Majlis min Amali Abi Sa'd al-Baghdadi

Majlis min Amali Abi Sa'd al-Baghdadi (A Dictation Session from the Amali of Abu Sa'd al-Baghdadi) is a short hadith tract preserving a single dictation assembly held by the preacher Abu Sa'd Ahmad ibn Ali ibn Sulayman al-Baghdadi Majlis min Amali Abi Sa'd…+1.

Composition and Transmission

The session was delivered by Abu Sa'd Ahmad ibn Ali ibn al-Hasan ibn Ahmad ibn Sulayman al-Baghdadi in the congregational mosque on Friday, 29 Ramadan 446 AH Majlis min Amali Abi Sa'd….

The text was transmitted directly from Abu Sa'd by Abu al-Fath Ismail ibn al-Fadl ibn al-Ikhshidh al-Sarraj and Abu Tahir Abd al-Karim ibn Abd al-Razzaq al-Hasnabadhi Majlis min Amali Abi Sa'd…+1. Both transmitters passed it on to Abu al-Faraj Yahya ibn Abi al-Raja al-Thaqafi al-Isbahani—heard before al-Sarraj in Sha'ban 518 AH and before al-Hasnabadhi in Sha'ban 520 AH—who later brought it to Damascus Majlis min Amali Abi Sa'd…. In Ramadan 627 AH, the session was dictated by Abu al-Hasan Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Qurtubi at the Qulus Mosque and simultaneously read by Abu Muhammad Abd al-Haqq ibn Abd al-Salam al-Siqilli Majlis min Amali Abi Sa'd….

Contents

The tract contains a succession of narrated traditions, complete with isnads, covering theological, ethical, and ascetic themes:

• Eschatological and prophetic reports: A narration from Aisha on humanity being resurrected barefoot and unclothed on the Day of Judgment Majlis min Amali Abi Sa'd…; a report describing the Prophet's vision in Paradise of a palace belonging to Umar ibn al-Khattab Majlis min Amali Abi Sa'd…; and a hadith describing the initial creation in darkness before Allah cast His light upon it Majlis min Amali Abi Sa'd….
• Worship and religious conduct: The Prophet's instruction on moderation in ritual prayer upon seeing a suspended rope in the mosque Majlis min Amali Abi Sa'd…; the distribution of his hair following the Stoning of the Jamarat Majlis min Amali Abi Sa'd…; the permissible yearning (ghibta) for the devotion of a person given the Quran or wealth spent in charity Majlis min Amali Abi Sa'd…+1; and a hadith qudsi on Allah rewarding those engaged with the Quran above ordinary petitioners Majlis min Amali Abi Sa'd…+1.
• Moral admonitions and ascetic sayings: An injunction against forsaking a fellow Muslim for more than three days Majlis min Amali Abi Sa'd…; a warning to shield oneself from Hellfire even with half a date or a kind word Majlis min Amali Abi Sa'd…+1; a narrative concerning divine retribution upon a town where an otherwise obedient worshiper never demonstrated indignation for God's sake Majlis min Amali Abi Sa'd…; counsels attributed to Ali ibn Abi Talib regarding reliance on God, candid admission of ignorance, and the centrality of patience Majlis min Amali Abi Sa'd…; an aphorism from Dawud al-Tai on piety as true wealth and honor Majlis min Amali Abi Sa'd…; and a Sufi anecdote transmitted via Abu Mansur Ma'mar ibn Ahmad al-Isbahani regarding spiritual humility Majlis min Amali Abi Sa'd….