From an Islamic law perspective, the 2 main sources for deriving rulings in Islam are the Quran, the word of ALLAH & the Sunnah, the established practice of the Messenger of ALLAH, Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, and the Sahabah Radi Allahu Anhum.

In this article, we are going to discuss the Sunnah and Hadith. Now, some Muslims, especially in the latter part of the 20th century, use HADITH to refer to the SUNNAH or use Hadith and Sunnah interchangeably, especially Salafi scholars, and the unwitting Muslims are jumping on the bandwagon as well. This is incorrect, as Sunnah is always undoubtedly authentic, but hadith can be authentic or da’if (weak) or fabricated.

What is a Hadith?

The SALAF, the early generation of Muslim scholars, ESPECIALLY the likes of Imam Abu Hanifa & Imam Malik, did not necessarily equate Hadith with Sunnah or vice versa. We, the Ulama Deoband, follow the path of the esteemed Tabi‘i (the 2nd generation of Muslims after the Sahabah (Radi Allahu Anhum), Imam Abu Hanifa.

In the Sunnah and Hadith, the concept of ‘Hadith = Sunnah’ originated during the period of Imam Shafi’i and has been adopted by many Salafi scholars.

But it is important to differentiate between Hadith & Sunnah and know that not every Hadith is an established practice (i.e. a Sunnah), and not every Sunnah can be found in a Hadith. Once a practice was established (by Prophet Muhammad ﷺ & Sahabah (Radi Allahu Anhum)), it equated to a Sunnah (with or without a hadith).

When we say we follow the Quran & the Sunnah, muslims automatically assume the Quran, and any Authentic Hadith

This might be surprising to many Muslims, but the early Muslims did not follow every authentic hadith; rather, they followed the established practice (the sunnah). Because this concept of referring to Hadith is a practice of later Muslims, not early Muslims. As Ahle Sunnah wal Jamaat, the Ulama of Deoband, we must strive to follow the early generations of Muslims who adhered to established practice (the sunnah).

In addition, there are occasions when esteemed scholars of Fiqh & Hadith, as well as the general Ummah, have not followed or acted upon authentic hadith. Example: How many people consider carrying their children on their shoulders while in Salah? As per the hadith below, the Messenger of Allah, Muhammad (ﷺ) did.

“I saw the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) leading the people in prayer with Umama daughter of Abu’l-‘As on his neck; and when he prostrated he put her down.” (Bukhari, Hadith 516; Muslim, Hadith 543)

Now this hadith is “authentic” – “sahih”, but is it acted upon? No. Because the established practice is total focus on the salah, without distraction. So it is rejected.

Another Hadith, which is “authentic” – “sahih”, is also rejected by scholars because it contradicts the Quran and established principles of Islamic law. Example

Narrated Abu Hurairah: The Prophet (ﷺ) said: The child of adultery is worst of the three.

Sunan Abi Dawud 3963

The Qur’an says

no one should bear the burden of another [ 6:164, 17:15, 35:18, 39:7, 53:38 ]

So when the hadith contradicts the Quran, we must follow the Quran, not the hadith (even though the hadith is authentic). The hadith cannot be as authentic as the Quran. The Quran is the word of Allah and is authentic beyond doubt

It is also important to note that the majority of Muslims believe that when an authentic hadith (i.e., Sahih) appears in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih al-Muslim, it must be acted upon (i.e. be followed).

What is Sahih (authentic), according to Hadith scholars?

But this was not the case with the two earliest scholars of Islamic law, Imam Malik & Imam Abu Hanifa.

The early-generation jurists, scholars of fiqh, would clarify which hadiths to use and which not to use, based on the practices and Ijma of the Sahabah and the early Muslim generations. Because if a hadith contradicts the Quran or the established sunnah, it is possible there is an error in the narration or a misunderstanding by the narrator. It is not possible that there is an error in the Sunnah, because the Sunnah is always authentic.

Example,

Hazrat Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) clarified or corrected the understandings of senior companions who misunderstood, misheard or narrated partial hadith. Because she was the “Mother of the Believers” and the beloved wife of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, she had a deeper understanding of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ , than most.

In addition, some hadiths have been narrated word for word, and others have been narrated with the general meaning the narrator understood to have been what was said. And that’s why you get similar authentic hadith with different wordings.

Remember, the practices of the early Muslims equates to Sunnah. And it is not possible for early Muslims to go astray so soon after the demise of the Messenger of ALLAH, Prophet Muhammad ﷺ.

If “Nauzubillah – نعوذ بالله” (or Na’udhu billah), the early Muslims (the Salaf), were wrong, then our deen is on a slippery slope.

But the early generations of Muslims were NOT wrong, and those who follow the Fiqh, the school of thought of Imam Abu Hanifa & Deoband Maslak, are not wrong either. Be assured of that. Because Imam Abu Hanifa and the Deobanis only follow the early Muslims (the Prophet ﷺ, Sahabah (Radi Allahu Anhum) & the Tabaeen) and the established practices, i.e., the sunnah of the early Muslims.

This misunderstanding of Hadith, Sunnah, and the established practices has only come about because millions of Muslims are using the internet as their primary source for Islamic education. The internet is awash with fake, deviant, and untrustworthy scholars who are spurring out misinformation.

In other words, the quality of output is directly determined by the quality of input

“Garbage In, Garbage Out” or “Trash In”, “Trash Out”

That’s why the primary source of Islamic education should be established scholars and established madrassas (Islamic schools). Then these misunderstandings would not occur, and the internet fitna would not spread.

In addition, the books of Hadith, the famous 6 books – al-Bukhari, Muslim, Al-Tirmidhi, Al-Nisaī, Ibn Mājah, and Abu Dawūd are not written for the layman, the average person. These are highly specialized books, written for students of hadith. Not only do the Hadith require prerequisite fiqh knowledge to be put together, but they also often require significant decoding. And also, there is a reason why they are usually the last thing studied in seminaries, not the first.

So the average Uber taxi driver, Deliveroo delivery driver, or office/warehouse worker simply cannot pick up a hadith from Bukhari, take its literal meaning, and then command everyone to follow it. It’s not that simple.

The hadith scholars spent years studying the hadith from established scholars.