Why Should We Follow An Imaam?

Why should we
follow an Imaam?

Published by Published by Published by Published by
Madrasah Taleemuddeen, Isipingo Beach,
Durban, South Africa

No Copyright ()
Open permission is granted for reprinting this booklet provided it is ithout an!
alterations" A humble appeal is directed to the readers to offer suggestions,
corrections, etc" to improve the #ualit! of this publication in the future" Ma!
Allah Taala reard !ou for this"
The author, translators, editors and t!pesetters humbl! re#uest !our duaas for
them, their parents, families, mashaa!ikh and asaati$a"

%ompiled B!& Mufti 'akaria Makada

(ublished and distributed b!&
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)//0
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iii
Contents
7oreard 7oreard 7oreard 7oreard """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""" / // /
B! >adhrat Mufti Abul ?aasim @umaani Saheb 1Daamat
Barakaatuhum4 """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" /
B! >adhrat Moulana Muhammad Il!as (atel Saheb 1Daamat
Barakaatuhum4 """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" -
Introduction Introduction Introduction Introduction """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""" """""""""""""" """""""""""""" 0 00 0
The ObAect of mans The ObAect of mans The ObAect of mans The ObAect of mans e*istence e*istence e*istence e*istence """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""" . .. .
The ?uraan The ?uraan The ?uraan The ?uraan """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """"""""""""" """"""""""""" """"""""""""" /5 /5 /5 /5
Beferring to the ?uraan ithout the Medium of Basulullah "" //
The >istor! of the Ta#leed of the 7our I The >istor! of the Ta#leed of the 7our I The >istor! of the Ta#leed of the 7our I The >istor! of the Ta#leed of the 7our Imaams maams maams maams """"""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""" /0 /0 /0 /0
7rom the Sahaabah & """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" /3
7rom the Taabieen and Tab9e9Taabieen& """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" /3
;hat is Ta#leedC ;hat is Ta#leedC ;hat is Ta#leedC ;hat is Ta#leedC """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """"" """"" """"" +5 +5 +5 +5
Is Ta#leed supported b! the ?uraanC """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" +5
Is Ta#leed supported b! the Ahaadith of Basulullah C """"""""""""""" ++
iv
Is Ta#leed9e9Shakhsi 1folloing one specific person4 supported
from the >adith """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" +0
Befer to the 8*perts """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" +.
;h! are there onl! four Ma$habsC """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" -+
The 7our Imaams at a glance The 7our Imaams at a glance The 7our Imaams at a glance The 7our Imaams at a glance """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""" -) -) -) -)
Imaam Abu >anifah """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" -0
Introduction """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" -0
(iet! and Dirtues """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" -0
>is Ma$hab """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" -3
Elad Tidings """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" -6
Eenerosit! """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" -.
(rinciples Eoverning his Ma$hab """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" )5
>is 8*pertise in the 7ield of >adith """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" )/
>is 8*pertise in the 7ield of 7i#h """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" ))
The praise of Imaam Shaafiee regarding Imaam Abu >anifah """"""""" )0
Imaam Maalik """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" ),
Introduction """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" ),
>is 8*pertise """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" ),
>is %aution in Deen """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" )3
Elad Tidings """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" )6
>is Bespect for >adith """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" ).
>is Sincerit! """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 05
>is Fove and Bespect for Madinah Ta!!ibah """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 0/

v
Important 7acts regarding >is Fife """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 0+
Imaam Shaafiee """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 0+
Introduction """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 0+
>is 8*pertise """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 0+
>is (iet! """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 0)
Elad Tidings """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 00
>is intelligence """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 0,
>is Ikhlaas, >umilit! and Fove for Brotherhood"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 03
The Durood of Imaam Shaafiee """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 06
Imaam Ahmad bin >ambal """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 0.
Introduction """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 0.
>is 8*pertise """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 0.
>is >umilit! and %haracter """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" ,5
Trials and Tribulations """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" ,/
The (eriod after the Trial """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" ,/
>is (iet! """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" ,+
>is Adab 1Bespect4 in Deen """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" ,-
Are there an! MuAtahids in this da! and ageC Are there an! MuAtahids in this da! and ageC Are there an! MuAtahids in this da! and ageC Are there an! MuAtahids in this da! and ageC """"""""""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""""""" ,) ,) ,) ,)
;hat is rong if one refers to the ?uraan and >adith ;hat is rong if one refers to the ?uraan and >adith ;hat is rong if one refers to the ?uraan and >adith ;hat is rong if one refers to the ?uraan and >adith
Directl!C Directl!C Directl!C Directl!C """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""""" ,3 ,3 ,3 ,3
The 7irst (roblem that ill arise b! referring directl! to the
?uraan and >adith """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" ,3
vi
The Second (roblem """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 35
The Third (roblem """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 3/
%ombining to Salaahs in ones hometon ithout a valid reason 3)
The 7ourth (roblem """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 33
The 7ifth (roblem """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 6+
The Si*th (roblem """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 6)
The Seventh (roblem """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 63
A Debate beteen Mufti Mahmood >asan Eangohi Saheb G
former Mufti of Darul Hloom Deoband G and a Ehair Mu#allid at the
Ma#aam9e98brahim """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 6.
The 8ighth (roblem """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" .)
An interesting dialogue ith a Ehair Mu#allid regarding the
Mu#tadee reciting behind the Imaam in Salaah """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" .6
A 7e 8*amples of the Disastrous Outcome of those ho refer
directl! to the ?uraan and >adith """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" //+
The @inth (roblem """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" //)
The Tenth (roblem """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" //3
The method of education in the Mubaarak era of Basulullah """""" //6
The >arms of the la!man referring directl! to the ?uraan and
>adith """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" /+5
Salafi!!at under the Salafi!!at under the Salafi!!at under the Salafi!!at under the microscope microscope microscope microscope """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""" """""""" """""""" /+- /+- /+- /+-
The purpose of Salafi!!at""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" /+)
The essence of Salafi!!at """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" /+6

vii
Outcome """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" /-5
Tent! five !ears of e*perience """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" /-+
7olloing one of the 7our Imaams of 7i#h 7olloing one of the 7our Imaams of 7i#h 7olloing one of the 7our Imaams of 7i#h 7olloing one of the 7our Imaams of 7i#h """""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""" /-- /-- /-- /--
The Status of Ta#leed The Status of Ta#leed The Status of Ta#leed The Status of Ta#leed """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""""""""""""" /)- /)- /)- /)-
Moulana 8b Moulana 8b Moulana 8b Moulana 8brahim Si!alkotis ill rahim Si!alkotis ill rahim Si!alkotis ill rahim Si!alkotis ill9 99 9opinion of Imaam Abu opinion of Imaam Abu opinion of Imaam Abu opinion of Imaam Abu9 99 9
>anifah >anifah >anifah >anifah """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" "" " /0/ /0/ /0/ /0/

/
K
Foreward
By Hadhrat Mufti Abul Qaasim
Numaani Saheb !aamat
Bara"aatuhum#
All praise is due to Allah Taala and ma! peace and salutations be
upon >is noble Basul and @abi"
I as introduced to the book I;h! should e follo an
ImaamCJ hich as recentl! prepared b! m! honourable friend,
Moulana 'akaria Makada, a graduate of Madrasah Taleemuddeen,
Isipingo Beach, Durban, South Africa"
The fitnah of ghair mu#allidi!!at 1abandoning the folloing of a
ma$hab4 is an e*tremel! dangerous and overhelming fitnah of
contemporar! times" Eenerall!, simple9minded !oungsters as ell
as unar! Muslims, ho are uneducated of the basics of Deen, but
have the desire for practice, fall pre! to this fitnah" The picture
painted b! those ho abandon folloing of ma$habs seems ver!
attractive and appealing to the la!man as he is invited toards
folloing the ?uraan and >adith directl! opposed to folloing an
+ Why should we follow an Imaam?

Imaam" 7urthermore, a calculated effort is being made to cause the
Hmmah to abandon the safe path hich the Hmmah treaded upon
for man! centuries" As a result, doubts and suspicions are instilled
regarding the great Imaams, the pious of the past and at times even
regarding the illustrious Sahaabah 1Badhi!allahu Anhum4"
In this recent book, after e*amining Ehair Mu#allidi!!at, the
author has e*pounded on the meaning of ta#leed and folloing an
Imaam, and has shon the safet! in adopting this path"
I hope that this ill assist the Hmmah in understanding this
topic and prove beneficial for those ho have steered aa! from
the truth"
Ma! Allah Taala accept this ork and grant the author the
abilit! to render more ork and service in Deen"

Was Salaam Was Salaam Was Salaam Was Salaam
(Hadhrat ufti) !bul "aasim Nu#maani ($aamat %ara&aatuhum) (Hadhrat ufti) !bul "aasim Nu#maani ($aamat %ara&aatuhum) (Hadhrat ufti) !bul "aasim Nu#maani ($aamat %ara&aatuhum) (Hadhrat ufti) !bul "aasim Nu#maani ($aamat %ara&aatuhum)
'e(tor)prin(ipal $arul *loom $eoband+ 'e(tor)prin(ipal $arul *loom $eoband+ 'e(tor)prin(ipal $arul *loom $eoband+ 'e(tor)prin(ipal $arul *loom $eoband+
,-)./),./- ,-)./),./- ,-)./),./- ,-)./),./-

-
Foreward
By Hadhrat Moulana Muhammad Ilyas
$atel Saheb !aamat Bara"aatuhum#
In ever! field of life there are to groups& Those ho are e*perts of
that field and those ho are not" The non9e*perts have ala!s
folloed the e*perts of the field" Fet alone the la!9person, even the
one ho has some significant degree of ac#uaintance ith the field
follos the principles, guidelines and deductions from the e*perts
of the field" A general practitioner is ell trained to diagnose most
illnesses and administer treatment" >oever, despite his !ears of
stud!, he follos the principles and the deductions of the e*pert
ph!sicians ho are recognised authorities in the field"
Allah TaKala has ordained the same natural procedure for Deen"
Allah TaKala declares in the glorious ?uraan& IAnd ask those of
knoledge if !ou do not knoJ" Thus the foundation for Ta#leed
1folloing an e*pert4 has been laid in the ?uraan"
In order to highlight the importance of Ta#leed and the dangers
of abandoning this natural procedure in life, Moulana 'akaria
) Why should we follow an Imaam?

Makada Saheb, an Hstaad of >adith at Madrasah Taleemuddeen,
Isipingo Beach, has abl! presented this treatise"

(Hadhrat oulana) (Hadhrat oulana) (Hadhrat oulana) (Hadhrat oulana) uhammad Ilyas Patel uhammad Ilyas Patel uhammad Ilyas Patel uhammad Ilyas Patel
Senior *staa Senior *staa Senior *staa Senior *staad dd d of Hadith of Hadith of Hadith of Hadith
adrasah 0a#leemuddeen adrasah 0a#leemuddeen adrasah 0a#leemuddeen adrasah 0a#leemuddeen
Isipingo %ea(h Isipingo %ea(h Isipingo %ea(h Isipingo %ea(h 1 11 1 South !fri(a South !fri(a South !fri(a South !fri(a

0
Introdu%tion
It is the Islamic dut! of ever! individual to search for the truth"
During this search one ill come across different sects and groups
all inviting him under the banner of Islam to adopt their a!" ;hat
should a person do at such a timeC >o should he differentiate
ha## 1truth4 from baatil 1falsehood4C In this regard, Basulullah
gave the Hmmah some guidelines to follo in order to understand
hether a group is on the right path or not" @abi declared that
the group that holds on firml! to his a! and the a! of the
Sahaabah, are the rightl! guided ones" All other groups are deviated
from the truth of Islam"

!" #$ %& %& '$ (" () *& +,-
(. / 0&12 34 (" !" 56 7&8 % +
9:6 ;-8 % + *) / & <" + =$ >? 2
, @A
B

B
C# D E FG
, Why should we follow an Imaam?

It is reported from !bdullah bin !mr that 'asulullah said2 3y
*mmah will be fa(ed with (onditions similar to whi(h the %ani Israaeel
e4perien(ed5 li&e a pair of shoes6 one foot is identi(al to the other6 to su(h
an e4tent that if there was a situation in the %ani Israaeel where a person
openly (ommitted in(est with his mother6 there will be someone in my
*mmah who will perpetrate su(h a (rime+ 0he %ani Israaeel were di7ided
into se7enty two se(ts6 and my *mmah will be di7ided into se7enty three
se(ts+ 8a(h of them will be destined for 9ahannam e4(ept one+: 0he
Sahaabah;e;<iraam as&ed2 3Whi(h group will be sa7ed from the fire of
9ahannam?: Nabi answered2 30hose who tread upon my way and the
way of my Sahaabah +:
In this era, there are numerous groups and sects" 8ver! group
claims to be on the a! of Basulullah and the Sahaabah " Thus
one is faced ith a dilemma as to ho he should follo" ;hat is the
criteria to determine hich group is treading upon the path of
Basulullah and the Sahaabah C Basulullah e*plained the basis
on hich one ill Audge ho is on the correct path, as mentioned in
the folloing >adith&
H =2? I > & J" 56K
.L M N% O#K P 7 P Q7) & 6
'$ R2 ST
B

B
>U* VW. &X BY E BBZ
Introdu(tion 3

It is reported from Hadhat !bu Hurairah that 'asulullah said2 3I ha7e
left two sour(es of guidan(e for you to adopt+ =ou will ne7er be misguided
as long as you hold fast onto these two+ 0he first is the boo& of !llah and the
se(ond is my Sunnah+ 0hese two are inseparable and will meet me at the
Haudh;e;<awthar+
;hen e e*amine the lives of the four Imaams, the outstanding
feature hich e notice is that the! strictl! adhered to the book of
Allah Taala and the Mubaarak Sunnah of Basulullah in ever!
facet of their lives" The! could be aptl! described ith the folloing
ords& IThe! ere a personification of the Sunnah of Basulullah
in ever! alk of life in entiret!"J If per chance one has to come
across an! situation here their ma$aahib apparentl! contradict
certain Ahaadith, he ill certainl! find sufficient substantiation
through other Ahaadith, together ith reconciling beteen the
Ahaadith adopted and the Ahaadith hich ere apparentl! left out"
Their approach to the ?uraan and >adith in deducing masaail as
one governed strictl! b! principles of Deen deduced from the
?uraan and Sunnah" It as certainl! not an approach of personal
opinion nor an approach of Ipick and chooseJ, as is itnessed in
toda!s times" >ence, one can safel! reach the conclusion that these
four Imaams 1hose ma$aahib stood the test of time for
appro*imatel! thirteen centuries4 are orth! of emulation in
guiding us to Allah and >is Basul "
This book is for those ho ish to reach the truth ith regard
to the topic of Ta#leed, i"e" the need to follo an Imaam in order for
one to be able to correctl! practice on the ?uraan and Sunnah" It
6 Why should we follow an Imaam?

also highlights the dangers that one ill face in abandoning
Ta#leed of one of the four Imaams and adopting the path of the
ghair mu#allideen 1those ho do not follo an Imaam4" Insha
Allah, if this book is studied ithout preAudice, it ill prove
beneficial in creating the correct mindset and understanding of
Deen ithin the reader"
;e make duaa that Allah Taala accept this humble effort and
cron it ith success and divine acceptance" Aameen

.
&he 'b(e%t of mans e)isten%e
The ObAect of mans e*istence on earth is to recogni$e, orship and
serve his %reator, Allah Taala" 8ver!thing else is secondar!"
;orship of Allah Taala is not restricted to the five pillars
1Imaan, Salaah, 'akaah, 7asting and >aA4" Instead it encompasses
ever! facet of life from eating to ansering the call of nature, from
business to marriage and from being the head of the household to
being the leader of the state"
In order to teach man ho to orship Allah Taala in ever!
aspect of life, b! performing ever! action in a manner that is
pleasing to >im, Allah Taala sent messengers and revealed >is
books of guidance" The last and final messenger as Sa!!iduna
Basulullah and the last book that as revealed upon him as the
?uraan" Eaining salvation in this orld and the ne*t is no onl!
possible b! folloing the ?uraan and the noble Sunnah of
Basulullah "

/5
&he Quraan
The primar! source of guidance revealed to mankind from Allah
Taala is the ?uraan" The @oble ?uraan in its entiret! is a means of
guidance for mankind at large" It 1the @oble ?uraan4 comprises of
incidents and events of the past nations, scenes of the >ereafter,
admonishments for the evil9doers and glad9tidings for the pious,
etc" Similarl! it also comprises of las and inAunctions of ShariLah"
;ith regard to the verses of the ?uraan that e*plain stories and
events of the past nations, scenes of the >ereafter, etc", Allah Taala
declares&

!nd We ha7e indeed made the "ur#aan easy to understand and see& ad7i(e6
then is there anyone to see& ad7i(e? (Surah "amar >-)-.)
As far as these verses are concerned 1i"e" stories and events of the
past nations4, the! are easil! comprehendible to an! person
conversant in the Arabic language or even those ho refer to the
translations of the >ol! ?uraan" As for those verses of the ?uraan
hich discuss SharLi las and inAunctions, let alone those ho are
ell conversant in the Arabic language, even the Sahaabah ere
unable to fathom the meanings of such verses or unravel their
hidden secrets ithout the intermediar! of Basulullah "
0he "ur#aan //

*eferrin+ to the Quraan without the
Medium of *asulullah
Amongst the man! duties of prophet9hood assigned to @abi , one
of his duties as to verball! e*plain as ell as ph!sicall!
demonstrate to the Hmmah the details and particulars of the SharLi
las contained in the @oble ?uraan" Allah Taala sa!s&

, >
!nd We ha7e sent down the "ur#aan (the reminder) to you so that you
e4plain to the people what has been re7ealed for them6 and so that they
refle(t+ (Surah Nahl /?)--)
7or e*ample the @oble ?uraan declares&

8stablish Salaah (Surah %a@arah ,)-A)

If one has to stud! the ?uraan in depth he ill not find an! details
mentioned of the five fardh SalaahM vi$" 7aAr, 'uhr, Asr, Maghrib and
8sha nor ill he find the e*act number of the rakaats for each
Salaah" Other related aspects such as the sunan, aaAibaat, faraaidh,
or the factors hich invalidate or decrease the spirit of the Salaah
are also not mentioned" One ill be compelled to refer to the
Sunnah
/
for these details since it is in realit! a commentar! of the

/
Nnon as I;ahi ghair matlooJ"
/+ Why should we follow an Imaam?

?uraan" Similar is the case of 'akaah, Saum, >aA and the remainder
inAunctions of ShariLah" >ence e understand that folloing the
Ahaadith of Basulullah is akin to obe!ing Allah Taala, as
mentioned in the aa!ah&

<
He who obeys the 'asul obeys !llah 0a#ala+ (Surah Nisa# -)B.)
@abi himself directed our attention to this point in the folloing
>adith&
@ =2? >I & ( )
(K2 +&[ <" H H2 \ KR +&[ J1
UL H
It is reported from !bu Hurairah that Nabi said2 3y entire *mmah
will gain entry into paradise e4(ept those who reCe(t+: 0he Sahaabah
en@uired2 3!nd who are those who reCe(t (D Nabi of !llah )+: Nabi
replied2 30hose who follow my Sunnah (way) will surely enter paradise and
those who disobey me are the reCe(tors+: (%u&haari ,)/.B/)
This statement of @abi clearl! establishes the fact that one
cannot gain salvation ithout the medium of Basulullah "
7urthermore, it is impossible for one to understand all the verses of
the ?uraan ithout the agenc! of the Ahaadith of Basulullah ,
even though he ma! be a Sahaabi 1the first recipient of the
?uraan4"
0he "ur#aan /-

;ith regards to the folloing verse of the >ol! ?uraan&

>
>
>
>
>
!nd eat and drin& until the white thread of dawn appears to you distin(t
from its bla(& thread+ (Surah %a@arah ,)/BE)
>adhrat Adi bin >atim At9Tai tried to appl! his on intellect in
understanding the intended meaning of the verse and hence
reached an erroneous conclusion" Subse#uentl! he e*pressed hat
he understood before Basulullah " Basulullah corrected him and
e*plained the correct meaning of the verse"
This entire incident is reported b! Imaam Ahmad bin >ambal
+] &
^_ ] &8$ `? ,WK 1$ a%` JWK C O$
b 5c, d#? +2e f ) g '$ 72 . hi jk hi
Rk l m n" U N$ R Ke j *7%oL 5p
qR 5%oL r, *" -L s Rk tjk < jk
tRk L 5A mu WKL C#
5%& UL (" vR 4" j2% w" 34 S *& R
Imaam Sha#bi reports that Hadhrat !di bin Hatim related to me that
when the abo7e 7erse of the "ur#aan was re7ealed6 I too& two pie(es of
thread (one thread was bla(& and the other white)+ I then pla(ed both the
/) Why should we follow an Imaam?

threads beneath my pillow+ I stared at the threads for a long time e4pe(ting
to see the white thread be(oming more (lear and 7isible from the bla(&
thread so that I may then abstain from eating+ Howe7er6 the entire night
passed and in the morning I (ame to Nabi and I had e4pressed what I
had understood from the 7erse and what I had done during the night+ Nabi
smiled and remar&ed2 3If the meaning of the 7erse is as you ha7e
understood6 then your pillow is indeed 7ery wide+ For indeed the white and
bla(& threads implied in the 7erse refer to the brightness of the day and the
dar&ness of the night+:
/

/
Tafsir Ibn Nathir G Surah Ba#arah 1/<+-34" Abu Daood (g" -+/"
O$ C x Rk hi jk hi . 72 '$ +2e d#? 5c, b f C l
m)#L L mr&L qR 5p *7%IL R <U j <U m#K 34
*& ? w" j2 2y (4" vR (" UL 3AML z ({ z R ? w"
*& S | f RR d l

/0
&he History of the &a,leed of
the Four Imaams
A common #uestion posed b! man! people is& IIf the Ahaadith of
Basulullah are a commentar! of the @oble ?uraan, then hat is
the need for making Ta#leed of an ImaamCJ
In order to understand the anser to this #uestion, a brief
discussion of the histor! of the ma$aahib 1schools of thought4 is
necessar!"
It is the divine s!stem of Allah Taala that >e provided means
for the fulfilment of ever! need of man" 7urthermore, in proportion
to the need, ade#uate means have been provided for its fulfilment"
%onsider the need for ater and air" Besides raining don ater
from the skies, Allah Taala made it possible to ac#uire ater from
man! sources ith relative ease" As for air, since man re#uires air
ever! second, it has been provided free ever!here" All one needs
to do is breathe" Thus Allah Taala has provided for all the ph!sical
needs of man"
More important than ever! ph!sical need is the spiritual need
of man" >e needs to recognise his creator and orship >im" This is
the purpose of his e*istence on earth" >ence Allah Taala instituted
divine measures to fulfil this greatest need of ever! human being"
Allah Taala declares in the glorious ?uraan&
/, Why should we follow an Imaam?

