What is Ilm Al Hadith (Science of Hadith) Monday, March 2, 2020

Define Ilm Al Hadith (Science of Hadith)

Ilm al hadith means Science of Hadith, which refers to the Knowledge of the scrutiny of hadith literature. Basically every hadith has a chain (isnad) of narrators that are going all the way back to the Prophet ﷺ. Studying biography of each narrator in a chain who transmits the hadith, in addition to comparing it with other chains of that same hadith, if any, including studying linguists of text as well as circumstances involved when particular hadith was narrated and others factors involved in recording are all included in the subject of ilm al hadith. There exists a few common misconceptions that the collection of hadith took place many years, in most cases 200 years, after the Prophet's death or that its initial collection was started by the students of the companions, and Prophet Muhammad ﷺ and his companions never supported or indulged in this activity. Such misconceptions are false because there is evidence that hadith were being collected during the Prophet's life (discussed in subsequent posts) and in fact the foundation and practice of Ilm Al hadith (Science of Hadith) was initiated by his companions, in a more organized manner especially during the rule of Umar ibn Khattab (r.a), the 2nd successor of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ.

Foundation of Ilm Al Hadith (Science of Hadith)

Umar (r.a) was the first to realize the necessity of the proper sifting of the hadith narrations. Those who narrated any hadith were required to produce some witnesses in support of the tradition. In this way a rich corpus of Hadith was built up. Umar (r.a) classified the traditions in two broad categories. One category of traditions pertained to religious, moral and social affairs pertaining to the community at large. The other traditions revolved round the person of the Holy Prophet ﷺ and pertained to his words and deeds as a human being i.e. the Prophet's Sunnah. Umar (r.a) distinguished between these two categories.[1] All matters falling in the first category were binding and had the status of law. Umar (r.a) evolved the following principles on the basis of which the traditions were to be accepted:

(1) The report should be literally faithful;

(2) Every Hadith narrated should carry with it the name of the narrator and the chain of narrators;

(3) The narrators must be men of proven faith and integrity;

(4) In judging the veracity of a report the occasion and circumstances involved should be taken into consideration;

(5) The report should not be repugnant to the Holy Quran;

(6) The report should be rational.

Subsequent Developments in Ilm Al hadith (Science of Hadith)

By the end of 1st century Hijrah (100 AH - 720 CE) majority Companions passed away leaving their compilations behind including the framework and process for hadith evaluation taught to Tabi’een (their students). However this process needed to be a bit more supervised especially to avoid and separate the unauthentic traditions that began circulation in subsequent years. Therefore, during the rule of Umar bin Abdul Aziz (r.a) (717 - 720 CE), one of the Ummayad Caliphs (also known as 2nd Umar due to his piety), ordered the collection of ahadith on a large scale. He assigned learned scholars and hadith experts of Madinah such as Abu Bakr Ibn Hazam (Qadi of Madinah) and famous Ibn Shihab al-Zuhri, who were also students of Prophet's companions, Ayesha (r.a) and Anas bin Malik (r.a), expert hadith specialists and teachers. During the mid of 2nd century Hijrah (150 AH), hadith centers came to exist and scholars like Imam Malik (Died 179 AH) and Sufyan Thauri (Died - 168 AH) and several others opened their centers to teach hadith with rules as laid down by their predecessors.

In subsequent years rules of hadith collection were expanded and further conditions were added such as ilm al rijal (names of narrators and their biographies) and each hadith that included a chain (isnad) of narrators was classified based on the reliability of the narrators such as their piety, intelligence, if they were of forgetful nature, or if they were known to ever have lied. It was based on the strength of the narrators is how each hadith came to be classified with a status such as Dhaeef (weak), Sahih (authentic), Mutawattur (narrated through several chains), Hassan (good - lesser than Sahih), Ghareeb (strange due to some interruption in chain). Based on each status later compilations were made such as Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim, with sahih meaning they are very authentic due to evaluation involved in their chains. One of the authors of Hadith book comments on this unique process: “Every Muhaddith (hadith expert) even today, when describes a hadith, he suffixes it with a specific name of a hadith denoting its level of authenticity (such as ‘Hassan’ or ‘Sahih’), then quotes the book of hadith where its documented (such as Musnad of Ahmad) and then prefixes it with an unbroken chain of narrators spreading over the last 1400 years through whom he received the hadith. No other religion, nation, party or even small group of people can show the parallel of what early Muslims did to ensure the authenticity of hadith and Sunnah.”[2]

In subsequent centuries scholars studied these ahadith, added their comments to explanations given by their teachers and developed upon the wisdom and knowledge, resulting in science of Fiqh (practices/ruling) & Shariah (Islamic law). It is extremely sad to see that today many Muslims doubt the authenticity process of all hadith or some of it, without researching. And worst is that some even compare the uniquely systematic collection of this literature with collection of Christian Gospels that clearly lacked any consistent methodology and process in its compilation.

