Usul ul Hadith

Definition of Sahih

Hadith transmitted by an upright (عدل), precise (متقن) narrator with a connected (متصل) chain

Ahlul Hadith added: the hadith should also be free of any deviation from other narrations (شذوذ) and defects (علة). There are many characteristics which Ahlul Hadith consider to be علل that jurists do not think lowers the rank of a hadith from sahih.

Agreed definition: Hadith narrated by an upright (عدل) and precise (متقن) narrator with a connected (متصل) chain and no hiding of narrators (تدليس), which is free of deviation from other narrations (شذوذ)

If a chain has a narrator who was dropped from it (مرسل), there is a difference of opinion as to whether the hadith can be considered Sahih

Define uprightness (عدالة)

A Muslim who performs their obligations and does not openly sin (acts that scholars unanimously agree are sinful). This ensures no intentional mistakes are made.

Why is accuracy (ضبط) and precision (إتقان) important in a narrator?

It ensures no unintentional mistakes are made

Al Khitabi’s definition of Hasan

The hadith's chain is recognised and its narrators are well-known, most other ahadith are like it, most of the scholars accept it, and most jurists use it.

Imam al Dhahabi says this definition is intended to be for those ahadith which do not reach the category of Sahih. The Hasan hadith is therefore higher in rank than the Da'if category and lower than the Sahih category

Issues with Al Khitabi’s definition of Hasan

This definition is not inclusive and exclusive, so the term Sahih hadith aligns with this definition also

How can the ranks of Sahih relate to the categorisation of Hasan?

One opinion is that the Hasan hadith is free from weak narrators, and so is part of the Sahih category. The Sahih ahadith have multiple ranks, and the Hasan ahadith are the lowest rank of Sahih ahadith

Al Tirmidhi’s definition of Hasan

He is the first person to use the name Hasan for this elusive category.

The hadith has narrators who have not been accused of lying (متهم), the hadith does not deviate from other narrations (شاذ), and something similar to the hadith has been narrated through another chain

Issues with Al Tirmidhi’s definition of Hasan

It is undermined by how Al Tirmidhi actually uses the term when classifying ahadith, such as by pairing it with another term that would contradict this definition (e.g., Hasan Ghareeb where the narration is only known through this chain, or Hasan Sahih)

How can Al Tirmidhi’s use of ‘Hasan Sahih’ be explained?

1. The two terms are referring to the rank of two chains through which the hadith has been narrated - this is contradicted by al Tirmidhi’s use of the label ‘Hasan Sahih - this hadith is only known through this chain’

2. He uses the term Hasan in a linguistic rather than technical sense, to refer to the goodness of the content or wording of the hadith - Ibn Daqiq al Id says that if this were the case, we would call Mawdu’ ahadith Hasan, which no one does

3. Ibn Daqiq al Id’s explanation: The terms Sahih and Hasan are not mutually exclusive and the term Hasan does not necessarily inferiority to Sahih. It is only inferior if the term 'Hasan' is used on its own. For example, the characteristics of narrators have different degrees of importance. The presence of less important characteristics such as honesty and lack of suspicion justifies the label of Hasan but does not negate the presence of more important characteristics such as precision and memory which justify the label of Sahih, and vice versa. In this way, a hadith can also be labelled both Hasan and Sahih. This also means that every Sahih hadith must be Hasan - this view would explain the use of early scholars of hadith, who would refer to many ahadith considered to be Sahih as Hasan

Ibn al Jawzi’s definition of Hasan

The hadith has tolerable weaknesses and acting by it is permissible

Issues with Ibn al Jawzi’s definition of Hasan

Not precise because it does not include a rule that would distinguish tolerable weaknesses from other weaknesses

Ibn al Salah’s definition of Hasan

There are two types:

1. A hadith with unknown narrator(s) whose competency has not been verified, but the narrator is not negligent, does not make mistakes often, and has not been accused of lying. The content of the hadith is also recognised as being similar to or the same as a narration from another chain, and so is supported by it

