The Hadith Question

Qur'an Explorer
3 days ago
17 min read

What the Quran Says About Following the Messenger

Introduction

Traditional Islam rests on two foundations: the Quran and the hadith - collections of narrations about what the Messenger reportedly said and did, compiled centuries after his death. Muslims are taught that while the Quran provides general guidance, the hadith are essential to understand and practice Islam properly. Without them, we're told, we wouldn't know how to pray, fast, or fulfill our religious obligations.

But does the Quran itself support this two-source system? When we examine what the Quran actually says about the Messenger's role, the sufficiency of the Book, and following other narrations, a very different picture emerges - one that challenges the entire basis for the hadith system.

This investigation uses only the Quran's own words to explore what it says about itself, the Messenger's function, and whether additional sources of religious law were ever intended.

What Tradition Says

Traditional Islam holds that:

The Messenger's words and actions were divinely guided beyond the Quran
Collections of his sayings (hadith) are necessary to understand Islam
"Obey Allah and obey the Messenger" means following both Quran and hadith
The hadith are a second source of law alongside the Quran
Without hadith, we cannot properly practice Islam

This has created an entire religious science: hadith authentication, chain verification, biographical evaluation, legal extraction from narrations.

What Does the Quran Actually Say?

1. The Messenger's Own Stated Role

The Quran records the Messenger explicitly defining his own function:

6:50 - "Say: I do not say to you that I possess the treasures of Allah, nor do I know the unseen, nor do I say to you that I am an angel. I only follow what is revealed to me."

10:15 - "Say: It is not for me to change it of my own accord. I only follow what is revealed to me. Indeed I fear, should I disobey my Lord, the punishment of a tremendous day."

46:9 - "Say: I am not an innovation among the messengers, and I do not know what will be done with me or with you. I only follow what is revealed to me, and I am only a clear warner."

The pattern is unmistakable. The Messenger himself says repeatedly: "I only follow what is revealed to me."

Not "I follow what is revealed plus my own divinely inspired opinions." Not "I follow revelation and you should record my personal practices." Simply: I follow what is revealed.

2. The Messenger's Explicit Function

What was he sent to do? The Quran uses a specific term repeatedly:

الْبَلَاغُ الْمُبِينُ (al-balāgh al-mubīn) - "the clear conveyance/delivery"

5:92 - "And obey Allah and obey the Messenger and beware. But if you turn away, then know that upon Our Messenger is only the clear conveyance."

5:99 - "Not upon the Messenger except the clear conveyance. And Allah knows what you reveal and what you conceal."

16:35 - "...Is there upon the Messenger except the clear conveyance?"

24:54 - "...And if you turn away, then upon him is only what is placed upon him, and upon you is what is placed upon you. And if you obey him, you will be guided. And not upon the Messenger except the clear conveyance."

29:18 - "...And not upon the Messenger except the clear conveyance."

36:17 - "And not upon us except the clear conveyance."

42:48 - "...Then upon you is nothing against them. Not upon you is their guardianship. Upon you is only the conveyance."

64:12 - "And obey Allah and obey the Messenger. But if you turn away, then upon Our Messenger is only the clear conveyance."

The function is stated over and over: deliver the message clearly. That's it. Not "create a parallel legal system through your personal practices." Not "provide additional revelation through your daily life."

3. What Is This Message He Conveys?

69:38-47 provides the answer:

"So I swear by what you see and what you do not see, indeed it is the word of a noble messenger... And if he had made up about Us some sayings, We would have seized him by the right hand, then We would have cut from him the aorta, and not from you any one could prevent [it]."

The "word" (قَوْل - qawl) he conveys is not his own. If he had fabricated anything attributed to Allah, there would be immediate consequences.

53:3-4 - "Nor does he speak from [his own] inclination. It is not but a revelation revealed."

This refers to the Quran he is delivering, not to creating a parallel source of law from his personal behavior.

