Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Allah ya yarda da shi, ya yi ƙoƙari ya bi hanyoyin al'ummar Musulmi na farko har ta kai ga—kamar yadda muka ji daga al-Husayn ibn al-Munadi—ya nemi izinin matarsa don ya sami baiwa, yana koyi da su. Da yardar matarsa, ya sayi wata mace a kan ƙaramin farashi, ya kuma sanya mata suna Rayhanah, yana bin misalin da Annabi ﷺ ya kafa. 21.1

Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal, God be pleased with him, strove to emulate the practices of the early Muslims to the point that—as we learned from al-Ḥusayn ibn al-Munādī—he asked his wife’s permission to have a concubine in emulation of them. With his wife’s consent, he bought a woman for a trifling price and named her Rayḥānah, following the example set by the Prophet, God bless and keep him. 21.1

Wani ya taba gaida Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal da cewa, "Allah ya sa ka yi tsawon rai a Musulunci!" 21.2

[Al-Baghdādī:] Someone once greeted Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal by saying, “May you live long in Islam!” 21.2

"Kuma a cikin sunnah," ya amsa.

“And in the sunnah,” he replied.

[Al-Maymūnī:] Ban taɓa ganin wani mutum da ya fi Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal daraja ba, kuma babu wani Musulmi na zamanin baya da ya fi shi kiyayewa wajen kaucewa keta dokar Allah ba, ko kuma ya fi jajircewa wajen bin sunnar Annabi ﷺ. Idan wani hadisi ya tabbata sahihi, babu wanda ya fi shi tsananin riko da shi wajen aiki da shi. 21.3

[Al-Maymūnī:] Never have I laid eyes on anyone with more merit than Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal, nor any latter-day Muslim146 more wary of transgressing God’s law, or more devoted to the sunnah of the Prophet, God bless and keep him. If a report proved reliable, no one was more rigorous than he in living by it. 21.3

[Al-Athram:] Na ji Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal yana cewa, "Ba wani abu ba ne face sanin sunnah da bin ta. Kiyasi yana aiki ne kawai idan kana da wurin farawa. Amma ba za ka iya kai wa ga wurin farawar ba, ka rushe shi, sannan ka kira abin da ka yi da 'kiyasi.' Kiyasi bisa me?" 21.4

[Al-Athram:] I heard Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal say, “It’s nothing more than knowing the sunnah and following it. Reasoning by analogy works only if you have a place to start from. But you can’t work your way to the starting point, demolish it, and then call what you’ve done ‘reasoning by analogy.’ Analogy based on what?” 21.4

Wani ya taba cewa wa Aḥmad: "Babu wanda ya kamata ya yi ƙoƙarin yin hukunci ta hanyar qiyas sai dai idan yana da ilimi sosai kuma ya san yadda ake kwatanta abubuwa yadda ya kamata." Sai ya amsa da cewa: "Gaskiya ne."

Someone once said to Aḥmad: “No one should attempt to reason by analogy unless he’s very learned and knows how to compare things properly.” “Right,” he replied.

A cikin magance matsalolin shari'a, Aḥmad, a abin da na gani daga gwaninta, zai bi hadisan da aka danganta ga Annabi ﷺ idan akwai su, kuma zai yi watsi da ra'ayoyin da suka sabawa juna waɗanda aka danganta ga Sahabbai ko mambobin zamanai na gaba. Idan Sahabbai sun yi sabani a tsakaninsu, zai zaɓi daga cikin ra'ayoyinsu; ba zai nemi ra'ayoyin da suka zo bayansu ba. Idan babu hadisin Annabi ﷺ da kuma babu rahotannin Sahabbai da zai dogara da su, sai ya koma ga Tabi'ai. Wani lokaci kan sami matsala game da yadda aka isar da wani hadisin Annabi ﷺ, amma zai karɓi rahoton muddin babu wani rahoto mai ƙarfi da ya saɓa masa. Haka lamarin yake, misali, game da hadisin da 'Amr ibn Shu'ayb da Ibrahim al-Hajari suka ruwaito. Wani lokaci kuma zai ambaci rahoto wanda sarkar isnadi ta ɓace a matakin Sahabi, idan babu abin da zai saɓa masa. 21.5

In dealing with legal problems, Aḥmad, in my experience, would follow Hadith reports citing the Prophet, if there were any, and ignore divergent opinions attributed to the Companions or members of later generations. If the Companions had disagreed among themselves, he would choose among their opinions; he would not consult later opinions. If there was no Prophetic Hadith and no Companion reports to draw on, he would go to the Successors. Sometimes there would be a problem with the transmission of a Prophetic Hadith, but he would accept the report so long as no stronger contrary report existed. This was the case, for example, with the Hadith narrated by ʿAmr ibn Shuʿayb and Ibrāhīm al-Hajarī. Sometimes he would cite a report with a link missing at the Companion level if there was nothing to contradict it. 21.5