>
>
Certainly We are the ones who re7ealed the "ur#aan and surely We ha7e
ta&en the responsibility of safeguarding it+ (Surah HiCr />)G)
In this verse Allah Subhaanahu a Taala e*plicitl! and
emphaticall! declares that >e >imself has taken the responsibilit!
of protecting the ?uraan" 7or the enactment of this divine
responsibilit! of protecting the greatest book IAl9?uraanJ, Allah
Subhaanahu a Taala utili$ed the greatest of >is creation after the
Ambi!aa ^-X *, ho ere none other than the auspicious
Sahaabah "
Then came the time for the compilation and preservation of the
commentar! of the ?uraan 1i"e" the Ahaadith of Basulullah 4" 7or
this mammoth task Allah Taala utili$ed the Sahaabah as ell as
the Taabieen and the Tab9e9Taabieen * +] "
Thereafter the need arose for the compilation and preservation
of the las of the ?uraan and >adith" S!stemi$ing the las of
ShariLah re#uired discerning and differentiating beteen the
previous abrogated las and the latter las hich replaced them,
deciphering beteen the authentic and unauthentic narrations,
categori$ing the status of inAunctions and prohibitions 1fardh,
aaAib, sunnah, mustahab, mubaah, haraam, makrooh9e9tahrimi,
makrooh9e9tan$ihi, khilaaf9e9alaa4 and finall! formulating
principles in the light of ?uraan and >adith hich govern the
deduction of non9te*tual situations" All of the above needed to be
accomplished in order to correctl! practise upon each la of
0he History of the 0a@leed of the Four Imaams /3

ShariLah in the manner it as revealed b! Allah Taala upon
Basulullah "
The accomplishment of such a tremendous task as onl!
possible b! a selected class of Allahs servants, hose phenomenal
e*pertise and unparalleled proficienc! cover ever! science of Deen"
This class of people are classified in the terminolog! of the Aurists as
IMuAtahideenJ"
There ere onl! a limited number of these highl! #ualified
specialists of Deen in the time of the Sahaabah , Taabieen and
Tab9e9Taabieen * +] "
From the Sahaabah -
Among the Sahaabah , the folloing personalities ere knon as
the MuAtahideen&
The four Nhulafaa9e9Baashideen , Abdullah bin Masood, bin
Abbaas, Abdullah bin LAmr, Abdullah bin Hmar, Muaa$ bin =abal
and a fe others "
From the &aabieen and &ab.e.&aabieen-
Among the ell9knon MuAtahideen of the second era ere&
Imaam Abu >anifah, Shabi, 8brahim @akhai, Al#amah, Imaam
Maalik, Imaam Shaafiee, Imaam Ahmad, Imaam Au$aaee, Faith bin
Sad and others * +] "
/6 Why should we follow an Imaam?

Onl! Allah Taala knos, in >is infinite and un#uestionable
isdom, h! >e hand9picked this elite group for the office of
IAtihaad" These special servants of Allah Taala continued to serve
the creation and ater the fields of Deen" In their era the! ere the
centre of attraction in solving the Deeni masaail 1?uestions
pertaining to Deen4 of the da!"
The ma$aahib of man! of these great men ere recorded for the
benefit of the coming generations" >oever, ith the passage of
time, due to the various ars and other tragic situations recorded
in histor!, the orks of these MuAtahideen in its entiret! ere no
longer preserved" >ence to date, onl! scattered portions of
undetailed information regarding their ma$habs have been
recorded" It as the divine decree of Allah Taala that onl! the
orks of the four Aimmah9MuAtahideen, in its entiret!, remain
preserved"
7urthermore, the latter Hlama thoroughl! e*amined and
scrutini$ed the ma$ahib of these four Imaams in the light of
?uraan and >adith" 7or centuries thereafter these ma$aahib ere
tried and tested b! the luminaries of Islam, the likes of Imaam
Daare9?utni, >afi$ Baiha#i, >afi$ bin >aAar, Allamah Aini, Imaam
@aai, >afi$ 'ailaLee, Imaam Tahaai, >afi$ bin Abdil Bar, bin
Arabi, >afi$ ibnul =a$i and man! others"
Thus the four ma$aahib received the acceptance of thousands of
specialists" All these doctors of their field unanimousl! attested to
the unmatched master! of the four Imaams and admitted their
inabilit! to produce a masterpiece ma$hab like that of these
0he History of the 0a@leed of the Four Imaams /.

Imaams" These Hlama further supported and corroborated the four
ma$aahib, that all are firml! based on the ?uraan and Sunnah"
>ence in this time and age, for one to intend to personall!
revie the ShariLah and formulate principles that govern the
deduction of masaail ould be akin to re9inventing the heel"
@evertheless, the Hlama are in agreement that although the
doors of IAtihaad have not been closed, hoever, after the third
centur! no one has met the criteria of being a muAtahid" Those
people ho claimed to be on the pedestal of IAtihaad ere tested b!
the Hlama of the time and after being proven academicall!
incompetent, ere dis#ualified and reAected"

+5
What is &a,leed?
Ta#leed is to accept the vie of an Imaam ith confidence that his
vie conforms to the ?uraan and Sunnah though one ma! be
unaare of the proofs of the Imaam"
/

Is &a,leed su//orted by the Quraan?
The inAunction of Ta#leed is established through man! verses of the
?uraan" B! a! of e*ample, a fe verses ill be cited belo&

_
Follow the path of those who turn to e H!llah 0aIalaJ+ (Surah Ku@man
A/2/>)

.
.
>
!s& the people of &nowledge if you do not &now+ (Surah !n;Nahl /?2-A)

>
<
'
,

B
}~ U #Kk ? U7 R +L% }~ f 6b RU g DG >`) ,K 7) > l
What is 0a@leed? +/

D you who belie7e obey !llah6 the 'asul and the people of authority
amongst you+ (Surah Nisa -2>G)
The Mufassireen 1the likes of Abu Bakr =assaas, Allamah Aaloosi and
Imaam Baa$i4 commentate that Iulil amrJ in this verse refers to the
Hlama and the 7u#ahaa of the Hmmah" >ence, the compulsion of
Ta#leed is established from this verse"
The renoned Aalim of the Ahle >adith 1those ho claim to be
folloing the >adith4, @aaab Siddi#ue >asan confirms the above
commentar! in his kitaab Al9=unnah thus sa!ing&
t t XT t +% y vAM ? ^_
] z ? % z
B

!((ording to bin !bbaas6 9aabir 6 Hasan6 !bul !aliyah6 !taa#6 $ahhaa&6
uCaahid and Imaam !hmad * +] 3ulil amr: in this 7erse refers to the
*lama+
@aaab Siddi#ue >asan further states&
UA7 ( k w" (y2 4" M7U > % t *7yL 0 +y
% ) ( +\ % 0 +y
D

B
V7L R ^% 2) B E BZB
D
V7L R ^% 2) B E BZB
++ Why should we follow an Imaam?

If this 7erse is with referen(e to the Islami( rulers6 then too 0a@leed of the
*lama (annot be dispro7en+ 0he reason being that obeying the (ommand of
the rulers is subCe(t to the appro7al of the *lama6 Cust as the rulings of the
*lama are subCe(t to being in (onformity with the tea(hings of 'asulullah
"
Is &a,leed su//orted by the Ahaadith of
*asulullah ?
The inAunction of Ta#leed is supported b! man! Ahaadith of
Basulullah " >ereunder, a fe Ahaadith ill be presented&
In the blessed era of Basulullah , >adhrat Muaa$ bin =abal
as nominated as the governor of Oemen b! Basulullah "
Basulullah commanded the people of Oemen to refer their Deeni
issues to >adhrat Muaa$ " >ence, Ta#leed commenced in the
noble era of Basulullah ith the permission of Basulullah "
Rk 2c2 , 4% % } d&XL / v
+& 7K MUL +& 1& 5K 1&
>$
B
!swad bin =aLeed reports2 3Hadhrat u#aaL (ame to the people of
=emen as a tea(her and a leader+ 0he people of =emen en@uired from him

B
C D E FF
What is 0a@leed? +-

regarding a person who passed away lea7ing behind a daughter and a
sister+ u#aaL issued a 7erdi(t that half of the estate will be gi7en to the
daughter and the remaining half will be gi7en to the sister+ 0his o((urred
during the lifetime of 'asulullah +:
+62#$ J" < CR >!U .L
7L 2# C% n g @ .
B
&8$ XT 1 c &8$ (6 +& =! 3b
} >% +62#$ 7 2#
C% @ .
D
HuLaifah reports that 'asulullah said2 3I do not &now how long I will
be amongst you+ 0herefore6 follow the two who are to (ome after me6 !bu
%a&r and *mar +:

@ote& @ote& @ote& @ote& 7rom the above9mentioned to Ahaadith e understand that
@abi did not ask the people of Oemen to directl! refer to the
>adith" Instead, the! ere asked to refer to >adhrat Muaa$ for
SharLi guidance and rel! upon hat he sa!s" The reason for @abi
instructing the people of Oemen 1and similarl! the entire Hmmah4

B
& C#: D E DY
D
& C#: D E DY
+) Why should we follow an Imaam?

to make Ta#leed is that ever! person is not capable of correctl!
e*tracting las from the ?uraan and >adith" Beferring to the
?uraan and >adith is the responsibilit! of highl! #ualified
specialists of the Hmmah, knon as the Aimmah9e9MuAtahideen"
Accordingl!, in the second >adith @abi instructed us to follo
the guidelines given b! Abu Bakr and Hmar " 7urthermore,
@abi did not ask us to #uestion their authenticit! or #uer! their
proofs for the! possessed the total capabilit! of correctl! deducing
las from the ?uraan and >adith" Bather, he asked us to merel!
follo hat the! said" In essence, this is Ta#leed"
8$ 3 ({ 6$ =K Q*g
x , (.2 2 n"
0ML & $ T o%2 Ke d.L 34 &
B
Saalim reports that ibn *mar was as&ed regarding a person who
was owed money on (redit6 whether it would be permissible for him to
wai7e a portion of the debt in e4(hange of early payment+ Ibn *mar
disli&ed the idea and prohibited it+
@ote& @ote& @ote& @ote& Moulana Thani +] e*plained that in this narration, e
find that ibn Hmar issued a verdict ithout furnishing an!
proof for his decision, nor did the #uestioner en#uire from him

B
\b +2 Y
What is 0a@leed? +0

regarding the proof of his ruling" Instead, he relied upon ibn Hmars
ruling since he recognised the high status and position ibn
Hmar held in the field of deducing las from the ?uraan
and >adith" Thus, e conclude that Ta#leed as practised in the
ver! noble era of Basulullah "
/

Is &a,leed.e.Sha"hsi followin+ one
s/e%ifi% /erson# su//orted from the
Hadith
;T QA 4% x (
% 4% n" UL ) >MU UL >M / Q7)
(L .2 / Q7) +&XL
(L .2 / +& *7 >2 T
C# L
D

It is reported that when 'asulullah dispat(hed Hadhrat u#aaL to
=emen6 he as&ed him6 3What pro(edure will you adopt when passing
de(isions in the affairs of the uslims?: u#aaL replied2 3I will de(ide in

/
At9ta#leed pg"/5
D
& C#: B E DZ
+, Why should we follow an Imaam?

a((ordan(e to the "ur#aan+: Nabi then as&ed him2 3If a law is not found
in the "ur#aan then what will you do?: He replied6 3I will refer to the
!haadith of 'asulullah +: Nabi then @uestioned him2 3If the ruling is
not found in the !haadith6 then what will you do?: He replied2 3I will
employ my ability of reasoning (ICtihaad) in rea(hing a (on(lusion+: *pon
hearing this6 Nabi said2 3!ll praise be to !llah who inspired the
messenger of 'asulullah (u#aaL ) with the (orre(t guidan(e+:
/

Hnder the commentar! of the above9mentioned >adith, some
scholars of >adith e*plain&
+

/ U z %b ^-" z B E B x
}u () (" 2$ #*L ( 2T =*g 2 ,k 34 dM2 -L 4% QA *L X
( =*` / #? *& $ < 4% QA + ;T ;$ C#
6 < C# 91 M6 2 % 4% QA =*g ) > *& $ (.2
/ %2 < % ? 3`2 < ?K Xb IL A < Q#) < *7 A
R&" / +%g 52 4" 2T +! j% 2T #? $ +%g ) 34 / U&
] d X, =R (" yi . 322 RgL 2$ &u
3# &6L o7$ dU, % ? ( +U{ (L% 17 R&" #? 4%
+A &6 ) ?& 7A d *y ? A / ; + <
+%X { / (%27b 7K 4" 77 T (" +% +2 0 R 6p +!
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D
x ) UL >MU , .2 4" , ? 34
? #? t U +&X t Q7. ? .T / Ûb ( *& L 72c % XL MU
What is 0a@leed? +3

The purpose for @abi #uestioning >adhrat Muaa$ in the
folloing manner as, so that the people ma! realise his capabilit!
and have confidence in him" Basulullah desired that the people of
Oemen should refer their Deeni problems to >adhrat Muaa$ , and
an! decision passed b! him should be readil! accepted ithout an!
reservation" Otherise it ould seem #uite strange of a leader to
test the governor he alread! nominated at the time of bidding him
fareell" 7or indeed @abi as full! aare that >adhrat Muaa$
possessed the full capabilit! to manage the office of ?adha 1passing
Audgments4"
&8$ 5% 2c? $g +&" +&
5K UL +& 1& 5K 1& m R%X %7XL XL
R%X WK U @ UL U 5I 4" , 27*b >M *L
M a& +&- 1& +&< X +. {{

a, / % b Q7.) 5,) U$ / +&X (L t d,:K C# : <
& t +%yU / Q7. +2X =7b =*`b +&X (" 7 ) t Q7. d}K7 %
4% 5 <" Kk + .2 L a& / +X +&X ) .2
5 t h! x ` =} Û2 m{) ) +A1 8 < ({ , %L )
t % + 5,) %2 P 7%2 0U % m*7g . b *U6 +! " 5?4
>! *7 >! *7 ,%7 >2 +,% *[ / 0 *[ / C 0 C (78 N-)
f | C ). D E GZZ l
+6 Why should we follow an Imaam?

>U 5KL &L d,WKL U R%X UL < JX
^R #? WT .L
B
Dn(e Hadhrat !bu oosa was @uestioned regarding the estate of a
de(eased who was sur7i7ed by a daughter6 paternal granddaughter and
sister+ How should the estate be distributed? He replied saying2 3Half the
estate will be gi7en to the daughter and the remaining half will be gi7en to
the sister+ Howe7er6 go to ibn as#ood for (onfirmation+: When ibn
as#ood was informed of the 7erdi(t issued by !bu oosa he
mentioned2 3If this is the (orre(t 7erdi(t6 then (ertainly I am misled from
the path of those who are rightly guided+ y 7erdi(t in this issue is in
(onformity with the 7erdi(t of Nabi 5 half the estate will be gi7en to the
daughter6 a si4th will be gi7en to the paternal granddaughter in
(ompletion of two thirds of the estate and the remainder will go to the
sister+: We then returned to !bu oosa and informed him of the 7erdi(t
gi7en by ibn as#ood + 0hereupon he said2 3!s long as this great !alim is
ali7e6 I don#t see the need for you people to refer to me i+e+ hold fast onto
him and (ontinue referring to him in all matters relating to $een+
( CRk ^ & 4%
&" 5UL L 7L '$ 7&LR ^`
7 mr, n" UL & d% 5L R%X 7cL '$ m
D

B
C D E FF

D
& @ RR B E
What is 0a@leed? +.

!mr bin aymoon reports that the messenger of Nabi 6 Hadhrat u#aaL
(ame to =emen+ I lo7ed him e4(essi7ely so I remained with him until the
end of his life+ 0hereafter I sear(hed for the most &nowledgeable person
after him+ 0hereupon I met !bdullah bin as#ood and I also remained
with him until the end of his life+
+. ( ? +&2b >I *& = 5L\
5I$ 6& < #K, 3U -, 2
B
I&rimah +] reports that the people of adinah unawwarah in@uired
from ibn !bbaas regarding the law of a woman who e4perien(ed
haidh after her fardh tawaaf6 should she wait until she be(omes pure in
order to perform the tawaaf;e;widaa or will it fall off? He replied that it will
fall off and she may lea7e+ *pon this the people of adinah said2 3We will
not pra(tise on your opinion lea7ing out the 7iew of Maid bin 0haabit +:
>afi$ ibn >aAar, reporting from Tha#afi, narrates this statement of
the inhabitants of Madinah Munaarah in 7athul Baari in the
folloing manner& I;hether !ou e*press !our vie or not, e ill
hold onto the vie of 'aid "J
*efer to the 0)/erts
In regard to orldl! affairs, the principle Irefer to the e*perts of
the fieldJ is #uite common" If a person intends constructing a triple

B
C B E DG
-5 Why should we follow an Imaam?

stor! mansion, he ill first contact an architect to dra out the
plans" >e ill thereafter hire the services of an engineer as ell as a
contractor to put up the proAect" If one has to independentl!
embark on such a proAect ithout the aid of the architect, the
engineer and the contractor, e can ell imagine the devastating
outcome that he ill cause for himself through such actions"
Similarl! if someone is afflicted b! an acute sickness e"g" cancer,
cardiac failure etc" and is advised b! e*pert ph!sicians that if he
does not undergo immediate surger!, there is a ninet! to ninet!
five percent chance that the sickness ill prove fatal" Then under
these life9threatening circumstances, if one has to refer to a
medical Aournal, and thereafter musters up the courage to
personall! operate upon himself, hat ill be our response
regarding such a persons determinationC
In the same breath e see this principle upheld in all alks of
life" (eople refer to others ho the! recogni$e to be e*perts in their
respective fields for guidance and assistance" In realit! this is
Ta#leedM IBel!ing upon the e*pertise of othersJ"
In retrospect hen one vies the different departments of
Islamic learning, one ill undoubtedl! reali$e that ithout placing
ones confidence and reliance upon people ho are learned in the
respective fields of Deen, one ill not progress Islamicl!"
7rom the elementar! Maktab
/
level, the child is re#uired to
place his confidence upon his Muallim or Muallima, thereb!

/
The elementar! level here children are taught the Arabic alphabets, and then
taught to recite the ?uraan"
What is 0a@leed? -/

gaining the abilit! to recite the ?uraan" At the second level the
child is admitted into a >if$ class here the child commits the
?uraan to memor! ith perfecting its recitation" At this stage e
also notice that in order for the child to progress, he is re#uired to
follo his Hstaadh and place his reliance upon the knoledge that
is imparted to him" The child thereafter progresses further here
he gains admission into a Darul Hloom or universit!" Darious
courses are offered to him under the tutorship of #ualified
teachers" >ere also he subAects his understanding to conform to the
understanding of his tutors ho he recogni$es as being #ualified in
the field" At the end of the stipulated period he receives a
#ualification signif!ing his competence and proficienc! in the
various fields of Deen"
;e understand that at ever! stage in the life of man,
irrespective of orldl! progress or Deeni progress, he is dut! bound
b! ShariLah to institute the principle of Ta#leed"
Allah Taala sa!s&

.
.
>
The cru* of the matter is that currentl! the e*perts of Deen are
recogni$ed as e*perts since their knoledge relativel! e*ceeds the
knoledge of the common man" >ence, the! are referred to for
Islamic guidance" As far as other related fields of Deen are
concerned, people do not refer to them though the! might be
-+ Why should we follow an Imaam?

learned in those branches of Deen" 7urthermore, if the current da!
e*perts are compared to the e*perts of the past, the! 1the e*perts
of toda!4 ill be rated belo the common man of those times" This
brings us to the conclusion that if e ish to follo a guide hose
e*pertise e*tensivel! encompasses ever! department of Deen vi$"
the ?uraan, >adith, iAmaa, histor!, verdicts of Sahaabah, etc" then
e ill not find an!one of contemporar! times ho ill be able to
guide us to Allah Taala other than the legac! of the Aimmah9e9
Arba hich Allah Taala has preserved 1from amongst all the other
Aimmah9e9MuAtahideen4 throughout the centuries of Islam"
Why are there only four Ma1habs?
Man! great Hlama of the past have clearl! affirmed that Ta#leed
has become confined to onl! one of the four ma$habs" In this regard
Allamah Abdur Bahman bin Muhammad Al9Maghribi 1656 A">4
rites& IP Ta#leed became confined to these four Imaams in all the
cities of the Muslim orld" All the folloers of other Imaams
graduall! became e*tinct" Thus, hen the terminologies of the
various sciences became ide9spread in the earth, the scholars
closed the doors of differences 1and confined Ta#leed to one of the
four Imaams4 as the! feared that someone unorth! ould begin
claiming IAtihaad" >ence the! 1the scholars4 stated& IThe abilit! to
reach the rank of a muAtahid has become virtuall! impossible"J
Thereupon the! directed the people toards making Ta#leed of one
of the four Imaams and arned them against changing ma$habs for
What is 0a@leed? --

convenience, as this ill amount to pla!ing fools ith the Deen of
Allah" Thus an!one ho claims to have ac#uired the level of
IAtihaad in this age ill be reAected and ill not be folloed" The
entire Muslim orld no has consensus regarding the Ta#leed of
these four Imaams"J
/

B
? b (Ub R t+%k <? & 1k / U7 | b \ -i Q &
n" 34 R&" >`K b tR*7< + n" 9 b ^% / m$-y< %` {)
7K ) t<? U n" & R t_ co% $1L t&2 < 2 82 < t? }u
2Ub | 72 ( r$ -7 L b ?U | *?# U, <" 2 | U )
#? }u U6 ^ 1 < t+2 ?& 1 k A1 % *& d ?# f | +U
(K j!6 72 U6 l

-)
&he Four Imaams at a +lan%e
Through stud!ing the lives of the four Imaams 1vi$" Imaam Abu
>anifah, Imaam Maalik, Imaam Shaafiee, Imaam Ahmad bin
>ambal * +] , one ould undoubtedl! be convinced that the!
ere orth! of the position of imaamat" Their piet!, righteousness
and consistenc! in adhering to ever! teaching of the ?uraan and
Sunnah and possessing encompassing knoledge of ever!
department of Deen had made them the centre of attraction in
their eras and a source of guidance for the Hmmah for centuries
that folloed upto this da!" The! could be aptl! described as the
bearers of the knoledge of the former people 1the Sahaabah and
Taabieen4" On account of this, from the millions of scholars in
ever! field, Allah Taala handpicked them and divinel! selected
them for the guidance of this Hmmah for the centuries that passed
up till this da!"

0he Four Imaams at a glan(e -0

Imaam Abu Hanifah
Introdu%tion
Imaam Abu >anifahs name as @uman bin Thaabit" >e
as born in the !ear 65 A">" and passed aa! in the !ear /05 A">"
/

Allamah ibn Natheer +] 1d" 33) A">"4 rites about Imaam
Abu >anifah& I""" one of the four Imaams of the ma$aahib that are
folloed" >e as the first amongst them in demise, as he had also
itnessed the era of the Sahaabah " >e sa Anas bin Maalik " It
is related that he also met other Sahaabah as ell" Some even
mention that he narrated from seven of the Sahaabah " And Allah
Taala knos best"J
Allamah 'ahabi +] 1d" 336 A">"4 states& I>e 1Imaam Abu
>anifah4 met Anas on a number of occasions hen he visited
them in Nufa"J
+

$iety and 2irtues
Allamah Al9Nhatib Al9Baghdadi states& IIt has been
recorded about Imaam Abu >anifah that he performed
Salaatul 7aAr and 8sha ith the same udhu for fort! !ears """ and it

/
H#oodul =umaan pg" 0)<0,
+
;ho are the blind folloersC pg" -/
-, Why should we follow an Imaam?

is also recorded that he completed seven thousand khatams
1complete recitals4 of the ?uraan in his lifetime"J
/

Imaam Shaafiee +] sa!s that on one occasion Imaam Maalik
+] as asked& IDid !ou meet Imaam Abu >anifah +]CJ
Imaam Maalik +] replied& IOes, Imaam Abu >anifah +] as
a man ho if he claimed that a certain pillar as made of gold, he
ould present sound and unbreakable proofs to establish his
claim"J
+

Shareek +] sa!s& IImaam Abu >anifah as a person ho
used to observe silence for length! periods, and as a man of great
intelligence"J
-

Ibn Ishaa# Samar#andi sa!s that Imaam Abu Ousuf said&
IImaam Abu >anifah used to complete a khatam of the ?uraan
ever! night in one rakaat"J
)

Misar bin Nidaam sa!s& IOne night I ent into the musAid here
I sa a man performing salaah" I as taken aback b! his melodious
recitation of the >ol! ?uraan" ;hen he reached the seventh Au$ of
the ?uraan, I thought he ma! go into ruku an! moment but he
didnt until he recited one third of the ?uraan" I thought he ma! go
into ruku at the termination of half the ?uraan, but he continued

/
;ho are the blind folloersC pg" -/
+
Si!ar 0-)<,
-
Si!ar 0-0<,
)
Si!ar 0-0<,
0he Four Imaams at a glan(e -3

until he recited the entire ?uraan in one rakaat" Hpon closer
inspection, I realised it as Imaam Abu >anifah "
/

Abu Mua!!id Nhaaari$mi +] narrates that Abdullah bin
Mubaarak +] said& IOn one occasion a fe goats ere stolen in
Nufa" On hearing of this, Imaam Abu >anifah +] en#uired about
the average ma*imum age of a goat" ;hen he as informed that
goats normall! live for up to seven !ears, he abstained from eating
goat meat for seven !ears"J
+

Imaam Abu >anifah as once asked& >o did !ou ac#uire this
high position in Deen and the great treasures of ilmCJ Imaam Abu
>anifah replied& I never acted miserl! ith the knoledge that
Allah Taala had blessed me ith" Instead I ala!s shared it ith
the people, and I never regard it to be belo m! dignit! to seek
knoledge from the Hlama"
-

His Ma1hab
Allamah Sharaani states in his kitaab LAl9Mee$aan, II as
blessed ith a vision from the side of Allah Taala herein I had
seen the ma$aahib of the Imaams in the form of streams" I sa the
ma$aahib of Imaam Abu >anifah, Imaam Maalik, Imaam Shaafiee,

/
H#oodul =umaan pg" /3,
+
H#oodul =umaan pg" +53
-
Maaalimul Irshaadi!a pg" +/3
-6 Why should we follow an Imaam?

