mursalah

Mursalah is a term primarily used in Islamic jurisprudence, specifically in the context of Hadith, which refers to a Hadith transmitted without a complete chain of narrators. In such a mursalah Hadith, a successor (tabi'i) narrator directly attributes a saying or action to the Prophet Muhammad, omitting the intermediary companion (sahabi) who would have heard it from the Prophet. This missing link in the chain is what characterizes it as mursalah.

The authenticity and reliability of mursalah Hadith are a subject of scholarly debate among Islamic jurists. Some scholars consider mursalah Hadith to be a valid source of law, particularly if the narrator is known to be trustworthy and if there are other corroborating narrations. They might argue that if a tabi'i mentions a Hadith directly from the Prophet, it implies that a companion must have conveyed it to him, and that companion was likely reliable.

Other scholars, however, are more stringent and consider mursalah Hadith to be less reliable or even unacceptable as proof for legal rulings, due to the uncertainty of the missing narrator. The specific opinion often depends on the school of thought and the individual jurist's methodology for evaluating Hadith. Nevertheless, mursalah Hadith still hold historical and theological significance, providing valuable insights into early Islamic traditions and discussions.