It would
be beneficial if we gave some of these here, for perhaps this will admonish or
remind those who follow the opinion of the Imaams - nay, of those far below the
Imaams in rank - blindly18, sticking to their
madhhabs or views as if these had descended from the heavens! But Allaah,
Mighty and Sublime, says:
"Follow
(O men!) the revelation given to you from your Lord, and follow not, as friends
and protectors, other than Him. Little is it you remember of admonition."19
The first
of them is Abu Haneefah Nu'maan ibn Thaabit, whose companions have narrated
from him various sayings and diverse warnings, all of them leading to one
thing: the obligation to accept the Hadeeth, and to give up following the
opinions of the imaams which contradict it:
1. "When a
hadeeth is found to be saheeh, then that is my madhhab."20
2. "It is
not permitted21 for anyone to accept our views
if they do not know from where we got them."22
In one
narration, "It is prohibited23 for someone who
does not know my evidence to give verdicts24 on
the basis of my words."
Another
narration adds, "... for we are mortals: we say one thing one day, and take it
back the next day."
In another
narration, "Woe to you, O Ya'qub25! Do not write
down everything you hear from me, for it happens that I hold one opinion today
and reject it tomorrow, or hold one opinion tomorrow and reject it the day
after tomorrow."26
3. "When I
say something contradicting the Book of Allaah the Exalted or what is narrated
from the Messenger (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam), then ignore my saying."27
As for
Imaam Maalik ibn Anas, he said:
1. "Truly I
am only a mortal: I make mistakes (sometimes) and I am correct (sometimes).
Therefore, look into my opinions: all that agrees with the Book and the Sunnah,
accept it; and all that does not agree with the Book and the Sunnah, ignore
it."28
2.
"Everyone after the Prophet (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) will have his
sayings accepted and rejected - not so the Prophet (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa
sallam)."29
3. Ibn Wahb
said: "I heard Maalik being asked about cleaning between the toes during
ablution. He said, 'The people do not have to do that.' I did not approach him
until the crowd had lessened, when I said to him, 'We know of a sunnah about
that.' He said, 'What is that ?' I said, 'Laith ibn Sa'd, Ibn Lahee'ah and 'Amr
ibn al-Haarith narrated to us from Yazeed ibn 'Amr al-Ma'aafiri from Abu
'Abdur-Rahman al-Hubuli from Mustawrid ibn Shaddaad al-Qurashi who said, 'I saw
the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) rubbing between his
toes with his little finger.' He said, 'This hadeeth is sound; I had not heard
of it at all until now.' Afterwards, I heard him being asked about the same
thing, on which he ordered cleaning between the toes."30
As for
Imaam Shaafi'i, the quotations from him are most numerous and beautiful31,
and his followers were the best in sticking to them:
1. "The
sunnahs of the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) reach, as
well as escape from, every one of us. So whenever I voice my opinion, or
formulate a principle, where something contrary to my view exists on the
authority of the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam), then the
correct view is what the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam)
has said, and it is my view."32
2. "The
Muslims are unanimously agreed that if a sunnah of the Messenger of Allaah
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) is made clear to someone, it is not permitted33
for him to leave it for the saying of anyone else."34
3. "If you
find in my writings something different to the Sunnah of the Messenger of
Allaah (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam), then speak on the basis of the Sunnah
of the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam), and leave what I
have said."