Imaam Ahmad bin >ambal +] as large streams floing ith
force, hile the ma$aahib of the other Imaams of that era hich
had become e*tinct ere small streams hich later on dried up and
had become hard like rocks" 7rom the four Imaams, the Imaam
hose stream as the longest as Imaam Abu >anifah ,
folloed b! the stream of Imaam Maalik, then Imaam Shaafiee,
then Imaam Ahmad * +] " The one ith the shortest stream as
Imaam Daood , hose ma$hab as discontinued in the 0
th

centur!" I interpreted this dream as reference to the duration of the
time the different ma$aahib ill be practised upon"
/

3lad &idin+s
>afi$ =alaalud Deen Su!ooti mentions that the Hlama have
mentioned that Basulullah had issued glad tidings in favour of
Imaam Abu >anifah in the folloing >adith" Imaam
Bukhaari and Imaam Muslim narrate the >adith from >adhrat Abu
>urairah that Basulullah said& I>ad knoledge been at the
Thura!!a star, then Allah Taala ill create a man from (ersia ho
ill ac#uire this knoledge"
2

/
Mu#addamah Musnad Imaam Abi >anifah pg".
+
This means that Imaam Abu >anifah as included in this glad tiding,
though it ma! not have referred e*clusivel! to him"
0he Four Imaams at a glan(e -.

Allamah Su!ooti sa!s that this >adith is authentic and that it is
a glad tiding in favour of Imaam Abu >anifah +]"
/

Abu Oah!a Al9>immaani sa!s that he heard Imaam Abu >anifah
sa!& II once sa a dream hich made me ver! concerned" I had
seen as though I as digging up the grave of Basulullah " I then
came to Basrah, and instructed a person to go and ask Muhammad
bin Sireen +] the interpretation of the dream on m! behalf"
Muhammad bin Sireen +], upon hearing the dream, replied&
IThe one ho had seen the dream ill be blessed b! Allah Taala
ith the bount! of gathering the Ahaadith of Basulullah 1and the
knoledge of Deen, and present it to the Hmmah4"J
+

3enerosity
Muthanna bin BaAaa said& I;henever Imaam Abu >anifah
ould spend on his famil!, he ould spend the same amount in
charit!"J
-

Imaam Abu >anifah +] used to send cash to Baghdad in
order to purchase goods to be sold in Nufa" The profit ould be
accumulated and utilised in the food, clothing and other needs of
the Muhadditheen" >e ould then present the remaining profit to
them in the form of cash and he ould tell them, (raise Allah

/
H#oodul =umaan pg" 0,
+
Si!ar 0-)<,
-
Si!ar 0-0<,
)5 Why should we follow an Imaam?

Taala alone and not me" I have not disbursed an!thing from m!
ealth but from the ealth of Allah Taala" B! Allah, hatever >e
has bestoed upon me is !our trust hich >e has sent to !ou via
me"
/

Imaam Misar bin Nidaam narrates: It as the habit of
Imaam Abu >anifah that hatever he purchased for his famil!, he
ould spend the same amount on the senior Hlama, and henever
he purchased clothing for his famil!, he used to bu! the same
amount for the senior Hlama as ell" At the onset of the fruit
season, hatever he intended to purchase for his famil! members,
he ould first purchase the same for the senior Hlama"
+

$rin%i/les 3o4ernin+ his Ma1hab
@ooh Al9=aami reports that Imaam Abu >anifah said& I;e submit
ourselves to hatever is reported from Basulullah and from the
Sahaabah" ;e give them preference over the statements of others
and personal logic" >oever, that hich is reported from an!one
else, then the! are men and so are e" 1>ence, e are not bound to
accept it, instead e ill emplo! our IAtihaad in reaching the
conclusion4"J
-

/
H#oodul =umaan pg" /.,
+
H#oodul =umaan pg" /.3
-
Si!ar 0-)<,
0he Four Imaams at a glan(e )/

His 0)/ertise in the Field of Hadith
>is e*pertise and proficienc! in the field of >adith can be summed
up in the ords of Imaam Abu Ousuf , ho himself as a
great Muhaddith and the Hstaad of Imaam Ahmad bin >ambal
" >e sa!s& IImaam Abu >anifah had much more insight regarding
authentic Ahaadith than me"J >e further sa!s& II have not
itnessed an!one more learned in the field of >adith than Imaam
Abu >anifah "J
/

Abu Muhammad Al9>aarithi narrates that Imaam Abu Ousuf +]
said& I;henever e discussed an! Deeni issue ith Imaam Abu
>anifah to hich his contemporaries unanimousl! agreed, I ould
go to the Mashaa!ikh of Nufa to search for a clear >adith in
verification of his opinion" I ould often come across to or three
Ahaadith hich I used to present to him in verification of his
opinion" I once en#uired from him regarding ho he had come to
kno about this >adith" >e replied& LI am ell ac#uainted ith the
Ahaadith reported b! the Hlama of Nufa"J
+

Abu Oa#oob Ousuf bin Ahmad Makki narrates that Abdullah bin
Ahmad bin 8brahim Dara#i said& II as present in the gathering
here Oah!a bin Maeen as asked about Abu >anifah" >e replied&
L>e is reliable in terms of accepting Ahaadith from him" I have not
heard an! of the Muhadditheen portra!ing him to be unreliable"

/
H#oodul =umaan pg" //.
+
H#oodul =umaan pg" +/
)+ Why should we follow an Imaam?

Fook at Imaam ShubahM he rites to Imaam Abu >anifah
re#uesting him to e*plain a fe Ahaadith, and Shubah after all is
Shubah"J 1In other ords, in the field of >adith, Imaam Shubah is
of a ver! eminent rank"4
/

Imaam Abu >anifah declared that a narrator should onl!
narrate a >adith if he remembered it thoroughl!, from the da! he
heard it till the da! he is narrating it"
+

Ali bin Madeeni +] sa!s& ISuf!aan Thauri, Abdullah bin
Mubaarak, >ammaad bin 'aid, >ishaam, ;aki bin =arrah, Abbaad
bin Aaam and =afar bin Aun have narrated Ahaadith from Imaam
Abu >anifah +]" >is Ahaadith are #uite accepted b! the
Muhadditheen"J
Shabaabah sa!s that Shubah held a favourable opinion of
Imaam Abu >anifah +]"
-

Nhateeb Baghdadi +] narrates that Suf!aan bin H!a!nah +]
said& The first person ho accorded me a seat of honour in
the field of >adith as Imaam Abu >anifah +]" ;hen I arrived
in Nufa, he openl! informed the people that I am most
knoledgable in regard to the Ahaadith of Amr bin Dinaar +]"

/
H#oodul =umaan pg" /06
+
H#oodul =umaan pg" /.
-
H#oodul =umaan pg" -0/
0he Four Imaams at a glan(e )-

The people started gathering around me and I started teaching
those Ahaadith to them"
/

Suf!aan bin H!a!nah 1the Hstaad of Imaam Shaafiee4 ] + is
reported to have said& M! sight has not fallen on an!one as great
as Imaam Abu >anifah"J
+

>ibbaan bin Moosa said& ;e ere once seated in the compan!
of Abdullah bin Mubaarak +] 1the student of Imaam Abu
>anifah and from among the Hstaads of Imaam Bukhaari i"e" from
among the narrators appearing in Bukhaari Shareef4" >e as
dictating Ahaadith to us, hen he said& @umaan bin Thaabit
narrated to me """J" Someone asked him, O Abu Abdir Bahmaan,
ho are !ou referring to b! this name @umaan bin ThaabitC >e
replied, I am referring to Imaam Abu >anifah, ho is a treasure
house of ilm" Hpon hearing this, some of the students terminated
the cop!ing don of this >adith from him" Abdullah bin Mubaarak
remained silent for some time, after hich he remarked, O people,
ho disrespectful of !ouQ %ertainl! !ou are not aare of the status
of the Imaams of Deen" @obod! is as orth! of being folloed as
Imaam Abu >anifah" Indeed he as an Imaam" >e as e*tremel!
pious and his reputation as untarnished" >e as a ver! devout
Aalim and 7a#eeh" >e e*plained ilm ith deep insight and
profound understanding" >e possessed uni#ue Ta#a 1i"e" Allah
consciousness4 that ver! fe possess" The narrator adds&

/
H#oodul =umaan pg" //.
+
H#oodul =umaan pg" /)-
)) Why should we follow an Imaam?

Abdullah bin Mubaarak thereafter sore an oath that he ill not
teach them for another month"
/

His 0)/ertise in the Field of Fi,h
Oah!a bin Maeen is reported to have said& IAccording to
me, the most reliable and most esteemed ?iraat is the ?iraat of
>am$ah hile in 7i#h it is the 7i#h of Abu >anifah " I have
found the predecessors holding the same vie as ell"J
+

Imaam Shaafiee +] is reported to have said about Imaam
Abu >anifah& I(eople are entirel! dependent upon Imaam Abu
>anifah in 7i#h"J
-

;hen Oah!a bin Maeen as asked hether Suf!aan Thauri +]
narrated an! >adith from Imaam Abu >anifah, he said& ISurel!
he narrated from him" Abu >anifah as a ver! reliable narrator and
most truthful in e*pounding the las of 7i#h" In regard to the Deen
of Allah Taala, he as regarded as most reliable and trustorth!"
)

/
H#oodul =umaan pg" /)0
+
-
H#oodul =umaan pg" /)-
)
0he Four Imaams at a glan(e )0

&he /raise of Imaam Shaafiee re+ardin+ Imaam
Abu Hanifah

*
R- ( U +6
&
Xb
"

UL
^.$ +
2)

}r, `b L L. < ~b <

&
L +6
2k V

0he leader of the uslims6 Imaam !bu Hanifah6 has beautified the (ities
and those who reside in it+
With laws of the "ur#aan6 !haadith of 'asulullah and the Fi@h of $een6
Cust li&e the beauty of the "ur#aan o7er all other hea7enly s(riptures+
0here was no one li&e him in the east or in the west6 and nor in the (ity of
<ufa+
So may the spe(ial mer(y of !llah 0a#ala perpetually rain upon him6 till the
end of time as long as the "ur#aan is re(ited+
/

/
Deeaan Imaam Shaafiee pg" +6,
), Why should we follow an Imaam?

Imaam Maali"
Introdu%tion
Imaam Maalik as born in the !ear .0 A">", and as /0
!ears !ounger than Imaam Abu >anifah " >e passed aa! on
the /)
th
of Babi9ul9Aal, /3. A">"
/

His 0)/ertise
Abu @uaim narrates from Abu Musab & II heard
Imaam Maalik sa!& LI never passed a 7ata 1verdict4 until
sevent! scholars bore testimon! to the fact that I as orth! of
issuing 7ata"J
+

Allamah 'ar#aani states that Imaam Maalik started teaching
>adith at the age of seventeen"
-

Imaam Maalik said& II rote one hundred thousand
Ahaadith ith m! right hand"J
)

Imaam Shaafiee +] said& I>ad it not been for Imaam Maalik
and Suf!aan bin H!a!nah * +] , the knoledge of >iAaa$

/
Si!ar )-0<3
+
Mu#addamah of AAa$ pg" 33
-
Ibid
)
Bustaanul Muhadditheen pg" +0
0he Four Imaams at a glan(e )3

1Makkah Mukarramah and Madinah Ta!!ibah4 ould have been
lost"J
/

>ammaad bin Salamah sa!s& IIf someone had to ask me to
appoint a person from hom the Hmmah of Basulullah ould be
able to attain knoledge from, I ould regard Imaam Maalik bin
Anas to be the most suitable and appropriate person for that task"J
+

Once a person asked Imaam Shaafiee, IDid !ou ever meet
an!one like Imaam Maalik +]CJ Imaam Shaafiee replied& II
have heard some of those ho ere more senior than us in age and
knoledge sa!ing that the! had never seen an!one like Imaam
Maalik +], so ho could e have seen someone like himCJ
-

Muthannah bin Saeed mentions that I heard Imaam Maalik sa!&
IThere is no night that passes e*cept that I see Basulullah in a
dream"J
)

His Caution in !een
Abdur Bahman bin Mahdi sa!s& IA man once asked Imaam
Maalik a masalah 1ruling4, to hich he responded& II am
not sure about it"J The man e*claimed& II have indeed travelled to

/
Si!ar -..<3
+
Mu#addamah of Ml" Abdul >a!! Faknoi of Muatta Imaam Muhammad pg" /5
-
Ibid
)
)6 Why should we follow an Imaam?

!ou from such and such a place to ask !ou about itQJ Imaam Maalik
responded& I;hen !ou return to !our place, inform the
people that I said that I am not sure of it"J
/

>aitham bin =ameel sa!s& I as present on one occasion hen
Imaam Maalik +] as asked fourt! eight #uestions, thirt! to
of hich he ansered b! sa!ing I do not kno"
+

3lad &idin+s
>afi$ =alaalud Deen Su!ooti sa!s that the Hlama have
Imaam Maalik in the folloing manner& ISoon a time ill
come hen people ould travel length! Aourne!s beating their
camels in pursuit of Lilm" The! ould not find an!one as learned as
the Aalim of Madinah"J It is also reported in a narration of Tirmidhi
that Basulullah said& INnoledge ill be cut off, and there ill
not be an!one more knoledgeable than the Aalim of Madinah"J
Suf!aan bin H!a!nah said& IThe Muhadditheen attributed
these glad tidings of Basulullah to Imaam Maalik "J
- -- -

Mutarrif bin Abi Abdillah said& II sa Basulullah in a dream
sitting in the musAid ith people around him" Imaam Maalik as

/
Sifatus Safah -.3</
+
Si!ar )5/<3
3
Mu#addamah of Ml" Abdul >a!! Faknoi of Muatta Imaam Muhammad pg" .,
0he Four Imaams at a glan(e ).

standing before him and there as musk in front of Basulullah "
>e as taking handfuls from it and giving it to Imaam Maalik, and
Imaam Maalik as distributing it among the people"J Mutarrif then
commented, II interpreted it as the knoledge of Deen and
folloing the Sunnah"J
/

His *es/e%t for Hadith
>is gathering as one of great ae, forbearance and knoledge" >e
as a noble man ho as endoed ith ae and respect" There
as no arguing, shouting or raising of voices in his gathering"
+

Ibn >abib said& I;hen Imaam Maalik sat to teach >adith, no one
moved from their place until he got up"J
;henever he sat don to narrate >adith, he applied itr and
donned ne clothes" A carpet as set out for him on hich he sat"
>e emerged from his house ith a great amount of humilit!" >e sat
before the >adith of Basulullah ith utmost respect and dignit!"
Oud used to be burnt in the gathering here the >adith of
Basulullah used to be taught b! Imaam Maalik +]"
-

Abdullah bin Mubaarak said& II as once present in the
gathering of Imaam Maalik +] hile he as relating >adith to
us and a scorpion stung him si*teen times" Imaam Maaliks facial

/
Ibid
+
Mu#addamah of AAa$ pg" 6/
-

comple*ion began to change colour, hoever he continued
teaching the >adith of Basulullah " After the lesson as over and
the students had departed, I asked him the reason for the change in
his comple*ion during the lesson" >e informed me regarding the
scorpion sting and said, LI did not move from m! place out of
respect for the >adith of Basulullah "J
/

Abu Musab +] sa!s that Imaam Maalik used to onl! narrate
>adith hile in the state of udhu, out of respect for the >adith of
Basulullah
+

His Sin%erity
Allamah 'ar#aani mentioned& I;hen Imaam Maalik +]
prepared his kitaab IAl9MuattaJ, he doubted his sincerit! and thus
feared that the kitaab ma! not gain acceptance in the sight of Allah
Taala" >ence, as a means of testing his ikhlaas, he resolved ithin
his heart to insert the kitaab in ater" In order to determine
hether his kitaab as ritten ith ikhlaas, he begged Allah Taala
to reveal to him in this a! that if the kitaab gets et, then it is a
sign that this kitaab as not ritten ith ikhlaas" After placing the
kitaab in the ater and removing it, he found it as completel!
dr!"
-

/
Mu#addamah of Ml" Abdul >a!! Faknoi of Muatta Imaam Muhammad pg" /5
+
Si!ar )/+<3
-
Mu#addamah of AAa$ /<.+
0he Four Imaams at a glan(e 0/

His 5o4e and *es/e%t for Madinah &ayyibah
It is related that he onl! left the >aram of Madinah if he had a valid
reason"
/

Imaam Maalik possessed great love for the land of
Madinah Munaarah" This love as on account of the love he had
for Basulullah " Allamah ibn Nhalli#aan rites& IImaam Maalik
never rode a conve!ance in the blessed cit! of Madinah
Munaarah" 8ven at the time hen he gre old and became
e*tremel! eak, he preferred to alk rather than being
transported b! a conve!ance" ;hen Imaam Maalik as
asked the reason, he mentioned& LI feel e*tremel! difficult to ride on
a conve!ance in the Mubaarak cit! of Madinah Munaarah, hile
Basulullah is buried beneath the ground"J
+

Imaam Maalik used to commence teaching the students
of >adith and those residing in Madinah Munaarah before
teaching others" ;hen he as asked the reason for shoing
preference to the students of >adith and the people of Madinah, he
e*claimed& IThese are the neighbours of Basulullah "J
-

/
+
Mu#addamah of AAa$ pg" 6-
-
0+ Why should we follow an Imaam?

Im/ortant Fa%ts re+ardin+ His 5ife
Imaam Maalik resided in the house of Abdullah bin Masood
in Madinah Munaarah" >e did not possess his on house"
Instead he rented the house until his demise" In the MusAid he sat
here Hmar used to sit and this as the ver! same place here
Basulullah ould la! his bedding hilst sitting for Itikaaf"
/

Imaam Shaafiee
Introdu%tion
Imaam Shaafiees name as Muhammad bin Idrees" >e as
born in the !ear /05 A">" 1the ver! !ear Imaam Abu >anifah passed
aa!4 and passed aa! in the month of BaAab, +5) A">"
+

His 0)/ertise
Imaam Ahmad said& IAn!one ho used ink and a pen 1for
the knoledge of Deen4 is undoubtedl! indebted to Imaam Shaafiee
in some a! or the other"J Imaam Ahmad also said&
I7or fort! !ears I have been supplicating for Imaam Shaafiee after
Salaah"J Once Imaam Ahmads son asked him& I;hat t!pe

/
+
Sifatus Safah )-.</
0he Four Imaams at a glan(e 0-

of a person as Imaam ShaafieeC I hear !ou often making duaa for
himCJ >e replied& IO m! beloved sonQ Imaam Shaafiee as
like the sun for the orld and a safet! for the people" Think about
it, do these to 1bounties4 have an! substituteCJ
/

Abdur Bahmaan bin Mahdi sa!s& II do not perform an! salaah,
e*cept that I also make duaa for Imaam Shaafiee"J
+

Imaam Shaafiee +] as titled in Baghdad as L@aasirus
Sunnah 1the saviour of the Sunnah4" Ibn Natheer +] sa!s& I>e
memori$ed the ?uraan hen he as onl! seven, the Muatta of
Imaam Maalik hen he as ten, and his Shaikh, Muslim bin
Nhallaad a$9'anAi permitted him to pass verdicts 17ata4 hen he
as onl! fifteen" 1Some narrations state that he as eighteen4" Abu
Thor +], one of the MuAtahideen of that era, sa!s& I;e never
sa an!one like Imaam Shaafiee"J
-

Abu Hbaid +] sa!s& II never sa an!one more elo#uent,
intelligent and cautious 1referring to his state of ;ara4 than Imaam
Shaafiee"J Imaam Ahmad +] ould relate the >adith narrated
b! Abu Daood +] herein Abu >urairah reports that
Basulullah said& IDeril! Allah appoints for this Hmmah, upon
ever! hundred !ears, a reviver for its Deen"J Imaam Ahmad +]
ould then comment& IHmar bin Abdul A$i$ as sent at the end of

/
Sifatus Safah )-0</
+
Si!ar -.)<6
-
Al9Bidaa!ah ;an9@ihaa!ah +3,</5
0) Why should we follow an Imaam?

the first hundred !ears and Imaam Shaafiee as sent at the end of
the second centur! 1as a reviver4"J
/

A!!oub bin Suaid sa!s& II did not think I ould live to see a
man as great as Imaam Shaafiee"J
+

Imaam Ahmad bin >ambal said& IImaam Shaafiee as from
amongst the most elo#uent of people"J
-

His $iety
Babi sa!s& IImaam Shaafiee used to divide his
night into three portions" The first third as for riting, the second
third for Salaah and the last third for rest"J Babi also said&
IIn the month of Bamadhaan, Imaam Shaafiee used to
complete the recitation of the ?uraan si*t! times" >oever it is not
possible to calculate ho much of it as accomplished in Salaah"J
Babi once said& IImaam Shaafiee used to complete thirt!
recitals of the ?uraan in ever! month, but during the month of
Bamadhaan, he used to complete si*t! besides hat he recited
during Salaah"J
)

8brahim bin Muhammad Ash9Shaafiee sa!s& II never sa
an!one perform salaah better than Imaam Shaafiee +]" The

/
Mu#addamah of Deeaan of Imaam Shaafiee pg" )5
+
Mu#addamah of Deeaan of Imaam Shaafiee pg" -.
-
Mu#addamah of Deeaan of Imaam Shaafiee pg" )/
)
Sifatus Safah )-3</
0he Four Imaams at a glan(e 00

reason for this is that he had learnt ho to perform Salaah from
Muslim bin Nhaalid, ho learnt from ibn =ura!A, ho learnt from
Ataa, ho learnt from ibn 'ubair, ho learnt from Abu Bakr ,
ho learnt from @abi "J
/

3lad &idin+s
>afi$ =alaalud Deen Su!ooti sa!s that the Hlama have
Imaam Shaafiee in the folloing manner& IDo not talk ill of
the ?uraish, as an Aalim of the ?uraish ould 1in the near future4
fill the entire orld ith ilm 1knoledge4"J The Hlama sa! that this
glad tiding as in reference to Imaam Shaafiee "
+

Ibnu Abdil >akam sa!s that hen the mother of Imaam
Shaafiee +] as pregnant ith him, she sa a dream as though
she gave birth to a star that became apparent in 8g!pt, and
thereafter a piece of it landed in ever! ton" The interpreters of
dreams interpreted this dream as meaning that she ill give birth
to an Aalim, hose knoledge ill be e*clusive for the people of
8g!pt at first, and then it ill spread throughout the orld"J
-

/
Mu#addamah of Deeaan of Imaam Shaafiee pg" -3
+
H#oodul =umaan pg" 0,
-
Si!ar -3.<6
0, Why should we follow an Imaam?

