The Life of Ibn Ḥanbal (Library of Arabic Literature, 3)

Synopsis

Ahmad Ibn Hanbal (d. 241 H/855 Ad), Renowned For His Profound Knowledge Of Hadiths—the Reports Of The Prophet’s Sayings And Deeds—is A Major Figure In The History Of Islam. He Was Famous For Living According To His Own Strict Interpretation Of The Prophetic Model And For Denying Himself The Most Basic Comforts, Even Though His Family Was Prominent And His City, Baghdad, Was Then One Of The Wealthiest In The World. Ibn Hanbal’s Piety And Austerity Made Him A Folk Hero, Especially After He Resisted The Attempts Of Two Caliphs To Force Him To Accept Rationalist Doctrine. His Subsequent Imprisonment And Flogging Is One Of The Most Dramatic Episodes Of Medieval Islamic History, And His Principled Resistance Influenced The Course Of Islamic Law, The Rise Of Sunnism, And The Legislative Authority Of The Caliphate. [this Book] Is A Translation Of The Biography Of Ibn Hanbal By The Baghdad Preacher, Scholar, And Storyteller Ibn Al-jawzi (d. 597 H/1200 Ad), Newly Abridged For A Paperback Readership By Translator Michael Cooperson. Set Against The Background Of Fierce Debates Over The Role Of Reason And The Basis Of Legitimate Government, It Tells The Formidable Life Tale Of One Of The Most Influential Muslims In History.-- Machine Generated Contents Note: Ch. 1 Ibn Hanbal's Birth And Family Background -- Ch. 2 His Lineage -- Ch. 3 His Childhood -- Ch. 4 The Beginning Of His Search For Knowledge And The Journey He Undertook For That Purpose -- Ch. 5 The Major Men Of Learning Whom He Met And On Whose Authority He Recited Hadith -- Ch. 6 His Deference To His Teachers And His Respect For Learning -- Ch. 7 His Eagerness To Learn And His Single-minded Pursuit Of Knowledge -- Ch. 8 His Powers Of Retention And The Number Of Reports He Knew By Heart -- Ch. 9 His Learning, His Intelligence, And His Religious Understanding -- Ch. 10 Praise Of Him By His Teachers -- Ch. 11 Teachers And Senior Men Of Learning Who Cite Him -- Ch. 12 All The Men Of Learning Who Cite Him -- Ch. 13 Praise Of Him By His Peers, His Contemporaries, And Those Close To Him In Age -- Ch. 14 Praise Of Him By Prominent Successors Who Knew Him Well -- Ch. 15 A Report That The Prophet Elijah Sent Him Greetings -- Ch. 16 Reports That Al-khadir Spoke In His Praise -- Ch. 17 Praise Of Him By Pious Strangers And Allies Of God -- Ch. 18 Allies Of God Who Visited Him To Seek His Blessing -- Ch. 19 His Fame -- Ch. 20 His Creed -- Ch. 21 His Insistence On Maintaining The Practices Of The Early Muslims -- Ch. 22 His Reverence For Hadith Transmitters And Adherents Of The Sunnah -- Ch. 23 His Shunning And Reviling Of Innovators And His Forbidding Others To Listen To Them -- Ch. 24 His Seeking Of Blessings And Cures Using The Qur'an And Water From The Well Of Zamzam, As Well As Some Hair And A Bowl That Belonged To The Prophet -- Ch. 25 His Age When He Began Teaching Hadith And Giving Legal Opinions -- Ch. 26 His Devotion To Learning And The Attitudes That Informed His Teaching -- Ch. 27 His Works -- Ch. 28 His Aversion To Writing Books Containing Opinions Reached Through The Exercise Of Independent Judgment At The Expense Of Transmitted Knowledge -- Ch. 29 His Forbidding Others To Write Down Or Transmit His Words -- Ch. 30 His Remarks On Sincerity, On Acting For The Sake Of Appearances, And On Concealing One's Pious Austerities -- Ch. 31 His Statements About Renunciation And Spiritual Weakness -- Ch. 32 His Remarks On Different