Hadith

Hadith (Arabic: حديث) is the Arabic word for a 'report' or an 'account [of an event]' and refers to the Islamic oral tradition of anecdotes containing the purported words, actions, and the silent approvals of the Islamic prophet Muhammad or his immediate circle (companions in Sunni Islam, Ahl al-Bayt in Shia). These traditions initially circulated in early post-prophetic discussions, often without formal attribution. They began to be systematically compiled between the 7th and 10th centuries by Islamic scholars (muhaddiths), who organized them first according to the primary authority to whom they were attributed and subsequently by subject matter. In later traditions, each hadith is associated with a isnad, a lineage of people who reportedly heard and repeated the hadith from which the source of the hadith can be traced. In the following centuries, hadith scholars established criteria to verify the authenticity of these narrations (Hadith sciences), with categories such as sahih ('authentic'), hasan ('good'), and da'if ('weak'). This process aimed to address and analyze contradictory or questionable statements within certain narrations. However, hadith classification developed into divergent lines, depending on surrounding cultural spheres where each sect established over time its own accredited corpus, and shaped by the presuppositions of religio-political divisions such as Sunni, Shia, and Kharijite. Differences in classification and interpretation paved the way for various Islamic schools of thought to adopt divergent approaches regarding their understanding and application of Sharia. Hadiths are currently part of Sunnah, the Islamic body of traditions and practices. Hadiths gained importance in Islamic society over centuries over several distinct stages. Sunnah originally meant a tradition that did not contain the definition of good and bad. Later, "good traditions" began to be referred to as sunnah and the concept of "Muhammad's sunnah" was established, and Muhammad's sunnah gave way to the "hadiths of Muhammad"....