His intelli+en%e
Imaam Mu$ani reports that on one ocassion e ere
present b! Imaam Shaafiee hen an old man earing
oollen clothing appeared" The old man then asked Imaam
Shaafiee& IMa! I ask a #uestionCJ Imaam Shaafiee gave him
permission" >e then asked& I;hat are the SharLi proofs in the Deen
of Allah TaalaCJ Imaam Shaafiee replied& IThe Nitaab of Allah
Taala"J >e then asked& IAnd hat elseCJ Imaam Shaafiee replied&
IThe Sunnah of Basulullah "J >e then asked& IAnd hat elseCJ
Imaam Shaafiee replied& IThe consensus of the Hmmah"J >e then
asked& I;hat is !our proof for thisCJ Imaam Shaafiee thought for a
hile" The old man then said& II give !ou respite for three da!s,
either !ou bring me proof from the ?uraan, or seek forgiveness
and repent to Allah Taala"J The facial comple*ion of Imaam
Shaafiee changed" >e then ent and did not come out until the
third da! beteen 'uhr and Asr, in the condition that he as
e*tremel! sick" >e hardl! sat don hen the old man came,
greeted him and sat beside him" >e then asked for his proof" Imaam
Shaafiee said& IOesJ, and he began reciting the verses&

,
;
>

_
.
!nd whoe7er opposes the essenger after guidan(e has be(ome (lear to
him and follows a path other than the path of the belie7ers6 we shall
(forsa&e him) and let him (ontinue on his path6 and thereafter We shall
dri7e him towards Hell6 and e7il it is as an abode+ (Surah Nisa6 //>)
0he Four Imaams at a glan(e 03

The man said& IOou have spoken the truth"J The man then left"
Imaam Shaafiee said to those seated around him& II recited the
entire ?uraan thrice dail! for three da!s, until the proof finall!
daned upon me"J
/

Imaam Ahmad bin >ambal said& IA scholar of >adith can never
get satiated from stud!ing the kitaabs of Imaam Shaafiee 1due to
the abundant and profound knoledge contained in it4"J
+

Imaam Ahmad bin >ambal said& IThe 7u#ahaa ere the doctors,
and the Muhadditheen ere the pharmacists" Muhammad bin
Idrees 1Imaam Shaafiee4 came as both a doctor and a pharmacist"J
-

His I"hlaas6 Humility and 5o4e for Brotherhood
Imaam Babee mentions that Imaam Shaafiee said& IIt is m!
desire that people learn and take benefit from the knoledge 1in
m! kitaabs4, ithout an!thing being attributed to me"J
)

Oounus As9Sadafi sa!s& II did not see an!one more intelligent
than Imaam Shaafiee" I debated ith him on one occasion
regarding a certain masalah, then e separated" >e thereafter took
hold of m! hand and said& LO Abu Moosa, h! cant e still remain

/
Si!ar )/)<6
+
Mu#addamah of Deeaan of Imaam Shaafiee pg" )/
-
Ibid
)
Si!ar -6,<6

closel! attached as brothers, even though I notice that e do not
agree on certain issues"J
/

&he !urood of Imaam Shaafiee
Ibn Bunaan Asbahaani sa!s that I once sa Basulullah in
a dream and asked him, LO Basulullah , has an! special honour
been granted to Muhammad bin Idrees Shaafiee , ho is the
son of !our LuncleC 1LHncle has been mentioned because Imaam
Shaafiees ancestor! meets Basulullah s ancestor! at Abd Oa$eed
bin >ishaam" >ishaam as the great grandfather of Basulullah 4"
Basulullah replied& IOes indeed" I have supplicated to Allah Taala
that he be saved from the reckoning on the da! of ?i!aamah"J I
then asked, IO Basulullah , on account of hich deed did he
become orth! of such a favourCJ Basulullah replied& IIt is
because he has recited such a durood upon me that no one else ever
recited"J I then en#uired& IO Basulullah , hat is that duroodCJ
Basulullah replied&

D !llah 0a#alaN %estow spe(ial mer(y upon Hadhrat uhammad

e@ui7alent to the number of times that he was remembered6 and bestow

/
Si!ar -6+<6
0he Four Imaams at a glan(e 0.

spe(ial mer(y upon Hadhrat uhammad e@ui7alent to the number of
times that the negle(tful forgot to remember him+
1

Imaam Ahmad bin Hambal
Introdu%tion
Imaam Ahmad as born in the !ear /,) A">", and passed
aa! on the morning of 7rida!, the /+
th
of Babi9ul9Aal, +)/ A">"
at the age of 33"
+

His 0)/ertise
A reputed Muhaddith, 8brahim Al9>arbi 1d"+60 A">"4 sa!s&
II had the opportunit! of seeing Imaam Ahmad bin >ambal "
It seemed as if his heart as a treasure9chest containing all the
knoledge granted to human beings, past and present" >e could
reveal hatever he sa relevant, and hold back hat he did not
desire to divulge"J Abu 'urah sa!s& IImaam Ahmad
as a >afi$ of one million Ahaadith"J Someone asked& I>o do !ou
knoCJ >e said& II revised ith him, and noted the chapters from
him"J Imaam Abdur Ba$$aa# said& II never sa an!one greater in

/
7a$aail 9 Durood
+
Sifatus Safah )63</
,5 Why should we follow an Imaam?

7i#h and ;ara 1caution in matters of Deen4 than Imaam Ahmad bin
>ambal"J
/

>armala has reported that I heard Imaam Shaafiee sa!& IAt the
time hen I left Baghdad, I did not leave an! person behind ho
as greater than Imaam Ahmad in knoledge and 7i#h"J
+

Ali bin Madeeni +] said& IAt the time of crisis, Allah Taala
had supported this Deen ith to personalities, ith Abu Bakr
on the da! hen the tribes had turned apostate, and ith Imaam
Ahmad bin >ambal +] at the time the Hmmah as tested ith
the fitnah of &hal@ul "ur#aan"
-

His Humility and Chara%ter
Muhammad ibnul9>asan bin >aroon said& II sa Abu Abdillah
1Imaam Ahmad4 hen he as alking" >e disliked that an!one
should follo him"J
)

Imaam Oah!a bin Maeen +] sa!s& II never sa the like of
Imaam Ahmad" ;e accompanied him for fift! !ears" >e never once
flaunted himself for the good that he possessed"J
0

/
Sifatus Safah )3.</
+
Si!ar )),<.
-
Si!ar )),<.
)
Si!ar ),0<.
0
Si!ar )06<.
0he Four Imaams at a glan(e ,/

&rials and &ribulations
Imaam Ahmad as unimaginabl! harassed and tortured b!
the rulers of his time" During Bamadhaan ++/ A">" hen he as 03
!ears of age, he as prisoned b! Mutasim and lashed" This as onl!
due to a masalah hich he adhered to, hile some of the deviant
sects did not concur ith it 1i"e" the issue of &hal@ul "ur#aan4" >e as
severel! lashed eighteen times, hich caused him to fall
unconscious" Thereafter he as thron don upon his face, a mat
as placed over him, and his bod! as trampled" ;hen he regained
consciousness and food as placed before him, he refused to eat as
he as fasting" 8ach one of those ho took part or itnessed the
lashing as forgiven b! him, e*cept those ho ere in deviance"
>e used to sa!& I;hat benefit do !ou derive out of !our Muslim
brother being punished because of !ouCJ Fater, Allah Taala guided
Mutasim, ho thus repented and shoed tremendous remorse
over his behaviour"J
/

&he $eriod after the &rial
The %aliph Mutaakkil succeeded %aliph ;aathi# in +-+ A">" >e
held Imaam Ahmad in high esteem, but Imaam Ahmad remained
cautious since he regarded the favours of the king as a temptation
toards evil" Once Mutaakkil sent him a bag of ten thousand
dirhams and about to hundred dinaars" It as emphasi$ed that he

/
;ho are the blind folloers pg" -6
,+ Why should we follow an Imaam?

should accept it lest the king ould be offended if the gift as
refused" Imaam Ahmad did not even look at it" At the time
of Maghrib, he called his son Saalih and said, INeep this b! !ou"J
Before dan the ne*t morning, Imaam Ahmad called for his son
ho immediatel! came" >e said to him, II havent slept last nightJ,
and he began to eep" >e continued, IAll m! life I remained safe
from the rulers and kings" @o, in old age, I am being tested ith
them" I have decided to distribute this ealth in the morning" That
morning, he continued distributing the mone! to the various
factions of the poor and need! until the entire amount as spent"
>e then also gave the bag aa! to a destitute person" >is son sa!s&
I;e ere e*periencing such povert! 1at that time4 hich onl!
Allah Taala kne"J
/

His $iety
>is son Abdulllah relates& IM! father used to perform three
hundred rakaat dail!" ;hen he became ill due to the lashes hich
eakened him, he used to perform one hundred and fift! rakaat" At
that time he as close to eight! !ears of age" >e used to recite one9
seventh of the ?uraan dail!, thereb! completing the ?uraan in
seven da!s" Besides the Salaah of the da!, he used to complete one
recital in seven nights as ell" After performing 8sha Salaah, he
used to have a light nap, then sta! aake up to the morning
performing Salaah and making duaa" M! father performed >aAA five

/
Sifatus Safah )6,</
0he Four Imaams at a glan(e ,-

times, three on foot and to b! conve!ance" On one of his Aourne!s
of >aAA he spent onl! tent! dirhams"J
/

8brahim bin Shammaas +] sa!s& II kne Imaam Ahmad as a
child, sta!ing aake during the night 1in Ibaadah4"J
+

His Adab *es/e%t# in !een
Imaam Ahmad bin >ambal never called an! of his !saatiLa
b! their names out of respect for them" Bather, he ould refer to
them b! their titles"
-

Once, Imaam Ahmad as l!ing don due to some illness" In
the middle of the discussion someone mentioned the name of
8brahim bin Tahmaan " On listening to this name, Imaam
Ahmad immediatel! sat up out of respect" Thereafter he
remarked, IIt is inappropriate that the names of the elders are
mentioned hilst e are sitting and rela*ing"J
)

/
Sifatus Safah )6)</
+
Si!ar ),,<.
-
Aadaabul Mutaallimeen
)
Ibid

,)

Are there any Mu(tahids in
this day and a+e?
Allamah Shihab Ar9Bamli +] 1.03 A">"4 states& IThe person ho
has a true understanding of hat IAtihaad actuall! means ould feel
ashamed before Allah from attributing it to an!one of this da! and
age" In fact, ibnus9Salaah 1,)- A">"4 and his folloers stated that it
had become e*tinct three hundred !ears ago" ibnus9Salaah himself
passed aa! three hundred !ears ago, hence, it had become e*tinct
about si* hundred !ears ago"J
Allamah Munai +] 1/5-/ A">"4 sa!s& The Aalim of the
S!rian region, Imaam ibn Abid9Dam 1,)+ A">"4 rites after
mentioning all the conditions of IAtihaad& IIt is hardl! possible to
find these conditions in an! scholar of our age" Instead, there is no
MuAtahid9e9mutla# on the surface of the earth toda!"J
During the tenth centur! of Islam, Imaam Su!ooti +], 1.//
A">"4 claimed to have reached the level of IAtihaad" Allamah Shihab
ibn >aAar >aitami +] 1.3) A">"4 sa!s& I;hen Imaam =alalud
Deen Su!ooti claimed IAtihaad, all his contemporaries confronted
him" The! presented a #uestionnaire to him about some issues"
Therein, the! stated to possible ansers to each #uestion, and
!re there any uCtahids in this day and age? ,0

said& IIf !ou have even reached the loest degree of IAtihaad, hich
is IAtihaad in 7ata, then !ou should stipulate the preferred vie,
substantiated ith proof, in conformance ith the ma*ims laid
don b! the MuAtahideen"
>oever, he returned their #uestionnaire ithout an! anser,
e*cusing himself that he as too bus!, and as therefore unable to
look into those #uestions"J
/

Moulana Ashraf Ali Thani +] rites in this regard& IThose
ho reAect Ta#leed obAect b! sa!ing& LDid the >anafis 1or mu#allids4
receive ah! 1revelation4 that IAtihaad has come to an endC The!
do not understand that it is a divine principle that the means of
fulfilling a need comes into e*istence at the time hen that
necessit! occurs" Allah Taala sends don rain generall! at the time
of need" ;inds also blo at times of need" ;here temperatures
become intensel! lo, animals have thicker oolM and there are
countless such e*amples" Fikeise, hen there as a need for the
recording of >adith, Allah created people ith phenomenal
memories" Such memories are nohere to be found toda!" The
reAecters of the four ma$aahib also, ho shout slogans of folloing
>adith, are not able to bring forth one individual ho has
memori$ed even Saheeh Al9Bukhaari and Saheeh Muslim ith their
chains of narrations, as as done b! the illustrious authors of these
blessed books"

B
2U jL +U B
,, Why should we follow an Imaam?

In the same a!, hen the need arose to document the
ShariLah, Allah granted man! people e*traordinar! talents and
capabilities in 7i#h and IAtihaad" @o that Deen has been recorded,
and its las and fundamentals outlined, this need no longer e*ists"
Oes, to the e*tent of need, some abilit! of IAtihaad is still to be
found, hereb! rulings for contemporar! issues are deduced,
through the medium of the principles laid don b! the
MuAtahideen"
/
R/5S

/
;ho are the blind folloers (g" 05 1An e*cerpt from Ashraful =aaab4

,3
What is wron+ if one refers to
the Quraan and Hadith
!ire%tly?
If one ho is not a muAtahid refers to the ?uraan and >adith
directl! in order to e*tract SharLi las and find solutions to his
problems, he ill land himself in clear disaster and encounter man!
difficulties" It is akin to an ignorant la!man tr!ing to find a solution
to legal or medical issues b! directl! referring to the sources" >e is
bound to misunderstand man! fundamental issues and bring great
disaster upon himself" Fet us e*amine some of the problems he ill
encounter&
&he First $roblem that will arise by
referrin+ dire%tly to the Quraan and
Hadith
The first problem is that some people ill begin to consider
themselves as MuAtahids" The! ill refer to translations of the
?uraan and the books of >adith 1such as the translations of Saheeh
Bukhaari, Saheeh Muslim, etc"4" Subse#uentl!, the! ill arrive at
,6 Why should we follow an Imaam?

their on incorrect conclusions" This is undoubtedl! detrimental
not onl! to their on Deen, but also e#uall! destructive to the Deen
of the general public" @abi foretold the coming of such crucial
times here people ill confine the truth to their on logic and
the! ill entirel! shun emulation of the pious predecessors" >ence,
he is reported to have said that from amongst the signs of
?i!aamah&
4" 52 Ag y V? %7 ,R =8 Qo" ) C4 C 2
=ou will witness people fulfilling their greed6 following their base desires6
gi7ing preferen(e to dunya o7er $een and being satisfied with their own
reasoning and understanding+ (ish&aat Pg+ -AE)
Qo b X6& >? ?g
! person will be satisfied and pleased with his independent reasoning and
understanding6 and this is among the worst signs+ (ish&aat Pg+ -A-)
@abi has also mentioned that from amongst the signs of
?i!aamah is&
% K d#? +k
0he latter of this *mmah will (urse the former+ (ish&aat Pg+ -E.)
%onsider the folloing to incidents hich reveal the outcome of
the one ho is not a MuAtahid, but refers directl! to the ?uraan
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? ,.

and >adith" The folloing to incidents are narrated b! Allamah
Nothari +]" >e sa!s&
A person as accustomed to performing Salaat9ul9;itr after
making istinAa 1cleaning himself after urinating4" ;hen asked about
it, he #uoted the >adith&
o7 L
He who uses mud pebbles for istinCa should 3perform Witr: (ish&aat Pg+
-,)
The ord literall! means Lto do something in an odd number
and it could also mean Lperform itr salaah" >ence, this person
misunderstood this >adith to be referring to ;itr Salaah" The
correct meaning of this >adith is that, he ho uses mud pebbles for
istinAa, should use an odd number"
Another person declared that it as forbidden to ater ones
neighbours garden" >e substantiated it b! #uoting the folloing
>adith&
< < 2 ^ Ke ( >UX2 d - d}u
It is not permitted for one who belie7es in !llah and the last day to irrigate
someone else#s (rop with his own water+ (ish&aat Pg+ ,G.)
The >adith actuall! implies that, if someone ac#uired a pregnant
slave oman 1hen slaver! as still in practise4, then he is
prohibited from copulating ith her until she gives birth"

&he Se%ond $roblem
The second problem is that some people, after independentl!
vieing the las of the ?uraan and >adith 1ith their limited
analog!4, ill begin to deduce underl!ing factors 1Lilal4 upon hich
rulings are based" Thereafter, the! ill abrogate man! las of Deen
on the basis that the underl!ing cause that the! deduced no more
e*ists"
7or instance, consider the la of performing udhu before
ever! Salaah" In this time and age, a group of modernists hold the
vie that there is no need to perform udhu before ever! Salaah,
since our limbs are mostl! covered and do not get dirt!" The!
contend that the la of udhu as most relevant to the Sahaabah
" Man! of the Sahaabah ere shepherds or orked on the fields
and in other outdoor occupations" As a result, their bodies became
soiled in dust and dirt" Therefore, the! ere re#uired to make
udhu for ever! Salaah" >ence, this group of modernists subAected
the la of udhu to their flaed analog!"
/

A similar e*ample is that of the la of appointing itnesses at
the time of nikaah" Basulullah has declared&
< ., <" R*`
0here is no ni&aah without witnesses+ 1Ba!ha#i 3<///4

/
Ta#leed a IAtihaad b! Ml" Ashraf Ali Thani pg" -)
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? 3/

Based on this and other Ahaadith, the scholars have unanimousl!
stated that the nikaah must be itnessed b! at least to people,
otherise it ill not be valid"
Oet, some modernists opine that the nikaah is valid regardless
of hether itnesses are present or not" The! comment upon the
aforementioned >adith that itnesses ere onl! deemed necessar!
in the >adith in order to alleviate an! misunderstanding or denial if
the! cropped up later on during the nikaah" >oever, the! claim
that noada!s the nikaah is properl! recorded and signed b! both
parties" Therefore, itnesses are not necessar!" Thus, on the basis
of their flaed deduction of the reason for having itnesses in a
nikaah, the! cast aside this fundamental SharLi re#uirement"
/

&he &hird $roblem
The third problem is that some people ill come across certain
Ahaadith hich have been unanimousl! abrogated 1i"e" according
to the consensus of the Sahaabah and the entire Hmmah4,
hoever due to lack of sufficient knoledge regarding the
historical background of the la, the! ill begin practising upon it"
%onsider the >adith hich permits the practice of mutah"
+

Hndoubtedl!, for a limited time the Sahaabah ere alloed to

/
Ta#leed a IAtihaad b! Ml" Ashraf Ali Thani pg" -0
+
MutKah refers to a temporar! marriage that as initiall! alloed
for muAaahids ho ere out in Aihaad and it as later abrogated" A

practise mutah in the noble era of Basulullah during Aihaad"
>oever, this permissibilit! as later abrogated b! the la of
prohibition" If an!one independentl! studies the classical orks of
the Muhadditheen, vi$" Saheeh Bukhaari, Saheeh Muslim as ell as
other compilations of >adith, he ill conclude that it is permissible
for one to practise mutah, since the >adith hich mentions its
permissibilit! is recorded in these books"

The folloing narration appears in Saheeh Muslim&
+ -)k < K & CR&
UL x (" (4 . (
%77X %2 +%7 X&
B
9abir bin !bdullah and Salimah bin !&wa# report2 3! person (ame out to us
and announ(ed6 OIndeed 'asulullah has granted you permission to
engage in mut#ah+#:
This >adith as later abrogated b! man! other Ahaadith"
+

proper nikaah ould be performed ith the oman in the presence of itnesses
and ith mahr"
B
X B E ZY
D 8-8 +%7b / \ ^ K + 2" *&
f X B E ZB l
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? 3-

7rom this e*ample e can ell imagine the disastrous outcome of
those ho refer directl! to the ?uraan and >adith" The! ill
eventuall! end up folloing abrogated Ahaadith" It should be
understood that merel! finding a >adith recorded in Bukhaari or
Muslim or an! other compilation of >adith does not allo one to
practise upon it" =ust as there are certain verses recorded in the
?uraan hich are unanimousl! abrogated,
/
similarl! there are
man! authentic Ahaadith contained in the books of >adith 1vi$"
Saheeh Bukhaari, Saheeh Muslim, etc"4 hich are also unanimousl!
abrogated" The reason for these Ahaadith being recorded in these
books as in order to prove that this la e*isted in the earlier era
of Islam"

/
This refers to those verses hose las have been abrogated and replaced ith
other las though the recitation of those verses has not been abrogated" An
e*ample of this ould be the aa!ah regarding Aihaad&

>
'estrain your hands from Cihaad and establish Salaah and dis(harge La&aah (Surah Nisa
-2EE)
This la e*isted at the beginning of Islam hen the Sahaabah ere not
permitted to age ar against the &uffaar" Fater on this la as abrogated ith
the folloing verse&

\
Waging war with the &uffaar has been permitted for you on a((ount of you being
oppressed (Surah HaC ,,2AG)

>ence, e conclude that an! >adith found in the various books of
>adith ill not necessaril! #ualif! it to be practised upon" Instead
one ill have to verif! hether Basulullah continued practising
upon it till the end of his life or hether it as abrogated"
Combinin+ two Salaahs in ones hometown without
a 4alid reason
%onsider the la of Aoining to Salaahs under normal
circumstances 1i"e" ithout an! SharLi e*cuse and hilst one is
residing in his home ton4" The Sahaabah as ell as the entire
Hmmah for man! centuries of Islam ere unanimous that it is
impermissible for one under normal circumstances to Aoin Salaahs"
The >adith of Basulullah recorded in Tirmi$i is e*plicit in this
regard&
a& 0 -1 }u
# UL Q !.
B

Ibnu !bbaas reports that Nabi said2 3Whoe7er (ombines two
Salaahs without a 7alid reason has indeed (ommitted a maCor sin+:
+

B
C# B E Z
&$ ? a$ ? &$ X ] 6%I t2T ? & %I ?

d}u
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? 30

>oever, e notice that there is another >adith recorded b!
Imaam Tirmi$i +] under the chapter& I%hapter regarding the
combining of to SalaahsJ hich states&
x 0 *r 1%
Q~b `% +&2b }u K < y UL < R 3#
R ( < 7

Ibnu !bbaas stated2 3Nabi (ombined the Muhr Salaah with the
!sr Salaah and the aghrib Salaah with the 8sha Salaah in adinah
unawwarah without any e4(use neither the e4(use of fear nor rain+: Ibnu
!bbaas was then @uestioned2 3Why did Nabi do that?: He
replied2 3He did this so as not to in(on7enien(e his *mmah+:
Imaam Tirmi$i +] commentating upon this >adith declares&
IThis >adith 1the apparent meaning of this >adith i"e" performing
to Salaahs in one time hilst residing in ones home ton4 is not
practised b! an!bod!
+
"J >ence, e understand that the entire

x 0[ ( ?W -1 % ( ?*&2 9Le / 7) , Qyi &~
!. =}) $ 5 / -1 | A. ;T -% mU{ 3# ,WK
x a& !. Q UL # }u -1 0
f tJ` XT +2 \ BGD l
B
C# B E Z
+
According to the >anafi ma$hab, this >adith can be practised upon if
interpreted in this a! that Basulullah performed both Salaahs together b!

