Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani
Nazm al-Laali bil-Mia al-Awali
- Author died
- 852 AH
- Editions
- Dar al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah
Nazm al-La'ali bil-Mi'a al-'Awali (The String of Pearls of the Hundred Elevated Traditions) is a hadith work compiled by Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani (d. 852 AH / 1449 CE), containing one hundred ten-link ('ushari) narrations transmitted through elevated chains of transmission (isnad).
Background and Composition
The book represents Ibn Hajar's earliest hadith extraction (takhrij), compiled in 796 AH (1394 CE) when he began his dedicated study of the discipline. He extracted these narrations from the transmissions of his teacher, the Syrian hadith master Burhan al-Din Abu Ishaq Ibrahim ibn Ahmad ibn Abd al-Wahid al-Tanukhi al-Ba'labakki (d. 800 AH). In his introduction, Ibn Hajar emphasized the virtue of seeking high chains of transmission ('uluww al-isnad), citing the statement of Ahmad ibn Hanbal that seeking elevated isnads is part of religion, as well as the dictum of Muhammad ibn Aslam al-Tusi that proximity in transmission brings one closer to God and His Messenger. The work was audited before al-Tanukhi in a single reading session on Sunday, 12 Rajab 797 AH, as recorded by the hadith scholar Ahmad ibn Abi Bakr al-Busiri. Ibn Hajar later followed this collection with a forty-hadith supplement titled al-'Awali al-Taliya lil-Mi'a al-'Aliya.
Method and Content
The collection contains one hundred ten-tiered hadiths ('ushariyat), meaning that ten transmitters separated the shaykh from the Prophet ﷺ. Ibn Hajar restricted the selection to sound (sahih), fair (hasan), and rare (gharib) narrations free of severe defects (nakara), narrated exclusively by upright and trustworthy authorities rather than suspect or sectarian transmitters.
Following each tradition, Ibn Hajar analyzed the paths of transmission and indicated technical isnad features such as parallel chains (muwafaqat), alternative substitute routes (abdal), and handshakes (musafahat). He quantified the elevation of his teacher's chains against the standard canonical collections, determining how many transmission tiers were saved in comparison with narrations recorded in works such as Sahih Muslim or the Sunan compilations of Abu Dawud and al-Nasa'i.
Reception
Ibn Hajar's principal hadith teacher, Zayn al-Din al-'Iraqi (d. 806 AH), penned a written endorsement (taqriz) on the manuscript. Al-'Iraqi commended the quality of the extraction, the soundness of the chosen narrators, and the clarity with which Ibn Hajar demonstrated technical isnad variants such as muwafaqat and abdal, remarking that the work announced Ibn Hajar's entry into the ranks of authoritative hadith scholars.
Publication
The work was edited by Kamal Yusuf al-Hut and published in a single volume by Dar al-Kutub al-'Ilmiyya in Beirut in 1410 AH / 1990 CE.
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