Introduction to the Science of Hadith

Abstract

This paper aims to present a lucid introduction to the noble science of hadith. It focuses on exploring the field’s origins, history, evolution, terminology, and sub-branches. Furthermore, this paper seeks to familiarise the reader with the basic components of hadith structure and hadith literature.

Terminological Definition of Ḥadīth 

The roots of the Arabic word ḥadīth (pl. aḥādīth) can be traced back to pre-Islamic Arabia, where we can find utilisation of the term in classical poetry. The word is still part of the common lexicon today. At a root level, the word is structured with the arrangement of three letters: ḥ d th – ح د ث. Collectively, these letters indicate the occurrence of an event that did not previously transpire.[1] Generally, this ‘occurrence’ includes messages, narrations, and conversations, making the usage of the term unspecific to a particular context or time.

In the Qur’an, the term ḥadīth appears twenty-three times.[2] The individual meanings of the term vary in accordance with the context of the particular verse. For example, ḥadīth is used to mean ‘conversation’ in the following verse: “And when you come across those who ridicule Our revelations, do not sit with them unless they engage in a different topic (ḥadīthin ghayrih).”[3] In the following verse, ḥadīth is used to imply a ‘story’: “Has the story of Mūsā (ḥadīthu Mūsā) reached you?”[4]

In the statements of the Messenger Muhammad ﷺ, we encounter different usages of the word. In one example, the Messenger ﷺ used the word to mean speech: “The best of al-ḥadīth (speech) is Allah’s Book.”[5] In another example, the term ḥadīth is used to mean ’narration’[6]: “Narrate (ḥaddithū) from the Children of Israel without blame.”[7]

In technical terms, a hadith is defined as ‘words (aqwāl, sg. qawl), actions (afʿāl, sg. fiʿl), and tacit approvals (iqrārāt, sg. iqrār) that are attributed to the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. Statements describing the Prophet’s personal and physical characteristics are also encompassed by this definition of hadith’.[8] In addition, statements about the Prophet ﷺ which predate the advent of the first revelation are included.[9] The complete corpus of authentic hadiths are collectively referred to as the ‘Sunnah’. Although each hadith is taken as an individual report, in order to understand a single hadith a holistic approach must be taken wherein hadiths are looked at in light of other hadiths in a comprehensive manner.

Even though the above presented subject-specific definition is limited to the Prophet ﷺ, some scholars include reports of the Prophet’s Companions (aṣḥāb/ṣaḥābah, sg. saḥābī) and the Successors (tābiʿūn, sg. tābiʿī).[10] Hence, the need arose for some scholars to distinguish between the various reports. Statements attributed to the Prophet ﷺ were designated as ḥadīth marfūʿ, statements from a Companion were labelled ḥadīth mawqūf, and accounts from a Successor were labelled ḥadīth maqṭūʿ.

The terms khabar and athar are often used to refer to a hadith. From a linguistic perspective, khabar is a synonym of ḥadīth in the sense that it is a ‘communication’ or ‘message’. It also carries the same subject-specific definition. Nonetheless, some scholars use the term hadith exclusively for reports from the Prophet ﷺ, and the term khabar to refer alone to reports from his Companions and the Successors. Other scholars are of the opinion that the term khabar is broad and can be used for all types of reports from the Prophet ﷺ, his Companions, and the Successors, while the term hadith is narrow and specific to the Prophet ﷺ.[11] Thus, every hadith is considered a khabar, but not every khabar is considered a hadith.

Athar literally translates to ‘a trace’, and is sometimes used synonymously with hadith. In terms of its subject-specific definition, some scholars are of the opinion that athar includes reports about the Prophet ﷺ, his Companions, and the Successors. However, other scholars from the region of Khorasan limited the term ‘athar’ to refer to reports from the Companions exclusively.[12]

Hadith Structure

A hadith consists of two main components:

1. The chain of transmission (sg. isnād/sanad, pl. asānīd, ‘support’),
2. The message/statement (sg. matn, pl. mutūn, ‘statement’). Sometimes, it is transmitted together with a description of the contextual background. This includes, for example, the testimonial, ‘The Prophet ﷺ said…’[13]

By way of example, al-Bukhārī (d. 256/870) narrates the following: 

“Al-Ḥumaydī ʿAbdullāh b. al-Zubayr related to us; he said, Sufyān told us that Yaḥyā b. Saʿīd al-Anṣārī told me that Muḥammad b. Ibrāhīm al-Taymī heard ʿAlqamah b. Waqqāṣ al-Laythī saying: I heard ʿUmar b. al-Khaṭṭāb (r) saying [chain of narration]: ‘I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ saying [frame action]: “Indeed deeds are according to intentions, and every person (is due) what he intended…”’” [until the end of the hadith].[14]

Hadith in Thematic Terms

Thematically, hadiths can be divided by subject area. Some are concerned with theology (ʿaqīdah), while others deal with divine law (aḥkām). The latter can then be further classified into sub-categories, such as hadiths pertaining to the rulings of acts of worship (aḥkām al-ʿibādāt) and hadiths concerning the laws governing interpersonal acts (aḥkām al-muʿāmalāt). In addition, there are hadiths regarding the military campaigns (al-maghāzī) of the Prophet ﷺ, hadiths describing the end times and epic events (al-fitan wa al-malāḥim/ashrāṭ al-sāʿah), hadiths that can be used as aids for the process of Qur’anic exegesis (al-tafsīr), and many other themes.

Importance of the Science of Hadith

Hadith is the second major ‘source text’ in Islam. The science of hadith is the discipline designed to deal with this ‘source text’ directly. Given that the Islamic sciences are interdisciplinary in nature, all the key disciplines in Islam such as fiqh, tafsīr, sīrah, and the like are all partly sourced from hadiths. In other words, all Islamic disciplines depend on hadiths, and in turn rely directly on the results deduced via the science of hadith. Oftentimes, a determination made in these other Islamic disciplines pivots around the availability, authenticity, and/or lack thereof of a hadith. This interdependency demonstrates the vital role of the science of hadith.

The science of hadith represents the means by which the Sunnah of the Messenger ﷺ is preserved, categorised, documented, and transmitted authentically. Since the time of revelation, the Sunnah has assumed an important status and served as an explanation of the Qur’an. The Qur’an states, “And We have sent down to you the admonition, that you may make clear to people what has been revealed to them.”[15]

In light of the above verse, the Prophet ﷺ was commissioned by Allah to explain the revelation. This is why the Companions attempted to observe every action and statement of his. The Companions varied in this regard, with some observing and transmitting more hadith texts than others. It is reported that some Companions took turns in accompanying the Prophet ﷺ so that they could uninterruptedly observe and then report everything concerning him ﷺ to the other Companions.[16] This became a habit amongst them to the point that they would narrate and transmit those narrations to other Companions, without explicitly mentioning whether those reports were directly heard from the Prophet ﷺ or not. Due to this, the generation of the Prophet ﷺ is considered to be the foundation in terms of transmitting knowledge to later generations.

The Emergence of the Science of Hadith

After the first generation of the Companions passed away, and others relocated, it was necessary to ensure that the Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ was preserved so that his authentic teachings could be passed on securely to subsequent generations. This called for the development of a systematic and secure method of recording the hadiths of the Prophet ﷺ. The scholars who spent their entire lives collecting and transmitting hadith texts were now burdened with this glorious yet laborious task. This led them to establish basic principles which could help distinguish authentic hadiths from weak ones, thereby marking the advent of the science of hadith.

