The Life and Legacy of Imam al-Tirmidhi and His Contributions to Hadith

“And among people and moving creatures and grazing livestock are various colors similarly. Only those fear Allāh,

from among His servants, who have knowledge. Indeed, Allāh is Exalted in Might and Forgiving.” (Quran 35:28)

As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh.

“In the name of Allāh, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.”

“[All] praise is [due] to Allāh, Lord of the worlds -” (Quran 1:1-2)

...of the worlds. Peace and blessings upon the most noble of prophets and messengers,

our Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, his family, companions, and followers.

Welcome, my brothers and sisters, to a new episode

of this series, which I ask Allah ﷻ to make blessed.

The biography of an Imam... My meeting with you today

about the scholar of knowledge,

the hafiz, the foremost faqih, who recorded the Sunnah and through whom Allah ﷻ honored the Ummah,

who strove to correct the weak narrations and revived what had become like the Cave and the Inscription,

along with his mastery in the fiqh of hadith defects and identifying errors.

This is one of the Imams of Islam who are followed in the science of hadith.

He is Imam al-Tirmidhi, may Allah ﷻ have mercy on him and forgive him.

Al-Tirmidhi's full name is Muhammad ibn Isa ibn Sawrah ibn Musa ibn al-Dahhak al-Sulami al-Tirmidhi.

He is also known as al-Darir — meaning the blind one — because he lost his sight

in the latter part of his life.

As for the claim that he was born blind, this is incorrect, and I will discuss this shortly.

Al-Tirmidhi (RH) was born in the third Hijri century, approximately in the month of Dhu al-Hijjah, in the year...

...two hundred and nine of the Hijrah (209 AH),

in a village in the region of Tirmidh called Bu'.

Therefore, he is attributed to it, and is also sometimes called Al-Bu'i,

and he was perhaps nicknamed Al-Sabuni,

because he, along with some of his companions, practiced the trade of soap-making

before dedicating himself to knowledge; so he is sometimes called Al-Sabuni.

Al-Tirmidhi (RH) followed the path of the scholars

in gradually seeking knowledge and traveling to seek Hadith,

and focusing on having many teachers.

Therefore, Al-Tirmidhi (RH), what he acquired...

he did not achieve it, nor did he reach this rank

except because he followed the correct steps in seeking knowledge,

and among those was traveling in pursuit of knowledge.

It is well known that traveling for knowledge is a tradition from the past,

rather, the tradition of the Prophets.

Meaning, Musa (AS) traveled to al-Khidr

in the well-known story that came in Surah al-Kahf.

The students of Abdullah ibn Mas'ud traveled from Kufa to Umar in Madinah.

Jabir ibn Abdullah traveled to Anis ibn al-Dahhak in Egypt.

Many scholars — rather, I mentioned previously that all those whose biographies I covered used to travel in pursuit of knowledge.

Perhaps Imam Malik (RH) is approximately the only figure not mentioned as having traveled.

And I mentioned the reason, because Medina is the destination of seekers of knowledge,

where the scholars are, and the descendants of the Companions (RA).

Therefore, people would travel to Medina.

Al-Tirmidhi learned from the Khurasanis, the Iraqis, and the Hijazis.

Of course, Khurasan is the land known as Transoxiana,

and he learned from the Iraqis and the Hijazis, and met the senior scholars.

He might have missed a few, but

he met the giants of knowledge among the scholars of Hadith.

Al-Bukhari alone suffices for Imam Al-Tirmidhi.

Therefore, when you come across some of the words of Al-Tirmidhi,

saying, 'I asked Muhammad,' meaning Muhammad bin Isma'il Al-Bukhari,

He does not mention [him], he says, 'I asked Muhammad' in Al-Jami' or in Al-Ilal.

His intention by 'Muhammad' is Muhammad ibn Ismail Al-Bukhari,

may Allah ﷻ have mercy on him and on all of us.

Of course, those who wrote the biography of at-Tirmidhi (RH)...

...give you a picture of this Imam and this personality,

a personality upon whom Allah bestowed vast knowledge, a brilliant mind, a penetrating understanding,

and a memory for everything he heard and encountered.

Therefore, the long journey he undertook,

and reaching distant lands,

all of this truly added great and numerous contributions to him,

leading to the birth of the scholar Al-Tirmidhi (RH).

By the way, I mentioned a short while ago that Al-Tirmidhi is sometimes nicknamed "the blind,"

And some of those who write his biography say that he was born blind,

meaning he was born without sight.

And this is not correct.

Therefore, in Imam Al-Tirmidhi's journey in the month of Rajab, in the year 279 AH,

from which he traveled. They mentioned that he traveled while he was sighted,

and people used to gather around him and learn from him.

