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Hanbali school
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The Hanbali school[a] or Hanbalism is one of the four major schools of Islamic jurisprudence, belonging to the Ahl al-Hadith tradition within Sunni Islam.[1] It is named after and based on the teachings of the 9th-century scholar, jurist and traditionist, Ahmad ibn Hanbal (c. 780–855 CE), and later institutionalized by his students. One who subscribes to the Hanbali school is called a Hanbali (Arabic: ٱلْحَنْبَلِيّ, romanized: al-ḥanbalī, pl. ٱلْحَنْبَلِيَّة, al-ḥanbaliyya, or ٱلْحَنَابِلَة, al-ḥanābila). It mostly adheres to the Athari school of theology and is the smallest out of the four major Sunni schools, the others being the Hanafi, Maliki and Shafi'i schools.[2][3][4]
Like the other Sunni schools, it primarily derives sharia from the Quran, hadith and views of Muhammad's companions.[1] In cases where there is no clear answer in the sacred texts of Islam, the Hanbali school does not accept juristic discretion or customs of a community as sound bases to derive Islamic law on their own—methods that the Hanafi and Maliki schools accept.[4] Hanbalis are the majority in Saudi Arabia and Qatar where the Salafi movement has grown.[5][6][7] As such, Hanbalis form barely 5% of the Sunni Muslim population worldwide.[8]
With the rise of the 18th-century conservative Wahabbi movement, the Hanbali school experienced a great reformation.[9] The Wahhabi movement's founder, Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab, collaborated with the House of Saud to spread Wahhabi teachings around the world.[9] British orientalist Michael Cook argues Ahmad ibn Hanbal's own beliefs played "no real part in the establishment of the central doctrines of Wahhabism",[10] and "the older Hanbalite authorities had doctrinal concerns very different from those of the Wahhabis".[10] Wahhabi scholars such as al-Albani, al-Wadi'i and Ibn Baz eventually began to criticize taqlid to any of the four schools, including the Hanbali school.[11]
History
[edit]
Ahmad ibn Hanbal, the founder of Hanbali school of thought (madhab), was a disciple of the Sunni Imam Al-Shafi‘i, who was reportedly a student of Imam Malik ibn Anas,[12][13]: 121 who was a student of the Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq, like Imam Abu Hanifa.[14][15] Thus all of the four great Imams of Sunni Fiqh are connected to Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq from the Bayt (Household) of Muhammad, whether directly or indirectly.[16]
Like Al-Shafi'i and Dawud al-Zahiri, Ahmad was deeply concerned with the extreme elasticity being deployed by many jurists of his time, who used their discretion to reinterpret the doctrines of Qur'an and Hadiths to suit the demands of Caliphs and wealthy.[17] Ibn Hanbal advocated for a literal interpretation of Qur'an and Hadiths. Influenced by the debates of his time, he was known for rejecting religious rulings (fatwas) from the 'Ijma (consensus) of jurists of his time, which he considered to be speculative theology (Kalam). He associated them with the Mu'tazilis, whom he despised and referred to as heretical apostates. When asked whether or not people should pray behind them in congregation , he said "One does not pray behind them, such as the Jahmiyyah and the Mu’tazilah."[18]. Ibn Hanbal was also hostile to the discretionary principles of rulings in jurisprudence (Usul al-fiqh) mainly championed by the people of opinion, which was established by Abu Hanifa, although he did adopt al-Shafi'i's method in usul al-fiqh. He linked these discretionary principles with kalam. His guiding principle was that the Quran and Sunnah are the only proper sources of Islamic jurisprudence, and are of equal authority and should be interpreted literally in line with the Athari creed. He also believed that there can be no true consensus (Ijma) among jurists (mujtahids) of his time,[17] and preferred the consensus of Muhammad's companions (Sahaba) and weaker hadiths. Imam Hanbal himself compiled Al-Musnad, a text with over 30,000 saying, actions and customs of Muhammad.[1]

Ibn Hanbal never composed an actual systematic legal theory on his own, and was against setting up juristic superstructures. He devoted himself to the task of collection and study of Hadith; and believed that legal rulings must be derived by referring directly to the Qur'an and Sunnah; instead of referring to a body of religious jurisprudence.[19][20] However; his followers would later establish a systematic legal methodology some generations after Ibn Hanbal's death.[21][self-published source] Much of the work of preserving the school based on Ibn Hanbal's method was laid by his student Abu Bakr al-Khallal; his documentation on the founder's views eventually reached twenty volumes.[22][23] The original copy of the work, which was contained in the House of Wisdom, was burned along with many other works of literature during the Mongol siege of Baghdad. The book was only preserved in a summarized form by the Hanbali jurist al-Khiraqi Archived 2021-09-14 at the Wayback Machine, who had access to written copies of al-Khallal's book before the siege.[23]

Relations with the Abbasid Caliphate were rocky for the Hanbalites. Led by the Hanbalite scholar Al-Hasan ibn 'Ali al-Barbahari, the school often formed mobs of followers in 10th-century Baghdad who would engage in violence against fellow Sunnis suspected of committing sins and the Shias.[24] During al-Barbahari's leadership of the school in Baghdad, shops were looted,[25] female entertainers were attacked in the streets,[25] popular grievances among the lower classes were agitated as a source of mobilization,[26] and public chaos in general ensued.[27] Their efforts would be their own undoing in 935, when a series of home invasions and mob violence on the part of al-Barbahari's followers in addition to perceived deviant views led to the Caliph Ar-Radi publicly condemning the school in its entirety and ending its official patronage by state religious bodies.[27][28]
According to Christopher Melchert, medieval Hanbali literature is rich in references to saints, grave visitation, miracles, and relics.[29] Historically, the Hanbali school has been seen as one of the four major Sunni madhahib (schools of law), and many prominent medieval Sufis, such as Abdul Qadir Gilani, were Hanbali jurists and mystics at the same time.[29]
At some point between the 10th and 12th centuries, some Hanbali scholars began adopting the term “Salafi". The influential 13th century Hanbali theologian Ibn Taymiyya advocated Salafi thought as a theological endeavour and his efforts would create a lasting impact on the subsequent followers of the Hanbali school.[30][31]
Some scholars maintain Ibn Hanbal was "the distant progenitor of Wahhabism" and also inspired the similar Salafi movement.[32] Now, most of the followers of the Salafi movement are present in Saudi Arabia andd Qatar.[33][34][35]
Principles
[edit]Sources of law
[edit]Like all other schools of Sunni Islam, the Hanbali school holds that the two primary sources of Islamic law are the Qur'an and the Sunnah found in Hadiths (compilation of sayings, actions and customs of Muhammad). Where these texts did not provide guidance, Imam Hanbal recommended guidance from established consensus of Muhammad's companions (Sahabah), then individual opinion of Muhammad's companions, followed in order of preference by weaker hadiths, and in rare cases analogy (Qiyas).[1] The Hanbali school, unlike Hanafi and Maliki schools, rejected that a source of Islamic law can be a jurist's personal discretionary opinion or consensus of later generation Muslims on matters that serve the interest of Islam and community. Hanbalis hold that this is impossible and leads to abuse.[17]
Ibn Hanbal rejected the possibility of religiously binding consensus (Ijma), as it was impossible to verify once later generations of Muslims spread throughout the world,[17] going as far as declaring anyone who claimed as such to be a liar. Ibn Hanbal did, however, accept the possibility and validity of the consensus of the Sahaba the first generation of Muslims.[36][37] Later followers of the school, however, expanded on the types of consensus accepted as valid, and the prominent Hanbalite Ibn Taymiyya expanded legal consensus to later generations while at the same time restricting it only to the religiously learned.[37] Analogical reasoning (Qiyas), was likewise rejected as a valid source of law by Ibn Hanbal himself,[17][38][39] with a near-unanimous majority of later Hanbalite jurists not only accepting analogical reasoning as valid but also borrowing from the works of Shafi'ite jurists on the subject.
Ibn Hanbal's strict standards of acceptance regarding the sources of Islamic law were probably due to his suspicion regarding the field of Usul al-Fiqh, which he equated with speculative theology (kalam).[40] While demanding strict application of Qur'an and Hadith, Hanbali Fiqh is nonetheless flexible in areas not covered by Scriptures. In issues where the Qur'an and the Hadiths were ambiguous or vague; the Hanbali Fuqaha (jurists) engaged in Ijtihad to derive rulings. Additionally, the Hanbali madh'hab accepted the Islamic principle of Maslaha ('public interest') in solving the novel issues.[41] In the modern era, Hanbalites have branched out and even delved into matters regarding the upholding (Istislah) of public interest (Maslaha) and even juristic preference (Istihsan), anathema to the earlier Hanbalites as valid methods of determining religious law.
Theology
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Ibn Hanbal taught that the Qur'an is uncreated due to Muslim belief that it is the word of God, and the word of God is not created. The Muʿtazilites taught that the Qur'an, which is readable and touchable, is created like other creatures and created objects. Ibn Hanbal viewed this as heresy, replying that there are things which are not touchable but are created, such as the Throne of God.[42] Unlike the other three schools of Islamic jurisprudence (Hanafi, Maliki, and Shafi), the Hanbali madhab remained largely traditionalist or Athari in theology[43] and it was primarily Hanbali scholars who codified the Athari school of thought.
Distinct rulings
[edit]Purity (tahara)
[edit]Ablution (wudu')
[edit]- Saying "with the name of God" (bi-smi llāh) is necessary, but waived if one forgets or is ignorant.
- It is obligatory and a pillar (rukn) to wash the mouth and nose, and is not waived.
- It is obligatory and a pillar to wipe the entire head, including the ears, and is not waived. Wiping the neck is not recommended.
- It is recommended to lengthen the whiteness that will appear on the Day of Judgement by washing to the top of the arms and shins.
- Impurities, such as blood, pus, and vomit, nullify ablution if they come out the body in large amounts, but not small amounts. If they come out the front or back private parts, it nullifies it regardless of the amount. Also, urine and stool nullify it regardless of the amount and where it came out from.
- Light sleep when standing or sitting does not nullify ablution.
- Touching someone of the opposite sex with any part of the body nullifies ablution if done with lust (shahwah). The hair, teeth, and nails are not included.
- Touching the front or back private part with the hand nullifies ablution. The testicles are not included.
- Wind passing from the woman's front private part nullifies ablution.
- Eating camel meat nullifies ablution, whether raw or cooked. All other parts, such as its fat, liver, or pancreas, do not.
- Washing the dead nullifies ablution.
- Apostasy nullifies ablution.
Impurities (najasa)
[edit]- A minimum of three wipes is obligatory to cleanse the impurity after relieving oneself, and any less will not suffice. If there is still impurity after that, more wipes must be used until the effect is achieved. Microscopic amounts are excused.
- Washing the hands three times is obligatory after awakening from a night's sleep. Naps during the day are not included.
- Impurities must be washed seven times with water to be rendered pure. Nothing can cleanse impurities except purifying (ṭahūr) water.
- Transforming one substance into another does not render it pure, even if it changes its chemical properties, except alcohol (khamr).
