Title: A Further Clarification on the Position of Hadith Question/Comments: I was just reading your answer on Hadiths and I was wondering: Allah told us (the Muslims) to follow Him and the Prophet (pbuh) and we ask ourselves how can we when he is no longer with us, and this is where Hadiths fall into place, Allah and Muhammad (pbuh) knew that he (pbuh) would eventually die, so why did they not collect hadiths in writing, before this happened to prevent all this confusion? Islam is supposed to be easy to follow is it not? And there are so many controversies with Hadith even questioning the meanings in Qur'an... for example the Quran tells women to cover themselves. And now women are wondering how much. Should we veil or not? Should we wear full niqaab or not? And as I have studied some on this subject there seems to be hadiths where the Prophet (pbuh) has said that we do... for example there is one that says that Allah will not accept prayer from any women not wearing a veil... I ask myself why would Allah want such a thing from me but if he does I will obey... but who knows what He wants anymore... Allah does not say that in Qur'an... plus there are those Hadiths , which contradict. As well as the Hadiths that I followed from what I thought was a reliable source only to be laughed at because they were not true. What I am saying here is that Allah knows best and that if His intentions were for us to follow Hadiths then why did He not specify this in the Qur'an. Also why did Muhammad not say for the companions to write it down then so it would be clear. I am still confused. Answer: When the Qur'an directs us to obey Allah and His messenger, it is, in fact, not referring to obedience toward two separate sources of directives. On the contrary, the implication in such directives is that, which has been clarified in Al-Nisaa 4: 80 as: Whoever obeys the Prophet, has in fact obeyed God. A close observation shall show that the prophets of God are, in fact, our sole source of information of God's directives. Thus, obedience to God, in its essence, requires obedience to His prophets. I do not agree with the view that "obedience to God" implies obedience to the Qur'an, while "obedience to the Prophet (pbuh)" implies obedience to the Sunnah of the Prophet (pbuh). This view, obviously, entails the inherent error of dissociating the Sunnah from God's revelations. In my opinion, on the contrary, obedience and adherence to the Qur'an and the Sunnah of the Prophet (pbuh), both are the requirements of "obedience to God" and neither of these can be achieved without "obedience to the Prophet (pbuh)". Thus, the Qur'an and the Sunnah of the Prophet (pbuh) are, in fact, the basic sources of Islam available to us. Hadith , as I have stated earlier in a few of my responses, is not a primary source of the Shari`ah , as against the Qur'an and the Sunnah . Hadith , unlike the Qur'an and the Sunnah , is neither secure from adulteration, alteration and loss, nor has it been transmitted to us through the same reliable sources, which have transmitted the Qur'an and the Sunnah [1] . Hadith should be considered and accepted only after it has been thoroughly explained in the light of the two primary sources of the Shari`ah - i.e. the Qur'an and the Sunnah [2] . You write: for example the Qur'an tells women to cover themselves. And now women are wondering how much. Should we veil or not? Should we wear full niqaab or not? And as I have studied some on this subject there seems to be hadiths where the Prophet (pbuh) has said that we do... Unfortunately, I am not aware of the Hadith , in which the Prophet (pbuh) has directed women to veil themselves. I am, therefore, unable to comment on it. I would suggest that you kindly provide the complete reference for it. You write: there is one that says that Allah will not accept prayer from any women not wearing a veil... I ask myself why would Allah want such a thing from me but if he does I will obey... but who knows what He wants anymore... Allah does not say that in Qur'an... The referred Hadith is narrated by Tirmidhi Kitaab al-Sala'h in the following words: When a woman reaches the age of menstruation, her prayers are not accepted, if she does not wear a head covering. It is, in fact, not a "veil", but a sheet used for "head covering" (Khimaar) that is referred to in this Hadith . Khimaar is clearly recommended by the Qur'an ( Al-Noor 24: 31). Thus, this Hadith has not added anything to the main corpus of Islam (i.e. the Shari`ah ), but has only applied the directive entailed in the Qur'an to a practical life situation. I am sure that if one were to analyze Hadith in the light of the Qur'an and the Sunnah , it would save him from accepting incorrect sayings ascribed to the Prophet (pbuh) and thereby, from, adding such ingredients to the basic corpus of Islam, which were not added by the Prophet (pbuh), himself. October 22, 2000 [1] For details please refer to the previous questions that I have answered on the topic. [2] For details regarding my opinion about the position of Hadith as a source of Islam and the distinction between Hadith and Sunnah , please refer to the section titled " Sources of Islam ".