Tafsir Muqatil ibn Sulayman
- Author died
- 150 AH
- Editions
- Dār Iḥyā’ al-Turāth
Tafsir Muqatil ibn Sulayman (Tafsīr Muqātil ibn Sulaymān, "The Quranic Commentary of Muqatil ibn Sulayman"), also known as al-Tafsir al-Kabir ("The Great Commentary"), is a comprehensive Quranic commentary by Muqatil ibn Sulayman (d. 150 AH / 767 CE), recognized as the earliest surviving complete verse-by-verse commentary on the Quran .
Structure and Methodology
The work covers the entire text of the Quran in the traditional order of its surahs, providing an analytical, continuous explanation that weaves Quranic verses and their interpretations into a single, accessible prose narrative . Unlike earlier fragmentary glosses that were limited to verses with transmitted reports, the commentary systematically addresses every verse . It combines transmitted tradition with rational interpretation (al-manqul wa-l-ma'qul), selecting the preferred interpretation directly without listing divergent scholastic disputes .
The commentary is distinguished by several key methodological features:
- Explaining the Quran by the Quran and Polysemy: It places strong emphasis on interpreting verses through parallel passages, detailing polysemous expressions and semantic variations (al-wujuh wa-l-naza'ir) .
- Universal Interpretive Principles (Kulliyyat): It introduces broad semantic rules, such as establishing that every occurrence of the phrase ala' Allah in the Quran denotes God's blessings (na'ma' Allah) .
- Contexts of Revelation and Abrogation: It incorporates comprehensive accounts of the occasions of revelation (asbab al-nuzul) and addresses the clear and ambiguous verses (al-muhkam wa-l-mutashabih), abrogation (naskh), and the opening letters of surahs .
- Harmonization: It offers rational reconciliations for verses whose surface meanings appear contradictory .
Transmission and Sources
The text reached later scholars through specific chains of transmission, prominently through al-Hudhayl ibn Habib (Abu Salih ibn Budayl) from Muqatil, who narrated it on the authority of thirty figures, including Successors . Other transmission routes include those of Ishaq ibn Ibrahim al-Taghlibi, Abu 'Isma, and al-Suddi .
A defining characteristic of the work is the omission of full chains of transmission (isnad) for individual reports, alongside extensive reliance on Judeo-Christian lore (Isra'iliyyat) to elaborate narrative details of biblical and prophetic accounts .
Reception and Scholarly Assessment
The commentary elicited starkly contrasting assessments among classical scholars. Its breadth of Quranic insight received notable praise; al-Shafi'i famously stated that all people are dependent on Muqatil in the field of tafsir . Ahmad ibn Hanbal observed that Muqatil possessed books he consulted and affirmed that he had genuine knowledge of the Quran . When Abdullah ibn al-Mubarak examined parts of the work, he remarked on its high quality while regretting its lack of reliable attribution: "How excellent his tafsir would be, if only he were trustworthy!" and "What extraordinary knowledge, if only it had chains of transmission!" Sufyan ibn 'Uyaynah kept a copy of Muqatil's book, noting that while he did not transmit it as formal hadith, he utilized it as a guide and reference .
Conversely, mainstream traditionist exegetes—including al-Tabari, Ibn Abi Hatim, and Ibn Kathir—largely set aside Muqatil's commentary due to severe criticisms of his reliability in hadith transmission, his omission of isnads, his inclusion of biblical lore, and theological charges of anthropomorphism (tashbih) directed at him . When Waki' ibn al-Jarrah was asked about Muqatil's commentary, he advised the questioner not to look into it and instead to bury it . Ibrahim al-Harbi asserted that Muqatil had collected people's interpretations without hearing them directly from figures such as Mujahid ibn Jabr, equating his work in status to the tafsir of al-Kalbi .
Despite these strictures, the commentary served as a major direct and indirect source for several prominent later exegetes, most notably Abu Ishaq al-Tha'labi in al-Kashf wa-l-bayan and al-Wahidi in al-Tafsir al-Basit .
Modern Editions
The complete commentary was edited by Abdullah Mahmud Shahata, who initially analyzed its methodology in his 1968 doctoral dissertation at Cairo University . His edition was published in five volumes, with the text of the commentary occupying the first four volumes and the fifth volume devoted to an extensive introductory study of Muqatil's life and interpretive method . Another edition, edited by Ahmad Farid, was published in Beirut in 2003 .
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