Qut al Quloob Chapter 33 a by Abu Ṭalib al-Makki

قُوتُ الْقُلُوبِ فِي مُعَامَلَةِ الْمَحْبُوبِ وَوَصْفِ طَرِيقِ الْمُرِيدِ إِلَى مَقَامِ التَّوْحِيدِ

Qūtu al-qulūbi fī muʿāmalati al-maḥbūbi wa-waṣfi ṭarīqi al-murīdi ʾilā maqāmi al-tawḥīdi

Nourishment for Hearts in Dealings with the Beloved and a Description of the Seeker’s Path to the Station of Divine Oneness

Chapter 33 · The First Two Pillars

أَرْكَانُ الْإِسْلَامِ: الشَّهَادَتَانِ وَالصَّلَاةُ

ʾArkānu al-ʾislāmi: al-shahādatāni wa-al-ṣalātu

Pillars of Islam: The Two Testimonies and Prayer

أَبُو طَالِبٍ الْمَكِّيُّ

Abu Ṭalib al-Makki

الْفَصْلُ الثَّالِثُ وَالثَّلَاثُونَ ذِكْرُ دَعَائِمِ الْإِسْلَامِ الْخَمْسِ الَّتِي بُنِيَ عَلَيْهَا

al-faṣlu al-thālithu wa-al-thalāthūna dhikru daʿāʾimi al-ʾislāmi al-khamsi allatī buniya ʿalayhā

Chapter Thirty-Three: An account of the five pillars upon which Islam is built

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٣٦

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 136

Volume Two, page 136

أَوَّلُ ذِكْرِ فَرْضِ شَهَادَةِ التَّوْحِيدِ لِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَوَصْفِ فَضَائِلِهَا، وَهِيَ شَهَادَةُ الْمُقَرَّبِينَ، وَشَهَادَةِ الرَّسُولِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ وَفَضْلِهَا لِلْمُوقِنِينَ. قَالَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى وَصَدَقَتْ أَنْبِيَاؤُهُ لِرَسُولِهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: (فَاعْلَمْ أَنَّهُ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَاسْتَغْفِرْ لِذَنْبِكَ) مُحَمَّدٌ: 19، وَقَالَ لِعِبَادِهِ يَأْمُرُهُمْ بِمِثْلِ ذَلِكَ: (فَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّمَا أُنْزِلَ بِعِلْمِ اللَّهِ وَأَنْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا هُوَ) هُودٌ: 14.

ʾawwalu dhikri farḍi shahādati al-tawḥīdi li-l-muʾminīna wawaṣfi faḍāʾilihā, wahiya shahādatu al-muqarrabīna, washahādati al-rasūli ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama wafaḍlihā li-l-mūqinīna. qāla Allāhu taʿālā waṣadaqat ʾanbiyāʾuhu lirasūlihi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: (fa-ʿlam ʾannahu lā ʾilāha ʾillā Allāhu wa-staghfir lidhanbika) muḥammadun: 19, waqāla liʿibādihi yaʾmuruhum bimithli dhālika: (fa-ʿlamū ʾannamā ʾunzila biʿilmi Allāhi waʾan lā ʾilāha ʾillā huwa) hūdun: 14.

First, an account of the believers’ obligation to testify to divine unity, a description of its merits, this being the testimony of those brought near, and testimony to the Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, and its merit for those possessing certainty. God the Exalted said to His Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, and His prophets spoke truly: “Know that there is no god but God, and ask forgiveness for your sin” (Muḥammad 47:19). Commanding His servants likewise, He said: “Know that it was sent down with God’s knowledge, and that there is no god but Him” (Hūd 11:14).

فَفَرْضُ التَّوْحِيدِ هُوَ اعْتِقَادُ الْقَلْبِ أَنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى وَاحِدٌ لَا مِنْ عَدَدٍ، وَأَوَّلٌ لَا ثَانِيَ لَهُ، مَوْجُودٌ لَا شَكَّ فِيهِ وَحَاضِرٌ لَا يَغِيبُ، وَعَالِمٌ لَا يَجْهَلُ قَادِرٌ لَا يَعْجِزُ، حَيٌّ لَا يَمُوتُ قَيُّومٌ لَا يَغْفُلُ، حَلِيمٌ لَا يَسْفَهُ سَمِيعٌ بَصِيرٌ، مَلِكٌ لَا يَزُولُ مُلْكُهُ قَدِيمٌ بِغَيْرِ وَقْتٍ، آخِرٌ بِغَيْرِ حَدٍّ.

fafarḍu al-tawḥīdi huwa iʿtiqādu al-qalbi ʾanna Allāha taʿālā wāḥidun lā min ʿadadin, waʾawwalun lā thāniya lahu, mawjūdun lā shakka fīhi waḥāḍirun lā yaghību, waʿālimun lā yajhalu qādirun lā yaʿjizu, ḥayyun lā yamūtu qayyūmun lā yaghfulu, ḥalīmun lā yasfahu samīʿun baṣīrun, malikun lā yazūlu mulkuhu qadīmun bighayri waqtin, ʾākhirun bighayri ḥaddin.

The obligation of affirming divine unity is the heart’s conviction that God the Exalted is One, outside numerical reckoning; First, with no second; existent, without doubt; present, never absent; knowing, never ignorant; powerful, never incapable; living, never dying; self-subsisting, never heedless; forbearing, never foolish; hearing and seeing; a King whose dominion never passes away; pre-eternal, without time; and Last, without limit.

كَائِنٌ لَمْ يَزَلْ وَلَا تَزَالُ الْكَيْنُونَةُ صِفَتَهُ لَمْ يُحْدِثْهَا لِنَفْسِهِ، دَائِمٌ أَبَدَ الْأَبَدِ لَا نِهَايَةَ لِدَوَامِهِ، وَالدَّيْمُومَةُ وَصْفُهُ غَيْرُ مُحْدِثِهَا لِنَفْسِهِ، لَا بِدَايَةَ لِكَوْنِهِ وَلَا أَوَّلِيَّةَ لِقِدَمِهِ وَلَا غَايَةَ لِأَبَدِيَّتِهِ، آخِرٌ فِي أَوَّلِيَّتِهِ أَوَّلٌ فِي آخِرِيَّتِهِ، وَإِنَّ أَسْمَاءَهُ وَصِفَاتِهِ وَأَنْوَارَهُ غَيْرُ مَخْلُوقَةٍ لَهُ وَلَا مُنْفَصِلَةٍ عَنْهُ.

kāʾinun lam yazal walā tazālu al-kaynūnatu ṣifatahu lam yuḥdithhā linafsihi, dāʾimun ʾabada al-ʾabadi lā nihāyata lidawāmihi, wa-al-daymūmatu waṣfuhu ghayru muḥdithihā linafsihi, lā bidāyata likawnihi walā ʾawwaliyyata liqidamihi walā ghāyata liʾabadiyyatihi, ʾākhirun fī ʾawwaliyyatihi ʾawwalun fī ʾākhiriyyatihi, waʾinna ʾasmāʾahu waṣifātihi waʾanwārahu ghayru makhlūqatin lahu walā munfaṣilatin ʿanhu.

He exists and has always existed; existence remains His attribute, which He did not originate for Himself. He endures for ever and ever, with no end to His endurance; everlastingness describes Him, and He did not originate it for Himself. His being has no beginning, His pre-eternity no inception, and His eternity no end. He is Last in His being First, and First in His being Last. His names, attributes, and lights are neither created by Him nor separate from Him.

وَإِنَّهُ أَمَامَ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ، وَوَرَاءَ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ، وَفَوْقَ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ وَمَعَ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ، وَأَقْرَبُ إِلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ مِنْ نَفْسِ الشَّيْءِ، وَإِنَّهُ مَعَ ذَلِكَ غَيْرُ مَحَلٍّ لِلْأَشْيَاءِ، وَإِنَّ الْأَشْيَاءَ لَيْسَتْ مَحَلًّا لَهُ، وَإِنَّهُ عَلَى الْعَرْشِ اسْتَوَى كَيْفَ شَاءَ بِلَا تَكْيِيفٍ وَلَا تَشْبِيهٍ، وَإِنَّهُ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ عَلِيمٌ وَعَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ وَبِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ مُحِيطٌ.

waʾinnahu ʾamāma kulli shayʾin, wawarāʾa kulli shayʾin, wafawqa kulli shayʾin wamaʿa kulli shayʾin, waʾaqrabu ʾilā kulli shayʾin min nafsi al-shayʾi, waʾinnahu maʿa dhālika ghayru maḥallin li-l-ʾashyāʾi, waʾinna al-ʾashyāʾa laysat maḥallan lahu, waʾinnahu ʿalā al-ʿarshi istawā kayfa shāʾa bilā takyīfin walā tashbīhin, waʾinnahu bikulli shayʾin ʿalīmun waʿalā kulli shayʾin qadīrun wabikulli shayʾin muḥīṭun.

He is before everything, behind everything, above everything, and with everything, nearer to everything than that thing itself. Nevertheless, He is no locus for things, nor are things a locus for Him. He established Himself upon the Throne as He willed, without any specification of how or any comparison to created things. He knows everything, has power over everything, and encompasses everything.

الْجَوُّ وَجْهٌ وَالْفَضَاءُ مِنْ وَرَائِهِ، وَالْهَوَاءُ وَجْهٌ وَالْمَكَانُ مِنْ وَرَائِهِ، وَالْحَوْلُ وَجْهٌ وَالْبُعْدُ مِنْ وَرَائِهِ، وَهَذِهِ كُلُّهَا حُجُبٌ مَخْلُوقَاتٌ مِنْ وَرَاءِ الْأَرَضِينَ وَالسَّمٰوَاتِ مُتَّصِلَاتٌ بِالْأَجْرَامِ اللِّطَافِ وَمُنْفَصِلَاتٌ عَنِ الْأَجْسَامِ الْكِثَافِ، وَهِيَ أَمَاكِنُ لِمَا شَاءَ دَاخِلَةٌ فِي قَوْلِهِ وَمِنْ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ خَلَقْنَا زَوْجَيْنِ، دَاخِلَةٌ فِي قَوْلِهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: رَبَّنَا لَكَ الْحَمْدُ مِلْءَ السَّمٰوَاتِ وَمِلْءَ الْأَرْضِ، وَمِلْءَ مَا شِئْتَ مِنْ شَيْءٍ بَعْدُ.

al-jawwu wajhun wa-al-faḍāʾu min warāʾihi, wa-al-hawāʾu wajhun wa-al-makānu min warāʾihi, wa-al-ḥawlu wajhun wa-al-buʿdu min warāʾihi, wa-hādhihi kulluhā ḥujubun makhlūqātun min warāʾi al-ʾaraḍīna wa-al-samāwāti muttaṣilātun bi-al-ʾajrāmi al-liṭāfi wamunfaṣilātun ʿani al-ʾajsāmi al-kithāfi, wahiya ʾamākinu limā shāʾa dākhilatun fī qawlihi wamin kulli shayʾin khalaqnā zawjayni, dākhilatun fī qawlihi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: rabbanā laka al-ḥamdu milʾa al-samāwāti wamilʾa al-ʾarḍi, wamilʾa mā shiʾta min shayʾin baʿdu.

The atmosphere is a face, with space behind it; the air is a face, with place behind it; the surrounding expanse is a face, with distance behind it. All these are created veils beyond the earths and heavens, connected to subtle bodies and separate from dense bodies. They are places for whatever He wills, included in His saying, “Of everything We created a pair,” and in the saying of the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace: “Our Lord, to You belongs praise filling the heavens, filling the earth, and filling whatever else You will thereafter.”

وَاللَّهُ جَلَّ وَعَظُمَ شَأْنُهُ هُوَ ذَاتٌ مُنْفَرِدٌ بِنَفْسِهِ، مُتَوَحِّدٌ بِأَوْصَافِهِ لَا يَمْتَزِجُ وَلَا يَزْدَوِجُ إِلَى شَيْءٍ، بَائِنٌ مِنْ جَمِيعِ خَلْقِهِ لَا يَحُلُّ الْأَجْسَامَ وَلَا تَحُلُّهُ الْأَعْرَاضُ، لَيْسَ فِي ذَاتِهِ سِوَاهُ وَلَا فِي سِوَاهُ مِنْ ذَاتِهِ شَيْءٌ، لَيْسَ فِي الْخَلْقِ إِلَّا الْخَلْقُ وَلَا فِي الذَّاتِ إِلَّا الْخَالِقُ، فَتَبَارَكَ اللَّهُ أَحْسَنُ الْخَالِقِينَ. وَإِنَّهُ تَعَالَى ذُو أَسْمَاءٍ وَصِفَاتٍ وَقُدْرَةٍ وَعَظَمَةٍ وَكَلَامٍ وَمَشِيئَةٍ وَأَنْوَارٍ، كُلُّهَا غَيْرُ مَخْلُوقَةٍ وَلَا مُحْدَثَةٍ، بَلْ لَمْ

wa-Allāhu jalla waʿaẓuma shaʾnuhu huwa dhātun munfaridun binafsihi, mutawaḥḥidun biʾawṣāfihi lā yamtaziju walā yazdawiju ʾilā shayʾin, bāʾinun min jamīʿi khalqihi lā yaḥullu al-ʾajsāma walā taḥulluhu al-ʾaʿrāḍu, laysa fī dhātihi siwāhu walā fī siwāhu min dhātihi shayʾun, laysa fī al-khalqi ʾillā al-khalqu walā fī al-dhāti ʾillā al-khāliqu, fatabāraka Allāhu ʾaḥsanu al-khāliqīna. waʾinnahu taʿālā dhū ʾasmāʾin waṣifātin waqudratin waʿaẓamatin wakalāmin wamashīʾatin waʾanwārin, kulluhā ghayru makhlūqatin walā muḥdathatin, bal lam

God, majestic and immense in His standing, is an essence standing alone in Himself, unique in His attributes. He neither mingles nor pairs with anything. Distinct from all His creation, He does not inhabit bodies, nor do accidents inhere in Him. Nothing other than Him is within His essence, and nothing of His essence is within anything other than Him. Within creation there is only creation, and within the divine essence only the Creator. Blessed, then, is God, the best of creators. The Exalted possesses names, attributes, power, greatness, speech, will, and lights, all uncreated and unoriginated. Rather, He has always

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٣٧

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 137

Volume Two, page 137

يَزَلْ قَائِمًا مَوْجُودًا بِجَمِيعِ أَسْمَائِهِ وَصِفَاتِهِ وَكَلَامِهِ وَأَنْوَارِهِ وَإِرَادَتِهِ، وَإِنَّهُ ذُو الْمُلْكِ وَالْمَلَكُوتِ وَالْعِزَّةِ وَالْجَبَرُوتِ، لَهُ الْخَلْقُ وَالْأَمْرُ وَالسُّلْطَانُ وَالْقَهْرُ، يَحْكُمُ بِأَمْرِهِ فِي خَلْقِهِ وَمُلْكِهِ مَا شَاءَ كَيْفَ شَاءَ، لَا مُعَقِّبَ لِحُكْمِهِ وَلَا مَشِيئَةَ لِعَبْدٍ دُونَ مَشِيئَتِهِ، إِنْ شَاءَ شَيْئًا كَانَ وَلَا يَكُونُ إِلَّا مَا شَاءَ.

yazal qāʾiman mawjūdan bijamīʿi ʾasmāʾihi waṣifātihi wakalāmihi waʾanwārihi waʾirādatihi, waʾinnahu dhū al-mulki wa-al-malakūti wa-al-ʿizzati wa-al-jabarūti, lahu al-khalqu wa-al-ʾamru wa-al-sulṭānu wa-al-qahru, yaḥkumu biʾamrihi fī khalqihi wamulkihi mā shāʾa kayfa shāʾa, lā muʿaqqiba liḥukmihi walā mashīʾata liʿabdin dūna mashīʾatihi, ʾin shāʾa shayʾan kāna walā yakūnu ʾillā mā shāʾa.

subsisted and existed with all His names, attributes, speech, lights, and will. His are kingship and sovereignty, might and irresistible power. His are creation and command, authority and dominion. By His command He decides concerning His creation and kingdom whatever He wills, however He wills. None can reverse His judgment, and no servant has a will independent of His will. If He wills something, it is; nothing is except what He wills.

لَا حَوْلَ لِعَبْدٍ عَنْ مَعْصِيَتِهِ إِلَّا بِرَحْمَتِهِ، وَلَا قُوَّةَ لِعَبْدٍ عَلَى طَاعَتِهِ إِلَّا بِمَحَبَّتِهِ، وَهُوَ وَاحِدٌ فِي جَمِيعِ ذَلِكَ، لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ وَلَا مُعِينَ فِي شَيْءٍ مِنْ ذَلِكَ، وَلَا يَلْزَمُهُ إِثْبَاتُ الْوَعِيدِ بَلِ الْمَشِيئَةُ إِلَيْهِ فِي الْعَفْوِ، وَلَا يَجِبُ عَلَيْهِ فِي الْأَحْكَامِ مَا أَجْرَى عَلَيْنَا، وَلَا يُخْتَبَرُ بِالْأَفْعَالِ وَلَا يُشَارُ بِالْمَقَالِ.

lā ḥawla liʿabdin ʿan maʿṣiyatihi ʾillā biraḥmatihi, walā quwwata liʿabdin ʿalā ṭāʿatihi ʾillā bimaḥabbatihi, wahuwa wāḥidun fī jamīʿi dhālika, lā sharīka lahu walā muʿīna fī shayʾin min dhālika, walā yalzamuhu ʾithbātu al-waʿīdi bali al-mashīʾatu ʾilayhi fī al-ʿafwi, walā yajibu ʿalayhi fī al-ʾaḥkāmi mā ʾajrā ʿalaynā, walā yukhtabaru bi-al-ʾafʿāli walā yushāru bi-al-maqāli.

A servant has no means of turning from disobedience to Him except through His mercy, and no strength to obey Him except through His love. He is One in all this, without partner or helper in any of it. He is not bound to enforce threatened punishment; the choice of pardoning belongs to Him. The rules He has made applicable to us do not become incumbent upon Him. He is neither tested through actions nor indicated through speech.

