What does “the Companions are all upright” mean according to the Muḥaddithūn?

The companions of the Prophet ﷺ are an integral piece of the puzzle when we consider the preservation of Islam. They are the vehicle of transmitting the entire corpus of ḥadīth. Their uprightness, therefore, is important to defend to in turn, defend the bulletproof process of ḥadīth transmission and preservation. 

The scholars of ḥadīth have a maxim that is “al-saḥābah kuluhum ʿudūl”, which translates as “the Companions are all upright”. It is important, though, to clarify what is meant by ‘uprightness’ here. Dr Aḥmad Snobar (ḥafidhahullah) posits that when a scholar of ḥadīth uses this word, they are referring to uprightness in regards to transmission of ḥadīth, i.e. their integrity and truthfulness in transmission. This is an important clarification because, through this principle, we are not saying that the companions are absolved of fault. This would place them in the bracket of prophethood, which is, of course, not the case. Rather, we are saying that the companions would never intentionally speak an untruth about the Prophet ﷺ. 

While the likes of Shāh Waliyyullāh al-Dihlawī (raḥimahullah) agree with this perspective, Shaykh ʿAbdul Fattāḥ Abū Ghudda (raḥimahullah) does not. He mentions that the more general understanding of “ʿadālah” is what is intended in this maxim. This more common definition used by the muḥadithūn is: “a firmly established quality that keeps a person away from major sins, persistence on minor sins and anything that is considered improper (khawārim al-murūʾah).”

Regardless of the specific definition used by the muḥadithūn of ʿadālah, the practical implication of this maxim does not change. A companion of the Prophet ﷺ will not be subject to the same rigorous scrutiny that other narrators are subject to, to ensure the authenticity of a narration. If a companion of the Prophet ﷺ attributed something to him ﷺ, it is likely to be true. They saw it to be the most heinous of crimes to do otherwise. May Allah be pleased with them all.