Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani
Fath al-Bari bi Sharh al-Bukhari
- Author died
- 852 AH
- Editions
- T al-Salafiya
Fath al-Bari bi Sharh al-Bukhari (The Opening of the Creator in Explaining al-Bukhari) is a multi-volume Arabic commentary on Muhammad ibn Ismail al-Bukhari's hadith collection Sahih al-Bukhari, authored by the Shafi'i scholar and hadith master Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani (d. 852 AH / 1449 CE) .
Composition and Writing Process
Ibn Hajar prepared for the commentary by first resolving the suspended chains (al-ahadith al-mu'allaqa) in Sahih al-Bukhari in his work Taghliq al-Ta'liq, which he completed in 804 AH . He then completed a massive introductory volume to the commentary in 813 AH . Initially, Ibn Hajar embarked on an expansive commentary, drafting about one volume of detailed exposition; however, fearing that unforeseen obstacles might prevent its completion on that scale, he shifted to a medium-length format, which became Fath al-Bari .
The formal composition began in early 817 AH through dictation (imla'), before transitioning to written fascicles (kurrasa) . Around five years later, when about a quarter had been copied into fair drafts, a dedicated circle of advanced students collaborated on reviewing the text . Ibn Hajar would write each fascicle, the students would copy it, and they gathered once a week to collate copies and deliberate over the text, with the scholar Burhan al-Din Ibrahim ibn Khidr reading aloud .
The primary drafting took twenty-five years, concluding on the first day of Rajab 842 AH, though Ibn Hajar continued making minor marginal additions and revisions until shortly before his death . To celebrate its completion, Ibn Hajar hosted a grand banquet on Saturday, 2 Sha'ban 842 AH, at the venue known as al-Taj and al-Sab' Wujuh . The feast reportedly cost approximately 500 gold dinars and was attended by many leading figures and scholars of the era, including al-Qayani, al-Wanai, and al-Sa'd al-Dayri .
Structure and Introduction
In Ibn Hajar’s autograph, the work comprised thirteen volumes, alongside a separate, large introductory volume titled Hady al-Sari . Fair copies circulated in varying divisions of ten, twenty, thirty, or more volumes .
The introduction, Hady al-Sari, is organized into ten chapters :
- Chapter 1: The circumstances and motives behind al-Bukhari’s compilation of his Sahih .
- Chapter 2: The subject matter, scope, and verification of al-Bukhari's criteria (shart), his unique chapter headings (tarajim), and the book's standing as the most authentic hadith compilation .
- Chapter 3: The rationale behind truncating hadith texts and repeating narrations across different chapters .
- Chapter 4: The reasons for citing suspended narrations (mu'allaqat) and companion reports (mawqufat) alongside connected prophetic traditions .
- Chapter 5: An alphabetical lexicon defining rare or difficult vocabulary (al-gharib) occurring in the texts .
- Chapter 6: Vocalization and clarification of ambiguous names, patronymics (kunyas), and lineages (ansab) .
- Chapters 7–10: Detailed refutations and defenses concerning narrations and narrators criticized by earlier critics, summary connections of suspended reports, verification of the total count of hadiths, and an extensive biography of al-Bukhari .
Methodology
Fath al-Bari opens with the praise formula: الحمد لله الذي شرح صدور أهل الإسلام بالهدى ("Praise be to God Who expanded the chests of the people of Islam with guidance") . Ibn Hajar’s method relies heavily on assembling diverse transmission lines (turuq) and textual variants of each hadith, using them to determine the strongest interpretations, resolve grammatical ambiguities, and clarify obscure identifiers (mubhmat) across chains and matns .
When addressing hadiths that al-Bukhari repeats across multiple chapters, Ibn Hajar comments at each occurrence specifically on the element pertinent to that particular chapter heading, cross-referencing full discussions to the primary place where the text was or would be expounded . He integrates extensive legal analysis (fiqh), Arabic grammar and rhetoric, biographical evaluations of transmitters, Quranic exegesis (tafsir), and occasion of revelation reports (asbab al-nuzul) .
Reception and Influence
The commentary achieved widespread circulation during Ibn Hajar's lifetime and was acquired by rulers and scholars across Islamic lands, with manuscripts selling for up to 300 gold dinars . Ibn Khaldun famously observed that producing a comprehensive commentary on Sahih al-Bukhari remained an unfulfilled debt owed by the Muslim community; bibliographer Hajji Khalifa remarked that this debt was fulfilled by the commentaries of Ibn Hajar, Badr al-Din al-Ayni, and al-Qastallani .
Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti praised the work, stating that no scholar from earlier or later generations had written anything comparable to it . When the Yemeni scholar al-Shawkani was asked why he did not author his own commentary on Sahih al-Bukhari, he replied with a play on words referencing the conquest of Mecca: لا هجرة بعد الفتح ("There is no migration after the conquest [or: after al-Fath]") .
The Hanafi scholar Badr al-Din al-Ayni drew heavily on Fath al-Bari while writing his contemporary commentary Umdat al-Qari, often borrowing Ibn Hajar’s fascicles via Ibn Khidr with Ibn Hajar's permission . Ibn Hajar subsequently penned a rejoinder work, Intiqad al-I'tirad, addressing al-Ayni’s critiques and remarks on his commentary .
Abridgments
Fath al-Bari was abridged by several scholars, including:
- Abu al-Fath Muhammad ibn Husayn al-Maraghi (d. 859 AH) .
- Muhammad ibn Muhammad al-Shafi'i, known as Imam al-Kamiliyya (d. 874 AH) .
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