Как пишется сунна на арабском

In Islam, sunnah, also spelled sunna (Arabic: سنة), are the traditions and practices of the Islamic prophet Muhammad that constitute a model for Muslims to follow. The sunnah is what all the Muslims of Muhammad’s time evidently saw and followed and passed on to the next generations.^[1] According to classical Islamic theories,^[2] the sunnah are documented by hadith (the verbally transmitted record of the teachings, deeds and sayings, silent permissions or disapprovals of Muhammad), and along with the Quran (the book of Islam), are the divine revelation (Wahy) delivered through Muhammad^[2] that make up the primary sources of Islamic law and belief/theology.^[3][4] Differing from Sunni classical Islamic theories are those of Shia Muslims, who hold that the Twelve Imams interpret the sunnah, and Sufi who hold that Muhammad transmitted the values of sunnah «through a series of Sufi teachers.»^[5]

According to Muslim belief, Muhammad was the best exemplar for Muslims,^[6] and several verses in the Quran declare his conduct exemplary, and enjoin his followers to obey him.^[7][8][9] Sunnah provides a basis not only for major laws and rituals in Islam like how to pray salat, but for «even the most mundane activities», such as the order in which to cut fingernails or the proper length of a beard.^[10]

In the pre-Islamic period, sunnah was used to mean «manner of acting», whether good or bad.^[11] During the early Islamic period, the term referred to any good precedent set by people of the past, including both Muhammad,^[11] and his companions.^[3][12] In addition, the sunnah of Muhammad was not necessarily associated with hadith.^[13]

The classical meaning that now prevails was introduced later in the late second century of Islam, when under the influence of the scholar Al-Shafi‘i, Muhammad’s example as recorded in hadith was given priority over all other precedents set by other authorities. The term al-sunnah then eventually came to be viewed as synonymous with the sunnah of Muhammad,^[11] based on hadith reports.^[14] Recording the sunnah was also an Arabian tradition and once they converted to Islam, Arabians brought this custom to their religion.^[15]

The sunnah of Muhammad as based on hadith includes his specific words (Sunnah Qawliyyah), habits, practices (Sunnah Fiiliyyah), and silent approvals (Sunnah Taqririyyah).^[16] In Islam, the word «sunnah» is also used to refer to religious duties that are optional, such as Sunnah salat.^[17]

Definitions and usage[edit]

Sunnah (سنة [ˈsunna], plural سنن sunan [ˈsunan]) is an Arabic word that means

• «habit» or «usual practice» (USC glossary);^[18] also
• «habitual practice, customary procedure or action, norm, usage sanctioned by tradition» (Wehr Dictionary);^[19]
• «a body of established customs and beliefs that make up a tradition» (Oxford Islamic Studies Online);^[5]
• «a path, a way, a manner of life» (M.A.Qazi).^[1]
• «precedent» or «way of life» (pre-Islamic definition, Joseph Schacht and Ignác Goldziher).^[20]

Its religious definition can be:

• «the Sunna of the Prophet, i.e., his sayings and doings, later established as legally binding precedents» (along with the Law established by the Quran) (Hans Wehr);^[19]
• «All of the traditions and practices of the Prophet» of Islam, «that have become models to be followed» by Muslims (M.A.Qazi);^[1]
• «the body of traditional social and legal custom and practice of the Islamic community» (Encyclopædia Britannica);^[21]
• «the actions and sayings of the Prophet Muhammad» (Oxford Islamic Studies Online).^[5]

Islam Web gives two slightly different definitions:

• «the statements, actions and approvals (or disapprovals) of Prophet Muhammad», (definition used by «legal theorists»);
• «anything narrated from or about the Prophet… either before or after he became a prophet, of his statements, actions, confirmations, biography, and his physical character and attributes,» (used by scholars of hadith).^[22]

It was first used with the meaning of «law» in the Syro-Roman law book before it became widely used in Islamic jurisprudence.^[23]

Sunnah and hadith[edit]

In the context of biographical records of Muhammad, sunnah often stands synonymous with hadith since most of the personality traits of Muhammad are known from descriptions of him, his sayings and his actions from hadith.^[24] According to Seyyed Nasr, the hadith contains the words of Muhammad, while the sunnah contains his words and actions along with pre-Islamic practices of which he approved.^[25] In the context of sharia, Malik ibn Anas and the Hanafi scholars are assumed to have differentiated between the two: for example Malik is said to have rejected some traditions that reached him because, according to him, they were against the «established practice of the people of Medina».^{[citation needed]}

Sunnah Salat[edit]

In addition to being «the way» of Islam or the traditional social and legal custom and practice of the Islamic community, sunnah is often used as a synonym for mustahabb (encouraged) rather than wajib/fard (obligatory), regarding some commendable action (usually the saying of a prayer).

Ahl as-Sunnah[edit]

Sunni Muslims are also referred to as Ahl as-Sunnah wa’l-Jamā’ah («people of the tradition and the community (of Muhammad)») or Ahl as-Sunnah for short. Some early Sunnî Muslim scholars (such as Abu Hanifa, al-Humaydî, Ibn Abî ‘Âsim, Abû Dâwûd, and Abû Nasr al-Marwazî) reportedly used the term «the sunnah» narrowly to refer to Sunni Doctrine as opposed to the creeds of Shia and other non-Sunni Islamic sects.^[4] Sunnah literally means face, nature, lifestyle, etc.^[26] In the time of Muhammad’s companion, newly converted Muslims accepted and rejected some set of creed by using reason. So many early Muslim scholars started writing books on creed entitled as ‘sunnah’.^{[citation needed]}

In the Quran[edit]

The word «sunna» appears several times in the Qur’an, but there is no specific mention of sunnah of the messenger or prophet (sunnat al-rasool, sunnat al-nabi or sunna al-nabawiyyah), i.e. the way/practice of Muhammad (there are several verses calling on Muslims to obey Muhammad—see below). Four verses (8.38, 15.13, 18.55) use the expression “sunnat al-awwalin”, which is thought to mean «the way or practice of the ancients». It is described as something «that has passed away» or prevented unbelievers from accepting God. “Sunnat Allah” (the «way of God») appears eight times in five verses. In addition, verse 17.77 talks of both the way of other, earlier Muslim messengers (Ibrahim, Musa, etc.), and of «our way», i.e. God’s way.

[This is] the way (sunna) of those whom we sent [as messengers] before you, and you will not find any change in Our way (sunnatuna).^[27][28]

This indicates to some scholars (such as Javed Ahmad Ghamidi) that sunnah predates both the Quran and Muhammad, and is actually the tradition of the prophets of God, specifically the tradition of Abraham. Christians, Jews and the Arab descendants of Ishmael, the Arabized Arabs or Ishmaelites, when Muhammad reinstituted this practice as an integral part of Islam.

History/etymology[edit]

Prior to the «golden age of classical Islamic jurisprudence»,^{[Note 1]} the «ancient schools» of law prevailed.

The tradition which not directly sourced from Hadith or practice of Muhammad and instead traced to solely some Sahabah were also acknowledged as one of the source of jurisprudence, as it was regarded by scholars of Islam such as Nawawi as «unrecorded Hadith» which not explicitly attributed to Muhammad himself but clearly practiced by the first generation of Muhammad’s follower. Al-Nawawi has listed Zubayr ibn al-Awwam ruling regarding ethics of sitting down during eat and drinks in his book, Riyadh as Shaliheen, by basing the ethic in az-Zubayr practice, which narrated by his son, Abdulah.^[30] another manners and ethic ruling based on az-Zubayr covering such as prohibition for sleeping during Sübh,^[31] And ethics of sitting down while drinking.^[32] Meanwhile, another example of this kind of Sunnah also included:

• on the difference in the number of lashes used to punish alcohol consumption, Caliph Ali reported that (Muhammad and Abu Bakr ordered 40 lashes, Umar 80) — «All this is sunna»;^[33]
• on Umar’s deathbed instructions on where Muslims should seek guidance: from the Qur’an, the early Muslims (muhajirun) who emigrated to Medina with Muhammad, the Medina residents who welcomed and supported the muhajirun (the ansar), the people of the desert, and the protected communities of Jews and Christians (ahl al-dhimma); hadith of Muhammad are not mentioned.^[34]

According to historians (particularly Daniel W. Brown), the classical Islamic definition of sunnah as the customs and practices of Muhammad (only) was not the original one.^{[citation needed]}

In al-Ṭabarī’s history of early Islam, the term «Sunnah of the Prophet» is not only used «surprisingly infrequently», but used to refer to «political oaths or slogans used by rebels», or «a general standard of justice and right conduct», and not «to specific precedents set by Muhammad», let alone hadith.^[35] An early theological writing by Hasan al-Basri (Risala fi’l Qadar) also is «empty of references to specific cases» when mentioning «Sunnah of the Prophet».^[35]
Daniel Brown states that the first extant writings of Islamic legal reasoning were «virtually hadith-free» and argues that other examples of a lack of connection between sunnah and hadith» can be found in:

• Kitāb al-Irjāʾ of al-Hasan b. Muhammad b. al-Hanafiyya,^[36][35]
• the first letter of Abdallah ibn Ibad to Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan,^[37][35]
• and the Risāla of Abu Hanifa addressed to ʿUthman al-Battī.»^[38][35]

According to one source (Ahmad Kazemi Moussavi and Karim Douglas Crow), early Sunni scholars often considered sunnah equivalent to the biography of Muhammed (sira). As the hadith came to be better documented and the scholars who validated them gained prestige, the sunnah came often to be known mostly through the hadith, especially as variant or fictional biographies of Muhammad spread.^[39]

Four Madhhabs[edit]

The golden age, starting with the creation of the Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi’i, Hanbali, etc. schools of fiqh in the second century of Islam, limited sunnah to «traditions traced back to the Prophet Muhammad himself» (sunna al-nabawiyyah). But the ancient «regional» schools of law, located in several major cities of the new Arab empire of Islam — Mecca, Kufa, Basra, Syria, etc.,^[40]—had a more flexible definition of sunnah than is now commonly used. This being the «acceptable norms» or «custom»,^[35] which included examples of the Muhammad’s companions, the rulings of the Caliphs, and practices that «had gained general acceptance among the jurists of that school».^[2]

Abū ʿAbdullāh Muhammad ibn Idrīs al-Shāfiʿī (150-204 AH), known as al-Shafi’i, argued against flexible sunnah and the use of precedents from multiple sources,^[41][2] emphasizing the final authority of a hadith of Muhammad, so that even the Qur’an was «to be interpreted in the light of traditions (i.e. hadith), and not vice versa.»^[42][43] While the sunnah has often been called «second to the Quran»,^[44][45] hadith has also been said to «rule over and interpret the Quran».^{[46][Note 2]}
Al-Shafiʿi «forcefully argued» that the sunnah stands «on equal footing with the Quran», (according to scholar Daniel Brown) both being divine revelation. As Al-Shafi’i put it, «the command of the Prophet is the command of God»^[49][50] (notwithstanding the triumph of this theory, in practice the schools of fiqh resisted the thorough application of hadith and fiqh was little changed from the days before Al-Shafi’i).^[51] This, though, contradicts another point Shafi made which was the sunnah was below the Quran.^[52]

Sunnah of Muhammad outranked all other, and «broad agreement» developed that «hadith must be the basis for authentication of any Sunnah,» (according to M.O. Farooq).^[53] Al-Shafiʿi’s success was such that later writers «hardly ever thought of sunnah as comprising anything but that of the Prophet».^[54]

Systemization of hadith[edit]

While the earliest Muslim lawyers «felt no obligation» to provide documentation of hadith when arguing their case, and the sunnah was not recorded and written during Muhammad’s lifetime, (according to scholar Khaled Abou El Fadl), all this changed with the triumph of Al-Shafi‘i and a «broad agreement» that Hadith should be used to authenticate sunnah, (according to Mohammad Omar Farooq),^[53] over the course of the second century,^[55] when legal works began incorporating Prophetic hadith.^[56][57]

Hadith was now systematically collected and documented, but several generations having passed since the time of its occurrence meant that «many of the reports attributed to the Prophet are apocryphal or at least are of dubious historical authenticity,» (according to Abou El Fadl). «In fact, one of the most complex disciplines in Islamic jurisprudence is one which attempts to differentiate between authentic and inauthentic traditions.»^{[3]
[Note 3]}

Classical Islam[edit]

Islam jurists divide sunnah into that which has no legal consequences —al-sunna al-ʿādīyah — (the «personal habits and preferences» of Muhammad); and that which is binding on Muslims — al-sunna al-hudā.^[61] The literalist Zāhirī school disagrees holding that there was no sunnah whose fulfillment is not rewarded or neglect punished,^[62] while classical Islam holds that following non-binding al-sunna al-ʿādīyah is meritorious but not obligatory.^[63]

Sufis see the «division between binding and non-binding» sunnah as «meaningless». Muhammad is al-insān al-kāmil, the perfect man, labib-Allah beloved of God,^[64] an intercessor, a «channel of divine light». Imitating his every action is «the ultimate expression» of piety.^[62] or in the words of Al-Ghazālī:

Know that the key to joy is following the sunnah and imitating the Prophet in all his comings and goings, words and deeds, extending to his manner of eating, rising, sleeping and speaking. I do not say this only in relation to requirements of religion [ʿibādāt], for there is no escaping these; rather, this includes every area of behavior [ʿādāt].^[65]

Modernist Islam[edit]

In the 19th century, «social and political turmoil» starting with the decline of the Moghal empire, caused some Muslims to seek a more humanized figure of Muhammad. The miracle-performing «larger than life» prophetic figure was de-emphasized in favor of «a practical model for restoration of the Muslim community,» a virtuous, progressive social reformer. Nasserist Egypt, for example, celebrated the «imam of socialism» rather than the cosmic «perfect man».^[66] One who argued against the idea of sunnah as divine revelation, and for the idea that Muhammad’s mission was simply to transmit the Quran was Ghulam Ahmed Perwez (1903–1985). He quoted the Quranic verse «The messenger has no duty except to proclaim [the message],» (Q.5:99)^[67] and pointed out several other verses where God corrects something Muhammad has done or said (8:67),(9:43), (66:1), thus demonstrating Muhammad’s lack of supernatural knowledge.^[68]

This era of rapid social and technological change, decline of Muslim power, and replacement of classical madhhab by Western-inspired legal codes in Muslim lands,^[69] also suggested a turn away from the «detailed precedents in civil and political affairs,» called for by traditional Hadith, «for if worldly matters require detailed prophetic guidance, then every age will require a new prophet to accommodate changing circumstances».^[70]

Islamic revivalism[edit]

With de-colonialization in the late 20th century, a new Islamic revival emerged. Activists rather than theorists, they sought «to restore Islam to ascendency»,^[71] and in particular to restore Sharia to the law of the lands of Islam it had been before being replaced by «secular, Western-inspired law codes» of colonialism and modernity.^[72] Like modernists, revivalists «vehemently rejected»^[73] taqlid and were not particularly interested in the classical schools of law (madhhab). But revivalists like Abul A’la Maududi and Mustafa al-Siba’i support for «the authority of Sunnah and the authenticity of Hadith in general» was «unwavering»,^[74] as was their opposition to «Hadith denialism».^[73] At the same time they agreed that restoring relevant Sharia required «some reformulation» of the law, which would require a return to sources, which required agreement on how the sources were to be «interpreted and understand» and reassessment of hadith.^[69] This involved examining hadith content (matn) for its spirit and relevance «within the context of the Sharia as a whole» according to the method of scholars of Islamic law (fuqaha) and weeding out corrupted hadith inconsistent with «reason, with human nature, and with historical conditions».^[75] Shibli Nomani, Abul A’la Maududi, Rashid Rida, and Mohammed al-Ghazali being proponents of this effort.^[76]

Alternatives to classical hadith based sunnah[edit]

Although «most writers agree», including skeptics, that «sunnah and hadith must stand or fall together»,^[77] some (Fazlur Rahman Malik, Javed Ahmad Ghamidi) have attempted to «establish a basis for sunnah independent of hadith»,^[77] working around problem of hadith authenticity raised by modernist and Western critics,^[78] while reaching back to pre-al-Shafiʿi meaning of sunnah.^[79]

«Living sunnah»[edit]

In the 1960s, Fazlur Rahman Malik, an Islamic modernist and former head of Pakistan’s Central Institute for Islamic Research, advanced another idea for how the (prophetic) sunnah—the normative example of Muhammad—should be understood: as «a general umbrella concept»^[80] but not one «filled with absolutely specific content»,^[80] or that was static^[81] over the centuries. He argued that Muhammad had come as a «moral reformer» and not a «pan-legit», and that the specifics of the sunnah would be agreed upon community of his followers, evolving with changing times as a «living and on-going process».^[82] He accepted the criticism of Western and Muslim scholars that the content of many hadith and isnad (chain of transmitters) had been tampered with by Muslims trying to prove the Muhammad had made a specific statement—but this did not make them fraudulent or forgeries, because if «Hadith verbally speaking does not go back to the Prophet, its spirit certainly does».^[83] Instead these collections of ahadith of al-Bukhari and al-Muslim’s were ijma (consensus or agreement of the Muslim scholars—which is another classical source of Islamic law).^[84] Doing so they follow the spirit of Muhammad’s mission,^[85][86] and «resurrect» the legal methodology of the pre-Shafi’i «Ancient schools». But just as second and third century Muslims could re-formulate hadith and law around a prophetic spirit, so can modern Muslims—redefining riba and replacing medieval laws against bank interest with measures that help the poor without harming economic productivity.^[87][88]

Sunnah from practice not hadith[edit]

Some of the most basic and important features of the sunnah – worship rituals like salat (ritual prayer), zakat (ritual tithing), hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca), sawm (dawn to dusk fasting during Ramadan) – are known to Muslim from being passed down ‘from the many to the many’ (according to scholars of fiqh such as Al-Shafi’i),^[89] bypassing books of hadith, (which were more often consulted for answers to details not agreed upon or not frequently practiced) and issues of authenticity.

