HISTORY OF IMAM SHAFIE
Imam Shafi’e was born in the town of Gaza, Palestine (150 H/767 M – 204 H/819 M). His
name is Muhammad bin Idris al-Shafi’e. He is the only Imam that related to Prophet SAW. In
the city of Makkah, he is an orphan. He lost his father during infancy and raised by his mother
under very poor circumstances. His mother directs him to the circles of knowledge. He learn
from 81 sheikh from various countries to seek knowledge. Imam Shafi’e remained in Baghdad
as a student of Imam Muhammad for over 3 years. He develop his first Mazhab in Baghdad.
Imam Shafi’e was influenced by the teachings of both Imam Abu Hanifah and Imam Malik.
Imam Shafi’e is encyclopaedist in encyclopaedia. He explain almost everything and anything.
His knowledge is different to other imams which is almost in every area and every subject that
we can know about. As for Imam Shafi’e’s gift, he had a gift of memory. By the age of 7, we
are told by Imam Baihaqi that he memorised the Quran. He read the Quran every single day of
his life, some said that he read the whole Quran every day. By the age of 10, he had memorised
at least of the versions of the Muwatta of Imam Malik. And he used to love hadith and would
go to the circles of the Muhadditheen (scholar of hadith) and memorise hadith just from hearing
it. He could not afford books or to study, so in any other way he just heard and heard until he
memorised the hadith.
When he had to write things, he would write the hadith on pieces of broken pottery or on old
pieces of leather or parchment. It is said that because he was poor, he could not afford to buy
writings material, so he used to hang around at Dewan of The Governor of the city of Makkah,
