SEJARAH ILMU NAHWU DARI MASA KHULAFAUR RASYIDIN HINGGA MENJADI ILMU YANG SISTEMATIS
Ilmu Nahwu atau tata bahasa Arab tidak serta-merta muncul begitu saja. Ia lahir dari kebutuhan mendesak untuk menjaga kemurnian bahasa dan ketepatan makna, terutama dalam memahami Al-Qur'an dan Hadis. Sejarah panjangnya bermula pada masa pemerintahan para sahabat Nabi.
Awal Mula: Masa Khalifah Umar bin Khattab RA
Kisah kelahiran ilmu ini bermula ketika seorang Arab yang kurang memahami kaidah bahasa membaca surat At-Taubah ayat 3:
Ia membaca kata warasuluhi dengan harakat Jer (kasrah), yang secara makna berarti "Sesungguhnya Allah berlepas diri dari orang-orang musyrikin dan dari Rasul-Nya."
Tentu saja hal ini salah dan menimbulkan kesalahpahaman fatal. Orang tersebut bahkan berkata, "Jika Allah berlepas diri dari Rasul-Nya, maka aku pun berlepas diri dari Rasulullah."
Mendengar hal tersebut, Khalifah Umar bin Khattab RA memanggilnya dan mengoreksi: "Bukan begitu cara membacanya. Harus dibaca Rofa'kan (dhommah), sehingga artinya menjadi: Sesungguhnya Allah dan Rasul-Nya berlepas diri dari orang-orang musyrikin."
Insiden ini menjadi titik balik. Khalifah Umar RA kemudian memerintahkan Syaikh Abul Aswad Ad Duali dari Bani Kinanah untuk mulai meletakkan dasar-dasar gramatika bahasa Arab agar kesalahan serupa tidak terulang.
Penyempurnaan di Masa Sayyidina Ali bin Abi Thalib RA
Perkembangan ilmu Nahwu semakin matang pada masa Sayyidina Ali bin Abi Thalib RA. Ada kisah menarik yang dialami oleh Syaikh Abul Aswad bersama putrinya.
Suatu malam, sang putri ingin memuji keindahan langit dengan berkata: "Maa ahsanus samaa-i". Namun karena harakat yang kurang tepat, kalimat itu justru terdengar seperti pertanyaan: "Apa yang membuat indahnya langit?"
Sang ayah pun menjawab sesuai pemahamannya, "Yang membuat indah adalah bintang-bintang." Putrinya pun tersenyum dan menjelaskan bahwa ia sebenarnya ingin mengungkapkan kekaguman, bukan bertanya. Abul Aswad pun mengajari cara pengucapan yang benar dengan mengubah harakat menjadi "Maa ahsanas samaa-a".
Keesokan harinya, Abul Aswad menceritakan kejadian ini kepada Sayyidina Ali RA. Beliau bersabda bahwa hal ini terjadi karena mulai bercampurnya bahasa Arab dengan bahasa asing (Ajam).
Sayyidina Ali RA kemudian memerintahkan Abul Aswad untuk menulis kaidah-kaidah bahasa. Materi pertama yang diajarkan adalah pembagian kalimat menjadi tiga: Isim, Fi'il, dan Huruf, serta membahas tentang Sighot Ta'ajub (ungkapan kekaguman).
Dari situlah ilmu ini dinamakan Nahwu, yang berarti "mencontoh" atau "mengarah", karena kita belajar dengan mengikuti contoh-contoh kaidah yang benar.
Perkembangan dan Pembukuan
Setelah dasar-dasar diletakkan oleh Abul Aswad Ad Duali, ilmu ini terus berkembang. Muncullah tokoh-tokoh besar yang menyusunnya menjadi kitab yang sistematis:
- Imam Khalil bin Ahmad Al Farahidy: Beliau membuat inovasi dengan menyusun bab-bab khusus dalam ilmu Nahwu.
- Imam Sibawaih: Murid jenius Imam Khalil, yang memperluas kajian dengan dalil-dalil yang sangat kuat. Beliau menulis kitab monumental berjudul "Al-Kitab", yang menjadi rujukan utama hingga saat ini.
