Mufti Abu Layth Archive: fiqh/madhhabs-and-following

What did Abu Hanifa say about Imam Malik?

Sat, 10 Dec 2022 00:00:00 +0000

What did Abu Hanifa say about Imam Malik?

Abu Hanifa called the younger Imam Malik a blonde, blue-eyed lad. Mufti Abu Layth closes that the Hanafi madhhab became restrictive in recent centuries while schools such as the Maliki kept their freedoms. Mufti Abu Layth says the Hanafi madhhab became very restrictive and controlling, especially in the last two or three centuries, whereas other schools such as the Maliki kept their freedoms.

Answer from 10 December 2022 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Imam Abu Hanifa | Mufti Abu Layth (at 1:08:15)

A more recent answer on history/scholars-and-imams/imam-malik exists (19 April 2023): Did Imam Malik reject the hadith he did not act on?

Watch on YouTube at 1:08:15 · Open the segment

How did the Hanafi school develop from Abu Hanifa's teaching?

Sat, 10 Dec 2022 00:00:00 +0000

How did the Hanafi school develop from Abu Hanifa's teaching?

Abu Hanifa's students, above all Imam Muhammad, turned his spirit into an institution through the six books of the zahir al-riwaya, and Mufti Abu Layth feels the madhhab later lost that spirit and became focused on the letter of the law. Mufti Abu Layth says the Hanafi madhhab, over the generations, lost the spirit Abu Hanifa brought, became radically institutionalised and focused on the letter of the law, declaring most things haram, contrary to his concern to create ease.

Answer from 10 December 2022 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Imam Abu Hanifa | Mufti Abu Layth (at 24:52)

Watch on YouTube at 24:52 · Open the segment

Is mut'ah (temporary marriage) haram for Sunni Muslims?

Sat, 19 Mar 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Is mut'ah (temporary marriage) haram for Sunni Muslims?

Mufti Abu Layth says most Sunnis hold mut'ah haram but a minority, including Ibn Ashur, held it is not categorically haram; follow the view you hold and do not fight over it. Mufti Abu Layth says mut'ah is one of those matters where, if you follow those who say it is haram, it is haram for you, and that it is not something to fight over.

Answer from 19 March 2022 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Mut'ah From The Sunni Point Of View Today? | Differing Opinions | Mufti Abu Layth (at 0:00)

A more recent answer on fiqh/polygamy-and-mutah exists (22 February 2023): Is there an LGBTQ push in media and schools?

Watch on YouTube at 0:00 · Open the segment

Can I blindly follow scholars in matters of belief?

Sun, 14 Feb 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Can I blindly follow scholars in matters of belief?

No: Mufti Abu Layth says blind following in belief is forbidden by scholarly consensus, and the majority of one school is not ijma'. Mufti Abu Layth says it is forbidden, by the consensus of the scholars, to blindly follow others in matters of belief.

Answer from 14 February 2021 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Caller runs off from the debate - Will Jesus Return | Mufti Abu Layth (at 8:13)

A more recent answer on belief/creed-and-kalam-schools exists (13 February 2023): Why orthodoxy took hold, and who wrote the checklist

Watch on YouTube at 8:13 · Open the segment

If I sleep late and wake up at asr, can I pray the missed prayers together then?

Tue, 05 Jan 2021 00:00:00 +0000

If I sleep late and wake up at asr, can I pray the missed prayers together then?

If you wake at asr after sleeping late, pray when you wake; he says the religion is meant to be easy, as the Prophet taught. Mufti Abu Layth says that if someone who sleeps late wakes up at asr time, that is when they pray, as the hadith says: when you wake up, pray.

Answer from 5 January 2021 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: answer to a specific questioner

Recording: Monday Nights with Mufti #196 | Q&A Unscripted & Unrestricted! 😉 | Mufti Abu Layth (at 8:22)

A more recent answer on fiqh/madhhabs-and-following exists (10 December 2022): What did Abu Hanifa say about Imam Malik?

Watch on YouTube at 8:45 · Open the segment

A Hanbali opinion on women's sexual desire, and Dawah Man quoting Ibn al-Qayyim

Tue, 22 Sep 2020 00:00:00 +0000

A Hanbali opinion on women's sexual desire, and Dawah Man quoting Ibn al-Qayyim

Mufti Abu Layth reads a Hanbali view that a woman may use a sexual aid when her desire is unmet, and mocks a claim quoted by Dawah Man from Ibn al-Qayyim.