For this reason, some scholars, namely Al-Hafiz 'Umar ibn 'Alak, said,

"Al-Bukhari died and left no one in Khurasan like Abu 'Isa al-Tirmidhi in knowledge, memorization, piety, and asceticism."

He said, "He wept until he became blind, and remained blind for years."

This means that al-Tirmidhi lost his sight at the end of his life, and they mentioned two reasons for this.

By analyzing the statements of the scholars, it became clear to me that

the loss of his sight was due to one of two reasons, or both.

The first is his dedication to reading, writing, and authorship,

and the second is that he wept at the end of his life over one of his sheikhs,

grieving and crying over him.

Both factors may have combined to cause this, may Allah ﷻ have mercy on him.

Of course, there were approximately fifteen years

between Al-Bukhari and Al-Tirmidhi.

Of course, as I mentioned to you a short while ago, Al-Tirmidhi

studied under the giants of the people of knowledge, the major scholars of Hadith of his era.

And as I mentioned, Imam Al-Bukhari (RH) is sufficient [to mention];

he learned from him, even though he was a shoreless ocean,

yet he did not stop seeking Hadith from others,

nor was he satisfied with his ocean of knowledge alone,

rather, he sought more from others, and studied under many Sheikhs.

Among the most notable of them also was Ishaq ibn Ibrahim al-Handali,

known as Ibn Rahawayh,

likewise Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj al-Qushayri al-Naysaburi,

Qutaybah ibn Sa'id,

Muhammad ibn Bashshar Bundar,

Muhammad ibn al-Muthanna,

and Ziyad ibn Yahya al-Hassani,

and Abd al-Abbas ibn Abd al-Azim al-Anbari,

and Abu Sa'id al-Ashajj al-Kindi,

as well as al-Haytham bin Kulayb al-Shashi, author of the well-known Musnad,

and also Muhammad bin Mahbub al-Mahbubi, the narrator of al-Jami' from him.

This large number of these giants undoubtedly had a clear influence

on the personality of Imam al-Tirmidhi

until he emerged in this manner, may Allah ﷻ have mercy on him and forgive him.

As for the students of Imam al-Tirmidhi (RH),

it is like the rule that we always reiterate: a scholar who traveled the earth,

journeyed, heard from scholars, and settled in other lands to teach,

it is very natural that students of knowledge would come to him and sit with him.

It is very difficult to list the names of all these students, but sometimes

a student might become famous when he indeed emerges as a scholar, just as...

We mentioned a group of scholars who are indeed the products of these scholarly schools,

or who, for example, compile works, or preserve the issues of their Sheikh, and things of that nature.

Therefore, among the students of Imam al-Tirmidhi are Asad ibn Yusuf al-Nasafi,

Abu Bakr Ahmad ibn Isma'il al-Samarqandi,

Dawud ibn Nasr ibn Suhayl al-Bazdawi, and Ahmad ibn Yusuf al-Nasafi as well,

and al-Rabi' ibn Hayyan al-Bahili, and indeed a group of these scholars whose names history has immortalized,

may Allah Almighty have mercy on them.

Indeed, the scholars have unanimously agreed upon Imam al-Tirmidhi's virtue and precedence,

and that he is one of the giants of knowledge,

to the extent that Abu Ya'la al-Khalil ibn 'Abdullah said:

"Muhammad ibn 'Isa ibn Sawrah ibn Shaddad, the Hafidh, is agreed upon. He has a book on Sunan,"

and a book on Al-Jarh wa al-Ta'dil."

as well-known for his trustworthiness, leadership, and knowledge.

Ibn Hibban says about al-Tirmidhi that he engaged in collecting, classifying, remembering, and memorizing.

Glory be to Allah. Ibn Hibban also described him—

He is among the hadith scholars who lived at the end of the third and fourth Hijri centuries.

He says about al-Tirmidhi that he was among the six Imams who were devoted to the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.

As for al-Hakim al-Naysaburi —

he transmitted from 'Umar ibn

He says about Imam al-Tirmidhi that al-Bukhari passed away and left no one like him in memorization, knowledge, asceticism, and piety.

He had become blind — they mention this in the biography of al-Tirmidhi, may Allah ﷻ have mercy on him.

Ibn al-'Imad al-Hanbali says that Imam al-Tirmidhi was a student of Abu 'Abdillah al-Bukhari.

as al-Bukhari said of him that he was a marvel in precision and memorization.

As for Ibn al-Athir, he says: "Al-Tirmidhi was a leading scholar, a Hafiz, who wrote excellent works,

including Al-Jami' al-Kabir, which is the best of books."

As for Ibn Khallikan, he says: "Al-Tirmidhi is considered the famous Hafiz,

and he is one of the Imams we must follow in the science of Hadith. He was a precise man,

He authored the book Al-Ilal and Al-Jami', and he is an exemplar of excellence,

and he is one of the most important students of Abu Abdillah Muhammad ibn Isma'il al-Bukhari."

