Sunan Ibn Majah
The Book of the Sunnah
كتاب المقدمة
Chapter 5
مَنْ حَدَّثَ عَنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ـ صلى الله عليه وسلم ـ حَدِيثًا وَهُوَ يُرَى أَنَّهُ كَذِبٌ
Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shaybah narrated to us: Waki narrated to us, from Sufyan, from Habib ibn Abi Thabit, from Maymun ibn Abi Shabib, from al-Mughirah ibn Shubah, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Whoever narrates a report from me while believing it to be false is one of the two liars.
Translation notes
This is another chain for the warning that a person who transmits a report while believing it false is one of the two liars.
Chapter 6
اتِّبَاعِ سُنَّةِ الْخُلَفَاءِ الرَّاشِدِينَ الْمَهْدِيِّينَ
Abdullah ibn Ahmad ibn Bashir ibn Dhakwan al-Dimashqi narrated to us: al-Walid ibn Muslim narrated to us: Abdullah ibn al-Ala—meaning Ibn Zabr—narrated to us: Yahya ibn Abi al-Mutaa narrated to me: I heard al-Irbad ibn Sariyah say: One day the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) stood among us and delivered a profound admonition that made hearts tremble and eyes shed tears. It was said: Messenger of Allah, you have admonished us as if bidding farewell, so give us a parting charge. He said: I enjoin upon you reverence for Allah, and listening and obedience, even if [your leader is] an Abyssinian slave. You will see severe discord after me, so hold fast to my Sunnah and the Sunnah of the rightly guided caliphs. Bite down on it with your molars. Beware of newly introduced matters, for every innovation is misguidance.
Translation notes
The Arabic includes the source identification meaning Ibn Zabr in the chain. It describes a farewell-like admonition, then gives commands to fear Allah, listen and obey, adhere firmly to the Prophets Sunnah and that of the rightly guided caliphs, and avoid newly introduced matters. The image of biting down with the molars is retained.
Ismail ibn Bishr ibn Mansur and Ishaq ibn Ibrahim al-Sawwaq both narrated to us: Abd al-Rahman ibn Mahdi narrated to us, from Muawiyah ibn Salih, from Damrah ibn Habib, from Abd al-Rahman ibn Amr al-Sulami, who heard al-Irbad ibn Sariyah say: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) admonished us with a counsel that brought tears to our eyes and made our hearts tremble. We said: Messenger of Allah, this is the counsel of one bidding farewell. What charge do you leave with us? He said: I have left you upon the clear, radiant path, whose night is like its day. No one will deviate from it after me except one who is doomed. Whoever among you lives will see much discord, so adhere to what you know of my Sunnah and the Sunnah of the rightly guided caliphs. Bite down on it with your molars. And adhere to obedience, even if [your leader is] an Abyssinian slave. For the believer is like a camel with a nose ring: wherever it is led, it follows.
Translation notes
The Arabic includes the image of a clear radiant path whose night is like its day, says only the doomed will deviate from it, and compares the believer to a nose-ringed camel that follows wherever it is led. These images and the obedience instruction are fully retained.
Yahya ibn Hakim narrated to us: Abd al-Malik ibn al-Sabbah al-Mismai narrated to us: Thawr ibn Yazid narrated to us, from Khalid ibn Madan, from Abd al-Rahman ibn Amr, from al-Irbad ibn Sariyah, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) led us in the dawn prayer, then turned to us and admonished us with a profound admonition. He mentioned something similar.
Translation notes
The Arabic is an abbreviated parallel report. It states that the Prophet led the dawn prayer, turned toward the people, delivered a profound admonition, and mentioned something similar to the preceding account. The details of that earlier admonition are not repeated in this source block.
Chapter 7
اجْتِنَابِ الْبِدَعِ وَالْجَدَلِ
Suwayd ibn Said and Ahmad ibn Thabit al-Jahdari both narrated to us: Abd al-Wahhab al-Thaqafi narrated to us, from Jafar ibn Muhammad, from his father, from Jabir ibn Abdullah, who said: When the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) preached, his eyes reddened, his voice rose, and his anger intensified, as though he were warning an army, saying: They may attack you in the morning or evening. He would say: I and the Hour have been sent like these two, and he joined his index and middle fingers. Then he would say: To proceed: The best of matters is the Book of Allah, the best guidance is the guidance of Muhammad, the worst matters are those newly introduced, and every innovation is misguidance. He would also say: Whoever leaves property, it is for his family; whoever leaves a debt or dependents, then their responsibility is upon me and their return is to me.