Historically speaking, scholars have differed as to who was the first to write explicitly about the science of hadith. The widely held view is that Imam al-Shāfiʿī (d. 204/820) was the first scholar to explicitly formulate and establish in written form some principles and fundamentals of the science of hadith in his work al-Risālah (The Epistle).[17] In it, for example, he mentions conditions for when a hadith can be relied upon for usage in jurisprudential matters as well as in other fields. Moreover, he discusses the permissibility of relaying hadiths with different wordings which nevertheless retain the same meaning, stipulating that the reporter must have memorised the transmitted hadith’s text. He also touches upon the topic known in the science of hadith as mukhtalaf al-ḥadīth (reconciling apparently contradictory reports). Other scholars of his time such as Abū ʿUbayd al-Qāsim b. al-Sallām (d. 224/838) wrote works on the important sub-discipline of gharīb al-ḥadīth (unfamiliar and obscure terms in hadith). The well-known hadith scholar ʿAlī b. al-Madīnī (d. 234/848) also wrote numerous books on various hadith disciplines, including ʿilal al-ḥadīth (hidden defects in a hadith) – one of the most vital disciplines in hadith studies. Al-Dhahabī (d. 748/1348) mentioned that ʿAlī b. al-Madīnī is said to have authored up to 200 books.[18] Al-Khaṭīb al-Baghdādī (d. 463/1071) mentioned many of them by name, but unfortunately a large proportion of them are now lost.[19]

Another important figure who wrote about hadith criticism is Yaʿqūb b. Shaybah (d. 234/728). A small portion of his hadith work – namely al-Musnad al-Kabīr – is still available today. In it, he uses various terms to classify the credibility of any given hadith. For example, he grades a hadith by saying, “Ḥādīth ḥasan al-isnād, wa huwa ṣaḥīḥ” (“The hadith’s chain of narration is good [acceptable] and it [the hadith] is authentic”).[20] Influential scholars such as Yaḥya b. Maʿīn (d. 233/847), Aḥmad b. Ḥanbal (d. 241/855), al-Bukhārī (d. 256/870), and Muslim (d. 261/875) have also written works on this subject. Imam Muslim in his muqaddimah (introduction to his authentic collection of hadiths) lays a significant foundation for hadith criticism, along with its application in his treatise on hadith criticism entitled al-Tamyīz (The Discernment).

Among the best-known hadith scholars is al-Tirmidhī (d. 279/892). He has two works on hadith criticism: al-ʿIlal al-Kabīr (Hadith Deficiencies: The Original Edition) and al-ʿIlal al-Ṣaghīr (Hadith Deficiencies: the Summarised Edition). He discusses and studies in them – with emphasis given to application rather than theory – the most well-known sub-disciplines of the science of hadith, such as hadith criticism (al-naqd), criticism of the narrator (al-jarḥ wa al-taʿdīl), and classifications of hadith. Likewise, Abū Dāwūd (d. 275/897) authored Risālah Abī Dāwūd ilā Ahl Makkah (Abū Dāwūd’s Epistle to the People of Makkah) as an explanation of the methodology he utilised in his Sunan collection.

In the 3rd/10th century, other hadith scholars such as Ibn Abī Ḥātim (d. 327/938) followed with works related to many areas of hadith scholarship, including but not limited to hidden defects of a hadith (al-ʿilal) and hadith criticism (al-naqd). It is worth mentioning that fields such as al-ʿilal (hidden defects in hadith) and al-jarḥ wa al-taʿdīl (criticism of the transmitters) form rules that are more concerned with the scrutinising of hadith narrators.

