al-Nukat ala Kitab Ibn al-Salah li Ibn Hajar
- Author died
- 852 AH
- Editions
- Deanship of Scientific Research at the Islamic University
al-Nukat ala Kitab Ibn al-Salah is a critical commentary on hadith methodology written by the Shafi'i hadith scholar Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani (773–852 AH / 1372–1449 CE) . The book provides analytical marginalia and critical assessments (nukat) on Ibn al-Salah's foundational handbook Ma'rifat Anwa' Ilm al-Hadith (commonly known as Muqaddimat Ibn al-Salah) as well as on the related commentary al-Taqyid wa-l-Idah by Ibn Hajar's teacher, Zayn al-Din al-Iraqi .
Composition and Purpose
The origin of the text dates back to Ibn Hajar's studies under his teacher al-Iraqi, with whom he read the latter's commentary notes on Ibn al-Salah's work . During and after these sessions, whenever a subtle point, rare observation, or objection occurred to him, Ibn Hajar recorded it in the margins of his copy . He subsequently resolved to compile and organize these scattered observations into an independent treatise to complete the critical evaluation of Ibn al-Salah's work, defining his objective as gathering scattered scholarly benefits and capturing elusive principles .
Scope and Structure
Ibn Hajar did not complete the entire treatise; his commentary breaks off at the twenty-second category of hadith sciences, ma'rifat al-maqlub (inverted hadith) . The surviving text contains 129 discrete critical notes addressed to Ibn al-Salah's text and over 50 notes directed at al-Iraqi's al-Taqyid wa-l-Idah .
The structure of the work follows the opening sequence of Ibn al-Salah's book:
- Introduction (Khutbah): Thirteen notes analyzing linguistic choices and theological aspects, such as whether divine names are derived or revelatory (tawqifiyyah) .
- Categories of Hadith: Covers the categories of authentic (al-sahih), fair (al-hasan), weak (al-da'if), connected (al-muttasil), attributed (al-marfu'), stopped (al-mawquf), severed (al-maqtu'), hurrying/hurried (al-mursal), disconnected (al-munqati'), problematic/broken (al-mu'dal), concealed (al-mudallas), anomalous (al-shadhdh), objectionable (al-munkar), corroboration and consideration (al-i'tibar wa-l-mutaba'at), additions of trustworthy narrators (ziyadat al-thiqat), solitary narrations (al-afrad), defective (al-mu'allal), perturbed (al-mudtarib), interpolated (al-mudraj), fabricated (al-mawdu'), and inverted (al-maqlub) . Under the category of supported hadith (al-musnad), Ibn Hajar raised no notes against Ibn al-Salah, though he noted a point on al-Iraqi's commentary .
Method and Content
Ibn Hajar's methodology involves four main approaches: defending Ibn al-Salah against unjustified criticisms raised by later scholars; providing independent critical objections and debates on specific rulings; clarifying linguistic and terminological nuances; and introducing detailed discussions, isnad investigations, and hadith paths .
Within the text, Ibn Hajar frequently cross-references his other writings, including Taghliq al-Ta'liq, Sharh al-Bukhari (Fath al-Bari), Tahdhib al-Tahdhib, Tartib al-Mudraj, and Ghufran ma Taqaddama min al-Dhunub . In turn, he cited this commentary in Fath al-Bari—such as during his discussions on the hadith of covering the nakedness and the hadith on the expiation of a gathering (kaffarat al-majlis) under defective narrations—as well as in Nuzhat al-Nazar and al-Nukat al-Ziraf .
Reception and Editions
The book served as an influential reference for later hadith specialists. Substantial portions of its analyses and rulings were incorporated into later major works, such as al-Sakhawi's Fath al-Mughith, Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti's Tadrib al-Rawi, and Muhammad ibn Isma'il al-San'ani's Tawdih al-Afkar .
The title appears in historical references under slight variants: al-Suyuti referred to it as al-Idah bi-Nukat Ibn al-Salah, while Muhammad ibn Ja'far al-Kattani recorded it as al-Ifsah ala Nukat Ibn al-Salah . While several later scribal copies attached wa-Alfiyyat al-Iraqi to the title, Ibn Hajar's own holograph in Yemen bears the title al-Nukat ala Kitab Ibn al-Salah, reflecting that his commentary targeted Ibn al-Salah's text and al-Iraqi's prose commentary al-Taqyid wa-l-Idah rather than al-Iraqi's poem . The work was edited by Rabi' ibn Hadi Umayr al-Madkhali based on five manuscripts and published by the Deanship of Scientific Research at the Islamic University of Madinah in 1404 AH (1984 CE) .
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