A Timely Reminder Shared With Us by a 16-Year-Old Youth Regarding the Fear of Allah and Preservation of the Sunnah

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

Today I was in the company of a 16-year-old youth, may Allah bless and preserve him and his parents, who constantly engages me in discussions at the Masjid and outside regarding various issues related to the religion, especially when his father occasionally asks me to walk home with him, as my house and theirs are just a 15-minute walk away.

Today, after Qur’an school, we performed the Maghrib prayer. He then started a conversation with me regarding who the senior muhaddithin of the Salaf were. He mentioned some, and I mentioned some. He then mentioned Yahya bin Qattan, may Allah have mercy upon him.

Then he shared something very beneficial about Imam Yahya that once again reminded me, and will also remind you, about the manner in which the Salaf exalted the Sunnah, while fearing only Allah and seeking solely to preserve the Sunnah of the Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.

I was also filled with happiness to hear this from this 16-year-old youth who was born in our presence, grew up in our presence, and was nurtured in our presence. I saw him when he was a baby, then a toddler, until he has now reached the age of 16, nearly reaching our height.

Here is the timely Faa’idah he narrated to me:

It was said to Yaḥyā ibn Saʿīd al-Qaṭṭān, may Allah have mercy upon him:

“Do you not fear that these people whose narrations you criticise will be your adversaries in Allah’s presence on the Day of Resurrection?”

He replied:

“For these people to be my adversaries is more beloved to me than for Allah’s Messenger ﷺ to be my adversary, saying to me: ‘Why did you narrate from me a hadith that you considered to be a lie?’” [1]

After getting into the car with his father, I related the Faa’idah shared by his son. We also recalled the following :

Imam Al-Khatib Al-Baghdadi, may Allah have mercy upon him, said:

There is no one among the people of hadith who showed favoritism (or behaved in a biased manner) in hadith — neither toward his father, his brother, nor his son. Ali ibn Abdillah Al-Madini, may Allah have mercy upon him, was an Imam of hadith in his era, however, not a letter is reported from him with regards to strengthening (the reliability of) his father; rather, the opposite of that is what has been narrated from him. [2]

Imam Ibn Hibban, may Allah have mercy upon him, said: Ali Ibn Al-Madini, may Allah have mercy upon him, was asked about his father, so he said: “Ask someone else”. They said: “We ask you (in particular)”. He lowered his head (in silence for a while), then he raised his head and said: “This is the religion, my father is weak (in hadith)”. [3] [End of quote]

I ask Allah – and for all of you – that he surrounds us with people – regardless of their age – who will remind us of every good, protect us, grant us Sidq, Thabat and Husnul khatimah Amin.

[1] Reported by al-Ḥākim in al-Madkhal ilas Ṣaḥiḥ p. 111. Al-Khaṭīb in al-Kifāyah fī ʿIlm al-Riwāyah p. 44, and Ibn ʿAsākir in Tārīkh Dimashq 54/393.

[2] Sharaf Ashab al-Hadith p. 41

[3] Al-Majruhin 2/15