Light On the Muhammadan Sunnah Or Defence of the Hadith
Al-bukhari and His Book
Full name of al-Bukhari is Abu Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Isma’il al-Bukhari al-Farsi. He was born in Bukhara in 194H. He made trips to several countries, seeking for hadith, starting to compile chapters of his book in the Holy Sanctuary. It took him sixteen years to compile and classify it in Basrah and other places till completing it in Bukhara. He died in Khartang near Samarqand in 256 H.
In Muqaddimat Fath al-Bari, 557 Ibn Hajar reported that Abu Ali al-
Ghassani quoted al-Bukhari as saying: I brought out al-Sahih from among six hundred traditions.
Al-Isma’ili also quoted him as saying: I haven’t brought out in this book but only the sahih 558 traditions, and the sahih ones that I haven’t cited being more.
Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Umar al-Razi says: Abu Zar'ah could learn by heart seven hundred traditions, and one hundred and forty thousand ones through their tafsir … (Tawjih al-nazar’, p. 4).
Reason Behind Compilation of al-Bukhari’s Book:
Ibn Hajar in his Muqaddimah says: The motive that incited resolution of al-Bukhari to collect the sahih traditions, and made him determined to do so, was what he heard from his instructor chief of hadith and fiqh Ishaq ibn Ibrahim al-Hanzali, known with the name of Ibn Rahawayh. Abu Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Isma’il al-Bukhari says: We were with Ibn Rahawayh who said: Would it be better if you compile an abridged book containing the sahih traditions of the Messenger of Allah? Being impressed by this statement, I embarked on compiling the comprehensive Sahih in which including six hundred thousand traditions.
Al-Bukhari Narrating Through Meaning:
In Ta’rikh Baghdad, al-Khatib al-Baghdadi reported from al-Bukhari as saying: There might be a hadith I heard in Basrah writing it in the Sham,
and there might be a hadith I heard in the Sham writing it in Egypt! Thereat it was said to him: O Abu Abd Allah, (did you write it) completely? when he kept silent. 562
Uhaydar ibn Abi Ja’far, governor of Bukhara, is reported to have said: Muhammad ibn Isma’il once upon a day said to me: There might be a hadith I heard in Basrah writing it in the Sham, and there might be a hadith I heard in the Sham writing it in Egypt! Thereat I said to him: O Abu Abd Allah, (did you write it) completely? when he kept silent.
Muhammad ibn al-Azhar al-Sijistani said: One day I attended a meeting in the house of Sulayman ibn Harb, with presence of al-Bukhari who was only hearing but not writing anything. When one of the attendants was asked: Why doesn’t he write? He said: When he (al-Bukhari) returns to Bukhara he will write down out of his memory. 564
Ibn Hajar al-Asqallani says: What is unusual about al-Bukhari being that he used to report the hadith completely with one isnad and two (different) wordings. 565
Death of al-Bukhari Before Revising His Book:
It is reported that al-Bukhari died before making a clean copy of his book. Ibn Hajar, in Muqaddimat al-Fath reports that Abu Ishaq Ibrahim ibn Ahmad al-Mustamli said: When copying al-Bukhari’s book from its original manuscript that was with his companion Muhammad ibn Yusuf al-Farbari, I found in it incomplete things and other things that were not revised, among which explanations after which nothing was recorded, and traditions that were not explained. So I added some of these to some of those ones.
Abu al-Walid al-Baji says: What proving the veracity of this statement the narrations of Abu Ishaq al-Mustamli, Abu Muhammad al-Sarakhsi, Abu al-Haytham al-Kashmihi and Abu Zayd al-Maruzi, with some differences in order and placing of words though they were copied from one
origin! That was due to the fact that every one of them used to copy as much as he could from patchments and scapula, wherever it be, from which he would add to what he collected before. From this it can be concluded that two or more expositions are found connected to each other with no traditions in between them. 566
In Fath al-Bari (Vol. VII) 567 he (Ibn Hajar) writes: Throughout the copies of al-Bukhari I have never come across any biography for Abd al-Rahman ibn Awf, or Sa’d ibn Zayd who were among the ten (promised with paradise) – though dedicating a special biography for Sa’id ibn Zayd in the beginning of al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah. I suppose this to be done freely by reporters of al-Bukhari’s book, since he – as previously referred to – has left the book in a draft-like form, so in the names cited by him here neither preferability nor priority nor old age, the aspects of priority in ranking are considered. When none of these considerations being observed by him, it indicated that he had written each biography separately, the fact resulting in the narrators annexing some of them to each other at random.
