Iqtiḍāʾ al-Ṣirāṭ al-Mustaqīm - Ibn Taimiya - (1/464)

Iqtiḍāʾ al-Ṣirāṭ al-MustaqīmIbn Taimiya

It has been said: As for objecting that “the law of those before us is our law so long as our own Law has not come with something contrary,” that contention rests on two premises—both of which are absent when it comes to imitating them.

The first premise is that it must be established, through a trustworthy transmission, that the matter was indeed legislated for them: such as Allah informing us of it in His Book, His Messenger conveying it, or it being transmitted through mass-narration and the like. Simply reverting to their own statements or to what is found in their books is, by unanimous agreement, impermissible. Even though the Prophet (Allah bless and grant him peace) once inquired of them, they informed him, and he examined what was in the Torah, that was only because their falsehood could not be concealed from him; rather, Allah Most High made him aware of what in their words was false and what was true, as He had told him of their lies on more than one occasion. We, on the other hand, cannot be sure they will not lie to us; the narrator may be a flagrant sinner, indeed an unbeliever, who brings us a report that we then follow. It is authentically reported from the Prophet (Allah bless and grant him peace) that he said:

“When the People of the Book relate something to you, neither confirm it nor deny it.” (2)

The second premise is that our own Sacred Law contains no specific ruling on the matter. Yet if our Law does contain a clear text—whether in agreement or in opposition—that suffices, and we dispense with whatever is forbidden because it entails imitating them. Nor has it been proven that the practice in question was legislated for those before us; even if it were, the way (hady) of our Prophet (Allah bless and grant him peace) was contrary to it, and it is he whom we have been commanded to follow and emulate. Our Prophet (Allah bless and grant him peace) has in fact instructed us that our way should differ from the way of the Jews and the Christians; any concurrence arises only in contingent rulings, not in habitual conduct and enduring symbols.

All of this is on condition that nothing has been transmitted from our Prophet or his Companions to the contrary, nor that the root of that ruling has been confirmed within our own religion. Indeed, it has been established concerning a prophet

(1) The word sharaʿ is absent from manuscript A. (2) Reported by al-Bukhari, Book of Tafsir, chapter “Say: We believe in Allah and what has been sent down to us,” Fatḥ al-Bari, 8/170, ḥadith no. 4485; its wording is: “Do not affirm what the People of the Book say, nor declare them liars … .” (3) Manuscripts J, D, and Ṭ read lam (“did not”) without the preceding conjunction waw (“and”).

قيل: أما المعارضة بكون شرع (١) من قبلنا شرع لنا، ما لم يرد شرعنا بخلافه، فذاك مبني على مقدمتين، كلتاهما منفية في مسألة التشبه بهم: إحداهما: أن يثبت أن ذلك شرع لهم، بنقل موثوق به، مثل أن يخبرنا الله في كتابه، أو على لسان رسوله، أو ينقل بالتواتر، ونحو ذلك، فأما مجرد الرجوع إلى قولهم، أو إلى ما في كتبهم، فلا يجوز بالاتفاق، والنبي صلى الله عليه وسلم، وإن كان قد استخبرهم فأخبروه، ووقف على ما في التوراة؛ فإنما ذلك لأنه لا يروج عليه باطلهم، بل الله سبحانه يعرفه ما يكذبون مما يصدقون، كما قد أخبره بكذبهم غير مرة. وأما نحن فلا نأمن أن يحدثونا بالكذب، فيكون فاسق، بل كافر قد جاءنا بنبأ فاتبعناه، وقد ثبت في الصحيح عن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم أنه قال: «إذا حدثكم أهل الكتاب فلا تصدقوهم، ولا تكذبوهم» (٢) . المقدمة الثانية: أن لا يكون في شرعنا بيان خاص لذلك، فأما إذا كان فيه بيان خاص: إما بالموافقة، أو بالمخالفة، استغني عن ذلك فيما ينهى عنه من موافقته، ولم (٣) يثبت أنه شرع لمن كان قبلنا، وإن ثبت فقد كان هدي نبينا صلى الله عليه وسلم بخلافه، وبهم أمرنا نحن أن نتبع ونقتدي، وقد أمرنا نبينا صلى الله عليه وسلم: أن يكون هدينا مخالفا لهدي اليهود والنصارى، وإنما تجيء الموافقة في بعض الأحكام العارضة، لا في الهدي الراتب، والشعار الدائم. ثم ذلك بشرط: أن لا يكون قد جاء عن نبينا وأصحابه خلافه، أو ثبت أصل شرعه في ديننا، وقد ثبت عن نبي من الأنبياء

(١) شرع: ساقطة من (أ) . (٢) أخرجه البخاري في كتاب التفسير، باب قولوا آمنا بالله وما أنزل إلينا، الحديث رقم (٤٤٨٥) من فتح الباري (٨ / ١٧٠) ، ولفظه: " لا تصدقوا أهل الكتاب ولا تكذبوهم. . " الحديث. (٣) في (ج د ط) : لم. بدون الواو.