البَيهَقِيُّ — العَالِمُ الشَّافِعِيُّ الخُرَاسَانِيُّ الَّذِي يُعَدُّ [السُّنَنُ الكُبرَى] أَكبَرَ مَجمُوعَاتِ الحَدِيثِ الكَلَاسِيكِيَّةِ بَعدَ الكُتُبِ السِّتَّةِ وَالَّذِي أَحصَى فِي [شُعَبِ الإِيمَان] سَبعًا وَسَبعِينَ شُعبَةً مِن شُعَبِ الإِيمَانِ وَنَظَّمَ الحُجَجَ الكَلَامِيَّةَ الأَشعَرِيَّةَ دَعمًا لِلفِقهِ الشَّافِعِيّ
al-Bayhaqi (البَيهَقِيّ; full name: Abu Bakr Ahmad ibn al-Husayn ibn Ali al-Khurasani al-Bayhaqi; born 384 AH / 994 CE in Bayhaq [in Khorasan, present-day Iran]; died 458 AH / 1066 CE in Nishapur; the background: born in the village of Khusrawjird in the Bayhaq district of Khorasan; studied under leading Khorasan scholars including al-Hakim al-Naysaburi [author of al-Mustadrak]; became the leading Shafi'i scholar of Khorasan in his generation; major teachers: al-Hakim al-Naysaburi [924-1014 CE], the leading Khorasan hadith scholar whose al-Mustadrak attempted to supplement al-Bukhari and Muslim; al-Bayhaqi's dual focus: hadith collection/criticism AND systematic defense of Shafi'i fiqh and Ash'ari theology; major works: [1] Al-Sunan al-Kubra [The Large Book of Prophetic Practice]: 10 large volumes; organized by fiqh topics; contains approximately 21,000+ narrations; the most comprehensive systematic hadith collection arranged by legal topic [as opposed to the Musnad-by-Companion arrangement]; where hadith supports the Shafi'i position, al-Bayhaqi accepts it; where hadith challenges the Shafi'i position, he analyzes the chain exhaustively and explains the Shafi'i solution; this makes the Sunan al-Kubra simultaneously a hadith collection AND a defense of Shafi'i fiqh; [2] Sha'b al-Iman [The Branches of Faith]: a comprehensive moral-theological work based on the hadith 'Iman has 70-odd branches, the highest of which is saying La ilaha illa Allah and the lowest removing harm from the path'; al-Bayhaqi listed 77 branches of faith, each with supporting hadith, covering theology, ritual, ethics, and social conduct; [3] Al-Asma' wal-Sifat [The Names and Attributes]: systematic treatment of divine names and attributes from an Ash'ari perspective; defends Ash'ari positions on God's attributes against both Mu'tazili negation and anthropomorphist affirmation; [4] Dala'il al-Nubuwwa [Proofs of Prophethood]: comprehensive collection of hadith and reports demonstrating the Prophet's prophethood through miracles, prophecies, and characteristics; 7 volumes; one of the most important works in the genre; [5] Al-I'tiqad [The Creed]: shorter systematic Ash'ari theology; the methodology: al-Bayhaqi was a precise hadith critic who classified narrations by quality; his characteristic approach was to collect all relevant hadith for a fiqh issue, evaluate each chain, explain why the Shafi'i school follows its preferred evidence, and account for hadith that seem to support other positions; his reception: al-Bayhaqi's works were widely used in Shafi'i madrasas; his Sunan al-Kubra remains the most comprehensive source for tracking Shafi'i hadith-based arguments; contemporary scholarship on hadith authentication frequently cites his chain evaluations; the geographic context: Khorasan [modern Iran/Central Asia] was in al-Bayhaqi's time the most intellectually productive region of the Islamic world — al-Hakim, al-Bayhaqi, and later al-Ghazali all flourished there within a century) is the systematic defender of Shafi'i hadith-grounded jurisprudence.
A Hadith Scholar in Service of a School
Al-Bayhaqi’s relationship to hadith is distinctive among classical scholars: he was simultaneously a collector, critic, and advocate. His al-Sunan al-Kubra does not merely present hadith — it uses hadith in service of a systematic defense of Shafi’i fiqh. Where the evidence supports the Shafi’i position, al-Bayhaqi presents it and explains its chain. Where hadith seem to support other schools, he analyzes why the chain is weak, the narration misunderstood, or the Shafi’i reading nonetheless correct.
This apologetic hadith-scholarship made the Sunan al-Kubra the go-to reference for Shafi’i jurists seeking evidentiary support. With over 21,000 narrations across ten volumes, organized by fiqh topic, it remains the most comprehensive legal-hadith compilation in classical Islamic literature.
Sha’b al-Iman: 77 Branches of Faith
The hadith “Faith has 70-odd branches” prompted al-Bayhaqi to systematically enumerate every branch. His list of 77 branches, each supported by hadith evidence, became the standard reference in Shafi’i circles for defining the full scope of Islamic practice — covering theology (the primacy of La ilaha illa Allah), ritual (the prayers, fasting, hajj), ethics (honesty, fulfilling promises), and social obligations (removing harm from public pathways at the hadith’s simplest end).
Ash’ari Systematic Theology
Al-Bayhaqi’s al-Asma’ wal-Sifat and al-I’tiqad positioned him as a systematic Ash’ari theologian who used hadith to defend the Ash’ari middle way on divine attributes — rejecting both Mu’tazili negation and anthropomorphist literalism. His synthesis of hadith-grounding with Ash’ari theology typified the mature Khorasan Shafi’i tradition.
See also: Seerah Al Nawawi, Seerah Al Ghazali, Seerah Al Juwayni, Seerah Ibn Kathir, Fiqh Al Usul Al Fiqh