Hanbali school

{{Short description|School of Islamic jurisprudence}} {{use dmy dates|date=February 2026}} {{use British English|date=February 2026}} {{Other uses|Hanbali (nisba) (disambiguation){{!}}Hanbali (nisba)}} {{Sunni Islam|Schools of Law}}

The '''Hanbali school'''{{efn|{{langx|ar|ٱلْمَذْهَب الْحَنْبَلِي|translit=al-maḏhab al-ḥanbalī}}; {{plural form}} {{lang|ar|ٱلْمَذْهَب حَنْبَلِيّ}}, {{translit|ar|al-maḏhab al-ḥanbaliyy}}.}} or '''Hanbalism''' is the smallest of the four major schools of Islamic jurisprudence within Sunni Islam. Named after and based on the teachings of Ahmad ibn Hanbal, the school belongs to the {{Transliteration|ar|Ahl al-Hadith}} historical tradition.

Like the other Sunni schools, it primarily derives sharia from the Quran, hadith and views of Muhammad's companions. In cases where there is no clear answer in the sacred texts of Islam, the Hanbali school does not accept juristic discretion or customs of a community as sound bases to derive Islamic law on their own—methods that the Hanafi and Maliki schools accept. Most Hanbalis traditionally adhere to the Athari school of theology.

Hanbalis are the majority only in Saudi Arabia and Qatar, comprising barely 1% of the Sunni Muslim population worldwide.<ref name="dc1">Daryl Champion (2002), The Paradoxical Kingdom: Saudi Arabia and the Momentum of Reform, Columbia University Press, {{ISBN|978-0-231-12814-8}}, p. 23 footnote 7</ref><ref>Barry Rubin (2009), Guide to Islamist Movements, Volume 2, ME Sharpe, {{ISBN|978-0-7656-1747-7}}, p. 310</ref><ref>[http://aannaim.law.emory.edu/ifl/legal/qatar.htm State of Qatar] School of Law, Emory University</ref><ref>Mohammad Hashim Kamali (2008), Shari'ah Law: An Introduction, {{ISBN|978-1-85168-565-3}}, Chapter 4</ref> With the rise of the 18th-century conservative Wahhabi movement, the Hanbali school experienced a great reformation.<ref name="mz15">{{cite book |last=Zaman |first=Muhammad |title=Modern Islamic thought in a radical age |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2012 |isbn=978-1-107-09645-5 |pages=15–17, 62–95}}</ref> The Wahhabi movement's founder, Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab, collaborated with the House of Saud to spread Wahhabi teachings around the world.<ref name="mz15" /> However, British orientalist Michael Cook argues that Ahmad ibn Hanbal's own beliefs played "no real part in the establishment of the central doctrines of Wahhabism",<ref name="Michael Cook 1992 p. 198">Michael Cook, “On the Origins of Wahhābism,” Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, Third Series, Vol. 2, No. 2 (Jul., 1992), p. 198</ref> and that "the older Hanbalite authorities had doctrinal concerns very different from those of the Wahhabis".<ref name="Michael Cook 1992 p. 198" /> Wahhabi scholars such as al-Albani, Muqbil al-Wadi'i and Ibn Baz eventually began to criticize ''taqlid'' to any of the four schools, including the Hanbali school.<ref name="Pierret 106">{{cite book |last=Pierret|first=Thomas|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1YemPpfsU20C|title=Religion and State in Syria: The Sunni Ulama from Coup to Revolution|date=2013-03-25|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-1-1070-2641-4|page=106}}</ref>

