Criticism of Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim in the Writings of the Early Imams of Ahl al-Bayt
A number of Imams of the Ahl al-Bayt (ع) have expressed reservations regarding the claim of authenticity attached to Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim.
Al-Hasan bin Yahya Al-Qasimi (d. 1343 AH)
Imam al-Mansur bi-Llah al-Qasim bin Muhammad (ع) narrated from Imam al-Mahdi Ahmad bin Yahya (ع), from Imam al-Hadi Hasan al-Qasimi (ع), in reference to the two Sahihs:
«بينهما وبين الصحة مسافات ومراحل»
Between these two books and that which may be regarded as true authenticity lies a great distance.
(Mahāsin al-Anẓār, of Imam al-Hadi Hasan al-Qasimi)
The Selectivity of al-Bukhari’s Narrations
It is noted that al-Bukhari did not narrate from the leading Imams of the Ahl al-Bayt, including:
- al-Hasan ibn ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib (ع),
- Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq (ع),
- Mūsā al-Kāẓim (ع),
- ʿAlī al-Riḍā (ع),
- Muḥammad al-Jawād (ع),
- al-Ḥasan al-ʿAskarī (ع),
despite the fact that some of them were his contemporaries. Similarly, he omitted transmission from other prominent descendants of the Prophet ﷺ, such as Zayd ibn ʿAlī, Yaḥyā ibn Zayd, Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh (al-Nafs al-Zakiyyah), and al-Qāsim al-Rassī, among others.
By contrast, al-Bukhari included narrations from individuals known for opposition to the Ahl al-Bayt. Among these was ʿImrān ibn Ḥiṭṭān, a Kharijite who composed poetry in praise of Ibn Muljam, the assassin of Imam ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib (ع). Despite his affiliations, ʿImrān was considered thiqa (reliable) by later authorities such as Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī, al-ʿAjlī, and Qatāda.
Imam al-Hadi’s Assessment
In a similar vein, Imam al-Mahdi Aḥmad al-Murtaḍā (ع) cites Imam Yahya al-Hadi (ع) in his al-Ghāyah as saying:
“They have two books which they call ‘the two Sahihs,’ but by my life, they are devoid of authenticity.”
This academic critique highlights a central concern: the methodological and sectarian selectivity of the compilers of the Sahihayn, and the resulting distance between these compilations and what the Imams of the Ahl al-Bayt (ع) considered true authenticity.