4. The Quran's Claim About Itself

39:23 provides a comprehensive statement about the Quran's nature:

اللَّهُ نَزَّلَ أَحْسَنَ الْحَدِيثِ كِتَابًا مُّتَشَابِهًا مَّثَانِيَ تَقْشَعِرُّ مِنْهُ جُلُودُ الَّذِينَ يَخْشَوْنَ رَبَّهُمْ ثُمَّ تَلِينُ جُلُودُهُمْ وَقُلُوبُهُمْ إِلَىٰ ذِكْرِ اللَّهِ

"Allah has sent down the best hadith - a Book, consistent, reiterating. The skins shiver from it of those who fear their Lord; then their skins and their hearts relax at the remembrance of Allah."

Notice what the Quran calls itself: أَحْسَنَ الْحَدِيثِ (aḥsana al-ḥadīth) - "the best hadith" or "the best narration/account/statement."

If the Quran is "the best hadith," what does that say about other hadith collections?

The verse describes this "best hadith" as:

كِتَابًا (kitāban) - a Book
مُّتَشَابِهًا (mutashābihan) - consistent, self-similar
مَّثَانِيَ (mathāniya) - reiterating, reinforcing itself through repetition

The Quran is self-consistent and self-reinforcing. It repeats its core themes and interprets itself through its own patterns.

And the Quran contains its own explanation:

25:33 - "And they do not bring you any example except that We bring you the truth and better in explanation."

وَأَحْسَنَ تَفْسِيرًا (wa-aḥsana tafsīran) - "and better in explanation/interpretation."

Every challenge, every question, every example brought - the Quran provides the truth and the better explanation. The word تَفْسِيرًا (tafsīran) is from the root ف س ر (f-s-r), meaning to explain, interpret, clarify. The Quran claims to provide its own best interpretation.

75:16-19 makes this even more explicit:

لَا تُحَرِّكْ بِهِ لِسَانَكَ لِتَعْجَلَ بِهِ إِنَّ عَلَيْنَا جَمْعَهُ وَقُرْآنَهُ فَإِذَا قَرَأْنَاهُ فَاتَّبِعْ قُرْآنَهُ ثُمَّ إِنَّ عَلَيْنَا بَيَانَهُ

"Do not move your tongue with it to hasten with it. Indeed, upon Us is its collection and its recitation. So when We have recited it, then follow its recitation. Then indeed, upon Us is its clarification."

The final statement is critical: ثُمَّ إِنَّ عَلَيْنَا بَيَانَهُ (thumma inna ʿalaynā bayānahu) - "Then indeed, upon Us is its clarification/explanation."

The word بَيَانَهُ (bayānahu) means its clarification, explanation, making clear. From the root ب ي ن (b-y-n) - to make clear, to explain, to elucidate.

Allah says:

Upon Us is its collection - We compiled it
Upon Us is its recitation - We revealed it
Follow its recitation - Follow what We revealed
Upon Us is its clarification - We explain it

If Allah has taken responsibility for clarifying the Quran, who are humans to claim that additional narrations are needed to explain it?

6:114 - "Then is it other than Allah I should seek as judge while He has revealed to you the Book explained in detail? And those to whom We gave the Book know that it is sent down from your Lord in truth, so never be among the doubters."

The Book is مُفَصَّلًا (mufaṣṣalan) - explained in detail, made distinct, clarified.

6:38 - "And We have not neglected in the Book a thing."

16:89 - "...And We have sent down to you the Book as clarification for all things and as guidance and mercy and good tidings for the Muslims."

The Quran claims to be:

The best hadith (39:23)
Better in explanation than any example brought (25:33)
Its clarification is upon Allah (75:19)
Explained in detail (6:114)
Complete - nothing neglected (6:38)
Clarification for ALL things (16:89)
Self-consistent and self-reinforcing (39:23)

If this is true, what function would other hadith collections serve? What could they add?

The Quran doesn't just claim sufficiency - it explicitly identifies itself as "the best hadith" (39:23), provides "better explanation" (25:33), and declares that its own clarification is Allah's responsibility (75:19).

This raises unavoidable questions:

If Allah has already sent down "the best hadith," why would we need to compile other hadith?
If the Quran provides "better explanation" than any example, why seek explanations elsewhere?
If Allah has taken responsibility for the Quran's clarification, why would we need human scholars to create systems of authentication and extraction of law from oral traditions?

Wouldn't any other collection, by definition, be inferior to "the best"? Wouldn't any other explanation be inferior to the "better explanation"? Wouldn't human attempts at clarification compete with Allah's stated responsibility?

