Conclusion of Chapter Three

Section Five Continued
September 17, 2026
A Debt Owed – UPDATED 18/09/2026!!!
September 18, 2026
Section Five Continued
September 17, 2026
A Debt Owed – UPDATED 18/09/2026!!!
September 18, 2026

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Conclusion of Chapter Three

 

What motivated the Sahabah radiya Llahu ‘anhum to be keen towards the Prophetic Sunnah and to preserve it—in addition to Allah’s subhanahu wa ta ‘ala command to obey His Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam—was their love, respect, and veneration for His Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. Their love for him manifested itself in many ways, such as:

  • Their willingness to sacrifice their own parents for him.
  • The eagerness of those returning from a journey to begin by seeing him before going to their own families.
  • Their veneration of anything his blessed hand touched.
  • Their reverence for his relics, preservation of them, and seeking blessings from them.
  • Their inability to bear being far from him.
  • Their reprimanding their children if they were late in seeing him.
  • Their adherence to the practices upon which the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam left them.
  • Their avoidance of disturbing him by raising their voices, staring at him, or raising their heads.
  • Their preference of his relatives over their own.
  • Their refusal to climb on top of a house wherein he was present.
  • Their wish to be cut into pieces rather than the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam suffering the slightest harm.
  • Their willingness to kill their relatives if they were enemies of Allah and his Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.
  • Their longing for him upon arrival (from a journey) and at the time of his death.
  • Their abstention from performing any action before he performed it.
  • Their weeping when remembering him.
  • Their love for what he loved and their hatred for what he hated.
  • Their recounting of what happened to them on the day of his demise.
  • Their obedience to him in all matters, etc.

Among the manifestations of their love, reverence, and veneration for the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam was their eagerness to adhere to his Sunnah, preserve it, practice upon it, and disseminate it. This was evident in in the following ways:

  • Some of them would be attached to him to hear and memorise Hadith directly from him. Those who missed hearing it from him (directly) would hear it from someone who heard it from him.
  • Those who were busy would take turns to attend his gatherings.
  • They would send others to the homes of the Ummahat al Mu’minin to learn about the Prophet’s salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam conduct and mannerisms.
  • They would verify what they did not know, to the point that they would return to him and review with him regarding what he said.
  • If any of them encountered a problem, they would return to him—and if they were far away, they would travel to him—to learn the correct ruling.
  • If they heard something from someone else that contradicted what they heard from him, they would condemn that person.
  • If they heard something from someone else which their minds could not comprehend, they would take the one who narrated it to him to verify it.
  • They would present what they heard to him to ensure the accuracy of the wording.
  • Some of them would assign someone to ask questions when needed.
  • Children would be brought to his gatherings.
  • They would discuss Hadith when they met.
  • Worldly concerns did not prevent them from seeking knowledge.
  • Modesty did not prevent the women from asking the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam questions, in addition to their eagerness to learn and disseminate it.
  • They were keen for the Bedouins to come and ask questions.
  • They preserved the Sunnah during the lifetime of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, whether through practical application, memorisation by heart, or writing.
  • Answer to what was reported regarding the prohibition against writing from the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam… etc.

Among the manifestations of their preservation of the Sunnah were:

  • Their emulation of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.
  • Their condemnation of those who contradicted it.
  • Their refusal to remain silent when propagating it.
  • Their argument through the Qur’an to establish its authority and the obligation to apply it.
  • Explanation of their situation, and how Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala guided them through His Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.
  • Their discussion regarding it in their gatherings.
  • Asking one another when they were unaware of it.
  • Encouragement towards respect, veneration, and reverence for it.
  • Severe condemnation of those who were not content with it, who mocked it, or who said something contrary to what they had heard.
  • Reviewing with one another when doubts arose, such as a narrator reviewing what he had narrated to reflect on it, or repeating the question to the narrator after a period of time until the questioner was certain, or sending the questioner to another Sahabi to verify the first one’s accuracy.
  • Writing to another Sahabi to confirm the authenticity of what he had heard, taking the narrator to the one from whom he had heard it to verify the accuracy of the report, mentioning to them who was present, referring to those who were present when they heard it from the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, referring them to someone they considered more knowledgeable or precise in Hadith to confirm its authenticity, the narrator himself taking an oath if he sensed doubt from the listener, the narrator mentioning something that confirms his memorisation, accuracy, and mastery, or the listener requesting the one who narrated it to him from the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam to take an oath.
  • To scrutinise the Sahabi’s hearing of the hadith from the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, or for them to reject a hadith that contradicts what they possess of which they are certain.
  • When one is rejected for something that he heard from someone else, he returned to the one who narrated it to him to confirm its authenticity.
  • Their confirmation of each other’s narrations.
  • Some of them asking for witnesses to what someone narrated.
  • Presenting to those were present what the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam would do.
  • Not adding to what the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam said.
  • Preserving the practice on which the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam left them.
  • Travelling to remote areas to hear a hadith or to verify its accuracy.
  • Reviving the practices that had been forgotten, which were performed during the time of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.
  • Declaring as mistaken those who said something contrary to what they knew from the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, while ruling those who contradicted the Prophetic Sunnah as being disobedient to the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.
  • Informing others of what they had acquired close to death for fear of concealing knowledge.
  • Preserving the Prophet’s salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam teachings.

