Ep. 16 (Final): Imam Ahmad b. Hanbal | Our Models – The Heroes We Want to Be

One of the great figures of Islam who not only stood up for the right beliefs but set an example of steadfastness and perseverance for the truth was a great scholar of hadith and fiqh by the name of Ahmad ibn Hanbal. Imam Ahmad lived in the second and third century of Islam and was, like Imam Bukhari and other great people, orphaned at a young age and raised by his mother. They had to go through tough times, and in fact, growing up, he had to work at the local post office to help support his family so they had something to eat. During this time, his mother was always turning his attention towards Islamic knowledge and wanted him to excel in deen. At a very young age, he had memorized the Qur’an. By the age of 10, he was already a hafiz, and after that, he turned his attention to the scholars that were available in Baghdad at that time and started acquiring knowledge from that. He found that he had a particular affinity and interest in the hadith of the prophet (SAW), and whenever he could find scholars of that time, he would take their hadith. In fact, he was so diligent that, after Fajr, he would wait outside the houses of his teachers so that he could benefit from them. He would not even wait for them to set a circle or halaqah – he would go to them and wait outside. When they came out, he would ask them if they had time and if he could acquire knowledge from them. When he grew up, he traveled for knowledge to Makkah, Madinah and other areas – he met Imam Shafi’I who was his teacher and mentor in fiqh – he also studied with Imam Yusuf, who was one of the students of Imam Abu Hanifah. According to Imam Abu Zur’a, Abu Zur’a told Imam Ahmad’s son, “Your father had memorized one million ahadith of the prophet (SAW).”

It was not all knowledge – it was practice. Imam Ahmad says himself, “Any hadith I have learned, I have practiced on it, so much so that when I read the hadith of the prophet (SAW) getting cupping done, I went and also had this done and gave the same amount as the prophet (SAW).” His status was such that people in his time looked to him for not just hadith, but rulings in all religious matters. He built a very large circle of influence. A time came when the rulers of the Muslim world, Ma’mun Al-Rashid specifically, had fallen into the inclinations towards philosophical arguments and debates and using Greek logic to justify things in Islam. One of the things that the people following this methodology came up with was that they declared the Qur’an to be a creation of Allah (SWT) like anything else. This is against the belief of Muslims – The Qur’an is not a creation, but rather, the word of Allah (SWT), that which Allah (SWT) has revealed. He did not create it and give it to mankind that way. For some people, it is not a big deal as long as you believe that it is true, but the fact is, you cannot believe this, because if you believe that it is a creation, this means that it is temporary and it will finish. The Qur’an never finishes. So, Imam Ahmad emphasized this point and that their belief was wrong, and eventually, he was jailed. He was told to turn away from this belief otherwise he would be tortured. He did not turn away from his belief and was tortured day in and day out. In fact, the people that were there said that he was beaten so severely that even if an elephant was beaten like that, it would not be able to withstand it. Every day, he was lashed over and over again until all of the flesh came off of his back. Even while he was being beaten, he would say, “Qur’an is the word of Allah (SWT). It is not a creation.”

This is a huge example of someone who stands up for the truth and is willing to go through any suffering to uphold the truth. This is one of the things that the people of knowledge had in this Ummah – it is about what is right. Justice and truth was very clear to them, and when something was the truth, they would live by it and die for it. May Allah (SWT) have mercy on Imam Ahmad. What an example he set for us. Today, in many different ways, we are tested – whether we stand by our truth and morals or not, and every day, we are put in that position. Will we stand by which that is the truth, or will we give it up for something else? Whether it is our desires or the desires and trends of society, or the inclinations that other people are pushing us towards – what do we stand for, and how much are we willing to endure for the truth? Ultimately, the people of truth are those that are remembered, and those that compromise what is the truth and give in to falsehood for any reason are forgotten by their time and the people after them. Imam Ahmad stood up for something, and this is why we are talking about him some 12 centuries later. May Allah (SWT) give us the ability to follow in the footsteps of these people and learn to stand up for what is the truth, and enable our knowledge people of the truth and people that defend the truth and are willing to bear any sacrifice for the sake of the truth. May Allah (SWT) make us from the people who live by his book and the hadith of the prophet (SAW).