The Divine Promise of the Protection of Hadith
The command of Allah Almighty is:
اتَّبِعْ مَا أُوحِيَ إِلَيْكَ مِن رَّبِّكَ ۖ لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ۖ وَأَعْرِضْ عَنِ الْمُشْرِكِينَ
“Follow what is revealed to you from your Lord; there is no deity except Him, and turn away from the polytheists.”
In another place He said:
وَاتَّبِعْ مَا يُوحَىٰ إِلَيْكَ وَاصْبِرْ حَتَّىٰ يَحْكُمَ اللَّهُ ۚ وَهُوَ خَيْرُ الْحَاكِمِينَ
“And follow what is revealed to you, and be patient until Allah makes a judgment. And He is the best of judges.”
Similarly, in another place:
وَاتَّبِعْ مَا يُوحَىٰ إِلَيْكَ مِن رَّبِّكَ ۚ إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ خَبِيرًا
“And follow what is revealed to you from your Lord. Indeed, Allah is ever, of what you do, Knowing.”
In these three verses of the Holy Quran, Allah Almighty has commanded His Messenger, peace be upon him, to follow the revelation sent to him, and the same command has been given by Allah Almighty to the Ummah of the Prophet, peace be upon him. Thus He said:
اتَّبِعُوا مَا أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكُم مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ وَلَا تَتَّبِعُوا مِن دُونِهِ أَوْلِيَاءَ ۗ قَلِيلًا مَّا تَذَكَّرُونَ
“Follow what has been revealed to you from your Lord and do not follow friends other than Him; you [who] know little.”
In this verse, the Ummah of Muhammad is commanded to follow the divine revelation. In short, from all these verses, it has become clear that Allah Almighty has commanded the Prophet, peace be upon him, and his Ummah to follow the revelation.
What is Revelation?
In Islamic terminology, revelation (Wahi) refers to Allah Almighty secretly informing His chosen Prophets, peace be upon them, through news and commands, which grants them definite and certain knowledge. Two types of revelation were sent to the Prophets, peace be upon them: one in the form of a book, and the other besides the book, which is referred to as wisdom (Hikmah) and tradition (Hadith). Allah Almighty says:
فَقَدْ آتَيْنَا آلَ إِبْرَاهِيمَ الْكِتَابَ وَالْحِكْمَةَ وَآتَيْنَاهُم مُّلْكًا عَظِيمًا
“So indeed We gave Abraham the Scripture and wisdom, and We gave him a great kingdom.”
After Sayyiduna Ibrahim, Allah Almighty continued the chain of prophethood and messengership in his progeny. All the Prophets and Messengers who came after him were from his family. Allah Almighty granted them the book and wisdom; some received both (book and wisdom), such as Dawud, Musa, Isa, and Muhammad, peace be upon them, while others received only wisdom, such as Ishaq, Yaqub, etc.
In Surah An-Nisa
, addressing the Noble Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, it is said:
إِنَّا أَوْحَيْنَا إِلَيْكَ كَمَا أَوْحَيْنَا إِلَىٰ نُوحٍ وَالنَّبِيِّينَ مِن بَعْدِهِ ۚ وَأَوْحَيْنَا إِلَىٰ إِبْرَاهِيمَ وَإِسْمَاعِيلَ وَإِسْحَاقَ وَيَعْقُوبَ وَالْأَسْبَاطِ وَعِيسَىٰ وَأَيُّوبَ وَيُونُسَ وَهَارُونَ وَسُلَيْمَانَ ۚ وَآتَيْنَا دَاوُودَ زَبُورًا
“Indeed, We have revealed to you, [O Muhammad], as We revealed to Noah and the prophets after him. And We revealed to Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, and the Descendants, Jesus, Job, Jonah, Aaron, and Solomon, and to David We gave the Psalms.”
