INTRODUCTION

Various sources of Islamic law are used by Islamic

jurisprudence to elucidate the Sharia, the body of Islamic law. The primary

sources, accepted universally by all Muslims, are the Qur'an and Sunnah. The

Qur'an is the holy scripture of Islam, believed by Muslims to be the direct and

unaltered word of Allah. The Sunnah consists of the religious actions and

quotations of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad and narrated through

his Companions and Imams- (as per the beliefs of the school of Ahle-Sunnah

and Ahle-Shia).

In the eighth century, a difference in legal approach arose amongst Islamic

thinkers in two prevailing schools of legal thought. The traditionalists (ahl al-

hadith) relied solely on the Quran and the sunna (traditions) of the Prophet as

the only valid sources for jurisprudence, such as the prevailing thought

emanating from Medina. The non-traditional approach (ahl al-ra'y) relied on the

free use of reasoning and opinion in the absence of reliable ahadith, which was

heralded in Iraq. The reason for the difference in technique is that in Medina,

there was an abundance of reliable ahadith that scholars could depend on for

forming legislation, since the Prophet lived the last ten years of his life during a

period of legislation in the young Muslim community. In Iraq, the sources that

were available were not as reliable as in Medina and so the jurists had to turn to

analogy because of their circumstances. Therefore, a hadith may have been

accepted by Malik (from Medina) and not by Abu Hanifa (from Iraq) who had

to use analogy in the absence of reliable hadith. A challenge that jurists had to

reconcile was which of the Prophet’s actions and decisions were religiously

binding and which were merely a function of personal discretion of the Prophet?

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In general, ahl al-hadith eventually lent legislative significance to much of the

Prophet’s decisions, whereas other schools tended to distinguish between the

various roles that the Prophet played in his life.

Muhammad ibn Idris al-Shafi'i (d. 819) was concerned about the variety of

doctrine and sought to limit the sources of law and establish a common

methodology for all schools of Islamic law.3 His efforts resulted in the

systemization of usul al-fiqh, the following four sources of Islamic law:

1. The Quran;

2. The Sunna or Hadith (tradition of the Prophet) ;

3. Qiyas or analogies;

4. Ijma or unanimous agreement

1.

Throughout history these sources were used in descending order by Muslim

jurists in determining the legality of an issue. If the legality was not based on an

explicit command in the Quran, then the jurists turned to look for explicit

commands in the hadith, and so on. Unfortunately, as we shall discover, not all

aspects of the methodology were unanimously agreed upon; the Quran could be

interpreted differently, some traditions of the Prophet were questioned for their

authenticity and to what extent they were religiously imperative, the use of

analogies was greatly debated and there was little unanimous agreement among

scholars in Islamic history about inexplicit issues.

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Quran

The Qur'an is the first and most important source of Islamic law. Believed to be

the direct word of God as revealed to Muhammad through angel Gabriel in

Mecca and Medina, the scripture specifies the moral, philosophical, social,

political and economic basis on which a society should be constructed. The

verses revealed in Mecca deal with philosophical and theological issues,

whereas those revealed in Medina are concerned with socio-economic laws. The

Qur'an was written and preserved during the life of Muhammad, and compiled

soon after his death.

God revealed the Quran in Arabic through the Angel Gabriel to Prophet

Muhammad over a period of 23 years. For ten years in Mecca and 13 years in

Medina the Quran taught the oneness of God and guided believers to the path of

morality and justice. As the Muslim community grew and its needs became

more complex, the Quran addressed those issues and tried to replace old tribal

customs with more just reforms. For example, the Quran outlawed prevalent

customs such as idolatry, gambling, liquor, promiscuity, unbridled polygamy,

usury, etc. It also improved the status of women by proclaiming women's

equality to men and providing women with decreed rights in the areas of

marriage, divorce and inheritance.