References:

[1] Masud-ul-Hasan, Professor. 1982. "Khalifa bin al-Khattab - Hadith and Fiqh." Alim - The world's most useful Islamic software. Accessed 03 05, 2019.  . (Masud-ul-Hasan 1982)

[2] Kazi, Mazhar. April 1, 2007. Guidance from Hadith & Sunnah. Al-Huda Publications - (Kazi April 1, 2007)

[Courtesy of  Zaid Shah | Rizqan Kareem | Most Excellent Sustenance]

The Quran on Jihad as Struggle vs Jihad as Fighting Sunday, March 1, 2020

Jihad means striving and struggle in the way of Allah ﷻ. Jihad does not mean to kill. Qitaal means to kill. The majority of Verses on Jihad mentioned in the Quran are not associated with Qitaal. The only Surah that mentions Jihad with Qitaal is Surah Taubah (chapter 9) and that also in regards to lawful defensive war and not aggression. Sheikh Irshad Soofi Siddiqui Chishti of South Africa, in his book Madinah to Karbala, mentions the following facts about Jihad and its revelation in the Quran: “There are 35 verses of the Holy Quran which contain the word Jihad ﺟﻬﺎﺩ or its derivatives. Of the 35 verses of the Holy Quran which contain the word Jihad ﺟﻬﺎﺩ or its derivatives, not a single verse contain Jihad ﺟﻬﺎﺩ as suggesting aggressive fighting and killing. Not a single verse combines the word Jihad ﺟﻬﺎﺩ with qitaal (killing) fighting or warfare. This is with regard to the text of the Holy Quran. Putting the 35 verses which deals with Jihad ﺟﻬﺎﺩ into context, 30+ verses have no context or connection with fighting or warfare. There are only few verses which mention the word Jihad with Qitaal. They possess the context of lawful defensive warfare and they all appear in one chapter (Surah). They are in the 9th Surah, at-Tawbah (Repentance) and they refer to a lawful defensive war.”[1]

Many Quranic verses that contain the word Jihad were revealed in Makkah during the 1st ten years of Prophet’s preaching, and in Makkah the Prophet and His Companions never engaged in any combats. In fact they bore the persecution patiently. For example the following Verses revealed in Makkah contain the word Jihad and the context in which they were revealed has nothing to do with fighting or Qitaal. In the following Verse Allah ﷻ advises the believers to strive with the Quran (i.e. using knowledge as your weapon) and even refers to such struggle as Jihad Kabeera i.e. Great Struggle: … but strive hard against them, by means of this [Quran], with utmost striving (Jihad Kabeera)."[2] In the following Verse Allah ﷻ mentions that doing good and righteous deeds are a Jihad (struggle) His path: "...But We shall be sure to guide to Our ways those who strive hard (jahadoo) for Our cause: God is with those who do good.."[3[ Similar verses that mention Jihad (struggle), majority of them in the Quran are not in reference to Qitaal or killing, but inspire the believers to struggle in the way of righteousness and keep patience at what they experience when struggling, because suffering brings them spiritually closer to Allah ﷻ and impacts their enemies by making them realize their own errors. However, as a last resort if the enemy is hell bent on eliminating the believers and Islam, then in such extreme scenario there is room to Jihad (struggle) and fight the enemy for the sake of defending one's honor and faith.

References:

[1] Chishti, Irshad Soofi Siddiqui. 2010. Madinah to Karbala Holy Blood on Unholy Hands Volume One. Abd al-Qadir Soofi Publications - (Chishti 2010)

[2] Al Quran 25:52 - Asad Translation

[3] Al Quran 29:69 - www.Quran.com

[Courtesy of  Zaid Shah | Rizqan Kareem | Most Excellent Sustenance]

Hadith Collections in Early Islam

​Hadith are the Prophetic words and Sunnah are the Prophet's actions. Alongside memorizing and writing the Quran, many companions of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ memorized and copied his hadith and sunnah in to writing format, especially those that had very close interactions with him and spent more time with his blessed personality. The companions memorized and collected the Prophetic traditions when accompanying him, and after his passing away learned those that were missed from other more learned companions.

The collection of Abu Bakr (r.a)

According to Ayesha (r.a), Abu Bakr (r.a) had originally a collection of over five hundred traditions, and he deposited the compilation with her for custody. Ayesha (r.a) relates that one night she noticed that Abu Bakr (r.a) felt very restless. He tossed about in the bed, and could not sleep. Ayesha (r.a) got worried whether he was suffering or was worried. He made no reply, but remained restless throughout the night. The following morning he asked Ayesha (r.a) to bring him the collections that he had deposited with her. She brought the compilation and he set fire to it. On the inquiry of Ayesha (r.a), Abu Bakr (r.a) explained his conduct: "The collection contained many traditions that I had heard from other people. I thought that if I died and left behind traditions accepted by me as sahih (authentic), but really not so, then I would have to answer for that."[1] Thus Abu Bakr (r.a) collected himself and in fact did not condemn in any way this act of collecting traditions but burned them only due to fear of personal accountability before Allah ﷻ, if even one of them resulted in being incorrect. Therefore its not the collection he disliked but his personal accountability due to deep consciousness of Allah ﷻ that he feared.

Hadith collection during Umar's rule

It was during his rule that Umar (r.a) laid the foundation for the practice of ilm al hadith (science of hadith), process used for the hadith preservation by subsequent generations of Islamic scholars. The practice with Umar (r.a) was that if any new problem cropped up, he announced the issue in the public assembly, and inquired if any of them remembered any tradition of the Holy Prophet ﷺ on the subject. Those who narrated any tradition were required to produce some witnesses in support of the tradition. If such statement was duly corroborated and was in accordance with the spirit of the Quran as well as common sense it was adopted and applied to the facts of the case in hand. In this way a rich corpus of Hadith was built up. To read more on the agreed principles for acceptance of a hadith in his era please read: ​What is Ilm Al Hadith (Science of Hadith).