==History== thumb|400x400px|Map of the Muslim world. Ahmad ibn Hanbal, the founder of Hanbali school of thought (''madhhab''), was a disciple of the Sunni Imam Al-Shafi‘i, who was reportedly a student of Imam Malik ibn Anas,<ref name="Dutton">{{citation |title=The Origins of Islamic Law: The Qurʼan, the Muwaṭṭaʼ and Madinan ʻAmal |last=Dutton |first=Yasin |author-link=Yasin Dutton |page=16}}</ref><ref name="Haddad2007">{{cite book |last=Haddad |first=Gibril F. |title=The Four Imams and Their Schools |location=London, the U.K. |publisher=Muslim Academic Trust |year=2007 |pages=121–194}}</ref>{{rp|121}} who was a student of the Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq, like Imam Abu Hanifa.<ref name="KassamBlomfield">{{citation |author1=Zayn Kassam |author2=Bridget Blomfield |chapter=Remembering Fatima and Zaynab: Gender in Perspective |title=The Shi'i World |editor=Farhad Daftory |publisher=I.B Tauris Press |year=2015}}</ref><ref name="Alia2015">{{cite web |last=Aliyah |first=Zainab |title=Great Women in Islamic History: A Forgotten Legacy |url=http://www.youngmuslimdigest.com/study/02/2015/great-women-islamic-history-forgotten-legacy/ |website=Young Muslim Digest |access-date=18 February 2015 |date=2 February 2015}}</ref> Thus all of the four great Imams of Sunni ''Fiqh'' are connected to Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq from the ''Bayt'' (Household) of Muhammad, whether directly or indirectly.<ref name="HistoryOfIslam">{{cite web |url=http://historyofislam.com/contents/the-classical-period/imam-ja%E2%80%99afar-as-sadiq/ |title=Imam Ja'afar as Sadiq |work=History of Islam |access-date=2012-11-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150721215837/http://historyofislam.com/contents/the-classical-period/imam-ja%E2%80%99afar-as-sadiq/ |archive-date=2015-07-21 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Like Al-Shafi'i and Dawud al-Zahiri, Ahmad was deeply concerned with the extreme elasticity being deployed by many jurists of his time, who used their discretion to reinterpret the doctrines of ''Qur'an'' and ''Hadiths'' to suit the demands of Caliphs and the wealthy.<ref name=ali281/> Ibn Hanbal advocated for a literal interpretation of ''Qur'an'' and ''Hadiths''. Influenced by the debates of his time, he was known for rejecting religious rulings (''fatwas'') from the ''<nowiki/>'Ijma'' (consensus) of jurists of his time, which he considered to be speculative theology (''Kalam''). He associated them with the Mu'tazilis, whom he despised and referred to as heretical apostates. When asked whether or not people should pray behind them in congregation, he said "One does not pray behind them, such as the Jahmiyyah and the Mu’tazilah."<ref>Kitab Al-Sunnah, Abdullah Ibn Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, P. 27</ref> Ibn Hanbal was also hostile to the discretionary principles of rulings in jurisprudence (''Usul al-fiqh'') mainly championed by the people of opinion, which was established by Abu Hanifa, although he did adopt al-Shafi'i's method in usul al-fiqh. He linked these discretionary principles with ''kalam''. His guiding principle was that the ''Quran'' and Sunnah are the only proper sources of Islamic jurisprudence, and are of equal authority and should be interpreted literally in line with the Athari creed. He also believed that there can be no true consensus (''Ijma'') among jurists (''mujtahids'') of his time,<ref name=ali281/> and preferred the consensus of Muhammad's companions (''Sahaba'') and weaker hadiths. Imam Hanbal himself compiled ''Al-Musnad'', a text with over 30,000 sayings, actions and customs of Muhammad.<ref name="hmr1">{{cite book |last=Ramadan|first=Hisham M.|year=2006|title=Understanding Islamic Law: From Classical to Contemporary|publisher=Rowman Altamira|isbn=978-0-7591-0991-9|pages=24–29}}</ref> [[File:Ibnhanbal.jpg|thumb|Legal questions of Abu Dawud al-Sijistani addressed to Ibn Hanbal, produced October 879]] Ibn Hanbal never composed an actual systematic legal theory on his own, and was against setting up juristic superstructures. He devoted himself to the task of collection and study of Hadith; and believed that legal rulings must be derived by referring directly to the ''Qur'an'' and ''Sunnah''; instead of referring to a body of religious jurisprudence.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Horo|first=Dilip|title=Holy Wars: The Rise of Islamic Fundamentalism|publisher=Routledge: Taylor & Francis|year=1989|isbn=978-0-415-82444-6|location=Abingdon, Oxon|page=28|chapter=Chapter 5: SAUDI ARABIA: THE OLDEST FUNDAMENTALIST STATE}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=B. Hallaq |first=Wael |title=The Origins and Evolution of Islamic Law |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-521-80332-8 |location=Cambridge, UK |pages=159–160}}</ref> However; his followers would later establish a systematic legal methodology some generations after Ibn Hanbal's death.<ref>I. M. Al-Jubouri, ''Islamic Thought: From Mohammed to September 11, 2001'', pg. 122. Bloomington: Xlibris, 2010. {{ISBN|978-1-4535-9585-5}}{{self-published source|date=December 2017}}</ref>{{Self-published inline|certain=yes|date=December 2017}} Much of the work of preserving the school based on Ibn Hanbal's method was laid by his student Abu Bakr al-Khallal; his documentation on the founder's views eventually reached twenty volumes.<ref>{{Cite book |last=B. Hallaq |first=Wael |title=The Origins and Evolution of Islamic Law |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-521-80332-8 |location=Cambridge, UK |pages=159–160 |chapter=7: The formation of legal schools}}</ref><ref name=bakr>Abu Zayd Bakr bin Abdullah, ''Madkhal al-mufassal ila fiqh al-Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal wa-takhrijat al-ashab''. Riyadh: Dar al 'Aminah, 2007.</ref> The original copy of the work, which was contained in the House of Wisdom, was burned along with many other works of literature during the Mongol siege of Baghdad. The book was only preserved in a summarized form by the Hanbali jurist [https://www.studentsok.in/2020/03/biography-of-imam-abu-umar-ibn-al-husayn-ibn-abdallah-al-khiraqi.html?m=1 al-Khiraqi] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210914121831/https://www.studentsok.in/2020/03/biography-of-imam-abu-umar-ibn-al-husayn-ibn-abdallah-al-khiraqi.html?m=1 |date=2021-09-14 }}, who had access to written copies of al-Khallal's book before the siege.<ref name=bakr/> [[File:Chester Beatty T 414 fol 130r ibn Ḥanbal.jpg|left|thumb|Miniature in a 1585-1590 Ottoman manuscript depicting Ahmad ibn Hanbal]] Relations with the Abbasid Caliphate were rocky for the Hanbalites. Led by the Hanbalite scholar Al-Hasan ibn 'Ali al-Barbahari, the school often formed mobs of followers in 10th-century Baghdad who would engage in violence against fellow Sunnis suspected of committing sins and the Shias.<ref name=joel61>Joel L. Kraemer, Humanism in the Renaissance of Islam: The Cultural Revival During the Buyid Age, pg. 61. Volume 7 of Studies in Islamic culture and history. Leiden: Brill Publishers, 1992. {{ISBN|978-90-04-09736-0}}</ref> During al-Barbahari's leadership of the school in Baghdad, shops were looted,<ref name=study>Christopher Melchert, Studies in Islamic Law and Society, vol. 4, pg. 151. Leiden: Brill Publishers, 1997.</ref> female entertainers were attacked in the streets,<ref name=study/> popular grievances among the lower classes were agitated as a source of mobilization,<ref>Ira M. Lapidus, Islamic Societies to the Nineteenth Century: A Global History, pg. 192. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2012. {{ISBN|978-0-521-51441-5}}</ref> and public chaos in general ensued.<ref name=joel62>Joel L. Kraemer, pg. 62.</ref> Their efforts would be their own undoing in 935, when a series of home invasions and mob violence on the part of al-Barbahari's followers in addition to perceived deviant views led to the Caliph Ar-Radi publicly condemning the school in its entirety and ending its official patronage by state religious bodies.<ref name=joel62/><ref>{{Cite book |last=Newman |first=Andrew J. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vZeMAQAAQBAJ&dq=%E1%B8%A5anbal%C4%AB+al-R%C4%81%E1%B8%8D%C4%AB&pg=PA25 |title=The Formative Period of Twelver Shi'ism: Hadith as Discourse Between Qum and Baghdad |date=2013-10-18 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-136-83705-0 |language=en}}</ref>

