Muhammad ibn Ya'qub al-Kulayni

Muslim scholar Abu Ja'far Muhammad bin Yaqoub ibn Ishaq al-Kulainy
Title	Thiqatul-Islam Kulainy
Born	250 AH
Died	329 AH
Era	Islamic golden age
Region	Iran & Iraq
Religion	Islam
Denomination	Shia Islam
Main interest(s)	Hadith
Notable work(s)	Kitab al-Kafi
Influenced by Muhammad, Ali, Ahl al-Bayt
Influenced Shaikh Saduq

Abu Ja'far Muhammad ibn Ya'qub ibn Ishaq al-Kulayni al-Razi (Persian: شیخ ابوجعفر محمّد بن یعقوب بن اسحاق رازی; c. 250 AH/864 CE - 329 AH/941 CE).^[1]

Life

Al-Kulayni was born in Kulayn, a village or small town situated near Rey, in Iran.^[2] His father was Ya'qub al-Kulayni, who is buried at Rey. He belonged to the era of the Minor Occultation of Muhammad al-Mahdi (the last Twelver Shia Imam who, according Shia belief, is currently in occultation and will certainly appear before the Day of Judgment) and is claimed to have greatly benefited from al-Mahdi's divine knowledge by interacting with him through the Imam's deputies and emissaries.^[3][4]

Kulayni received his early religious education in his native town and went to Rey for further education. According to Shia view he is among a special class of muhaddithin known as Rihalah-ye hadith i.e. those who travelled in order to collect ahadith and met the persons considered to be the authority on hadith.^[4]

He travelled to Baghdad for this reason and lived there for twenty years, engaged in teaching and pursuing academic work, until he died in 329 AH/941 CE. He is considered the foremost Shia compiler of hadith and was the author of Kitab al-Kafi.^[5]

Work and contribution

Although Shaykh al-Kulaynī is most famous for al-Kāfī, this opus was not his only accomplishment. The following is a list of his known works:

• Kitab al-Kafi (extant)
• Rasāʾil al-aʿimmah
• Kitāb al-rijāl
• Kitāb al-radd ʿalā al-qarāmiṭah
• Kitāb mā qīla fī al-aʾimmah min al-shiʿr
• Kitāb taʿbīr al-ruʾyā

Sadly, of these, only al-Kāfī has survived in its entirety.^[6]

