Sharh al-'Aqa'id al-Nasafiyya () is a commentary written by the Hanafi-Shafi'i scholar al-Taftazani (d. 791/1389 or 792/1390) on the creed of Najm al-Din 'Umar al-Nasafi's Al-Aqaid al-Nasafiyya, an authoritative compendium on Islamic Sunni theology that remained a standard textbook in Ottoman schools. The book is a commentary on al-Nasafi's treatise, in which al-Nasafi systematized Hanafi-Maturidi theology. However, al-Taftazani adopted an Ash'ari perspective in his commentary.
'AqÃÂ'id al-Nasafi, a short summary of the authentic Muslim beliefs by Najm al-Din 'Umar al-Nasafi. 'AqÃÂ'id is the plural of 'aqidah, which means, religious belief, creed, or theology. This short treatise has gained much popularity and acceptance amongst the Islamic community because of its comprehensive summary of the beliefs of Islam.
In this work, Najm al-Din 'Umar al-Nasafi closely followed Abu al-Mu'in al-Nasafi's formulations in his Tabsirat al-Adilla.
Al-Nasafi compiled and enumerated some 60 points of belief, each one of them being established directly or indirectly by a Qur'anic verse or an authentic Hadith. Although written from the perspective of the Maturidi school of theology, there is a consensus about all the fundamental beliefs mentioned in its pages amongst the Sunni scholars and they have only differed on a few of the subsidiary issues dealt with in this work. Many commentaries have been written on this work differing in size; among them are:
One of the most popular was the commentary written by Sa'd al-Din al-Taftazani (d. 792/1390). Since then, it has been taught in Islamic schools and seminaries throughout the world, particularly in Central and South Asia.
In 1988, Syed Naquib al-Attas put forward the 'AqÃÂ'id al-Nasafi manuscript as the oldest Malay manuscript with the date of authorship established as 1590 CE (998 AH), during the era of Sultan Alauddin Riayat Syah's rule in Aceh (1589âÂÂ1604). Like most religious manuscripts in the early stages, this manuscript was a translation from Arabic to Malay and this text was written in both languages, with the translated text written below the lines of the original text in Arabic.
Al-Taftazani started the book by praising Ash'aris after criticizing the Mu'tazilis. Part of his intention when he wrote this commentary was to thoroughly refute the Ahl al-Batil (the people of falsehood), such as the Mu'tazila, the Karramiyya, the Khawarij, the Philosophers, etc. Though his commentary in parts reflects an Ash'ari-Maturidi synthesis, the main framework was Ash'ari theology.
Al-Taftazani's commentary is the oldest manuscript copied on the territory of Macedonia. The scribe Muhammad ibn Sinan mentioned that he had copied it in Skopje, in the madrasa (school) of Isa Bey, in 926/1519.
There have been many scholars and theologians who have written glosses and notes on al-Taftazani's commentary, among them are the following:
The number of glosses (hawashi) on al-Taftazani's commentary on al-Nasafi's creed has reached around 82.
(d. 879/1474), Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti (d. 911/1505), and Mulla 'Ali al-Qari (d. 1014/1606) have performed the process of Hadiths that are mentioned in Sharh al-'Aqa'id al-Nasafiyya to identify its source and status.