Even an ordinary Muslim is well aware of the fact that the revelation sent to Sayyiduna Nuh, Ismail, Ishaq, Yaqub, Ayyub, Yunus, Harun, and Sulaiman, peace be upon them, was not in the form of a book but was another type of revelation besides the book, which we can call wisdom and tradition. In fact, the intellectual battle Prophet Musa, peace be upon him, fought against Pharaoh was also through this other type of revelation, because the Torah was revealed after Pharaoh’s drowning. The revelation Pharaoh denied, and for denying which he was drowned, was this other type of revelation called tradition. Allah Almighty says:
وَهَلْ أَتَاكَ حَدِيثُ مُوسَىٰ
“And has the story of Moses reached you?”
It is worth pondering that the one who denies the tradition of Musa, peace be upon him, is punished by divine torment, but the one who denies the tradition of Muhammad, the Messenger, peace be upon him, escapes punishment? Certainly not.
In any case, it is clear that just as revelation came to the earlier Prophets, similarly revelation came to the last Prophet, Sayyiduna and Mawlana Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him. Accordingly, the revelation sent to him was of two types: one called the Book, i.e., the Holy Quran, and the other called wisdom, which is the explanation, commentary, and interpretation of the Book, i.e., the noble Hadith. Both these things, the Book and wisdom, are from Allah, divine revelation. Allah Almighty says:
وَأَنزَلَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْكَ الْكِتَابَ وَالْحِكْمَةَ وَعَلَّمَكَ مَا لَمْ تَكُن تَعْلَمُ ۚ وَكَانَ فَضْلُ اللَّهِ عَلَيْكَ عَظِيمًا
“And Allah taught you that which you did not know and ever great is the favor of Allah upon you.”
This blessed verse clearly states that Allah Almighty revealed two things upon you, peace be upon him: one is the Book and the other is wisdom. The Book refers to the Holy Quran, and wisdom refers to your Sunnah and Hadith.
Imam Shafi’i, may Allah have mercy on him, says:
”فذكر الله الكتاب وهو القرآن وذكر الحكمة فسمعت من ارضى من أهل العلم بالقرآن يقول: الحكمة سنة رسول الله ، وهذا يشبه ما قال والله أعلم . لأن القرآن ذكر واتبعته الحكمة، وذكر اللـه مـنـه على خلقه بتعليمهم الكتاب والحكمة فلم يجز – والله أعلم أن يقال: الحكمة هاهنا إلا سنة رسول الله“
“So Allah mentioned the Book, which is the Quran, and He mentioned wisdom. I have heard from the scholars of the Quran whom I like that wisdom is the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, and it resembles the divine command more closely. Allah knows best, because after mentioning the Quran, wisdom is mentioned, and Allah Almighty is describing His favor upon His creation through the teaching of the Book and wisdom. Therefore, it is not permissible to call anything wisdom here except the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him. Allah knows best.”
Imam Tabari, may Allah have mercy on him, says:
”واذكــرن ما يقرا فى بيوتكن من آيات كتاب الله والحكمة ويعنى بالحكمة ما أوحى إلى رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم من أحكام دين الله ولم ينزل به قرآن وذلك السنة“
“And remember what is recited to you from the verses of Allah and wisdom.” Wisdom means that which Allah revealed to the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, regarding the rulings of the religion, which the Quran did not descend upon, and this is the Sunnah.”
Hafiz Ibn Kathir, may Allah have mercy on him, says:
”ويعلمهم الكتاب والحكمة، يعنى القرآن والسنة“
“And He teaches them the Book and wisdom,” meaning the Quran and the Sunnah.”
Hafiz Ibn Qayyim, may Allah have mercy on him, says:
”إن الله سبحانه تعالى أنزل على رسوله وحيين واوجب على عباده الايمان بهما والعمل بما فيهما وهما الكتاب والحكمة وقال تعالى: ﴿وانزل الله عليك الكتب والحكمة﴾ وقال تعالى: ﴿هو الذى بعث فى الأمين رسولا منهم يتلوا عليهم أيته و يزكيهم ويعلمهم الكتب والحكمة﴾ ، وقال تعالى: ﴿واذكرن ما يتلى فى بيوتكن من أيت الله والحكمة﴾ والكتاب هو القرآن والحكمة هي السنة باتفاق السلف“
“Indeed, Allah Almighty revealed two types of revelation upon His Messenger and made it obligatory upon His servants to believe in and act upon both. They are the Book and wisdom. Allah Almighty says: ‘And Allah revealed upon you the Book and wisdom.’ And Allah Almighty also says: ‘It is He who sent among the unlettered a Messenger from themselves, reciting to them His verses and purifying them and teaching them the Book and wisdom.’ And Allah Almighty says: ‘And remember what is recited to you from the Book and wisdom in your homes.’ The Book is the Holy Quran, and wisdom, by consensus of the Salaf, is the Sunnah.”
It is understood that the Book refers to the Holy Quran and wisdom refers to the Sunnah and Hadith. Our faith is that both are revelation, both are from Allah, and following both is necessary. Denying either one necessarily entails denying the other revelation. For example, if a person claims faith in the Book, i.e., the Quran, but denies wisdom, i.e., Hadith, then in reality he denies both; he has no faith in either. He denies the Quran and the Hadith both. Similarly, if someone claims faith in Hadith but denies the Quran, he also denies both. In reality, he neither accepts Hadith nor the Quran. Thus, these two things are inseparable and mutually dependent.”
Objection:
The deniers of Hadith say that by Hikmat (wisdom) the Holy Quran itself is meant because the Quran calls itself Hakim (Wise), therefore by Hikmat the Quran Hakim is meant, and the waw (and) between Kitab (Book) and Hikmat (Wisdom) is not a conjunction but explanatory.
Answer:
The objection of the Hadith deniers is not correct because the truth is that the “waaw” (and) is a conjunction. In the Holy Quran, this “waaw” appears repeatedly between “Kitab” (Book) and “Hikmah” (Wisdom), which is evidence that it is a conjunction because if the “waaw” were explanatory, then what was the need for it to appear repeatedly? Once would have been enough for clarification. Moreover, a group of scholars also considers it a conjunction. Furthermore, interpretation is needed by humans; what need does Allah Almighty have for interpretation? He fully knows the meaning and intention of every word of the speaker. Reflect on Surah Al-Baqarah
, where Sayyiduna Ibrahim (peace be upon him) prays:
رَبَّنَا وَابْعَثْ فِيهِمْ رَسُولًا مِّنْهُمْ يَتْلُو عَلَيْهِمْ آيَاتِكَ وَيُعَلِّمُهُمُ الْكِتَابَ وَالْحِكْمَةَ وَيُزَكِّيهِمْ ۚ إِنَّكَ أَنتَ الْعَزِيزُ الْحَكِيمُ
“O our Lord! Send among them a messenger from themselves who will recite to them Your verses and teach them the Book and wisdom.”
Here, in no way can the “waaw” be called explanatory because interpretation is needed by humans, not by the Creator of the universe. Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani states: “This is against both language and reason. Against language because the explanatory ‘waaw’ always comes between synonymous words, such as ‘ranj wal musarrat’ or ‘musrat unbisat’, but ‘Kitab’ and ‘Hikmah’ are not synonymous words. The word ‘Hikmah’ does not bring to mind the Quran or the Book when spoken, and similarly, the word ‘Kitab’ does not bring the meaning of ‘Hikmah’ to mind. Therefore, it is not correct to call the ‘waaw’ between ‘Kitab’ and ‘Hikmah’ explanatory. Against reason because if the Quran has called itself ‘Hakim’ (Wise), does it necessarily mean that wisdom does not exist outside the Quran? The Quran also calls itself ‘Karim’ (Generous), so does generosity and the generous not exist anywhere else besides the Quran? Understand this with a simple example: if a person says that sugar is sweet, can it be understood that sweetness exists only in sugar and nothing else can be sweet?”
Whether revelation is in the form of the Book or wisdom, i.e., Hadith, Allah Almighty has taken the responsibility of its protection in every era. Allah Almighty says:
إِنَّا نَحْنُ نَزَّلْنَا الذِّكْرَ وَإِنَّا لَهُ لَحَافِظُونَ
“Indeed, it is We who sent down the Reminder, and indeed, We will be its guardian.”
Here, Allah Almighty did not say ”نَزَلْنَا الْقُرْآنَ“ but said: إِنَّا نَحْنُ نَزَّلْنَا الذِكرَ وَإِنا لَهُ لَحَافِظُونَ, which indicates that Allah Almighty has taken the responsibility of protecting the Reminder. The Reminder refers to the Quran as well, as in Surah An-Nahl:
وَأَنزَلْنَا إِلَيْكَ الذِّكْرَ لِتُبَيِّنَ لِلنَّاسِ مَا نُزِّلَ إِلَيْهِمْ وَلَعَلَّهُمْ يَتَفَكَّرُونَ
“We sent down the Reminder to you so that you may explain to the people what was sent down to them and so that they may reflect.”
Here, the Quran is called the Reminder. Similarly, the explanation of the Quran, its interpretation and clarification, i.e., the blessed Hadith, is also the Reminder. In Surah At-Talaq, it is stated:
قَدْ أَنزَلَ اللَّهُ إِلَيْكُمْ ذِكْرًا ﴿١٠﴾ رَّسُولًا يَتْلُو عَلَيْكُمْ آيَاتِ اللَّهِ مُبَيِّنَاتٍ لِّيُخْرِجَ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ مِنَ الظُّلُمَاتِ إِلَى النُّورِ
“Indeed, Allah has sent down the Reminder to you, which is a Messenger who recites to you Allah’s clear verses so that He may bring out those who believe and do righteous deeds from darkness into light.”
Here, the word رسول ، ذكرا is used, meaning Allah has sent down the Reminder to you who is a Messenger. Allah Almighty calls His Messenger, peace be upon him, the Reminder because your pure existence is entirely Reminder; your sayings, actions, conditions, and speeches are all Reminder. In any case, it is established that the Reminder is not only the Quran but also the Hadith of the owner of the Quran. Therefore, Allah Almighty has taken the responsibility of protecting both and has protected them. Even after more than fourteen centuries, both remain preserved and will remain so in the future, God willing.
Allah Almighty says:
لَّقَدْ كَانَ لَكُمْ فِي رَسُولِ اللَّهِ أُسْوَةٌ حَسَنَةٌ
“Indeed, in the Messenger of Allah you have a good example.”
This verse indicates that the pure life of the Prophet, peace be upon him, is a good example for Muslims of every era. In every matter of life, whether religious or worldly, seek guidance from the example of the Messenger; this is the best model and pattern for you. The Quran commands prayer but does not explain how to pray, how many units it has, what to recite and what not to, how to perform bowing and prostration, what to observe during prayer, what is forbidden and what is permitted. Regarding all these matters, the Quran clearly says to seek guidance from the example of the Messenger. How to perform Hajj? What to do and what not to do during Hajj? Seek guidance from the example of the Messenger. In short, in every kind of worship, the Quran’s decision is to seek guidance from the example of the Messenger. Similarly, worldly matters such as happiness, sorrow, lifestyle, transactions, etc., in every matter, seek guidance from the example of the Messenger. This command is for people until the Day of Judgment: seek guidance from the example of the Messenger. If Hadith were not preserved, then tell me, where would we find the example of the Messenger today from which we take guidance? Therefore, it was necessary that along with the Quran, the Hadith of the owner of the Quran also be preserved so that on the Day of Judgment, no one could excuse themselves by saying that the good example did not reach us; we came into the world centuries after the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him. Until our arrival, your example was not preserved, so how could we implement the Quranic commands accordingly? To eliminate this excuse of people, Allah preserved the Hadith.
You, peace be upon him, are the last Messenger of Allah. The chain of prophethood that began with Sayyiduna Adam (peace be upon him) ended with you. No prophet or messenger will come until the Day of Judgment. Your being the Seal of the Prophets also necessitates that the Shariah you brought remains preserved until the Day of Judgment. Perhaps the Shariahs of previous prophets were not preserved because they were not the last prophet. This honor was only for the last prophet that his Shariah would be preserved. Your Shariah is in the form of the Quran and Hadith. Without Hadith, the Muhammadan Shariah is incomplete; the complete picture of Islam is formed by both the Quran and Hadith. Therefore, the preservation of Hadith was as necessary as the preservation of the Quran. If Hadith were not preserved, the Muhammadan Shariah would be considered unprotected and incomplete. Later people would wander with incomplete Shariahs and wait for a new prophet, thus the belief in the finality of prophethood would be erased (God forbid). Therefore, Allah Almighty took the responsibility of preserving Hadith along with the Quran and protected it.
