Light On the Muhammadan Sunnah Or Defence of the Hadith
Best Care Was Given To Sanad:
Al-Dhahabi, in his book Siyar a’lam al-nubala’, when giving the biography of Yahya ibn Sa'id al-Qattan, reported that Yahya said: "Never look at the hadith but look at the isnad, when it be correct the hadith is correct; otherwise never be beguiled by the hadith if the isnad be incorrect."
He also said: The predecessors were averse to going deeply into matters and call disputants as heretics.
A Necessary Meditation
It is proper here to make a short halt to meditate over what I stated before, of the sayings of Ibn al-Salah and al-Iraqi and al-Hakim, beside other leaders of hadith who considered it (hadith) to be sahih. However, when going through whatever we manifested before in regard of hadith in general, and that which we are going to state, we will verily come to realize many things that permit or rather urge us to make such a meditating pause.
The first thing we get out of this being that: the Prophet (S) did not commit his traditions to writing during his lifetime as he did in the case of the Qur'an, so as to come out as authentic as the Qur'an. Not only this, but he also forbade from writing them, the order that was obeyed by his Companions and their followers who abstained from writing the hadith and were sufficed with transmitting it through oral tradition (riwayah). But this was not done
according to the original words uttered by the Prophet, but they used to narrate the hadith on the basis of meaning.
Such practice remained to be followed till they started to write it (hadith) down, the act that was fulfilled about the middle of the 2nd Hijrah Century. Religion and (Arabic) language were inflicted a severe detriment due this delay in writing down of hadith, beside the falsities foisted by the fabricators, and liars from among enemies of religion, with the pleasure-seekers and even the righteous among Muslims.
When ulama’ of jarh and ta’dil began making investigations into conditions of the narrators, so as to recognize the reliable one and the unreliable, they couldn't — despite the toilful efforts they exerted in this search — attain to the goal they were after, achieving not their intention. That was due to the fact that their search was made in accordance with their capacity and human ability, exceeding not the apparent conditions of the narrators. And they are not to blame in this respect, as endeavouring to realize the hidden realities and whereabouts of men is verily an infeasible or rather impossible task.
In this regard al-Wazir al-Yamani, in al-Rawd al-basim, says: Many of the chiefs of jarh and ta’dil are reluctant regarding the (reliability of) narrator, deeming him reliable once and unreliable another. As bringing his fancy within the pale of multiplicity can't be weighed by a standard criterion but it is subject to conjecture and can be recognized through investigation and strival (ijtihad), so such wahm (fancy) was viewed in the same way the fuqaha’ were viewing the conjectural events. Hence Ibn Mu'in 533 holds two views regarding the narrator: tawthiq (deeming reliable) and tad'if (deeming weak), and alike things. Further, it is impossible to evade wahm (misconception), and ismah (infallibility) can never be an attribute of reliable
people, or rather it (Messenger's ismah) can never prevent against suspicion but only in tabligh (i.e. tabligh of revelation). As the Messenger of Allah doubted that he performed some obligatory prayers completely, when Dhu al-Yadayn questioned him: Have you shortened the prayers or forgotten this? 534
For all this, we find all books of hadith containing the sahih and non-sahih and even the fabricated and falsified ones, with none of the books being devoid of this even those of al-Bukhari and Muslim which were called al-Sahihayn, and were a target of violent attacks of critics. Since the case was such with these books, which were devoid of mutawatir authentic traditions but full of conjectural ahad traditions, the Ummah ulama’ of fiqh, usul and kalam have not acted according to them nor been committed to whatever cited in them.
So also the case with the grammarians who never quoted hadith to prove rules of language and grammar (nahw), after being sure of their being not sahih or mutawatir as were uttered by the Prophet, but were narrated on the basis of meaning. The argument they adopted for this was the hadith: "I married her to you with what you have",
Those were the views we intended to survey before quoting the utterances of the ulama’ who prompted us to make such a meditative halt before them.
Ibn al-Salah says: When they say: 'This hadith is sahih they mean by this that its sanad goes back to all the aforementioned kinds, and it is no provision for it to be decisive in itself.
