The Foundations of the Islamic Belief

8/13/2019 The Foundations of the Islamic Belief

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0 /ray that the rea.ers will benefit from the soun. reasoning which they are about to embar* u/on an.that it will o/en gui.ing channels of thought that will give /leasure in this life an. in the (ereafter&

(asan El Fatih Umm %urman -u.an !!#

!ha"te #ne

The Belief of the $unni% the &ay of the P o"hetThe E$/osition of the Belief of the -unni, way of the Pro/het, is embo.ie. in two /hrases of witnessing which form one of the Pillars of 0slam&

(A) The meanin' of the fi st "h ase of &itnessin'

e say : our success is from Allah : /raise be to Allah the +reator, the )estorer, the One who .oeswhatever (e wills& (e whose Throne is glorious an. whose Power is ightyC who gui.es the selectamongst (is worshi//ers to the righteous /ath& (e who grants them benefits once they affirm (isOneness by guar.ing the articles of belief from the .ar*ness of .oubt an. hesitation& (e who lea.s themto follow the way of (is chosen Pro/het uhamma. : /raise an. /eace be u/on him : an. to follow the

e$am/le of his com/anions, the most honore., by .irecting their footste/s to the way of truth& (e whoreveals (imself to them in (is Essence an. in (is or*s by (is fine attributes which none /erceivee$ce/t the one who inclines his ear in contem/lation& (e who ma*es *nown to them that (e is One in(is Essence without any associate, -ingle without any e1ual, Eternal without a similar&

Nothing /rece.es (im, (e is without any beginning& (e is Eternal with none after (im, Everlastingwithout any en., subsisting without cessation, abi.ing without termination (e has not cease. an. (ewill not cease to be .escribe. by the e/ithets of a?esty& At the en. of time (e will not be sub?ect to.issolution an. .ecay, but (e is the First an. the Dast, the (i..en an. A//arent, an. (e *nowseverything&

i T anscendence (*+altation)

Allah is not a bo.y /ossessing form, nor a substance restricte. an. limite. (e .oes not resemble otherbo.ies either in limitation or in acce/ting .ivision&

(e is not a substance an. substances .o not resi.e in (imC (e is not a 1uality of substance, nor .oes a1uality of substance occur in (im&

)ather, (e resembles no e$istent an. no e$istent resembles (im& Nothing is li*e (im an. (e is not li*eanything& easure .oes not bin. (im an. boun.aries .o not contain (im& %irections .o not surroun.(im an. neither the earth nor the (eavens are on .ifferent si.es of (im&

Truly, (e is controlling the Throne in the manner in which (e sai. an. in the sense in which (e wille. :

in a state of transcen.ence that is remove. from /arallel an. touch, resi.ence, fi$ity of location,stability, envelo/ment, an. movement&

The Throne .oes not su//ort (im, but the Throne an. those who carry it are su//orte. by the-ubtleness of (is Power an. are constraine. by (is Firmness& (e is above the Throne an. (eavens an.above everything to the limits of the earth with an aboveness which .oes not bring (im nearer to theThrone an. the (eavens, ?ust as it .oes not ma*e (im further from the earth&

)ather, (e is (ighly E$alte. above the Throne an. the (eavens, ?ust as (e is (ighly E$alte. above theearth& Nevertheless, (e is near to every entity an. is 2nearer to the worshi//er than his ?uggler vein2an. (e witnesses everything since (is nearness .oes not resemble the nearness of bo.ies, ?ust as (isEssence .oes not resemble the essence of bo.ies&


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Page 3 of 56(e .oes not e$ist in anything, ?ust as nothing e$ists in (im E$alte. is (e that a /lace coul. contain(im, ?ust as sanctifie. is (e that no time coul. limit (im&

For, (e was as before (e ha. create. time an. /lace, an. ?ust as (e was, (e is now& (e is .istinct from(is creatures through (is attributes& There is not in (is Essence any other than (im, nor .oes (isEssence e$ist in any other than (im&

(e is E$alte. from change an. movement& -ubstance .oes not resi.e in (im an. the 1uality ofsubstance .o not befall (im& )ather, (e is in the attributes of (is a?esty beyon. cessation& An. (e is inthe attributes of (is Perfection& (e is not in nee. of an increase in /erfection& 0n (is Essence, (isE$istence is *nown by reason &

0n the Everlasting Dife, (is Essence is seen by the eyes of the righteous as a favor from (im, an. asubtlety as a com/letion of favors from (im through their behol.ing (is racious Face&

ii ,ife and Po&e

(e is Diving, Able, the +on1ueror an. All:sub.uing&

0na.e1uacy an. wea*ness .o not befall (imC slumber .oes not overta*e (im nor slee/C annihilation.oes not /revail over (im nor .eath& (e is the Owner of the visible an. invisible 4ing.om, an. of Poweran. ight& (is are .ominion, sub?ugation, creation, an. comman.C the (eavens are rolle. in (is )ightan. create. things are sub?ugate. in (is Firmness&

(e is -ingle in creating an. inventing& (e is Alone in bringing into e$istence an. innovating& (e create.all creatures an. their .ee.s, an. .ecree. their sustenance an. their life s/anC nothing .ecree. esca/es(is Firmness an. the mutations of the affairs .oes not sli/ from (is Power&

hatever (e .ecrees cannot be numbere. neither .oes (is 4nowle.ge en.&

iii -no&led'e

(e is 4nowle.geable of all the *nown, encom/assing all that ha//ens in the .e/ths of earth to thehighest heavens& (e is 4nowle.geable in which there is not an atom that esca/es (is 4nowle.ge inheaven an. earth&

)ather, (e *nows the stam/ing of the blac* ant u/on the soli. roc* in the .ar*est night& (e /erceivesthe movement of a /article of .ust in mi.:air& (e *nows the secrets an. that which is more hi..en&

(e is the Overseer of the whis/ering of the self an. the flow of thoughts, an. the most .ee/estconcealment of the selves&

ith a *nowle.ge which is ancient from eternity an. by which (e has not cease. to be .escribe.

through the ages&

Not by a *nowle.ge which is sub?ect to u/.ating by occurring an. circulating in (is Essence&

i. ill

(e is the iller of all e$istence an. the Planner of all contingent things& There is nothing that occurs in(is visible or invisible worl. e$ce/t by (is /rior /lanning an. (is e$ecution whether it is little or/lenteous, small or large, goo. or evil, benefit or harm, belief or unbelief, gratitu.e or ingratitu.e,/ros/erity or loss, increase or .ecrease, obe.ience or .isobe.ience all is accor.ing to (is is.om an.

ill, what (e wills occurs an. what (e .oes not will .oes not occur& There is not a glance of theonloo*er nor a stray thought that is not sub?ect to (is ill&


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Page 4 of 56(e is the +reator at first, the )estorer, the %oer of whatsoever (e wills& There is none that rescin.s (iscomman., an. none that su//lements (is .ecrees, an. there is no esca/e for a worshi//er from.isobeying (im, e$ce/t by (is (el/ an. ercy, an. none has /ower to obey (im e$ce/t by (is ill&Even if man*in., ?inn, angels, an. .evils were to unite to try to move the weight of an atom in the worl.or to ren.er it still, without (is ill they woul. fail&

(is ill subsists in (is Essence amongst (is Attributes& (e has not cease. to be .escribe. by it frometernity, willing, : in (is 0nfinity : the e$istence of the things at their a//ointe. time which (e has.ecree.& -o they come into e$istence at their a//ointe. times as (e has wille. in (is 0nfinity without/rece.ence or .elay& They come to /ass in accor.ance with (is 4nowle.ge an. (is ill without variationor change&

(e .irects matters not through arrangement of thought an. awaiting the /assage of time, an. so noaffair occu/ies (im from another affair&

. ea in' and $eein'

(e : the ost (igh : is the (earer, the -eer& (e hears an. sees&

No au.ible thing, however faint, esca/es (is (earing, an. no visible thing, however minute, is hi..enfrom (is -ight&

%istance .oes not /revent (is (earing an. .ar*ness .oes not obstruct (is -eeing& (e sees without a/u/il an. eyeli., an. hears without the meatus an. ears, as (e /erceives without a heart, an. sei;eswithout limbs, an. creates without an instrument, since (is attributes .o not resemble the attributes ofthe creation, an. as (is Essence .oes not resemble the essence of creation&

.i $"eech

(e : the ost (igh : s/ea*s, comman.ing, forbi..ing, /romising, an. threatening, with a s/eech frometernity, ancient, an. self:e$isting&

Unli*e the s/eech of the creation, it is not a soun. which is cause. through the /assage of air or thefriction of bo.iesC nor is it a letter which is enunciate. through the o/ening an. closing of li/s an. themovement of the tongue&

An. that the 4oran, the original Torah, the original os/el of 'esus, an. the original Psalms are (isBoo*s sent .own u/on (is essengers, /eace be u/on them&

The 4oran is rea. by tongues, written in boo*s, an. remembere. in the heart, yet it is, neverthelessancient, subsisting in the Essence of Allah, not sub?ect to .ivision an. or se/aration through itstransmission to the heart an. /a/er by this he meant that the movement of the reciter@s tongue an. hismanagement of the flow of air in his mouth an. ear etc&, or the writer@s inscri/tion u/on /a/er, all ofwhich are create.& hereas the logic of ha;ali a..resses what is beyon. this human 1uality an..imension of time an. /hysic& Thereby he refers to the 4oran before one@s movement of the tongue ortranscri/tion onto /a/er& ost errors have come from our human .imensions, an. that we try to.escribe %ivine attributes through our own limite. human attributes : %arwish & oses : Allah /raise.him an. gave him /eace : hear. the -/eech of Allah without soun. an. without letter, ?ust as therighteous see the Essence of Allah : the (igh : in the (ereafter, without substance or its 1uality&

An. since (e has these 1ualities, (e is Diving, 4nowing, illing, (earing, -eeing an. -/ea*ing with life,/ower, *nowle.ge, will, hearing, sight, an. s/eech, not solely through (is Essence&

.ii eeds


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Page 5 of 56(e, the E$alte., the (igh, there is no e$istence e$ce/t (im, unless it occurs by (is action an. /rocee.sfrom (is 'ustice, in the best, /erfect, com/lete an. ?ust ways&

