Ilam al-Sailin an Kutub Sayyid al-Mursalin li-Ibn Tulun
- Author died
- 953 AH
- Editions
- Mu’assasat al-Risālah
I'lam al-Sa'ilin 'an Kutub Sayyid al-Mursalin ("Informing Inquirers Concerning the Letters of the Master of Messengers") is a treatise on prophetic correspondence by the Damascene scholar Ibn Tulun (d. 953 AH / 1546 CE), gathering forty-nine letters dictated by the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ to various rulers, tribes, and governors .
Scope and Contents
The work documents forty-nine written communications that the Prophet ﷺ commanded several companions to transcribe on his behalf . These letters include diplomatic dispatches sent to contemporary monarchs and rulers across Persia, the Byzantine Empire, Yemen, the Levant, Egypt, and Bahrain . The collection also incorporates messages sent to specific tribes and notable figures throughout and around the Arabian Peninsula, as well as official directives issued to provincial governors appointed over territories that entered Islam . The contents of these documents encompass verbal, practical, and tacit prophetic traditions addressing foundational religious matters, theological doctrines, legal rulings, and covenants regulating relations with non-Muslim confederates (mu'ahidun) .
Sources and Methodology
Ibn Tulun compiled the texts of these letters from various early hadith and prophetic biography (sirah) sources available during his lifetime . His primary references include Sahih al-Bukhari, Sahih Muslim, the Sunan compilations, and multiple musnad works . In addition to citing standard compilations, the author transmits certain letters through his own chain of transmission leading back to the otherwise lost Musnad of Baqi ibn Makhlad al-Andalusi (d. 276 AH) .
Manuscripts and Publication History
A surviving manuscript of the treatise is preserved in the Zahiriyyah Library in Damascus under general accession number 240, spanning seventeen folios . The text was first published in Damascus in 1348 AH (and also dated to 1349 AH / 1929 CE) . It was later edited by Mahmud al-Arna'ut, reviewed by Abd al-Qadir al-Arna'ut, and published by Mu'assasat al-Risalah in Beirut in 1403 AH (1983 CE), followed by a second edition in 1407 AH (1987 CE) .
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