Muslim jurists agree that the Qur'an in its entirety is not a legal code (used in

the modern sense); rather its purpose is to lay down a way of life which

regulates man's relationship with others and God. The verses of the Qur'an are

categorized into three fields: "science of speculative theology", "ethical

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principles" and "rules of human conduct". The third category is directly

concerned with Islamic legal matters which contains about five hundred verses

or one thirteenth of it. The task of interpreting the Qur'an has led to various

opinions and judgments. The interpretations of the verses by Muhammad's

companions for Sunnis and Imams for Shias are considered the most authentic,

since they knew why, where and on what occasion each verse was revealed.

The shari'a, foundations of Islamic law, are derived from verses from the Quran.

"The bulk of Quranic matter consists mainly of broad, general moral directives

as to what the aims and aspirations of Muslims should be, the 'ought' of the

Islamic religious ethic." 4 Because many of the directives in the Quran are so

broad, interpretation takes on such a significant role. There have been so many

different interpretations of the Quran, claims widely read and revered Islamic

thinker Abul A'ala Maududi, that "there is hardly to be found any command

with an agreed interpretation." 5 And that doesn't just refer to modern scholars,

but also includes the founding schools of thought and even the companions of

the Prophet, who "did not all agree in every detail in regard to Commands and

Prohibitions."6 Nevertheless, the authenticity of the Quran has never been

questioned by any Muslim scholar or institution.

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Sunnah

The Sunnah is the next important source, and is commonly defined as "the

traditions and customs of Muhammad" or "the words, actions and silent

assertions of him". It includes the everyday sayings and utterances of

Muhammad, his acts, his tacit consent, and acknowledgments of statements and

activities. According to Shi'ite jurists, the sunnah also includes the words, deeds

and acknowledgments of the twelve Imams and Fatimah, Muhammad's

daughter, who are believed to be infallible.

Justification for using the Sunnah as a source of law can be found in the Qur'an.

The Qur'an commands Muslims to follow Muhammad. During his lifetime,

Muhammad made it clear that his traditions (along with the Qur'an) should be

followed after his death. The overwhelming majority of Muslims consider the

sunnah to be essential supplements to and clarifications of the Qur'an. In Islamic

jurisprudence, the Qur'an contains many rules for the behavior expected of

Muslims but there are no specific Qur'anic rules on many religious and practical

matters. Muslims believe that they can look at the way of life, or sunnah, of

Muhammad and his companions to discover what to imitate and what to avoid.

Much of the sunnah is recorded in the Hadith. Initially, Muhammad had

instructed his followers not to write down his acts, so they may not confuse it

with the Qur'an. However, he did ask his followers to disseminate his sayings

orally. As long as he was alive, any doubtful record could be confirmed as true

or false by simply asking him. His death, however, gave rise to confusion over

Muhammad's conduct. Thus the Hadith were established. Due to problems of

authenticity, the science of Hadith (Arabic: `Ulum al-hadith) is established. It is

a method of textual criticism developed by early Muslim scholars in

determining the veracity of reports attributed to Muhammad. This is achieved

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by analyzing the text of the report, the scale of the report's transmission, the

routes through which the report was transmitted, and the individual narrators

involved in its transmission. On the basis of these criteria, various Hadith

classifications developed.

With regard to validity of sunnah two questions arises :

i. Whether an alleged tradition is genuine?

ii. If so, whether it is obligatory?

The first question is purely a question of fact and should be considered

according to the evidence adduced in its support. An examination of the

evidentiary test used by the great compilers of the tradition will undoubtedly

show how highly developed were the method of criticism was used. The

collectors of the tradition understood of the distinguishing the genuine from the

spurious traditions by employing the external test- the examination of isnad

(chain of narrator), and the internal test- the scrutiny of matan (subject matter

of the traditions), the only object which was to examine the credibility and

authenticity of the traditions.