Translation notes
The Arabic includes the Prophets preaching manner, the comparison of his mission and the Hour to two joined fingers, the Book and Prophetic guidance, and the final statement that property goes to the family while debts or dependents are taken up by him. The English witness says newly invented matters and dependent children; the Arabic wording is retained without narrowing dependents to children.
Muhammad ibn Ubayd ibn Maymun al-Madani, Abu Ubayd, narrated to us: My father narrated to us, from Muhammad ibn Jafar ibn Abi Kathir, from Musa ibn Uqbah, from Abu Ishaq, from Abu al-Ahwas, from Abdullah ibn Masud, that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: There are only two things: speech and guidance. The best speech is the speech of Allah, and the best guidance is the guidance of Muhammad. Beware of newly introduced matters, for the worst matters are those newly introduced; every newly introduced matter is an innovation, and every innovation is misguidance. Beware lest the passage of time grow long for you and your hearts grow hard. What is coming is near; only what is not coming is far away. The wretched person is one who was wretched in his mothers womb, and the fortunate person is one who takes admonition from another. Fighting a believer is disbelief, and reviling him is disobedience. It is not lawful for a Muslim to shun his brother for more than three days. Beware of lying, for lying is never sound, whether in earnest or in jest. A man must not promise his child and then fail to keep the promise. Lying leads to wickedness, and wickedness leads to the Fire. Truthfulness leads to righteousness, and righteousness leads to Paradise. It is said of the truthful person: He spoke truthfully and acted righteously. And it is said of the liar: He lied and acted wickedly. A person continues to lie until he is recorded with Allah as a liar.
Translation notes
The Arabic enumerates both speech and guidance, then a long series of warnings and contrasts. The witness renders fighting a believer as disbelief and reviling him as immorality; the Arabic terms are kufr and fusuq, translated here as disbelief and disobedience. The source includes the statement about a person being wretched in the womb and does not qualify it; that wording is preserved.
Muhammad ibn Khalid ibn Khidash narrated to us: Ismail ibn Ulayyah narrated to us: Ayyub narrated to us. (Another chain:) Ahmad ibn Thabit al-Jahdari and Yahya ibn Hakim both narrated to us: Abd al-Wahhab narrated to us: Ayyub narrated to us, from Abdullah ibn Abi Mulaykah, from Aishah, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) recited this verse: He is the One who sent down the Book to you; in it are verses that are clear and definitive—they are the foundation of the Book—and others that are ambiguous... up to His saying: None take heed except people of understanding. [Quran 3:7] Then he said: Aishah, when you see those who dispute about it, they are the ones Allah meant, so beware of them.
Translation notes
The Arabic gives two chains, the second specifying Ayyub from Abdullah ibn Abi Mulaykah from Aishah. The report quotes Quran 3:7 from its opening through the clause about people of understanding, with an ellipsis marking the intervening wording; this editorial span is made explicit.
Ali ibn al-Mundhir narrated to us: Muhammad ibn Fudayl narrated to us. (Another chain:) Hawtharah ibn Muhammad narrated to us: Muhammad ibn Bishr narrated to us. Both said: Hajjaj ibn Dinar narrated to us, from Abu Ghalib, from Abu Umamah, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: No people ever went astray after guidance upon which they had been, except that they were given disputation. Then he recited this verse: Rather, they are a contentious people.
Translation notes
The Arabic contains two source routes converging at Hajjaj ibn Dinar. It uses jadl for argumentative disputation and then quotes a Quranic phrase describing them as a contentious people. The English witness paraphrases jadl as indulging in disputes.
Dawud ibn Sulayman al-Askari narrated to us: Muhammad ibn Ali, Abu Hashim ibn Abi Khidash al-Mawsili, narrated to us: He said: Muhammad ibn Mihsan narrated to us, from Ibrahim ibn Abi Ablah, from Abdullah ibn al-Daylami, from Hudhayfah, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Allah does not accept from a person of innovation any fasting, prayer, charity, Hajj, Umrah, jihad, sarf, or adl. He leaves Islam as a hair leaves dough.
