Methods For Confirming Lineage Books (Kitab Nasab)

Book Title: Measuring the Authenticity of Habib Lineage in Indonesia
Author: KH Imaduddin Utsman Al Bantani, leader of Nahdlatul Ulum Islamic Boarding School, Banten
First Edition: October 2022
Publisher: Maktabah Nahdatul Ulum
Translator: alkhoirot.org | Al-Khoirot Research and Publication
Field of Study: Islamic History, genealogy 

Contents

1. Methods For Confirming Lineage Books (Kitab Nasab)
2. Method For Confirming Alawi Bin Ubaidillah 
3. Back to Book  Measuring the Authenticity of Habib Lineage in Indonesia 

METHODS FOR CONFIRMING LINEAGE BOOKS (KITAB NASAB)

There are numerous lineage books that discuss the Ba Alawi family; however, do these books serve as a sufficient basis for the authenticity of the Ba Alawi lineage back to Prophet Muhammad s.a.w.?

A lineage book can only serve as valid evidence (dalil) for names that were contemporary to the time the book was written. For example:

• The book Nubzat Lathifah fi Silsilati nasabil Alawi was written by Zainal Abidin bin Alwi Jamalul Lail.
• The book Ittisalu Nasabil Alawiyyin wal Asyraf was written by Umar bin Salim al-Attas in the 13th century AH.
• The book Syamsudz Dzahirah was written by Abdurrahman Muhammad bin Husein al-Masyhur in the mid-13th century AH.
• While these books can serve as evidence or references for individuals living during that century, they cannot serve as evidence for those living in previous centuries. For instance, to confirm the identity of Ahmad bin Isa, we must verify it against a book written during his lifetime or the one written closest to the era in which he lived.

Similarly, the names that come before or after him must be confirmed by books written during their respective eras.

METHOD FOR CONFIRMING ALAWI BIN UBAIDILLAH

Alawi bin Ubaidillah is the ancestor of the Ba Alawi in Indonesia, Yemen, and several Southeast Asian countries. His complete lineage is claimed as follows: Alawi bin Ubaidillah "bin" Ahmad al-Muhajir bin Isa al-Rumi bin Muhammad an-Naqib bin Ali al-Uraidhi bin Ja'far al-Sadiq bin Muhammad al-Baqir bin Ali Zainal Abidin bin Husain bin Fatimah Azzahra binti Prophet Muhammad s.a.w.. Within this lineage, Alawi is the 12th name in the sequence.

To establish this using the looking down method, we must be able to find evidence that the name above him indeed had a child with the name listed below him.[]