The Jurisprudence of the Four Schools and the Ruling on Adhering to One of Them

The Shaykh : In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may prayers and peace be upon the leader of the white-ankled ones, our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions. O dear brothers, O noble listening brothers, our guest on the phone is the Honorable Shaykh Muhammad ibn Salih al-Uthaymeen, professor at the College of Sharia and Principles of Religion in al-Qasim, and the preacher and imam of the Grand Mosque in the city of Unayzah. At the beginning of this meeting, I welcome the Honorable Shaykh Muhammad with the warmest welcome, so welcome, Shaykh Muhammad.

The questioner : Welcome and greetings. This questioner from the Sultanate of Oman, Ibrahim, says in this question: I ask your honor to inform us about the four schools of jurisprudence and their rulings, and whether there are other schools. If a person adopts one of them, is that sufficient? We ask for your guidance.

The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and I send prayers and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and his Companions, and upon those who follow them with excellence until the Day of Judgment.
The four famous schools are the school of Imam Malik, the school of Imam Abu Hanifah, the school of Imam al-Shafi'i, and the school of Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal (may Allah have mercy on them). There are other schools, such as the school of the Zahiriyyah and the Sufi school, among others, but these are not the famous schools among Muslims today. Yes.
As for adopting one of them, it is permissible, but it is obligatory for a person to adopt the school he considers closest to the truth, as Allah the Blessed and Exalted said: . If a sick person chooses from among doctors the one he considers closest to the correct treatment,
so likewise in religion, it is obligatory for a person to adopt what he considers closest to the truth. However, it is not permissible to place this followed imam in the position of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), taking his words and actions in all circumstances and not seeing it permissible to deviate from them when evidence is revealed that contradicts them. Rather, adhering to these schools is a matter of approximation, meaning approximating jurisprudence and knowledge for the person. Otherwise, the primary and ultimate obligation is that Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) be your imam, because you will be held accountable for him on the Day of Resurrection, as Allah the Blessed and Exalted said: .
And whoever adopts one of these four schools or any other, and evidence is revealed to him that contradicts it, then it is obligatory for him to deviate from it to the evidence, due to the saying of Allah the Blessed and Exalted: