Jameah Mahmoodiyyah

The author of al-Khairat al-Hisan collected information from books of biographies and cited the names of the Sahaba whom it is reported that the Imam has transmitted ahadith from. He counted them as sixteen of the Sahaba. They are:

1. Anas ibn Malik

2. Abdullah ibn Anis al-Juhani

3. Abdullah ibn al-Harith ibn Juz’ al-Zabidi

4. Jabir ibn Abdullah

5. Abdullah ibn Abi Awfa

6. Wa’ila ibn al-Asqa`

7. Ma`qal ibn Yasar

8. Abu Tufail `Amir ibn Wa’ila

9. `A’isha bint Hajrad

10. Sahl ibn Sa`d

11. al-Tha’ib ibn Khallad ibn Suwaid

12. al-Tha’ib ibn Yazid ibn Sa`id

13. Abdullah ibn Samra

14. Mahmud ibn al-Rabi`

15. Abdullah ibn Ja`far

16. Abu Umama

Many disagreements exist regarding his reporting of Ahadith from some of these Sahaba. His reporting from Anas is supported by most of the biographers. The following are some of the Ahadith believed to be reported by the Imam directly from the Sahaba. Many biographers list them in their books:

First Hadith:

"Seeking of knowledge is an obligation on each and every Muslim." Reported by Abu Hanifa upon the authority of Anas ibn Malik. Many books of biography mention two chains of transmition for this Hadith.

Arabic transliteration: ("Talabu al-`ilmi fariDaatun `ala kulli muslim")

Second Hadith:

Abu Hanifa reported upon the authority of Jabir ibn Abdullah, said, "A man from the Ansar came to the Prophet Muhammad (saw) and said, ‘O Messenger of Allah! I never was gifted a son and a son was never born to me.’ So he (saw) said, ‘And where are you from the abundance of zikr and istighfar? Allah provides, by them, the children." He said, "So, the man used to increase his charity and his asking for forgiveness." Then Jabir, said "nine sons were born to him."

Some argued, though, that Jabir died in the year 79 A.H. while Abu Hanifa was born, most probably, in the year 80 A.H., so how can this report be true?

Arabic transliteration: ("Ja’a rajulun min al-anSar ila al-nabi – Salla allahu `alaihi wa sallam – fa qala lahu, ‘ya rasulallahi ma ruziqtu waladan qaTT wa la wulida li,’ faqala, ‘wa aina anta min kathrat al-istighfar wa al-Sadaqa, yarzuqu Allahu biha al-walad.’ Qal, "fa kana al-Rajul yukthiru min al-Sadaqa wa al-istighfar." Wa qala jabir – radiya allahu `anh – "fa wulida lahu tis`atun mina al-dhukur").

Third Hadith:

The Greatest Imam said, "I heard Abdullah ibn Juz’ al-Zabidi, the companion of the Prophet (saw), saying, "Whoever learned the knowledge of religion, Allah will protect him from worries and will provide him with sustenance from where he does not expect."

Arabic transliteration: ("Man tafaqqaha fi al-din kafahu Allahu hammahu wa razaqahu min Haythu la yaHtasib").

Fourth Hadith:

Reported from Abu Hanifa, said, "I heard Abdullah ibn Abi Awfa saing, "I heard the Prophet (saw) saying, "Whoever built a mosque, even if it be like a nest of a sand-grouse, Allah will build him a house in Paradise."

Arabic transliteration: ("Man bana lillahi baitan wa law ka mafHaSi qaTa, bana Allahu lahu baitan fi al-janna").

Fifth Hadith:

Reported from Abu Hanifa, said, "I was born in the year eighty, and Abdullah ibn Anis came to Kufa in the year ninety-four, and I heard from him while I was fourteen years old. I heard him saying, ‘Your loving the thing causes blindness and deafness.’"

Arabic transliteration: ("Wulidtu sanata thamanin, wa qadima Abdullah ibn Anis al-Kufa sanata arba`in wa tis`in, wa sami`tu minhu wa ana ibnu arba`a `ashrata sana. Sami`tuhu yaqul, ‘Hubbuka al-shay’a yu`mi wa yuSimm’").

Sixth Hadith:

Reported by Abu Hanifa, said I heard Wa’ila ibn al-Asqa` saying, "I heard the Messenger of Allah (saw) saying, ‘Do not display your rejoicing at your brother [‘s misfortune], so that Allah might remedy him and inflict it upon you.’"

Arabic transliteration: ("La tuZhiranna shamatataka li akhika fa yu`afiahu Allahu wa yabtalika").

