No legal opinion or judgment of Abū Bakr is known to have contradicted a scriptural text, whereas several such instances are known concerning Umar, Uthmān, and Alī (1). More are known concerning Alī than concerning the other two (2).

One example is his opinion that a [pregnant woman] (3) whose husband has died must observe her waiting period until the later of the two prescribed periods has elapsed. The two Sahīh collections report concerning the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace:

“He told Subay‘a al-Aslamiyya, when she gave birth three nights after her husband’s death, ‘Your waiting period is over, so marry whomever you wish.’ When she told him, ‘Abū al-Sanābil said that I cannot marry until the later of the two periods has elapsed,’ he said, ‘Abū al-Sanābil is mistaken.’” (4)

In his book Khilāf Alī wa-Abd Allāh, al-Shāfi‘ī compiled a substantial collection of Alī’s opinions that people had abandoned because they contradicted a scriptural text or its meaning.

After him, Muhammad ibn Nasr al-Marwazī compiled an even larger collection. When those from Kufa debated him, he would cite scriptural texts as evidence, and they would reply, “We have followed the opinion of Alī and Ibn Mas‘ūd.” He therefore compiled for them many opinions (5) of Alī and Ibn Mas‘ūd that they themselves, or others, had abandoned. He would say, “If you may disagree with them (6) on those questions because the evidence establishes a position contrary to theirs (7), then the same applies to the remaining questions.” Nothing comparable is known concerning Abū Bakr.