The Sunni Imam as-Shafii

Chapter three [from book] is mostly about the Sunni Imam Shafii.

Imam Shafii is deemed as a reformer and a savior of traditionalists. One of his student testified that his teacher (Imam Shafii) ridiculed the arbitrary application of qiyas (analogy) by Abu Hanifah. Imam Shafii compared ra'y of Abu Hanifah to sorcery

"I best compare Abu Hanifah’s ra’y to a sorceress’ thread which, according to the direction in which it is pulled, appears either yellow or reddish." (footnote: book Ibn al-Mulaqqin)

As-Shafii is also credited for founding the Sunni Usul al-Fiqh. His most famous statement was (rephrase) ’If there was a contradiction between my sayings and the words of the Holy Prophet, then the saying of the Holy Prophet (saw) supersedes my statement’.

His prominent follower (also a theologian), Al-Nawawi contrasted his (Shafii) approach with the other theologians of his time

"He studied the legal attitudes of his predecessors and learned from the outstanding imams; he disputed with the most able and most profound men; he smoothed <nahata> their teachings, examined them, and from all material thus gathered together, he after wards produced a system which incorporated the Book, the sunnah, consensus, and analogy; yet he did not restrict himself to the one or the other among these sources as others have done." (footnote book Tahdhib al-asma from book)

Another Shafiite (Abu Bakr al-Jurri) praising as-Shafii

“In Abu Hanifah’s school, neither ra’y nor hadith is to be found; in Malik’s school, there is weak ra’y and sound hadith; Ishaq b. Rahwayhi has weak hadith and weak ra’y; in al-Shafii’s, there is sound ra’y and sound hadith.” (footnote book al-Sharani)

Imam Shafii gets glowing review from the Sunni Imam Ahmad b. Hanbal 

“We intended to refute the exponents of ra’y, but we did not succeed; then al-Shafii came and led us to victory” (footnote book Tahdhib al-asma from book)

continue reading part ten