According to the Qur'an Muslims have possessions and lead a beautiful life in abundance and blessings

In many verses of the Qur'an Allah promises the dominion of the
morality of Islam all overthe world. The promise of our All-Mighty
Lord is true and Allah never failsto keep His promise.
Those who believe in Allah also believe that Allah's promise will
absolutely come true. Because our All-Mighty Allah gives the news of
the dominion of the morality of Islam over the world and promises it,
what befalls to sincerebelievers is to pray for its realization by
heart, demand it and strive for it with all their might. Believing
that morality of Islam will reign and making effort for the
realization of this blessed event is obligatory for every Muslim who
abides by the Qur'an. In one verse our All-Mighty Allah says:
Allah has promised thoseof you who believe and do right actions that
He will make them successors in the land as He made those before them
successors, and willfirmly establish for them their religion with
which He is pleased and give them, in place of their fear, security.
'Theyworship Me, not associating anything with Me.' Any who are
unbelivers after that, such people are deviators. (Surat an-Nur, 55)
Some other verses in which Allah promises thedominion of the morality
of Islam over the world are as follows:
Allah has written, 'I will be victorious, I and and My Messengers.'
Allah is Most Strong, Almighty. (Surat al-Mujadala, 21)
They desire to extinguish Allah's Light with their mouths but Allah
will perfect His Light, though the unbelievers hate it. It is He Who
sent His Messenger with guidance and the Religion of Truth to exaltit
over every other religion, though the associaters hate it.
(Suratas-Saff, 8-9)
They desire to extinguish Allah's Light with their mouths. But Allah
refuses to do other than perfect His Light, even though the kafirun
detest it. It is He Who sent His Messenger with guidance and the
Religion of Truth to exaltit over every other deen,even though the
associaters detest it. (Surat a-Tawba, 32-33)
Allah confirms the Truth by His words, even though the evildoers hate
it. (Surah Yunus, 82)
Those before them plotted but all plotting belongs to Allah. He knows
what each self earns, and the unbelievers will soon know who has the
Ultimate Abode. (Surat ar-Ra'd, 42)
We destroyed generations before you when they did wrong. Their
Messengers brought them the clear signs, but they were never going to
have faith. That is how We repay evildoers. Then We appointed you
after them to be successors onthe earth so We might observe how you
would act. (Surah Yunus, 13-14)
That those people of pure natural belief in Allah who do not associate
any partners toHim will be the inheritors of this world is a divine
Law which is stressed in many verses of the Qur'an:
We wrote down in the Psalms, after the Reminder came: 'It is My
servants who are righteous who will inherit the earth.' (Surat
al-Anbiya, 105)
We will leave you the land to live in after them. That is the reward
of those who fear My station and fear My threat.' They asked for
Allah's victory, and everyobdurate tyrant failed. (Surah Ibrahim,
14-15)
Moses said to his people,'Seek help in Allah and be steadfast. The
earth belongs to Allah. He bequeathes it to any of His slaves He
wills. The successful outcome is forthose who fear [and respect
Allah].' They said,'We suffered harm before you came to us and after
you came to us.' He said, 'It may well be that your Lord is going to
destroy your enemy and make you the successors in the land so that He
can see how you behave.' (Surat al-A'raf, 128-129)
We destroyed generations before you when they did wrong. Their
Messengers brought them the clear signs, but they were never going to
have faith. That is how We repay evildoers. Then We appointed you
after them to be khalifs on theearth so We might observe how you would
act. (Surah Yunus, 13-14)
Rather We hurl the truth against falsehood and it cuts right through
it andit vanishes clean away! Woe without end for you for what you
portray! (Surat al-Anbiya, 18)

Ideal character of Muslim women

In the Qur'an, Allah informs us how belief benefits a woman:
Do not marry women who associate [others with Allah] until they
believe. A slave girl who is one of the believers is better for you
than a woman who associates [others with Allah], even though she may
attract you. And do not marry men who associate [others with Allah]
until they believe. A slave whois one of the believers is better for
you than a man who associates [others with Allah], even though he may
attract you. Such people call you to the Fire, whereas Allah calls
you, with His permission, to the Garden and forgiveness. He makes His
Signs clear to people so that, hopefully, they will pay heed. (Surat
al-Baqara: 221)
Allah reveals that belief, fear and respect of Allah,and Islamic
morality are the foremost causes of the believers' strength
ofcharacter and virtue. Belief makes all of a person's qualities
meaningful. In addition, the Qur'an's morality helps women, and
everyone else, to acquirea most strong, solid, and virtuous character.
