TERMINOLOGY

 “Quran”- verbatim word of God

revealed to Prophet Muhammad (s)

 “Hadith Qudsi”- word of God in the

language of the Prophet (s)

 “Qudsi” does not necessarily mean

confirmed or authentic; can be forgery,

There can be weak or strong hadith

 DEFINITION OF HADITH

• In Arabic “hadith” means “talk” or “news”

• Also used to describe something new

(de novo)

• In the Islamic literature perspective, Hadith

refers to the sayings of Prophet Muhammad
(S)
REASONS for ABSENCE OF WRITTEN
HADITH at the time of the Prophet
(PBUH)

– Prophet Muhammad did not recommend writing

down the hadith because:

– There would be 2 texts; but the Ummah should

have one authentic, guarded text The Quran

– Vast majority of people were illiterate

– There was no standard at that time to write the

context of the hadith
DURING THE TIME OF THE FOUR RIGHTLY
GUIDED CALIPHS
All of the four Caliphs refused to record the Hadith

They required “2 witnesses” as a proof of any one

quotation relayed to the Prophet (PBUH)
ARGUMENTS THAT HADITH ARE NOT
NECESSARY

• The hadith were not allowed to be

written at the time of Prophet
Muhammad (PBUH)

 Quran is a complete source of

guidance

 The word “hadith” is not mentioned

 COUNTER- ARGUMENTS
 God sent th Prophet down to humankind to
make clear what has been “bestowed” on us

 God commands humankind to follow the

Prophet

 God says in the Quran that you will find an

example to follow in the Prophet “in order
to be good “
THE AUTHENTICATION PROCESS
 Reference system: “Sanad” is the chain of
narrators

 Bibliography and evaluation of the narrators

was done to ensure accuracy of any statement

 Critique of “Al Matn,” body of the text

 Scholars felt it easier to critique the “sanad,”

rather than the “matn”
 CATEGORIZATION OF Hadith
according to Sanad
• Marfoo- (elevated or promoted) hadith can be
traced to the prophet –direct from him to the
next link

• Maqtoo (severed or cut) – chain stops at a

companion of the Prophet

Another Terminology:

• Musnad- elevated to the Prophet

• Mursal- chain stops at a successor

 WEAK CHAINS

• MUNQUATIE- one link missing in the

chain

• MUEDIL- more than one link is missing

• MUALLAQ- suspended, if all links are

missing
 NUMBER OF NARRATORS

• Mutawatir- narrated by a large group of

people who received it from another large
group of people, leading back to Prophet
Muhammad; they should be too numerous
to leave room for conspiring to lie

• Singular- the chain at all or some levels is a

single individual – represents probability,
but not certainty of authenticity
 THE RANKS OF HADITH
• Saheeh- sound; according the rules of the compiler

• Hasan- good; the chain is fair, but not perfect

• Dhaeif- weak; members of the chain are unreliable

• Mawude- the hadith is forged

 DIVISION OF THE SUNNAH OF
PROPHET MUHAMMAD
• Non Legal Sunnah “Sunnah Ghayr
Tashri’iyyah- actions and sayings of the
Prophet that were not meant to set a
binding legal rule

• Subtypes
– Natural human activities of the Prophet
(i.e. sleep, dress)
– Things related to social custom or habit
(i.e. agricultural methods)
– Specific circumstances (i.e. strategies of
war)
 CRITERIA of evaluating the Matn Of
The HADITH
Some scholars have recommended the following criteria to doubt certain
Hadith, so the hadith should not be automatically accepted:

• 1- If it contradicts the Quran, the mutawatir hadith, or consensus of the scholars

• 2- If it is against reason

• 3- If it is against common experience

• 4- If an event is relayed by a single individual, but it was witnessed by many, yet

they did not relay it

• 5- If the hadith mentions a severe punishment for a simple mistake, or a great

reward for an insignificant good deed
 We Need Critical Study of a HADITH
If The Hadith Is
• Attaching superior value to certain parts of the Quran

• Highlighting superior value and virtue to a person or place

• Prophecies conveying specific times and dates

• Ideas that do not befit the Prophet and his character

• Use of imperfect Arabic language

FAMOUS SCHOLARS OF HADITH