Abu al-Yusr al-Bazdawi

Abu al-Yusr al-Bazdawi (Arabic: أبو الْيُسر الْبَزْدَوي) (c.1030-c.1100), who was given the honorific title of Sadr al-Islam, was a prominent Central Asian Hanafi-Maturidi scholar and a qadi (judge) in Samarqand in the late eleventh century. He was a teacher to several well-known Hanafi scholars, such as Najm al-Din 'Umar al-Nasafi and 'Ala' al-Din al-Samarqandi (who was a teacher to Al-Kasani).

Abu al-Yusr al-Bazdawi
أبو الْيُسر الْبَزْدَوي
TitleSadr al-Islam
صدر الإسلام
Personal
Born421 A.H. = c. 1030 A.D.
Died493 A.H. = 1100 A.D.
ReligionIslam
EraIslamic Golden Age
RegionMa Wara' al-Nahr (the land which lies beyond the river), Transoxiana (Central Asia)
DenominationSunni
JurisprudenceHanafi
CreedMaturidi
Main interest(s)Aqidah, Kalam (Islamic theology), Fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence)
Notable work(s)Kitab Usul al-Din
Muslim leader
Influenced

Name

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Abu al-Yusr Muhammad b. Muhammad b. al-Hussein b. 'Abd al-Karim b. Musa b. Mujahid al-Nasafi al-Bazdawi.[1]

The attribution al-Bazdawi indicates that he or his family originated from Bazda or Bazdawa, a small town with a castle on the road between Nasaf and Bukhara.[2]

He was the younger brother of Fakhr al-Islam Abu al-Hassan al-Bazdawi, the author of Kanz al-Wusul, also known as Usul al-Bazdawi.

Birth

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He was born around the year 421 A.H. (1030 A.D.) and received his earliest education in Maturidism disciplines from his father.[3] His grandfather Abu Muhammad 'Abd al-Karim b. Musa al-Bazdawi (d. 390 AH/1000–1001 CE), who was a student of al-Maturidi, and his elder brother Fakhr al-Islam 'Ali b. Muhammad al-Bazdawi (d. 482–483 AH/1089–1090 CE) were leading Hanafi scholars and wrote many books.[4]

Teachers

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Students

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Some of his well known students were Najm al-Din 'Umar al-Nasafi and 'Ala' al-Din al-Samarqandi (who was a teacher to 'Ala' al-Din al-Kasani).[6][7]

Works

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He was the author of several works on law, including a commentary on the major work of Abu Hanifa, after whom the Hanafi school was named, and a commentary on a work of Abu Hanifa's student Muhammad al-Shaybani, who was one of the founders of the Hanafi school.[8]

The most important of his books which remain is Kitab Usul al-Din (edited with a biographical introduction by Hans-Peter Linss).[9]

Al-Bazdawi's Kitab Usul al-Din, as described by Hans-Peter Linss, comprises:[10]

  1. a short review of all literature of the heretics on dogma and theology in Islam;
  2. a Hanafi-Sunni orthodoxy defence against the dissenting opinions and teachings of the heretical sects; and
  3. a study on the heterodox factions in Islam, their subdivisions and their most important leaders.

Al-Bazdawi was also the author of Ma'rifat al-Hujaj al-Shar'iyya (Arabic: معرفة الحجج الشرعية) in Usul al-Fiqh.[11][12]

Dr. Haytham Abdul-Hamid Khazna (Arabic: هيثم عبد الحميد خزنة) said in his book Tatawur al-Fikr al-Usuli al-Hanafi (Arabic: تطور الفكر الأصولي الحنفي) that this book should not be attributed to Abu al-Yusr al-Bazdawi, because the books of Tarajim (biographies and bibliographies) didn't mention it, and because the book is weak in style analysis.[13]

