Shubuhat Hawl al-Sunnah
- Author died
- 1415 AH
- Editions
- Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Endowments, Dawah and Guidance - Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Shubuhat Hawl al-Sunnah (Doubts Regarding the Sunnah) is a treatise by the Egyptian-Saudi scholar Abd al-Razzaq Afifi (1323–1415 AH / 1904–1994 CE) dedicated to defending the legislative authority (hujjiyyah) of the prophetic Sunnah and refuting arguments raised against it .
Background and Context
The work was written to address the arguments of groups and individuals who diminish the status of the Sunnah, advocate restricting religious practice exclusively to the Quran, or challenge the historical transmission and reliability of hadith . It was later published as an independent book (including a first edition by Dar al-Fadilah in 1417 AH and by the Ministry's Agency for Publications and Scholarly Research in Saudi Arabia) and also included within compilations of the author's treatises and fatwas .
Themes and Structure
Afifi begins the treatise by establishing the foundational necessity of affirming divine messengership and recognizing that what the Messenger brought constitutes divine revelation alongside the Quran, serving to clarify and elaborate its general rulings . He emphasizes that a defender's approach must vary according to the stance of the objector :
- Total Rejection of the Sunnah: Against those who claim that the Quran renders the Sunnah unnecessary by citing verses such as مَا فَرَّطْنَا فِي الْكِتَابِ مِنْ شَيْءٍ ("We have not neglected anything in the Book", al-An'am: 38) and وَنَزَّلْنَا عَلَيْكَ الْكِتَابَ تِبْيَانًا لِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ ("And We have sent down to you the Book as clarification for all things", al-Nahl: 89), Afifi explains that "the Book" in al-An'am refers to the Preserved Tablet (al-Lawh al-Mahfuz) . He further points out that both surahs are Meccan, whereas the majority of detailed legal prescriptions—such as the specific timings, numbers of rak'ahs, and forms of prayer, the thresholds (nisab) and conditions for zakah, and the specific rulings of criminal law and transactions—were revealed in Medina and can only be known and practiced through the prophetic Sunnah .
- Rational and Empirical Objections: In addressing those who reject authentic hadiths on the pretext of perceived conflict with reason or modern medical and scientific findings (such as the hadith regarding the fly falling into a drink), Afifi argues that human intellect and empirical theories are fallible and evolving, and cannot override verified transmissions from the Prophet ﷺ .
- The Issue of Early Recording: In response to the doubt that hadiths and chains of narration (asānīd) were not formally compiled until later generations, Afifi clarifies that while the widespread systematic recording of isnads occurred later, individual texts (mutūn) and personal codices were indeed committed to writing during the Prophet's lifetime, such as the writings of Abd Allah ibn Amr ibn al-As and the sheet (sahifah) possessed by Ali ibn Abi Talib .
Answer updated