Hmmah has agreed upon the fact that it is impermissible for one to
practise upon the apparent meaning of this >adith" Oet e find in
this present age and time, a group of people ho practise upon this
abrogated >adith" So if someone ishes to follo hatever he
comes across in the vast treasure of >adith ithout e*amining its
true position in Deen, he ill certainl! end up folloing abrogated
Ahaadith" Such a person ill consider himself as having done a
great service to Deen" >e ill regard himself to be a reviver of a
Ldead Sunnah hich nobod! practised upon" >oever, the sad
realit! is that such a person has stra!ed from the straight path b!
folloing hat the entire Hmmah, from the time of the Sahaabah
, has regarded as abrogated" >e has reAected the path folloed
unanimousl! b! the entire Hmmah"
Allah Taala declares in the >ol! ?uraan&

,
;
>

_
Whoe7er opposes the 'asul after the guidan(e was manifest to him and
he follows a path other than that of the belie7ers then We shall lea7e him in
the path he has (hosen and We will enter him into 9ahannum+ What an e7il
abodeN (Surah Nisa -2//>)

performing 'uhr in its last time and Asr in its first time, similarl! Maghrib in its
last time and 8sha in its first time" In this a! both Salaahs ould be performed
in their respective times"

At this Auncture, it is e*tremel! important that e understand that
a discontinued practice no longer remains a Sunnah or part of
Deen" 8speciall! in the case here one is aare of the fact that the
common practice of the Sahaabah as ell as the entire Hmmah
opposes it" ;hat then gives one the authorit! to practise upon itC
7urthermore, the >adith of Basulullah sufficientl! elucidates this
point"
#g #g / &
B
Whoe7er adopts an independent path will also be alone in 9ahannum+
&he Fourth $roblem
The fourth problem is that if the masses are alloed to follo at
random hatever the! believe to be correct or hoever the! feel is
on the correct opinion, it ill eventuall! result in man! people
folloing their on hims and desires" Most people hen faced
ith a problematic situation opt to follo the opinion of those
Muftis and Aalims through hom their benefits and interests ill
be secured" In that predicament most people are totall!
unconcerned about stud!ing the proofs and eighing the
arguments" Bather, their main concern is ho the! can save their
image in societ! or secure their commercial gain" 7or the sake of

B
)$ B E BB

convenience the! are prepared to hop over to an! ma$hab in order
to achieve this obAective" One should honestl! ponder and
contemplate over this crucial situation" Is such a person folloing
Deen or folloing his nafsC ;ill such a persons actions be in
conformit! to the verse of the ?uraan&
_ 1Do not follo

!our desires"4 R+,&-6S or is his action opposing this la of the
?uraanC There are man! glaring e*amples found in toda!s times
hich highlight this problem" >ereunder a fe e*amples are cited&
A person is caught for e*ceeding the speed limit" >e is given a
B+555 fine b! the police" >e decides to look around to see hether
an! Aalim permits the pa!ing of speeding fines ith interest
mone!" >e is informed that a certain Aalim allos the pa!ing of
speeding fines ith interest mone!" So this person feels #uite
satisfied that he has found some sort of Austification for his actions
1through the 7ata of that specific Aalim4" But at the same time he
is told that !ou are presentl! eating prans" According to the 7ata
of that ver! Aalim, prans have been declared makrooh9e9tahrimi"
>ence !ou should also adhere to the ruling of that Aalim in relation
to the issue of prans"
>e responds, IThere isnt onl! one Aalim in the hole orld"
Dont !ou kno that so and so Aalim 1in hose opinion it is
impermissible to pa! speeding fines ith interest mone!4 declared
prans as totall! permissibleC So I follo that Aalim in that issue"J
One should consider this situation and honestl! anser the
folloing #uestion& ;ill the one adopting such an approach in
these matters, as ell as all other Deeni issues be regarded as a
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? 3.

sincere and steadfast Believer, or ill he be considered a I7ata
ShopperJ and one folloing his hims and desiresC >ence, e
conclude from this situation that the one ho opts to remain
unrestricted, b! folloing hat he feels appropriate and correct
eventuall! opposes to verses of the >ol! ?uraan&

>
<
>
>
Worship !llah 0a#ala with sin(erity+ HAG2,J

. <
$o not follow your desires+ H,?2ABJ

Allamah ibnul Aabidin +] narrated an incident that transpired
in the time of Shaikh Abu Bakr Al9=o$aAani +]" A >anafi Aalim
proposed to marr! the daughter of a person ho as from the
Ahle9>adith" The father refused to accept the proposal unless he
agrees to abandon his present ma$hab and begin practising L?iraat
khalfal9Imaam 1reading #iraat hilst folloing an Imaam in
Salaah4 and LBaful9Oadain 1i"e" lift his hands before and after ruku4
etc" The Aalim submitted to those conditions and the nikaah took
place" ;hen Shaikh Abu Bakr as asked regarding this situation he
loered his head and remarked& II fear that the Imaan of this man
ma! leave him at the time of his death, due to the fact that he
abandoned a practice hich he regarded as Sunnah, and

substituted it ith a contradictor! deed ithout an! SharLi reason,
but for the sake of securing a oman in nikaah"J
/

Moulana Ashraf Ali Thani +] narrates a similar incident"
>e sa!s& IThere is a village near our area, herein a man married a
certain oman" Fater it as learnt that both of them ere breastfed
b! the same oman 1thus being foster brother and sister4" A person
came to en#uire from me hat as to be done about the matter" I
e*plained to him that this marriage is not correct, and that the!
should be separated" >e remarked& LThis is going to be a source of
immense disgrace" (lease find a a! for its permissibilit!C I said to
him& L7irstl!Q There is no disgrace in separation" Bather, in living
together, there ill be immense disgrace, because people ill sa!
that !ou have united a brother and sister 1in marriage4" Secondl!,
even if there is disgrace, then let it be" ;hen this is the command of
the ShariLah, then there is no #uestion of disgrace" The man began
to sa!& LBut he drank the milk in infanc! and then immediatel!
vomited it out" So I told him& L;hether he vomited it out or not, the
la does not change"

B
7 R x Z E Y x n" yK +6&$ @ QA - ( .$ +,K7 / b
K UL ?# v:2 ( <" HL J[ . @ * / 7& 2T QA
d#? % ` UL cL L 34 y< & 22 0L2 ^_
c! .& 9\ ?# 7 ,k -c& 5 ," ?#2 ( K .
+&7& +6 k ) d& $ ? C#
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? 6/

After receiving a clear anser from me, the! proceeded to
Delhi" There the! found a man ho claimed to practise on the
>adith onl!, 1ithout folloing a ma$hab4" It is not m! obAect right
no to speak about him" >ence, to achieve their aim, the! ent to
this person to see if their obAect could be fulfilled" That person
issued a verdict that if he has consumed less than five sips, she does
not become impermissible for him 1to marr!4"
The! immediatel! rote out a #uestionnaire stating that a man
drank to sips of milk from a oman during infanc!" Does she
become his foster motherC The anser as ritten 1b! that person4
ith the >adith& 1One or to sips do not create
prohibition"4, hereas this >adith had been abrogated through the
verse of the >ol! ?uraan&

>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
. <
(Forbidden upon you are your mothers6 daughters6 sisters6 paternal aunts6
maternal aunts6 nie(es Hbrother#s daughters and sister#s daughtersJ6 your
foster mothers6 and foster sisters+) H-2,-J
The man became ver! happ! and proceeded to the husband and
ife and handed the 7ata over to them sa!ing& LThis after all is
also an Aalims 7ata" If e practise on it, hat harm ill there
beCJ

Toda!, this is the kind of self9interest that is found in people"
/

&he Fifth $roblem
The fifth problem is that at times due to not confining oneself to
one ma$hab, a person ill commit the serious crime of
contradicting the consensus of the Sahaabah and the entire
Hmmah of Basulullah " The ?uraanic inAunctions, as ell as the
Ahaadith are e*plicit ith regards to the severit! of such an act"
Allah Taala declares&

,
;
>

_
Whoe7er opposes the 'asul after the guidan(e was manifest to him and
he follows a path other than that of the belie7ers then We shall lea7e him in
the path he has (hosen and We will enter him into 9ahannum+ What an e7il
abodeN (Surah Nisa -2//>)
In one >adith, @abi has stated&
#g #g / &
Whoe7er adopts an independent path will also be alone in 9ahannum+
(ustadra& Ha&im /)//>)

/
Ashraful =aaab (g"/)6
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? 6-

In !et another >adith, @abi has said&
< 0 +-I
!llah 0a#ala will not (ause my *mmah to unite on misguidan(e+
(ustadra& Ha&im /)//>)
An e*ample to illustrate the above9mentioned aspect is the
#uestion of three talaa#s issued all at once" Becentl! several
incidents of this nature occurred, here a person issued his ife
ith three talaa#s in one sitting" Hpon realising his error he ished
to make up" >oever, the Hlama e*plained to him that his nikaah
ith his ife has terminated" >ence, until the SharLi condition of
halaalah does not happen, it is completel! prohibited for him to
continue living ith the oman" The man as also informed that if
the! continued to live ith each other, the! ould be living a life of
$ina" This person ent around 1in an earnest endeavour to save
himself from the disgrace and embarrassment of societ!4 asking
hether an! ma$hab offers a solution to the present situation" >e
as repeatedl! informed that there is consensus amongst all the
four ma$habs as ell as the entire Hmmah from the time of the
Sahaabah upon this issue" This consensus continued for seven
centuries till the time of ibn Taimi!!ah, ho as responsible for
breaking the consensus" This person, desperate to save his integrit!
and e*tricate himself from the embarrassment, said& II ill accept
this verdict and go b! it"J

>ence, the one ho opts to follo an isolated vie hich as
initiated man! centuries after the era of the Sahaabah 1e"g" the
#uestion of three talaa#s being considered as one talaa# or that
taraaeeh is onl! eight rakaats and not tent! rakaats4 is impl!ing
b! a! of inference that the entire Hmmah including the illustrious
Sahaabah of Basulullah ere unaare of the true Deen, or that
the! ere in misguidance G Allah 7orbid" 7urthermore, one ill be
opposing the inAunction of Basulullah herein he said&
7 2# C% @ . f >I *& l
B

Follow the two who will (ome after me5 !bu %a&r and *mar +
@ @@ @ote ote ote ote& && & The masalah of three talaa#s being regarded as three is
substantiated b! the ?uraan, >adith, Aathaar of Sahaabah and
IAmaa"
&he Si)th $roblem
The si*th problem is that a person ho does not strictl! adhere to
one ma$hab and instead randoml! chooses the verdict of those
Imaams hom he deems correct, at times opposes all ma$habs"
>ence, his ibaadat is rendered null and void according to all the
Imaams"

B
C# D E DY

%onsider the situation here a person ishes to follo the
ma$hab of Imaam Ahmad +] in regard to the masalah of raful
!adain during Salaah 1raising the hands at the time hen going into
ruku as ell as coming up from ruku4 and he decides to follo the
ma$hab of Imaam Maalik +] regarding the masalah of irsaal
1not t!ing the hands in the standing posture, instead leaving it
loose on the sides hen reciting Surah 7aatiha and a Surah4"
Thereafter in the masalah of ?iraat khalfal9Imaam he opts to
follo the ma$hab of Imaam Abu >anifah +] i"e" those behind
the Imaam are not alloed to recite an!thing, neither Surah
7aatiha nor a Surah, and in the masalah of ?unoot of 7aAr he
chooses to follo Imaam Shaafiee +] i"e" it is necessar! that
?unoot be read after coming up from ruku in the second rakaat of
7aAr" This person thereafter comes to kno that according to the
Salafees 1though not according to the four Imaams of 7i#h4 udhu
is valid b! merel! making masah over n!lon or cotton socks and he
then performs Salaah ith such a udhu" ;hat ill e sa!
regarding the Salaah of such a personC According to no ma$hab,
neither the Salafees nor the four ma$habs, ill the Salaah of such a
person be valid" >is Salaah ill be invalid according to the four
Imaams on account of his udhu being invalid, and his Salaah ill
be invalid according to the Salafees on account of him not reciting
Surah 7aatiha behind the Imaam hich is necessar! according to
them"
Moulana Ashraf Ali Thani +] rites& IP ;hen the
condition prevalent amongst most people is that the! follo that

hich appeals to their personal reasoning then if the! are not
going to be restricted to an! ma$hab, their actions ill definitel! be
based on self9interest" The outcome ill then be like the person
ho bled after having performed udhu" According to the >anafi
ma$hab, his udhu is nullified, and according to the Shaafiee
ma$hab, his udhu remains intact" Therefore, he decides to follo
the ma$hab of Imaam Shaafiee +] in this masalah" Thereafter
he touches his ife, and since touching ones ife nullifies ones
udhu according to the Shaafiee ma$hab contrar! to the vie of
the >anafi ma$hab, he opts to follo the ma$hab of Imaam Abu
>anifah +] in this masalah" The result of this is that none of
the ma$habs regard his udhu as valid, neither Imaam Abu >anifah
+] nor Imaam Shaafiee ] + " If he performs Salaah, his
Salaah ill be invalid according to both ma$habs 1according to
Imaam Abu >anifah +] due to blood floing from his bod! and
according to Imaam Shaafiee +] due to him touching his ife4"
>ence, the one ho adopts an attitude of folloing his desires in all
matters of Deen remains a orshipper of his nafs 1personal
interests4 and there ill be no Deen left in his life" Thus such a
concoction and mi*ture of the various ma$aahib is impermissible
according to all the Imaams"
The difference beteen us and the Sahaabah is that the primar!
concern of the Sahaabah as the fear of Allah Taala and
commitment to Deen" %onversel!, our greater concern revolves
around securing our personal interests and image in societ!" >ence,
e are prepared to compromise our Deeni values in order to secure

our personal interests" Thus e understand that there as no real
need for the Sahaabah to confine themselves to folloing one
ma$hab or one Imaam 1considering the fact that the era the! lived
in as an era replete ith man! MuAtahideen"4
7urthermore, through Ta#leed our Deen is completel!
s!stemi$ed and codified 1i"e" the four Imaams have e*tracted
principles from the ?uraan and >adith b! hich the! deduced
las and inAunctions, thereb! enabling us to understand each
masalah of Deen in its correct perspective"4 If e abandon Ta#leed
and follo hat e deem correct, e ill be de9s!stemi$ing and
de9codif!ing our Deen" If our endeavour is to follo the most
correct ruling of the four Imaams, then due to us not being capable
of such a great task, e ill be putting ourselves through
unnecessar! difficult!" If our obAective is ease 1b! looking for
concessions4, then e ill be enslaved to our nafs" Therefore, for
the consistent balance of ShariLah to remain, together ith securit!
against the nafs 1self interest4, Ta#leed is essential" 1Ashraful
=aaab /).9/054
&he Se4enth $roblem
The seventh problem is that some people ill reAect IAtihaad totall!"
The! ill feel that there is no need for making IAtihaad" Instead, if
an! problematic situation arises, one should refer directl! to the
?uraan and >adith in finding a solution, since Allah Taala
commands in the ?uraan&

<
<
_ <
<
_ <
<
_ <
<
>
` ,
>
` ,
>
` ,
>
` ,
If you dispute in any matter then refer it to !llah and the 'asul if you
truly belie7e in !llah and the last day+ (Surah Nisa -2>G)
Thus the! rongl! deduce from this aa!ah that there is no need for
IAtihaad" The outcome of those adopting this attitude is that the!
ill be faced ith one of three situations&
/" The! ill completel! ignore all those aspects of Deen hich
are not e*plicitl! mentioned in the ?uraan and Sunnah but,
have nevertheless been derived from these sources b! the
MuAtahideen through IAtihaad"
+" The! ill not find SharLi solutions to man! contemporar!
issues and thus fall into suspicions and doubts regarding the
truth of Islam" The! ill begin to feel that Islam is not a
complete a! of life since ShariLah has not provided
solutions to man! issues"
-" The! ill consider themselves to be free to do as the! ish
in all matters that have not been e*plicitl! mentioned in the
?uraan and Sunnah" The end result of this is that the! ill
follo their desires, thus causing them to veer astra!" Allah
Taala sa!s&

>
>
>
>
>
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? 6.

$o you thin& that We ha7e (reated you in 7ain and that you will
not be returned ba(& to *s+ (Surah u#minoon ,A2//>)
7or e*ample, if e consider the masalah of shaving the hair,
there is mention in the Ahaadith regarding the
impermissibilit! of shaving the beard, hoever there is no
e*plicit mention in the ?uraan as ell as the Ahaadith of
Basulullah regarding the masalah of shaving the hair on
the cheek 1i"e" above the beard4 or the hair on the chest or
on the calves" Similarl!, there is mention in the Ahaadith
regarding the masalah of a fl! falling into milk, hoever
there is no e*plicit mention in the ?uraan as ell as the
Ahaadith of Basulullah regarding the masalah of a
mos#uito, flea, bee or asp falling into milk" These masaail
have been derived through the IAtihaad of the MuAtahideen"
>ence, hat ill be the viepoint of such individuals 1ho
reAect IAtihaad4 regarding these t!pes of masaailC
A !ebate between Mufti Mahmood Hasan 3an+ohi
Saheb 7 former Mufti of !arul 8loom
!eoband 7 and a 3hair Mu,allid at the Ma,aam.e.
0brahim
Mufti Mahmood Saheb related that once, a ghair mu#allid met him
at the Ma#aam9e98brahim and said&
.5 Why should we follow an Imaam?

Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 I have heard that !ou issue 7atas" M! advice to !ou
is that !ou should never issue a 7ata contrar! to the ?uraan and
>adith"
ufti ufti ufti ufti Saheb Saheb Saheb Saheb2 22 2 If !our advice is general then I am grateful and
=a$aakallah 1ma! Allah reard !ou"4" >oever, if !ou have come
across an! of m! 7atas that contradict the ?uraan or >adith then
kindl! inform me so that I ma! look into it" If I have erred then I
shall retract"
Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 I have not come across an! such 7ata" @evertheless,
I have Aust heard that !ou issue 7atas" Therefore, I decided to
advise !ou in this regard"
ufti ufti ufti ufti Saheb Saheb Saheb Saheb2 22 2 ;ell, listen attentivel! to hat I have to sa!" ;hen a
#uer! comes before me, I refer to the ?uraan Shareef" If I find the
anser recorded in the ?uraan then I do not turn to an!thing else"
7or e*ample, the #uestion regarding three talaa#s 1in one sitting4
came before me" ;hen I referred to the ?uraan Shareef I found the
aa!ah&

0wo di7or(es (an be issued (Surah %a@arah ,2,,G)

After a fe lines Allah Taala then sa!s&

>
>
,
;
>
>
:
0hen if he di7or(es her (the third di7or(e) she will not be halaal for him
until she marries another husband+ (Surah %a@arah ,2,A.)
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? ./

;e understand from here that if three talaa#s are issued, all three
ill be valid irrespective of hether the! are issued in one sitting
or separate sittings" The ?uraan Shareef does not present an!
further detail in this issue" >ence, such a oman no longer remains
halaal and laful for her husband unless she undergoes the process
of halaalah" Thus, in the masalah of three talaa#s I issued the
verdict in conformit! to the ?uraan that the ife is totall!
unlaful for the husband"
If after searching through the ?uraan Shareef I do not find a
solution to m! problem I refer to the >adith" If I find the anser in
the >adith, then I do not refer to an!thing else" 7or e*ample, the
#uestion regarding ?iraat Nhalfal9Imaam 1should the mu#tadi
recite Surah 7aatiha behind the Imaam in Salaah4 as posed to me"
;hen I searched the ?uraan Shareef I could not find an! anser"
Therefore, I then referred to the >adith" I came across a narration
in Saheeh Muslim here @abi stated& 1;hen the Imaam
is engaged in #iraat then the mu#tadi should remain silent"4" This
>adith is an authentic narration 1Saheeh4, clear in its purport
1Sareeh4 and it has not been abrogated 1Ehair Mansookh4" ;e
clearl! understand from this >adith that it is impermissible for the
mu#tadi to engage in an! recitation hilst the Imaam is reciting"
Thus, I issued the 7ata in conformit! to the >adith" 7urthermore,
if I do not find an! solution in the >adith then I adopt the vie
1IAtihaad4 of Imaam Abu >anifah +]"
.+ Why should we follow an Imaam?

Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 It is impossible that !ou ill not find a solution in the
>adith" If !ou cannot find the anser in !our books, then search in
the books of others"
ufti ufti ufti ufti Saheb Saheb Saheb Saheb2 22 2 ;ho do !ou refer to hen !ou sa! othersC Must I search
in the books of the Oahood and @asaaraC
Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 @o" Search in Bukhaari, Tirmi$i, etc"
ufti ufti ufti ufti Saheb Saheb Saheb Saheb2 22 2 ;h! do !ou refer to them as the books of othersC Arent
the! our books as ellC ;e stud! and teach their kitaabs all the
time" Oou claim that ever!thing is found in the >adith hereas the
>adith itself disproves hat !ou are sa!ing" It appears in the >adith
that hen Basulullah dispatched >adhrat Muaa$ to Oemen, he
asked him, I;hat procedure ill !ou adopt hen passing decisions
in the affairs of the MuslimsCJ Muaa$ replied& II ill decide in
accordance to the ?uraan"J @abi then asked him& IIf a la is not
found in the ?uraan then hat ill !ou doCJ >e replied, II ill
refer to the Ahaadith of Basulullah "J @abi then #uestioned him&
IIf the ruling is not found in the Ahaadith, then hat ill !ou doCJ
>e replied& II ill emplo! m! abilit! of reasoning 1IAtihaad4 in
reaching a conclusion"J Hpon hearing this, @abi said& IAll praise
be to Allah ho inspired the messenger of Basulullah 1Muaa$ 4
ith the correct guidance"J 1Tirmi$i G Nitaabul Ahkaam G /<+)34
Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Ask me an! #uestion and I promise !ou that I shall
furnish the anser from the >adith"
ufti ufti ufti ufti Saheb Saheb Saheb Saheb2 22 2 If !ou ill be able to present to me a >adith that is an
authentic narration 1Saheeh4, clear in its purport 1Sareeh4 and it
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? .-

has not been abrogated 1Ehair Mansookh4 for ever! masalah that I
ask, then I shall seek forgiveness for being a >anafi and I shall
abandon the Ta#leed of Imaam Abu >anifah " ;ell, then do
!ou have an! >adith stating clearl! regarding the permissibilit! or
impermissibilit! of removing the hair on the cheek 1above the
beard4" Similarl!, can !ou present before me an! >adith regarding
the hair on the chest and calvesC
Since there is no clear >adith found, he became e*tremel!
embarrassed and asked,
Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Do !ou ish to test meC
ufti ufti ufti ufti Saheb Saheb Saheb Saheb2 22 2 Oes" I am testing !ou" Do !ou think that I ill so easil!
abandon folloing the >anafi ma$habC I ill have to thoroughl!
e*amine !ou before abandoning Imaam Abu >anifah and adopting
!our a!"
>e became enraged at this and began alking aa!" I then said
to him, I8*cuse me, but !ou had Aust promised me earlier that !ou
ill present a >adith for ever! masalah that I ask !ou" So fulfil !our
promise" Dont break !our promise" This is a sign of a munaafi#
1h!pocrite4" It is reported in the >adith regarding the signs of a
munaafi#& !" # $% 1hen he makes a promise he breaks it4"J
The ghair mu#allid ignored me and left" So I said to him, IAt
least make musaafahah ith both hands before !ou depart"J I then
.) Why should we follow an Imaam?

e*tended both m! hands and he stretched forth onl! one hand and
made musaafahah 1as is the a! of the ghair mu#allideen4"
/

&he 0i+hth $roblem
The eighth problem is that the one ho does not subscribe to an!
of the four ma$habs and instead refers directl! to the ?uraan and
>adith ill after a period of time inevitabl! fall into confusion and
doubt" The reason for this is that the one ho is un#ualified in Deen
ill at times come across situations here the purport of the
Ahaadith seems to contradict each other"
%onsider the >adith of Basulullah reported in Bukhaari hich
e*plains that Basulullah raised his hands hen going into ruku
as ell as hen coming up from ruku"
() 0L2 22 #$ .& 4" 77L =-1 4" W) -) 4" 0L
-)
D

Nabi would raise his hands up to his shoulders when (ommen(ing
Salaah6 when saying the ta&beer for ru&u# and when rising from ru&u#+
Opposed to this is the report of @asaai Shareef hich states that
@abi onl! raised his hands at the time of takbeer9e9tahreemah

/
Malfoo$aat of 7a#eehul Hmmah Mufti Mahmood Saheb +]
D
C B E BYD
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? .0

1i"e" at the commencement of the Salaah4 and he did not raise his
hands at an! other time during the Salaah"
L 0L2 22 <" = =$
B
He only raised his hands on(e+
Similarl!, the >adith of Tirmi$i and Abu Daood Shareef proves
that @abi also raised his hands after rising up from saAdah"
4" 0L RoX M2 0L 22 '$ L -
D
He raised his hands when getting up from saCdah+
One ill be surprised to find that all these Ahaadith are authentic"
Another e*ample is those narrations hich e*plain that
Aameen should be said softl! after Surah 7aatiha&
() 4" < M j6K P
G
'asulullah would say !ameen after reading &' and he would lower
his 7oi(e+

B
>!X, B E BD
D
RR B E BY C# t B E
G
C# B E
., Why should we follow an Imaam?

