Abu Hanifa

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Abu Hanifa
أَبُو حَنِيفَة
Title
  • Shaykh al-Islam
    ('Shaykh of Islam')
  • Al-Imam al-A'zam ('the Greatest Imam')
  • Siraj al-A'imma ('Lamp of the Imams')
Personal
BornSeptember 699 CE (Rajab 80 AH)
Kufa, Umayyad Caliphate (modern-day Iraq)
Died767 CE (150 AH; aged 68–70)
Baghdad, Abbasid Caliphate (modern-day Iraq)
Resting placeAbu Hanifa Mosque, Baghdad, Iraq
ReligionIslam
Children
  • Hammad
  • Hanifa[1]
EraLate
Independent (eponym of the Hanafi school
)
Main interest(s)
Notable idea(s)
Notable work(s)
Occupation
Patronymic
(Nasab)
Ibn Thābit ibn Zūṭā ibn Marzubān
ٱبْن ثَابِت بْن زُوطَا بْن مَرْزُبَان
Teknonymic
(Kunya)
Abū Ḥanīfa
أَبُو حَنِيفَة
Toponymic
(Nisba)
Al-Taymī al-Kūfī
ٱلتَّيْمِيّ ٱلْكُوفِيّ
Muslim leader
Influenced by

Abu Hanifa

Islamic jurisprudence, which remains the most widely practiced to this day.[3] His school predominates in Central Asia, Afghanistan, Iran (until the sixteenth century), Turkey, the Balkans, Russia, Circassia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, and some parts of the Arab world.[6][7]

Born to a Muslim family in Kufa,[3] Abu Hanifa traveled to the Hejaz region of Arabia in his youth, where he studied in the Islamic holy cities of Mecca and Medina.[3] He was named by al-Dhahabi as "one of the geniuses of the sons of Adam" who "combined jurisprudence, worship, scrupulousness, and generosity".[8]

As his career as a jurist and theologian progressed, he became known for favoring the use of

Maturidi school of theology.[3] He left behind two major students, Abu Yusuf and Muhammad al-Shaybani
, who would later become celebrated jurists in their own right.

Name

How Abu Hanifa earned his name is disputed. According to some

dialect. He was often seen with one, thus earning his name this way.[1]
According to this interpretation, his name literally means the "Father of the Inkpot".

However, some

historians contest he earned it as he had a daughter named Hanifa.[1]
His name would then mean the "Father of Hanifa". The opposing side believes he never had a daughter with such name.

Biography

Family background

Historians generally agree Abu Hanifa was born in Kufa during the period of the Umayyad Caliphate, but they differ regarding the year: 699 CE / 80 AH,[9][10] 696 CE / 77 AH,[11] 689 CE / 70 AH,[12] or 680 CE / 61 AH.[13] Many historians choose the latest date, 699 CE / 80 AH; however, Muhammad Zahid al-Kawthari, adjunct to the office of the last Elder of Islam of the Ottoman Empire, believed the date of 689 CE / 70 AH is supported by two considerations.[citation needed] First, Muhammad ibn Makhlad al-Attar considered the narration of Abu Hanifa's son, Hammad, from Malik ibn Anas to be an example of an older man's narration rather than a younger man. Second, Abu Hanifa was concerned with who should succeed Ibrahim al-Nakha'i after his death in 96 AH. This concern would have only arisen if he was older than 19, since it is considered he only took his religious studies seriously after then. If Abu Hanifa was born in 80 AH, Abu Hanifa would have been 16 at the time of al-Nakhai's death.[13]

Abu Hanifa is thought to be of

Zutt, Jats who migrated into Iraq during the Islamic Golden Age.[15][16][17] His grandfather, Zuta, may have been captured by Muslim troops in Kabul and sold as a slave in Kufa, where he was purchased and freed by an Arab tribesman of the Taym Allah, a branch of the Banu Bakr. Zuta and his progeny thereafter would have become clients of the Taym Allah, hence the sporadic references to Abu Hanifa as "al-Taymi".[18] According to his grandson Isma'il, however, his lineage went back to free Persians who had never been held as slaves. He called Abu Hanifa's great-grandfather "Marzuban", which is an arabicized form of the Sasanian military office of marzban, held by governors of the frontier provinces of the Sasanian realm.[5]

Early life and scholarship

There is scant biographical information about Abu Hanifa. It is generally known that he worked a producer and seller of khazz, a type of silk clothing material. He attended lectures on jurisprudence conducted by the Kufan scholar Hammad ibn Abi Sulayman (d. 737).[18] He also possibly learnt jurisprudence (fiqh) from the Meccan scholar Ata ibn Abi Rabah (d. c. 733) while on pilgrimage.

