Map showing some Core areas of maliki, Shafi, Hanbalis and Hanafi Muslims in Africa, Asia and Europe. Sunni Islam is the largest denomination of Islam. Sunni Islam is also referred to as Ahl as-Sunnah wa’l-Jamā‘h (Arabic Fiqh ( Arabic: فقه, fɪqəh is Islamic Jurisprudence. Fiqh is an expansion of the Sharia Islamic law—based directly on the The Shāfi‘ī Madhab ( ar شافعي) is one of the four schools of Fiqh, or religious law within The Maliki Madhhab ( Arabic مالكي) is one of the four schools of Fiqh or religious law within Sunni Islam Hanbali ( حنبلى) is one of the four schools ( Madhhabs of Fiqh or religious law within Sunni Islam (the other three being Islamic theology is a branch of Islamic studies regarding the beliefs associated with the Islamic faith In Islam, a Maturidi ( Arabic: الماتريدي) is one who follows Abu Mansur Al Maturidi 's theology which is a close variant of the The Ash'ari theology ( Arabic الأشاعرة al-asha`irah) is a school of early Muslim speculative theology founded by the theologian Abu al-Hasan Athari ( al-Athariyya) in English is translated as textualism which is derived from the Arabic word Athar, which means "Narrations" Muʿtazilah ( Arabic المعتزلة al-mu`tazilah) is a theological school of thought within Sunni Islam. The Deobandi ( Urdu: دیو بندی devbandī) is a Sunni Islamic revivalist movement which started in India and has more recently Barelwi or Barelvi ( Hindi: बरेलवी Urdu: بریلوی is a movement of Sunni Sufism in South Asia that was founded by The Five Pillars of Islam (Arabic أركان الإسلام is the term given to the five duties incumbent on every Muslim. The Shahada ( Arabic: ar الشهادة, from the verb ar شهد "to testify" is the Islamic Creed. Ṣalāt ( Arabic: صلاة‎, pl ṣalawāt, Qur'anic Arabic: صلوة ṣalawah) (also munz in Pashto and This is a sub-article of Islamic economical jurisprudence. Zakaat ( زكاة zækæːh zakaat or zakāh, has the implied Sawm ( Arabic: صوم is an Arabic word for Fasting regulated by Islamic jurisprudence. The Hajj (حج is a pilgrimage to Mecca (Makkah It is the largest annual pilgrimage in the world The Rightly Guided Caliphs or The Righteous Caliphs ( ar الخلفاء الراشدون) is a term used in Sunni Islam to refer to the first Early life Abu Bakr was born at Mecca some time in the year 573 CE, in the Banu Taym branch of the Quraysh tribe Umar (a=عمر بن الخطاب|t=`Umar ibn al-Khattāb c 581-83 CE &ndash 7 November, 644) also known as Umar the Great or Omar the Great Early life Uthman was born in Ta’if, which is situated on a hill and the presumption is that Uthman was born during the summer months since wealthy Meccans ‘Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib (a=علي بن أﺑﻲ طالب|t=ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib 13th Rajab, 24 BH – 21st Ramaḍān, 40 AH The six major Hadith collections (Arabic Al-Sihah al-Sittah) are the works of some individuals from Islamic scholars who by their Sahih Muslim ( Arabic: صحيح مسلم ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, full title "Al-Musnadu Al-Sahihu bi Naklil Adli" is one of the Six major collections as-Sunan as-Sughra (السنن الصغرى also known as Sunan an-Nasa'i (Arabic سنن النسائي is one of the Sunni Six Major Hadith collections Sunan Abu Da'ud (سُنن أبو داوود is one of the Sunni Six Major Hadith collections, collected by Abu Da'ud. Jami al-Tirmidhi (جامع الترمذي popularly Sunan al-Tirmidhi (سُـنَن الترمذي is one of the Sunni Six major Hadith collections Sunan Ibn Maja (سُنن ابن ماجه is one of the Sunni Six Major Hadith collections collected by Ibn Maja. The Muwaṭṭa (الموطأ is an early statement of Muslim law compiled and edited by Imam Malik. Sunan al-Darami by Al-Darami (181H-255H is a Hadith collection considered by Sunnis to be among the nine the Six major Hadith collections

