Majmu' al-Fatawa - Ibn Taimiya - (28/47)

Majmu' al-FatawaIbn Taimiya

He—may Allah have mercy on him—also wrote while in prison:

(*)
We—praise and thanks be to Allah—enjoy immense blessings that increase every day, and Allah Most High continually grants us further blessings. Having the books brought out was among the greatest blessings, for I had been eager for some of them to be brought out so that you could examine them. They disliked al-Ikhnā’iyyah being brought out, yet Allah used them to bring out all the books and compel the opponents to examine them. Through this, the guidance and religion of truth with which Allah sent His Messenger become clear, for these matters had been obscure to most people. Once they become clear, Allah guides whoever seeks the truth; as for whoever seeks falsehood, Allah’s proof is established against him, and he deserves to be humbled and disgraced by Allah. I wrote none of this to be concealed from anyone, even someone hostile.

The papers containing your replies have arrived. I am well, and my eyes are well—better than ever. We enjoy immense blessings beyond counting or reckoning. All praise is due to Allah—abundant, pure, and blessed praise.

He then made some further remarks and said:

Everything Allah Most High decrees contains goodness and mercy

(*) Shaykh Nāsir ibn Hamad al-Fahd stated (p. 214): Two points should be noted here: First: This letter was among the last things the shaykh—may Allah have mercy on him—wrote. He wrote it approximately a month and a half before his death, as stated in al-‘Uqūd al-Durriyya, p. 384. Second: Ibn ‘Abd al-Hādī—may Allah have mercy on him—included this letter in al-‘Uqūd—and I believe his book is the source from which this letter was taken. The two versions differ in only one place: al-Fatāwā reads, “The papers containing your replies have arrived,” whereas al-‘Uqūd reads, “The papers containing your replies have been washed.” The reading in al-‘Uqūd appears to be correct. And Allah knows best.

وَكَتَبَ - رَحِمَهُ اللَّهُ - وَهُوَ فِي السِّجْنِ: (*) وَنَحْنُ - وَلِلَّهِ الْحَمْدُ وَالشُّكْرُ - فِي نِعَمٍ عَظِيمَةٍ تَتَزَايَدُ كُلَّ يَوْمٍ وَيُجَدِّدُ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى مِنْ نِعَمِهِ نِعَمًا أُخْرَى؛ وَخُرُوجُ الْكُتُبِ كَانَ مِنْ أَعْظَمِ النِّعَمِ فَإِنِّي كُنْت حَرِيصًا عَلَى خُرُوجِ شَيْءٍ مِنْهَا لِتَقِفُوا عَلَيْهِ وَهُمْ كَرِهُوا خُرُوجَ " الإخنائية " فَاسْتَعْمَلَهُمْ اللَّهُ فِي إخْرَاجِ الْجَمِيعِ؛ وَإِلْزَامِ الْمُنَازِعِينَ بِالْوُقُوفِ عَلَيْهِ وَبِهَذَا يَظْهَرُ مَا أَرْسَلَ اللَّهُ بِهِ رَسُولَهُ مِنْ الْهُدَى وَدِينِ الْحَقِّ؛ فَإِنَّ هَذِهِ الْمَسَائِلَ كَانَتْ خَفِيَّةً عَلَى أَكْثَرِ النَّاسِ. فَإِذَا ظَهَرَتْ فَمَنْ كَانَ قَصْدُهُ الْحَقَّ هَدَاهُ اللَّهُ؛ وَمَنْ كَانَ قَصْدُهُ الْبَاطِلَ قَامَتْ عَلَيْهِ حُجَّةُ اللَّهِ؛ وَاسْتَحَقَّ أَنْ يُذِلَّهُ اللَّهُ وَيُخْزِيَهُ وَمَا كَتَبْت شَيْئًا مِنْ هَذَا لِيُكْتَمَ عَنْ أَحَدٍ وَلَوْ كَانَ مُبْغِضًا. وَالْأَوْرَاقُ الَّتِي فِيهَا جَوَابَاتُكُمْ وَصَلَتْ وَأَنَا طَيِّبٌ وَعَيْنَايَ طَيِّبَتَانِ أَطْيَبَ مَا كَانَتَا. وَنَحْنُ فِي نِعَمٍ عَظِيمَةٍ لَا تُحْصَى وَلَا تُعَدُّ. وَالْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ حَمْدًا كَثِيرًا طَيِّبًا مُبَارَكًا فِيهِ. ثُمَّ ذَكَرَ كَلَامًا وَقَالَ: كُلُّ مَا يَقْضِيهِ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى فِيهِ الْخَيْرُ وَالرَّحْمَةُ

(*) قال الشيخ ناصر بن حمد الفهد (ص ٢١٤): وهنا تنبيهان: الأول: أن هذه الرسالة هي من آخر ما كتبه الشيخ رحمه الله، حيث كتبها قبل موته بنحو شهر ونصف كما في (العقود الدرية) ص ٣٨٤. الثاني: أن ابن عبد الهادي رحمه الله ذكر هذه الرسالة في العقود - وأظن كتابه هو مصدر هذه الرسالة - ولا يوجد فرق بين الرسالتين إلا في موضع واحد فقط، حيث قال في الفتاوى (والأوراق التي فيها جواباتكم وصلت)، وهي في العقود (والأوراق التي فيها جواباتكم غسلت)، والظاهر أن الذي في العقود هو الصحيح، والله أعلم.