Analysis of Practical Tawatur and the Status of Hadith and Sunnah
The Perspective of Maulana Amin Ahsan Islahi and Javed Ahmad Ghamidi
According to Maulana Amin Ahsan Islahi and Javed Ahmad Ghamidi, the Sunnah is the detailed account of the practical life of the Prophet ﷺ, which has been established through the practical tawatur (continuous communal practice) of the Ummah. Hence, it is definitive in its transmission (qat‘i al-thubūt) and as significant as the Qur’an. They consider the Sunnah to be like the soul of the Qur’an, and denial of the Sunnah is tantamount to denial of the Qur’an itself.
They regard Hadith as a written record of the Sunnah, which does not reach the level of tawatur and thus falls under the category of khabar al-wāḥid (solitary report). According to them, Hadith is probabilistic in its authenticity (ẓannī al-thubūt), unreliable, and questionable in terms of validity. Therefore, the Qur’an cannot be fully understood based solely on Hadith.
(References: Maulana Amin Ahsan Islahi, Mabādi Tadabbur Ḥadīth, Ch. 1 & 2, pp. 19, 28, 38, 41, Faran Foundation, Lahore, 2000; Mabādi Tadabbur Qur’an, pp. 52, 169, Dar al-Isha‘at al-Islamiyyah, Lahore, 1971; Tadabbur Qur’an, Vol. 1, Introduction, p. B, Maktabah Markazi Anjuman Khuddām al-Qur’an, Lahore, 1976)
Maulana Islahi asserts that the sole source of the Sunnah is the practical tawatur of the Ummah. He states:
"Just as the Qur’an is established through verbal tawatur, the Sunnah is established through the practical tawatur of the Ummah—for instance, the rulings of prayer and Hajj. These practices were transferred from the Prophet ﷺ to the Companions, then to the Successors, and subsequently to the Successors of the Successors."
(Mabādi Tadabbur Ḥadīth, p. 28)
① Question of Detailed Rulings:
While basic rulings of prayer and Hajj are found in the Qur’an, can Maulana identify which specific detailed rulings are exclusively established through practical tawatur?
② Issue of Innovations (Bid‘āt):
If practical tawatur is passed on from generation to generation, how can it be determined that current innovations in Muslim practices are not considered part of the Sunnah?
③ Differentiating Sunnah from Innovation:
If a practice has been continued for generations, what criteria will distinguish whether it is Sunnah or Bid‘ah?
Maulana Islahi defines practical tawatur, yet later acknowledges that it is limited to the actions of the Rightly Guided Caliphs, and in support of this, he presents a solitary report (khabar al-wāḥid): “Fa ʿalaykum bi sunnatī...”
(Mabādi Tadabbur Ḥadīth, p. 29)
✔ If practical tawatur is confined to only one generation or a few individuals, how can it be regarded as authoritative like the Qur’an’s tawatur?
✔ Is the chain of practical tawatur still verifiably intact today?
While Islahi claims that the Sunnah must be established through practical tawatur, the reality is that verification of this tawatur is impossible without reports or narrations. This implies that determination of the Sunnah outside of Hadith is not feasible.
According to Islahi, if a Hadith contradicts the Sunnah, that Hadith should be rejected, as Sunnah is definitive, whereas Hadith is speculative.
(Mabādi Tadabbur Ḥadīth, p. 28)
If the practice of the Ummah and practical tawatur are considered the only sources of the Sunnah, innovations may receive Shariah legitimacy, since there is also communal practice behind them. Those who accept Hadith as a valid Shariah source have clear criteria to reject Bid‘āt, but this possibility is eliminated under the philosophy of practical tawatur.
① Status of Hadith and Sunnah:
Authentic Hadiths transmitted by reliable narrators, and verified through the principles of Hadith authenticity, represent the true form of the Sunnah of the Messenger ﷺ, and acting upon them is obligatory.
② Limited Scope of Practical Tawatur:
Declaring practical tawatur as the sole source of the Sunnah is practically unacceptable, as it is a conceptual abstraction that has never been unanimously accepted by the Ummah.
③ Position of the Majority of the Ummah:
The majority of the Ummah regards authentic narrations by trustworthy transmitters as a manifestation of the Sunnah, and considers the sciences of al-jarḥ wa al-ta‘dīl, biographical evaluation, and Hadith compilation as reliable methods for determining the Sunnah.