When Hammad died, Abu Hanifa succeeded him as the principal authority on Islamic law in Kufa and the chief representative of the Kufan school of jurisprudence.[18] Abu Hanifa gradually gained influence as an authority on legal questions, founding a moderate rationalist school of Islamic jurisprudence that was named after him.[7]

Adulthood and death

Abu Hanifa Mosque in Baghdad, Iraq

In 763,

caliph offered Abu Hanifa the post of qadi al-qudat (chief judge of the state), but he declined the offer, choosing to remain independent. His student Abu Yusuf was later appointed to the post by Caliph Harun al-Rashid.[19]

In his reply to al-Mansur, Abu Hanifa said that he was not fit for the post. Al-Mansur, who had his own ideas and reasons for offering the post, lost his temper and accused Abu Hanifa of lying.

"If I am lying," Abu Hanifa responded, "then my statement is doubly correct. How can you appoint a liar to the exalted post of a Qadi (Chief Judge)?"

Incensed by this reply, al-Mansur had Abu Hanifa arrested, locked in prison and tortured. It was said that once in prison he was never fed nor cared for.[20] Even in prison, the jurist continued to teach those who were permitted to visit him.

On 15 Rajab 150,

Zaydi
Imams.

The structures of the tombs of Abu Hanifa and

Safavid Empire in 1508.[25] In 1533, the Ottomans conquered Baghdad and rebuilt the tombs of Abu Hanifa and Abdul Qadir, as well as other Sunni sites.[26]

Sources and methodology

The sources from which Abu Hanifa derived Islamic law, in order of importance and preference, were: the

Qur'an, the authentic narrations of the Muslim prophet Muhammad (known as hadith), consensus of the Muslim community (ijma), analogical reasoning (qiyas), juristic discretion (istihsan) and the customs of the local population enacting Muslim laws (urf).[citation needed] The development of analogical reason and the scope and boundaries by which it may be used was recognized by the majority of Muslim jurists, but its establishment as a legal tool was the result of the Hanafi school. While it was likely used by some of his teachers, Abu Hanifa is regarded by modern scholarship as the first to formally adopt and institute analogical reason as a part of Islamic law.[27]

As the fourth Caliph,

Abdullah, son of Masud helped form much of the base of the school, as well as other personalities from the direct relatives (or Ahli-ll-Bayṫ) of Moḥammad from whom Abu Hanifa had studied such as Muhammad al-Baqir. Many jurists and historians had reportedly lived in Kufa, including one of Abu Hanifa's main teachers, Hammad ibn Abi Sulayman.[28][29]

Reception

Map of the Muslim world. Hanafi (grass green) is the Sunni school predominant in Turkey, the Northern Middle East, Northern Caucasus, many parts of Egypt, Central Asia and most of the Indian subcontinent

Positive

He was highly regarded across the various fields of sacred knowledge and significantly influenced the development of Muslim theology.[30] During his lifetime, he was acknowledged as a jurist of the highest calibre.[31] Zakaria bin Muhammad Amin credited Abu Hanifa for his consistent openness to the possibility that he was wrong on various matters.[32] The Shafi'i and prominent hadith scholar, Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani, stated that criticism of Abu Hanifa holds no significance, as figures like Abu Hanifa are "on a degree to which Allah - the Exalted - has raised them, in that they are followed and imitated." [33]

Ibn Taymiyya credited Abu Hanifa for his knowledge and addressed the accusations against him, stating, “There is no doubt regarding Imam Abu Hanifa’s knowledge. People later attributed many lies to Imam Abu Hanifa, which were all untrue. The aim of such writings was to taint Imam Abu Hanifa[34] His students, Ibn Kathir and al-Dhahabi, held similar opinions about Abu Hanifa, extensively rebuking accusations against him and praising his contributions.[35][36]

