Virtues of the Imam Ahmad ibn Ḥanbal: Volume One

Chapter 21: His Insistence on Maintaining the Practices of the Early Muslims

٣٢٧ 327 21: His Insistence on Maintaining the Practices of the Early Muslims [Al-Rabʿī:] Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal, the exemplar of the Sunnis, who endured the Inquisition for the sake of God, told me: “Seventy jurisprudents from different towns, all of them Successors and imams, agreed that the sunnah in force at the time of the Emissary’s death consisted of accepting God’s decrees, submitting to His command, acquiescing to His rule, obeying Him, and avoiding whatever He has forbidden; acting solely for His sake and believing that all things good and bad happen by His decree; renouncing vainglory, argument, and quarreling about religion; passing one’s hand over one’s shoes as an ablution; fighting alongside the caliph, be he pious or sinful; praying over Muslim dead; holding that belief consists of speech and action alike, and that it increases through obedience to God and diminishes with disobedience to Him; believing that the Qurʾan is the speech of God revealed to the consciousness of His Prophet (God bless and keep him) and is uncreated , no matter how it is recited; bearing up under the rule of whatever government there is, just or unjust; believing that we should not take up arms against rulers, even oppressive ones; not holding anyone who professes the oneness of God to be an Ingrate, even if he commits grave sins; not discussing the disputes that arose among the Prophet’s Companions; holding that the best of people after the Emissary of God are Abū Bakr, ʿUmar, ʿUthmān, and the Emissary’s cousin ʿAlī; and asking God to show mercy to the Emissary ’s wives, children, and in-laws (may God have mercy upon them all). This is the sunnah: if you follow it, you will be saved. To adopt it is a blessing and to break from it is to be lost.” Chapter 21: His Insistence on Maintaining the Practices of the Early Muslims Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal, God be pleased with him, strove to emulate the practices of the early Muslims to the point that—as we learned from al-Ḥusayn ibn al-Munādī—he asked his wife’s permission to have a concubine in emulation of them. With his wife’s consent, he bought a woman for a trifling price and named her Rayḥānah, following the example set by the Prophet, God bless and keep him. 21.1 ٣٢٨ 328 P _  "2 3 4 5 6 #01  $X`¡  ìabc@ /   AB $7^²™³¡  çaÇĪ  Å P˜ i™   * +  ,   ¢01P _“aÇÞ wx@ / #01  * D EÂ:  HI/ #  f ?@ / # :. /     f01  á= w x-     " #    7  JKL M   * +  ,-¦Ž^°̄ " # :. /     ݑ_ AB      * + ,NO )     " # AB¦Ž^°̄ " # :. /     F# P  S=T@ / # 7  JKL M      P@ / # ( ) AB¦Ž^°̄ " # :. /   P“‹ [ Š£   #   * + ,NO )     `aÇ  HI/ #  * +  ,-¦Ž^°̄ " # :. /     * D  Y \ çaÇ¡ ¸^†@ / # P  S= w ¹     7  JKL M  P²™³Ö 01¤£ " #  * D Y_   7°̄ :. /     * D   Y !`‹ [Š@ / # k‚ \   ! ç w¡  x-    7  JKL M  AB¦Ž^°̄ " # :  ` d      " # $ % &'# ( )  * + ,- "2 3 4 5 6   §   :. /     * D EÂ# v w  >?@ / #  f01¤£ " #     `aÇ  HI/ # _ ?‘  7°̄ . k lim nX`op " 2 3 4 5 6 # * + ,NO ) $ % &'# ( )   AB " #   AB $ % &'# ö y  " # .  $X `ìabc@ / #01 :. /    AB¦Ž^°̄ " # :. /     * D EP Pà  HI/ # 7°̄#01¤@ / # ( )    7  JKL M  AB¦Ž^°̄ " # :. /    F    y  HI/ # ( )     Ž`aÇ  HI/ #01¤£ " # AB¦Ž^°̄ " # :. /   P“‹ [AB    7  JKL M  AB¦Ž^°̄ " # :. /    t‡ˆ‰ _Š£7°̄  * D Y" #© / # 7  JKL M    AB " # ¢ " # $X \  AB! 01 !   Êy     P“Ë ) 01¤£ " # 01   ` d      " #     Z [ Œ   " #  * D  eò )  f " #F  :. / 01  á= TB  * +  ,01 Ȫ«Ä / # à99© / # ( )  Þ w媫ÿp $XÀ9O ) $ % &'# * +  ,NZ [ $X  ]^’‘  $X `ìop01    °̄01  P± ) $ % &'#  fPà  HI/ —©ª«  ÷›/œŒ w x- _`op " #  Ž_ AB ! 7 \ : ¡ ; / #   #— 7°̄ " #   ݑ " #F .$Xe 9— O )    ?‘# _`op " # 2 3 4 5 6 01 Á( ) ١    •s– [ #   " # t u ž`op01    k‚ ´É#P  " # AB¦Ž^°̄ " #  ݑ_ AB      * + ,NO )     " # AB¦Ž^°̄ " # ¼  01  FP“    7  JKL M  AB¦Ž^°̄ " #  §¨ i™ š   PS w x- ¦Ž^§¨ i™ t u / 9O )   °̄F 2 3 4 5 6 " # îǸ^ v= TB ¢ " #  * + ­ w  >  ]^’‘ 2 3 4 5 6 :$ % &'# ( )  * + ,- "2 3 4 5 6   §   .|  * D _ Y”bc@ /   AB |  * D _ Y”bc@ / # .  * + ­ w  >  ]^’‘ 2 3 4 5 6   °̄ " # :. /    * +  ,NZ [   * D  ec@ / #  Ë )  $X†@ /" `aÇÄ / #  * +  ,   ¢ñ h i#   " #  " †B`aÇÄ / #   $Xe  w媫ÿp ©ª«  õ   $ % &'# ( )   AB " #   ݑ " #F01 .$X !    im nX°̄ Áv w x-   !  2 3 4 5 6 01  $X AB: •s– [ŠI/ #   7°̄ " # . / 01  á= TB v‰ §    7°̄ "   AB t u / _  ݑ7°̄ t u ž`op01 $XÀ9O ) $ % &'#¦  Ž^:   Ì  §    * +  ,-¦Ž^ :  Ì  k‚ _ƒ $ % &'# 7 JKL M r  s   ‫؟‬ö7 :   Ì  §¨ i™ :. / 01 ¶   "   P _“ab„ * + ,NO )   °̄ " #   AB " #   AB ö7 :   Ì  §¨ i™ :. / 01 ¶   "      ` d      " # $ % &'# ( )  * + ,- " # * + ,NO )   °̄ " #01 ‫؛‬#  #˜ i™ 01 #  #˜ i™7°̄ " # .¦Ž^ :  Ì :. / 01  á= > §   ‫؟‬$ % &'# ( ) ٦،٢١ ٧،٢١ ٨،٢١ ٣٣١ 331 21: His Insistence on Maintaining the Practices...