Ḥadīth and Scholars in the Mamlūks
Nagihan EmiroğluIt is known that the Mamlūk Sultans gave weight to scholars, especially ḥadīth scholars and ḥadīth science. The Mamlūk Sultans engaged in science and compiled works. On the other hand, since the Sultans and the Emirs were different from the people in terms of ethnicity and sect, they needed scholars to establish contact with the people. The Sultans were in contact with scholars to ensure their legitimacy, to control the religious structures of the society, to encourage the society in war and economic troubles, and to persuade society in important decisions. The Scholars also needed political stability in order to work in institutions such as madrasahs and Dār al-ḥadīth, and to continue their scientific studies in peace. Therefore, the Scholars should have been in contact with the Sultans. This situation often affected their scientific and social relations with each other. In the Mamlūk community, where various denominations and ethnic groups lived, the position of the scholars in society varied. The people gave a special value to the scholars who were busy with the ḥadīth because of their interest in the Hz. Prophet and the science of the ḥadīth. In this study, the relationship of the Scholars and especially the muḥaddith with the politicians and each other, the understanding of the ḥadīth and sunna of the society and the position of the scholars in the society will be discussed.
Memlüklerde Hadis ve Ulema
Nagihan EmiroğluMemlük sultanlarının ulemaya özel olarak da hadis ulemasına ve hadis ilmine önem verdiği, hürmet gösterdiği, kendilerinin ilimle meşgul oldukları ve eser telif ettikleri bilinmektedir. Öte yandan sultan ve emirler gerek etnik açıdan gerekse mezhepsel açıdan halktan farklı olduğu için halk ile aralarında irtibatı sağlamak açısından ulemaya ihtiyaç duymuşlardır. Bu nedenle sultanlar kendi meşruiyetlerini sağlamak, toplumun dini yapılarını kontrol altında tutmak, savaş ve ekonomik sıkıntılarda âlimlerin toplumu cesaretlendirme ve önemli kararlarda toplumu ikna etmek gibi özelliklerinden yararlanmak için ulema ile yakın münasebet içinde bulunmuşlardır. Buna karşın ulema da gerek medrese ve darülhadis gibi kurumlarda görev alabilmek gerekse bireysel olarak huzur içinde ilmî çalışmalarını sürdürebilmek için siyasi istikrar ortamına ihtiyaç duymuştur. Bu da onların sultanlarla belli düzeyde bir ilişki içinde bulunmalarını gerektiriyordu. Bu durum onların çoğu zaman birbirleriyle olan ilmî ve sosyal ilişkilerini de doğrudan etkilemiştir. Bu ilişki ağı içinde oldukça çeşitli mezhep ve etnik grubun yaşadığı Memlük toplumunda ulemanın toplum içindeki konumu da değişkenlik göstermektedir. Özellikle halk Hz. Peygamber’e ve hadis ilmine duyduğu ilgi gereği hadis ile meşgul olan ulemaya ayrı bir değer atfetmiştir. Bu çalışmada genel olarak ulemanın özelde ise muhaddislerin gerek siyasilerle gerek birbirleriyle ilişkileri, toplumun hadis ve sünnet anlayışı ve muhaddislerin toplumdaki konumu, dönemin biyografi ve tarih kitaplarından hareketle mukayeseli olarak ele alınacaktır.
The Mamlūk Turkish State (648-923/1250-1517) was a state that triumphed against the Mongols and the Crusaders. The Mamlūk Turkish State which dominated Egypt, Damascus and Hijaz, the most important regions of the Islamic world for nearly three centuries, had a great impact on the Islamic states after that, especially the Ottoman Empire, with its political and scientific institutions. The Mamlūk State where developments could be regarded as the summit in terms of science as well as political avhievements, should be handled in terms of hadith science. Because this period was a rich period where many muhaddithūn were trained, the best examples of hadith literature were written, and they offer basic resources to today’s researchers in every field of the Islamic sciences.
One of the reasons why hadith science became popular in this period is that the Muslims living in the Mamlūk s period were the people who knew that the most important science center, Baghdad, was recently destroyed by the Mongols, and who actually fought against the Mongols. This situation should have prompted them to hold on the Qur’an and sunna more tightly, and to adopt a simple and clean contract as in the first years of Islam, rather than new theoretical-philosophical debates. In addition to the hadith science in society, the fact that much more importance was given to the life of Sufism and zuhd, and the positioning of society in a high position in the hadith science and muhaddithūn shows this.
