Past Paper question on History and Importance of Hadith
Q1a. Write a detailed account of the Musannaf and the musnad collections of Hadith.[10]
b. In your opinion,from the two hadith collections above,which is more useful to muslims?Give reasons for your answers.[4]
A:Ahadith are the sayings of the Prophet SAW which were and additional guide to muslim ummah.They further elaborated the teachings of the quran and helped the ummah follow the righteous path.The collection of Ahadith earned importance in the early tenure of Islam.Two of the expertise used for the collection resulted in two categories.
The first one was names ‘Musnad’ being derived from the word ‘Sanad’ which meant authority.This category was named Musnad because it had a complete chain of transmitters and if traced back would be directly linked to the Prophet SAW.The main criteria for this collection was the name of the companion/narrator.The compilation began with the nearest kinsmen of the Prophet SAW i.e the 4 rightly guided caliphs and other blessed companions including his wives and daughters.Each individual was treated as a sub category and had a different number of Ahadith in it.
The most highly valued works in this category is of Imam Ahmad Bin Hanbal,the founder of the Hanbali school of Law.To assemble this collection he finalized over 30,000 ahadith out of the 75,000 he collected.A musnad hadith is useful for those who are interested in only one narrator as they can easily find the collection of the narrator they follow.
As the Musnad collection was not categorized according to topics,the people felt a need of another collection and so the Musannaf collection which meant divided up was compiled.Its main criteria was the basic topic of discussion for example Zakat,Fasting,etc.The best work done in this category is Al muwatta which contains about 1720 ahadith compiled by Imam Malik Bin Anas, the founder of Maliki school of law.
Another compilation in this category is al-Musannaf of Imam Abdul Razzaq Al Sanani which contains 11,033 Ahadith.To this category, also belongs the most notable of all ahadith collections i.e, the Sahih Bukhair and Sahih Muslim,the Sunan works of al-Nasai,Abu daud,Ibn Majah and Jami of Tirmizi.
Many other authors also compiled musnad or musannaf Ahadith but did not receive as much recognition as the ones mentioned above as their work didnt play a big enough role in the compilation.
b. In my opinion,the musannaf hadith are more useful for the muslims as the upgrade from Musnad to musannaf was made only because it was necessary.The Musnad collection promotes only one school of thought and does not attend to the common topics i.e marriage,prayer etc.Whereas the Musannaf Ahadith are generalized and contain ahadith from all the narrators on a specific topic.This makes it convenient for the muslims to find answers and saves up their time,as modern day muslims live a very occupied life and so they prefer saving their time therefore Musannaf Ahadith are more useful.
Q2 a ) What are the different types of a Hadith ? How are they classified into these types?
Ans ) Compilers divided a Hadith into 2 categories . First one is Hadith-e- Qudsi that contains words from Allah and is conveyed to us by Holy Prophet . Second is Prophetic Hadith –e- Nabwi that contains words spoken by Holy Prophet by himself.
Types of Hadith to Sanad and Matan
Authentic:
Compilers used very strict methods to classify a Hadith into different types. One of them was to judge the authenticity of the Hadith through Sanad and matan . There are 4 types of a Hadith and the first is called authentic or Sahi Hadith. It has a sanad which is un broken and every narrator in it must be know for their knowledge , piety , strong memory and honesty.They must have met each other and the chain should go back to Holy Prophet . The report of a child , an in sane person or a non-Muslim cannot be accepted .In the same way the text of the Hadith should not contradict the text of Quran , Ijma of the community or the basic principles of Islam . It should not be against common sense or the laws of nature. It should never level accusations against Holy Prophet’s family or his companions. It should not lay down severe punishments for minor offenses or promise high rewards for insignificant good deeds . The text should be classic Arabic with the dialect of Quraish without the use of any inappropriate language.
Less Authentic (Hasan)
The second is approved or Hassan Hadith which is similar to authentic Hadith except that it’s narrators had been found defective in memory , in comparison with the narrators of authentic Hadith . For e.g Imam Ahmad reported that Yahya Ibn e Saeed told him saying that Bahz Ibn e Hakim that his father informed on the authourity of his grand father that I asked Prophet (SAW) whom should I be specially good Prophet (SAW) said “to your mother”. He repeated this thrice, then he said,”to your father, then to him who is near to kin, one after the other.”This Hadith qualifies all the characteristics of a Sahih Hadith except that one of the Hadith compilers has pointed out slight weakness in the memory of Bahz Ibn e Hakim.
