Skiredj Library of Tijani Studies
In the name of Allah, the Most Merciful, the Especially Merciful. May Allah’s blessings and peace be upon our master Muhammad, his family, and his companions.
Among the remarkable works of the eminent Tijani scholar, judge, man of letters, and gnostic Sidi Ahmed ibn al-Hajj al-‘Ayyashi Skiredj al-Khazraji al-Ansari is a travel book of rare richness and unusual scope: Taj al-Ru’us bi al-Tafassuh fi Nawahi Sus. It is more than a travel narrative. It is at once a historical record, a literary composition, a geographical survey, a scholarly notebook, a social commentary, and a portrait of southern Morocco in the early twentieth century.
For readers interested in Moroccan intellectual history, Tijani scholarship, Sous culture, and the literary heritage of Sidi Ahmed Skiredj, this book deserves special attention.
What is Taj al-Ru’us?
The title under which the work became known in print is Taj al-Ru’us bi al-Tafassuh fi Nawahi Sus, which may be rendered in English as “The Crown of Heads: A Broad Excursion Through the Regions of Sous.” It was printed at the New Press in Fez during the lifetime of the author himself.
Sidi Ahmed Skiredj had mentioned the work earlier in his book al-Ightibat, where he referred to it under a slightly different title meaning “The Crown of Heads in Traveling Through the Regions of Sous.” This shows that the work was already part of his personal catalog of writings before its final printed form.
Interestingly, the noted scholar and man of letters Sidi al-Tahir ibn Muhammad al-Tamnarti al-Ifrani preferred an alternative title for it: Tazyin al-Turus bi al-Tafassuh fi Nawahi Sus. A copy of the book once owned by him bore this suggested title in his own handwriting on the cover. That detail alone shows how highly the work was regarded in learned circles.
Why this book matters
This book is important because it brings together several worlds in one composition. It is a travel account, but not a simple itinerary. It is a learned document written by a major scholar who moved through cities, villages, schools, zawiyas, ribats, libraries, markets, tribes, valleys, and mountain regions with the eye of a jurist, the memory of a historian, and the language of a poet.
It also belongs to the late period of Sidi Ahmed Skiredj’s life. By the time he composed this journey, he was already a mature scholar with a vast intellectual network and a long record of writing. That gives the work a special weight. It is the testimony of a seasoned master looking at land, people, scholarship, religion, and society with a deeply trained eye.
The background of the journey
The idea of visiting the Sous region did not arise suddenly. It had been forming for years. Around 1345 AH / 1926 CE, Sidi Ahmed Skiredj welcomed into his home in El Jadida a group of leading scholars from the Sous region. Among them was the celebrated scholar and man of letters Sidi al-Tahir ibn Muhammad al-Tamnarti al-Ifrani al-Susi, who had long enjoyed a strong friendship with him.
Another important figure in this story is Sidi Ahmad ibn ‘Ali al-Kashti al-Tinani, who maintained an intimate and reverential correspondence with Skiredj. In his letters, he addressed him with titles such as my shaykh, my father, my support, my pillar. Those letters repeatedly invited Skiredj to visit Sous, inspect its zawiyas, schools, libraries, ribats, and intellectual landmarks, and meet its scholars and students.
One of the latest such invitations, dated Rabi‘ al-Awwal 1355 AH / 1936 CE, shows that the scholars and students of the scientific school of Alma were eager for his visit. The journey that became Taj al-Ru’us was therefore not accidental. It was the response to a longstanding scholarly desire from the learned world of Sous.
A road trip by car in pre-modern conditions
One striking feature of this رحلة is that it was undertaken by car, and not by the traditional means of travel more common in earlier Moroccan journeys. Skiredj had purchased this vehicle years before, during his period as a judge in El Jadida. He even mentioned its purchase price in one of his letters to his brother M’hammed Skiredj.
This matters because it places the work at an interesting historical crossroads: deeply traditional in scholarship and style, yet distinctly modern in its method of travel. Even so, the roads were far from easy. The total distance covered by the car exceeded 2,500 kilometers, an impressive figure for the time, especially given the mixed state of the roads, some paved and many not, along with the limitations of both the vehicle and the travel conditions.
Who accompanied him?
