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‘Umar ibn al-Khattāb recite this verse, the words of Allah Most High:
“Let man look at his food.” (24) [‘Abasa 24]
He then said, “All this we understand, but what is abb (pasture)?” Then he moved a staff he held in his hand and said, “This is needless probing. What harm is there in your not knowing what abb means?” He then said, “Follow what has been made clear to you in this Book, and leave whatever has not.”
His words, “Follow what has been made clear to you,” mean whatever has become clear to you. Otherwise, Allah Most High has indeed made all of it clear, but some of its contents may remain unclear to some people. ‘Umar did not understand abb, just as he did not understand kalālah.
عمر بن الخطاب قرأ هذه الآية قوله تعالى فَلْيَنْظُرِ الْإِنْسَانُ إِلَى طَعَامِهِ
(٢٤)
[عبس ٢٤]
ثم قال كل هذا قد عرفناه فما الأبّ ثم رقص عصا كانت بيده فقال هذا من باب التكلف وما عليك أن لا تدري ما الأبّ ثم قال اتبعوا ما بُيّن لكم في هذا الكتاب وما لا فدعوه فقوله اتبعوا ما بُيّن لكم أي ما تبين لكم وإلا فالله تعالى قد بينه كله لكن قد يخفي لعض ما فيه على بعض الناس وعمر خفي عليه الأبّ كما خفي عليه الكلالة