Understanding the Quran also required that Hadith be preserved. The entire Ummah agrees that Hadith is the explanation of the Quran, the detail of its generalities, the clarification of its important points, the interpretation of its difficulties, and the explanation of its indications. If Hadith were not preserved, how would the details of the Quran’s generalities be known? Where would the clarification of its important points come from? How would the difficulties be interpreted? How would the indications be explained? The doors of personal interpretation would open; everyone would run their intellectual horses and interpret the meaning and sense of the Quran as they wished. Allah Almighty preserved Hadith for the understanding of the Quran and protected it.
Sources of Hadith Preservation
Allah Almighty has preserved the Quran through certain means, and through the same means, He has also preserved the Hadith. There are two major means of Quranic preservation: (1) Memorization (Hifz). (2) Writing (Kitabat). As soon as any verse or chapter of the Quran was revealed, the Prophet would inform the Companions, have it written down, and encourage memorization. The Companions both memorized and wrote down the Quran. After the Companions, in every era, these two means of Quranic preservation continued to exist. The Quran continued to be memorized and written. Thus, today we have the Quran preserved through these same means and in its original form.
Similarly, the preservation of Hadith also relies on these two major means: (1) Memorization (Hifz) (2) Writing (Kitabat).
(1) Preservation of Hadith through Memorization:
Allah Almighty says:
وَاذْكُرْنَ مَا يُتْلَىٰ فِي بُيُوتِكُنَّ مِنْ آيَاتِ اللَّهِ وَالْحِكْمَةِ ۚ إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ لَطِيفًا خَبِيرًا
“And remember what is recited in your houses of the verses of Allah and wisdom. Indeed, Allah is ever Subtle and Acquainted.”
In this blessed verse, the household of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is commanded not only to memorize the Quran but also to memorize Hadith.
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) himself prayed for those who memorize Hadith:
نضر الله امراءا سمع منا حديثا فحفظه حتى يبلغه
“May Allah keep happy and prosperous the person who hears a Hadith from us, then memorizes it until he conveys it to others.”
On one occasion, the Prophet (peace be upon him) taught the delegation of the tribe of Abd Qais about religious matters, including rulings not mentioned in the Quran. Regarding these matters, he said to them:
احفظوهن واخبروا بهن من وراتكم
“Memorize them and inform those who come after you.”
Sayyidna Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) said:
إنما كنا نحفظ الحديث والحديث يحفظ عن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم
“Indeed, we used to memorize Hadith, and Hadith was memorized from the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him).”
Sayyidna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) said:
حفظت عن رسول الله صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم وعاءين ، فأما احدهما فبثثته وأما الآخر فلو بثتته قطع هذا البلعوم
“I have memorized two containers of knowledge from the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). I have spread one of them, and if I spread the other, my throat will be cut.”
Sayyidna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) is saying that he memorized two containers of knowledge from the Prophet (peace be upon him). One he has spread, referring to Hadith related to Sunnah and Shariah rulings. The other, he said, if he spreads it, his throat will be cut, referring to Hadith about future trials and tribulations. However, later he sometimes did narrate those as well. In any case, this Hadith shows that Sayyidna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) used to memorize Hadith.
Once Sayyidna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) asked the Companions: ”أيكم يحفظ حديث رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم عن الفتنة“ “Which one of you remembers the Hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him) regarding trials?” Sayyidna Hudhayfah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: ”أنا أحفظه كما قال“ “I have memorized it exactly as you (peace be upon him) said.” Sayyidna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: ”إن عليه لجري فكيف قال ؟“ “You are indeed very brave (tell us), how did the Prophet (peace be upon him) say it?” Then Sayyidna Hudhayfah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that Hadith.
From all these narrations, it becomes clear that the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) used to memorize the Hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him) orally.
