أسس نقد الرجال عند الإمام الذهبي

Abstract

Received: 2026 / 04 / 03
Revision: 2026 / 04 / 25
Accepted: 2026 / 05 / 06
Published: 2026 / 09 / 30

This research examines the foundations of narrator criticism according to Imam Al-Dhahabi، one of the most prominent Hadith critics of the eighth century AH (14th century CE)، through an inductive study of his critical works such as "Mizan Al-I'tidal" and "Tadhkirat Al-Huffaz." It has been shown that Al-Dhahabi's methodology was distinguished by his adoption of "moral authentication" (Al-Tawthiq Al-Ma'nawi)، which is based on contextual indicators of the narrator's character and his prolonged association with reliable narrators، in addition to his precise classification of the graded levels of authentication and discrediting، reflecting his analytical vision of the probative value of chains of transmission. Al-Dhahabi also established the rule of giving precedence to explained discrediting (Al-Jarh Al-Mufassar) over unspecified commendation (Al-Ta'dil) when they conflict، while rejecting vague and ambiguous discrediting. He distinguished between discrediting a narrator due to frequent errors—which may render him suitable for follow-up narrations (mutaba'at)—and discrediting him for lying and fabrication، which completely invalidates his narration. Regarding the issue of conflicting critical opinions، Al-Dhahabi set forth principles for weighing preferences، including: giving precedence to the contemporary critic over the later one، giving precedence to explained discrediting over vague discrediting، considering the number of critics provided they are comparable in scholarly rank، and giving precedence to the most knowledgeable، most reliable، and most precise critic even if fewer in number. Al-Dhahabi grounded his methodology in a number of scriptural texts، and was characterized by fairness and justice in judging narrators، as his aversion to a narrator's doctrinal innovation did not prevent him from clarifying the reality of his reliability or weakness.