In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Most Merciful
This is just something to think about if you follow Hadith.
Two hundred years after hijra, Bukhari collected a total of 600,000 hadiths. Out of these, he only verified 7,000 and rejected about 7,397 which he believed were false and not genuine.
Imam Bukhari the collector of the narration lived in a period over 230 years after the death of the prophet. YET THE MAJORITY OF MUSLIMS UNQUESTIONABLY ACCEPT IT
My question is : if the hadith are authentic and true as sectarian Muslims claim, then how can my use of these traditions, to show the true character of Muhammad, be dishonest or a misunderstanding?
Muhammad is either the person who Imam Bukhari describes or Imam Bukhari's hadith is wrong! Which is it?
Here is another question which needs to be asked is :
Where is the manuscript evidence concerning the earliest Hadith?
How can we be sure that stories were not erroneously inserted into the traditions, or that existing stories did not undergo editing?
After all, if someone can "create" a tradition, what would prevent them from"creating" a chain of narration?
The rules for hadith science were not developed until the early 11th century,by Al-Hakim (d.1014) who developed 52 categories, and then Ibn al-Salah (d.1245) who developed 65 categories.
The problem with this argument is : how do we know that the "chain" of transmission is authentic?
In fact, it is difficult, in spite of the Muslim "science" of Hadith to know which traditions are strong or weak! For example, again, Bukhari collected over600,000 reports, but kept only 7,397 as true!
To make matters even more confusing, there are contradictions among the"accepted" Hadiths (ikhtilaf al-hadith).
There are many hadiths which record conflicting accounts of the same event!
It is interesting to note that Bukhari wrote a book about the narrators (Zuafa-us-sagher).
What is even more interesting is that Bukhari's book condemns several narrators including:
Ata bin abi Maimoona, Ayyub bin Aiz, Ismail bin Aban, Zubair bin Muhammad, At-Tayyimi, Saeed bin Urwa, Abdullah bin Abi Labeed, Abdul Malik bin Ameen, Abdul waris bin Saeed, Ata bin As-Saib bin Yazeed, and Khamsan bin Minhal asunreliable.
However, the Hadith-collection of Bukhari in the its modern form actually includes many traditions narrated by these very individuals! Obviously, these traditions, which Bukhari rejected, were inserted in his book following his death.
For 16 years Bukhari collected traditional Islamic literature, compiled then into a book and most Muslims accepted them as Islamic doctrines. Was Bukhari specially chose by Allah to do this?
Also by Imam Bukhari declining to propagate the falsehood in the name of the Prophet and in the process he "REJECTED" hundreds of thousand Hadiths...can anyone call Imam Bukhari a 'Munkar-e-Hadith' - a rejecter of Hadiths?
The historical facts...
Sahih Al-Bukhari is regarded by a vast majority of the Muslims as the most authoritative collection of the Prophetic Sayings and Deeds - Hadiths and quoted below are two sources, written by learned Muslim scholars, that give details for the origin of Sahih Al-Bukhari, compiled by Imam Bukhari (died 256 A.H.).
These source documents also tell us that hundreds of thousands of"UNRELIABLE" narrations were "REJECTED" by Bukhari.
The Muslim Ummah has since then profusely complimented his great efforts.
Circulation of the True Reports amalgamated along with the False Reports, attributed to the Prophet , was not tolerated then and should not be tolerated now, if the bottom line is to propagate the Whole Truth, on behalf of the Prophet.
The figures recorded below show that Imam Bukhari had rejected more than 99% of the circulating Hadiths that were memorized by the learned scholars and respected Imams of his own era and of his predecessors.
Source # 1. "It is said Imam Hanbal narrated one million (Hadiths).
Al-Ghazzali earned his title hujjat-al-Islam, the authority of Islam, by memorizing 300,000.
The accepted authority, Imam Bukhari, after a lifetime's work, selected about 7,300 from 600,000 in 97 books. CollectingHadeeths became an Islamic science." ('Discovering Islam' by Dr. Akbar S. Ahmed, page 24).
Source # 2. "It is said that Imam Bukhari collected over 300,000 Ahadithand he himself memorized 200,000 of which some were unreliable.
...although he had memorized such a large number he only chose approximately7,275 with repetition and about 2,230 without repetition..." ('The Translation of the Meanings of Sahih Al-Bukhari' by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan, page 18).
If one was to work out the percentage of the rejection by Imam Bukhari from the above recorded figures, one would be shocked and taken aback having arrived at the staggering high figures for the elimination.
