Editing Hadith (section)

===Shia and Sunni textual traditions===
{{Islam |texts}}
Sunni and Shia hadith collections differ because scholars from the two traditions differ as to the reliability of the narrators and transmitters. Narrators who sided with [[Abu Bakr]] and [[Umar]] rather than [[Ali]], in the disputes over leadership that followed the death of Muhammad, are considered unreliable by the Shia; narrations attributed to [[Ali]] and the family of Muhammad, and to their supporters, are preferred. Sunni scholars put trust in narrators such as [[Aisha]], whom Shia reject. Differences in hadith collections have contributed to differences in worship practices and shari'a law and have hardened the dividing line between the two traditions.

====Extent and nature in the Sunni tradition====
In the Sunni tradition, the number of such texts is somewhere between seven and thirteen thousand,{{#tag:ref|See the references and discussion by Abdul Fattah Abu Ghuddah ''Thalathatu rasa'il fi ulum al-hadith; risalat abi dawud ila ahl makkata fi wasf sunanihi'', pg 36, footnote. Beirut: ''Maktaba al-Matbu'at al-Islamiyah'': 2nd ed 1426/2005.|group=Note}} but the number of ''hadiths'' is far greater because several ''isnad'' sharing the same text are each counted as individual hadith. If,  say, ten companions record a text reporting a single incident in the life of Muhammad, hadith scholars can count this as ten hadiths. Thus, Musnad Ahmad, for example, has over 30,000 hadiths—but this count includes texts that are repeated in order to record slight variations within the text or within the chains of narrations. Identifying the narrators of the various texts, comparing their narrations of the same texts to identify both the soundest reporting of a text and the reporters who are most sound in their reporting occupied experts of hadith throughout the 2nd century. In the 3rd century of Islam (from 225/840 to about 275/889),{{#tag:ref|The earliest book, Bukhari's Sahih was composed by 225/840 since he states that he spent sixteen years composing it (''Hady al-Sari'', introduction to ''Fath al-Bari'', p. 489, Lahore: ''Dar Nashr al-Kutub al-Islamiya'', 1981/1401) and also that he showed it to Yahya ibn Ma'in<ref>(''Hady al-Sari'', introduction to ''Fath al-Bari'', p. 8</ref> who died in 233. Nasa'i, the last to die of the authors of the six books, died in 303/915. He probably completed this work a few decades before his death: by 275 or so.|group=Note}} [[Hadith terminology#Ṣaḥīḥ|hadith experts]] composed brief works recording a selection of about two- to five-thousand such texts which they felt to have been most soundly documented or most widely referred to in the Muslim scholarly community.{{#tag:ref|Counting multiple narrations of the same texts as a single text, the number of hadiths each author has recorded roughly as follows: Bukhari (as in Zabidi's ''Mukhtasar'' of Bukhari's book) 2134, Muslim (as in Mundhiri's ''Mukhtasar'' of Muslim's book) 2200, Tirmidhi 4000, Abu Dawud 4000, Nasa'i 4800, Ibn Majah 4300. There is considerable overlap amongst the six books so that Ibn al-Athir's ''Jami' al-Usul'', which gathers together the hadiths texts of all six books deleting repeated texts, has about 9500 hadiths.|group=Note}} The 4th and 5th century saw these six works being commented on quite widely. This auxiliary literature has contributed to making their study the place of departure for any serious study of hadith. In addition, Bukhari and Muslim in particular, claimed that they were collecting only the soundest of sound hadiths. These later scholars tested their claims and agreed to them, so that today, they are considered the most reliable collections of hadith.<ref>''Muqaddimah Ibn al-Salah'', p. 160 Dar al-Ma’aarif edition</ref> Toward the end of the 5th century, [[Ibn al-Qaisarani]] formally standardized the Sunni canon into [[Al-Kutub al-Sittah|six pivotal works]], a delineation which remains to this day.<ref>[[Ignác Goldziher]], ''Muslim Studies'', vol. 2, p. 240. [[Halle (Saale)|Halle]], 1889-1890. {{ISBN|0-202-30778-6}}</ref><ref>Scott C. Lucas, ''Constructive Critics, Ḥadīth Literature, and the Articulation of Sunnī Islam'', p. 106. [[Leiden]]: [[Brill Publishers]], 2004.</ref><ref>[[Ibn Khallikan]]'s Biographical Dictionary, translated by [[William McGuckin de Slane]]. [[Paris]]: Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland. Sold by [[Institut de France]] and [[Royal Library of Belgium]]. Vol. 3, p. 5.</ref>

