بسم الله وحده والصلاة والسلام على من لا نبي بعده
Ālimah Siddiqa al-Fārsiyyah
Student, Takhassus Fi 'l-Hadith
Checked and Approved:
Mufti Ismail Moosa
www.ulumalhadith.com
Title: Mabāḥith fī ʿIlm al-Jarḥ wa ’t-Taʿdīl
Genre: Ḥadīth
Language: Arabic
Author: Shaykh Qāsim ʿAlī Saʿd
Publisher: Dār al-Bashāʾir al-Islāmiyyah
Pages: 169
Overview of the Book
Shaykh Qāsim ʿAlī Saʿd has authored the book Mabāḥith fī ʿIlm al-Jarḥ wa at-Taʿdīl on the discussions of the science of criticism and authentication of narrators. It comprises of an introduction, and three main sections. In the introduction, he speaks of the importance and benefit of the science of al-jarḥ wa ’t-taʿdīl (criticism and authentication), and the exclusivity of this ummah with it. Thereafter, in the first section, he discusses the levels of the words of criticism and authentication and their rulings. In the second section, he discusses the scholars who spoke regarding narrators. Finally, in the third section, he elaborates on the conditions of a critic and authenticator and the etiquettes they ought to abide by.
Contents of the Book
The speciality of isnād
Imām Ḥākim an-Nisāpūrī has said: “Had it not been for the isnād, and the devotion of the people [of ḥadīth] to it, and their keenness to preserve it, the light of Islam would have extinguished, and opportunity would have been opened for the infidels and innovators to fabricate aḥadīth and alter its chains [without anyone noticing]. Surely, when reports are stripped off their chains is when they are left fragmented.”
Imām Ibn Ḥazm has explained the speciality of this ummah with the chain of narration by saying: “The narrating of a reliable narrator from a reliable narrator until it reaches the Prophet ﷺ is something that Allāh Taʿālā has only granted to this ummah. The Jews only have such chains of narrations that are disconnected, and do not even reach close to prophet Mūsā (ʿalayhissalām) the way our chains reach Prophet Muḥammad ﷺ. Rather, it stops at a point where between them and prophet Mūsā, there is a period of 30 generations, where they only reach Shamʿūn and his likes. As for the Christians, they do not have this type of transmission except the prohibition of divorce. However, they both have such transmissions that have been transmitted by liars and unknown individuals.”
This speciality is specific to the Ahl as-Sunnah wa ’l-Jamāʿah of the Muslims, and not to other sects of Islam, such as the Rāfiḍah. The Rāfiḍah are the least attentive to the necessity of isnād. They accept everything that supports their whims and desires, whilst matters that oppose their whims are already an indication of their falsehood. This is why ʿAbd ar-Raḥmān ibn al-Mahdī has said: “The people of [true] knowledge write whatever is for them and against them, whereas the people of desires do not write except whatever is for them.”
The first scholars of al-jarḥ wa ’t-taʿdīl
Imām Dhahabī elaborated on the era of the early scholars of al-jarḥ wa ’t-taʿdīl, and explained the reason why in the early periods, that there were fewer scholars in this field, which was mainly due to the rarity of narrators that were unreliable or weak. In fact, there were very few he explains, since majority of the narrators of that era were either the Companions or the senior tābiʿūn. Those who were considered weak or unreliable were from among the leaders of the Rawāfiḍ, Khawārij or Shīʿah such as al-Mukhtār al-Kadhdhāb or Maʿbad al-Juhanī. He said that from among the early scholars of this field were Imām Shaʿbī and Imām Ibn Sīrīn, who criticised, or authenticated narrators. Many other scholars considered Imām Muḥammad ibn Sīrīn as the first to speak about narrators. Thereafter came Imām Shuʿbah, who was considered, by and large, a nation by himself in assessing the narrators of ḥadīth. Imām al-Khaṭīb al-Baghdādī narrates from Ṣālih Jazarah, who said: “The first person who spoke about the narrators of ḥadīth was Shuʿbah. Thereafter, Imām Yaḥyā al-Qaṭṭān, Imām Aḥmad, and Yaḥyā ibn Maʿīn followed him.” Hence, we understand why Imām Wakīʿ praised Imām Shuʿbah saying, “I hope that Allāh raises Shuʿbah many levels high in Jannah due to him purifying [the Sunnah of] the Prophet ﷺ.”