Other Ahaadith e*plain that the Aameen be said aloud"
() 4" < M 0L P
B
'asulullah would say !ameen and he would raise his 7oi(e+
Simirlal!, some Ahaadith e*plain that it is necessar! under all
circumstances to recite Surah 7aatiha in Salaah" Otherise, the
Salaah ill be invalid"
< =- b U2 +p6 Q7.
D

0here is no Salaah for he who does not re(ite Surah Faatiha+
>oever, other Ahaadith e*plain that it is necessar! for the one
behind the Imaam to remain silent" >e is not alloed to recite
an!thing in an audible and inaudible Salaah"
4" 71,L
G
When the Imaam re(ites then remain silent+
() ^" =UL ^_ =
B

B
RR B E BG
D
C# B E Y
G
X B E Z
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? .3

Who has an Imaam6 the re(itation of his Imaam will be suffi(ient for him+
(Hen(e there is no need for him to re(ite anything behind the Imaam+)
x ,WK !" 8$ @ +`! Rg
R x ^ / 1% x UL 6K
dc~L C# 2 L ( x cu x ()
3 5?.L ( U 6K %XL a& x
() ^" (L =
D
!bdullah bin Shaddaad reports that Nabi led the !sr Salaah+ $uring the
Salaah someone re(ited some "iraat whilst following+ Hen(e6 a musallee
besides him nudged him+ !fter the Salaah6 he as&ed the person6 3Why did
you nudge me?: He replied6 3Nabi was standing in front of you and I did
not li&e that you re(ite any @iraat whilst following him+: Nabi heard this
and said2 3Whoe7er follows an Imaam6 his (the Imaam#s) @iraat will suffi(e
for him+
It is also noteorth! that all these above mentioned Ahaadith have
been authenticall! reported b! the Muhadditheen" >ence, on hat
basis ill one ho is not a MuAtahid give preference to one >adith
over the other, more so hen it cannot be chronologicall! proven
in man! cases hich of the las are the former and hich are the

B
+ B y t B E GDG
D
^- \b BYB
.6 Why should we follow an Imaam?

latterC ;hat ill be the basis of the Audgement of such a person
ho is not ac#uainted ith the various sciences of ShariLah, vi$"
?uraan, >adith, 7i#h, the practices of the Sahaabah, IAmaa, etc",
and he also does not have a set of rules governing his
authenticating or disauthenticating the Ahaadith, nor does he
understand the factors hich credit or discredit the narrator or the
reasons for preferring one to the otherC It is obvious that he ill
eventuall! choose one narration either on the basis of personal
interests or hat his heart is inclined toards or hat he sees
people doing in a certain Arab countr!" This is definitel! no
grounds in ShariLah for giving preference"
An interestin+ dialo+ue with a 3hair Mu,allid
re+ardin+ the Mu,tadee re%itin+ behind the Imaam
in Salaah
>adhrat Mufti Mahmood Eangohi as conducting a
Bukhaari Shareef lesson in Nanpur hen a person entered and
posed a #uestion hich as totall! unrelated to the lesson"
@evertheless the folloing discussion ensued beteen >adhrat
Mufti Saheb and the ghair mu#allid&
Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 ;hat is !our personal opinion regarding the
masalah of ?iraat Nhalfal9Imaam 1the mu#tadee reciting behind
the Imaam in Salaah4C
Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 I ill anser once !ou inform me hich
ma$hab !ou subscribe to"
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? ..

Phair u Phair u Phair u Phair u@allid2 @allid2 @allid2 @allid2 I am an Ahle9>adith"
Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 @o !ou ma! present !our #uestion"
Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 ;hat is !our personal opinion regarding the
masalah of ?iraat Nhalfal9Imaam 1the mu#tadee reciting behind
the Imaam in Salaah4C
Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Oour #uestion is #uite disturbing"
Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 It is strange that a mere #uestion could disturb
someone"
Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 %ertainl!Q It is for this reason the ?uraan has
forbade us from posing certain #uestions" Does the ?uraan not
command us&

'
,
.
.
>
.
D =ou who belie7eN $o not pose su(h @uestions whi(h6 if e4plained to
you6 will (ause you pain+: (Surah aa#idah6 /./)
Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 And ma! I ask in hich a! did m! #uestion disturb
!ouC
Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 I am disturbed on account of the fact that !ou
are en#uiring about m! personal opinion in this issue" Are !ou
going to go b! hatever I sa!C Oou ought to be asking hat the
>adith has to sa! regarding this masalah"J
Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 OesQ That is e*actl! hat I meant"

Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Al9>amdulillahQ Oour inner condition reveals
that !ou consider hatever I am going to tell !ou to be in
accordance to that hich appears in the >adith" 1Therefore, !ou
have in#uired from me regarding m! personal opinion"4 @o that
!ou have understood this, listen attentivel!Q It is not compulsor!
for the mu#tadi to recite behind the Imaam in Salaah"
Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 Phair u@allid2 ;ill !ou present to me !our proof for sa!ing it is not
compulsor! for the mu#tadi to recite behind the ImaamC
Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Once again !ou have disturbed me through
!our #uestion"
Phair Phair Phair Phair u@all u@all u@all u@allid2 id2 id2 id2 >o is thatC
Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Oou claim to be an Ahle9>adith 1a folloer of
the >adith4 hereas in this situation !ou have abandoned the
teachings of the >adith" The >adith instructs the claimant to
furnish proof, not the defendant" Since !ou are claiming that it is
compulsor! for the mu#tadi to recite behind the Imaam in Salaah,
it is !our dut! to furnish the proof&
+& >b
Nabi said2 It is the duty of the (laimant to produ(e proof in
substantiation of his (laim+
>afi$ ibnus9Salaah in his IMu#addamahJ has categoricall! stated
that this >adith is a mash9hoor >adith"
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? /5/

I am not the one ho claims that it is compulsor! for the
mu#tadee to recite behind the Imaam" Instead, it is !ou" Despite
that, !ou still demand proof from me and act contrar! to this
>adith&
+& >b
Nabi said2 It is the duty of the (laimant to produ(e proof in
substantiation of his (laim+
%ertainl! this is not hat is e*pected from a person ho claims to
be Ahle9>adith 1a folloer of the >adith4"
@evertheless, I ill still e*plain to !ou 1h! reciting behind the
Imaam is not compulsor!4" To prove compulsion, one needs an
absolutel! authentic proof knon in ShariLah as @ass9e9?ati"
In our case, the proof i"e" the >adith hich establishes reciting
behind the Imaam is not an absolutel! authentic proof 1@ass9e9
?ati4"
Phair Phair Phair Phair u@all u@all u@all u@allid2 id2 id2 id2 >eres m! proof P
< =- b U2 +p6 Q7.
0here is no Salaah for he who did not read Surah Faatiha+
Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Inform me, in hich Au$ of the ?uraan does this
appearC In hich Surah does this verse appearC %ertainl! this is no
verse of the ?uraan" Instead this is a >adith hich falls under the
/5+ Why should we follow an Imaam?

categor! of khabrul aahid" Dont !ou even kno the meaning of
an absolutel! authentic proofC 1() *+4
@evertheless since !ou have presented this >adith, can !ou
please e*plain ho !ou have concluded from this >adith that it is
compulsor! to recite behind the ImaamC
7or a long time I have been aiting to ask the Ahle9>adith ho
the! conclude from this >adith that it is compulsor! for the
mu#tadi to recite Surah 7aatiha" %onsider the narration of >adhrat
Hbaadah bin Saamit &
Once, after the completion of the Salaah, Basulullah
en#uired from the Sahaabah as to ho among them ere
reciting during the Salaah" Basulullah said&
.% (U K ."
It seems that you are re(iting behind your Imaam
7rom this >adith e understand that reciting behind the Imaam
as not a command of Basulullah " Similarl!, e come to kno
that reciting behind the Imaam as not a common practice during
the era of Basulullah "
>ad this been the common practice of the Sahaabah or the
command of Basulullah , @abi ould have not en#uired from
them hether the! ere reciting behind the Imaam" 7urthermore,
had this been the instruction of Basulullah , the companions of
Basulullah ould have replied&
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? /5-

O our master , as per !our instruction e are reciting
behind the Imaam"J
It is for this ver! reason, e do not find that Basulullah ever
#uestioned the Sahaabah hether the! recited Lsubhana rabbi!al
a$eem in ruku, Lsubhana rabbi!al aala in saAdah or attihi!aatC
;h! didnt @abi ask regarding these aspectsC This is due to
the fact that this as the general practice of the Sahaabah hich
ever!one as carr!ing out as per the instruction of @abi "
>oever, in the case of reading behind the Imaam, the #uestion
as posed& I;ho from amongst !ou ere reciting behind me in
SalaahCJ
Some of the Sahaabah then timorousl! ansered& I;e ere
reciting behind !ou, O @abi QJ @abi then said&
Do not recite an!thing 1behind !our Imaam4 ith the
e*ception of Surah 7aatiha, for there is no Salaah for the one ho
does not recite Surah 7aatiha P 1Ba$lul MaAhood4
Phair Phair Phair Phair u@all u@all u@all u@allid2 id2 id2 id2 IP Oou seeQ This is e*actl! hat I mentioned to !ouQJ
Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 I%ertainl!Q But, allo me to e*plain to !ou the
correct meaning of this >adith" On one hand Basulullah prohibits
reciting behind the Imaam through the folloing ords& ,- 1do
not recite behind the ImaamQ4 and on the other hand Basulullah
makes an e*clusion b! sa!ing % 1e*cept forP4" 1So e have a
prohibition together ith an e*clusion"4 Thus the prohibition
denotes impermissibilit! hilst the e*clusion denotes
permissibilit!" Definitel! e understand that Basulullah ill not
prevent !ou from doing a certain thing and at the same time allo
/5) Why should we follow an Imaam?

!ou to do that ver! same thing" So could !ou e*plain to me hich
thing is Basulullah preventing us from and hich thing is
Basulullah alloing us to do" If e are being alloed to recite
Surah 7aatiha 1behind the Imaam4, then hat are e being
prohibited fromC
Phair Phair Phair Phair u@all u@all u@all u@allid2 id2 id2 id2 I8ver!thing besides Surah 7aatiha ill be left under
the prohibition" In actual fact, hat I mean is that the >adith is
stopping us from reciting an!thing 1i"e" a Surah4 after Surah 7aatiha
like reading some other verse or like Aoining another Surah to
Surah 7aatiha"
Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 IDer! ell" Fet us make iitibaar of this >adith"
Are !ou familiar ith the terminolog! of the Muhadditheen hen
the! mention iitibaarC
Phair Phair Phair Phair u@all u@all u@all u@allid2 id2 id2 id2 I%ertainl! I am familiar ith this terminolog!"
Iitibaar means to accept and acknoledge something"J
Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 @OQ This is not hat iitibaar means" According
to the Muhadditheen, iitibaar means to carr! out a comprehensive
stud! in order to gather the various chains of a certain >adith
hich are recorded in the books of >adith" The purpose for
carr!ing out this stud! is so that one ma! be able to keep before
him the various te*ts of the same >adith and pass a correct
Audgement" @o, making iitibaar of this >adith, e find different
ordings appearing in different Ahaadith" The folloing te*t
appears in one >adith&
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? /50

< =- b U2 +p6 Q7. 1L
0here is no Salaah for the one who does not re(ite Surah Faatiha and
something else (o7er and abo7e Surah Faatiha)+
In another te*t it appears&
L R
something additional
In !et another te*t it appears&

X
whate7er else you find easy to re(ite+
Another te*t reads&
= *%
0here is no Salaah for the one who does not re(ite Surah Faatiha (oupled
with another Surah+
Oet another te*t reads&
72 *%
/5, Why should we follow an Imaam?

0here is no Salaah for the one who does not re(ite Surah Faatiha and two
more 7erses+
Neeping all these te*ts before us, e understand that it is
permissible for one to recite more than Surah 7aatiha" @o, !ou
e*plain to me that if this is the case, then hat e*actl! are e not
supposed to recite behind the ImaamC
If !ou have an! reservations regarding the authenticit! of these
te*ts, I ill sho it to !ou from the original orks"
>adhrat Mufti Saheb continued& IFet us leave these #uestions to
be ansered b! the learned scholars" I ish to ask !ou another
masalah" Tell me, if !ou entered the MusAid hilst the Imaam is in
ruku, hat ill !ou doC ;ill !ou Aoin him in ruku or notC
If !ou dont Aoin him then !ou 1being an Ahle9>adith4 ill be
abandoning the >adith hich sa!s& L=oin the Imaam in hichever
posture !ou find him in" 1Musannaf Abdur Ba$$aa# +<+6/4
And if !ou do Aoin him in ruku, then hat about !our Surah
7aatihaC
Oou could recite it in ruku, but then !ou ill be contradicting
the >adith hich prohibits reciting ?uraan in ruku" 1@asai4"
Oou could do as some of the Ahle9>adith do i"e" despite them
Aoining the Imaam in ruku, the! repeat the rakaat after the Imaam
makes salaam" If !ou do accordingl!, !ou ill be abandoning the
>adith herein Basulullah said& I;ho Aoins the Imaam in ruku
has got the rakaat"J 1Ba$lul MaAhood4
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? /53

@o tell me, ho can one call himself an Ahle9>adith hen he
has ignored all these Ahaadith of Basulullah C In fact 1from the
Ahaadith mentioned4 he has not practised on a single >adith"
Phair Phair Phair Phair u@all u@all u@all u@allid2 id2 id2 id2 >o do I come out of this problemC I am cornered
from all sides"
Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 I;hat a simpleton !ou areQ After I have
cornered !ou from all sides, !ou are asking me for a a! out"J
Phair Phair Phair Phair u@all u@all u@all u@allid2 id2 id2 id2 IIf !ou had found the Imaam in ruku, hat ould
!ou doCJ
Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 I;h! are !ou no referring to meC >as !our
treasure of Ahaadith depletedC And if I do tell !ou, ill !ou go b!
hat I sa!CJ
Phair Phair Phair Phair u@all u@all u@all u@allid2 id2 id2 id2 1Silent4
Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 IIf I do tell !ou, ill !ou promise to adopt
Ta#leed as e doCJ
Phair Phair Phair Phair u@all u@all u@all u@allid2 id2 id2 id2 I(lease dont entangle me ith !our arguments"J
Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 IOou have become so entangled, as if there is
no a! out of it" As for me, I ould simpl! refer the matter to
>adhrat Imaam Abu >anifah" I ould go up to him and sa!&
I>adhratQ I am cornered from all sides, please sho me a a! out"J
Imaam Abu >anifah ould sa!& ISonQ The >adith is e*plicit& IIn
hichever posture !ou find the Imaam, Aoin him"J SonQ 7ollo the
>adith and go directl! into ruku, for it is impermissible to
contradict the >adith"J

7urthermore, understand O m! sonQ The >adith has prohibited
us from reciting ?uraan during ruku" >ence do not recite Surah
7aatiha in the state of ruku, for indeed it is a grave offence to
contradict the >adith"
And m! dear sonQ The >adith sa!s& ;ho Aoins the Imaam in
ruku, has got the rakaat" So regard that rakaat as counted and do
not repeat it" Otherise !ou ill be committing a serious crime b!
ignoring the >adith"
I ill then en#uire& IO Imaam SahebQ ;hat about the >adith&
< =- b U2 +p6 Q7.
0here is no Salaah for he who does not re(ite Surah Faatiha+
Imaam Abu >anifah ould repl!&
SonQ This >adith refers to the one ho is not behind an Imaam,
e"g" someone ho is performing Salaah alone or this >adith refers
to the Imaam himself"
If the Imaam or the one performing Salaah alone does not recite
Surah 7aatiha, the Salaah ill not be complete"
As for the one folloing the Imaam, then there are other
Ahaadith relating to him" 7or e*ample the narration hich sa!s&
4" 71,L
When the Imaam re(ites then remain silent+ (uslim)
() ^" =UL ^_ =
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? /5.

Who has an Imaam6 the re(itation of his Imaam will be suffi(ient for him
(0abraani6 $aara "utni6 Ibnu aCah Q See %aLlul aChood)
^_ I
0he Imaam is made responsible for the entire (ongregation+ (0irmiLi)
After all, there must be something hich the Imaam has taken
responsibilit! of"
Phair Phair Phair Phair u@all u@all u@all u@allid2 id2 id2 id2 The narrator of that >adith is a ka$$aab 1liar4"
Ha Ha Ha Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 dhrat ufti Saheb2 dhrat ufti Saheb2 dhrat ufti Saheb2
4" 71,L
When the Imaam re(ites then remain silent+ (uslim)
This >adith is a >adith narrated b! Imaam Muslim in Muslim
Shareef" >o dare !ou find fault ith the narratorC
An!a!, ho is this narratorC Fet me make a note of him" ;ho
knos, he might appear in one of !our proofs and I ill use it
against !ou"
Phair Phair Phair Phair u@all u@all u@all u@allid2 id2 id2 id2 Theres nothing rong ith this >adith" I as
referring to the other >adith hich sa!s&
() ^" =UL ^_ =
//5 Why should we follow an Imaam?

Who has an Imaam6 the re(itation of his Imaam will be suffi(ient for him
(0abraani6 $aara "utni6 Ibnu aCah Q See %aLlul aChood)
In this narration there is a ka$$aab 1liar4"
Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 IAnd ho is this ka$$aab narratorCJ
Phair Phair Phair Phair u@all u@all u@all u@allid2 id2 id2 id2 I=aabir =ufiJ
Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 IAnd hich Muhaddith ruled =aabir =ufi as a
ka$$aabCJ
Phair Phair Phair Phair u@all u@all u@all u@allid2 id2 id2 id2 IAbu >anifahJ
Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 SubhanallahQ Oou mean !ou are actuall! rel!ing
upon hat our Imaam Abu >anifah said regarding a narrator of
>adithQ This is fantastic" 7or !ears people have been sa!ing Abu
>anifah does not kno >adith" Toda!, it pleases me to hear from
!our mouth that Imaam Abu >anifah as ell ac#uainted ith
>adith"
In fact, from !our statement e also learn that Imaam Abu
>anifah must have ritten a book on >adith in hich he discussed
at length the narrators of >adith" ;ould !ou be kind enough to
#uote the book herein Imaam Abu >anifah had recorded thisC
Phair Phair Phair Phair u@all u@all u@all u@allid2 id2 id2 id2 1Silent4
The A$aan of Asr as then called out and the ghair mu#allid got up
and started leaving"
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? ///

Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 I=oin us >anafis for one Salaah at least" Oou
ma! b! all means recite behind the Imaam if !ou ish"J
Phair Phair Phair Phair u@all u@all u@all u@allid2 id2 id2 id2 IIm in a hurr!" I have some important ork"J
Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 Hadhrat ufti Saheb2 I;ell, then listen to this >adith before !ou
leave" It appears in the narration of Sihah 1authentic narrations4
that henever Shaitaan hears the A$aan he runs aa! hilst
passing ind" 1Bukhaari, Muslim and Mishkaat4
All obAects, be it the stones, sand, etc", that are found in the
vicinit! until the furthest point to here the voice of the mua$$in
reaches ill bear testimon! for him on the Da! of =udgement"
Shaitaan therefore escapes out of fear that his name ill be enlisted
amongst those ho ill intercede for the mua$$in"
At the same time, another >adith sa!s&
` Û *L *&
He who imitates a nation5 he will be (ounted from amongst them+
(ish&aat)
>ence, 1after hearing the A$aan4 if !ou are going to leave in this
manner ithout performing Salaah, !ou ill be resembling
Shaitaan"
LAAa$ul Masaalik #uotes the statement of Imaam Maalik&
IIn udhu, use !our hand to clean !our nose" Do not blo !our
nose in a manner hich resembles the snorting of a donke!"J
//+ Why should we follow an Imaam?

>ence !ou should not resemble Shaitaan b! leaving ithout
performing Salaah"
The ghair Mu#allid left ithout sa!ing an!thing"
/

A Few 0)am/les of the !isastrous 'ut%ome of those
who refer dire%tly to the Quraan and Hadith
Moulana Sarfaraa$ Nhan rites& II have a sincere Deeni
conscious friend hose daughter9in9la claimed to follo the
>adith" It as her practise that henever she re#uired a
compulsor! ghusal 1bath4 she ould merel! thro three handfuls
of ater over her bod!" She insisted that the >adith of Saheeh
Bukhaari onl! instructs one to thro three handfuls of ater over
the head for a fardh 1obligator!4 ghusl and that there is no need to
pour ater over the entire bod!" This became such a serious
problem that it led to divorce" The >adith hich she referred to
does appear in Saheeh Bukhaari 1/<-.4 here Basulullah said
hilst indicating ith both his hands& LI pour ater over m! head
thrice" >oever, this is Aust one portion of the >adith" The detailed
narration hich appears in the ver! same chapter after a fe lines
e*plains the procedure, here it sa!s that thereafter he poured
ater over his entire bod!" 1Bukhaari /<-.4
+

/
Malfoo$aat of 7a#eehul Hmmah Mufti Mahmood Saheb 1Bahmatullahi Alaihi4
D
6b ^-. f DBF l
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? //-

A >adith of Saheeh Bukhaari 1/<+059+0/4 states& IAn Hmrah in
Bamadhaan e#uals to a >aAA ith me i"e" Basulullah "J Similarl!
another >adith states& IThe one ho performs 7aAr Salaah in
congregation and thereafter sits till sunrise remembering Allah
Taala and performs to rakaats of nafl Salaah, he ould attain the
reard of a complete >aAA and Hmrah"J 1Sunan Tirmidhi /</-54 If a
person looks at the apparent meaning of these to Ahaadith
ithout the medium of an Imaam, he ould conclude that there is
no need for him to perform his fardh >aAA, since he has alread!
attained the reard of a complete >aAA and a >aAA ith Basulullah "
If he refers to an Imaam, he ould e*plain that these Ahaadith onl!
refer to the reard of >aAA" >oever, these actions do not absolve
him from the obligation hich still remains on him"
Another real e*ample of the above is& Once a man 1ho as
going for Hmrah4 came to an Aalim and said& IThe >adith sa!s that
one Salaah in Makkah Mukarramah e#uals one hundred thousand
Salaah elsehere" 1Sunan Ibni MaAah (g" /5/4 So if I perform one
#adhaa Salaah there, ont it compensate for all m! #adhaa
SalaahCJ The Aalim replied& IIf !our deduction is correct, then not
onl! ill it compensate for !our past Salaahs, rather there ill be
no need for !ou to perform an! more Salaah in the future as ell"J
Thereafter he e*plained to him that this onl! refers to the reard
and not the obligation"
7rom these e*amples e understand that referring directl! to
the ?uraan and >adith ithout the medium of an Imaam is
detrimental to our Deen" In the first situation, the omans ghusl
//) Why should we follow an Imaam?

as incorrect" >ence none of her Salaahs ould be accepted" In the
second e*ample, the person ould have discarded the fifth pillar of
Islam" In the third situation the person ould end up discarding
Salaah completel!"
@ote& @ote& @ote& @ote& ;hen such great luminaries in the field of >adith, the likes of
Imaam Abu Daood and Imaam Tirmi$i ho compiled
books on >adith, likeise e*perts like Allamah @aai and >afi$
ibn >aAar As#alaani ho prepared e*tensive commentaries on
Bukhaari and Muslim 1hich run into volumes4 confined
themselves to folloing one of the four Imaams, then ho can a
la!man of this era ho refers to a mere translation of these ver!
books of >adith regard himself absolved of folloing an ImaamC
&he Ninth $roblem
The ninth problem is that since there e*ists no fifth ma$hab in the
orld at present, those ho ish to adopt a ne ma$hab 1b!
directl! referring to the ?uraan and >adith4, ill have to do either
one of to things in order to reach the correct conclusion" The!
ill either emplo! their personal reasoning hen the! come across
an! apparent contradiction in the Ahaadith or alternativel!,
depend upon the verdict of a scholar of recent times" B! acting
upon either one of the to, hat assurit! do the! have that the
conclusion the! reach is correct" 7urthermore, since the!
personall! do not possess the re#uired level of Deeni knoledge
nor the potential to verif! the e*act position of the information
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? //0

the! come across, tr!ing to solve comple* problems hich relate to
the chain of narrators of the Ahaadith or anal!sing complicated
situations hich have alread! been orked out b! the four Imaams
and their folloers ill be nothing but a mocker! of the Deen of
Allah Taala" Apart from that, the maAor fear that remains is that if
an! mistake occurs, then one ill be guilt! of the sin of
adulterating the Deen of Allah Taala as the arning has been
sounded in the >adith of Basulullah &
H =2? >I & x 'L }~
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B
Hadhrat !bu Hurairah reports that 'asulullah said2 If a person
in(apable of issuing 7erdi(ts in $een issued a 7erdi(t6 he will bear the sin
((onse@uen(e) of the in(orre(t 7erdi(t he issued+
&K / 6 QL - & o$ o`L / 7$L
XL A ? ( s +1K / 7 3 +1K 5, U
b X7uL mL L & a& WK 3#
d7 *7 < 4" %2 wL 6g >% X w" () 6.2
( 72 1%2 $ +K X * X~2 ! dX |
D

B
RR B
D
RR c ZF
//, Why should we follow an Imaam?