The Science of Hadith from the 4th/11th century and onward

In the first few centuries of Islam, various works were written wherein scholars classified hadiths directly. However, these works did not detail how the rules of hadith sciences were applied, and they were not concerned with codifying the field into an organised scheme of theoretical rules. Furthermore, these works were brief and did not discuss terminologies at any great length. The task of doing so was first attempted by al-Ḥasan b. Khallād al-Rāmahurmuzī (d. 360/971) in his book al-Muḥaddith al-Fāṣil bayn al-Rāwī wa al-Wāʿī (The Hadith Scholar that Discerns Between the Transmitter and the Attentive), albeit he did not explicitly mention some relevant sub-disciplines of hadith science. He was followed by Abū ʿAbdillāh al-Ḥākim (d. 405/1012) who authored Maʿrifah ʿUlūm al-Ḥadīth (The Knowledge of the Sciences of Hadith), in which he alluded to 52 categories (nawʿ) – though the structure and presentation of his scheme laying out the disciplines was criticised by some hadith scholars, as it was ambiguous towards rudimentary aspects of the science. Hence, shortly thereafter Abū Nuʿaym al-Aṣbahānī (d. 430/1038) attempted to supplement al-Ḥākim’s work and composed the treatise al-Mustakhraj ʿalā ʿUlūm al-Ḥadīth li al-Ḥākim (The Supplement to Science of Hadith by al-Ḥākim). He was followed by the great hadith scholar al-Khaṭīb al-Baghdādī (d. 463/1071), who authored many works that served as the core material for the writings of many later scholars. Among the most cited works in hadith studies is his al-Kifāyah fī ʿIlm al-Riwāyah (The Sufficiency in the Science of Transmission [of Hadith]).

First Turning Point of the Science of Hadith

In the 7th/13th century, Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ aṣ-Shahrazūrī’s (d. 643/1265) book Maʿrifah ʿUlūm al-Ḥadīth (Knowledge of the Sciences of Hadith), better known as Muqaddimah Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ (The Introduction of Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ), marked a turning point in the codification of the science of hadith. He composed it during his tenure as a teacher at the well-known Dār al-Ḥadīth school in Damascus. Even though he relied on the works of al-Ḥākim and al-Khaṭīb al-Baghdādī, the hadith scholars who came after him used his book as the basis of their works. For example, al-Nawawī (d. 676/1277) abridged it and named it al-Irshād (The Guidance), which he later summarised again in a work titled al-Taqrīb wa al-Taysīr (To Bring Near and Facilitate). This work of al-Nawawī was then explained by al-Ḥāfiẓ al-Suyūṭī (d. 911/1505) in his book Tadrīb al-Rāwi (The Training of the Transmitter).

Another important summary of Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ’s book is Ikhtiṣār ʿUlūm al-Ḥadīth (The Summary of the Sciences of Hadith) by al-Ḥāfiẓ Ibn Kathīr (d. 774/1373), which was explained by the contemporary Egyptian hadith scholar Aḥmad Shākir (d. 1958) in a work entitled al-Bāʿith al-Ḥathīth (The Driving Force). Another very special work named Naẓm al-Durar fī ʿIlm al-Athar (The Stanza of Pearls in the Science of Reports) was written by al-Ḥāfiẓ al-ʿIrāqī (d. 806/1403). It is a poem based on the material of Muqaddimah Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ and consists of nearly 1000 verses, which al-Ḥāfiẓ al-Sakhāwī (d. 902/1497) later explained in a monumental five-volume work titled Fatḥ al-Mughīth (The Victory of the Helper).   

Second Turning Point of the Science of Hadith

The emergence of Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī (d. 852/1449), often referred to as ‘the leader of the hadith scholars’, marked a second turning point for the science of hadith. He authored several works in the field, such as Nukhbah al-Fikar (The Selected Thoughts), its companion commentary titled Nuzhah al-Naẓar (The Delightful Trip of Reflections), and al-Nukat ʿalā Kitāb Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ (Annotations on the Book of Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ). Moreover, he authored an unprecedented explanation of Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhāri called Fatḥ al-Bārī (The Victory of the Creator). He accompanied this with his famous introduction titled Hady al-Sārī (The Guidance for the Goer). Interestingly, when al-Shawkānī (d. 1250/1839) was asked by some of his students to write a commentary on Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, he responded by quoting the Prophet ﷺ, “There is no emigration after victory (lā hijrah baʿd al-fatḥ).” By this, he meant that Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī no longer requires an explanation after the advent of Ibn Ḥajar’s sensational work Fatḥ al-Bārī (The  Victory of the Creator).[21] 

Subcategories within Hadith Sciences

From among the most crucial sub-categories of the science of hadith are the riwāyah and dirāyah developments. Despite this division not being explicitly mentioned until the 7th/13th century, it can be inferred from the title of al-Rāmahurmuzī’s 4th/10th century book al-Muḥaddith al-Fāṣil bayn al-Rāwī wa al-Wāʿī (The Hadith Scholar that Discerns Between the Transmitter and the Attentive) that the science of hadith was generally divided into these two categories.

