ABSTRACTS

Translated into English by Hamid Reza Salarkia

The hadith "la-'adwā": attribution and concept recognition

A survey on the origin of the claim that according to Islam the illnesses are not contagious

Mahmoud Karimiyan¹

The hadith "la-'adwā" denoting the absolute negation of contagiousness of illnesses from the ill person to a healthy one is attributed to the Prophet (s.a.w) in the hadith collection of the Two Schools (Shi'a and Sunni). This hadith contradicts both the experimental and medical indisputable things, as well as some of the reliable traditions. For this reason it was noticed by the thinkers and scholars in the field of hadith discussions, and received their justifications about its purport; however, none of them is compatible with the appearance of the hadith and the atmosphere of its issuance. At the same time the probability of abrogation, distortion and paraphrasing about it is denied.

Considering these objections, as well as the weakness in its reliability in the Shi'a resources, and the doubt or denial about certain narrators of it in Sunni resources this tradition is seriously and fundamentally questionable. This article attempts to evaluate the reliability of this hadith and to recognize its purport. It also explains the above objections and investigates the reliability of the isnād of the hadith. In addition it studies the different opinions that can be expressed about its meaning and rejects them all, and finally, reinforces the probability that the hadith in question is a fabricated one.

Keywords: "la-'adwā", contagiousness of an illness, mange, attribution of the hadith, recognition of purport, hadith comprehension, hadith fabrication.