Scholarly Response to Allegations Against Ahl al-Hadith – A Detailed Analysis
Taken from: Fatāwā ‘Ilmiyyah, Vol. 1 (Uṣūl, Takhrīj, and Ḥadīth Authentication, p. 671)
Qur’anic and Prophetic Guidelines
Allah ﷻ says:
﴿وَإِذَا قُلْتُمْ فَاعْدِلُوا﴾
“And when you speak, speak with justice.” (Al-An‘ām: 152)
﴿إِن جَآءَكُمْ فَاسِقٌ بِنَبَإٍ فَتَبَيَّنُوۤاْ﴾
“If a fāsiq brings you news, verify it.” (Al-Ḥujurāt: 6)
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
“Allah does not take away knowledge by snatching it away from the people, but He takes away knowledge by taking away the scholars, until when no scholar remains, people will take ignorant leaders; they will be asked, they will issue fatāwā without knowledge, they will go astray and lead others astray.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 100; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 2673)
Key Principles Derived
◈ Verification of issues is obligatory, especially in cases of accusation.
◈ Issuing fatwā without knowledge is haram.
◈ Fatwā must be given with justice and impartiality.
◈ The public must seek guidance from scholars of Qur’an and Sunnah, not from ignorant preachers.
Allegations Against Ahl al-Hadith and Scholarly Clarifications
① Allegation: Ahl al-Hadith do not acknowledge Imam Abū Ḥanīfah (رحمه الله)
Clarification:
- If by “not acknowledging” it means rejecting his existence, knowledge, and status, this is false. Ahl al-Hadith fully recognize him as a scholar, and his existence is historically well-established.
- References: al-Tārīkh al-Kabīr of al-Bukhārī (8/81, no. 2253); Kitāb al-Kunā of Muslim.
- Imam Abū Ḥanīfah himself said:
“I have not seen anyone more false than Jābir al-Ju‘fī, and I have not seen anyone more virtuous than ‘Aṭā ibn Abī Rabāḥ.”
(‘Ilal al-Tirmidhī with Sharḥ Ibn Rajab, vol. 1, p. 69)
- If by “not acknowledging” it means not practicing blind taqlīd, then yes — Ahl al-Hadith reject taqlīd, as did Imām al-Shāfi‘ī, Imām Mālik, and Imām Aḥmad.
- References: al-Umm by al-Muzanī; Ādāb al-Shāfi‘ī by Ibn Abī Ḥātim; Masā’il Abī Dāwūd; Majmū‘ al-Fatāwā of Ibn Taymiyyah (20/10).
- Even the followers of taqlīd do not always strictly follow their imams (examples in al-Hidāyah).
- Fatwā of Deobandi scholar Kifāyatullāh:
“Ahl al-Hadith are Muslims and part of Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamā‘ah… Mere abandonment of taqlīd does not expel one from Islam.”
(Kifāyat al-Muftī, vol. 1, p. 325, fatwā no. 370)
② Allegation: Ahl al-Hadith deny that sleep invalidates wudu
Clarification:
- Ahl al-Hadith state: Wudu breaks with the release of wind, whether with sound or odor, from front or back.
- They affirm that sleep invalidates wudu.
- Evidence: Sunan al-Tirmidhī (ḥadīth 3535, ḥasan ṣaḥīḥ).
- Reference: Mukhtaṣar Ṣaḥīḥ Ṣalāt al-Nabī, p. 8.
③ Allegation: Ahl al-Hadith restrict Tarāwīḥ to 8 rak‘āt only
Clarification:
- Ahl al-Hadith affirm 8 rak‘āt as the Sunnah, based on the practice of the Prophet ﷺ.
- Even leading Ḥanafī scholars acknowledged this:
- Ibn al-Humām (Fatḥ al-Qadīr 1/407)
- Ibn Nujaym (al-Baḥr al-Rā’iq 2/67)
- Ṭaḥṭāwī (Ḥāshiyah al-Ṭaḥṭāwī 1/295)
- Khalīl Aḥmad Sahāranpūrī (Barāhīn Qaṭ‘iyyah, p. 195)
- ‘Umar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb (رضي الله عنه) instructed Ubayy ibn Ka‘b and Tamīm al-Dārī to lead people in 11 rak‘āt.
- References: Muwaṭṭa’ Mālik (1/114); Āthār al-Sunan (ḥadīth 775).
④ Allegation: Ahl al-Hadith consider semen pure (ṭāhir)
Clarification:
- The issue of semen’s purity/impurity is ikhtilāfī (disputed).
- Even Deobandi scholar Muḥammad Taqī ‘Uthmānī admits:
“According to Ibn ‘Umar, Ibn ‘Abbās, Imām al-Shāfi‘ī, and Imām Aḥmad (in one opinion), semen is ṭāhir.”
(Dars Tirmidhī, 1/346)
- However, the researched opinion of many Ahl al-Hadith scholars, including Ḥāfiẓ Zubair ‘Alī Zai, is that semen is najis.
- Reference: Fatāwā ‘Ilmiyyah, vol. 1, p. 671.
❖ Conclusion
◈ The accusations against Ahl al-Hadith are either outright fabrications or statements taken out of context.
◈ The fatwās issued by Deobandi scholars are unresearched and unjust, lacking fairness and objectivity.
◈ Verdicts must be issued based on Qur’an and Sunnah, not sectarian bias or blind taqlīd.
ھذا ما عندي والله أعلم بالصواب
