Born inBukhara in present-dayUzbekistan, Al-Bukhari began learninghadith at a young age. He travelled across theAbbasid Caliphate and learned under several influential contemporary scholars. Bukhari memorized thousands ofhadith narrations, compiling theSahih al-Bukhari in 846. He spent the rest of his life teaching thehadith he had collected. Towards the end of his life, Bukhari faced claims theQuran was created,[clarification needed] and wasexiled fromNishapur. Subsequently, he moved to Khartank, nearSamarkand.
Sahih al-Bukhari is revered as the most importanthadith collection inSunni Islam.Sahih al-Bukhari andSahih Muslim, thehadith collection of Al-Bukhari's studentMuslim ibn al-Hajjaj, are together known as theSahihayn (Arabic:صحيحين,romanized: Saḥiḥayn) and are regarded by Sunnis as the most authentic books after the Quran. It is part of theKutub al-Sittah, the six most highly regarded collections ofhadith in Sunni Islam.
Al-Mughirah's father, Bardizbah (Persian:بردزبه), is the earliest known ancestor of Al-Bukhari according to most scholars and historians. Bardizbah was aZoroastrianMagi.Taqi al-Din al-Subki is the only scholar to name Bardizbah's father, who he says was named Bazzabah (Persian:بذذبه). Little is known of both of them except that they werePersian and followed the religion of their people.[6][7][8] Historians have also not come across any information on Al-Bukhari's grandfather, Ibrahim ibn al-Mughirah (Arabic:إبراهيم ابن المغيرة,romanized: Ibrāhīm ibn al-Mughīrā).[6]
According to contemporary hadith scholar and historianAl-Dhahabi, al-Bukhari began studying hadith in the Hijri year 821 CE. He memorized the works ofAbd Allah ibn al-Mubarak while still a child and began writing and narrating hadith while still an adolescent. In the Hijri year 826 CE, at the age of sixteen, Al-Bukhari performed theHajj with his elder brother and widowed mother.[9][11] Al-Bukhari stayed inMecca for two years, before moving toMedina where he wroteQadhāyas-Sahābah wa at-Tābi'īn, a book about thecompanions ofMuhammad and thetabi'un. He also wroteAl-Tārīkh al-Kabīr during his time in Medina.[9]
According toJonathan Brown, following Ibn Hanbal, Al-Bukhari had reportedly declared that 'reciting theQuran is an element of createdness’. Through this assertion, Al-Bukhari had sought an alternative response to the doctrines ofMu'tazilites and declared that the element of creation is applied only to humans, not the Word of God. His statements were received negatively by prominenthadith scholars and he was driven out ofNishapur.[14][15][16] Al-Bukhari, however, had only referred to the human action of reading the Qur’an, when he reportedly stated "My recitation of the Quran is created" (Arabic:لفظي بالقرآن مخلوق,romanized: Lafẓī bil-Qur'āni Makhlūq).[17][18]Al-Dhahabi and al-Subki asserted that Al-Bukhari was expelled due to the jealousy of certain scholars of Nishapur.[19] Al-Bukhari spent the last twenty-four years of his life teaching thehadith he had collected. During themihna, he fled to Khartank, a village nearSamarkand, where he then also died on Friday, 1 September 870.[9][20] Today his tomb lies within the Imam Bukhari Mausoleum[21] in Hartang,Uzbekistan, 25 kilometers fromSamarkand. It was restored in 1998 after centuries of neglect and dilapidation. The mausoleum complex consists of Al-Bukhari's tomb, amosque, amadrasa, library, and a small collection of Qurans. The modern ground-level mausoleum tombstone of Al-Bukhari is only a cenotaph, the actual grave lies within a smallcrypt below the structure.[22]
Sahih al-Bukhari is considered Al-Bukhari'smagnum opus. It is a collection of approximately 7,563hadith narrations across 97 chapters creating a basis for a complete system ofjurisprudence without the use of speculative law. The book is highly regarded among Sunni Muslims, and most Sunni scholars consider it second only to theQuran in terms of authenticity. It is considered one of the most authentic collection of hadith, even ahead ofMuwatta Imam Malik andSahih Muslim. Alongside the latter,Sahih al-Bukhari is known as one of the 'Sahihayn (TwoSahihs)' and they are together part of theKutub al-Sittah.[23] One of the most famous stories from theSahih al-Bukhari is the story of Muhammad's first revelation.
