Minhaj as-Sunnah - Ibn Taimiya - (4/528)

Minhaj as-SunnahIbn Taimiya

the evil resulting from his action was greater than the good that resulted from it. Examples include those who rebelled against Yazīd in Medina; Ibn al-Ashath, who rebelled against Abd al-Malik in Iraq; Ibn al-Muhallab, who rebelled against his son (1) in Khurasan; Abū Muslim, leader of the movement, who rebelled against them in Khurasan [also] (2); those (3) who rebelled against al-Mansūr in Medina and Basra; and others like them.

The ultimate outcome for such people is that they either prevail or are defeated; then their rule passes away, leaving them with no favorable end. Abd Allah ibn Ali and Abū Muslim were the two who (4) killed a great many people, and Abū Jafar al-Mansūr had both of them killed. As for the people of al-Harrah, Ibn al-Ashath, Ibn al-Muhallab, and others (5), they and their followers were defeated. They neither established the religion nor preserved their worldly affairs.

Allah Most High does not command anything that brings about neither the welfare of the religion nor that of worldly life. Although those who do so may be among Allah’s pious allies (6) and the people of Paradise, they are no better than Ali, Aisha, Talhah, al-Zubayr, and others. Yet they were not praised for the fighting in which they engaged (7), even though they held a higher standing before Allah and had better intentions than others.

Likewise, among the people of al-Harrah were many people of knowledge and religion. Likewise,

(1) A, B, W, H, and S: “his father.” (2) “Also” is an addition in A and B. (3) N and M: “and those who.” (4) N: “they are those who”; M: “the two of them are those who.” The reading adopted here is from W; this phrase is absent from all the other manuscripts. (5) “And others” is an addition in N, M, and W. (6) A and B: “the servants of Allah.” (7) A and W: “They were not praised for what they did.”

مَا تَوَلَّدَ عَلَى فِعْلِهِ مِنَ الشَّرِّ أَعْظَمَ مِمَّا تَوَلَّدَ مِنَ الْخَيْرِ. كَالَّذِينَ خَرَجُوا عَلَى يَزِيدَ بِالْمَدِينَةِ، وَكَابْنِ الْأَشْعَثِ الَّذِي خَرَجَ عَلَى عَبْدِ الْمَلِكِ بِالْعِرَاقِ، وَكَابْنِ الْمُهَلَّبِ الَّذِي خَرَجَ عَلَى ابْنِهِ (١) بِخُرَاسَانَ، وَكَأَبِي مُسْلِمٍ صَاحِبِ الدَّعْوَةِ الَّذِي خَرَجَ عَلَيْهِمْ بِخُرَاسَانَ [أَيْضًا] (٢) ، وَكَالَّذِينَ (٣) خَرَجُوا عَلَى الْمَنْصُورِ بِالْمَدِينَةِ وَالْبَصْرَةِ، وَأَمْثَالِ هَؤُلَاءِ. وَغَايَةُ هَؤُلَاءِ إِمَّا أَنْ يَغْلِبُوا وَإِمَّا أَنْ يُغْلَبُوا، ثُمَّ يَزُولُ مُلْكُهُمْ فَلَا يَكُونُ لَهُمْ عَاقِبَةٌ ; فَإِنَّ عَبْدَ اللَّهِ بْنَ عَلِيٍّ وَأَبَا مُسْلِمٍ هُمَا اللَّذَانِ (٤) قَتَلَا خَلْقًا كَثِيرًا، وَكِلَاهُمَا قَتَلَهُ أَبُو جَعْفَرٍ الْمَنْصُورُ. وَأَمَّا أَهْلُ الْحَرَّةِ وَابْنُ الْأَشْعَثِ وَابْنُ الْمُهَلَّبِ وَغَيْرُهُمْ (٥) فَهُزِمُوا وَهُزِمَ أَصْحَابُهُمْ، فَلَا أَقَامُوا دِينًا وَلَا أَبْقَوْا دُنْيَا. وَاللَّهُ تَعَالَى لَا يَأْمُرُ بِأَمْرٍ لَا يَحْصُلُ بِهِ صَلَاحُ الدِّينِ وَلَا صَلَاحُ الدُّنْيَا، وَإِنْ كَانَ فَاعِلُ ذَلِكَ مِنْ أَوْلِيَاءِ اللَّهِ (٦) الْمُتَّقِينَ وَمِنْ أَهْلِ الْجَنَّةِ، فَلَيْسُوا أَفْضَلَ مِنْ عَلِيٍّ وَعَائِشَةَ وَطَلْحَةَ وَالزُّبَيْرِ وَغَيْرِهِمْ، وَمَعَ هَذَا لَمْ يُحْمَدُوا مَا فَعَلُوهُ (٧) مِنَ الْقِتَالِ، وَهُمْ أَعْظَمُ قَدْرًا عِنْدَ اللَّهِ وَأَحْسَنُ نِيَّةً مِنْ غَيْرِهِمْ. وَكَذَلِكَ أَهْلُ الْحَرَّةِ كَانَ فِيهِمْ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْعِلْمِ وَالدِّينِ خَلْقٌ. وَكَذَلِكَ

(١) أ، ب، و، هـ، ص: أَبِيهِ. (٢) أَيْضًا: زِيَادَةٌ فِي (أ) ، (ب) . (٣) ن، م: وَالَّذِينَ. (٤) ن: هُمُ الَّذِينَ ; م هُمَا الَّذَيْنِ، وَمَا أَثْبَتُّهُ مِنْ (و) ، وَسَقَطَتْ هَذِهِ الْعِبَارَةُ مِنْ سَائِرِ النُّسَخِ. (٥) وَغَيْرُهُمْ: زِيَادَةٌ فِي (ن) ، (م) ، (و) . (٦) أ، ب: عِبَادِ اللَّهِ. (٧) أ، و: لَمْ يُحْمَدُوا عَلَى مَا فَعَلُوهُ.