Modernist Rashid Rida thought this «the only source of sunnah that is beyond dispute».^[90] S.M. Yusuf argued «practice is best transmitted through practice»,^[91] and a more reliable way to establish sunnah than hadith. He also believed that the passing down of practice from generation to generation independent of hadith explained why early schools of law did not differentiate between sunnah of the caliphate and sunnah of the prophet.^[92]
According to Javed Ahmad Ghamidi, another Modernist, this passing down by continuous practice of the Muslim community (which also indicates consensus, ijma) was similar to how the Qur’ān has been «received by the ummah» (Muslim community) through the consensus of the Muhammad’s companions and through their perpetual recitation. Consequently, Ghamidi sees this more limited sunnah of continuous practice as the true sunnah – equally authentic to the Quran, but shedding orthodox sunnah and avoiding problematic basis of the hadith.^[93]

«Inner states»[edit]

Sufi thinkers «emphasized personal spirituality and piety rather than the details of fiqh».^[94]
According to the view of some Sufi Muslims who incorporate both the outer and inner reality of Muhammad, the deeper and true sunnah are the noble characteristics and inner state of Muhammad — Khuluqin Azim or ‘Exalted Character’.^[95] To them Muhammad’s attitude, his piety, the quality of his character constitute the truer and deeper aspect of what it means by sunnah in Islam, rather than the external aspects alone.^[96] They argue that the external customs of Muhammad loses its meaning without the inner attitude and also many hadiths are simply custom of the Arabs, not something that is unique to Muhammad.^[9]

Basis of importance[edit]

The Qur’an contains numerous commands to follow Muhammad.^[7] Among the Quranic verses quoted as demonstrating the importance of hadith/sunnah to Muslims are

Say: Obey Allah and obey the Messenger,^[17][97]

Which appears in several verses: 3:32, 5:92, 24:54, 64:12^[98]

Your companion [Muhammad] has not strayed, nor has he erred, Nor does he speak from [his own] inclination or desire.^[99][100]

«A similar (favour have ye already received) in that We have sent among you a Messenger of your own, rehearsing to you Our Signs, and sanctifying you, and instructing you in Scripture and Wisdom, and in new knowledge.^[101]

«Ye have indeed in the Messenger of Allah a beautiful pattern (of conduct) for any one whose hope is in Allah and the Final Day, and who engages much in the Praise of Allah.»^[9]

The teachings of «wisdom» (hikma) have been declared to be a function of Muhammad along with the teachings of the scripture.^[102] Several Quranic verses mention «wisdom» (hikmah) coupled with «scripture» or «the book» (i.e. the Quran) — al-kitāb wa al-ḥikma. Mainstream scholars starting with al-Shafi’i believe hikma refers to the sunnah, and this connection between sunnah and the Quran is evidence of the sunnah’s divinity and authority.^[103]

• 4:113 — «For Allah hath sent down to thee the Book and wisdom and taught thee what thou Knewest not (before): And great is the Grace of Allah unto thee.»^[104]
• 2:231 — «…but remember Allah’s grace upon you and that which He hath revealed unto you of the Scripture and of wisdom, whereby He doth exhort you.»^[105]
• 33:34 — «And bear in mind which is recited in your houses of the revelations of God and of wisdom».^[106]

Therefore, along with the Quran, the sunnah was revealed. Modern Sunni scholars have examined both the sira and the hadith in order to justify modifications to jurisprudence (fiqh).^{[citation needed]} Hense, the imitation of Muhammad helps Muslims to know and be loved by God.^[16]

Another piece of evidence for the divinity of the Sunnah—according to its supporters—are verses in the Quran that refer to revelations not found in the Quran. For example, there is no verse mentioning the original direction of prayer (the qibla) in the Quran, but God in the Quran does say He appointed the original qibla (2:143).^[107] Other events mentioned in the Quran that already happened without Quranic command or description include a dream in which Muhammad would enter Mecca (2:231); Muhammad’s marriage to Zayd’s ex-wife (Quran 33:37); and the dispute over the division of spoils after the Battle of Badr (8:7); all «definitive proof that besides the Quran other commands came to the Prophet by the agency of waḥy,» according to revivalist Abul A’la Maududi.^[108]
Yet another piece of evidence offered is that «Prophet witness» is «the chief guarantee» of what is divine revelation. In other words, «Muslims only know the Quran is revelation because of Muhammad’s testimony to this fact. If prophetic word is not to be trusted, then the Quran itself is open to suspicion.» Since the Quran is not, the sunnah must be trustworthy.^[109]

Alternative view[edit]

The minority argument against the sunnah of Muhammad being divine revelation (waḥy) goes back to the ahl al-Kalam who al-Shāfiʿī argued against in the second century of Islam. Their modern «Quranists», the modern successors of the ahl al-Kalam, argue that the sunnah falls short of the standard of the Quran in divinity.^[110] Specifically because

1. with the exception of the ḥadīth qudsī, sunnah was not revealed and transmitted verbatim, as was the Quran; it was often transmitted giving the sense or gist of what was said (known as bi’l-maʿnā);^[111]
2. the process of revelation was not «external, entirely independent of the influence of the messenger»; it bares the «personality» or «mentality» (baṣīrat) of Muhammad;^[111]
3. unlike the Quran, it was not «preserved in writing» until over a century after Muhammad’s death, which opens the question of how much corruption and/or error entered the writings and why, if it was divinely revealed, eternal truth, orders were not given to the earliest Muslims to write it down as they were for the Quran.^[112][111]

Providing examples[edit]

According to John Burton, paraphrasing Al-Shafi’i, «it must be remembered that the Quran text are couched in very general terms which it is the function of the sunnah to expand and elucidate, to make God’s meaning absolutely clear.»^[113]
There are a number of verses in the Quran where «to understand the context, as well as the meaning», Muslims need to refer to the record of the life and example of Muhammad.^[17]

It is thought that verses 16:44 and 64 indicate that Muhammed’s mission «is not merely that of a deliveryman who simply delivers the revelation from Allah to us, rather, he has been entrusted with the most important task of explaining and illustrating» the Quran.

And We have also sent down unto you (O Muhammad) the reminder and the advice (the Quran), that you may explain clearly to men what is sent down to them, and that they may give thought.^{[114][115][116]}

And We have not sent down the Book (the Quran) to you (O Muhammad), except that you may explain clearly unto them those things in which they differ, and (as) a guidance and a mercy for a folk who believe. [Quran 16:64]^[117]

For example, while the Quran presents the general principles of praying, fasting, paying zakat, or making pilgrimage, they are presented «without the illustration found in Hadith, for these acts of worship remain as abstract imperatives in the Qur’an».^[115]

Types of sunnah[edit]

Sunnah upon which fiqh is based may be divided into:^[4]

• Sunnah Qawliyyah — the sayings of Muhammad, generally synonymous with “hadith”, since the sayings of Muhammad are noted down by the companions and called «hadith».^[4]
• Sunnah Fiiliyyah — the actions of Muhammad, including both religious and worldly actions.^[4]
• Sunnah Taqririyyah — the approvals of Muhammad regarding the actions of the Companions which occurred in two different ways:
  • When Muhammad kept silent for an action and did not oppose it.
  • When Muhammad showed his pleasure and smiled for a companion’s action.^[4][118]

It may be also divided into sunnah that is binding for Muslims and that which is not. Ibn Qutaybah (213-276 AH) distinguished between:

1. Sunnah «brought by Gabriel»;^[119]
2. sunnah from «Muhammad’s own ra’y and is binding, but subject to revision»;^[119]
3. «non-binding sunnah», which Muslims are not subject to «penalty for failure to follow».^[119]

In the terminology of fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence), sunnah denotes whatever though not obligatory, is «firmly established (thabata) as called for (matlub)» in Islam «on the basis of a legal proof (dalîl shar`î).^[4]

Sciences of sunnah[edit]

According to scholar Gibril Fouad Haddad, the «sciences of the Sunnah» (‘ulûm as-Sunna) refer to:

the biography of the Prophet (as-sîra), the chronicle of his battles (al-maghâzî), his everyday sayings and acts or «ways» (sunan), his personal and moral qualities (ash-shamâ’il), and the host of the ancillary^[120] hadîth sciences such as the circumstances of occurrence (asbâb al-wurûd), knowledge of the abrogating and abrogated hadîth, difficult words (gharîb al-hadîth), narrator criticism (al-jarh wat-ta`dîl), narrator biographies (al-rijâl), etc., as discussed in great detail in the authoritative books of al-Khatîb al-Baghdâdî.^[121]

Sunnah in Shia Islam[edit]

Shia Islam does not use the Kutub al-Sittah (six major hadith collections) followed by Sunni Islam, therefore the sunnah of Shia Islam and the sunnah of Sunni Islam refer to different collections of religious canonical literature.

The primary collections of sunnah of Shia Islam were written by three authors known as the ‘Three Muhammads’,^[122] and they are:

• Kitab al-Kafi by Muhammad ibn Ya’qub al-Kulayni al-Razi (329 AH),
• Man la yahduruhu al-Faqih by Ibn Babawayh and Tahdhib al-Ahkam, and
• Al-Istibsar both by Shaykh Tusi.

Unlike Akhbari Twelver Shiites, Usuli Twelver Shiite scholars do not believe that everything in the four major books of the sunnah of Shia Islam is authentic.

In Shia hadees one often finds sermons attributed to Ali in The Four Books or in the Nahj al-Balagha.

See also[edit]

• Bid‘ah
• Categories of Hadith
• Sharia

References[edit]

Notes[edit]

Citations[edit]

Further reading[edit]

• Brown, Daniel W. (1996). Rethinking tradition in modern Islamic thought. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521570778. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
• Burton, John (1990). The Sources of Islamic Law: Islamic Theories of Abrogation (PDF). Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 978-0-7486-0108-0. Retrieved 21 July 2018.
• Hamza, Feras, «Sunna», in Muhammad in History, Thought, and Culture: An Encyclopedia of the Prophet of God (2 vols.), Edited by C. Fitzpatrick and A. Walker, Santa Barbara, ABC-CLIO, 2014, Vol II, pp. 610–619.
• Ibn Abdul Aziz Asy-Syalhub, Fuad (2019). Ringkasan Kitab Adab (in Indonesian). Darul Falah. ISBN 9789793036847. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
• Musa, Aisha Y. (2008). Hadith as Scripture: Discussions on the Authority of Prophetic Traditions in Islam. New York: Palgrave. ISBN 978-0230605350.
• Nu’man, Farid (2020). Fiqih Praktis Sehari-hari (in Indonesian). Gema Insani. ISBN 978-6022507819. Retrieved 20 November 2021.

External links[edit]

• The Sunna as Primordiality by Sheikh Abdal Hakim Murad
• The Meaning of «Sunna» in the Qur’an, Qur’anic Studies
• Sunnah and Hadith, Center For Muslim–Jewish Engagement
• 5 Actionalbe Sunnah backed by science

In Islam, sunnah, also spelled sunna (Arabic: سنة), are the traditions and practices of the Islamic prophet Muhammad that constitute a model for Muslims to follow. The sunnah is what all the Muslims of Muhammad’s time evidently saw and followed and passed on to the next generations.^[1] According to classical Islamic theories,^[2] the sunnah are documented by hadith (the verbally transmitted record of the teachings, deeds and sayings, silent permissions or disapprovals of Muhammad), and along with the Quran (the book of Islam), are the divine revelation (Wahy) delivered through Muhammad^[2] that make up the primary sources of Islamic law and belief/theology.^[3][4] Differing from Sunni classical Islamic theories are those of Shia Muslims, who hold that the Twelve Imams interpret the sunnah, and Sufi who hold that Muhammad transmitted the values of sunnah «through a series of Sufi teachers.»^[5]

According to Muslim belief, Muhammad was the best exemplar for Muslims,^[6] and several verses in the Quran declare his conduct exemplary, and enjoin his followers to obey him.^[7][8][9] Sunnah provides a basis not only for major laws and rituals in Islam like how to pray salat, but for «even the most mundane activities», such as the order in which to cut fingernails or the proper length of a beard.^[10]

In the pre-Islamic period, sunnah was used to mean «manner of acting», whether good or bad.^[11] During the early Islamic period, the term referred to any good precedent set by people of the past, including both Muhammad,^[11] and his companions.^[3][12] In addition, the sunnah of Muhammad was not necessarily associated with hadith.^[13]

The classical meaning that now prevails was introduced later in the late second century of Islam, when under the influence of the scholar Al-Shafi‘i, Muhammad’s example as recorded in hadith was given priority over all other precedents set by other authorities. The term al-sunnah then eventually came to be viewed as synonymous with the sunnah of Muhammad,^[11] based on hadith reports.^[14] Recording the sunnah was also an Arabian tradition and once they converted to Islam, Arabians brought this custom to their religion.^[15]

The sunnah of Muhammad as based on hadith includes his specific words (Sunnah Qawliyyah), habits, practices (Sunnah Fiiliyyah), and silent approvals (Sunnah Taqririyyah).^[16] In Islam, the word «sunnah» is also used to refer to religious duties that are optional, such as Sunnah salat.^[17]

Definitions and usage[edit]

Sunnah (سنة [ˈsunna], plural سنن sunan [ˈsunan]) is an Arabic word that means

• «habit» or «usual practice» (USC glossary);^[18] also
• «habitual practice, customary procedure or action, norm, usage sanctioned by tradition» (Wehr Dictionary);^[19]
• «a body of established customs and beliefs that make up a tradition» (Oxford Islamic Studies Online);^[5]
• «a path, a way, a manner of life» (M.A.Qazi).^[1]
• «precedent» or «way of life» (pre-Islamic definition, Joseph Schacht and Ignác Goldziher).^[20]

Its religious definition can be:

• «the Sunna of the Prophet, i.e., his sayings and doings, later established as legally binding precedents» (along with the Law established by the Quran) (Hans Wehr);^[19]
• «All of the traditions and practices of the Prophet» of Islam, «that have become models to be followed» by Muslims (M.A.Qazi);^[1]
• «the body of traditional social and legal custom and practice of the Islamic community» (Encyclopædia Britannica);^[21]
• «the actions and sayings of the Prophet Muhammad» (Oxford Islamic Studies Online).^[5]

Islam Web gives two slightly different definitions:

• «the statements, actions and approvals (or disapprovals) of Prophet Muhammad», (definition used by «legal theorists»);
• «anything narrated from or about the Prophet… either before or after he became a prophet, of his statements, actions, confirmations, biography, and his physical character and attributes,» (used by scholars of hadith).^[22]

It was first used with the meaning of «law» in the Syro-Roman law book before it became widely used in Islamic jurisprudence.^[23]

Sunnah and hadith[edit]

In the context of biographical records of Muhammad, sunnah often stands synonymous with hadith since most of the personality traits of Muhammad are known from descriptions of him, his sayings and his actions from hadith.^[24] According to Seyyed Nasr, the hadith contains the words of Muhammad, while the sunnah contains his words and actions along with pre-Islamic practices of which he approved.^[25] In the context of sharia, Malik ibn Anas and the Hanafi scholars are assumed to have differentiated between the two: for example Malik is said to have rejected some traditions that reached him because, according to him, they were against the «established practice of the people of Medina».^{[citation needed]}

Sunnah Salat[edit]

In addition to being «the way» of Islam or the traditional social and legal custom and practice of the Islamic community, sunnah is often used as a synonym for mustahabb (encouraged) rather than wajib/fard (obligatory), regarding some commendable action (usually the saying of a prayer).

Ahl as-Sunnah[edit]

Sunni Muslims are also referred to as Ahl as-Sunnah wa’l-Jamā’ah («people of the tradition and the community (of Muhammad)») or Ahl as-Sunnah for short. Some early Sunnî Muslim scholars (such as Abu Hanifa, al-Humaydî, Ibn Abî ‘Âsim, Abû Dâwûd, and Abû Nasr al-Marwazî) reportedly used the term «the sunnah» narrowly to refer to Sunni Doctrine as opposed to the creeds of Shia and other non-Sunni Islamic sects.^[4] Sunnah literally means face, nature, lifestyle, etc.^[26] In the time of Muhammad’s companion, newly converted Muslims accepted and rejected some set of creed by using reason. So many early Muslim scholars started writing books on creed entitled as ‘sunnah’.^{[citation needed]}

In the Quran[edit]

The word «sunna» appears several times in the Qur’an, but there is no specific mention of sunnah of the messenger or prophet (sunnat al-rasool, sunnat al-nabi or sunna al-nabawiyyah), i.e. the way/practice of Muhammad (there are several verses calling on Muslims to obey Muhammad—see below). Four verses (8.38, 15.13, 18.55) use the expression “sunnat al-awwalin”, which is thought to mean «the way or practice of the ancients». It is described as something «that has passed away» or prevented unbelievers from accepting God. “Sunnat Allah” (the «way of God») appears eight times in five verses. In addition, verse 17.77 talks of both the way of other, earlier Muslim messengers (Ibrahim, Musa, etc.), and of «our way», i.e. God’s way.

[This is] the way (sunna) of those whom we sent [as messengers] before you, and you will not find any change in Our way (sunnatuna).^[27][28]

This indicates to some scholars (such as Javed Ahmad Ghamidi) that sunnah predates both the Quran and Muhammad, and is actually the tradition of the prophets of God, specifically the tradition of Abraham. Christians, Jews and the Arab descendants of Ishmael, the Arabized Arabs or Ishmaelites, when Muhammad reinstituted this practice as an integral part of Islam.

History/etymology[edit]

Prior to the «golden age of classical Islamic jurisprudence»,^{[Note 1]} the «ancient schools» of law prevailed.

