Abu Said Al-Sirafi
| Abu Said Al-Sirafi | |
|---|---|
| Born | 284 AH Siraf, Iran |
| 💀Died | 368 AH Baghdad, Iraq368 AH |
| 🏫 Education | syntax, jurisprudence (Fiqh), linguistics, poetry, lawful duties, arithmetics, oration, poetry, poetics (rhymes metre), Qur’an, hadith, and engineering |
| 💼 Occupation | Syntaxian |
| Known for | Basra syntax |
| Title | Al-Qadi |
Abu Said Al-Sirafi
Al-Sirafi (284 AH - 368 AH): Abu Sa`id Al-Hasan bin Abdullah Al-Marzaban Al-Sirafi, the syntaxian known as Al-Qadi. He was born in Siraf, and it is where he began to seek knowledge. He left it before his twenties and went to Oman to study. Then, he returned to Siraf, and went to Askar Makram and stayed there with Abi Muhammad Ibn Umar, the speaker, who presented him and preferred him over all his companions. He entered Baghdad, and became the successor of judge Abu Muhammad Ibn Ma’arouf on the eastern side and then the eastern and western sides. He was the best of those with knowledge of Basra syntax. He recited the Holy Qur’an on Abu Bakr Ibn Mujahid, Arabic language on Ibn Duraid, and the syntax on Abi Bakr Ibn al-Sarraj. People used to work on it in several arts: the Holy Qur’an and its recitations, the study of the Qur’an, syntax, linguistics, jurisprudence (Fiqh), lawful duties, arithmetics, oration, poetry, poetics (rhymes metre).
His morals and merits
Abu Said was an ascetic who did not eat except for what he earned with his hand, and he did not go out of his house to the ruling council or to the teaching council every day except after he had copied ten papers, taking ten dirhams for their wages, the amount of his supplies, then he went out to his council. Abu Hayyan al-Tawhidi said in the praising report of Al-Sirafi: Abu Said Al-Sirafi is the chief leader of Shoyoukh, and the chief leader of the imams in knowledge of syntax, jurisprudence (Fiqh), linguistics, poetry, lawful duties, arithmetics, oration, poetry, poetics (rhymes metre), Qur’an, hadith, and engineering. He was the religious jurisconsult in Alrusafa mosque for fifty years on the doctrine of Abu Hanifah school and was never mistaken or had a slip of the tongue. His father was a magian named Behzad, so when he converted to Islam, he called him Abdullah. And there was between him and Abu al-Faraj al-Isfahani, the author of Kitab al-Aghani (the Book of Songs), similar to what is usual between the virtues of competition.
His debate with Matta bin Younus
Abu Said has a famous debate with the logician Matta bin Younus in the council of the minister Abi Al-Fath Ja'far ibn al-Furat. Abu Said was a critic of Greek logic, especially Aristotelian, and saw it as an intruder to the Arabs and not a transcendent global logic, so he used to say Aristotle's logic is about Greece. To clarify his purpose, he presented an example, which is the letter O (waw), and he said that the meanings of the waw for Aristotle differ from the meanings of the waw among the Arabs. The debate ended with the minister's admission of the victory of Abi Said, but Matta did not acknowledge it.
His death
He died on Monday, the second of Rajab in the year 368 AH in Baghdad, at the age of eighty-four, and was buried in Al-Khayzaran cemetery. It was said that he died in the year sixty-four, and it was said in the year sixty-five, and the correct one is probably the first.
References
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