His name: Muhammad ibn Idrs Al-Abbs ibn Uthmn ibn Shfi ibn Al-Sib ibn Ubayd ibn

Abd Yazd ibn Hshim ibn Al-Mualib ibn Abd Manf ibn Qusay, known as Imam Al-Shfi, Ab Abdullah Al-Shfi AlHijz Al-Makk Al-Azd Al-Qurash Al Hshim Al-Mualib may Allah be well pleased with him. Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal said of him, He was like the sun over the world and good health for people do these two have replacements or successors? (Ibn Abdul Barr in his Al-Intiq 125 )

He was a Relative of the Prophet Muhammad He is the cousin of the Prophet Muhammad ('alayhis salat wa salam) descending from Al-Mualib who is the brother of Hshim, Abdul-Muttalibs father. Both his great-great-grandfather, Shfi, and the latters father, Al-ib, were companions of the Prophet (sa), as were al-ib ibn Ubayds uncles Ubayd ibn Abd Yazds brothers Ujayr and Rukna, the man who wrestled with the Prophet. (Narrated by Ab Dwd and At-Tirmidh with a very weak chain ) Al-ibs mother, Al-Shif bint Al-Arqam ibn Hshim, sister of Ftima bint Asad, the mother of Al ibn Ab Tlib (radiya Allahu anhu), who the Prophet called his second mother. (C.f. Ibn Hajr, Tawl At-Tans (p 34-39), al-Iaba 3:23, 3:310, 4:104. ) Someone praised Ban Hshim in front of the Prophet (salla allahu alayhi wa sallam), whereupon the latter interlaced the fingers of his two hands and said: We and they are but one and the same and The Ban Hshim and the Banu Abdul-Mualib are not but one and the same. (Sahh Al-Bukhr ) Imam An-Nawaw listed three peculiar merits of al-Shafi: his sharing the Prophets lineage at the level of their common ancestor Abd Manf; his birth in the Holy land of Palestine and upbringing in Makka; and his education at the hands of superlative scholars together with his own superlative intelligence and knowledge of the Arabic language.

Prophetic Hadths Predicting Al-Shfi Ibn ajar added two more merits to An-Nawaws list: the adth of the Prophet (sa),

Oh Allah! Guide Quraysh, for the science of the scholar that comes from them will encompass the earth. Oh Allah! You have let the first of them taste bitterness, so let the latter of them taste reward! (Hafith Ibn ajr and Al-Bayhaqi said that the chains are strong with all corroborating narrations together and Ibn Hazm declared it Sahh in his Al-Ikm 6:286. ) Imm Amad also narrates with two chains the prohibition of cursing the Quraysh and the Prophets (alayhis salam) statement to Qatda ibn An-Numn Al-afar: You might see among them men with deeds next to which you will despair your own deeds and envy them whenever you see them. If I did not fear Qurayshs tyranny I would disclose to them all the good Allh has in store for them. Another hadth of the Prophet (alahis salam) says,

Truly Allh shall send forth for this community, at the onset of every hundred years, someone/those who will renew for it <the status of> its Religion. (A sound hadth by agreement of the masters of hadth see footnote 445 of The Four Imams by G.f. Haddad, this is the wording of Abu Dawud in his Sunan from his chapter on Malhim number 3740, Al-Hafith Zayn ud dn al-Irq stated, Its chain is Sahh ) The scholars agreed, among them Ab Qilba (d. 276) and Imm Ahmad, that the Quraysh narration signified Al-Shfi. (Al-Bayhaq in Marifat As-Sunan 1:207 and many others. See footnote 446 of the Four Imms ) Imam Ahmad is also authentically recorded to have said about the hadth of the renewer being sent every 100 years,

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It was 'Umar ibn Abdul-Azz in the first hundred and in the second hundred it was Imm Ash-Shfi! (See the work Awn Al-Mabd Sharh Sunan Ab Dwds commentary upon the above hadth to see the many chains leading up to Imm Ahmad ibn Hanbal regarding this issue ) Al-Bayhaq also mentioned another great merit, the superlative praise of Yemen and the Yemenis by the Prophet (sa) in the numerous sayings of his, as Al-Shfi is from Yemen on his mothers side. (Such as the statement Faith is Yemeni! as reported in Sahh Muslim and elsewhere ) Moreover, Al-Bayhaq said, most of Al-Shfis knowledge is taken from the people of Makka and Madna and Makka and Madna are Yemeni.

