ABOUT SUNNAH
The contemporaries of the Prophet are known as the Companions, or sahabah. Because the Companions believed in the message of the Prophet, all his actions served as a precedent for them and every word falling from his lips became a commandment to them; and they were anxious to follow each one as faithfully as they could. During the lifetime of the Prophet Muhammad, many of his Companions learnt by heart whatever he said, and keenly observed whatever he did, all of   which they shared with each other. They naturally thirsted after the knowledge of what he said or did, so that many, like Abu Hurayrah, Anas ibn Malik and Abdullah ibn Mas‘ud, kept constant company with him in order to observe and hear his  every  word  and  deed. Ai‘sha, the Prophet’s wife, was the first among women to tell  of  the Prophet’s  sayings  and doings. She reported more than two thousand hadith, while Abu Hurayrah related more than five thousand hadith.

Later, the sayings were compiled by various collectors of hadith. In this regard, Bukhari and Muslim are the first to have applied the most rigorous measures to ascertain the reliability of each hadith. An unbroken chain of narrators was traced for each hadith and each transmitter’s life was analysed from all angles to validate his trustworthiness.