حَكِيمٌ عَادِلٌ بِحِكْمَةٍ وَعَدْلٍ، هُمَا صِفَتَاهُ لَا يُشْبَهُ حِكْمَتُهُ بِحِكْمَةِ خَلْقِهِ، وَلَا يُقَاسُ عَدْلُهُ بِعَدْلِ عِبَادِهِ، وَلَا يَلْزَمُهُ مِنَ الْأَحْكَامِ مَا أَلْزَمَهُمْ، وَلَا يَعُودُ عَلَيْهِ مِنَ الْأَسْمَاءِ الْمَذْمُومَةِ كَمَا يَعُودُ عَلَيْهِمْ، قَدْ جَاوَزَ الْعُقُولَ وَفَاتَ الْأَفْهَامَ وَالْأَوْهَامَ وَالْعُقُولَ، هُوَ كَمَا وَصَفَ نَفْسَهُ وَفَوْقَ مَا وَصَفَهُ خَلْقُهُ، نَصِفُهُ بِمَا ثَبَتَتْ بِهِ الرِّوَايَةُ وَصَحَّتْ عَنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ.

ḥakīmun ʿādilun biḥikmatin waʿadlin, humā ṣifatāhu lā yushbahu ḥikmatuhu biḥikmati khalqihi, walā yuqāsu ʿadluhu biʿadli ʿibādihi, walā yalzamuhu mina al-ʾaḥkāmi mā ʾalzamahum, walā yaʿūdu ʿalayhi mina al-ʾasmāʾi al-madhmūmati kamā yaʿūdu ʿalayhim, qad jāwaza al-ʿuqūla wafāta al-ʾafhāma wa-al-ʾawhāma wa-al-ʿuqūla, huwa kamā waṣafa nafsahu wafawqa mā waṣafahu khalquhu, naṣifuhu bimā thabatat bihi al-riwāyatu waṣaḥḥat ʿan rasūli Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama.

He is wise and just through wisdom and justice, His two attributes. His wisdom cannot be likened to His creatures’ wisdom, nor His justice measured against His servants’ justice. He is not subject to the rules He has imposed upon them, nor do blameworthy designations apply to Him as they apply to them. He transcends intellects and surpasses understandings, imaginings, and intellects. He is as He describes Himself, beyond His creatures’ descriptions. We describe Him by what is established and soundly transmitted from God’s Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace.

وَأَنَّهُ لَيْسَ كَمِثْلِهِ شَيْءٌ فِي كُلِّ شَيْءٍ بِإِثْبَاتِ الْأَسْمَاءِ وَالصِّفَاتِ، وَنَفْيِ التَّمْثِيلِ وَالْأَدَوَاتِ، وَأَنَّهُ سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى لَمْ يَزَلْ مَوْجُودًا بِصِفَاتِهِ، كُلُّهَا لَمْ تَزَلْ لَهُ، وَإِنَّ صِفَاتِهِ قَائِمَةٌ بِهِ لَمْ تَزَلْ كَذَلِكَ، وَلَا يَزَالُ بِلَا نِهَايَةٍ وَلَا غَايَةٍ وَلَا تَكْيِيفٍ وَلَا تَشْبِيهٍ وَلَا تَثْنِيَةٍ، بَلْ بِتَوْحِيدٍ هُوَ مُتَوَحِّدٌ بِهِ وَتَفْرِيدٍ هُوَ مُنْفَرِدٌ بِهِ.

waʾannahu laysa kamithlihi shayʾun fī kulli shayʾin biʾithbāti al-ʾasmāʾi wa-al-ṣifāti, wanafyi al-tamthīli wa-al-ʾadawāti, waʾannahu subḥānahu wataʿālā lam yazal mawjūdan biṣifātihi, kulluhā lam tazal lahu, waʾinna ṣifātihi qāʾimatun bihi lam tazal kadhālika, walā yazālu bilā nihāyatin walā ghāyatin walā takyīfin walā tashbīhin walā tathniyatin, bal bitawḥīdin huwa mutawaḥḥidun bihi watafrīdin huwa munfaridun bihi.

Nothing is like Him in any respect: names and attributes are affirmed, while likenesses and instruments are denied. He, glorified and exalted, has always existed with His attributes; all have always belonged to Him. His attributes subsist in Him and have always done so. He continues without end or limit, without specification of manner, comparison, or duplication, in a unity proper to Him alone and a singularity in which He stands alone.

لَا يَجْرِي عَلَيْهِ الْقِيَاسُ وَلَا يُمَثَّلُ بِالنَّاسِ، وَلَا يُنْعَتُ بِجِنْسٍ وَلَا يُلْمَسُ بِحِسٍّ وَلَا بِجِنْسٍ مِنْ شَيْءٍ، وَلَا يَزْدَوِجُ إِلَى شَيْءٍ، وَإِنَّ مَا سِوَى أَسْمَائِهِ وَصِفَاتِهِ وَأَنْوَارِهِ وَكَلَامِهِ مِنَ الْمُلْكِ وَالْمَلَكُوتِ مُحْدَثٌ كُلُّهُ وَمُظْهَرٌ، كَانَ بَعْدَ إِنْ لَمْ يَكُنْ وَلَمْ يَكُنْ قَدِيمًا وَلَا أَوَّلَ بَلْ كَانَ بِأَوْقَاتٍ مُحْدَثَةٍ وَأَزْمَانٍ مُؤَقَّتَةٍ.

lā yajrī ʿalayhi al-qiyāsu walā yumaththalu bi-al-nāsi, walā yunʿatu bijinsin walā yulmasu biḥissin walā bijinsin min shayʾin, walā yazdawiju ʾilā shayʾin, waʾinna mā siwā ʾasmāʾihi waṣifātihi waʾanwārihi wakalāmihi mina al-mulki wa-al-malakūti muḥdathun kulluhu wamuẓharun, kāna baʿda ʾin lam yakun walam yakun qadīman walā ʾawwala bal kāna biʾawqātin muḥdathatin waʾazmānin muʾaqqatatin.

Analogy does not apply to Him; He is not compared with human beings, described by a genus, touched through sensation or through any kind of thing, or paired with anything. Everything within kingship and sovereignty other than His names, attributes, lights, and speech is originated and brought into manifestation. It came to be after not being; it was neither pre-eternal nor first, but came to be in originated periods and delimited times.

وَاللَّهُ تَعَالَى هُوَ الْأَزَلِيُّ الَّذِي لَمْ يَزَلْ، الْأَبَدِيُّ الَّذِي لَمْ يَحُلْ، الْقَيُّومُ بِقَيُّومِيَّةٍ هِيَ صِفَتُهُ، الدَّيْمُومُ بِدَيْمُومِيَّةٍ هِيَ نَعْتُهُ، أَوَّلٌ بِلَا أَوَّلٍ وَلَا عَنْ أَوَّلٍ، آخِرٌ لَا إِلَى آخِرٍ بِكَيْنُونَةٍ هِيَ حَقِيقَتُهُ، أَحَدٌ صَمَدٌ لَمْ يَلِدْ وَبِمَعْنَاهُ لَمْ يُولَدْ، وَمَعْنَى ذَلِكَ لَمْ يَتَوَلَّدْ هُوَ مِنْ شَيْءٍ وَلَمْ يَتَوَلَّدْ مِنْهُ شَيْءٌ. وَمِثْلُ ذَلِكَ لَمْ يُخْلَقْ مِنْ ذَاتِهِ شَيْءٌ، كَمَا لَمْ تُخْلَقْ ذَاتُهُ مِنْ شَيْءٍ، سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى عَمَّا يَقُولُ الْمُلْحِدُونَ مِنْ ذَلِكَ عُلُوًّا كَبِيرًا.

wa-Allāhu taʿālā huwa al-ʾazaliyyu alladhī lam yazal, al-ʾabadiyyu alladhī lam yaḥul, al-qayyūmu biqayyūmiyyatin hiya ṣifatuhu, al-daymūmu bidaymūmiyyatin hiya naʿtuhu, ʾawwalun bilā ʾawwalin walā ʿan ʾawwalin, ʾākhirun lā ʾilā ʾākhirin bikaynūnatin hiya ḥaqīqatuhu, ʾaḥadun ṣamadun lam yalid wabimaʿnāhu lam yūlad, wamaʿnā dhālika lam yatawallad huwa min shayʾin walam yatawallad minhu shayʾun. wamithlu dhālika lam yukhlaq min dhātihi shayʾun, kamā lam tukhlaq dhātuhu min shayʾin, subḥānahu wataʿālā ʿammā yaqūlu al-mulḥidūna min dhālika ʿuluwwan kabīran.

God the Exalted is the Pre-eternal who has always been, the Everlasting who has never changed, the Self-subsisting through self-subsistence, His attribute, and the Ever-enduring through everlastingness, His description. He is First without a first or derivation from a first; Last without proceeding toward another last, through a being that is His reality. He is One, the Self-sufficient: He did not beget and, by the same meaning, was not begotten. This means that He did not arise from anything, nor did anything arise from Him. Likewise, nothing was created out of His essence, just as His essence was not created out of anything. Glorified is He, and supremely exalted above what those who deviate say concerning this.

ذِكْرُ فَرْضِ شَهَادَةِ الرَّسُولِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ

dhikru farḍi shahādati al-rasūli ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama

An account of the obligation of testimony to the Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace

قَالَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى الْكَبِيرُ الْمُتَعَالِ: (وَإِذْ أَخَذَ اللَّهُ مِيثَاقَ النَّبِيِّينَ لَمَا آتَيْتُكُمْ مِنْ كِتَابٍ وَحِكْمَةٍ ثُمَّ جَاءَكُمْ رَسُولٌ مُصَدِّقٌ لِمَا مَعَكُمْ لَتُؤْمِنُنَّ بِهِ وَلَتَنْصُرُنَّهُ) آلُ عِمْرَانَ: 81، وَقَالَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ: (مَنْ يُطِعِ الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطَاعَ اللَّهَ) النِّسَاءُ: 80، وَقَالَ: (إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يُبَايِعُونَكَ إِنَّمَا يُبَايِعُونَ اللَّهَ) الْفَتْحُ: 10.

qāla Allāhu taʿālā al-kabīru al-mutaʿāli: (waʾidh ʾakhadha Allāhu mīthāqa al-nabiyyīna lamā ʾātaytukum min kitābin waḥikmatin thumma jāʾakum rasūlun muṣaddiqun limā maʿakum latuʾminunna bihi walatanṣurunnahu) ʾālu ʿimrāna: 81, waqāla ʿazza wajalla: (man yuṭiʿi al-rasūla faqad ʾaṭāʿa Allāha) al-nisāʾu: 80, waqāla: (ʾinna alladhīna yubāyiʿūnaka ʾinnamā yubāyiʿūna Allāha) al-fatḥu: 10.

God the Exalted, the Great, the Most High, said: “When God took the prophets’ covenant: Whatever scripture and wisdom I give you, then a messenger comes confirming what you possess, you must believe in him and support him” (Āl ʿImrān 3:81). Mighty and majestic is He, He said: “Whoever obeys the Messenger has obeyed God” (al-Nisāʾ 4:80). And He said: “Those who pledge allegiance to you are pledging allegiance to God” (al-Fatḥ 48:10).

فَفَرْضُ شَهَادَةِ الرَّسُولِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ أَنْ تَشْهَدَ أَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، خَاتَمُ الْأَنْبِيَاءِ لَا نَبِيَّ بَعْدَهُ، وَكِتَابَهُ خَاتَمُ الْكُتُبِ لَا كِتَابَ بَعْدَهُ، وَهُوَ مُهَيْمِنٌ عَلَى كُلِّ كِتَابٍ، وَمُصَدِّقٌ لِمَا سَلَفَ مِنَ الْكُتُبِ قَبْلَهُ، وَأَنَّ شَرِيعَتَهُ نَاسِخَةٌ لِلشَّرَائِعِ، قَاضِيَةٌ عَلَيْهَا إِلَّا مَا أَقَرَّهُ كِتَابُهُ وَوَافَقَهُ، وَكِتَابَهُ شَاهِدٌ عَلَى الْكُتُبِ وَحَاكِمٌ عَلَيْهَا، وَأَنَّهُ هُوَ الَّذِي بَشَّرَ بِهِ عِيسَى

fafarḍu shahādati al-rasūli ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama ʾan tashhada ʾanna muḥammadan rasūlu Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama, khātamu al-ʾanbiyāʾi lā nabiyya baʿdahu, wakitābahu khātamu al-kutubi lā kitāba baʿdahu, wahuwa muhayminun ʿalā kulli kitābin, wamuṣaddiqun limā salafa mina al-kutubi qablahu, waʾanna sharīʿatahu nāsikhatun li-l-sharāʾiʿi, qāḍiyatun ʿalayhā ʾillā mā ʾaqarrahu kitābuhu wawāfaqahu, wakitābahu shāhidun ʿalā al-kutubi waḥākimun ʿalayhā, waʾannahu huwa alladhī bashshara bihi ʿīsā

The obligation of testimony to the Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, is that you testify that Muḥammad is God’s Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, the seal of the prophets, with no prophet after him. His Book seals the scriptures, with no scripture after it, oversees every scripture, and confirms the scriptures preceding it. His law abrogates and adjudicates earlier laws, except what his Book endorses and agrees with. His Book bears witness over the scriptures and judges them. He is the one whose coming Jesus

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٣٨

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 138

Volume Two, page 138

عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ أُمَّتَهُ، وَهُوَ الَّذِي أَخْبَرَ بِهِ مُوسَى عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ أُمَّتَهُ، وَهُوَ الْمَذْكُورُ فِي التَّوْرَاةِ وَالْإِنْجِيلِ وَسَائِرِ كُتُبِ اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ الْمُنَزَّلَةِ، وَهُوَ الَّذِي أَخَذَ اللَّهُ مِيثَاقَ النَّبِيِّينَ أَنْ يُؤْمِنُوا بِهِ وَيَنْصُرُوهُ لَوْ أَدْرَكُوهُ، فَأَقَرُّوا بِذَلِكَ وَشَهِدَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى عَلَى شَهَادَتِهِمْ، وَهُوَ الَّذِي أَخَذَتِ الْأَنْبِيَاءُ شَهَادَةَ الْأُمَمِ عَلَى الْإِيمَانِ بِهِ وَأَمَرَتْهُمْ بِتَصْدِيقِهِ وَأَخْبَرَتْهُمْ بِظُهُورِهِ.

ʿalayhi al-salāmu ʾummatahu, wahuwa alladhī ʾakhbara bihi mūsā ʿalayhi al-salāmu ʾummatahu, wahuwa al-madhkūru fī al-tawrāti wa-al-ʾinjīli wasāʾiri kutubi Allāhi ʿazza wajalla al-munazzalati, wahuwa alladhī ʾakhadha Allāhu mīthāqa al-nabiyyīna ʾan yuʾminū bihi wayanṣurūhu law ʾadrakūhu, faʾaqarrū bi-dhālika washahida Allāhu taʿālā ʿalā shahādatihim, wahuwa alladhī ʾakhadhati al-ʾanbiyāʾu shahādata al-ʾumami ʿalā al-ʾīmāni bihi waʾamarathum bitaṣdīqihi waʾakhbarathum biẓuhūrihi.

peace be upon him, announced to his community, and the one of whom Moses, peace be upon him, informed his community. He is mentioned in the Torah, the Gospel, and all God’s other revealed scriptures, mighty and majestic is He. Concerning him God took the prophets’ covenant that they would believe in him and support him if they lived to encounter him. They affirmed this, and God the Exalted witnessed their testimony. Concerning him the prophets obtained the nations’ testimony that they would believe in him, commanded them to affirm his truth, and told them of his appearance.

وَأَنَّ مُوسَى وَعِيسَى عَلَيْهِمَا السَّلَامُ لَوْ أَدْرَكَاهُ لَزِمَهُمَا الدُّخُولُ فِي شَرِيعَتِهِ، وَأَنَّ بَقِيَّةَ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ مِنَ الْيَهُودِ وَالنَّصَارَى كَفَرَةٌ بِاللَّهِ لِجُحُودِهِمْ رِسَالَتَهُ، وَأَنَّ إِيمَانَهُمْ بِكِتَابِهِ مُفْتَرَضٌ عَلَيْهِمْ مَأْمُورٌ بِهِ فِي كُتُبِهِمْ وَعَلَى أَلْسِنَةِ رُسُلِهِمْ، وَأَنَّ طَاعَتَهُ وَمَحَبَّتَهُ فَرِيضَةٌ وَاجِبَةٌ عَلَى الْكَافَّةِ كَطَاعَةِ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى، وَاتِّبَاعَ أَمْرِهِ وَاجْتِنَابَ نَهْيِهِ مُفْتَرَضَةٌ عَلَى الْأُمَّةِ إِيجَابًا أَوْجَبَهُ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى لَهُ، وَفَرْضًا افْتَرَضَهُ عَلَى خَلْقِهِ مُتَّصِلٌ بِفَرَائِضِهِ.

waʾanna mūsā waʿīsā ʿalayhimā al-salāmu law ʾadrakāhu lazimahumā al-dukhūlu fī sharīʿatihi, waʾanna baqiyyata banī ʾisrāʾīla mina al-yahūdi wa-al-naṣārā kafaratun bi-Allāhi lijuḥūdihim risālatahu, waʾanna ʾīmānahum bikitābihi muftaraḍun ʿalayhim maʾmūrun bihi fī kutubihim waʿalā ʾalsinati rusulihim, waʾanna ṭāʿatahu wamaḥabbatahu farīḍatun wājibatun ʿalā al-kāffati kaṭāʿati Allāhi taʿālā, wa-ttibāʿa ʾamrihi wa-jtināba nahyihi muftaraḍatun ʿalā al-ʾummati ʾījāban ʾawjabahu Allāhu taʿālā lahu, wafarḍan iftaraḍahu ʿalā khalqihi muttaṣilun bifarāʾiḍihi.

Had Moses and Jesus, peace be upon them both, encountered him, they would have been obliged to enter his law. The remaining Children of Israel, Jews and Christians, disbelieve in God through their denial of his mission. Belief in his Book is incumbent upon them, commanded in their scriptures and by their messengers. Obeying and loving him is obligatory upon everyone, as is obeying God the Exalted. Following his commands and avoiding what he forbids is incumbent upon the community: an obligation God the Exalted established for him and imposed upon His creation, joined to His own obligations.