5. The Quran's Warning About Other Narrations

45:6 - "These are the verses of Allah We recite to you in truth. Then in what hadith after Allah and His verses will they believe?"

The word used is حَدِيثٍ (ḥadīth) - narration, account, statement.

After Allah's verses, what other narration/hadith would you believe?

68:36-38 provides even more direct confrontation:

"What is [the matter] with you? How do you judge? Or do you have a book in which you learn that indeed for you in it is whatever you choose?"

This is striking. The Quran challenges those who might claim authority outside it:

What's wrong with your judgment?
Do you have ANOTHER book (كِتَابٌ - kitāb)?
A book where you get to learn/study (تَدْرُسُونَ - tadrusūn)?
Where you find whatever you choose (تَخَيَّرُونَ - takhayyarūn)?

This directly addresses the claim that there's another source of divine guidance beyond the Quran - a source where you can find rulings and practices by selecting from various narrations and interpretations.

77:50 - "Then in what hadith after it will they believe?"

7:185 - "...Then in what hadith after it will they believe?"

The Quran repeatedly asks: after THIS (the Quran), what other narration would you follow?

The challenge in 68:36-38 is particularly relevant to the hadith system:

Do you have another book? (Yes - collections of Bukhari, Muslim, etc.)
In which you study? (Yes - entire sciences of hadith study)
Where you find whatever you choose? (Yes - selecting from thousands of narrations, grading them, extracting preferred rulings)

The Quran seems to be anticipating and directly challenging exactly this system.

6. The Warning Against Division

6:159 - "Indeed, those who have divided their deen and become sects - you are not with them in anything. Their affair is only [left] to Allah; then He will inform them about what they used to do."

30:32 - "Of those who have divided their deen and become sects, every faction rejoicing in what it has."

What created the sects? Different interpretations, different hadith collections, different chains of authority - all claiming to represent "what the Messenger really meant" beyond the Quran.

7. The Prohibition of Taking Authorities Besides Allah

9:31 - "They have taken their rabbis and their monks as lords besides Allah, and [also] the Messiah, the son of Mary. And they were not commanded except to worship one God; there is no deity except Him. Exalted is He above whatever they associate with Him."

The Quran criticizes Jews and Christians for taking their religious scholars as authorities who could make lawful and unlawful.

Does the hadith system not do the same? Scholars authenticate narrations, extract law, declare practices obligatory or forbidden based on these narrations.

42:21 - "Or have they partners who have legislated for them from the deen what Allah has not permitted?"

8. What About "Obey Allah and Obey the Messenger"?

This phrase appears multiple times (3:32, 3:132, 4:59, 5:92, 8:1, 8:20, 8:46, 24:54, 47:33, 64:12).

But notice: the Quran NEVER says "obey Allah and obey the hadith" or "obey Allah and obey the narrations about the Messenger."

4:59 is particularly instructive - but also traditionally mistranslated in a way that breaks the Quran's own pattern:

Traditional translation: "O you who have believed, obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you. And if you dispute over anything, refer it to Allah and the Messenger..."

The problem: Every other verse pairs "obey Allah and obey the Messenger" together - always these two, never three authorities. Why would 4:59 suddenly add a third category of obedience?

Looking at the Arabic structure:

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا أَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ

"O you who have believed, obey Allah and obey the Messenger."

Then the verse continues with وَ (wa - "and"):

وَأُولِي الْأَمْرِ مِنكُمْ

This can be read as starting a NEW statement, not continuing the command to obey. The verse then reads:

"O you who have believed, obey Allah and obey the Messenger. And those in authority among you - if you dispute over anything, refer it to Allah and the Messenger, if you should believe in Allah and the Last Day. That is the best [way] and best in result."

Now the verse makes structural sense:

Obey Allah and obey the Messenger (the consistent pairing)
Those in authority among you (a separate subject being addressed)
When there's dispute, refer to Allah and the Messenger (back to the two authorities)

Notice: the verse does NOT say "refer it to Allah, the Messenger, AND those in authority."

If "those in authority among you" were meant to be a third source of obedience equal to Allah and the Messenger, why would they be excluded from the referral process for disputes?

