Imam Nafi' Madani

His name was Nafi' and his kunya was Abu Abd al-Rahman, Abul Hasan, and Abu Ruwaim. His father's name was Abdul Rahman and his father's father's name was Abu Na'eem. He was the slave of Ju'ayna bin Shu'oob bin Laithi. And he was the ally of Hamzah bin Abdul Muttalib. His color was black. He was a scholar in regards to the recitation of the Qur'an as well as in the Arabic language and he was very strong in holding on to the Sunnah and Hadith of the Prophet (SAW). He took up the Imamah after Abu Ja'far and was known as THE Imam.

He is from the second generation. From the Sahabah, he met Tufayl and Ibn Abi Unays, so he was from the Tabi'een. Imam Malik mentions that Imam Nafi's recitation was on the Sunnah and the best. Is'haaq Musayyibi said that his countenance was pleasant and that he was very handsome. He was visited by the Prophet SAW in his dream. He learned Qur'an from seventy of the Tabi'een. Imam Abu Ja'far Yazeed bin Qa'qaa' himself is included in these seventy, who is the eighth Imam of Qiraa' and is the freed slave of Ibn Abbas. Nafi' himself says that when he studied from Imam Abu Ja'far, he was 9 years of age. The other Sheikh was Shaiba bin Nassaa' and the third was Abdul Rahman bin Hurmuzaa (?). All three of them learned from Ibn Abbas and Ubay bin Ka'b who learned from the Prophet SAW who learned from Jibreel who received it from the Lord himself.

It has been recorded about him that when he would read the Qur'an or speak, fragrance would come from his mouth. Someone once asked him about this fragrance and what fragrance he put on when he taught, and Imam Nafi' said that he does not put on fragrance nor does he go near fragrance, but rather he had a dream in which the Prophet SAW came to him and recited Qur'an very close to his face, and since then, he has had this fragrance coming from his mouth. He died in Madina in the year 167AH at the age of 99 and he was buried in Jannatul Baqi'.