al-Iji, Muhammad ibn Abd al-Rahman
- Died
- 905 AH
- Born in
- -
Muhammad ibn Abd al-Rahman al-Iji (832–905 AH / 1429–1500 CE) was a Shafi'i jurist, hadith scholar, and exegete from Ij near Shiraz, best known for his comprehensive Quranic commentary Jami al-Bayan fi Tafsir al-Quran (The Comprehensive Exposition in the Interpretation of the Quran) .
Lineage and Education
He was Mu'in al-Din Muhammad ibn Abd al-Rahman ibn Muhammad ibn Abd Allah ibn Muhammad al-Hasani al-Husayni al-Iji al-Safawi al-Shirazi al-Shafi'i . He was born in 832 AH (1429 CE) in the town of Ij in the environs of Shiraz . His nisba al-Safawi derived from his father, Safi al-Din Abu al-Fadl Abd al-Rahman ibn Muhammad al-Iji (d. 864 AH / 1460 CE in Mecca), a Shafi'i Sufi scholar who had composed glosses on al-Tabadkani's commentary on Manazil al-sa'irin (Stations of the Wayfarers) .
Al-Iji received his early education under his father and his paternal uncle in his hometown . He subsequently traveled to pursue his studies across Kirman and Khurasan, where he studied under Mawla Ali, a prominent disciple of al-Sayyid al-Sharif al-Jurjani .
Career and Later Life
Al-Iji served as the mufti in Ij before departing for the Hijaz . He performed the pilgrimage in 867 AH (1463 CE) and settled in Mecca, residing there for over a decade and instructing students who benefited from his scholarship, as recorded by al-Sakhawi .
His scholarly activity centered on Quranic exegesis, theology, and hadith. His father had initially begun drafting an exegesis on Surat al-An'am before setting it aside and directing him to complete the project . Al-Iji commenced the composition of his exegesis, Jami al-Bayan fi Tafsir al-Quran—also titled Jawami al-Tibyan—in the Prophet's Mosque in Medina in Jumada al-Akhirah 904 AH and completed it on 25 Ramadan 905 AH . In addition to his exegesis, he authored a treatise on bodily resurrection and the soul titled Bayan al-ma'ad al-jismani wa-l-ruh .
Al-Iji died in 905 AH (1500 CE) ; another report places his death in 906 AH (1500 CE) .
Answer updated
List of Works
Jami al-Bayan fi Tafsir al-Quran, also known as Tafsir al-Iji and recorded as Jawami al-Tibyan fi al-Tafsir, is a complete Quranic commentary. It is designed as a concise, self-sufficient exegesis that avoids unnecessary prolixity while delivering core interpretations to students. Grounded in transmitted interpretations from the early generations, the work emphasizes reliance on sound narrations, drawing upon major classical commentaries and specialized works of hadith authentication.