Daif al-Targhib wa al-Tarhib

Daif al-Targhib wa al-Tarhib (The Weak [Hadiths] of Encouragement and Deterrence) is a hadith evaluation work by Muhammad Nasir al-Din al-Albani (d. 1420 AH / 1999 CE) that isolates and critically assesses the inauthentic narrations contained in the classic compilation al-Targhib wa al-Tarhib by Abd al-Azim al-Mundhiri (d. 656 AH / 1258 CE) Mukhtasar Sahih Muslim li…+1.

Background and Composition

Al-Albani prepared the critical verification of al-Mundhiri's al-Targhib wa al-Tarhib over years of teaching lessons to students, completing his systematic verification on 26 Rajab 1396 AH Sahih al-Targhib wa al-Ta…. He initially began printing Daif al-Targhib wa al-Tarhib in Damascus, but the project was halted after completing a substantial portion due to his move to Amman in 1400 AH / 1980 CE Daif al-Targhib wa al-Tar….

Later, the publisher Saad al-Rashid, owner of Maktabat al-Maarif in Riyadh, prompted al-Albani to publish the remaining volumes of its counterpart work, Sahih al-Targhib wa al-Tarhib, alongside Daif al-Targhib wa al-Tarhib Sahih al-Targhib wa al-Ta…. Al-Albani subsequently re-examined and revised both works before printing Sahih al-Targhib wa al-Ta…+1.

Method and Classification

Al-Albani's principal objective was to isolate weak and inauthentic narrations so that preachers and students would avoid relying upon or propagating them Sahih al-Targhib wa al-Ta…+1. He noted that al-Mundhiri had categorized hadiths primarily through his phrasing—using active transmission ('an) to signal strength and passive transmission (ruwiya) to signal weakness—while introducing sub-divisions that al-Albani considered ambiguous and perplexing for general readers Daif al-Targhib wa al-Tar….

In Daif al-Targhib wa al-Tarhib, al-Albani organized the judgments on inauthentic hadiths into five defined grades, expanding on his earlier three-tier system Daif al-Targhib wa al-Tar…:

• Da'if (Weak): A narration with a standard damaging defect, such as narrator weakness, confusion (idtirab), or anomaly (shudhudh) Daif al-Targhib wa al-Tar….
• Da'if jiddan (Very Weak): A narration containing an abandoned (matruk) or severely deficient narrator whose reports contain frequent objectionable elements Daif al-Targhib wa al-Tar….
• Mawdu' (Fabricated): A narration with an identified liar or fabricator in its chain of transmission, or bearing evident textual marks of fabrication alongside an apparent transmission defect Daif al-Targhib wa al-Tar….
• Munkar or Munkar jiddan (Objectionable / Highly Objectionable): A narration in which a weak narrator contradicts reliable transmitters, or one possessing an objectionable text even without direct contradiction Daif al-Targhib wa al-Tar….
• Shadhdh (Anomalous): A narration reported by a reliable transmitter that contradicts more reliable authorities, whether in the chain or the text Daif al-Targhib wa al-Tar….

Al-Albani relied on the Muniriyyah edition of al-Mundhiri's original compilation as his base text, rectifying scribal omissions and typographical errors as he encountered them, while keeping his main focus on distinguishing authentic from inauthentic material Sahih al-Targhib wa al-Ta….

Publication

The work was published in Riyadh by Maktabat al-Maarif in two volumes comprising 1,437 pages (first edition, 1421 AH / 2000 CE) Jami Turath al-Allama al-….