Minhaj as-Sunnah - Ibn Taimiya - (4/53)

Minhaj as-SunnahIbn Taimiya

at Ja'far [ibn Muhammad] (1), I knew that he was descended from the prophets” (2).

As for his statement, “He devoted himself to worship rather than leadership,” this is a contradiction on the part of the Imamiyya. According to them, the imamate (3) is a duty incumbent upon him (4), which he must undertake and whose burdens he must shoulder, since there was no imam in his time other than him. If assuming this momentous charge (5) were obligatory, [it would be] (6) more deserving of priority than devoting oneself to supererogatory acts of worship.

As for his statement that he (7) “is the one who disseminated the jurisprudence of the Imamiyya, true knowledge, and beliefs founded on certainty,” this necessarily entails one of two conclusions: either he introduced into the realm of knowledge something unknown to those before him, or those before him fell short (8) in disseminating the knowledge whose dissemination was obligatory [upon them] (9). Can any rational person doubt that the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—made clear to his community

(1) “Ibn Muhammad” is omitted from N and M. (2) Abū Abd Allāh Jafar ibn Muhammad ibn Alī ibn al-Husayn ibn Alī ibn Abī Tālib, known as al-Sādiq, is the sixth imam according to the Rāfida. He was born in Medina in 80 AH and died there in 148 AH. See his biography in *Tadhkirat al-Huffāz*, 1/166–167; *Sifat al-Safwa*, 2/94–98; *Wafayāt al-Ayān*, 1/291–292; *Hilyat al-Awliyā*, 3/192–206; and *al-Alām*, 2/121. See also *al-Imām al-Sādiq* by Shaykh Muhammad Abū Zahra—may Allah have mercy on him—Dār al-Fikr al-Arabī, Cairo, n.d. (3) A, B, R, S, and H read: “the imam”; N reads: “the Imāmiyya.” The reading adopted in the text, “the imamate,” follows M and W. (4) “Upon him” is omitted from A, B, and S. (5) A and B read: “greatest.” (6) “It would be” is omitted from N, M, A, B, and W. (7) “That he” is omitted from A, B, and S. (8) A, B, R, and M read: “the one before him fell short” (R and M have the plural verb: “they fell short”). (9) “Upon them” occurs only in R, H, and S.

إِلَى جَعْفَرِ [بْنِ مُحَمَّدٍ] (١) عَلِمْتُ أَنَّهُ مِنْ سُلَالَةِ النَّبِيِّينَ " (٢) . وَأَمَّا قَوْلُهُ: " اشْتَغَلَ بِالْعِبَادَةِ عَنِ الرِّيَاسَةِ ". فَهَذَا تَنَاقُضٌ مِنَ الْإِمَامِيَّةِ، لِأَنَّ الْإِمَامَةَ (٣) عِنْدَهُمْ وَاجِبٌ عَلَيْهِ (٤) أَنْ يَقُومَ بِهَا وَبِأَعْبَائِهَا، فَإِنَّهُ لَا إِمَامَ فِي وَقْتِهِ إِلَّا هُوَ، فَالْقِيَامُ بِهَذَا الْأَمْرِ الْعَظِيمِ (٥) لَوْ كَانَ وَاجِبًا [لَكَانَ] (٦) أَوْلَى مِنَ الِاشْتِعَالِ بِنَوَافِلِ الْعِبَادَاتِ. وَأَمَّا قَوْلُهُ: إِنَّهُ (٧) : " هُوَ الَّذِي نَشَرَ فِقْهَ الْإِمَامِيَّةِ، وَالْمَعَارِفَ الْحَقِيقِيَّةَ، وَالْعَقَائِدَ الْيَقِينِيَّةَ ". فَهَذَا الْكَلَامُ يَسْتَلْزِمُ أَحَدَ أَمْرَيْنِ: إِمَّا أَنَّهُ ابْتَدَعَ فِي الْعِلْمِ مَا لَمْ يَكُنْ يَعْلَمُهُ مَنْ قَبْلَهُ. وَإِمَّا أَنْ يَكُونَ الَّذِينَ قَبْلَهُ قَصَّرُوا (٨) فِيمَا يَجِبُ [عَلَيْهِمْ] (٩) مِنْ نَشْرِ الْعِلْمِ. وَهَلْ يَشُكُّ عَاقِلٌ أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ - صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ - بَيَّنَ لِأُمَّتِهِ

(١) بْنِ مُحَمَّدٍ سَاقِطَةٌ مِنْ (ن) ، (م) . (٢) أَبُو عَبْدِ اللَّهِ جَعْفَرُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ عَلِيِّ بْنِ الْحُسَيْنِ بْنِ عَلِيِّ بْنِ أَبِي طَالِبٍ، الْمُلَقَّبُ بِالصَّادِقِ، الْإِمَامُ السَّادِسُ عِنْدَ الرَّافِضَةِ. وُلِدَ بِالْمَدِينَةِ سَنَةَ: ٨٠ وَتُوُفِّيَ بِهَا سَنَةَ: ١٤٨. انْظُرْ تَرْجَمَتَهُ فِي: تَذْكِرَةِ الْحُفَّاظِ: ١/١٦٦ ١٦٧، صِفَةِ الصَّفْوَةِ ٢/٩٤ ٩٨، وَفَيَاتِ الْأَعْيَانِ ١/٢٩١ ٢٩٢، حِلْيَةِ الْأَوْلِيَاءِ ٣/١٩٢ ٢٠٦، الْأَعْلَامِ ٢/١٢١. وَانْظُرْ عَنْهُ كِتَابَ " الْإِمَامِ الصَّادِقِ " لِلشَّيْخِ مُحَمَّدٍ أَبِي زَهْرَةَ رَحِمَهُ اللَّهُ، ط. دَارِ الْفِكْرِ الْعَرَبِيِّ، الْقَاهِرَةِ، بِدُونِ تَارِيخٍ. (٣) أ، ب، ر، ص، هـ: الْإِمَامَ، ن: الْإِمَامِيَّةَ. وَمَا أَثْبَتُّهُ عَنْ (م) ، (و) . (٤) عَلَيْهِ: سَاقِطَةٌ مِنْ (أ) ، (ب) (ص) ،. (٥) أ، ب: أَعْظَمُ. (٦) لَكَانَ: سَاقِطَةٌ مِنْ (ن) ، (م) ، (أ) ، (ب) ، (و) . (٧) إِنَّهُ: سَاقِطَةٌ مِنْ (أ) ، (ب) (ص) ،. (٨) أ، ب، ر، م: الَّذِي قَبْلَهُ قَصَّرَ (ر، م: قَصَّرُوا) . (٩) عَلَيْهِمْ: فِي (ر) ، (هـ) ، (ص) فَقَطْ.