Seerah... Ibn Ishaq, Ibn Hisham etc...

[ibnMustafa]

Assalaamu Alaykum wa Rahmatullah,

I apologise in advance if this has been covered in other threads, I personally have not come across it.

My question is, insha'Allah those more knowledgeable than myself can answer, is regarding the authenticity and reliability of the early Seerah works. Are they worthwhile to invest in, or should one stick to the contemporary works on Seerah such as The Sealed Nectar and others etc. What have the scholars said about the works of Ibn Hisham and the likes? Anyone who has knowledge regarding this, please help me in getting a better understanding on this...

Jazak'Allahu Khayran

wasalaamu alaykum

[ibnMustafa]

I apologise, I forgot to ask aswell, if anyone has any good Seerah recommendations to let me know insha'Allah..

barak'Allahu feek'um

[Umm Sulaym]

Originally Posted by ibnMustafa

...if anyone has any good Seerah recommendations to let me know insha'Allah..

barak'Allahu feek'um

Walaykumusalam warahmatullahi wabarakatuh,

Brother I have the same question as you so inshaa'Allah someone knowledgeable can answer.

But for Seerah recommendations, in English:

'A Biography of the Prophet of Islam: In the Light of the Original Sources, An Analytical Study' - by Dr. Mahdi Rizqullah Ahmad, Translated by Syed Iqbal Zaheer; Darussalam Publications

-- the benefit of this book is that the author has extensive footnotes and references telling the reader whether the chain of narrations by Ibn Hisham/Ishaq (R) & others are authentic. Another benefit of this book is that it has almost each chapter concluding with 'Lessons and Implications' which helps the reader extract information that he can apply to his life from the Seerah of An-Nabi salalahu 'alayhi wasalam. It is short, concise and to the point with brief comments which put everything into perspective. If you have been exposed to the 'Noble Life of the Prophet' (3 vols.), one can say this is a much shorter version but with better references and footnotes especially regarding your concerns about Ibn Ishaq and Ibn Hisham (R).

Obviously an Arabic version can be found since these 2 vols. are translated. These volumes had been recommended by Sh. Kamal el Mekki in his Seerah series.
And Allah SWT knows best.

Wasalamu 'alaykum warahmatullah.

[ibnMustafa]

barak'Allahu feeki ukhti,

I will look out for the 2 volume set, I remember looking at it not long ago in a bookstore aswell...

I did look at the 3 Vol. set aswell, but I like extensive referencing, so I may invest in the Mahdi Rizqullah Ahmad 2 vol. set. Do you have any information on the author sister?

I guess we are both waiting for someone knowledgable to answer the question.. (smile)

Jazak'Allah khayr

[Umm Sulaym]

No, I don't know much about the author brother.

Just a word of caution (perhaps): the 2 vol. set is not comprehensive as a Seerah go-to-book. I compared it with the 'Noble Life of the Prophet' (also found on Kalamullah) and it seems that when compared that the 2 vol. set has lesser information (sometimes missing some parts) which may have been extensively talked about in the 3 vol. set.

Seerah books, all, have different themes. Depends on what the reader is looking for. Some authors focus only on Rasulalah salalahu 'alayhi wasalam's behaviour, while others on ghazwaat and so on and so forth. As a result, some info may be less emphasized compared to other bits of info. And Allah SWT knows best.

In the Preface of the 2 vol. set(pp.15), it's mentioned (and I quote):

"It has not been my endeavor to merely gather together under one title all the narratives that have come down to us concerning Prophet Muhammad salalahu 'alayhi wasalam but rather to present those that are fairly reliable for their authenticity. Reports are not so reliable have only been used in matters not pertaining to the creed or law. The large number of footnotes was therefore necessary. They demonstrate that if a narrative reported in biographies or war chronicles did not meet with the strict conditions set by Hadith scholars, then, there were others that supported it, or which offered circumstantial evidences, thus elevating the narrative to the level of acceptance for historical purposes. They also demonstrate that if Muslim historians did not observe strict rules of acceptance or rejection that the Hadith scholars had set for themselves, then, at least they had strong grounds to report what they were reporting."

***
Better suited to ask the question about Ibn Hisham & Ibn Ishaq in the 'Hadeeth Sciences & Islamic History' section inshaa'Allah. Maybe it'll be answered there inshaa'Allah.

Wasalamu 'alaykum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.

