A Research on the Approach of Sunnis Understanding of Hadith Concept to the Hadiths of Imam Riḍā (as)

Hadith is the second source of Islamic teachings. Problems such as distortion, shifting of letters, forgetfulness and mistakes of narrators, etc. have made it difficult to access authentic hadiths. Muslim thinkers, especially Shia and Sunni hadith scholars, try to determine the correct hadiths by relying on reliable criteria. Although the difference in criteria has caused the result of their efforts to be different in most cases; but in some cases, both groups agree on the authenticity of a hadith. Based on the analytical descriptive method, this article tries to examine the approach of Sunnis understanding the hadith concept to the hadiths of Imam Riḍā (as). The result of the research shows that Sunni hadith scholars consider many hadiths of the virtues of the Ahl al-Bayt (as) and even the virtues of the Prophet (pbuh) as well as the medical hadiths of Imam Riḍā (as) to be weak or made up by his narrators. But the interpretative and moral hadiths of that imam have relative authenticity and acceptability among them. The result of this research is used in the field of "common hadith" studies as well as the scientific authority of the Ahl al-Bayt (as) as well as it is useful in the field of studies on the approximation of religions.