Sharḥ Riyāḍ al-Ṣāliḥīn - Ibn al-'Uthaymin - (1/444)

Sharḥ Riyāḍ al-ṢāliḥīnIbn al-'Uthaymin

The sixth is the keeper of Paradise. Some reports mention that his name is Riḍwān, and he has been placed in charge of the Garden just as Mālik has been placed in charge of the Fire. For every angel whose name is known to us we affirm faith in him by name; as for those whose names we do not know, we affirm faith in them in general—believing in the tasks we have been told they perform, in the qualities described for them, and in everything the Book and the Sunnah have related concerning the attributes of these angels.

Question: We have said that the angels are part of the unseen realm; can they nevertheless be seen? The answer is: yes, they can—either in the form in which they were created or in another form Allah chooses for them. Thus, on the Day of Badr He said to them: “I am with you, so make firm those who believe; I will cast terror into the hearts of those who disbelieve—strike above their necks and strike every fingertip of theirs” (al-Anfal 8:12). At such moments they may appear in their own form.

Gabriel, for instance, was seen by the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—in his original form on two occasions: once on earth, at the mouth of Ḥirāʾ near Mecca, and once in heaven, by the Lote-Tree of the Ultimate Boundary, as Allah says: “And indeed he saw him on another descent, by the Lote-Tree of the Furthest Boundary” (al-Najm 53:13–14). The Prophet saw him with six hundred wings that filled the entire horizon. Only Allah knows the true extent of those wings; but when something lofty fills the horizon, that simply means it is immeasurably vast.

These were the two times the Prophet saw Gabriel in his true form. On other occasions Gabriel would come to him in the likeness of a human being, as in the ḥadīth narrated by ʿUmar, where he appeared as a man with intensely black hair and exceedingly white garments, bearing no trace of travel, and whom none of the Companions recognized. Allah is capable of all things, and He has granted the angels the ability to assume human shapes—whether by their own choice or by His—

السادس: خازن الجنة: وورد في بعض الآثار إن اسمه (رضوان) وهذا وكل بالجنة كما إن مالكا وكل بالنار. فمن علمنا اسمه من الملائكة آمنا به باسمه، ومن لم نعلم باسمه آمنا به علي سبيل الإجمال، آمنا بعمله الذي نعلمه وبوصفه وبكل ما جاء به الكتاب والسنة من أوصاف هؤلاء الملائكة. مسالة: قلنا إن الملائكة عالم غيبي، فعل يمكن إن يروا؟ الجواب: نعم قد يرون، أما علي صورتهم التي خلقوا عليها، واما علي صورة من أراد الله إن) أَنِّي مَعَكُمْ فَثَبِّتُوا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا سَأُلْقِي فِي قُلُوبِ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا الرُّعْبَ فَاضْرِبُوا فَوْقَ الْأَعْنَاقِ وَاضْرِبُوا مِنْهُمْ كُلَّ بَنَانٍ) (لأنفال: من الآية١٢) يكون علي صورته! فجبريل رآه النبي صلي الله عليه وسلم علي صورته التي خلقه الله عليها في موضعين، في الأرض وفي السماء: في الأرض عند قار حراء قرب مكة، وفي السماء عند سدرة المنتهي، كما قال الله (وَلَقَدْ رَآهُ نَزْلَةً أُخْرَى عِنْدَ سِدْرَةِ الْمُنْتَهَى) (لنجم: ١٤، ١٣) ، رآه وله ستمائة جناح قد سد الأفق، أي: ملا الأفق كله وله ستمائة جناح، ولا يعلم قدرة الأجنحة إلا الله ﷿، لكن إذا كان الشي عاليا سد الأفق فمعناه انه واسع جدا. هذا الذي رآه النبي صلي الله عليه وسلم علي صورته مرتين، أحيانا يأتيه بصورة إنسان كما في حديث عمر_ رضي الله عنه_ الذي معنا في قصة جبريل، فقد جاءه بصورة رجل شديد سواد الشعر، شديد بياض الثياب، لا يري عليه اثر السفر، ولا يعرفه الصحابة، والله علي كل شئ قدير، قد أعطاهم الله ﷾ ذلك إن يتصوروا بصور البشر، أما باختيارهم واما باختيار