Seventh Hadith:

Reported from Abu Hanifa, said, "Wa’ila ibn al-Asqa` told me, from the Messenger of Allah (saw), said, ‘Leave what causes you doubt and head towards what does not cause you doubt.’"

Arabic transliteration: ("Da` ma yuribuk ila ma la uribuk").

[al-Manaqib, al-Muwaffaq al-Makki, Vol. 1, 27; al-Manaqib, al-Kurdari, Vol. 1, 5]

And from what is agreed upon among many of the authors is that the Imam saw Anas ibn Malik. [Even] al-Khatib al-Baghdadi, despite his advocacy of a negative image for the Imam, does support the fact of his seeing of Anas ibn Malik with his saying, "Abu Hanifa saw Anas ibn Malik and heard from `Ata’ ibn Abi Rabah" [Tarikh Baghdad, Vol. 13, 324].

Ibn `Abd al-Barr mentions in his Jami` Bayan al-`Ilm [Vol. 1, 35], after he mentioned, alongside its sanad, a piece of news which Imam Abu Hanifa heard from Abdullah ibn al-Harith ibn al-Juz’, the Sahabi, "Ibn Sa`d, author of al-Waqidi, mentioned that Abu Hanifa saw Anas ibn Malik and Abdullah ibn al-Harith ibn al-Juz’." Counting on this, Ibn al-Juz’ is considered to have died late, and in priority, that Abu Hanifa saw Abdullah ibn Abi Awfa since he was Kufi with regards to his residence and place of death.

Furthermore, Abu Nu`aim al-Asfahani mentioned among the Sahaba, whom Abu Hanifa saw, Anas, Abdullah ibn al-Harith, and Ibn Abi Awfa. The same is reported by Sibt ibn al-Jawzi upon the authority of Dhakir ibn Kamil from Abu `Ali al-Haddad from his book al-Intisar wa’l-Tarjih. This, considering the birth date of Abu Hanifa in the year 80 A.H., but if his birth date was in the year 61 A.H., or in the year 70 A.H., as in the reports of Ibn Zawad and Ibn Hayyan, the possibility of his seeing of the Sahaba would be bigger. Abu al-Qasim ibn Abi al-`Awam expanded on clarifying who was comtemporary of him relying on the first report in his book Fazail Abi Hanifa wa Ashabih (The Virtues of Abu Hanifa and His Followers).

Among what was altered by means of tampering in [the process of] copying what was mentioned is that Daraqutni was asked about Abu Hanifa’s hearing from Anas, is it considered correct? He said "la wa la ru’ytuh" (No, niether his seening). But the original statement is "la illa ru’yatuh" (No, except his seeing). As an evidence on this is what Suyuti mentioned in the beginning of his book Tabiyd al-Sahifa with his saying "Hamza al-Sahmi said, ‘I heard Daraqutni saying Abu Hanifa did not meet any of the Sahaba except that he saw Anas with his eyes but did not hear from him.’" And from the ones who professed his seeing Anas are: Ibn Sa`d, al-Daraqutni, Abu Nu`aim al-Asfahani, Ibn `Abd al-Barr, al-Khatib [al-Baghdadi], Ibn al-Jawzi, al-Sam`ani, `Abd al-Ghani al-Maqdisi, Sibt ibn al-Jawzi, Fazl Allah al-Turishty, Nawawi, Yafi`i, Dhahabi, Zain al-Din al-`Iraqi, al-Wali al-`Iraqi, Ibn al-Wazir, al-Badr al-`Ayni, Ibn Hajar [al-`Asqalani], Shihab al-Din al-Qastalani, Suyuti, and Ibn Hajar al-Makki, among others. [Ta’nib al-Khatib fi ma Saqahu fi al-Imam Abi Hanifa min al-Akadhib, Kawthari, 15].


-

References the Author Relied On:

1. al-Haytami, al-Khairat al-Hisan. For al-`Allama, Mufti al-Hijaz Ibn Hajar (d.943 A.H.).

2. Manaqib al-Imam Abi Hanifa. For Abu al-Mu’ayyid al-Muwaffaq al-Makki (d.568).

3. Manaqib Abi Hanifa. For Ibn al-Bazzaz al-Kurdari, author of Fatawi al-Bazzaziyya (d. 827).

4. al-Durr al-Munazzam fi Manaqib al-Imam al-A`zam: a manuscript kept in the library of al-Azhar al-Sharif (#238). For Noah Afandi (d. 1070, Cairo).

5. al-`Uqud al-Jiman fi Manaqib Abi Hanifa al-Nu`man: also a manuscript in al-Azhar. For al-Salih al-Dimashqi.