- If an impurity falls into pure (ṭāhir) water less than two qullahs in volume, all of it is rendered impure (najis). If it is more than two qullahs, it remains pure. If the liquid the impurity falls into is other than water, it will be rendered impure regardless of the amount.
- Semen (madī) is pure.
- Blood, pus, vomit, pre-ejaculate fluid (madhī), and white discharge after urinating (wadī) are impure. However, a small amount of blood and pus is excused.
- Cat hair and saliva are pure.
- All seafood is generally pure and permissible.
- Pigs, dogs, donkeys, predators larger than a cat, birds with talons, and all animals derived from them are all impure and impermissible.
- Leather from unslaughtered animals is impure, even if tanned.
- Rennet from unslaughtered animals is impure and impermissible.
- Vinegar made with human intervention is impure and impermissible, but pure and permissible if formed naturally.
Prayer (salah)
[edit]Standing (qiyam)
[edit]- It is recommended to grasp (qabd) the hands below the navel, as stated in Kashshaf al-Qina' by Mansur al-Buhuti, al-Mughni of Ibn Qudamah, and other works. This is also the position of the Hanafi school, as well as Abu Hanifa and his students, Sufyan ath-Thawri, Ishaq ibn Rahuyah, Ibrahim an-Nakha'i, and other scholars among the predecessors (salaf).
Other views on where to place them do exist in the school, due to conflicting narrations from Ahmad:
- Above the navel and below the chest[44]
- On the navel
- A choice wherever to place them
- Letting them hang free (ṣadl)
- Grasping them in obligatory prayers, but letting them hang free in voluntary prayers
- Reciting another chapter (sūrah) after reciting the chapter al-Fatihah is recommended and not obligatory.
- It is recommended to look at the place of prostration when standing and throughout the entire prayer, except the testimony.
Bowing (ruku')
[edit]- It is recommended to raise the hands (rafʿ al-yadayn) when going into bowing and rising from it.[44]
- It is obligatory to recite the remembrance, "Glory be to my Lord, the Most Great" (subḥāba rabbiya l-ʿaẓīm), once, and recommended to do so three or more times.
- When standing after bowing, it is obligatory to recite the remembrance, "Our Lord, to you is all praise" (rabbanā laka l-ḥamd). One has a choice whether to grasp the hands like before or not.[45]
Prostration (sujud)
[edit]- The fingers should be closed together and facing the direction of prayer (qiblah), including the thumb, and the tips should be align with the top of the shoulders.
- It is obligatory to recite the remembrance, "Glory be to my Lord, the Most High" (subḥāba rabbiya l-aʿlā), once, and recommended to do so three or more times.
Sitting (jalsa)
[edit]- It is obligatory to recite the supplication, "Lord, forgive me" (rabbi ghfir lī) once, and recommended to do so three or more times.
Testimony of faith (tashahhud)
[edit]- The little and ring fingers of the right hand should be folded in, a circle should be made with the middle finger and thumb, and the index finger should be pointed when saying the name of God (Allāh).[44][46][47]
- It is recommended to look at the finger.
- It is permissible to raise the hands when rising.
- Peace and salutations upon Muhammad and extra supplications are only done in the sitting of the final testimony.
- It is recommended to sit in the outstretched (at-tawarruk) position in the sitting of the final testimony when the prayer has more than one.
Greeting of peace (taslim)
[edit]- Two are obligatory and pillars which are not waived. The exact wording must be used: "All peace be on you and the mercy of God" (as-salāmu ʿalaykum wa-raḥmatu llāh). It is not permissible to omit a single letter, not even the definite article al-, or to replace alaykum with alayk.[48]
Voluntary prayers
[edit]Odd prayer (salah al-witr)
[edit]- It is recommended to pray two cycles (rakʿatayn) consecutively, and then separately. It is recommended to recite the special supplication (qunūt) after bowing, while raising the hands.[48] However, other ways to perform it are permissible.
- After reciting the special supplication, it is recommended to raise the hands when going into prostration.
Congregational prayer
[edit]- In the absence of a valid excuse, it is obligatory for adult men to pray in congregation rather than individually.[49]
Other
[edit]- Most Hanbali scholars consider admission in a court of law to be indivisible, that is, a plaintiff may not accept some parts of a defendant's testimony while rejecting other parts. This position is also held by the Zahiri school, though opposed by the Hanafi and Maliki schools.[50]
Reception
[edit]The Hanbali school has traditionally enjoyed a smaller following than the other schools. In the earlier period, Sunni jurisprudence was based on four other schools: Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i and Zahiri; later on, the Hanbali school supplanted the Zahiri school's spot as the fourth mainstream school.[51] Hanbalism essentially formed as a traditionalist reaction to what they viewed as bid'ah (innovations) on the part of the earlier established schools.[52]
Historically, the school's legitimacy was not always accepted. Muslim exegete Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari, founder of the now extinct Jariri school of law, was noted for ignoring the Hanbali school entirely when weighing the views of jurists; this was due to his view that the founder, Ibn Hanbal, was merely a scholar of Hadith (prophetic traditions) and was not a Faqih (jurist) at all.[53] The Hanbalites, led by al-Barbahari, reacted by stoning Tabari's home several times, inciting riots so violent that Abbasid authorities had to subdue them by force.[54] Upon Tabari's death, the Hanbalites formed a violent mob large enough that Abbasid officials buried him in secret, in an attempt to prevent further riots.[24] Similarly, the Andalusian Malikite Jurist and theologian Ibn 'Abd al-Barr made a point to exclude Ibn Hanbal's views from the books on Sunni Muslim jurisprudence.[55]
Eventually, the Mamluk Sultanate and later the Ottoman Empire codified Sunni Islam as four schools, including the Hanbalite school at the expense of the Zahirites.[56][57] The Hanafis, Shafi'is and Malikis agreed on important matters and recognized each other's systems as equally valid; this was not the case with the Hanbalites, who were recognized as legitimate by the older three schools but refused to return the favor.[52]
Differences with other Sunni schools
[edit]By the end of the classical era, the other three remaining schools had codified their laws into comprehensive jurisprudential systems; enforcing them far and wide. However, the Hanbalis stood apart from the other three madh'habs; by insisting on referring directly back to the Qur’an and Sunnah, to arrive at legal rulings. They also opposed the codification of sharia (Islamic law) into a comprehensive system of jurisprudence; considering the Qur'an and Hadith to be the paramount sources.[58]
Relationship with Sufism
[edit]Sufism, often described as the inner mystical dimension of Islam, is not a separate "school" or "sect" of the religion, but, rather, is considered by its adherents to be an "inward" way of approaching Islam which complements the regular outward practice of the five pillars; Sufism became immensely popular during the medieval period in practically all parts of the Sunni world and continues to remain so in many parts of the world today. As Christopher Melchert has pointed out, both Hanbalism and classical Sufism took concrete shapes in the ninth and early tenth-centuries CE, with both soon becoming "essential components of the high-medieval Sunni synthesis."[59] The Hanbali school of Sunni law historically had a very intimate relationship with Sufism throughout Islamic history.[59][5]
There is evidence that many early medieval Hanbali scholars were very close to the Sufi martyr and saint Hallaj, whose mystical piety seems to have influenced many regular jurists in the school.[60] This is likely due to Al-Hallaj himself being a fanatical follower of Hanbali school with reports saying he would pray 500 time a day outside the tomb of Ahmed Bin Hanbal.[61][62] Hallaj was also saved by many Hanbalis during the multiple times he was arrested in Baghdad prior to his execution.[63] Tustari was also known to be a Hanbali and was the Sufi teacher of the Hanbali polemicist al-Barbahari.[64] Many later Hanbalis, meanwhile, were often Sufis themselves, including figures not normally associated with Sufism, such as Ibn Taymiyyah and Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah.[65] Both these men, sometimes considered to be completely anti-Sufi in their leanings, were actually initiated into the Qadiriyya order of the celebrated mystic and saint Abdul Qadir Gilani,[65] who was himself a renowned Hanbali Faqih. As the Qadiriyya Tariqah is often considered to be the largest and most widespread Sufi order in the world, with many branches spanning from Turkey to Pakistan, one of the largest Sufi branches is effectively founded on Hanbali school.[60] Other prominent Hanbalite scholars who praised Sufism include Ibn 'Aqil, Ibn Qudamah, Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali, Muhammad Ibn Abd al-Wahhab.[66]
Although Muhammad Ibn Abd al-Wahhab is sometimes regarded as a denier of Sufism, both he and his early disciples acclaimed Tasawwuf; believing it to be an important discipline in Islamic religion.[67][68] Ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab prescribed various Sufi spiritual exercises to his followers for attaining Zuhd (asceticism), in accordance with Qur'an and Hadith. Extolling the virtuous Sufi Awliya (saints) who attained Ma'rifa (highest stage of mystical awareness in Sufism) as exemplars to his followers, Ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab stated:
" “From among the wonders is to find a Sufi who is a faqih and a scholar who is an ascetic (zahid).” For indeed those who are concerned with the piety of the heart are often associated with a lack of ma‘rifah, which would necessitate abstinence from wrong and make jihad necessary. And those who are in-depth in knowledge at times mention such wickedness and doubts that place them in err and deviation... So, His love itself is the basis of His worship, and assigning equals (shirk) in love is the basis of polytheism in His worship... This is why the ‘arif Sufi shaykhs would advise many to pursue knowledge. Some of them would say: “A person only leaves a single Sunnah due to the pride in him.” "
List of Hanbali scholars
[edit]- Abu Bakr al-Khallal (d.311 AH) – Jurist responsible for the school's early codification.
- Sahl al-Tustari (d. 283 AH), a Persian scholar and ascetic from Shushtar in Iran.
- Al-Hasan ibn 'Ali al-Barbahari (d. 329 A.H.), an Iraqi traditionist and a jurist, author of the book Sharh al-Sunnah.
- Ibn Battah al-Ukbari (d. 387 A.H.), an Iraqi theologian and jurisconsult, author of the book Al-Ibaanah.
- Ibn Taymiyya (d. 728 AH), a Syrian theologian, jurist, scholar.
- Mansur Al-Hallaj (d. 309 AH), a Persian theologian, poet and Sufi master.
- Ibn Arabi, (d. 638 AH) an Andalusian Arab theologian, scholar and Sufi master.
- Abū 'Abdullāh Muhammad Ibn Manda (d. 395 A.H.), hadīth master, biographer and historian from Isfahan.
- Al-Qadi Abu Ya'la (d. 458 A.H.)
- Ibn Aqil (d. 513 A.H.)
- Awn ad-Din ibn Hubayra (d. 560 A.H.)
- Abdul Qadir Gilani (d. 561 A.H.) a Persian scholar, jurist and Sufi master from Gilan province in Iran.
- Abu-al-Faraj Ibn Al-Jawzi (d. 597 A.H.) – A famous jurist, exegete, critic, preacher and a prolific author, with works on nearly all subjects.
- Hammad al-Harrani (d. 598A.H.) – A jurist, critic and preacher who lived in Alexandria under the reign of Salahudin.
