wikishia:Featured Article/2016/51

Muhammad b. al-Hasan b. 'Ali b. al-Hasan (Arabic: محمد بن الحسن بن علي بن الحسن) ( d. 460/1067), better known as al-Shaykh al-Tusi (Arabic: الشيخ الطوسي), was one of the greatest Shi'a jurists and compilers of hadith. He has written many works in the fields of theology and tafsir. For his great contributions and tremendous influence, he received the honorable title of al-Shaykh al-Ta'ifa (Arabic: الشيخ الطائفة) (the chief or head of the Shi'a).

Al-Shaykh al-Tusi was the leader of of Shi'a faqihs. He attained the station of ijtihad in both fiqh and usul al-fiqh. From the Four Books, he is the author of both al-Istibsar and Tahdhib al-ahkam.

The ideas and works of al-Shaykh al-Tusi had overshadowed Shi'a scholarship and no one opposed his opinions until the time of Ibn Idris (d. 597/1201). His book, al-Nihaya, was the main source of teaching in Shi'a scholarly circles until al-Muhaqiq al-Hilli (d. 676/1277) wrote Shara'i' al-Islam.

Al-Shaykh al-Tusi wrote in nearly all fields of Islamic sciences. His works are a unique resource for later generations because many of the sources he used were destroyed in the burning of Shapur Library in Karkh. Read more...