Frequently Asked Question

I must make it clear that no collection of the Traditions is free from falsified or weak traditions. Therefore, we, like the scholars of Sunni Sect, judge every tradition on its merit.
We "use" (to use your own word!) the above-mentioned books of traditions edited by Sunni scholars as well as other books of Shia scholars, applying the same test everywhere without discrimination.

Only that hadith is considered authentic whose meaning is not against the Qur'an and another mutawatir hadith, nor against reason or known facts; and whose narrators are trustworthy.

Narrators' trustworthiness or otherwise is known from 'Ilm-ur-rijal. There are many books of Shi'a scholars on this subject right from the Rijal of al-Kashshi (end of the 4th century of hijrah) to the present mujtahid, as-Sayyid al-Khoui whose Mu'jam-u-rijal-il-hadith (in 23 large volumes) is the most comprehensive of all.

Depending on narrators' degree of trustworthiness, the Shi'a have divided ahadith into four categories: Sahih (Correct), Hasan (Good), Muwaththaq (Reliable) and Dha'if (Weak).