Masʿūd b. ʿUmar al-Taftāzānī
Saʿd al-dīn’s commentary on al-ʿaqīda al-Nasafiyya is one of the early commentaries on the creed and its also one of the most commented upon commentary making all further commentaries on it super commentaries. Saʿd al-dīn Abū Saʿīd Masʿūd b. ʿUmar b. ʿAbdullāh al-Taftāzānī (b. 722/1322 – d.791/1389). He is a jurist of Shāfiʿī school of Muslim jurisprudence and Ashʿarī school of sunnī theology. 1
Al-Taftāzānī was a consummate scholar who travelled widely in Central Asia he was a master of both Shāfiʿī school and Ḥanafī school of Muslim jurisprudence and Ashʿarī school as well as Māturīdī school of sunnī theology. I am of the opinion that he wrote commentary on al-ʿaqīda al-Nasafiyya in the Māturīdī school of sunnī theology and noted his disagreement as well the Ashʿarī school and other schools’ disagreements. This is in line with his work as a scholar to be able to articulate his authors idea. For example he did this when he wrote philosophical texts written within the school of Muslim Philosophy. He also followed suit in his works on jurisprudence as in works on Shāfiʿī jurisprudence he explained the Shāfiʿī positions and when he wrote works on Ḥanafī jurisprudence he explained the Ḥanafī positions. This may have caused confusion where some claimed that he is a Ḥanafī Jurist whereas other claimed that he is a Shāfiʿī Jurist. In the case of his commentary on al-ʿaqīda al-Nasafiyya claimed that he is following Ashʿarī theology due to his many other works on Ashʿarī theology whereas in the commentary it is apparent that he is citing Māturīdī positions clearly.