The tradition which not directly sourced from Hadith or practice of Muhammad and instead traced to solely some Sahabah were also acknowledged as one of the source of jurisprudence, as it was regarded by scholars of Islam such as Nawawi as «unrecorded Hadith» which not explicitly attributed to Muhammad himself but clearly practiced by the first generation of Muhammad’s follower. Al-Nawawi has listed Zubayr ibn al-Awwam ruling regarding ethics of sitting down during eat and drinks in his book, Riyadh as Shaliheen, by basing the ethic in az-Zubayr practice, which narrated by his son, Abdulah.^[30] another manners and ethic ruling based on az-Zubayr covering such as prohibition for sleeping during Sübh,^[31] And ethics of sitting down while drinking.^[32] Meanwhile, another example of this kind of Sunnah also included:

• on the difference in the number of lashes used to punish alcohol consumption, Caliph Ali reported that (Muhammad and Abu Bakr ordered 40 lashes, Umar 80) — «All this is sunna»;^[33]
• on Umar’s deathbed instructions on where Muslims should seek guidance: from the Qur’an, the early Muslims (muhajirun) who emigrated to Medina with Muhammad, the Medina residents who welcomed and supported the muhajirun (the ansar), the people of the desert, and the protected communities of Jews and Christians (ahl al-dhimma); hadith of Muhammad are not mentioned.^[34]

According to historians (particularly Daniel W. Brown), the classical Islamic definition of sunnah as the customs and practices of Muhammad (only) was not the original one.^{[citation needed]}

In al-Ṭabarī’s history of early Islam, the term «Sunnah of the Prophet» is not only used «surprisingly infrequently», but used to refer to «political oaths or slogans used by rebels», or «a general standard of justice and right conduct», and not «to specific precedents set by Muhammad», let alone hadith.^[35] An early theological writing by Hasan al-Basri (Risala fi’l Qadar) also is «empty of references to specific cases» when mentioning «Sunnah of the Prophet».^[35]
Daniel Brown states that the first extant writings of Islamic legal reasoning were «virtually hadith-free» and argues that other examples of a lack of connection between sunnah and hadith» can be found in:

• Kitāb al-Irjāʾ of al-Hasan b. Muhammad b. al-Hanafiyya,^[36][35]
• the first letter of Abdallah ibn Ibad to Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan,^[37][35]
• and the Risāla of Abu Hanifa addressed to ʿUthman al-Battī.»^[38][35]

According to one source (Ahmad Kazemi Moussavi and Karim Douglas Crow), early Sunni scholars often considered sunnah equivalent to the biography of Muhammed (sira). As the hadith came to be better documented and the scholars who validated them gained prestige, the sunnah came often to be known mostly through the hadith, especially as variant or fictional biographies of Muhammad spread.^[39]

Four Madhhabs[edit]

The golden age, starting with the creation of the Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi’i, Hanbali, etc. schools of fiqh in the second century of Islam, limited sunnah to «traditions traced back to the Prophet Muhammad himself» (sunna al-nabawiyyah). But the ancient «regional» schools of law, located in several major cities of the new Arab empire of Islam — Mecca, Kufa, Basra, Syria, etc.,^[40]—had a more flexible definition of sunnah than is now commonly used. This being the «acceptable norms» or «custom»,^[35] which included examples of the Muhammad’s companions, the rulings of the Caliphs, and practices that «had gained general acceptance among the jurists of that school».^[2]

Abū ʿAbdullāh Muhammad ibn Idrīs al-Shāfiʿī (150-204 AH), known as al-Shafi’i, argued against flexible sunnah and the use of precedents from multiple sources,^[41][2] emphasizing the final authority of a hadith of Muhammad, so that even the Qur’an was «to be interpreted in the light of traditions (i.e. hadith), and not vice versa.»^[42][43] While the sunnah has often been called «second to the Quran»,^[44][45] hadith has also been said to «rule over and interpret the Quran».^{[46][Note 2]}
Al-Shafiʿi «forcefully argued» that the sunnah stands «on equal footing with the Quran», (according to scholar Daniel Brown) both being divine revelation. As Al-Shafi’i put it, «the command of the Prophet is the command of God»^[49][50] (notwithstanding the triumph of this theory, in practice the schools of fiqh resisted the thorough application of hadith and fiqh was little changed from the days before Al-Shafi’i).^[51] This, though, contradicts another point Shafi made which was the sunnah was below the Quran.^[52]

Sunnah of Muhammad outranked all other, and «broad agreement» developed that «hadith must be the basis for authentication of any Sunnah,» (according to M.O. Farooq).^[53] Al-Shafiʿi’s success was such that later writers «hardly ever thought of sunnah as comprising anything but that of the Prophet».^[54]

Systemization of hadith[edit]

While the earliest Muslim lawyers «felt no obligation» to provide documentation of hadith when arguing their case, and the sunnah was not recorded and written during Muhammad’s lifetime, (according to scholar Khaled Abou El Fadl), all this changed with the triumph of Al-Shafi‘i and a «broad agreement» that Hadith should be used to authenticate sunnah, (according to Mohammad Omar Farooq),^[53] over the course of the second century,^[55] when legal works began incorporating Prophetic hadith.^[56][57]

Hadith was now systematically collected and documented, but several generations having passed since the time of its occurrence meant that «many of the reports attributed to the Prophet are apocryphal or at least are of dubious historical authenticity,» (according to Abou El Fadl). «In fact, one of the most complex disciplines in Islamic jurisprudence is one which attempts to differentiate between authentic and inauthentic traditions.»^{[3]
[Note 3]}

Classical Islam[edit]

Islam jurists divide sunnah into that which has no legal consequences —al-sunna al-ʿādīyah — (the «personal habits and preferences» of Muhammad); and that which is binding on Muslims — al-sunna al-hudā.^[61] The literalist Zāhirī school disagrees holding that there was no sunnah whose fulfillment is not rewarded or neglect punished,^[62] while classical Islam holds that following non-binding al-sunna al-ʿādīyah is meritorious but not obligatory.^[63]

Sufis see the «division between binding and non-binding» sunnah as «meaningless». Muhammad is al-insān al-kāmil, the perfect man, labib-Allah beloved of God,^[64] an intercessor, a «channel of divine light». Imitating his every action is «the ultimate expression» of piety.^[62] or in the words of Al-Ghazālī:

Know that the key to joy is following the sunnah and imitating the Prophet in all his comings and goings, words and deeds, extending to his manner of eating, rising, sleeping and speaking. I do not say this only in relation to requirements of religion [ʿibādāt], for there is no escaping these; rather, this includes every area of behavior [ʿādāt].^[65]

Modernist Islam[edit]

In the 19th century, «social and political turmoil» starting with the decline of the Moghal empire, caused some Muslims to seek a more humanized figure of Muhammad. The miracle-performing «larger than life» prophetic figure was de-emphasized in favor of «a practical model for restoration of the Muslim community,» a virtuous, progressive social reformer. Nasserist Egypt, for example, celebrated the «imam of socialism» rather than the cosmic «perfect man».^[66] One who argued against the idea of sunnah as divine revelation, and for the idea that Muhammad’s mission was simply to transmit the Quran was Ghulam Ahmed Perwez (1903–1985). He quoted the Quranic verse «The messenger has no duty except to proclaim [the message],» (Q.5:99)^[67] and pointed out several other verses where God corrects something Muhammad has done or said (8:67),(9:43), (66:1), thus demonstrating Muhammad’s lack of supernatural knowledge.^[68]

This era of rapid social and technological change, decline of Muslim power, and replacement of classical madhhab by Western-inspired legal codes in Muslim lands,^[69] also suggested a turn away from the «detailed precedents in civil and political affairs,» called for by traditional Hadith, «for if worldly matters require detailed prophetic guidance, then every age will require a new prophet to accommodate changing circumstances».^[70]

Islamic revivalism[edit]

With de-colonialization in the late 20th century, a new Islamic revival emerged. Activists rather than theorists, they sought «to restore Islam to ascendency»,^[71] and in particular to restore Sharia to the law of the lands of Islam it had been before being replaced by «secular, Western-inspired law codes» of colonialism and modernity.^[72] Like modernists, revivalists «vehemently rejected»^[73] taqlid and were not particularly interested in the classical schools of law (madhhab). But revivalists like Abul A’la Maududi and Mustafa al-Siba’i support for «the authority of Sunnah and the authenticity of Hadith in general» was «unwavering»,^[74] as was their opposition to «Hadith denialism».^[73] At the same time they agreed that restoring relevant Sharia required «some reformulation» of the law, which would require a return to sources, which required agreement on how the sources were to be «interpreted and understand» and reassessment of hadith.^[69] This involved examining hadith content (matn) for its spirit and relevance «within the context of the Sharia as a whole» according to the method of scholars of Islamic law (fuqaha) and weeding out corrupted hadith inconsistent with «reason, with human nature, and with historical conditions».^[75] Shibli Nomani, Abul A’la Maududi, Rashid Rida, and Mohammed al-Ghazali being proponents of this effort.^[76]

Alternatives to classical hadith based sunnah[edit]

Although «most writers agree», including skeptics, that «sunnah and hadith must stand or fall together»,^[77] some (Fazlur Rahman Malik, Javed Ahmad Ghamidi) have attempted to «establish a basis for sunnah independent of hadith»,^[77] working around problem of hadith authenticity raised by modernist and Western critics,^[78] while reaching back to pre-al-Shafiʿi meaning of sunnah.^[79]

«Living sunnah»[edit]

In the 1960s, Fazlur Rahman Malik, an Islamic modernist and former head of Pakistan’s Central Institute for Islamic Research, advanced another idea for how the (prophetic) sunnah—the normative example of Muhammad—should be understood: as «a general umbrella concept»^[80] but not one «filled with absolutely specific content»,^[80] or that was static^[81] over the centuries. He argued that Muhammad had come as a «moral reformer» and not a «pan-legit», and that the specifics of the sunnah would be agreed upon community of his followers, evolving with changing times as a «living and on-going process».^[82] He accepted the criticism of Western and Muslim scholars that the content of many hadith and isnad (chain of transmitters) had been tampered with by Muslims trying to prove the Muhammad had made a specific statement—but this did not make them fraudulent or forgeries, because if «Hadith verbally speaking does not go back to the Prophet, its spirit certainly does».^[83] Instead these collections of ahadith of al-Bukhari and al-Muslim’s were ijma (consensus or agreement of the Muslim scholars—which is another classical source of Islamic law).^[84] Doing so they follow the spirit of Muhammad’s mission,^[85][86] and «resurrect» the legal methodology of the pre-Shafi’i «Ancient schools». But just as second and third century Muslims could re-formulate hadith and law around a prophetic spirit, so can modern Muslims—redefining riba and replacing medieval laws against bank interest with measures that help the poor without harming economic productivity.^[87][88]

Sunnah from practice not hadith[edit]

Some of the most basic and important features of the sunnah – worship rituals like salat (ritual prayer), zakat (ritual tithing), hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca), sawm (dawn to dusk fasting during Ramadan) – are known to Muslim from being passed down ‘from the many to the many’ (according to scholars of fiqh such as Al-Shafi’i),^[89] bypassing books of hadith, (which were more often consulted for answers to details not agreed upon or not frequently practiced) and issues of authenticity.

Modernist Rashid Rida thought this «the only source of sunnah that is beyond dispute».^[90] S.M. Yusuf argued «practice is best transmitted through practice»,^[91] and a more reliable way to establish sunnah than hadith. He also believed that the passing down of practice from generation to generation independent of hadith explained why early schools of law did not differentiate between sunnah of the caliphate and sunnah of the prophet.^[92]
According to Javed Ahmad Ghamidi, another Modernist, this passing down by continuous practice of the Muslim community (which also indicates consensus, ijma) was similar to how the Qur’ān has been «received by the ummah» (Muslim community) through the consensus of the Muhammad’s companions and through their perpetual recitation. Consequently, Ghamidi sees this more limited sunnah of continuous practice as the true sunnah – equally authentic to the Quran, but shedding orthodox sunnah and avoiding problematic basis of the hadith.^[93]

«Inner states»[edit]

Sufi thinkers «emphasized personal spirituality and piety rather than the details of fiqh».^[94]
According to the view of some Sufi Muslims who incorporate both the outer and inner reality of Muhammad, the deeper and true sunnah are the noble characteristics and inner state of Muhammad — Khuluqin Azim or ‘Exalted Character’.^[95] To them Muhammad’s attitude, his piety, the quality of his character constitute the truer and deeper aspect of what it means by sunnah in Islam, rather than the external aspects alone.^[96] They argue that the external customs of Muhammad loses its meaning without the inner attitude and also many hadiths are simply custom of the Arabs, not something that is unique to Muhammad.^[9]

Basis of importance[edit]

The Qur’an contains numerous commands to follow Muhammad.^[7] Among the Quranic verses quoted as demonstrating the importance of hadith/sunnah to Muslims are

Say: Obey Allah and obey the Messenger,^[17][97]

Which appears in several verses: 3:32, 5:92, 24:54, 64:12^[98]

Your companion [Muhammad] has not strayed, nor has he erred, Nor does he speak from [his own] inclination or desire.^[99][100]

«A similar (favour have ye already received) in that We have sent among you a Messenger of your own, rehearsing to you Our Signs, and sanctifying you, and instructing you in Scripture and Wisdom, and in new knowledge.^[101]

«Ye have indeed in the Messenger of Allah a beautiful pattern (of conduct) for any one whose hope is in Allah and the Final Day, and who engages much in the Praise of Allah.»^[9]

The teachings of «wisdom» (hikma) have been declared to be a function of Muhammad along with the teachings of the scripture.^[102] Several Quranic verses mention «wisdom» (hikmah) coupled with «scripture» or «the book» (i.e. the Quran) — al-kitāb wa al-ḥikma. Mainstream scholars starting with al-Shafi’i believe hikma refers to the sunnah, and this connection between sunnah and the Quran is evidence of the sunnah’s divinity and authority.^[103]

• 4:113 — «For Allah hath sent down to thee the Book and wisdom and taught thee what thou Knewest not (before): And great is the Grace of Allah unto thee.»^[104]
• 2:231 — «…but remember Allah’s grace upon you and that which He hath revealed unto you of the Scripture and of wisdom, whereby He doth exhort you.»^[105]
• 33:34 — «And bear in mind which is recited in your houses of the revelations of God and of wisdom».^[106]

Therefore, along with the Quran, the sunnah was revealed. Modern Sunni scholars have examined both the sira and the hadith in order to justify modifications to jurisprudence (fiqh).^{[citation needed]} Hense, the imitation of Muhammad helps Muslims to know and be loved by God.^[16]

Another piece of evidence for the divinity of the Sunnah—according to its supporters—are verses in the Quran that refer to revelations not found in the Quran. For example, there is no verse mentioning the original direction of prayer (the qibla) in the Quran, but God in the Quran does say He appointed the original qibla (2:143).^[107] Other events mentioned in the Quran that already happened without Quranic command or description include a dream in which Muhammad would enter Mecca (2:231); Muhammad’s marriage to Zayd’s ex-wife (Quran 33:37); and the dispute over the division of spoils after the Battle of Badr (8:7); all «definitive proof that besides the Quran other commands came to the Prophet by the agency of waḥy,» according to revivalist Abul A’la Maududi.^[108]
Yet another piece of evidence offered is that «Prophet witness» is «the chief guarantee» of what is divine revelation. In other words, «Muslims only know the Quran is revelation because of Muhammad’s testimony to this fact. If prophetic word is not to be trusted, then the Quran itself is open to suspicion.» Since the Quran is not, the sunnah must be trustworthy.^[109]

Alternative view[edit]

The minority argument against the sunnah of Muhammad being divine revelation (waḥy) goes back to the ahl al-Kalam who al-Shāfiʿī argued against in the second century of Islam. Their modern «Quranists», the modern successors of the ahl al-Kalam, argue that the sunnah falls short of the standard of the Quran in divinity.^[110] Specifically because

1. with the exception of the ḥadīth qudsī, sunnah was not revealed and transmitted verbatim, as was the Quran; it was often transmitted giving the sense or gist of what was said (known as bi’l-maʿnā);^[111]
2. the process of revelation was not «external, entirely independent of the influence of the messenger»; it bares the «personality» or «mentality» (baṣīrat) of Muhammad;^[111]
3. unlike the Quran, it was not «preserved in writing» until over a century after Muhammad’s death, which opens the question of how much corruption and/or error entered the writings and why, if it was divinely revealed, eternal truth, orders were not given to the earliest Muslims to write it down as they were for the Quran.^[112][111]

Providing examples[edit]

According to John Burton, paraphrasing Al-Shafi’i, «it must be remembered that the Quran text are couched in very general terms which it is the function of the sunnah to expand and elucidate, to make God’s meaning absolutely clear.»^[113]
There are a number of verses in the Quran where «to understand the context, as well as the meaning», Muslims need to refer to the record of the life and example of Muhammad.^[17]

It is thought that verses 16:44 and 64 indicate that Muhammed’s mission «is not merely that of a deliveryman who simply delivers the revelation from Allah to us, rather, he has been entrusted with the most important task of explaining and illustrating» the Quran.

And We have also sent down unto you (O Muhammad) the reminder and the advice (the Quran), that you may explain clearly to men what is sent down to them, and that they may give thought.^{[114][115][116]}

And We have not sent down the Book (the Quran) to you (O Muhammad), except that you may explain clearly unto them those things in which they differ, and (as) a guidance and a mercy for a folk who believe. [Quran 16:64]^[117]

For example, while the Quran presents the general principles of praying, fasting, paying zakat, or making pilgrimage, they are presented «without the illustration found in Hadith, for these acts of worship remain as abstract imperatives in the Qur’an».^[115]

Types of sunnah[edit]

Sunnah upon which fiqh is based may be divided into:^[4]

• Sunnah Qawliyyah — the sayings of Muhammad, generally synonymous with “hadith”, since the sayings of Muhammad are noted down by the companions and called «hadith».^[4]
• Sunnah Fiiliyyah — the actions of Muhammad, including both religious and worldly actions.^[4]
• Sunnah Taqririyyah — the approvals of Muhammad regarding the actions of the Companions which occurred in two different ways:
  • When Muhammad kept silent for an action and did not oppose it.
  • When Muhammad showed his pleasure and smiled for a companion’s action.^[4][118]

It may be also divided into sunnah that is binding for Muslims and that which is not. Ibn Qutaybah (213-276 AH) distinguished between:

1. Sunnah «brought by Gabriel»;^[119]
2. sunnah from «Muhammad’s own ra’y and is binding, but subject to revision»;^[119]
3. «non-binding sunnah», which Muslims are not subject to «penalty for failure to follow».^[119]

In the terminology of fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence), sunnah denotes whatever though not obligatory, is «firmly established (thabata) as called for (matlub)» in Islam «on the basis of a legal proof (dalîl shar`î).^[4]

Sciences of sunnah[edit]

According to scholar Gibril Fouad Haddad, the «sciences of the Sunnah» (‘ulûm as-Sunna) refer to:

the biography of the Prophet (as-sîra), the chronicle of his battles (al-maghâzî), his everyday sayings and acts or «ways» (sunan), his personal and moral qualities (ash-shamâ’il), and the host of the ancillary^[120] hadîth sciences such as the circumstances of occurrence (asbâb al-wurûd), knowledge of the abrogating and abrogated hadîth, difficult words (gharîb al-hadîth), narrator criticism (al-jarh wat-ta`dîl), narrator biographies (al-rijâl), etc., as discussed in great detail in the authoritative books of al-Khatîb al-Baghdâdî.^[121]

Sunnah in Shia Islam[edit]

Shia Islam does not use the Kutub al-Sittah (six major hadith collections) followed by Sunni Islam, therefore the sunnah of Shia Islam and the sunnah of Sunni Islam refer to different collections of religious canonical literature.

The primary collections of sunnah of Shia Islam were written by three authors known as the ‘Three Muhammads’,^[122] and they are:

• Kitab al-Kafi by Muhammad ibn Ya’qub al-Kulayni al-Razi (329 AH),
• Man la yahduruhu al-Faqih by Ibn Babawayh and Tahdhib al-Ahkam, and
• Al-Istibsar both by Shaykh Tusi.

Unlike Akhbari Twelver Shiites, Usuli Twelver Shiite scholars do not believe that everything in the four major books of the sunnah of Shia Islam is authentic.

In Shia hadees one often finds sermons attributed to Ali in The Four Books or in the Nahj al-Balagha.

See also[edit]

• Bid‘ah
• Categories of Hadith
• Sharia

References[edit]

Notes[edit]

Citations[edit]

Further reading[edit]

• Brown, Daniel W. (1996). Rethinking tradition in modern Islamic thought. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521570778. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
• Burton, John (1990). The Sources of Islamic Law: Islamic Theories of Abrogation (PDF). Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 978-0-7486-0108-0. Retrieved 21 July 2018.
• Hamza, Feras, «Sunna», in Muhammad in History, Thought, and Culture: An Encyclopedia of the Prophet of God (2 vols.), Edited by C. Fitzpatrick and A. Walker, Santa Barbara, ABC-CLIO, 2014, Vol II, pp. 610–619.
• Ibn Abdul Aziz Asy-Syalhub, Fuad (2019). Ringkasan Kitab Adab (in Indonesian). Darul Falah. ISBN 9789793036847. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
• Musa, Aisha Y. (2008). Hadith as Scripture: Discussions on the Authority of Prophetic Traditions in Islam. New York: Palgrave. ISBN 978-0230605350.
• Nu’man, Farid (2020). Fiqih Praktis Sehari-hari (in Indonesian). Gema Insani. ISBN 978-6022507819. Retrieved 20 November 2021.