In fact, Sayyidna Abu Saeed Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) used to tell his students to discuss Hadith because one Hadith reminds of another.
Like the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them), the Tabi‘in, Tabi‘ al-Tabi‘in, and the Imams of Hadith also used to memorize Hadith orally. Abu Husayn said, I asked Saeed bin Jubair (a Tabi‘i, may Allah have mercy on him): Did you ask all the Hadith that I hear from you from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with both of them)? He said: No, I used to sit silently in his gathering; he himself would narrate, and I would memorize it orally.
Abu Burdah said that a person was accompanying Abu Musa Ash‘ari (may Allah be pleased with him). He spoke carelessly about Islam. He said to me: It is likely that Abu Musa will pass away and his Hadith will not be preserved, so you should write down his Hadith. I said: Your opinion is very good, so I started writing his Hadith. He (Abu Musa) narrated a Hadith, and I began to write it as I used to. He immediately came behind me and said: Are you writing my Hadith? I said: Yes. He said: Bring what you have written to me. When I brought it, he erased it and said:
”احفظ كما حفظت “
“Memorize it as I have memorized it.”
Imam Abu Dawood Sijistani’s noble son, Imam Abu Bakr Abdullah bin Abi Dawood, is said by Imam Ibn Shahin to have dictated Hadith for nearly twenty years. Ibn Shahin never saw any book in his hands. He used to write Hadith purely from memory (orally).
Ibn Shahin also stated that when Imam Ibn Abi Dawood became blind towards the end, he would sit on the pulpit, and his son Abu Mu‘ammar would sit one step below him holding a book. He would say: That Hadith, you used to recite it entirely (from memory).
Ahmad bin Ibrahim Shadhan said that once Imam Ibn Abi Dawood went to Sijistan and, at the strong request of the Hadith scholars, recited thirty thousand Hadith orally.
Preservation of Hadith through Writing
The second major important means of preserving Hadith is writing. This means of preserving Hadith has been continuously practiced since the Prophetic era. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) used to have Hadith written down and also commanded writing. Therefore, saying that Hadith was written only two and a half centuries later and not before is completely wrong and based on ignorance. From the time of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) until today, Hadith has been written in every era. No era has been devoid of writing Hadith.
Writing of Hadith in the Prophetic Era
Sayyiduna Abu Huraira (may Allah be pleased with him) says that when Allah Almighty granted the conquest of Makkah to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), he stood among the people and praised Allah, then said: “Indeed, Allah had stopped the elephants from Makkah and entrusted the authority of Makkah to His Messenger and the believers. It was not permissible for anyone before me to fight in Makkah, and for me, it has only been permissible for a moment during the day. After me, it will not be permissible for anyone. So its game should neither be chased away nor its thorny trees cut down, nor should anything lying on its paths be taken up except by the announcer, and whoever has a victim killed therein has the choice of either taking blood money or retribution.” Sayyiduna Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) said: O Messenger of Allah! Please permit us to use Azkhar (dry grass) because we use it in our graves and homes. So the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: الا الأذخر meaning Azkhar (grass) is permitted.
A man from Yemen, Abu Shah, stood up and said: O Messenger of Allah! Write this (sermon) for me. So you said: اكتبوا لابي شاء “Write this (sermon) for Abu Shah.”
Sayyiduna Abu Huraira (may Allah be pleased with him) says that among the companions of the Prophet, no one narrated more hadiths from him than I did, except Abdullah ibn Amr (may Allah be pleased with him), because he used to write and I did not.
Sayyiduna Abdullah ibn Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that I used to write down whatever I heard from the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) so that I could memorize it. The Quraysh forbade me, saying: You write down everything, whereas the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) is a human being who speaks in anger and happiness. So I stopped writing. When this was conveyed to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), he pointed to his blessed mind with his finger and said: أكتب فوالذي نفسي بيده ما يخرج منه إلا حق “Keep writing, by the One in Whose hand is my soul! Nothing comes out of it except the truth.”
