"As for one who is the guardian of an orphan who has wealth, let him do business with it and not leave it until it becomes consumed by zakah." [Tirmidhi, Zakah 15, (641).] Will you explain this hadith?

"As for one who is the guardian of an orphan who has wealth, let him do business with it and not leave it until it becomes consumed by zakah." [Tirmidhi, Zakah 15, (641).] Will you explain this hadith? Is it permissible to narrate hadiths with their meanings?

"Do business with the wealth of orphans on behalf of them so that zakah will not consume it." What does this hadith mean? Is it permissible to tell the meaning of hadiths briefly and say that they are hadiths? Is it necessary to tell hadiths word for word?

Dear Brother / Sister,

1. (2037)- Amr Ibn Shuayb reports from his father and grandfather. "The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said,

"As for one who is the guardian of an orphan who has wealth, let him do business with it and not leave it until it becomes consumed by zakah." [Tirmidhi, Zakah 15, (641)]

EXPLANATION:

This hadith shows that an orphan has to pay zakah if he has enough wealth. As it is seen, if this wealth is not increased through business, it will decrease by one in forty every year. The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) expresses it as "zakah eating wealth". As a matter of fact, Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, Imam Malik and Shafii decreed acting upon this hadith that zakah will be given from the wealth of orphans.

Abu Hanifa, Sufyan Thawri and Abdullah Ibn Mubarak use the following hadith as evidence about the orphan of wealth:

"The Pen is lifted from three: ... a child until he reaches puberty."

What is meant by "the pen being lifted" is the lack of all kinds of responsibilities. According to those scholars, a guardian cannot do anything against the orphan’s wealth but can do things for his wealth. For instance, he accepts the donations and gifts to the orphan but cannot give gifts and do charity from his wealth because they will decrease his wealth and will be against it. From this point of view, zakah will be a deed against him.

(Prof. Dr. İbrahim CANAN, Kütüb-ü Sitte Tercüme ve Şerhi)

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Narration by Meaning in Hadiths:

Hz. Prophet (pbuh) ordered the Companions to memorize hadiths and to keep them in their minds:

"When I tell you a hadith, memorize it and keep it in mind." (Dhahabi, Siyeru A'lamin-Nubala", Egypt 1957. I / 96)

According to what Abdullah b. Mas'ud narrated, the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) prayed to Allah to whiten the faces of those who hear his hadiths and convey them to others. (Abu Dawud, Ilm, 10; Tirmidhi, Ilm, 7)

The Companions acted very carefully in order to narrate and convey the words of the hadiths in the form that they heard from the Prophet (pbuh) and objected severely to those who expressed them with different words. Abdullah b. Umar, one of the Companions, was remarkable about memorizing the hadiths with the words heard from the Prophet (pbuh) and to narrate them like that. When he heard a hadith from the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) or witnessed something about him, he would neither decrease anything from it nor add anything to it. (Musnad, V I I/297-298)

The Companions acted very meticulously about narrating hadiths word by word, advised it to one another and corrected the mistakes of one another when it was necessary.

There are two kinds of narration about hadiths. One of them is narrating them word by word, and the other is narrating them by meaning. The narration of hadiths word by word is essential but both the Companions and most of the hadith narrators that lived after them narrated hadiths by meaning.  

When somebody objected to Hasan al-Basri by saying, "Today, you change the words of the hadith that you narrated yesterday", he answered as follows:  "If the meaning is true, it is permissible." (Khatib al-Baghdadi, al-Kifaya fi Ilmir-Riwaya, Madinah, n.d., p. 207)

We see in hadith resources that the same incident is narrated through different words and that many hadiths are narrated word by word. When the hadiths are viewed carefully, it will be seen that the hadiths that are narrated word by word are generally short and those narrated by meaning are generally long.   

Narration by meaning through different words occur in some words and synonymous words are used in general; not all of the words of the hadith change. These are the facts that were found as a result of serious research. Besides, the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) allowed hadiths to be narrated by meaning:

"There is no drawback to narrating hadiths if you do not render what is haram halal and what is halal haram and if the meaning is true." (Khatib al-Baghdadi, al-Kifaya fi Ilmir-Riwaya, Madinah, n.d., p. 199-200)

Hadith, fiqh and methodology scholars hold different views regarding the issue. Some scholars regard it permissible to narrate hadiths by meaning while others say it is not permissible. Those who regard narrating hadiths by meaning lay down some conditions. 

Accordingly, the narrator must be someone who knows the meanings and purposes of the words and the states that distort those meanings. Imam Shafii states the following regarding the issue:

"Some Companions disagreed about the words of the Quran. However, there was no difference in meaning."

