In the name of Allah with Whose name nothing can harm on earth or in heaven, and He is

the All-Hearing, All-Knowing((This is the Duaa/Dhikr that has been shared on WhatsApp)

PRAYERS TO SEEK PROTECTION FROM CALAMITIES

Duaa(s) & Adhkaar (plural of Dhikr Zikr)

I seek refuge in the perfect words of Allah from the evil of that which He has created

For each (person), there are angels in succession, before and behind him. They guard him by the Command of
Allah [Quran ar-Rad 13:11].

May a witness bear witness to our praise of Allaah for His favours and bounties upon us. Our Lord, protect us,
show favour upon us and deliver us from every evil. I seek refuge in Allaah from the Fire).

I seek refuge in the perfect words of Allaah from every devil and poisonous reptile, and from every envious evil eye

O! Allah, We ask You to repel them, ward off their evil, deal with them and prevent any evil reaching us from them.

whoever seeks refuge in the name of Allah, no calamity can harm him from the direction of the earth or
from the direction of heaven.

There is no person who does not have an angel appointed over him, to protect him whilst he sleeps and when he is
awake from the jinn, humans and vermin, so that none of them come towards him, intending him ill, but the angel
says: Get back

O Allah, You are my Lord, there is no god but You, in You I put my trust, and You are Lord of the mighty Throne.
Whatever Allah wills happens, and whatever Allah does not will does not happen. There is no power and no
strength except with Allah, the Most High, the Most Great. I know that Allah has power to do all things and
that Allah has encompassed all things within His knowledge. O Allah, I seek refuge with You from the evil of my
own self, and the evil of every creature that You hold by its forelock. Verily my Lord is on a straight path.

Hence the slogan of the prayers, the adhaan and the Eids is the takbeer, and it is mustahabb to say it in
high places such as al-Safa and al-Marwah, when a person climbs up a hill or rides his mount and so on.
With it fires are extinguished even if they are great, and at the time of the adhaan the shaytaan flees.

ESSAY COMPILED BY
SAEED ABDULRAHIM
email: Islamic_Wisdom@Hotmail.com web: www.scribd.com/IslamicWisdom7
1
Credit:
This Essay has been put together combining various Q&As from:

Islam Question and Answer

General Supervisor: Shaykh Muhammad Saalih al-Munajjid
Introduction:
The video clip that has been circulated on whatsApp is most probably based on the following Duaa (Suplication.).
However, what seems to be a misunderstanding is that the background incident which gave rise to this Duaa is
about a widespread fire in Abul Dardas neighbourhood whilst his own house remained untouched, therefore,
mistakenly people assume that the Dua is specifically for seeking relief from incidents of fire. Whereas the Duaa is
meant to seek relief from general harm.

INDEX
1.Supplication /Duaa /DhikrIn the name of Allah with Whose name nothing can harm on earth or in heaven,
and He is the All-Hearing, All-Knowing
2.Incident of Fire in Abu Dardas Neighborhood
3.Another Supplication/D uaa/Dhikr I seek refuge in the perfect words of Allah from the evil of that which He
has created
4. Another Dhikr(also spelt as Zikr) Say: Qul huwa Allaahu Ahad and al-Muawwidhatayn
5. Protecting Angels: For each (person), there are angels in succession, before and behind him. They guard him by
the Command of Allah [Quran ar-Rad 13:11].
6. Another scholars comments on the Hadith beginning with the words Bismillah illadhi la yadurru .
7. Concerning the Hadith mentioned earlier at the beginning of page 2 marked elsewhere by **
8. More on the Duaa mentioned earlier marked with ** first mentioned at the beginning of page No.2.
9.Another Dua on seeking Allahs Protection from a range of other calamities
10.Specific Dhikr (TAKBEER) to be made if an earthly Fire should occur
11. More on Specific Takbeer If Allah (SWT) should decree an earthly Fire:
12.Is there a prayer which can protect me from bad people at school, and in general?
12.1 I seek refuge in the perfect words of Allaah from every devil and poisonous reptile, and from every envious
evil eye.
12.2 May a witness bear witness to our praise of Allaah for His favours and bounties upon us. Our Lord, protect us,
show favour upon us and deliver us from every evil. I seek refuge in Allaah from the Fire).
12.3 Whoever makes a stop on a journey and says, Aoodhu bi kalimaat Allaah il-tammaati min sharri ma khalaqa
(I seek refuge in the perfect words of Allaah from the evil of that which He has created), nothing will harm him until
he moves on from that place.)
12.4When the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) was afraid of some people he would say,
Allaahumma inna najaluka fi nuhoorihim wa naoodhu bika min shuroorihim (O Allaah, we ask You to repel them
and we seek refuge in You from their evil).
13.The Seven Types of Martyrdom
14-Hadith terminology (from Wikipedia)
15. Various Classifications of Hadeeth
15.1 Sahih
15.2 Hasan
15.3 Daif (Weak)
15.4 Maudu (Fabricated)
15.5 - What does Hadith Gharib ( ) mean?

2
 ---The Beginning ---
1.To begin with, we quote here a Question that has been raised in the website Islam Question and Answer at the
following address: https://islamqa.info/en/82932

Question No. 126587: Adhkaar for morning and evening that protect against harm

A Questioner asked the following Question:

What is the ruling on a person offering supplication on behalf of his parents and siblings, because there is a hadith
which says that whoever says these supplications in the morning, no harm will touch him until evening comes, and
whoever says them in the evening, no harm will touch him until morning comes:

Transliteration Bismillah illadhi la yadurru maa ismihi shayun fil-ard wa la fil-sama wa huwa al-samee ul-
aleem
Translation (In the name of Allah with Whose name nothing can harm on earth or in heaven, and He is the All-
Hearing, All-Knowing)

With regard to reciting this supplication on behalf of family members, that is not valid and does not suffice them, as
there is no report to indicate that it is valid to recite adhkaar on behalf of the living. So each Muslim should be keen
to do that which will benefit him, and ensure that he is not one of those who are heedless of the remembrance of
Allah, may He be glorified and exalted.
2.Incident of Fire in Abu Dardas Neighborhood
In some books it is stated that Abud-Darda used to recite this dhikr, and it so happened that there was a fire in the
quarter in which Abud-Darda was living which burned all the houses around him, but no part of his house was burned.
Is there a saheeh hadith about that? Is it acceptable to recite this supplication on behalf of the members of ones
family?
Because of the incident of Fire relating to Abu-Dardas quarters, some people misquote the above Hadith based
Duaa as a protection specifically from an Earthly Fire when it aught to be regarded as a supplication common for
seeking protection against Calamities in general.
According to one scholar who states that I do not know of any specific saheeh duaa in the Sunnah that the Muslim
may recite so that Allaah might protect him against fire. Rather he should pray to Allaah to protect him from harm
and disliked things, and ask Allaah to keep him safe and sound, and seek refuge from the things from which the Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) used to seek refuge, as mentioned in the hadeeth quoted above, for Allaah
is the best of protectors and the most merciful of those who show mercy.
There is a daeef (weak) hadeeth about protection from fire and other calamities, and perhaps this is what the
questioner is referring to.
It was narrated that Talq ibn Habeeb said: A man came to Abul-Darda (may Allaah be pleased with him) and said:
O Abul-Darda, your house has burned down. He said: It has not burned down. I know that Allaah would not do that
because of some words that I heard from the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him);
whoever says them at the beginning of the day, no calamity will befall him until evening comes, and whoever says
them at the end of the day, no calamity will befall him until morning comes: O Allaah, You are my Lord, there is no
god but You, in You have I put my trust and You are the Lord of the Mighty Throne. Whatever Allaah wills happens,
and whatever He does not will does not happen. There is no power and no strength except with Allaah, the Most High,
the Almighty. I know that Allaah has power over all things and that Allaah has encompassed all things with His
knowledge. O Allaah, I seek refuge with You from the evil of my own self, and from the evil of every living creature
whose forelock is in Your hand. My Lord is on a straight path**
Editorial Note1
There seems to be some confusion in the mind of the writer about which Hadeeth he is expanding on, is he referring
to the Hadith marked above as **Or is he writing about the Hadith whose wordings are: Bismillah illadhi la yadurru
3
maa ismihi shayun fil-ard wa la fil-sama wa huwa al-samee ul-aleem which has much shorter wordings than the
one marked **. Because of frequent references, it seems more likely that the Hadeeth with shorter wordings is the
one that is often mentioned / referred to in further passages from here on.

