Mashayakhat al-Nasai = Tasmiyat al-Shuyukh
- Author died
- 303 AH
- Editions
- دار عالم الفوائد
Mashayakhat al-Nasai (Arabic: مشيخة النسائي), also known as Tasmiyat al-Shuyukh (The Naming of the Teachers), is a biographical hadith catalogue by the hadith master Abu Abd al-Rahman al-Nasai (215–303 AH / 829–915 CE; or born 214 AH) detailing his teachers and his critical appraisals of their reliability.
Transmission and Content
The work has been preserved through the transmission of Abu Ishaq Ibrahim ibn Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Bassam under the title Tasmiyat mashayikh Abi Abd al-Rahman Ahmad ibn Shu'ayb ibn Ali al-Nasai alladhina sami'a minhum (The Naming of the Teachers of Abu Abd al-Rahman Ahmad ibn Shu'ayb ibn Ali al-Nasai from Whom He Heard). In this transmission, al-Nasai enumerates 196 teachers, stating their geographic origins or affiliations (such as Naysabur, Merv, Basra, Kufa, Damascus, and Hims) and pairing each entry with a verdict of evaluation (jarh wa-ta'dil), including terms such as thiqa (trustworthy), thiqa ma'mun (trustworthy and dependable), la ba'sa bihi (there is no harm in him), saduq (truthful), salih (righteous/adequate), and designations of weakness.
Among the prominent authorities listed are Ishaq ibn Rahawayh, Qutayba ibn Sa'id, Abu Hatim al-Razi, Hannad ibn al-Sari, Hisham ibn Ammar, and al-Harith ibn Miskin. In select entries, al-Nasai clarifies whether he personally transcribed hadith from the individual, noted specific irregularities in their manuscripts, or suspended judgment on their status.
Concluding Dictations
Following the register of teachers, the text includes critical observations dictated by al-Nasai:
- Evaluations of Specific Transmitters: al-Nasai critiques narrators dictated to him by Ahmad ibn Salih al-Misri, evaluating Asim ibn Umar as rejected in hadith (munkar al-hadith matruk), distinguishing him from his brothers Ubayd Allah and Abd Allah, and grading Isa ibn Abi Isa al-Hannat as rejected (matruk).
- Judges Known for Hadith Transmission: A dedicated section titled Dhikr man yu'raf min al-qudah bi-l-hadith evaluates judges associated with narration, listing figures such as Abu al-Bakhtari Wahb ibn Wahb, Abu Shayba, Salama al-Ahmar, Ali ibn Zabyan, al-Hasan ibn Ziyad al-Lu'lu'i, al-Waqidi (citing Yahya ibn Ma'in's judgment that he fabricated hadith), and al-Hasan ibn Umara.
- Authorities on al-Zuhri: al-Nasai concludes by identifying Malik ibn Anas and Ziyad ibn Sa'd al-Khurasani as the most reliable authorities on Ibn Shihab al-Zuhri.
Supplementary Compilations
Later hadith scholars compiled supplements identifying additional teachers of al-Nasai omitted from Ibn Bassam's recension, most notably Ibn Asakir in al-Mu'jam al-mushtamil and Diya al-Din al-Maqdisi in Juz al-awham.
Answer updated