Chapter: Essential Knowledge Regarding This Issue

Among what is necessary to know in this chapter is that you should be aware that the unique narrations reported are of three types:

First Type: Accepted by Scholars of Hadith

The first type is the one which has been agreed upon by scholars of Hadith in terms of its authenticity, and this is divided into two categories:

First Category: Reported from Various Aspects

The first one is those that are reported from many aspects, and various methods till they become widely known, and far-fetched from being mistaken in them or consensus on lying in them. With this type of narration, acquired knowledge is derived. Such narrations include the ones related to Destiny, the Vision, the Pond, Punishment of the Grave, and some narrations related to Miracles, Virtues, and Rulings, some of its narrations have been reported from many aspects.

Second Category: Individually Reported

The second category is that which is reported individually, and it is used in sermons, encouragement, and intimidation, and in rulings as the testimony of two witnesses is applicable in rulings for judges, even though they might make a mistake or forget something. This could be supported by the text of the Book (Quran) that approves the testimony of two witnesses if they are fair, and by the Sunnah that approves the news of one person if he meets all the conditions of acceptance in what necessitates action. May Allah give us guidance and success.

On the Authenticity of Hadith Narrations

Reported by Al-Rahman ibn Abi Ya'la, from Samurah ibn Jundub who said: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, "Whoever narrates a Hadith from me and he thinks that it is false, then he is one of two liars" [(82)]. Then we were reported to by Shu'bah, from Habib ibn Abi Thabit, from Maimun ibn Abi Shabib, from Al-Mughirah ibn Shu'bah who said: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said something similar.

A note on the Guarantees of Hadith Acceptance

A narrator whose narration is suspected of forgery, recognized for his weak memory and frequent mistakes in his narrations, or remains obscure without having his integrity and conditions for accepting his news proven to demand acceptance, is one class of Hadith narrators. Their Hadiths should not be used in judicial rulings, just as the testimony of someone of this characteristic is not acceptable to judges. However, it may be employed in invitations to good deeds, encouragement, and discouragement, in interpretation and in historical accounts that are not connected to Islamic jurisprudence.

A quoted saying of Islamic Scholars

I heard Abu Abdillah Al-Hafiz saying: I heard Abu Zakaria - Yahya ibn Muhammad Al-Anbari saying: I heard Abu Al-Hasan - Muhammad ibn Is'haq ibn Ibrahim Al-Hanzali saying: my father used to relate from 'Abdul Rahman ibn Mahdi who said: "When we narrate concerning reward and punishment, and the virtues of deeds, we are lenient in the chains of narration, and tolerant of the men [in them], and when we narrate concerning the lawful and the prohibited and judgment, we are strict in the chains of narration and we critique the men" [(82)].

References of the Hadith

This hadith was narrated by Al-Tirmidhi in the Book of Knowledge (chapter): It was reported that whoever narrates a Hadith and he thinks that it is false (5:36), from Al-Mughirah ibn Shu'bah, and Abu Isa said: "And in the chapter from Ali ibn Abi Talib and Samurah, Ibn Majah narrated it in the introduction (5) chapter on whoever narrates a hadith of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, and he thinks it is false (1:14), from Ali, and from Samurah, and from Al-Mughirah. It is also mentioned in Ibn Haban's Sahih: 1- The Book of adherence to Sunnah / The Hadith (29) from Samurah (1:111) according to our verification.

Interpreting Their Teachings

The Sheikh stated: they were lenient in taking interpretations from them because the words they interpreted by are validated by the languages of the Arabs. Their work merely involved collection and simplification.

Abu Abdullah Al-Hafiz and Abu Abd Al-Rahman Al-Sulami Narration

Abu Abdullah Al-Hafiz and Abu Abd Al-Rahman Al-Sulami informed us and said: Abu Al-Abbas reported from Muhammad bin Yaqub: I heard Abbas bin Muhammad saying: I heard "Ahmed bin Hanbal" being asked at the Leitmotive of Abi Al-Nadhr: Hashem son of Al-Qasim, what do you say about "Moses bin Ubaidah" and "Mohammed bin Ishaq"?

The Comment of Ahmed Bin Hanbal

He (Ahmed bin Hanbal) replied: As for "Moses bin Ubaidah", he was not problematic, but he narrated dubious Hadiths from Abdullah bin Dinar, from Ibn Omar, from the Prophet, peace be upon him. As for "Mohamed bin Ishaq", he is a man from whom these hadiths are written.