Weak Hadith
A Hadith is considered weak if any one of its narrators was known to be a liar or was known to have bad memory . If he had not met the previous narrator then the Hadith was said to be weak. This dis continuity refers to the omission of a narrator occurring at different position within the isnad or the narrator is blamed of the false character. For example “ when you call upon Allah, then supplicate with the palms of your hands, and do not supplicate with their backs, and when you finish , wipe your face with them. “This is a weak sanad due to Ibne Hassan as he used to have female singers and listen to music, and he used to narrate fabricated reports on the authority of trustworthy narrators.
The last one is Fabricated or Maudu Hadith in which sayings or actions were attributed to Holy Prophet that ,he had never said or done then the Hadith was said to be Fabricated. For example “ learn witch craft (sehar) but do not use it.”This Hadith is false and has no basis In Islam. it is not permissible to learn witchcraft or use . It is an evil action and considered as kufr.
In the terminology of Hadith it is also divided into 2 more categories based on the number of narrators at each level in a particular Sanad. According to a number of narrators the 2 categories are Hadith Muta watir and Hadith Ahad . The first category is Mutawatir or successive narration . It is conveyed by narrators so numerous that it is not conceivable that they had agreed upon something untruthful . Such a Hadith are accepted as unquestionable in their authority . This is due to its being beyond the historical possibility that narrators could have conspired to forge a narration e.g Holy Prophet said, “ Whoever intentionally attributes a lie against me, should prepare his seat in the fire. “ This is a Mutawatair Hadith as it has a min of 70 --74 narrators.
Hadith Ahad : According to the number of narrators the 2nd category is called Ahad or “Singular narration .” Linguistically Hadith Ahad refers to a Hadith narrated by only one narrator . But in Hadith terminology it refers to a narration not fulfilling all of the conditions necessary to be called Mutawatir . Hadith Ahad is a narration in which the chain of transmitters has not reached a number sufficient to qualify as Mutawatir . It consists of 3 sub classifications and the first is called ‘Mashoor ‘ and it refers to a Hadith conveyed by 3 or more narrators but is not considered Mutawatair . The second is’ Aziz ‘which is a Hadith conveyed by 2 narrators in any given level of a Hadith ‘s Sanad . The last one is ‘Gharib ‘ which is conveyed by only one narrator . Hadith ahad are those whose Sanad are broken or whose traditions are less widely accepted . Therefore they are regarded as less authentic but if their narrators were regarded as honest then they were accepted or otherwise rejected .
May / June 2014
Q 2 a ) What rules did the writers of the 6 authentic books ( Sihah-e- Sitta ) apply to ensure the authenticity of a Hadith ?
Ans ) In 3rd century AD compilers focused out on separating authentic a Hadith from the rest of the a Hadith . They used various and strict methods to determine the authenticity reliability of Hadith.
Authenticity according to Sanad :
According to San ad and Matan compilers divided A Hadith into 4 categories , Sahi , Hassan , Zaeef or Maudu . Compilers introduced each Hadith with its own San ad , that is the chain of transmitters which is a valuable source to determine the authenticity of a Hadith . Study of the biographies of these narrators is call Asma -al- Rijal which comprised of the collections of books about the circumstances of the life of every narrator . Each narrator must be a sane adult Muslim. Who has never committed a major sin and was known to avoid even the minor ones . They must posses excellent memory with a pious character . They must be firm in faith and known for their honesty and trust worthiness must have met each other . The chain of narrators must always go back to the Holy Prophet himself.
Matan or Text :
The compilers also ensured the authenticity of a Hadith by checking its Matan or text . The Matan of a Hadith should not contradict the Quran , already established authentic a Hadith , Ijma of the Muslim community and the basic teachings of Islam . It should not go against common sense or reason e.g a promise of high reward for a small virtue and severe punishments for insignificant bad deeds. Events which had happened in congregation should be narrated by more than 2--3 people or the Hadith would be rejected e.g : Once Abu Baker R A said that, during Azan the companions used to kiss their thumbs when Muhammad SAW name was taken .As it was only narrated by Hazrat Abu Baker R A the compilers rejected it even though his character was outstanding . The text should be in classic Arabic with the dialect of Quraish . It should not level accusation against Holy Prophet’s family or close companions.
Number of narrators :
Compilers also divided the a Hadith into 2 main categories according to the number of narrators . The first is called Mutawatair or successive narration . it is a Hadith conveyed by narrators so numerous that it is not conceivable that they have agreed upon untruth. Such a Hadith are accepted as unquestionable in their authority e.g , “ Whoever intentionally attributes a lie against Holy Prophet (SAW) should prepare his seat in the fire of hell. “ This is a Mutawatair Hadith as it has a minimum of 74 narrators. The 2nd category is called Ahad or singular narration . It refers to any Hadith not classified as Mutawatair . Their San ad are usually broken so they are less widely accepted as authentic Ahadith . But if their narrators are regarded as honest then they would be accepted . Such a Hadith are classified into 3 more categories . First is Mashoor conveyed by 3 or more narrators but is not considered to be Mutawatair . 2nd is Aziz conveyed by 2 narrators and the last one is Gharib conveyed by only 1 narrator.