In one
narration: "... then follow it (the Sunnah), and do not look sideways at anyone
else's saying."35
4. "When a
hadeeth is found to be saheeh, then that is my madhhab."36
5. "You37
are more knowledgeable about Hadeeth than I, so when a hadeeth is saheeh,
inform me of it, whether it is from Kufah, Basrah or Syria, so that I may take
the view of the hadeeth, as long as it is saheeh."38
6. "In
every issue where the people of narration find a report from the Messenger of
Allaah (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) to be saheeh which is contrary to what I
have said, then I take my saying back, whether during my life or after my
death."39
7. "If you
see me saying something, and contrary to it is authentically-reported from the
Prophet (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam), then know that my intelligence has
departed."40
8. "For
everything I say, if there is something authentic from the Prophet (sallallaahu
'alaihi wa sallam) contrary to my saying, then the hadeeth of the Prophet
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) comes first, so do not follow my opinion."41
9. "Every
statement on the authority of the Prophet (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) is
also my view, even if you do not hear it from me."42
Imaam
Ahmad was the foremost among the Imaams in collecting the Sunnah and sticking
to it, so much so that he even "disliked that a book consisting of deductions
and opinions be written."43 Because of this he
said:
1. "Do not
follow my opinion; neither follow the opinion of Maalik, nor Shaafi'i, nor
Awzaa'i, nor Thawri, but take from where they took."44
In one
narration: "Do not copy your Deen from anyone of these, but whatever comes from
the Prophet (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) and his Companions, take it; next
are their Successors, where a man has a choice."
Once he
said: "Following45 means that a man follows what
comes from the Prophet (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) and his Companions;
after the Successors, he has a choice."46
2. "The
opinion of Awzaa'i, the opinion of Maalik, the opinion of Abu Haneefah: all of
it is opinion, and it is all equal in my eyes. However, the proof is in the
narrations (from the Prophet (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) and his
Companions)."47
3. "Whoever
rejects a statement of the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam)
is on the brink of destruction."48
These are
the clear, lucid sayings of the Imaams (Allaah Exalted be pleased with them)
about sticking to the Hadeeth and forbidding the following of their opinion
without clearly- visible evidence, such that mere opinion and interpretation is
not acceptable.
Hence,
whoever adhered to whatever of the Sunnah that was proved authentic, even if it
opposed some of the Imaams' sayings, he would not be conflicting with their
madhhab, nor straying from their path; rather, such a person would be following
all of them and would be grasping the most trustworthy hand-hold, which never
breaks. However, this would not be the case with the one who abandoned any of
the authentic Sunnah simply because it contradicted their views; nay, such a
person would be being disobedient to them and opposing their above mentioned
sayings, while Allaah says:
"But
no, by Your Lord, they can have no (real) faith, until they make you judge in
all disputes between them, and find in their souls no resistance against your
decisions, but accept them with the fullest conviction."49.
He also
says:
"Then
let those beware who withstand the Messenger's order, lest some trial befall
them or a grievous penalty be inflicted on them."50
Haafiz Ibn
Rajab al-Hanbali (rahimahullaah) says:
"Therefore
it is obligatory on anyone who hears of a command of the Messenger of Allaah
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) or knows it, to explain it to the Ummah, advise
them sincerely, and order them to follow his command, even if it contradicts
the opinion of someone great. This is because the authority of the Messenger of
Allaah (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) has the most right to be respected and
followed, over and above the opinion of anyone great who has unknowingly
contradicted the Messenger's command in any matter. This is why the Companions
and those after would refute anyone who contradicted the authentic Sunnah,
sometimes being very stern in their refutation51,
not out of hatred for that person, for they loved and respected him, but
because the Messenger of Allaah was more beloved to them, and his command was
superior to the command of any other created being. Hence, when the order of
the Messenger and that of someone else conflicted, the order of the Messenger
would be more fitting to be enforced and followed. None of this would stop them
respecting the person they had opposed because they knew that he would be
forgiven52; in fact, the latter would not mind
his instruction being opposed when the command of the Messenger of Allaah
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) was clearly shown to be opposite."53
Indeed, how
could they mind that, when they had ordered their followers to do so, as we
have seen, and had enjoined on them to abandon any of their views which
contradicted the Sunnah. In fact, Imaam Shaafi'i (rahimahullaah) told his
companions to attribute the authentic Sunnah to him also, even if he had not
adopted it or had adopted something contradictory to it. Hence, when the
analyst Ibn Daqeeq al-'Eid (rahimahullaah) collected together, in a bulky
volume, the issues in which one or more of the four Imaams' madhhabs had
contradicted the authentic hadeeth, he wrote at the beginning of it, "It is
prohibited to attribute these answers to the Mujtahid Imaams, and obligatory on
the jurists who follow their opinions to know of these so that they do not
quote them regarding these and thus lie against them."54
Due to
all that we have mentioned, the disciples of the Imaams, a number of people
from those of old, and a few from those of later time55,
would not accept all of their Imaam's views; they actually ignored many when
they found them to be clearly against the Sunnah. Even the two Imaams, Muhammad
ibn al-Hasan and Abu Yoosuf (rahimahullaah) differed from their shaikh Abu
Haneefah "in about a third of the Madhhab"56, as
the books of masaa'il prove. Similarly is said about Imaam al- Muzani57
and other followers of Shaafi'i and other Imaams; were we to start giving
examples, the discussion would become exceedingly, long, and we would digress
from what we set out to do in this Introduction, so we shall limit ourselves to
two instances:
1) Imaam
Muhammad says in his Muwatta'58(p. 158), "As for
Abu Haneefah, he did not regard there being a prayer to ask for rain, but we
hold that the imaam prays two rak'ahs and then supplicates and holds out his
wrapping garment ..."