Among the manifestations of their eagerness and preservation of the Prophetic Sunnah was their acquisition of it. This was achieved either:

  • During his lifetime, by hearing it directly from the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam—with mention of the examples of the wordings they used when acquiring the Sunnah—or from a Sahabi who had heard it from the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, whether in his gathering or outside of it. This is in addition to their extreme caution when acquiring from others, whether it was the Qur’an or the Prophetic Sunnah.
  • Or after his demise, by referring back to what they had heard or seen from the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, or by referring to other Sahabah—together with their narrations from one another if they trusted them—with even greater caution after his demise.

Among the manifestations of their caution after the demise of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam were:

  • Their refusal to accept narrations from those whose memory was questionable or who had forgotten.
  • Asking the narrator to take an oath that he heard the hadith directly from the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.
  • The listeners’ verification of the narrator’s statement.
  • Their criticism of narrators and their refutation of liars.
  • Sending someone to others to enquire about the hadith’s authenticity.
  • Repeating the question to the narrator after a period of time to ascertain his accuracy.
  • Disapproval of those who narrated excessively.
  • Writing to another Sahabi to verify the narrator’s accuracy.
  • Sending written material to those they suspected might not know the contents, so that they might act upon it.
  • Demanding evidence and witnesses for the authenticity of what was attributed to the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.
  • Undertaking journeys to verify the wording of ahadith.
  • Accepting solitary narrations if they were satisfied with its reliability.
  • The importance of the Sahabah’s radiya Llahu ‘anhum reliability.
  • The emergence of the seed of the chain of transmission in Hadith.
  • The emergence of a Sahabi’s mursal narration, along with clarifying whether their transmission of the Sunnah was verbatim or by meaning.
  • The Sunnah was not encompassed by any of them individually but was present with all of them collectively, along with explaining the categories of the Sunnah in terms of authenticity and in terms of frequent and infrequent narrators, as well as the reason for the infrequent transmissions, the methodology of those who transmitted infrequently and what motivated them to do so, and the methodology of those who transmitted frequently and what prompted them to do so, with mentioning the strength of Abu Hurairah’s radiya Llahu ‘anhu memory as an example.

Among the manifestations of their keenness and preservation of the Prophetic Sunnah are:

  • Their methodology in transmission, such as asking one another about matters of the Prophet’s salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam Sunnah that they did not know.
  • Visiting one another for the purpose of discussing and reviewing Hadith.
  • Holding gatherings and study circles in the Masajid.
  • The large number of students.
  • Sermons delivered from the pulpit by scholars or Khalifas.
  • Writing to one another.
  • Some recording what they heard from the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.
  • Some dictating to their students, along with examples of what they wrote after the Prophet’s salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam demise, as well as the demonstration of the eagerness of some in preserving the wording of the Hadith, not permitting any alteration, whilst others were content with conveying the meaning. Furthermore, the explanation of the conditions for narrating Hadith by meaning and describing their approach when narrating Hadith.
  • Demonstration of their caution in transmitting Hadith. This is done by examining the Qur’an, then the Prophetic Sunnah, then asking people, then striving to narrate the Hadith verbatim, then narrating sparingly for fear of fabricating something.
  • Accuracy of Hadith memorisation. If anyone had doubts about his memorisation, he would not narrate.
  • Sufficing with the narration of others.
  • Refraining from narrating what people’s minds cannot comprehend.
  • Narrating occasionally for fear of boring the listeners, and not prolonging the lessons.
  • Remembering the punishment for lying upon the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam before narrating.
  • Finally, mentioning the factors that contributed to the spread of the Prophetic Sunnah during the era of the Sahabah radiya Llahu ‘anhum.

