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THE SCHOLARS OF NISKAPUR, 700 - 1225
BY
MOUFID MUHAJAMAD NOURI
Vol. I.
Thesis :presented to the Uni ver·si ty of' Edinburgh
or
for the degree or·Doctor Philosophy.
1967 ..
i
TABLE OF CONTENTS
VOL .. I
Page
Table oE Contents
i
Acknowledgments
iv
PreEace
V
Abbreviations Employed
vii
Introduction to the Sources
ix
I.. General Introductory Notes
1 .. Khurasan: Its locality and its role in
early Islamic history
l
2 .. A note on the topography or Nishapur
9
3 .. Agriculture and irrigation in the
Nishapur oasis
15
4 .. Nishapur: Trade and industry
21
PART ONE. The scholars of Nishapur who died
between 700-900.
Historical Introductory Note
The tahiridsr patronage of learning
25
III. The Traditionists
The collectors or traditions: Al-Bukhari
and Muslim 30
A. The Traditionists (700-900) 36
IV.. The Jurists and the Theologians
The ~anarites: Ibn-tahman, Abu-'Umar al-
Faqih, Bishruwayhi and his sons. Abu-Na~r
al-Labbad and :tfikan.. The Shafi'ites: Ibn
Rahuya and Abu-'Abd-Allah al-Qurashi. The
Founder or the ~ahirite school of jurisprudence
DavvUd ibn-KhalaE and the founder of the
Karramite school of' theology Ibn-Karram 65
ii
Vol.,I (contd.2
BoCoDoEo The Jurists and the Theologians
(700-900) 76
Vo The Uystics
adh
I(Abd-Allah ibn-al-l.Iubarak, Ya.J;.ya ibn-Iviu 6
ar-Razi, al-IJakim at-Tirmidhi: The l1ialami tes
and the Risala of the f.Ialamites of Abu-'Abd
ar-Raliffian as-Sulami. 93
Fo The Mystics (700-900) 101
VI. The Readers and the Conmentators of the Qur:.an
The earliest readers aDd commentators in
Nisha:pur: Bukayr an-Naysaburi, Ibn-Abi-
'Amr an-Naysaburi and Abu-?1-Ijasan as-Sa'di 111
Go The Readers and the Commentators of the
Qur~an (700-900) 114
VII The iien of Letters and the Poets
The activities of poets and men of letters
o~ Baghdad in Nishapur: Abu-Tam~am, Abu
~1-'Amaythal al-A'rabi, Abu-Sa'id aQ_-J;arir,
Abu-91-Viinhal al-I\iuhallabi and Abu-91-
a'
inhal al-Khuz i 116
J·,.i
Ho Men of Letters and Poets (700-900) 121
PART TWO. The Scholars of Nishapur who died
between 900-lOOOo
Io Historical Introductory Note
The 9affarids: The Samanid patrons of
learning 128
IIo The Traditionists
The influence of the worl\: of al-Bukhari and
Muslim on the collections of the other
traditionists in Nishapur: The attitude
of the Shari'ite and the Hana:fite schools
0 .
towards the study of traditions. 133
iii
Vol .I ( contd.)
Page
I~ The Traditionists (900-1000) 138
III. The Jurists and the Theologians
The ~anarites: The pupils of the Baghdadian
Abu-'1-~asan al-Karkhi. The Shari'ites:
Ibn-Khuzayma Abu-'Ali ath-Thaqafi, Abu-'1-
9
- -
~asan al-Bayhaqi Ibn-~ibban and Ibn-al-
9
Mundhir. Abu-Sahl a§>-9u'Luki, the pupil of
- -
Abu-~ 1-~asan al-Ash'ari. 176
J.K.L.M. The Jurists and the Theologians
(900-1000) 185
IV. The Mystics
Abu--'Uthman a1-I}iri and his pupils: The
attitude of the schools of .jurisprudence
towards mysticism
222
N. The ~ystics (900-1000) 226
V. The Readers and the Commentators of the
Qur:-an
Ibn-Mihran 237
0. The Readers and the Commentators of the
Qur~an (900-1ooo) 239
VIo The Men of Letters and the Poets
- -
Satirical poets: Abu~Bakr al-Khwarizmi, Abu~
'1-Qasim al-Iska:ri and Abu-AJ:lmad al-Katib.
lien of letters: Abu-'Ali as-Sa1lami and
Abu-'1- 'Abbas al-hiika1i.
243
P. The Men of Letters and the Poets
(900-1000)
247
iv
ACKNOV'ILEDGiviENTS
I should like to acknowledge my deep gratitude and
sincere thanks to my supervisor~ the Reverend Professor
W It1ontgomery Watt, for his invaluable instruction,
o
assistance and encouragement in the preparation and writing
of this work.. My thanks are also due to the staffs of
Edinburgh University Library, the National Library of Scotland
and the Library of the School of Oriental and .Af'rican Studies
in London, for giving me access to their libraries and
helping me in every possible way in my research.
V
PREFACE
The main purpose of this work is to present short
biographical accounts of the lives of the scholars who were either
natives of or visitors to Nishapur from the beginning of the eighth
century to the first quarter of the thirteenth century.
The content of the work can best be illustrated by a brief
account of the method chosen to present it.
