Islamic Perspectives
by
A NOTE ON TRANSLITERATION OF ARABIC WORDS: Long vowels are indicated in bold, e.g. hadith. If a word itself is in bold, the long vowels are indicated by the ordinary font, e.g. hadith. Also, note that underlining instead of dotting is used to distinguish between related letters (e.g. h and h). If a word itself is underlined, then absence of underlining indicates the letter that would otherwise be indicated by underlining, e.g. hadith. Finally, a word that has been once written with proper diacritical indicators may subsequently be written without such indicators. Thus hadith may be written simply as hadith. Diacritical indicators may also be omitted from well-known words like allah.
Contents
PART I: THE SUNNAH AND THE HADITH IN THE LIGHT OF THE QUR`AN
Chapter 1: The Qur’anic Usage of the Words “Sunnah” and “Hadith”
Chapter 2: The Message and the Messenger
Chapter 3: How Far the Sunnah is Binding
PART II: THE SUNNAH AND THE HADITH IN THE LIGHT OF THE TRADITIONS
Chapter 4:
Ahadith concerning the Role of the Sunnah and the Hadith
Chapter 5: Traditions about the Companions concerning the Role of the Sunnah and the Hadith
Chapter 6: Traditions about the Transmission, Collection, and Writing of the Hadith
PART III: HOW RELIABLE WAS THE TRANSMISSION OF HADITH
Chapter 7: Historical Traditions
Chapter 8: Widely Quoted Ahadith Known to be Unauthentic
Chapter 9: Ahadith in Recognized Collections
Chapter 10: “Sahih” Ahadith
Chapter 11: Ahadith Found in More Than One “Sahih” Collection
Chapter 12: Ahadith With the Best Possible Documentation
PART: IV: WHAT IS INVOLVED IN THE SACRED HADITH PROJECT
Chapter 13: Reviewing the Older Methodology
Chapter 14: Overcoming Some Hurdles in the Way of Reviving the Hadith
Criticism
Chapter 15:
Organizing the Hadith Project
PART II: THE SUNNAH AND THE HADITH IN THE LIGHT OF THE TRADITIONS
(Part I was published in this Journal, Vol. 4, No. 1, January-December, 2000. This part is reproduced, with minor changes by the author, from the Journal of the Muslim Research Institute, Vol. 6, No. 1, January-March, 2001)
In Part I we examined some basic questions about the Sunnah/Hadith in the light of the Qur’an. In this part we examine the same questions in the light of the traditions. Let us recall from the definitions given in the Introduction that in this book the term “tradition” covers both the reports about the Prophet (Hadith) and the reports about other early Islamic personalities and communities. It is helpful to look at all the traditions, especially those pertaining to the time of the companions, because the teachings and orders of the Prophet created a certain understanding among the companions and by looking at the traditions we can determine some of that understanding which in turn throws light on the message of Islam itself.
That the way the revelation was understood by the Prophet and his first followers is decisive in determining the meaning of the revelation is fairly clear but some Qur’an-only Muslims confuse the issue a little by saying that the Qur’anic revelation transcends any particular time and place, including the time and place of the Prophet and the companions, and hence its fuller understanding is an unending and gradual process. An implication of this is that it is possible for us to understand the Qur’an better than the Prophet and the companions. But from the Qur’anic verses discussed in Part I it is clear that the Prophet’s understanding of the revelation is decisive and is the norm for Muslims. And since the companions were the first eyewitnesses of what the Prophet taught and did, their testimony becomes decisive in determining the Prophet’s understanding of the revelation. It is possible that in case of some verses about Nature our understanding can increase with time by scientific development, but it is inconceivable in the light of the Qur’an that we can know better the religious teachings of Islam than did the Prophet and his companions, especially when it comes to the basic questions of the type we are concerned with in this book, e.g., is the Sunnah/Hadith a source of Islam, is it revelatory, does it have an authority exactly like that of the Qur’an, and to which extent it is binding?
Interestingly, some of the more compelling arguments of the Qur’an-only people are not based on the Qur’an but on the Hadith – yes, the very Hadith that they so vehemently reject. From the Hadith and the other traditions it becomes clear (see Chapter 6) that the Prophet and the companions did not consider it necessary to produce authoritative comprehensive collections of the Hadith for the guidance of the people, which is incomprehensible if the Hadith or the Sunnah is viewed as an independent and primary sources of Islam, along with the Qur’an. This favors some aspects of the views of the Qur’an-only Muslims, although, not their main contention that the Hadith has no revelatory value and is not a part of Islamic teachings.
Traditions discussed in Part II
In Chapter 4 we discuss those prophetic traditions (ahadith) that have a bearing on the role of the Sunnah and/or the Hadith. These include, but do not consist entirely of, ahadith that are often mentioned in the classical hadith collections under the subject of the Sunnah as a source of Islam, e.g., kitab al-‘itisam bi al-kitab wa al-sunnah in Sahih al-Bukhari. Chapter 5 discusses traditions about some leading companions that reveal their attitude towards the Sunnah/Hadith. A particular class of traditions, those concerned with the transmission, collection or writing of the Hadith is discussed separately in Chapter 6.
This part of the book not only serves the purpose defined above – to examine the basic questions about the Sunnah/Hadith in the light of the Hadith -- but it also contributes to the subsequent parts of the book. We discuss here many ahadith in some detail and comment on their authenticity. In this way we will provide several examples of unauthentic traditions that are found in sahih collections. The process will be continued in Part III and will show that the ahadith in the existing collections are much more subject to doubt than is generally admitted.
Chapter 4
Ahadith concerning the Role
of the Sunnah and the Hadith
There is a large number of ahadith in which the Prophet reportedly talks about his Sunnah and Hadith and their role in his work. As we now proceed to show, the authenticity of most of these ahadith is subject to reasonable doubt. That does not mean, however, as is sometimes concluded, that for the Prophet his Sunnah was not part of Islamic teaching. After the Qur’an repeatedly commanded the believers to follow him or obey him in the clearest terms, he probably did not feel the need to state the principle afresh in his own words. It is the Muslim community after him that felt the need to express the principle by reference to his Sunnah. In his life the principle of obeying and following him had a relatively simple meaning and application: Believers should listen to his words, look at his example, and just follow them. If at times they misunderstood or misapplied his words or example, he could simply correct them. But when he departed from this world he could no longer be heard or watched and no longer guide them in new situations or correct them when they made mistakes. At first his companions simply went by the vivid memories that they had of their presence with him, but as years passed and the number of companions began to reduce in comparison to the rest of the Muslims, these memories began to fade away. Obeying and following the Prophet under this circumstance was naturally understood to mean following the Sunnah that his coming had established. The traditions that talk about the need to follow the Sunnah or the Hadith express this idea. To the extent they imply that the Prophet’s example and his commands are a part of Islam, these traditions express a legitimate aspect of the teaching of the Prophetic message. But to the extent these traditions identify the Prophet’s example and commands with the practices prevalent in the community, they are only partially valid. For, although the Prophet’s Sunnah and the practices prevalent among the companions as a group were not sharply distinguishable and they could be assumed with considerable justification to be identical, this became less and less the case as time passed and the Muslim ummah expanded rapidly.
We divide the ahadith to be discussed in this chapter under the headings that correspond to the basic questions that have been discussed in Part I in the light of the Qur’an and have been repeated above, that is: Is Sunnah a source of Islamic guidance/law? Is it revelatory? Is it an independent or a secondary source? How far it is binding? How far reason is to be used in interpreting it? Did God promise its preservation?
Sunnah as a source of Islamic guidance
We discuss here ahadith that in a general way talk of the importance of the Sunnah/Hadith in Islam and thus suggest that the Sunnah/Hadith is a source of Islamic guidance.
I HAVE LEFT WITH YOU….
We begin by a hadith that has the earliest documentation, being reported by both Ibn Ishaq and Muwatta.
Ibn Ishaq as quoted by Ibn Hisham records that the Prophet in his address to the people at his farewell hajj said:
I have left with you something, to which if you hold fast, you will never fall into error – a clear direction, the Book of God and the Sunnah of His prophet, so give good heed to what I say.
Despite having the earliest documentation, this hadith raises some doubts about its authenticity. Thus note the way the Prophet refers to his Sunnah as “the sunnah of His Prophet”. One should expect him to say “the Book of God and my sunnah”. The words “the Book of God and the Sunnah of His Prophet,” although possible as words of the Prophet himself, are much more natural on the lips of the Muslims, who probably often repeated that we should hold fast to the Book of God and the Sunnah of His Prophet. This formula, it seems, has influenced the formulation of the above hadith. Later versions of the hadith in al-Hakim (d. 405) “improve” the earlier version by changing “the Sunnah of His Prophet” to “my Sunnah”.
It may also be noted that the very use of the word Sunnah by the Prophet in reference to his practice is somewhat problematic, since it reflects a discontinuity with the Qur’an. As we saw in Chapter 1, the Qur’an uses the word Sunnah mostly to refer to the divine punishment of the people in past history and not the customs and ways established by the Prophet. This comment, of course, applies to all the ahadith in which the Prophet talks of his Sunnah as a source of guidance.
Muwatta also records a saying similar to the one above, but without mentioning the occasion of the farewell address or any other occasion:
Yahya related to me from Malik that it had reached him that the Messenger of God said, “I have left two matters (amarayn) with you. As long as you hold to them, you will not go astray: the Book of God and the Sunnah of His Prophet.” (Also, found in al-Hakim; in some versions there is the addition: “they will not separate till they meet me on the hawd, the pool in paradise)”.
