An Arab born in Bukhara, in present-day Uzbekistan, Muhammad ibn Ismail al-Bukhari (810-869) was one of the most famous and influential Islamic scholars of his time. He is renowned for his collection of Hadith texts (the Hadith being the traditional sayings of the Prophet Muhammad), called the Sahih, which is regarded by many Sunni Muslims as the most reliable commentary on the Qur'an that exists. Ahmad Mujtaba Hasan here discusses Bukhari's colourful life and times as well as his mastery of the textual disciplines of 'fiqh', 'rijal' and 'ilal'. The legacy of Bukhari is shown by Dr Hasan to have great currency, since on more than one occasion this great Islamic scholar was criticised for doctrinal heterodoxy by his contemporaries. Then, as now, the interpretation of religious texts proved to be a controversial matter, and this attractive and lively biography will appeal to all those, and not just in Islamic studies, fascinated by the challenges posed to tradition by textual hermeneutics.
