Common Narrations in the Ahl al-Sunnah and Shīʿa -Specific to Usūl al-Kāfī for Kulaynī-
Ayşe Nur AslanCommon narrations in the Sunnī and Shīʿite literature are important sources of information about the early periods of hadith history. When the narrators who transmitted these hadiths are researched from the Sunnī and Shīʿite rijāl books, it is possible to make inferences about when, where, and through whom the transfer of information between the hadith circles of the two schools took place. The chains of these hadiths also enable us to determine when a scholar’s hadith circle was open to the participation of both Sunnī and Shīʿite-oriented narrators and when the hadith circles of the two schools became independent. The texts of the common narrations reveal on which issues the Ahl al-Sunnah and Shīʿa agreed and how the hadiths could change within the framework of sectarian views. In this article, the mentioned issues are discussed specifically in the context of 406 common narrations determined in the Usūl al-Kāfī for Kulaynī. Upon examining the isnads and texts, it has been established that the prevalent narrations were transmitted from one scholarly circle to another by unreliable narrators in Kūfah during the 2nd/8th century. It was also observed that significant alterations took place in the texts of the hadiths, particularly in relation to contentious topics such as the imāmate and the Companions.
Ehl-i Sünnet ve Şîa’da Müşterek Rivayetler -Küleynî’nin el-Kâfî’sinin Usûl Bölümü Özelinde-
Ayşe Nur AslanSünnî ve Şiî literatürdeki müşterek rivayetler, hadis tarihinin erken dönemleri hakkında bilgi veren önemli bir kaynak niteliğindedir. Bu rivayetlerin isnadlarındaki râviler Sünnî ve Şiî ricâl eserlerinden eş zamanlı olarak okunduğunda, iki ekolün ders halkaları arasındaki bilgi intikallerinin ne zaman, nerede ve kimler aracılığıyla gerçekleştiğine dair çıkarımlar yapılabilmektedir. Bununla birlikte müşterek rivayetlerin isnadları, muhaddislerin ders halkalarının hangi dönemde hem Sünnî hem de Şiî eğilimli râvilerin katılımına açık olduğunu belirlemeye ve iki ekolün hadis meclislerinin tamamen ayrılarak müstakilleştiği dönemi tespit etmeye imkân tanımaktadır. Ayrıca müşterek rivayetlerin metinleri Ehl-i sünnet ve Şîa’nın ittifak ettiği konuları ve rivayet geçişlerinden sonra hadislerin mezhebî görüşler çerçevesinde nasıl değişebildiğini göstermektedir. Bu makalede, bahsi geçen konular Şiî âlim Küleynî’nin (ö. 329/941) el-Kâfî isimli eserinin Usûl bölümünde tespit edilen 406 müşterek rivayet özelinde ele alınmıştır. İsnad ve metinleri incelendiğinde bu hadislerin ağırlıklı olarak ahlak konularında yoğunluk kazandığı, 2./8. asır boyunca büyük oranda Kûfe’deki zayıf râviler tarafından bir ekolün ders halkasından diğerine intikal ettiği, Şiî halkalara geçişinden sonra ise özellikle imâmet ve sahâbe gibi iki ekolün ihtilaf ettiği konulardaki hadislerin metinlerinde anlamlı tasarrufların meydana geldiği belirlenmiştir.
Islamic science literature on Ahl al-Sunna and Shīʿa was formed depending on sectarian doctrines. It is possible to follow this clearly through hadith sources. When we look at the Shīʿite hadith works, we see that, unlike the Ahl al-Sunna, the words of the Imāms are also accepted as hadith. On the other hand, unlike Shī‘a, according to Sunnī thought, the Companions played an important role in transmitting hadith. When the chains of Sunnī and Shīʿite narrations are examined, these two basic differences are clearly observed. Although Sunnī and Shīʿite scholars adopt different methods on many issues, such as the acceptance, rejection, and authenticity criteria of narrations, there is a group of common narrations in the hadith literature of the two schools.
These narrations are very important because they reveal the issues on which the schools agreed upon and the size of this alliance. However, more importantly, these narrations provide information about the early periods of hadith history. At this point, the common narrators in both Sunnī and Shīʿite isnāds of common narrations rise to prominence. Because it is possible to obtain information about the hadith transitions between the two schools based on the evaluations of Sunnī and Shīʿite scholars regarding common narrators. The texts of common narrations are also important in terms of revealing whether the hadiths were changed within the framework of sectarian views. This article aims to show what proportions of common narrations exist in the hadith sources of Ahl al-Sunna and Shīʿa, and on which hadiths these two schools agree and differ from each other. Additionally, the article will show how, where, when, and through whom narrations are transferred between Ahl al-Sunna and Shīʿa.
In recent times, there have been studies examining common narrations. The most important of these studies are the books prepared by Taqrīb al-Madhāib projects operating in Egypt and Kuwait to bring the two schools closer to each other. Common hadiths in these studies are narrations about a subject in both Sunnī and Shīʿite literature. Therefore, it is not possible to accurately make evaluations of the common narrations in the hadith works of the two schools based on these works. In these studies, there is no discussion of how common narrations were transferred from one school’s hadith circle to another.
Unlike previous studies, this article investigates hadiths with similar texts in the books of Sunnī and Shīʿite scholars, spesicifically focusing itself to Usūl section of Kulaynī’s al-Kāfī. In this study, it was determined that 406 out of 3798 hadiths were found to be common. This shows that the common narrations in the hadith sources of the two schools are around 10%. In addition, it was observed that the common narrations were mainly about hadiths regarding morality. Another issue discussed in this paper is the isnād characteristics of common narrations. The most important element in the chains is the common narrators, as they are connected to the scientific circles of Ahl al-Sunna and Shīʿa. Because of the information about the common narrators in both Sunnī and Shīʿite rijāl works, it is possible to make inferences about the period and region in which these people participated in the narration activity. Essentially, this gives an idea about when, where, and through which names individuals the transfer of information between Sunnī and Shīʿite circles occurred. However, the biographical material about common narrators also provides information about the period when a hadith scholar’s circle was open to narrators from both schools. Based on these details about common narrators, it is possible to determine when the hadith circles of the two schools separated from each other or gained independent identity.
Finally, this article provides information about the textual features of common hadiths. When the texts of these narrations were examined, it was observed that there were no serious textual differences between the Sunnī and Shīʿite texts. However, this situation changes, especially regarding critical issues for Ahl al-Sunna and Shīʿa, such as imāmate and walāyah. Significant changes such as addition and reduction occurres in the texts of these narrations that are the subjects of the Sunnī and Shīʿite conflict. As a result, it has been determined that common narrations were transferred from one school circle to another in the 2nd/8th century. The transfer of hadiths between Sunnī and Shīʿite circles mainly occurred in Kūfah. According to this research, the people who transferred these hadiths from one circle to another are Shīʿite oriented, weak, liar, unknown, and crypto narrators.
