Biographies of the Imams who wrote the six books | Episode (2) | Imam Muslim, may God have mercy on him

0:00 In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

0:03 O you who recite the words of the Prophet, peace be upon him, and explain them,

0:09 How beautiful is your voice when it resonates with guidance.

0:15 The biographies of the authors of the Six Books,

0:18 Six biographies filled with beauty and majesty.

0:23 Summarized with care from that unique and magnificent book,

0:29 The biographies of the most noble of people,

0:32 By Imam al-Dhahabi, may Allah have mercy on him.

0:37 Prepared by Sheikh Muhammad al-Muhanna, may Allah preserve him.

0:53 Imam Muslim, may Allah have mercy on him,

0:57 He is the great Imam,

1:00 The master memorizer and precise scholar,

1:02 The authoritative proof and the truthful,

1:04 Abu al-Husayn,

1:06 Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj ibn Muslim ibn Ward,

1:09 Ibn Kushadh al-Qushayri al-Naysaburi.

1:13 The author of the Sahih.

1:15 It is said he was a client (mawla) of the Qushayr tribe.

1:18 It is said he was born in the year 204 AH.

1:22 This means he was ten years younger than Imam al-Bukhari.

1:28 Thus, he studied under al-Bukhari and benefited from him,

1:32 And defended him when some of his contemporaries spoke ill of him.

1:36 May the mercy of Allah be upon them all.

1:39 His first hearing of hadith was in the year 218 AH,

1:42 From Yahya ibn Yahya al-Tamimi.

1:45 He performed Hajj in the year 220 AH while he was still a beardless youth.

1:48 He heard hadith in Makkah from al-Qa'nabi,

1:51 Who was his most senior teacher.

1:53 He heard hadith in Kufa from Ahmad ibn Yunus and a group of others.

1:58 He then returned quickly to his homeland.

2:00 He traveled again after some years, before the year 230 AH,

2:04 And heard hadith in Iraq, the two Holy Cities, and Egypt.

2:08 Ahmad ibn Salama said:

2:10 I saw Abu Zur'ah and Abu Hatim

2:13 Preferring Muslim in the knowledge of authentic hadith over the scholars of their time.

2:20 Ahmad ibn Salama then said:

2:22 A study session was held for Muslim,

2:25 And a hadith was mentioned to him that he did not recognize.

2:28 He returned to his house and lit the lamp,

2:32 And said to those in the house:

2:34 "Let no one enter."

2:37 It was said to him, "We have been gifted a basket of dates."

2:41 He said, "Bring it forward."

2:43 They brought it to him,

2:45 And he continued searching for the hadith,

2:47 Eating the dates one by one.

2:50 Morning came, and the dates were finished,

2:52 And he had found the hadith.

2:54 Abu 'Abdullah al-Hakim narrated this.

2:57 He then added, "A trustworthy person among our companions told me

3:01 That he died because of that [incident]."

3:03 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Hatim said:

3:06 Muslim was a trustworthy scholar among the memorizers.

3:10 Muhammad ibn Bashshar said:

3:12 The memorizers of the world are four:

3:15 Abu Zur'ah in Rayy,

3:17 Muslim in Naysabur,

3:19 'Abdullah al-Darimi in Samarqand,

3:22 And Muhammad ibn Isma'il [al-Bukhari] in Bukhara.

3:25 Al-Husayn ibn Muhammad al-Masarjis said:

3:29 I heard my father say:

3:31 I heard Muslim say:

3:34 "I compiled this authentic Musnad

3:37 From three hundred thousand heard hadiths."

3:40 Al-Hakim said:

3:42 I heard Abu 'Abd al-Rahman al-Sulami say:

3:45 I saw a sheikh with a handsome face and clothing,

3:49 Wearing a fine cloak,

3:51 And a turban with its end hanging between his shoulders.

3:55 It was said, "This is Muslim."

3:58 The authorities of the Sultan approached and said:

4:01 "The Commander of the Faithful has ordered

4:04 That Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj

4:06 Be the Imam of the Muslims."

4:08 They brought him forward in the congregational mosque,

4:10 So he pronounced the takbir and led the people in prayer.

4:13 Ahmad ibn Salama said:

4:15 I was with Muslim during the compilation of his Sahih

4:18 For fifteen years.

4:20 Al-Hafiz ibn Mandah said:

4:23 I heard Abu 'Ali al-Naysaburi,

4:26 The memorizer, say:

4:28 "There is no book under the canopy of heaven

4:31 More authentic than the book of Muslim."

4:33 This was the opinion of Abu 'Ali al-Naysaburi,

4:36 That the Sahih of Muslim

4:38 Is more authentic than the Sahih of al-Bukhari.

