How many are the ahadeeth that contain legislation (ahkam)?

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His Slave and Messenger.

We do not know the exact number of Ahaadeeth Al-Ahkaam (Ahaadeeth of legislation), but some scholars stated different numbers for them, each according to his knowledge about them.

Ibn Hajar said in his book An-Nukat ‘Ala Ibn As-Salah: “As for Ahaadeeth Al-Ahkaam in particular, then Abu Ja'far Muhammad ibn Al-Husayn Al-Baghdaadi stated in his book entitled At-Tamyeez, from Ath-Thawri, Shu’bah, Yahya ibn Sa’eed Al-Qattaan, Ibn Mahdi and Ahmad ibn Hanbal, and others: that the total Ahaadeeth attributed to the Prophet – meaning the Saheeh (authentic) ones without any repetition –  are four thousand and four hundred, and according to Is-haaq ibn Raahawayh, they are more than seven thousand. Ahmad ibn Hanbal said: “I heard Ibn Mahdi saying: “The Ahaadeeth about what is Halaal and Haraam (what is lawful and what is forbidden) from these Ahaadeeth are eight hundred. This is also what Is-haaq ibn Raahawayh reported from Yahya ibn Sa’eed.

On the other hand, Al-Qaadhi Abu Bakr ibn Al-‘Arabi said that Ahaadeeth Al-Ahkaam in the two Saheehs (i.e. in Saheeh Al-Bukhari and Saheeh Muslim) are about two thousand. Abu Daawood As-Sijistaani reported from Ibn Al-Mubaarak: “They are nine hundred, and what they mean by this number is the explicit sayings of the Prophet about what is lawful and what is forbidden; and Allaah knows best." And he also said: “Each scholar mentioned the number of the Ahaadeeth according to what he came to know about them; it is for this reason that they differed [about their number]." [End of quote]

The Ahaadeeth Al-Ahkaam are too many and are scattered in the books of Sunnah, such as the six books and others. They are Ahaadeeth collected and selected by the authors of those books from the main compilations of Ahaadeeth, and they classified them according to the subjects of Fiqh (jurisprudence) – and they are so many and varied –such as:

- ‘Umdatul Ahkaam min Kalaam Khayr Al-Anaam, by ‘Abdul Ghani Al-Maqdisi,

- Al-Ahkaam Al-Kubra, by Majd Ad-Deen Abul Barakaat ibn Taymiyyah, who is the grandfather of Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah,

- Al-Muntaqa min Akhbaar Al-Mustafa also by Majd Ad-Deen Abul Barakaat who summarized it from his book Al-Ahkaam Al-Kubra,

- Al-I'ilmaam fi Bayaan Adillatul Al-Ahkaam, by Al-‘Izz ibn Abdus-Salaam,

- Al-I'ilmaam fi Ahaadeeth Al-Ahkaam, by Ibn Daqeeq Al-‘Eed,

- Al-Muharrar fi Ahaadeeth Al-Ahkaam, by Ibn ‘Abdul Haadi,

- Buloogh Al-Maraam min Adillatul Ahkaam, by Ibn Hajar.

Allaah Knows best.