91 places where the four Sunni schools differ, from wudu and salah to fasting, zakat and marriage. Filter by topic, search, or compare just the Hanafi and Shafi'i schools.
91 differences shown
| Issue | Hanafi | Shafi'i | Maliki | Hanbali | From |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wudu and ghuslThe fard acts of wudu | Four: wash the face, the arms with the elbows, wipe a quarter of the head, wash the feet with the ankles. Intention, order and continuity are sunnah. | Six: the intention, the face, the arms, wiping part of the head, the feet, and keeping the order. | Seven: the intention, the face, the arms, wiping the whole head, the feet, rubbing (dalk) and continuity. | Six: the face with the mouth and nose, the arms, the whole head with the ears, the feet, order and continuity. | How to make wudu |
| Wudu and ghuslTouching the opposite sex | Does not break wudu. "Touched women" in 5:6 means intercourse. | Touching the skin of a non-mahram of the opposite sex breaks wudu. | Breaks wudu if it is with desire. | Breaks wudu if it is with desire. | Quran 5:6 |
| Wudu and ghuslBismillah before wudu | Sunnah. Wudu is valid without it. | Sunnah. | Sunnah. | Wajib when you remember it. | Dua after wudu |
| Wudu and ghuslWiping over socks | Over leather khuffs, or thick socks that stay up and keep water out, put on after a full wudu: 24 hours at home, 72 when travelling. Not over thin socks. | As the Hanafi school for leather khuffs. | As the Hanafi school for leather khuffs, with no time limit in the well-known view. | Also over cloth socks thick enough not to show the skin. | How to make wudu |
| Wudu and ghuslThe fard acts of ghusl | Rinse the whole mouth, rinse the nose, wash the whole body once. The intention is sunnah. | The intention and washing the whole body. Mouth and nose are sunnah. | The intention, the whole body, rubbing and continuity. Mouth and nose are sunnah. | The intention and the whole body, including the mouth and nose. | How to perform ghusl |
| Wudu and ghuslGhusl for a new Muslim | Recommended. Obligatory if you were in a state needing ghusl before Islam and did not take one. | Same as the Hanafi school. | Obligatory for every new Muslim. | Obligatory for every new Muslim. | New Muslim guide |
| SalahWhen Asr begins | When an object's shadow is twice its length, plus its noon shadow. | When the shadow equals the object's length, plus its noon shadow. | When the shadow equals the object's length, plus its noon shadow. | When the shadow equals the object's length, plus its noon shadow. | Prayer times |
| SalahWhen Isha begins | Abu Hanifa: when the white twilight has gone. His two companions: when the red twilight has gone. Fatwa has been given on both. | When the red twilight has gone. | When the red twilight has gone. | When the red twilight has gone. | Isha times |
| SalahFacing the qibla from far away | Face the direction (jihah) of the Kaaba. A small turn either side does not matter. | Aim at the Kaaba itself (ayn) by your best effort, even from far away. | Face the direction, as in the Hanafi school. | Face the direction, as in the Hanafi school. | Qibla finder |
| SalahThe opening takbir | A condition (shart). "Allahu akbar" is wajib; another phrase of glorification is valid but makruh tahrimi. | A pillar. Only "Allahu akbar" or "Allahul-akbar" is valid. | A pillar. Only the exact words "Allahu akbar". | A pillar. Only the exact words "Allahu akbar". | Allahu Akbar |
| SalahRaising the hands | Only at the opening takbir (and the witr qunut). | At the opening takbir, before and after ruku, and when standing from the first tashahhud. | Only at the opening takbir, in the well-known view. | At the opening takbir and before and after ruku. | How to pray |
| SalahWhere the hands are placed | Men below the navel, women on the chest. | Below the chest, above the navel. | The arms hang at the sides (sadl) in fard prayers, in the well-known practice. | Below the navel. | How to pray |
| SalahThe opening dua (thana) | Subhanakallahumma, sunnah in every prayer. | Sunnah. Wajjahtu wajhiya is preferred. | No opening dua in obligatory prayers. | Subhanakallahumma is preferred. | Thana |
