The Legacy of Imam al-Shafi'i: His Knowledge, Poetry, and Students

“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)

Assalamu 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 ﷻ send peace, blessings, and prayers upon the Messenger of Allah ﷺ,

and upon his family, companions, and followers.

Welcome, my brothers and sisters, to a new meeting and a new session.

We sail through the biographies of these exemplary scholars.

I promised you in the previous episode

that I would continue talking about Imam al-Shafi'i (RH).

We explored his biography in the previous episode,

and discovered something of the character of Imam

al-Shafi'i (RH),

and the beginning of his upbringing and early pursuit of knowledge (RH).

Al-Shafi'i (RH) was highly skilled in various sciences,

He was one of the wonders of the world, therefore

al-Shafi'i mastered a very large group of sciences and arts,

and knowledge did not distract him from them.

For example, he was famous for medicine (RH), and he was keen on it.

It was even said that he used to regret the loss of medicine, saying,

"They wasted a third of knowledge and entrusted it to non-Muslims."

In fact, he has amazing statements regarding medicine mentioned in his books,

to the point that it would seem to a reader that Al-Shafi'i (RH) was a proficient physician whose profession was medicine.

This indicates his mastery of various fields, may Allah ﷻ have mercy on him.

He was also excellent at archery, to the point that he said,

"My aspiration was in two things: knowledge and archery."

He said, "I excelled in archery to the point that I would hit ten out of ten. I would hit ten out of ten."

He passed by a man practicing archery, said, "Well done," and prayed for blessings upon him.

Then he asked his servant, "What do you have with you?"

He replied, "Three dinars."

He said, "Give them to this archer to encourage him in archery."

Al-Shafi'i (RH) was a man of firasah (insight),

He was a man of firasah, to the point that he said about himself:

"I went to Yemen seeking books on firasah, until I transcribed and compiled them."

He had remarkable experiences showing the strength and accuracy of his firasah.

Al-Humaydi said, "Al-Shafi'i and I left Makkah and met a man in Al-Abtah."

I said to Al-Shafi'i, "Read this man,"

meaning, guess what this man's occupation is?

Looking at the man, Al-Shafi'i said, "He is either a carpenter or a tailor."

He said, "I caught up and asked him. He replied, 'I was a carpenter, now a tailor.'"

Al-Rabi' (RH) said, "My brother passed through the courtyard of the mosque,

so Al-Shafi'i called me and said, 'O Rabi',"

"Is that passerby walking there your brother?"

I said, "Yes." And he had not disliked him before that.

Al-Muzani said: I was with Al-Shafi'i in the mosque,

when a man entered and started going around those sleeping in the mosque. Al-Shafi'i said to Al-Rabi':

"Go and ask him: Have you lost a black slave who is blind in one eye?"

Meaning, this man was looking for something lost, looking for something he had misplaced.

Al-Rabi' said: When Al-Shafi'i (RH) saw him, he said to me,

"Go and tell this man: Have you lost a black slave who is blind in one eye?"

Al-Rabi' said: So I went to him and told him, and he said, "Yes."

So I said, "Come." He came to Al-Shafi'i and asked, "Where is my slave?"

Al-Shafi'i said, "You will find him in prison." So the man went and found him in prison.

Al-Muzani said: I said to Al-Shafi'i, "Tell us, for you have bewildered us!"

He said, "Yes. I saw a man enter the mosque, walking around those sleeping,

so I said, 'He seeks a runaway.' I saw him go to the black people, not the white ones,

so I said, 'A black slave has run away.' And I saw him...

...moving toward the left-eye side of the sleepers,

so I said, 'He is blind in one eye.'

The one being sought is blind in one eye.

We said: 'How did you know he was in prison?'

He said: 'This is the runaway—when they are hungry, they steal.'

"These slaves, if they are hungry, they steal, and if they are full, they cause mischief."

"So I deduced that he must have done something of that sort."

This is Al-Shafi'i's (RH) reasoning: since he is a runaway,

...looking for something, he might steal and end up in prison.

The stories of Imam Al-Shafi'i's (RH) keen insight are very numerous.

I have mentioned only a few examples regarding Al-Shafi'i (RH),

in terms of the books and scholarly heritage that he left for the Ummah.

No Imam before Imam Al-Shafi'i was known to have written works

in Tafsir, Usul, Furu', Fiqh, and literature

comparable to Al-Shafi'i's in quantity, brilliance, precision, and mastery.

Ibn Zulaq said, "Al-Shafi'i authored about two hundred volumes."

Imam Al-Shafi'i was peerless in his speed of writing,

while maintaining accuracy, maturity, and perfection,

to the extent that he would complete a book in half a day.

A book in half a day! Yunus ibn Abd al-A'la said:

"Al-Shafi'i would write a book from morning until noon,"

from morning until noon—meaning from Fajr until Dhuhr."