ذِكْرُ فَضَائِلِ شَهَادَةِ الرَّسُولِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ

dhikru faḍāʾili shahādati al-rasūli ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama

An account of the merits of testimony to the Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace

قَالَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى: (قُلْ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ تُحِبُّونَ اللَّهَ فَاتَّبِعُونِي يُحْبِبْكُمُ اللَّهُ وَيَغْفِرْ لَكُمْ ذُنُوبَكُمْ) آلُ عِمْرَانَ: 31، وَقَالَ الرَّسُولُ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: لَا يُؤْمِنُ عَبْدٌ حَتَّى أَكُونَ أَحَبَّ إِلَيْهِ مِنْ أَهْلِهِ وَمَالِهِ وَالنَّاسِ أَجْمَعِينَ، وَقَالَ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: لَوْ أَدْرَكَنِي مُوسَى وَعِيسَى مَا وَسِعَهُمَا إِلَّا اتِّبَاعِي، وَرَوَيْنَا فِي لَفْظٍ آخَرَ: ثُمَّ لَمْ يُؤْمِنَا بِي لَأَكَبَّهُمَا اللَّهُ فِي النَّارِ.

qāla Allāhu taʿālā: (qul ʾin kuntum tuḥibbūna Allāha fa-ttabiʿūnī yuḥbibkumu Allāhu wayaghfir lakum dhunūbakum) ʾālu ʿimrāna: 31, waqāla al-rasūlu ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: lā yuʾminu ʿabdun ḥattā ʾakūna ʾaḥabba ʾilayhi min ʾahlihi wamālihi wa-al-nāsi ʾajmaʿīna, waqāla ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: law ʾadrakanī mūsā waʿīsā mā wasiʿahumā ʾillā ittibāʿī, warawaynā fī lafẓin ʾākhara: thumma lam yuʾminā bī laʾakabbahumā Allāhu fī al-nāri.

God the Exalted said: “Say: If you love God, follow me; God will love you and forgive you your sins” (Āl ʿImrān 3:31). The Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: “No servant believes until I am dearer to him than his family, his wealth, and all people.” He also said, may God bless him and grant him peace: “Had Moses and Jesus encountered me, they could do nothing but follow me.” We have transmitted another wording: “Then, if they did not believe in me, God would cast them headlong into the Fire.”

وَحَدَّثُونَا فِي الْإِسْرَائِيلِيَّاتِ أَنَّ رَجُلًا عَصَى اللَّهَ تَعَالَى مِائَتَيْ سَنَةٍ، فِي كُلِّهَا يَتَمَرَّدُ وَيَجْتَرِئُ عَلَى اللَّهِ، فَلَمَّا مَاتَ أَخَذَ بَنُو إِسْرَائِيلَ بِرِجْلِهِ وَأَلْقَوْهُ عَلَى مَزْبَلَةٍ، فَأَوْحَى اللَّهُ تَعَالَى إِلَى مُوسَى عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ أَنْ غَسِّلْهُ كَفِّنْهُ وَصَلِّ عَلَيْهِ فِي جَمِيعِ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ، فَفَعَلَ مَا أُمِرَ بِهِ فَعَجِبَ بَنُو إِسْرَائِيلَ مِنْ ذَلِكَ، وَأَخْبَرُوهُ أَنَّهُ لَمْ يَكُنْ فِي بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ أَعْتَى عَلَى اللَّهِ وَلَا أَكْثَرَ مَعَاصٍ مِنْهُ.

waḥaddathūnā fī al-ʾisrāʾīliyyāti ʾanna rajulan ʿaṣā Allāha taʿālā miʾatay sanatin, fī kullihā yatamarradu wayajtariʾu ʿalā Allāhi, falammā māta ʾakhadha banū ʾisrāʾīla birijlihi waʾalqawhu ʿalā mazbalatin, faʾawḥā Allāhu taʿālā ʾilā mūsā ʿalayhi al-salāmu ʾan ghassilhu kaffinhu waṣalli ʿalayhi fī jamīʿi banī ʾisrāʾīla, fafaʿala mā ʾumira bihi faʿajiba banū ʾisrāʾīla min dhālika, waʾakhbarūhu ʾannahu lam yakun fī banī ʾisrāʾīla ʾaʿtā ʿalā Allāhi walā ʾakthara maʿāṣin minhu.

They related to us, among the Israelite traditions, that a man disobeyed God the Exalted for two hundred years, rebelling and acting insolently toward God throughout. When he died, the Children of Israel took him by the foot and threw him onto a rubbish heap. God the Exalted revealed to Moses, peace be upon him: “Wash him, shroud him, and pray over him with all the Children of Israel.” He did as commanded. The Children of Israel were amazed and told him that no Israelite had been more insolent toward God or more sinful.

فَقَالَ: قَدْ عَلِمْتُ، وَلَكِنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى أَمَرَنِي بِذَلِكَ. قَالُوا: فَاسْأَلْ لَنَا رَبَّكَ، فَسَأَلَ مُوسَى عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ رَبَّهُ فَقَالَ: يَا رَبِّ، قَدْ عَلِمْتَ مَا قَالُوا، فَأَوْحَى اللَّهُ تَعَالَى إِلَيْهِ أَنْ صَدَقُوا أَنَّهُ عَصَانِي مِائَتَيْ سَنَةٍ إِلَّا أَنَّهُ يَوْمًا مِنَ الْأَيَّامِ فَتَحَ التَّوْرَاةَ فَنَظَرَ إِلَى اسْمِ حَبِيبِي مُحَمَّدٍ مَكْتُوبًا، فَقَبَّلَهُ وَوَضَعَهُ عَلَى عَيْنِهِ، فَشَكَرْتُ لَهُ ذَلِكَ، فَغَفَرْتُ لَهُ ذُنُوبَ مِائَتَيْ سَنَةٍ.

faqāla: qad ʿalimtu, wa-lākinna Allāha taʿālā ʾamaranī bi-dhālika. qālū: fa-sʾal lanā rabbaka, fasaʾala mūsā ʿalayhi al-salāmu rabbahu faqāla: yā rabbi, qad ʿalimta mā qālū, faʾawḥā Allāhu taʿālā ʾilayhi ʾan ṣadaqū ʾannahu ʿaṣānī miʾatay sanatin ʾillā ʾannahu yawman mina al-ʾayyāmi fataḥa al-tawrāta fanaẓara ʾilā ismi ḥabībī muḥammadin maktūban, faqabbalahu wawaḍaʿahu ʿalā ʿaynihi, fashakartu lahu dhālika, faghafartu lahu dhunūba miʾatay sanatin.

He said: “I know, but God the Exalted commanded me to do this.” They said: “Ask your Lord on our behalf.” Moses, peace be upon him, asked his Lord: “My Lord, You know what they have said.” God the Exalted revealed to him: “They spoke truly: he disobeyed Me for two hundred years. But one day he opened the Torah and saw the written name of My beloved Muḥammad. He kissed it and placed it against his eye. I acknowledged that deed and forgave him the sins of two hundred years.”

وَحُدِّثْنَا فِي مَعْنَاهُ عَنِ الْعَبَّاسِ بْنِ عَبْدِ الْمُطَّلِبِ قَالَ: كُنْتُ مُؤَاخِيًا لِأَبِي لَهَبٍ، مُصَافِيًا لَهُ، فَلَمَّا مَاتَ وَأَخْبَرَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى عَنْهُ بِمَا أَخْبَرَ، حَزِنْتُ عَلَيْهِ وَأَهَمَّنِي أَمْرُهُ، فَسَأَلْتُ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى عَلَيْهِ حَوْلًا أَنْ يُرِيَنِي إِيَّاهُ فِي الْمَنَامِ، قَالَ: فَرَأَيْتُهُ يَلْتَهِبُ نَارًا فَسَأَلْتُهُ عَنْ حَالِهِ فَقَالَ: صِرْتُ إِلَى النَّارِ فِي الْعَذَابِ، لَا يُخَفَّفُ عَنِّي وَلَا يُرَوَّحُ إِلَّا لَيْلَةَ الْإِثْنَيْنِ فِي كُلِّ اللَّيَالِي وَالْأَيَّامِ فَإِنَّهُ يُرْفَعُ عَنِّي الْعَذَابُ.

waḥuddithnā fī maʿnāhu ʿani al-ʿabbāsi bni ʿabdi al-muṭṭalibi qāla: kuntu muʾākhiyan liʾabī lahabin, muṣāfiyan lahu, falammā māta waʾakhbara Allāhu taʿālā ʿanhu bimā ʾakhbara, ḥazintu ʿalayhi waʾahammanī ʾamruhu, fasaʾaltu Allāha taʿālā ʿalayhi ḥawlan ʾan yuriyanī ʾiyyāhu fī al-manāmi, qāla: faraʾaytuhu yaltahibu nāran fasaʾaltuhu ʿan ḥālihi faqāla: ṣirtu ʾilā al-nāri fī al-ʿadhābi, lā yukhaffafu ʿannī walā yurawwaḥu ʾillā laylata al-ʾithnayni fī kulli al-layālī wa-al-ʾayyāmi faʾinnahu yurfaʿu ʿannī al-ʿadhābu.

On the same subject, we were told from al-ʿAbbās ibn ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib: “I was brotherly and sincerely friendly with Abū Lahab. When he died, and God the Exalted disclosed what He disclosed concerning him, I grieved for him and was troubled about him. For a year I asked God the Exalted concerning him to show him to me in a dream.” He said: “I saw him ablaze and asked about his condition. He said: ‘I have come to the Fire, in torment. It is neither lightened nor relieved, except on Monday night among all the nights and days: then the torment is lifted from me.’”

قُلْتُ وَكَيْفَ ذَلِكَ؟ قَالَ: وُلِدَ فِي تِلْكَ اللَّيْلَةِ مُحَمَّدٌ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، فَجَاءَتْنِي أُمَيْمَةُ فَبَشَّرَتْنِي بِوِلَادَةِ آمِنَةَ إِيَّاهُ، فَفَرِحْتُ بِمَوْلِدِهِ،

qultu wakayfa dhālika? qāla: wulida fī tilka al-laylati muḥammadun ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama, fajāʾatnī ʾumaymatu fabashsharatnī biwilādati ʾāminata ʾiyyāhu, fafariḥtu bimawlidihi,

“I asked: ‘How is that?’ He said: ‘Muḥammad, may God bless him and grant him peace, was born that night. Umayma came and brought me the good news that Āmina had given birth to him. I rejoiced at his birth,

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٣٩

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 139

Volume Two, page 139

فَأَعْتَقْتُ وَلِيدَةً لِي فَرَحًا مِنِّي بِهِ، فَأَثَابَنِي اللَّهُ تَعَالَى بِذَلِكَ أَنْ رَفَعَ عَنِّي الْعَذَابَ فِي كُلِّ لَيْلَةِ إِثْنَيْنِ لِذَلِكَ. وَقَالَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى فِي تَحْقِيقِ الْمَحَبَّةِ: (يُحِبُّونَ مَنْ هَاجَرَ إِلَيْهِمْ) الْحَشْرُ: 9، ثُمَّ قَالَ تَعَالَى: (وَيُؤْثِرُونَ عَلَى أَنْفُسِهِمْ وَلَوْ كَانَ بِهِمْ خَصَاصَةٌ) الْحَشْرُ: 9، فَمِنْ مَحَبَّةِ الرَّسُولِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ إِيثَارُ سُنَنِهِ عَلَى الرَّأْيِ وَالْمَعْقُولِ، وَنُصْرَتُهُ بِالْمَالِ وَالنَّفْسِ وَالْقَوْلِ، وَعَلَامَةُ مَحَبَّتِهِ اتِّبَاعُهُ ظَاهِرًا وَبَاطِنًا.

faʾaʿtaqtu walīdatan lī faraḥan minnī bihi, faʾathābanī Allāhu taʿālā bi-dhālika ʾan rafaʿa ʿannī al-ʿadhāba fī kulli laylati ʾithnayni li-dhālika. waqāla Allāhu taʿālā fī taḥqīqi al-maḥabbati: (yuḥibbūna man hājara ʾilayhim) al-ḥashru: 9, thumma qāla taʿālā: (wayuʾthirūna ʿalā ʾanfusihim walaw kāna bihim khaṣāṣatun) al-ḥashru: 9, famin maḥabbati al-rasūli ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama ʾīthāru sunanihi ʿalā al-raʾyi wa-al-maʿqūli, wanuṣratuhu bi-al-māli wa-al-nafsi wa-al-qawli, waʿalāmatu maḥabbatihi ittibāʿuhu ẓāhiran wabāṭinan.

and freed a slave girl of mine out of joy in him. God the Exalted rewarded me for that by lifting the torment from me every Monday night.’” God the Exalted said concerning love’s realization: “They love those who have migrated to them” (al-Ḥashr 59:9). Then the Exalted said: “They prefer others to themselves, even though they are in need” (al-Ḥashr 59:9). Loving the Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, includes preferring his practices to opinion and rational judgment, and supporting him with wealth, person, and speech. Its sign is following him outwardly and inwardly.

فَمِنِ اتِّبَاعِ ظَاهِرِهِ: أَدَاءُ الْفَرَائِضِ وَاجْتِنَابُ الْمَحَارِمِ وَالتَّخَلُّقُ بِأَخْلَاقِهِ وَالتَّأَدُّبُ بِشَمَائِلِهِ وَآدَابِهِ، وَالِاقْتِفَاءُ لِآثَارِهِ وَالتَّجَسُّسُ عَنْ أَخْبَارِهِ، وَالزُّهْدُ فِي الدُّنْيَا وَالْإِعْرَاضُ عَنْ أَبْنَائِهَا وَمُجَانَبَةُ أَهْلِ الْغَفْلَةِ وَالْهَوَى، وَالتَّرْكُ لِلتَّكَاثُرِ وَالتَّفَاخُرِ مِنَ الدُّنْيَا وَالْإِقْبَالُ عَلَى أَعْمَالِ الْآخِرَةِ، وَالتَّقَرُّبُ مِنْ أَهْلِهَا وَالْحُبُّ لِلْفُقَرَاءِ، وَالتَّحَبُّبُ إِلَيْهِمْ، وَتَقْرِيبُهُمْ وَكَثْرَةُ مُجَالَسَتِهِمْ، وَاعْتِقَادُ تَفْضِيلِهِمْ عَلَى أَبْنَاءِ الدُّنْيَا.

famini ittibāʿi ẓāhirihi: ʾadāʾu al-farāʾiḍi wa-jtinābu al-maḥārimi wa-al-takhalluqu biʾakhlāqihi wa-al-taʾaddubu bishamāʾilihi waʾādābihi, wa-al-iqtifāʾu liʾāthārihi wa-al-tajassusu ʿan ʾakhbārihi, wa-al-zuhdu fī al-dunyā wa-al-ʾiʿrāḍu ʿan ʾabnāʾihā wamujānabatu ʾahli al-ghaflati wa-al-hawā, wa-al-tarku li-l-takāthuri wa-al-tafākhuri mina al-dunyā wa-al-ʾiqbālu ʿalā ʾaʿmāli al-ʾākhirati, wa-al-taqarrubu min ʾahlihā wa-al-ḥubbu li-l-fuqarāʾi, wa-al-taḥabbubu ʾilayhim, wataqrībuhum wakathratu mujālasatihim, wa-ʿtiqādu tafḍīlihim ʿalā ʾabnāʾi al-dunyā.

Following his outward conduct includes fulfilling obligations, avoiding forbidden things, acquiring his character, adopting his dispositions and manners, following his traces, and diligently seeking reports about him; renouncing the world, turning away from its people, avoiding the heedless and those ruled by desire, abandoning worldly rivalry and boasting, devoting oneself to works of the hereafter, drawing near its people, loving the poor, seeking their affection, bringing them close, sitting with them frequently, and believing them superior to the people of this world.

ثُمَّ الْحُبُّ فِي اللَّهِ لِلْبَعِيدِ الْمُبْغِضِ، وَهُمُ الْعُلَمَاءُ وَالْعُبَّادُ وَالزُّهَّادُ، وَالْبُغْضُ فِي اللَّهِ لِلْقَرِيبِ الْمُحِبِّ، وَهُمُ الظَّلَمَةُ الْمُبْتَدِعَةُ وَالْفَسَقَةُ الْمُعْلِنَةُ، وَمِنِ اتِّبَاعِ حَالِهِ فِي الْبَاطِنِ مَقَامَاتُ الْيَقِينِ، وَمُشَاهَدَاتُ عُلُومِ الْإِيمَانِ، مِثْلُ الْخَوْفِ وَالرِّضَا وَالشُّكْرِ وَالْحَيَاءِ، وَالتَّسْلِيمِ وَالتَّوَكُّلِ وَالشَّوْقِ وَالْمَحَبَّةِ، وَإِفْرَاغُ الْقَلْبِ لِلَّهِ وَإِفْرَادُ الْهَمِّ بِاللَّهِ، وَوُجُودُ الطُّمَأْنِينَةِ بِذِكْرِ اللَّهِ.

thumma al-ḥubbu fī Allāhi li-l-baʿīdi al-mubghiḍi, wahumu al-ʿulamāʾu wa-al-ʿubbādu wa-al-zuhhādu, wa-al-bughḍu fī Allāhi li-l-qarībi al-muḥibbi, wahumu al-ẓalamatu al-mubtadiʿatu wa-al-fasaqatu al-muʿlinatu, wamini ittibāʿi ḥālihi fī al-bāṭini maqāmātu al-yaqīni, wamushāhadātu ʿulūmi al-ʾīmāni, mithlu al-khawfi wa-al-riḍā wa-al-shukri wa-al-ḥayāʾi, wa-al-taslīmi wa-al-tawakkuli wa-al-shawqi wa-al-maḥabbati, waʾifrāghu al-qalbi li-llāhi waʾifrādu al-hammi bi-Allāhi, wawujūdu al-ṭumaʾnīnati bidhikri Allāhi.

Then comes loving for God’s sake the distant person who dislikes you, namely scholars, worshippers, and ascetics, and hating for God’s sake the close person who loves you, namely oppressive innovators and open sinners. Following his inward state includes the stations of certainty and contemplations of the sciences of faith, such as fear, contentment, gratitude, modesty, surrender, trust, longing, and love; emptying the heart for God, concentrating one’s concern on God, and finding tranquility in remembering God.

فَهَذِهِ مُعَامَلَاتُ الْخُصُوصِ وَبَعْضُ مَعَانِي بَاطِنِ الرَّسُولِ، وَهُوَ مِنْ أَتْبَاعِهِ ظَاهِرًا وَبَاطِنًا، فَمَنْ تَحَقَّقَ بِذَلِكَ فَلَهُ مِنَ الْآيَةِ نَصِيبٌ مَوْفُورٌ أَعْنِي قَوْلَهُ تَعَالَى: (قُلْ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ تُحِبُّونَ اللَّهَ فَاتَّبِعُونِي يُحْبِبْكُمُ اللَّهُ) آلُ عِمْرَانَ: 31، وَقَدْ كَانَ سَهْلٌ يَقُولُ: عَلَامَةُ الْمَحَبَّةِ، إِتِّبَاعُ الرَّسُولِ، وَعَلَامَةُ إِتِّبَاعِ الرَّسُولِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ الزُّهْدُ فِي الدُّنْيَا.

fa-hādhihi muʿāmalātu al-khuṣūṣi wabaʿḍu maʿānī bāṭini al-rasūli, wahuwa min ʾatbāʿihi ẓāhiran wabāṭinan, faman taḥaqqaqa bi-dhālika falahu mina al-ʾāyati naṣībun mawfūrun ʾaʿnī qawlahu taʿālā: (qul ʾin kuntum tuḥibbūna Allāha fa-ttabiʿūnī yuḥbibkumu Allāhu) ʾālu ʿimrāna: 31, waqad kāna sahlun yaqūlu: ʿalāmatu al-maḥabbati, ʾittibāʿu al-rasūli, waʿalāmatu ʾittibāʿi al-rasūli ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama al-zuhdu fī al-dunyā.

