Saaduddin
Taftazani
------------------------------------
Sa'ad
al-Din Masud ibn Umar ibn Abd Allah al-Taftazani (Persian: سعدالدین
مسعودبن عمربن عبداللّه هروی خراسانی تفتازانی) also known as Al-Taftazani and
Taftazani (1322-1390) was a Muslim Persian polymath.He also wrote a commentary
on the Qur'an in Persian called "Kashf-al-Asrar"
Early
life and education
---------------------------------------
Al-Taftazani
was born in 1322 in Taftazan, Khorasan in Iran, then in the Sarbedaran
state.[9] He completed his education in various educational institutions in the
cities of Herat, Ghijduvan, Feryumed, Gulistan, Khwarizm, Samarkand and
Sarakhs. He mainly resided in Sarakhs. He was active during the reign of Timur,
who noticed him as a promising scientist and supported his scholarship, and was
part of his court. Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani famously remarked about him that
"science ended with him in the East" and "no one could ever
replace him".He died in Samarkand in 1390 and was buried in Sarakhs. He
sincerely practiced Islam, and practiced and preached in the Hanafi and
Maturidi schools. He was of the Hanafi school in matters of Fiqh (Islamic
jurisprudence) and a Maturidi with regard to issues of Aqidah (Islamic creed.
Career
-----------
During
his lifetime, he wrote treaties on grammar, rhetoric, theology, logic, law and
Quran exegesis.[4] His works were used as textbooks for centuries in Ottoman
madrasahs.[9] and are used in Shia madrasahs to this day.[12] He completed
"Sharh-i az-Zanjani" which was his first and one of his most famous
works at the age of 16.[13] He also wrote a commentary of the Qur'an in Persian
and translated a volume of Sa'adi's poetry from Persian into Turkish.[citation
needed] But it was in Arabic that he composed the bulk of his writing.
Contributions
------------------------
Al-Taftazani
made contributions to theology, Islamic jurisprudence, linguistics, rhetoric,
logic and literature.His treatises, even the commentaries, are "standard
books" for students of Islamic theology and his papers have been called a
"compendium of the various views regarding the great doctrines of
Islam".
Legacy
--------------
Ibn
Khaldun, who is considered by some to be the father of the social sciences for
anticipating many elements of these disciplines centuries before they were
founded in the West, said of him:
I
found in Egypt numerous works on the intellectual sciences composed by the
well-known person Sa'd al-Din al-Taftazani, a native of Herat, one of the
villages of Khurasan. Some of them are on kalam (speculative theology) and the
foundations of fiqh and rhetoric, which show that he had a profound knowledge
of these sciences. Their contents demonstrate that he was well versed in the
philosophical sciences and far advanced in the rest of the sciences which deal
with Reason.
Writings
by Al-Taftazani
----------------------------------------
Linguistics
--------------------
Sharh
az Zanjani (aka. Serh ul Izzi fi't-Tasrîf, aka. Sa'diyye). (738 A.H.). His
first work.
Al-Irsad
(aka. Irsad ul Hadi). (778 A.H.).
al-Ni'am
al-Sawabigh fi Sharh al-Nawabigh.
Rhetoric[edit]
Al-Mutawwal
(747 A.H.).
Al-Muhtasar
(aka. Muhtasar ul Ma'ani). (756 A.H.).
Sharh'u
Miftah il Ulum (aka. Mirtah il Ulum). (787 A.H.).
Logic
----------
Sherh
ur Risalet ash Shamsiyye (aka. Sharh ush Shamsiyya). (752 A.H.).
Maqasıd
ut Talibin fi Ilmi Usul id-Din (aka. Al-Maqasid). (784 A.H.).
Tezhib
ul Mantiq Wa al Kalam.(739 A.H.).
Sharh
ul Aqaid in Nasafiyye (767 A.H.; commentary on Abu Hafs Omar al-Nasafi's creed).
