The following is an excerpt taken from the beginning of the book Majmua-i Zuhdiyya:

In Arabic, when the word fiqh is used in the category of faqiha yafqahu, that is, in the fourth category, it means to know, to understand. When used in the fifth category, it means to know, to understand the Shariat. The knowledge that explains the Shariat, that is, the rules of the Shariat, has been called The knowledge of fiqh. A person who knows the teachings of fiqh is called a Faqih. The knowledge of fiqh explains the things which people should do and those which they should not do. The knowledge of fiqh originates from Qur'an al-karim, from hadith ash-Sharifs, from the ijma'-i ummat and from qiyas. These four sources of the knowledge of fiqh are called the Adilla-i shariyya. Mujtahids, while extracting ahkam (rules) out of these four sources, parted into four Madhhabs. It is explained in the fourth chapter that the Sahaba and the mujtahids who came during the century after them were called Salaf-i salihin. The unanimity of the Salaf-i salihin is called Ijma'-i ummat. Those rules of the Shariat that have been derived from Qur'an al-karim or from hadith ash-Sharifs or from the Ijma'-i ummat are called Qiyas-i fuqaha. To understand by way of qiyas if something is halal or haram, it is compared to something else which is known as halal or haram. To do this, the reason which makes that thing halal or haram has to exist in the former, too!

It is Imam-i azam Abu Hanifa who established and first practiced the knowledge of fiqh.

The knowledge of fiqh, i.e. Ahqam-i Islamiyya (Islamic rules) is very extensive. It is divided into four major parts:

1- 'Ibadat is divided into five branches: namaz, fast, zakat, hajj, jihad. Each has many divisions. It is written in Durr-ul-mukhtar and Radd-ul-mukhtar that jihad means to invite people to Islam and to fight against those who will not accept it, [against the armies of those tyrants who prevent others from hearing this invitation and prevent those who heard it from believing in it. This fight is assumed by the State, armed forces of the State]. It is also jihad to help those who fight [that is, the State, the army] through material support, through ideas, [words and writings,] by increasing the number of defenders of Islam, and by curing [and by praying for] them. It is declared in a hadith ash-Sharif: "Perform jihad against disbelievers through your property, through your lives, and through your tongues!" Also, it is jihad to maintain security near the frontier and to learn how to use various means of war during the time of peace. It is fard-i kifaya for Muslims to perform this kind of jihad. When an enemy attacks, it becomes Fard-i 'ayn for everybody, for women and children, that is, for those who are close to the place, and if their power does not suffice, for those who are far away, even very far from the area. [It is written on the two hundred and seventy-second page of the fifth volume of Ibni 'Abidin, "Women go for jihad after veiling themselves and with their husband or mahram relatives."] Those who do not help will become sinful. The person who understands that he will be killed if he attacks and will be captured if he does not attack does not fight. But he had better attack if it will harm the enemy and will render an advantage for the Muslims. The case is not so with performing Nahy-i anil-munkar to sinful Muslims, that is, admonishing them. Those for whom it is wajib to advise are permitted to advise even if it will be of no avail, even if they know that they will be killed. But it is not permissible when it causes fitna. When besieging a city of disbelievers, first they will be invited to Islam. If they accept it, they will become brothers with us. If they do not, they will be asked to become zimmi by paying a tax called the jizya. Jizya means to pay a fine, a retribution. It is the money which disbelievers are to pay to the (Muslim) government in return for being spared from death. There are two kinds of jizya. The first is the sum agreed on while making peace with disbelievers. This sum can never be changed later. The second kind of jizya is the sum levied on those (disbelievers) who are left to themselves instead of being killed after a victory won over an enemy. At the end of each month one dirham of silver -which is equal to half a gram of gold- will be taken from the poor ones. Those with moderate means will be charged two dirhams, and the rich ones will be charged four dirhams. Those who cannot work or who are ill for more than half of a year will not be charged at all. A person with an income more than ten thousand dirhams a year is considered rich. One who earns more than two hundred dirhams is considered to have moderate means. The jizya is not levied on children, on women, on very old people, on religious men, or on Muslims. No one can be forced to pay any kind of tax other than zakat, 'ushr, jizya and kharaj. Otherwise, it will be cruelty, in which case what has been taken will have to be given back.

[The government will make payments from the Bayt-ul mal for all public services it has to provide. If the Bayt-ul-mal has no income or has insufficient income, then the government asks its citizens to pay taxes against the public services to be performed. Citizens have to pay these taxes in full and on time. It is collected by force from those who refuse to pay it.]

