Al- Imam Abu Hanifa R.A.

He performed hajj fifty-five times and stayed in Mecca for several years. Only at the place where his soul was taken, he had read the entire Qur’ân al-kerîm seven thousand times. He said, “I laughed once in my life, and I regret it.” He talked little and thought much.

Al- Imam Abu Hanifa R.A Tomb.

The book Qâmûs al-a’lâm states:

Al-Imâm al-a’zâm Abû Hanîfa’s name was Nu’mân. His father’s name was Thâbit. His grandfather’s name was Nu’man, too. He was the first of the four great imâms of the Ahl as-Sunna. ‘Imâm’ means ‘profoundly learned scholar.’ He was one of the main pillars of the brilliant religion of Muhammad (‘alaihi ’s-salâm). He was a descendant of a Persian notable. His grandfather had embraced Islam. He was born in Kûfa in 80 (698 A.D.). He was born early enough to see Anas ibn Mâlik, ’Abdullah ibn Abî Awfâ, Sahl ibn Sa’d as-Sâ’idî and Abû al-Fadl Âmir ibn Wâsila, four Sahâbîs (radiy-Allâhu ta’âlâ anhum). He learned ’ilm al-fiqh from Hammâd ibn Abî Sulaimân. He enjoyed the companionship of many notables of the Tâbi’în, and of Imâm Ja’far as-Sâdiq (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’aleyh). He memorized innumerable hadîths. He was brought up so as to become a great judge, but he became an imâm al-madhhab. He had a superior, and amazingly keen intellect. In ’ilm al-fiqh, he attained an unequalled grade in a short time. His name and fame became world-wide.

Yazîd ibn ’Amr, Governor of Iraq during the time of Marwân ibn Muhammad, the fourteenth and last Umayyad Khalîfa, who was a grandson of Marwân ibn Hakam (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’aleyh) and was killed five years after assuming the caliphate in Egypt in 132 (750 A.D.), proposed to Abû Hanîfa (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’aleyh) to become a judge for the law-court of Kûfa. But, since he had as much zuhd, taqwâ and wara’ as he had knowledge and intellect, he refused it. He was afraid of not being able to safequard human rights because of human weaknesses. With a command from Yazîd, he was given a whipping, hundred and ten blows to the head. His blessed face and head swelled. The next day, Yazîd took the Imâm out and oppressed him by repeating his offer. The Imâm said, “Let me consult,” and obtained permission to leave. He went to the blessed city of Mecca and stayed there for five or six years.

The ’Abbâsid Khalîfa Abû Ja’far Mansûr (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’aleyh) commanded him to be the chief of the Supreme Court of Appeal in 150 A.H. [767 A.D.]. He refused it and was put into jail. He was subjected to whipping, ten blows more every following day. When the number of whippings reached one hundred, he attained martyrdom. Abû Sa’d Muhammad ibn Mansûr al-Hârizmî (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’aleyh), one of the viziers of Melikshâh (447-485 A.H., the third Seljuqî Sultan and the son of Sultan Alparslan), had a wonderful dome built over his grave. Afterwards, Ottoman emperors embellished and had his tomb restored several times.

Abu Hanîfa (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’aleyh) was the first who compiled and classified ’ilm al-fiqh, and he gathered information for each branch of knowledge. He wrote the books Farâ’id and Shurût. There are innumerable books describing his extensive knowledge on fiqh; his extraordinary ability in qiyâs; and his dumbfounding superiority in zuhd, taqwâ, mildness and righteousness. He had many disciples, some of whom became great mujtahids.

The Hanafî Madhhab spread far and wide during the time of the Ottoman Empire. It almost became the official Madhhab of the State. Today, more than half of the Muslims on the earth and most of the Ahl as-Sunna perform their ’ibâda according to the Hanafî Madhhab. Citation from the book Kâmûs-ul a’lâm ends here.

