Death of Imam Al-Shafi'i

Imam Muhammad Ibn Idris Al-Shafi’i was one of the most revered Islamic scholars, more popularly known as an Islamic Jurist. He was the founder of one of the four major Sunni Islamic Schools of Jurisprudence (Fiqh), remembered after his name, as the Shafi'i School of Jurisprudence.

His death at a relatively early age of just 54 years was one of the significant sad events in the history of Islamic jurisprudence. It was not just the death of a renowned, authentic, and highly credible scholar and jurist; it was practically the end of an era of great scholarly work that contributed to defining the Islamic laws, which ultimately became one of the four established schools of thought in Islamic Jurisprudence. His death left a lasting impact and legacy, marked by his unprecedented research in Islamic Law and Jurisprudence, based on the Quran and Hadith.

He was the first to establish a distinction between the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad صَلَّى ٱللَّٰهُ عَلَيْهِۦ وَسَلَّمَ and the traditions of the companions of the Prophet, as previously both were treated as the same. He prioritized the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad صَلَّى ٱللَّٰهُ عَلَيْهِۦ وَسَلَّمَ over the traditions of the Companions of the Prophet. Resultantly, the word Sunnah now exclusively refers to the acts and sayings of the Prophet Muhammad صَلَّى ٱللَّٰهُ عَلَيْهِۦ وَسَلَّمَ. 

Who was Imam Al-Shafi’i?

• Full Name – Abu Abdullah Muhammad Ibn Idris Al-Shafi’i
• Date of Birth – Imam Shafi’i was born in 150 AH, corresponding to 767 CE
• Place of Birth – He was born in Gaza, Palestine
• His Teachers – Among some other scholars, one of his major teachers was Imam Malik (the founder of the Maliki School of Jurisprudence). Names of his other teachers are:
  1. Muslim Ibn Khalid Al-Zanji
  2. Sufyaan Ibn Uyainah
  3. Ibrahim Ibn Yahya
  4. 4. Wakee’ Ibn Al-Jarraah
  5. Muhammad Ibn Hassan Al-Shaibaani, who was one of the students of Imam Abu Hanifa, the founder of the Hanafi School of Jurisprudence
  6. Hammad Ibn Usama Al-Haashmim
  7. Abdull Wahhab Ibn Abdul Majeed al-Bursri
• His Students – The most prominent and famous student of his was Imam Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, the founder of the Hanbali School of Jurisprudence. Other renowned scholars, who remained his students, include:
  1. Imam Abu Yaqub Al-Buwayṭi
  2. Abu Ibrahim Isma'il Ibn Yahya Al-Muzani
  3. Rabi’ Ibn Sulayman Al-Muradi
  4. Abu Ali Al-Karabisi
  5. Ibrahim Ibn Khalid Abu Thawr
• Known for – He is renowned for his Wisdom, Linguistic Mastery, Authority in Islamic Laws, and Great knowledge of Hadith.

Circumstances of His Death

Very limited authentic information is available about the life and death of Imam Shafi'i, as his earliest biographies were lost. The most reliable biography of Imam Shafi’i is by Ibn Abi Hatim al-Razi (938 CE), but it lacks sufficient details about his life and death. Some of his other biographies highlight some details.

As far as his death is concerned, there are two accounts in history and his later biographies. One account suggests that he died of injuries due to an armed attack on him by the supporters of a Maliki follower, named Fityan. Reportedly, Imam Shafi’i won an argument with Fityan, which triggered an abusive attitude by Fityan, and the Governor of Egypt punished him. The supporters of Fityan retaliated by attacking Imam Shafi'i, who was seriously injured and eventually died after a few days of this incident.

The other account, which is considered more reliable and authentic, narrates a different story about his death, as reported by the renowned Islamic Scholar, Ibn Hajar Al-Asqalani. Imam Shafi’i suffered from serious intestinal illness and hemorrhoids, which resulted in serious deterioration in his health. Above that, the huge workload and intellectual exertion during his teaching career, his health further deteriorated. Resultantly, he passed away at a relatively young age of just 54 years. The date of his death is reported as 20^th January 820 CE, corresponding to 30^th of Rajab 204 AH. He was buried in Al-Fustat, present-day Cairo, Egypt. His mausoleum was built in 1212 CE (608 AH), which remains a site of respect and reflection for Muslims from all over the Islamic World.    

