Prominent figures who was rejectors of Hadith, if Muslims follow Hadith, why don't Muslims follow Hadith that prohibit Hadith?

The writing and documentation of the Sunnah is an interesting and important part of our Islamic history. The Ahl'ul-Hadith or the Traditionists did not distinctly emerge in Muslim society until the second Islamic century, more than a hundred years after the Prophet's death.

There is a big gap between the Prophet and the first legal digest that contains some traditions, i.e.the Muwatta' of Imam Malik (d. 179 AH). It is historically known that the `four guided caliphs'— close companions of the Prophet — not only did not leave us any collection of traditions, they did not make use or made very little use of traditions.

Nevertheless, against all odds, the Traditionists prevailed in insisting the hadith/sunnah was binding on the Muslims from the beginning. They claim to derive this authority for the hadith from the Quran itself, as we shall presently show. They cannot do otherwise than make this claim, for without the authority of the Quran as the basis of its legitimacy, the hadith is automatically rejected. It will be seen that this claim is false.

They put forward four principal arguments.

Firstly, the hadith is also Divine revelation.

Secondly, God's command to the believers to obey the messenger means that they must uphold the hadith.

Thirdly, the Prophet is the interpreter of the Quran and the hadith is necessary in order to understand and carry out Quranic injunctions. Fourthly and lastly, the Prophet is an example for the believers to follow, and his sunna is binding on the believers.

It seems obvious that obedience to the messenger in the above verse and in other similar verses means obedience to God, since the messenger is not an independent agency. As messenger, he was the agency that delivered the message, and obedience to him was equivalent to obedience to God. As stated in the Quran several times, "The sole function of the messenger is to deliver the message." 

It should be noted that the Quran uses the word `messenger' and not `Muhammad'. The obedience is, therefore, to the messenger, that is, to the message that he brought from God.

In short, God and messenger in this context constitute one concept which should not be separated.

In all its details, the reader of this history can find all the indications that God permitted the corruption of the so called Hadiths and Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammed as He told us in 6:112-113.

God repeatedly told us in the Quran that His book, is complete, perfect and fully detailed, see 6:19,38,114,115; 50:45, 12:111, and if He so willed He would have given us hundreds of books, not just one QURAN, see18:109 and 31:27.  

How then can the hadith writers insist that the Quran is incomplete when it also has every kind of example quoted for mankind's reference? The Quran therefore contains details for all our needs. The Quran states general principles in places where it would be too burdensome for us if God were to make strict rules. This is especially true when the Quran touches on socio-cultural matters as they differ from place to place and among different peoples.

As regards the Muslims, Muhammad brought them the Quran, described by God Himself as an invincible book, but no sooner did Muhammad die and leave them, they contrived to make Muhammad bring two books and, after bitter quarrels, they legislated, two hundred and fifty years later, that Muslims must uphold not only the Quran but also the hadith. However, in truth, since then, they followed the hadith rather than the Quran.

God knew that the Quran is enough and that those who do not find the Quran to be enough will be committing idol-worship by having people like Sahih Bukhari and company as partners with God, in setting the law for this great and perfect deen, see 9:36,12:40, 30:43.

The Hadiths that disallow the writing of it have the same roots which many of us reject. But if you look at it the other way, it only deepens the contradiction of Hadith. It shows that the Hadith is chiding itself for its narrations and yet it is going on narrating.

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.Science of hadith perfect? Science of hadith came about because of mass corruption in the fidelity of hadith.

 The Six authoritative (Sahih) hadith are compiled by:

Sahih Bukhari (810-870); Sahih Muslim (817-874); Daud (817-888); al-Tirmidhi (821-892); al-Nasai (d.915); al-Darimi (797-868); and Ibn Maja (824-886).

Muhammad’s authority following the Sunnah was developed posthumously, invented by the religious scholars as a device to wrestle power out of the hands of the Caliph.

The idea that Muhammad’s political power passed to the Caliph was invented at a later period (the early Abbasid- post 750 AD), when the idea of Muhammad's Sunnah was used to undermine the positions of the Caliphs (1986:26).

Besides, when I say that the writing of Hadith is not allowed, I don't take this information from the Hadith itself. Instead I take it from the authentic data of Islamic history. The fact that the according totheir own sources of Hadith, it's stated that the Prophet forbade people to write down his words, and also the fact that during the reign of Abu Bakr Siddiq and Umar bin Khattab thousands of Hadith were destroyed (BURNED) by them is well known and is found everywhere in Islamic history. 

Majority of the Hadith narrations either have no link with the important values of the Qur'aan or they altogether clash with the ethics of the Qur'aan. Only a small amount of narrations conform with the Quraanic dictates. But even concerning few of those narrations that might conform with the Qur'aan, there is no reason to presume that these were mentioned by the Prophet is those words. 

What came to be regarded by the Sunnites as the `Six Authentic Books' compiled by Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Daud, Ibn Maja, Tirmidhi and al-Nasa`i.

The four Shi'ite compilations are by al-Kulaini, Ibn Babuwayh, al-Murtada and Ja`afar Muhammad al-Tusi did not exist at the time of the Prophet's death, as the Quran did, but were made between 210 and 410 years later. Why were the compilations not made earlier?

Several modern hadith scholars claim that they possess new evidence to prove that the hadith were written down at the time of the Prophet. They were memorized and handed down from generation to generation until the second and third Islamic centuries when the official compilations were made.

The still unanswered question, even if we were to accept the claim, is this:

"Why was the official compilation not made earlier, especially during the time of the righteous caliphs when the first reporters, i.e., the eye witnesses, were still alive and could be examined?"

When we remember that there was an alleged statement by the Prophet, made at his final Pilgrimage Oration and heard by tens of thousands, exhorting his followers to hold on to the Quran and his sunna, it is most unreasonable not to expect the great early caliphs to order the writing down and compiling of the Prophet's sayings.

That none of them did so could only mean that the Prophet never made the statement, and that it was a later invention attributed to him.

Does not this fact alone show that the hadith was a new development, not sanctioned by the Prophet?

During the second caliph Abu Bakr's administration, Abu Bakr himself ordered the Prophet's secretary, Zaid ibn Thabit, to compile the Quran into book form, taking care that all its contents were corroborated by two or more witnesses.

When the third caliph, Uthman, prepared his official version of the Quran for dissemination throughout the length and breadth of Islam, he based it on this version. Thus, the Quran fully satisfies the requirements of a well-corroborated text.

Why was Hadith forbidden?

There are several hadiths that say Prophet Muhammad forbade his sayings from being recorded. 

