindiqs, that is, religion reformers, themselves know about their own defects that they cannot attack Ahl as-Sunnat openly. By using false, deceptive, evasive words, they always play behind the curtain. How could it ever be said to be wrong to follow an imam al-madhhab? Allahu ta'ala declares in the suras an-Nahl and al-Anbiya', "Learn by asking those who know!" and "Adapt yourselves to Ulu 'l-amr ('ulama')!" It is for this reason that it has been wajib to follow an imam al-madhhab. By saying that it is wrong to follow him, this la-madhhabi heretic means to say, "Follow not him but me!" He tries to make Muslims give up imitating the right and to drift them into imitating his own wrong way. The la-madhhabi are the imitators of error.

There are two kinds of taqlid. The first one is the non-Muslims' following their parents and priests and becoming disbelievers. Taqlid of this kind is certainly wrong (batil). The Qur'an al-karim and the Hadith ash-Sharif prohibit this kind of taqlid. And it is not enough for a Muslim to say that he is Muslim just by imitating his parents. A person who knows, approves and believes the meanings of the six fundamentals of iman is a Muslim. It is obvious that imitating somebody in respect of iman is wrong. So it is a wrong imitation to believe the la-madhhabi and to dissent from Ahl as-Sunnat. Further, it is incorrect to liken this to the taqlid in respect of a'mal (acts or practices). The Qur'an al-karim and the Hadith ash-Sharif command this second kind of taqlid. The hadith, "My umma do not agree on deviation! [This hadith sharif is quoted in the book Khulaasat at-tahqiq fi bayani hukmi 't-taqlid wa 't-talfiq by 'Abd al-Ghani an-Nabulusi (d. 973/1565), in the preface to Al-mizan al-kubra by 'Abd al-Wahhab ash-Sha'rani, in various letters in Maktubat by al-Imam ar-Rabbani Ahmad al-Faruqi as-Sirhindi (d. 1034/1624) and at the end of Hujjat-Allahi 'ala 'l-alamin by Yusuf an-Nabhani.]
shows that all of what the scholars of the right path have written is correct. Those who are against this are unjust and wrong. By the consensus of millions of the Ahl as-Sunnat and thousands of awliya', who have appeared for thirteen hundred years, it is wajib for a Muslim who is not a mujtahid to follow a mujtahid whom he believes, trusts and likes so that he can do his actions and 'ibadat correctly. He who disbelieves this consensus will be disbelieving this hadith ash-Sharif. This consensus also shows that a mujtahid should act in accordance with his own ijtihad, and he is not permitted to follow another mujtahid. Each Sahabi (Muslim who saw the Prophet at least once) was a mujtahid. For this reason, they disagreed with one another on some actions. Likewise, Imam Yusuf's not renewing his ablution on a Friday and al-Imam ash-Shafi'i's not raising his hands after bowing during salat as he visited al-Imam al-azam Abu Hanifa's grave were in no way the taqlid of others; they followed their own ijtihads on these occasions.