Is it obligatory to memorize the chain of narration (sanad) and the text (matn) of Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim, or is it sufficient to memorize the text only, or should one memorize the last narrator in the chain and then follow it with "from the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him," such as: "I heard Umar ibn al-Khattab, may Allah the Almighty be pleased with him, say, 'I heard the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, say...'"?
Memorizing both the isnad and the matn for a hadith is a good and beneficial practice for students of hadith science. It is also permissible to memorize only the matn, or to memorize the name of the Companion along with the matn. All these methods are permissible.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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