- Abd al-Ghani al-Maqdisi (d. 600 A.H.) – A prominent hadith master from Damascus and the nephew of Ibn Qudamah.
- Ibn Qudamah (d. 620A.H.) – One of the major Hanbali authorities and the author of the profound and voluminous book on Law, al-Mughni, which became popular amongst researchers from all juristic backgrounds.[23]
- Diya al-Din al-Maqdisi (d. 643 A.H.)
- Ibn Hamdan, Ahmad al-Harrani (d. 695 A.H.) - A jurist and judge born and raised in Harran and later practised in Cairo
- Ibn Muflih al Maqdisi (d. 763 A.H.)
- Ibn Rajab (d. 795 A.H.) – A prominent jurist, traditionist, ascetic and preacher, who authored several important works, largely commenting upon famous collections of traditions.
- Mar'ī al-Karmī (d. 1033 A.H.) - The main jurist of Hanbali Madhhab of his time in Al-Azhar University, Egypt and authority from the later generation of Hanbali Scholars. He was a scholar, the most knowledgeable person, a researcher, an interpreter of the Qur’an, a narrator of Hadith, an Islamic jurist, al-Usuli, a grammarian and one of the most prominent Hanbalis in Egypt.
- al-Buhūtī (d. 1051 A.H.) - The leading jurist of Hanabilah of his time in Egypt and authority from the later generation of Hanbali Scholars.
- Muhammad ibn Abd-al-Wahhab – A Hanbalī jurist and traditionalist, very controversial both amongst his Hanbalī & Non-Hanbalī contemporaries. He is the patronym of the Wahhabi movement.
Notes
[edit]See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b c d Ramadan, Hisham M. (2006). Understanding Islamic Law: From Classical to Contemporary. Rowman Altamira. pp. 24–29. ISBN 978-0-7591-0991-9.
- ^ Gregory Mack, Jurisprudence, in Gerhard Böwering et al (2012), The Princeton Encyclopedia of Islamic Political Thought, Princeton University Press, ISBN 978-0-691-13484-0, p. 289
- ^ "Sunnite". Encyclopædia Britannica. 2014.
- ^ a b Ziauddin Sardar (2014), Mecca: The Sacred City, Bloomsbury, ISBN 978-1-62040-266-5, p. 100
- ^ a b Daryl Champion (2002), The Paradoxical Kingdom: Saudi Arabia and the Momentum of Reform, Columbia University Press, ISBN 978-0-231-12814-8, p. 23 footnote 7
- ^ Barry Rubin (2009), Guide to Islamist Movements, Volume 2, ME Sharpe, ISBN 978-0-7656-1747-7, p. 310
- ^ State of Qatar School of Law, Emory University
- ^ Mohammad Hashim Kamali (2008), Shari'ah Law: An Introduction, ISBN 978-1-85168-565-3, Chapter 4
- ^ a b Zaman, Muhammad (2012). Modern Islamic thought in a radical age. Cambridge University Press. pp. 15–17, 62–95. ISBN 978-1-107-09645-5.
- ^ a b Michael Cook, “On the Origins of Wahhābism,” Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, Third Series, Vol. 2, No. 2 (Jul., 1992), p. 198
- ^ Pierret, Thomas (2013-03-25). Religion and State in Syria: The Sunni Ulama from Coup to Revolution. Cambridge University Press. p. 106. ISBN 978-1-1070-2641-4.
- ^ Dutton, Yasin, The Origins of Islamic Law: The Qurʼan, the Muwaṭṭaʼ and Madinan ʻAmal, p. 16
- ^ Haddad, Gibril F. (2007). The Four Imams and Their Schools. London, the U.K.: Muslim Academic Trust. pp. 121–194.
- ^ Zayn Kassam; Bridget Blomfield (2015), "Remembering Fatima and Zaynab: Gender in Perspective", in Farhad Daftory (ed.), The Shi'i World, I.B Tauris Press
- ^ Aliyah, Zainab (2 February 2015). "Great Women in Islamic History: A Forgotten Legacy". Young Muslim Digest. Retrieved 18 February 2015.
- ^ "Imam Ja'afar as Sadiq". History of Islam. Archived from the original on 2015-07-21. Retrieved 2012-11-27.
- ^ a b c d e Chiragh Ali, The Proposed Political, Legal and Social Reforms, in Modernist Islam 1840-1940: A Sourcebook, pp. 281-282 Edited by Charles Kurzman, Oxford University Press, (2002)
- ^ Kitab Al-Sunnah, Abdullah Ibn Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, P. 27
- ^ Horo, Dilip (1989). "Chapter 5: SAUDI ARABIA: THE OLDEST FUNDAMENTALIST STATE". Holy Wars: The Rise of Islamic Fundamentalism. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge: Taylor & Francis. p. 28. ISBN 978-0-415-82444-6.
- ^ B. Hallaq, Wael (2005). The Origins and Evolution of Islamic Law. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. pp. 159–160. ISBN 978-0-521-80332-8.
- ^ I. M. Al-Jubouri, Islamic Thought: From Mohammed to September 11, 2001, pg. 122. Bloomington: Xlibris, 2010. ISBN 978-1-4535-9585-5[self-published source]
- ^ B. Hallaq, Wael (2005). "7: The formation of legal schools". The Origins and Evolution of Islamic Law. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. pp. 159–160. ISBN 978-0-521-80332-8.
- ^ a b c Abu Zayd Bakr bin Abdullah, Madkhal al-mufassal ila fiqh al-Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal wa-takhrijat al-ashab. Riyadh: Dar al 'Aminah, 2007.
- ^ a b Joel L. Kraemer, Humanism in the Renaissance of Islam: The Cultural Revival During the Buyid Age, pg. 61. Volume 7 of Studies in Islamic culture and history. Leiden: Brill Publishers, 1992. ISBN 978-90-04-09736-0
- ^ a b Christopher Melchert, Studies in Islamic Law and Society, vol. 4, pg. 151. Leiden: Brill Publishers, 1997.
- ^ Ira M. Lapidus, Islamic Societies to the Nineteenth Century: A Global History, pg. 192. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2012. ISBN 978-0-521-51441-5
- ^ a b Joel L. Kraemer, pg. 62.
- ^ Newman, Andrew J. (2013-10-18). The Formative Period of Twelver Shi'ism: Hadith as Discourse Between Qum and Baghdad. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-136-83705-0.
- ^ a b Christopher Melchert, The Ḥanābila and the Early Sufis, Arabica, T. 48, Fasc. 3 (Brill, 2001); cf. Ibn al-Jawzī, Manāqib al-imām Aḥmad, ed. ʿĀdil Nuwayhiḍ, Beirut 1393/1973
- ^ Ismail, Raihan (2021). "Chapter 1: Salafism". Rethinking Salafism: The Transnational Networks of Salafi ʿUlama in Egypt, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia. New York, United States of America: Oxford University Press. p. 13. ISBN 9780190948955.
Ibn Taymiyyah propagated Salafi thought as a theological endeavor, and disciples of the Hanbali school adopted the term "Salafi." The precise time at which they did so—at some point during the tenth to twelfth century.
- ^ Zahalka, Iyad (April 2016). Shari'a in the Modern Era. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1-107-11458-6.
- ^ Bearman, Bianquis, Bosworth, van Donzel, Heinrichs, P. , Th. , C.E. , E. , W.P. (1960). "Aḥmad b. Ḥanbal". In Laoust, Henri (ed.). Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition. Brill. ISBN 9789004161214. Archived from the original on 2021-11-05. Retrieved 2021-11-05.
Founder of one of the four major Sunnī schools, the Ḥanbalī, he was, through his disciple Ibn Taymiyya [q.v.], the distant progenitor of Wahhābism, and has inspired also in a certain degree the conservative reform movement of the Salafiyya.
{{cite book}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "Hanbali school | Definition & Facts | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2023-09-24.
- ^ ".europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes" (PDF).
- ^ Ahmady, Kameel 2019: From Border to Border. Comprehensive research study on identity and ethnicity in Iran. Mehri publication, London. p 440.
- ^ Muhammad Muslehuddin, "Philosophy of Islamic Law and Orientalists," Kazi Publications, 1985, p. 81
- ^ a b Dr. Mohammad Omar Farooq, "The Doctrine of Ijma: Is there a consensus?," June 2006
- ^ Mansoor Moaddel, Islamic Modernism, Nationalism, and Fundamentalism: Episode and Discourse, pg. 32. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2005.
- ^ Christopher Melchert, The Formation of the Sunni Schools of Law: 9th-10th Centuries C.E., pg. 185. Leiden: Brill Publishers, 1997.
- ^ Christopher Melchert, The Formation of the Sunni Schools of Law: 9th-10th Centuries C.E., pg. 182. Leiden: Brill Publishers, 1997.
- ^ Horo, Dilip (1989). "Chapter 5: SAUDI ARABIA: THE OLDEST FUNDAMENTALIST STATE". Holy Wars: The Rise of Islamic Fundamentalism. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge: Taylor & Francis. pp. 120–121. ISBN 978-0-415-82444-6.
- ^ "Al-Ghazali, The Alchemy of Happiness, Chapter 2". Archived from the original on 2006-05-15. Retrieved 2006-04-09.
- ^ Halverson, Jeffry R. (2010). Theology and Creed in Sunni Islam: The Muslim Brotherhood, Ash'arism, and Political Sunnism. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 34. ISBN 978-0-230-10658-1.
The Hanbalite madhhab, in contrast, largely maintained the traditionalist of Athari position.
- ^ a b c Ibn Qudamah. The Mainstay Concerning Jurisprudence (Al Umda fi 'l Fiqh).
- ^ Shaikh Tuwaijiri. pp. 18–19.
- ^ Al-Buhuti, Al-Raud al-murbi, p. 72.
- ^ Al-Mughni (1/524).
- ^ a b "Salat According to Five Islamic Schools of Law" from Al-Islam.org
- ^ Marion Holmes Katz, Prayer in Islamic Thought and Practice, p. 128, 2013
- ^ hi Mahmasani, Falsafat al-tashri fi al-Islam, p. 175. Trns. Farhat Jacob Ziadeh. Leiden: Brill Archive, 1961.
- ^ Mohammad Sharif Khan and Mohammad Anwar Saleem, Muslim Philosophy And Philosophers, pg. 34. New Delhi: Ashish Publishing House, 1994.
- ^ a b Francis Robinson, Atlas of the Islamic World Since 1500, pg. 29. New York: Facts on File, 1984. ISBN 0-87196-629-8
- ^ Yaqut al-Hamawi, Irshad, vol. 18, pg. 57-58.
- ^ History of the Prophets and Kings, General Introduction, And, From the Creation to the Flood, pg. 73. Trsn. Franz Rosenthal. SUNY Press, 1989. ISBN 978-1-4384-1783-7
- ^ Camilla Adang, This Day I have Perfected Your Religion For You: A Zahiri Conception of Religious Authority, pg. 20. Taken from Speaking for Islam: Religious Authorities in Muslim Societies. Ed. Gudrun Krämer and Sabine Schmidtke. Leiden: Brill Publishers, 2006.