Al-Bukhari wrote three works discussing narrators of hadith with respect to their ability in conveying their material. These areAl-Tārīkh al-Kabīr,Al-Tarīkh al-Awsaţ, andAl-Tarīkh al-Ṣaghīr. Of these,Al-Tārīkh al-Kabīr is published and well-known, while Al-Tarīkh al-Ṣaghīr is lost.[24] Al-Dhahabi quotes Al-Bukhari as having said, “When I turned eighteen years old, I began writing about the companions and thetabi'un and their statements. [...] At that time I also authored a book of history at thegrave of the Prophet at night during a full moon."[11] The books being referred to here wereQadhāyas-Sahābah wa at-Tābi'īn andAl-Tārīkh al-Kabīr. Al-Bukhari also wrote al-Kunā onpatronymics, and Al-Ḍu'afā al-Ṣaghīr on weak narrators of hadith.[25]Al-Adab al-Mufrad is a collection of hadith narrations onethics and manners.[23][26]
In response to the accusations levied against him during hismihna, Al-Bukhari compiled thetreatiseKhalq Af'āl al-'Ibād, the earliest traditionalist representation of the position taken by Ahmad ibn Hanbal, in which Al-Bukhari explains that the Quran is God's uncreated speech, while maintaining that God creates human actions, as the Sunnis had insisted in their attacks on the free-will position ofQadariyah. The first section of the book reports narrations from earlier scholars such asSufyan al-Thawri that affirmed theSunni doctrine of the uncreated nature of theQuran and condemned anyone who held the contrary position as aJahmi orKāfir. The second section asserts that the acts of men are created, relying on Qur'anic verses and reports from earlier traditionalist scholars likeYahya ibn Sa'id al-Qatlan. In the last part of his treatise, Al-Bukhari harshly condemned theMutazilites, defending the belief that sound of the Qur'an being recited is created.[27] Al-Bukhari cited Ahmad Ibn Hanbal as evidence for his position, re-affirming the latter's legacy and the former's allegiance to theAhl al-Hadith.[28][29]
In terms of law, scholars likeJonathan Brown assert that al-Bukhari was of theAhl al-Hadith, an adherent ofAhmad ibn Hanbal's traditionalist school in law (fiqh), but fell victim to its most radical wing due to misunderstandings.[31] This claim is supported byHanbalis, although members of theShafi'i andẒāhirī schools levy this claim as well.[32][33] Scott Lucas argues that al-Bukhari's legal positions were similar to those of theẒāhirīs andHanbalis of his time, suggesting al-Bukhari rejectedqiyas and other forms ofra'y completely.[34][35] Many are of the opinion that Al-Bukhari was amujtahid with his ownmadhhab.[36][37][38][39] Munir Ahmad asserts that historically most jurists considered him to be amuhaddith (scholar ofhadith) and not afaqīh (jurist), and that as amuhaddith, he followed theShafi'i school.[31] The Harvard historianAhmed el-Shamsy also asserts this, as he states that he was a student of the Shafi'i scholaral-Karabisi [ar] (d. 245/859).[40]
A significant number of scholars, both historical and contemporary, maintain that al-Bukhari was an independent mujtahid and did not adhere to any of the four famous madhhabs.Al-Dhahabi said that: Imam Bukhari was amujtahid, a scholar capable of making his ownijtihad without following any Islamic school of jurisprudence in particular.[41]
According to some scholars, such asChristopher Melchert, and alsoAsh'ari theologians, includingIbn Hajar al-'Asqalani andal-Bayhaqi, al-Bukhari was a follower of theKullabi school of Sunni theology due to his position on theutterance of the Quran being created.[42][43][14] Other Kullabis, such asal-Harith al-Muhasibi, were harassed and made to relocate, a similar situation al-Bukhari found himself towards the latter years of his life by other Hanbalis.[16][44] He was also known to be a student ofal-Karabisi [ar] (d. 245/859), who was a direct student ofImam al-Shafi'i from his period in Iraq.[45][40] Al-Karabisi was also known to have associated himself directly withIbn Kullab and the Kullabi school of thought.[46][42]
According toNamira Nahouza in her work 'Wahhabism and the Rise of the New Salafists', al-Bukhari in hisSahih, in the book entitled "Tafsir al-Qur'an wa 'ibaratih" [i.e., Exegesis of the Qur'an and its expressions],surat al-Qasas, verse 88: "kullu shay'in halikun illa Wajhah" [the literal meaning of which is "everything will perish except His Face"], he said the term [illa Wajhah] means: "except His Sovereignty/Dominance". And there is [in this same chapter] other than that in terms ofta'wil (metaphorical interpretation), like the term 'dahk' (Arabic:ضحك,lit. 'laughter') which is narrated in a hadith, [which is interpreted by] His Mercy.[47]
Al-Bukhari also rebuked those who rejected ofqadar (predestination) inSahih al-Bukhari by quoting a verse of the Qur'an implying that God had precisely determined all human acts.[15] According toIbn Hajar al-'Asqalani, al-Bukhari signified that if someone was to accept autonomy in creating his acts, he would be assumed to be playing God's role and so would subsequently be declared aMushrik, similar to the laterAsh'ari view ofkasb (acquisition, occasionalism, and causality, which link human action with divine omnipotence).[15] In another chapter, al-Bukhari refutes the creeds of theKharijites. According toBadr al-Din al-'Ayni, the heading of that chapter was designed not only to refute the Kharijites but any who held similar beliefs.[15]
^Bourgoin, Suzanne Michele; Byers, Paula Kay, eds. (1998)."Bukhari".Encyclopedia of World Biography (2nd ed.). Gale. p. 112.ISBN9780787625436.Archived from the original on 20 May 2016. Retrieved19 October 2015.
