Biography of an Imam: The Life and Legacy of Imam Abu Hanifah al-Nu'man

“And among people and moving creatures and grazing livestock are various colors similarly. Only those fear Allāh,

from among His servants, who have knowledge. Indeed, Allāh is Exalted in Might and Forgiving.” (Quran 35:28)

As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh.

“In the name of Allāh, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.”

“[All] praise is [due] to Allāh, Lord of the worlds -” (Quran 1:1-2)

May Allah's peace, blessings, and prayers be upon the Messenger, his family, companions, and followers.

To proceed, may Allah bless you all, my brothers and sisters, and welcome back as scheduled.

I promised you in the first session that we would begin with the first personality

whom we will talk about in this program, "Biography of an Imam."

In this session, I will speak about a prominent scholar

who grew up in a household where his star of knowledge rose,

and the ocean of his fiqh overflowed.

He was full of intelligence since his youth, and possessed high qualities and manners.

His signs spoke of goodness,

and his early life heralded the birth of a scholar who would rival the stars in height.

Do you know who?

It is Imam Abu Hanifah al-Nu'man (RH).

Abu Hanifah's name is al-Nu'man ibn Thabit ibn al-Marzuban,

and he was a client of Banu Taym Allah ibn Tha'labah.

His kunya was Abu Hanifa,

and he was known as Abu Hanifa. He was one of the great Imams,

and one of the Imams of Islam,

from the free people of Persia, and he belonged to a noble family among his people.

It is said his origin was from Kabul; others say from the people of Anbar, or from Nasa, or from Tirmidh.

In general,

the fame of Abu Hanifa and the glory he attained

means there is no need to ask about his lineage.

"Whoever is slowed by his deeds, his lineage will not hasten him."

Abu Hanifa's grandfather, al-Marzuban, accepted Islam in the time of Umar ibn al-Khattab (RA),

and moved to the city of Kufa, making it his homeland.

And he was an only child.

Abu Hanifa's father was a cloth merchant, selling fabrics in a shop he owned in Kufa.

Abu Hanifa followed his father in this trade, and continued

in accordance with the custom of predecessors in inheriting crafts.

He continued in this trade, which was selling cloth,

and Abu Hanifah used to eat from the work of his own hands.

Abu Hanifah (RH) was born in the year eighty of the Hijrah of the Prophet ﷺ,

In fact, he was born during the lifetime of the younger Companions (RA).

and it was said that he saw Anas bin Malik (RA) when he came to Kufa.

What is apparent — and Allah ﷻ knows best — is that he

did not meet any of the Companions (RA), but rather that was his grandfather,

So he was from the Tabi' al-Tabi'in; Abu Hanifah was from the Tabi' al-Tabi'in.

Al-Khatib al-Baghdadi mentioned that Abu Hanifah saw in a dream as if he was digging up the grave of

the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and he was terrified by this dream.

So he sent someone to ask Muhammad ibn Sirin, the well-known Imam.

Ibn Sirin said, "The person of this dream...

...will unearth knowledge that no one before him has reached."

Meaning, it indicates rich knowledge; the person of this dream will have...

...as we say colloquially, a prominent future.

That is why he said: 'No one before him has reached it.'

Abu Hanifah (RH), as I mentioned, his early signs spoke of goodness.

Therefore, he memorized the Holy Quran in his youth.

It was said he memorized the Quran before the age of ten.

When he reached the age of sixteen, he went with his father to perform Hajj.

Abu Hanifah had a brilliant mind from an early age, and he was well-spoken.

Abu Yusuf said, "He was the most eloquent of people, with the sweetest voice,

and the most persuasive in getting his point across.

And this Abu Yusuf is one of the students of Abu Hanifah—Abu Yusuf the judge.

He was praising his Sheikh,

mentioning his beautiful speech, eloquence, and sweet words,

and his great intelligence, may Allah the Almighty have mercy on him.

In the beginning of his life, Abu Hanifah

grew up inclined towards debate and argumentation when he was in his twenties.

He would silence the atheists, deviants, and heretics who were prominent at that time,

refuting their doubts and dismantling their falsehoods.

He debated the leader of innovation at that time, Jahm ibn Safwan, until he silenced him,

and argued with many people of innovation.