Answer from 22 September 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: quoted view (stated in order to be discussed, not necessarily held)

Recording: Monday Nights with Mufti #183 | Q&A Unscripted & Unrestricted! 😉 | Mufti Abu Layth (at 1:57:55)

A more recent answer on fiqh/sexual-ethics exists (22 February 2023): Did some Muslim scholars say homosexuality is not haram?

Watch on YouTube at 1:57:55 · Open the segment

Is it a virtue for a scholar never to hold an original position?

Mon, 24 Aug 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Is it a virtue for a scholar never to hold an original position?

Mufti Abu Layth argues that a teacher of Islam who claims never to have held a position of his own is admitting he has never had an original thought in the faith.

Answer from 24 August 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Monday Nights with Mufti #179 | Q&A Unscripted & Unrestricted! 😉 | Mufti Abu Layth (at 10:54)

A more recent answer on fiqh/madhhabs-and-following exists (10 December 2022): What did Abu Hanifa say about Imam Malik?

Watch on YouTube at 10:54 · Open the segment

Why do people get so upset about Islamic rulings on sex?

Sun, 19 Apr 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Why do people get so upset about Islamic rulings on sex?

The guest blames a culture of shame in the subcontinent, and says the classical scholars and al-Bukhari show there is no shyness in learning the religion and that legitimate differences cannot be denounced.

Answer from 19 April 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: quoted view (stated in order to be discussed, not necessarily held)

Recording: Shaykh Kashif Khan | Policing thought, Pornography & Pandora's box | MindTrap with Mufti #15 (at 2:13:27)

A more recent answer on dialogue/guest-conversations exists (18 October 2025): How should Muslims engage people with very different views of the religion?

Watch on YouTube at 2:13:27 · Open the segment

Why do people react so strongly when a scholar challenges established views?

Sun, 19 Apr 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Why do people react so strongly when a scholar challenges established views?

The guest says people feel threatened when their views are challenged, and that independence from groups and donors is what lets a scholar research and speak honestly.

Answer from 19 April 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: quoted view (stated in order to be discussed, not necessarily held)

Recording: Shaykh Kashif Khan | Policing thought, Pornography & Pandora's box | MindTrap with Mufti #15 (at 1:19:17)

A more recent answer on dialogue/guest-conversations exists (18 October 2025): How should Muslims engage people with very different views of the religion?

Watch on YouTube at 1:19:17 · Open the segment

What is fiqh, and is it the same as Shari'ah?

Fri, 22 Mar 2019 00:00:00 +0000

What is fiqh, and is it the same as Shari'ah?

Fiqh is our understanding of what is expected of us towards God and towards people. It overlaps with Shari'ah, which people usually keep for the legal side, and it has different ways of deriving rulings. Mufti Abu Layth says fiqh is our understanding of what is expected of us towards God and towards people, partly synonymous with Shari'ah, a word people tend to reserve for the legal side.

Answer from 22 March 2019 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Why did I Choose Maliki Fiqh? -Mufti Abu Layth (at 0:00)

A more recent answer on fiqh/legal-theory exists (18 October 2025): If reason helps us understand the Quran, does the reasoning of earlier scholars matter too?

Watch on YouTube at 0:00 · Open the segment

Are the Salafis themselves orthodox by their own standard?

Sat, 20 Oct 2018 00:00:00 +0000

Are the Salafis themselves orthodox by their own standard?

The Salafis are themselves unorthodox: the orthodoxy of the ummah has been Ash'ari and the four schools of law, both of which they reject, so their appeal to orthodoxy against new interpretations is inconsistent. Mufti Abu Layth says the Salafis are themselves unorthodox, since the orthodoxy of the ummah has been Ash'ari in belief and the four schools in law, both of which they reject, so their appeal to orthodoxy against new interpretations of verses is inconsistent.

Answer from 20 October 2018 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: A Reply to Sheikh Yasir Qadhi - Mufti Abu Layth (at 28:50)

A more recent answer on belief/creed-and-kalam-schools exists (13 February 2023): Why orthodoxy took hold, and who wrote the checklist

Watch on YouTube at 28:50 · Open the segment

Which scholars say men and women may shake hands, and what about 'I do not shake hands with women'?

Fri, 04 May 2018 00:00:00 +0000

Which scholars say men and women may shake hands, and what about 'I do not shake hands with women'?

The hadith 'I do not shake hands with women' is set against Umm Atiyya's narrations of the women's pledge, which some read as the Prophet shaking hands. Contemporary scholars including the Shaykh of al-Azhar, Bin Bayyah and the European fatwa council have ruled that shaking hands is permitted.

