The Impact of Jurisprudential Orientation on Al-Bayhaqi’s Critical Methodology in His Book “Al-Khilāfiyyāt”: An Applied Study

Abstract

This study is devoted to examining the methodology of Imam al-Bayhaqi in formulating his critical judgments in the field of hadith. In two main sections, I explored the influence of his juristic orientation on his critical approach, particularly in his acceptance or rejection of hadith reports, and in his evaluation of narrators through criticism and validation (jarḥ and taʿdīl). The study clarifies al-Bayhaqi’s method in affirming the authenticity of hadith, whether through grading them as ṣaḥīḥ (authentic), ḥasan (sound), or through related terminologies, along with the evidences and indicators he relied upon in issuing such rulings. Furthermore, it presents his approach to weakening and rejecting hadith, identifying the underlying reasons and the contextual indicators that informed his critical assessments