Lawaih al-Anwar al-Sunniya wa Lawaqih al-Afkar al-Sunniya
- Author died
- 1188 AH
- Editions
- Maktabat al-Rushd lil-Nashr wa-al-Tawzī‘
Lawāʾiḥ al-Anwār al-Saniyya wa Lawāqiḥ al-Afkār al-Sunniyya (The Gleams of Sunnī Lights and the Fertilizers of Sunnī Thoughts) is a theological commentary by the Hanbali scholar al-Saffarini (d. 1188 AH / 1774 CE) on al-Qaṣīda al-Ḥāʾiyya, a well-known creedal poem by Abu Bakr ibn Abi Dawud (d. 316 AH / 929 CE) .
Composition and Title
Al-Saffarini completed the composition of the work on 20 Shaʿbān 1176 AH . A primary manuscript was transcribed shortly afterward by his longtime student Isa al-Qaddumi, who finished copying it on 4 Dhū al-Qiʿda 1176 AH .
The author stated the title in his introduction as Lawāʾiḥ al-Anwār al-Saniyya wa Lawāqiḥ al-Afkār al-Sunniyya Sharḥ ʿAqīdat Ahl al-Āthār al-Salafiyya, while manuscripts also transmit the expanded title Lawāʾiḥ al-Anwār al-Saniyya wa Lawāqiḥ al-Afkār al-Sunniyya fī Sharḥ Qaṣīdat al-Imām al-Ḥāfiẓ Abī Bakr ibn Abī Dāwūd al-Ḥāʾiyya fī ʿAqāʾid al-Ṭawāʾif al-Salafiyya wal-Firaq al-Athariyya . Most biographical sources refer to it under variants of this title citing its commentary on Ibn Abi Dawud's Ḥāʾiyya .
Subject and Structure
The core subject of the work is an exposition of the thirty-three verses of Ibn Abi Dawud's poem, which addresses key theological doctrines disputed between Ahl al-Sunnah and various dissenting groups . The topics covered include:
- Adherence to the Quran and the Sunnah, and warning against religious innovations .
- The affirmation that the Quran is the uncreated speech of God .
- The beatific vision of God in the afterlife, the divine hands, and the divine descent .
- The virtues of the Prophet's Companions .
- Divine decree (al-qadar) .
- Eschatological matters, including the questioning and punishment in the grave, the Basin (al-ḥawḍ), the Scale (al-mīzān), and intercession (al-shafāʿa) .
- Rejection of the doctrines of the Kharijites .
- The definition and nature of faith (al-īmān), alongside the abandonment of speculative opinion in favor of revelation .
In addition to the thirty-three base lines, al-Saffarini included and explained three verses appended to the poem by Ibn al-Banna al-Hanbali, addressing the virtues of Aisha, Mu'awiya, the Emigrants (Muhajirun), the Helpers (Ansar), and the Successors (Tabi'un) . Because Ibn Abi Dawud did not incorporate every creedal topic in his poem, al-Saffarini supplemented his commentary with additional discussions to complete the subject, such as God's divine elevation (al-istiwāʾ) and the ledgers of deeds (al-ṣuḥuf) . The book opens with an introductory section on adhering to the Quran and Sunnah and warning against innovations, and concludes with a section on the merits of knowledge, Hadith, and their practitioners .
Method and Relation to Other Works
Al-Saffarini's method entails providing linguistic and technical definitions for the wording of each verse before elaborating on its theological implications . He supports each issue with scriptural evidence from the Quran, prophetic traditions, and reports from the early generations (Salaf); the work incorporates 362 hadiths and 136 reports (āthār) .
The work serves as a companion to al-Saffarini's other major creedal treatise, Lawāmiʿ al-Anwār al-Bahiyya, which is a commentary on his own poem al-Durra al-Muḍiyya . While Lawāmiʿ al-Anwār extensively discusses topics such as sectarian divisions, the two books complement each other with differing degrees of elaboration across various theological subjects .
Publication
The book was edited by Abd Allah ibn Muhammad ibn Sulayman al-Busayri and published in two volumes by Maktabat al-Rushd in Riyadh (first edition, 1415 AH / 1994 CE) .
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