Muhaddith of the era Sheikh Zubair Ali Zai and the issue of Tadlees

الحمد لله رب العلمين و الصلوة والسلام على رسوله الأمين، أما بعد:

Sometimes in a chain of narration, all narrators are trustworthy and truthful, but the muhadditheen still consider it weak because there is some defect in it, such as the ‘an’anah of a tadlis narrator, etc. Even if a tadlis narrator is trustworthy and truthful, if he does not explicitly state the hearing (sama’), his narration will still be considered weak.
Some types of tadlis are as follows:

Tadlis al-Isnad:

Tadlis al-Isnad is when a narrator omits his direct teacher in the chain and begins to narrate from the teacher of his teacher, from whom he has met, and narrates in such a manner that there is a possibility of hearing (sama’) but no explicit statement of it.

Tadlis al-‘Atf:

In this, the narrator narrates from two or more teachers, while he has only heard from one, and he joins the other(s) with conjunctions, which gives the impression that he has heard from the others as well.

Tadlis al-Taswiyah:

In this, the narrator omits a weak narrator above his teacher in the chain.

Tadlees al-Shuyukh:

In this, the narrator mentions the name, title, or kunyah of his Sheikh which is unknown to the general people.

Regarding the acceptance of the ’’عن‘‘ narrations of the mudallisīn, although there are different opinions, the correct and prevailing stance is that of Imam Shafi’i, may Allah have mercy on him, which has been adopted by the muhaddithīn. In contrast, the stance of the Tabaqat scholars is rejected, as even Hafiz Ibn Hajar, may Allah have mercy on him, appears to contradict his own Tabaqat classification, and later scholars have strongly disagreed with him in this regard, with numerous examples available.

Hafiz Ibn Hajar’s Tabaqat Classification and the Scholars

🌸 Sheikh Nasir al-Din al-Albani, may Allah have mercy on him:
Sheikh Nasir al-Din al-Albani, may Allah have mercy on him, is a renowned name in the field of research. He also strongly disagreed with Hafiz Ibn Hajar. He declared the mursal narrations of Hasan Basri as weak, even though according to Hafiz Ibn Hajar, they are mudallisīn of the second Tabaqat.

For example, see:

Abu Qulabah Abdullah bin Zaid Al-Jurmi, who according to Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) belongs to the first category, says about his narration:

’’إسناده ضعيف لعنعنة أبي قلابة وهو مدعور بالتدليس‘‘

(Masih Ibn Khuzaymah Vol. 3, p. 268, under Hadith 2043)

Hafiz Ibn Hajar has mentioned Hasan bin Zakwān, Qatadah, and Muhammad bin Ajlan in the third category, meaning their munn‘an narrations are weak, but Imam Al-Albani has classified their munn‘an narrations as authentic or good. See

From these examples, the difference between Hafiz Ibn Hajar and Imam Al-Albani regarding the classification of narrators becomes clear.

Author of Tuhfat al-Ahwadhi, Abdul Rahman Mubarakpuri (may Allah have mercy on him)

Abdul Rahman Muhaddith Mubarakpuri (may Allah have mercy on him) criticized the narration of Ibrahim Al-Nakha’i with the ‘an’ (عن) chain, while he is considered by the Hafiz to be a mudallis of the second category, and he criticized the narration with the ‘an’ chain.

Virtuous Sheikh Irshad al-Haq Athari (may Allah preserve him)

Ibrahim Nakha’i and Sulaiman Al-A’mash both belong to the second tier according to Hafiz Ibn Hajar’s classification, but Sheikh Irshad-ul-Haq Athari, may Allah preserve him, has criticized their Munn’an narrations and declared those narrations as not authentic.

These examples make it clear that Hafiz Ibn Hajar’s classification is not entirely correct, nor is it accepted without question.
It is propagated about the respected teacher, Fazilat al-Sheikh Hafiz Zubair Ali Zai (may Allah have mercy on him), that he declared weak a very large collection of hadiths that had been practiced upon. He was strict in matters of tadlis and declared weak many hadiths which, according to the research of Imam Albani (may Allah have mercy on him) and other scholars, had been classified as authentic. In other words, his intention was to declare hadiths weak and thus unfit for practice. معاذ اللہ
The reality is that the respected teacher judged the authenticity or weakness of hadiths with utmost impartiality in light of the principles established by the pious predecessors. This is why, whenever his research found any hadith or narrator to be questionable, he openly turned towards the truth.

They were indeed defenders of authentic hadiths; a prime example of this is their strong defense of the Sahihayn, and they provided us with a magnificent framework regarding the Sahihayn. They wrote in very clear words that “Defending the Sahihayn is a part of my faith.”