- Tokoh Selanjutnya: Seperti Syaikh Abu Ali Al Farisi dan Syaikh Abu Al Qosim Az Zajaj yang menyusun ringkasan-ringkasan agar lebih mudah dipelajari.
Tidak hanya itu, perbedaan pandangan antara mazhab Kufah dan Bashrah justru memperkaya khazanah ilmu ini, melahirkan berbagai metode baru yang memudahkan para pencari ilmu (tholibul ilmi) dalam mempelajari Ilmu Nahwu
ENGLISH
THE HISTORY OF ARABIC GRAMMAR (ILMU NAHWU)
From the Era of the Rightly Guided Caliphs to a Systematic Science
Arabic Grammar (Nahwu) did not appear overnight. It was born out of an urgent need to preserve the purity of the language and ensure the accuracy of meaning, especially when understanding the Quran and the teachings of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. Its long history began during the leadership of the Prophet's companions.
The Beginning: During the Time of Caliph Umar ibn Khattab RA
The story of how this science began happened when an Arab man, who lacked knowledge of linguistic rules, recited verse 3 of Surah At-Taubah:
He read the word wa rasūluhī with a Kasrah (vowel sound 'i') at the end. Grammatically, this changed the meaning to: "Indeed, Allah is free from [obligation to] the disbelievers, and so is His Messenger."
This was a critical error that led to a dangerous misunderstanding. The man even said, "If Allah has disowned His Messenger, then I too disown the Messenger."
Upon hearing this, Caliph Umar ibn Khattab RA summoned him and corrected his recitation:
"That is not the correct way to read it. It should be read with Dhammah (vowel sound 'u'), so the meaning becomes: Indeed, Allah and His Messenger are free from [obligation to] the disbelievers."
This incident became a turning point. Caliph Umar RA then commissioned Sheikh Abul Aswad Ad Duali to establish the fundamental rules of Arabic grammar to prevent similar mistakes from happening again.
Refinement During the Time of Sayyidina Ali ibn Abi Talib RA
The development of grammar became more advanced during the time of Sayyidina Ali ibn Abi Talib RA. There is an interesting story involving Sheikh Abul Aswad and his daughter.
One night, his daughter wanted to express her admiration for the beauty of the sky by saying:
However, because she used the wrong vowel marks, the sentence sounded like a question: "What makes the sky beautiful?"
Her father answered based on his understanding, "What makes it beautiful are the scattered stars."
His daughter smiled and explained that she was actually expressing amazement, not asking a question. Abul Aswad then taught her the correct pronunciation by changing the vowels so it clearly meant "How beautiful the sky is!"
The next day, Abul Aswad told this story to Sayyidina Ali RA. He explained that this confusion happened because the Arabic language was beginning to mix with foreign languages (Ajam).
Sayyidina Ali RA then instructed Abul Aswad to write down these linguistic rules systematically. The first lessons taught were the classification of words into three types: Noun (Isim), Verb (Fi'il), and Particle (Harf), as well as rules for expressions of wonder.
From this method of learning by example, this science was named Nahwu, which means "way" or "pattern," because students learn by following correct examples and patterns.
Development and Documentation
After the foundations were laid by Abul Aswad Ad Duali, this science continued to grow. Great scholars emerged who organized it into comprehensive books:
- Imam Khalil bin Ahmad Al Farahidy: He innovated by organizing the study into specific chapters and topics.
- Imam Sibawaih: A brilliant student of Imam Khalil. He expanded the study with strong evidence and proofs. He wrote the monumental book simply titled "Al-Kitab" (The Book), which remains the main reference for grammar studies to this day.
- Later Scholars: Such as Sheikh Abu Ali Al Farisi and Sheikh Abu Al Qasim Az Zajaj, who wrote summaries and simplified the material so it was easier to learn.
Furthermore, the academic discussions and differences of opinion between the scholars of Kufah and Basrah actually enriched this field of knowledge, leading to new methods that make it easier for students (Talibul Ilmi) to master the science of Arabic Grammar
BERKAS
..أَنَّ ٱللَّهَ بَرِىٓءٌ مِّنَ ٱلْمُشْرِكِينَ ۙ وَرَسُولُهُۥ ۚ...الآية
(At Taubah 9:3)
dengan dibaca jer (رسوله)yang mengandung arti: "Sesungguhnya Allah telah berlepas diri dari orang-orang musyrikin dan Rasul-nya".