Categories of al-jarḥ wa ’t-taʿdīl
The first section contains its own five page introduction, in which the author introduces the topic and terms for the narrators of ḥadīth that he will soon discuss and categorize. He mentions the difference between the early and latter-day scholars’ usage of the terms, and how many of them were coined later on as the science developed. Thereafter, he brought the six levels of the terminologies of at-taʿdīl (authentication), and elaborated on each of them, defining them and mentioning any differences there may be regarding their meaning or usage between scholars. He then specifically discussed the principles of Imām Dhahabī that he followed in his compilation, Mīzān al-Iʿtidāl. Following the discussion of the terminologies of at-taʿdīl, the author then likewise spoke about the terminologies of al-jarḥ (criticism). He mentioned how according to Imām Ibn Abi Ḥātim, and those that followed him, the terms are categorized into four levels. According to Imām Dhahabī and Imām ʿIrāqī, they are categorized into five, whilst according to Imām Sakhawī and Imām Sindī, the categories are six.
The scholars of al-jarḥ wa ’t-taʿdīl
After that, Shaykh Qāsim ʿAlī Saʿd discusses the groups of scholars who spoke regarding narrators and divides them into three main categories: 1) Those who spoke about the majority of the narrators of ḥadīth, such as Imām Ibn Maʿīn and Imām Abu Ḥātim ar-Rāzī, 2) Those who spoke about many narrators, such as Imām Mālik and Imām Shuʿbah, and 3) Those scholars who spoke about a few narrators such as Imām Shāfiʿī and Imām Ibn ʿUyaynah. In each of these categories, there are three levels. In the first level are those scholars who are very strict and harsh in their conditions, such that they weaken a narrator merely due to two or three errors, and declare their ḥadīth weak. The author then elaborates how one should deal with their statements, suggesting that considering their stringent conditions, if they authenticate someone, then it holds a lot of weight. On the other hand, if they weaken someone, then one should look into what their reasons are, and what their contemporaries say regarding the same narrator. Imām Ibn Maʿīn, Abū Ḥātim, and and Imām Juzjānī are all included in this first level. The second level consists of those scholars who are considered lenient, such as Imām Tirmidhī, Imām Ḥākim, and Imām Bayhaqī. Finally, the last level are those scholars who are moderate in their approach, such as Imām Bukharī, Imām Aḥmad, Imām Abū Zurʿah, and Imām Ibn ʿAdī. Furthermore, sometimes a scholar inclines more towards leniency in respect to his teacher or what agrees with his madhhab.
Conclusion
Shaykh Qāsim ʿAlī Saʿd’s book Mabāḥith fī ʿIlm al-Jarḥ wa ’t-Taʿdīl is an excellent book on the science of al-jarḥ wa ’t-taʿdīl (criticism and authentication). It is well-organized and contains just the right amount of detail whereby it allows an advanced student to learn new benefits but neither confuses nor tires a beginner. The author has included some of the longer discussions and details of the terms in the footnote section, making it easy for the beginner who may want to skip and avoid possible confusion, but allowing the advanced student to take full benefit from all the details. He does not include discussions that have little relevance to the topic, nor does he overwhelm the reader by mentioning too many opinions or quotations.
The division of the book into three main sections discussing the terminologies, the scholars of the science, and the conditions and etiquettes to abide by comprises of most pertinent discussions, allowing the one who reads this book to attain a comprehensive — albeit brief — understanding of the science of al-jarḥ wa ’t-taʿdīl. It is likewise a great resource to use when wanting to refer back to simple points, or to memorize the main points on the subject.
May Allāh Taʿālā have mercy on them all.
The PDF can be accessed here.