He received the honorific title al-Imam al-A'zam ("the highly venerated Imām")[37] and his tomb, surmounted by a dome erected by admirers in 1066 is still a shrine for pilgrims.[38] It was restored in 1535 by Suleiman the Magnificent after the Ottoman conquest of Baghdad.[26]

Negative

Abu Hanifa also had his critics. He was perceived by

Sufyan ibn `Uyaynah: "[T]he affairs of men were in harmony until they were changed by Abù Hanìfa in Kùfa, al-Batti in Basra and Màlik in Medina".[40] Early Muslim jurist Hammad ibn Salamah once related a story about a highway robber who posed as an old man to hide his identity; he then remarked that were the robber still alive he would be a follower of Abu Hanifa.[41]

Today

Today, the Hanifa school is followed by 45% of Muslims[42] and Abu Hanifa is popularly known amongst Sunni Muslims as a man of the highest personal qualities: a performer of good works, remarkable for his self-denial, humble spirit, devotion and pious awe of God.[43]

Generational status

Abu Hanifa is regarded by some authorities as one of the

Sahaba including Anas ibn Malik,[44] with some even reporting that he transmitted Hadith from him and other companions of Muhammad.[45][46] Others take the view that Abu Hanifa only saw around half a dozen companions, possibly at a young age, and did not directly narrate hadith from them.[45]

Abu Hanifa was born at least 60 years after the death of Muhammad, but during the time of the first generation of Muslims, some of whom lived on until Abu Hanifa's youth. Anas ibn Malik, Muhammad's personal attendant, died in 93 AH and another companion, Abul Tufail Amir bin Wathilah, died in 100 AH, when Abu Hanifa was at least 20 years old. The author of al-Khairat al-Hisan collected information from books of biographies and cited the names of Muslims of the first generation from whom it was reported that the Abu Hanifa had transmitted hadith. He counted 16 of them, including

Students

Yusuf ibn Abd al-Rahman al-Mizzi listed 97 hadith scholars who were his students. Most of them went on to be hadith scholars, and their narrated hadiths were compiled in the Sahih al-Bukhari, Sahih Muslim and other books of hadith.[48] Imām Badr al-Din al-Ayni included another 260 students who studied Hadith and Fiqh with Abu Hanifa.[49]

His most famous students were Imām

Character and appearance

Al-Nadr ibn Muhammad recalled Abu Hanifa had "a beautiful face, beautiful clothing, and fragrant scent."[51]

His student Abu Yusuf described him as "well-formed, from the best of people in appearance, most eloquent in speech, sweetest in tone, and clearest in expressing his thoughts."[51]

His son Hammad described him as "very handsome, dark-skinned, having good posture, wearing much cologne, tall, not speaking except in reply to someone else, and not involving himself in what did not concern him."[51]

Ibn al-Mubarak remarked he "never saw a man more revered in gatherings, nor better in character and forbearance, than Abu Hanifa."[51]