^Lang, David Marshall, ed. (1971)."Bukhārī".A Guide to Eastern Literatures. Praeger. p. 33.ISBN9780297002741.Archived from the original on 25 April 2016. Retrieved19 October 2015.
^abcdSalaahud-Deen ibn ʿAlee ibn ʿAbdul-Maujood (December 2005).The Biography of Imam Bukhaaree. Translated by Faisal Shafeeq (1st ed.). Riyadh: Darussalam.ISBN9960969053.Archived from the original on 24 June 2016. Retrieved19 October 2015.
^abBourgoin, Suzanne Michele; Byers, Paula Kay, eds. (1998)."Bukhari".Encyclopedia of World Biography (2nd ed.). Gale. p. 112.ISBN9780787625436.
^Robson, J. (24 April 2012)."al-Bukhārī, Muḥammad b. Ismāʿīl".Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition. Brill Online.Archived from the original on 21 September 2016. Retrieved16 September 2016.
^Brown, Jonathan (2007). "Three: The Genesis of al-Bukhārī and Muslim". The Canonization of al-Bukhari and Muslim: The Formation and Function of the Sunni Hadith Canon. Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. p. 80.ISBN978-90-04-15839-9.
^abWahab, Muhammad Rashidi, and Syed Hadzrullathfi Syed Omar."The Level of Imam al-Ash'ari's Thought in Aqidah." International Journal of Islamic Thought 3 (2013), p58-70:"Because of that, al-Bukhari in most matters related to the question of aqidah is said to take the opinion of Ibn Kullab and al-Karabisi (al-'Asqalani 2001: 1/293)"
^abcdAzmi, Ahmad Sanusi. "Ahl al-Hadith Methodologies on Qur'anic Discourses in the Ninth Century: A Comparative Analysis of Ibn Hanbal and al-Bukhari." Online Journal of Research in Islamic Studies 4.1 (2017): 17-26. "Supporting his master, Ahmad ibn Hanbal (d. 241/855), al-Bukhari is reported to declare that ‘reciting the Qur’an is an element of createdness’. This statement presumably proclaimed by al-Bukhari as an explanatory assertion intended to provide an alternative source of thought or reasoning for Muslims. Instead of accepting the doctrine of the Mu’tazilites (the group that champions the concept of the creation of the Qur’an), al-Bukhari appears to suggest that the element of creation is only applied to humans, not to the words of God, namely the Qur’an. The statement did, however, receive a negative response from the Muslim community, including some prominent scholars (especially Hanbalites)."
^abMelchert, Christopher. "The Piety of the Hadith folk." International Journal of Middle East Studies 34.3 (2002): 425-439. "Hadith folk in Baghdad warned those of Nishapur against the famous traditionist Bukhari, whom they then drove from the city for suggesting one's pronunciation of the Qur'an was created"
^al-Lalaka'i, Abi al-Qāsim.Sharh Usul I'tiqād Ahl as-Sunnah wa al-Jamā'ah (in Arabic). Vol. 2.Cairo: Dar al-Hadith. p. 396.
^Brown, Jonathan (2007). "Three: The Genesis of al-Bukhārī and Muslim".The Canonization of al-Bukhari and Muslim: The Formation and Function of the Sunni Hadith Canon. Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. p. 80.ISBN978-90-04-15839-9.
^Sanusi Azmi, Ahmad (April 2017)."Ahl al-Hadith Methodologies on Qur'anic Discourses in the Ninth Century: A Comparative Analysis of Ibn Hanbal and al-Bukhari".Online Journal Research in Islamic Studies.4 (1): 23 – via Research Gate. At the crux of the disagreement regarding the meaning of apparently ambiguous terms of 'lafz al-Qur'an' (word of the Qur'an), in which al-Bukhari was reported to have uttered 'lafzi bi al-Qur'an makhluq' (my recitation of the Qur'an is created), where he is actually referring to the human action of reading the Qur'an, he was immediately at risk... . Al-Dhahabi and al-Subki related that it is due to the jealousy of some scholars of Naisabur (Nishapur)..
