Reassessing Lā Ba’sa Bihi in Jarḥ wa Ta‘dīl: Mapping Narrator Credibility in the Critical Methodology of al-Dāraqutnī

Abstract

The inconsistency in the interpretation of the term lā ba’sa bihi in the field of jarḥ wa ta‘dīl raises methodological issues in determining the level of credibility of the narrators evaluated by Imam al-Dāraqutnī (385 H). This study aims to describe the use of the term lā ba’sa bihi and to map the levels and classifications of the credibility of narrators who have been given that designation. The study employs an inductive method by collecting data from al-Dāraqutnī’s works, particularly the book Su’ālāt, as well as historical literature and biographies of narrators. The data is then analyzed comparatively with the assessments of other hadith critics to identify patterns of consistency and variation in the use of this term. The results of the study show that there are 266 narrators rated as lā ba’sa bihi, consisting of 66 tsiqah, 108 ṣadūq, 64 mastūr, 24 ḍa‘īf, and 4 narrators whose status cannot be determined. These findings indicate that lā ba’sa bihi is not synonymous with tsiqah in the absolute sense, but rather represents a spectrum of credibility that reflects al-Dāraqutnī’s meticulousness and caution in evaluating hadith narrators