Hadith collections by prominent sahabas (companions)

​Its stated the Abu Ayyub Ansari (r.a), the famous Ansari companion, traveled for a month’s journey to Egypt listen to a hadith of the Prophet ﷺ directly from its narrator Uqba ibn Amir (r.a) who said that Prophet ﷺ said: “Whoever cover the faults of the believer Allah will cover his faults on Judgment day.” (Bukhari & Muslim). After hearing he did not even change his saddle of the horse and immediately left to come back. Jabir bin Abdullah (r.a) went a month’s journey from Madinah to Syria to secure authenticity of a tradition from Abdullah ibn Amr (r.a) as Abdullah used to himself write hadith. Abdullah (r.a) reports: "I used to write everything i heard from the Messenger (saw) as i wanted to Preserve it. The Quraish forbade me, saying "Do you write down everything that you hear (from him) and The Messenger ﷺ is a human being who sometimes speaks in anger and joy? (that is that he may say something emotionally that may not be worth writing)." So I stopped. Then i mentioned this to Allah's Messenger ﷺ. He pointed with his finger to his mouth and said "Write! By the One in Whose Hand is My Life! Nothing comes out of it (His Mouth) except the Truth!" [2]

Said ibn Al Musayyib (r.a) used to travel days and nights to listen to a single hadith from its original narrator. It is on record that companions like Ali ibn Abi Talib (r.a), Abu Huraria (r.a) and other companions collected their own sahifa (scripture) of Prophetic Hadith such as:

• Sahifah (scripture) of Ali ibn Abu Talib (r.a)
• Sahifah of Abdullah ibn Abi Auf (r.a)
• Nuskah of Samurah Jundab (r.a)
• Kitab of Abu Huraira (r.a)
• Sahifah of Jabir Bin Abdullah (r.a) [3]

It was these books from which was derived most of the hadith literature later found in the authentic collections that we famously know today as Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawud, Ibn Majah, Tirmidhi etc.

References:

[1] Masud-ul-Hasan, Professor. 1982. "Khalifa Abu Bakr - Mushaf, Hadith, Tasawwuf, Fiqh, and Poetry." Alim - The world's most useful Islamic software. Accessed 03 05, 2019. . (Masud-ul-Hasan 1982)

[2] Sunan Abu Daud of Imam Abu Daud, Hadith #3161

[3] Kazi, Mazhar. April 1, 2007. Guidance from Hadith & Sunnah. Al-Huda Publications - (Kazi April 1, 2007)

[Courtesy of  Zaid Shah | Rizqan Kareem | Most Excellent Sustenance]

The Prophet's Authority in Islam Thursday, January 23, 2020

In Islam a Muslim Believer has to accept whatever decisions Allah ﷻ and His Prophet ﷺ has already made for them and they know better for the believers than the believers know whats better for themselves and that is the essence of Imaan (Islamic faith): "It is not for a believing man or a believing woman, when Allah and His Messenger have decided a matter, that they should [thereafter] have any choice about their affair."[1] When Allah ﷻ says He has made a decision, and His Messenger has made a decision, then as believers we do not differ as that could impact our Imaan. 

In another verse of the Quran we are informed of the Prophet's status in relation to the Quran and how significant are his teachings: “Allah did confer a great favor on the Believers when He sent among them a Messenger from among themselves, who rehearses to them the Signs (Verses) of Allah, purifies them, instructs them in Scripture, and teaches them Wisdom, whereas previously they had been in plain error.”[2] The words "purifies them", "instructs them in scripture", "teaches them wisdom" implies his teaching the Quran, living in accordance to the Quran, expressed in His Actions (Sunnah) and Words (Hadith) to those around him in the first instance, and then for all generations to come. 

Therefore any objection to the Prophetic teachings is an objection to the statements of Allah ﷻ in the Quran, that puts a question mark on our faith.

References:

​[1] Al Quran 33:36

[2] Al Quran 3:164

[Courtesy of  Zaid Shah | Rizqan Kareem | Most Excellent Sustenance]

What is the Importance of Hadith in Islam? Sunday, January 19, 2020

Rasool Allah ﷺ said: “From Adam to me, Allah sent a hundred and twenty-four thousand Prophets, of whom three hundred and fifteen were Messengers (i.e. entrusted with a book).” [1] A simple difference between a prophet and a messenger is that the former was chosen for prophethood but not revealed a book while the latter was not only honored with prophethood but also received a divine message which his followers collected in a book format. Apparently the hadith seems to provide no more than a figure of Prophets & Messengers that lived in the past. But if we ponder closely over the wording and ask why more prophets than messengers, we actually learn a profound lesson. It helps us gain an understanding about the very institution of prophethood. If the role of a prophet was simply to deliver the book, as some misguided people tend to argue, there should have been as many books and messengers as the prophets! But the very fact that there have been many prophets without a book firmly establishes the need for real life examples is greater than books. Real life examples are absolutely necessary as they are the prime source of inspiration just as the saying "actions speak louder than words". Its just like I have a book with info & instructions but if I do not have a teacher to teach and practically show me how to implement those teachings then most likely I am bound to make tons of mistakes. In the case of Imaan (faith) which is a matter of hereafter we need to act with utmost care, as there's even more at stake than life or death, its a matter of eternal paradise or eternal hellfire.