2) We have
'Isaam ibn Yoosuf al-Balkhi, one of the companions of Imaam Muhammad59
and a servant of Imaam Abu Yoosuf60, who "would
give verdicts contrary to Imaam Abu Haneefah because he did not know the
latter's evidence, and other evidence would present itself to him, so he would
give verdicts using that."61 Hence, "he would
raise his hands on bowing (in prayer) and on rising from it"62,
as is the mutawaatir sunnah of the Prophet (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam); the
fact that his three Imaams (i.e. Abu Haneefah, Abu Yoosuf and Muhammad) said
otherwise did not prevent him from practising this sunnah. This is the approach
which every Muslim is obliged to have, as we have already seen from the
testimony of the Four Imaams, and others.
To sum up:
I sincerely hope that no follower of an Imaam will race to condemn the
principles of this book and abandon benefiting from the sunnahs of the Prophet
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) which it contains, with the argument that they
are contrary to his Madhhab. I hope that such a person will instead consider
what we have given of the exhortations of the Imaams towards the obligation to
act on the Sunnah and ignore their sayings contradictory to it. I hope also
that he will realise that to condemn the attitude of this book is to condemn
whichever Imaam he is following, for we have taken these principles from those
Imaams, as we have explained. Therefore, whoever refuses to be guided by them
on this path is in great danger, for such refusal necessitates turning away
from the Sunnah, the Sunnah to which we have been ordered to refer in cases of
difference of opinion and on which we have been commanded to depend.
I ask
Allaah to make us among those about whom He says,
"The
answer of the believers, when summoned to Allaah and His Messenger, in order
that he may judge betweeen them, is no other than this: they say, "We hear and
we obey" - it is such as these that will attain Success. It is those who obey
Allaah and His Messenger, and fear Allaah, and keep their duty to Him, who will
triumph."63
Footnotes
[18]This
is the sort of taqleed (blind following ) which Imaam Tahaawi was referring to
when he said, "Only someone with party-spirit or a fool blindly follows
opinion" - quoted by Ibn 'Aabideen in Rasm al-Mufti (vol. 1, p. 32 from the
Compilation of his Essays).
[19]al-A'raaf,
7:3
[20]Ibn
'Aabideen in al-Haashiyah (1/63), and in his essay Rasm al-Mufti (1/4 from the
Compilation of the Essays of Ibn 'Aabideen), Shaikh Saalih al-Fulaani in Eeqaaz
al-Himam (p. 62) & others. Ibn 'Aabideen quoted from Sharh al-Hidaayah by
Ibn al-Shahnah al-Kabeer, the teacher of Ibn al-Humaam, as follows:
"When a hadeeth contrary
to the Madhhab is found to be saheeh, one should act on the hadeeth, and make
that his madhhab. Acting on the hadeeth will not invalidate the follower's
being a Hanafi, for it is authentically reported that Abu Haneefah said, 'When
a hadeeth is found to be saheeh, then that is my madhhab', and this has been
related by Imaam Ibn 'Abdul Barr from Abu Haneefah and from other imaams."
