TO RELATE THE PROPHETS
NARRATION
BECOMES PRHIBITED

What happened after the Prophets death? Dhahaby one of
the great Sunni scholars, relates that after Abu Bakr
took over the leadership of the government he gathered
the Muslims and the companions of the Prophet (s.a.w)
saying:

You relate the Prophets Hadith and certainly you
disagree on certain points with one another, and in the
future you will find more of these points of
disagreement. It is for certain that after you the
general public will have even more differences of
opinion. As such, you should relate nothing from the
Prophet. Tell anyone who asks you that there is the Quran
among us, and to see its allowances as lawful and its
prohibitions as unlawful. 89

(We see what a strange excuse he found and how he
disguised wrong as right and we also see to what extent
and precision the Holy Prophets (s.a.w) prediction came
to pass).

Qarzat Ibn Kaab one of the Prophets companions
relates another event:

When Umar was sending us to take over the
governing of Iraq he accompanied us to Sarar on foot and
then said: Do you know why I escorted you and saw
you off? We replied: You saw us off to show your
respect for us and to honour us! He said:
Other than that I had something else in mind. You
are going to a city where the resonance of the sound of
its people reciting the Quran reaches the ears as the
resonance of the sound of honey bees in their hives. Be
careful lest you keep them from this by relating the
Hadith of the Prophet of God (s.a.w). Do not narrate
Hadith for them. I am your partner in (the spiritual
reward of) this deed.

Qarzat added that: After these words by the
caliph, I narrated not so much as one more Hadith of the
prophet.

The inhabitants of Iraq having just become Muslims had
never seen the Prophet of Islam (s.a.w). These new
Muslims who have not seen their Prophet are avid and
thirsty to obtain facts concerning him, and to hear his
words and Hadith, and to become familiar with his actions
and way of life. Because of this it is very probable that
they would have said to Qarzat:

Relate some Hadiths for us

and Qarzat replied:

Umar has prohibited us, we cannot relate
Hadith. 90

There is another narrative on this matter which is
very strange and in which the precise meaning of
concealment is seen. If in the past the leaders
themselves concealed divine truths, here they used strict
prohibition so that others would conceal Hadiths and
refrain from the relating of narratives.

Historians say that a short while before Umars death
he sent persons to various parts of the Islamic world to
summon a few of the Prophets companions to Medina. People
such as Abu Dharr, Abdullah ibn Massoud, Abu Darda,
Abdullah ibn Hudhaifeh and others. After he gathered them
he said:

What are these Hadiths which you have spread
throughout the world!?

Those present said:

Do you prohibit our narration of Hadiths?

He replied:

No, I dont prohibit you but you will stay right
here with me in Medina and by God while I am alive you
will not leave my sight or this city. We are more
intelligent and better know which of the Hadiths you
relate should be accepted and which ones rejected. They
however, the rest of the people, dont know what to
accept and what to reject.

This group of the Prophets companions remained in the
city of Medina and in the vicinity of the caliph until
his death, and were in reality under observation. What,
type of Hadiths are those which only their administration
recognizes, and may separate the acceptable from the
unacceptable among them while the rest of the Muslims
dont know of and cannot separate? Pay close attention
that the Caliph does not accuse this group of lying.
Among them there happened to be Abu Dharr upon
whose truthfulness the sun had never cast a shadow.
91

We have no choice here but to interpret that the
unacceptable Hadiths were those which were not agreeable
with the governments policies at that time because of
this the narrators and relators of such Hadiths were kept
under observation so they couldnt further circulate
them.

Some historians have said: Umar imprisoned three
of the Prophets companions; Ibn Massoud, Abu Darda, and
Abu Massoud Ansary in Medina and proclaimed that their
crime was narrating the Prophets Hadith too frequently.
He said to them: You have excessively related the hadiths
of the Holy prophet. 92

These were examples from a series of existing records
related to the prevention of the promulgation of hadith.
This matter does not stop here but goes onward. During
the second caliphs rule the people possessed writings, in
them having collected Hadiths for themselves. For
example, one companion remembered fifty of the Prophets
Hadith and having written them down on small pieces of
leather or bone had created a small book of Hadith.
Another had gathered thirty and still another had
collected some more and so on..... In this way the people
possess numerous writings of the Prophets hadith.

One day while in the pulpit the Caliph made the people
swear to hand him their writings. The Caliph is very
powerful and no-one has the strength to resist him, since
he commanded them they had no choice but to bring them to
him. After everyone had brought their writings he ordered
their burning.

This was the fate of Hadith and the form of their
narration during the time of Umar, of course to the
extent that these records aided us. During Uthmans era
this situation did not change. During his rule, Uthman
declared from the pulpit: The Hadiths which ere not
narrated during Abu Bakr and Umars rule must not be
related. We also know that Umar had said: Do
not narrate Hadiths with the exception of those related
to precepts or matters or worship.

As such, the prohibition of the narration and relating
of the Prophets Hadith was in effect during Uthmans
lengthy Caliphate and the Caliphates administration
controlled this with all of their might.

During Muaviehs rule the situation continued in the
same manner and even worse. He had said from the pulpit:
O People! Refrain from narrating the Prophets
Hadith except for those which were related during Umars
time.

Of course this matter did not have only this one
aspect and it is not true that there was no contention
with relation to this immense movement to halt the
promulgation of Hadith. There was a group, who with
regard to the enormity of this destruction began an
unending struggle against it. We will content ourselves
with only two or three historical events in this regard.