نشریه آینه پژوهش
سال سی و چهارم شماره 4 (پیاپی 202، مهر و آبان 1402)

In this article, as part of the 29th series of essays titled  “Reading Manuscript” the author critically examines the texts of several manuscripts. The texts covered in this edition are as follow: 

A Note from Mīrzā Jalāl al-Dīn Tehrānī on a Manuscript
A Document Regarding Condemning the Sending Children for Education to Istanbul
Some Dates of the Governors Ruling Gilan Between 1264 to 1290
The Passing of Several Scholars from the Dashtaki Dynasty
Considering Alchemy a Religious Science
The Benefits of a Grape Orchard in Qarpozabad, Qazvin, an Endowment for the Children of Ayatollahs, Conditioned on Studying and Legality
The History of the Emergence and Rise of Nair-e Aazam Shahanshahi for the Kingdom.

One of the valuable sources of ancient Persian poetry is the notes written by the owners of handwritten manuscripts on the first and last blank pages, the intervals between chapters, and the margins of manuscript pages. The older the manuscripts and the more ancient the recording of these notes, the more valuable they become. In this article, 57 quatrains from five ancient manuscripts are extracted and presented with necessary explanations. These quatrains are attributed to poets such as Khayyām, Mahastī Ganjavī, Owḥaddīn Kirmānī, Kamāl Esmāīl Isfahani, and others. Some quatrains are without a specified author. Two quatrains in these sources are translations of Arabic verses, or vice versa, and are of considerable importance and reference from the perspective of comparative literature.

This article explores the inception of the movable type printing industry in Tehran’s Dar al-Khilafah by introducing and examining the first printed book in this type in Tehran. The author delves into the reasons behind the publication of this book during that period

The series of notes published under the title " Țūmār " in each issue of Ayeneh Pazhuhesh encompasses content in the field of Islamic studies and book critique. In the first issue of Țūmār, the following titles are presented:
1. From Knowledge to Pseudo-knowledge in Companions-Oriented Islam
2. The Role of Sect in Critiquing Ṣaḥīḥ Bukhārī
3. Contradictions in the Concept of Criticizing Sunnah
4. In Honor of His Virtue: Professor Shafiei Kadkani and the Book "Galandariyyah dar Tarikh"
5. Qom Seminary and the Specialized Library of Hadith Sciences: Greater than the Library of Shiite in the Third Millennium; Foundations and Functions

This classic introduction in the field of hermeneutics, published in Persian for the first time, encompasses a wide range of approaches to interpreting the sacred text. Manfred Oeming, a professor of theology of the Old Testament at Heidelberg University, provides a brief history of philosophical hermeneutics, offering a clear structure to emphasize the existence of different approaches to interpreting a text and explaining the necessity of such diversity. In this article, which essentially serves as the first chapter of the book "An Introduction to Contemporary Biblical Hermeneutics," Oeming aims to introduce perspectives on the Bible and sacred texts by taking a brief look at interpretative traditions from Plato to the contemporary period.

It is widely accepted among researchers that the original language of Manichaean writings was the Aramaic language. However, scholars have refined their understanding over time. Two pivotal articles, translated in this essay, mark a turning point in the history of Manichaean studies regarding this issue. The language of Mani is considered a dialect of the Aramaic language, and Manichaeans translated his writings from this dialect into other languages. However, it is important to note that this dialect was not the language of the city of Edessa.

One of the research areas between Iranian and Arab cultures is common proverbs. By examining ancient and contemporary proverbial books in these two cultures, we encounter numerous similar proverbs, with contemporary ones being more prevalent in both cultures. These common proverbs sometimes share themes and, at times, are identical. According to the author's research, the highest similarity among contemporary Arabic proverbs is observed between Persian and Iraqi proverbs, especially in the city of Baghdad. Many similar proverbs can be found between these two cultures, and notably, several Persian proverbs are commonly used in both Persian and Kurdish languages among them.

In the third issue of "Writings," at first (6) a section of the chapter "Iranian Middle Ages" by Walter Bruno Henning is translated. Prior to that, we have provided explanations about related research on his scrutinized texts in this writing, which has been conducted after his passing. In the next section (7), the oldest example of the prayers of "One Hundred and Twenty" from a Khutanī text is introduced. Finally, in section (8), additional explanations are given about the two terms in ancient Arabic-Persian culture (1401).

