# Did the debate with Dr Abdullah Abdul Majid answer the BukhariGate challenge? *Afterthoughts on the BukhariGate discussion: phenomenology, ontology, epistemology* - URL: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/eokcnwggiba/s/18/ - Date: 2021-01-26 · Kind: lesson · Transcript tier: machine · Recording: Monday Nights with Mufti #199 | Q&A Unscripted & Unrestricted! 😉 | Mufti Abu Layth (1:16:45–1:21:59) - Status: general teaching - Watch from the start of the segment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eoKcNwGGIBA&t=4605s - Recording page: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/eokcnwggiba/ **Topics:** Sahih al-Bukhari (BukhariGate); Debate challenges and reviews; Mutawatir and certainty **Summary (not a quotation; machine-made, unchecked):** Mufti Abu Layth says the discussion did not settle BukhariGate but strengthened it, since doubts about the book's transmission mean reports contradicting reason or the Quran should be set aside. **Checked position (checked by two independent reviews, not by the channel):** Mufti Abu Layth says the discussion did not put BukhariGate to rest but further cemented it, and that because Sahih al-Bukhari cannot be shown with certainty to reach us exactly from its author, reports in it that contradict reason, the Quran or Islam's principles should be set aside. **Evidence, his words at 1:21:10:** “if we can't establish with utter certainty which we can't that this book reaches us exactly from let's say source a which is allegedly imam bukhari himself” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eoKcNwGGIBA&t=4870s) ## Longer summary Mufti Abu Layth turns to the BukhariGate discussion with Dr Abdullah Abdul Majid [?] from Luton, a conversation of about five and a half hours that had already had some 18,000 views, and thanks the guest for his love, respect, good character and banter. He says the discussion in no way put BukhariGate to bed but further cemented its challenges, which he looks at from three aspects. The phenomenology is the status of Bukhari today as an impeccable, quasi-divine authority; the ontology is what the book contains, mostly ordinary and good teachings but also some reports he calls massively problematic, even cancerous, that need to be recognised and rejected; and the epistemology is how the book reaches us. Since it cannot be established with certainty that the book comes exactly from al-Bukhari, he says, reports in it that contradict reason, the Quran or the principles of Islam should be walked away from, as Imam Malik taught that isolated narrations can snatch the religion from you. ## Sources and names cited - Dr Abdullah Abdul Majid [?] - Sahih al-Bukhari - Imam al-Bukhari - Imam Malik - khabar al-ahad (isolated reports) - A report is rejected if it contradicts reason, the Quran or an established principle ## Transcript (machine tier, 1:16:45–1:21:59) [1:16:43] bukhari people bukhari buhari so those of you that didn't watch bukhari gate went down we had a discussion unhinged or unhindered you decide people you decide so that was with uh just bring it back up up with dr abdullah abdul majid from luton it was a very lengthy conversation um it spanned about five and a half hours the whole thing and it was seriously i i thoroughly enjoyed it [1:17:22] i just want to say so i want to begin by saying that my you know much love to dr sab for really coming on for showing a lot of love and respect i think whether or not dr sab answers uh the challenge of let's say of bukhari gate in speech marks put that aside but you see doctors are definitely diljitliya you know he he won our hearts yeah he seems to have great character [1:18:00] and uh definitely i enjoyed the banter i enjoyed discussing um it's already been watched so so much i think it's it's been what just a couple of days now and it's been uh it's probably had about 18 000 views already so you know for a five hour video what the hell but it is it was an amazing opportunity and even you know before going live the off screen was a really good vibe and i enjoyed that so that i am very grateful to dr zab for for coming on and you know doing that my actual [1:18:36] thoughts on the discussion that happened is uh let me just see here right my actual thoughts on the discussion are that i think um i right i don't feel that it in any way um [Music] i don't feel that in any way buhari gate is um has been kind of put to bed at all if anything it further kind of establishes the arguments that [1:19:15] have been raised by this um if you want to call bukhari a challenge or an idea or whatever it is but it's a challenge i guess it definitely to me it just concretized and further cemented the the queries and and the challenges raised by bukhari gate because to me bukhari gate and i mentioned this at the beginning of the the dialogue you see there's three aspects that i'm looking at it from and i've put them in poll the poet that the phenomenology [1:19:54] the ontology and the epistemology peoples you think just you think just i say to you i think these are fake books behind me so the phenomenology being what the phenomenon of bukhari is today as in it's deemed this wow this impeccable uh transmission you know this huge this this super quasi-divine authority that we have then the the ontology what the book [1:20:33] contains the essence of it lies in the topics within it and obviously it doesn't it doesn't contain everything but in fact most of what is in bukhari is just regular hadith you know oh the prophet prayed this day or the prophet did this should give charity this happened you know it's just and many things very nice you know great teachings you should tell the truth you should be honest you should smile you should do this you should treat parents well all these amazing teachings are in bukhara there's nothing wrong with them but there are some [1:21:10] that are problematic massively on huge on a huge scale that are cancerous and those things need to be recognized and rejected so that's the ontology and then there's the epistemology that how does this book reach us because if we can't establish with utter certainty which we can't that this book reaches us exactly from let's say source a which is allegedly imam bukhari himself so then if you've got doubt [1:21:50] in that even if it's five percent doubt but if it's doubtful in it reaching back to the imam then or some doubt in it then you need to be especially careful about those teachings that you find in it that um contradict reason or the quran or the prince or the principles of islam then because this has got some doubt in any way you need to walk away and that's what imam malik taught about the one-on-one narrations the isolated narrations they snatch the deen from you so that's the um that's what bugatti gate is now ## Cite Mufti Abu Layth Archive, segment eoKcNwGGIBA/s/18. https://muftiabulayth.org/r/eokcnwggiba/s/18/ Not a fatwa: these answers were given to specific people at specific times. Ask a qualified scholar about your own situation.