Death

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After serving for a period of time as a magistrate in Samarqand, he eventually moved to Bukhara and died there in 493 A.H. (1100 A.D.).[14]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Siyar A'lam al-Nubala'". Islamweb.net.
  2. ^ Journal for the History of Arabic Science, Volumes 7-8. Institute for the History of Arabic Science, University of Aleppo. 1983. p. 4.
  3. ^ Wan Jamaluddin. "AL-PALIMBANI'S THOUGHT IN HIS SUFISTIC WORK" (PDF). Study on Manuscript in Saint Petersburg-Russia titled: «A Gift for those, who Seeks The Real Faith». p. 174.
  4. ^ "BAZDAWI ABU AL YUSR (421H/1030CE-493H/1100CE)". Islamic Encyclopedia. Archived from the original on 2019-03-29. Retrieved 2019-03-29.
  5. ^ Hanif, Sohail, 2019, "Al-Hadith al-Mashhur: A Hanafi Reference to Kufan Practice?", in Locating the Shari'a: Legal Fluidity in Theory, History and Practice by Sohaira Siddiqui (ed.), Brill Publications, Leiden, 2019.
  6. ^ Talal Al-Azem (2016). Rule-Formulation and Binding Precedent in the Madhhab-Law Tradition. Brill Publishers. p. 70. ISBN 9789004323292.
  7. ^ Sohaira Siddiqui (2019). Locating the Sharia: Legal Fluidity in Theory, History and Practice. Brill Publishers. p. 99. ISBN 9789004391710.
  8. ^ Journal for the History of Arabic Science, Volumes 7-8. Institute for the History of Arabic Science, University of Aleppo. 1983. p. 4.
  9. ^ The Pakistan Philosophical Journal, Volume 14. Pakistan Philosophical Congress. 1975. p. 18.
  10. ^ Wan Jamaluddin. "AL-PALIMBANI'S THOUGHT IN HIS SUFISTIC WORK" (PDF). Study on Manuscript in Saint Petersburg-Russia titled: «A Gift for those, who Seeks The Real Faith». p. 174.
  11. ^ The Pakistan Philosophical Journal, Volume 14. Pakistan Philosophical Congress. 1975. p. 18.
  12. ^ Arabic Edition & Index by M. Bernand & Eric Chaumond, IFAO, Cairo, 2003.
  13. ^ "A Brief Biography of Sadr al-Islam Abu al-Yusr al-Bazdawi, by Dr. Haytham Abdul-Hamid Khazna".
  14. ^ The Pakistan Philosophical Journal, Volume 14. Pakistan Philosophical Congress. 1975. p. 18.
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Hammad bin ibi Sulman taughtMuhammad al-Baqir (676–733) taughtFarwah bint al-Qasim Jafar's mother
Abu Hanifa (699–767) wrote Al Fiqh Al Akbar and Kitab Al-Athar, jurisprudence followed by Sunni, Sunni Sufi, Barelvi, Deobandi, Zaidiyyah and originally by the Fatimid and taughtZayd ibn Ali (695–740)Ja'far bin Muhammad Al-Baqir (702–765) Muhammad and Ali's great great grand son, jurisprudence followed by Shia, he taughtMalik ibn Anas (711–795) wrote Muwatta, jurisprudence from early Medina period now mostly followed by Sunni in Africa, Sunni Sufi and taughtAl-Waqidi (748–822) wrote history books like Kitab al-Tarikh wa al-Maghazi, student of Malik ibn AnasAbu Muhammad Abdullah ibn Abdul Hakam (died 829) wrote biographies and history books, student of Malik ibn Anas
Abu Yusuf (729–798) wrote Usul al-fiqhMuhammad al-Shaybani (749–805)al-Shafi‘i (767–820) wrote Al-Risala, jurisprudence followed by Sunni, Sunni sufi and taughtIsmail ibn IbrahimAli ibn al-Madini (778–849) wrote The Book of Knowledge of the CompanionsIbn Hisham (died 833) wrote early history and As-Sirah an-Nabawiyyah, Muhammad's biography
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Ibn Majah (824–887) wrote Sunan ibn Majah hadith bookAbu Dawood (817–889) wrote Sunan Abu Dawood Hadith Book
Muhammad ibn Ya'qub al-Kulayni (864- 941) wrote Kitab al-Kafi hadith book followed by Twelver ShiaMuhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari (838–923) wrote History of the Prophets and Kings, Tafsir al-TabariAbu Hasan al-Ash'ari (874–936) wrote Maqālāt al-islāmīyīn, Kitāb al-luma, Kitāb al-ibāna 'an usūl al-diyāna
Ibn Babawayh (923–991) wrote Man La Yahduruhu al-Faqih jurisprudence followed by Twelver ShiaSharif Razi (930–977) wrote Nahj al-Balagha followed by Twelver ShiaNasir al-Din al-Tusi (1201–1274) wrote jurisprudence books followed by Ismaili and Twelver ShiaAl-Ghazali (1058–1111) wrote The Niche for Lights, The Incoherence of the Philosophers, The Alchemy of Happiness on SufismRumi (1207–1273) wrote Masnavi, Diwan-e Shams-e Tabrizi on Sufism
Key: Some of Muhammad's CompanionsKey: Taught in MedinaKey: Taught in IraqKey: Worked in SyriaKey: Travelled extensively collecting the sayings of Muhammad and compiled books of hadithKey: Worked in Persia