Sualat al-Sijzi lil-Hakim
- Author died
- 405 AH
- Editions
- Dār al-Gharb al-Islāmī
Sualat al-Sijzi lil-Hakim (The Questions of al-Sijzi to al-Hakim) is a treatise on hadith transmitter criticism (al-jarh wa-l-ta'dil) comprising evaluations delivered by the hadith scholar Abu Abd Allah al-Hakim (321–405 AH / 933–1014 CE) and compiled by Mas'ud ibn Ali al-Sijzi.
Content and Composition
The work combines two sets of inquiries regarding the reliability of hadith narrators: an earlier inquiry sent by scholars from Baghdad and questions posed directly by Mas'ud al-Sijzi.
Al-Hakim recorded that at the conclusion of a gathering, Abu Muhammad al-Ammari delivered a letter from hadith scholars in Baghdad stating that they had engaged in compiling authentic hadiths (al-sahih) and had transcribed reports from a number of scholars from Khurasan, including pilgrims and travelers, but lacked knowledge of their standing in transmitter criticism and whether they were suitable for narration in the Sahih. They requested that al-Hakim dictate his evaluation of each narrator underneath their written names in a small booklet (juz'). Al-Hakim complied and recorded his responses on Monday, 23 Jumada al-Akhira 381 AH.
Mas'ud al-Sijzi prefaced his compilation with this Baghdadi inquiry and appended his own direct questions to al-Hakim concerning a separate group of transmitters, uniting both collections in a single work.
Transmission and Titles
A copy of these questionings was held by al-Hakim and transmitted from him by authorization (ijaza) by Abu Bakr Ahmad ibn Ali ibn Khalaf al-Shirazi. The lexicographer Murtada al-Zabidi cited the portion containing the Baghdadi questions under the title al-Risala al-Baghdadiyya (The Baghdadi Epistle).
Publication
The text was edited by Muwaffaq ibn Abd Allah ibn Abd al-Qadir and published in Beirut by Dar al-Gharb al-Islami in 1408 AH / 1988 CE.
Answer updated