A Critical Study of Traditions of Bukhari and Muhammad ibn Ishaq about the Hudaibiyah Pact

The current research involves a narration reported by Al-Zuhri quoting the authority of Urwah ibn al-Zubayr on the authority of Marwan ibn al-Hakam and Al-Musawwar bin Makhramah about the Hudaibiyah Pact that has been cited by Al-Bukhari in his magnum opus Al-Sahih and Ibn Ishaq in his historical work Al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah. This tradition includes the events from the beginning of the journey of Prophet Mohammad to Mecca and his return to Medina after concluding the pact of Hudaibiyah. This narrative has been studied with two angles: First, as for the chain of authority, the researcher proves the first reporter to be unqualified to be trusted and reliable in transmitting the narration. Besides, the narration is classified as interruptedly transmitted report (i.e. mursalah). The researcher then critically analyzes the attempt of Ibn Hajar and others to prove the authenticity of this narration. In this process, the personalities of Marwan ibn al-Hakam, Al-Musawwar ibn Makhramah, Urwah ibn al-Zubayr, and al-Zuhri were studied as well. Second, as for the text and content, the researcher finds this narration of exclusively containing some strange matters that are incongruous to conducts and personality of the Prophet as revealed by the holy Qur’an. Besides, these strange matters have not been mentioned by other references or narrations. Here, another point of doubt is that the narration lacks the most important event that followed the pact of al-Hudaybiyah i.e. Bay’at al- Ridwan (the allegiance of pleasure).