Is it permissible for a student of knowledge to authenticate or weaken a hadith in opposition to the opinion of previous hadith scholars, in accordance with the rules of authentication and weakening?
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The questioner : The student of knowledge, when judging hadiths as authentic or weak, always investigates what the Imams before him said. If he finds, for example, a hadith that the Hafiz Ibn Hajar or another of the Imams authenticated, but he sees an obvious defect in it, yet he does not see a consensus among the people of hadith on the authenticity of this hadith or on its weakness, and he sees a view contrary to this; is it permissible for him to oppose them? To oppose this Imam and speak of its authenticity or weakness?
The Shaykh : Your statement that he sees a contrary view confused me, after you mentioned that there is disagreement regarding its authentication and weakening. He sees a view contrary to what?
The questioner : I mean, does he see a view contrary to the authentication of the hadith by the Hafiz Ibn Hajar, or its weakening?
The Shaykh : Fine, but at the same time, does he see someone who agrees with him?
The questioner : No one has agreed with him on this before. No one has agreed with him on this before. The Hafiz Ibn Hajar is the one who, for example, uniquely authenticated this hadith. The hadith, for example, is in "Sunan al-Daraqutni," or such and such a hadith, and the Hafiz Ibn Hajar uniquely authenticated it. They did not agree on its authentication or on its weakening. And he himself sees a view contrary to this Imam, and he has no predecessor in authenticating or weakening it. He did not find this. Allah knows best whether he has a predecessor or not? Is it permissible for him to be bold, or to say it is authentic while opposing the Hafiz Ibn Hajar, or weak while opposing the Hafiz Ibn Hajar, for the defect he sees and mentions his proof for it?
The Shaykh : There is no god but Allah. The answer differs, my brother, depending on the one you called a student of knowledge. If he sees—without being arrogant about himself!—that he has reached a level of investigation in the science of al-jarh wa al-ta'dil (the critique and vindication of narrators) and authentication and weakening that justifies him opposing the Commander of the Believers in Hadith, Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani; then he has that right. Otherwise, he does not.
The Shaykh : Your statement that he sees a contrary view confused me, after you mentioned that there is disagreement regarding its authentication and weakening. He sees a view contrary to what?
The questioner : I mean, does he see a view contrary to the authentication of the hadith by the Hafiz Ibn Hajar, or its weakening?
The Shaykh : Fine, but at the same time, does he see someone who agrees with him?
The questioner : No one has agreed with him on this before. No one has agreed with him on this before. The Hafiz Ibn Hajar is the one who, for example, uniquely authenticated this hadith. The hadith, for example, is in "Sunan al-Daraqutni," or such and such a hadith, and the Hafiz Ibn Hajar uniquely authenticated it. They did not agree on its authentication or on its weakening. And he himself sees a view contrary to this Imam, and he has no predecessor in authenticating or weakening it. He did not find this. Allah knows best whether he has a predecessor or not? Is it permissible for him to be bold, or to say it is authentic while opposing the Hafiz Ibn Hajar, or weak while opposing the Hafiz Ibn Hajar, for the defect he sees and mentions his proof for it?
The Shaykh : There is no god but Allah. The answer differs, my brother, depending on the one you called a student of knowledge. If he sees—without being arrogant about himself!—that he has reached a level of investigation in the science of al-jarh wa al-ta'dil (the critique and vindication of narrators) and authentication and weakening that justifies him opposing the Commander of the Believers in Hadith, Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani; then he has that right. Otherwise, he does not.
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.