# Is the Muwatta of Imam Malik more authentic than Sahih al-Bukhari?

*Malik's fame, the golden chain, and why the Muwatta is not ranked first*

- URL: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/vhqvm47pns0/s/7/
- Date: 2023-03-10 · Kind: lesson · Transcript tier: machine · Recording: The Legendary Imam Malik Ibn Anas | Mufti Abu Layth (26:01–31:02)
- Status: latest answer on its topic; general teaching
- Watch from the start of the segment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhqVM47pNS0&t=1561s
- Recording page: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/vhqvm47pns0/

**Topics:** Imam Malik; Hadith collections and their history

**Summary (not a quotation; machine-made, unchecked):** The Muwatta, with Malik's 'golden chain', is arguably the most authentic book of hadith and predates al-Bukhari, though others do not rank it first.

**Checked position (checked by two independent reviews, not by the channel):** Mufti Abu Layth says the Muwatta is arguably the most authentic book of hadith from a hadith perspective.

**Evidence, his words at 28:33:** “it is the mother is arguably the most authentic book in Hadith from a hadithi perspective” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhqVM47pNS0&t=1713s)

## Longer summary

Mufti Abu Layth says Malik became an imam celebrated in his lifetime, so that at Hajj people imitated even his straightening of his cloak. He says Malik was untouchable in hadith: al-Bukhari considered his chain, with two people between him and the Prophet, the golden chain, and the Muwatta is one of the earliest compendiums, a selection rather than a collection, and arguably the most authentic book of hadith, predating al-Bukhari by generations. He says the Malikis and others rank it first, and asks why the Shafi'is who dominated hadith literature and the Salafis do not, suggesting its small size of about 1,800 hadith and, more importantly, what Malik says in it.

## Sources and names cited

- Imam Malik
- al-Muwatta
- Imam al-Bukhari
- silsilat al-dhahab (the golden chain)
- al-Tirmidhi
- Shafi'i school
- Salafi

## Transcript (machine tier, 26:01–31:02)

[25:22] about and he said well it would keep people strong and the faith would if they were people of Faith then people around them felt their presence and by feeling their presence the faith had a presence as in when they spoke of the Deen it had an awe to it so he was very and he was criticized a lot about this kind of stuff so he did he did speak about that let me just oh this I see this just moved yeah so he did um he did do that that was um

[26:01] his his whole attitude and people used to criticize him that how can you you know it's not from this is Indulgence and but he he what he was who he was the legend Allah and he became so committed to the study of Hadith and ferk and learning that he became an Imam in his age in his lifetime he was so celebrated that everybody people would come to they knew who he was you know they say in Hajj he um

[26:40] people would follow like they would just see what is Malik doing and they would just imitate that to the extent they say once uh Imam Malik something um he was sitting in I think Mina and as he's sitting something he had this already like a cloak and he got trapped under him under him so he stood up and he straightened his thing and people stood up like they're thinking that they were thinking this is this is the religious

[27:18] act to do at this stage this is the way that they would copy him and when it came to matters of the faith in Hadith he was untouchable in Hadith his chain is considered by Imam bukhari to be the most strongest chain that exists in Hadith literature it's called the Golden Chain

[27:55] um from the prophet so between Malik and the prophet there are two people so this is considered the golden chain which is not it's it's in the mothball but it's not the only as in Imam Malik uses other chains but that's in there as well and the mother was one of the first and one of the earliest compendiums of Hadith literature Imam Malik was not trying to compile Hadith as a collective but what he was doing is

[28:33] putting together a selection okay it is the mother is arguably the most authentic book in Hadith from a hadithi perspective okay it is it naturally it predates it predates by some generations the very existence of Imam bukhar so let alone his book acknowledgment

[29:04] Imam Malik's chain is it is nothing it is the most authentic chain in the entire Hadith literature this is the position of Imam Malik why do people not put Imam Malik's book as number one because the malikia do and some of the people do Allah and other people do consider them to be the the most authentic book there is but why does why do the shafi's or the other people not the chef dominated the Hadith literature

[29:44] why do they not consider why do the salafia not consider it why do um and there may be many reasons amongst them that well some people felt well it's well it's it's only a small number of Hadith there's only about 1800 Hadith in there whereas the other books have whether it's going to be seven thousand six thousand four thousand ten thousand twelve thousand and so this is a small collection of Hadith therefore it's not of equal measure that may be a reason another reason is as well that Imam Malik speaks in the model

[30:23] and you say well what's the problem with him speaking doesn't Imam turmidi speaks in history he says well such and such scholar acted according to this Hadith such and such didn't he says well such and such person is weak such and such person so that's fine you know it's not a uh I would I would sometimes speaks in his uh Imam bukhari sometimes speaks in his book so what's the problem with speaking well it's not speaking per se it's what's being spoke [Laughter]

[31:01] Imam Malik brings the Hadith not always but he brings the Hadith and then he says we don't act according to this Hadith he says he says you know this Hadith we in our city and here I ask you what city in our city in this city in the one that counts

## Cite

Mufti Abu Layth Archive, segment VhqVM47pNS0/s/7. https://muftiabulayth.org/r/vhqvm47pns0/s/7/

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