فصلنامه علوم حدیث
سال بیستم شماره 1 (پیاپی 75، بهار 1394)

Numerous traditions have considered the hadiths quoted from the Prophet’s Household as ṣa‘b (hard) and mustṣ‘ab (considered hard). It became clear after collecting these traditions that the resources of most of them are early and reliable; such reliable resources as Baṣā’ir al-Darajāt, al-Kāfī and some of works of Shaykh Ṣadūq. Transmission chains of these traditions are numerous and based on Dirāyat al-Noor software program; some of them are either ṣaḥīḥ (authentic) or muwath-thaq (authenticated). Thus we are sure that they have truly been transmitted (from the Household).Based on ijtihād-based lexicology, establishment of hadith family and finding internal and external indications it was understood that the concept of “ḥadīthunā” (our hadith) and the hardness of receiving it refer - in most cases - to matchless merits, virtues and accomplishments of the Ahl al-Bayt (A.S). A few hadiths of this collection refer to scientific hardness of the context of the hadith. These two groups do not contradict with one another; because the sublime knowledge and thought of the Ahl al-Bayt (A.S) are part of their existential accomplishments. What is mainly intended by the expression of ṣa‘b and mustṣ‘ab hadiths is that one should avoid recounting the existential accomplishments of the Ahl al-Bayt for those who do not possess the capacity of hearing and tolerating them.

The tradition “Lan yufliḥ qawmun wallaw amrahum imra’atan” (the people who entrusted a woman with their affairs will never attain salvation) that was quoted in Sunni resources from Abū Bakrah and then has entered Shī‘ī resources, is one of numerous hadiths that reproach the women. The main common link is the tradition of Abū Bakrah who quoted it from the Prophet (S) in order for him to evade participating in the Battle of Jamal (Camel) on the favor of either parties, with the purpose of reproaching the women and justifying his absence. In this article we have examined and analyzed this hadith on the bases of isnād (transmission chain), matn (text of hadith), and both matn and isnād and have found out that it dates back to the second half of the first/seventh century. It is a fabricated hadith and is remarkably later than the Prophet’s era; however, due to constant recounting and transmission in Sunni and Shī‘ī resources it has become strengthened in the course of history and has been penetrated into jurisprudential resources. Consequently, it has denoted unqualification of the women to undertake ruling, governing, leading congregational prayers, and social positions in general, in the Shī‘ī and Sunni jurisprudential fundamentals.

Presenting a practical model of methodological practice of ijtihād in inferring the mystical and ethical teachings out of mathūr (authentically transmitted) resources based on the rules of ‘ilm al-uṣūl (legal theory) is the first achievement of this study. Discovering methods peculiar to the author in evaluating these presumptive rules based on authentically transmitted indications, as well as bringing flexibility to the function of rules on the basis of denotation of texts is the second achievement of this study. It means that the author has returned the rules to the text of the Book and the Sunnah (i.e. the Quran and the Precedent) and this way has prevented the legal theory rules to influence on “meaning” for the authentically transmitted texts. Having made preparations, he benefited, instead, from establishment of “hadith family” and “examining the indications” and has applied the rules in their practical position, that is at the service of understanding the meaning and finding the denotation from the Quran and the hadith.

This article intends to examine the understandings of those who believe in negative theology when they encounter traditions quoted from Imam Ali (A.S) with regard to the Divine Attributes. Three viewpoints are observed in interpretation of these traditions; three groups have interpreted them with an ontological approach concerning the attributes: a group has considered these attributes as referring to those of the creatures; a second group has denied the existence of any attributes for God, Exalted is He; and a third group has divided the attributes to those of the essence and those beyond the essence, and has believed in the negation of the attributes beyond the essence. The origin of these approaches is lack of adequate reflection in the collection of the traditions and the cognitive and cultural fields of the era in which the traditions were issued. The correct viewpoint in interpreting the documentations of negative theology is to prove the attributes from the ontological dimension of the attributes and negation of anthropomorphism (tashbīh) in its semantic dimension. In this theory, one cannot present an affirmative description about the nature of the attributes; however, in addition to the denial of the flaws and defects, one can present a functionalistic description of the attributes.