Abu Saeed al-Khudri said, “We exerted our best to get the Messenger of Allah to allow us to write his hadith but he refused.” Recorded by Al-Baghdadi in Taqyid al-Ilm 

Narrated Zayd ibn Thabit:

Al-Muttalib ibn Abdullah ibn Hantab said:

Zayd ibn Thabit entered upon Mu'awiyah and asked him about a tradition. He ordered a man to write it. Zayd said: The Apostle of Allah ordered us not to write any of his traditions. So he erased it. [Sunan of Abu-Dawood Book 25, Number 3640:]

The reason most often given by Hadith followers as to why it was forbidden is formulated by Ramhurmuzi (d. 360 A.H.) as follows: 

“Apparently the prohibition was in the beginning to make their attention to the Qur’an only and to distinguish the recording of the Qur’an from the sunnah (traditions) of the Prophet and to keep things safe from any kind of mixture or confusion.” 

Muslims claim that in order for one to be a Muslim, one must uphold both the Quran and the Sunnah (Hadith) of Muhammad. Yet at the same time they claim that the Sunnah was not written down to prevent it from mixing with the Quran. 

It seems to me that for the followers of the hadiths, Quran and Sunnah (Hadith) are one in the same. Any difference seems to be merely lip service. In reality, there is no distinction drawn, since both are equally binding according to them.  However, in reality, as per the laws of Allah, it is only the Quran that is binding.

Some more hadith narrations which itself confirm the illegality of the Hadith institution, by confirming that the Prophet (pbuh) gave orders not to write anything except the Quraan.

1) Ibn Saeed Al-Khudry reported that the messenger of God had said, 

"Do not write anything from me EXCEPT QURAN. Anyone who wrote anything other than the Quran shall erase it." 

The following is reported to have happened 30 years after the death of the Prophet Muhammed and shows that the Prophet never allowed anyone to write anything except the Quraan till the end. 

Those hadiths that claim or indicate that the Prophet later changed his mind and allowed the companions to write his sayings are considered fabricated or weak by the hadith scholars themselves.   

But the following which was narrated 30 years after the passing away of the Prophet (pbuh) is enough to conclude the Prophet Muhammed  never authorized the writing of the hadiths since the time he told his followers not to write anything except the Quran.

(2) From Ibn Hanbal:

Zayd Ibn Thabit (The Prophet's closest revelation writer) visited the Khalifa Mu'aawiyah (more than 30 years after the Prophet's death), and told him a story about the Prophet. Mu'aawiyah liked the story and ordered someone to write it down. But Zayd said. " the messenger of God ordered us NEVER to write anything of his hadith," 

(3) The famous book, "Ulum Al-Hadith" by Ibn Al-Salah, reports a hadith by Abu Hurayra in which Abu Hurayra said the messenger of God came out to us while we were writing his hadiths and said; "What are you writing?" We said, "Hadiths that we hear from you, messenger of God."

He said, "A book other than the book of God ?!" We said, "Should we talk about you?" He said, Talk about me, that would be fine, but those who will lie will go to Hell. Abu Hurayra said, we collected what we wrote of Hadiths and burned them in fire. 

(4) In the famous book, "Taq-yeed Al-Ilm", Abu Hurayra said, the messenger of God was informed that some people are writing his hadiths. He took to the pulpit of the mosque and said, "What are these books that I heard you wrote? I am just a human being. Anyone who has any of these writings should bring it here. Abu Hurayra said we collected all these and burned them in fire. 

(5) Ibn Hanbal in his Musnad book, narrates a hadith in which Abdullah Ibn Omar said, "the messenger of God one day came out to us as if he was going to depart us soon and said, "When I depart you (die), hold to the book of God, prohibit what it prohibits and accept as halal what it makes halal." 

No mention of the Sunnah. 

(6) Again, in the book "Taq-yeed Al-Ilm", Abu Saeed Al-Khudry said, " I asked the messenger of God a permission to write his hadiths, but he refused to give me a permission." 

(7) The farewell Pilgrimage of the Prophet Muhammad is a corner stone in the Muslim history. The Final Sermon given by the Prophet during this pilgrimage was witnessed by tens of thousands of Muslims.  Yet there are THREE versions of this sermon in the Hadith books. This by itself reflects the degree of corruption of the Hadith books as this is the most witnessed speech of the prophet Muhammad. 

Prominent figure who was a rejector of Hadith 

Abu Bakr at one point was not sure whether to keep what he knows of hadiths or not. He had collected 500 Hadiths during very long companionship of the Prophet Muhammed, but he could not sleep the night until he burned them.

Umar ibn al-Khattab and the Question of Hadith

Umar ibn al-Khattab was among the most important early Muslims, one of Mumammad’s closest companions, a champion of Islam, and the second man to lead the Muslim community after Mumammad’s death. As the second of the four rightly guided Caliphs (al-khulafa’ al-rashidun), Umar’s reputation for piety and dedication to Islam has been both legendary and unquestioned among Sunni Muslims throughout history. His opinions on religious matters are also highly respected.

Umar is a lightening-rod figure in the controversies over Hadith. Scattered throughout various genres of Islamic literature from the third/ninth century onward are reports that ascribe to this legendary figure strong objections to the writing and transmission of Hadith.

Taken together, the details of these stories make a powerful impression and corroborate that in these stories Umar “radically separated the authority of the Messenger from his Message . . . [and] distinguished the Book as an independent truth source to which no stipulations could be made.”

This is a particularly important aspect of the controversies over the Hadith as a source of scriptural authority because that authority rests on the belief in Prophetic authority and the duality of revelation.

Umar in al-Tabaqat al-Kubra

The first story Ibn Sad narrates about Umar’s attitude toward the recording of the Hadith occurs in the section where he recounts his appointment as Caliph (Dhikr istikhlaf Umar).

He cites a story from Sufyan ibn Uyayna (d. 198 AH), on the authority of al-Zuhri that “Umar wanted (arada) to write the Traditions (al-sunan), so he spent a month praying for guidance; and afterward, he became determined to write them. But then he said:

‘I recalled a people who wrote a book, then they dedicated themselves to it (aqbalu 4alaihi) to it and neglected the Book of God (wa-taraku Kitab Allah).’”

which reminded me of Prophet Muhammad who said that his people (Muslims)DESERTED/ABANDONED the Qur’aan:

Qur’aan 25:30

وَقَالَ الرَّسُولُ يَا رَبِّ إِنَّ قَوْمِي اتَّخَذُوا هَذَا الْقُرْآنَ مَهْجُورًا

"The Messenger said, “My Lord, my people have deserted this Qur’aan."