The second question is a question of law. The obligatory nature of the traditions

is based on many Quranic verses amog which are the following:-

“Obey God, and obey Prophet” (4:59)

“He who obeys the Prophet, obeys God” (4:80)

“Whatever the Prophet gives accept it and whatever he forbids abstain from it”

(59:7)

“And whatever he (Mohammed) utters, it is not of his own whim and fancy ; it

is not else but a divine revelation revealed onto him” (53:3-4)

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To establish the authenticity of a particular Hadith or report, it had to be

checked by following the chain of transmission (isnad). Thus the reporters had

to cite their reference, and their reference's reference all the way back to

Muhammad. All the references in the chain had to have a reputation for honesty

and possessing a good retentive memory. Thus biographical analysis (`ilm al-

rijāl, lit. "science of people"), which contains details about the transmitter are

scrutinized. This includes analyzing their date and place of birth; familial

connections; teachers and students; religiosity; moral behaviour; literary output;

their travels; as well as their date of death. Based upon these criteria, the

reliability (thiqāt) of the transmitter is assessed. Also determined is whether the

individual was actually able to transmit the report, which is deduced from their

contemporaneity and geographical proximity with the other transmitters in the

chain. Examples of biographical dictionaries include Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani's

"Tahdhīb al-Tahdhīb" or al-Dhahabi's "Tadhkirat al-huffāz."

Using this criteria, Hadith are classified into three categories:

Undubitable (mutawatir), which are very widely known, and backed up by

numerous references.

Widespread (mashhur), which are widely known, but backed up with few

original references.

Isolated or Single (wahid), which are backed up by too few and often

discontinuous references

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Hadith

These works are narrations concerning the words and deeds of the Islamic

prophet Muhammad. Hadith are regarded by traditional Islamic schools of

jurisprudence as important tools for understanding theQur'an and in matters

of jurisprudence. Hadith were evaluated and gathered into large collections

mostly during the reign of Umar ibn AbdulAziz during the 8th and 9th

centuries. These works are referred to in matters of Islamic law and history to this

day. The two main denominations of Islam, Shi`ism and Sunnism, have different

sets of Hadith collections

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Definition

In Arabic the word hadith means that which is new from amongst things or a piece

of information conveyed either in a small quantity or large. The Arabic plural

is aḥādīth. Hadith also refers to the speech of a person. As tahdith is the infinitive,

or verbal noun, of the original verb form;hadith is, therefore, not the

infinitive, rather it is a noun.

In Islamic terminology, the term hadith refers to reports of statements or actions of

Muhammad, or of his tacit approval of something said or done in his

presence. Classical hadith specialist Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani says that the intended

meaning of hadith in religious tradition is something attributed to Muhammad, as

opposed to the Qur'an. Other associated words possess similar meanings

including: khabar (news, information) often refers to reports about Muhammad,

but sometimes refers to traditions about his companions and their successors from

the following generation; conversely, athar (trace, vestige) usually refers to

traditions about the companions and successors, though sometimes connotes

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traditions about Muhammad. The word sunnah (custom) is also used in reference

to a normative custom of Muhammad or the early Muslim community.

Sacred hadith

Hadith Qudsi' (or Sacred Hadith) are a sub-category of hadith, which are sayings

of Muhammad. Muslims regard the Hadith Qudsi as the words

of God (Arabic:Allah), repeated by Muhammad and recorded on the condition of

an isnad. According to as-Sayyid ash-Sharif al-Jurjani, the Hadith Qudsi differ

from the Qur'an in that the former were revealed in a dream or through revelation

and are "expressed in Muhammad's words", whereas the latter are the "direct

words of God".

An example of a Hadith Qudsi is the hadith of Abu Hurairah who said that

Muhammad said:

"When God decreed the Creation He pledged Himself by writing in His

book which is laid down with Him: My mercy prevails over My wrath."

are referred to in matters of Islamic law and history to this day. The two main

denominations of Islam, Shi`ism and Sunnism, have different sets of Hadith

collections.

