Mazhar al-Din al-Zaydani
- Died
- 727 AH
- Born in
- -
Mazhar al-Din al-Zaydani (d. 727 AH / 1326–1327 CE) was a Hanafi jurist, grammarian, and hadith commentator best known for his commentary on al-Baghawi's hadith compilation Masabih al-Sunnah, titled al-Mafatih fi Sharh al-Masabih.
Name and Background
He was al-Husayn ibn Mahmud ibn al-Husayn—recorded in some biographical notices as ibn al-Hasan—al-Zaydani al-Shirazi, frequently referred to as al-Mazhari or al-Mazhar. His nisba al-Zaydani is linked to the desert plain of Zaydan near Kufa, and he is also ascribed the nisba al-Kufi. He was blind (al-Darir) and followed the Hanafi school of jurisprudence.
Scholarly Activity and Reception
al-Zaydani was active in both Arabic linguistics and hadith commentary. In grammar, he completed his commentary al-Mukammal fi Sharh al-Mufassal, elucidating al-Zamakhshari's grammatical manual al-Mufassal, in Jumada al-Akhira 659 AH. In hadith studies, he composed al-Mafatih fi Sharh al-Masabih (also referred to as al-Mafatih fi Hall al-Masabih), in which he clarified obscure vocabulary, analyzed grammatical structures, addressed legal deductions according to the four Sunni schools of jurisprudence, and prefixed an introductory section on hadith terminology and disciplines.
His commentary served as a major reference for subsequent hadith scholars. Sharaf al-Din al-Tibi drew upon it extensively in his commentary on Mishkat al-Masabih, citing him under the abbreviation Maz (مظ). It was likewise relied upon by Ibn al-Malak, Zayn al-Arab, and Mulla Ali al-Qari, as well as by commentators on Sahih al-Bukhari such as al-Kirmani, al-Birmawi, Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani, Badr al-Din al-Ayni, and al-Qastallani, in addition to al-Munawi in Fayd al-Qadir.
Death
al-Zaydani died in 727 AH (1326–1327 CE). Death came before he could finish al-Mafatih fi Sharh al-Masabih, reaching hadith 4,187 in the chapter on epic battles (Bab al-Malahim) within the book of tribulations (Kitab al-Fitan); the work was later completed by another scholar under the title Tatimmat al-Mafatih.
Answer updated
List of Works
al-Mafatih fi Sharh al-Masabih is a comprehensive commentary on al-Baghawi's hadith collection Masabih al-Sunnah. Covering nearly five thousand hadiths, the work is also referred to in bibliographical sources as al-Mafatih ala al-Masabih and al-Mafatih fi Hall al-Masabih.