Bishr al-Hafi

One of the Sufis of the earliest period; first one of the notable hadith scholars of his age, then turning to asceticism and Sufism, he is known by the epithet "al-Hafi" (the Barefoot). His full name is Abu Nasr Bishr b. al-Harith b. Abd al-Rahman b. Ata b. Hilal al-Hafi al-Marwazi.

He was born in 150 (767) or 152 (769) in Merv, into one of the city's leading families. After his first religious education he turned to hadith, learning from such traditionists as Malik b. Anas, Sharik b. Abd Allah, Hammad b. Zayd, Ibrahim b. Sa'd, Fudayl b. Iyad and Abd Allah b. al-Mubarak. Al-Daraqutni stated that he was a reliable transmitter who never related an unsound hadith.

According to what the sources agree on, he then buried all his books in the earth, turned to Sufism and joined the gatherings of his maternal uncle Ali b. Khashram. The sources state that his wish to be rid of the pride and the desire for fame and renown he felt because of his hadith work also played a part in this turn. It is related that when his former teacher and companions, urging him not to abandon hadith, asked, "What will you answer when God asks you tomorrow, 'Why did you not transmit the hadith of the Prophet?'", he replied: "I will say: You commanded me to oppose my self. My self desired to narrate hadith and to be esteemed. That is why I opposed it."

In this period he met the Sufis of his time Fudayl b. Iyad, Sari al-Saqati, Ahmad b. Asim al-Antaki, Abu Ali al-Juzjani and Abu Sa'id al-Kharraz. He earned his living by spinning. In law he followed the school of Sufyan al-Thawri. His friendship with Ahmad b. Hanbal was lasting: Ibn Hanbal, who answered people's questions on sincerity, trust and contentment, told a man who asked about love, "Ask Bishr for the answer. While he is alive it is not fitting for me to answer this question." He sided with Ibn Hanbal in the question of the createdness of the Qur'an, and his definition of faith as affirmation, assent and action also shows his closeness to Hanbali thought.

He died in 227 (841).

His Circle of Influence — Scholars such as Ahmad b. Hanbal, Abu Khaythama Zuhayr b. Harb, Ahmad al-Dawraqi and Ibrahim al-Harbi transmitted hadith from him. Abd Allah b. al-Jalla said of him, "In scrupulousness he is our master." A. Schimmel counts him first among the Sufis who prepared the way for al-Harith al-Muhasibi. The source links the Hanbali Ibn al-Jawzi's writing of the Manaqib Bishr al-Hafi to this intellectual closeness.

His Poetry and Sufi Line — Piety, scrupulousness and opposing the self hold a special place in his Sufi thought. Bishr, who said "For forty years my soul has craved roast meat, and I have not yet found lawful money to buy it", held that renunciation can dwell only in a heart cleansed of greed and covetousness, and took care not even to drink from fountains that sultans had built with doubtful money. He was among the first Sufis to give Sufi interpretations of terms such as contentment, trust and surrender. Concealing good deeds and fleeing hypocrisy and fame — the Malamati temper — held an important place in his life: to him, enjoying praise is more harmful than committing sin, since it hinders spiritual maturity, and one should count obscurity a gain. He divides Sufis into three groups: those who ask nothing of anyone (spiritual ones), those who do not ask but accept when given (the middling), and those who busy themselves with worship and await their provision from God. He prefers the generous man to the miserly Sufi. When friends saw him shivering with cold and asked why, he said: "I remembered the poor and destitute; since I am not rich enough to help them, I wanted at least to share their pain in this way." He criticised scholars who lacked due care in religious matters and Sufis who put gnosis before piety and miracles before uprightness, and he advised dervishes in training to travel.

His Works — The sources ascribe to him a work titled Kitab al-Zuhd (Kitab al-Tasawwuf) and some poems.