Ilm al-ḥadīth riwāyatan is concerned with the process of transmission between the reporters, as well as the different modes of transmission (ṭuruq al-taḥammul). Great attention is paid to the correct pronunciation of transmitters’ names and hadith wording in general (ḍabṭ al-asmāʾ wa al-alfāẓ). This was to avoid errors arising which could impact the correct understanding or classification of a hadith.[22]  

ʿIlm al-ḥadīth dirāyatan deals with rules (qawāʿid) that hadith scholars draw upon to determine the state of the chain of transmission (isnād) in conjunction with the text of transmission (matn), and then to classify them on a scale of authenticity.

One could add that the former category, also known as uṣūl al-ḥadīth, is concerned with the state of the chain of transmission and mode of transmission, in addition to the examination of the trustworthiness (al-ʿadālah) and accuracy (al-ḍabṭ) of the transmitters.[23] The latter category would be mainly concerned with hadith hermeneutics, i.e. the understanding of the hadiths while observing the rules of the Arabic language and the fundamentals of the Shariah.[24] While hadith scholars prefer the former definitions presented, this division is not clearly present in many books of the science due to them all being treated together as a single category. For example, al-Ḥāfiẓ al-Suyūṭī mentions a total of 93 sub-disciplines of the science of hadith in his book Tadrīb al-Rāwī (The Training of the Transmitter), which many separate books have discussed individually, commented upon, and elaborated upon as they developed.[25]

Important books of the science of hadith (muṣṭalaḥ) – arranged chronologically

1. Al-Muḥaddith al-Fāṣil bayn al-Rāwī wa al-Wāʿī (The Hadith Scholar that Discerns Between the Transmitter and the Attentive) by al-Ḥasan Ibn Khallād Al-Rāmahurmuzī (d. 360/971).
2. Maʿrifah ʿUlūm al-Ḥadīth (The Knowledge of the Sciences of Hadith) by Muḥammad b. ʿAbdullāh al-Ḥākim (d. 405/1012).
3. Mustakhraj ʿalā ʿUlūm al-Ḥadīth li al-Ḥākim (The Supplement to ‘the Sciences of Hadith‘ by al-Ḥākim) by Abū Nuʿaym al-Aṣbahānī (d. 430/1038).
4. Al-Kifāyah fī ʿIlm al-Riwāyah (Sufficiency in the Science of Transmission [of Hadith]), and
5. Al-Jāmiʿ li Akhlāq al-Rāwī wa Ādāb al-Sāmiʿ (On the Code of Conduct of the Transmitter and the Receiver*) by al-Khaṭīb al-Baghdādī (d. 463/1071).
6. Al-Ilmāʿ ilā Maʿrifah Usūl al-Riwāyah wa Taqyīd al-Samāʿ (The Reference for Knowing the Principles of Transmitting and Receiving) by Qāḍī ʿIyāḍ (d. 544/1149).
7. Ma Lā Yasaʿ al-Muḥaddith Jahluh (What a Hadith Scholar Should Know*) by Abū Ḥafṣ al-Mayānajī (d. 580/1184).
8. Maʿrifah ʿUlūm al-Ḥadīth, known as: Muqaddimah Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ (The Knowledge of the Hadith Sciences or The Introduction of Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ) by Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ al-Shahrazūrī (d. 643/1265).
9. Al-Taqrīb wa al-Taysīr (To Bring Near and Facilitate) by al-Nawawī (d. 676/1277).
10. Ikhtiṣār ʿUlūm al-Ḥadīth (The Summary of the Sciences of Hadith) by al-Ḥāfiẓ Ibn Kathīr (d. 774/1373).
11. Naẓm al-Durar fi ʿIlm al-Athar (The Stanza of Pearls in the Science of Reports) by al-Ḥāfiẓ al-ʿIrāqī (d. 806/1403).
12. Nukhbah al-Fikar (The Selected Thoughts) by Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī (d. 852/1449).
13. Nuzhah al-Naẓar (The Delightful Trip of Reflections) also by Ibn Ḥajar.
14. Fatḥ al-Mughīth (The Victory of the Helper) by al-Ḥāfiẓ al-Sakhāwī (d. 902/1497).
15. Tadrīb al-Rāwi (The Training of the Transmitter) by al-Ḥāfiẓ al-Suyūṭī (d. 911/1505
16. Al-Bāʿith al-Ḥathīth (The Driving Force) by Aḥmad Shākir (d. 1958).