Maka orang Arab tersebut berkata: "karena Allah telah berlepas diri dari Rasul-Nya maka akupun berlepas diri dari Rosululloh". Maka dipanggilah orang tersebut oleh Sayyidina Umar bin Khothob RA dan berkatalah : "Benarkah engkau telah berlepas diri dari Rosululloh ? ". Orang Arab tersebut menjawab dengan dalil ayat tadi. Kemudian Sayyidina Umar bin Khothob berkata : "Bukan begitu cara membacanya bukan dijerkan tetapi dirofa'kan(ورسوله)" yang artinya: "Sesungguhnya Allah dan Rasul-nya berlepas diri dari orang-orang musyrikin"
He read the word (وَرَسُولِهِ) wa rasūlihi with a Kasrah (the vowel sound 'i'), which changed the meaning to:
"Indeed, Allah is free from [responsibility to] the polytheists, and so is His Messenger."
Hearing this, the Arab man said:
"Since Allah has disowned His Messenger, then I too disown the Messenger of Allah."
Upon hearing this, Caliph Umar ibn al-Khattab RA summoned the man and asked:
"Is it true that you have disowned the Messenger of Allah?"
The man replied by quoting the verse as his evidence.
Caliph Umar ibn al-Khattab RA then corrected him, saying:
"That is not the correct way to recite it. It should not be read with Kasrah, but rather with Rafa' (Dhammah / the vowel sound 'u') as (وَرَسُولُهُ) wa rasūluhu. This means: Indeed, Allah and His Messenger are free from [responsibility to] the polytheists
saat itu putrinya berkata kepada beliau :"ما أحسنُ السماءِ؟ "( dibaca dlhomah nun nya dan kasroh hamzahnya ) dengan maksud : "alangkah indahnya langit diatas sana"(tetapi memberikan pahaman "apa yang membuat indahnya langit?"di sebabkan dibaca dhommah nun dan kasih hamzahnya). Ucapan sang putri dijawab beliau : " yang membuat indahnya langit adalah bintang-bintang yang bertaburan ". Mendengar jawaban itu putrinya merasa heran lalu berkata : " Wahai ayahku bukan itu yang ananda maksudkan, tetapi yang nanda maksud adalah kekaguman akan keindahan langit ". Perkataan sang putri menjadikan Syaikh Abul Aswad Ad Duali mengerti akan maksud apa yang sebenarnya dikehendaki putrinya karena sebelumnya Syaikh Abul Aswad Ad Duali menyangka bahwa sang putri bertanya tentang " apa yang membuat indahnya langit ?", kemudian dengan penuh kasih sayang beliau menasehati putrinya yang tercinta : " jika yang kamu kehendaki adalah kekaguman tentang keindahan langit maka katakanlah :" dengan memfathahkan nun lafadz -ما أحسنَ -dan hamzahnya lafadz -السماءَ-"
At that moment, his daughter said to him:
"ما ا حسنُ ا لسماءِ؟"
(Pronounced with a Dhammah on the letter Nun and a Kasrah on the letter Alif)
She intended to say: "How beautiful the sky is!"
However, because of the incorrect vowels she used, the sentence actually meant: "What makes the sky beautiful?"
Her father replied based on what he heard: "What makes the sky beautiful are the scattered stars."
Hearing this answer, she was surprised and said: "O my father, that is not what I meant. I was expressing my admiration for the beauty of the sky."
Hearing this, Sheikh Abul Aswad Ad Duali finally understood his daughter's true intention. He had mistakenly thought she was asking a question. Then, with great affection, he taught his beloved daughter:
"If you wish to express wonder at the beauty of the sky, you should say:
"ما احسنَ السماءَ"
...by changing the vowel on the Nun in the word Mā Aḥsana to Fathah, and the vowel on the Alif in as-samā'a also to Fathah."
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