A Review of the Debate between Batalavi and Chakrhalavi — Page 4
4 4 A REVIEW OF THE DEBATE BETWEEN BAT A LAV I AND CHAKRH A LAV I them in light of God’s Book. This is the extreme viewpoint of Maulav i Muhammad H ussain. Meanwhile, his opponent, Maulav i ‘Abdull a h Sahib, has posi- tioned himself on the other extreme and rejects the hadith in its entirety. In one sense this is tantamount to rejecting the Holy Quran itself for Allah the Exalted says: 1 Thus, since the love of God is linked with following the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and the hadith are also a means by which the practical example of the Holy Prophet can be known, an individual who rejects the hadith also rejects a modality of following him. Maulav i ‘Abdull a h Sahib states that all the hadith are tainted by doubt and suspicion. However, this notion has come about due to a lack of reflection. The root cause of this view is the flawed and deficient manner in which hadith scholars have prioritized [the scriptural texts]. Their tendency to ascribe greater authority to the hadith than the Holy Quran has led many people astray. According to this perspective, they believe that both the book of Allah and the hadith are on hand when needed. They go on to suggest that the latter stands as an authority over the former, as if the hadith is a judge seated upon the bench and the book of Allah stands at its behest as a plaintiff in its court. Anyone could be mislead 1. Say, ‘If you love Allah, follow me: then will Allah love you…’ ( S u rah A l-e-‘Imr a n, 3:32). [Publisher]