Al-Shfis Early Years

He was born in a village in Ghazza by the town of Asqaln in 150 A.H. the same year Ab Hanfah died shortly after his fathers death in Shm. His mother took him at the age of two to the ijz, where he grew up among her Azd Yemen relatives. Later, fearinig the waste of his sharf lineage, she moved him to Makka. Al-Shfi was early a skillfull archer, then he took to learning language and poetry until he devoted himself to fiqh, beginning with hadth. His mother coul not afford to buy him paper and he would write his lessons on bones, particularly shoulder-bones. He memorized the Qurn at age seven, then Mliks Muwaa at age ten, at which time his teacher would deputise him to teach in his absence. He receive permission to give fatwa at age fifteen. (Narrated by Ibn Ab Htim, Manqib Ash-Shfi wadbuh )

His Early Legal Prowess Ab Mansr Al-Baghdd in Manqib Ash-Shfi and Naqd Ab Abdullh Al-Jurjn fi Tarj Madhhab Ab Hanfah related the following example of the Imms perspicuity at an early age: Al-Shfi was sitting at Mliks feet one day when a man came in and said: I sell turtle-doves, and one of my customers returned one of them to me today saying that it does not coo, so I swore to him on pain of divorce that my turtle-dove coos all the time! Mlik said: You have divorced your wife and are not to approach her. Al-Shfi was fourteen at the time. He said to the man: Which happens more, your turtledoves cooing or its silence? The said: Its cooing. Al-Shfi said: Your marriage is valid and there is no penalty for you [due to your oath]. Whereupon Mlik frowned at him saying: Boy, how do you know this? Al-Shfi replied: Because you narrated to me from al-Zuhr, from Abu Salama ibn AbdurRahmn from Umm Salama that Ftima bint Qays said: Raslullah! Abu Jahm and Muwiya have both proposed to me. The Prophet (sa) replied: Muawiya is penniless and as for Ab Jahm he does not put down his staff from his shoulder. (possibly two meanings: he is a wife-beater, or he travels a lot for further clarification see footnote 449 of The Four Imams by G.f. Haddad ) That is, most of the time Arabs assert the more frequent of two actions [exclusively of the other] because of its constancy. Since this mans turtledove coos more than it is silent, I can declare it constant in its cooing. Mlik was pleased at his reasoning. (See Ibn Al-Subk, Tabaqt Al-Shfiyya Al-Kubr 5:147-148) The scholars said that Allh accelerated the intelligence of al-Shfi and al-Nawaw because he gave them a short lifespan. Al-umayd narrated that the faqh of Makka, Imm Muslim ibn Khlid Al-Zanj (100180), said to al-Shfi: Give fatw, Ab Abdullh! It is time you gave fatw, at which time al-Shfi was fifteen years old. Ab Ubayd al-Qsim ibn Sallm said: If the intelligence of an entire nation was brought together he would have encompassed it! Studies With Imm Mlik ibn Anas and Muammad Ash-Shaybn as Well As Others