If they do not accept this either, they will be attacked. If they accept the jizya they will be our countrymen and will live under Islam's justice. They will be granted the right to perform their worships and to sell to each other pork and alcoholic drinks. Among them, and between them and the Muslims, the same laws, rights, punishments, and trade dealings, as is the case among the Muslims will be practiced. The hadd for alcoholic drinks will not be inflicted on them. Their customs, except receiving interest, will not be considered a crime. [Interest is haram in their religion, too.] If an enemy is powerful, it is permissible to make peace by even giving goods to them. If powerful murtads captured cities and the cities became Dar-ul-harb, it is also permissible to make peace with them when there is a necessity.

After the five principles of Islam, the highest act of worship is jihad. All the sins of a martyr, except his debts to creatures, will be forgiven. Furthermore, Allahu ta'ala will compensate for the debts to creatures on the Day of Resurrection. Those who die in a jihad or on the way for hajj or while keeping guard near the frontier will be given the thawab for these worships of theirs continuously until the Resurrection. Their bodies will not rot. Each of them will intercede for seventy people on the Day of Resurrection. It is written on the six hundred and thirty-eighth page of the second volume of Hadiqa, "He who becomes a martyr by drowning will be given twice as much thawab as the one who becomes a martyr on land."

It is declared in a hadith: "Learn how to shoot arrows, and how to ride a horse!" It is declared in another hadith: "He who learns how to shoot arrows and then forgets it is not one of us," and in another hadith, "Playing is not useful. Only, it is appropriate to learn how to shoot arrows, to tame one's horse and to play with one's wife." That is, they are useful and necessary. These hadiths command and encourage us to learn and train ourselves to use all means of war during the time of peace. As it is seen, it is an act of worship to get ready for jihad. Our Prophet "sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam' communicates that there are three kinds of jihad against disbelievers: through actions, through words, through prayers. It is fard-i kifaya to get ready for jihad through actions, to learn how to make and how to use new weapons. Recently the second type of war, that is, the attacks of the irreligious through articles, movies and radios, has grown. It is jihad also to stand against this. [It is explained in detail in the sixty-fifth and one hundred and ninety-third letters that this type of jihad is more important and deserves more thawab. These two types of jihad are performed by the order and permission of the government. It is wajib not to rebel against the government and not to oppose its laws.]

2- Munakahat, which has many divisions, such as marriage, divorce, subsistence, and many others.

3- Muamalat, which has many divisions, such as buying and selling, rent, companies, interest, inheritance.

4- 'Uqubat (penal code), that is, the punishments called hadd, which is mainly divided into six sections: Qisas (lex talions), drunkennes, sirqat (theft), zina (fornication), qazf (accusing a woman falsely of adultery), riddat (turning renegade), and the punishments for these. Because the punishment come after the sin, they are called 'Uqubat. It is fard for everybody to learn the 'ibadat (worship) part of fiqh. It is fard-i kifaya to learn parts of Munakahat and Muamalat. That is, it is fard to learn these for those who meet with such circumstances. [It is a must for every Muslim to learn the four parts of fiqh and give 'ushr in dar-ul harb, too. For instance, it is also haram in dar-ul-harb to look at the private parts, heads, arms, or legs of kafir and murtad women there. Only, it is permissible for Muslims not to follow the Shariat in muamalat with disbelievers in dar-ul-harb.

Countrymen have to learn branches of 'uqubat and muamalat, for the Shariat also commands the zimmi to obey the rules of 'uqubat and muamalat. A disbeliever who lives in Dar-ul-Islam but who has another nationality has to obey only the rules of muamalat.

After the branches of knowledge of tafsir, hadith and kalam, the most honored branch of knowledge is fiqh. It brings more thawab to study the knowledge of fiqh than to perform supererogatory prayers of namaz at night. And it brings more thawab to learn it from a teacher than to study it alone. The following six hadiths are sufficient to indicate the honor in fiqh:

When Allahu ta'ala wishes to do a favor to a slave of His, He makes him a faqih in religion.

If a person becomes a faqih, Allahu ta'ala sends the things which he longs for and his food by means unanticipated by him.

The person whom Allahu ta'ala calls the highest is the one who is a faqih in the Din. This hadith alone would suffice to show the greatness of Imam-i azam.

Against the devil, one faqih is stronger than a thousand 'Abids (those who worship much).

Everything is based upon a pillar. The basic pillar of the Din is the knowledge of fiqh. The best, the most valuable act of worship is to learn and teach fiqh.