One can say that 99.27% of what there Scholar name Imam Hanbal had memorized was not included by Imam Bukhari; 97.57% of what another Scholar name Al-Ghazzali had memorized and 98.78% of what he himself had earlier memorized.
These figures of the rejections would rise even further, if one was to work them on the bases of the accepted 2,230 Hadiths without repetition.
Respectively in the same order, the new percentage figures for the rejections would be 99.998%; 99.993% and 99.996%.
Today, we are away from the Whole Truth but imagine how further we all would have been if all the then circulating Hadiths were printed, published, memorized and recited from the pulpit by the Imams and the Muslim scholars.
From my understanding it's a fact that there beloved Imam Bukhari has never been criticized or accused of being a rejecter of Hadith - Munkar-e-Hadith, for rejecting the unreliable narrations.
His efforts are being proudly complimented. The reality is that Imam Bukhari earned his reputation by his strict rules and accepting only a fraction of the percentage out of the million(s) in circulation.
His so called diligent work of "rejection" is erroneously heightened by a few, to a degree of that of an infallible person.
Nearly twelve centuries have passed since the day Imam Bukhari left this world. Today, the learned Muslim scholars have discovered that the "litmus test" used by the prominent compilers of his era had a major drawback and some serious flaws just like the Christians Revised Standard Version their Scholars admitted that the King James Version had flaws.
Dr. Akbar S. Ahmed writes:
"In time the Prophet's sayings and actions - hadith, traditions - came to be accepted as the truth by Muslims. The problem lay in location a genuine hadith. Relying mostly or solely upon the name that was tagged to a Hadith as its narrator and/or compiler - the collector, was considered to be the litmus test for the authenticity of a re-narrated report - hadith."
In other words little or no attention was paid to the contents or the subject matter of the narrations. The compilers were more interested in drawing a chart of the narrators that would link them as closely as possible to the Prophet.
Today, we know with certainty that being a Prophet's closer companion need not necessarily mean they spoke nothing but the truth. Even the Prophet's first companions did lie before the Prophet. (see Surah 9:43).
The credibility or otherwise of the chain of narrators was not enough for a perfect Litmus Test. What was being reported in the name of the Prophet should have played a far greater role, which it did not.
Consequently, many narrations that have passed the "litmus test", conducted twelve centuries or so ago, could NOT have passed the test today.
Isnad to me is a joke, with no scientific basis, and to prove that just look at the Hadith! There are so many things which contradict Al Quran, womens rights, human rights, science, and most importantly the character of The Prophet himself. The Hadith are the greatest tool for the enemies of Islam to use against us.
The end result of it is that Islam today absolves more than 5,000 spurious, fabricated and weak Hadiths and that needs to be put out of circulation, sooner the better.
For details please visit http://www.mostmerciful.com/al-albaani.htm
What do you do when 'Authentic' Hadith contradict another 'Authentic' Hadith or the Qur'an?
It is conceivable, knowing well the human psychology, that initially Imam Bukhari may have faced serious opposition to his work, especially from those who had earned their reputation and status by memorizing and preaching the discarded hundred of thousands of "unreliable" Hadiths.
Traditionalist Muslim view Sahih Bukhari as their most trusted collection of hadith and it is considered the most ------> authentic book <----- after the Qur'an.
Sahih Muslim is the second most ----> authentic hadith<---- collection after Sahih Al-Bukhari, and is highly acclaimed by Sunni Muslims.
Now, what is interesting is that both of these 'Authentic' sources rejects each others 'Authenticity.'
Sahih Bukhari --> rejected <--- more than 600 hadith accepted by Muslim and Sahih Muslim ---> rejected <--- more than 400 hadith accepted by Bukhari.
This once more raises an issue with regard to Hadith as how can 2 SAHIH Hadith primary sources contradict one another and which then is the correctHadith on Muta?
According to Hanbel 6/136, 192,213, the prophet “Never urinated in a standing position.”
However Bukhari in his “authentic” book of Hadith says that the prophet indeed urinated in a standing position. (Bukhari 4/60-64)
Isn't this a big contradiction how can two 'Authentic' sources reject other'Authentic' sources?
Today, those who oppose the notion of second revision often argue that the learned Muslim scholars of the former generations have treated the circulating Hadiths to be authoritative and never expressed their doubts to the authenticity.
We cannot speak with certainty for what did and did not transpire in the distant past. But history of the recent past reveals that this claim is not entirely true.
According to Bukhari 56/152 and Hanbel 3/107, 163; the prophet recommended that people drink camel urine to recuperate after an illness.
