Minhaj as-Sunnah - Ibn Taimiya - (7/160)

Minhaj as-SunnahIbn Taimiya

[Sūrat al-Mujādilah: 12] (1)

It is related through the hadith master Abū Nu'aym, from Ibn Abbās, that he said:

‘Allah prohibited speaking to the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—unless charity was first given. They were too miserly to give charity before speaking to him, but Alī gave charity, and no other Muslim did so.’

In al-Tha'labī’s Tafsīr, Ibn Umar said:

‘Alī possessed three distinctions; had I possessed even one of them, it would have been dearer to me than red camels: his marriage to Fātimah, his being given (2) the banner on the day of Khaybar, and the verse concerning private consultation.’

Razīn ibn Mu'āwiyah narrated in The Compilation of the Six Authentic Collections from Alī:

‘No one other than me acted upon this verse, and through me Allah (3) eased the burden on this Ummah.’

This demonstrates his superiority over them; therefore, he has the strongest claim to the imamate.” (4)

The response is as follows:

What is established is that Alī—may Allah be pleased with him—gave charity and privately consulted the Messenger. The verse was then abrogated before anyone else acted upon it (5). However, the verse did not make charity obligatory upon them; rather, it instructed them to give charity if they consulted him privately. Anyone who did not consult him privately was therefore under no obligation to give charity. Since private consultation was not obligatory, no one was blameworthy for refraining from something that was not obligatory. As for anyone among them (6) who was unable to give charity but who, had he possessed the means, would have consulted him privately

(1) K: “… charity”—to the end of the verse. (2) K: “and the giving [of the banner].” (3) The name “Allah” does not appear in S or (B). (4) K: “that he was superior—peace be upon him—and thus would have the strongest claim to the imamate.” (5) Ibn Kathīr said in his *Tafsīr*, commenting on verse 12 of Sūrat al-Mujādilah: “It has been said that no one acted upon this verse before its abrogation except Alī ibn Abī Tālib, may Allah be pleased with him.” He then said: “Al-Awfī reported from Ibn Abbās, concerning the words of Allah Most High, ‘O you who believe … [offer] charity before your private consultation,’ down to ‘Indeed, Allah is All-Forgiving, Most Merciful’: ‘The Muslims used to offer charity before a private consultation. When the zakat ruling was revealed, this was abrogated.’” (6) B: “among them.”

[سُورَةُ الْمُجَادَلَةِ: ١٢] (١) مِنْ طَرِيقِ الْحَافِظِ أَبِي نُعَيْمٍ إِلَى ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ، قَالَ: إِنَّ اللَّهَ حَرَّمَ كَلَامَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ - صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ - إِلَّا بِتَقْدِيمِ الصَّدَقَةِ، وَبَخِلُوا أَنْ يَتَصَدَّقُوا قَبْلَ كَلَامِهِ، وَتَصَدَّقَ عَلِيٌّ، وَلَمْ يَفْعَلْ ذَلِكَ أَحَدٌ مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ غَيْرُهُ. وَمِنْ تَفْسِيرِ الثَّعْلَبِيِّ قَالَ ابْنُ عُمَرَ: كَانَ لَعَلِيٍّ ثَلَاثَةٌ لَوْ كَانَتْ لِي وَاحِدَةٌ مِنْهُنَّ كَانَتْ أَحَبَّ إِلَيَّ مِنْ حُمُرِ النَّعَمِ: تَزْوِيجُهُ فَاطِمَةَ، وَإِعْطَاؤُهُ (٢) الرَّايَةَ يَوْمَ خَيْبَرَ، وَآيَةُ النَّجْوَى. وَرَوَى رَزِينُ بْنُ مُعَاوِيَةَ فِي " الْجَمْعِ بَيْنَ الصِّحَاحِ السِّتَّةِ " عَنْ عَلِيٍّ: مَا عَمِلَ بِهَذِهِ الْآيَةِ غَيْرِي، وَبِي خَفَّفَ اللَّهُ (٣) عَنْ هَذِهِ الْأُمَّةِ. وَهَذَا يَدُلُّ عَلَى فَضِيلَتِهِ عَلَيْهِمْ، فَيَكُونُ هُوَ أَحَقَّ بِالْإِمَامَةِ " (٤) . وَالْجَوَابُ أَنْ يُقَالَ: أَمَّا الَّذِي ثَبَتَ فَهُوَ أَنَّ عَلِيًّا - رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ - تَصَدَّقَ وَنَاجَى، ثُمَّ نُسِخَتِ الْآيَةُ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَعْمَلَ بِهَا غَيْرُهُ (٥) ، لَكِنَّ الْآيَةَ لَمْ تُوجِبِ الصَّدَقَةَ عَلَيْهِمْ، لَكِنْ أَمَرَهُمْ إِذَا نَاجَوْا أَنْ يَتَصَدَّقُوا، فَمَنْ لَمْ يُنَاجِ لَمْ يَكُنْ عَلَيْهِ أَنْ يَتَصَدَّقَ. وَإِذَا لَمْ تَكُنِ الْمُنَاجَاةُ وَاجِبَةً، لَمْ يَكُنْ أَحَدٌ مَلُومًا إِذَا تَرَكَ مَا لَيْسَ بِوَاجِبٍ، وَمَنْ كَانَ فِيهِمْ (٦) عَاجِزًا عَنِ الصَّدَقَةِ وَلَكِنْ لَوْ قَدَرَ لَنَاجَى

(١) ك:. . صَدَقَةً الْآيَةَ. (٢) ك: وَإِعْطَاءُ. (٣) لَفْظُ الْجَلَالَةِ لَيْسَ فِي س، (ب) . (٤) ك: عَلَى أَفْضَلِيَّتِهِ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ، فَيَكُونُ أَحَقَّ بِالْإِمَامَةِ. (٥) قَالَ ابْنُ كَثِيرٍ فِي تَفْسِيرِهِ لِآيَةِ ١٢ مِنْ سُورَةِ الْمُجَادَلَةِ: " وَقَدْ قِيلَ: إِنَّهُ لَمْ يَعْمَلْ بِهَذِهِ الْآيَةِ قَبْلَ نَسْخِهَا سِوَى عَلِيِّ بْنِ أَبِي طَالِبٍ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ "، ثُمَّ قَالَ: " وَقَالَ الْعَوْفِيُّ عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ فِي قَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا. . . نَجْوَاكُمْ صَدَقَةً - إِلَى - فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ غَفُورٌ رَحِيمٌ) . كَانَ الْمُسْلِمُونَ يُقَدِّمُونَ بَيْنَ يَدَيِ النَّجْوَى صَدَقَةً، فَلَمَّا نَزَلَتِ الزَّكَاةُ نُسِخَ هَذَا ". (٦) ب: مِنْهُمْ.