According to Christopher Melchert, medieval Hanbali literature is rich in references to saints, grave visitation, miracles, and relics.<ref name="Melchert">Christopher Melchert, The Ḥanābila and the Early Sufis, Arabica, T. 48, Fasc. 3 (Brill, 2001); cf. Ibn al-Jawzī, ''Manāqib al-imām Aḥmad, ed. ʿĀdil Nuwayhiḍ'', Beirut 1393/1973</ref> Historically, the Hanbali school has been seen as one of the four major Sunni ''madhahib'' (schools of law), and many prominent medieval Sufis, such as Abdul Qadir Gilani, were Hanbali jurists and mystics at the same time.<ref name="Melchert" />

At some point between the 10th and 12th centuries, some Hanbali scholars began adopting the term “Salafi". The influential 13th century Hanbali theologian Ibn Taymiyya advocated Salafi thought as a theological endeavour and his efforts would create a lasting impact on the subsequent followers of the Hanbali school.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ismail |first=Raihan |title=Rethinking Salafism: The Transnational Networks of Salafi ʿUlama in Egypt, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2021 |isbn=9780190948955 |location=New York, United States of America |page=13 |chapter=Chapter 1: Salafism |quote="Ibn Taymiyyah propagated Salafi thought as a theological endeavor, and disciples of the Hanbali school adopted the term “Salafi.” The precise time at which they did so—at some point during the tenth to twelfth century."}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Zahalka |first=Iyad |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0wCmCwAAQBAJ&dq=%E1%B8%A5anbal%C4%AB+syria&pg=PA79 |title=Shari'a in the Modern Era |date=April 2016 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-107-11458-6 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Bearman, Bianquis, Bosworth, van Donzel, Heinrichs |first=P. , Th. , C.E. , E. , W.P. |url=https://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/encyclopaedia-of-islam-2/ahmad-b-hanbal-COM_0027 |title=Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition |publisher=Brill |year=1960 |isbn=9789004161214 |editor-last=Laoust |editor-first=Henri |chapter=Aḥmad b. Ḥanbal |quote="Founder of one of the four major Sunnī schools, the Ḥanbalī, he was, through his disciple Ibn Taymiyya [q.v.], the distant progenitor of Wahhābism, and has inspired also in a certain degree the conservative reform movement of the Salafiyya." |access-date=2021-11-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211105150206/https://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/encyclopaedia-of-islam-2/ahmad-b-hanbal-COM_0027 |archive-date=2021-11-05 |url-status=live}}</ref>

== Demographics == Hanbali school is the smallest out of the four schools.<ref>Gregory Mack, Jurisprudence, in Gerhard_Böwering et al (2012), The Princeton Encyclopedia of Islamic Political Thought, Princeton University Press, {{ISBN|978-0-691-13484-0}}, p. 289</ref><ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/574006/Sunnite|title=Sunnite|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica|year=2014}}</ref><ref name="mecca">Ziauddin Sardar (2014), Mecca: The Sacred City, Bloomsbury, {{ISBN|978-1-62040-266-5}}, p. 100</ref> It is the majority only in Saudi Arabia and Qatar where the Wahhabi movement has grown.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Hanbali school {{!}} Definition & Facts {{!}} Britannica|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hanabilah|access-date=2023-09-24|website=www.britannica.com|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes|url=https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2016/577963/EPRS_BRI(2016)577963_EN.pdf}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |title=Ahmady, Kameel 2019: From Border to Border. Comprehensive research study on identity and ethnicity in Iran. Mehri publication, London. p 440}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=Islam in the World Today: A Handbook of Politics, Religion, Culture, and Society|url=https://www.google.com.pk/books/edition/Islam_in_the_World_Today/X_2tDwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=qatar+%22shafi%27i%22&pg=PA119&printsec=frontcover|publisher=Cornell University Press|date=2011-12-15|isbn=978-0-8014-6483-6|language=en|first=Werner|last=Ende|first2=Udo|last2=Steinbach}}</ref> However, Qatar has a sizeable Shafi'i minority with the most well-known Qatari scholar Ali al-Qaradaghi belonging to the Shafi'i school.<ref>{{Cite web|title=IUMS mourns one of Ahsa’s major scholars, IUMS member, Shafi`i Sheikh Ahmed bin Abdullah Al-Doghan|url=https://iumsonline.org/ar/ContentDetails.aspx?ID=2206|website=iumsonline.org|access-date=2025-12-01|language=en}}</ref> Hanbalis form barely 2% of the global Muslim population.{{Sfn|Esposito|2017}}

==Principles== {{more sources needed section|date=February 2026}} ===Sources of law=== Like all other schools of Sunni Islam, the Hanbali school holds that the two primary sources of Islamic law are the Qur'an and the Sunnah found in Hadiths (compilation of sayings, actions and customs of Muhammad). Where these texts did not provide guidance, Imam Hanbal recommended guidance from established consensus of Muhammad's companions (Sahabah), then individual opinion of Muhammad's companions, followed in order of preference by weaker hadiths, and in rare cases analogy (Qiyas).<ref name=hmr1/> The Hanbali school, unlike Hanafi and Maliki schools, rejected that a source of Islamic law can be a jurist's personal discretionary opinion or consensus of later generation Muslims on matters that serve the interest of Islam and community. Hanbalis hold that this is impossible and leads to abuse.<ref name=ali281>Chiragh Ali, The Proposed Political, Legal and Social Reforms, in Modernist Islam 1840-1940: A Sourcebook, pp. 281-282 Edited by Charles Kurzman, Oxford University Press, (2002)</ref>

Ibn Hanbal rejected the possibility of religiously binding consensus (''Ijma''), as it was impossible to verify once later generations of Muslims spread throughout the world,<ref name=ali281/> going as far as declaring anyone who claimed as such to be a liar. Ibn Hanbal did, however, accept the possibility and validity of the consensus of the ''Sahaba'' the first generation of Muslims.<ref>Muhammad Muslehuddin, "Philosophy of Islamic Law and Orientalists," Kazi Publications, 1985, p. 81</ref><ref name="farooq">Dr. Mohammad Omar Farooq, "The Doctrine of Ijma: Is there a consensus?," June 2006</ref> Later followers of the school, however, expanded on the types of consensus accepted as valid, and the prominent Hanbalite Ibn Taymiyya expanded legal consensus to later generations while at the same time restricting it only to the religiously learned.<ref name="farooq"/> Analogical reasoning (''Qiyas''), was likewise rejected as a valid source of law by Ibn Hanbal himself,<ref name=ali281/><ref name=mansoor>Mansoor Moaddel, ''Islamic Modernism, Nationalism, and Fundamentalism: Episode and Discourse'', pg. 32. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2005.</ref><ref>Christopher Melchert, The Formation of the Sunni Schools of Law: 9th-10th Centuries C.E., pg. 185. Leiden: Brill Publishers, 1997.</ref> with a near-unanimous majority of later Hanbalite jurists not only accepting analogical reasoning as valid but also borrowing from the works of Shafi'ite jurists on the subject.{{cn|date=February 2026}}

