The Words of the Imams: Al-Shaykh al-Ṣadūq and the Development of Twelver Shīʿī Hadith Literature

Ibn Babawayh – also known as al-Shaykh al-Saduq – was a prominent Twelver Shi'i scholar of hadith . Writing within the first century after the vanishing of the twelfth imam, al-Saduq represents a pivotal moment in Twelver h adith literature, as this Shi'i community adjusted to a world without a visible imam and guide, a world wherein the imams could only be accessed through the text of their remembered words and deeds. George Warner's study of al-Saduq's work examines the formation of Shi'i hadith literature in light of these unique dynamics, as well as giving a portrait of an important but little-studied early Twelver thinker. Though almost all of al-Saduq's writings are collections of h adith , Warner's approach pays careful attention to how these texts are selected and presented to explore what they can reveal about their compiler, offering insight into al-Saduq's ideas and suggesting new possibilities for the wider study of h adith . "Ibn Babawayh - also known by his honorific title of al-Shaykh al-Saduk - was an Imami Shiʻi scholar of the early Buwayhid period. He is best known as a major hadith scholar, being the author of Man la yahduruhu al-Faqih , one of the four canonical books of Shi'ite Islam. Despite his importance, al-Saduq has received little scholarly attention. Neither is there any book length study on Shi'i hadith literature, the discipline being overwhelmingly dominated by studies of Sunni hadith . George Warner's book fill this gap. It is a study of al-Saduq - one of the foundational figures of Twelver Shiʻism, a scholar of the hadith, a member of the Buwayhid court and a writer or great skill and ingenuity - and it sheds light on the richness of the later Abbasid religious and intellectual culture."-- Provided by publisher Ibn Babawayh - also known by his honorific title of al-Shaykh al-Saduk - was an Imami Shi'i scholar of the early Buwayhid period. He is best known as a major hadith scholar, being the author of Man la yahduruhu al-Faqih, one of the four canonical books of Shi'ite Islam. 0Despite his importance, al-Saduq has received little scholarly attention. Neither is there any book length study on Shi'i hadith literature, the discipline being overwhelmingly dominated by studies of Sunni hadith. George Warner's book fill this gap. It is a study of al-Saduq - one of the foundational figures of Twelver Shi'ism, a scholar of the hadith, a member of the Buwayhid court and a writer or great skill and ingenuity - and it sheds light on the richness of the later Abbasid religious and intellectual culture Half Title Title Page Copyright Page Dedication Contents Acknowledgements Introduction: Hadith, occultation and compilation Part I: Placing al-Ṣadūq Chapter 1: Living without an imam: Imāmī thought in the age of al-Ṣadūq  Chapter 2: Legal theory and the living imam: Al-Ṣadūq as a scholar of hadith Chapter 3: Hadith as literature: Al-Ṣadūq, adab and Imāmī traditionism at the Buwayhid court Part II: Reading al-Ṣadūq Chapter 4: Al-Tawḥīd: Theology and its limits Chapter 5: Kamāl al-dīn wa tamām al-niʿma: Looking for the imam Conclusion: Hadith literature and Twelver Shīʿism Appendix I Appendix II Notes Bibliography Index