This notion was confirmed by al-Iraqi in exposition of his Alfiyyah, when saying: Whenever men of hadith say: This hadith is sahih, they intend to say — as it appeared to us out of the externals of isnad — that its veracity
is decisive in itself because of possibility of error and forgetfulness on the part of the thiqah (trustworthy).
In al-Qawati; al- Sam'ani writes: The sahih tradition cannot be recognized only through the narration of trustworthy men but also through comprehension, knowledge, intensive hearing and study.
Al-Hakim says: So many a hadith are there whose isnad contains only one reliable thiqah narrator, and so they be weak and defective.
Abd al-Rahman ibn Mahdi says: Recognizing the (correct) hadith is an inspiration! and when asking that who is expert in defects of hadith: Wherefrom is this? he will have no hujjah to argue with.
These were some of the statements of the ulama’ about the hadith which they made sahih, so how would be the case with the traditions that were reported in their books and were considered sahih by them?
And after all this what is to do by that who intends to recognize the correct hadith in which the heart feels assured and the self is confident? And which way has he to adopt so as to be guided to distinguish it from among other traditions, while facing such and other sayings that cause perplexity and raise doubt and suspicion? Which one has he to adopt and which one has he to forsake? Especially after being aware of what Ibn al-Salah quoted in his Fatawa from the Imams (leaders) of hadith including their statements about forms of hadith, when saying:
The imams classified hadith into the following forms:
1- a hadith with incorrect isnad and matn (text).
2- or a hadith with incorrect isnad and sahih text.
3- or a hadith with unknown isnad and matn.
4- or a hadith with correct isnad and matn.
5- or a hadith with weak isnad and matn.
These were the five forms of hadith among whose ambiguous and bewildering ravines the researcher may go astray, knowing no outlet toward deliverance, because they (traditionists) have neither manifested their boundaries nor singled out between their sorts, nor laid down criteria for evaluating them so as people be acquainted with them.
If supposedly the knowledge-seeker be guided to the correct part of the traditions, nevertheless he never feels rest assured to act according to them after being aware of the statement of the ulama’ expressing that veracity of hadith never necessitating its being decisive in itself due to possibility of inadvertence and forgetfulness on the part of the thiqah.
That was a short statement I presented in this meditating pause with no need to go farther, and nothing more to say but to raise our hands to Allah imploring Him: O God, shower Your mercy upon us and prepare for us a guide of our affair.
Some Kinds of Hadith
Hadith was divided into numerous kinds and many books were compiled in this regard. And since we, as said before, never discuss the technical aspect of this science but suffice with exposing history of hadith, we found it proper to refer to those kinds that can serve our subject of discussion. Because this would help us recognize the incongruity and contradiction that afflicted the riwayah, and how it was affected by alteration and changes, except what we have stated before.
The Confused Hadith:
Ibn al-Salah says: The confused and disorderly hadith is that in whose regard the narration differ from each other, with some reporting it in a
certain form and some others reporting it in another contradictory way. Confusion may happen in the hadith text, or in the isnad, and it may be caused by one narrator or a group of narrators... and it entails weakness of the hadith since it reflects the fact that it was never put right or corrected.
As an example for confusion in the text we can refer to a hadith reported by Abu Bakr who said: O Messenger of Allah: I see that you turned old! He (S) said: Surat Hud and its sisters made me old. This hadith is confused, as it was not reported but only through Abu Ishaq al-Subay'i, and there was disagreement concerning it. Some of the narrators reported it in a mursal way. (with no reference to chain of transmitters), and some reported it in a mawsul way (with a successive chain of narrators), and some others ascribing it to Abu Bakr, and some to Sa'd, and some others to A'ishah. The disagreement appeared in ten aspects cited by al-Daraqutni, and reported by trustworthy narrators some of whom can never be considered superior to the others, and putting them together is infeasible.
Traditionists Care Not for Errors & Criticism of Texts:
Al-Jaza'iri said: The traditionists rarely judge the hadith to be confused, when disagreement regarding it occurring in the text itself, as this being not of their business as they be muhaddithun, but it is the business of the mujtahidun. But they judge the hadith to be disordered when the disagreement be related to the isnad itself, as this being their business.
