Light On the Muhammadan Sunnah Or Defence of the Hadith

Definition of the Book

In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent the Merciful

“And those who shun the worship of the idols3and turn they unto God, for them is the glad tidings, so bear thou the glad tidings unto My servants. Those who hearken unto the word and follow the best of it; those are they whom God hath guided; and those it is who are the men of understanding.” (39: 17,18)

It is almost concurred among all, with no need for any proof, that the Muhammadan hadith being so esteemed and sublime that requiring the best care and accurate research, so as to study and learn the treasures it contains, of religion, morals, wisdoms and precepts, beside other worldly and hereafter advantages and interests. But, despite the dignified position and noble status it had, the scholars and men of letters have never given it the due attention, care and investigation, leaving it to be handled and circulated by the so-called men of hadith, studying it according to their way of thinking. The method adopted by these people was based on inanimate unchangeable principles. So we see the former ones among them, who laid down these rules, have confined their attention on recognizing the hadith narrators, and searching – as much as possible – into their biography, never caring then about whatever uttered by them: whether being veracious or not, reasonable or other than this. The reason behind this being their full dependence upon the

sanad (chain of transmitters) alone, without any slight regard for the meaning and denotation. Then it was the turn of their successors, who blindly stuck at the limits and boundaries laid by those who preceded them, without even thinking of trespassing or turning away from them. Thus the science of riwayah (narration), since the earlier centuries, became so rigid and lifeless without any vitality or change. Then we noticed how these and those people clung only to the superficialities of hadith as indicated by the narrations, fully believing in and following without the slightest investigation or verification.

While doing their utmost in studying science of hadith, extremely caring for its sanad to the extent it was said: The science of hadith has fully developed and was burnt, 4  but on the other hand they have all neglected a highly serious point that had to be realized and conceived before going into this science and studying its books. This point being searching for the real context of the veracious traditions uttered by the Prophet (S), and whether he has commanded to write down this very text when disclosing it – as he did in the case of the Qur’an – or ignored it, forbidding its inscription? Further, have the Companions and their followers written it down, or forsaken that job? What was the matter with them when embarking on narrating it? And was whatever reported identical with the very utterances of the Prophet – in wording and meaning – or contradictory to them? Also what be the factors intrigued into the hadith from the propensities of his (Prophet’s) enemies? Beside the effects befalling it from the purposes of his friends till spoiling it and making strange words to creep into it? Then at what time the parts narrated were registered? And was the tadwin (writing down) done through only one method without any modification with passage of ages and consecution of generations? Also what was the form and manner in which it recently came out in his books that people took for granted? And what was the stance of the Ummah ulama toward it? And the extent of their trust in or disagreement with it, after all that (distortion) which inflicted it and whatever affected it? Beside alike significant matters that should be known by every Muslim or researcher in Islam before considering the hadith and adopting

what its words and meanings denote.

But all this and whatever relevant to history of hadith, was altogether discarded by scholars and researchers, leaving them only as akhbar scattered in the books, and sayings concealed inside the asfar (history books), with no book undertaking their promulgation, or influential researcher undertaking the task of classifying them.

Before indulging into the science of hadith, they had to get acquainted with its history, since the scholars made it compulsory for everyone to recognize the history of every science before embarking on studying it, exclaiming: The position of the history of every element and matter to it being exactly as that of sight to the body.

Motives behind Compilation of this Book

On launching to study, with intellect and thought, my religion, after learning it through dictation and imitation, emotionally, I opined that I should trace back its prime sources and correct chains (asanid). When reaching the hadith books adopted by the Sunnites I came across traditions, whose words and denotations could never be found in any way among his (S) wise utterances and rhetorical speech. That which astonished me even more was to find in the denotations of many traditions, things that neither reason would make sense of, nor proper knowledge would confirm, nor could be supported by an external sense or any authentic book. 7

Such falsities I have found in a large number of the traditions that were filling exegesis and history books, and others! That which excited my wonder being: whenever reading a statement uttered by any of the Arab arrogants, I would tremble because of its rhetoric, with manificent feeling overwhelming me due to its strong wording. While reading most of the utterances ascribed to the Prophet, I would never feel the same joyance, nor that trembling. I was quite surprised how would such non sensical feeble speech devoid of rhetoric – could be uttered by the Prophet (S) while he being

the best of Arabic-speaking rhetoricians…or how would such feeble language be produced from him while being the wisest man inviting to guidance! The main reason behind my wonder was that I used to hear from men of religion – may God forgive them – that the traditions contained in the Sunnah books all being true and correct, with their words and denotations, and that all Muslims should absolutely admit them with whatever they contained!!

