Siyar Aʿlām al-Nubalāʾ - Shams al‑Din al‑Dhahabi - (10/76)

Siyar Aʿlām al-NubalāʾShams al‑Din al‑Dhahabi

or to the Fire so that I might console it. Then he wept and recited:

When my heart grew hard and my paths became confined,
I made my ladder of hope nothing but Your pardon.

My sin loomed immense, but when I set it
Beside Your forgiveness, my Lord, Your forgiveness was greater.

You have ever been the Pardoner of sin; without cease
You bestow and forgive out of grace and generosity.

So if You punish me, I shall not despair,
Even were my soul, through my offence, to enter Jahannam (Hell).

Had it not been for You, no worshipper would be misled by Iblis;
How then, when he led astray Your chosen servant Adam?

I commit sin, fully aware of its weight,
Yet I know that Allah forgives out of mercy.

Its chain of transmission is reliably traced back to him (1).

Abu al-‘Abbas al-Asamm said: Al-Rabi‘ ibn Sulayman narrated to us: “I entered upon al-Shafi‘i while he was ill, and he asked me about our companions. I answered, ‘They are talking.’ He said, ‘I have never debated anyone simply to prevail over him, and I would love for all people to learn this book—meaning my writings—without a single part of it being attributed to me.’

He said this on a Sunday, and he died on Thursday. We returned from his funeral on the night of Friday and sighted the crescent of Sha‘ban in the year 204 AH; he was a little over fifty years old (2).

Ibn Abi Hatim said: Abu Muhammad al-Sijistani, a resident of Mecca, wrote to me, reporting from al-Harith ibn Surayj: ‘I entered with al-Shafi‘i upon one of al-Rashid’s servants who was in a room spread with silk brocade. When al-Shafi‘i saw it he turned back. The servant said to him, “Come in.” He replied, “It is not permissible to sit upon what is forbidden.” The servant then stood up, smiling.’

(1) Al-Bayhaqi, Manaqib, vol. 2, pp. 111, 293–294; Yaqut, Muʿjam al-udabaʾ, vol. 17, p. 303; al-Subki, Tabaqat al-Shafiʿiyyah, vol. 1, p. 156; Ibn ʿAsakir, Tarikh, vol. 15, p. 21; al-Suyuti, Tawali al-taʾsis, p. 83. (2) Al-Bayhaqi, Manaqib, vol. 2, pp. 297–298; Ibn ʿAsakir, Tarikh, vol. 15, p. 22/1.

أَوْ إِلَى نَارٍ فَأُعَزِّيْهَا، ثُمَّ بَكَى وَأَنْشَأَ يَقُوْلُ: وَلَمَّا قَسَا قَلْبِي وَضَاقَتْ مَذَاهِبِي ... جَعَلْتُ رَجَائِي دُوْنَ عَفْوِكَ سُلَّمَا تَعَاظَمَنِي ذَنْبِي فَلَمَّا قَرَنْتُهُ ... بِعَفْوِكَ رَبِّي كَانَ عَفْوُكَ أَعْظَمَا فَمَا زِلْتَ ذَا عَفْوٍ عَنِ الذَّنْبِ لَمْ تَزَلْ ... تَجُوْدُ وَتَعْفُو مِنَّةً وَتَكَرُّمَا فَإِنْ تَنْتَقِمْ مِنِّي فَلَسْتُ بِآيِسٍ ... وَلَوْ دَخَلَتْ نَفْسِي بِجِرمِي جَهَنَّمَا وَلولاَكَ لَمْ يُغْوَى بِإِبْلِيْسَ عَابِدٌ ... فَكَيْفَ وَقَدْ أَغوَى صَفِيَّكَ آدَمَا وَإِنِّيْ لآتِي الذّنْبَ أَعْرِفُ قَدْرَهُ ... وَأَعلَمُ أَنَّ اللهَ يَعْفُو تَرَحُّمَا إِسْنَادُهُ ثَابِتٌ عَنْهُ (١) . قَالَ أَبُو العَبَّاسِ الأَصَمُّ: حَدَّثَنَا الرَّبِيْعُ بنُ سُلَيْمَانَ: دَخَلْتُ عَلَى الشَّافِعِيِّ وَهُوَ مريضٌ، فَسَأَلنِي عَنِ أَصْحَابِنَا. فَقُلْتُ: إِنَّهُم يَتَكَلَّمُوْنَ. فَقَالَ: مَا نَاظَرْتُ أَحَداً قَطُّ عَلَى الغَلَبَةِ، وَبِودِّي أَنَّ جَمِيْعَ الخَلْقِ تَعَلَّمُوا هَذَا الكِتَابَ -يَعْنِي: كُتُبَهُ- عَلَى أَنْ لاَ يُنْسَبَ إِلَيَّ مِنْهُ شَيْءٌ. قَالَ هَذَا يَوْمَ الأَحَدِ، وَمَاتَ يَوْمَ الخَمِيْسِ، وَانْصَرَفْنَا مِنْ جِنَازَتِهِ لَيْلَةَ الجُمُعَةِ، فَرَأَيْنَا هِلاَلَ شَعْبَانَ سَنَةَ أَرْبَعٍ وَمائَتَيْنِ، وَلَهُ نَيِّفٌ وَخَمْسُونَ سَنَةً (٢) . ابْنُ أَبِي حَاتِمٍ: كَتَبَ إِلَيَّ أَبُو مُحَمَّدٍ السِّجِسْتَانِيُّ نَزِيْلُ مَكَّةَ، حَدَّثَنِي الحَارِثُ بنُ سُرَيْجٍ، قَالَ: دَخَلْتُ مَعَ الشَّافِعِيِّ عَلَى خَادِمِ الرَّشِيْدِ وَهُوَ فِي بَيْتٍ قَدْ فُرِشَ بِالدِّيْبَاجِ، فَلَمَّا أَبْصَرَهُ رَجَعَ. فَقَالَ لَهُ الخَادِمُ: ادْخُلْ. قَالَ: لاَ يَحِلُّ افْتِرَاشُ الحُرُمِ. فَقَامَ الخَادِم مُتَبَسِّماً

(١) " مناقب " البيهقي ٢ / ١١١، ٢٩٣، ٢٩٤، و" معجم الأدباء " ١٧ / ٣٠٣، و" طبقات الشافعية " للسبكي ١ / ١٥٦، و" تاريخ ابن عساكر " ١٥ / ٢١، و" توالي التأسيس ": ٨٣. (٢) " مناقب " البيهقي ٢ / ٢٩٧، ٢٩٨، و" تاريخ ابن عساكر " ١٥ / ٢٢ / ١.