This is part of the
completeness of the knowledge and piety of the Imaams, for they indicated by
saying this that they were not versed in the whole of the Sunnah, and Imaam
Shaafi'i has elucidated this thoroughly (see later). It would happen that they
would contradict a sunnah because they were unaware of it, so they commanded us
to stick to the Sunnah and regard it as part of their Madhhab. May Allaah
shower His mercy on them all.
[21]Ar.:
halaal
[22]Ibn
'Abdul Barr in Al-Intiqaa' fi Fadaa'il ath-Thalaathah al- A'immah al-Fuqahaa'
(p. 145), Ibn al-Qayyim in I'laam al- Mooqi'een (2/309), Ibn 'Aabideen in his
Footnotes on Al-Bahr ar-Raa'iq (6/293) and in Rasm al-Mufti (pp. 29,32) &
Sha'raani in Al-Meezaan (1/55) with the second narration. The last narration
was collected by 'Abbaas ad-Dawri in At- Taareekh by Ibn Ma'een (6/77/1) with a
saheeh sanad on the authority of Zafar, the student of Imaam Abu Haneefah.
Similar narrations exist on the authority of Abu Haneefah's companions Zafar,
Abu Yoosuf and 'Aafiyah ibn Yazeed; cf. Eeqaaz (p. 52). Ibn al-Qayyim firmly
certified its authenticity on the authority of Abu Yoosuf in I'laam
al-Mooqi'een (2/344). The addition to the second narration is referenced by the
editor of Eeqaaz (p. 65) to Ibn 'Abdul Barr, Ibn al-Qayyim and others.
If this is what they say
of someone who does not know their evidence, what would be their response to
one who knows that the evidence contradicts their saying, but still gives
verdicts opposed to the evidence?! Therefore, reflect on this saying, for it
alone is enough to smash blind following of opinion; that is why one of the
muqallid shaikhs, when I criticised his giving a verdict using Abu Haneefah's
words without knowing the evidence, refused to believe that it was a saying of
Abu Haneefah!
[23]Ar.:
haraam
[24]Ar.:
fatwaa
[25]i.e.
Imaam Abu Haneefah's illustrious student, Abu Yoosuf (rahimahullaah).
[26]This
was because the Imaam would often base his view on Qiyaas (Analogy), after
which a more potent analogy would occur to him, or a hadeeth of the Prophet
(sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) would reach him, so he would accept that and
ignore his previous view. Sha'raani's words in Al-Meezaan (1/62) are summarised
as:
"Our belief, as well as
that of every researcher into Imaam Abu Haneefah (radi Allaahu 'anhu), is that,
had he lived until the recording of the Sharee'ah, and the journeys of the
Preservers of Hadeeth to the various cities and frontiers in order to collect
and acquire it, he would have accepted it and ignored all the analogies he had
employed. The amount of qiyaas in his Madhhab would have been just as little as
that in other Madhhabs, but since the evidences of the Sharee'ah had been
scattered with the Successors and their successors, and had not been collected
in his lifetime, it was necessary that there be a lot of qiyaas in his Madhhab
compared to that of other imaams. The later scholars then made their journeys
to find and collect ahaadeeth from the various cities and towns and wrote them
down; hence, some ahaadeeth of the Sharee'ah explained others. This is the
reason behind the large amount of qiyaas in his Madhhab, whereas there was
little of it in other Madhhabs."
Abul-Hasanaat
Al-Lucknowi quoted his words in full in An- Naafi' al-Kabeer (p. 135),
endorsing and expanding on it in his footnotes, so whoever wishes to consult it
should do so there.