After the General
Introduction, the work is divided chronologically into four parts
dealing respectively with the periods from 700 to 900, 900 to
1000, 1000 to 1100 and 1100 to 1225o Each part is prefaced by a
historical introduction to the period and is then divided into
five sections according to the five categories I have employed to
denote the particular field of scholarship in m1ich each of those
scholars who died within that period was most renovmed, videlicet,
(I) the traditionists, (2) the jurists and the theologians,
(3) the mystics, (4) the readers and the commentators of the
Qur>an and (5) the men of letters and the poets. In each section,
there is an introduction indicating the most significant trends
occurring within that field of scholarship in the period and
mentioning the most celebrated scholars connected therewitho
Following this introduction are biographical notes of all the
relevant scholars who ~ractised in this field in that period.
These biographies are arranged in chronological order according
to the dates of death of the scholars, with the exception of the
biographies of those scholars whose· exact dates of death are
unknovm and these are listed at the end of each section.
Finally,
vi
the work is supplemented by four lists tabling respectively
(1) the teachers and their pupils, (2) the scholars who taught in
the madrasas (3) the rJ.ag.is and the Chiefs of' the qagis and (4) the
9
scholars who acted as muftis. Each list is also arranged
chronologically.
With regard to the transliteration of the characters of
Arabic into those of English, I have followed the system employed
by the Iviuir Institute of Edinburgh University and in this
.9
connection I wish to acknowledge my indebtedness to my supervisor,
the Reverend Professor Wo 1:iontgomery Watt for his assistance o
9
vii
ABBREVIATIONS EMPLOYED
TITLES AND AUTHORS
A L = Huart, Arabic Literatureo
Ans = as-Samtani~ al-Ansabo
B G A = Bibiotheca Geographicorum Arabicorum, (Leiden)o
B I = Bibliotheca Islamica (Cairo, Istanbul and Beirut).
Bos = Bosworth, The Ghaznavids their Em·)ire in Afghanistan
1
and Eastern Iran 994:1040.
B S O(A)S = Bulletin o:f the School o:f Oriental (and African)
Studies (London)p
Bughyat = a~-9uytiti, Bughyat al-wu'ato
Il
E = Enc;ycloJ2aedia o:f Islam, :first edition, (Leiden) ..
2
E I = o:f Islam, second edition.
Enc~cloJ2aedia
GAL = Brockelmann, Geschichte der ..\ rabi schen Lit
tei"~atu-1.,
(Leiden).o
GALS = Brockelmann, Geschichte der Arabi schen Lit t.~ratu~,
Supplementb~de, (Leiden).
GM S = EoJ.Wo Gibb Memorial Series (London).
H Kh = ~ajjf-Khali:fa, Kash~ az-zunun .
...!.-_
I Fun = Ibn-Funduq, Ta'rikh-i Bayhaqo
I ~ = Ibn-~ajar, Tahdhib at-tahdhib.
I Kh = Ibn-Khallikan, Wa:fayat al-a'yan.
Irsh = Yaqut, Irshad al-arib li-ma'ritat al-adib.
J A 0 S =Journal o:f·the American Oriental Society (New Haven,
Con..necticut)"
J R A S = Journal of' the Royal Asiatic Soeiety (London)o
Jaw = Ibn-Abi-'1-waf'a' al-Jaw~ir al-mugiyya f'i tabaqat
al-Hanafiyya ..
viii.
Kamil = Ibn-al-Athir~ al-Kamil fi't-ta'rikh.
Kashf = al-Hujwiri~ Kashf al-m~~jubo
Khat = al-Khatib-al-Baghdadi,Ta'ri~h Baghdad.
L HP= Browne, A Literary History of Persiao
=
Lub Ibn-al-Athir,al-Lubab fi tahdhib al-~nsab.
M B = Yaqut, Iviu' jam al-buldan.
Mift~ = r_rash-Ktfpre-Zade Ivii:ft~ as-sa 'ada wa mi-sb~ as-siy9.da ..
9
Mizan = ad-Dhahabi, roizah al-i'tidad fi nagd ar-rijal.
Munta?am = Ibn-al-Jawzi, al-Munta~am :fi ta'rikh al-muluk
wa'l-umam ..
lvi W = Muslim World (Lei den) ..
Na:f = Jami, al-uns.
Na:f~at
S E I = Shorter Encyclopaedia o:f Islam (Leiden)o
Sha' = ash-Sha'rani, at-'J.'abaqat al-kubra al-musammat
- - -
al-anwar :fi tabaqat al-akhyar.
bi-lawaqi~
Shadh = Ibn- 'Imad~ Shadharat adh-dhahab :ri akhbar man
dhahab.
Siyag = al-Farisi, as-Siyaq li-ta'rikh Naysaburo
Subk = as-Subki, 'J'abaqat ash-Sha:fi 'iyya al-kubra ..
Sulam = as-Sulami rabaqat a~-?u:fiyya.
9
Tadh = adh-Dhahabi, Tadhkirat al-~u:f:fa~o
T KM = Ibn-'As8kir, Tabyyin kadhib al-mu:ftari.
T N = al-~8kim an-Naysaburi, Ta'rikh-i Nishapur.
t Q = Ibn-al-Jazari, ~abaqat al-qurra' ..
Via:fi = a§>-9a:fadi, al-Wafi bi '1-waf'ayat.