Once a controversy took place regarding the salat (prayers) referred to in the story of Dhu al-Yadayn. 537 The narrator doubted it to be either the noon (zuhr) or afternoon (asr) prayers! Another time he thought it to be one of ashiyy two prayers: either the zuhr or asr prayers. In another place he once
determined it to be the zuhr and once again to be the asr prayer. Another time he said: It is most probably the asr prayer. At Nasa'i reported once what testifies that the source of doubt was Abu Hurayrah and his words, when he said: The Prophet, may God's peace and benediction be upon him and his Progeny, performed one of ashiyy prayers, but I (Abu Hurayrah) forgot 538 which one it was. Some of the narrators tried to bring them together, claiming that the episode occurred twice. Much often some of them follow this practice in bringing together in order to correct all the narrations, for protecting the narrators from being charged with error or inadvertence or forgetfulness. It seems as if these traditionists care for the narrators much more than caring for the narrations, so they brought them together, even when they (narrations) disagree with one’s hearing. 539
In relation to what al-Allamah al-Jaza’iri stated concerning the ignorance of the traditionists to the texts (of hadith) I cite herewith a statement al-Allamah al-Sayyid Rashid Rida said in this respect when discussing the hadith of the going away of the sun after sunset, which is one of the ambiguous traditions previously referred to: “The hadith ulama’ so seldom care for errors in the texts in regard of their meanings and rules, but their all attention is concentrated upon the asanid with course and clauses of the texts, beside the differences in them and what is marfu’ and mawquf of them. Also they cared for the words foisted into them that were composed by the narrators and out of the text ascribed to the Prophet (S). The researching ulama’ can recognize the mistakes of texts through their expositions of principles and branches of religion, and other things, even if they are not among the muhaddithun. But they refer in this regard to the principles laid by the traditionists like their saying: The veracity of the sanad never necessitates veracity of the text in fact and the same matter.
And also their saying: One of the signs of fabrication of hadith – even if its sanad be correct – being its contradiction to the decisive Qur’anic text, and its meaning contradicts every legal decisive rule: Such as some of the doctrinal principles, or the acts upon which there is unanimity and which are necessarily known to be of religion in a way that it is infeasible to bring them together.
That is why the traditionists determined to disapprove Abu Hurayrah’s hadith which was reported by Muslim about the creation of the heavens and earth in seven days.
If contradicting the decisive rule being a reason for judgement, either after veracity of hadith due to not having trust in its narrators or to their errors in its wording, the conceptions would necessarily differ according to differences in cognizances and knowledge of their owners. Those who know not that the sun never disappears from the earth and never passes from view of people for one hour or even a minute, does not see any trouble in the hadith of Abu Dharr about where it (sun) be after its decline as they think that its decline is a decline from the world as a whole. 540
He (al-Jaza’iri) further says: If the narrations be criticized in respect of the tenor of their text, and also in their sanad, the texts will destroy and abrogate many of the asanid.
In his discussion of the ambiguities exposed in some of the traditions, like the hadith on sorcery of the Prophet (S), and hadith of prostration of the sun under the Throne, he stated the following: “No one can manage to attain to truth in such ambiguities except that who gave reins to his intellect to think freely respecting the sayings uttered by different sorts of ulama’. He also says: the ulama’ of doctrinal and fiqhi principles (usul) have much more knowledge than the traditionists regarding criticism of texts and what is rational and sensible and agrees with principles of aqa’id and what doesn’t agree with them.
Both the sects concur that: The text of marfu’ traditions of correct
sanad should not necessarily be correct, due to possibility of presence of someone in chain of narrators who deliberately or inadvertently committed a mistake in the riwayah … and it is not necessary that text of any hadith of incorrect sanad should be untrue. Rather they said: Any hadith with fabricated narration may be veracious actually, and the hadith of correct sanad may be fabricated in actuality. We are requested to judge according to the external dimension with observing the rules and regulations. Hence that hadith whose sanad is correct we would accept its narration and adopt rules of belief and evidences of intellect to judge its text if it be ambiguous, and the one of incorrect sanad we can never call it a prophetic hadith, though its meaning be correct. 542
Added to the words of al-Sayyid Rashid Rida we can say that the veracity or goodness of isnad can never necessitate veracity or euphemism of the hadith. Al-Hakim 543 says: Many traditions have in their isnad only one reliable trustworthy narrator, though they being defective and weak. Hence the sahih tradition cannot be known through its narrators alone but through comprehension, memorization and recurring hearing.