Since this is the
justification for why Abu Haneefah has sometimes unintentionally contradicted
the authentic ahaadeeth - and it is a perfectly acceptable reason, for Allaah
does not burden a soul with more than it can bear - it is not permissible to
insult him for it, as some ignorant people have done. In fact, it is obligatory
to respect him, for he is one of the imaams of the Muslims through whom this
Deen has been preserved and handed down to us, in all its branches; also, for
he is rewarded under any circumstance: whether he is correct or wrong. Nor is
it permissible for his devotees to continue sticking to those of his statements
which contradict the authentic ahaadeeth, for those statements are effectively
not part of his Madhhab, as the above sayings show. Hence, these are two
extremes, and the truth lies in between. "Our Lord! Forgive us, and our
brethren who came before us into the Faith; and leave not, in our hearts, any
rancour against those who have believed. Our Lord! You are indeed Full of
Kindness, Most Merciful." (Al-Hashr 59:10)
[27]Al-Fulaani
in Eeqaaz al-Himam (p. 50), tracing it to Imaam Muhammad and then saying, "This
does not apply to the mujtahid, for he is not bound to their views anyway, but
it applies to the muqallid."
Sha'raani expanded on
that in Al-Meezaan (1/26):
"If it is said: 'What
should I do with the ahaadeeth which my Imaam did not use, and which were found
to be authentic after his death?' The answer which is fitting for you is: 'That
you act on them, for had your Imaam come across them and found them to be
authentic, he would have instructed you to act on them, because all the Imaams
were captives in the hand of the Sharee'ah.' He who does so will have gathered
all the good with both his hands, but he who says, 'I will not act according to
a hadeeth unless my Imaam did so', he will miss a great amount of benefit, as
is the case with many followers of the Imaams of the Madhhabs. It would be
better for them to act on every hadeeth found to be authentic after the Imaam's
time, hence implementing the will of the Imaams; for it is our firm belief
about the Imaams that had they lived longer and come to know of those ahaadeeth
which were found authentic after their time, they would have definitely
accepted and acted according to them, ignoring any analogies they may have
previously made, and any views they may have previously held."
[28]Ibn
'Abdul Barr in Jaami' Bayaan al-'Ilm (2/32), Ibn Hazm, quoting from the former
in Usool al-Ahkaam (6/149), & similarly Al-Fulaani (p. 72)
[29]This
is well known among the later scholars to be a saying of Maalik. Ibn 'Abdul
Haadi declared it saheeh in Irshaad as- Saalik (227/1); Ibn 'Abdul Barr in
Jaami' Bayaan al-'Ilm (2/91) & Ibn Hazm in Usool al-Ahkaam (6/145, 179) had
narrated it as a saying of Al-Hakam ibn 'Utaibah and Mujaahid; Taqi ad- Deen
as-Subki gave it, delighted with its beauty, in al- Fataawaa (1/148) as a
saying of Ibn 'Abbaas, and then said: "These words were originally those of Ibn
'Abbaas and Mujaahid, from whom Maalik (radi Allaahu 'anhu) took them, and he
became famous for them." It seems that Imaam Ahmad then took this saying from
them, as Abu Daawood has said in Masaa'il of Imaam Ahmad (p. 276): "I heard
Ahmad say, 'Everyone is accepted and rejected in his opinions, with the
exception of the Prophet (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam)'."
[30]From
the Introduction to Al-Jarh wat-Ta'deel of Ibn Abi Haatim, pp. 31-2.
[31]Ibn
Hazm says in Usool al-Ahkaam (6/118):
"Indeed, all the
fuqahaa' whose opinions are followed were opposed to taqleed, and they forbade
their companions from following their opinion blindly. The sternest among them
in this regard was Shaafi'i (rahimahullaah), for he repeatedly emphasised, more
than anyone else, following the authentic narrations and accepting whatever the
proof dictated; he also made himself innocent of being followed totally, and
announced this to those around him. May this benefit him in front of Allaah,
and may his reward be of the highest, for he was the cause of great good."
[32]Related
by Haakim with a continuous sanad up to Shaafi'i, as in Taareekh Dimashq of Ibn
'Asaakir (15/1/3), I'laam al- Mooqi'een (2/363, 364) & Eeqaaz (p. 100).
