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What is the meaning of "ignorance of the narrator outwardly and inwardly," and is outward ignorance the same as the ambiguous, or not?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

For a hadith to be accepted, the narrator must be just, trustworthy in his piety and truthfulness. Therefore, the narration of an unknown person, whose justice is not established, is not accepted.

The unknown (Majhul) is of several types: 1. Unknown in justice, outwardly and inwardly: This is someone whose justice is not known at all, and his narration is not accepted by the majority of scholars. This category includes "Majhul al-Hal" (one whose person is known, but whose condition outwardly and inwardly is unknown), "Al-Mubham" (one who is not named), and "Majhul al-Ayn" (one whose name is mentioned but who is otherwise unknown). 2. Unknown in inner justice (Al-Mastur): This is someone whose outward condition is just (does not commit sins), but whose inner condition is unknown. 3. Majhul al-Ayn (Unknown in person): This is someone whose name is mentioned, but who is otherwise unknown. The narration of a Majhul al-Ayn is accepted if two reliable narrators transmit from him and identify him.

The lifting of the state of being unknown establishes outward justice (Islam and freedom from religious defects), but it does not establish inner justice (the narrator's precision and mastery) except through the commendation of critics.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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