Examples of Compilers : Imam Bukhari was the first scholar who separated pure a Hadith from the rest. He started his collection at the age of 16 and travelled far and wide for 16--17 years to meet and interrogate the narrators of a Hadith. He met over a thousand Sheikhs living in distant places like Balkh and Hijaz . Once he visited a place to consult another scholar , He saw from a distance that he was alluring the camel with an empty basket of fruits Imam Bukhari returned immediately as he thought that if a person can lie to an animal then another human being is no different . Once while travelling on a boat Imam Bukhari was giving a large amount of wealth to give it to someone on the other side . Another traveller came to know about this and he claimed that he had lost his wealth and asked to search the travelers.The Imam immediately drowned all the wealth into the river in order to protect himself from a false accusations . The method employed by the compilers ensured that authentic a Hadith remained completely without doubts and people could follow them in the future without any reluctance.
Q a ) Why do Muslims need to know about the Holy Prophet SAW a Hadith and what benefits do they hope to get by following his Sun nah ?
Ans ) Introduction : Verbal teachings and actions of Holy Prophet SAW from a perfect path of life for humans that if they follow it then the lord will be pleased with them and they would be able to ful fill the rights of their fellow beings. That’s why Qur'an says , “ You will have a perfect example in Holy Prophets ‘s personality for you to follow. “
Legal Use of a Hadith :
Quran is the foremost source of Islamic law and provides detailed guidance for all aspects of human life. But in some places the Qur'an gives brief guidance and we get the detailed explanation from a Hadith for these matters e.g : The Quran only commands us to establish prayer but we learn the method and it’s details from Holy Prophet when he says, “ Pray as you see me praying . “ Sometimes a Hadith work as law makers instead of explaining the law e.g Quran prohibits the use of alcohol but does not prescribe the punishment for it’s consumption and it comes from a Hadith that it is 40-80 lashes . This Hadith also explains the technical issues of Quran e.g regarding timing of the fast the Quran says, “ And eat and drink until the white thread becomes distinct to you from the black thread of the dawn . “ Hadith tells us that in this verse white thread means day and black means night other sources of Islamic law will only be consulted if Hadith is silent and if their law will agree to Hadith only then it will be accepted.
Guidance for individual and communal responsibilities.
The book of a Hadith contain detailed instructions about individual and personal responsibilities e.g : Holy Prophet said, “When one of you drinks he should not blow into the vessel .”So Muslims today follow this by waiting patiently for a hot drink to cool down . As modesty prevents destructive thoughts and encourages positive way of thinking so Holy Prophet wanted Muslims to behave decently as it would protect them like a shield against immorality. Holy Prophet said, “ Modesty produces nothing but good. “ At many places Holy Prophet motivated Muslims to help the poor and needy especially the widows and the orphans and he announced highest rewards for those who worked hard for the welfare of the needy people . Holy Prophet also instructed Muslims to forgive each other for their mistakes to form a peaceful society as he said , “ Allah will not show mercy to those who does not mercy to others . “
Benefits of following Sunnah with example of mercy . Holy Quran declares the life of Holy Prophet as a perfect e.g for Muslims to follow. By following his Sunnah that are his actions we hope to walk the path of righteousness which would ultimately lead us to earning the pleasure of Allah which will bring blessings to us in this world and the next . Quran says, “ Obey Allah and obey the messenger …” Sunnah not only keeps us on the right path but also prevents us from following the evil ways which will bring painful punishments to us . Holy Prophet himself said, in his last farewell address “ I leave with you two things if you hold fast to them you will never be misguided . The book of Allah and my Sunnah . “ In the conquest of Makkah Holy Prophet forgave the cruelest enemies including Hinda and Wahshi which teaches us a lesson to forgive each others mistakes which not only helps in creating brotherly relationships but we also become hopeful to receive mercy from Allah.
Honesty and Simplicity :
Makkans besieged Holy Prophet’s house to kill him but he was informed about this plan by angel Jibrail . Holy Prophet before leaving left one of his most trusted and close companion Hazrat Ali R A in such dangerous circumstances in his bed to return the valuables of those who had come to kill him. This teaches us to practise honesty in our dealings with others to establish trust and harmony among the people especially in financial matters . Holy Prophet was a very simple man . He used to sleep on the ground and wear simple dresses which mostly had patches on them. By following Holy Prophet’s simplicity in our lives we can develop humility that would also help us in being more obedient to Allah . Simplicity would also remove arrogance which prevents a person from becoming disobedient to Allah’s demands. Through simplicity we would also be able to save money which can be spent to help the poor and needy people around us.
