Al-Fawāʾid - Ibn al-Qayyim - (الكتاب/296)

Al-FawāʾidIbn al-Qayyim

A Noble Principle

I reflected on this matter and discovered that its foundation is this: you must realize that every blessing comes from Allah alone—both the blessings of obedience and the blessings of lawful pleasures. You should therefore turn to Him, asking Him to inspire you to remember those blessings and to grant you the ability to give thanks for them. Exalted is He who says: “Every blessing you enjoy is from Allah; then, when harm touches you, to Him you cry for help.” (53) [al-Nahl: 53] — and: “So remember Allah’s favors that you may prosper.” (69) [al-Aʿrāf: 69] — and: “Give thanks for Allah’s blessing, if it is Him alone that you worship.” (114) [al-Nahl: 114]. Just as those blessings come solely from Him and from His pure grace, their remembrance and your gratitude for them can be attained only through His enabling grace.

Sins, on the other hand, arise from His abandonment—His leaving the servant to himself and allowing a barrier to stand between the servant and his Lord. If Allah does not lift that barrier from His servant, the servant has no means whatsoever to remove it on his own. Consequently he is compelled to beseech and implore Allah to avert from him the causes of sin so that they do not emanate from him; and, if by decree and by the very nature of being human those sins do occur, he is equally compelled to plead that Allah repel their consequences and punishments.

Thus the servant can never cease needing these three essentials, and he will find success only through them: gratitude, the quest for well-being, and sincere repentance.

I then reflected further and found that all of this turns upon hope and fear. Yet hope and fear are not in the servant’s hands; they lie in the hands of Him who turns hearts and directs them as He wills. If He grants a servant success, He draws that servant’s heart toward Him and fills it with both hope and fear. But if He forsakes the servant, He leaves him to his own self, does not draw his heart to Him, and does not will that for him. Whatever Allah wills comes to pass, and whatever He does not will never occurs.

I pondered once more: do guidance and abandonment have causes, or are they produced solely by sheer divine will with no cause at all? I found that their cause lies in the receptivity—or the lack thereof—of the vessel; and He, exalted is He, is the Creator

قاعدة جليلة فكَّرتُ في هذا الأمر؛ فإذا أصله: أن تعلم أن النعم كلها من الله وحده؛ نِعم الطاعات ونِعم اللَّذَّات، فترغب إليه أن يُلهمك ذكرَها ويُوزِعَك شكرَها، قال تعالى: ﴿وَمَا بِكُمْ مِنْ نِعْمَةٍ فَمِنَ اللَّهِ ثُمَّ إِذَا مَسَّكُمُ الضُّرُّ فَإِلَيهِ تَجْأَرُونَ (٥٣)﴾ [النحل: ٥٣]، وقال: ﴿فَاذْكُرُوا آلَاءَ اللَّهِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ (٦٩)﴾ [الأعراف: ٦٩]، وقال: ﴿وَاشْكُرُوا نِعْمَتَ اللَّهِ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ إِيَّاهُ تَعْبُدُونَ (١١٤)﴾ [النحل: ١١٤]، وكما أن تلك النعم منه ومن مجردِ فضله؛ فذِكرُها وشكرُها لا يُنال إلَّا بتوفيقه. والذنوب من خِذلانه وتخلِّيه عن عبده وتَخليتِه بينه وبين نفسه، وإن لم يكشفْ ذلك عن عبده فلا سبيلَ له إلى كشفه عن نفسه؛ فإذا هو مضطرٌّ إلى التضرع والابتهال إليه أن يدفع عنه أسبابها حتى لا تصدر منه، وإذا وقعتْ بحكم المقادير ومقتضى البشرية فهو مضطر إلى التضرع والدعاء أن يدفع عنه موجباتها وعقوباتها. فلا ينفكُّ العبد عن ضرورته إلى هذه الأصول الثلاثة، ولا فلاحَ له إلا بها: الشكر، وطلب العافية، والتوبة النصوح. ثم فكَّرتُ فإذا مدارُ ذلك على الرغبة والرهبة، وليسا بيد العبد، بل بيد مقلِّب القلوب ومصرِّفها كيف يشاء؛ فإن وفَّق عبدَه أقبل بقلبه إليه وملأهُ رغبةً ورهبةً، وإن خذلَه تركه ونفسَه، ولم يأخذ بقلبه إليه، ولم يشأ له ذلك، وما شاء الله كان وما لم يشأ لم يكن. ثم فكَّرتُ: هل للتوفيق والخذلان سببٌ؟ أم هما بمجرد المشيئة لا سببَ لهما؟ فإذا سببهما أهلية المحل وعدمها؛ فهو سبحانه خالق