BENEFIT 227: Is Jarh wa Ta'dil still applicable today?

A questioner asks: How should we respond to those who claim that the practice of Jarh wa Ta’dil (the science of criticising and accrediting narrators) has ended and that its scholars have passed away? And if you assert that the science of Jarh wa Ta’dil is still applicable, who are the scholars of this science in our time? Sheikh Muhammad Al-Majeedi ḥafidhahullāh responded: The one who makes this claim has not understood the true nature of Jarh wa Ta’dil. He assumes that it is solely related to evaluating narrators, not realising that Jarh wa Ta’dil is part of enjoining good and forbidding evil, which is a responsibility in every time and place and one of the most distinctive characteristics of this Ummah. Allah, the Exalted, says: ﴿وَلۡتَكُن مِّنكُمۡ أُمَّةٞ يَدۡعُونَ إِلَى ٱلۡخَيۡرِ ‌وَيَأۡمُرُونَ ‌بِٱلۡمَعۡرُوفِ وَيَنۡهَوۡنَ عَنِ ٱلۡمُنكَرِۚ وَأُوْلَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلۡمُفۡلِحُونَ﴾ “Let there arise from you a nation inviting to [all that is] good, enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong, and those will be the successful.” [Surah Aal-e-Imran: 104]. And He, the Almighty, also says: ﴿وَٱلۡمُؤۡمِنُونَ وَٱلۡمُؤۡمِنَٰتُ بَعۡضُهُمۡ أَوۡلِيَآءُ بَعۡضٖۚ ‌يَأۡمُرُونَ ‌بِٱلۡمَعۡرُوفِ وَيَنۡهَوۡنَ عَنِ ٱلۡمُنكَرِ وَيُقِيمُونَ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَيُؤۡتُونَ ٱلزَّكَوٰةَ وَيُطِيعُونَ ٱللهَ وَرَسُولَهُۥٓۚ أُوْلَٰٓئِكَ سَيَرۡحَمُهُمُ ٱللهُ إِنَّ ٱللهَ عَزِيزٌ حَكِيمٞ﴾ “The believing men and believing women are allies of one another. They enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong, and establish prayer and give zakah and obey Allah and His Messenger. Those – Allah will have mercy upon them. Indeed, Allah is Exalted in Might and Wise.” [Surah At-Tawbah: 71]. Regarding this, Abu Sa’id Al-Khudri, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: ((مَنْ رَأَى مِنْكُمْ ‌مُنْكَرًا ‌فَلْيُغَيِّرْهُ بِيَدِهِ، فَإِنْ لَمْ يَسْتَطِعْ فَبِلِسَانِهِ، فَإِنْ لَمْ يَسْتَطِعْ فَبِقَلْبِهِ، وَذَلِكَ أَضْعَفُ الْإِيمَانِ)) “Whoever among you sees an evil (this is part of correcting evil, which is an obligation upon everyone with knowledge and insight), let him change it with his hand; if he is unable to do so, then with his tongue; and if he is unable to do so, then with his heart – and that is the weakest of Eman.” [Narrated by Muslim]. Moreover, defending the religion and guarding its boundaries are also part of this responsibility. Imam Ahmad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: الحمد لله الذي جعل في كل زمان فترة من الرسل، بقايا من أهل العلم يدعون من ضل إلى الهدى، ويصبرون منهم على الأذى، يحيون بكتاب الله الموتى، ويبصرون بنور الله أهل العمى، فكم من قتيل لإبليس قد أحيوه، وكم من ضالٍ تائه قد هدوه، فما أحسن أثرهم على الناس، وأقبح أثر الناس عليهم. ينفون عن كتاب الله تحريف الغالين، ‌وانتحال ‌المبطلين، وتأويل الجاهلين، الذين عقدوا ألوية البدع، وأطلقوا عقال الفتنة فهم مختلفون في الكتاب، مخالفون للكتاب، مجمعون على مفارقة الكتاب، يقولون على الله، وفي الله، وفي كتاب الله بغير علم. اهـ “Praise be to Allah who, in every age of a pause in the sending of messengers, leaves behind remnants of the people of knowledge who call those who have gone astray to guidance and patiently endure their harm. With the Book of Allah, they give life to the dead and, with the light of Allah, they give sight to the blind. How many a slain one of Iblees have they revived, and how many a straying wanderer have they guided? What a good impact they have on people, and what a bad impact people have on them. They protect the Book of Allah from the distortions of extremists, the fabrications of false claimants, and the misinterpretations of the ignorant—those who have raised the banners of innovation and unleashed the reins of discord. They differ from the Book, oppose the Book, and unanimously agree to depart from the Book, speaking about Allah, His religion, and His Book without knowledge."