Question:
What is the ruling regarding narrating stories I have heard, but am
unaware as to their authenticity, in the path of da'wah to some people,
and likewise narrating stories which I know are fabricated (lies)? And
what is the ruling regarding narrating a hadeeth whilst I do not know
whether it is authentic or weak?
Response: It is not
permissible for a person, a storyteller or one who gives advice, to
narrate a hadeeth and attribute it to the Messenger (sal-Allaahu `alayhe
wa sallam) whilst he does not know if it is authentic. And it is (also)
not permissible for him to narrate a hadeeth whilst he knows it to be
weak. However, if he narrates a weak hadeeth to reveal it's weakness and
warn the people from it, then that is obligatory.
Likewise,
he should not narrate stories which he assumes are worthy (of being
narrated) without checking (their authenticity), and he should not
narrate stories which he knows are fabricated, because that is being
dishonest and deceiving the people.
Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen
as-Sahwah al-Islaamiyyah - Question 5, Page 105