His mother put him beneath the scholars as a boy in Makkah. He studied there with: Imm Muslim ibn Khlid Az-Zanj the Muft of Makkah, Dwd ibn Abdur-Rahmn Al-Ar, and his uncle Muhammad ibn Al ibn Shfi, and he was the nephew of Al-Abbs the grandfather of Imm AshShfi, Sufyn ibn Uyaynah, Abdur-Rahmn ibn Ab Bakr Al-Malk, Sad ibn Slim, Fudayl ibn Iy and others. Adh-Dhahab said, I have not seen that he took anything from Nfi ibn Umar even though he was with him in Makkah! In 163 A.H., at age thirteen though some say he was older, Al-Shfi went to see Mlik in Madna, who was impressed by his memory and intelligence. He took the Muwaa from Imm Mlik and also took knowledge, particularly hadth, from Ibrhm ibn Ab Yahy, Abdul-Azz Ad-Darurd, Af ibn Khlid, Isml ibn Jafar, Ibrhm ibn Sad and a group from their generation. Some of the Qurashs recommended Al-Shfi to the new governor of Yemen, Al-Mualib, and he went back to Yemen as his aide. He took knowledge in Yemen from Muarrif ibn Mzin, Hishm ibn Ysuf AlQ and an entire group of scholars of the time and era. (See Siyar Al-Alam An-Nubal under the entry of Al-Shfi ) He held a judgeship in Najrn during which his fame reached the stars for his sense of fairness and his acceptance on the part of the people. This did not last. The governor, Al-Shf, and a number of Alaws were summoned to Baghdd in chains, all of them accused of being Alaw agitators by the agent of the Caliph Hrn Al-Rashd in Yemen. They were executed one after another. When al-Shfi was introduced before the Caliph, he said: Oh Amr Al-Muminn (Commander of the Believers)! What do you say about a man [i.e. a Abbas] who has two paternal cousins [i.e. Mualib and a Alaw], one of whom [the Mualib] deems him his intimate family, places him in his own lineage, affirms that his property is taboo to him except by his permission, that his daughter is unmarriageable to him except by his betrothal, and that he considers him to own the same rights over him as he would over himself. The other [The Alaw], however, claims that the man is beneath him, that he is higher than him in lineage, that he is his slave, his daughter his bondswoman, that she belongs to him without his permission, and that his property is his booty. Which of them should you rightly patronize, Commander of the Believers? You are that man and here are your two paternal cousins! Hrn asked al-Shfi to repeat to him his parable three times until he understood what he meant. Then he spared his life but ordered him detained. Certain chroniclers mention a report that begins with the words of the Caliph al-Mamn, I tested Al-Shfi in everything, and I found him accomplished in all of it [] but Al-Sakhw showed that the two never met. (Al-Sakhw, Al-Iln wal-Tawbkh p. 11 ) Imm Al-Shfi formed the project of asking Imm Muhammad Ash-Shaybn to intercede for him at the time he was being detained in Baghdd. However, when he witnessed him disparaging al-Madna and its scholars one day, he rose and said, Madna is the sacred precinct of the Prophet (sa), its people his Companions and relatives-in-law, those that came after them the Successors and elite of this Umma. And if, by the people of Madna, you meant one man, Mlik ibn Anas, then say his name and leave the rest alone! Al-Shaybn replied, I meant Mlik ibn Anas. Mlik is one man, and there were in Madina jurists other than him, then he preceded to refute Al-Shaybns published critique of the Madnans point by

point. When the Caliph heard of the incident, he said, And why should Muhammad ibn Al-Hasan be irked that a man from Ban Abd Manf silence him? Then he had five thousand dinars dispatched to alShfi and released him. Al-Shfi used a full fifty dinars to pay the barber for a cupping and gave the rest to those Meccans and Qurashs that were present, retaining only one hundred dinars for himself. (AlBayhaq in his Manqib 1:106-116 ) While in Baghdd he studied Hanaf fiqh at the hands of Muhammad ibn Al-Hasan Ash-Shaybn. The Chroniclers of Ash-Shfi mention that Imm Muhammad Shaybn changed his view on an issue of ghab (robbery) due to debate with Imm Ash-Shfi. Al-Shfi said, From Muhammad ibn Al-Hasan I wrote one [a variant says two] camel-loads and I never saw anyone whose face did not show distaste when asked a difficult question except Muhammad ibn Al-Hasan. ((Ibn Abdul-Barr in his Al-Intiq 119 and others )) He also said, I always held Muammad ibn Al-asan Al-Shaybn in the highest esteem and spent sixty dinars buying all his books. He never met Ab Ysuf, the disciple of Imm Ab Hanfah, but does report from him through Muhammad ibn Al-Hasan in his Al-Umm and the Musnad. Note here then that the debate quoted by some that is reported to have existed between Ab Ysuf and Imm Ash-Shfi is a forgery, see The Four Imms comment number 455 by G.f. Haddad. It is related that Imm Ash-Shfi prayed one time after shaving, with hair all over his clothes, at a time when he considered hair impure. Asked about it he replied: When we cannot avoid something (aythu ubtulna), we follow the ruling of the Iraqis [i.e. the schools of Ab Hanfa and Sufyn] in the matter. (Cited by Al-Bn in Umdat At-Taqq fil-Taqld wal-Talfq p. 93 Awwma Adab al-Ikhtilf p. 77 ) Imm Al-Bayhaq in the Manqib related that Al-Shfis final position is that hair is pure.

