Imam Shafi’i’s Asceticism and Fear
Imam Shafi’i’s strong asceticism, his extreme fear of Allah, and the fact that all his concerns were for the Hereafter are clearly evidenced by this narration: «One day, Sulayman b. Uyayna was narrating a hadith when Shafi’i, unable to bear it, fainted. Those who saw this told Uyayna that Shafi’i had died. Uyayna said: «If he has died, then the most virtuous person of this age has died.»»
Another narration is also reported from Abdullah b. Muhammad al-Balawi: «When speaking about the son of Nebate, Omar said to me: «I have not seen anyone as cautious about doubtful matters and as eloquent in speech as Muhammad b. Idris al-Shafi’i (R.A.).»»
One day, I was with Shafi’i and Haris, the son of Lebil, on the top of Safa. Haris, a student of Sali al-Murra, recited with a burning voice from the Quran:
«Today is the day when the speech is held back. Permission will not be given to those who seek forgiveness.» (TT – Mursalat : 35 – 36)
When Imam Shafi’i heard this verse, his face turned pale, his hair stood on end, and he fainted from a terrible shock and fell to the ground. When he regained consciousness, he said:
«O Allah, I seek refuge in You from liars and those who turn their faces away. O Allah, the hearts of the knowledgeable incline towards You, and the necks of the seekers are humbled before You. O my Lord, bestow Your generosity upon me, cover my sins with Your name of Concealer, and forgive my sins with Your mercy and grace.» He then left.
We also left Mecca. When I arrived in Baghdad, Imam Shafi’i was also in Iraq, that is, in that city. One day, I was sitting by the Tigris to perform ablution when a man came to me and said: «O young man, perform your ablution well so that Allah the Almighty may treat you kindly in this world and the Hereafter.»
I turned around and saw a figure with a shroud walking away. I hurried to perform my ablution and followed him. He turned back and asked: «Do you have a request?» I said: «Yes, I also want a teacher like you.» He replied: «You must know that those who are faithful to Allah will find salvation. Those who fear Allah, that is, those who guard against the fear of disbelief at the last breath, will find safety. Whoever does not give their heart to the pleasures of this world today will be granted great rewards from Allah tomorrow and will reach the presence of glory. Do you want more?»
«— Yes,» I said, showing my desire.
«— Three qualities must be present in a person for their faith to mature.
1 — Emr-i ma’rul: Those who convey the commands of Allah the Almighty to others and also accept them themselves,
2 — Nehy-i münker: Those who prevent others from the prohibitions of Allah the Almighty and also refrain from them themselves,
3 — Those who do not go beyond the boundaries set by Allah the Almighty and preserve these things.» He continued and said:
«— Do you want me to say more?»
«— Yes,» I replied.
«— Turn your back on the world, turn towards the Hereafter, and bind yourself to Allah in your work so that you may find salvation.» He said and left. I had not recognized him; when I asked who he was, they said it was Imam Shafi’i.
If you pay attention to how Imam Shafi’i fainted and fell at the sight of the divine statements of the Quran and to this advice and exhortation, you will easily understand how much he feared Allah the Almighty and how ascetic he was. This level of asceticism and fear is only possible by knowing the greatness of Allah the Almighty. Indeed, it is said: «Among the servants, those who fear Allah the Most Merciful the most are the scholars.» Imam Shafi’i acquired this fear not from issues such as peace, marriage, and similar jurisprudential matters, but perhaps from the knowledge of the Hereafter found in the Quran and Hadith, which are the source of all knowledge. Because all rulings are in the Quran.
His knowledge of the secrets of the heart and the science of the Hereafter is also easily understood from the wise words reported about him:
«Riyadh (showing off) is a fitnah (trial) that the desires of the soul impose upon the sight of the scholars. If the scholars incline towards the desires of their souls, their deeds will be destroyed.»
