The Role of ‘Ăisha in the Transmission and Critique of Hadīth

This article deals with the role of ‘Ăisha in the science of hadīth. She was the younger wife of the Prophet and accompanied him for a long time. She has been distinguished with the sharp memory among Prophet’s companions, that preserved every tiny detail of his life and got a prominent position among the muksirūn al-hadīth. She played a pivotal role in the transmission of hadīth, hence, she was the primary source of referring to the Prophet’s companions and their successors. It is concluded from a thorough review of her narrations that her hadīths were contained those pieces of information which rarely found in the narrations of other transmitters. She was not a transmitter solely, but she was also a great mufassira, muhaddītha, and faqīha of her time. The companions were visiting her for the investigation and attestation of a hadīth, the exegesis of a Quranic verse, and the explanation of an Islamic provision. Moreover, she criticised with a scientific method, the narrations of fellow Prophet’s companions that they attributed to the Prophet. A detailed study of her critique showed that whenever she was informed by a narration and asked for attestation she was presenting it to the Holy Qurān, the authentic hadīth, the proven history, and qiyās al-‘Aqlī. If there was any conflict among the transmitted hadīth with these sources, she was showing her concern about it and questioning the understanding or the memory of the narrator, which are discussed with explanatory examples in this study.