Distinguishing Between Transmission and Copy in Sahih al-Bukhari

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Distinguishing Between Transmission and Copy in Sahih al-Bukhari

This article explains an important methodological distinction in the study of Sahih al-Bukhari: the difference between a riwayah and a nuskhah. The two are related, but they do not mean the same thing.

In hadith scholarship, a riwayah refers to the line or mode by which the book was transmitted from its author through hearing, authorization, or other recognized methods of reception. The transmission of Muhammad ibn Yusuf al-Firabri is the most famous and widespread route from Imam al-Bukhari, and later transmissions such as those of al-Kushmihani, al-Mustamli, and al-Hamawi branch from it. Minor differences of wording and additions among these routes became an important field of study in verification and criticism.

By contrast, a nuskhah refers to the written form of the book as preserved in a particular manuscript or copied through a specific transmitter. It is the material textual form of the work, whether manuscript or printed edition. Some copies became famous by the names of their owners or transmitters because of their reliability and scholarly value.

The article then mentions two broad types of copies: those representing a single transmitter’s copy, and those that compile several transmissions together, such as Abu Dharr al-Harawi’s combined recension and the Yunini recension. It also highlights the Saghani copy, valued for its comparison with the original Firabri line. The point of the article is that careful study of Sahih al-Bukhari requires attention to both transmission history and manuscript embodiment.

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