Minhaj as-Sunnah - Ibn Taimiya - (7/470)

Minhaj as-SunnahIbn Taimiya

Abū Bakr and ʿUmar after the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—for had anyone else assumed authority, he would not have accomplished what they did, either because he lacked the capability or because he lacked the will.

Indeed, if it is asked:

“Why did ʿAlī not overcome Muʿāwiya and his supporters?”

The cause must have been either incomplete capability or incomplete will. Otherwise, when capability and will are complete, the act must necessarily occur. Complete capability includes having one’s followers obey him, while complete will includes willing (1) what is best, most beneficial, and most pleasing to Allah and His Messenger.

Abū Bakr and ʿUmar possessed fuller capability and a superior will. It was through this that Allah granted Islam victory by means of them and brought unbelief and hypocrisy low by means of them. ʿAlī—may Allah be pleased with him—was not granted the same fullness of capability and will that they were.

Just as Allah Most High favored some prophets over others, He favored some caliphs over others. Since ʿAlī was not granted what they had been granted, he could not accomplish during his caliphate what they accomplished. That being so, he would have been (2) far less capable still of doing so when the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—died. No matter how the matter is construed, the most a Shiite can say is:

“His followers did not obey him.”

It is replied:

“If (3) those who pledged allegiance to him (4) did not obey him, how would those who had not pledged allegiance to him (5) have obeyed him?”

And if it is said:

“Had they pledged allegiance to him (6) after the death of the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—he would have accomplished through them something greater than what Abū Bakr and ʿUmar accomplished.”

(1) The word *irāda* (“will”) is omitted from (م). (2) After the word *wa-hīnaʾidh* (“that being so”), there is a blank of approximately two words in (س) and (ب). The following is written in the margin of (س): “There is likewise a blank in the exemplar. Perhaps the missing wording is *fa-huwa* (‘so he is’). Allah knows best. Yūsuf Husayn.” The editor of (ب) wrote in his annotation: “There is a blank of approximately two words in the exemplar.” In (ن), the word *fa-kāna* (“so he was”) was written but struck out. There is no blank in (م). (3) In (س) and (ب): *in* (“if”). (4) In (م): *tābaʿūhu* (“followed him”). (5) In (م): *yutābiʿhu* (“follow him”). (6) In (م): *tābaʿūhu* (“followed him”).

أَبِي بَكْرٍ وَعُمَرَ بَعْدَ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، فَإِنَّهُ لَوْ تَوَلَّى غَيْرُهُمَا كَانَ لَمْ يَفْعَلْ مَا فَعَلَا، إِمَّا لِعَدَمِ الْقُدْرَةِ، وَإِمَّا لِعَدَمِ الْإِرَادَةِ. فَإِنَّهُ إِذَا قِيلَ: لِمَ لَمْ يَغْلِبْ عَلِيٌّ مُعَاوِيَةَ وَأَصْحَابَهُ؟ فَلَا بُدَّ أَنْ يَكُونَ سَبَبُ ذَلِكَ: إِمَّا عَدَمُ كَمَالِ الْقُدْرَةِ، وَإِمَّا عَدَمُ كَمَالِ الْإِرَادَةِ، وَإِلَّا فَمَعَ كَمَالِ الْقُدْرَةِ وَكَمَالِ الْإِرَادَةِ يَجِبُ وُجُودُ الْفِعْلِ، وَمِنْ تَمَامِ الْقُدْرَةِ طَاعَةُ الْأَتْبَاعِ لَهُ، وَمِنْ تَمَامِ الْإِرَادَةِ إِرَادَةُ (١) مَا هُوَ الْأَصْلَحُ الْأَنْفَعُ الْأَرْضَى لِلَّهِ وَلِرَسُولِهِ. وَأَبُو بَكْرٍ وَعُمَرُ كَانَتْ قُدْرَتُهُمَا أَكْمَلَ وَإِرَادَتُهُمَا أَفْضَلَ، فَبِهَذَا نَصَرَ اللَّهُ بِهِمَا الْإِسْلَامَ، وَأَذَلَّ بِهِمَا الْكُفْرَ وَالنِّفَاقَ، وَعَلِيٌّ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ لَمْ يُؤْتَ مِنْ كَمَالِ الْقُدْرَةِ وَالْإِرَادَةِ مَا أُوتِيَا. وَاللَّهُ تَعَالَى كَمَا فَضَّلَ بَعْضَ النَّبِيِّينَ عَلَى بَعْضٍ، فَضَّلَ بَعْضَ الْخُلَفَاءِ عَلَى بَعْضٍ، فَلَمَّا لَمْ يُؤْتَ مَا أُوتِيَا لَمْ يُمْكِنْهُ أَنْ يَفْعَلَ فِي خِلَافَتِهِ مَا فَعَلَا، وَحِينَئِذٍ فَكَانَ (٢) عَنْ ذَلِكَ بِمَوْتِ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ أَعْجَزَ وَأَعْجَزَ، فَإِنَّهُ عَلَى أَيِّ وَجْهٍ قُدِّرَ ذَلِكَ، فَإِنَّ غَايَةَ مَا يَقُولُ الْمُتَشَيِّعُ: إِنَّ أَتْبَاعَهُ لَمْ يَكُونُوا يُطِيعُونَهُ. فَيُقَالُ: إِذَا (٣) كَانَ الَّذِينَ بَايَعُوهُ (٤) لَمْ يُطِيعُوهُ، فَكَيْفَ يُطِيعُهُ مَنْ لَمْ يُبَايِعْهُ (٥) ؟ وَإِذَا قِيلَ: لَوْ بَايَعُوهُ (٦) بَعْدَ مَوْتِ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ لَفَعَلَ بِهِمْ أَعْظَمَ مِمَّا فَعَلَ أَبُو بَكْرٍ وَعُمَرُ.

(١) إِرَادَةُ: سَاقِطَةٌ مِنْ (م) (٢) بَعْدَ كَلِمَةِ " وَحِينَئِذٍ " يُوجَدُ بَيَاضٌ فِي (س) ، (ب) بِمِقْدَارِ كَلِمَتَيْنِ، وَكُتِبَ فِي هَامِشِ (س) مَا يَلِي: " وَكَذَا بَيَاضٌ فِي الْأَصْلِ، وَلَعَلَّهُ لَفْظُهُ " فَهُوَ " وَاللَّهُ أَعْلَمُ، يُوسُف حُسَيْن " وَكَتَبَ مُحَقِّقُ (ب) فِي تَعْلِيقِهِ: " بَيَاضٌ بِالْأَصْلِ بِمِقْدَارِ كَلِمَتَيْنِ ". وَفِي (ن) كُتِبَتْ كَلِمَةُ " فَكَانَ " وَلَكِنْ عَلَيْهَا شَطْبٌ. وَلَا يُوجَدُ بَيَاضٌ فِي (م) (٣) س، ب: إِنْ (٤) م: تَابَعُوهُ (٥) م: يُتَابِعْهُ (٦) م: تَابَعُوهُ