Al-Kutub al-Sittah

Distinctive Features
Amin Ahsan Islahi, the notable Islamic scholar, has listed three outstanding qualities of Sahih Bukhari 
[9]
:
1.
1. Quality and soundness of the chain of narrators of the selected ahādīth. Imam Bukhari has followed two principle
criteria for selecting sound narratives. First, the lifetime of a narrator should overlap with the lifetime of the
authority from whom he narrates. Second, it should be verifiable that narrators have met with their source
persons. They should also expressly state that they obtained the narrative from these authorities. This is a stricter
criterion than that set by Imam Muslim.
2. Imam Bukhari accepted the narratives from only those who, according to his knowledge, not only believed in
Islam but practiced its teachings. Thus, he has not accepted narratives from the Murjites.
3.
3. The particular arrangement and ordering of chapters. This expresses the profound knowledge of the author and
his understanding of the religion. This has made the book a more useful guide in understanding of the religious
disciplines.
Authenticity
Ibn al-Salah said: "The first to author a Sahih was Bukhari, Abu ‘Abdillah Muhammad ibn Ismaa’eel al-Ju’fee,
followed by Aboo al-Husain Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj al-Naisaabooree al-Qushairee, who was his student, sharing many
of the same teachers. These two books are the most authentic books after the Quran. As for the statement of
al-Shafi’i, who said “I do not know of a book containing knowledge more correct than Malik’s book,” – others
mentioned it with a different wording – he said this before the books of Bukhari and Muslim. The book of Bukhari is
the more authentic of the two and more useful."
[3]
Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani quoted Aboo Ja’far al-‘Uqailee as saying, "After Bukhari had written the Sahih, he read it to
Ali ibn al-Madini, Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Yahya ibn Ma'in as well as others. They considered it a good effort and
testified to its authenticity with the exception of four hadith. Al-‘Uqailee then said that Bukhari was actually correct
regarding those four hadith." Ibn Hajar then concluded, "And they are, in fact, authentic."
[10]
Ibn al-Salah said in his Muqaddimah: "It has been narrated to us that Bukhari has said, 'I have not included in the
book al-Jami’ other than what is authentic and I did not include other authentic hadith for the sake of brevity.'"
[3] 
In
addition, al-Dhahabi said, "Bukhari was heard saying, 'I have memorized one hundred thousand authentic hadith and
two hundred thousand which are less than authentic.'”
[11]
Number of hadith
Ibn al-Salah also said: "The number of hadith in his book, the Sahih, is 7,275 hadith, including hadith occurring
repeatedly. It has been said that this number excluding repeated hadith is 4,000."
[3] 
This is referring to those hadith
which are musnad,
[12] 
those from the Companions originating from the Prophet which are authentic.
[13]
Commentaries
Several detailed commentaries on this collection have been written, such as:
1. Al-Kawkab al-Darari fi Sharh Al-Bukhari by al-Kirmani (died: 796H).
2. Fath al-Bari Sharh Sahih al-Bukhari by al-Hafith Ibn Hajar (died: 852H).
3. Umdah al Qari fi Sharh Sahih al Bukhari' written by Badr al-Din al-Ayni and published in Beirut by Dar Ihya’
al-turath al-`Arabi
[14]
4. Irshad al-Sari li Sharh Sahih al-Bukhari by al-Qastalani (died: 923H); one of the most well known of the
explanations of Sahih Bukhari'
[15]
.
5. Al-Tanqih by al-Zarkashi.
6. Al-Tawshih by al-Suyuti (died: 811H)