As Allah revealed in the verse, "No indeed! We have given them that by
which they are remembered [i.e. their honor, eminence and dignity]"
(Surat al-Mu'minun: 71), this morality gives people their dignity and
honor. Therefore, women who live by this morality will be respected
and enjoy their deserved honor and dignity.
As we mentioned earlier,Allah has not determinedseparate characters
for men and women and therefore calls on all people to abide by one
Muslim character. Therefore, Muslims fear and respect Allah, seek His
good pleasure, and seek only to win the Hereafter, in the full
knowledge that this worldly life is temporary and that he or she will
die one day.
Muslim Women Submit to God:
Muslim women believe in Allah with a true heart, submit completelyto
Him, are aware that there is no other deity, that He is the Lord of
every being and thing, and that He is All-Powerful. Therefore, she
fears and respects only Him and seeks to win only His good pleasure.
She worships only Him, accepts only Him as her closest friend,and
seeks only His help. She also knows that onlyHe can direct good and
bad toward her, and so lives in the full knowledge that she is
dependent on Him. She knows that He keeps heralive, provides and
caresfor her, and protects andguards her. For these reasons, she has
no expectations of other people.
She believes in Allah without the slightest doubt in her heart for her
whole life, never losing heart or belief regardless of the
circumstances. She knows how to be grateful and content with her
closeness to Him both when her life is good and when she is undergoing
difficulties. She is in a state of constant submission, certain of our
Lord's love, compassion, forgiveness, and providence.
When she encounters a problem, she knows thatAllah has provided a
solution in the Qur'an, and that what matters most is her continued
sincere love, submission,and trust in Allah. She is certain of Allah's
promise that He creates everything according to His justice and with
wisdom and goodness.
Even if her problems seem to go on forever, she never surrenders to
hopelessness or worries when His help will come.Content with what He
has sent her way, she maintains her patience and submission, knowing
that somethinggood will come out of it. She remembers what theQur'an
says about those who abandon their belief in such times. In addition,
she recites "My Lord is with me and will guide me" (Surat
ash-Shu'ara': 62), just as the Prophets did when faced with hardship.
Throughout her life, her profound faith enables her to see Allah's
compassion, closeness, love, help, and friendship at all times.
This superior character becomes even more distinctive when compared
with that of unbelieving women. Some unbelieving women do not show the
appropriate degree of submission in their encounters, because they
ignore the fact that Allah creates everything and inserts much wisdom
and goodness hidden therein. One of the best-known characteristics of
such women is their impatience, lack of determination, panic, and
throwing tantrums when experiencing various hardships.
For this reason, and to save themselves the hassle, men often try to
keep women away from potentially troublesome situations. Movies and
novels are full of such stories. Since they do notplace their trust in
Allah and do not submit to Him, they cannot find the patience and
resolution to endure hard times. In fact, their strength is in direct
proportion to the size of the gain they can expect from working
through these difficulties.
Believing women derive their strength from theirbelief and their
determination to win Allah's good pleasure. Therefore, their
resistance can be quite powerful. The Qur'an reveals this truth in the
following verse: "Allah's guidance, that is true guidance. We are
commanded to submit asMuslims to the Lord of allthe worlds" (Surat
al-An'am: 71). Allah givesgood news to those whosubmit to Him:
Those who submit themselves completely toAllah and do good have
grasped the Firmest Handhold. The end resultof all affairs is with
Allah.(Surah Luqman: 22)
Not so! All who submit themselves completely toAllah and are
good-doers will find their reward with their Lord. They will feel no
fear and will know no sorrow. (Surat al-Baqara:112)
Muslim Women Have Great Ideals:
One of the unbelievers' most misguided character traits is the
restrictions that they placed on people's ideals, thoughts, and
lifestyle. In the case of women, society tells them that they have
certain duties and responsibilities that theyare expected to fulfill
to the best of their ability. Usually, they are not encouraged to
acquire different ideals or develop their personalities. Only when
women become aware of this reality do they begin to perceive the need
to seek greater ideals, widen their horizon, and develop their
personalities.
rimarily, women are expected to provide for and cater to their
families' needs and raisetheir children. Otherwise, they focus
onthemselves, according tothe conditioning they received when young.