Three men accompanied Sidi Ahmed Skiredj on this journey:
Sidi Muhammad ibn ‘Ali al-Tazrawalti al-Susi, the Moqadem of the Tijani zawiya at Bab al-Kabir in Casablanca
Sidi Muhammad al-Jaddani, the driver
Sidi ‘Abd al-Kabir al-Tukkani
Their presence reflects the scholarly, devotional, and practical dimensions of the journey.
How the book was written
As soon as the journey began, Skiredj started recording its events and impressions. He carried loose papers specifically for that purpose. Manuscript leaves preserved in the Skiredj library show that he wrote rapidly, spontaneously, and often without formal layout. He wrote where space allowed: at the top of the page, in the margin, to the side, or wherever the hand found room.
This was not unique to Taj al-Ru’us. It was the same method he used in earlier journeys, such as his Zidani, Wahrani, and Hijazi travel writings. Yet although the first notes were made quickly and informally, the final work was later revised, organized, and polished until it reached the refined form known today.
At what stage of his life was this written?
When Skiredj undertook this journey, he was sixty-one years old. It belongs to the closing period of his life and is one of his last major journeys, apart from his later brief trip to Algeria. He lived only about eight more years after this journey, passing away in 1363 AH / 1944 CE.
At the time, he was serving as judge of Settat and its surroundings. This mature stage of his life adds to the value of the book. It is the work of a man at the height of experience, combining law, literature, spirituality, and observation.
A poem of 1,100 verses
Another remarkable feature of Taj al-Ru’us is its form. The work consists of about 1,100 verses, composed in the Kamil meter. This is not casual versification. It is a carefully structured poetic travelogue, composed with notable precision and control.
That alone makes the work stand out. It is a serious literary achievement, not merely a diary in rhyme. The scale, coherence, and density of the composition reflect Skiredj’s mastery of language and form.
What the journey covers
Skiredj deliberately shaped the route to maximize its reach. On the outbound journey, he traveled through the coastal cities, while the return route passed through Marrakesh and the Hawz region. This allowed him to widen the journey and visit more areas, tribes, scholars, and friends.
Along the way, he wrote about cities such as:
Fez
Casablanca
El Jadida
Jorf Lasfar
Safi
Essaouira
Tamanar
Agadir
Inzegane
Tiznit
Taroudant
Marrakesh
He also described numerous villages, valleys, mountains, roads, markets, and tribal zones encountered during the journey.
The geographical dimension
One of the strongest aspects of the book is its geographical content. From the first stages of the trip, Skiredj pays close attention to the physical and civic character of places.
His account of Casablanca is especially notable. He devotes more than two pages to describing its large buildings, rapid demographic growth, commercial and industrial expansion, and major port. This is valuable because it captures Casablanca during a period of transformation, seen through the eyes of a learned Moroccan observer.
Throughout the work, he describes regions with concrete detail: routes taken, landscapes crossed, places visited, and notable features of each area.
The historical dimension
The book also has an unmistakable historical value. Skiredj does not merely pass through places; he situates them. He recalls their significance, notes their past, mentions their scholars and notables, and records their place in wider Moroccan life.
This makes the work useful not only as literature but also as a source for the intellectual and social history of Morocco, especially southern Morocco.
The scholarly dimension
Perhaps the central axis of the book is its scholarly content. Skiredj’s real aim was not tourism in the ordinary sense. He wanted to visit centers of knowledge, meet scholars, inspect libraries, and reconnect with the learned networks of the Sous region.
As in many of his writings, he was attentive to the ranks and biographies of the people he met. He included short and long notices on scholars, men of letters, nobles, pious figures, leaders, and officials. In total, he mentioned more than 140 individuals, some encountered in Fez and others met during the journey itself.
This biographical material gives the work exceptional documentary value.
The social dimension
Skiredj also observed the social life of the places he visited. He noted customs, habits, public behavior, and visible changes in society. This gives the work a human texture beyond travel routes and scholarly encounters.
He paid attention to what people wore, how they behaved, and what new habits were spreading. His observations allow the reader to see Morocco in transition.
His love for Fez
As in many of his writings, Skiredj began by praising his beloved hometown, Fez. He was deeply attached to the city and frequently used any suitable occasion to celebrate its virtues, its precedence, and its learned culture.
