Abu Yazid al-Bistami's Claim of Tahdith

بســم اللــه الرحمــن الرحيــم

والصلاــة والسلاــم علــى نبيــه الكريــم

وعلــى اهــل بيتــه الطيبيــن الطاهريــن المظلوميــن

والعاقبة للمتقين

The ninth century Sufi mystic, Abu Yazid Tayfur b. Isa al-Bistami, popularly known as Bayazid Bistami, claimed to be a recipient of direct communication from Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’la, in other words, a Muhaddath. In a well known incident, while debating with the Ulama of his time, he said to them:

أخذتم علمكم ميتاً عن ميت وأخذنا علمنا عى الحي الذي لا يموت يقول أمثالنا حدثني قلبي عن ربي وأنتم تقولون حدثنا فلان

“You take your knowledge from a deceased (narrating) from the deceased, and we take our knowledge from the Living (Allah) Who will never die. Our example is: ‘my heart narrated from my Lord’, while you say: ‘So-and-so narrated to us.’” (Sharh Kalimat al-Sufiya p.165):