Connection with the family of Muhammad

Muhammad, The final Messenger of God(570–632 the Constitution of Medina, taught the Quran, and advised his companions
Abu Hurairah
(603–681) taught
Urwah ibn Zubayr (died 713) taught by Aisha, he then taught
Said ibn al-Musayyib (637–715) taughtAbdullah ibn Umar (614–693) taughtAbd Allah ibn al-Zubayr (624–692) taught by Aisha, he then taught
Umar ibn Abdul Aziz
(682–720) raised and taught by Abdullah ibn Umar
Hammad bin ibi Sulman taught
Farwah bint al-Qasim
Jafar's mother
Abu Hanifa (699–767) wrote Al Fiqh Al Akbar and Kitab Al-Athar, jurisprudence followed by
Ja'far bin Muhammad Al-Baqir (702–765) Muhammad and Ali's great great grand son, jurisprudence followed by Shia, he taught
Malik ibn Anas (711–795) wrote Muwatta, jurisprudence from early Medina period now mostly followed by Sunni in Africa, Sunni Sufi and taughtAl-Waqidi (748–822) wrote history books like Kitab al-Tarikh wa al-Maghazi, student of Malik ibn AnasAbu Muhammad Abdullah ibn Abdul Hakam (died 829) wrote biographies and history books, student of Malik ibn Anas
Al-Risala, jurisprudence followed by Sunni, Sunni sufi and taught
Ismail ibn IbrahimAli ibn al-Madini (778–849) wrote The Book of Knowledge of the CompanionsIbn Hisham (died 833) wrote early history and As-Sirah an-Nabawiyyah, Muhammad's biography
Jami` at-Tirmidhi hadith books
Al-Baladhuri (died 892) wrote early history Futuh al-Buldan, Genealogies of the Nobles
Sunan Abu Dawood
Hadith Book
Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari (838–923) wrote History of the Prophets and Kings, Tafsir al-Tabari
Abu Hasan al-Ash'ari (874–936) wrote Maqālāt al-islāmīyīn, Kitāb al-luma, Kitāb al-ibāna 'an usūl al-diyāna
Diwan-e Shams-e Tabrizi
on Sufism
Key: Some of Muhammad's CompanionsKey: Taught in MedinaKey: Taught in IraqKey: Worked in SyriaKey: Travelled extensively collecting the sayings of Muhammad and compiled books of hadithKey: Worked in Persia

As with Malik ibn Anas (who was a teacher of Imam al-Shafi'i,[52][53]: 121  who in turn was a teacher of Sunni Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal), Imam Abu Hanifa was a student of Ja'far al-Sadiq, who was a descendant of the Islamic Nabi (prophet) Muhammad. Thus all of the four great Imams of Sunni Fiqh are connected to Ja'far from the Bayt (Household) of Muhammad, whether directly or indirectly.[54]

In one hadith, Abu Hanifa once said about Imam Ja'far: "I have not seen anyone with more knowledge than Ja'far ibn Muhammad."[55] However, in another hadith, Abu Hanifa said: "I met with Zayd (Ja'far's uncle) and I never saw in his generation a person more knowledgeable, as quick a thinker, or more eloquent than he was."[56]

Opposition to anthropomorphism

Imam Abu Hanifa was quoted as saying that

Jahm ibn Safwan (d. 128/745) went so far in his denial of anthropomorphism (Tashbih) as to declare that 'God is not something (Allah laysa bi shay')'. Muqatil ibn Sulayman (d. 150/767), likened God to His creatures.[57]

Jahm ibn Safwan) and the Mushabbihah (antropomorphists), and he probably said (instead of Mushabbihah) "Muqatiliyyah" (followers of Muqatil ibn Sulayman).[58][59][60]

Works

Scholarly works by Abu Hanifa
Title Description
Al-Fiqh al-Akbar
Al-Fiqh al-Absat
Kitaab-ul-Aathaar
Narrated by Imam Muhammad al-Shaybani & Imam Abu Yusuf – compiled from a total of 70,000 hadith
Al-Wasiyyah
At Tareeq Al Aslam Musnad
Imam Abu Hanifah

Confusion regarding Al-Fiqh Al-Akbar

The attribution of Al-Fiqh Al-Akbar to Abu Hanifa has been disputed by A.J. Wensick[61] as well as by Zubair Ali Zai.[62]

Other scholars have agreed that Abu Hanifa was the author including

Muhammad Zahid Al-Kawthari, al-Bazdawi, and Abd al-Aziz al-Bukhari.[63] The scholar, Ibn Abil-'Izz Al-Hanafi attributes the book to Abu Hanifa.[64]

Scholars such as Mufti Abdur-Rahman have pointed out that the book being brought into question by Wensick is actually another work by Abu Hanifa called: Al-Fiqh Al-Absat.[63]

Footnotes

  1. Arabic: أَبُو حَنِيفَة ٱلنُّعْمَان بْن ثَابِت بْن زُوطَا بْن مَرْزُبَان ٱلتَّيْمِيّ ٱلْكُوفِيّ); he is also known by the titles Shaykh al-Islam ('Shaykh of Islam'), al-Imam al-A'zam ('the Greatest Imam'), and Siraj al-A'imma ('Lamp of the Imams').[3][4]

