Sufi Qurn Commentary

(Draft, not for citation without

permission.) by Dr. Alan Godlas

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Al-Tafsr al-f (Sufi Koran exegesis), also referred to as al-tafsr
al-eshr or be'l-eshra (Koran exegesis through allusion), is a littlestudied, controversial, and voluminous genre of Koran commentary,
the key feature of which is the "unveiling" (kashf) to the individual Sufi
commentator of a relationship between a Koranic verse and Sufi
concepts. Although the only comprehensive scholarly work on this
genre is the Turkish r tefsr okulu (Ate, 1974), Paul Nwyia
investigated the primacy of the individual experience of the
commentator in Sufi hermeneutics as well as the development of a Sufi
vocabulary for expressing this (Nwyia, 1970). Because Sufi
commentators frequently move beyond the "apparent" (her) point of
the yt on which they are commenting and instead relate Koranic
yt to the "inner or esoteric" (ben) and metaphysical dimensions
of consciousness and existence, they have often been criticized
(Dhahab, vol. 2, pp. 337-378; Mashann, pp. 639-650). The validity of
such criticism is itself questionable, however, when it reaches the
extent of conflating Sufi tafsr with Isml (benya) tawl.
Although both Sufi tafsr and Isml tawl may share the
designation of "tawl" and are superficially similar, in fact they are two
distinct kinds of hermeneutics. On the one hand, two significant
features of Isml tawl are as follows: first, its method derives from
the foundation (ass) that is the Imam; and second, in Isml tawl
the object of the yt revealed by tawl is also often the Imam (Walker
1993, 124-133 and 1994, p. 120; Habil, p. 36; Nanji, p. 192; Corbin,
1975, p. 523; Corbin 1983, p. 99; Daftary, p. 388). On the other hand,
first, in Sufi tafsr the method is kashf (an unveiling to the heart of the
interpreter)--contingent not on the Imam but variously on the grace of
God, the spiritual capacity of the interpreter, and the degree of one's
spiritual effort; and second, in Sufi tafsr the object revealed is largely

related to Sufi practice or to an ontological or anthropological aspect of

Sufi doctrine but is not claimed to invalidate the exoteric meaning of
the ya. In spite of the often obfuscating criticism, even Sunni scholars
such as Ghazl (d. 505/1111), Ebn Qayyem Jawzya (d. 751/1350),
Sheb (d. 790/1388), and Sad-al-Dn Taftazn (d. 793/1390)
accepted Sufi tafsr as being legitimate as long as certain conditions
were met (Gatje, pp. 228-230; Dhahab, vol. 2, pp. 357-58, 366-369;
Qan 309-10). One contemporary scholar even defended Solam's
aqeq al-tafsr (see below) against the charge of being Isml,
stating that since Solam did not deny the exoteric meaning of the
Koran or declare it to be invalid, the aqeq should not be considered
to be among the works of the Ismls (benya) (NoqrSH, p. 188).
Although many Sufis wrote commentaries on individual sras
(such as Srat Ysof) or particular yas, this survey only covers the
Sufi tafsrs that are extant and that generally dealt with the whole of
the Koran (although such commentaries would often omit a number of
ya per sra). Furthermore, this article is limited to commentaries in
Persian or the Iranian sphere and to other commentaries that either
influenced or were influenced by such commentaries. See Ate (1974)
for Sufi tafsrs that are outside the scope of this essay.
Based largely upon the analysis of Gerhard Bwering we can
divide the history of Sufi Koran commentary into five phases
(Bwering, 1991, pp. 42-43). The elementary phase, lasting from the
2nd/8th to the 4th/10th centuries, consists of two stages. The first of
these two stages Bwering terms that of the forebears" of Sufi Koran
commentary. These are asan Bar (d. 110/728), Jafar deq (d.
148/765), and Sofyn Thawr (d. 161/778). Of these three
commentators, the most significant was the sixth Shiite Imam, Jafar
deq, whose commentary (as recorded by Solam [d.412/1021] ) was
transmitted to his son, Imam Ms Kem (d. 183/799), from him to his
son, Imam Al Re (d. 203/818), and from him through a chain of
transmission to Solam that Bwering has shown to be historically
problematic (Bwering, 1991, p. 53-55; 1994, pp. 18-22; Nwyia, 1968).
The elementary phase in its second stage consists of Solam's
commentary and the following seven Sufis who, in addition to Jafar
deq, were Solam's primary sources: Dhu'l-Nn Mer (d. 246/861),
Sahl Tostar (d. 283/896), Ab Sad Kharrz (d. 286/899), Jonayd (d.
298/910), Ebn A dam (d. 311/923), Ab Bakr Wse (d. 320/932),
and Shebl (d. 334/946). Of these, it is possible that only Tostr, Ebn
A, and Wse may have been compilers of separate Sufi Koran
commentaries (Nwyia, 1973; Bwering, 1991, p. 42). Tostar's tafsr,
written in Arabic and published uncritically, is the only tafsr of these
authors to survive independently. Bwering, in his thorough study of
Tostar's tafsr, showed that its structure is comprised of three main
levels: Tostar's own commentary on Koranic verses, his statements
and those of pre-Islamic prophets on various mystical subjects, and

