Imam Muslim

The third Century of the Hijrah (migration to Madinah) has been the most congenital period for the collection and development of the Prophet (salAllahu alayhi wasalam)'s traditions in the Muslim world.
During this period, as many as six well-known collections, popularly called as 'Sahih Sitta' (Six authentic collections) saw the light of day. These included the Sahih Al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim.


During this period, conditions were exremely favourable for the collection of traditions (ahadith). A certain unanimity had been attained on all disputed points, particularly on questions of Law and doctrine, and a definite opinion regarding the value of most traditions had been formed by the well-known Muslim scholars. It was thus possible to proceed and collect all such traditions which were generally accepted as reliable.


The most outstanding reporters of the ahadith had been A'isha, Abu Hurairah, Abdullah ibn Abbas, Fatima az-Zahra, Abdullah ibn Umar, Abdullah ibn Masud, Zaid ibn Thabit, Uns ibn Malik and Saeed al-Makhzumi (radiAllahu anhum).
Several collections of ahadith were prepared by different scholars through these reporters. In the beginning, ahadith were arranged according to their transmitters and not according to their contents. The best known of such collections is the Musnad of Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal (rahimullah). The best collection of ahadith of this period is the Muwatta of Imam Malik (rahimullah).


But later, the collections of ahadith were arranged according to their contents, more scientifically and conveniently. Such collections arranged according to chapters are called Musannaf (arranged). Six such collections of ahadith universally recognised by Muslims as Sahih (authentic) appeared during the Third Century A.H.
These are the collections of;
(1) Imam Bukhari (d. 256 A.H.)
(2) Imam Muslim (d. 261 A.H.)
(3) Abu Dauwd (d. 275 A.H.)
(4) At-Tirmidhi (d. 279 A.H.)
(5) An-Nasa'i (d. 303 A.H.)
(6) Ibn Majah (d. 273 A.H.)


These books are recognised as authentic traditions. Of these six, the Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim are held in high esteem in the Muslim world, ranking only second to the Holy Qur'an.


The merit of the collections of Imam Bukhari and Muslim lies not in the fact that they had been able to sort genuine ahadith out of a mass of circulating material on the subject, but because their collections were universally acclaimed as genuine, particularly by the learned and pious Muslims.


Asakir-ud-Din Muslim b. Hajjaj Abul Hussain al-Qushayri al-Nishapuri, better known as Imam Muslim, was born in Nishapur in approximately 202 A.H. (817 A.C.), and died in 261 A.H. (857 A.C.), and was buried in Nasarabad, a suburb of Nishapur.
Muslim belonged to the Qushayr tribe of the Arabs, an offshoot of the great clan of Rabi, a distinguished family of Arab Muslims in Khorasan.

His parents were religiously minded persons and as such he was brought up in a pious atmosphere. This left such an indelible impression on his mind that he spent the whole of his life as a God-fearing person and always adhered to the path of Righteousness. His excellent moral character can be well judged from the simple fact that he never indulged in backbiting, a very common human failing.

Nishapur, his birthplace, was also a place of great faith and knowledge. Nishapur had great personalities in this period, such as Imam Ishaq b. Rahwaih and Muhammad b.Yahya al-Dhuhali.


After completing his education, Muslim set out to collect ahadith for his memorable work on the subject. He travelled extensively to collect ahadith in Arabia, Egypt, Syria and Iraq, attending lectures of the most prominent taditionalists of his time. Muslim also consulted some of the outstanding authorities on the subject, including Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Abdullah al Qarri, Ishaq ibn Rahuya, Qutaiybah bin Said, Abdullah bin Maslama and other great Muhhadith.

Muslim came to be settled down at Nishapur. There he came into contact with Imam Bukhari, and was so much impressed by his vast knowledge of Hadith and his deep insight into it that he kept himself attached to him up to the end of his life.
Imam Muslim was also an admirer of another great teacher of Hadith, Muhammed bin Yahya al Dhuli. He attended his lectures regularly. He visited Baghdad several times and had the opportunity of delivering lessons there. His last visit to Baghdad was two years before his death.


He wrote many books and treatises on Hadith, but the most important of his works is the collection (Jami') of his Sahih Some of the commentators of Ahadith are of the opinion that in certain respects it is the best and most authentic work on the subject.
Imam Muslim took great pains in collecting 300,000 Traditions, and then after a thorough examination of them retained only 4000, the genuineness of which is fully established.


Imam Muslim has to his credit many other valuable contributions to different branches of Hadith literature, and most of them retain their eminence even to the present day. Amongst these Kitab al-Musnad al-Kabir 'Ala al-Rijal, Jami Kabir, Kitab, al-Asma wa'l-Kuna, Kitab al-Ilal, Kitab al- Wijdan are very important.



His Methods of Classification and Annotation

Muslim's Sahih comes next to it. However, in certain respects the latter is considered superior to the former. Imam Muslim strictly observed many principles of the science of Hadith which had been slightly ignored by his great teacher Imam Bukhari (may Allah have mercy on both of them). Imam Muslim considered only such traditions to be genuine and authentic as had been transmitted to him by an unbroken chain of reliable authorities and were in perfect harmony with what had, (been related by other narrators whose trustworthiness was unanimously accepted and who were free from all defects).

Moreover, Imam Bukhari, while describing the chain of narrators, sometimes mentions their kunya and sometimes gives their names. This is particularly true in case of the narrators of Syria. This creates a sort of confusion, which Imam Muslim has avoided.

Imam Muslim takes particular care in according the exact words of the narrators and points out even the minutest difference in the wording of their reports.

Imam Muslim has also constantly kept in view the difference between the two well-known modes of narration, haddathana (he narrated to us) and akhbarana (he informed us). He is of the opinion that the first mode is used only when the teacher is narrating the hadith and the student is listening to it, while the second mode of expression implies that the student is reading the hadith before the teacher. This reflects his utmost care in the transmission of a hadith.

Imam Muslim has taken great pains in connecting the chain of narrators. He has recorded only that hadith which, at least, two reliable tabi'een (successors) had heard from two Companions and this principle is observed throughout the subsequent chain of narrators.


His Students

Imam Muslim had a very wide circle of students, who learnt Hadith from him. Some of them occupy a very prominent position in Islamic history, e.g. Abu Hatim Razi, Musa b. Harun, Ahmad b. Salama, Abu 'Isa Tirmidhi, Abu Bakr b. Khusaima, Abu ‘Awana and Hafiz Dhahabi.


His Death

Imam Muslim lived for fifty-five years in this world. Of this short span of his life he spent most of his time in learning Hadith, in its compilation, in its teaching and transmission. He always remained absorbed in this single pursuit and nothing could distract his attention from this pious task.
He died in 261 A.H. (875 A.C.), and was buried in Nasarabad, a suburb of Nishapur.
May Allah Have Mercy on him.