Similar Questions, Different Answers? Reading the Sunni and Imami Hadith Corpus Together by Dr Belal Alabbas

On Tuesday, 26th November 2024, Dr Belal Alabbas presented a research seminar at AMI entitled ‘Similar Questions, Different Answers? Reading the Sunni and Imami Hadith Corpus Together.’ In his presentation, Dr Alabbas addressed the phenomenon of contradictions in hadith within both Shia and Sunni traditions. He examined the methods and approaches employed by Imam Al-Shafi'i to address this issue in his book ‘Ikhtilaf Al-Hadith‘ and compared them to the methods and mechanisms adopted by Sheikh Abu Ja'far Al-Tusi in his book ‘Al-Istibsar fima Ikhtalafa min Al-Akhbar‘. Dr Alabbas attempted to draw comparisons between their solutions to the problem of conflicting reports and contradictions, concluding that there is a significant level of similarity in their approaches and methods. However, differences were observed, attributed to their respective doctrinal and intellectual foundations, such as the role of ‘qiyas‘ and the concept of ‘taqiyya‘ in resolving contradictions among narrations and hadith.