Literally, Hadith means a narrative, communication or news consisting of the

factual account of an event. The word occurs frequently in the Qur'an (23 times

to be precise) and in all cases it carries the meaning of a narrative or

communication.

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Components of a hadith

The two major aspects of a hadith are the text of the report (the matn), which

contains the actual narrative, and the chain of narrators (the isnad), which

documents the route by which the report has been transmitted. The sanad, literally

'support', is so named due to the reliance of the hadith specialists upon it in

determining the authenticity or weakness of a hadith. The isnad consists of a

chronological list of the narrators, each mentioning the one from whom they heard

the hadith, until mentioning the originator of the matn along with the matn itself.

The first people to hear hadith were the companions who preserved it and then

conveyed it to those after them. Then the generation following them received it,

thus conveying it to those after them and so on. So a companion would say, "I

heard the Prophet say such and such." The Follower would then say, "I heard a

companion say, 'I heard the Prophet.'" The one after him would then say, "I heard

someone say, 'I heard a Companion say, 'I heard the Prophet..." and so on.

Shia and Sunni hadith differences

The Sunni canon of hadith took its final form more than 230 years after the death

of Muhammad (632 AD). Later scholars may have debated the authenticity of

particular hadith but the authority of the canon as a whole was not questioned. This

canon, called the six major Hadith collections, includes: Sahih al-Bukhari, Sahih

Muslim, Sunan Abu Dawood, Al-Sunan al-Sughra, Sunan al-Tirmidhi and Sunan

ibn Majah. Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim are considered the most reliable of

these collections.

In Shia hadith you will often find sermons attributed to Ali in The Four Books or

in the Nahj al-Balagha. Shi'a Muslims do not use the six major Hadith collections

followed by the Sunni, instead, their primary hadith collections are written by three

authors who are known as the 'Three Muhammads'. They are: Kitab al-

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Kafi byMuhammad ibn Ya'qub al-Kulayni al-Razi (329 AH), Man la yahduruhu

al-Faqih by Muhammad ibn Babuyaand Al-Tahdhib and Al-Istibsar both

by Shaykh Muhammad Tusi. Unlike Akhbari Twelver Shi'a, Usuli Twelver Shi'a

scholars do not believe that everything in the four major books is authentic.

Sunni and Shia hadith collections differ because scholars from the two traditions

differ as to the reliability of the narrators and transmitters. Narrators who took the

side of Abu Bakr and Umar rather than Ali, in the disputes over leadership that

followed the death of Muhammad, are seen as unreliable by the Shia; narrations

sourced to Ali and the family of Muhammad, and to their supporters, are preferred.

Sunni scholars put trust in narrators, such as Aisha, whom Shia reject. Differences

in hadith collections have contributed to differences in worship practices and

shari'a law and have hardened the dividing line between the two traditions.

 Hadith as a source of LAW

In the early days of Islam following the demise of the Prophet, stories relating

to the life and activities of the Prophet dominated all other kinds of narratives,

so the word began to be used almost exclusively to a narrative from, or a saying

of, the Prophet. [Azami, Studies, pp. 1-3 ] 

Hadith differs from Sunnah in the sense that Hadith is a narration of the conduct

of the Prophet whereasSunnah is the example or the law that is deduced from it.

Hadith in this sense is the vehicle or the carrier of Sunnah, although Sunnah is a

wider concept and used to be so especially before its literal meaning gave way

to its juristic usage. Sunnah thus preferred not only to the Hadith of the Prophet

but also to the established practice of the community. But once the literal

meanings of Hadith and Sunnah gave way to their technical usages and were

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both exclusively used in reference to the conduct of the Prophet, the two

became synonymous. 

Sunnah coming direct from the Prophet in the form of Hadith through a reliable

chain of narrators is a source of law.

The primary source of Islamic law is Divine Revelation. It has been given to

humankind by the Prophet Muhammad (SAW) in 2 kinds. One is the Quran, the

direct word of Allah (SWT), and the other is the Sunnah or the teachings of the

Prophet (SAW). The Prophet (SAW) always acted according to the instructions

of Allah (SWT). Hadith which is usually applied also for Sunnah, is oral custom

relating to the words and deeds of the Muslim prophet Muhammad saw.