(e is ise in (is ver.icts& (is ?ustice is not to be com/are. with that of worshi//ers, because it isconceivable that the worshi//er is un?ust when he .eals with /ro/erties of other than his own& But,harm is not conceivable from Allah : the (igh : because (e .oes not encounter any ownershi/ of otherthan (imself, in which (is .ealing coul. be .escribe. to be harmful&

Everything besi.es (im, chil.ren of A.am an. ?inn, angels an. .evils, heaven an. earth, animals,/lants, an. inanimates, substance an. its 1uality, as well as things /erceive. an. things felt, are alloriginate. things which (e create. by (is Power an. before they were nothing, since (e e$iste. inEternity alone an. there was nothing whatsoever with (im&

-o (e originate. creation thereafter as a manifestation of (is Power an. a reali;ation of that which ha./rece.e. of (is ill an. the reali;ation of (is or. in eternity, not because (e ha. any nee. ornecessity for it&

(e is magnanimous in creating an. inventing an. in im/osing obligations, not .oing it through necessity&

(e is racious in beneficence an. reform, though not through any nee.& unificence an. 4in.ness,Beneficence an. race are (is, since (e is able to bring u/on (is creatures all manner of torture an. totry them with all *in.s of /ain an. affliction& Even if (e shoul. .o this, it woul. be ?ustice from (im, itwoul. not be vile, it woul. not be tyrannous&

(e : the ighty, the lorifie. : rewar.s (is believing worshi//ers for their acts of obe.ience accor.ingto generosity an. encouragement rather than accor.ing to their merit an. obligation& For there is noobligation u/on (im in any .ee. towar.s anyone an. tyranny is inconceivable in (im& For there is noright u/on (im towar.s anyone&

As for (is right to be obeye. it is obligatory an. bin.ing u/on all creatures because (e ma.e itobligatory u/on them through the tongues of (is /ro/hets an. not by reason& But (e sent (is /ro/hetsan. showe. their truthfulness through e$/licit miracles, an. they conveye. (is comman.s an.

/rohibitions as well as (is /romises an. threats& -o it became obligatory u/on all creatures to believethem an. what they brought&

(B) The meanin' of the second "h ase of &itnessin' &hich is the &itnessin'fo the messen'e s and thei messa'e

Allah sent the unlettere., of Guraish, Pro/het uhamma. : /raise an. /eace be u/on him : with (isessage for Arabs an. non:Arabs ali*e, to the ?inn an. humanity& Therefore Allah su/erse.e. other

religions by the )eligion of Pro/het uhamma. : /raise an. /eace be u/on him : e$ce/t that which (econfirme. amongst them&

(e favore. Pro/het uhamma. over all other /ro/hets an. ma.e him the master of man*in., an..eclare. incom/lete any /rofession of faith which attests to Oneness, which is 2 There is no godexcept Allah, 2 unless it is followe. by the witness to the essenger, which is your saying, 2 uhamma.is the essenger of Allah&2 (e obligate. all nations to believe in everything he informe. of the affairs ofhere an. the (ereafter&

Allah will not acce/t the belief of any one until he believes in that which the Pro/hetinforme. of the affairs that occur after .eath, the first of which is the 1uestion of the angels un*ar an.Na*eer& These are two awesome an. terrifying beings who will ma*e the .ecease. sit u/ in the grave,both soul an. bo.yC they will as* him about the Oneness of Allah an. about the essage, as*ing, 2 hois your Dor., an. what is your )eligion, an. who is your /ro/hetH2 They are also *nown as the twoe$aminers of the grave an. their 1uestions are consi.ere. as the first trial after .eath&


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Page 6 of 56Again, one shoul. believe in the /unishment of the grave, an. that it is real an. that (is )uling is ?ustover both the bo.y an. soul in accor.ance with (is ill&

An. one shoul. believe in the -cale with the two /ans with its in.icator : the magnitu.e of which is li*ethe stages of the (eavens an. the earth : in it, the .ee.s are weighe. by the Power of Allah, an. itsweights or measures are the mustar. see. an. the atom, in or.er to establish e$act ?ustice&

The recor.s of goo. .ee.s will be /lace. in a fine image in the scale of light, an. then the balance willbe heavy accor.ing to its ran* with Allah, by (is Iirtue&

The recor.s of the evil .ee.s will be cast in an evil image in the scale of .ar*ness, an. they will be lightin the balance through the 'ustice of Allah&

One shoul. believe also that the Bri.ge is realC it is a Bri.ge stretche. over (ell, shar/er than the e.geof the swor. an. finer than a hair& The feet of the unbelievers sli/ on it, accor.ing to the .ecree of Allah: the E$alte. : an. they will fall into the FireC but the feet of the believers stan. firm u/on it, by the

race of Allah, an. so they are .riven into the Everlasting resi.ence&

An. one shoul. believe in the fre1uente. /ool, the Pool of Pro/het uhamma. : Allah has /raise. an.given him /eace& From which the believers will .rin* before entering Para.ise an. after crossing overthe Bri.ge& hoever .rin*s a single mouthful from it will never thirst again& 0ts wi.th is the .istance ofone month@s ?ourneyC its waters are whiter than mil* an. sweeter than honey& Aroun. it are ewers innumber li*e the stars of the s*y, an. into it flow two s/rings from al:4awthar&

An. one shoul. believe in the 'u.gement an. the .istinctions between those in it, that some will beclosely 1uestione., that some will be treate. with forgiveness an. that others will enter Para.ise without1uestioning : these are the nearest&

Allah will as* whomsoever (e will of the /ro/hets concerning the .eliverance of the essage, an.whosoever of the unbelievers concerning their re?ection of the essengersC an. (e will as* theinnovators concerning the way of the Pro/het an. the uslims concerning their .ee.s&

One shoul. believe that the believer in the Oneness of Allah willbe release. from (ell fire after he has been /unishe., so that there will not remain in (ell one singlebeliever&

One shoul. believe in the intercession of the /ro/hets, of the learne., an. of the martyrs, then the restof the believers : each accor.ing to his influence an. ran* before Allah&

hosoever remains of the believers an. has no intercessor will be release. through the race of Allah,the ighty, the lorifie.&

Therefore not one single believer will abi.e in (ell foreverC whosoever has in his heart the weight of anatom of belief will be brought out from there&

One shoul. believe the virtues of the +om/anions : may Allah be /lease. with them : an. their .ifferentran*s, an. that the most e$cellent of man*in., after the Pro/het : Allah /raise. an. gave him /eace : isAbu:Ba*r, an. then JUmar, an. then JUthman, an. then JAli : may Allah be /lease. with them : an.one shoul. thin* well of all the +om/anions an. /raise them, ?ust as Allah : the ighty, the lorifie. :an. (is Pro/het /raise. them all : Allah has /raise. the Pro/het an. given him /eace :& All these werere/orte. in the news an. witnesse. tra.itions & Therefore whosoever believes in all thisan. believes in it without .oubting will be among the /eo/le of truth an. the congregation of the ay ofthe Pro/het , an. in.ee. has se/arate. themself from the followers of error an. /arty ofinnovation&


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Page 7 of 56-o we as* Allah to /erfect our faith an. ma*e us stea.fast in the )eligion for us an. for all uslimsthrough (is ercy& Truly (e is the ost erciful& An. may the /raise of Allah be u/on our aster

uhamma. an. u/on every chosen worshi//er

!ha"te T&oThe G aduation of Guidance and !lassification of the $ta'es of

Belief

Kou shoul. *now that what we have alrea.y mentione. un.er The Exposition of the Creed shoul. be/resente. to chil.ren in their early years in or.er that they may commit it to memory& 0ts meaning willcontinue to be unfol.e. before them little by little as they grow ol.er&

The first ste/ is to commit it to memory, after which comes un.erstan.ing, then belief, then certaintyan. reali;ation, all of which are ingraine. in the chil. without /roof&

Allah : the E$alte. : from (is Iirtue over the heart of the human being has wi.ene. it by /re/aring theheart from the beginning for belief without the nee. for any argument or /roof&

(ow can this be .enie. when all the articles of faith of the /eo/le are base. u/on /ure re/etition an.

imitation&

Kes, a belief which results from /ure imitation may not be free of some wea*ness at the beginning, inthat it can be sha*en an. im/aire. by its o//osite whenever it is /resente.&

0t shoul., therefore, be strengthene. an. confirme. in the heart of the chil. an. the layman until itbecomes well establishe. an. unsha*able&

The way to strengthen an. confirm it .oes not lie in learning the art of .ebate an. .ogmatic theology&)ather, to be busy with the recitation of the 4oran an. its e$/lanation, an. rea.ing the Pro/hetic1uotations an. their meanings& Also, being busy in the /erformance of religious .uties an. acts ofworshi/&

0t is in this way that one@s belief continues to increase an. become well establishe. through the /roofsan. arguments hear. from the 4oran&

0t is also increase. through the e$/lanation of the /ro/hetic 1uotations with their merits& As well as it isincrease. by the light of worshi/ing, the fulfillment of obligatory .uties an. through observing the /ious,by *ee/ing com/any with them, listening to them, observing their stages an. manners in obe.ience toAllah : the ighty, the lorifie. : the way in which they fear (im, an. humble themselves before (im&

-o the first re/etition was li*e the sowing of see.s in the heart an. what followe. is li*e its watering an.nursing until it grew an. was raise. as a goo. tree having well establishe. roots with branches reachingu/ into the air&

The senses of the chil. shoul. also be guar.e. with utmost care against argumentation an. .ogmatictheology, because what argumentation im/airs is greater than what it re/airs& hat it corru/ts isgreater than what it reforms& 0n fact, strengthening the chil. through argumentation is li*e stri*ing atree with an iron a$e in the ho/e that it will strengthen it& 0n such a way limbs are bro*en off that canlea. to either its .estruction, or, most /robably im/air its growth&

-eeing shoul., in this case, suffice as a reason&

+om/are then the faith of the goo., the righteous an. the common /erson to that of those of .ogmatictheology an. .ebators& Kou will fin. that the belief of the or.inary /erson is as firm as a high mountainwhich is move. neither by storm nor lightning& On the other han., the belief of those of .ogmatic


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Page 8 of 56theology an. he who guar.s his belief with the classifie. .ebate is li*e a threa. hanging in the air, blownto an. fro by the win.&

This is true of all e$ce/t those who have hear. the /roof of faith an. have acce/te. it throughfellowshi/, ?ust as they have ta*en hol. of belief itself an. acce/te. it through fellowshi/, since there isno .ifference in fellowshi/ between learning the /roof or the /rove.&

Dearning the /roof is one thingC arriving at it through in.e/en.ent thin*ing is another which is far fromit&

0f the chil. were to be brought u/ on this firm belief then occu/y himself with gaining his livelihoo., hemight not be more enlightene.& But accor.ing to the belief of the /eo/le of the truth he will be save.&

This is because the )eligion .i. not obligate the uncivili;e. Arabs more than believing an. certifying inthe a//arent articles of belief&

They were never obligate. to research, in1uire, nor to be bur.ene. with the classification of arguments&

(owever, if one wishes to be among the travellers along the /ath of the (ereafter in or.er to befortunate, one woul. be able to continue to act in accor.ance with one@s *nowle.ge by hol.ing fast to/iety, restraining one@s soul from lust, /racticing self:.isci/line an. self:mortification& Then avenues ofgui.ance woul. be o/ene. which woul. reveal the realities of this belief through the %ivine Dight castinto one@s heart through self:mortification in fulfillment of the /romise of Allah who sai.