Mamlūks took many of their features from the Ayyūbid State, which ruled before them in the geography they dominated. There are some applications of the Ayyūbids on the background of the importance given to the science of hadith in society. One of the reasons why madrasahs and Dār al-ḥadīth were built during the Ayyūbid period was to take a precaution against Shii, and to adopt the Sunni contract. Because of this purpose, the Ayyūbids gave much more importance to Asharism than to other sects, with the thought that they were the best representatives of Sunni in general. Overtime, this attitude became more radical in the name of Asharism. As a result of the efforts made to spread and strengthen the Asharism, the majority of the people adopted it. When the Mamlūks came in time, it was not possible to eliminate the Ashari/Shafii effect from the Ayyubids despite some practices such as the appointment of judges from four different sects. The negative policies followed by the Shia tendencies against the hadith led to the selection of hadith and circumcision as the method of protecting the Sunni in Egypt and Damascus, and the emphasis on the hadith. Accordingly, the number of Dār al-ḥadīth in the region, and the importance given by the society to the hadith education increased. This situation seems to be the main reason underling the fact that hadith science developed significantly during the Mamlūk period.
The importance of the Mamlūk Sultans and Emirs, who gave importance to science and scholars in general, to give special importance to science of the hadith and scholars, which were engaged in hadith, and the presence of Sultans and Emirs, who attended the hadith assemblies, listened and narrated the hadith, and classified the works, can be mentioned among the factors affecting the development of the hadith.
Another reason for the hadith science to be highly developed and widespread among the Mamlūks during the Mamlūk is the high number of places and facilities where the science of hadith could be collected. Because there were quite different and easy ways to collect hadith education in this period.
A large number of Dār al-ḥadīth allocated to hadith science, especially madrasahs, where other Islamic sciences were collected, mosques where people from all walks of life could easily participate without any quota, age or scientific level limitation, served as training institutions as well as hankhah, ribat, lodges, libraries and tombs that served as an educational institution made the hadith science easily accessible, and offered numerous possibilities for those who wanted to collect hadith science.
Some situations arising from the technical characteristics of hadith science should have contributed to the spread of hadith science in the society and to increase the number of scholars receiving hadith education. Practices belonging to the science of hadith, such as isnad, acceptance of the method of icazet and concluding the sema and spelling councils that can be easily attended by all sects, and which gained widespread in many cities during the Mamlūk s, led to the formation of a mobility and liveliness in favor of hadith science in the society.
It can also be thought that the upbringing of the Mamlūk Sultan and Emirs, brought from various countries as devshirme, with the love of Prophet and perception of the sunna, gave them a special emphasis on the science of hadith when they came power. In addition, the fact that Turks, who love to fight and are a strong nation, have adopted the understanding of jihad for God should be considered. In this regard, the science of hadith has performed a role that encourages both the sultan and emirs and the society which they managed. It can be said that this understanding also leads to the fact that the science of hadith has had a special place for the administrators.
In the Mamlūk society, scholars generally received education in many branches of Islamic sciences and they wrote works by giving lectures in each branch of science. For this reason, many of comrades in this period were also good historians, good jurists, good commentators. In Mamlūk society, apart from being a group that produced information, scholars had a different function. Since the Sultans and the Emirs were different from the people in terms of ethnicity and sectarian, they needed scholars to establish contact with the people. Sultans have been in contact with scholars to ensure their legitimacy, to control the religious structures of the society, to encourage the society in war and economic troubles and to persuade society in important decisions. The Scholars also needed a political stability in order to work in institutions such as madrasahs and Dār al-ḥadīth and to continue their scientific studies at peace. Therefore, the Scholars should have been in contact with the Sultans. This situation has often affected their scientific and social relations with each other.
In the Mamlūk community where various denominations and ethnic groups live, the position of scholars in society varies. The people gave a special value to the scholars who were busy with the ḥadīth because of their interest in the Hz. Prophet and the science of the ḥadīth. In this study, the relationship of the Scholars and especially the muḥaddith with the politicians and each other, the understanding of the ḥadīth and sunna of the society and the position of the scholars in the society will be discussed.