When reading the hadith: “Whoever said lies against me deliberately, he should occupy his abode in fire”, I became so astonished of such restriction that could’ “never be issued by a messenger who was delegated with truth and commanded to do it, forbidding from lying (kidhb) and warning against it. Since it is quite obvious for all that to lie is to tell about something in a way contrary to its truth and reality, whether being produced by Muhammad or other than him.

I kept on this belief till eagerness to realize the truth motivated me to seek and search for the origin and narration of the hadith, with its biography from the correct sources and authentic asanid, hoping to get acquainted with that which relieves me of the straitness in my bossom, eliminating my inside disturbance. This was due to the fact that this sensitive matter has never enjoyed an all inclusive compilation that could satisfy the researcher’s greed, and make the seeker’s quest to come true I persisted for a long time on investigation and seeking for truth, sparing no book that would be beneficial even with one word to help me reaching my sought quest, trying my best without giving up my efforts or submitting to the self calls to take rest and relieving it of this toilful process. I countered these calls with calling my self to patience, forbearance and persistence, till my trip was concluded with reaching amazing realities and extremely critical results! As I came to know that all hadith books were almost devoid of what they called sahih (correct) or even hasan (good) tradition, which was cited and recorded according to the very words and syntax of sentences uttered by the Prophet (S). I found out also that those traditions which they termed as sahih, had been no more than denotations as conceived by some narrators, with only very few words that

might have remained with no change in several short traditions, and in very rare cases. It became quite obvious for me that what they used to call as a correct hadith, was in fact veracious only in the perspective of its narrators, just indicating that al-Bukhari and Muslim concurred on reporting it, no more no less. While in fact, the hadith being decisively determined in regard of its theme was not among the conditions for the correct traditions, because of the liability to error, forgetfulness and inattention on the part of the thiqah (trustable narrator). That is why these traditions appeared and reached us with no any sign or hint of his (S) eloquence except for dim light and scanty beam.

It is out of scope here to enumerate all the facts I discovered and came across due to their multiplicity and abundance, as they being exposed in details in this book.

The first of the facts that were revealed to me, being that the Prophet (S) has never appointed certain scribes for writing down the traditions that were disclosed by him, as he did for the Qur’an, letting them (traditions) to be freely conveyed to people’s ears. And this task was executed according to the power of memory, that could never be denied or disputed by anyone through inattention or fancy, or error or oblivion, leading thus to dissociation of the hadith’s words syntax and breaking down its course of denotations. He (S) has not only left the matter in this state but also has forbidden the inscription of traditions (uttered by him), expressing: – as reported by Muslim and others – “Never write anything from me other than the Qur’an. Whoever did write other than the Qur’an should erase it.”

This forbiddance was obeyed and fulfilled by his Companions, who not only did not inscribe from his utterances other than the Qur’an, but also abstained from reporting the hadith, with forbidding people from that act, showing severe preservation toward whatever narrated to them. Abu Bakr and Umar used to reject every hadith from any Companion whatever his rank be near them, except when bringing a witness giving testimony that he had heard it from the Prophet, even that Ali (A) was obliged to exact an oath from the

(Prophet’s) Companion to confirm what he used to narrate to him. This practice was followed during the era of the Companions, so how would be the case after them?!

3. Worshipping and obeying the taghut being always the cause leading to tyranny and renegading from religion, on the part of a creature who is worshipped a chief who is imitated and a desire (hawa) which is followed. Ibn al-Qayyim said: The taghut is everything with which the bondman trespasses his limits, as a worshipped or followed or obeyed person. The taghut of every people is that whom they take as a judge to settle their disputes, other than Allah and His Messenger, or worship other than Allah, or follow him with no perception from Allah, and obey him in matters which they know to be submitted to Allah.

4. It is said: The sciences are of three kinds: One which has ripened but hasn't burnt, which is 'ilm al-nahw (grammar) and al-usul. The second is a science that has neither ripened nor burnt, which is 'ilm al-bayan (rhetoric), and exegesis. The third one is a science that has ripened and burnt which is ilm al-hadith and fiqh (jurisprudence).

5. It is said a naqqab man, meaning an influential and potent man.

6. The book Manahij wa tajdid, by Amin al-Khuwalli, p. 88.

7. The only mutawatir book is verily the Qur'an, no book else.