4:41 Some scholars held this view,

4:44 But the majority of scholars and the vast number of them

4:47 Maintain that the Sahih of al-Bukhari is more authentic and greater.

4:51 Al-Daraqutni said:

4:53 "Were it not for al-Bukhari,

4:55 Muslim would have neither come nor gone."

4:57 Makki ibn 'Abdan said:

5:00 I heard Muslim say:

5:02 "I presented this book of mine, the authentic Musnad,

5:05 To Abu Zur'ah.

5:07 Everything he pointed out to me in this book

5:10 As having a defect, I omitted.

5:13 And everything he said was authentic and had no defect,

5:17 That is what I included."

5:19 I say: There are few high-chain (ali) narrations in Sahih Muslim,

5:23 Except for a small number.

5:25 It is a precious book, complete in its purpose.

5:28 When the memorizers saw it, they were impressed by it,

5:31 But they did not hear it [directly from him] due to the low chain (nuzul).

5:34 So they turned to the hadiths of the book,

5:37 And narrated them through their own high-chain narrations,

5:40 By one or two degrees [of separation] and so on,

5:44 Until they covered the entire book in this manner.

5:47 They called it "The Mustakhraj (Extraction) on Sahih Muslim."

5:51 Among those who did so were several masters of hadith,

5:56 Including Abu Bakr

5:58 Muhammad ibn Muhammad ibn Raja',

6:01 Abu 'Awanah al-Isfara'ini,

6:04 Abu Ja'far al-Hiri,

6:07 Abu al-Walid Hassan ibn Muhammad al-Faqi,

6:11 Abu Hamid Ahmad ibn Muhammad al-Shariki al-Harawi,

6:16 Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn 'Abdullah ibn Zakariyya al-Jawzaqi,

6:21 Imam Abu 'Ali al-Masarjis,

6:24 Abu Nu'aym Ahmad ibn 'Abdullah ibn Ahmad al-Asbahani,

6:29 And others whose names do not come to mind right now.

6:33 Al-Hakim said:

6:35 Muslim's place of business was in Khan Mahmash,

6:38 And his livelihood came from his estates in Ustuwa,

6:42 Which is a region of Naysabur.

6:46 Al-Hakim also said:

6:48 I heard my father say:

6:50 I saw Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj;

6:53 He was of full stature,

6:55 With white hair and beard,

6:57 Letting the end of his turban hang between his shoulders.

7:01 Abu 'Abdullah al-Hakim reported

7:04 That Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab al-Farra'

7:07 Said:

7:08 Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj was among the scholars of the people,

7:12 And one of the vessels of knowledge.

7:14 Then al-Hakim mentioned the works of the Imam of the people of hadith, Muslim, may Allah have mercy on him:

7:20 The Great Musnad on the narrators,

7:24 And I do not think anyone heard it from him.

7:27 The Jami' (Comprehensive) book arranged by chapters,

7:30 I saw some of it in his own handwriting.

7:32 The book of Names and Kunyas (patronymics),

7:35 The Sahih Musnad,

7:38 The book of al-Tamyiz (Distinction),

7:40 The book of al-'Ilal (Defects),

7:42 The book of al-Wuhdan (Narrators with only one student),

7:44 The book of al-Afrad (Unique narrations),

7:46 The book of al-Aqran (Peers),

7:48 The book of his questions to Ahmad ibn Hanbal,

7:52 The book of the children of the Companions,

7:55 The book of the errors of the hadith scholars,

7:58 The book of the Tabaqat (Generations),

8:00 The book of the unique narrations of the Syrians,

8:03 Then al-Hakim listed other works of his that I have not mentioned.

8:08 Muslim passed away in the month of Rajab,

8:11 In the year 261 AH in Naysabur,

8:15 At the age of over fifty.

8:31 I was the humming of hadith,

8:35 As if I had accompanied you.

8:38 I heard the humming from you,

8:42 I grieved at times, and at others, I smiled.

8:48 You were comforted, then humility appeared upon you,

8:54 Boasting at times

8:57 Of the Sunnah of Ahmad,

9:00 At times as a devotee,

9:03 With gentle people.

9:06 Read, for I have made myself a sacrifice for you,

9:10 And I wish

9:12 That I had read until my whole voice became a minaret.

9:18 My veins have yearned for hadith and its people,

9:24 So open your Sahih collections,

9:26 And quench my thirst with the chains of narration (an'ana),

9:29 With the "he said, he said," and "he narrated to us,"

9:35 And the eloquent, precise, comprehensive words.

9:41 For the words of the Prophet, peace be upon him, have majesty,

9:47 And his speech has authority over all other speech.

9:53 Upon it is a light, blooming with tranquility,

9:59 Flowing into my soul, and I remain a sinner.

Biographies of the Imams who wrote the six books | Episode (2) | Imam Muslim, may God have mercy on him

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