Legal
Sciences
--------------------------
at-Talwih
fi Kashfi Haqaiq at Tanqih (758 A.H.).
Hashiye
tu Muhtasar il Munteha. (770 A.H.).
Miftah
ul Fiqh (aka. Al-Miftah). (782 A.H.).
Ihtisaru
Sharhi Talhis il jami il Kabir. (785 A.H.).
Al-Fatawa
al Hanaffiya. (759 A.H.). A detailed compilation of gis juristical decisions
during his juristicaal career.
Sharh
ul Faraid is Sirajiyya.
Theology
---------------
Hashiyye
Al ak-Kashshaf. (789 A.H.). This is an unfinished work of his.
Kashf
ul Esrar ve Uddet ul Ebraar.
Al
Arbain.
Sharh
ul Hadis ul Erbain en Neveviyye.
Hashiyat
al kashaf ( extremely rare work by Taftazani ) never finished by the scholar or
unknown compiled during his life time.There are 3 manuscripts that have shed
light on the subject and are known to the public in museums and private
collections.One is dated 1147AH(private Saudi collection and is the oldest
dated copy of his work some 357 years after his death),One dated 1209 AH,One
dated 1237AH.
Allamah
Sa’duddin Taftazani
-----------------------------------------
(712-791H/1312-1390AD)
----------------------------------
Amongst the miracles of the Qur’an
is its style and language. Nothing can compete with the Qur’an in any way shape
or form. Many have tried to copy it and many still do, but they can never
compete with its beauty which shines from every aspect that one can look from.
One of the main aspects with which it has been studied is from the aspect of
balaghah (rhetoric), the science which deals with word-play, metaphor, simile,
embellishment, and so-on. In Arabic, if nahw (Grammar) is the body, then balaghah
(rhetoric) is its soul.
Balaghah
(rhetoric), like nahw (grammar), was not in a codified form during the time of
the Prophet (peach and blessing be upon him) because the ‘Arabs understood it
naturally as it was their language. But once Islam began to spread far and wide
into countries which weren’t familiar to the Arabic language, the concern for
the preservation of the language grew. Once this concern was felt, scholars
began writing down the principles and rules of different subjects not only
related to the Arabic language, but in all the fields related to the Qur’an.
Giants in the field of grammar wrote their treatises, masters in the art of
rhetoric wrote their own masterpieces, and similar happened in the sciences of
Hadith, fiqh, tafseer, and every science that can somehow be related to the
Qur’an. Allamah Taftazani was amongst these very giants who contributed to the
codification and formulation of the principles and rules of rhetoric which we
find imbedded in the very books we study today.
His
full name was Sa’duddin Mas’ud ibn U’mar ibn A’bdillah at-Taftazani. He was
born in 722[1] Hijri (correlating to 1331 AD) in the city of Taftazan in
Khurasan. He lived in the era which most historians name the “Golden Era” of
Islam due to the great many accomplishments made at the hands of the Muslims in
arts, medicine, and science. He was Shafi’i in practice and Maturidi in
theology. He studied under luminaries like ‘Adud ud-din al-Iyjy, Qutb ud-din
Muhammad ar-Razi, and Naseem ud-din abu A’bdillah an-Naysapuri.
Allamah
Taftazani was a very hardworking student. Ibn ‘Imad mentions in his Shadharat
adh-Dhahab that he excelled over all his peers in knowledge and foresight. He
was 16 years of age when he first wrote his book Sharh az-Zanjani (a book on
Arabic morphology). In the biographical introduction to Sharh al-Maqasid (a
book on Islamic theology also written by him), the commentators mention that,
“Taftazani moved to Jurjan as a great scholar due to his commentary on the book
of morphology [written] by Zanjani” (Sharh al-Maqasid 79). Eventually, his
popularity grew and students began flocking to him.