Hadhrat 9aabir reports that they were on(e on a Courney when a person
amongst them was stru(& by a ro(& and suffered se7ere head inCuries+ He
then e4perien(ed a wet;dream (thus re@uiring ghusl)+ So he as&ed some of
his (ompanions if there was any (on(ession for performing tayammum+
0hey replied2 30here is no (on(ession for you sin(e water is a7ailable+:
0hus6 this Sahaabi too& a bath and passed away (as a result of ma&ing
ghusl)+ When they returned and Nabi was informed of this6 he said2
30hey &illed him6 may !llah &ill them+ Why (ouldn#t they en@uire from
those who were &nowledgeable when they did not &now? 0he (ure of an
ailing person (an ignorant person) is to as&+ It was suffi(ient for him to only
perform tayammum and bandage his wound+ He (ould ha7e then rubbed
his moist hand o7er it and wash the rest of his body+:
%onversel!, those ho abide b! the verdicts of an! of the four
Aimmah9e9MuAtahideen ill be rightl! guided and rearded even
in a situation here a difference is found among them,
irresepective of hose ma$hab he abides to" If per chance the
Imaam erred in his ruling 1in issues here the doors of IAtihaad
have been left open4 then too it ill be approved in the court of
Allah Taala" The >adith of Basulullah is e*plicit in this regard&
@ =2? x 4" .$ )T *7L
QL L ( 4" .$ yKL L $
B

B
C#: DZ
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? //3

Hadhrat !bu Hurairah reports that 'asulullah said6 OIf a uCtahid
employs ICtihaad when issuing a 7erdi(t and he rea(hes the (orre(t
(on(lusion6 he will re(ei7e a double reward+ !nd if he employs ICtihaad and
errs6 he will re(ei7e one reward from !llah 0a#ala+
7urthermore, in certain situations e notice apparent
contradictions beteen the purport of certain Ahaadith and certain
verses of the ?uraan" In order to reach the correct conclusion, the
Aimmah9e9MuAtahideen emplo!ed their facult! of IAtihaad and
carried out a thorough anal!sis before adopting their ma$hab" In
this regard, the Ahaadith had to be e*amined completel! and
vieed from diverse angles" The chain of narrators had to be
checked and the position of ever! narrator scrutini$ed" In short,
several aspects had to be thoroughl! e*amined before adopting a
particular vie in their ma$hab"
&he &enth $roblem
The tenth problem is that not being committed to one ma$hab ill
cause one to change the entire structure of ones Deen" This change
ill slol! and graduall! take place in stages" The first stage is that
one ill no longer remain committed since ones direction has been
lost" One ill no longer see the need to follo one ma$hab,
resulting in one beginning to personall! choose the opinions in
deen hich suit ones lifest!le or conform to ones personal
interest"
//6 Why should we follow an Imaam?

The second stage is that there ill be a gradual transformation
in the value s!stem, outlook and mindset one used to hold on to
hile being ascribed to one ma$hab" The third stage is that after a
period of time such an individual ill no longer confine the
mindset of free thinking to oneself, rather he ill influence his
subordinates and circle of friends to adopt his idea of free thinking"
The ill9effects of this ill become apparent in ever! department of
ones Deen, to such an e*tent that until and unless one does not get
to terms ith rationalising the las of Deen and measuring it
according to ones personal level of reasoning, one ill not see the
need to follo it" >ence, the net outcome of this is that ones value
s!stem of Deen ill resemble an enterprise being run on ones
personal choice and opinion"
&he method of edu%ation in the Mubaara" era of
*asulullah
In the era of the Sahaabah, the method of education as that
people ac#uired the knoledge of Deen 1the ?uraan and >adith4
under the guidance of those ho ere learned in the various
branches of Deen" Despite the Sahaabah being full! conversant in
the Arabic language, !et in matters of Deen the! never adopted the
approach of self9stud! nor did the! refer directl! to the ?uraan
and >adith" The! ere ell aare of the grave arnings that have
been sounded b! Basulullah in his Mubaarak Ahaadith for the one
ho treads on such a dangerous path, as ell as the serious
conse#uences of adopting such an approach"
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? //.

In one >adith Basulullah is reported to have said& IThe one
ho fabricates or concocts something in Deen and incorrectl!
attributes it to me, he has prepared his abode in the fire of
=ahannum"J
/

Eenerall! people stud!ing the ?uraan and >adith on their on
reach incorrect conclusions and misinterpret the ?uraan and
>adith" The outcome of this is that the! present the rong message
of Deen to the Hmmah hile attributing it to Allah Taala and >is
Basul " >ence there is the great fear of them coming under the
purvie of the above mentioned arning of Basulullah "
Apart from this, Basulullah foretold the coming of such times
before ?i!aamahM here the true spirit of Deen that e*isted in the
beginning of Islam ill no longer remain" The caution that as
e*ercised b! the Sahaabah in Deeni matters ill no longer be seen"
(eople ill refer directl! to the ?uraan and >adith in sourcing out
solutions for their Deeni problems" @abi said&
C @ 3 C%gk , 0 a& U2 < K
<" ;-8 -K ( {.2 , A7L ( 762 Q7.
d#K2 b >~72 2 %2 2 <" ( / % (U2 &
) & & )#2 <" Qk ( 2 4 d%ML < 2
f ?: u: B E BD l

B
X A
/+5 Why should we follow an Imaam?

3I fear in spe(ial three short(omings in my *mmah+ Firstly6 due to the
abundan(e of material wealth and possessions6 Cealousy will spread among
them for one another+ Se(ondly6 they will begin to freely dis(uss the Holy
"ur#aan (without referring to the *lama and the learned)6 whereas many
meanings in the "ur#aan are su(h that they (annot be understood by
anyone e4(ept !llah 0a#ala+ (In regard to su(h 7erses)6 the well;7ersed
s(holars of the %oo& say2 3We fully belie7e in it6 and that it has (ome from
!llah 0a#ala+: (0hus how mu(h more (areful should the (ommon people
be+) 0hirdly6 the religious s(holars will be negle(ted and ignored and people
will not see the need to refer to them (i+e+ people will adopt the approa(h of
self;study in $een and refer to the "ur#aan and Hadith dire(tly)+: (!t;
0argheeb Wat;0arheeb /)/>,)
&he Harms of the layman referrin+ dire%tly to the
Quraan and Hadith
On one occasion a person came to >adhrat Hmar for some ork"
During the conversation, >adhrat Hmar asked him regarding the
condition of the people in the land he had come from" The person
replied& IO Ameerul Mumineen, there is a great aakening among
the people and people are learning the ?uraan and referring to the
?uraan directl! in Deeni matters 1i"e" ithout the guidance of the
Hlama4"J >adhrat ibn Abbaas as present in this gathering
and upon hearing the statement of this person, he said& II take an
oath on Allah Taala, I do not like that people begin learning and
stud!ing the ?uraan b! themselves"J Hpon this, >adhrat Hmar
What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? /+/

immediatel! reprimanded him and disapproved of the obAection he
raised against the approach of the people"
After being reprimanded b! >adhrat Hmar , >adhrat ibn
Abbaas sa!s& II then ent home e*tremel! grieved and
orried and said to m!self& LIt seems that on account of m!
statement, I have fallen from the sight of >adhrat Hmar and lost
the loft! position I as enAo!ing"J >e further sa!s& IAfter returning
home, I rested on m! bed, until the omenfolk of the house became
concerned of m! condition" It as not due to an! ailment that I had
fallen ill, rather over hat had occurred during the conversation
ith >adhrat Hmar " ;hile I as in that condition, a person came
to me and said& LThe Ameerul Mumineen has sent me to call !ou" I
then came out of m! home and >adhrat Hmar as there aiting
for me" >e took hold of m! hand until e ere in seclusion" >e then
asked& L;hat as it that !ou disapproved regarding the statement
made b! that man earlierC I replied& LO Ameerul Mumineen, if I
have erred, then I seek the forgiveness of Allah Taala and repent,
and I am prepared to correct m! stance according to hat !ou
advise me" >adhrat Hmar said& L@o, rather tell me the reason for
!our disapprovalC I replied& LO Ameerul Mumineen, the reason for
me disapproving people referring to the ?uraan directl! is that
the! ill begin to reach their on conclusions and formulate their
on opinions in Deen" ;hen this ill happen, then the outcome of
this is that each person ill have his on version of Deen and
confine the truth to hat he feels" This ill then lead to differences
and dissension coming about in the ranks of the Muslims 1based on
/++ Why should we follow an Imaam?

ignorance4" The dissension ill then lead to arguments and disputes
and ultimatel! Muslims ill be fighting ith Muslims"J >adhrat
Hmar as greatl! pleased ith hat >adhrat ibn Abbaas
said and told him that he also felt the same though he hadnt
e*pressed this to an!one till the time !ou mentioned it"

/+-
Salafiyyat under the
mi%ros%o/e
Salafi!!at is the latest trend in the orld hich has been given a
Deeni bod! and form though bereft of the spirit and soul of Deen"
After a length! period of telve hundred !ears 1during hich the
Hmmah remained committed to the four ma$habs4 this neo9
ma$hab made its appearance"
Most people ascribing themselves to this ne ma$hab ish to
lead a free and unhindered life" The! do not ant to be bound b!
an! restrictions hich come in the path of their orldl! interests"
>oever, at the same time their aim is to appear as Deeni
committed people treading on the path of Deen" Similarl!, the! are
greatl! concerned that people do not alienate them from the rest of
the Hmmah nor label them as Itransgressors in DeenJ on account
of their la*it! in Deen" >ence through directl! referring to the
?uraan and >adith, the! remain under the misconception that
the! are the onl! ones ho are folloing Basulullah and that
those subscribing to the four ma$habs are folloing their Imaams
and not Basulullah " Fittle do the! realise that each Imaam
precisel! guided the Hmmah toards the ?uraan and >adith and
presented the essence of the Sunnah in its pristine form" On the
/+) Why should we follow an Imaam?

contrar!, the Salafis and those ho endeavour to break aa! from
the mainstream of the Hmmah have become victims of opposing
the Sunnah in man! branches of Deen"
The! earmarked certain masaail from different ma$aahib
together ith highlighting the source of those masaail from the
relevant books of >adith 1e"g" Bukhaari and Muslim4" Thereafter
the! impressed upon the Hmmah that it is onl! their vie that is
correct and ever! other vie is incorrect" In doing so, the!
deliberatel! ignored the other authentic narrations hich establish
the practice adopted b! the other ma$aahib in that masalah"
7urthermore, in situations here the four Aimmah do not
Iapparentl!J practise upon certain Ahaadith based on substantial
proofs and reasons, the! latched onto such Ahaadith and accused
the Aimmah of abandoning the Ahaadith of Basulullah " Similarl!,
e notice that herever differences in masaail e*ist among the
Imaams, the! promoted independent research and stud! and
alloed choosing hichever vie one feels to be correct"
&he /ur/ose of Salafiyyat
After a thorough stud! and e*amination of this ne ma$hab called
salafiism one reaches this conclusion that the purpose and aim of
those ho ere responsible for spreading this mindset in the orld
in the beginning of the /+
th
centur! as&
Salafiyyat under the mi(ros(ope /+0

/" To create internal fights and dissension in the Hmmah
especiall! amongst those ho ascribe themselves to the
four Imaams"
+" To cause the minds of the Muslims to be stormed b!
suspicions and doubts in their Deen"
-" To remove the confidence of the people from the
Aimmah and Aslaaf"
)" To cause the masses to become liberal and la* in matters
of Deen and to pick and choose the opinion of that
Imaam hich conforms to their personal reasoning"

In order to accomplish their mission, the plan of action the!
e*ecuted as&
/" The! used the differences beteen the four ma$aahib as
a basis for creating confusion and doubts"
+" The! invited toards practising upon isolated opinions
1Shaa$ A#aal4 hich oppose the mainstream vie of
the Hmmah"
-" The! alloed the masses to randoml! choose from
different ma$aahib and not to blindl! follo one
ma$hab"
)" The! promoted the concept of Irationali$ing Deen to
suit contemporar! timesJ"
/+, Why should we follow an Imaam?

0" The! encouraged the masses to refer directl! to the
?uraan and >adith in finding Deeni solutions to modern
da! problems"
," The! e*horted the masses to reinterpret the ?uraan
and >adith to fit contemporar! situations"

Some of the vies that the! have ascribed themselves to and ver!
staunchl! advocate are as follos&
/" Baful Oadain 1raising the hands hen going into ruku
and getting up from ruku4" This conforms to the
Shaafiee and >ambali ma$hab" According to the Maaliki
and >anafi ma$hab, the hands are onl! raised at the
beginning of the Salaah 1Mughnil MuhtaaA /<-66 M Al9
Mughni Fibni ?udaamah /< /3/ M >aashi!atud9Dasu#i /<
-., M Shaami /< 05,4
+" Aameen bil =ahr 1reciting the Aameem aloud4" This
conforms to the Shaafiee and >ambali Ma$hab contrar!
to the Maaliki and >anafi Ma$hab" 1Mughnil MuhtaaA
/<-3. M Al9Mughni Fibni ?udaamah /< /,+ M >aashi!atud9
Dasu#i /< -.6 M Shaami /< ).+4
-" =ama bainas9Salaatain 1Aoining Salaahs during a
Aourne!4" This conforms to the Maaliki, >ambali and
Shaafiee ma$hab contrar! to the >anafi ma$hab"
Salafiyyat under the mi(ros(ope /+3

1Mugnil MuhtaaA /<,5- M Al9Mughni Fibni ?udaamah /<
/-/ M >aashi!atud9Dasu#i /< 06) M Shaami /< -6/4
)" (lacing the hands on the ground before the knees hen
going into saAdah" This conforms to the Maaliki ma$hab
contrar! to the Shaafiee, >anafi and >ambali ma$hab"
1Mughnil MuhtaaA /<-.. M Al9Mughni Fibni ?udaamah /<
/.. M >aashi!atud9Dasu#i /< )5/ M Shaami /< ).34
0" The postures of the omans Salaah is e*actl! the same
as mens Salaah hich does not conform to an! of the
four ma$aahib" >ence, the! have omitted man! Ahaadith
in this regard" 1MaAmul 7ataa -<-)-M Al9Mugni Fibni
?udaamah /< +06M >aashi!atud9Dasu#iM Shaami /< 05)4
," ;adhul Oadain LAlas9Sadr 1placing the hands during
Salaah upon the chest4 hich does not conform to an! of
the four ma$aahib" 1MaAmul 7ataa -</63M Al9Mugni
Fibni ?udaamah /< /)5M >aashi!atud9Dasu#iM Shaami /<
)6,4
3" Masah upon ordinar! socks hich does not conform to
an! of the four ma$aahib" 1Masah alal =orabain b! this
humble author pg" 06<0.4
6" (erforming eight rakaats of Taraeeh hich does not
conform to an! of the four ma$aahib" 1Nhairul
Masaabeeh fi Adadit Taraeeh pg" )+4
/+6 Why should we follow an Imaam?

." Three talaa#s issued at once is regarded as one talaa#
hich does not conform to an! of the four ma$aahib"
1Al9Aalaamul Marfooah fi hukmit tala#aatil maAmooah
b! Sheikh Muhaddith >abeebur Bahmaan Aa$ami4
/5" The! severed themselves from the Ahlus9Sunnah al9
=amaaah in regard to certain beliefs in Deen e"g" Istiaa
LAlal9Arsh" 1A#eedatu Ahlis Sunnah al =amaaah b!
Shaikh Htha!meen pg" //4
&he essen%e of Salafiyyat
In essence, this ma$hab is an assortment of the four ma$aahib
blended ith personal opinions" >ence, herever one is faced ith
differences among the Aimmah, he is at libert! to hop from one
ma$hab to another and choose hat appeals to his reasoning" If
an!one dare raise an obAection against him, then he defends
himself b! #uoting the >adith of Basulullah out of conte*t&
@ =2? x 4" .$ )T *7L
QL L ( 4" .$ yKL L $
B
Hadhrat !bu Hurairah reports that 'asulullah said6 3If a uCtahid
employs ICtihaad when issuing a 7erdi(t and he rea(hes the (orre(t

B
C#: DZ
Salafiyyat under the mi(ros(ope /+.

(on(lusion6 he will re(ei7e a double reward+ !nd if he employs ICtihaad and
errs6 he will re(ei7e one reward from !llah 0a#ala+:
>oever, in doing so, the! have failed to realise that this >adith is
in relation to a MuAtahid 1the one ho posseses the capabilit! of
IAtihaad in Deen, as as the position of the four Imaams and the
MuAtahids of the previous eras of the Sahaabah and the Taabieen4"
This >adith does not relate to the la!man" As far as those Ahaadith
that relate to the la!man, then the! had ignored those Ahaaadith"
There are man! Ahaadith hich prohibit the masses from
tampering and interfering ith the pristine ShariLah of Islam" This
is the clear message given in the folloing >adith&

&K / 6 QL - & o$ o`L / 7$L
XL A ? ( s +1K / 7 3 +1K 5, U
b X7uL mL L & a& WK 3#
d7 *7 < 4" %2 wL 6g >% X w" () 6.2
( 72 1%2 $ +K X * X~2 ! dX |
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Hadhrat 9aabir reports that they were on(e on a Courney when a person
amongst them was stru(& by a ro(& and suffered se7ere head inCuries+ He
then e4perien(ed a wet;dream (thus re@uiring ghusl)+ So he as&ed some of

B
RR ZF
/-5 Why should we follow an Imaam?

his (ompanions if there was any (on(ession for performing tayammum+
0hey replied2 30here is no (on(ession for you sin(e water is a7ailable+:
0hus6 this Sahaabi too& a bath and passed away (as a result of ma&ing
ghusl)+ When they returned and Nabi was informed of this6 he said2
30hey &illed him6 may !llah &ill them+ Why (ouldn#t they en@uire from
those who were &nowledgeable when they did not &now? 0he (ure of an
ailing person (an ignorant person) is to as&+ It was suffi(ient for him to only
perform tayammum and bandage his wound+ He (ould ha7e then rubbed
his moist hand o7er it and washed the rest of his body+:
7rom this >adith e understand that it is impermissible for the
la!man to independantl! appl! IAtihaad and tr! to reach an!
conclusion in Deeni matters" Otherise, Basulullah ould have
first asked them& IDid !ou first appl! IAtihaad before !ou issued the
verdict to him or notCJ ;hereas since it is not permissible for the
la!man to refer directl! to the ?uraan and >adith and source out
Deeni solutions, @abi as overcome ith anger and cursed them
on this occasion"
'ut%ome
The result and outcome of Salafi!!at is that a fifth ma$hab has been
created in the orld" The onl! difference beteen this fifth ma$hab
and the four ma$aahib is that each individual ill be the Imaam of
his on ma$hab hich ill be designed and tailored to conform to
his reasoning" >ence, those ho tread along the path of Salafi!!at
Salafiyyat under the mi(ros(ope /-/

ill onl! remain Muslims b! name, but bereft of the Sunnah of
Basulullah " As far as their lifest!le and outlook is concerned, the!
ill subAect themselves to estern cultures and traditions, thus,
leading a carefree life governed b! their hims and fancies"
> 3g2 ( q2 &
( < U2 ^-_ <" < U2 (U <" ?X =
>? QK V ? g 5p R X ?& +&76
*L R%
B
It is reported from Hadhrat !li that 'asulullah said2 3Soon a time will
dawn upon the people when Islam will only remain in name and the
"ur#aan will be (onfined to its te4t+ 0he asaaCid will be full of people but
7oid of guidan(e+ 0he *lama (of that time) will be the worst people on the
fa(e of the earth+ 0hey will be the (ause of mis(hief and (orruption
spreading in the earth and the (orruption will return to them+
@ +%8 / 2$ 2\ x | 4"
52 Ag y V? %7 ,R =8 Qo" ) C4 C 2
D
!bu 0ha#labah reports that 'asulullah said2 3(! time will dawn upon
my *mmah before "iyaamah when)=ou will witness people fulfilling their

B
1b =.` G >U* (< %g -U, BFY
D
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/-+ Why should we follow an Imaam?

greed6 following their base desires6 gi7ing preferen(e to dunya o7er $een
and being satisfied with their own reasoning and understanding+:
@abi has forearned us of such a time hich e are presentl!
itnessing" The preservation of the true spirit and teaching of Deen
has become secondar! and people have attempted to scuttle the
smooth sailing ship of Islam b! creating an environment of self
opinion and deviation from the firml! established path of the pious
predecessors"
&wenty fi4e years of e)/erien%e
Moulana Bitaali 1an Aalim ho did not subscribe to the folloing
of an! of the four ma$aahib eventuall! realised the damage and
harm caused b! biasedl! speaking against the four Imaams4 sa!s&
Man! of the masses transgressed the boundaries of Austice
and finall! the boundar! of Islam itself"J
>e further rites in Ishaaatus9Sunnah&
After tent! five !ears of e*perience I have come to the
conclusion that those ho leave out the folloing of an Imaam or
MuAtahid eventuall! leave the fold of Islam"J
/

B
\i +?c, E ZD

/--
Followin+ one of the Four
Imaams of Fi,h
?& ?& ?& ?& %an !ou please present to me the proofs from the ?uraan and
>adith commanding us to follo one of the four Imaams of 7i#hC I
believe that e are all folloers of Basulullah " >ence Allah Taala
obligated us to follo our beloved Basulullah " Basulullah has
said in his Mubaarak >adith& II leave behind to thingsM the
?uraan and m! Sunnah" As long as !ou hold firml! to these toM
!ou ill never go astra!"J 7rom this >adith e understand that in
solving our Deeni matters e should directl! refer to the ?uraan
and >adith" >oever, if one is non9conversant in the Arabic
language and thus unable to e*tract SharLi las from the ?uraan
and >adith, he ma! refer to an! Aalim of Deen" ;h! do people
emphasise on folloing one of the four Imaams of 7i#hC

A& A& A& A& Allah Taala commands us in the >ol! ?uraan to refer our Deeni
matters to people of knoledge" Allah Taala sa!s&

.
.
>
/-) Why should we follow an Imaam?

