Bukhari

Benefits and Issues:
Relevance between the Chapter and the Hadith:
Imam Bukhari rahimahullah stated in the chapter heading that it is permissible to mention the evil of wicked men, and as evidence, he cited the hadith regarding Abu Lahab, about whom Allah the Exalted said: “May your hands perish, Abu Lahab, and may you be ruined.” The connection between the chapter heading and the hadith is established in a very subtle manner, and it is as follows: Allah the Exalted made it clear regarding Abu Lahab that he was an evildoer, a disbeliever, and a sinner; for this reason, Allah the Exalted mentioned his evil, saying, “May your hands perish.” When we look at the context of revelation, Abu Lahab insulted the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, saying, “May you be ruined all day long!” In response, Allah the Exalted also mentioned his ruin. Undoubtedly, this verse was revealed during the lifetime of Abu Lahab (may Allah’s curse be upon him), but the Noble Qur’an, which is for all time until the Day of Judgment, will continue to be recited after Abu Lahab’s death, and people will read the mention of his evil in this verse. Thus, when his evil and wickedness are mentioned in the Qur’an even after his death, it is evident that mentioning the evil of wicked people is permissible so that people may take heed. Here, the wicked people referred to are the disbelievers.

Ibn al-Munir rahimahullah says:
«والظاهر أن البخاري جري على عادته فى الاستنباط الخفي والحالة فى الظاهر الجلي على سبق الأفهام إليه على أن الآية مرتبة وهى تسمية المزموم، وتغبيب الغيبة وخصوصًا فى الكتاب العزيز الذى يبقي ولا يفني آخر الدهر .» [المتوازي، ص128]
“That is, it appears that Imam Bukhari rahimahullah, in accordance with his habit, has made a very subtle deduction here, and the blameworthy mention of Abu Lahab’s case is his backbiting, especially since this is recorded in the Noble Book, which will remain forever until the Day of Judgment.”

Muhammad Zakariyya Kandhlawi rahimahullah says:
«عقب باب النهي عن سب الأموات بهذا الباب اشارة إلى أن الأموات الشرار مستثنيٰ عنه كما هو دأبه فى أكثر الأبواب» [الأبواب والتراجم لصحيح البخاري، ج3، ص248]
“The prohibition of speaking ill of the dead is related to this chapter, and in this chapter there is an indication that those dead who were wicked are excluded from the generality of the previous chapter, as has been attempted to be established in most chapters.”

Imam Qastallani rahimahullah says:
“The chapter heading indicates that it is prohibited to speak ill of the dead except for those who were wicked.” [ارشاد الساري، ج3، ص156]
He further writes:
“The relevance between the chapter heading and the hadith is that Ibn Abbas radi Allahu anhu mentioned (Abu Lahab) with a curse, and that is to mention the evil of wicked men. And it is not hidden that the above hadith of Sayyiduna Ibn Abbas radi Allahu anhuma is among the mursal reports of the Companions, because this verse was revealed in Makkah, and at that time Ibn Abbas radi Allahu anhuma was either not yet born or was very young. However, it should be remembered that the mursal reports of the Companions are authoritative. The scholars have agreed that the mursal narration of a Companion is valid, because the Companion would have heard it either directly from the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam or indirectly from another Companion. In any case, the Companions were truthful in narrating hadith.”

Ibn al-Mulaqqin rahimahullah says:
«فذكر شرار الموتيٰ من أهل الشرك خاصة جائز لانه لا شك فيه انهم مخلدون فى النار» [التوضيح، كتاب الجنائز، ج10، ص207]
“Thus, mentioning the wicked men who are polytheists is permissible, because there is no doubt that these polytheists are eternally in Hellfire (therefore, it is permissible to inform people of their evil).”

From the explanations of the commentators, it becomes clear that Abu Lahab, who possessed the worst of qualities, was mentioned with blame in the Qur’an, which is to make his disbelief clear to the people. Therefore, when mentioning his evil after his death is permissible, the relevance to the chapter heading is also clarified.

Objection:
SA Here, an objection arises: Why did Allah the Exalted not mention Abu Lahab’s real name? EA The answer is that his real name was ‘Abd al-‘Uzza, so how could Allah the Exalted address him by his polytheistic name? Secondly, people only recognized him by his kunyah (nickname), so Allah the Exalted mentioned his kunyah so that people would recognize him. (For details, refer to [كشف المشكل، ج2، ص223].)

