Shaykh Tahir al-Jaza’iri

By Shoayb Ahmed

Editing by Shoaib Rasheed

The reformer and great scholar of Tafsīr, Ḥadīth, Fiqh, Uṣūl, history and the Arabic language, Ṭāhir b. Muḥammad Ṣāliḥ b. Aḥmad b. Mawhūb al-Samūni al-Jazā’iri al-Dimashqi (1852CE/1268AH – 1920 CE/1338AH), was born and passed away in Damascus.

His father Muḥammad Ṣāliḥ migrated from French-occupied Algeria to Damascus in 1846 CE (1263 AH) along with the great Algerian leader ʿAbd al-Qādir al-Jazā’iri. Muḥammad Ṣāliḥ lived there until he passed away in 1868 CE (1285 AH). He was a scholar of the Quranic sciences. He also read and repeated the lessons in Ṣaḥīḥ Bukhāri on behalf of Shaykh Aḥmad al-Kizbari in the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, and also authored some useful books. He was the authorized muftī of the Māliki madhhab in Damascus.

Shaykh Ṭāhir received his early education from his father; thereafter he studied with many other ʿulamā in Damascus. One of them was Shaykh ʿAbd al-Ghanī al-Maydānī.[2] From him, Shaykh Ṭāhir learned how to be thorough, accurate, and precise when analyzing complex Fiqh issues. He studied Arabic, Turkish and Persian under Shaykh ʿAbd al-Raḥmān al-Banushnāqi. He also studied French, Syriac, Hebrew and the Ethiopian language. He also knew some of the Berber tribal languages, particularly of those who inhabited parts of Algeria.

Shaykh Ṭāhir devoted all his time and energy towards studying. This also included studying the natural sciences, mathematics, and astronomy. His knowledge of history was superb, and, in addition, he was very well-acquainted with the biographies of the previous scholars and their books.

In his youth, he was among the founders of a charitable organization that was established by a group of scholars of Damascus in 1877. In 1878, at the age of twenty-six he was appointed as a general inspector for the primary schools. During the period he served this position, he wrote some books that were necessary at the time for pupils in various levels. Together with Shaykh ʿAlā al-Dīn ʿĀbidīn (d. 1888 CE), they agreed to establish al-Jamʿīyyah al-Khayrīyyah al-Islāmiyyah that was very active in Damascus and responsible for establishing many schools.

In 1879 he attempted to gather in one place all historical manuscripts from the endowment libraries in Damascus. The result of this effort was the establishment of the Ẓāhirīyyah Library that became one of the most prominent libraries in the Arab world because of its valuable collections of manuscripts. After his success with this library he strove to repeat the same in Jerusalem to establish the Khālidīyyah Library in al-Quds. Shaykh Ṭāhir continued to serve the knowledge of Islam through writing, teaching, and promoting it through his libraries.

His activities increased after 1886 after he had abandoned his work with the government. He devoted his time to teaching and towards promoting various reforms. In 1907, he faced some harassment and pressure from the Turkish authorities in Syria. As the result, he migrated to Egypt where its scholars welcomed him, especially the likes of Aḥmad Taymūr Bāshā and Aḥmad Zakī Bāshā.

He refused to take a cent from the State, because he feared that he would be forced to be silent on issues that were not palatable to the leaders. Instead, he lived by sacrificing his most beloved possessions. He sold his books and his manuscripts in order to survive. Even in these desperate times, he chose to sell his books to Dār al-Kutub al-Miṣrīyyah for half the price he would have received from the British Museum because he wanted to ensure that the books remain in Muslim lands. Shaykh ʿAlī Yūsuf and Aḥmad Taymūr Bāshā tried to allocate some position to him, which would enable thousands to benefit from his vast knowledge and at the same time he would receive a salary. He excused himself because of his old age and his inability to fulfill official administrative and time requirements and also because he was accustomed to reading and researching the whole night right until Fajr. This was particularly his practice in the last forty years of his life.

He remained in Cairo for about thirteen years and in 1920 he became seriously ill, and he returned to Damascus. Soon after his return he was elected as a member of the Arabic Academy in Damascus and the Director of the Ẓāhirīyyah Library. He passed away four months later in 1920 and is buried on the Qāsiyūn Mountain in Damascus, Syria.

As Shaykh Ṭāhir was so careful about utilizing his time, he did not care about his appearance and dressed very shabbily. He never married and used to spend a great deal of the night with his friends and the remainder in reading and writing. He enjoyed swimming and walking as an exercise. He was very particular about performing his ṣalāt punctually to the call of the adhān, no matter where he was. He defended the Arabic language and the Hijrī calendar.