The book “Arba’īn”  by by As'ad ibn Ibrāhim Irbalī has gained recognition among Shiite writers, at least from the eighth century, and discusses the virtues of Amir al-Mu'minin (peace be upon him). Irbalī 's obscurity among later Shiites, coupled with occurrence of changes in recording his names, has led Shiite bibliographers to confusion, resulting in the emergence of two personalities: "As'ad ibn Ibrāhīm al-Ḥillī" and "Sa'd al-Irbalī." A textual analysis of the book Arba’īn, in comparison with historical information, indicates that As'ad ibn Ibrahim Irbalī refers to none other than Abu al-Majd al-Nashābī, a prominent poet, writer, and influential figure of the seventh century. Moreover, by comparing Arba’īn  by Irbalī with Arba’īn  by Muhammad ibn Abi Muslim ibn Abi al-Fawāris, it becomes evident that Irbalī ‘s Arba’īn  is, in fact, a manipulated version of Ibn Abi al-Fawāris’s work. Even the introduction to Irbalī ‘s Arba’īn is fabricated and is based on the introduction of Ibn Abi al-Fawāris’s Arba’īn. The alterations in Irbalī's writing are extensive and follow relatively clear patterns. Finally, considering As'ad ibn Ibrahim's religious and political inclinations, as well as his personal, social, and literary characteristics, it seems inappropriate to attribute this book to him. It is likely that a forger with a penchant for (Ghuluv) exaggeration in the seventh century, by applying changes in Abi al-Fawāris’s Arba’īn, ascribed a new composition to As'ad ibn Ibrahim.

This article provides an introduction and critique of the book " Early Islam and the Birth of Capitalism" by Benedict Kohler. In this work, the author extensively uses historical evidence to argue that the motivation for wealth creation, entrepreneurship, engagement with free markets, and global trade has roots in the teachings of Islam and the culture of early Islamic centuries. In doing so, he critiques and complements Max Weber's idea in the famous book "The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism" and attempts to demonstrate that the origin of capitalism can be traced back not to the era of the Protestant Reformation in Europe but to the early Islamic period in the Arabian Peninsula. Although this book is a noteworthy interdisciplinary research with many innovative points, some serious criticisms can be addressed, including the lack of reference to primary sources, overlooking ongoing debates and ambiguities regarding the history of Islam due to the insufficient availability of clear and sufficient evidence from the first two centuries of Islam, the relatively low reliance of the author on Quranic verses, neglecting a nuanced understanding of capitalism, and adopting a reductionist approach towards religion in downplaying its role to mere ideology.

Book Covenant is a new section in the Ayeneh Pazhuhesh journal where we introduce newly published books in the fields of Islamic studies, religious studies, history, culture, and art in Muslim societies. Our priority is to introduce books that have not been translated into Persian and have been published by reputable academic publishers.
In this issue, we introduce three books:
“The Modern Arabic Bible”
“Judaism and Islam: Boundaries and Interactions”
“Imagination of the Ancient World in Islamic Societies”

The following content includes a conversation with five experts in the fields of Islamic studies and Quranic studies on the occasion of completing the Persian translation of the "Encyclopedia of the Quran." Mohammad Ali Amir Moezzi has pointed out two important shifts in Quranic studies: the emergence of revisionists and the use of contemporary non-Islamic sources alongside the Quran, such as Syriac Christian texts and archaeological studies in Arabia. He further discusses his Quranic activities and efforts to emphasize Shiite sources in Islamic studies research. Devin J. Stewart traces the history of Quranic studies, initially emerging as a subfield under the studies of the Bible, pausing during World War II, and eventually evolving into more organized, collective, and national research after the publication of " The Syro-Aramaic Reading of the Koran " by Christoph Luxenberg. He introduces the "Encyclopedia of the Quran" as born in such an environment. Sajjad Razavi highlights three main concerns in Western Quranic studies: history, compilation and codification of the Quranic text; intertextuality: examining the Quran in relation to various pre-existing texts; and Quranic exegesis. He, while emphasizing the importance of translating classical works into Persian in the field of Islamic studies, lists the strengths and weaknesses of the "Encyclopedia of the Quran." Seyyed Ali Aghaei describes the general features of encyclopedic works and recognizes them in the "Encyclopedia of the Quran." These features include being report-like, requiring updates over time based on new research, and introducing the diverse space of research and new theories. Morteza Karimi-Nia, while stressing the superiority Persian language and Iranian researches in Quranic studies compared to other Islamic countries, criticizes the formality and quantity-oriented approach dominating Iranian academic centers and the neglect of familiarity with and raising new questions in the field of Quranic studies.

