Sahib ibn Abbad’s Rooznamejeh and His Daily Account of Baghdad

There is no doubt that most of post-Islamic Iranian ancient literature, either in Persian or Arabic, is still in the form of manuscripts which have not been corrected. Even those corrected and translated into Arabic have not yet been translated into Persian. Hence an Iranian reader who is unfamiliar with Arabic will not have the opportunity to enjoy this legacy of literature. One of these works, whose correction dates back to more than half a century ago and reflects the thoughts of a great Iranian figure, Sahib ibn Abbad, is Rooznamejeh. This book is of immense value because, firstly, the writer seems to be one of the first people to use this word in its current sense and secondly, it reflects the attitudes and beliefs of Sahib when he was aged around twenty and had not yet entered the Ministry. This paper firstly focuses on the use of the word “rooznamejeh” in ancient Arabic texts and the reason for Sahib’s presence in Baghdad where he wrote daily notes for his teacher Ibn al-Amid. As there is no other written text about Rooznamejeh except for Mohammed Hassan al-Yassin’s brief introduction, the paper then studies al-Yassin’s correction of this book and the parts he has not included in his correction. To do so it is necessary to answer two questions: Has al-Yassin referred to all the written accounts, books, etc. on Rooznamejeh in his correction? What groups and circles had Sahib mostly met on his journey to Baghdad, and why?  Due to his interest in Mu’tazila and scientific and literary debates and circles, Sahib mostly met the fuqahā and Sufis of Baghdad. Since the book’s author seems to have travelled to Baghdad only once, we can conclude that all the accounts of his meetings with the people of Baghdad are the lost parts of his Rooznamejeh.