Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī’s Approach towards Ḥadīths that Contradict the Saḥīḥ al-Bukhārī: With Special Reference to his Fatḥ al-Bārī bi Sharḥ Saḥīḥ al-Bukhārī

Abstract

Undoubtedly, much research has been done on the method of dealing mutually contradicting hadiths. However, a review on books of hadith commentaries reveals more detailed approaches hitherto unmentioned. The objective of this paper is to identify the approach used by Ibn Ḥajar al- ʿAsqalānī in his Fatḥ al-Bārī bi Sharḥ Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī in addressing ḥadīths that convey contradictory meanings to the ḥadīths of al-Bukhārī. It uses the method of content analysis on the first chapter, Badʾ al-Waḥy, which consisted of elaborations of eight ḥadīths. The result shows that there are four approaches conducted by Ibn Ḥajar that can be derived from the chapter. These are: rejecting the contradictory ḥadīths if their status is weak; pointing to the different contexts in which the ḥadīths are uttered; acknowledging the meanings of the ḥadīths in Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī as the norm; and concluding that the matn of the ḥadīths is an expression of the transmitters themselves.