Can matters related to the necessary articles of faith (uṣul al-dīn) be derived from solitary (or non-mutawātir) narrations?

To begin, we must clarify the following: mass transmitted narrations (mutāwatir), solitary narrations and necessary articles of faith. A mutawātir narration is one that is mass transmitted among every generation of the believers to the extent that makes it impossible to have been fabricated or doctored. In contrast to this is a solitary narration (khabar al-wāḥid pl. al-akhbār al-āḥād), is one that has several narrators. However, the narration has not reached the level of a mutawātir narration whereby the numerous chains of narrations removes any doubt of its authority. Lastly, the necessary articles of faith, referred to as uṣūl al-dīn. These are the principles or roots of faith that every Muslim must believe in. Sunni Muslims normally categorise the following as the necessary articles of faith: 

1. Belief in God 
2. Belief in angels 
3. Belief in divine revelation of the Qur'ān 
4. Belief in the messenger of God 
5. Belief in the hereafter 
6. Belief in predestination 

Similarly, Shiite Muslims categorise the following as necessary articles of faith: 

1. Belief in God 
2. Belief in divine justice 
3. Belief in the messenger of God 
4. Belief in the twelve Imams 
5. Belief in the hereafter 

These articles of faith are derived by Islamic scholars to define the important tenets of faith that constitute to the essential elements of creed (‘aqīda) which cannot be compromised. Scholars opine that if one is to compromise these tenets, then they would exit the folds of Islam and can no longer be called Muslims. Muslim scholars either primarily or secondary derive these tenets from Islamic Scriptures that are reported in a mutawātir manner, whereby there is no doubt that the narration has come from an authoritative source such as the Prophet and or Shiite Imam. Additionally, it must be noted that the Qurʾān and mutawātir narrations are the only two sources that could establish a necessary article of faith or its related details. 

However, since not all extended and elaborate details regarding the necessary articles of faith are conveyed in a mutawātir manner, the question that arises is whether these details can be derived from non-mutawātir sources (or solitary narrations). These are sources that do not lead to certainty that they are definitely revealed by an authoritative source. 

For instance, a vast majority of the details in Islamic eschatology that are mentioned in hadith literature have come down to us in the form of solitary narrations. The details concerning the advent of Sufyānī and Dajjāl, for instance, are vividly described in narrations attributed to the Prophet and the Imams.^[1] Whereas solitary narrations could arguably be used in certain legal matters (to establish an act of worship, for instance), they cannot be binding in matters related to faith. This is firstly due to the nature of belief that require certainty. A belief can only qualify as a belief when it is ‘understood’ — a process facilitated by a rational proof. A solitary narration does not yield certainty. Secondly, the proofs (adilla) that argue in favour of the authority of solitary narrations fall short of extending it to the matters concerning belief. In matters related to faith and belief, the customary practice of the rational people is to understand and attain certitude.  

The claim being made here is that solitary narrations are not binding in matters of faith, i.e., one cannot be obliged to believe in something based on a solitary narration. In other words, one is not excluded from faith if they refuse to accept a particular dogma or denounce a particular event if it is only reported in solitary narrations. These rejections are not tantamount to rejecting the Qurʾān or the message of the Prophet. Moreover, in reference to the content discussed in these narrations, at times they can be contradictory in nature, superstitious that sound logic refuses to accept and even some prophecies mentioned in them have proven to be wrong. 

To sum up, the hallmark of Islamic belief system is rationality. The term faith (īmān) suggests that a person should feel safe, protected, and confident after upholding one’s faith. No one should be obliged to accept any article of faith or its details unless they feel sure and confident about them. Solitary narrations do not yield certainty that is required in matters of faith and hence they remain non-binding. Though over here we have discussed mainly on the details pertaining to Islamic eschatology, the appeal of this argument is wider for it equally applies to all those details about the nature of God’s throne, characteristics of angels, modality of revelation etc. mentioned in the hadith literature. While one might be tempted to argue in favor of the maximalist approach (accepting everything mentioned in the hadith literature) in the matters concerning faith and its potential benefits. These include the fear of hell or God’s punishment and encouraging good behavior in this life, one cannot discredit the drawbacks associated with this approach for often it leads to accepting issues that do not stand up to scrutiny. 

[1] Nuʿaym b. Ḥammād, al-Fitan, pp. 27-32; 142, 149, 165; al-Sayyid Ibn Ṭāwūs, al-Tashrīf bil minan fī al-taʿrīfbil fitan,pp. 80-87.