It is divided into ten types: Five of which are agreed to their authenticity and five are differed in their authenticity.

The first type of the agreed upon:

The narrations of the great two scholars: Abu `Abdullah Al Bukhari and Abu Al Husayn Muslim who reported the highest degree of authentic Hadiths. It is the Hadith which was reported by a Companion who was famous for his narrations from the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and had two trustworthy narrators who report from him then a follower who was famous for narrating from the Companions reports it then two trustworthy narrators narrate it from him. Then one of the follower of Successors who was famous for narration and good memory and had narrators from the fourth class of narrators report it. Then the sheikh of Al Bukhari and Muslim who was famous for trustworthiness and good memory report it; this is the highest degree of authentic narrations.

The reported Hadiths by the previous way do not exceed ten thousand Hadith.

Imam Muslim wanted to report his Sahih according to the classification of narrators into three sections, but when he finished the first section, he died in old age.

How come he says that the number of Hadiths reported from the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) did not reach ten thousand Hadiths while four thousand Companions reported from the Prophet after accompanying him for about several and twenty years in Makkah and Medina and after they had memorized his sayings and actions, his sleep and wakefulness, his movements and stases, and all his conditions whether seriousness or jesting. Moreover, a good memorizer could memorize five hundred thousand, six hundred thousand, and seven hundred thousand Hadiths. 

The condition mentioned was also mentioned by Al Hakim Abu `Abdullah An-Naysabury.

Others said: This condition is irregular in the books of Al Bukhari and Muslim, where they reported Hadiths that did not meet that condition.

Al Hakim was an expert in this knowledge and knew well its secrets, and he did not judge those two books except after searching, testing, and making sure of his judgment.

The one who said that the condition is irregular must have followed the ways of Hadiths reported in the two books and found Hadiths that did not meet the condition which Al Hakim mentioned. However, this is not a proof against the saying of Al Hakim because Al Hakim affirms while that person negates, and affirmation is given priority to negation. How come that person negates the condition because he did not find it and perhaps others found it and he did not know about? Good thinking of scholars is better and believing their sayings is more entitled, but the saying of Al Hakim has two interpretations:

1- The Hadith may be reported by a Companion who was famous for narration then two narrators reported it then two narrators reported the Hadith from each narrator until it reached Al Bukhari and Muslim.

2- The Hadith may be reported by a Companion who had two narrators to report from him but only one of them reported the narration from him then that narrator would have two narrators to report from him but only one of them reported it and so on. Thus, the purpose of this condition is praising narrators, saying that the Hadith was reported by famous narrators, and reporting from narrators who are famous for narration.

If the purpose of Al Hakim was the first, we have already refuted the opposite claim by saying that the condition was set by some scholars who did not use any Hadith that did not meet that condition as a proof as previously mentioned. We have already explained that it was not a condition in the view of most scholars.

We know for sure that none could narrate authentic Hadiths as Al Bukhari and Muslim did. This is the proper way to prove the authenticity of the Hadith because who is better than Al Bukhari and Muslim in proving authentic Hadiths?

However, if Al Bukhar and Muslim reported only the Hadiths that met that condition, they did not condition it to approve or disapprove a Hadith, but they only did what is better and sought the highest rank.

If the purpose of Al Hakim was the second, there is no need to refute it because it is good to narrate Hadiths reported by famous narrators.

Add comment