Asrar al-Kawn = al-Haya al-Sunniya fi al-Haya al-Sunniya
- Author died
- 911 AH
- Editions
- Dār al-Kutub al-‘Ilmīyah
Al-Hay'a al-Sunniyya fi al-Hay'a al-Sunniyya (Arabic: الهيئة السنية في الهيئة السنية, lit. 'The Radiant Cosmology in the Prophetic Tradition', also published as Asrar al-Kawn) is a treatise on cosmology by the Egyptian Shafi'i polymath Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti (d. 911 AH / 1505 CE) . The book compiles Quranic verses, prophetic traditions, and early transmitted narrations (athar) detailing the creation and structure of the cosmos .
Composition and Scope
Al-Suyuti outlines the scope of the treatise in his opening statement, defining it as a work on cosmology (ilm al-hay'a) extracted from traditions (al-athar) and traced through reports (al-akhbar), aimed at providing reflection and insight for people of understanding . In classical bibliographies such as Hajji Khalifa's Kashf al-Zunun, the work is recorded under cosmology (ilm al-hay'a) as al-Hay'a al-Sunniyya fi al-Hay'a al-Sunniyya, as well as under the variant title al-Hiba al-Sunniyya fi al-Hay'a al-Sunniyya .
Contents and Structure
The book is arranged thematically around the metaphysical and physical constituents of the Islamic cosmological order, citing scriptural passages alongside narrations transmitted through figures such as Ibn Abbas, Wahb ibn Munabbih, and early traditionists . Topics addressed across its sections include:
- The Throne and the Footstool (al-Arsh wa al-Kursi): Narrations on their immense dimensions, nature, creation, and proximity to cosmic waters .
- The Cosmic Veils (al-Hujub): Descriptions of what lies between the Throne and the seventh heaven, detailing the divine veils of light, darkness, and fire .
- The Tablet and the Pen (al-Lawh wa al-Qalam): Traditions concerning the primordial creation of the Pen, its recording of divine decree, and the description of the Preserved Tablet .
- The Heavens, Earth, and Natural Phenomena: Accounts of the distances between the heavens, the composition of the skies, celestial bodies, and terrestrial wonders such as the origin and flooding of the Nile .
Abridgment and Reception
The Ottoman scholar Ibrahim ibn Abd al-Rahman al-Qaramani (d. after 1069 AH / 1659 CE) produced an abridgment of the work titled al-Hay'a al-Islamiyya (also documented as Mukhtasar al-Hay'a al-Sunniyya) .
Later scholars frequently cited al-Suyuti's compilation when addressing traditional cosmological viewpoints, including Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Saffarini in Ghidha' al-Albab and the Maliki jurist Muhammad Alish in his fatwa collection Fath al-Ali al-Malik . Conversely, the exegete Shihab al-Din al-Alusi criticized the reliance on many reports gathered in al-Hay'a al-Sunniyya, remarking in his commentary Ruh al-Ma'ani that authentic traditions among such cosmological accounts are scarce and cannot be firmly relied upon against astronomical observations regarding the motion of celestial spheres .
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