A Layman's Guide To Analysing Hadith
By: Farhad Shafti
Hadiths are narrated on a regular basis among the community of Muslims. There are those who accept any hadith that is narrated to them. There are those who reject any hadith that is narrated to them. In between, there are those more rational individuals who value the hadith and would like to take benefit of hadith, however at the same time are conscious not to accept a suspicious hadith or not to interpret and implement the content of a hadith in a wrong way. The problem for many of these wise Muslims is that they have no or little knowledge or experience of evaluating hadith and at the same time it is not always possible for them to consult a learned scholar about the reliability and the meaning of a hadith.
Following is a brief explanation aimed at the layman in the area of hadith that may help the person in evaluating a hadith and its interpretation when he/she does not have access to a learned scholar to help out:
It is advisable for a person who needs to assess a hadith with no or little knowledge, skill and experience in analysing hadith to observe the following simple principles. There are some overlaps between some of these principles but they are detailed them in the following way in a hope that they may be clear:
1. The primary sources of understanding Islam are the Qur'an and the Established Sunnah. Hadith is a valuable source of information but it is not an independent source of understanding Islam. Therefore no hadith, on its own, adds any essential religious beliefs or practices to the corpus of religion. (for more on the difference between Established Sunnah and Hadith please read Sunnah vs. Hadith and Sunnah vs. Hadith (Follow Up 3: Definition of Established Sunnah).
2. No understanding of hadith can be against the clear statements of the Qur’an or clear principles that the Almighty has established in the Qur’an.
3. When the Qur’an instructs about a religious practice no hadith can add any compulsory elements to that instruction.
4. No understanding of a hadith can be against known facts.
5. No understanding of a hadith can change the meaning of a verse of the Qur’an from its obvious meaning.
Apart from the above principles, in a second level of studying a hadith the following considerations need to be in place:
- Is the hadith narrated in the more reliable books?
If not, it is closer to caution to remain with reservations about what the hadith suggests.
- Are there more than one versions of the hadith?
If yes, then it is worth to read them as well before coming up with any conclusions.
- Is the hadith claiming that the prophet (pbuh) made an important statement to the public, yet it is narrated by very few companions only?
Imam abu Hanifa very wisely used to question such hadiths.
- Is the hadith about news of the future? Merits of individuals? Reward of some deeds?
I am not suggesting that if the answer is yes then the hadith is wrong. However it is worth noticing that the scholars of hadith have found that comparing to other subjects, hadiths related to the above subjects are more prone to weakness because these have always been topics that fabricators of hadith and exaggerators or unwise well-wishers have been interested in.
- Is the hadith in favour of a particular sect of Islam and is narrated in the sources of that sect of Islam only?
If the answer is yes then it is wise to be cautious as the elements of sectarian bias can always be there.
Almost all that is mentioned above is about the content of hadith. Of course studying the narrators is another dimension of studying hadith, however since this writing is aimed at the layman no reference has been made towards this aspect of hadith evaluation. Having said that, analysing the context of a hadith using the above principles and observations provides a rather safe stance that may not necessarily be provided by analysing the narrators only. Incidentally there are now a number of books and even online services on internet that can give the opinion of a scholar about the degree of reliability of a hadith. These can easily be used by a layman specially if reading Arabic is not a problem. Of course for more educated and experienced students of Islam looking at the original sources of rijal (narrators) is essential.
The above is for the situation where there is no easy access to a learned scholar. When there is a possibility, consulting an expert is always highly advisable.
Hadiths are narrated on a regular basis among the community of Muslims. There are those who accept any hadith that is narrated to them. There are those who reject any hadith that is narrated to them. In between, there are those more rational individuals who value the hadith and would like to take benefit of hadith, however at the same time are conscious not to accept a suspicious hadith or not to interpret and implement the content of a hadith in a wrong way. The problem for many of these wise Muslims is that they have no or little knowledge or experience of evaluating hadith and at the same time it is not always possible for them to consult a learned scholar about the reliability and the meaning of a hadith.
Following is a brief explanation aimed at the layman in the area of hadith that may help the person in evaluating a hadith and its interpretation when he/she does not have access to a learned scholar to help out:
It is advisable for a person who needs to assess a hadith with no or little knowledge, skill and experience in analysing hadith to observe the following simple principles. There are some overlaps between some of these principles but they are detailed them in the following way in a hope that they may be clear:
1. The primary sources of understanding Islam are the Qur'an and the Established Sunnah. Hadith is a valuable source of information but it is not an independent source of understanding Islam. Therefore no hadith, on its own, adds any essential religious beliefs or practices to the corpus of religion. (for more on the difference between Established Sunnah and Hadith please read Sunnah vs. Hadith and Sunnah vs. Hadith (Follow Up 3: Definition of Established Sunnah).
2. No understanding of hadith can be against the clear statements of the Qur’an or clear principles that the Almighty has established in the Qur’an.
3. When the Qur’an instructs about a religious practice no hadith can add any compulsory elements to that instruction.
4. No understanding of a hadith can be against known facts.
5. No understanding of a hadith can change the meaning of a verse of the Qur’an from its obvious meaning.
Apart from the above principles, in a second level of studying a hadith the following considerations need to be in place:
- Is the hadith narrated in the more reliable books?
If not, it is closer to caution to remain with reservations about what the hadith suggests.
- Are there more than one versions of the hadith?
If yes, then it is worth to read them as well before coming up with any conclusions.
- Is the hadith claiming that the prophet (pbuh) made an important statement to the public, yet it is narrated by very few companions only?
Imam abu Hanifa very wisely used to question such hadiths.
- Is the hadith about news of the future? Merits of individuals? Reward of some deeds?
I am not suggesting that if the answer is yes then the hadith is wrong. However it is worth noticing that the scholars of hadith have found that comparing to other subjects, hadiths related to the above subjects are more prone to weakness because these have always been topics that fabricators of hadith and exaggerators or unwise well-wishers have been interested in.
- Is the hadith in favour of a particular sect of Islam and is narrated in the sources of that sect of Islam only?
If the answer is yes then it is wise to be cautious as the elements of sectarian bias can always be there.
Almost all that is mentioned above is about the content of hadith. Of course studying the narrators is another dimension of studying hadith, however since this writing is aimed at the layman no reference has been made towards this aspect of hadith evaluation. Having said that, analysing the context of a hadith using the above principles and observations provides a rather safe stance that may not necessarily be provided by analysing the narrators only. Incidentally there are now a number of books and even online services on internet that can give the opinion of a scholar about the degree of reliability of a hadith. These can easily be used by a layman specially if reading Arabic is not a problem. Of course for more educated and experienced students of Islam looking at the original sources of rijal (narrators) is essential.
The above is for the situation where there is no easy access to a learned scholar. When there is a possibility, consulting an expert is always highly advisable.
