In The Name of Allaah, The Most Merciful, The Bestower of Mercy.

His lineage

Muhammad Bin Idrees Ibn Al-Abbaas Bin Uthmaan Bin Shaafi Ibn As-Saa’ib Bin Ubaid Bin Abd Yazeed Bin Haashim Ibnul Muttalib Bin Abdi Manaaf Bin Qusay Bin Kilaab Bin Murrah Bin Ka’b Bin Lu’ay Bin Ghaalib Al-Qurashee. Saa’ib Bin Ubaid [radiyallaahu-anhu] accepted Islam on the day of Badr and his son Shaafi Ibn As-Saa’ib [radiyallaahu-anhu] is one of the junior companions of the Prophet [peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him].

Brief Acquaintance With His Path In Seeking Knowledge

Imaam Ash-Shaafi’ee was very young when his father passed away, so at the age of two his mother took him to Makkah in order that his lineage is not lost. He grew up there, completed memorisation of the Qur’aan at the age of seven and memorized the Muwatta of Imaam Maalik at the age of ten. He acquired Fiqh from Muslim Bin Khaalid, who acquired Fiqh from Ibn Jurayh, who acquired Fiqh from Ataa, who acquired Fiqh from Ibn Abbaas, Ibn Az-Zubayr and other than them amongst a group of the companions, such as Amr Bin Ali, Ibn Mas’ood, Zayd Bin Thaabit and others [radiyallaahu-anhum]. Ash-Shaafi’ee also studied under Imaam Maalik [rahimahullaah]

His Status In The Eyes of The Senior Imaams

Many of the Senior Imaams have praised him, such as Abdur Rahmaan Bin Mahdee [rahimahullaah] who asked him to write for him a book in the subject matter of Usool, so Ash-shaafi’ee wrote it. Ibn Mahdee always used to supplicate for him in prayer and said that Ash-Shaafi’ee was similar to his teachers, such as Imaam Maalik Bin Anas and Qutaybah Bin Sa’eed [rahimahumallaah]. Ibn Maahdee also said, “Ash-Shaafiee is an Imaam”.

Abu Ubayd [rahimahullaah] said, “I have not seen one who is more eloquent, intelligent and god fearing than Ash-Shaafi’ee”. He has also been praised by numerous scholars, such as Yahyah Bin Aktham Al-Qaadee, Ishaaq Bin Raahawayh, Muhammad Bin Al-Hasan and others [rahimahumullaah].

His Status In The Eyes of Imaam Ahmad Bin Habnal [rahimahullaah]

The Messenger [peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him] said:

إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَبْعَثُ لِهَذِهِ الأُمَّةِ عَلَى رَأْسِ كُلِّ مِائَةِ سَنَةٍ مَنْ يُجَدِّدُ لَهَا دِينَهَا

Allaah will raise for this Ummah at the end of every hundred years the one who will revive its religion for it.

Imaam Ahmad [rahimahullaah] used to say, “Umar Bin Abdil Azeez [rahimahullaah] was one of the revivers at the end of the first hundred years and Ash-Shaafiee [rahimahullaah] was one of the revivers at the end of the second hundred years”. He used to supplicate for Ash-Shaafi’ee in prayer for nearly 40years.

More Faa’idah On This Hadeeth

إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَبْعَثُ لِهَذِهِ الأُمَّةِ عَلَى رَأْسِ كُلِّ مِائَةِ سَنَةٍ مَنْ يُجَدِّدُ لَهَا دِينَهَا

Allaah will raise for this Ummah at the end of every hundred years the one who will revive its religion for it.

[إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَبْعَثُ لِهَذِهِ الأُمَّةِ  – Allaah will raise for this Ummah]- meaning the Ummatul Ijaabah [i.e. the Muslims]. [عَلَى رَأْسِ كُلِّ مِائَةِ سَنَةٍ – At the end of every hundred years]- meaning at the end of every hundred years when there is little knowledge of the Islamic legislation and the authentic Prophetic Tradition, whilst ignorance and religious innovation is rife.

[مَنْ يُجَدِّدُ لَهَا دِينَهَا   – One who will revive its religion for it]- meaning a scholar who is alive and well known. He will clarify the authentic Prophetic Tradition and distinguish it from the religious innovations. knowledge will be abundant again and its adherents will be aided, and the proponents of religious will be overcome and degraded.

This reviver is non else but a scholar who has sound understanding of the religious sciences that deal with acts of worship, the underlying wisdoms of the religion and the texts that deal with beliefs of the heart. [Ref 1]

An Excerpt from Awnul Ma’bood Sharh Sunan Abee Daawud. Vol 11. Pages 259-260. Publisher: Daar Al-Kutub Al-Ilmiyyah. 1st Edition 1419AH (Year 1998). Slightly paraphrased]

Falsely Accused And Arrested

Imaam Ash-Shaafi’ee [rahimahullaah] was once appointed as judge in Najraan (Yemen), then the people stringently began to follow his rulings and gave them precedence, so the affair was distorted to Haaroon Ar-Rasheed [rahimahullaah] that As-Shaafi’ee was seeking after the Khilaafah. He was then taken to Baghdad in chains on a mule and he was 30 years old at the time. He was brought in the presence of Haaroon Ar-Rasheed [rahimahullaah] and a discussion took place between him and Muhammad Bin Hasan Ash-Shaybaanee [rahimahullaah] in the presence of Haaroon. Muhammad Bin Hasan spoke highly of Ash-Shaafi’ee and thus it became clear to Haaroon Ar-Rasheed that Ash-Shaafi’ee was innocent of what they attributed to him.

Adherence to The Sunnah, His Stance Against Blameworthy Blind Following And The People of Bidah

He said, “If a hadeeth is reported with an authentic chain from the Messenger of Allaah [peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him], then establish your speech on it and abandon my speech, because it is what I would have held, even if you do not hear it from me”. He also said, “Do not blindly follow me”. “I do not have speech in the presence of the Messenger’s speech”.

He said, “It is better for a man to be put to trial with everything that Allaah has forbidden except Shirk than looking into theological rhetoric. Indeed I have come across affairs from the proponents of theological rhetoric that which I never thought I would come across”.

Humility

He said, “I wish that the people acquired this knowledge of the Sharee’ah and nothing of it is attributed to me”.

An Except From Al-Bidaayah Wan-Nihaayah. Vol10. Pages 251-254