Shooting Stars Against the Ginn: Use and Reuse of a Hadīt in the Exegesis of Q 46:29

This paper investigates the use of a ḥadīṯ within a corpus of medieval Qurʾānic commentaries (tafāsīr) concerning the mysterious encounter between Muḥammad and a group of ǧinn (Q 46:29; 72:1). A comparative analysis shows that ʾAbū ʾIsḥāq al-Ṯaʿlabī (d. 1035) chooses a version that aligns more closely with earlier exegeses than with those found in canonical ḥadīṯ collections (e.g., the Ṣaḥīḥayn). His version closely resembles, in both content and form, the accounts found in the Tafsīr by al-Ṭabarī (d. 923) and, indirectly, a transmission line traceable at least as far back as the Tafsīr by Muqātil b. Sulaymān (d. 767). This study highlights the active role of the Qurʾānic commentators in selecting and reshaping inherited material for interpretive purposes, contributing to a broader reflection on the relationship between tafāsīr and ḥadīṯ literature.