The Hanafi (Arabic حنفي) school is the oldest of the four schools of thought (Madhhabs) or jurisprudence (Fiqh) within Sunni Islam. Arabic (ar الْعَرَبيّة (informally ar عَرَبيْ) in terms of the number of speakers is the largest living member of the Semitic language Madhhab or Mazhab ( Arabic مذهب mæðhæb pl مذاهب mæðæːhıb) is an Islamic school of thought, or Fiqh ( Arabic: فقه, fɪqəh is Islamic Jurisprudence. Fiqh is an expansion of the Sharia Islamic law—based directly on the Sunni Islam is the largest denomination of Islam. Sunni Islam is also referred to as Ahl as-Sunnah wa’l-Jamā‘h (Arabic The Hanafi madhhab is named after its founder, Abu Hanifa an-Nu‘man ibn Thābit (Arabic: النعمان بن ثابت‎) (699 - 767), but its doctrine derives primarily from his two most important disciples, Abu Yusuf and Muhammad al-Shaybani. Al-Imam al-A'zam ( الامام الاعظم) "The Greatest Imam" Nu’man bin Thabit bin Zuta bin Mahan ( النعمان بن ثابت‎) better known by Yaqub ibn Ibrahim al-Ansari better known as Abu Yusuf (أبو يوسف (d The latter's works, known collectively as zāhir al-riwāya, remained authoritative for later Hanafis.

Overview

Among the four established Sunni schools of legal thought in Islam, the Hanafi school is the oldest, but it is generally regarded as the most liberal and as the one which puts the most emphasis on human reason. Sunni Islam is the largest denomination of Islam. Sunni Islam is also referred to as Ahl as-Sunnah wa’l-Jamā‘h (Arabic The Hanafi school also has the most followers among the four major Sunni schools. (Both the Ottoman Empire and the Mughal Empire were Hanafi so the Hanafi school is still widespread in their former lands). The Ottoman Empire (1299–1923 ( Old Ottoman Turkish: دولتْ علیّه عثمانیّه Devlet-i Âliye-yi Osmâniyye, Late Ottoman and Modern Turkish The Mughal Empire ( Persian and self-designation گورکانی; مغلیہ سلطنت) was an Islamic imperial power which ruled most The other three schools of thought are Shafi, Maliki, and Hanbali. The Shāfi‘ī Madhab ( ar شافعي) is one of the four schools of Fiqh, or religious law within The Maliki Madhhab ( Arabic مالكي) is one of the four schools of Fiqh or religious law within Sunni Islam Hanbali ( حنبلى) is one of the four schools ( Madhhabs of Fiqh or religious law within Sunni Islam (the other three being Today, the Hanafi school is predominant among the Sunnis of Central Asia, Afghanistan, Pakistan and the most of the Indian Subcontinent, China as well as in Iraq, Turkey, Albania, the Balkans and the Caucasus. In his book Mektubat, Imam Rabbani told that he came to know by kashf that Jesus would be a hanafi in his second coming. The literal meaning of the word kashf is "unveiling" but in Sufi terminology it means to expose the heart to Metaphysical illumination or " Revelation

According to Abdalhaqq Bewley:

"The madhhab of Imam Abu Hanifa, may Allah cover him with mercy, was formulated in Iraq, a very different environment to that of Madina al-Munawwara where the deen had been laid down, and the number of Companions who had settled there had been too few to allow a complete picture of the Sunna to emerge. Madina may refer to Madina Armenia Medina For this reason Hanafi methodology involved the logical process of examining the Book and all available knowledge of the Sunna and then finding an example in them analogous to the particular case under review so that Allah's deen could be properly applied in the new situation. It thus entails the use of reason in the examination of the Book and Sunna so as to extrapolate the judgements necessary for the implementation of Islam in a new environment. It represents in essence, therefore, within the strict compass of rigorous legal and inductive precepts, the adaptation of the living and powerful deen to a new situation in order to enable it take root and flourish in fresh soil. This made it an ideal legal tool for the central governance of widely varied populations which is why we find it in Turkey as the legacy of the Uthmaniyya Khilafa and in the sub-continent where it is inherited from the Moghul empire. "