Labels: Imam Abu Hanifah Posted by Mohammad Ashhad Bin Saeed [Gufiralahuma]

The Shield Of A Scholar:

Imaam Maalik said, “The shield of the Scholar is, ‘I do not know’, so if he leaves it down, his attacker will strike him.” (1)

Imaam Maaliks Responses To Questions He Didn’t Know:

Haitham Ibn Jameel said, “I heard Imaam Maalik being asked about forty-eight (48) issues. So he answered thirty-two (32) of them with ‘I do not know’.“

Khaalid Ibn Khaddaash said, “I came to Imaam Maalik with forty (40) issues, So he did not respond except to five issues.“

A Scholars Advice To A Student:

‘Adbullaah Ibn Yazeed Ibn Hurmuz said, “It is befitting for the scholar that he passes on to his students the statement, ‘I do not know’, until that becomes the foundation that they flee to.“

Half Of Deen:

Ibn ‘Adbil-Barr said, “It is authentically related from Abu Dardaa’ that ‘I do not know’ is half of knowledge.” (2)

Footnotes:

(1) Al-Intiqaa’, p. 37

(2) Jaami’ Bayaanil ‘Ilm Wa Fadhlih, 1/54.

Labels: Ulama Posted by Mohammad Ashhad Bin Saeed [Gufiralahuma]

لأُمِّ سَلَمَةَ يَا أُمَّ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ مَا كَانَ أَكْثَرُ دُعَاءِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ -صلى الله عليه وسلم- إِذَا كَانَ عِنْدَكِ قَالَتْ كَانَ أَكْثَرُ دُعَائِهِ « يَا مُقَلِّبَ الْقُلُوبِ ثَبِّتْ قَلْبِى عَلَى دِينِكَ ». قَالَتْ قُلْتُ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ مَا لأَكْثَرِ دُعَائِكَ يَا مُقَلِّبَ الْقُلُوبِ ثَبِّتْ قَلْبِى عَلَى دِينِكَ قَالَ « يَا أُمَّ سَلَمَةَ إِنَّهُ لَيْسَ آدَمِىٌّ إِلاَّ وَقَلْبُهُ بَيْنَ أُصْبُعَيْنِ مِنْ أَصَابِعِ اللَّهِ فَمَنْ شَاءَ أَقَامَ وَمَنْ شَاءَ أَزَاغَ

Um Salamah , Mother of the Believers (may Allah be pleased with her) said the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to frequently say “ Oh changer of the hearts make my heart stick to Your religion.” So, I asked him, “ Oh Messenger of Allah,  why do you often say, “Oh changer of the hearts make my heart stick to Your religion ?” He (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “Oh Um Salamah, every human being’s heart is between the two fingers of Allah. Whoever Allah wants to remain guided he’s guided. And whoever Allah wishes to be lead astray deviates. “

Collected by At-Tirmithi (3522) Al-Albani graded this hadeeth as being Saheeh in his checking of At-Tirmithi.

Lessons to be learned from this Hadeeth:

Al-Imam, Al-Hafith Al-Mubarakfuri ([1353] may Allah have mercy on him) wrote some wonderful words for this hadeeth in his explanation for Jam’I At-Tirmithi. He wrote:

1.    “Oh changer of the hearts…” Sometimes the heart is turned to obedience and other times its lead to disobedience. Also there are times when the heart is directed to be attentive of Allah, and other times its diverted to be heedless.

2.    “Make my heart stick to Your religion… This is a request to Allah to make the heart remain solid in Islam, without any deviation from the upright Religion and straight path.

3.    “Whoever Allah wants to remain guided he’s guided…” This means everybody’s heart Allah wishes to be guided; He allows it to remain sound and the person obedient.

1. And whoever Allah wishes to be lead astray deviates. “This implies that whoever Allah wants to be lead astray He turns his heart away from the truth, or away from Islam ,and obedience to the Most Wise.

5.    There is another narration where after Mu’adh heard this hadeeth he recited the verse, “(They say): "Our Lord! Let not our hearts deviate (from the truth) after You have guided us, and grant us mercy from You. Truly, You are the Bestower." [ Al-Imran 8].