The wording of this story is very direct and leaves no doubt as to what Umar feared might happen if he were to commit the Traditions (al-sunan) of the Prophet to writing: that, like people before them, Muslims might turn their attention to that book and neglect the Qur’an. Who those people were is not specified in this story.

The next story that Ibn Sad recounts about the Commander of the Faithful (Umar) and his attitude toward the Hadith is found in volume five of the Tabaqat.

It is related on the authority of al-Qasim ibn Mumammad ibn Abi Bakr al-Siddiq (d. 106 AH)—the grandson of Abu Bakr, another of Mumammad’s closest companions and the first of the rightly guided Caliphs who led the Muslim community after his death. 

When al-Qasim was asked by his student Abd Allah ibn al-Ala’ (d. 164 AH) to dictate Hadith, he refused, saying, “the Hadith multiplied during the time of Umar; then he called on the people to bring them to him, and when they brought them to him, he ordered them to be burned.

Afterward, he said, ‘a Mishna like the Mishna of the People of the Book,’ (mathna’a ka mathna’at ahl al-Kitab).”

“From that day on,” Abd Allah ibn al-Ala’ continues, “Al-Qasim forbade me to write Hadith.”

What is the Mishnah of the People of the Book?

("Repetition" or "Study"), completed about 220 AD  (Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Judah ha-Nasi) as the  of almost 150 rabbis were collected by the Rabbinic The Commentary on the Mishnah called Gemara or "Supplementary Learning" was collected by the School for Galilee over the next 200 years and added to the  Mishnah, producing the Palestinian Talmud about 425 AD.

Note that:

The Talmud/Mishnah is the (Hadith) and the Gemara is the (Sunnah)

  ("Supplementary Learning") consists of:The Haggadah (anecdotes and stories for instruction)

• • Halakah (means "the way;" the body of law defining the holy way of life)

The six orders are: Mishnah Hadith of the Jews

• Zeraim ("Seeds"), dealing with prayer and blessings, tithes and agricultural laws (11 tractates)
• Moed ("Festival"), pertaining to the laws of the Sabbath and the Festivals (12 tractates)
• Nashim ("Women"), concerning marriage and divorce, some forms of oaths and the laws of the nazirite (7 tractates)
• Nezikin ("Damages"), dealing with civil and criminal law, the functioning of the courts and oaths (10 tractates)
• Kodashim ("Holy things"), regarding sacrificial rites, the Temple, and the dietary laws (11 tractates) and
• Tohorot ("Purities"), pertaining to the laws of purity and impurity, including the impurity of the dead, the laws of food purity and bodily purity (12 tractates).

As in the first story, what disturbs Umar is the writing of a book that will compete with the Book of God. He compares the written Hadith with the Mishna of the People of the Book.

In Judaism, the Mishna serves much the same function that the Hadith have come to serve in Islam. It is a codification

of the Oral Law and contains rulings related to the details of ritual purity, prayer, marriage, divorce, and so on. The Mishna and the Gemara together make up the Talmud, which is the most important book in Judaism besides the Torah.

However, Umar is credited with objecting to not only the writing of the Hadith, but also to transmitting them. Perhaps the strongest and most compelling story about Umar’s attitude toward Prophetic traditions is that found in volume six of the Tabaqat.

Here, Ibn Sad relates the story of Umar’s instructions to a delegation of companions that he is sending

to the region of Kufa to serve as administrators. He orders them not todistract the people from the Qur’an with the transmission of Hadith.

Again, the wording attributed to Umar is significant:

“la tasadduhum bil-amadith fa-tashghalunahum jarridu al-Qur’an wa-aqillu al-riwayat an rasul Allah” (Do not distract them with the Hadiths, and thus engage them! Bare the Qur’an and spare the narration from God’s Messenger!). 

Several things are important about this particular story.

Umar is giving strong and direct commands in this story:

“la tasadduhum bil-amadith fa-tashghalunahum” (Do not distract them with the Hadiths, and thus engage them!).

Umar follows this up with another equally direct order that deserves careful attention:

“jarridu al-Qur’an.”

The Arabic verb jarrid is the imperative of the second form of j-r-d, literally meaning to make something bare. According to Lisan al-Arab, when used with the Qur’an as its object, as it is in this story, it means not to clothe the Qur’an with anything.

In the Lisan, Ibn Mannur specifically quotes Ibn Uyayna (d. 198 AH), from whom Ibn Sad relates this story, as saying that jarridu al-Qur’an means not to clothe the Qur’an with Madiths (ahadith) of the People of the Book.

However, in this case, Umar’s next words indicate the source of the stories (al-ahadith) with which the Qur’an should not be clothed—al-riwayat an rasul Allah—narration from God’s messenger.

In reporting this story from Ibn Uyayna, Ibn Sad does not indicate that Ibn Uyayna offered other than a literal understanding of Umar’s words. Yet Umar clearly has not strictly forbidden such narration:

“jarridu al-Qur’an wa aqillu al-riwayat an rasul Allah” (Bare the Qur’an and be sparing with narration from God’s Messenger.).

It is not talking about the Messenger or what the Messenger may have said that troubles Umar. What troubles him is the possibility of generating something that would rival the Book of God.

which reminded me of Prophet Muhammad who said that his people (Muslims) DESERTED/ABANDONED the Qur’aan:

Qur’aan 25:30

وَقَالَ الرَّسُولُ يَا رَبِّ إِنَّ قَوْمِي اتَّخَذُوا هَذَا الْقُرْآنَ مَهْجُورًا

"The Messenger said, “My Lord, my people have deserted this Qur’aan."

In the previous stories, Umar’s concern was that writing down the Traditions would do so. In this story it is clear that he

fears any narration of Prophetic Traditions will do the same thing. 

Taken together, these stories indicate that writing and transmitting the Hadith was a commonly accepted practice—it is only after careful consideration that Umar rejects the idea of putting the Hadith in writing, and then takes the drastic step of calling for and destroying what others had written of the Hadith.

This suggests that Umar’s actions represent a radical departure from the prevailing norm. In that case, Umar, in keeping with his image as the defender of God’s Book, is acting in response to something that is competing for status and authority with God’s Book. If these stories truly represent Umar’s attitude toward writing and transmitting Prophetic traditions, it could be argued that they represent his personal opinion and are not based on a command from the

Prophet.

However, there are two problems with this argument.

First, it presupposes the acceptance of commands of the Prophet, beyond the Qur’an, as binding, while that idea was still a matter of some debate when Abd al-Razzaq and Ibn Sad were writing.

Second, and more importantly, even if it is only Umar’s personal opinion, it is still the basis for his objections to the transmission and writing of the Hadith. 