Those who have found it fit, and quoted the above daeef (weak) hadith in their writings include:
This was narrated by Ibn al-Sunni in his book Aml al-Yawm wal-Laylah (25/hadeeth 27) and by al-Tabaraani in al-
Duaa (2/954).
Ibn al-Jawzi said in al-Ilal al-Mutanaahiyah (2/836, 837):
While those who assert that the hadith is daeef (weak) do so on the following ground.
This hadeeth is not proven, and the problem with it is (the narrator) al-Aghlab ibn Tameem, of whom Yahya ibn Maeen
said: He is nothing. Al-Bukhaari said: His hadeeth is munkar. End quote.
This hadeeth was also narrated via another isnaad with similar wording. It was narrated by al-Haarith ibn Abi Usaamah
in his Musnad (2/953). He said: Yazeed ibn Haroon told us: Muaadh Abu Abd-Allaah told us: A man narrated it to me
from al-Hasan.
This is a weak isnaad (chain of narrators) because the man who narrated it from al-Hasan is unknown.
The hadeeth was classed as daeef (weak) by al-Iraaqi in Takhreej Ihya Uloom al-Deen (1/316) and by Shaykh
al-Albaani in Tahqeeq al-Kalim al-Tayyib 74
The same guiding Hadith has been Narrated by Abu Dawood (No.5088). It has also been narrated by at-Tirmidhi in his
Sunan (no. 3388) as follows:
There is no one who says in the morning of every day and in the evening of every night Bismillah illadhi la yadurru
maa ismihi shayun fil-ard wa la fil-sama wa huwa al-samee ul-aleem (In the name of Allah with Whose name
nothing can harm on earth or in heaven, and He is the All-Hearing, All-Knowing), three times, then nothing will
harm him.
Editorial Note2
We thus note that from here on the Hadeeth that is being commentated on by various authors is the one with shorter
wordings beginning with the words Bismillah illadhi la yadurru and not the one which gets a mention at the top of
page 2 marked with two asterixes **
Dr. Abd ar-Razzaaq al-Badr has said:
This is one of the great Adhkaar that the Muslim should recite every morning and evening, so that he may be protected
thereby, by Allahs leave, against being struck by a sudden calamity or disastrous harm or the like. Al-Qurtubi (may
Allah have mercy on him) said concerning this hadith: This is a saheeh report and true words that have been proven
to us by experience. Ever since I heard it I acted upon it, and nothing harmed me until I omitted to do it. A scorpion
stung me in Madinah one night, and when I thought about it I realised that I had forgotten to seek refuge with Allah
by reciting these words.
See: al-Futoohaat ar-Rabbaanyyah by Ibn Allaan (3/100).
The Sunnah about this dhikr is to say it three times every morning and evening, as the Prophet (blessings and peace
of Allah be upon him) taught.
The words illadhi la yadurru maa ismihi shayun fil-ard wa la fil-sama (with Whose name nothing can harm on
earth or in heaven)mean: whoever seeks refuge in the name of Allah, no calamity can harm him from the direction
of the earth or from the direction of heaven. )
And the words wa huwa al-samee ul-aleem (and He is the All-Hearing, All-Knowing) mean: He hears all that
people say and knows all their deeds, none of which are hidden from Him on earth or in heaven.
Classification of this Hadeeth
At-Tirmidhi classifying this hadeeth has said: It is hasan saheeh ghareeb.
It was classed as saheeh by Ibn al-Qayyim in Zaad al-Maaad (2/338) and by al-Albaani in Saheeh Abi Dawood. It is
proven in Saheeh Muslim that Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said:

4
3.Another D uaa / Dhikr
Aoodhu bi kalimaat Allaah al-taammah min sharri ma khalaq
A man came to the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and said: O Messenger of Allah, I was
stung by a scorpion last night. He said: If you had said, when evening came, Aoodhu bi kalimaat Allaah al-
taammah min sharri ma khalaq (I seek refuge in the perfect words of Allah from the evil of that which He has
created), it would not have harmed you.)
Narrated by Muslim (2709).
According to a report narrated by at-Tirmidhi: Whoever says three times when evening comes, Aoodhu bi
kalimaat Allaah al-taammah min sharri ma khalaq (I seek refuge in the perfect words of Allah from the evil
of that which He has created), no fever will harm him that night. No. 3604.
The word translated here as fever refers to a sting from any poisonous creature such as a scorpion,
snake or the like.
Following this hadith, at-Tirmidhi narrated from Suhayl ibn Abi Saalih one of the narrators that he said:
learn it, and they used to say it every night. One of their young girls was stung, and she did Our family used to
not feel any pain as a result.
This hadith is indicative of the virtue of this supplication, and indicates that whoever says it when evening comes will be
protected, by Allahs leave, from anything that may harm him such as a snake bite or scorpion sting and the like. End
quote.
Fiqh al-Adiyah wal-Adhkaar (3/12-14).

4. Another Dhikr
Say: Qul huwa Allaahu Ahad and al-Muawwidhatayn
Another of the Adhkaar that offer protection against evil and ward off harm, by Allahs leave, is that which was narrated
by Abdullah ibn Khubayb (may Allah be pleased with him) who said: We went out on a rainy and very dark night, looking
for the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) to lead us in prayer, and we found him. He said:
Say, but I did not say anything. Then he said: Say, but I did not say anything. Then he said: Say, and I said: What
should I say, O Messenger of Allah? He said: Say: Qul huwa Allaahu Ahad and al-Muawwidhatayn, in the
evening and in the morning, three times, and they will suffice you against all things.
Narrated by Abu Dawood (5082) and by at-Tirmidhi (3575), who said: It is hasan saheeh ghareeb. An-Nawawi
said in al-Adhkaar (p. 107): Its isnaad is saheeh.
To sum up:
The duaas and adhkaar mentioned above will protect the Muslim from harms and evils of all kinds, by Allahs leave, but
that is not necessarily so. If a person is affected by harm despite regularly reciting these adhkaar, then that is by the
decree of Allah, may He be exalted, and there is great wisdom in what He commands and decrees.

5. Protecting Angels
For each (person), there are angels in succession, before and behind him. They guard him by the Command of
Allah
[Quran ar-Rad 13:11].
Ikrimah narrated from Ibn Abbaas that he said: They guard him by the Command of Allah this refers to angels
who protect him from in front and from behind, but when the decree of Allah comes, they step back.
Mujaahid said: There is no person who does not have an angel appointed over him, to protect him whilst he sleeps and
when he is awake from the jinn, humans and vermin, so that none of them come towards him, intending him ill, but the
angel says: Get back except for something that Allah decrees is to reach him, then it befalls him.
Tafseer Ibn Katheer (4/438).

Praise be to Allah

5
6. Another scholars comments on the Hadith beginning with the words Bismillah illadhi la yadurru .
Firstly:
With regard to the supplication mentioned in the question, it is proven to be from the Prophet (blessings and peace
of Allah be upon him), as mentioned by some of the scholars.
It was narrated that Abaan ibn Uthmaan (may Allah be pleased with him) said, narrating from Uthmaan ibn Affaan
who said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) say: Whoever says Bismillah
illadhi la yadurru maa ismihi shayun fil-ard wa la fil-sama wa huwa al-samee ul-aleem (In the name of Allah with
Whose name nothing can harm on earth or in heaven, and He is the All-Hearing, All-Knowing), three times, will not
be stricken with a sudden affliction until morning comes, and whoever says them when morning comes will not be
stricken with a sudden affliction until evening comes.
Secondly:
As mentioned earlier, With regard to reciting this supplication on behalf of family members, that is not valid and does
not suffice them, as there is no report to indicate that it is valid to recite adhkaar on behalf of the living. So each
Muslim should be keen to do that which will benefit him, and ensure that he is not one of those who are heedless of
the remembrance of Allah, may He be glorified and exalted.
Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):
And remember your Lord by your tongue and within yourself, humbly and with fear without loudness in words in
the mornings, and in the afternoons and be not of those who are neglectful.
Surely, those who are with your Lord (angels) are never too proud to perform acts of worship to Him, but they
glorify His Praise and prostrate before Him
[Quran: al-Araaf 7:205-206].