| SalahAudhu billah (taawwudh) | In the first rakah only, quietly, by the imam and the one praying alone, not the follower. | Recommended in every rakah, most strongly in the first. | Not said in fard prayers in the well-known view. | Quietly in the first rakah. | Audhu billah |
| SalahBismillah before Al-Fatiha | Said quietly. It is not part of Al-Fatiha. | The first ayah of Al-Fatiha: it must be recited, aloud in the loud prayers. | Not recited in fard prayers in the well-known view. | Said quietly before Al-Fatiha. | Bismillah |
| SalahReciting Al-Fatiha behind the imam | The follower stays silent and does not recite. | The follower recites Al-Fatiha. | Recited in the quiet prayers, not in the loud ones. | Not required. Recommended in the quiet prayers and in the imam's pauses. | How to pray |
| SalahSaying ameen | Quietly, in every prayer. | Aloud in the prayers recited aloud. | The follower says it quietly; the imam does not say it after reciting aloud, in the well-known view. | Aloud in the prayers recited aloud. | Ameen |
| SalahA surah after Al-Fatiha | Wajib in the first two rakahs of a fard prayer. | Sunnah. | Sunnah. | Sunnah. | Short surahs for salah |
| SalahTasbih in ruku and sujood | Sunnah. The prayer is valid without it. | Sunnah. | Sunnah. | Wajib once each. Leaving it on purpose breaks the prayer. | Subhana rabbiyal azeem |
| SalahSitting between the two sajdahs | The sitting is wajib. The dua in it is recommended in nafl prayers. | The dua is sunnah in every prayer. | The dua is recommended, with no fixed wording. | Saying "Rabbighfir li" at least once is wajib. | Dua between two sajdahs |
| SalahThe tashahhud | Wajib in both sittings. The first sitting is wajib, the last is fard. | The final tashahhud is a pillar; the first is sunnah. | Both tashahhuds are sunnah; the final sitting is fard. | The final tashahhud is a pillar; the first is wajib. | Attahiyat |
| SalahSalawat in the last sitting | An emphasised sunnah. The prayer is valid without it. | A pillar: the prayer is not valid without it. | Sunnah. | A pillar: the prayer is not valid without it. | Durood Ibrahim |
| SalahSajdah sahw | Wajib, made after one salam to the right. | Sunnah, always before the salam. | Before the salam for something left out, after it for something added. | Before the salam, except where the Prophet ﷺ did it after. | Sajdah sahw |
| SalahQunut in Fajr | Not recited, except in a time of calamity. | Recited in every Fajr, after the ruku of the second rakah. | Recommended, quietly, before the ruku of the second rakah. | Not recited, except in a time of calamity. | Dua Qunoot |
| SalahAdhkar straight after the fard | After Fajr and Asr, sit for the adhkar. After Dhuhr, Maghrib and Isha, say a short dhikr, pray the sunnah, then the adhkar. | Straight after every fard prayer, before any sunnah. | Straight after every fard prayer, before any sunnah. | Straight after every fard prayer, before any sunnah. | Adhkar after salah |
| SalahHow a woman prays | Several differences: hands on the chest, the body kept close in ruku and sajdah, and other details of covering. | Compact in ruku and sajdah; hands and sitting as men. | Close to the Shafi'i view. | Compact; she may sit with both feet to the right. | How women pray |
| SalahA man's awrah in salah | From below the navel to below the knees, the knee included. | Between the navel and the knee, neither included. | The private parts strictly; the rest to the knee should be covered. | Between the navel and the knee, and something over the shoulders in a fard prayer. | Awrah for men and women |
| SalahA woman's awrah in salah | All but the face, the hands and the feet. | All but the face and the hands. The feet are covered. | All but the face and hands. If hair or feet show, the prayer is valid but repeated within its time. | All but the face, in the relied-upon view. | Awrah for men and women |
| SalahThe words of the adhan | 15 phrases, with no tarji. | 19 phrases, with tarji (the testimonies said quietly first). | 17 phrases: Allahu akbar twice at the start, with tarji. | 15 phrases, as in the Hanafi school. | The adhan |