They concentrate on their physical appearance, hair style, make-up,
clothing and fashion in general; keeping their homes clean; and
talking with their friends. While there is nothing wrong with such
activities, it is wrong to limit their livesjust to these tasks
without even knowing why this is so.
Allah created men and women for a purpose and revealed their
responsibilities in the Qur'an. Most importantly, each woman is
responsible to our Lord, for He created her, gave her life, protected
and watched over her, and provided for her. Men and womenare required
to lead the moral life prescribed by Allah, worship and serve Him, and
to win His goodpleasure. They are required to tell people who are far
from the happy and contented life of following the Qur'an's values
about Islam's values and to make a genuine effort tohelp them draw
closer toAllah's pleasure, mercy, and Paradise. They must strive to
save people from negative frames of mind, and from suffering under the
influence of the chaos and disorder, all of which are presented by
Satan and thus are devoid of true love, respect, and friendship.
All believers are obliged to help and guide those who are weak and
distressed to His path:
What reason could you have for not fighting in the Way of Allah-for
those men, women, and children who are oppressed and say: "Our Lord,
take us out of this city whose inhabitants are wrongdoers! Give us a
protector from You! Give us a helper from You!?" (Surat an-Nisa': 75)
Allah further reminds Muslims that they are obliged to assist orphans,
people who are stranded, and other needy people:
Worship Allah and do not associate anything with Him. Be good to your
parents and relatives, orphans and the very poor, neighborswho are
related to you and neighbors who are not related to you, and
companions, travelers, and your servants. Allah does not love anyone
vain or boastful. (Surat an-Nisa': 36)
A Muslim woman is aware of all these responsibilities and so does not
focus only on herself. Rather, she does her best to solve the problems
around the world, such as helping people who are suffering, fighting
infectious diseases, working with children displaced or orphaned by
war and conflict, and taking care of the elderly and other women as if
they were her own problems.
She gives her full attention to every matter in her daily life,
because she knows that the truly important thingis to win Allah's good
pleasure, live the Qur'an's morality, and spread this morality in
order to bring true contentment and happiness to all others. For this
reason, she acts in the knowledge that what she encounters each day is
not so important when put intothe overall context of what she was
created to do.
Muslim Women Are Dignified:
... And the soul and whatproportioned and inspired it with depravity
or heedfulness; he who purifies it has succeeded, he who covers it up
has failed. (Surat ash-Shams: 7-10)
The above verses warn people about the selfish ego that, when not
brought under control, will lead them to limitless evil. A person's
fear and respect of Allah,as well as his or her belief in the
Hereafter, gives each person the strength and reason to resist these
temptations.
Without this awareness, people will follow their desires and not worry
about their meeting with Allah in the Hereafter, where they will be
held accountable for their deeds. If his ego demands anger, jealousy,
or ill-treatmentof someone else, he will indulge it. If her selfish
ego encourages her to vent her anger or jealous frustration with
insinuations, mockery, slander, lies, conspiracies, or hypocritical
behavior, she will oblige it withoutgiving it a second thought. Such
people will commit all of these sins without reservation,because they
believe that they will never haveto account for their deeds.
Allah, however, reveals that all of these activitiesare unconstrained
evils called for by the selfish ego. When people act onthese impulses,
things just get worse. People who cannot control theiremotions, even
when they know that what they are doing is wrong,show that they are
both weak and ignore their conscience. In other words, they seem to
grow smaller. It is debasing to be unable toact maturely or respond
rationally when their selfish egos suggest otherwise. As Allah
reveals, the dignifying and rightful response to such evil suggestions
is to ignore them and act conscientiously. This character trait needs
to be worked on, for eventually it will earn other people's respect
and love and raise the person's ranks in His eyes, as well as in the
eyes of other people.