Allahu Akbar! What greater defense of hadith can there be than this?

Dear readers! Due to tadlees (concealment), a narrator’s munn’an (interrupted) narration is considered weak.

As the renowned Pakistani researcher Fazilat al-Sheikh Irshad ul-Haq Athari, may Allah preserve him, states: “It is an established principle that the munn’an narration of a mudallis is not accepted.”

(Tawzih al-Ahkam, Vol. 2, p. 765, second edition 1030)

Hafiz Ibn Hajar wrote a book on mudallis narrators titled Tabaqat al-Mudallisin.

The respected teacher wrote a magnificent research and commentary on this under the title “Al-Fath Al-Mubeen.” When I read it, I found that there are 42 narrators in Hafiz Ibn Hajar’s Tabaqat al-Mudallisīn against whom the accusation of tadlees (concealment) is actually false.
The statements through which some narrators are accused of tadlees, when the respected teacher investigated them, it became clear that those statements are not even proven from the hadith scholars on whose basis that narrator was labeled a mudallis. Or, the scholars who labeled him a mudallis are among those who consider tadlees and isnaad omission (irsaal) to be the same thing. Thus, that trustworthy and reliable narrator was acquitted of tadlees, meaning the collection of his “an” (from) hadiths, which was considered weak, was also deemed authentic.

Dear readers! Out of these 42, five narrators belong to the third category according to Hafiz Ibn Hajar, meaning the continuous narrations of these five hadith scholars are considered weak by those who accept Ibn Hajar’s classifications. May Allah, the Lord of the Worlds, illuminate the grave of the respected teacher with light, shower His mercy upon him, and make this service of Hadith a means of salvation for him. Ameen

He declared these five Muhaddithin free from tadlis, and as a result, the collection of their mursal narrations also became acceptable, which had been considered rejected.
Dear readers! When any narrator is declared free from tadlis by the respected teacher, his approach is also worth observing. The writer will also provide an example of this, which is done solely out of love for authentic Hadith.
In the third category of Tadrees al-Mudallisīn by Hafiz Ibn Hajar (a category whose narrators’ mursal narrations are considered weak even by the followers of Tabaqat), the details of these five trustworthy Muhaddithin are mentioned, whom the respected teacher has declared free from tadlis.

① Ahmad bin Abdul Jabbar al-‘Atardi:

You are considered trustworthy by the majority. A detailed article on this can be found in Sheikh Zubair’s (may Allah have mercy on him) book Ilmi Maqalat, Volume 4, page 392. Hafiz Ibn Hajar mentioned you in the third category in Tabaqat al-Mudallisīn, although in Al-Taqrīb he has also classified you as weak. In this regard, in Tabaqat al-Mudallisīn, you should have been placed in the fifth category, not the third.

🌸 Respected teacher Sheikh Zubair (may Allah have mercy on him) states in his mentioned article:

Benefit:

In the writing of Taqrīb al-Tahdhīb, Hafiz Ibn Hajar’s rejection has been refuted and Ahmad ibn Abd al-Jabbar has been declared ’’بل : صدوق حسن الحديث ربما خالف‘‘.

(See Maqalat Vol 1 pp. 67-68, Maqalat Vol 4 p. 395)

② Muhammad ibn Isa ibn Najih:

He is a trustworthy hadith narrator, a narrator of Sunan al-Nasa’i and Ibn Majah. His narrations are reported with suspension (mu’allaq) in Sahih al-Bukhari. He is mentioned in the third category in Tabaqat al-Mudallisīn. Hafiz Ibn Hajar says: ’’قال صاحبه أبو داؤد: كان مدلسًا وكذا وصفه الدارقطني‘‘

He has been counted among the mudallisīn by Allama Alaqi, Abu Zur’ah al-Iraqi, Al-Suyuti, Al-Hilmi, Al-Dimni, and Ibn Tal’at.

🌸 Sheikh Zubair (may Allah have mercy on him) says:

The issue of Imam Abu Dawood’s tadlees has been narrated by Abu Ubaid Muhammad bin Ali bin Uthman Al-Ajri in his “As-Sualat Al-Ajri” (1737), and Al-Ajri himself is unknown لم أجد من وثقہ. No authentication has been found from anywhere, therefore labeling him as a mudallis: ’’وهذا لم يثبت عن أبي داؤد‘‘ is not established from Imam Abu Dawood.
Sheikh Zubair Ali Zaee, may Allah have mercy on him, commenting on Imam Dar Qutni’s statement says: ’’وقول مدار الدارقطني لم يثبت عنه أيضًا‘‘ Dar Qutni’s statement is also not established regarding labeling him as a mudallis.
Finally, he says:

قلت : وهو بريء من التدليس

(Al-Fath Al-Mubeen: 118)
Muhammad bin Isa bin Najeeh is free from tadlees.

