Misbah al-mutahajjid (book)

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Misbah al-mutahajjid
Bibliographical Information
Bibliographical Information
AuthorAl-Shaykh al-Tusi
Original titleمِصباحُ المُتَهجِّد و سلاحُ المُتَعَبّد
LanguageArabic
Series1 volume
SubjectJurisprudence, supplication, ziyarah


Prayer

Miṣbāḥ al-mutahajjid wa silāḥ al-mutaʿabbid (Arabic: مِصباحُ المُتَهجِّد و سلاحُ المُتَعَبّد) or al-Miṣbāḥ al-Kabīr (Arabic: المِصباحُ الکَبیر) is a book written by al-Shaykh al-Tusi (d. 460/1067) in Arabic on du'a, supplication, ziyarat, practices and recommended manners of different days and months. Since its publication, it has always been a reference of Shia and Shia scholars. In this book, some rulings in jurisprudence also mentioned along with some du'as and supplications.

Author

Muhammad b. al-Hasan b. 'Ali b. al-Hasan (b. 385/995 – d. 460/1067) known as al-Shaykh al-Ta'ifa and al-Shaykh al-Tusi was the author of the two books of Tahdhib and al-Istibsar from the Four Books of Shia hadiths references. He is regarded among the greatest hadith and fiqh scholars of Shia. He had influential works in Kalam and the Qur'an exegesis. At the age of 23, he went to Iraq from Khurasan and benefited from great scholars there including al-Shaykh al-Mufid and al-Sayyid al-Murtada.

Date

When al-Shaykh al-Tusi arrived in Baghdad in 408/1017-8, he benefited from Shapur library, which was burnt later, and also from the library of his teacher al-Sayyid al-Murtada and began collecting hadiths of authentic Shia hadiths collections [Usul] and the books which were written by the companions of Imams (a). In that period, there were sources and books available which are not available today and al-Shaykh al-Tusi has mentioned them in his books. He wrote Tahdhib al-ahkam, al-Istibsar and Misbah al-mutahajjid at that time.[1]

Method

In this book, al-Shaykh al-Tusi has mentioned du'as and prayers recommended during the year. There, he also has mentioned some rulings related to prayers. This book contains many topics including tahara, night prayer, practices of Friday, supplications in a week, du'as of the month of Ramadan, etc.

Chapters

  • Tahara; containing different types and qualities and its rulings in nine parts.
  • Kitab al-Salat where al-Shaykh al-Tusi has discussed about prayer's conditions, general types, branches, rulings and manners in four parts and twelve general titles.
  • Weekly supplications which contains supplications in the nights and the days of the week.
  • Practices of lunar months which have been mentioned in one to twelve parts.[2]

Value and Authenticity

This book is among the important sources for supplication and ziyarat and books such as Ibn Fahd al-Hilli's 'Uddat al-da'i, al-Kaf'ami's Misbah, Sayyid b. Tawus's Iqbal al-a'mal and Shaykh Abbas Qummi's Mafatih al-jinan have all benefited from Misbah al-mutahajjid. Some great Shia scholars have summarized it, translated it and written commentaries on it, and have written many works related to it.[3]

Related Researches

Completion

In 635/1237-8, al-Sayyid b. Tawus wrote five books as supplements to Misbah al-mutahajjid:

Summarization

Regarding the great attention made to the book, al-Shaykh al-Tusi decided to summarize the book so that people could better use it. He called the summary Misbah al-mutahajjid saghir.[5]

Other scholars also summarized it including:

  • Shaykh Nizam al-Din Sulayman b. Hasan Sahrashti who called his summary Qabas al-isbah fi talkhis al-misbah.[6]
  • 'Allama al-Hilli who summarized the book following the request of the minister of Muhammad b. Qawhadi and called it Minhaj al-salah fi mukhtasar al-misbah. At the end of it, he added Al-Bab al-hadi 'ashar which is a course of beliefs.[7]
  • Sayyid Ali Husayn Baqi Qurashi known as Ibn Baqi who called his summary Ikhtiyar al-misbah.[8]
  • Diya' al-thaqalayn written by Mirza Hatam b. Nizam al-Mulk.[9]


Translation

Some scholars have translated it such as:

  • Sayyid Ali Imami Isfahani contemporary with the author of Riyad al-'Ulama
  • Shaykh Abbas Qummi who translated Misbah al-mutahajjid to Farsi in 1331/1912-3. It has been printed in the margin of Misbah al-mutahajjid.[10]


Commentaries

Some great scholars have written commentaries on Misbah al-mutahajjid such as:


Copies

Prints

This book has been printed many times in different countries. In one of its prints (by Mu'assisa Fiqh Shi'a), Ali Asghar Murwarid and Abudhar Bidar edited it, researched about it and wrote an introduction for it.

Notes

  1. Introduction of the book Miṣbāḥ al-mutahajjid. Makarim.ir. (Persian)
  2. Ṭūsī, Miṣbāḥ al-mutahajjid, index.
  3. Introduction of the book Miṣbāḥ al-mutahajjid. Makarim.ir. (Persian)
  4. Aḥmadī, Tārīkh ḥadīth Shʿīa, p. 334.
  5. Tihrānī, al-Dharīʿa ilā taṣānīf al-shīʿa, vol. 21, p. 118.
  6. Tihrānī, al-Dharīʿa ilā taṣānīf al-shīʿa, vol. 17, p. 30.
  7. Tihrānī, al-Dharīʿa ilā taṣānīf al-shīʿa, vol. 23, p. 164.
  8. Tihrānī, al-Dharīʿa ilā taṣānīf al-shīʿa, vol. 8, p. 190.
  9. Tihrānī, al-Dharīʿa ilā taṣānīf al-shīʿa, vol. 15, p. 123.
  10. Tihrānī, al-Dharīʿa ilā taṣānīf al-shīʿa, vol. 4, p. 137.
  11. Aḥmadī, Tārīkh ḥadīth Shʿīa, p. 333.
  12. Tihrānī, al-Dharīʿa ilā taṣānīf al-shīʿa, vol. 14, p. 68.
  13. Ṭūsī, Miṣbāḥ al-mutahajjid, p. 862.
  14. Aḥmadī, Tārīkh ḥadīth Shʿīa, p. 332.

References

  • Āgā Buzurg al-Tihrānī, Muḥammad Muḥsin. Al-Dharīʿa ilā taṣānīf al-shīʿa. Beirut: Dār al-Aḍwāʾ, [n.d].
  • Aḥmadī, Mahdī. Tārīkh ḥadīth Shʿīa dar sadahā-yi chāhārum tā haftum hijrī. Qom: Dār al-Ḥadīth, 1389 Sh.
  • Introduction of the book Miṣbāḥ al-mutahajjid. Makarim.ir. visited 2021/3/1.
  • Ṭūsī, Muḥammad b. al-Ḥasan. Miṣbāḥ al-mutahajjid. Beirut: Muʾassisa Fiqh al-Shīʿa, 1411 AH.