Al-Baghawī | |
|---|---|
البغوي | |
| Title | Shaykh al-Islam Muḥyī as-Sunnah Rukn al-Din Al-Ḥāfiẓ |
| Personal life | |
| Born | January 1042 or 1045 Baghshur |
| Died | 1123 |
| Era | Islamic golden age |
| Region | Khorasan |
| Main interest(s) | Tafsir,Hadith,Fiqh[1] |
| Notable work(s) | Maʻālim at-Tanzīl Masabih al-Sunnah |
| Occupation | Scholar,Mufassir,Traditionist,Jurist |
| Religious life | |
| Religion | Islam |
| Denomination | Sunni |
| Jurisprudence | Shafi'i[2] |
| Creed | Ash'ari[2] |
| Muslim leader | |
Influenced | |
Abū Muḥammad al-Ḥusayn ibn Masʻūd ibn Muḥammad al-Farrā' al-Baghawī (Persian/Arabic:ابو محمد حسین بن مسعود بغوی), also known asal-Baghawī (Arabic:البغوي) was aPersianSunni Muslimscholar based inKhorasan.[3] He was a prominent Quran exegete (mufassir), traditionist (muhaddith), andShafi'i jurist (faqih).[4][5] He best known for his two major works,Maʻālim at-Tanzīl andMasabih as-Sunnah.[3]
Al-Baghawi was known by several titles and was referred to as the "Supporter of the Religion" (Dhahīr al-Dīn) byIbn Khallikān, who describes him as an ocean in the religious sciences. Al-Baghawī was dubbed the "Reviver of the Sunna" (Muḥyī as-Sunna) because he supposedly dreamed of theIslamic prophet telling him, “You revived my Sunna through your commentary on my ḥadīths” and this was due to compiling his workSharḥ al-Sunna. He is also known as the "Pillar of the Religion" (Rukn al-Dīn).[6]
His last name, al-Baghawī, comes from where he was born, and he is not the only scholar with this name; according toYāqūt al-Ḥamawī (d. 626/1229), a number of scholars were born in this village and also had the same name. Al-Baghawī is also known as Ibn al-Farrāʾor al-Farrāʾ, which means “the furrier” or “son of the furrier.” Scholars disagreed as to whether this denotes his own occupation or his father's.[6]
His birthdate is only mentioned byYaqut al-Hamawi in hisMuʿjam al-Buldān to be in Jumādā al-Awwal, 433/January 1042. However, subsequent sources, likeMiftāḥ al-Saʿāda by Ṭāsh Kopruzādeh andal-Aʿlām byKhayr al-Din al-Zirikli, report that he was born in 436 AH. According to every source, his hometown isBaghshûr, also known as Bagh, inKhurāsān, a city that lies betweenHerat andMerv.[6]
A greater understanding of the scholar's thoughts and the intellectual environment around them is made possible by knowing their educational background. The names of the academics who taught al-Baghawī and their areas of expertise are described in detail in biographical pages. His professors are spread out among different Khurāsān residents and are highly knowledgeable and diversified.al-Qāḍī Ḥusayn was al-Baghawī's main teacher, and he studiedfiqh and receivedhadith from him as well as from many other experts. Qāḍī Ḥusayn's influence on al-Baghawī can be assessed by the many ḥadīths that he transmitted inSharḥ al-Sunna and the frequent references to his legal judgements inal-Tahdhīb.[7]
Although al-Baghawī's educational travels are not consistently documented,Ibn al-Subkī makes sure that al-Baghawī did not travel toBaghdad due to the lack of sources on his interactions in this area.Ibn Taghribirdi mentions that he travelled to different places to hear ḥadīths. The six other scholars mentioned as ḥadīth teachers of al-Baghawī were not all based in Baghshūr or al-Marw al-Rūdk but across Khurāsān. Some of his professors were hadith experts well-versed in adab and fiqh, including Abū ʿAmr ʿAbd al-Waḥid al-Malīḥī, Abū al-Ḥasan al-Dāwūdī, Abū Bakr Yaʿqūb al-Ṣīrafī, and Abū Bakr Muḥammad b. Haytham al-Turābī.[8]
Abū al-Qāsim al-Qushayrī and Abū al-Ḥasan b. Yūsuf al-Juwaynī are the last two teachers of al-Baghawī who were major scholars of their respective times. Al-Qushayrī is considered a greatSufi master, but his knowledge encompassed fiqh, legal theory, ḥadīth, Quranic exegesis, and adab. Abū al-Ḥasan b. Yūsuf al-Juwaynī is a Sufimuhaddith who wrote a Sufi treatise calledal-Silwa fī ʿulūm al-ṣūfiyya. He was also the elder brother of the renowned legal scholarImam al-Haramayn. These scholars' names reappear in al-Baghawī’s ḥadīthisnads across his works. While many had teaching and adjudicating duties, the exact institutions remain unknown. Their educational backgrounds, writings, and positions give information on the Sunni scholarly scene.[9]
Regarding the second pillar of science, al-Baghawī, which he acquired from his masters, he also studied the knowledge that earlier Muslim scholars (salāf) had left behind and drew on his own knowledge from literature.[10] Al-Baghawī was well known for his religiosity and never taught without performing anwudu. Furthermore, it seems that he did not prioritise the wordily living because he liked to eat solely bread and began combining it with oil after his neighbours complained.[7] He was a preacher who urged the people to follow theSunnah and classical works.[10] From among his pupils includeDiya' al-Din al-Makki, the father of renowned polymathFakhr al-Din al-Razi.[11]
Al-Baghawī passed away in 516 AH in the month of Shawwal/1123 and was buried right next to his teacheral-Qadi Husayn in the Ṭāliqān cemetery inMarw al-Rudh.[12][8]
Taqi al-Din al-Subki said: “Very little do we see al-Baghawi choosing something unless if he researched it he would find one that was stronger than the others, besides that he could also express it concisely, this shows that he was given extraordinary intelligence, and he is careful in such matters.”[10]
Al-Dhahabi said: “Al-Baghawī was an imam who had a lot of knowledge, a role model, an expert on hadith, Shaikh al-Islām, life of the Sunnah, and many of his compositions.”[10]
Al-Dhahabi said: “His works were blessed and received complete acceptance due to his righteous purpose and sincere intention.”[13]
Ma'ālim al-Tanzīl, was produced by al-Baghawi, also a Shafi'i Ash'ari scholar from Khurasan.
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