Juz fihi Dhikr Hal Ikrima Mawla Abd Allah ibn Abbas wa ma qila fihi
- Author died
- 656 AH
- Editions
- Dār al-Bashā'ir al-Islāmiyyah lil-Ṭibā‘ah wal-Nashr wal-Tawzī‘
Juz fihi Dhikr Hal Ikrima Mawla Abd Allah ibn Abbas wa ma qila fihi (Treatise on the Condition of 'Ikrima, Client of 'Abd Allah ibn 'Abbas, and What Has Been Said Concerning Him) is a biographical and critical monograph by the Egyptian hadith scholar Abd al-Azim al-Mundhiri (581–656 AH / 1185–1258 CE), dedicated to evaluating the status, reliability, and controversies surrounding the prominent Successor Ikrima Mawla Ibn Abbas.
Purpose and Scope
Al-Mundhiri composed the work to assemble the historical reports, biographical details, and assessments of both early and later scholars concerning Ikrima Mawla Ibn Abbas. The evaluation of 'Ikrima had long been a central debate among hadith critics, prompting earlier scholars—including Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari, Muhammad ibn Nasr al-Marwazi, Ibn Manda, Ibn Hibban, and Ibn Abd al-Barr—to write treatises in his defense. Al-Mundhiri’s tract gathers rare citations and textual excerpts from several of these early compositions.
Contents and Method
The treatise is organized around key aspects of 'Ikrima's life, transmission, and standing:
- Biography and Education: It outlines his origins as a Berber from the Maghrib who belonged to Husayn ibn Abi al-Hurr al-'Anbari before being gifted to Abd Allah ibn Abbas in Basra during the caliphate of Ali ibn Abi Talib, as well as Ibn 'Abbas's dedication to teaching him the Quran and the Sunna.
- Narrations and Transmission: It discusses 'Ikrima's direct narrations from Companions such as Ibn 'Abbas, Abd Allah ibn Umar, Abu Hurayra, and Aisha, alongside critical discussions on which reports were mursal (hurried) and the scholars' debate over whether he directly heard from 'A'isha. It notes the vast circle of Successors who transmitted from him across the Hijaz, Egypt, Yemen, the Levant, Iraq, and Khurasan.
- Praise and Endorsements: It records praise for his mastery in Quranic exegesis (tafsir), legal rulings, and prophetic biography (sira) from leading early authorities such as Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Ishaq ibn Rahwayh, Yahya ibn Ma'in, Al-Sha'bi, and Qatada ibn Di'ama.
- Criticisms: It presents the specific criticisms leveled against 'Ikrima, which centered on three points: accusations of lying made by figures like Said ibn al-Musayyib, Al-Qasim ibn Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr, and Muhammad ibn Sirin; allegations of subscribing to Kharijite (specifically Sufrite) doctrine; and receiving monetary gifts from rulers.
- Defense and Rebuttal: Al-Mundhiri marshals extensive counterarguments from al-Marwazi, Ibn 'Abd al-Barr, and al-Tabari. These arguments establish that 'Ikrima's probity (adala) was firmly established by his long companionship with Ibn 'Abbas and the acceptance of his hadith by major authorities. They demonstrate that unspecified disparagements cannot overturn established uprightness, that reports attributing defamatory statements to Ibn 'Umar lack validity, and that sectarian accusations were routinely leveled against transmitters without nullifying their reliability.
- Death: The treatise concludes with accounts of 'Ikrima's death, noting disagreements regarding the year (104, 105, 106, 107, or 115 AH) and his age (80 or 84), while confirming that he died in Medina despite a report claiming he died in Kairouan.
Transmission and Publication
The surviving transmission of the work goes back to al-Mundhiri through Abu al-Qasim 'Ubayd Allah ibn Muhammad ibn 'Uthman al-Zarzari, whose father read it directly to the author. The text was preserved in a tenth-century AH manuscript volume completed in Jumada al-Ula 920 AH. It was edited by Nizam Muhammad Salih Ya'qubi and published in Beirut by Dar al-Basha'ir al-Islamiyya in 1421 AH / 2000 CE as part of the Liqa' al-'Ashr al-Awakhir bi-al-Masjid al-Haram series.
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