Over the centuries, several different categories of collections have emerged. Some are more general, such as the ''muṣannaf'', the ''muʿjam'', and the ''jāmiʿ'', and some more specific, characterized either by the subjects covered, such as the ''sunan'' (restricted to legal-liturgical traditions), or by''their''s composition, such as the [[Forty hadith|''arbaʿīniyyāt'']] (collections of forty hadiths).<ref name="siddiqi">Muhammad Zubayr Siddiqi, ''Hadith Literature'', Cambridge, Islamic Texts Society, 1993, edited and revised by Abdal Hakim Murad.</ref>

====Extent and nature in the Shia tradition====
Shi'a Muslims seldom if ever use the [[six major hadith collections]] followed by the Sunnis because they do not trust many of the Sunni narrators and transmitters. They have their own extensive hadith literature. The best-known hadith collections are [[The Four Books]], which were compiled by three authors who are known as the 'Three Muhammads'.<ref name="Momen, Moojan 1985, p.174">Momen, Moojan, ''Introduction to Shi'i Islam'', Yale University Press, 1985, p.174.</ref> The Four Books are: ''Kitab al-Kafi'' by [[Muhammad ibn Ya'qub al-Kulayni]] al-Razi (329 [[Hijri year|AH]]), ''Man la yahduruhu al-Faqih'' by [[Al-Shaykh al-Saduq|Muhammad ibn Babuya]] and ''Al-Tahdhib'' and ''Al-Istibsar'' both by [[Shaykh Tusi|Shaykh Muhammad Tusi]]. Shi'a clerics also make use of extensive collections and commentaries by later authors.

Unlike Sunnis, the majority of Shia do not consider any of their hadith collections to be sahih (authentic) in their entirety. Therefore, each individual hadith in a specific collection must be investigated separately to determine its authenticity. The Akhbari school, however, considers all the hadith from the four books to be authentic.<ref>{{cite book|author1=Mohammad A. Shomali|title=Shi'i Islam: Origins, Faith and Practices|date=2003|publisher=ICAS Press|isbn=9781904063117|page=35|edition=reprint}}</ref>

The importance of hadith in the Shia school of thought is well documented. This can be captured by Ali ibn Abi Talib, cousin of Muhammad, when he narrated that "Whoever of our Shia (followers) knows our [[Shariah]] and takes out the weak of our followers from the darkness of ignorance to the light of knowledge (Hadith) which we (Ahl al-Bayt) have gifted to them, he on the day of judgement will come with a crown on his head. It will shine among the people gathered on the plain of resurrection."<ref name="Kafi2013"/> [[Hassan al-Askari]], a descendant of Muhammad, gave support to this narration, stating "Whoever he had taken out in the worldly life from the darkness of ignorance can hold to his light to be taken out of the darkness of the plain of resurrection to the garden (paradise). Then all those whomever he had taught in the worldly life anything of goodness, or had opened from his heart a lock of ignorance or had removed his doubts will come out."<ref name="Kafi2013"/>

Regarding the importance of maintaining accuracy in recording hadith, it has been documented that [[Muhammad al-Baqir]], the great-grandson of Muhammad, has said that "Holding back in a doubtful issue is better than entering destruction. Your not narrating a Hadith is better than you narrating a Hadith in which you have not studied thoroughly. On every truth, there is a reality. Above every right thing, there is a light. Whatever agrees with the book of Allah you must take it and whatever disagrees you must leave it alone."<ref name="Kafi2013">{{cite book|last1=ibn Ya’qub al-Kulayni|first1=Abu Ja’far Muhammad|title=Kitab al-Kafi|date=February 2013|publisher=The Islamic Seminary Inc.|location=New York|isbn=978-0-9890016-2-5|edition=eBook}}</ref>{{rp|10}} Al-Baqir also emphasized the selfless devotion of Ahl al-Bayt to preserving the traditions of Muhammad through his conversation with [[Jabir ibn Abd Allah]], an old companion of Muhammad. He (Al-Baqir) said, "Oh Jabir, had we spoken to you from our opinions and desires, we would be counted among those who are destroyed. We speak to you of the hadith which we treasure from the Messenger of Allah, Oh Allah grant compensation to Muhammad and his family worthy of their services to your cause, just as they treasure their gold and silver."<ref name="Kafi2013" /> Further, it has been narrated that [[Ja'far al-Sadiq]], the son of al-Baqir, has said the following regarding hadith: "You must write it down; you will not memorize until you write it down."<ref name= Kafi2013/>{{rp|33}}