Abd al-Fattah al-Qadi
- Died
- 1403 AH
- Born in
- -
Abd al-Fattah al-Qadi (1325–1403 AH / 1907–1982 CE) was an Egyptian scholar of Quranic readings (qira'at) and an educator at al-Azhar University, widely known for his authoritative didactic manual al-Budur al-Zahira fi al-Qiraat al-Ashr al-Mutawatira ("The Radiant Full Moons in the Ten Recurrent Readings") .
Lineage and Early Life
His full name was Abd al-Fattah ibn Abd al-Ghani ibn Muhammad al-Qadi . He was born in Damanhur, the capital of Beheira Governorate in Egypt, on 25 Sha'ban 1325 AH / 14 October 1907 CE, though another biographical report dates his birth to 25 Sha'ban 1320 AH . He identified as Shafi'i in jurisprudence (fiqh) and adhered to the Naqshbandi Sufi order .
He memorized the Quran in his hometown under Shaykh Ali Ayyad (also recorded as Ali Ayyadah) and mastered tajwid under Mahmud Muhammad Ghazal and Mahmud Muhammad Nasr al-Din . He studied the ten recitational traditions under several scholars who granted him licenses (ijazahs), including Ghazal, Nasr al-Din, Hammam Qutb Abd al-Hadi, and Hasan Subhi .
Education and Academic Training
Al-Qadi joined the Azhari Institute in Alexandria before advancing through higher academic levels in Cairo . He obtained the standard Shahada Alamiyya degree from al-Azhar University in 1931 CE and completed his advanced postgraduate specialization (al-Takhasus al-Qadim) in the Quranic exegesis (tafsir) and Hadith branch in 1934–1935 CE (1355 AH), a credential equivalent to a doctoral degree .
During his academic studies in Alexandria and Cairo, he studied with leading scholars across multiple disciplines:
- In Quranic exegesis and Quranic sciences: Yusuf al-Dijwi, Muhammad Taj al-Din, Ahmad Makki, and Abd Allah Jad .
- In Hadith: Hasan al-Sharif, Mahmud Khattab al-Subki, and Muhammad al-Khadir Husayn, with whom he read Sahih al-Bukhari throughout his specialization years .
- In rhetoric (balagha), logic, and research disputation: Shahadah Munaysi, Muhammad al-Utrays, Mahmud Shaltut, Abd Allah Draz, and Abd al-Halim Ahmad Qadum .
- In theology (kalam) and Arabic literature: Amin Mahmud Surur, Muhammad al-Izbi Rizq, Ibrahim Khatir, and Sayyid ibn Ali al-Marsafi .
- In Shafi'i jurisprudence: Ismail al-Maslawi .
Career and Teaching
Following his graduation, al-Qadi taught at the secondary Azhari institute in Cairo . He was subsequently appointed head of the Department of Qira'at in the Faculty of Arabic Language at al-Azhar and general inspector of the Azhari institutes . He also served as the director (shaykh) of the Institute of Qira'at in Cairo, headed the Quranic Manuscript Review Committee (Lajnat Muraja'at al-Masahif) at al-Azhar, and oversaw the Azhari institutes in Desouk and Damanhur . He later served as Deputy General and Director General of the Azhari institutes until his retirement .
In 1394 AH / 1974 CE, al-Qadi relocated to Medina following the establishment of the Faculty of the Holy Quran and Islamic Studies at the Islamic University of Madinah, where he served as the founding head of the Department of Qira'at . Among the many students who received recitational instruction and scholarly training from him were Muhammad Salim Muhaysin, Ahmad Ismail Makti, and Ahmad Hafiz Abd al-Sami .
Scholarly Contribution
Al-Qadi was regarded as a foremost authority of his era in the sciences of recitations, verse counting (ilm al-fawasil), and Arabic poetics . His al-Budur al-Zahira fi al-Qiraat al-Ashr al-Mutawatira systematically synthesizes the ten recurrent readings via the pedagogical traditions of al-Shatibi's al-Shatibiyyah and Ibn al-Jazari's al-Durrah . He also authored al-Wafi fi Sharh al-Shatibiyya, an exhaustive commentary on the seven canonical readings, and composed al-Faraid al-Hisan fi Add Ay al-Quran, a didactic poem documenting regional variations in Quranic verse numbering .
Illness and Death
Al-Qadi fell ill while residing in Medina and traveled to Cairo for medical treatment . He died in Cairo at the call to the Dhuhr prayer on Monday, 15 Muharram 1403 AH / 1 November 1982 CE, and was buried there . Another biographical entry erroneously records his death in 1385 AH in Medina .
Answer updated
List of Works
al-Budur al-Zahira fi al-Qiraat al-Ashr al-Mutawatira is a manual on the science of Quranic variant readings. It presents the ten mutawatir recitational traditions of the Quran by combining the two foundational pedagogical lineages of the "minor ten" readings: the seven readings from al-Shatibi's poem al-Shatibiyyah and the three complementary readings from Ibn al-Jazari's al-Durrah al-Mudi'ah, serving as an applied guide detailing the variants for readers and students.
al-Wafi fi Sharh al-Shatibiya is a contemporary commentary on al-Qasim ibn Firruh al-Shatibi's foundational didactic poem on the seven canonical Quranic readings, Hirz al-Amani wa-Wajh al-Tahani. Designed to provide a clear, systematic exposition for students in religious institutes, it begins with an introductory treatise before delivering a line-by-line commentary on the poem's 1,173 verses, explaining vocabulary, syntax, and cryptic symbols across both general principles and surah-by-surah variants.
Sharh al-Nazm al-Jami li-Qiraat al-Imam Nafi is a specialized work on Quranic reading that provides an explanatory commentary on a didactic poem on the recitation tradition of Imam Nafi. Focusing on the transmissions of Qalun and Warsh via the path of the Shatibiyyah, the concise commentary systematically explains the rules, phonetic variants, and specific word differences belonging to these traditions.
al-Faraid al-Hisan fi Add Ay al-Quran is a didactic poem on the science of Quranic verse breaks (ilm al-fawasil). Arranged sequentially according to the surahs of the Quran, the versification documents the differences among recognized authorities of verse numbering and outlines regional disagreements over where verses begin and end.