Victory was always on his side,

may Allah have mercy on him, due to what Allah, Glorified and Exalted, granted him

of strong presentation, proof, and eloquence,

until his fame spread, his reputation grew, and he became highly renowned.

Then, after that, he (RH) turned to the science of fiqh.

And this has an amazing story, Subhan Allah al-Adheem.

An incident happened to Abu Hanifah in his early youth that made him transition from...

...debate, speculation, and argumentation to the science of fiqh.

And this was mentioned by Zufar ibn al-Hudhayl, who said: "I heard Abu Hanifah saying:

'I used to study theology (kalam) until I reached such a level in it that I was pointed at with fingers.

And we used to sit near the circle of Hammad ibn Abi Sulayman.'"

This was his teacher, his first teacher.

He says: "My circle was close to the circle of Hammad ibn Abi Sulayman.

One day, a woman came to me to ask a fiqh question.

She said: 'A man has a slave-wife...'"

A man has a slave-wife and wants to divorce her according to the Sunnah.

How should he divorce her? He said, 'I did not know what to say.'

So I told her to ask Hammad and then return and tell me.

She asked Hammad, and he said:

'He divorces her once while she is clean from menstruation and intercourse,

then leaves her until she menstruates twice,

since she is a slave, not a free woman, until she menstruates twice.

Once she performs ghusl, she is lawful for other husbands.' So she returned,

Abu Hanifah said: 'She told me,

so I said: 'I have no need for speech,'

So I took my sandals and sat with Hammad.

I would listen to his questions and memorize his answers.

Then he would repeat them the next day; I would remember them while his companions made mistakes.

Hammad noticed this young man who represented an exceptional case, and said:

"No one shall sit at the front of the circle opposite me except Abu Hanifah."

He said: 'I accompanied him for ten years.'

Abu Hanifah (RH) said: "Then, my soul longed for leadership,"

so I wanted to leave him and sit in a circle of my own."

Glory be to Allah the Almighty! Such is the soul that enjoins evil, and Satan!

He said: "I wanted to leave, thinking I was..."

"...qualified to teach, so I should be on my own."

He said: "So I went out one evening, determined to do so."

"But when I entered the mosque, I saw him."

He said: "I saw my teacher, Hammad ibn Abi Sulayman."

He said: "I could not bring myself to leave him, so I came and sat with him."

He said: "That very night, news came to him of the death of a relative in Basra,"

"who left wealth and had no heir other than him"—meaning, other than Hammad.

"So he instructed me to sit in his place."

"No sooner had he left than questions came to me that I had never heard from him."

"So I would answer."

Abu Hanifah says: "I would answer the questions and write down my answers."

He was away for two whole months, then returned, and I presented the questions to him,

which were about sixty questions.

He agreed with me on forty and disagreed with me on twenty.

So I vowed to myself that I would not leave him until he died,

and I did not leave him until he died.

This shows his devotion to his teacher.

Abu Hanifah (RH)

did not limit his learning to Hammad ibn Abi Sulayman.

His teachers were countless.

He acquired knowledge from a large number of the Salaf scholars,

and he had many teachers, to the extent that

the number of his teachers, as reported, reached four thousand.

This was mentioned by his biographers.

There is no surprise or wonder in this,

especially since he performed Hajj fifty-five times.

He performed Hajj fifty-five times,

and it is no secret to you, my brothers and sisters, that Mecca gathers the scholars who are in Mecca,

or in Madinah, or those who come from all corners of the earth to perform the rites of Hajj.

So Abu Hanifa would meet with these great scholars, gather with them, and learn from them.

Abu Hafs al-Kabir says, after mentioning the number of Abu Hanifa's teachers —

a group of scholars compiled and arranged them in alphabetical order —

of course, the most famous of Abu Hanifa's teachers was Hammad ibn Abi Sulayman, whose story we mentioned a short while ago,

and he was a Tabi'i, a Kufi Tabi'i.

He was deeply devoted to Abu Hanifa,

and that was because he saw that Abu Hanifa had a sharp and flowing intellect,

and was qualified to become one of the scholars.

Therefore, Hammad said: "No one sits at the head of the circle beside me

Abu Hanifah. Abu Hanifah (RH) narrated from him two thousand Hadiths of rulings,

and more than a third of the Imam's Hadiths in his Musnad, compiled by Al-Haskafi, are...