Ibn Hanbal's strict standards of acceptance regarding the sources of Islamic law were probably due to his suspicion regarding the field of ''Usul al-Fiqh'', which he equated with speculative theology (''kalam'').<ref>Christopher Melchert, The Formation of the Sunni Schools of Law: 9th-10th Centuries C.E., pg. 182. Leiden: Brill Publishers, 1997.</ref> While demanding strict application of ''Qur'an'' and ''Hadith'', Hanbali ''Fiqh'' is nonetheless flexible in areas not covered by Scriptures. In issues where the ''Qur'an'' and the ''Hadiths'' were ambiguous or vague; the Hanbali ''Fuqaha'' (jurists) engaged in ''Ijtihad'' to derive rulings. Additionally, the Hanbali madh'hab accepted the Islamic principle of ''Maslaha'' ('public interest') in solving the novel issues.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Horo|first=Dilip|title=Holy Wars: The Rise of Islamic Fundamentalism|publisher=Routledge: Taylor & Francis|year=1989|isbn=978-0-415-82444-6|location=Abingdon, Oxon|pages=120–121|chapter=Chapter 5: SAUDI ARABIA: THE OLDEST FUNDAMENTALIST STATE}}</ref> In the modern era, Hanbalites have branched out and even delved into matters regarding the upholding (''Istislah'') of public interest (''Maslaha'') and even juristic preference (''Istihsan''), anathema to the earlier Hanbalites as valid methods of determining religious law.{{cn|date=February 2026}}

===Theology=== {{Aqidah}} Ibn Hanbal taught that the Qur'an is uncreated due to Muslim belief that it is the word of God, and the word of God is not created. The Muʿtazilites taught that the Qur'an, which is readable and touchable, is created like other creatures and created objects. Ibn Hanbal viewed this as heresy, replying that there are things which are not touchable but are created, such as the Throne of God.<ref name="Chair">{{Cite web | title=Al-Ghazali, The Alchemy of Happiness, Chapter 2 | url=http://muslim-canada.org/sufi/ghach2.html | access-date=2006-04-09 | archive-date=2006-05-15 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060515235048/http://muslim-canada.org/sufi/ghach2.html | url-status=dead }}</ref> Unlike the other three schools of Islamic jurisprudence (Hanafi, Maliki, and Shafi), the Hanbali madhab remained largely traditionalist or Athari in theology<ref name=Halverson-34>{{cite book|last=Halverson|first=Jeffry R.|title=Theology and Creed in Sunni Islam: The Muslim Brotherhood, Ash'arism, and Political Sunnism |date=2010|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|page=34|isbn=978-0-230-10658-1|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IYzGAAAAQBAJ&q=osama&pg=PA80| quote="The Hanbalite madhhab, in contrast, largely maintained the traditionalist of Athari position."}}</ref> and it was primarily Hanbali scholars who codified the Athari school of thought.{{cn|date=February 2026}}

==Distinct rulings== {{no citations section|date=February 2026}} ===Purity (''tahara'')=== {{no citations section|date=February 2026}} ====Ablution (''wudu'')==== {{no citations section|date=February 2026}} *Saying "with the name of God" (''bi-smi llāh'') is necessary, but waived if one forgets or is ignorant.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *It is obligatory and a pillar (''rukn'') to wash the mouth and nose, and is not waived.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *It is obligatory and a pillar to wipe the entire head, including the ears, and is not waived. Wiping the neck is not recommended.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *It is recommended to lengthen the whiteness that will appear on the Day of Judgement by washing to the top of the arms and shins.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *Impurities, such as blood, pus, and vomit, nullify ablution if they come out the body in large amounts, but not small amounts. If they come out the front or back private parts, it nullifies it regardless of the amount. Also, urine and stool nullify it regardless of the amount and where it came out from.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *Light sleep when standing or sitting does not nullify ablution.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *Touching someone of the opposite sex with any part of the body nullifies ablution if done with lust (''shahwah''). The hair, teeth, and nails are not included.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *Touching the front or back private part with the hand nullifies ablution. The testicles are not included.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *Wind passing from the woman's front private part nullifies ablution.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *Eating camel meat nullifies ablution, whether raw or cooked. All other parts, such as its fat, liver, or pancreas, do not.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *Washing the dead nullifies ablution.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *Apostasy nullifies ablution.{{cn|date=February 2026}}

====Impurities (''najasa'')==== {{no citations section|date=February 2026}} *A minimum of three wipes is obligatory to cleanse the impurity after relieving oneself, and any less will not suffice. If there is still impurity after that, more wipes must be used until the effect is achieved. Microscopic amounts are excused.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *Washing the hands three times is obligatory after awakening from a night's sleep. Naps during the day are not included.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *Impurities must be washed seven times with water to be rendered pure. Nothing can cleanse impurities except purifying (''ṭahūr'') water.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *Transforming one substance into another does not render it pure, even if it changes its chemical properties, except alcohol (''khamr'').{{cn|date=February 2026}} *If an impurity falls into pure (''ṭāhir'') water less than two ''qullahs'' in volume, all of it is rendered impure (''najis''). If it is more than two ''qullahs'', it remains pure. If the liquid the impurity falls into is other than water, it will be rendered impure regardless of the amount.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *Semen (''madī'') is pure.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *Blood, pus, vomit, pre-ejaculate fluid (''madhī''), and white discharge after urinating (''wadī'') are impure. However, a small amount of blood and pus is excused.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *Cat hair and saliva are pure.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *All seafood is generally pure and permissible.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *Pigs, dogs, donkeys, predators larger than a cat, birds with talons, and all animals derived from them are all impure and impermissible.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *Leather from unslaughtered animals is impure, even if tanned.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *Rennet from unslaughtered animals is impure and impermissible.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *Vinegar made with human intervention is impure and impermissible, but pure and permissible if formed naturally.{{cn|date=February 2026}}

===Prayer (''salah'')=== {{more citations section|date=February 2026}} ====Standing (''qiyam'')==== *It is recommended to grasp (''qabd'') the hands below the navel, as stated in ''Kashshaf al-Qina'' by Mansur al-Buhuti, ''al-Mughni'' of Ibn Qudamah, and other works. This is also the position of the Hanafi school, as well as Abu Hanifa and his students, Sufyan ath-Thawri, Ishaq ibn Rahuyah, Ibrahim an-Nakha'i, and other scholars among the predecessors (''salaf''){{cn|date=February 2026}}.

