Before the Book - بَيْنَ يَدَيِ الْكِتَابِ

Before the Book

بَيْنَ يَدَيِ الْكِتَابِ

All praise is for Allah, Lord of the worlds, and blessings and peace be upon the one whom He sent to all people as a bearer of glad tidings and a warner, as one who calls to Allah by His permission, and as an illuminating lamp.

الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ، وَالصَّلَاةُ وَالسَّلَامُ عَلَى مَنْ أَرْسَلَهُ كَافَّةً لِلنَّاسِ بَشِيرًا وَنَذِيرًا، وَدَاعِيًا إِلَى اللَّهِ بِإِذْنِهِ وَسِرَاجًا مُنِيرًا.

To proceed: the sciences of grammar and morphology have attained, among the instrumental sciences, a rank that no other sciences have reached. It has even been said of them: “Grammar is to the sciences like light is to the stars, and morphology among the sciences is like the full moon among the stars.”

أَمَّا بَعْدُ، فَإِنَّ عِلْمَ النَّحْوِ وَالصَّرْفِ قَدْ حَظِيَا بَيْنَ الْعُلُومِ الْآلِيَّةِ مَكَانَةً لَمْ يَبْلُغْهَا غَيْرُهُمَا، حَتَّى قِيلَ فِيهِمَا: «النَّحْوُ لِلْعُلُومِ كَالضَّوْءِ لِلنُّجُومِ، وَالصَّرْفُ فِي الْعُلُومِ كَالْبَدْرِ فِي النُّجُومِ».

Likewise, it has been said: “Morphology is the mother of the sciences, and grammar is their father.”

وَهَكَذَا قِيلَ: «الصَّرْفُ أُمُّ الْعُلُومِ، وَالنَّحْوُ أَبُوهَا».

For this reason, earlier and later scholars authored works in both sciences, some concise and some extensive, until these works reached us. Each of these compositions is unique in its own way. Yet the standing and acceptance attained by ʿIlm al-Ṣīghah may be appreciated through the words of ʿAllāmah Muḥammad Yūsuf al-Banūrī, may Allah have mercy on him:

وَلِهَذَا صَنَّفَ فِيهِمَا الْمُتَقَدِّمُونَ وَالْمُتَأَخِّرُونَ كُتُبًا مِنْ بَيْنِ مُخْتَصَرٍ وَمُطَوَّلٍ إِلَى أَنْ وَرِثْنَاهَا، فَكُلٌّ مِنْ هَذِهِ التَّصَانِيفِ نَسِيجُ وَحْدِهِ، إِلَّا أَنَّ الْمَقَامَ وَالْقَبُولَ اللَّذَيْنِ نَالَهُمَا «عِلْمُ الصِّيغَةِ» يَسَعُنَا أَنْ نُقَدِّرَ ذَلِكَ بِقَوْلِ الْعَلَّامَةِ مُحَمَّدِ يُوسُفَ الْبَنُورِيِّ رَحِمَهُ اللَّهُ:

“The science of morphology is a foundation among the Arabic sciences. The earlier and later scholars in every age authored distinguished books on it. Yet among the works of the later scholars there are two books that have no equal: Ṣarf Mīr and ʿIlm al-Ṣīghah. The author of ʿIlm al-Ṣīghah was a great mujāhid in India, and he had memorised the Qāmūs of al-Fayrūzābādī by heart.”

«إِنَّ عِلْمَ الصَّرْفِ أَسَاسٌ فِي الْعُلُومِ الْعَرَبِيَّةِ، وَقَدْ صَنَّفَ فِيهِ الْقُدَمَاءُ وَالْمُتَأَخِّرُونَ فِي كُلِّ عَصْرٍ كُتُبًا مُمْتَازَةً، إِلَّا أَنَّ كِتَابَيْنِ مِنْ مُؤَلَّفَاتِ الْمُتَأَخِّرِينَ لَا نَظِيرَ لَهُمَا: “صَرْفُ مِيرٍ”، وَ“عِلْمُ الصِّيغَةِ”، وَكَانَ مُصَنِّفُ عِلْمِ الصِّيغَةِ مُجَاهِدًا كَبِيرًا فِي الْهِنْدِ، وَكَانَ يَحْفَظُ الْقَامُوسَ لِلْفَيْرُوزْآبَادِيِّ عَنْ ظَهْرِ الْقَلْبِ».

Indeed, the morphological rules were gathered in ʿIlm al-Ṣīghah with a comprehensiveness that has no equal. The rules found in al-Zarādī, Dustūr al-Mubtadiʾ, Taṣrīf al-Zanjānī, Shāfiyat Ibn al-Ḥājib, and other Persian and Arabic works do not reach its rank.

