Islamic Studies

Lecture No, 1

Introduction to Basic Sources of Islam

a. Introduction and basic Concepts of Al-Quran

b. Introduction of Sunnah, Hadiths, History, Kinds of Hadith

Introduction of Quran

The Holy Quran is the most important holy book in the history of mankind, a
source of huge inspiration, guidance and wisdom for millions of Muslims all over
the world. It is the pivotal point of imaan, faith, and integral to the foundations of
an Islamic society being the basis of its shariah, Islamic legal injunctions and law.
As such one of the aims of Islamic studies is to ensure a continuous link remains
between the body of the Islamic community, the ummah and its heart, the Holy
Quran. It is a book not just to be read, but to be studied, understood and ultimately
revered. This writing is an attempt to provide an introduction to the Holy Quran so
that Muslims and non-Muslims alike can have an insight into its significance but
also understand its necessity to the Islamic faith and its importance to the Holy
Prophet’s (saw) status.

Quran like a heart of human being for Islamic Ummah because Quran is guide of
Islamic Ummah in all aspects of life and it is very useful and best for the future of
Muslim Ummah and if we will leave it and do not take guidance from the Last
book Allah it will be very harmful for us because there is no guidance like the
Quranic guidance. The way of life that is mentioned in the Quran we do not find it
in any other holy book in this world therefore Non- Muslims also can find the
broad view of life in the shape of Quranic instructions.

Meaning of the Word Quran

The Holy Qur’an is the literal word of Allah, beautifully revealed to Prophet
Muhammad (saw) through the Angel Gibraeel (as). Before any attempt is made to
describe the meanings of the word “Qur’an” the etymological base of the Arabic
language needs a brief explanation first. The Arabic language is one of the richest
languages in the world word containing many meanings and hidden depths, which
 have no comparison in the English language. In order to appreciate the true
meaning and understanding of a particular word inquiry has to take place, at the
top of the list.

Meaning of the Word Quran

The Holy Qur’an is the literal word of Allah (swt), divinely revealed to Prophet
Muhammad (saw) through the Angel Gibraeel (as). Before any attempt is made to
describe the meanings of the word “Qur’an” the etymological base of the Arabic
language needs a brief explanation first. The Arabic language is one of the richest
languages in the world word containing many meanings and hidden depths, which
have no comparison in the English language. In order to appreciate the true
meaning and understanding of a particular word a threefold inquiry has to take
place, looking into the:

1. etymological base of each word

2. its grammatical category
3. its contextual location
Etymological Aspect of Each Word

Most Arabic words have a root word consisting of 3 or 4 letters. These root words
form the foundation of many nouns, verbs and adjectives. One root word can be
responsible for a whole host of words. Any Arabic word that consists of the same 3
letters will have the same root word as its origins. In Arabic a root word is called
“Mada” meaning subject matter. Every root word has its own individual meaning
and the basic meanings travel into every noun or verb that is created. Once vowel
sounds of the Arabic language are inserted into the root word they give a more
precise and specific meaning.

Grammatical Category

Secondly every noun, verb or adjective also belongs to a specific grammatical or

composite category, which have its own particular properties and meanings. These
words carry on those characteristics and meanings in addition to the root word
itself. Once the original meaning of the root word is combined with the prevailing
grammatical and composite characteristics of that word this is then studied in light
of the context of the original matter in discussion.

Contextual Location

Once the above two stages take place then the word in question is studied in light
of the context, usage, contents and subject matter of its placement. This will finally
lead to the exact and precise meaning of the word and give a true picture of what
the writer is trying to convey. One has to remember that in the context of the Holy
Qur’an, this is a divinely revealed book of God. As such every word can be taken
to have been specially chosen for man to read and then understand as the Arabic
language has an enormous breadth of vocabulary. Thus a detailed knowledge of
Arabic grammar and linguistics as well as the language itself needs to be
understood before any attempt can be made to provide a comprehensive “tafseer”
or explanation of the Qur’anic verses.

Root Words of the Qur’an

The word Qur’an can be derived from four root words, each with their own
individual meanings. The first root word is “qara’a” whose literal meaning is to
collect or to compile. In this respect the Qur’an is a book which was collected and
codified under the divine protection of Allah (swt). When Angel Gibraeel (a.s)
used to bring the divine revelation of Allah (swt) to the Holy Prophet Muhammad
(saw) he had already been instructed by God to reveal the exact placement of each
ayah (in the relevant Surah) as well as the arrangement of the Surah’s and their
names. Since this was the case it was impossible for others to interfere in the
Qur’an in any manner or form. It will remain in its actual and original state until
the Day of Judgment the Qur’an itself testifies to its divine protection:

“It is for us to collect and recite it” (75:17)

In the context of the Qur’an, the word qara’a is also taken as being the book which
contains all knowledge of the universe. Every as aspect of life as we know has
been codified and collected within it [1]. An answer to any question man wishes to
have answered can be found in the verses of the Holy Qur’an:
“And we have sent down to thee the Book explaining all things, a guide, a mercy
and glad tidings to Muslims”. (16:89)

“A detailed exposition of everything”. (12:11)

“We have omitted nothing from the book”. (6)

The second root word is “qar’ana” meaning a union or conjunction. The root word
does not specify what the union consists of, merely that a process of combination is
indicated. In reference to the Qur’an this refers to the literal physical existence of
the Qur’an and its properties. Imaam Fakr-al-Deen Razi quotes Imaam Sufyan
Sorri as stating that the Holy Qur’an was given its own special name because
letters are joined to make words, words are joined to make ayahs, ayahs are joined
to make surahs and surahs are joined to make the Qur’an. This beautiful
combination of literature has produced the most magnificent book in the world.