According to these stories, Umar strongly opposed both the writing and the transmission of Hadith—not because he disapproved of writing or of sharing information, but because he feared that they would gain a status equal to or even greater than that of the Qur’an itself.

Even if these stories do not truly represent the attitude, commands, and actions of Umar, they do represent him as the archetypal defender of God’s Book at a time when some people saw the Prophetic traditions as competing for status and authority with God’s Book.

Umar in the Hadith

The Tabaqat is not the only third-century source that portrays Umar as objecting to extra-Qur’anic materials. Several Hadith collections, both canonical and noncanonical, report Umar’s concern about extra-Qur’anic materials from the Prophet.

The collections of Hadith that eventually became canonized are not the earliest collections of Hadith that have come down to us.

An important earlier work is the Musannaf of Abd al-Razzaq al-San4ani (d. 211/827).22 Abd al-Razzaq reports

both 4Umar’s decision not to commit the Sunna to writing for fear that it will lead to a book to which people turn and leave the Book of God, and also a story in which Umar gives this order to those he is sending out to govern.

The details of the former story are nearly identical withminor but notable additions.

However, the details of the latter differ more dramatically between the version reported by Abd al-Razzaq and

the version reported some two decades later by Ibn Sad. The story about Umar abandoning the idea of committing the Sunna to writing recorded by Abd al-Razzaq adds the statement that Umar consulted the Prophet’s companions on the issue and that they encouraged him to do so.

Abd al-Razzaq’s version also ends with a dramatic statement attributed to Umar. After recalling a previous people who wrote a book to which they dedicated themselves and for which they “left the Book of God,”

Umar is reported as saying, “wa-inni wallahi la ulabbis Kitab Allah bi-shayy’in abadan” (By God! I will never clothe the Qur’an with anything).

Looking back at the entry in Lisan al-Arab noted earlier in the discussion of the story related in the Tabaqat, Ibn Mannur specifies that jarridu al-Qur’an means not to clothe it with anything (la tulabbisu bihi shayyan). This addition suggests that the Hadith will not only cause people to desert the Qur’an, but that they may also somehow conceal it from them.

The details differ even more in the stories in which Umar is quoted as ordering his provincial governors to “bare the Qur’an.”

In order to appreciate the differences, let us compare both stories in their entirety. 

First, Ibn Sad’s version:

We were headed toward Kufa and 4Umar accompanied us as far as Sirar. Then he made ablutions, washing twice, and said:

“Do you know why I have accompanied you?” We said: “Yes, we arecompanions of God’s messenger (peace and blessings be upon him).” Then, he said:

“You will be coming to the people of a town for whom the buzzing of the Qur’an is as the buzzing of bees. Therefore, do not distract them with the Hadiths, and thus engage them. Bare the Qur’an and spare the narration from God’s

Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him)! Go and I am your partner.”

The earlier story related by Abd al-Razzaq is somewhat longer than the later story, containing a broad variety of orders. It is a list of commands and prohibitions that includes the command to

“bare the Qur’an and spare the narration from God’s Messenger.”

However, the later story recorded by Ibn Sad does not contain any of the other orders found in the early version. Instead, it focuses on this particular order and includes detailed reasoning, in lyrical wording, on 4Umar’s part:

“You will be coming to the people of a town for whom the buzzing of the Qur’an is as the buzzing of

bees. Therefore, do not distract them with the Hadith . . .”

The comparison of the recitation of the Qur’an to the buzzing of bees suggests that the people are constantly occupied with the Qur’an. The Hadith are portrayed as something that may take their attention away from the Qur’an. The idea that the Hadith will distract people from the Qur’an is central to the arguments against the Hadith that we will see later in

Al-Khatib al-Baghdadi’s Taqyid al-Ilm, and in the modern arguments. The increasing detail and elaboration that are evident in the stories reported about Umar from Abd al-Razzaq’s Musannaf and Ibn Sad’s Tabaqat in the early and mid-third century AH, to al-Baghdadi’s Taqyid al-Ilm in the mid-fifth century AH suggests that as the Hadith gained greater authority and attention, those who opposed that authority developed and refined their own arguments.

Umar also figures prominently in a story found in the canonical collections of the Hadith. That story relates an incident that took place

It is not only Umar who is credited with prohibiting the writing of extra-Qur’anic materials from the Prophet. In addition to the stories of Umar’s objection, the canonical collections of Hadith also report a direct command from the Prophet prohibiting his followers from writing down anything on his authority other than the Qur’an and ordering

those who had done so to erase what they had written.

This particular report is narrated seven times in three collections, with only minor variations in textual content, by several different chains of transmitters on the authority of Abu Said al-Khudri.

According to Azmi, only one chain of transmitters is considered sound (Samim) according to classical

Muslim standards of Hadith criticism. With the exception of the report in Muslim’s Samim, the different versions are identical apart from different Arabic words meaning “except.”

Because proponents of the Hadith to us, it is difficult to ascertain how important the prophet’s reported prohibition was to thearguments of their opponents.

However, the controversy fueled by these reports has been addressed from the third/ninth century to the present in

the works of a wide variety of scholars.

The existence of equally sound reports in which the Prophet permits writing is the basis of one of the most frequent responses offered by proponents of Hadith—that the prohibition of writing Hadith was later abrogated by a statement of permission to do so.

Together with the reports relating Umar’s opposition to the transmission and recording of the Hadith, these reports from the Prophet have fueled both the classical and modern discussion over the legitimacy of the Hadith as an authoritative source of religious guidance for Muslims.

Another prominent figure according to the rejectors of Hadith is Ali Ibn Abu Talib, the fourth Khalifa

Ali Ibn Abu Talib, in one of his speeches said,

"I urge all those who have writing taken from the messenger of God to go home and erase it. The people before you were annihilated because they followed theHadiths of their scholars and left the book of their Lord." (Sunan Al-Daramy)

Some people claim that the "Hadith & Sunnah" are divine revelations.

Obviously, they are not aware that the criterion of divine revelations is PERFECT PRESERVATION.

Since the so-called Hadith & Sunnah of the Prophet have been vastly corrupted, they can never meet the criterion of divine revelation. It is an acknowledged fact that the vast majority of Hadiths are false fabrications.

Millions of Muslims thought, that obeying the God is obeying the Qur'an and obeying the Prophet Muhammad is obeying the Hadiths & Sunnah, but what God says about it?

"Obeying the Messenger is obeying God." (Quran 4:80), and

"As We have sent among you a Messenger (Prophet Muhammad) from yourselves, to recite to you Our verses (Quran )...." (2: 151).

Those who follow the Quran are following the Prophet Muhammed, those who are following the alleged Hadith and Sunnah are not following the Prophet but following those who wrote these books.