These are the spiritual dealings of the elect and some meanings of the Messenger’s inward life; such a person is among his followers outwardly and inwardly. Whoever realizes this has an ample share in the verse, by which I mean His saying, exalted is He: “Say: If you love God, follow me; God will love you” (Āl ʿImrān 3:31). Sahl used to say: “The sign of love is following the Messenger, and the sign of following the Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, is renunciation of the world.”

وَقَالَ أَيْضًا فِي تَفْسِيرِ قَوْلِهِ: (وَمَنْ يُطِعِ اللَّهَ وَالرَّسُولَ فَأُولَئِكَ مَعَ الَّذِينَ أَنْعَمَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِمْ) النِّسَاءُ: 69، قَالَ: يُطِعِ اللَّهَ فِي فَرَائِضِهِ، وَالرَّسُولَ فِي الدُّخُولِ فِي سُنَنِهِ، فَإِذَا اجْتَنَبَ الْعَبْدُ الْبِدَعَ، وَتَخَلَّقَ بِأَخْلَاقِ الرَّسُولِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فَقَدِ اتَّبَعَهُ وَقَدْ أَحَبَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى، وَكَانَ مَعَهُ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ غَدًا مُوَافِقًا فِي مَنْزِلَتِهِ.

waqāla ʾayḍan fī tafsīri qawlihi: (waman yuṭiʿi Allāha wa-al-rasūla fa-ʾulāʾika maʿa alladhīna ʾanʿama Allāhu ʿalayhim) al-nisāʾu: 69, qāla: yuṭiʿi Allāha fī farāʾiḍihi, wa-al-rasūla fī al-dukhūli fī sunanihi, faʾidhā ijtanaba al-ʿabdu al-bidaʿa, watakhallaqa biʾakhlāqi al-rasūli ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama faqadi ittabaʿahu waqad ʾaḥabba Allāha taʿālā, wakāna maʿahu ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama ghadan muwāfiqan fī manzilatihi.

He also explained His saying, “Whoever obeys God and the Messenger, those are with the people God has blessed” (al-Nisāʾ 4:69), saying: “He obeys God in His obligations, and the Messenger by entering into his practices.” When a servant avoids innovations and acquires the character of the Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, he has followed him and loved God the Exalted. Tomorrow he will be with him, may God bless him and grant him peace, corresponding to his station.

ذِكْرُ فَضَائِلِ شَهَادَةِ التَّوْحِيدِ وَوَصْفِ تَوْحِيدِ الْمُوقِنِينَ

dhikru faḍāʾili shahādati al-tawḥīdi wawaṣfi tawḥīdi al-mūqinīna

An account of the merits of testimony to divine unity and a description of the unity affirmed by those possessing certainty

قَالَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى: (شَهِدَ اللَّهُ أَنَّهُ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا هُوَ وَالْمَلَائِكَةُ وَأُولُو الْعِلْمِ قَائِمًا بِالْقِسْطِ) آلُ عِمْرَانَ: 18، وَقَالَ سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى: (وَالَّذِينَ هُمْ بِشَهَادَاتِهِمْ قَائِمُونَ) الْمَعَارِجُ: 33، فَشَهَادَةُ الْمُوقِنِ بِيَقِينِهِ أَنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى هُوَ الْأَوَّلُ فِي كُلِّ شَيْءٍ، وَأَقْرَبُ مِنْ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ، وَهُوَ الْمُعْطِي الْمَانِعُ الْهَادِي الْمُضِلُّ، لَا مُعْطِيَ وَلَا مَانِعَ وَلَا ضَارَّ وَلَا نَافِعَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ، كَمَا لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ.

qāla Allāhu taʿālā: (shahida Allāhu ʾannahu lā ʾilāha ʾillā huwa wa-al-malāʾikatu wa-ʾulū al-ʿilmi qāʾiman bi-al-qisṭi) ʾālu ʿimrāna: 18, waqāla subḥānahu wataʿālā: (wa-alladhīna hum bishahādātihim qāʾimūna) al-maʿāriju: 33, fashahādatu al-mūqini biyaqīnihi ʾanna Allāha taʿālā huwa al-ʾawwalu fī kulli shayʾin, waʾaqrabu min kulli shayʾin, wahuwa al-muʿṭī al-māniʿu al-hādī al-muḍillu, lā muʿṭiya walā māniʿa walā ḍārra walā nāfiʿa ʾillā Allāhu, kamā lā ʾilāha ʾillā Allāhu.

God the Exalted said: “God bears witness that there is no god but Him, as do the angels and those possessing knowledge, maintaining justice” (Āl ʿImrān 3:18). Glorified and exalted is He, He said: “Those who uphold their testimonies” (al-Maʿārij 70:33). Through his certainty, the person possessing certainty testifies that God the Exalted is First in everything and nearer than everything. He gives and withholds, guides and leads astray. None gives, withholds, harms, or benefits except God, just as there is no god but God.

وَقُرْبُ اللَّهِ مِنْهُ وَنَظَرُهُ إِلَيْهِ وَقُدْرَتُهُ عَلَيْهِ وَحِيطَتُهُ بِهِ، فَيَسْبِقُ نَظَرُهُ وَهْمَهُ إِلَى اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ قَبْلَ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ، وَيَذْكُرُهُ فِي كُلِّ شَيْءٍ وَيَخْلُو قَلْبُهُ مِنْ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ، وَيَرْجِعُ إِلَيْهِ فِي كُلِّ شَيْءٍ، وَيَتَأَلَّهُ إِلَيْهِ دُونَ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ، وَيَعْلَمُ أَنَّ اللَّهَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ أَقْرَبُ إِلَى الْقَلْبِ مِنْ وَرِيدِهِ، وَأَقْرَبُ إِلَى الرُّوحِ مِنْ حَيَاتِهِ، وَأَقْرَبُ إِلَى الْبَصَرِ مِنْ نَظَرِهِ، وَأَقْرَبُ إِلَى اللِّسَانِ مِنْ رِيقِهِ، بِقُرْبٍ هُوَ وَصْفُهُ لَا

waqurbu Allāhi minhu wanaẓaruhu ʾilayhi waqudratuhu ʿalayhi waḥīṭatuhu bihi, fayasbiqu naẓaruhu wahmahu ʾilā Allāhi ʿazza wajalla qabla kulli shayʾin, wayadhkuruhu fī kulli shayʾin wayakhlū qalbuhu min kulli shayʾin, wayarjiʿu ʾilayhi fī kulli shayʾin, wayataʾallahu ʾilayhi dūna kulli shayʾin, wayaʿlamu ʾanna Allāha ʿazza wajalla ʾaqrabu ʾilā al-qalbi min warīdihi, waʾaqrabu ʾilā al-rūḥi min ḥayātihi, waʾaqrabu ʾilā al-baṣari min naẓarihi, waʾaqrabu ʾilā al-lisāni min rīqihi, biqurbin huwa waṣfuhu lā

There is God’s nearness to him, His looking upon him, His power over him, and His encompassing him. His gaze thus precedes his imagining toward God, mighty and majestic is He, before everything. He remembers Him in everything; his heart empties of everything. In everything he returns to Him, worshipping Him to the exclusion of everything. He knows that God, mighty and majestic is He, is nearer to the heart than its jugular vein, to the spirit than its life, to sight than its looking, and to the tongue than its saliva, through a nearness that is His attribute, without

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٤٠

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 140

Volume Two, page 140

بِتَقْرِيبٍ وَلَا بِتَقَرُّبٍ، وَأَنَّهُ تَعَالَى عَلَى الْعَرْشِ فِي ذَلِكَ كُلِّهِ، وَأَنَّهُ رَفِيعُ الدَّرَجَاتِ مِنَ الثَّرَى وَهُوَ رَفِيعُ الدَّرَجَاتِ مِنَ الْعَرْشِ، وَأَنَّ قُرْبَهُ مِنَ الثَّرَى وَمِنْ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ، كَقُرْبِهِ مِنَ الْعَرْشِ، وَأَنَّ الْعَرْشَ غَيْرُ مُلَامِسٍ لَهُ بِحِسٍّ وَلَا مُفَكِّرٍ فِيهِ بِوَجْسٍ، وَلَا نَاظِرٍ إِلَيْهِ بِعَيْنٍ وَلَا مُحِيطٍ بِهِ بِدَرَكٍ، لِأَنَّهُ تَعَالَى مُحْتَجِبٌ بِقُدْرَتِهِ عَنْ جَمِيعِ بَرِيَّتِهِ.

bitaqrībin walā bitaqarrubin, waʾannahu taʿālā ʿalā al-ʿarshi fī dhālika kullihi, waʾannahu rafīʿu al-darajāti mina al-tharā wahuwa rafīʿu al-darajāti mina al-ʿarshi, waʾanna qurbahu mina al-tharā wamin kulli shayʾin, kaqurbihi mina al-ʿarshi, waʾanna al-ʿarsha ghayru mulāmisin lahu biḥissin walā mufakkirin fīhi biwajsin, walā nāẓirin ʾilayhi biʿaynin walā muḥīṭin bihi bidarakin, liʾannahu taʿālā muḥtajibun biqudratihi ʿan jamīʿi bariyyatihi.

bringing near or drawing near. Throughout all this He, exalted is He, is upon the Throne. He is exalted in degrees above the earth, and exalted in degrees above the Throne. His nearness to the earth and to everything is like His nearness to the Throne. The Throne neither touches Him through sensation, thinks of Him through an inward impression, looks at Him with an eye, nor encompasses Him through apprehension, for the Exalted is veiled by His power from all His creation.

وَلَا نَصِيبَ لِلْعَرْشِ مِنْهُ إِلَّا كَنَصِيبِ مُوقِنٍ عَالِمٍ بِهِ، وَاجِدٍ بِمَا أَوْجَدَهُ مِنْهُ مِنْ أَنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى عَلَيْهِ، وَأَنَّ الْعَرْشَ مُطْمَئِنٌّ بِهِ، وَأَنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى مُحِيطٌ بِعَرْشِهِ فَوْقَ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ وَفَوْقَ تَحْتَ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ، فَهُوَ فَوْقَ الْفَوْقِ وَفَوْقَ التَّحْتِ، وَلَا يُوصَفُ بِتَحْتٍ فَيَكُونَ لَهُ فَوْقٌ، لِأَنَّهُ هُوَ الْعَلِيُّ الْأَعْلَى أَيْنَ كَانَ لَا يَخْلُو مِنْ عِلْمِهِ وَقُدْرَتِهِ مَكَانٌ.

walā naṣība li-l-ʿarshi minhu ʾillā kanaṣībi mūqinin ʿālimin bihi, wājidin bimā ʾawjadahu minhu min ʾanna Allāha taʿālā ʿalayhi, waʾanna al-ʿarsha muṭmaʾinnun bihi, waʾanna Allāha taʿālā muḥīṭun biʿarshihi fawqa kulli shayʾin wafawqa taḥta kulli shayʾin, fahuwa fawqa al-fawqi wafawqa al-taḥti, walā yūṣafu bitaḥtin fayakūna lahu fawqun, liʾannahu huwa al-ʿaliyyu al-ʾaʿlā ʾayna kāna lā yakhlū min ʿilmihi waqudratihi makānun.

The Throne’s share in Him is only like the share of one who possesses certainty and knowledge of Him, finding what He has made him find of Himself: that God the Exalted is upon it, that the Throne rests secure through Him, and that God the Exalted encompasses His Throne, above everything and above the beneath of everything. He is above above and above beneath. He is not described as beneath, which would entail an above Him, for He is the High, the Highest, wherever He is; no place is devoid of His knowledge and power.

وَلَا يُحَدُّ بِمَكَانٍ وَلَا يُفْقَدُ مِنْ مَكَانٍ وَلَا يُوجَدُ بِمَكَانٍ، فَالتَّحْتُ لِلْأَسْفَلِ وَالْفَوْقُ لِلْأَعْلَى، وَهُوَ سُبْحَانَهُ فَوْقَ كُلِّ فَوْقٍ وَفَوْقَ كُلِّ تَحْتٍ فِي السُّمُوِّ، وَهُوَ فَوْقَ مَلَائِكَةِ الثَّرَى، وَهُوَ فَوْقَ مَلَائِكَةِ الْعَرْشِ وَالْأَمَاكِنُ لِلْمُمْكِنَاتِ وَمَكَانُهُ مَشِيئَتُهُ وَوُجُودُهُ قُدْرَتُهُ وَالْعَرْشُ وَالثَّرَى وَمَا بَيْنَهُمَا وَحَدٌّ لِلْخَلْقِ الْأَسْفَلِ وَالْأَعْلَى، بِمَنْزِلَةِ خَرْدَلَةٍ فِي قَبْضَتِهِ.

walā yuḥaddu bimakānin walā yufqadu min makānin walā yūjadu bimakānin, fa-al-taḥtu li-l-ʾasfali wa-al-fawqu li-l-ʾaʿlā, wahuwa subḥānahu fawqa kulli fawqin wafawqa kulli taḥtin fī al-sumuwwi, wahuwa fawqa malāʾikati al-tharā, wahuwa fawqa malāʾikati al-ʿarshi wa-al-ʾamākinu li-l-mumkināti wamakānuhu mashīʾatuhu wawujūduhu qudratuhu wa-al-ʿarshu wa-al-tharā wamā baynahumā waḥaddun li-l-khalqi al-ʾasfali wa-al-ʾaʿlā, bimanzilati khardalatin fī qabḍatihi.

He is not bounded by place, absent from a place, or found by means of a place. Beneath belongs to what is lower, and above to what is higher. Glorified is He, in elevation He is above every above and every beneath. He is above the angels of the earth and above the angels of the Throne. Places belong to possibilities; His place is His will and His existence His power. The Throne, the earth, what lies between them, and a boundary for lower and higher creation are as a mustard seed in His grasp.

وَهُوَ أَعْلَى مِنْ ذَلِكَ، وَمُحِيطٌ بِجَمِيعِ ذَلِكَ بِحِيطَةٍ هِيَ صِفَتُهُ وَسَعَةٍ هِيَ قُدْرَتُهُ، وَعُلُوٍّ هُوَ عَظَمَتُهُ بِمَا لَا يُدْرِكُهُ الْعَقْلُ وَلَا يُكَيِّفُهُ الْوَهْمُ، وَلَا نِهَايَةَ لِعُلُوِّهِ وَلَا فَوْقَ لِسُمُوِّهِ وَلَا بُعْدَ فِي دُنُوِّهِ، وَلَا حِسَّ فِي وُجُودِهِ وَلَا مَسَّ فِي شُهُودِهِ، وَلَا إِدْرَاكَ لِحُضُورِهِ وَلَا حِيطَةَ لِحِيطَتِهِ.

wahuwa ʾaʿlā min dhālika, wamuḥīṭun bijamīʿi dhālika biḥīṭatin hiya ṣifatuhu wasaʿatin hiya qudratuhu, waʿuluwwin huwa ʿaẓamatuhu bimā lā yudrikuhu al-ʿaqlu walā yukayyifuhu al-wahmu, walā nihāyata liʿuluwwihi walā fawqa lisumuwwihi walā buʿda fī dunuwwihi, walā ḥissa fī wujūdihi walā massa fī shuhūdihi, walā ʾidrāka liḥuḍūrihi walā ḥīṭata liḥīṭatihi.

He is higher than that and encompasses it all through an encompassing that is His attribute, an amplitude that is His power, and an exaltation that is His greatness, in a manner intellect cannot apprehend or imagination specify. His exaltation has no end, His elevation no above, His nearness no distance, His existence no sensation, and His witnessing no touch. His presence cannot be comprehended, nor His encompassing encompassed.

وَقَدْ قَالَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى لِلْكُلِّ: (يَخَافُونَ رَبَّهُمْ مِنْ فَوْقِهِمْ) النَّحْلُ: 50، وَقَالَ سُبْحَانَهُ: (سَبِّحِ اسْمَ رَبِّكَ الْأَعْلَى) الْأَعْلَى: 1، وَقَالَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ: (أَلَا إِنَّهُ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ مُحِيطٌ) فُصِّلَتْ: 54، وَإِنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى لَا يَحْجُبُهُ شَيْءٌ عَنْ شَيْءٍ، وَلَا يَبْعُدُ عَلَيْهِ شَيْءٌ، قَرِيبٌ مِنْ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ بِوَصْفِهِ، وَهُوَ الْقُدْرَةُ وَالدَّرَكُ، وَالْأَشْيَاءُ مُبْعَدَةٌ بِأَوْصَافِهَا، وَهُوَ الْبُعْدُ وَالْحُجُبُ.

waqad qāla Allāhu taʿālā li-l-kulli: (yakhāfūna rabbahum min fawqihim) al-naḥlu: 50, waqāla subḥānahu: (sabbiḥi isma rabbika al-ʾaʿlā) al-ʾaʿlā: 1, waqāla ʿazza wajalla: (ʾalā ʾinnahu bikulli shayʾin muḥīṭun) fuṣṣilat: 54, waʾinna Allāha taʿālā lā yaḥjubuhu shayʾun ʿan shayʾin, walā yabʿudu ʿalayhi shayʾun, qarībun min kulli shayʾin biwaṣfihi, wahuwa al-qudratu wa-al-daraku, wa-al-ʾashyāʾu mubʿadatun biʾawṣāfihā, wahuwa al-buʿdu wa-al-ḥujubu.

God the Exalted has said concerning all: “They fear their Lord above them” (al-Naḥl 16:50). Glorified is He, He said: “Glorify the name of your Lord, the Highest” (al-Aʿlā 87:1). Mighty and majestic is He, He said: “Indeed, He encompasses everything” (Fuṣṣilat 41:54). Nothing veils God the Exalted from anything, and nothing is distant from Him. He is near everything through His attribute, namely power and apprehension. Things are made distant through their attributes, namely distance and veils.