The book Mîr’ât al-kâ’inât states:

The ancestors of al-Imâm al-â’zam (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’aleyh) come from the province of Fâris, Iran. His father, Thâbit, had met Imâm ’Alî (radiy-Allâhu ’anh) in Kûfa and Hadrat ’Alî had pronounced a benediction over him and his descendants. Al-Imâm al-a’zam was one of the greatest among the Tâbi’ûn and saw Anas ibn Mâlik (radiy-Allâhu ’anh) and three or seven more of the as-Sahâbat al-kirâm. He learned hadîth-i sherifs from them.

A hadîth sherîf, which al-Imâm al-Hârizmî reported from Abû Huraira (radiy-Allâhu ’anh) through isnâd muttasil (an uninterrupted chain of reporters), states: “Among my Umma, there will come a man called Abû Hanîfa. On the Day of Resurrection, he will be the light of my Umma.” Another hadîth sherîf states: “A man named Nu’mân ibn Thâbit and called Abû Hanîfa will appear and will revive Allâhu ta’âlâ’s Religion and my Sunna.” And another one states: “In every century, a number of my Umma will attain to high grades. Abû Hanîfa will be the highest of his time.” These three hadîths are written in the book Mawdû’ât al-’ulûm and in Durr al-mukhtâr. This hadîth sherîf is also well-known: “Among my Umma, a man called Abû Hanîfa will appear. There is a beauty-spot between his two shoulder blades. Allâhu ta’âlâ will revive His Religion through his hand.”

[Preface to Durr al-mukhtâr writes: “A hadîth sherîf states: ‘As Âdam (’alaihi ’s-salâm) was proud of me so I am proud of a man of my Umma named Nu’mân and called Abû Hanîfa. He is the light of my Umma.’ ” Another hadîth sherîf states:“Prophets (’alaihimu ’s-salâm) are proud of me. And I am proud of Abû Hanîfa. He who loves him will have loved me. He who feels hostility towards him will have felt hostility towards me.” These hadîths are also written in the book Al-muqaddima by the profound scholar Hadrat Abû ’l-Laith as-Samarqandî and in Taqadduma, which is a commentary to the former. In the preface to the fiqh book Al-muqaddima by al-Ghaznawî hadîths praising him are quoted. In Diyâ’ al-ma’nawî, a commentary on it, Qâdî Abî ’l-Baqâ said, ’Abû’l-Faraj ’Abd ar-Rahmân ibn al-Jawzî, based on the words of al-Khatîb al-Baghdâdî, said that these hadîths were mawdû’. Yet this remark of his is bigotry, for these hadîths were reported by several chains of transmitters. Ibn ’Âbidîn, in his commentary on Durr al-mukhtâr, proved that these hadîths were not mawdû’ and quoted the following hadîth sherîf from the book Al-khairât al-hisân by Ibn Hajar al-Makkî: “The ornament of the world will be taken away in the year 150.” He went on, “The great fiqh scholar Shams al-a’imma ’Abd al-Ghaffâr al-Kardarî (d. 562/1166 A.D.) said, “It is obvious that this hadîth sherîf refers to al-Imâm al-a’zam Abû Hanîfa, since he passed away in 150.” A hadîth sherîf given by al-Bukhârî and Muslim says, “If îmân went to the planet Venus, a man of Fâris (Persian) descent would bring it back.” Imâm as-Suyûtî, a Shâfi’î ’âlim, remarked, “It has been communicated unanimously that this hadîth sherîf refers to al-Imâm al-a’zam.” Nu’mân Alûsî writes in the book Ghâliyya that this hadîth-i sherîf refers to Abû Hanîfa and that his grandfather descended from a Fâris family. ’Allâma Yûsuf, a Hanbalî scholar, quoted in his work Tanwîr as-sahîfa from Hâfiz ’Allâma Yûsuf ibn ’Abd al-Barr (b. 368/978 and d. 463/1071 in Shâtiba), Qadî of Lisbon, Portugal, “Do not slander Abû Hanîfa and do not believe those who slander him! I swear by Allâhu ta’âlâ that I know not a person superior to him, having more wara’ or being more learned than he. Do not believe what al-Khatîb al-Baghdâdî said! He was antipathetic towards the ’ulamâ’. He slandered Abû Hanîfa, Imâm Ahmad and their disciples. The ’ulamâ’ of Islam refuted al-Khatîb and censured him. Ibn al-Jawzî’s grandson, ’Allâma Yûsuf Shams ad-dîn al-Baghdâdî, wrote in his forty-volumed book Mir’ât az-zamân that he was astonished to know that his grandfather had followed al-Khatîb. Imâm al-Ghazâlî (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’aleyh), in his Ihyâ’, praises al-Imâm al-a’zam with such words as ‘’âbid’, ‘zâhid’ and ‘al-’ârifu bi’llâh’. If the Sahâbat al-Kirâm and the ’ulamâ’ of Islam had different points of view from one another, it was not because they did not approve of each other’s words or because they were unsociable to one another or because they disliked one another; mujtahids (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’alaihim ajma’în) disagred with one another concerning ijtihâd for Allâhu ta’âlâ’s sake and to serve Islam.”]