2Those who struggle in Our +ause, e will surely gui.e them to Our waysC an. Allah is with those who.o goo.&2


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Page 9 of 560bn Ab. al A@la : may Allah be /lease. with him : sai., 2On the .ay Al -hafi@i : may Allah be /lease. withhim : .ebate. with (afs Al Far., a u@ta;ilite theologian, Al -hafi@i sai. JE$clu.ing the sin of /olytheismit is better for the worshi//er to face his +reator guilty of every offense than to stan. before (im with alittle scholastic theology & 0 have also hear. (afs say things which 0 cannotre/eat&2 (e a..e., 20 have .iscovere. among the scholastic theologians things which 0 never e$/ecte.to fin.& E$ce/ting the sin of /olytheism, if the worshi//er is trie. with all the /rohibitions it is better forhim than loo*ing into scholastic theology&2

Al 4arabisi relate. that al:-hafi@i : may Allah be /lease. with him : was once as*e. about some of thescholastic theology an. became infuriate. an. sai., 2As* (afs al Far. an. his cohorts about this : mayAllah .ishonor them&2 hen al:-hafi@i : may Allah be /lease. with him : was ta*en ill, (afs came to himan. as*e. 2 ho am 0H2 (e re/lie., 2Kou are (afs al:Far. : may Allah neither /rotect you nor ta*e youun.er (is aus/ices until you re/ent of your sins&2 (e a..e. 20f /eo/le only but *new what /re.ilectionslur* in scholastic theology they woul. run away from it as they woul. run away from a lion&2 An. a..e.,2 henever 0 hear a man say that the 2name2 is 2the name.2 or .ifferent from 2the name.2 0 bearwitness that he is one of the /eo/le of scholastic theology an. that he has no religion&2

Al La@farani relate. that al:-hafi@i once sai., 2 y ?u.gment concerning the scholastic theologians is thatthey shoul. be beaten with /alm branches an. carrie. in that con.ition among the tribes an. clans&

hile /ronouncing 2this is the /enalty of those who .esert the 4oran an. the /ro/hetic sayings an. ta*e

themselves to scholastic theology&2

Ahma. ibn:(anbal, sai., 2A scholastic theologian never succee.s& Kou cannot fin. anyone who, having.abble. in scholastic theology, without unsoun.ness in his heart&2 (e was so strong in its con.emnationthat he ostraci;e. al (arith al uhasibi, in s/ite of the latter@s asceticism an. /iety, because he wrote awor* on the refutation of heresy, in which he tol. him, 2 oe unto you& %o you not first state theirheretical beliefs an. then answer them, thereby com/elling men to stu.y these heresies an. to /on.erover these .ubiosities, all of which will .raw them into self o/inionation an. research&2

Ahma. : may Allah have mercy on him : also sai., 2The scholastic theologians are heretics&2 ali* : mayAllah have mercy on him : sai. 2(ave you seen how, when one of stronger argument confronts him hewill .iscar. his religion for a new one every .ayH2 0n other wor.s, the /osition of the .ebators ischanging& ali* : may Allah have mercy on him : also sai., 2The testimony of the /eo/le of innovationan. heretics is not /ermissible&2 0n inter/reting this, some of his com/anions sai. that he meant byheretics the scholastic theologians, no matter whichever .octrine they might belong&

Abu:Kusuf sai., 2(e who see*s *nowle.ge through .ogmatic theology will become a heretic&2 Al:(asansai., 2Neither argue with heretics, associate with them nor listen to them&2 U/on this the scholar of the/ro/hetic 1uotations in the first era have been unanimous& The narrations which came .own to us fromthem are innumerable& They have sai. that the com/anions refraine. from it although they are more*nowle.geable of the realities an. more ca/able of mastering the wor.ing than others because they*new what evil woul. come out of it&

For this reason the Pro/het : /raise an. /eace be u/on him : sai., 2%estroye. are those who s/lit hairsM%estroye. are those who s/lit hairsM %estroye. are those who s/lit hairsM An. these are those who aree$travagant in investigation an. research&2

Also they /rove. by saying that if this sub?ect were an integral /art of )eligion the essenger of Allah :/raise an. /eace be u/on him : woul. have consi.ere. it to be the most im/ortant thing to comman.his +om/anions to a..ress themselves with, an. woul. have taught them its ways& (e woul. have also/raise. it an. commen.e. its foun.ers&

One must bear in min. that he even taught how one shoul. clean oneself after relieving oneself an.urge. them to stu.y the law of inheritance an. commen.e. them on it& (e forba.e them from s/ea*ingon .estiny&


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Page 10 of 56An. he sai. 2)efrain concerning .estiny&2 An. accor.ingly the +om/anions .i. so : may Allah be/lease. with them&

Nee.less to say, to a.. to what the teacher set forth is harm an. errorC the +om/anions are ourteachers an. our e$am/le, an. we are their followers an. stu.ents&

The other grou/ /rove. that the forbi..en in the scholastic theology are such terms as substance an.substance@s 1uality an. the other strange terms with which the +om/anions : may Allah be /lease. withthem : were not familiar&

But the matter is not .ifficult to e$/lain, because there is not a single branch of *nowle.ge in which newterms have not been intro.uce. for the sa*e of conveying meanings&

For e$am/le, the -cience of Pro/hetic Guotations, the -cience of inter/retation, an. the -cience of'uris/ru.ence& (a. the reci/ients encountere. terms such as refutation, invali.ation, com/osition,.e.uction, an. false collocation, as well as the other 1uestions which are brought as evi.ence byanalogy, they woul. not com/rehen. them&

Therefore the intro.uction of new terms to signify a .efinite meaning is ?ust as legitimate as inventingvessels with a new sha/e an. form for use in /ermissible usages&

0f it is the meaning of these terms which is forbi..en, we .o not mean to attain through them anythinge$ce/t the *nowle.ge of the /roofs for the creation of the universe, the Oneness of the +reator, an. (isAttributes as they are mentione. in the )eligion&

-ince when, is it unlawful to *now Allah : the (igh : with the /roofH But if it is sectarianism, fanaticism,enmity, hatre., an. all that .ogmatic theologies an. controversy bree. which are meant an. inten.e.,then these are unlawful an. shoul. be guar.e. against an. avoi.e., ?ust as /ri.e, conceit, hy/ocrisy,an. the .esire for /ower which the sciences of the Pro/hetic Guotations, 4oran inter/retation, an.

?uris/ru.ence bree. are unlawful an. shoul. be guar.e. against an. avoi.e.&

Nevertheless, some of the *nowle.ge shoul. not be /rohibite. because of the metho.s& (ow then ismentioning the /roof or re1uesting it or searching for it /rohibite., when Allah sai., 2 -ay Bring your/roof2 An. (e : the ighty, the lorifie. : sai. 2that he who woul. /erish might /erish by clear /roof,an. he who woul. live might live by clear /roof&2 An. (e : the (igh : sai. 2(ave you any authority forthisH2 0n other wor.s a /roof& An. (e : the (igh : sai. 2 -ay JFor Allah is the overwhelming /roof&@2 An. (e : the (igh : sai. 2(ave you not seen him who .is/ute. with Abraham about his Dor.2 u/ to 2(ewho .isbelieve. became /ale2 hen (e : the E$alte. : mentione. how Abraham /resente. the /roof in.ebating an. gaine. the u//er han. over his o//onent in a matter that /raises Abraham&

An. (e : the ighty, the lorifie. : sai. 2This is Our /roof, e give it to Abraham over his nation&2 An.(e : the (igh : sai. 2They sai. JO Noah, you have .ebate. us a lot&2 An. (e : the (igh : sai. inPharoah@s story 2An. who is the Dor. of the orl.2 u/ to 2even if 0 bring to you something clear2 Briefly,the 4oran, from its beginning to its en., is an argument with the unbelievers&

The greatest /roof of theologians for the Oneness of Allah is (is -aying 2(a. there been in either go.s besi.es Allah, both woul. have surely gone to ruin&2 Their greatest /roof for the/ro/hecy is, 2An. if you are in .oubt as to that which e have sent .own to our worshi//er , then /ro.uce a cha/ter li*e it&2 Their greatest /roof for the resurrection is, 2-ay (e shallgive life to them ho originate. them at first&2 An. so on of the rest of the verses an. the /roofs&

Thus the /ro/hets : the /raise of Allah be u/on them : .i. not cease to .ebate with the unbelievers an..is/ute with them& Allah sai., 2%is/ute with them in the *in.est manner&2 The +om/anions : may Allahbe /lease. with them : too use. to .ebate an. .is/ute with the unbelievers, but only when necessary&%uring the time of the +om/anions the nee. for .is/utation was minimal&


