Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani
al-Wuquf ala al-Mawquf
- Author died
- 852 AH
- Editions
- Muʾassasat al-Kutub al-Thaqāfiyyah
al-Wuquf ala al-Mawquf (also known as al-Wuquf ala ma fi Sahih Muslim min al-Mawquf) is a hadith treatise by Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani (d. 852 AH / 1449 CE) dedicated to identifying and compiling non-prophetic companion (mawquf) and Successor (maqtu') narrations contained within Sahih Muslim .
Background and Purpose
Ibn Hajar traced and compiled the material for this monograph in Aleppo in 836 AH . In the work's introduction, he explained that the catalyst for its compilation arose in scholarly gatherings where discussions turned to a remark made by Abu Amr Ibn al-Salah in his Ulum al-Hadith. Ibn al-Salah had asserted that aside from the introductory preface, Sahih Muslim contained exclusively marfu' (elevated, prophetic) narrations unmixed with mawquf reports. Subsequent scholars challenged this assertion by noting instances of non-prophetic statements in the text, such as the aphorism of the Successor Yahya ibn Abi Kathir: "Knowledge cannot be attained through bodily ease" (لا يستطاع العلم براحة الجسد). This prompted Ibn Hajar to systematically track and assemble all similar companion and Successor reports scattered across Muslim's collection .
Contents and Scope
The work is organized as a concise monograph (juz') . Ibn Hajar highlighted that Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj did not intend to compile mawquf reports as primary texts, but rather included them incidentally (taba'an la qasdan) .
The vast majority of such reports in Sahih Muslim appear in two distinct ways:
- In the introduction of Sahih Muslim, where they primarily address the principles and etiquette of hadith transmission .
- In the main body of the collection, where they predominantly occur embedded within the context and background of elevated prophetic traditions .
An example documented in the work is the narration attributed to Salman al-Farsi advising against being the first to enter a market or the last to leave it, which Ibn Hajar noted as being transmitted in Sahih Muslim as a companion statement rather than an elevated prophetic report .
Distinction and Editions
Ibn Hajar's work is distinct from another hadith book with a similar title, Ma'rifat al-Wuquf 'ala al-Mawquf by Abu Hafs Umar ibn Badr al-Mawsili (d. 622 AH), which was compiled to correct works on fabricated hadith (Mawdu'at) by demonstrating that certain reports branded as fabrications were authentic statements of Companions or Successors .
al-Wuquf ala al-Mawquf has been edited by Abd Allah al-Laythi al-Ansari and published in Beirut by Mu'assasat al-Kutub al-Thaqafiyya (1406 AH / 1986 CE) .
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