Certain rules have been laid down to regulate the practice. The verse which abrogates is called Núsikh, and the abrogated verse Mansúkh. Mansúkh verses are of three kinds:-first, where the words and the sense have both been abrogated; secondly, where the letter only is abrogated and the sense remains; thirdly, where the sense is abrogated though the letter remains. Imám Málik gives as an instance of the first kind the verse: "If a son of Adam had two rivers of gold, he would covet yet a third; and if he had three he would covet yet a fourth. Neither shall the belly of a son of Adam be filled, but with dust. God will turn unto him who shall repent." The Imám states that originally this verse was in the Súra (ix.) called Repentance. The verse, called the "verse of stoning" is an illustration of the second kind. It reads: "Abhor not your parents for this would be ingratitude in you. If a man and woman of reputation commit adultery, ye shall stone them both; it is a punishment ordained by God; for God is mighty and wise." The Khalíf Omar says this verse was extant in Muhammad's life-time but that it [60]is now lost. But it is the third class which practically comes into 'Ilm-i-usúl. Authorities differ as to the number of verses abrogated. Sale states that they have been estimated at two hundred and twenty-five. The principal ones are not many in number, and are very generally agreed upon. I give a few examples.
It is a fact worthy of notice that they occur chiefly, if not almost entirely, in Súras delivered at Madína. There, where Muhammad had to confront Jews and Christians, he was at first politic in his aim to win them over to his side, and then, when he found them obstinate, the doctrine of abrogation came in conveniently. This is seen plainly in the following case. At Mecca Muhammad and his followers did not stand facing any particular direction when at prayer, a fact to which the following passage refers:-"To God belongeth the east and west; therefore, whithersoever ye turn yourselves to pray there is the face of God." (Súra ii. 109). When Muhammad arrived at Madína, he entered into friendship with the Jews and tried to win them to his side.
The Qibla (sanctuary) towards which the worshippers now invariably turned at prayer was Jerusalem. This went on for a while, but when Muhammad claimed to be not merely a Prophet for the Arabs, but the last and the greatest of all the Prophets, when he asserted that Moses had foretold his advent, and that his revelations were the same as those contained in their own Scriptures, they utterly refused allegiance to him. In the first half of the second year of the Hijra the breach between them was complete. It was now time to reconcile the leaders of the Quraish tribe at Mecca. So the verse quoted above was abrogated by: "We have seen thee turning thy face towards heaven, but we will have thee turn to a Qibla, which shall please thee.
Turn then thy face toward the Holy Temple (of Mecca), and wherever ye be, turn your faces toward that part." (Súra ii. 139.) The Faithful were consoled by the assurance that though they had not done so hitherto, yet God would not let their [61]faith be fruitless, "for unto man is God merciful, gracious." (v. 138.) The doctrine of abrogation is brought in for a more personal matter in the following case: "It is not permitted to thee to take other wives hereafter, nor to change thy present wives for other women, though their beauty charm thee, except slaves, whom thy right hand shall possess." (Súra xxxiii. 52.) This is said by Beidawi, and other eminent Muslim divines, to have been abrogated by a verse which though placed before it in the arrangement of verses, was really delivered after it.
The verse is: "O Prophet, we allow thee thy wives whom thou hast dowered, and the slaves which thy right hand possesseth out of the booty which God hath granted thee; and the daughters of thy uncle, and the daughters of thy aunts, both on thy father's side, and on thy mother's side, who have fled with thee (to Madína), and any other believing woman, who hath given herself up to the Prophet; if the Prophet desireth to wed her, it is a peculiar privilege for thee, above the rest of the Faithful." (Súra xxxiii. 49.) The Moghul Emperor Akbar, wishing to discredit the 'Ulamá, in one of the meetings so frequently held for discussion during his long reign, propounded the question as to how many free born women a man might marry. The lawyers answered that four was the number fixed by the Prophet. "Of other women who seem good in your eyes marry two and two, and three and three, and four and four." (Súra iv. 3.) The Emperor said that he had not restricted himself to that number, and that Shaikh 'Abd-un-Nabi had told him that a certain Mujtahid had had nine wives. The Mujtahid in question, Ibn Abi Lailah reckoned the number allowed thus 2+3+4=9.
