The second generation of hadith scholarship; meaning, foundation and method

Among major problems mention can be made of production of knowledge and necessity of theorization on the basis of hadith sources, foundation of which is discovery of reality and not description nor prescription; the question of whether or not hadith comprehension (fiqh al-ḥadīth) can result in knowledge generation. The goal of this research is to study the possibility, foundation and method of producing knowledge from the hadiths. The method of this research is analyzing the interdisciplinary hadith-oriented studies and then experiencing it in hadith scholarship. The finding of this research is that firstly, there exists the possibility of producing knowledge from hadith (discovery of reality); because the words of the Infallibles are issued on the basis of realities, and that they conceal it (i. e. the reality) in their lower layers. Secondly, the approach of a researcher should be understanding the foundation and the lowest layer of hadith and not its appearance. Thirdly, to attain such a goal, in addition to the customary fiqh al-ḥadīth (hadith comprehension) one should make use of the third generation of fiqh al-ḥadīth which is based on the tactic of reverse-engineering, with the purpose of recognizing the foundation of constituents of each hadith and then discovering the basic rule through the investigation of relations of the foundations with one another. It is concluded that to produce knowledge and to Islamize the humanities, other phases should be completed after completion first generation’s phases. On this basis, the instruction of this method in the disciplines of hadith sciences (‘ulūm al-ḥadīth) and the sciences of the Qur’an and hadith (‘ulūm al-qur’ān wa al-ḥadīth) should be taken into consideration.