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Page 11 of 56The first to establish the /rece.ence of summoning innovators bac* to truth by means of .ebate an.argument was JAli ibn abi Talib : may Allah be /lease. with him : when he sent ibn Abbas to the4hari?ites& 0bn Abbas argue. with them saying, 2 hat, you rebel against your lea.erH2 They re/lie., 2(ehas fought, but .i. not turn the /risoners to be slaves nor too* the s/oils of war&2 0bn Abbas e$/laine.to them that /risoners an. s/oils are ta*en only in a war against unbelievers, a..ing, 2 oul. any ofyou, if Da.y A@isha : may Allah be /lease. with her : ha. been ta*en ca/tive on the %ay of the +amel,an. if she ha. fallen to his lot, have .eeme. it lawful to .eal with her as he .ealt with his own /ro/ertywhile she is referre. to in the 4oran as your motherH2 They answere. 2No,2 an. conse1uently twothousan. of them returne. to be obe.ient&

0t was also re/orte. that al (asan once .ebate. with a Ga.arite with theresult that the latter re/ente.& -imilarly, JAli ibn Abi Talib : may Allah honor his face : also .ebate. witha Ga.arite&

0t is also re/orte. that JAb.ullah ibn as@u. : may Allah be /lease. with him : .ebate. with Ka;i. ibnJAmirah on the sub?ect of belief& JAb.ullah sai. 20f 0 say that 0 am a believer it will be li*e saying that 0am in Para.ise&2 Thereu/on Ka;i. ibn JAmirah sai. to him, 2O +om/anion of the essenger of Allah,what is belief e$ce/t to believe in Allah, (is angels, Boo*s an. essengers, as well as in resurrectionan. the scales, an. to /erform the /rayers, *ee/ the fast, an. /ay the obligatory charity& Ket we havesins which, if we *new that they will be forgiven us, we woul. *now that we will be of the /eo/le of

Para.ise& For this reason we say that we are believers, but we .o not say that we are from the /eo/le ofPara.ise&2 0bn as@u. re/lie., 2By Allah, you have sai. the truthC this was a mista*e on my /art&2 Thusit shoul. be sai. that the +om/anions immerse. little in the .ebating an. this they .i. for a short timean. not as a long time necessity nor by the way of authorshi/, teaching it or ta*ing it as a /rofession&Furthermore this limiting /racticing on their /art was .ue to little nee. for it as innovation .i. nota//ear in their time&

They a..resse. themselves to it briefly because their only /ur/ose was to silence the a.versary an.com/el him to a.mit his errorC they aime. at revealing the truth an. removing .ubiosities& Ket,whenever the confusion of the a.versary /ersiste. or he insiste. in continuing in error, they /rolonge.their argument, never rec*oning, as it were once they starte. they coul. not measure the nee. or theweight&

Their not a//lying themselves to teaching an. writing about it is not unli*e their custom with regar. to ?uris/ru.ence, inter/retation of 4oran, an. /ro/hetic 1uotations& Therefore, if it is /ermissible tocom/ose boo*s on ?uris/ru.ence an. to wor* out rare hy/othetical cases which sel.om arise, either as a/re/aration for the time when it is nee.e., or sim/ly to shar/en the wits& 0t is also /ermissible for us toclassify the metho.s of .is/utation in /re/aration for the time when .ubiosities flare u/ or an innovatorruns looseC or sim/ly to shar/en the wits or have the argument rea.y so that when nee.e. it will bewithin reach of all ?ust as the /re/aration of armaments for war before the .ay of battle&

This is /ractically all that can be sai. on behalf of the two grou/s &

(i) 2ulin's !once nin' ebate

0f you as* me what 0 thin* the best is 0 will say that the truth of the matter is that those who con.emnit absolutely an. un.er all circumstances as well as those who /raise it absolutely an. unreserve.ly arewrong& The matter shoul. be more carefully .etaile.&

Kou shoul. *now then, that first of all a thing, such as wine or carrion, may be /ronounce. unlawfulfrom its very nature& hat 0 mean by Jits very nature@ is that the cause of its being /ronounce. unlawfulis a 1uality inherent in it& 0nto$ication an. .eath& 0f we were as*e. concerning these two things, wewoul. not hesitate to say that they were absolutely unlawful, an. woul. in no way thin* of allowingcarrion to be eaten in time of .es/eration, nor ever thin* of /ermitting the .rin*ing of wine when a/erson starts to cho*e over a mouthful of foo. an. fin.s nothing with which to swallow it besi.es wine&


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Page 12 of 560n the secon. /lace a thing may be /ronounce. unlawful for some other reason, such as un.ersellingyour uslim brother .uring the /erio. of o/tion, tra.ing .uring the call to /rayer, or eating earth whichis /ronounce. unlawful because of its harmful effect& -uch things are .ivi.e. into those which areharmful both in small an. large 1uantities, an. are therefore /ronounce. unlawful& For e$am/le, /oisonwhich is fatal whether in small or large 1uantityC an. those which are harmful only when ta*en in e$cessli*e, for e$am/le, honey, which can be harmful to a feverish /atient& The same is true of eating earth&Therefore, in /ronouncing wine absolutely unlawful, only the most general cases were ta*en intoconsi.eration& 0n the event that something new arises, it will be well to consi.er the .etailing&

e return now to the science of scholastic theology to say that it has benefits an. harm&

ith regar. to its usefulness whenever it is useful it is either lawful, commen.able, or obligatory, as theoccasion .eman.s& As to its harm, whenever it is harmful it is unlawful& 0ts harm lies in raising .oubtsan. un.ermining the articles of faith by moving them out from the realm of certitu.e an. .etermination&These things are ha//ening at the beginning an. their restoration by means of /roof is .oubtful&Furthermore, it varies with the in.ivi.ual& Therefore it is true that it is harmful to the faith&

Ket it has another harmful influence which manifests itself in confirming the belief of the heretics in theirheresies an. establishing them in their hearts so that their claims increase an. their insistence on thembecomes more stubborn& This *in. of harm, however, results from the fanaticism which .is/utation

arouses& For this reason you fin. that the lay heretic can, through *in.ness, be easily .issua.e. from hiserror in no time& But if he were brought u/ in a town where .is/utation an. fanaticism aboun. it will beim/ossible for both the /ast an. current generation to remove the heresy from his heart, their combine.efforts notwithstan.ing& On the contrary, /assion, fanaticism, hatre. of the a.versaries of .is/utationan. non: conformist grou/s /revail over his heart an. /revent him from com/rehen.ing the truth sothat even if he were tol., 2%o you want Allah to remove for you the veil an. to reveal to you throughseeing that the truth is on the si.e of your a.versaryH2 he woul. .isli*e it for fear that his a.versarywoul. be gla.ene. by it& This, then, is the chronic .isease which has s/rea. among men all over thelan.& 0t is a *in. of corru/tion which is set in motion by the .is/utants through their fanaticism& That isits harm&

As to its benefits some thin* that it is useful in revealing realities an. *nowing them as they really are&But how far from the truth this is, because the fulfillment of noble .esire is not foun. in .is/utation& 0nfact the /er/le$ity an. confusion conse1uent on .is/utation sur/ass anything which it may reveal orunfol.& 0f you were to hear that from a scholar of the /ro/hetic 1uotations or a semi: scholar you woul.thin* that men are the enemies of that of which they are ignorant&

Ta*e it, then, from one who has familiari;e. himself with .is/utation an., after a careful stu.y an. athorough investigation of it in which he sur/asse. the e$treme limits of its masters an. went evenfurther to stu.y in great .etail other cognate sub?ects, has come to .isli*e it, an. has ascertaine. thatthe roa. to the realities of *nowle.ge is close. from this .irection&

%is/utation, as a matter of fact, will inevitably reveal, unfol. an. clarify a few things, but this is veryrare an. only occurs in sim/le an. clear matters which are rea.ily un.erstoo. even before any thoroughstu.y of the art of .is/utation& 0t has only one benefit& 0t /reserves the belief for the or.inary /eo/lean. safeguar.s it against the confusion of innovators by .ifferent *in.s of argumentation& For thelayman is swaye. by the argument of the innovator although the argument may be falseC an. toconfront a false /osition with another refutes it& Peo/le are e$/ecte. to follow this belief which we havealrea.y mentione. because the )eligion has or.aine. it for the goo. of their tem/oral an. s/iritual livesan. because the goo. early generations agree. on it&

The learne. are e$/ecte. to watch over it for the or.inary /eo/le against the ambiguities of theinnovators, ?ust as the magistrates are e$/ecte. to safeguar. their /ro/erty against the attac*s of theo//ressors an. ravishers&


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Page 13 of 56hen both its harm an. benefit are fully un.erstoo., one shoul. be li*e the /hysician who is a.e/t in

the use of .angerous .rugs, which he .oes not a//ly e$ce/t to the right /lace an. only at the time of.es/aration&

To e$/lain further, the laymen an. the or.inary /eo/le who are engage. in crafts an. tra.es shoul. beleft alone in the integrity of their beliefs which they have acce/te. when they were instructe. in the faithwhich we have alrea.y state.& To teach them .is/utation is .eci.e.ly harmful to them as it will /erha/sarouse .oubts in their min.s which will sha*e their belief& Once these .oubts are arouse. it will not be/ossible to reme.y their sha*en belief&

As to the layman who believes in a certain innovation, he shoul. be calle. bac* to the truth with*in.ness an. tact an. not with fanaticism, with soft wor.s which are convincing to the soul an. effectivein the heart, wor.s similar to those of the arguments of the 4oran an. the /ro/hetic 1uotations, mi$e.with a little a.monition an. warning& This is much better than .ebate along the line set .own by thescholastic theologians& This is because the layman, when he hears such arguments, thin*s that they area *in. of techni1ue in .is/utation which the .is/utant has learne. in or.er to .raw men to his belief&+onse1uently, if the layman fails to re/ly to these arguments he will assume that the scholastictheologians of his school are ca/able of refuting them& %is/utation with both this man an. the former isunlawful&

Di*ewise it is unlawful to argue with one who has fallen victim to .oubt, since .oubt shoul. be remove.with *in.ness by a.monition an. un.erstan.able /roofs free of e$cessive s/eculation an. en.less.ebate& 0n fact .is/utation is useful in only one case, namely, when the layman has been /ersua.e. tobelieve in an innovation through one *in. of argument, in which case it shoul. be countere. by thesame *in. of argument in or.er to recall the /erson to the truth& This, however, a//lies to those who :because of their fon.ness of .is/utation : are no longer satisfie. with the or.inary a.monitions an.warnings, but have reache. a stage where nothing will cure them e$ce/t .ebate& +onse1uently it is/ermissible to argue with them& But in a country where heresy is rare an. one rite /revails, it shoul. besufficient to state the articles of faith which we have alrea.y mentione., without any attem/t to ta*e u/the 1uestion of /roofs& The /erson shoul. wait until something 1uestionable arises before he ta*es u/the 1uestion of /roofs which he shoul. /resent accor.ing to the nee.& 0f the heresy were a common onean. a fear e$iste. that the chil.ren might be beguile. with it, then there woul. be no harm in teachingthem the e1uivalent of what we have inclu.e. in /art of this boo* entitle. "The Jerusalem Message"(al-Risalah al- Qudsiyah) , as a means for overcoming the influence of the .is/utations of innovators ifthat influence shoul. confront the chil.ren&