Later on when the same people killed the prophet’s shepherd, he commanded that they be seized, their eyes taken out and their hands and feet cut and left them thirsty in the desert.
This does not fit in with the personality of the prophet presented in Al Quran. Al Quran says that the prophet was compassionate. How could the prophet recommend the drinking of camel’s urine, considering the importance that the Qur’an gives to hygiene?
Whenever a learned Muslim scholar had raised his voice, he has been summarily and instantaneously rejected and labeled Munkar-e-Hadith or Mukar-e-Islam.
The Muslim Ummah was swiftly warned to keep a safe distant from such Muslim scholars and their works. The opportunity to express their opinions freely was denied and their work was suppressed.
Al Quran commands believers not to make any distinction between any of Allah’s messengers (Quran 2:285 and many other places), yet according to Bukhari’s books of Hadith (Bukhari 97/36), the prophet contradicted the Qur'an saying that he was the “most honorable” among all the messengers.
Not only this, the books of Bukhari make the prophet even contradict himself by saying in a different Hadith (Bukhari 65/4,6 and Hanbel 1/205,242,440) that we should not make any distinction between the messengers and that hewas not better than even Yunus.
Could the prophet have contradicted Al Quran?
"This [Qur'an] is sent down from the Lord of all the worlds. If [the Prophet] had said anything against Us, We would certainly have seized his right hand and cut off his artery, and none of you could have defended him." (Qur'an 69:43-47)
"It is not meet for a Human Being that Allah should give him the Book and Government and 'Nabuwah' (Direct reception of Divine Messages), then he should say to people: Be subservient to me rather than Allah; but on the contrary (he would say): Become sustenance providers (to mankind) because of your teaching the Book and your studying (it yourselves)." (3:79)
According to the Qur'an, of course not.
Could the prophet of Allah have contradicted himself?
"We know best what they say, and you are not one to compel them; therefore remind him by means of the Quran who fears My Promise." (50:45)
We know that the Prophet Muhammad couldn't contradict himself because what he preached and conveyed was the Qur'an alone.
The books of Hadith in fact insult the prophet by attributing to him things he never said or did.
According to the books of Hadith, a woman is compared to a black dog or a monkey (this Hadith pre-dates Darwin but it refers to women only)Bukhari 8/102 and Hanbel 4/86.
Al Quran on the other hand honours women and lifts up their status contrary to what is contained in the Hadith.
A woman is called bad luck in the hadith (Bukhari 76/53).
Also, according to the collection of Muslim (Sahih Muslim), most of the people in hell were of the feminine gender!
According to Bukhari, “Women are naturally, morally and religiously defective.”
Therefore, according to the standard of Al Quran, no Muslim should accept such prejudiced Hadith as issuing from the lips of the prophet of Allah.
According to Bukhari (Book of Jihad, 146) and Abu Dawd 113, the prophet gave permission to warriors to kill women and children in war.
Indeed these people are attributing tyranny to a prophet held in honor by Allah, and described as having mercy for the people.
Al Quran says, even about the people that attack us first, that we should quit fighting if they offer peace, leave alone killing women and children.
According to the standard of Al Quran, the prophet could NEVER have asked his warriors to kill women and children.
According to Hanbel 4/85, 5/54, the prophet ordered that all black dogs be killed because they were devils.
Inspired by that Hadith so called “Muslims” kill hundreds of dogs all over the world and consider them unclean.
Al Quran, on the other hand talks about the sleepers in the cave (sura 18) as having a dog, inside their dwelling place and allows meat killed by hunting dogs.
There is nothing in Al Quran, which even remotely suggests that dogs are unclean as pets.
Indeed Al Quran states that Allah has subjected animals to be of use to humankind.
Al Quran states that,” Vision cannot comprehend God, who comprehends all vision,” yet the Hadith of Bukhari 97/24 and 10/129 says that to prove his identity to Muhammed, Allah showed the prophet his thigh.
Al Quran mentions with absolutely no ambiguity that the punishment of adultery or fornication is 100 lashes (Quran 24:1-3); which is half in the case of slave girls (50 lashes) and double in the case of the wives of the prophet (200 lashes) if they were to become guilty.
The Hadith, contrary to this mention “stoning to death,” as being the punishment of adultery in the case of married couples. This is completely against the commandment of Allah in Al Quran, which makes no distinction between married or unmarried in the case of adultery.
The Hadith is definitely borrowed from a similar ruling in the Old Testament. Itcontradicts Al Quran.
Could the prophet have issued a ruling contrary to the ruling of Allah in Al Quran and if not where did this come from?