Translation notes
The Arabic names sarf and adl without explaining them; the English witness interprets these as obligatory and voluntary acts, but that gloss is not explicit in the Arabic. The terms are therefore transliterated and the ambiguity retained. The final simile says a hair exits dough.
Abdullah ibn Said narrated to us: Bishr ibn Mansur al-Khayyat narrated to us, from Abu Zayd, from Abu al-Mughirah, from Abdullah ibn Abbas, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Allah refuses to accept the deed of a person of innovation until he abandons his innovation.
Translation notes
The Arabic refers to the persons deed and says acceptance is refused until he leaves his innovation. The English witness adds good deeds, while the Arabic simply says deed or action.
Abd al-Rahman ibn Ibrahim al-Dimashqi and Harun ibn Ishaq both narrated to us: Ibn Abi Fudayk narrated to us, from Salamah ibn Wardan, from Anas ibn Malik, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Whoever abandons lying while it is false will have a palace built for him in the outskirts of Paradise. Whoever abandons disputation while he is in the right will have one built for him in its middle. Whoever makes his character good will have one built for him in its highest reaches.
Translation notes
The Arabic gives three escalating rewards: in the outskirts, middle, and highest reaches of Paradise. It distinguishes abandoning lies while in falsehood from leaving argument even when one is right, then good character. The palace is explicit in the first clause and carried elliptically in the next two.
Chapter 8
اجْتِنَابِ الرَّأْىِ وَالْقِيَاسِ
Abu Kurayb, Muhammad ibn al-Ala, narrated to us: Abdullah ibn Idris, Abdah, Abu Muawiyah, Abdullah ibn Numayr, and Muhammad ibn Bishr narrated to us. (Another chain:) Suwayd ibn Said narrated to us: Ali ibn Mushir, Malik ibn Anas, Hafs ibn Maysarah, and Shuaib ibn Ishaq narrated to us. They all narrated from Hisham ibn Urwah, from his father, from Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-As, that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Allah does not take knowledge away by snatching it from the people. Rather, He takes knowledge away by taking the scholars. When He leaves no scholar, people take ignorant leaders; they are asked, and they give legal opinions without knowledge. Thus they go astray and lead others astray.
Translation notes
The Arabic lists several narrators on each of two routes before converging at Hisham ibn Urwah. The report distinguishes knowledge being removed from peoples hearts from its removal through the death of scholars, and describes the resulting uninformed leadership and legal opinions.
Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shaybah narrated to us: Abdullah ibn Yazid narrated to us, from Said ibn Abi Ayyub: Abu Hani, Humayd ibn Hani al-Khawlani, narrated to me, from Abu Uthman, Muslim ibn Yasar, from Abu Hurayrah, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Whoever is given a legal opinion without sound basis, its sin is only upon the one who gave him that opinion.
Translation notes
The Arabic characterizes the legal opinion as ghayr thabit, not firmly established. It places the sin of giving such an unsupported opinion on the one who issued it.
Muhammad ibn al-Ala al-Hamdani narrated to us: Rushdin ibn Sad and Jafar ibn Awn narrated to me, from Ibn Anam—namely al-Ifriqi—from Abd al-Rahman ibn Rafi, from Abdullah ibn Amr, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Knowledge consists of three things; whatever is beyond them is extra: a clear verse, an established Sunnah, or a just obligation.
Translation notes
The Arabic lists a clear verse, an established Sunnah, and a just obligation. The English witness interprets the final phrase as rulings by which inheritance is divided fairly, but inheritance is not specified in the Arabic, so that gloss is omitted. The chain itself identifies Ibn Anam as al-Ifriqi.
Al-Hasan ibn Hammad, Sajjada, narrated to us: Yahya ibn Said al-Umawi narrated to us, from Muhammad ibn Said ibn Hassan, from Ubadah ibn Nusayy, from Abd al-Rahman ibn Ghanm: Muadh ibn Jabal narrated to us, saying: When the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) sent me to Yemen, he said: Do not judge or decide except on the basis of what you know. If a matter is unclear to you, pause until it becomes clear, or write to me about it.