An ’âlim dreamt of Rasûlullah (sall-Allâhu ’alaihi wa sallam) and asked him, “What would you say about Abû Hanîfa’s knowledge?” He answered, “Everybody needs his knowledge.” Another ’âlim asked in his dream, “O Rasûl-Allah! What would you say about the knowledge Nu’mân ibn Thâbit has, who lives in Kûfa?” He answered, “Learn from him and do as he says. He is a very good person.” Imâm ’Alî (radiy-Allâhu ’anh) said, “Let me inform you of a person called Abû Hanîfa, who will live in Kûfa. His heart will be full of knowledge and hikma (wisdom). Towards the end of the world, many people will perish because of not appreciating him, just as the Shî’ites will perish because of not having appreciated Abû Bakr and ’Umar (radiy-Allâhu ’anhumâ).” Imâm Muhammad al-Bâqir ibn Zain al-’Âbidîn ’Alî ibn Husain (rahmatullâhi ’alaihim, b. 57 A.H. in Medina and d. 113, buried in the shrine of Hadrat ’Abbâs (radiy-Allâhu ’anh) in Medina) looked at Abû Hanîfa and said, “When those who destroy the religion of my ancestors increase in number, you will revive it. You will be the saviour of those who fear and the shelter of those who are confused! You will lead the heretics to the right way! Allâhu ta’âlâ will help you!” When he was young, al-Imâm al-a’zâm (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’aleyh) studied ’ilm al-kalâm and ma’rifa and became very competent. Then after serving Imâm Hammâd for twenty-eight years, he attained maturity. When Hammâd passed away, he took his place as a mujtahid and muftî. His knowledge and superiority became known far and wide. His virtue, intelligence, sagacity, zuhd, taqwâ, trustworthiness, readiness of wit, devotion to Islam, righteousness and his perfection in every respect as a human being were above those of all others of his time. All the mujtahids and those who succeeded him and noble people —even Christians— praised him. Al-Imâm ash-Shâfi’î (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’aleyh) said, “All men of fiqh are Abû Hanîfa’s children.” He said once, “I get blessings (tabarruk) from Abû Hanîfa[’s soul]. I visit his tomb every day. When I am in difficulty, I go to his tomb and perform two rak’as of salât. I invoke Allâhu ta’âlâ, and He gives me what I wish.” Al-Imâm ash-Shafi’î was a disciple of Imâm Muhammad. He remarked, “Allâhu ta’âlâ bestowed knowledge upon me through two persons. I learned the Hadîth ash-sherîf from Sufyân ibn ’Uyaina and fiqh from Muhammad ash-Shaibânî.” He said once, “In the field of religious knowledge and in worldly affairs, there is one person to whom I am grateful. He is Imâm Muhammad.” And again, al-Imâm ash-Shâfi’î said, “With what I learned from Imâm Muhammad I have written a pack-animal-load of books. I would not have acquired anything of knowledge had he not been my teacher. All men of knowledge are the children of the ’ulamâ’ of Iraq, who were the disciples of the ’ulamâ’ of Kûfa. And they were the disciples of Abû Hanîfa.”

