Bazl al-Ihsan bi-Taqrib Sunan al-Nasai Abi Abd al-Rahman
- Author died
- 1446 AH
- Editions
- Maktabat al-Tarbiyah al-Islamiyyah li-Ihya' al-Turath al-Islami
Bazl al-Ihsan bi-Taqrib Sunan al-Nasai Abi Abd al-Rahman (Bestowing Benefaction in Facilitating the Sunan of al-Nasa'i) is a multi-volume hadith commentary and verification work by the Egyptian hadith scholar Abu Ishaq al-Huwayni (d. 1446 AH / 2024 CE), dedicated to the detailed graduation (takhrij), biographical analysis, and authentication of the traditions in al-Nasa'i's al-Mujtaba (also known as al-Sunan al-Sughra).
Background and Composition
Al-Huwayni began working on the book toward the end of 1399 AH. The project was initiated upon the suggestion of his mentor, Shaykh Hamid ibn Ibrahim, the proprietor of Maktabat al-Mustafa. Observing al-Huwayni working on Sunan Ibn Majah, Hamid urged him to turn his attention instead to Sunan al-Nasa'i, noting that scholars had not given it comparable service, and encouraged him to at least graduate its hadiths for library patrons. Al-Huwayni wrote out the initial draft by hand, photocopied it, deposited a copy in the library, and distributed a limited number of copies to students of knowledge for correction and feedback. He completed the introduction to the published work in Dhu al-Qa'dah 1409 AH.
Methodology and Structure
Al-Huwayni structured his examination of Sunan al-Nasa'i according to several defined methodological principles:
- Isnad evaluation and biographical sketches: Every chain of transmission is assessed for authenticity (sahih, hasan, or da'if) following the rules of classical hadith scholars. Narrators are given concise biographies (name, father, grandfather, and kunya), expanding only when refuting doubts or clarifying instances of leniency in biographical critique (al-jarh wa-l-ta'dil).
- Graduation (Takhrij): Traditions are referenced across primary published and manuscript collections of the Sunnah, evaluating each cited narration and discussing hidden defects ('ilal) where necessary.
- Cross-referencing al-Tirmidhi: For traditions shared with al-Tirmidhi, al-Huwayni tracks al-Tirmidhi's cross-references (wa fi al-bab 'an fulan) to document corroborating paths (shawahid).
- Supplementing al-Sunan al-Kubra: To account for material unique to al-Nasa'i's larger collection, al-Huwayni planned to append traditions present in al-Sunan al-Kubra but absent from al-Mujtaba at the conclusion of each chapter.
To prevent the commentary from becoming overly lengthy, al-Huwayni separated its introductory and legal components into independent works. He designed a three-part introductory work titled al-Im'an Muqaddimat Bazl al-Ihsan, covering al-Nasa'i's biography, transmission conditions, teachers, and rules of narrator criticism. He also separated the legal analysis of chapter headings into a dedicated work titled Taqrib al-Na'i li-Tarazim Abwab al-Nasa'i.
Reception and Publication
The work received commendation from the contemporary hadith scholar Muhammad Nasir al-Din al-Albani. After reviewing an early copy delivered to him in 1406 AH / 1986 CE, al-Albani praised its methodology and described it in recorded remarks as one of the most beneficial contemporary works produced on Sunan al-Nasa'i, reiterating his praise directly to al-Huwayni in Amman in 1407 AH.
The first volume of Bazl al-Ihsan was published in Cairo by Maktabat al-Tarbiyah al-Islamiyyah in 1410 AH / 1990 CE, covering the early chapters of the Book of Purification (Kitab al-Taharah). The second volume was published by the same house in 1412 AH / 1992 CE.
Answer updated