7. Thirdly: Concerning the Hadith mentioned earlier on at the beginning of page 2 marked elsewhere
by **
With regard to the story of the houses around the house of Abud-Darda (may Allah be pleased with him) burning
down whilst his house remained safe, it was not narrated concerning the dhikr mentioned in the question
Bismillah illadhi la yadurru maa ismihi shayun fil-ard wa la fil-sama wa huwa al-samee ul-aleem (In the name
of Allah with Whose name nothing can harm on earth or in heaven, and He is the All-Hearing, All-Knowing).
Rather it was narrated concerning another duaa:
It was narrated that Talq ibn Habeeb said:
A man came to Abud-Darda (may Allah be pleased with him) and said: O Abud-Darda, your house is on fire. He
said: It is not on fire; Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, would not do that, because of some words that I
heard from the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) whoever says them at the
beginning of the day, no calamity will befall him until evening comes, and whoever says them at the end of the
day, no calamity will befall him until morning comes: Allahumma anta Rabbiy, laa ilaaha illa anta, alayka
tawakkaltu, wa anta Rabb ul-arsh il-azeem; ma sha Allahu kaana wa ma lam yasha lam yakun; laa
hawla wa laa quwwata illa Billah il-Aliy il-Azeem. Alamu anna Allaha ala kulli shayin qadeer, wa
anna Allaha qad ahata bi kulli shayin ilman. Allahumma inni aoodhu bika min sharri nafsi wa min
sharri kulli daabbatin anta aakhidun bi naasiyatiha; inna Rabbiy ala siraatin mustaqeem
Narrated by Ibn as-Sunni in Amal al-Yawm wal-Layla (no. 57); at-Tabaraani in ad-Duaa (no. 343); al-Bayhaqi in
Dalaail an-Nubuwwah (7/121), via al-Aghlab ibn Tameem: al-Hajjaaj ibn Furaafisah told us, from Talq ibn
Habeeb.
Ibn al-Jawzi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
This is a hadith that is not proven, the problem is with al-Aghlab. Yahya ibn Maeen said: He is nothing. Al-Bukhaari
said: He is munkar al-hadith (i.e., his hadith is to be rejected). End quote.
Al-Ilal al-Mutanaahiyah (2/352)
It was classed as daeef by al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar in Nataaij al-Afkaar (2/401)
Shaykh al-Albaani (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

6
This isnaad is da eef jiddan (very weak). Concerning this al-Aghlab, al-Bukhaari and others said: He is munkar
al-hadith (i.e., his hadith is to be rejected). al-Hajjaaj ibn Furaafisah is somewhat weak. End quote.
As-Silsilah ad-Daeefah (no. 6420)
And Allah knows best.
Praise be to Allaah.
Secondly:

8.More on the Duaa mentioned earlier marked with ** first mentioned at the beginning of page
No.2.
There is a daeef hadeeth about protection from fire and other calamities, and perhaps this is what the questioner
is referring to.
It was narrated that Talq ibn Habeeb said: A man came to Abul-Darda (may Allaah be pleased with him) and
said: O Abul-Darda, your house has burned down. He said: It has not burned down. I know that Allaah would
not do that because of some words that I heard from the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him); whoever says them at the beginning of the day, no calamity will befall him until evening comes, and
whoever says them at the end of the day, no calamity will befall him until morning comes: O Allaah, You are my
Lord, there is no god but You, in You have I put my trust and You are the Lord of the Mighty Throne. Whatever
Allaah wills happens, and whatever He does not will does not happen. There is no power and no strength except
with Allaah, the Most High, the Almighty. I know that Allaah has power over all things and that Allaah has
encompassed all things with His knowledge. O Allaah, I seek refuge with You from the evil of my own self, and
from the evil of every living creature whose forelock is in Your hand. My Lord is on a straight path.
This was narrated by Ibn al-Sunni in his book Aml al-Yawm wal-Laylah (25/hadeeth 27) and by al-Tabaraani in
al-Duaa (2/954).
Ibn al-Jawzi said in al-Ilal al-Mutanaahiyah (2/836, 837):
This hadeeth is not proven, and the problem with it is (the narrator) al-Aghlab ibn Tameem, of whom Yahya ibn
Maeen said: He is nothing. Al-Bukhaari said: His hadeeth is munkar. End quote.
This hadeeth was also narrated via another isnaad with similar wording. It was narrated by al-Haarith ibn Abi
Usaamah in his Musnad (2/953). He said: Yazeed ibn Haroon told us: Muaadh Abu Abd-Allaah told us: A man
narrated it to me from al-Hasan.
This is a weak isnaad because the man who narrated it from al-Hasan is unknown.
The hadeeth was classed as daeef (weak) by al-Iraaqi in Takhreej Ihya Uloom al-Deen (1/316) and by Shaykh
al-Albaani in Tahqeeq al-Kalim al-Tayyib (74).
9.Specific Dhikr (TAKBEER) to be made if an earthly Fire should occur
If Allaah decrees that a fire should occur, then some scholars regard it as mustahabb to say takbeer whilst putting
it out, and they say that saying takbeer at the time of a fire will help in extinguishing it and prevent its
harm.
A hadeeth concerning that was narrated from Abd-Allaah ibn Amr ibn al-Aas, saying that the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: If you see a fire, then say takbeer, for takbeer will extinguish it. Narrated
by Ibn al-Sunni in Aml al-Yawm wal-Laylah (295) and by al-Tabaraani in al-Duaa (1/307). But it is a weak
hadeeth. See al-Silsilah al-Daeefah by al-Albaani (2603).
Ibn Taymiyah (may Allaah have mercy on him) said in al-Fataawa al-Kubra (5/188):
Hence the slogan of the prayers, the adhaan and the Eids is the takbeer, and it is mustahabb to say it in high
places such as al-Safa and al-Marwah, when a person climbs up a hill or rides his mount and so on. With it fires
are extinguished even if they are great, and at the time of the adhaan the shaytaan flees. End quote.
Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allaah have mercy on him) said in Zaad al-Maaad (4/194):
Because a fire is caused by the substance of the shaytaan from which he was created, and it causes some general
destruction which befits the shaytaan and his substance and actions, the shaytaan helped with it and played some
7
role in it, fire by its very nature seeks to dominate and destroy. These two matters domination of the earth and
destruction are the way of the shaytaan to which he calls people, and by means of which he destroys the sons
of Adam. Fire and the shaytaan both seek to dominate on earth and spread corruption and destruction, but the
might of the Lord, may He be glorified and exalted, suppresses the shaytaan and his actions. Hence magnifying
Allaah (by saying takbeer) has an effect in extinguishing fires, for nothing can resist the might of Allaah, may He
be glorified and exalted. When the Muslim magnifies his Lord, his takbeer has the effect of suppressing the fire
and the shaytaan who is made of its substance, so the fire is extinguished. We ourselves and others have tried
this, and we have found it to be so. And Allaah knows best.
And Allaah knows best.
10. More on Specific Dhikr (TAKBEER) to be made, If Allah (SWT) decrees an earthly Fire:
If Allaah decrees that a fire should occur, then some scholars regard it as mustahabb to say takbeer whilst putting
it out, and they say that saying takbeer at the time of a fire will help in extinguishing it and prevent its harm.
A Hadith about what to say when there is a FIRE.
A hadeeth concerning that was narrated from Abd-Allaah ibn Amr ibn al-Aas, saying that the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: If you see a fire, then say takbeer, for takbeer will extinguish it. Narrated by
Ibn al-Sunni in Aml al-Yawm wal-Laylah (295) and by al-Tabaraani in al-Duaa (1/307). But it is a weak hadeeth. See
al-Silsilah al-Daeefah by al-Albaani (2603).
Ibn Taymiyah (may Allaah have mercy on him) said in al-Fataawa al-Kubra (5/188):
Hence the slogan of the prayers, the adhaan and the Eids is the takbeer, and it is mustahabb to say it in high places
such as al-Safa and al-Marwah, when a person climbs up a hill or rides his mount and so on. With it fires are
extinguished even if they are great, and at the time of the adhaan the shaytaan flees. End quote.
Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allaah have mercy on him) said in Zaad al-Maaad (4/194):
Because a fire is caused by the substance of the shaytaan from which he was created, and it causes some general
destruction which befits the shaytaan and his substance and actions, the shaytaan helped with it and played some role
in it, fire by its very nature seeks to dominate and destroy. These two matters domination of the earth and
destruction are the way of the shaytaan to which he calls people, and by means of which he destroys the sons of
Adam. Fire and the shaytaan both seek to dominate on earth and spread corruption and destruction, but the might of
the Lord, may He be glorified and exalted, suppresses the shaytaan and his actions. Hence magnifying Allaah (by saying
takbeer) has an effect in extinguishing fires, for nothing can resist the might of Allaah, may He be glorified and exalted.
When the Muslim magnifies his Lord, his takbeer has the effect of suppressing the fire and the shaytaan who is made
of its substance, so the fire is extinguished. We ourselves and others have tried this, and we have found it to be so.
And Allaah knows best.
Another Question from a Student
11.Is there a prayer which can protect me from bad people at school, and in general?

Praise be to Allaah.