As for Al-Sam'ani (RH), he says about Al-Tirmidhi:

"One of the Imams who can be followed in the science of Hadith

is Imam al-Tirmidhi.

He categorized the defects (ilal) and histories in the book of Al-Jami',

and he was classified as one of the most important men of knowledge,

and he is set as an example in precision and memorization."

He was a student of Abu Abdillah Muhammad ibn Ismail al-Bukhari.

Al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar (RH) said: "Al-Idrisi said:

Al-Tirmidhi was one of the imams who are followed in the science of Hadith.

He compiled Al-Jami', Al-Tawarikh, and Al-'Ilal, the compilation of a knowledgeable, master scholar.

He was an exemplar in memorization.

As for the historian of Islam, al-Dhahabi, he says about al-Tirmidhi:

when writing his biography: 'The memorizer, the scholar, the author of Al-Jami', trustworthy, agreed upon.'

And Ibn al-'Imad al-Hanbali also mentioned,

among what they mentioned about al-Tirmidhi, saying: 'He excelled over his peers,

a sign in memorization and mastery,'

to the point that al-Sam'ani also said that al-Tirmidhi was the undisputed imam of his era.

Of course, al-Tirmidhi (RH) was blessed with a memory that has rarely been matched.

which actually helped him memorize tens of thousands of Hadiths

and their chains of narration, to the point that he became a proverb in memorization.

There is a beautiful story that he mentioned about himself,

Al-Tirmidhi (RH) mentioned a beautiful story about himself regarding memorization.

He said, "I was on the way to Makkah, and I had written down two parts of my sheikh's Hadiths, and I met him.

So I asked him, thinking that the two parts were with me. I asked him, and he answered me,

only to find that I had two blank parts—meaning, blank paper.

Two blank parts. He continued reciting to me from memory,

and he looked and saw blank paper in my hand. He said, 'Have you no shame before me?'"

"So I informed him of my situation and said, 'I have memorized it all.'

meaning, 'I have memorized all of this that you have just dictated.'

He said, 'Recite.' So I recited it to him, but he did not believe me."

He said, "Did you review this memorization before coming to me?"

So I said, "Narrate something else to me."

He said, "So he narrated forty Hadiths to me from the rare ones of his Hadith,"

then he said, "Come, read."

So I repeated them back to him, not making a mistake in a single letter.

He said to me, "I have not seen anyone like you."

He said, "I have not seen anyone like you."

And this indicates the strength of the memory that Imam Al-Tirmidhi (RH) possessed.

Ibn Hibban says about Al-Tirmidhi: "Abu Isa was among those who collected, authored, memorized, and revised."

My brothers and sisters, as I mentioned to you, the works of Al-Tirmidhi are indeed many.

In fact, the works of Al-Tirmidhi are widely accepted and approved by the scholars.

Therefore, for example, Al-Tirmidhi did not stop at authoring the "Sunan al-Jami'",

rather, he authored a large number of books, including, for example, "Al-Shama'il al-Muhammadiyyah".

This book which became widely known,

and scholars explained it and strived to serve this book,

"Al-Shama'il al-Muhammadiyyah".

He has the book of Zuhd, and also the book of History,

the book of Al-'Ilal Al-Kubra, and Al-'Ilal Al-Mufrad,

and Asma' Al-Sahabah, and the book of Al-Asma' wal-Kuna.

Of course, Imam Al-Tirmidhi was distinguished in the field of 'Ilal.

And 'Ilal, in reality, as the scholars say, are defects

that are either in the chain of narration (isnad) or in the text (matn).

And this is truly a field that only

the most brilliant among the scholars excel in.

Only one who has been steeped in knowledge can master it.

Therefore, very few have distinguished themselves in the field of 'Ilal.

And among those who distinguished themselves in this field is Imam Al-Tirmidhi (RH).

As for his book Al-Jami' lil-Sunan,

as well as Al-'Ilal Al-Sughra, which he made an introduction to Al-Jami',

revealing his methodology and approach in this great work.

Of course, the book Al-Jami' contains approximately

three thousand nine hundred and fifty-six Hadiths.

He classified it by chapters and fiqh, and also mentioned the defects of Hadiths,

and it includes clarifying the authentic from the weak, and the levels between them.

Al-Tirmidhi (RH) says about his book:

"I compiled this authentic Musnad

and presented it to the scholars of Hijaz, who approved of it,

and presented it to the scholars of Iraq, who approved of it,

and I presented it to the scholars of Khorasan, and they approved of it.

And whoever has this book in his house, it is as if a speaking Prophet is in his house.