Many Muslims don’t realize that the 1st chapter of the Quran i.e. Surah Fatiha which we recite 17 times a day (in 5 times salaah) has the following words in one of its verses: "Guide us to the straight path. The path of those on whom You have bestowed Your grace. Not the path of those who earned your wrath and niether of those who go astray” [2] Notice that Allah ﷻ did not instruct us to recite "Guide us to the path of book or Quran", no! In fact what He has instructed us to ask to be guided on the path of “Those upon whom you have bestowed Your Grace” obviously meaning that we are asking Allah ﷻ to provide us a model, a practical example. Thus what could be best than emulating the life of the best teacher and man to ever have walked on the face of this earth: "Indeed, in the Messenger of Allah you have an excellent example..."[3] The Hadith and Sunnah literature in Islam was not just collected for historical record. What Muslims have collected is unprecedented science of knowledge which no other nation has of their Prophet. Its equivalent cannot be found in other religions. Hence the importance of this literature in the contemporary lives of the Muslims is greater than ever.

To understand how and why Allah ﷻ has declared in the Quran that Prophet Muhammad's example is the best for entire human race, please read this topic - Prophet Muhammad ﷺ: The Best Role Model For All

References:

[1] Musnad Ahmad Hadith # 21257

[2] Al Quran 1:6–7

[3] Al Quran 33:21

[Courtesy of  Zaid Shah | Rizqan Kareem | Most Excellent Sustenance]

Why Quran Often Refers to Prophet Muhammad ﷺ as a Messenger?

Originally answered on August 5, 2019 on Quora - In the Qur'an Allah says 'Obey Allah, obey the messenger'. Why did Allah use the term 'messenger' and not use the name of Muhammad?

​This is because the official designation of ‘Messenger’ as opposed to ‘Muhammad’ carries importance with the listeners so they take his authority seriously especially when it comes to revelation & guidance. Such as when a country’s President addresses the nation and makes an important decision then they are informed through official channels that ‘President has made the decision’ and not ‘xyz has made a decision’ as then the decision is coming from his position of authority and not just his person so they follow what has been decided and realize its importance. 

​Knowing the importance attached to the ‘Messenger’ designation, we may now understand why Allah ﷻ separately mentioned ‘Obey Allah’ and ‘Obey the Messenger’ in the Quran, such as the following set of ayahs (Al Quran 4:59–65). They specifically indicate Prophet’s independent authority and Allah ﷻ, in His divine wisdom, chose to give him this authority because the Prophet ﷺ came not merely to deliver a message but also explain its details using his individual wisdom and practically live accordingly to it so Muslims will always have his example as a reference for religious (and non-religious) matters if and when they require:

​(Al Quran 4:59–65) Believers! Obey Allah and obey the Messenger, and those from among you who are invested with authority; and then if you were to dispute among yourselves about anything refer it to Allah and the Messenger if you indeed believe in Allah and the Last Day; that is better and more commendable in the end….(O Messenger!) Have you not seen those who claim to believe in the Book which has been revealed to you and in the Books revealed before you, and yet desire to submit their disputes to the judgement of taghut (the Satanic authorities who decide independently of the Law of Allah)…(And tell them that) We never sent a Messenger but that he should be obeyed by the leave of Allah…But no, by your Lord, they cannot become true believers until they seek your arbitration in all matters on which they disagree among themselves, and then find not the least resistance in their hearts over what you have decided, and accept it in willing submission.

The set of ayahs from 4:59–65 and the highlighted parts indicate that Allah ﷻ approved Prophet Muhammad ﷺ authority to act independently because of his status as well as his importance as a Messenger in deciding matters required for the completion of Islam. Its compilation is found in the Hadith/Sunnah literature which holds authority after Quran.

[Courtesy of  Zaid Shah | Rizqan Kareem | Most Excellent Sustenance]

The Correct Manner of Approaching Hadith Literature Thursday, January 16, 2020

"O you who believe, do not raise your voices above the Prophet’s, do not raise your voice when speaking to him as you do to one another, or your [good] deeds may be cancelled out without you knowing." [1]

From the inception of Islam, the Muslims have received knowledge mainly through 2 primary sources and those are Quran and Hadith/Sunnah. This knowledge has been given to us for learning and practicing, however there are certain guidelines that Quran, Prophetic example and the example of the Companions teaches us when dealing and handling such knowledge. In this age of technology where information lies on our fingertips we also come across many ahadith and the apparent wording of their text makes us doubtful and we ask questions like "why does this hadith seemingly contradicts the Quran?" or "why do we feel this hadith is not right?" The hadith that seemingly contradict the Quran or appear incorrect to some minds is not due to the errors that it carries, but due to the lack of understanding that the minds carry. 

One of the salaf (earliest Muslim generation) named Ibn Uyayna (r.a) said something extremely wise about hadith literature: “Hadith are a source of misguidance to those who do not take them from its people (muhadditheen)” Muhadditheen are scholars and experts who study and carry expertise in the ilm al hadith (sciences of prophetic traditions). This means that if individual minds were to study hadith without necessary knowledge and guidance from scholars, they might very well be misguided due to the apparent wording of the text even though its supposed to guide them. Just as if a Quranic verse about a particular subject were to be taken in isolation and all other verses related to that same subject were ignored, we can make grave errors in understanding the subject. Same applies towards understanding hadith that are recorded in several books. If we pick one and try to understand in isolation then there is a great chance of us misunderstanding the lesson being given, as we did not consult other books of tradition that might carry part of that same lesson. 

