Five Key Characteristics of the Five Imams

In his Ihya', Imam al-Ghazali states:

فالفقهاء الذين هم زعماء الفقه وقادة الخلق أعني الذين كثر أتباعهم في المذاهب خمسة الشافعي ومالك وأحمد بن حنبل وأبو حنيفة وسفيان الثوري رحمهم الله تعالى وكل واحد منهم كان عابدا وزاهدا وعالما بعلوم الآخرة وفقيها في مصالح الخلق في الدنيا ومريدا بفقهه وجه الله تعالى فهذه خمس خصال اتبعهم فقهاء العصر من جملتها على خصلة واحدة وهي التشمير والمبالغة في تفاريع الفقه لأن الخصال الأربع لا تصلح إلا للآخرة وهذه الخصلة الواحدة تصلح للدنيا والآخرة إن أريد بها الآخرة قل صلاحها للدنيا شمروا لها وادعوا بها مشابهة أولئك الأئمة

"The jurisprudents who are the spokesmen of the science of jurisprudence and the leaders of men, namely those whose school claims the greatest following, are five: al-Shafi'i, Malik, abu-Hanifah, Ahmad ibn-Hanbal, and Sufyan al-Thawri, each of whom has been a worshipper of God, an ascetic, a learned man versed in the science of the hereafter, a jurisprudent well-informed in the affairs of men in this world, and a devotee to the knowledge of God's face. All of these five characteristics, with the exception of the fourth, the pursuit and thorough research into the details of jurisprudence, have been cultivated by the jurisprudents of the different schools, because the other four characteristics are of no use except for the hereafter, while this particular one is useful for the affairs of this world and the next. Its value for this world, however, diminishes when the hereafter becomes its avowed end. The modern jurisprudents have taken it up and consequently have claimed to be like the early imams. But how far from the truth this is, since angels are not usually compared with blacksmiths." [English translation by Nabih Amin Faris]

Here, Imam al-Ghazali mentions five key characteristics of the five Imams (Sufyan ath-Thawri included):

1) They were worshipers of God (i.e., they engaged in a lot of supererogatory worship).

2) They were ascetics.

3) They were learned in the sciences pertaining to the Hereafter.

4) They were jurists who knew the masalih of mankind in this life.

5) They sought the pleasure of Allah through their practice of fiqh.

Al-Ghazali points out that with the exception of the fourth one, all of these matters only truly benefit us later in the afterlife, while the fourth one has its benefits in the dunya as well. He points out that most of the fuqaha of his era lopsidedly focus on the fourth aspect at the expense of neglecting the others, and despite doing so, they still attribute and compare themselves to the Imams who founded their respective juristic schools. Al-Ghazali shuns such a comparison.

This is such a powerful point Al-Ghazali is making. We all make a big deal and take pride in following our respective Imams and favorite scholars, yet how far are we all from imitating them in their piety and character.