This indicates his confidence in this compilation,

and no one would say this except a scholar who is confident in his work

and confident in his compilation, may Allah ﷻ have mercy on him.

Of course, the Jami', Jami' al-Tirmidhi,

indeed stands out from the rest of the books with many unique features

that set it apart from the other scholars who compiled in this field.

For example, if we wanted to mention some of his unique features: first, he established the rules of Hadith transmission in it,

and these rules were extremely precise.

Also, among the unique features of Al-Tirmidhi (RH),

is that he grades the Hadith as Sahih, Hasan, Gharib, or Da'if, depending on its status.

Therefore, we find the scholars... as the poet said:

"I sleep soundly, untroubled by its complexities, while others stay awake and dispute over them."

Al-Tirmidhi was distinguished by mentioning, for example, when he grades a Hadith, he says:

"A Sahih Hadith," or "A Hasan Sahih Hadith,"

or "A Hasan Gharib Hadith," or such, or "A Hasan Sahih Hadith."

Of course, the scholars have extensive discussions and research on this.

What did Al-Tirmidhi mean by this?

Did he mean that the hadith came through two routes: a Hasan route and a Sahih route?

Or did he mean that the hadith, through all its routes, is Hasan,

but rose to the level of Sahih, or so and so?

And this, of course, is mentioned in the books of Hadith terminology,

And also, there are academic studies on this aspect.

In general, this is one of his distinguishing features.

And so you find that after mentioning a hadith, he says: 'Hadith Hasan Sahih,'

or 'Hadith Hasan Sahih Gharib' as well.

Gharib — or he says, for example: 'This is a Hasan and Gharib hadith from the narration of so-and-so,'

and this means the gharabah (singularity) is in the chain of narration,

even though the hadith has other narrations that are not gharib.

The point is that this is one of the distinguishing features of Imam al-Tirmidhi (RH),

and scholars have explanations for this that would take a long time to cover.

Ibn Rajab (RH) said,

about *al-Jami'*: "Know that al-Tirmidhi narrated in his book the Sahih,

narrated in his book the Sahih, Hasan, and Gharib,

and the Gharib reports he narrated contain some Munkar (rejected) narrations,

especially in the Book of Virtues,

but he usually clarifies that,

and I do not know that he narrated from someone accused of lying, whose accusation is agreed upon, with a solitary chain.

Yes, he may narrate from someone with poor memory,

and those whose narrations are mostly weak,

and he usually clarifies that and does not remain silent about it.

Also, he paid attention to the views of the jurists and mentioning their choices and madhhabs,

For he mostly mentions the differences among the jurists,

their differing views, and how they derived their evidence,

and he preserved some of the abandoned madhhabs and views.

You know that there are madhhabs that have become extinct and abandoned,

such as the madhhab of al-Awza'i and the madhhab of Sufyan ibn Sa'id al-Thawri."

And also the old madhhab of al-Shafi'i, by the way, which he mentioned in his Jami'.

I can say that the first to speak about comparative fiqh,

in the contemporary sense in Sharia universities and colleges,

is Imam al-Tirmidhi in this manner.

For this reason, Ibn Rajab (RH) said, "Know that Abu 'Isa (RH)

mentioned in this book the madhhabs of many famous scholars of Hadith,

such as Sufyan, Ibn al-Mubarak, Malik, al-Shafi'i, Ahmad, and Ishaq.

He did not mention chains for most of that; he mentioned summarized chains here,

even if they do not allow one to verify the actual chains of transmission,

as he noted that some is from so-and-so and some from so-and-so,

without specifying or distinguishing which part, and he mentioned..."

that he explained that properly in his book containing the mawquf narrations.

It is as if, may Allah have mercy on him, he had a larger compiled book than this one,

in which marfu' hadiths and mawquf narrations are all mentioned with chains of transmission,

whereas in this book, which he compiled for marfu' hadiths, he only mentions a few mawquf narrations.

This, of course, is the statement of Ibn Rajab (RH).

Al-Tirmidhi (RH), as [the author] said: "First: The path of death is the end of every living being,

and its caller calls all on earth. His decreed time came, which Allah has written for every living being,

and he passed away, may Allah's mercy be upon him, in his town of Bugh in Rajab, in the year 279 AH,

after a life full of knowledge and action. He became blind, as mentioned, at the end of his life,

after he had traveled, heard, written, discussed, compiled, and read. May Allah's mercy be upon him,

the mercy of the righteous, and may He join him with the prophets, the truthful, the martyrs, and the righteous — excellent are those as companions.

And I entrust you to Allah, Whose trusts are never lost,

and I will meet you in an upcoming episode with another figure as well,

from among the great figures in the history of knowledge and scholars.

And may the peace, mercy, and blessings of Allah be upon you.