2. The hadith with narrators who are well-known for their honesty and uprightness but do not reach the rank of the narrators of Sahih ahadith because they are inferior in memory and precision. This narrator is still higher in rank than the narrator whose solitary narration is rejected. There is also no deviation from other narrations (شذوذ) or defects (علة)

There are objections to this definition

Issues with trying to define Hasan

There is no general rule that all Hasan ahadith adhere to. There are many ahadith that scholars of hadith differ on as to whether they are Sahih, Hasan, or Da'if, and they may change their minds. A Hasan hadith has some weakness that prevents it from being unanimously elevated to the rank of Sahih, and scholars disagree on where exactly to draw the line

Definition of Da’if

A hadith that falls slightly short of the ranking of Hasan.

These are found in the Sunan (not in the Sahihayn) and in the books of jurists

The lowest levels of Hasan can be considered the highest levels of Da'if. Many average narrators fall into a grey area between the two categories

Definition of Matruh

A hadith that falls below the ranking of Da'if.

These are found in some long Musnads and in ajza' (short books), and some in Sunan Ibn Majah and Jami' Tirmidhi.

Definition of Mawdu’

A hadith whose content contradicts the principles of Islam and whose narrator is a liar

Levels of Mawdu’

1. What is unanimously agreed to be a lie. This is known by the confession of the fabricator, or having experienced lies from him in other cases

2. What most agree is a fabrication, but others say is simply a disreputable rejected hadith which we do not need to risk calling a fabrication

3. What most people agree is weak and disreputable, and some say is a lie - this minority may have this view as a result of their frequent engagement with, and expertise in, the phrasing used by the Prophet. If they see poor wording which contradicts the principles of Islam, or reckless/exaggerated exhortation, warning, or profession of virtues, and it has a murky chain, or a seemingly clear chain with a known liar and fabricator in it, then the scholar may intuit that it is made up. Among this minority, their opinions are united on the hadith.

Ibn Daqiq al Id’s opinion on the admission of the fabricator that they lied when narrating a hadith

The admission of the fabricator is sufficient to label the hadith as Mawdu', but it does make it certain that the hadith is fabricated, because it is possible that the narrator lied about having fabricated it

Imam al Dhahabi says this is needless speculation

Definition of Mursal

A hadith in which a تابعي has omitted a companion in the chain, and so says that he directly heard the Prophet SAW say the hadith

Other definitions:

1. A hadith where an elder تابعي says “the Prophet SAW said”

2. A hadith where any person, تابعي or later, says “the Prophet SAW said”

3. A hadith where a person is missing at any point in the chain

What is an elder تابعي?

A person in the generation that came after the companions. Most studied with the companions

What is a middle تابعي?

A person in the generation that came after the companions and lived a little later than the elder تابعيين. Some studied with the companions, others from the elder تابعيين.

What is a younger تابعي?

A person in the generation that came after the companions and lived a little later than the elder and middle تابعيين. Most studied from the elder تابعيين.

Explain how Mursal ahadith are generally viewed depending on the تابعي narrating them.

1. If the chain is Sahih up to the elder تابعي → hadith considered by many jurists to be authoritative

2. If the chain contains a weak narrator up to the elder تابعي → hadith considered Da’if due to the weak narrator

3. If the chain contains abandoned narrator → hadith considered weak and rejected

4. If chain is Sahih up to the middle تابعي → hadith is considered good and may be accepted or rejected

5. If the hadith is from a younger تابعي → hadith may be Mu’dal or Munqati’ because it is likely that the younger تابعي has omitted both an elder تابعي and companion from the chain

Definition of Mu’dal

A hadith whose chain has two or more people omitted from it

Definition of Munqati’

A hadith whose chain has a narrator or more missing at any point in the chain

This is rarely used as evidence. The best of these is where Malik narrates as having reached him from the Prophet SAW, because he was careful. The possibility of it having reached him is stronger than in the Mursal ahadith of certain other individuals

Definition of Mawquf

 A saying or act that is attributed to a companion (regardless of quality of chain)

Definition of Marfu’

A saying or act or passive approval or description that is attributed to the Prophet SAW (regardless of quality of chain)

Definition of Mawsul

A hadith with a connected chain and no missing individuals

Definition of Musnad

A hadith with a connected chain (Mawsul) that includes mention of the Prophet SAW (Marfu’)

Definition of Shadh

A hadith from a ثقة narrator that contradicts the ahadith of other ثقة narrators OR a hadith that is narrated solely by someone whose status is such that their sole narration can't be accepted

Definition of Munkar

A hadith that is narrated solely by a weak narrator

A hadith narrated solely by an honest person may also be considered Munkar

Definition of Ghareeb

Opposite of Mashhur - a hadith which is not well-known or is odd

Sometimes this strangeness refers to the text of the hadith and other times its chain

Definition of Tafarrud

What a narrator is alone in narrating. They could be narrating a chain or text of a hadith

This could also refer to a narrator being alone in transmitting something from a specific teacher

Definition of Musalsal

A hadith that maintains a certain characteristic at each level of its chain of narration, e.g.  repeating the phrase "I heard" or having the hadith be the first hadith that the narrator mentions to their students

Most are weak or false due to the lying of its narrators

Strongest of these are the ones where the repeated characteristics are reading Surah Saff, narrators being from Damascus, narrators being from Egypt, and the chain where the narrators are all named Muhammad up to ibn Shihab

Definition of Mu’an’an

A hadith with a chain which contains "From (عن) so and so"

Discuss the conditions of accepting a Mu’an’an hadith

1. Some say connectedness can’t be established until it is proven that the narrator actually met whoever he says he is narrating from. Others say that it is enough if there is a mere possibility that the narrator met the person (i.e. they are contemporaries). This is the opinion of Muslim

• The narrator must not be a mudallis

  • If he does not do tadlis, the chain is taken as if it were connected (muttasil)

  • If he is a mudallis, he is more likely to be considered as having not heard the narration from that person

    • If a person conceals a reliable narrator, there is no issue

    • If a person does conceals a weak narrator, he is rejected

Why is it more difficult for the متأخرون to examine ahadith compared to the متقدمون?

متقدمون could inspect original manuscripts and notes of narrators and could recognise their علل. Whereas in the time of the متأخرين, the chains had become long and people had lost the understanding of the precise meaning of certain expressions of transmission that the متقدمون had.

Definition of Tadlis

When a man narrates a hadith from a person who he did not hear it from or who he did not meet

For a hadith where a narrator may have done tadlis, explain how terms of transmission impact our consideration of the narrator.

• If he explicitly says "أخبرنا" or “حدثنا“ then he is simply a liar and this is not called tadlis

• If he uses a more ambiguous term like “عن“ or “قال“ then it is possible that he has done tadlis. The age or generation gap between the narrators is looked at to determine whether he met the person above him in the chain

  • If he has met him, then there is no tadlis

  • If the person did not meet him but it is possible that they were contemporaries, then it becomes a point of dispute as to whether they have done tadlis or not

  • If the person did not meet him and they were not contemporaries, then the hadith is Munqati' and there is no tadlis

Reasons for Tadlis

1. A person fears that if they explicitly name the person they heard the hadith from, the weakness of the teacher would be known

2. A person seeks prominence or a high-level chain, so they make it seem as if they narrated from a high ranking narrator

3. A person wants to give the impression that they had many teachers to give themselves credibility, so they use alternative or lesser known names for the same teacher, or they make it sound like they heard a hadith in a famous place, so they use a name for it that can also be applied to a less prominent area

• This is allowable, but it is better to leave it

• When a person does Tadlis by using different names in this way, it leads to ignorance regarding the reliability of the narrator because their identity is not known, which could lead to us doubting reports of his which may be sahih.

