OBSERVATION

This question centrered on the role played by women in the preservation of Hadith during the life of the Prophet (S.A.W.) and after his demise. As it were, the question appeared to be the most difficult for the candidates because the performance of a few candidates who attempted the question was poor. As it was noted in the past, it seems teachers of Islamic Studies lose sight of this aspect of the syllabus while teaching the preservation of Hadith as a topic. It must be noted therefore that the wives of the Prophet (S.A.W.) played a unique role in the collection and preservation of Hadith. For example, ‘Aishah was one of the most prominent traditionists of her time and she taught many people about the life of the Prophet (S.A.W.). Not only her, Hafsah also was very prominent as a collector and narrator of Hadith. Beyond their time, Zaynab of Harran taught the Musnad of Ahmad B. Hambal while Fatimah bint ‘Ali lectured on Sahih of al-Bukhari in her time.