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
Introduction to the Science of Hadith al-Kattānī. `Āʼishah bint `Abd al-Raḥmān said in the foreword of her edition of the "Introduction": His book about the sciences of hadith is the best known of his works without comparison, to the extent that it is sufficient to say, "the Book of Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ", the intent being understood due to its popularity and stature. With the previous scholars, its subject matter overcame it, thus being referred to as, "the Book of Ibn al-Ṣalāḥ about `Ulūm al-Ḥadīth" or as he referred to it in its opening pages, "the Book of Familiarity with the Types of `Ulūm al-Ḥadīth". It has become