Hadith as Sunna, but it is not necessary that a Sunna would have a supporting hadith sanctioning it. Some sources (Khaled Abou El Fadl) limit hadith to verbal reports, with the deeds of Muhammad and reports about his companions being part of the "Sunnah", but not hadith. Joseph Schacht quotes a Hadith by Muhammad that is used "to justify reference" in Islamic law to companions of Muhammad as religious authorities — "My companions are like lodestars." According to Schacht, (and other scholars) in the very first generations after the death of Muhammad, use of hadith from "Sahabah" ("companions" of Muhammad) and
Hadith terminology its source. This provides confirmation that the "hadith" is authentically attributed to its source at a level above reasonable doubt. This is due to its being beyond historical possibility that narrators could have conspired to forge a narration. In contrast, an "ahaad hadith" is a narration the chain of which has not reached a number sufficient to qualify as "mutawatir". "Hadiths" can be "mutawatir" in both actual text and meaning: The second category, "ahaad" ( meaning "singular") narration, refers to any "hadith" not classified as "mutawatir". Linguistically, "hadith ahad" refers to a "hadith" narrated by only one narrator. In "hadith"