Allah Almighty has always blessed His righteous servants, the muhaddithin and the leading imams of the Muslims, with His protection and sincerity at every moment. False and misleading statements presented by the enemies of Islam did not cause the slightest harm to these exalted personalities. All kinds of abuse, slander and mockery from these falsehood-followers only served to increase the greatness of these sacred figures. When opponents and oppressive individuals were ignored by the muhaddithin, they began efforts to harm the honour of these men of religion and became busy in negative propaganda against them.
Among the famous and honoured names of the imams of Islam is that of Imam Muhammad bin Jarir al-Tabari. He was born in Tabaristan in 224 AH. Imam al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him) was a great and high-ranking Sunni imam, a hafiz, thiqah and trustworthy. The world remembers him with the honourable title “Imam al-Mufassirin”. He held the high rank of muhaddith, faqih, mufassir, historian, linguist and mujtahid mutlaq. He had many works and is counted among the great imams of Islam, and he has a unique position in the exegesis of the noble Quran.
Praise and Affirmation
Many scholars have stated the scholarly greatness and affirmation of Imam al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him). Some of their statements are as follows:
Hafiz Khatib Baghdadi (may Allah have mercy on him) writes:
“Imam al-Tabari settled in Baghdad and remained there until his death. He was among those great scholars whose opinion was taken as decisive, and people turned to him because of his scholarly excellence. He was simultaneously an expert in various sciences, and no contemporary of his shared in them. He was a hafiz of the Quran, a scholar of qira’at, one with insight into the meanings of the Quran, a faqih of the rulings of the Quran, an expert in the sahih and da’if of hadith, in the nasikh and mansukh, and in the sayings of the Companions, the Tabi’in and the jurists who came after them, and an expert in history. His book on the nations and kings is famous, and no one has written a book like his on the exegesis of the Quran. Another of his books is “Tahdhib al-Athar”, and no other book has been seen with its subject matter, although he could not complete it. There are countless works on his principles and subsidiary rulings, and he preserved many unique issues.”
Imam Abu Ahmad Husain bin Ali bin Muhammad bin Yahya bin Abdur Rahman bin al-Fadl al-Darimi (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
“Imam Muhammad bin Ishaq (may Allah have mercy on him) asked me first of all: Have you written anything from Imam Muhammad bin Jarir al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him)? I said: No. He said: Why? I said: Because he did not go out and the Hanabila prevented people from going to him. Upon this he said: You did very badly. I wish you had not written from those from whom you have written, and had only obtained the honour of hearing from Imam Muhammad bin Jarir al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him).”
The words of Imam Husain bin Ali Tamimi (may Allah have mercy on him):
“When I returned from Baghdad to Nishapur, Imam Muhammad bin Ishaq Khuzaymah (may Allah have mercy on him) asked me: From whom did you hear in Baghdad? I mentioned a group from whom I had heard. He asked: Did you hear anything from Imam Muhammad bin Jarir al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him)? I said: No, because due to the Hanabila in Baghdad no one could go to him, and they used to prevent people from going to him. He said: If you had obtained the honour of hearing from Imam Muhammad bin Jarir al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him), it would have been better for you than all those from whom you have heard.”
Muhammad bin Ali bin Muhammad bin Sahl, a student of Imam al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him), called him “faqih”.
Imam Ibn Surayj, Abu al-Abbas Ahmad bin Umar Baghdadi (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
“Abu Ja’far Muhammad bin Jarir al-Tabari was a faqih in the Shari’ah sciences.”
Imam Abu Sa’id bin Yunus (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
“He was a faqih. In 263 AH he travelled to Egypt, wrote books there, and then came back to Baghdad. He wrote very good books which are proof of the breadth of his knowledge.”