Another academic implication of the word “qar’ana” is that the Qur’an is

combined with guidance, the two being inseparable. The Holy Qur’an refers to this
combination:

“This is the book: it is guidance sure, without doubt”. (2:2)

“Here is a plain statement. To one, a guidance and instruction to those who fear
Allah”. (3:138)

“For one who had certainly sent unto them a book, based on knowledge, which we
explained in detail; a guidance and mercy to all those who believe”. (7:52)

“There are clear evidences to me, and a guidance and mercy to those of assured
faith”. (45:20)

The third root word is “qira’athun” meaning to read or recite. In reference to the
Qur’an this is one of its most important features. Although other books that claim
to be divinely revealed are also read and recited, the Holy Qur’an has a specific
characteristic, superiority and individuality compared to them. This is because it is
the most widely read book in the world. Millions of Muslims all over the world
recite it in their daily prayers 5 times a day. The Qur’an is read and recited daily in
what is called ‘tilawat’ where Muslims read the Qur’an whenever they have some
spare time to get the Blessings of Almighty Allah. During the month of Ramadhan
the entire Qur’an is recited over a period of 30 days in the special ‘tharawih
prayers [2]’, as well as being individually read by Muslims in their homes. Often,
during this month of fasting, each member of the household will have completely
read and finished the Qur’an at least once if not twice.

As well as being read and recited, the Qur’an acts as a practical guide in all affairs
of Muslims, be they social, cultural, legal, economic or political. Unlike its biblical
counterpart, the Qur’an does not merely contain stories of Prophets or an analogue
of Islamic history. Rather it contains an array of topics to be of use in one’s daily
life. Codes of behavior and their limits are explained, mutual rights and
responsibilities of men, women, children are laid down as well as international
principles to be used to govern communities, countries and nations. The Qur’an
acts as a practical guide of life to Muslims in the personal and official spheres of
life. To make it more accessible to different nations and peoples of various
countries, it has been translated in almost every language of the world.

Furthermore, from the period of the Holy Prophet (saw) up until the present day
some 1400 hundred years later, millions of Muslims have learnt the Qur’an off by
heart [3]. It is unimaginable how many people must have learnt the Qur’an over the
last 14 centuries, suffice to say no other book can claim to have these particular
traits attached to it. And this trend and inclination will continue till the Day of
Judgement.

The fourth and final root word of the word Qur’an is “qira’in” which is the plural
of “qarina” which meaning evidence, argument or symbol. In the context of the
Qur’an this is taken to mean how one verse interprets, elaborates and gives
arguments and evidences for previous verses. In ayah 5 of surah Al-Fatiha[4] for
example, man is told to ask Allah for the right path:

“Guide us Thou on the right path”.

The following verse then answers this request and explains what the right path is:

“The path of those whom you have favored. Not those who have earned your anger
or gone astray”. (1:6-7)

So the Qur’an is self-evident and self-explanatory. If one verse gives a general

meaning than the other gives a more specific definition. Similarly if one verse
gives an absolute commandment then the other verse will gives its exceptions and
qualifications. The Holy Qur’an testifies to this fact:

“Oh mankind! Verily there has come to you a convincing proof from your Lord for
we have sent into you a light (that is manifest)”. (4:174)

Moreover the Qur’an contains 100’s of evidences of its own truthfulness being the
best evidence of the truth of its claim. That is why a challenge was given to the
non-believers that if all of mankind and jinn kind were to come together to create a
similar or equal book to that of the Qur’an they would fail, this being an
impossibility:

“Say. If the whole of mankind and Jinns were to gather together to produce the
like of this Qur’an, they could not produce the like thereof, even if they backed up
each other with help and support.” (17:88)

Fourteen hundred centuries have passed and no change or alteration has taken
place in the Holy Qur’an. The text that is present today is exactly the same text that
was revealed to Prophet Muhammad (saw). This is so despite hundreds of attempts
by non-Muslims to try and insert alterations and changes into the Qur’an. That is
why Allah (swt) himself gives it divine protection:

“We have, without doubt, sent down the message; And We will assuredly guard it
(from corruption”. (15:9)

Just as there have been no alterations made to the Qur’an, similarly there are no
conflicts or contradictions in the text of the Holy Qur’an. If one reads the beautiful
verses each one compliments the next. The surahs and ayah’s of the Qur’an work
in consistent harmony with each other. The Holy Qur’an is truly a uniform piece of
work. In contrast the Encyclopedia of America for example states that there are
about 30,000 errors in the text of the bible and in its various versions. Although the
accuracy of this type of observation is open to debate, what is clear is that any
book that claims to be divinely revealed would surely not even entertain one error
let alone hundreds or thousands of errors. The very nature of God, His
Omnipotence, All Knowing and Most Powerful nature presupposes that His
divinely given book would be clean of all mistakes. Indeed the Holy Qur’an is a
living testament to that fact.

