Minhaj as-Sunnah - Ibn Taimiya - (7/515)

Minhaj as-SunnahIbn Taimiya

If his statement(1), “The most knowledgeable member of my community concerning what is lawful and unlawful is Muādh ibn Jabal,” has a sounder chain of transmission and is clearer(2) in its import, then it is evident that anyone who adduces this to argue that Ali was more knowledgeable(3) than Muādh is ignorant. How much more so anyone who makes the same claim concerning Abu Bakr and Umar, both of whom were more knowledgeable(4) than Muādh?! This is so even though some scholars grade the hadith mentioning Muādh and Zayd as weak, while others grade it acceptable; as for the hadith mentioning Ali, it is weak or baseless.

The hadith, “I am the city of knowledge, and Ali is its gate,” is even weaker and more tenuous. It is therefore counted only among(5) fabricated reports, even though al-Tirmidhī narrated it. Ibn al-Jawzī also cited it and explained that all its chains of transmission are fabricated. Indeed, its falsity is evident from the text itself(6): if the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, were the city of knowledge, if that city had only one gate, and if only one person conveyed knowledge from him, then the whole affair of Islam would be undermined. For this reason, Muslims agree that knowledge from him cannot be conveyed by only one person(7). Rather, those who convey it must be sufficiently numerous to establish mass transmission, such that their report yields certain knowledge for anyone who was not present.

(1) (ن) and (س) read: “And when he made his statement”; (م): “And when he said.” (2) (س) and (ب) read: “and greater.” (3) All manuscripts read: “greater.” I hope that the reading I have adopted is correct. (4) (س) and (ب) read: “greater.” (5) (م) reads: *mina* (“from/among”). (6) Ibn al-Jawzī cited the hadith in *al-Mawdū'āt*, discussed its chains and wordings, and explained that they are fabricated, vol. 1, pp. 349–355. See also al-Suyūtī, *al-La'āli' al-Masnū'a*, vol. 1, pp. 328–336; al-Shawkānī, *al-Fawā'id al-Mawdū'a*, pp. 348–349; and the editor’s marginal notes, pp. 389 and 353. In *Da'īf al-Jāmi' al-Saghīr*, vol. 2, p. 13, al-Albānī declared the hadith fabricated. Al-Tirmidhī transmitted it from Alī—may Allah be pleased with him—in his *Sunan*, vol. 5, p. 301 (Book of Virtues, Chapter 87: The Virtues of Alī ibn Abī Tālib), and said: “This is a *gharīb* (isolated) and *munkar* (rejected) hadith. Some narrators transmitted this hadith from Sharīk without mentioning al-Sunābihī. We know of no trustworthy narrator who transmitted this hadith except Sharīk. There is also a report on this subject from Ibn Abbās.” (7) (س) reads: “knowledge from him [is conveyed by] one person”; (ن) and (م): “knowledge from him [is conveyed] only by one person.” The reading adopted in the text is from (ب).