Two of the hadith transmitters in the second/eighth century are namesakes: ‘Amr b. Khālid Wāsiṭī, known as “Abu Khālid Wāsiṭī” and ‘Amr b. Thābit b. Hurmuz, known as “‘Amr b. Abi ’l-Miqdām”. There is not an agreement among the Imāmī Rijālī experts about the intellectual inclination of these two transmitters. Relying on historical indications the present article attempts to discover the intellectual (and denominational) inclination of these two people. One of important criteria that is applied for this purpose is considering the content of traditions transmitted by these two people. It is concluded, by applying this criterion, that Abu Khālid belongs to the Jārūdiyyah denomination and Ibn Abi ’l-Miqdām – contrary to his father who was a follower of the Batarī sect (a branch of Zaidi school) – was with a high degree of probability an Imāmī (Twelver Shi‘a). This article then indicates that in one of the traditions denoting the fact that the Imams are twelve in number, ‘Amr b. Khālid was mistakenly substituted for ‘Amr b. Thābit (Ibn Abi ’l-Miqdām).

Zurārah b. A‘yan is among very honorable hadith transmitters that on the one hand has collectively been praised and authenticated in certain traditions within a group of transmitters under the title of “Aṣḥāb al-Ijmā” (People of Consensus), and on the other hand has severely been cursed in certain traditions. In the Rijālī works (evaluating the reliability of transmitters) different reasons and justifications have been presented concerning those traditions in which imprecation of Zurārah is contained. Some scholars have abandoned them due to the weakness of their isnād (transmission chain) while some others hold that those traditions were stated because of practicing prudent dissimulation. It was mentioned in Rijāl books that Zurārah had believed in a heretical idea called “istiṭā‘ah” (lit. capability). Scrutinizing the isnād and text of the traditions denoting imprecation of Zurārah, this article has indicated that those traditions in which Zurārah was cursed have in fact been stated (and disseminated) by the adherents of the opposite intellectual current in the field of theological issue of istiṭā‘ah.

From the aspect of fiqh al-hadith (hadith comprehension) correct understanding of the aura in which a hadith was uttered (faḍā’ al-ṣudūr) is among the factors of valid attitude toward the traditions and the words quoted from the Infallibles.Because the aura must be counted among the circumstantial indications (qarā’in ḥāliyyah) that along with intellectual and literary indications may play an important role in discovering the purpose of the Infallible figure (peace be upon him/her) of his/her utterance. Imam Ali’s instruction (Nahj al-Balaghah, II, 77, given to Ibn ‘Abbas at the time of his being deputed to confront the Kharijites) that refers to the fact that the Qur’an has many faces and interpretations (ḥammāl dhū wujūh) and that (referring to) the hadith has a fundamental role in the debating, is a case that is worth inflecting and studying from the utterance and semantic aspects.In his conclusion of the reports of utterance aura, the writer has considered Iskafi’s opinion closer to the reality and based on this has deduced that the Imam’s purpose is that from the aspect of “what is” and “what is not” the Qur’an possesses such a capability that it may be interpreted with different meanings, but from the aspect of “obligations” and “prohibitions” an exegete is obliged to apply all tradition-based and exegetic principles and indications so that he may discover the valid semantic faces (and interpretations) and layers.

This article studies Prophet Muhammad’s sermons on Fridays, and the Two Feasts: Day of Sacrifice and Day of Fast-breaking. In a general point of view by collecting all sermons of the Prophet (Allah’s blessing be upon him and his Household) on Fridays, and the Two Feasts: Day of Sacrifice and Day of Fast-breaking registered in the Shī‘ī and Sunni hadith collections, such cases as: a brief account of the sermons, the full list of indexes of the sermons without deleting the reiterated items, as well as the full list of sermon indexes after deletion of the reiterated ones have been referred to.Then under the title of “analyzing the topics of the sermons” such issues as determining the important components of the sermons, frequency rate of important components, sorting out the priorities of religious values, characteristics of a religious community from Prophet Muhammad’s point of view, volume and duration of the sermons and the analysis of their occasions have been examined.Since the most frequent components in these sermons are ethical, it has been understood that the most outstanding characteristic of religious community in the eyes of Prophet Muhammad (Allah’s blessings be upon him and his Household) is that it pivots on ethics.