التفسير بالمأثور
al-Tafsīr bi-l-maʾthūr
Interpretation of the Quran by transmitted material: other Quranic verses, the Prophet’s sayings, and the words of the Companions and their followers.
What it means
Al-tafsīr bi-l-maʾthūr is the way of explaining the Quran that rests on what has been handed down. It draws first on other verses of the Quran, since the Quran explains itself, and then on the sayings and example of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). After these come the explanations of the Companions and, in some accounts, of the followers. Faruqi defines it as exegesis carried out by means of traditions received from the Prophet and his Companions. It differs from tafsīr bi-l-raʾy, which relies on reasoned judgement within the rules of the Arabic language and the law. Well-known works of the transmitted type include Jāmiʿ al-bayān by al-Tabari and the commentary of Ibn Kathir.
Often misunderstood as
The transmitted type is sometimes assumed to be uncritical, although its scholars grade each report by its chain of narrators.
What the sources say
Scholars generally hold that the strongest explanation of a verse is another verse, followed by the Prophet’s explanation, then the Companions’ reports, since they witnessed the revelation. Caution is applied because weak or invented reports, including borrowed tales called isrāʾīliyyāt, entered some works and are screened out by critics.
Term and Arabic as listed in Ismail al Faruqi, Toward Islamic English (International Institute of Islamic Thought, 1995), p. 49, listed as AL TAFSĪR BIL MA'THŪR. The definition is restated here.