Zuhayr ibn Harb
- Died
- 234 AH
- Born in
- -
Zuhayr ibn Harb (160–234 AH / 776–848 CE) was a hadith scholar from Nasa who settled in Baghdad, known for his narrations in the major canonical collections and his treatise Kitab al-Ilm (The Book of Knowledge).
Lineage and early life
He was Abu Khaythama Zuhayr ibn Harb ibn Shaddad al-Harashi al-Nasa'i, later al-Baghdadi. He was a client (mawla) of the Banu al-Harish ibn Ka'b of the 'Amir ibn Sa'sa'a tribe. His grandfather's original non-Arabic name was Ashtaal (or Ashtaak), which was Arabized to Shaddad. According to his son Abu Bakr Ahmad ibn Abi Khaythama, he was born in the year 160 AH (776 CE). Originally from Nasa in Khorasan, he traveled widely in pursuit of hadith before making Baghdad his permanent residence. Both his son Ahmad and his grandson Muhammad also became notable scholars of hadith.
Education, teachers, and the Mihna
Zuhayr was a companion of Ahmad ibn Hanbal on some of his journeys and was noted for his adherence to the prophetic traditions and his aversion to speculative theology (kalam), legal opinion (ra'y), and disputation. He studied under many prominent early authorities, including Sufyan ibn Uyayna, Hushaym ibn Bashir, Jarir ibn Abd al-Hamid, Yahya ibn Said al-Qattan, Abd al-Rahman ibn Mahdi, Waki ibn al-Jarrah, and Ismail ibn Ulayya.
During the inquisition regarding the createdness of the Quran (al-Mihna), the governor Ishaq ibn Ibrahim dispatched Zuhayr as one of a group of seven scholars to al-Raqqa to be interrogated before the Abbasid caliph al-Ma'mun. The scholars complied under pressure and were initially permitted to return to Baghdad, but al-Ma'mun summoned them again after departing al-Raqqa for Syria; they joined him near Aleppo and traveled with him until he sent them back to Baghdad.
A large cohort of major traditionists narrated from him, including Muhammad ibn Ismail al-Bukhari, Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj—who transmitted 1,281 hadiths from him in his Sahih—Abu Dawud, Ibn Majah, Abu Zur'a al-Razi, Abu Hatim al-Razi, Ibrahim al-Harbi, and his son Abu Bakr ibn Abi Khaythama. In addition to his transmissions, he authored a Musnad collection.
Standing and reception
Zuhayr was widely praised by his contemporaries and biographers for his reliability, memory, and precision. Yahya ibn Ma'in deemed him trustworthy (thiqa) and remarked that he "suffices a whole tribe." Al-Nasa'i characterized him as trustworthy and reliable (thiqa ma'mun), and Abu Hatim al-Razi termed him truthful (saduq). Ya'qub ibn Shayba considered him more firm and accurate in hadith than Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shayba, a preference echoed by Muhammad ibn Abd Allah ibn Numayr. When asked about his competence in evaluating transmitters, Abu Dawud praised the depth and quality of his knowledge. Ibn Hibban described him as a meticulous and exacting scholar among the peers of Ahmad ibn Hanbal and Yahya ibn Ma'in, while al-Khatib al-Baghdadi summarized him as trustworthy, firm, a memorizer, and exacting.
Death
Zuhayr died in Baghdad during the caliphate of al-Mutawakkil in 234 AH (848 CE) at the age of seventy-four. His son stated that his death occurred on the night of Thursday, 7 Sha'ban 234 AH, ten months after the death of Yahya ibn Ma'in; another report from Abu al-Qasim al-Baghawi places it on 8 Sha'ban. Al-Bukhari recorded his death in the month of Rabi' al-Thani of the same year, while an isolated report transmitted by Ali ibn Ahmad ibn al-Nadr gave the year as 232 AH, which al-Khatib al-Baghdadi classified as an error.
Answer updated
List of Works
Kitab al-Ilm (The Book of Knowledge) is an early hadith treatise devoted to the virtues, etiquette, and pursuit of sacred knowledge. Rather than focusing on legal rulings or substantive jurisprudence, this thematic collection compiles narrations, reports, and sayings from the Prophet, his Companions, and the early generations regarding the standing of scholars, proper manners for students and teachers, and guidance to encourage the seeking of religious knowledge and the preservation of prophetic tradition.