Q b ) Why in your opinion was it important for compilers to apply these rules ?
What are the advantages of having different categories of a Hadith ?
Why is it important for Muslims to have a collection of authentic a Hadith ?
Ans b ) The compilers used different and strict methods to divide a Hadith into different categories . They used San ad and Matan and sometimes the number of narrators to judge the authenticity of a Hadith . With the help of these methods they were able to separate pure Hadith from Hassan , weak and fabricated . As Muslims we have to follow the life of Holy Prophet as role model which is commanded to us by the Quran . And now we are blessed to have a collection of pure a Hadith which if we follow then we are exactly following Holy Prophet’s path without any doubt or confusion . But if a Hadith were not categorized separately might have created confusion and instead of following the right path we might be going astray. Secondly a Hadith have a great role is Islamic legal thinking . It not only helps to explain Quranic laws but formulates laws for us where Quran is silent . So now the collection of authentic a Hadith removes all the chances of legeslation through against the Quran or baisic Islamic laws . This makes us more confident in applying Shariya laws in our lives without any doubts .
How are the Quran and a Hadith employed together in working out the Islamic law?
Role of a Hadith where Quran vague examples ?
Role of a Hadith where Quran is silent examples ?
Dependence of other sources on a Hadith ?
B ) Briefly explain why the need rose in early Islamic history to compile a Hadith .
Ans ) A Hadith were compiled in 3rd century hijra because compilers were worried that if the knowledge of hadith was not conveyed over the Muslim state equally then the Muslims of one part would be deprived of what was being taught in the other part of the Muslim state .There were different centers in which the scholars were teaching different knowledge of Hadith compilers decided that they should collect all this knowledge and assemble it in a way that it can be conveyed to all Muslims . Secondly , to interpret the Quranic commandment, knowledge of a Hadith was direly needed. It also explains the technical meaning of the verses of Quran so to give a complete guide to the future generations its equally important to compile a Hadith along with the Quran.
Give 1 example and explain how Sun ah is important in a Muslims life today ?
Ans ) Sunah means practice , a code of life or a custom in its factual sense . In Islamic terminology it means the actions of Holy Prophet SAW . In 8th AH Holy Prophet conquered Makkah without facing any resistance . Holy Prophet was in all the position to take revenge from his enemies in exchange for all the persecutions . But Holy Prophet preferred to forgive instead of being revengeful . Through this we learn that humans are vulnerable to make mistakes and if we start taking revenge then we would be treated the same way. It would create hatred and chaos . So for the peace and warm atmosphere of our society it’s important to ignore each other’s mistakes and to forgive each other.
B ) “Truly my mercy overcomes my wrath . “ This is a Hadith -e- Qudsi . What is special able the Hadith of this kind ?
Ans ) Hadith-e-Qudsi enjoys special position in the types of a Hadith based on the degree of liability of a Hadith . According to legal experts Hadith -e Qudsi are divine words spoken by Holy Prophet. Though such traditions are not formally incorporated in the Quran and for this reason they are also called non- recitable revelations . One major mark of their identify is that their Matan usually contains Allah’s direct speech. So unlike all other traditions their authenticity is proven by Holy Prophet to Allah himself. That is the reason they are ranked on top among the rest of the aHadith and are considered to be the most authentic a Hadith.
Q ) Explain the main difference between Masnad and Musanaf ?
Ans ) In the 3rd century Hijra compilers introduced 2 different techniques for collection of a Hadith , masnad and musanaf .
Masnad are the collections in which the narrator was the most important person taken into consideration .
Masnad is a word derived from Sana d meaning authority in these collections the contents and the matter of a Hadith or its subject are not important and the decisive point would be the name of the companions and the first transvestite from Holy Prophet . So the book begins with the companions then gradually to Holy Prophets wives and the common people of other towns .The most important of all these books is that of Imam Ahmad bin Humble . As in the Masnad collections the subject of a Hadith was of little value and it is different to consult them for research so, the compilers introduced a new technique called Musanaf which means divided up in these books a Hadith have been grouped into chapters and sub chapters according to their theme e.g chapter on prayer and Zakat . The best known work of this time was Al muwatta which contains 20 a Hadith compiled b y Imam Malik bin Anas . To this category also belong the most important books of a Hadith , Sahi Muslim and Sahi Bukhari.
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