...narrated from him, from Ibrahim ibn Abi Musa al-Ash'ari, from Al-Aswad, from Aisha (RA).

Abu Hanifa (RH) says:

"I have not prayed a single prayer since Hammad died except that I sought forgiveness for him along with my parents."

"And I seek forgiveness for everyone I learned knowledge from, or whom I taught knowledge."

Allahu Akbar! What manners are these!

These are those who do not forget the ones who, after Allah ﷻ, had the greatest merit in teaching and nurturing them.

They seek forgiveness for them alongside their own fathers and mothers. Allahu Akbar!

A student of knowledge must never forget his teachers,

nor those under whom he studied,

and never to forget those who raised him upon knowledge, upon good character, and upon all else that elevates a student of knowledge.

Abu Yusuf al-Qadi (RH) says:

"I never prayed or did any act without supplicating to Allah ﷻ for Abu Hanifah and seeking forgiveness for him."

Glory be to Allah ﷻ, the Almighty!

Such is the teacher's influence on the student!

When Abu Yusuf al-Qadi heard Abu Hanifah supplicating for his teachers,

he also began to supplicate and seek forgiveness for him, never forgetting him in his prayers,

never forgetting him in his prayers.

This is true etiquette.

This is how students of knowledge should be.

Of course, Abu Hanifah, as I mentioned, my brothers and sisters,

did not limit himself to Hammad ibn Abi Sulayman, nor to anyone else.

He learned from a large group of scholars of the Salaf, such as 'Ata' ibn Abi Rabah,

that giant among scholars, and al-Sha'bi.

Allahu Akbar! It is enough to know 'Adi ibn...

Thabit, 'Amr ibn Dinar, and Nafi', freed slave of 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar (RA),

and he learned from Qatadah, Al-Qasim ibn 'Abd al-Rahman ibn 'Abdullah ibn Mas'ud, and Abu Ishaq al-Sabi'i,

and many others whom none but Allah ﷻ can count.

Abu Hanifah (RH) said: "I visited Abu Ja'far al-Mansur, the Abbasid Commander of the Faithful."

He said: "I visited him, and he asked: 'O Abu Hanifah, from whom did you learn?'"

I said: "From Hammad, from Ibrahim, from 'Umar ibn al-Khattab (RA),"

'Ali ibn Abi Talib (RA), 'Abdullah ibn Mas'ud (RA), and Ibn 'Abbas (RA)."

Abu Ja'far said: "Excellent, excellent! You have secured the finest sources,

O Abu Hanifah—the good, pure, and blessed ones, may Allah's blessings be upon them."

If we want to discover the actual number of Abu Hanifah's students, it is indeed very difficult to enumerate them

the number of Abu Hanifah's students, due to their large number on one hand,

and their dispersion in many countries on the other hand, makes it impossible to count them.

But if we want to mention them, the first we mention is his son Hammad,

Hammad ibn Abi Hanifah, a faqih among the jurists.

Also, Ibrahim ibn Tahman, and Ishaq ibn Yusuf al-Azraq,

Asad ibn 'Amr al-Qadi, and al-Hasan ibn Ziyad al-Lu'lu'i,

also Hamzah al-Zayyat, Dawud al-Ta'i, and Zufar ibn al-Hudhayl,

and 'Abd al-Razzaq ibn Hammam al-San'ani, author of Al-Musannaf,

Abu Nu'aym, and Muhammad ibn al-Hasan al-Shaybani,

who is one of the most famous students of Abu Hanifah,

as well as Hushaym, Waki' ibn al-Jarrah, and Abu Yusuf al-Qadi, whom I mentioned earlier,

and countless others whom none can enumerate but Allah ﷻ.

Abu Hanifah al-Nu'man ibn Thabit, in reality,

The scholars praised him and spoke well of him,

Regarding the issues for which his contemporaries criticized him,

and those after him, he actually recanted them,

except for one issue

which is still being discussed by scholars, whether it is

a matter of verbal disagreement or otherwise; there is no need to mention it.

I am here to present the praise for Abu Hanifah and to show

the status of this prominent scholar whom people still remember with goodness,

and also benefit from his knowledge. Undoubtedly, this support from Allah

is sufficient proof of this man's virtue, that Allah ﷻ has immortalized his memory.

It is as if a divine decree immortalized Abu Hanifah's memory;

everyone knows Imam Abu Hanifah.