The very next passage (4:83) clarifies what "those in authority" actually means:

وَإِذَا جَاءَهُمْ أَمْرٌ مِّنَ الْأَمْنِ أَوِ الْخَوْفِ أَذَاعُوا بِهِ ۖ وَلَوْ رَدُّوهُ إِلَى الرَّسُولِ وَإِلَىٰ أُولِي الْأَمْرِ مِنْهُمْ لَعَلِمَهُ الَّذِينَ يَسْتَنبِطُونَهُ مِنْهُمْ

"And when there comes to them a matter of security or fear, they spread it around. But if they had referred it back to the Messenger and to those in authority among them, those who can draw it out from among them would have known it."

This verse specifies the context:

أَمْرٌ مِّنَ الْأَمْنِ أَوِ الْخَوْفِ - "a matter of security or fear"
The verse addresses a specific, practical scenario: security situations, threats, community safety
People tend to spread rumors when they hear about dangers
Instead: refer such matters to the Messenger and to those in positions dealing with community affairs
Those who can extract/draw out (يَسْتَنبِطُونَهُ - yastanbiṭūnahu, from the root related to drawing water from a well) proper understanding will know how to respond

Critical observation: This is NOT about religious law or ritual practice. It's about practical community matters - security, safety, crisis response.

The word أُولِي الْأَمْرِ (ūlī al-amr) means "those in charge of affairs" - those handling community responsibilities, not religious scholars claiming to legislate divine law.

And even in these practical matters, the verse says they should extract understanding (يَسْتَنبِطُونَهُ) - draw it out from the source (what the Messenger conveys). They're not creating new law; they're applying guidance to situations.

What this means for 4:59:

If the immediately following verse (4:83) narrows "those in authority" to people handling practical community affairs (security matters), then 4:59's reference to "those in authority among you" is also contextual - not establishing a religious authority class.

The reading becomes:

Obey Allah and obey the Messenger (the two sources)
Those among you handling community affairs - when disputes arise, refer back to Allah and the Messenger
Don't create human authorities who legislate independently

This reading:

Maintains the consistent pattern of dual authority (Allah + Messenger)
Explains why only two authorities are mentioned in dispute resolution (4:59)
Defines "those in authority" as people handling practical affairs, not religious legislators (4:83)
Shows their function is to extract understanding from the source, not to become sources themselves
Doesn't create a special clerical class with divine authority
Keeps the Quran's emphasis on referring to the revealed Book

When there's a dispute, where do you refer it? To Allah and the Messenger.

How do you refer something to Allah? Through His revealed Book. How do you refer something to the Messenger? Through what he delivered - the same Book.

If hadith were a parallel source, why doesn't the verse say "refer it to Allah, the Messenger, and the hadith collections"?

9. The Test of Consistency

Let's apply the Quran's own test for consistency:

4:82 - "Then do they not reflect upon the Quran? If it had been from other than Allah, they would have found within it much contradiction."

If the hadith system were part of the intended guidance, we should find:

The Quran affirming the need for additional revelation beyond itself
The Quran instructing the recording of the Messenger's daily practices
The Quran establishing hadith authentication methodology
The Quran explaining how to distinguish authentic from fabricated narrations

Instead we find:

The Quran claiming completeness and detail
The Messenger saying "I only follow what is revealed"
The Quran warning about following other narrations after its verses
The Quran criticizing the taking of religious authorities who legislate

That's the most common objection, and it reveals the entire problem with the traditional approach. Here's the rebuttal:

The "But How Do We Pray?" Objection

The usual argument: "Without hadith, how would we know how to pray? The Quran doesn't tell us how many rak'ahs, what to recite, when to bow - we need hadith for these details!"

The problem with this argument: It assumes that salat IS the ritual prayer as traditionally practiced.

But that's the very assumption we need to question.

1. What Does the Quran Actually Say About Salat?

When you search the Quran for the word صلاة (ṣalāt), you find it used in contexts that don't match a fixed ritual:

2:43 - "And establish the salat and give the zakat and bow with those who bow."

4:43 - "O you who have believed, do not approach the salat while you are intoxicated until you know what you are saying..."

If salat is a fixed ritual with specific recitations, why does this verse need to tell you to "know what you are saying"? In a fixed ritual, you'd always know what you're saying - it's the same words every time.

