al-Amasi
- Died
- 940 AH
- Born in
- -
Muhyi al-Din al-Amasi (864–940 AH / 1460–1534 CE) was an Ottoman Hanafi scholar, teacher, and literary compiler from Amasya, best known for his belles-lettres anthology Rawd al-Akhyar al-Muntakhab min Rabi al-Abrar .
Lineage and Education
He was Muhyi al-Din Muhammad ibn al-Khatib Qasim ibn Ya'qub ibn Ahmad al-Amasi al-Hanafi, commonly known in biographical literature as Ibn al-Khatib, Ibn al-Khatib Qasim, or Ibn Qasim . He was born in the Anatolian town of Amasya in 864 AH (1460 CE) . He received his foundational education in his hometown under his father and distinguished scholars of the region, including Ali al-Tusi and Khidr Beg . Demonstrating early academic aptitude, he completed his studies in legal theory and applied jurisprudence (al-usul wa-al-furu') in 880 AH at the age of sixteen .
Career and Teaching
Al-Amasi began his instructional career in Amasya before advancing to prominent teaching positions across various Ottoman cities . He was subsequently appointed to a professorship at one of the Eight Madrasas (al-Madaris al-Thaman) in Constantinople . Sultan Bayezid II (Bayezid Khan) also appointed him as a personal tutor to his son, Prince Ahmad . He continued to hold teaching posts until his death in 940 AH (1534 CE) .
Scholarly Standing
Biographers describe al-Amasi as a versatile scholar conversant with both traditional and rational disciplines . In addition to his work in hadith, Quranic recitation (qira'at), Quranic exegesis (tafsir), and history, he was known for his preaching (wa'z), his understanding of music, and his familiarity with the occult sciences, including magic squares (al-awfaq), oneiromancy (ta'bir), and jafr . He composed poetry in both Arabic and Turkish, including a Turkish poetic composition titled Tuhfat al-Ushshaq . His primary literary achievement was Rawd al-Akhyar al-Muntakhab min Rabi al-Abrar, an abridgment and selected rearrangement of al-Zamakhshari's adab compendium Rabi al-Abrar, which he augmented with additional anecdotes and sayings from literary scholars . He also compiled a theological treatise regarding the Prophet's lineage entitled Anba al-Istifa fi Haqq Aba al-Mustafa .
Answer updated
List of Works
Rawd al-Akhyar al-Muntakhab min Rabi al-Abrar (The Garden of the Chosen: Selected from the Spring of the Pious) is an anthology of Arabic literature and adab completed in 921 AH (1515 CE). Belonging to the genre of conversational and assembly topics (ilm al-muhadarat), the book serves as both an abridgment and an expansion of al-Zamakhshari's earlier compendium Rabi al-Abrar. It combines selections from that work with supplementary anecdotes, sayings, and literary extracts from other belles-lettres sources.