| SalahThe words of the iqamah | 17 phrases: doubled like the adhan, with qad qamatis-salah twice. | 11 phrases: said singly, except the takbirs and qad qamatis-salah. | 10 phrases: qad qamatis-salah once. | 11 phrases, as in the Shafi'i school. | The adhan |
| SalahReplying to the adhan | Recommended. The required reply is going to the prayer. | Sunnah. | Sunnah. | Sunnah. | Dua after adhan |
| SalahShortening (qasr) when travelling | Wajib. From about 77 to 78 km (48 miles). Ends with an intended stay of 15 days. No combining, except at Arafah and Muzdalifah. | A concession. From about 81 to 89 km. Ends with an intended stay of 4 days. Combining is allowed. | A confirmed sunnah. A similar distance. Ends with 4 days. Combining allowed when on the move. | Better than praying in full. About 81 to 89 km. Ends after more than 4 days. Combining allowed. | Qasr prayer |
| Witr, Jumuah, Eid and moreWitr | Wajib. Three rakahs with one salam, qunut before ruku in the third, every night. | A confirmed sunnah, 1 to 11 rakahs. Qunut after ruku in the second half of Ramadan. | A confirmed sunnah: one rakah after an even prayer. No qunut in witr. | A confirmed sunnah, 1 to 11 rakahs. Qunut after ruku all year. | How to pray witr |
| Witr, Jumuah, Eid and moreMaking up a missed witr | Must be made up, as three rakahs. | Not owed as qada, since it is sunnah. | Not owed as qada, since it is sunnah. | Not owed as qada, since it is sunnah. | Qada calculator |
| Witr, Jumuah, Eid and moreTaraweeh rakahs | 20, a sunnah muakkadah for men and women. | 20. | 20, or 36 as in Madinah in Imam Malik's time. | 20. | How to pray taraweeh |
| Witr, Jumuah, Eid and moreWho makes Jumuah valid | A town, the time of Dhuhr, a khutbah and at least three men besides the imam. | Forty resident men. | In a masjid, with about twelve men besides the imam. | Forty men, in the main view. | How to pray Jumuah |
| Witr, Jumuah, Eid and moreTwo rakahs during the khutbah | Do not start any prayer once the khutbah has begun. | Pray two short rakahs. | Do not pray once the khutbah has begun. | Pray two short rakahs. | How to pray Jumuah |
| Witr, Jumuah, Eid and moreThe Eid prayer | Wajib. Six extra takbirs: three before the recitation in the first rakah, three after it in the second. | A confirmed sunnah. Seven extra takbirs in the first rakah, five in the second, before the recitation. | A confirmed sunnah. Six extra in the first, five in the second, before the recitation. | A communal obligation. Six extra in the first, five in the second. | Eid 2027 dates |
| Witr, Jumuah, Eid and moreTakbir al-tashriq | Wajib after every fard prayer, Fajr on 9 Dhul Hijjah to Asr on the 13th: 23 prayers. | Sunnah after every prayer, voluntary too, over the same days. | Sunnah after fard prayers, Dhuhr on the 10th to Fajr on the 13th: 15 prayers. | Sunnah after fard prayers in congregation, Fajr on Arafah to Asr on the 13th. | First 10 days of Dhul Hijjah |
| Witr, Jumuah, Eid and moreThe janazah prayer | No Al-Fatiha as recitation, the thana instead. Hands raised at the first takbir only. No prayer over an absent body. | Al-Fatiha is a pillar. Hands raised at every takbir. Prayer over an absent body is allowed. | No Al-Fatiha, dua after each takbir. One salam. No absent janazah. | Al-Fatiha is a pillar. Hands raised at every takbir. Absent janazah allowed. | How to pray janazah |
| Witr, Jumuah, Eid and moreThe rain prayer (istisqa) | Abu Hanifa: dua and istighfar, no set congregational prayer. His students, followed by many later Hanafis: two rakahs with a khutbah. | An emphasised sunnah: two rakahs in congregation and a khutbah. | An emphasised sunnah: two rakahs in congregation and a khutbah. | An emphasised sunnah: two rakahs in congregation and a khutbah. | Dua for rain |
| Witr, Jumuah, Eid and moreSalatul tasbih | Mustahabb, by the method of Ibn al-Mubarak. | Recommended by many, by the Ibn Abbas method. | Not among the school's recommended prayers. | Not recommended in the main view. | Salatul Tasbih |