Names of the Holy Qur’an

The Qur’an has been referred to by many different names in the holy text. The
word Qur'an itself can be found in the scriptures:

"We do relate unto you the most beautiful stories, in that We reveal to thee this
(portion of the) Qur'an: Before this thou too was among those who knew it not."
(Yusuf, 12:3)

"Nay this is a glorious Qur'an (inscribed) in a tablet preserved". (Al-Buruj, 85:21-

22)

However Allah Almighty refers to the Holy Qur'an using several other names:

Al-nur the light (7:157)

Al-hukm the judgment (13:37)

Al-dhikr the reminder (15:9)

Al-kitab the scripture (21:10)

Al-furqan the criterion (25:1)

Al-tanzil the revelation (26:192)

 Further descriptive titles include mubarak (blessing)[5], mussadiq (confirmation of
truth)[6], mubin (explanation)[7], hakim (wisdom)[8], majid (glorious)[9] and kari
m (honoured)[10]

Divine Revelation

Definition of “Wahi”

The Arabic word wahi comes from the root word waha and is used to describe
divine revelation. It has a variety of different meanings in the Arabic language,
being interpreted as “a quick or divine indication”, “to give or convey a message”
or “gentle speech”. In Islamic terminology, wahi can be precisely defined as God’s
divine message conveyed to Allah’s chosen persons (Prophets). This message can
be conveyed openly or in a hidden and concealed manner, imparting wisdom and
knowledge that is beyond the material and physical realities of man.

The renowned scholar, Hafiz ibn Hajr as-Qalani defines wahi as that knowledge
regarding the Shariah that Allah conveys to His Prophets. Imaam Qastalani states
that wahi is information given to the Prophets by Allah Almighty, in the form of a
book, through Angels or through dreams. Descriptions of wahi are also given in the
Holy Qur’an:

History of Quran

Compilation of Divine Revelation

The compilation of the Holy Qur’an took place in three stages:

1. During the lifetime of the Holy Prophet (saw)

2. During the caliphate of Sayyidina Abu Bakr (rad)
3. During the caliphate of Sayyidina Othman bin Affan
In the Lifetime of the Holy Prophet (saw)

There is ample evidence showing that the entire Qur’an was written down in the
Prophets (saw) lifetime. As stated earlier when he (saw) received revelation he
would instruct scribes to record the revelation on parchments of paper or pieces of
leather. He would also indicate in which Surah each ayah was to be placed [39].
The Companions never interfered in the arrangement of the ayahs and Surahs
which are the same in copies of Qur’ans available today. Hadrat Zaid bin Thabbit
was one of the most prominent of the scribes and has reported that he, along with
other companions would compile the Qur’an in the presence of the Holy Prophet
(saw)[40]. During this time the names of the Surahs were also known. Angle
Gibraeel (a.s) would also come to the Holy Prophet (saw) every Ramadan to listen
to him reciting the Qur’an, and listened to him twice in the year of his demise[41].

In the time of Sayyidina Abu Bakr (rad)

A detailed account of this is contained in an account given by Zaid bin Thabbit in

Sahih Bukhari. After the demise of the Holy Prophet (saw) an imposter called
Muslimah announced falsely his own Prophethood. Sayyidina Abu Bakr (rad) sent
a Muslim expedition against him and a harsh battle took place in 632 A.D (11 A.H)
at the place of Yamamah[42] during which hundreds of hafiz were martyred.
Sayyidina Umar bin Kattab (rad) became concerned at the heavy loss of casualties,
fearing that a large part of the Qur’an could be lost if the rate of martyrdom
increased. He expressed these fears to the Caliph Sayyidina Abu Bakr (rad) and
asked him to compile the Qurán into a permanent book form. Sayyidina Abu Bakr
(rad) was at first shocked at the request and said he could not do something that the
Holy Prophet (saw) had never done in his own lifetime. However Sayyidina Umar
(rad) continued to persuade him until Sayyidina Abu Bakr (rad) said his heart was
opened by Allah (swt) and he agreed to the suggestion.