His Move Away from Imm Mliks Madhhab Al-Hkim narrated from Abdullah ibn Abdul-Hakam: Al-Shfi never ceased to speak according to Mliks position and he would say: We do not differ from him other than the way colleagues would, until some young men spoke unbecomingly at length behind his back, whereupon al-Shfi resolved to put his differences with Mlik in writing. Otherwise, his whole life he would say, whenever asked something: This is what the Teacher said hdh qawl al-ustdh meaning Mlik. (Ibn Hajr, Tawl At-Tans 153154 ) Al-Shafi said: Al-Layth ibn Sad is stronger in fiqh (afqah) than Mlik but his school perished for lack of students. (Narrated by Al-Mizz in Tahdhb Al-Kaml and many others, see footnote 458 in The Four Imams ) This was also the view of Ibn Al-Mubrak, Sad ibn Ab Ayyb and Yahy ibn Bukayr while alDaraward put Al-Layth even above Rabat Al-Ra. Al-Layth recited the Basmala out loud and gave salm to the front in Salh.

His Trips to Baghdd and His Move to Egypt Imm Ash-Shfi traveled to Baghdd three times:

1) As a student in 184 with the group of Yemen descendants of Al (radiya Allahu anhu) 2) As a recognized Imm in fiqh in 195 returning to Makkah two years later, then 3) In 198 for a few months, after which he went to Egypt where he remained until his death ((Ibn Abdul Barr Al-Intiq 117 )) When he entered Egypt he was patronized by the ascetic friend of the poor and descendant of the Prophet (sa), Al-Sayyida Nafsa , who ordered his bier brought into her house when he died so that she could recite the funeral prayer over him, and carried the bier. Sayyidah Nafsah is the daughter of Al-Hasan the son of Zayd the son of Al-Hasan the son of Imm Al ibn Ab Tlib (raiya Allhu Anhum). In other words, she is the great great granddaughter of Al-Hasan the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad (sa) of whom was said to be from the children of Janna! (Ibn Kathr in his Bidya and Ibn Imd. For more references see page 195-196 of The Four Imams )

Imm Al-Shfi Reconciled the Schools of Hadth and Fiqh Al-Shf is the paradigm of hadth-informed jurisprudence among the Salaf, gathering under one roof the superlative insight of Ab Hanfa and Mliks legal opinion (ra) on the one hand, on the other, the extensive knowledge of narrators and the evidence they transmitted which characterized al-Bukhr and Ahmad. The latter said: We did not cease to curse the people of legal opinion and they would curse us, until al-Shf came and reconciled our differences. (Q Iy in Tartb Al-Madrik 1:91, to read his comments upon this quote see page 196 of The Four Madhhabs ) Ibn Abd al-Salm said that there is not a single hadth that did not reach al-Shf in one form or another, whether musnad, mursal, or munqati. (Ibn Kathr in his Bidyah 10:276 )

The Old (Qadm) and the New (Jadd) Schools of Imm Ash-Shfi Two schools of fiqh or madhhib are actually attributed to Al-Shfi, embracing all his positions and legal opinions (fatwa). These two schools are known in the terminology of the jurists as The Old and the The New, corresponding respectively to his stays in Irq and Egypt. The most prominent transmitters of the New among al-Shfis students are: Al-Buwai, Al-Muzan, and Al-Rab in Al-Umm. The most prominent transmitters of the Old school are Al-Zafarn, Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Al-Karbis, and Abu Thawr in Kitb Al-Hujja. What is presently known as the Shfi position refers to the New school except in approximately twenty two questions, in which Shfi scholars and muftis have retained the positions of the Old.

