Hadith

Definition
In Islamic terminology, the term hadith refers to reports of statements or actions of Muhammad, Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani says that the intended meaning of hadith in religious tradition is something attributed to Muhammad but that is not found in the Quran.

Hadith Qudsi
Hadith Qudsi (or Sacred Hadith) is a sub-category of hadith which are sayings of Muhammad. Muslims regard the Hadith Qudsi as the words of God.

Kinds of Hadith
In general, there are three basic kinds of hadith from the viewpoint of the Ahl al-Sunnah (al-Sahih, al-hasan, and al-da'if), 1) Al-sahih: It is a hadith free of any kind of fault related by several continuous chains of veracious transmitters with more than one first recorder (ruwat'adilun, dabitun ghayr shawadhdh). Al-hasan: It is a hadith which is well-known, and with reputable source (makhraj) and transmitters (ruwat). It has been defined in these words in al-Jurjani's al-Ta'rifat: Al-hasan is a hadith whose transmitters are reputed for their veracity and trustworthiness; however, it does not reach the station of al-hadith al-sahih. Al-daif: It is a hadith which does not have the qualities of either al-sahih or al-hasan. Al-musnad: It is a hadith whose chain of transmission goes right up to the Holy Prophet (S). Al-muttasil (mawsul): It is a hadith whose all links in transmission are mentioned by the later transmitters. Al-marfu': It is a hadith which reaches one of the Ma'sumun, regardless of continuity in the chain of transmitters

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Six Great Muhaddiseen

The third century Hijra is the golden period in the history of Hadith. Scholars throughout the Muslim world were busy collecting and sifting the ahadith. The six famous books were collected by Bukhari, Muslim, Nasai, Abu Dawud, Tirmazi and Ibn Maja.

Imam Abu Abdullah Muhammad Bin Ismail Bukhari (194~256 AH)

His father was a rich merchant in Bukhara and he died when Imam Bukhari was young. His mother took special interest in his education and with his photographic memory he was able to master the basic Islamic studies. He then travelled to Iraq, Khurasan, Syria, Egypt and Hijaz in search of ilm~ul~Hadith. He had memorised nearly six hundred thousand Ahadith. With his vast treasure of hadith and the deep insight in principles of hadith (usuul~e~hadith) he set about the task of selecting the most sound ahadith. It took him over sixteen years to compile his Al~Jama`e Al~Sahih. Finally, in the shade of the green dome of the Prophets mosque he organized his work into chapters. Before Bukhari there were collections of a hadith but only in four subjects: Tafseer, Seerah, Fiqhand Zuhd. Imam Bukharis contribution was that he compiled all these into a single book arranging them into chapters.

Imam Muslim Bin HajjaajNaishapuri (202~261 AH)

He was Imam Bukharis student and he travelled widely to study the hadith. He knew 300 thousand ahadith and wrote 24 books and monographs in the field of hadith. His magnum opus (greatest literary work) is the Sahih Muslim. The Introduction of Sahih Muslimis a comprehensive treatise on principles of hadith.

Abu Eesa Muhammad bin Eesa Sulaiman al~Tirmazi (209~274 AH)

He came from Tirmaz in Turkestan. He was a student of Bukhari, Muslim and Abu Dawud. He travelled widely seeking ahadith. He was very pious and God fearing, a constant flow of tears Eventually blinded him. He has written eight other books apart from his Sunan Al~Ti rmazi.

Ahmed Bin Sho`aib Al~N isai (214~3 13 AH)

Imam Nisai was born in the town of Nisai in Khurasan. He was Abu Dawuds student and travelled widely in search of knowledge. Initially, he lived in Egypt and later moved to Humas in Syria, where he was appointed the Chief Justice. He later went to live in Makkah where he died and was buried. He wrote thirteen books of which give and concerned with Science of Hadith (Usuul~e~Hadith). His largest work is Al~Sunan Al~K u b r a a vast treasure of hadith. It is still in its manuscript form. He later abridged it and called it Al~Sunan Al~Sughra. This contains 5761 ahadith.

Abu Abdullah Muhammad Bin Yazeed Ibn Maaja (209~273 AH)

Ibn Maaja was born in Qazuan in Azerbaijan, north of Iran. The town was conquered in Caliphate of Hazrat Uthman (Radi Allaho Anho). After completing basic education in his home town he left his home at age of 22. He visited Kufa, Basra, Syria, Baghdad, Ray, Makkah, Madinah andKhurasan.

Abu Dawud Sulaiman Bin Asha`th (202~275 AH)

Abu Dawud was born in Khurasan and was one of the genius students of Imam Ahmad Bin Hanbal. He travelled far across the Muslim world for the knowledge of Hadith. He died in Basra. His greatest literary work Sunan Abi Dawud is a collection of 4800 ahadith. Mainly concerning the Ahkaam i.e. the affairs of worship, civil and criminal law etc.