BACK⇒ Return to Table of contents

 

Conclusion of Chapter Three

 

What motivated the Sahabah radiya Llahu ‘anhum to be keen towards the Prophetic Sunnah and to preserve it—in addition to Allah’s subhanahu wa ta ‘ala command to obey His Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam—was their love, respect, and veneration for His Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. Their love for him manifested itself in many ways, such as:

  • Their willingness to sacrifice their own parents for him.
  • The eagerness of those returning from a journey to begin by seeing him before going to their own families.
  • Their veneration of anything his blessed hand touched.
  • Their reverence for his relics, preservation of them, and seeking blessings from them.
  • Their inability to bear being far from him.
  • Their reprimanding their children if they were late in seeing him.
  • Their adherence to the practices upon which the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam left them.
  • Their avoidance of disturbing him by raising their voices, staring at him, or raising their heads.
  • Their preference of his relatives over their own.
  • Their refusal to climb on top of a house wherein he was present.
  • Their wish to be cut into pieces rather than the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam suffering the slightest harm.
  • Their willingness to kill their relatives if they were enemies of Allah and his Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.
  • Their longing for him upon arrival (from a journey) and at the time of his death.
  • Their abstention from performing any action before he performed it.
  • Their weeping when remembering him.
  • Their love for what he loved and their hatred for what he hated.
  • Their recounting of what happened to them on the day of his demise.
  • Their obedience to him in all matters, etc.

Among the manifestations of their love, reverence, and veneration for the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam was their eagerness to adhere to his Sunnah, preserve it, practice upon it, and disseminate it. This was evident in in the following ways:

  • Some of them would be attached to him to hear and memorise Hadith directly from him. Those who missed hearing it from him (directly) would hear it from someone who heard it from him.
  • Those who were busy would take turns to attend his gatherings.
  • They would send others to the homes of the Ummahat al Mu’minin to learn about the Prophet’s salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam conduct and mannerisms.
  • They would verify what they did not know, to the point that they would return to him and review with him regarding what he said.
  • If any of them encountered a problem, they would return to him—and if they were far away, they would travel to him—to learn the correct ruling.
  • If they heard something from someone else that contradicted what they heard from him, they would condemn that person.
  • If they heard something from someone else which their minds could not comprehend, they would take the one who narrated it to him to verify it.
  • They would present what they heard to him to ensure the accuracy of the wording.
  • Some of them would assign someone to ask questions when needed.
  • Children would be brought to his gatherings.
  • They would discuss Hadith when they met.
  • Worldly concerns did not prevent them from seeking knowledge.
  • Modesty did not prevent the women from asking the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam questions, in addition to their eagerness to learn and disseminate it.
  • They were keen for the Bedouins to come and ask questions.
  • They preserved the Sunnah during the lifetime of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, whether through practical application, memorisation by heart, or writing.
  • Answer to what was reported regarding the prohibition against writing from the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam… etc.

Among the manifestations of their preservation of the Sunnah were:

  • Their emulation of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.
  • Their condemnation of those who contradicted it.
  • Their refusal to remain silent when propagating it.
  • Their argument through the Qur’an to establish its authority and the obligation to apply it.
  • Explanation of their situation, and how Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala guided them through His Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.
  • Their discussion regarding it in their gatherings.
  • Asking one another when they were unaware of it.
  • Encouragement towards respect, veneration, and reverence for it.
  • Severe condemnation of those who were not content with it, who mocked it, or who said something contrary to what they had heard.
  • Reviewing with one another when doubts arose, such as a narrator reviewing what he had narrated to reflect on it, or repeating the question to the narrator after a period of time until the questioner was certain, or sending the questioner to another Sahabi to verify the first one’s accuracy.
  • Writing to another Sahabi to confirm the authenticity of what he had heard, taking the narrator to the one from whom he had heard it to verify the accuracy of the report, mentioning to them who was present, referring to those who were present when they heard it from the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, referring them to someone they considered more knowledgeable or precise in Hadith to confirm its authenticity, the narrator himself taking an oath if he sensed doubt from the listener, the narrator mentioning something that confirms his memorisation, accuracy, and mastery, or the listener requesting the one who narrated it to him from the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam to take an oath.
  • To scrutinise the Sahabi’s hearing of the hadith from the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, or for them to reject a hadith that contradicts what they possess of which they are certain.
  • When one is rejected for something that he heard from someone else, he returned to the one who narrated it to him to confirm its authenticity.
  • Their confirmation of each other’s narrations.
  • Some of them asking for witnesses to what someone narrated.
  • Presenting to those were present what the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam would do.
  • Not adding to what the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam said.
  • Preserving the practice on which the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam left them.
  • Travelling to remote areas to hear a hadith or to verify its accuracy.
  • Reviving the practices that had been forgotten, which were performed during the time of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.
  • Declaring as mistaken those who said something contrary to what they knew from the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, while ruling those who contradicted the Prophetic Sunnah as being disobedient to the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.
  • Informing others of what they had acquired close to death for fear of concealing knowledge.
  • Preserving the Prophet’s salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam teachings.