References

His biography is found in Ibn Ma'in's History (2: 517), "The Big History" (1: 1: 101), "The Critique and Adjustment" (3: 1: 270), "The Injured" (2: 253-256), "Balance of Neutrality" (3:556), "Refinement of Refinement" (9: 178-181). The List (95), The Comprehensive in Obituaries (3:83), Layers of the Interpreters (2: 144), Shards of Gold (1: 217).

Moses bin Ubaidah bin Nashit Al-Rubdizdi, Abu Abd Al-Aziz Al-Madani

Bukhari stated: "Ahmed (Hanbal) said, 'His hadith is strongly criticized'", and Ibn Ma'in said: "Only his hadith was weakened because he narrated dubious narrations from Abdullah bin Dinar", and he also once said, "He is nothing." Abu Zar'a said, "He is not strong in hadith", and Abu Hatim said, "His hadith is criticized." He was weakened by Al-Nasai and Ibn Haban. "The Refinement" (10: 356-360).

Mohamed bin Ishaq bin Yasar (80-151 AH)

He was born in Medina and moved to Alexandria where he attended Yazeed bin Abi Habib's lessons in the science of Hadith, and after years he returned to his birthplace where he met the narrator Sufyan bin 'Uyayna, then he emigrated to Baghdad. He was truthful yet believed to have Shiite and predestinarian leanings.

The Prophethood's Saying and Its Verification

Rifaa reported this from Ibrahim bin Abdul Rahman Al-Azri, who stated that Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: "The upright in every generation will inherit this knowledge, they will repel the exaggerations of the extremists, the false claims of the liars and the interpretations of the ignorant." (96). This narration was also reported by Walid bin Muslim from Ibrahim bin Abdul Rahman, from trustworthy sheikhs, from the Prophet (peace be upon him).

Verification through generations

This narration has been verified during the time of the companions and then in every era up to our present day. Groups knowledgeable about the narrators of the Sunnah stepped forward in every generation. They were aware of their conditions in relation to validation and criticism, and they recorded them in books. Thus, anyone who wants to know these details can find the way.

Luminaries of the law from across the lands, as well as other Hadith scholars, have spoken on this. Abu Abdul Rahman, Muhammad bin Al-Hussein Al-Sulami, told us that Abu Sa'id Al-Khallaal narrated to him from Abu Al-Qasim Al-Baghawi, who heard from Mahmoud bin Ghailan Al-Marwazi, who quoted Al-Hammami as saying that he heard Abu Hanifa say: "I have not seen anyone more untruthful than Jabir Al-Ja'afi (97), and no one more virtuous than Ata'a (98)."

Notes

(96) Cited by Ibn Adi in al-Kamal. All versions are weak, but al-Khatib al-Baghdadi mentioned it in his work, with respect to the virtues of Hadith scholars (pp. 28-30).

(97) He is Jabir Ibn Yazid Ibn Al-Harith Al-Ja'afi Al-Kufi, one of the followers of Abdullah Ibn Saba. He claimed that Ali (peace be upon him) would return to this world and boasted falsely about possessing thousands of Hadiths from the Prophet (peace be upon him) that he did not actually have. Imam Ahmed, Yahya Bin Mu'een, and Abd al-Rahman Ibn Mahdi ignored him; al-Nasai labelled him as 'abandoned', al-‘Aqeeli saw him as 'weak', and he was criticized by Ibn Hibban and al-Ajli.

(98) He is Ata'a Ibn Abi Rabah. The views about his credibility are unanimous, and his traditions have been cited by all. He has a biography in "Revival of the Sciences of Religion" (2:199) and his statement was cited by al-Tirmidhi in al-'ilal (5:741).

Abdul Hamid Al-Himmani and Abu Saad Al-Sughani

Abdul Hamid Al-Himmani recounts: I heard Abu Saad Al-Sughani approach Abu Hanifa and ask, "O Abu Hanifa, what do you say about taking from 'Al-Thawri'?" Abu Hanifa replied, "You may write from him, he is reliable except for the hadith of 'Abu Ishaq' from 'Al-Harith', and the hadith of 'Jabir Al-Ja'fi'."

Abu Al-Husain Bin Al-Fadl Al-Qattan

Abu Al-Husain Bin Al-Fadl Al-Qattan, in Baghdad, conveyed to us from Abdullah bin Ja'far who had it related to him by Ya'qoub bin Sufyan, who said, "I heard Harmala say: Imam Shafi'i said, 'To narrate from Haram bin Uthman is prohibited'."

