Hadith Denial: Root Causes and Its Impact on Islamic Thought

انکارِ حدیث کی فکری بنیادیں:اسباب و اثرات

Abstract

A study of Islamic history makes it evident that the denial of Hadith is not a modern phenomenon but a continuation of an old intellectual deviation, whose early manifestations can be traced to the Khārijites and certain extreme tendencies among the Muʿtazilites. In the modern period, however, this tendency developed into an organized intellectual movement that sought to undermine the authority and legislative status of the Prophetic Hadith through various rationalistic, historical, Orientalist, and materialistic arguments. Its proponents have essentially maintained that the Qur’an alone is sufficient as the source of religion and that there is no need to recognize Hadith as an independent source of Islamic law. This claim, however, contradicts the Qur’an itself, which repeatedly commands obedience to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and establishes his authoritative position.

In reality, the Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ constitutes the practical interpretation of the Qur’an and the essential means through which its injunctions are explained and implemented. The details of numerous fundamental religious obligations—including prayer, zakāt, ḥajj, transactions, social conduct, and ethics—are known through Hadith and Sunnah. Therefore, the denial of Hadith is not merely a rejection of individual narrations; rather, it ultimately undermines the entire Islamic legal framework, the juristic tradition, and the vast scholarly heritage accumulated by the Muslim Ummah over centuries. For this reason, the great scholars of Islam, particularly the eminent Hadith scholars and jurists, have consistently addressed this intellectual deviation and established the authority of Hadith through rigorous, decisive, and enduring scholarly arguments.

Keywords: Denial of Hadit, Prophetic Sunnah, Islamic Law; Khārijites; Muʿtazilites; Orientalism