Muslim women have enough dignity and character to reject such debasing
behavior for small gains. Allah informs us of the conspiring nature of
unbelieving women: "Hesaw the shirt torn at the back and said: 'The
source of this is women'sdeviousness. Without a doubt your guile is
very great'" (Surah Yusuf: 28).Unbelieving women often try to resolve
situations by conspiring, intriguing, or lying instead of seeking
rational solutions. Indulging Satan's suggestions, they fall back on
hypocrisy, cowardice, or devious methods. Believing women, on the
other hand, resolve their problems by honesty, openness, and
sincerity, for their awareness of Allah totally removes them from such
inappropriate behavior.
Unbelieving women alsoare characterized by envy. Allah mentions
envious people and warns others about theirevil: "Say: 'I seek refuge
with the Lord of Daybreak, from the evil of what He has created and
from the evil of the darkness when it gathers, and from the evil of
women who blowon knots and from the evil of an envier when he envies'"
(Surat al-Falaq: 1-5). Some unbelieving women are prone to such
behavior, which causes distrust, tantrums, broken relationships, and
endless arguments, all ofwhich result in an unfulfilled and unhappy
life. In addition, they cause great suffering and damage to themselves
and to those around them. Believing women, however, will disregard
this aspect of human ego, knowing that it leads to great losses in
this life as well as in the next.
Mockery is another character defect of unbelieving women. In the
following verse Allahwarns them against suchbehavior: "O you who
believe! People should not ridicule others who may be better than
themselves; nor should any women ridicule other women who may be
better than themselves. And do not find fault with one another or
insult each other with derogatory nicknames" (Surat al-Hujurat: 11).
Those women who are shaped by the unbelief that rules their societies
do not hesitate to ridicule people for their shortcomings or to
mockothers, because they do not think of the Hereafter. They do not
consider this behavior aswrong, but rather as a kind of humor. Often
thismockery is not even verbal, but is expressed by making faces,
rolling one's eyes, imitating their mannerisms, or whispering about
them. Believing women shun such activities, because they know that
Allah requires them to live according to the Qur'an'smorality.
In another verse, Allah reminds people not to speculate or gossip
about others: "O you who believe! Avoid most suspicion. Indeed, some
suspicion is a crime. Do not spy and do not backbite one another.
Would any of you like to eat his brother's dead flesh? No, you would
hate it. And have fear of Allah. Allah is Ever-Returning, Most
Merciful" (Surat al-Hujurat: 12).
Believing women live dignified lives. Instead of mocking others, they
try to help. They compliment people who are successful, instead
ofsuccumbing to envy and gossip. And, when in the company of
unbelieving people who might somehow offend them, they do not
compromise their integrity or dignity.

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And Allah Knows the Best!

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Published by :->
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Imam Muslim

BIRTH OF IMAM MUSLIM
His name was Abul-Hussain Muslim-bin-Habaj al Nishapuri. He was born
in a distinguished family of Arab Muslims in Khorasanwhich. was a
famous town of Russia. Imam Muslim was born in 817 A.D. corresponding
to theIslamic year 204 A.H. His forefathers occupied prominent
positions during the time of the four Caliphs. He travelled to many
places with the object of learning Hadith,and after completing his
studies in the various centres of learning, he settled at Nishapur. He
spend the rest of his life teaching Hadith.
EDUCATION
Imam Muslim started his studies at the very early age of fourteen
years. In the year 218 A.H. the atmosphere in Nishapur, his
birthplace, was of a religious and knowledge type. Nishapur had great
personalities in this period such as lmaam Rahiwe and lmaam
Zohri.After travelling widely in search of Hadith, he settled in
Nishapur as mentioned above. Imam Muslim was much impressed by the
vast knowledge of Imaam Bukhari (R.A.), in the fieldof Hadith and the
deep insight he possessed on this subject. He therefore attached
himself to Imaam Bukhari (R.A.) up to the end of his life. Imam Muslim
was also an admirer of another great teacher of Hadith, Muhammed bin
Yahya al Dhuli. He attended his lectures regularly. He visited Baghdad
several times and had the opportunity of deliveringlessons there. His
last visitto Baghdad was two years before his death.
