hat of the {66} Traditions, or the
second branch of the science of 'Ilm-i-usul. The Traditions contain the
record of all that Muhammad did and said. It is the belief of every Muslim,
to whatever sect he belongs, that the Prophet not only spake but also acted
under a divine influence. The mode of the inspiration is different from
that of the Quran. There the revelation was objective. In the Prophet's
sayings recorded in the Traditions the inspiration is subjective, but still
a true inspiration. This belief places the Traditions in a place second
only to the Quran; it makes them a true supplement to that book, and thus
they not only throw light on its meaning, but themselves form the basis on
which doctrines may be established. Without going so far as to say that
every Tradition by itself is to be accepted as an authority in Islam, it
may be distinctly asserted that there can be no true conception formed of
that system if the Traditions are not studied and taken into account. So
important a branch of Muslim theology is it, that the study of the
Traditions is included in the 'Ilm-i-usul, or science of exegesis. Some
account of them, therefore, naturally forms part of this chapter.

The first four Khalifs were called the Khulafa-i-Rashidin that is, those
who could guide others aright. They had been friends and Companions of the
Prophet, and the Faithful could always appeal to them in cases of doubt.
The Prophet had declared that Islam must be written in the hearts of men.
There was therefore an unwillingness to commit his sayings to writing. They
were handed down by word of mouth. As no argument was so effectual in a
dispute as "a saying" of the Prophet, the door was opened by which spurious
Traditions could be palmed off on the Faithful. To prevent this, a number
of strict rules were framed, at the head of which stands the Prophet's
saying, itself a Tradition: "Convey to other persons none of my words
except those which ye know of a surety. Verily, he who purposely represents
my {67} words wrongly will find a place for himself nowhere but in fire."
To enforce this rule, it was laid down that the relator of a Tradition must
also repeat its "Isnad," or chain of authorities, as: "I heard from such an
one, who heard from such an one," and so on, until the chain reaches the
Prophet himself. Each person, too, in this "Isnad," must have been well
known for his good character and retentive memory. This failed, however, to
prevent a