| Witr, Jumuah, Eid and moreDuha prayer | Mustahabb, 2 to 12 rakahs. | A confirmed sunnah, 2 to 8 rakahs. | Recommended, 2 to 8 rakahs. | Recommended, 2 to 8, prayed now and then in one view. | Ishraq and duha |
| FastingThe intention for a Ramadan fast | From sunset until before the middle of the day, a new one each day. | At night, before dawn, for each day. | One intention at the start of Ramadan covers the month. | At night, before dawn, for each day. | Ramadan fasting rules |
| FastingEating out of forgetfulness | The fast is still valid. | The fast is still valid. | A Ramadan fast is broken: make up one day. | The fast is still valid. | What breaks your fast |
| FastingEating or drinking on purpose | Make up the day and kaffarah (60 days of fasting). | Make up the day only. Kaffarah is only for intercourse. | Make up and kaffarah, with a choice of fasting or feeding. | Make up the day only. Kaffarah is only for intercourse. | What breaks your fast |
| FastingThe order of kaffarah | 60 days of fasting in a row; feeding 60 poor people only if you cannot fast. | The same order. | A free choice, and feeding is preferred. | The same order. | Fidya and kaffarah calculator |
| FastingKaffarah for intercourse: who pays | Each spouse who took part willingly. | Only the husband, in the main view. | Both if willing; a husband who forced his wife pays hers too. | Both if willing, even if it happened out of forgetfulness. | Intimacy in Ramadan |
| FastingWater slipping down in wudu | Breaks the fast: make up one day. | Not broken if you rinsed normally. | Breaks the fast: make up one day. | Not broken if you rinsed normally. | What breaks your fast |
| FastingCupping (hijama) while fasting | Does not break the fast; disliked if it weakens you. | Does not break it. | Does not break it. | Breaks the fast. | What breaks your fast |
| FastingMiswak or brush after midday | Miswak is sunnah all day. Toothpaste is disliked. | Disliked after midday. | Allowed all day; anything that leaves a taste is disliked. | Disliked after midday. | What breaks your fast |
| FastingEye drops and kohl | Do not break the fast. | Do not break the fast. | Classically, break it if tasted in the throat; many today say they do not. | Classically, break it if tasted in the throat; many today say they do not. | What breaks your fast |
| FastingSwallowing phlegm | Does not break the fast. | Breaks it if it reached the mouth and could have been spat out. | Does not break it, in the well-known view. | Breaks it if it reached the mouth and could have been spat out. | What breaks your fast |
| FastingMadhy (pre-seminal fluid) | Does not break the fast. | Does not break the fast. | The day is made up. | Breaks it if it came from kissing or touching. | What breaks your fast |
| FastingFasting when travelling | Fasting is better if there is no hardship. Set off after dawn: complete that day. | Same as the Hanafi school. | Same as the Hanafi school. | Not fasting is better. Set off after dawn: you may break it once out of town. | Ramadan fasting rules |
| FastingPregnant or breastfeeding | Make up the days; no fidya. | Make up, plus fidya if she feared only for the baby. | A pregnant woman makes up only; a breastfeeding one fearing for the baby also pays fidya. | Make up, plus fidya if she feared only for the baby. | Fidya and kaffarah calculator |
| FastingDelaying make-up fasts past Ramadan | Make them up; no extra fidya. | Make them up, plus a fidya for each day if there was no excuse. | Make them up, plus a fidya for each day if there was no excuse. | Make them up, plus a fidya for each day if there was no excuse. | Fidya and kaffarah calculator |
| FastingWhen bleeding stops during the day | Keep from food and drink for the rest of the day, and make it up. | No need to keep from food for the rest of the day. | No need to keep from food for the rest of the day. | Keeping from food is required, in the well-known view. | What breaks your fast |
| FastingMoon sighting: one or many horizons | In the main position, a sighting anywhere binds those it reaches. Many later Hanafis allow each region its own. | Each region with a different horizon follows its own sighting. | A sighting anywhere binds all who learn of it. | A sighting anywhere binds all who learn of it. | Moon sighting |
