IMAM AL-BUKHARI (d. 256 H. i Samarkand)

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nur.nu
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IMAM AL-BUKHARI (d. 256 H. i Samarkand)

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As-salamu`aleikum wa rahmatuAllahi wa barakatuHu

För några år sedan (årsskiftet 2002/03) reciterades hela Sahih Bukhari av den hadith-lärde Sheikh Muhammad ibn Ibrahim al-Yaqoubi al Hasani (av Al al-Bayt) i Hounslow-moskén i London. Sådana recitationer hör till den muslimska traditionen, men det var det första gången som en sådan recitation ägde rum i Europa.

I samband med denna historiska händelse sammanställdes en samling av anekdoter ur levnaden av imam Abu `AbdiAllah Muhammad ibn Isma`il ibn Ibrahim ibn Bardizbah al-Buklhari, som återges nedan. Materialet är hämtat ur olika böcker på arabiska om de lärdas biografier, och är inte tidigare publicerat.


(c) Översättaren

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Slutsessionen vid Khatam al-Bukhari i London 2002

Imam al-Bukhaari (194 AH - 256 AH)

All praise is due to Allah The Transcendent. Free from any associate, and manifest in His Oneness. The Creator of everything known and unknown, that which is to be known and that which has been known. The All Knowing, All Hearing, All Seeing. The Lord of All existence. And this is recognized by the people of innermost knowledge. May His Prayers and Salutations be upon His Emissary, the light of the universe and the source of tranquility, for those who take his name (Sal Allahu alayhi wa salam) with hearts of reverence for his exalted station and unparalled rank. Also upon His pure family and noble companions.
Ameen.
____________

Imam Bukhaari's father, Abu Hassan Ismail bin Ibrahim, was a scholar of his age and took knowledge from Imam Maalik (RA). It is narrated by Ahmed bin Hafs, that he entered upon him in his moment of death, to find him saying; "From all of my wealth it cannot be said that even a dirham is from a doubtful source (i.e. in its permissibility)." Upon this Ahmed bin Hafs felt ashamed.

Imam Bukhaari was born after the Jumu'ah prayer with 13 nights remaining from the month of Shawwal in the year 194 AH in Bukhaarah where he was raised and grew up as an orphan. Muhammed bin Alfadl al Balkhy said; Muhammed bin Ismaeel i.e. ( Imam Bukhaari) had lost his sight when he was a child. His mother was of great worship and prayer. She saw in a dream Sayiduna Ibrahim Alahi salaam, who said to her, "Indeed Allah the Most Exalted has returned the sight of your son, because of your relentless prayer." She awoke to find that her son's sight had been returned.

The love of learning of Imam Bukhaari was apparent from a young age. He had memorized the works of ibn Mubaarak and Waqee around the age of ten. Imam Bukhaari's scribe, Abu Jafar Muhammed bin Abi Hatim, narrates his asking Imam Bukhaari; "When did you become a seeker of this science?" He said, "I was inspired from the time when I was in the kutaab (the traditional school for children too memorise the Quran from the age of five/seven onwards)." He then asked him, "what was your age?" He said he was ten or slightly younger. Then I left the kutaab and started going to Imam Daakhily and others, for Hadeeth. Then one day he said, when narrating a hadeeth, "Sufyan, from Abi Zubayr from Ibrahim." I said to him "Abu Zubayr does not narrate from Ibrahim." He reprimanded me, I then said, "return the original copy that is with you." He then got up and went inside to find the original, he came out asking, "How is it meant to be O boy!?" I said, "It is Zubayr bin Adeey from Ibrahim." He then took my pen and marked His book and said, "you're right!" Some people asked Imam Bukhaari "how old were you when this happened?" He said, "eleven years old."

His first journey for knowledge was when he was sixteen, to Haj, with his mother and brother, whereupon his brother returned with his mother and he remained, and took from the scholars of the region. The first book Imam Bukhaari wrote was his Taarikh, which he completed at the Emissary’s grave (May Allah’s peace and blessing be upon him) on the night of a full moon. He said, "rarely is that something can be mentioned of history that I do not have a narration for it, except I did not want the book to be too long."

Imam Bukhaari travelled far and wide, meeting scholars from all walks of life, going to Khurasaan, Iraq, Hijaaz, Maghrib, not leaving any major city without his mark. Jaffar bin Muhammed Al Qataan, Imam of Karmiyniya, heard Bukhaari saying, "I have taken from a thousands shaykhs or more, and from everyone of them ten thousand or more hadeeth. There is not a single hadeeth that I have except that I can also mention its chain."

Imam Bukhaaris rapport, wherever he went, is also accounted for. Abu Ali Saleh bin Muhammed Jazzarah said, Muhammed bin Ismail came to Baghdad, and I would narrate from him, there would be no less than twenty thousand people present.