فَالْبُعْدُ وَالْأَبْعَادُ حُكْمُ مَشِيئَتِهِ، وَالْحُدُودُ وَالْأَقْطَارُ حُجُبُ بَرِيَّتِهِ، وَالْمَسَافَةُ وَالتِّلْقَاءُ مَكَانَةٌ لِسِوَاهُ، وَالنَّوَاحِي وَالْجِهَاتُ مَوْضِعٌ لِلْمُحْدَثَاتِ، وَالنَّهَارُ وَاللَّيْلُ مَسْكَنٌ لِلْمُصَرَّفَاتِ، وَالْبُعْدُ وَالْفَضَاءُ مَكَانٌ لِلْمَخْلُوقِينَ وَالتَّوْسِعَةُ وَالْهَوَاءُ مَحَلٌّ لِلْعَالَمِينَ، وَالْأَحْكَامُ وَالْأَقْدَارُ وَاقِعَةٌ عَلَى خَلْقِهِ. وَهُوَ سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى قَدْ جَاوَزَ الْمِقْدَارَ وَالْأَحْكَامَ، وَفَاتَ الْعُقُولَ وَالْأَوْهَامَ وَسَبَقَ الْأَقْدَارَ، وَاحْتَجَبَ بِعِزِّهِ عَنِ الْأَفْكَارِ.

fa-al-buʿdu wa-al-ʾabʿādu ḥukmu mashīʾatihi, wa-al-ḥudūdu wa-al-ʾaqṭāru ḥujubu bariyyatihi, wa-al-masāfatu wa-al-tilqāʾu makānatun lisiwāhu, wa-al-nawāḥī wa-al-jihātu mawḍiʿun li-l-muḥdathāti, wa-al-nahāru wa-al-laylu maskanun li-l-muṣarrafāti, wa-al-buʿdu wa-al-faḍāʾu makānun li-l-makhlūqīna wa-al-tawsiʿatu wa-al-hawāʾu maḥallun li-l-ʿālamīna, wa-al-ʾaḥkāmu wa-al-ʾaqdāru wāqiʿatun ʿalā khalqihi. wahuwa subḥānahu wataʿālā qad jāwaza al-miqdāra wa-al-ʾaḥkāma, wafāta al-ʿuqūla wa-al-ʾawhāma wasabaqa al-ʾaqdāra, wa-ḥtajaba biʿizzihi ʿani al-ʾafkāri.

Distance and dimensions are the decree of His will; boundaries and regions are His creatures’ veils. Spatial intervals and facing positions belong to others. Areas and directions are the location of originated things; day and night house things subject to His disposal. Distance and space are the place of creatures; extension and air are the abode of the worlds. Judgments and decrees fall upon His creation. He, glorified and exalted, transcends measure and judgments, surpasses intellects and imaginings, precedes decrees, and is veiled from thoughts by His might.

لَا يُصَوِّرُهُ الْفِكْرُ وَلَا يَمْلِكُهُ الْوَهْمُ، حَجَبَ عَنِ الْعُقُولِ تَشَجَّ ذَاتِهِ وَلَمْ تَحْكُمْ الْعُقُولُ بِدَرَكِ صِفَاتِهِ، إِذْ لَيْسَ كَمِثْلِهِ شَيْءٌ فَيُعْرَفَ بِالتَّمْثِيلِ، وَلَا لَهُ جِنْسٌ فَيُقَاسَ عَلَى التَّجْنِيسِ، وَهُوَ اللَّهُ فِي السَّمٰوَاتِ وَفِي الْأَرْضِ، ثُمَّ اسْتَوَى عَلَى الْعَرْشِ، وَهُوَ مَعَكُمْ أَيْنَمَا كُنْتُمْ، غَيْرُ مُتَّصِلٍ بِالْخَلْقِ وَلَا مُفَارِقٍ، وَغَيْرُ مُمَاسٍّ لِكَوْنٍ وَلَا مُتَبَاعِدٍ.

lā yuṣawwiruhu al-fikru walā yamlikuhu al-wahmu, ḥajaba ʿani al-ʿuqūli tashajja dhātihi walam taḥkum al-ʿuqūlu bidaraki ṣifātihi, ʾidh laysa kamithlihi shayʾun fayuʿrafa bi-al-tamthīli, walā lahu jinsun fayuqāsa ʿalā al-tajnīsi, wahuwa Allāhu fī al-samāwāti wafī al-ʾarḍi, thumma istawā ʿalā al-ʿarshi, wahuwa maʿakum ʾaynamā kuntum, ghayru muttaṣilin bi-al-khalqi walā mufāriqin, waghayru mumāssin likawnin walā mutabāʿidin.

Thought does not picture Him, nor imagination possess Him. He has veiled from intellects the cleaving of His essence, and intellects do not adjudicate the apprehension of His attributes. Nothing resembles Him so that He might be known through comparison, nor has He a genus so that analogy by genus might apply. He is God in the heavens and on earth, then established Himself upon the Throne, and is with you wherever you are: neither connected to creation nor separated, neither touching any existent nor remote.

بَلْ مُتَفَرِّدٌ بِنَفْسِهِ مُتَّحِدٌ بِوَصْفِهِ لَا يَزْدَوِجُ إِلَى شَيْءٍ وَلَا يَقْتَرِنُ بِهِ شَيْءٌ، هُوَ أَقْرَبُ مِنْ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ بِقُرْبٍ هُوَ وَصْفُهُ، هُوَ مُحِيطٌ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ بِحِيطَةٍ هِيَ نَعْتُهُ، وَهُوَ مَعَ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ وَفَوْقَ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ، وَهُوَ أَمَامَ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ وَوَرَاءَ

bal mutafarridun binafsihi muttaḥidun biwaṣfihi lā yazdawiju ʾilā shayʾin walā yaqtarinu bihi shayʾun, huwa ʾaqrabu min kulli shayʾin biqurbin huwa waṣfuhu, huwa muḥīṭun bikulli shayʾin biḥīṭatin hiya naʿtuhu, wahuwa maʿa kulli shayʾin wafawqa kulli shayʾin, wahuwa ʾamāma kulli shayʾin wawarāʾa

Rather, He stands alone in Himself and is one in His attribute; He pairs with nothing, and nothing is coupled to Him. He is nearer than everything through a nearness that is His attribute, encompassing everything through an encompassing that describes Him. He is with everything and above everything, before everything and behind

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٤١

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 141

Volume Two, page 141

كُلِّ شَيْءٍ، بِعُلُوٍّ وَدُنُوٍّ هُوَ قُرْبُهُ، فَهُوَ وَرَاءَ الْحَوْلِ الَّذِي هُوَ وَرَاءَ حَمَلَةِ الْعَرْشِ، وَهُوَ أَقْرَبُ مِنْ حَبْلِ الْوَرِيدِ الَّذِي هُوَ الرُّوحُ، وَهُوَ مَعَ ذَلِكَ فَوْقَ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ وَمُحِيطٌ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ، وَلَيْسَ يُحِيطُ بِهِ شَيْءٌ وَلَيْسَ هُوَ تَعَالَى فِي كُلِّ هَذَا مَكَانًا لِشَيْءٍ، وَلَا مَكَانًا لَهُ شَيْءٌ، وَلَيْسَ كَمِثْلِهِ فِي كُلِّ هَذَا شَيْءٌ.

kulli shayʾin, biʿuluwwin wadunuwwin huwa qurbuhu, fahuwa warāʾa al-ḥawli alladhī huwa warāʾa ḥamalati al-ʿarshi, wahuwa ʾaqrabu min ḥabli al-warīdi alladhī huwa al-rūḥu, wahuwa maʿa dhālika fawqa kulli shayʾin wamuḥīṭun bikulli shayʾin, walaysa yuḥīṭu bihi shayʾun walaysa huwa taʿālā fī kulli hādhā makānan lishayʾin, walā makānan lahu shayʾun, walaysa kamithlihi fī kulli hādhā shayʾun.

everything, through an exaltation and a closeness that are His nearness. He is beyond the surrounding expanse beyond the bearers of the Throne, and nearer than the jugular cord, which is the spirit. Nevertheless, He is above everything and encompasses everything, while nothing encompasses Him. In all this He, exalted is He, is no place for anything, nor is anything a place for Him. In all this nothing resembles Him.

لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ فِي مُلْكِهِ وَلَا مُعِينَ لَهُ فِي خَلْقِهِ، وَلَا نَظِيرَ لَهُ مِنْ عِبَادِهِ، وَلَا شَبِيهَ لَهُ فِي اتِّحَادِهِ وَهُوَ أَوَّلٌ فِي آخِرِيَّتِهِ بِأَوَّلِيَّةٍ هِيَ صِفَتُهُ، وَآخِرٌ فِي أَوَّلِيَّتِهِ بِآخِرِيَّةٍ هِيَ نَعْتُهُ، وَبَاطِنٌ فِي ظُهُورِهِ بِبَاطِنِيَّةٍ هِيَ قُرْبُهُ، وَظَاهِرٌ فِي بَاطِنِيَّتِهِ بِظُهُورٍ هُوَ عُلُوُّهُ، لَمْ يَزَلْ كَذَلِكَ أَزَلًا، وَلَا يَزَالُ كَذَلِكَ أَبَدًا.

lā sharīka lahu fī mulkihi walā muʿīna lahu fī khalqihi, walā naẓīra lahu min ʿibādihi, walā shabīha lahu fī ittiḥādihi wahuwa ʾawwalun fī ʾākhiriyyatihi biʾawwaliyyatin hiya ṣifatuhu, waʾākhirun fī ʾawwaliyyatihi biʾākhiriyyatin hiya naʿtuhu, wabāṭinun fī ẓuhūrihi bibāṭiniyyatin hiya qurbuhu, waẓāhirun fī bāṭiniyyatihi biẓuhūrin huwa ʿuluwwuhu, lam yazal kadhālika ʾazalan, walā yazālu kadhālika ʾabadan.

He has no partner in His kingship, no helper in His creating, no peer among His servants, and no likeness in His unity. He is First in His lastness through a firstness that is His attribute, and Last in His firstness through a lastness that describes Him; hidden in His manifestation through a hiddenness that is His nearness, and manifest in His hiddenness through a manifestation that is His exaltation. He has always been thus, eternally before, and will always be thus, eternally after.

لَا يَتَوَجَّهُ عَلَيْهِ التَّضَادُّ وَلَا تَجْرِي عَلَيْهِ الْحَوَادِثُ وَالْآبَادُ، وَلَا يَنْتَقِصُ وَلَا يُزَادُ، هُوَ عَلَى عَرْشِهِ بِاخْتِيَارِهِ لِنَفْسِهِ، فَالْعَرْشُ حَدُّ خَلْقِهِ الْأَعْلَى وَهُوَ غَيْرُ مَحْدُودٍ بِعَرْشِهِ تَعَالَى، وَالْعَرْشُ مُحْتَاجٌ إِلَى مَكَانٍ وَالرَّبُّ غَيْرُ مُحْتَاجٍ إِلَيْهِ، كَمَا كَانَ الرَّحْمَنُ عَلَى الْعَرْشِ اسْتَوَى، الرَّحْمَنُ اسْمُهُ وَالِاسْتِوَاءُ نَعْتُهُ، مُتَّصِلٌ بِذَاتِهِ، وَالْعَرْشُ خَلْقُهُ مُنْفَصِلٌ عَنْ صِفَاتِهِ.

lā yatawajjahu ʿalayhi al-taḍāddu walā tajrī ʿalayhi al-ḥawādithu wa-al-ʾābādu, walā yantaqiṣu walā yuzādu, huwa ʿalā ʿarshihi bi-khtiyārihi linafsihi, fa-al-ʿarshu ḥaddu khalqihi al-ʾaʿlā wahuwa ghayru maḥdūdin biʿarshihi taʿālā, wa-al-ʿarshu muḥtājun ʾilā makānin wa-al-rabbu ghayru muḥtājin ʾilayhi, kamā kāna al-raḥmānu ʿalā al-ʿarshi istawā, al-raḥmānu ismuhu wa-al-istiwāʾu naʿtuhu, muttaṣilun bidhātihi, wa-al-ʿarshu khalquhu munfaṣilun ʿan ṣifātihi.

Opposition does not apply to Him; events and ages do not pass over Him. He neither diminishes nor increases. He is upon His Throne by His own choice for Himself. The Throne is the highest limit of His creation, while He, exalted is He, is not bounded by His Throne. The Throne needs a place, but the Lord does not need it, as it was: “The All-Merciful established Himself upon the Throne.” All-Merciful is His name; establishing Himself is His description, attached to His essence. The Throne is His creation, separate from His attributes.

لَيْسَ بِمُضْطَرٍّ إِلَى مَكَانٍ يَسَعُهُ، وَلَا حَامِلٍ يَحْمِلُهُ وَلَا حِيطَةٍ تَجْمَعُهُ، وَلَا خَلْقٍ يُوجِدُهُ، هُوَ حَامِلٌ لِلْعَرْشِ وَلِلْحَمَلَةِ بِخَفِيِّ لُطْفِهِ، وَجَامِعٌ لِلْعَرْشِ وَلِلْحَفَظَةِ بِلَطِيفِ صُنْعِهِ، وَمُوجِدٌ مَا أَحَبَّ لِمَنْ يُحِبُّ مِنَ التَّجَلِّي بِمَعَالِي أَسْمَائِهِ وَصِفَاتِهِ بِخَفِيِّ لُطْفِهِ وَلَطِيفِ قُرْبِهِ، لِاخْتِصَاصِ رَحْمَتِهِ، وَهُوَ أَظْهَرَ الْكَوْنَ مِنْ وَرَاءِ الْحَوْلِ.

laysa bimuḍṭarrin ʾilā makānin yasaʿuhu, walā ḥāmilin yaḥmiluhu walā ḥīṭatin tajmaʿuhu, walā khalqin yūjiduhu, huwa ḥāmilun li-l-ʿarshi wali-l-ḥamalati bikhafiyyi luṭfihi, wajāmiʿun li-l-ʿarshi wali-l-ḥafaẓati bilaṭīfi ṣunʿihi, wamūjidun mā ʾaḥabba liman yuḥibbu mina al-tajallī bimaʿālī ʾasmāʾihi waṣifātihi bikhafiyyi luṭfihi walaṭīfi qurbihi, li-khtiṣāṣi raḥmatihi, wahuwa ʾaẓhara al-kawna min warāʾi al-ḥawli.

He is not compelled to need a place containing Him, a bearer carrying Him, an enclosure gathering Him, or a creature bringing Him into being. He carries the Throne and its bearers through His hidden gentleness, and gathers the Throne and its guardians through His subtle workmanship. For those He loves, He brings about whatever self-disclosure He wishes through the heights of His names and attributes, by His hidden gentleness and subtle nearness, specially bestowing His mercy. He manifested existence from beyond the surrounding expanse.

هُوَ مُمَكِّنٌ لِلْعَرْشِ بِبَسْطِهِ فِي تَوْسِعَةِ الْحَوْلِ، وَهُوَ مُحِيطٌ بِالْعَرْشِ وَالْحَوْلِ بِالْقُدْرَةِ وَالطَّوْلِ، لَا يَسَعُهُ غَيْرُ مَشِيئَتِهِ وَلَا يَظْهَرُ إِلَّا فِي أَنْوَارِ صِفَتِهِ، وَلَا يُوجَدُ إِلَّا فِي سَعَةِ الْبَسْطَةِ، فَإِذَا قَبَضَ أَخْفَى مَا أَبْدَى، وَإِذَا بَسَطَ أَعَادَ مَا أَخْفَى، وَكَذَلِكَ جَعْلُهُ فِي كُلِّ رَسْمِ كَوْنٍ، وَفِعْلُهُ بِكُلِّ اسْمِ مَكَانٍ مِمَّا جَلَّ فَظَهَرَ، وَمِمَّا دَقَّ فَاسْتَتَرَ.

huwa mumakkinun li-l-ʿarshi bibasṭihi fī tawsiʿati al-ḥawli, wahuwa muḥīṭun bi-al-ʿarshi wa-al-ḥawli bi-al-qudrati wa-al-ṭawli, lā yasaʿuhu ghayru mashīʾatihi walā yaẓharu ʾillā fī ʾanwāri ṣifatihi, walā yūjadu ʾillā fī saʿati al-basṭati, faʾidhā qabaḍa ʾakhfā mā ʾabdā, waʾidhā basaṭa ʾaʿāda mā ʾakhfā, wa-kadhālika jaʿluhu fī kulli rasmi kawnin, wafiʿluhu bikulli ismi makānin mimmā jalla faẓahara, wamimmā daqqa fa-statara.

He gives the Throne its place by spreading it within the extension of the surrounding expanse, and encompasses Throne and expanse through power and might. Nothing contains Him but His will; He appears only in the lights of His attribute and is found only in the amplitude of expansion. When He contracts, He conceals what He revealed; when He expands, He restores what He concealed. Such is His making in every configuration of existence and His doing in every named place, among things great and manifest or subtle and hidden.

لَا يَسَعُهُ غَيْرُ مَشِيئَتِهِ بِقُرْبِهِ، وَلَا يُعْرَفُ إِلَّا بِشُهُودِهِ، وَلَا يُرَى إِلَّا بِنُورِهِ، هَذَا لِأَوْلِيَائِهِ الْيَوْمَ بِالْغَيْبِ فِي الْقُلُوبِ، وَلَهُمْ ذَلِكَ غَدًا فِي الْمُشَاهَدَةِ بِالْأَبْصَارِ، وَلَا يُعْرَفُ إِلَّا بِمَشِيئَتِهِ إِنْ شَاءَ وَسِعَهُ أَدْنَى شَيْءٍ، وَإِنْ شَاءَ لَمْ يَسَعْهُ كُلُّ شَيْءٍ، إِنْ أَرَادَ عَرَفَهُ كُلُّ شَيْءٍ وَإِنْ لَمْ يُرِدْ لَمْ يَعْرِفْهُ كُلُّ شَيْءٍ، إِنْ أَحَبَّ وُجِدَ عِنْدَ أَيِّ شَيْءٍ، وَإِنْ لَمْ يُحِبَّ لَمْ يُوجَدْ بِشَيْءٍ.

lā yasaʿuhu ghayru mashīʾatihi biqurbihi, walā yuʿrafu ʾillā bishuhūdihi, walā yurā ʾillā binūrihi, hādhā liʾawliyāʾihi al-yawma bi-al-ghaybi fī al-qulūbi, walahum dhālika ghadan fī al-mushāhadati bi-al-ʾabṣāri, walā yuʿrafu ʾillā bimashīʾatihi ʾin shāʾa wasiʿahu ʾadnā shayʾin, waʾin shāʾa lam yasaʿhu kullu shayʾin, ʾin ʾarāda ʿarafahu kullu shayʾin waʾin lam yurid lam yaʿrifhu kullu shayʾin, ʾin ʾaḥabba wujida ʿinda ʾayyi shayʾin, waʾin lam yuḥibba lam yūjad bishayʾin.