The number of hadiths collected and attributed to the prophet Muhammed is in the hundreds of thousands, as much as 700,000.

As much as 99% of all these hundreds of thousands hadiths are pure lies and fabricationsand were rejected by the early Muslim scholars who thought they can figure out which hadith is authentic and which is not.

On the contrary, the remaiming 1% Hadiths which according to the writers of Hadiths books are the most authentic and Sahih Hadiths, but among these 1% Sahi Hadiths there are so many Hadiths which contradict with Qur'an or against the teaching of Qur'an, and there are many Hadiths which contradict with other Hadiths as well.

Even then, we call these books of Hadiths Authentic & Sahih Hadiths and claimed these Hadiths as divine revelation.? And even then mostly Muslims are looking forward for details of Qur'an in these corrupted so called books of Hadiths. While God says that Qur'an is complete and fully detailed.

Malik Ibn Anas collected about 500 hadiths in his famous book, "Al-Muwattaa" (

2) Ahmed Ibn Hanbal, collected about 40,000 hadiths, in his famous "Musnad" from among 700,000 hadiths. That is 94% lies and fabrications.

(3) Bukhary collected about 600,000 hadiths and accepted 7,275 hadiths and considered 99% hadiths to be un-proven hadiths, lies and/or fabrications.

(4) Muslim collected 300,000 hadiths and only accepted 4,000 of them, and refused about 99% of these collected hadiths.

This will give you an idea of how much corruption entered or tried to enter Islam from the back door. Now we should understand why God promised to preserve, protect and safeguard His book, the ONLY authentic hadith, the ONLY acceptable hadith, the BEST HADITH, the Quran.

NO such guarantee was offered to the fabrications and lies of the fabricators and liars who tried to improve on God's book, and called the Quran incomplete, undetailed and imperfect, and claimed that the Quran needs clarification by another book.

Not a simple number to ignore regarding God preserving His divine revelations as stated in (15: 9).

"Absolutely, we have revealed the reminder (Azekrra) (Quran), and absolutely, we will preserve it."

Seeing how much falsehood entered the so called Hadiths books (99%) would make any sincere Muslim understand the reason these books were so much corrupted.

One more criteria for God's words is:

"... If it were from other than God, they would have found in it numerous contradictions."   ( 4: 82)

On the authority of Al-Hasan bin Ali, the grandson of the messenger of Allah, who said : I memorized from the messenger of Allah his saying :

"Leave that which makes you doubt for that does not makes you doubt." narrated by Termithi, and Tirmithi said it is true and fine Hadith.

Prophet Muhammad forbids the writing of his Hadiths because God knows that some sincere believers will get lost and will be looking into Hadith books for guidance,"

(On the day of judgment) the messenger will say, 'My Lord; my people have deserted THIS QURAN (25. 30).

The farewell Pilgrimage of the Prophet Muhammed is a corner stone in the Muslim history. The Final Sermon given by the Prophet during this pilgrimage was witnessed by thousands of Muslims. There are however THREE versions of this sermon in the Hadiths books. This by itself reflects the degree of corruption of the Hadiths books as this is the most witnessed speech of the prophet Muhammed.

and my Family. Muslim 44/4, Nu2408; Ibn Hanbal1- First version, " I left for you what if you hold up to, you will never be misguided,

4/366; darimi 23/1, nu 3319.

This is the version made up by the Shiite Muslims.

and my Sunnah" . Muwatta, 46/32-Second version, "I left for you what if you hold up to, you will never be misguided,

This is the version made up by the Sunni Muslims.

" Muslim 15/19, nu 1218; Ibn Majah 25/84, Abu dawud 11/56.3- Third version, "I left for you what if you hold up to, you will never be misguided,

 (3x) in the Quran that Muhammad's message is ONLY the QURAN.This is the version hated by the Sunni and Shiite Muslims alike. This is the And

Many Sunni Muslims and Shiite Muslims do not even know that this version of the sermon exists. In reality, they do not want to know, the truth hurts, but Hell fire hurts much more.

So this is my perspective why Prophet Muhammad prohibited the writing of his Hadiths.

Reference:

Hadith as Scripture by Aisha Musa

HADITH A RE-EVALUATION By Kassim Ahmad

http://www.stjohnadulted.org/3faith1.htm#Oral Torah

It is commonly (and mistakenly) argued that Adam was created first which is non quranic, Qur'an supports equality towards both

In the Name of Allah, the Beneficient, the Most Merciful

"No nation rises higher than its women." 

This is a reality for us all with spiritual equality, responsibility and accountability for both men and women is a well-developed theme in the Quran. Spiritual equality between men and women in the sight of Allah is not limited to purely spiritual, religious issues, but is the basis for equality in all temporal aspects of human endeavor. We have to understand that a spiritually evolved woman understands the difference between being a girlfriend to running after boys and choosing a man/husband. This understand can have a play a big difference in her life and make a profound effect on the quality of life for her, her offspring and her community.

Its understood that a strong married couples between a man/woman build wealthy families which, in turn, build affluent communities.

"O mankind! Be conscious of your Sustainer, who has created you out of one living entity (nafs), and out of it created its mate, and out of hte two spread abroad a multitude of men and women. And remain conscious of Allah, in whose name you demand your rights from one another, and of these ties of kinship. Verily, Allah is ever watchful over you! (4:1)"

Unfortunately there are some Quranic translators who disagree on the meaning of "nafs" in the above verse which Muhammad Asad translates as "living entity." 

Many claim that "nafs" translates as "person," that is, Adam. But according to another translation of the Qur'an by Asad and other Allah created humankind and its sexual counterpart out of its own kind. 

The Arabic word referring to mate (zawj) in the above Quranic verse is grammatically neutral and can be applied both ot male and female interchangeably. 

So it is not clear, nor should we conjecture and of course conjecture does not hold any weight over the truth and we can't conjecture that Adam was created first, his wife was created out of Adam, or that woman is innately subservient to Adam/man. 

The fact that this Quranic verse does not specify one specific sex over the other is proof of gender non-bias and equality. 

It is commonly (and mistakenly) argued that Adam was created first, and that by this gesture Allah finds the male dominant and superior to the female; however, the wording of the Quran in the aforementioned verse does not support this claim. This is non Quranic that Adam or man was created first. 

The Quran describes how Adam and and his wife were told to avoid a specific tree, which they both approached. For this act of disobedience to Allah, they were consequently banished from the garden; however, later both repented and were forgiven by Allah. 

The Quran does not allude to Adam's wife tempting Adam to eat from the tree and being responsible for their downfall. 