Yes, there are many duaas which if a Muslim recites them, they will be a means of protecting him from evil and evil
people. These include the following:
12.1 It was narrated that Ibn Abbaas (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: The Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) used to seek protection for al-Hasan and al-Husayn and say: Your father (i.e., Ibraaheem) used
to seek protection by means of them (these words) for Ismaaeel and Ishaaq: Aoodhu bi kalimaat-Allaah il-taammah
min kulli shaytaanin wa haammah wa min kulli aynin laammah (I seek refuge in the perfect words of Allaah from
every devil and poisonous reptile, and from every envious evil eye).
Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 3191.
12.2 It was narrated from Abu Hurayrah that when the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) was on
a journey and got up or ended his journey in the last part of the night, he would say, Samia saamiun bi hamdi Lillaah
wa husni balaaihi alayna. Rabbana saahibna wa afdil alayna aaidhan Billaahi min al-naar (May a witness bear
witness to our praise of Allaah for His favours and bounties upon us. Our Lord, protect us, show favour upon us and
deliver us from every evil. I seek refuge in Allaah from the Fire).
Narrated by Muslim, 2718
8
Samia saamiun (literally, may a hearer hear us) al-Khattaabi said: This means, may a witness bear witness that we
are praising Allaah for His blessings and favours.
12.3 It was narrated that Khawlah bint Hakeem al-Sulamiyyah said: I heard the Messenger of Allaah (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) say: Whoever makes a stop on a journey and says, Aoodhu bi kalimaat Allaah il-
tammaati min sharri ma khalaqa (I seek refuge in the perfect words of Allaah from the evil of that which He has
created), nothing will harm him until he moves on from that place.)
Narrated by Muslim, 2708
12.4 It was narrated from Moosa al-Ashari that when the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) was
afraid of some people he would say, Allaahumma inna najaluka fi nuhoorihim wa naoodhu bika min shuroorihim
(O Allaah, we ask You to repel them and we seek refuge in You from their evil).
Narrated by Abu Dawood, 1537; classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh al-Jaami, 4706
Shaykh Abd al-Azeem Abaadi said:
What is meant is: We ask You to repel them, ward off their evil, deal with them and prevent any evil reaching us from
them.
Awn al-Mabood, 4/277
13. Seven Types of Martyrdom

151904: If a person dies by burning is he regarded as a martyr?

Praise be to Allaah.
The one who dies by burning is a martyr, because of the report narrated by Ahmad (23804), Abu Dawood (3111)
and al-Nasaai (1846) from Jaabir ibn Ateek (may Allah be pleased with him), according to which the Messenger
of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: What do you regard as martyrdom? They said: Being
killed for the sake of Allaah. The Messenger of Allaah (S) said: Martyrdom is seven things besides being killed for
the sake of Allaah. The one who dies of the plague is a martyr, the one who drowns is a martyr, the one who dies
of pleurisy is a martyr, the one who dies of a stomach disease is a martyr, the one who is burned to death is a
martyr, the one who dies beneath a collapsed building is a martyr, and the woman who dies in pregnancy is a
martyr.
Classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh Abi Dawood.
It says in Awn al-Mabood Sharh Sunan Abi Dawood:
Al-Matoon is the one who dies of the plague. The one who drowns is a martyr if his journey was for a permissible
purpose. The one who dies of pleurisy this refers to pain in a persons side, which calmed down and the pain
ceased at the time of death; one of its signs is pain under the ribs and difficulty in breathing, along with constant
fever and coughing. It is more common in women, according to al-Qaari. Al-mabtoon (the one who dies of a
stomach disease) refers to diarrhoea or dropsy or pain in the stomach. The one who is burned to death refers to
one who dies in a fire. The one who dies beneath a collapsed building this refers to falling walls and the like.
The woman who dies in pregnancy al-Khattaabi said: what this means is that she dies with a child in her womb.
End quote.
And he said at the end: i.e., she dies with a child in her womb. And it was said: this phrase [in Arabic] may refer
to the woman who dies a virgin. End quote.
Shaykh Ibn Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) was asked: If a man of the civil defence dies as a result
of being burned with fire when he was trying to put it out, is he regarded as a martyr?
He replied: Firstly, I say: everyone who dies by fire and is a Muslim is one of the martyrs, because the Prophet
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: the one who is burned to death is a martyr. But we cannot say
that So and so is a martyr because he died by burning, because we do not know. Rather we stay in general terms
that everyone who dies by burning is a martyr, and if he was a firefighter then he will attain a greater reward,
because the one who died seeking to put out a fire combined two things: he was burned to death and he was
protecting his brothers. So in fact he has attained two rewards: the reward for protecting his Muslim brothers and
the reward of martyrdom for being burned to death. But you should note that we do not testify for any particular

9
individual, meaning for example, that if a person is burned to death in front of us, we say the one who is burned
to death is a martyr, but we do not say this man is a martyr. Al-Bukhaari (may Allah have mercy on him)
referred to this issue in his Saheeh and said: Chapter: It cannot be said that So and so is a martyr. Then he
quoted as evidence for that the words of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him): wounded
for the sake of Allah; Allah knows best who is wounded for His sake. He said: Allah knows best; therefore if Allah
knows who is wounded for His sake, then we cannot testify for anyone; rather we say in general terms that the
one who is killed for the sake of Allah is a martyr. Thus we differentiate between speaking in general terms and
speaking in specific terms.
End quote from Majmoo Fataawa Ibn Uthaymeen (25/448)

And Allah knows best.

And Allaah knows best.

14-Hadith terminology
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Hadith terminology (Arabic:

) muala al-adth) is the body of terminology in Islam which
specifies the acceptability of the sayings (hadith) attributed to the prophet Muhammad(saw) other early
Islamic figures of significance, such as Muhammad's(saw) family and/or successors. Individual terms
distinguish between those hadith considered rightfully attributed to their source or detail the faults of those of
dubious provenance. Formally, it has been defined by Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani as: "knowledge of the principles
by which the condition of the narrator and the narrated are determined." [1] This page comprises the primary
terminology used within hadith studies.
Contents
1 Terminology relating to the authenticity of a hadith
a 1.2 asan 1.3 Related terms 1.3.1 Musnad 1.3.1.1 Musnad format of hadith collection 1.3.2
Muttail 1.4 af 1.4.1 Categories of discontinuity 1.4.1.1 Muallaq 1.4.1.2 Mursal1.4.1.3 Munqai
1.4.2 Other types of weakness 1.4.2.1 Munkar1.4.2.2 Muarib1.4.2.3 Maw 1.4.2.3.1 Recognizing
fabricated hadith1.4.2.3.2 Causes of fabrication1.4.2.3.3 Collections2 Terminology relating to the
number of narrators in an isnad 2.1 Mutawatir 2.1.1 Types of mutawatir2.2 Ahaad 2.2.1 `Aziz 2.2.2
Gharib 2.3 Impact on Islamic law Terminology pertaining to a narration's origin 3.1 Marfu`3.2
Mawquf3.3 Maqtu' 4 Sunni hadith terminology literature
Terminology relating to the authenticity of a hadith
Ibn al-Salah said: "A hadith, according to its specialists, is divided into a, asan and af."[2]

Ibn al-Salah said, "A hadith, according to its specialists, is divided into a ("authentic"), asan and
af."[2] While the individual terms of hadith terminology are many, many more than these three terms, the
final outcome is essentially determining whether a particular hadith is a and, therefore, actionable, or
af and not actionable. This is evidenced by al-Bulqini's commentary on Ibn al-Salah's statement. Al-
Bulqini commented that "the terminology of the hadith specialists is more than this, while, at the same time,
is only a and its opposite. Perhaps what has been intended by the latter categorization (i.e. into two
categories) relates to standards of religious authority, or lack of it, in general, and what will be mentioned
afterwards (i.e. the sixty-five categories) is a specification of that generality."[2]
is best translated as "authentic".[citation needed] Ibn Hajar defines a hadith that is a
a-a ()
lithatihi "a in and of itself" as a singular narration (ahaad; see below) conveyed by a trustworthy, completely
competent person, either in his ability to memorize or to preserve what he wrote, with a muttail ("connected")
isnd ("chain of narration") that contains neither a serious concealed flaw (illah) nor irregularity (shdhdh). He then

