Shaykh Ahmad ibn Abi Talib Tabarsi known as Shaykh Tabarsi (

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

: ), was a 12th-century

Shia Shia Islam is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political successor (caliph) and as the spiritual leader of the Muslim community (imam). However, his right is understood ...

scholar who died in 548 AH (1153 CE).

Life

Tabarsi was born in the year 1073 AD in

Tabaristan Tabaristan or Tabarestan (; ; from , ), was a mountainous region located on the Caspian coast of northern Iran. It corresponded to the present-day province of Mazandaran, which became the predominant name of the area from the 11th-century onward ...

province or some scholars said in

Tafresh Tafresh () is a city in the Central District (Tafresh County), Central District of Tafresh County, Markazi province, Markazi province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. Tafresh is located amidst high mountains sou ...

a city which was named at those days Tabres, Iran.Islamic Insights Magazine » Shaikh Tabarsi
/ref> He lived and taught in

Mashhad Mashhad ( ; ), historically also known as Mashad, Meshhed, or Meshed in English, is the List of Iranian cities by population, second-most-populous city in Iran, located in the relatively remote north-east of the country about from Tehran. ...

until the year 1128 AD. He wrote a number of books on doctrine, theology, ethics and grammar. He wrote his famous work, a commentary on the Quran, when he was over the age of sixty, living in Sabzawar.Bio of Shaykh Tabarsi
/ref> He had many students, most famous are his son Radhi ad-Din Tabarsi, author of the book
Makarim al-Akhlaq
', and Ibn Shahr-e Ashub. He was killed in the Oghuz invasion to Khorasan. The location of his grave is disputed as to it being within the Imām Ridhā Shrine complexShaykh Tabarsi Mausoleum Mashad
/ref> or whether it lies in

Mazandaran Mazandaran Province (; ) is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. Its capital is the city of Sari, Iran, Sari. Located along the southern coast of the Caspian Sea and in the adjacent Central Alborz mountain range and Hyrcanian forests, it is border ...

. The shrine located in Mazandaran was the location of the

battle A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force co ...

between the forces of the

Shah Shāh (; ) is a royal title meaning "king" in the Persian language.Yarshater, Ehsa, ''Iranian Studies'', vol. XXII, no. 1 (1989) Though chiefly associated with the monarchs of Iran, it was also used to refer to the leaders of numerous Per ...

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

and the Bábís, followers of the

Báb The Báb (born ʻAlí-Muḥammad; ; ; 20 October 1819 – 9 July 1850) was an Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbai ...

, over the period October 10, 1848 to May 10, 1849.

Work and contribution

Tabarsi had many works, but only around 20 of his books are survived to the present time. His main work is ''Majma‘ al-bayān'' (Compendium of Elucidations on the Exegesis of the Quran), a commentary (

tafsir Tafsir ( ; ) refers to an exegesis, or commentary, of the Quran. An author of a ''tafsir'' is a ' (; plural: ). A Quranic ''tafsir'' attempts to provide elucidation, explanation, interpretation, context or commentary for clear understanding ...

) of

Qur'an The Quran, also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation directly from God ('' Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which consist of individual verses ('). Besides ...

. While Shia Scholars have written many commentaries of the Quran, none has been able to match the eloquence and magnitude of his book. He completed writing this book in the year 1139 AD. His other works are al-Kafi al-shall and Jawami al-Jami.

Notes

References

* 1073 births 1153 deaths 12th-century Iranian writers People from Tafresh People from Qaem Shahr Burials in Mashhad Burials at Imam Reza Shrine Shaykh Tabarsi tomb, Imam Reza shrine,

{{Iran-bio-stub