| FastingFasting only the 10th of Muharram | Makruh tanzihi; fast the 9th or 11th with it. | Not disliked; the 9th and 10th are recommended. | Recommended, with the 9th. | The 9th and 10th are recommended. | Ashura 2027 |
| FastingSix days of Shawwal | Mustahabb, in a row or spread out. | Best in a row straight after Eid. | Imam Malik disliked joining them to Eid; later Malikis allow them. | Together or apart; make up Ramadan first. | Six days of Shawwal |
| FastingItikaf: is a fast needed? | Only for a vowed itikaf. The last ten days are a communal sunnah. | No fast needed; even a short stay counts. | A fast is a condition; the shortest is a day and a night. | No fast unless vowed; a moment counts. | Itikaf |
| FastingWhere a woman does itikaf | In the prayer place of her home. | Only in a masjid. | Only in a masjid. | Only in a masjid. | Itikaf |
| ZakatWhich nisab for cash | The silver nisab (612.36 g), as it helps more of the poor. Gold, silver, cash and goods are added by value. | Gold and silver each have their own nisab and are not added. Many today use gold for cash. | Gold and silver are added together, by count rather than value. | Added together by value. Many today use silver for cash. | Nisab today |
| ZakatZakat on worn jewellery | Due on all gold and silver, worn or not. | Not due on permissible jewellery worn regularly. | Not due on permissible jewellery worn regularly. | Not due on permissible jewellery worn regularly. | Zakat calculator |
| ZakatTaking debts off | Debts due now reduce zakatable wealth; for a mortgage, only the next 12 months. | Debts do not reduce zakat, in the more correct view. | Reduce zakat on gold, silver and cash, not on crops or livestock. | Debts that are due reduce it. | Zakat calculator |
| ZakatNisab during the year | What counts is having the nisab at the start and end of the lunar year. | The nisab must stay complete all year. | Not on our page yet | The nisab must stay complete all year. | Nisab today |
| ZakatZakat al-fitr: how much | Half a sa of wheat (about 1.75 kg) or one sa of dates, barley or raisins. Cash is allowed. | One sa (about 2.5 kg) of the staple food, given as food. | One sa of the staple food, given as food. | One sa of the staple food, given as food. | Zakat al-Fitr |
| ZakatZakat al-fitr: who pays | Whoever owns the nisab beyond basic needs on Eid morning, for themselves and young children. Not obliged for a wife. | Anyone with more than a day's food, for all they support, including the wife. | Anyone with more than a day's food, for all they support, including the wife. | Anyone with more than a day's food, for all they support, including the wife. | Zakat al-Fitr |
| Hajj, Umrah and QurbaniSai in Umrah | Wajib: leaving it needs a dam (a sheep). | A pillar. Shaving or trimming is also a pillar. | A pillar: Umrah is incomplete without it. | A pillar: Umrah is incomplete without it. | How to perform Umrah |
| Hajj, Umrah and QurbaniThe best kind of Hajj | Qiran, then tamattu, then ifrad. | Ifrad. | Ifrad. | Tamattu. | Hajj 2027 |
| Hajj, Umrah and QurbaniIs Qurbani obligatory? | Wajib on every adult resident who owns the nisab. | A confirmed sunnah, until sunset on the 13th. | A confirmed sunnah. | A confirmed sunnah. | Qurbani 2027 |
| Hajj, Umrah and QurbaniHair and nails before Qurbani | Mustahabb not to cut them; not a sin. | Makruh to cut them. | Makruh to cut them. | Forbidden to cut them. | Qurbani 2027 |
| Hajj, Umrah and QurbaniAqiqah | Mustahabb (some texts say permissible). | A confirmed sunnah. | A sunnah, on the seventh day only, one animal for a boy or a girl. | A confirmed sunnah. | Aqiqah calculator |
| Marriage and familyThe wali (guardian) | An adult woman may contract her own nikah; it is sunnah for her wali to arrange it. | The wali is a condition of the nikah. | The wali is a condition of the nikah. | The wali is a condition of the nikah. | Nikah |
| Marriage and familyWitnesses to the nikah | Two Muslim men, or one man and two women. | Two upright Muslim men. | Needed before consummation, not always at the contract. Announcing it is essential. | Two upright Muslim men. | Nikah |