Sayyidina Abu Bakr (rad) called upon Hadrat Zaid bin Thabbit (rad) to collect and
compile the Qur’an into one volume. Hadrat Zain bin Thabbit was also astonished
at this request and declared it would have been easier for him to shift a mountain
than to do such a task. He too questioned how they could do something that the
Holy Prophet (saw) had never done. Sayyidina Abu Bakr (rad) replied this was a
good thing and began to persuade him until Allah (swt) opened the heart of Hadrat
Zaid bin Thabbit (rad) who agreed to do this too.
Hadrat Zaid bin Thabbit (rad) set about completing the task. He collected all the
written parts of the Qur’an from date leaves, parchment and pieces of leather and
also listened to many of the hafiz who recited verses from their memories. After
having carefully compared and cross checked each ayah, he compiled the written
Qur’an into one single volume. Sayyidina Abu Bakr became its official custodian,
passing on to Sayyidina Umar bin Kattab (rad) during his caliphate. After his
demise the Qur’anic volume was passed into the custody of his daughter Hadrat
Hafsah (rad).

In the time of Sayyidina Uthman bin Affan (rad)

As the Islamic empire increased it incorporated many different nations and tribes
who did not speak and understand Arabic. As a result difference in reciting the
Qur’an and pronunciation began to occur. It is reported by Hadrat Anas bin Malik
[43] that Hadrat Hudaifah bin Yaman (rad) had been involved in the victories of
the Muslim run Sham, now modern day Syria, and Iraq over Armenia and
Azerbaijan. He heard the differences in the recitation of the Qur’an by the
inhabitants there. Upon his return he related these concerns to Sayyidina Uthman
(rad) who expressed a deep apprehension at this new development. They both
feared conflicts could arise, replicating the problems that had occurred in the
authenticity of the Bible and Toroth. Sayyidina Uthman took action and asked
Hadrat Hafsah (rad) for the original volume of the Qur’an promising to return it to
her once copies were made. She sent it immediately to him. Hadrat Zaid bin
Thabbit, having been responsible for the first compilation (rad) was appointed as
the head of a committee to make exact and perfect copies of the original. The other
committee members consisted of Hadrat Abdullah bin Zubair, Hadrat Sa’id bin Al
A’as and Hadrat Abdur Rahman bin Harith (rad). Hadrat Uthman gave them
instructions that if any of the three disagreed upon any point with Hadrat Zaid (rad)
then the relevant ayah should be written in the language of the Quraish as that was
the tongue in which the Qur’an was revealed.

Once copies were made the original was returned to Hadrat Hafsah (rad). The new
copies were then distributed to every Muslim province with the orders that all other
copies of the Qur’an, be they full or partial copies, were to be burnt and replaced
by this original one. Since that day the Holy Qurán has remained in its original
pristine form and will remain as such in the future by the Grace and Blessings of
Allah Almighty.

b. Introduction of Sunnah, Hadiths, History, Kinds of Hadith

Introduction to Sunnah
Basic Concepts of Hadith
History of Hadith
Kinds of Hadith

Introduction of Sunnah or Hadiths

As most Muslims are aware, the life example of the Prophet Muhammad (
) is the basis for the beliefs and laws of Islam. His sayings, actions and
expressions are a fountain of guidance for the believers. The Sahaabah Kiraam
themselves ( ) memorized each and every page of the life of the Prophet (
)- standing and sitting, traveling and living at home. From the conditions
of his household life to the political and economic laws he established, there is no
incident from the life of the Prophet ( ) except that the Companions (
) took note of it and preserved its remembrance- some by pure memory and
others by writing it down. After them, the Taabi’een and their followers continued
this process of memorizing and compiling the hadeeth to the point that by the
second century Hijri, publication of entire books and writings of hadeeth was
widespread. It is because of those times that Muslims today have a picture of the
entire way of life of the Prophet ( ) laid out for them.1

 The great scholars and legislators of the ummah dedicated their entire lives to
acquiring the knowledge of hadeeth. They used to travel thousands of miles just to
learn one hadeeth. Nothing would discourage or delay them from their search for
hadeeth- they would even narrate hadeeth from their own students. These scholars
memorized and compiled books of hadeeth and established an entire science
around hadeeth and the biography of narrators (‘ilm-ur-rijaal: “the study of men”).
In order to fully understand the greatness of their achievement and its value for
1
Islam, one only has to consider what would be the state of the ummah if such
narrations had not been collected and preserved- what a great foundation of the
deen would have been missing.

 The purpose of this lecture is to provide an overview of the importance, history

and study of hadeeth. This summary barely touches the surface of the sciences of
hadeeth. As such it should be kept in mind that understanding of the particulars and
details of hadeeth and the rulings derived therefrom requires strong and widespread
study from a reliable Muslim scholar.

The Need for Hadiths

Allah has summarized in a brief and beautiful way in the Qur’an the basic
foundations of Islam. Without the explanation and description provided by the
hadeeth, however, there is no other way to gain understanding of the details of all
such rulings. The prophetic hadith provide Muslims with the practical actions
necessary for implementing the Qur’aanic injunctions. For example, words like
salaah, zakaah, tayammum, hajj and ‘umrah each have a literal meaning in Arabic
which is somewhat different from their meaning as used by the Shari’ah- without
the hadith of the Prophet ( ), there would be no way to tell what the Shar’i
meanings of such words are.

