# Why do Hanafis defend Sahih al-Bukhari when their school differs from it?

*Question marks over Bukhari: Abbasid canonisation and the Hanafi view of hadith*

- URL: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/rtwywca2-pq/s/13/
- Date: 2021-01-29 · Kind: discussion · Transcript tier: machine · Recording: Shaykh Atabek Shukurov | Mortgages, Madhabs & Molvi-ism | MindTrap 48 | Mufti Abu Layth (58:48–1:06:26)
- Status: general teaching
- Watch from the start of the segment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rtwyWCa2-pQ&t=3528s
- Recording page: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/rtwywca2-pq/

**Topics:** Sahih al-Bukhari (BukhariGate); Sunnah versus hadith; The Hanafi school and Imam Abu Hanifa

**Summary (not a quotation; machine-made, unchecked):** Mufti Abu Layth says Bukhari has question marks and is not the gold standard; the guest says its canonisation was an Abbasid-era Athari project, and that for Hanafis the Athar of their own imams should rank highest.

## Longer summary

Mufti Abu Layth says that with Bukharigate he was not saying Sahih al-Bukhari should be thrown away but that it has question marks and is not the gold standard people have made it, and that the guest first interested him in the manuscripts and the Nasafi transmission [?]. The guest says, as a follower of the early school, that al-Bukhari criticised Abu Hanifa on the basis of narrations, that the later Abbasid period backed the Athari approach and canonised certain collections, and that the Hanafis, whose school rests on the Quran with athar only clarifying it, were forced into that movement, keeping only the furu while their principles were neglected after al-Halwani [?]. Mufti explains for viewers that the Hanafi and Maliki schools were built on reason and distinguished sunnah, the practice, from hadith, the documented reports, and that later followers became crypto-Shafi'is without realising it. The guest adds that al-Bukhari wrote against the Hanafis in Bukhara itself and repeatedly criticises Abu Hanifa in the Sahih as 'some people', and that by the Hanafi school the most authentic collection should be the Athar of Imam Muhammad or of Abu Yusuf.

## Sources and names cited

- Shaykh Atabek Shukurov (guest)
- Sahih al-Bukhari
- Imam al-Bukhari
- Abu Hanifa
- Ibrahim ibn Ma'qil al-Nasafi [?]
- al-Halwani [?]
- Kitab al-Athar (of Imam Muhammad and of Abu Yusuf)
- Athari
- sunnah
- Shafi'i school

## Transcript (machine tier, 58:48–1:06:26)

[58:12] That's very intriguing. That's very good for that. But but however, it is very rich. I would say um it um um it uh clearly clearly explains the very very high level of Ahmed Muhammad in hadith. Okay. Firstly, but secondly also it it shows that he does not give much respect to other subjects for example such as reasoning and you know and other principles of the you know but main inclination is to because to the extent that he says uh do you prefer a weak hadith over Yeah.

[58:48] Yeah. [laughter] Yeah. So speaking of hadith that you know according to principles are problematic Bkari gate this whole thing of Bkari not being you know there being question marks around Sahil Bkari we're not saying throw it away but we're saying that there's question marks it's not this gold standard that people have made it you you've also been a champion of this idea as well and in fact before I even did my Bkari gate we met up uh probably about uh 8 months before that you you'd come to Birmingham and we spoke and you actually piqued my

[59:27] interest in the topic by telling me about look the manuscripts and Nasafi and there's problems and uh so I mean despite what you know if you could say your thoughts on this because people generally refuse to accept that there's any qu any problems any question marks with Bkari despite all of this evidence uh what's going on here what's going on she yeah you know obviously I am as a follower of early school okay so I can clearly um uh confirm that it's it's not secret okay so many books have been

[1:00:07] written even in the past centuries um in that Imam Bkari has raised quite a lot of points against Abuhanifh you know he's he was criting the appearance of Abuhanifh based on the narrations. Do you understand? Yeah. But then the later abasi period it was mainly the aari understand. So which backed up all of these books.

[1:00:32] So they needed to appoint uh you can say um uh uh so they had to um canonize some certain collections. Okay. Okay. Yeah. And and obviously um we as Hanafis we cannot be the the highest champions in the you can say movement. Okay. uh because shafes will just finish us off um in [laughter] less than you know in less just in one book they will just ruin our uh positions you know based on assar because our school is not based on assar okay but mainly

[1:01:10] based on Quran and assar is just clarify it's the source which clarifies Quranic statements so that's why um so so anyway that's why um even As Hanafis we became you can say because of this um abbasi period we were just forced okay to you can say our school into the movement okay so now for example um the man is also okay and even mul you know the subcontinent so all of them became more or less so for so so that's why it

[1:01:48] created a ground for us to accept that these six books are the highest And Bkari is the the even the highest one. But this statement is not statement. It is the you know statement. Okay. Or which is coming from Salah for example and you know those scholars. Okay. But by that time um you would hardly find any uh real Hanafi scholar.

[1:02:13] But um the only the Hanafi you can say um Hanafi I'm sorry Hanafi school was limited only in the Furu. But what about it was neglected long ago. you know they you know maybe the do you know um Halwani maybe he was the last scholar and and that's like a thousand years ago you know some I imagine yeah so like time of you know so it's nearly 900 yeah so but the rest you know the latest they were just in okay so how many drops should fall when you are washing the you

[1:02:51] know and when you are holding is it one thing or two fing you know that furu fura just stuff. So people that just just to clarify to you what see in case you kind of missed this point that what the sheh is highlighting is that you see these schools have foundations upon which they're built and how what they have like personalities and uh they have identities to them. So you have schools which are built on reason.

[1:03:18] Okay. And the Hanafi school Imam Abuhanifh was built on reason. Immalik's school as well is from the Ali as well. But you see what role does hadith play in your school? So to these mabs, Hadith didn't play an important role in the school. There's a difference. Sunnah did. So you had the Quran which they used and the Hanafis and the Maliki said Sunnah and hadith are not synonyms.

[1:03:47] There they may be an overlap but a sunnah was what the prophet was the practice and a hadith is just what somebody once documented. Now what's happened is the sheres were about no no it's all about the hadith the documents. But in the centuries that followed people seem to have shifted towards becoming kind of crypto sharafies without realizing it without realizing it.

[1:04:13] So that's the that's the kind of uh [clears throat] Yeah. So because when you think about it, it's weird that you have today Hanifies at the forefront of defending dogmatically Sahil Bkari even though their madhab goes against Sahil Bkari on most of the things. Yeah. Yeah. [laughter] Yeah. Yeah. And even even when Imam Bkari was in Bkar obviously you know the um Abu Hass Kabir Ab so all of them were still there you know so he has produced his book about the you know Mhm.

[1:04:48] it was written against us. Yeah. Okay. And in the center of Hani school do you understand? Yeah. And even Sah Bkari so immaris you know clearly criticizes saying yeah. So those those of you that don't know within Bkari there's at least uh 33 or uh points where IM Bkari will say and some and someone has said and this someone and then what he'll do is after he says that he'll give a like a fatwa and then he'll criticize and rip it up and say this is against the sunnah and against

[1:05:25] that someone is imbu. Yeah. Most of the time. Yeah. Most of most of the time. Yeah. Yeah. So, and also and also so basically um that's why based on the hafi school. Okay. So, um maybe we should say we should say that either Assar of Im Muhammad or the Im of Muhammad is the most authentic hadith collection.

[1:05:54] However, this Shafi you can say school became widespread. Mhm. Okay. Assari style. So that's why even now say it is bkari is the most authentic but based on our school it should be one of either or by the narration of Imam Muhammad the most authentic collection of hadith. Yeah. And you also you know with Bkari you also there was the manuscript issue which I've already highlighted in my videos as well and all of that but you also raised this issue of wijada today.

## Cite

Mufti Abu Layth Archive, segment rtwyWCa2-pQ/s/13. https://muftiabulayth.org/r/rtwywca2-pq/s/13/

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