Sahih al-Bukhari
35
7. Sharh Ibn Kathir (died: 774H)
8. Sharh ‘Ala’ al-Din Maghlatay (died: 792H)
9. Sharh Ibnu al-Mulaqqin (died: 804H)
10. Sharh al-Barmawi (died: 831H)
11. Sharh al-Tilmasani al-Maliki (died: 842H)
12. Sharh al-Bulqini (died: 995H)
13. Fath al-Bari by Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali (died: 795H)
14.
14. Sharh Ibni Abi Hamzah al-Andalusi
15. Sharh Abi al-Baqa’ al-Ahmadi
16.
16. Sharh al-Bakri
17.
17. Sharh Ibnu Rashid
18. Hashiyat ul Bukhari By Tajus Shariah Mufti Muhammad Akhtar Raza Khan Qaadiri Al Azhari;
19. Sharh Ibn Battaal By Abu al-Hasan 'Ali ibn Khalaf ibn 'Abd al-Malik (died: 449H); published in 10 volumes
with an additional volume containing indexes;
20. Al-Mutawari 'Ala Abwab al-Bukhari by Nasir al-Din ibn al-Munayyir (died: 683H): An explanation of select
chapter titles; published in one volume.
21. Fayd al-Bari by Anwar Shah al-Kashmiri
Translations
Sahih al-Bukhari has been translated into English by the Salafi scholar Muhammad Muhsin Khan in 9 volumes. The
text used for this work is Fath Al-Bari, published by the Egyptian Press of Mustafa Al-Babi Al-Halabi in 1959. It is
published by Al Saadawi Publications and Dar-us-Salam and is included in the USC-MSA Compendium of Muslim
Texts.
[16]
References
[1] Mabadi Tadabbur-i-Hadith, Amin Ahsan Islahi
[2] The Canonization of Al-Bukhari and Muslim: The Formation and Function of the Sunni Hadith Canon (http:/
 
/
 
books.
 
google.
 
com/
books?id=nyMKDEAb4GsC&
 
dq=The+
 
Canonization+
 
of+
 
Al-Bukhari+
 
and+
 
Muslim&
 
source=gbs_navlinks_s) by Jonathan Brown,
BRILL, 2007
[3] Muqaddimah Ibn al-Salah, pg. 160-9 Dar al-Ma’aarif edition
[4] "Meaning of sahih" (http:/
 
/
 
www.
 
islamic-dictionary.
 
com/
 
index.
 
php?word=sahih). Islamic-Dictionary.com. . Retrieved 2010-05-13.
[5] Hadyi al-Sari, pg. 10.
[6] "The number of authentic hadith" (http:/
 
/
 
www.
 
ibnamin.
 
com/
 
num_hadith.
 
htm). Ibnamin.com. . Retrieved 2010-05-13.
[7] Abridged from Hady al-Sari,the introduction to Fath al-Bari, by Ibn Hajr, pg. 8–9 Dar al-Salaam edition.
[8] "Al Imam Bukhari" (http:/
 
/
 
www.
 
ummah.
 
net/
 
Al_adaab/
 
hadith/
 
bukhari/
 
imam_bukhari.
 
html). Ummah.net. . Retrieved 2010-02-03.
[9] Mabadi Tadabbur-i-Hadith, Amin Ahsan Islahi
[10] Hady al-Sari, pg. 684.
[11] Tadhkirat al-huffaz, vol. 2 pgs. 104-5, al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah edition.
[12] Hady al-Sari, pg. 654.
[13] Nuzhah al-Nathr, pg. 154
[14] google cach (http:/
 
/
 
66.
 
249.
 
93.
 
104/
 
search?q=cache:_tbh3_dRvKQJ:www.
 
e-imj.
 
com/
 
Vol4-No1/
 
Vol4-No1-H5.
 
htm+
 
Bukhari+
Umdah+
 
Qari&
 
hl=en&
 
ct=clnk&
 
cd=18)
[15] Abdal-Hakim Murad. "Abdal-Hakim Murad – Contentions 8" (http:/
 
/
 
www.
 
masud.
 
co.
 
uk/
 
ISLAM/
 
ahm/
 
bari.
 
htm). Masud.co.uk. .
Retrieved 2010-05-13.
[16] "Full translation from the USC-MSA" (http:/
 
/
 
www.
 
usc.
 
edu/
 
dept/
 
MSA/
 
fundamentals/
 
hadithsunnah/
 
bukhari/
 
). Usc.edu. . Retrieved
2010-09-26.