External links[edit]

• The Sunna as Primordiality by Sheikh Abdal Hakim Murad
• The Meaning of «Sunna» in the Qur’an, Qur’anic Studies
• Sunnah and Hadith, Center For Muslim–Jewish Engagement
• 5 Actionalbe Sunnah backed by science

In Islam, sunnah, also spelled sunna (Arabic: سنة), are the traditions and practices of the Islamic prophet Muhammad that constitute a model for Muslims to follow. The sunnah is what all the Muslims of Muhammad’s time evidently saw and followed and passed on to the next generations.^[1] According to classical Islamic theories,^[2] the sunnah are documented by hadith (the verbally transmitted record of the teachings, deeds and sayings, silent permissions or disapprovals of Muhammad), and along with the Quran (the book of Islam), are the divine revelation (Wahy) delivered through Muhammad^[2] that make up the primary sources of Islamic law and belief/theology.^[3][4] Differing from Sunni classical Islamic theories are those of Shia Muslims, who hold that the Twelve Imams interpret the sunnah, and Sufi who hold that Muhammad transmitted the values of sunnah «through a series of Sufi teachers.»^[5]

According to Muslim belief, Muhammad was the best exemplar for Muslims,^[6] and several verses in the Quran declare his conduct exemplary, and enjoin his followers to obey him.^[7][8][9] Sunnah provides a basis not only for major laws and rituals in Islam like how to pray salat, but for «even the most mundane activities», such as the order in which to cut fingernails or the proper length of a beard.^[10]

In the pre-Islamic period, sunnah was used to mean «manner of acting», whether good or bad.^[11] During the early Islamic period, the term referred to any good precedent set by people of the past, including both Muhammad,^[11] and his companions.^[3][12] In addition, the sunnah of Muhammad was not necessarily associated with hadith.^[13]

The classical meaning that now prevails was introduced later in the late second century of Islam, when under the influence of the scholar Al-Shafi‘i, Muhammad’s example as recorded in hadith was given priority over all other precedents set by other authorities. The term al-sunnah then eventually came to be viewed as synonymous with the sunnah of Muhammad,^[11] based on hadith reports.^[14] Recording the sunnah was also an Arabian tradition and once they converted to Islam, Arabians brought this custom to their religion.^[15]

The sunnah of Muhammad as based on hadith includes his specific words (Sunnah Qawliyyah), habits, practices (Sunnah Fiiliyyah), and silent approvals (Sunnah Taqririyyah).^[16] In Islam, the word «sunnah» is also used to refer to religious duties that are optional, such as Sunnah salat.^[17]

Definitions and usage[edit]

Sunnah (سنة [ˈsunna], plural سنن sunan [ˈsunan]) is an Arabic word that means

• «habit» or «usual practice» (USC glossary);^[18] also
• «habitual practice, customary procedure or action, norm, usage sanctioned by tradition» (Wehr Dictionary);^[19]
• «a body of established customs and beliefs that make up a tradition» (Oxford Islamic Studies Online);^[5]
• «a path, a way, a manner of life» (M.A.Qazi).^[1]
• «precedent» or «way of life» (pre-Islamic definition, Joseph Schacht and Ignác Goldziher).^[20]

Its religious definition can be:

• «the Sunna of the Prophet, i.e., his sayings and doings, later established as legally binding precedents» (along with the Law established by the Quran) (Hans Wehr);^[19]
• «All of the traditions and practices of the Prophet» of Islam, «that have become models to be followed» by Muslims (M.A.Qazi);^[1]
• «the body of traditional social and legal custom and practice of the Islamic community» (Encyclopædia Britannica);^[21]
• «the actions and sayings of the Prophet Muhammad» (Oxford Islamic Studies Online).^[5]

Islam Web gives two slightly different definitions:

• «the statements, actions and approvals (or disapprovals) of Prophet Muhammad», (definition used by «legal theorists»);
• «anything narrated from or about the Prophet… either before or after he became a prophet, of his statements, actions, confirmations, biography, and his physical character and attributes,» (used by scholars of hadith).^[22]

It was first used with the meaning of «law» in the Syro-Roman law book before it became widely used in Islamic jurisprudence.^[23]

Sunnah and hadith[edit]

In the context of biographical records of Muhammad, sunnah often stands synonymous with hadith since most of the personality traits of Muhammad are known from descriptions of him, his sayings and his actions from hadith.^[24] According to Seyyed Nasr, the hadith contains the words of Muhammad, while the sunnah contains his words and actions along with pre-Islamic practices of which he approved.^[25] In the context of sharia, Malik ibn Anas and the Hanafi scholars are assumed to have differentiated between the two: for example Malik is said to have rejected some traditions that reached him because, according to him, they were against the «established practice of the people of Medina».^{[citation needed]}

Sunnah Salat[edit]

In addition to being «the way» of Islam or the traditional social and legal custom and practice of the Islamic community, sunnah is often used as a synonym for mustahabb (encouraged) rather than wajib/fard (obligatory), regarding some commendable action (usually the saying of a prayer).

Ahl as-Sunnah[edit]

Sunni Muslims are also referred to as Ahl as-Sunnah wa’l-Jamā’ah («people of the tradition and the community (of Muhammad)») or Ahl as-Sunnah for short. Some early Sunnî Muslim scholars (such as Abu Hanifa, al-Humaydî, Ibn Abî ‘Âsim, Abû Dâwûd, and Abû Nasr al-Marwazî) reportedly used the term «the sunnah» narrowly to refer to Sunni Doctrine as opposed to the creeds of Shia and other non-Sunni Islamic sects.^[4] Sunnah literally means face, nature, lifestyle, etc.^[26] In the time of Muhammad’s companion, newly converted Muslims accepted and rejected some set of creed by using reason. So many early Muslim scholars started writing books on creed entitled as ‘sunnah’.^{[citation needed]}

In the Quran[edit]

The word «sunna» appears several times in the Qur’an, but there is no specific mention of sunnah of the messenger or prophet (sunnat al-rasool, sunnat al-nabi or sunna al-nabawiyyah), i.e. the way/practice of Muhammad (there are several verses calling on Muslims to obey Muhammad—see below). Four verses (8.38, 15.13, 18.55) use the expression “sunnat al-awwalin”, which is thought to mean «the way or practice of the ancients». It is described as something «that has passed away» or prevented unbelievers from accepting God. “Sunnat Allah” (the «way of God») appears eight times in five verses. In addition, verse 17.77 talks of both the way of other, earlier Muslim messengers (Ibrahim, Musa, etc.), and of «our way», i.e. God’s way.

[This is] the way (sunna) of those whom we sent [as messengers] before you, and you will not find any change in Our way (sunnatuna).^[27][28]

This indicates to some scholars (such as Javed Ahmad Ghamidi) that sunnah predates both the Quran and Muhammad, and is actually the tradition of the prophets of God, specifically the tradition of Abraham. Christians, Jews and the Arab descendants of Ishmael, the Arabized Arabs or Ishmaelites, when Muhammad reinstituted this practice as an integral part of Islam.

History/etymology[edit]

Prior to the «golden age of classical Islamic jurisprudence»,^{[Note 1]} the «ancient schools» of law prevailed.

The tradition which not directly sourced from Hadith or practice of Muhammad and instead traced to solely some Sahabah were also acknowledged as one of the source of jurisprudence, as it was regarded by scholars of Islam such as Nawawi as «unrecorded Hadith» which not explicitly attributed to Muhammad himself but clearly practiced by the first generation of Muhammad’s follower. Al-Nawawi has listed Zubayr ibn al-Awwam ruling regarding ethics of sitting down during eat and drinks in his book, Riyadh as Shaliheen, by basing the ethic in az-Zubayr practice, which narrated by his son, Abdulah.^[30] another manners and ethic ruling based on az-Zubayr covering such as prohibition for sleeping during Sübh,^[31] And ethics of sitting down while drinking.^[32] Meanwhile, another example of this kind of Sunnah also included:

• on the difference in the number of lashes used to punish alcohol consumption, Caliph Ali reported that (Muhammad and Abu Bakr ordered 40 lashes, Umar 80) — «All this is sunna»;^[33]
• on Umar’s deathbed instructions on where Muslims should seek guidance: from the Qur’an, the early Muslims (muhajirun) who emigrated to Medina with Muhammad, the Medina residents who welcomed and supported the muhajirun (the ansar), the people of the desert, and the protected communities of Jews and Christians (ahl al-dhimma); hadith of Muhammad are not mentioned.^[34]

According to historians (particularly Daniel W. Brown), the classical Islamic definition of sunnah as the customs and practices of Muhammad (only) was not the original one.^{[citation needed]}

In al-Ṭabarī’s history of early Islam, the term «Sunnah of the Prophet» is not only used «surprisingly infrequently», but used to refer to «political oaths or slogans used by rebels», or «a general standard of justice and right conduct», and not «to specific precedents set by Muhammad», let alone hadith.^[35] An early theological writing by Hasan al-Basri (Risala fi’l Qadar) also is «empty of references to specific cases» when mentioning «Sunnah of the Prophet».^[35]
Daniel Brown states that the first extant writings of Islamic legal reasoning were «virtually hadith-free» and argues that other examples of a lack of connection between sunnah and hadith» can be found in:

• Kitāb al-Irjāʾ of al-Hasan b. Muhammad b. al-Hanafiyya,^[36][35]
• the first letter of Abdallah ibn Ibad to Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan,^[37][35]
• and the Risāla of Abu Hanifa addressed to ʿUthman al-Battī.»^[38][35]

According to one source (Ahmad Kazemi Moussavi and Karim Douglas Crow), early Sunni scholars often considered sunnah equivalent to the biography of Muhammed (sira). As the hadith came to be better documented and the scholars who validated them gained prestige, the sunnah came often to be known mostly through the hadith, especially as variant or fictional biographies of Muhammad spread.^[39]

Four Madhhabs[edit]

The golden age, starting with the creation of the Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi’i, Hanbali, etc. schools of fiqh in the second century of Islam, limited sunnah to «traditions traced back to the Prophet Muhammad himself» (sunna al-nabawiyyah). But the ancient «regional» schools of law, located in several major cities of the new Arab empire of Islam — Mecca, Kufa, Basra, Syria, etc.,^[40]—had a more flexible definition of sunnah than is now commonly used. This being the «acceptable norms» or «custom»,^[35] which included examples of the Muhammad’s companions, the rulings of the Caliphs, and practices that «had gained general acceptance among the jurists of that school».^[2]

Abū ʿAbdullāh Muhammad ibn Idrīs al-Shāfiʿī (150-204 AH), known as al-Shafi’i, argued against flexible sunnah and the use of precedents from multiple sources,^[41][2] emphasizing the final authority of a hadith of Muhammad, so that even the Qur’an was «to be interpreted in the light of traditions (i.e. hadith), and not vice versa.»^[42][43] While the sunnah has often been called «second to the Quran»,^[44][45] hadith has also been said to «rule over and interpret the Quran».^{[46][Note 2]}
Al-Shafiʿi «forcefully argued» that the sunnah stands «on equal footing with the Quran», (according to scholar Daniel Brown) both being divine revelation. As Al-Shafi’i put it, «the command of the Prophet is the command of God»^[49][50] (notwithstanding the triumph of this theory, in practice the schools of fiqh resisted the thorough application of hadith and fiqh was little changed from the days before Al-Shafi’i).^[51] This, though, contradicts another point Shafi made which was the sunnah was below the Quran.^[52]

Sunnah of Muhammad outranked all other, and «broad agreement» developed that «hadith must be the basis for authentication of any Sunnah,» (according to M.O. Farooq).^[53] Al-Shafiʿi’s success was such that later writers «hardly ever thought of sunnah as comprising anything but that of the Prophet».^[54]

Systemization of hadith[edit]

While the earliest Muslim lawyers «felt no obligation» to provide documentation of hadith when arguing their case, and the sunnah was not recorded and written during Muhammad’s lifetime, (according to scholar Khaled Abou El Fadl), all this changed with the triumph of Al-Shafi‘i and a «broad agreement» that Hadith should be used to authenticate sunnah, (according to Mohammad Omar Farooq),^[53] over the course of the second century,^[55] when legal works began incorporating Prophetic hadith.^[56][57]

Hadith was now systematically collected and documented, but several generations having passed since the time of its occurrence meant that «many of the reports attributed to the Prophet are apocryphal or at least are of dubious historical authenticity,» (according to Abou El Fadl). «In fact, one of the most complex disciplines in Islamic jurisprudence is one which attempts to differentiate between authentic and inauthentic traditions.»^{[3]
[Note 3]}

Classical Islam[edit]

Islam jurists divide sunnah into that which has no legal consequences —al-sunna al-ʿādīyah — (the «personal habits and preferences» of Muhammad); and that which is binding on Muslims — al-sunna al-hudā.^[61] The literalist Zāhirī school disagrees holding that there was no sunnah whose fulfillment is not rewarded or neglect punished,^[62] while classical Islam holds that following non-binding al-sunna al-ʿādīyah is meritorious but not obligatory.^[63]

Sufis see the «division between binding and non-binding» sunnah as «meaningless». Muhammad is al-insān al-kāmil, the perfect man, labib-Allah beloved of God,^[64] an intercessor, a «channel of divine light». Imitating his every action is «the ultimate expression» of piety.^[62] or in the words of Al-Ghazālī:

Know that the key to joy is following the sunnah and imitating the Prophet in all his comings and goings, words and deeds, extending to his manner of eating, rising, sleeping and speaking. I do not say this only in relation to requirements of religion [ʿibādāt], for there is no escaping these; rather, this includes every area of behavior [ʿādāt].^[65]

Modernist Islam[edit]

In the 19th century, «social and political turmoil» starting with the decline of the Moghal empire, caused some Muslims to seek a more humanized figure of Muhammad. The miracle-performing «larger than life» prophetic figure was de-emphasized in favor of «a practical model for restoration of the Muslim community,» a virtuous, progressive social reformer. Nasserist Egypt, for example, celebrated the «imam of socialism» rather than the cosmic «perfect man».^[66] One who argued against the idea of sunnah as divine revelation, and for the idea that Muhammad’s mission was simply to transmit the Quran was Ghulam Ahmed Perwez (1903–1985). He quoted the Quranic verse «The messenger has no duty except to proclaim [the message],» (Q.5:99)^[67] and pointed out several other verses where God corrects something Muhammad has done or said (8:67),(9:43), (66:1), thus demonstrating Muhammad’s lack of supernatural knowledge.^[68]

This era of rapid social and technological change, decline of Muslim power, and replacement of classical madhhab by Western-inspired legal codes in Muslim lands,^[69] also suggested a turn away from the «detailed precedents in civil and political affairs,» called for by traditional Hadith, «for if worldly matters require detailed prophetic guidance, then every age will require a new prophet to accommodate changing circumstances».^[70]

Islamic revivalism[edit]

With de-colonialization in the late 20th century, a new Islamic revival emerged. Activists rather than theorists, they sought «to restore Islam to ascendency»,^[71] and in particular to restore Sharia to the law of the lands of Islam it had been before being replaced by «secular, Western-inspired law codes» of colonialism and modernity.^[72] Like modernists, revivalists «vehemently rejected»^[73] taqlid and were not particularly interested in the classical schools of law (madhhab). But revivalists like Abul A’la Maududi and Mustafa al-Siba’i support for «the authority of Sunnah and the authenticity of Hadith in general» was «unwavering»,^[74] as was their opposition to «Hadith denialism».^[73] At the same time they agreed that restoring relevant Sharia required «some reformulation» of the law, which would require a return to sources, which required agreement on how the sources were to be «interpreted and understand» and reassessment of hadith.^[69] This involved examining hadith content (matn) for its spirit and relevance «within the context of the Sharia as a whole» according to the method of scholars of Islamic law (fuqaha) and weeding out corrupted hadith inconsistent with «reason, with human nature, and with historical conditions».^[75] Shibli Nomani, Abul A’la Maududi, Rashid Rida, and Mohammed al-Ghazali being proponents of this effort.^[76]

Alternatives to classical hadith based sunnah[edit]

Although «most writers agree», including skeptics, that «sunnah and hadith must stand or fall together»,^[77] some (Fazlur Rahman Malik, Javed Ahmad Ghamidi) have attempted to «establish a basis for sunnah independent of hadith»,^[77] working around problem of hadith authenticity raised by modernist and Western critics,^[78] while reaching back to pre-al-Shafiʿi meaning of sunnah.^[79]

«Living sunnah»[edit]

In the 1960s, Fazlur Rahman Malik, an Islamic modernist and former head of Pakistan’s Central Institute for Islamic Research, advanced another idea for how the (prophetic) sunnah—the normative example of Muhammad—should be understood: as «a general umbrella concept»^[80] but not one «filled with absolutely specific content»,^[80] or that was static^[81] over the centuries. He argued that Muhammad had come as a «moral reformer» and not a «pan-legit», and that the specifics of the sunnah would be agreed upon community of his followers, evolving with changing times as a «living and on-going process».^[82] He accepted the criticism of Western and Muslim scholars that the content of many hadith and isnad (chain of transmitters) had been tampered with by Muslims trying to prove the Muhammad had made a specific statement—but this did not make them fraudulent or forgeries, because if «Hadith verbally speaking does not go back to the Prophet, its spirit certainly does».^[83] Instead these collections of ahadith of al-Bukhari and al-Muslim’s were ijma (consensus or agreement of the Muslim scholars—which is another classical source of Islamic law).^[84] Doing so they follow the spirit of Muhammad’s mission,^[85][86] and «resurrect» the legal methodology of the pre-Shafi’i «Ancient schools». But just as second and third century Muslims could re-formulate hadith and law around a prophetic spirit, so can modern Muslims—redefining riba and replacing medieval laws against bank interest with measures that help the poor without harming economic productivity.^[87][88]

Sunnah from practice not hadith[edit]

Some of the most basic and important features of the sunnah – worship rituals like salat (ritual prayer), zakat (ritual tithing), hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca), sawm (dawn to dusk fasting during Ramadan) – are known to Muslim from being passed down ‘from the many to the many’ (according to scholars of fiqh such as Al-Shafi’i),^[89] bypassing books of hadith, (which were more often consulted for answers to details not agreed upon or not frequently practiced) and issues of authenticity.