Translation notes
The Arabic instructs Muadh not to judge or decide without knowledge and, if a matter is unclear, to pause until it is clarified or write to the Prophet. The English witness appends the grade label Mawdu, which is not present in the Arabic text and is not included in the translated report.
Suwayd ibn Said narrated to us: Ibn Abi al-Rijal narrated to us, from Abd al-Rahman ibn Amr al-Awzai, from Abdah ibn Abi Lubabah, from Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-As, who said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) say: The affairs of the Children of Israel remained upright until the muwalladun arose among them—the children of captives from other peoples. They spoke according to opinion, so they went astray and led others astray.
Translation notes
The Arabic describes the muwalladun as children of captives from other nations or peoples; the English witness narrows this to children of female slaves. The translation retains the broader wording of the Arabic and the two consequences: they strayed and led others astray.
Chapter 9
فِي الإِيمَانِ
Ali ibn Muhammad al-Tanafisi narrated to us: Waki narrated to us: Sufyan narrated to us, from Suhayl ibn Abi Salih, from Abdullah ibn Dinar, from Abu Salih, from Abu Hurayrah, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Faith has sixty-some or seventy branches. The lowest of them is removing harmful things from the road, and the highest is saying There is no god but Allah. Modesty is a branch of faith. Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shaybah narrated to us: Abu Khalid al-Ahmar narrated to us, from Ibn Ajlan. (Another chain:) Amr ibn Rafi narrated to us: Jarir narrated to us, from Suhayl. Both routes lead from Abdullah ibn Dinar, from Abu Salih, from Abu Hurayrah, from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), with a similar report.
Translation notes
The Arabic gives a numerical variant, sixty-some or seventy branches, rather than a fixed total. It describes the highest branch as the declaration There is no god but Allah and separately identifies modesty as one branch. The second part preserves two alternative routes and states that they carry a similar wording.
Sahl ibn Abi Sahl and Muhammad ibn Abdullah ibn Yazid narrated to us; they said: Sufyan narrated to us, from al-Zuhri, from Salim, from his father, who said: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) heard a man admonishing his brother about modesty, and said, “Modesty is a branch of faith.”
Translation notes
The Arabic states that the Prophet heard the man; the English witness has a grammatical error (“said heard”) and reverses the subject of the final speech.
Suwayd ibn Sa'id narrated to us; 'Ali ibn Mushir narrated to us, from al-A'mash. (H) 'Ali ibn Maymun al-Raqqi narrated to us; Sa'id ibn Maslamah narrated to us, from al-A'mash, from Ibrahim, from 'Alqamah, from 'Abdullah, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "No one with a mustard seed's weight of arrogance in his heart will enter Paradise, and no one with a mustard seed's weight of faith in his heart will enter the Fire."
Translation notes
The Arabic preserves two transmission routes, with the first ending at al-Aamash before the shared continuation; both routes are rendered. Fire translates al-Nar; the witness uses Hell.
Muhammad ibn Yahya narrated to us; 'Abd al-Razzaq narrated to us; Ma'mar informed us, from Zayd ibn Aslam, from 'Ata ibn Yasar, from Abu Sa'id al-Khudri, who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: When Allah has delivered the believers from the Fire and they are safe, none of you pleads more forcefully with another over a right owed to him in this world than the believers will plead with their Lord for their brothers who were admitted to the Fire. They will say: Our Lord, our brothers used to pray, fast, and perform Hajj with us, yet You admitted them to the Fire. He will say: Go and bring out those among them whom you recognize. They will come to them and recognize them by their faces; the Fire will not consume their faces. Some will have been seized by the Fire up to the middle of their shins, and some up to their ankles. They will bring them out and say: Our Lord, we have brought out those You commanded us to bring out. Then He will say: Bring out whoever has a dinar's weight of faith in his heart, then whoever has half a dinar's weight, then whoever has a mustard-seed's weight. Abu Sa'id said: Whoever does not believe this, let him recite: Indeed, Allah does not wrong even the weight of an atom; and if it is a good deed, He multiplies it and gives from Himself a great reward.
Translation notes
The full chain, sequence of faith thresholds, and concluding Quranic citation are retained. The English witness renders the citation with parenthetical alternatives; the Arabic quotes the verse without them.