Hafiz Dhahabi (may Allah have mercy on him) writes:
“Imam Muhammad bin Jarir bin Yazid bin Kathir al-Tabari was an imam, a scholar of his age, and the author of many books. He belonged to the city of “Amul” in Tabaristan. He was born in 224 AH and after 240 AH he travelled in search of knowledge. He travelled to various regions and met famous scholars. He was a unique genius in terms of knowledge and wisdom.”
Hafiz Dhahabi further says:
“He was thiqah, sadiq, hafiz, an imam in tafsir, an imam in fiqh, ijma’ and matters of difference, an expert in history and the days of the people, and had mastery over the sciences of qira’at and lughah.”
Shaykh al-Islam Thani, Allamah Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) writes:
“He is an imam in fiqh, tafsir, hadith, history, lughah, nahw and the sciences of the Quran.”
Hafiz Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) writes:
“He was an imam expert in many types of sciences.”
Imam Ibn Jarir al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him) is recognized by the scholars, by consensus, as a Sunni exegete and imam. Muslims in every age have continued to use his tafsir as a reliable source for understanding the Quran, and later exegetes have made it the foundation of their own tafsirs. Hafiz Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him) presented a summary of it in his renowned tafsir “Tafsir al-Quran al-Azim,” and that tafsir is full of praise for Imam Ibn Jarir al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him).
The statement of Imam Ibn Khuzaymah (may Allah have mercy on him)
Hafiz Ibn Balawayh Muhammad bin Ahmad al-Jallab (may Allah have mercy on him) has transmitted this statement of Imam al-A’immah Ibn Khuzaymah (may Allah have mercy on him):
“Imam Ibn Khuzaymah asked me: Have you written a tafsir from Muhammad bin Jarir (may Allah have mercy on him) ? I replied that yes, I have written a tafsir from him. He asked: Complete? I said: Yes, I have written the whole of it. He further asked: In which years? I told him: From 283 Hijri to 290 Hijri. Thereupon Imam Ibn Khuzaymah borrowed that copy from me and returned it after several years. Then he said: I have read this tafsir from beginning to end, and to my knowledge there is no scholar on the face of the earth greater than Muhammad bin Jarir (may Allah have mercy on him). Certainly the Hanabilah wronged him.”
The enmity of the enemies of Islam towards Tafsir al-Tabari
The deniers of hadith, the atheists and the zanadiqah have always regarded the tafsir of Ibn Jarir al-Tabari as opposed to them. These people want to interpret the Quran according to their own desires and wish to mould the Quran to suit their own liking, but with the presence of Tafsir al-Tabari they can never succeed in their failed attempts. It becomes the means of defeating the false ambitions of the enemies of Islam and tears apart the web they have woven. In response to it, they begin to resort to baseless objections.
An attempt to prove Imam Ibn Jarir al-Tabari to be a Shia
The well-known denier of hadith, Tamanna Imadi, made an attempt in an article to prove that Imam Ibn Jarir (may Allah have mercy on him) was a Shia, so that the importance of his incomparable tafsir might be reduced in the hearts of the people of Islam. “Tolu-e-Islam” approved of this article and commented on it:
“Allamah Tamanna has proven in this article that Imam Ibn Jarir al-Tabari was in reality a Shia. If he was a Shia, then you yourself understand what becomes of the tafsir and history which the Ahl al-Sunnah wal-Jama’ah consider so authoritative, and how reliable the structures raised on that foundation can be.”
The standing of Tafsir Ibn Jarir among the people of Islam
The enemies of hadith and the advocates of falsehood are making every effort to end the trust of the people of Islam in Tafsir Ibn Jarir, but this dream will never be realised, in sha Allah. When the matter of the tafsir of the Quran comes up, the first glance of Muslims falls upon Tafsir Ibn Jarir. This tafsir is an authoritative, established and foundational tafsir source for the people of Islam and Ahl al-Sunnah wal-Jama’ah, which the people of Islam have always accepted with the utmost respect and pride. This exalted and high-ranking tafsir is like an unsheathed sword against the people of innovation and the people of doubt.
