Tafsir Ibn Arafa al-Nuskha al-Kamila
- Author died
- 803 AH
- Editions
- Dār al-Kutub al-ʿIlmiyya
Tafsir Ibn Arafa (Tafsir Ibn ʿArafa, also known in full editions as al-Nuskha al-Kamila) is a work of Quranic exegesis based on the teaching sessions and dictations of the Maliki scholar of Tunis, Ibn Arafa (716–803 AH / 1316–1401 CE), transcribed and transmitted by his disciples .
Origin and Transmissions
Ibn Arafa did not compose a unified exegesis as an independent authored book; instead, the material originated from his exegesis lectures delivered across several decades in Tunis . When he departed for the Hajj pilgrimage in Jumada al-Akhirah 792 AH, his lectures had progressed to the Quranic verse إِلَيْهِ يُرَدُّ عِلْمُ السَّاعَةِ , and he resumed his scholarly activities upon returning in 793 AH .
The exegesis was preserved through separate student transmissions (taqyidat), the most prominent of which include:
- The recension of al-Ubbī (Muhammad ibn Khalifah al-Wishtati, d. 827 AH): Regarded as the most complete surviving transmission of Ibn Arafa's exegesis, preserved in manuscripts such as that of the National Library of Tunisia .
- The recensions of al-Basyili (Ahmad ibn Muhammad al-Basyili, d. 830 AH): al-Basyili attended Ibn Arafa's sessions between 783 and 803 AH and compiled an extensive transcript (al-Taqyid al-Kabir) along with an abridged version entitled Nukat wa-Tanbihat fi Tafsir al-Quran al-Majid . The abridgment broke off at Surat al-Saff and was subsequently completed by Ibn Ghazi al-Miknasi (d. 919 AH) using selections from al-Taqyid al-Kabir .
- The recension of Abu al-Qasim al-Sharif al-Salawi: A two-volume transcript documented by later bibliographers .
During the Saadi era in Morocco, Sultan Ahmad al-Mansur commissioned the scholar Muhammad ibn Abi Abd Allah al-Rajraji to synthesize the transmissions of al-Basyili and al-Salawi into a single combined work with supplementary remarks .
Method and Sources
In the opening of the exegesis, Ibn Arafa defines the discipline of tafsir as the knowledge of the Quran's denotation (madlul al-Quran), the specific nature of its signification (khassiyyat kayfiyyat dalalatih), the occasions of revelation (asbab al-nuzul), and the abrogating and abrogated verses (al-nasikh wa-l-mansukh) . He explains that the specific nature of signification relates to Quranic inimitability (i'jaz), rhetoric (al-ma'ani al-bayaniyya), and embellishment (ilm al-badi') as treated by al-Zamakhshari and his successors .
Ibn Arafa divides scholars addressing the Quran into categories: the independent legal interpreter who is also an exegete (such as Izz al-Din ibn Abd al-Salam), the exegete who is not an absolute mujtahid but has mastered the grammatical and linguistic tools (such as Sibawayh, Abu Ali al-Farisi, al-Zajjaj, and al-Zamakhshari), and the mujtahid who is not an exegete . He maintained that because comprehensive exegetical material was already established in prior reference books, late scholars act primarily as transmitters (naqilun) .
The text is characterized by rational analysis, linguistic precision, legal derivations, and critical evaluations of earlier authorities . Ibn Arafa frequently engages with and quotes exegetical, legal, and theological sources, including al-Zamakhshari, Ibn Atiyya, Fakhr al-Din al-Razi, Abu Hayyan al-Gharnati, Malik ibn Anas in al-Mudawwana, Ibn Rushd in al-Bayan wa-l-Tahsil, al-Juwayni in al-Irshad, and Ibn al-Tilimsani in Sharh al-Ma'alim .
Reception and Editions
Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani noted that the notes recorded from Ibn Arafa's sessions were rich in scholarly benefits, demonstrating broad erudition across multiple disciplines, precision, and verification . Ahmad Baba al-Tinbukti similarly described the transcriptions as an eminent compilation filled with insights, additions, and subtle points (nukat) .
A portion of al-Ubbī's transmission covering up to the end of Surat al-Baqarah was edited by Hasan al-Manna'i and published in two volumes by the Research Centre at Zaytuna University in Tunis (1986) . A complete edition of the text based on al-Ubbī's transmission (Tafsir Ibn Arafa bi-Riwayat al-Ubbī) was published by Dar al-Kutub al-Ilmiyya in Beirut in four volumes (1429 AH / 2008 CE) .
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