In His nearness nothing contains Him but His will. He is known only through His witnessing and seen only by His light. Today this belongs to His friends in the unseen, in their hearts; tomorrow it will be theirs in contemplation with their eyes. He is known only by His will. If He wills, the least thing contains Him; if He wills, everything fails to contain Him. If He wishes, everything knows Him; if not, everything fails to know Him. If He wishes, He is found with any thing; if not, He is found through nothing.

وَقَدْ جَاوَزَ الْحُدُودَ وَالْمِعْيَارَ وَسَبَقَ الْقَبْلَ وَالْأَقْدَارَ، ذُو صِفَاتٍ لَا تُحْصَى وَلَا تَتَنَاهَى، لَيْسَ مَحْبُوسًا فِي صُورَةٍ وَلَا مَوْقُوفًا بِصِفَةٍ، وَلَا مَحْكُومًا عَلَيْهِ بِحُكْمٍ وَلَا مَوْجُودًا بِلَمَمٍ، لَا يَتَجَلَّى بِوَصْفٍ مَرَّتَيْنِ، وَلَا يَظْهَرُ فِي صُورَةٍ لِإِثْنَيْنِ، وَلَا يَرِدُ مِنْهُ بِمَعْنًى وَاحِدٍ كَلِمَتَانِ، بَلْ لِكُلِّ تَجَلٍّ مِنْهُ صُورَةٌ، وَلِكُلِّ عَبْدٍ عِنْدَ ظُهُورِهِ لَهُ صِفَةٌ.

waqad jāwaza al-ḥudūda wa-al-miʿyāra wasabaqa al-qabla wa-al-ʾaqdāra, dhū ṣifātin lā tuḥṣā walā tatanāhā, laysa maḥbūsan fī ṣūratin walā mawqūfan biṣifatin, walā maḥkūman ʿalayhi biḥukmin walā mawjūdan bilamamin, lā yatajallā biwaṣfin marratayni, walā yaẓharu fī ṣūratin liʾithnayni, walā yaridu minhu bimaʿnan wāḥidin kalimatāni, bal likulli tajallin minhu ṣūratun, walikulli ʿabdin ʿinda ẓuhūrihi lahu ṣifatun.

He transcends boundaries and measure and precedes before and decrees. His attributes cannot be numbered or exhausted. He is not confined within a form, halted at an attribute, subjected to a judgment, or found by a passing encounter. He does not disclose Himself twice in one description or appear to two persons in one form; no two words proceed from Him with one meaning. Rather, each self-disclosure has a form, and each servant has an attribute when He appears to him.

وَعَنْ كُلِّ نَظْرَةٍ كَلَامٌ وَبِكُلِّ كَلِمَةٍ إِفْهَامٌ، وَلَا نِهَايَةَ لِتَجَلِّيهِ وَلَا غَايَةَ لِأَوْصَافِهِ وَلَا نَفَادَ لِكَلِمِهِ، وَلَا انْقِطَاعَ لِأَفْهَامِهِ وَلَا تَكْيِيفَ لِمَعَانِيهِ هَذِهِ، إِذْ لَيْسَ فِي التَّوْحِيدِ كَيْفٌ، وَلَا لِلْقُدْرَةِ مَاهِيَّةٌ، وَلَا يُشْبِهُهُ بِهَذِهِ الْأَوْصَافِ خَلْقٌ، إِذْ لَيْسَ لِلذَّاتِ كُفْؤٌ، إِذَا احْتَجَبَ عَنِ الْعِيَانِ وَالْأَبْصَارِ رَفَعَ ذَاتَهُ عَنِ

waʿan kulli naẓratin kalāmun wabikulli kalimatin ʾifhāmun, walā nihāyata litajallīhi walā ghāyata liʾawṣāfihi walā nafāda likalimihi, walā inqiṭāʿa liʾafhāmihi walā takyīfa limaʿānīhi hādhihi, ʾidh laysa fī al-tawḥīdi kayfun, walā li-l-qudrati māhiyyatun, walā yushbihuhu bi-hādhihi al-ʾawṣāfi khalqun, ʾidh laysa li-l-dhāti kufʾun, ʾidhā iḥtajaba ʿani al-ʿiyāni wa-al-ʾabṣāri rafaʿa dhātahu ʿani

From every glance comes speech, and through every word understanding. His self-disclosure has no end, His descriptions no limit, and His words no exhaustion. His understandings never cease; these meanings of His admit no specification of manner. There is no “how” in divine unity and no definable quiddity to power. No creature resembles Him in these descriptions, for the divine essence has no equal. When He veils Himself from direct sight and eyes, He raises His essence beyond

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٤٢

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 142

Volume Two, page 142

الْقُلُوبِ وَالْأَفْكَارِ، فَلَمْ يُخَيِّلْهُ عَقْلٌ وَلَمْ يُصَوِّرْهُ فِكْرٌ، لِئَلَّا يَمْلِكَهُ الْوَهْمُ، فَيَكُونَ مَرْبُوبًا وَهُوَ رَبٌّ، وَلَا يُنْظَرُ إِلَيْهِ بِفِكْرٍ فَيَكُونَ مَقْهُورًا وَهُوَ قَاهِرٌ، لَا يُعْقَلُ بِعَقْلٍ لِأَنَّهُ عَاقِلُ الْعَقْلِ، وَلَا يُدْرَكُ بِحِيطَةٍ وَهُوَ مُحِيطٌ بِكُلِّ حِيطَةٍ، حَتَّى يَتَجَلَّى آخِرًا بِإِحْسَانِهِ، كَمَا تَجَلَّى أَوَّلًا بِحَنَانِهِ، فَيُشْهَدُ بِحُضُورِهِ وَيُنْظَرُ بِنُورِهِ وَلَيْسَ هَذَا لِسِوَاهُ وَلَا يُعْرَفُ بِهَذَا إِلَّا إِيَّاهُ.

al-qulūbi wa-al-ʾafkāri, falam yukhayyilhu ʿaqlun walam yuṣawwirhu fikrun, liʾallā yamlikahu al-wahmu, fayakūna marbūban wahuwa rabbun, walā yunẓaru ʾilayhi bifikrin fayakūna maqhūran wahuwa qāhirun, lā yuʿqalu biʿaqlin liʾannahu ʿāqilu al-ʿaqli, walā yudraku biḥīṭatin wahuwa muḥīṭun bikulli ḥīṭatin, ḥattā yatajallā ʾākhiran biʾiḥsānihi, kamā tajallā ʾawwalan biḥanānihi, fayushhadu biḥuḍūrihi wayunẓaru binūrihi walaysa hādhā lisiwāhu walā yuʿrafu bi-hādhā ʾillā ʾiyyāhu.

hearts and thoughts. No intellect imagines Him and no thought pictures Him, lest imagination possess Him and He become subject to lordship, though He is Lord. He is not gazed upon through thought, which would make Him subdued, though He subdues. No intellect comprehends Him, because He comprehends intellect. No encompassing apprehends Him, while He encompasses every encompassing. Eventually He discloses Himself through His beneficence, as He first disclosed Himself through His tenderness: He is witnessed through His presence and seen through His light. This belongs to none other, and none but Him is known thus.

وَهَذَا مِنْهُ لِأَوْلِيَائِهِ الْيَوْمَ بِأَنْوَارِ الْيَقِينِ فِي الْقُلُوبِ، وَهُوَ لَهُمْ مِنْهُ غَدًا بِمُعَايَنَةِ الْأَبْصَارِ فِي دَارِ الْحَبِيبِ أَبَدَ الْأَبَدِ فِي الْجِنَانِ، يَتَجَلَّى لَهُمْ بِعَظَائِمِ الْقُدْرَةِ وَلَطَائِفِ الْحَنَانِ، وَيُكَلِّمُهُمْ بِمَا لَا غَايَةَ لَهُ مِنْ لَذِيذِ الْمَعَانِي، يَتَجَلَّى بِصِفَاتِ الْجَلَالِ وَيَظْهَرُ بِمَعَانِي الْحُسْنِ وَالْجَمَالِ، وَيَبْدُو بِلِبْسِ الْبَهَاءِ وَالْكَمَالِ.

wa-hādhā minhu liʾawliyāʾihi al-yawma biʾanwāri al-yaqīni fī al-qulūbi, wahuwa lahum minhu ghadan bimuʿāyanati al-ʾabṣāri fī dāri al-ḥabībi ʾabada al-ʾabadi fī al-jināni, yatajallā lahum biʿaẓāʾimi al-qudrati walaṭāʾifi al-ḥanāni, wayukallimuhum bimā lā ghāyata lahu min ladhīdhi al-maʿānī, yatajallā biṣifāti al-jalāli wayaẓharu bimaʿānī al-ḥusni wa-al-jamāli, wayabdū bilibsi al-bahāʾi wa-al-kamāli.

Today He gives this to His friends through the lights of certainty in their hearts; tomorrow He will give it through direct sight with their eyes in the Beloved’s abode, for ever and ever in the gardens. He discloses Himself to them through the sublimities of power and subtleties of tenderness, speaking to them inexhaustibly delightful meanings. He discloses Himself through attributes of majesty, appears through meanings of loveliness and beauty, and emerges clothed in splendor and perfection.

يَجْمَعُ لَهُمْ بِأَوَّلِ مَعْنًى مِنْ مَعَانِيهِ بِمَا يُوجِدُهُمْ بِهِ مِنَ النَّعِيمِ وَالسُّرُورِ وَالْفَضْلِ وَالْحُبُورِ، بِكُلِّ نَظْرَةٍ أَوْ كَلِمَةٍ أَوْ قُرْبٍ أَوْ لُطْفٍ أَوْ عَطْفٍ أَوْ حَنَانٍ أَوْ إِحْسَانٍ جَمِيعَ مَا فَرَّقَهُ مِنْ نَعِيمِ الْجِنَانِ، وَيَنْظُرُ إِذَا أَحَبَّ إِلَى مَا يُحِبُّ اخْتِيَارًا لَا تَهْجُمُ الْأَشْيَاءُ عَلَيْهِ فِي نَظَرِهِ إِجْبَارًا، وَيُعْرِضُ عَمَّا شَاءَ اخْتِيَارًا لَا تَعْتَرِضُ الْمَنْظُورَاتُ فِي نَظَرِهِ اضْطِرَارًا.

yajmaʿu lahum biʾawwali maʿnan min maʿānīhi bimā yūjiduhum bihi mina al-naʿīmi wa-al-surūri wa-al-faḍli wa-al-ḥubūri, bikulli naẓratin ʾaw kalimatin ʾaw qurbin ʾaw luṭfin ʾaw ʿaṭfin ʾaw ḥanānin ʾaw ʾiḥsānin jamīʿa mā farraqahu min naʿīmi al-jināni, wayanẓuru ʾidhā ʾaḥabba ʾilā mā yuḥibbu ikhtiyāran lā tahjumu al-ʾashyāʾu ʿalayhi fī naẓarihi ʾijbāran, wayuʿriḍu ʿammā shāʾa ikhtiyāran lā taʿtariḍu al-manẓūrātu fī naẓarihi iḍṭirāran.

Through the first of His meanings, in the bliss, joy, bounty, and delight He grants them through every glance, word, nearness, gentleness, affection, tenderness, or beneficence, He gathers for them all the bliss He has distributed throughout the gardens. When He wishes, He looks at what He wishes by choice: things do not force themselves upon His gaze. He turns away from whatever He wills by choice: visible things do not intrude upon His gaze by compulsion.

يُعْرِضُ فِي نَظَرِهِ لِكِبْرِيَاءِ عِزِّهِ، وَيَنْظُرُ فِي إِعْرَاضِهِ بِلَطَائِفِ عَطْفِهِ، الْمُلْكُ فِي قَبْضَتِهِ وَالْخَزَائِنُ فِي كَلِمَتِهِ وَالْكَوْنُ فِي مَشِيئَتِهِ وَالْمَلَكُوتُ كُلُّهُ بِيَدِهِ، وَالْجَبَرُوتُ وَالْعَظَمَةُ سُبُحَاتُ صِفَاتِهِ وُجُودُ الْأَشْيَاءِ لَا يَضْطَرُّهُ إِلَى النَّظَرِ إِلَيْهَا إِنْ أَرَادَ الْإِعْرَاضَ عَنْهَا لِأَنَّهُ مُقْتَدِرٌ قَهَّارٌ وَعَدَمُهَا لَا يَضْطَرُّهُ إِلَى أَنْ يَرَاهَا لِسَبْقِ عِلْمِهِ بِهَا، لِأَنَّهَا مَعْلُومُ عِلْمِهِ ذِي الْأَخْبَارِ.

yuʿriḍu fī naẓarihi likibriyāʾi ʿizzihi, wayanẓuru fī ʾiʿrāḍihi bilaṭāʾifi ʿaṭfihi, al-mulku fī qabḍatihi wa-al-khazāʾinu fī kalimatihi wa-al-kawnu fī mashīʾatihi wa-al-malakūtu kulluhu biyadihi, wa-al-jabarūtu wa-al-ʿaẓamatu subuḥātu ṣifātihi wujūdu al-ʾashyāʾi lā yaḍṭarruhu ʾilā al-naẓari ʾilayhā ʾin ʾarāda al-ʾiʿrāḍa ʿanhā liʾannahu muqtadirun qahhārun waʿadamuhā lā yaḍṭarruhu ʾilā ʾan yarāhā lisabqi ʿilmihi bihā, liʾannahā maʿlūmu ʿilmihi dhī al-ʾakhbāri.

While looking, He turns away through the grandeur of His might; while turning away, He looks through the subtleties of His affection. Kingship is in His grasp, the treasuries in His word, existence in His will, and all sovereignty in His hand. Irresistible power and greatness are the radiances of His attributes. Things’ existence does not compel Him to look at them if He wishes to turn away, for He is all-powerful and all-subduing. Nor does their nonexistence compel Him to see them, since His knowledge precedes them: they are the objects of His knowledge, possessed of tidings.

وَلِأَنَّهُ هُوَ الْجَبَّارُ إِذِ الْمَوْجُودُ وَالْمَعْدُومُ يَضْطَرُّ غَيْرَهُ إِلَى النَّظَرِ لِضَعْفِهِ عَنِ الِامْتِنَاعِ، وَالْعَدَمُ يَضْطَرُّ سِوَاهُ إِلَى الْفَقْدِ لِعَجْزِهِ عَنِ الِاخْتِرَاعِ، وَهُوَ تَعَالَى مُبَايِنٌ لِسِوَاهُ بِعِزِّهِ، غَيْرُ مُمَاثِلٍ لِغَيْرِهِ بِقَهْرِهِ، وَلِأَنَّ الْمَعْدُومَ كَالْمَحْجُوبِ وَهُوَ تَعَالَى يَرَى الْمَحْجُوبَ، مِنَ الذَّرَّةِ مِنْ تَحْتِ الثَّرَى مِنْ وَرَاءِ السَّمٰوَاتِ وَالْأَرَضِينَ.

waliʾannahu huwa al-jabbāru ʾidhi al-mawjūdu wa-al-maʿdūmu yaḍṭarru ghayrahu ʾilā al-naẓari liḍaʿfihi ʿani al-imtināʿi, wa-al-ʿadamu yaḍṭarru siwāhu ʾilā al-faqdi liʿajzihi ʿani al-ikhtirāʿi, wahuwa taʿālā mubāyinun lisiwāhu biʿizzihi, ghayru mumāthilin lighayrihi biqahrihi, waliʾanna al-maʿdūma ka-al-maḥjūbi wahuwa taʿālā yarā al-maḥjūba, mina al-dharrati min taḥti al-tharā min warāʾi al-samāwāti wa-al-ʾaraḍīna.

And because He is the Compeller: what exists and what does not compel another to look, because that other is too weak to resist; nonexistence compels another to lack, because that other cannot originate. Through His might the Exalted is distinct from everything else, and through His mastery unlike any other. The nonexistent is like the veiled, and the Exalted sees what is veiled, down to the tiny particle beneath the earth, beyond the heavens and earths.

وَلَا يَحْجُبْنَ نَفَاذَ نَظَرِهِ إِلَيْهَا وَلَا يَمْنَعْنَ قُرْبَهُ مِنْهَا، وَلَا يَحْجُزْنَ قُدْرَتَهُ عَلَيْهَا وَلَا يُجَاوِزُ دُونَ حِيطَتِهِ بِهَا، إِذِ الْحُجُبُ وَاقِعَةٌ عَلَى الْخَلْقِ غَيْرُ مُتَّصِلَةٍ بِالْخَالِقِ، وَبَوَاطِنُ الْأَشْيَاءِ وَغَوَامِضُهَا مُنْكَشِفَةٌ لِلْخَالِقِ وَهُوَ أَيْضًا يَشْهَدُ الْمَآلَ وَالْأَوَاخِرَ إِلَى نِهَايَةِ نِهَايَاتِهَا فِي أَبَدِ أَبَدِهَا، كَمَا يَشْهَدُ ذَلِكَ الْيَوْمَ أَعْنِي مِنْ غَدٍ وَبَعْدِ غَدٍ، وَمَا وَرَاءَهُ إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ وَمَا فِيهَا.

walā yaḥjubna nafādha naẓarihi ʾilayhā walā yamnaʿna qurbahu minhā, walā yaḥjuzna qudratahu ʿalayhā walā yujāwizu dūna ḥīṭatihi bihā, ʾidhi al-ḥujubu wāqiʿatun ʿalā al-khalqi ghayru muttaṣilatin bi-al-khāliqi, wabawāṭinu al-ʾashyāʾi waghawāmiḍuhā munkashifatun li-l-khāliqi wahuwa ʾayḍan yashhadu al-maʾāla wa-al-ʾawākhira ʾilā nihāyati nihāyātihā fī ʾabadi ʾabadihā, kamā yashhadu dhālika al-yawma ʾaʿnī min ghadin wabaʿdi ghadin, wamā warāʾahu ʾilā yawmi al-qiyāmati wamā fīhā.

They do not obstruct His gaze from reaching it, prevent His nearness to it, or bar His power over it; nor does anything pass beyond His encompassing it. Veils fall upon creation and are not attached to the Creator. Things’ interiors and mysteries are disclosed to the Creator. He also witnesses their eventual outcome and final states to the utmost of their ends throughout their everlasting duration, just as He witnesses that today: I mean tomorrow, the day after, and what lies beyond, until the Day of Resurrection and all it contains.

