4. The occurrence of ahadith containing the names of Sahabah who collected the Qur’an in the Prophetic Era

The Imami scholars have used ahadith from the sources of the Ahlus Sunnah as evidence for the prophetic compilation of the Qur’an, which contain the names of numerous Sahabah who collected the Qur’an. Among these ahadith are the following:

روى الإمام البخاري عن أنس قال مات النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم ولم يجمع القرآن غير أربعة أبو الدرداء ومعاذ بن جبل وزيد بن ثابت وأبو زيد

1. Al Imam al Bukhari reports from Anas radiya Llahu ‘anhu that he said, “The Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam passed away and none had memorised the Qur’an except four: Abu al Darda’, Muaz ibn Jabal, Zaid ibn Thabit, and Abu Zaid.”^[1]

روى الإمام البخاري أيضا عن أنس رضي الله عنه جمع القرآن على عهد رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم أربعة كلهم من الأنصار أبي ومعاذ بن جبل وأبو زيد وزيد بن ثابت

2. Al Imam al Bukhari also reports from Anas radiya Llahu ‘anhu, “Four people memorised the Qur’an during the time of the Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, all of whom were from the Ansar: Ubayy, Muaz ibn Jabal, Abu Zaid, and Zaid ibn Thabit.”^[2]

روى الإمام مسلم حدثنا عمرو بن عاصم حدثنا همام قال قلت لأنس بن مالك من جمع القرآن على عهد رسول الله صلى الله علي وسلم قال أربعة كلهم من الأنصار أبي بن كعب ومعاذ بن جبل وزيد بن ثابت ورجل من الأنصار يكنى أبا زيد

3. Al Imam Muslim reports that ‘Amr ibn ‘Asim narrated from Hammam, who said, “I asked Anas ibn Malik, ‘Who memorised the Qur’an during the time of the Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam?’ He said, ‘Four people, all of whom were from the Ansar: Ubayy ibn Ka’b, Muaz ibn Jabal, Zaid ibn Thabit, and a man from the Ansar known by the agnomen Abu Zaid.’”^[3]

روى الطبراني عن عامر الشعبي قال جمع القرآن على عهد رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم ستة من الأنصار زيد بن ثابت وأبو زيد ومعاذ بن جبل وأبو الدرداء وسعد بن عبادة وأبي بن كعب

4. Al Tabarani reports from ‘Amir al Sha’bi who said, “Six people from the Ansar memorised the Qur’an during the time of the Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam: Zaid ibn Thabit, Abu Zaid, Muaz ibn Jabal, Abu al Darda’, Sa’d ibn ‘Ubadah, and Ubayy ibn Ka’b.”^[4]

Jafar al Subhani, relies on the above mentioned ahadith to argue for the Prophetic compilation of the Qur’an. He says:

وتدل هذه الروايات على أن القرآن قد جمع على عهد رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم

These narrations indicate that the Qur’an was compiled during the time of the Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.^[5]

Discussion of Issue 4

This argument is incorrect, since what is meant by the term al jam’ (collection) mentioned in the above narrations is al hifz (memorisation). The ‘Ulama of the Imamiyyah acknowledge this, as can be seen from the following:

1. Muhammad Hadi Ma’rifah says:

وحديث ستة أو أربعة جمعوا القرآن على عهده صلى الله عليه وسلم فمعناه الحفظ على ظهر قلب حفظوا جميع الآيات النازلة لحد ذاك الوقت

As for the hadith that mentions four or six people collected the Qur’an during his salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam time, it means memorisation by heart. They memorised all the verses revealed at that time.^[6]