  • This is a serious problem, but it is less of an issue in Sahih Bukhari, because it's been established that its subject is only the sahih ahadith

Definition of Mudtarib

A hadith which has been narrated in different versions, such that it is defective

Explain how the nature of the defect in a potentially Mudtarib hadith impacts how it is viewed

1. If a defect is inconsequential, such as when a ثقة narrator narrates a different version than that of a weak narrator, then the hadith is not defective

2. If a consistently reliable narrator reports that a hadith is Mursal and a weak narrator reports it as connected, then it is not considered connected for two reasons - the weakness of the weak narrator and the chain being reported as Mursal by a reliable narrator

3. If a consistently reliable narrator reports a hadith in one way and other reliable narrators contradict him, then consideration is given to the what the other reliable narrators have agreed on. It is more likely that the lone narrator is mistaken. This is not a defect, we just go with the majority

4. If some narrators conflict with other narrators, and both are of the same number, and Bukhari and Muslim differ, and one is not more likelier than the other, Bukhari and Muslim will cite both versions in their books, and even more so when they differ in wording but it is possible to reconcile their meanings

5. If a group of narrators differ from each other and bring numerous versions, this weakens the hadith and indicates that its narrator did not transmit it precisely. But if this group narrates multiple chains that can be reconciled with each other, then this is not a defect

Definition of Mudraj

Wording that came from some narrators which is inserted into the text of the hadith, making it unclear to the listener that the wording is not part of the hadith itself, and there is evidence that the wording is from a narrator. This usually happens at the start or end of the text in the hadith.

For example, when there is an expression used that separates one part from another. This is a speculative method of identifying this. If the assumption is weak, then we refrain from making judgement or we consider it likely to be part of the text of the hadith

Explain the meaning of حدثنا

• Narrator heard his shaykh verbally narrate the hadith

  • Some also allowed the use of حدثنا in the case of a narrator who read the hadith to his shaykh

• حدثني refers to what a narrator hears from their shaykh alone, حدثنا refers to what a narrator hears from their shaykh along with others who also heard

Explain the meaning of سمعت

• Narrator heard his shaykh verbally narrate the hadith

  • Some also allowed the use of سمعت in the case of a narrator who read the hadith to his shaykh

• سمعنا refers to what a narrator hears from their shaykh alone, سمعت refers to what a narrator hears from their shaykh along with others who also heard

Explain the meaning of أخبرنا

• Narrator heard the shaykh verbally narrate the hadith, or narrator read the hadith to his shaykh, or someone else read the hadith to his shaykh and the narrator heard that person

• أخبرني refers to what a narrator hears from their shaykh alone

• The meaning of the word أخبر is broader than the meaning of the word حدث

  • Every تحديث is إخبار, but not every إخبار is تحديث

• Expert muhadditheen equated the term أخبرنا with حدثنا  in terms of their strength and validity because both terms are used to refer to an oral transmission (what a narrator has heard a shaykh verbally narrate, or what has been read to a shaykh that the narrator heard)

Explain the meaning of أنبأنا

• Same as حدثنا and أخبرنا but is commonly used amongst muta'akkhireen as a custom to mean that the narrator received ijazah (permission to transmit the hadith) but did not necessarily receive oral transmission of the hadith

  • Ijazah is less strong form of transmission than سماع (oral transmission)

• Surah Tahreem Ayah 3 shows how تحديث and إخبار and إنباء can be considered as synonyms of each other

Explain the meaning of قال لنا

Some consider قال لنا to indicate that the narrator received ijazah and munawalah (munawalah is when a shaykh gives their book or a physical manuscript containing the narration to the student)

Explain the meaning of قال

• It is like عن - it does not indicate connection

  • This is overlooked in the case of a companion who says قال رسول الله if the companion is one who has been ascertained to have heard the Prophet SAW say the hadith. This is considered connected

    • If he only saw the Prophet SAW, then it is possible the hadith is Mursal - this is al Dhahabi's opinion but most muhadditheen disagree and say it is always connected

    • This is the same for a tabi'iy who said قال referring to a companion, and who was known for having met that companion. It is considered connected.

