Majmu' al-Fatawa - Ibn Taimiya - (7/42)

Majmu' al-FatawaIbn Taimiya

“The only response of the believers, when they are called to Allah and His Messenger so that he may judge between them, is to say, ‘We hear and we obey.’ It is they who will be successful.”

This, then, is the scope of the term “faith” when used without qualification in the words of Allah and His Messenger: it encompasses performing obligatory duties and refraining from forbidden acts. Anyone whom Allah and His Messenger deny faith must have neglected an obligation or committed something forbidden. He therefore does not fall within the designation whose bearers are entitled to the promised reward and safe from the threatened punishment; rather, he is among those liable to the threatened punishment.

Likewise, Allah Most High says:

“He has made faith beloved to you and beautiful in your hearts, and has made disbelief, wickedness, and disobedience hateful to you. It is they who are rightly guided.”

Muhammad ibn Nasr al-Marwazī said:

Since some sins constitute disbelief while others do not, He distinguished between them, dividing them into three categories: disbelief; wickedness that does not constitute disbelief; and disobedience that constitutes neither disbelief nor wickedness. He stated that He had made all of them hateful to the believers.

Since all acts of obedience fall within faith, with none lying outside it, He did not list them separately by saying, “He has made faith, obligatory duties, and all other acts of obedience beloved to you.” Rather, He encompassed them all in His words:

“He has made faith beloved to you.”

Thus, all acts of obedience are included in this, for He has made prayer, zakat, and all other acts of obedience beloved to the believers as a matter of religious devotion. Allah has stated that He made these things beloved to them and beautiful in their hearts, in His words:

“He has made faith beloved to you.”

They likewise hate all sins—disbelief, wickedness, and all other sins—as a matter of religious devotion, for Allah has stated that He made these things hateful to them.

Among the statements illustrating this are the words of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him:

{إنَّمَا كَانَ قَوْلَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ إذَا دُعُوا إلَى اللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ لِيَحْكُمَ بَيْنَهُمْ أَنْ يَقُولُوا سَمِعْنَا وَأَطَعْنَا وَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْمُفْلِحُونَ} . فَهَذَا حُكْمُ اسْمِ الْإِيمَانِ إذَا أُطْلِقَ فِي كَلَامِ اللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ؛ فَإِنَّهُ يَتَنَاوَلُ فِعْلَ الْوَاجِبَاتِ وَتَرْكَ الْمُحَرَّمَاتِ وَمَنْ نَفَى اللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُ عَنْهُ الْإِيمَانَ؛ فَلَا بُدَّ أَنْ يَكُونَ قَدْ تَرَكَ وَاجِبًا أَوْ فَعَلَ مُحَرَّمًا فَلَا يَدْخُلُ فِي الِاسْمِ الَّذِي يَسْتَحِقُّ أَهْلُهُ الْوَعْدَ دُونَ الْوَعِيدِ؛ بَلْ يَكُونُ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْوَعِيدِ. وَكَذَلِكَ قَوْله تَعَالَى {حَبَّبَ إلَيْكُمُ الْإِيمَانَ وَزَيَّنَهُ فِي قُلُوبِكُمْ وَكَرَّهَ إلَيْكُمُ الْكُفْرَ وَالْفُسُوقَ وَالْعِصْيَانَ أُولَئِكَ هُمُ الرَّاشِدُونَ} . قَالَ مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ نَصْرٍ الْمَرْوَزِي: لَمَّا كَانَتْ الْمَعَاصِي بَعْضُهَا كُفْرٌ وَبَعْضُهَا لَيْسَ بِكُفْرِ فَرَّقَ بَيْنَهَا فَجَعَلَهَا ثَلَاثَةَ أَنْوَاعٍ: نَوْعٌ مِنْهَا كُفْرٌ وَنَوْعٌ مِنْهَا فُسُوقٌ وَلَيْسَ بِكُفْرِ وَنَوْعٌ عِصْيَانٌ وَلَيْسَ بِكُفْرِ وَلَا فُسُوقٍ. وَأَخْبَرَ أَنَّهُ كَرَّهَهَا كُلَّهَا إلَى الْمُؤْمِنِينَ. وَلَمَّا كَانَتْ الطَّاعَاتُ كُلُّهَا دَاخِلَةٍ فِي الْإِيمَانِ وَلَيْسَ فِيهَا شَيْءٌ خَارِجٌ عَنْهُ لَمْ يُفَرِّقْ بَيْنَهَا فَيَقُولُ: حَبَّبَ إلَيْكُمْ الْإِيمَانَ وَالْفَرَائِضَ وَسَائِرَ الطَّاعَاتِ؛ بَلْ أَجْمَلَ ذَلِكَ فَقَالَ: {حَبَّبَ إلَيْكُمُ الْإِيمَانَ} . فَدَخَلَ فِي ذَلِكَ جَمِيعُ الطَّاعَاتِ؛ لِأَنَّهُ قَدْ حَبَّبَ إلَى الْمُؤْمِنِينَ الصَّلَاةَ وَالزَّكَاةَ وَسَائِرَ الطَّاعَاتِ حُبَّ تَدَيُّنٍ لِأَنَّ اللَّهَ أَخْبَرَ: أَنَّهُ حَبَّبَ ذَلِكَ إلَيْهِمْ وَزَيَّنَهُ فِي قُلُوبِهِمْ لِقَوْلِهِ: {حَبَّبَ إلَيْكُمُ الْإِيمَانَ} وَيَكْرَهُونَ جَمِيعَ الْمَعَاصِي؛ الْكُفْرَ مِنْهَا وَالْفُسُوقَ وَسَائِرَ الْمَعَاصِي كَرَاهَةَ تَدَيُّنٍ لِأَنَّ اللَّهَ أَخْبَرَ: أَنَّهُ كَرَّهَ ذَلِكَ إلَيْهِمْ. وَمِنْ ذَلِكَ قَوْلُ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: