ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Light On the Muhammadan Sunnah Or Defence of the Hadith Position of Sunnah in Religion: They (traditionists) made the spoken Sunnah in the third degree, following the practised Sunnah, which comes after the Qur’an, that reached us through successive chain (mutawatir), in a way no doubt can be ascribed to it. For this reason it is quite established outright.

While the Sunnah reached us through an unsuccessive chain, the fact entailing its being doubtful as a whole. The second rank in religion is given to the practical Sunnah (the Prophet’s acts). In al-Muwafiqat, 19 al-Shatibi is reported to have said: The position of Sunnah comes in consideration after the Book (Qur’an) for the following proofs: First: The Book being decisive and asserted, while the Sunnah is doubtful.

And affirming it (Sunnah) is valid only in its generalities not the details, on the contrary of the Book which is established in general and in details. And that which is fixed is prior to that which is suspicious, the fact necessitating to give the Book precedence over the Sunnah. Second: The Sunnah is either expository for the Book, or be excessive to this.

If it be an exposition its order of consideration would be after the exposed thing (Book), as the decline of the exposed requires decline of the exposition, while the opposite is not true. That whose status is thus is more meritorious to be superior, and if it be not an exposition, no consideration is given to it unless it be there in the Book. This verily is an evidence to give priority to the Book in consideration.

Third: The akhbar (reports) and (old) traces, like the hadith of Mu’adh, when the Prophet asked him: On what basis do you pronounce the hukm (rule)? He replied: On the basis of the Book of Allah. He (S) inquired: If you can’t find it there (with what you give the rules)? He said: With the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah? He again asked: If you can’t find it there (with what then)? He said: I exert my opinion.

20 Citing many proofs from Umar, Ibn Mas’ud and Ibn Abbas, confirming this issue, al-Shatibi said: And that which is decisively established in this regard being the fact that the Sunnah can never reach the degree of consideration of the Book.He also said: The Sunnah has in fact the position of interpretation and exposition of the denotations of the rules in the Book.