6.     Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) also asked the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), “You regularly say, “Oh changer of the hearts make my heart stick to Your religion.” Are you afraid for us? He (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “Yes!”. This means Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) knew these words the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said weren’t for him, because he was protected by Allah from sin and deviation, especially his heart. Rather, He (peace and blessings be upon him) would constantly say these words in order to teach his nation. [ end of quote]

TN (May Allah pardon him) We need to constantly follow and stick to the Sunnah; especially this Sunnah from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). We need it now more than ever, in this time where Fitnah is knocking on everybody’s door. Just look around and reflect. How many people were praised from Ahulus Sunnah, and are now dispraised by Ahulus Sunnah?! How many scholars were recommended to be learnt from, but now are being warned against?! How many people were Muslims have now left Islam?!. Reflect, Reflect, “Oh Ahulus Sunah, “Oh changer of the hearts make my heart stick to Your religion.”-Ameen

Taken from “ Tuhfatul Ahwathee bi shari Jami’ At-Tirmithi”

Labels: Dua Posted by Mohammad Ashhad Bin Saeed [Gufiralahuma]

Imam Bukhari used a four angled rule which helped him to study Hadith.

We use the Aid of our freinds at mosque who go to a few lectures here and there and then we take the adivce from Hadhrat Mowlana Peer Google (WWW) to study Hadith and to deduce the best ruling to suit our own fancies.

Our present times of extreme negligence and laziness, where the maximum extent of education in this science is (normally limited to studying) the six authentic books of hadith for one to call himself a hadith scholar, can be likened to “A monkey who has a bit of turmeric powder and wishes to be called a grocer.” The extent to which this group of half-baked scholars graduating from madrasas has made a mock of our religion cannot be found in the time of our predecessors, even if we were to search for it. The main cause for this current degeneration among the scholars stems from our confidence in our virtues and our reliance upon our defective and unsound knowledge. In fact, the jurists of the later centuries [muta’akhkhirin] have prohibited us from issuing any religious verdicts based on our own opinions. Instead, they have advised us to transcribe the verdicts from similar religious verdicts of the past.

But NO! In these times, even the most intricate of scholarlistic issues, let alone ordinary concerns, have become subjected to the people’s whims and fancies. To Allah alone do we complain and He alone is the Helper.

Once again I stress ""There is safety in following just one Madhab"

Imam Suyuti relates (through his chain) that Muhammad ibn Ahmad said: “When Abu ‘l-Abbas Walid ibn Ibrahim was deposed as the chief justice of Rayy (formally of the great cities of Persia located a few miles from Tehran) and he came to Bukhara, my teacher, Abu Ibrahim Al-Khatalli took me with him to see Walid.

My teacher requested him to narrate those hadiths to me which he had heard from his teachers. He replied, ‘I have not heard anything from them.’ My teacher was quite shocked and remarked, ‘How can you say that you have not heard anything from them whereas you are a deeply-read scholar?’ Walid then related his story saying, ‘When I became a rational and mature adult and I developed a passion towards the science of hadith, I went to Imam Bukhari (may Allah be pleased with him) and explained my intentions to him. He advised me thus, “Son, before you set out to pursue any field, make sure you are well-grounded with its prerequisites and demands. And remember that a person cannot become a perfect scholar in the science of hadith until and unless he writes four things with four other things, which are as indispensable as four things, which resemble four other things. (He must write these things) in four times, with four conditions, in four places, upon four things, from four types of people, and for four objectives. All of these four-angled things can only be achieved with another four things coupled with another four. Once all these things are achieved, four things will
become insignificant before him and he will be tried with four other things. If he exercises patience in these four trials, Allah will honor him with four things in this world and award him four things in the hereafter.”

