Inarat al-Duja fi Maghazi Khayr al-Wara
- Author died
- 1399 AH
- Editions
- Dār al-Minhāj
Inarat al-Duja fi Maghazi Khayr al-Wara (Illumination of the Darkness Regarding the Expeditions of the Best of Creation) is a work on the military campaigns of the Prophet Muhammad by the Meccan scholar Hasan ibn Muhammad Mashshat (1317–1399 AH / 1899–1979 CE) . Composed in 1360 AH (1941 CE), it is an extensive commentary on the didactic poem (manzumah) on maghazi composed by the Mauritanian scholar Ahmad al-Badawi al-Majlisi al-Shinqiti (d. c. 1220 AH) .
Background and Purpose
Mashshat developed a connection to al-Badawi's poem early in his life, having memorized it during his youth and studied and corrected its text under his teacher Muhammad 'Abd Allah Zaydan . He regularly taught it, cited it in his lectures, and encouraged his students to memorize it . Mashshat held the poem in high esteem, characterizing it as the definitive work on the subject and regarding it as superior to earlier poetic treatments of the Prophet's campaigns, such as al-Durrah al-Saniyyah by Ibn al-Munasif .
Structure and Methodology
The work opens with introductory prefaces addressing foundational subjects, including the legal rulings and gradual legislation of jihad, the importance of the study of maghazi, and an overview of the foremost classical authors and sources in the field . It then proceeds through the poem's chronological treatment of the Prophet's military expeditions and related events .
In constructing his commentary, Mashshat consulted the earlier commentary on the poem written by the author's nephew, Hammad ibn al-Amin al-Shinqiti . While Hammad had grouped verses together and commented on them discursively without analyzing individual phrases, Mashshat adopted an analytical line-by-line method, examining every verse and detailing the syntax and grammatical parsing (i'rab) necessitated by poetic constraints . He also conducted textual collation, recording textual variants between his manuscript and Hammad's copy, such as variations in verse openings and the recorded names of those who stood firm alongside the Prophet at the Battle of Hawazin .
Mashshat relied upon foundational biographical and historical authorities, prominently drawing from Ibn Ishaq, Ibn Sayyid al-Nas (al-Hafiz al-Ya'mari), and al-Rawd al-Unuf . He integrated hadith literature extensively, citing the two Sahih collections of al-Bukhari and Muslim, broader canonical collections, and hadith commentaries such as Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani's Fath al-Bari, while employing principles of legal theory (usul al-fiqh) to examine and reconcile conflicting historical reports .
Reception and Publication History
Mashshat personally gifted copies of the work to other scholars; in Shawwal 1386 AH, he inscribed and presented a copy to the Indian hadith scholar Muhammad Abd al-Rashid al-Nu'mani .
The book has been published in multiple editions:
- A second edition was issued in Cairo by Dar al-Madani in 1384 AH .
- A third edition was published in Jeddah by Matba'at al-Isfahani in 1396 AH .
- A later academic edition was prepared with an extensive study and side headings by Mashshat's student Abdul-Wahhab Ibrahim Abu Sulayman (completed in Kuala Lumpur in 1413 AH / 1992 CE), with editorial correction and proofreading by his students Qasim ibn Muhammad al-Ahdal and Sibghat Allah Ghulam Nabi Qutb al-Din, sponsored by the author's son, Ahmad Hasan Mashshat .
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