This is a brief thing which we inclu.e. in this boo* because of its brevity& 0f the chil. were bright an.therefore became aware of a certain 1uestion or grew s*e/tical of something in his min., then thefeare. .isease has a//eare. an. the mala.y has become visible& There will be no harm, then, to/romote the chil. to the e1uivalent of that which we have inclu.e. in the boo* entitle. al-lqtisad i al-! tiqad (The Mid-#ay $elie ) , which is free from any .e/artures from a .iscussion of the foun.ationsof the articles of faith to the other investigations of the scholastic theologians& 0f this convinces the chil.then he might be left aloneC but if this shoul. fail to convince him, then the .isease has become chronic,the mala.y roote., an. the e/i.emic wi.es/rea.& Det, then, the /hysician be as *in. an. tactful as/ossible, an. let him await the ill of Allah until, through (is race, the truth shall be reveale. to the

chil.& Otherwise he will /ersist in his .oubt an. s*e/ticism&

The material containe. in that boo* an. others of the same *in. is that from which benefit can bee$/ecte.& +ha/ters not confine. to the same sub?ect are of two *in.s&

The first com/rises cha/ters which .eal with sub?ects other than the foun.ations of the articles of faith,such as those which .iscuss /ro/ensity, transmutations an. the .ifferent *in.s of /erce/tions or.iscoursing on sight, whether or not it has an o//osite which is calle. obstruction or blin.ness& 0f thisobstruction .oes e$ist, then it will be an obstruction from all invisiblethings, or a /roof which verifies every visible thing that can be seen, as well as other mislea.ingtrivialities&


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Page 14 of 56The secon. *in. of these cha/ters contains a further e$/ansion of the same arguments as a//lie. toother sub?ects, together with several 1uestions an. answers : .etails which a.. nothing but confusionan. /er/le$ity to him who has not alrea.y been convince. by the /revious material& For there arecertain things which become more obscure with .ilation an. e$/ansion&

0f one were to say that the investigation into the rules of /erce/tions an. /ro/ensities is useful forshar/ening the min. which is the instrument of )eligion ?ust as the swor. is the instrument of (oly war


15/56


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Page 16 of 56Dor. is e1uivalent to unbelief&2 -ome one also sai., 2The Dor. has a secret, if reveale., /ro/hecy willbecome obsolete& Pro/hecy has a secret, if .ivulge., *nowle.ge will become useless, an. the learne./eo/le of Allah have a secret, if .isclose., the )eligion will become of no force&2 0f he who ha. sai. this.i. not mean thereby the futility of /ro/hecy as far as those with lessor intellect are concerne. becauseof their inability to un.erstan., then what he sai. is not true& )ather, that which is true is free ofcontra.iction& The /erfect man is he whose *nowle.ge .oes not .estroy his /iety, an. the roa. to /ietyis through the /ro/hecy&

Kou may say, 2These verses an. /ro/hetic 1uotations may be sub?ect to several inter/retations& -howus, then, how their visible meaning .iffers from the invisible& For if the visible is contra.ictory to theinvisible, it will .estroy the )eligion, which is e$actly the /osition of those who say that reality iscontrary of the )eligion& This is unbelief because the )eligion re/resents the visible an. realityre/resents the invisible& 0f the one is neither contra.ictory to, nor in .isagreement with the other, thenboth are i.entical& Therefore the .ivision ishereby .estroye. an. the )eligion will have no secret which shoul. not be .ivulge.& )atherboth the hi..en an. the obvious will be the same&2 0f you in1uire, then you shoul. *now that this1uestion raises a grave issue an. lea.s into the science of )evelation .e/arting from the intent of thescience of /ractical )eligion which is the /ur/ose of these boo*s& For the articles of faith which we havealrea.y mentione. come un.er the .ee.s of the heart which we are re1uire. to receive with acce/tancean. consent, by fi$ing the heart on them an. a.hering to them, not by en.eavoring to com/rehen. their

realities, since this was not re1uire. of all /eo/le&

ere it not a /art of /ractical )eligion we woul. not have mentione. it in this boo*, an. were it not oneof the outwar. .ee.s of the heart we woul. not have mentione. it in the first half of the boo*& )eal revelation is an attribute of the essence of the heart an. its inwar. /art& But if the .iscussionlea.s to the stirring u/ of .oubt or the sha.ow of .oubt concerning the contra.iction of the visible to theinvisible, a brief wor. of e$/lanation becomes necessary& For he who says that reality .isagrees with the)eligion an. the invisible contra.icts the visible is closer to unbelief than to belief&

(iii) $ec ets !oncealed by the Peo"le of Allah

0n fact, the secrets whose com/rehension is /eculiar to the favorites of Allah an. the /ractice of which is

limite. to them an. which they .o not .ivulge to the masses may be .ivi.e. into five categories&

The first is that the thing in itself is subtle an. beyon. the com/rehension of most hearts an. min.s&+onse1uently its com/rehension is restricte. to the elite who shoul. not .ivulge it to those who areunable to gras/ it lest, whenever their hearts fail to com/rehen. it or to un.erstan. the conceale.secrets of the s/irit, it becomes a calamity to them&

The Pro/het himself refraine. from e$/laining this /art& The min.s fail to com/rehen. its reality an. theimaginations to imagine its truth& But .o not thin* that this was not reveale. to the Pro/het of Allah :the /raise an. /eace be u/on him : for he who .oes not *now the s/irit .oes not *now himself, an. hewho .oes not *now himself .oes not *now his +reator&

0t is not unli*ely that this was reveale. to some of the /eo/le who are close to Allah an. the learne.men although they were not /ro/hetsC but they .isci/line. themselves in the eti1uette of the )eligionan. hel. their /eace in the matters where the Pro/het : the /raise an. /eace be u/on him : himself wassilent& 0n fact there are in the attributes of Allah many hi..en things which are beyon. thecom/rehension an. un.erstan.ing of the crow.s& Of these, the Pro/het of Allah : the /raise an. /eacebe u/on him : .i. not mention anything e$ce/t those that are obvious to the min.s, such as *nowle.gean. /ower an. the li*e, which men un.erstan. in terms of something a*in to them an. then su//osethat they /erforme. the feat through their own *nowle.ge an. /ower, es/ecially since they /ossesscertain 1ualities which are calle. *nowle.ge an. /ower& +onse1uently they arrive at that by somemanner of analogy& But if the Pro/het : the /raise an. /eace be u/on him : mentione. some of theattributes of Allah to which men have nothing a*in an. which .o not resemble, even remotely, anythingthey /ossess, they woul. not have un.erstoo. them& Thus, the /leasure of coition, if mentione. to the


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Page 17 of 56chil. or to the im/otent, will not be un.erstoo. by them e$ce/t in relation to the /leasure of eatingwhich they com/rehen.& This un.erstan.ing, however, will not be one of actual e$/erience&

Furthermore, the .ifference between the 4nowle.ge an. Power of Allah an. human *nowle.ge an./ower is greater than the .ifference between the /leasure of coition an. the /leasure of eating& 0n short,man*in. .oes not com/rehen. e$ce/t themselves an. their own attributes which are /resent with themor were with him in the /ast& By com/arison an. analogy with these they un.erstan. the attributes ofothers& They will also reali;e that there is a .ifference between their attributes an. those of Allah innobleness an. /erfection& Therefore it is not within the /ower of /eo/le but to .eclare as belonging toAllah what has been .eclare. as belonging to themselves, such as action, *nowle.ge, an. /ower as wellas other attributes an. to ac*nowle.ge that in Allah they are the most /erfect an. the most noble& ostof their em/hasis woul., therefore, be on their own attributes rather than on those of a?esty whichbelong e$clusively to Allah&

For this reason the Pro/het sai., 20 cannot count /raising Kou as Kou have /raise. Kourself& 2 This .oesnot mean the inability to e$/ress what 0 com/rehen. but rather an a.mission of the inability tocom/rehen. the Essence of the a?esty of Allah& For this reason again someone sai. 2No one truly*nows Allah e$ce/t Allah (imself&2 Abu:Ba*r al:-i..i1 sai., 2Praise be to Allah who has not given men away to *now (im e$ce/t through their inability to *now (im&2 Det us now, however, sto/ this *in. of.iscussion an. go bac* to the main /ur/ose, namely that one of these categories com/rises that which

the min.s fail to com/rehen., such as the s/irit an. some of the attributes of Allah& Perha/s the Pro/hetrefere. to something of the same nature when he sai., 2(is cover is Dight, if (e reveals it, in.ee., theE$altation of (is Face will burn everything of (is creation that (is -ight reaches&2

The secon. category of the hi..en things which the /ro/hets an. the /eo/le who are close to Allah.ecline to mention or .ivulge com/rises those things which are intelligible in themselves an. the min.s.o not fail to gras/, but their mention is harmful to most hearers although it is not harmful to the/ro/hets an. the /eo/le who are close to Allah&

The secret of the .ecrees of Allah which the learne. men were forbi..en to .ivulge belongs to this /art&+onse1uently it is not unli*ely that certain truths may be harmful to some /eo/le ?ust as the light of thesun is harmful to the eyes of bats an. the /erfume of the rose is harmful to blac*:beetles& An. howcoul. this be .eeme. unli*ely when we *now that our saying that unbelief, a.ultery, sin, an. evil e$istall by the ill of Allah, which in itself is true, but, nevertheless, has been harmful to many because itwas ta*en by them as an evi.ence for folly, lac* of wis.om, an. a//roval of evil an. wic*e.nessH Thushas al:)awan.i as well as several se/aratists, .eviate. from the right /ath by following such heresies&-imilarly, if the secret of the .ecrees of Allah were .ivulge. most /eo/le woul. fancy that Allah is

lac*ing in /ower, because their min.s are inca/able of com/rehen.ing anything which will remove thatfancy&

