0/5.1. Chapter:
Sahih Muslim 53 — Reliability Can Change
Unveiling Defects of the Transmitters of Ḥadīth and Relaters of Reports and the Statements of the A’immah Regarding That
Reliability Can Change: Timing Matters in Hadith Narration
Sahih Muslim : 53
Sahih MuslimHadith Number 53
حَدَّثَنَا الْحَسَنُ الْحُلْوَانِيُّ، حَدَّثَنَا يَحْيَى بْنُ آدَمَ، حَدَّثَنَا مِسْعَرٌ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا جَابِرُ بْنُ يَزِيدَ، قَبْلَ أَنْ يُحْدِثَ، مَا أَحْدَثَ .
Mis’ar Narrated from:
Jābir bin Yazīd narrated to us before there took place what happened [i.e. before his false beliefs] ’.
Reference : Sahih Muslim Introduction 53In-book reference : Introduction, Narration 52
Summary of Sahih Muslim Hadith 53
This report teaches that timing matters in hadith narration. Mis'ar says that Jābir bin Yazīd narrated to them before “what happened” took place, meaning before the later issue mentioned in the translation. The report does not spell out all details here, but related reports in the same group connect the issue to beliefs that caused people to question him. The safe point is that scholars cared about when they heard from a narrator. A person’s earlier reports and later condition could be discussed separately. This is a useful lesson in hadith narrator reliability. It shows that scholars were not only asking, “Who narrated?” They also asked, “When did we hear from him, and what was his condition then?”
What we learn from this hadith
- The timing of hearing from a narrator can matter.
- A narrator’s later condition may affect how people view his reports.
- Scholars recorded changes that affected trust.
- Careful hadith review may include both the person and the time of narration.