Sahih al-Bukhari
36
External links
• Hadith Bukhari (http:/
 
/
 
ahadith.
 
co.
 
uk/
 
sahihbukhari.
 
php) - Alternative English Translation Without mistakes
and omissions
Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal
Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal is a collection of Hadith collected by the famous Sunni scholar Ibn Hanbal to whom the
Hanbali madhab of Sunnis is attributed.
Front cover of Musnad Imam Ahmad Ibne Hanbal.
Description
It is said by some that Ibn Hanbal made a comment in
regards to his book which read as follows: "There is not
a hadith that I have included in this book except that it
was used as evidence by some of the scholars." Certain
Hanbali scholars, such as Abu'l-Faraj ibn al-Jawzi
claimed that the Musnad contains hadiths that are
fabricated by interpolation (i.e. the narrator jumbling
up information, mixing texts and authoritative chains).
However, it is agreed that the hadith that are suspected
to be fabricated are not new hadiths that are creations
of a dubious narrator's imagination.
[1]
.
References
[1] Fatawa of Ibn Taimiya, vol 1, page 248.
External links
• Methodology of Imam Ahmad (http:/
 
/
 
www.
 
ibnamin.
 
com/
 
Manhaj/
 
ahmad.
 
htm) (Arabic)
• Search Musnad Ahmad Bin Hanbal at Ekabakti.com (http:/
 
/
 
www.
 
ekabakti.
 
com) (Arabic)

Ahmad ibn Hanbal
37
Ahmad ibn Hanbal
Islamic scholar
Abu Abdillah Ahmed ibn Muhammed ibn
Hanbal al-Shaybani
Title
Sheikh ul-Islam Imam Ahl al-Sunnah
Born
780 CE/164 AH[1]
Baghdad, Iraq[2] )[3]
Died
855 CE/241 AH (aged 74-75)[1]
Baghdad, Iraq[4]
Ethnicity
Arab
Region
Iraq
Maddhab
Ijtihad
School tradition
Athari
Main interests
Fiqh, Hadith, Aqeedah[4]
Notable ideas
Hanbali madhhab
Works
Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal
Influences
•
Al-Shafi‘i[4]
••
Sufyan ibn `Uyaynah
•
‘Abd ar-Razzaq as-San‘ani
••
Yahya ibn Sa'id al-Qattan
••
Yazid Ibn Haroon
••
Abu Dawud at-Tayalisi
••
Abdur Rahman Ibn Mahdi
••
Waki ibn al Jarrah
••
Hushaim Ibn Basheer
••
Ismaa'eel Ibn 'Ulyah
••
Abu Yusuf