The Messenger of Allah said to them,

"The Quran was sent down in the form of seven letters (ways). Read it in the way that is easy for you." Since it is possible to read the Quran in seven ways, there should be no drawback to narrating hadiths by meaning. (Shafii, ar-Risala, tahqiq: Ahmed Muhammad Shakir, Beirut n.d., p. 273, 4)

As a matter of fact, narration of hadiths by meaning has not done any harm to Islam. It does not comply with scientific facts to claim the opposite of it.

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NARRATION

Narration is a hadith methodology term meaning reporting, telling, telling and reporting hadiths and to attribute something to the person who narrated it. Narration is not confined to reporting the Sunnah only. Narration includes attributing the words of the Companions, Tabiun and the other levels to the ones who reported them. It is understood from this definition of narration that narration has three basic elements. One of them is the Sunnah or similar news that is the subject of the narration; the second is a person who narrates the news by attributing it to the person(s) who reports it to him; the third one is the person who receives the news from the person who narrated to him by attributing it to the person who reported it to him.  Narration has a very important purpose in the first place: to convey the Sunnah of the Prophet (pbuh), which consists of his words and deeds, or his hadith in the general sense, to the generations that will come in the centuries to come. The safest way to convey and transmit the knowledge and information about the Prophet is this triple system of narration. As a matter of fact, a Companion who heard the news from the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) narrated it to a person from Tabiun by attributing it to the Prophet; the person from Tabiun reported to a person from Tabiut-Tabiun by attributing it to the Companion who narrated it to him. Thus, it became possible for that news to be conveyed to the people who lived centuries later. (Talat Koçyiğit, Hadis Istılahları, Ankara 1980, p. 371)

The Companions, Tabiun and the generations that followed these two generations gave great importance to being very careful in narration, determining the text with its correct form and good research. For, the news or hadith that is narrated is trusted if it has come through a trustable way of transmission; if it is not narrated through such a way, that narration will be of no value. The soundness of the narration is based on the soundness of those triple elements. The soundness of the triple elements takes place when no change occurs in the news that is narrated and when the source of the attribution of the news is sound.

Unlike other cultures, the principles of this method of narration, which is peculiar to Islamic culture and hadiths, are explained in the Quran. The principles and rules of narrations mentioned in the Quran are as follows: 

l. Telling lies being rendered haram definitely

This principle renders it fard to obey scientific trust and reliability. It is possible to call it the principle of betrayal being haram and evil related to scientific issues.  It is definitely forbidden in the Quran and hadiths to tell lies and to use lies for something. That lying is haram is expressed clearly and lying is indicated as a trait of non-Muslims. A Muslim never tells lies; he does not value fake narrations. For, "It is those who believe not in the Signs of Allah, that forge falsehood: it is they who lie." (an-Nahl, 16/105) It is explained as follows in another verse: "Say: the things that my Lord hath indeed forbidden are: shameful deeds, whether open or secret; sins and trespasses against truth or reason; assigning of partners to Allah, for which He hath given no authority; and saying things about Allah of which ye have no knowledge." (al-A'raf, 7/33). There are many more verses indicating that telling lies is rendered haram. The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) states the following in a hadith: "Anyone who tells a lie about me deliberately should prepare his place in Hell."

2. Refusing the news conveyed by a wicked person (fasiq)

This principle is stated in the following verse: "O ye who believe! If a wicked person comes to you with any news, ascertain the truth." (al-Hujurat, 49/6) According to this verse, when a wicked person gives some news, it is necessary to search it and not to accept it. If this news is confirmed by another source, the trust must be based on the news coming from this second source. For a fasiq has stopped obeying Allah and is in rebellion. A fasiq is a liar.

3. Laying justice as a condition in order to accept the news given by a narrator

This is also an undisputable rule imposed by Islam. The following is stated in the verses: "And take for witness two persons from among you, endued with justice." (at-Talaq, 65/2);

"And get two witnesses, out of your own men, and if there are not two men, then a man and two women, such as ye choose, for witnesses." (al-Baqara, 2/282) Those verses seem to be about witnessing related to goods but they are also regarded necessary for the narrator of a hadith. For, when a narrator narrates a hadith, he witnesses about Allah and the Messenger of Allah in the narration. Imam Tirmidhi states the following regarding the issue: "For, witnessing in religion is an issue that needs to be dwelled on and searched more than witnessing in rights and goods." (Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali, Sharhu Ilalit-Tirmidhi)

4. Researching every issue

This important principle about narration is stated in the following verse: "And pursue not that of which thou hast no knowledge; for every act of hearing, or of seeing or of (feeling in) the heart will be enquired into (on the Day of Reckoning)." (al-Isra, 17/36). This verse orders a Muslim not to pursue the issues that he does not know whether they are true or not and that he does not know very well. This main principle makes it necessary to be sure that the knowledge based on narration is sound. For, in sciences that are based on reporting, this acceptance can take place only after the knowledge is searched for soundness. It is necessary to know whether the knowledge that is reported is in compliance with its original form.