It is noteworthy that neither Ibn Ishaq nor Malik gives any isnad for the hadith. Malik simply tells us that it has reached him that the Messenger of God said the above words. He does not claim that he knows from where this saying is coming. Serious doubts can be raised, and are often raised by the muhaddithun, about the authenticity of a hadith like this one, which has no isnad or at most has broken isnad. There is also the additional fact that this saying of the Prophet is not found in Bukhari.
The absence of isnad in Ibn Ishaq and Muwatta may be due to the fact that farewell address was delivered in front of many people and was well known. No particular chain of links was prominent or necessary for its transmission. If so, many differences in the various versions of the address show that the transmission was not faithful, and hence doubt is raised about whether the transmission of the above hadith, which is a particular part of the farewell address, has been faithful. In fact, we can be more specific and show that the words attributed to the Prophet in the above hadith has suffered important changes before being recorded by Ibn Ishaq and Muwatta. Thus Muslim gives a version of the farewell address in which the Prophet mentions only the Book of God and not the Sunnah:
Then [during his farewell hajj the Prophet] came to the bottom of the valley, and addressed the people saying: “…. I have left among you the Book of God, and if you hold fast to it, you would never go astray….”.
Muslim does give the isnad for this hadith, which is part of a long hadith describing the farewell pilgrimage. His isnad are: Ja’far bin Muhammad from his father Muhammad bin ‘Ali (bin Husayn bin ‘Ali bin Abi Talib) from Jabir bin ‘Abd Allah from the Prophet. This is not necessarily a case of isnad being invented as time passed, since the important omission of the Sunnah in Muslim’s version and many other differences between his version of the farewell address and that of Ibn Ishaq may well mean that he had access to information independent of Malik and Ibn Ishaq. With time Hadith scholars were able to collect many more traditions from many varied sources and may well have found isnad for ahadith that earlier scholars knew without isnad. In the particular case at hand the isnad has intrinsic plausibility since it is a personal account of Muhammad bin ‘Ali, told by his son, of his meeting with the companion Jabir bin ‘Abd Allah who was present at the farewell hajj. Hence Muslim may well have preserved some authentic material, including the underlined words in the above quotation. If so, the Prophet mentioned only that he was leaving the Book of God (Qur’an). A reference to the Sunnah was added later.
There is further evidence that the Prophet did not talk of the Sunnah as the second independent source along side the Qur’an. Thus Ibn Ishaq records another hadith set on the occasion of a farewell situation. Some months after his farewell hajj and just before his death the Prophet joined the prayers when Abu Bakr was leading. After the prayer he addressed the people and said:
O men! The fire is kindled and rebellions come like the darkness of the night. By God you cannot lay anything to my charge. I allow only what the Qur’an allows and forbid only what the Qur’an forbids.
Here again there is no mention of the Sunnah. The words “I allow only what the Qur’an allows etc.” could be interpreted to mean that the Prophet made certain things lawful and others unlawful and in this way we can consider here the concept of Sunnah as implicit. But that is a matter of interpretation. At the very least we have to admit that in this hadith the Sunnah is not an independent source. It is completely secondary and subordinate to the Qur’an. It allows nothing that is not allowed by the Qur’an and prohibits nothing that is not prohibited by the Qur’an. This is a far cry from some other traditions where the Prophet is reported to have said that he allows and prohibits things just like the Qur’an (see further below).
In Bukhari and Muslim the Prophet does not address the people after praying behind Abu Bakr. But in a farewell type of address set at Khumm the Prophet says in a hadith recorded by Muslim that he was leaving behind two things. The first is the Book of God but the second is NOT Sunnah:
It is related from Yazid bin Hayyan that he said: I, Husayn bin Sabrah and 'Umar bin Muslim went to Zayd bin Arqam. When we sat down with him Husayn said to him, “Zayd, you have been able to acquire a great virtue that you saw God’s Messenger, listened to his talk, fought by his side in (different) battles, and prayed behind him. Zayd, you have in fact earned a great virtue. Zayd, narrate to us what you heard from God’s Messenger.” He said: “I have grown old and have almost spent my age and have forgotten some of the things I remembered concerning God’s Messenger; so accept whatever I narrate to you, and what I do not narrate compel me not to (narrate) it.” He then said: “One day the Messenger of God stood up to deliver a sermon at a watering place known as Khumm situated between Makkah and Madinah. He praised God, extolled Him and delivered the sermon and exhorted (us) and said: amma ba‘d! O people, I am a human being. I am about to receive a messenger (the angel of death) from my Lord and I, in response to God’s call, (would depart from you). But I am leaving among you two weighty things. The first is the Book of God in which there is right guidance and light, so hold fast to the Book of God and adhere to it. He exhorted (us) (to hold fast) to the Book of God and then said: (The second are) the members of my household (ahl bayti). I remind you of God regarding the members of my family.” He (Husayn) said to Zayd: “Who are the members of his household? Aren’t his wives the members of his family?” Thereupon he said: “His wives are the members of his family (but here) the members of his family are those for whom acceptance of zakah is forbidden.” And he said: “Who are they?” Thereupon he said: “ ‘Ali and the offspring of ‘Ali, ‘Aqil and the offspring of ‘Aqil and the offspring of Ja‘far and the offspring of ‘Abbas.” Husayn said: “So these are the ones for whom the acceptance of zakah is forbidden.” Zayd said: “Yes”.
In the above hadith the reference to the ahl al-bayt is vague. Muslims are not exhorted to hold fast to ahl al-bayt as a source of guidance as they are exhorted to hold fast to the Qur’an. For, the Prophet only says, “I remind you of God concerning the ahl al-bayt” which could mean simply to be kind and just to them. But ahadith similar to the above are found in many later books, where the ahl al-bayt become a second source of guidance along with the Qur’an:
I have left among you that which if you abide by, you will never go astray: the Book of God, and my family, the members of my house (ahl al-bayt) (related by al-Tirmidhi, Ahmad, Ibn abi ‘Asim, al-Hakim, al-Tabarani, al-Dailami and al-Tahawi).
If in some ahadith ahl al-bayt are mentioned as the source of guidance next to the Qur’an, in the following hadith, also set in an unspecified farewell situation (probably similar to the one assumed in Ibn Ishaq’s tradition quoted earlier), the rightly guided khulafa become the source along with the Sunnah:
‘Abd al-Rahman ibn Amr as-Sulami and Hujr ibn Hujr said: We came to al-‘Irbad ibn Sariyah who was among those about whom the following verse was revealed: ‘Nor (is there blame) on those who come to you to be provided with mounts, and you tell (them): I can find no mounts for you.’ We greeted him and said: We have come to see you, in your illness, and obtain benefit from you. Al-‘Irbad said: One day the Messenger led us in prayer, then faced us and gave us a lengthy exhortation at which the eyes shed tears and the hearts were afraid. A man said: ‘O Messenger of God! It seems as if it were a farewell exhortation, so what injunction do you give us?’ He then said: ‘I enjoin you to fear God, and to hear and obey even if it be an Abyssinian slave, for those of you who live after me will see great disagreement. You must then follow my Sunnah and that of the rightly guided khulafa. Hold to it and stick fast to it. Avoid novelties, for every novelty is an innovation, and every innovation is an error.’ (Abu Da`ud; this hadith with some variations is also found in Ahmad, Tirmidhi, and Ibn Majah).
The italicized part in the above quotation is also found in other ahadith. Thus in Bukhari, it is related on the authority of Anas: The Prophet said, “Listen and obey (your chief) even if an Ethiopian whose head is like a raisin were made your chief.” A version much closer to the tradition in Abu Da`ud is also found in Ibn Sa‘d (Tabaqat), where the farewell situation is that of a sermon during the farewell hajj:
Umm al-Husayn narrated: I saw the Prophet on the night of ‘Arafah on a camel. …And heard him say: O people! Hear and obey, even if it were some deformed Abyssinian slave who establishes the Book of God among you.
Notice that the condition here for the obedience to an amir is to establish the Book of God. Unlike the hadith in Abu Da`ud, here there is no mention of the Sunnah of the Prophet much less the sunnah of the khulafa.
The idea that the sunnah of the khulafa is part of the right religion is, however, found as a view held by the companions in a tradition in Bukhari. The view is voiced by ‘Abd al-Rahman and accepted by other companions. After gathering the people and announcing the choice of ‘Uthman as the third khalifah, ‘Abd al-Rahman says:
When all of them
had gathered, ‘Abd al-Rahman said, “None has the right to be worshipped but
God,” and added, “Now then, O ‘Ali, I have looked at the people’s tendencies
and noticed that they do not consider anybody equal to ‘Uthman, so you should
not incur blame (by disagreeing).” Then ‘Abd al-Rahman said (to ‘Uthman), “I
give the oath of allegiance to you on condition that you will follow the Sunnah
of God and of His Messenger and of the two khulafa` (after him).”
So ‘Abd al-Rahman gave the oath of allegiance to him, and so did the people
including the muhajirun (emigrants) and the ansar
(helpers) and the chiefs of the army staff and all the Muslims.
Notice that the sunnah of God has assumed here a meaning with little correspondence to the Qur’anic usage (see Chapter 1), where the word is never used for the commandments of God through revelation. The view implied here that the sunnah of the khulafa` is to be followed might have been expressed by ‘Abd al-Rahman in response to the need of the occasion. In any case, it was not part of a standard oath of allegiance, for, Bukhari also records the following tradition that gives the oath of allegiance by ‘Abd Allah bin ‘Umar in which there is no reference to the sunnah of the khulafa`:
‘Abd Allah bin ‘Umar wrote to ‘Abd al-Malik bin Marwan swearing oath of allegiance to him: “I affirm (uqirru) to hear and obey what is in accordance with the sunnah of God and the sunnah of his Messenger as much as I am able to.”
It seems therefore that the view that the sunnah of the khulafa` is a part of religion first developed among some companions and then was attributed to the Prophet.
