Lesson 36
The Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ
السنة النبوية
Read selected aḥādīth in their classical Arabic with full isnād chains. Ḥadīth vocabulary and classical Arabic prose style are the defining features of this landmark unit.
Hadith Science Vocabulary
ArabicTransliterationMeaning
إِسْنَادisnādchain of narrators
مَتْنmatntext of the hadith
رَاوٍrāwinnarrator
صَحِيحṣaḥīḥauthentic
حَدَّثَنَاḥaddathanānarrated to us (isnād formula)
Sample Ḥadīth with Isnād
حَدَّثَنَا عُمَرُ بْنُ الْخَطَّابِ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ قَالَ: سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ يَقُولُ: إِنَّمَا الْأَعْمَالُ بِالنِّيَّات
Ḥaddathanā ʿUmaru bnu l-Khaṭṭābi raḍiya llāhu ʿanhu qāla: samiʿtu rasūla llāhi ﷺ yaqūlu: innamā l-aʿmālu binniyyāt
ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated, saying: I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ saying: "Truly, actions are by intentions." (Bukhārī 1)
- بْن / بِنْت: "Son of / daughter of" used in isnād chains; the alif is elided when preceded by a vowel.
- سَمِعْتُه يَقُول: "I heard him saying" verb + pronoun + present participle a classical Arabic construction.
- إِنَّمَا: Restrictive particle "actions are ONLY by intentions" the strongest restriction tool in Arabic.
- Impact: Understanding the first ḥadīth of Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī in its original Arabic this moment marks a new relationship with the Sunnah.