comments inserted into the tafsr by later Sufis (Bwering, 1980, pp.
129-30).
Undoubtedly the most significant author of Sufi Koran
commentary prior to the 6th/12th century is Solam, without whose
commentary almost the entirety of the Koran commentary of the first
generations of Sufis would have been lost. Solam, whose full name
was Ab Abd-al-Ramn Moammad b. osayn Azd Solam Naysbr,
was a Shfe who around 325/937 (or 330/942) was born in Naysbr,
where he also died in 412/1021. Bwering has published his edition of
the unique manuscript of Solam's minor commentary, Zidt aqeq
al-tafsr (1995), and is currently editing his major commentary, the
aqeq al-tafsr. These commentaries--both of which are in Arabic
and consist of esoteric commentary on selected verses of the Koran
arranged in accordance with the Koran's traditional order--are almost
entirely compilations of commentaries of earlier Sufis, whose names
Solam cited. Ate briefly discussed each of Solam's seventy-four
primary Sufi sources (1969, pp. 76-95). Although Solam's tafsrs are
essentially collections of the exegeses of other Sufis, his creative
genius is evident in the fact that it is largely through his work that the
Koranic commentaries of the early Sufis have been preserved. Solam
himself stated that the very reason he composed his commentary was
because he saw that authorities of the exoteric sciences (al-olm alawher) had written much about the exoteric implications of the
Koran, but that no one had collected the understanding of the Koran as
expressed by the "folk of the Truth" (ahl al-aqqa), which is to say, by
the Sufis (aq'eq, f. 1b). The tafsrs most directly influenced by
Solam are those of Daylam, Rzbehn, and Gsuderz, which will be
discussed below. In addition, an influence of Solam's tafsr (of Srat
al-Ftea in the aqeq) upon Shiite literature is seen in the Shar
Tawid al-adq of Q Sad Qomm (d. after 1107/1696) (pp. 626635). The overall importance of Solam's commentaries has been
highlighted by Bwering, who has asserted that Solam's aqeq is to
Sufis what abar's tafsr is to the Sunni community as a whole and
that Solam's commentaries are as important to pre-sixth/twelfth c.
Sufism as Ebn Arab's major works are to later Sufism (Bwering,
1991, p. 56).
The second phase of Sufi tafsr, lasting from the fifth/eleventh to
the seventh/thirteenth centuries, consists of three different forms:
moderate Sufi commentaries, esoteric commentaries deeply indebted
to Solam, and commentaries written in Persian. Moderate
commentaries are those that include esoteric Sufi tafsr as well as
commentary based on transmissions (rewyt) from the Prophet,
companions, and early commentators as well as discussion of syntax,
grammar, historical context, feqh, and similar exoteric questions. One
work of the "moderate" form is al-Kashf wa-'l-bayn an tafsr al-Qorn
of Ab Eq Amad b. Moammad b. Ebrhm thalab (d. 427/1035)

