Jami' at-Tirmidhi
Jami` at-Tirmidhi 1988
حَدَّثَنَا ابْنُ أَبِي عُمَرَ، حَدَّثَنَا سُفْيَانُ، عَنْ أَبِي الزِّنَادِ، عَنِ الأَعْرَجِ، عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ " إِيَّاكُمْ وَالظَّنَّ فَإِنَّ الظَّنَّ أَكْذَبُ الْحَدِيثِ " . قَالَ أَبُو عِيسَى هَذَا حَدِيثٌ حَسَنٌ صَحِيحٌ . قَالَ وَسَمِعْتُ عَبْدَ بْنَ حُمَيْدٍ يَذْكُرُ عَنْ بَعْضِ أَصْحَابِ سُفْيَانَ قَالَ قَالَ سُفْيَانُ الظَّنُّ ظَنَّانِ فَظَنٌّ إِثْمٌ وَظَنٌّ لَيْسَ بِإِثْمٍ فَأَمَّا الظَّنُّ الَّذِي هُوَ إِثْمٌ فَالَّذِي يَظُنُّ ظَنًّا وَيَتَكَلَّمُ بِهِ وَأَمَّا الظَّنُّ الَّذِي لَيْسَ بِإِثْمٍ فَالَّذِي يَظُنُّ وَلاَ يَتَكَلَّمُ بِهِ .
Unreviewed translation. All hadiths in this collection are available in five languages. Titles and introductions may remain in Arabic.
Ibn Abi ‘Umar narrated to us: Sufyan narrated to us, from Abu al-Zinad, from al-A‘raj, from Abu Hurayrah, that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “Beware of suspicion, for suspicion is the most false of speech.” Abu ‘Isa said: This hadith is hasan sahih. He said: I heard ‘Abd ibn Humayd mention, from one of Sufyan’s companions, that Sufyan said: “There are two kinds of suspicion: one that is sinful and one that is not sinful. The sinful kind is when someone forms a suspicion and speaks of it; the kind that is not sinful is when someone forms a suspicion but does not speak of it.”
Notes and open questions — unreviewed
Sufyan’s explanation is reported through an unnamed companion; the source distinguishes suspicion voiced aloud from suspicion kept unspoken.
أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ " إِيَّاكُمْ وَالظَّنَّ فَإِنَّ الظَّنَّ أَكْذَبُ الْحَدِيثِ " .
The warning uses zann, a broad term for suspicion or supposition; the commentary then distinguishes sinful and non-sinful forms by whether one speaks of it.
Does “suspicion” convey the term consistently across the warning and Sufyan’s explanation?
قَالَ وَسَمِعْتُ عَبْدَ بْنَ حُمَيْدٍ يَذْكُرُ عَنْ بَعْضِ أَصْحَابِ سُفْيَانَ قَالَ قَالَ سُفْيَانُ الظَّنُّ ظَنَّانِ فَظَنٌّ إِثْمٌ وَظَنٌّ لَيْسَ بِإِثْمٍ فَأَمَّا الظَّنُّ الَّذِي هُوَ إِثْمٌ فَالَّذِي يَظُنُّ ظَنًّا وَيَتَكَلَّمُ بِهِ وَأَمَّا الظَّنُّ الَّذِي لَيْسَ بِإِثْمٍ فَالَّذِي يَظُنُّ وَلاَ يَتَكَلَّمُ بِهِ .
Sufyan’s two-part explanation is transmitted through an unnamed one of his companions, as reported by ‘Abd ibn Humayd.
Is the attribution kept at the same level of specificity as the source?