The Evolution of Fiqh(9.4 Imaam Ahmad ibn Hambal)

Imaam Ahmad ibn Hambal (778-855 CE)

Imaam Ahmad carried on the tradition of his teacher, Imaam

ash-Shaafi’ee as well as that of the earlier Imaams by trying to instill

in his students a high respect for the sources of Islaam and a disdain

for rigid imitation of scholars’ opinions. But, because Taqleed had

begun to take root among some of the followers of the earlier

Imaams, Ahmad took even more drastic action. 
Whereas Abu Haneefah discouraged his students from recording 
all of his opinions, Imaam Ahmad forbade them from recording 
any of his opinions at all. 
Thus, his Madh-hab was not compiled in written form

until the era of his students.

Ahmad was very explicit in his warnings against Taqleed, as

is evident in the following saying of his recorded by Ibn Qayyim:

“Do not blindly follow my rulings, those of Maalik, ash-Shaafi’ee,

al-Awzaa’ee or ath-Thawree, Take (your rulings) from whence they

took theirs.”
 Eeqaadh al-Himam, p. 113.

 Similarly, in another of his statements recorded by

Ibn ‘Abdul-Barr. He said, “The opinions of al-Awzaa’ee, Maalik and

Abu Haneefah are simply opinions and to me they are all equal, but

the real criterion for right or wrong is in the Hadeeths.”
Jaami Bayaan al-‘Ilm, vol.2, p. 149.

The Imaam’s preference for Hadeeths over opinions was so

great that he used to prefer a weak Hadeeth over a deduced ruling.

His respect for the Sunnah of the Prophet (s.w.), which he himself

collected in a major work of over 30,000 Hadeeths called al-Musnad

Al-Kabeer, was so great that he also gave severe warnings to those

who would dare disregard a Hadeeth of the Prophet (s.w.). Ibn al-

Jawzee reported that Imaam Ahmad said, “Whoever rejects an

authentic Hadeeth of Allaah’s messenger (s.w.) is on the verge of

destruction.” 
Ibn al-Jawzee, al-Manaaqib, (Beirut: Daar al-Aafaaq al-Jadeedah, 
2nd ed., 1977), p. 182

 The Prophet (s.w.) had given the following order to

his companions and Muslims in general: “Convey what you have

heard from me, even if it is only a verse (from the Qur’aan),”

Narrated by ‘Abdullaah ibn ‘Amr ibn al-‘Aas and collected by al-

Bukhaaree (Sahih Al-Bukhari, (Arabic-English), vol. 4, p. 442, no. 667).

In order that divine guidance would be available to all generations 
of Muslims until the Last Day. Because of that, Imaam Ahmad
 fought vigilantly against anything which could possibly interfere 
with the conveyance of divine guidance to his generation as 
well as those to come.