An Introduction to the Collection of Warram

Warram Ibn Abi Firas’s Tanbih Al-Khawatir Wa Nuzhat Al-Nawazir, better known as Majmu‘at Waram (The Collection of Warram) is a precious collection of narrations on the moral practices and etiquettes of God-wary and pious believers.

Tanbih Al-Khawatir Wa Nuzhat Al-Nawazir, better known as Majmu’a (Collection) of Warram, is a celebrated work on moral and ethical doctrines of the Shia school of thought. Written by a renowned and reliable scholar, this book enjoys a prominent position among the books on ethics and etiquette of pious people. In addition to the biography of the author and various names of the book, this paper presents a general outlook of its authenticity and content, and offers citations of its narrations in other Hadith collections.

About the Author

Warram Ibn Abi Firas is counted among the scholars of the 6th and 7th centuries A.H. He was born in Hilla, the centre of Shia teachings, particularly in jurisprudence. No information currently exists regarding the date of his birth. Most researchers believe that he belonged to an Arab tribe among the descendants of Malik Al Ashtar, the great companion of Imam Ali (a.s.)

According to this view, his lineage is as follows: Abu Al-Husayn Warram Ibn Abi Firas Ibn Hamdan Ibn Isa Ibn Abi Al-Najm Ibn Warram Ibn Hamdan Ibn Khuldan Ibn Ibrahim Ibn Malik Ibn Harith Al-Ashtar Al-Nakha’i. Some researchers such Mustafa Jawad, however, hold that his ancestors were among the Kurdish Mawali (non-Arab Muslims) of Bani Ashtar who took part in the uprising of Mukhtar Al-Thaqafi in 66 AH.

He is the maternal ancestor of Sayyid Radi Al-Din Ibn Tawus, the famous Shi’i scholar and the author of Al-Luhuf. Some authors mistakenly assumed that Warram is the paternal ancestor of Sayyid Ibn Tawus. This assumption, however, is incorrect since the paternal ancestors of Sayyid Ibn Tawus have been numerated in various books and there is no mention of Warram amongst them. Moreover, his father was among the great jurists of his time, and his brother, Mujir Al-Din Ja’far Ibn Abi Firas, was a well-known scholar.

Warram’s spouse is a descendant of Shaykh Tusi. It is for this reason that Sayyid Ibn Tawus occasionally wrote “my grandfather Warram Ibn Abi Firas” and sometimes “my grandfather Shaykh Tusi” in his books, although in realty, it was his great ancestor. His scholarly and spiritual status is apparent in his valuable works; furthermore, Sayyid Ibn Tawus’s testimony is the best evidence, he says in his Falah Al-Sa’il, “My grandfather is among those on whose deeds one can rely.”

Shaykh Muntajab Al-Din also has called him a pious scholar and a great jurist. He said, “I saw him in Hilla and found him just as [good as] I had heard of.” Also, Sayyid Ibn Tawus explicitly declares that his grandfather had a great influence in his scholarly life. Furthermore, he speaks about his considerable love for the progeny of the Holy Prophet