[33]Ar.:
halaal
[34]Ibn
al-Qayyim (2/361) & Fulaani (p. 68)
[35]Harawi
in Dhamm al-Kalaam (3/47/1), Khateeb in Al-Ihtijaaj bi ash-Shaafi'i (8/2), Ibn
'Asaakir (15/9/10), Nawawi in Al- Majmoo' (1/63), Ibn al-Qayyim (2/361) &
Fulaani (p. 100); the second narration is from Hilyah al-Awliyaa' of Abu
Nu'aim.
[36]Nawawi
in Al-Majmoo' (1/63), Sha'raani (1/57), giving its sources as Haakim and
Baihaqi, & Fulaani (p. 107). Sha'raani said, "Ibn Hazm said, 'That is, ...
found to be saheeh by him or by any other Imaam'." His saying given next
confirms this understanding.
Nawawi says: "Our
companions acted according to this in the matter of tathweeb (calling to prayer
in addition to the adhaan), the conditions on coming out of ihraam due to
illness, and other issues well-known in the books of the Madhhab. Among those
of our companions who are reported to have passed judgment on the basis of the
hadeeth (i.e. rather than the saying of Shaafi'i) are Abu Ya'qoob al-Buweeti
and Abu l-Qaasim ad-Daariki. Of our companions from the muhadditheen, Imaam Abu
Bakr Al-Baihaqi and others employed this approach. Many of our earliest
companions, if they faced an issue for which there was a hadeeth, and the
madhhab of Shaafi'i was contrary to it, would act according to the hadeeth and
give verdicts based on it, saying, 'The madhhab of Shaafi'i is whatever agrees
with the hadeeth.' Shaikh Abu 'Amr (Ibn as-Salaah) says, 'Whoever among the
Shaafi'is found a hadeeth contradicting his Madhhab, he would consider whether
he fulfilled the conditions of ijtihaad generally, or in that particular topic
or issue, in which case he would be free to act on the hadeeth; if not, but
nevertheless he found it hard to contradict the hadeeth after further analysis,
he would not be able to find a convincing justification for opposing the
hadeeth. Hence, it would be left for him to act according to the hadeeth if an
independent imaam other than Shaafi'i had acted on it, and this would be
justification for his leaving the Madhhab of his Imaam in that issue.' What he
(Abu 'Amr) has said is correct and established. Allaah knows best."
There is another
possibility which Ibn as-Salaah forgot to mention: what would one do if he did
not find anyone else who acted according to the hadeeth? This has been answered
by Taqi ad-Deen as-Subki in his article, The Meaning of Shaafi'i's saying,
"When a hadeeth is found to be saheeh, then that is my madhhab" (p. 102, vol.
3): "For me, the best thing is to follow the hadeeth. A person should imagine
himself in front of the Prophet (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam), just having
heard it from him: would there be leeway for him to delay acting on it? No, by
Allaah ... and everyone bears a responsibility according to his understanding."
The rest of this
discussion is given and analysed in I'laam al- Muwaqqi'een (2/302, 370) and in
the book of al-Fulaane, (full title:) Eeqaaz Himam ulu l-Absaar, lil-Iqtidaa'
bi Sayyid al- Muhaajireen wal-Ansaar, wa Tahdheeruhum 'an al-Ibtidaa' ash-
Shaa'i' fi l-Quraa wal-Amsaar, min Taqleed al-Madhaahib ma'a l- Hamiyyah
wal-'Asabiyyah bain al-Fuqahaa' al-A'saar (Awakening the Minds of those who
have Perception, towards following the Leader of the Emigrants and Helpers, and
Warning them against the Innovation Widespread among Contemporary Jurists in
the Towns and Cities, of following Madhhabs with Zeal and Party- Spirit). The
latter is a unique book in its field, which every desirer of truth should study
with understanding and reflection.
[37]addressing
Imaam Ahmad ibn Hanbal (rahimahullaah).