Thus for the type of ahadith discussed above we have the following situation: these ahadith report that the Prophet at a time close to his departure from this world said that he was leaving behind some source(s) for the people’s guidance. At least one version mentions only the Qur’an, some versions mention the Qur’an and Sunnah and some other ahadith mention the Qur’an and the Sunnah of the Prophet and of the khulafa`. Still other ahadith mention ahl al-bayt but omit any reference to the Sunnah. This last hadith is not found in any of the earliest books, Muwatta, Ibn Ishaq, and Bukhari. It seems clear that we cannot affirm the authenticity of any of these ahadith with much confidence, since there is no consistency. My best judgment is that in some farewell situation, the Prophet did say that he was leaving for the people the Book of God, to which they should hold fast. He did not refer to his Sunnah or ahl al-bayt or khulafa. All these are changes made by later Muslims.
Nevertheless it is important to underline that what these ahadith are saying is a valid expression of the teaching of Islam. As noted earlier, they express the Qur’anic principle of obedience to, and following of, the Prophet in a new situation, years after his departure. Even the reference to the sunnah of the khulafa` is justified, since beliefs and practices on which the four khulafa` or even the first two of them were in agreement was very likely an authentic expression of the Prophet’s teaching or in harmony with it. The only problem here is that we have to be careful to distinguish between what is reported to be the Sunnah of the Prophet and the khulafa` and what was actually their Sunnah. Also, we should be careful not to deduce from the validity of the idea that the Sunnah is part of Islamic guidance that the ahadith expressing that idea are authentic words of the Prophet. Some have argued for the authenticity of these ahadith on the ground that they are perfectly in keeping with the teaching of the Qur’an. In this connection a particular mention is made not only of the verses where the obedience to, and following of the Prophet is enjoined, but also of those that mention the Book and Wisdom, 2:129, 2:151, 2:231, 3:164, 4:113, 33:34 & 62:2). But this by itself does not establish the authenticity of the ahadith under consideration. As we shall see (Part III), there are many ahadith that are consistent with the Qur’an but are known to be incorrectly attributed to the Prophet.
WHO DESERVES MOST TO ACT AS IMAM
In the ahadith discussed above we saw that the earliest version probably did not refer to the Sunnah and focused entirely on the Qur’an. The reference to the Sunnah was added later. We now look at some other examples of this type of modification of earlier traditions. One such example concerns the question about who should act as the imam in prayers.
Abu Mas‘ud al-Ansari reported God’s Messenger as saying: The one who is most versed in the Book of God should act as Imam for the people, but if they are equally versed in reciting it, then the one who has most knowledge regarding Sunnah, if they are equal regarding the Sunnah, then the earliest one to emigrate; if they emigrated at the same time, then the earliest one to accept Islam. No man must lead another in prayer where (the latter) has authority, or sit in his place of honor in his house, without his permission. In his narration (of this hadith) al-Ashajj used “older” in place of “earliest one to accept Islam”. (A’mash has narrated a hadith like this by the same chain of transmitters.) (Muslim).
Here after the ability to recite the Qur`an the knowledge of the Sunnah is said to determine who should act as imam. But Muslim records another hadith by a different line of communication but from the same companion, Abu Mas’ud al-Ansari, in which there is no reference to the Sunnah! This hadith reads:
Abu Mas’ud al-Ansari reported: The Messenger of God said to us: The one who is well versed in the Book of God and is the most advanced in recitation should act as imam for the people; if they are equally versed in reciting it, then the earliest one to emigrate; and if they emigrated at the same time, then the oldest one in age. No man must lead another in prayer in latter’s house or where (the latter) has authority, or sit in his place of honor in his house, except that he gives you permission or (he said) with his permission.
This second version not only omits the important reference to the Sunnah but also differs from the other version in another way. The last criterion in this version is age and not, as in the first version, priority in acceptance of Islam.
There are other ahadith in Muslim and Bukhari that further suggest strongly that the earliest criteria to decide who should act as imam are: the ability to recite the Qur’an and age. The knowledge of the Sunnah was no part of these criteria. Thus Muslim reports the following ahadith:
Abu Sa‘id al-Khudri is reported to have said that the Messenger of God said: Whenever there are three (among you) let one of them act as their imam and the one most deserving to be the imam is the best reader (of the Qur’an) (aqra`u).
Malik bin al-Huwayrith said: We came to the Messenger of God and we were all young men of nearly equal age. We stayed with him for twenty nights, and as the Messenger of God was very kind and tender of heart, he thought that we were eager (to see) our family. So he asked us about the members of the family that we had left behind and when we informed him, he said: Go back to your family, stay with them, and teach them and exhort them, and when the time for prayer comes, one amongst you should announce the adhan and then the oldest among you should lead the prayer.
Muslim records another version of this last hadith:
Malik bin al-Huwayrith reported: I came to the Messenger of God along with a companion, and when we intended to return from him, he said: When there is time for prayer, give adhan, pronounce iqamah, and the older among you should lead the prayer.
A hadith of this type is also found in Bukhari:
Malik bin al-Huwayrith said: We went to the Prophet and we were all young men. We stayed with him for about twenty nights. The Prophet was very merciful. He said, “When you return to your place, teach them (the people there) and tell them to offer such and such a prayer at such and such a time and such and such a prayer at such and such a time. And at the time of the prayer one of you should pronounce the adhan and the oldest of you should lead the prayer.”
Again notice the various discrepancies. The most striking of these is that in Muslim’s second version Malik bin al-Huwayrith visits the Prophet with only one companion while in the other two versions there are several companions. In view of the fact that Bukhari and Muslim both agree on the version in which there are several persons, it may be concluded that this version is more original. If so, the change from several to two persons might have been made in order to support the rule that congregational prayer requires a minimum of two persons. Recall the hadith from Abu Sa‘id al-Khudri in which this minimum number seems to be three.
Here are two more ahadith about who should act as the imam in prayer:
Ibrahim ibn al-Mundhir related to us saying: Anas ibn ‘Iyad related to us: It is related from ‘Ubayd Allah from Nafi’ that ‘Abd Allah bin ‘Umar said: When the earliest emigrants came to al-‘Usbah, a place in Quba`, before the arrival of the Prophet, Salim, the slave of Abu Hudhayfah, who knew the Qur’an more than the others used to lead them in prayer (Bukhari).
Ibn ‘Abbas reported God’s Messenger as saying, “Let the best among you call the adhan for you, and Qur’an-readers (qurra`) act as your imams.” (Abu Da`ud).
It may be possible to reconcile some of these ahadith. Thus one may argue that when the Prophet told Malik bin al-Huwayrith and his companions that the older among them should act as imam he was not stating a general rule but applying it to this special group. It may be that all the persons in this group were similar in their knowledge or reading of the Qur’an. Yet when we read all the ahadith together we are struck by the absence of any reference to the knowledge of the Sunnah in all but one of them. This strongly suggests the conclusion that this one reference is a later addition and was no part of the authentic words of the Holy Prophet.
TEACHING OR LEARNING THE QUR’AN AND THE SUNNAH
A request for a teacher of the Qur’an and the Sunnah
(It has been reported) from Anas bin Malik that some people came to the Messenger of God and said to him: Send with us some men who may teach us the Qur’an and the Sunnah. Accordingly, he sent seventy men from the Ansar. They were called qurra` (reciters) and among them was my maternal uncle, Haram. They used to recite the Qur’an, discuss and learn (its meaning) at night. During the day they brought water and poured it (in pitchers) in the mosque, collected wood and sold it, and with the sale proceeds bought food for the people of the Suffah and the needy. The Holy Prophet sent the reciters with these people, but they fell upon them and killed them before they reached their destination. (While dying), they said: ‘O God, convey from us the news to our Prophet that we have met you (in a way) that we are pleased with you and you are pleased with us.’ (The narrator) said: A man attacked Haram, the maternal uncle of Anas, from behind and smote him with a spear that pierced him. (While dying), Haram said: ‘By the Lord of the Ka'bah, I have met with success.’ The Messenger of God said to his companions: Your brethren have been slain while they were saying: O God, convey from us to our Prophet the news that we have met you in a way that we are pleased with you and you are pleased with us (Muslim).
There is very strong evidence that the reference to the “Sunnah” is a later addition in this hadith. We have versions of the above story in several other sources earlier than Muslim (d. 261) such as:
Musa bin ‘Uqbah (d. 141), Sirah
Ibn Ishaq (d. 151), Sirah
Ibn Sa‘d (d. 230), Tabaqat
Bukhari (d. 256), Sahih
None of these versions say that the companions were sent to teach the Qur’an and the Sunnah. Muslim also has several other ahadith referring to the story, but they do not mention the Sunnah. There are also significant differences between this hadith and other versions of the stories in earlier documents that do not inspire confidence in the reliability of its details and therefore in its reference to the Sunnah. Thus:
1) This hadith says that the Holy Prophet sent 70 companions. But according to Ibn Ishaq the number was forty. Musa bin ‘Uqbah does not mention any number. Ibn Ishaq and al-Waqidi mention names of many of those killed but all these names add up to no more than 16 men. Even if we assume that half of the less important names were forgotten the actual figure is around thirty.
2)
The
reason given for the dispatch of the group varies considerably. This particular
hadith says that group was sent at the request of some people. Musa bin `Uqbah
gives the following account from al-Zuhri: “‘Amir bin Malik bin Ja‘far who was
called ‘the one who plays with the spears’ came to the Messenger when he was a
polytheist. The Messenger explained Islam to him and he refused to accept it.
He gave the Messenger a present which he refused saying that he would not
accept a present from a polytheist. `Amir said: ‘O Messenger, send with me
those of your messengers you wish and I will guarantee their safety.’” This
account is not clear as to the exact purpose of why the group was requested.