Modernist Rashid Rida thought this «the only source of sunnah that is beyond dispute».^[90] S.M. Yusuf argued «practice is best transmitted through practice»,^[91] and a more reliable way to establish sunnah than hadith. He also believed that the passing down of practice from generation to generation independent of hadith explained why early schools of law did not differentiate between sunnah of the caliphate and sunnah of the prophet.^[92]
According to Javed Ahmad Ghamidi, another Modernist, this passing down by continuous practice of the Muslim community (which also indicates consensus, ijma) was similar to how the Qur’ān has been «received by the ummah» (Muslim community) through the consensus of the Muhammad’s companions and through their perpetual recitation. Consequently, Ghamidi sees this more limited sunnah of continuous practice as the true sunnah – equally authentic to the Quran, but shedding orthodox sunnah and avoiding problematic basis of the hadith.^[93]

«Inner states»[edit]

Sufi thinkers «emphasized personal spirituality and piety rather than the details of fiqh».^[94]
According to the view of some Sufi Muslims who incorporate both the outer and inner reality of Muhammad, the deeper and true sunnah are the noble characteristics and inner state of Muhammad — Khuluqin Azim or ‘Exalted Character’.^[95] To them Muhammad’s attitude, his piety, the quality of his character constitute the truer and deeper aspect of what it means by sunnah in Islam, rather than the external aspects alone.^[96] They argue that the external customs of Muhammad loses its meaning without the inner attitude and also many hadiths are simply custom of the Arabs, not something that is unique to Muhammad.^[9]

Basis of importance[edit]

The Qur’an contains numerous commands to follow Muhammad.^[7] Among the Quranic verses quoted as demonstrating the importance of hadith/sunnah to Muslims are

Say: Obey Allah and obey the Messenger,^[17][97]

Which appears in several verses: 3:32, 5:92, 24:54, 64:12^[98]

Your companion [Muhammad] has not strayed, nor has he erred, Nor does he speak from [his own] inclination or desire.^[99][100]

«A similar (favour have ye already received) in that We have sent among you a Messenger of your own, rehearsing to you Our Signs, and sanctifying you, and instructing you in Scripture and Wisdom, and in new knowledge.^[101]

«Ye have indeed in the Messenger of Allah a beautiful pattern (of conduct) for any one whose hope is in Allah and the Final Day, and who engages much in the Praise of Allah.»^[9]

The teachings of «wisdom» (hikma) have been declared to be a function of Muhammad along with the teachings of the scripture.^[102] Several Quranic verses mention «wisdom» (hikmah) coupled with «scripture» or «the book» (i.e. the Quran) — al-kitāb wa al-ḥikma. Mainstream scholars starting with al-Shafi’i believe hikma refers to the sunnah, and this connection between sunnah and the Quran is evidence of the sunnah’s divinity and authority.^[103]

• 4:113 — «For Allah hath sent down to thee the Book and wisdom and taught thee what thou Knewest not (before): And great is the Grace of Allah unto thee.»^[104]
• 2:231 — «…but remember Allah’s grace upon you and that which He hath revealed unto you of the Scripture and of wisdom, whereby He doth exhort you.»^[105]
• 33:34 — «And bear in mind which is recited in your houses of the revelations of God and of wisdom».^[106]

Therefore, along with the Quran, the sunnah was revealed. Modern Sunni scholars have examined both the sira and the hadith in order to justify modifications to jurisprudence (fiqh).^{[citation needed]} Hense, the imitation of Muhammad helps Muslims to know and be loved by God.^[16]

Another piece of evidence for the divinity of the Sunnah—according to its supporters—are verses in the Quran that refer to revelations not found in the Quran. For example, there is no verse mentioning the original direction of prayer (the qibla) in the Quran, but God in the Quran does say He appointed the original qibla (2:143).^[107] Other events mentioned in the Quran that already happened without Quranic command or description include a dream in which Muhammad would enter Mecca (2:231); Muhammad’s marriage to Zayd’s ex-wife (Quran 33:37); and the dispute over the division of spoils after the Battle of Badr (8:7); all «definitive proof that besides the Quran other commands came to the Prophet by the agency of waḥy,» according to revivalist Abul A’la Maududi.^[108]
Yet another piece of evidence offered is that «Prophet witness» is «the chief guarantee» of what is divine revelation. In other words, «Muslims only know the Quran is revelation because of Muhammad’s testimony to this fact. If prophetic word is not to be trusted, then the Quran itself is open to suspicion.» Since the Quran is not, the sunnah must be trustworthy.^[109]

Alternative view[edit]

The minority argument against the sunnah of Muhammad being divine revelation (waḥy) goes back to the ahl al-Kalam who al-Shāfiʿī argued against in the second century of Islam. Their modern «Quranists», the modern successors of the ahl al-Kalam, argue that the sunnah falls short of the standard of the Quran in divinity.^[110] Specifically because

1. with the exception of the ḥadīth qudsī, sunnah was not revealed and transmitted verbatim, as was the Quran; it was often transmitted giving the sense or gist of what was said (known as bi’l-maʿnā);^[111]
2. the process of revelation was not «external, entirely independent of the influence of the messenger»; it bares the «personality» or «mentality» (baṣīrat) of Muhammad;^[111]
3. unlike the Quran, it was not «preserved in writing» until over a century after Muhammad’s death, which opens the question of how much corruption and/or error entered the writings and why, if it was divinely revealed, eternal truth, orders were not given to the earliest Muslims to write it down as they were for the Quran.^[112][111]

Providing examples[edit]

According to John Burton, paraphrasing Al-Shafi’i, «it must be remembered that the Quran text are couched in very general terms which it is the function of the sunnah to expand and elucidate, to make God’s meaning absolutely clear.»^[113]
There are a number of verses in the Quran where «to understand the context, as well as the meaning», Muslims need to refer to the record of the life and example of Muhammad.^[17]

It is thought that verses 16:44 and 64 indicate that Muhammed’s mission «is not merely that of a deliveryman who simply delivers the revelation from Allah to us, rather, he has been entrusted with the most important task of explaining and illustrating» the Quran.

And We have also sent down unto you (O Muhammad) the reminder and the advice (the Quran), that you may explain clearly to men what is sent down to them, and that they may give thought.^{[114][115][116]}

And We have not sent down the Book (the Quran) to you (O Muhammad), except that you may explain clearly unto them those things in which they differ, and (as) a guidance and a mercy for a folk who believe. [Quran 16:64]^[117]

For example, while the Quran presents the general principles of praying, fasting, paying zakat, or making pilgrimage, they are presented «without the illustration found in Hadith, for these acts of worship remain as abstract imperatives in the Qur’an».^[115]

Types of sunnah[edit]

Sunnah upon which fiqh is based may be divided into:^[4]

• Sunnah Qawliyyah — the sayings of Muhammad, generally synonymous with “hadith”, since the sayings of Muhammad are noted down by the companions and called «hadith».^[4]
• Sunnah Fiiliyyah — the actions of Muhammad, including both religious and worldly actions.^[4]
• Sunnah Taqririyyah — the approvals of Muhammad regarding the actions of the Companions which occurred in two different ways:
  • When Muhammad kept silent for an action and did not oppose it.
  • When Muhammad showed his pleasure and smiled for a companion’s action.^[4][118]

It may be also divided into sunnah that is binding for Muslims and that which is not. Ibn Qutaybah (213-276 AH) distinguished between:

1. Sunnah «brought by Gabriel»;^[119]
2. sunnah from «Muhammad’s own ra’y and is binding, but subject to revision»;^[119]
3. «non-binding sunnah», which Muslims are not subject to «penalty for failure to follow».^[119]

In the terminology of fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence), sunnah denotes whatever though not obligatory, is «firmly established (thabata) as called for (matlub)» in Islam «on the basis of a legal proof (dalîl shar`î).^[4]

Sciences of sunnah[edit]

According to scholar Gibril Fouad Haddad, the «sciences of the Sunnah» (‘ulûm as-Sunna) refer to:

the biography of the Prophet (as-sîra), the chronicle of his battles (al-maghâzî), his everyday sayings and acts or «ways» (sunan), his personal and moral qualities (ash-shamâ’il), and the host of the ancillary^[120] hadîth sciences such as the circumstances of occurrence (asbâb al-wurûd), knowledge of the abrogating and abrogated hadîth, difficult words (gharîb al-hadîth), narrator criticism (al-jarh wat-ta`dîl), narrator biographies (al-rijâl), etc., as discussed in great detail in the authoritative books of al-Khatîb al-Baghdâdî.^[121]

Sunnah in Shia Islam[edit]

Shia Islam does not use the Kutub al-Sittah (six major hadith collections) followed by Sunni Islam, therefore the sunnah of Shia Islam and the sunnah of Sunni Islam refer to different collections of religious canonical literature.

The primary collections of sunnah of Shia Islam were written by three authors known as the ‘Three Muhammads’,^[122] and they are:

• Kitab al-Kafi by Muhammad ibn Ya’qub al-Kulayni al-Razi (329 AH),
• Man la yahduruhu al-Faqih by Ibn Babawayh and Tahdhib al-Ahkam, and
• Al-Istibsar both by Shaykh Tusi.

Unlike Akhbari Twelver Shiites, Usuli Twelver Shiite scholars do not believe that everything in the four major books of the sunnah of Shia Islam is authentic.

In Shia hadees one often finds sermons attributed to Ali in The Four Books or in the Nahj al-Balagha.

See also[edit]

• Bid‘ah
• Categories of Hadith
• Sharia

References[edit]

Notes[edit]

Citations[edit]

Further reading[edit]

• Brown, Daniel W. (1996). Rethinking tradition in modern Islamic thought. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521570778. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
• Burton, John (1990). The Sources of Islamic Law: Islamic Theories of Abrogation (PDF). Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 978-0-7486-0108-0. Retrieved 21 July 2018.
• Hamza, Feras, «Sunna», in Muhammad in History, Thought, and Culture: An Encyclopedia of the Prophet of God (2 vols.), Edited by C. Fitzpatrick and A. Walker, Santa Barbara, ABC-CLIO, 2014, Vol II, pp. 610–619.
• Ibn Abdul Aziz Asy-Syalhub, Fuad (2019). Ringkasan Kitab Adab (in Indonesian). Darul Falah. ISBN 9789793036847. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
• Musa, Aisha Y. (2008). Hadith as Scripture: Discussions on the Authority of Prophetic Traditions in Islam. New York: Palgrave. ISBN 978-0230605350.
• Nu’man, Farid (2020). Fiqih Praktis Sehari-hari (in Indonesian). Gema Insani. ISBN 978-6022507819. Retrieved 20 November 2021.

External links[edit]

• The Sunna as Primordiality by Sheikh Abdal Hakim Murad
• The Meaning of «Sunna» in the Qur’an, Qur’anic Studies
• Sunnah and Hadith, Center For Muslim–Jewish Engagement
• 5 Actionalbe Sunnah backed by science

In Islam, sunnah, also spelled sunna (Arabic: سنة), are the traditions and practices of the Islamic prophet Muhammad that constitute a model for Muslims to follow. The sunnah is what all the Muslims of Muhammad’s time evidently saw and followed and passed on to the next generations.^[1] According to classical Islamic theories,^[2] the sunnah are documented by hadith (the verbally transmitted record of the teachings, deeds and sayings, silent permissions or disapprovals of Muhammad), and along with the Quran (the book of Islam), are the divine revelation (Wahy) delivered through Muhammad^[2] that make up the primary sources of Islamic law and belief/theology.^[3][4] Differing from Sunni classical Islamic theories are those of Shia Muslims, who hold that the Twelve Imams interpret the sunnah, and Sufi who hold that Muhammad transmitted the values of sunnah «through a series of Sufi teachers.»^[5]

According to Muslim belief, Muhammad was the best exemplar for Muslims,^[6] and several verses in the Quran declare his conduct exemplary, and enjoin his followers to obey him.^[7][8][9] Sunnah provides a basis not only for major laws and rituals in Islam like how to pray salat, but for «even the most mundane activities», such as the order in which to cut fingernails or the proper length of a beard.^[10]

In the pre-Islamic period, sunnah was used to mean «manner of acting», whether good or bad.^[11] During the early Islamic period, the term referred to any good precedent set by people of the past, including both Muhammad,^[11] and his companions.^[3][12] In addition, the sunnah of Muhammad was not necessarily associated with hadith.^[13]

The classical meaning that now prevails was introduced later in the late second century of Islam, when under the influence of the scholar Al-Shafi‘i, Muhammad’s example as recorded in hadith was given priority over all other precedents set by other authorities. The term al-sunnah then eventually came to be viewed as synonymous with the sunnah of Muhammad,^[11] based on hadith reports.^[14] Recording the sunnah was also an Arabian tradition and once they converted to Islam, Arabians brought this custom to their religion.^[15]

The sunnah of Muhammad as based on hadith includes his specific words (Sunnah Qawliyyah), habits, practices (Sunnah Fiiliyyah), and silent approvals (Sunnah Taqririyyah).^[16] In Islam, the word «sunnah» is also used to refer to religious duties that are optional, such as Sunnah salat.^[17]

Definitions and usage[edit]

Sunnah (سنة [ˈsunna], plural سنن sunan [ˈsunan]) is an Arabic word that means

• «habit» or «usual practice» (USC glossary);^[18] also
• «habitual practice, customary procedure or action, norm, usage sanctioned by tradition» (Wehr Dictionary);^[19]
• «a body of established customs and beliefs that make up a tradition» (Oxford Islamic Studies Online);^[5]
• «a path, a way, a manner of life» (M.A.Qazi).^[1]
• «precedent» or «way of life» (pre-Islamic definition, Joseph Schacht and Ignác Goldziher).^[20]

Its religious definition can be:

• «the Sunna of the Prophet, i.e., his sayings and doings, later established as legally binding precedents» (along with the Law established by the Quran) (Hans Wehr);^[19]
• «All of the traditions and practices of the Prophet» of Islam, «that have become models to be followed» by Muslims (M.A.Qazi);^[1]
• «the body of traditional social and legal custom and practice of the Islamic community» (Encyclopædia Britannica);^[21]
• «the actions and sayings of the Prophet Muhammad» (Oxford Islamic Studies Online).^[5]

Islam Web gives two slightly different definitions:

• «the statements, actions and approvals (or disapprovals) of Prophet Muhammad», (definition used by «legal theorists»);
• «anything narrated from or about the Prophet… either before or after he became a prophet, of his statements, actions, confirmations, biography, and his physical character and attributes,» (used by scholars of hadith).^[22]

It was first used with the meaning of «law» in the Syro-Roman law book before it became widely used in Islamic jurisprudence.^[23]

Sunnah and hadith[edit]

In the context of biographical records of Muhammad, sunnah often stands synonymous with hadith since most of the personality traits of Muhammad are known from descriptions of him, his sayings and his actions from hadith.^[24] According to Seyyed Nasr, the hadith contains the words of Muhammad, while the sunnah contains his words and actions along with pre-Islamic practices of which he approved.^[25] In the context of sharia, Malik ibn Anas and the Hanafi scholars are assumed to have differentiated between the two: for example Malik is said to have rejected some traditions that reached him because, according to him, they were against the «established practice of the people of Medina».^{[citation needed]}

Sunnah Salat[edit]

In addition to being «the way» of Islam or the traditional social and legal custom and practice of the Islamic community, sunnah is often used as a synonym for mustahabb (encouraged) rather than wajib/fard (obligatory), regarding some commendable action (usually the saying of a prayer).

Ahl as-Sunnah[edit]

Sunni Muslims are also referred to as Ahl as-Sunnah wa’l-Jamā’ah («people of the tradition and the community (of Muhammad)») or Ahl as-Sunnah for short. Some early Sunnî Muslim scholars (such as Abu Hanifa, al-Humaydî, Ibn Abî ‘Âsim, Abû Dâwûd, and Abû Nasr al-Marwazî) reportedly used the term «the sunnah» narrowly to refer to Sunni Doctrine as opposed to the creeds of Shia and other non-Sunni Islamic sects.^[4] Sunnah literally means face, nature, lifestyle, etc.^[26] In the time of Muhammad’s companion, newly converted Muslims accepted and rejected some set of creed by using reason. So many early Muslim scholars started writing books on creed entitled as ‘sunnah’.^{[citation needed]}

In the Quran[edit]

The word «sunna» appears several times in the Qur’an, but there is no specific mention of sunnah of the messenger or prophet (sunnat al-rasool, sunnat al-nabi or sunna al-nabawiyyah), i.e. the way/practice of Muhammad (there are several verses calling on Muslims to obey Muhammad—see below). Four verses (8.38, 15.13, 18.55) use the expression “sunnat al-awwalin”, which is thought to mean «the way or practice of the ancients». It is described as something «that has passed away» or prevented unbelievers from accepting God. “Sunnat Allah” (the «way of God») appears eight times in five verses. In addition, verse 17.77 talks of both the way of other, earlier Muslim messengers (Ibrahim, Musa, etc.), and of «our way», i.e. God’s way.

[This is] the way (sunna) of those whom we sent [as messengers] before you, and you will not find any change in Our way (sunnatuna).^[27][28]

This indicates to some scholars (such as Javed Ahmad Ghamidi) that sunnah predates both the Quran and Muhammad, and is actually the tradition of the prophets of God, specifically the tradition of Abraham. Christians, Jews and the Arab descendants of Ishmael, the Arabized Arabs or Ishmaelites, when Muhammad reinstituted this practice as an integral part of Islam.

History/etymology[edit]

Prior to the «golden age of classical Islamic jurisprudence»,^{[Note 1]} the «ancient schools» of law prevailed.