وَإِذَا كَانَ قَوْلُهُ (١) : " «أَعْلَمُ أُمَّتِي بِالْحَلَالِ وَالْحَرَامِ مُعَاذُ بْنُ جَبَلٍ» " أَصَحَّ إِسْنَادًا وَأَظْهَرَ (٢) دَلَالَةً، عُلِمَ أَنَّ الْمُحْتَجَّ بِذَلِكَ عَلَى أَنَّ عَلِيًّا أَعْلَمُ (٣) مِنْ مَعَاذٍ جَاهِلٌ، فَكَيْفَ مِنْ أَبِي بَكْرٍ وَعُمَرَ اللَّذَيْنِ هُمَا أَعْلَمُ (٤) مِنْ مُعَاذٍ؟ ! مَعَ أَنَّ الْحَدِيثَ الَّذِي فِيهِ ذِكْرُ مُعَاذٍ وَزَيْدٍ بَعْضُهُمْ يُضَعِّفُهُ، وَبَعْضُهُمْ يُحَسِّنُهُ، وَالَّذِي فِيهِ ذِكْرُ عَلِيٍّ فَضَعِيفٌ أَوْ بَاطِلٌ. وَحَدِيثُ: " «أَنَا مَدِينَةُ الْعِلْمِ وَعَلِيٌّ بَابُهَا» أَضْعَفُ وَأَوْهَى " ، وَلِهَذَا إِنَّمَا يُعَدُّ فِي (٥) الْمَوْضُوعَاتِ، وَإِنْ رَوَاهُ التِّرْمِذِيُّ، وَذَكَرَهُ ابْنُ الْجَوْزِيِّ، وَبَيَّنَ أَنَّ سَائِرَ طُرُقِهِ مَوْضُوعَةٌ، وَالْكَذِبُ يُعْرَفُ مِنْ نَفْسِ مَتْنِهِ (٦) ، فَإِنَّ النَّبِيَّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ إِذَا كَانَ مَدِينَةَ الْعِلْمِ، وَلَمْ يَكُنْ لَهَا إِلَّا بَابٌ وَاحِدٌ، وَلَمْ يُبَلِّغْ عَنْهُ الْعِلْمَ إِلَّا وَاحِدٌ، فَسَدَ أَمْرُ الْإِسْلَامِ، وَلِهَذَا اتَّفَقَ الْمُسْلِمُونَ عَلَى أَنَّهُ لَا يَجُوزُ أَنْ يَكُونَ الْمُبَلِّغُ عَنْهُ الْعِلْمَ وَاحِدًا (٧) ، بَلْ يَجِبُ أَنْ يَكُونَ الْمُبَلِّغُونَ أَهْلَ التَّوَاتُرِ الَّذِينَ يَحْصُلُ الْعِلْمُ بِخَبَرِهِمْ لِلْغَائِبِ.

(١) ن، س: وَإِذَا قَالَ قَوْلَهُ ; م: وَإِذَا قَالَ. . (٢) س، ب: وَأَعْظَمَ (٣) فِي جَمِيعِ النُّسَخِ: أَعْظَمُ: وَأَرْجُو أَنْ يَكُونَ الصَّوَابُ مَا أَثْبَتُّهُ (٤) س، ب: أَعْظَمُ (٥) م: مِنَ (٦) ذَكَرَ ابْنُ الْجَوْزِيِّ الْحَدِيثَ فِي كِتَابِهِ " الْمَوْضُوعَاتِ " وَتَكَلَّمَ عَلَى طُرُقِهِ وَأَلْفَاظِهِ وَبَيَّنَ أَنَّهَا مَوْضُوعَةٌ ١/٣٤٩ ٣٥٥ ; وَانْظُرِ: السُّيُوطِيَّ فِي اللَّآلِئِ الْمَصْنُوعَةِ ١/٣٢٨ ٣٣٦، الشَّوْكَانِيَّ فِي " الْفَوَائِدِ الْمَوْضُوعَةِ " ص ٣٤٨ ٣٤٩ وَانْظُرْ تَعْلِيقَ الْمُحَقِّقِ، هَامِشَ ص ٣٨٩ ٣٥٣. وَقَالَ الْأَلْبَانِيُّ عَنِ الْحَدِيثِ فِي " ضَعِيفِ الْجَامِعِ الصَّغِيرِ " ٢/١٣: إِنَّهُ مَوْضُوعٌ. وَذَكَرَ التِّرْمِذِيُّ الْحَدِيثَ فِي سُنَنِهِ عَنْ عَلِيٍّ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ ٥/٣٠١ (كِتَابُ الْمَنَاقِبِ، بَابُ ٨٧ مَنَاقِبِ عَلِيِّ بْنِ أَبِي طَالِبٍ) ، وَقَالَ: " هَذَا حَدِيثٌ غَرِيبٌ مُنْكَرٌ. رَوَى بَعْضُهُمْ هَذَا الْحَدِيثَ عَنْ شَرِيكٍ، وَلَمْ يَذْكُرُوا فِيهِ عَنِ الصُّنَابِحِيِّ، وَلَا نَعْرِفُ هَذَا الْحَدِيثَ عَنْ أَحَدٍ مِنَ الثِّقَاتِ غَيْرَ شَرِيكٍ. وَفِي الْبَابِ عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ " (٧) س: عَنْهُ الْعِلْمَ وَاحِدٌ ; ن، م: عَنْهُ الْعِلْمَ إِلَّا وَاحِدٌ. وَالْمُثْبَتُ مِنْ (ب)