The rules of the Shariat in the Hanafi Madhhab were brought to materialization through a way beginning with Hadrat Abdullah Ibni Masud, one of the Sahaba. This means to say that the chief of the Madhhab, Imam-i azam Abu Hanifa, learned the knowledge of fiqh from Hammad, who learned it from Ibrahim-i Naha'i, who from Alqama, who from Abdullah bin

Masud, who learned it from Rasulullah "sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam'. Abu Yusuf, Muhammad, Zufar bin Huzayl and Hasan bin Ziyad are all Imam-i azam's disciples. Of these, Imam-i Muhammad wrote some thousand books on the knowledge of the Din. Because he married the mother of Imam-i Shafi'i, who was one of his disciples, when he died his books were inherited by Imam-i Shafi'i and this caused his knowledge to increase. For this reason, Imam-i Shafi'i said, "I swear that my knowledge on fiqh has increased by reading Imam-i Muhammad's books. He who wants to deepen in the knowledge of fiqh should keep company with Abu Hanifa's disciples." And once he said, "All Muslims are like Imam-i azam's household, children." That is, as a man earns his household's subsistence, so Imam-i azam undertook the task of uncovering the knowledge of the Din which people need, thus rescuing everybody from a very difficult job. Imam-i Shafi'i's establishing a different Madhhab does not mean that he disliked Imam-i azam or that he disagreed with him. The Sahaba had different madhhabs, too. Despite this, they liked and respected each other. The last ayat of Fat-h Sura is a document for this fact.

Imam-i azam Abu Hanifa not only gathered the knowledge of fiqh, divided it into branches, and put ways and methods, but also gathered the knowledge of fiqh coming from Rasulullah and from the Sahaba and conveyed it to hundreds of his disciples. Of these some were educated and trained as specialists in 'Ilm-i kalam, that is, in the knowledge of iman. Of these, Abu Sulaiman Jurjani, one of those educated by Imam-i Muhammad Shaibani, and Abu Bakr-i Jurjani, one of his disciples, became famous. And of these disciples, Abu Nasr-i Iyad educated Abu Mansur-i Maturidi in the knowledge of kalam. Abu Mansur wrote down the knowledge of kalam that came from Imam-i azam in books. Struggling against those who had deviated from the right way, he strengthened the belief of the Ahl as-sunnat. He spread it everywhere.

Everyday Imam-i azam Abu Hanifa "rahmatullahi 'alaih' performed morning prayer in the mosque and then answered his students till noon. Before midday, he performed Qaylula sitting. It is written in Shir'a-tul-Islam, in Ibni Abidin, in its chapter about bay'i fasid, and in Mawahib-i ladunniyya, in its chapter about dream interpretation, that it is sunnat to perform Qaylula, that is, to sleep for a while as the sun approaches noon. It is written in

Mizan that Qaylula can be performed in the afternoon, too. After the early afternoon prayer he taught knowledge to his disciples until the night prayer. After the night prayer he went home and rested for a while. Then he went to the mosque and worshipped until the morning prayer. This fact has been communicated by Mis'ar bin Kadam-i Kufi, one of the Salaf-i salihin, and by many other noble people.

He traded and earned his living by means of the halal. Sending goods to other places, he bought his disciples' needs with his earnings. He spent much for his own home, and gave as much as he spent for his home to the poor as alms. Every Friday he distributed twenty gold coins to the poor for the souls of his parents. He would not stretch his legs towards his master and teacher Hammad's house. However, there was a distance of seven streets between them. Once he heard that one of his partners had sold a great amount of goods incompatibly with the Shariat; he distributed all ninety thousand aqcha earned from this merchandise, thus accepting not even a penny of it. The villages of Kufa city had been raided by brigands, who had driven away the sheep. Thinking that these stolen sheep might have been slaughtered and sold to the people, he did not buy or eat mutton for seven years from then on, for he had learned that a sheep lived at most seven years. He avoided the haram very much and observed the Shariat in everything he did.

For forty years Imam-i azam performed the morning prayers with the ablution which he performed for the night prayers, [that is, he did not sleep after the night prayers]. This fact is written with documents in Mawdu'at-ul 'Ulum, in Durr-ul-mukhtar, in the preface of Ibni Abidin, and in Mizan-ul-kubra. [The wives of these great people, like they themselves, made it a pleasure for themselves to worship Allahu ta'ala, to serve His Din, and sacrificed their rights and pleasures for Allah's way. Also, all the Sahaba, with the wishes and permission of their wives, had gone to distant places for jihad in order to spread Allah's Din, and many of them became martyrs and did not come back. And their wives were happy because they shared these thawabs.] He performed hajj fifty-five times. During his last hajj, he entered the Kaba and performed a namaz of two rakats. He recited the entire Qur'an in the namaz. Then he wept and prayed, "Ya Rabbi! I haven't been able to do the worships in a manner worthy of Thee. But I have understood very well that Thou couldst not be understood through the mind. Forgive my faults in my service for the sake of this understanding of mine!" At that moment a voice was heard saying, "O Abu Hanifa! You have known Me well and served Me beautifully. I have forgiven you and those who are in your madhhab and those who will follow your way until the end of the world." He read the entire Qur'an al-karim once every day and once every night. These facts are written in Durr-ul-muhktar, in the preface of Ibni Abidin, in Khayrat-ul-hisan, in Mirat-i kainat, and also at the end of Hazanat-ul-Muftin. Reciting the entire Qur'an al-karim in one rakat of namaz has been the lot of only 'Uthman bin Affan, Tamim-i Dari, Said bin Jubair and Imam- i azam Abu Hanifa. It is written in Shir'a-tul-Islam, "It is mustahab to read the entire Qur'an al-karim in forty days. Rasulullah used to read it all once a year, for it had settled in his blessed heart. While reading Qur'an al-karim it is necessary to meditate over its meaning and to have it settle into the heart. For this reason, he prohibited it from being read entirely in a period of time shorter than three days. 'Uthman bin Affan, Zayd bin Thabit, Abdullah ibni Masud, Ubayy-ibnu Qa'b-il-hadraji and many of the Sahaba used to read it all once a week. Abids (those who worship much) should read it twice a week and those who spread knowledge should read it once a week." It is declared in a hadith ash-Sharif: "He who reads the entire Qur'an al-karim in less than three days cannot understand its meaning." The hadith does not prohibit the performing of one prayer of namaz by reciting the entire Qur'an. Those who asked Rasulullah "sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam' were ordered to read it through according to the time that was suitable with their states and jobs.