(see Goldfeld), better known for his Ares al-majles f qea alanbi. thalab, who had read the entirety of the aqeq al-tafsr to
Solam himself, included in his commentary not only Sufi eshrt, but
hadith, commentaries of the early Muslim generations, Esrlyt, and
discussions of syntax and feqh. Hence, Ate considered it to be both
an exoteric (her) and a Sufi esoteric (ben) work (Ate, 1974, p. 97).
Another example of this "moderate" form is Abd-al-Karm
Qoshayr's (d. 465/1074) Laef al-eshrt, written in Arabic, and
examined to a degree by R. Ahmad (pp. 16-69) and by its modern
editor, Basyn (Qoshayr, vol. 1, pp. 3-37). In the Laef, Qoshayr-who was a Shfe-- for the most part explicated the literal meaning of
Koranic verses, although at times he discussed the esoteric meaning of
an ya. In spite of the fact that Qoshayr, unlike Solam, did not cite
earlier authorities, Ate maintained that Qoshayr frequently utilized
Solam's tafsr, borrowing poetry from Solam and contemplating
Solam's tafsr while writing the Laef (1974, p. 100). In addition to
the Laef al-eshrt, Qoshayr wrote another Sufi commentary which
is still in manuscript, "The Great Commentary" (al-Tafsr al-kabr), but
which has briefly been discussed by Bwering (1989, p. 571).
A final example of "moderate" commentary of this period is the
Arabic tafsr, Noghbat al-bayn f tafsr al-Qorn of Shehb-al-Dn Ab
afOmar b. Moammad Sohraward (d. 632/1234), the famous
Shfe author of the Sufi manual Awref al-maref. It is extant only
in manuscripts (Brockelmann, GAL, SI, p. 789, #4) --one of which was
copied with the permission (ejza) of Sohraward himself (Ate, 1974,
p. 161). According to Ate, Noghbat al-bayn is largely an exotericly
oriented tafsr, although to a certain extent it does deal with asceticism
(zohd) (Ate, 1974, p. 162).
What distinguishes the second form of Sufi commentary from
other Sufi tafsrs of the second phase or period is that both examples
of the "second form" consist almost entirely of esoteric Sufi
commentary; they cannot be considered to be part of a "school" of
commentaries; and they were written in Arabic. Tadq al-maref or,
as it is also titled, Fot al-Ramn f eshrt al-Qorn was written by
the little known Sunni Sufi, Ab Thbet Abd-al-Mlek Daylam (d.
598/1193) and was only recently discovered by Bwering (and is still
unpublished). Although commentary from Solam's authorities in the
aqeq al-tafsr comprises about half of Daylam's tafsr, Daylam did
not just directly import this material, but rather seems to have
elaborated on it. The source of the remaining half of the content of the
Tadq al-maref is Daylam himself (Bwering, 1987, p. 232).
The other tafsr of the second form of the second phase, Ares
al-bayn f aq'eq al-Qorn--written by the Shfe Sufi, Ab
Moammad Rzbehn b. Ab Nar Baql Shrz (d. 606/1209)--is similar
to Tadq al-maref in a number of ways, while also exhibiting some
differences. Like Daylam's tafsr, Rzbehn's Ares al-bayn is an

esoteric Sufi tafsr, written in Arabic, comprised almost equally of

material from earlier tafsrs and commentary from the author himself.
Among the differences between the two tafsrs are that (in addition to
using his own commentary) Rzbehn directly borrowed from Solam's
two tafsrs, quoting his authorities verbatim without any
embellishment. Consequently, Ares al-bayn became the primary
vehicle for the transmission of much of Solam's Zidt for ninehundred years (until Bwering's recent discovery and publication of the
Zidt); and the Ares is the only major witness to the unique
manuscript of the Zidt. A second significant difference between
Daylam's tafsr and that of Rzbehn is that Rzbehn included much
Sufi material from Qoshayr's Laef al-eshrt in the Ares; while
Daylam apparently did not utilize Qoshayr as a source (Bwering,
1987, p. 232). A final point concerning the Ares al-byan is that
although it was published in lithograph, it is rare and riddled with
significant errors. Hence al-al-Dn w began an edition, which is
now being followed by Godlas, who, after having located sixty-five
manuscripts, is working on a critical edition, translation, and study of
its entirety (Godlas, 1991, p. 33; 1996, p. 31, and forthcoming).
The third form of the second phase consists of the two Persian
commentaries of Maybod (d. 530/1135) and Darwjik (d. 549/115455). The first of these, Abu'l-Fal Rashd-al-Dn Maybod's published
tafsr, Kashf al-asrr wa-oddat al-abrr, is known as the commentary of
the Khwjah Abd-Allh Anr (d. 481/1089) (a anbal), since it
contains much of Anr's esoteric commentary. Nevertheless,
Maybod (a Shfe) added his own esoteric commentary, extensive
traditional tafsr be'l-rewya, and other exoteric commentary on
matters such as variant readings, feqh, contexts of revelation (asbb
al-nozl), and related hadith, in addition to a literal translation of the
Koranic Arabic into Persian. The literature on Kashf al-asrr has been
surveyed by Masarrat (1374 ./1995) and papers delivered at a
conference on Maybod were edited by Pindar (1374/1995).
There is some confusion concerning the name of Darwjik and
the title of his unpublished Persian tafsr, which appears to have been
composed in Bukhara in the year 519/1125 (Storey, I/1, p. 4).
Bwering only lists the nesba, Darwjik, along with his death date,
549/1154 (Bwering, 1991, p. 42). Storey at first listed his name as
Ab Nar Amad b. asan b. Amad Solaymn and noted that he was
"commonly called 'Zhed' " (Storey, I/1, p. 4). Later, Storey gave a
few possibilities for his name and nesba (including Darwjik) but noted
that a ms. discussed by Ritter provided a nearly identical author's
name--Ab Nar Amad b. asan b. Amad--whose nesba was
tentatively "Daran" and whose death was in 549/1154-55 (Storey, I/2,
p 1190). Various titles given to the tafsr are Tafsr-e Zhed, Tafsr-e
Sayf-al-Dn, Laef al-tafsr (Storey, I/1, p. 4 and I/2, p. 1190) and
Tafsr-e Zhed, Tafsr-e DRwJk, and Laef al-tafsr (Nser and