| Marriage and familyThe minimum mahr | 10 dirhams of silver (30.618 g). | No set minimum. | A quarter dinar of gold or 3 dirhams of silver. | No set minimum. | Mahr calculator |
| Marriage and familyA no-second-wife condition | Not binding on the husband. | Not binding. | Not binding. | Binding: if he marries again, she may end the marriage. | Quran 4:3 |
| Marriage and familyIddah after divorce: the three quru | Three complete periods. | Three times of purity, so it often ends a few days sooner. | Three times of purity. | Three complete periods. | Iddah calculator |
| Marriage and familySeclusion without consummation | A valid seclusion brings the full iddah. | Only actual consummation brings an iddah. | Same as the Hanafi school. | Same as the Hanafi school. | Iddah calculator |
| Marriage and familyThe grandfather and siblings | The grandfather blocks all brothers and sisters. | The grandfather shares with the siblings. | The grandfather shares with the siblings. | The grandfather shares with the siblings. | Islamic inheritance calculator |
| Marriage and familyLeftover estate (radd) | Returned to blood relatives, not a spouse. | Traditionally to the public treasury; later scholars allow radd. | Traditionally to the public treasury. | Returned to blood relatives, as the Hanafi school. | Islamic inheritance calculator |
| Dress and daily lifeA woman's face in front of non-mahram men | Not awrah. Later Hanafis say a young woman covers it where there is fear of fitnah. | Covering the face and hands is required, in the relied-upon view. | Not awrah; covering becomes required where fitnah is feared. | The face and hands are covered (niqab), in the relied-upon view. | Hijab |
| Dress and daily lifeThe beard | Wajib. Shaving it or cutting below a fist's length is makruh tahrimi. | Shaving is makruh in the relied-upon view; some held it haram. | Shaving is haram. | Shaving is haram. | Sunnahs of daily life |
| Dress and daily lifeReplying to a sneeze | Wajib; one reply covers a group. | Sunnah; one reply covers a group. | Obligatory; one reply covers a group, in the better-known view. | Obligatory; one reply covers a group, in the better-known view. | Yarhamukallah |
| Dress and daily lifeBismillah when slaughtering | Required: left on purpose, the meat is not halal; forgotten, it is halal. | Sunnah: the meat is halal even if it is left out. | Required when remembered. | Required when remembered. | Bismillah |
| Dress and daily lifeWomen visiting graves | Permitted without wailing; better less often for young women. | Makruh, except the Prophet's ﷺ grave. | Permitted for older women, disliked for young women who go often. | Makruh, except the Prophet's ﷺ grave. | Dua for visiting the grave |
| Dress and daily lifeGifting Quran recitation to the dead | The reward reaches them. | Earlier view: it does not reach; many later scholars: it does. | Earlier view: it does not reach; many later scholars: it does. | The reward reaches them. | Sadaqah jariyah |
| Quran and beliefAyat of sajdah: how many, and the ruling | 14, with one in Al-Hajj and one in Sad. Wajib on reciter and listener. | 14, with two in Al-Hajj; Sad is a sajdah of thanks. Sunnah. | 11 in the relied-upon count. Sunnah. | 14, as the Shafi'i school. Sunnah. | Quran facts |
| Quran and beliefAyat al-Kursi during a period | May be said as dhikr or protection, not as recitation. | May be said as dhikr, not as recitation. | May be recited from memory. | May be said as dhikr, not as recitation. | Ayatul Kursi |
| Quran and beliefIs iman only belief? | Iman is affirming with the tongue and believing in the heart; deeds are its fruit, not part of its definition. | Belief, statement and action; it rises and falls. | Belief, statement and action; it rises and falls. | Belief, statement and action; it rises and falls. | Articles of faith |
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Each row summarises the madhhab note on the page it links to, where you will find the evidence and the details. "Not on our page yet" means the source page does not state that school's view.
