Written by Imam al-Wahidi (d. 468/1075), Al-Wahidi’s Asbab al-Nuzul is the earliest, best-known representative and extant work of this genre. In the introduction to his Asbab al-Nuzul, Al-Wahidi, who was hailed as the greatest Qur’anic commentator of his time, wrote, “We have ended up benefiting the beginners in the sciences of the Book by expounding the occasions for which it was revealed. It is not possible to know the interpretation of a given verse or the meaning it alludes to without knowing its story and the occasion of its revelation.” This title is not only the work that has insured Al-Wahidi a prominent place in the field of Qur’anic study, but it is also the standard upon which all subsequent works on the occasions of the revelation were modeled.