Answer from 4 May 2018 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: quoted view (stated in order to be discussed, not necessarily held)

Recording: Hadith Analysis: Why men and women CAN shake hands -Mufti Abu Layth (at 2:36)

A more recent answer on fiqh/madhhabs-and-following exists (10 December 2022): What did Abu Hanifa say about Imam Malik?

Watch on YouTube at 2:36 · Open the segment

Can a woman go on Hajj without a mahram?

Sun, 22 Apr 2018 00:00:00 +0000

Can a woman go on Hajj without a mahram?

Mufti Abu Layth reports that al-Shafi'i allowed a woman to go with a group of women and Imam Malik with any safe company, while Abu Hanifa required a mahram for journeys over three days.

Answer from 22 April 2018 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: quoted view (stated in order to be discussed, not necessarily held)

Recording: Hadith Analysis & Fatwa: Women Can Travel Without a Mahram - Mufti Abu Layth (at 9:31)

A more recent answer on fiqh/hajj-and-umrah exists (18 October 2025): How do Quranists perform Hajj and apply Islam without the fiqh tradition?

Watch on YouTube at 9:31 · Open the segment

If reason judges religion, whose reason counts, and what about rituals?

Mon, 09 Apr 2018 00:00:00 +0000

If reason judges religion, whose reason counts, and what about rituals?

The concept of ritual must make sense, not every detail; the shared judgement of a healthy mind is the standard; and, by Malik's rule that only the Messenger's words are beyond rejection, following a school is not belonging to a cult. Mufti Abu Layth says that the concept of ritual rather than its details must accord with reason, that the shared judgement of a healthy mind is the standard of reason, and that following the Maliki school does not make one a cult member, since Malik taught that everyone's words may be rejected except the Messenger's.

Answer from 9 April 2018 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: The Role Of Reason In Religion - Mufti Abu Layth (at 1:14:24)

A more recent answer on belief/reason-and-revelation exists (18 October 2025): Why did Mufti Abu Layth bring up 3:188 against the Quran-only position?

Watch on YouTube at 1:14:24 · Open the segment

Stop calling Bukhari the most authentic book after the Quran; fiqh preserved the living Sunnah

Tue, 13 Mar 2018 00:00:00 +0000

Stop calling Bukhari the most authentic book after the Quran; fiqh preserved the living Sunnah

Sahih al-Bukhari is an excellent effort but should not be called the most authentic book after the Quran; hadith are sifted, while fiqh and the madhhabs carry the Sunnah in living form. Mufti Abu Layth says Sahih al-Bukhari should not be called the most authentic book after the Quran: it is an excellent effort whose reports are still sifted, while fiqh and the madhhabs preserved the Sunnah in living form.

Answer from 13 March 2018 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: PRELUDE: Why There Is NO 2nd Coming Of Jesus (as) In Islam- Mufti Abu Layth (at 2:21:55)

A more recent answer on hadith/bukhari exists (18 October 2025): Why did Mufti Abu Layth challenge hadith in BukhariGate, and can the Prophet be called the most beloved of creation?

Watch on YouTube at 2:21:55 · Open the segment

Everyone picks and chooses: later scholars on mawlid, shrines, hadra and the Jesus hadith

Tue, 13 Mar 2018 00:00:00 +0000

Everyone picks and chooses: later scholars on mawlid, shrines, hadra and the Jesus hadith

Every group accepts later scholars against earlier ones when it suits them; Mufti Abu Layth says rejecting the Jesus hadith on the later scholars' authority is no different. Mufti Abu Layth says everyone, Salafis included, picks and chooses between early and later scholars, so rejecting the Jesus hadith on the authority of later scholars is no different from what others do.

Answer from 13 March 2018 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: PRELUDE: Why There Is NO 2nd Coming Of Jesus (as) In Islam- Mufti Abu Layth (at 1:56:59)

A more recent answer on fiqh/legal-theory exists (18 October 2025): If reason helps us understand the Quran, does the reasoning of earlier scholars matter too?

Watch on YouTube at 1:56:59 · Open the segment

Shawkani against claimed consensus: music, following a madhhab, four wives, raf' al-yadayn

Tue, 13 Mar 2018 00:00:00 +0000

Shawkani against claimed consensus: music, following a madhhab, four wives, raf' al-yadayn

Those who cite Shawkani's claim that the return is mutawatir do not follow him when he rejects other consensuses or calls raf' al-yadayn mutawatir; claimed consensuses have been overturned before. Mufti Abu Layth says Shawkani's claim that the return of Jesus is mutawatir cannot bind when Shawkani himself rejected claimed consensuses on music, following a madhhab and marrying more than four wives, and those who cite him ignore him elsewhere.

