Ibn al-Jawzi
al-Mudhish
- Author died
- 597 AH
- Editions
- Dār al-Kutub al-‘Ilmīyah
al-Mudhish (The Astonishing Book) is a compendium of homiletics, religious disciplines, and literary lore composed by the Baghdadi scholar and preacher Ibn al-Jawzi (d. 597 AH / 1201 CE) .
Composition and Purpose
Also titled al-Mudhish fi al-Muhadarat and al-Mudhish fi al-Mawa'iz, the book was completed by Ibn al-Jawzi on Tuesday, 14 Jumada al-Akhirah 591 AH . In the introduction, opening with praise of God whose bounties have no end, the author explains his motivation: having devoted himself sincerely to the craft of preaching and exhortation, he selected the most engaging, subtle, and poignant anecdotes and scholarly gems to assemble in this work . The work was formulated to serve as a resource of sermons and curious reports for gatherings and assemblies .
Structure and Contents
The work is organized into five distinct chapters (abwab):
- Sciences of the Quran (fi Ulum al-Quran): Coverings aspects of Quranic knowledge .
- Linguistic Usage and Nuances (fi Tasarruf al-Lughah): Examining Arabic linguistic expressions and idioms .
- Sciences of Hadith (fi Ulum al-Hadith): Dealing with prophetic traditions and their disciplines .
- Historical Lore and Chronicles (fi Ulum al-Tawarikh): Covering historical narratives and accounts .
- Exhortations and Sermons (fi al-Mawa'iz): Focusing on homiletic discourses and moral admonitions .
Transmission and Manuscripts
The book has been preserved across numerous historic manuscripts in several libraries, including copies in Cairo, Damascus, Medina, Istanbul, the British Museum, and the Vatican . Among its early manuscript witnesses is a fully vocalized two-volume copy transcribed in an Eastern script, with a colophon dated to the middle ten days of Rabi' al-Awwal 749 AH .
Answer updated