- ^ "Law, Islamic". Encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 13 March 2012.
- ^ Chibli Mallat, Introduction to Middle Eastern Law, pg. 116. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007. ISBN 978-0-19-923049-5
- ^ Horo, Dilip (1989). "Chapter 5: SAUDI ARABIA: THE OLDEST FUNDAMENTALIST STATE". Holy Wars: The Rise of Islamic Fundamentalism. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge: Taylor & Francis. pp. 40, 41, 53. ISBN 978-0-415-82444-6.
- ^ a b Christopher Melchert, "The Ḥanābila and the Early Sufis," Arabica, T. 48, Fasc. 3 (2001), pp. 352-367
- ^ a b Christopher Melchert, "The Ḥanābila and the Early Sufis," Arabica, T. 48, Fasc. 3 (2001), p. 352
- ^ "LOUIS MASSIGNON", The Theology of Louis Massignon, Catholic University of America Press, pp. 18–45, doi:10.2307/j.ctt1p6qppr.7, retrieved 2023-09-18
- ^ The Passion of Al-Hallaj, Mystic and Martyr of Islam, Volume 1: The Life of Al-Hallaj Louis Massignon
- ^ Massignon, L.; Gardet, L. (2012-04-24), "al-Ḥallād̲j̲", Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition, Brill, retrieved 2023-09-18
- ^ Aigle, Denise (2003-05-15). "Christopher Melchert. « The Ḥanābila and the Early Sufis ». Arabica, XLVIII, 3 (2001), pp. 352-367". Abstracta Iranica. 24. doi:10.4000/abstractairanica.34544. ISSN 0240-8910.
- ^ a b Christopher Melchert, "The Ḥanābila and the Early Sufis," Arabica, T. 48, Fasc. 3 (2001), p. 353
- ^ Al-Makki, 'Abd al-Hafiz (21 November 2010). "Sufism and the Imams of the Salafi Movement: Introduction". Deoband.org. Archived from the original on 21 January 2021.
- ^ a b al-Makki, 'Abd al-Hafiz (January 2011). "Shaykh Muhammad bin 'Abd al-Wahhab and Sufism". Deoband.org. Archived from the original on 11 January 2015. Retrieved 3 April 2015.
- ^ Rida, Rashid (1925). Commentary of Shaykh 'Abd Allah bin Shaykh Muhammad bin 'Abd al-Wahhab al-Najdi's Al-Hadiyyah al-Suniyyah. Egypt: Al Manar Publishers. p. 50.
Further reading
[edit]- Abd al-Halim al-Jundi, Ahmad bin Hanbal Imam Ahl al-Sunnah, published in Cairo by Dar al-Ma'arif
- Dr. 'Ali Sami al-Nashshar, Nash'ah al-fikr al-falsafi fi al-islam, vol. 1, published by Dar al-Ma'arif, seventh edition, 1977
- Makdisi, George. "Hanābilah". Encyclopedia of Religion. Ed. Lindsay Jones. Vol. 6. 2nd ed. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2005. 3759–3769. 15 vols. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Thomson Gale. (Accessed December 14, 2005)
- Dar Irfan Jameel. "Introduction to Hanbali School of Jurisprudence".
- Vishanoff, David. "Nazzām, Al-." Ibid.[full citation needed]
- Iqbal, Muzzafar. Chapter 1, "The Beginning" Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine, Islam and Science, Ashgate Press, 2002.
- Leaman, Oliver, "Islamic Philosophy". Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy, v. 5, pp. 13–16.
External links
[edit]- Hanbaliyyah at Overview of World Religions
Hanbali school
View on GrokipediaHistory
Origins and Founder Ahmad ibn Hanbal
Ahmad ibn Hanbal, born in November 780 CE (164 AH) in Baghdad to a family originally from Basra of the Arab Banu Shayban tribe, emerged as a leading traditionalist scholar in the early Abbasid era.[7][8] Orphaned young after his father's death, he pursued extensive studies in hadith and jurisprudence, traveling to centers like Kufa, Basra, Mecca, Medina, Yemen, and Syria to collect narrations from over 1,000 teachers, including notable figures such as Imam al-Shafi'i.[8][9] His methodology emphasized strict adherence to the Quran and authentic Sunnah, prioritizing transmitted texts over rational speculation (kalam), which positioned him against Mu'tazilite influences prevalent in the caliphal court.[2][10] The Hanbali madhhab originated from Ahmad's jurisprudential teachings, which he disseminated primarily through oral fatwas and classroom sessions rather than a systematic written compendium, reflecting his preference for preserving prophetic tradition without codification that might invite innovation.[11] His major contribution, the Musnad, compiles approximately 30,000 hadiths arranged by narrator chains (isnad), serving as a foundational source for Hanbali fiqh by providing evidentiary basis for rulings.[12] The school's formalization occurred post his death in 855 CE (241 AH), when students like Abu Bakr al-Khallal (d. 923 CE) transcribed and organized his positions into texts such as al-Jami', institutionalizing the madhhab's emphasis on textual literalism and rejection of analogical reasoning unless corroborated by hadith.[13][14] Ahmad's endurance during the Mihna inquisition (833–848 CE), where he was imprisoned and tortured for upholding the Quran's uncreated nature against caliphal Mu'tazilite doctrine, bolstered the madhhab's credibility among traditionalists (Ahl al-Hadith), establishing it as a bastion of orthodoxy resistant to state-imposed theology.[10] This trial not only affirmed his authority but catalyzed the school's growth, as his acquittal under Caliph al-Mutawakkil in 848 CE shifted Abbasid policy toward Sunnism, enabling Hanbali dissemination in Baghdad and beyond.[4] His funeral in Baghdad drew an estimated 800,000 to 1 million attendees, underscoring his influence and the nascent madhhab's popular support.[8]Early Trials and the Mihna Inquisition
The nascent Hanbali approach, centered on Ahmad ibn Hanbal's (780–855 CE) rigorous adherence to the Quran and authenticated hadith with minimal recourse to analogy or rational speculation, drew early criticism from Mu'tazilite scholars and other rationalists who favored interpretive theology (kalam) to resolve apparent anthropomorphic descriptions of God in scripture.[15] This opposition manifested in scholarly debates where Hanbalis were accused of promoting corporealism (tashbih) by affirming divine attributes as described in texts without qualification or metaphorical reinterpretation (ta'wil).[16] Such tensions remained largely intellectual until state intervention escalated them into persecution. In 833 CE (218 AH), Abbasid Caliph al-Ma'mun (r. 813–833) launched the Mihna, an inquisition aimed at imposing the Mu'tazilite doctrine that the Quran was created in time, rather than eternal and uncreated as the speech of God, to safeguard divine transcendence and unity.[17] Officials, judges, and scholars were interrogated; assent brought favor, while refusal led to imprisonment, flogging, or execution.[18] Ahmad ibn Hanbal, then in his fifties, was summoned to Baghdad, where he steadfastly refused to endorse the createdness of the Quran, arguing it contradicted prophetic traditions and risked undermining scriptural authority.[17] Under Caliph al-Mu'tasim (r. 833–842), Ibn Hanbal endured prolonged imprisonment and, in approximately 835 CE, severe public flogging—reportedly over 1,000 lashes—administered by the chief inquisitor Ahmad ibn Abi Du'ad, yet he persisted in his denial, reportedly fainting from pain but reviving to reaffirm the Quran's uncreated nature.[17] [18] The Mihna continued under al-Wathiq (r. 842–847), with Ibn Hanbal released around 845 CE amid growing public sympathy and scholarly resistance that highlighted the policy's failure to coerce consensus.[18] Caliph al-Mutawakkil (r. 847–861) terminated the Mihna in 849 CE, prohibiting further debates on the Quran's nature, dismissing Mu'tazilite officials, and patronizing hadith scholars, thereby vindicating the traditionalist position and elevating Ibn Hanbal's stature as a symbol of doctrinal integrity.[17] This ordeal, lasting about 15 years, not only preserved the Athari creed's literalist affirmation of divine attributes but also solidified the Hanbali school's reputation for resilience against rationalist impositions, contributing to its survival and eventual institutionalization.[18]Classical Expansion and Codification
Abu Bakr al-Khallal (d. 311 AH/923 CE), a prominent student of Ibn Hanbal's direct disciples, played a pivotal role in the early systematization of Hanbali jurisprudence by compiling extensive records of Ibn Hanbal's legal opinions and rulings, amassing them into a multi-volume work known as the Jāmiʿ or al-Sunnah, which preserved the school's foundational teachings amid potential loss following the founder's death in 241 AH/855 CE.[19] This compilation, spanning approximately twenty volumes, marked the initial codification effort, enabling the transmission of Hanbali fiqh beyond oral tradition and facilitating its expansion within Baghdad's scholarly circles during the late Abbasid period.[20] Al-Khallal's documentation emphasized reliance on authenticated hadith and Ibn Hanbal's transmitted views, distinguishing the school from more analogical approaches in rival madhhabs.[21] Building on al-Khallal's foundation, Abu al-Qasim al-Khiraqi (d. 334 AH/945–946 CE) produced the Mukhtaṣar al-Khiraqī, the earliest concise manual (mukhtaṣar) of Hanbali substantive law, which distilled core rulings on ritual purity, prayer, transactions, and family matters into a structured text suitable for teaching and reference.[22] Composed in Baghdad before al-Khiraqi's relocation to Damascus—where he became the first Hanbali buried—this work laid out the school's basic legal framework derived from Quran, Sunnah, and Ibn Hanbal's precedents, serving as a primary curriculum text that spurred further commentaries and institutional growth in Syria and beyond.[23] Its brevity and fidelity to transmitted sources contributed to the madhhab's consolidation as a distinct school by the mid-4th/10th century, amid competition from Hanafi dominance under Abbasid patronage.[24] The classical phase of expansion intensified in the 5th–7th/11th–13th centuries, as Hanbali scholars established madrasas in Baghdad and Damascus, attracting students despite the school's minority status, with key figures like Abu Ya'la al-Farra' (d. 458 AH/1066 CE) authoring commentaries on al-Khiraqi's Mukhtaṣar to refine and defend Hanbali positions against theological and juridical rivals.[25] Culminating in Muwaffaq al-Din Ibn Qudama al-Maqdisi (d. 620 AH/1223 CE), whose al-Mughnī—a voluminous comparative fiqh treatise—integrated prior Hanbali sources while critiquing other schools, providing exhaustive analysis across legal topics and solidifying the madhhab's methodological rigor through hadith authentication and limited qiyas. Ibn Qudama's sequential works, from concise summaries to advanced exegeses, transformed Hanbali education, enabling its endurance and spread to regions like Palestine and Hijaz by the Ayyubid era.[26] This codification era entrenched the school's textualist ethos, with over 300 distinct rulings preserved in core texts, fostering a resilient tradition less prone to speculative evolution.[27]Post-Classical Developments up to the Ottoman Era