Other learned men counted in this way 2+2, 3+3, 4+4=18. The Emperor wished the meeting to decide the point. Again, the second verse of Súra lxxiii reads: "Stand up all night, except a small portion of it, for prayer." According to a Tradition handed down by 'Áyesha the last verse of this Súra was revealed a year later. It makes the matter much easier. "God measureth the night and the day; he knoweth that ye cannot count its hours aright, and therefore turneth to you mercifully. Recite then so much of the Qurán as may be easy to you." (v. 20.) The following is an illustration of a verse abrogated, though there is no verse to prove its abrogation. However, according to the Ijmá' it has been abrogated. "But alms are only to be given to the poor and the needy and to those who collect them, and to those whose hearts are won to Islám." (Súra ix. 60.) The clause-"to those whose hearts are won to Islám"-is now cancelled.
Muhammad, to gain the hearts of those, who lately enemies, had now become friends, and to confirm them in the faith, gave them large presents from the spoils he took in war; but when Islám spread and became strong, the 'Ulamá agreed that such a procedure was not required and said that the order was "mansukh." The other verses abrogated relate to the Ramazán fast, to Jihád, the law of retaliation, and other matters of social interest. The doctrine of abrogation is now almost invariably applied by Musalmán controversialists to the Old and New Testaments, which they say are abrogated by the Qurán. "His (Muhammad's) law is the abrogator of every other law."[58] This is not, however, a legitimate use of the doctrine. According to the best and most ancient Muslim divines, abrogation refers entirely to the Qurán and the Traditions, and even then is confined to commands and prohibitions.
"Those who imagine it to be part of the Muhammadan creed that one law has totally repealed another, are utterly mistaken-we hold no such doctrine."[59] In the Tafsír-i-Itifáq it is written: "Abrogation affects those [63]matters which God has confined to the followers of Muhammad, and one of the chief advantages of it is that the way is made easy." In the Tafsír-i-Mazhirí we find: "Abrogation refers only to commands and prohibitions, not to facts or historical statements." Again, no verse of the Qurán, or a Tradition can be abrogated unless the abrogating verse is distinctly opposed to it in meaning. If it is a verse of the Qurán, we must have the authority of Muhammad himself for the abrogation; if a Tradition, that of a Companion. Thus "the word of a commentator or a Mujtahid is not sufficient unless there is a 'genuine Tradition' (Hadís-i-Sahíh), to show the matter clearly.
The question of the abrogation of any previous command depends on historical facts with regard to the abrogation, not on the mere opinion of a commentator." It cannot be shown that either Muhammad or a Companion ever said that the Bible was abrogated. This rule, whilst it shows that the assertion of modern controversialists on this point is void of foundation, also illustrates another point to which I have often called attention, viz.; that in Islám all interpretation must be regulated by traditionalism. Additions were occasionally made. Thus when it was revealed that those who stay at home were not before God as those who go forth to war, Abdullah and Ibn Um-Maktum said: 'and what if they were blind.' The Prophet asked for the shoulder-blade on which the verse was written. He then had a spasmodic convulsion. After his recovery he made Zeid add the words, "free from trouble." So now the whole verse reads thus: "Those believers who sit at home free from trouble (i.e., bodily infirmity), and those who do valiantly in the cause of God, with their substance and their persons, shall not be treated alike." (Súra iv. 97). Years after, Zeid said: "I fancy I see the words now on the shoulder-blade near a crack." [64] The question of the eternal nature of the Qurán does not properly come under the head of 'Ilm-i-usúl, but it is a dogma fondly cherished by many Muslims. In the days of the Khalíf Al-Mamun this question was fiercely debated. The Freethinkers, whilst believing in the Mission of Muhammad, asserted that the Qurán was created, by which statement they meant that the revelation came to him in a subjective mode, and that the language was his own.