In the Quranic version, both were held accountable and both paid the price for their choices, proving that gender equality is an intrinsic part of Islamic belief. (See Quran 2:30-37)

Women are independent individuals, as exemplified by the fact that all human beings will be accountable for their own intentions and deeds on the Day of Judgment when "no human being shall be of the least avail to another human being" (82:19) 

If men were ultimately responsibile for women (fathers for their daughters, husbands for their wives, etc.), then this accountability would be solely on men's shoulders to bear until the Day of Judgment.

But this is not the case:

"And whatever wrong any human being commits rests upon himself alone; and no bearer of burdens shall be made to bear another's burden..." (6:165)

Consequently, we cannot be judged according to our own deeds unless we have the freedom of choice to do so. This free choice carries with it the responsibility to make the right choices or paying the consequence for wrong ones, best exemplified by Adam and his wife.

In the Quran, reference to men and women is through attributes and deeds, by which we will be judged. 

The most pious of us, or those who follow Allah's commands, are referred to as "believers" or "mu'mineen" (pl.) in the Quran. 

In many references, in fact, the Quran resonates this equality by eloquently repeating "men and women" with ethical and practical qualities throughout the verses, and even emphasizes this ten times in the following verse:

"Verily for all men and women who have surrendered themselves unto Allah, and all believing men and believing women, and all truly devout men and truly devout women, and all men and women who are true to their word, and all men and women who are patient in adversity, and all men and women who humble themselves before Allah, and all men and women who give in charity, and all self-denying men and self-denying women, and all men and women who are mindful of their chastity, and all men and women who remember Allah unceasingly: for all of them has Allah readied forgiveness of sins and a mighty reward." (33:35)

It is paramount to understand tha tthe Quran equates being a "mu'min" (sing.) with actual practice, so that it is not enough to just have faith in principle; we must put our faith into practice. The same applies to our belief in the equality of men and women; gender equality as outlined in the Quran must also be put into practice. 

Both man and woman have been created from the same single vital principle:

 “It is He Who has created you from a single vital principle [NAFS] and then He created from it a sort of being having its like [ZAWJ]…”[7:189].

“O Mankind! Guard yourselves (from the inevitable consequences of violating the commands) of your Guardian-Lord [Rabb] (by carefully abiding by His Guidance) Who created you from a single vital principle [NAFS] and then He created from it a sort of being having its like [ZAWJ]…”[4:1]

 “And among His Signs is this, that He created for you sort of beings having your like [AZWAAJ] from your own vital principle [NAFS]…” [30:21]

Male and female are from one another:

 “So their Guardian-Lord responded to them: That I will not waste the work of a worker among you, whether male or female, the one of you being from the other;…”[3:195]

 All mankind has been created from male and female:

Female plays as vital part in the process of procreation as a male.

 “O mankind! We created you all from male and female, and made you into nations and tribes, that you may know each other (not that ye may despise (each other). Verily the most honoured of you in the sight of Allah is (he who is) the most righteous of you. And Allah has full knowledge and is well acquainted (with all things)”. [49:13]

Principle of division of labour:

Men have been blessed with certain qualities which women lack and women are endowed with certain abilities which men do not have. Both men and women can earn and own. 

Men shall have what they earn and women shall have whatever they earn [4:32].

Although women can earn but due to biological reasons, they are incapacitated for considerable periods of time, to earn a living. Due to this fact it is obvious and natural that the responsibility for maintaining the family is vested in men. When women are given such protection then they must fulfil their functions as women faithfully and safeguard their potentialities [4:34].

Both men and women are to be rewarded for their actions:

So their Guardian-Lord responded to them: That I will not waste the work of a worker among you, whether male or female, the one of you being from the other;…[3:195]

It was not woman who was deceived by Satan:

Adam and his wife (the representatives of men and women of the human species) have been mentioned in the Quran at various places.

It is incorrect to claim that it was Adam’s wife who was deceived by the Satan. Quran is quite clear in this respect. It says: Satan enticed BOTH of them [2:36].

In the phrase “Faazallahuma alshshaytanu” [2:36], “huma” stands for “both”.

All the qualities that are attributed to Momin men, also belong to Momin women:

Society consists of both men and women, who have to go through life hand in hand.  If one of them lags behind, it is bound to hamper the progress of the other. There is no difference in the potentialities of men and women; except certain biological differences which have been retained for the posterity of the human race.

Both are equally capable to submit to the Divine Laws;

Both are equally capable to exhibit complete conviction in them;

Both are equally capable to utilize their developed potentialities according to the Divine Laws; Both are equally capable to be true to the covenant (9:111) which they have made with Allah ; Both are equally capable to be steadfast when facing adversities, troubles or difficulties;

Both are equally capable to be prompt in rendering service to others (like the fruit-laden branch of an easily accessible tree);

Both are equally capable to be ever ready to sacrifice all their assets for the sake of the Divine Order;

Both are equally capable to abstain themselves from all that the Divine Laws prohibit them to do and to bear in mind the restrictions imposed by these Laws;

Both are equally capable to guard their chastity fully; [33:35] 

The Quran reveals:

“Let there arise out of you a band of people inviting to all that is good enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong: they are the ones to attain felicity.” (3-104)

As Muslims, we try to strive to be close to Allah (become God-conscious) through our daily actions and Allah in turn gives us guidance and outlines how we can become not just Muslims but believers (a higher degree of faith) in the following verses:

He also details our creation in the beginning of men and women by the following verses:

“O Mankind reverence your Guardian Lord, who created you from a single person, created of like nature, his mate and from them twain scattered (like seeds) countless men and women; reverence Allah, through whom ye demand your mutual rights, and reverence the wombs (that bore you): for Allah ever watches over you)" (4:1)

And outlines how men and women should relate to each other in the following verse:

“Allah hath promised to Believers Men and women, Gardens under which rivers flow to dwell therein, and beautiful mansions in gardens of everlasting bliss. But the greatest bliss is the good pleasure of God: that is the supreme felicity” (9: 72)

Diversity began with the creation of gender:

“O human beings! We have created you all out of a male and a female, and made you into (various) peoples and tribes so that you may come to know one another. Surely, the most honored of you in the sight of Allah is the one who is most conscious of Him. Behold, Allah is All-knowing, All-aware” (49:13)………

Yet in this current day and age, women regardless if they are Muslims or not suffer oppression because of cultural restrictions that are not Islamicly justified. This must come to a stop. We must start to dialogue about these oppressions that occur not only around the world but here in our own communities. 

Women have suffered for thousands of years even from before the time of the prophet and continue to suffer until today – with female infanticide marking the attitude of Arab society to females which led tribes to treat women as subordinates (like property) to the cruel treatment of women with regards to marriage and divorce etc.