Therefore, he is the subject of praise by the scholars.

Waki' bin al-Jarrah—who was the sheikh of al-Shafi'i—said:

Waki' said: "Abu Hanifah was of great trustworthiness, and he would prefer..."

“And [He promises] other [victories] that you were [so far] unable to [realize] which Allāh has already encompassed. And ever is Allāh, over all things, competent.”

“And if those [Makkans] who disbelieve had fought you, they would have turned their backs [in flight]. Then they would not find a protector or a helper.” (Quran 48:21-22)

...even if swords were drawn against him for Allah's sake, he would have endured it.

Ash-Shafi'i (RH) said: Malik was asked, 'Have you seen Abu Hanifa?' He said, 'Yes,

I saw a man who, if he argued to turn this pillar into gold, he would prove it.'

This refers to Abu Hanifa's strength in debate and argument.

These were his beginnings, and he might have benefited from them

when he delved into the world of fiqh.

Ash-Shafi'i said the famous statement: 'In fiqh, people...

...are dependents of Abu Hanifa. People in fiqh are his dependents.'

Yahya ibn Ma'in said, 'Abu Hanifa was trustworthy; he would not narrate a Hadith

...except what he memorized, and he would not narrate what he did not memorize.

Abdullah bin al-Mubarak (RH) says:

"I have not seen any man more dignified in his assembly, nor of better conduct and forbearance, than Abu Hanifah."

And an-Nadr bin Shumayl (RH) says:

"People were asleep regarding fiqh until Abu Hanifah awakened them with what he expounded and clarified."

Meaning, they say: "People were asleep regarding fiqh until Abu Hanifah awakened them with what he expounded and clarified."

And Yahya bin Sa'id al-Qattan (RH), the famous, well-known Imam, says:

"We do not lie to Allah ﷻ; we have not heard of any opinion better than that of Abu Hanifah,

...and indeed, we have adopted most of his views.

Ibn al-Mubarak (RH) says: 'Abu Hanifah is the most learned in fiqh.'

And Abu Mu'awiyah al-Darir (RH) says: "Loving Abu Hanifah is from the Sunnah."

And Hafs bin Ghiyath (RH) says: "Abu Hanifah's speech in fiqh is finer than a hair."

'None finds fault with it except an ignorant person.'

Meaning, he is telling you that Abu Hanifah's speech in fiqh is very precise, finer than a hair.

'None finds fault with it except an ignorant person,' as the ignorant cannot comprehend such speech.

Al-A'mash was asked about a matter and said,

"Only Al-Nu'man ibn Thabit, the silk merchant, is good at this,

because it is his trade," referring to selling clothes. He said, "and I think he has been blessed in his knowledge."

Rawh ibn 'Ubadah said, "I was with Abdul-Malik ibn Jurayj, the famous Imam, in the year 150 AH,"

"when the news of Abu Hanifah's death reached him,

so he uttered the Istirja', expressed grief, and said:

'What knowledge has gone!'"

Abdus-Samad ibn Abdil-Warith, the well-known Imam, said, "We were with Shu'bah ibn Al-Hajjaj,"

It was said to him, 'Abu Hanifah has died.'

Shu'bah said, "The fiqh of Kufa has gone with him. May Allah bestow His favor upon us and him."

Shu'bah ibn al-Hajjaj also said, speaking about Abu Hanifah:

"By Allah, he had excellent understanding and a good memory."

And Abdullah ibn Dawud al-Huraybi says:

"People ought to pray for Abu Hanifa in their prayers, for his preservation of fiqh

and the Sunan for them."

And Makki ibn Ibrahim — who was one of al-Bukhari's teachers, as is well known — says:

"Abu Hanifa was the most knowledgeable person on earth."

And Ali ibn al-Ja'd says:

"We were with Zuhayr ibn Mu'awiya when a man came. Zuhayr asked: 'Where have you come from?'

He said: 'From Abu Hanifa.' So Zuhayr said:

'One day of your going to Abu Hanifa is more beneficial for you than a month of coming to me.'"

Hatim ibn Adam said: I asked Al-Fadl ibn Musa, "What do you say about those who speak ill of Abu Hanifah?"

He said, "Indeed, Abu Hanifah brought them knowledge that they understood and knowledge that they did not,

and he left nothing for them, so they envied him."