In the centuries following the classical codification of Hanbali jurisprudence around the 10th century CE, the school maintained a strong presence in Baghdad, bolstered by patronage from Abbasid viziers including Ibn Hubayra (d. 560/1165 CE) and Ibn Yunus (d. 593/1196 CE).[28] Key figures advanced both legal and theological scholarship; Ibn al-Jawzi (d. 597/1200 CE) produced extensive works on fiqh and preaching, while Mawaffaq al-Din Ibn Qudama al-Maqdisi (d. 620/1223 CE) authored al-Mughni, a comprehensive multi-volume exposition comparing Hanbali positions with other schools and serving as a cornerstone text for later jurists.[28] [29] Ibn Qudama also composed supplementary manuals like al-'Umdah and al-Muqni', systematizing rulings on ritual purity, prayer, and transactions while adhering to strict hadith authentication.[28] [30] The Mongol invasion and sack of Baghdad in 656/1258 CE inflicted severe losses on the Hanbali tradition, killing numerous scholars, destroying libraries, and scattering survivors, which temporarily diminished the school's institutional strength in Iraq.[28] This event prompted a migration of remaining Hanbalis to Syria, where Damascus under Ayyubid and subsequent Mamluk rule became the new intellectual hub.[28] Taqi al-Din Ahmad ibn Taymiyyah (661–728/1263–1328 CE), educated in Damascus, revitalized Hanbali thought by advocating a return to Quran and Sunnah over blind adherence (taqlid), critiquing speculative kalam theology, and incorporating limited qiyas (analogy) and personal reasoning (ra'y) grounded in textual evidence; his voluminous fatwas and treatises, such as Majmu' al-Fatawa, addressed jurisprudence on worship, contracts, and governance while defending anthropomorphic interpretations of divine attributes without modality.[28] His student Shams al-Din Ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawziyyah (691–751/1292–1350 CE) expanded these principles in I'lam al-Muwaqqi'in on judicial methodology and Zad al-Ma'ad on prophetic sunnah, emphasizing empirical hadith verification over philosophical abstraction.[28] By the 8th–10th centuries AH (14th–16th centuries CE), Hanbali scholarship persisted in Syria and the Hijaz despite broader Sunni shifts toward Ash'ari theology and Hanafi dominance. Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali (736–795/1335–1393 CE) contributed to hadith sciences and fiqh through works like Jami' al-'Ulum wa-al-Hikam, upholding traditionalist creed amid theological debates.[28] Later figures, including al-'Ulaymi (d. 927/1521 CE) and Musa al-Hujawi (d. 958/1560 CE), compiled texts such as al-Minhaj al-Ahmad, documenting rulings and differences to preserve the madhhab's methodology.[28] The Ottoman conquest of Mamluk territories (1516–1517 CE) elevated Hanafi jurisprudence as the state madhhab, marginalizing Hanbalis in official courts, yet the school endured through private teaching, madrasas in Damascus, and mufti roles in Mecca and Medina, where it coexisted with other Sunni schools until the 19th century.[28] This era saw no fundamental doctrinal overhaul but reinforced the Hanbali commitment to literalist textualism, influencing later reformist movements.[28]Theological Foundations
Athari Creed and Anthropomorphism
The Athari creed, foundational to the Hanbali school, mandates the affirmation of God's attributes (sifat) as explicitly stated in the Quran and authentic Sunnah, without interpretive distortion (ta'wil), delegation of meaning (tafwid al-ma'na), or inquiry into their modality (takyif). This approach, rooted in the textualist methodology of Ahmad ibn Hanbal (780–855 CE), prioritizes scriptural fidelity over rational speculation, rejecting the Mu'tazili negation of attributes and Ash'ari metaphorical reinterpretations to preserve divine transcendence alongside literal affirmation. Hanbali theologians, such as Ibn Qudama al-Maqdisi (1147–1223 CE), codified this in works like al-Lam'a fi al-I'tiqad, insisting attributes like God's hand (yad) or face (wajh) exist eternally and really, yet without resemblance to creation (tashbih) or corporeal implications.[31][32] Central to Athari doctrine is the principle of bi-la kayf ("without how"), articulated by Ibn Hanbal during the Mihna inquisition (833–848 CE), where he endured imprisonment for refusing to deny attributes like divine speech or vision under rationalist pressure. He affirmed, for instance, God's "descent" (nuzul) in the last third of the night as per hadith, believing it "as it came from the Messenger of Allah, without asking how," thereby upholding the texts while negating any spatial or temporal modality that would imply created limitations. This stance extends to all attributes: they are affirmed in their established meanings (ma'na thabit) but stripped of human analogies, aligning with Quranic injunctions such as "There is nothing like unto Him, and He is the Hearing, the Seeing" (42:11).[33][34] Critics, including some Ash'ari and Mu'tazili scholars, have accused Atharis of anthropomorphism (tashbih or tajsim), claiming literal affirmation risks portraying God as bodily or locatable. However, classical Hanbali sources refute this by distinguishing affirmation (ithbat) from corporealism: Ibn Hanbal explicitly rejected likening God's hand to a human's, stating, "His hand is above His Throne, but not like the hand of a son of Adam," and denied any direction (jiha) or settling (istiqrar) for God. Later Hanbalis like Ibn Taymiyya (1263–1328 CE) reinforced this, arguing that true anthropomorphism lies in interpretive denial that effectively negates the texts, whereas Athari affirmation safeguards both God's uniqueness and scriptural integrity without speculative innovation (bid'a). Empirical review of Hanbali creedal texts shows consistent negation of modality and resemblance, countering charges of literalism as misunderstanding the nuanced ithbat bi-la tashbih.[33][34]Rejection of Speculative Theology (Kalam)
The Hanbali school, rooted in the Athari theological tradition, categorically rejects kalam—speculative theology employing dialectical methods and Aristotelian logic to rationalize or defend Islamic doctrines—as an impermissible innovation (bid'ah) that undermines reliance on divine revelation. Hanbali scholars prioritize textual evidence from the Quran and authentic Sunnah over rational speculation, arguing that kalam introduces ambiguity and human conjecture into matters of creed, potentially leading to the negation (ta'til) or metaphorical reinterpretation (ta'wil) of God's attributes. This stance stems from a commitment to emulating the understanding of the Salaf (early generations), who avoided such methodologies in favor of straightforward affirmation (ithbat) of scriptural descriptions without delving into "how" (bila kayf).[35][36] Ahmad ibn Hanbal (d. 855 CE), the school's eponymous founder, explicitly condemned kalam, declaring, "Whoever seeks knowledge through kalam becomes a heretical apostate," and identifying its practitioners as inevitably aligning with erroneous groups like the Jahmiyya. He further stated, "I am not a person of kalam; I do not view kalam favorably except against one who innovates in religion, to silence him and close the door on him." Early Hanbali authorities, such as those cited by al-Marwazi and Abu Imran al-Asbahani, deemed the study of kalam prohibited, restricting its use solely to refuting innovators rather than as a tool for doctrinal formulation. This prohibition extended to authoring or debating with kalam texts, reflecting a broader Athari aversion to philosophy-influenced theology, which Hanbalis saw as corrupting pure faith transmitted via prophetic tradition.[37][35][36] Subsequent Hanbali theologians, including Ibn Qudama al-Maqdisi (d. 1223 CE) and Ibn Taymiyyah (d. 1328 CE), reinforced this rejection by critiquing kalam's epistemological overreach, which they argued prioritizes reason (aql) over transmission (naql) and fosters sectarian division. Ibn Taymiyyah, in particular, distinguished permissible rational argumentation—used defensively against heresies—from the systematic kalam of Mu'tazila or Ash'ari schools, which he viewed as diluting anthropomorphic descriptions in scripture. This methodological fidelity preserved Hanbali theology's emphasis on unadorned scriptural literalism, influencing later traditionalist movements while maintaining doctrinal independence from rationalist syntheses.[35][36]Affirmation of Divine Attributes
The Hanbali school upholds the affirmation (ithbāt) of God's attributes (sifāt Allāh) as they are described in the Quran and authentic prophetic traditions (Sunnah), asserting their reality (haqīqah), eternity, and distinction from any created likeness, while abstaining from speculative inquiry into their modality (bi-lā kayf). This approach rejects the negation (taʿṭīl) of attributes practiced by the Muʿtazilah and the metaphorical reinterpretation (taʾwīl) often employed by Ashʿarī theologians, instead adhering strictly to textual evidence without alteration or anthropomorphic assimilation (tashbīh).[38][39] Ahmad ibn Hanbal (d. 855 CE), the eponymous founder, exemplified this creed by affirming attributes such as God's Hand (yad), Face (wajh), and self-sufficiency (istiqlāl), as explicitly mentioned in Quranic verses like "The Hand of God is over their hand" (Quran 48:10) and "Everything will perish except His Face" (Quran 28:88), without ascribing human-like qualities or forms to them. He declared, "We believe in them as they have come, without [asking] how (kayf) and without [deviating into] meanings (maʿnā)," thereby delegating comprehension of their essence to divine knowledge alone and refusing to equate them with corporeal realities.[40][33] This stance was forged amid theological pressures, including his endurance of the miḥnah (inquisition, 833–848 CE) under Abbasid caliphs, where he defended scriptural fidelity against rationalist impositions that sought to deny or reinterpret such attributes as created or figurative.[38] Subsequent Hanbali scholars, such as Ibn Qudamah al-Maqdisi (d. 1223 CE) in his Lumʿat al-Iʿtiqād, systematized this affirmation by cataloging attributes into essential (dhātiyyah, e.g., life, knowledge, power, will, hearing, sight, speech) and actional (fiʿliyyah, e.g., creating, sustaining), all affirmed as necessarily real and uncreated, with negation of deficiency or resemblance to preclude misunderstanding.[41] They emphasized that God's transcendence (tanzīh) is preserved by the texts themselves, critiquing kalām (speculative theology) for introducing innovations that obscure plain meanings, as seen in Ibn Taymiyyah's (d. 1328 CE) defenses where he upheld attributes like descent (nuzūl) and ascension (istiwāʾ) over the Throne as literal establishments befitting divine majesty, without spatial confinement or likeness to motion.[42][43] This doctrinal consistency underscores the school's reliance on transmitted reports (athar) from the Salaf (pious predecessors), prioritizing unadulterated affirmation to safeguard monotheism (tawḥīd) against philosophical dilutions, though internal nuances emerged, such as varying degrees of tafwīḍ (delegation of precise modality and connotation to God) among classical figures versus more explicit ontological assertions by later reformers like Ibn Taymiyyah.[44]Jurisprudential Methodology
Primary Sources: Quran and Sunnah
The Hanbali school accords the Quran absolute primacy as the foundational source of jurisprudence, treating its verses as binding and self-evident where they provide explicit guidance on legal matters, with rulings derived through direct textual application rather than subordination to secondary interpretive tools. This approach reflects Ahmad ibn Hanbal's (780–855 CE) insistence on unmediated adherence to divine revelation, viewing the Quran's Arabic wording as inimitable and sufficient for establishing obligations in worship, transactions, and penal codes. Hanbalis reject any diminishment of Quranic authority through philosophical overlay, prioritizing its literal injunctions as the ultimate arbiter in conflicts with other evidences. The Sunnah functions as the essential interpretive and supplemental source to the Quran, comprising authenticated reports (hadith) of the Prophet Muhammad's verbal statements, physical actions, and silent approvals, which clarify ambiguities, particularize generalities, and extend applications beyond Quranic silence. In Hanbali methodology, sahih (authentic) hadith—verified through stringent chains of transmission (isnad) and content scrutiny (matn)—carry probative force equivalent to the Quran for deriving specific rulings, as exemplified by ibn Hanbal's preference for prophetic practice over analogical extension in ambiguous cases. His compilation of the Musnad, containing roughly 30,000 hadith organized by narrator companion, exemplifies this reliance, serving as a core repository for Hanbali scholars to authenticate and apply Sunnah-derived laws while excluding fabrications or weak narrations. This dual textual foundation embodies the school's ahl al-hadith orientation, enforcing literal adherence (zahir al-nass) to apparent meanings without resorting to metaphorical distortion (ta'wil) absent compelling textual warrant, thereby safeguarding rulings from subjective rationalism and ensuring causal fidelity to prophetic precedent. Such methodology distinguishes Hanbalis by minimizing deference to consensus or analogy when texts suffice, as articulated in foundational works by ibn Hanbal's successors who codified these principles amid post-third-century AH doctrinal trials.Use of Hadith and Authentication Standards