2. Agha Buzurk al Tahrani says:

وأما بعض الأخبار التي فيها نسبة جمع القرآن إلى بعض الأصحاب رجالا ونساء في عهد النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم وأن بعضهم أكمل ما عنده بعد رحلته صلى الله عليه وسلم فالظاهر الذي هو المراد من جمعهم القرآن هو جمع القرآن في خزانة الحفظ وإحضار جميعه في وعاء الصدر والقراءة فيه عن ظهر القلب لا جمعهم القرآن بالتدوين والكتابة وجعله في الحفظ عبر العلماء عن هؤلاء الجامعين المذكورين في تلك الأخبار بالحفاظ فترى العلامة السيوطي في الإتقان يقول النوع العشرون في معرفة حفاظ القرآن ورواته ثم ما أورد في ذيل هذا العنوان إلا تلك الأخبار المشار إليها وفيها تعداد جامعي القرآن من الرجال والنساء في عهد النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم وبعضهم أكمل ما عنده بعد رحلته صلى الله عليه وسلم فحمل جمعهم القرآن على الجمع في الحفظ وعبر عنهم بالحفاظ وهو إطلاق شائع ودائر في الأخبار فترى أن الشعبي يقول إن أبا بكر وعمر وعليا توفوا ولم يجمعوا القرآن مريدا عدم حفظهم له في صدورهم كما أن الشعبي في رواية أخرى يحلف بالله أنه دخل علي حفرته وما حفظ القرآن رواهما ابن قتيبة عن الشعبي كما في الصاحبي وبالجملة إرادة الحفظ من الجمع تظهر في جملة من الأخبار فمنها ما في كتاب بصائر الدرجات بإسناده إلى أبي جعفر الباقر عليه السلام في حديث آخره وما جمع القرآن وما حفظه كما أنزل الله تعالى إلا علي بن أبي طالب عليه السلام والأئمة من بعده عليهم السلام فالمراد بالجمع هنا الحفظ الذي جعله عطف تفسيره فإن الأئمة من بعده ما كانوا جامعي القرآن إلا بهذا المعنى لا الجمع التدويني والكتابة في محل واحد ومنها ما رواه الخوارزمي في مناقبه عن علي بن رباح أنه قال جمع القرآن على عهد رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم علي بن أبي طالب وأبي بن كعب فإن الأخبار المستفيضة من العامة والخاصة مصرحة بأن جمع أمير المؤمنين عليه السلام وتدوينه للقرآن إنما كان بعد رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم وعقيب وفاته وبعد الفراغ من تجهيزه فالمراد من جمعه في عهده هو جمعه في الحفظ الذي أنكره ابن قتيبة برواية الشعبي كما مر ومنها رواية ابن أشته في المصاحف فقد أخرجها السيوطي في الإتقان وحكم بصحتها عن محمد بن سيرين قال مات أبو بكر ولم يجمع القرآن وقتل عمر ولم يجمع القرآن فإن المراد حفظهما لجميع القرآن كما صرح به في أخبار أخر وحكاه ابن أشته أيضا عن بعض كما يأتي وأما الجمع والتدوين بين الدفتين كذلك فكان في عصر الشيخين باتفاق الأخبار الصحيحة المترادفة كما صرح به العلامة ابن حجر فيما مر آنفا ومنها رواية الطبراني بإسناده عن الشعبي قال جمع القرآن على عهد رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم ستة من الأنصار زيد بن ثابت وأبو زيد ومعاذ بن جبل وأبو الدرداء وسعد بن عبادة وأبي بن كعب وكان جارية بن مجمع بن جارية قد قرأه إلا سورة أو سورتين أخرج الرواية في أسد الغابة في ترجمة جارية بن مجمع وهي شارحة لمعنى الجامع في عهده وأنه القارئ لجميع سوره عن حفظ ولم يكن جارية كذلك فما عد منهم ومنها قول أنس بن مالك فإنه قال مات النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم ولم يجمع القرآن غير أربعة أبو الدرداء ومعاذ بن جبل وزيد بن ثابت وأبو زيد انتهي وهذا الحديث عن أنس رواه البخاري وجزم المحققون أن مراده الجمع في الحفظ في الصدور لا التدوين في الكتاب لصراحة كلمات أهل السير في عدم تحقق هذا الجمع التدويني في موضع واحد في عهده صلى الله عليه وسلم

As for some of the reports that attribute the collection of the Qur’an to some of the Sahabah, men and women, during the era of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam and that some of them completed what they had after his salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam passing, then the apparent meaning of their “collection” of the Qur’an is the collection of the Qur’an in the treasury of their mental recall, preserving it in their hearts and reading it from memory, not their collection of the Qur’an by writing and recording it and then memorising it thereafter. The scholars have referred to the “collectors” mentioned in these narrations as “huffaz”.

