Continued from “The blind boy who became the scholar of Hadith” (SG, May 31) One night, Al-Bukhari had a strange dream that later had a great impact on his life. He saw himself standing before the Prophet (peace be upon him), holding a palm-leaf fan in his hand with which he pushed all evil away from the Prophet (peace be upon him). He was so confused and surprised that he went to his scholars, may Allah have mercy on them, asking them to interpret his dream. They said happily: “You will clear the lies and false claims away from the Prophet (peace be upon him).” Al-Bukhari then remembered his teacher, Sheikh Ishaq Bin Rahawayh, the prominent scholar of Khurasan, when he told his students once: “It would be great if you can compile a concise and brief book containing the authentic narrations of the Prophet (peace be upon him).” These words echoed in Al-Bukhari's heart. Thereupon, he made an intention to actively and seriously pursue this mission. He started to strive in his long journey of writing this great book in 217 AH when he was 23-years-old. Because of that dream, Al-Bukhari traveled thousands of miles moving from one Islamic territory to another, undergoing all sorts of difficulties, hardships, and weariness, sometimes to obtain only one narration of the Prophet (peace be upon him). He sometimes even had to eat grass to satisfy his hunger after he had spent all his money. Even the few hours of night in which he snatched short naps to rest a while, were not so resting for him, as he used to wake up 15 to 20 times a night to lit his lamp and sit to classify the narrations he had collected. Al-Bukhari made a pact with himself that he wouldn't include a narration from any narrator until he had personally met him, and listened to the narration with his own ears. He never accepted narrations except from the ones who were known for being honest, diligent, accurate, fearing Allah, and having a sharp memory. After this process, he would have a ritual bath; pray two Rak'ah and then include only the narration that had met all these conditions in his book. After 16 years of continuous effort and hard work, Al-Bukhari finished his valuable book that comprised around 7,000 authentic narrations which he selected from amongst 600,000 authentic and inauthentic narrations. He overlooked many authentic narrations so that his book wouldn't be too long. It became the most authentic book after the Qur'an. It is known as ‘Sahih Al-Bukhari'. After Imam Al-Bukhari became famous throughout the world, thousands of scholars came to him to study as students until the number of people who attended his study circles in Baghdad reached 20,000. Among the most remarkable figures of his students were scholars like Al-Tirmidhi, An-Nasa'i, Muslim, and others, may Allah have mercy on them. In 250 AH, Al-Bukhari left to Nisabor, a city in Khurasan and stayed there for a while teaching the people. Then he decided to return to his dear city, Bukhara. When he did, the people rushed to welcome him. There was great celebration in which huge tents were pitched and decorations were hung. There was an overwhelming atmosphere of happiness that prevailed throughout all Bukhara. The people of Samarqand then sent a message for him asking him to come. He agreed and packed with great joy. When he started walking towards his animal he felt uneasy and said: “Take me back, I have become weak and ill.” When they took him back to his house, he said some supplications then he laid on his bed sweating a lot. He passed away on a Friday night, the beginning of the month of Shawwaal, 256 AH. He was 62-years-old when he died. He was buried in the village of Khartank which is now known as ‘Khawajah Saheb'.