4:142 - "Indeed, the hypocrites [think to] deceive Allah, but He is deceiving them. And when they stand for salat, they stand lazily, showing [themselves to] the people and not remembering Allah except a little."

The criticism here is about their internal state (lazy, showing off, not remembering Allah) - not about incorrect ritual performance.

107:4-6 - "So woe to those who pray, who are heedless of their salat, those who make show [of their deeds]."

You can be "heedless" of your salat while still doing it? How does that work if salat is just physical movements?

2. The Root Meaning

The root ص ل و (ṣ-l-w) appears throughout the Quran. Looking at its usage:

33:43 - "It is He who does salat upon you, and His angels, that He may bring you out from darknesses into the light."

Allah does صلاة (ṣalāt) upon the believers? Is Allah performing the ritual prayer toward us? Obviously not. The word here means something like: turning attention toward, blessing, supporting, remaining conscious of.

33:56 - "Indeed, Allah and His angels do salat upon the Prophet. O you who have believed, do salat upon him and give greetings of peace."

Again - we're told to do salat upon the Prophet. This isn't the ritual prayer. It's about maintaining conscious connection, honoring, remembering.

3. What Salat Might Actually Mean

From the Quran's own usage, صلاة (ṣalāt) appears to mean: maintaining conscious connection, turning attention toward, staying mindful of.

When the Quran says "establish the salat," it may be saying: maintain your conscious connection to divine guidance.

Not "perform these specific physical movements at these specific times."

But rather: stay connected to the awareness and principles you've been given.

4. The Circular Reasoning

The argument "we need hadith to know how to pray" contains circular reasoning:

Assume salat = the specific ritual prayer as traditionally practiced
Notice the Quran doesn't detail this ritual
Conclude: we need hadith to fill the gap
Use hadith to define what salat means
Point to hadith-defined salat as proof we need hadith

But step 1 is the assumption that needs questioning.

If salat doesn't mean "the five-times-daily ritual prayer with specific movements," then there's no gap to fill.

5. The Quran's Own Answer

Remember what we established earlier:

The Messenger said: "I only follow what is revealed to me" (6:50, 10:15, 46:9)

If the ritual prayer as practiced today were mandatory:

The Messenger would have needed to follow it
It would have to be "revealed to him"
It would be in the Quran

If it's not detailed in the Quran:

Either it wasn't revealed (and the Messenger didn't follow it)
Or it's not what salat actually means

The Quran claims to be:

Complete (6:38)
Detailed (6:114)
Clarification for all things (16:89)
Easy, not burdensome (2:185, 22:78)

Would a complete, detailed Book:

Make mandatory a complex ritual?
Require specific movements, timings, and recitations?
But not explain any of these requirements?
Force people to depend on oral traditions collected centuries later?
Make practice impossible without scholarly intermediaries?

Or would it give guidance principles that any person can understand and apply?

6. The Real Question

The question isn't "How do we pray without hadith?"

The question is: "What if salat isn't the ritual we've been taught it is?"

What if "establishing salat" means:

Maintaining conscious awareness of divine guidance
Staying connected to the principles you've received
Turning your attention regularly toward truth and reality
Living with mindful remembrance rather than heedless distraction

That kind of guidance:

Doesn't need hadith to explain
Can be understood directly from the Quran
Is accessible to anyone
Doesn't require clerical authority
Doesn't create division
Actually fits what the Quran says about ease and completeness

7. The Challenge

If someone says "we need hadith to know how to pray," ask them:

"Did the Messenger follow only what was revealed to him (as he stated in 6:50, 10:15, 46:9), or did he follow things not revealed?"

If they answer: "Only what was revealed"

Then what he followed is in the Quran
If ritual prayer details aren't in the Quran, he didn't follow them as divine requirement

If they answer: "He followed things beyond what was revealed"

Then they're contradicting the Messenger's own explicit statements
And claiming he lied when he said "I only follow what is revealed"

You can't have it both ways.

Either:

The ritual prayer as practiced is mandatory AND detailed revelation - but then it should be in the Quran
The ritual prayer as practiced is not in the Quran - so it's not mandatory revelation
Salat in the Quran means something different than the traditional ritual

8. The Honest Position

The honest position is: We don't know with certainty what the Messenger's personal practices were.

