Give It a Second Thought: Dealing with Apparently Problematic Hadiths
بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِيْم
Abstract
The surge of criticism in recent times of supposedly problematic ḥadīths generally rests on the claim that such ḥadīths are absurd, unscientific, impossible, or contradictory. Every ḥadīth whose content is seen as problematic has a specific explanation, for which relevant literature can be consulted. This article highlights broad guidelines that are to be kept in mind when dealing with narrations of this nature. After some preliminary thoughts, four points are proffered for consideration: (1) the limits of human reason and experience; (2) the importance of contextualization; (3) the usage of figurative speech; and (4) the need to distinguish between impossibility and unlikelihood. In no way are these guidelines meant to be exhaustive. As a first response, they can help to assuage the concerns of a Muslim whose conscience is constantly agitated by reading apparently problematic ḥadīths. Detailed discussions of specific ḥadīths can be offered on a case-by-case basis.
Introduction
In numerous places in the Qurʾān, Allah calls upon humankind to use their intellect and to contemplate the perfection of His creation. He says, “And now We have sent down to you [people] a Scripture to remind you. Will you not use your reason?”
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In other verses, He reprimands those who do not use their intellect: “But the disbelievers invent lies about Allah. Most of them do not use reason”
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is a striking case in point.
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That the Qurʾān transcends a mere exposition of raw assertion by engaging in a process of argumentation and dialogue—it is the “evincive proof” (burhān) and “conclusive argument” (al-ḥujjah al-bālighah)—is indicative of its appeal to the human mind.
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Therefore, there exists no incongruity between reason and revelation; the former in fact leads one to appreciate the latter while the latter enjoins and exemplifies the former.
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There are, however, two important caveats that should not escape our attention: the reasoning has to be sound and the revelation authentic.
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From the formative period of Islamic history, scholars wrote books to address apparently contradictory ḥadīths, a field known as mukhtalif al-ḥadīth,
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and ḥadīths that apparently conflict with other evidence or external reality, a field known as mushkil al-ḥadīth.
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In this vein, Imām al-Shāfiʿī (d. 204 AH) authored Ikhtilāf al-Ḥadīth,
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regarded as one of the earliest works on the subject. Analogous works include Ibn Qutaybah al-Dīnawarī’s (d. 276 AH) pioneering monograph, Taʾwīl Mukhtalif al-Ḥadīth, Abū Jaʿfar al-Ṭaḥāwī’s (d. 321 AH) peerless compendium, Sharḥ Mushkil al-Āthār,
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and Abū Bakr Ibn Fūrak’s (d. 406 AH) masterpiece, Mushkil al-Ḥadīth wa Bayānuhū. Scholars also dealt with such narrations in their general Ḥadīth commentaries when the occasion arose. Abū Bakr Ibn Khuzaymah (d. 311 AH) confidently proclaimed, “I am unaware of any two authentic narrations of the Prophet ﷺ that are contradictory. If anyone comes across such narrations, let him bring them to me so that I can reconcile them.”
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Preliminary thoughts
It goes without saying that, before venturing to clarify any misunderstanding or problematic content in a ḥadīth, it is paramount to ensure its authenticity. A person should not expend energy in trying to reconcile, say, a fabricated ḥadīth with external realities, because it cannot be reliably attributed to the Prophet ﷺ to begin with, and therefore, should not be a matter of concern.
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It is pointless to attempt to explain the putative ḥadīth, for instance, that states, “Hornets were created from the heads of horses and bees from the heads of cows” because this supposed ḥadīth is fabricated.
13 Mullā ʿAlī al-Qārī reminds the reader of the ancient adage: first stabilize the throne firmly, then worry about engraving it (thabbit al-ʿarsh thumm unqush); that is, before concerning ourselves with whether the meaning is correct, we should ensure that the report is even reliable to begin with.
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In his magnum opus, al-Ṭaḥāwī’s modus operandi was to examine only acceptable narrations.
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A ḥadīth is often transmitted via multiple routes (riwāyāt), which may differ in wording. When attempting to understand a ḥadīth, the need to examine it in view of all its routes of transmission cannot be stressed enough. Until all the routes of a ḥadīth are collected and analyzed as a whole, Ibn al-Madīnī explains, its errors will not become apparent.
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Take the Prophetic ḥadīth narrated via ʿĀʾishah and Buraydah that a human body has 360 joints and a person is required to perform a virtuous deed for each joint.
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In two variant routes of transmission from Abū Hurayrah and Ibn ʿAbbās, this ḥadīth is narrated with the words “360 bones,” which is incongruent with modern knowledge of human anatomy.
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But these routes are defective. The route of Ibn ʿAbbās contains the impugned narrator al-Layth ibn Abī Sulaym while the route of Abū Hurayrah suffers from several flaws, viz. disagreement among, and contentions regarding, the sub-transmitters, isolation in transmission, and conflict with more authentic routes. Although there are multiple routes for the ḥadīth, the correct version contains the words “360 joints.”
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The main focus here is on how to deal with problematic ḥadīths (mushkil al-ḥadīth). Before proceeding, however, a word on conflicting ḥadīths (mukhtalif al-ḥadīth) is in order. Jurists laid out the following procedure for dealing with conflicting ḥadīths.
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The first step is to harmonize (jamʿ) between the conflicting reports.
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The Prophet ﷺ prohibited a person from placing one leg on the other when lying down,
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but he reportedly did exactly that on one occasion.
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Al-Khaṭṭābi explains that the prohibition pertains to the scenario where placing one leg on the other will expose one’s private part; the Prophet ﷺ did so in a manner that ensured his lower body was concealed.
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When harmonization is not possible, one is to seek out evidence of abrogation (naskh).
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As we have seen earlier, the Prophet ﷺ is reported to have both allowed and prohibited the writing of his ḥadīths.
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To avoid any issues in preserving the Qurʾān, the Prophet ﷺ initially prohibited the Companions from writing ḥadīths. Once there remained no fear of such neglect, he allowed them to write material besides the Qurʾān.
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In the absence of evidence to suggest abrogation, one should prefer (tarjīḥ) one ḥadīth over the other based on a list of factors related to the chain of transmission, the text, and other issues.
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