In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Summary of the Book:
*Ramadan: Events and Lessons*
The Death of Imam al-Muzani
Time: Six days remaining in the month of Ramadan,
In the year 264 AH.
Beneficial knowledge is among the righteous deeds that continue to benefit its possessor after their death.
This is achieved by leaving behind an authored or endowed book,
Or students who teach that knowledge to the people,
Or legal verdicts (fatawa) from which creation benefits through the clarification of rulings and the resolution of complex issues.
This falls under the statement of Allah Almighty:
“Lo! We it is Who bring the dead to life. We record that which they send before (them, and their footprints. And all things We have kept in a clear Register.” (36:12)
On the authority of Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him),
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:
"When a human being dies, his deeds come to an end except for three:
A continuous charity, knowledge from which benefit is derived,
Or a righteous child who prays for him."
Al-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
"The scholars said the meaning of the hadith is
That the deceased's own actions cease upon his death,
And the renewal of reward for him stops, except in these three things,
Because he was the cause behind them.
For a child is from his own earning,
And likewise the knowledge he leaves behind through teaching or authoring,
As well as continuous charity, which is the endowment (waqf).
In this hadith lies the virtue of marriage in the hope of having a righteous child—
And the explanation of the varying circumstances of people regarding marriage has been mentioned previously,
Which we clarified in the Book of Marriage—
And in it is proof for the validity of the principle of religious endowment and its immense reward,
Along with a clarification of the virtue of knowledge, encouragement to acquire it abundantly,
And incentive to pass it on through teaching, authoring, and elucidation;
And that one should select from the sciences those that are most beneficial, then the next most beneficial."
Indeed, it is a great blessing for a scholar
To have an outstanding, righteous student
Who carries his knowledge after his death,
Thereby benefiting the people with it,
Immortalizing his knowledge, his memory, and supplications for him after he is gone,
So that he remains alive through that, even while in his grave.
This is among the reasons that prompt scholars to pay great attention to choosing their students
And to bestow immense care upon the most virtuous among them,
In hopes of attaining that desired benefit.
Among those fortunate scholars blessed with brilliant students
Was Imam al-Shafi'i,
Who left behind from his students an outstanding scholar:
Imam al-Muzani,
Who transmitted the knowledge and fiqh of his master to the Ummah,
To the extent that al-Shafi'i said of him during his lifetime:
"Al-Muzani is the champion of my school of thought."
Thus al-Shafi'i's statement about him was fulfilled
After his death.
Abu al-Hasan ibn 'Abd al-Salam said:
"The jurist Abu Ishaq narrated to us,
Saying: 'As for al-Shafi'i (may Allah have mercy on him),
His jurisprudence was passed down to his companions,
Among whom was Abu Ibrahim
Isma'il ibn Yahya ibn Isma'il
Ibn 'Umar ibn Ishaq al-Muzani.'"
Al-Dhahabi said: "A vast number of scholars acquired knowledge from him,
And through him, the school of Imam al-Shafi'i spread across the horizons."
Al-Muzani's Name, Lineage, and Birth (may Allah have mercy on him):
He is the eminent Imam, the jurist of the Muslim nation,
The paragon of ascetics, Abu Ibrahim
Isma'il ibn Yahya ibn Isma'il
Ibn 'Umar ibn Muslim
Al-Muzani al-Nasri, the student of al-Shafi'i.
As for 'al-Muzani',
This attribution is to Muzaynah bint Kalb,
Which is a large, well-known tribe.
He was born in Egypt
In the year of the death of al-Layth ibn Sa'd,
In the year 175 AH.
His Knowledge and the Scholars' Praise for Him (may Allah have mercy on him):
Imam al-Muzani possessed abundant knowledge, comprehensive fiqh,
And a powerful command
Of understanding.
His primary devotion was to fiqh over other branches of knowledge;
Thus, he narrated few hadiths,
But he was a leading authority in fiqh.
He did not have many teachers;
Rather, his steadfast companionship with al-Shafi'i was his defining state.
He narrated hadith from al-Shafi'i,
'Ali ibn Ma'bad ibn Shaddad,
And Nu'aym ibn Hammad.