Additionally, each prophetic hadith has a background just as each verse of the Quran has a background of its revelation. In most cases the backgrounds need to be kept in mind when understanding any particular hadith. To prevent these sort of mistakes is why Allah ﷻ has advised the Muslims to consult the people of knowledge: "...So ask the people of remembrance (i.e. learned), if you do not know..." - "….If they referred it (i.e the knowledge) to the Messenger and those in authority among them (i.e. the scholars), those seeking its meaning would have found it out from them. If it were not for God’s bounty and mercy towards you, you would almost all have followed Satan."[2]

References:

[1] Al Quran 49:02

[2] Al Quran 16:43 - Al Quran 4:83

[Courtesy of  Zaid Shah | Rizqan Kareem | Most Excellent Sustenance]

The Matter of Hadith Rejecters Wednesday, January 15, 2020

The Prophet ﷺ predicted hadith rejection

Narrated Al-Miqdam ibn Ma'dikarib (r.a) that the Prophet ﷺ said: “Beware! I have been given the Quran and something like it (i.e. Sunnah & Hadith), yet the time is coming when a man replete on his couch will say: Keep to the Qur'an; what you find in it to be permissible treat as permissible, and what you find in it to be prohibited treat as prohibited.” [1]

The prophetic hadith predicts the appearance of such persons among the Muslims who will openly reject the hadith and challenge them while sowing doubts in the hearts of others of their soundness. Such people have come to appear in our times who proudly refer to themselves as "Ahle Quran" i.e. the people of the Quran, a misleading term because they are not identified by affirming the Quran but by the rejection of hadith. If they were truly affirming the Quran then there is no dearth of ayahs in the Quran that explicitly say to "follow the Prophet" or "obey him" or "take whatever he gives’"etc. Therefore the correct term for them would be Munkareen e Hadith i.e. those who reject hadith or Hadith Rejecters.

Please note that these Hadith Rejecters are not one type, they are 3 main types. The flagship of misguided groups is that they are prone to further divisions. Khalid Baig, an Islamic writer from South Africa has divided them in to 3 Groups and explains each:

1. The first group holds that the job of the Prophet ﷺ was only to deliver the Quran. We are to follow only the Quran and nothing else, as were the Prophet's companions. Further, Hadith is not needed to understand the Quran, which is sufficient for providing guidance.
2. The second group holds that the Companions were required to follow the Prophet ﷺ but we are not as we're not the companions.
3. The third group holds that, in theory, we also have to follow Hadith but we did not receive Hadith through authentic sources and therefore we have to reject all Hadith collections.

First Group

How can this group hold the first position yet profess belief in the Quran while it clearly says: "And We have sent down unto You the Message so that you may explain clearly to mankind what was sent down to them, and so that they may give thought."[2] "Allah did confer a great favour on the Believers when He sent among them a Messenger from among themselves, who rehearses unto them the Signs of Allah, purifies them, instructs them in Scripture, and teaches them Wisdom, whereas previously they had been in plain error."[3] Verses like these clearly mentions words like "explain clearly", "instructing them in scripture" which anyone with common sense would agree as to be Prophets words and actions.

Second Group

How can anyone hold the second group's position, limiting the Prophethood to 23 years, yet profess belief in the Quran, while it says: "We did not send you except as Mercy for entire universe."[4] "And We have not sent you (O Mohammad) except as a giver of good news and a warner to all mankind."[5] These 2 Verses mention that Prophet ﷺ was sent to all generations i.e. for the past, present and future generations, so if he was alive and explaining the early generation to whom he was sent then naturally for the upcoming generations would be his hadith or words as he himself would not be present, simple.

Third Group

The Third group's position is that since they didn't receive the hadith then how can they follow it? This obviously is contradicting because the people who collected the Quran are the same people who collected hadith, hadith has come to us through the same channel as Quran i.e. Companions of the Prophet. Since Allah ﷻ has promised to protect the Quran (Al Quran 15:09) then if the same Allah orders us to 'Obey the Prophet' in the Quran, don't you think He would preserve sources of Prophetic words? After all who inspired the early Muslims to compile the Prophet’s words and actions in a systematic way through a branch of knowledge that we know today as science of hadith (ilm al hadith). This effort of their’s is unparalleled as compared to achievements of all other non-Muslim nations and their scholars. No doubt they could not have succeeded in it had it not been Allah’s will. It should be common sense for a Muslim believer.

How did Hadith Rejecters appear?

The hadith rejection concept was alien to the Muslims till about 150 years ago when Muslims were colonized. This was the first time that the majority of Muslim world came under domination of such powers that were secular in their approach towards everything, even education. When their way of life came to dominate the Muslim world amid the weakening of the Ottoman Empire then the new Muslim generation influenced by the way of life of the West was inspired to believe that the only way to have success in this world materially is by abandoning the traditional Islamic knowledge of their ancestors as the Western people have done of their’s after Renaissance. Hadith knowledge was seen as an obstacle by some modern Muslim thinkers inspired by secular philosophies. This led towards them promoting this theory that Muslims do not need hadith if they choose to be "developed". The efforts to reinterpret the Islamic texts led towards birth of many confusions among Muslims which are still observable. Hadith rejection is one of such confusions of which the Prophet ﷺ warned us more than 14 centuries ago.