I said, “May Allah have mercy upon you. Please explain these four-angled things for me.” He said, “Certainly. The four things he has to write are:
(1) the statements and commands of Allah’s Messenger (PBUH).
(2) the sayings of the Companions and their relative ranks.
(3) the sayings of the Tabi'een and their ranks (i.e. who among them are reliable and who are not), and
(4) the conditions of all the narrators who narrate hadiths.
These (four pieces of information) must be written together with the following four things:
(1) the actual names of the narrators,
(2) their appellations or titles (kunya),
(3) their places of residence, and
(4) their dates of birth and death (to determine whether the narrator actually met the people he has narrated from).
(These are indispensable to him) just (as four things are necessary with four other things:)
(1) as praises of Allah (are necessary) with the khutba,
(2) as salutations (are necessary) with mention of the name of Allah’s Messenger (PBUH).
(3) as Bismillah (is necessary) with a süra (of the Qur’an), and
(4) as the takbir is necessary with the salat.
These resemble four other things (which are names of four categories of hadith):
(1) the musnadat [narrations traceable to the Messenger],
(2) the mursalat [narrations transmitted by a Follower from the Messenger directly without a Companion in between],
(3) the mawqufat [narrations traceable only to a Companion ], and
(4) the maqtu'at [narrations traceable only to a Follower].
(These things must all be written) jn four times:
(1) in his childhood,
(2) in his age of discernment (i.e. close to maturity),
(3) in his youth, and
(4) in his old age.
(In other words, he must continue acquiring hadiths at all times throughout every stage of his life? They must be
written) under four conditions:
(1) while his is occupied,
(2) while he is free,
(3) in his poverty, and
(4) in his affluence.
(In other words, he must diligently pursue the knowledge of these things no matter what his circumstances may be).
This is done at four places:
(1) in mountainous terrain,
(2) on the seas,
(3) in cities, and
(4) in rural areas.
(In other words, he must endeavour to acquire this science from the right teacher, no matter where that teacher is located. He writes what he has acquired) upon four things:
(1) upon stones,
(2) upon shells,
(3) upon skins, and
(4) upon bones.
(In other words, even when be does not find paper he will continue recording it somewhere) until he finds the paper upon which to preserve it. (He acquires it from four different types of people.
(1) from his seniors,
(2) from his juniors,
(3) from his counterparts, and
(4) from the books of his father, provided he has firm conviction that these are his father’s books.
(In other words, he endeavours to acquire this science in every way possible without feeling ashamed to obtain it even from his juniors. He has four objectives for doing all of these things.
(1) to acquire (this science) solely for the pleasure of Allah ,
(2) to practice upon the hadiths which confirm to the verses of the Holy Qur’an,
(3) to propagate (the science) to those who seek it, and
(4) to write it out so that it can be a source of guidance to those who will come after him.
Thereafter, the aforementioned four things cannot be acquired (unless he has first acquired) four other things that are part of human acquisition:
(1) the knowledge of how to read and write,
(2) lexicography and vocabulary,
(3) morphology, and
(4) syntax
Together with four other things that are not of human acquisition, but are bestowed by Allah :
(1) sound health,
(2) ability,
(3) an ardent desire for learning, and
(4) a retentive memory.
Once all the aforementioned four-angled things are attained by him, then four things will become insignificant before him:
He will then be afflicted with four things:
(1) his enemies will rejoice at his distress,
(2) his friends will reproach him,
(3) the ignorant will taunt him, and
(4) the scholars will be jealous of him.
Once he exercises patience on these calamities, Allah will honor him with four things in this world:
(1) the honor of contentment [qana'a],
(2) conviction coupled with awe and dignity,
(3) the pleasure of sacred knowledge and
(4) eternal life.
(On top of that,) Allah will honor him with four things in the hereafter:
(1) the honor of intercession on behalf of whomever he pleases,
(2) the shade of the throne of Allah on the day when there will be no shade available except the shade of His throne,
(3) the privilege to provide water to whomsoever he pleases from the pool of Muhammad [al-Kawthar], and
(4) close proximity with the Prophets in the Highest of the High Places

So now, my son, I have told you whatever I have heard from my teachers. Now you have the choice to either pursue this field or to abstain from it.”
These are the principles and rules Imam Bukhari has laid out for every individual who wishes to become a hadith scholar or a student of hadith. We should take heed of Imam Bukhari’s advice and hold firmly onto it. In actual fact, the science of hadith is even more difficult to attain than Imam Bukhari (may Allah be pleased with him) describes.

Labels: Mazhab Posted by Mohammad Ashhad Bin Saeed [Gufiralahuma]

Imam Bukhari has taken proofs from the Quran and Hadith. He has quoted Hadith under the following headings:
"Hold on fast to the Jamaat of Muslims and their Imam"(page 059, Vol 1)
"One who seperates oneself from the Jamaat (of Muslims) even a hand span, will die a death of ignorance"(page 1045, Vol 2)
There is also an order even execute those who seperate themselves from the Jamaat of Muslims and their Imam."...they will leave Islam in the way an arrow leaves its bow...wherever you see them, you should kill them. Their killing will be rewardable on the day of Qiyaamah"(page 75, Vol 2)
"A group of people will emerge from amongst you, who will belittle your Salah over theirs , and your Fasts over teirs, and your actions over theirs, they will recite the Quran, which will not pass their throats (have no effect upon them), the will leave the Deen like an arrow leaves its bow" (page 756, Vol2).
These people will emerge before Qiyaamah. Only those who are deficient in age and knowledge will join them

Imams Muslims, Tirmidhi, Abu Dawud, Nasai also quote the same.