^abAbdul Qadir Muhammad Jalal et al., "Elevating Imam Al Bukhari: Affirming the Status of Imam Al Bukhari and His Sahih by Dispelling the Misconceptions Surrounding them", Lagos 2021
^Fihris Muṣannafāt al-Bukhāri, pp. 9-61, Dār al-'Āṣimah, Riyaḍ: 1410.
^"AdabMufrad".bewley.virtualave.net.Archived from the original on 31 December 2014. Retrieved25 February 2013.
^Brown, Jonathan (2007). "Three: The Genesis of al-Bukhārī and Muslim".The Canonization of al-Bukhari and Muslim: The Formation and Function of the Sunni Hadith Canon. Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. pp. 80–82.ISBN978-90-04-15839-9.
^Brown, Jonathan (2007). "Three: The Genesis of al-Bukhārī and Muslim".The Canonization of al-Bukhari and Muslim: The Formation and Function of the Sunni Hadith Canon. Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. p. 79.ISBN978-90-04-15839-9.Al-Bukhari's allegiance to the ahl al-hadith camp and to Ibn Hanbal himself is thus obvious. Indeed, he quotes Ibn Hanbal as evidence for his position on the lafz.
^Brown, Jonathan (2007). "Three: The Genesis of al-Bukhārī and Muslim".The Canonization of al-Bukhari and Muslim: The Formation and Function of the Sunni Hadith Canon. Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. p. 79.ISBN978-90-04-15839-9.
^abcAbu-Alabbas, Belal (2018).Between scripture and human reason: an intellectual biography of Muḥammad ibn Ismāʿīl al-Bukhārī (d.256/870). pp. 38–39.
^abBrown, Jonathan (2007). "Three: The Genesis of al-Bukhārī and Muslim".The Canonization of al-Bukhari and Muslim: The Formation and Function of the Sunni Hadith Canon. Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. p. 78.ISBN978-90-04-15839-9.
^Imam al-Bukhari. (d. 256/870; Tabaqat al-Shafi'iya, 2.212-14 [6])
^Lucas, Scott C. (2006). "The Legal Principles of Muhammad B. Ismāʿīl Al-Bukhārī and Their Relationship to Classical Salafi Islam".Islamic Law and Society.13 (3):290–292, 303.doi:10.1163/156851906778946341.
^Lucas, Scott C. (2006). "The Legal Principles of Muhammad B. Ismāʿīl Al-Bukhārī and Their Relationship to Classical Salafi Islam".Islamic Law and Society.13 (3): 290, 312.doi:10.1163/156851906778946341.
^Sattar, Abdul. "Konstruksi Fiqh Bukhari dalam Kitab al-Jami’al-Shahih." De Jure: Jurnal Hukum dan Syar'iah 3.1 (2011).
^Masrur, Ali, and Imam Zainuddin Az-Zubaidi. "Imam Muhammad bin Ismail al-Bukhari (194-256 H): Kolektor Hadis Nabi Saw. paling unggul di Dunia Islam." (2018): 1-16.
^ab"The Adversaries of Aḥmad Ibn Ḥanbal", 1997 Christopher Melchert."Al-Karabisi's (And Ibn Kullabs) doctrine of the pronunciation was taken up after him by Ahmad al-Sarrak (fl. ca. 240/854-855), Abu Thawr (d. 240/854), Ibn Kullab (d. ca. 240/854-855), al-Harit al-Muhasibi (d. 243/857-858), Dawud al-Zahiri (d. 270/884), and even al-Bukhari (d. 256/870). Indeed, most of the known semi-rationalist Kullabi school were loosely associated with Al-Shafi'i."
^Al-Asqalani, Ibn Hajar (2001).Fath al-bari sharh Sahih al-Bukhari. Vol. 1. Maktabah Misr. p. 293.
^Shakir, Zaid. "Treatise for the Seekers of Guidance." NID Publishers, 2008.
^The Canonization of al-Bukhari and Muslim. Jonathon AC Brown. Page 71
^The Formative Period Of Islamic Thought by Watt, W. Montomery
Bukhari, Imam (194-256H) الإمام البُخاري; An educational Encyclopedia of Islam; Syed Iqbal Zaheer
Abdul Qadir Muhammad Jalal et al., "Elevating Imam Al Bukhari: Affirming the Status of Imam Al Bukhari and His Sahih by Dispelling the Misconceptions Surrounding them", Lagos 2021
