What is the criterion for anomaly in the text?
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The questioner : The issue of anomaly in the text.
The Shaykh: What is the question?
The questioner : Regarding anomaly in the text: does anomaly occur when a narrator contradicts a trustworthy narrator by using a word that is more precise than his, or is anomaly defined as a contradiction in the meaning of a word with the meaning of another word used by a more trustworthy narrator?
The Shaykh : The question is not clear.
The questioner : I mean, Shaykh, in the hadith regarding pointing with the index finger, one version states that he was pointing with it, and this version is supported by the agreement of many of the preservers of hadith. Another version states that he was moving it. Does this count as an anomaly, given that he was unique in the version where he moved it, whereas there was agreement or near-agreement among the preservers that he was pointing with it? Does this count as an anomaly regarding the word "moving it"?
The Shaykh : No, it is not an anomaly, because pointing does not contradict moving. If the narrators of a hadith that ends with a single Companion narrated that he did not move it, and a trustworthy narrator narrated that he moved it, then it would be called anomalous. However, if trustworthy narrators narrate a word that does not contradict the explicit narration of a trustworthy narrator whose meaning is implicitly included in the narration of the group, and there is nothing in their narration that contradicts the narration of the trustworthy narrator, then this is not considered an anomaly.The questioner : May Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The Shaykh: What is the question?
The questioner : Regarding anomaly in the text: does anomaly occur when a narrator contradicts a trustworthy narrator by using a word that is more precise than his, or is anomaly defined as a contradiction in the meaning of a word with the meaning of another word used by a more trustworthy narrator?
The Shaykh : The question is not clear.
The questioner : I mean, Shaykh, in the hadith regarding pointing with the index finger, one version states that he was pointing with it, and this version is supported by the agreement of many of the preservers of hadith. Another version states that he was moving it. Does this count as an anomaly, given that he was unique in the version where he moved it, whereas there was agreement or near-agreement among the preservers that he was pointing with it? Does this count as an anomaly regarding the word "moving it"?
The Shaykh : No, it is not an anomaly, because pointing does not contradict moving. If the narrators of a hadith that ends with a single Companion narrated that he did not move it, and a trustworthy narrator narrated that he moved it, then it would be called anomalous. However, if trustworthy narrators narrate a word that does not contradict the explicit narration of a trustworthy narrator whose meaning is implicitly included in the narration of the group, and there is nothing in their narration that contradicts the narration of the trustworthy narrator, then this is not considered an anomaly.The questioner : May Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh : Yes.
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.