al-Wijaza fi al-Athbat wal-Ijaza
- Author died
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- Editions
- Dar Qurtubah lil-Nashr wa-al-Tawzi'
al-Wijaza fi al-Athbat wal-Ijaza (The Concise Compendium on Scholarly Registers and Licenses) is a contemporary work on chains of transmission (isnad) and scholarly licenses (ijazah) authored by the Saudi scholar Dhiab al-Ghamdi . Completed in 1428 AH (2007 CE), the book documents one hundred and twenty scholarly registers (athbat) and licenses, as well as sixty transmission chains to foundational Islamic texts and classical authorities .
Purpose and Composition
The author concluded the writing of the book on the eve of Friday, 10 Rabi' al-Awwal 1428 AH . In his introduction, al-Ghamdi states that he composed the compendium as a concise reference to document the transmissions he obtained from various scholars, seeking to preserve the practice of isnad within Sunni scholarship . He notes that while earlier generations placed great emphasis on transmission chains, some contemporary adherents of Ahl al-Sunnah had neglected the discipline, leaving scholarly licensing predominantly cultivated among theological opponents and Sufi orders . Through this work, he sought to revive connected chains reaching back to the Prophet and early masters, extending general licenses (ijazat ahl al-'asr) to contemporary students of sacred knowledge .
Structure and Contents
The book is structured into ten main parts (abwab), subdivided into various sections (fusul), concluding with general indices :
- Part One: Introductions to Ijaza: Covers eight sections addressing the definition and merit of ijaza, its legal validity and acceptance according to the majority of early scholars (al-salaf), its utility following the codification of hadith, refutations of those who dismiss it, the licensing of minors, the neglect of ijaza among 일부 traditionalists, and the status of general authorization for contemporaries .
- Part Two: Enumerates the scholars from whom the author acquired religious knowledge directly .
- Part Three: Divided into two sections listing the scholars who granted direct licenses to the author—including Abdullah ibn Aqil and 'Abd al-Wakil ibn 'Abd al-Haqq al-Hashimi—as well as the specific titles of their transmitted athbat and licenses .
- Part Four: Details transmission chains for the recitations of the Quran .
- Part Five: Traces the author's isnads to fifteen primary books of the Prophetic Sunnah .
- Part Six and Seven: Outlines transmission chains in the Hanbali school as well as across the four major schools of Sunni Fiqh .
- Part Eight: Presents chained narrations (al-ahadith al-musalsalah), comprising two sections: the hadith of mercy known as al-Musalsal bil-Awwaliyyah, and the hadith chained with expressions of love (al-Musalsal bil-Mahabbah) .
- Part Nine: Contains the author's physical transmission chain for the prophetic cubic measure (mudd), tracing calibrations of the vessel back through successive generations of scholars .
- Part Ten: Divided into two sections; the first lists one hundred and twenty renowned athbat and ijaza compilations, while the second presents transmission chains to the writings of sixty major Islamic scholars, arranged chronologically by their death dates .
The book concludes with a formal, conditional general ijaza extended by the author to students of knowledge who adhere to the creed and methodology of Ahl al-Sunnah wal-Jama'ah .
Reception
The work received a written commendation and preface (taqriz) from the Syrian scholar Zuhayr al-Shawish, who praised the author for collecting an extensive number of verified athbat and transmission chains . Al-Shawish highlighted the value of assembling such chains for the Quran and Prophetic Hadith, distinguishing rigorous, verified transmission from unsubstantiated claims in the field of isnad documentation .
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