Although recent years have witnessed a growing number of studies examining the Mu‘tazilite methods of evaluating hadith and their contributions to this field, the lack of primary sources has largely confined these efforts to theoretical interpretations. Another factor that undermines the reliability of such studies is their predominant reliance on non-Mu‘tazilite sources.

The recently discovered work Sharḥ al-Ḥadīth by the Mu‘tazilite imam Abū ʿAlī al-Jubbāʾī (d. 303/916) stands out as an exceptional source that fills this significant gap.

This commentary, written on the al-Musnad of the renowned hadith scholar Ibn Abī Shaybah (d. 235/850), not only provides an opportunity to examine hadith through a distinctly Mu‘tazilite perspective, but also necessitates a reassessment of established assumptions regarding the relationship between Mu‘tazilism and hadith, as well as the history of hadith commentary.

The work, prepared for publication by Hüseyin Hansu, has been made available to the scholarly community by the Istanbul Darülfünun Faculty of Theology Foundation Publications.