He also says: «If you fear falling into UCB (a term referring to a specific jurisprudential concept), think about whose approval you are seeking, which blessings you are longing for, which afflictions you are trying to avoid, which comfort you are thanking Allah for, and which calamity you are remembering. If you keep even one of these in mind, there will be no one who will approve of your deeds. (Because it means your deeds are not worthy of comparison with them.)» Look, how he explains the treatment for the great illness of the heart, riyadh, and the cures for UCB and UCB.
Again, Hazreti Shafi’i says: «The deeds of those who do not protect their souls are of no benefit.» He also says (may Allah have mercy on him): «The secret of the one who serves Allah the Almighty knowingly awakens, and the secret (privacy) is far ahead; that is, he feels the spiritual joy of his worship.» He also says: «Every person has a friend and an enemy. For this reason (so that your friend may be blessed and your enemy disgraced), serve Allah.» This is also his saying…
Abdul Aziz’s son, Abdul Kahir, who was a person who avoided the good and the bad, used to ask Imam Shafi’i about the concept of vera’. Since he was himself a person of vera’, Imam Shafi’i (R.A.) would favor him and answer his questions.
One day, when asked which of the three stages of the scholars (salnr, mihnet, and temkin) was more acceptable, Shafi’i said: «Temkin is the level of the prophets; then comes mihnet, then patience, and then temkin. Look, Allah the Almighty first tested Ibrahim (peace be upon him), then gave him temkin. Musa (peace be upon him) was first tested, then given temkin and endurance. Eyyub (peace be upon him) was tested, then given temkin. Sulayman (peace be upon him) was first tested, then given temkin and great dominion.
Therefore, temkin is the highest level. Indeed, Allah the Almighty says:
«And thus We placed Yusuf in the midst of the people in a state of temkin.» (12 – Yusuf: 21)
He also says: «And We gave Eyyub (peace be upon him) a greater portion than all his people and companions.» (21 – Enbiya: 84)
Imam Shafi’i’s (R.A.) explanation clearly indicates that he was in harmony with the Quran’s teachings and that he knew the levels of the prophets and saints who turned towards Allah the Almighty. All of these are knowledge of the Hereafter.
When asked by Imam Shafi’i (R.A.): «When can a person become a scholar?» he answered: «After thoroughly understanding every subject he reads, he moves on to another and completes his deficiencies.»
When asked to Calinus, a ruler from the Greek philosophers: «Why do you recommend different medicines for the same illness?» Calinus replied: «In reality, the medicine for the illness is one, but the other medicines are recommended to reduce the harmful effects of that medicine. The single remedy, by its strength, can sometimes have the opposite effect and kill the patient. However, the other medicines reduce its strength and only the healing sensitivity remains.» He said. In the same way, single-sided knowledge can lead a person to excess; but when other sciences are also mixed in, it returns to balance. These and many other virtues indicate Imam Shafi’i’s knowledge of the Hereafter and his superior position in the science of knowing Allah the Almighty.
0 Fiqh and Fiqh’s struggle, the aim is only the pleasure of Allah, and this narration clearly testifies to it: «To the visitor who came to see him during his illness, he said: «My desire was to inform people of what I know without being attributed to me.»» Looking at his knowledge of the dangers of gaining knowledge and fame and his refusal to have such fame in his heart, Imam Shafi’i says: «I never wanted anyone I debated with to fall into error.» He also says: «Whenever I spoke with someone, I wanted them to be successful, to grow stronger, to see help, and to be protected and safeguarded by Allah the Almighty.» He also says: «In my debates with people, I did not consider whose tongue the truth would come from, whether it was mine or theirs.» (That is: Let the truth be found, whether it comes from my tongue or my enemy’s.) He also says: «I did not think of anything other than respect and love for those who accepted the truths I presented, and those who rejected the truths and stubbornly insisted on them were out of my sight and I erased them from my heart.» All of these clearly show that the aim of Imam Shafi’i’s debates in fiqh is the pleasure of Allah.
1st BOOK — 2nd CHAPTER — IMAM MALIK BL 71
You can see that those who came after him only followed him in fiqh, but they separated from the real goal, which is sincerity. For this reason, Ebu Sevr (may Allah have mercy on him) said: «Neither I nor the seeing eyes have seen anyone like Shali’.»
Ahmed b. Hanbal (may Allah be pleased with him) said: «For forty years, I have prayed and made du’a to Shafi’i.» Look at the sincerity of the one making du’a and the high level of the one being prayed for. Also, look at the enmity and jealousy among the scholars of this age towards each other; you will find the difference among the scholars. In this way, you will understand how wrong the claims are about the current scholars following them.
Ahmed b. Hanbal’s son, who saw how often his father prayed to Imam Shafi’i, asked: «Who is Shafi’i that you pray to him so much?» Ahmed replied: «My son, Shafi’i is like the sun in relation to the world and like comfort in relation to people.» Think now, is there anyone who can replace these people?
Imam Ahmed says: «Everyone who clings to Divit has a debt of gratitude to Imam Shafi’i.»
Yahya b. Sa’id al-Kattan said: «For forty years, I have prayed in every prayer, asking Allah the Almighty to grant him the knowledge He has bestowed upon him and to guide him to the correct path.»
There are countless virtues in the Hazreti Shafi’i. We will stop here. Most of what we have written is taken from the book Manaqib, which Nasr b. Ibrahim al-Makdisi wrote about Imam Shafi’i. May Allah be pleased with him and with all Muslims.
IMAM MALIK
Imam Malik (R.A.) is also adorned with the five virtues mentioned above.
When asked:
— What do you say about the pursuit of knowledge?
— It is very good, but the knowledge you learn should be the one that is useful in your daily life, he said.
He gave such importance and respect to religious knowledge that when he was about to narrate a hadith, he would immediately perform ablution, trim his beard, apply perfume, sit on his knees in a respectful manner, and then narrate the hadith.
When asked: «Why do you do this?» he would answer: «Out of respect for the precious words that come from the blessed tongue of our Prophet.»
Imam Malik says: «Knowledge is not about reading and narrating a lot! It may be a light that Allah the Almighty gives to whoever He wills.» This respect and reverence for knowledge is a clear evidence of his strong knowledge of the greatness of Allah the Almighty.
The following statement clearly indicates that his aim in knowledge was the pleasure of Allah: «Struggle in religion [debate and enmity in religious matters] has no value at all. (It is a bad habit.)»
Again, this statement also indicates his virtue:
«I know that Hazreti Malik answered «I do not know» to thirty-two out of forty-eight questions asked to him.» Those whose aim is not the pleasure of Allah but self-interest cannot show such humility and modesty. For this reason, Imam Shafi’i also said: «Among the scholars, Imam Malik is like a bright star. No one is as grateful to Malik as I am.»
It is reported that: (The Caliph, Mansur, had excluded Malik from narration because he did not think it necessary to force the wife to be divorced. Later, he secretly sent a man to ask him about this matter, and in front of the people, he said: «My wife — the wife of the divorced woman is not divorced.» Upon this, the Caliph, even though he beat him with a whip, did not stop narrating. Again, Malik said: «A person who does not lie in the hadith he narrates, and who tells the truth, will not fall ill in old age, will not lose his mind, will not have his senses disturbed, and will not be affected by fire.»
Regarding his asceticism and piety: Emir al-Mu’minin, Mehdi, asked Malik: «Do you have a house?» Malik replied: «No, but I will inform you of a hadith I heard from Rebi’a b. Abu ‘Abd al-Rahman: «The husband’s wife [ash] is the wife.» The same question was also asked to Hurr al-Rashid, who also answered no. Hurr al-Rashid then gave him three thousand dinars to buy a house. He took the money but did not spend even forty of it. When Reşid wanted to return from Hijaz to Iraq, Malik (R.A.) said: «I invite you to come with me, because just as the Hazret-i Osman (R.A.) invited people to the Quran, I also invite Muslims to the Muvatta…