Contributions and Legacy

• Founder of the Shafi’i School of Jurisprudence – One of the most prominent and significant contributions of Imam Shafi’i is the foundation of the Shafi’i School of Jurisprudence, which is one of the four established Sunni Jurisprudences, Hanafi, Maliki, and Hanbali, being the other three. His jurisprudence is based on four basic principles: the Quran, Sunnah, Consensus or Ijma', and Analogy or Qiyas. Here, Ijma means consensus among the scholars in particular and the majority of the Islamic Umma in general, over a specific religious and social issue, where direct instructions could not be found in the Quran and Hadith. Qiyas or analogy is a concept of deciding a religious matter on the basis of reasoning. This method is also used in cases where a direct and explicit ruling is not found in the Quran and Sunnah.
• Books and Research Work – Imam Shafi’i is the author of many books, some of which have been lost. Among his saved works, the most popular are Al-Risala, Kitab al-Umm, Masnad al-Shafi’i (Hadith Collection), Ikhtilaf al-Hadith, and Jima al-Ilm.
• His Role in Uniting Legal Methodologies – Imam Shafi’i contributed a pivotal and most significant role in uniting legal methodologies and standardizing Islamic Jurisprudence. In this context, he emphasized that Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad صَلَّى ٱللَّٰهُ عَلَيْهِۦ وَسَلَّمَ and the traditions of his Companions must be separated. Previously, both these were taken as the same, whereas he was of the firm opinion that these should be separated because the Sunnah of the Prophet holds a greater and prioritized status. As a result, the word Sunnah is now specifically used to refer to the Sunnah of the Prophet. The traditions of the Companions of the Prophet are now not termed as “Sunnah”. It is a great contribution of Imam Shafi’i.
• Bridging Scholarly Traditions Between Hijaz and Iraq - Another significant contribution of Imam Shafi’i is that he managed to bridge the gap between the scholarly traditions between the Arab and Iraq. Prior to him, there was a vast difference between the traditions of Hijaz (Arab) and Iraq. Close coordination and interrelating these scholarly traditions of Arab and Iraq resulted in shaping the unified Islamic legal systems that were workable and accepted worldwide. 

Significance of His Passing

The Muslim Ummah suffered a big loss in the shape of the death of Imam Al-Shafi’i. It was the death of a knowledgeable religious scholar, who was revered among all segments of Islamic Society. He was not only a scholar but also a teacher of Islamic Jurisprudence. He served as a teacher of Islamic Laws for many years. He was one of those scholars who created harmony among different schools of jurisprudence. His role in this capacity is quite significant, as he was the student of one of the students of Imam Abu Hanif, the founder of the Hanafi School of Jurisprudence. His name is Muhammad Ibn Hassan Al-Shaibaani. He was a student of Imam Malik, the founder of the Maliki Jurisprudence. Then he was the teacher of Imam Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, the founder of the Hanbali Jurisprudence. So, he was a scholar who gained and contributed knowledge to all four major schools of thought in Sunni Islam.

His legacy continues through his students and followers, based on his principles and teachings. His followers can be found in East Africa, Southeast Asia, Egypt, and Yemen.

Lessons from the Life of Imam Al-Shafi’i

Some of the key lessons are summarized here, derived from the life of Imam Al-Shafi’i:

1. He taught that the knowledge has to be pursued with sincerity and humility.
2. He emphasized the need for displaying a sense of respect for the differences of opinion among different schools of thought. He was of the firm belief that it is one of the essentials for formulating workable Islamic Jurisprudence.
3. It is essential for a true scholar to combine intellect with piety and devotion. Piety and devotion are the basic requirements that a religious scholar or Jurist must possess. Without it, the credibility of a religious scholar will be doubtful. 

Places Where His Legacy Lives On

• His mausoleum is in Cairo, Egypt, which remains a center of attraction for scholars and knowledge seekers from across the Muslim world.
• The Islamic Jurisprudence founded by him, the Shafi’i school of thought, is widely followed in various parts of the Islamic World, including Southeastern Countries, such as Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Maldives. His jurisprudence is also followed in Somalia and Yemen. 

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