Hadith- Hasan Lighairihi
The
Qur’an was revealed by Allah(swt) through Angel Jibrael (a.s) to our last
Messenger Muhammad(pbuh). The Prophet(pbuh) not only explained the words of
Allah(swt) to us but he was the living Quran. His words, actions, sayings have
all been recorded known as Hadith. Everything he said & did was by the command
of Allah(swt) & the Quran & Hadith has been preserved ever since.
“He
does not speak out of his own desires; indeed what he says is revelation.”[1]
If
one has to understand the Quran then one has to study what the Prophet(pbuh)
said or did relating to it. It was due to the science of narration, collection
& criticism that the hadith of the Prophet(pbuh) have been preserved till
today[2].
“Indeed, I have revealed the
Reminder, I will, indeed, protect it.”[3]
Every
hadith is made up of two things, the matn(text) & the isnaad. The Isnaad is
the chain of narrators who have narrated the hadith. The Isnaad became a very
integral part of Islam because people could not fabricate hadith & fool the
people by attributing it to the Prophet(pbuh). By way of the isnaad & ways
of checking the authenticity of each narration the scholars ended up preserving
the hadith for us & for the generations to come.
Abdullaah Ibn
al-Mubarak said:
“The isnaad is from the religion.
Were it not for the isnaad anyone could say anything he wished.”
Classification
of Hadith
The
science of hadith developed known as Ilm Mustlah al Hadith which would
distinguish between authentic narrations & fabricated ones.[4]
The early scholars of hadith generally classified the hadith into Sahih hadith,
daeef hadith & Imam Tirmidhi categorized Hasan hadith to distinguish them
from the daeef hadith.
Hasan Hadith
Hasan
hadith is one which is graded between Sahih(authentic) & daeef(weak). It
has been defined by Imam Tirmidhi(r.a) as a hadeeth that does not have in its
chain a narrator suspected of lying, nor does it conflict with superior texts
and it is transmitted via more than one chain of similar strength.[5]
Al-Khattabi says,
"It is the one where its source is
known and its reporters are unambiguous."[6]
It
means that a hadith is graded Hasan when none of its narrators is of a doubtful
nature such as with mursal or munqati hadith.
Ibn
al-Salah classifies hasan into two categories on the condition that they are
free from any irregularities. One with an isnad containing a reporter from whom
none of the prominent people reported but is not careless in his reporting
& a similar text from another chain has been reported as well. Second with
an isnad containing a reporter who is known to be truthful and reliable, but is
a degree less in his memory of hadith in comparison to the reporters of sahih
hadith.[7]
Al-Dhahabi
says,
"A hasan hadith is
one which excels the da'if but nevertheless does not reach the standard of a
sahih hadith."[8]
According
to Ibn Al Salah & Imam Tirmidhi a number of daeef or weak hadith can be
upgraded to the level of hasan if the weakness in their narrators is of a
lesser degree. This type of hasan hadith is called Hasan Lighairihi (hasan due
to others). But if the narrator is accused of lying or the hadith itself is
shahdh then even a number of weak hadith cannot support each other to upgrade
it to Hasan Lighairihi.
If
the weakness in a hadith is due to the weakness in the memory of the narrator
or the narrators & not due to lying or indecent behavior. And if there are
other hadith supporting it then it is reclassified as Hadith Hasan Lighairihi.
One has to look at the weakest narrator or link in the isnaad. If he is a liar
(kahtaab) then no matter how many hadith support it it is classified as
Fabricated.
Difference
between Hasan Dhaatihi & Hasan Lighairihi
Ibn
Hajar said Hadith Hasan is on which is transmitted by upstanding narrators in a
continuous chain of narration, free from any hidden defects or conflict with
superior texts. Except that it contains a narrator or narrators whose accuracy
is inferior. Such a hadeeth is regarded as hasan lithaatih (hasan by itself). A
hadeeth is considered hasan if it fulfills all the requirements of Sihhah
except Dabt (accuracy).[9]
Hasan
Dhaatihi can be elevated to the level of a Sahih if it is endorsed by another
hadith with a stronger chain, in which case it would be called Hasan
Lighairihi, hasan because of external evidence whereas hasan dhaatihi is hasan
for its own sake.[10]
Ruling
on Hadith Hasan
Hadith
hasan is considered by the scholars in formulating the laws & for
establishing Islamic Laws. They are considered until & unless abrogated or superseded
by Sahih Hadith.
Conclusion
The
efforts of the early scholars who developed the methods to classify the hadith
after examining the hadith, its chain (isnaad), the narrators & other
things is highly commendable. Their efforts have enabled the hadith of the
Prophet(pbuh) to be preserved up to this day. Without the hadith one cannot
completely understand the Quran or follow the Prophet(pbuh). Allah(swt) not
only promised to protect the Quran but also preserved the life of the
Prophet(pbuh) so that we could follow his footsteps to become a better muslim.
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