Muhammad ibn Ishaq ibn Yasar: Reliability of the Narrator – Critical Review

Muhammad ibn Ishaq ibn Yasar: Reliability of the Narrator – Critical Review​

Source: Fatawa ‘Ilmiyyah, Vol. 1 — Principles, Documentation, and Verification of Narrations — Page 624

❖ Question​

Is Muhammad ibn Ishaq ibn Yasar considered a weak narrator? Some people claim that he is weak.

❀ Answer​

1. Reliability:
   
   • If Muhammad ibn Ishaq specifies sama‘ (that he directly heard a narration from the source), he is generally regarded as Hassan (good) in Hadith.
   • Reference: Al-Kawakib al-Durriyah, pp. 42–43 (2nd edition, pp. 59–60).
2. Common Misconception:
   
   • Some believe he is only trustworthy in Maghazi (biographical/historical accounts) and Sira, and consider him weak in Hadith of fiqh or Sunnah rulings.
   • This is incorrect. The majority of Hadith scholars (jumhur al-muhaddithin) classify him as Hassan and even Saduq (truthful) across both Maghazi and general Hadith.
3. Supporting Authorities:
   Muhammad ibn Ishaq has been praised or accepted by renowned scholars:
   
   • Imam Bukhari
   • Abu Dawud
   • Ibn Khuzaymah
   • Ibn Hibban
   • Tirmidhi
   • Al-Daraqutni
   • Al-Bayhaqi
   • And many other classical Hadith authorities
4. Warning:
   
   • Claims that “he is weak” are false and misleading.
   • The correct stance:

“When Ibn Ishaq explicitly specifies sama‘, I consider him Hassan in Hadith.”


Testimony Date: May 2000


ھذا ما عندي واللہ أعلم بالصواب
(This is what I have in knowledge, and Allah alone knows the correct view.)