Furthermore, if someone shoul. .iscuss the %ay of )esurrection an. shoul. say that it will fall after athousan. years, or a few years after or a few years before, his wor.s woul. be un.erstoo.& Neverthelessthe a//ointe. time of the %ay of )esurrection was not foretol. for the welfare of man*in. an. for fear ofthe harm which might ensue& The /erio. may be long an. the a//ointe. time very .istant,with the result that /eo/le, thin*ing that the %ay of )ecom/ense is remote, woul. cease to min. orcare& On the other han. it may be, in the 4nowle.ge of Allah, close at han.& 0f then, the a//ointe. timeshoul. be foretol., /eo/le woul. be greatly frightene. with the result that they woul. neglect their wor* an. transactions an. havoc woul. overta*e the worl.& ere this to occur an. come true, itwoul. be an e$am/le of this category&


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Page 18 of 56The thir. category is where the thing is such as will be un.erstoo. an. cause no harm when mentione.clearly, although it is usually e$/resse. through meta/hor or allegory so that its im/ression on the heartof the listener may be .ee/er& 0ts value is that it leaves a greater im/ression on the heart& Thus if a/erson ha. sai. that he ha. seen a man /lace /earls aroun. the nec*s of swine an. his wor.s wereta*en meta/horically to e$/ress the im/arting of *nowle.ge, an. the s/rea. of learning among thosewho are unworthy, the listener woul. rea.ily un.erstan. its literal meaning while thethorough an. careful listener, when he e$amines an. fin.s that the man ha. no /earls an. was notsurroun.e. by swine, woul. see through an. com/rehen. the inner an. invisible meaning& +onse1uentlymen .iffer in this res/ect& An e$am/le of this foun. in the following /oem Two men, one a weaver theother a tailor on either si.e of +onstellation of IirgoC One is weaving shrou.s for the .ecease., an. hiscom/anion tailors for the forthcoming one&

The /oet e$/resse. the celestial /henomena of the rising of the stars an. their setting meta/horicallythrough the /arable of two artisans& This *in. of belongs to the /rinci/le of e$/ressing acertain meaning through a /icture which contains the same meaning or a similar meaning&

Belonging to the same *in. are the wor.s of the Pro/het when he sai., 2Ierily the mos1ue will shrin*when /eo/le s/it in its courtyar. ?ust as the /iece of s*in shrin*s when it is /lace. over the fire&2 Koucan rea.ily un.erstan. that the courtyar. of the mos1ue .oes not actually shrin* when /eo/le s/it in it&

hat the wor.s of the Pro/het really mean is that the atmos/here of the mos1ue, being honore. an.

e$alte., has been .ishonore. an. belittle. by s/itting, which is as o//ose. to the i.ea of the mos1ue asfire is to the integrity of the /articles of s*in&

Belonging to the same *in. are the wor.s of the Pro/het when he sai., 20s he who raises his hea. from/rostration before the /rayer lea.er not afrai. that Allah will transform his hea. into that of a .on*eyH2 This, however, will never ta*e /lace literally but only meta/horically since the hea. of the .on*ey is/roverbial, not for its form an. sha/e, but for its characteristic stu/i.ity an. foolishness& Thus, whoeverwoul. raise his hea. from /rostration before the /rayer lea.er, his hea. woul. become li*e that of a.on*ey in stu/i.ity an. foolishness& 0t is this which is meant an. not the sha/e which the literal meaning in.icates& For it is utterly foolish to /lace following an. /rece.ing together because they are contra.ictory&

The *nowle.ge that, in such cases, there are inner meanings which .iffer from the outwar.significations, can only be .etermine. by either rational or legal evi.ence& The rational is when anyinter/retation accor.ing to the outwar. meaning is im/ossible, as in the wor.s of the Pro/het : the/raise an. /eace be u/on him : when he sai. 2The heart of the believer lies between two of the fingersof the erciful &2 hen we e$amine the hearts of the believers we shall not fin. them surroun.e.with fingers, an. conse1uently we shall *now that the wor.s are use. meta/horically for /ower which isinherent in fingers an. constitutes their hi..en life& Furthermore, /ower was meta/horically re/resente.by the fingers because such a meta/hor conveys the i.ea of /ower more com/letely&

Of the same *in. is the instance where Allah e$/resses the i.ea of (is Power meta/horically by saying2 hen e .ecree a thing, e only say JBe,@ an. it is&2


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Page 19 of 56unbelief an. hy/ocrisy, which, although it rises to an. floats u/on the surface of the water, .oes notlastC but gui.ance which benefits man*in., en.ures&

0n this /art a grou/ of men went .ee/ly an. inter/rete. the things which were mentione. in connectionwith the (ereafter, such as the balance, the Bri.ge, an. the li*e& All this, however, is innovation becauseit was not han.e. .own by /ro/hetic 1uotations, es/ecially since its literal an. outwar. inter/retation isnot im/ossible& Therefore it shoul. be inter/rete. literally&

The fourth category is where a /erson com/rehen.s the thing in a general way an. then through furtherinvestigation an. e$/erimentation, un.erstan.s its /articulars so that it becomes a /art of him& Thus thetwo *in.s of *nowle.ge .iffer& The first, resembles the hus*s, while the secon. , resembles the /ith& The first is the visible or outwar., the secon. is the invisible orinwar.& This is ?ust li*e the e$am/le of the man who sees a /erson in the .ar* or from a .istance an.ac1uires a certain /icture of that /erson& But when he sees him from a close range or after the .ar*nesshas gone, he reali;es certain .ifferences& This last /icture, however, is not o//ose. to the first butcom/lementary to it&

The same is true of *nowle.ge, faith, an. belief& For a /erson may believe in the e$istence of love,sic*ness, an. .eath even before any of them occur& But to believe in their e$istence after they haveta*en /lace is more com/lete than believing in their e$istence before they ta*e /lace& 0n fact man*in.

has, with regar. to /assion an. love as well as the other con.itions, three .ifferent stages an. three.istinct .egrees of com/rehension&

The first is to believe in the e$istence of the thing before it ta*es /laceC the secon. is to believe in itse$istence at the time of its occurrenceC an. the thir. is to believe in its e$istence after it has ta*en/lace&

To recogni;e the e$istence of hunger after it is gone is .ifferent from recogni;ing its e$istence before itis gone& -imilarly, there are some of the sciences of )eligion which mature by e$/erience an. theirmature state as com/are. with their /remature state is li*e the invisible as com/are. to the visible&(ence there is a .ifference between the sic* man@s *nowle.ge of health an. the healthy man@s*nowle.ge of it& 0n short, /eo/le .iffer in these four /artsC yet in none of them is there an invisible

meaning which contra.icts the visible& )ather the invisible meaning com/letes an. /erfects the visible ?ust as the /ith com/letes the hus*&

The fifth category is where concrete wor.s are use. figuratively& Those with lessor intellect will regar.the literal an. visible meaning sensible an. will not go beyon. itC but the man who has an insight forrealities will com/rehen. the secret it contains& This is li*e the wor.s of him who sai., 2The wall sai. tothe /eg, Jwhy .o you s/lit meH@ The /eg re/lie. JAs* the one who is hitting me an. .oes not let me go&

o an. see the mallet which is behin. me&@2 This is, un.oubte.ly, figurative&

Of the same *in. are the following or.s of Allah, 2Then (e wille. to the heaven, when it was smo*e,an. to it an. to the earth (e sai. J+ome willingly, or unwillingly&@ J e come willingly,@ they answere.&2 & Those with lesser intellect, because of their lac* of un.erstan.ing, woul. assume thatboth the (eaven an. the earth /ossess life intellect, an. the ability to un.erstan. s/eech& (e woul. alsoassume that they were a..resse. by a s/eech of actually enunciate. wor.s which both coul. hear an.re/ly to with enunciate. wor.s saying, 2 e come willingly&2 But whosoever has insight woul. reali;e thatthis was a figurative an. that Allah only e$/resse. that the (eaven an. earth aresub?ect to (is ill&

Of the same *in., too, are the or.s of Allah when (e sai., 2There is nothing that .oes not /roclaim (isPraise&&&2


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Page 20 of 56to (is Oneness& As has been sai. 20n everything (e has a sign which .eclares that (e is One&2 0n thesame way it is sai., 2This master/iece testifies that its a*er /ossesses the ability an. /erfect*nowle.ge&2 This .oes not mean that the master/iece actually utter the wor.s, 20 testify &&&2 etc& butmerely that, through its form an. state, &

-imilarly everything .oes, in itself, stan. in nee. of the +reator to create an. sustain it, to maintain itsattributes an. to move it to an. fro in its .ifferent states& An. through its nee. it testifies to its a*er byE$alting (im& -uch a witness is com/rehen.e. by those who have insight, not those who stan. still an..o not venture beyon. the e$ternals& For this reason Allah sai., 2But you .o not un.erstan. theire$tolling&2


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Page 21 of 56re/resentations& Nevertheless they confess the resurrection of the bo.y, Para.ise with its foo., /erfume,an. se$ as well as other sensual /leasures, an. (ell with burning fires which scorch the s*in an. meltthe fat&

The /hiloso/hers go still further& They inter/ret alleschatological re/resentations as allegories .enoting mental an. s/iritual /ain, an. mental an. s/iritual.elight& They .eny the resurrection of the bo.y but believe in the immortality of the soul an. that it willbe /unishe. or ma.e ha//y by /unishment an. .elight of non:sensual nature& They are e$tremists&

The true mi..le:roa. between this com/lete allegorisman. the rigi.ity of the (anbalites is subtle an. obscure& 0t is foun. only by those who en?oy %ivine

ui.ance an. com/rehen. things by the ai. of %ivine Dight, not by hearsay& Then when the mysteries ofthings are reveale. to them, so that they see them as they are, they go bac* to the 4oran an. /ro/hetic1uotations an. their wor.ingC whatever agrees with what they see with the light of certainty they affirm,an. whatever .isagrees with it they inter/ret allegorically& But he who bases his *nowle.ge of thesethings on mere hearsay will thereby fail to secure a firm foothol. or gain a well .efine. /osition therein&-uch a man who confines himself to mere hearsay woul. .o better to follow the /osition of Ahma. ibn(anbal&

But a closer e$amination an. .efinition of the mi..le:roa. /osition in these things belongs to the vast

sub?ect of revelation which we must leave asi.e&

Our aim was only to ma*e clear that the invisible an. visible may be in harmony with one another an.that no .isagreement e$ists between them& At any rate many things have been unfol.e. through our.iscussion of these five /arts&

0t is our o/inion that for the common /eo/le the e$/lanation of the faith which we have alrea.y given issufficient for them an. that nothing further will be re1uire. of them in the first .egree& But if any fear of.isturbances arises on account of the s/rea. of heresies, then, in the secon. .egree, recourse may beha. to a statement of the belief wherein a brief an. un.etaile. outline of the obvious /roofs is/resente.&

e shall, therefore, /resent these obvious /roofs in this boo* an. shall confine ourselves therein to whatwe have issue. to the /eo/le of 'erusalem, entitle. al )isalah al Gu.siyah fi Gawa@i. al JA1a@i.


