Minhaj as-Sunnah - Ibn Taimiya - (1/459)

Minhaj as-SunnahIbn Taimiya

say that Allah is the Creator of the servants’ acts, it followed that he had to maintain that the servants’ acts are an act of Allah Most High (1), since, in his view, His act is the very thing He brings about (2). Thus, he deemed the servants’ acts to be an act of Allah. According to the best-known report from him, he described them as the servants’ own acts only figuratively; rather, he said that they were their acquisition. He defined acquisition as that which occurs (3) in the locus of a created capacity in conjunction with that capacity. He was followed in this by [a group of jurists] (4) from among the followers of Mālik, al-Shāfiī, and Ahmad.

Most people criticized this doctrine, saying: “The three marvels of speculative theology are al-Nazzām’s leap, the states of Abū Hāshim, and al-Asharī’s acquisition.” The following lines were recited concerning this:

Among the things that are said, though no intelligible reality lies beneath them ... that comes within the grasp of minds,
Are acquisition according to al-Asharī, the state according to al-Bahshamī (5), and the leap of al-Nazzām (6).

The rest of Ahl al-Sunnah, however, say [that] (7) the servants’ acts are truly acts of their own. This is one of the two positions attributed to al-Asharī. The majority of them, who (8) distinguish between

(1) N reads: “The servants’ acts are an act belonging to Allah Most High”; B reads: “The servants’ acts are Allah Most High’s act.” The reading adopted here is from M. (2) N and M read: “since His act on their behalf is what He brings about,” which is a corruption. (3) A and B read: “that which occurred.” (4) The words “among the jurists” are an addition in A and B. (5) A, B, and M read: “al-Hāshimī.” (6) In the margin of A, opposite this passage, several phrases were written, of which the following could be made out: “... al-Nazzām held that one who cuts a thing cuts part of it and leaps over another part.... Abū Hāshim al-Jubbā’ī claimed that states are neither known nor unknown, neither existent nor nonexistent.... [This] is mentioned, and its detailed discussion ... is in its proper place. The humble Nu‘mān.” (7) The word “that” is an addition in A and B. (8) N and M read: “And the majority of those who...”

يَقُولُونَ: إِنَّ اللَّهَ خَالِقُ أَفْعَالِ الْعِبَادِ، لَزِمَهُ أَنْ يَقُولَ: إِنَّ أَفْعَالَ الْعِبَادِ فِعْلٌ لِلَّهِ تَعَالَى (١) ، إِذْ كَانَ فِعْلُهُ عِنْدَهُ هُوَ مَفْعُولُهُ (٢) ، فَجَعَلَ أَفْعَالَ الْعِبَادِ فِعْلًا لِلَّهِ، وَلَمْ يَقُلْ: هِيَ فِعْلُهُمْ - فِي الْمَشْهُورِ عَنْهُ - إِلَّا عَلَى وَجْهِ الْمَجَازِ، بَلْ قَالَ: هِيَ كَسْبُهُمْ. وَفَسَّرَ الْكَسْبَ بِأَنَّهُ مَا يَحْصُلُ (٣) فِي مَحَلِّ الْقُدْرَةِ الْمُحْدِثَةِ مَقْرُونًا بِهِ. وَوَافَقَهُ عَلَى ذَلِكَ [طَائِفَةٌ مِنَ الْفُقَهَاءِ] (٤) مِنْ أَصْحَابِ مَالِكٍ وَالشَّافِعِيِّ وَأَحْمَدَ. وَأَكْثَرُ النَّاسِ طَعَنُوا فِي هَذَا الْكَلَامِ، وَقَالُوا: عَجَائِبُ الْكَلَامِ ثَلَاثَةٌ: طَفْرَةُ النَّظَّامِ، وَأَحْوَالُ أَبِي هَاشِمٍ، وَكَسْبُ الْأَشْعَرِيِّ. وَأُنْشِدَ فِي ذَلِكَ: مِمَّا يُقَالُ وَلَا حَقِيقَةَ تَحْتَهُ ... مَعْقُولَةٌ تَدْنُو إِلَى الْأَفْهَامِ الْكَسْبُ عِنْدَ الْأَشْعَرِي وَالْحَالُ عِنْدَ الْبَهْشَمِي (٥) وَطَفْرَةُ النَّظَّامِ (٦) . وَأَمَّا سَائِرُ أَهْلِ السُّنَّةِ فَيَقُولُونَ: [إِنَّ] (٧) أَفْعَالَ الْعِبَادِ فِعْلٌ لَهُمْ حَقِيقَةً، وَهُوَ أَحَدُ الْقَوْلَيْنِ لِلْأَشْعَرِيِّ. وَيَقُولُ جُمْهُورُهُمُ الَّذِينَ (٨) يُفَرِّقُونَ بَيْنَ

(١) ن: إِنْ أَفْعَالَ الْعِبَادِ فِعْلًا لِلَّهِ تَعَالَى؛ ب: إِنَّ أَفْعَالَ الْعِبَادِ هِيَ فِعْلُ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى. وَالْمُثْبَتُ مِنْ (م) . (٢) ن، م: إِذْ كَانَ فِعْلُهُ عَنْهُمْ هُوَ مَفْعُولُهُ، وَهُوَ تَحْرِيفٌ. (٣) ا، ب: مَا حَصَلَ. (٤) مِنَ الْفُقَهَاءِ: زِيَادَةٌ فِي (ا) ، (ب) . (٥) ا، ب، م: الْهَاشِمِيِّ. (٦) فِي هَامِشٍ (ا) كُتِبَ أَمَامَ الْمَوْضِعِ عِبَارَاتٌ ظَهَرَ مِنْهَا ". . النَّظَّامُ أَنَّ الْقَاطِعَ لِلشَّيْءِ يَقْطَعُ بَعْضَهُ وَيَطْفِرُ بَعْضَهُ. . . أَبُو هَاشِمٍ الْجُبَّائِيُّ زَعَمَ أَنَّ الْأَحْوَالَ لَا مَعْلُومَةً وَلَا مَجْهُولَةً وَلَا مَوْجُودَةً وَلَا مَعْدُومَةً. . مَذْكُورَةٌ وَتَفْصِيلُ ذَلِكَ. . فِي مَحَلِّهِ. الْفَقِيرُ نُعْمَانُ ". (٧) إِنَّ: زِيَادَةٌ فِي (ا) ، (ب) . (٨) ن، م: وَيَقُولُ جُمْهُورُ الَّذِينَ. . .