Al-Bukhari was the first to discern between the sahih tradition – in his view – and non-sahih one, so he selected for his book those traditions which he thought to be sahih (correct). Because tadwin (writing down) before his era was done – as stated earlier – through gathering the correct and incorrect traditions without any discernment, as this can be clearly seen in Musnad Ahmad and other Musnads, or by adding some things to the Messenger’s traditions and the Companions’ utterances and Followers’ verdicts, as this can be found in Malik’s Muwatta’. For all this, al-Bukhari’s book (Sahih) was thought to be the first book compiled that containing sahih traditions. The traditionsts criticized him in a hundred and ten traditions, of which the reporting of thirty-two ones was concurringly agreed by Muslim, and seventy-eight ones were reported by him alone. 568
Those for whom al-Bukhari not Muslim has reported alone were four hundred thirty plus men, among whom eighty ones
reported amounted to 620 men, among whom 160 ones were telling of presence of weakness. And the number of traditions for which they were both criticized amounted to two hundred and ten ones, of which eighty ones were independently related by al-Bukhari, with the rest being related by Muslim. 570
About the traditions criticized by al-Daraqutni, Ibn Hajar is reported to have said: There is controversy regarding the veracity of these traditions, and they were not approved or accepted as in the case of the most of the book.
Sahih al-Bukhari Containing Many Dubieties:
After reviewing the traditions narrated by al-Bukhari regarding which doubts were raised, al-Sayyid Muhammad Rashid Rida said: When reading what is said by al-Hafiz (Ibn Hajar) concerning them, you will come to realize them to be all on skill of art…
Dr. Ahmad Amin — after stating number of traditions for which criticism was levelled at al-Bukhari as mentioned before – reports the following: 573
“Some of the men for whom al-Bukhari reported were untrustworthy, and those among rijal of al-Bukhari labelled with weakness numbered eighty ones. In fact this being the biggest problem, as it is impossible to recognize the hidden realities about the rijal. It is true that it is easy to judge whoever committed a lapse, but what to do in respect of what is concealed? Further the judgements of people regarding the rijal differ greatly, as someone may deem some man to be trustworthy and another one deeming him to be untrustworthy, the practice affected by innumerable psychological impulses. Also there used to be disagreement among the traditionists themselves in regard of rules of tajrih (sarcasm) and ta’dil (commutation), as some of them would reject the hadith of the innovator outright, whether being Kharijite or
Mu’tazili. And some of them would accept his narration of the traditions that had no connection with his innovation. Some others would say: If he be inviting to them (traditions), his narration would be disapproved, but if he be not calling to them, it would be approved. Some of the traditionists would be so strict that he would abstain from narrating the traditions of those having connection with the governors and being attached to the worldly lusts, whatever be the level of their earnestness and exactitude, while some others would see no harm in this as long as he (narrator) be reliable and truthful. Some others would be stiff to the extent that he would reproach the narrator for a jest he made, like that who reported as some of the Basran jokers used to spread purses (of money) on the road and hide themselves… and when the pedestrian stoops for picking them they would shout at him, when he would be ashamed and leave it, and they would laugh at him. This led one of the traditionists to issue a legal verdict (fatwa) to fill a purse with pieces of glass, so that on their shouting at him he would pick the money purse and leave the glass purse as a retaliation and chastisement to them for their practice. For this fatwa, some of the traditionists sarcasted him, while others approved of him as finding no objection to it, beside other reasons the explanation of which is out of scope here.
Because of this fact, there appeared among them intense disagreement and dispute in respect of judging the rijal, which entailed their differing about veracity of their narration and taking hadith from them. The most vivid example for this being Ikrimah, the mawla of Ibn Abbas, who spread hadith and tafsir everywhere. He was charged by some (traditionists) with falsity, and sharing the opinion of the Khawarij, and receiving the gifts of emirs and rulers, with some of them reporting plenty of his lies and fabrications. They reported that Sa’id ibn al-Musayyab said to his master Burd: Don’t tell me lies as Ikrimah did to Ibn Abbas.
speaking, with no one daring to dispute with his hadith.” However, there are others who authenticate and deem him as reliable, for instance Ibn Jarir al-Tabari has full confidence in him, filling his Tafsir and Ta’rikh with his sayings and narrations. Also he was authenticated by Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Ishaq ibn Rahawayh and Yahya ibn Mu’in and other notable traditionists.
For all this, compilers of al-Sahih adopted toward him (Ikrimah), different attitudes, as al-Bukhari deemed him to be honest, citing many of his narrations in his Sahih, while Muslim gave preponderance to his untrustworthiness, reporting from him only one hadith on hajj, unrelying on him alone in it but bringing his name for supporting the chain of the hadith of Sa’id ibn Jubayr on the same subject.
