Four Books: Difference between revisions

[[File:The Four Books 1.jpg|thumbnail|250px|The Four Books ; the most important sources in [[Shiite]] [[hadith]] and [[jurisprudence]].]]

 

'''The Four Books''', (Arabic:{{iarabic| الکتب الأربعة / الأصول الأربعة}}), are the four main collections of [[hadith]] which, after the [[Qur'an]], form the basis of [[Shi'a]] beliefs and practices. The Four Books are ''[[al-Kafi]]'', ''[[Tahdhib al-ahkam]]'', ''[[al-Istibsar]]'' and ''[[Man la yahduruh al-faqih]]''.

''Al-Kafi'' was compiled by [[Al-Kulayni|Abu Ja'far Muhammad b. Ya'qub Kulayni]] (d. [[329]]/941) during [[the Minor Occultation]] period. It contains 16,000 [[hadith]] which are divided into the three general sections of usul (principles), furu' (branches), and rawda (miscellaneous part). Usul contains hadiths related to beliefs, furu' contains hadiths concerning [[fiqh]], and rawda contains hadiths pertaining to [[akhlaq]] and morality.<ref> Modir Shanehchi, ''Tarikh-i Hadith'', p. 116 - 119.</ref>

It contains 6,000 hadiths related to [[fiqh]] and practical rulings - all of which al-Saduq deemed as authentic and used as the basis for his [[fatwa|fatwas]].<ref> Modir Shanehchi. ''Tarikh-i Hadith''. p. 130 - 135.</ref>

This hadith collection was compiled by [[al-Shaykh al-Tusi|Shaykh al-Ta'ifah Abu Ja'far Muhammad b. al-Hasan al-Tusi]] (d. [[460]]/1067). The hadith it contains are also mainly related to [[fiqh]].

In it, al-Tusi discusses rulings of [[fiqh]] ranging from [[tahara]] (purity) to [[diyat]] (blood money). The order of the book's content is the same as that of [[al-Shaykh al-Mufid]]'s ''al-Muqni'ah''.

In this work he has collected only those hadiths relating to [[fiqh]] which apparently contradict each other. Like other fiqh references, the categorization of topics in this book begins with tahara and ends with diyat. Under each topic, he first mentions the hadiths he regards as authentic, then mentions the ones that apparently contradict them, and finally, attempts to harmonize them.