Al-Ṭabarī and Shiite Exegeses Some Exegetical Ties between Shiite and Sunni Traditions During Early Times With Specific Emphasis on al-Shaykh al-Ṭūsī's al-Tibyān

Al-Ṭabarī’s commentary is among the important Quranic exegeses in the Islamic world. In his work, al-Ṭabarī refers to the fewest number of Shiite exegetical traditions, as the early Shiite exegete living at his time __ Such as al-ʻAyyāshī, al-Qummī and Furāt al-Kūfī __ did the same and did not narrate non-Shiite traditions. In spite of this, his commentary in addition to having a direct impact on later Sunnis’ commentaries, starting from the late 4th century, has influenced the Shiite exegetical works as well. One century after al-Ṭabarī, the Shiite exegetes in Baghdad gradually started to pay more attention to his commentary, and after the writing of al-Tibyān by al-Shaykh al-Ṭūsī (d. 460 AH) this trend in attending to Sunnis’ exegetical views with emphasis on al-Ṭabarī’s commentary, reached its summit. The present study aims at reviewing this trend and tries firstly to identify the Shiite traces in Ṭabarī’s commentary and then will attempt to clarify the direct and indirect influences of al-Ṭabarī on bringing the Sunni’s concepts (The Sayings of Companions and Successors) into Shiite commentaries especially after the emergence of al-Tibyān by al-Shaykh al Ṭūsī in the mid-fifth century.