The Muwaṭṭaʾ (Arabic: الموطأ, “well-trodden path”) or Muwatta Imam Malik (Arabic: موطأ الإمام مالك) of Imam Malik (711–795) written in the 8th-century, is the earliest collection of hadith texts comprising the subjects of Islamic law, compiled by the Imam, Malik ibn Anas.^[1] Malik’s best-known work, Al-Muwatta was the first legal work to incorporate and combine hadith and fiqh (except possibly for Zayd ibn Ali’s Musnad.

It is considered to be from the earliest extant collections of hadith that form the basis of Islamic jurisprudence alongside the Qur’an.^[3] It includes reliable hadith from the people of the Hijaz, as well as sayings of the companions, the followers and also those who came after them.^[4] The book covers rituals, rites, customs, traditions, norms and laws of the time of the Islamic prophet Muhammad.^[5]

It is reported that Imam Malik selected for inclusion into the Muwatta just over 1900 narrations,^[6] from the 100,000 narrations he had available to him.

It contains a record of the exemplification by the last Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, of the message of the Qur’an, the practice (‘amal) of the people of Madinah of the first generations, a transmission of the ethos that permeated the city, and Imam Malik’s painstaking clarification of the Sunna, the hadiths, the practice and legal judgements. Ash-Shafi’i’ said, “After the Book of Allah, there is no book on the face of the earth sounder than the book of Malik.”

‘Ala’ ad-Daan Maghlatay al-Hanafi said, “The first person to compile the sahih was Malik.” Ibn Hajar said, “The book of Malik is sound by all the criteria that are demanded as proofs in the mursal, munqati’ and other types of transmission.” As-Suyuti followed Ibn Hajar’s judgement and said, “It is absolutely correct to say that the Muwatta’ is sound (sahih) without exception.” Al-Bukhari and Muslim transmitted most of its hadiths and included them in their sahih collections. The authors of the rest of the six books, the Imam of the hadith scholars, Ahmad ibn Hanbal, and others did the same. Here FREE download

Here German translation Ins Deutsche übertragen und mit Anmerkungen versehen von Abd al-Hafidh Wentzel

Here French translation: Le plus célèbre ouvrage composé par l’Imâm de Médine, c’est Al-Mouwatta. Il s’agit d’un ouvrage compilant des éléments de la Sounna purifiée, ainsi que certaines opinions juridiques émises par les nobles compagnons, les Successeurs et autres savants parmi les pieux prédécesseurs. Dowload Gratuit