Other views on where to place them do exist in the school, due to conflicting narrations from Ahmad:{{cn|date=February 2026}} #Above the navel and below the chest<ref name=TMCJ>Ibn Qudamah. ''The Mainstay Concerning Jurisprudence (Al Umda fi 'l Fiqh)''.</ref> #On the navel{{cn|date=February 2026}} #A choice wherever to place them{{cn|date=February 2026}} #Letting them hang free (''ṣadl''){{cn|date=February 2026}} #Grasping them in obligatory prayers, but letting them hang free in voluntary prayers{{cn|date=February 2026}} *Reciting another chapter (''sūrah'') after reciting the chapter al-Fatihah is recommended and not obligatory.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *It is recommended to look at the place of prostration when standing and throughout the entire prayer, except the testimony.{{cn|date=February 2026}}

====Bowing (''ruku'')==== *It is recommended to raise the hands (''rafʿ al-yadayn'') when going into bowing and rising from it.<ref name=TMCJ/> *It is obligatory to recite the remembrance, "Glory be to my Lord, the Most Great" (''subḥāna rabbiya l-ʿaẓīm''), once, and recommended to do so three or more times.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *When standing after bowing, it is obligatory to recite the remembrance, "Our Lord, to you is all praise" (''rabbanā laka l-ḥamd''). One has a choice whether to grasp the hands like before or not.<ref>''Shaikh Tuwaijiri''. pp. 18–19.</ref>

====Prostration (''sujud'')==== *The fingers should be closed together and facing the direction of prayer (''qiblah''), including the thumb, and the tips should be align with the top of the shoulders.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *It is obligatory to recite the remembrance, "Glory be to my Lord, the Most High" (''subḥāba rabbiya l-aʿlā''), once, and recommended to do so three or more times.{{cn|date=February 2026}}

====Sitting (''jalsa'')==== *It is obligatory to recite the supplication, "Lord, forgive me" (''rabbi ghfir lī'') once, and recommended to do so three or more times.{{cn|date=February 2026}}

====Testimony of faith (''tashahhud'')==== *The little and ring fingers of the right hand should be folded in, a circle should be made with the middle finger and thumb, and the index finger should be pointed when saying the name of God (''Allāh'').<ref name=TMCJ/><ref>Al-Buhuti, ''Al-Raud al-murbi'', p. 72.</ref><ref>Al-Mughni (1/524).</ref> *It is recommended to look at the finger.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *It is permissible to raise the hands when rising.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *Peace and salutations upon Muhammad and extra supplications are only done in the sitting of the final testimony.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *It is recommended to sit in the outstretched (''at-tawarruk'') position in the sitting of the final testimony when the prayer has more than one.{{cn|date=February 2026}}

====Greeting of peace (''taslim'')==== *Two are obligatory and pillars which are not waived. The exact wording must be used: "All peace be on you and the mercy of God" (''as-salāmu ʿalaykum wa-raḥmatu llāh''). It is not permissible to omit a single letter, not even the definite article ''al-'', or to replace ''alaykum'' with ''alayk''.<ref name=alislam>[http://www.al-islam.org/encyclopedia/chapter7/6.html "Salat According to Five Islamic Schools of Law"] from Al-Islam.org</ref>

====Voluntary prayers==== =====Odd prayer (''salah al-witr'')===== *It is recommended to pray two cycles (''rakʿatayn'') consecutively, and then separately. It is recommended to recite the special supplication (''qunūt'') after bowing, while raising the hands.<ref name=alislam/> However, other ways to perform it are permissible.{{cn|date=February 2026}} *After reciting the special supplication, it is recommended to raise the hands when going into prostration.{{cn|date=February 2026}}

====Congregational prayer==== *In the absence of a valid excuse, it is obligatory for adult men to pray in congregation rather than individually.<ref>Marion Holmes Katz, ''Prayer in Islamic Thought and Practice'', p. 128, 2013</ref>

===Other=== *Most Hanbali scholars consider admission in a court of law to be indivisible, that is, a plaintiff may not accept some parts of a defendant's testimony while rejecting other parts. This position is also held by the Zahiri school, though opposed by the Hanafi and Maliki schools.<ref>hi Mahmasani, ''Falsafat al-tashri fi al-Islam'', p. 175. Trns. Farhat Jacob Ziadeh. Leiden: Brill Archive, 1961.</ref>

==Reception== The Hanbali school has traditionally enjoyed a smaller following than the other schools. In the earlier period, Sunni jurisprudence was based on four other schools: Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i and Zahiri; later on, the Hanbali school supplanted the Zahiri school's spot as the fourth mainstream school.<ref>Mohammad Sharif Khan and Mohammad Anwar Saleem, ''Muslim Philosophy And Philosophers'', pg. 34. New Delhi: Ashish Publishing House, 1994.</ref> Hanbalism essentially formed as a traditionalist reaction to what they viewed as ''bid'ah'' (innovations) on the part of the earlier established schools.<ref name=franc29>Francis Robinson, ''Atlas of the Islamic World Since 1500'', pg. 29. New York: Facts on File, 1984. {{ISBN|0-87196-629-8}}</ref>

