Tartib al-Ulum lil-Marashi
- Author died
- 1145 AH
- Editions
- Dār al-Bashāʼir al-Islāmīyah
Tartib al-Ulum (The Classification of the Sciences) is a treatise on pedagogical methodology and the classification of Islamic and rational disciplines by the Ottoman scholar Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr al-Mar'ashi, known as Sajaklizadah (d. 1145 AH / 1732 CE; variant 1150 AH) .
Purpose and Motivation
Al-Mar'ashi composed the work as an educational reform manual for students of knowledge . He observed that while earlier centuries had produced verifying scholars and prolific authors, students in later generations struggled due to defective instructional methods (al-tadbirat al-radiyyah) . Among these missteps were engaging prematurely with dense supercommentaries (hawashi) before mastering foundational texts (mutun), studying higher subjects without completing their prerequisite fields, and spending excessive time on topics of minor utility while neglecting essential knowledge .
Structure and Content
The book is arranged into an introduction (muqaddimah), two main objectives (maqsadani), a supplement (tadhyil), and a conclusion (khatimah) :
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The Introduction: Divided into chapters covering:
- Beneficial disciplines: Enumerating Arabic linguistic sciences (lexicography, morphology, etymology, calligraphy, syntax, prosody, rhyme, rhetoric, and belles-lettres); rational disciplines (logic, dialectics/munazarah, preliminaries of theology, and mathematics comprising geometry, arithmetic, and astronomy); disciplines derived from the Quran and Sunnah (creed, ethics, homiletics, jurisprudence, and legal theory); esoteric knowledge (al-ilm al-laddunni); Quranic sciences (poetic structure, tajwid, pausing and resuming, orthography, variant readings, and exegesis); hadith sciences (texts, meanings, and usul al-hadith); as well as anatomy, medicine, physiognomy (firasah), dream interpretation, and Persian language and syntax . It excludes disciplines deemed harmful (such as philosophy, sorcery, and astrology) or those lacking significant benefit .
- Utility of the sciences: Discussing benefits (fa'idah), ends (ghayah), and aims (gharad), establishing that their ultimate purpose is attaining felicity in both worlds, with sacred sciences standing closest to that goal .
- Division into sacred and non-sacred: Examining three technical formulations of "sacred science" (al-ilm al-shar'i), drawing on definitions by Abu Hamid al-Ghazali, Mulla Khusraw, and Ibn Hajar .
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The First Objective: Detailed definitions of each beneficial science alongside explanations and warnings against faulty study habits .
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The Second Objective: The recommended curriculum and sequence for beginners . The student begins with basic creed and Quran recitation under an instructor, then learns Sunnī theological tenets, ethics, and ritual obligations, utilizing works such as the Turkish treatise of Muhammad al-Birgiwi and the vocabulary of Ibn Farishta . The student then progresses sequentially through morphology (sarf), syntax (nahw), practical rulings (ahkam), logic (mantiq), disputation (munazarah), speculative theology (kalam), rhetoric (ma'ani), legal theory (usul al-fiqh), detailed jurisprudence with evidences (such as al-Hidayah), hadith methodology and transmission, and Quranic exegesis (tafsir), with auxiliary disciplines like arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, and prosody studied whenever feasible .
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Supplement and Conclusion: The supplement is devoted to the merits and praise of the Quran, while the conclusion addresses topics relating to philosophy .
Transmission and Manuscripts
Manuscripts of Tartib al-Ulum survive in numerous international library collections, including the Laleli and Selim Agha libraries in Istanbul, the Egyptian National Library in Cairo, the Berlin State Library, the Austrian National Library in Vienna, Princeton University Library, and the Mahmudiyyah Library in Medina .
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