Thesis Chapters by Dr. Bilal Ahmad
Western ╒ad┘th studies have witnessed important developments in recent years with an increased in... more Western ╒ad┘th studies have witnessed important developments in recent years with an increased interest in both its text and its textual vehicle, generally known as matn and isn┐d respectively.
Hamdard Islamicus, 2021
Harald Motzki (d. 2019) is a highly accomplished scholar of ×adīth who used historical critical m... more Harald Motzki (d. 2019) is a highly accomplished scholar of ×adīth who used historical critical method in its study by offering a combination of isnād and matn analytical techniques. His method, the Isnād cum Matn Analysis has been adopted by his students at his university as well as elsewhere. This hybrid method for ascertaining the date and text of Traditions of the Prophet ×aÌrat Muhammad RasËlullah KhÉtam un NabiyyÊn Øallallahu 'alaihi wa 'alÉ Ólihi wa AÎÍÉbihi wa Øallam first compares the chains of transmission after combining them graphically as GHA Juynboll had done before him and in the second step, the variant texts transmitted by those chains are also compared. The oldest text elements are pointed out as well as the approximate date of that text. Its importance notwithstanding, his method and application have also been critically viewed by scholars of ×adīth and its history. The present paper analyses Motzki's application of the said method to Traditions of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) on ZakÉt al-FiÏr while also pointing out to some of the shortcomings of its application by Motzki.
Papers by Dr. Bilal Ahmad
Islamic Studies, 2015
Early Islam and Muslims have long caught the western historians' fancy. While the well-known work... more Early Islam and Muslims have long caught the western historians' fancy. While the well-known works of scholars like von Kremer (d. 1889), Muir (d. 1905), Goldziher (d. 1921), Lammens (d. 1937), and Margoliouth (d. 1940) are seen today as the cornerstones of modern western historiography of Islam, Leone Caetani (d. 1935)'s Annali dell'Islam 1 may well be called its courtyard. Although it is probably the only significant book written by Caetani who was an Italian prince and a brilliant historian on early Islam, even a glance at it instantly impresses an onlooker with its sheer volume and depth. From its meticulous chronologies of major as well as many minor events in the history of Islam to its in-depth analyses of those events and their sources, Annali may be rightly called a major macropedia of Islamic history in a western language. The current paper tries to understand the author's mind that went into it, taking a small sample from it which covers the Prophet Mu╒ammad (peace be upon him)'s biography or S┘rah, which is the starting point not only of Islamic history but also of Islam as we know it today.
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Thesis Chapters by Dr. Bilal Ahmad
Papers by Dr. Bilal Ahmad