The book was thus brought within the reach of criticism. In the year 212, A.H. the Khalíf issued a decree to the effect that all who held the Qurán to be uncreated were to be declared guilty of heresy. But the Khalíf himself was a notorious rationalist, and so the orthodox, though they remained quiet, remained unconvinced. The arguments used on the orthodox side are, that both the words and their pronunciation are eternal, that the attempt to draw a distinction between the word as it exists in the Divine Mind and as it appears in the Qurán is highly dangerous. In vain do their opponents argue that, if the Qurán is uncreated, two Eternal Beings are in existence. To this it is answered: "This is the honourable Qurán, written in the preserved Tablet." (Súra lvi. 76). A Tradition is also adduced which states: "God wrote the Thora (Law) with His own hand, and with His own hand He created Adam; and also in the Qurán it is written, 'and We wrote for him upon the tables a monition concerning every matter,' in reference to the tables of the Law given to Moses." If God did this for former prophets and their works, how much more, it is argued, should he not have done it for the last and greatest of the prophets, and the noble Qurán? It is not easy to get a correct definition of the term "the uncreated Qurán," but it has been put thus: "The Word as it exists in the mind of God is 'Kalám-i-Nafsí' (spiritual word), something unwritten and eternal. It is acknowledged by the Ijmá'-i-Ummat (consent of the Faithful), the Traditions, and by other prophets that God speaks. The Kalám-i-Nafsí then is eternal, but the actual words, style, and eloquence are created by God; so also is the arrangement and the miraculous nature of the book."
This seems to be a reasonable account of the doctrine, though there are theologians who hold that the very words are eternal. The doctrine of abrogation clashes with this idea, but they meet the objection by their theory of absolute predestination. This accounts for the circumstances which necessitated the abrogation, for the circumstances, as well as the abrogated verses, were determined on from all eternity. This concludes the consideration of the exegesis of the Qurán, a book difficult and uninteresting for a non-Muslim to read, but one which has engaged and is still engaging the earnest thoughts of many millions of the human race. Thousands of devout students in the great theological schools of Cairo, Stamboul, Central Asia and India are now plodding through this very subject of which I have here been treating; soon will they go forth as teachers of the book they so much revere.
How utterly unfit that training is to make them wise men in any true sense of the word, how calculated to render them proud, conceited, and scornful of other creeds, its rigid and exclusive character shows. Still, it is a marvellous book; for twelve hundred years and more it has helped to mould the faith, animate the courage, cheer the despondency of multitudes, whether dwellers in the wild uplands of Central Asia, in Hindustan, or on the shores of the Mediterranean. The Turanian and the Aryan, the Arab and the Negro, alike learn its sonorous sentences, day by day repeat its opening clauses, and pray in its words as their fathers prayed before them. Next to the act of testifying to the unity of God, the Qurán is the great bond of Islám.
No matter from what race the convert may have come, no matter what language he may speak, he must learn in Arabic, and repeat by rote portions of the Qurán in every act of public worship. The next subject for consideration is that of the [66]Traditions, or the second branch of the science of 'Ilm-i-usúl. The Traditions contain the record of all that Muhammad did and said. It is the belief of every Muslim, to whatever sect he belongs, that the Prophet not only spake but also acted under a divine influence. The mode of the inspiration is different from that of the Qurán. There the revelation was objective. In the Prophet's sayings recorded in the Traditions the inspiration is subjective, but still a true inspiration. This belief places the Traditions in a place second only to the Qurán; it makes them a true supplement to that book, and thus they not only throw light on its meaning, but themselves form the basis on which doctrines may be established. Without going so far as to say that every Tradition by itself is to be accepted as an authority in Islám, it may be distinctly asserted that there can be no true conception formed of that system if the Traditions are not studied and taken into account.
So important a branch of Muslim theology is it, that the study of the Traditions is included in the 'Ilm-i-usúl, or science of exegesis. Some account of them, therefore, naturally forms part of this chapter. The first four Khalífs were called the Khulafá-i-Ráshidín that is, those who could guide others aright. They had been friends and Companions of the Prophet, and the Faithful could always appeal to them in cases of doubt. The Prophet had declared that Islám must be written in the hearts of men. There was therefore an unwillingness to commit his sayings to writing. They were handed down by word of mouth. As no argument was so effectual in a dispute as "a saying" of the Prophet, the door was opened by which spurious Traditions could be palmed off on the Faithful. To prevent this, a number of strict rules were framed, at the head of which stands the Prophet's saying, itself a Tradition: "Convey to other persons none of my words except those which ye know of a surety. Verily, he who purposely represents my words wrongly will find a place for himself nowhere but in fire." To enforce this rule, it was laid down that the relator of a Tradition must also repeat its "Isnád," or chain of authorities, as: "I heard from such an one, who heard from such an one," and so on, until the chain reaches the Prophet himself.