The Hanbali school places profound emphasis on the Sunnah, transmitted through Hadith, as the second primary source of Islamic jurisprudence after the Quran, viewing it as essential for clarifying ambiguous Quranic verses and establishing specific rulings on worship, transactions, and conduct.[45] Ahmad ibn Hanbal, the school's founder (d. 855 CE), exemplified this by compiling the Musnad, a vast collection of approximately 27,000-40,000 narrations organized by Companion rather than thematic order, prioritizing the preservation of prophetic traditions through rigorous narrator scrutiny.[46] This approach reflects the Ahl al-Hadith tradition's commitment to textual literalism, minimizing speculative interpretation in favor of authenticated reports.[45] Authentication standards in the Hanbali methodology adhere to classical Sunni criteria, evaluating Hadith via the isnad (chain of transmission) and matn (text content). A sahih (authentic) Hadith requires a continuous chain (muttaṣil) of narrators who are upright (ʿadl, free from moral flaws like lying or heresy) and precise (ḍābit, with strong memory and accuracy), free from irregularities (shudhudh), hidden defects (ʿillah), or concealment (tadlīs).[46] A hasan (good) Hadith permits slightly weaker narrators but remains viable for legal deduction if corroborated. Ibn Hanbal pioneered systematic jarḥ wa taʿdīl (disparagement and endorsement of transmitters), compiling works on narrator flaws and using corroborative evidence like shawahid (supporting texts) or mutābaʿāt (parallel chains) to bolster authenticity, as applied in his Musnad where he flagged dubious reports.[46] Mutawātir Hadiths (mass-transmitted, yielding certainty) override solitary (āḥād) ones, though the latter suffice for probable knowledge in fiqh if authenticated.[45] Regarding weak (ḍaʿīf) Hadiths, Hanbalis restrict their use in establishing obligations, prohibitions, or core doctrines, rejecting them if severely flawed (e.g., fabricated or from unknown narrators). However, Ibn Hanbal permitted mildly weak Hadiths for non-obligatory matters like virtues of deeds (faḍāʾil al-aʿmāl), encouragement to piety, or supplementary evidence, provided they align with established principles and lack contradiction from stronger sources—a position prioritizing transmitted text over analogy (qiyās).[45] [46] This leniency stems from the view that even imperfect Hadith preserves prophetic guidance better than human reasoning alone, though later Hanbalis like Ibn Qudamah (d. 1223 CE) refined it to require some basis (aṣl) in authentic tradition.[45] In practice, this elevates Hadith authentication as a foundational discipline, with Hanbali jurists often deferring to Hadith specialists (muḥaddithūn) for validation before fiqh application.[46]Limited Role of Analogy (Qiyas) and Consensus (Ijma)
In Hanbali jurisprudence, qiyas (analogical reasoning) serves as a secondary source invoked only when explicit rulings from the Quran or authenticated Sunnah are absent, and even then, its application is tightly constrained to cases where the effective cause ('illah) is directly discernible from primary texts to prevent speculative extension. Ahmad ibn Hanbal (780–855 CE), the school's founder, prioritized transmitted narrations (athar) over deductive analogy, viewing excessive reliance on qiyas as akin to personal opinion (ra'y) that risked introducing bid'ah (innovation), and he reportedly suspended judgment on novel issues lacking clear prophetic precedent rather than analogize freely.[47] Later Hanbali scholars, including Abu Ya'la (d. 1066 CE) and Ibn Qudama (d. 1223 CE), formalized qiyas as permissible in limited domains such as hudud penalties or ritual purity but rejected it for core doctrinal matters, distinguishing the madhhab's textualist rigor from the more expansive analogical methodologies of the Hanafi or Shafi'i schools.[48] This restraint reflects a broader Athari emphasis on emulating the salaf (early generations) without rational embellishment. Similarly, ijma' (scholarly consensus) holds probative force in Hanbali usul al-fiqh primarily as the unanimous agreement of the Prophet's companions (Sahaba) or their immediate successors, deemed infallible due to their proximity to divine revelation, while later consensuses among mujtahids are treated as presumptively strong but reversible if contradicted by authentic hadith. Hanbali texts, such as those by Ibn al-Jawzi (d. 1201 CE), underscore that ijma' must represent the collective verdict of the entire ummah's qualified scholars without latent dissent, a stringent criterion that renders post-salaf ijma' practically scarce and subordinate to textual evidence.[49] This limitation arises from skepticism toward the completeness of transmitted knowledge after the third generation (taba' al-tabi'in), prioritizing verifiable early consensus—estimated at fewer than 100 instances in core fiqh matters—over broader, potentially errant scholarly majorities.[48] Consequently, Hanbalis often revert to athar or cautious non-application (tawqif) in ambiguous cases, safeguarding against the dilution of prophetic intent.Distinct Legal Rulings
Rules of Purity and Worship
In the Hanbali school, ritual purity (tahara) encompasses the removal of both physical impurities (najasat) and ritual impurities (hadath), with strict adherence to textual evidences from the Quran and authentic Sunnah. Physical impurities include substances such as flowing blood, carrion (except human or locust), pork, dog saliva, and intoxicants; vessels licked by dogs require seven washings, the first with earth.[50] Tiny amounts of certain impurities, like blood spots smaller than a dirham, are excused on clothing or body during prayer if removal is difficult.[51] Water used for purification must be tahur (pure and purifying), such as rainwater or well water not altered by impurities exceeding their own volume.[50] For istinja (cleansing after defecation or urination), it is obligatory to remove traces from the private parts using water or stones (istijmar), with a minimum of three wipes using solid material if water follows; water alone is preferable when feasible.[50] Minor ritual impurity (hadath asghar) requires wudu, whose obligatory acts (fara'id) include: intention (niyyah), saying bismillah, washing the face (including rinsing mouth and nostrils), washing hands and arms to the elbows, wiping the entire head (including ears with the fingers), and washing feet to the ankles, performed in sequence with continuity (i.e., without prolonged breaks).[51] Distinct Hanbali invalidators of wudu include skin-to-skin contact with the opposite sex accompanied by lust, touching one's own private parts with the front of the palm, deep sleep, loss of consciousness, eating camel meat, and apostasy, in addition to standard emissions from the private parts or skin impurities.[52] [51] Wiping over leather socks (khuffayn) is permitted for one day and night for residents (three for travelers), covering what wudu would wash. Major ritual impurity (hadath akbar) necessitates ghusl, obligatory after sexual intercourse, ejaculation, menstruation, postpartum bleeding, or death.[51] The obligatory acts of ghusl comprise intention, saying bismillah, washing hands (especially private parts), performing a complete wudu, and thoroughly washing (isbagh) the entire body, including hair roots, without specifying an order beyond the initial steps.[51] Tayammum substitutes for wudu or ghusl when water is unavailable or harmful, involving intention, two light strikes on clean earth or dust to pat the hands, wiping the face, then striking again to wipe hands to wrists in sequence.[51] Worship (ibadat) in Hanbali fiqh prioritizes precise emulation of the Prophet's Sunnah, with prayer (salah) as its cornerstone. The five daily prayers are obligatory upon pubescent, sane Muslims, with conditions including ritual purity, facing the qibla, covering the awrah (men: navel to knees; women: entire body except face and hands), and intention.[51] The fourteen pillars (arkān) of salah include takbiratul-ihram, standing (qiyam) for those able, recitation of al-Fatiha, bowing (ruku'), rising from ruku', prostration (sujud) twice, sitting between prostrations, and final tashahhud with salutations (taslim).[51] Distinct positions include placing the right hand over the left below the navel for men during qiyam, silent recitation of bismillah after al-Fatiha in audible prayers, and the imam's recitation sufficing for followers in obligatory congregational prayers, which are themselves obligatory for free, resident men capable of attending.[51] [53] Qunut (supplication) is performed in witr prayer after ruku' of the final rak'ah, raising hands to chest level, but not in fajr.[54] Friday (jumu'ah) and Eid prayers require a minimum quorum and specific conditions, such as delivery within zuhr time for jumu'ah.[51] Fasting (sawm) during Ramadan obligates abstention from food, drink, sexual intercourse, and ejection of semen from dawn (fajr) to sunset (maghrib), preceded by nightly intention (or once for the month).[51] Invalidators include intentional consumption, vomiting a mouthful, or intercourse (requiring kaffara: freeing a slave, 60 consecutive fasts, or feeding 60 poor persons); cupping does not invalidate.[51] Exemptions apply to the ill, travelers, elderly, pregnant, or nursing women fearing harm, with makeup fasts (qada') and potential fidya (feeding one poor per missed day for the chronically unable).[51] Zakat al-fitr, one sa' of staple food per person, is due before Eid prayer to purify the faster.[51] Zakat mandates 2.5% on hoarded wealth (nisab: 85g gold or 595g silver) held one lunar year, including merchandise, crops (5% if irrigated, 10% rain-fed), and livestock (e.g., one sheep per 40).[51] Hajj, obligatory once if physically and financially able, requires ihram, tawaf al-qudum, sa'i, standing at Arafah, tawaf al-ifadah, and stoning the jamarat; violations like hunting in ihram incur fidya (fasting three days or feeding six poor).[51] Tamattu' pilgrimage (umrah followed by hajj) is recommended, with women needing a mahram escort.[51] These rulings derive primarily from Ahmad ibn Hanbal's transmitted positions, as codified in works like Ibn Qudamah's al-Mughni and Ibn Balban's Akhsar al-Mukhtasarat.[50] [51]Family and Transactional Law