Al-Daraqutni and other chief critics have never criticized the text as they did in the case of isnad, as criticism related to text is so precise and obscure that can never be realized but only by those hadith leaders known of having expertise in recognizing its defects. That is contrary to criticism related to text (matn), which can be fulfilled by many of knowledgeable ulama’ engaged in legal (Shar’i) sciences, and investigating about their original and minor issues, like exegetes, fuqaha’, and men of usul al-fiqh and usul al-Din.
Many of the leaders of hadith were liable to criticism in respect of the text, but that was so rare compared to criticism they faced in respect of the isnad. As an example for this we can refer to al-Isma’ili’s words, he uttered after citing the hadith reported by al-Bukhari on the authority of Abu Hurayrah as saying: “Abraham will meet, on the Day of Resurrection, his father Azar with darkness covering his (Azar’s) face” (the hadith), he said:
There is doubt in veracity of this hadith as Abraham is aware that Allah never breaks His promise, so how does He make what befalls his father a disgrace for him after informing him that Allah promised him not to disgrace him on the Day of Resurrection, assuring him that verily there is no breach to His promise. Al-Daraqutni found defect in isnad of this hadith saying: It is reported by Ibrahim ibn Tihman, from Ibn Abi Dhi’b, from Sa’id al-Maqbari, from his father, from Abu Hurayrah, and he was answered for this with that al-Bukhari suspended hadith of Ibrahim ibn Tihman in tafsir neglecting not the controversy regarding it. Any reader of the two Sahihs should search for the criticism levelled at them in both respects (isnad and matn), so as to have full knowledge about riwayah. 544
Defect-Finding in Hadith:
Defect-finding is the most accurate and obscure of sciences of hadith, and can never be undertaken but only by that who owns acute mind, ample memorization and comprehensive knowledge of asanid, texts, and conditions of the narrators. The defective hadith, which is called by men of hadith as al-ma’lul (diseased, ill), is that in which a defect is found that refuting its veracity though safety from it appearing on the face. This defect may befall the isnad of the hadith, which is more common, and may also appear in its text, but when afflicting the isnad it will vilify the veracity of both the isnad and text.
We suffice with citing one example for defect of text, which is a hadith ascribed to Anas and reported by Muslim alone, in which he totally denied recital of Basmalah (In the Name of Allah, the Beneficient the Merciful) in the beginning of hadith. On seeing most of narrators holding this view, initiating every report with the phrase ‘Praise be to God, the Lord of Worlds’ with no mention of Basmalah, the practice concurringly reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim in their Sahihs, some traditionists accounted for narration of the said words holding that whoever narrted it in that way has in
fact related it on basis of its meaning. Out of his statement, that they used to initiate their reports with ‘praise’ it can be concluded that they were not using Basmalah. Thus he narrated it according to the way he understood it but made a mistake, as its meaning being that the surah with which they used to initiate their speech was al-Fatihah, with no mention of tasmiyah adding to this several things, of which it is confirmed that Anas was once questioned about initiation with Basmalah, when he replied that he never memorized from the Messenger of Allah (S) any hadith in this regard.
The word defect (illah) may be used for other causes refuting the hadith, that bringing it out of veracity into weakness state that hindering from acting according to it, in conformity with the word illah in origin. Therefore in many of books on defects of hadith we find much sarcasm through falsity, inattention and bad memorization, and other kinds of sarcasm. Defects of hadith appear more in traditions reporrted by trustworthy narrators, when they reporting a hadith with being unaware of a defect in it, rendering the hadith thus as defective, with its proof (hujjah) being memorization and comprehension and knowledge, no more.