Rasulullah "sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam' revealed that Imam-i azam would come. In a hadith, which is written in Diya-i ma'nawi, in Mawduatul'Ulum, in Khayrat-ul-hisan, and which is said to be sahih in the book Ibni Abidin, is declared, "As Adam and all prophets boast about me, so I boast about a person with the surname Abu Hanifa and with the name Numan, who will be the light of my Ummat. He will protect them against deviating from the right way and from falling into the darkness of ignorance." He died in 150 A.H., when he was seventy years old. The great savant Hadrat Ibni Hajar-i Makki states that the hadith ash-Sharif "In the year one hundred and fifty the world's ornament will go away" is intended for Imam-i azam.

Shamsaddin Sami Bey writes as follows in his Qamus-ul alam: "The name of Imam-i azam Abu Hanifa is Numan. His father's name was Thabit. He is the first of the four great imams of the Ahl as-sunnat. He is a great pillar of the brilliant Shariat of Muhammad "alaihis-salam". He is a descendant of one of the notables of Persia. His grandfather had accepted Islam. He was born in the city of Kufa in 80 A.H. He was born early enough to live during the times of Anas bin Malik, Abdullah bin Abi Awfa, Sahl bin Sad-i Sa'idee and Abut-tufail Amir bin Wasila, who were Sahabis. He learned the knowledge of fiqh from Hammad bin Abi Sulaiman. He kept company with many great persons of the Tabiin, especially with Imam-i Jafar Sadiq. He memorized many hadiths. If he had not become a madhhab leader, he was brought up so as to become a great judge, a man of ideas. He had a superior intellect and a wisdom which bewildered everybody. In the knowledge of fiqh he reached a grade that did not have an equal or a likeness. Yazid bin Amr, who was the Governor of Iraq during the time of Marwan, offered him the judgeship to a law-court of Kufa. But because he had much zuhd, taqwa and wara' as well as knowledge and wisdom, he did not accept it. He was afraid of failing to observe the people's rights because of human weaknesses. Though he was whipped a hundred and ten times on the head with Yazid's command, he persisted in refusing. He was invited to Baghdad by the second Abbasi Khalifa Abu Jafar Mansur. He was offered a judgeship, but he refused it again.

He was the first to divide the knowledge of fiqh into branches; he gathered the sections of information belonging to each branch, and wrote the books Faraid and Shurut. There are innumerable books describing his extensive knowledge in fiqh, his miraculous power in qiyas, and his dumbfounding superiority in zuhd, taqwa, mildness and piety. He had very many disciples, some of whom became mujtahids. He died in 150 A.H., when he was seventy years old. Because he would not accept the presidency of the Supreme Court of Appeal offered by Abu Jafar Mansur, he was sent to jail. There he was whipped. He was whipped ten times more for each following day. He became a martyr when the number of whipping became a hundred. Abu Sad-i Harazmi, one of the viziers of the Saljuki Emperor Sultan Malikshah, had a wonderful tomb built over Hadrat Abu Hanifa's grave. Later on, this tomb was restored and embellished various times by Ottoman emperors.

The Hanafi Madhhab spread everywhere during the time of Ottoman Empire. It was almost the official Madhhab of the State. Today, more than half of the Muslims over the world and the majority of the Ahl as-sunnat worship according to the principles of the Hanafi Madhhab."

It is written as follows in the book Mirat-i Kainat: Imam-i azam's father, Thabit, had met Hadrat Imam-i Ali in Kufa and Ali "radi-Allahu 'anh' had invoked a blessing on him and on his children. This fact is written in the books Durr-ul-mukhtar, Mawduat-ul-Ulum and Mirat-i kainat, and especially in Ibni Abidin, which gives even its documents. He saw Anas bin Malik and also three or seven more of the Sahaba. He learned hadiths from them.

