The Book of Asceticism · Hadith 3 (#Ḥadīth #3)

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Since this is one of the older extant ḥadīth texts, there are bound to be some discrepancies among the available manuscripts of this work. The source we have chosen for this translation is the edition that has been meticulously put together, after comparing a number of available manuscripts and also referring to secondary sources, by the esteemed scholar and researcher Mirzā Ghulām Riḍā ʿIrfāniyān, and published in the year 1361 AH Solar. Many of the traditions compiled in this work are also found in other sources such as Kulaynī’s al-Kāfī, or al-Ṣadūq’s al-Amālī among others. At times, these latter works seem to have more complete and accurate versions of the traditions. It is perhaps for this reason that in more recent times Kitāb al-Zuhd has not gotten the same attention as some of the other ḥadīth texts, despite being of an earlier provenance. To date, there is only one Farsi translation of the work and no other complete English translation.[1] Since the Arabic text of this work has a number of instances where the editor has included a second form of a word or phrase in square brackets, which at times is quite different from the first one, we opted to translate only the word which seems more accurate given the context, and in cases where it is not clear which of the two is more correct, we translated the second form and included that in brackets as well. We have, however, left the Arabic text as is for those who would like to refer to the possible alternative form when it is present. We have also included some annotations in the footnotes to clarify the meaning of certain traditions, and have also included the sūrah and āyah numbers of Qurʾānic references within the traditions. Given that This is one of the earliest source texts, there is no bibliography. However, in the Arabic text of this work that we used, the editor did include footnotes wherein he mentioned the later works that referred to each of the traditions. Though the title of this work might lead one to believe that this text is all about al-zuhd or abstemiousness, it contains within it a variety of ethical teachings categorised into twenty different topics. For this we have included an appendix to explain the meaning of the term al-zuhd itself, and how it is possible that the term was understood, during certain periods, to encompass all positive ethical traits. In conclusion, we acknowledge that all mistakes in the translation are ours alone. We pray that the Almighty accept this humble effort and hope that this work will be beneficial for those who read it. And all praise belongs solely to Allah, Lord of the worlds.

Gradings are classical jarḥ-wa-taʿdīl, name-matched to a rijāl index (not individually re-verified).