Dnesh Pazhh, p. 218). Storey listed a number of manuscripts (most

of which are partial) and also noted that a characteristic of this tafsr is
the reoccurrence of the Arabic phrase, Qla al-Shaykh al-emm alzhed (the shaikh, the ascetic, the leader [or the ascetic leader] said)
(Storey, I/1, p. 1190).
The third phase of Sufi commentary, written from the beginning
of the seventh/thirteenth to the middle of the eighth/fourteenth
century, consists of what Bwering has termed the commentaries of
Sufi "schools," most importantly those of Najm-al-Dn Kobr (Abu'lJannb Amad b. Omar)(d. 618/1221) and Moyi'l-Dn Ebn Arab (d.
638/1240) (Bwering, 1991, p. 42-43). One of the most urgent needs
in the scholarship of Sufi tafsr is the publication of the collective tafsr
of the Kobrwya tradition, often known as the al-Tawlt al-najmya. In
the most recent examination of the problematic authorship of this
tafsr, J. Elias concluded that Najm-al-Dn Kobr (a Shfe from
Khwrazm) may have written the first part--from the beginning of the
Koran to Srat al-DHrit 51:19--entirely by himself. It is also possible
that his disciple Najm-al-Dn Rz Dya (d. 654/1256) may have written
part of it. The first part--containing both exoteric and esoteric tafsr-has been variously titled Ayn al-ayt, al-Awref, and Bar al-aqeq
(Dhahab, vol. 2, p. 395; Elias, 1995, pp. 204-5). Nevertheless, Bar alhaqeq also appears to have been the title of a different tafsr written
by Najm-al-Dn Rz (Ate, pp. 142-44; William Shpall, 1981-84;
Sleymniye: ms. Hasan Hsn #37 mokarrar). Elias has
demonstrated, however, that Al-al-Dawla Semnn (d. 736/1336)
wrote a distinct commentary, one of the names of which is Tafsr Najm
al-Qorn and which is entirely esoteric. It begins with Srat al-r
(Srat 52) and covers the remainder of the Koran, although it is
prefaced by a long introduction and commentary on the Ftea and in
various mss. begins when the tafsr of Kobr/Rz leaves off (Elias,
1995, pp. 203-212; Dhahab, p. 395). The introduction was edited by
Nwyia (1973-77, pp. 141-57) and studied by Corbin (1978, pp. 121-44).
Elias edited various excerpts of Semnn's tafsr, basing his edition on
two related mss., one of which was collated with Semnn's own copy
(1991, pp. 281-321). Elias also discussed Semnn's understanding of
the Koran--which he explicitly expresses in his tafsr--noting that
according to Semnn one can become transformed into a mirror for
Divine attributes by contemplating the Qorn (Elias, 1995, pp. 107110).
Another tafsr related to the Kobraw school is that of the Shfe
scholar Nem-al-Dn asan b. Moammad b. osayn Qomm
Naysbr (d. 728/1327, but this is problematic). Although his tafsr,
Tafsr Ghareb al-Qorn wa-ragheb al-forqn (which has been
published), is largely a traditional exoteric tafsr, it includes significant
Sufi commentary, most of which--as the author himself stated-- came
from Najm-al-Dn Rz Dya (Naysbr, vol. 30, p. 223; Ayz p. 528;