One can see that the scholar al Suyuti has a section in his book al Itqan that deals with “the twentieth type: knowing the huffaz of the Qur’an and its narrators.” Under this title, he mentions these exact reports which have been referred to and it contains a list of the collectors of the Qur’an from the men and women during the era of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam and some of them completed what they had after his salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam passing. He interprets their “collection” of the Qur’an as their collection of it by memorisation and he refers to them as “huffaz”, which is a common and widespread term in the reports.

One can also see that al Sha’bi says, “Abu Bakr, ‘Umar, and ‘Ali died without collecting the Qur’an,” meaning that none of them had memorised it. Al Sha’bi also said in another narration, “And he swears by Allah that ‘Ali entered his grave without memorising the Qur’an.” Both of these reports were narrated by Ibn Qutaybah on the authority of al Sha’bi, as recorded in the book al Sahibay.^[7]

In brief, the meaning of the term “al hifz” in connection to “collection” becomes clear when the reports are examined in their totality. Among them is what is reported through a chain of narrators from Abu Jafar al Baqir ‘alayh al Salam in the book Basa’ir al Darajat in his last hadith, “And none collected the Qur’an nor memorised it as it was revealed by Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala except for ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib ‘alayh al Salam and the Imams who followed him ‘alayhim al Salam.”

What is meant by “collection” here is memorisation, as can be interpreted from the explanation (of this statement), for the Imams after him did not collect the Qur’an except in this sense, not the written collection and writing it in a single place. Also, among these reports is what al Khawarizmi reports in his book al Manaqib on the authority of ‘Ali ibn Rabah that he said, “During the time of the Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib and Ubayy ibn Ka’b collected the Qur’an.” The widespread reports, known far and wide, clearly indicate that the collection and writing down of the Qur’an by the Commander of the Faithful ‘alayh al Salam took place only after the passing of the Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam and only after thorough preparation. What is meant by its “collection” during his tenure is its collection in memory, which Ibn Qutaybah denied based on the narration of al Sha’bi as mentioned above.

Also included among them is Ibn Ashtah’s narration in al Masahif which al Suyuti included in al Itqan and ruled that it was authentic on the authority of Muhammad ibn Sirin. He said, “Abu Bakr died without having collected the Qur’an and ‘Umar was murdered without having collected the Qur’an.” The meaning here is that the two of them had not memorised the entirety of the Qur’an, as clearly emphasised in other narrations. Ibn Ashtah also relates the following, “As for the collection and recording between the two covers, it occurred during the era of al Sheikhayn^[8], according to their agreement on the authentic and corroborated reports.”

And the scholar Ibn Hajar concurs with what is stated above. Among them: Al Tabarani’s narration with his chain of transmission on the authority of al Sha’bi, who said, “The Qur’an was compiled [memorised] during the time of the Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam by six of the Ansar: Zaid ibn Thabit, Abu Zaid, Muaz ibn Jabal, Abu al Darda’, Sa’d ibn ‘Ubadah, and Ubayy ibn Ka’b. And Jariyah ibn Mujamma’ ibn Jariyah would recite except one or two chapters of it.”

The narration was included in Usd al Ghabah in the biography of Jariyah ibn Mujamma’ and it explains what was meant by al jami’ (collector) during that time, which is someone who could recite the entirety of the Qur’an from memory. Jariyah was not like that, so he was not counted among them. Also among them is the statement of Anas ibn Malik, who said, “The Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam died and no one had collected the Qur’an except four: Abu al Darda’, Muaz ibn Jabal, Zaid ibn Thabit, and Abu Zaid.” This hadith from Anas was reported by al Bukhari, and the authoritative scholars established that what he meant by “collection” was memorisation in the hearts, not writing it down in a book, since the experts in the Sirah clearly emphasise that written collection in a single place did not occur during his salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam time.^[9]

3. Sheikh Muhammad ‘Awdah rahimahu Llah, who was guided away from Shi’ism, confirmed that what is meant by the word “collection” is memorisation by heart. He provided evidence for this from the Sunnah of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam and the sayings of the predecessors, saying:

اعلم أن استعمال كلمة جمع القرآن هي بالأساس عندهم لمن حفظه عن ظهر قلب ثبت ذلك عن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم وعن السلف

Know that the predominant word used among them to describe someone who had memorised the Qur’an by heart was collector. This word is established from the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam and the Salaf.

A. Reports from the Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam:

1. Al Bukhari reports in his al Sahih and Abu Dawood reports in his al Sunan—and the wording is his—from the hadith of ‘Amr ibn Salamah from his father radiya Llahu ‘anhu:

أنهم وفدوا إلى النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم فلما أرادوا أن ينصرفوا قالوا يا رسول الله من يؤمنا قال أكثركم جمعا للقرآن أو أخذا للقرآن قال فلم يكن أحد من القوم جمع ما جمعته قال فقدموني وأنا غلام وعلي شملة لي فما شهدت مجمعا من جرم إلا كنت إمامهم وكنت أصلي على جنائزهم إلى يومي هذا

They came to the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam as delegates. When they wanted to leave, they enquired, “O Messenger of Allah, who will lead us in prayer?”

He said, “The one among you who has memorised the Qur’an the most or has learned the Qur’an the most.”

He continued, “No one among the people had memorised what I had. They brought me forward while I was a young boy and I was wearing a cloak. I never attended a gathering of Jarm^[10] except that I was their imam; and I have been praying over their funerals to this day.”^[11]

2. Al Imam al Tirmidhi narrates in his al Sunan from the hadith of Abu Hurairah radiya Llahu ‘anhu:

حدثني رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم أن الله تبارك وتعالى إذا كان يوم القيامة ينزل إلى العباد ليقضي بينهم وكل أمة جاثية فأول من يدعو به رجل جمع القرآن ورجل يقتل في سبيل الله ورجل كثير المال فيقول الله للقارئ ألم أعلمك ما أنزلت على رسلي قال بلى يا رب فماذا عملت فيما علمت قال كنت أقوم به أناء الليل وأناء النهار فيقول الله تعالى له كذبت وتقول الملائكة كذبت ويقول الله تعالى بل أردت أن يقال أن فلانا قارئ فقد قيل ذاك

The Messenger of Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam told me, “When the Day of Resurrection comes, Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala will judge between His servants, while every nation is kneeling. The first to be called upon will be a man who has memorised the Qur’an, a man who was killed in the way of Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala, and a man with great wealth. Allah will say to the reciter, ‘Did I not teach you what I revealed to My messengers?’

He will say, ‘Yes, O Lord.’

Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala will then ask, ‘But what did you do with what you learned?’

He will say, ‘I used to stand in prayer during the night and during the day.’

Allah will say to him, ‘You have lied.’

The angels will say, ‘You have lied.’

Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala will say, ‘Rather, you wanted it to be said that so-and-so is a reciter; and it was said.’”^[12]

3. Al Imam Ibn Majah reports in his al Sunan and al Imam Ahmed in his al Musnad, while the original hadith is to be found in al Sahihayn, on the authority of ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Amr ibn al ‘As radiya Llahu ‘anhuma who said:

جمعت القرآن فقرأته كله في ليلة فقال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم إني أخشى أن يطول عليك الزمان وأن تمل فاقرأه في شهر فقلت دعني استمتع من قوتي وشبابي قال فاقرأه في عشرة قلت دعني استمتع من قوتي وشبابي قال فاقرأه في سبع قلت دعني استمتع من قوتي وشبابي فأبى

I memorised the Qur’an and recited it all in one night. The Messenger of Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam said, “I fear that time will take a toll on you and you will become weak, so recite it in a month.”

I said, “Let me enjoy my strength and youth.”

He said, “Then recite it in ten (days).”

I said, “Let me enjoy my strength and youth.”

He said, “Then recite it in seven (days).”