IMAM MUSLIM'S TEACHERS
Imam Muslim (R.A.) apart from attending the lessons of Imaam
Bukhariregularly, also attended the lectures of lmaam Ahmad bin
Hambal, Abdullah al Qarri, Qutaibabin Said, Abdullah bin Maslama and
other great Muhadith.
IMAM MUSLIM'S STUDENTS
Imam Muslim (R.A.'s) mostnoted students are Hatim Razi, Ahrnad bin
Salmah, Abu Isa Tinnizi, Abubaker bin Khuzaima and other great
scholars.
CHARACTER AND KNOWLEDGE
Imam Muslim R.A. adhered strictly to the path of righteousness. Hewas
in fact a great saint of a very high calibre. His excellent character
can be well judged from the simple fact that he never ever indulged in
backbiting, a very common human failing. He had a remarkable memory.
Ishaq bin Rahwisaid of Imam Muslim; " I wonder what this personis
going to be?" This was said in his youth. Ishaq Kausar once addressed
lmam Muslim (R.A.) and said; "Your presence in the Muslim community
will always keep it in the good. " Abu Saimah who was a colleague of
lmam Muslim was so attached to him that while lmaam Sahib was busy
compiling the Sahih Muslim, he remained in lmaam Sahib's company for
fifteen years. He never told a lie nor did he ever use vulgar words.
MASLAK
Sheikh Abdul Latief says Imaam Tirmidhi and Imam Muslim were followers
of the Shafee school of thought, although they were both Mujtahids.
Moulana Abdur-Rashid says that Imaam Muslim was a Maliki. The fact is
what was said by Sheikh Tahir Jazari that Imam Muslim is not a Maliki
nor a Hanifi nor a Shafi, but hiscompilation of the sahih Muslim shows
that he was more inclined towards the Shafee school of thought.
SAHIH OF IMAM MUSLIM
Allamah Nabawi (R.A.) says that the Ummat haveaccepted the Bukhari
Shareef and Muslim Shareef as the Kitabs, which follow the Quraan,in
authenicity although the Bukhari is regarded as holding a higher
position than the Sahih Muslim for specific reasons, the sequence
applied in the Muslim is much better than that of Bukhari. It is known
as Al-Jamah as Sahih because it contains the eight different subjects
on Hadis.
AL-JAMAH AS SAHIH MUSLIM
Imam Bukhari (R.A.) concentrated his efforts on compilation of
authentic hadith as well as deduction of Laws from Hadith. This is the
most difficult part to understand in the Bukhari. How he deduced Laws
from the Hadis, Imam Muslim concentrated his efforts only on
compilation of authentic Hadith.

Imam Bukhari

Who is not aware of Hadhrat Imam Bukhari (R.A) and his kitaab
'Saheehul- Bukhari'?
However in this present day, the majority of Muslims use his kitaab to
refer to whenever in need of a supporting reference for their actions
or deeds without the knowledge of the lifeof the great author.
The famous and respected Muhaddith, Imam Bukhari's (R.A) genealogy is
as follows: Mohammed Ibn Ismail Ibn Ibrahim Ibn Mugheera Ibn
Bardizbah.
His father Ismail was a well-known and famous Muhaddith in his time
and had been blessed with the chance of being in the company of Imam
Malik, Hammad Ibn Zaid and also Abdullah Ibn Mubarak (R.A.).
Imam Bukhari (R.A) was born on the blessed day of Friday 13 Shawwaal
194 (A.H). He had lost the use of his eyes in the early stages of his
childhood. However, due to the pious and lengthy prayers of his mother
his eyesight was returned miraculously. The news had reached his
mother through a dream in which Hadhrat Ibrahim (A.S) had appeared and
said, "Due to your bountiful and sacred prayers Allah Ta'alaa has
returned the eyesight of your son."
The dream was proven tobe true in the morning.