7rom this verse e conclude that each person is not obligated to
refer directl! to the ?uraan and >adith" Bather, he is commanded
to refer the matter to a specialist" 7urthermore, Iconsulting a
specialist in the fieldJ is not confined to Deeni matters" Instead it is
a common principle adhered to amongst all classes of people in
orldl! matters as ell" A patient ho has to undergo a maAor
heart operation refers to the most #ualified and recognised heart
surgeon around" Similarl!, the victim ho has to appear in court on
account of alleged treason or suspected murder emplo!s the
services of a professional advocate to defend his case" 8ach of the
above 1the patient and the victim4 understands the seriousness of
the situation and the fatal conse#uences that follo" Thus the!
hand over the matter to the most capable person" Similarl!, e
need to understand that in matters of Deen e ought to follo
those ho ill correctl! guide us to the straight path" Allah Taala
sa!s&

_
Follow the path of those who turn to e+ H!llah 0aIalaJ (Surah Ku@man
A/2/>)
7rom this verse e understand that e are obligated to follo the
one ho ill guide us to Allah" If one takes an incapable person as
his guide and thus incorrectl! practises upon the las of ShariLah,
ill such a person ever be absolved of his obligation in the court of
Allah TaalaC Definitel! not" Bather he ill be orth! of
punishment for adopting the incorrect procedure in searching for
Following one of the Four Imaams of Fi@h /-0

the truth" Fet us illustrate this point through a fe e*amples from
the Mubaarak life of Basulullah and his illustrious Sahaabah "
Some of these Ahaadith are&
/" Ali reports that @abi had dispatched an arm! and he
appointed an ameer over them" During the course of the
Aourne!, the ameer became angr! ith the arm!" So, he lit a
fire and instructed the Sahaabah to enter it" In
substantiation, he #uoted the >adith of @abi that the
ameer of the arm! must be obe!ed" Some ere
contemplating over entering the fire hilst the others
refused" ;hen the! reported the matter to @abi , he
addressed those ho ere contemplating entering into the
fire& I>ad !ou leaped into the fire, !ou ould have remained
in it till the Da! of ?i!aamah"J >e further said to those ho
refused to enter the fire& IThere is no obedience to the
creation hen it involves the disobedience of Allah"
Obedience is onl! in good actions"J
/

+" Imaam Shabi reports that >adhrat Adi bin >atim related
to me that hen the folloing aa!ah as revealed&

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a& )#L *& ,L w" (K UL ?K2 ( RL ?KR UL , L f l
+1% / +\ < 2K +U ^2 n" *L c2 ?KR ?K2 ( R 2# UL
%b / +y w" |
/-, Why should we follow an Imaam?

>
>
>
>
>
8at and drin& until the white thread of dawn appears to you
distin(t from its bla(& thread+ (Surah %a@arah ,)/BE)
I took to pieces of thread 1one thread as black and the
other hite4" I then placed both the threads beneath m!
pillo" I stared at the threads for a long time e*pecting to
see the hite thread becoming more clear and visible from
the black thread so that I ma! then abstain from eating"
>oever, the entire night passed and in the morning I came
to @abi and I had e*pressed hat I had understood from
the verse and hat I had done during the night" @abi
smiled and remarked that if the meaning of the verse is as
!ou have understood, then !our pillo is indeed ver! ide"
7or indeed the hite and black threads implied in the verse
refer to the brightness of the da! and the darkness of the
night"
/

-" =aabir reports that the! ere once on a Aourne! hen a
person amongst them as struck b! a rock and suffered
severe head inAuries" >e then e*perienced a et9dream
1thus re#uiring ghusl4" So he asked some of his companions
if there as an! concession for performing ta!ammum"

B
= }{) }X6 =U B E DG t RR @ & x GDB
Following one of the Four Imaams of Fi@h /-3

The! replied& IThere is no concession for !ou since ater is
available"J Thus, this Sahaabi took a bath and passed aa!
1as a result of making ghusl4" ;hen the! returned and @abi
as informed of this, he said& IThe! killed him, ma! Allah
kill them" ;h! couldnt the! en#uire from those ho ere
knoledgeable hen the! did not knoC The cure of an
ailing person 1an ignorant person4 is to ask" It as sufficient
for him to onl! perform ta!ammum and bandage his ound"
>e could have then rubbed his moist hand over it and ash
the rest of his bod!"J
/

In the above9mentioned events e notice that all the people
involved ere the Sahaabah of Basulullah , the first recipients of
the ?uraan" Hndoubtedl!, the! ere conversant in the Arabic
language and referred to the ?uraan" 7urthermore, the! ere
more knoledgeable than an!one of us present toda!" >o as it
that Basulullah disapproved of hat the! had done and in certain
cases 1as itnessed above4 he even reproached them severel!C
>oever, there seems to be an outard inconsistenc! beteen
these above9mentioned incidents and similar incidents here
Basulullah approved the actions of certain Sahaabah, though
the! erred in their Audgement" %onsider the incident of Bani
?urai$ah&

B
RR ZF
/-6 Why should we follow an Imaam?

On the occasion of Nhanda#, @abi dispatched the Sahaabah to
go to Bani ?urai$ah" @abis e*plicit command to this group of
Sahaabah as that the! should perform their Asr Salaah at Bani
?urai$ah" The Sahaabah ere en9route hen the time of Asr as
about to e*pire" A difference of opinion occurred beteen the
Sahaabah ith regards to the performance of the Asr Salaah" One
group felt that the Asr Salaah should not be dela!ed, rather it
should be performed en9route prior to the time e*piring" The!
understood the instruction of Basulullah Inone of !ou should
perform his salaah e*cept in Bani ?urai$ahJ to mean that hasten so
that !ou ma! reach Bani ?urai$ah at the time of Asr" >ence the Asr
Salaah should not be made #adhaa" On the other hand, the second
group of Sahaabah held the opinion that the Asr Salaah should be
performed at Bani ?urai$ah even though the Salaah is made #adhaa
as this as compl!ing ith the e*plicit command of Basulullah "
;hen @abi as later informed of the difference beteen the
Sahaabah, he approved the actions of both groups"
The anser to this inconsistenc! is that there ere MuAtahideen
amongst the to groups of Sahaabah" 7urther, it is permissible for a
MuAtahid to emplo! his IAtihaad in reaching a conclusion" This
anser can be understood from the >adith of Basulullah &
@ =2? >I & 4" .$
)T *7L QL L ( 4" .$ yKL L $
B

B
C# B E DZ
Following one of the Four Imaams of Fi@h /-.

Hadhrat !bu Hurairah has mentioned that 'asulullah said2 3When a
haa&im (uCtahid) issues a (orre(t 7erdi(t by means of ICtihaad he shall
re(ei7e two rewards and if he errs he shall re(ei7e one reward+:
7rom this >adith e learn that the right of making IAtihaad is
reserved for a MuAtahid" Other than a MuAtahid, an! person ho
interferes in the matters of Deen and reaches an erroneous
conclusion ill be sinful on account of taking the la into his on
hands" But on the other hand, if a person refers the matter to a
MuAtahid 1one possessing the highest levels of understanding and
capabilit!4 and he errs in his Audgment, both ill be absolved in the
court of Allah Taala based on the above >adith" So e conclude
that this >adith and the >adith of Bani ?urai$ah are ith reference
to a MuAtahid, not an ordinar! mu#allid"
At this Auncture the #uestion that arises is that Lho ill then
#ualif! as a MuAtahidC Before e*plaining ho is a MuAtahid, it is
imperative for us to comprehend the different levels and classes of
people in regard to potentials and capabilities so that e ill
understand the e*alted position of a muAtahid in ShariLah"
In regard to the knoledge of Deen, people can be categori$ed
into three classes&
The first class of people are those ho posses the basic knoledge
of ShariLah" 1e"g" Aapas in the maktabs or >uffaa$ ho have
memorised the ?uraan ithout stud!ing its meaning4" This
categor!s obligation is to impart hat the! have learnt of the basic
fundamentals of Deen" @abi has said&
/)5 Why should we follow an Imaam?

~ +2
Con7ey from me e7en if it be one aayah+
Since this class of believers have not ac#uired sufficient Deeni
knoledge to guide others in all branches of Deen, it is
impermissible for them to issue 7atas and verdicts of ShariLah"
7urthermore, since the knoledge of Deen hich the! are
imparting is confined and restricted, there is no possibilit! of an!
addition from their side" Thus there is no fear of an! change or
distortion coming to Deen" >oever, in the more intricate matters
of ShariLah the! should refer to those above them ho are more
#ualified"
The second class of people are those ho have pursued Deeni
knoledge in Madrasahs and institutes under #ualified e*pert
scholars" This class of people after #ualif!ing as Hlama, are in the
position to issue Islamic verdicts" It should be borne in mind that
this class of people though far senior than the first class, hoever
their capabilities and potentials are limited and are far loer than
the potential of the third class" The most that can be said about this
class is that the! have ac#uired the abilit! to access the meanings
of the ?uraan and >adith and conve! to the Hmmah the message
of both 1?uraan and >adith4" This is applicable to the Hlama of this
era" As for the Hlama of the past, there ere people amongst them
ho possessed great treasures of knoledge e"g" Imaam Tahai,
>afi$ ibn >aAar As#alani, Allamah @aai etc" >oever, despite
them having such vast knoledge, hen it came to e*tracting the
Following one of the Four Imaams of Fi@h /)/

hidden meanings of the aa!aat and Ahaadith the! admitted their
incapabilit! and sa the need of folloing the Aimmah9e9
MuAtahideen" @abi said&
Q $ UL n" ? UL &
0here are many who disseminate Fi@h to those more learned than them+
Q $ UL (R UL
0here are many who possess the &nowledge of Fi@h though they do not
ha7e the e4pertise in Fi@h+
7rom these Ahaadith e understand that a person possessing a lot
of 7i#h does not necessaril! mean that he ill be able to access the
hidden meanings contained therein" >ence hen it comes to the
aspect of e*tracting las and deducing masaail or finding amicable
solutions for nel! developed situations of contemporar! issues,
the! are incapable of this great mammoth task and are highl!
dependent upon the knoledge of the third class"
The third class of people are the MuAtahideen" Their level of
intelligence and understanding alloed them to deduce and source
out numerous masaail directl! from the ?uraan and >adith" To
give us a glimpse of the calibre of the third class, the statement of
Imaam Ahmad bin >ambal +] is #uite sufficient"
A man once asked Imaam Ahmad& IIf a person memorises /55
555 Ahaadith, can he #ualif! as a 7a#ih 1Aurist4CJ >e replied& I@o"J
The person asked& I;hat about +55 555CJ The Imaam once again
/)+ Why should we follow an Imaam?

replied& I@o"J Again the man said& IThen -55 555CJ The Imaam
replied in the negative once more" The man said& IAnd )55 555CJ
This time he shook his palm, indicating that probabl! no he ma!
be a 7a#ih, fit enough to pass a 7ata on his on accord"
;e thus conclude that the right to directl! deduce and e*tract
masaail from the ?uraan and >adith is reserved and e*clusive for
the MuAtahideen" As for those loer than them in knoledge and
understanding, and the la!men, it is incumbent that the! follo the
deductions of these MuAtahideen"

/)-
&he Status of &a,leed
?& ?& ?& ?& ;hat is the status of Ta#leed 1folloing one of the four Imaams
of 7i#h4 in DeenC 8"g" fardh, aaAib, sunnah or mustahabC
A& A& A& A& 7olloing one of the four Imaams of 7i#h vi$" 1Imaam Abu
>anifah, Imaam Maalik, Imaam Shaafiee and Imaam Ahmad +]
* 4 is aaAib9li9ghairihi
/
R/0S 1compulsor!4 in Deen" The reason for
it receiving the status of uAoob is that ithout Ta#leed of the four
Imaams, one ill not be able to correctl! practise upon the entire
Deen" 8speciall! in this time and age here e see science and
technolog! at its peak, ne inventions and developments have
become a norm in current times" In short, the orld has evolved to
such limits hich ere never itnessed previousl! throughout the
annals of human histor!" The progress and advancements of the
orld in the present era poses a host of challenges before the
Hlama" Thus, e find the masses constantl! referring their Deeni
matters and problems to the Hlama seeking Islamic rulings and
guidance due to the unfolding of ne events and developments"

/
That hich is compulsor! on account of it being the onl! medium to fulfilling
the Islamic inAunction of $een, though it is not directl! established in an! of the
te*tual proofs of $een vi$" the ?uraan and Hadith"
/)) Why should we follow an Imaam?

Subse#uentl!, in the face of these challenges e find the Hlama
completel! reliant and dependent upon the orks of the four
Imaams" The! refer to the books of these Imaams ho ere blessed
ith such foresight and illuminated knoledge that despite living
appro*imatel! thirteen hundred !ears ago, !et the! ere able to
produce accurate solutions for situations surfacing centuries later"
The ansers and solutions hich the! presented ere directl!
sourced out from the ?uraan and the Ahaadith of Basulullah "
;e mentioned that Ta#leed of the four Imaams is aaAib9li9
ghairihi" An elucidation of this statement is that though e do not
find an! e*plicit inAunction neither in the ?uraan nor in the >adith
commanding in specific to make Ta#leed of the four Imaams,
hoever the ?uraan instructs us ith to inAunctions&
/" To follo those ho are capable enough to guide us to Allah&

_
Follow the path of those who turn to e H!llah 0aIalaJ+ (Surah
Ku@man A/2/>)
+" To refrain from folloing our desires and temptations
against the command of Allah&

. <
$o not follow your desires for that will (ause you to go astray+
(Surah Sawd AB2,?)
0he Status of 0a@leed /)0

Neeping the above in mind, e conclude that since it is not possible
to find an! person in this time and age possessing the capabilities of
the four Imaams, it ill definitel! be aaAib to follo an! one of the
four Imaams" 7urthermore, apart from the four Imaams e cannot
find an! Aalim 1even Imaam Bukhaari and others4 from the Salaf
1Hlama of the past4 hose ma$hab has been entirel! recorded like
that of the four Imaams"
>ence, if a person ishes to follo an! other ma$hab other than
that of the four Imaams, it is highl! possible that he ill incorrectl!
practise upon the verdict of that specific Imaam due to the
necessar! details or conditions of his ma$hab not being entirel!
recorded"
Secondl!, there is a principle in ShariLah& ./ ./ 0#-0 i"e" the
means hich enables one to practise upon an inAunction of ShariLah
also receives the status of that inAunction" >ence, if an inAunction is
aaAib, the path leading to it ill also be regarded as aaAib" B! the
same token if an inAunction is fardh, the means enabling one to
complete that fardh ill also be considered as fardh"
7urthermore, if there is onl! one possible a! or method of
fulfilling an inAunction of Deen, to a greater e*tent ill that method
be aaAib, since there is no alternative in fulfilling that inAunction"
Fet us illustrate this principle through an e*ample" %onsider the
inAunction of >aAA" The obligator! action is that of >aAA" >oever,
@abi commanded that >aAA is aaAib onl! on that person ho
possess +1 1a conve!ance and provisions4" This command of
Basulullah is applicable to those ho live in Makkah Mukarramah
/), Why should we follow an Imaam?

and the surrounding areas, for hom travelling upon camel9back
ith little provisions is possible" As for those ho live thousands of
miles aa! from the >ol! Fands and re#uire transport b! sea or air,
>aAA ill be aaAib subAect to them affording a plane ticket or a ship
ticket ith accommodation" In hich >adith do e find this
mentionedC If these people living abroad possess a camel and little
provisions as in the case of those residing in Makkah Mukarramah,
ill e sa! that >aAA is aaAib upon them as ellC Obviousl! notQ So
e understand from this e*ample that on account of the >aAA being
dependant on ac#uiring a plane ticket, the obligation of >aAA is
subAect to one being able to afford it" In the absence of this, all the
Hlama agree that >aAA is not obligator!"
Despite the obligator! action being one and the same for both
people, but due to the means of both differing, the cause for its
compulsion ill differ" It ill be impossible for one living abroad to
fulfil the inAunction of >aAA b! depending merel! on a camel and
meagre provisions"
Similar is the case of Ta#leed in this age and time" Since this is
the onl! practical solution in order for one to practise on the entire
Deen, one ill have no choice, but to follo one of these four
illustrious Imaams"
In the past, there ere man! other muAtahideen ho ere the
contemporaries of these Aimmah, such as Muhammad bin Sireen,
>asan Basri, Suf!aan Thauri etc" ho ere blessed ith the highest
levels of intelligence and understanding enabling them to deduce
inAunctions directl! from the ?uraan and >adith" (eople ould
0he Status of 0a@leed /)3

refer to them as ell in their Deeni matters, thereb! absolving
themselves of their obligation through referring to the Hlama in
their Deeni matters" >oever, ith the passage of time the
emergence of people possessing the calibre of knoledge of these
illustrious Imaams ceased, thus leaving the Muslims ith no choice
but to refer to the orks of their predecessors" Subse#uentl!, hen
e search the orks produced b! these great Imaams, e find that
besides the four famous Imaams, ver! little remains of the orks of
other Imaams in relation to 7i#h" 7urthermore, the principles and
governing rules that these four Imaams had laid out are such that
the! cover all situations that arise, hereas, the other Imaams had
not compiled such principles" In addition to this, the students of
these four Imaams flourished and thereb! imparted the teachings
and lessons of their Hstaads to the various #uarters of the Muslim
orld" This alloed the 7i#h and ma$aahib of these four Imaams to
become common and idespread amongst the learned and
common folk" Accordingl!, these four ma$aahib and schools of 7i#h
became the subAect matter of stud! and research and great scholars
adopted these ma$aahib as their school of 7i#h since the deductions
of these 7u#ahaa covered all aspects of life"
;hen practising one of these four ma$aahib is the onl! possible
a! for us to practise on Deen entirel!, folloing one of the four
ma$aahib ill thus become compulsor!M not because folloing
these Aimmah is an e*plicit inAunction in Deen, but because there
is no other route one can adopt hereb! he ill be able to practise
upon the entire Deen ithout omitting an!thing" This is the
/)6 Why should we follow an Imaam?

meaning of aaAib9li9ghairihi" 1Since folloing the entire Deen is
dependant upon Ta#leed, it is afforded the status of aaAib9li9
ghairihi"4
;hen e e*amine the lives of these four Imaams, the glaring
feature that e notice is that the! strictl! adhered to the Mubaarak
Sunnah of Basulullah in ever! facet of their lives" The! could be
aptl! described ith the folloing ords& IThe! ere entirel! a
personification of the Sunnah of Basulullah in ever! alk of life"J
If per chance one has to come across an! situation here their
ma$aahib apparentl! contradicts certain Ahaadith, he ill certainl!
find sufficient substantiation through other Ahaadith, coupled ith
accurate reconciliations beteen the Ahaadith not seemingl!
practised" Their approach to the ?uraan and >adith in deducing
masaail as one strictl! governed b! principles of Deen" It as
certainl! not an approach of personal opinion or an approach of
Lpick and choose, as is itnessed in this da! and age" >ence, one
can safel! reach the conclusion that these four Aimmah 1hose
ma$aahib stood the test of time for appro*imatel! thirteen
centuries4 are orth! of emulation in guiding us to Allah Taala and
>is Basul "
Thirdl!, the sole purpose for Allah Taala creating us and
sending us to the orld is that e orship >im" 8ver!thing else
besides >is orship 1e"g" eating, drinking, transacting, building
homes, etc"4 is secondar!" Since man cannot e*ist in this orld
ithout certain basic re#uirements 1e"g" air, ater, food, etc"4 Allah
0he Status of 0a@leed /).

Taala has made these re#uirements easil! available to man so that
no obstacle remains in the path of him orshipping his creator"
Similarl!, e find that in accordance to the urgenc! of a need,
provisions are made" %onsider the most vital re#uirement of human
life i"e" air" Man is in need of air ever! moment of his life" >ence
Allah Taala has made this available ever!here" All that one is
re#uired to do is to breath" Similar is the case of food, ater, etc"
;e should understand that, hen Allah Taala undertook the
responsibilit! to provide for the material needs of manM can e ever
imagine Allah Taala not making ade#uate provisions for the Deeni
needs of manC All these orldl! arrangements and provisions e
see around us are onl! facilitated in order that man could serve his
creator, Allah Taala in ease and comfort" So the obAect is not food
and drink, instead it is the orship of Allah Taala 1practising upon
Deen4" Accordingl!, in order to make the purpose of mans creation
possible, Allah Taala alloed great luminaries to be produced in
the form of the Aimmah9e9MuAtahideen" >ence, e notice that for
appro*imatel! thirteen centuries the Hmmah has held on to the
ma$aahib of these four great Aimmah thereb! fulfilling the
purpose of their creation"
7urthermore, consider if one hundred people in this time and
age begin e*tracting las from the ?uraan and >adith, each one
presenting to the public his personal viepoint of a verse ith each
person reaching different conclusions, ill e regard this as a
service to Deen or a disserviceC ;ill Allah Taala entrust us to our
limited understanding and logicC If one prefers to adopt this

method in matters of Deen e can ell imagine the detrimental
outcome and grave conse#uences it ill create in the Hmmah, let
alone the confusion and perple*it! it ill produce in the mind and
heart" Thus, the safest and most cautious path to adopt ould be to
follo one of the four great Imaams of 7i#h hose lessons and
teachings have been thoroughl! scrutinised and researched" In fact,
it ould not be incorrect to declare that in order for a Muslim to be
able to practise Deen entirel! it ould be aaAib for him to align
himself to one of the four ma$aahib"
Ma! Allah bless each one of us ith the true understanding of
Deen and the abilit! to follo in the footsteps of our pious
predecessors"

/0/
Moulana 0brahim Siyal"otis
ill.o/inion of Imaam Abu.
Hanifah
Initiall! Moulana 8brahim Si!alkoti 1ho as formerl! part of the
Ahle9>adith4 had an ill9opinion of Imaam Abu >anifah +]"
Thereafter he began to have a lot of respect for Imaam Saheb"
Moulana 8brahim Si!alkoti rites about himself in his book
Tareekhe Ahle >adith&
I;hen looking for some masalah I ent through the books on
the shelf" I started checking up the vie9point of Imaam Abu
>anifah +]" After going through different books some
reservation settled in m! heart regarding Imaam Abu >anifah +]
"
The effects of evil thoughts ithin me could be felt around me"
It as broad da!light, !et I felt darkness enveloping me" The
blackness as thick and compound hich as similar to hat the
aa!at sa!s& Darkness one over the other"J At the same time, Allah
Taala inspired m! heart that this is the outcome of !our ill9feelings
for Abu >anifah +]Q Bepent for !our rongQJ Moulana 8brahim
continues& I started reading the ords of istighfaar and
immediatel! the darkness disappeared" In fact, it as replaced ith
such brightness hich outshone the da!light" 7rom then onards
/0+ Why should we follow an Imaam?

m! respect and confidence for Imaam Abu >anifah +]
continued to gro" I sa! to those ho 1dont listen to me and4
continue reviling Abu >anifah +], m! e*ample ith !ou is the
ver! same hich Allah Taala had said to the ones ho denied the
incident of MeraaA"

<
_
So will you doubt that whi(h he was shown (Surah NaCam >A2/,)
>ence it is futile for an!one to argue ith me regarding something
I itnessed in a akeful state hile I as in m! senses"J 1Ikhtilaaf9
e9Hmmat and Siraat9e9Musta#eem +<).4
Moulana 8brahim Si!alkoti prepared his book Tareekhe Ahle
>adith in hich he rote some histor! of the seniors of the Ahle
>adith as ell as some of the histor! of the previous
Muhadditheen" The book includes Imaam Abu >anifah +]
amongst the previous senior Muhadditheen" The All9India Ahle
>adith %onference of Delhi as impressed ith the book and
ished to distribute copies of it" The! had one reservation& The
name of Abu >anifah +] amongst the MuhadditheenQC The!
asked Moulana 8brahim to de9list Imaam Abu >anifah +] and
publish it 1ithout the section of Abu >anifah +]4" Moulana
replied b! sa!ing that the name of Imaam Abu >anifah +] can
never be alienated from the fraternit! of the Muhadditheen"
/

B
2T 8 D E GFZ

Why Should We Follow An Imaam?

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Why Should We Follow An Imaam?

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Why should we

8stablish Salaah (Surah %a@arah ,)-A)

}r, `b L L. < ~b <

D !llah 0a#alaN %estow spe(ial mer(y upon Hadhrat uhammad

&$ ? a$ ? &$ X ] 6%I t2T ? & %I ?

_ 1Do not follo

Worship !llah 0a#ala with sin(erity+ HAG2,J

$o not follow your desires+ H,?2ABJ

What is wrong if one refers to the "ur#aan and Hadith $ire(tly? 6.

0wo di7or(es (an be issued (Surah %a@arah ,2,,G)

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