Al-Imâm al-a’zam acquired knowledge from four thousand people.

The ’ulamâ’ of every century wrote many books describing the greatness of al-Imâm al-a’zam.

In the Hanafî Madhhab, five hundred thousand religious problems were solved and all of them were answered.

Al-Hâfiz al-kebîr Abû Bakr Ahmad al-Hârizmî wrote in his book Musnad, “Saif al-a’imma reports that when al-Imâm al-a’zam Abû Hanîfa derived a matter from Qur’ân al-kerîm and Hadîth ash-sherîf, he would propound it to his masters. He would not give the answer to the inquirer unless all of them confirmed it.” One thousand of his disciples attended all his classes when he taught in the mosque of Kûfa city. Forty of them were mujtahids. When he found the answer for a matter he would propound it to his disciples. They would study it together and, when they were all in agreement that it was consistent with Qur’ân al-kerîm and Hadîth ash-sherîf and with the words of the Sahâbat al-kirâm, he would be delighted and say, “Al-hamdu li’llâh wa’llâhu akbar,” and all those who were present would repeat his words. Then he would tell them to write it down.

[It is written in the book Radd al-Wahhâbî: “Being a mujtahid requires first being specialized in the Arabic language and in the various linguistic sciences such as awdâ’, sahîh, marwî, mutawâtir; ways of radd; mawdû’ vocabulary; fasîh, radî and mazmûn forms; mufrad, shâdh, nâdir, musta’mal, muhmal, mu’rab, ma’rifa, ishtiqaq, haqîqa, majâz, mushtarak, izdâd, mutlaq, muqayyad, ibdâl and qalb. Next you must be specialized in sarf, nahw, ma’ânî, bayân, badî’, balâghât, ’ilm al-usûl al-fiqh, ’ilm al-usûl al-hadîth, ’ilm al-usûl at-tafsîr, and have memorized the words of the imâms of jarh and ta’dîl. Being a faqîh requires, in addition to these, knowing the proof for every matter and studying the meaning, the murâd and ta’wîl of the proof. Being a muhaddith, that is, a scholar of hadîth, requires only memorizing the hadîths as one heard them; it is not compulsory to know the meanings, murâds, ta’wîls, or to understand the proofs for the rules of Islam. If a faqîh and a muhaddith disagree with each other about a hadîth sherîf, e.g. if the former says that it is sahîh and the latter says that it is da’îf, the faqîh’s word will be valid. Therefore, al-Imâm al-a’zâm’s word or decision is more valuable than all the others because he was the first mujtahid and the highest faqîh due to his having heard many hadîths directly from the Sahâbat al-kirâm without any intervention. A hadîth sherîf that was said to be sahîh by this exalted imâm was said to be sahîh by all Islamic scholars. A muhaddith cannot be in the grade of a faqîh. And he can never reach the grade of an imâm al-madhhab.

’Abdulhaq ad-Dahlawî, a scholar of hadîth, wrote in his book Sirât-i mustaqîm,“Some hadîths which al-Imâm ash-Shâfi’î took as documents were not taken as documents by al-Imâm al-a’zam Abu Hanîfa. Seeing this, the lâ-madhhabî used it as an opportunity for traducing al-Imâm al-a’zam and claimed that Abû Hanîfa had not followed the hadîth ash-sherîf. However, Hadrat al-Imâm al-a’zâm Abû Hanîfa found and took other hadîths which were more sahîh and dependable in documenting the matter.”

