# When should a hadith be rejected, and can a Muslim refuse a religious command that makes no sense?

*Ibn al-Jawzi's three conditions for a hadith, and the companion who refused to jump into the fire*

- URL: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/uuldzklvxvo/s/15/
- Date: 2018-04-09 · Kind: lesson · Transcript tier: machine · Recording: The Role Of Reason In Religion - Mufti Abu Layth (1:09:12–1:14:24)
- Status: general teaching
- Watch from the start of the segment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UuLDZkLvxvo&t=4152s
- Recording page: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/uuldzklvxvo/

**Topics:** Text criticism, reason and the Quran; Reason and revelation; The companions

**Summary (not a quotation; machine-made, unchecked):** A hadith is accepted only if it does not contradict reason, the transmitted sources or an established principle, as Ibn al-Jawzi wrote; the companion who refused an order to jump into a fire shows reason rightly judging a command.

**Checked position (checked by two independent reviews, not by the channel):** Mufti Abu Layth holds, following Ibn al-Jawzi, that a hadith is accepted only if it does not contradict reason, the transmitted sources or an established principle of Islam, and that the companion who refused an order to jump into a fire shows reason rightly judging a religious command.

**Evidence, his words at 1:12:56:** “at that time when he disobeyed him he didn't know that ruling he just reasoned that this what you're telling me to do clashes with reason doesn't make any sense” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UuLDZkLvxvo&t=4376s)

## Longer summary

Mufti Abu Layth says the inherent fear is that if one childhood belief turns out untrue the rest, and Islam itself, may fall too, but it is better to rid Islam of interpretations that crept in than to present it so and have it bulldozed by atheists, who will show no mercy. He points out that the great hadith scholars said the same: Ibn al-Jawzi, quoted by al-Suyuti and later scholars, wrote that a sahih hadith is accepted on three conditions, that it does not go against reason, does not contradict the transmitted sources such as the Quran and established tradition, and does not uproot an established principle of Islam. Yet people embrace absurd reports and make Islam sound dumb. He then tells the story of an expedition sent by the Prophet whose commander, after a dispute, lit a fire and ordered his men to jump in, invoking the Prophet's command to obey him; one companion, whose name is garbled in the transcript, reasoned that they had believed in Allah to escape the fire and refused, and when they returned the Prophet told them he was right, that there is no obedience to a creature in disobedience of the Creator. The point, he says, is that the companion did not know that ruling and simply judged that the command clashed with reason, and he was correct. He sums up that this is why reason matters, that hiding behind cobwebs will not protect anyone, and that the straw-man religion being put up is ridiculed daily while the number of ex-Muslims rises.

## Sources and names cited

- Ibn al-Jawzi
- al-Suyuti
- a hadith must not contradict reason, the Quran and established Sunnah, or uproot a principle of Islam
- Abdullah ibn Hudhafa [?] (name garbled in the transcript)
- report: do not obey a creature in disobedience to the creator

## Transcript (machine tier, 1:09:12–1:14:24)

[1:09:04] black magic happens this happens the moon was split or this happened they know certain stories Jesus is gonna come back all this kind of stuff now if you are told at some point in your life while these things might are not true the the inherent fear is that well if that's not true maybe the rest of the things that I learnt and Islam itself is not true as well and this is the fear that people have that they don't want it because they think if one knocks down maybe they might all knock down so I get why they're scared of that but it is

[1:09:42] much better to read Islam of interpretations that have come along the way rather than present it like this and have it bulldozed by atheists because they will have no mercy when they tear down the pillars of faith they will have no mercy so you'd rather look at it yourself and say well what issues what issues are going on what's this what's this this is a problem this is a problem and then even within Islam if things outlook and the shocking thing is all of our great more hadith in wrote this in their books they said by the way four hadith comes what does even or Josie say

[1:10:21] the great half-wave of hadith and this is quoted by all the later Mohideen including suti and all these people he says if a hadith comes we accept the Asahi after it's met the conditions at the Mohideen say you know all the people have to be correct and sound mind and all that he says then we accept it with these three conditions that lamb you buy number one love you buy in el Mar cool it doesn't go against reason uncle lamu by Anil Marco and he says well um you Holly Philemon cool and it doesn't go against the transmitted sources like the Quran and the established well um you naughty little soul and it

[1:10:59] doesn't uproot and a an established principle of Islam then we will accept it so people are so quick to say well no no no no God no I'm gonna question this even if it's absurd they will embrace it they won't look at the great damage they're doing they'll just say oh it's okay it's okay but then so many people would be like well that sounds dumb now now you just made Islam sound dumb now I tell you this is an interesting story where a companion a group of the Prophet sends an expedition of people amongst them is a companion by the name of Abdul lagna Hadassah now the this one of the

[1:11:39] unsolvable is the immediate he's in charge of this kind of expedition so when they get to this place anyway they they have some kind of dispute amongst them so this person marshal this person intelligently comes out with a solution to kind of he say like he's upset with them like they disagree on something and he says now this is the truth he says okay I tell you what he lights a fire and he says jump into this fire and if this isn't the truth or something it will burn you and otherwise it will burn you like it comes up with this property you know like these kind of many evil kind of propositions that you hear sometimes so he comes up with one of these so one of some of the Companions

[1:12:18] of thinking okay you know like fine you know we stand by that much were prepared and and he's because he's the amina pointed he says to them because what some of the companions say no I'm not going to do that he says but the Prophet sent me commanded me as you Emir so the Prophet commanded you to follow me and I'm commanding you to jump into that fire but what is afterlife not FSA he thinks about this reason think and make judgment he said we believed in Allah to escape a fire

[1:12:56] why should we jump into fire this doesn't make any sense he says I'm not gonna listen to you he says I'm not gonna listen to you and and this person says yeah but the Prophet told you to listen he says no it doesn't make any sense I'm not gonna listen to you they go back to my deena they tell the Prophet the Prophet says to him you were right you don't listen to them Latta utterly must look infamous it colic you do not listen to creation especially when they're telling you to disobey Allah to commit suicide like this but the interesting point is at that time when he disobeyed him he didn't know that ruling he just reasoned that this what you're telling me to do

[1:13:34] clashes with reason doesn't make any sense so why should surely Allah be telling and his messenger telling us to do things that clash with reason so he so he based on that he makes a judgment and he was correct so this is important to understand so that's the kind of summary of why reason is too important and these kind of criticisms of one well you're going to become an atheist well believe me what's the the opposite what what do you propose that we just hide behind these cobwebs because those cobwebs are not going to protect you

[1:14:11] because people are gunning down this kind of scarecrow this kind of like straw man of religion that you are putting up and it is being ridiculed day in day out the number of X Muslims is massively disproportionately on the increase because people religion doesn't make sense to people so this is why this scare mongering we need to ignore that yes if people don't want to look if people say I don't want a reason I don't want a question that's fine that's your choice I accept that that's that lower level of Iman that's your faith fine but

## Cite

Mufti Abu Layth Archive, segment UuLDZkLvxvo/s/15. https://muftiabulayth.org/r/uuldzklvxvo/s/15/

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