5. Reporting false news being haram

This principle shows us the criterion of caution in the issue of narration. "And pursue not that of which thou hast no knowledge" (al-Isra, 17/36) This verse shows it. The following famous hadith reported by many Companions expresses the same principle: "If a person narrates a statement that is thought to be a lie from me, he is a liar." (Muslim, Muqaddima, I,15)

Those verses and hadiths emphasize the responsibility of narration. They warn about the issue. It is necessary for a person who hears a hadith to think first, narrate it after it is understood to be sound and to be careful while narrating. In general, this principle renders it haram to report any hadith and news that is feared to be fake.

The issue of narration, whose principles and criteria have been determined by verses and hadiths, is a necessary issue. For, it is impossible not to need report and narration related to any science and any worldly affair. For, it is not possible for everybody to be on the spot when things happen and to witness everything. In that case, those who are far away and who do not witness things can find out about them only through oral or written narrations. Similarly, those who are born after those incidents happen can know them through the narration of those who lived before them. For instance, the history of previous nations and current nations, madhhabs, religions, the views of philosophers, the experience of scientists and the conclusions they drew reach us through reporting and narrating. Therefore, there is no other way except narration to learn the hadiths and news of the Prophet (pbuh). However, it is necessary for the issue of narration to be sound and healthy.

Hz. Prophet (pbuh) ordered the Companions to memorize hadiths and to keep them in their minds: "When I tell you a hadith, memorize it and keep it in mind." (Dhahabi, Siyeru A'lamin-Nubala", Egypt 1957. I, s. 96) According to what Abdullah b. Mas'ud narrated, the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) prayed to Allah to whiten the faces of those who hear his hadiths and convey them to others. (Abu Dawud, Ilm, 10; Tirmidhi, Ilm, 7)

The Companions acted very carefully in order to narrate and convey the words of the hadiths in the form that they heard from the Prophet (pbuh) and objected severely to those who expressed them with different words. Abdullah b. Umar, one of the Companions, was remarkable about memorizing the hadiths with the words heard from the Prophet (pbuh) and to narrate them like that. When he heard a hadith from the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) or witnessed something about him, he would neither decrease anything from it nor add anything to it. (Musnad, V I I/297-298)

The Companions acted very meticulously about narrating hadiths word by word, advised it to one another and corrected the mistakes of one another when it was necessary.

The Companions acted very meticulously about narrating hadiths word by word, advised it to one another and corrected the mistakes of one another when it was necessary.

There are two kinds of narration about hadiths. One of them is narrating them word by word, and the other is narrating them by meaning. The narration of hadiths word by word is essential but both the Companions and most of the hadith narrators that lived after them narrated hadiths by meaning. 

When somebody objected to Hasan al-Basri by saying, "Today, you change the words of the hadith that you narrated yesterday", he answered as follows:  "If the meaning is true, it is permissible." (Khatib al-Baghdadi, al-Kifaya fi Ilmir-Riwaya, Madinah, n.d., p. 207)

We see in hadith resources that the same incident is narrated through different words and that many hadiths are narrated word by word. When the hadiths are viewed carefully, it will be seen that the hadiths that are narrated word by word are generally short and those narrated by meaning are generally long. Narration by meaning through different words occur in some words and synonymous words are used in general; not all of the words of the hadith change. These are the facts that were found as a result of serious research. Besides, the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) allowed hadiths to be narrated by meaning: "There is no drawback to narrating hadiths if you do not render what is haram halal and what is halal haram and if the meaning is true." (Khatib al-Baghdadi, al-Kifaya fi Ilmir-Riwaya, Madinah, n.d., p. 199-200) Hadith, fiqh and methodology scholars hold different views regarding the issue. Some scholars regard it permissible to narrate hadiths by meaning while others say it is not permissible. Those who regard narrating hadiths by meaning lay down some conditions. Accordingly, the narrator must be someone who knows the meanings and purposes of the words and the states that distort those meanings. Imam Shafii states the following regarding the issue: "Some Companions disagreed about the words of the Quran. However, there was no difference in meaning." The Messenger of Allah said to them, "The Quran was sent down in the form of seven letters (ways). Read it in the way that is easy for you." Since it is possible to read the Quran in seven ways, there should be no drawback to narrating hadiths by meaning. (Shafii, ar-Risala, tahqiq: Ahmed Muhammad Shakir, Beirut n.d., p. 273, 4) As a matter of fact, narration of hadiths by meaning has not done any harm to Islam. It does not comply with scientific facts to claim the opposite of it.

Sabahattin YILDIRIM

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