A hadîth sherîf states: “The most beneficial ones of my Umma are those who live in my time. The next most beneficial ones are those who succeed them. And the next most beneficial ones are those who will come after them.” This hadîth sherîf shows that the Tâbi’ûn were more beneficial than Taba’ at-Tâbi’în. The Islamic ’ulamâ’ all agree that al-Imâm al-a’zam Abû Hanîfa saw some of the as-Sahâbat al-kirâm, heard hadîths from them, and, therefore, was one of the Tâbi’ûn. For example, al-Imâm al-a’zam heard the hadîth, “A person who builds a mosque for Allâhu ta’âlâ’s sake will be given a villa in Paradise,” from ’Abdullah ibn Awfâ, who was a Sahâbî. Jalâl ad-dîn as-Suyûtî, a Shâfi’î scholar, wrote in his book Tabyîd as-sahîfa that al-Imâm ’Abdulkarîm, one of the Shâfi’î scholars, wrote a complete book describing the Sahâbis whom al-Imâm al-a’zam had seen. It is written in Durr al-mukhtâr that al-Imâm al-a’zam saw seven Sahâbîs. Among the four a’immat al-madhâhib, only al-Imâm al-a’zam was honoured with being one of the Tâbi’ûn. It is a rule in ’ilm al-usûl that the view of those who admit something is preferred to the view of those who refuse it. It is obvious that al-Imâm al-a’zam Abû Hanîfa, being one of the Tâbi’ûn, is the highest of the a’immat al-madhâhib. The lâ-madhhabîs’ denying al-Imam al-a’zam’s superiority or their trying to vilify this exalted Imâm by saying that he was weak in the knowledge of hadîth, is similar to their denying the superiority of Hadrat Abû Bakr and Hadrat ’Umar (radiy-Allâhu ’anhumâ). This perverse negation of theirs is not a sort of illness that can be cured by preaching or advice. May Allâhu ta’âlâ cure them! The Muslims’ Khalîfa ’Umar (radiy-Allâhu ’anh) said during his khutba: “O Muslims! As I tell you now, Rasûlullah (sall-Allâhu ’alaihi wa sallam) told us during his khutba: “The most beneficial people are my Sahâba. The most beneficial after them are their successors. And the next most beneficial are those who will come after them. There will be liars among those who will come after these.’ ” The four Madhhabs which Muslims have been following and imitating today are the Madhhabs of those beneficial people whose goodness was affirmed by Rasûlullah (sall-Allâhu ’alaihi wa sallam). The Islamic ’ulamâ’ declare in consensus that it is not permissible to adopt a Madhhab other than these four Madhhabs.

Ibn Nujaim al-Misrî (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’aleyh), author of the book Bahr ar-râ’iq,wrote in his work Ashbâh, “Hadrat al-Imâm ash-Shâfi’î said that a person who wanted to be a specialist in the knowledge of fiqh should read Abû Hanîfa’s books.” Abdullah Ibn Mubârak said, “I have not seen another specialist as learned as Abû Hanîfa in the knowledge of fiqh. The great ’âlim Mis’ar used to kneel in front of Abû Hanîfa and learn what he did not know by asking him. I have studied under a thousand ’ulamâ’. Yet, had I not seen Abû Hanîfa, I would have slipped into the bog of Greek philosophy.” Abû Yûsuf said, “I have not seen another person as profoundly learned as Abû Hanîfa in the knowledge of hadîth. There is not another ’âlim who can expound hadîths as competently as he did.” The great ’âlim and mujtahid Sufyân ath-Thawrî said, “In comparison with Abû Hanîfa, we were like sparrows versus a falcon. Abû Hanîfa is the leader of the ’ulamâ’.” ’Alî ibn Âsim said, “If Abû Hanîfa’s knowledge were to be measured with the total knowledge of all the ’ulamâ’ contemporary with him, Abû Hanîfa’s knowledge would prove to be greater.” Yazîd ibn Hârûn said, “I studied under a thousand ’ulamâ’. Among them I did not see anyone who had as much wara’ as Abû Hanîfa did or who was as wise as Abû Hanîfa (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’aleyh).” Muhammad ibn Yûsuf ash-Shâfi’î, one of the Damascene ’ulamâ’, praises al-Imâm al-a’zam Abû Hanîfa much, explains his superiority in detail, and says that he is the leader of all mujtahids in his book Uqûd al-jamân fî manâqibi’n-Nu’mân. Al-Imâm al-a’zam Abû Hanîfa said, “We esteem and love Rasûlullâh’s (’alaihi ’s-salâm) hadîths above all. We search for the words of the Sahâbat al-kirâm, choose and adopt them. As for the words of the Tâbi’ûn, they are like our words. Translation from the book Radd-i Wahhâbî ends here. This book was printed in India and in Istanbul, in 1264 (1848 A.D.) and in 1401 (1981 A.D.), respectively.

In the book Sayf-ul-muqallidîn alâ a’nâk-il-munkirîn, Mawlânâ Muhammad ’Abd al-Jalîl wrote in Persian: “The lâ-madhhabî say that Abû Hanîfa was weak in the knowledge of hadîth. This assertion of theirs shows that they are ignorant or jealous. Al-Imâm az-Zahabî and Ibn Hajar al-Makkî say that al-Imâm al-a’zam was an ’âlim of hadîth. He learned hadîths from four thousand ’ulamâ’. Three hundred of them were among the Tâbi’ûn and were ’ulamâ’ of hadîth. Al-Imâm ash-Sha’rânî says in the first volume of al-Mîzân, ‘I have studied three of al-Imâm al-a’zam’s Musnads. All of them transmit information from the well-known ’ulamâ’ of the Tâbi’ûn.’ Hostility which the lâ-madhhabî people bear against the Salaf as-sâlihîn and their jealousy towards the mujtahid imâms, particularly towards their leader al-Imâm al-Muslimîn Abû Hanîfa, must have obstructed their perception and conscience to the extent that they deny the beauty and superiority of these Islamic ’ulamâ’. They are intolerant of the fact that pious people have what they do not have. It is for this reason that they deny the superiority of the imâms of Islam and thus venture into the shirk (polytheism) of jealousy. It is written in the book Hadâ’iq: ‘When al-Imâm al-a’zam Abû Hanîfa memorized hadîths he wrote them down. He kept the hadîth books he wrote in wooden boxes, some of which he always kept at hand wherever he went. His quoting only a few hadîths does not show that the number of hadîths he memorized was small. Only bigotted enemies of Islam may say so. This bigotry of theirs proves al-Imâm al-a’zam’s perfection; an inept person’s slandering the learned indicates the latter’s perfection.’ Founding a great Madhhab and answering hundreds of thousands of questions by documenting them with âyats and hadîths could not have been done by a person who was not deeply specialized in the sciences of tafsîr and hadîth. In fact, bringing forth a new, unique Madhhab without a model or an example is an excellent proof for al-Imâm al-a’zam’s expertise in the sciences of tafsîr and hadîth. Because he worked with extraordinary energy and brought forth this Madhhab, he did not have time to quote the hadîths or to cite their transmitters one by one; this cannot be grounds for denigrating that exalted imâm by jealously casting aspersions on him by saying that he was weak in the knowledge of hadîth. It is a known fact that riwâya (transmitting) without dirâya (ability, intelligence) has no value. For example, Ibn Abd al-Barr said, ‘If riwâya without dirâya were valuable, a dustman’s quoting a hadîth would be superior to Luqmân’s intelligence.’ Ibn Hajar al-Makkî was one of the ’ulamâ’ in the Shâfi’î Madhhab, but he wrote in his book Qalâ’id: ‘The great âlim of hadîth A’mash asked al-Imâm al-a’zam Abû Hanîfa many questions. Al-Imâm al-a’zam answered each of his questions by quoting hadîths. After seeing al-Imâm al-a’zam’s profound knowledge in hadîth, A’mash said, “O, you, the ’ulamâ’ of fiqh! You are like specialized doctors, and we the ’ulamâ’ of hadîth are like pharmacists. We cite hadîths and their transmitters, but you are the ones who understand their meanings.” ’ It is written in the book ’Uqûd al-jawâhiri ’l-munîfa: ‘While ’Ubaidullah ibn ’Amr was in the company of the great ’âlim of hadîth A’mash, someone came up and asked a question. As A’mash thought about the answer, al-Imâm al-a’zam joined in. A’mash repeated the question to the Imâm and requested an answer. Al-Imâm al-a’zam immediately answered it in detail. Admiring the answer, A’mash said, “O Imâm! From which hadîth do you derive this?” Al-Imâm al-a’zam quoted the hadîth ash-sherîf from which he derived the answer and added, “I heard this from you.” ’ Al-Imâm al-Bukhârî knew three hundred thousand hadîths by heart. He wrote only twelve thousand of them in his books because he feared very much the threat in the hadîth ash-sherîf, “If a person quotes, in the name of hadîth, what I have not uttered, he will be tormanted very bitterly in Hell.” Having much wara’ and taqwâ, al-Imâm al-a’zam imposed very heavy conditions for the transmitting of hadîths. He would quote only those hadîths fulfilling these conditions. Some ’ulamâ’ of hadîth transmitted numerous hadîths because their branch was wider and their conditions were lighter. The ’ulamâ’ of hadîth never belittled one another on account of differing conditions. Had this not been so, Imâm Muslim would have said something to offend al-Imâm al-Bukhârî (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’alaihimâ). Al-Imâm al-a’zam Abû Hanîfa’s transmitting only a few hadîths because of his circumspection and taqwâ could only be a good reason for praising and lauding him.”]