The tradition which not directly sourced from Hadith or practice of Muhammad and instead traced to solely some Sahabah were also acknowledged as one of the source of jurisprudence, as it was regarded by scholars of Islam such as Nawawi as «unrecorded Hadith» which not explicitly attributed to Muhammad himself but clearly practiced by the first generation of Muhammad’s follower. Al-Nawawi has listed Zubayr ibn al-Awwam ruling regarding ethics of sitting down during eat and drinks in his book, Riyadh as Shaliheen, by basing the ethic in az-Zubayr practice, which narrated by his son, Abdulah.^[30] another manners and ethic ruling based on az-Zubayr covering such as prohibition for sleeping during Sübh,^[31] And ethics of sitting down while drinking.^[32] Meanwhile, another example of this kind of Sunnah also included:

• on the difference in the number of lashes used to punish alcohol consumption, Caliph Ali reported that (Muhammad and Abu Bakr ordered 40 lashes, Umar 80) — «All this is sunna»;^[33]
• on Umar’s deathbed instructions on where Muslims should seek guidance: from the Qur’an, the early Muslims (muhajirun) who emigrated to Medina with Muhammad, the Medina residents who welcomed and supported the muhajirun (the ansar), the people of the desert, and the protected communities of Jews and Christians (ahl al-dhimma); hadith of Muhammad are not mentioned.^[34]

According to historians (particularly Daniel W. Brown), the classical Islamic definition of sunnah as the customs and practices of Muhammad (only) was not the original one.^{[citation needed]}

In al-Ṭabarī’s history of early Islam, the term «Sunnah of the Prophet» is not only used «surprisingly infrequently», but used to refer to «political oaths or slogans used by rebels», or «a general standard of justice and right conduct», and not «to specific precedents set by Muhammad», let alone hadith.^[35] An early theological writing by Hasan al-Basri (Risala fi’l Qadar) also is «empty of references to specific cases» when mentioning «Sunnah of the Prophet».^[35]
Daniel Brown states that the first extant writings of Islamic legal reasoning were «virtually hadith-free» and argues that other examples of a lack of connection between sunnah and hadith» can be found in:

• Kitāb al-Irjāʾ of al-Hasan b. Muhammad b. al-Hanafiyya,^[36][35]
• the first letter of Abdallah ibn Ibad to Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan,^[37][35]
• and the Risāla of Abu Hanifa addressed to ʿUthman al-Battī.»^[38][35]

According to one source (Ahmad Kazemi Moussavi and Karim Douglas Crow), early Sunni scholars often considered sunnah equivalent to the biography of Muhammed (sira). As the hadith came to be better documented and the scholars who validated them gained prestige, the sunnah came often to be known mostly through the hadith, especially as variant or fictional biographies of Muhammad spread.^[39]

Four Madhhabs[edit]

The golden age, starting with the creation of the Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi’i, Hanbali, etc. schools of fiqh in the second century of Islam, limited sunnah to «traditions traced back to the Prophet Muhammad himself» (sunna al-nabawiyyah). But the ancient «regional» schools of law, located in several major cities of the new Arab empire of Islam — Mecca, Kufa, Basra, Syria, etc.,^[40]—had a more flexible definition of sunnah than is now commonly used. This being the «acceptable norms» or «custom»,^[35] which included examples of the Muhammad’s companions, the rulings of the Caliphs, and practices that «had gained general acceptance among the jurists of that school».^[2]

Abū ʿAbdullāh Muhammad ibn Idrīs al-Shāfiʿī (150-204 AH), known as al-Shafi’i, argued against flexible sunnah and the use of precedents from multiple sources,^[41][2] emphasizing the final authority of a hadith of Muhammad, so that even the Qur’an was «to be interpreted in the light of traditions (i.e. hadith), and not vice versa.»^[42][43] While the sunnah has often been called «second to the Quran»,^[44][45] hadith has also been said to «rule over and interpret the Quran».^{[46][Note 2]}
Al-Shafiʿi «forcefully argued» that the sunnah stands «on equal footing with the Quran», (according to scholar Daniel Brown) both being divine revelation. As Al-Shafi’i put it, «the command of the Prophet is the command of God»^[49][50] (notwithstanding the triumph of this theory, in practice the schools of fiqh resisted the thorough application of hadith and fiqh was little changed from the days before Al-Shafi’i).^[51] This, though, contradicts another point Shafi made which was the sunnah was below the Quran.^[52]

Sunnah of Muhammad outranked all other, and «broad agreement» developed that «hadith must be the basis for authentication of any Sunnah,» (according to M.O. Farooq).^[53] Al-Shafiʿi’s success was such that later writers «hardly ever thought of sunnah as comprising anything but that of the Prophet».^[54]

Systemization of hadith[edit]

While the earliest Muslim lawyers «felt no obligation» to provide documentation of hadith when arguing their case, and the sunnah was not recorded and written during Muhammad’s lifetime, (according to scholar Khaled Abou El Fadl), all this changed with the triumph of Al-Shafi‘i and a «broad agreement» that Hadith should be used to authenticate sunnah, (according to Mohammad Omar Farooq),^[53] over the course of the second century,^[55] when legal works began incorporating Prophetic hadith.^[56][57]

Hadith was now systematically collected and documented, but several generations having passed since the time of its occurrence meant that «many of the reports attributed to the Prophet are apocryphal or at least are of dubious historical authenticity,» (according to Abou El Fadl). «In fact, one of the most complex disciplines in Islamic jurisprudence is one which attempts to differentiate between authentic and inauthentic traditions.»^{[3]
[Note 3]}

Classical Islam[edit]

Islam jurists divide sunnah into that which has no legal consequences —al-sunna al-ʿādīyah — (the «personal habits and preferences» of Muhammad); and that which is binding on Muslims — al-sunna al-hudā.^[61] The literalist Zāhirī school disagrees holding that there was no sunnah whose fulfillment is not rewarded or neglect punished,^[62] while classical Islam holds that following non-binding al-sunna al-ʿādīyah is meritorious but not obligatory.^[63]

Sufis see the «division between binding and non-binding» sunnah as «meaningless». Muhammad is al-insān al-kāmil, the perfect man, labib-Allah beloved of God,^[64] an intercessor, a «channel of divine light». Imitating his every action is «the ultimate expression» of piety.^[62] or in the words of Al-Ghazālī:

Know that the key to joy is following the sunnah and imitating the Prophet in all his comings and goings, words and deeds, extending to his manner of eating, rising, sleeping and speaking. I do not say this only in relation to requirements of religion [ʿibādāt], for there is no escaping these; rather, this includes every area of behavior [ʿādāt].^[65]

Modernist Islam[edit]

In the 19th century, «social and political turmoil» starting with the decline of the Moghal empire, caused some Muslims to seek a more humanized figure of Muhammad. The miracle-performing «larger than life» prophetic figure was de-emphasized in favor of «a practical model for restoration of the Muslim community,» a virtuous, progressive social reformer. Nasserist Egypt, for example, celebrated the «imam of socialism» rather than the cosmic «perfect man».^[66] One who argued against the idea of sunnah as divine revelation, and for the idea that Muhammad’s mission was simply to transmit the Quran was Ghulam Ahmed Perwez (1903–1985). He quoted the Quranic verse «The messenger has no duty except to proclaim [the message],» (Q.5:99)^[67] and pointed out several other verses where God corrects something Muhammad has done or said (8:67),(9:43), (66:1), thus demonstrating Muhammad’s lack of supernatural knowledge.^[68]

This era of rapid social and technological change, decline of Muslim power, and replacement of classical madhhab by Western-inspired legal codes in Muslim lands,^[69] also suggested a turn away from the «detailed precedents in civil and political affairs,» called for by traditional Hadith, «for if worldly matters require detailed prophetic guidance, then every age will require a new prophet to accommodate changing circumstances».^[70]

Islamic revivalism[edit]

With de-colonialization in the late 20th century, a new Islamic revival emerged. Activists rather than theorists, they sought «to restore Islam to ascendency»,^[71] and in particular to restore Sharia to the law of the lands of Islam it had been before being replaced by «secular, Western-inspired law codes» of colonialism and modernity.^[72] Like modernists, revivalists «vehemently rejected»^[73] taqlid and were not particularly interested in the classical schools of law (madhhab). But revivalists like Abul A’la Maududi and Mustafa al-Siba’i support for «the authority of Sunnah and the authenticity of Hadith in general» was «unwavering»,^[74] as was their opposition to «Hadith denialism».^[73] At the same time they agreed that restoring relevant Sharia required «some reformulation» of the law, which would require a return to sources, which required agreement on how the sources were to be «interpreted and understand» and reassessment of hadith.^[69] This involved examining hadith content (matn) for its spirit and relevance «within the context of the Sharia as a whole» according to the method of scholars of Islamic law (fuqaha) and weeding out corrupted hadith inconsistent with «reason, with human nature, and with historical conditions».^[75] Shibli Nomani, Abul A’la Maududi, Rashid Rida, and Mohammed al-Ghazali being proponents of this effort.^[76]

Alternatives to classical hadith based sunnah[edit]

Although «most writers agree», including skeptics, that «sunnah and hadith must stand or fall together»,^[77] some (Fazlur Rahman Malik, Javed Ahmad Ghamidi) have attempted to «establish a basis for sunnah independent of hadith»,^[77] working around problem of hadith authenticity raised by modernist and Western critics,^[78] while reaching back to pre-al-Shafiʿi meaning of sunnah.^[79]

«Living sunnah»[edit]

In the 1960s, Fazlur Rahman Malik, an Islamic modernist and former head of Pakistan’s Central Institute for Islamic Research, advanced another idea for how the (prophetic) sunnah—the normative example of Muhammad—should be understood: as «a general umbrella concept»^[80] but not one «filled with absolutely specific content»,^[80] or that was static^[81] over the centuries. He argued that Muhammad had come as a «moral reformer» and not a «pan-legit», and that the specifics of the sunnah would be agreed upon community of his followers, evolving with changing times as a «living and on-going process».^[82] He accepted the criticism of Western and Muslim scholars that the content of many hadith and isnad (chain of transmitters) had been tampered with by Muslims trying to prove the Muhammad had made a specific statement—but this did not make them fraudulent or forgeries, because if «Hadith verbally speaking does not go back to the Prophet, its spirit certainly does».^[83] Instead these collections of ahadith of al-Bukhari and al-Muslim’s were ijma (consensus or agreement of the Muslim scholars—which is another classical source of Islamic law).^[84] Doing so they follow the spirit of Muhammad’s mission,^[85][86] and «resurrect» the legal methodology of the pre-Shafi’i «Ancient schools». But just as second and third century Muslims could re-formulate hadith and law around a prophetic spirit, so can modern Muslims—redefining riba and replacing medieval laws against bank interest with measures that help the poor without harming economic productivity.^[87][88]

Sunnah from practice not hadith[edit]

Some of the most basic and important features of the sunnah – worship rituals like salat (ritual prayer), zakat (ritual tithing), hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca), sawm (dawn to dusk fasting during Ramadan) – are known to Muslim from being passed down ‘from the many to the many’ (according to scholars of fiqh such as Al-Shafi’i),^[89] bypassing books of hadith, (which were more often consulted for answers to details not agreed upon or not frequently practiced) and issues of authenticity.

Modernist Rashid Rida thought this «the only source of sunnah that is beyond dispute».^[90] S.M. Yusuf argued «practice is best transmitted through practice»,^[91] and a more reliable way to establish sunnah than hadith. He also believed that the passing down of practice from generation to generation independent of hadith explained why early schools of law did not differentiate between sunnah of the caliphate and sunnah of the prophet.^[92]
According to Javed Ahmad Ghamidi, another Modernist, this passing down by continuous practice of the Muslim community (which also indicates consensus, ijma) was similar to how the Qur’ān has been «received by the ummah» (Muslim community) through the consensus of the Muhammad’s companions and through their perpetual recitation. Consequently, Ghamidi sees this more limited sunnah of continuous practice as the true sunnah – equally authentic to the Quran, but shedding orthodox sunnah and avoiding problematic basis of the hadith.^[93]

«Inner states»[edit]

Sufi thinkers «emphasized personal spirituality and piety rather than the details of fiqh».^[94]
According to the view of some Sufi Muslims who incorporate both the outer and inner reality of Muhammad, the deeper and true sunnah are the noble characteristics and inner state of Muhammad — Khuluqin Azim or ‘Exalted Character’.^[95] To them Muhammad’s attitude, his piety, the quality of his character constitute the truer and deeper aspect of what it means by sunnah in Islam, rather than the external aspects alone.^[96] They argue that the external customs of Muhammad loses its meaning without the inner attitude and also many hadiths are simply custom of the Arabs, not something that is unique to Muhammad.^[9]

Basis of importance[edit]

The Qur’an contains numerous commands to follow Muhammad.^[7] Among the Quranic verses quoted as demonstrating the importance of hadith/sunnah to Muslims are

Say: Obey Allah and obey the Messenger,^[17][97]

Which appears in several verses: 3:32, 5:92, 24:54, 64:12^[98]

Your companion [Muhammad] has not strayed, nor has he erred, Nor does he speak from [his own] inclination or desire.^[99][100]

«A similar (favour have ye already received) in that We have sent among you a Messenger of your own, rehearsing to you Our Signs, and sanctifying you, and instructing you in Scripture and Wisdom, and in new knowledge.^[101]

«Ye have indeed in the Messenger of Allah a beautiful pattern (of conduct) for any one whose hope is in Allah and the Final Day, and who engages much in the Praise of Allah.»^[9]

The teachings of «wisdom» (hikma) have been declared to be a function of Muhammad along with the teachings of the scripture.^[102] Several Quranic verses mention «wisdom» (hikmah) coupled with «scripture» or «the book» (i.e. the Quran) — al-kitāb wa al-ḥikma. Mainstream scholars starting with al-Shafi’i believe hikma refers to the sunnah, and this connection between sunnah and the Quran is evidence of the sunnah’s divinity and authority.^[103]

• 4:113 — «For Allah hath sent down to thee the Book and wisdom and taught thee what thou Knewest not (before): And great is the Grace of Allah unto thee.»^[104]
• 2:231 — «…but remember Allah’s grace upon you and that which He hath revealed unto you of the Scripture and of wisdom, whereby He doth exhort you.»^[105]
• 33:34 — «And bear in mind which is recited in your houses of the revelations of God and of wisdom».^[106]

Therefore, along with the Quran, the sunnah was revealed. Modern Sunni scholars have examined both the sira and the hadith in order to justify modifications to jurisprudence (fiqh).^{[citation needed]} Hense, the imitation of Muhammad helps Muslims to know and be loved by God.^[16]

Another piece of evidence for the divinity of the Sunnah—according to its supporters—are verses in the Quran that refer to revelations not found in the Quran. For example, there is no verse mentioning the original direction of prayer (the qibla) in the Quran, but God in the Quran does say He appointed the original qibla (2:143).^[107] Other events mentioned in the Quran that already happened without Quranic command or description include a dream in which Muhammad would enter Mecca (2:231); Muhammad’s marriage to Zayd’s ex-wife (Quran 33:37); and the dispute over the division of spoils after the Battle of Badr (8:7); all «definitive proof that besides the Quran other commands came to the Prophet by the agency of waḥy,» according to revivalist Abul A’la Maududi.^[108]
Yet another piece of evidence offered is that «Prophet witness» is «the chief guarantee» of what is divine revelation. In other words, «Muslims only know the Quran is revelation because of Muhammad’s testimony to this fact. If prophetic word is not to be trusted, then the Quran itself is open to suspicion.» Since the Quran is not, the sunnah must be trustworthy.^[109]

Alternative view[edit]

The minority argument against the sunnah of Muhammad being divine revelation (waḥy) goes back to the ahl al-Kalam who al-Shāfiʿī argued against in the second century of Islam. Their modern «Quranists», the modern successors of the ahl al-Kalam, argue that the sunnah falls short of the standard of the Quran in divinity.^[110] Specifically because

1. with the exception of the ḥadīth qudsī, sunnah was not revealed and transmitted verbatim, as was the Quran; it was often transmitted giving the sense or gist of what was said (known as bi’l-maʿnā);^[111]
2. the process of revelation was not «external, entirely independent of the influence of the messenger»; it bares the «personality» or «mentality» (baṣīrat) of Muhammad;^[111]
3. unlike the Quran, it was not «preserved in writing» until over a century after Muhammad’s death, which opens the question of how much corruption and/or error entered the writings and why, if it was divinely revealed, eternal truth, orders were not given to the earliest Muslims to write it down as they were for the Quran.^[112][111]

Providing examples[edit]

According to John Burton, paraphrasing Al-Shafi’i, «it must be remembered that the Quran text are couched in very general terms which it is the function of the sunnah to expand and elucidate, to make God’s meaning absolutely clear.»^[113]
There are a number of verses in the Quran where «to understand the context, as well as the meaning», Muslims need to refer to the record of the life and example of Muhammad.^[17]

It is thought that verses 16:44 and 64 indicate that Muhammed’s mission «is not merely that of a deliveryman who simply delivers the revelation from Allah to us, rather, he has been entrusted with the most important task of explaining and illustrating» the Quran.

And We have also sent down unto you (O Muhammad) the reminder and the advice (the Quran), that you may explain clearly to men what is sent down to them, and that they may give thought.^{[114][115][116]}

And We have not sent down the Book (the Quran) to you (O Muhammad), except that you may explain clearly unto them those things in which they differ, and (as) a guidance and a mercy for a folk who believe. [Quran 16:64]^[117]

For example, while the Quran presents the general principles of praying, fasting, paying zakat, or making pilgrimage, they are presented «without the illustration found in Hadith, for these acts of worship remain as abstract imperatives in the Qur’an».^[115]

Types of sunnah[edit]

Sunnah upon which fiqh is based may be divided into:^[4]

• Sunnah Qawliyyah — the sayings of Muhammad, generally synonymous with “hadith”, since the sayings of Muhammad are noted down by the companions and called «hadith».^[4]
• Sunnah Fiiliyyah — the actions of Muhammad, including both religious and worldly actions.^[4]
• Sunnah Taqririyyah — the approvals of Muhammad regarding the actions of the Companions which occurred in two different ways:
  • When Muhammad kept silent for an action and did not oppose it.
  • When Muhammad showed his pleasure and smiled for a companion’s action.^[4][118]

It may be also divided into sunnah that is binding for Muslims and that which is not. Ibn Qutaybah (213-276 AH) distinguished between:

1. Sunnah «brought by Gabriel»;^[119]
2. sunnah from «Muhammad’s own ra’y and is binding, but subject to revision»;^[119]
3. «non-binding sunnah», which Muslims are not subject to «penalty for failure to follow».^[119]

In the terminology of fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence), sunnah denotes whatever though not obligatory, is «firmly established (thabata) as called for (matlub)» in Islam «on the basis of a legal proof (dalîl shar`î).^[4]

Sciences of sunnah[edit]

According to scholar Gibril Fouad Haddad, the «sciences of the Sunnah» (‘ulûm as-Sunna) refer to:

the biography of the Prophet (as-sîra), the chronicle of his battles (al-maghâzî), his everyday sayings and acts or «ways» (sunan), his personal and moral qualities (ash-shamâ’il), and the host of the ancillary^[120] hadîth sciences such as the circumstances of occurrence (asbâb al-wurûd), knowledge of the abrogating and abrogated hadîth, difficult words (gharîb al-hadîth), narrator criticism (al-jarh wat-ta`dîl), narrator biographies (al-rijâl), etc., as discussed in great detail in the authoritative books of al-Khatîb al-Baghdâdî.^[121]

Sunnah in Shia Islam[edit]

Shia Islam does not use the Kutub al-Sittah (six major hadith collections) followed by Sunni Islam, therefore the sunnah of Shia Islam and the sunnah of Sunni Islam refer to different collections of religious canonical literature.

The primary collections of sunnah of Shia Islam were written by three authors known as the ‘Three Muhammads’,^[122] and they are:

• Kitab al-Kafi by Muhammad ibn Ya’qub al-Kulayni al-Razi (329 AH),
• Man la yahduruhu al-Faqih by Ibn Babawayh and Tahdhib al-Ahkam, and
• Al-Istibsar both by Shaykh Tusi.

Unlike Akhbari Twelver Shiites, Usuli Twelver Shiite scholars do not believe that everything in the four major books of the sunnah of Shia Islam is authentic.

In Shia hadees one often finds sermons attributed to Ali in The Four Books or in the Nahj al-Balagha.

