Al-Mustadrak 'ala l-sahihayn (book)
 | |
| Author | al-Hakim al-Nishaburi |
|---|---|
| Original title | المُسْتَدْرَک عَلی الصَحیحَیْن |
| Language | Arabic |
| Subject | Hadith |
| Genre | Narrative |
Al-Mustadrak 'ala l-ṣaḥīḥayn (Arabic: المُسْتَدْرَک عَلی الصَحیحَیْن), written in 373/983-4, is a supplement of Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim written by al-Hakim al-Nishaburi. He collected hadiths that were missing from the two books, although they met the conditions of reliability as set by al-Bukhari and Muslim.
Al-Mustadrak contains 8803 hadiths, including about 260 hadiths regarding the virtues of Imam 'Ali (a). The book has been criticized by some Sunni scholars because it cited hadiths, such as Hadith al-Tayr and Hadith al-Ghadir. Some scholars, such as al-Urmawi, al-Suyuti, and al-Kinani, consider al-Hakim al-Nishaburi's al-Mustadrak to be one of al-Sihah al-Sitta (the six reliable Sunni sources of hadiths). However, some Sunni scholars hold that there are unreliable hadiths in this book.
Author
Muhammad b. 'Abd Allah, known as al-Hakim al-Nishaburi or Ibn al-Bayyi' (321/933-405/1014-5) was a Sunni scholar of hadiths. On some accounts, he wrote over 1000 books. His works include Tarikh Nishabur (a history of Nishabur), Fada'il Fatima al-Zahra (virtues of Fatima al-Zahra (a)), Maqtal al-Husayn (the tragedy of Imam al-Husayn (a)), Ma'rifat al-hadith (science of hadith), and al-Mustadrak 'ala l-sahihayn. Some people take his Ma'rifat al-hadith to be the first organized text of hadith sciences.[1] In his work, Hakim cited some virtues of Ahl al-Bayt (a). Some Sunni scholars held that he was a Rafidi, and so, they believed that he was a Shi'a.[2]
The Title and the Topic
"Mustadrak" literally means a supplement of a book. In the terminology of hadith, it refers to a book that supplements a hadith book, compiling hadiths that are missing from the original work, but had to be in it in accordance with the methodology of the original author.[3]
According to the author, al-Mustadrak 'ala l-sahihayn has collected hadiths that are missing from the books "Sahih al-Bukhari" and "Sahih Muslim", although they qualify as reliable according to their methodologies. However, al-Hakim also added hadiths to the book that are reliable according to his own standards.[4] In the text of the book, al-Hakim referred to his book as "al-Mustadrak 'ala l-Shaykhayn",[5] and it was called so by some other scholars too.[6]
Motivation for Writing
Al-Hakim al-Nishaburi began writing al-Mustadrak in 373/983-4. In the introduction of the book, he says that the motivation for writing the book was the request by a group of Sunni muslims to collect hadiths that qualify as reliable according to the standards of al-Bukhari and Muslim, though they are cited in their works. He also said that some people object that all reliable hadiths for them are fewer than 10,000, though al-Bukhari and Muslim never claimed that they had collected all reliable hadiths.[7]
Style of Writing
Al-Hakim usually specifies hadiths that qualify as reliable according to the standards of both al-Bukhari and Muslim with the phrase: "this is a reliable hadith on the standard of Shaykhayn (i.e. al-Bukhari and Muslim) and they did not cite it". And he specifies hadiths that qualify as reliable according to the standard of one of these two scholars with the phrase: "this is a reliable hadith on the standard of al-Bukhari and he did not cite it" and "this is a reliable hadith on the standard of Muslim and he did not cite it". And he writes under hadiths that qualify as reliable according to his own standards: "this is a hadith with reliable chains of transmitters".[8]
In some cases, al-Hakim mentions more than one chain of transmitters. He sometimes cites a hadith as evidence for the main hadith, and in some cases, he also cites a conflicting hadith and tries to reconcile them. Also in certain cases, he provides delineations and comments about a hadith's text and chain of transmitters, and in particular, he provides evidence for the reliability of the transmitters of a hadith that he takes to be reliable. He also uses abbreviations in the book, for example, "thanā" (ثَنا) for "ḥaddathanā" (حَدَّثَنا, literally: transmitted the hadith to us) and "anba'" (أنْبَأ) for "anba'anā" (أنْبَأَنا, literally: let us know).[9]
Contents
Al-Mustadrak contains 8803 hadiths, 51 parts ("books") and 3647 sections ("titles"). The majority of its hadiths are concerned with jurisprudential issues. The book begins with a part concerning "al-iman" (faith)[10] and ends with a part concerning "al-ahwal" (horrors).