Dhahab, vol. 1, p. 321). Zarqn noted that after Naysbr discussed

the exoteric meaning (her man) of an ya, he would write, "The
people of 'allusion' (eshra) say..." Or, he simply wrote "al-tawl" and
thereafter explicated the esoteric meaning (al-man al-eshr) of the
ya (Zarqn, vol. 2, pp. 82). M. Ayoub has translated excerpts of the
Sufi component of Naysbr's tafsr (1981, vol. 1, and 1992, vol. 2).
Ebn Arbs school of Koran commentary, influenced mainly by
Moyi'l-Dn Ebn Arab's writings and to a lesser degree by his
predecessor Ebn Barrajn, was continued by Qshn and afad
(Bwering, 1991, p. 43), although the connection of Safad to this
school is problematic. These tafsrs consist of independently
composed commentaries that nevertheless are united by their
common usage of Ebn Arab's terms and concepts. According to Ate-who described various mss. of the tafsr of Abd-al-Salm b. Abd-alRamn Abu'l-akam Eshbl, known as Ebn Barrajn (d. 536/1141) (d.
536/1141)--the tafsr of Ebn Barrajn greatly influenced Ebn Arab
(Ate, 1974, pp. 130-31). In addition, Ate argued that a partial
commentary--from Srat Ynus (10) to Srat al-r (52) --by Ebn Arab
is extant (ms. ehid Al Paa #62) and that it was a model for the
commentary of Qshn (Ate, 1974, pp. 178-79, 187-88). If Ate has
indeed correctly identified Ebn Arab as the author of this manuscript,
its publication is another of the major needs of the field.
Bwering noted that the tafsr of afad (d. 696/1296)--whose full
name was Jaml-al-Dn Ysof b. Hell b. (?) Abi 'l-Barakt alab anaf
Abu'l-Fael afad--was influenced by Ebn Arab's school of thought
(1991, p. 43). Ate demonstrated that this unpublished tafsr, the title
of which is Kashf al-asrr f hatk al-astr, had been mistakenly
attributed to Ebn Arab himself (Ate, 1974, p. 197). Although Ate, in
the table of contents of r tefsr okulu, lists afad's tafsr as being
among those that were influenced by the "unity of being" (wadat alwojd) (which is an important doctrine of Ebn Arab's "school"), later,
however, in his discussion of afad's exegetical method, Ate
concluded by stating that afad's tafsr did not exhibit the
characteristics of the "unity of being" (Ate, 1974, p. 202).
In contrast to afad, the tafsr of Abd-al-Razzq Qshn (d.
730/1330) clearly exhibits the influence of the "unity of being." This is
a major reason why even to this day Qshn's tafsr is known as the
"Tafsr of Ebn Arab" (ed. GHleb, 1401/1981). Studied by Pierre Lory
(1980), excerpts of this tafsr have been translated into English by
Ayoub (1981, vol. 1, and 1992 vol. 2). The most recent contribution to
the tafsrs of the "school" of Ebn Arab is a contemporary collection of
Ebn Arab's Sufi exegeses found throughout his works and compiled by
M. GHorb (Ayz, pp. 464-69).
The commentaries written in India and in regions ruled by the
Ottomans and Timurids, comprise the fourth phase of Sufi tafsr, the
period from the ninth/fifteenth to the twelfth/eighteenth century. Of all

