# Did early Sunni hadith scholars such as Sufyan ibn Uyayna wear earrings?

*Sunni sources: a hadith student with two earrings, and Sufyan ibn Uyayna's earring*

- URL: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/pkjtq8axgre/s/5/
- Date: 2019-07-24 · Kind: lesson · Transcript tier: machine · Recording: Holistic Overview: Can Men Wear Earrings? -Mufti Abu Layth (16:58–19:33)
- Status: general teaching
- Watch from the start of the segment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkjtq8AXGRE&t=1018s
- Recording page: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/pkjtq8axgre/

**Topics:** Jewellery, gold and silk for men; Scholars and imams of the past

**Summary (not a quotation; machine-made, unchecked):** Yes: the Musnad of Abu Ya'la records a hadith student wearing two earrings, and al-Dhahabi's Siyar A'lam al-Nubala describes the young Sufyan ibn Uyayna sitting in Amr ibn Dinar's hadith class with an earring in his ear.

## Longer summary

Mufti Abu Layth says Husayn is described in another narration as wearing earrings in both ears, and asks listeners to hold any doubt about that while he turns to Sunni sources. From the Musnad of Abu Ya'la, a Hanbali hadith scholar, he cites a transmitter who recalled visiting a shaykh [?] while still a young man and wearing two earrings at the time he was studying hadith. Anticipating that people will ask who that narrator was, he goes to a greater figure: Sufyan ibn Uyayna, the great hadith master of Makkah from the era of the Salaf, of whom al-Dhahabi in Siyar A'lam al-Nubala, volume eight page 462, transmits an eyewitness description as a young man carrying his writing tablets, wandering the streets with his friends and sitting in the hadith class of Amr ibn Dinar, the greatest hadith master of Makkah at the time, with an earring in his ear. He then asks who could be a greater legend of the Salaf than Sufyan ibn Uyayna, and answers that it is the man Sufyan himself called the greatest scholar in the Hijaz: Imam Malik.

## Sources and names cited

- Husayn ibn Ali
- Musnad Abi Ya'la
- Abu Ya'la al-Mawsili
- report: i went to visit him while still a young man and at that time i had two earrings in my ear when i studied hadith
- Sufyan ibn Uyayna
- al-Dhahabi
- Siyar A'lam al-Nubala
- report: i saw sufyan ibn uyayna as a young man carrying his tablets sitting in the class of amr ibn dinar with an earring in his ear
- Amr ibn Dinar
- Imam Malik

## Transcript (machine tier, 16:58–19:33)

[16:34] what kora Tahu Yetta that the ban and his both earrings were shaking and he describes the events of when they he was on I mean he was obviously one of the people that Martin and killed Hussein really long but he describes the events quite vividly and other people do as well that during his final time Imam Hussain really Allah on had two earrings in another narration they say were fiorini he do return in both of his ears he wore earrings now you may think well no that doesn't sound quite right and I'll come back to this point just hold

[17:14] that thought let me transmit to you from the must net of coming back to Sunni sources the most nada abou yeah Allah the most net of Abu yalla famous humbly son Nima hadith he transmits from a great scholar of hadith uberman Hal who says when he went to visit Abu I went to visit a Boober as well as la me he says and I was still a young man Rafi although knee he says or in Fe o dunya poor attain and used to have two earrings at that time when I used to study hadith that's in the must net of Abu Yahya let's not stop

[17:53] there people people may say who's a bloomin hat okay let's go to a greatest corner let's go to a greater one Sophia Nina Allah the great didn't have faith of Makkah from the Salaf era sharaba as transmitted by the hubby in ceará al-amin novella in volume 8 page four six two people he mentions the eyes RIE - Abner alaina wa huwa olam he says I saw if not Janna when he was a young man carrying these great he had these great kind of Allah these things which he

[18:31] would document on and write all these hadith he says I saw him way wandering in the streets chilling out with his mates la la in the Umrah Bernardin are sitting in a hadith class with the greatest happy the hadith of Makkah in that time I'm reading a Tina Rafi ozoni he Court and in his ear he had an earring this is Yusef even

[19:05] arguing now let's not stop keep on my right who can be a greater legend from the selleth then Sophia and even you guessed it people who Saffiano llena himself says that was the greatest color in Hejaz in his time none other than the eylem of alum of medina people imam ali Kipnis you will people you'll find my own teacher of the runny and if car one of the greatest orlimar sham he has a

## Cite

Mufti Abu Layth Archive, segment pkjtq8AXGRE/s/5. https://muftiabulayth.org/r/pkjtq8axgre/s/5/

Not a fatwa: these answers were given to specific people at specific times. Ask a qualified scholar about your own situation.