Itraf al-Musnad al-Mutali bi-Atraf al-Musnad al-Hanbali

Itraf al-Musnad al-Mutali bi-Atraf al-Musnad al-Hanbali is a hadith indexing work (atraf) authored by Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani (773–852 AH / 1372–1449 CE), compiling and organizing the narrations found in Ahmad ibn Hanbal's al-Musnad Itraf al-Musnad al-Mutali…+1.

Scope and Structure

The book indexes the narrations of Ahmad's Musnad, along with the supplementary additions (ziyadat) transmitted by his son Abdullah ibn Ahmad and those added by the transmitter Abu Bakr al-Qati'i Majallat al-Jami'a al-Isl…+1. In compiling the text, Ibn Hajar built upon the earlier alphabetical restructuring of the Musnad carried out by Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Abd Allah ibn al-Muhibb al-Samit (712–789 AH) al-Madhhab al-Hanbali Dir….

Ibn Hajar divided the work into two broad divisions:

• Connected narrations (al-muttasil): encompassing raised (marfu'), companion-attributed (mawquf), and successor-attributed (maqtu') traditions Turuq al-Takhrij bi Hasab…. This section is arranged alphabetically by the names of male Companions, followed by those known by their agnomens (kunya), then unnamed narrators (mubhamaat), followed by female Companions structured in the same sequence Itraf al-Musnad al-Mutali…+1. For prolific Companions, narrations are typically grouped either alphabetically by the sub-narrators or by the opening phrasing of the text Turuq al-Takhrij bi Hasab…+1.
• Hurried and non-exhaustive reports (al-marasil wa-l-mawqufat): a distinct division that brings together non-continuous (mursal) reports and non-prophetic traditions not incorporated in the main sections, grouped under specific topical headings Majallat al-Jami'a al-Isl…+1.

Method and Cross-Referencing

For each entry, Ibn Hajar cites the identifying opening portion of the hadith (taraf), lists its chain variations, traces its placement back to the seventeen core regional sub-collections (masanid) of Ahmad's Musnad, and establishes his own continuous chains of transmission back to the author Itraf al-Musnad al-Mutali…+1. He also indicates parallel transmissions in other primary compilations using an abbreviated symbol system:

• خ for al-Bukhari
• م for Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj
• د for Abu Dawud
• س for al-Nasa'i
• ت for al-Tirmidhi
• ق for Ibn Majah
• خز for Ibn Khuzaymah in his Sahih
• عه for Abu Awanah al-Isfarayini in his Sahih
• حب for Ibn Hibban in his Sahih
• ك for al-Hakim al-Naysaburi in al-Mustadrak
• قط for al-Daraqutni in his Sunan
• مي for al-Darimi in his Jami' Itraf al-Musnad al-Mutali…+1

Reception and Editions

Al-Sakhawi recorded that Ibn Hajar's teacher, Zayn al-Din al-Iraqi, relied extensively on Itraf al-Musnad al-Mutali during his dictation assemblies and scholarship Turuq al-Takhrij bi Hasab….

The work contains 12,787 hadith entries al-Madhhab al-Hanbali Dir…. It was published in a critical edition edited by Zuhayr ibn Nasir al-Nasir in nine volumes with an accompanying index volume, published jointly by Dar Ibn Kathir and Dar al-Kalim al-Tayyib Itraf al-Musnad al-Mutali…+1.