It is declared in a hadith ash-Sharif: "Of my Ummat, a person named Abu Hanifa will come. He will be the light of my Ummat on the Day of Resurrection." It is declared in another hadith ash-Sharif: "A person named Numan bin Thabit and called Abu Hanifa will come, and will enliven Allah's Din and my Sunnat." The hadith ash-Sharifs such as "There will come a person named Abu Hanifa. He is the most useful of this Ummat," "One of my Ummat will enliven my Sunnat and kill the bidats. His name is Numan bin Thabit," "In every century there will be those who will get exalted among my Ummat. Abu Hanifa is the highest of his time," "Of my Ummat, there will come a person named Abu Hanifa. There is a beauty-spot between his two shoulder-blades. Allahu ta'ala will enliven His Din through his hand" are well known. One of the savants asked Rasulullah in his dream. "What would you say about the knowledge of Abu Hanifa!" He declared in response: "Everybody needs his knowledge." Another savant asked in his dream, "O Rasulallah! What would you say about the knowledge of Numan bin Thabit, who is from Kufa city?" He declared: "Learn from him, and act as he teaches you. He is a very good person." Imam-i Ali "radi-Allahu 'anh' said, "Let me inform you about a person named Abu Hanifa, in Kufa city. His heart will be full of knowledge and ultimate divine meanings. During the latest time period, many people will perish because they will not appreciate him. As a matter of fact, Rafidis will perish on account of Abu Bakr and 'Umar," Imam-i Muhammad Baqir "rahmatullahi 'alaih' looked at Abu Hanifa "rahmatullahi ta'ala 'alaih' and said, "When those who defile my ancestor's Shariat are on the increase, you will enliven it. You will be the savior of those who fear and the refuge of those who are confused! You will bring heretics round to the right course! Allahu ta'ala will help you!"

Of the above-said hadiths, the first, the second and the fifth are written in Khayrat-ul- Hisan, and also in Mawduatul'Ulum, by AllamaTaskoprulu. In the preface of a valuable book of fiqh, Durr-ul-mukhtar, the author quotes the hadiths "As Adam "alaihis-salam" boasts about me, so I boast about a person among my Ummat. His name is Numan and his surname is Abu Hanifa. He is the light of my Ummat" and "As Prophets boast about me, so I boast about Abu Hanifa. He who loves him has loved me. He who dislikes him has disliked me," and states that Abu Jawzi says that they are mawdu'. This is bigotry, for they have been reported by various people. Ibni Abidin writes that these hadiths are sahih, and explains these lines as follows: "As is reported in the book Khayrat-ul-hisan by Ibni Hajar- i Makki, it is declared in a hadith ash-Sharif in Bukhari and Muslim, "Even if iman goes up to the planet of Venus, one of the sons of Faris will certainly bring it back.' Faris means the people in that part of Iran called Fars. Imam-i azam's grandfather is from there. It is obvious that this hadith ash-Sharif denotes Imam-i azam. There is no doubt about it."

Such hadith savants as Suyuti, Zahabi and Asqalani said mawdu' about some hadiths; yet these words of theirs mean "They do not have the conditions which sahih hadiths should have according to my Madhhab." They did not mean that they were concocted hadiths. We should not say concocted about these hadiths, which exist in valuable books, by being deceived by the obstinate, envious articles of such people as Ibni Taymiyya, Ibni Jawzi and Aliyy-ul-Qari, who have dissented from the Ahl as-sunnat, or of those heretics called Wahhabis. Please read the fifth chapter! It is written on the three hundred and tenth page of the book Bariqa that it is declared in a hadith ash-Sharif in Bukhari and Muslim, "The most useful of people are those Muslims who are in my century. (That is, they are the Sahaba.) After them the best ones are those who come after them. (That is, they are the Tabiin.) And after them the best ones are those who will come after them. Lies will spread among those who will come after them. Do not believe their words or deeds!" This hadith ash-Sharif is also written in the book Fath-ul-majid by Wahhabis. All the Sahaba, and also most of those who came in the centuries after them are as they are described in the hadith ash-Sharif. Imam-i azam is one of the Tabiin, who are praised in this hadith ash-Sharif. In fact, it is known by all Muslims and even by all men of knowledge, whether they are religious or irreligious, that he is one of the highest of the Tabiin. Since Imam-i azam "rahmatullahi ta'ala 'alaih' is one of the greatest of those who have been celebrated through this hadith ash-Sharif, it would be unnecessary to look for another hadith ash-Sharif for explaining his greatness. A person who says mawdu' about the hadith ash-Sharifs that are written above and which praise him has disbelieved also this sahih hadith ash-Sharif. It is understood that the person is not a Sunni.