Ahmad ibn Hanbal
38
Influenced
•
al-Barbahaaree,[5]
•
Muhammad al-Bukhari,[6]
••
Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj
••
ibn Qudamah
••
Abu Zur'ah al-Razi
••
Yahya ibn Ma'in
••
Saalih Ibn Ahmad Ibn Hanbal
••
Abdullah Ibn Ahmad Ibn Hanbal
••
Abu Dawood
••
Muhammad ibn Yahya al-Dhuhli
••
Tirmidhi
••
Ibn Majah
••
Ali ibn al-Madini
••
Abu Hatim Muhammad ibn Idris al-Razi
••
ibn Aqil
••
ibn al-Jawzi
••
Mohammad bin Abdulwahab
••
ibn Taymiyya
••
Al-Nasa'i
••
ibn al-Qayyim
••
ibn Rajab al-Hanbali
•
Ibrahim ibn Ya'qub al-Juzajani[7]
Ahmad bin Muhammad bin Hanbal Abu `Abd Allah al-Shaybani (Arabic: ﻲﻧﺎﺒﻴﺸﻟﺍ ﻪﻠﻟﺍ ﺪﺒﻋ ﻮﺑﺍ ﻞﺒﻨﺣ ﻦﺑ ﺪﻤﺤﻣ ﻦﺑ ﺪﻤﺣﺍ)
was an important Muslim scholar and theologian. He is considered the founder of the Hanbali school of fiqh (Islamic
jurisprudence). Imam Ahmad is one of the most celebrated Sunni theologians, often referred to as "Sheikh
ul-Islam"
[8] 
or the "Imam of Ahl al-Sunnah," honorifics given to the most esteemed doctrinal authorities in the Sunni
tradition. Imam Ahmad personified the theological views of the early orthodox scholars, including the founders of
the other extant schools of Sunni fiqh, Imam Abu Hanifa, Imam Malik ibn Anas, and Imam ash-Shafi`i.
Biography
Early life and family
Legal writings, produced October 879.
Ahmad ibn Hanbal's family was originally from Basra, Iraq, and
belonged to the Arab Banu Shayban tribe.
[9] 
His father was an officer
in the Abbasid army in Khorasan and later settled with his family in
Baghdad, where Ahmad was born in 780 CE.
[2]
Ibn Hanbal had two wives and several children, including an older son,
who later became a judge in Isfahan.
[8]
Education and Work
Ibn Hanbal studied extensively in Baghdad, and later traveled to
further his education. He started learning jurisprudence (Fiqh) under
the celebrated Hanafi judge, Abu Yusuf, the renowned student and companion of Imam Abu Hanifah. After finishing
his studies with Abu Yusuf, ibn Hanbal began traveling through Iraq, Syria, and Arabia to collect hadiths, or
traditions of the Prophet Muhammad. Ibn al-Jawzi states that Imam Ahmad had 414 Hadith masters whom he
narrated from. With this knowledge, he became a leading authority on the hadith, leaving an immense encyclopedia
of hadith, the al-Musnad. After several years of travel, he returned to Baghdad to study Islamic law under al-Shafi.
He became a mufti in his old age, but is remembered most famously, as the founder of the Hanbali madhab or school
of Islamic law, which is now most dominant in Saudi Arabia, Qatar as well as the United Arab Emirates. 
[10][11]
 
[12]

Ahmad ibn Hanbal
39
In addition to his scholastic enterprises, ibn Hanbal was a soldier on the Islamic frontiers (Ribat) and made Hajj five
times in his life, twice on foot.
[13]
Death
Ibn Hanbal died in 855 CE in Baghdad, Iraq.
The Mihna
Ibn Hanbal was famously called before the Inquisition or Mihna of the Abassid Caliph al-Ma'mun. Al-Ma'mun
wanted to assert the religious authority of the Caliph by pressuring scholars to adopt the Mu'tazila view that the
Qur'an was created rather than uncreated. According to Sunni tradition, ibn Hanbal was among the scholars to resist
the Caliph's interference and the Mu'tazila doctrine of a created Qur'an—although some Orientalist sources raise a
question on whether or not he remained steadfast 
[14]
However, according to Sunni tradition, due to his refusal to accept Mu'tazilite authority, ibn Hanbal was imprisoned
in Baghdad throughout the reign of al-Ma'mun. In an incident during the rule of al-Ma'mun's successor, al-Mu'tasim,
ibn Hanbal was flogged to unconsciousness. However, this caused upheaval in Baghdad and al-Ma'mun was forced
to release ibn Hanbal. 
[13] 
After al-Mu’tasim’s death, al-Wathiq became caliph and continued his predecessors
policies of Mu'tazilite enforcement and in this pursuit, he banished ibn Hanbal from Baghdad. It was only after
al-Wathiqu's death and the ascent of his brother al-Mutawakkil, who was much friendlier to the more traditional
Sunni dogma, that ibn Hanbal was welcomed back to Baghdad.
Works
The following books are found in Ibn al-Nadim's Fihrist:
• Kitab al-`Ilal wa Ma‘rifat al-Rijal: "The Book of Narrations Containing Hidden Flaws and of Knowledge of the
Men (of Hadeeth)" Riyad: Al-Maktabah al-Islamiyyah
• Kitab al-Manasik: "The Book of the Rites of Hajj"
• Kitab al-Zuhd: "The Book of Abstinence" ed. Muhammad Zaghlul, Beirut: Dar al-Kitab al-'Arabi, 1994
• Kitab al-Iman: "The Book of Faith"
• Kitab al-Masa'il "Issues in Fiqh"
• Kitab al-Ashribah: "The Book of Drinks"
• Kitab al-Fada'il Sahaba: "Virtues of the Companions"
• Kitab Tha'ah al-Rasul : "The Book of Obedience to the Messenger"
• Kitab Mansukh: "The Book of Abrogation"
• Kitab al-Fara'id: "The Book of Obligatory Duties"
• Kitab al-Radd `ala al-Zanadiqa wa'l-Jahmiyya "Refutations of the Heretics and the Jahmites" (Cairo: 1973)
• Tafsir : "Exegesis"
• the Musnad