The Proof (Hujjat) of Hadiths (why Hadiths is proof of Islamic ruling)

Allah has firmly commanded the Muslims to follow the actions and sayings of
the Prophet Muhammad ( ). Thus, He has said:

“Follow Allah and follow the Messenger.”

(Surah Nisaa, Ayah 59)

“And what the Messenger gives you, take it. And what he forbids you from, keep
away from it.”
(Surah Hashr, Ayah 7)
 “Say [to them O Muhammad ( )]: If you love Allah, follow me…”
(Surah Aali ‘Imraan, Ayah 31)

“Surely there is in the Messenger of Allah a most beautiful example for you…”
(Surah Ahzaab, Ayah 21)

 From these blessed verses, it is clear that obeying the rulings of the Prophet (
) and following his actions is obligatory on every Muslim up till the Day
of Judgment. The question then is how can people who come after the Prophet (
) know what his sayings and actions were. Allah sent the Prophet (
) as an example for us- how else is it possible that we model our lives on
his life without the existence of hadeeth? Just as the Prophet ( ) himself
was a direct example for the Sahaabah ( ), who took guidance from him in
person, in the same way the hadeeth provide this guidance to us. For if one does
not accept the guidance given by the hadeeth, the hujjat established by Allah will
be incomplete. Allah not only sent the Qur’aan for guidance- He also sent with it a
Messenger ( ) whose obedience and following has been made necessary as
well, and again, without the hadeeth there is no other way to know the sayings and
actions of the Prophet Muhammad ( ).

 If one does not accept the hadeeth, then not only is one prevented from acquiring
the guidance given by the Prophet ( ), but one will also have an
incomplete understanding of the rulings given in the Qur’aan. Allah establishes
that He has sent the Prophet Muhammad ( ) to explain the meanings of the
Qur’aan and to teach their implementation:

“And We have revealed upon you the dhikr, that you may explain to the people
what has been revealed for them.”
(Surah Nahl, Ayah 44)

  
 “And that he (the messenger) may teach them the Book and Wisdom.”
(Surah Baqarah, Ayah 129)

  Some people may argue that the meanings of the verses and the knowledge of the
“Book” and “Wisdom” was only necessary upon the Companions. However, Islam
is not only for the Sahaabah ( ). Rather, until the Day of Judgment, it is the
religion for all the people and thus, the people need to know the same wisdom that
the Sahaabah needed to know. Furthermore, just as the Sahaabah needed the
Prophet ( ) to explain and explain the meanings of the Qur’aan for them,
even though they themselves were of genuine character, those people who come
later are minor in quality of belief and understanding than the first generation.
Thus, they will be even more needy of such explanation. Thirdly, Allah has said in
the Qur’aan:

“He it is Who has sent among the unlettered nations a prophet from among
themselves, who recites His signs to them and purifies them, and teaches them the
Book and Wisdom, even though they were, before that, in clear Error. And also to
others after them who have not yet joined them…” (Surah Jumu’ah, Ayah 2)

From this verse it is clear that the Prophet ( ) was sent not only to teach
the Qur’aan to the Sahaabah ( ) but also for those Muslims who would come
after them. Thus, it cannot be argued except that just as the Prophet ( )
was a guidance and example for the Sahaabah, so he is for all the Muslims up till
the Last Day. If this were not the case, then there is no other way that prophecy of
the verse above would be fulfilled.

Just think for yourself, that if one only tried to follow the Qur’aan, then how would
one regulate that the word salaah refers to that procedure that is familiar to all
Muslims from the time the adhaan is given until the imaam says the salaam.
Similarly, words like Hajj, Zakaat are only mentioned briefly in the Qur’aan to
establish their performance. How else, other than the hadeeth, can one determine
the detailed rulings, procedures and protocols of these and all other actions in the
life of a Muslim?

The complete understanding of the rulings of Qur’aan is only gained through the
guidance of the Prophet ( ). During the period of disclosure, the Sahaabah
( ) obtained such guidance directly from his blessed tongue. For those
Muslims coming later, the hadeeth provide the same function.

Just as the Prophet Muhammad ( ) was sent to explain the meanings of

certain words of the Qur’aan, he was also sent to teach certain rules of the Shari’ah
which are not even mentioned in the Qur’aan. In this regard, Allah has said:

“… that he may make lawful for you the good things and make unlawful for you
the evil things.”
(SurahA’raaf, Ayah 157)

 Some things that the Messenger of Allah ( ) made halaal or haraam are
not otherwise mentioned in the Qur’aan. Only in the hadeeth can one find their
mention. Without accepting the proof of hadeeth, we would remain with an
incomplete picture of the way of life that Allah has established for us.

 Even to understand the literal meaning of verses in the Qur’aan, the hadeeth are
necessary. This is because certain verses were revealed for a particular situation or
in response to some specific question or statement of the non-believers and
hypocrites. Sometimes a verse referred to an incident that would happen later or
some verses came down to correct or support the actions of the Companions (
). Thus, without the knowledge of the reason for revelation of such verses
(asbaab an-nuzool), it is not possible to understand their meaning correctly.
Without accepting the hadeeth, it is impossible that one will be able to practice
upon the teachings of the Qur’aan.

 History of Hadith:

The Collection of Hadeeth in the era of Sihabah

 Another argument of those ignorant people who reject the hadeeth is that the
collection of hadeeth only started hundreds of years after the death of the Prophet (
 ). Thus, they claim the books of hadeeth are not authentic. However, this
claim is entirely baseless because the memorization and writing down of the
hadeeth was begun during the very lifetime of the Prophet Muhammad ( )
and continued in every generation with no exception.

 During the blessed time of the Prophet ( ) many Sahaabah ( )started

to preserve in writing the ahadeeth. Imaam Bukhaari ( ) mentions a tradition
in his Saheeh that at the time of the liberation of Makkah, the Prophet ( )
gave a long khutbah. Afterwards, a man from Yemen requested him: “Have it
written down for me, Oh Messenger of Allah.” The Prophet ( ) then gave
the order: “Write it for so-and-so.”

 In the same way, Hadrat ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Amr ibn al-‘Aas ( ) was given a
general order and permission to write down hadeeth:

“On the authority of ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Amr ( ) who said: I used to write down
everything that I heard from the Messenger of Allah ( ) in order to
preserve it. The Quraysh used to stop me and say: Do you write everything you
hear from him, even though the Messenger of Allah ( ) is a man and he
talks in anger and pleasure? So I stopped my writing and mentioned it to the
Messenger of Allah ( ). He ( ) indicated with his finger to his
 mouth and said: ‘Write it! For by the One in Whose Hand is my soul, nothing
except Truth (Haqq) comes out from it.’”

From the traditions above, then, it is clear that from the time of the Prophet (
) the Sahaabah Kiraam ( ) used to write down and preserve his
sayings and actions. And those instances in which the Prophet ( ) did not
allow someone to write down some particular hadeeth were because of special
circumstances, such as the fear of confusing a hadeeth with the Qur’aan.

Collection of Hadeeth in the era of tabieen

After the passing of the Prophet ( ), the Taabi’een began to gather and
write the traditions from the Sahaabah in a similar way. Hadrat Abu Hurairah (
), from whom 5,374 hadeeth have been narrated, taught those hadeeth to
countless numbers of students, who wrote down and memorized them and taught
them in turn to their students. In Musnad Daarimi it is mentioned that one such
student who wrote down hadeeth from Abu Hurairah ( ) and preserved them
was Basheer ibn Naheek. Besides other students, Kareeb wrote down hadeeth from
Hadrat ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abbaas ( ) who narrated 2,660 hadeeth. From Hadrat
Anas ( ), who also narrated over 2,000 hadeeth, it is mentioned in Musnad
Daarimi that Abaan used to write down and memorize his hadeeth. ‘Urwah ibn
Zubayr used to write hadeeth from Ummul-Mu’mineen ‘Aa’ishah ( ), who
related 2,210 hadeeth.

In general, it was common for people to memorize hadeeth from the Sahaabah.
From the first century onward, numerous collections of hadeeth were assembled.
There was no single, combined, organized collection of hadeeth- rather, the
Taabi’een collected and preserved any hadeeth that they could find. During the
khilaafah of Hadrat ‘Umar ibn ‘Abdul-‘Azeez ( ), he felt a great need for a
reliable and complete arrangement of hadeeth. Thus, he established a committee of
well-known scholars to perform this task, among whom were the great Abu Bakr
ibn Muhammad ibn ‘Umar ibn Hazm, Qaasim ibn Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr and
Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Muslim ibn ‘Ubaydallaah ibn ‘Abdullah ibn Shihaab
Zuhri ( ).

Hadrat ‘Umar ibn ‘Abdul-‘Azeez ( ) arranged for the gathering of hadeeth

from all different places and had them written down. Ibn Shihaab Zuhri arranged
and compiled those hadeeth. In addition to gathering hadeeth, the chains of
narrators (sanad) were also accurately preserved by az-Zuhri. Thus, he is often
known as the originator of the science of isnaad.
The students and colleagues of Zuhri ( ) continued and carried on this work
after him. Thus, in the second century, one of his students, Imaam Maalik ibn Anas
( ), compiled the first major collection of hadeeth arranged in the order
similar to that common today. That book was called the Mu’atta.

Besides the Mu’atta of Imaam Maalik, the Imaam-e-A’zam Abu Hanifah ( )

also recorded his narrations in his Kitaab-ul-Aathaar. Besides these two great
works, other collections that were produced in the empire of hadeeth during the
second century were: Sunan Abul-Waleed (151H) 2[1], Jaami’ Sufyaan Thawri
(161H), Musannaf Abi Salamah (167H), Musannaf Abi Sufyaan (197H) and
Jaami’ Sufyaan ibn ‘Uyainah (198H). In the third century, additional great
compilations were produced by ash-Shaafi’ ( ) in his Kitaab-ul-Umm
(204H), Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal (241H), al-Jaami’ as-Saheeh of Bukhaari
(256H), al-Jaami’ of Muslim (261H), Sunan of Abu Dawood (275H), Jaami’
Tirmidhi (279H) and Sunan Ibn Maajah (273H).

