Validation of Hadith Sources Using the Thematic Analysis Method(A Case study of the Book Kifāyatul Athar)

The Prophet’s (pbuh) Hadiths are one of the valuable sources in explaining the basics of Islam and its true interpretation. In the meantime, the hadiths that were issued in expressing the virtues and position of the Ahl al-Bayt (as) have a special value and position, and it is necessary to study and examine them more carefully. A major part of these hadiths is collected in the book "Kifāyatul Athar of the Texts of the Twelve imams" written by Khazāz Rāzi, which unfortunately has been neglected throughout the history of Islam, and some even consider its hadiths to be weak. In this article, in order to validate the text and content of the hadiths of this book, using the thematic analysis method, we have tried to extract the themes and categories of the hadiths of this book and explain the network of their themes. The results of the research indicate the extraction of 575 basic themes from the 125 hadiths quoted in this book, which can be classified into five categories of organizing themes and two overarching themes: "explaining the general position of the Ahl al-Bayt (as)" and "introducing prominent imams". In the first part, the name, number and general characteristics of Ahl al-Bayt (as) are introduced; in the second part, some characteristics of prominent Imams such as: Imam Ali, Imam Hassan, Imam Hussain, Imam Mahdi and Lady Fatimah Zahrā (Peace be upon them) has been introduced, that the report of these cases is stated in the article.