The commentary attributed to Imam Hasan ibn Ali al-Askari (AS) is one of the significant early Shiite narrative exegeses from the third century. It has been a subject of controversy, criticism, and discussions among both early and later Imamiyah scholars. Due to certain weak and incorrect content in this commentary and debates surrounding it, along with the question of its attribution to the Eleventh Imam (AS), the issue arises: if the current text of the commentary does not belong to Imam Hasan al-Askari (AS) or his venerable forefather, then who is the author? Is there any evidence to demonstrate that this work belongs to a specific individual? Recently, a comprehensive book addressing the attribution and recognition of the author of "Tafsir Askari" has been written, consisting of thirteen chapters. This paper introduces this book, provides a summary of its chapters and findings, identifies the author of "Tafsir Askari," and, by reviewing evidence from the commentary and other historical documents, argues that the author of the commentary is indeed Hasan ibn Ali al-Askari, also known as Nasir Lil-Hagh Aṭrūsh, the Alawi ruler of Tabaristan and Imam of the Zaidiyah.

The book “Criticisms and Doubts of the Imami Shia Against Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī and Rejecting them” authored by Dr. ‘Ādil ‘Azzāzī has recently been published in four volumes and nearly two thousand five hundred pages in Cairo, Egypt. This book is the author's doctoral dissertation in the Faculty of Hadith Sciences of Al-Azhar University, Egypt, which was defended with honors. The central theme of this book is the response to the criticisms of Shia against Bukhārī's al-Jāmi al- Ṣaḥīḥ book, which has been published in the contemporary century by Shia writers, especially of Iranian origin, in criticizing and evaluating al-Jāmi al- Ṣaḥīḥ book and its author. Some of these criticisms refer to Bukhārī's personality and another type refers to the content of hadiths in al-Jāmi al- Ṣaḥīḥ. The main issue of this article is the critical analysis of Bukhārī's recognition chapter from the first volume of this book, which has criticized the content of this chapter and the author's approach in compiling it with a pathological approach. The findings of this article prove that the myth-making approach of Bukhārī is evident in Dr. ‘Azzāzī's book, and his claims in Bukhārī's translation face serious historical challenges and criticisms. The critical analysis of the author of the article is based on a specific theoretical framework in criticizing the Muslim heritage, which is explained in the first part of the article. The first part is dedicated to the criticism of al-Jāmi al- Ṣaḥīḥ in the struggle of criticism and defense of the intellectual currents of the contemporary century. In the second part, the approach of mythology in Bukhārī's description is analyzed. In the third part of the myth of “Bukhārī; Amir al-Mu’mīnīn Fi Hadith" has been analyzed and criticized.

The present article is a translation of Professor David Samuel Margoliouth's (1858-1940) paper, in which eleven words have been added to the extensive list previously compiled by Arthur Jeffery (1892-1959) for foreign words used in the Quran. These words are categorized into Hebrew/Aramaic, Syriac, and Ethiopian languages. Furthermore, the author has endeavored to complement Jeffery's masterpiece while maintaining the analytical and writing style. Examining Persian translators indicate that Persian-speaking researchers have not yet paid attention to this article. They have also tried to provide this valuable article in a more suitable form for readers by adding explanatory notes.

One of the works of Allāma Mīr Hāmed Hussein is his first Manhaj known as "Abaqāt," recently, the section containing the verses of this Manhaj has been researched, edited and published by Mohammad Javad Rajabzadeh. This writing provides a critical examination of the conducted research and highlights some shortcomings in the adopted research methods. Numerous errors in reading the text of the manuscript, lack of precise comparison with existing manuscripts, failure to observe fidelity in reflecting the text of the manuscript, and insufficient comparison of many citations with sources are among the deficiencies of this research. Although it is rare to find a research free from these flaws, what has happened in the mentioned research, and what we seek to prove, is the multiplicity and diversity of mistakes related to the mentioned issues. In this writing, after explaining the shortcomings and some of their reasons, we present 65 pieces of errors from the edited text as a handful of examples. In the course of discussing the shortcomings and their solution, in addition to proving the need for a critical review of the first Manhaj of Abaqāt, practical insights and points for those interested in the field of manuscript edition will be addressed.