Thus, from the history of the development of the ummah, it is clear that the work
of collecting and preserving hadeeth in all forms was practiced from the time of
revelation itself up through the third century and onward. By the third century, this
process had merged into an entire branch of study and the Sihaah Sitta (six reliable
works of hadeeth) had been compiled, providing a well-documented and well-
arranged collection of the hadeeth that had been narrated by the earlier generations
of Sahaabah and Taabi’een.

The Sihaah Sitta

The term “sihaah sitta” or “the six sound books,” refers to six collections of
hadeeth whose reliability is generally agreed upon among the Muslim scholars [3].
These collections are:

            Saheeh Bukhaari
            Saheeh Muslim
            Jaami’ Tirmidhi
            Sunan Abi Dawood
            Sunan Nisaa’i
            Sunan Ibn-i-Maajah

2
Al-Jaami’ as-Saheeh li Bukhaari: Imaam Abu ‘Abdullah Muhammad ibn Ismaa’eel
ibn Ibraaheem ibn al-Mugheerah ibn Bardizbah al-Bukhaari ( ) (194 – 256H)
was born in Bukhara, Iran. At the age of ten he began acquiring knowledge of
hadeeth and at sixteen years old he went with his mother to Hajj. He stayed in
Makkah for two years and then went to Madinah, studying from the great scholars
of Islam. He also traveled to Egypt, Basra, Koofa, Baghdaad and Syria. His
greatest work, al-Jaami’ as-Saheeh, took 16 years to complete. It is said that he
collected some 300,000 to 600,000 hadeeth, of which 200,000 he memorized
himself, and of those he selected 7,275 which he considered to be the most reliable
and authentic. The scholars of Islam have unanimously labeled his collection as
“the most authentic book after the Book of Allah.”3[5]

Al-Jaami’ as-Saheeh li Muslim: Next in reliability to Saheeh al-Bukhaari is the

work of Imaam Abul-Husayn Muslim ibn al-Hajjaaj ibn Muslim al-Qushayriy an-
Naisaaburiy ( ). Born in 202 H. in Nisaabur, Iran, he died in 261 H. and was
buried near the same place. He also traveled widely and among his many works is
his al-Jaami’ as-Saheeh in which he selected about 4,000 hadeeth out of 300,000
he collected. Among both his teachers and his students one finds the names of
many great scholars of Islam. Together with Saheeh al-Bukhaari, his collection is
known as one of the Saheehayn- “two authentic books.” The term muttafaqun
‘alayh (“agreed upon”) indicates that a certain hadeeth is to be found in both
collections.

 Jaami’ Tirmidhi: Imaam Abu ‘Eesa Muhammad ibn ‘Eesa at-Tirmidhi ( )

was born in 209 H. in Tirmidh, Iran and he passed away in the same town in 279
H. In addition to his other books, he is most well-known for his collection of
hadeeth and for his Shamaa’il, a collection of traditions concerning the person and
character of the Prophet ( ). His Jaami’ includes fewer hadeeth than the
previous two above (2,028) but is known for his critical remarks concerning the
chains of narrators and the points of differences between the four madhaahib.
Among his teachers were Imaams Bukhaari, Ahmad ibn Hanbal and Abu Dawood
as-Sijistaani ( ). He also traveled through Khuraasaan, ‘Iraq and Hijaz to
collect his hadeeth.

 Sunan Abi Dawood: Imaam Abu Dawood Sulaymaan ibn al-Ash’ath Sijistaaniy
( ) heard hadeeth from over three hundred scholars. He was born in Sijistaan,
Khuraasaan, near Afghanistan, in 202 H. and lived for 73 years. Known for a
strong memory and a powerful mind, his collection is composed of 4,800 traditions
selected from a half of a million which he wrote down. Previous to his work, the
3
collections of hadeeth were arranged in the manner of a Jaami’ (see below for
definition). In his Sunan, he instead collected only traditions related to the laws,
rulings and legal questions of Islam and arranged them by subject matter.

 Sunan Nisaa’i: This fifth famous collection of 5,761 hadeeth was compiled by
Imaam Abu ‘Abdur-Rahmaan Ahmad ibn Shu’ayb ibn ‘Ali Nisaa’i ( ). He
was born in another town of Iran- Nisa- in 215 H. and died in 303 H. His book also
mainly contains traditions related to legal issues of the Shari’ah.

 Sunan Ibn Maajah: Imaam Abu ‘Abdullah Muhammad ibn Yazeed ibn Maajah al-
Qazweeniy ( ) was born in Qazween, Iran in 209 H. and lived for 64 years.
His compilation contains some 4,000 hadeeth. The Sunans of Nisaa’i and Ibn
Maajah are somewhat more lenient in their criticism of the authenticity of hadeeth
than the previous books, but nonetheless they are among the most reliable
collections of hadeeth.

  Technical details related to the hadeeth.