A confusion and its reality
In fact, in the time of the Sunni imam Muhammad bin Jarir bin Yazid al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him), there was another personality who was also named Muhammad bin Jarir, though his grandfather’s name was Rustam. This person also lived in Baghdad, and both shared the same kunyah, and on this basis the misunderstanding was created. The year of death of both is also the same, which caused the wrongdoers to create confusion between them. The Shia attributes of Muhammad bin Jarir bin Rustam al-Tabari were attempted to be linked to the Sunni imam Muhammad bin Jarir bin Yazid al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him), so that it could be conveyed that Imam al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him) was a Shia. In reality, however, Muhammad bin Jarir bin Rustam al-Tabari was a Rafidi Shia, and his mention is found even in the authoritative books of the Shia. Even Shia scholars themselves acknowledge that Muhammad bin Jarir bin Yazid al-Tabari is a Sunni imam and that Muhammad bin Jarir bin Rustam al-Tabari are two separate personalities.
The statement of Imam Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him)
The renowned biographer, critic of narrators, and commentator on Sahih al-Bukhari, Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him), explained the reality of this confusion as follows:
“Their contemporaries and later scholars have written their biographies, but no one has declared them to be Shia. This confusion has arisen because of the names of these two personalities (Muhammad bin Jarir bin Yazid al-Tabari, Sunni, and Muhammad bin Jarir bin Rustam al-Tabari, Rafidi), their fathers’ names, their nisbah, their kunyah, their existence in one era, and the abundance of their writings.”
The statement of Imam Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him)
Hafiz Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him), the exegete of the Quran and imam of Ahl al-Sunnah wal-Jama’ah, clarified the difference between the two personalities while discussing the issue of wudu, and wrote:
“Some scholars think that there are two men named Ibn Jarir; one of them is a Shia, to whom this statement is attributed, while scholars regard Imam Abu Ja’far as free of those qualities. Some people have taken the Imam’s tafsir’s position on washing the feet as evidence to create this confusion, claiming that he made wiping of the feet obligatory alongside washing, whereas he used the word ‘masah’ in the sense of touching or rubbing the feet, and not in the sense of Shia wiping.”
The testimony of Muhammad bin Ali bin Muhammad bin Sahl known as Ibn al-Imam
Muhammad bin Ali bin Muhammad bin Sahl, known as Ibn al-Imam, narrates:
“I heard Imam Abu Ja’far Muhammad bin Jarir al-Tabari, the jurist, speaking about Sayyiduna Ali bin Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him). When Imam Muhammad bin Jarir (may Allah have mercy on him) was asked about the ruling on one who says that Sayyiduna Abu Bakr and Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) are not rightly-guided Imams, he said: He is not only an innovator but also deserves to be killed.”
The Statement of Imam Ibn Jarir al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him) Himself
Imam Ibn Jarir al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him) said regarding the virtue of the Companions of the Prophet ﷺ:
“Among the Companions of the Prophet ﷺ, the most virtuous is Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him). After him comes Sayyiduna Umar al-Faruq (may Allah be pleased with him), then Sayyiduna Uthman bin Affan Dhu al-Nurayn (may Allah be pleased with him), and after him is the rank of the Commander of the Faithful and Imam of the God-fearing, Sayyiduna Ali bin Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him).”
Statement of a Shia Scholar
The well-known Shia scholar Muhammad Baqir Majlisi (d. 1111 AH) wrote about Muhammad bin Jarir bin Rustam al-Tabari:
“This is not the Ibn Jarir who is the historian and opponent of the Shia.”
Note No. 1
Hafiz al-Dhahabi (may Allah have mercy on him) (748-673 AH) wrote about Imam Muhammad bin Jarir bin Yazid al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him):
“Muhammad bin Jarir bin Yazid al-Tabari, the great imam, exegete, Abu Ja’far, author of magnificent books, died in 310 AH. He was trustworthy (thiqah) and truthful (sadiq), but there was a slight, non-harmful Shi’ism found in him.”
Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him), refuting the opinion of Hafiz al-Dhahabi, wrote that the accusation of Shi’ism was levelled against Imam al-Tabari only on the basis that he declared the hadith of Ghadir Khumm to be sahih:
“The accusation of Shi’ism was levelled against him only because he declared the hadith of Ghadir Khumm to be sahih.”
Furthermore, Hafiz al-Dhahabi (may Allah have mercy on him) did not mention this in his later works, which shows that he had retracted this opinion. Moreover, no other scholar has accepted this statement of Hafiz al-Dhahabi as correct, because it has no solid foundation. It must also be remembered here that there is a great difference between “فِیْہِ تَشَیُّعٌ یَّسِیْرٌ” and Shi’ism in the modern sense of the term. Hafiz al-Dhahabi has described Abu Ja’far as thiqah, sadiq, and a great imam, which makes clear that in his view the Shi’ism found in Imam al-Tabari was non-harmful and minor.
Note No. 2
In fact, when Hafiz Ahmad bin Ali al-Sulaymani (may Allah have mercy on him) criticised Muhammad bin Jarir bin Rustam Abu Ja’far al-Tabari the Rafidi, Hafiz al-Dhahabi (may Allah have mercy on him) assumed that this criticism may have been directed at the Sunni imam Muhammad bin Jarir bin Yazid Abu Ja’far al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him), and therefore he wrote:
“Hafiz Ahmad bin Ali al-Sulaymani, with loose tongue, said that Ibn Jarir used to fabricate hadiths for the Rawafid. This is his false assumption; rather, Ibn Jarir is among the trusted great imams of Islam. We do not claim that he was infallible, but it is not permissible for us to harm him on the basis of baseless claims and personal desires. It is necessary for scholars to be cautious in their criticism and praise of one another, especially when the matter concerns a great imam.”
In fact, al-Sulaymani’s criticism was about Muhammad bin Jarir bin Rustam the Rafidi, and Hafiz al-Dhahabi (may Allah have mercy on him) had come to have doubts about this. Expressing this hesitation, he wrote that perhaps al-Sulaymani had mentioned the Rafidi Ibn Jarir al-Tabari:
“Perhaps Hafiz al-Sulaymani (may Allah have mercy on him) intended this Rafidi, whose mention is about to come.”
Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him), in support of al-Sulaymani and in refutation of Hafiz al-Dhahabi, clarified:
“If I were to swear that Hafiz al-Sulaymani intended only Ibn Jarir bin Rustam the Rafidi, my oath would be valid. Al-Sulaymani was a firm hafiz and knew well what he said. I cannot think that he would level a false accusation against an imam like Ibn Jarir.”
Note No. 3
Hafiz Abu al-Fadl al-Iraqi (may Allah have mercy on him) (806-725 AH), explaining, said:
“Muhammad bin Jarir bin Rustam, Abu Ja’far al-Tabari, was a wicked Rafidi. Hafiz Abd al-Aziz al-Kittani mentioned him and said that he was a Rafidi and that he has some books, among which is a book about the narrators from the Ahl al-Bayt. Perhaps Hafiz al-Sulaymani (may Allah have mercy on him) intended to declare him weak and said that he fabricates hadiths for the Rawafid. Hafiz al-Dhahabi (may Allah have mercy on him) mentioned Muhammad bin Jarir al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him) in Mizan al-I’tidal, who is a well-known imam, and mentioned al-Sulaymani’s statement and refuted it. It is as if he did not know that a Rafidi shares the same name with Imam Abu Ja’far al-Tabari. The only difference between the two is in the name of the grandfather: the grandfather of the Rafidi is named Rustam, whereas the grandfather of the well-known imam is named Yazid.”
