Siyar Aʿlām al-Nubalāʾ - Shams al‑Din al‑Dhahabi - (18/284)

Siyar Aʿlām al-NubalāʾShams al‑Din al‑Dhahabi

Al-Khaṭīb said:

“As for discussion of the divine attributes, whatever is transmitted about them in the authentic Sunan, the position of the early generations (salaf) is to affirm them, allow them to stand upon their apparent sense, and to deny both modality and resemblance. Some people have rejected them outright, thereby nullifying what Allah has affirmed; others, while affirming them, have treated them in a manner that amounts to a kind of anthropomorphism and specification. The aim, rather, is to follow the middle course between the two extremes, for the religion of Allah, Exalted be He, lies between excess and negligence.

“The basic rule here is that discourse on the attributes is a branch of discourse on the Essence and must follow its pattern. Once it is known (1) that affirming the Lord of the worlds is simply an affirmation of His existence, not an affirmation of ‘how’, then likewise affirming His attributes is merely an affirmation of their existence, not a fixation of limit or modality.

“Thus, when we say that Allah possesses a hand, hearing, and sight, these are attributes He has affirmed for Himself. We do not say that ‘hand’ means power, nor that hearing and sight mean knowledge, nor do we say that they are bodily limbs.

“Nor do we liken them to the hands, ears, and eyes that are limbs and instruments of action. Their affirmation is obligatory only because the revealed texts have come with them, and negating resemblance is likewise obligatory, in His words: ‘There is nothing like unto Him’ (al-Shūrā 11) and ‘And there is none comparable to Him’ (2) (al-Ikhlāṣ 4).”

Ibn al-Najjār said: Al-Khaṭīb was born in a village belonging to the district of Nahr al-Malik. His father was the Friday preacher in Darzījān, whereas he himself grew up in Baghdad. He studied the Qurʾanic readings with their variant transmissions, pursued jurisprudence under al-Ṭabarī, and wrote down from him certain disputed issues … until he said:

“Those who narrated from him include Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Malik ibn Khayrūn, Abū Saʿd Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad al-Zawzanī, and Mufliḥ ibn —”

(1) In the base manuscript the word reads “ma‘lum,” which is incorrect. (2) See Tadhkirat al-huffaz, vol. 3, pp. 1142–1143.

الخَطِيْب قَالَ: أَمَّا الكَلاَمُ فِي الصِّفَات، فَإِنَّ مَا رُوِيَ مِنْهَا فِي السُّنَن الصِّحَاح، مَذْهَبُ السَّلَف إِثبَاتُهَا وَإِجرَاؤُهَا عَلَى ظوَاهرهَا، وَنَفْيُ الكَيْفِيَة وَالتَّشبيه عَنْهَا، وَقَدْ نَفَاهَا قَوْمٌ، فَأَبطلُوا مَا أَثبَتَهُ الله، وَحققهَا قَوْمٌ مِنَ المُثْبِتين، فَخَرَجُوا فِي ذَلِكَ إِلَى ضَرْب مِنَ التَّشبيه وَالتَّكييف، وَالقصدُ إِنَّمَا هُوَ سُلُوْك الطّرِيقَة المتوسطَة بَيْنَ الأَمرِيْن، وَدينُ الله تَعَالَى بَيْنَ الغَالِي فِيْهِ وَالمُقصِّر عَنْهُ. وَالأَصْلُ فِي هَذَا أَنَّ الكَلاَم فِي الصِّفَات فَرْعُ الكَلاَم فِي الذَّات، وَيُحتذَى فِي ذَلِكَ حَذْوُهُ وَمثَالُه، فَإِذَا كَانَ معلُوْماً (١) أَن إِثْبَاتَ رَبِّ العَالِمِين إِنَّمَا هُوَ إِثْبَاتُ وَجُوْدٍ لاَ إِثْبَاتُ كَيْفِيَة، فَكَذَلِكَ إِثْبَاتُ صِفَاته إِنَّمَا هُوَ إِثْبَاتُ وَجُوْدٍ لاَ إِثْبَاتُ تحديدٍ وَتَكييف. فَإِذَا قُلْنَا: للهِ يَد وَسَمْع وَبصر، فَإِنَّمَا هِيَ صِفَاتٌ أَثبتهَا الله لِنَفْسِهِ، وَلاَ نَقُوْل: إِنَّ مَعْنَى اليَد القدرَة، وَلاَ إِنَّ مَعْنَى السَّمْع وَالبصر: العِلْم، وَلاَ نَقُوْل: إِنَّهَا جَوَارح. وَلاَ نُشَبِّهُهَا بِالأَيدي وَالأَسْمَاع وَالأَبْصَار الَّتِي هِيَ جَوَارح وَأَدوَاتٌ لِلفعل، وَنَقُوْلُ: إِنَّمَا وَجب إِثبَاتُهَا لأَنَّ التَّوقيف وَردَ بِهَا، وَوجب نَفِيُ التَّشبيه عَنْهَا لِقَوْلِهِ: ﴿لَيْسَ كَمِثْلِهِ شَيْءٌ﴾ [الشُّوْرَى:١١] ﴿وَلَمْ يَكُنْ لَهُ كُفُواً أَحَد (٢) ﴾ [الإِخلاَص:٤] . قَالَ ابْنُ النَّجَّار: وُلِدَ الخَطِيْبُ بقَرْيَة مِنْ أَعْمَالِ نَهْر الْملك، وَكَانَ أَبُوْهُ خَطِيْباً بدَرْزِيجَان، وَنَشَأَ هُوَ بِبَغْدَادَ، وَقرَأَ القِرَاءات بِالروَايَات، وَتَفَقَّهَ عَلَى الطَّبَرِيّ، وَعلق عَنْهُ شَيْئاً مِنَ الخلاَف ... ، إِلَى أَنْ قَالَ: وَرَوَى عَنْهُ: مُحَمَّدُ بنُ عَبْدِ المَلِكِ بنِ خَيْرُوْنَ، وَأَبُو سَعْدٍ أَحْمَدُ بنُ مُحَمَّدٍ الزَّوْزَنِي، وَمفلحُ بنُ

(١) في الأصل معلوم، وهو خطأ. (٢) انظر " تذكرة الحفاظ " ٣ / ١١٤٢، ١١٤٣.