Abu farko kuma mafi muhimmanci da aka ba fifiko a tarihin Musulunci shi ne Sīrah na Annabi ﷺ, da kuma yaƙe-yaƙe na soja (maghazi) da suka biyo baya. Don haka, an dogara ne ga hadisai da Sahabbai, Tabi'ai da waɗanda suka zo bayansu suka ruwaito game da rayuwar Annabi ﷺ; tun daga haihuwarsa, ƙuruciyarsa, da kiransa zuwa Musulunci, har zuwa jihadi da balaguron yaƙi da ya yi a kan mushrikai, da cin nasarorinsa. A takaice, rahotanni game da Annabi ﷺ tun daga haihuwarsa har zuwa rasuwarsa.

The first and foremost thing that was given priority in the Islamic history was the Sīrah of the Prophet  and the subsequent military campaigns (maghazi) that followed. For this, reliance was placed on ahadīth narrated by the Sahabah, Tabi'een and those who came after them concerning the life of the Prophet ; from his birth, his early life, and his Call to Islam to the Jihad and military expeditions against the Mushrikin and his conquests. In short, reports concerning the Prophet  from his birth till his death.

Tarihin rayuwar Annabi ﷺ wani bangare ne na hadisan da aka ruwaito. Irin wadannan hadisai sun kasance warwatsu a zamanin da Muhaddith zai tattara dukkan rahotannin da suka iske shi, ya koye su ba tare da wani tsari ko shiryawa ba. Lokacin da hadisai suka fara zama an shirya su bisa babi-babi, sai aka hada yakokin soji a cikin babi daban-daban. Daga nan sai wadannan suka rabu da hadisi, aka kuma rubuta littattafai na musamman a kansu, duk da cewa muhaddithai sun ci gaba da saka su cikin babikansu. Saboda haka, a cikin Bukhari akwai Littafin Yakokin Soji (kitab al-Maghazi), a kuma cikin Muslim akwai Littafin Jihadi da Yakokin Soji (kitab al-jihad wa al-siyar).

The history of the Prophet's life  was a part of the reported ahadīth. Such ahadīth used to be miscellaneous in the days when the Muhaddith would compile all the reports that reached him and learn them without any order or arrangement. When ahadīth came to be arranged according to chapters, the military campaigns were brought together in separate chapters. These then became separated from the hadīth and specific books were written on them although the muhaddithin continued to include them within their chapters. So, in Bukhari there is the Book of Military Expeditions (kitab al-Maghazi) and in Muslim the Book of Jihad and Military Campaigns (kitab al jihad wa al-siyar).

Ko da yake mutane da yawa sun rubuta game da Sīrah, littafi na farko da ya zo daga cikin marubutan farko shi ne kitab al-Maghazi na Ibn Ishaq. Marubucinsa, Muhammad ibn Ishaq ibn Yassaar (d.153 A.H.), ana ɗaukarsa mafi shahara daga cikin waɗanda ke da alaƙa da maghazi, har ya kai ga cewa an ruwaito Shafi'i yana cewa: "Duk wanda yake son ya zama gwani a kan maghazi, to ya dogara ga Muhammad ibn Ishaq." Bayan Ibn Ishaq, marubuci na biyu na farko shi ne al-Waqidi. Muhammad ibn 'Umar ibn Waqid al-Waqidi (d.209 A.H.) an ɗauke shi yana da ilimi mai zurfi a kan maghazi, wanda ya kusanci na Ibn Ishaq. Ya kasance mai ilimi sosai a fannin tarihi da hadisi, sai dai an ruwaito game da shi cewa a shekarun ƙarshe ya fara rikita rahotanninsa. Shi ya sa mafi yawan muhaddithai suka ɗauke shi a matsayin mai rauni. Bukhari yana cewa game da shi: "Hadisansa abin ƙi ne (munkar al-hadīth)." Duk da haka, ba su rage zurfin iliminsa game da maghazi ba. Saboda haka, Ahmad ibn Hanbal yana cewa game da shi: "Yana da cikakken sani game da maghazi." Ya rubuta littafi a kan maghazi, wanda Ibn Sa'd ke ambatowa a littafinsa al-Tabaqat (Zamanai) a lokacin da yake tattaunawa kan Sīrah. Haka kuma, Tabari ma yana ambatar daga gare shi. Biyu daga cikin shahararrun marubutan Sīrah sune Ibn Hisham (d.218 A.H.) da Muhammad ibn Sa'ad (d.230 A.H.).

Though many have written about the Sīrah, the first book that is existent from amongst the early compilers is the kitab al-Maghazi of Ibn Ishaq. Its author, Muhammad ibn Ishaq ibn Yassaar (d.153 A.H.) is considered the most well known of the ones who were associated with the maghazi, to the extent that Shafi'i is reported to have said: ' Whosoever wishes to be an expert in the maghazi, he should depend on Muhammad ibn Ishaq'. After Ibn Ishaq, the second early author is al-Waqidi. Muhammad ibn 'Umar ibn Waqid al-Waqidi (d.209 A.H.) was considered to have an extensive knowledge of the maghazi which approximated to that of Ibn Ishaq. He was very knowledgable in history and hadīth though it is reported about him that in later years he began to get his reports muddled. That is why many muhaddithin have branded him as weak, Bukhari says of him: ' His ahadīth are to be rejected (munkar al-hadīth)'. However they did not impugn the depth of his knowledge concerning the maghazi. Thus, Ahmad ibn Hanbal says about him: 'He is well-informed about the maghazi'. He has compiled a book on maghazi from which Ibn Saa'd quotes in his book al-Tabaqat (The Generations) in his discussion of the Sīrah. Likewise, Tabari also quotes from it. Two of the most famous compilers of the Sīrah are Ibn Hisham (d.218 A.H.) and Muhammad ibn Sa'ad (d.230 A.H.).