Ahl al-Bayt in al-Mustadrak
In his al-Mustadrak, al-Hakim has collected hadiths concerning the virtues of Ahl al-Bayt (a). He transmitted about 260 hadiths with regard to the virtues of Imam 'Ali (a). He was criticized by some Sunni scholars of hadiths for his citation of hadiths such as Hadith al-Tayr and Hadith al-Ghadir.[11] Some writers appealed to the citation of such hadiths to show that he was a "Rafidi" or a Shi'a.[12]
Reliability
It is said that some scholars, such as al-Urmawi, al-Suyuti, and al-Kinani consider al-Hakim al-Nishaburi's al-Mustadrak as one of the six reliable books for Sunni muslims.[13] However, some Sunni scholars have pointed to unreliable hadiths cited in this book. Ibn al-Jawzi mentioned 60 fabricated hadiths in al-Mustadrak in his book, al-Mawdu'at (literally: fabricated hadiths). Al-Dhahabi wrote a book under Talkhis al-mustadrak (a summary of al-Mustadrak) and removed some of its hadiths. Some people have considered al-Dhahabi's summary to be a rejection of al-Mustadrak.[14]
Publication
According to Fuat Sezgin, al-Mustadrak was first published in India and then it was published in Cairo, Medina, Tunisia and so on.
Notes
- ↑ Pākatchī, Pazhūhishī pīrāmūn-i jawāmiʿ-i ḥadīthī-yi ahl-i sunnat, vol. 2, p. 91.
- ↑ Pākatchī, Pazhūhishī pīrāmūn-i jawāmiʿ-i ḥadīthī-yi ahl-i sunnat, vol. 2, p. 89.
- ↑ Pākatchī, Pazhūhishī pīrāmūn-i jawāmiʿ-i ḥadīthī-yi ahl-i sunnat, vol. 2, p. 84; Najafzāda, Dānish-i ḥadīth, p. 273.
- ↑ Ḥājī Khalīfa, Kashf al-ẓunūn, vol. 2, p. 1672.
- ↑ Pākatchī, Pazhūhishī pīrāmūn-i jawāmiʿ-i ḥadīthī-yi ahl-i sunnat, vol. 2, p. 83.
- ↑ Pākatchī, Pazhūhishī pīrāmūn-i jawāmiʿ-i ḥadīthī-yi ahl-i sunnat, vol. 2, p. 83.
- ↑ Ḥākim al-Niyshābūrī, al-Mustadrak ʿalā l-ṣaḥīḥayn, vol. 1, p. 2-3.
- ↑ "Al-Mustadrak ʿalā l-ṣāḥīḥāyn", p. 10.
- ↑ Pākatchī, Pazhūhishī pīrāmūn-i jawāmiʿ-i ḥadīthī-yi ahl-i sunnat, vol. 2, p. 92.
- ↑ Ḥākim al-Niyshābūrī, al-Mustadrak ʿalā l-ṣaḥīḥayn, vol. 1, p. 3.
- ↑ Ḥājī Khalīfa, Kashf al-ẓunūn, vol. 2, p. 1672; Samʿānī, al-Ansāb, vol. 2, p. 402.
- ↑ Pākatchī, Pazhūhishī pīrāmūn-i jawāmiʿ-i ḥadīthī-yi ahl-i sunnat, vol. 2, p. 89.
- ↑ Pākatchī, Pazhūhishī pīrāmūn-i jawāmiʿ-i ḥadīthī-yi ahl-i sunnat, vol. 2, p. 89.
- ↑ Pākatchī, Pazhūhishī pīrāmūn-i jawāmiʿ-i ḥadīthī-yi ahl-i sunnat, vol. 2, p. 90.
References
- Group of authors. Al-Mustadrak ʿalā l-ṣāḥīḥāyn; Majalla-yi Muḥaddith-i Nu. Fall 1387 Sh, Published 1388 Sh.
- Ḥājī Khalīfa, Muṣṭafā b. ʿAbd Allāh al-. Kashf al-ẓunūn ʿan asāmī l-kutub wa l-funūn. Beirut: Dār Iḥyāʾ al-Turāth alʿArabī, 1410 AH.
- Ḥākim al-Niyshābūrī, Muḥammad b. ʿAbd Allāh al-. Al-Mustadrak ʿalā l-ṣaḥīḥayn. Beirut: Dār al-Maʿrifa, [n.d].
- Najafzāda, Muḥammad Bāqir. Dānish-i ḥadīth. Tehran: Mājir, 1373 Sh.
- Pākatchī, Aḥmad. Pazhūhishī pīrāmūn-i jawāmiʿ-i ḥadīthī-yi ahl-i sunnat. Tehran: Dānishgāh-i Imām Ṣādiq (a), 1391 Sh.
- Samʿānī, ʿAbd al-Karīm b. Muḥammad al-. Al-Ansāb. Edited by ʿAbd al-Raḥmān b. Yaḥyā al-Muʿallimī al-Yamānī. Hyderabad: Majlis Dāʾirat al-Maʿārif al-ʿUthmānīyya, 1382 AH.