Answer from 13 March 2018 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: PRELUDE: Why There Is NO 2nd Coming Of Jesus (as) In Islam- Mufti Abu Layth (at 1:53:04)

A more recent answer on fiqh/legal-theory exists (18 October 2025): If reason helps us understand the Quran, does the reasoning of earlier scholars matter too?

Watch on YouTube at 1:53:04 · Open the segment

Did the scholars ever agree on what counts as riba?

Thu, 19 Oct 2017 00:00:00 +0000

Did the scholars ever agree on what counts as riba?

There has never been clarity or agreement on what riba applies to: the Hanafi, Shafi'i and Maliki schools each defined its scope differently, and nobody calls a phone-for-phones swap riba. No scholar has given Mufti Abu Layth a satisfying explanation of why delay in barter is riba. Mufti Abu Layth says there has never been agreement or clarity among the scholars on what riba applies to, and that none of the senior scholars he has asked has given a satisfying explanation of why delaying one side of a barter between different goods is riba.

Answer from 19 October 2017 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Are Mortgages & Bank Loans Haram? - Mufti Abu Layth (at 17:12)

A more recent answer on fiqh/madhhabs-and-following exists (10 December 2022): What did Abu Hanifa say about Imam Malik?

Watch on YouTube at 17:12 · Open the segment

Is choosing the easier scholarly opinion just following my desires?

Wed, 06 Sep 2017 00:00:00 +0000

Is choosing the easier scholarly opinion just following my desires?

In this clip Shaykh Akram Nadwi gives examples of al-Shafi'i, Abu Hanifa and al-Tabari giving easier minority rulings, and says choosing among the jurists' opinions is not following one's nafs. Mufti Abu Layth only asks the question.

Answer from 6 September 2017 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: quoted view (stated in order to be discussed, not necessarily held)

Recording: Giving rulings based on minority opinions- Shaykh Akram Nadwi & Mufti Abu Layth (at 8:07)

A more recent answer on fiqh/divorce exists (10 March 2023): Why was Imam Malik flogged?

Watch on YouTube at 8:07 · Open the segment

Is it wrong to choose the easier opinion in Islam?

Wed, 06 Sep 2017 00:00:00 +0000

Is it wrong to choose the easier opinion in Islam?

Mufti Abu Layth says choosing what is easier is the nature of Islam, citing hadith that the Prophet always chose the easier of two options. Islam came to connect people with God, not to make secondary details the main issue.

Answer from 6 September 2017 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Giving rulings based on minority opinions- Shaykh Akram Nadwi & Mufti Abu Layth (at 5:27)

A more recent answer on fiqh/legal-theory exists (18 October 2025): If reason helps us understand the Quran, does the reasoning of earlier scholars matter too?

Watch on YouTube at 5:27 · Open the segment

Should scholars give fatwas based on minority opinions if it makes life easier?

Wed, 06 Sep 2017 00:00:00 +0000

Should scholars give fatwas based on minority opinions if it makes life easier?

In this clip Shaykh Akram Nadwi says scholars may give fatwas on easier minority opinions in minor matters of fiqh, since ease has always guided the jurists. Mufti Abu Layth speaks only at the end.

Answer from 6 September 2017 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: quoted view (stated in order to be discussed, not necessarily held)

Recording: Giving rulings based on minority opinions- Shaykh Akram Nadwi & Mufti Abu Layth (at 0:00)

A more recent answer on fiqh/legal-theory exists (18 October 2025): If reason helps us understand the Quran, does the reasoning of earlier scholars matter too?

Watch on YouTube at 0:00 · Open the segment

Should I pray 8 or 20 rak'ahs of tarawih?

Wed, 17 May 2017 00:00:00 +0000

Should I pray 8 or 20 rak'ahs of tarawih?

Tarawih has no fixed number: eight, the least the Prophet prayed, is the base and anything above it is valid. Twenty was the common practice and the schools' broad view, but neither eight nor twenty is wrong. Mufti Abu Layth says he would go with and promote the understanding that tarawih has no set number, with eight, the least the Prophet prayed, as the base and anything above it valid.

Answer from 17 May 2017 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Q: Is Taraweeh 8 or 20 Raka'at? Mufti Abu Layth (at 0:20)

A more recent answer on fiqh/madhhabs-and-following exists (10 December 2022): What did Abu Hanifa say about Imam Malik?