(Cf. al-Ṭaḥḥān: Taysīr Muṣṭalaḥ al-Ḥadīth, pp. 13)

 

[1] Ibn Fāris, Maqāyīs al-Lughah Bd. 2, S. 36, ‘حدث’.

[2] See: al-Aʿẓami, Studies in Hadith Methodology, pp. 1 ff.

[3] al-Anʿām, 68.

[4] Ṭā-hā, 9.

[5] Narrated by al-Bukhārī, no. 6098.

[6] See Al-Aʿẓami, Hadith Methodology, p. 3; Zafar Anṣāri, Islamic Legal Terminology, p. 5.

[7] Narrated by al-Bukhāri, no. 3461.

[8] See: Al-Kirmānī, Sharḥ al-Bukhārī, vol. 1, p. 12; Ibn Ḥajar, Fatḥ al-Bārī, vol. 1, p. 193; Al-Sakhāwī, Fatḥ al-Mugīth, vol. 1, p. 12; ʿAjjāj al-Khaṭīb, al-Sunnah Qabl al-Tadwīn. Al-Aʿzami, Studies in Hadith Methodology, p. 3; Jonathan Brown, Hadith, p. 3. Jurists, on the other hand, disregard physical and character traits in their definition, as no norms are usually derived from them.

[9] Ibn Taymiyyah, al-Fatāwa vol. 18, S. 6-12.

[10] Al-Ṭībī, al-Khulāṣah fi Uṣūl al-Ḥadīth, p. 30, Al-Aʿzami, Studies in Hadith Methodology, p. 3.

[11] Ibid; Ibn Ḥajar, Nukhbah al-Fikar, S. 7.

[12] Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ, ʿUlūm al-Ḥadīth, S. 42.

[13] For more details on the structure of a hadith text, see Brown: Hadith, pp. 6 f.

[14] Al-Bukhārī, No. 1.

[15] an-Naḥl, 44. 

[16] See al-Bukhārī, no. 88; al-Zahrānī, Tadwīn al-Sunnah, p. 27.

[17] Al-Khuḍayr, Taḥqīq al-Raghbah, p. 41.

[18] Al-Dhahabī, al-Siyar, vol. 11, p. 42.

[19] Cf. Al-Khaṭīb, al-Jāmiʿ no. 1926.

[20] Yaʿqūb b. Shaybah al-Baṣrī, al-Musnad al-Kabīr, p. 60.

[21] Ṣiddīq Khān, al-Ḥiṭṭah, S. 131-132; al-Kittānī, Fihris al-Fahāris, S. 322 f.

[22] See Al-Suyūṭī, Tadrīb al-Rāwī vol. 1, p. 40.

[23] Ḥājī Khalīfah, Kashf al-Ẓunūn vol. 1, S. 635.

[24] See Al-Mubārakfūrī, Qawāiʿd fī ʿUlūm al-Ḥadīth, pp. 49-51.

[25] The online database (https://k-tb.com/) currently lists 8703 titles of Arabic-language treatises in the field of hadith sciences. It can be downloaded here in PDF form.