al-Siraj al-Munir fi al-Iana ala Marifat Bad Manani Kalam Rabbina al-Hakim al-Khabir

al-Siraj al-Munir fi al-I'ana 'ala Ma'rifat Ba'd Ma'ani Kalam Rabbina al-Hakim al-Khabir ("The Illuminating Lamp to Aid in Knowing Some Meanings of the Speech of Our Lord, the All-Wise, All-Aware") is a four-volume Quranic commentary by the Egyptian Shafi'i scholar al-Khatib al-Shirbini (d. 977 AH / 1570 CE) Faharis Ulum al-Quran al-…+1.

Purpose and Scope

In his introduction, al-Shirbini notes that earlier scholars composed works explaining the rulings and circumstances of revelation of the Quran, each according to their capacity, which motivated him to follow their path in compiling a commentary Faharis Ulum al-Quran al-…. He also states that he received the science of tafsir through narrated transmission (riwayatan) from several earlier authorities al-Tafsir wa al-Mufassiru…. The book encompasses the entire text of the Quran, integrating traditional exegesis, grammatical analysis, legal deductions, and theological insights Faharis Ulum al-Quran al-…+1.

Method and Sources

Al-Shirbini established specific methodological guidelines for the commentary:

• Selection of interpretations: He confined himself primarily to the most sound and preponderant interpretations (arjah al-aqwal), intentionally omitting unacceptable views to avoid unnecessary length al-Istinbat inda al-Khati…+1. When including secondary interpretations or alternative parses due to some interpretive merit, he signaled their non-preferred status by introducing them in the passive voice with qila ("it is said") al-Tafsir wa al-Mufassiru….
• Quranic readings: He restricted the variant readings (qira'at) discussed in the text to the seven canonical and famous readings al-Tafsir wa al-Mufassiru….
• Grammar and language: He included grammatical parsing (i'rab) only where necessary for clarity, omitting lengthy technical debates that belong properly to specialized Arabic grammatical treatises al-Istinbat inda al-Khati…+1.
• Sources: The author drew heavily upon foundational commentaries, combining transmitted reports from early generations (salaf) with citations from earlier exegetes such as al-Zamakhshari, al-Baydawi, and al-Baghawi, occasionally defending, clarifying, or refuting their conclusions al-Istinbat inda al-Khati…+1.
• Hermeneutical deduction: The work is notable for its extensive derivations (istinbatat), where the author reflects upon subtle meanings, legal rulings, and rhetorical benefits embedded within the verses al-Istinbat inda al-Khati…+1.

In the epilogue to the work, al-Shirbini described the commentary as gathering the bulk of major commentaries, the mutawatir readings, the clearest interpretations, and sound and good hadiths Manahij al-Mufassirin+1.

Reception and Print History

The modern scholar Muhammad Husayn al-Dhahabi assessed the work as an accessible and enjoyable commentary that strikes a balance between being neither tiresomely lengthy nor deficiently brief al-Tafsir wa al-Mufassiru….

The work has been preserved in numerous manuscripts across libraries in Cairo, Aleppo, Riyadh, Tunis, and Princeton Khizanat al-Turath - Fihr…. It was first printed in Cairo at the Bulaq Press in 1285 AH (1868 CE) in four volumes under the editorial supervision of Ibrahim Abd al-Ghaffar al-Dusuqi al-Siraj al-Munir fi al-I…+1. Subsequent four-volume printings appeared at Bulaq in 1299 AH with Zakariyya al-Ansari's Fath al-Rahman bi-Kashf ma Yaltabis fi al-Quran on its margins, at al-Matba'a al-Khayriyya in 1311 AH with al-Baydawi's Anwar al-Tanzil, and in modern editions published in Beirut Mujam al-Matbuat al-Arabi…+1.