Sahih al-Bukhari
Sahih al-Bukhari 11
حَدَّثَنَا سَعِيدُ بْنُ يَحْيَى بْنِ سَعِيدٍ الْقُرَشِيِّ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا أَبِي قَالَ، حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو بُرْدَةَ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ أَبِي بُرْدَةَ، عَنْ أَبِي بُرْدَةَ، عَنْ أَبِي مُوسَى ـ رضى الله عنه ـ قَالَ قَالُوا يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ أَىُّ الإِسْلاَمِ أَفْضَلُ قَالَ " مَنْ سَلِمَ الْمُسْلِمُونَ مِنْ لِسَانِهِ وَيَدِهِ ".
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Sa'id ibn Yahya ibn Sa'id al-Qurashi narrated to us. He said: My father narrated to us. He said: Abu Burda ibn Abdullah ibn Abi Burda narrated to us, from Abu Burda, from Abu Musa (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: They asked, ‘O Messenger of Allah, which aspect of Islam is best?’ He replied: ‘The one from whose tongue and hand the Muslims are safe.’
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
The English witness recasts the question as asking which person is the best Muslim. The Arabic literally asks which Islam is best; ‘which aspect of Islam’ makes the implied subject readable without changing it into a question about a person.
أَىُّ الإِسْلاَمِ أَفْضَلُ
The elliptical Arabic question can be understood as asking which practice or aspect of Islam is best; the witness paraphrases it as asking which Muslim is best.
Should the English retain the question about the best aspect of Islam, or follow the witness's person-focused paraphrase?