Although he was modest by nature he was fiercely independent. He never accepted any gift from the rulers. When he was financially in need, he continued to sell some of his books. The most expensive and dearest thing to him was his books and the time he spent studying and conducting his research. Nothing at all distracted him. He was able to answer questions that were posed to him with ease and was very annoyed at those who tried to insult the scholars. He used to prepare a large quantity of coffee that would last for a few ways to save on preparation time. He drank coffee to give him energy and to keep him alert and awake. Whenever he left his home he always carried a book or some notes from which he could benefit, thus never wasting his time. Many Orientalist scholars respected him and consulted him on numerous occasions. The Jewish Orientalist scholar, Goldziher, was one such scholar who even attended the Shaykh’s lessons in Damascus and translated his book Tawjīh al-Naẓar into German.

Despite the great amount of time he spent reading, he advised students to lessen their reading during the holidays and, instead, to increase their sporting and recreational activities. He maintained that, deep immersion into books could lead to seclusion and alienation from people. He in turn had an excellent relationship with many scholars of Damascus that included; Shaykh ʿAbd al-Razzāq al-Bayṭār, Shaykh Abu ‘l-Khayr ʿĀbidīn, Shaykh Salīm al-Bukhārī and his close friend Shaykh Jamāl al-Dīn al-Qāsimī.[3]

Shaykh Ṭāhir wrote many books over thirty-five in number on various subjects. These include ʿAqīdah, ʿUlūm al-Qur’ān, Tajwīd, the science of Ḥadīth, Sīrah, Uṣūl, Arabic rhetoric, Arabic literature, the philosophy of natural mathematics, history and an introduction to many Islamic manuscripts. His most important books are:

• Irshād al-Albā ilā Taʿlīm Alif Bā in Arabic language learning at the primary-school level.
• Al-Tibyān li-Baʿḍ al-Mabāḥith al-Mutaʿalliqah bi ‘l-Qur’ān in the Quranic sciences
• Tawjīh al-Naẓar ilā Uṣūl al-Athar in the science of Ḥadīth. Shaykh Abu Ghuddah describes this as one of the most extensive works on the subject.
• Al-Jawāhir al-Kalāmīyyah fī al-ʿAqā’id al-Islāmīyyah in the science of theology (ʿAqīdah).
• Al-Taqrīb ilā Uṣūl al-Taʿrīb in Arabic Grammar.
• Sharḥ Khuṭab Ibn Nabātah in Poetry and Literature.
• Al-Tadhkirah al-Ẓāhirīyyah, a collection of articles on various topics.
• Al-ʿUqūd al-Ālī fī Asānīd al-Awālī
• Munyat al-Adhkiyā fī Qaṣaṣ al-Anbiyā
• Mukhtaṣar Adab al-Kātib by Ibn Qutaybah
• Madkhal al-Ṭullāb ilā Fann al-Ḥisāb in Mathematics education at the primary-school level.

Some of his works are still manuscripts that have never been published. Some of the titles are:

• Asnā ‘l-Maqāṣid fi ʿIlm al-ʿAqā’id
• Al-Ilmām bi Uṣūl Sīrat al-Nabī ʿAlayhi ‘l-Ṣalāt wa ‘l-Salām
• Al-Tafsīr al-Kabīr in four volumes and can be regarded as notes to Tafsīr al-Bayḍāwī.
• Various others describing his travels to Alexandria and other places.
• Various compilations of biographies of scholars of different eras.
• Selections from al-Muwāfaqāt by al-Shāṭibī and al-Zarrūq’s work in Taṣawwuf

He could be distinguished from many of his contemporary scholars because he enjoyed the following:

1. He worked tirelessly, through his interaction with the Turkish authorities, on initiatives for spreading education and establishing schools throughout Syria. He even established a school for girls. He would convince people who owned large, palace-like homes to donate a portion that could be used for a school. He also encouraged and supported the establishment of a school dedicated to teaching the seven modes of recitation of the Quran.
2. He personally took charge of the syllabus, despite receiving opposition from certain sectors in Damascus who wanted this knowledge to be exclusively for them and their families.
3. He actively participated in establishing social and charitable organizations.
4. He strove to promote the history and integrity of the Arabic language.
5. He played an important role in bridging the gap between realities and absolute aspects of Islam and modern science.
6. His idea of education emphasized moral development (tarbīyyah) and ethics (akhlāq).
7. He was active in writing and keeping the people informed through the newspapers.[4]

His student, Shaykh Muḥammad Saʿīd al-Bānī al-Dimashqī, Muḥammad Kurd ʿAlī, Shaykh ʿAlī al-Ṭanṭāwī, and Shaykh ʿAdnān al-Khaṭīb and others revered him and they wrote about Shaykh Ṭāhir’s productive life and distinct personality.