The description of the group as “messengers” suggests what later in Ibn Ishaq
becomes more explicit: “If you send some of your companions to the people of
3) This hadith suggests that the news of the martyrdom of the qurra` reached the Holy Prophet miraculously through divine inspiration. Earlier versions, however, state that the news traveled through a survivor. Thus in Musa bin `Uqbah we read that one of the companions was captured and later released. “When he came to the Messenger of God the latter said to him, “Are you the only survivor?” Ibn Ishaq gives a similar account with greater detail.
In view of the fact that this hadith differs significantly from the earlier versions of the story of Bi`r Mu‘anah and, in particular, the fact that no reference to the Sunnah is found in the earlier versions, it is probable that this reference is secondary. Some further indication of this is provided by the hadith itself. Thus the people who are sent by the Prophet are called qurra`. This term applies to the reciters of the Qur’an. It is said about the qurra` that “they used to recite the Qur’an, discuss and ponder over its meaning at night.” Nothing is said here that they also used to spend time in remembering or learning the Sunnah, which is something that we should expect if the reference to the Sunnah was an integral part of the story from the beginning. Finally, we may refer to the following hadith which also talks of learning and teaching the Qur`an in mosques:
Abu Hurayrah reported God’s Messenger as saying: … He who treads the path in search of knowledge, God would thereby make easy a path for him to paradise and those persons who assemble in a house among the houses of God and recite the Book of God and they learn and teach the Qur'an, there would descend upon them the tranquillity and mercy would cover them and the angels would surround them and God makes a mention of them in the presence of those near him … (Muslim).
This hadith also suggests that at first the Muslim community concentrated primarily on learning and teaching the Qur`an.
Learning from the Qur’an and the Sunnah.
In Bukhari we find the following hadith:
Muhammad bin Kuthayr related to us: Sufyan informed us: Al-A‘mash related to us from Zayd bin Wahb: Hudhayfah related, saying: The Messenger of God narrated to us two ahadith. I have seen one (realized), and I am waiting for (the realization of) the other. He told us: Trust (al-amanah) descended into the very roots of the hearts of people. Then the Qur’an was revealed and they learnt (it) from the Qur’an and they learnt (it) from the Sunnah. Then he (the Holy Prophet) told us about the removal of trust. He said: The man would have a wink of sleep and trust would be taken away from his heart leaving the impression of a faint mark. He would again sleep and honesty would be taken away (further) so that its trace will resemble the trace of a blister as when an ember is dropped on one’s foot which would make it swell, and one would see it swollen but there would be nothing inside. People would be carrying out their trade but hardly will there be a trustworthy person. It will be said, ‘in such-and-such tribe there is an honest man,’ and later it will be said about some man, ‘What a wise, polite and strong man he is!’ though he will not have in his heart faith equal even to a mustard seed.” No doubt, there came upon me a time when I did not mind dealing (bargaining) with anyone of you, for if he was a Muslim his Islam would compel him to pay me what is due to me, and if he was a Christian, the Muslim official would compel him to pay me what is due to me, but today I do not deal except with such-and-such person.
The following points are noteworthy about this hadith:
1) The hadith is also found in Muslim. The agreement between the versions in Bukhari and Muslim is so close in Arabic that the two scholars are in all probability following a written document reaching them from different sources. Biographical information provided by Ibn Hanbal, al-Hakim, and ‘Ali bin Ja‘d confirms that Sufyan, one of the transmitters of the above hadith, wrote traditions from al-A‘mash (61– 147), another of the transmitters, who in turn wrote hundreds of traditions from earlier sources. Yet if we read the isnad in Bukhari or Muslim we would not be able to tell that they are using written sources. They use words like haddathana (related to us), akhbarana (informed us), and ‘an (from). This is because when muhaddithun used written sources they did so after verifications by a chain of transmitters going back to the authors of the written documents, so that the living voices of people rather than the documents were viewed as the primary sources. The documents were simply a secondary means to aid the process of transmission. Not realizing this, many students of the Hadith with a superficial knowledge of the Hadith literature concluded that ahadith were transmitted only orally for century and a half before the appearance of Ibn Ishaq, Muwatta etc. Yet it becomes clear that the written material frequently accompanied the oral transmission of Hadith from much earlier period. That, of course, does not mean that the transmission was faithful, as is shown by non-Islamic religious traditions. Thus in the Christian tradition writing started within a few decades after the departure of Jesus and yet it is full of fabricated material. The particular hadith under consideration itself was not transmitted with complete faithfulness, as the following observations show.
2) One difference between the versions in Bukhari and Muslim is that in Muslim, after comparing the traces left of trust and honesty with the blister caused by an ember, there are the additional words: “the Prophet took a pebble and rolled it down over his foot.” This is one indication that some changes in the hadith were made during at least the later stages of its transmission. But some other more significant changes might also have taken place even in the earlier stages in the part that is common to both Bukhari and Muslim. Notice how in the beginning we are told that Hudhayfah has witnessed the fulfillment of the first part of the hadith and is still waiting for the fulfillment of the second. But from his comments on the hadith at the end it seems that even the second part of the hadith has been fulfilled. For Hudhayfah has stopped trusting people to the extent that he does not do business with people except a very few. It is, however, possible that the two ahadith to which Hudhayfah refers might correspond to the two sleeps or stages in which the al-amānah will be removed. In one stage honest dealings will be rare but still some trace of iman will be found in the heart while in the second stage no iman will remain in the hearts just like a blister caused by an ember has nothing inside. Hudhayfah has seen the first stage and he is waiting for the second.
The hadith seems to be authentic in substance. To understand its core idea it is necessary to interpret al-amanah in a sense much wider than simple honesty in business dealings, even if this latter meaning is what is received as a first impression. Hadith commentators have suggested that al-amānah means the trust mentioned in Qur’an 33:72: We did indeed offered the trust (al-amanah) to the heavens and the earth and the mountains, but they refused to bear it and were afraid from (being unfaithful to) it. Man, (on the other hand), bore it (unconcerned with unfaithfulness to it). For he is a transgressor, ignorant. This interpretation explains why in the hadith al-amānah descends first while the Qur’an descends afterward. For al-amānah was given to man at the time of his creation (cf. the reference to fitrah in 30:30). Revelation confirms what is already found in the true nature of man and reminds him of it. However, by sleep (forgetting God and getting lost in the life of this world) he begins to loose al-amanah. A time will come when it will be completely lost from the hearts; only a superficial mark of it will be left.
But what about the reference to the Sunnah? Is this authentic? There are, at least to my knowledge, not enough versions of this hadith, or other traditions clearly linked with it, to reach any definite conclusion in this regard. There is only the general improbability of the Prophet using the word sunnah in the sense of the extra-Qur`anic guidance that he provided, to which improbability we have already drawn attention. In any case, the hadith cannot be used to support any independent role for the Sunnah. It simply states that people learnt al-amanah from the Sunnah without saying any thing about the precise role of the Sunnah within Islam.
THE BEST GUIDANCE (Hady)
In some traditions the Qur’an is called hadith and what we call Sunnah or Hadith is called hadyu Muhammad:
Jabir bin ‘Abd Allah is reported to have said: When the Messenger of God delivered the sermon, his eyes became red, his voice rose and his anger increased so that he was like one who gives a warning against the enemy saying: “The enemy (faces) you in the morning and in the evening too.” He would also say: “The last Hour and I have been sent like these two,” and he would join his forefinger and middle finger; and would further say: “amma ba‘d, the best hadith is the Book of God and the best guidance is the guidance (hady) of Muhammad. And the worst matters are the muhdathat (the new things introduced into the religion) and every innovation is error.” … (Muslim)
Bukhari also has traditions containing the underlined words, but they are attributed to ‘Abd Allah and not to the Prophet:
Adam bin Abi Iyas related to us: Shu‘bah related to us: ‘Amr bin Murrah informed us that he heard Murrah say that ‘Abd Allah (bin ‘Umar?) said: The best hadith is God’s Book, and the best guidance (hady) is the guidance of Muhammad, and the worst matters are muhdathat; and whatever you have been promised will surely come to pass, and you cannot prevent (it).
Bukhari records another version of this tradition:
Abu al-Walid related to us: Shu‘bah related to us: It is reported that Mukhariq said: I heard Tariq say: ‘Abd Allah said: “The best hadith is God’s Book, and the best guidance is the guidance of Muhammad.”
Shu‘bah heard from two independent sources the underlined words from ‘Abd Allah without any reference to the Prophet. Hence the attribution of the words to the Prophet is under some doubt. Some scholars have suggested the following principle to take back to the Prophet words that are attributed to a companion: if a statement attributed to a companion is such that only the Prophet is expected to have the knowledge implied by it, then it may be attributed to the Prophet. For example, if a companion speaks about past events, about which one cannot learn by ijtihad, and the companion is known to be uninformed about earlier scriptures, then it may be assumed that he is speaking on the basis of what he heard from the Prophet. Or, if a companion predicts events or talks about what will happen on the judgment day or about rewards and punishments for some actions then it can also be assumed that he or she is speaking on the basis of what he or she learnt from the Prophet. Similarly, if a companion says that they used to do such and such in the day of the Prophet or that the Sunnah is such and such, then also one may assume that he or she is reflecting the teaching of the Prophet. This principle is of only partial validity but in any case it does not apply to the tradition in question since there is nothing in the thought expressed here that could only come from the Prophet. The first part of the hadith (“the best hadith is God’s Book”) is based on the Qur’an (39:23) while the second part (“the best guidance is the guidance of Muhammad”) could come from any Muslim teacher. The saying in fact is part of the traditional addresses given on Fridays. It appears that it became part of these addresses quite early as the expression amma ba‘d in Jabir’s version shows and then got attributed to the Prophet.
