Involuntary Rihla in Hadith Narration (100-330/718-941)
Thesis Type: Postgraduate
Institution Of The Thesis: Istanbul University, Institute Of Social Sciences, İlahiyat Fakültesi Bölümü, Turkey
Thesis Supervisor: Bekir Kuzudişli
Approval Date: 2025
Thesis Language: Turkish
Open Archive Collection: AVESIS Open Access Collection
Supported Program: Other
Abstract:
This thesis examines, within a structural framework, the largely neglected “involuntary” dimension of the rihla (scholarly journey) phenomenon, which played a central role in the formative period of the Islamic scholarly tradition. It argues that the rihla was not limited to voluntary journeys undertaken in pursuit of knowledge, and it focuses on a problem that has not been systematically analyzed in the existing literature. The primary objective of this thesis is to move beyond individual narratives to evaluate the causes, manifestations, geographical and chronological distribution, and the effects on the science of hadith of the involuntary rihlas undertaken by narrators across the Islamic world—from Transoxiana to al-Andalus—during the first three centuries of the Hijri calendar. In addition to its place within rihla studies, the thesis offers a new framework for understanding the nature of state-scholar relations in Islamic history.
The findings indicate that involuntary rihlas, largely linked to political events, formed around three main patterns: Political pressure from state officials often resulted in acts of forced relocation by the political authority. Periods of social turmoil, such as civil wars and rebellions, led to scholars departing from cities on their own initiative in search of safety. Social pressure at a more local level frequently resulted in the exile of a scholar from his place of residence. Chronological analysis reveals that these cases peaked during historical junctures like the Umayyad-Abbasid transition and the Mihna period. Geographical analysis shows that Baghdad was at the center of this network, serving as both a hub of coercion and a center of convergence.
In conclusion, both the frequency and the forms of involuntary rihlas in a given period can be seen as a direct reflection of that era’s political authority’s relationship with legitimacy and opposition. This situation also affected hadith transmission to a certain extent. Although undertaken by a statistically limited portion of the total narrators in the same period, the consequences of the involuntary rihla for the science of hadith are discussed, owing to its significance in the lives of some prominent hadith scholars (muhaddithūn).