③ Marwan bin Muawiyah Al-Fazari:

He is a trustworthy muhaddith, a narrator of Sahihayn and the four Sunan. Hafiz Ibn Hajar, may Allah have mercy on him, says:

’’كان مشهوراً بالتدليس وكان يدلس الشيوخ أيضًا وصفه الدارقطني بذالك‘‘

🌿 (Tabaqat Al-Mudallisīn: 124)
He used to practice tadlees al-isnad and tadlees al-shuyukh. Imam Dar Qutni has described him as characterized by tadlees.

The respected teacher says:

’’سأل عباس الدورى يحيى بن معين عن حديث رواه مروان بن معاوية عن علي بن أبي الوليد فقال:هذا علي بن الغراب‘‘

(Tarikh Ad-Duri: 2843)

’’يعني أنه كان يدلس تدليس الشيوخ ولم يثبت عنه تدليس الإسناد فهوبريء فهو بريء من التدليس وقول الحافظ ابن حجر فيه مرجوح‘‘

He used to practice tadlees al-shuyukh; tadlees al-isnad is not established from him, and he was free from harmful tadlees. Hafiz Ibn Hajar’s opinion is weak.
After this, the opinion of Muhammad bin Talat is mentioned:

’’فالصواب أن مروان يدرس الشيوح فقط وهذا النوع من التدليس لا ينظر فيه إلى عنعنة المدرس وإنما ينظر إلى أسماء شيوخ .‘‘

قلت (شيخ زبير رحمه الله) أصاب فيما أرى وللتحقيق ميدان واسع.

The correct point is that Marwan only practiced tadlīs al-shuyūkh (concealing the identity of one’s teachers), and in this type of tadlīs, the chain of the mudallis is not examined; rather, the names of his teachers are considered.
The respected teacher finally states: In my opinion, the statement of Muhammad ibn Talaat is the correct one. The rest of the research field is very vast.

④ Makhhūl al-Shāmī:

He is a famous Tabi‘i. He is a narrator of Sahih Muslim and the four Sunan. In Tabaqāt al-Mudallisīn, he is placed in the third category; accordingly, all his narrations except those in Sahih Muslim are considered weak due to tadlīs. Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) says:

وصفه بذلك ابن حبان وأطلق الذهبي أنه كان يدرس ولم أره للمتقدمين إلا في قول ابن حبان.

Imam Ibn Hibban has described him as characterized by tadlīs, and Al-Dhahabi has also said categorically that he practiced tadlīs. Among the earlier scholars, I have not seen any opinion about his tadlīs other than that of Ibn Hibban.

Among those who count him as a mudallis are Allama Alai, Abu Zur‘ah, Ibn al-‘Iraqi, Al-Dhahabi, Daminī, and Ibn Talaat.

🌸Respected teacher Sheikh Zubair Ali Zai, may Allah have mercy on him, says:

بأن الإمام ابن حبان يطلق التدليس على الإرسال وقول الدهبي في ميزان الإعتدال (177/4) يدل على أن التدليس و الإرسال شيء واحد عند الحافظ الذهبي. قلت فلم يثبت تدليس مكحول رحمه الله إنما هو إرسال عن عبار الصحابة، والله أعلم قلت وهو بريء من التدليس على الراحح . والحمد لله .

That Imam Ibn Hibban used to speak of tadlis as being the same as irsal. Imam Dhahabi’s statement in Mizan al-I’tidal indicates that tadlis and irsal are the same thing according to Hafiz Dhahabi. I say that it is not proven that Makhool, may Allah have mercy on him, practiced tadlis; rather, he used to transmit from senior companions through irsal. And Allah knows best.
In my view, according to the stronger opinion, he was free from tadlis. And all praise is due to Allah.

⑤ Abu Ubaidah bin Abdullah bin Mas’ud:

He is a trustworthy narrator in both the two Sahihs as well as the four Sunan. Hafiz Ibn Hajar mentioned him in the third tier, meaning that apart from the two Sahihs, his uninterrupted narrations in other books will be considered weak, unless there is explicit hearing or correction evidence present.
🌸Respected teacher Sheikh Zubair, may Allah have mercy on him, says:

وهو برى من التدليس.

That Abu Ubaidah ibn Abdullah ibn Mas’ud was free from tadlees (concealment).

