Evaluation of Abu Ishaq al-Juzcânî's Jarhs for al-ahl Kufa in the Context of Sectarian Bigotry Debates

Abstract

Human deficiencies in jarh-ta'dil activities, the negativities arising from sectarian bigotry have opened the validity and reliability of the rijal criticism to discussion since the first periods. It is important to contribute to the discussions in the field, the critic's criticism has matured and the jarh and tadil activities have gained a systematic structure, especially where duafa literature was formed in Hijra 3rd century. This article’s aims to evaluate the jarhs of the Shiite inclined ahl al-Kufa narrators in terms of sectarian bigotry, around the attitude of the people of bid'at towards the narration, that based on the work called "Ahvâlu'r-ricâl" by Abu Ishaq al-Cuzcânî, one of the jarh-ta'dil scholars who attracted attention with his extreme criticisms of the people of bid'ah in the 3rd century of Hijra. Cûzcânî has been criticized as being violent and acting with sectarian bigotry in his criticisms of the ahl al-Kufe narrators, who have a wide place in his work and are accused of tashayyu. First of all, In the research the sectarian identities of the narrators in the tashayyu' movement and the criticisms about them were examined. Then, the claims and criticisms about the work were evaluated by taking into account the criticisms of the dignitaries. It has been tried to reach a conclusion about the view of the people of bid'at on the narration and the relation of the cerhs directed to ahl al-Kufa narrators with the sectarian fanaticism.