Minhaj as-Sunnah - Ibn Taimiya - (2/133)

Minhaj as-SunnahIbn Taimiya

or a pronoun—His attributes are included in the referent of His name (1), and thus do not fall (2) outside the referents of His names.

Whoever says, “I called upon Allah,” or, “I worshipped Him,” has in fact called upon the Ever-Living, [the Self-Sustaining] (3), the All-Knowing, the All-Powerful, who is described by knowledge, power, and all the other attributes of perfection.

[Commentary on His Statement, “For He Is One and Is Neither a Body nor a Substance”]

As for his statement:

“For He is one and is not (4) a body” (5):

If by “one” he means what Allah and His Messenger meant (6), as in such words as (7):

“Your God is One God.”

[Surah al-Baqarah: 163]

And His words:

“He is the One, the Prevailing.”

[Surah al-Ra'd: 16] (8)

[and similar statements] (9), then this is true.

If, however, by “one” he means what the Jahmiyyah—those who deny the attributes—mean, namely, that He is an essence stripped of attributes, then this “one” has no reality in the external world. It can only be conceived in the mind, not instantiated in concrete reality. The existence of an essence stripped of attributes is impossible, and it is likewise impossible—

(1) N reads: “name,” which is a corruption. (2) N reads: “and thus it does not fall.” (3) The word *al-Qayyūm* (the Self-Sustaining) is omitted from N and M. (4) N and M omit “and” before “is not.” (5) Ibn Taymiyyah abridged Ibn al-Mutahhar’s statement here, as he did previously (p. [0–9] 02). The statement appeared earlier in full as follows: “For He is one; He is neither a body nor a substance; nor is He composite, since every composite is dependent on its part, for its part is other than it; nor is He an accident.” On p. 97, I explained the differences in this passage between the text of *Minhāj al-Sunnah* and that of *Minhāj al-Karāmah*, p. 82 (M). (6) N and M read: “what Allah and His Messenger meant.” (7) N and M omit the preposition before “such as.” (8) N, M, B, and A read: “And He is Allah, the One, the Prevailing,” which is a slip by either the copyist or the author. (9) The phrase “and similar statements” is omitted from N and M.

أَوْ مُضْمَرٍ، دَخَلَ فِي مُسَمَّى اسْمِهِ (١) صِفَاتُهُ، فَهِيَ لَا تَخْرُجُ (٢) عَنْ مُسَمَّى أَسْمَائِهِ. فَمَنْ قَالَ: دَعَوْتُ اللَّهَ أَوْ عَبَدْتُهُ، فَهُوَ إِنَّمَا دَعَا الْحَيَّ [الْقَيُّومَ] (٣) ، الْعَلِيمَ الْقَدِيرَ، الْمَوْصُوفَ بِالْعِلْمِ وَالْقُدْرَةِ وَسَائِرِ صِفَاتِ الْكَمَالِ. [التعليق على قوله لأنه واحد وليس بجسم ولا جوهر] وَأَمَّا قَوْلُهُ: " لِأَنَّهُ وَاحِدٌ وَلَيْسَ (٤) بِجِسْمٍ " (٥) . فَإِنْ أَرَادَ بِالْوَاحِدِ مَا أَرَادَهُ (٦) اللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُ بِمِثْلِ (٧) قَوْلِهِ: {وَإِلَهُكُمْ إِلَهٌ وَاحِدٌ} [سُورَةُ الْبَقَرَةِ: ١٦٣] ، وَقَوْلِهِ: {وَهُوَ الْوَاحِدُ الْقَهَّارُ} [سُورَةُ الرَّعْدِ: ١٦] (٨) [وَنَحْوِ ذَلِكَ] (٩) ، فَهَذَا حَقٌّ. وَإِنْ أَرَادَ بِالْوَاحِدِ مَا تُرِيدُهُ الْجَهْمِيَّةُ نَفَاةُ الصِّفَاتِ مِنْ أَنَّهُ ذَاتٌ مُجَرَّدَةٌ عَنِ الصِّفَاتِ، فَهَذَا " الْوَاحِدُ " لَا حَقِيقَةَ لَهُ فِي الْخَارِجِ، وَإِنَّمَا يَقْدِرُ فِي الْأَذْهَانِ لَا فِي الْأَعْيَانِ، وَيَمْتَنِعُ وُجُودُ ذَاتٍ مُجَرَّدَةٍ عَنِ الصِّفَاتِ، وَيَمْتَنِعُ

(١) ن: اسْمِ، وَهُوَ تَحْرِيفٌ. (٢) ن: فَهُوَ لَا يَخْرُجُ. (٣) الْقَيُّومَ: سَاقِطَةٌ مِنْ (ن) ، (م) . (٤) ن، م: لَيْسَ. (٥) اخْتَصَرَ ابْنُ تَيْمِيَّةَ هُنَا عِبَارَةَ ابْنِ الْمُطَهَّرِ كَمَا فَعَلَ مِنْ قَبْلُ (ص [٠ - ٩] ٠٢) وَوَرَدَتِ الْعِبَارَةُ بِتَمَامِهَا قَبْلَ ذَلِكَ وَهِيَ: " لِأَنَّهُ وَاحِدٌ، وَأَنَّهُ لَيْسَ بِجِسْمٍ وَلَا جَوْهَرٍ، وَأَنَّهُ لَيْسَ بِمُرَكَّبٍ لِأَنَّ كُلَّ مُرَكَّبٍ مُحْتَاجٍ إِلَى جُزْئِهِ لِأَنَّ جُزْأَهُ غَيْرُهُ، وَلَا عَرْضَ ". وَقَدْ بَيَّنْتُ فِي ص ٩٧ الْفُرُوقَ الْمَوْجُودَةَ فِي هَذِهِ الْعِبَارَةِ بَيْنَ نَصِّ " مِنْهَاجِ السُّنَّةِ " وَنَصِّ " مِنْهَاجِ الْكَرَامَةِ " ص ٨٢ (م) . (٦) ن، م: مَا أَرَادَ. (٧) ن، م: مِثْلَ. (٨) ن، م، ب، أ: وَهُوَ اللَّهُ الْوَاحِدُ الْقَهَّارُ، وَهُوَ سَهْوٌ مِنَ النَّاسِخِ أَوِ الْمُؤَلِّفِ. (٩) عِبَارَةُ " وَنَحْوِ ذَلِكَ ": سَاقِطَةٌ مِنْ (ن) ، (م) .