Al-Šarīf al-Murtaḍā's Oeuvre and Thought in Context: An Archaeological Inquiry into Texts and their Transmission

This book is a detailed analysis of the reception and transmission of the doctrinal, legal, literary, and exegetical oeuvre of al-Šarīf al-Murtaḍā, arguably one of the most important thinkers of the medieval period, within and beyond Twelver Šīʿism. The study undertakes an archaeological inquiry of sorts into al-Murtaḍā’s monographic works and their transmission through an analysis of their manuscript tradition from al-Murtaḍā’s time until the contemporary period, covering the full range of the disciplines that he addressed. Inspired by similar quests undertaken by scholars of early modern Europe, this study also pays special attention to the various clusters of one-volume libraries of al-Murtaḍā's writings, the earliest witnesses of which can be traced back to the sixth/twelfth and seventh/thirteenth centuries, and it discusses their astoundingly linear transition from manuscript to print. The resulting insights into the transmission of al-Murtaḍā’s oeuvre allow for a careful reconstruction of the relative chronology of al-Murtaḍā’s works in the various disciplines, a necessary foundation for future in-depth analysis of the development of his theological, legal, and exegetical thought.