As our Prophet "sall-Allahu 'alaihi wassalam' praises the imams of Madhhabs in the hadith above, let us see what he declares about the Wahhabis and about those men of the Din who, like Wahhabis, have appeared recently. It is declared in the two hadith ash- Sharifs that are written in Tanbih and Mukhtasar-i Tazkira: "Towards the end of the world there will be a decrease in knowledge and an increase in ignorance" and "The decrease in knowledge indicates a decrease in the number of savants. Ignorant men of the Din will cause fitna by giving fatwas according to their own points of view. They will cause people to deviate from the right way." These hadith ash-Sharifs inform us that in the latter time period ignorant, sinful and heretical men of the Din will be on the increase and will mislead Muslims."

Studying the knowledge of kalam and marifat in his youth, he became very well-versed. Then, by serving Imam-i-Hammad for twenty-eight years, he reached maturity. When Hammad died, he replaced him as a mujtahid and Mufti. His knowledge, his superiority became known far and near. On account of his knowledge, virtue, intellect, comprehension, zuhd, taqwa, trustworthiness, quickness to reply and repartee, devoutness, trueness and all other human maturities, he was superior to everybody. All the mujtahids contemporary with him or succeeding him, other savants and great people, and even Christians have praised him. It is written in Khayrat-ul-hisan, in Mizan-ul-kubra, in Mirat-i-kainat, and in Mawduat-ul-Ulum that Imam-i Shafi'i said, "In the knowledge of fiqh, all people are Abu Hanifa's children." Again, it is written in Hafiz Zahabi's book As-sahifa fi manakib-i Abi Hanifa, Ibni Hajar-i Makki's Kalaid-ul-ukban fi-manakib-in Numan, Hamawi's Ashbah, Muhammad bin Yusuf's Sirat-i Shami and in Mahmud Pishawuri's Persian book Hujjat-ul- Islam that Imam-i Shafi'i said, "He who wants to become a fiqh scholar should read the books of Abu Hanifa," and they wrote that this was also reported by Imam-i Muzani. Once he said, "I get benefits from Abu Hanifa. I visit his grave every day. When I am in a difficult situation I go to his grave and perform a namaz of two rakats. I beg Allahu ta'ala. And He gives me what I wish for." This is explained in the preface of Ibni Abidin and also on the hundred and sixty-sixth page of Shawahid-ul-haqq. It is written in Ghaliyya: "Imam-i Shafi'i used to perform morning prayers near Abu Hanifa's grave, but he would not recite the prayers of the Qunut out of his respect towards him. There was no savant on earth who was superior to Abu Hanifa." Imam-i Shafi'i was a disciple of Imam-i Muhammad, who was Imam-i azam's second disciple. He said, "Allahu ta'ala bestowed knowledge upon me through two people. I learned hadith from Sufyan bin Uyayna and fiqh from Muhammad Shaibani." And he said once, "There is one person to whom I am grateful concerning the knowledge of the Din and in worldly affairs. He is Imam-i Muhammad." Imam-i Shafi'i, again, said, "I wrote enough books to load a beast of burden with what I learned from Imam-i Muhammad. Had it not been for him, I wouldn't have acquired anything of knowledge. In knowledge, all people are the children of the savants of Iraq. The savants of Iraq are the disciples of the savants of Kufa. And the savants of Kufa are Abu Hanifa's disciples." Imam-i azam acquired knowledge from four thousand people.

Various books have been written by savants coming in each century who have explained the greatness of Imam-i azam.

Five hundred thousand matters of the Din have been solved and answered in the Hanafi Madhhab.

Imam-i azam's taqwa was very great. He used to trade in order to earn halal food. He had commercial partners. He used to distribute earnings of thousands of aqchas which he considered doubtful to the poor and to men of the Din. He used to support his hundreds of disciples and meet their needs with his own earnings. For thirty years he fasted every day. [He ate for five days in a year, on the days of 'Iyd.] He used to perform namaz at nights. He used to spend most of the hours of his days giving lectures and answering the questions of the people in the mosque. At nights he used to worship his Owner in the mosque or in his home. For forty years he performed the morning prayers with the ablution he had made for the night prayers. He often used to read the entire Qur'an in one rakat or in two rakats. And sometimes, whether in namaz or not, he would recite an ayat describing Allah's torment or mercy, time after time, and then weep, moan and sob. Those who heard him would pity him. He would dress like the poor. But sometimes he would wear a very valuable suit in order to exhibit the blessings of Allahu ta'ala. He performed hajj fifty-five times and stayed in the blessed city of Mecca for several years. At the place where his soul was taken away he recited the entire Qur'an seven thousand times. He said, "I have laughed once in my life. And I repent for it." He would talk infrequently, but think much. He used to discuss some subjects of the Din with his disciples. One night, after performing the night prayer in jamaat, he was going out of the mosque, when he began to talk to his disciple Zufar on some matter. One of his feet was outside the door and the other inside the mosque yet. They talked until the morning adhan and then went back into the mosque to perform the morning prayer before he had time to take his other foot out. Saying that Hadrat Imam-i Ali had said, "It is permissible to spend up to four thousand dirhams for livelihood," he used to distribute the excess of the four thousand dirhams of his earnings to the poor. Yazid bin 'Amr wanted to make him the governor and the judge of Kufa city. He would not accept it. He imprisoned him and had him beaten. His blessed head and face swelled. The next day he took the imam out and repeated his offer with oppression. The imam said. "Let me consult," and obtained permission. He went to the blessed city of Mecca and stayed there for five or six years.

