Doubted an Account, Then Learned It Is a Hadith — What Should Be Done?

Question

Zayd heard from a certain preacher an account [purportedly] taken from hadith, but afterwards could not recall whether it was indeed a hadith or not. Zayd related this account to Musa, saying: “I heard this account from such-and-such a preacher.” Musa rejected it, saying: “I have doubts about this; such an account is incorrect.” Later it became known that this is indeed found in hadith.

Answer

Without verification (tahqiq), one should neither attribute something to the noble hadith nor reject an established hadith. If something was heard from a preacher and the heart did not accept it, and for that reason it was rejected, and it later became known that this matter is indeed found in the noble hadith, then the rejection should be retracted and the matter acknowledged.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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