Minhaj as-Sunnah - Ibn Taimiya - (6/376)

Minhaj as-SunnahIbn Taimiya

As for the caliphs and the Companions, every good that the Muslims will enjoy until the Day of Resurrection—faith [and Islam](1), the Quran, knowledge, understanding, acts of worship, admission to Paradise, deliverance from the Fire, victory over the unbelievers, and the ascendancy of Allah’s word—is due solely to the blessed effects of what the Companions did, for they conveyed the religion and strove in Allah’s cause.

Every believer in Allah is indebted to the Companions—may Allah be pleased with them—until the Day of Resurrection. Every good enjoyed by the Shia and others is through the blessing of(2) the Companions. The good accomplished by the Companions followed from the good accomplished by the Rightly Guided Caliphs, for they were more firmly committed to every good in religion and worldly life than the rest of the Companions. How, then, could these men be the source of evil while those Rāfidis are the source of good?!

It is well known that a Rāfidi is loyal to those Rāfidis and hostile to the Companions. Is this anything but the evil of one whose insight Allah has blinded? “Indeed, it is not the eyes that go blind, but the hearts within the breasts that go blind.”

If someone says:

“The majority who are loyal to the three have among them such evil and tribulations as have never been reported of Ali. Thus, no comparison should be drawn between the Rāfidis and the Companions and the majority.”

We reply:

The answer is twofold. First(3): We did not mention this for the sake of comparison, but rather to refute one who claimed that tribulation arose only from the Rightly Guided Caliphs. We have learned through direct observation and recurrent transmission that the immense tribulations and evils, to which no other tribulations compare,

(1) “And Islam” is omitted in N and M. (2) N and M read: “from the blessing of.” (3) N and M read: “The answer is from two perspectives.”

وَأَمَّا الْخُلَفَاءُ وَالصَّحَابَةُ فَكُلُّ خَيْرٍ فِيهِ الْمُسْلِمُونَ إِلَى - يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ مِنَ الْإِيمَانِ [وَالْإِسْلَامِ] (١) ، وَالْقُرْآنِ وَالْعِلْمِ، وَالْمَعَارِفِ وَالْعِبَادَاتِ، وَدُخُولِ الْجَنَّةِ، وَالنَّجَاةِ مِنَ النَّارِ، وَانْتِصَارِهِمْ عَلَى الْكُفَّارِ، وَعُلُوِّ كَلِمَةِ اللَّهِ - فَإِنَّمَا هُوَ بِبَرَكَةِ مَا فَعَلَهُ الصَّحَابَةُ، الَّذِينَ بَلَّغُوا الدِّينَ، وَجَاهَدُوا فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ. وَكُلُّ مُؤْمِنٍ آمَنَ بِاللَّهِ فَلِلصَّحَابَةِ - رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمْ - عَلَيْهِ فَضْلٌ إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ، وَكُلُّ خَيْرٍ فِيهِ الشِّيعَةُ وَغَيْرُهُمْ فَهُوَ بِبَرَكَةِ (٢) الصَّحَابَةِ. وَخَيْرُ الصَّحَابَةِ تَبَعٌ لِخَيْرِ الْخُلَفَاءِ الرَّاشِدِينَ، فَهُمْ كَانُوا أَقْوَمَ بِكُلِّ خَيْرٍ فِي الدِّينِ وَالدُّنْيَا مِنْ سَائِرِ الصَّحَابَةِ، فَكَيْفَ يَكُونُ هَؤُلَاءِ مَنْبَعَ الشَّرِّ، وَيَكُونُ أُولَئِكَ الرَّافِضَةُ مَنْبَعَ الْخَيْرِ؟ ! . وَمَعْلُومٌ أَنَّ الرَّافِضِيَّ يُوَالِي أُولَئِكَ الرَّافِضَةَ وَيُعَادِي الصَّحَابَةَ، فَهَلْ هَذَا إِلَّا مِنْ شَرِّ مَنْ أَعْمَى اللَّهُ بَصِيرَتَهُ؟ فَإِنَّهَا لَا تَعْمَى الْأَبْصَارُ، وَلَكِنْ تَعْمَى الْقُلُوبُ الَّتِي فِي الصُّدُورِ. وَإِذَا قَالَ الْقَائِلُ: الْجُمْهُورُ الَّذِينَ يَتَوَلَّوْنَ الثَّلَاثَةَ فِيهِمْ مِنَ الشَّرِّ وَالْفِتَنِ مَا لَمْ يُنْقَلْ مِثْلُهُ عَنْ عَلِيٍّ، فَلَا يُقَابَلُ بَيْنَ الرَّافِضَةِ وَالصَّحَابَةِ وَالْجُمْهُورِ. فَنَقُولُ: الْجَوَابُ مِنْ وَجْهَيْنِ الْأَوَّلُ (٣) : أَنَّا لَمْ نَذْكُرْ هَذَا لِلْمُقَابَلَةِ، بَلْ رَدًّا عَلَى مَنْ زَعَمَ أَنَّ الْفِتْنَةَ لَمْ تَخْرُجْ إِلَّا عَنِ الْخُلَفَاءِ الرَّاشِدِينَ. وَنَحْنُ قَدْ عَلِمْنَا بِالْمُعَايَنَةِ وَالتَّوَاتُرِ أَنَّ الْفِتَنَ وَالشُّرُورَ الْعَظِيمَةَ الَّتِي لَا تُشَابِهُهَا فِتَنٌ،

(١) وَالْإِسْلَامِ: سَاقِطَةٌ مِنْ (ن) ، (م) . (٢) ن، م: مِنْ بَرَكَةِ. (٣) ن، م: مِنْ وَجْهَيْنِ الْجَوَابُ.