There is no verse on stoning adulterers in Al Quran. Hadith forgers knew about this so they inserted another Hadith which claims that a verse on stoning existed in Al Quran but it was eaten by a goat and so vanished from the earth (Ibn Maja 36/144; Ibn Hanbal 3/61;5/131, 132, 183;6/269).
The Hadith also tells of a “planet of the apes” type story in which the prophet helped stone a monkey guilty of adultery whom the other monkeys had caught in order to bring it to justice.
Why do they attribute such fairy tales to the prophet? Could not Allah protect his book from the goat? Al Quran suggests halving or doubling the punishment for adultery, how can you kill someone (stone to death) half or double?
Al Quran only prohibits the meat of one animal, the pig. Certain sects in Islam however, based on the authority of the Hadith forbid clams, shrimp, crab etc. Why are they attributing against Allah a lie if they are believers?
Qur’aan 42:21
أَمْ لَهُمْ شُرَكَاء شَرَعُوا لَهُم مِّنَ الدِّينِ مَا لَمْ يَأْذَن بِهِ اللَّهُ وَلَوْلَا كَلِمَةُ الْفَصْلِ لَقُضِيَ بَيْنَهُمْ وَإِنَّ الظَّالِمِينَ لَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ
"They follow idols who decree for them religious laws never authorized by Allah. If it were not for the predetermined decision, they would have been judged immediately. Indeed, the transgressors have incurred a painful retribution."
Here is a brief list of their scholars of repute who have spoken out against the"unreliable" Hadiths.
1. Sir Syed Ahmed Khan of India (d. 1898).
2. Mufti Muhammad ‘Abduh of Egypt.
3. Maulana Shibli Numani of Darul ‘Uloom Nadwatul Ulama, Lucknow, India.
4. Shams Pirzada author of “Dawat-ul-Qur’an”.
5. Sheikh Muhammad Nasir-ud-deen Al-Albaani
The Muhaddith and Faqeeh of our century (d. 1999)
Islam is now passing through a phase where it is possible to send the messages across the world through the Internet and permit anyone and everyone to participate in a healthy discussion. Today, it is not easy to silence the voices of Knowledge, Reasoning and Logic.
Besides, there is a big gap between ways the earlier generations were lead to the Truth and the Muslims of the present generation search and discover the Truth. Everyone has access to information.
To those who OPPOSE the idea of REVISION and do DENOUNCE the individuals who make such suggestions, here is my simple question:
My Dear Brothers and Sisters; are you fully comfortable with the following Hadiths?
Read each one carefully and then honestly reply to your own self:
1. Hadiths that contradict the verses of the Qur'an, e.g.
The Earth and Adam were created in SEVEN Days Muslim # 6707.
The entire Universe was created in SIX Days Qur'an 7:54, 10:3, 11:7, 32:4.
2. Hadiths that throw ridicules upon the Messenger of Allah, e.g.
Prophet Suleman had sex with his 99 wives in one night to have a child from each wife.
Bukhari 8:634; 8:711; 9:561 and 4:635. Surprisingly, the incident happened once but the figures for the wives vary from 60, 70, 99 and 100.
A grievous Chastisement will be upon men who patronize ridiculous hadeethswithout the knowledge and thus mislead others from the path of Allah 31: 6-7
3. Hadiths that foretell questionable details for the end times, e.g. Sun will rise from the West! (One need not elaborate the consequences!).
Dajjal will take away the Qur'an from the earth although Allah has promised to Guard it. Qur'an 41:42; 15:79;
73:20. Islam will prevail over other religions at the end times Qur'an 9:33; 110:3; 61:9. Will it prevail without the Qur'an?
4. Hadiths that speak of the Future and Unseen Qudsi and the non Qudsi.
The knowledge of that is with Allah Alone and He does not disclose that to anyone except by Revelation Qur'an 7:188; 72: 26; 67: 26; 27:65; 46:9; 6:50.
If the future or unseen is Revealed that Message becomes the Qur'anic verse.
5. Hadiths, too many of them, that speak of the harsh punishments to the dead bodies that are lying in their tombs .
Will the punishments be given to the dead bodies before the Day of Resurrection?
And, even before the promised Day when the Records of their Deeds will be given to each one in their right or left hand?
And, even before the promised "Day of Judgment" when Allah will judge them according to their deeds and pronounce the punishments? Having absolute faith in the "Day of Judgment" and the particulars mentioned in the Qur'an, is the tenet of Islam.
6. Hadiths that unjustly cut short the lives of Muslim men and women (particularly in Afghanistan, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia).