I said, “Let me enjoy my strength and youth.” But he refused.^[13]

4. Al Imam Ibn Abi Shaybah reports in his al Musannaf:

حدثنا عبيد الله بن موسى عن أسامة عن الزهري عن أنس أن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم قال في حادثة دفن شهداء بدر رضي الله تعالى عنهم انظر أكثر جمعا للقرآن فقدموه في اللحد

‘Ubaidullah ibn Musa told us, on the authority of Usamah, on the authority of al Zuhri, on the authority of Anas, that the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam said at the incident of burying the martyrs of Badr radiya Llahu ‘anhum, “Find those who had memorised the most Qur’an and place them in the grave first.”^[14]

B. Reports by the Salaf:

1. Al Imam al Bukhari reports in al Tarikh al Kabir:

قال لي إبراهيم بن موسى عن عيسى بن يونس عن الفضيل أبي محمد قال سمعت الحسن يقول أنا يوم الدار ابن أربع عشرة سنة جمعت القرآن أنظر إلى طلحة بن عبيد الله

Ibrahim ibn Musa told me on the authority of ‘Isa ibn Yunus on the authority of al Fudayl Abu Muhammad who said, “I heard al Hassan^[15] say, ‘I was fourteen years old on the Day of the House. I memorised the Qur’an. I was looking at Talhah ibn ‘Ubaidullah.’”^[16]

2. Al Hafiz ‘Abdur Razzaq reports in his Musannaf on the authority of Abu Ishaq, who said:

دخلت عليه يعني على عبد الرحمن بن يزيد فقال لي أجمعت القرآن قال قلت نعم والحمد لله قال أفحججت قال قلت نعم قال أفتزوجت قال قلت لا قال فما يمنعك وقد قال عبد الله بن مسعود لو لم يبق من الدنيا الا يوم واحد أحببت أن يكون لي فيه زوجة

I went to him, i.e. ‘Abdur Rahman ibn Yazid. He asked me, “Have you memorised the Qur’an?”

I said, “Yes. Praise be to Allah.”

He asked, “Have you performed Hajj?”

I said, “Yes.”

He asked, “Have you married?”

I said, “No.”

He said, “What prevents you whereas ‘Abdullah ibn Mas’ud said, ‘If there were only one day left in this world, I would love to have a wife in it?”^[17]

3. Abu Dawood said in Kitab al Masahif:

يقال للذي يحفظ القرآن قد جمع القرآن

It is said of the one who has memorised the Qur’an that he collected the Qur’an.^[18]

4. Al Imam Ibn Khuzaimah listed a chapter in his al Sahih titled:

باب استحباب تأمير المسافرين أحدهم على أنفسهم والبيان أن أحقهم بذلك أكثرهم جمعا للقرآن

Chapter on the desirability for travellers to appoint one from among them as their leader and the clarification that the worthiest of leadership among them is the one who has memorised the most Qur’an.^[19]

5. Al Hafiz al Tabarani reports in al Mujam al Kabir on the authority of ‘Amir al Sha’bi, who said:

جمع القرآن على عهد رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم ستة من الأنصار زيد بن ثابت وأبو زيد ومعاذ بن جبل وأبو الدرداء وسعد بن عبادة وأبي بن كعب

Six from the Ansar collected (memorised) the Qur’an during the time of the Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam: Zaid ibn Thabit, Abu Zaid, Muaz ibn Jabal, Abu al Darda’, Sa’d ibn ‘Ubadah, and Ubayy ibn Ka’b.^[20]

6. In the hadith of Zakariyya:

وكان جارية بن مجمع بن جارية قد قرأه إلا سورة أو سورتين

Jariyah ibn Mujamma’ ibn Jariyah had memorised except one or two chapters of it.

Al Hafiz Ibn Hajar says in Fath al Bari (9/53) that this addition is authentic in spite of the fact that it is mursal^[21].