Lingually the word hadith means that which is fresh from amongst things or

some informations communicated either in a micro amount or large. In Islamic

nomenclature, the term hadith refers to report about the statements or actions of

Muhammad, or about his implied approval of something stated or done in his

presence.

The Quran and the Sunnah are complimentary. The meaningful of the Quran is

in general in nature. The Sunnah gets it specified and particular. The Sunnah

explains the instruction manual of the Quran. The Quranic injunction is

sometimes implicit and the Sunnah gets in explicit by providing necessary

components and items. According to Islamic jurists, the Sunnah is second to

fard. Fard means something is obligatory and it must be done; to neglect it

without any excuse is a sin. The Sunnah is divided into confirmed (Sunnah

muakkadah) and optional (Sunnah ghair muakkadah). A hadith consists of two

aspects: the text of the report (matn) containing the actual narrative; and the

chain of narrators (isnad, or sanad), which documents the route by which the

report has been transmitted.

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Hadith are generally categorized as sahīh (sound, authentic), da'īf (weak), or

mawdū' (fabricated). Other classifications used also include: hasan (good),

which refers to an otherwise sahīh report suffering from minor deficiency, or a

weak report strengthened due to numerous other corroborating reports; and

munkar (ignored) which is a report that is rejected due to the presence of a

solitary and generally unreliable transmitter. Both sahīh and hasan reports are

considered acceptable for usage in Islamic legal discourse. Classifications of

hadith may also be based upon the scale of transmission. Reports that pass

through many reliable transmitters at each point in the isnad up until their

collection and transcription are known as mutawātir.

Muslims who accept hadith believe that trusted hadith are in most cases the

words of Muhammad and not the word of God. Hadith Qudsi forms a partial

exception; these (few) hadith are said to recount divine revelations given to

Muhammad but not included in the Qur'an. However, the words (as opposed to

the substance) are believed to be Muhammad's own, and not divine. Muslims

also use the Ahadith to interpret parts of the Qur'an when verses are not clear or

even when verses are clear to achieve an in-depth understanding.

Sunnah or Hadith is the second source from which the teachings of Islam are

drawn. Hadith literally means a saying conveyed to man, but in Muhaditheen's

terminology Hadith means sayings of the Prophet, his action or practice of his

silent approval of the action or practice. Hadith and Sunnah are used

interchangeably, but sometimes these are used for different meanings.

To deal with the topic it is necessary to know the position of the Prophet in

Islam, because the indispensibility of Hadith depends upon the position of the

Prophet.

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Analyzing the problem we can visualize three possibilities:

1. The duty of the Prophet was only to convey the message and nothing more

was required from him.

2. He had not only to convey the message but also to act upon it and to explain

it. But all that was for the specified period and after his death Qur'an is

sufficient to guide humanity.

3. No doubt he had to convey the Divine Message but it was also his duty to act

upon it and to explain it to the people. His actions and explanations are a source

of guidance forever. His sayings, actions, practices and explanations are a

source of light for every Muslim in every age.

The learned men of the Muslim Millat are of the unanimous view that only the

third point is the correct assessment of the Prophet's position in Islam. The

Qur'an contains dozens of reminders of the important position of the Prophet.