Before the Prophet(SAW) came to us, there was great Jahilliyah in the World. There was a need for a Prophet to come set things in order. Thus came Our Final Prophet Muhammad (SAW). The Prophet was given help by Allah in the form of Sahaba. The World had a new PERFECT teacher to learn from and to follow. The sahaba were the best of the best students to learn from for the people to come later. Islam started to spread far & wide. Many wars were taking place and many Hufaz of the Quran were made Shaheed, due to the number of Hufaz lost, The Muslims (Sahaba) saw the need of compiling the the Quran together in a form of a book so that the Quran may be preserved. This was the will of Allah and for this reason we have the Quran with us today. Later many opinions were being given as to how one should practice their Deen. Some qouted from what they saw the Prophet (SAW) do in his early days and some quoted from what they saw in the middle days of his life and some quoted from the last few days of his life. Hence there were many many opinions going around every where. Later by the will of Allah came the time for the Great Imams. These great Imams realised the problems that could arise with all these differences in the Ummah, so again by the will of Allah rules were deduced and formulas were set up in order to have a correct codified interpritation of the teachings of the Prophet(SAW) with all the corect references and hadith. The Imams would also comment that if something that they have decided upon and a stronger evidence is found, then this would become their way. This comment was not set out for laymen of the last 1000 years, infact it was set out for the other great Faqih amongst them. Now by the will of Allah, Islam was codified and recorded for the people of the future. With all four schools of thoughts having slightly different understanding of the rulings set out by them on a few aspects, Allah has in this way kept the Sunnah alive for the entire life of the Prophet(SAW). Now comes the time, by the Will of Allah that all the Hadith get noted and written down and preserved for the future. the great Imams who had such vast knowledge of Hadith still followed a school of thought by the will of Allah.

So as you can see, Allah sent the Prophet, The Quran, The Sahaba, The Imams and then the Hadith collectors in this particular order. There is Great Hikmah in this. Allah is the best of planners. Why try to change the plan or go another way.

The Imams of The Sahaba

The Prophet(SAW) sent Hadhrat Musayb bin Umayr(RA) as the first teacher to Madinah at the request of the people of Madina, after the pledge of Aqba.
Whilst Hadhrat Musayb(RA) was in Madina, who did the people follow? Did he call the Prophet(SAW) up and ask him?
Did The Prophet(SAW) send Hadhrat Musaib(RA) to teach or to be followed or just to teach?
(all this was whilst the Prophet(SAW) was alive)

When The answers could not be found in Quran & Hadith, what did the Sahaba do?

Hadhrat Abu Bakr(RA) gave Fatwa and made it clear that it was his Ijtihad and view. The people followed the school of Abu Bakr(RA)

Hadhrat Umar(RA) gave fatwaa from his Ijtihad and view. On one occasion he sent a message to his judges that they also make Ijtihad when passing a ruling if it was not clear from Quran & Sunnah or amongst the senior Sahaba.

Hadhrat Uthmaan(RA) took pledge of Khilafat on the condition that he follow the previous Khalifas.

Hadhrat Ali(RA) used to say "I am making Ijtihad on my view"

Many of the Fatawa of the Khulafa-e-Rashedeen appear in "Musannif ibn Abi Shaibah"

The Prophet (SAW) sent Hadhrat Ma'aaz(RA) to Yemen where he applied Ijtihad to solve many Issues. The entire population of Yemen followed the school of Ma'aaz(RA). He was the Imam for Yemen.

Hadhrat Adbullah ibn Abbas(RA) resided in Makkah, many of his fatwas are listed in "Musannif Abdur Razzaq" & "Musannif ibn Abi Shaiba". The School of thought for Hadhrat Abdullah ibn Abbas(RA) was dominent in Makkah.

Hadhrat Zaid ibn Thabit(RA) resided in Madina. He passed his fatwas there from his understanding of the Quran & Sunnah and from the teachings of the Senior Sahaba(RA).

Hadhrat Anas(RA) was followed in Basra.

Hadhrat Abdullah ibn Masood(RA) was sent to Kufa by Hadhrat Umar(RA) to be the teacher of Kufa. He was followed in Kufa.

On many occasions, proof was not given as they did not give their opinions from their desires, but they gave their rulings from the understanding of the Deen they had learnt from the Prophet(SAW)

During the era of the Tabi'een, many people used to go to Makkah for Hajj. The Khalifa of the time would make the following announcement: "No one is to pass a Fatwa except these two Imams Hadhrat Ata ibn Abi Rabaah and Hadhrat Mujahid (RA)." Thousands of the Fatawa passed by these two appear with no proofs mentioned with these rulings. All the Tabi'een and the Tabe Tabi'een used to practice upon these rulings without any objection or question.

During the era of the Tabi'een, different areas were following different schools.
In Makkah it was the school Hadhrat Ata bin Abi Rabaah
In Madina it was the school of Nafi Mowla ibn Umar
In Basra it was the school of Hassan al Basri
In Kufa it was the school of Ibrahim an-Nakha'i
In Yemen it was the school of Tawoos
In Yamama it was the school of Yahya ibn Abi Katheer
In Sham it was the school of Makhool
In Iraq it was the school of Maimoon bin Mehran
In Khurasaan it was the school of Dahaak

In every city, the people would follow that particular school and on many occasions without any proof.

