Abstract:

This article explores the significance of Abū Jaʻfar al-ʻUqaylī’s (d. 322/934) Kitāb alDu ʻafā on the weak transmitters of hadith. Its significance lies in its status as the marker of a new era in the historical development of the duafā literature for the following reasons. Firstly, with Kitāb al-Duʻafā, the number of narrators included in a duafā work increased considerably, compared to previous representatives of the literature. Secondly, the book criticizes narrators with explanatory remarks that consist of a few sentences rather than simply with specific terms of jarh and taʻdil, as well as with examples from narrators’ mistaken ahadith that led to their impugnment. Thirdly, unlike the early duafā authors, ʻUqaylī also frequently referred to former hadith critics’ opinions. Last but not least, Kitāb al-Duʻafā is distinguished with a prologue that establishes the legitimacy of hadith criticism and examines its history. The paper argues that although the same features are also found –often in a more sophisticated manner- in Ibn Hibban’s (d. 354/965) Kitāb al-Majrūhīn and Ibn ʻAdī’s (d. 365/976) al-Kāmil, ʻUqaylī’s Kitāb al-Duʻafā should be regarded as the precursor of a new phase in the duafā literature, due to its chronological precedence.

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