and their schools of thought; for upon their statements the rulings revolve, and through their schools of thought the jurists of Islam issue fatwas.
Our Imam, Abu Abd Allah Ahmad [bin Muhammad] ibn Hanbal—may Allah be pleased with him—was among the most fulfilled of them in virtue, the closest of them in means to Allah, the most devoted of them in following the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), the most knowledgeable of them regarding him, and the most ascetic of them regarding this world and the most obedient of them to His Lord. For this reason, our choice fell upon his school of thought.
I have desired to explain his school and his chosen opinions so that whoever follows in his footsteps may know them. I shall clarify in many of the issues what was disputed versus what was agreed upon, and I shall mention for each imam what he held, seeking blessings through them and introducing their schools of thought. I shall indicate the evidence for some of their statements by way of abbreviation, limiting myself in that to what is preferred. I shall attribute—as much as possible—the reports to the books of the leading scholars of the traditions, so that certainty may be obtained regarding their intended meaning and a distinction may be made between the authentic and the defective among them, so that the well-known may be relied upon and the unknown may be disregarded.
Then, I have arranged this upon the commentary of the abridgment (Mukhtasar) of Abu al-Qasim Umar ibn al-Husayn ibn Abd Allah al-Khiraqi—may Allah have mercy upon him—because it is a blessed and beneficial book, and a concise and comprehensive summary. Its author was a great imam, righteous, possessing religion and piety, who combined knowledge and action. Thus, we seek blessing through his book and structure the commentary according to his issues and chapters. We begin in every issue with its explanation and clarification, and what it indicates through its explicit wording, its implication, and its content. Then, we follow that with similar matters that are not mentioned in
(11) Omitted from the original (MS A). (12) Omitted from MS M. (13) He—may Allah have mercy upon him—transgressed in this expression, for it is not permissible to seek blessings through the righteous; the Companions did not do so with anyone other than the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) during his lifetime—neither with Abu Bakr nor anyone else—nor did the Successors (Tabi'un) do so with their leaders in knowledge and religion. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) has characteristics during his life in which it is not appropriate for others to share; thus, it is not permissible to draw an analogy between him and any of the Imams. This is if they were alive; how much more so when they are dead! The matter is therefore even more serious and is not permissible at all. (14) In the original: "wa-a'zu" and "'azihi," and this is a dialectal variation. (15) In MS M: "I built (or structured)." (16) This is an exaggeration on his part—may Allah have mercy upon him—because there is no book believed to have barakah (blessing) other than the Book of Allah, the Exalted. Allah the Almighty said: {And this is a Book We have revealed [which is] blessed} [Surah al-An'am: 92]. Furthermore, it [the Quran] is infallible, whereas all other books are prone to error. And Allah knows best.
ومَذاهِبَهم، فَعلَى أقْوالِهم مَدارُ الأحكام، وبمذاهبِهم يُفْتِى فقَهاءُ الإِسلام.
وكان إمامُنا أبو عبد اللَّه أحمد [بن محمد] (١١) بن حَنْبَلٍ، رضى اللَّه عنه، مِن أوْفاهم فَضِيلة، وأقْربِهم إلى اللَّه وَسِيلة، وأتْبَعِهِم لرسولِ اللهِ -صلى اللَّه عليه وسلم- وأعْلَمِهم به (١٢)، وأزْهَدِهم في الدنيا وأطْوَعِهم لربِّه، فَلذلك وقَع اختيارُنا على مذهبِه.
وقد أحبَبْتُ أن أشرحَ مذهبَه واخْتيارَه، ليَعْلَم ذلك مَن اقتفَى آثارَه، وأُبَيِّنَ في كثيرٍ من المسائل ما اختُلِفَ فيه مِمَّا أُجْمِعَ عليه، وأذكرَ لكلِّ إمامٍ ما ذهب إليه، تبرُّكا بهم (١٣)، وتعريفًا لمذاهبِهم، وأُشِير إلى دليلِ بعض أقوالِهم على سبيل الاختصار، والاقْتصار مِن ذلك على المختار، وأعْزُوَ ما أمْكننِى عَزْوُه (١٤) مِن الأخبار، إلى كُتُبِ الأئمَّةِ مِن عُلَماء الآثار، لتَحْصُلَ الثِّقَةُ بمَدْلُولِها، والتَّمييزُ بين صحيحِها ومَعْلولِها، فيُعْتمدَ علَى مَعْروفِها، ويُعْرَض عن مَجْهولِها.
ثم رتَّبْتُ (١٥) ذلك علَى شرحِ مُخْتَصَر أبى القاسم عمر بن الحسين بن عبد اللَّه الْخِرَقِىِّ، رحمَه اللَّه، لِكَوْنِه كتابا مُبارَكا نافعًا، ومختصرًا مُوجَزًا جامِعًا، وَمُؤلِّفُه إمامٌ كبير، صالح ذُو دِين، أخو وَرَعٍ، جَمع العلمَ والعملَ، فنتبرَّك بكتابِه (١٦)، ونجعلُ الشَّرْحَ مُرتَّبًا على مَسائِلِه وأبوابِه، ونبدأ في كلِّ مسألةٍ بشَرْحِها وتَبْيينِها، وما دَلَّتْ عليه بمَنْطُوقِها ومَفْهُومِها وَمَضْمُونِها، ثم نُتْبع ذلك ما يُشابِهُها مما ليس بمذكورٍ في
(١١) سقط من: الأصل.(١٢) سقط من: م.(١٣) تجاوز - رحمه اللَّه - في هذا التعبير؛ لأنه لا يجوز التبرك بالصالحين، لأن الصحابة لم يكونوا يفعلونه مع غير النبي -صلى اللَّه عليه وسلم- في حياته، لا مع أبى بكر ولا غيره، ولا فعله التابعون مع قادتهم في العلم والدين. والنبى -صلى اللَّه عليه وسلم- له خصائص في حال حياته لا يصلح أن يشاركه فيها غيره، فلا يجوز أن يقاس عليه أحد من الأئمة، هذا لو كانوا على قيد الحياة، فكيف وهم أموات! إن الأمر إذًا أشدّ، ولا يجوز إطلاقا.(١٤) في الأصل: "وأعزى" و"عزيه"، وهي لغة.(١٥) في م: "بنيت".(١٦) هذه مبالغة منه - رحمه اللَّه - لأنه ليس هناك كتاب يعتقد فيه البركة غير كتاب اللَّه عزّ وجلّ؛ قال تعالى {وَهَذَا كِتَابٌ أَنْزَلْنَاهُ مُبَارَكٌ} سورة الأنعام ٩٢، ولأنه معصوم من الخطأ، وما عداه من الكتب فهو عرضة للخطأ. واللَّه أعلم.