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Page 22 of 56Furthermore they foun. out that mere verbal re/etition of the wor.s 2There is no go. e$ce/t AllahC

uhamma. is the essenger of Allah 2 is of no avail unless they com/letely un.erstan. what thefun.amentals of the witness involve of /rinci/le an. /illars& They also have *nown that the twowitnessing /hrases, .es/ite their brevity, contain an affirmation of the e$istence of Allah (imself, (isAttributes, an. (is %ee.s, as well as an affirmation of the truthfulness of the essenger : the /raise an./eace be u/on him : An. they also *new that establishing the faith u/on these /illars, which are four,each one having ten /rinci/les The first /illar concerning the *nowle.ge of the Essence of Allah : the(igh : consists of ten /rinci/les& They are

&The *nowle.ge that Allah : the (igh : e$ists& #& (e is Ancient 3& (e is Everlasting& 9& (e is not a substance& 8& (e is not a bo.y& "& (e is not a 1uality of a bo.y & 7& (e is not sub?ect to a .irection& 6& (e is not resi.ent in a /lace& !& (e is seen&

5& (e is One& The secon. /illar concerns the attributes of Allah 0t com/rises of ten /rinci/les& They are the *nowle.gethat

&(e is Alive& #& (e is 4nowle.geable& 3& (e is Powerful& 9& (e is the iller& 8& (e is the (earer& "& (e is the -eer&

7& (e is the -/ea*er& 6& (is Essence is E$alte. to contain a creation &

!& (is or.s are ancient an. eternal& 5& (is 4nowle.ge is ancient an. eternal as (is ill&

The thir. /illar concerns the %ee.s of Allah it consists of ten /rinci/les

&The actions of man*in. are create. by Allah : the (igh& #& They are gaine. by the creation& 3& They are wille. by Allah : the (igh&

9& Allah has been racious by creation an. invention& 8& Allah is free to im/ose unbearable obligations& "& Allah is free to /unish the innocent& 7& hile ta*ing into consi.eration that which is best is not obligatory u/on (im& 6& That there is nothing obligatory e$ce/t by the )eligion& !& (is sen.ing of /ro/hets is /ossible &

5& The /ro/hecy of our Pro/het uhamma. : the /raise an. /eace be u/on him : is truebeing confirme. by miracles&

The fourth /illar is concerning hear. verses an. the /ro/hetic 1uotations mentioning the unseen& An.consist of ten /rinci/les


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Page 23 of 56&The affirmation of the assembly on the %ay of )ecom/ense&

#& The accounting& 3& The 1uestioning un*ar an. Na*eer& 9& The /unishment of the grave& 8& The balance& "& The Bri.ge over (ell& 7& The creation of Para.ise an. (ell& 6& The ruling of the imamate & !& The e$cellence of the +om/anions is in accor.ance with the chronological or.er&

5& The con.itions of the imamate &

The Fi st Pilla

The first among the /illars of belief is the *nowle.ge of the Essence of Allah : the E$alte., the (igh : an.that Allah : the (igh : is One&

!t consists o ten principles%

(i a) The -no&led'e of is *+istence

The first /rinci/le is the *nowle.ge of the e$istence of Allah : the (igh

The first light which shoul. be use. for illumination an. the first thing to be followe. on the roa. ofa.monition are the instructions of the 4oran, because there is no e$/lanation beyon. that of Allah : theE$alte.& Allah says in the 4oran

2(ave e not ma.e the earth a cra.le an. the mountains as /egsH An. e create. you in /airs, an. ema.e your slee/ a rest, an. e ma.e the night a mantle, an. e ma.e the .ay for a livelihoo.& An. ebuilt above you seven strong ones, an. /lace. in them a bla;ing lam/ an. have sent .own from theclou.s /ouring rain that e may bring forth with it grain an. /lants an. lu$uriant gar.ens&2 &

An. again,

2Assure.ly in the creation of the (eaven an. of the EarthC an. in the alternation of night an. .ayC an. inthe shi/s which /ass through the sea with what is useful to manC an. in the rain which Allah sen.s .ownfrom (eaven, giving life by it to the earth after its .eath, an. by scattering over it all *in.s of cattleCan. in the change of the win.s, an. in the clou.s that are com/elle. between the (eaven an. the EarthCare signs for those who un.erstan.&2

(e : the (igh : also sai.

2(ave you not seen how Allah create. the seven heavens one above the other, setting in them the moonas a light an. the sun as a lanternH Allah has cause. you to grow from the earth, an. to it (e will returnyou& Then (e will bring you forth&2 &

An. (e : the (igh : sai.

2(ave you seen what you e?aculateH %i. you create it, or are e the +reatorH 0t was e that .ecree..eath among you& e will not be outstri//e. that e will charge you an. cause you to grow again in afashion you .o not *now& Kou have surely *nown the first creation& hy then, will you not rememberM+onsi.er the soil you till& 0s it you that sow it, or are e the -owerH 0f e will, e woul. ma*e it bro*enorts an. you woul. remain won.ering& J e are la.en with .ebtsM )ather, we have been


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Page 24 of 56/revente.M@ +onsi.er the water which you .rin*& 0s it you that sen. it .own from the clou.s or eH 0f ewill, e woul. ma*e it bitter, why then .o you not give than*sH +onsi.er the fire which you *in.le& 0s ityou that originate. its tree, or are e the OriginatorH2


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Page 25 of 56static ob?ect the /otential motion of which is not re1uire. by the min., an. there is no moving ob?ect the/otential rest of which is not re1uire. by the min.& The su..en is originate. because of its imme.iateoccurrence an. that which has gone is also an originate. matter since it is no longer .ue to the fact if itis /roven it is ancient it will obligate that it .oes not turn to nothing : .etails of which will be e$/laine.in /roving eternity of the a*er : the (igh, the Purifie.&

The thir. assertion is our statement that whatever is not in.e/en.ent of originate. things is itselforiginate.& 0ts /roof lies in the fact that if it were not so, then there woul. be, before every originate./henomenon, other originate. /henomena which have no beginningC an. unless these originate./henomena come to nothing in their entirety, the turn for the /resent originate. /henomena to comeinto being imme.iately woul. never arrive& But it is im/ossible for that which has no en. to come tonothing&

Furthermore if the celestial s/heres have revolutions, the numbers of which have no en., it is inevitablethat their numbers be either o.. or even, or both o.. an. even, or neither o.. nor even& But it isim/ossible that their numbers be both o.. an. even at the same time, or neither o.. nor even for thiswoul. be a combination of both the negative an. the affirmative, since in the affirmation of the one isthe negation of the other, an. in the negation of the one is the affirmation of the other&

Furthermore they cannot /ossibly be even because the even number becomes o.. with the a..ition of

oneC an. how coul. that which has no en. be wanting oneH Nor can they /ossibly be o.. because theo.. number becomes even with the a..ition of oneC an. how coul. it be wanting one when its numberhas no en.H Therefore the conclusion is that the worl. is not in.e/en.ent of originate. /henomena, an.that which is not in.e/en.ent of originate. /henomena is itself originate.& An. when its being anoriginate. /henomena has been establishe., its nee. for an Originator becomes a necessity throughobvious com/rehension&

(ii) Ancient *te nity

The secon. /rinci/le is the *nowle.ge that Allah is Ancient from eternity& (e has no beginning, but (e isthe beginning of everything an. before anything living or .ea.& The /roof of this is foun. in thesu//osition that if Allah ha. been originate. an. not ancient, (e woul. have been in nee. of an

originator& 0n turn (is originator woul. also nee. an originator an. so on in a chain of infinity& An.whatever enrolls in such chain will never be foun.& Or it reaches to an Ancient Originator an. (e is theFirst& This is the wante. whom we name. the a*er, the Originator, the Fashioner, an. the +reator ofthe orl.s&

(iii) *te nity

The thir. /rinci/le is the *nowle.ge that Allah, besi.es being without beginning, (is E$istence has noen.&

(e is the First an. the Dast, the Iisible an. the 0nvisible, since that whose eternity is establishe. (is en.is im/ossible& 0ts /roof lies in the reali;ation that if it came to nothing it is inevitable that it shoul. come

to nothing either by (imself or by an o//onent&

An. if it were /ossible for a thing, which is conceive. of as self:subsisting, to come to nothing, it will be/ossible for a thing, which is conceive. of as self:annihilating, to come into being& An. ?ust as thesu..en emergence of e$istence re1uires a cause, so .oes the emergence of e$tinction re1uire a cause&That it will come to nothing through an o//osing annihilating agency is false, because if that annihilatingagency were ancient, e$istence si.e by si.e with it woul. be inconceivable& But we have learnt in thetwo /revious /rinci/les of (is E$istence an. (is Eternity& (ow .i. (e e$ist together with the claime.o//onent in eternityH 0f, however, the annihilating o//onent were an originate. /henomenon, itse$istence from eternity woul. be im/ossible because for the originate. /henomenon to o//ose theancient an. .estroy its e$istence is less li*ely than the ancient to o//ose the originate. an. /revent its


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Page 26 of 56e$istence& 0n fact /revention is easier than .estruction while the ancient is stronger an. more /re:eminent than the originate.&

