46 Facts About Tabari

1.

Tabari wrote works on a diverse range of subjects, including world history, poetry, lexicography, grammar, ethics, mathematics, and medicine.

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2.

Al-Tabari followed the Shafi'i madhhab for nearly a decade before he developed his own interpretation of Islamic jurisprudence.

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3.

Tabari has been described as either of Persian or Arab origin.

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4.

Tabari memorized the Qur'an at seven, was a qualified prayer leader at eight, and began to study the prophetic traditions at nine.

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5.

Tabari returned at least twice, the second time in 290 AH, when his outspokenness caused some uneasiness and led to his quick departure.

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6.

Tabari first went to Ray, where he remained for some five years.

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7.

Tabari was thus introduced in youth to pre-Islamic and early Islamic history.

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8.

Tabari then travelled to study in Baghdad under Ahmad ibn Hanbal, who had recently died.

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9.

Tabari possibly made a pilgrimage prior to his first arrival in Baghdad.

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10.

Tabari left Baghdad probably in 242 AH to travel through the southern cities of Basra, Kufah and Wasit.

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11.

Tabari was then well-versed in four of the five remaining Sunni legal schools, before founding his own independent, yet eventually extinct, school.

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12.

Tabari did not give Ibn Hanbal's dissenting opinion any weight at all when considering the various views of jurists, stating that Ibn Hanbal had not even been a jurist at all but merely a recorder of Hadith.

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13.

The ever-ethical Tabari declined the offer, saying he had undertaken to do his work at the specified amount, and could not honorably take more.

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14.

Tabari had a private income from his father while he was still living, and then the inheritance.

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15.

Tabari was some fifty years old when al-Mu'tadid became caliph.

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16.

Tabari was well past seventy in the year his History was published.

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17.

Tabari's accounts are as authentic as one can expect from that period.

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18.

Tabari was known for his view that Hanbalism was not a legitimate school of thought, as Ibn Hanbal was a compiler of traditions and not a proper jurist.

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19.

The Hanbalites of Baghdad would often stone Tabari's house, escalating the persecution to the point where Abbasid authorities had to subdue them by force.

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20.

Regardless, Tabari was remembered positively by contemporaries such as Ibn Duraid, and the Hanbalites were condemned by Abbasid authorities in their entirety for persecuting opponents, roughly a decade later.

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21.

The period in which Tabari lived was full of religious differences and political unrest, which was characterized by the stigmatization and accusation of individuals.

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22.

Tabari is described as having a dark complexion, large eyes and a long beard.

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23.

Tabari was tall and slender and his hair and beard remained black until he was very old.

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24.

Tabari was attentive to his health, avoiding red meat, fats, and other foods he deemed unhealthy.

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25.

Tabari was seldom sick before his last decade, when he suffered from bouts of pleurisy.

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26.

Tabari had a sense of humor, though serious subjects he treated seriously.

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27.

Tabari had studied poetry when young and enjoyed writing, reciting and participating in poetic exchanges.

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28.

Tabari had a good grounding in grammar, lexicography, and philology.

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29.

Tabari knew Persian and was acquainted with the origins of various foreign loan words in Arabic from a number of other languages.

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30.

Al-Tabari was very humble to his companions, visitors and students, without being proud of his position, condescending with his knowledge, or being domineering towards others.

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31.

Tabari did not bear hatred against anyone, and he had a satisfied soul, excusing those who had wronged him, and forgiving those who offended him.

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32.

Tabari's ijtihad led to criticism from the Zahiris and some fanatic Hanbali followers.

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33.

Apparently, al-Tabari did not think much of Ibn Hanbal as a jurist, but mainly saw him as a traditionist, and this was enough to incite the Hanbalites against him.

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34.

Al-Tabari was suddenly accused of being a Jahmite heretic, while his respect for 'Ali ibn Abi Talib, the fourth rightly guided caliph, exposed him to accusations of Shi'ite sympathies.

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35.

Al-Tabari is said to have declared bluntly that it was absurd.

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36.

Tabari established his own madhhab, usually designated the Jariri madhhab after his patronymic.

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37.

Tabari's school failed to endure in the competitive atmosphere of the times.

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38.

Al-Tabari's jurisprudence belongs to a type which Christopher Melchert has called "Rationalism", largely associated with the Shafi'i madhhab.

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39.

Tabari appears, like Dawud al-Zahiri, to restrict consensus historically, defining it as the transmission by many authorities of reports on which the Sahaba agreed unanimously.

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40.

Anyone familiar with al-Tabari's chronicle knows what a formidable challenge it poses for a translator, especially for one attempting to make it accessible to an audience that includes non-specialists.

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41.

Tabari wrote extensively; his voluminous corpus containing three main titles:.

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42.

Tabari's work is one of the major primary sources for historians.

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43.

Al-Tabari supplemented this material with historical reports embodied in works on genealogy, poetry, and tribal affairs.

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44.

Tabari therefore made it concise and kept it to 3000 pages.

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45.

Ignac Goldziher Hungarian scholar, wrote in 1920 a book focusing on Tabari, titled in German as "Die Richtungen der islamischen Koranauslegung", and it was published by Brill Publishers.

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46.

That al-Tabari's history was immensely significant we can all agree; but as to precisely how he became so significant there is no clear consensus.

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