Ismail the father of Imam Bukhari (R.A) had died in Imam Bukhari's
childhood, leaving him inthe care of his mother where he was nourished
with love and care. At theage of sixteen after having memorized the
compiled books of Imam Waki and Abdullah Ibn Mubarak, he performed Haj
with his elder brotherand mother. After the completion of Haj Imam
Bukhari remained in Makkah for a further two years and upon reaching
the age of eighteen headed for Medinah, andspent his nights next to
the grave of the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallamcompiling the books
of 'Qadhaayas-Sahaabah Wat-Taabi'een' and 'Taareekhul-Kabeer' withthe
moonlight as a meansof lighting.
Imam Bukhari (R.A) traveled a great deal in order to expand his
knowledge. He made twotrips to Syria and Egypt and stayed six years in
Arabia. He also happenedto return to Kufa, Baghdad and Basra four
times and at times remained there for a period of five years. Also at
Haj season he used to return to Makkah.
Imam Bukhari ( R.A) first started listening and learning ahaadeeth in
205 A.H., and after profiting from the Ulamaa of his town he started
his travels in 210 A.H. There are a great number of teachers from whom
Imam Bukhari (R.A) actually gained his much respected knowledge. It
has been known to be said by Imam Bukhari (R..A) himself that, "I have
written ahaadeeth from 1080 different people all of whom were
scholars." However, he profited most from Ishaq Ibn Rahway and Ali Ibn
Madeeni (R.A). Imam Bukhari (R.A) has narrated ahaadeeth fromUlamaa of
five different categories. He has also narrated ahaadeeth fromhis
students believing in the fact that no person shall be titled a
scholar ofahaadeeth until he has narrated from his elders, youngsters
and contemporaries.
Imam Bukhari (R.A) also had a vast amount of students. It has been
stated that approximately 9 000 people were privileged to sit in his
lessons wherehe taught his Kitab 'Sahih-Ul-Bukhari'. There were
travelers amongst these from all corners of the world in order to
jointhese pious sittings and to be honoured with a glimpse of the
knowledge that he held and which never failed toastonish anybody.
Memory
Imam Bukhari's (R.A) memory was considered to be inhuman, for as soon
as the praying of a hadith would finish Imam Bukhari (R.A) would
repeat it orally. It has been known that in his childhood he had
memorized 2 000 ahaadeeth.
There is one spectacular incident which took place in Baghdad when
Imam Bukhari (R.A) took up temporary residence there. The people
having heard of his many accomplishments, and the attributes which
were issued to him, decided to test him so as to make him prove
himself to them. In order to do that they chose onehundred different
ahaadeeth and changing the testimonials and the text of the ahaadeeth
they were then recited by ten people to Imam Bukhari (R.A).
There was a crowd of gathered people from within and outside the city
to witness the outcome of such a test. When the ahaadeeth were recited
Imam Bukhari (R.A) replied to all in one manner, "Not to my
knowledge." However, after the completion of all the ahaadeeth Imam
Bukhari(R.A) repeated each text and testimonial which had been changed
followed by the correct text and testimonial, suchwas the memory of
ImamBukhari (R.A).
Abstinence
His abstinence was also an attribute which was incomparable and
undauntless. He had beenleft a considerable amount of wealth by his
father however, due to his generosity he spent it all in the path of
Allah so that at the end he had been left with no money forcing him to
spend his day on one or two almonds.
He never took advantage from the generosity of any king or ruler,
although many occasionsarose. Once he fell ill and when his urine was
tested, the results showed that he had not consumed curry for a long
time. Upon questioning he said, "I have not consumed curryfor the last
forty years.
The Governor of Bukhara made a special request for Imam Bukhari (R.A)
tomake daily visits to his home in order to teach his children. Imam
Bukhari (R.A) declined stating that, "I give greater respect to
knowledge rather than to people, for it is they who are in need of the
knowledge and it is they who should seek it."
Upon hearing this the Governor was further annoyed by Imam Bukhari's
(R.A) answer and made a second request that Imam Bukhari (R.A) make a
special arrangement to teach his children alone without anyone else
being present which was also refused by Imam Bukhari (R.A). The
Governor was infuriated by the second refusal andordered Imam Bukhari
(R.A) out of Bukhara. The people of Samarqand hearing of this quickly
issued an invitation to Imam Bukhari (R.A) to come to their town.