Citations

  1. ^ a b c "imamAbuhanifah". muftisays. May 19, 2006. Retrieved January 21, 2024.
  2. .
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Pakatchi, Ahmad and Umar, Suheyl, "Abū Ḥanīfa", in: Encyclopaedia Islamica, Editors-in-Chief: Wilferd Madelung and, Farhad Daftary.
  4. ^ a b S. H. Nasr (1975), "The religious sciences", in R.N. Frye, The Cambridge History of Iran, Volume 4, Cambridge University Press. p.474: "Abū Ḥanīfah, who is often called the "grand imam"(al-Imam al-'Azam) was Persian
  5. ^ a b ABŪ ḤANĪFA, Encyclopædia Iranica
  6. .
  7. ^ .
  8. ^ Al-Dhahabi. Al-Ibar fi Khabar man Ghabar. Vol. 1. p. 164.
  9. .
  10. ^ Suwaidan, Dr. Tareq Al. Imam Abu Hanifa an-Nu'man. الابداع الفكري. Abu Hanifa, may God have mercy on him, was born in Kufa in 80 AH, as the preponderant opinion states. This is what al-Khattab mentioned in his narration of Isma'il, Abu Hanifa's grandson, ...
  11. Ibn Abd al-Barr
    . Jami' Bayan al-Ilm wa-Fadlih.
  12. ^ Ibn Hibban. al-Jarh wa-l-Ta'dil.
  13. ^
    adh-Dhahabi
    . The Virtues of Imam Abu Hanifa. Visions of Reality Publishing. pp. 9–10.
  14. ^ Cyril Glasse, "The New Encyclopedia of Islam", Published by Rowman & Littlefield, 2008. p.23: "Abu Hanifah, a Persian, was one of the great jurists of Islam and one of the historic Sunni Mujtahids"
  15. ISBN 978-90-04-07026-4. Abu Hanīfa was also of Zuṭṭ
    stock, his grandfather being known as Zūṭi, apparently a corruption of Zuṭṭi.
  16. . Some Jat freemen became famous in the Islamic world, as for instance Abu Hanifa ( 699-767 ? )
  17. . ...Abu Hanifa (699–767), the founder of the Hanafi school of law, who was of Jat stock, most likely descending from those early prisoners sent to Iraq.
  18. ^ a b c Schacht 1960, p. 123.
  19. ^ "Oxford Islamic Studies Online". Abu Yusuf. Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on April 5, 2016.
  20. ^ Ya'qubi, vol. III, p.86; Muruj al-dhahab, vol. III, pp. 268–270.
  21. ^ Ammar, Abu (2001). "Criticism levelled against Imam Abu Hanifah". Understanding the Ahle al-Sunnah: Traditional Scholarship & Modern Misunderstandings. Islamic Information Centre. Retrieved June 13, 2018.
  22. ^ "Islamic Hijri Calendar For Rajab – 150 Hijri". habibur.com. Retrieved June 13, 2018.
  23. .
  24. .
  25. ^ Encyclopedia of the Ottoman Empire
  26. ^ .
  27. ^ See:
    *Reuben Levy, Introduction to the Sociology of Islam, pg. 236–237. London: Williams and Norgate, 1931–1933.
    *Chiragh Ali, The Proposed Political, Legal and Social Reforms. Taken from Modernist Islam 1840–1940: A Sourcebook, pg. 280. Edited by Charles Kurzman. New York City: Oxford University Press, 2002.
    *Mansoor Moaddel, Islamic Modernism, Nationalism, and Fundamentalism: Episode and Discourse, pg. 32. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2005.
    *Keith Hodkinson, Muslim Family Law: A Sourcebook, pg. 39. Beckenham: Croom Helm Ltd., Provident House, 1984.
    *Understanding Islamic Law: From Classical to Contemporary, edited by Hisham Ramadan, pg. 18. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield, 2006.