The Khalifa Mansur used to respect the imam very much. He sent him ten thousand aqcha and a concubine as a present. The imam did not accept them. One aqcha was worth one dirham of silver. Mansur was cruel. In 145 A.H., Ibrahim bin Abdullah bin Hadrat Hasan had been recruiting soldiers in order to help his brother Muhammad, who had declared his caliphate in the blessed city of Medina. He had come to Kufa. It was rumored that Abu Hanifa had been helping him. Upon hearing this, Mansur had the imam brought to Baghdad from Kufa. He told him to tell everybody that Mansur was the rightful Khalifa. He would give him the presidency of the Supreme Court of Appeal in return for this. He oppressed him very much. The imam, having too much taqwa to esteem worldly ranks, did not accept it. Being hurt, Mansur imprisoned him. He had him thrashed. Having received thirty blows, his blessed feet bled. Mansur repented and sent him thirty thousand aqcha, but he did not accept it. He imprisoned him again and had him thrashed, each day ten blows more than the day before were added. On the eleventh day, because Mansur was afraid that the people might attack, he was forced to lie down on his back. Poisonous sherbet was poured into his mouth. He performed sajda (prostration) while dying in 150 A.H. Some fifty thousand people performed his janaza prayer. There was such a great crowd that the prayer was accomplished with difficulty, not before the afternoon prayer. For twenty days many people came to his grave and performed his janaza prayer there.

He had seven hundred and thirty disciples. His son Hammad was one of his notable disciples.

There have been some disagreements among the disciples of Imam-i azam. The hadith, "Disagreements among the savants of my Ummat is Allah's compassion," informs us that these disagreements are useful. He used to fear Allah very much, and was very careful in obeying Qur'an al-karim. He used to say to his disciples, "On any matter, if you happen to obtain a document that disagrees with my word, leave my word aside and follow the document!" For his disciples, like he himself, were mujtahids. All his disciples swear, "We have stated even our disagreements with him based on a proof, a document which we had heard from him."

Muftis should act in accordance with Imam-i azam's word. If his word cannot be found they should follow Imam-i Yusuf's word. Next to him, Imam-i Muhammad's word should be followed. When the word of Imam-i Yusuf and that of Imam-i Muhammad are on one side and Imam-i azam's word is on the other side, a Mufti can give a fatwa according to either side.

It is written in the introductions to Radd-ul-mukhtar and Majmua-i zuhdiyya (in Turkish), and in Waqfun-niyyat by Shaikh-ul-Islam Ahmad bin Sulaiman bin Kamal Pasha, "There are seven grades of fiqh savants. The highest of them are the mujtahids in the Shariat. These are called "mujtahid-i mutlaq.' The imams of the four Madhhabs are in this grade. The second from the highest are those great 'alims who are called "mujtahid fi-l-madhhab.' Imam-i Abu Yusuf, Imam-i Muhammad Shaibani and the other disciples of Imam-i azam are among them. They derive ahkam (rules) from the Adilla-i Shariyya following the methods and principles formulated by Imam-i azam Abu Hanifa. Some of the ahkam derived by them may not be suitable to the ahkam derived by Imam-i azam. [It is written in Al-mizan-ul-kubra, page 17 that they are called "mujtahid-i mutlaq fi-l-madhhab,' too.] The third group are the 'ulama who are mujtahid fi-l-masala. They find out the ahkam for new matters. The ahkam found by them should be suitable to the ahkam of the afore-mentioned two groups. Khassaf, Tahawi, Karkhi, Shams-ul-aimma Halwani, Shams-ul-aimma Sarakhsi, Pazdawi, Qadikhan and the similar profound 'ulama are among the mujtahids of the third group. The 'alims who are in the groups other than those mentioned above are not mujtahids, but muqallids. For example, the 'ulama called Ashab-i takhrij in the fourth group cannot perform ijtihad. Abu Bakr Ahmad Radi died in 370 A.H. [981 A.D.] in Baghdad; he chose one of two meanings by explaining the ahkam which had been reported mujmal (briefly) and which might be understood in two ways. The fifth group of the fiqh scholars are the Ashab-i tarjih. They select the sahih (correct) and awla (better) ones of several khabars (narrations) which have reached them. Quduri and Burhan-ad-din al-Marghinani, author of the book al-Hidaya, are among them. The sixth group are the Ashab-i tamyiz, muqallid 'ulama who distinguish the qawi (strong) ahkam from the daif (weak) ones and the zahir khabars from the nadir ones. The authors of the books Kanz-ud-daqaiq, Mukhtar, Ikhtiyar, Wiqaya and Majma'ul-bahrayn are among them. They did not include any mardud (rejected) and daif reports in their books. The seventh group are the muqallids who cannot carry out the above-said services, but who can only transmit correctly from the books of the preceding groups and report them. [It is written in Majmua-i Zuhdiyya that Tahtawi and Durr-ul-mukhtar and Ibni 'Abidin are among them.] The 'ulama of the sixth group will exist until Doomsday and they will distinguish the haqq (right) from the batil (wrong). The hadith ash-Sharif, "The 'ulama of my Ummat who are on the right way will exist till Doomsday,' reports this."