However, there was also a difference of opinion within the people of
Samarqand which forced Imam Bukhari (R.A) to turn towards Khartang.
It was here that he spent the month of Ramadaan and in the month of
Shawwaal headed towards Samarqand, where death found him whilst he was
traveling. Imam Bukhari died in themonth of Shawwaal 256 A.H., at the
age of 62.
(To Allah we belong and to Him we shall return.)
Writings
There are a number of books compiled by Imam Bukhari (R.A) however,
Bukhari Shareef has gained great esteem and a high status in the
learning and praying of ahaadeeth.
A specific date has not been known as to when he had started the
writing of Bukhari Shareef, however, we do know that after he had
finished he had shown the manuscript to his teachers Imam Ahmad Ibn
Hanbal (R.A) for approval who died in 241A.H, along with Ibnul-Madeeni
who died in 234A.H, and lastly Ibn Maeen who passed away in 233 A.H.
It has also been recorded that it took the noble writer a period of 16
years to gather the ahaadeeth and to write Bukhari Shareef which sets
the date back to 217 A.H, as the year in which he started the
compilation; Imam Bukhari (R.A) being merely 23 years of age.
Before Imam Bukhari (R.A) had started to collect ahaadeeth there had
actually been quite afew published books of ahaadeeth in which Imam
Bukhari (R.A) foundahaadeeth of both weak and strong testimonials,
which gave him the idea to compile such a kitaab containing ahaadeeth
of only strong testimonials. Ishaaq Ibn Rahway (R.A) agreed to this
idea whichstrengthened Imam Bukhari's (R.A) decision.
Imam Bukhari (R.A) states, "There was once a time during one of our
sessions when my teacher Ishaaq Ibn Rahway remarked it would be
appreciated if someone could collect ahaadeeth which held strong and
reliable testimonials and write them in the form of a kitaab." This
inspired Imam Bukhari (R.A) which was later strengthened by a dreamin
which Imam Bukhari (R.A) was positioned in front of the Prophet
Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallamwith a fan in one hand toaid him in ridding
the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam of all flies which would rest
upon him. Upon waking, Imam Bukhari (R.A) visited several interpreters
for an appropriate interpretation. They all answered that it meant he
would in future cleanse the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallamof all
lies spoken by the people through narrating misunderstood ahaadeeth.
This gave Imam Bukhari (R.A) great comfort and strength once he
started the writing of his kitab Al-Jame-ul-Sahih. The complete name
of the kitaab is 'Al-Jame-ul-Sahih-al-Musnad-min-ahaadeethe-Rasulillah
Sallallahu AlaihiWasallam-wa-sunanihi-wa-Ayyaamihi,' which means a
collected versionof ahaadeeth in the form of a kitaab which relates to
us the sayings, actions and the life of the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi
Wasallam.
Imam Bukhari (R.A) had taken great care in writing the ahaadeeth and
choosing those which met the standards and conditions which he set to
find ahaadeeth with only strong testimonials which included only
reliable and trustworthy testifiers. He spent 16 years in writing the
kitaab, altering it a total of three times. Allaamah Ayni (R.A.)
reports of Ibn Tahir's remark that Imam Bukhari had written
Sahih-ul-Bukhari in his hometown Bukhara. Ibn Bujair however, relates
that he had started his compiling in Makkah, and some have reported of
seeing him in Basra. There is still another differing remark made by
others who comment on seeing him in Madinah to write his kitaab.
However, we find Imam Bukhari (R.A) relating himself that he wrote
Sahih-ul-Bukhari in Masjid -e-Haraam.
Before he actually placed a hadith in his compilation he used to
perform ghusl and prayed to Allah through two rakah nafl prayers
asking for guidance. Imam Bukhari ( R.A) worked such that only after
being completely satisfied with the hadith in question did he give it
a place in his kitaab. Due to this great care which was taken, the
people were heard to say that the ahaadeeth which Imam Bukhari (R.A)
has narrated have been so carefully phrased and with such precision
that it is felt Imam Bukhari (R.A) had heard the ahaadeeth directly
through the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam.
