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I came across many authentic traditions of the Imams of the Ahlulbait (peace be upon them) about ghusl, purification and ablution. These traditions are highly descriptive and specific about the main issues in jurisprudence. Is it permissible for me to follow my understanding of these traditions, and follow the rulings of my marja in other issues?
You should follow the scholar who has reached the level of ijtihad and fulfills all the other conditions of the marja in all issues.
The derivation of the edicts from the religious sources require a great amount of knowledge and experience gained from continuous studying and research over many years. The authenticity of the traditions is only one factor taken into consideration in this process. Only the scholars who have reached the level of ijtihad have the capability to undertake this.
What are your views about the book al-Irshad?
It is one of the important sources that researchers refer to in order to learn about the biography of the Prophet and the Imams (peace be upon them all).
Shaikh Saduq in "Al-Ilal" narrated the sermon of Shiqshiqiya via a chain of narrators ending with Ibn Abbas. There is Ikrima in that chain. Was he an enemy of the Ahlul-Bayt (peace be upon them)?
The mentioned sermon is famous and was narrated by different chains of narrators. Furthermore, if the one who narrates an incident or a narration that does not support some of his beliefs and even goes against him, then this is an indication that the narration is true. It is known that some of the content of this sermon does not correspond to the beliefs of the enemies of the Ahlulbait (peace be upon them); therefore, the authenticity of the sermon is beyond doubt.
I am having a very hard time trying to figure out which hadith books are reliable; can you recommend any to me?
The hadith books consist of different kinds of hadiths. There are authenticated, acceptable and weak ones in each book. Differentiating between them is not possible except by the scholars who are well-versed in the criteria of determining the reliability of the narrators.
I would like to know if the sentence: “Every day is Ashura and every land is Karbala,” is a slogan, or a narration from our Imams (peace be upon them)?
The said statement is a slogan, and not a narration from the Prophet or the Imams (peace be upon all of them).
In books of classical Shia scholars some reports in praise of the Ahlulbait (peace be upon them) came without chains of transmission. What is our obligation? Should we accept reports which have no chains of transmissions? Or we should reject them as unestablished?
It is not permissible to reject them and consider them as false narrations, as long as there is a possibility of them actually being truthful and originating from the Ahlulbait (peace be upon them). At the same time, it is not correct to assert them as being truthful if we are uncertain of their truthfulness. They are narrations that might correspond to reality.
If the narration was non authentic or does not have the conditions of being accepted, we don’t have the right to reject it or consider it as false. However, we should return the verdict in this issue to the Imams of the Ahlulbait since almighty Allah knows the truth. There are many narrations that emphasize this meaning. Imam Mohamed Albaqir said: “The most liked amongst my companions are those who know their religious Jurisprudence more and those who fear god more and the most that I dislike is the one that when they hear a narration that they were told that it is related to us or narrated from us but their hearts do not tolerate it so then they reject it. They do not know that the narration might have been from us so they become out of our religionâ€.
Do the Shia consider the book of Al-Kafi authentic in the same way that the Sunnis consider Sahih Muslim and Sahih Bukhari authentic?
Al-Kafi is a respected book in the views of Shia scholars, but we cannot guarantee that all the narrations mentioned in it are authenticated, as one should refer to the experts to determine the authenticity of each narration.
Is the narrator, Mufaddal ibn Umar, companion of Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq (peace be upon him) reliable?
The scholars of the study of the narrators (Ilm al-Rijal) have different opinions regarding Mufaddal bin Umar. His Eminence is inclined to believe that he is reliable and his narrations are accepted.
What is your opinion on Ibrahim ibn Hashim, the father of Ali ibn Ibrahim al-Qummi, as a narrator?
Both of the said persons are considered trustworthy.
Is the Hadith-e-Kisa Authentic?
There are many narrations that report that the Prophet gathered his household under the ‘Kisa’ – a cloak – which indicate clearly that the incident took place. The narrations are different in the exact wording. At the ending of the book of Mafatih al-Jinan, there is one version of this narration from some hadith books.