According to history it was not until the Quran was revealed that female infanticide was considered a crime and laws regarding marriage and divorce were outlined to give woman the rights that they had been denied.

But even so, a cultural attitude towards women has persisted throughout the years, we see in practice even here in our own communities in 2011 in some of these so called Muslim countries whereby certain Islamic centers/mosques discourage or even restrict women from attending and some women are intimidated by fear of rejection and humiliation to enter Alah’s house of worship. Some mosques do not allow women to enter the mosque from the front doors etc.

In a 2001 CAIR study of 416 American mosques - 2/3 of mosques women were not allowed to pray in the main hall, 1/4 of the mosques did not offer programs for women, 1/3 did not allow women to sit on the governing 

boards.

Women until today still are not educated as to their Islamic rights in marriage (their rights to include various conditions in a marriage contract etc). There have been cases where marriages are not registered with the state and thus denying the woman the legal right of protection in cases of divorce.

Some women are restricted from higher education which is contrary to what the teachings of the Qur'an. Women are discouraged from education because the families fear this will decrease their ability to marry and others who are even less fortunate are restricted from even a basic education in other countries.

Most Muslims are taught that Islam liberated women by giving them rights not previously enjoyed.Some examples include rights of ownership, decision-making in marriage, divorce and so on. 

Indeed, when reviewing primary Muslim sources of Qur'an and and not any other book including the so called authentic Hadith (words and deeds allegedly attributed to the Prophet Muhammed),one is impressed by an overall image of men and women as equal partners as those who are expected by Allah to"enjoin the doing of what is right and forbid the doing of what is wrong" (9:71) in all spheres of life, and to act as His vicegerents in ensuring justice, freedom and equality for all.

The importance of developing a strong family as the major building block of a strong society is clearly expressed in Islamic literature. The family unit is solidified by mutual respect, understanding and compassion that applies within the family and among all members of society in general.

Unfortunately, over time, many of the original principles have been abandoned or modified to suit political agendas, thus presenting Muslims with laws and images that hardly resembled the original Islamic community led by Muhammad who brought the Qur'an alone and judged by the Qur'an alone.

Many of these laws were generated between the 10th and 12th centuries from man made guesswork called Hadith and Sunnah books long after the death of Muhammad, and are particularly reflected in legislation today related to marriage and divorce which often place women at a distinct disadvantage.

Muslims who live as minorities in non-Islamic countries are also affected by the sexist and authoritarian attitudes that pervade many communities and impact behavior in terms of marriage, divorce, abuse, exclusion of women from the mosques and decision-making bodies, double standards applied to male and female children and so on.

Because of a belief in a liberated, equitable and dignified position of women outlined in the Qur'an, many Muslims, men and women alike, are calling for reevaluation of attitudes and practices that, although done in the name of Islam, are actually contrary to the basic messages found in the primary source, the Qur'an alone.

To question and possibly oppose entrenched positions that are based on archaic laws, man made books called Hadith  and Sunnah, or cultural trends, requires courage and conviction on the part of Muslims today. But this is necessary and worth any risks in order to enable women to achieve liberation through Islam as originally intended.

Major problem areas that need to be addressed include the following:

1) Family laws pertaining to marriage and divorce that reinforce the image of relationships based on a hierarchy with the rights of the husband superseding those of the wife and that prevent women from being in control of their lives.

2) Violence against women which occurs in the home, community, and as a consequence of warfare which is claimed by some to be allowed by Islam when it is not.

3) Abuse of certain Islamic practices that affect women negatively, such as polygamy and temporary marriage, when applied out of context and without abiding by Islamic restrictions.

4) Excluding women from religious activities such as attendance in the mosque which has clearly been established as the Muslim woman's right.

5) Failure to promote the importance of a woman's contribution to society beyond child-bearing.

6) Failure to enable women to take advantage of rights of property ownership and inheritance outlined by Islam. Focusing on the behavior of women as a marker for morality in society and subjecting them to harassment, intimidation or discrimination.

7) Lack of awareness of the important role of men in contributing significantly in sharing household responsibilities and child-rearing as exemplified by Prophet Muhammed through following the Qur'an alone.

According to reports a young woman living in Florida at the time was told she could not pursue a medical education because that would restrict her ability to get married according to man made guesswork called Hadith and miscontrued verses of the Qur'an.

According to Muslims who follow outside teachings of the Qur'an called Hadith some women are restricted to pursue careers as well. This is in contrast to the Prophet himself who married a successful business women and was not known to discourage her from that pursuit according to their own man made guesswork called Hadith. 

Some women are beaten in the name of Islam by their male counterparts when we know these were not teachings from the Qur'an.

In some current reports on abuse of women, one woman living in the San Fernando valley was punched in the head causing her to be rushed to the Emergency Room because of blood coming out of her ear.

Another woman was forcefully shoved out of a room while she was instructing her son to work on his homework apparently because her husband wasn't able to listen to his television program. Isn't this oppressive?

In another case, a man used the Qur'an in a court of law to explain to the judge why abusing his wife was a right afforded to him by the deen. Imagine that?

In other scenarios, some religious leaders have advised women not to report the abuse to the authorities or blame the woman for breaking up the family. Islam is often used to justify the abuse or blame the victim.

Allah created mates for the following reason:

“And among His wonders is that He created for you mates from among yourselves that you might find restfulness (and satisfaction), and he has engendered between you affection, and tenderness; surely, in that are signs for people who think….” (30:21)

Let the Qur'an be our guide and all of the Prophet's portrayed in the Qur'an be our example of behavior as detailed in the Qur'an.

All of the Prophet's of Allah were men of character, honesty and integrity – they treated their family with kindness and their wives in specific with justice and wisdom.

Muslim women and non Muslim women around the world are suffering because many are raising children single-handedly in the war torn countries and are struggling to make ends meet.

Others suffer oppression at the hands of the system in cases of rape where there is no just legal recourse to this crime for them or from unjust family laws that leave a woman high and dry without any support.

As believers, men and women, we have a responsibility to counter this oppression and right the wrong. Even the smallest of good deeds will not go unrewarded if we have good intentions.

Greet your sisters in Islam with the best of greetings when they enter the mosque and facilitate the Islamic education starting with your daughters/sisters of their rights especially when it comes to marriage and divorce. The leadership has a responsibility to educate the community about affairs of marriage and divorce and provide access to samples of marriage contracts.

The leadership also should encourage couples to discuss important issues prior to marriage to encourage healthy communication as part of community building process.

The Ummah must realize the importance of brotherhood/sisterhood and support each other especially in the United States where there is a lack of extended family - this will ensure stability of families and provide the necessary psychological/moral support that many families need living in a society as a minority.

