General
Who was al-Kulayni?
Very little is known about the author of what is arguably the most influential ḥadīth collection in the Shiʿa world, Muḥammad ibn Yaʿqūb al-Kulaynī. Unlike some of his contemporaries and compilers of other well-known works of ḥadīth, details about al-Kulaynī’s life are sketchy at best. He is said to have hailed from the village of … Continue reading
Did al-Kulayni get influenced by the Rationalists of Baghdad?
Andrew Newman suggests in his Formative Period of Twelver Shi’ism, that the author of al-Kāfī, Muḥammad ibn Ya‘qūb al-Kulaynī, was influenced by the rationalists of Baghdād due to his twenty-year residence there (p. 195). It is natural to assume that a person who spends such a long time in any place would be influenced by … Continue reading
Review of: Was Imam ʿAli (a) a Misogynist? by Amina Inloes
Was Imam ʿAlī (a) a Misogynist? This is the title that Amina Inloes gave to her article about the phrases that have been “falsely attributed” to Imam ʿAlī in Nahj al-Balāghah that apparently undermine women. Aside from the rather crude and sensationalist title, the article aims to show that the statements in the Nahj where … Continue reading
Tumattiʿahu or Tumakkinahu?
In an interesting article on Duʿāʾ al-Faraj , Sayyid Jaʿfar al-Ḥaydarī argues that the phrase: «و تمتّعه فيها طويلا» …in Duʿāʾ al-Faraj is most likely a copyist error (taṣḥīf) and is actually supposed to be: «و تمكّنه فيها طويلا» He bases his arguments on the following evidence: 1) Shaykh al-Ṭāʾifah has mentioned the second version … Continue reading
The difference between sanad and isnad
Some ḥadīth scholars have said that isnād is a synonym of sanad. But others have rejected this synonymy outright and insist that these two terms are different. Isnād, according to them, is the ascription of a ḥadīth to the one who said it and is thus a means of attaining information about the chain of … Continue reading
Understanding Ahadith
Bismillah It has been more than 1400 years since our beloved Prophet (S) passed away from this temporary world and because of this and numerous other factors, it is quite difficult to ascertain the authenticity of any hadith firstly, and then understand its context and purport secondly. Historically, scholars have applied various methods to establish … Continue reading
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Welcome to al-Hadith Journal. Since the posts in this blog have not been arranged in any specific order, it is recommended that you click on the category of your interest on the sidebar to read all the posts related to that particular category. To download our books, click on the top menu ‘Books‘. To download … Continue reading