Historically, the school's legitimacy was not always accepted. Muslim exegete Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari, founder of the now extinct Jariri school of law, was noted for ignoring the Hanbali school entirely when weighing the views of jurists; this was due to his view that the founder, Ibn Hanbal, was merely a scholar of ''Hadith'' (prophetic traditions) and was not a ''Faqih'' (jurist) at all.<ref>Yaqut al-Hamawi, ''Irshad'', vol. 18, pg. 57-58.</ref> The Hanbalites, led by al-Barbahari, reacted by stoning Tabari's home several times, inciting riots so violent that Abbasid authorities had to subdue them by force.<ref>History of the Prophets and Kings, General Introduction, And, From the Creation to the Flood, pg. 73. Trsn. Franz Rosenthal. SUNY Press, 1989. {{ISBN|978-1-4384-1783-7}}</ref> Upon Tabari's death, the Hanbalites formed a violent mob large enough that Abbasid officials buried him in secret, in an attempt to prevent further riots.<ref name=joel61/> Similarly, the Andalusian Malikite Jurist and theologian Ibn 'Abd al-Barr made a point to exclude Ibn Hanbal's views from the books on Sunni Muslim jurisprudence.<ref>Camilla Adang, ''This Day I have Perfected Your Religion For You: A Zahiri Conception of Religious Authority'', pg. 20. Taken from ''Speaking for Islam: Religious Authorities in Muslim Societies''. Ed. Gudrun Krämer and Sabine Schmidtke. Leiden: Brill Publishers, 2006.</ref>

Eventually, the Mamluk Sultanate and later the Ottoman Empire codified Sunni Islam as four schools, including the Hanbalite school at the expense of the Zahirites.<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia|url=http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Islamic_law.aspx |title=Law, Islamic |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia.com |access-date=13 March 2012 }}</ref><ref>Chibli Mallat, ''Introduction to Middle Eastern Law'', pg. 116. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007. {{ISBN|978-0-19-923049-5}}</ref> The Hanafis, Shafi'is and Malikis agreed on important matters and recognized each other's systems as equally valid; this was not the case with the Hanbalites, who were recognized as legitimate by the older three schools but refused to return the favor.<ref name=franc29/>

==Differences with other Sunni schools== By the end of the classical era, the other three remaining schools had codified their laws into comprehensive jurisprudential systems; enforcing them far and wide. However, the Hanbalis stood apart from the other three ''madh'habs''; by insisting on referring directly back to the ''Qur’an'' and ''Sunnah'', to arrive at legal rulings. They also opposed the codification of sharia (Islamic law) into a comprehensive system of jurisprudence; considering the ''Qur'an'' and ''Hadith'' to be the paramount sources.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Horo|first=Dilip|title=Holy Wars: The Rise of Islamic Fundamentalism|publisher=Routledge: Taylor & Francis|year=1989|isbn=978-0-415-82444-6|location=Abingdon, Oxon|pages=40, 41, 53|chapter=Chapter 5: SAUDI ARABIA: THE OLDEST FUNDAMENTALIST STATE}}</ref>

==Relationship with Sufism== Sufism, often described as the inner mystical dimension of Islam, is not a separate "school" or "sect" of the religion, but, rather, is considered by its adherents to be an "inward" way of approaching Islam which complements the regular outward practice of the five pillars; Sufism became immensely popular during the medieval period in practically all parts of the Sunni world and continues to remain so in many parts of the world today. As Christopher Melchert has pointed out, both Hanbalism and classical Sufism took concrete shapes in the ninth and early tenth-centuries CE, with both soon becoming "essential components of the high-medieval Sunni synthesis."<ref name="Christopher Melchert 2001 pp. 352-367">Christopher Melchert, "The Ḥanābila and the Early Sufis," ''Arabica'', T. 48, Fasc. 3 (2001), pp. 352-367</ref> The Hanbali school of Sunni law historically had a very intimate relationship with Sufism throughout Islamic history.<ref name="Christopher Melchert 2001 pp. 352-367"/><ref name="dc1" />

There is evidence that many early medieval Hanbali scholars were very close to the Sufi martyr and saint Hallaj, whose mystical piety seems to have influenced many regular jurists in the school.<ref name="Christopher Melchert 2001 p. 352">Christopher Melchert, "The Ḥanābila and the Early Sufis," ''Arabica'', T. 48, Fasc. 3 (2001), p. 352</ref> This is likely due to Al-Hallaj himself being a fanatical follower of Hanbali school with reports saying he would pray 500 time a day outside the tomb of Ahmed Bin Hanbal.<ref>{{Citation |title=LOUIS MASSIGNON |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/j.ctt1p6qppr.7 |work=The Theology of Louis Massignon |pages=18–45 |access-date=2023-09-18 |publisher=Catholic University of America Press|doi=10.2307/j.ctt1p6qppr.7 |url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref>The Passion of Al-Hallaj, Mystic and Martyr of Islam, Volume 1: ''The Life of Al-Hallaj''

Louis Massignon

</ref> Hallaj was also saved by many Hanbalis during the multiple times he was arrested in Baghdad prior to his execution.<ref>{{Citation |last1=Massignon |first1=L. |title=al-Ḥallād̲j̲ |date=2012-04-24 |url=https://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/encyclopaedia-of-islam-2/al-halladj-COM_0256 |encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition |access-date=2023-09-18 |publisher=Brill |language=en |last2=Gardet |first2=L.}}</ref> Tustari was also known to be a Hanbali and was the Sufi teacher of the Hanbali polemicist al-Barbahari.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Aigle |first=Denise |date=2003-05-15 |title=Christopher Melchert. « The Ḥanābila and the Early Sufis ». Arabica, XLVIII, 3 (2001), pp. 352-367. |journal=Abstracta Iranica |volume=24 |doi=10.4000/abstractairanica.34544 |issn=0240-8910|doi-access=free }}</ref> Many later Hanbalis, meanwhile, were often Sufis themselves, including figures not normally associated with Sufism, such as Ibn Taymiyyah and Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah.<ref name="Christopher Melchert 2001 p. 353">Christopher Melchert, "The Ḥanābila and the Early Sufis," ''Arabica'', T. 48, Fasc. 3 (2001), p. 353</ref> Both these men, sometimes considered to be completely anti-Sufi in their leanings, were actually initiated into the ''Qadiriyya'' order of the celebrated mystic and saint Abdul Qadir Gilani,<ref name="Christopher Melchert 2001 p. 353"/> who was himself a renowned Hanbali ''Faqih''. As the ''Qadiriyya'' ''Tariqah'' is often considered to be the largest and most widespread Sufi order in the world, with many branches spanning from Turkey to Pakistan, one of the largest Sufi branches is effectively founded on Hanbali school.<ref name="Christopher Melchert 2001 p. 352"/> Other prominent Hanbalite scholars who praised Sufism include Ibn 'Aqil, Ibn Qudamah, Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali, Muhammad Ibn Abd al-Wahhab.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Al-Makki|first='Abd al-Hafiz|title=Sufism and the Imams of the Salafi Movement: Introduction|url=https://www.deoband.org/2010/11/sufism/sufism-and-the-imams-of-the-salafi-movement-introduction/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210121042718/https://www.deoband.org/2010/11/sufism/sufism-and-the-imams-of-the-salafi-movement-introduction/|archive-date=21 January 2021|website=Deoband.org|date=21 November 2010 }}</ref>

