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 (
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 (
The ’Abbâsid Khalîfa Abû
Ja’far Mansûr (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’aleyh) commanded him to be the chief of the
Supreme Court of Appeal in
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
this hadîth sherîf refers
to al-Imâm al-a’zam Abû Hanîfa, since he passed away in
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).
---------------------------------
[1] It is explained in the second fascicle of Endless Bliss that a mawdû’ hadîth does not mean ‘false, made-up hadîth’ in ’ilm al-usûl al-hadîth.
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.
---------------------------------
[1]. Al-Imâm al-a’zam Abû Hanîfa’s two leading disciples were Imâm Muhammad ash-Shaibânî and Imâm Abû Yûsuf (rahmatullâhi ta’âlâ ’alaihim)
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:[1] “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
---------------------------------
[1]
First published in India in 1264 (
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 (
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.”[1]]
The book Mir’ât
al-kâ’inât goes on: “Al-Imâm al-a’zam Abû
---------------------------------
[1] Saif al-muqallidîn ’alâ a’nâqi ’l-munkirîn.
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 (
“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.[1] 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 Mekka 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
---------------------------------
[1] Crying out of love for Allâh ta’âlâ in salât does not break the salât in the Hanafî Madhhab.
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.