Ahmad ibn Hanbal
40
Quotes
•• It is said that, when told that it was religiously permissible to say what pleases his persecuters without believing in
it at the time of mihna, Ahmad said "If I remained silent and you remained silent, then who will teach the
ignorant?".
• With regard to innovation within religion, Ahmad said “The graves of sinners from People of Sunnah is a garden,
while the graves of the pious ascetics from the People of Innovation is a barren pit. The pious among Ahlus
Sunnah are the Friends of Allah, while the sinners among Ahlul-Bidah are the Enemies of Allah.”
[15]
Historical views
• Imam Abu Dawood, who was a collector of prophetic hadith stated:
"The lectures of Ahmad were sittings of the Hereafter. He would not mention in them anything of the
worldly affairs; and I never saw him mention this world."
• The Hanafi scholar Yahya ibn Ma'in stated:
“I have not seen the like of Ahmad, we have accompanied him for fifty years, and he never boasted
about anything from the good which he was characterized with.”
[8]
• When Abdul-Qadir Gilani was asked whether there existed a person who was a wali of Allah who was upon a
creed other than the creed of Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Gilani answered:
"That has not occurred and will never occur.”
[8]
• Harmala said:
“I heard Al-Shafi‘i say: ‘I left Baghdad and did not leave behind me anyone more virtuous, more learned,
more knowledgeable than Ahmad ibn Hanbal.’”
• Abu Ubayd said: "The Science at its peak is in the custody of four men, of whom Ahmad ibn Hanbal is the most
knowledgeable."
• Yahya ibn Ma'in said, as related by Abbas [al-Duri]: "They meant for me to be like Ahmad, but by Allah! I shall
never in my life compare to him."
• Muhammad ibn Hammad al-Taharani said: "I heard Abu Thawr say: Ahmad is more learned or knowledgeable
than Sufyan al-Thawri.’"
• Ibrahim al-Harbi said: "I held Ahmad as one for whom Allah had gathered up the combined knowledge of the
first and the last."
• Qutaiba ibn Said noted that if Ahmad were to witness the age of Sufyan al-Thawri, Malik, al-Awzai and Laith ibn
Sa'd, he would have surpassed them all.
References
[1] "ﻞﻳﺪﻌﺘﻟﺍﻭ ﺡﺮﺠﻟﺍ ﺔﻤﺋﺃ ﺞﻫﺎﻨﻣ" (http:/
 
/
 
www.
 
ibnamin.
 
com/
 
Manhaj/
 
scholars.
 
htm). Ibnamin.com. . Retrieved 2010-03-21.
[2] Roy Jackson, "Fifty key figures in Islam", Taylor & Francis, 2006. p 44: "Abu Abdallah Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Hanbal ibn Hilal
al-Shaybani was born in Baghdad in Iraq in 780"
[3] The History of Persia by John Malcolm – Page 245
[4] A Literary History of Persia from the Earliest Times Until Firdawsh by Edward Granville Browne – Page 295
[5]
[5] Explanation of the Creed, pg. 8
[6] "CLASSICAL BOOKS \ Hadeeth \ Saheeh al-Bukhaaree (al-Jaami' as-Saheeh)" (http:/
 
/
 
fatwa-online.
 
com/
 
classicalbooks/
 
hadeeth/
0000101.
 