The Perspective of Maulana Amin Ahsan Islahi and Javed Ahmad Ghamidi
❖ Definition of Sunnah
According to Maulana Amin Ahsan Islahi and Javed Ahmad Ghamidi, the Sunnah is the detailed account of the practical life of the Prophet ﷺ, which has been established through the practical tawatur (continuous communal practice) of the Ummah. Hence, it is definitive in its transmission (qat‘i al-thubūt) and as significant as the Qur’an. They consider the Sunnah to be like the soul of the Qur’an, and denial of the Sunnah is tantamount to denial of the Qur’an itself.
❖ The Status of Hadith
They regard Hadith as a written record of the Sunnah, which does not reach the level of tawatur and thus falls under the category of khabar al-wāḥid (solitary report). According to them, Hadith is probabilistic in its authenticity (ẓannī al-thubūt), unreliable, and questionable in terms of validity. Therefore, the Qur’an cannot be fully understood based solely on Hadith.
(References: Maulana Amin Ahsan Islahi, Mabādi Tadabbur Ḥadīth, Ch. 1 & 2, pp. 19, 28, 38, 41, Faran Foundation, Lahore, 2000; Mabādi Tadabbur Qur’an, pp. 52, 169, Dar al-Isha‘at al-Islamiyyah, Lahore, 1971; Tadabbur Qur’an, Vol. 1, Introduction, p. B, Maktabah Markazi Anjuman Khuddām al-Qur’an, Lahore, 1976)◈ Practical Tawatur: A Theory or a Reality?
❖ The View of Maulana Islahi
Maulana Islahi asserts that the sole source of the Sunnah is the practical tawatur of the Ummah. He states:
"Just as the Qur’an is established through verbal tawatur, the Sunnah is established through the practical tawatur of the Ummah—for instance, the rulings of prayer and Hajj. These practices were transferred from the Prophet ﷺ to the Companions, then to the Successors, and subsequently to the Successors of the Successors."
(Mabādi Tadabbur Ḥadīth, p. 28)
❖ Questions and Objections
① Question of Detailed Rulings:
While basic rulings of prayer and Hajj are found in the Qur’an, can Maulana identify which specific detailed rulings are exclusively established through practical tawatur?
② Issue of Innovations (Bid‘āt):
If practical tawatur is passed on from generation to generation, how can it be determined that current innovations in Muslim practices are not considered part of the Sunnah?
③ Differentiating Sunnah from Innovation:
If a practice has been continued for generations, what criteria will distinguish whether it is Sunnah or Bid‘ah?
❖ Contradiction in Islahi’s View
Maulana Islahi defines practical tawatur, yet later acknowledges that it is limited to the actions of the Rightly Guided Caliphs, and in support of this, he presents a solitary report (khabar al-wāḥid): “Fa ʿalaykum bi sunnatī...”
(Mabādi Tadabbur Ḥadīth, p. 29)
✿ Key Questions
✔ If practical tawatur is confined to only one generation or a few individuals, how can it be regarded as authoritative like the Qur’an’s tawatur?
✔ Is the chain of practical tawatur still verifiably intact today?
❖ Comparison Between Sunnah, Hadith, and the Practice of the Ummah
◈ Dependence of Practical Tawatur on Historical Reports
While Islahi claims that the Sunnah must be established through practical tawatur, the reality is that verification of this tawatur is impossible without reports or narrations. This implies that determination of the Sunnah outside of Hadith is not feasible.
❖ Superiority of Sunnah Over Hadith
According to Islahi, if a Hadith contradicts the Sunnah, that Hadith should be rejected, as Sunnah is definitive, whereas Hadith is speculative.
(Mabādi Tadabbur Ḥadīth, p. 28)
◈ The Effect of Innovations
If the practice of the Ummah and practical tawatur are considered the only sources of the Sunnah, innovations may receive Shariah legitimacy, since there is also communal practice behind them. Those who accept Hadith as a valid Shariah source have clear criteria to reject Bid‘āt, but this possibility is eliminated under the philosophy of practical tawatur.
❖ Conclusion
① Status of Hadith and Sunnah:
Authentic Hadiths transmitted by reliable narrators, and verified through the principles of Hadith authenticity, represent the true form of the Sunnah of the Messenger ﷺ, and acting upon them is obligatory.
② Limited Scope of Practical Tawatur:
Declaring practical tawatur as the sole source of the Sunnah is practically unacceptable, as it is a conceptual abstraction that has never been unanimously accepted by the Ummah.
③ Position of the Majority of the Ummah:
The majority of the Ummah regards authentic narrations by trustworthy transmitters as a manifestation of the Sunnah, and considers the sciences of al-jarḥ wa al-ta‘dīl, biographical evaluation, and Hadith compilation as reliable methods for determining the Sunnah.