Hence it seems difficult to judge those whose conditions being unknown, and no compiler of any hadith book was immune against this due to disagreement among people in judging the rijal (men of hadith).
Al-Bukhari’s Traditions and Their Deniers:
Al-Sayyid Rashid Rida, in a reply to a question put forth to him about al-Bukhari’s Sahih, said: Undoubtedly, in al-Bukhari’s Sahih there are traditions that being in total the best source for producing the hadith and pursuing the sahih through all the traditions recorded in hadith books and after it in order comes Sahih Muslim. Also, there is no doubt that in other than them among Sunnah references there can be found more correct traditions, the fact confirmed by rejection of al-Bukhari and others to hundreds of thousands of traditions that used to be reported, for the sake of selecting the confirmed correct traditions.
by witchcraft of some men, which was disapproved by some ulama like al-Imam al-Jassas, one of the earlier exegetes, and al-Imam Muhammad Abduh among the latter ulama, as it (hadith) contradicts the Qur’anic verse: “… when say the unjust (unto the believers): “Ye follow none but a man bewitched. Behold thou (O Our Apostle Muhammad!) what similitudes they coin for thee! for they have gone (so far) astray (that) they cannot find the way (to truth). (17: 47, 48)
Further al-Bukhari’s book contained traditions on habits and instincts that can never be among principles or branches of religion. When pondering upon all these and those claims, it would be obvious for all that it is neither of principles of faith nor of cornerstones of Islam that the Muslim should believe in every hadith reported by al-Bukhari, whatever its theme be. Rather, being aware of or accepting what Sahih al-Bukhari contained was not stipulated as a contition to admit the Islam or its detailed knowledge of anyone. It is known also that it is not permissible for any Muslim to disapprove any of these traditions after knowing of it but only through a proof establishing its non-veracity in text or sanad. As the ulama’ who refuted the veracity of some of these traditions were never to do so unless having strong evidences, some of which might have been correct and some wrong; nevertheless none of them was considered as a slanderer of Islam.
Praise be to Allah!! Millions of Hanafi Muslims hold that raising the hands in time of ruku’ (kneeling) and rising up after it is legally reprehensible (makruh). This hadith was reported by al-Bukhari in his Sahih and other places on the authority of tens of Companions through a large number of asanid, with no one blaming or objecting them for their leader’s not deeming it correct since he had not gone over al-Bukhari’s asanid on it, the veracity of which was ascertained by anyone of his school-mate ulama’ after reading them. Then some Muslim man
acts, defending of Islam and inviting to it, may be charged with impiety through a proof or suspicion against the veracity of a hadith reported by al-Bukhari from some unknown man whose name indicating his not having any relation to Islam, that was Abd ibn Hunayn, the theme of whose text was neither of the doctrines, nor rituals nor rules of Islam, nor being adopted by Muslims in practice. Rather, all the followers of the schools (madhahib) of imitators were but to forsake acting according to what al-Bukhari and Muslim deemed correct of the traditions on legislation that were reported on the authority of eminent leaders of narrators, either for ijtihadi causes or mere imitation. Al-Muhaqqiq Ibn al-Qayyim, in his book A`lam al-muqi`in, has cited more than a hundred evidences testifying this fact, and about this man charged with impiety. Despite all these facts we hold that Sahih al-Bukhari being truly the most authentic boof after Book of Allah, but it and its narrators can never be considered immune against error … and not every doubtful in any of its narrations is to be deemed disbeliever! How easy is charging with impiety on the part of imitators of utterances of the latter (traditionists), and Allah is sufficient for us and He is the best Guarantor. 578
Ibn al-Jawzi’s al-Intisar contained many traditions taken from the two Sahihs, that were not adopted by the Shafi’ites when they preponderated some contradictory ones, and so is the case with the rest of schools of thought.
Al-Bukhari and People of Sham:
Al-Dhahabi, on the authority of Abu Amr Hamdan, reported: I asked Ibn Uqdah, from whom I should learn, al-Bukhari or Muslim? He replied: Muhammad (i.e. al-Bukhari) was a knowledgeable man (‘alim), and Muslim was an ‘alim. Hamdan says: I repeated this question several times, when he said: Muhammad (al-Bukhari) may err in regard of people of Sham since he took and looked into their books, so he might refer to some man with his kunyah (nickname) in some place, while referring to him in another place with
his name, thinking them to belong to two different men. Whereas Muslim would so rarely commit any mistake in regard of causes (‘ilal), because he used to write the masanid not the maqati’ or marasil.
