Minhaj as-Sunnah - Ibn Taimiya - (1/132)

Minhaj as-SunnahIbn Taimiya

And [the Most High] (1) said:

{Have you not considered the one who argued with Abraham about his Lord because Allah had granted him kingship?}

[Surah al-Baqarah: 258]

Thus, He granted kingship to some unbelievers just as He granted it to some prophets. Yet after Ali—may Allah be pleased with him—and al-Hasan, He granted kingship to none (2) of these figures, as He had granted it to the prophets and the righteous, nor as He had granted it to other kings. This invalidates the claim that Allah appointed these infallible figures in this manner.

If it is said:

“What is meant by His appointment of them is that He made obedience to them obligatory upon creation. If people obeyed them, they would guide them, but people disobeyed them.”

The response is:

Merely by virtue of this, however, neither divine grace nor mercy came about in the world. Rather (3), all that occurred was that people rejected and disobeyed them. Moreover, those who believe in the Awaited One derived no benefit from him, and no divine grace or benefit came to [them] (4) through him, despite their loving him and professing allegiance to him. It is therefore known that neither divine grace (5) nor benefit was attained through him, whether by those who acknowledged his imamate or by those who denied it.

This invalidates their claim that divine grace and mercy came into the world through this infallible figure. It is necessarily known that nothing of the kind came to this (6) world through this Awaited One, whether for those who believed in him or those who rejected him—unlike the Messenger and Prophet whom Allah sent,

(1) “the Most High” is absent from N. (2) A: “because Allah had granted him kingship; indeed, Allah granted kingship to someone”; B: “because Allah had granted him kingship, yet Allah did not grant kingship to anyone.” 1 (3) “Rather” is absent from A and B. (4) “for them” is omitted only from N. (5) A and B: “through him there was no divine grace.” (6) “this” is omitted from A and B.

وَقَالَ [تَعَالَى] (١) : {أَلَمْ تَرَ إِلَى الَّذِي حَاجَّ إِبْرَاهِيمَ فِي رَبِّهِ أَنْ آتَاهُ اللَّهُ الْمُلْكَ} [سُورَةُ الْبَقَرَةِ: ٢٥٨] . فَقَدْ آتَى الْمُلْكَ لِبَعْضِ الْكُفَّارِ، كَمَا آتَاهُ لِبَعْضِ الْأَنْبِيَاءِ، وَمِنْ بَعْدِ عَلِيٍّ - رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ -، وَالْحَسَنِ لَمْ يُؤْتِ الْمُلْكَ لِأَحَدٍ (٢) مِنْ هَؤُلَاءِ، كَمَا أُوتِيَهُ الْأَنْبِيَاءُ، وَالصَّالِحُونَ، وَلَا كَمَا أُوتِيَهُ غَيْرُهُمْ مِنَ الْمُلُوكِ، فَبَطَلَ أَنْ يَكُونَ اللَّهُ نَصَبَ هَؤُلَاءِ الْمَعْصُومِينَ عَلَى هَذَا الْوَجْهِ. فَإِنْ قِيلَ: الْمُرَادُ بِنَصْبِهِمْ أَنَّهُ أَوْجَبَ عَلَى الْخَلْقِ طَاعَتَهُمْ، فَإِذَا أَطَاعُوهُمْ هَدَوْهُمْ لَكِنَّ الْخَلْقَ عَصَوْهُمْ. فَيُقَالُ: فَلَمْ يَحْصُلْ بِمُجَرَّدِ ذَلِكَ فِي الْعَالَمِ لَا لُطْفٌ، وَلَا رَحْمَةٌ، بَلْ (٣) إِنَّمَا حَصَلَ تَكْذِيبُ النَّاسِ لَهُمْ، وَمَعْصِيَتُهُمْ إِيَّاهُمْ، وَأَيْضًا، فَالْمُؤْمِنُونَ بِالْمُنْتَظَرِ لَمْ يَنْتَفِعُوا بِهِ، وَلَا حَصَلَ [لَهُمْ] (٤) بِهِ لُطْفٌ، وَلَا مَصْلَحَةٌ مَعَ كَوْنِهِمْ يُحِبُّونَهُ، وَيُوَالُونَهُ فَعُلِمَ أَنَّهُ لَمْ يَحْصُلْ بِهِ لُطْفٌ (٥) ، وَلَا مَصْلَحَةٌ لَا لِمَنْ أَقَرَّ بِإِمَامَتِهِ، وَلَا لِمَنْ جَحَدَهَا. فَبَطَلَ مَا يَذْكُرُونَ أَنَّ الْعَالَمَ حَصَلَ فِيهِ اللُّطْفُ، وَالرَّحْمَةُ بِهَذَا الْمَعْصُومِ، وَعُلِمَ بِالضَّرُورَةِ أَنَّ هَذَا (٦) الْعَالَمَ لَمْ يَحْصُلْ فِيهِ بِهَذَا الْمُنْتَظَرِ شَيْءٌ مِنْ ذَلِكَ لَا لِمَنْ آمَنَ بِهِ، وَلَا لِمَنْ كَفَرَ بِهِ بِخِلَافِ الرَّسُولِ، وَالنَّبِيِّ الَّذِي بَعَثَهُ اللَّهُ،

(١) تَعَالَى: لَيْسَتْ فِي (ن) . (٢) أ: أَنْ آتَاهُ اللَّهُ الْمُلْكَ فَقَدَ آتَى اللَّهُ الْمُلْكَ لِأَحَدٍ؛ ب: أَنْ آتَاهُ اللَّهُ الْمُلْكَ فَلَمْ يُؤْتِ اللَّهُ الْمُلْكَ لِأَحَدٍ. ١ (٣) بَلْ: لَيْسَتْ فِي (أ) ، (ب) . (٤) لَهُمْ: سَاقِطَةٌ مِنْ (ن) فَقَطْ. (٥) أ، ب: بِهِ لَا لُطْفٌ. (٦) هَذَا: سَاقِطَةٌ مِنْ (أ) ، (ب) .