A Comparative Study of the Imamate Research Methodology of the Books Mahasin by Barqi and Basa'ir al-Darajat by Saffar

The primary objective of this research is to conduct a comparative study of Imamate research (imāmat-pizhūhī) in two foundational Shīʿī hadith works from the third century AH: Al-Maḥāsin by Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad ibn Khālid al-Barqī and Baṣāʾir al-Darajāt by Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥasan al-Ṣaffār. The central question of this research is: With what epistemological approach and through what narrative structure has each work elucidated the station of the Imam and the doctrine of Imamate, and what are the attitudinal differences between them in expounding Imamate? The research hypothesis posits that the theological concerns and intellectual backgrounds of each traditionist (muḥaddith) had a direct influence on their narrative style and the manner of organizing hadiths. The research methodology is descriptive-analytical, based on documentary study and textual analysis. Data were collected and analyzed through examining chapter structures, the arrangement of narratives, and the re-reading of doctrinal content. The findings indicate that both authors—traditionists from Qom in the third century AH—regarded Imamate as the axis of all religious affairs. The difference is that al-Barqī, in Al-Maḥāsin, adopts a practical and educative (tarbītī) approach to expounding the doctrine of Imamate, demonstrating the connection between belief in Imamate and the religious life of the believer in areas such as the reward for actions, the punishment for sins, and ethical values. In contrast, al-Ṣaffār, in Baṣāʾir al-Darajāt, focuses on the stations (maqāmāt), virtues (faḍāʾil), and existential levels (marātib-i wujūdī) of the Imams (AS), thereby highlighting the dimension of their knowledge (ʿilm). The final synthesis of the research indicates that differences in the authors' goals and epistemic horizons led to two distinct models in Imamate research: one, al-Barqī's ethical-doctrinal (akhlāqī-iʿtiqādī) model, which emphasizes the practical outcomes of faith; and the other, al-Ṣaffār's faith-based-epistemic (īmānī-maʿrifatī) model, which focuses on the unseen dimensions and existential stations of the Imams. Together, these present a comprehensive and two-dimensional picture of Imamate research among early Shīʿī traditionists