Sahih Hadith

Sahih Hadith (, ) in Hadith terminology, may be translated as " authentic hadith (prophetic narration)" or "sound hadith (prophetic narration)". Ibn Hajar defines a ''hadith'' that is ' ("''ṣaḥīḥ'' in and of itself") as a singular narration (''ahaad''; see below) conveyed by a trustworthy, completely competent person, either in his ability to memorize or to preserve what he wrote, with a '' muttaṣil'' ("connected") '' isnād'' ("chain of narration") that contains neither a serious concealed flaw (''ʻillah,'' Arabic:علة) nor irregularity (''shādhdh''). He then defines a ''hadith'' that is ''ṣaḥīḥ lighairihi'' ("''ṣaḥīḥ'' due to external factors") as a ''hadith'' "with something, such as numerous chains of narration, strengthening it." In the Sunni branch of Islam, the canonical hadith collections are the six books (Kutub al-Sittah) listed below.

Conditions

Ibn Hajar's definitions indicate that there are five conditions to be met for a particular ''hadith'' to be considered ''ṣaḥīḥ'':
# Each narrator in the chain of narration must be trustworthy;
# Each narrator must be reliable in his ability to ''preserve'' that narration, be it in his ability to memorize to the extent that he can recall it as he heard it, or, that he has written it as he heard it and has preserved that written document unchanged;
# The ''isnād'' must be connected (''muttasil'') insofar as it is at least possible for each narrator in the chain to have received the ''hadith'' from a predecessor;
# The ''hadith'', including its ''isnād'', is free of ''ʻillah'' (hidden detrimental flaw or flaws, e.g. the establishment that two narrators, although contemporaries, could not have shared the ''hadith'', thereby breaking the ''isnād''.)
# The ''hadith'' is free of irregularity, meaning that it does not contradict another ''hadith'' already established (accepted).

A number of books were authored in which the author stipulated the inclusion of ''ṣaḥīḥ hadith'' alone.

''Ḥasan'' hadith

''Ḥasan'' ( meaning "good") is used to describe ''hadith'' whose authenticity is not as well-established as that of ''ṣaḥīḥ hadith'', but sufficient for use as supporting evidence.

Ibn Hajar defines a ''hadith'' that is ''ḥasan lithatihi''"''ḥasan'' in and of itself"with the same definition a ''ṣaḥīḥ hadith'' except that the competence of one of its narrators is less than complete; while a ''hadith'' that is ''ḥasan ligharihi'' ("ḥasan due to external factors") is determined to be ''ḥasan'' due to corroborating factors such as numerous chains of narration. He states that it is then comparable to a ''ṣaḥīḥ hadith'' in its religious authority. A ''ḥasan hadith'' may rise to the level of being ''ṣaḥīḥ'' if it is supported by numerous ''isnād'' (chains of narration); in this case that ''hadith'' would be ''ḥasan lithatihi'' ("''ḥasan'' in and of itself") but, once coupled with other supporting chains, becomes ''ṣaḥīḥ ligharihi'' ("''ṣaḥīḥ'' due to external factors").''Nuzhah al-Nuthr'', published as ''Al-Nukat'', pg. 91–92, ''Dar ibn al-Jawzi'', al-Damam, 6th edition.

Collections

According to Sunni Islam, which reflects the beliefs followed by 80–90% of adherents of Islam worldwide, See further citations in the article Islam by country. Sahih status was achieved by the first two books in the following list (known as "the six books" or ''Kutub al-Sittah''):

# '' Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī''. Considered the most authentic book after the Quran.
# '' Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim''. Considered the next most authentic book after Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī.
# '' Ṣaḥīḥ ibn Khuzaymah''. Al-Suyuti was of the opinion that ''Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Khuzaymah'' was at a higher level of authenticity than ''Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Ḥibbān''.''Tadrib al-Rawi'', vol. 1, pg. 148, ''Dar al-'Asimah'', Riyadh, first edition, 2003.
# '' Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Ḥibbān''. Al-Suyuti also concluded that ''Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Ḥibbān'' was more authentic than ''Al-Mustadrak alaa al-Ṣaḥīḥain''.
# '' al-Mustadrak ʻalā al-Ṣaḥīḥayn'', by Hakim al-Nishaburi.
# ''Al-Āhādith al-Jiyād al-Mukhtārah min mā laysa fī Ṣaḥīḥain'' by Ḍiyāʼ al-Dīn al-Maqdisī, authenticity considered.
# '' Al-Jami al-Kamil'' by Ziya-ur-Rahman Azmi
Different branches of Islam refer to different collections of hadiths or give preference to different ones.

See also

* Mutawatir hadith

References

{{Sunni hadith literature , state=collapsed

Terminology
Arabic words and phrases