References:

[1] Sunan Abi Dawud 4604 - www.Sunnah.com

[2] Al Quran 16:44

[3] Al Quran 3:164

[4] Al Quran 21:107

[5] Al Quran 34:28

[Courtesy of  Zaid Shah | Rizqan Kareem | Most Excellent Sustenance]

The Systematization of Hadith & Fiqh Wednesday, January 1, 2020

Fiqh means the practices and rulings of Islam deducted by Islamic scholars from Quran and Hadith, the 2 primary sources of guidance. The need for systematization of Islamic knowledge such as Fiqh (practices and rulings) and other sciences such as ilm al hadith (sciences of hadith), Tasawwuf (science of spirituality) and all related subjects came to be developed later due the need of time.

During the Prophet's life, his example was right in front of the companions and whenever verses of Quran were revealed they were direct witnesses to it. Therefore the companions had direct access and first hand experience of the revelation process and its implementation unlike Muslims of the later centuries. They not only witnessed but also recorded them. Additionally they were a smaller community, concentrated in to one large group within the 2 major cities of Islam i.e. Makkah and Madinah. If any companion erred or forgot about a particular practice or ruling of the Prophet ﷺ, he was immediately corrected by the other who was living within the same community. After the passing away of the Prophet ﷺ, gradually Islam spread throughout the region and it accepted new people in to its fold. When new people entered Islam especially during the Rashidun period i.e. during rule of first 4 successors of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ (namely Abu Bakr (r.a), Umar (r.a), Uthman (r.a) and Ali (r.a)) the companions also spread to different regions. There they focused on the preservation of knowledge they had learned from the Prophet ﷺ and focused on teaching to the local people. This is how schools of thought came to be developed in early Islam that were named after each companions such as school of Abdullah ibn Masud (r.a) in Kufa and Abdullah ibn Umar (r.a) in Makkah, Abu Darda (r.a) in Damascus, Muadh bin Jabal (r.a) in Palestine and other companions went other places. Therefore, the people of each town had their own set of teachings they acquired from them and were satisfied.

Later on these cities were exposed to the hadith and sunnah information of the Prophet ﷺ which was taught in other cities by other companions which led towards the developing stage of various sciences such as ilm al hadith (sciences of hadith), fiqh (rulings and practices) and better understanding of Shariah (Islamic law). This also caused the need for pious among the knowledgeable to learn more by travelling to those cities which they did and compiled books and knowledge, and taught there, which then led towards development of major schools of thoughts such as 4 (Maliki, Sha'afi, Hanbali, Hanafi) and subsequent systematic compilations of hadith books. Many of these scholars that hailed from each major city of the Islamic world were all students of the teachers who themselves were students of either those learned from the Tabi'een (second generation or students of companions) or lived longer to have claimed learning directly from the companions. Therefore this is a process of traditional knowledge which has been handed down from the time of Prophet ﷺ to later generations through medium of pious and knowledgeable ones in a systematized manner.

[Courtesy of  Zaid Shah | Rizqan Kareem | Most Excellent Sustenance]

Isnad - The Key to Hadith Reliability & Preservation Monday, December 30, 2019

Sacred status of hadith/sunnah in Islam

The primary sources of revelation in Islam are the Quran and Hadith/Sunnah. Quran explicitly orders the Muslims to obey and follow the Prophet's teaching and example when learning the book: "Allah did confer a great favour on the Believers when He sent among them a Messenger from among themselves, who rehearses to them the Signs of Allah, purifies them, instructs them in Scripture, and teaches them Wisdom, whereas previously they had been in plain error." [1] Here, and many other places in the Quran, we are informed about the importance of Hadith & Sunnah because the entire practice of the Quran and how to live by it is found in the life of the Prophet ﷺ. Since Allah ﷻ promises in ‘Al Quran 15:09’ that He has protected the message of guidance from all corruption till the day of judgment therefore His commandment to follow Prophetic teachings also hold exact same surety of protection.

The role of Isnad in hadith preservation

The hadith literature is a sacred tradition alongside Quran and the key to this sacredness lies in something called Isnad which basically means "chain of transmission". An Isnad contains a list of narrators who memorized and transmitted a hadith through a chain, that directly reaches all the way back to the sacred person of the Prophet ﷺ. For example lets say Imam Zaid memorized and wrote down a hadith he heard from his teacher Imam, who learned and memorized from his teacher a Companion, who directly met and heard from the Prophet ﷺ. Now when Imam Zaid will go and teach it to his students they will memorize the tradition, write it down and in turn will teach to their students. Through this process not only the hadith got memorized by who were taught but also transmitted from generation to generation, oral and in writing, linked with a chain that reaches back all the way to the Prophet’s sacred personality, who himself was recipient of revelation from Allah ﷻ through Angel Jibraeel (alaihi salaam). But there is one major sacred & spiritual factor guiding the isnad process. Nazim Bakhsh, quotes in his writing Shaykh Hamza Yusuf, a leading Islamic scholar, who gives an overview of how scholars have made use of Isnad process from generation to generation through something called Ijaza: "Shaykh Hamza Yusuf, has often said that isnad is the secret of this Ummah and a gift from Allah. Without isnad the entire tradition could very well collapse. The system of ijaza (teaching licenses) is intricately linked to isnad in that one takes his knowledge from noble men and women who took their knowledge from those who took their knowledge from those….all the way back to that model community (companions) and to the blessed Messenger himself, whose knowledge, without a shadow of doubt, came from the Lord of the Divine Throne through his messenger, the Angel Gibril (Gabriel), upon him be peace.” [2] Ijazas are teaching licenses given by a Sheikh, well versed and knowledgeable in Islam to those of his students whom he approves to be fit of transmitting hadith and other knowledge directly from himself. This has maintained the transmission process called isnad not only on the academic level but also on a spiritual level.