Some distinctive opinions of Abu Hanifa and the Hanafi School

• Abu Hanifah held that "wine" (the fermented juice of dates or grapes) was absolutely prohibited. But he thought it was permissible to drink small non-intoxicating amounts of other alcoholic beverages (e. g. made from honey or grains). Later Hanafi scholars tend to rule that all alcoholic beverages are prohibited regardless of source.
• It is prohibited or disliked to eat some forms of non-fish seafood based on the hadith of the prophet Muhammad: "Two types of dead meat and two types of blood have been made lawful for your consumption [without being slaughtered]: fish and locust, liver and spleen". (Reported by Ahmad and Ibn Majah,).
• Except during Hajj every salah needs to be made in its regular time. The Hajj (حج is a pilgrimage to Mecca (Makkah It is the largest annual pilgrimage in the world Ṣalāt ( Arabic: صلاة‎, pl ṣalawāt, Qur'anic Arabic: صلوة ṣalawah) (also munz in Pashto and It is not valid to combine prayers, even when travelling. ^[1]
• A sixth daily Witr prayer is wajib or "required". Witr (وتر is a Muslim prayer that is performed at night after Isha'a and before Fajr.
• Abu Hanifah held that "the Quran" consists of the meaning of the text and so in the daily prayers it was permissible to recite "the Quran" in any language unconditionally. Later Hanafis only held that this was permissible if the person praying was unable to recite the Quran in Arabic.
• Bleeding can break one's wudu. This article is about Hygiene in Islam. Wudu ( Arabic: الوضوء al-wuḍū', Persian:آبدست ābdast
• Abu Hanifah and the Maturidis say that "Faith neither increases nor decreases" and that "Actions are not a part of faith".

Despite these differences, there is little or no animosity between the four schools of religious law within Sunni Islam. Sunni Islam is the largest denomination of Islam. Sunni Islam is also referred to as Ahl as-Sunnah wa’l-Jamā‘h (Arabic Instead there is a cross-pollination of ideas and debate that serves to refine each school's understanding of Islam.

Notable Hanafis

• Abu Hanifah
• Abu Yusuf
• Muhammad al-Shaybani
• Abu Mansur Al Maturidi
• Al-Kawthari
• Ibn Abidin
• Ahmad Sirhindi
• Baha-ud-Din Naqshband Bukhari
• Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi
• Shah Waliullah
• Fethullah Gülen
• Ahmed Raza Khan
• Riaz Ahmed Gohar Shahi
• Muhammad al-Yaqoubi
• Muhammad Ilyas
• Muhammad Zakariya al-Kandahlawi
• Shaykh Nazim al-Qubrusi
• Rashid Ahmed Gangohi
• Ilyas Attar Qadri
• Ashraf Ali Thanwi
• Muhammad Taqi Usmani
• Muhammad Rafi Usmani
• Shibli Nomani
• Ibn Abi al-Izz
• Mufti Tahir Mahmood Kiani
• Faraz Rabbani
• Syed Abdullah Shah Naqshbandi
• Mufti Ghulam Rasool Jamaati
• Ahmad ibn Muhammad al-Tahawi
• Farid al-Din Attar
• Zameer Ikraam Sattaur
• Abd al-Ghani al-Nabulsi
• Tahir-ul-Qadri
• Abdul Razzaq al-Halabi
• Tariq Jamal
• Haji Abdulwahab
• Yusuf Motola

Hanafi Groups and Movements

• Deobandi
• Barelwi
• Maturidi
• Sunni Bohra
• Tablighi Jamaat

References

• The Recovery of True Islamic Fiqh

External links

• Salaah Evidences for the Hanafi Madhab
• SunniPath.com Hanafi ruling website
• NoorOnline.com
• sunniport.com
• Shariah Board (Hanafi) Audio Fatawa in many languages (free online)
• Sahih al Islam Over 2,000 Collection of Islamic Information
• Online Urdu Audio on Various Subjects
• Kitab Ghar Urdu Translation of Hanafi Fiqh and Hadith Books
• Hizmet Books Hanafi books in English (free online)
• White Thread Press Books on Hanafi Fiqh and Hadith
• Al-Rashad Books and Audio Books and Audio on Hanafi Fiqh
• The Al-Imam al-A'zam Abu Hanifah web site!