ʿilm al-ḥadīth
-
What is ʿilm al-ḥadīth?
ʿilm al-ḥadīth is a form of investigation established by Muslim traditionists in the 9th century CE to determine the validity of accounts (hadiths) of Muhammad’s statements, actions, and approbations as reported by various authorities.
Muslim scholars attempted to determine forgeries or doubtful reports among the existing body of hadiths. They were bound in principle to accept any textually reliable hadith and had to restrict themselves principally to the scrutiny of a sanad (chain of oral or written transmission) by which the reliability of a hadith was determined.
2 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
Why is ʿilm al-ḥadīth important in Islam?
ʿilm al-ḥadīth is the science of Hadith, a discipline developed by Muslim traditionists to determine the validity of accounts of Prophet Muhammad's statements, actions, and approbations.
During Islam's first two centuries, the number of Hadiths multiplied, often fabricated to accommodate diverse cultures within the Muslim community. This era necessitated methods to determine forgeries and doubtful reports. ʿilm al-ḥadīth emerged to address these challenges by scrutinizing the isnād (chains of transmission) to ascertain a Hadith's reliability.
Acceptable Hadiths are categorized as ṣaḥīḥ (sound), ḥasan (good), and ḍaʿīf (weak), based on the reliability and completeness of their transmission chains and the consistency of their texts with orthodox beliefs.
2 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
What are hadiths, and what do they contain?
Hadiths are reports and traditions about the Prophet Muhammad, considered by Muslims as a key source of religious law and moral guidance second only to the Qurʾān. They offer insights into Muhammad's practices and those of his community, covering law, ritual, and creed.
The ʿilm al-ḥadīth is a practice that emerged in the 9th century to determine the validity of hadiths. These accounts include Muhammad's statements, actions, and endorsements as reported by different authorities. The isnad, or chain of transmission, helps determine a hadith's reliability. Valid hadiths are categorized as sound (ṣaḥīḥ), good (ḥasan), or weak (ḍaʿīf).
2 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
How do scholars verify if a hadith is authentic?
Muslim scholars established \u02bfilm al-\u1e25ad\u012bth in the 9th century to verify hadiths, accounts of Muhammad's statements, actions, and approbations. Scholars rate each hadith by examining the isnād (chain of transmitters) and the reliability and orthodoxy of its authorities. Essential requirements for trustworthy transmitters include faith, truthfulness, maturity, sound mind, and good memory. They should understand and relay reports verbatim and possess sufficient Arabic knowledge.
Hadiths are divided into three categories: sahih (sound, accurate), hasan (fair), and da'if (weak). The most authoritative hadiths have a trustworthy narrator in every generation and uninterrupted isnads going back to Muhammad. Forged hadiths are labeled as mawdū.
3 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
What is the difference between sahih (authentic), hasan (good), and daif (weak) hadiths?
In Islam, ilm al-hadith is a form of investigation used to determine the validity of accounts (hadiths) of Muhammad’s statements, actions, and approbations as reported by various authorities. Acceptable hadiths fall into three categories:
-
Sahih (sound): Hadiths with a reliable and uninterrupted chain of transmission (isnad) and a text (matn) that does not contradict orthodox belief. The isnad is continuous, going back to Muhammad himself.
-
Hasan (good): Hadiths with an incomplete isnad or transmitters of questionable authority.
-
Da'if (weak): Hadiths whose matn or transmitters are subject to serious criticism. Isnads for which one or more narrators could not be verified are considered broken or incomplete.
2 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
-
How did ʿilm al-ḥadīth influence Islamic law and tradition?
ʿilm al-ḥadīth is the science of Hadith, which are accounts of Muhammad's words and deeds. It emerged to determine the validity of these accounts, which became a critical source of Islamic law and creed.
As Islam expanded and incorporated diverse cultures, ḥadīth multiplied, sometimes fabricated to accommodate contemporary situations. Scholars then developed ʿilm al-ḥadīth to identify forgeries and doubtful reports. This involved scrutinizing the isnād (chain of transmission) for reliability. Acceptable ḥadīth were categorized as sound (ṣaḥīḥ), good (ḥasan), or weak (ḍaʿīf) based on the isnād and text.
3 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
ʿilm al-ḥadīth, form of investigation established by Muslim traditionists in the 3rd century ah (9th century ce) to determine the validity of accounts (hadiths) of Muhammad’s statements, actions, and approbations as reported by various authorities.
In the first two centuries of Islam, during the period of territorial expansion, there arose a need to accommodate a great diversity of cultures in the Muslim community. The hadiths then multiplied in number and were often fabricated in order to create a normative past that could accommodate contemporary situations. Thus many early opinions on the religious law and dogma of Islam, as well as sectarian prophecies and other expectations, were cast in the form of hadiths. Once the Prophet’s personal example, as recorded in hadiths, became established as the universal Muslim norm (Sunnah), however, Muslim scholars attempted to determine forgeries or doubtful reports among the existing body of hadiths. They were bound in principle to accept any textually reliable hadith and had to restrict themselves principally to the scrutiny of a sanad (plural, isnād)—i.e., a chain of oral or written transmission by which the reliability of a hadith was determined (see isnād).
All acceptable hadiths therefore fall into three general categories: ṣaḥīḥ (sound), those with a reliable and uninterrupted chain of transmission and a matn (text) that does not contradict orthodox belief; ḥasan (good), those with an incomplete sanad or with transmitters of questionable authority; ḍaʿīf (weak), those whose matn or transmitters are subject to serious criticism.
" height="20" alt="HEW Logo">
The isnād are further evaluated according to the completeness of their chains: they may be unbroken and reliable all the way back to Muhammad (musnad) yet very short (ʿālī), implying less likelihood of error; they may lack one authority in the chain of transmitters or may be missing two or more transmitters (muʿḍal) or may have an obscure authority, referred to simply as “a man” (mubham).
The transmitters themselves, once established in the historical record as reliable men, determine further categories; the same tradition may have been handed down concurrently through several different isnād (mutawātir), indicating a long and sound history, or a hadith may have been quoted by three different trustworthy authorities (mashhūr) or by only one (āḥad).
Many scholars produced collections of hadiths, the earliest compilation being the great Musnad of Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal, arranged by isnād. But only six collections, known as al-kutub al-sittah (“the six books”), arranged by matn—those of al-Bukhārī (died 870), Muslim ibn al-Ḥajjāj (died 875), Abū Dāʾūd (died 888), al-Tirmidhī (died 892), Ibn Mājāh (died 886), and al-Nasāʾī (died 915)—came to be recognized as canonical in orthodox Islam, though the books of al-Bukhārī and Muslim enjoy a prestige that virtually eclipses the other four.