Al-Husayn Bin Al-Hasan Al-Ghazairi

Al-Husayn Bin Al-Hasan Al-Ghazairi, in Baghdad, narrated to us from Ahmed bin Salman, who was told by Ja’far bin Muhammad Al-Sa’igh and Affan. Affan said, "I was told by Yahya bin Sa’id Al-Qattan, who said, 'I asked Shu’bah, Sufyan Al-Thawri, Malik bin Anas, and Sufyan bin Uyaynah about a man accused of narrating a Hadith without memorizing it.' They advised, 'Make his condition clear to the people.'"

Al-Husayn Bin Muhammad Ruzdabari

Al-Husayn Bin Muhammad Ruzdabari informed us from Abu Bakr, Ahmed bin Kamil bin Khalaf Al-Qadi, who was told by Abu Sa’d Al-Harwi from Abu Bakr bin Khalad, who said, "It was asked to Yahya Bin Said, 'Do you not fear that those from whom you refused to narrate Hadiths might stand against you before Allah?' He replied, 'I would rather have them against me before Allah than He Himself (Allah) against me.'""

Haram bin Uthman Al-Ansari Al-Madani

Haram bin Uthman Al-Ansari Al-Madani was mentioned by Malik who said, "He is not reliable." Shafi ’i and others also stated, "To narrate from Haram is prohibited." Ibn Hibban said, "He was excessively Shi'i, he altered the Isnad (chain of narrators), and attributed Mursal (Hadith with missing link at the level of Sahaba) to the Prophet."

The Messenger of Allah - Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him

The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon Him, once asked, "Have you ever heard a Hadith (narration) from me that you think is false?"

The Transmission Chain

Abu Abdullah Al-Hafiz informed us, saying: "Abu Al-Walid the Jurist told us. Hassan, son of Sufyan, informed us, and Harmala, son of Yahya, said, "I heard Al-Shafi'i (may Allah have mercy on him) say, 'If it were not for Shu'bah, the Hadith would not have been known in Iraq. He would come to a man and say, do not narrate or you will provoke the wrath of the ruler. For such words, they would refrain from the Harim of Sunnah."

The Importance of this Statement

The numerous examples and references of what we mentioned are plentiful. What we have mentioned about the extension is quite sufficient.

Introduction to "Proofs of Prophecy"

This is the introduction to the book "Proofs of Prophecy" which explains the conditions that the Lawgiver underwent, May Allah’s blessings be upon Him. Abu Al-Hassan Sheikh, Hamza bin Muhammad Al-Bayhaqi (may Allah have mercy on him), with his good creed and beautiful intentions in knowing the miracles of the beloved Prophet Muhammad, may Allah bless him and his family and send His peace, refers to these conditions to arrive at an understanding of the narrations that I have quoted about him. I have also mentioned his biography in the next volume.

It is important to note that every narration that I have included in this book has been followed by something that indicates its authenticity. I have either left it ambiguous, which is acceptable, or I have pointed out its weakness and recommended reliance on something else.

Many of the later scholars have classified books about miracles and other things. They have quoted [100] in "S" (S): Walid [101]. See the author's translation, our preface to the book at the beginning of this section.

Narrations and Authenticity

Many narrations are presented without discerning their authenticity, distinguishing the popular from the strange, or the recounted from the fabricated. Regardless of the integrity of intention in accepting these narrations, they are all treated with the same level of credibility. Conversely, those with flawed beliefs also treat them with identical levels of rejection.

My Approach in Written Works

In my composed books on fundamentals and branches of knowledge, I tend to limit the narrations to what is authentic, or clearly differentiate between the authentic and non-authentic. This approach allows people of the Sunni tradition to have clear insight on what they can depend on. Thereby allowing no room for anyone of deviant ideology to have any misgivings about the accounts Sunni people rely on.

Efforts of Narration Preservation

The meticulous efforts by the preservation scholars in knowing the states of the narrators and what narratiions to accept or reject, illustrates their dedication. So much so, that a son does not hesitate in criticizing his father if he stumbles upon something mandating the rejection of his account; nor does a father for his son, or a brother for his brother. No blame of anyone could prevent them in the cause of truth, nor any fraternal affection or financial ties. There are many stories about them in my books.

Recognizing Authenticity in my Books

Those who understand my discretion in distinguishing betw