In Hanbali jurisprudence, marriage contracts necessitate the presence of a wali, or guardian, typically the bride's father or closest male relative, who must explicitly offer her in marriage using phrases such as "I marry off so-and-so" to ensure validity.[55] The Hanbali school, alongside Shafi'i and Maliki, mandates the wali's sole authority in contracting the marriage for a sane adult woman, rejecting marriages conducted without such guardianship as invalid.[56] The mahr, or bridal gift, is obligatory as contractual consideration from the husband, payable immediately or deferred, with no minimum specified beyond what is customary or agreed.[57] Divorce via talaq requires the husband's pronouncement, with Hanbalis classifying a triple talaq uttered in one sitting as three irrevocable divorces, rendering reconciliation impossible without a new contract and witnesses.[58] During the iddah period—three menstrual cycles for menstruating women or three lunar months otherwise—the wife observes waiting to ascertain pregnancy and allow revocation for the first or second talaq.[59] Hanbalis permit the divorced wife to inherit from her husband if he dies during iddah from revocable divorce, and extend this to cases where iddah has ended but she has not remarried.[59] Inheritance follows fixed Quranic shares, with sons receiving twice daughters' portions, husbands one-quarter or one-half of the estate depending on children, and no testamentary bequests altering heir shares beyond one-third of the property.[60] Transactional law in the Hanbali madhhab emphasizes contracts free from riba (usury) and gharar (excessive uncertainty), rendering sales invalid if price, quantity, or delivery terms lack clarity, such as unspecified costs or unseen commodities prone to dispute.[61] Bay' (sales) for fungible goods like food must occur hand-to-hand to avoid deferral implying riba, while deferred payments in non-riba transactions are permissible if transparently marked up without exploitation.[62] Errors in contract price bind the sale but require correction per Hanbali rulings, prioritizing equity over voidance.[63] Prohibited practices include double sales or speculative trades, aligning with broader scriptural bans on unjust enrichment.[64]Criminal and Public Law
In Hanbali jurisprudence, criminal law is categorized into hudud (fixed punishments prescribed by divine texts for offenses against God and society), qisas (retaliatory justice for offenses against individuals, such as murder or bodily harm), and ta'zir (discretionary punishments for offenses neither covered by hudud nor qisas, left to judicial authority).[65][66] These categories derive strictly from the Quran and authenticated Sunnah, with Hanbali scholars like Ahmad ibn Hanbal insisting on rigorous evidentiary standards—such as four eyewitnesses for adultery—to avoid erroneous application, reflecting a conservative approach that prioritizes doubt in favor of the accused over punitive certainty.[67][68] Hudud offenses include theft (amputation of the hand for the value exceeding nisab, typically 3 dirhams of gold or equivalent, under strict conditions like no necessity-driven theft), adultery (zina, with 100 lashes for unmarried offenders and stoning to death for married ones, where Hanbalis uniquely mandate combining flogging and stoning for the latter), false accusation of adultery (qadhf, 80 lashes), highway robbery (hirabah, ranging from amputation to execution based on severity), and wine consumption (80 lashes, extendable in repetition).[69][70] Hanbali fiqh upholds these without mitigation, viewing them as deterrents essential for social order, and applies them publicly once proven, though historical application was rare due to evidentiary hurdles; unlike more lenient madhhabs, Hanbalis reject analogy (qiyas) expansions that dilute scriptural prescriptions.[67][65] For qisas, Hanbali rulings permit exact retaliation in intentional murder or injury, but preclude it if the victim's heirs consent to diya (blood money) or pardon, emphasizing familial agency over state imposition.[65] Ta'zir covers public order violations like apostasy (riddah, punishable by death after a repentance period of three days, as acts denying core beliefs—e.g., rejecting prophethood—threaten communal faith and warrant execution to preserve societal cohesion) and rebellion (baghy, entailing combat against the lawful ruler, punished by death or crucifixion if armed resistance persists).[71][72] Hanbali scholars, including Ibn Taymiyyah, classify such acts as undermining public welfare, justifying severe discretionary measures like imprisonment or exile when hudud thresholds are unmet.[69] This framework, dominant in Saudi Arabia since the 18th-century Wahhabi alliance, prioritizes textual literalism, resulting in fewer procedural flexibilities compared to Hanafi or Maliki schools.[66][65]Rulings on Interactions with Non-Muslims
Classical Hanbali jurists, such as Ibn Muflih, al-Bahuti, and Mar‘i al-Karmi, prohibit initiating greetings or congratulations to non-Muslims on their religious festivals due to the risk of venerating false beliefs; neutral interactions in non-religious contexts are permitted.[73]Geographical Spread and Influence
Historical Centers in Baghdad and Damascus
The Hanbali school originated in Baghdad, where its eponymous founder, Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal (164–241 AH/780–855 CE), resided, taught, and compiled his extensive Musnad collection of hadiths, establishing the foundational principles of reliance on Quran, Sunnah, and authenticated traditions.[74] Following his death, Baghdad served as the school's primary intellectual hub through the Abbasid era, with early systematization by disciples such as his son ʿAbd-Allāh (d. 290 AH/903 CE) and Abū Bakr al-Khallāl (d. 311 AH/923–24 CE), who compiled al-Jāmiʿ, preserving ibn Ḥanbal's legal opinions and facilitating transmission to subsequent generations.[28] By the 4th/10th century, Hanbali teachings had spread from Baghdad to regions including Syria, but the city retained its centrality, evidenced by the establishment of dedicated madrasas and the veneration of ibn Ḥanbal's tomb, which Caliph al-Mustaẓhir renovated in 574 AH/1178 CE.[28] Baghdad's prominence peaked in the 6th/12th century, producing influential jurists like ʿAbd al-Qādir al-Jīlānī (d. 561 AH/1166 CE), though not strictly Hanbali in jurisprudence, and Abū Yaʿlā ibn al-Farrāʾ (d. 458 AH/1066 CE), alongside viziers such as Ibn Hubayra (d. 560 AH/1165 CE) who advanced Hanbali administrative influence.[28] Major texts emerged here, including Ibn Qudāma al-Maqdisī's al-Mughnī (completed circa 620 AH/1223 CE), a comprehensive fiqh compendium that synthesized earlier works and underscored the school's textualist methodology.[28] However, the Mongol sack of Baghdad in 656 AH/1258 CE devastated Hanbali institutions, scattering scholars and precipitating a sharp decline in the city's role as the madhhab's core, though pockets of continuity persisted among surviving families.[28][13] Damascus emerged as the preeminent Hanbali center in the post-Abbasid period under Mamluk patronage from the 7th/13th century onward, attracting refugees from Iraq and fostering revival amid the madhhab's reduced footprint elsewhere.[28] Taqī al-Dīn Aḥmad ibn Taymiyya (661–728 AH/1263–1328 CE), who relocated to Damascus after the Mongol incursions, invigorated the school through rigorous critiques of rationalist excesses and innovative applications of hadith, authoring over 300 works that emphasized independent reasoning within Hanbali bounds while teaching in local mosques and madrasas.[28][75] His disciple Shams al-Dīn Muḥammad ibn Abī Bakr ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya (691–751 AH/1292–1350 CE) further systematized these ideas in texts like Iʿlām al-Muwaqqiʿīn, extending Hanbali influence on theology and law.[28] Subsequent Damascene Hanbalis, including ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Rajab (736–795 AH/1335–1393 CE), upheld the tradition through biographical and exegetical works, maintaining scholarly chains amid Mamluk-Syrian intellectual vibrancy.[28] By the 10th/16th century, figures like Shams al-Dīn al-ʿUlaymī (d. 927 AH/1521 CE) documented the madhhab's continuity, linking it to reformist currents that persisted into the Ottoman era, with Damascus solidifying as a bastion for Hanbali textual fidelity against proliferating taqlīd practices in other Sunni schools.[28][13] This shift from Baghdad to Damascus reflected not only geopolitical upheaval but also the madhhab's adaptability, preserving its emphasis on prophetic traditions in a changing Islamic landscape.Dominance in the Arabian Peninsula
The Hanbali school achieved dominance in the Arabian Peninsula primarily through its integration with the Wahhabi reform movement in the 18th century. Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab, a Hanbali scholar born in 1703 in Najd, advocated a return to the Quran and authentic Sunnah, critiquing practices he viewed as innovations, which aligned closely with Hanbali textualist methodology. In 1744, he formed a pact with Muhammad ibn Saud, ruler of Diriyah, establishing the first Saudi state that enforced Hanbali jurisprudence as the basis for governance and law across expanding territories in central Arabia.[6] This alliance propelled Hanbali fiqh into the official legal framework of successive Saudi states, culminating in the unification of much of the Peninsula under Abdulaziz Al Saud by 1932, when the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was proclaimed. Saudi Arabia's legal system remains grounded in Hanbali principles, supplemented by Wahhabi doctrinal emphases, with judges (qadis) trained in Hanbali texts such as those of Ibn Qudamah and Ibn Taymiyyah. The state's export of this tradition via religious institutions like the Islamic University of Medina has reinforced Hanbali influence regionally.[76][77] Beyond Saudi Arabia, Hanbali adherence prevails among the majority in Qatar, where it forms the basis of judicial rulings, though with some local adaptations. In other Gulf states like the UAE and Kuwait, Hanbali scholars and communities maintain presence, but dominance is less absolute, coexisting with Shafi'i or other influences among expatriates and tribes. Yemen's Hanbali footprint remains marginal, overshadowed by Shafi'i and Zaydi traditions. Overall, the Peninsula's Hanbali stronghold reflects the enduring political success of the Saudi-Wahhabi model rather than widespread organic scholarly diffusion.[78][6]Modern Extensions through Migration and Reform Movements
In the 18th century, the Hanbali school experienced a pivotal revival through the reformist efforts of Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab (1703–1792), whose doctrine emphasized strict monotheism and scriptural literalism aligned with Hanbali methodology, forging an alliance with Muhammad ibn Saud that established the First Saudi State in 1744.[79] This movement rejected perceived innovations in other Sunni traditions, prioritizing hadith authentication and limiting analogy, thereby embedding Hanbali jurisprudence as the foundational legal framework for governance in Najd and expanding territories.[78] The Third Saudi State, consolidated after 1902 and formalized as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 1932, codified Hanbali rulings in areas like family law and criminal penalties, with institutions such as the Permanent Committee for Scholarly Research and Ifta issuing fatwas grounded in this school since 1962.[78] Subsequent reform movements, including 20th-century Salafism, further extended Hanbali principles by advocating return to the practices of the salaf (early generations), often drawing on Hanbali scholars like Ibn Taymiyyah (1263–1328) for critiques of taqlid (blind imitation) and emphasis on direct Quranic and hadith derivation.[80] While Salafis frequently transcend madhhab boundaries to favor ijtihad, their methodological conservatism—restricting qiyas and prioritizing weak hadith avoidance—mirrors Hanbali rigor, influencing global networks through publications and seminaries funded by Gulf states, with over 1,500 Saudi-supported mosques worldwide by the early 2000s promoting such approaches. In Saudi Arabia, this fusion manifested in legal reforms like the 1975 Basic System of Government, which affirmed Sharia (Hanbali-interpreted) as the constitution, extending the school's reach amid rapid modernization and population growth from 3 million in 1950 to over 35 million by 2020.[78] Migration played a complementary role in disseminating Hanbali jurisprudence beyond the Peninsula, particularly via intra-Gulf movements and labor diasporas. Tribal migrations from Najd to eastern Arabia and Qatar in the 19th–20th centuries carried Hanbali practices, culminating in Qatar's adoption of the school as predominant post-1971 independence, where it informs civil codes despite pragmatic adaptations.[81] Similarly, in the UAE, Hanbali influence persists in emirates like Sharjah and Ras al-Khaimah through historical Bedouin affiliations and scholarly exchanges, comprising a core element of federal Sharia-based family laws enacted in 2005.[82] Globally, expatriate workers and students from Saudi Arabia and Qatar—numbering millions in Europe, North America, and Asia by the 2010s—established Salafi-Hanbali oriented communities, with U.S. Salafi groups adopting Hanbali rulings on ritual purity and finance in mosques like those in New York and California since the 1990s. These extensions, however, face critiques for rigidity, as noted in analyses of Salafi legal evolution prioritizing anti-innovation stances over contextual adaptation.[83]Relationships with Other Islamic Traditions