It is written in the introduction to Mizan-ul-kubra, "After the imams of the four Madhhabs "rahmatullahi ta'ala alaihim ajmain' no alim claimed to be a mujtahid-i mutlaq. Only imam- i Muhammad bin Jarir-i Tabari claimed so, but his claim was not accepted. Imam-i Suyuti used to say that he was a mujtahid-i mutlaq fi-l-madhhab, and he used to issue fatwa according to the Shafi'i Madhhab. The 'arif-i kamils who had reached high grades of tasawwuf became mujtahids with dhawq (taste) and wijdan (finding). They detected the halals with their fragrant odor and the harams with their bad smell. It is not possible to reach the grade of ijtihad without receiving fayd from an 'arif-i kamil. A Wali who has reached this grade need not imitate a Madhhab. Their calling themselves Hanafi or Shafi'i is due to having followed a Madhhab before reaching this grade. It is necessary to learn correctly the knowledge of fiqh of one of the four Madhhabs to rise to the grades of Wilayat. Therefore, it is necessary to learn either by hearing, or by reading the books written by a pious person who is known to have the creed of the Ahl as-sunnat and an attachment to a Madhhab. A sufi who follows what he learned by hearing it from a man of religion without a Madhhab and with a corrupt creed, or by reading a book written by an unknown person, or a sufi who does not follow one of the four Madhhabs will go astray and become a zindiq. He will become an aide-de-satan in tempting others to go astray, too."

[It is first necessary for someone who becomes a Muslim, or for Muslims' children who reach the age of maturity called 'aqil-baligh, to say the Kalima-i shahadat and to believe in it by learning the meaning of it. Then, they have to learn and believe in the knowledge written in the books of the Ahl as-sunnat savants regarding itiqad, that is, the tenets of belief. Then, they have to learn fiqh knowledge from the books of any one of the four Madhhabs, that is, the five commandments of Islam, and they must follow these commandments. Those who deny that it is necessary to learn and obey these things and those who do not pay due attention to these points become murtads. That is, after they become Muslims upon saying the Kalima-i shahadat, they become kafirs again. The knowledge of itiqad in the four Madhhabs is the same. Someone who follows the knowledge of iman and fiqh of any of the four Madhhabs is called Ahl as-sunnat or Sunni.

Belief of those who do not follow one of these four Madhhabs is corrupted. They are either Ahl-i bidat -bidat holders- or murtads. In both cases, they will certainly go to Hell to be punished in the fire, if they die without repentance. While doing something, due to certain excuses, a person coming across difficulties in doing that thing according to his own Madhhab's rules can do it according to the rules of one of the other three. Then, he has to follow all the rules related to this thing in this second Madhhab. If it is difficult to obey one of these rules, but this rule is easier in his own Madhhab, then he can do it. In this case two Madhhabs are joined on an obligatory basis. If it is also difficult in his own Madhhab, then it is jaiz for him not to obey the first rule of his own Madhhab. A better way, however, is to consider a permission likely to exist in the ijtihad of one of the Ashab al-kiram. The Sahabis who were alive when Rasulullah "sallAllahu ta'ala 'alaihi wa sallam' died were all mujtahids. When it becomes difficult to follow one of the four Madhhabs, then it is appropriate to worship according to the ijtihads of one of the Ashab-i kiram. When difficulty arises, our zann-i galib, that is, strong supposition, is acceptable. The meaning of the 102nd ayat of Surat-it-Tawba is: "The early Immigrants (from Mecca to Medina) and the Residents (of Medina) and those who follow them are pleased with Allahu ta'ala. Allahu ta'ala is also pleased with them. I (Allahu ta'ala) prepared heaven for them. They will live there eternally." It is clear from this ayat also that the Ashab-i kiram "ridwanullahi ta'ala alaihim ajmain' are Allahu ta'ala's compassion, and whoever follows any one of them will attain eternal blessings.]

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