For instance the Qur'an says:

"And verily in the messenger of Allah ye have a good example for him who

looketh unto Allah and the last day and remembereth Allah much." [Al-Ahzab

31]

According to this verse, every Muslim is bound to have the good example of the

Prophet as an ideal in life. In another verse he has been made a 'Hakam' for the

Muslims by Allah Almighty. No one remains Muslim if he does not accept the

Prophet's decisions and judgements:

"But no, by thy Lord, they can have no real faith until they make thee judge in

all disputes between them and find in their souls no resistance against thy

decisions but accept them with the fullest conviction."[An-Nisa: 65]

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While explaining the qualities of Muslims the Qur'an says:

"The answer of the believers, when summoned to Allah and His apostle, in

order that He may judge between them, is no other than this: They say: we hear

and we obey." [An-Nur: 51]

In many places the Qur'an has given its verdict on this issue. The Qur'an says:

"Obey Allah and obey the Messenger." [An-Nisa 59]

and

"Whatever the Messenger giveth you take it and whatever he forbiddeth abstain

from it." [Al-Hashr: 7]

Qur'an is very clear in expressing its view on the position of the Prophet.

According to the Qur'an the Prophet has four capacities and he must be obeyed

in every capacity. He is Mu`allim wa Murabbee he is Shaari` one who explains

the Book, he is a law-giver and judge, and he is a ruler. In all these capacities he

is an ideal example for the Muslims. I am quoting a few verses of the Holy

Book just to give a hint of this topic.

"Allah did confer a great favour on the believers when He sentamong them an

apostle from among themselves rehearsing untothem the signs of Allah,

sanctifying them in scripture andwisdom while, before that, they had been in

manifest error." [Al-Imran: 164]

"And We have sent down unto thee the Message that thou mayest explain

clearly to men what is sent for them."[An-Nahl: 44]

"For he commands them what is just and forbids them what isevil; he allows

them as lawful what is good and pure andprohibits them from what is bad and

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impure. He releases them from their heavy burdens and from the yokes that are

upon them." [Al-Araf: 157]

"O you who believe! Obey Allah and obey the apostle, and those charged with

authority among you. If ye differ in anything amonst yourselves refer it to Allah

and His Apostle, if you believe in Allah and the last day." [An-Nisa: 59]

"It is not fitting for a believer, man or woman when a matterhas been decided by

Allah and His apostle to have any optionabout their decision. If any one

disobeys Allah and His apostle, he is indeed on a clearly wrong path." [Al-

Ahzab: 36]

In all these verses, the Qur'an has explained various aspects of the Prophets

personality. One can judge the importance of the Prophet from these verses. I

am reminded of another important verse of the Qur'an, which is actually a

verdict against those who do not believe in Hadith as an authentic source of law:

"If any one contends with the Prophet even after guidance hasbeen plainly

conveyed to him, and follows a path other than that becoming to men of faith,

We shall leave him in the path he has chosen and land him in Hell, what an evil

refuge." [An-Nisa: 110]

The Qur'an while pressing the Muslims to obey the Prophet, goes a step further

when it announces that the Prophethood of Muhammad (peace be upon him) is

above all the limitations of time and space. He is the last Prophet and is a

Messenger of Allah for the whole of humanity for all time to come.

Hadith is nothing but a reflection of the personality of the Prophet, who is to be

obeyed at every cost.

Any student of the Qur'an will see that the Holy Book generally deals with the

broad principles or essentials of religion, going into details in very rare cases.

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The details were generously supplied by the Prophet himself, either by showing

in his practice how an injunction shall be carried out, or by giving an

explanation in words. The Sunnah or Hadith of the Holy Prophet was not, as is

generally supposed, a thing of which the need may have been felt only after his

death, for it was very much needed in his lifetime. The two most important

religious institutions of Islam are prayer and zakat; yet when the injunction

relating to prayer and zakat were delivered, and they were repeatedly revealed

in both Mecca and Madina, no details were supplied. Keep up prayers (aqimoo

as-salaah the Qur'anic injunction and it was the

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Prophet himself who by his own actions gave details of the prayer and said:

(Salloo kamaa ra'aytamoonee usaallee) "Pray as you see me praying."

Payment of zakah is again an injunction frequently repeated in the Qur'an yet it

was the Prophet (peace be upon him) who gave the rules and regulations for its

payment and collection. These are but two example; but since Islam covers the

entire sphere of human activities, hundreds of points had to be explained by the

Prophet (peace be upon him) by his example in action and in words.