Abd al-Rahman ibn Mahdi is reported to have said: To know the hadith is an inspiration, and when inquiring any expert knowledgeable in defects of hadith: Wherefrom you got this?, he will have nothing to argue with.
Misconstructed Kinds of Traditions:
I previously quoted al-Allamah al-Batliyosi as saying that one of reasons of disagreement that befell the Ummah being tashif (misconstruction), which I didn’t discuss there, and herewith I give a brief account about it:
The musahhaf tradition is that in which dissimilarity occurred through changing places of dots of one word with keeping the same shape of writing. The example for this can be the hadith. Whoever fasting month of Ramadan following it consecutively with six days of (month of) Shawwal, it
will be recorded for him. Tashif may befall the text as well as the isnad, such as tashif of some muhaddithun in the name of Ibn Muzahim when changing it to Ibn Murajim (with ra’ and jim). It can be refered to the words uttered by al-Batliyosi there.
Ibn al-Salah said:
Recognizing the musahhaf among asanid and texts of traditions is verily a weighty task that can only be shouldered by well-versed memorizers, among whom being al-Daraqutni, who left for us a valuable compilation about it. Also it is reported that Abu Abd Allah Ahmad ibn Hanbal said: Who is that free from error and tashif!
An example for tashif in the text a reference can be mae to what is reported by Ibn Luhay’ah from book of Musa ibn Aqabah, on the authority of Zayd ibn Thabit as saying: The Messenger of Allah ihtajama (retired!) in the mosque, while the correct word is ihtajara (with ra’) in the mosque in a booth or hasir (mat) – a chamber in which he used to perform prayers, but was misconstructed by Ibn Luhay’ah.
Kinds of Muharraf Traditions:
Muharraf (perverted-corrupted) tradition is that in which dissimilarity occurred through changing the shape of the word with keeping the image of writing intact. The example for this being what happened for some bedouin Arab, who found in a hadith in some book stating that the Prophet (S), when performing prayers before him they used to erect anuzah – meaning harbah (lance), 546 which he thought it with silent nun narrating it on the basis of the meaning he imagined erroneously, saying: When the Prophet was performing prayers a she-goat was put before him!!
The Reversed Hadith
The reversed hadith (maqlub) is that in which replacement by taqdim (bringing forward) and ta’khir (bringing backward) appearing, like the hadith
of Abu Hurayrah reported by Muslim, about the seven men whom Allah will overshadow under shadow of His Throne on the Day of Resurrection, which says: “… and a man gave a charity secretly in a way his right hand knows not what his left hand spends…” This hadith was reversed by one of the narrators, as its correct wording was: “… in a way that his left hand knows not what his right hand spends…” as was stated in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim through certain ways of transmission. There are numerous examples for this in their compilations.
Yahya ibn Mu'in was one of eminent ulama' of jarh and ta'dil.
Refer to vol. I, p. 81.
See the story of this hadith in this book.
Abd al-Rahman ibn Mahdi was one of notable ulama' of jarh and ta'dil.
The story of Dhu al-Yadayn is reported in the two Sahihs, that Abu Hurayrah said: The Prophet led us in prayers of the noon (zuhr) or the afternoon (asr), when Dhu al-Yadayn said to him: The prayer O Messenge of Allah, it is diminished!? The Prophet then said to his Companions: Does he say the truth? They said: Yes. Then he (S) performed two other rak'ahs, and made two sajdahs.
How can he forget? While claiming that the Prophet ordered him to spread his garment, pouring out in it of his blessings so as to protect him against forgetting anything. See my book Shaykh al-mudirah.
Tawjih al-nazar, p. 257.
Tafsir al-Manar, vol. XXIX, pp. 40, 41.
Ibid., vol. III, p. 141.
Ibid., pp. 101, 102; al-Azhar.
Al-Hakim stated this when elucidating the nineteenth kind of sciences of hadith, in his book Ma'rifat ulum al-hadith. In this elucidation he said: This sort of sciences is other than the jarh and ta'dil.
Tawjih al-nazar, p. 334.
Muqaddimat Ibn al-Salah, p. 114.
One of its meanings is the stick.