the Sufi tafsrs written during this period, the tafsrs of Gsderz,
Kshef, Nakhjewn, Aziz Mahmd Hdy, and Esml aqq Bursaw,
are the most noteworthy. Although the Naqshbands KHhjah
Moammad Prs (d. 822/1419) and Yaqb arkh (d. 851/1447) wrote
tafsrs that contain some Sufi content, these did not cover the whole of
the Koran and so will not be dealt with here.
The great Chest shaikh, Sayyed Abu'l-Fat Moammad b. Ysof
osayn, a anaf, known as Khwjah Bandah'nawz and most
particularly by his ancestral name of Gsderz (long hair) (d.
825/1422), spent his life in Delhi and the Deccan during the periods of
Tughlaq and Bahmanid rule and wrote a still unpublished Sufi tafsr
(almost entirely in Arabic) that deals largely with Sufi themes (in
contrast to the assertion of M. Slem Qedw) (Hussaini, p. 20, citing
Qedw, pp. 174-76). It is similar in structure to but not dependent
upon the Ares al-bayn; which is to say that like Rzbehn,
Gsderz cited numerous verbatim passages directly from Solam's
aqeq al-tafsr (which he indicates by aqeq) and from
Qoshayr's Laef al-eshrt (indicated by "Laef") and included
significant commentary that is apparently his own--commentary which
is preceded by the designation al-multaqa (unexpectedly found
thing). Hussaini briefly discussed the tafsr and the manuscripts, one
nearly complete and one partial manuscript of which are extant in the
India Office (#109-111), while a partial copy is held in Lucknow
(Hussaini, pp. 11-13, 20, 39; Loth, p. 24).
The well-known author, Kaml-al-Dn osayn b. Al We-e
Kshef (d. 910/1504-5 in Herat), wrote the Persian Koran commentary
Mawheb-e alya, which is also known as the Tafsr-e Hosayn.
Although Mawheb-e alya (uncritically published in 1938) is largely a
translation and exoteric commentary on the Koran, it has a significant
and evocative Sufi component. In spite of the fact that Kshef (who
was the brother-in-law of Abd-al-Ramn Jm and father of Fakhr-alDn Al f, the author of the Naqshband hagiography Rashat ayn
al-ayt ) was a prominent figure in Timurid Herat and an initiate in the
Sunni Naqshband order, the question of his madhab is problematic.
Some sources stated that he was a anaf, others a Shfei, and still
others a Shiite. Whatever the case may be, his tafsr (completed
899/1494) is described as being written in the style of the ahl-e
sonnat va-jamat (folk of the Sunna and congregation) and does not
exhibit Shiite characteristics (Nn, preface, pp. 13-21, 79). There are
three kinds of Sufi materials that Kshef cites in Mawheb-e alya:
earlier Sufi tafsrs, general Sufi prose treatises, and Persian Sufi poetry.
Most of the Sufi material in the tafsr derives from the Sufi comentaries
of Solam, Qoshayr, Anr/Maybod, and the Kobraw school, although
he occasionally cites other Sufi tafsrs such as that of Qshn and
possibly Darwjik (referred to by "al-Zhed"). Among the Persian Sufi
poets he frequently cites are Jall-al-Dn Rm, San, and KHhjah

Abd-Allh Anr. He also quotes from a number of other Sufi texts,

among them being Ebn Arab's al-Fott al-Makkya and a variety of
works of Jm.
Nemat-Allh b. Mamd Nakhjewn (Nakhjown) (d. 920/1514),
a anaf Naqshband shaikh, wrote in Arabic the Sufi tafsr (published
in 1325/1907) titled al-Fawte al-elhya wa-al-mafte al-ghaybya.
Originally from Nakhjewn in Azerbaijan, Bb Nemat-Allh or Shaikh
Alwn (as he was also known) completed his tafsr in 902/1497 in
Tabriz, and from there emigrated to Akehir in Anatolia, where he spent
the last sixteen years of his life and where his grave was well-known.
He did not cite any other Sufi tafsrs and appears to have written alFawte al-elhya without consulting any sources. Although he
commented on every ya of the Koran, the vast majority of his
exegesis consists of brief traditional exoteric commentary clarifying the
meaning of words. Nevertheless, in a substantial introduction to the
tafsr, at the beginning and end of every sra, and periodically
throughout his tafsr, Nakhjewn included Sufi-oriented material
involving the terminology and concepts of the school of Ebn Arab
(Nakhjewn, pp. ii (preface) and pp. 2-3; Ayz, pp. 563-566).
Aziz Mahmud Hdy (1038/1628), the prolific Turkish shaikh of
the Jelwat Sufi order, who lived most of his adult life in Uskudar (across
the Bosporus from Istanbul), gave discourses on the Koran that after
his death were composed into a tafsr titled Nafes al-majles. Written
in Arabic (but still unpublished), for the most part this tafsr consists of
exoteric commentary interspersed at times with Sufi commentary
dealing with aspects of the Sufi path such as asceticism (zohd),
"consciousness of God" (taqw), and "passing away in God" (fan
fi'llh). Although it has been asserted that Hdy wrote his tafsr
without referring to any other tafsrs, Ate observed the influence of
Solam on at least a part of the Nafes (H. Ylmaz, 111; Ate, p. 231).
The most extensive and comprehensive of all the Sufi tafsrs
written during this period is R al-bayn, by Esml aqq Bursaw (d.
1137/1725), a prolific scholar, who like Hdy was a Sufi shaikh of the
Jelwat order. A anaf, Esml aqq lived most of his life in Istanbul
and Bursa. R al-bayn (which has been published both in Turkey and
in the Arab world), written largely in Arabic, has both traditional
exoteric and Sufi dimensions. Its significance for the Iranian world lies
primarily in the fact that aqq often quoted from the tafsrs of the
Kobraw school, as well as from Solam, Qoshayr, Ebn Arab/Qshn,
Rzbehn, and Kshef. Furthermore, into his tafsr he weaves Persian
poetry from the likes of fe, Sad, Rm, and Ar. R al-bayn is
similar to Kshef's Mawheb-e alya, only more massive and with a
greater emphasis on Sufi tafsr.
The final period in the history of Sufi tafsr, from the
thirteenth/nineteenth c. until today, includes the tafsrs of Ebn Ajba,
Pnpat, Als, Soln Al Shh, af Al Shh, and Moll owaySH.

