Chapter One
Sources for the Shaykh’s Biography
[Sources for the Shaykh’s Biography]

The eminent scholar al-Albani (may Allah have mercy on him) devoted his entire life to the service of the hadith of the Messenger of Allah—peace and blessings be upon him—collecting them, tracing their chains, studying them, authenticating the sound reports and identifying the weak.

His biography therefore offers fertile ground for anyone wishing to present a contemporary Islamic model that recalls the early righteous generations and their strenuous defence of the Prophet’s hadith.

The “hadith expert of his age” has already been the subject of a fair number of books, some covering his life in full and others treating only certain aspects. Yet, sadly, the field still calls for greater care. Among the finest works I have encountered is The Life of al-Albani, His Works, and the Praise of the Scholars for Him by al-Shaybani—about which more will be said in due course.

Indeed, the life of al-Albani (may Allah have mercy on him) teems with compelling events that demand deep, patient study in order to extract the lessons and admonitions they contain.

A thorough study of the Shaykh’s life might include matters such as:

(1) The Shaykh was non-Arab by origin, hailing from Albania; the Albanian people are part of the Arnaʾut stock. He emigrated with his father, al-Hajj Nuh (may Allah have mercy on him), to the Levant.

How did this non-Arab become the foremost hadith authority of his time?

And how did he come to be a point of reference for the Muslim ummah in distinguishing authentic reports from weak ones?