Al-Tabarī had amassed the treasures of this archive, and the ocean of his learning flowed abundantly through his peerless commentary.
[5 – Preferring Some Quranic Readings over Others]
Al-Tabarī (may Allah have mercy on him) was among the foremost scholars whose fame spread far and whose mastery encompassed every branch of Islamic learning. He was an imam qualified to exercise independent reasoning, and he authored works in most Islamic disciplines. Accordingly, he treated Quranic readings extensively in his commentary, preferring some over others. He did not accept as admissible certain readings whose supporting evidence he did not deem sound, and he judged some more likely to be correct than others. Yāqūt al-Hamawī stated that al-Tabarī had written a magnificent, voluminous work on Quranic readings. He said:
“I saw it in eighteen volumes, although it was written in a large hand. In it, he included all the readings, both well-known and non-canonical; he explained and substantiated them, and selected from among them a reading of his own that did not depart from the well-known readings. He did not devote himself to teaching recitation, and only a few individuals studied it under him, such as al-Saffār (1).”
Al-Tabarī (may Allah have mercy on him) may, however, be faulted for rejecting some readings, denying that they were correct, and preferring some readings over others even though all of them were mass-transmitted. He used expressions indicating rejection and preference, such as:
“The only reading I deem permissible is such-and-such.”
Or:
“This reading is more likely to be correct.”
Or:
“In my view, the first interpretation is the more fitting of the two interpretations of the verse and the sounder of the two readings in recitation.”
We have flagged every such instance in the margin of the critically edited text, so that a student of knowledge may beware lest his foot slip over a scholar’s lapse. Just as a single drop does not cloud the sea, a single lapse does not diminish a scholar. No one is infallible except the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). This therefore detracts neither from al-Tabarī’s merit nor from his lofty stature. Indeed, how could it, when Ibn Mujāhid—who selected the Seven Readings—was one of his students, and he was cited by Ibn