Scholars
&
Muhaddithat

After the death of the Messenger,

people soon began to realise

that the social context of the revelation

and his lived example

would soon be lost if a specific attempt to preserve it was not undertaken,

and those of an historical bent set out,

among other things,

to establish biographical information about

as many of the companions as they could.

Among these are at least 600 female companions,

a who's who of the women that lived around the Messenger,

the information about them included

not just their names,

but their mother's names,

the names of their children,

the names of their husbands,

and other notable aspects of their biographies.

This is a treasure trove

for reconstruction of an image of the time

that has no equivalent in any other religion.

Of these women,

150 are known to have passed on information about the Messenger's words and actions,

later compiled as over 2000 different ahadith,

with 19 of these women providing

information directly related to the meaning or context

of revelation of Qur'anic verses,

this information sheds another light on

the Sunnah of the Messenger,

and gives us a fuller picture of the world in which he lived,

and in which the Reading was revealed.

This set a clear precedent

that women could pass on such information or understanding

with no concern for male approval or involvement,

and established that the female role in passing on knowledge

was equal to the male, with no deficiency.

And that first direct link to the Messenger was sacred,

but it was not hadith as we know it,

part of a study, a science, a history.

The academic side formed around it later,

trying to catch that first light in a bottle,

and in doing so formed the most extraordinary historical artefact.

The Messenger disapproved of his companions writing down what he said

apart from the Qur'an,

concerned that people would confuse the two,

to the extent that many of his close companions

have very few if any ahadith traced back to them.

But after his death,

such reports of aspects of his life inevitably proliferated,

as people tried to gain as full an understanding as possible

of the Message and the muslim way of life.

And as Islam spread,

the Messenger's name was attached to millions of sayings,

by all manner of people,

both the knowledgeable and the ignorant,

some of whom were sincerely passing on what they understood to be invaluable truths,

and some of whom had more devious, self-centred intentions.

And as the ahadith were used in discussions of law,

it clearly became necessary to clarify which was which,

and which could be trusted.

So began the collection and study of hadith in a formal manner,

their transition from verbal transmission to written texts,

gathered together in the great collections

some 200 years after the death of the Messenger.

Even then, scholars still felt it preferable to assign them to memory

rather than rely on texts for transmission,

considering those known by heart

to be more likely to be a constant part of the narrator's way of life.

But law of it's nature is given authority,

so as ahadith were used to form legal opinions

their narrators also needed to be authoritative,

and requirements were established as to what was needed

for someone to have the authority to transmit them,

and al-Shafi'i clarified this at length,

including not just a good memory,

but also a reputation for truthfulness,

an understanding of the meaning of language

and how changes in words affect meaning,

and that they be recognised for their knowledge

and sincerity in the practice of their deen.

And in all of these matters,

a woman has equal capacity and standing to a man.

So as hadith studies became more formalised,

women studied with men and alongside men,

taught men

and wrote commentaries on the prior work of men.

The names of well-known muhaddithat

names that were also often well-known in other fields of religious study,

are too numerous to fit into a brief list,

with over 8000 women jurists being part of the known heritage

of hadith transmission and commentary

from the earliest times up to the present day.

And although the use of computers

may have reduced the importance of memory,

it has also given women greater scope

for a continued involvement in ongoing commentary,

comparison and critical analysis,

and to give a new perspective on religious law.