In one of the most memorable lines of the journey, he says in meaning:
“Fez—what can make you understand what Fez is? It holds a distinction over cities in all lands. Knowledge springs from the breasts of its people just as its waters spring from the walls.”
This opening is typical of Skiredj. His love for Fez was intellectual, spiritual, emotional, and civilizational all at once.
A warning against extremism
One especially relevant feature of the book is that Skiredj did not miss the opportunity to speak against religious extremism and harshness. He saw fanaticism and excessive severity as dangers to religion and society and argued for resisting and uprooting them.
He mentions a case involving one of his own students, Muhammad ibn al-Hajj Fatha al-Safriwi, who had once leaned toward a group of extremist youths in Fez. According to Skiredj, this movement claimed it wanted to reform religion, oppose certain social customs, and fight Sufi orders, zawiyas, shrines, and related practices. In the end, that phenomenon was suppressed through the combined efforts of scholars, authorities, and righteous people, and the young man returned to sound judgment through the advice of his teacher.
This makes the book more than a travel account. It is also a witness to moral and religious tensions of its time.
Legal discussions inside the journey
As expected from a jurist of Skiredj’s stature, the book contains فقه-oriented discussions. He did not suspend legal inquiry during travel. On the contrary, the journey became a space for reflection and response.
Among the issues he discussed were:
the zakat implications of argan oil
earlier legal opinions connected to peanuts and safflower
a question posed by the Pasha of Taroudant regarding sodomy
the proper way to recite the regular Qur’anic hizb in a shrine when two separate groups begin reciting at the same time
On that last issue, he advised that it was more fitting and more adab-appropriate for both groups to gather and recite together in one place, avoiding noise, overlap, and confusion.
These passages reveal Skiredj in action as a working scholar, not only a traveler.
Social criticism: new habits and changing times
Skiredj also comments on social innovations and habits that disturbed him. He mentions practices such as:
shaving the beard
wearing foreign clothes
excessive sitting in cafés
smoking
drinking alcohol
When he returned to Fez after a lengthy absence, he was especially struck by the spread of beard shaving among young people and even students of knowledge, something he regarded as a serious and unfamiliar development in the city.
These remarks give the book a reformist tone in places, grounded in moral concern rather than mere description.
A journey praised by many scholars
The literary value of Taj al-Ru’us was quickly recognized. According to available evidence, nearly fifty poems of commendation were composed in praise of the work.
Among the most prominent were those by:
Sidi al-Tahir ibn Muhammad al-Tamnarti al-Ifrani
Sidi Ahmad ibn ‘Ali al-Kashti al-Tinani
al-Faqih al-Hasan ibn ‘Ali ibn ‘Abd Allah al-Ilghi al-Susi
This wide reception shows that the book was not only appreciated as a personal memoir. It was welcomed as a major literary and scholarly contribution.
Why Taj al-Ru’us still matters today
This book remains valuable for several reasons. It offers:
a vivid portrait of Sous and southern Morocco
insight into Moroccan scholarly networks
an example of Tijani literary culture
a detailed record of cities, routes, tribes, and institutions
a window into religious, legal, and social debates of its time
a demonstration of Sidi Ahmed Skiredj’s range as poet, jurist, historian, and observer
Few works combine all these dimensions with such density.
A book already edited and published
This work was not left buried in manuscript form. It has already been edited, printed, and published, making it accessible again to readers and researchers interested in Skiredj’s legacy and in Moroccan intellectual history more broadly.
That publication is itself an important service to scholarship, because Taj al-Ru’us is one of the works that helps us understand not only the author, but an entire scholarly world.
Final reflection
Taj al-Ru’us bi al-Tafassuh fi Nawahi Sus is one of those books that rewards more than one kind of reader. The historian will find documentation. The literary reader will find polished verse and vivid expression. The student of Sufism will find networks of learning and devotion. The researcher of Morocco will find a map of places, people, and concerns from a decisive moment in the country’s modern history.
Above all, the book reflects the genius of Sidi Ahmed Skiredj himself: a scholar ahead of his time, precise in observation, elegant in style, rich in knowledge, and profoundly connected to the lands and people he wrote about.
That is why this journey remains a crown among his travel writings.
+++