Watch on YouTube at 0:20 · Open the segment

Is Mufti Abu Layth a modernist?

Mon, 06 Apr 2015 00:00:00 +0000

Is Mufti Abu Layth a modernist?

No: he follows the school of Madinah and Imam Malik, teaches thousand-year-old texts and holds chains back to the Prophet, and calls boycotting classical thought a heresy. Looking modern in dress, he says, is not modernism, and Abu Hanifa too was criticised for his dress.

Answer from 6 April 2015 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Unanswered Questions- An interview with Mufti Abu Layth (at 39:21)

A more recent answer on fiqh/maliki-school exists (19 April 2023): Why does the practice of Madinah matter more than a single hadith?

Watch on YouTube at 39:21 · Open the segment

Is difference of opinion in Islam a mercy?

Wed, 02 Jul 2014 00:00:00 +0000

Is difference of opinion in Islam a mercy?

Yes, definitely: difference of opinion is a mercy and a message of tolerance. He also calls social media vital for da'wah. Mufti Abu Layth says difference in Islam is definitely a mercy and a message of tolerance and acceptance.

Answer from 2 July 2014 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Insights to a personal journey: An interview with Mufti Abu Layth (at 18:32)

A more recent answer on fiqh/madhhabs-and-following exists (10 December 2022): What did Abu Hanifa say about Imam Malik?

Watch on YouTube at 18:32 · Open the segment

Why did Mufti Abu Layth choose the Maliki madhhab?

Wed, 02 Jul 2014 00:00:00 +0000

Why did Mufti Abu Layth choose the Maliki madhhab?

Its personality matched his own: the Maliki school keeps things natural, for example in how one stands, holds the hands and makes du'a in salah. Mufti Abu Layth says the Maliki madhhab emphasises keeping things natural, as a theme running throughout the school.

Answer from 2 July 2014 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Insights to a personal journey: An interview with Mufti Abu Layth (at 6:27)

A more recent answer on fiqh/maliki-school exists (19 April 2023): Why does the practice of Madinah matter more than a single hadith?

Watch on YouTube at 6:27 · Open the segment

Is it haram for a woman to go out for a walk?

Fri, 09 May 2014 00:00:00 +0000

Is it haram for a woman to go out for a walk?

One speaker says nothing makes it haram for a woman to go for a walk and challenges the other to produce a Maliki fatwa forbidding it; the other asks whether fatwa must follow the madhhab's protocols.

Answer from 9 May 2014 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: quoted view (stated in order to be discussed, not necessarily held)

Recording: Mufti Abu Layth & Ustadh AbdusShakur Brooks: A discussion on Maliki Fiqh (at 27:38)

A more recent answer on fiqh/maliki-school exists (19 April 2023): Why does the practice of Madinah matter more than a single hadith?

Watch on YouTube at 27:38 · Open the segment

Is Imam Malik's own fatwa the Maliki madhhab?

Fri, 09 May 2014 00:00:00 +0000

Is Imam Malik's own fatwa the Maliki madhhab?

The speakers disagree on whether Imam Malik's own words or the later transmitted madhhab decide a ruling; one says Malik's hijab fatwas were relaxed and left the face uncovered.

Answer from 9 May 2014 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: quoted view (stated in order to be discussed, not necessarily held)

Recording: Mufti Abu Layth & Ustadh AbdusShakur Brooks: A discussion on Maliki Fiqh (at 19:50)

A more recent answer on fiqh/maliki-school exists (19 April 2023): Why does the practice of Madinah matter more than a single hadith?

Watch on YouTube at 19:50 · Open the segment

Which scholars have allowed trimming or shaving the beard?

Sat, 12 Apr 2014 00:00:00 +0000

Which scholars have allowed trimming or shaving the beard?

Maliki and other classical jurists held that trimming or even shaving the beard is at most makruh, not haram, and many modern scholars across the schools have given the same fatwa or kept trimmed, goateed or clean-shaven beards themselves. Mufti Abu Layth presents this to show the opinion's long standing, not to deny the other view. Mufti Abu Layth says that the view that trimming or even shaving the beard is at most makruh and not haram has been held by Maliki and other classical jurists and by many modern scholars, some of whom were themselves trimmed, goateed or clean-shaven.

