Ibn Battal

Ibn Baṭṭāl
ابن بطال
TitleAl-Ḥāfiẓ
Personal
Died1057 (449 AH)
ReligionIslam
EraIslamic golden age
RegionIberian Peninsula
DenominationSunni
JurisprudenceMaliki[1]
CreedAsh'ari[2][3]
Notable work(s)Sharh Ibn Battal
OccupationScholar, Jurist, Traditionist, Judge
Muslim leader

Abū al-Ḥasan ʿAlī ibn Khalaf ibn ʿAbd al-Malik ibn Baṭṭāl al-Bakrī al-Qurṭubī al-Mālikī (Arabic: أبو الحسن علي بن خلف بن عبد الملك بن بطال البكري القرطبي المالكي), better known as Ibn Baṭṭāl (Arabic: اابن بطال) was an Andalusian Islamic scholar primarily known for his expertise in Hadith and Islamic jurisprudence. His celebrated Sharh Ibn Battal is a classic commentary of Sahih al-Bukhari, the first of the Six Books of Sunni Islam.[4]

Biography

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There are no historical documents that the biographers have cited that provide specifics on his birthdate, upbringing, or pursuit of knowledge. They did, however, all acknowledge his enormous efforts to study and become an expert in jurisprudence, Hadith, interpretation, belief, language, origins, and other subjects.[5][4]

The biographers did manage to record the teachers he studied under. However, it is noted he studied a large number of ulama and among he most prominent: Abu Umar al-Talamanki, Ibn Afif, Ibn al-Faradi, Abu al-Qasim al-Wahrani, Abu Abd al-Warith, and Abu Bakr al-Razi.[5]

Ibn Battal was a highly sought after Hadith expert and people from all over al-Andalus would flock to him. He served as a judge in the fort of Luarca. He was a teacher who produced numerous students. Among his most popular students: Muhammad bin Yahya bin Muhammad al-Zahtaa al-Taimi al-Andalusi, Al-Saqqat al-Funki, Abu Dawood, Abu al-Abbas, and Abdurrahman ibn Bishr.[5]

Wednesday night, while being prayed for during the noon prayer in Valencia, Ibn Battal passed away (449 A.H. - 1057 A.D). Rather Ibn Bashkuwal claimed to have seen in Abu al-Hasan al-Maqri's handwriting that he passed away on Wednesday night, that his funeral prayer was said at noon in 449 A.H., and that al-Andalus was greatly affected by his passing.[5]

Reception

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Syrian Islamic scholar al-Dhahabi (d. 1348) said he was one of the senior Malikis (of his time) and Qadi Iyad (d. 1149) said he was a noble, exalted, and morphologist man.[5]

Ibn Bashkuwal states: “He was one of the seekers of knowledge, understanding, good handwriting, and well-tuned. He meticulously cares about the Hadith perfecting what was restricted from it and explained Sahih al-Bukhari in several volumes, and people narrated it from him. He used to imitate speech in the manner of Al-Ash'ari, and he died in the year four hundred and forty-nine.”[6]

Works

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Ibn Battal authored many books on Hadith and jurisprudence. His most popular work is his celebrated commentary on Sahih al-Bukhari ranging 11 volumes entitled Sharh Ibn Battal. It is widely acclaimed in the Sunni community and considered one of the earliest commentaries of Sahih al-Bukhari.[7][8]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Ibn Daqiq al-'Id (10 May 2010). Ibn-Daqiq's Commentary on the Nawawi Forty Hadiths. Lulu Press. p. 19. ISBN 9780359651566.
  2. ^ Raed al-Samhouri (13 Sep 2019). Imaginary Ancestor; A Historical-analytical Approach To The Predecessor Of The Ordeal - Ahmed Bin Hanbal And The Imaginary Ahmed Bin Hanbal. Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies. p. 17. ISBN 9786144452950. written by Ibn Battal al-Maliki, who is an Ash'ari scholar (d. 449 AH)...an explanation of Sahih al-Bukhari
  3. ^ Al-Bayhaqi (1999). Allah's Names and Attributes. Vol. 4 of Islamic Doctrines & Beliefs. Translated by Gibril Fouad Haddad. Islamic Supreme Council of America. p. 91. ISBN 9781930409033.
  4. ^ a b "Ibn Battal Qurtub (ابن بطال أبو الحسن علي بن خلف بن عبد الملك)". usul.ai. Archived from the original on 12 June 2024.
  5. ^ a b c d e Ayad Khalaf Yousef (November 2022). "The Consensus of Bin Battal in his Interpretation of Sahih Al-Bukhari". Anbar University Journal for Islamic Sciences. 13 (4). University of Anbar: 4444–4451. doi:10.34278/aujis.2022.176026.
  6. ^ Al-Safadi (1 May 2014). Al Wafi Bil Wafayat. Vol. 21. Dar al-Kotob al-'Ilmiyya. p. 56.
  7. ^ "Ibn Battal al-Maliki al-Qurtubi". alukah.net (in Arabic). Archived from the original on 28 May 2023.
  8. ^ Stearns, Justin K. (April 2011). Infectious Ideas: Contagion in Premodern Islamic and Christian Thought in the Western Mediterranean. Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 20. ISBN 9781421401058.