What is your opinion of the one who says that the student of knowledge should begin with the books of hadith and not with the fiqh manuals, because they are devoid of evidence?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : The question, O Shaykh, is that a methodology for seeking knowledge has emerged among young beginners, which is said to be starting with the books of the Sunnah, the books of hadith, and it is not correct to start with the fiqh manuals, because they are devoid of "Allah said" and "the Messenger said." Is this correct?
The Shaykh : First: What we see is that the student should begin, before anything else, with understanding the Noble Qur'an, because Allah the Exalted said:[Sad 38:29] And because the Qur'an does not require any effort in its authentication, as it is established by mass transmission (mutawatir). However, the Sunnah contains authentic, good, weak, and fabricated reports; it requires effort. Furthermore, it also requires gathering its various chains. A person may be presented with a hadith from the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), and it may have a specification for its generality, or a restriction for its absoluteness, or this hadith may be abrogated and he does not know it. For this reason, you find that the one who relies on his understanding of the hadiths makes many mistakes. There is no doubt that the hadiths, or the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), are among the primary sources; they are like the Qur'an in the obligation to act upon them, provided they are authentic from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family).
As for his claim that the manuals are devoid of what Allah and His Messenger said, yes, most fiqh manuals do not contain the evidence. However, the evidence is found in their commentaries. Therefore, they are not devoid of evidence when considering their commentaries, which analyze their wording and clarify their meanings.
What I see is that a person should begin first with the Book of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), and secondly, with books of fiqh based on the Book and the Sunnah, because these regulate his actions and correct his understanding, so that he does not fall into error in understanding the hadiths of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him).
But if we were asked: Is it better to memorize a fiqh manual or a concise hadith manual? We see that he should memorize a concise hadith manual, such as *Umdat al-Ahkam* or *Bulugh al-Maram*, but he should not neglect consulting the words of the scholars and the jurists.
The questioner : In a phrase, O Shaykh.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : The Qur'an does not require great effort in its authentication.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : Does it not imply that it requires a little effort in its authentication?
The Shaykh : No, did we say it that way? We said it does not require great effort relative to the Sunnah, because the Qur'an does not require any effort in its authentication. The Qur'an is established without dispute and does not require any effort at all.
The Shaykh : First: What we see is that the student should begin, before anything else, with understanding the Noble Qur'an, because Allah the Exalted said:
[This is] a blessed Book which We have revealed to you, [O Muhammad], that they might reflect upon its verses and that those of understanding would be reminded.
كِتَابٌ أَنْزَلْنَاهُ إِلَيْكَ مُبَارَكٌ لِيَدَّبَّرُوا آيَاتِهِ وَلِيَتَذَكَّرَ أُولُو الْأَلْبَابِAs for his claim that the manuals are devoid of what Allah and His Messenger said, yes, most fiqh manuals do not contain the evidence. However, the evidence is found in their commentaries. Therefore, they are not devoid of evidence when considering their commentaries, which analyze their wording and clarify their meanings.
What I see is that a person should begin first with the Book of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), and secondly, with books of fiqh based on the Book and the Sunnah, because these regulate his actions and correct his understanding, so that he does not fall into error in understanding the hadiths of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him).
But if we were asked: Is it better to memorize a fiqh manual or a concise hadith manual? We see that he should memorize a concise hadith manual, such as *Umdat al-Ahkam* or *Bulugh al-Maram*, but he should not neglect consulting the words of the scholars and the jurists.
The questioner : In a phrase, O Shaykh.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : The Qur'an does not require great effort in its authentication.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : Does it not imply that it requires a little effort in its authentication?
The Shaykh : No, did we say it that way? We said it does not require great effort relative to the Sunnah, because the Qur'an does not require any effort in its authentication. The Qur'an is established without dispute and does not require any effort at all.