Describe how tadlis can be done using different terms of transmission

• The Magharibah (regions west of Egypt) started to use أخبرنا to mean they were given Ijazah rather than oral transmission, and some even used حدثنا. This is a form of tadlis because the use of the term makes it seem as if the narrator received oral transmission of the hadith from the shaykh when they did not

• A form of tadlis is for a person to narrate قرئ على الشيخ even though he was not present to hear that hadith being read to the shaykh

  • قرئ على فلان: أخبرك فلان means "it was read to shaykh a: shaykh b informed shaykh a"

• For a narrator to say "أخبرنا فلان من كتابه", making it sound like the narrator received an oral transmission, when in reality they only received ijazah. In this case, the correct way to say it would be "أخبرنا فلان في كتابه"

• For a narrator to say "أخبرنا فلان" when he had been present as a child of 2 or 3 years old when a hadith was being read during a majlis to a shaykh instead of saying "وأنا حاضر". This presence lacks the permission of the shaykh being listened to and does not establish a connection. This presence is in fact of less strength than ijazah; ijazah is a type of connection according to the Imams.

  • The attendance of a 1 or 2 year old when it is not combined with ijazah is not considered as a connection except if the child attended the majlis of an expert in hadith who acknowledges that the child's name has been written down as having attended and heard the hadith. This serves as permission for the child to transmit the hadith.

Rank the terms of transmission

1. حدثنا، سمعت

2. أخبرنا، ذكر لنا، أنبأنا

3. عن

4. قال

• Muta'akkhireen consider أنبأنا، عن، كتب إلينا to be of the same rank

Definition of Maqlub

The reversed hadith: It is what the sheikh narrated with an incorrect chain of transmission, attaching the chain of transmission of one hadith to the text of the hadith after it, or when he narrates a hadith with the name of a narrator reversed

• If someone does it by accident, then it is minor. If someone intentionally does this, he is known as a hadith thief. This is also the case for someone who says they have heard a hadith from someone when they did not hear it

  • If a person attributes a da'if chain to a hadith whose chain is not certain, it isn't as bad as attributing a sahih chain to a hadith that does not have a sahih chain

    • The latter is a form of fabrication and innovation

  • If this is done with regards to halal and haram, then it is a grave sin

  • If this is done with regards to oral transmission and claiming to hear a juz' or book that one did not hear, it is just a lie against the shuyookh, but not against the Prophet SAW

Explain تحل

Receiving a narration

• عدالة not condition for receiving a narration. It is only a condition for transmitting it

  • If a عادل narrator narrates a hadith he heard when he was a disbeliever, sinner, or child, his hearing of the hadith is valid

  • The muhadditheen agreed that if a person is at least 5 years old when they hear a narration, then it is classed as a سماع. Any age below that would be حضور.

    • But there is no evidence in support of this stipulation regarding age. What is considered is a person's ability to comprehend and discern the text of the hadith they heard when at that age

Issue 1

• It is allowed to modify the chain of a hadith by using synonyms (maintaining the meaning) when you are narrating it from the author of the book/ juz' that contains the hadith

  • It is disliked by some to add extra details like titles of narrators, dates of hearing, or who exactly read to whom

• It is not allowed to modify the chain or text of a hadith when you are narrating from the book/ juz' itself, and not the author

  • Ibn Daqiq al Id said: Is this prohibition obligatory or recommended? Some believed it to be wajib not to modify it, while they allowed modification when simply narrating from the author, saying that a person has no right to alter an author's written work, but this statement is weak.

  • Ibn Daqiq al Id says: Taking a hadith from a book/ juz' and including it in one's own compilation with modifications does not constitute changing the original book

    • Imam al Dhahabi said: This is not allowed, except if you are cutting a long hadith into parts, or combining multiple ahadith which share the same chain, such that he says "and with this chain to the Prophet SAW…"

Issue 2

• Some muhadditheen allowed the narrator's use of سمعت to refer to them reading the hadith to their teacher, or hearing another person read the hadith to their teacher

  • This goes against the technical meaning of the term سمعت but it could also be considered a type of رواية بالمعنى

    • This is how historians have used سمعت - merely to convey oral transmission

Issue 3

If a person quotes a single hadith from a nuskha and preserves the exact wording of it, this is permissible according to consensus. Otherwise, the muhadditheen allow permissible variations in wording

Issue 4

• It is allowed to shorten a hadith, quote an excerpt of it, or split it into parts, as long as doing so does not change its meaning