وَلَقَدْ جُمِعَتِ الْقَوَانِينُ الصَّرْفِيَّةُ فِي «عِلْمِ الصِّيغَةِ» بِاسْتِقْصَاءٍ لَا يُوجَدُ لَهُ نَظِيرٌ، فَقَوَانِينُ «الزَّرَادِي» وَ«دُسْتُورِ الْمُبْتَدِئِ» وَ«تَصْرِيفِ الزَّنْجَانِيِّ» وَ«شَافِيَةِ ابْنِ حَاجِبٍ» وَغَيْرِهَا مِنَ الْكُتُبِ الْفَارِسِيَّةِ وَالْعَرَبِيَّةِ لَنْ تَتَمَكَّنَ مِنَ الْوُصُولِ إِلَى مَرْتَبَتِهَا.

In any case, no book in any discipline, however comprehensive and precise it may be, can be fully understood by a student, nor can the student develop an interest in it, unless it is studied under a teacher skilled in that discipline and its rules and principles are applied to different examples. For this reason, we see diligent and skilled teachers not limiting themselves merely to teaching students the rules and principles…

وَعَلَى كُلِّ حَالٍ، فَإِنَّ أَيَّ كِتَابٍ وَفِي أَيِّ فَنٍّ مَهْمَا كَانَ جَامِعًا وَمَانِعًا لَا يُمْكِنُ أَنْ يَفْهَمَهُ الدَّارِسُ حَقَّ الْفَهْمِ، وَلَا أَنْ يَرْغَبَ فِيهِ، إِلَّا إِذَا قُرِئَ عَلَى أُسْتَاذٍ مَاهِرٍ فِي ذَلِكَ الْفَنِّ، وَبِتَطْبِيقِ قَوَاعِدِهِ وَأُصُولِهِ عَلَى أَمْثِلَةٍ مُخْتَلِفَةٍ؛ لِذَا نَرَى الْأَسَاتِذَةَ الْمُجْتَهِدِينَ الْمَهَرَةَ لَا يَكْتَفُونَ بِتَدْرِيسِهِمْ

…the rules and principles alone, but they also add practical applications of those rules for them. May Allah reward them well. However, the common practice in our time is to suffice with only the rules and examples found in the book. The harmful result is that weaker students are unable to apply these rules to verses of the Noble Qur’an and to other examples.

الطَّلَبَةَ الْقَوَاعِدَ وَالْأُصُولَ فَقَطْ، بَلْ يَزِيدُونَهُمْ عَلَى هَذِهِ الْقَوَاعِدِ تَطْبِيقَاتٍ عَلَيْهَا، فَجَزَاهُمُ اللَّهُ خَيْرًا، لَكِنَّ الْعَادَةَ الرَّائِجَةَ فِي عَصْرِنَا هَذَا أَنَّهُ يُكْتَفَى بِمَا هُوَ فِي الْكِتَابِ مِنَ الْقَوَاعِدِ وَالْأَمْثِلَةِ فَقَطْ، فَتَظْهَرُ نَتِيجَتُهُ الْوَخِيمَةُ أَنَّ الطُّلَّابَ الضُّعَفَاءَ لَا يَسْتَطِيعُونَ أَنْ يُطَبِّقُوا هَذِهِ الْقَوَاعِدَ عَلَى آيَاتِ الْقُرْآنِ الْكَرِيمِ وَالْأَمْثِلَةِ الْأُخْرَى.

There was therefore a pressing need to solve this problem. When I had gathered various examples and added them to Iqnāʿ al-Ḍamīr, the Arabic translation of Naḥw Mīr by Shaykh ʿAbd al-Wāḥid ibn Malik ʿAbd al-Ḥaqq al-Madanī, and it had been published, the respected teacher Shaykh Muḥammad Walī Khān al-Muẓaffar, may Allah Most High preserve him, asked me to write exercises for his book Taʿrīb ʿIlm al-Ṣīghah. I seized the opportunity to attain this great honour and began writing.

