The Ranks of the Four Sunan, al-Mustadrak, and al-Musnad
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The first question of Fatwa number ( 9184 )
Q 1: Is (al-Mustadrak of al-Hakim al-Naysaburi on the two Sahihs) of a higher rank in terms of the validity of the chain of narration, or are (the Four Sunan) of Abu Dawud and al-Nasa'i and al-Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah more authentic than al-Mustadrak? And is the Musnad of Imam Ahmad more authentic in terms of chain, or is it al-Mustadrak? And is (the Muwatta of Imam Malik) more authentic in chain than (the Four Sunan) and (al-Mustadrak), or are they equal? And is it permissible for us Muslims to take a hadith if it is authentic in any of the established compiled books, or do we present the hadith to the scholars first, and how is that done?
A 1: Praise be to Allah alone, and blessings and peace be upon His Messenger, his family, and his Companions.. And after: First: Refer to the beginning of the book (The Introduction of Ibn al-Salah on the Sciences of Hadith), or to the beginning of (Fath al-Mughith, a commentary on the Alfiyyah of al-'Iraqi on the Sciences of Hadith), or to the beginning of the book (al-Taqrib) by al-Suyuti in (a commentary on the book al-Tarhib) by al-Nawawi; so that you may know from them the ranks of the collections you mentioned, and the status of one relative to the other; this is more beneficial and useful for you. Second: Whoever is qualified for independent legal reasoning, possesses a scientific aptitude, and has the strength to derive religious rulings from the scriptural evidence - it is permissible for him to refer to the authentic texts of the Book and the Sunnah to understand the rulings from them, along with
referring to the statements of the Imams on the subject; so that this may be an aid, after Allah, in the precision of understanding and reaching the truth, and so that he does not contradict the community; otherwise, let him refer the matter to those qualified for it, so that he may seek guidance from the scholars in knowing what he needs of the rulings of Islam. And success is from Allah, and may Allah send blessings and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his Companions.
Q 1: Is (al-Mustadrak of al-Hakim al-Naysaburi on the two Sahihs) of a higher rank in terms of the validity of the chain of narration, or are (the Four Sunan) of Abu Dawud and al-Nasa'i and al-Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah more authentic than al-Mustadrak? And is the Musnad of Imam Ahmad more authentic in terms of chain, or is it al-Mustadrak? And is (the Muwatta of Imam Malik) more authentic in chain than (the Four Sunan) and (al-Mustadrak), or are they equal? And is it permissible for us Muslims to take a hadith if it is authentic in any of the established compiled books, or do we present the hadith to the scholars first, and how is that done?
A 1: Praise be to Allah alone, and blessings and peace be upon His Messenger, his family, and his Companions.. And after: First: Refer to the beginning of the book (The Introduction of Ibn al-Salah on the Sciences of Hadith), or to the beginning of (Fath al-Mughith, a commentary on the Alfiyyah of al-'Iraqi on the Sciences of Hadith), or to the beginning of the book (al-Taqrib) by al-Suyuti in (a commentary on the book al-Tarhib) by al-Nawawi; so that you may know from them the ranks of the collections you mentioned, and the status of one relative to the other; this is more beneficial and useful for you. Second: Whoever is qualified for independent legal reasoning, possesses a scientific aptitude, and has the strength to derive religious rulings from the scriptural evidence - it is permissible for him to refer to the authentic texts of the Book and the Sunnah to understand the rulings from them, along with
referring to the statements of the Imams on the subject; so that this may be an aid, after Allah, in the precision of understanding and reaching the truth, and so that he does not contradict the community; otherwise, let him refer the matter to those qualified for it, so that he may seek guidance from the scholars in knowing what he needs of the rulings of Islam. And success is from Allah, and may Allah send blessings and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his Companions.
Source
www.alifta.gov.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.