The Sahifa of Hamam: An Early Seminal Hadith Compendium

In recent times, there has been a revival of the centuries-old allegation that Sunni hadith documentation did not commence until a considerable period after the Prophet's passing. This narrative is predominantly propelled by the Twelver Shia, who, following the lead of Orientalists, aim to demonstrate that such a lapse in transmission would pose to be problematic for those seeking to accept the Sunni means to the Prophetic teachings. Some proponents of this position even posit that this gap extends to an astonishing two centuries following the Prophet's departure from this world.

To substantiate a perplexing claim of this size, the proponents reference a number of historical reports from the Sunni tradition. Their inability to differentiate between the hesitancy exhibited by certain elements among the companions in documenting ahadith alongside the Quran, and reports that are inherently flawed in their routes of transmission, leads them unto their conclusions.

In this regard, for the benefit of the objective enquirer, enclosed below is an English translation of an excerpt from the introduction of Shaikh `Ali ibn Hassan al-Halabi's research on the early hadith compendium, al-Sahifa al-Sahiha, of Hamam bin Munabih (d.101). This primary seminal work, compiled by the disciple of the esteemed sahabi, Abu Huraira (d.58), constitutes a significant contribution to the genre of early Prophetic hadith literature. Its existence serves as evidence that the transcription and subsequent documentation of hadith did not commence one or two centuries after the Prophet's passing, but rather during his lifetime, and continued after his departure from this world. The Sahifa of Hamam bin Munabih is survived today in its entirety within the Musnad of Imam Ahmad, as well as a number of extant manuscripts dating back to the eighth and eleventh hijri centuries. Some of its contents are also transmitted in the Musannaf of `Abdurrazzaq (d.211), via the Jami` of Ma`mar bin Rashid (d.153), two figures who serve as transmitters of this Sahifa. It is of significance to highlight that Hamam bin Munabih commences his transmission with the phrase: "Abu Huraira related to us from the Prophet of Allah". This introduction gives his compendium what would become known as an isnad, or a route of transmission.

In this introductory excerpt, Shaikh `Ali al-Halabi proceeds to present examples of the companions transcribing and disseminating ahadith at the Prophet's behest. Subsequently, he discusses instances of hadith transcription and documentation by some of the very companions accused of incinerating ahadith. Finally, he presents the perspectives of Sunni scholarship who have reconciled reports describing the alleged destruction of Prophetic material with the numerous ahadith attesting to the documentation and transcription of ahadith during the Prophetic era and afterward. May Shaikh al-Halabi's work be accepted from him.

Muqaddima al-Tahqiq:

"Indeed, all praise is due to Allah, we praise Him, seek His help, and ask for His forgiveness. We seek refuge in Allah from the evil within ourselves and the evil of our actions. Whoever Allah guides, there is none to misguide him, and whoever Allah leads astray, there is none to guide him. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, alone without any partner, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger. As for what follows, indeed, the knowledge of the noble Prophetic ahadith is among the greatest of sciences in terms of value and reward. It is a knowledge with authentic roots extending deep into the message of Islam since the dawn of the call (of Islam). The al-Sahifa al-Sahiha that I present today to the students of hadith and its people, is among the greatest evidences for what I have established earlier, as it undoubtedly clarifies that the documentation of the Prophetic ahadith began during the lifetime of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him. I have made every effort to produce an accurate recension of this work, with the ahadith documented being as close as possible to the truth, God willing. Indeed, if my work is correct, then all praise and grace belongs to Allah, and if it is otherwise, I ask Allah to forgive me and grant me reward and blessings, for He is the All-Hearing, the All-Responsive.

