SkyAboveYou
08-08-2004, 12:26 PM
Posted by BlueRose
The Difference Between Qur'aan & Hadeeth
Islam is very clear on the concept of God and the concept of Prophet so that there is no confusion or ambiguity in the minds of Muslims between the two. Islam distinguished between a) The word of Allah brought by the angel Jibreel (Gabriel) as revelation, known as the Qur'aan; and B) The words of Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) which are known as the Hadeeth.
This separate identity of Allah and His creation is very vital if you study the history of old religions and Islam ensured that they were not mixed. How was this done?
How Was The Integrity Of The Qur’aan Insured?
The companions (radiallahu ‘anhum) on the instruction of Prophet Mohammad (sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam), wrote down the words of Allah as revealed and also kept them in memory, so as to ensure that from the time of revelation until now the word of Allah remains pure and untainted. However, the Prophet commanded the companions not to write down the hadeeth during the early period of Islam, and the wisdom behind this was not to mix the hadeeth with the word of Allah. It is very important for Muslims to understand the differences between the hadeeth, hadeeth Qudsi, and the Qur'aan.
There is another important aspect to hadeeth. The actions and sayings of the Prophet (sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) provided clarification of the meanings of Qur'aan. When inquired about the character of Prophet Muhammad (sallalahu alaihi wa sallam), his wife Aisha (radiallahu ‘anhaaa) replied, His character is the Qur’aan. This indicates that Prophet (sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) gave further explanation of the Qur'aan with what he said or did during his lifetime. For example, the Qur'aan mentions prayer and the hadeeth or the Sunnah shows Muslims how and when to do it. The following details will help clarify the matter further.
Defining The Types Of Hadeeth
The meaning of Hadeeth is news, report or narration. They are reports about the Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) in the following:
What he said (qaul)
What he did (fi’ l)
What he approved in other people’s action (taqrir)
There are also reports about him i.e. what he was like (sifa)
There is agreement among most Muslim scholars, that the contents of the sunnah are also from Allah. However, these were expressed by the Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) in his own words or actions. They are the words and actions of a human being transmitted by the companions and family members (radiallahu ‘anhum), who memorized the words or closely observed the actions of Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) for the benefit of the Muslim Ummah.
The Difference Between Qur'aan & Hadeeth
Islam is very clear on the concept of God and the concept of Prophet so that there is no confusion or ambiguity in the minds of Muslims between the two. Islam distinguished between a) The word of Allah brought by the angel Jibreel (Gabriel) as revelation, known as the Qur'aan; and B) The words of Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) which are known as the Hadeeth.
This separate identity of Allah and His creation is very vital if you study the history of old religions and Islam ensured that they were not mixed. How was this done?
How Was The Integrity Of The Qur’aan Insured?
The companions (radiallahu ‘anhum) on the instruction of Prophet Mohammad (sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam), wrote down the words of Allah as revealed and also kept them in memory, so as to ensure that from the time of revelation until now the word of Allah remains pure and untainted. However, the Prophet commanded the companions not to write down the hadeeth during the early period of Islam, and the wisdom behind this was not to mix the hadeeth with the word of Allah. It is very important for Muslims to understand the differences between the hadeeth, hadeeth Qudsi, and the Qur'aan.
There is another important aspect to hadeeth. The actions and sayings of the Prophet (sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) provided clarification of the meanings of Qur'aan. When inquired about the character of Prophet Muhammad (sallalahu alaihi wa sallam), his wife Aisha (radiallahu ‘anhaaa) replied, His character is the Qur’aan. This indicates that Prophet (sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) gave further explanation of the Qur'aan with what he said or did during his lifetime. For example, the Qur'aan mentions prayer and the hadeeth or the Sunnah shows Muslims how and when to do it. The following details will help clarify the matter further.
Defining The Types Of Hadeeth
The meaning of Hadeeth is news, report or narration. They are reports about the Prophet (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) in the following:
What he said (qaul)
What he did (fi’ l)
What he approved in other people’s action (taqrir)
There are also reports about him i.e. what he was like (sifa)
There is agreement among most Muslim scholars, that the contents of the sunnah are also from Allah. However, these were expressed by the Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) in his own words or actions. They are the words and actions of a human being transmitted by the companions and family members (radiallahu ‘anhum), who memorized the words or closely observed the actions of Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) for the benefit of the Muslim Ummah.