al-Baghandi al-Saghir
- Died
- 312 AH
- Born in
- -
Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Muhammad al-Baghandi (c. 210s–312 AH / c. 830–924 CE), known as al-Baghandi al-Saghir ("the younger al-Baghandi"), was an Iraqi hadith scholar and preserver (hafiz) based in Baghdad . He composed specialized compilations including Musnad Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, documenting narrations associated with the Umayyad caliph Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, and Ma Rawahu al-Akabir 'an al-Asaghir, a tract on instances where senior scholars transmitted from junior authorities.
Lineage and Family
His full lineage is Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Muhammad ibn Sulayman ibn al-Harith ibn Abd al-Rahman al-Azdi . The nisba al-Baghandi derives from Baghand, which Abu Sa'd al-Sam'ani identified as likely a village near Wasit . He belonged to a prominent family of hadith transmitters: his father, Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Sulayman al-Baghandi (known as al-Baghandi al-Kabir, d. 283 AH), was also a hadith master, as was his son, Abu Dharr Ahmad ibn Muhammad (d. 326 AH) . He also had a younger brother with the identical name and patronymic, Abu Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Muhammad ibn Sulayman, who transmitted in Mosul .
Education and Travels
Al-Baghandi was born in the 210s AH and began his hadith studies in Wasit in 227 AH . He undertook extensive travels across the Islamic world to collect transmissions, visiting Damascus, Egypt, Kufa, and Basra, before settling and teaching in Baghdad . During their shared journey to the Levant and Egypt, the scholar Abdan noted that al-Baghandi caught up with their group in Damascus and preceded them into Egypt on mules .
Among his most prominent teachers were Ali ibn al-Madini, Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shayba, Uthman ibn Abi Shayba, Hisham ibn Ammar, Duhaym, Shayban ibn Farrukh, Suwayd ibn Sa'id, al-Harith ibn Miskin, and Muhammad ibn Abd Allah ibn Numayr .
A large circle of notable traditionists transmitted from him, including al-Tabarani, al-Husayn ibn Isma'il al-Mahamili, Abu Bakr al-Shafi'i, Abu Bakr al-Isma'ili, Muhammad ibn Makhlad al-Duri, Ibn Shahin, Ibn al-Muzaffar, and Abu Ahmad al-Hakim .
Scholarly Standing and Reception
Al-Baghandi was renowned for his vast memory; he was reported to have stated that he could answer three hundred thousand questions concerning the traditions of the Prophet ﷺ . Contemporary accounts describe him as reeling off chains of narration from memory so intensely that his turban would slip off his head . His preoccupation with narration was such that while standing for ritual prayer he was once heard to begin with a chain of transmission—saying « حدثنا محمد بن سليمان لوين » (Luwayn narrated to us)—before the congregants reminded him and he recited the Fatihah .
Scholars evaluated his reliability with differing verdicts:
- Al-Khatib al-Baghdadi and Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Abi Khaythama affirmed his trustworthiness, with al-Khatib observing that prominent teachers cited his narrations in sound collections and that no substantial flaw was established against him other than obfuscation of sources (tadlis) . Al-Dhahabi described him as truthful (saduq) and an ocean of hadith knowledge .
- Other critics were more severe. Ibrahim al-Isbahani labeled him a liar . Ibn Adi noted that some of his narrations were rejected and that he practiced multiple types of tadlis, though he expressed hope that al-Baghandi did not intentionally fabricate .
- Al-Daraqutni criticized him for frequent mistakes when narrating from memory, extensive tadlis, and dropping intermediaries, while Abu Bakr al-Isma'ili noted his propensity for tadlis and textual misreadings (tashif) .
Death
Al-Baghandi died in Baghdad at the end of Dhu al-Hijjah in 312 AH (924 CE) . A variant report transmitting the year 313 AH was regarded by al-Khatib al-Baghdadi as an error .
Answer updated
List of Works
Ma Rawahu al-Akabir an al-Asaghir (What Seniors Narrated from Juniors) is a specialized hadith tract (juz') that gathers solitary transmissions in which senior scholars narrated from their juniors. Belonging to the riwayat al-akabir 'an al-asaghir genre of hadith sciences, it examines instances where narrators relate traditions from individuals younger in age, lower in generational tier, or less prominent in memorization and rank across various transmission chains.
Musnad Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz (The Musnad of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz) is a specialized hadith collection dedicated to gathering the traditions and reports transmitted through the Umayyad caliph Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz. Organized as a musnad, it documents both the authorities from whom he received hadiths and the transmitters who related narrations on his authority, encompassing legal rulings, acts of worship, and historical interactions during his governance.