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Who Was Imām al-Nawawī?
One of the most famous muḥaddithūn and fuqahāʾ is Imām al-Nawawī. He is known as the Reviver of the Sunnah, renowned for his deep knowledge and piety.
His full name is Muḥyī al-Dīn Abū Zakariyyā Yaḥyā bin Sharaf al-Nawawī. His name is an attribution to Nawā, a small city about 90 km south of Damascus, where he was born in the beginning of 631 AH. He lived there throughout his youth. An amazing incident that occurred while he was a child:
His father mentioned that his son Yaḥyā, when he was 7 years old, was sleeping on his side on the 27th night of Ramaḍān. He woke up in the middle of the night and said, “Dear father, what is this light that has filled the house?” The whole family woke up and none of them saw anything. Thus, his father said that he knew that night was Laylah al-Qadr.
Throughout his childhood, he would not play with other children. When they would call him to engage in their games, he would cry and run away, engaging in the recitation of the Holy Qurʾān instead. An individual by the name of Shaykh Yāsīn bin Yūsuf noticed this and took him under his wing, becoming his spiritual guide.
When he was nineteen years old, he moved to Damascus. He studied there with many shuyūkh, attending twelve lessons every day. Furthermore, he memorized several books during his studies. He also traveled to Madinah and learned from…