Abu Qabeel, a Tabi’i (may Allah have mercy on him), said: We were with Abdullah ibn Amr ibn As (may Allah be pleased with them) when he was asked: Which of the two cities will be conquered first: Constantinople or Rome? Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) ordered a ringed box to be brought, then took out a book from it and said: We were writing with the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) when he was asked which of the two cities would be conquered first: Constantinople or Rome? The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: “First, the city of every fortress, that is, Constantinople will be conquered.”
Yazid ibn Shareek (may Allah have mercy on him) says that Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: We did not write anything from the Prophet (peace be upon him) except the Qur’an and what is in this parchment.
The meaning of Sayyiduna Ali’s (may Allah be pleased with him) statement is that we only recorded two things from the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him): one is the Holy Qur’an and the other is the matters contained in this parchment. When asked what is in this parchment, he said: It contains the statement about blood money and the release of prisoners, and the ruling that a Muslim should not be killed in retaliation for a disbeliever.
Mu’bad ibn Hilal (may Allah have mercy on him) says that when we insisted more on Sayyiduna Anas ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him), he would take out the register he had and say: These are the hadiths I heard from the Prophet (peace be upon him), I wrote them down and presented them before the Prophet (peace be upon him).
Note:
To declare this narration as rejected by Hafiz al-Dhahabi (may Allah have mercy on him) without evidence is incorrect. Atbah ibn Abi Hakim is truthful and has good hadith, and the uniqueness of such a narrator is certainly not harmful, and Allah knows best. Nadim
Imam Zahri (may Allah have mercy on him) says: This manuscript is from the book which the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) had written regarding charity before his death, and it was preserved with the family of Umar ibn al-Khattab. He also says: It was recited to me by Salim ibn Abdullah ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them), and I memorized it as it was, and this is the same writing which Umar ibn Abdul Aziz had transmitted from Abdullah ibn Abdullah ibn Umar and Salim ibn Abdullah ibn Umar.
From all these narrations, it becomes clear as daylight that even during the blessed era of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), hadiths were written down. The Prophet himself used to give commands, and the companions (may Allah be pleased with them) also used to write the blessed hadiths according to their interest and enthusiasm.
Writing Hadith in the Era of the Companions
After the Holy Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, this tradition continued during the era of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them). The Companions also used to write and have written the blessed Ahadith after the departure of the Holy Prophet Muhammad ﷺ from this world. For instance:
It is narrated from Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik that Sayyiduna Abu Bakr Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him) wrote this book for him and sent him towards Bahrain:
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم: هذه فريضة الصدقة التى فرض رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم على المسلمين و التى أمر الله بها رسوله.
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful, this is the obligation of Zakat which the Messenger of Allah ﷺ imposed upon the Muslims, and Allah Almighty commanded the Messenger of Allah ﷺ regarding it.
Abu Uthman Nahdi says that we were with Uqbah bin Farqad in Azerbaijan or Syria when the book of Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) reached us (in which it was written:) “Amma ba’d! Indeed, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ forbade silk (for men), except for so much (i.e., the equivalent of two fingers).”
Sayyiduna Mughirah (may Allah be pleased with him)’s scribe Warad says that Sayyiduna Muawiyah (may Allah be pleased with him) wrote to Sayyiduna Mughirah bin Shu’bah (may Allah be pleased with him) asking him to write and send those Ahadith which he had heard from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. So Mughirah (may Allah be pleased with him) wrote back to him: Indeed, the Prophet of Allah ﷺ used to recite this after every prayer: لا اله الا الله وحده لا شريك له له الملك و له الحمد و هو على كل شيء قدير ، اللهم لا مانع لما أعطيت ولا معطي لما منعت ولا ينفع ذا الجد منك الجدد
And Sayyiduna Mughirah (may Allah be pleased with him) also wrote to him that the Prophet ﷺ forbade idle talk (useless disputes), excessive questioning, and wasting wealth, and he forbade disobedience to mothers, burying daughters alive, denying others their rights, and asking without necessity.
Basheer bin Nahik says that whatever I heard from Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him), I used to write it down. Then when I intended to leave, I took my book to him, read it to him, and said: Is this what I heard from you? He said: Yes.
Ma’n bin Abdur Rahman says that in front of me, Abdur Rahman bin Abdullah placed a book and swore: This is a book written by the hand of his father Abdullah bin Mas’ud (may Allah be pleased with him).