Here is another hadith talking about the guidance (hady) of the Holy Prophet:
It is narrated from Hudhayfah bin al-Yaman: The people used to ask the Messenger of God about the good but I used to ask him about the evil lest I should be overtaken by it. So I said, “O Messenger of God! We were living in ignorance and in the worst atmosphere when God brought to us this good (i.e., Islam). Will there be any evil after this good?” He said, “Yes.” I said, “Will there be any good after that evil?” He replied, “Yes, but it will be tainted (not pure.)”‘ I asked, “What will be its taint?” He replied, “(There will be) some people who will guide others not according to my guidance (hady). You will approve of some of their deeds and disapprove of some others”…. (Bukhari)
In the saying of ‘Abd Allah (the best hadith is the Book of God and the best hady is the hady of Muhammad), hady means only the Hadith since the Qur’an is mentioned separately. But in the above hadith, the Qur’an is not mentioned. One may interpret al-hady to include the whole way of the Prophet revealed both by the Qur’an and authentic Hadith, but “my hady” suggests the guidance that the Prophet provided in explaining and elaborating the Qur`an. Some people will not use this guidance and understand the Qur`an in other ways. This will “taint” the good. Notice a rather mild condemnation of ignoring the hady of the Prophet: it is not equated with evil but only a “tainted” good.
CONVEY TO THE ONE WHO IS ABSENT
In a hadith narrated in Muslim and Bukhari on the authority of Abu Bakrah the Prophet after teaching that the blood and property of a Muslim is sacrosanct commands: “Let the one who is present convey to the one who is absent. It may be that the one who is being conveyed to may be more heedful than the one who heard (in person).” The hadith, as expected, comes with several different versions with significant variations, even in the words that we have quoted. Yet the general sense is the same. Here is one version:
Abu Bakrah related from the Prophet who said: “Time has come back to its original state which it had when God created the heavens and the earth. The year is twelve months, of which four are sacred; (and out of these four) three are in succession – Dhu al-Qa'dah, Dhu al-Hijjah and Muharram, and (the fourth one) Rajab Mudar which is between Jumad (al-Thani) and Sha‘ban.” (He then asked us:) “Which month is this?” We said, “God and his Messenger know better.” He kept quiet so long that we thought he might call it by another name. Then he said, “Isn’t it Dhu al-Hijjah?” We said, “Yes.” He asked, “What city is this?” We said, “God and his Messenger know better.” Then he kept quiet so long that we thought he might call it by another name. He then said, “Isn’t it al-baladah (Makkah)?” We said, “Yes.” He asked, “What is the day today?” We said, “God and his Messenger know better.” Then he kept quiet so long that we thought that he might call it by another name. Then he said, “Isn’t it the day of al-nahr (sacrifice)?” We said, “Yes.” Then, he said, “Your blood and your property,” (Muhammad, one of the narrators, said: I think he also said: “and your honor”) “have sanctity for one another like the sanctity of this day of yours, in this city of yours, in this month of yours. You shall meet your Lord and he will ask you about your deeds. Beware! Don’t go astray after me by striking the necks of one another. Lo! Let the one who is present inform the one who is absent for perhaps the one informed might be more heedful than the one who heard it (in person).” (Bukhari)
The command, “Let the one present convey to the one absent” also occurs in some other types of ahadith. For example:
Yasar, the client of Ibn ‘Umar, said: Ibn ‘Umar saw me praying after the break of dawn. He said: O Yasar, the Messenger of God came to us while we were offering this prayer and said: Those who are present should inform those who are absent: Do not offer any prayer after (the break of) dawn except two rak‘ahs (Abu Da`ud).
But in such instances the command is less natural than in the hadith of Abu Bakrah and seems to be imported from it. The command is in all probability authentic and shows that the Prophet wanted at least some of his words to be transmitted beyond the time and place where they were spoken.
There are several ahadith reported from numerous companions that condemn with varying degree of strength falsely attributing something to the Prophet. These ahadith are indicative of the importance that the Prophet himself or his early followers attached to the reports about him, that it, to the Sunnah/Hadith.
The ahadith are reported in three different forms, each with many different chains of transmission.
Whoever reports … thinking that it is
false
Muslim in the introduction (muqaddimah) to his sahih has reported the following hadith from two companions:
It is reported from al-Mughirah bin Shu‘bah and Samurah bin Jundub that the Prophet said: “Whoever reports from me a report, thinking that it is false, is one of the liars”.
Muslim has called this hadith mashhur (widely known) because in differing words it is related on the authority of numerous companions. A commentary on Muslim collects the following facts: Bazar in his Musnad narrates it from 40 companions. It is reported from 60 companions according to Abu Bakr Sayrafi, 87 companions according to Ibn Mundah. Some have mentioned 200 companions while others have mentioned 62 including the ‘asharah mubashsharah (the ten who were promised paradise), adding that this is the only hadith reported from more than 60 companions or by the ‘asharah mubashsharah. Most of these numbers are probably estimated by considering all the ahadith that in some way or another condemn the act of falsely reporting something about the Prophet, and not just the ahadith of the type quoted. In particular, the ahadith in which hell fire is the fate of those who tell a lie about the Prophet are also counted.
Muslim in his muqaddimah relates the following ahadith:
It is related from Anas bin Malik that he said: I am prevented from relating too many ahadith to you by this that the Messenger of God said, “Anyone who deliberates (ta'ammada) a lie about me will surely take his seat in the fire”.
It is related from Abu Hurayrah that he said: The Messenger of God said, “Any one who deliberately tells a lie about me will surely take his seat in the fire”.
It is related from Rib‘iyy bin Harash that he heard ‘Ali addressing the people and saying: The Messenger of God said, “Do not lie about me. For if any one lies about me, he will go to the fire”.
It is related from ‘Ali bin Abu Rabi‘ah al-Walbi that he went to the mosque when al-Mughirah was amir of Kufah. He said that al-Mughirah stated that he heard the Messenger of God saying, “To tell a lie about me is not like telling a lie about anyone. So if anyone deliberately tells a lie about me, he will surely take his seat in the fire”.
Bukhari also reports similar ahadith, some going back to companions other than the four mentioned by Muslim in the above ahadith. Although, the authenticity of the saying in Muslim and Bukhari is supported by the multiplicity of its chains of transmission from the Prophet, it still suffers from some weaknesses.
Thus Muwatta does not record this type of hadith. We do find in Muwatta a hadith in which the words “will take his seat in the fire” are connected with “false” statement, but the context is quite different:
Yahya said, Malik related to us from Hisham ibn Hisham ibn Utba ibn abi Waqqas from ‘Abd Allah ibn Nistas from Jabir ibn ‘Abd Allah al-Ansari that the Messenger of God said, “If someone swears a false oath near this mimbar of mine, he will take his seat in the fire”.
It is possible that this saying and the one in Muslim and Bukhari are both authentic. There is a reasonable explanation why this saying in Muwatta is not more widely reported: outside Madinah it will not have much practical relevance, since the mimbar of the Prophet existed only in Madinah, unless one understands mimbar of the Prophet as mimbar in any mosque. It seems more probable, however, that the original saying has found here an application in the law court. Some litigants being judged in the Prophet’s mosque might have been suspected of making false statements under oath. So the saying about false attribution to the Prophet has been adopted here to discourage this behavior. One could argue that Muwatta, being of earlier date, has preserved the more original saying that was later changed into a condemnation of all false attribution to the Prophet. But in view of the numerous chains of transmission of this latter form, it is more likely that the hadith in Muwatta is a later adaptation of the other hadith. If so, this is yet another illustration, that an earlier document does not always preserve the more original tradition. We saw another example of this in the hadith “I have left two matters with you…. the Book of God and the Sunnah of his Prophet”, which is probably preserved more faithfully by Muslim who omits the reference to the Sunnah.
Another possible weakness in the saying arises from the fact that it has not been reported with the same wording. Thus Abu Hurayrah’s version has ta'ammada while other versions have kadhaba. Also, in the version going back to ‘Ali we read, yalij al-nar (will go to hell) instead of falyatabawwa` maq‘ad hu fi al-nar (he will surely take his seat in the fire).” It may be that the Prophet himself used different words at different times, but it seems more probable that the variants developed during the process of transmission. If so, we have here an illustration of what is observed elsewhere in the hadith literature: even the most reliable sayings of the Prophet are not transmitted with complete exactness.
Versions of the hadith in Bukhari are subject to some other weaknesses.
a) Thus in one hadith in Bukhari we read:
It is reported from ‘Abd Allah
bin ‘Amr: The Prophet said, “Convey (ballighu) from me even if it were a
single ayah, and relate (haddithu) from the children of
The two parts of this hadith, the one granting permission to relate traditions from the Jews and the other condemning the false attribution of words to the Prophet do not seem to belong together originally. This is also a common phenomenon in the hadith literature: two ahadith originally separate are brought together. In the above hadith the purpose of bringing the two separate parts is a noble one: to try to stop those people who were relating traditions from the Jews and then falsely attributing them to the Prophet. The hadith is saying that you may relate Jewish traditions but do not make them into hadith by attributing them to the Prophet.
The authenticity of the first part of the hadith is doubtful because it seems to contradict another hadith:
It is narrated from Abu Hurayrah: The people of the book used to recite the Torah in Hebrew and explain it in Arabic to the Muslims. On that God’s Messenger said, “Do not believe the people of the book or disbelieve them, but say: ‘We believe in God and what is revealed to us….’ “ (2.136).
