What are the best books of tafsir that rely on athar?
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The student: What are the best books of tafsir that follow the rules you mentioned, so that the student can understand them and practice them?
The Shaykh : In my view, the best among the tafsirs that focus on athar is Tafsir Ibn Kathir. Tafsir Ibn Kathir is one of the best books that rely on tafsir by athar. However, as you know, the Qur'an—Glorified and Exalted is He—is vast. If all people were to gather to grasp its meaning, they would not be able to do so. You will find, for example, that one person studies the Qur'an from the linguistic aspect, another from the creedal aspect, another from the jurisprudential aspect, and another from the rhetorical aspect. There are many diverse sciences in the Noble Qur'an. Ibn Kathir, for example, is undoubtedly good in terms of athar, but he is deficient in many matters of language. He also speaks very little about deriving rulings. We find, for example, that al-Qurtubi focuses on rulings and branches out from the verse, and so on. The important point is that every scholar has a methodology in interpreting the words of Allah (Mighty and Majestic).
The Shaykh : In my view, the best among the tafsirs that focus on athar is Tafsir Ibn Kathir. Tafsir Ibn Kathir is one of the best books that rely on tafsir by athar. However, as you know, the Qur'an—Glorified and Exalted is He—is vast. If all people were to gather to grasp its meaning, they would not be able to do so. You will find, for example, that one person studies the Qur'an from the linguistic aspect, another from the creedal aspect, another from the jurisprudential aspect, and another from the rhetorical aspect. There are many diverse sciences in the Noble Qur'an. Ibn Kathir, for example, is undoubtedly good in terms of athar, but he is deficient in many matters of language. He also speaks very little about deriving rulings. We find, for example, that al-Qurtubi focuses on rulings and branches out from the verse, and so on. The important point is that every scholar has a methodology in interpreting the words of Allah (Mighty and Majestic).