This excerpt is taken from the book "Hujjat-e-Hadith" by Fazilat al-Sheikh Ghulam Mustafa Zaheer Amanpuri .
The foundation of the religion of Islam is based on the belief in the Oneness of God and the belief in Prophethood; these are the two fundamental and essential principles of the pure Shariah. Their source and origin are the Quran and Hadith. It is the unanimous and agreed belief of the Muslims that both the Quran and Hadith are divine revelation and religion, and both are protected by Allah Almighty.
The Glorious Quran:
The Glorious Quran is the speech of the Lord of the worlds; there is no doubt about its being revelation. It is a clear book free from all kinds of doubt and suspicion. Despite this, the wrongdoers have denied it. The Quran describes this denial in these words: [اِنۡ ہٰذَاۤ اِلَّا سِحۡرٌ یُّؤۡثَرُ]،[اِنۡ ہٰذَاۤ اِلَّا قَوۡلُ الۡبَشَرِ]
This is nothing but a powerful magic; this is the speech of a human being.
Reference: (Al-Muddathir:24-25)
In another place it is said:
[اِنۡ ہٰذَاۤ اِلَّا اخۡتِلَاقٌ] This is nothing but a fabricated statement from himself.
Reference: (Sad:7)
❀ Dear readers! Tell us honestly: What harm has come to the Quran due to the aversion of these polytheists and disbelievers? Christian missionaries and Aryans have raised doubts and objections about the Quran, Qadianis have declared the Quran abrogated and denied the Hadith, and the Rafidis have claimed alterations and additions in it to the extent of mutawatir (mass-transmitted) narrations. Should Muslims deny the Quran because of all this propaganda? The answer given about the Quran will be the same answer given about the Hadith.
The Quran and Denial of Hadith:
Every denier of Hadith is, in fact, a denier of the Quran. The objectives of the deniers of the Quran and the deniers of Hadith are the same: to deny the belief in Tawhid (Oneness of God) and the belief in Risalat (Prophethood). This is only possible by denying the Quran and Hadith. Under the pretext of the Quran, Hadith is targeted, objections are raised against it, doubts and suspicions are created, Hadith is given a historical status to conspire to end the Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ, Hadith is declared a foreign conspiracy and outright denied, and instead of following the religion, desires are followed. They present Hadith as if it is the Quran; if it is, according to their opinion, in accordance with the Quran, then it is Hadith, otherwise it is a false story! Sometimes they claim that the Quran is definitive and Hadith is speculative, so belief in Tawhid and Risalat cannot be established from it. Sometimes, by giving false interpretations to Quranic texts against authentic Hadith and the unanimous statements of the Imams, they make them a playground for their desires. Sometimes they raise an outcry that Hadith was written two hundred years later, so how can it be trusted? Sometimes they sacrifice Hadith to a sick intellect and deny it altogether.
Remember, the hallmark of every false religion is that it judges religion solely by the criterion of reason. In short, every unfortunate and oppressor has openly oppressed the Hadith of the Prophet ﷺ. We complain to our Allah; He alone will question those oppressors.
The Jahmi sect denied the Hadith as well as the divine nature of the Quran, while the Mu'tazila sect denied the Hadith and also claimed the Quran to be created.
Na'im ibn Hammad Khuzai, may Allah have mercy on him (228 AH), says:
المعتزلة تردون ألفي حديث من حديث النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم أو نحو ألفي حديث.
The Mu'tazila deny about two thousand or so Hadiths of the Prophet.
Reference: Sunan Abi Dawood, under Hadith: 4772, and its chain is authentic
❀ Where the Ash'ari sect abandoned the hadiths, there they denied that the Quran is the true speech of Allah Almighty; where the Kharijites denied the hadiths, there they committed semantic distortion and false interpretation in the clear texts of the Quran; where the Karramiyya sect made authentic hadiths a playground for their desires, there they declared the Quran to be metaphorical speech of Allah; where the Murji'ah rejected some hadiths, there they considered some clear verses of the Quran as insignificant; where the Rafidah denied the hadiths, there they claimed the Quran to be altered and corrupted; where the Qadianis denied the hadiths, there they declared the Quran to be abrogated.
❀ It is evident that every misguided sect that oppresses the hadiths inevitably subjects the Quran to their own desires; the only difference is in the appearance and form, the character remains the same.
Deniers of the Quran targeted the noble personality of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ with criticism, deniers of Hadith among the Rafidis defamed the companions of the Prophet, may Allah be pleased with them all, some became hostile to Jibreel Ameen, deniers of Hadith among the Kharijites belittled the status of the companions, Nasibi deniers of Hadith criticized the noble personalities of the Ahl al-Bayt, deniers of Hadith of our era attempted to degrade and insult the trustworthy Imams, Hadith scholars, righteous predecessors, and trustworthy jurists and mujtahids. The noble Hadith scholars were labeled as ignorant, lacking understanding, and enemies and opponents of the Quran.
If the noble personality of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, the sacred existence of the companions, and the Hadith scholars, may Allah have mercy on them, are targeted with criticism, then the existence of Islam cannot remain. The deniers of Hadith also desire that not even the name or trace of Islam remain (seeking refuge with Allah!). Therefore, they target these sacred souls for criticism.
How great an injustice it is that the Hadith of the Prophet ﷺ is given a historical status and thus one abandons a large part of the religion? While there is consensus among Muslims that Hadith is divine revelation, and Quranic evidence supports this.
