Sharh Ma'ani Shi'r al-Mutanabbi li-Ibn al-Iflili - al-Safr al-Awwal
- Author died
- 441 AH
- Editions
- مؤسسة الرسالة
Sharh Ma'ani Shi'r al-Mutanabbi (Explanation of the Meanings of al-Mutanabbi's Poetry) is an Andalusian commentary on the collected poetry of al-Mutanabbi (303–354 AH / 915–965 CE), authored by the Cordoban philologist, grammarian, and vizier Ibn al-Iflili (352–441 AH / 963–1050 CE).
Composition and Transmission
Ibn al-Iflili—Abu al-Qasim Ibrahim ibn Muhammad al-Zuhri, who served as vizier to the Umayyad caliph al-Mustakfi Billah in Cordoba—was widely recognized for his mastery of Arabic lexicography, historical traditions, and poetry, particularly the verses of Abu Tammam and al-Mutanabbi. In compiling and refining his commentary on al-Mutanabbi's Diwan, Ibn al-Iflili was assisted by his prominent student, the philologist al-A'lam al-Shantamari (410–476 AH / 1019–1083 CE), who had traveled to Cordoba in 433 AH to study under him.
Ibn al-Iflili transmitted the text of al-Mutanabbi's poetry through a direct Andalusian line of transmission: he read it under Abu al-Qasim al-Husayn ibn al-Walid (known as Ibn al-'Arif), who narrated it from Abu Bakr al-Ta'i and Ibrahim al-Maghribi, both of whom took it directly from al-Mutanabbi himself. In turn, his commentary and transmission of the Diwan were passed down through notable Andalusian scholars, including al-A'lam al-Shantamari, Abu Marwan 'Abd al-Malik ibn Siraj, and Abu Tamim al-'Izz ibn Muhammad ibn Abi Musa Ibn Baqnuh.
Reception and Scholarly Debates
The commentary was widely cited among Andalusian literary scholars, though it also drew scholarly critique. The polymath Ibn Hazm composed a critical treatise reviewing and objecting to various interpretations in the work, entitled al-Ta'aqqub 'ala Ibn al-Iflili fi Sharhihi li-Diwan al-Mutanabbi (or al-Radd 'ala Ibn al-Iflili fi Shi'r al-Mutanabbi). Ibn Hazm's critical remarks subsequently prompted the jurist 'Abd Allah ibn Ahmad al-Nubahi to write a treatise defending Ibn al-Iflili and rebutting Ibn Hazm's criticisms.
Manuscripts and Editions
Manuscript copies of the commentary, in whole or in parts—such as the first volume (al-sifr al-awwal)—have been preserved in several libraries, including the General Library in Rabat (MS 437 D / 324), the al-Zahiriyya Library in Damascus (MS 6711), the British Museum (MS Or. 4356), the Library of al-Qarawiyyin in Fez, and the Ahmadiyya collection in Tunis. The work has also been edited and published in two volumes in Beirut (1412 AH / 1992 CE).
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