[Muḥammad ibn Dāwūd:] Abū Bakr al-Marrūdhī ya gaya mana, "Na taba zuwa masallaci tare da Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal. Bayan mun shiga, sai ya tashi ya yi salla, sai na ga ya miƙa hannunsa daga cikin hannun riga, ya yi haka." A nan al-Marrūdhī ya nuna motsi ta hanyar ɗaga yatsu biyu. "Lokacin da salla ta ƙare, na tambaye shi dalilin da ya sa ya yi motsin yatsu a lokacin salla. Ya ce, 'Shaiɗan ya zo mini ya ce ban wanke ƙafafuna ba, sai na nuna masa cewa ina da shaidu biyu da ke ƙaryata hakan.'" 21.6

[Muḥammad ibn Dāwūd:] Abū Bakr al-Marrūdhī told us, “I once went to the mosque with Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal. After we went in he got up to pray, and I saw him extend his hand out of his sleeve and go like this.” Here al-Marrūdhī made a gesture by waving two fingers. “When the prayer was over, I asked him why he had gestured with his fingers while praying. He said, ‘Satan came to me and said that I hadn’t washed my feet, and I was showing him that I had two witnesses to the contrary.’” 21.6

[Al-Maymūnī:] Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal ya taba faɗa mini, "Abul-Ḥasan! Ka tabbata ba ka taɓa yin magana a kan wata tambaya ba sai dai idan kana da misali da za ka ambata."21.7

[Al-Maymūnī:] Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal once said to me, “Abū l-Ḥasan! Make sure never to speak on a question unless you have an exemplar to cite.” 21.7

[ʿAbd al-Raḥmān the physician:] Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal da Bishr ibn al-Ḥārith duka sun yi rashin lafiya. Duk lokacin da na je wajen Bishr, zan tambaye shi yadda yake ji, sai ya yabi Allah, sannan ya ce mini, yana cewa “Alhamdu lillahi! Ina jin haka da haka.” Amma duk lokacin da na je wajen Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal na tambaye shi yadda yake ji, sai ya ce “Lafiya lau.” 21.8

[ʿAbd al-Raḥmān the physician:] Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal and Bishr ibn al-Ḥārith both fell ill. Whenever I went to see Bishr, I would ask how he was feeling, and he would praise God and then tell me, saying “Praise God! I feel such-and-such.” But whenever I went to see Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal and ask him how he was feeling, he would say “Fine.” 21.8

Wata rana na ce wa Aḥmad, “Ɗan'uwanka Bishr ma yana rashin lafiya, kuma duk lokacin da na tambaye shi yaya yake, sai ya fara da yabon Allah.” Sai ya ce, “Ka tambaye shi daga ina ya samo hakan.” “Ina tsoron tambayar shi haka.” “Ka gaya masa cewa ɗan'uwansa Abū ʿAbd Allāh yana son sani.” Lokaci na gaba da na ga Bishr, na gaya masa abin da Aḥmad ya ce. Ya amsa da cewa, “Aḥmad ba zai karɓi komai ba sai da jerin masu ruwaito! Abū ʿAwn ne yake ruwaitowa daga Ibn Sīrīn cewa, ‘Idan ka yabi Allah kafin ka yi korafi, to ba korafi ba ne.’ Don haka ina gaya maka cewa ina jin kaza da kaza, domin in amince da ikon Allah a kaina.” Na bar gidan Bishr na je wajen Aḥmad domin in ba shi labarin abin da ya faɗa. Bayan haka, duk lokacin da na je wajen Aḥmad sai ya ce, “Yabon Allah,” sannan ya gaya mini abin da ke damunsa.

One day I said to Aḥmad, “Your brother Bishr is ill too, and whenever I ask him how he is, he begins by praising God.” “Ask him who he got that from.” “I’m afraid to ask him that.” “Tell him that his brother Abū ʿAbd Allāh wants to know.” The next time I saw Bishr, I told him what Aḥmad had said. He replied, “Aḥmad won’t take anything without a list of transmitters! It’s Abū ʿAwn citing Ibn Sīrīn, ‘If you praise God before complaining, then it’s not a complaint.’ So I’m telling you that I feel such-and-such, to acknowledge God’s power over me.” I left Bishr’s house and went to Aḥmad to report what he had said. After that, every time I went to see Aḥmad he would say, “Praise God” and then tell me what was wrong.

[Al-Marrūdhī:] Aḥmad ya gaya mini, "Ban taɓa rubuta wani Hadisi na Annabi ba, tsira da amincin Allah su tabbata a gare shi, face na aiwatar da shi. Saboda haka sa'ad da na ci karo da wani rahoto cewa Annabi ﷺ ya biya Abū Ṭaybah dinari don ya yi masa cupping, sa'ad da na sake yin cupping din kaina, na ba mai yin cupping dinari."147 21.9

[Al-Marrūdhī:] Aḥmad told me, “I have never written down a Hadith of the Prophet, God bless and keep him, without putting it into practice. So when I came across a report that the Prophet paid Abū Ṭaybah a dinar to perform a cupping on him, when I next had myself cupped I gave the cupper a dinar.”147 21.9

[Al-A'mash:] Na ji wani yana tambayar Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal game da tunanin wasa da yawo da hankali. Ya ce: "Ba Sahabbai ko Tabi'ai da suka ce komai game da su." 21.10

[Al-Aʿmash:] I heard someone ask Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal about obsessive and distracting thoughts. He said, “Neither the Companions nor the Successors had anything to say about them.” 21.10