[38]Related
by Ibn Abi Haatim in Aadaab ash-Shaafi'i (pp. 94-5), Abu Nu'aim in Hulyah
al-Awliyaa' (9/106), al-Khateeb in Al- Ihtijaaj bish-Shaafi'i (8/1), and from
him Ibn 'Asaakir (15/9/1), Ibn 'Abdul Barr in al-Intiqaa' (p. 75), Ibn al-Jawzi
in Manaaqib al-Imaam Ahmad (p. 499) & Harawi (2/47/2) with three routes
from 'Abdullaah ibn Ahmad ibn Hanbal from his father that Shaafi'i said to him:
...etc; thus, it is authentic on the authority of Shaafi'i. This is why Ibn al-
Qayyim attributed it definitely to him in I'laam (2/325), as did Fulaani in
Eeqaaz (p. 152) and then said: "Baihaqi said, 'This is why he - i.e. Shaafi'i -
used hadeeth so much, because he gathered knowledge from the people of Hijaaz,
Syria, Yemen and 'Iraq, and so accepted all that he found to be authentic,
without leaning towards or looking at what he had considered out of the Madhhab
of the people of his land when the truth was clear to him elsewhere. Some of
those before him would limit themselves to what they found in the Madhhab of
the people of their land, without attempting to ascertain the authenticity of
what opposed it. May Allaah forgive all of us'."
[39]Abu
Nu'aim (9/107), Harawi (47/1), Ibn al-Qayyim in I'laam al-Muwaqqi'een (2/363)
& Fulaani (p. 104).
[40]Ibn
Abi Haatim in al-Aadaab (p. 93), Abul Qaasim Samarqandi in al-Amaali, as in the
selection from it by Abu Hafs al- Mu'addab (234/1), Abu Nu'aim (9/106) &
Ibn 'Asaakir (15/10/1) with a saheeh sanad.
[41]Ibn
Abi Haatim, Abu Nu'aim & Ibn 'Asaakir (15/9/2).
[42]Ibn
Abi Haatim (pp. 93-4).
[43]Ibn
al-Jawzi in al-Manaaqib (p. 192)
[44]Fulaani
(p. 113) & Ibn al-Qayyim in I'laam (2/302).
[45]Ar.:
ittibaa'
[46]Abu
Daawood in Masaa'il of Imaam Ahmad (pp. 276-7)
[47]Ibn
'Abdul Barr in Jaami' Bayaan al-'Ilm (2/149).
[48]Ibn
al-Jawzi (p. 182).
[49]an-Nisaa',
4:65
[50]an-Noor,
24:63
[51]Even
against their fathers and learned men, as Tahaawi in Sharh Ma'aani al-Aathaar
(1/372) & Abu Ya'laa in his Musnad (3/1317) have related, with an isnaad of
trustworthy men, from Saalim ibn 'Abdullaah ibn 'Umar, who said:
"I was sitting with Ibn
'Umar (radi Allaahu 'anhu) in the mosque once, when a man from the people of
Syria came to him and asked him about continuing the 'Umrah onto the Hajj
(known as Hajj Tamattu'). Ibn 'Umar replied, 'It is a good and beautiful
thing.' The man said, 'But your father (i.e. 'Umar ibn al-Khattaab) used to
forbid it!' So he said, 'Woe to you! If my father used to forbid something
which the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) practised and
commanded, would you accept my father's view, or the order of the Messenger of
Allaah (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) ?' He replied, 'The order of the
Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam).' He said, 'So go away from
me.' Ahmad (no. 5700) related similarly, as did Tirmidhi (2/82) and declared it
saheeh.