First of all, Amad b. Ajba (d. 1224/1809), a Moroccan Sufi, was the
author of the tafsr titled al-Bar al-madd f tafsr al-Qorn al-majd.
Only two volumes of the tafsr (until Srat al-Arf 7:9) ever appeared
in print (Ebn Ajba, 1375/1955 and 1376/1956). Largely neglected by
scholars of tafsr, al-Bar al-madd nevertheless contains significant
Sufi commentary. Ebn Ajba, an initiate of the Darqw order, stated
that he combined in his tafsr "both the explanations (ebra) of the
exoterics (ahl al-her) with the allusions (eshra) of the esoterics (ahl
al-ben)" (Ebn Ajba, 1410/1990, pp. 38-39; French translation by
Michon, 1968, vol. 15, p. 40) Although most of the Sufi sources of his
tafsr are from the Maghreb, Andals, or Egypt, in his tafsr he also
quotes from Iranian scholars such as Qoshayr and Rzbehn. Ebn
Ajba's quotations from Rzbehn have gone unnoticed because Ebn
Ajba referred to him as "al-WRTJB" (Godlas, forthcoming; and Michon,
1973, p. 275).
The tafsr of Pnpat, titled Tafsr al-Mahar, was written in
Arabic by Q than-Allh Othmn Fn Fat (Pnpat) anaf
Naqshband (d. 1225/1810) and has been published in 10 volumes.
Both Bwering and Ayz regard Pnpat's tafsr as a Sufi tafsr, and
Ayz also groups it among the Sufi tafsrs that use the hermeneutics of
allusion (al-eshr) (Bwering, 1991, p. 43; Ayz, pp. 833, 850).
Nevertheless, Ayz states that in spite of the fact that Q thanAllh (who lived most of his life in the North Indian state of Haryana)
was a Naqshband Sufi in the lineage of Amad Sirhind, his tafsr
consists almost entirely of exoteric commentary and only rarely deals
with "esoteric matters" (romz) and "mystical allusions" (eshrt)
(Ayz, p. 366).
Shehb-al-Dn Als, one of the most important nineteenth
century Iraqi scholars, was the author of the Arabic Koran commentary
R al-man f tafsr al-Qorn al-am wa-sab al-mathn. Abu'lthan Shehb-al-Dn Sayyed Mamd b. Abd-Allh osayn Als
Baghdd lived most of his life in Baghdad, where he died in
1270/1854. Affiliated with the Naqshband arqa of Mawln KHled
Baghdd, he was the mufti of Baghdad for a number of years and was
regarded as the shaikh of the scholars of Iraq (Dhahab, 1967, v. 1,
352-53; EI2, s.v. "Als"). Some sources assert that he was a Shfe,
others, however, maintain that he was a anaf (Ate, 1974, p. 250).
Although his massive tafsr deals largely with exoteric matters, it does
indeed have a significant Sufi component, one that is often introduced
by the phrase "men bb al-eshra" (from the domain of allusion). A
biographer of Als has stated that among the Sufi commentators upon
whom Als relied were Ebn Arab, Tostar, and Esml aqq (Abd-alamd, pp. 207-9). In addition, Als relied upon Rzbehn. This,
however, had gone unnoticed because Als --on numerous occasions
without attribution-- quoted the Ares verbatim or creatively
integrated passages from it into his tafsr (Godlas, forthcoming).

jj Mrz asan Efahn, known as af Al Shh (d.

