What is the ruling on studying "Tafsir Madarik al-Tanzil by al-Nasafi" and "Tafsir al-Baydawi," and are their exegetes among the scholars of Ahl al-Sunnah, or are they from others, such as the Ash'aris?
Al-Baydawi and Al-Nasafi are two venerable scholars. Al-Baydawi was a Shafi'i and Ash'ari, and his exegesis is "Anwar al-Tanzil wa Asrar al-Ta'wil." It is a concise compilation of previous tafsirs, with the addition of reasonable interpretations. As for Al-Nasafi, he was a Hanafi and Maturidi, and his exegesis is "Madarik al-Tanzil wa Haqa'iq al-Ta'wil." In it, he benefited from Al-Baydawi and Al-Zamakhshari, while avoiding the innovation of the Mu'tazilah.
These books of tafsir must be weighed with a precise scale. Benefiting from Al-Baydawi's and Al-Nasafi's tafsirs requires sufficient knowledge of the creed of Ahl al-Sunnah to avoid errors. However, the presence of errors does not mean these books should be discarded. Scholars have praised these tafsirs while warning against the innovations found within them, such as Ibn Taymiyyah, who pointed out the errors of Al-Zamakhshari and Ibn Atiyyah despite their benefits.
In summary, Al-Baydawi's and Al-Nasafi's tafsirs are beneficial for the mature student of knowledge. It is preferable to study them under the guidance of a shaykh, with a warning against the innovations contained therein.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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