Also, Ibn 'Asaakir
(7/51/1) related from Ibn Abi Dhi'b, who said:
"Sa'd ibn Ibraaheem
(i.e. the son of 'Abdur Rahmaan ibn 'Awf) passed judgment on a man on the basis
of the opinion of Rabee'ah ibn Abu 'Abdur Rahmaan, so I informed him of the
saying of the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) which was
contradictory to the judgment. Sa'd said to Rabee'ah, 'We have Ibn Abi Dhi'b,
whom I regard to be reliable, narrating from the Prophet (sallallaahu 'alaihi
wa sallam) contrary to what I ruled.' Rabee'ah said to him, 'You have made your
effort, and your judgment has been passed.' Sa'd said, 'Most amazing! I enforce
the decree of Sa'd, and not the decree of the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu
'alaihi wa sallam)! No, I shall withdraw the decree of Sa'd, son of the mother
of Sa'd, and enforce the decree of the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu 'alaihi
wa sallam).' So Sa'd called for the written decree, tore it up and gave a new
verdict."
[52]In
fact, he would be rewarded, because of the Prophet's saying (sallallaahu
'alaihi wa sallam): "When a judge passes judgment, if he makes his effort
(ijtihaad) and rules correctly, he will have two rewards; if he makes his
effort (ijtihaad) and rules wrongly, he will have one reward." (Related
by Bukhaari, Muslim & others.)
[53]Quoted
in the notes on Eeqaaz al-Himam (p. 93)
[54]Fulaani
(p. 99)
[55]cf.
al-Waaqi'ah 56:13-14
[56]Ibn
'Aabideen in Haashiyah (1/62), & Lucknowi gave its source in an-Naafi'
al-Kabeer (p. 93) as Ghazaali .
[57]He
himself says at the beginning of his Concise Shaafi'i Fiqh (printed in the
margin of Imaam Shaafi'i's Al-Umm):
"This book is a
selection from the knowledge of Muhammad ibn Idrees al-Shaafi'i (rahimahullaah)
and from the meanings of his sayings, to aid the understanding of whoever wants
it, knowing of his forbidding the following of his, or anyone else's, opinion,
so that such a person may carefully look for his Deen in it."
[58]In
which he has explained his opposing his Imaam in about twenty masaa'il (nos.
42, 44, 103, 120, 158, 169, 172, 173, 228, 230, 240, 244, 274, 275, 284, 314,
331, 338, 355, 356 - from Ta'leeq al-Mumajjid 'alaa Muwatta' Muhammad
(Important Notes on Muhammad's Muwatta'))
[59]Ibn
'Aabideen mentioned him among them in Haashiyah (1/74) & in Rasm al-Mufti
(1/17). Qurashi mentioned him in Al- Jawaahir al-Madiyyah fi Tabaqaat
al-Hanafiyyah (p. 347) and said, "He was a reliable transmitter of Hadeeth. He
and his brother Ibraaheem were the two shaikhs of Balakh of their time."
[60]Al-Fawaa'id
al-Bahiyyah fi Taraajum al-Hanafiyyah (p. 116)
[61]Al-Bahr
ar-Raa'iq (6/93) & Rasm al-Mufti (1/28).
[62]Al-Fawaa'id
... (p. 116); the author then added a useful note:
"From this can be
deduced the falsity of Makhool's narration from Abu Haneefah: 'that he who
raises his hands during Prayer, his Prayer is ruined', by which Ameer, the
scribe of Itqaani, was deceived, as has been mentioned under his biography.
'Isaam ibn Yoosuf, a companion of Abu Yoosuf, used to raise his hands, so if
the above-mentioned narration had any foundation, Abu Yoosuf and 'Isaam would
have known about it ... It can also be deduced that if a Hanafi ignored the
madhhab of his Imaam in an issue due to the strength of the evidence against
it, this would not take him outside the ranks of the Imaam's followers, but
this would in fact be proper taqleed in the guise of leaving taqleed; do you
not see that 'Isaam ibn Yoosuf left Abu Haneefah's madhhab of not raising the
hands, but he is stil counted as a Hanafi?... To Allaah I complain of the
ignorance of our time, when they insult anyone who does not follow his Imaam in
an issue because of the strength of evidence against it, and expel him from the
fold of that Imaam's followers! This is not surprising when those who do this
are from the ordinary masses, but it is amazing when it comes from those who
imitate men of learning but plod along that path like cattle!"
[63]an-Noor
24:51-52