Al-Shfis Mastery of the Arabic Language

Al-Shfi was known for his peculiar strength in the Arabic language, poetry, and philology. He is the only Quraysh of the four Imams and the only one of the Four to be raised in Makka, the cradle of the chief Quranic dialect. His Dwn of poetry is among the masterpieces of Arabic literature. Imm Al-Bayhaq narrated: [From Al-Rab]: Al-Shfi was an arab in his soul and an arab in his speech. If you had seen him and seen the beauty of his expression and eloquence you would have been awestruck. If he had authored his books in the way that he used to speak, no one would have been able to read them. (Manqib 1:19 ) [From Ibn Hishm]: I was Al-Shfis close companion for a long time and I never heard him us anything other than a word which, carefully considered, one would not find (in its context) a better word in the entire Arabic language. [] Al-Shfis discourse, in relation to language is a proof in itself. [From Al-Hasan ibn Muhammad al-Zafaran]: A group of Bedouins used to frequent al-Shfis gathering with us and sit in a corner. One day I asked their leader: You are not interested in scholarship; why do you sit with us? They said: We come to hear al-Shfis language. [From Al-Muzani]: Al-Shfi asked Ibrhm ibn Ulayya after they finished listening to a girl singing Arabic poetry: Does this bring joy to your soul? He said no. Al-Shfi said, You have no feelings! (m laka iss) Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal said, Imm Ash-Shfi is a Hujjah (proof) in the language of Arabic! (see Ibn Kathrs Tabaqt Ash-Shfiyyn )

Imm Ash-Shfi and Tasawwuf (Sufism)

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Imm Ash-Shfi said: If a rational man does not become a Sufi he does not reach noon except he is a dolt! Commenting Shaykh Gibril states, Ab Nu`aym narrates this from Muh.ammad ibn `Abd al-Rah.mn ibn al-Fad.l, from Ab al-H.asan [Ah.mad ibn Muh.ammad ibn al-H.rith] ibn al-Qattt [al-Mis.r], from the thiqa Muh.ammad ibn Ab Yah.y, from the thiqa Imm Ynus ibn `Abdal-A`l, from the Imm. There is another weak narrative used by the detractors of the Sufis that states, "A rational man does not become a Sufi except he reaches noon a dolt." In the chain of this narration is Abu Muhammad Ja'far ibn Muhammad ibn Al-Harith from Al-Hasan ibn Muhammad ibn Al-Dahhak, both of unknown reliability!

Adding to the list of positive statements of Imam Ash-Shafii regarding Tasawwuf is the following:

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I accompanied the Sufis for ten years and benefited from them but from two sayings [and in another report three sayings]: their statement that time is as a sword: if you do not cut it, it cuts you, and their statement that deprivation is immunity. [The reported third states: their statement: if your soul does not keep busy with truth it will keep you busy with btil (falsehood).] Shaykh Gibril states commenting on this athar: Narrated from Muh.ammad ibn Muh.ammad ibn Idrs al-Shfi` by al-Bayhaq in Manqib al-Shfi` (2:208) cf. Ibn al-Qayyim in Madrij al-Slikn (3:128) and al-Jawb al-Kf (p. 208-209) and al-Suyt. in Tayd al-H.aqqat al-`Aliyya (p. 15) Adding again to his statements Imam Ajluni reports that Imam Ash-Shafii said,

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Three things in this world have been made lovely to me: avoiding affectation, treating people kindly, and abiding by the way of the people of tasawwuf! [source:1089 ] In the Diwan of Imam Ash-Shafii we find:

Faqhan wa-s.ufiyyan fakun laysa wh.idan fainn wa-h.aqqillhi iyyka ans.ah.u Fadhlika qsin lam yadhuq qalbuhu tuqan wahdh jahlun kayfa dhl-jahli yas.luh.u Be both a jurisprudent and a s.f never just one of the two. Truly, by the Divine Right, I am advising you sincerely! For the former is hardened, his heart tastes no Godwariness, While the latter is ignorant of what use is the ignorant?

