The Importance of an Unbroken Chain of Transmission in the Application of Authentic Hadiths in Islamic Law

The article examines the application of muttasil (continuous-chain) hadiths within the Sunna, one of the primary sources of Islamic law. It highlights how muttasil hadiths are classified into mutawatir, mashhur, and ahad categories in the Hanafi school and how this classification serves to establish their use as evidentiary sources in the process of ijtihad. Furthermore, the study elaborates on the view of the majority of scholars (jumhur) that mutawatir hadiths, due to their uninterrupted transmission, are equivalent to the Qur’an in certainty. The concept of continuous testimony (tawatur) is shown to produce definitive knowledge (yaqin), which is comparable to knowledge acquired through sensory perception. Additionally, the article explains that in the terminology of Hanafi jurists, a mashhur hadith is one that, while initially narrated by a limited number of Companions, became widely transmitted in subsequent generations and achieved the status of mutawatir narration during the periods of the Tabi‘un and Tabi‘a Tabi‘in. The article also discusses the majority opinion among scholars of the Ahlus Sunna wa’l Jama‘a, which holds that although ahad hadiths do not produce definitive knowledge, acting upon them is obligatory. While zanni dalil (probabilistic evidence) is considered sufficient in practical jurisprudential matters, it is emphasized that conjecture cannot replace certainty in matters of belief. Through this discussion, the article sheds light on the foundational principles governing the classification and application of hadiths in Islamic jurisprudence and their role in shaping the broader framework of Islamic legal and theological thought.