What are the books with which a student of knowledge should begin studying hadith?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : He says: What are the things with which one who wants to learn hadith should begin, and what are the books with which one can start? May Allah reward you.
The Shaykh : This question has been repeated in every session we have held, so the answer is as follows, in brief:
Whoever wants to study the science of hadith terminology must begin with the book *Al-Ba'ith al-Hathith*—may Allah guide you and rectify your affairs—*Al-Ba'ith al-Hathith: A Commentary on the Summary of the Sciences of Hadith*. The commentary is by Shaykh Ahmad Shakir al-Qadi, the Egyptian judge (may Allah have mercy on him), who was one of the rare scholars of hadith in the modern era. The text being commented upon is *Ikhtisar 'Ulum al-Hadith* by al-Hafiz Ibn Kathir al-Dimashqi, in which he summarized *Mukhtasar 'Ulum al-Hadith* by Ibn al-Salah. This book is the one with which it is best for a beginner in this science to start. After that, he should occupy himself and his free time with *Sharh al-Nukhba* by al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar al-'Asqalani. This Hafiz is attested to as having been the "Amir al-Mu'minin" (Commander of the Faithful) in hadith in his time, and this status has continued for him to this day, as no one has come after him to succeed him in this science and its comprehensive understanding, both in knowledge and application. Indeed, many scholars in various disciplines and sciences have studies that are mostly theoretical and not practical, like those who, for example, read books on the principles of jurisprudence but do not benefit from this science at all, because they do not apply it to the jurisprudential issues in which scholars differ. Thus, their knowledge remains theoretical and does not benefit them, as we have mentioned. However, al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) combined knowledge with practical application. Therefore, his commentary, titled *Sharh al-Nukhba*, is one of the most comprehensive books in the science of terminology, despite its small size, and one of the most precise in understanding. If the student of knowledge focuses on this very small booklet, it contains the foundations of this science. After that, he must practice applying what he has studied of this science of terminology, and he must continue to ascend in reading the old works written in this field.
Then, first of all, he should occupy himself with reading some of the books on the men (narrators). It is proposed and considered good that he begin with the book *Mizan al-I'tidal fi Naqd al-Rijal* by the Imam of critics, al-Hafiz al-Dhahabi al-Dimashqi. In this book, he speaks about a very large number of narrators about whom some of the early Imams spoke with words that weaken this biographical subject. This weakening may be correct, or it may be incorrect. Al-Hafiz al-Dhahabi, in this book, clarifies what he sees as correct, whether in preferring the criticism that was said about them or preferring the authentication. This book, *Mizan al-I'tidal fi Naqd al-Rijal*, is not limited to a specific group of men; rather, it touches upon many of those who have hadiths mentioned in the books of the Sunnah, as well as others who did not narrate in these books but in others. It is a comprehensive book covering various types of narrators. It explains the method of the hadith scholars in refuting some of these narrators and provides examples of their hadiths that they narrated and which were rejected. Often, these hadiths are the cause of the criticism of them and the reason for their weakening. The reader of this book practices the method of the hadith scholars in criticizing narrators, so that this science becomes a logical science with reasonable meaning, rather than a science that is accepted by them without question.
In addition to this book, at the beginning of his study of books on the men, he should include the book by al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar al-'Asqalani titled *Taqrib al-Tahdhib*. This is truly a name that fits its description, *Taqrib al-Tahdhib*, because the *Tahdhib* that he summarized in this *Taqrib* may have very lengthy biographies for many narrators. In some biographies, the opinions mentioned are completely contradictory, especially in the mind of one who has no knowledge of the science of al-jarh wa al-ta'dil (the critique and vindication of narrators). He becomes confused about which of these opinions to lean toward, as some authenticate this biographical subject and others weaken him. The Hafiz, in his *Taqrib*, simplifies this difficult matter for the beginner with a single word. In doing so, he adheres to a rule from the sciences of hadith terminology, which is the rule: "Criticism takes precedence over authentication", with its known conditions in terminology. Thus, this beginner proceeds in this type of science until he rises by returning to the foundations of these summarized books, which were authored by the early hadith scholars, such as al-Hakim Abu 'Abdullah al-Nisaburi and al-Khatib al-Baghdadi, and others like them. They are the ones who authored and founded this science, and those who came after them did nothing but collect the opinions of those predecessors and clarify what they were able to clarify. This is a brief word regarding this question, concerning the science of terminology.
