Jerome J.
The hadith On Fasting, compiled by Al-Bukhari during the ninth-century, conveys several traditions about the Prophet Muhammad and his life. There are two parts to every hadith: the first part is the isnad, which is the chain of oral transmitters; the second part is the text of the tradition, which is always about the Prophet or anyone closely relatable to him (Rosenwein 152). The isnad before every tradition follow a general formula of stating the most recent oral transmitter first, and then listing the series of people the tradition passed through all the way back to the Prophet. A good example is seen in the second tradition titled On the Merits of the Feast, where the account starts by stating that “‘Abdallah b. Maslama related to us from Malik, from Abu’z-Zinad, from al-Araj, from Abu Huraira, that the Apostle of Allah—upon whom be Allah’s blessing and peace—said…” (Rosenwein 153). The fact that every tradition in this text had to be traced back to the Prophet (the Apostle of Allah) shows just how high the status of Muhammad had been lifted to in later Islamic communities. When any question was raised on how to practice right behavior (sunna) there was only one person who could answer with authority: Muhammad. With new questions constantly arising years after the Prophet’s death, isnad functioned to establish authority in the answers to such modern day issues.
On Fasting reveals a wide variety of conflicts and concerns that later Islamic communities faced, namely during the month of Ramadan. One of the larger conflicts addressed deals with the issue of when Ramadan should start and stop. As stated in the Qur’an, the month of fasting is supposed to start with the sighting of the new moon. However, the Qur’an never gives instruction on what to do if the sky is cloudy and the moon cannot be seen. It would seem that the Islamic communities of the ninth-century were unclear on how literally to take the instruction found in the Qur’an. On Fasting offers a clear answer to the issue by citing a tradition where Muhammad instructs people to make a computation for the new moon if the sky is cloudy (Rosenwein 154). Other fasting issues addressed include sex while fasting, bathing while fasting, and accidentally eating or drinking while fasting. With such a great level of specificity in every tradition, it is clear that the people of the Muslim faith had a great desire to ensure their relationship with God was properly established. Muslims demonstrate their submission to God by serving Him and following his commands. If their desire to submit to His exact will was lacking, then there would not have been a need to trace answers concerning sunna back to the authority of Muhammad.
The hadith On Fasting, compiled by Al-Bukhari during the ninth-century, conveys several traditions about the Prophet Muhammad and his life. There are two parts to every hadith: the first part is the isnad, which is the chain of oral transmitters; the second part is the text of the tradition, which is always about the Prophet or anyone closely relatable to him (Rosenwein 152). The isnad before every tradition follow a general formula of stating the most recent oral transmitter first, and then listing the series of people the tradition passed through all the way back to the Prophet. A good example is seen in the second tradition titled On the Merits of the Feast, where the account starts by stating that “‘Abdallah b. Maslama related to us from Malik, from Abu’z-Zinad, from al-Araj, from Abu Huraira, that the Apostle of Allah—upon whom be Allah’s blessing and peace—said…” (Rosenwein 153). The fact that every tradition in this text had to be traced back to the Prophet (the Apostle of Allah) shows just how high the status of Muhammad had been lifted to in later Islamic communities. When any question was raised on how to practice right behavior (sunna) there was only one person who could answer with authority: Muhammad. With new questions constantly arising years after the Prophet’s death, isnad functioned to establish authority in the answers to such modern day issues.
On Fasting reveals a wide variety of conflicts and concerns that later Islamic communities faced, namely during the month of Ramadan. One of the larger conflicts addressed deals with the issue of when Ramadan should start and stop. As stated in the Qur’an, the month of fasting is supposed to start with the sighting of the new moon. However, the Qur’an never gives instruction on what to do if the sky is cloudy and the moon cannot be seen. It would seem that the Islamic communities of the ninth-century were unclear on how literally to take the instruction found in the Qur’an. On Fasting offers a clear answer to the issue by citing a tradition where Muhammad instructs people to make a computation for the new moon if the sky is cloudy (Rosenwein 154). Other fasting issues addressed include sex while fasting, bathing while fasting, and accidentally eating or drinking while fasting. With such a great level of specificity in every tradition, it is clear that the people of the Muslim faith had a great desire to ensure their relationship with God was properly established. Muslims demonstrate their submission to God by serving Him and following his commands. If their desire to submit to His exact will was lacking, then there would not have been a need to trace answers concerning sunna back to the authority of Muhammad.