Although Muhammad Ibn Abd al-Wahhab is sometimes regarded as a denier of Sufism, both he and his early disciples acclaimed ''Tasawwuf''; believing it to be an important discipline in Islamic religion.<ref name="auto">{{cite web|last1=al-Makki|first1='Abd al-Hafiz|title=Shaykh Muhammad bin 'Abd al-Wahhab and Sufism|url=http://www.deoband.org/2011/01/tasawwuf/shariah-and-tariqah-tasawwuf/shaykh-muhammad-bin-%E2%80%98abd-al-wahhab-and-sufism/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150111012457/http://www.deoband.org/2011/01/tasawwuf/shariah-and-tariqah-tasawwuf/shaykh-muhammad-bin-%E2%80%98abd-al-wahhab-and-sufism/|archive-date=11 January 2015|access-date=3 April 2015|website=Deoband.org|date=January 2011 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Rida|first1=Rashid|title=Commentary of Shaykh 'Abd Allah bin Shaykh Muhammad bin 'Abd al-Wahhab al-Najdi's Al-Hadiyyah al-Suniyyah|date=1925|publisher=Al Manar Publishers|location=Egypt|page=50}}</ref> Ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab prescribed various Sufi spiritual exercises to his followers for attaining ''Zuhd'' (asceticism), in accordance with ''Qur'an'' and ''Hadith''. Extolling the virtuous Sufi ''Awliya'' (saints) who attained ''Ma'rifa'' (highest stage of mystical awareness in Sufism) as exemplars to his followers, Ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab stated: <blockquote>" “From among the wonders is to find a Sufi who is a ''faqih'' and a scholar who is an ascetic (''zahid'').” For indeed those who are concerned with the piety of the heart are often associated with a lack of ''ma‘rifah'', which would necessitate abstinence from wrong and make ''jihad'' necessary. And those who are in-depth in knowledge at times mention such wickedness and doubts that place them in err and deviation... So, His love itself is the basis of His worship, and assigning equals (''shirk'') in love is the basis of polytheism in His worship... This is why the ''‘arif'' Sufi ''shaykhs'' would advise many to pursue knowledge. Some of them would say: “A person only leaves a single ''Sunnah'' due to the pride in him.” "</blockquote><ref name="auto"/>

