By this link: Can you clarify for us the meaning of ḥasan ḥadīth? The Meaning of Ḥasan Ḥadīth is Also in Three Tiers I replied: Experts of ḥadīth also have three usages of this term They asked: What are they? One: Ḥasan-Ṣaḥīḥ I replied: The term ḥasan-ṣaḥīḥ is used for a report whose source is known while all the conditions of ṣaḥīḥ reports are also found in it, as used by Tirmidhī and others when they deem a report to be ḥasan-ṣaḥīḥ. Two: Ḥasan The term ḥasan without the ṣaḥīḥ qualifier is one whose origins are known while most of…
View More The True Meaning of ḤasanAuthor: admin
The True Meaning of Ṣaḥīḥ
By this link: What is the true meaning of the ṣaḥīḥ (sound) ḥadīth? I replied: Experts of this discipline have used it for a variety of meanings, all of which have in common the reliability or verification of a report’s attribution to its source. Three-Tier Usage of Ṣaḥīḥ They asked: What are the most notable of these meanings? I replied: There are three broad usages of the term ṣaḥīḥ: The first usage of ṣaḥīḥ is for a report that is attributed to the Prophet which fulfills five conditions: Contiguous chain: There must be clear continuity of the chain without any…
View More The True Meaning of ṢaḥīḥThe crisis facing madrasas
By Dr. Mohammad Akram Nadwi Madrasas, like Nadwa, Deoband, Islah and others, which have been active in service of the Muslim community for the best part of 150 years, now face a hard choice. They are under pressure to shift away from the objectives for which they were originally founded towards curricula primarily oriented to preparing students for the current job market. It is said that, if they do not move in this direction, they will not attract students in sufficient numbers to remain viable, meaning that they will eventually become irrelevant and close. As an alumnus and former teacher…
View More The crisis facing madrasasReflection on Education
By Dr. Mohammad Akram Nadwi In this book, a Muslim scholar who has dedicated a lifetime to teaching in an Islamic madrasa reflects on the different, contending styles of education prevalent in India as a consequence of the legacy of colonial rule. He explains the need to find a way between, on the one hand, the orientation of education as traditionally understood by Muslims (which colonial rule had systematEically undermined and rendered practically irrelevant, but which some Muslims were resolved to cling to, despite the costs in terms of being socially and politically marginalized), and on the other, the modern…
View More Reflection on EducationA Crystal Clear Book: An Examination of the Qurʾān as a Book with Perfect Clarity
By this link: Tell us about the Book of our Lord. I replied: It is the Book which God the Exalted revealed onto our Prophet Muḥammad, peace and blessings be upon him, devoid of all aberration, which brings mankind from darkness into light; a self-consistent Book which repeats its contents in manifold forms from which shiver the skins of those that hold their Lord in awe; and then their skins and their hearts soften for God’s remembrance. It is the guidance of God through which He guides those whom He wills, and the one who is led astray has no…
View More A Crystal Clear Book: An Examination of the Qurʾān as a Book with Perfect ClarityRead in the Name of Thy Lord who Created: A Look at the True Meaning of the First Revelation
By this link: Explain the statement of God—”Read in the name of your Lord who created!”— and remove the shrouds of confusion from us, since it is the very first revelation of the Qurʾān upon the Prophet and it is not clear to us what was the reason for this command to read. We have reviewed the various views of interpreters, but that exercise has only pushed us into foolishness and stupidity and increased the muddling of the truth and even more confusion. I replied: This is from those matters of the Qurʾān that people have been mistaken about in…
View More Read in the Name of Thy Lord who Created: A Look at the True Meaning of the First RevelationA Book Free of Aberration: An Examination of the Qurʾān as a Straightforward Book Free of All Aberration and Crookedness
By this link: You have mentioned in a previous article your particular care to ponder over the Book of God in the blessed month of Ramadan. Can you enlighten us on any new meaning that your reflections have lead you to understand? I replied: There are a number of meanings from God’s Book that I was inspired to in this month. They asked: Tell us about the most noble of them in your eyes. I replied: It is God’s description of His Book that it is free of aberration, when He says: “Praise be to God Who has revealed to…
View More A Book Free of Aberration: An Examination of the Qurʾān as a Straightforward Book Free of All Aberration and CrookednessImam Abu Hanifah
By Dr. Mohammad Akram Nadwī Insofar as this talk about Abu Hanifah aims to introduce or present the book, it should pick out its major concerns – to show how and why the fiqh associated with Abu Hanifah has been relied upon and trusted by Muslims. This is done by discussing examples that illustrate how Hanafi fiqh was constructed, how it reasoned/worked with the primary sources; and by describing the man and his quality of life as a devout Muslim. One way to start would be to quote the interesting compliment paid to Abu Hanifah by his peers among near…
View More Imam Abu HanifahA Lesson About the Timings of the Five Prayers
Tarawīḥ Prayer is not Obligatory
By this link: Some people before us have condemned in very severe terms those who don’t perform the Tarawīḥ prayer. I replied: This condemnation is extremism in the religion of God and strictness where it doesn’t belong. Rather, you should be gentle and forbearing with people and strive to make them love the religion. Be wary of becoming excessive and extreme in any of its matters, lest you drive people away, for that is a trait of the deviated Khārijite sect and the innovators. They asked: What then is the ruling of the Tarawīḥ prayer? I replied: It is sunnah…
View More Tarawīḥ Prayer is not Obligatory