7. Al Imam al Bukhari reports in his al Sahih and al Hafiz Ibn Abi Shaybah in his Musannaf—and the wording is his—the hadith of Ibn ‘Abbas:

حدثنا هشيم عن أبي بشر عن سعيد بن جبير عن ابن عباس قال جمعت المحكم على عهد رسول الله صلى الله تعالى عليه وآله وصحبه وسلم يعني المفصل

Hushaym narrated to us on the authority of Abu Bishr, from Sa’id ibn Jubayr, from Ibn ‘Abbas, who said, “I collected (i.e. memorised) the Muhkam (of the Qur’an) i.e. the Mufassal^[22] in the time of the Messenger of Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.”^[23]

I say: by the aforementioned, one can see the blind ignorance of al Khu’i’s statement (i.e. about the word al jam’ being used interchangeably with al hifz):

هذا القول دعوى لا شاهد عليها

This statement is a baseless claim.

And this is the pinnacle of his lies and fabrications.^[24]

After this discussion and refutation of the four problematic issues, I finally bring the fourth chapter to a close with the help of Allah’s subhanahu wa ta ‘ala divine guidance; and all praise belongs to Allah.

NEXT⇒ Conclusion

^[1] Al Bukhari: Sahih al Bukhari, 6/103.

^[2] Ibid., 4/229.

^[3] Muslim: Sahih Muslim, 7/149-150.

^[4] Al Tabarani: Al Mujam al Kabir, 2/261.

^[5] Al Subhani: Rasa’il wa Maqalat, 8/316.

^[6] Ma’rifah: Al Tamhid fi ‘Ulum al Qur’an, pg. 290.

^[7] Ibn Faris, in his book al Sahibay, comments on what Ibn Qutaybah said:

وابن قتيبة يطلق إطلاقات منكرة ويروي أشياء شنيعة كالذي رواه عن الشعبي أن أبا بكر وعمر وعليا توفوا ولم يجمعوا القرآن وأن عليا دخل حفرته وما حفظ القرآن وهذا كلام شنيع جدا

Ibn Qutaybah makes strange statements and narrates heinous things, such as what he narrated on the authority of al Sha’bi that Abu Bakr, ‘Umar, and ‘Ali all died without collecting the Qur’an and that ‘Ali entered his grave without memorising the Qur’an. This is very heinous talk. (Ibn Faris: Al Sahibay fi Fiqh al Lughah al ‘Arabiyyah wa Masa’iliha wa Sunan al ‘Arab fi Kalamiha, 151, Ahmed Hassan Basaj commentary, Manshurat Muhammad ‘Ali Baydun, Dar al Kutub al ‘Ilmiyyah, Beirut, first edition, 1998.)

^[8] Literally ‘the two Sheikhs’: an honourary term for Abu Bakr and ‘Umar radiya Llahu ‘anhuma.

^[9] Al Tahrani: Al Naqd al Latif fi Nafy al Tahrif ‘an al Qur’an al Sharif, pg. 918-920.

^[10] The name of an Arab tribe.

^[11] Sahih al Bukhari, Hadith: 4302; Sunan Abi Dawood, Hadith: 587.

^[12] Sunan al Tirmidhi, Hadith: 2382.

^[13] Sunan Ibn Majah, Hadith: 1346; Musnad Ahmed, Hadith: 6516.

^[14] Musannaf Ibn Abi Shaybah, Hadith: 11777.

^[15] Al Hassan al Basri.

^[16] Al Tarikh al Kabir, Hadith: 2503.

^[17] Musannaf ‘Abdur Razzaq, Hadith: 10382.

^[18] Kitab al Masahif, after report 31.

^[19] Sahih Ibn Khuzaimah, 4/486.

^[20] Al Mujam al Kabir, Hadith: 2092.

^[21] A mursal report is a report that is narrated by a Tabi’i, but attributed directly to the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. In other words, it drops the Sahabi between the Tabi’i and the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam from the chain of narrators.

^[22] The Mufassal refers to the short chapters of the Qur’an.

^[23] Sahih al Bukhari, Hadith: 3125; Musannaf Ibn Abi Shaybah, 5/24/26.

^[24] Muhammad ‘Awdah: Al Furqan bayn Mawqif Ahlus Sunnah wa al Rafidah min al Qur’an, pg. 101-104.

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