Unlike the earlier hadith, this one does not encourage relating traditions from the Jews.
b) Another hadith from Bukhari reads:
It is narrated from al-Mughirah: I heard the Prophet saying, “Ascribing false things to me is not like ascribing false things to anyone else. Whosoever intentionally tells a lie against me, he will surely take his seat in the fire.” I heard the Prophet saying, “The deceased who is wailed over is tortured for that wailing”.
In this hadith also originally separate traditions have been put together in a single hadith, but this case is somewhat different. Here the separate sayings remain separate and even the words “I have heard the Prophet saying” are repeated twice. Bukhari does that probably when he finds two or more ahadith side by side in the same source with exactly the same chain of transmission.
The last statement in the above hadith is rejected by ‘Aishah in another tradition in Bukhari:
It is narrated from Hisham’s father: It was mentioned before ‘Aishah that Ibn ‘Umar attributed the following statement to the Prophet, “The dead person is punished in the grave because of the crying and lamentation of his family”. On that, ‘Aishah said, “But God’s Messenger said, ‘The dead person is punished for his crimes and sins while his family cry over him.’” She added, “And this is similar to the statement of God’s Messenger when he stood by the (edge of the) well which contained the corpses of the pagans killed at Badr, ‘They hear what I say.’” She added, “But he said, now they know very well what I used to tell them was the truth.” ‘Aishah then recited (the verse): “You cannot make the dead hear.” (30.52) and “You cannot make those who are in their graves, hear you” (35:22), that is, when they had taken their places in the fire.
If this criticism by ‘Aishah of the last statement – which also conflicts with the Qur’anic principle that every soul is responsible for what it earns – is accepted as authentic and correct, then other statements in the above hadith may also have been falsely reported.
c) We may also briefly examine the following hadith from Bukhari:
Narrated Wathila bin al-Asqa: The Messenger of God said, “Verily, one of the worst lies is to claim falsely to be the son of someone other than one’s real father, or to claim to have had a dream one has not had, or to attribute to the Messenger of God what he has not said.”
Notice that here the Prophet is referred to in the third person (“to attribute to the Messenger of God what he has not said”). The wording is such that any early Muslim teacher could have spoken the saying. Hence it is possible that the “hadith” was originally the words of a prominent Muslim. It is interesting that Muhsin Khan translates “to attribute to the Messenger of God what he has not said” as “to attribute to me what I have not said”. This is an example of how our understanding can change the words that we are translating or reporting.
None of the above-mentioned weaknesses, however, are decisive enough to overturn the support provided by the multiplicity of chains of transmission and so on balance the saying seems to be authentic.
It is sufficient for a man’s lie …
The third type of ahadith about false reporting of traditions in Muslim’s muqaddimah read as follows:
Hafs bin ‘Asim is reported to have said that the Messenger of God said: It is sufficient for a man’s lie that he reports all that he hears.
This version is mursal (i.e. does not mention the companion who heard the hadith from the Prophet). Imam Malik and Imam Abu Hanifah accept a mursal hadith if the successor who reports it is trustworthy and known to omit only trustworthy transmitters. Imam Shafi‘i accepts a mursal hadith if it is confirmed by a different chain even if by a mursal hadith or by a hadith with weak isnad. His criterion will apply to the above tradition, because we have another isnad for it:
Hafs bin ‘Asim is reported to have related from Abu Hurayrah similar words from the Prophet.
Here the isnad goes all the way to the Prophet. However, several traditions stop at companions or even later scholars and do not take the saying to the Prophet.
Abu ‘Uthman al-Nahdi is reported to have said that `Umar bin al-Khattab said, It is sufficient for a man’s lie that he reports all that he hears.
‘Abd Allah (bin Mas‘ud) is reported to have said: It is sufficient for a man’s lie that he reports all that he hears.
‘Abd al-Rahman bin
Ibn Wahb is reported to have said: Malik said to me: A person is not safe (from lie) if he reports all that he hears and he can never be a leader while he reports all that he hears.
To the above traditions quoted by Muslim we may also add one quoted by Ibn ‘Abd al-Barr in his jami‘ bayan al-‘ilm wa fadlihi:
Ibn abi Laylah (20-83) used to say that only when one is able to reject some of the ahadith and accept some others could a person be credited with the knowledge of Hadith.
A glance at the above traditions shows that we are dealing here with two distinct sayings:
1) To be a leader or expert on the Hadith one must not accept and pass on every tradition one hears. In other words, one must use some critical judgment and evaluate what one hears, which would necessarily result in the rejection of some traditions.
2) If one does not use any critical judgment and one reports all that one hears, then one does not have any concern for what is true and this lack of concern will necessarily mean that he will not hesitate to tell lies knowingly, which means that he is a liar.
The first
saying is only attributed to the successors and subsequent scholars: Ibn abi
Laylah, Malik, and Ibn
As noted earlier, it is said by some scholars about a saying of a companion that its attribution to the Prophet is understood when the saying expresses something that only the Prophet is expected to know. But this principle does not apply to the tradition in question since there is nothing in the thought expressed here – to be a liar it is enough to report all what one hears – that could only come from the Prophet. Indeed, the words look like a proverb that could have originated at any time and at any place and then spread from there. So it seems that in view of the fact that many versions attribute the saying only to some companions or later scholars, its attribution to the Prophet is very doubtful.
SHAHADAH
The confession of faith that there is no god but Allah and Muhammad is his Messenger is found in many ahadith, although with some variations. It is part of adhan and of the daily and jum'ah prayers, all of which are mentioned in the Qur’an and were instituted well within the lifetime of the Prophet. Hence there is overwhelming probability that in some form the shahadah goes back to the Prophet. The significance of this observation for our subject is that the shahadah talks about God and the Prophet and not God and his Book. If the only function of the Prophet was to deliver the Qur’an, then we should expect a shahadah like the following: There is no god but Allah and the Qur’an is his book. The fact that the shahadah mentions only the persons of God and his Messenger means that after God it is the Messenger who occupies the primary significance. The Qur`an and the Sunnah/Hadith are the means by which the Messenger is known in history and he continues his function of conveying God’s message. Those traditions that make the Qur’an the focus of attention can be easily understood if, as suggested in Part I, we think of the Qur’an (which calls itself the best hadith) as the core of the Sunnah/Hadith that was to be especially guarded and preserved.
SENT WITH JAWAMI‘ AL-KALIM
Narrated Sa‘id bin al-Musayyab: Abu Hurayrah said that God’s Messenger said, “I have been sent with jawami‘ al-kalim (the shortest expressions with the widest meaning) and have been made victorious with awe (cast in my enemy’s hearts), and while I was sleeping, I saw that the keys of the treasures of the world were placed in my hand.”
The jawami‘ al-kalim probably refers to the words of the Prophet and is not identical to the Qur’an. Being sent with jawami‘ al-kalim suggests that they constitute some type of revelation.
A QUESTION ANSWERED WITH DIVINE INSPIRATION
Narrated Safwan bin Ya‘la bin Umayyah: Ya‘la used to say, "I wish I could see God's Messenger at the time he is receiving inspiration." When the Prophet was at al-Ji‘ranah and was shaded by a garment hanging over him and some of his companions were with him, a man perfumed with scent came and said, "O Messenger of God! What is your opinion regarding a man who assumes ihram and puts on a cloak after perfuming his body with scent?" The Prophet waited for a while, and then the divine inspiration descended upon him. ‘Umar pointed out to Ya‘la, telling him to come. Ya‘la came and pushed his head (underneath the screen which was covering the Prophet) and behold! The Prophet's face was red and he kept on breathing heavily for a while and then he was relieved. Thereupon he said, "Where is the questioner who asked me about ‘umrah a while ago?" The man was sought and then was brought before the Prophet who said (to him), "As regards the scent which you perfumed your body with, you must wash it off thrice, and as for your cloak, you must take it off; and then perform in your ‘umrah all those things which you perform in hajj" (Bukhari).
Here the divine inspiration is clearly not Qur`anic revelation, since the rule given about ‘umrah is not found in the Qur`an. Hence, according to this hadith, at least some of the extra-Qur`anic teaching of the Prophet was the result of revelation.
I SPEAK NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH
In Abu Da`ud and Darimi it is related by ‘Abd Allah bin ‘Amr that he used to write down everything (kuntu aktubu kulla shay) he heard from the Prophet in order to memorize it. The Quraysh stopped him from this, saying that the Prophet was human and might have said some things in anger. ‘Abd Allah bin ‘Amr stopped writing after hearing this and mentioned the matter to the Prophet. The Prophet pointed to his tongue with his finger and said, “Under no circumstances anything false comes out of this (tongue).” Ibn ‘Abd al-Barr in his jami‘ bayan al-‘ilm wa fadlihi records a similar tradition:
‘Abd Allah bin ‘Amr asked the Prophet: “Shall I write everything I hear from you?” The Prophet replied, “Yes, everything… I do not speak anything but the truth.”
I AM ONLY HUMAN …
But in contrast to the above hadith, another tradition reports the Prophet as saying:
“I am but a human being; what I have told you about God is the truth; what I have stated to you on my own account, bear in my mind that I am only human, I may be right or I may be wrong.”
Muslim records the following hadith containing similar words:
It is related from Talha: I passed by people near the date-palm trees in the company of the Messenger of God. He said: “What are these people doing?” They said: They are grafting, i.e. they combine the male with the female (tree) and thus they yield more fruit. Thereupon God’s Messenger said: “I do not think that this is of any use.” The people were informed about it and they abandoned (this practice). God’s Messenger was informed about it, whereupon he said: “If there is any use of it, then they should do it, for it was just a personal opinion of mine, and do not go after my personal opinion; but when I say to you anything on behalf of God, then do accept it, for I do not attribute lie to God, the Exalted and Glorious.”
Muslim records two more versions of this hadith.