Interactions with Sufism and Asceticism
Ahmad ibn Hanbal, the eponymous founder of the Hanbali school (d. 855 CE), exemplified and promoted asceticism (zuhd) through his personal detachment from worldly possessions and his compilation of Kitab al-Zuhd, a collection of narrations from the Salaf and Tabi'in emphasizing renunciation of material attachments to prioritize devotion to God.[84][85] This work underscores zuhd not as self-mortification but as trust in divine provision over self-reliance, aligning with early Islamic piety that views worldly indifference as essential for spiritual purity.[86] Hanbali scholars subsequent to Ibn Hanbal, such as Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali (d. 1393 CE), continued this tradition, integrating ascetic practices like simplicity in dress and diet with rigorous adherence to hadith, viewing them as safeguards against innovation (bid'ah).[87] The Hanbali school's interactions with Sufism emerged in ninth- and tenth-century Baghdad, where both movements developed concurrently, sharing roots in ascetic renunciation but diverging in methodology. Early Sufis, often overlapping with Hanbali circles, emphasized Sharia-compliant zuhd akin to Ibn Hanbal's teachings, fostering mutual respect among hadith-oriented ascetics.[88] However, Hanbalis maintained a cautious stance toward Sufi developments involving ecstatic practices, esoteric interpretations, or claims of direct divine unveiling (kashf) that lacked explicit textual basis, prioritizing literal adherence to Quran and Sunnah over mystical intuition.[89] A pivotal Hanbali voice in this discourse was Taqi al-Din Ibn Taymiyyah (d. 1328 CE), who distinguished between "true" Sufism—embodied by early figures like Abdul Qadir al-Jilani (d. 1166 CE), which he affiliated with as a Qadiri—and deviant forms involving pantheism or antinomianism, as seen in critiques of Ibn al-Arabi (d. 1240 CE).[90][91] Ibn Taymiyyah praised Sufi emphasis on inner purification when grounded in Sharia but condemned excesses like saint veneration or innovation in worship, arguing they contradicted the Salaf's ascetic model; this nuanced critique influenced later Hanbali reformers while reinforcing the school's anti-esoteric bent.[92][93]Connections to Wahhabism and Salafism
Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab (1703–1792), the founder of the Wahhabi movement, received his primary education in Hanbali jurisprudence in Najd, drawing heavily from the works of medieval Hanbali scholars such as Ahmad ibn Taymiyyah (d. 1328) and his student Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah (d. 1350), who emphasized strict adherence to the Quran, Sunnah, and early precedents while rejecting theological innovations and excessive rationalism.[94] [82] His teachings positioned Wahhabism as a reformist effort to revive what he viewed as the pristine monotheism (tawhid) of the salaf, aligning with Hanbali literalism in creed (aqidah athari) and aversion to practices like saint veneration, which Hanbalis historically critiqued as bid'ah (innovation).[95] [78] In 1744, ibn Abd al-Wahhab formed a pact with Muhammad ibn Saud, establishing a politico-religious alliance that propelled Wahhabi doctrines across the Arabian Peninsula, often implementing Hanbali-derived rulings on issues like criminal punishments and ritual purity with heightened enforcement against perceived polytheism (shirk).[96] This movement diverged from traditional Hanbalism by prioritizing unrestricted ijtihad (independent reasoning) over taqlid (imitation of madhhab authorities), critiquing adherence to any school—including Hanbali—as potentially veiling direct recourse to primary sources, though it retained Hanbali positions in fiqh where they aligned with hadith literalism.[82] [95] Salafism, emerging as a broader 19th- and 20th-century reformist trend, shares foundational ties to Hanbali thought through its endorsement of Ibn Taymiyyah's methodologies, which advocate emulating the salaf al-salih (pious predecessors) in theology and law, often favoring Hanbali rulings on anthropomorphic attributes of God and anti-Sufi stances.[97] Many Salafi scholars, particularly in the Hanbali-Salafi variant, adopt Hanbali fiqh selectively for its hadith-centric approach but reject madhhab-bound taqlid, aiming instead for a non-sectarian "madhhab of the salaf" that prioritizes scholarly consensus (ijma') from the first three generations.[97] [98] Tensions persist between traditional Hanbali scholars, who uphold the madhhab's structured methodology, and contemporary Salafis/Wahhabis, whom some Hanbalis accuse of over-literalism or hasty takfir (declaring Muslims apostates), as seen in disputes over the scope of bid'ah and interactions with other Sunni traditions.[82] Despite these, Wahhabism's dominance in Saudi Arabia since the 18th-century Saudi state expansions has reinforced Hanbali influence globally through state-sponsored institutions, blending it with Salafi purism to shape modern interpretations of orthodoxy.[96] [78]Tensions with Shiism and Rationalist Schools
The Hanbali school's foundational emphasis on unqualified adherence to the Quran, Sunnah, and the practices of the salaf engendered acute doctrinal opposition to rationalist theological currents, particularly the Mu'tazila, who prioritized human reason in resolving ambiguities about divine attributes and justice. This rift intensified during the mihna (inquisition) decreed by Abbasid Caliph al-Ma'mun in 218 AH/833 CE, which compelled scholars to affirm the Mu'tazili tenet that the Quran was a created entity rather than uncreated and eternal. Ahmad ibn Hanbal, as a preeminent traditionist, rejected this imposition, arguing it contradicted explicit scriptural texts; his defiance led to 28 months of imprisonment, repeated interrogations, and public flogging under Caliphs al-Mu'tasim (r. 218–227 AH/833–842 CE) and al-Wathiq (r. 227–232 AH/842–847 CE), until al-Mutawakkil terminated the policy in 234 AH/849 CE.[99] Hanbalis critiqued rationalist kalam (speculative theology) as an illicit innovation that risked anthropomorphism or negationism in describing God's essence, favoring instead the athari approach of affirming texts without interpretive analogy or philosophical analogy. This position, exemplified by Ibn Hanbal's insistence on emulating the early generations' restraint from delving into divine "how" (kayfiyya), positioned Hanbalism as a bulwark against not only Mu'tazilism but also antecedent rationalists like the Jahmiyya, who denied God's eternal attributes. Later Hanbali scholars, such as Ibn Qudama (d. 620 AH/1223 CE), reinforced this by compiling creeds that condemned rationalist deviations as heretical, prioritizing mass-transmitted reports (tawatur) over dialectical proofs.[16] Tensions with Shiism stemmed from irreconcilable views on prophetic succession, the status of the companions, and authoritative sources of law. Hanbalis upheld the caliphates of Abu Bakr, Umar, and Uthman as legitimate based on consensus (ijma') and election, rejecting the Shia doctrine of Ali's exclusive divine appointment and the Imams' interpretive monopoly, which they deemed an exaggeration (ghuluww) unsupported by undisputed hadiths. Ibn Hanbal's Musnad, compiling over 27,000 narrations, authenticated traditions praising the companions collectively while excluding Shia-favored reports elevating Ali above them, thereby dismissing much of the Shia hadith corpus as fabricated or weak.[100] Historically, these doctrinal chasms fueled urban strife in Baghdad, a Hanbali stronghold, where early adherents clashed with Shia enclaves; from the early 4th century AH/10th century CE, Sunnis—including Hanbalis—raided and burned Shia quarters in retaliatory violence amid theological disputations and political jockeying under Buyid (Shia-leaning) rule (334–447 AH/945–1062 CE). Such episodes underscored Hanbali populism's role in mobilizing against perceived Shia sectarianism, with figures like Ibn Hanbal advising caution toward "Rafidites" (a pejorative for extreme Shiis) in social interactions, reflecting broader Sunni wariness of doctrines like dissimulation (taqiyya) and temporary marriage (mut'a).[101]Comparisons with Other Sunni Madhhabs
Methodological Divergences from Hanafi, Maliki, and Shafi'i
The Hanbali school distinguishes itself through a methodology that prioritizes literal adherence to the Quran and authentic hadith (Sunnah), resorting to analogical reasoning (qiyas) only sparingly when textual evidence is absent and no contradiction arises, in marked contrast to the more extensive application of qiyas in the Hanafi and Maliki schools.[48] Founded by Ahmad ibn Hanbal (d. 855 CE), this approach reflects a deep skepticism toward speculative reasoning (ra'y), rejecting juristic preference (istihsan) as subjective and preferring the transmitted reports (athar) of the Prophet's companions over later scholarly opinions.[102] Hanafis, under Abu Hanifa (d. 767 CE), integrate istihsan and customary practice (urf) to adapt rulings for equity, allowing deviation from strict qiyas when it leads to hardship or better outcomes, a flexibility Hanbalis deem an unwarranted intrusion into divine legislation.[48] In handling consensus (ijma), Hanbalis limit its binding authority to the agreement of the companions or those with direct prophetic transmission, dismissing later ijma among scholars unless traceable to early sources, whereas Shafi'is, following Muhammad ibn Idris al-Shafi'i (d. 820 CE), accord ijma broader validity as a definitive proof preceding qiyas in their formalized hierarchy of sources.[103] This conservative stance underscores Hanbali aversion to innovation (bid'ah), viewing expansive ijma as prone to error without primordial authentication. Malikis, per Malik ibn Anas (d. 795 CE), elevate the normative practice of Medina's inhabitants (amal ahl al-Madina) as a quasi-textual source, interpreting it as reflective of prophetic precedent; Hanbalis, however, subordinate such practices to explicit hadith, rejecting them if unsupported by narration to avoid regional biases.[48]| Aspect | Hanbali Approach | Hanafi Approach | Maliki Approach | Shafi'i Approach |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Qiyas | Sparing, only if no text contradicts | Extensive, with istihsan for preference | Extensive, integrated with public interest | Primary secondary source after ijma |
| Ijma | Limited to companions' consensus | Broader scholarly agreement accepted | Includes Medinan consensus | Binding if post-prophetic, before qiyas |
| Istihsan/Urf | Rejected as subjective | Employed for equity and custom | Used alongside masalih mursala | Generally avoided, strict to texts |
| Primary Emphasis | Literal hadith and athar | Ra'y and analogy | Amal ahl al-Madina | Systematized textual hierarchy |