As discussed earlier, Isnad is part of a wider process called ilm al hadith (sciences of hadith), that maintains the unanimous position of the Islamic scholars who not only recorded & memorized the hadith but also scrutinized them making it clear which of them fall under category of sahih (authentic), mursal (interrupted), dhaeef (weak), munkar (rejected), mawdoo (fabricated), in terms of their chain of narrators. They were familiar with who the forgers were and who were the unknown narrators, who should not be considered fully trustworthy in the chain. All of that is due to the position and importance of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, as the seal of all the Prophets and leader of humankind. Hence it is these sacred factors that have guided the systematic process of hadith collection and preservation due to which forgeries and interpolations have not been able to be attributed to him and to be accepted by the majority consensus of Islamic scholars.

References:

[1] Al Quran 3:164 - Asad Translation

[2] Baksh, Nazim. 2015. In The Spirit of Tradition. January 5th. Accessed January 7th, 2020. 

[Courtesy of  Zaid Shah | Rizqan Kareem | Most Excellent Sustenance]

1st Century Hijrah Hadith Texts Saturday, December 28, 2019

There has been discovery of several hadith texts belonging to the 1st Century Hijrah (Islamic year) whose contents were compared by modern Muslim & Non-Muslim scholars and researchers, with the canonical collections of the 3rd century Hijrah (9th century CE) of Imam Bukhari, Imam Muslim, Imam Ahmad etc. Their findings reveal that the hadith were almost identical with no issues. Among those that were subject to such research in the recent years in particular were Sahihfa (scriptures) of Hamam ibn Munabbih and Musannaf of Abdul Razzaq of the 1st Century. Below are some of their findings which support the fact that not only were hadith being collected in the first century but also their authenticity has been proven to be correct.

Sahifah (Scripture of) Hamam Ibn Munabbih

Sahifah (Scripture of) Hammam ibn Munabbih (d. 101 AH) is perhaps one of the earliest known hadith collections, by 8th century scholar Hammam ibn Munabbih. It has been translated in the 20th century by Muhammad Hamidullah - a world-renowned Muhaddith, Faqih and scholar of Islam and International Law from Pakistan, winner of national award Hilal-e-Imtiaz in Pakistan. Hammam ibn Munabbih was the taba'een (student) of the Companion, Abu Huraira (r.a), the famous hadith transmitter. Dr Hamidullah published this Sahifa of Hammam around 1979 and it proves that hadith were collected in the Mid 1st century Hijrah. His research was also compared by orientalists such as, by R. M. Speight who mentions that: “… the texts in Hammam and those recorded in Ibn Hanbal, Bukhari and Muslim with the same isnad show almost complete identity, except for a few omissions and interpolations which do not affect the sense of the reports. On the other hand, the same ahadith as told by other transmitters in the three collections studied show a rich variety of wording, again without changing the meaning of the reports.” [1] Speight shared his analysis after comparing it (i.e., the Sahifa) with about the 1500 variant readings of the same ahadith found in the collections of Ibn Hanbal (Musnad), al-Bukhari (Sahih) and Muslim (Sahih); dating from 3rd Century Hijrah.

Musannaf Abdul Razzaq

Another book from the 1st century belonging to the famous early Muslim Muhaddith (hadith expert and teacher) named Abdul Razzaq Sanani (124 AH - 211 AH) was studied by another Western Non-Muslim writer name Harald Motzki. His analysis appeared in the Journal of Near Eastern Studies and he says that: “The works of ‘Abd al-Razzak are extremely important for the study of early Islamic jurisprudence, hadith and exegesis of the Kur’an because they contain older sources or materials which have otherwise been lost. ‘Abd al-Razzak had direct access to authors of the first extensive compilations of traditions arranged according to subject . . . like those by Ma’mar b. Rashid, Ibn Djuraydj, Sufyan al-Thawri and Sufyan b. ‘Uyayna. His own Musannaf is to a large extent compiled from materials received from these four scholars, and it is very probable that these materials came for the most part from their books. In general, ‘Abd al-Razzak’s transmission from these teachers of his seems to be reliable . . . While studying the Musannaf of `Abd al-Razzaq, I came to the conclusion that the theory championed by Goldziher, Schacht, and in their footsteps, many others - myself included - which in general, reject hadith literature as a historically reliable sources for the first century AH, deprives the historical study of early Islam of an important and a useful type of source.​” [2]

Even though as Muslim Believers we do not need the above findings to prove us the authenticity of the hadith literature, yet this confirms for us even more that the hadith of the Prophet ﷺ were collected through a science called ilm Al hadith which no doubt was an effective methodology and has produced for us results that helped Muslims guided for the past 14 centuries.

