Mansur bin Ammar
- Died
- 225 AH
- Born in
- -
Mansur ibn Ammar (d. 225 AH / 840 CE) was an early Islamic preacher, ascetic, and narrator renowned for his eloquent homilies across Iraq, Syria, and Egypt.
Origin and Early Life
His full name was Mansur ibn Ammar ibn Kathir, and he held the kunya Abu al-Sari. He was attributed the nisbas al-Sulami and al-Khurasani, with accounts linking his origin to Khurasan—specifically Dandanqan near Merv, Abiward, or Bushanj—while other accounts described him as hailing from Basra. A well-known biographical account attributes his devotion to an occasion when he found a parchment inscribed with the Basmala on the ground; finding no clean place to store it respectfully, he swallowed it, after which he saw in a dream that the gates of wisdom had been opened to him.
Preaching and Travels
Mansur was widely celebrated for his homiletic gatherings (majalis), rhetorical skill, and ability to move audiences to tears. He traveled extensively, preaching in Iraq, Syria, and Egypt. During his time in Egypt, he delivered an impassioned exhortation in the mosque during a severe drought, prompting congregants to donate large amounts of wealth and jewelry; he entrusted the proceeds to the local scholars al-Layth ibn Sa'd and Ibn Lahi'ah. Al-Layth admired his preaching and provided him with generous stipends, including a gift of one thousand dinars and fifteen faddans of land, and Ibn Lahi'ah similarly granted him five faddans. He was also summoned to preach before the Abbasid caliph Harun al-Rashid.
Transmission and Critical Standing
Mansur narrated hadith and exhortations from teachers including al-Layth ibn Sa'd, Ibn Lahi'ah, Ma'ruf al-Khayyat, Hiql ibn Ziyad, al-Munkadir ibn Muhammad, and Bashir ibn Talha. Those who transmitted from him included his sons Sulaym and Dawud, as well as Ahmad ibn Mani', Ali ibn Khashram, Mansur ibn al-Harith, and Zuhayr ibn Abbad. A dedicated tract compiling his transmitted traditions and sayings, Ahadith Mansur ibn Ammar, was later assembled by the hadith scholar Abu Bakr al-Dhakwani.
Hadith critics evaluated Mansur with caution regarding his narrations:
- Abu Hatim al-Razi stated that he was an exhortative preacher and was not strong in hadith.
- Ibn Adi classified his hadith as uncorroborated (munkar).
- al-Daraqutni noted that he transmitted from weak narrators and relayed traditions that lacked corroboration.
- al-Uqayli alleged that he exhibited theological leanings toward the Jahmiyya.
- Sufyan ibn Uyayna reportedly rebuked and drove him away when Mansur questioned him concerning the nature of the Quran.
Despite these criticisms in hadith verification, later biographical authorities highlighted his preeminence in homiletics and spiritual admonition.
Death
Mansur settled in Baghdad, where he died in 225 AH (840 CE), though an alternative estimate places his death around 200 AH.
Answer updated
List of Works
Ahadith Mansur ibn Ammar is a specialized hadith tract (juzʾ hadīthī) compiling transmitted prophetic traditions and homiletic sayings attributed to the early ascetic and preacher Mansur ibn Ammar. Gathered by the hadith scholar Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Abd al-Rahman al-Dhakwani, the fascicle preserves both prophetic reports and pious exhortations narrated from various teachers.