However, he had many students who studied under him,
Among whom were the Imam of Imams,
Abu Bakr ibn Khuzaymah,
Abu al-Hasan ibn Jawsa,
Abu Bakr ibn Ziyad al-Naysaburi,
Abu Ja'far al-Tahawi
(His nephew),
Abu Nu'aym ibn 'Adi,
'Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Hatim,
And Abu al-Fawaris ibn al-Sabuni,
Alongside a vast multitude from the East and the West.
May Allah have mercy on him, he possessed exceptional skill in argumentation and debate,
To the extent that al-Shafi'i was reported to have said of him:
"If he were to debate Satan, he would defeat him."
Ibn Khallikan said of him:
"He was an ascetic, a scholar, a mujtahid, a master of argument,
And a deep diver into subtle meanings.
He is the leader of the Shafi'is,
The most knowledgeable of them regarding his methodology, his legal verdicts, and what is transmitted from him."
He (may Allah have mercy on him) was a scholar deeply grateful to Allah for His grace in granting him knowledge and understanding;
Whenever he finished a legal issue and recorded it in his concise summary,
He would step up to the prayer niche and perform two rak'ahs
Out of gratitude to Allah Almighty.
Perhaps this was among the reasons blessing was placed in his *Mukhtasar*, as will come.
Al-Bukhari followed a similar practice,
But before placing any hadith into his *Sahih*.
Muhammad ibn Yusuf al-Firabri said:
"Muhammad ibn Isma'il al-Bukhari said to me:
'I never included a hadith in the book *Al-Sahih*
Except that I performed a ritual bath before it and prayed two rak'ahs.'"
He also said:
"I did not enter any hadith into the *Sahih*
Except after seeking Allah Almighty's guidance through prayer (istikharah) and becoming certain of its authenticity."
Through this and other reasons, blessing was placed in *Sahih al-Bukhari* (may Allah have mercy on him).
His Worship and Devotion (may Allah have mercy on him):
Beneficial knowledge, when it touches the inner recesses of a person's heart,
Engenders a deep devotion to acting upon it
And applying it toward doing good and avoiding evil.
Such was Imam Abu Ibrahim;
His knowledge clothed him in detachment from worldly affairs and devotion to the Hereafter,
So he became renowned among the people for his asceticism, scrupulous piety, and God-fearing nature.
'Umar ibn 'Uthman al-Makki said:
"I have not seen anyone among the devoted worshippers—despite the vast number I have met—
More intense in striving than al-Muzani,
Nor more constant in worship than him.
And I have never seen anyone who held knowledge and its people in greater honor than he did."
He was among the strictest of people with himself regarding scrupulous piety,
Yet the most lenient and accommodating with others in that regard.
He used to say:
"I am merely a single trait from the character of al-Shafi'i."
His Writings (may Allah have mercy on him):
Imam al-Muzani (may Allah have mercy on him) authored numerous works,
Most of which were in fiqh and the issues of the school of thought.
Among those works are:
*Al-Jami' al-Kabir*, *Al-Jami' al-Saghir*, *Al-Manthur*,
*Al-Masa'il al-Mu'tabarah*, *Al-Targhib fi al-'Ilm*,
And *Kitab al-Watha'iq*.
However, his most famous and far-reaching book,
And the one most extensively commented upon by the scholars of the school,
Is his abridgment,
Known as *Mukhtasar al-Muzani*.
The people of knowledge praised it
And spoke of its widespread dissemination among the people.
Abu al-'Abbas Ahmad ibn Surayj said:
"*Mukhtasar al-Muzani* leaves this world as an untouched virgin;
It is the foundation of all authored books in the school of al-Shafi'i (may Allah be pleased with him).
According to its layout they arranged their works,
And its text they explained and commented upon."
Al-Dhahabi said:
"The lands were filled with his *Mukhtasar* in fiqh,
And several prominent scholars wrote commentaries on it,
To the extent that it was said:
A virgin bride would have a copy of *Mukhtasar al-Muzani* as part of her bridal trousseau."
His Death (may Allah have mercy on him):
Al-Muzani's life was prolonged,
And people benefited greatly from his knowledge and writings.
After that long life spent in acquiring knowledge and acting upon it,
Death came to him in Egypt in Ramadan,
With six days remaining in the month,
In the year 264 AH,
At the age of eighty-nine.
He was buried near the tomb of Imam al-Shafi'i (may Allah be pleased with him)
In the Lesser Qarafah cemetery,
At the foot of Mount Muqattam.
May Allah Almighty have mercy upon him.
*Ramadan: Events and Lessons*