Minhaj as-Sunnah - Ibn Taimiya - (1/109)

Minhaj as-SunnahIbn Taimiya

thus declaring them rightly guided and successful (1), without mentioning the Imamate.

Moreover, we know by necessity from the religion of Muhammad [son of Abdullah] (2)—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—that when people embraced Islam, he did not make their faith conditional upon knowledge of the Imamate, nor did he mention any such thing to them. Anything constituting one of the pillars of faith necessarily had to be explained by the Messenger to the believers so that they might attain faith [through it] (3). Since it is known by necessity that the Messenger did not make this a condition of faith, it follows that making it such a condition is one of the claims of the people of falsehood.

If it is said: “It is included within the general scope of the texts (4), or it falls under the principle that whatever is indispensable to fulfilling an obligation is itself obligatory, or another text indicates (5) it,”

it is replied: Even if all of this were true, it would at most establish that the Imamate is one of the subsidiary branches of religion, not (6) one of the pillars of faith. A pillar of faith is something without which faith cannot exist, such as the two testimonies of faith: a person is not a believer until he testifies that there is no deity except Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah. If the Imamate were a pillar of faith without which no one’s faith could be complete, the Messenger would necessarily have explained it in a general and conclusive manner that left no room for excuse, just as he explained

(1) N and M read: “successful and rightly guided.” (2) “Son of Abdullah” is added in A and B. (3) “Through it” is omitted from N and M. (4) A and B read: “the text.” (5) N reads: “and another text indicates it.” 1 (6) N and M read: “and thus it would not be.”

فَجَعَلَهُمْ مُهْتَدِينَ مُفْلِحِينَ (١) ، وَلَمْ يَذْكُرِ الْإِمَامَةَ. وَأَيْضًا: فَنَحْنُ نَعْلَمُ بِالِاضْطِرَارِ مِنْ دِينِ مُحَمَّدِ [بْنِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ.] (٢) - صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ - كَانُوا إِذَا أَسْلَمُوا لَمْ يَجْعَلْ إِيمَانَهُمْ مَوْقُوفًا عَلَى مَعْرِفَةِ الْإِمَامَةِ، وَلَمْ يَذْكُرْ لَهُمْ شَيْئًا مِنْ ذَلِكَ، وَمَا كَانَ أَحَدَ أَرْكَانِ الْإِيمَانِ لَا بُدَّ أَنْ يُبَيِّنَهُ الرَّسُولُ لِأَهْلِ الْإِيمَانِ لِيَحْصُلَ لَهُمْ [بِهِ] (٣) الْإِيمَانُ، فَإِذَا عُلِمَ بِالِاضْطِرَارِ أَنَّ هَذَا مِمَّا لَمْ يَكُنِ الرَّسُولُ يَشْتَرِطُهُ فِي الْإِيمَانِ عُلِمَ أَنَّ اشْتِرَاطَهُ فِي الْإِيمَانِ مِنْ أَقْوَالِ أَهْلِ الْبُهْتَانِ. فَإِنْ قِيلَ: قَدْ دَخَلَتْ فِي عُمُومِ النُّصُوصِ (٤) ، أَوْ هِيَ مِنْ بَابِ مَا لَا يَتِمُّ الْوَاجِبُ إِلَّا بِهِ، أَوْ دَلَّ (٥) عَلَيْهَا نَصٌّ آخَرُ. قِيلَ: هَذَا كُلُّهُ لَوْ صَحَّ لَكَانَ غَايَتُهُ أَنْ تَكُونَ مِنْ بَعْضِ فُرُوعِ الدِّينِ لَا (٦) تَكُونُ مِنْ أَرْكَانِ الْإِيمَانِ، فَإِنَّ رُكْنَ الْإِيمَانِ مَا لَا يَحْصُلُ الْإِيمَانُ إِلَّا بِهِ كَالشَّهَادَتَيْنِ، فَلَا يَكُونُ الرَّجُلُ مُؤْمِنًا حَتَّى يَشْهَدَ أَنْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ، وَأَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ، فَلَوْ كَانَتِ الْإِمَامَةُ رُكْنًا فِي الْإِيمَانِ لَا يَتِمُّ إِيمَانُ أَحَدٍ إِلَّا بِهِ لَوَجَبَ أَنْ يُبَيِّنَ ذَلِكَ الرَّسُولُ بَيَانًا عَامًّا قَاطِعًا لِلْعُذْرِ، كَمَا بَيَّنَ

(١) ن، م: مُفْلِحِينَ مُهْتَدِينَ. (٢) بْنِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ: زِيَادَةٌ فِي (أ) ، (ب) . (٣) بِهِ: سَاقِطَةٌ مِنْ (ن) ، (م) . (٤) أ، ب: النَّصِّ. (٥) ن: وَدَلَّ. ١ (٦) ن، م: فَلَا.