The book Mir’ât al-kâ’inât goes on: “Al-Imâm al-a’zam Abû Hanîfa (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’aleyh) performed morning prayer in a mosque and answered his disciples’ questions until noon every day. After early afternoon prayer, he taught his disciples again until night prayer. Then he would go home and, after resting for a while, return to the mosque and worship until morning prayer. Mis’ar ibn Kadâm al-Kûfî, one of the Salaf as-sâlihîn, who passed away in 115 (733 A.D.), and many other great people reported this fact.

“He earned his living in a halâl way by trading. He sent goods to other places and with his earnings he met the needs of his disciples. He spent much for his household and gave an equal amount as alms to the poor. Moreover, every Friday he distributed twenty gold coins to the poor for his parents’ souls. He did not stretch his legs towards his teacher Hammâd’s (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’aleyh) house, though he lived at a distance of seven streets away. Once he found out that one of his partners had sold a large amount of goods incompatibly with Islam. He distributed all the ninety thousand aqchas earned to the poor, not taking one penny of it. After brigands had raided the villages of Kûfa and had stolen sheep, he, thinking that these stolen sheep might be slaughtered and sold in the town, did not eat mutton for seven years, for he knew that a sheep lived seven years at the longest. He abstained from the harâm to that degree. He observed Islam in his every action.

“For forty years al-Imâm al-a’zam (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’aleyh) performed the morning prayer with the ablution he had made for the night prayer [that is, he did not sleep after the night prayer.] He performed hajj fifty-five times. During the last one, he went into the Ka’ba, performed a prayer of two rak’as and recited the whole Qur’ân al-kerîm during the prayer. Then, weeping, he invoked, ‘O my Allâhu ta’âlâ! I have not been able to worship Thee in a manner worthy of Thee. Yet I have understood very well that Thou cannot be comprehended through intelligence. For this understanding of mine, please forgive the defects in my service!’ At that moment a voice was heard, ‘O Abû Hanîfa! You have acknowledged Me very well and have served Me beautifully. I have forgiven you and those who will be in your Madhhab and follow you until the end of the world.’ He read Qur’ân al-kerîm from the beginning to the end once every day and once every night.