Har yau Musulmi suna ci gaba da mayar da hankalinsu ga Sīrah. Ana ɗaukar Sīrah ɗaya daga cikin abubuwa mafi muhimmanci da ya kamata Musulmi su kula da su sosai, domin tana ɗauke da rahotanni game da Manzon Allah ﷺ dangane da ayyukansa, maganganunsa, shirunsa da siffarsa; kamar Alƙur'ani, duk abin da ke cikinta doka ce. Saboda haka Sīrah na ɗaya daga cikin ginshiƙan doka, shi ya sa ake ɗaukarta a matsayin wani ɓangare na hadisi (adabi). Duk abin da aka tabbatar da ingancinsa daga cikinta game da Manzon Allah ﷺ, ta fuskar isnadinsa da ma'anarsa, ana ɗaukarsa a matsayin hujjar Shari'a, domin yana daga cikin Sunnah, balle kuma gaskiyar cewa Allah ya umurce mu da koyi da Manzon Allah ﷺ. Allah ya ce:

To this day Muslims have continued to devote their attention to the Sīrah. The Sīrah is considered one of the most important things to which Muslims should pay careful attention because it contains reports concerning the Messenger  in terms of his actions, sayings, silence and description; like the Qur’ān all of it is legislation. Therefore the Sīrah is one of the constituent elements of legislation and that is why it is considered part of the hadīth (literature). Whatever is proven to be authentic from it concerning the Prophet , in terms of its transmission and meaning, it is considered as a Sharī’ah evidence because it is from the Sunnah, not to speak of the fact that we are commanded by Allah  to emulate the Messenger . Allah  said:

Saboda haka, mayar da hankali ga Sīrah da bin diddigin ta al'amari ne na Shari'ah. Sai dai, bambancin hanyar da malaman farko suka bi wajen tattara Sīrah da tarihi da na malaman da suka zo daga baya shi ne: hanyar malaman farko wajen tattara Sīrah da tarihi ta dogara ne akan ruwaito labarai. Masana tarihi sun fara da watsa labari ta baki; tsarar farko wacce ta shaida ayyukan Manzon Allah ﷺ ko ta ji labarinsu ta watsa su ga wasu, sannan tsarar da ta biyo baya ta dauki nauyin watsawar. Wasu daga cikinsu kuma sun rubuta hadisai cikin tsari mara tsayayye, kamar yadda ake gani a littattafan hadisi har yau. Sai a farkon karni na biyu bayan Hijira ne muka ga wasu malamai suka fara tattarawa da hada labaran tarihin rayuwa, suka rubuta su bisa hanyar ruwaito, ta hanyar ambaton sunan mai ruwaitowa da wanda ya ruwaito daga gare shi, kamar yadda ake yi a watsa hadisi. Ta haka ne malaman hadisi da masu sukar ruwaya suke iya sanin ingantattun labarai masu karbuwa daga marasa karfi da wadanda ba a karba ba, saboda sanin da suke yi game da masu ruwaitowa da silsilar ruwaya. Wannan kuma ita ce hanyar da ake dogara da ita idan ana ambaton Sīrah, muddin tana ingantacciya, sabanin marubutan Sīrah na zamani wadanda kawai suke lissafa abubuwan da suka faru ba tare da ambaton masu ruwaitonsu ba. Shi ya sa ba a dogara da littattafansu a matsayin tushen Sīrah sai idan marubucin ya tabbatar a lokacin rubutu cewa labaran da ya ruwaito lallai daga labaran Sīrah ne kuma amintattu ne. Idan bai yi haka ba, ba a ambaton maganarsa, amma sai a mayar da abin da ya ambata zuwa ga littattafan Sīrah da aka watsa bisa hanyar ruwaito ko kuma zuwa littattafan hadisi. Wannan saboda labaran da suka shafi Manzon Allah ﷺ daga Sunnah ba a daukar su sai idan sun ingantu.

Therefore, devoting ones attention to the Sīrah and its pursuance is a Sharī’ah matter. However, the difference between the method employed in compiling the Sīrah by the ancients and those who came in later periods is that: the method of the ancients in compilation of the Sīrah and history used to depend on the narration of reports. The historians started with the oral transmission; the first generation which witnessed the actions of the Messenger  or heard about it and transmitted it began to transmit it to others, the burden of which was assumed by the generation that came after. And some of them wrote down ahadīth in a miscellaneous manner which can be seen in the books of hadīth even today. Not till the advent of the second century (Hijri) do we find some scholars beginning to compile and put together the biographical reports and put them down in writing according to the method of narration, by mentioning the name of the transmitter and the one who transmitted from him, exactly as it was done in the (transmission) of hadīth. Thus, hadīth scholars and critics are able to know the authentic and acceptable biographical reports from the weak and inadmissible ones due to their knowledge of the transmitters and the chain of transmission. And this is the procedure which is relied upon when quoting from the Sīrah, as long as it is authentic, contrary to the modern authors of the Sīrah who only enumerate events without mentioning their transmitters. That is why their books are not relied upon as a source of Sīrah except when the author verifies at the time of writing that the transmitted reports are indeed from the Sīrah reports and are trustworthy. If he does not then his statement is not quoted but the event which he mentions is traced back to the books of Sīrah which have been transmitted according to the method of narration or to the books of hadīth. This is because reports concerning the Prophet  from the Sunnah are not taken except when they are authentic.