Ahmad b. Muhammad b. Khalid al-Barqi: Difference between revisions

Al-Barqi was born around 200/815-16 in Kufa.His father was a disciple of Imam al-Kazim (a), Imam al-Rida (a), and Imam al-Jawad (a) and a scholarly man. <ref>Najāshī, Rijāl, p. 335. </ref>

Scholars of rijal regard al-Barqi as one of the disciples of Imam al-Jawad (a) and Imam al-Hadi (a), <ref>Ṭūsī, Rijāl Ṭūsī, vol. 1, p. 383; Ṭūsī, al-Fihrist, vol. 1, p. 116.</ref> but there is no mention of these two Imams (a) in al-Barqi's narrations. It is just mentioned in a hadith that in a travel to Samarra, a courier came from "the Man" and according to evidences, "the man" was Imam al-hadi (a). <ref>Kashshī, Ikhtīyār maʿrifat al-rijāl, vol. 2, p. 831. </ref>

Al-Najashi states that al-Barqi passed away in 274/887-88 but 'Ali b. Muhammad Majilawayh, his grandson and his student says that he passed away in 280/893-894. <ref>Najāshī, Rijāl, p. 70. </ref> In his funeral Ahmad b. Muhammad b.'Isa al-Ash'ari who banished him from Qom, participated barefoot as a sign of regret for what he has done.  

All the major shi'a scholars like al-Najashi, al-Shaykh al-Tusi and al-'Allama al-Hilli have praised al-Barqi and considered him as a reliable narrator. <ref>Najāshī, Rijāl, p. 76; Ṭūsī, al-Fihrist, p. 62; Ḥillī, Khulāṣat al-aqwāl, p. 63. </ref> Al-Barqi also has a special position among the Sunnis.  

The fact that al-Barqi used to narrate from unreliable narrators and take mursal hadiths as reliable hadiths caused that Ahmad b. Muhammad b. 'Isa al-Ash'ari, the head of hadith scholars of Qom, banish al-Barqi from Qom but after a while al-Ash'ari returned al-Barqi to Qom and apologized him. Al-Ash'ri participated in al-Barqi's funeral bareheaded (without 'imama (turban) ) and barefoot to show his sorrow and compensate his previous action. <ref>Ṭūsī, al-Fihrist, p. 62; Ḥillī, Khulāṣat al-aqwāl, p. 63; ʿAllāma al-Ḥillī, Rijāl, p. 14; Farshchīyān, Pīshgāmān-i tashayyuʿ, p. 104. </ref>

Al-Wahid al-Bihbahani writes: al-Barqi is certainly reliable and what the critics say is not proved and even if he trusted in unreliable narrators, we can just say that his approach in narrating hadith is not right. <ref>Bihbahānī,al-Fawāʾid al-rijālīyya, p. 43. </ref>

Ibn al-Ghada'iri also says: The criticism of Qummi hadith scholars were about those who al-Barqi narrated from, not al-Barqi himself. <ref>Ibn al-Ghaḍāʾirī, al-Rijāl, p. 39. </ref>

Al-Barqi has narrated approximately from 200 persons and mentioned about 100 books in the field. <ref>Āqāyī, Muqāayisa taḥlīlī-yi si chāp-i kitāb-i al-Rijāl-i Barqī. </ref> Ayatollah al-Khoei has discussed about them several times in his book. <ref>Khoeī, Muʿjam rijāl al-ḥadīth, vol. 2, p. 31,32,226,227,266,267. </ref>

• Mu'alla b. Muhammad. <ref>Khoeī, Muʿjam rijāl al-ḥadīth, vol. 2, p. 32. </ref>

 

His most important works are Rijal al-Barqi and Al-Mahasin. His other works are as followings: <ref>12. Ziriklī, Al-Aʿlām, vol. 1, p. 205; Kaḥḥālah, Muʿjam al-muʾalifīn, vol. 2, p. 98. </ref>

• Kitab al-rijal