Reasons for Revelation in Books of Prophetic Biography: An Applied Study on the Book "Biography of the Messenger of Allah" by Imam Abu al-Mu'tamir Sulayman al-Basri

Abstract

This study aims to examine the reports of occasions of revelation (asbāb al-nuzūl) contained in Sīrat Rasūlullāh ﷺ  by Abū al-Muʿtamir Sulaymān al-Taymī al-Baṣrī (d. 143 AH). The research seeks to collect and analyze the reports cited by the author, investigate his methodology in presenting them, and distinguish authentic reports from weak ones according to the principles of hadith criticism and Qur’anic exegesis. The study addresses the following questions: Which Qur’anic verses did Abū al-Muʿtamir associate with specific occasions of revelation in his sīrah work, and which of these reports are authentic or weak? The research employs an inductive method to identify all relevant reports in the text, alongside an analytical and critical approach to evaluate their chains of transmission and contents through comparison with classical works on asbāb al-nuzūl, tafsīr, and sīrah. The findings reveal that Abū al-Muʿtamir mentioned twenty-nine reports concerning occasions of revelation. Nineteen of these reports were found to be authentic, while ten were deemed inauthentic due either to weaknesses in their chains of transmission or because they represent exegetical interpretations rather than actual occasions of revelation. The study also demonstrates a notable degree of agreement between Abū al-Muʿtamir’s narrations and those of Muqātil ibn Sulaymān and Muḥammad ibn al-Sāʾib al-Kalbī when they concur in reporting the occasion of revelation of a verse.