Subjects -- Ch. 33 Poems He Recited Or Had Attributed To Him -- Ch. 34 His Correspondence -- Ch. 35 His Appearance And Bearing -- Ch. 36 His Imposing Presence -- Ch. 37 His Cleanliness And Ritual Purity -- Ch. 38 His Kindness And His Consideration For Others -- Ch. 39 His Forbearance And His Readiness To Forgive -- Ch. 40 His Property And Means Of Subsistence -- Ch. 41 His Refusal To Accept Help Even In Distress -- Ch. 42 His Generosity -- Ch. 43 His Accepting Gifts And Giving Gifts In Return -- Ch. 44 His Renunciation -- Ch. 45 His House And Furniture -- Ch. 46 His Diet -- Ch. 47 His Indulgences -- Ch. 48 His Clothing -- Ch. 49 His Scrupulosity -- Ch. 50 His Shunning Appointment To Positions Of Authority -- Ch. 51 His Love Of Poverty And His Affection For The Poor -- Ch. 52 His Humility -- Ch. 53 His Accepting Invitations And His Withdrawal Upon Seeing Things He Disapproved Of -- Ch. 54 His Preference For Solitude -- Ch. 55 His Wish To Live In Obscurity And His Efforts To Remain Unnoticed -- Ch. 56 His Fear Of God -- Ch. 57 His Preoccupation And Absentmindedness -- Ch. 58 His Devotions -- Ch. 59 His Performances Of The Pilgrimage -- Ch. 60 His Extemporaneous Prayers And Supplications -- Ch. 61 His Manifestations Of Grace And The Effectiveness Of His Prayers -- Ch. 62 The Number Of Wives He Had -- Ch. 63 His Concubines -- Ch. 64 The Number Of His Children -- Ch. 65 The Lives Of His Children And Descendants -- Ch. 66 How And Why The Inquisition Began -- Ch. 67 His Experience With Al-ma'mun -- Ch. 68 What Happened After The Death Of Al-ma'mun -- Ch. 69 His Experience With Al-mu'tasim -- Ch. 70 His Reception By The Elders After His Release, And Their Prayers For Him -- Ch. 71 His Teaching Of Hadith After The Death Of Al-mu'tasim -- Ch. 72 His Experience With Al-wathiq -- Ch. 73 His Experience With Al-mutawakkil -- Ch. 74 His Refusing Ibn Tahir's Request To Visit Him -- Ch. 75 What Happened When His Two Sons And His Uncle Accepted Gifts From The Authorities -- Ch. 76 Some Major Figures Who Capitulated To The Inquisition -- Ch. 77 His Comments On Those Who Capitulated -- Ch. 78 Those Who Defied The Inquisition -- Ch. 79 His Final Illness -- Ch. 80 His Date Of Death And His Age When He Died -- Ch. 81 How His Body Was Washed And Shrouded -- Ch. 82 On Who Sought To Pray Over Him -- Ch. 83 The Number Of People Who Prayed Over Him -- Ch. 84 The Praising Of The Sunnah And The Decrying Of Innovation That Took Place During His Funeral Procession -- Ch. 85 The Crowds That Gathered Around His Grave -- Ch. 86 His Estate -- Ch. 87 Reactions To His Death -- Ch. 88 Reaction To His Death On The Part Of The Jinns -- Ch. 89 On The Condolences Offered To His Family -- Ch. 90 A Selection Of The Verses Spoken In Praise Of Him In Life And In Commemoration Of Him In Death -- Ch. 91 His Dreams -- Ch. 92 Dreams In Which He Appeared To Others -- Ch. 93 Dreams In Which He Was Mentioned -- Ch. 94 The Benefit Of Visiting His Grave -- Ch. 95 The Benefit Of Being Buried Near Him -- Ch. 96 The Punishments That Befall Anyone Who Attacks Him -- Ch. 97 What To Think About Anyone Who Speaks Ill Of Him -- Ch. 98 Why We Chose His Legal School Over The Others -- Ch. 99 On The Excellence Of His Associates And Successors -- Ch. 100 His Most Prominent Associates And Their Successors From His Time To Our Own. By Ibn Al-jawzī ; Translated By Michael Cooperson ; Foreword By Garth Fowden. Translated From The Arabic. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 402-414) And Index.