References:

[1] R. M. Speight, “A Look At Variant Readings In The Hadith”, Der Islam, 2000, Band 77, Heft 1, p. 170 

[2] H. Motzki, “al-Sanani, Abd al-Razzak b. Hammam b. Nafi, Abu Bakr al-Yamani al Himyari (IX 7a)”, in Encyclopaedia of Islam CD-ROM Edition v. 1.0

[Courtesy of  Zaid Shah | Rizqan Kareem | Most Excellent Sustenance]

Mawaqi an Nujum - The Revelation of the Quran in Stages Saturday, September 28, 2019

The Quran was revealed in every Ramadaan in Night of Laylatul Qadr for 23 years

The Quran was revealed in the month of Ramadaan in the night of Qadr (power) which majority of scholars concur happened on 27th of the Islamic holy month of Ramadaan or as few say, occurred on one of the last odd nights of Ramadaan, which are the holiest nights of this month. Firstly, the Quran confirms the fact that it was revealed in the month of Ramadaan: “It was in the month of Ramadan that the Quran was revealed as guidance for humankind, clear messages giving guidance and distinguishing between right and wrong.”[1] Then Quran claims that it was revealed in one of the holiest nights called Laylatin Mubarakah (blessed night): “We sent it down on a blessed night… in which every firm decree is made distinct.”[2] In another place, Allah ﷻ says He sent down the Quran on Laylatul Qadr (the night of power or destiny): “Behold, We revealed this (Qur'an) on the Night of Power.”[3] Based on these verses of the Quran it is confirmed that revelation of the Quran began in Ramadaan and it was a blessed night called night of Qadr (power/destiny) in which the revelation was sent.

Before the Quran was revealed in this wonderful night in Ramadaan, it was already inscribed in Lawhal Mahfuz, the preserved tablet of Allah ﷻ where all matters have been preordained and predestined for His entire creation. This fact is also mentioned in the Quran and best translated as: “NAY, I call to witness the coming-down in parts [of this Qur'an - Mawaqi an Nujum] - and, behold, this is indeed a most solemn affirmation, if you but knew it! Behold, it (Quran) is a truly noble discourse, [conveyed to man] in a well-guarded divine writing (Lawhal Mahfuz) which none but the pure can touch: a revelation from the Sustainer of all the worlds!”[4] Many English translators of the Quran, translate the term mawaqi an nujum as ‘positioning of the stars’, but some like Muhammad Asad on the authority of Ibn Abbas (r.a), prophet's foremost knowledgeable companion, said this term can also be defined as ‘the step-by-step revelation’ or ‘coming-down in parts’ in references to revelation of the Quran.

The Quran, already preserved in lawhal mahfuz, was first brought down to the lowest heaven i.e. the heaven  above the earth and from there it continued to come down in parts within a period of twenty three years of Prophet’s ministry. This process for revelation of every verse from first heaven to earth was under the protection and delivery of Allah’s angels and that is meant by the words: “none but the pure can touch (Al Quran 56:79).” As recorded in the hadith literature Ibn Abbas (r.a) explained this process in the following words: “The Quran was sent down all at once to the heaven of this world, and then God, Exalted is He, sent it down to the Prophet ﷺ in installments of five verses at a time, or more or less than this’. He has said, Glorified and Exalted is He: ‘(Al Quran 56:75–77) Nay, I swear by the setting places of the stars! — And that is indeed a tremendous oath, if you but knew — This is indeed a noble Quran’. The Quran did not come down in one month or two, nor in a year or two; the time between the first revelation and the last was twenty years, or as [many] as God willed.”[5]

Shaikh Abdul Qadir Gilani (r.a) elaborates in his work Al Ghunya al Talibeen on the description given by Ibn Abbas (r.a), how revelation began and completed within 23 year period on this same night of Qadr (Laylatul Qadr - night of power) in the same month of Ramadaan: “Allah ﷻ sent it down from the Well-Kept Tablet [al law al mahfuz] to the heaven of this lower world—to the Scribes [as-Safara], they being the clerks or secretaries among the angels. It would thus come down on that particular night, from the Tablet, to the extent that Archangel Gabriel (a.s) was to reveal it—with the permission of Allah ﷻ —to the Prophet ﷺ in the course of the whole year. The same procedure would then be applied in each subsequent year, until the entire Quran had come down, on the Night of Power [Lailat al-Qadr] in the month of Ramadaan, to the heaven of this lower world.”[6] Hence a portion of the Quran would be brought down from the highest heaven to the lowest, every year in Ramadaan in the night of Qadr (power/destiny), and that portion would subsequently be revealed throughout the year till the next night of Qadr, till completion of the Quran. 

References:

[1] Al Quran 2:185

[2] Al Quran 44:3-4

[3] Al Quran 97:1

[4] Al Quran 56:75–80

[5] Al-Tustari, Sahl bin Abdullah. 2011. Tafsir al-Tustari. Amman: Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought - (Al-Tustari 2011)

[6] Jilani, Sayyid Abd al-Qadir. n.d. "Seventh Discourse ." In Ghunya al-Talibeen, by Sayyid Abd al-Qadir Jilani. As-Sunnah Foundation of America - (Jilani n.d.)

[Courtesy of  Zaid Shah | Rizqan Kareem | Most Excellent Sustenance]