Minhaj as-Sunnah - Ibn Taimiya - (3/8)

Minhaj as-SunnahIbn Taimiya

and that He, Most High, wills the unbeliever’s disobedience but does not will his obedience. This entails abhorrent consequences.”

The reply is that this may be addressed from several perspectives.

First: It has already been explained more than once that questions of divine decree and of affirming Allah’s justice or imputing injustice to Him (1) neither necessarily follow (2) from questions of the Imamate nor necessarily entail them. Many people affirm the imamate of the three caliphs while holding (3) the same view on divine decree that he has stated, whereas many others hold the converse. No person’s stance (4) on one issue is inherently tied to his stance on the other. It has already been reported (5) that the Imāmīs hold two views (6) on whether servants’ acts are created by Allah [Most High]. The same is true of the Zaydīs.

Al-Ashʿarī (7) said: “The Zaydīs differed regarding [the creation of] acts (8), and they are divided into two groups. The first group among them maintains that servants’ acts (9) are created by Allah: He created, originated, and brought them into existence after they had not existed. Thus, they (10) are newly originated by Him and brought into existence. The second group

(1) B, A, ʿA, and M read: “and permitting,” which is erroneous. (2) B and A read: “necessarily entailing.” (3) B and A read: “and they say.” (4) ʿA reads: “and no one among the people”; M reads: “and no one of the effect,” which is a corruption. (5) “It has been reported” is absent from B and A. M reads: “reason,” which is a corruption. (6) N and M read: “created by Allah, according to two views.” (7) Al-Ashʿarī, *Maqālāt al-Islāmiyyīn*, Ritter ed. (Istanbul, 1929), 1:72. (8) N and M read: “regarding acts”; *Maqālāt* reads: “regarding the creation of acts.” (9) *Maqālāt* reads: “acts.” (10) ʿA reads: “and they are.”

وَأَنَّهُ تَعَالَى يُرِيدُ الْمَعَاصِيَ مِنَ الْكَافِرِ وَلَا يُرِيدُ مِنْهُ الطَّاعَةَ وَهَذَا يَسْتَلْزِمُ أَشْيَاءَ شَنِيعَةً ". فَيُقَالُ: الْكَلَامُ عَلَى هَذَا مِنْ وُجُوهٍ. أَحَدُهَا: أَنَّهُ قَدْ تَقَدَّمَ غَيْرُ مَرَّةٍ أَنَّ مَسَائِلَ الْقَدَرِ وَالتَّعْدِيلِ وَالتَّجْوِيرِ (١) لَيْسَتْ مَلْزُومَةً (٢) لِمَسَائِلِ الْإِمَامَةِ وَلَا لَازِمَةً، فَإِنَّ كَثِيرًا مِنَ النَّاسِ يُقِرُّ بِإِمَامَةِ الْخُلَفَاءِ الثَّلَاثَةِ، وَيَقُولُ (٣) مَا قَالَهُ فِي الْقَدَرِ، وَكَثِيرٌ مِنَ النَّاسِ بِالْعَكْسِ، وَلَيْسَ أَحَدٌ مِنَ النَّاسِ (٤) مُرْتَبِطًا بِالْآخَرِ أَصْلًا وَقَدْ تَقَدَّمَ النَّقْلُ (٥) عَنِ الْإِمَامِيَّةِ: هَلْ أَفْعَالُ الْعِبَادِ خَلْقُ اللَّهِ [تَعَالَى] ؟ عَلَى قَوْلَيْنِ (٦) ، وَكَذَلِكَ الزَّيْدِيَّةُ. قَالَ الْأَشْعَرِيُّ (٧) : " وَاخْتَلَفَتِ الزَّيْدِيَّةُ فِي [خَلْقِ] الْأَفْعَالِ (٨) وَهُمْ فِرْقَتَانِ: فَالْفِرْقَةُ الْأُولَى مِنْهُمْ يَزْعُمُونَ أَنَّ أَفْعَالَ (٩) الْعِبَادِ مَخْلُوقَةٌ لِلَّهِ، خَلَقَهَا وَأَبْدَعَهَا وَاخْتَرَعَهَا بَعْدَ أَنْ لَمْ تَكُنْ، فَهِيَ (١٠) مُحْدَثَةٌ لَهُ مُخْتَرَعَةٌ. وَالْفِرْقَةُ الثَّانِيَةُ

(١) ب، أ، ع، م: وَالتَّجْوِيزِ، وَهُوَ خَطَأٌ. (٢) ب، أ: مُسْتَلْزِمَةً. (٣) ب، أ: وَيَقُولُونَ. (٤) ع: وَلَيْسَ وَاحِدٌ مِنَ النَّاسِ، م: وَلَيْسَ أَحَدُ التَّأْثِيرِ، وَهُوَ تَحْرِيفٌ. (٥) النَّقْلُ: سَاقِطَةٌ مِنْ (ب) ، (أ) ، وَفِي (م) : الْعَقْلُ وَهُوَ تَحْرِيفٌ. (٦) ن، م: خَلْقٌ لِلَّهِ عَلَى قَوْلَيْنِ. (٧) فِي مَقَالَاتِ الْإِسْلَامِيِّينَ (ط رِيتَرْ، اسْتَانْبُولَ، ١٩٢٩) ١/٧٢. (٨) ن، م: فِي الْأَفْعَالِ ; الْمَقَالَاتِ: فِي خَلْقِ الْأَعْمَالِ. (٩) الْمَقَالَاتِ: أَعْمَالَ. (١٠) ع: وَهِيَ.