The command of Allah Almighty is:
[لَقَدۡ کَانَ لَکُمۡ فِیۡ رَسُوۡلِ اللّٰہِ اُسۡوَۃٌ حَسَنَۃٌ لِّمَنۡ کَانَ یَرۡجُوا اللّٰہَ وَ الۡیَوۡمَ الۡاٰخِرَ وَ ذَکَرَ اللّٰہَ کَثِیۡرًا]
Indeed in the Messenger of Allah you have a good example for whoever hopes in Allah and the Last Day and remembers Allah much.
Reference: (Al-Ahzab: 21)
❀ What is the example of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ? It is the Hadith itself. If the status of Hadith is non-legislative and historical, then where is the example of the Messenger ﷺ? The purpose of the deniers of Hadith is precisely this, that the example of the Messenger ﷺ should be ended.
❀ From this it is understood that every denier of Hadith is pursuing enmity against the Quran. They deny and reject Hadith in such a way that it necessarily leads to denial and rejection of the Quran. This means that Allah Almighty commanded His worship, but left the method of its performance to the mercy and whim of history.
The command of Allah Almighty is:
[وَ اَنۡزَلۡنَاۤ اِلَیۡکَ الذِّکۡرَ لِتُبَیِّنَ لِلنَّاسِ مَا نُزِّلَ اِلَیۡہِمۡ وَ لَعَلَّہُمۡ یَتَفَکَّرُوۡنَ]
We have sent down to you the Reminder so that you may explain to the people what has been sent down to them, and that they may reflect.
Reference: (An-Nahl: 44)
❀ Did the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ present the explanation of the Holy Quran? Did he clarify and elucidate it? Did he interpret and expound upon it? If the answer is yes, then where is it? If the legislative status of Hadith is denied, then it would necessarily imply the denial of this noble verse of the Holy Quran. How correct would it be to say that "Hadith has no religious status, it is merely historical, which changes from morning to evening and becomes something else entirely."
Just think, what kind of history is Hadith, which provides guidance and reform for all humanity and encompasses all fields of life concerning improvement and welfare? What kind of history is this, which is full of permanent rules of economy, politics, literature, and ethics? What kind of history is this, which is filled with eloquence, rhetoric, elevated style and rulings, and the interpretation of time? What kind of history is this, which distinguishes between lawful and unlawful, pure and impure?
What kind of history is this, which confirms the Quran, declares it to be true revelation, commands acting upon it, forbids disputing it, explains its virtue, acknowledges its eternal miracle, and does not deviate from all the fundamental beliefs, acts of worship, and ethics stated in the Holy Quran?
What kind of history is this, which explains the detailed method of performing prayer, and even states that ablution is broken by the passing of wind? What kind of history is this, which explains the sanctity of relationships? What kind of history is this, that not a single statement of it has been opposed by the consensus of Muslims? What kind of history is this, that sound intellect and pure nature accept every statement of it? What kind of history is this, that before it, the history of the world was unable to present such an example?
Imam Ajari, may Allah have mercy on him (360 AH), says:
كل من رد سنن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم وسنن أصحابه فهو ممن شاق الرسول وعصاه وعصى الله تعالىٰ بتركه قبول السنن، ولو عقل هٰذا الملحد وأنصف من نفسه علم أن أحكام الله عز وجل وجميع ما تعبد به خلقه إنما تؤخذ من الكتاب والسنة وقد أمر الله عز وجل نبيه عليه السلام أن يبين لخلقه ما أنزله عليه مما تعبدهم به، فقال جل ذكره: [وَ اَنۡزَلۡنَاۤ اِلَیۡکَ الذِّکۡرَ لِتُبَیِّنَ لِلنَّاسِ مَا نُزِّلَ اِلَیۡہِمۡ وَ لَعَلَّہُمۡ یَتَفَکَّرُوۡنَ]
Reference: (An-Nahl:44)
وقد بين صلى الله عليه وسلم لأمته جميع ما فرض الله عز وجل عليهم من جميع الأحكام وبين لهم أمر الدنيا وأمر الآخرة وجميع ما ينبغي أن يؤمنوا به ولم يدعهم جهلة لا يعلمون حتى أعلمهم أمر الموت والقبر وما يلقى المؤمن وما يلقى الكافر وأمر المحشر والوقوف وأمر الجنة والنار حالا بعد حال يعرفه أهل الحق. Whoever rejects the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and his companions will be among those who oppose and disobey the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and by abandoning the Sunnah, he has also disobeyed Allah Almighty. If this atheist uses reason and judges fairly, he will realize that all the commands of Allah Almighty and the ways of His creation who worship Him are derived solely from the Book and Sunnah. Allah Almighty has also commanded His Prophet ﷺ to explain to His creation the worship commands revealed to them. Thus, He said: [وَ اَنۡزَلۡنَاۤ اِلَیۡکَ الذِّکۡرَ لِتُبَیِّنَ لِلنَّاسِ مَا نُزِّلَ اِلَیۡہِمۡ وَ لَعَلَّہُمۡ یَتَفَکَّرُوۡنَ]
Reference: (An-Nahl:44)
"We have sent down to you the Reminder so that you may explain to the people what has been revealed to them and so that they may reflect." Therefore, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ has explained all the commands prescribed for his Ummah, as well as the matters of this world and the Hereafter. He did not leave them ignorant or unaware of the things that must be believed in. He even informed them about the conditions of death and the grave, the outcomes of the believer and disbeliever, the gathering and standing for reckoning on the Day of Judgment, and the detailed states of Paradise and Hell, which the people of truth recognize.
Reference: Ash-Shari'ah: 1203/3