[56Abdullah]

Originally Posted by Umm Sulaym

But for Seerah recommendations, in English:

'A Biography of the Prophet of Islam: In the Light of the Original Sources, An Analytical Study' - by Dr. Mahdi Rizqullah Ahmad, Translated by Syed Iqbal Zaheer; Darussalam Publications

--------

Obviously an Arabic version can be found since these 2 vols. are translated. These volumes had been recommended by Sh. Kamal el Mekki in his Seerah series.
And Allah SWT knows best.

Respected Sister,
Is there any link to download the book (either in English or Arabic) from?
Or,
Can you please upload it, or PM me, please?

[Umm Sulaym]

None that I know of brother.

Perhaps Kalamullah brothers can be contacted. If they uploaded so many volumes of other books then surely 2 vol. is do-able inshaa'Allah.

Wasalamu 'alaykum warahmatullah.

[Abu emaan]

In no way am I questioning the sisters choice but I was looking for reviews of the book and I found this. Sister have you read through the book yourself, So you can verify what the reviewer is saying?

One of the worst books of seerah I've ever read. The translation is extremely choppy and seems to have been done by someone with a middle school level of command over the English language. The actual substance of the book isn't much better. Supposedly an "analytical study," the analysis of events is confined to bulleted points at the end of occasional chapters. Footnotes are devoted to long discussions on the authenticity/non-authenticity of certain narrations. The author decides some things are authentic which famous scholars say are non authentic, making the grading useless to English readers who don't have knowledge to check grading of hadith. Finally, the focus on this book is completely on military battles; the entire portion of the book discussing the character of the Prophet and his behavior is confined to one chapter, seemingly added as an afterthought. The ummahatul mumineen are given a paragraph on average. Save yourself time and money and read Raheeq ul makhtum (Mubarakpuri), In the Footsteps of the Prophet (Ramadan), or The Noble Life of the Prophet (Sallabi).

http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/306051283

[Umm Sulaym]

When I googled the book to search for a free copy for the brother, I saw the same review. So brother I know what you mean.

I have the 2 vols. and as I am reading it, I compare it regularly with the 'Noble Life of the Prophet' one and I repeat it's (the 2 vols. one) grading is definitely better because some narrations mentioned in the 'Noble Life' are marked as inauthentic in this book with precise explanation. If I recall where exactly, I will share inshaa'Allah.

Originally Posted by Abu emaan

One of the worst books of seerah I've ever read. The translation is extremely choppy and seems to have been done by someone with a middle school level of command over the English language. The actual substance of the book isn't much better. Supposedly an "analytical study," the analysis of events is confined to bulleted points at the end of occasional chapters. Footnotes are devoted to long discussions on the authenticity/non-authenticity of certain narrations. The author decides some things are authentic which famous scholars say are non authentic, making the grading useless to English readers who don't have knowledge to check grading of hadith. Finally, the focus on this book is completely on military battles; the entire portion of the book discussing the character of the Prophet and his behavior is confined to one chapter, seemingly added as an afterthought. The ummahatul mumineen are given a paragraph on average. Save yourself time and money and read Raheeq ul makhtum (Mubarakpuri), In the Footsteps of the Prophet (Ramadan), or The Noble Life of the Prophet (Sallabi).

If you read the above review carefully you would notice that the reviewer's expectations of the book were warped. Like I mentioned above, this is not a comprehensive Seerah book. What this book is good for is it's meticulousness in its level of grading which apparently the reviewer didn't like because he/she wasn't interested in it. Plus he/she expected the book to talk more about Rasulalah salalahu 'alayhi wasalam's in depth behaviour. Realistically speaking: 2 volumes are very short to dedicate to entire Seerah of Rasulalah salalahu 'alayhi wasalam and expecting it to contain details which the author doesn't even promise in his preface, is really inviting disappointment. The reviewer who was quoted above seemed very immature in his review and did a lot of injustice to the author's hard work. May Allah SWT forgive us and him. ameen!

It is a condensed version book with excellent grading of the narrations. It is rare to find Seerah books adhering to the rules of Hadith scholars because Seerah scholars are much more relaxed (not reducing the appreciation of their hard work but their objectives are different). It depends whether you're reading it for leisure (which is majority of the Muslims) versus for analytical study. Your expectations will change accordingly. On top of that these volumes contain lessons, they so far seem well-organized (lay out and flow), and are in English which makes it a collectible (at least for me). By the way, I don't get paid to advertise for the author.

While selecting a Seerah book, one has to know whether one's expectations and the author's preface match in order to avoid disappointment inshaa'Allah that is if it's such a big deal. Otherwise, the more we learn about Rasulalah salalahu 'alayhi wasalam, the more we desire to learn more and no Seerah book will ever be 'enough' in my humble opinion. And Allah SWT knows best.

Wasalamu 'alaykum warahmatullah.