Minhaj as-Sunnah - Ibn Taimiya - (1/48)

Minhaj as-SunnahIbn Taimiya

[Surah Āl Imrān: 79–80]

(1) If one who takes the angels and prophets as lords is in such a state, then what of one who takes as his imam someone nonexistent, who has no existence at all?

The Exalted has said:

{They have taken their rabbis and monks as lords besides Allah, as well as the Messiah, son of Mary, although they were commanded to worship only one God. There is no deity except Him. Glorified is He above what they associate with Him.}

[Surah al-Tawbah: 31].

It is established in al-Tirmidhī and elsewhere, in [the hadith of] Adī ibn Hātim, [that] he said (2), “O Messenger of Allah, they did not worship them.”

He replied, “They declared the forbidden lawful for them and forbade them what was lawful, and they obeyed them. That was their worship of them.” (3)

Those people took actual human beings (4) as lords, whereas these people make what is lawful and forbidden contingent upon a nonexistent imam who has no reality. They then act upon everything said (5) by those claiming affiliation with him (6) to be something he declares lawful or forbidden, even when it contradicts the Book, the Sunnah, and the consensus of the early generations of the Muslim community—so much so that their faction

(1) Verse 80 of Surah Āl Imrān is absent from N and M. (2) N and M read: “From Adī ibn Hātim, who said.” (3) In Sunan al-Tirmidhī, 4:341–342 (Book of Quranic Exegesis, Surah al-Tawbah), Adī ibn Hātim said: “I came to the Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him—wearing a gold cross around my neck. He said, ‘Adī, cast this idol off yourself.’ I then heard him recite from Surah Barā'ah: {They have taken their rabbis and monks as lords besides Allah.} He said, ‘They did not worship them; rather, whenever they declared something lawful for them, they regarded it as lawful, and whenever they declared something forbidden for them, they regarded it as forbidden.’” Al-Tirmidhī said: “This is a gharīb hadith. We know it only through the narration of Abd al-Salām ibn Harb, and Ghutayf ibn A'yan is not known as a hadith transmitter.” (4) M reads: “people.” (5) N reads: “according to what is said.” (6) B reads: “those who affirm his existence.”

[سُورَةُ آلِ عِمْرَانَ: ٧٩ - ٨٠] (١) فَإِذَا كَانَ مَنْ يَتَّخِذُ الْمَلَائِكَةَ وَالنَّبِيِّينَ أَرْبَابًا بِهَذِهِ الْحَالِ، فَكَيْفَ بِمَنْ يَتَّخِذُ إِمَامًا مَعْدُومًا لَا وُجُودَ لَهُ، وَقَدْ قَالَ تَعَالَى: {اتَّخَذُوا أَحْبَارَهُمْ وَرُهْبَانَهُمْ أَرْبَابًا مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ وَالْمَسِيحَ ابْنَ مَرْيَمَ وَمَا أُمِرُوا إِلَّا لِيَعْبُدُوا إِلَهًا وَاحِدًا لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا هُوَ سُبْحَانَهُ عَمَّا يُشْرِكُونَ} [سُورَةُ التَّوْبَةِ: ٣١] . وَقَدْ ثَبَتَ فِي التِّرْمِذِيِّ، وَغَيْرِهِ مِنْ [حَدِيثِ] «عَدِيِّ بْنِ حَاتِمٍ [أَنَّهُ] قَالَ (٢) : يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ مَا عَبَدُوهُمْ، فَقَالَ: (إِنَّهُمْ أَحَلُّوا لَهُمُ الْحَرَامَ، وَحَرَّمُوا عَلَيْهِمُ الْحَلَالَ، فَأَطَاعُوهُمْ، فَكَانَتْ تِلْكَ عِبَادَتَهُمْ إِيَّاهُمْ» .) (٣) فَهَؤُلَاءِ اتَّخَذُوا أُنَاسًا (٤) مَوْجُودِينَ أَرْبَابًا، وَهَؤُلَاءِ يَجْعَلُونَ الْحَلَالَ وَالْحَرَامَ مُعَلَّقًا بِالْإِمَامِ الْمَعْدُومِ الَّذِي لَا حَقِيقَةَ لَهُ، ثُمَّ يَعْمَلُونَ بِكُلِّ مَا يَقُولُ (٥) الْمُنْتَسِبُونَ إِلَيْهِ (٦) إِنَّهُ يُحَلِّلُهُ، وَيُحَرِّمُهُ، وَإِنْ خَالَفَ الْكِتَابَ وَالسُّنَّةَ، وَإِجْمَاعَ سَلَفِ الْأُمَّةِ حَتَّى أَنَّ طَائِفَتَهُمْ

(١) آيَةُ ٨٠ مِنْ سُورَةِ آلِ عِمْرَانَ لَيْسَتْ فِي (ن) ، (م) . (٢) ن، م: عَنْ عَدِيِّ بْنِ حَاتِمٍ قَالَ. (٣) فِي: سُنَنِ التِّرْمِذِيِّ ٤/٣٤١ - ٣٤٢ (كِتَابُ التَّفْسِيرِ، سُورَةُ التَّوْبَةِ) عَنْ عَدِيِّ بْنِ حَاتِمٍ قَالَ: أَتَيْتُ النَّبِيَّ - صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ - وَفِي عُنُقِي صَلِيبٌ مِنْ ذَهَبٍ، فَقَالَ: يَا عَدِيُّ اطْرَحْ عَنْكَ هَذَا الْوَثَنَ، وَسَمِعْتُهُ يَقْرَأُ فِي سُورَةِ بَرَاءَةٌ (اتَّخَذُوا أَحْبَارَهُمْ وَرُهْبَانَهُمْ أَرْبَابًا مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ) قَالَ: " أَمَّا أَنَّهُمْ لَمْ يَكُونُوا يَعْبُدُونَهُمْ، وَلَكِنَّهُمْ كَانُوا إِذَا أَحَلُّوا لَهُمْ شَيْئًا اسْتَحَلُّوهُ، وَإِذَا حَرَّمُوا عَلَيْهِمْ شَيْئًا حَرَّمُوهُ ". " قَالَ التِّرْمِذِيُّ: " هَذَا حَدِيثٌ غَرِيبٌ لَا نَعْرِفُهُ إِلَّا مِنْ حَدِيثِ عَبْدِ السَّلَامِ بْنِ حَرْبٍ، وَغُطَيْفِ بْنِ أَعْيَنَ لَيْسَ بِمَعْرُوفٍ فِي الْحَدِيثِ ". (٤) م: نَاسًا. (٥) ن: بِمَا يَقُولُ. (٦) ب: الْمُثْبِتُونَ.