al-Fath ala Abi al-Fath
- Author died
- 455 AH
- Editions
- Dār al-Shu’ūn al-Thaqāfiyyah al-‘Āmmah
al-Fath ala Abi al-Fath (The Victory over Abu al-Fath) is a classical Arabic work of literary criticism and commentary composed by the philologist and literary scholar Ibn Furrajah (d. c. 455 AH / 1063 CE) . It was written primarily as a detailed critical response to the commentary on the poetry collection (Diwan) of al-Mutanabbi composed by the grammarian Abu al-Fath Ibn Jinni .
Purpose and Scope
Ibn Furrajah dedicated substantial scholarly attention to the poetry of al-Mutanabbi, examining various Levantine and Iraqi transmissions of the Diwan . In response to Ibn Jinni's commentary, al-Fasr, Ibn Furrajah wrote two complementary treatises: al-Fath ala Abi al-Fath and al-Tajanni ala Ibn Jinni (Accusation Against Ibn Jinni) .
While the principal aim of the work is to correct Ibn Jinni's readings, grammatical interpretations, and explications of difficult verses, Ibn Furrajah also broadens his scope to respond to other prominent critics of al-Mutanabbi . These include the judge Ali ibn Abd al-Aziz al-Jurjani regarding his al-Wasatah, Abu Ali al-Hatimi regarding his al-Risalah al-Hatimiyyah, and the Buyid vizier al-Sahib Ibn Abbad regarding his critique al-Kashf an Masawi al-Mutanabbi .
Structure and Method
The poetic verses addressed in the book are arranged alphabetically according to their rhyme letters . Ibn Furrajah generally defends al-Mutanabbi against detractors such as Ibn Abbad, whom he considers excessively prejudiced against the poet . He conducts detailed grammatical and rhetorical analyses, illustrating stylistic features in al-Mutanabbi's verse such as rhetorical shift in person (iltifat) in passages of self-praise . Despite his strong defense of al-Mutanabbi, Ibn Furrajah occasionally points out aesthetic flaws, explicitly characterizing certain verses or poems as substandard .
Ibn Furrajah also challenges Ibn Jinni's claims about having directly questioned al-Mutanabbi regarding specific meanings . In discussing al-Mutanabbi's verse on comparison, Ibn Furrajah rejects Ibn Jinni's purported transmission of the poet's intent and narrates an anecdote involving al-Mubarrad and Abu Hanifah al-Dinawari to argue that acknowledging uncertainty is preferable to unsubstantiated assertions .
Answer updated