Tafsir Furat al-Kufi (book)

Tafsīr Furāt Kūfī is written in Arabic, and is considered to be al-tafsir bi al-riwayah. It was authored by Abu al-Qasim Furat b. Ibrahim b. Furat al-Kufi, a scholar, muhaddith, and mufassir of Shi'a in the second half of the third and the beginning of the fourth centuries. The author has assembled merely the verses of Qur'an which are sent about Imams (a). This book is one of the most noteworthy Shi'a exegeses.

About the Author

There is precise reliable data neither about his life, nor about the date of his birth and death. Also, his name is not mentioned in the old references of tarajum and rijal. However, based on the age of the people whom he had narrated hadith from directly, some suppose that he was one of Shi'a scholars of the second half of the third and the beginning of the fourth centuries. The Shi'a early scholars of rijal science such as Kashi, Najashi, Shaykh Tusi, and the recent scholars like Ibn Dawud Hilli, Allamah Hilli, and Muhammad b. Ali Ardibili have provided us with no information about him; nevertheless, he is regarded a reliable scholar in narrating hadith by contemporary rijal scholars and scholars belonging to recent centuries. This is because the hadiths he has narrated agree with the reliable ones. “Shaykh Sasuq has quoted from Tafsir Furat in many of his works through his father, Ali b. Babuyah, or through muhadiths like Hasan b. Muhammad b. Sa'id Hashimi”, states Aqa Buzurg Tihrani.

The Author's Sect

There is consensus on the issue that Furat Kufi was Shi'a, yet the argument is about whether he was imami or ziydi. Some have affirmed he was imami because the narrated hadiths by him agree with the hadiths stated by Imams (a). Some think he was ziydi while writing his book, since he has narrated some hadiths from ziydiyyah, and has not declared his belief in Imams being twelve. Also, he mentioned a hadith from Ziyd b. Ali in which 'ismat is thought to be merely for ahl al-kisa' (Prophet Muhammad (s), Lady Fatima (a), Imam Ali (a), Imam al-Hasan (a), and Imam al-Husayn (a)). Although he is inclined to the beliefs of ziydiyyah to some degrees, it is worth mentioning that he has brought some hadiths which make us believe he was not ziydi. For instance, he narrated some hadiths about the arrival of Imam Mahdi (a), or the divine source of Imams (a), or the hadiths he narrated from Imam Sadiq (a) and Imam Reza (a).

Masters in Hadith

From the documents found in his book, we are informed of the names of some of his masters. Mostly, he has narrated hadiths from Husayn b. Sa'id Ahwazi (passed away in 250 AH), Ja'far b. Muhammad b. Malik Farazi Kufi (passed away in 300 AH), 'Ubayd b. Kathir 'Amir Kufi (passed away in 294 AH), the companions of Imam al-Reza (a), Imam al-Jawad (a), and Imam al-Hadi (a). The corrector of this book mentions 126 masters of Furat Kufi in the preface.

The Status of the Book

Since the fourth century, many great Shi'a scholars have regarded Furat and his book reliable and narrated hadiths from it. Muhammad b. Hasan b. Ahmad b. Walid, who was one of the masters of Shaykh Saduq, has narrated hadiths from Furat in his book Fadl al-Ziyarat al-Husayn (a), so has Hakim Haskani, a Sunni scholar, in his book Shawahid al-tanzil.

Later on, muhadiths such as 'Allamah Majlisi and Shaykh Hurr 'Amili regarded Furat and the hadiths of his book very reliable. Afterwards, later scholars referred to his book and narrated hadiths from it. Of the scholars who applied those hasiths in their works are: Qazi Sa'id Qumi in Sharh al-arba'in, Mashhadi Qumi in Tafsir Kanz al-daqa'iq, Fiyd Kashani in Tafsir al-asfa, Hashim b. Sulayman Bahrani in Al-burhan, Mamqani in Tanqih al-maqal, and Muhammad Baqir Khansari in Rawdat al-jannat.

Content

This book consists of 775 hadiths relating to exegesis of Qur'an. The majority of hadiths are from Imams (a), in second place from sahabah, and after that tabi'in. In this book, only the verses which had hadiths along with them as revelations were brought. These hadiths primarily talk about Shi'a beliefs and notions. Accordingly, the unlikely (ba'id) or immediate (qarib) interpretation of these verses is offered.

Methodology and the Features of Tafsir

• This exegesis is organized sequentially and is set according to the sequence of surah. However, Furat Kufi has brought the verses which, in his view, are related to Shi'a thoughts and deserved Imams (a).
• This exegesis is Al-tafsir bi al-riwayah, meaning he only has mentioned the hadiths and not put forward any personal interpretation and rumination.

Editions

This book was first published in Najaf, in 1354 AH, by Shaykh Muhammad Ali Qarawi Ardubadi's effort. He wrote a preface to this edition. It embraces 766 hadiths. Tafsir Furat Kufi also was published by Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance in Tehran, in 1410 AH. Muhammad Al-Kazim conducted some research and amendments on this version, presenting the book with 775 hadiths.