Imam Abū Ḥanīfa was an influential Islamic scholar and jurist who founded the Hanafi school of Islamic jurisprudence. He was born in 699 CE in Kufa, Iraq and showed early intellectual promise, embarking on a quest for religious knowledge. He studied under prominent scholars and became a distinguished student of Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq. Though offered the position of Chief Judge, Abu Hanifa declined in order to remain independent and was later imprisoned and tortured, dying in prison in 767 CE. He was greatly respected and influential in Islamic law.