Presented here are fifty [50] references from the traces of the pious predecessors which establish that the title and attribute name “Ahl al-Hadith” is entirely correct and there is a consensus on it.
1. Bukhari:
◈ Imam Bukhari said about the Ta’ifa Mansura (the victorious group):
“Meaning, they are Ahl al-Hadith.”
[Mas’ala Al-Ihtijaj bi al-Shafi’i, Al-Khatib, p. 47, with a Sahih chain; Al-Hujjah fi Bayan al-Mahajjah 1/246]
◈ Imam Bukhari (may Allah have mercy on him) reported from Yahya ibn Sa’id al-Qattan about a narrator:
“He was not from Ahl al-Hadith.”
[Al-Tarikh al-Kabir 6/429; Al-Du’afa al-Saghir, p. 281]
2. Muslim:
◈ Imam Muslim said about the discredited narrators:
“They are accused according to Ahl al-Hadith.”
[Sahih Muslim, Muqaddimah, p. 6 (before the first chapter), second edition 1/5]
◈ Imam Muslim (may Allah have mercy on him) further said:
“We have explained the methodology of Hadith and its people.”
[Same reference]
◈ Imam Muslim (may Allah have mercy on him) included Ayub al-Sakhtiyani, Ibn Aoun, Malik bin Anas, Shu’bah bin al-Hajjaj, Yahya bin Sa’id al-Qattan, Abdul Rahman bin Mahdi, and those who came after them among “أهل الحديث“ (Ahl al-Hadith).
[Sahih Muslim, Muqaddimah, p. 22 [Bab Sahat al-Ihtijaj bil-Hadith al-Mu’an’an], second edition 1/26, third edition 1/23]
3. Shafi’i:
◈ About a weak narration, Imam Muhammad bin Idris al-Shafi’i said:
“Ahl al-Hadith do not consider it authentic.”
[Al-Sunan al-Kubra by Al-Bayhaqi 1/260, with a Sahih chain]
◈ Imam Shafi’i (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
“When I see a person from Ahl al-Hadith, it is as if I have seen the Prophet (peace be upon him) alive.”
[Sharaf Ashab al-Hadith by Al-Khatib: 85, with a Sahih chain]
4. Ahmad bin Hanbal:
◈ Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal (may Allah have mercy on him) was asked about the Ta’ifa Mansura, and he said:
“If this victorious group is not the Ashab al-Hadith, then I do not know who they are?”
[Ma’rifah Ulum al-Hadith by Al-Hakim, p. 2, No. 2, with a Hasan chain, and authenticated by Ibn Hajar in Fath al-Bari 13/293 under Hadith No. 7311]
5. Yahya ibn Sa’id al-Qattan:
◈ Imam Yahya ibn Sa’id al-Qattan said about Sulayman ibn Tarhan al-Taymi:
“Taymi was from Ahl al-Hadith according to us.”
[Musnad Ali al-Ja’d 1/594, Hadith No. 1354, with a Sahih chain; second edition: 1314; Al-Jarh wa al-Ta’dil by Ibn Abi Hatim 4/125, with a Sahih chain]
◈ Yahya al-Qattan said about the narrator Imran ibn Qudamah al-‘Ammi:
“But he was not from Ahl al-Hadith.”
[Al-Jarh wa al-Ta’dil 6/303, with a Sahih chain]
6. Tirmidhi:
◈ Imam Tirmidhi (may Allah have mercy on him) said about a narrator named Abu Zaid:
“Abu Zaid is an unknown person according to Ahl al-Hadith.”
[Sunanan Tirmidhi: 88]
7. Abu Dawood:
◈ Imam Abu Dawood al-Sijistani (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
“According to the majority of Ahl al-Hadith.”
[Risalat Abi Dawood ila Makkah fi Wasf Sunanih, p. 30, Manuscript p. 1]
8. Nasa’i:
◈ Imam Nasa’i (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
“And a benefit for the people of Islam and from Ahl al-Hadith, knowledge, jurisprudence, and the Quran.”
[Sunanan Nasa’i 7/135, Hadith No. 4147; Al-Ta’liqat al-Salafiyyah: 4152]
9. Ibn Khuzaymah:
◈ Imam Muhammad bin Ishaq bin Khuzaymah al-Naysaburi said about a Hadith:
“We have not seen any disagreement among the scholars of Ahl al-Hadith that this report is authentic in terms of transmission.”
[Sahih Ibn Khuzaymah 1/21, Hadith No. 31]
10. Ibn Hibban:
◈ Hafiz Muhammad bin Hibban al-Busti titled a chapter in his book as follows:
“Mentioning the report by which some of the Mu’attila (those who deny Allah’s attributes) criticized Ahl al-Hadith, as they were deprived of the correct understanding of its meaning.”
[Sahih Ibn Hibban, Al-Ihsan: 566, second edition: 565]
◈ In another place, Hafiz Ibn Hibban described the attribute of Ahl al-Hadith as:
“They adhere to the Sunnah, defend it, and suppress those who oppose it.”
[Sahih Ibn Hibban, Al-Ihsan: 6129, second edition: 6162; see also Al-Ihsan 1/140 before Hadith No. 61]
This concludes the presentation of fifty references supporting the consensus on the title “Ahl al-Hadith.”
