Ibn al-Muqayir

Ibn al-Muqayir (545–643 AH / 1150–1246 CE) was a Baghdadi-born Hanbali hadith scholar, Quran reciter, and carpenter who settled in Cairo and became celebrated as the foremost hadith transmitter of Egypt (musnid al-Diyar al-Misriyya) in his era Tashil al-Sabila li Murid…+1.

Name, Background, and Upbringing

His full name was Abu al-Hasan Ali ibn al-Husayn ibn Ali ibn Mansur al-Baghdadi al-Azaji al-Hanbali al-Najjar Tashil al-Sabila li Murid…+1. He was born in Baghdad on the eve of Eid al-Fitr in 545 AH (1150 CE) al-Wafi bil-Wafayat+1. His family title, Ibn al-Muqayir (or al-Muqayyir), reportedly arose because one of his ancestors fell into a pit containing pitch (qar) and was subsequently called al-Muqayyar al-Tanbih wal-Iqaz+1.

Education and Travels

In his youth in Baghdad, Ibn al-Muqayir received formal transmission licenses (ijazat) from senior scholars who were alive in the 550s AH, including Ibn al-Zaghuni, Nasr ibn Nasr al-Ukbari, the hafiz Muhammad ibn Nasir, Sa'id ibn al-Banna, Abu al-Karam al-Shahrazuri, and Abu Ja'far Ahmad ibn Muhammad al-Abbasi al-Wafi bil-Wafayat+1. He personally attended and heard hadith directly (sama') from prominent Baghdadi transmitters, including Shuhdah al-Katibah, Mu'ammar ibn al-Fakhir, Abd al-Haqq ibn Yusuf, Isa ibn Ahmad al-Dawshabi, and Ahmad ibn al-Na'im al-Wafi bil-Wafayat+1.

Ibn al-Muqayir transmitted hadith in Baghdad before traveling to Damascus in 632 AH, where he resided and taught for around two years and studied under local scholars such as Ibn Sadaqah al-Harrani and Tughdi ibn Khatlakh Silat al-Takmila li-Wafay…+1. He subsequently performed the Hajj pilgrimage, taught in Khaybar and the Sacred Mosque in Mecca, and resided there as a neighbor (jawara) before moving to Cairo, where he settled permanently and transmitted hadith extensively al-Wafi bil-Wafayat+1.

Scholarly Standing and Students

Because of his exceptionally high chains of transmission (uluww al-isnad) and longevity, he was considered the final surviving transmitter who held ijazah from his early Baghdadi authorities and direct audition from Mu'ammar ibn al-Fakhir al-Wafi bil-Wafayat+1. His narrations and forty-hadith collection (al-Arba'un) were compiled and widely transmitted across Islamic lands Tarikh al-Barzali al-Muqt…+1. Scholars praised his piety; the hafiz Taqi al-Din Ubayd described him as a righteous elder devoted to night prayers (tahajjud), worship, and Quran recitation, who was exceptionally patient with hadith students al-Wafi bil-Wafayat+1. The hafiz Izz al-Din al-Husayni similarly commended him as a pious worshiper who kept to himself and maintained regular devotions Tashil al-Sabila li Murid…+1.

A large number of scholars and hadith specialists transmitted from him, including Sharaf al-Din al-Dimyati, Ibn Manzur (Muhammad ibn Mukram), Baha al-Din Ibn Asakir, and Muhammad ibn Abd al-Karim al-Mundhiri Husn al-Muhadara fi Tarik…+1. The last person to transmit from him through direct audition was Yunus ibn Ibrahim al-Dabbisi al-Asqalani al-Wafi bil-Wafayat+1.

Death

Ibn al-Muqayir died in the middle of Dhu al-Qi'dah 643 AH (April 1246 CE) in Cairo Tashil al-Sabila li Murid…+1. He was buried the following day at the foot of Mount al-Muqattam, near the tomb of Dhu al-Nasabayn Silat al-Takmila li-Wafay…+1.