IMAAM TIRMIDHI'S CONTRIBUTION TOWARDS HADITH
by Moulana Abdool Kader Hoosen

Introduction

Importance of the Traditions

The word Hadith (pl. Ahaadith) varies in meaning according to its context in the Arabic language. Literally it implies a conversation, speech or discussion. However in the Islamic context Hadith refers to the sayings of Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.) (b.570-d. 632 A.D.), For example, "There is no Zakat (poor-due) on less than five carmels",; Or his deeds: 'Aisha (d.57 A.H.), the wife of the Prophet (S.A.W.), said that he saw spittle, or mucus or phlegm, on the wall of the Qibla (direction faced in prayer) and scraped it off; or his tacit approval: 'A'isha reports that the Prophet (S.A.W.) did not object to her lying down in front of him whilst he was engaged in prayers; or his features: Anas b. Malik (d.91 A.H.), who was the attendant of the Prophet (S.A.W.), describes him as a man not excessively tall or short, nor pallid or dark in complexion; or his character: 'A'isha describes the Prophet (S.A.W.) as a man who did not take revenge for himself unless the limits of Allah were violated.

Every Hadith consists of two parts. The first contains the names of the persons who have handed down the substance of the tradition from one to another; this part is called the Sanad, which is the support for the reliability of the statement. The second part is the Matn (text) - the real substance of the report.

The term Hadith is more general in meaning than Sunna, since Sunna contains the actions, sayings, tacit approval and character of the Prophet (S.A.W.). Hadith, besides including the aforementioned, also comprises the descriptions of she Prophet's (S.A.W.) physical features.

The Muslim scholars are unanimous that the authority of the Qur'an is binding on all Muslims irrespective of place or time. Likewise they agree that the authority of the Prophet (S.A.W.), which is established by the Qur'an, is second only to that of Allah.

The Prophet (S.A.W.) was instructed by Allah to explicate the Qur'an to the masses and to provide guidance for them: AllAH says, "And We have revealed unto thee the Remembrance, that thou mayst explain to mankind that which hath been revealed for them, and that haply they may reflect". (Qur'an 16:44). To accept the Prophet (S.A.W.) as a judge is one of the conditions of faith. The Qur'an states, "But nay, by thy Lord, they will not believe (in truth) until they make thee judge of what is in dispute between them and find within themselves no dislike of that which thou decidest, and submit with full submission.' (4:65) "The saying of (all true) believers when they appeal unto Allah and His messenger to judge between them is only that they say: We hear and we obey. And such are the successful". (24:51) "O ye who believe! Obey Allah, and obey the messenger and those of you who are in authority; and if ye have a dispute concerning any matter, refer it to Allah and the messenger if ye are (in truth) believers in Allah and the Last Day. That is better and more seemly in the end". (4:59)

Furthermore, the status of the Prophet (S.A.W.) as a lawgiver is established by the following verses in the Qur'an. Allah says:
"And obey Allah and the Messenger, that ye may find mercy". (3:132) "And it becometh not a believing man or a believing woman, when Allah and His messenger have decided an affair (for them), that they should (after that) claim any say in their affairs; and whoso is rebellious to Allah and His messenger, he verify goeth astray in error manifest". (33:36) "And whatsoever the messenger giveth you, take it. And whatsoever he forbiddeth, abstain (from it)". (59:7) The above mentioned Qur'anic verses entrench the Prophet's status as a lawgiver and make it binding upon Muslim individuals, communities and states to obey him.

The spirit of disregarding traditions or dismissing them as a fundamental source of Islamic Law would obviously amount to the dismissal of the Prophet's status as legislator and a conscious attempt to breed conspiracy against the Sunna of the Prophet (S.A.W.)

The Present State of Research Concerning Tirmidhi

Hadith is the second principal source of Islamic legislation after the Qur'an and holds an important position in Islamic Studies. A number of books have been written on Hadith, both in Muslim and Orientalist circles regarding its recording, authenticity and criticism. However, in comparison with Arabic poetry the subject of Hadith has not attracted many Orientalists. The number of publications on Hadith are still within such a limit that a single compiler, with some effort, could compile most of the relevant information in the form of a bibliography.

One of the main reasons for the Orientalists paying scant attention to Hadith is that, since Ignaz Goldziher published his work on Hadith entitled Muhammedanische Studien in 1889-1890, it has become a major source for Orientalists on Hadith. Most of the Orientalists were overwhelmingly influenced by his writing. Thus, the views of the Orientalists appear to have been decided once and for all by him, so much so that Alfred Guillaume in his preface of The Traditions of Islam wrote that Goidziher's Muhammedanische Studien must form the basis of any work on Hadith literature. However, new ground has been broken by modern day scholars.

It has been noticed that Orientalist and Muslim works on Islam in relation to the corpus of Hadith literature focussed more on the compilations of Bukhari (b.194-d. 256-AH.) and Muslim (b.206-d. 261 AH.) rather than that of Tirmidhi (b. 209-d. 279 AH.). The only work on Tirmidhi's Jami' in the English language and published in 1954 is The Transmission of Tirmidhi's Jami' by James Robson. In comparison, the list of contents of Sahih Bukhari and some select translations from Sahih Muslim were published by Hammer Purgstall in the first few decades of the 19th Century.