==List of Hanbali scholars== {{dynamic list}} {{no citations section|date=January 2026}} *Abu Ishaq Ibrahim ibn Ya'qub ibn Ishaq al-Sa'di al-Juzajani (Arabic: أبو إسحاق إبراهيم بن يعقوب بن إسحاق السعدي الجوزجاني, born around 796 CE/180 AH – died 872 CE/259 AH) was a Muslim hadith scholar, one of the imams of al-jarh wa al-ta'deel and a student of Ahmad ibn Hanbal. Some of the hadith scholars who transmitted his narrations include Abu Dawood, al-Tirmidhi and al-Nasa'i * Abu Dawud al-Sijistani - was a scholar of prophetic hadith who compiled the third of the six "canonical" hadith collections recognized by Sunni Muslims, the ''Sunan Abu Dāwūd''. * Abu Bakr al-Khallal (d. 311 AH) – Jurist responsible for the school's early codification. * Sahl al-Tustari (d. 283 AH), a Persian scholar and ascetic from Shushtar in Iran. * Al-Hasan ibn 'Ali al-Barbahari (d. 329 A.H.), an Iraqi traditionist and a jurist, author of the book Sharh al-Sunnah. * Abu al-Hasan 'Abd al-'Aziz b. al-Harith b. Asad b. al-Layth al-Tamimi (929–981/2 CE; 317–371 AH) (Arabic: أبو الحسن عبد العزيز بن الحارث بن أسد بن الليث التميمي) was a Muslim saint who belonged to the Junaidia order. * Abū al-Faḍl al-Tamīmi (952–1020 CE/341–410 AH) Abd al-Wāḥid b. ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz b. al-Ḥārith b. Asad al-Tamīmī or Abū al-Faḍl al-Tamīmī (Arabic: أبو الفضل التميمي) was a 10th century Muslim saint who belonged to the Junaidia order * Abd al-Ghani ibn Abd al-Wahid al-Maqdisi (Arabic: عبد الغني بن عبد الوحيد المقدسي, <small>romanized:</small> ''ʿAbd al-Ghāni ibn ʿAbd al-Waḥīd al-Maqdisī''; 1146 – 1203) was a classical Sunni Islamic scholar and a prominent hadith master. * Abū 'Alī al-Ḥasan ibn Aḥmad ibn 'Abd Allāh ibn al-Bannā' al-Baghdādī al-Ḥanbalī * Abū Ismāʿīl al-Harawī (d. 397–398 A.H.), A Persian scholhar from Herat, Afghanistan * Ibn Batta' al-Ukbari (d. 387 A.H.), an Iraqi theologian and jurisconsult, author of the book Al-Ibaanah. * Abū al-Qāsim ʿUmar ibn al-Ḥusayn al-Khiraqī al-Baghdadi (<abbr>c.</abbr> 911 – 945/46) was a prominent Sunni jurist of Hanbali school * Taqi al-Din ibn Taymiyya (d. 728 AH), a well-known Syrian theologian, jurist and scholar. * Abū 'Abdullāh Muhammad Ibn Manda (d. 395 A.H.), hadīth master, biographer and historian from Isfahan. * Al-Qadi Abu Ya'la (d. 458 A.H.) * Ibn Aqil (d. 513 A.H.) * Awn al-Din ibn Hubayra (d. 560 A.H.) * Abdul Qadir Gilani (d. 561 A.H.) a Persian scholar, jurist and Sufi master from Gilan province in Iran. * Abu-al-Faraj Ibn Al-Jawzi (d. 597 A.H.) – A famous jurist, exegete, critic, preacher and a prolific author, with works on nearly all subjects. * Hammad al-Harrani (d. 598A.H.) – A jurist, critic and preacher who lived in Alexandria under the reign of Salahudin. * Abd al-Ghani al-Maqdisi (d. 600 A.H.) – A prominent hadith master from Damascus and the nephew of Ibn Qudamah. * Ibn Qudama (d. 620A.H.) – One of the major Hanbali authorities and the author of the profound and voluminous book on Law, ''al-Mughni'', which became popular amongst researchers from all juristic backgrounds.<ref name=bakr/> * Diya al-Din al-Maqdisi (d. 643 A.H.) * Ibn Hamdan, Ahmad al-Harrani (d. 695 A.H.) - A jurist and judge born and raised in Harran and later practised in Cairo *Ibn Muflih al Maqdisi (d. 763 A.H.) * Ibn al-Qayyim (d. 751 A.H.) – The closest companion and student of Ibn Taymiyya, also a respected jurist in his own right. * Ibn Rajab (d. 795 A.H.) – A prominent jurist, traditionist, ascetic and preacher, who authored several important works, largely commenting upon famous collections of traditions. * Ibn al-Mibrād (d. 909 A.H.) - a Syrian jurist who specialized in ʾUṣūl al-Fiqh and wrote an intermediate treatise on it, ''Ghāyat al-sūl ilā ʿilm al-uṣūl''. This work is considered to be his magnum opus and is a widely recognized work by later Hanbali scholars.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ibn al-Imad |date=1931 |title=Shadharāt al-dhahab fī akhbār man dhahab |trans-title=Fragments Of Gold In The History Of Those Who Have Passed On |work=Maktabat al-Qudsī |location=Cairo, Egypt |language=ar}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Kattānī |first=‘Abd al-Ḥayy ibn ‘Abd al-Kabīr |title=Fihris al-fahāris wa-al-athbāt wa-mu‘jam al-ma‘ājim wa-al-mashyakhāt wa-al-musalsalāt |publisher=Dār al-Gharb al-Islāmī |year=1982 |edition=2 |location=Beirut, Lebanon |language=ar |trans-title=The Index to All Indexes; Dictionary of Proofs and Sheikhdoms}}</ref> *Mar'ī al-Karmī (d. 1033 A.H.) - The main jurist of Hanbali Madhhab of his time in Al-Azhar University, Egypt and authority from the later generation of Hanbali Scholars. He was a scholar, the most knowledgeable person, a researcher, an interpreter of the Qur’an, a narrator of Hadith, an Islamic jurist, al-Usuli, a grammarian and one of the most prominent Hanbalis in Egypt. * Shams al-Din al-Saffarini (d.1701- 1774) *al-Buhūtī (d. 1051 A.H.) - The leading jurist of Hanabilah of his time in Egypt and authority from the later generation of Hanbali Scholars. * Muhammad ibn Abd-al-Wahhab – A Hanbalī jurist and traditionalist. He is the patronym of the Wahhabi movement.

== Notes == {{Notelist}}

== See also == {{Portal|Islam}} * Outline of Islam * Adhan * Islamic schools and branches * Islamic views on sin * Salat * The four Sunni Imams * Wudu {{Clear}}

==References== {{reflist|30em}}

==Further reading==

* {{Cite web |last=Esposito|first=John|date=2017|title=The Muslim 500: The World's 500 Most Influential Muslims|url=http://themuslim500.com/downloads/TheMuslim500-2017-lowres.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170927233013/http://themuslim500.com/downloads/TheMuslim500-2017-lowres.pdf|archive-date=September 27, 2017|access-date=August 2, 2017|website=The Muslim 500|page=32|df=mdy-all}}

* Abd al-Halim al-Jundi, ''Ahmad bin Hanbal Imam'' ''Ahl al-Sunnah'', published in Cairo by Dar al-Ma'arif * Dr. 'Ali Sami al-Nashshar, ''Nash'ah al-fikr al-falsafi fi al-islam'', vol. 1, published by Dar al-Ma'arif, seventh edition, 1977 * Makdisi, George. "Hanābilah". ''Encyclopedia of Religion''. Ed. Lindsay Jones. Vol. 6. 2nd ed. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2005. 3759–3769. 15 vols. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Thomson Gale. (Accessed December 14, 2005) * Dar Irfan Jameel. [https://web.archive.org/web/20150501120937/http://www.academia.edu/6790702/Introduction_to_Hanbali_School_of_Jurisprudence "Introduction to Hanbali School of Jurisprudence"]. * Vishanoff, David. "Nazzām, Al-." Ibid.{{full citation needed|date=August 2019}} * Iqbal, Muzzafar. [http://www.cis-ca.org/muzaffar/Book/chap-1-final.pdf Chapter 1, "The Beginning"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303192828/http://www.cis-ca.org/muzaffar/Book/chap-1-final.pdf |date=2016-03-03 }}, ''Islam and Science'', Ashgate Press, 2002. * Leaman, Oliver, [http://www.muslimphilosophy.com/ip/rep/H009.htm "Islamic Philosophy"]. ''Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', v. 5, pp.&nbsp;13–16.

==External links== * [https://web.archive.org/web/20041210085038/http://philtar.ucsm.ac.uk/encyclopedia/islam/sunni/hanb.html Hanbaliyyah] at Overview of World Religions

{{Hanbali scholars}} {{Islamic theology |state=collapsed}}

Category:Hanbali Category:Madhhab Category:Schools of Sunni jurisprudence Category:Sunni Islamic branches Category:Sunni Islam