The Blessed Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم received two types of divine revelations. One is the spoken [matluww] and the second, the unspoken [ghair-matluww]. The spoken revelation is that which is recited [i.e., the Qur’an]; the unspoken revelation is that which is not recited [i.e., the aúódõth of the Blessed Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم]. An indication of the roots of the unspoken revelation can be found in the ayas of the Qur’an. Allah صلى الله عليه وسلم says in the Holy Qur’an:

To gain a broader understanding of this aya, it is important that we look into its historical background.

Shortly after the migration to Madina, the Blessed Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and the Sahaba رضي الله عنه‎) were told to pray towards Masjid al-Aqüó in Jerusalem. Masjid al-Aqüó became the qibla of the Muslims for seventeen months. After seventeen months, the order to pray towards Masjid al-Aqüó was abrogated and Muslims were ordered to pray towards Makka. This order was established through the following aya:

In this aya, Allah سبحانه وتعالى.mentions the first order, which was to face towards Jerusalem, as His own order. This impresses upon the reader the fact that Allah سبحانه وتعالى. himself was behind the order to face Masjid al-Aqüó. But when we read the Qur’an we do not find any such aya in which Allah سبحانه وتعالى. ordered the Muslims to pray towards Jerusalem.

The fact is that this order came from the Blessed Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and not from any aya of the Qur’an. The aya does not say, “The Blessed Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم enacted the order…” rather it says, “We appointed the qibla….” This brings us to the understanding that the order of the Blessed Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم is no different from the order of Allah سبحانه وتعالى..

The proof is so self-evident it does not require any further clarification. This clear statement from the Qur’an regarding the order given by the Blessed Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم demonstrates a fundamental belief about the aúódõth of the Blessed Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم: that they are a form of revelation. And this is what is known as the unspoken or unrecited revelation.

The aya mentioned above also reveals some other important points:

1. A special type of revelation was sent to the Blessed Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم which was not a part of the Qur’an.

2. These revelations were from Allah سبحانه وتعالى.

3. Similarly, the rulings that derived from the unspoken revelations were also the rulings of Allah سبحانه وتعالى.

All the Sahaba رضي الله عنه‎ were obligated to fulfill the orders of the unspoken revelations in the same manner as they were the spoken revelation [Qur’an]. Some orders were revealed to test the õmón of the Muslims, particularly those orders that were revealed through the unspoken revelation, to see whether they obeyed the orders. Many other examples could be cited, but they have not been mentioned for the sake of brevity.

While this aforementioned proof highlights the importance of the aúódõth and their validity as an authority in Islam, it also establishes that the preservation of the Qur’an includes preservation of the úódõth. The Qur’an itself is the essence of Islamic thought and is the final word in this matter. The Qur’an states:

In this aya the Qur’an orders us to adhere to the way of the Blessed Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم, as adherence to the Blessed Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم is adherence to Allah سبحانه وتعالى.. Once, a woman came to the famous Sahaba رضي الله عنه‎), ‘Abd Allóh ibn Mas‘ñdرضي الله عنه‎. She said, “I have heard you stop people from doing certain things even though I have read the Qur’an from cover to cover and I have never read the Qur’an ordering us to abstain from these things.” ‘Abd Allóh ibn Mas‘ñd رضي الله عنه‎) replied, “Had you read the Qur’an you would have found it. Have you not read this aya of the Qur’an:

From this incident we learn that this aya incorporates the aúódõth of the Blessed Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and establishes the authority of the aúódõth in Islam.