Hafiz al-Iraqi had to write this because perhaps he had a copy of Mizan al-I’tidal in which Hafiz al-Dhahabi’s statement “فَلَعَلَّ السُّلَیْمَانِيُّ أَرَادَ الْآتِي” was not present. In fact, Hafiz al-Dhahabi clearly distinguished between Abu Ja’far Muhammad bin Jarir bin Yazid al-Tabari the Sunni and Muhammad bin Jarir bin Rustam al-Tabari the Rafidi. By mentioning them separately, he described the Sunni imam al-Tabari as a great imam, thiqah and sadiq, while he described the Rafidi as the impure Rafidi.
Note No. 4
Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) (852-773 AH) wrote about Abu Hayyan, the teacher of his teachers:
“Our teacher’s teacher Abu Hayyan was misled by the statement of Hafiz Sulaymani (may Allah have mercy on him), and in the beginning of his tafsir, in explaining the word ‘Sirat’, he said that Abu Ja’far Tabari, who is the imam of the Imami Shia, said that the word ‘Sirat’ in the language of Quraysh is with the letter sad. I have made this point as a caution so that no one is misled by it.”
This error was in that copy of Abu Hayyan’s tafsir, and in fact this statement was about Abu Ja’far al-Tusi, not about Imam Ibn Jarir Tabari. It is possible that there is an error in the copy that Hafiz Ibn Hajar had, or that he overlooked it, because nothing of this kind exists in the Tafsir of Ibn Jarir Tabari.
Shuyukh (Teachers)
Imam Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him) travelled to various regions in pursuit of knowledge and acquired knowledge from them. He learned from scholars such as Muhammad bin Abd al-Malik bin Abu Shawarib, Isma’il bin Musa al-Suddi, Ishaq bin Abu Isra’il, Ahmad bin Mani’, Abu Kurayb Muhammad bin al-Ala, Hannad bin al-Sari, Abu Hammam al-Sukuni, Muhammad bin Abd al-A’la al-San’ani, Muhammad bin Bashshar Bandar, Muhammad bin al-Muthanna, Hasan bin Arafa, Muhanna bin Yahya, Ali bin Sahl al-Ramli, Bishr bin Mu’adh al-Aqadi, Amr bin Ali al-Fallas, Zubayr bin Bakkar and Ahmad bin Surayj al-Razi (may Allah have mercy on them all), and others.
Eminent Students (Talamidh)
Imam Tabarani, Ahmad bin Kamil al-Qadi, Abu Bakr al-Shafi’i, Imam Abu Ahmad bin Adi, and many other scholars studied knowledge from Imam Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him).
Works (Tasanif)
Among the well-known works of Imam Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him) is Jami’ al-Bayan ‘an Ta’wil Ay al-Qur’an, which is known as Tafsir Tabari. In addition, Tarikh al-Umam wal-Muluk, Tahdhib al-Athar, al-Tabsir fi Ma’alim al-Din, and Sarih al-Sunnah are also counted among his important works.
Death (Wafat Hasrat Ayat)
No one comes to this world forever, and Imam Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him) departed this temporary world in 310 AH. May Allah shower His mercies upon him!
Summary (Khulasa)
Imam Muhammad bin Jarir Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him) was an outstanding exegete, muhaddith and jurist in Islamic history, who did notable work in tafsir and history. Some people were misled about Imam Tabari because of his namesake, the Shia scholar Muhammad bin Jarir bin Rustam, and accused him of being Shia. This confusion arose from similarity in name, kunya and year of death. All scholars agree that Imam Tabari was a Sunni scholar, and his tafsir “Jami’ al-Bayan” has always been regarded as reliable by the scholars of Ahl al-Sunnah wal-Jama’ah. The accusation of Tashayyu’ against him was made merely because he authenticated the hadith of Ghadir Khumm, but scholars have made clear that this was a non-harmful Tashayyu’, which has no effect on his school of thought. The works of Imam Tabari, especially Tafsir Tabari and Tarikh al-Umam wal-Muluk, are a great asset in Islamic history and tafsir.