10
defines a hadith that is a lighairihi "a due to external factors" as a hadith "with something, such as
numerous chains of narration, strengthening it."[3]
Ibn Hajar's definitions indicate that there are five conditions to be met for a particular hadith to be considered a:
Each narrator in the chain of narration must be trustworthy;
Each narrator must be reliable in his ability to preserve that narration, be it in his ability to memorize to the
extent that he can recall it as he heard it, or, that he has written it as he heard it and has preserved that
written document unchanged;
The isnd must be connected (muttasil) insofar as it is at least possible for each narrator in the chain to have
received the hadith from a predecessor;
The hadith, including its isnd, is free of illah (hidden detrimental flaw or flaws, e.g. the establishment that
two narrators, although contemporaries, could not have shared the hadith, thereby breaking the isnd.) The
hadith is free of irregularity, meaning that it does not contradict another hadith already established
(accepted).
A number of books were authored in which the author stipulated the inclusion of a hadith alone. According to
Ahl al-Sunna, this was only achieved by the first two books in the following list:
a al-Bukhr. Considered the most authentic book after the Quran.[4]
a Muslim. Considered the next most authentic book after a al-Bukhr.[4]a ibn Khuzaymah.
Al-Suyuti was of the opinion that a Ibn Khuzaymah was at a higher level of authenticity than
a Ibn ibbn.[5]
a Ibn ibbn. Al-Suyuti also concluded that a Ibn ibbn was more authentic than Al-Mustadrak
alaa al-aain.[5]
al-Mustadrak al al-aayn, by Hakim al-Nishaburi.[5] Al-hdith al-Jiyd al-Mukhtrah min m laysa f
aain by iy al-Dn al-Maqdis, authenticity considered.[6]
asan
asan ( meaning "good") is used to describe hadith whose authenticity is not as well-established as that of a
hadith, but sufficient for use as (religious) evidence.
Ibn Hajar defines a hadith that is asan lithatihi "asan in and of itself" with the same definition a a hadith
except that the competence of one of its narrators is less than complete; while a hadith that is asan ligharihi
("asan due to external factors") is determined to be asan due to corroborating factors such as numerous chains of
narration. He states that it is then comparable to a a hadith in its religious authority. A asan hadith may rise to
the level of being a if it is supported by numerous isnd (chains of narration); in this case that hadith would be
asan lithatihi ("asan in and of itself") but, once coupled with other supporting chains, becomes a ligharihi
("a due to external factors").[7]A hadith which a scholar of hadith reports from his shaikh whom he has
apparently heard hadith from at an age conducive to that, and likewise each shaikh having heard from his shaikh
until the isnd reaches a well known Companion, and then the Messenger of Allah. An example of that is: Abu 'Amr
'Uthman ibn Ahmad al-Samak narrated to us in Baghdad: al-asan ibn Mukarram narrated to us: Uthman ibn 'Umar
narrated to us: Yunus informed us from al-Zuhri from Abdullah ibn Kab ibn Mlik from his father Ka'b ibn Malik who
sought from ibn Abi Hadrad payment of a debt the latter owed the former while in the mosque. Their voices became
raised to the extent that they were heard by the Messenger of Allah. He exited only by lifting the curtain of his
apartment and said, 'O Kab! Relieve him of his debt,' gesturing to him in way indicating by half. So he Kab said,
'Yes,' and the man paid him." To clarify this example I have given: my having heard from Ibn al-Samak is apparent, his
having heard from al-asan ibn al-Mukarram is apparent, likewise Hasan having heard from 'Uthman ibn 'Umar and
'Uthman ibn 'Umar from Yunus ibn Yazid this being an elevated chain for 'Uthman. Yunus was known [for having
heard from] al-Zuhri, as was al-Zuhri from the sons of Ka'b ibn Malik , and the sons of Ka'b ibn Malik from their father
and Ka'b from the Messenger as he was known for being a Companion. This example I have made applies to
thousands of hadith, citing just this one hadith regarding the generality [of this category].[8]

11
Related terms
Musnad.

The early scholar of hadith, Muhammad ibn Abdullah al-Hakim, defines a musnad ( meaning "supported")
hadith as: A hadith which a. scholar of hadith reports from his shaikh whom he has apparently heard hadith
from at an age conducive to that, and likewise each shaikh having heard from his shaikh until the isnd
reaches a well known Companion, and then the Messenger of Allah. An example of that is:
Abu 'Amr 'Uthman ibn Ahmad al-Samak narrated to us in Baghdad: al-asan ibn Mukarram narrated to us:
Uthman ibn 'Umar narrated to us: Yunus informed us from al-Zuhri from Abdullah ibn Kab ibn Mlik
from his father Ka'b ibn Malik who sought from ibn Abi Hadrad payment of a debt the latter owed the
former while in the mosque. Their voices became raised to the extent that they were heard by the Messenger
of Allah. He exited only by lifting the curtain of his apartment and said, 'O Kab! Relieve him of his debt,'
gesturing to him in way indicating by half. So he Kab said, 'Yes,' and the man paid him."
To clarify this example I have given: my having heard from Ibn al-Samak is apparent, his having heard from
al-asan ibn al-Mukarram is apparent, likewise Hasan having heard from 'Uthman ibn 'Umar and 'Uthman
ibn 'Umar from Yunus ibn Yazid this being an elevated chain for 'Uthman. Yunus was known [for having
heard from] al-Zuhri, as was al-Zuhri from the sons of Ka'b ibn Malik , and the sons of Ka'b ibn Malik from
their father and Ka'b from the Messenger as he was known for being a Companion. This example I have
made applies to thousands of hadith, citing just this one hadith regarding the generality [of this category]. [8]
Musnad format of hadith collection
A musnad hadith should not be confused with the type of hadith collection similarly termed musnad, which is
arranged according to the name of the companion narrating each hadith. For example, a musnad might begin by
listing a number of the hadith, complete with their respective sanads, of Abu Bakr, and then listing a number of
hadith from Umar, and then Uthman ibn Affan and so on. Individual compilers of this type of collection may vary in
their method of arranging those Companions whose hadith they were collecting. An example of this type of book is
the Musnad of Ahmad.
Muttail

Muttail () refers to a continuous chain of narration in which each narrator has heard that narration from his
teacher. [9]

af

af ( ) is the categorization of a hadith as "weak". Ibn Hajar described the cause of a hadith being classified as
weak as "either due to discontinuity in the chain of narrators or due to some criticism of a narrator."[10] This
discontinuity refers to the omission of a narrator occurring at different positions within the isnd and is referred to
using specific terminology accordingly as discussed below.
Categories of discontinuity
Muallaq
Discontinuity in the beginning of the isnd, from the end of the collector of that hadith, is referred to as muallaq

( meaning "suspended"). Muallaq refers to the omission of one or more narrators. It also refers to the omission
of the entire isnd, for example, (an author) saying only: "The Prophet said..." In addition, this includes the omission
of the isnd except for the companion, or the companion and successor together.[10]
Mursal
Mursal ( meaning "hurried"): if the narrator between the Successor and Muhammad is omitted from a given
isnd, the hadith is mursal, e.g., when a Successor says, The Prophet said ...[11] Since Sunnis believe in the
uprightness of all Sahaba, they do not view it as a necessary problem if a Successor does not mention what Sahaba
he received the hadith from. This means that if a hadith has an acceptable chain all the way to a Successor, and the
successor attributes it to an unspecified companion, the isnd is considered acceptable. There are, however,
different views in some cases: If the Successor is a young one and it is probable that he omitted an elder Successor
who in turn reported from a companion. The opinion held by Imam Malik and all Maliki jurists is that the mursal of a
trustworthy person is valid, just like a musnad hadith. This view has been developed to such an extreme that to
12
some of them, the mursal is even better than the musnad, based on the following reasoning: "The one who reports a
musnad hadith leaves you with the names of the reporters for further investigation and scrutiny, whereas the one
who narrates by way of irsal (the absence of the link between the successor and the Prophet), being a
knowledgeable and trustworthy person himself, has already done so and found the hadith to be sound. In fact, he
saves you from further research." Others reject the mursal of a younger Successor.[11]
Munqai

A hadith described as munqai ( meaning "broken") is one in which the chain of people reporting the hadith
(the isnd) is disconnected at any point.[11] The isnd of a hadith that appears to be muttail but one of the reporters
is known to have never heard hadith from his immediate authority, even though they lived at the same time, is
munqai. It is also applied when someone says "A man told me...".[11]
Other types of weakness
Munkar

Munkar ( meaning "denounced") According to Ibn Hajar, if a narration which goes against another authentic
hadith is reported by a weak narrator, it is known as munkar. Traditionists as late as Ahmad used to simply label any
hadith of a weak reporter as munkar.[12]
Muarib

Muarib ( meaning "shaky") According to Ibn Kathir, if reporters disagree about a particular shaikh, or
about some other points in the isnd or the matn, in such a way that none of the opinions can be preferred over the
others, and thus there is irreconcilable uncertainty, such a hadith is called muarib.[13]
An example is the following hadith attributed to Abu Bakr: "O Messenger of Allah! I see you getting older?" He Commented [SR1]:
(may Allah bless him and grant him peace) replied, "What made me old are Surah Hud and its sister surahs."
The hadith scholar Al-Daraqutni commented: "This is an example of a muarib hadith. It is reported through Abu
Ishaq, but as many as ten different opinions are held regarding this isnd. Some report it as mursal, others as
muttasil; some take it as a narration of Abu Bakr, others as one of Sa'd or `A'ishah." Since all these reports are
comparable in weight, it is difficult to prefer one above another. Hence, the hadith is termed as muarib".[13]
Maw

