Ahl al-Hadith

Ahl al-Hadith (Arabic:أهل الحديث‎, Urdu: Ahl-e-Hadith, "The people of hadith" or "People of the traditions (of the Prophet)"; also Așḥāb al-ḥadīṯ; أصحاب الحديث), is a branch of Sunni Islam and a name given to various Islamic conservative traditionalists, and refers to the adherent's belief that they are not bound by taqlid but consider themselves free to seek guidance in matters of religious faith and practices from the authentic hadith which, together with the Qur'an, are in their view the principal worthy guide for Muslim. Adherents contrast themselves with those they call Ahl al-Rai, literally "the people of rhetorical theology". The Ahl-e-Hadith movement is often described as being synonymous with Salafism.