“Al-Imâm al-a’zam had so much taqwâ that for thirty years he fasted every day [except the five days of a year on which it is harâm to fast]. He often read the entire Qur’ân al-kerîm in one rak’a or two. And sometimes, during sâlât or outside it, he read an âyat describing Heaven and Hell over and over again and sobbed and lamented. Those who heard him pitied him. Among the Umma of Muhammad (’alaihi ’s-salâm), reciting the entire Qur’ân al-kerîm in a single rak’a of salât fell to the lot of only ’Uthmân ibn ’Affân, Tamîm ad-Dârî, Sa’d ibn Jubair and al-Imâm al-a’zam Abû Hanîfa. He did not accept any presents from anyone. He wore clothes like those of the poor. Yet at times, in order to exhibit the blessings of Allâhu ta’âlâ, he wore very valuable clothes. He performed hajj fifty-five times and stayed in Mecca for several years. Only at the place where his soul was taken, he had read the entire Qur’ân al-kerîm seven thousand times. He said, “I laughed once in my life, and I regret it.” He talked little and thought much. He discussed some religious matters with his disciples. One night, while leaving the mosque immediately after performing the night prayer in jamâ’a, he began to talk with his disciple Zufar on some subject. One of his feet was inside the mosque and the other was outside. The conversation continued until the morning adhân. Then, without taking the other step out, he went back in for the morning prayer. Because ’Alî (radiy-Allâhu ’anh) had said, ‘It is permissible to have a personal allowance of up to four thousand dirhams,’ he distributed to the poor what was more than four thousand dirhams of his earnings.

“The Khalîfa Mansûr revered the Imâm very much. He presented him ten thousand aqchas and a jâriya. The Imâm did not accept them. At that time one aqcha was worth one dirham of silver. In 145 A.H., Ibrâhîm ibn ’Abdullâh ibn Hasan ibn ’Alî was recruiting men in order to help his brother Muhammad (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’alaihim ajma’în), who had proclaimed himself the Khalîfa in Madina. When he came to Kûfa, it was rumoured that Abû Hanîfa was helping him. Mansûr heard this and had the Imâm taken from Kûfa to Baghdad. He told him to tell everybody that Mansûr was rightfully the Khalîfa. He offered him the presidency of the Supreme Court of Appeal as a recompense. He imposed on him very much. The Imâm did not accept it. Mansûr imprisoned him and had him thrashed with a stick thirty strokes. His blessed feet bled. Mansûr repented and sent him thirty thousand aqchas, only to be refused again. He was imprisoned again and thrashed ten strokes more every day. [According to some report] on the eleventh day, for fear that the people might rebel, he was forced to lie down on his back and poisonous sherbet (a sweet fruit drink) was poured into his mouth. As he was about to die, he prostrated (sajda). Some fifty thousand people performed janâza salât for him. Because of the enormous crowd, it was performed with difficulty and finished not before the late afternoon prayer. For twenty days many people came to his tomb and performed janâza salât for him near his tomb.

“He had seven hundred and thirty disciples. Each of them was famed for his virtue and pious deeds. Many of them became qâdîs or muftîs. His son Hammâd (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ aleyh) was one of his notable disciples.” Passages from the book Mir’ât-ul-kâinât end here.

They have been leaders guiding the ahl-i dîn, rahmatullâhi ’alaihim ajma’în.

There were some disagreements between al-Imâm al-a’zam and his disciples on the information that was to be deduced through ijtihâd. The following hadîth ash-sherîf declares that these disagreements were useful: “Disagreement (on the ’âmâl, practices) among my Umma is[Allâhu ta’âlâ’s] compassion.” He feared Allâhu ta’âlâ very much and was very careful in following Qur’ân al-kerîm. He said to his disciples, “If you come across a document (sanad) inconsistent with my words on a subject, ignore my words and follow that document.” All his disciples swore, “Even our words inconsistent with his words surely depend on a proof (dalîl, sanad) we had heard from him.”

Hanafî muftîs have to issue fatwâs agreeable with what al-Imâm al-a’zam said. If they cannot find his word, they should follow Imâm Abû Yûsuf. After him, Imâm Muhammad should be followed. If the words of Imâm Abû Yûsuf and Imâm Muhammad are on one side and those of al-Imâm al-a’zam on the other, a muftî may issue a fatwâ according to either side. When there is darûra (a pressing difficulty), he may issue a fatwâ suitable with the words of the mujtahid who showed the easiest way. He cannot issue a fatwâ that does not depend on the words of any of the mujtahids; such an issue cannot be called a fatwâ.