Is it permissible to act upon the report of a single narrator, especially in the chapter of creed, or is it necessary to condition its acceptance by the community?
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The questioner : Is it permissible to act upon the report of a single narrator, especially in the chapter of creed, or is it necessary to condition its acceptance by the community?
The Shaykh : No, we do not believe in this condition. This condition is only mentioned regarding the half of a report that comes through the path of a single narrator, stating that it provides certainty like a mass-transmitted report. Is this clear? However, it is not required that a report containing a creedal matter, a metaphysical matter, or a legal ruling, as Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) says, must be mass-transmitted by definition or provide certainty in the sense we mentioned earlier, namely that the community accepted it. Such a condition is not required in any way. Because, in my firm belief, there is a distinction between practical rulings and scientific reports; what is required for the latter is not required for the former. This is undoubtedly one of the innovations of the science of theology (kalam). And as we all know from the authentic Sunnah, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to send individuals from among his Companions (peace and blessings be upon him) to teach people their religion. Among the most famous of them, and the one with whom the evidence is associated—may peace be upon you—which necessitates taking creed even from the report of a single narrator, is Mu'adh ibn Jabal (may Allah be pleased with him). We know that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) sent him to Yemen. When he sent him there, he advised him and commanded him, as in the hadith of Anas ibn Malik: that when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) sent Mu'adh to Yemen, he said to him:; therefore, he called them to creed, indeed to the foundation of creed, which is tawhid (the oneness of Allah), and it is obligatory. Therefore, such a condition does not mean there is a legal proof, even from the practice of the righteous predecessors.
The Shaykh : No, we do not believe in this condition. This condition is only mentioned regarding the half of a report that comes through the path of a single narrator, stating that it provides certainty like a mass-transmitted report. Is this clear? However, it is not required that a report containing a creedal matter, a metaphysical matter, or a legal ruling, as Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) says, must be mass-transmitted by definition or provide certainty in the sense we mentioned earlier, namely that the community accepted it. Such a condition is not required in any way. Because, in my firm belief, there is a distinction between practical rulings and scientific reports; what is required for the latter is not required for the former. This is undoubtedly one of the innovations of the science of theology (kalam). And as we all know from the authentic Sunnah, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to send individuals from among his Companions (peace and blessings be upon him) to teach people their religion. Among the most famous of them, and the one with whom the evidence is associated—may peace be upon you—which necessitates taking creed even from the report of a single narrator, is Mu'adh ibn Jabal (may Allah be pleased with him). We know that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) sent him to Yemen. When he sent him there, he advised him and commanded him, as in the hadith of Anas ibn Malik: that when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) sent Mu'adh to Yemen, he said to him:
Let the first thing you call them to be the testimony that there is no god but Allah
ليكُنْ أول ما تدعوهم إليه شهادة أن لا إله إلا الله
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.