A hadith that is maw () is one determined to be fabricated and cannot be attributed to its origin. Al-Dhahabi
defines maw as a hadith the text of which contradicts established norms of the Prophet's sayings, or its reporters
include a liar.
Recognizing fabricated hadith
Some of these hadith were known to be spurious by the confession of their inventors. For example, Muhammad ibn
Sa`id al-Maslub used to say, "It is not wrong to fabricate an isnd for a sound statement." Another notorious inventor,
`Abd al-Karim Abu 'l-Auja, who was killed and crucified by Muhammad ibn Sulaiman ibn `Ali, governor of Basra,
admitted that he had fabricated four thousand hadith declaring lawful the prohibited and vice versa.
Maw narrations are also recognised by external evidence related to a discrepancy found in the dates or times of a
particular incident. For example, when the second caliph, Umar ibn al-Khattab decided to expel the Jews from
Khaybar, some Jewish dignitaries brought a document to Umar apparently proving that the Prophet had intended that
they stay there by exempting them from the jizya (tax on non-Muslims under the rule of Muslims); the document
carried the witness of two companions, Sa'd ibn Mua'dh and Mu'awiyah ibn Abi Sufyan. Umar rejected the document
outright, knowing that it was fabricated because the conquest of Khaybar took place in 6 AH, whereas Sa'd ibn Mua'dh
died in 5 AH just after the Battle of the Trench, and Mu'awiyah embraced Islam in 8 AH, after the conquest of Mecca.
Causes of fabrication
There are several factors which may motivate an individual to fabricate a narration:
political differences;
factions based on issues of creed;
fabrications by heretics;

13
fabrications by story-tellers;
fabrications by ignorant ascetics;
prejudice in favour of town, race or a particular leader;
inventions for personal motives;
the desire to promote proverbs into hadith.
Collections
A number of hadith specialists have collected fabricated hadith separately in order to distinguish them from other
hadith.[14][unreliable source?]
Examples include:
Al-Maudu`at by Abul-Faraj Ibn Al-Jawzi.
Kitab al-Abatil by al-Jauzaqani.[who?]
Al-La'ali al- Masnu'ah fi 'l-Ahadith al-Mawdu`ah by al-Suyuti.[who?]
Al-Mawdu`at by Ali al-Qari.Al-Fawaid al-Majmu'ah fi al-Ahaadeeth al-Mawdu'ah by Muhammad ash-
Shawkani.
Terminology relating to the number of narrators in an isnad
In hadith terminology, a hadith is divided into two categories based, essentially, upon the number of narrators
mentioned at each level in a particular isnd.[2]

In hadith terminology, a hadith is divided into two categories based, essentially, upon the number of narrators
mentioned at each level in a particular isnd. Consideration is given to the least number of narrators at any level of
the chain of narration; thus if ten narrators convey a hadith from two others who have conveyed it from ten, it is
considered `aziz, not mashhur.[15]
Mutawatir

The first category is mutawatir (
meaning "successive") narration. A successive narration is one conveyed by
narrators so numerous that it is not conceivable that they have agreed upon an untruth thus being accepted as
unquestionable in its veracity. The number of narrators is unspecified.[15] A hadith is said to be mutawatir if it was
reported by a significant, though unspecified, number of narrators at each level in the chain of narration, thus
reaching the succeeding generation through multiple chains of narration leading back to its source. This provides
confirmation that the hadith is authentically attributed to its source at a level above reasonable doubt. This is due to
its being beyond historical possibility that narrators could have conspired to forge a narration. In contrast, an ahaad
hadith is a narration the chain of which has not reached a number sufficient to qualify as mutawatir.
Types of mutawatir
Hadiths can be mutawatir in both actual text and meaning:
Mutawatir in wording

A hadith whose words are narrated by such a large number as is required for a mutawatir, in a manner that all the
narrators are unanimous in reporting it with the same words without any substantial discrepancy. For example:
"[Muhammad(saw) said:] Whoever intentionally attributes a lie against me, should prepare his seat in the Fire." This
is a mutawatir hadith in its wordings because it has a minimum of seventy-four narrators. In other words, seventy-
four companions of Muhammad(saw) have reported this hadith at different occasions, all with the same words. The
number of those who received this hadith from the Companions is many times greater, because each of the seventy
four Companions has conveyed it to a number of his students. Thus the total number of narrators of this hadith has
been increasing in each successive generation and has never been less than seventy-four. All these narrators who
now are hundreds in number, report it in the same words without even a minor change. This hadith is therefore

14
mutawatir in its wording, because it cannot be imagined reasonably that such a large number of people have
colluded to coin a fallacious sentence in order to attribute it to Muhammad(saw).

Mutwatir in meaning A hadith which is not reported by multiple narrators using the same words. The words of the
narrators are different. Sometimes even the reported events are not the same. But all the narrators are unanimous
in reporting a basic concept, which is common in all reports. This common concept is also ranked as a mutawatir
concept.

For example: It is reported by such a large number of narrators that Muhammad enjoined Muslims to perform two
ra'kat in Fajr, four ra'kat in Dhuhr, Asr and Esha and three ra'kat in the Maghrib prayer, yet the narrations of all the
reporters who reported the number of ra'kat are not in the same words. Their words are different and even the
events reported by them are different. But the common feature of all the reports is the same: the exact number of
ra'kat. The hadith is thus said to be mutawatir in meaning.

Ahaad
The second category, ahaad ( meaning "singular") narration, refers to any hadith not classified as mutawatir.
Linguistically, hadith ahad refers to a hadith narrated by only one narrator. In hadith terminology, it refers to a
hadith not fulfilling all of the conditions necessary to be deemed mutawatir.[15] Hadith ahad consists of three sub-
classifications also relating to the number of narrators in the chain or chains of narration:[15]
`Aziz
hadith is any hadith conveyed by two narrators at any point in its isnd (chain of narrators).[15]
An `aziz ()
Gharib

A gharib ( ) hadith is one conveyed by only one narrator.[15] Al-Tirmidhi's understanding of a gharib hadith,
concurs to a certain extent with that of the other traditionists. According to him a hadith may be classified as gharib
for one of the following three reasons:
Firstly, a hadith may be classified as gharib since it is narrated from one chain only. Al-Tirmidhi mentions
as an example a tradition from Hammad ibn Salamah from Abu 'Usharai on the authority of his father who
enquired from the Prophet whether the slaughtering of an animal is confined to the gullet and throat. The
Prophet replied that stabbing the thigh will also suffice.
Secondly, a tradition can be classified as gharib due to an addition in the text, though it will be considered a
sound tradition, if that addition is reported by a reliable reporter. The example cited by al-Tirmidhi is a
tradition narrated through the chain of Malik (died 179 AH) from Nafi' (died 117 AH) on the authority of
Ibn 'Umar (died 73 AH) who stated that the Prophet declared alms-giving at the end of Ramadan obligatory
upon every Muslim, male or female, whether a free person or slave from the Muslims. However, this
tradition has also been narrated by Ayyub Sakhtiyani and 'Ubaid Allah ibn 'Umar, without the addition
"from the Muslims", hence the above-mentioned example due to the addition of "from the Muslims" in the
text is classified as gharib.
Thirdly, a tradition may be declared gharib since it is narrated through various chains of transmitters but
having within one of its chains an addition in the isnd.
Impact on Islamic law
See also: Punishment of the Grave History of belief in the punishment of the grave

There are differing views as to the level of knowledge achieved by each of the two primary categories mutawatir and
ahaad. One view, expressed by Ibn Hajar and others, is that a hadith mutawatir achieves certain knowledge, while
ahad hadith, unless otherwise corroborated, yields speculative knowledge upon which action is mandated.[15] A
second view, held by Dawud al-Zahiri, Ibn Hazm and others and, reportedly, the position of Malik ibn Anas[citation
needed] is that hadith ahad achieves certain knowledge as well. According to Ibn Hazm, [t]he narration conveyed by
a single, upright narrator conveying from another of a similar description until reaching the Prophet mandates both
knowledge and action.[16]

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Terminology pertaining to a narration's origin
Different terms are used for the origin of a narration. These terms specify whether a narration is attributed to
Muhammad(saw), a companion, a successor or a latter historical figure.
Marfu

Ibn al-Salah said: "Marfo` () refers to a narration attributed specifically to the Prophet [Muhammad](saw). This
term does not refer to other than him unless otherwise specified. The category of marfu` is inclusive of narrations
attributed to the Prophet regardless of their being muttasil, munqati` or mursal among other categories."[17]There
are differing views as to the level of knowledge achieved by each of the two primary categories mutawatir and
ahaad. One view, expressed by Ibn Hajar and others, is that a hadith mutawatir achieves certain knowledge, while
ahad hadith, unless otherwise corroborated, yields speculative knowledge upon which action is mandated.[14] A
second view, held by Dawud al-Zahiri, Ibn Hazm and others and, reportedly, the position of Malik ibn Anas[citation
needed] is that hadith ahad achieves certain knowledge as well. According to Ibn Hazm, [t]he narration conveyed by
a single, upright narrator conveying from another of a similar description until reaching the Prophet mandates both
knowledge and action.[15]
Mawquf

According to Ibn al-Salah, "Mawquf () refers to a narration attributed to a companion, whether a statement of
that companion, an action or otherwise."[17]
Maqtu'