Guide
A madhhab is a school of Islamic law (fiqh). The word means "a way to go". Each of the four Sunni madhhabs, Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i and Hanbali, is a method of reading the Quran and Sunnah, built by a great imam and refined by generations of his students. They agree on belief and on the pillars of Islam. They differ only in details, such as where the hands are placed in salah or whether worn jewellery is zakatable, and they accept each other as valid.
80 to 150 AH · 699 to 767 CE
Al-Numan ibn Thabit of Kufa, counted by many as a tabii because he saw the Companion Anas ibn Malik. His students Abu Yusuf and Muhammad al-Shaybani wrote down the school. Followed widely in Turkey, the Balkans, Central Asia and South Asia.
about 93 to 179 AH · 711 to 795 CE
The imam of Madinah and author of al-Muwatta. He gave weight to the practice of the people of Madinah. Followed widely in North and West Africa.
150 to 204 AH · 767 to 820 CE
Muhammad ibn Idris, a student of Malik and of Muhammad al-Shaybani. His al-Risalah is the first book on the principles of fiqh. Followed widely in Egypt, East Africa, Yemen and Southeast Asia.
164 to 241 AH · 780 to 855 CE
Of Baghdad, a student of al-Shafi'i and compiler of the Musnad. Known for keeping close to the hadith. Followed widely in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf.
If you pray beside a Shafi'i, you will see the hands raised before and after ruku, ameen said aloud, the follower reciting Al-Fatiha, and qunut in Fajr. A Shafi'i makes wudu again after touching the skin of a non-mahram, and starts Asr earlier. In the Hanafi school, witr is wajib, the iqamah is doubled, the silver nisab is used for cash, and zakat is due on worn jewellery. Use the "Hanafi and Shafi'i only" button above to see just these two columns.
Someone who is not a scholar follows a qualified school, as a patient follows a doctor, and this is following the Quran and Sunnah through the people who know them best (taqlid). A Muslim should keep to one school in practice, and not pick the easiest view from each school to suit their desires. Taking another school's view for a real need, with the guidance of a scholar, is allowed. A Hanafi may pray behind a Shafi'i imam and the prayer is valid, unless the follower knows the imam did something that breaks wudu in the Hanafi school, such as bleeding, and did not renew it.
All four are built on the Quran and Sunnah, and each has evidence for its views. Imam al-Shafi'i is reported to have said that people are all dependent on Abu Hanifa in fiqh, and the imams praised one another. Choosing one is usually a matter of where you live and who teaches you. AmalKit shows the Hanafi view first, because it is the school of our teachers, and the others where they differ, so the site is useful to everyone.
The rulings on this page are pending review by the scholars on our team.
Questions
They are two of the four Sunni schools of fiqh. They agree on belief and the pillars, and differ on details: in salah (raising the hands, ameen aloud, Al-Fatiha behind the imam, qunut in Fajr), wudu (touching the opposite sex), witr (wajib for Hanafis), the iqamah, and zakat on jewellery.
A school of Islamic law: a method of deriving rulings from the Quran and Sunnah, named after its founding imam. The four Sunni madhhabs are the Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i and Hanbali.
Four Sunni madhhabs are followed today: Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i and Hanbali. Other schools existed, such as the Zahiri, and the Jafari school is followed by Shia Muslims.
Yes. The prayer is valid, and scholars of all four schools allow it. Hanafi scholars add one detail: if you know the imam did something that breaks wudu in the Hanafi school and did not renew it, do not follow him in that prayer.
Most scholars say a person who is not a scholar should follow a qualified school or scholar, and keep to it rather than choosing the easiest view on each question. Some contemporary scholars allow following any trusted scholar question by question.
Usually the one taught where you live, or by the teachers you learn from. All four are valid. What matters is to learn your school's rulings well from a qualified teacher.