Page 64 - The Importance of the Ahl Al-Sunnah

HARUN YAHYA

for days and then imprisoned. However, he was soon released
due to the government’s fear of the public’s reaction.
Abu Hanifah lived for many years in the Hijaz, and returned
to Kufa after the Abbasids came to power. However, little
changed under Abbasid rule. His response to Caliph al-
Mansur’s request that he become qadi of Baghdad was: “If I am
threatened with drowning in the River Euphrates in the event
that I decline this proposal, then I prefer to drown. There are
many around you who stand in need.” At this, al-Mansur had
him tortured for several days. This event ruined his health, and
he died in Baghdad in 150 AH. Hundreds of thousands of
Muslims still visit his tomb every year.
Following al-Imam al-A`zam’s death, his students produced
books by collecting his fatwas and the hadiths he had related,
and presenting them in a systematic form. Deriving new rul-
ings in the light of their teacher’s views, they spread his ideas
throughout the Islamic world. As a result, his teachings gradu-
ally became the Hanafi school, which still has many active fol-
lowers in Turkey, the Balkans, the Caucasus, Siberia, China,
Pakistan, Albania, Egypt, Palestine, Syria and Iraq.
Some of al-Imam al-A`zam’s works that have come down to
the present day are Al-Fiqh al-Akbar, ‘Alim wa al-Muta‘allim, Al-
Risalah, five al-Hashiyyah books, al-Qasidat an-Nu’maniyyah, and
Marifat al-Mazahib.
Some noteworthy extracts from his works are given below:
“Show people as much love as you can. Greet everyone,
even the very lowly. If you gather with others in an assem-
bly and discuss various problems, during which someone
expresses an idea to which you are opposed, do not
oppose them. If they ask you, give your opinion, speak

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