  • It is allowed to say the text of the hadith before mentioning the chain, and vice versa

Issue 5

• If a person cites a hadith with a chain, then follows that with another chain and says "مثله" to mean that the wording of the hadith for this chain is the same as that of the previous one, this is allowed if the person doing it is an expert muhaddith who is able to discern the wording

  • If the wording differs but the meaning is the same, the person can say  نحوه، بمعناه، or بنحو منه

Issue 6

• If a person says حدثنا فلان مذاكرة (in a review session), this indicates some weakness, because there is leniency in review sessions

• Another kind of leniency is when a person hears ahadith without comparing his record of what he has heard against what the teacher has actually said (i.e., without taking notes or making corrections to his record)

  • If this person often makes mistakes, his transmission from the teacher is not accepted

    • In cases where it is, the correct parts are separated from the incorrect parts

  • If this person rarely makes mistakes, his transmission from the teacher, but he is not allowed to then narrate from the teacher's original manuscript

Manners of the Narrator

1. It is essential that a student of knowledge correct their intention

• Whoever seeks ahadith to accumulate ahadith, to boast, to narrate, to obtain positions of authority, or to be praised for his knowledge has lost

  • Whoever seeks ahadith for the Akhirah will find that knowledge will open their heart and make them submit to Allah SWT, increasing their humility

• Whoever seeks ahadith for the sake of Allah SWT, to act by them, to gain closeness to Allah SWT by frequently sending prayers and blessings upon the Prophet SAW, and to benefit others has succeeded

  • Whoever seeks ahadith for the Dunya will become arrogant, boastful, and tyrannical, and will disdain common Muslims. He will be reduced to lowness and vileness

2. A muhaddith should hope that he is included as being among those about which the Prophet SAW said: "May Allah SWT make radiant those who hear my sayings and remember them, and transmit them to those who did not hear them"

3. A muhaddith should dedicate themselves to teaching good students, especially if he is the only one who has this knowledge or if he is their only teacher

4. A muhaddith should refrain from narrating when he has reached old age and mental decline

• While he is healthy, he should give his family and trusted brothers the instruction to prevent him from narrating if he shows signs of mental decline

• Whoever's memory declines when he has a few ahadith that he has mastered due to having a lot of experience or familiarity with them, it is okay for them to narrate those during the period of his mental decline

• It is okay if a person gives ijazah for his narrations during the period of his mental decline, if his precise original manuscript has not changed and he remembers what he is giving ijazah for. But if he becomes confused and senile, ijazah cannot be taken from him

5. A muhaddith should not narrate ahadith in the presence of someone who is more qualified than him, due to his age or mastery, and he should not narrate a hadith that someone else present has a higher chain for

6. A muhaddith should not deceive beginners, but should guide them to the most important knowledge and teachers, because this religion is based on sincerity

• If he guides them to a senior person who may not be a scholar but who has a short, high chain, and he knows that the students struggle to understand the narrations of the senior, he should either recommend them to a scholar whose reading of the hadith they can hear, or the muhaddith should attend the senior's lectures himself and narrate with his lower chain; in this way, the students get the benefit of both receiving the higher chain and learning from a scholar

7. It is narrated that Imam Malik used to shower before giving ahadith, would apply incense and perfume himself, and wear good clothes, and would maintain dignity and composure, and rebuke those who raised their voices

8. A Muhaddith should also recite ahadith with the proper tone

• In al Dhahabi's time, people had become lax and started to rush this to a reprehensible extent, obscuring, stuttering, and slurring words together

  • This kind of سماع is no better than receiving ijazah. At least with ijazah, there is honesty. If you rush through the ahadith without fully hearing what's being said, and then claim حدثنا, this is simply a lie

9. The expert muhadditheen used to hold sessions for dictation

• These would help ensure the clarity of the words for both the person being heard and those who are listening to him

10. Muhadditheen should avoid narrating ahadith that are difficult for common people to understand. If he does narrate them, he should do it only in specific gatherings where people of understanding are present