Early Islamic scholars

Muhammad (570–632) prepared the Constitution of Medina, taught the Quran, and advised his companions                                                     `Abd Allah bin Masud (died 650) taught Ali (607-661) fourth caliph taught Aisha, Muhammad's wife and Abu Bakr's daughter taught Abd Allah ibn Abbas (618-687) taught Zayd ibn Thabit (610-660) taught Umar (579-644) second caliph taught Abu Hurairah (603 – 681) taught                                                                                                           Alqama ibn Qays (died 681) taught   Husayn ibn Ali (626–680) taught Qasim ibn Muhammad ibn Abu Bakr (657-725) taught and raised by Aisha Urwah ibn Zubayr (died 713) taught by Aisha, he then taught Said ibn al-Musayyib (637-715) taught Abdullah ibn Umar (614-693) taught Abd Allah ibn al-Zubayr (624-692) taught by Aisha, he then taught                                                                                           Ibrahim al-Nakha’i taught     Ali ibn Husayn Zayn al-Abidin (659–712) taught         Hisham ibn Urwah (667-772) taught Ibn Shihab al-Zuhri (died 741) taught Salim ibn Abd-Allah ibn Umar taught Umar ibn Abdul Aziz (682-720) raised and taught by Abdullah ibn Umar                                                                                   Hammad bin ibi Sulman taught     Muhammad al-Baqir (676-733) taught Farwah bint al-Qasim Abu Bakr's great grand daughter Jafar's mother                                                               Abu Hanifa (699 — 767) wrote Al Fiqh Al Akbar and Kitab Al-Athar, jurisprudence followed by Sunni, Sufi, Barelvi, Deobandi, Zaidiyyah Shia and originally by the Fatimid and taught Zayd ibn Ali (695-740) Ja'far al-Sadiq (702–765) Ali's and Abu Bakr's great great grand son taught Malik ibn Anas (711 – 795) wrote Muwatta, jurisprudence from early Medina period now mostly followed by Sunni in Africa and taught   Al-Waqidi (748 – 822) wrote history books like Kitab al-Tarikh wa al-Maghazi, student of Malik ibn Anas Abu Muhammad Abdullah ibn Abdul Hakam (died 829) wrote biographies and history books, student of Malik ibn Anas                                                                 Abu Yusuf (729-798) wrote Usul al-fiqh Muhammad al-Shaybani (749–805)       Al-Shafi‘i (767—820) wrote Al-Risala, jurisprudence followed by Sunni and taught Ismail ibn Ibrahim   Ali ibn al-Madini (778–849) wrote The Book of Knowledge of the Companions   Ibn Hisham (died 833) wrote early history and As-Sirah an-Nabawiyyah, Muhammad's biography                                                             Isma'il ibn Jafar (719-775) Musa al-Kadhim (745-799)   Ahmad ibn Hanbal (780—855) wrote Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal jurisprudence followed by Sunni and hadith books Muhammad al-Bukhari (810-870) wrote Sahih al-Bukhari hadith books Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj (815-875) wrote Sahih Muslim hadith books Muhammad ibn Isa at-Tirmidhi (824-892) wrote Jami` at-Tirmidhi hadith books Al-Baladhuri (died 892) wrote early history Futuh al-Buldan, Genealogies of the Nobles                                 Ibn Majah (824- 887) wrote Sunan ibn Majah hadith book   Abu Dawood (817–889) wrote Sunan Abu Dawood Hadith Book             Muhammad ibn Ya'qub al-Kulayni (864- 941) wrote Kitab al-Kafi hadith book followed by Twelver Shia                     Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari (838–923) wrote History of the Prophets and Kings, Tafsir al-Tabari   Abu al-Hasan al-Ash'ari (874–936) wrote Maqālāt al-islāmīyīn, Kitāb al-luma, Kitāb al-ibāna 'an usūl al-diyāna             Ibn Babawayh (923-991) wrote Man la yahduruhu al-Faqih jurisprudence followed by Twelver Shia   Sharif Razi (930-977) wrote Nahj al-Balagha followed by Twelver Shia   Nasir al-Din al-Tusi (1201-1274) wrote jurisprudence books followed by Ismaili and Twelver Shia     Al-Ghazali (1058–1111) wrote The Niche for Lights, The Incoherence of the Philosophers, The Alchemy of Happiness on Sufism   Rumi (1207-1273) wrote Masnavi, Diwan-e Shams-e Tabrizi on Sufism               KEY: Some of Muhammad's Companions KEY: Taught in Medina KEY: Taught in Iraq KEY: Worked in Syria KEY: Travelled extensively collecting the sayings of Muhammad and compiled books of hadith KEY: Worked in Iran

See also

• Sharif al-Murtaza
• Al-Sharif al-Radi
• Shaykh Mufid
• Al-Shaykh Al-Mufid
• Al-Hurr al-Aamili

References

1. Shaikh Mohammed bin Yaqoob bin Ishaq Kulaini & Al Kafi @ islam-laws.com
2. Ali Akbar al-Ghaffari's introduction to his eight-volume edition of al-Kulayni's Usul al-Kafi , Tehran, 3rd edition 1388-), I, 9-13.
3. Ali Akbar al-Ghaffari's introduction to his eight-volume edition of al-Kulayni's al-Kafi , Ibid. I, 13-14.
4. Syed Waheed Akhtar: Early Imammiyah Shiite Thinkers
5. Meri, Josef W. (2005). Medieval Islamic Civilization: An Encyclopedia. USA: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-96690-0.
6. Islamic Texts Institute. Al-Kafi Book I: Intellect and Foolishness. Taqwa Media. ISBN 9781939420008.

External links

• Classical Islam: A Sourcebook of Religious Literature by Norman Calder, J A Mojaddedi, Andrew Rippin
• The Formative Period of Twelver Shi'Ism: Hadith As Discourse Between Qum and Baghdad by Andrew J Newman
• Great Shiite Works: Al-Kafi by Al-Kulayni by I. K. A. Howard in al Serat Journal.
• 'Al-Kafi' by Al-Kulayni by Dr. I. K. A. Howard Al-Serat, Vol. 2 (1976), No. 1
• The Trustworthy of Islam Kulayni No such page found - October 24, 2012
• The Buyid Domination as the Historical Background for the Flourishing of Muslim Scholarship During the 4th/10th Century by Dr. M. Ismail Marcinkowski* No such page found - October 24, 2012
• Shaikh Mohammed bin Yaqoob bin Ishaq Kulaini. & Al Kafi
• Islamic Texts Institute
• "Al-Kafi Book I: Intellect and Foolishness"