Such was Al-Shafi'i (RH).

the spark, so to speak, that ignited the art of writing in usul al-fiqh,

as scholars after him followed suit in writing on it.

Therefore, the book Al-Risalah is considered the first book written in usul al-fiqh.

That is why you now find shuyukh, scholars, and university professors,

when they teach usul al-fiqh and begin with the introductory matters,

among which they say, "The first to write in usul al-fiqh..." and they mention Al-Shafi'i (RH).

Therefore, in reality, Al-Shafi'i,

when he authored Al-Risalah, included in it a set of chapters and rules in usul al-fiqh.

For example, he authored Al-Nasikh wa Al-Mansukh, which was also his first book in the principles of Hadith,

and he authored a book called Jima' al-'Ilm,

in which he defended the Sunnah in an amazing way, because some deviant factions emerged in his era.

They began to attack the Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ,

through a series of deviant steps.

But Al-Shafi'i stood up to them and defended the Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ.

He refuted the opponents of the Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ, and established

the necessity of the authority of the Sunnah in Islamic Sharia.

He has the great book Al-Umm, the most famous of Imam Al-Shafi'i's works.

He has Al-Imla' al-Saghir and Al-Amali al-Kubra.

"Mukhtasar al-Muzani" is basically an arrangement of Al-Shafi'i's fiqh, as well as "Mukhtasar al-Buwayti".

Al-Shafi'i also established many terms in the science of Hadith terminology that were unprecedented,

such as defining connectivity, the anomalous, the trustworthy, and the difference between "haddathana" and "akhbarana".

People adopted these from Al-Shafi'i.

Therefore, there are very many academic theses on Al-Shafi'i's terminology and Al-Shafi'i's fiqh, and sometimes...

Al-Shafi'i (RH) has, you know, amazing terminology. For example,

"I dislike that"—the default is that it is understood as a prohibition,

unless evidence indicates it means mere dislike,

and this is what the scholars of the Salaf adhered to.

When they said, "We dislike this," it meant it is prohibited,

unless evidence indicated otherwise,

or a context clue indicated that it means dislike.

Generally, Al-Shafi'i was distinguished by amazing terminology,

meaning he (RH) was the first to introduce it.

Al-Shafi'i, of course, in his method of learning and inference,

did not deviate from the way of the righteous Salaf before him

in belief, knowledge, and teaching.

Of course, he relied on the Book, the Sunnah, consensus, and sound analogy.

He was never known to have opposed the way of the righteous Salaf

in matters of belief, such as Lordship, worship, the Names and Attributes, and faith.

He was upon the creed of the righteous Salaf,

and he was severe against the people of desires and innovations.

And when the innovation of Kalam emerged in his era,

and it appeared — in a very dangerous manner — and what resulted from it

of harm to Islam and its people, and the trials that befell the scholars,

he said his famous statement: "My ruling regarding the people of Kalam

is that they be struck with palm branches and sandals and paraded

and it be said: this is the punishment of one who abandoned the Book and Sunnah

and turned to Kalam."

Of course, Al-Shafi'i (RH),

on the jurisprudential side,

relied on the Quran, Sunnah, consensus, and sound analogy, as I mentioned.

And he had special concern for the fiqh of the Companions (RA).

This is what made him stand out clearly in understanding the evidences,

because the Companions (RA) were chosen and selected by Allah ﷻ.

And it is not possible to dispense with their fiqh and understanding of the evidence.

For this reason, for example, Imam al-Shafi'i would often rely on

the statements or narrations of the Companions (RA).

Also, among the evidences he relied upon were Masalih Mursalah and Istislah,

but he did not call them by this name; rather, he included them under Qiyas,

and explained them in detail, may Allah have mercy on him (RH).

Likewise, he used to adopt custom ('urf) and habit ('adah), as is,

just as we mentioned regarding Imam Malik and Abu Hanifah.

This 'urf has authority in the Sharia, but with regulations.

Al-Shafi'i (RH) used to adhere to authentic Hadiths

and turn away from flimsy, weak, and fabricated narrations,

paying extreme attention to this, such that Abu Zur'ah said:

“Al-Shafi'i has no Hadith containing an error.”

Indeed, Allah ﷻ gave al-Shafi'i a very amazing ability in debates,

And this is one of the distinctions of Imam al-Shafi'i,

to the extent that it was said that the giants of the people of knowledge could not stand before him,

and it is not known of him (RH) that he was ever defeated in a debate.

This, if anything, only indicates that he was a repository of knowledge, along with a pure soul and a clear mind.

His mind was exceptionally sharp (RH).

Ishaq ibn Rahwayh — Ibn Ibrahim al-Hanzali (RH), the famous Imam — says:

"We were with Sufyan ibn 'Uyaynah, writing down the Hadiths of 'Amr ibn Dinar,

when Ahmad ibn Hanbal came to me—he and Ishaq

were peers in the same era and in knowledge—

and he said, 'O Abu Ya'qub, get up so I can show you a man...'"

...the likes of whom your eyes have never seen.'

He said, 'I stood up, and he brought me to the courtyard of Zamzam,

and there was a man wearing white clothes, with a brownish complexion, of good appearance and great intellect.

He sat me down next to him and said to him,

'O Abu 'Abdullah'—Imam Ahmad said to Al-Shafi'i—'O Abu 'Abdullah,

this is Ishaq ibn Rahwayh al-Himsy.' So he welcomed and greeted me.

Of course, Ishaq ibn Rahwayh, up to this point, did not know who this man was.

He did not know that this was Al-Shafi'i,

because Imam Ahmad had not told him.

He said, 'So he welcomed and greeted me, and we debated with one another,

and a wealth of knowledge burst forth from him, and he was impressed by my memorization.

Meaning, he was impressed by my memorization, and a wealth of knowledge burst forth from this man.

He said, 'When our sitting went on for a long time, I said to him, "O Abu 'Abdullah, let us go to the man you mentioned,"

Meaning, Ishaq was saying to Imam Ahmad,

"Let us go to the man you mentioned." He said, "This is the man."

So I said to him, "Subhan Allah!

You made us leave a man—meaning Sufyan ibn 'Uyaynah—

you made us leave a man who says, 'Al-Zuhri narrated to us,'

and I only imagined that you would bring us to a man

like Al-Zuhri or close to him.

But you brought us to this youth!"

Meaning, he was saying, "It is as if I..."

"I was imagining that you would bring us to someone like Al-Zuhri or even higher than him."

Imam Ahmad said to me, "O Abu Ya'qub,

learn from this man, for my eyes have never seen anyone like him."

Look at Imam Ahmad (RH)

and his insight in knowing men.

Al-Aburi says: Ishaq said, "So I asked him...

...about residing in the houses of Makkah.

Now, Ishaq ibn Ibrahim al-Himsī began to debate Imam al-Shafi'i.

He says: I asked him about the houses of Mecca,

meaning regarding renting them. He said: it is permissible,

meaning the dwellings of Mecca.

So I said: may Allah ﷻ have mercy on you, and I began citing the hadith

from Aisha (RA) and from Umar ibn al-Khattab (RA) and a group of the Companions,

and those who disapproved of renting the houses of Mecca — while he sat listening as I recited to him.

When I finished, he was silent for a moment.

Then he said: may Allah ﷻ have mercy on you — did you not know

that the Prophet ﷺ said: 'Has Aqil left us any dwelling or property?'

— any property or house?

He said: by Allah, I did not understand what he meant by it, nor do I think anyone else understood it.

Al-Hakim al-Naysaburi says: Ishaq said,

"Do you permit me to speak?"

He said, "Yes."

"So I said, 'Yazid ibn Harun narrated to us, from Hisham, from al-Hasan, that he did not hold that view.

And Abu Nu'aym and others informed us, from Sufyan,

from Mansur, from Ibrahim, that he did not hold that view.'"

Al-Hakim said, "Al-Shafi'i (RH) did not know Ishaq yet;

he did not know that this was Ishaq ibn Ibrahim al-Himsi."

Al-Shafi'i (RH) said to someone who knew him,

"Who is this?"

They said, "This is Ishaq ibn Ibrahim al-Himsi ibn Rahwayh al-Khurasani."

Al-Shafi'i (RH) said to him, "Are you the one whom the people of Khorasan claim is their faqih?"

Ishaq (RH) said, "So they claim."

Al-Shafi'i (RH) said, "How I wish someone other than you were in your place,"

I would have ordered that his ears be pulled—meaning, I would rub his ears.

Al-Hakim said, in another report, Al-Shafi'i (RH) said to him:

"If I were to say what you say, I would need to chain narrators. I say to you,

'The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said,' and you say, 'Ata, Tawus, and Mansur."

Observe, glory be to Allah ﷻ, the strength of argument and proof of Imam Al-Shafi'i (RH).

Imam Al-Shafi'i (RH), glory be to Allah ﷻ the Almighty, has sayings indeed

that make you imagine he is the Luqman of this Ummah, with amazing words of wisdom.

Among his sayings, he says: "Whoever learns the Quran, his value becomes great;

and whoever studies fiqh, his status becomes noble;

and whoever learns the language, his nature becomes refined;

and whoever learns arithmetic, his judgment becomes sound; and whoever writes Hadith, his proof becomes strong;

and whoever does not safeguard himself, his knowledge will not benefit him."

He who does not reform himself will not benefit from knowledge.

Among his beautiful sayings: 'Seeking knowledge is better than voluntary prayer.'

'Seeking knowledge is better than voluntary prayer.'

Glory be to Allah. Why? Because, of course,

worship that benefits others is better than that confined to the individual.

And he used to say: 'Whoever is laughed at regarding a matter will never forget it.'

Meaning, if someone speaks about a matter and then people laugh...

at this matter—he will never forget it,

because he will research, look into books, and study with his peers.

Al-Shafi'i (RH) said, among the beautiful things he used to say:

'Whoever attends a gathering of knowledge without an inkwell and paper...

...is like one who goes to the mill without wheat.'

Whoever attends a gathering of knowledge without an inkwell and paper...

...is like one who goes to the mill without wheat.

This is like some students of knowledge today who do not carry pens in their pockets.

One of my sheikhs once rebuked me in my youth,

when he did not see a pen in my pocket.

He said, "How can you be a student of knowledge with no pen in your pocket?"

"Carry a pen."

Indeed, sometimes a person comes across a beneficial point,

or an issue—a piece of wisdom—that they need to write down.

Now, praise be to Allah, one can write this down on smart devices,

such as mobile phones; one can write it down.

Anyway, among the sayings of Al-Shafi'i (RH), he says:

"No one should reside in a town that has neither a scholar nor a doctor."

Glory be to Allah the Magnificent! He says:

"No one should reside in a town that has neither a scholar nor a doctor."

Meaning, this is the doctor of the bodies, and this is the doctor of religion.

Al-Shafi'i (RH), as I mentioned at the beginning of the episodes,

was one of the masters of poetry,

but he left poetry and turned to fiqh.

However, some of his poems remained, and they were collected in a Diwan.

It is published, focusing on asceticism and manners.

Indeed, these poems are indispensable to pulpit speakers

and ceremonial speeches, as well as anyone who appreciates literature.

All of them need these verses that Al-Shafi'i (RH)

had composed; they are of the utmost beauty and quality.

Among his famous poems is:

"If you are ever alone one day, do not say, 'I am alone,' but say, 'I have an Overseer.'

Do not think that Allah ﷻ is heedless for an hour, nor that what you hide is concealed from Him."

He used to say: "We were heedless of Allah's command, until sins overtook us, followed by more sins."

"Oh, how I wish that Allah would forgive what has passed, and permit our repentance so we may repent."

Among his poetry, he says: 'There is no good in padding speech'

'when you can find its essence. And silence is more beautiful for a young man than speech without wisdom.'

and a youth should wear a silence, reflecting his character, visible on his forehead.'

Among the things he used to say, which scholars now pass down:

And the position of the fool before the scholar is like the position of the scholar before the fool.

So this one is indifferent to the other's company,

and that one is even more indifferent to him.

If wretchedness overcomes a fool, he stubbornly opposes the scholar.'

Al-Shafi'i (RH)—his biography is truly beautiful and wonderful.

And I did not wish to cover all of it,

but it is, as is my method and approach in this program —

glimpses, scattered notes, and flowers from the gardens of these

...scholars. We now come to the final chapter of Al-Shafi'i's (RH) life, which is his death.

Al-Shafi'i (RH) fell severely ill while he was in Egypt.

His illness involved bleeding; he had a hemorrhage,

to the point that a basin would be placed under him due to the severity of the bleeding he was suffering from.

His student Al-Muzani entered upon him and asked, "How are you doing this morning?"

He replied, "I am departing from this world, parting from my brothers,"

"drinking from the cup of death, and arriving before Allah ﷻ,"

"And by Allah, I do not know if my soul is heading to Paradise, that I may congratulate it, or to the Fire, that I may console it." Then he wept.

He wept, may Allah have mercy on him and be pleased with him.

Al-Shafi'i (RH) passed away in the year 204 AH, at the age of approximately 54, may Allah have mercy on him.

He left behind this amazing legacy and this good reputation.

He was buried in Cairo at the beginning of Sha'ban on Friday.

Al-Rabi' said, "We returned from burying Al-Shafi'i and saw the crescent of Shawwal, and that was in the year 204 AH."

He, may Allah Almighty have mercy on him, was a tall man, handsome in appearance and of good character,

beloved by people, clean in his clothes, eloquent in speech, highly awe-inspiring, and very generous.

And he, may Allah's mercy be upon him, used dye—unlike some scholars—dyeing it red in accordance with the Sunnah.

He had a beautiful voice in recitation, as we mentioned, may Allah have mercy on him.

So peace be upon Al-Shafi'i among the first and the last generations,

and I ask Allah Almighty to gather us and him with the Prophets, and in the Gardens of Paradise.

...of Bliss, by Allah's permission.

Our next episode will also be with another

of the outstanding and great figures in our Islamic world, if Allah ﷻ wills.

I will see you in good health. May the peace, mercy, and blessings of Allah ﷻ be upon you.