11. Muhadditheen are not allowed to narrate mawdu' or matruh ahadith except if they make the status of these ahadith clear to the listeners to warn them of these ahadith

Explain the meaning of ثقة

• قة -> a person who many have deemed reliable and none have deemed weak

  • Among groups of the muta'akhireen: common to use ثقة to refer to narrators who have not been criticised, whose identities are known, but not their status (مجهول الحال = مستور). We refer to these individuals as محله الصدق and they may be called شيخ

    • Their use of the term مجهول does not mean مجهول بالعين because if it did, it would be better for them not to use them as evidence

    • If a great ثبت narrator narrates from مجهول العين then the مجهول العين's status is strengthened

      • Some muhadditheen use this individual as evidence, including Nasa'iy and Ibn Hibban

  • The level below ثقة: a person who has not been deemed reliable or weak

  • If a person is included in sahihayn -> they are deemed ثقة

  • If a person's hadith is deemed to be sahih by Tirmidhi or Ibn Khuzayma -> they are good

  • If a person's hadith is deemed to be sahih by Daraqutni or al Hakim -> his hadith is at least hasan

• Sources of knowing thiqah narrators: Tareekh al Bukhari, Tahdheebul Kamal, Ibn Abi Hatim, Ibn Hibban

Explain the requirements and subsequent ranking of different types of narrators

• Narrator -> عدالة (moral uprightness, integrity)

• ثقة (reliable) narrator -> عدالة، ضبط، إتقان (accuracy and precision)

  1. ثقة ثقة

  2. ثقة حافظ

  3. ثقة متقن

  4. ثقة عارف، حافظ صدوق

  5. ثقة (a person who is not حافظ , is moderately knowledgeable, but is vigilant) -> this is most of the narrators in sahihayn -> it is not a condition for ثقة that the narrator never make mistakes, because nobody is infallible

     • If a thiqah tabi'iy is alone in narrating a hadith -> it is included in sahihayn

     • If a tab' thiqah tabi'iy is alone in narrating a hadith -> it may be included in sahihayn or not

       • Critics hesitate to attach غرابة to the label of صحيح for these

       • Some حفاظ have called some sole narrations from narrators in this category munkar

     • If a teacher of one of the Imams (Bukhari, Abu Dawud, Muslim) is alone in narrating a hadith -> it is munkar

       • If a person continues to narrate munkar afraad ahadith, he is criticised, and his ahadith are deemed weaker, and the حفاظ hesitate to call him ثقة

         • If he retracts his narrations and stops narrating them, and acknowledges his mistake, that is better for him and his عدالة is strengthened

  6.  A person who has not been deemed ثقة or weak

Explain the meaning of حافظ and the rankings of them

• حافظ (expert) -> ثقة، المعرفة، الإكثار (extensive knowledge and accumulation of many ahadith)

  • The حفاظ can be divided into 3 levels. Each level is further divided into generations

    • Highest level

      • Abu Hurayra

      • Among the tabi'een

      • Among the younger tabi'een

      • Among the tab' tabi'een

      • …

      • Bukhari, Abu Dawud, Muslim

    • 2nd highest level

      • A group of the companions and tabi'een

    • 3rd highest level

      • Many companions, many tabi'een and tab' tabi'een

  • مفاريد الحفاظ:

    • If a hafidh tabi'iy is alone in narrating a hadith -> it is sahih

    • If a hafidh tab' tab'ieen is alone in narrating a hadith -> it is sahih ghareeb

    • If a hafidh student of a tab' tabi'een is alone in narrating a hadith -> ghareeb fard (فرد) -> but this is rare

Explain the types of narrators Bukhari and Muslim included in their books

1. Those who they used as evidence in their original manuscripts

   • Those who both or one used as evidence AND they were not deemed thiqah or criticised -> he is thiqah, his hadith is strong

   • Those who both or one used as evidence AND they were criticised ->

     • If the criticism is overly harsh or personal AND most deem him to be thiqah -> his hadith does not fall from being hasan. The shaykhan did not use weak narrators as evidence, only those whose ahadith were hasan or sahih

