Muhammad ibn Aslam al-Tusi

Muhammad ibn Aslam al-Tusi (c. 180–242 AH / c. 796–856 CE) was a Khurasani hadith scholar and ascetic based in Tus, renowned for his devotion to prophetic traditions and his collection al-Arba'un ("The Forty Hadith") Siyar Aalam al-Nubala+1.

Lineage and Early Life

His full name was Abu al-Hasan Muhammad ibn Aslam ibn Salim ibn Yazid al-Kindi al-Khurasani al-Tusi, a client (mawla) of the Kindah tribe Tabaqat Ulama al-Hadith+1. He was born around 180 AH Siyar Aalam al-Nubala.

Education, Travels, and Students

Al-Tusi traveled across major centers of learning to hear hadith, studying in Khurasan, Kufa, Basra, Wasit, and the Hijaz Tarikh al-Islam. His earliest teacher was al-Nadr ibn Shumayl Tabaqat Ulama al-Hadith+1. Among his other prominent shaykhs were Yazid ibn Harun, Ubayd Allah ibn Musa, Ya'la ibn 'Ubayd, Muhammad ibn 'Ubayd, Jafar ibn Awn, Abu Nu'aym al-Fadl ibn Dukayn, and Muslim ibn Ibrahim Tabaqat Ulama al-Hadith+1. He compiled his transmissions into a musnad collection Tadhkirat al-Huffaz = Tab…+1.

A substantial group of scholars transmitted hadith from him, including Ibn Khuzaymah, Abu Bakr ibn Abi Dawud, Ibrahim ibn Abi Talib, al-Husayn ibn Muhammad al-Qabbani, Muhammad ibn Waki' al-Tusi, and Abu Hatim al-Razi Tabaqat Ulama al-Hadith+1.

Theological Positions

Al-Tusi authored al-Radd 'ala al-Jahmiyyah ("Refutation of the Jahmiyyah"), a theological treatise that was examined and admired by Ahmad ibn Hanbal Tarikh al-Islam. He strongly condemned the doctrine of the createdness of the Quran advanced by Bishr al-Marisi, as well as the assertion by Muhammad ibn Karram that spiritual knowledge (ma'rifah) is excluded from faith al-Ikmal - li-Ibn Makula.

Scholarly Standing

Al-Tusi was widely acclaimed by his contemporaries for his strict reliance on prophetic reports and his personal asceticism. When asked about the prophetic command to adhere to the "great majority" (al-sawad al-a'zam), Ishaq ibn Rahawayh identified it as Muhammad ibn Aslam and his followers, observing that he had not encountered any scholar in fifty years who adhered more strongly to the traditions Tabaqat Ulama al-Hadith. Ibn Khuzaymah referred to him as the "educator of this Ummah" (rabbani hadhihi al-ummah) and stated he had never seen anyone comparable to him in religious piety, comparing him to Ahmad ibn Hanbal and Ishaq ibn Rahawayh Tabaqat Ulama al-Hadith+1. Muhammad ibn Rafi remarked that meeting al-Tusi reminded him of the Companions of the Prophet Tabaqat Ulama al-Hadith. Yahya ibn Yahya al-Naysaburi directed people to adhere to al-Tusi's rulings because he systematically substantiated every legal issue with prophetic hadith Tarikh al-Islam. In hadith criticism, authorities including Abu Hatim al-Razi and Abu Zur'ah al-Razi declared him trustworthy (thiqah) al-Masalik al-Qawima bi-T….

Death

Al-Tusi died in Nishapur in the middle of the night during the month of Muharram 242 AH (c. May 856 CE), with reports placing the date at five or three nights remaining in the month Tabaqat Ulama al-Hadith+1. Tahir ibn Abd Allah, the governor of Khurasan, ordered his body to be taken to the cemetery of al-Shadhyakh, where he led the funeral prayer at dawn, and al-Tusi was buried beside Ishaq ibn Rahawayh Siyar Aalam al-Nubala. Reports circulated that one million or 1.1 million people prayed over him, though al-Dhahabi questioned the plausibility of these numbers given that the news of his death emerged at night and the prayer was conducted shortly after daybreak Tarikh al-Islam+1.