Takmil al-Naf bi ma lam yathbut bihi waqf wa la raf
- Author died
- 1429 AH
- Editions
- Maktab al-Tawʿiyah al-Islāmīyah li-Iḥyāʾ al-Turāth al-ʿArabī
Takmil al-Naf bi ma lam yathbut bihi waqf wa la raf (Completing the Benefit Regarding What Is Unproven Either as Mawquf or Marfu') is a work of hadith criticism by the Egyptian scholar Muhammad Amr ibn Abd al-Latif (d. 1429 AH / 2008 CE). The work is devoted to examining narrations that circulate both as sayings attributed to the Prophet ﷺ (marfu') and as statements of Companions or Successors (mawquf), demonstrating that their transmission chains are unestablished in both forms.
Background and Composition
While researching material for subsequent parts of his work Tabyid al-Sahifah bi-Usul al-Ahadith al-Da'ifah and consulting sources such as Hilyat al-Awliya by Abu Nu'aym al-Isfahani, Ibn Abd al-Latif encountered companion and successor variants for reports he already knew to be unauthentic from the Prophet ﷺ. Upon checking the chains of those mawquf narrations, he found that their attribution was likewise defective, which prompted him to compose a companion study specifically dedicated to narrations lacking authentic chains in either form.
The author initially gathered material intending to include fifty narrations in the first installment, but reduced the selection to twenty-five. He cited three considerations for this reduction: caution against prematurely declaring reports weak that might later prove sound, a desire to publish the volume quickly before losing momentum, and consideration for the publisher to limit book size and printing expenses. Before selecting the final title, he considered I'lam al-Thaqaf bi-ma lam Yathbut bihi Raf' wa-la Waqf and al-Shaf' bi-ma lam Yathbut bihi Waqf wa-la Raf, but discarded both after consulting a colleague because the terms thaqaf and shaf' were prone to misunderstanding. The author concluded the introduction on Friday, 11 Rajab 1409 AH (17 February 1989 CE), and completed fair-copying and indexing on Monday, 6 Sha'ban 1409 AH (13 March 1989 CE).
Methodology and Scope
The book concentrates strictly on the authenticity of reported phrasings (alfaz) rather than the correctness of their underlying meanings (ma'ani); the author noted that demonstrating the weakness of a particular text does not invalidate an established Islamic concept or negate sound related narrations. Each narration is analyzed through its transmission lines, identifying hidden defects ('ilal) and assessing transmitters using biographical evaluation (al-jarh wa-l-ta'dil). Alongside technical chain analysis, Ibn Abd al-Latif included critical commentary on contemporary scholarly practices, cautioning against vanity, ostentation, seeking titles, and unqualified claims of manuscript verification and hadith grading.
Structure and Publication
The published first installment contains twenty-five numbered hadith entries, appended with indices of criticized transmitters, sound narrations cited in evidence, and topical subjects. It was published in 1410 AH (1989 CE) by Maktabat al-Taw'iyah al-Islamiyyah in Giza, Egypt. Although subsequent portions were drafted and referenced in the author's other works, this volume remained its primary published part, and he intended to revise and augment it before his death.
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