    *Christopher Roederrer and Darrel Moellendorf [de], Jurisprudence, pg. 471. Lansdowne: Juta and Company Ltd., 2007.
    *Nicolas Aghnides, Islamic Theories of Finance, pg. 69. New Jersey: Gorgias Press LLC, 2005.
    *Kojiro Nakamura, "Ibn Mada's Criticism of Arab Grammarians." Orient, v. 10, pgs. 89–113. 1974
  28. ^ Nadwi, Sayyid Ijteba. Nuqoosh-e-Tabinda. (in Urdu) (1994 First ed). Jamia Nagar: Dar Irnaws p. 254
  29. ^ "The Leading Fiqh Scholars (Founders of the four schools of Fiqh)". April 20, 2017.
  30. .
  31. .
  32. .
  33. ^ as-Sakhawi, Shams ad-Deen (1999). al-Jawahir wa al-Durar fi Tarjama Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Hajr. Dar Ibn Hazm, Beirut. pp. vol.2 pp.946–947.
  34. ^ Ibn Taymiyya. Minhaj as-Sunna An-Nabawiyya. pp. vol.1, page 259.
  35. ^ Ibn Kathir. Al-Bidāya wa l-Nihāya.
  36. ^ adh-Dhahabi. Tadhkira al-Huffaz.
  37. .
  38. .
  39. .
  40. ^ Camilla Adang, "This Day I have Perfected Your Religion For You: A Zahiri Conception of Religious Authority," p.33. Taken from Speaking for Islam: Religious Authorities in Muslim Societies. Ed. Gudrun Krämer and Sabine Schmidtke. Leiden: Brill Publishers, 2006
  41. ^ Esposito, John (2017). "The Muslim 500: The World's 500 Most Influential Muslims" (PDF). The Muslim 500. p. 32. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 27, 2017. Retrieved August 2, 2017.
  42. .
  43. .
  44. ^ a b Imām-ul-A’zam Abū Ḥanīfah, The Theologian
  45. ^ http://www.islamicinformationcentre.co.uk/alsunna7.htm last accessed June 8, 2011
  46. ^ "Imam-ul-A'zam Abū Ḥanīfah, The Theologian". Masud.co.uk. Archived from the original on February 12, 2010. Retrieved February 7, 2010.
  47. ^ Tāhzibul Kamal by Yusuf ibn Abd al-Rahman al-Mizzi
  48. ^ Māganīl Akhīar by Imām Aini
  49. ^ "40 Great Students of Imam Abu Hanifah". ilmfeed.com. March 26, 2014.
  50. ^ a b c d Al-Dhahabi. Siyar al-A'lam al-Nubula'. Vol. 6. pp. 399–400.
  51. ^ Dutton, Yasin, The Origins of Islamic Law: The Qurʼan, the Muwaṭṭaʼ and Madinan ʻAmal, p. 16
  52. ^ Haddad, Gibril F. (2007). The Four Imams and Their Schools. London, the U.K.: Muslim Academic Trust. pp. 121–194.
  53. ^ "Imam Ja'afar as Sadiq". History of Islam. Archived from the original on July 21, 2015. Retrieved November 27, 2012.
  54. ^ Siyār Aʿlām An-Nubalāʾ (in Arabic). Vol. 6. p. 257.
  55. ^ Al-Tuhaf Sharh al-Zulaf (in Arabic). p. 28.
  56. .
  57. ^ "The Scholarly Acceptance of Imam Abu Hanifah's Pronouncements on al-Jarh wa al-Ta'dil". IlmGate - A Digital Archive of Islamic Knowledge.
  58. ^ "Answers to Doubts over the 'Aqidah of Imam Abu Hanifah". Darul Ma'arif. March 2014.
  59. ^ "Siyar A'lam al-Nubala' by Al-Dhahabi". Islam Web.
  60. ^ Wensick, A.J. (1932). The Muslim Creed. London: Cambridge University Press. p. 125.
  61. ^ Zubair Ali Zail's Fiqh ul-Akbar Imaam Abu Haneefah's book. Taken from The Story of the Fabricated book and the Rabbaanee Scholars, pg. 19–20. Trns. Abu Hibbaan and Abu Khuzaimah Ansaari.
  62. ^ .
  63. ^ Ibn Abil-Izz. Sharh At-Tahawiyah.

Sources

Further reading

Online

External links