Ibn al-Salah defined maqtu` () as a narration attributed to a Tabii (a successor of one of Muhammad'(saw)s
companions), whether it is a statement of that successor, an action or otherwise. In spite of the linguistic similarity, it
is distinct from munqati`.[17]
Sunni hadith terminology literature
As in any Islamic discipline, there is a rich history of literature describing the principles and fine points of hadith
studies. Ibn Hajar provides a summation of this development with the following: Works authored in the
terminology of the people of hadith have become plentiful from the Imams, both old and contemporary:
From the first of those who authored a work on this subject is the Judge, Ab Muammad al-Rmahurmuz
in his book, al-Muhaddith al-Faasil, however, it was not comprehensive.And al-Hakim, Ab Abd Allah an-
Naysaburi, authored a book, however, it was neither refined nor well arranged.
And following him, Aboo Nuaym al-Asbahaanee, who wrote a mustakhraj upon the book of the later,
(compiling the same narrations al-Hakim cited using his own isnd.) However, some things remain in need
of correction.
And then came al-Khatib Abu Bakr al-Bagdadi, authoring works in the various disciplines of the science of
hadith a book entitled al-Kifaayah and in its etiquettes a book entitled al-Jami` Li `Adab ash-Sheikh wa as-
Saami`. Scarce is the discipline from the disciplines of the science of hadith that he has not written an
individual book regarding, as al-Hafith Abu Bakr ibn Nuqtah said: Every objective person knows that the
scholars of hadith coming after al-Khatib are indebted to his works. After them came others, following al-
Khateeb, taking their share from this science."
al-Qadi Eyaad compiled a concise book naming it al-`Ilmaa'.
Ab Hafs al-Mayyaanajiyy authored a work giving it the title Ma Laa yasu al-Muhaddith Jahluhu or That
Which a Hadith Scholar is Not Allowed Ignorance Of. There are numerous examples of this which have
gained popularity and were expanded upon seeking to make plentiful the knowledge relating to these books
and others abridged making easy their understanding.
This was prior to the coming of the memorizer and jurist Taqiyy ad-Deen Aboo Amrin Uthmaan ibn al-
Salah Abd ar-Rahmaan ash-Shahruzuuree, who settled in Damascus. He gathered, at the time he had
become a teacher of hadith at the Ashrafiyyah school, his well known book, editing the various disciplines
mentioned in it. He dictated it piecemeal and, as a result, did not succeed in providing it with an appropriate
order. He occupied himself with the various works of al-Khatib, gathering his assorted studies, adding to
them from other sources the essence of their benefits. So he combined in his book what had been spread
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throughout books other than it. It is due to this that people have focused their attention upon it, following its
example. Innumerable are those who rendered his book into poetry, abridged it, sought to complete what had
been left out of it or left out any extraneous information; as well as those who opposed him in some aspect
of his work or supported him
References to this article on Hadith Terminology

1. al-`Asqaln, Amad ibn `Al. al-Nukat Ala Kitab Ibn al-Salah (in Arabic). 1. `Ajman: Maktabah al-Furqan. pp. 8195.
2. Muqadimah Ibn al-Salah, by Ibn al-Salah, along with Muhasin al-Istilah by al-Bulqini, edited by 'Aishah bint 'Abd al-
Rahman, pg. 101, Dar al-Ma'arif, Cairo.
3. Nuzhah al-Nuthr, published with Al-Nukat by 'Ali ibn Hasan, pg. 82, Dar ibn al-Jawzi, al-Damam, 6th edition.
4. al-Shahrazuri, `Uthman ibn `Abd al-Rahman Ibn al-Salah (1990). `Aishah bint `Abd al-Rahman, ed. al-Muqaddimah
fi `Ulum al-Hadith. Cairo: Dar al-Maaarif. pp. 1609.
5. Tadrib al-Rawi, vol. 1, pg. 148, Dar al-'Asimah, Riyadh, first edition, 2003.
6. al-Kattn, Muammad ibn Jafar (2007). Al-Rislah al-Mustarafah (seventh ed.). Dr al-Bashir al-Islamiyyah.
p. 24.
7. Nuzhah al-Nuthr, published as Al-Nukat, pg. 9192, Dar ibn al-Jawzi, al-Damam, 6th edition.
8. Marifah 'Ulum al-Hadith, by al-Hakim, pg. 17-8, Da'irah al-Ma'arif al-'Uthmanaiyyah, Hyderabad, India, second edition,
1977.
9. Nuzhah al-Nuthr, published with Al-Nukat by 'Ali ibn Hasan, pg. 83, Dar ibn al-Jawzi, al-Damam, 6th edition.
10. Nuzhah al-Nuthr, published with Al-Nukat, pg. 108, Dar ibn al-Jawzi, al-Damam, 6th edition.
11. "The Classification of hadith according to the links in the isnd, by Suhaib Hsan". Witness-pioneer.org. 2002-09-
16. Retrieved 2010-03-16.
12. "The Classification of hadith according to the nature of the text and isnd, by Suhaib Hassan". Witness-
pioneer.org. 2002-09-16. Retrieved 2010-03-16.
13. "The Classification of hadith according to a hidden defect found in the isnd or text of a hadith, by Suhaib
Hassan". Witness-pioneer.org. 2002-09-16. Retrieved 2010-03-16.
14. Huzaifa, Umme. "Efforts of Scholars in Eliminating Doubts upon the Collection of Fabricated Ahadith".
Retrieved August 9, 2017.
15. Nuzhah al-Nathar, by Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani, printed with: Al-Nukat Ala Nuzhah al-Nathr, pgs. 5170, by Ali ibn Hasan ibn
Ali, Dar Ibn al-Jawzi, Dammam, Saudi Arabia, sixth edition, 1422.
16. Al-Baith al-Hathith Sharh Ikhtisar Ulum Al-Hadith, Ahmad Muhammad Shakir, vol. 1, pg. 126, Maktabah al-Maarif,
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, first edition, 1996.
17. Muqadimah Ibn al-Salah, by Ibn al-Salah, along with Muhasin al-Istilah by al-Bulqini, edited by 'Aishah bint 'Abd al-
Rahman, pg. 193-5, Dar al-Ma'arif, Cairo.
18. Nuzhah Al-Nathr, pg. 4551, published with al-Nukat of Ali ibn Hasan, Dar Ibn al-Jawzi. I referred to the explanation of
Ali al-Qari, Sharh Sharh Nukhbah al-Fikr, in particular segments of pgs. 143-7.

Further readings

An Introduction to the Science of Hadith, by Ibn al-Salah, translated by Dr. Eerik Dickinson; ISBN 1-85964-
158-X
Studies in Hadith Methodology and Literature, by Muhammad Mustafa Al-A'zami; ISBN 983-9154-27-3
The Canonization of Al-Bukhari and Muslim: The Formation and Function of the Sunni Hadith Canon by
Jonathan Brown, BRILL, 2007

15.More on Various Classifications of Hadeeths

Definitions of these various classifications of Hadeeth have been taken from: http://www.islamic-
awareness.org/Hadith/Ulum/asb7.html
When talking, reading or writing about Hadeeths it will be helpful at this very stage to understand what the various
classifications of Hadiths mean.
15.1 - Sahih
Al-Shafi`i states the following requirement in order for a hadith which is not Mutawatir to be acceptable:

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"Each reporter should be trustworthy in his religion; he should be known to be truthful in his narrating, to understand
what he narrates, to know how a different expression can alter the meaning, and report the wording of the hadith
verbatim, not only its meaning. This is because if he does not know how a different expression can change the whole
meaning, he will not know if he has changed what is lawful into what is prohibited. Hence, if he reports the hadith
according to its wording, no change of meaning will be found at all. Moreover, he should be a good memoriser if he
happens to report from his memory, or a good preserver of his writings if he happens to report from them. He should
agree with the narrations of the huffaz (leading authorities in hadith), if he reports something which they do also. He
should not be a Mudallis, who narrates from someone he met something he did not hear, nor should he report from
the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) contrary to what reliable sources have reported from him. In
addition, the one who is above him (in the isnad) should be of the same quality, [and so on,] until the hadith goes back
uninterrupted to the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) or any authority below him."66
Ibn al-Salah, however, defines a Sahih hadith more precisely by saying:
"A Sahih hadith is the one which has a continuous isnad, made up of reporters of trustworthy memory from similar
authorities, and which is found to be free from any irregularities (i.e. in the text) or defects (i.e. in the isnad)."
By the above definition, no room is left for any weak hadith, whether, for example, it is Munqati`, Mu`dal, Mudtarib,
Maqlub, Shadhdh, Munkar, Ma`lul, or contains a Mudallis. The definition also excludes Hasan ahadith, as will be
discussed under that heading.
Of all the collectors of hadith, al-Bukhari and Muslim were greatly admired because of their tireless attempts to collect
Sahih ahadith only. It is generally understood that the more trustworthy and of good memory the reporters, the more
authentic the hadith. The isnad: Al-Shafi`i --- Malik --- Nafi` --- `Abdullah b. `Umar --- The Prophet (may Allah bless him
and grant him peace), is called a "golden isnad" because of its renowned reporters.67
Some traditionists prefer Sahih al-Bukhari to Sahih Muslim because al-Bukhari always looked for those reporters who
had either accompanied or met each other, even if only once in their lifetime. On the other hand, Muslim would accept
a reporter who is simply found to be contemporary to his immediate authority in reporting.68
The following grading is given for Sahih ahadith only:
1.Those which are transmitted by both al-Bukhari and Muslim;
2.Those which are transmitted by al-Bukhari only;
3.Those which are transmitted by Muslim only;
4.Those which are not found in the above two collections, but
which agree with the requirements of both al-Bukhari and Muslim;
5.which agree with the requirements of al-Bukhari only;
6.which agree with the requirements of Muslim only; and
7.Those declared Sahih by other traditionists.69
15.2 - Hasan
Al-Tirmidhi means by hadith Hasan: a hadith which is not Shadhdh, nor contains a disparaged reporter in its isnad, and
which is reported through more than one route of narration.70
Al-Khattabi (d. 388) states a very concise definition, "It is the one where its source is known and its reporters are
unambiguous."
By this he means that the reporters of the hadith should not be of a doubtful nature, such as with the Mursal or
Munqati` hadith, or one containing a Mudallis.
Ibn al-Salah classifies Hasan into two categories:
1.one with an isnad containing a reporter who is mastur ("screened", i.e. no prominent person reported from him) but
is not totally careless in his reporting, provided that a similar text is reported through another isnad as well;