Having discussed the importance of hadeeth and the brief history of collection, we
will now discuss some of the technical details related to the hadeeth.

  

The Definition of Hadeeth

 There are two types of study of hadeeth: one is ‘Ilmul-Hadeeth riwaayatan and the
other is ‘Ilmul-Hadeeth diraayatan. As for the first, it is the study and knowledge
of the sayings, actions, states, conditions and descriptions of the Prophet (
). The second type is the study of narrators and those narrated to, and the
conditions of acceptability or rejection.

 The word hadeeth itself, in the context of Islam, refers to the sayings, actions,
silent approvals, character and descriptions of the physical features of the Prophet (
). A hadeeth consists of two parts: the sanad, which is the chain of names
of people who have narrated the hadeeth through the generations, and the matn, or
the actual text and material of the report. Often the words hadeeth and sunnah are
used interchangeably. Their meanings are almost the same except that hadeeth is
slightly more general as sunnah does not refer to such things as the physical
features of the Prophet ( ). There are other words, such as “khabar” and
“athar”, which are often used synonymously with “hadeeth” but some scholars also
use them to indicate only certain types of hadeeth.
  

Kinds of Hadeeth

 Below are listed some of the different types of hadeeth that one may come across:

 Marfoo’: That hadeeth which is directly attributed to the Prophet ( ) and

tells of his actions, sayings or speech.

 Mawqoof: That which tells of the actions, sayings or speech of a Sahaabi.

 Maqtoo’: That in which the actions, sayings or speech of a Taabi’ee is described.

 Muttasil or Mawsool: That hadeeth whose chain (sanad) is not broken, eg. by
missing the name of a narrator.

 Mu’allaq: That hadeeth from the beginning of whose sanad some or all of the
narrators’ names have been dropped.

 Mursal: That hadeeth whose last narrator in the chain, ie. the Sahaabi’s name, is
dropped. That is, when a Taabi’ee directly narrates something about the Prophet (
).

 Mu’dal: Two consecutive narrators have been dropped from the chain.

 Munqati’ (bi ma’nan akhass): More than two narrators are dropped consecutively
in one part of the chain, or two narrators are dropped consecutively in multiple
parts of the sanad.

 Mudtarib: That in whose sanad or matn additions or deletions exist. [That is, a
hadeeth might be transmitted along many chains and in one particular chain, there
may be additions or deletions to some part of the sanad or matn that is found in the
other transmissions.]

 Mudarraj: That in which the narrator added his own or some other sayings to the
matn.

 Shaadh: That hadeeth of a narrator who has narrated something that is the opposite
of what a narrator of more reliability narrated. Its opposite is Mahfooz.

 Munkar: That hadeeth of a weak narrator who narrates something the opposite of a
more authentic tradition.
 Mu’allal: That hadeeth in which there is a major, hidden defect, such as a
mursalhadeeth which is narrated as if it is mawsool.

Saheeh li dhaatihi: That hadeeth whose chain of narrators is unbroken, every

narrator is reliable (‘aadil), well-known for memorization and preservation (dabt)
of hadeeth, and the hadeeth falls in neither of the categories of the Shaadh or
Mu’allal.

 Saheeh li ghayrihi: That hadeeth which has the same qualities as the previous one
except for the dabt of a narrator which may be slightly less reliable but that is
compensated for by the fact that the hadeeth is narrated from many chains of
people. [The word dabt refers to a narrator having a good grasp of what he narrates
as well as a sound memory and/or carefully kept books.]

 Hasan li dhaatihi: That hadeeth which has the qualities of Saheeh except that the
dabt is not as reliable and there are not enough other chains of narrations to raise it
to the status of Saheeh li ghayrihi.

 Hasan li ghayrihi: That hadeeth which is lacking in more than one quality required
for the Saheeh but this lack is again compensated for by the presence of other
chains of transmission of the same hadeeth.

 Da’eef: That hadeeth which is lacking more than one of the qualities of Saheeh
and there are not enough alternate chains to raise its status to Hasan.

 Matrook: That hadeeth in whose chain is a narrator known for lying.

 Mawdoo’: That hadeeth in whose chain is a narrator upon whom it is established

that he fabricated hadeeth.

 Ghareeb: That hadeeth whose sanad is such that at some link in the chain, that
narrator is alone in narrating the hadeeth from the shaykh. [In each generation,
many people might have narrated the same hadeeth through different chains. A
ghareeb hadeeth is one in which the number of narrators of that hadeeth in one
particular generation is only one.

 ‘Azeez: That hadeeth in which the number of narrators drops to two in one
generation and is more than two in the rest of the chain.

 Mashhoor: That hadeeth which is narrated from more than two chains in every
generation. That is, in each generation, at least three people narrated the hadeeth.
Slightly less than the number of a mutawaatir. This type of hadeeth and the
previous two are types of aahaad hadeeth.

 Mutawaatir: That hadeeth which is narrated from so many different chains in

every generation that it is impossible to suppose that anyone could have conspired
to fabricate the hadeeth.