Bihar al-Anwar

Part of a series on
Hadith
Sunni Kutub Al-Sittah ("The Six Books") Sahih Al-Bukhari صحيح البخاري Sahih Muslim صحيح مسلم Al-Sunan Al-Sughra السنن الصغرى Sunan Abi Dawood سنن أبي داود Sunan Al-Tirmidhi جامع الترمذي Sunan Ibn Maja سُنن ابن ماجه Period (CE)  Others Muwatta Imam Malik 8th–9th cent. Musnad Ahmad Ibn Hanbal 780–855 Sunan Al-Darimi 868 Shama'il Muhammadiyah (Shamaail Tirmidhi) 9th century Sahih Ibn Khuzaymah 923 Ṣaḥīḥ Ibn Ḥibbān 965 Al-Mustadrak a. Al-Ṣaḥīḥaīn 11th century Al-Mawdū'āt Al-Kubrā 1128–1217 Rīaḍ As-Ṣāliḥīn 1233–1278 Mishkat Al-Masabih 1340 Talkhis Al-Mustadrak 1274–1348 Majma Al-Zawa'id 1335–1405 Bulugh Al-Maram 1372–1449 Kanz al-Ummal 16th century Zujajat al-Masabih 19th century Minhaj us Sawi 20th century Muntakhab Ahadith 20th century
Shi'a Al-Kutub Al-Arb'ah ("The Four Books") Kitab Al-Kafi الكتاب الكافي Man La Yahduruhu Al-Faqih من لا يحضره الفقيه Tahdhib Al-Ahkam تهذیب الاحکام Al-Istibsar الاستبصار Period (CE)  Others Book of Sulaym Ibn Qays 7th century Al-Sahifa Al-Sajjadiyya 678–713 Uyun al Akhbar ar Reda 10th century Sharh Usul al-Kafi 11th century Nahj Al-Balagha 10th century Bihar Al-Anwar 17th century Haqq al-Yaqeen 17th century Ain Al-Hayat 17th century Qalam-e-Mowla   Daim al-Islam 10th century Al-Ghadir 19th century
Ibadi Jami Sahih Tartib Al-Musnad
Mu'tazila On the Peak of Eloquence  (13th century)
Related topics Biographical evaluation Criticism History Jihad Studies Terminology Types (categories)
Category Islam portal
v t e

Bihār al-Anwār (Arabic: بحار الأنوار‎, meaning "Seas of Lights") is a comprehensive collection of traditions (ahadith) compiled by the Shi'i scholar Mulla Muhammad Baqir, known as 'Allama Majlisi (d. 1110/1698). It is a hadith collection, the second source of inspiration in Shia Islam.

Probably completed between 1106/1694 and 1110/1698, it is an encyclopedia of ahadith, historical subjects and commentaries on many Qur'anic verses.

Bihar al-Anwar has 110 volumes. Majlisi wrote it to gather all the wisdom he could find, in order to preserve that knowledge for following generations. Due to this, there are certain objections raised on him stating that he has gathered both pearls and pebbles in this book. However, he in the preface of this same book has mentioned that he has taken a lot of trouble to scrutinize the traditions and then include them in his book. He says, "Then I chose to examine the traditions of the infallible, righteous Imams (a.s.), started exploring them and investigated them as was their right and I acquired its skill as was its due. Also the full name of the book Bihar Al Anwar is an indicative to the fact that Allama majlisi (ra) did not collect anything he had access to in this book. The full name of the book is "Oceans of Light an encyclopedia for Pearls of traditions of the Pure Aimmah" بحار الأنوار الجامعة لدرر أخبار الأءمة الأطهار

The collection is the most comprehensive (as a single collection) among all Islamic hadith collections. The author collected narrations related from the Prophet Muhammad, along with statements by Fatima (the daughter of Muhammad) and the Shi'i Imams, using both Shi'i and Sunni sources. The collection also includes his well-researched commentary on these narrations.

This book is one of the intellectual and scholarly masterworks of the Islamic Heritage.

See also

• List of Shi'a books

Bihar al-Anwar By Shaykh al-Islam Muhammad baqir al Majlisi(d.1110/1698) It has been recently published by the Open School,Chicago and prefaced by Mohammad hussain Jalai in 1421/2000CE