Fatawa Qazi

Beginner Level:

For beginners, I recommend several books that don’t require a heavily critical eye, are relatively brief in size, and are not overly technical in nature. Such books include three which I highly recommend be read cover-to-cover and purchased for one’s personal library.

1. Hadith Literature: Its Origin, Development, and Special Features by M. Zubayr Siddiqi
2. Studies in Hadith Methodology and Literature by M.M. Azami
3. The Authority of Sunnah by Justice Muhammad Taqi Usmani

Some may suggest Hashim Kamali’s A Textbook of Hadith Studies, but I have found it so riddled with errors as well as with premature, uninformed, and entirely unnecessary calls for reform that unless one is reading very critically I would suggest skipping it. At the same time, one must admit that the organization of topics in his book and general arrangement of material is excellent and deserving of praise.

Another book worth reading but not absolutely essential is Ghassan Abdul Jabbar’s Bukhari (Ghassan Abdul Jabbar is one of several pen names Dr. Iftikhar Zaman uses, I believe).

Intermediate Level:

For slightly advanced readers, I would suggest the following works, some of which need to be read slightly critically and preferably with the opportunity to discuss its contents with an expert:

1. Hadith: Muhammad’s Legacy in the Medieval and Modern World by Jonathan A.C. Brown
2. Hadith and Sunnah: Ideals and Realities (14 Selected Essays) 
3. Studies in Early Hadith Literature by M.M. Azami
4. An Introduction to the Conservation of Hadith by Dr. Muhammad Hamidullah
5. The Garden of the Hadith Scholars by Shah ‘Abd al-‘Aziz al-Dihlawi
6. The Sunnah and Its Role in Islamic Legislation by Dr. Mustafa al-Siba‘ee

Advanced Level:

My assumption for this level of a reader is that he/she is already quite advanced in the study of the Islamic sciences and has easy access to Arabic works as well as a good background in technical hadith manuals. The following works are useful, then, for reading that will complement a study of advanced Arabic works in Hadith Studies. This list is not meant to be exhaustive, and I even hesitated to include some of the books I did because of their inaccessibility or exorbitant prices.

1. On Schacht’s Origins of Muhammadan Jurisprudence by M.M. Azami
2. An Introduction to the Science of Hadith by Ibn Salah trs. by Eerick Dickenson
3. The Canonization of al-Bukhari and Muslim: The Formation and Function of the Sunni Hadith Canon by Jonathan A.C. Brown
4. Constructive Critics, Hadith Literature, and the Articulation of Sunni Islam by Scott C. Lucas
5. The Evolution of a Hadith: Transmission, Growth, and the Science of Rijal in a Hadith of Sa’d b. Abi Waqqas by Dr. Iftikhar Zaman
6. Analysing Muslim Traditions: Studies in Legal, Exegetical and Maghazi Hadith by Harald Motzki 

I have not included a list of the more common Orientalist or Reductionist works simply because many of the above texts do a decent job of summarizing their main contentions and providing context for them. I also haven’t included the countless beneficial journal articles that exist out there simply because this list was meant to include books alone. I am fairly certain I have omitted some works which I will later remember or be reminded of, so look out for revisions of this post.

Bilal Ali Ansari

Maqalat al-Kawthari

To celebrate the New Year we’ve decided to offer you more space for your precious media.

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(We have updated this post to include the updated edition of the book, with minor corrections from the translator. I’ve also included information about printing, etc…. from the translators own site:)

Salaam,

I am uploading the first online edition of Ten Lessons of Arabic, which is the revised translation of Das Sabaq [Ten Lessons]. Das Sabaq in Urdu has been a part of the‘Aalim course curriculum in Western madrasahs for a number of years. It is a basic level Arabic grammar text. This first online edition has been prepared after a number of revisions. Hopefully it is free of all errors. Nevertheless, your feedback (suggestions, constructive criticism, etc.) is welcome. You can contact me at my email or by leaving a comment to this post.

Printing Suggestions: There is no printed edition. However, you can create a printed version by getting it printed double-sided at home or from a place like FedEx Office for under $20 (including ring binding).

One thing to remember is that this document has been prepared for page size 5.5″ x 8.5″.  If you retain this page size, you might find that the i’raab on Arabic words are hard to read. It is therefore, recommended that you select the option “scale to paper size letter” in the print menu so that the text is easily legible.

Ten Lessons of Arabic

Muqaddamah of Riyad al-Salihin

Riyad al-Salihin

الأسماء و الصفات-الحافظ البيهقى-الكوثرى

Abdullah ibn al-Mubarak

Lata’if al-Ma’arif fi ma li Mawasim al-’Am min al-Waza’if

By ‘Allamah Zafar Ahmad al-‘Uthmani

Translated by Zameelur Rahman

1. Narrated from Tamim ibn Tarafah from Jabir ibn Samurah (Allah be pleased with him): He said:

Allah‟s Messenger (Allah bless him and grant him peace) came out to us and said: “Why do I see you raising your hands like they are the tails of wild horses? Be still in Salah!” Muslim narrated it (1:181).

I say: The evidence adhered to in this hadith is his (Allah bless him and grant him peace) statement, “Be still in Salah,” as it proves the obligation of stillness and that raising the hands in Salah negates this [stillness].

If it is said that his (Allah bless him and grant him peace) statement, “Why do I see you raising your hands like they are the tails of wild horses?” was said specifically with respect to raising [the hands] upon salam as clarified in a second hadith, which is Muslim’s narration from ‘Ubayd Allah ibn al-Qibtiyyah from Jabir ibn Samurah, he said: “We would, when praying with Allah’s Messenger (Allah bless him and grant him), say ‘al-salamu ‘alaykum wa rahmat Allah, al-salamu ‘alaykum wa rahmat Allah,’” and he gestured with his hands to the side, “so Allah’s Messenger (Allah bless him and grant him peace) said: ‘Why do you gesture with your hands like they are the tails of wild horses?’”

Translation of I’la al-Sunan Section on Raf’ al-Yadayn