فَكَانَتِ الْحَاجَةُ مَاسَّةً إِلَى حَلِّ هَذِهِ الْمُشْكِلَةِ، فَطَلَبَ مِنِّي فَضِيلَةُ الْأُسْتَاذِ الشَّيْخِ مُحَمَّدِ وَلِيِّ خَانِ الْمُظَفَّرِ - حَفِظَهُ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى - لَمَّا جَمَعْتُ الْأَمْثِلَةَ الْمُخْتَلِفَةَ وَأَضَفْتُهَا إِلَى «إِقْنَاعِ الضَّمِيرِ تَعْرِيبِ نَحْوِ مِيرٍ» لِلشَّيْخِ عَبْدِ الْوَحِيدِ بْنِ مَلِكِ عَبْدِ الْحَقِّ الْمَدَنِيِّ وَطُبِعَ، أَنْ أَكْتُبَ التَّمَارِينَ عَلَى كِتَابِهِ «تَعْرِيبِ عِلْمِ الصِّيغَةِ»، فَاغْتَنَمْتُ الْفُرْصَةَ لِهَذِهِ السَّعَادَةِ الْعَظِيمَةِ، وَبَدَأْتُ بِالْكِتَابَةِ.

This work began on 4 Ramaḍān 1428 AH in Madīnah al-Munawwarah, within the blessed and fragrant precincts of the Prophet’s Mosque and beside the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, in one of the gardens of Paradise. To Allah belong all praise and favour.

وَكَانَتْ بِدَايَةُ هَذَا الْعَمَلِ فِي 4 رَمَضَانَ 1428 مِنَ الْهِجْرَةِ بِالْمَدِينَةِ الْمُنَوَّرَةِ فِي رِحَابِ الْمَسْجِدِ النَّبَوِيِّ الْمُبَارَكَةِ الْعَطِرَةِ وَبِجِوَارِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ فِي رِيَاضِ الْجَنَّةِ، فَلِلَّهِ الْحَمْدُ وَالْمِنَّةُ.

By the grace of Allah Most High, this work was completed in a short period. In this book I followed the following plan:

  1. I divided the book into lessons and then gave them titles.
  2. I added three exercises to every lesson.
    • The first exercise contains some individual words so that the lesson may be applied to them.
    • The first part of the second exercise is devoted to Qur’anic verses, while its second part is devoted to Arabic examples.
    • In the third exercise, I gave the students room to construct examples of their own.
  3. I added further verbal nouns in every form so that the students’ tongues might become fluent in conjugating them, and after them I added some forms for the students to analyse.

وَبِفَضْلِ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى تَمَّ الْعَمَلُ هَذَا فِي مُدَّةٍ وَجِيزَةٍ، وَلَقَدِ اتَّبَعْتُ فِي هَذَا الْكِتَابِ الْخُطَطَ التَّالِيَةَ:

  1. قَسَّمْتُ الْكِتَابَ عَلَى دُرُوسٍ ثُمَّ عَنْوَنْتُهَا.
  2. زِدْتُ فِي كُلِّ دَرْسٍ ثَلَاثَةَ تَمَارِينَ.
    • التَّمْرِينُ الْأَوَّلُ مُشْتَمِلٌ عَلَى بَعْضِ الْمُفْرَدَاتِ؛ لِتَطْبِيقِ ذَلِكَ الدَّرْسِ عَلَيْهَا.
    • أَمَّا التَّمْرِينُ الثَّانِي فَجُزْؤُهُ الْأَوَّلُ يَخْتَصُّ بِالْآيَاتِ الْقُرْآنِيَّةِ، وَجُزْؤُهُ الثَّانِي بِالْأَمْثِلَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّةِ.
    • أَمَّا فِي التَّمْرِينِ الثَّالِثِ فَفَسَحْتُ الْمَجَالَ لِلطُّلَّابِ أَنْ يُكَوِّنُوا أَمْثِلَةً مِنْ عِنْدِهِمْ.
  3. زِدْتُ فِي كُلِّ بَابٍ مَصَادِرَ أُخْرَى؛ حَتَّى يَنْطَلِقَ لِسَانُ الطَّلَبَةِ بِتَصَارِيفِهَا، وَأَضَفْتُ بَعْدَهَا بَعْضَ الصِّيَغِ؛ لِيَحُلَّهَا الطَّلَبَةُ.
  1. In the section on “Benefits”, I added a “Discussion” after each benefit. Likewise, in the section on “Difficult Forms”, I added other similar forms alongside each form.
  2. I rearranged the wording of the main text in two or three places.
  3. I added marginal notes and annotations to some difficult expressions. Most of these annotations were taken from the original book, from the work of Shaykh Muftī Muḥammad Rafīʿ al-ʿUthmānī, namely ʿIlm al-Ṣīghah al-Muwarrad, and from ʿIlm al-Ṣīghah al-Muʿarrab by Shaykh Muḥammad Kalīm al-Dīn al-Qāsimī al-Hindī.
  1. فِي بَابِ «الْإِفَادَاتِ» زِدْتُ بَعْدَ كُلِّ إِفَادَةٍ «مُنَاقَشَةً» كَمَا زِدْتُ فِي بَابِ «الصِّيَغِ الْمُشْكِلَةِ» مَعَ كُلِّ صِيغَةٍ صِيَغًا أُخْرَى مُشَابِهَةً لَهَا.
  2. رَتَّبْتُ الْعِبَارَةَ فِي مَتْنِ الْكِتَابِ مِنْ مَوْضِعَيْنِ أَوْ ثَلَاثَةٍ.
  3. عَلَّقْتُ الْحَوَاشِيَ وَالتَّعْلِيقَاتِ فِي بَعْضِ الْعِبَارَاتِ الْمُغْلَقَةِ، وَأَكْثَرُ مَا اقْتَبَسْتُ هَذِهِ التَّعْلِيقَاتِ مِنْ أَصْلِ الْكِتَابِ، وَمِنْ كِتَابِ الشَّيْخِ الْمُفْتِي مُحَمَّدٍ رَفِيعٍ الْعُثْمَانِيِّ، أَيْ «عِلْمِ الصِّيغَةِ الْمُوَرَّدِ»، وَمِنْ «عِلْمِ الصِّيغَةِ الْمُعَرَّبِ» لِلشَّيْخِ مُحَمَّدِ كَلِيمِ الدِّينِ الْقَاسِمِيِّ الْهِنْدِيِّ.