We have collections of narrations written 200+ years after his death, transmitted through chains of narrators, authenticated by scholars using contested methodologies, often contradicting each other.

Is that really the foundation on which to base mandatory religious practice?

Or is it more reasonable to:

Trust what the Quran actually says
Understand salat from how the Quran uses the word
Accept that it may not be the ritual we've been taught
Follow the guidance principles the Quran clearly provides

9. The Implication

If you can't practice your deen without hadith, then:

The Quran is insufficient (contradicting its own claims)
The Messenger failed to deliver complete guidance (contradicting his stated role)
You're dependent on scholars and their authentication systems
You're following a religion system, not the Quran's guidance for deen

But if the Quran is complete, detailed, and sufficient (as it claims), then everything necessary for guidance is already there.

The question "how do we pray without hadith?" assumes we need to perform a specific ritual.

The Quran might be asking us to do something else entirely - something it actually explains.

10. The Same Logic Applies Everywhere

The "how do we pray without hadith?" objection is just one example of circular reasoning. The same pattern appears with every traditional "ritual":

"Without hadith, how would we know:

How many rak'ahs to pray?" - Assumes salat = ritual prayer with rak'ahs
How to perform hajj?" - Assumes hajj = pilgrimage to Makkah with specific rituals
How much zakat to pay?" - Assumes zakat = calculated percentage of wealth
How to fast Ramadan?" - Assumes siyam = ritual abstention from food during daylight

Each objection begins by assuming the traditional ritual interpretation, notices that the Quran doesn't detail that ritual, and then claims that hadith are necessary to fill the gap.

But what if:

Salat means conscious connection, not ritual prayer
Hajj means determined effort toward a goal, not physical pilgrimage
Zakat means growth/purification through circulation of resources, not a calculated tax
Siyam means restraint/consciousness during challenging times, not ritual fasting

If these words mean something other than the rituals tradition has defined, then there's no gap in the Quran. The guidance is already there - we've just been reading it through the lens of religious systems built on hadith.

The argument "we need hadith to understand the Quran" becomes: "we need hadith to maintain the religious system that hadith created." That's not discovering what the Quran says - that's defending what tradition built.

The Pattern That Emerges

When you read the Quran on its own terms:

The Messenger's role was:

Receive the revelation
Convey it clearly
Follow it himself
Warn people through it

Not:

Create additional law through his personal practices
Establish a parallel revelation system
Require his every action to be recorded and followed
Make himself necessary beyond the message he delivered

The Quran's claim about itself:

Complete and detailed
Sufficient as guidance
Clarification for all things
The final authority

Not:

Requiring supplementation by narrations
Needing authentication by scholars
Incomplete without hadith
Merely one part of a multi-source system

The Implications

If the Quran is:

Complete and detailed (6:114, 6:38, 16:89)
The only revelation the Messenger followed (6:50, 10:15, 46:9)
The message he was sent to convey (5:99, 24:54, 64:12)
Warning us not to follow other narrations after it (45:6, 77:50)
Warning against taking religious authorities who legislate (9:31, 42:21)

Then the hadith system:

Was not part of the original guidance
Creates division the Quran warned against
Establishes authorities the Quran prohibited
Follows narrations the Quran questioned
Assumes incompleteness the Quran denied

The Choice

You can follow:

The traditional view: The Quran is insufficient; you need hadith to understand and practice Islam properly. The Messenger's daily life was a parallel revelation that must be preserved through narrations authenticated by scholars.

Or what the Quran actually says: The Messenger conveyed a complete, detailed Book. He followed only what was revealed in it. After this Book's verses, what other narration would you believe? Refer disputes to Allah and what the Messenger delivered - the Quran itself.

The Question

If the Messenger himself said "I only follow what is revealed to me," and his function was "only the clear conveyance," and the Quran asks "what hadith after Allah's verses will they believe?"...

Why would we need a system of hadith at all?

Not as attack on tradition. Not as claim to have all answers. Simply: what does the Quran itself say?

The text is there. Read it. Decide for yourself.

About this document

This investigation uses only the Quran's Arabic text and its own internal cross-references. No hadith, tafsir, scholarly opinion, or external source was consulted. The methodology: let the Quran interpret itself.