Ma Rawahu al-Asatin fi Adam al-Maji ila al-Salatin
- Author died
- 911 AH
- Editions
- دار الصحابة للتراث
Ma Rawahu al-Asatin fi Adam al-Maji ila al-Salatin (What the Eminent Authorities Narrated Regarding Not Visiting Sultans) is a specialized hadith treatise by al-Jalal al-Suyuti (d. 911 AH / 1505 CE) collecting prophetic traditions and early scholarly reports that discourage religious scholars from entering upon rulers and frequenting royal courts .
Background and Context of Composition
Al-Suyuti composed the work in Cairo during the Mamluk period, a time characterized by tense relations between religious scholars and ruling elites . When the Mamluk Sultan al-Ashraf Qaytbay repeatedly summoned al-Suyuti to attend his court, al-Suyuti refused . When some individuals argued to the Sultan that obedience to the ruler was obligatory, al-Suyuti responded to the Sultan's emissaries that obedience is due only in matters conforming to the Prophet's commands, whereas the Prophet's instruction takes precedence over the ruler's command .
Following a request conveyed through the grand emir Timraz to provide his textual justification, al-Suyuti compiled the traditions and early reports into this work and produced an abridgment from it, titled al-Risala al-Sultaniyya, which he sent to the Sultan . Al-Suyuti maintained this stance of isolation and refusal of royal invitations throughout his later life, also declining summons and gifts sent by Sultan Qansuh al-Ghawri .
Content and Themes
The treatise compiles authentic and transmitted traditions warning scholars against courting political power and frequenting sovereign courts . Among the foundational traditions cited is the narration of Ibn Abbas and Abu Hurayra: من سكن البادية جفا، ومن اتبع الصيد غفل، ومن أتى أبواب السلاطين افتتن ("Whoever settles in the desert grows coarse, whoever pursues game becomes heedless, and whoever frequents the doors of sultans falls into tribulation") .
In the book, al-Suyuti argues that the vast majority of the early generations (al-salaf) and righteous later scholars (khalaf) held that these warnings apply unconditionally, whether the scholar is summoned by the ruler or goes uninvited, and whether the invitation is purportedly for a religious benefit or not . He documents the practices and statements of prominent early authorities who refused royal invitations, including Sufyan al-Thawri, Sa'id ibn al-Musayyab, and Hammad ibn Salama .
Reception and Versification
The treatise is also recorded under alternative titles, including Ma Rawahu al-Asatin fi Adam al-Taraddud ala al-Salatin and Riwayat al-Asatin fi Adam al-Maji ila al-Salatin . The Syrian scholar Najm al-Din al-Ghazzi later versified the treatise in an urjuza poem, incorporating additional traditions and reflections on the dangers of seeking proximity to rulers .
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