All this was before the four Imams.
This does not mean the Hadith was not there or the information was not gathered.

So to put it all together and answer the query of who the Companions followed:
The Sahaba followed the Prophet (SAW) and took from the Quran & Sunnah Directly and so too did the four Imams.
....Allah says in the Quran "In the Sight of Allah only Islam is accepted (Sura 13/ Verse 9).
The Prophet (SAW) left behind the Quran and the Sunnah, and the Sahaba, who were living examples of Islam, with whom Allah is happy with. The Prophet (SAW) said "hold fast to My Sunnat and the Sunnat of the Khulafa e Rashedeen" (Tirmidhi, Abu Dawud, ibn Majah etc). He also said "My Sahaba are like Stars, whomsoever you follow, you will be rightly guided" (Mishkat).

Islam Began to Spread far & wide, thus 2 periods past, the period of the Prophet (SAW) and the period of the Sahaba. During the latter time of the Sahaba, Imam Abu Hanifa grew up and met some Sahaba also. In this era, the complitaion of jurisprudence, the systematic settings of laws, rules, regulations on every subject of Deen, the arguments of jurisprudic principles were codified (later completed by his Students & other Imams of Fiqh). The delibration of every aspect of life, be it, political, social, economical took place. All this was done in the light of Quran and Sunnah (Because the Sahaba and Tabi'een were daily narrating Hadith & reading the Quran. This was not done from heresay or from the air, or by following whims and desires like they are accused of doing). In the time of Imam Abu Hanifa, a group of 40 Chosen, top ranking Ulama would discuss, delibrate and contemplate each law, rule and regulation before it was noted in registers. Delibration from every angle would take place before it was noted. Hence approximately 1.3 million masa'il were listed. (1,300,000) (we are not in the position to take out the strongest opinion, no matter which scholar tries, they are not of the calibre)

The other great Imams of fiqh followed, then the Imams of Hadith began their tremendous and marvellous task of complitaion and codification of the Hadith.

We have now completed 4 periods. 1. The era of The Prophet (SAW), 2. The era of the Sahaba, 3. The era of the Imams of Fiqh, 4. The Imams of Hadith.

Thus, The Quran & Sunnat came first followed by the schools of thought which explained the Sunnah in detail, then the compilation of the Hadith.

There were many Imams of Fiqh but only four survived. These four reached us because, they were codified properly and they had students prepared to continue the transmission of the four schools and finally because Allah desired so. The four schools contain the entire life of our Prophet (SAW).

Muslims are supposed to seek the truth, you name me one scholar in the last 1000 years that was capable of making his own Ijtihad after seeing and studying all the schools with all the evidence they have provided do you even think they can pull out the strongest opinion to fit around the other rulings they had passed. Some of them differed in their opinions, but they all had valid reasons. Each ruling they had passed was in conjunction with another rule for that subject, for each school, every thing fits in perfectly. The Greatest Scholars of Islam have already done all this work for us. There are no new Hadith that will come. There is no need to reinvent the wheel. The deen is perfect. There is no need for people to start giving absurd views and start misleading people. It is unbelievable that sometimes even something that is commen sense, others would like to prove them wrong.

Thank you for your comment, It has also given me the opportunity to write out this comment with such detail that I can now create a whole new blog from this. Jazakallah.

Finally as my favourite speaker on comparative religion, Dr Zakir Naik would say, "I hope that answers your question" The Imams had eyewitnessed the actions of the Senior Tabi'een (Imam Abu Hanifa saw some of the Sahaba), these Tabi'een were not fools to follow their own desires, they followed the Sahaba who followed TheProphet (SAW).

Why Follow 1 Imam
This Fatwa by Shaykh Uthaymeen was posted on a forum from which I have cut & pasted it.

Important advice for the student of knowledge from Imām Ibn al-‘Uthaymeen.

Praise be to Allah.

It is good if a person focuses on one shaikh and makes him his main source, especially if he is a young beginner, for if the young beginner seeks knowledge from a number of people he will be confused. For people are not all of one opinion, especially nowadays. In the past, here in the Kingdom (Saudi Arabia) people never deviated from [the books] al-Iqnā’ [Book of Hanbalī Fiqh by Al-Buhuti] and al-Muntahā [Book of Hanbalī fiqh by Mar`i bin Yusuf], so their fatāwā were all the same and the bases of their fatāwā were all the same; no one differed from another, except in his delivery and style. But now, everyone who has memorized a hadīth or two says, “I am the Imām to be followed. Imām Ahmad was a man and we are men.” So now there is chaos. Everyone is issuing fatāwā and sometimes you hear fatāwā from these people which make you weep and laugh at the same time. I was thinking of recording these fatāwā, but I was afraid that this might make me one of those who seek out their faults of their brothers, so I did not do it lest we transmit things that are as far from the truth as the earth is from the Pleiades.