The Shaykh : This question has been repeated in every session we have held, so the answer is as follows, in brief:
Whoever wants to study the science of hadith terminology must begin with the book *Al-Ba'ith al-Hathith*—may Allah guide you and rectify your affairs—*Al-Ba'ith al-Hathith: A Commentary on the Summary of the Sciences of Hadith*. The commentary is by Shaykh Ahmad Shakir al-Qadi, the Egyptian judge (may Allah have mercy on him), who was one of the rare scholars of hadith in the modern era. The text being commented upon is *Ikhtisar 'Ulum al-Hadith* by al-Hafiz Ibn Kathir al-Dimashqi, in which he summarized *Mukhtasar 'Ulum al-Hadith* by Ibn al-Salah. This book is the one with which it is best for a beginner in this science to start. After that, he should occupy himself and his free time with *Sharh al-Nukhba* by al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar al-'Asqalani. This Hafiz is attested to as having been the "Amir al-Mu'minin" (Commander of the Faithful) in hadith in his time, and this status has continued for him to this day, as no one has come after him to succeed him in this science and its comprehensive understanding, both in knowledge and application. Indeed, many scholars in various disciplines and sciences have studies that are mostly theoretical and not practical, like those who, for example, read books on the principles of jurisprudence but do not benefit from this science at all, because they do not apply it to the jurisprudential issues in which scholars differ. Thus, their knowledge remains theoretical and does not benefit them, as we have mentioned. However, al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) combined knowledge with practical application. Therefore, his commentary, titled *Sharh al-Nukhba*, is one of the most comprehensive books in the science of terminology, despite its small size, and one of the most precise in understanding. If the student of knowledge focuses on this very small booklet, it contains the foundations of this science. After that, he must practice applying what he has studied of this science of terminology, and he must continue to ascend in reading the old works written in this field.
Then, first of all, he should occupy himself with reading some of the books on the men (narrators). It is proposed and considered good that he begin with the book *Mizan al-I'tidal fi Naqd al-Rijal* by the Imam of critics, al-Hafiz al-Dhahabi al-Dimashqi. In this book, he speaks about a very large number of narrators about whom some of the early Imams spoke with words that weaken this biographical subject. This weakening may be correct, or it may be incorrect. Al-Hafiz al-Dhahabi, in this book, clarifies what he sees as correct, whether in preferring the criticism that was said about them or preferring the authentication. This book, *Mizan al-I'tidal fi Naqd al-Rijal*, is not limited to a specific group of men; rather, it touches upon many of those who have hadiths mentioned in the books of the Sunnah, as well as others who did not narrate in these books but in others. It is a comprehensive book covering various types of narrators. It explains the method of the hadith scholars in refuting some of these narrators and provides examples of their hadiths that they narrated and which were rejected. Often, these hadiths are the cause of the criticism of them and the reason for their weakening. The reader of this book practices the method of the hadith scholars in criticizing narrators, so that this science becomes a logical science with reasonable meaning, rather than a science that is accepted by them without question.
In addition to this book, at the beginning of his study of books on the men, he should include the book by al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar al-'Asqalani titled *Taqrib al-Tahdhib*. This is truly a name that fits its description, *Taqrib al-Tahdhib*, because the *Tahdhib* that he summarized in this *Taqrib* may have very lengthy biographies for many narrators. In some biographies, the opinions mentioned are completely contradictory, especially in the mind of one who has no knowledge of the science of al-jarh wa al-ta'dil (the critique and vindication of narrators). He becomes confused about which of these opinions to lean toward, as some authenticate this biographical subject and others weaken him. The Hafiz, in his *Taqrib*, simplifies this difficult matter for the beginner with a single word. In doing so, he adheres to a rule from the sciences of hadith terminology, which is the rule: "Criticism takes precedence over authentication", with its known conditions in terminology. Thus, this beginner proceeds in this type of science until he rises by returning to the foundations of these summarized books, which were authored by the early hadith scholars, such as al-Hakim Abu 'Abdullah al-Nisaburi and al-Khatib al-Baghdadi, and others like them. They are the ones who authored and founded this science, and those who came after them did nothing but collect the opinions of those predecessors and clarify what they were able to clarify. This is a brief word regarding this question, concerning the science of terminology.