The Ulama have discussed the question of Hadith in detail as a "wahyun

khafee" and prophetic wisdom. I do not want to go into the details, but one thing

must be stated clearly that there were cases when the Prophet, not having

received a revelation, made a personal effort to formulate opinion through his

own wisdom. Either it was corrected by revelation or it was approved. The

importance of the Sunnah even as a second source of Islam was a settled issue

for the Companions of the Prophet. I quote only one of the many examples: that

of Mu`az ibn Jabal who said to the Prophet that he would decide according to

the Sunnah if he did not find the solution of a problem in the Book. To quote

Dr. Hamidullah:

"The importance of Hadith is increased for the Muslim by the fact that the

Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) not only taught, but took the

opportunity of putting his teachings into practice in all the important affairs of

life. He lived for twenty three years after his appointment as the Messenger of

Allah. He endowed his community with a religion, which he scrupulously

practiced himself. He founded a state, which he administered as the supreme

head, maintaining internal peace and order, heading armies for external defense,

judging and deciding the litigations of his subjects, punishing the criminals and

legislating in all walks of life. He married and left a model of family life.

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Another important fact is that he did not declare himself to be above the

ordinary law which he imposed on others. His practice was not mere private

conduct, but a detailed interpretation and application of his teachings."

(Introduction to Islam page 23)

The man, therefore, who embraced Islam stood in need of both the Qur'an and

the Sunnah. Actually Hadith is so important that without it one cannot fully

understand the Holy Book and Islam or be able to apply it to one's life and

practice

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Difference between sunna and hadith

"The majority of the contents of the hadith corpus is, in fact, nothing but the

Sunna-Ijtihad of the first generations of Muslims, an ijtihad which had its

source in individual opinion but which in course of time and after tremendous

struggles and conflicts against heresies and extreme sectarian opinion received

the sanction of Ijma, i.e. the adherence of the majority of the Community. In

other words, the earlier living Sunnah was reflected in the mirror of the Hadith

with the necessary addition of chains of narrators. There is, however, one major

difference: whereas Sunnah was largely and primarily a practical phenomenon,

geared as it was to behavioral norms, Hadith became the vehicle not only of

legal norms abut of religious beliefs and principles as well." (Rahman, p. 45)

The hadith constitute the recording in writing everything that Prophet

Muhammad was to have said, such as his opinions or decisions on issues, his

responses to Muslims’ questions or requests, as well as his silent or tacit

approval of acts he had knowledge of. "The hadith sayings are in fact a veritable

panorama of daily life in the seventh century, a vivid panorama, extremely

varied because there are various versions of the same event. Finally, one also

finds side by side subjects as different as 'how to perform one's ablutions,' 'how

to behave on one's wedding night,' and 'what is to be done in case of civil war.'"

(Mernissi, 35)

Just as during his life, Muslims could go the Prophet for answers; after his

death, they looked to the hadith for Prophetic guidance, a means of searching

out what was or not acceptable in areas where the Quran had not left specific

rulings. However, many scholars believe that ahadith were not compiled in

authoritative collections until the middle of the ninth century, "by which time a

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great mass of diverse ahadith reflected the variety of legal opinion developed

over the past two centuries of juristic reasoning in the legal schools.

Recognition that the hadith literature included many fabrications led to a

concerted effort to distinguish more clearly authentic traditions." (Esposito, 6)

The sunna of the Prophet differs from the hadith in that

.

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BIBLIOGRAPHYSyed Khalid Rashid’s Muslim Law, V.P. Bhartiya, 5th Edition, Reprinted 2010,

Eastern Book Company

Muslim Law, S.M.A. Habibi, Allahabad Law Agency

http://www.mwlusa.org/topics/sources/sources.html

http://islam.about.com/od/law/a/sources.htm

http://www.legalserviceindia.com/article/l302-Sources-of-Islamic-Law.html

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