Benefit:
Surah Lahab was revealed when Allah the Exalted commanded the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam: «وَأَنْذِرْ عَشِيْرَتَكَ الْأَقْرَبِيْنَ» [الشعراء : 214]
In the aforementioned blessed verse, the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam was commanded to warn his close relatives of Allah’s punishment. To fulfill this command, the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam used the most important place of that time, known as Mount Safa. The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam warned all his relatives of Allah’s punishment, and among them was Abu Lahab. When Abu Lahab heard the Prophet’s invitation, he uttered disrespectful words and said: “May you be ruined! Did you gather us for this purpose all day?” Upon this statement, which is mentioned in the books of hadith, Allah the Exalted revealed Surah Lahab, in which, in a defensive manner, a crushing response was given to the disrespect of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam: “May both hands of Abu Lahab perish, and may he be ruined.” Now, the point of consideration regarding the authority of hadith is that when the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam warned his relatives according to the verse of Surah al-Shu‘ara, on that occasion Abu Lahab uttered disrespectful words. The mention of this disrespect is not found in the Qur’an, but it is present in the hadith. Now, the disrespect mentioned in the hadith is responded to defensively by Allah the Exalted in Surah Lahab. If the authority of hadith were not established, the Qur’an would never have responded to an insult whose mention is found in the hadith. So understand this well!

Benefit Number 2:
No matter from which angle you test the Noble Qur’an, this Book passes every test. In the present era, scientists have introduced a term called the “Falsification Test.” That is, when a scientist presents a research finding, he also presents three refutational tests for its falsification; if his research is disproved by this process, it is rejected without acceptance. In scientific terminology, this is called the “Falsification Test.” Apart from Islam, none of the world’s religions or faiths have succeeded in this refutational test, but Islam is the only religion that has succeeded in this test as well. There are many examples of this in the Qur’an and hadith, but space does not permit; I will present just one example.

Surah Lahab was revealed about the Prophet’s uncle, Abu Lahab, who was a great enemy of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. When the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam invited his close relatives to the doctrine of tawhid (monotheism), his uncle Abu Lahab strongly opposed him, due to which Allah the Exalted gave him the news of a death upon disbelief and the tidings of Hellfire. The noteworthy point is that this surah was revealed eight or ten years before Abu Lahab’s death, and the Qur’an had already announced years in advance that whenever Abu Lahab died, it would be upon disbelief.

Dear readers! Reflect: if even once Abu Lahab, just to show people, had uttered the testimony of faith (kalimah shahadah) with his tongue, it would have been enough to prove the Qur’an false. But since this speech is not human speech, in the span of eight years, not even the thought occurred to him that he could thus severely refute the Qur’an. In fact, it is clear that he himself knew of this surah, but after eight or ten years, Abu Lahab died upon disbelief—this is a clear challenge of the Qur’an, which we call the “Falsification Test.” No book in the world, except the Qur’an and authentic hadith, passes this test. The Noble Qur’an and authentic hadith present many such standards and refutational tests that only the Qur’an or the hadith of the Messenger sallallahu alayhi wa sallam can pass. All other religions lack the power to pass such standards. This is clear evidence that the Qur’an and authentic hadith are revelation from Allah the Exalted.

Hadith Commentary:
When this verse was revealed:
﴿وَاَنذِر عَشِیرَتَكَ الاَقرَبِینَ﴾ (Ash-Shu‘ara: 214)
meaning, "And warn your closest relatives,"
the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) ascended Mount Safa and called out to the people of Quraysh. They all gathered together.
Then he warned them of Allah’s punishment. At that moment, Abu Lahab—the accursed—said, "May you perish! Is it for this that you gathered us all day?" At that time, this surah was revealed: ﴿تَبَّتْ يَدَا أَبِي لَهَبٍ وَتَبَّ﴾ meaning, "May the hands of Abu Lahab be ruined, and ruined is he."
It is understood from this that it is permissible to mention evil people—disbelievers and atheists—along with their evil deeds.

Hafiz Ibn Hajar (rahimahullah) says:
"Ay, they have reached what they did of good or evil, and it is deduced from this that reviling the dead is absolutely prohibited. However, it has already been mentioned that its generality is specified, and the most correct view in this matter is that it is permissible to mention the evils of the deceased disbelievers and sinners in order to warn against them and to create aversion to them. The scholars have unanimously agreed on the permissibility of criticizing the criticized among the narrators, whether alive or dead."

That is, whatever good or evil they did has now come before them.
Now, reviling them is pointless, and from this, it is deduced that mentioning the dead with their evils is absolutely prohibited. However, it has already been mentioned that this generality is specified, and the most correct opinion in this regard is that it is permissible to mention the evils of deceased disbelievers and sinners, so that aversion to such evil deeds may be created. The scholars have reached consensus that it is permissible to criticize the narrators of hadith, whether they are alive or dead.

Hadith Commentary:
(1)
It is permissible to speak ill of someone for the sake of a religious benefit, such as in the case of a person whose bad traits may lead others astray; in such a situation, his bad traits and evils should be made clear to the people so that they may be saved from misguidance. However, as for a person who is among the people of piety, it is strictly forbidden to search out and publicize his faults.

(2)
It is permissible to criticize the narrators of hadith even after their death, because the protection of the religion is intended by this.

The complete explanation of this hadith will be presented in the Book of Tafsir (Hadith: 4971), in sha Allah.