Allamah
Taftazani was a master of many sciences. He, despite being Shafi’i in practice,
was an expert in the Hanafi School as well. Amongst his well know books in fiqh
are al-Fatawa al-Hanafiyyah, Sharh ala Faraid as-Sajawandi (Sharh of Siraji:
book on inheritance), and Mukhtasar Sharh Talkhees al-Jami’ al-Kabir of Imam
Muhammad ash-Shaybani. Amongst his books in usul is the famous Hanafi reference
at-Talweeh fi Kashfi Haqaiq at-Tanqeeh (famously known as at-Tawdeeh wa
at-Talweeh). This book further goes to show his expertise in the Hanafi school
of thought. He was also a scholar of mantiq (logic) and kalam (theology); his
works in mantiq include Tahdheeb al-Mantiq wa al-Kalam and Sharh Risalah
ash-Shamsiyyah. His works in kalam include Sharh al-Maqasid, and of course his
magnum opus Sharh ‘Aqaid an-Nasafiyyah.
One
of Allamah Taftazani’s greatest contributions was to the field of balaghah. He
has written three main books in this regard al-Mutawwal, Sharh al Kitab al-Miftah,
and his most famous and monumental work in balaghah Mukhtasar al-Ma’ani (also
known as Sharh Talkhees al-Miftah). The latter has been taught in madaris as
the highest level book in the science of balaghah. Mukhtasar al-Ma’ani is a
commentary of Talkhees al-Miftah by al-Qizwini which is a summary of Miftah
al-Ulum by as-Sakkaki. Students and teachers alike have been reported to say
that this is amongst the toughest books taught in the Dars e Nizami curriculum.
This goes to show the ‘Allamah’s depth in knowledge.
As
stated above, Allamah Taftazani was amongst those scholars who had deep
understanding and intellect. Allamah Shawkani is quoted to have said in his
Raji’ al-Badr at-Tali’ that, “at-Taftazani gained [knowledge] from the giants
of knowledge of his time. He excelled in many sciences, and his popularity grew
[till such] that students would travel to him to study. He began his writing
career at the young age of sixteen, and [soon] became matchless in his
knowledge during the eight century Hijri. His works became popular during his
lifetime and were spread out throughout the countries, and people would compete
to obtain these [very works]” (Sharh al-Maqasid 129).
Allamah
Taftazani passed away in 791H (correlating to 1389AD) in Samarqand. Ibn ‘Imad
mentions that there was a debate held at the command of the then king
Taymurlank. The debate took place between at-Taftazani and ash-Sharif
al-Jurjani. At the end of the debate, the judge, Nu’manuddin al-Khawarzimi
al-Mu’tazili, found them both to be equivalent in their knowledge. So
Taymurlank took the final decision in to his own hands and placed ash-Sharif
over at-Taftazani due to ash-Sharif’s lineage being higher than at-Taftazani’s.
Allamah Taftazani became depressed due to this, and he became severely grieved
by it. The great Allamah passed away soon after this incident.
Bibliography
--------------------
Al-A’lam
(vol. 7). Khayruddin az-Zerekly. Beirut: Lebanon. Dar al-‘Ilm lil Malayin 2005.
Shadharat
adh-Dhahab (vol. 8). Shihabuddin Abu al-Falah ibn ‘Emad. Damascus: Syria. Dar ibn
Kathir 1996.
Sharh
Aqaid an-Nasafiyyah. Sa’duddin Mas’ud At-Taftazani. Beirut: Lebanon. Dar
al-Beirut 2007.
Sharh
al-Maqasid (vol. 1). Sa’duddin Mas’ud At-Taftazani. Beirut: Lebanon. ‘Alam
al-Kutub 1998.
[1]
There is a difference of opinion as to whether he was born in the 712 or 722.
There are many scholars of history on both sides. The commentators of Allamah
Tafatazani’s Sharh al-Maqasid, after studying all the data and dates, incline
to 722 Hijri.
[2]
Only Allah knows as to the true nature of his death, but most historians
attribute this to his death.