I say: adhering to one scholar is very important when the seeker of knowledge is just starting out, so that he will not be confused. Hence our scholars forbade us to read al-Mughnī and Sharh al-Muhadhdhab and other books which contain numerous opinions when we were starting out. One of our scholars told us that Shaykh ‘AbdAllah ibn ‘AbdRahmān Bābiteen (May Allah have mercy on him), who was one of the great scholars of Najd, only read al-Rawd al-Murabba’ [Book of Hanbalī Fiqh by Al-Buhuti] and never read anything else. He read it repeatedly but he discussed it in great detail and in great depth.

If a person has gained a great deal of knowledge, then he should look at the views of the scholars so as to benefit from them in both academic and practical terms. But when one is just starting out, my advice is to focus on one particular scholar and not go to anyone else.

[From Fatāwā al-Shaikh Muhammad ibn Sālih al-‘Uthaymeen, Kitāb al-‘Ilm, page # 107]

الحمد لله
هذا جيد كون الإنسان يركز على شيخ من المشائخ يجعله هو الأصل لا سيما المبتدئ الصغير , المبتدئ الصغير إذا طلب العلم على عدة أناس تذبذب , لأن الناس ليسوا على رأي واحد خصوصاً في عصرنا الآن , كان فيما سبق أي قبل مدة كان الناس هنا في المملكة لا يخرجون أبداً عن الإقناع والمنتهى ؛ فتجد فتاواهم واحدة , وشروحهم واحدة , لا يختلف واحد عن آخر إلا في الإلقاء وحسن الأسلوب , لكن الآن لما كان كل واحد حافظاً حديثاً أو حديثين قال : أنا الإمام المقتدى به والإمام أحمد رجل ونحن رجال , فصارت المسألة فوضى , صار الإنسان يفتي , أحياناً تأتي الفتوى تبكي وتضحك وكنت أهمَّ أن أدوَّن مثل هذه الفتاوى لكن كنت أخشى أن أكون ممن تتبع عورات إخوانه فتركته تحاشيناً مني إلا نقلنا أشياء بعيدة عن الصواب بُعد الثريا عن الثرى .
فأقول : ملازمة عالم واحد مهمة جداً ما دام الطالب في أول الطريق لكي لا يتذبذب , ولهذا كان مشائخنا ينهوننا عن مطالعة المغني وشرح المهذب والكتب التي فيها أقوال متعددة عندما كنا في زمن الطلبة , وذكر لنا بعض مشائخنا أن الشيخ عبد الله بن عبد الرحمن بابطين ـ رحمه الله ـ وهو من كبار مشائخ نجد ذكروا أنه كان مكبَّاً على الروض المربع لا يطالع إلا إياه ويكرره , كل ما خلص منه كرره لكن يأخذه بالمفهوم والمنطوق والإشارة والعبارة فحصل خير كثير .
أما إن توسعت مدارك الإنسان فهذا ينبغي له أن ينظر أقوال العلماء يستفيد منها فائدة علمية وفائدة تطبيقية , لكن في أول الطلب أنا أنصح الطالب أن يركز على شيخ معين لا يتعداه .


من فتاوى الشيخ محمد بن صالح العثيمين , كتاب العلم , الصفحة # 107
END OF FATWAA



So There you have it. The Sahaba followed the Imams of their own time and this continued until all the rules were deduced and recorded for all to follow one codified Islam. This gave birth to the four great Imams.

Even the Great Hadith Scholars followed a codified Islam as layed out by the four schools of thoughts. If they followed a school, then what chance have we got in trying to find the strogest opinion. No Chance....

These people think they are very clever with their stupid questions and think they are capable of seeking out the truth for them selves. Well good luck to them as they will going round in circles only to find that their own scholars and their scholars's scholars were following a school of thought.

Shaytan works in strange ways and some times his job becomes so easy he just has to sit back and relax.

Stick to one of the schools, you cant go wrong, InshaAllah. Dont pick & chose the Masa'il from different schools, you will end up living a life of Sin. See the blog by Seifeddine "The importance of following one Madhab and sticking to it".

Labels: Taqleed Posted by Mohammad Ashhad Bin Saeed [Gufiralahuma]