Answer from 12 April 2014 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Cutting-edge Perspective: Trimming the beard in Islam (pt 1)- Mufti Abu Layth (at 4:01)

A more recent answer on fiqh/maliki-school exists (19 April 2023): Why does the practice of Madinah matter more than a single hadith?

Watch on YouTube at 4:01 · Open the segment

Can I trim my beard short or to a goatee, below a fist's length?

Sat, 12 Apr 2014 00:00:00 +0000

Can I trim my beard short or to a goatee, below a fist's length?

Trimming the beard from the sides, to a goatee or to less than a fist's length is permissible and not haram, though a difference of opinion exists and others may follow it. Mufti Abu Layth's aim is to show that this opinion has a long and continuing place in the tradition. Mufti Abu Layth holds that trimming the beard from the sides, to a goatee or to less than a fist's length is permissible and not haram, while recognising a valid difference of opinion that others may follow.

Answer from 12 April 2014 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Cutting-edge Perspective: Trimming the beard in Islam (pt 1)- Mufti Abu Layth (at 0:04)

A more recent answer on fiqh/madhhabs-and-following exists (10 December 2022): What did Abu Hanifa say about Imam Malik?

Watch on YouTube at 1:22 · Open the segment

How should I choose which madhhab to follow?

Wed, 12 Mar 2014 00:00:00 +0000

How should I choose which madhhab to follow?

Choose by whatever criteria suit you; you are not bound to the school of your locality. All madhhabs are in essence upon the truth, but Mufti Abu Layth personally prefers the school transmitted in Madinah, that of Imam Malik. Mufti Abu Layth says that to him personally all madhhabs are in essence upon the truth, but asks what could be greater than the school transmitted in Madinah, later known as the school of Imam Malik.

Answer from 12 March 2014 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Do I need to follow a Madhhab?- Mufti Abu Layth (at 11:46)

A more recent answer on fiqh/maliki-school exists (19 April 2023): Why does the practice of Madinah matter more than a single hadith?

Watch on YouTube at 11:46 · Open the segment

If the madhhabs differ so much, how can they all be valid?

Wed, 12 Mar 2014 00:00:00 +0000

If the madhhabs differ so much, how can they all be valid?

Compare the hadith an imam relied on with the hadith you quote, not the imam's fatwa with the hadith. The schools differ in application under one constitution of Quran and Sunnah, like US states, and learning every ruling from its evidence without a school is impractical. Mufti Abu Layth holds that the schools of law are all valid in essence, differing in application under the one constitution of the Quran and Sunnah, and that a difference between an imam and a hadith must be framed as hadith against hadith, never as the imam's fatwa against the Prophet's words.

Answer from 12 March 2014 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Do I need to follow a Madhhab?- Mufti Abu Layth (at 7:47)

A more recent answer on hadith/hadith-in-legal-reasoning exists (18 October 2025): Is there a middle way between rejecting all hadith and accepting every hadith?

Watch on YouTube at 7:47 · Open the segment

Do I have to stick to one madhhab, or can I question its positions?

Wed, 12 Mar 2014 00:00:00 +0000

Do I have to stick to one madhhab, or can I question its positions?

Develop within one school, since each rests on its own principles, like choosing one door into a building; once knowledgeable you may evaluate its positions. Mufti Abu Layth adds that some who resist this seem to struggle with submitting to authority. Mufti Abu Layth says a student should adopt one school of law as the basis for developing their understanding and may, at a later stage as their knowledge grows, analyse and evaluate some of its positions.

Answer from 12 March 2014 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Do I need to follow a Madhhab?- Mufti Abu Layth (at 5:13)

A more recent answer on fiqh/legal-theory exists (18 October 2025): If reason helps us understand the Quran, does the reasoning of earlier scholars matter too?

Watch on YouTube at 5:13 · Open the segment

Do I have to follow a madhhab?

Wed, 12 Mar 2014 00:00:00 +0000

Do I have to follow a madhhab?

Yes in practice: a sound understanding of the deen cannot be acquired without a school of law as the medium, just as knowledge cannot be acquired without a language. It is not a matter of sin or haram, but of what is conceivable. Mufti Abu Layth holds that following a madhhab is a practical necessity for anyone who wants a sound understanding of the deen, as a language is for learning anything, and not a legislated obligation whose neglect is sinful.

Answer from 12 March 2014 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Do I need to follow a Madhhab?- Mufti Abu Layth (at 0:04)

A more recent answer on fiqh/legal-theory exists (18 October 2025): If reason helps us understand the Quran, does the reasoning of earlier scholars matter too?

Watch on YouTube at 0:04 · Open the segment