It has become well-known among a large number of scholars, students, Arabs, non-Arabs, and orientalists that the sunna was not documented until a century or more had passed. They do not have any substantial evidence to ratify their claim, except for what has been reported about the prohibition of the Prophet from writing anything other than the Quran, with his saying, from Abu Sa`id al-Khudri: "Do not write anything from me except the Quran, and whoever has written anything from me other than the Quran, let him erase it." [Sahih Muslim 3004]

When discussing this opinion, we find that only one aspect of it is valid. Imam al-Sam`ani said: "The dislike for writing ahadith was only in the advent (of Islam), so as not to mix them with the Book of Allah. When the fear of mixing was no longer present, it became permissible to write them." [Adab al-Imla` wa al-Istimla`, p.146]

I say: The permissibility of writing is taken from the Prophetic permission for it, and there are explicit ahadith pertaining to this:

The first: When Abu Sha al-Yamani asked the Messenger of Allah to write for him something he had heard during the year of the conquest of Mecca, the Messenger of Allah replied: "Write for Abu Sha." [Sahih al-Bukhari 6880, Sahih Muslim 1355]

The second: `Abdullah bin `Amr said to the Messenger of Allah: "`O Messenger of Allah, I hear something from you, shall I write it down? He replied: Yes. `Abdullah asked: In anger and satisfaction? He replied: Yes, for I only speak the truth." [Sunan Abi Dawud 3646, al-Mustadrak `ala al-Sahihain, Sunan al-Darimi, Musnad Ahmad]

The third: `Abdullah ibn `Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both, said: "When the Prophet's pain intensified, he said: Bring me a book so I can write a book for you, after which you will never go astray." [Sahih al-Bukhari 114, Sahih Muslim 1637]

And there are further ahadith. [Ta`wil Mukhtalif al-Hadith, p.287, Mu`allim al-Sunan, 5:246]

Ibn al-Athir, reconciling between the hadith of Abu Sa`id and the opposing ahadith mentioned previously, said: "The permission to write is abrogating the prohibition, and the consensus of the umma on its permissibility, and they do not agree on anything unless it is correct. [Jami` al-Usul, 8:33]

I say: What confirms the abrogation of the previous ahadith by the hadith of Abu Sa`id is the continuous practice of many companions, tabi`in, and those after them in writing down the ahadith. We mention some of them as examples:

The first: ‎Hassan bin Jabir asked Abu `Umama al-Bahili about writing knowledge? He replied: "There is no harm in that." [Sunan al-Darimi, 1:127]

The second: In (Musnad Ahmad 5:413) [...] ibn Abi Ayyub al-Ansari's nephew told me that Abu Ayyub had written to him, informing him that he heard from the Messenger of Allah, may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him [...]

The third: Abu Bakr al-Siddiq wrote a book for Anas bin Malik containing the prescribed alms that the Messenger of Allah had prescribed for the Muslims. [Sahih al-Bukhari 1448]

And there are further, replete examples from the companions, and the tabi`in. [Dirasat fi al-Hadith al-Nabawi, 1:92-142]

Then afterwards came the absolute consensus of the umma as a decisive indication that permission is the final matter, and it is a consensus established by practical, continuous transmission from all persuasions of the umma after the first period. [al-Ba`ith al-Hathith, p.133]

Al-Qadi `Iyad said: "After this agreement and consensus, it was agreed by all scholars, imams, and narrators of knowledge." [al-`Ilma`a, p.147]

I say: In light of what has been mentioned earlier, we know for sure that the transcription and documentation of the ahadith began during the time of the Prophet of Allah by a number of companions, and some of them left suhuf (pl. sahifa), and we have received some of them:

The first: Sahifa al-Sadiqa of `Abdullah ibn `Amr (d.65).

The second: Sahifa of Jabir bin `Abdullah al-Ansari (d.78).

The third: Sahifa of Humam bin Munabih from Abu Huraira, and others. [al-Siyar al-Hathith fi Tarikh Tadwin al-Hadith, p.54-55]

And what we are intending to research here is the third compendium, al-Sahifa of Hamam bin Munabih.

Sahifa of Hammam bin Munabbih:

It is a Sahifa containing one-hundred and thirty-eight ahadith transcribed by Hamam bin Munabih from Abu Huraira. The work gained fame prominence for this very reason.