Women as well have a duty to educate themselves and their offspring and know that their participation in mosques and Islamic activities is their duty.

We need to combat domestic violence occurring in our communities there is no verse in the Qur'an telling men to 'beat' physically abuse or hit their wives and we need to convey this information by participating in awareness campaigns and advising families to seek professional help to avoid the tragic consequences that result and passing this behavior down from one generation to another.

The Islamic leadership including the Shura council must realize the necessity of professional training by experts re: the handling and recognition of domestic violence in the community. In one of the Los Angeles mosques - two brothers on the religious council doubted the fact that domestic violence exists. We need a public discourse and a forum to hear the concerns of Muslim women and to express our outrage at oppression when we witness it.

If we struggle together, men and women to combat oppression against our fellow believers around the world – internal and external oppression – we will be the victors and our Ummah will be a stronger one for that Allah says:

“And their Lord hath accepted of them, and answered them: “Never will I suffer or be lost the work of any of you be he male or female; ye are members, one of another………” (3:195)

The vision of our Ummah is one of men and women, sisters and brothers, male and female believers side by side, working for the cause of Allah to bring justice and peace to the rest of mankind.

Men and women acting as vicegerents to fulfill our responsibility to Allah in the best possible manner, inviting those to the truth, spreading good and working for justice around the world.

The Qur'an outlines essential components of all relationships between all people. These include, among many others, respect, kindness, honesty, tolerance, self-restraint, patience, forgiveness and compassion.

Such virtues apply between parents and children, spouses, business partners, neighbors and friends, regardless of gender.

The following Qur'anic verses illustrate these ideals:

And as for the believers, both men and women, they are close unto one another: they (all) enjoin the doing of what is right and forbid the doing of what is wrong, and are constant in prayer, and render the purifying dues, and pay heed unto God and His Apostle. (9:71)

And vie with one another to attain your Sustainer's forgiveness and to a paradise as vast as the heavens and the earth which has been readied for the God- conscious who spend (in His way) in time of plenty and in time of hardship, and hold in check their anger, and pardon their fellow men because God loves the doers of good. (3:133-134)

And among his wonders is this: He creates for you mates out of your own kind, so that you might incline towards them, and He engenders love and tenderness between you: in this, behold there are messages indeed for people who think.(30:21)

And do good unto thy parents. Should one of them, or both, attain to old age in thy care, never say (a word of disdain) to them or scold them, but (always) speak unto them with reverent speech, and spread over them humbly the wings of thy tenderness, and say: "O my Sustainer! Bestow Thy grace upon them, even as they cherished and reared me when I was a child!" (17:23-24)

In some communities, social contact between men and women who are not related is completely forbidden because of Muslims following man made books outside of the Qur'an called Hadith and Sunnah books, thus resulting in segregated schools, businesses, government offices, and the virtual exclusion of women from positions of power or control.

The domination and oppression of women has resulted from restrictions on social interactions enabling the leadership in governments to deny basic human rights and use Islam to support their position.

The Quran says about the believers in 22:41:

"When we establish them in the land and give them power and authority, they will establish system of Salat, a system of Zakat (i.e. providing means of development for all), and order what is right and stop others from what is wrong and in the end, all matters will be decided in accordance with the Laws of Allah." [22:41]

According to 22:41, when the believers have their own government (i.e. authority and power), they will do three things:

1. They will establish system of Salat

2. They will establish system of Zakat

3. They will order what is right and forbid what is wrong

In other words, three primarily important tasks of an Islamic government would be to establish systems of Salat and Zakat, order what is right and forbid what is wrong.

According to 9:71, women are to equally participate in the above mentioned three primarily important tasks of an islamic government. See the following verse:

"Men and women are each other's friends and benefactors. Both of them order what is right and stop (others from) what is wrong. They establish the system of Salat and arrange for giving Zakat. They obey Allah and His Messenger. These are the ones who will be blessed with kind protection and growth (like an embryo gets in mother's womb). This will be from Allah, Who is all powerful and His power is based on reason."[9:71]

It is clear from the above that men and women equally participate in the affairs of an Islamic Government.

Women can only be confined in homes as a punishment if they are guilty of lewdness and there are at least four witnesses to prove this charge [4:15].

Otherwise, they can not only go out but can also do job [4:32] to earn a living if they desire to and they can also take part in the government [9:71; 22:41].

4/15 And as for those who are guilty of an indecency from among your women, call to witnesses against them four (witnesses) from among you; then if they bear witness confine them to the houses until death takes them away or Allah opens someway for them.

The punishment for men for the same offence is mentioned in 4:16. However, it is not house arrest but any other physical punishment that is to be decide by the islamic Government because, if men are also kept under house arrest, they will not be able to earn a living for themselves and their family.

The keyword in the above verse (4:15) is "AMSIKOO", with the root M-S-K (meem-seen-kaaf) which means:

To retain, detain, withhold, arrest,  restrain, confine or , imprison.

Since women are to be confined in homes only as a punishment, there confinement without any reason would be a crime. Moreover, if the accusation on women is false, the punishment to the accusers is 80 lashes.

24/4 And those who accuse chaste women then do not bring four witnesses, flog them, (giving) eighty stripes, and do not admit any evidence from them ever; and these it is that are the transgressors,

In 33:33, Quran says to women:

Associate yourselves with home...[33:33]

The key word here is "QARN", which is different from "AMSIKOO" used in 4:15 and does not mean to be confined (in homes) but to associate and affiliate (with homes). 

The verse, however, was revealed about the worthy wives of the Prophet. Nevertheless, the verse formulates the principle that the centre of woman's duties is her home, which plays a vital role in human life.

Home here does not refer to a house of brick and mortar. But it refers to pleasant and peaceful surroundings which are conducive to the development of finer sentiments and for the rearing, education and training of the coming generations. 

While Quran suggests that women are to play a vital role at home, it exempts them from the duties of earning and bearing the expenses of the family, which it lays upon men. 

However, in exceptional circumstances, Quran does not forbid women from doing job to earn a living. It just suggests a principle of division of labour between men and women taking into account their biological and psychological differences.

A Muslim woman prays at the Baiturrahman grand mosque in Banda Aceh, Indonesia September 13, 2009. Muslims who commit adultery in Indonesia's Aceh province may be stoned to death under a controversial new sharia law passed by the local parliament on Monday. Aceh is the only province in predominantly Muslim Indonesia to use sharia for its legal code, introduced as part of an autonomy deal in 2002. Picture taken September 13, 2009. REUTERS/Tarmizy Harva (INDONESIA RELIGION IMAGES OF THE DAY CRIME LAW)