Uzbekistan: a land multifarious geniuses. ABU SA’ID HAYSAM IBN KULAYB SHASHI (Part 2)

Haysam ibn Kulayb Shashi began to study from his early age. In order to understand the essence of the question under discussion, he used to attend the debates and discussions held between the experts and the learned people in different fields of knowledge. He attended the lessons led by Isa ibn Ahmad al-Asqalani and im­proved his knowledge day by day. Al-Asqalani died in 268, i.e. 67 years before Haysam ibn Kulayb Shashi’s death. After Al-Asqa-lani’s death, Haysam ibn Kulayb Shashi continued his studies and investigations on Hadiths. He also attended the lessons led by Imam Abu Isa Muhammad at-Termizi and other specialists in this field. As has been mentioned by Professor, Doctor of History Ubaydulla Uvatov, “…there is reliable information that Imam ash-Shashi had a great number of teachers and masters, more than fifty in number, and studied under the auspices of these scholars. A great expert in Hadiths Imam Abu Isa Muhammad at-Termizi and a scholar from Mecca Abu-l-Hasan al-Baghavi were also his masters”. Dealing with this matter, we can mention the list of Haysam ibn Kulayb Shashi’s teachers and masters:

1. Ibrahim ibn Abdullah al-Qassar al-Abasi al-Kufi (died in 279/ 892);
2. Ibrahim ibn Abdullah ibn Muslim ibn Mua’z Abu Muslim al-Kaji al-Basri (died in 292/905);
3. Ahmad ibn Khazim ibn Abu Gharza Abu Amr al-Kufi (died in 276/890);
4. Ahmad ibn Zuhayr Abu Haysama ibn Harb Abu Bakr an-Nasai al-Baghdadi (died in 279/892);
5. Ahmad ibn Ali ibn al-Fazl Abu Ja’far al-Khazzaz al-Muqri’ (died in 286/899);
6. Ahmad ibn Mulaib ibn Hayan Abu al-Fazl al-Baghdadi (died in 275/889);
7. Al-Kharis ibn Muhammad ibn Abu Asama Dahir Abu Muhammad at-Tamimi al-Baghdadi (died in 282/897);
8. Muhammad ibn Isa ibn Savra Abu Isa at-Termizi (died in 279/892);
9. Muhammad ibn Yunus ibn Musa ibn Sulayman al-Kadimi al-Basri (died in 286/899);
10. Yahya ibn Abu Talib Ja’far ibn az-Zabarqani (died in
    275/889).

Characterizing the peculiarities of Haysam ibn Kulayb Shashi in his book “Siyar a’lam an-nubala” (Descriptions of Famous Geniuses), a well-known historian Shamsuddin az-Zahabi wrote the following lines: “Haysam ibn Kulayb Shashi is a well-known and reliable expert in Hadiths and a traveller, Hafiz and writer”.

The same features of Haysam ibn Kulayb Shashi were men­tioned by a famous bibliographer Yaqut al-Hamavi. He stresses that “Haysam ibn Kulayb Shashi was a great imam, hafiz, traveller, expert in Hadiths and writer”. He received lessons on morality in Baghdad from a scholar Abu Muhammad Abdullah ibn Muslim ibn Qutayba. As has been stated in some sources, Haysam ibn Kulayb Shashi must have created some literary works. The future studies of his career are supposed to discover some of his activities in this field.

Describing the abilities of Haysam ibn Kulayb Shashi, a scholar Muhammad ibn Tahir ibn al-Qaysarani wrote the following lines in his book “Tazkirat al-Huffaz (Characteristic features of Hafizes): “Ash-Shashi al-Hafiz is a reliable expert in Hadiths. Abu Sa’id al-Haysam ibn Kulayb ibn Shurayh ibn Ma’qili ash-Shashi, an expert in Hadiths from Maveraunnahr, is the author of the book “Musnadi kabir” “.

The fact that Abu Sa’id al-Haysam ibn Kulayb ibn Shurayh ibn Ma’qili ash-Shashi was the author of the book “Al-Musnad” (Musnad al-kabir) is mentioned in all historical sources where his lile and creative activities were described. The sources we have looked through unanimously state: “Abu Sa’id al-Haysam ibn kulayb ash-Shashi is an imam, hafiz, reliable expert in Hadiths and the author of the book “Musnad al-kabir’’. In most if his books Shamsuddin az-Zahabi mentioned the name of this author. In his book “Tabaqat al-muhaddisin (Classification of Experts in Ha­diths) he wrote: “Abu Said al-Haysam ibn Kulayb ash-Shashi is a hafiz and the author of the book “Musnad” “.

The above-mentioned facts prove that Abu Said al-Haysam ibn Kulayb ash-Shashi was known throughout the world as “Imam Shashi”. The Arabic historians of the Middle Ages mention his name with a noticeable honour “Imam ash-Shashi” and stress the fact that he was a great expert in the science of Hadiths. The historical sources also mention that Abu Sa’id al-Haysam ibn Kulayb ash-Shashi had a number of disciples and followers. Some of them are as follows:

1. Abu Abdullah Muhammad ibn Is’haq ibn Manda al-Isfahani;
2. Abulqasim Ali ibn Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn al-Hasan al-
   Kuza’i;
3. Abu Nasr al-Bukhari al-Kalabazi;
4. Mansur ibn Nasr ibn Abdurahim as-Samarqandi and some
   others.

As was mentioned by an honourable mufti Ziyavuddinkhan ibn Eshan Babakhan, the former Chairman of the Headquarters of Muslims of Central Asia and Kazakhstan, a great scholar Abu Bakr Qaffal ash-Shashi of Shash was also one of the students and followers of Abu Sa’id al-Haysam ibn Kulayb ash-Shashi.

Abu Sa’id al-Haysam ibn Kulayb ash-Shashi’s greater part of life and creative activity was spent in Bukhara and Samarkand because most of his students and followers were in these cities. Some of them are as follows:

1. Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Abdullah ibn Basir, a scholar and Sheikh of the Shafi’iya order;
2. Abu Abdullah ibn Manda, an imam, hafiz, traveller, and expert in Hadiths;
3. Abu Nasr Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn al-Husain ibn al-
   Hasan ibn Ali ibn Rustam al-Bukhari al-Kalabazi, an imam and hafiz;

4. Abulfazl Mansur ibn Nasr ibn Abdurahim al-Kaghazi;
5. Mansur ibn Nasr ibn Abdurahim as-Samarqandi.

They studied the science of Hadiths under the auspices of Abu Sa’id al-Haysam ibn Kulayb ash-Shashi and cited Hadiths from him.

Shamsuddin az-Zahabi was mistaken by showing that the place of Abu Sa’id al-Haysam ibn Kulayb ash-Shashi’s death was in Samarkand in 335/947. Abu Sa’id al-Haysam ibn Kulayb ash-Shashi spent the last years of his life in Bukhara and then came back to Shash, and in 335/947 died in this city. This fact is mentioned in a number of reliable sources.