The Status of Sunnah
Dr. Muhammad QasimThe Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad has been accepted as an important source of Islamic jurisprudence, next in importance only to the Quran. The authority and status of the Sunnah has remained undisputed and unchallenged throughout the centuries. There have been many differences among the Muslim scholars and jurists in the juristic opinions and views, but the authenticity and the authority of the Sunnah was never challenged or denied by any reputed jurist. All those individuals who challenged its authority separated themselves from main stream of the Muslims. The position of the Sunnah is still the same, but some Orientalists and some of their followers had tried, during the last century to cast some doubts about the status of Sunnah and particularly about its collection and compilation. The present thesis intends to present the status of Sunnah in Islam, a historio-conceptual analysis of Hadith collection, compilation and classification.