Dear readers! These are the five narrators of the third category of the Tabaqat al-Mudallisīn whose Ma’na narrations were considered weak by Hafiz Ibn Hajar and those who accept his Tabaqat. The respected teacher Hafiz Zubair, may Allah have mercy on him, researched and declared these five Muhammad Thain free from tadlees, which made their Ma’na narrations authentic and actionable. This is regarding the third category; otherwise, in the entire Tabaqat al-Mudallisīn, those who were labeled as mudallis and whom the respected teacher considers free from tadlees number forty-two.

It is noteworthy that when a trustworthy narrator is declared free from tadlees by the respected teacher, at that moment you see him expressing gratitude to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds, as we have seen in the translation of Imam Makhool Al-Shami. Besides him, in the translations of Ahmad bin Abdullah Ahmad bin Ishaq Al-Asbahani, Zaid bin Aslam Al-Omari, and Abdurabbah bin Nafi, after saying فهو برىء من التدليس or a similar phrase, they express gratitude to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds, by saying Walhamdulillah. This approach of the respected teacher is clear evidence that he had immense love for authentic hadiths and trustworthy narrators; his intention was not to declare hadiths weak but rather to defend hadith.

The respected teacher did not take a harsh stance on the issue of tadlees; he took principles from the pious predecessors and then, in light of those, judged narrators and hadiths. Regarding the issue of tadlees, the decisive statement of Imam Shafi’i, may Allah have mercy on him, is present, which Sheikh Zubair Ali Zai, may Allah have mercy on him, adopted. Imam Shafi’i, may Allah have mercy on him, says:

فقلنا : لا نقبل من مدلس حديثا حتى يقول فيه: حدثني أو سمعت .

(Kitab al-Risalah 53)

We do not accept any hadith from the narrators unless they explicitly say “I heard” or “I was told.”

Sheikh Zubair, may Allah have mercy on him, is not alone in adopting this stance. Centuries before him, Imam Ibn Hibban commented on the principle mentioned by Imam Shafi’i:

فمالم يقل المدلس و إن كان ثقة : حدثني أو سمعت فلا يجوز الإحتجاج بخبره و هذا أصل أبي عبد الله محمد بن إدريس الشافعي رحمه الله و من تبعه من شيوخنا .

(Kitab al-Hijr wa Hain, Vol. 1, p. 92)

Dear readers! There is a long list of those who adopt Imam Shafi’i’s, may Allah have mercy on him, principle regarding the issue of tadlees (concealment). In contrast, those who accept Tabaqat (classifications) show inconsistency in their approach. Sometimes, they appear to highly praise Hafiz Ibn Hajar’s Tabaqat, and at other times, they even declare Tabaqat to be incorrect. Sometimes, they are very lenient regarding tadlees, accepting the tadlees of narrators who concealed from those they considered weak, or those whom Hafiz Ibn Hajar, may Allah have mercy on him, assigned to the third category in his Tabaqat (for example, Imam Zahri, may Allah have mercy on him). For them, those narrators are also considered non-mudallis (non-concealers), and their uninterrupted narrations are accepted. Elsewhere, the same leniency turns into strictness on the issue of tadlees, to the extent that due to the concealment of the mudallis, even the authentic narrations of Sahih Muslim (which are accepted as authentic in terms of reliability) are declared weak. Non-mudallis or برىء من التدليس رواة (such as Abu Qilabah, etc.)’s uninterrupted hadiths are declared weak.

Dear readers! The respected teacher, may Allah have mercy on him, adopted an excellent methodology regarding Tadlees and Tabaqat, explaining it to others in a very simple manner. To be honest, after reading the strong arguments of the respected teacher, my heart has become at ease, praise be to Allah. We believe that if any impartial person reads the articles written by the respected teacher on this subject and the refutation written by Sheikh Siddiq Raza, may Allah preserve him, on the articles of Athariyyah, he will certainly adopt the morning of the respected teacher, God willing. Just as other great scholars of Pakistan, Sheikh Mubashir Ahmad Rabbani, Sheikh Dawood Arshad, Sheikh Umar Siddiq, and Sheikh Yahya Arfi, may Allah preserve them, have adopted it. But the condition is that the opposition to the respected teacher must be removed from hearts and minds, which Sheikh al-Hadith al-Muhaddith Rafiq al-Athari, may Allah preserve him, mentioned in response to a question asked by Janab Yunus Athari, saying: “Although many people (including some of their own) were after him, he did not care about anyone and responded well with strong arguments.”

(Sahmahi Al-Bayan Karachi Series Number 8, pages 12, 13)

May Allah, the Lord of the Worlds, grant success. Ameen