Criterion — remote MCP server for Quran and Hadith search
A hosted MCP server that answers natural-language questions over 6,236 Quran verses and hadith from six collections. Every hit comes with a source link.
claude mcp add --transport http criterion https://criterion.life/api/mcpWhat criterion does
Two tools ship with it: one searches the Quran, the other searches hadith. You ask in plain language and get passages back, each tied to Quran.com or Sunnah.com. Hadith results can be narrowed by collection and by authenticity grade.
There is nothing to install locally and no API key to obtain. Point the client at https://criterion.life/api/mcp over HTTP and the tools appear. That also sets the failure mode: the search runs on someone else's host. When the endpoint is down, the tools go quiet in your session and there is no local copy to fall back on.
Results lean on canonical texts rather than on whatever the model remembers, and the project stays away from sectarian argument by design. Handy if your assistant has to quote scripture and prove where the quote came from.
What it helps with
- pull verses by meaning instead of exact wording
- narrow hadith results by collection and authenticity grade
- get a citation that points back to Quran.com or Sunnah.com
- show the surrounding verses so a passage is not read out of context
Example prompts for the agent
- Find Quran verses about patience and give me the references
- Search hadith on charity, but only from Sahih Bukhari
- Look up hadith about kindness to parents with Sahih grade
How to install criterion
Platform CLI: remote server
claude mcp add --transport http criterion https://criterion.life/api/mcpPlatform CLI: remote server
codex mcp add criterion --url https://criterion.life/api/mcpConfig file
{
"mcpServers": {
"criterion": {
"url": "https://criterion.life/api/mcp"
}
}
}Config file
{
"servers": {
"criterion": {
"type": "http",
"url": "https://criterion.life/api/mcp"
}
}
}Platform CLI: remote server
gemini mcp add -t http criterion https://criterion.life/api/mcpStep by step, with commands for each platform: How to add an MCP server to Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, VS Code, Gemini CLI and more
Questions about criterion
How do I install Criterion in Claude Code?
Run claude mcp add --transport http criterion https://criterion.life/api/mcp. The server registers over HTTP and shows up in your next session.
What does Criterion do?
It runs semantic search across 6,236 Quran verses and hadith from six collections, then returns the passages with their sources.
Do I need an API key for Criterion?
No. The server is hosted at https://criterion.life/api/mcp. LLM and embedding keys are only relevant if you run the underlying project yourself.
