() is the second hadith collection of the Six Books of Sunni Islam. Compiled by Islamic scholar Muslim ibn al-Ḥajjāj () in the format, the work is valued by Sunnis, alongside , as the most important source for Islamic religion after the Qur'an.

Sahih Muslim contains approximately 5,500 - 7,500 hadith narrations in its introduction and 56 books. Kâtip Çelebi (died 1657) and Siddiq Hasan Khan (died 1890) both counted 7,275 narrations. Muhammad Fuad Abdul Baqi wrote that there are 3,033 narrations without considering repetitions. Mashhur ibn Hasan Al Salman, a student of Albanian Islamic scholar Al-Albani (died 1999), counted 7,385 total narrations, which, combined with the ten in the introduction, add up to a total of 7,395. He was also compelled to write the Sahih for what he observed to be the poor character of his contemporary hadith scholars, and their unreluctant willingness to spread daʻīf (weak) narrations. Muslim collected 12,000 narrations and chose 4,000 to be included in his book. Sahih Muslim and Sahih al-Bukhari are together referred to as the Sahihayn (The Two Sahihs).

Al-Nawawi wrote about Sahih al-Bukhari, "The scholars, may God have mercy on them, have agreed that the most authentic book after the dear Quran are the two Sahihs of Bukhari and Muslim." Siddiq Hasan Khan (died 1890) wrote, "All of the Salaf and Khalaf assert that the most authentic book after the book of Allah is Sahih al-Bukhari and then Sahih Muslim." This sentiment is echoed by both contemporary and past Islamic scholars, including Ibn Taymiyya (died 1328), Al-Maziri (died 1141), and Al-Juwayni (died 1085). Amin Ahsan Islahi praised the scientific arrangement of the narrations in Sahih Muslim. He also praised Muslim's particularity in highlighting differences in wording between two narrations, even when it came to a single letter that held no semantic significance, or if they differed about any facts relating to a narrator in the isnad.

Derived works

Commentaries

More than 60 commentaries have been written on Sahih Muslim, some of which are Siyānah Sahīh Muslim by Ibn al-Salah, of which only the beginning segment remains, Al-Mu'allim bi Fawā'id Muslim by Al-Maziri, Al Minhāj Sharḥ Sahīḥ Muslim by Al-Nawawi, Fath al-Mulhim bi-Sharh Sahih al-Imam Muslim by Shabbir Ahmad Usmani, Takmilah Fath al-Mulhim bi-Sharh Sahih al-Imam Muslim by Taqi Usmani, and Tafsir al-Gharīb mā fi al-Sahīhayn by Al-Humaydī. Translations of commentaries of Sahih Muslims are available in numerous languages.

See also

  • Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj – author of Sahih Muslim
  • Sahih al-Bukhari – another Sahih collection of hadith narrations and the other of the Sahihayn
  • Muhammad al-Bukhari – another hadith scholar, one of Muslim's teachers, and the author of Sahih al-Bukhari
  • Kutub al-Sittah – six most highly-regarded collections of hadith in Sunni Islam, including Sahih al-Bukhari, Sahih Muslim, and:
  • Sahih al-Tirmidhi – compiled by Al-Tirmidhi (824–892)
  • Sunan ibn Majah – compiled by Ibn Majah (824–887)
  • Sunan Abu Dawood – compiled by Abu Dawud al-Sijistani (died 889)
  • Al-Sunan al-Sughra, also known as Sunan an-Nasa'i – compiled by Al-Nasa'i (829–915)

References

  • English translation with Arabic text (Sunnah.com)
  • English translation with Arabic text (QuranX.com)