Many of the great Shafi'is followed the true way of tasawwuf including one of the greatest of them Imam An-Nawawi (rahmatullah 'alayh). Praise of Imm Ash-Shfi Imm Ahmad ibn Hanbal (rahmatullah alayh) said, Not one of the scholars of adth touches an inkwell or a pen without owing a huge debt to Al-Shfi. Ahmads shaykh, Yahy ibn Sad Al-Qattn said: I supplicate Allah for al-Shfi even inside my prayer, while Imm Ahmad himself said he made du for Imm Ash-Shfi for forty years. ((Ibn Kathr in his Bidayah as well as his Tabaqt Ash-Shfiyn )) When Ahmad first asked Isq ibn Rhyah to come and see a man the like of whom your eyes have not yet seen meaning al-Shfi Ishq failted Ahmad for attending the fiqh sessions of their peer in age and leaving the hadth sessions of the older Sufyn ibn Uyayna. Ahmad replied: Woe to you! If you miss a hadth with a shorter chain it will not arm you to find it elsewhere with a longer chain. But if you do not have the reasoning of this man [Ash-Shfi], I fear you will never be able to find it elsewhere! Ishq asked al-Shfi a few questions, after which he turned to a friend from Merv and said to him in Persian: Mardak r kaml nst the manling lacks finish. Al-Shfi perceiving the slight, turned to Isq and, in a rapid-fire succession of proofs, defeated him. After this incident Isq would say: I consider it my greatest blessing when I fully understand al-Shfis discourse while the latter expressed disapproval of Ihqs title as the jurisprudent of Khursn. (Al-Bayhaq, Manqib Ash-Shfi 1:213, Al-Sakhw in the introduction to his Al-Jawhir wal-Durar, Ibn Abdul Barr in his Intiq 124 as well as others ) When Yahy ibn Man expressed shock at the fact that Ahmad ibn Hanbal was seen standing at the foot of Ash-Shfi, holding his stirrup as the latter sat mounted, Ahmad retorted: If you want to learn fiqh, come and hold his other stirrup. (Ibn Abdul Barr Al-Intiq ) Imm Ahmad forbade Yahy ibn Man from criticizing Al-Shfi saying: Your eyes have never seen the like of Al-Shfi! and You understand nothing, Abu Zakariyy, of the meanings of Al-Shfis words! And whoever fails to understand something, opposes it. (Ibn Abdul Barr Al Intiq 178 )

His Legacy The majority of the scholars of hadith were either Shafi'i in fiqh, or Shafi'i inclined: Imam An-Nasa'i, [some say] Imam Al-Bukhari, Imam Ibn Khuzaymah, Imam Al-Hakim, Imam Ad-Daraqutni, Imam AlBayhaqi, and many more. Many great scholars of creed, including the leader of the Asha'ri school Abul Hasan Al-Asha'ri, and Islamic Mysticism (Tasawwuf/Sufism) including Imam Al-Junayd and Imam AlMuhasibi (see Tabaqat Ash-Shafi'iyyin by Ibn Kathir ), had a large group of followers of Imam AshShafi'is legal school. Followers of his school have remained diligent in preserving his school. Thousands memorize the works of his school, translate treatises, and publish new-found manuscripts every year. Imam Ash-Shafi'is legacy can be seen throughout the Muslim world. The most populated Muslim country in the world, Indonesia, has a majority population that prays according to Imam Ash-Shafi'i's legal school (madhhab). The following countries have a majority Shafi'i following: Syria, The Occupied Country of Palestine (where Imam Ash-Shafi'i was born), Jordan [this area is known as Shaam/ the Levant], Kurd

dominated 'Iraq (also known as Kurdistan) - also Kurd dominated Turkey, Yemen, Lower Egypt, Malaysia, Singapore, Maldives, the Philippines, Brunei, Somalia, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya, Tanzania, and elsewhere. Imam Ash-Shafi'i's legacy continues to spread as Muslims solidify their communities further west and develop learning institutions in the U.K., USA, Canada and elsewhere. His school's vibrancy and fluidity continues to be seen in the post-modern era with Muslim jurists still using Imam Ash-Shafi'is legal formulations in solving modern concerns. May Allah bless Imam Ash-Shafi'i and allow his legacy to continue to benefit the Muslim Ummah! Amin!

We would like to thank Sidi Dr. Gibril Haddad for allowing us to use quotes and references from His fantastic work "The Four Imams and Their Schools", the most scholarly and well-researched work in English on the subject. We used his work extensively, though we added other quotes and reorganized the work, as well as left out much of his material.