See also[edit]

• Bid‘ah
• Categories of Hadith
• Sharia

References[edit]

Notes[edit]

Citations[edit]

Further reading[edit]

• Brown, Daniel W. (1996). Rethinking tradition in modern Islamic thought. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521570778. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
• Burton, John (1990). The Sources of Islamic Law: Islamic Theories of Abrogation (PDF). Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 978-0-7486-0108-0. Retrieved 21 July 2018.
• Hamza, Feras, «Sunna», in Muhammad in History, Thought, and Culture: An Encyclopedia of the Prophet of God (2 vols.), Edited by C. Fitzpatrick and A. Walker, Santa Barbara, ABC-CLIO, 2014, Vol II, pp. 610–619.
• Ibn Abdul Aziz Asy-Syalhub, Fuad (2019). Ringkasan Kitab Adab (in Indonesian). Darul Falah. ISBN 9789793036847. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
• Musa, Aisha Y. (2008). Hadith as Scripture: Discussions on the Authority of Prophetic Traditions in Islam. New York: Palgrave. ISBN 978-0230605350.
• Nu’man, Farid (2020). Fiqih Praktis Sehari-hari (in Indonesian). Gema Insani. ISBN 978-6022507819. Retrieved 20 November 2021.

External links[edit]

• The Sunna as Primordiality by Sheikh Abdal Hakim Murad
• The Meaning of «Sunna» in the Qur’an, Qur’anic Studies
• Sunnah and Hadith, Center For Muslim–Jewish Engagement
• 5 Actionalbe Sunnah backed by science

сунна

Чтобы узнать о других значениях, см. Сунна .

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Сунна ( арабский : سنة , сунна , множественное Arabic : سنن сунан [сунан] ), также сунна или суннат , арабское слово, обозначающее традиционные обычаи и практики; в исламском сообществе это относится к традициям и обычаям Пророка Мухаммеда , которые представляют собой образец для подражания мусульманам. Сунна отделена от хадисов (устно переданные записи учений, деяний и высказываний Пророка некоторыми из его предполагаемых сподвижников), и Сунна — это то, что, очевидно, видели все мусульмане времен Пророка Мухаммеда, следовали и передавали следующим поколениям , без сомнения. (Например, метод вознесения 5 ежедневных молитв). Однако, согласно классическим исламским теориям Сунны, они задокументированы хадисами (устно переданные записи учений, деяний и высказываний, безмолвных разрешений или неодобрений Мухаммеда ) и вместе с Кораном (священной книгой ислама ) являются Божественное откровение ( вахи ), переданное через Пророка, которое составляет основные источники исламского права и веры / теологии . От суннитских классических исламских теорий отличаются теориимусульман- шиитов , которые считают, что двенадцать имамов интерпретируют сунну, и суфии, которые считают, что Мухаммад передал ценности сунны «через ряд суфийских учителей».

Согласно мусульманской вере, Мухаммад был лучшим примером для мусульман, и несколько стихов Корана объявляют его поведение образцовым и предписывают своим последователям подчиняться ему. Сунна служит основой не только для основных законов и ритуалов в исламе, таких как совершение намаза , но и для «даже самых мирских действий», таких как порядок стрижки ногтей или правильная длина бороды.

В доисламский период сунна использовалась для обозначения «образа действий», хорошего или плохого. В ранний исламский период этим термином обозначался любой хороший прецедент, созданный людьми прошлого, включая как Мухаммеда, так и его соратников. Кроме того, Сунна Пророка не обязательно была связана с хадисами.

Классическое значение, которое сейчас преобладает, было введено позже, в конце второго века ислама, когда под влиянием ученого Аш-Шафии пример Мухаммада, записанный в хадисах, получил приоритет над всеми другими прецедентами, установленными другими авторитетами. Термин ас-сунна затем в конечном итоге стал рассматриваться как синоним сунны Мухаммеда на основании хадисов. Запись сунны также была арабской традицией, и когда они обратились в ислам, арабы перенесли этот обычай в свою религию.

Сунны Мухаммада , как на основе хадисов включают свои специфические слова ( сунна Qawliyyah ), привычки, практик ( сунна Fiiliyyah ) и бесшумные утверждения ( сунна Taqririyyah ). В исламе слово « сунна » также используется для обозначения необязательных религиозных обязанностей, таких как сунна-намаз .

Определения и использование

Сунна ( سنة [ˈSunna] , множественное число سنن sunan [ˈSunan] ) — арабское слово, означающее

• «привычка» или «обычная практика» (глоссарий USC); также
• «обычная практика, обычная процедура или действие, норма, использование, санкционированное традицией» (Словарь Вера);
• «совокупность устоявшихся обычаев и верований, составляющих традицию» (Oxford Islamic Studies Online);
• «путь, путь, образ жизни» (MAQazi).
• «прецедент» или «образ жизни» (доисламское определение, Йозеф Шахт и Игнац Гольдзихер ).

Его религиозное определение может быть:

• «Сунна Пророка, т. е. его высказывания и поступки, впоследствии установленные как юридически обязательные прецеденты» (наряду с Законом, установленным Кораном) (Hans Wehr);
• «Все традиции и обычаи Пророка» ислама, «которые стали образцами, которым должны следовать» мусульмане (MAQazi);
• «совокупность традиционных социальных и правовых обычаев и практики исламского сообщества» (Британская энциклопедия);
• «Действия и высказывания Пророка Мухаммеда» (Oxford Islamic Studies Online).

Islam Web дает два немного разных определения:

• «заявления, действия и одобрения (или неодобрения) Пророка Мухаммеда» (определение, используемое «теоретиками права»);
• «все, что передается от Пророка или о нем … до или после того, как он стал пророком, о его утверждениях, действиях, подтверждениях, биографии, его физическом характере и качествах» (используется знатоками хадисов).

Впервые он был использован в значении «закон» в сиро-римской книге законов, прежде чем он стал широко использоваться в исламской юриспруденции.

Сунна и хадисы

Сунна и хадис (слова, действия или одобрение, которые рассказывают о Мухаммеде и которые, как считается, составляют Сунну) иногда используются как синонимы, но не всегда.

• Например, группу, известную как «Ахль аль-Хадис», также иногда называют «Ахль ас-Сунна»; такие книги, как «Кутуб аль-Хадис», также иногда называют «Кутуб ас-Сунна» (согласно сайту саудовских фетв «Исламский вопрос и ответ»). В контексте биографических записей Мухаммеда сунна часто является синонимом хадисов, поскольку большинство черт характера Мухаммеда известны из его описаний, его высказываний и его действий из хадисов.
• Примеры того, когда они не используются взаимозаменяемо, но имеют разные значения, — это когда Сунна относится к общим вопросам, то есть пути, методологии и пути исламского пророка Мухаммеда; и «придерживаться ислама в установленном порядке, не прибегая к дополнениям и не вводя нововведений в религию», чего нет в хадисах; Ученые-фукаха используют слово «Сунна», когда объясняют постановление о совершении определенного действия как мустахаб (нравится или поощряется), чего они не делают с хадисами). Согласно Сейеду Насру, хадис содержит слова пророка, а сунна содержит его слова и действия наряду с доисламскими практиками, которые он одобрил. В контексте шариата предполагается , что Малик ибн Анас и ханафитские ученые проводили различие между ними: например, Малик, как говорят, отверг некоторые дошедшие до него традиции, поскольку, по его словам, они были против «установленной практики люди Медины «.

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Сунна Салат

Помимо того, что это «путь» ислама или традиционные социальные и правовые обычаи и практика исламского сообщества, сунна часто используется как синоним слова « мустахабб» (поощряется), а не ваджиб / фард (обязательно), в отношении некоторых похвальных действий ( обычно произнесение молитвы).

Ахль ас-Сунна

Мусульман- суннитов также называют Ахль ас-Сунна ва’ль-Джама’ах («люди традиции и общины (Мухаммада)») или для краткости Ахль ас-Сунна . Некоторые ранние мусульманские ученые-сунниты (такие как Абу Ханифа , аль-Хумайди, Ибн Аби Асим, Абу Давуд и Абу Наср аль-Марвази), как сообщается, использовали термин «сунна» в узком смысле для обозначения суннитской доктрины в отличие от вероучений Шииты и другие несуннитские исламские секты. Сунна буквально означает лицо, природу, образ жизни и т. Д. Во времена сподвижника пророка Мухаммеда новообращенные мусульмане с помощью разума принимали и отвергали некоторые вероучения. Так много первых мусульманских ученых начали писать книги о вероучении под названием «сунна».

В Коране

Слово «Сунна» встречается в Коране несколько раз, но нет конкретного упоминания сунны посланника или пророка ( суннат аль-расул , суннат ан-наби или сунна ан-набавийя ), то есть пути / практики Пророк Мухаммед. (Там будут несколько стихов призывают мусульман подчиняться Мухаммаде см . Ниже) Четыре стиха (8,38, 15,13, 18,55) используют выражение « суннат аль-awwalin », которая , как полагают, означает «путь или практики древних.» Это описывается как что-то «ушедшее из жизни» или мешающее неверующим принять Бога. « Суннат Аллах » («путь Бога») встречается восемь раз в пяти стихах. Кроме того, в стихе 17.77 говорится как о пути других, более ранних мусульманских посланников ( Ибрагим , Муса и т. Д.), Так и о «нашем пути», то есть пути Бога.

[Это] путь ( сунна ) тех, кого мы послали [в качестве посланников] до вас, и вы не найдете никаких изменений в Нашем пути ( суннатуна ).

Это указывает некоторым ученым (таким как Джавед Ахмад Гамиди), что сунна предшествует как Корану, так и Мухаммеду, и на самом деле является традицией пророков Бога, особенно традицией Авраама . Христиане , евреи и арабские потомки Измаила , арабизированные арабы или измаилиты , когда Мухаммад восстановил эту практику как неотъемлемую часть ислама.

История / этимология

Согласно историкам (особенно Дэниелу В. Брауну ), классическое исламское определение Сунны как обычаев и обычаев (только) Мухаммеда не было исходным.

Первый век ислама

«Древние школы»

До «золотого века классической исламской юриспруденции» преобладали «древние школы» права. Золотой век, начавшийся с создания ханафитской , малики , шафиитской , ханбалиской и др. Школ фикха во втором веке ислама, ограничивал сунну «традициями, восходящими к самому пророку Мухаммаду» ( сунна ан-набавийя ). Но древние «региональные» школы права, расположенные в нескольких крупных городах новой арабской империи ислама — Мекке , Куфе , Басре , Сирии и т. Д., — имели более гибкое определение сунны, чем обычно используется сейчас. Это были «приемлемые нормы» или «обычай», которые включали в себя примеры сподвижников Пророка , постановления халифов и практики, которые «получили всеобщее признание среди юристов этой школы».

Сунна без Мухаммеда

Примеры использования немухаммадских сунн в это время можно найти в (не мусульманских) традициях / комментариях к хадисам.

• о разнице в количестве ударов плетью, используемых для наказания за употребление алкоголя, халиф Али сообщил, что (Мухаммад и Абу Бакр заказали 40 ударов плетью, Умар 80) — «Все это сунна»;
• на смертном одре Умара наставления о том, где мусульманам следует искать руководства: из Корана, первые мусульмане ( мухаджируны ), которые эмигрировали в Медину с Мухаммадом, жители Медины, которые приветствовали и поддерживали мухаджирунов ( ансаров ), людей пустыня и защищенные общины евреев и христиан ( ахл аль-дхимма ); Хадисы Мухаммеда не упоминаются.

Сунна без хадисов

В истории раннего ислама аль-Табари термин «Сунна Пророка» используется не только «на удивление редко», но и для обозначения «политических клятв или лозунгов, используемых повстанцами», или «общего стандарта справедливости. и правильное поведение », а не« в соответствии с конкретными прецедентами, установленными Мухаммедом », не говоря уже о хадисах. Ранние богословские труды Хасана аль-Басри ( Рисала фил Кадар ) также « лишены ссылок на конкретные случаи» при упоминании Сунны Пророка. Дэниел Браун заявляет, что первые дошедшие до нас сочинения исламской правовой аргументации «практически не содержали хадисов», и утверждает, что другие примеры отсутствия связи между сунной и хадисами «можно найти в:

• Китаб аль-Ирджах из аль-Хасана б. Мухаммад б. аль-Ханафийя,
• первая буква Абдаллаха ибн Ибада к Абд аль-Малик ибн Марван ,
• и Рисала из Абу Ханифы на имя’Uthman аль-Batti «.

Согласно одному источнику (Ахмад Каземи Мусави и Карим Дуглас Кроу), ранние суннитские ученые часто считали сунну эквивалентом биографии Мухаммеда ( сира ). По мере того, как хадисы стали лучше документироваться, а ученые, подтвердившие их, приобрели престиж, сунна стала часто известна в основном через хадисы , особенно по мере распространения вариантов или вымышленных биографий Мухаммеда.

аш-Шафии

Абу Абдулла Мухаммад ибн Идрис аль-Шафии (150-204 AH), известный как аль-Шафии , выступал против гибкого сунны и использования прецедентов из нескольких источников, подчеркивая окончательный авторитет хадисов от Мухаммада , так что даже Коран должен был «толковаться в свете традиций (т.е. хадисов), а не наоборот». Хотя сунну часто называют «второй после Корана», хадисы также говорят, что «управляют и интерпретируют Коран». Аль-Шафини «убедительно доказывал», что сунна стоит «на равных с Кораном» (по словам ученого Дэниела Брауна), и то и другое является божественным откровением. Как сказал аш-Шафи’и, «повеление Пророка — это повеление Бога». (Несмотря на триумф этой теории, на практике школы фикха сопротивлялись тщательному применению хадисов, и фикх мало изменился со времен до аш-Шафии.)

Сунна Мухаммеда превосходила все другие, и «широкое согласие» привело к тому, что «хадис должен быть основанием для аутентификации любой сунны» (согласно М.О. Фаруку). Успех аш-Шафини был таков, что более поздние авторы «почти никогда не думали, что сунна включает что-либо, кроме сунны Пророка», и сунна часто считалась синонимом хадиса.

Систематизация хадисов

Хотя первые мусульманские юристы «не чувствовали себя обязанными» предоставлять документацию по хадисам при аргументировании своих аргументов, а Сунна не была записана и написана при жизни Пророка (по словам ученого Халеда Абу Эль Фадла ), все это изменилось с триумфом Аш-Шафи’и и «широкое соглашение» о том, что хадисы должны использоваться для подтверждения подлинности Сунны (согласно Мохаммаду Омару Фаруку), в течение второго века, когда юридические работы начали включать Пророческие хадисы.

Теперь хадисы систематически собирались и документировались, но с момента его появления прошло несколько поколений, что означало, что «многие из сообщений, приписываемых Пророку, являются недостоверными или, по крайней мере, имеют сомнительную историческую достоверность» (согласно Абу Эль Фадлу). «Фактически, одна из самых сложных дисциплин в исламской юриспруденции — это та, которая пытается различать аутентичные и недостоверные традиции».

Классический ислам

Исламские правоведы делят сунну на то, что не имеет юридических последствий — ас-сунна аль-хадия («личные привычки и предпочтения» Мухаммеда); и то, что связывает мусульман — ас-сунна аль-худа . В буквалист Захири школы не согласен с этим , проведение , что не было сунной, выполнение которых не вознаграждается или пренебрежение наказывали, в то время как классический ислам считает , что следующий не имеющий обязательной силы аль-Сунна аль-‘ādīyah является похвальным , но не обязательно.

Суфии считают «разделение на обязательную и необязательную» сунну «бессмысленной». Мухаммад — аль-инсан аль-камиль , совершенный человек, лабиб-Аллах, возлюбленный Богом, заступник, «канал божественного света». Подражание каждому его действию — «высшее выражение» благочестия. или, как сказал аль-Газали :

Знайте, что ключ к радости — это следование сунне и подражание Пророку во всех его приходах и уходах, словах и поступках, включая его манеру есть, вставать, спать и говорить. Я говорю это не только в отношении требований религии [ ʿibādāt ], потому что от них никуда не деться ; скорее, это включает в себя все области поведения [ шадат ].

Модернистский ислам

В 19 веке «социальные и политические потрясения», начавшиеся с упадком империи Моголов, заставили некоторых мусульман искать более гуманную фигуру Мухаммеда. Чудотворная пророческая фигура «больше, чем жизнь» была уменьшена в пользу «практической модели восстановления мусульманского сообщества», добродетельного, прогрессивного социального реформатора. Насеристский Египет, например, прославлял «имама социализма», а не космического «совершенного человека». Гулам Ахмед Первез (1903–1985) выступал против идеи сунны как божественного откровения и за идею о том, что миссия Мухаммеда заключалась просто в передаче Корана . Он процитировал коранический стих «У посланника нет обязанности, кроме как провозглашать [сообщение]» (Q.5: 99), и указал на несколько других стихов, в которых Бог исправляет то, что сделал или сказал Мухаммед (8:67), (9 : 43), (66: 1), тем самым демонстрируя отсутствие у Мухаммеда сверхъестественных знаний.

Эта эпоха быстрых социальных и технологических изменений, упадка мусульманского могущества и замены классического мазхаба на западные правовые кодексы в мусульманских странах также предполагала отказ от «детальных прецедентов в гражданских и политических делах», к чему призывали традиционные Хадис: «Ибо, если мирские дела требуют подробного пророческого руководства, то в каждую эпоху потребуется новый пророк, чтобы приспособиться к меняющимся обстоятельствам».

Исламское возрождение

С деколониализацией в конце 20 века возникло новое исламское возрождение . Активисты, а не теоретики, они стремились «восстановить господство ислама», и, в частности, восстановить шариат в соответствии с законом в странах ислама, которым он был до того, как был заменен «светскими, вдохновленными Западом законами» колониализма и современности. Подобно модернистам, возрожденцы «решительно отвергали» таклид и не особенно интересовались классическими школами права ( мазхабом ). Но сторонники возрождения, такие как Абул А’ла Маудуди и Мустафа ас-Сибаи, поддержка «авторитета Сунны и подлинности хадисов в целом» была «непоколебимой», как и их оппозиция «отрицанию хадисов». В то же время они согласились с тем, что восстановление соответствующего шариата потребует «некоторой переформулировки» закона, что потребует возврата к источникам, что потребует соглашения о том, как источники должны «толковаться и понять», и переоценки хадисов. Это включало в себя изучение содержания хадисов ( матн ) на предмет его духа и актуальности «в контексте шариата в целом» в соответствии с методом исследователей исламского права ( фукаха ) и отсеивание искаженных хадисов, несовместимых с «разумом, человеческой природой. и с историческими условиями ». Шибли Номани , Абул А’ла Маудуди , Рашид Рида и Мохаммед аль-Газали являются сторонниками этих усилий.

Альтернативы сунне, основанной на классических хадисах

Хотя «большинство авторов согласны», включая скептиков, что «сунна и хадис должны стоять или падать вместе», некоторые ( Фазлур Рахман Малик , Джавед Ахмад Гамиди ) попытались «создать основу для сунны, независимую от хадисов», работая над проблемой Подлинность хадисов, поднятая модернистами и западными критиками, возвращаясь к до-аш-Шафиитскому значению Сунны.