Al-Bukhari and Infliction of Invention of the Qur’an:
Al-Hakim Abu Abd Allah, in his Ta’rikh, writes: When al-Bukhari arrived in Nisabur in 250 H., people entered on him to take and hear (traditions) from him. Once upon a day a man inquired from him about the “pronunciation in the Qur’an”, when he said: Our acts are invented (makhluqah), and our words are (derived) from our acts. This statement caused disagreement among people, and so soon Muhammad ibn Yahya al-Dhahali embarked on instigating people against him saying: Whoever claiming so is a heretic (mubtadi’), with whom no one should sit or talk to! And whoever betakes himself to al-Bukhari after that, should be accused with the same charge, as no one would attend his meeting (majlis) but only that following his school! Thereat people desisted from meeting and frequenting to al-Bukhari, with the exception of Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj and Ahmad ibn Salamah. Then al-Dhuhali said: Whoever believes in lafz, is not permitted to attend our meeting! On hearing this, Muslim took his cloak over his turban and departed the place, asking to collect whatever he has written about him. Thereat al-Bukhari became fearful and felt the danger threatening him, so he departed Nisabur to another city. 580
Al-Bukhari’s Narrations Differ in Number:
Number of al-Bukhari’s traditions according to narration of al-Firayri exceeded those ones according to narration of Ibrahim ibn Ma’qil al-Nasafi with two hundred while their number by al-Nasafi exceeded that of Hammad ibn Shakir al-Nasafi with a hundred ones as reported by al-Iraqi. 581
Al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar, in Muqaddimat Fath al-Bari, reported that the
number of the connected unrepeated texts cited in al-Bukhari (Sahih) was 2602, and one of the suspended marfu’ (successive) ones was 159 ones, making together 2761 traditions. In Sharh al-Bukhari he said that the number of the written ones reached to 2513.
Fath al-Bari, p. 4.
That is in his view, and as he thinks that he reported them in the way intended by them.
Huda al-sari fi Muqaddimat Fath al-Bari, p. 4.
Ibid., vol. II, p. 201.
Muqaddimat Fath al-Bari, p. 4.
Ta'rikh Baghdad, vol. II, p. 11.
Huda al-sari, vol. II, p. 201.
Ibid., p. 194.
Fath al-Bari, vol. I, p. 186.
Ibid., vol. I, p. 5.
Ibid., vol. VII, p. 74.
Ibid., vol. II, p. 81.
That was the number of rijal against whom people spoke ill, and from whom al-Bukhari, not Muslim, has reported. In regard of the rijal of al-Bukhari in whose authenticity there was doubt, Ibn Hajar has dedicated a separate chapter in his Muqaddimat Fath al-Bari, in which "he cited their names, and story of that vilification, with searching for its causes and knowing its factors," as thought by him. These names reached to about four hundred ones covering 65 pages from p. 113 up to 176, to some of which I will refer under bab of their disagreement about jarh and ta'dil. (Muqaddimat Fath al-Bari, p. 7 and vol. II, p. 111; Duha al-Islam, vol. II, p. 119.
Ibid., vol. I, pp. 7, 8.
That is the art of idiom of hadith, i.e. in view of the sanad. And in regard of the texts of al-Bukhari's traditions, he has not vilified them. But if a free-thinking faqih scholar devoted his time to these traditions he would find many of them deserving criticism.
Al-Manar Journal, vol. XXIX, p. 41.
Duha al-Islam, vol. II, pp. 117, 118.
It is also reported from Ibn Umar that he said to his mawla (bondman) Nafi': Don't lie to me as Ikrimah lied to Ibn Abbas. Ibn Taymiyyah, in Muqaddimat usul al-tafsir, said: A man inquired Sa'id ibn al-Musayyab about some verses of the Qur'an, when he said to him: Never question me about the Qur'an, but ask me about that who claims to know everything! meaning by that Ikrimah (p. 39).
That is, in their view, not they be correct and confirmed to be uttered by the Prophet (S).
Al-Manar Journal, vol. XXIX, pp. 104, 105.
This Muslim man is Dr. Muhammad Tawfiq Sidqi, who doubted the hadith on the flies, as a result of which he was charged with impiety by shaykhs of al-Azhar as usual.
Al-Manar Journal, vol. XXIX, p. 51.
Al-Maqdisi, Shurut al-A'immah al-sittah, p. 5.
Huda al-sari, vol. II, pp. 203, 204.
Shurut al-A'immah al-Khamsah, p. 58.
See vol. I, p. 70.