This is only through the enabling grace and favour of Allah Most High. Had it not been for His enabling grace, followed by the encouragement and kindness of Shaykh Muḥammad Walī Khān al-Muẓaffar and the prayers of my teachers and parents, I could not even have imagined undertaking this work, let alone claim for myself any praise or merit.

إِنْ هَذَا إِلَّا بِتَوْفِيقِ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى وَمَنِّهِ، فَإِنَّهُ لَوْ لَمْ يَكُنْ تَوْفِيقُهُ ثُمَّ تَحْرِيضُ الشَّيْخِ مُحَمَّدِ وَلِيِّ خَانِ الْمُظَفَّرِ وَشَفَقَتُهُ وَدَعَوَاتُ الْأَسَاتِذَةِ وَالْوَالِدَيْنِ لَمَا أَمْكَنَ لِي أَنْ أَتَصَوَّرَ الْقِيَامَ بِهَذَا الْعَمَلِ، فَضْلًا عَنْ أَنْ أَدَّعِيَ لِنَفْسِي أَيَّ شَيْءٍ مِنَ الْمَحَامِدِ وَالْفَضْلِ.

In conclusion, I present my words before the people of knowledge and virtue and the experts of this discipline, openly stating that I am not a master of this field, nor do I claim to be. Whoever finds an error in it should kindly do me the favour of drawing my attention to that error.

وَخِتَامًا أَعْرِضُ مَقَالِي بَيْنَ يَدَيْ أَهْلِ الْعِلْمِ وَالْفَضْلِ وَمَهَرَةِ هَذَا الْفَنِّ مُصَرِّحًا أَنِّي لَسْتُ بِفَارِسِ هَذَا الْمَيْدَانِ وَلَا أَدَّعِي ذَلِكَ، فَمَنْ عَثَرَ عَلَى خَطَإٍ فِيهِ فَلْيُحْسِنْ إِلَيَّ بِتَنْبِيهِهِ إِيَّايَ عَلَى الْخَطَإِ.

I ask Allah, Mighty and Majestic, to accept this humble work and make it a treasure with Him for me, for my parents, for my honoured teachers, and for everyone who has had a favour upon me in this work. Āmīn.

أَسْأَلُ اللَّهَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ أَنْ يَتَقَبَّلَ هَذَا الْعَمَلَ الْمُتَوَاضِعَ، وَيَجْعَلَهُ ذُخْرًا لِي عِنْدَهُ وَلِوَالِدَيَّ وَلِأَسَاتِذَتِي الْكِرَامِ وَلِمَنْ لَهُ فَضْلٌ عَلَيَّ فِي هَذَا الْعَمَلِ. آمِينَ.

Sayyid ʿAbd al-Rashīd ibn Maqṣūd al-Hāshimī
Teacher
at Madrasah Ibn ʿAbbās
Gulistan-e-Johar, Karachi, Pakistan
26 Rajab al-Murajjab 1429 AH

السَّيِّدُ عَبْدُ الرَّشِيدِ بْنُ مَقْصُودٍ الْهَاشِمِيُّ
أُسْتَاذٌ
بِمَدْرَسَةِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ
جُلْسِتَانْ جَوْهَرْ كَرَاتْشِي بَاكِسْتَانَ
26 مِنْ رَجَبٍ الْمُرَجَّبِ 1429 هـ