Identification and analysis of the information on the Christians of the Prophet's Period in Muqātil b. Sulayman's at-Tafsīr al-Kabīr

Muqātil b. Sulayman's work, at-Tafsīr al-Kabīr, holds a significant place in the Islamic exegesis tradition, both because it has survived to the present day and because it is the first comprehensive exegesis covering all surahs. Although Muqātil is primarily known for his exegesis, the narrations about the life of the Prophet Muhammad and his companions, as well as the political and social relations with other communities living during the Prophet's time, make his work an important source in the fields of sirah and maghāzi. In our research, we focus on identifying and analyzing the information about Christians during the Prophet Muhammad's era found in Muqātil b. Sulayman's at-Tafsīr al-Kabīr. This information has been compared with the early sirah and maghazi sources provided by Urwa b. Zubayr, Ibn Shīhab al-Zuhrī, Musa b. Uqba, Ibn Ishaq, Waqīdi, Ibn Hīsham and Ibn Sa'd. The aim was to highlight the similarities and differences between these works. As a result of our research, it was observed that some of the information about Christians during the Prophet's era reported by Muqātil is also found in early sirah and maghazi works, while some information is absent, and some topics fall outside the scope of those works. It was found that some of Muqātil's accounts contradict the information provided by these sources, some names of individuals differ in Muqātil's work, and some events have incorrectly established cause-and-effect relationships.