Writing Hadith in the Era of the Tabi‘in
After the companions of the Prophet, may Allah be pleased with them, came the era of the great followers (Tabi’in), during which extensive work was done on the writing and compilation of hadith. The hadiths were written down in such abundance that if all were to be mentioned, it would become excessively lengthy. Therefore, we will suffice with only a few references.
Abdullah bin Dinar, may Allah have mercy on him, says: The Caliph Umar bin Abdul Aziz, may Allah have mercy on him, sent a letter to the people of Medina ordering them to search for and write down the hadiths of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, because he feared the loss of knowledge and scholars.
It is narrated from Sulaiman bin Musa that he saw Nafi, the freed slave of Ibn Umar, having his knowledge written down, and it was written in his presence.
Imam Ayyub al-Sakhtiyani says that Abu Qilabah (may Allah have mercy on him) bequeathed his books to me, so I brought those books from Sham (Syria) and paid more than ten dirhams for their transportation.
Musa bin Uqbah states that Kareeb kept with us books from Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, weighing as much as a camel. Then when Ali bin Abdullah bin Abbas needed a book, he would write and send a request to send that book to him, and they would write that book and send a copy to him.
Salih bin Kaysan says that Imam Zahri wrote (hadith) but I did not write, so he succeeded and I was lost.
Similarly, the Sahifah of Hammam bin Munabbih, which is still famous in the scholarly world and contains nearly one hundred and fifty hadiths, and has been published several times with Urdu translation, was compiled by our master Abu Hurairah’s student, Imam Hammam bin Munabbih, a follower (Tabi’i).
The book Al-Sirah by Imam Muhammad bin Ishaq was also authored during the era of the Tabi’in and has been published multiple times and is well-known in the scholarly world.
After the era of the Tabi’in came the era of the followers of the followers (Taba’ al-Tabi’in), during which even more extensive work was done on the writing of hadith. Muwatta Imam Malik, Kitab al-Zuhd by Ibn Mubarak, Kitab al-Zuhd by Imam Waki’ bin Jarrah, Kitab al-Manasik by Sa’id bin Abi ‘Uroobah, Kitab al-Sirah by Muhammad bin Ishaq, and Kitab al-Du’a by Muhammad bin Fudayl, etc., were all compiled in this era. After that, so much work was done on the writing and compilation of hadith that it is difficult to encompass it all in writing. Musannif Abd al-Razzaq, Musannif Ibn Abi Shaybah, and Musnad Ibn Abi Shaybah were written, as well as Musnad Ahmad, Musnad Abi Dawood al-Tayalisi, and many other books came to light.
In summary, the blessed hadith was never left without being written down in any era. During the blessed Prophet’s time, the writing and compilation were done in a particular style. Then, during the early period of the companions and the Tabi’in, it gained even more momentum, and by the late period of the Tabi’in, it had reached such a peak that everywhere you looked, you saw hadith scholars teaching hadith. Later, during the era of the followers of the followers and then the era of the great hadith scholars, what can be said? Everywhere echoed the sayings of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him.
Even now, if someone keeps repeating that hadith was written two and a half centuries later and therefore it is not a legal proof, then only this can be said to them:
If the eyes are closed, then day is also night
What fault is there in the sun for that?
Allah Almighty has preserved the Quran through certain means, and through the same means, He has preserved the explanation of the Quran, i.e., the blessed hadith. The Quran was preserved through memorization, so the hadith was also preserved through memorization. If the Quran was preserved through writing, then the hadith was also preserved through writing. Why? Because both are revelation, both are from Allah. The Quran is the Word of Allah, and the hadith is the word of the Messenger of Allah. The Quran is the Book of Allah, and the hadith is the explanation of the Book of Allah. They are two manifestations of the same reality and two facets of the same picture. The Quran is the text, and the hadith is its explanation. Whatever the Prophet, peace be upon him, did and said in explanation of the Quran, although it is a separate entity in terms of existence, in reality and essence it is one and the same. Therefore, following both is obligatory. Today, both exist in their original form and will continue to exist in the future, God willing.