The reason for the repute of this Sahifa by its name 'Sahifa' of Hamam, is because Abu Huraira had several suhuf transcribed by more than one person, and we have not received anything from them except this Sahifa of Hamam. [Fath al-Bari, 1:184]

And this complete Sahifa has reached us in the Musnad of Imam Ahmad [2:312-319]. As well as in the Jami` of Ma`mar bin Rashid. Rather, there are several ahadith from it. [al-Musannaf `Abdurrazzaq al-San`ani, 1:379]

Likewise, in the Sahih of al-Bukhari, of Muslim, and others. [from the path of `Abdurrazzaq, from Ma`mar]

And because of the systematic value and historical benefit of this Sahifa, it was narrated separately by a number of hadith scholars, including al-Hafiz Abu Nu`aym and Imam al-Daraqutni. [al-Tahbir, 1:192, al-Wafiyat, 1:367, 2:208]

Further, hadith scholars have narrated the Sahifa individually across a number of eras.

It was narrated by ibn Khair in his al-Fahris [p.162-163] through two paths from Abu al-Ghana`im, `Abd al-Samad bin Ali, from al-Daraqutni, from Muhammad bin Yusuf al-Azdi, from Hasan bin Abi al-Rabi`, from `Abd al-Razzaq.

As well as from the path of Abu al-Ghana`im, who precedes it with the same route of transmission, it was narrated by al-Wadi Ashi, as in his Kitab al-Barnamij [p. 234].

A further fifteen ahadith from its beginning were narrated by Shaikh Abu al-Fadl Muhammad al-Suqsayni in his work, Tuhfat al-Muhadithin, through Ahmad bin Yusuf al-Salami from `Abd al-Razzaq. [Tarikh Irbal, 1:105]

The naming for this Sahifa, by scholars, has varied over time:

a. Some termed it: Hamam's copy. [al-Fahris, p.162]

b. Some called it: The authentic copy. [Khalasa Tadhib Tahdhib al-Kamal 411]

c. Some called it: Hamam's Sahifa. [Wafayat, 1:367]

d. And some of them termed it: al-Sahifa al-Sahiha. [Siyar `A`lam al-Nubala, 5:311]

What appears to be the case to this weak servant—and Allah knows best—is that the most appropriate name for it is al-Sahifa al-Sahiha, similar to al-Sahifa al-Sadiqa, by `Abdullah ibn `Amr ibn al-`As. [Sunan al-Darimi, 1:127]

There is no difficulty in adopting this name, as the veracity of this Sahifa is of the most profound capacity. [Ma`rifat `Ulum al-Hadith, p.55, Sharh Alfiyya al-`Iraqi, 1:33]

As a result, we can ascertain the great importance of this Sahifa in the sciences of hadith:

First: It is a historical document that proves the early documentation of hadith, i.e., before `Umar bin Abd al-`Aziz (may Allah have mercy on him) ordered the official documentation.

This is because Hamam was born around 40 and his teacher Abu Huraira died in 58 or 59, so it must have been documented before the death of his teacher because it was heard from him after sitting with him, meaning in the middle of the first hijri century.

Two: It serves as a model for researchers in `Usul al-Hadith for the copies containing ahadith with a single chain of narration, as al-Dhahabi said:

"If one singles out a hadith from the likes of Hamam's copy or Abu Mashar' copy, and the wording is preserved, it is considered permissible and superior as Muslim says: He mentioned ahadith, among them: The Messenger of Allah said... Otherwise, the investigators agree on the leniency in handling the acceptable expressions." [al-Muwqathat, p.63, `Ulum al-Hadith, p.304-306]

Third: The ahadith in this Sahifa discredit the claim that documentation during this period was only concerned with affairs of Islamic practice, without paying attention to issues of creed." [End Quote]

Reference: Munabih, H. bin (1987) ‘Muqaddima al-Tahqiq’, in A. al-H.A.H.A. Abd al-Hamid al-Halabi (ed.) al-Sahifa al-Sahiha, al-Sahifa Hamam bin Munabih. al-Maktab al-Islami, pp. 5–13.

To be continued by the permission of Allah.