Al-Radi prefers al-Suli's chess to a garden's flowers

الراضي يفضل لعب الصولي بالشطرنج على الزهر

934 CE · 322 AH

Al-Radi, in one of his gardens, asked his companions whether they had seen anything finer; they praised the garden, and he said that al-Suli's chess-playing was finer than those flowers and all they described 1.

Depth

At a glance

Era
The Early Abbasid Caliphate
Region
Levant & Iraq

In time

920930940950
Abbasid Fragmentation · The Buyid, Fatimid and Seljuk Era

Overview

In one of his gardens al-Radi asked his companions whether they had seen anything finer. They praised the garden, and he replied that al-Suli's chess-playing was finer than those flowers and everything they had described. 1

The event is tied to the caliph al-Radi and to al-Suli. The text does not give the year; the context is al-Radi's reign (322–329 AH) 2.

Connections

Explore the connections

Part of
The Early Abbasid Caliphate
Had participant
al-Radi bi-llah Abu al-Abbas Muhammad ibn al-Muqtadir· al-Suli
During the reign of
Muhammad al-Qahir bi-llah· al-Radi bi-llah Abu al-Abbas Muhammad ibn al-Muqtadir

People and things also explored

Chess match of al-Suli and al-Mawardi before al-Muktafi· The execution of al-Shalmaghani and Ibn Abi Awn· The deposition of al-Qahir and the blinding of his eyes· Baghdad· Abbasid Caliphate· Muhammad al-Qahir bi-llah· al-Radi bi-llah Abu al-Abbas Muhammad ibn al-Muqtadir· Battle of Baghdad (932)

Sources

  1. Muruj al-Dhahab — al-Masʼudi , p. 677
  2. Muruj al-Dhahab — al-Masʼudi , p. 676
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “Al-Radi prefers al-Suli's chess to a garden's flowers”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/event/al-suli-chess-praised-before-al-radi/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-11-09.

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Related

Chess match of al-Suli and al-Mawardi before al-Muktafi

At the start of al-Suli's service under al-Muktafi he played al-Mawardi, the chess player the caliph favoured, in the caliph's presence. Al-Suli beat him decisively; the caliph's favour shifted, and he remarked to al-Mawardi that his rosewater had turned to urine.