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2.one with an isnad containing a reporter who is known to be truthful and reliable, but is a degree less in his
preservation/memory of hadith in comparison to the reporters of Sahih ahadith.
In both categories, Ibn al-Salah requires that the hadith be free of any shudhudh (irregularities).71
Al-Dhahabi, after giving the various definitions, says, "A Hasan hadith is one which excels the Da`if but nevertheless
does not reach the standard of a Sahih hadith."72 In the light of this definition, the following isnads are Hasan according
to al-Dhahabi:
1.Bahz b. Hakam --- his father --- his grandfather;
2.`Amr b. Shu`aib --- his father --- his grandfather;
3.Muhammad b. `Amr --- Abu Salamah --- Abu Hurairah.
Reporters such as al-Harith b. `Abdullah, `Asim b. Damurah, Hajjaj b. Artat, Khusaif b. `Abd al- Rahman and Darraj Abu
al-Samh attract different verdicts: some traditionists declare their ahadith Hasan, others declare them Da`if.73
Examples of Hasan hadith
Malik, Abu Dawud, al-Tirmidhi and al-Hakim reported through their isnads from `Amr b. Shu`aib --- his father --- his
grandfather, that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said,
"A single rider is a devil (i.e. disobedient), two riders are two devils, but three makes a travelling party."
Al-Tirmidhi declares this hadith to be Hasan because of the above isnad, which falls short of the requirements for a
Sahih hadith.74
Several weak ahadith may mutually support each other to the level of Hasan.
According to the definitions of al-Tirmidhi and Ibn al-Salah, a number of similar weak ahadith on a particular issue can
be raised to the degree of Hasan if the weakness found in their reporters is of a mild nature. Such a hadith is known
as Hasan li ghairihi (Hasan due to others), to distinguish it from the type previously-discussed, which is Hasan li dhatihi
(Hasan in itself). Similarly, several Hasan ahadith on the same subject may make the hadith Sahih li ghairihi, to be
distinguished from the previously-discussed Sahih li dhatihi.
However, in case the weakness is severe (e.g., the reporter is accused of lying or the hadith is itself Shadhdh), such
very weak ahadith will not support each other and will remain weak. For example, the well-known hadith, "He who
preserves forty ahadith for my Ummah will be raised by Allah on the Day of Resurrection among the men of
understanding", has been declared to be Da`if by most of the traditionists, although it is reported through several
routes.75
15.3 - Da`if
A hadith which fails to reach the status of Hasan is Da`if. Usually, the weakness is one of discontinuity in the isnad, in
which case the hadith could be Mursal, Mu`allaq, Mudallas, Munqati` or Mu`dal, according to the precise nature of
the discontinuity, or one of a reporter having a disparaged character, such as due to his telling lies, excessive mistakes,
opposition to the narration of more reliable sources, involvement in innovation, or ambiguity surrounding his person.
The smaller the number and importance of defects, the less severe the weakness. The more the defects in number
and severity, the closer the hadith will be to being Maudu` (fabricated).76
Some ahadith, according to the variation in the nature of the weakness associated with its reporters, rank at the
bottom of the Hasan grade or at the top of the Da`if grade. Reporters such as `Abdullah b. Lahi'ah (a famous judge
from Egypt), `Abd al-Rahman b. Zaid b. Aslam, Abu Bakr b. Abi Maryam al-Himsi, Faraj b. Fadalah, and Rishdin b. Sa'd
attract such types of varying ranks as they are neither extremely good preservers nor totally abandoned by the
traditionists.77
15.4 - Maudu`
Al-Dhahabi defines Maudu` (fabricated, forged) as the term applied to a hadith, the text of which goes against the
established norms of the Prophet's sayings (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), or its reporters include a liar,

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e.g. the forty ahadith known as Wad'aniyyah or the small collection of ahadith which was fabricated and claimed to
have been reported by `Ali al-Rida, the eighth Imam of the Ithna 'Ashari Shi'ah.78
A number of traditionists have collected fabricated ahadith separately in order to distinguish them from other ahadith;
among them are Ibn al-Jauzi in Al-Maudu`at, al-Jauzaqani in Kitab al-Abatil, al-Suyuti in Al-La'ali al- Masnu'ah fi 'l-
Ahadith al-Maudu`ah, and `Ali al-Qari in Al-Maudu`at.
Some of these ahadith were known to be spurious by the confession of their inventors. For example, Muhammad b.
Sa`id al-Maslub used to say, "It is not wrong to fabricate an isnad for a sound statement."79 Another notorious inventor,
`Abd al-Karim Abu 'l-Auja, who was killed and crucified by Muhammad b. Sulaiman b. `Ali, governor of Basrah, admitted
that he had fabricated four thousand ahadith declaring lawful the prohibited and vice-versa.80
Maudu` ahadith are also recognised by external evidence related to a discrepancy found in the dates or times of a
particular incident.81 For example, when the second caliph, `Umar b. al-Khattab decided to expel the Jews from Khaibar,
some Jewish dignitaries brought a document to `Umar apparently proving that the Prophet (may Allah bless him and
grant him peace) had intended that they stay there by exempting them from the jizyah (tax on non-Muslims under the
rule of Muslims); the document carried the witness of two Companions, Sa'd b. Mu`adh and Mu'awiyah b. Abi Sufyan.
`Umar rejected the document outright, knowing that it was fabricated because the conquest of Khaibar took place in
6 AH, whereas Sa'd b. Mu`adh died in 3 AH just after the Battle of the Trench, and Mu'awiyah embraced Islam in 8 AH,
after the conquest of Makkah!82
The author, in his Criticism of Hadith among Muslims with reference to Sunan Ibn Majah, has given more examples of
fabricated ahadith under the following eight categories of causes of fabrication:83
political differences;
factions based on issues of creed;
fabrications by zanadiqah (enemies-within spreading heretical beliefs);
fabrications by story-tellers;
fabrications by ignorant ascetics;
prejudice in favour of town, race or a particular imam;
inventions for personal motives;
proverbs turned into ahadith.
Similar to the last category above is the case of Isra'iliyat ("Israelite traditions"), narrations from the Jews and the
Christians84 which were wrongly attributed to the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace).
15.5What does Hadith Gharib ( ) mean?
A gharib hadith is a kind of categorization of hadith based on its chain. It is a kind of ahad hadith, which means that
it's not narrated through an abundance of narrators at each level of the chain. There are three kinds of ahad hadith:
mash-hoor, `aziz, and gharib. A gharib hadith is one in which there is at least one level (or tier) which only has one
narrator in it. An example of a gharib hadith is the famous hadith on intention (niyyah):
Narrated 'Umar bin Al-Khattab:
I heard Allah's Messenger (saws) saying, "The reward of deeds depends upon the intentions and
every person will get the reward according to what he has intended. So whoever emigrated for worldly
benefits or for a woman to marry, his emigration was for what he emigrated for."
This hadith was narrated from one Companion (`Umar (ra)) to one Successor (`Alqamah), and then at each further
level there are 2 or more people.
Note that this kind of categorization is not based on the text of the hadith at all, so it is not a verdict on the
"strangeness" of a text or lack thereof.

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Since this kind of categorization is only based on the number of people at each level of the chain (and not on their
memory or trustworthiness), a gharib hadith can be sahih (authentic), hasan (acceptable), da`if (weak), or even other
categories of authenticity.
Source: Usul al-Hadith class
https://islam.stackexchange.com/questions/7952/what-does-hadith-gharib-%D8%AD%D8%AF%D9%8A%D8%AB-
%D8%BA%D8%B1%D9%8A%D8%A8-mean

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