1317/1899), wrote his unique Sufi tafsr in Persian poetry. Titled simply
Tafsr-e Qorn, it has been published in one large-size volume.
Regarded as one of the nineteenth century's premier poets, af Al
Shh was a Shiite Sufi shaikh of a branch of the Nematallh order
known as the af Al Shh or afya order, an order that was closely
connected to the Qjr court (Pourjavady and Wilson, pp. 252-53). In
his tafsr, written entirely in Persian rhymed couplets (mathnaw), af
Al Shh dealt with conventional exoteric subjects (such as various
Koranic narratives) but also frequently linked the Koran to explications
of Sufi metaphysics and the Sufi path.
Soln Moammad b. aydar Moammad b. Soln Moammad
Jonbd (Gonbd) (d. 1327/1909), a Shiite Sufi known as Soln Al
Shh, was the author of the published Arabic Koran commentary
Bayn al-sada f maqmt al-ebda (Ayz, p. 212). Originally from
Bdokht, a village in the vicinity of Gonbd (Iran), oln Al Shh was
a shaikh in the Gonbd branch of the Nematallh Sufi order. In his
tafsr, Soln Al Shh included exoteric commentary as well as Sufi
commentary. Although gh Bozorg Tehrn stated that Soln Al
Shh had been accused of plagiarism, Ayz has refuted these
allegations (Ayz, pp. 214-15; Pourjavady and Wilson, p. 252).
Abd-al-Qder b. Sayyed Moammad owaySH b. Mamd l
Ghz n, also known as Moll owaysh, was the author of the Koran
commentary Bayn al-man al asab tartb al-nozl. Moll
owaysh, an Ashar anaf, did not compose this Arabic tafsr in
accordance with the traditional ordering of the sras. Instead, he
arranged his tafsr according to the chronological order of revelation.
The tafsr, written in 1355/ 1936-37 (and published in 1384/1964-65),
consists of both exoteric and Sufi material. Among the Sufi tafsrs on
which the author relies are those of Ebn Arab/Qshn, Nakhjewn,
Esml aqq, and Als. In addition, Moll owaysh utilized wellknown general Sufi works such as Qoshayr's Resla, Ghazli's Ey
olm al-dn, Ab Najb Sohraward's Awref al-maref, and Abd-alKarm Jl's al-Ensn al-kmel, as well as two late Naqshbandi works,
Shaikh Moammad b. Abd-Allh b. Moaf KHn's (d. 1279/1862) alBahjat al-sanya f db al-arqat al-Naqshbandya, and Asad b.
Mamd eb Naqshband Khled's (d. 1347/1928) Nr al-hedya
wa'l-erfn f serr al-rbe wa'l-tawajjoh wa-khatm al-Khwjakn
(Ayz, 218-221).
Professor Bwering has stated that with the coming of the
thirteenth/ nineteenth century, the genre of Sufi tafsr began "a phase
of certain decline that seems to continue today" (Bwering, 1991, p.
43). Nevertheless, because we now know of three tafsrs composed in
this final phase that Bwering did not mention (those of Ebn Ajba, af
Al Shh, and Moll owaysh), it seems prudent to abandon the
assessment that this recent phase of Sufi tafsr is characterized by

"certain decline." In addition, as more Sufi tafsrs become published

and translated into various languages, this will make them available to
large audiences for the first time. Hence, it is certainly possible, if not
probable, that this will bring about both an increase in the appreciation
of Sufi tafsrs as well as an increase in the production of them. One
obstacle to this, however, is the current tendency in Western
scholarship to minimize the importance of critical editions of texts. It is
hoped that scholars will realize that without such editions, our efforts
to understand Sufi tafsr will remain severely impaired.
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