Manhaj al-Imam al-Daraqutni fi Naqd al-Hadith fi Kitab al-Ilal
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- Dār al-Muḥaddithīn lil-Baḥth al-ʿIlmī wa-al-Tarjamah wa-al-Nashr
Manhaj al-Imam al-Daraqutni fi Naqd al-Hadith fi Kitab al-Ilal (The Methodology of Imam al-Daraqutni in Hadith Criticism in Kitab al-Ilal) is a contemporary study on the science of hadith defects ('ilal) by Abu Abd al-Rahman Yusuf ibn Jawda al-Dawudi . The book examines the critical methodology, terminology, and evaluative standards of al-Daraqutni (d. 385 AH / 995 CE) in his major work on hadith defects, al-Ilal al-Warida fi al-Ahadith al-Nabawiyya .
Background and Purpose
The work originated as an academic master's thesis supervised by Yusuf ibn Abd al-Rahman al-Mar'ashli . Al-Dawudi set out to address the scarcity of analytical monographs devoted specifically to uncovering the systemic methods of classical hadith critics in their works on defects, focusing on al-Daraqutni due to the breadth and precision of his Kitab al-Ilal .
The book aims to explain the hidden criteria al-Daraqutni used when pointing out defects, decipher his technical expressions of defect attribution (ta'lil) and preference (tarjih), and demonstrate how classical hadith specialists engaged in both chain-of-transmission (isnad) and text (matn) criticism .
Structure and Content
The book is structured into an introduction, a prelude, four main parts (abwab), a conclusion, and scholarly indices :
- Prelude (al-Tamhid): Covers the linguistic and technical definitions of defect ('illah) and criticism (naqd), their legitimacy in Islamic scholarship, and the necessity of clarifying defects in transmitted reports .
- Part One (al-Bab al-Awwal): Focuses on al-Daraqutni and his book al-Ilal, divided into two chapters: a concise biography of al-Daraqutni across seven sections, and an introduction to Kitab al-Ilal across six sections .
- Part Two (al-Bab al-Thani): Explores the concept and types of defects according to al-Daraqutni across two chapters: his concept of 'illah, followed by an analysis of the hidden and apparent categories of defects affecting chains and texts .
- Part Three (al-Bab al-Thalith): Details the critical terminology used by al-Daraqutni across three chapters: terms signifying weakness or lack of establishment, terms indicating error, delusion, or variance, and terms denoting singularity (tafarrud), anomaly (gharaba), and preference (tarjih) .
- Part Four (al-Bab al-Rabi'): Investigates the contextual indicators (qara'in) of defect identification and preference across two chapters: indicators for establishing a defect, and the role of corroborating transmissions (mutaba'at) and surrounding circumstantial evidence in weighting conflicting narrations .
Method and Findings
Al-Dawudi employs an inductive and analytical approach by collecting statements from al-Daraqutni's al-Ilal as well as his other works (such as his Su'alat), cross-referencing transmission paths, documenting the evaluations of early biographers on specific narrators, and comparing al-Daraqutni's verdicts with those of other leading critics .
Among the study's stated conclusions is that textual criticism (naqd al-mutun) constitutes no less than ten percent of al-Daraqutni's critical discussions in Kitab al-Ilal, refuting assertions that early hadith critics neglected the scrutiny of hadith contents . The author also incorporates scholarly responses to certain hadiths in the Sahihayn of al-Bukhari and Muslim that were criticized by al-Daraqutni .
Publication
The work was published in a single volume (432 pages) by Dar al-Muhaddithin in Cairo in 1432 AH / 2011 CE .
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