Abu Zaid Marwazi reportsthat I was once asleep in between the 'Black
stone'and 'Maqaam-e-Ibrahim' when the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi
Wasallamappeared in my dream he stated, "O Abu Zaid! For how long
shall you teach Imam Shafi's (R.A) kitaab ? When shall you start the
teaching of my kitaab ?"
I questioned, "O Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam! Which kitaab is
yours?" He replied, "Mohammed Ibn Ismail's Al-Jame-ul-Sahih."
Hafiz Ibn Hajar (R.A) reports that Imam Bukhari (R.A) has kept it of
utmost importance to only narrate ahaadeeth of a strong testimonial
which can be proven by the name of the kitaab. However, along with
this Imam Bukhari (R.A) also made an effort to explainall points which
are difficult to understand, which is the reason why he has given a
plentiful host of meanings for one sentence which may include a word
that is in reality difficult to understand. Imam Bukhari (R.A) has
included within his kitaab the art of narrating ahaadeeth which have
been dividedinto eight different chapters. These chapters contain
subjects which have been sub-titled and are famous for the ingenious
way in which they have been phrased.
Imam Bukhari (R.A) has imposed conditions which all narrators and
testifiers must meet before the hadith can be selected. One condition
requires that all testifiers must have a strong memory.
There are also restrictions made upon this condition :
1. All the Muhadditheen who possess great knowledge of ahaadeethmust
agree upon the testifiers' in question ability to learn and memorize,
along with hisreporting techniques.
2. The testimonial must be complete without any missing testifiers.
3. If there are two different narrators of a hadith related to them
bya Sahaabi then the hadith shall be given a high stage in rank.
However, if only one narrator can be found and the testimonial proves
to be a strong onethen this shall be accepted without any doubts.
Allaamah Nawawi (R.A) relates that all scholars inIslam have agreed
that Sahih-ul-Bukhari has earnestly gained the reward of being the
mostauthentic after the Holy Qur'an.
Sahih-ul-Bukhari consists of 7 275 ahaadeeth including those ahaadeeth
which have been repeated. However,should the repeated ahaadeeth be
excluded then the total number of ahaadeeth will be 4,000.
Hafiz Ibn Hajar counted the ahaadeeth and concluded that there was7
397 where the ahaadeeth have been passed down from the Prophet
Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam directly and with the narrations of Sahabah
or Tabi'een etc.; procuring a total of 9 407ahaadeeth in all. Although
after excluding the repetitions he found 2 353 narrations of the
Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam and 160 sayings of the respected
Sahabah totaling to 2 513narrations in all.
Bukhari Shareef has beenset apart from other compilations, gaining a
distinctive honour due tothe following reasons :
1. Whilst Imam Bukhari (R.A) was engaged in the writing of Bukhari
Shareef, if the need aroseto stop work for a periodof time, then he
would continue his work only after writing 'Bismillah' which is the
reason why 'Bismillah' has been foundto be written in between in many
places.
2. At the end of all chapters Imam Bukhari (R.A) has concluded by use
of a word within the sentence so as to give one a point to ponder upon
and hopefully so that one becomes more aware of the primary objective
of life. e.g. afterthe first chapter he has included a word which
brings one to think of their short life in this world and of their
death.His intention is that one reads Kitaabe-Bukhari with death in
mind.
3. Imam Bukhari (R.A) haspaid great attention towards the beginning
and ending his kitaab with an appropriate hadith. For the first hadith
narrated within the kitaab is based upon intention which gives one the
opportunity to be sincere with himself as to what he intends to gain
from studying the words of the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallamwhich
have been narrated throughout the kitaab. Also the last chapter which
Imam Bukhari (R.A) has chosen to end his kitaab with is
'Kitaab-ul-Tauheed' which gives one a whole host of words which may be
said in order to praise the oneness of Allah; for it is this which is
believedto be the sole aid for all humans when they shall find
themselves in the unbearable position of being reckoned for their sins
on the Day of Judgment.
Hadhrat Shaikh Moulana Muhammad Zakariyya (R.A) has summed up the
above in these words," Imam Bukhari (R.A) has commenced his kitaab
with the hadeeth ' Innamal Aamaal….' and concluded it with
'Kalimataan.

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And Allah Knows the Best!

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Published by :->
M NajimudeeN Bsc- INDIA

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