«Живая сунна»

В 1960-х годах Фазлур Рахман Малик , исламский модернист и бывший глава Пакистанского Центрального института исламских исследований, выдвинул другую идею о том, как (пророческую) сунну — нормативный пример Пророка — следует понимать: как «общую зонтичное понятие «но не одно», наполненное абсолютно конкретным содержанием », либо статичное на протяжении веков. Он утверждал, что Мухаммад пришел как «моральный реформатор», а не «всезаконный», и что особенности сунны будут согласованы с сообществом его последователей, которое будет развиваться с меняющимися временами как «живой и непрерывный процесс». «. Он принял критику западных и мусульманских ученых за то, что содержание многих хадисов и иснадов (цепочек передатчиков) было изменено мусульманами, пытающимися доказать, что Мухаммед сделал конкретное заявление, но это не сделало их мошенническими или подделками. потому что, если «устный хадис не восходит к Пророку, значит, его дух». Вместо этого эти сборники хадисов аль-Бухари и аль-Муслима были иджмой (консенсус или согласие мусульманских ученых — еще один классический источник исламского права). Поступая так, они следуют духу миссии Пророка и «возрождают» правовую методологию дошафиитских «древних школ». Но точно так же, как мусульмане второго и третьего веков могли переформулировать хадисы и законы на основе пророческого духа, точно так же могут и современные мусульмане — переопределив риба и заменив средневековые законы против банковских процентов мерами, которые помогают бедным без ущерба для экономической производительности.

Сунна из практики, а не хадис

Некоторые из самых основных и важных особенностей сунны — ритуалы поклонения, такие как салат (ритуальная молитва), закят (ритуальная десятина), хадж (паломничество в Мекку ), савм (пост от рассвета до заката во время Рамадана ) — известны мусульманину из передается «от многих ко многим» (по мнению ученых фикха, таких как Аш-Шафи’и), минуя книги хадисов (к которым чаще обращались для получения ответов на детали, не согласованные или редко применяемые) и вопросы подлинности.

Модернист Рашид Рида считал это «единственным бесспорным источником сунны». С. М. Юсуф утверждал, что «практика лучше всего передается через практику» и является более надежным способом установления Сунны, чем хадисы. Он также считал, что передача практики из поколения в поколение независимо от хадисов объясняет, почему ранние юридические школы не делали различия между сунной халифата и сунной пророка. Согласно Джаведу Ахмаду Гамиди , другому модернисту, эта передача в результате непрерывной практики мусульманского сообщества (что также указывает на консенсус, иджму ) была аналогична тому, как Коран был «принят уммой » (мусульманским сообществом) через консенсус. из сподвижников Пророка и через их вечные декламации. Следовательно, Гамиди рассматривает эту более ограниченную сунну непрерывной практики как истинную сунну — в равной степени аутентичную для Корана, но отбрасывающую ортодоксальную сунну и избегающую проблемной основы хадисов.

«Внутренние состояния»

Суфийские мыслители «подчеркивали личную духовность и благочестие, а не детали фикха». По мнению некоторых суфийских мусульман, которые включают в себя как внешнюю, так и внутреннюю реальность Мухаммеда, более глубокая и истинная сунна — это благородные характеристики и внутреннее состояние Мухаммеда — Хулукин Азим или «Возвышенный характер». Для них отношение Мухаммеда, его набожность, качество его характера составляют более истинный и глубокий аспект того, что означает сунна в исламе, а не только внешние аспекты. Они утверждают, что внешние обычаи Мухаммеда теряют свой смысл без внутреннего отношения, а также многие хадисы являются просто обычаем арабов, а не чем-то уникальным для Мухаммеда.

Основа важности

Коран содержит множество повелений следовать за Пророком. Среди цитируемых коранических стихов, демонстрирующих важность хадисов / сунны для мусульман:

Скажи: Повинуйся Аллаху и повинуйся Посланнику,

Это встречается в нескольких стихах: Коран  3:32 , Коран  5:92 , Коран  24:54 , Коран  64:12.

Ваш товарищ [Мухаммад] не сбился с пути и не ошибался, И не говорит, исходя из [своих] склонностей или желаний.

«Подобное (вы уже получили милость) в том, что Мы послали к вам вашего собственного Посланника, который репетирует вам Наши знамения, освящает вас и наставляет вас в Писании и Мудрости, а также в новых знаниях.

«У вас действительно есть в Посланнике Аллаха прекрасный образец (поведения) для любого, кто надеется на Аллаха и Последний день, и кто много занимается прославлением Аллаха».

Учения «мудрости» ( хикма ) были объявлены функцией Мухаммеда наряду с учениями священного писания. В нескольких стихах Корана «мудрость» ( хикмах ) упоминается в сочетании со «священным писанием» или «книгой» (то есть Кораном) — аль-китаб ва аль-Шикма . Основные ученые, начиная с аш-Шафии, полагают, что хикма относится к Сунне, и эта связь между Сунной и Кораном свидетельствует о божественности и авторитете Сунны.

• Коран  4: 113 — «Ибо Аллах ниспослал тебе Книгу и мудрость и научил тебя тому, чего ты не знал (прежде): И велика милость Аллаха тебе».
• Коран  2: 231 — «… но помните милость Аллаха к вам и то, что Он ниспослал вам из Писания и мудрости, которыми Он увещевает вас».
• Коран  33:34 — «И имейте в виду, что читается в ваших домах откровений Бога и мудрости».

Поэтому вместе с Кораном была открыта сунна . Современные суннитские ученые исследовали как сира, так и хадисы , чтобы оправдать изменения в юриспруденции ( фикх ). В сущности, подражание Мухаммеду помогает мусульманам познать Бога и быть любимыми им.

Еще одно свидетельство божественности Сунны — по мнению ее сторонников — это аяты Корана, которые относятся к откровениям, которых нет в Коране. Например, в Коране нет стиха, в котором упоминается изначальное направление молитвы ( кибла ), но Бог в Коране действительно говорит, что Он назначил первоначальную киблу ( Коран  2: 143 ). Другие упомянутые в Коране события, которые уже произошли без указания или описания Корана, включают сон, в котором Мухаммад войдет в Мекку ( Коран  2: 231 ); Брак Мухаммеда с бывшей женой Зайда ( Коран  33:37 ); и спор о разделе добычи после битвы при Бадре ( Коран  8: 7 ); все «неопровержимые доказательства того, что, помимо Корана, Пророку были переданы и другие повеления с помощью вауи», по словам возродителя Абул А’ла Маудуди .

Альтернативный вид

Аргумент меньшинства против того, что сунна пророка является божественным откровением ( ваḥы ), восходит к ахль аль-Каламу , против которого аш-Шафини выступал во втором веке ислама. Их современные « коранисты », современные преемники ахль аль-Калама , утверждают, что сунна не соответствует стандартам Корана в божественности. В частности, потому что

1. за исключением хадис кудси , сунна не открывалась и не передавалась дословно, как Коран; это часто передавалось, давая смысл или суть сказанного (известное как би’л-манна );
2. процесс откровения не был «внешним, полностью независимым от влияния посланника»; он обнажает «личность» или «умонастроение» ( baṣīrat ) Мухаммеда;
3. в отличие от Корана, он не был «сохранен в письменной форме» до более чем столетия после смерти Мухаммеда, что открывает вопрос о том, сколько искажений и / или ошибок было вошло в писания и почему, если это было божественно открыто, вечная истина, приказы не были дано первым мусульманам, чтобы они записали это так, как они были для Корана.

Предоставление примеров

По словам Джона Бертона, перефразируя аш-Шафии , «следует помнить, что текст Корана сформулирован в очень общих чертах, и функция сунны состоит в том, чтобы расширять и разъяснять, чтобы сделать значение Бога абсолютно ясным». В Коране есть ряд аятов, где «чтобы понять контекст, а также значение», мусульманам необходимо обратиться к летописи жизни и примеру Пророка.

Считается, что стихи 16:44 и 64 указывают на то, что миссия Мухаммеда «не просто миссия доставщика, который просто доставляет нам откровение от Аллаха, скорее, ему была поручена самая важная задача объяснения и иллюстрации» Корана. .

И Мы также ниспослали вам (о Мухаммад) напоминание и совет (Коран), чтобы вы могли ясно объяснить людям, что ниспослано им, и чтобы они могли задуматься.

И Мы не ниспослали вам Книгу (Коран) (о Мухаммад), за исключением того, что вы можете ясно объяснить им те вещи, в которых они расходятся, и (как) руководство и милость для верующих людей. [Коран 16:64]

Например, хотя Коран представляет общие принципы молитвы, поста, уплаты закята или совершения паломничества, они представлены «без иллюстраций, найденных в хадисах, поскольку эти акты поклонения остаются абстрактными императивами в Коране».

Виды сунны

Сунну, на которой основан фикх , можно разделить на:

• Сунна Кавлийа — изречения Мухаммеда, обычно синонимичные « хадису », поскольку изречения Мухаммеда записываются сподвижниками и называются «хадисами».
• Сунна Fiiliyyah — действия Мухаммеда, включая как религиозные, так и мирские действия.
• Сунна Такририя — одобрение исламского пророка в отношении действий сподвижников, которые произошли двумя разными способами:
  • Когда Мухаммед молчал о действии и не сопротивлялся ему.
  • Когда исламский пророк проявил свое удовольствие и улыбнулся действиям товарища.

Его также можно разделить на сунну, обязательную для мусульман, и не обязательную. Ибн Кутайба (213-276 г.х.) различал:

1. Сунна «принесена Гавриилом»;
2. сунна из «собственного рая Мухаммеда и обязательна, но подлежит пересмотру»;
3. «необязательная сунна», которой мусульмане не подвергаются «наказанию за несоблюдение».

В терминологии фикха (исламской юриспруденции) сунна означает то, что, хотя и не является обязательным, «твердо установлено ( тхабата ), как того требует ( матлуб )» в исламе »на основании юридических доказательств ( далил шар`и ).

Науки Сунны

По словам ученого Джибрила Фуада Хаддада, «науки Сунны» ( ульм ас-Сунна ) относятся к:

биография Пророка ( ас-сира ), хроника его сражений ( аль-магхази ), его повседневные высказывания и поступки или «пути» ( сунан ), его личные и моральные качества ( аш-шамаил ) и множество вспомогательных наук о хадисах, таких как обстоятельства возникновения ( асбаб аль-вурд ), знание отменяемого и отмененного хадиса, трудные слова ( гариб аль-хадис ), критика рассказчика ( аль-джарх ват-тадил ), рассказчик биографии ( аль-риджал ) и т. д., как это подробно обсуждается в авторитетных книгах аль-Хатиб аль-Багдади.

Сунна в шиитском исламе

Шиитский ислам не использует Кутуб ас-Ситтах (шесть основных сборников хадисов ), за которым следует суннитский ислам, поэтому сунна шиитского ислама и сунна суннитского ислама относятся к различным сборникам религиозной канонической литературы.

Основные сборники Сунны шиитского ислама были написаны тремя авторами, известными как «Три Мухаммада», а именно:

• Аль-Кафи от Мухаммад аль-Кулайни аль-Рази (329 AH ),
• Man la yahduruhu al-Faqih от Ибн Бабавайха и Тахдиба аль-Ахкама , и
• Аль-Истибсар — Шейх Туси .

В отличие от шиитов- ахбари- двунадесятников, шиитские ученые- усули- двунадесятники не верят, что все в четырех основных книгах сунны шиитского ислама является подлинным.

В шиитских хадисах часто встречаются проповеди, приписываемые Али в «Четырёх книгах» или в « Нахдж аль-Балага» .

Смотрите также

• Бида
• Категории хадисов

Ссылки

Ноты

Цитаты

дальнейшее чтение

• Браун, Дэниел В. (1996). Переосмысление традиций в современной исламской мысли . Издательство Кембриджского университета. ISBN 0521570778. Проверено 10 мая 2018 .
• Бертон, Джон (1990). Источники исламского права: исламские теории отмены (PDF) . Издательство Эдинбургского университета. ISBN 978-0-7486-0108-0. Проверено 21 июля 2018 года .
• Хамза, Ферас, «Сунна», в книге «Мухаммед в истории, мысли и культуре: энциклопедия пророка Бога» (2 тома), под редакцией К. Фитцпатрика и А. Уокера, Санта-Барбара, ABC-CLIO, 2014 г., Том II, стр. 610–619.
• Муса, Аиша Ю. (2008). Хадис как Священное Писание: Обсуждения авторитета пророческих традиций в исламе . Нью-Йорк: Пэлгрейв. ISBN 978-0230605350.

внешние ссылки

• Сунна как первозданность Шейха Абдал Хакима Мурада
• Значение «сунны» в Коране , коранические исследования
• Сунна и хадисы , Центр взаимодействия мусульман и евреев
• Законодательная власть Сунны

Термин сунна (по- арабски  : سنة ) означает «традиция», «путь» или «закон». В Коране термин сунна используется для обозначения «неизменного закона» Бога в выражении сунна (т) Аллах (по- арабски  : سُنَّة اللَّهِ ), что означает «правила Бога».

Сунна, согласно Корану , включает в себя правила или «законы» Бога, которые были бы предписаны всем пророкам, включая пророка ислама Мухаммеда . Для мусульман сунна имеет следующие характеристики:

• он принадлежит исключительно Богу;
• он не взаимозаменяем ни с каким другим законом;
• он не может быть передан третьему лицу или пророку;
• он уникален и неизменен для всех людей и всех существ.

Сунна, согласно хадисам , освещает учение пророка. В частности :

• его слова;
• его действия;
• его явные или подразумеваемые разрешения;
• его личные моральные качества (по мнению некоторых исследователей хадисов, таких как Бухари или Муслим );
• его неодобрение;
• его отказ от определенных действий.

Сунна, согласно хадисам , является законодательным источником суннитского и шиитского ислама, связанного с законодательными нормами Корана. Это более известно под выражением «пророческая сунна».

Этимология

Слово сунна в переводе с арабского означает «традиция», «закон» или «путь».

Принятие

В мусульманском богословии этот термин означает «пророческое предание». Он обозначает поведение пророка ислама при жизни. У шиитов эта сунна была передана Мухаммедом имаму Али и Фатиме Захре . Сунна у шиитов основана на рассказах семьи пророка ( Ахль аль-Байт ). Таким образом, шиитская сунна никогда не прерывалась с момента Пророка до 12- ^го  имама. Во времена имама Садека ( 6- ^го  имама), то есть до имама Абу Ханифы (699-767), в шиитском мире было 400 книг хадисов и теологии. В то время суннитских школ еще не было. Первая работа по составлению хадисов появилась апостериори.

Выбор хадисов — это кропотливый процесс. Все сподвижники пророка не считаются подлинными или непогрешимыми, их рассказы анализируются имамами, которые держат имамата (преемственность пророчества). Некоторые хадисы отвергаются теологами, потому что они считаются недостоверными.

Сунна по Корану

Термин сунна встречается в Коране несколько раз и, как говорят, принадлежит исключительно Богу. Однако следует отметить, что выражение «пророческая сунна» не упоминается в Коране буквально. Согласно последнему, в «сунне» не может быть двойственности, и она даже была наложена на пророка Мухаммеда .

• Коран (33:38): Пророку не следует обижаться на то, что Бог наложил на него в соответствии с сунной Аллаха, которая была предписана и тем, кто жил прежде. Божье повеление — это неизбежный указ.
  
• Коран (33:62): Это был закон, установленный Аллахом по отношению к тем, кто жил прежде, и вы не найдете никаких изменений в законе Аллаха.
• Коран (48:23): Это правило Аллаха применимо к прошлым поколениям. И вы никогда не найдете никаких изменений в правлении Аллаха.

В Коране Бог упоминает термин «суннан», который является множественным числом от слова «сунна». Использование этого слова автоматически переводится как предупреждение против тех, кто хочет принять более одной «сунны».

Сунна по хадисам

Науки о сунне связаны с биографами Мухаммеда, а также со сбором и объяснением хадисов . Они содержат :

• биография пророка ислама;
• высказывания, поступки, моральные и личные качества Магомета;
• хроники событий, в которых участвовал Мухаммед (битвы, ссылки, встречи и т. д.), а также их контекстуализация;
• источники хадисов (т. е. цепочка людей, сообщивших о традиции), а также мнения и биографии людей, сообщивших эти хадисы;
• знание отмененных и отменяющих хадисов;
• знание хадисов, затрудняющих понимание;
• знание необоснованных хадисов.

Науки о сунне — это науки энциклопедистов, которые требуют большой строгости как при сборе хадисов, так и при поиске достоверности, которая сопровождает это собрание.

Хадисы по-прежнему широко изучаются сегодня не только специалистами по исламскому праву, но и мусульманами, стремящимися извлечь уроки, особенно духовные, из жизни Мухаммеда .

Расширенное значение слова в суннизме

В некоторых контекстах термин сунна представляет собой чрезмерные религиозные практики , такие как молитва или пост вне пяти столпов . В других контекстах это может относиться к самому закону ислама.

Ориентир поведения мусульман

Тексты сунны образуют обширную ссылку, в которой мусульмане ищут примеры поведения или оправдания. По этой же причине улемы (ученые) должны иметь полное знание этого, так же как они должны знать Коран наизусть .

Примечания и ссылки

Приложения

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в  · м Ислам и мусульманская культура
Догма	Аллах Другие пророки Священные книги ислама Мохаммед Таухид
Пять столпов	Правовая милостыня Рамадан месяц пост Паломничество в Мекку Молиться Исповедание веры
История	Ахль аль-Байт Доисламская Аравия Исламская археология История аль-Андалуса История распространения ислама Истоки ислама Реформы Мухаммеда Шуубийя
Закон	Шариат Дабиха Дхимми Экономика в исламе Исламские финансы Закон о браке Mahr Военное право Мусульманское уголовное право Рабство в арабо-мусульманском мире Фетва Хадис Политический ислам Исламская судебная практика Временный брак Доисламские арабские свадьбы Отрицание в исламе Сукук Сунна
Святые места	аль-Акса аль-Харам Иерусалим Кааба Мекка Медина Мечеть Пророка черный камень
Цивилизация	Аббасиды и сельджуки Золотой век ислама Альморавиды и Альмохады Айюбиды и мамлюки Каира Халиф Халифат Разделение мира в исламе Османская империя Faqîh Фатимиды Имам исламизм Молла Исламские либеральные движения Омейяды Омейяды Кордовы Рашидун Исламский социализм Науки и техники в аль-Андалусе Структура власти мусульман
Религиозные тенденции	Ахаризм Алевизм Шиизм Друзы Ибадизм Хариджизм Мазхаб Салафизм суфизм Суннизм Ваххабизм Заидизм
Культура	Омовения Мусульманский календарь Зикр Халяль Харам Джахилийя Кибла Место женщины в исламе Исламские науки и техники
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