Surayj ibn Yunus

Surayj ibn Yunus (d. 235 AH / 849 CE) was a Hadith scholar and ascetic based in Baghdad, recognized as a trustworthy narrator whose transmissions appear across major Hadith collections al-Muallim bi-Shuyukh al-…+1.

Origin and Lineage

His full name was Surayj ibn Yunus ibn Ibrahim ibn al-Harith, bearing the kunya Abu al-Harith al-Muallim bi-Shuyukh al-…. His family originated from Marw al-Rudh in Khurasan, though he settled and lived in Baghdad al-Muallim bi-Shuyukh al-…+1.

Hadith Transmission and Scholarship

Surayj studied and transmitted traditions from prominent scholars of his era, including Sufyan ibn Uyaynah, Hushaym ibn Bashir, Ismail ibn Ulayyah, Ismail ibn Jafar, Waki ibn al-Jarrah, and Yahya ibn Zakariyya ibn Abi Za'ida Tahdhib al-Kamal fi Asma …+1.

He taught numerous leading figures of the subsequent generation. Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj narrated directly and extensively from him in his Sahih, while al-Bukhari and al-Nasa'i cited him through intermediaries Tahdhib al-Tahdhib+1. Among his other prominent students were Abu Hatim al-Razi, Abu Zur'ah al-Razi, Abdullah ibn Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Abu al-Qasim al-Baghawi, Ibn Abi al-Dunya, and Baqi ibn Makhlad Tahdhib al-Tahdhib+1. In addition to transmitting Hadith, al-Daraqutni noted that he composed scholarly works, including a work on Quranic exegesis (tafsir) al-Muallim bi-Shuyukh al-….

Standing and Assessment

Surayj was widely recognized by his contemporaries for his piety and reliability in transmission. Ahmad ibn Hanbal praised him as a righteous man and directed students to write down his transmissions Tahdhib al-Tahdhib. Yahya ibn Ma'in affirmed his reliability, calling him shrewd (kayyis) and describing him as superior to his contemporary Surayj ibn al-Nu'man Tahdhib al-Tahdhib. Abu Hatim characterized him as truthful (saduq), and Ibn Sa'd and Ibn Qani' evaluated him as trustworthy and established (thiqah thabt) Tahdhib al-Tahdhib+1. Ibn Adi mentioned that he was known for answered prayers (mustajab al-da'wah) al-Muallim bi-Shuyukh al-….

Death

Surayj died in Rabi' al-Awwal 235 AH (849 CE), with reports specifying Monday night with seven nights remaining in the month al-Muallim bi-Shuyukh al-…+1. Other transmitted variants date his death to Rabi' al-Akhir of the same year, while alternative accounts report 234 AH or 230 AH Tahdhib al-Tahdhib+1.