The questionable Sayings of Prophet (Hadith) are placed ahead of the verses of the Qur'an.
The punishment of "stoning to death" supersedes the prescribed punishment of flogging Qur'an 24: 2 - 3.
A questionable Saying of Khalifa Umar also claims that the Verse of stoning to death (rajam) is missing in the Qur'an that we are reading.
Bukhari Vol. 8 Bk. 36, No. 6829.This is a very serious matter.
THINK, if a Muslim truly believes that the Qur'an is not Guarded and is Incomplete whom has he discredited, if not ALLAH???
7. Qudsi Hadith that claims on the Day of Judgment, the sins of Muslims will be unloaded and placed upon the back of Jews and Christians.
Qudsi Hadith No. 8, Book '110 Hadith Qudsi'. Allah promises;
He will not deal unjustly with any man in aught Qur'an 10:44/ 54; 2: 281; 36:54
8. Hadiths that record; upon the orders of the prophet the eyes of the thieves of his camels who had also murdered a shepherd were branded with heated irons, their hands and legs were cut off and were thrown in a rocky place.
When they asked for water to drink they were not given the water. Bukhari 1: 234; 8:794. "We sent thee not (O' Muhammad) but as a mercy for all creatures" Qur'an 21: 107.
9. Hadith that has an unbelievable story. A stone ran away with the clothes of Prophet Moses (a.s.), while he was taking a bath. Prophet Moses ran naked after that stone, caught it and beat it with his clothes. Narrator Abu Hurayrah swears that he personally saw that stone with the marks of cloth beating.
Bukhari 1 : 277
A grievous Chastisement upon men who patronize ridiculous hadeeths 31: 6-7
I URGE YOU ALL TO PLEASE READ the verses of the Glorious Qur'an 31: 6 and 7.
This time, keeping in the focus that the REVEALED ARABIC phrase "lahw al-Hadith" in reality translates "RIDICULOUS / LUDICROUS HADITH" and not music or the idle tale, if one was to read the rest of the text in proper context.
If a 'Authentic' Hadith contradicts another 'Authentic' Hadith doesn't this loses it's credibility all together.
If a 'Authentic' Hadith contradicts the Qur'an doesn't it loses it's credibility all together?
Read the ----> punishments <---- prescribed in verse 7 for PATRONIZINGsuch Hadiths, without the knowledge (of their authenticity), and thereby MISLEADING MEN from the REVEALED PATH OF ALLAH and THROWING RIDICULE IN THE PATH ALLAH (S.W.T.).
"But there are, among men, those who takes instead frivolous HADITH, without knowledge (or meaning), to mislead (men) from the Path of Allah and throw ridicule (on the Path): for such there will be a Humiliating Penalty.When Our Signs are rehearsed to such a one, he turns away in arrogance, as if he heard them not, as if there were deafness in both his ears: announce to him a grievous Penalty." Surah 31:6-7
In Surah 47:1-3 Allah says,
"Those who disbelieve and turn (men) from the way of Allah, He rendereth their actions vain. And those who believe and do good works and believe in that which is revealed unto Muhammad --and it is the truth from their Lord-- He riddeth them of their ill deeds and improveth their state. That is because those who disbelieve follow falsehood and because those who believe follow the truth from their Lord. Thus Allah coineth their similitudes for mankind."
Islam is the fastest growing religion today. Majority of those who enter Islam do so after studying the Verses of the Qur'an.
They compare these text with what they have been told to believe or did believe. As long as these new converts stay within the realm of the Revealed Text they find Islam to be transparent, rational, simple and above all easy to understand faith.
Once they step into the realm of the re-narrated reports called Hadith and Sunnah books outside of the Qur'an that came over 250 years AFTER the death of the Prophet Muhammad the number of these reports are far more in excess of the revealed verses, Islam no longer appears to be the same logically clear headed and totally lucid when they had joined. I have to say I'm a witness to this tragedy.
Those who are in the field of doing the Daw'ah know this to be the fact.
Furthermore, they are also aware that the serious challenges they face from the enemies of Islam have their roots in the text of "unreliable Hadiths".
It is often argued that to understand the verses of the Qur'an one must refer to the Hadith Literature.
On the other hand there are several narrations within this Questionable Literature (as we have today), that the unreliable Narrations do contradict the reliable Verses of the Qur'an, and at times, these contradictions are even unexplainable by the scholars doing the Daw'ah.
Obviously, that Hadiths were implanted by the enemies of Islam to CORRUPT the Deen of Allah.