Similar to this has been accounted for when he went to Iraq, and Basrah; some note that was even before he had a hair on his chin. Imam Bukhaari's scribe also narrates that he saw Imam Bukhaari get up at night between fifteen and twenty times to note down a Hadeeth and its chain, each time needing the light of a lamp, which meant getting fire and igniting the lamp. When once extinguished it required a new flame.

You only know scholars by the words of other scholars

Imam Tirmidhi said, "I have not seen anyone like him in Iraq or in Khurasaan, in understanding of weaknesses," i.e. in hadeeth, history, and chains of transmission. Imam Tirmidhi also notes once he was in Bukhaari's lessonand someone stood up and said, "May Allah make you the jewel of this Ummah." Tirmidhi says his prayer was answered.

Hakim said he heard Muhammed bin Yaqoob hear his father say, "I saw Muslim Bin Hajjaj i.e. (Imam Muslim) in front of Bukhaari asking him questions as though he was a child. Ahmed bin Hamdoon Al Qasaar heard Imam Muslim say when he came to Bukhaarah, "Leave me to kiss the feet of the teachers of teachers, the master of Muhaddetheen, and the doctor of theweaknesses in hadeeth," (i.e. Imam Bukhaari.).

Muhammed bin Abi Hatim (Bukhaari's scribe) narrates that he heard Mahmud bin Nadr Aba Sahl Asshafi say, "I went to Basrah, Sham, Hijazz, and Kufah and saw all the scholars, and did not meet one that did not see Muhammed bin Ismail more higher than themselves in learning". Abu Bakr bin Ishaq bin Kuzaymah has said, "I have not seen any one under the heavens more knowledgeable or memorized of the prophetic traditions than Muhammed bin Ismail," i.e. Bukhaari.

Hafidh Abu Fadl Muhammed bin Thahir al Maqdasi says, "It is enough of a testification for anyone of Imam Bukhaari's rank, as it is made by Ibn Kuzaymah, Ibn Khuzaymah himself traveled east and west in his meeting of scholars".

Imam Nawawi says, ".. Know that the descriptions of Bukhaari's lofty learning and superceding those in this field from his contemporaries is totally agreed upon by those previous and those who came later." Imam Ibn Hajr says, "He was a mountain in the amount he had memorized, the Imam of the world and in comprehension of the prophetic sayings." Imam Bukhaari passed away on the night of Eid and was buried in the day, after the Dhuhr prayer on Saturday the year 256AH. He was aged sixty two and buried in a village near Bukhaarah called Kartank.

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Moskén i anslutning till Imam Bukhari's gravplats

May Allah Elevate his rank and Shower His infinite mercy upon Him! Ameen

The Reason for Bukhaari compiling his Sahih

One of the major reasons why Imam Bukhaari compiled his book, was because of the advice of his teacher Ameer Al Mumineen in hadeeth and jurisprudence - Shaykh Ishaaq bin Ibrahim Al Handadhli - well known as ibn Rahawayah.As narrated by Bukhaari's student, Ibrahim bin Maqal al Nasafi, he said, "I heard Abaa Abdullahi Muhammed bin Ismail say, once we were with Ibn Rahawayah and he said if you were to put together a concise book consisting of the Most Authentic prophetic traditions". He said, "these words entered my heart and I began the compilation". It is also established with a sound chain that, Muhammed bin Sulaiman Alfarisi said, he heard Bukhaari saying, "I saw the Prophet (May Allah’s peace and blessing be upon him) in a dream and as though I was standing in front of him and I was carrying a hand fan by which I was driving away flies from him. I asked some interpreters of dreams about this and they said, 'You will drive away any lies that are told on the Prophet (May Allah’s peace and blessing be upon him)'". It also narrated by Abu Hatham Alkashmahiny from Imam Farabry, that Imam Bukhaari said to him, "There is not a Hadeeth that I have placed in my book except that I had performed ghusal and prayed two rakats before placing it in my book."

Also narrated from him is that it took the Imam sixteen years to finalise his book, extrapolating from six hundred thousand hadeeth. In the end, saying, "I have placed it as a proof between Allah and myself."

Another narration is that while in Makkah, he would make two rakats istikhaarah and only when he was absolutely certain, he would then place the Hadeeth in the book. As for when Imam Bukhaari formulated his headings of the book and its chapters, this he finalized in the Prophet's Mosque (May Allah’s peace and blessing be upon him), sitting between his grave and mimbar, praying two rakas for each title. Ibn Hajr has wrote a eight volume book on explaining the headings of Bukhaari entitled 'Tagleeq wa Taleeq'. As for Imam Farabry, the Imam's top student, he heard from Bukhaari his book twice, and his transmission of Bukaari is considered to be the most authentic. He narrates that Imam Bukhaari's scribe said, "He saw the Prophet (May Allah’s peace and blessing be upon him) in a dream, and he was walking in front of Imam Bukhaari and in every place the Prophet (May Allah’s peace and blessing be upon him) would lift his foot, Bukhaari would place his foot in the same place..."

All of what has been mentioned is really just a fragment of the Imam's endurance, love of the Sunnah, perseverance and steadfastness.
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