Each person, too, in this "Isnád," must have been well known for his good character and retentive memory. This failed, however, to prevent a vast number of manifestly false Traditions becoming current; so men set themselves to the work of collecting and sifting the great mass of Tradition that in the second century of Islám had begun to work untold evil. These men are called "Muhadisín," or "collectors of Tradition." The Sunnís and the Wahhábís recognise six such men, and their collections are known as the "Sihah-Sittah," or six correct books. They are the following:- (1). The Sahíh-i-Bukhárí, called after Abu Abdullah Muhammad Ibn-i-Ismá'íl, a native of Bukhárá. He was born A.H. 194. He was a man of middle height, spare in frame, and as a boy totally blind. The grief of his father was on this account intense; but one day in a dream he saw the Patriarch Abraham, who said to him: "God on account of thy grief and sorrow has granted sight to thy son." The sight being thus restored, at the age of ten he went to school, and began to learn the Traditions by heart. After his education was finished, a famous Muhadis named Dákhlí came to Bukhárá. One day the youthful Bukhárí ventured to correct the famous man. It was an astounding piece of audacity, but the youth was proved to be in the right. This set him on the work of collecting and sifting the Traditions. At the early age of sixteen he was able to remember fifteen thousand.
In course of time he collected 600,000 Traditions. The result of his examination and selection was that he approved of seven thousand two hundred and seventy-five. These are now recorded in his great work, the Sahíh-i-Bukhárí. It [68]is said that he never sat down to examine a Tradition without first performing a legal ablution, and repeating two rak'at prayers. He then said: "O Lord, let me not make a mistake." For sixteen years he lived in a mosque and died much respected at the age of sixty-four. (2). Sahíh-i-Muslim. Muslim Ibn-i-Hajjáj was born at Nishápúr, a city of Khorásán. He collected about 300,000 Traditions, from which he made his collection. He is said to have been a very just man, and willing to oblige all who sought his advice. In fact, this willingness to oblige was the indirect cause of his death. One day he was sitting as usual in the mosque when some people came to ask him about a Tradition. As he could not discover it in the books he had with him, he went to his house to search there. The people brought him a basket of dates. He went on eating and searching, but unfortunately he ate so many dates that he died. (A.H. 261.) (3). Sunan-i-Abu Dáúd. Abu Dáúd Sajistání, a native of Seistán, was born A.H. 202. He was a great traveller, and went to all the chief places of Musalmán learning. In knowledge of the Traditions, in devotion, in piety, he was unrivalled. He collected about 500,000 Traditions, of which he selected four thousand eight hundred for his book. (4). Jámí'-i-Tirmizí. Abu Isa' Muhammad Tirmizí was born at Tirmiz in the year A.H. 209.
He was a disciple of Bukhárí. Ibn Khallikan says this work is "the production of a well-informed man: its exactness is proverbial."[61] (5). Sunan-i-Nasáí. Abu Abd-ur-Rahman Nasáí was born at Nasá, in Khorásán, in the year A.H. 214, and died A.H. 303. It is recorded of him, with great approbation, that he fasted every other day, and had four wives and many slaves. This book is considered of great value. He met with his death in rather a sad way. He had compiled a book on the virtues of 'Alí, and as the people of [69]Damascus were at that time inclined to the heresy of the Khárigites, he wished to read his book in the mosque of that place. After he had read a little way, a man arose and asked him whether he knew aught of the praises of Muavia, 'Alí's deadly enemy. He replied that he did not. This answer enraged the people, who beat him so severely that he died soon after. (6). Sunan-i-Ibn Májah. Ibn Májah[62] was born at 'Irak A.H. 209.
This work contains 4,000 Traditions. The Shía'hs reject these books and substitute five books[63] of their own instead. They are of a much later date, the last one, indeed, having been compiled more than four hundred years after the Hijra. The belief which underlies the question of the authority of the Traditions is that before the Throne of God there stands a 'preserved Table,' on which all that can happen, and all that has ever entered, or will enter, the mind of man is 'noted in a distinct writing.' Through the medium of Gabriel, the Prophet had access to this. It follows then that the words of the Prophet are the words of God.
