The Scientific Role of Hadith Scholars from Maysan during the 3rd and 4th Hijri Centuries

Abstract

Abstract

          Muslim scholars played a significant role in preserving the sources of Islamic legislation and transmitting them to the Islamic nation foremost among these sources are the noble Prophetic hadiths and the sayings of the infallible Imams (peace be upon them)· Among those scholars were the sons and prominent figures of cities in the Islamic East, particularly during the 3rd and 4th Hijri centuries a period that witnessed a flourishing of Islamic sciences and heightened scholarly activity in teaching and authorship·In this context, Islamic sources have documented the role of hadith transmitters (muhaddithīn) from the city of Maysan in preserving, transmitting, and studying hadiths  both in terms of content and chain of narration as well as in scrutinizing them through the methods of al-jarḥ wa al-taʿdīl (criticism and validation)· These scholars include individuals whose biographical details are scattered across major classical sources, and this study sheds light on them by focusing on those whose scholarly efforts and civilizational contributions have been acknowledged in the books of hadith narrators· This includes their travels in pursuit of hadith sciences.·This study constitutes a pioneering academic effort that seeks to gather and analyze this information to introduce the biographies and historical contributions of these figures· It explores their lineage, scholarly credibility, and the scientific works they authored in the field of hadith· It also identifies their teachers from whom they learned and received authorization (ijāzah) to narrat as well as their students and those who transmitted hadiths from them among the prominent narrators of the Islamic world·