Among the manifestations of their eagerness and preservation of the Prophetic Sunnah was their acquisition of it. This was achieved either:

  • During his lifetime, by hearing it directly from the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam—with mention of the examples of the wordings they used when acquiring the Sunnah—or from a Sahabi who had heard it from the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, whether in his gathering or outside of it. This is in addition to their extreme caution when acquiring from others, whether it was the Qur’an or the Prophetic Sunnah.
  • Or after his demise, by referring back to what they had heard or seen from the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, or by referring to other Sahabah—together with their narrations from one another if they trusted them—with even greater caution after his demise.

Among the manifestations of their caution after the demise of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam were:

  • Their refusal to accept narrations from those whose memory was questionable or who had forgotten.
  • Asking the narrator to take an oath that he heard the hadith directly from the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.
  • The listeners’ verification of the narrator’s statement.
  • Their criticism of narrators and their refutation of liars.
  • Sending someone to others to enquire about the hadith’s authenticity.
  • Repeating the question to the narrator after a period of time to ascertain his accuracy.
  • Disapproval of those who narrated excessively.
  • Writing to another Sahabi to verify the narrator’s accuracy.
  • Sending written material to those they suspected might not know the contents, so that they might act upon it.
  • Demanding evidence and witnesses for the authenticity of what was attributed to the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.
  • Undertaking journeys to verify the wording of ahadith.
  • Accepting solitary narrations if they were satisfied with its reliability.
  • The importance of the Sahabah’s radiya Llahu ‘anhum reliability.
  • The emergence of the seed of the chain of transmission in Hadith.
  • The emergence of a Sahabi’s mursal narration, along with clarifying whether their transmission of the Sunnah was verbatim or by meaning.
  • The Sunnah was not encompassed by any of them individually but was present with all of them collectively, along with explaining the categories of the Sunnah in terms of authenticity and in terms of frequent and infrequent narrators, as well as the reason for the infrequent transmissions, the methodology of those who transmitted infrequently and what motivated them to do so, and the methodology of those who transmitted frequently and what prompted them to do so, with mentioning the strength of Abu Hurairah’s radiya Llahu ‘anhu memory as an example.

Among the manifestations of their keenness and preservation of the Prophetic Sunnah are:

  • Their methodology in transmission, such as asking one another about matters of the Prophet’s salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam Sunnah that they did not know.
  • Visiting one another for the purpose of discussing and reviewing Hadith.
  • Holding gatherings and study circles in the Masajid.
  • The large number of students.
  • Sermons delivered from the pulpit by scholars or Khalifas.
  • Writing to one another.
  • Some recording what they heard from the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.
  • Some dictating to their students, along with examples of what they wrote after the Prophet’s salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam demise, as well as the demonstration of the eagerness of some in preserving the wording of the Hadith, not permitting any alteration, whilst others were content with conveying the meaning. Furthermore, the explanation of the conditions for narrating Hadith by meaning and describing their approach when narrating Hadith.
  • Demonstration of their caution in transmitting Hadith. This is done by examining the Qur’an, then the Prophetic Sunnah, then asking people, then striving to narrate the Hadith verbatim, then narrating sparingly for fear of fabricating something.
  • Accuracy of Hadith memorisation. If anyone had doubts about his memorisation, he would not narrate.
  • Sufficing with the narration of others.
  • Refraining from narrating what people’s minds cannot comprehend.
  • Narrating occasionally for fear of boring the listeners, and not prolonging the lessons.
  • Remembering the punishment for lying upon the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam before narrating.
  • Finally, mentioning the factors that contributed to the spread of the Prophetic Sunnah during the era of the Sahabah radiya Llahu ‘anhum.