htm). Fatwa-online.com. . Retrieved 2010-03-21.
[7] Al-Bastawī, ʻAbd al-ʻAlīm ʻAbd al-ʻAẓīm (1990). Al-Imām al-Jūzajānī wa-manhajuhu fi al-jarḥ wa-al-taʻdīl. Maktabat Dār al-Ṭaḥāwī. p. 9.
[8]
[8] Foundations of the Sunnah, by Ahmad ibn Hanbal, pg 51-173
[9] H. A. R. Gibb et al., ed. (1986). "Aḥmad B. Ḥanbal". Encyclopaedia of Islam. A-B. 1 (New ed.). Brill Academic Publishers. p. 272.
ISBN 90-04-08114-3. "Aḥmad B. Ḥanbal was an Arab, belonging to the Banū Shaybān, of Rabī’a,..."
[10] http:/
 
/
 
www.
 
islamawareness.
 
net/
 
Madhab/
 
Hanbali/
 
ahmad_ibn_hanbal.
 
html

Ahmad ibn Hanbal
41
[11] al-Dhahabi, Siyar A`lam al-Nubala’ 9:434-547 #1876 and Tadhkira al-Huffaz 2:431 #438
[12] http:/
 
/
 
suzyashraf.
 
tripod.
 
com/
 
index.
 
html_essays
[13] "Imaam Ahmad ibn Hanbal" (http:/
 
/
 
www.
 
islamicawakening.
 
com/
 
viewarticle.
 
php?articleID=1193). .
[14]
[14] Brill, E.J., ed. (1965-1986). The Encyclopedia of Islam, vol. 7. pp. 3.
[15]
[15] Tabaqaat al-Hanaabilah (1/184)
Further reading
• Ibn al-Jawzi, Manaqib al-Imam Ahmad
• Nadwi, S. A. H. A., Saviors of Islamic Spirit (Vol. 1), translated by Mohiuddin Ahmad, Academy of Islamic
Research and Publications, Lucknow, 1971.
•• Melchert, Christopher, Ahmad ibn Hanbal (Makers of the Muslim World), Oneworld, 2006.
External links
• Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal: Life & Madhab (http:/
 
/
 
www.
 
islamicawakening.
 
com/
 
viewarticle.
php?articleID=1193&
 
)
• Diagram of teachers and students of Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal (http:/
 
/
 
www.
 
happy-books.
 
co.
 
uk/
muhammad-ibn-abdullah-lineage-and-family-tree/
students-sheikhs-and-teachers-of-famous-muslim-imams-and-scholars-in-muslim-history.
 
php?id=413)
Shamaail Tirmidhi
The Shamā'il Muhammadiyyah, often referred to as Shamā'il al-Tirmidhi or simply Shamā'il, is a collection of
hadiths compiled by the ninth-century Muslim hadith scholar Tirmidhi regarding the intricate details of the Islamic
prophet Muhammad's appearance, belongings, manners and life. The book contains 399 narrations from the
successors of the Prophet which are divided into 56 chapters.
[1]
One famous commentary on the book in the modern era is Muhammad Zakariya al-Kandahlawi's Khasaael e
Nabawi, and one of the more famous translations into English is done by Muhammad ibn Abdu Rahman Ebrahim.
References
[1]
[1] ibn Isa (2011)
Bibliography
• ibn Isa, Muhammad (Imam Tirmidhi) (2011) (in Arabic with Malay translation) (Hardcover). Syama'il
Muhammadiyah: KeanggunanMu Ya Rasulullah. Malaysia: PTS Islamika Sdn. Bhd.. pp. 388.
ISBN 978-967-3-66064-3.

Sahih Ibn Khuzaymah
42
Sahih Ibn Khuzaymah
Mukhtasar al-Mukhtasar min al-Musnad al-Sahih, in short Sahih Ibn Khuzaymah, is a collection of hadith by Ibn
Khuzaymah
Content
Its chapters cover prayer, fasting, pilgrimage, and the Zakat tithe.
Views
Among the Sahih collections after Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim, it is regarded highly along with Sahih Ibn
Hibbaan and Sahih Abi 'Awana.
Published edition
It has been edited by Muhammad Mustafa Al-A'zami, and published by al-Maktab al-Islami in Beirut.
References

Ibn Khuzaymah
43