Muhammad b. al-Hasan al-Saffar
| Personal Information | |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Abu Ja'far Muhammad b. al-Hasan b. Farrukh al-Saffar al-Qummi |
| Residence | Qom |
| Death | 290/903 |
| Scholarly Information | |
| Professors | Ibrahim b. Hashim al-Qummi, Ahmad b. Muhammad b. Khalid al-Barqi, Ahmad b. Muhammad b. 'Isa al-Ash'ari, Ahmad b. Hasan b. Ali b. Faddal, |
| Students | Ahmad b. Dawud al-Qummi, Muhammad b. Ja'far al-Mu'addab, Muhammad b. Hasan b. Walid, Muhammad b. Yahya al-'Attar |
| Works | Basa'ir al-darajat |
Abū Jaʿfar Muḥammad b. al-Ḥasan b. Farrūkh al-Ṣaffār al-Qummī (Arabic: ابو جَعفَر محمد بن حَسَن بن فَرّوخ صَفّار قُمی ), an Imami hadith scholar and jurist, and a contemporary and companion of Imam al-Hasan al-'Askari (a).
Al-Saffar is reported to have compiled several hadith works. The famous book Basa'ir al-darajat, a hadith collection on the theme of Imamology, is attributed to him.
Life
Al-Saffar, also known as al-A'raj (the Lame), was one of the Iranian mawlas (servent) of 'Isa b. Musa b. Talha al-Ash'ari—hence, his epithet al-Ash'ari.
The date of his birth is not known, but he passed away in 290/903 during the Minor Occultation.
According to al-Shaykh al-Tusi, he was a companion of Imam al-Hasan al-'Askari (a). The main evidence for this claim is the correspondences between him and the Imam (a), which can further indicate that, in addition to being a companion, he was a representative of the Imam (a).
Scholarly Status
Al-Saffar was one of the most prominent hadith scholars of Qom. The scholars of rijal have mentioned him as a reliable and great scholar.
He was also a prominent jurist of his time. One of his jurisprudential opinions which is reported in the sources is the permissibility of saying Farsi prayers in qunut.
Works
- Main article: Basa'ir al-darajat
Al-Saffar's most well-known work is Basa'ir al-darajat al-kubra fi fada'il Al Muhammad, known as Basa'ir al-darajat, which is a hadith collection on the theme of imamate.
His other works, as recorded by al-Najashi, are the following:
- Kitab al-Salat
- Kitab al-Wudu'
As the titles of his works indicate, he was more concerned with jurisprudence, though some of his works had theological themes.
Moreover, he had a collection of questions from Imam al-Hasan al-'Askari (a) and the Imam's (a) answers, which was extant at least until the time of al-Shaykh al-Saduq.
Teachers and Students
Apart from Imam al-Hasan al-'Askari (a), al-Saffar quoted hadiths from prominent hadith transmitters, such as
- Ibrahim b. Hashim al-Qummi
- Ahmad b. Muhammad b. Khalid al-Barqi
- Ahmad b. Muhammad b. 'Isa al-Ash'ari
And the following hadith transmitters quoted hadiths from him:
- Muhammad b. al-Hasan b. Ahmad b. al-Walid
- Ahmad b. Dawud al-Qummi
- Muhammad b. Yahya al-'Attar
References
- The content of this article is mainly taken from محمد بن حسن صفار قمی in Farsi WikiShia.