Of the four great "Canonical Legists" of Islám, Ahmad Ibn Hanbal was the greatest collector of Traditions. It is said that he knew by heart no less than one million. Of these he incorporated thirty thousand into his system of jurisprudence. That system is now almost obsolete. Abu Hanífa, who is said to have accepted only eighteen Traditions as authentic, founded a system which is to this day the most powerful in Islám. The Hanifites, however, as well as other Muslims, acknowledge the six standard collections of Traditions as direct revelations of the will of [70]God.
They range over a vast number of subjects, and furnish a commentary on the Qurán. The Prophet's personal appearance, his mental and moral qualities, his actions, his opinions, are all recorded over and over again. Many questions of religious belief are largely founded on the Traditions, and it is to them we must go for an explanation of much of the ritual of Islám. It is very difficult for any one, who has not lived in long and friendly intercourse with Muslims, to realize how much their religious life and opinions, their thought and actions, are based on the Traditions. Having thus shown the importance of the Traditions, I now proceed to enter a little into detail on the question of the rules framed concerning them. The classification adopted by different authors may vary in some subordinate points; but the following account is adopted from a standard Muhammadan work. A Tradition may be Hadís-i-Qualí, that is, an account of something the Prophet said; or Hadís-i-Fa'lí, a record of something which he did; or Hadís-i-Taqrírí, a statement of some act performed by other persons in his presence, and which action he did not forbid.
The Traditions may be classed under two general heads:- First.-Hadís-i-Mutawátír, that is, "an undoubted Tradition," the Isnád, or chain of narrators of which is perfect, and in which chain each narrator possessed all the necessary qualifications for his office. Some authorities say there are only a few of these Traditions extant, but most allow that the following is one: "There are no good works except with intention," for example, a man may fast, but, unless he has the intention of fasting firmly in his mind, he gains no spiritual reward by so doing. Second.-Hadís-i-Ahád. The authority of this class is theoretically somewhat less than that of the first, but practically it is the same. This class is again sub-divided into two:- (1). Hadís-i-Sahíh, or a genuine Tradition. It is not necessary to go into the sub-divisions of this sub-division. A Tradition is Sahíh if the narrators have been men of pious lives, abstemious in their habits, endowed with a good memory, free from blemish, and persons who lived at peace with their neighbours. The following also are Sahíh, though their importance as authorities varies. I arrange them in the order of their value. Sahíh Traditions are those which are found in the collections made by Bukhárí and Muslim, or in the collection of either of the above, though not in both; or, if not mentioned by either of these famous collectors, if it has been retained in accordance with their canons for the rejection or retention of Traditions; or lastly, if retained in accordance with the rules of any other approved collector.
For each of these classes there is a distinct name. (2). Hadís-i-Hasan. The narrators of this class are not of such good authority as those of the former with regard to one or two qualities; but these Traditions should be received as of equal authority as regards any practical use.[65] It is merely as a matter of classification that they rank second. In addition to these names, there are a number of other technical terms which have regard to the personal character of the narrators, the Isnád, and other points. A few may be mentioned. (1). Hadís-i-Z'aíf, or a weak Tradition. The narrators of it have been persons whose characters were not above reproach, whose memories were bad, or who, worse still, were addicted to "bid'at," innovation, a habit now, as then, a crime in the eyes of all true Muslims. All agree that a "weak Tradition" has little force; but few rival theologians agree as to which are, and which are not, "weak Traditions." (2). Hadís-i-Mua'llaq, or a Tradition in the Isnád of which there is some break. If it begins with a Tábi' (one in the generation after that of the Companions), it is called "Mursal" the one link in the chain, the Companion, being wanting.
If the first link in the chain of narrators begins in a generation still later, it has another name, and so on. (3). Traditions which have various names, according as the narrator concealed the name of his Imám, or where different narrators disagree, or where the narrator has mixed some of his own words with the Tradition, or has been proved to be a liar, an evil liver, or mistaken; but into an account of these it is not necessary to enter, for no Tradition of this class would be considered as of itself sufficient ground on which to base any important doctrine.[66] It is the universally accepted rule, that no authentic Tradition can be contrary to the Qurán. The importance attached to Tradition has been shown in the preceding chapter, an importance which has demanded the formation of an elaborate system of exegesis. To an orthodox Muslim the Book and the Sunnat, God's word direct and God's word through the mind of the Prophet, are the foundation and sum of Islám, a fact not always taken into account by modern panegyrists of the system.