Ijma’ on the Use of Weak Ahadits

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ

Dr. Jibril Fu’ad Haddad said that it is the ijma’, consensus, of the ‘ulama that weak ahadits can be narrated and put into practice in Islam provided certain conditions are met.  This is according to Imam Abu Bakr Ahmad ibn Husayn al-Bayhaqi (r.a.), Imam Abu ‘Umar Yusuf ibn ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abd al-Barr (r.a.), Imam Abu Zakariya Yahya ibn Sharaf an-Nawawi (r.a.), Shaykh Taqi’ ad-Din Ahmad ibn ‘Abd al-Halim ibn Taymiyyah (r.a.), Mulla Nur ad-Din Abu al-Hasan ‘Ali ibn Sulthan Muhammad al-Hirawi al-Qari (r.a.), and others.  Shaykh Muhammad al-Hasan ibn ‘Alawi al-Maliki (r.a.), mentioned these conditions in al-Lathif fi ‘Ulum al-Hadits.

At the bare minimum, the hadits must be related to fadha’il al-‘amal,  good deeds, without bearing on legal rulings and doctrine and, the hadits not be found to be forged.  Imam Abu ‘Abd ar-Rahman ‘Abdullah ibn al-Mubarak (r.a.) provided certain conditions are met said, “One may narrate from him to a certain extent or those ahadits pertaining to adab, admonition, and zuhd.” 

This conditional rule for narrating and practicing weak ahadits is in conformity with the unanimous view of the Salaf who permitted their use in fadha’il al-‘amal as well as manaqib, tafsir, and history including sirah, as opposed to ‘aqidah or the rulings pertaining to halal or haram.  This is stated or practiced by Imam Abu ‘Abdullah Sufyan ibn Sa’id ats-Tsawri (r.a.), Imam Abu Muhammad Sufyan ibn ‘Uyaynah (r.a.), Imam Abu al-Hasan ‘Ali ibn ‘Abdullah al-Madini (r.a.), Imam Yahya ibn Ma’in (r.a.), Imam ‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn Mahdi (r.a.), Imam Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Hanbal (r.a.), Imam Abu Muhammad, ‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn Abu Hatim ar-Razi (r.a.), Imam Abu ‘Abdullah Muhammad ibn Isma’il al-Bukhari (r.a.) in other than his Swahih, Imam Abu ‘Isa Muhammad ibn ‘Isa as-Sulami at-Tirmidzi (r.a.) and many others.