The Phenomenon of Distorting the Meanings of the Prophetic Hadiths and Responding to it

Abstract

This study seeks to explore the distortion of the meanings of Prophetic Hadiths as a phenomenon that has been widely noticed in some recent publications with the aim of unravelling the motives behind such a phenomenon and warning against it. The study therefore has been divided into four parts. The first part deals with the significance, reason and purpose of research. The second part presents a review of the phenomenon with definitions of relevant concepts. The third part focusses on the three demands of the study. The first demand is to reveal the vital importance of the right understanding of the Hadith for the preservation of the Sunnah. The second demand is to expose the negative impact of the recent distortion on the Sunnah. The third demand is to show the proper response to this phenomenon. The study has revealed that the distortion of Hadith leads to the misunderstanding of the Prophetic Sunnah. It also affirms that the right understanding of Hadith is one of the greatest grounds for preserving Sunnah and the religion of Islam. Therefore, we have to follow the right method to understand the meaning of Hadith by considering the contexts. We have to be able to differentiate between the important Islamic terms like the abrogater and the abrogated ,the absolute and the restricted ,the general and the private and understand these terms depending on the rules of Sharia ,Arabic Language and scholar’s proper and right method.