Zād al-Maʿād - Ibn al-Qayyim - (1/72)

The fourth: Warning a people to whom no warner (1) had come before him—namely, all the Arabs.

The fifth: Warning all jinn and human beings whom his call reaches until the end of time.

Section

After that, he—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—spent three years calling to Allah in secret. Then the following was revealed (2) to him:

“Then proclaim what you are commanded, and turn away from the polytheists.” [al-Hijr: 94]

He—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—then proclaimed his call publicly and openly declared his enmity toward his people. Conditions became increasingly difficult for him and the Muslims, until they were permitted to undertake the two migrations.

Section: His Names—May Allah Bless Him and Grant Him Peace

All his names are descriptive names (3), not merely proper names serving only to identify him. Rather, they are derived from qualities he possesses that establish his praiseworthiness and perfection.

Among them is Muhammad, the best known of his names. He is explicitly named by it in the Torah, as we have demonstrated with clear evidence in our book, “Clarifying Understanding on the Merit of Invoking Blessings and Peace upon the Best of Mankind” (4). It is a work unique in its subject; no one has preceded us (5) in producing its like in the wealth of its benefits

(1) ك, ع, مب, ن: “min nadhīr (any warner).” (2) ك, ع: “unzila (was sent down).” (3) This is the reading in the manuscripts and the Indian edition. Subsequent editions omitted the word “names.” (4) pp. 215–222. (5) ع: “yusbaq (is preceded),” as also in the printed edition. Its first letter is undotted in ك and مب. The reading adopted from ص, ج, and ن agrees with that in Jalā’ al-afhām (Clarifying Understanding).

الرابعة: إنذار قومٍ ما أتاهم نذيرٌ (١) من قبله، وهم العرب قاطبةً. الخامسة: إنذار جميع من بلغته دعوته من الجن والإنس إلى آخر الدهر. فصل فأقام ﷺ بعد ذلكَ ثلاث سنين يدعو إلى الله مستخفيًا. ثم نزل (٢) عليه ﴿فَاصْدَعْ بِمَا تُؤْمَرُ وَأَعْرِضْ عَنِ الْمُشْرِكِينَ﴾ [الحجر: ٩٤]، فأعلن ﷺ بالدعوة، وجاهر قومَه بالعداوة. واشتدَّ الأمرُ عليه وعلى المسلمين حتى أُذِن لهم في الهجرتين. فصل في أسمائه ﷺ - وكلها أسماءُ نعوتٍ (٣) ليست أعلامًا محضةً لمجرَّد التعريف، بل أسماء مشتقَّة من صفات قامت به توجب له المدح والكمال. فمنها: محمد، وهو أشهرها. وبه سُمِّي في التوراة صريحًا كما بينَّاه بالبرهان الواضح في كتاب «جلاء الأفهام في فضل الصلاة والسلام على خير الأنام» (٤). وهو كتابٌ فَرْدٌ في معناه لم نُسبَق (٥) إلى مثله في كثرة فوائده

(١) ك، ع، مب، ن: «من نذير». (٢) ك، ع: «أنزل». (٣) هكذا في الأصول والطبعة الهندية. وفي الطبعات التالية حذفوا كلمة «أسماء». (٤) (ص ٢١٥ - ٢٢٢). (٥) ع: «يُسبق»، وكذا في المطبوع. ولم ينقط أوله في ك، مب. والمثبت من ص، ج، ن موافق لما في «جلاء الأفهام».