It is reported from Rafi‘ bin Khadij that God’s Messenger came to Madinah and the people grafted the trees. He said: “What are you doing?” They said: We are used to doing that, whereupon he said: “Perhaps if you do not do that, it may be better for you.” So they abandoned (this practice and trees) and reduced (their yield naqasat, or, the narrator said they did not give any fruit, nafadat). They mentioned it (to the Holy Prophet), whereupon he said: “I am a human being, so when I command you about a thing pertaining to religion, do accept it, and when I command you about a thing out of my personal opinion, keep it in mind that I am a human being.”
It is reported from Anas that God’s Messenger passed by a group of people who were grafting the trees. Thereupon he said: “If you did not do it, it would be good.” (So they abandoned this practice) and the yield was not good. He passed by them (and said): “What has gone wrong with your trees?” They said: You said so and so. Thereupon he said: “You know your affairs of the world better.”
As we examine the three versions we notice the following significant differences:
In the version reported from Rafi‘ the Prophet simply raises a possibility (“perhaps, if you did not do it, it would be better”) whereas in the other two versions he expresses a more definite opinion (“If you did not do it, it would be good” or “I do not think that this is of any use.”). In the version attributed to Rafi‘ it is said that when the people stopped grafting the trees the yield reduced, in the version of Anas it is said the yield was defective, and in the version of Talhah nothing of the sort is mentioned. The words of the Prophet after people stopped grafting are also significantly different in the three versions. This is probably not a case of the whole story being created out of imagination. Rather, the differences are arising from the story and its significance being told in the transmitters’ own words.
In any case, the story does not disprove the view that the Hadith is revelatory. For, as noted earlier in Part I, mistakes of the prophets get corrected either by God or by the prophets themselves and this correction becomes part of the revelation. In this particular story the correction of the mistake, assuming that there was a mistake, teaches the following important lessons or principles that are as fit to be part of divine revelation as almost any other lesson or principle:
1) Do not take past knowledge as above question. Always ask questions in matters of science.
2)
No human being, not even prophets know everything
(Qur’an 5:116,
3) In case of ahadith, especially those that are not commandments, we should use reason, experience and experiments to determine how and how far to apply them.
Although prophets can make mistakes, this particular hadith is not necessarily a case of a mistake on the part of the Prophet Muhammad. He simply asked a question and then tentatively suggested something. This is especially clear in the version of Rāfi‘, where the Prophet says: “perhaps if you did not do it, it would be better”.
IF I GIVE THE RIGHT OF A MUSLIM TO ANOTHER
The following hadith, found in two versions in both Bukhari and Muslim, could suggest on first impression that the Prophet could make mistakes even when acting as a judge among some disputants:
‘Abd al-‘Aziz bin ‘Abd Allah related to us, saying: Ibrahim ibn Sa‘d related to me from Salih from Ibn Shihab who said: ‘Urwa bin al-Zubayr informed me that Zaynab bint Umm Salamah informed him that her mother Umm Salamah (the wife of the Holy Prophet) informed her: God’s Messenger heard some people quarreling at the door of his dwelling. He came out and said, “I am only a human being, and opponents come to me (to settle their problems); maybe someone amongst you can present his case more eloquently than the other, whereby I may consider him true and give a verdict in his favor. So, if I give the right of a Muslim to another (in this way), then it is really a portion of fire that he has the option to take or give up (before the day of judgment).” (Bukhari) The other version omits the reference to the Prophet hearing some people quarreling at the door. Otherwise it is substantially the same.
In this hadith the possibility of the Prophet making a mistake as a judge is clearly raised. Yet this seems to conflict with Qur’an 4:65: “But no! By your Lord! They do not become believers until they make you a judge in matters of dispute among them and then do not find any straitness in their hearts about what you have decided and submit to (the decision) completely.” This type of acceptance of the Prophet’s judgment would seem to be more suitable if his judgments were either right or there was a guarantee that God would send down correction of any errors he might make. Consequently, the authenticity of the hadith is in some doubt.
But even if the hadith is authentic it makes an important and valid point, so that it can still be considered revelatory. To understand the hadith more precisely we need to note that a judgment can be wrong in two ways:
1) It can be wrong in its result, that is, the person in the right was declared in the wrong or vice versa.
2) It can be wrong in the process used, that is, it is arrived at by a wrong use of the evidence.
A judgment may be right in one of these senses but wrong in the other. For example, suppose that a person is guilty of committing adultery but only one witness saw his action. In this case if the person is acquitted then this judgment will be wrong in the first sense (result), but right in the second (process). On the other hand, if the person is convicted, then the judgment will be right in the first sense but wrong in the second. It is not possible to be always sure that one’s judgment is right in the first sense because it requires omniscience and no human beings, not even prophets are omniscient.
Now once this distinction is made, it becomes clear that the hadith under consideration states only that the Prophet, being a human being and not omniscient, may not always be right in the first sense. The hadith does not mean that he could also be wrong in the second sense, that is, he could make wrong use of the evidence. If understood that way, the hadith does not conflict with the revelatory character of the Hadith. It, in fact, teaches an important lesson to judges: they should judge by what they hear from the disputants and witnesses. Without this principle a sound system of justice cannot be established. This is in any case how Bukhari and other Muslims understood this hadith, as is shown by the fact that after recording the above hadith, Bukhari gives some opinions of jurists as to how a judge should judge:
The people of Hijaz said,
“A judge should not pass a judgment according to his knowledge, whether he was
a witness at the time he was the judge or before that” And if a litigant gives
a confession in favor of his opponent in the court, in the opinion of some
scholars, the judge should not pass a judgment against him until the latter
calls two witnesses to witness his confession. And some people of
I WILL ASK FORGIVENESS FOR (A HYPOCRITE) MORE THAN SEVENTY TIMES
Another type of ahadith in which the Prophet seemingly makes a mistake is comprised of those ahadith in which ‘Umar expresses an opinion; the Prophet decides contrary to ‘Umar’s opinion, but later the Qur`anic revelation favors ‘Umar’s opinion. There are two stories of this type that have some credibility: the story of the funeral prayers for the hypocrite ‘Abd Allah bin Ubayy and the story of the treatment of prisoners of Badr. The first story is found in Ibn Ishaq, Bukhari, and Muslim. There are three versions, one on the authority of ‘Umar himself and two on the authority of Ibn ‘Umar. Bukhari gives all three. Here is one version on Ibn ‘Umar’s authority from Bukhari:
Narrated Ibn ‘Umar: When ‘Abd Allah bin Ubayy died, his son ‘Abd Allah bin ‘Abd Allah came to God's Messenger and asked him to give him his shirt in order to shroud his father in it. He gave it to him and then ‘Abd Allah asked the Prophet to offer the funeral prayer for him (his father). God's Messenger got up to offer the funeral prayer for him, but ‘Umar got up too and getting hold of the garment of God's Messenger said, "O God's Messenger! Will you offer the funeral prayer for him though your Lord has forbidden you to offer the prayer for him?" God's Messenger said, "But God has given me the choice by saying: 'Ask forgiveness for them, or do not ask forgiveness for them; even if you ask forgiveness for them seventy times…' (9.80). So I will ask (forgiveness) more than seventy times." ‘Umar said, "But he is a hypocrite!" However, God's Messenger offered the funeral prayer for him whereupon God revealed: “And never (O Muhammad) pray for anyone of them that dies, nor stand at his grave” (9.84). (Bukhari)
Despite its documentation by Ibn Ishaq, Bukhari, and Muslim, the authenticity of the hadith is subject to some doubt for the following reasons:
1) The isnads for the three versions are:
Abu Usamah – ‘Ubayd Allah – Nafi‘ – Ibn ‘Umar
Anas bin ‘Ayad – ‘Ubayd Allah – Nafi‘ – Ibn ‘Umar
Ibn Shihab – ‘Ubayd Allah – Ibn ‘Abbas – ‘Umar
Looking at these isnads we see that three people heard the hadith from ‘Ubayd Allah but to know from whom he heard the story and what exactly he heard we have only his word to go by, at least according to what Ibn Ishaq, Bukhari, and Muslim have accepted in their books. (In later books we find other weaker versions with somewhat different isnads). In the absence of any early confirmation of ‘Ubayd Allah’s story by a second witness, the hadith remains under reasonable doubt.
2) In the version quoted above from ‘Ubayd Allah – Nafi‘ – Ibn ‘Umar, the Holy Prophet gives his shirt to shroud the dead hypocrite Ibn Ubayy and offers funeral prayers for him at the request of his son. But in another version, also coming from ‘Ubayd Allah – Nafi‘ – Ibn ‘Umar the Prophet takes these actions entirely on his own initiative:
When ‘Abd Allah bin Ubayy died, his son came to the Messenger of God who gave his shirt to him and ordered him to shroud his father in it. Then he stood up to offer the funeral prayer …
This difference in the two ahadith with identical isnads from ‘Ubayd Allah to the Prophet shows that at least in some details the transmission of the story has not been entirely reliable.
3) Bukhari and Muslim record words of ‘Umar listing matters on which divine revelation agreed with his opinions:
It is reported from Anas that ‘Umar said: My Lord agreed with me in three things: 1) I said, "O God's Messenger, I wish we took the station of Ibrahim as our praying place (for some of our prayers). So the divine inspiration came: “And take (O people) the station of Ibrahim as a place of prayer (for some of your prayers e.g. two rak‘ah of Ka‘bah’s tawaf)" (2.125). 2) And as regards the verse about hijab of the women, I said, 'O God's Messenger! I wish you ordered your wives to cover themselves from the men because good and bad ones talk to them.' So the verse about hijab was revealed. 3) Once the wives of the Prophet made a united front against the Prophet and I said to them, 'It may be if he divorced you, his Lord will give him wives better than you in your place.' So a verse to this effect [66:5] was revealed" (Bukhari).
It is reported from Ibn ‘Umar that (‘Umar said): “My Lord agreed with me in three things: in the matter of (prayer at) the station of Ibrahim, in the matter of hijab for women, and in the matter of prisoners of Badr” (Muslim).
If the story under consideration is authentic, we should also expect a mention of the matter of the funeral prayers for the hypocrites, in which revelation agreed with ‘Umar’s opinion. The absence of any mention of this matter from both lists casts some doubt about the authenticity of the story.
4) Muslim gives another different account of what happened on the death of ‘Abd Allah bin Ubayy:
Jabir is reported as saying that the Messenger of God came to the grave of ‘Abd Allah bin Ubayy, took him out of the grave, put him on his knees, touched him with his saliva, and clothed him with his shirt. God knows best.
This story agrees with the second version of the hadith of ‘Ubayd Allah – Nafi‘ – Ibn ‘Umar in that here the Holy Prophet acts entirely on his own initiative. But there is no mention here of the Prophet offering funeral prayer and ‘Umar objecting to it. This argument from silence is not conclusive but it does raise some doubt.
5) The Qur`anic verse 9:80 seems to be misunderstood in the story. The Qur`anic words “even if you ask forgiveness for (the hypocrites) seventy times, God will not forgive them” probably mean: “no matter how many times you ask forgiveness for them, God will not forgive them.” That is, “seventy” is an indefinitely large number (see the commentaries on the Qur`an, e.g. Ibn Kathir, Tafsir). But in the hadith of ‘Ubayd Allah “seventy” is taken literally, so that the possibility of forgiveness for the hypocrites is admitted if the Prophet prayed more than seventy times.
Thus reasonable doubt exists regarding the authenticity
of the hadith. But even if we accept the hadith as authentic, it does not call
into question the revelatory character of the Sunnah/Hadith. Firstly, if it was
a mistake on the part of the Prophet to offer funeral prayer for Ibn Ubayy it
was corrected and as we have stated earlier a mistake and its correction can
become revelatory. Secondly, it is not at all clear that the Prophet made a
mistake. The Prophet was well within the rule that God had laid down till
the time of the death of Ibn Ubayy. Within that rule he was showing maximum
love and mercy even to those who harbored enmity in their hearts for him. This
reveals an important religious lesson: without transgressing the limits set by
the Qur`an, themselves based on mercy, we should show
as much compassion to enemies of Islam and Muslims, and our own personal
enemies as possible. Another indication that in this hadith we are not dealing
with any mistake on the part of the Holy Prophet is provided by the fact that
the Qur`anic passage 9:84 contains no hint that the Prophet had made a mistake.
Contrast this with
WHAT DO YOU THINK REGARDING THESE PRISONERS?
The second story, as recorded in Muslim, relates that the Prophet asked Abu Bakr and ‘Umar: “What do you think regarding these prisoners” taken in the battle of Badr? Abu Bakr suggested that they should be released in exchange for compensation, but ‘Umar advised killing them. The Prophet opted for the opinion of Abu Bakr. Then Qur`an 8:67 was revealed which is said to support ‘Umar’s position.
Bukhari does not record the story. It is also interesting that in the saying of ‘Umar, listing three matters on which divine revelation supported his opinions, the story of the prisoners is not included in the version accepted by Bukhari. In Muslim, of course, the story is part of the list. Thus Bukhari probably deliberately avoided traditions referring to the story because he did not find the story reliable.
The story is also absent from earlier books of history such as Ibn Ishaq’s Sirah and Ibn Sa‘d’s Tabaqat, both of which devote considerable space to the battle of Badr and refer to the passage 8:67.
Moreover, the story does not explain the Qur`anic passage to which it refers. The passage reads:
It is not fitting for a prophet that he should take captives unless he has fought and triumphed in the land. You desire the fleeting gains of the world, while God desires (for you) the hereafter. And God is mighty, wise. Were it not for an ordinance from God that had already gone forth, surely there would have befallen you a great chastisement for what you had taken (8:67-68).
This passage is not saying that the prisoners taken should be killed, as ‘Umar is reported to have suggested, but that the prisoners should not be taken at all before the battle has been fought to the limit of one’s resources or the enemies of God have been completely subjugated. This is also stated in the following passage:
So when you meet in battle those who disbelieve, smite their necks until when you have overcome them, then take prisoners, and afterwards either set them free as a favor or let them ransom till the war lays down its burdens … (47:4)
This verse may well be the ordinance that is referred to in 8:68 where it is said: “were it not for an ordinance from God that had already gone forth”. The verse is less categorical in prohibiting taking of prisoners before the battle reaches some natural conclusion and therefore provided some excuse for the conduct of the Muslims in Badr leading to divine forgiveness.
The two passages, 8:67-68 and 47:4 together make it clear that when the Muslims do decide to take prisoners there is no more any option to kill them (unless they do some serious mischief): They should be freed with or without ransom. Furthermore, the first passage provides no hint that the Prophet was at fault. The passage blames the believers and not the Prophet. All this also finds support in the following tradition:
When mujahidun were busy taking the booty and binding prisoners the Prophet saw that there was an expression of disapproval on the face of Sa‘d bin Mu‘adh. The Prophet asked him: “O Sa‘d, it seems that you disapprove of this conduct of the people.” He replied: “Yes, O Messenger of God! This is the first battle in which God has made the mushrikun loose. On this occasion it would have been better to beat them thoroughly instead of saving their lives by taking them prisoners (Ibn Hisham, Sirah).
In this tradition it is taken for granted that to take disbelievers as prisoners is to save their lives. Sa‘d is simply repeating here the idea in the Qur`anic verses, 8:67 and 47:4. Also, the Prophet is no part of what the people were doing.
Even a commentator like Mawdudi who rarely questions the accepted traditions finds the hadith of ‘Umar and the Qur`anic verse at odds with each other. He therefore rejects the hadith as an ahad khabar, which cannot be accepted if it leads to a problematic tafsir.
We may thus conclude that the story of a mistaken decision on the part of the Prophet regarding the prisoners of Badr is not reliable.
Sunnah that did not
originate from the Prophet
We have seen above several
ahadith that point to the revelatory character of the Sunnah of the Prophet. According
to some ahadith, even sunnah not originating from the
Prophet could become part of Islam and an expression of divine will. Thus
traditions recorded in Muwatta, Bukhari, Muslim and other books state that the
exact form of the call to prayers originated with some companions, Bilal or
‘Umar. This was approved by the Prophet and assumed by the Qur’an. Now it is a
part of Islamic practice. In a loose sense all Islamic traditions and ideas
that blend in perfect harmony with the teachings of the Qur’an and the
authentic Hadith are part of Islam and hence part of revelation. (Cf. Qur’an 58:22, where the believers are said to be assisted by
the Spirit from God and
In some ahadith there is a condemnation of muhdathat or bid‘ah, which seems to exclude any religious validity (or revelatory status) to anything new introduced in Islam. A comment on a hadith in Abu Da`ud makes the point: “Now anything introduced by the Muslims after this period (of the Prophet and the four khulafa`) must have its basis during this period or approved of by the Prophet or agreed upon by the companions.” The comment is on the hadith which reads:
“It is related from ‘Aishah that the Messenger of God said: If anyone introduces into this amr (matter, affair) of ours which does not belong to it, it is rejected” (Abu Da`ud).
But even if such ahadith are authentic, it is possible to take muhdathat or bid‘ah as those practices that do not blend with the Qur`an and the authentic Hadith. This is supported by the tradition in Bukhari, in which ‘Umar characterizes the tarawih prayer in Ramadan as bid‘ah hasanah, a good bid‘ah. To be sure the practice of regular congregational tarawih prayer was introduced and approved during the time of the rightly guided khulafa`, but nevertheless the tradition establishes the principle that a bid‘ah can be hasanah. Indeed, almost a century before Abu Da`ud (d. 275) wrote his Sunan containing the above hadith, Abu Yusuf (d. 183) in his Kitab al-Kharaj quotes the hadith:
The Prophet said: “Whoever introduces a good sunnah will be rewarded …”
Here there is no restriction on who introduces the sunnah and when. At least Abu Yusuf understands the hadith in general terms; for, in the same passage in which he quotes the above hadith he advises Harun al-Rashid (reigned 170-193) to “introduce some good sunan”.
Thus, on the basis of several traditions it is possible to view revelation as a plant that can continue to grow even after the planter is gone rather than a castle of rocks that a builder builds once for all. I personally hold to this view.
An important difference should, however, be kept in mind between the Sunnah originating from the Prophet and the Sunnah not originating from him. The Sunnah originating from the Prophet is revelatory by the basic teachings of Islam while the Sunnah not originating from him becomes revelatory only if the Prophet and the Qur’an have confirmed it. If a sunnah originated from a Muslim in the time of the Prophet, as in the case of the adhan, then the Prophet’s acceptance of it provides the necessary confirmation. In case of a sunnah originating after the Prophet this confirmation requires showing that the sunnah in question blends perfectly with the Qur’an and the Sunnah of the Prophet.
The view that a good sunnah is a part of Islam was one of the factors that resulted in attribution to the Prophet of words and actions that were considered good but that did not go back to him. The Prophet is even quoted as saying: “What is said of a good word, I (can be taken to) have said it.” This was, however, a terrible mistake. The Sunnah set by the Prophet should have been kept by earlier Muslims — and should be kept by us now -- completely separate from the Sunnah set by others so that we can establish the validity of the latter by reference to the former. Since this was not done, it was necessary for some scholars to embark on the sacred hadith project.
Secondary character of the Sunnah/Hadith
Even tho