The Hadith

Ahadith (plural of hadith) are the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad . There are several hadith collections which have been complied since the birth of Islam. The most popular one being Sahih Bukhari. Sahih Bukhari is considered to be the most reliable of all the hadith collections.

A hadith consists of two parts, the sanad and matn.

Sanad

The sanad is the chain of people each reporting the name of the person from whom they heard the hadith. The chain continues until it goes back to the person who heard the Prophet Muhammad say the hadith.

Matn

The matn is the actual text of the hadith.