As yet, there is no complete translation of Tirmidhi's Jami' in the English language, whereas a complete English translation of Sahih Bukhari was undertaken by Muhammad Muhsin Khan and published in nine volumes in 1971 by the Islamic University of Madina, Saudi Arabia. Likewise the entire Sahih Muslim was rendered into English by 'Abd al-Hamid Siddiqi and published in four volumes in 1976 in Lahore, Pakistan. These are the well known contributions in the field of Hadith by Muslim scholars.

Some Orientalists researched and or translated specific aspects from the collections of Bukhari and Muslim. Joseph Schact translated certain parts of Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim and titled them Aus der Traditionssammlung des al-Bukhari and Aus der Traditionssammlung des Muslim, respectively. Besides Schact, Oscar Rescher also researched Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim. He compiled a lexicon of Bukhari's section and translated the traditions relating to war from Sahih Muslim. Other prominent Orientalists who researched Sahih Bukhari or Sahih Muslim were A.J. Arberry and J.Robson. Arberry's work on Sahih Bukhari was named The Teachers of Bukhari, and Robson's The Transmission of Muslim's Sahih.

The most famous Orientalist scholar on Hadith, I. Goldziher also researched on Sahih Bukhari and named it Chatm al Buchari. Another Orientalist, Arthur Jeffery rendered "The Section on Fasting" from Sahih Bukhari into English. The first complete translation of Sahih Bukhari in an European language (French) was undertaken by O. Houdas and W. Marcais and published in four volumes in Paris in 1903-1914.

The reason scholars gave Bukhari and Muslim's collections preference over the other collections of Hadith is their being unanimously considered as the most authentic books of Hajith. Thus, when a tradition is accepted by Bukhari and Muslim and included in their respective collections, it is named "agreed upon". However, it should be borne in mind that when scholars say that Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim are the most authentic compilations of Hadith, it has a general implication and does not imply that every tradition in these books is superior to the traditions in other compilations.

E.M. Mahida and Gerrie Lubbe in their respective Bibliographies make no mention of any scholarly work on Hadith undertaken in South Africa. The six canonical works, namely, Sahih Muslim, Sahih Muslim, Sunan Abu Dawud, Sunan Nasa'i, Jami' Tirmidhi and Sunan ibn Majah are included in syllabi of the various Muslims seminaries in this country. It should not be forgotten that most of the lecturers in these seminaries graduated from the Indo-Pak sub-continent. The seminaries in India and Pakistan lay more emphasis on Sahih Bukhari and Tirmidhi's Jami' than on any other compilation of Hadith. Since this is done in India and Pakistan, the same approach is adopted here. Most students who study in these seminaries understand English better than any other language. Thus, this thesis fulfils a crucial need at the present time, when Islam is becoming articulate in South Africa.

The Composition of this Thesis

This thesis consists of five chapters in addition to a glossary. Chapter one opens with a discussion on the personal life of Tirmidhi. Herein biographical details of Tirmidhi himself are discussed and the intellectual climate of his era is also mentioned. This is followed by an elucidation of his academic career, which traces the beginning of his studies, the places he travelled to and the persons under whom he studied. Mention is also made of his students and which school of jurisprudence he aligned himself to. The survey on Tirmidhi's academic career concludes with a mention of the texts written by him. Chapter one ends with a mention of the death of Tirmidhi and comments of different scholars on him and his works. Since the Jami' is Tirmidhi's magnum opus, it is discussed in chapter two.

The second chapter discusses the aim of compiling the Jami'. This is followed by an evaluation of the seven editions of the Jami' available at the time of writing this thesis. An appraisal of their advantages and disadvantages has also been undertaken and is followed by an analysis of the manuscripts and commentaries of the Jami'. This chapter concludes with a mention of the different narrations of the Jami'.

After a perusal of the Jami' it becomes apparent that Tirmidhi is unique in his conditions for the acceptance of Ahadith and its terminology. Hence his conditions for acceptance in comparison with those of other traditionists is undertaken in chapter three. Prior to comparing the conditions of acceptance of other traditionists and those of Tirmidhi, the need for traditions, their authenticity and the method of determining their reliability is assessed.

The terminology of Tirmidhi is discussed in chapter four. This chapter opens with a review on the Sahih (sound), Hasan (good) and Da'if (weak) types of Hadith, and a few principles related to the science of Hadith, since an understanding of these principles enhances the understanding of his terminology.

In chapter five translations of four selected Ahadith from the Jami' are presented, preceded by the Arabic text, which highlights the terminology of Tirmidhi. Tirmidhi's evaluation of Hadith has caused some concern among the traditionists, hence this chapter concludes with a review of this matter.

Source:  Jamiatul Ulama (Kwazulu-Natal)