2. Those who they used for corroboration, supporting evidence, or consideration

   • Some had questionable memory and there is doubt in deeming some of them to be thiqah

• Every person included in the sahihayn is of a certain standard and cannot have their reliability removed except if there is a clear proof to indicate otherwise

Explain the narrators who are not included in the books of Bukhari and Muslim

• Those whose ahadith Tirmidhi and Ibn Khuzayma declared to be sahih

• Those who Nasa'iy, Ibn Hibban, and others narrated from

• Those who no one declared to be weak and whose narrations these musannifeen used as evidence

 

• Different moderate expressions have been used to refer to them, e.g., فلان ثقة، فلان صدوق، فلان لا بأس به

  • These expressions are all good- they don't weaken these narrator's ahadith, but they don't strengthen them to the level of complete, unanimous sahihness

    • Many of them waver between being used or not being used as evidence

  • There are some about whom musannifoon have said "ليس بالقوي" but they still used him as evidence, like Nasa'iy -> in this case, he said that this remark is not a discrediting criticism

Explain what is required of a person who evaluates narrators

• Discussing narrators requires complete piety, freedom from biases and prejudices, and thorough experience with ahadith and their defects and their narrators

• There are also errors in judgment which happen due to the critic's lack of piety and their reliance on suspicion or conflicting circumstantial evidence. A critic must have knowledge and God-consciousness, and because it is difficult to find these conditions united in people who vouch for the reliability of a narrator, the dangers in the practice of jarh and ta'deel have become significant

• Among later scholars, it has also become common to criticise others out of ignorance of the ranking of different sciences. The pre-Islamic sciences have spread, some with truth in them and others with falsehood. A critic needs to be able to distinguish between truth and falsehood so that he does not wrongly declare someone to be a disbeliever or accept the narration of a disbeliever.

• It requires assigning proper weight to expressions that scholars have used to praise and criticise narrators, and to conflicting expressions

• The most important thing is to know, through thorough examination, the established practice of eminent scholars, their terminology, and their intentions when using certain expressions

  • When Bukhari says سكتوا عنه, it might seem like he means they were neither praised nor criticised. He actually means their ahadith were abandoned

  • When Bukhari says فيه نظر, he means they were accused of lying or were not thiqah, which is worse than being da'if

  • When Abu Hatim says ليس بالقوي, he means the narrator did not reach the status of being strong and reliable

  • When Bukhari says ليس بالقوي, he means that the narrator is da'if

Explain how a person’s aqeedah can affect the acceptance of their ahadith

• If criticism is based on a person's aqeedah rather than their memory or errors for example, then this is of different levels:

  1. The one whose innovation is severe

     1. Like the extreme Khawarij, the Jahmiyyah and the Rawafid

  2. The one whose innovation is less severe

     1. Like the Shi'as and Murji'ism

and

1. The one who promotes his innovation

2. The one who does not promote his innovation

 

• If the narrator practises severe innovation and promotes it, you should not take ahadith from him

• If the narrator's innovation is less severe and they do not promote their innovation, his ahadith are taken and accepted

• If a narrator is of a sect that allows lying to support their opinions, it is more preferable to reject his ahadith

Is the narration of a person who innovates accepted if it is a narration that supports his innovation?

Ibn Daqiq al Id: Whoever believes that the narration of one who is accused of lying should be rejected, should also reject this narrator.

According to ibn Daqiq al Id, what should be done regarding the person who promotes his innovation and narrates ahadith

Whoever openly promotes his innovation should have their narration abandoned as a humiliation, and to suppress their school of thought, except if he is alone in narrating that hadith. In that case, we would consider his oral transmission.

We should also examine the status of the critic in relation to that of the one being criticised, considering their biases.

If it is apparent that the critic is biased, and the one being criticised is found to be thiqah from another perspective, then the critic is disregarded

If the one being criticised is not found to be thiqah from another perspective, then you should approach his narration with caution

What is the field of al Mu’talif and al Mukhtalif?

A field around names which are written the same without dots or vowels (مؤتلف) but are pronounced differently (مختلف)