Abu Nu'aym al-Asbahani said, "Abu Hanifah was a deep diver into complex issues."

And Al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani, the author of Fath al-Bari, said:

"The virtues of Imam Abu Hanifah are very many, may Allah ﷻ be pleased with him and grant him the highest Firdaws."

As for the worship—excuse me—the worship of Abu Hanifah (RH):

The worship of Abu Hanifah (RH): Abu Hanifah was deeply devout, constant in worship and obedience.

Al-Hasan ibn Muhammad al-Laythi said: I came to Kufa and asked about the most devout of its people,

and I was directed to Abu Hanifah. They said, "This is the most devout of the people of Kufa."

Sufyan ibn 'Uyaynah Abu Muhammad al-Hilali, the famous Imam (RH), said:

concerning Abu Hanifah (RH): "He was among those who prayed constantly."

Abu 'Asim al-Nabil, the well-known Imam, said:

"Abu Hanifah used to be called the peg (al-Watad) due to the abundance of his prayers."

Do you know what a peg is?

It is that which is driven into the ground to secure the tent ropes.

He said: "Due to the abundance of his prayers and his firmness, he was nicknamed the peg."

Mis'ar ibn Kidam said: "I saw Abu Hanifah recite the entire Quran in a single rak'ah."

And Abu Hanifah has joined the ranks of those who recited the Quran in a single rak'ah,

like 'Uthman ibn 'Affan (RA),

Tamim ibn Aws al-Dari (RA), and this is also narrated from Sa'id ibn Jubayr (RH)—may Allah have mercy on them all, and be pleased with 'Uthman.

Kharijah ibn Mus'ab said:

“Four Imams completed the Quran inside the Kaaba: 'Uthman ibn 'Affan, Tamim al-Dari,

Sa'id ibn Jubayr, and Abu Hanifah—may Allah ﷻ be pleased with and have mercy on them all.

Later, when he became occupied with usul, derivation, and his companions gathered, he began completing it in three [nights] in Witr.

And it was mentioned of him that he prayed for thirty years—

that for thirty years he prayed Fajr with the wudu of 'Isha (the night prayer),

and he performed Hajj fifty-five times, as I mentioned at the beginning of the lecture.

Mis'ar ibn Kidam said: “I saw the Imam—meaning Abu Hanifah—pray the morning prayer,

then sit for knowledge until he prayed Dhuhr.” “Ghadah” means Fajr.

“I saw the Imam pray Fajr, then sit for knowledge until Dhuhr,

then sit until 'Asr, then until near Maghrib, then until 'Isha.

So I said to myself, ‘When does he find time for worship?’”

When the people quieted down, he went out to the mosque.

His house was next to the mosque where he led the prayers for the sake of Allah ﷻ,

He stood in prayer until dawn, then he went inside and put on his clothes.

He had special clothes that he wore for the night prayer, and he went out for the dawn prayer.

He did as he used to do. I observed him in this state, and I never saw him not fasting, nor sleeping at night.

Mis'ar also said: "I entered the mosque and saw a man praying. I found his recitation beautiful.

He recited a seventh of the Quran, and I thought he would bow.

Then he recited a third, then a half,

and he kept reciting the Quran until he completed it all in one rak'ah. I looked, and it was Abu Hanifah."

Muhammad bin Fudayl says... Forgive me, I am mentioning the words of these scholars

to show the value of Abu Hanifah to these honorable, exemplary scholars.

Rather, the giants among the scholars of the Salaf.

Therefore, it is very important that we know the value of this scholar.

Muhammad ibn Fudayl said, "Abu Muti' said: I was in Makkah,

and I never entered to perform Tawaf at any hour of the night except that I saw Abu Hanifah and Sufyan performing Tawaf."

Al-Muthanna ibn Raja' said: "Abu Hanifah committed himself that if he swore by Allah truthfully, he would give a dinar in charity,

and whenever he spent on his family, he would give an equal amount in charity."

My brothers and sisters, we have sailed through the biography of Abu Hanifah and toured the life of this Imam,

but the talk is not yet finished because time has caught up with me, and this is what will be,

by the power of Allah ﷻ, in the next session, which is the third session,

to discover more of the biography of this Imam, may Allah ﷻ have mercy on him. So, stay tuned.

And may the peace, mercy, and blessings of Allah ﷻ be upon you.