The Sunna of the Prophet

The most important source of authority for Muslims, after the Qur’an, is the normative behaviour of the Prophet Muhammad (known as Sunna). Sunna is literally ‘the trodden path’ and originally referred to the customary law and practices prevalent in Arabia during the pre-Islamic era. For Muslims, however, it came to represent the normative behaviour of the Prophet. This Sunna is documented in hadith. Originally, the term hadith simply meant ‘new’ and was used in reference to a story or a report. 1 Later, it came to refer to information about the Prophet Muhammad, such as his sayings, deeds and descriptions of his person, as reported by the Companions.