Sualat Abi Dawud lil-Imam Ahmad
- Author died
- 241 AH
- Editions
- Maktabat al-'Ulum wa-al-Hikam
Sualat Abi Dawud lil-Imam Ahmad ("Questions of Abu Dawud to Imam Ahmad") is a compendium of hadith criticism, narrator evaluation, and legal inquiries recorded by the hadith scholar Abu Dawud al-Sijistani (202–275 AH / 817–889 CE) from his teacher, Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal (164–241 AH / 780–855 CE) .
Subject Matter and Scope
The work compiles questions addressed by Abu Dawud to Ahmad ibn Hanbal across various branches of Islamic scholarship, focusing extensively on the impugnment and validation of narrators (al-jarh wa-al-ta‘dil), hidden defects in hadith (‘ilal al-hadith), and the methodological principles of narration (usul ‘ilm al-riwayah) . It also includes questions regarding obscure vocabulary in hadith (gharib), the reconciliation of conflicting traditions (mukhtalif al-hadith), theology (i‘tiqad), leadership (al-imamah), manners (al-adab), and legal rulings (fiqh), alongside directly attributed prophetic reports (marfu‘) and traditions from the Companions and Successors (athar) transmitted through Ahmad .
Characteristics and Structure
The book is distinguished by the breadth of Ahmad ibn Hanbal's statements on narrator criticism and defective reports, with its volume of material on hidden defects being second only to the version of al-Ilal wa-Marifat al-Rijal transmitted by Ahmad's son, Abd Allah ibn Ahmad ibn Hanbal . The text includes a dedicated chapter devoted to inquiries on the rules and precision of hadith transmission (dabt), while the material specifically concerning ‘ilal and narrator evaluation is arranged at the end of the collection .
Scholars emphasize distinguishing this text from Abu Dawud's Masa'il al-Imam Ahmad, noting that while al-Masa'il is dedicated predominantly to jurisprudence, al-Sualat constitutes a distinct collection focused primarily on narrator criticism and biographical evaluation .
Transmission and Modern Editions
An early manuscript copy preserved at the Zahiriyya Library bears an audition note recorded during Abu Dawud's lifetime, dated to 266 AH (nine years prior to his death in 275 AH) .
The work has been edited by Ziyad Muhammad Mansur under the title Sualat Abi Dawud lil-Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal fi Jarh al-Ruwat wa-Ta‘dilihim and published in Medina by Maktabat al-‘Ulum wa-al-Hikam (1st ed., 1414 AH / 1994 CE) .
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