(i.) F ee F om $ubstance

The fourth /rinci/le The *nowle.ge that (e : the (igh : is not a substance which can be in a .imension&)ather, (e is E$alte. above to be suitable for a .imension& The /roof of this lies in the fact that everysubstance which is .efinite, is limite. by its own /lace an. is inevitably either constant in it or movingaway from it& Therefore it is not in.e/en.ent of motion or rest for both these are originate., an. thatwhich is not in.e/en.ent of originate. /henomena is itself originate.&

0f an ancient .efinite substance were conceivable, the eternity of the substances of the worl. woul. havebeen reasonable& An. if a /erson shoul. use the term substance an. not mean thereby a resi.entsubstance, he woul. be mista*en as far as the use of the term is concerne., not as far as the meaningfor which he ha. use. it&

(.) F ee F om Bodily Fo m

The fifth /rinci/le The *nowle.ge that (e : the (igh : is not a bo.y com/ose. of .ifferent substances,

since the bo.y is that which is com/ose. of substances& hen (is being a substance limite. by /lace isrefute., (is being a bo.y is also refute., because every bo.y is limite. by /lace an. is com/ose. ofsubstances& But it is im/ossible for the substance to be free from .ivision, com/osition, motion, rest,form, an. 1uantity, all of which are characteristics of originate. /henomena& An. if it were /ossible tobelieve that the a*er of the worl. is a bo.y, it woul. also be /ossible to believe in the .ivinity of thesun an. the moon as well as other heavenly bo.ies& 0f, therefore, one shoul. .are an. call Allah a bo.ybut not mean thereby a com/osition of substances, he woul. be wrong as far as the name is concerne.,but not in negating the i.ea of bo.y&

(.i) F ee f om the 6uality of $ubstance

The si$th /rinci/le The *nowle.ge that (e : the (igh : is not a 1uality of substance of a substancee$isting in a bo.y or a con.ition in a /laceC because an acci.ent is that which e$ists in a bo.y& But everybo.y is inevitably originate. an. as such its originator e$ists before it& (ow then coul. e$ist in abo.y when (e has e$iste. in eternity alone, with no other besi.e (im, an. then originate. the bo.iesan. their 1ualities afterwar.s& Besi.es (e is a 4nowing, an. Able, an. the illing +reator as shall be.iscusse. later& 0t is im/ossible for these attributes to e$ist in substance or its 1uality& On the contrarythey are im/ossible e$ce/t in a -elf:e$istent an. -elf:sufficient +reator&

The conclusion .erive. from these /rinci/les is that (e is -elf:e$isting, being neither substance,nor bo.y, nor a 1uality of substanceC that the whole worl. is ma.e of substances, their 1uality, an.bo.ies, an. conse1uently (e resembles nothing an. nothing resembles (im& (e is the Diving, the-ubsisting, there is none li*e unto (im& For how coul. the create. resemble its +reator, the or.aine.resemble (e who or.aine. it, an. the fashione. resemble (e who fashione. itH All bo.ies an. their1ualities were create. an. ma.e by (imC hence it is im/ossible that they are li*e (im or resemble (im&

(.ii) F ee f om di ection and "lace

The seventh /rinci/le The *nowle.ge that Allah : the (igh : is remove. from being limite. by any.irection because a .irection is either above or below, right or left, before or behin.& All these (ecreate. an. originate. through the creation of man whom he ma.e with two e$tremities, the one restson the earth an. com/rises his feet, while the o//osite e$tremity is his hea.& +onse1uently the termabove was originate. to in.icate the .irection of the hea. an. the term below, the .irection of the feet&This is true even of the ant which cree/s on the ceiling with the result that the .irections, in relation toit, are reverse. : what we consi.er above is to it below, an. what we consi.er below is to it above&-imilarly /eo/le were create. with two han.s, one han. usually being stronger than the other& The term


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Page 27 of 56right was therefore originate. to in.icate the .irection of the stronger han. an. the term left to in.icatethe o//osite .irection& +onse1uently the right han. si.e is calle. the right an. the o//osite .irection iscalle. the left&

an*in. was also create. with two .irections from one of which he sees an. towar. which hemoves& +onse1uently the term before was originate. to .esignate the .irection towar. which he moves,while the term behin. was originate. to .esignate the o//osite&

Therefore the .irections are originate. through the creation of manC an. ha. he not been create. alongthese lines, but rather create. roun. li*e a s/here, these .irections woul. never have e$iste.&

(ow then coul. Allah have been sub?ect to a .irection in eternity when every .irection is originate.& Orhow coul. (e have become sub?ect to a .irection when (e never ha. any .irection above (im when (ecreate. manC for that will mean that (e has a hea., since above .esignates the .irection above thehea.& But Allah is far E$alte. to have a hea.& Again how coul. (e have becomesub?ect to a .irection when (e never ha. any .irection below (im when (e create. man*in.C for thatwill mean that (e has feet, since below .esignates the .irection below the feet& Allah is far E$alte. to have feet& All this is too im/ossible in the min.& For whatever themin. conceives is .efinite in so far as it is limite. by /lace, in the same way as substances are limite.,or by substances, in the same way as their 1ualities are& But the im/ossibility of (is being a substance

or its 1uality has been establishe. : conse1uently (is being sub?ect to a .irection becomes im/ossible&

0f therefore anything else is meant by the term .irection other than these two meanings then the usagewill be wrong in terminology an. significationC because if Allah were above the worl. (e woul. beo//osite to it, an. everything which is o//osite to a bo.y is either e1ual to it in si;e, or smaller orlarger& All this im/lies measurement which necessarily re1uires an ob?ect or measurement& But Allah theOne +reator an. )uler of the worl. an. universe is far E$alte. above such things&

As to the raising of han.s heaven:war.s at the time of su//lication it is because (eaven is the .irectionof su//lication an. im/lies a .escri/tion of the One to whom the su//lications are offere., such as

a?esty an. ran.eur, em/loying thereby the .irection of height to re/resent the 1uality of lory an.E$altation& For Allah is above all in .ominion an. /ower&

(.iii) Ista&a

The eighth /rinci/le That (e : the (igh : istawa u/on the Throne in the sense which (e wille. by thatstate of e1uilibrium : a state which is not inconsistent with the 1uality of gran.eur an. to which thesym/toms of origination an. annihilation .o not /ermeate& 0t is e$actly what has been meant by theascension to (eaven in the 4oran when Allah sai., 2Then (e wille. to the (eaven, when it was smo*e&2 & This is only through .ominion an. /ower, as the /oet sai. 2Bishr has gaine. .ominionover 0ra1, ith neither swor. nor she..ing of bloo.&2

Thus were the /eo/le of truth com/elle. to /ursue such a figurative an. allegorical inter/retation ?ust asthe /eo/le of the invisible *nowle.ge were com/elle. to inter/ret (is saying : the (igh : 2(e is with

you wherever you are2 & This has been ta*en, by agreement, to mean thoroughcom/rehension an. *nowle.ge ?ust as the wor.s of the Pro/het : the /raise an. /eace be u/on him :2The heart of the believer lies between two of the fingers of the erciful 2 , have been ta*en tomean might an. /ower while his wor.s, 2The Blac* -tone is the )ight (an. of Allah in the earth,2 havebeen ta*en to mean veneration an. honor, because if they were ta*en literally, the result woul. havebeen im/ossible&

-imilarly the istawa of Allah u/on the Throne, if it were left to mean fi$ity of location an. stability, woul.necessitate that (e who is seate. u/on the Throne is a bo.y touching the Throne, an. is either e1ual toit in si;e, or larger or smaller& But all this is im/ossible, an. what lea.s to the im/ossible is itselfim/ossible&


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Page 28 of 56(i+) $eein'

The ninth /rinci/le 0s the *nowle.ge that (e : the (igh : although e$alte. from form an. 1uantity an.e$alte. above .irections an. .imensions, is nevertheless seen with the eyes in the (ereafter, theEverlasting abo.e& For (e sai.,

2On that %ay there shall be ra.iant faces, ga;ing towar.s their Dor.&2 &

But (e cannot be seen in this worl. accor.ing to (is saying : the ighty, the lorifie. :

2No eye can see (im, (e sees all eyes2


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Page 29 of 56imagine that it was woven by a .ea. /erson that has no life, or by a hel/less /erson with has no /ower,woul. be com/letely lac*ing in intellect an. utterly foolish an. ignorant&

(ii) -no&led'e

The secon. /rinci/le is the *nowle.ge that (e : the (igh : is 4nowle.geable, *nowing all things an.com/rehen.ing all creationC not even the weight of an atom in (eaven or on earth is ever hi..en from(is 4nowle.ge& (e is truthful in (is saying

2(e has *nowle.ge of all things&2 &

Furthermore evi.ence of (is Truthfulness is foun. in (is -aying : the (igh

2-hall (e who has create. all things not *nowH (e is the -ubtle, the Aware&2


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Page 30 of 56soun.H Abraham a..resse. his father saying 2O father, why worshi/ that which can neither see norhear, nor can .o anything for youH2 & But if these .efects which characteri;e. the i.ols ofhis father characteri;e. his +reator as well, his argument woul. have been invali. an. his evi.enceworthless, an. the wor.s of Allah 2This is Our /roof which e gave to Abraham against (is /eo/le,2woul. have been false&

An. as un.erstoo. (e is a %oer without limbs an. *nowle.geable without heart an. hea., so it coul.also be un.erstoo. that (e is the -eer without /u/il an. (earer without ear as there is no .ifferencebetween both&

(.i) $"eech

The si$th /rinci/le 0s that (e : the E$alte., the (igh : s/ea*s with a s/eech which is a -elf:e$istingattribute& 0t is neither a soun. nor a letterC it .oes not resemble the s/eech of others, ?ust as (isE$istence .oes not resemble others& 0n reality s/eech is the s/eech of the self& -oun.s were built intowor.s merely as symbols, ?ust as gestures an. signals are often use. to re/resent the same thing& (owthen has this fact not been *nown by a grou/ of ignorant /eo/le while it has been *nownby ignorant /oets &

One of them sai. 2-/eech is in the heartC hile the tongue is an in.icator for the heart&2 As for himwhose intellect .oes neither .eter nor restrain him from saying that his tongue is an originate. thing,but what originates in it by means of his originate. /ower is ancient .o not be an$ious to rectify hisbrain an. refrain your tongue from s/ea*ing with such a /erson&

-imilarly, you s

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The Foundations of the Islamic Belief