Minhaj as-Sunnah - Ibn Taimiya - (7/78)

Minhaj as-SunnahIbn Taimiya

That being so, his God-fearing allies share with him the bonds of religion, faith, and piety. This religious kinship is greater than kinship of the flesh (1), just as closeness between hearts and spirits is greater than closeness between bodies. Thus, the best of creation are his God-fearing allies.

As for his relatives, they include believers and unbelievers, the righteous and the wicked. When members of his family are distinguished (2), such as Alī—may Allah be pleased with him—Jafar, Hasan, and Husayn, they are accorded superior rank (3) because of the faith and piety they possess. By virtue of that, they are his allies—not merely by virtue of lineage. His allies therefore rank higher than his family.

Although blessings are invoked upon his family in conjunction with him (4), that does not entail (5) that they are superior to those allies of his upon whom blessings are not invoked. The prophets and messengers are among his allies and are superior to the members of his household, even though they are not included, by extension, in the invocation of blessings upon him. A person of lesser merit may be singled out for a particular distinction without thereby becoming superior to one of greater merit.

The proof is that his wives are among those upon whom blessings are invoked, as established in the two Sahīh collections. Indeed, (6) all people unanimously agree that the prophets are superior (7) to every one of them.

(1) S and B: “natural [kinship].” (2) B only: “of merit.” (3) N: “and so he ranks them higher”; S and B: “and so he ranked them higher.” (4) “With him” is omitted from S and B. (5) S: “did not diminish.” (6) N and S: “indeed”; B: “and indeed.” (7) N: “that the prophets and messengers are among the best of…”; S: “that the prophets are among the best of…”

وَإِذَا كَانَ كَذَلِكَ فَأَوْلِيَاؤُهُ الْمُتَّقُونَ بَيْنَهُ وَبَيْنَهُمْ قَرَابَةُ الدِّينِ وَالْإِيمَانِ وَالتَّقْوَى. وَهَذِهِ الْقَرَابَةُ الدِّينِيَّةُ أَعْظَمُ مِنَ الْقَرَابَةِ الطِّينِيَّةِ (١) ، وَالْقُرْبُ بَيْنَ الْقُلُوبِ وَالْأَرْوَاحِ أَعْظَمُ مِنَ الْقُرْبِ بَيْنَ الْأَبْدَانِ. وَلِهَذَا كَانَ أَفْضَلَ الْخَلْقِ أَوْلِيَاؤُهُ الْمُتَّقُونَ. وَأَمَّا أَقَارِبُهُ فَفِيهِمُ الْمُؤْمِنُ وَالْكَافِرُ، وَالْبَرُّ وَالْفَاجِرُ. فَإِنْ كَانَ فَاضِلًا (٢) مِنْهُمْ كَعَلِيٍّ - رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ - وَجَعْفَرٍ وَالْحَسَنِ وَالْحُسَيْنِ، فَتَفْضِيلُهُمْ (٣) بِمَا فِيهِمْ مِنَ الْإِيمَانِ وَالتَّقْوَى، وَهُمْ أَوْلِيَاؤُهُ بِهَذَا الِاعْتِبَارِ، لَا بِمُجَرَّدِ النَّسَبِ، فَأَوْلِيَاؤُهُ أَعْظَمُ دَرَجَةً مِنْ آلِهِ، وَإِنْ صَلَّى عَلَى آلِهِ تَبَعًا لَهُ (٤) لَمْ يَقْتَضِ (٥) ذَلِكَ أَنْ يَكُونُوا أَفْضَلَ مِنْ أَوْلِيَائِهِ الَّذِينَ لَمْ يُصَلِّ عَلَيْهِمْ، فَإِنَّ الْأَنْبِيَاءَ وَالْمُرْسَلِينَ هُمْ مِنْ أَوْلِيَائِهِ، وَهُمْ أَفْضَلُ مِنْ أَهْلِ بَيْتِهِ، وَإِنْ لَمْ يَدْخُلُوا فِي الصَّلَاةِ مَعَهُ تَبَعًا، فَالْمَفْضُولُ قَدْ يَخْتَصُّ بِأَمْرٍ، وَلَا يَلْزَمُ أَنْ يَكُونَ أَفْضَلَ مِنَ الْفَاضِلِ. وَدَلِيلُ ذَلِكَ أَنَّ أَزْوَاجَهُ هُمْ مِمَّنْ يُصَلَّى عَلَيْهِ، كَمَا ثَبَتَ ذَلِكَ فِي الصَّحِيحَيْنِ، فَقَدْ (٦) ثَبَتَ بِاتِّفَاقِ النَّاسِ كُلِّهِمْ أَنَّ الْأَنْبِيَاءَ أَفْضَلُ (٧) مِنْهُنَّ كُلِّهِنَّ.

(١) س، ب: الطَّبِيعِيَّةِ. (٢) ب (فَقَطْ) : فَاضِلًا. (٣) ن: فَيُفَضِّلُهُمْ، س، ب: فَفَضَّلَهُمْ. (٤) لَهُ: سَاقِطَةٌ مِنْ (س) ، (ب) . (٥) س: لَمْ يَنْقُصْ. (٦) ن، س: قَدْ، ب: وَقَدْ. (٧) ن: أَنَّ الْأَنْبِيَاءَ وَالْمُرْسَلِينَ هُمْ مِنْ أَفْضَلِ. .، س: أَنَّ الْأَنْبِيَاءَ هُمْ مِنْ أَفْضَلِ. .