وَهَذَا كُلُّهُ عَدَمٌ لَمْ يَخْلُقْهُ بَعْدُ، لِأَنَّ عِلْمَهُ بِذَلِكَ شَهَادَةٌ لَهُ لِأَنَّهُ لَيْسَ بَيْنَهُ وَبَيْنَ عِلْمِهِ حِجَابٌ، فَهُوَ يَشْهَدُ الْكَوْنَ مِنْ أَوَّلِهِ إِلَى آخِرِهِ مِنْ حَيْثُ عِلْمُهُ بِعِلْمٍ هُوَ وَصْفُهُ، وَمُشَاهَدَةٍ هِيَ نَعْتُهُ، وَلِأَنَّ كَلَامَهُ بِذَلِكَ يُخْبِرُ بِأَنَّهُ قَدْ كَانَ دَلِيلًا عَلَى شُهُودِهِ الْمَآبَ، لِأَنَّهُ شَهِدَ مَا عَلِمَ كَمَا عَلِمَ مَا بِهِ تَكَلَّمَ، فَلَمْ يَتَفَاوَتْ كَلَامُهُ وَعِلْمُهُ وَلَمْ يَخْتَلِفْ عِلْمُهُ وَشَهَادَتُهُ.

wa-hādhā kulluhu ʿadamun lam yakhluqhu baʿdu, liʾanna ʿilmahu bi-dhālika shahādatun lahu liʾannahu laysa baynahu wabayna ʿilmihi ḥijābun, fahuwa yashhadu al-kawna min ʾawwalihi ʾilā ʾākhirihi min ḥaythu ʿilmuhu biʿilmin huwa waṣfuhu, wamushāhadatin hiya naʿtuhu, waliʾanna kalāmahu bi-dhālika yukhbiru biʾannahu qad kāna dalīlan ʿalā shuhūdihi al-maʾāba, liʾannahu shahida mā ʿalima kamā ʿalima mā bihi takallama, falam yatafāwat kalāmuhu waʿilmuhu walam yakhtalif ʿilmuhu washahādatuhu.

All this is nonexistent: He has not yet created it. His knowledge of it is witnessing it, for no veil lies between Him and His knowledge. He witnesses existence from beginning to end through His knowledge, a knowledge that is His attribute and a contemplation that describes Him. His speech about it reports that it has already been, as evidence that He witnesses the final return. He witnesses what He knows, just as He knows what He has spoken. His speech and knowledge do not diverge; His knowledge and witnessing do not differ.

وَمَعَ ذَلِكَ كُلِّهِ فَلَا مَوْجُودَ فِي الْأَوَّلِيَّةِ وَلَا الْمُشَاهَدَةِ سِوَاهُ، وَلَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ فِي الْقِدَمِ وَلَا يَقْدُمُ شَاهِدٌ إِلَّا إِيَّاهُ، قُوَّتُهُ كُنْهُ قُدْرَتِهِ وَقُدْرَتُهُ دَوَامُ بَقَائِهِ، وَنَظَرُهُ سَعَةُ عِلْمِهِ وَعِلْمُهُ مَدَى نَظَرِهِ، يُدْرِكُ الْأَشْيَاءَ كُلَّهَا عَلَى اخْتِلَافِ أَوْصَافِهَا بِصِفَةٍ مِنْ صِفَاتِهِ، ثُمَّ يُدْرِكُ بِجَمِيعِ أَوْصَافِهِ مَا أَدْرَكَهُ بِهَذِهِ الصِّفَةِ، فَصَحَّ بِذَلِكَ أَنَّهُ نَظَرَ وَعَلِمَ وَتَكَلَّمَ،

wamaʿa dhālika kullihi falā mawjūda fī al-ʾawwaliyyati walā al-mushāhadati siwāhu, walā sharīka lahu fī al-qidami walā yaqdumu shāhidun ʾillā ʾiyyāhu, quwwatuhu kunhu qudratihi waqudratuhu dawāmu baqāʾihi, wanaẓaruhu saʿatu ʿilmihi waʿilmuhu madā naẓarihi, yudriku al-ʾashyāʾa kullahā ʿalā ikhtilāfi ʾawṣāfihā biṣifatin min ṣifātihi, thumma yudriku bijamīʿi ʾawṣāfihi mā ʾadrakahu bi-hādhihi al-ṣifati, faṣaḥḥa bi-dhālika ʾannahu naẓara waʿalima watakallama,

Despite all this, none exists in primordial firstness or contemplation other than Him. He has no partner in pre-eternity, and no witness precedes except Him. His strength is the very depth of His power, and His power the perpetuity of His subsistence. His gaze is the breadth of His knowledge, and His knowledge the reach of His gaze. Through one attribute He apprehends all things in their diverse descriptions, then through all His attributes apprehends what He apprehended through that one. Thus it is true that He looked, knew, and spoke,

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٤٣

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 143

Volume Two, page 143

لَا يَدْخُلُ التَّرْتِيبُ فِي صِفَاتِهِ أَعْنِي بِقَبْلٍ وَبَعْدٍ، وَلَا يُوصَفُ بِوَقْتٍ وَحَدٍّ وَلَا يُشَبَّهُ بِالتَّعْقِيبِ بِقُوَّتِهِ وَأَحْكَامِهِ أَعْنِي بِثُمَّ وَلَمْ، وَإِذَا وَحَتَّى، وَلَزِمَ عَلَى ذَلِكَ أَنَّهُ يَعْلَمُ بِنَظَرِهِ وَيَنْظُرُ بِعِلْمِهِ، فَصَارَتِ الْأَوَائِلُ وَالْأَوَاخِرُ لَدَيْهِ كَشَيْءٍ وَاحِدٍ، وَكَانَتْ صِفَاتُهُ كُلُّهَا آحَادًا كَامِلَاتٍ تَامَّاتٍ، غَيْرَ مَحْدُودَةٍ لِلْمَحْدُودَاتِ وَلَا مُؤَقَّتَةٍ مُرَتَّبَةٍ لِلْمُرَتَّبَاتِ الْمُؤَقَّتَاتِ.

lā yadkhulu al-tartību fī ṣifātihi ʾaʿnī biqablin wabaʿdin, walā yūṣafu biwaqtin waḥaddin walā yushabbahu bi-al-taʿqībi biquwwatihi waʾaḥkāmihi ʾaʿnī bithumma walam, waʾidhā waḥattā, walazima ʿalā dhālika ʾannahu yaʿlamu binaẓarihi wayanẓuru biʿilmihi, faṣārati al-ʾawāʾilu wa-al-ʾawākhiru ladayhi kashayʾin wāḥidin, wakānat ṣifātuhu kulluhā ʾāḥādan kāmilātin tāmmātin, ghayra maḥdūdatin li-l-maḥdūdāti walā muʾaqqatatin murattabatin li-l-murattabāti al-muʾaqqatāti.

without sequence entering His attributes, by which I mean before and after. He is not described by time or limit, nor likened to succession in His strength and judgments, by which I mean “then,” “not yet,” “when,” and “until.” It follows that He knows through His gaze and looks through His knowledge. Beginnings and endings become like one thing before Him. All His attributes are complete and perfect unities, neither bounded according to bounded things nor timed and ordered according to things timed and ordered.

إِذْ لَمْ يَكُنْ لَهَا مُحْدَثَاتٌ لِأَنَّهَا قَدِيمَةٌ بِقِدَمِهِ وَكَائِنَةٌ مَوْجُودَةٌ بِكَوْنِهِ وَوُجُودِهِ، إِذِ التَّرْتِيبُ فِي النُّعُوتِ مِنْ وَصْفِ الْخَلْقِ وَالْأَدَوَاتِ لِكَوْنِهَا مُحْدَثَةً مُظْهَرَاتٍ بِحُدُودٍ وَتَرْتِيبٍ وَأَوْقَاتٍ، وَاللَّهُ تَعَالَى لَيْسَ كَمِثْلِهِ شَيْءٌ فِي كُلِّ الصِّفَاتِ، فَصِفَاتُهُ قَدِيمَةٌ بِقِدَمِهِ وَكَائِنَةٌ مَوْجُودَةٌ بِكَائِنَتِهِ وَوُجُودِهِ، وَالْأَفْعَالُ مُحْدَثَةٌ مُظْهَرَاتٌ بِحُدُودٍ وَتَرْتِيبٍ، وَأَوْقَاتٍ بِتَرْتِيبٍ.

ʾidh lam yakun lahā muḥdathātun liʾannahā qadīmatun biqidamihi wakāʾinatun mawjūdatun bikawnihi wawujūdihi, ʾidhi al-tartību fī al-nuʿūti min waṣfi al-khalqi wa-al-ʾadawāti likawnihā muḥdathatan muẓharātin biḥudūdin watartībin waʾawqātin, wa-Allāhu taʿālā laysa kamithlihi shayʾun fī kulli al-ṣifāti, faṣifātuhu qadīmatun biqidamihi wakāʾinatun mawjūdatun bikāʾinatihi wawujūdihi, wa-al-ʾafʿālu muḥdathatun muẓharātun biḥudūdin watartībin, waʾawqātin bitartībin.

They have no originated occurrences, because they are pre-eternal through His pre-eternity and existent through His being and existence. Sequence among descriptions belongs to creatures and instruments, which are originated and manifested with limits, order, and times. Nothing is like God the Exalted in any attribute. His attributes are pre-eternal through His pre-eternity and existent through His existent being and existence. Actions are originated and manifested with limits and order, and times with order.

فَلَا مَوْجُودَ فِي الْأَوَّلِيَّةِ وَلَا الْمُشَاهَدَةِ سِوَاهُ وَلَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ فِي الْقِدَمِ، وَلَا قَيُّومَ لَهُ فِي الْأَبَدِ وَالْأَزَلِ سِوَاهُ قَبْلَ وُجُودِ الْوَقْتِ، وَالْحَدَثَانِ لَيْسَتْ صِفَاتُهُ ذَوَاتِ جِهَاتٍ فَيَتَوَجَّهَ إِلَى جِهَتِهِ فَيُدْرَكَ بِصِفَةٍ دُونَ صِفَةٍ، وَلَا ذَاتُهُ ذُو ذَاتٍ فَيُقْبِلَ عَلَى مَكَانٍ دُونَ مَكَانٍ فَيَضْطَرَّهُ التَّرْتِيبُ لِلْمَخْلُوقَاتِ، وَلَا يُدَبِّرُ الْأُمُورَ بِأَفْكَارٍ فَيَشْغَلَهُ شَأْنٌ عَنْ شَأْنٍ.

falā mawjūda fī al-ʾawwaliyyati walā al-mushāhadati siwāhu walā sharīka lahu fī al-qidami, walā qayyūma lahu fī al-ʾabadi wa-al-ʾazali siwāhu qabla wujūdi al-waqti, wa-al-ḥadathāni laysat ṣifātuhu dhawāti jihātin fayatawajjaha ʾilā jihatihi fayudraka biṣifatin dūna ṣifatin, walā dhātuhu dhū dhātin fayuqbila ʿalā makānin dūna makānin fayaḍṭarrahu al-tartību li-l-makhlūqāti, walā yudabbiru al-ʾumūra biʾafkārin fayashghalahu shaʾnun ʿan shaʾnin.

None exists in primordial firstness or contemplation other than Him; He has no partner in pre-eternity and no self-subsisting sustainer other than Himself in eternity past or future, before time and temporal occurrences existed. His attributes have no directions such that one might turn toward His direction and apprehend Him through one attribute rather than another. Nor is His essence a possessor of an essence that turns toward one place rather than another, constrained by the ordering of creatures. He does not govern affairs through thoughts, so that one concern would distract Him from another.

وَلَا يَدْخُلُ عَلَيْهِ الِاعْتِرَاضُ فَيَتَغَيَّرَ عَمَّا كَانَ، وَلَا يَخْلُقُ بِآلَةٍ فَيَسْتَعِينَ بِسِوَاهُ، وَلَا يُعْجِزُهُ قُدْرَةٌ فَيَحْتَاجَ إِلَى مُبَاشَرَةِ يَدَيْهِ، يَخْلُقُ بِيَدِهِ إِذَا شَاءَ وَعَنْ كَلِمَتِهِ إِنْ شَاءَ، وَبِإِرَادَتِهِ مَتَى شَاءَ وَبِمَعَانِي صِفَاتِهِ كَيْفَ شَاءَ، لَا يَضْطَرُّهُ التَّكْوِينُ إِلَى الْكَلَامِ وَكَلَامُهُ إِلَيْهِ كَيْفَ شَاءَ كَانَ خَزَائِنُهُ فِي كَلِمَتِهِ وَقُدْرَتُهُ فِي مَشِيئَتِهِ.

walā yadkhulu ʿalayhi al-iʿtirāḍu fayataghayyara ʿammā kāna, walā yakhluqu biʾālatin fayastaʿīna bisiwāhu, walā yuʿjizuhu qudratun fayaḥtāja ʾilā mubāsharati yadayhi, yakhluqu biyadihi ʾidhā shāʾa waʿan kalimatihi ʾin shāʾa, wabiʾirādatihi matā shāʾa wabimaʿānī ṣifātihi kayfa shāʾa, lā yaḍṭarruhu al-takwīnu ʾilā al-kalāmi wakalāmuhu ʾilayhi kayfa shāʾa kāna khazāʾinuhu fī kalimatihi waqudratuhu fī mashīʾatihi.

No intervening obstruction comes upon Him to change what He was. He does not create through an instrument and thus seek another’s help. No power defeats Him so that He must employ His hands directly. He creates with His hand if He wills, from His word if He wills, through His will whenever He wills, and through the meanings of His attributes however He wills. Bringing into being does not compel Him to speak; His speaking rests with Him however He wills it to be. His treasuries are in His word and His power in His will.

إِذَا تَكَلَّمَ أَظْهَرَ وَإِنْ شَاءَ قَدَرَ، وَمَتَى أَحَبَّ ظَهَرَ وَبِأَيِّ قُدْرَةٍ شَاءَ اسْتَتَرَ، هُوَ عَزِيزٌ فِي قُرْبِهِ وَقَرِيبٌ فِي عُلُوِّهِ حَجَبَ الذَّاتَ بِالصِّفَاتِ، وَحَجَبَ الصِّفَاتِ بِالْفِعَالِ، كَشَفَ الْعِلْمَ بِالْإِرَادَةِ وَأَظْهَرَ الْإِرَادَةَ بِالْحَرَكَاتِ، وَأَخْفَى الصُّنْعَ بِالصَّنْعَةِ وَأَظْهَرَ الصَّنْعَةَ بِالْأَدَوَاتِ، هُوَ بَاطِنٌ فِي غَيْبِهِ وَظَاهِرٌ بِحُكْمِهِ وَقُدْرَتِهِ، غَيْبٌ فِي حِكْمَتِهِ، وَحِكْمَتُهُ شَهَادَةٌ ظَاهِرَةٌ بِمَحْكُومَاتِهِ، وَهِيَ مَجَارِي قُدْرَتِهِ.

ʾidhā takallama ʾaẓhara waʾin shāʾa qadara, wamatā ʾaḥabba ẓahara wabiʾayyi qudratin shāʾa istatara, huwa ʿazīzun fī qurbihi waqarībun fī ʿuluwwihi ḥajaba al-dhāta bi-al-ṣifāti, waḥajaba al-ṣifāti bi-al-fiʿāli, kashafa al-ʿilma bi-al-ʾirādati waʾaẓhara al-ʾirādata bi-al-ḥarakāti, waʾakhfā al-ṣunʿa bi-al-ṣanʿati waʾaẓhara al-ṣanʿata bi-al-ʾadawāti, huwa bāṭinun fī ghaybihi waẓāhirun biḥukmihi waqudratihi, ghaybun fī ḥikmatihi, waḥikmatuhu shahādatun ẓāhiratun bimaḥkūmātihi, wahiya majārī qudratihi.

When He speaks, He manifests; if He wills, He determines. Whenever He wishes, He appears, and by whatever power He wills, He is concealed. He is mighty in His nearness and near in His exaltation. He veiled the essence through attributes and attributes through deeds, disclosed knowledge through will and manifested will through movements, concealed making through the made and manifested the made through instruments. He is hidden in His unseen reality and manifest through His judgment and power, unseen in His wisdom; His wisdom is a witnessing manifest through what He judges, the courses of His power.

وَصُنْعٌ سِرٌّ فِي صَنْعَتِهِ وَهِيَ عَلَانِيَةُ مَشِيئَتِهِ، لَيْسَ كَمِثْلِهِ شَيْءٌ فِي كُلِّ صِفَةٍ وَلَا كَقَوْلِهِ فِي مَاهِيَّةٍ. وَقَدْ رَوَيْنَا عَنْ أَبِي بَكْرٍ الصِّدِّيقِ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى عَنْهُ، كَلِمَةً مُجْمَلَةً بَالِغَةً فِي وَصْفِ التَّوْحِيدِ أَنَّهُ قَالَ فِي خُطْبَتِهِ: الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ الَّذِي لَمْ يَجْعَلِ السَّبِيلَ إِلَى مَعْرِفَتِهِ إِلَّا بِالْعَجْزِ عَنْ دَرَكِ مَعْرِفَتِهِ.

waṣunʿun sirrun fī ṣanʿatihi wahiya ʿalāniyatu mashīʾatihi, laysa kamithlihi shayʾun fī kulli ṣifatin walā kaqawlihi fī māhiyyatin. waqad rawaynā ʿan ʾabī bakrin al-ṣiddīqi raḍiya Allāhu taʿālā ʿanhu, kalimatan mujmalatan bālighatan fī waṣfi al-tawḥīdi ʾannahu qāla fī khuṭbatihi: al-ḥamdu li-llāhi alladhī lam yajʿali al-sabīla ʾilā maʿrifatihi ʾillā bi-al-ʿajzi ʿan daraki maʿrifatihi.

And a making is secret within His handiwork, which is the outward expression of His will. Nothing resembles Him in any attribute, nor His speech in any quiddity. We have transmitted from Abū Bakr al-Ṣiddīq, may God the Exalted be pleased with him, a concise, penetrating statement describing divine unity. In his sermon he said: “Praise belongs to God, who has made the only path to knowing Him the inability to attain knowledge of Him.”

وَرَوَيْنَا عَنْ أَحْمَدَ بْنِ أَبِي الْحَوَارِيِّ عَنْ بَعْضِ عُلَمَاءِ أَهْلِ الْمَعْرِفَهِ مِنْ أَهْلِ الشَّامِ أَنَّهُ قَالَ: رَأَى عَزَّ وَجَلَّ خَلْقَهُ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَخْلُقَهُمْ كَمَا رَآهُمْ بَعْدَ مَا خَلَقَهُمْ، وَرُوِيَ عَنْ أَبِي سُلَيْمَانَ الدَّارَانِيِّ أَنْ قَالَ: أَدْخَلَهُمُ الْجِنَانَ قَبْلَ أَنْ يُطِيعُوهُ، وَأَدْخَلَهُمُ النَّارَ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَعْصُوهُ.

warawaynā ʿan ʾaḥmada bni ʾabī al-ḥawāriyyi ʿan baʿḍi ʿulamāʾi ʾahli al-maʿrifahi min ʾahli al-shāmi ʾannahu qāla: raʾā ʿazza wajalla khalqahu qabla ʾan yakhluqahum kamā raʾāhum baʿda mā khalaqahum, waruwiya ʿan ʾabī sulaymāna al-dārāniyyi ʾan qāla: ʾadkhalahumu al-jināna qabla ʾan yuṭīʿūhu, waʾadkhalahumu al-nāra qabla ʾan yaʿṣūhu.

We transmitted from Aḥmad ibn Abī al-Ḥawārī, from one of the learned people of spiritual knowledge in Syria, that he said: “He, mighty and majestic is He, saw His creatures before creating them just as He saw them after creating them.” It was related from Abū Sulaymān al-Dārānī that he said: “He admitted them to the gardens before they obeyed Him, and admitted them to the Fire before they disobeyed Him.”

وَقَالَ أَيْضًا: إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ أَعَزُّ مِنْ أَنْ يُغْضِبَهُ أَفْعَالُ خَلْقِهِ، لَكِنَّهُ نَظَرَ إِلَى قَوْمٍ بِعَيْنِ الْغَضَبِ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَخْلُقَهُمْ، فَلَمَّا أَظْهَرَهُمُ اسْتَعْمَلَهُمْ بِأَعْمَالِ أَهْلِ الْغَضَبِ فَأَسْكَنَهُمْ دَارَ الْغَضَبِ؛ وَهُوَ أَكْبَرُ مِنْ أَنْ يُرْضِيَهُ أَفْعَالُ خَلْقِهِ، وَلَكِنَّهُ نَظَرَ إِلَى قَوْمٍ بِعَيْنِ الرِّضَا قَبْلَ أَنْ

waqāla ʾayḍan: ʾinna Allāha ʿazza wajalla ʾaʿazzu min ʾan yughḍibahu ʾafʿālu khalqihi, lākinnahu naẓara ʾilā qawmin biʿayni al-ghaḍabi qabla ʾan yakhluqahum, falammā ʾaẓharahumu istaʿmalahum biʾaʿmāli ʾahli al-ghaḍabi faʾaskanahum dāra al-ghaḍabi; wahuwa ʾakbaru min ʾan yurḍiyahu ʾafʿālu khalqihi, wa-lākinnahu naẓara ʾilā qawmin biʿayni al-riḍā qabla ʾan

He also said: “God, mighty and majestic is He, is too mighty for His creatures’ deeds to anger Him. Yet He looked at some people with the eye of anger before creating them. When He brought them forth, He employed them in the deeds of those subject to anger and lodged them in the abode of anger. He is too great for His creatures’ deeds to please Him. Yet He looked at some people with the eye of pleasure before

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٤٤

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 144

Volume Two, page 144

يَخْلُقَهُمْ، فَلَمَّا أَظْهَرَهُمُ اسْتَعْمَلَهُمْ بِأَعْمَالِ أَهْلِ الرِّضَا فَأَسْكَنَهُمْ دَارَ الرِّضَا. وَقَدْ رَوَيْنَا عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ فِي قَوْلِهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ: (هَلْ أَتَى عَلَى الْإِنْسَانِ حِينٌ مِنَ الدَّهْرِ لَمْ يَكُنْ شَىْئًا مَذْكُورًا) الدَّهْرُ: 1؛ يَعْنِي كَانَ فِي عِلْمِ اللَّهِ أَنَّهُ يُكَوِّنُهُ وَكَأَنَّهُ عَلَّقَ قَوْلَهُ، لَمْ يَكُنْ بِقَوْلِهِ مَذْكُورًا.

yakhluqahum, falammā ʾaẓharahumu istaʿmalahum biʾaʿmāli ʾahli al-riḍā faʾaskanahum dāra al-riḍā. waqad rawaynā ʿani ibni ʿabbāsin fī qawlihi ʿazza wajalla: (hal ʾatā ʿalā al-ʾinsāni ḥīnun mina al-dahri lam yakun shayʾan madhkūran) al-dahru: 1; yaʿnī kāna fī ʿilmi Allāhi ʾannahu yukawwinuhu wakaʾannahu ʿallaqa qawlahu, lam yakun biqawlihi madhkūran.

creating them. When He brought them forth, He employed them in the deeds of those receiving His pleasure and lodged them in the abode of pleasure.” We transmitted from Ibn ʿAbbās concerning His saying, mighty and majestic is He, “Has there come upon the human being a period of time when he was not a thing mentioned?” (al-Dahr 76:1): that is, it was in God’s knowledge that He would bring him into being. It is as though he connected the words “was not” to the word “mentioned.”

وَاللَّهُ تَعَالَى يُخْبِرُ بِمَا يَكُونُ فِي الدُّنْيَا وَبِمَا يَكُونُ فِي الْقِيَامَةِ وَبِمَا بَعْدَهَا، بِلَفْظِ أَنَّهُ قَدْ كَانَ لِاسْتِوَاءِ ذَلِكَ فِي عِلْمِهِ آخِرًا كَأَوَّلٍ، إِذْ لَا تَرْتِيبَ فِي الْعِلْمِ وَلَا حَدَّ وَلَا مَسَافَةَ وَلَا بُعْدَ فِي الْقُدْرَةِ، وَقَدْ قَالَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى: (وَمَنْ أَصْدَقُ مِنَ اللَّهِ قِيلًا) النِّسَاءُ: 122، أَعِنْدَهُ عِلْمُ الْغَيْبِ، فَهُوَ يَرَى فَنَقَّصَهُ بِذَلِكَ وَذَمَّهُ.

wa-Allāhu taʿālā yukhbiru bimā yakūnu fī al-dunyā wabimā yakūnu fī al-qiyāmati wabimā baʿdahā, bilafẓi ʾannahu qad kāna li-stiwāʾi dhālika fī ʿilmihi ʾākhiran kaʾawwalin, ʾidh lā tartība fī al-ʿilmi walā ḥadda walā masāfata walā buʿda fī al-qudrati, waqad qāla Allāhu taʿālā: (waman ʾaṣdaqu mina Allāhi qīlan) al-nisāʾu: 122, ʾaʿindahu ʿilmu al-ghaybi, fahuwa yarā fanaqqaṣahu bi-dhālika wadhammahu.

God the Exalted reports what will happen in this world, at the Resurrection, and afterward using words saying it has already happened, because last and first are equal in His knowledge. Knowledge has no sequence, nor power any boundary, interval, or distance. God the Exalted has said: “Who is truer in speech than God?” (al-Nisāʾ 4:122). “Does he possess knowledge of the unseen, so that he sees?” Through this He disparaged and censured him.

وَقَالَ تَعَالَى: (الَّذِي يَرَاكَ حِينَ تَقُومُ) (وَتَقَلُّبَكَ فِي السَّاجِدِينَ) الشُّعَرَاءُ: 218 - 219؛ أَيْ وَيَرَى تَقَلُّبَكَ وَبِهِ انْتَصَبَ التَّقَلُّبُ بِالْعَطْفِ عَلَى الْقِيَامِ، وَجَاءَ فِي التَّفْسِيرِ تَقَلُّبُكَ فِي الْأَصْلَابِ الزَّاكِيَةِ وَالْأَرْحَامِ الطَّاهِرَةِ، لَمْ يَتَّفِقْ لَكَ أَبَوَانِ عَلَى سِفَاحٍ قَطُّ، كَذَلِكَ رُوِيَ عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ وَقِيلَ فِي أَصْلَابِ الْأَنْبِيَاءِ: يُقَلِّبُكَ بِالتَّنْقِيلِ فِي صُلْبِ نَبِيٍّ بَعْدَ نَبِيٍّ حَتَّى أَخْرَجَكَ مِنْ ذُرِّيَّةِ وَرَثَةِ إِسْمَاعِيلَ.

waqāla taʿālā: (alladhī yarāka ḥīna taqūmu) (wataqallubaka fī al-sājidīna) al-shuʿarāʾu: 218 - 219; ʾay wayarā taqallubaka wabihi intaṣaba al-taqallubu bi-al-ʿaṭfi ʿalā al-qiyāmi, wajāʾa fī al-tafsīri taqallubuka fī al-ʾaṣlābi al-zākiyati wa-al-ʾarḥāmi al-ṭāhirati, lam yattafiq laka ʾabawāni ʿalā sifāḥin qaṭṭu, kadhālika ruwiya ʿani al-nabiyyi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama waqīla fī ʾaṣlābi al-ʾanbiyāʾi: yuqallibuka bi-al-tanqīli fī ṣulbi nabiyyin baʿda nabiyyin ḥattā ʾakhrajaka min dhurriyyati warathati ʾismāʿīla.

The Exalted said: “Who sees you when you rise, and your movement among those who prostrate” (al-Shuʿarāʾ 26:218–219): that is, He sees your movement. “Movement” takes the accusative through this, being conjoined with rising. Exegesis explains it as your movement through pure loins and chaste wombs: no two ancestors of yours ever joined in fornication. This too was related from the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace. Another explanation is the loins of prophets: He moves you from one prophet’s loins to another’s until He brings you forth from the descendants of Ishmael’s heirs.

وَقَدْ رَوَيْنَا مَعْنَى ذَلِكَ عَنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، وَقَالَ تَعَالَى فِي سَمْعِ الْأَصْوَاتِ قَبْلَ الْأَشْبَاحِ وَخَلْقِهَا: (قَدْ سَمِعَ اللَّهُ قَوْلَ الَّتِي تُجَادِلُكَ فِي زَوْجِهَا) الْمُجَادَلَةُ: 1، فَأَخْبَرَ أَنَّهُ سَمِعَ الْأَصْوَاتِ فِي الْقِدَمِ فِي عِلْمِهِ قَبْلَ خَلْقِ الْمُصَوِّتِينَ فِي الْحَدِيثِ، فَكَيْفَ لَا يَرَى الْكَوْنَ عَنْ آخِرِهِ فِي الْقِدَمِ بِعِلْمِهِ قَبْلَ ظُهُورِهِمْ لَهُ مُتَصَوِّرِينَ بِفِعْلِهِ؟

waqad rawaynā maʿnā dhālika ʿan rasūli Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama, waqāla taʿālā fī samʿi al-ʾaṣwāti qabla al-ʾashbāḥi wakhalqihā: (qad samiʿa Allāhu qawla allatī tujādiluka fī zawjihā) al-mujādalatu: 1, faʾakhbara ʾannahu samiʿa al-ʾaṣwāti fī al-qidami fī ʿilmihi qabla khalqi al-muṣawwitīna fī al-ḥadīthi, fakayfa lā yarā al-kawna ʿan ʾākhirihi fī al-qidami biʿilmihi qabla ẓuhūrihim lahu mutaṣawwirīna bifiʿlihi?

We have transmitted the meaning of this from God’s Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace. Concerning hearing voices before bodies and their creation, the Exalted said: “God has heard the words of the woman disputing with you about her husband” (al-Mujādala 58:1). He thus reports that He heard voices pre-eternally in His knowledge before creating their speakers in temporal existence. How, then, would He not see all existence to its end pre-eternally through His knowledge, before they appeared to Him, given form by His act?

وَقَدْ قَالَ تَعَالَى: (وَلَقَدْ خَلَقْنَاكُمْ ثُمَّ صَوَّرْنَاكُمْ ثُمَّ قُلْنَا لِلْمَلَائِكَةِ اُسْجُدُوا لِآدَمَ) الْأَعْرَافُ: 11، وَالْخَلْقُ وَالتَّصْوِيرُ كَانَا بَعْدَ السُّجُودِ لِآدَمَ، فَأَخْبَرَ عَنْهُ أَوَّلًا لِشُهُودِهِ لَهُ وَاسْتِوَائِهِ فِي عِلْمِهِ إِذْ لَا بُدَّ مِنْ كَوْنِهِ، فَأَشْبَهَ قَوْلَهُ تَعَالَى: (خَلَقَ السَّمٰوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ فِي سِتَّةِ أَيَّامٍ ثُمَّ اسْتَوَى عَلَى الْعَرْشِ) الْأَعْرَافُ: 54.

waqad qāla taʿālā: (walaqad khalaqnākum thumma ṣawwarnākum thumma qulnā li-l-malāʾikati usjudū liʾādama) al-ʾaʿrāfu: 11, wa-al-khalqu wa-al-taṣwīru kānā baʿda al-sujūdi liʾādama, faʾakhbara ʿanhu ʾawwalan lishuhūdihi lahu wa-stiwāʾihi fī ʿilmihi ʾidh lā budda min kawnihi, faʾashbaha qawlahu taʿālā: (khalaqa al-samāwāti wa-al-ʾarḍa fī sittati ʾayyāmin thumma istawā ʿalā al-ʿarshi) al-ʾaʿrāfu: 54.

The Exalted has said: “We created you, then gave you form, then said to the angels: Prostrate yourselves before Adam” (al-Aʿrāf 7:11). Creation and giving form occurred after the prostration before Adam, yet He mentioned them first because He witnessed them and they were equal in His knowledge, since they were certain to happen. This resembles His saying, exalted is He: “He created the heavens and earth in six days, then established Himself upon the Throne” (al-Aʿrāf 7:54).

وَالْعَرْشُ قَبْلَ السَّمٰوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَالِاسْتِوَاءُ صِفَتُهُ لَمْ تَزَلْ بِهِ، ثُمَّ أَخْبَرَ عَنْهُ أَنَّهُ أَخَّرَ التَّرْتِيبَ، فَاللَّهُ سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى عَالِمٌ بِالْكَوْنِ قَبْلَ الْكَوْنِ وَنَاظِرٌ إِلَى عِلْمِهِ، لَا حِجَابَ بَيْنَهُ وَبَيْنَ مَعْلُومِهِ، وَسَامِعٌ لِمَا شَهِدَ وَمُتَكَلِّمٌ بِمَا عَلِمَ فَقَدْ سَبَقَ النَّظَرُ وَالسَّمْعُ وَالْكَلَامُ الْكَوْنَ كُلَّهُ مِنْ حَيْثُ سَبَقَ الْعِلْمُ وَالْقُدْرَةُ وَالْمَشِيئَةُ.

wa-al-ʿarshu qabla al-samāwāti wa-al-ʾarḍi wa-al-istiwāʾu ṣifatuhu lam tazal bihi, thumma ʾakhbara ʿanhu ʾannahu ʾakhkhara al-tartība, fa-Allāhu subḥānahu wataʿālā ʿālimun bi-al-kawni qabla al-kawni wanāẓirun ʾilā ʿilmihi, lā ḥijāba baynahu wabayna maʿlūmihi, wasāmiʿun limā shahida wamutakallimun bimā ʿalima faqad sabaqa al-naẓaru wa-al-samʿu wa-al-kalāmu al-kawna kullahu min ḥaythu sabaqa al-ʿilmu wa-al-qudratu wa-al-mashīʾatu.

The Throne precedes the heavens and earth, and establishing Himself is His attribute, always belonging to Him. Then He reported it, placing it later in the sequence. God, glorified and exalted, knows existence before its existence and looks upon His knowledge, with no veil between Him and what He knows. He hears what He witnesses and speaks what He knows. Looking, hearing, and speaking therefore precede all existence just as knowledge, power, and will precede it.

فَهُوَ نَاظِرٌ سَامِعٌ مُتَكَلِّمٌ بِنَفْسِهِ مِنْ حَيْثُ كَانَ عَالِمًا مُقْتَدِرًا مُرِيدًا بِنَفْسِهِ، ثُمَّ أَظْهَرَ الْخَلْقَ عَالَمًا بَعْدَ عَالَمٍ فِي وَقْتٍ بَعْدَ وَقْتٍ، فَجَاؤُوا عَلَى نَظَرِهِ وَسَمْعِهِ وَكَلَامِهِ كَمَا كَانُوا فِي عِلْمِهِ وَقُدْرَتِهِ وَمَشِيئَتِهِ، بِغَيْرِ زِيَادَةٍ وَلَا نُقْصَانِ خَرْدَلَةٍ، أَلَا تَرَى أَنَّهُ بِقُدْرَتِهِ وَعِلْمِهِ يَرَى يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ وَمَا فِيهَا؟ وَالْآخِرَةَ وَمَا يَكُونُ مِنْهَا عَلَى حَقِيقَةِ مَا أَخْبَرَ عَنْهُ لَا يَمْنَعُهُ عَدَمُ الْكَوْنِ وَلَا يَحْجُبُهُ بُعْدُ التَّأْخِيرِ؟

fahuwa nāẓirun sāmiʿun mutakallimun binafsihi min ḥaythu kāna ʿāliman muqtadiran murīdan binafsihi, thumma ʾaẓhara al-khalqa ʿālaman baʿda ʿālamin fī waqtin baʿda waqtin, fajāʾū ʿalā naẓarihi wasamʿihi wakalāmihi kamā kānū fī ʿilmihi waqudratihi wamashīʾatihi, bighayri ziyādatin walā nuqṣāni khardalatin, ʾalā tarā ʾannahu biqudratihi waʿilmihi yarā yawma al-qiyāmati wamā fīhā? wa-al-ʾākhirata wamā yakūnu minhā ʿalā ḥaqīqati mā ʾakhbara ʿanhu lā yamnaʿuhu ʿadamu al-kawni walā yaḥjubuhu buʿdu al-taʾkhīri?

He looks, hears, and speaks through Himself, just as He knows, has power, and wills through Himself. Then He manifested creation, world after world, at time after time. They came into His sight, hearing, and speech as they were in His knowledge, power, and will, without increase or diminution of a mustard seed. Do you not see that through His power and knowledge He sees the Day of Resurrection and all it contains, the hereafter and what will occur there, exactly as He has reported? Nonexistence does not prevent Him, nor remoteness in time veil Him.

كَذَلِكَ كَانَ يَشْهَدُ مَا قَدْ كَانَ الْيَوْمَ فِي قِدَمِهِ بِعِلْمِهِ بِهِ وَبِقُدْرَتِهِ عَلَيْهِ وَحِيطَتِهِ بِهِ، لَا يَمْنَعُهُ عَدَمُ كَوْنِهِ وَلَا يَحْجُبُهُ فَقْدُ ظُهُورِهِ وَلَا يَجُوزُ أَنْ يُدْرِكَ سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى الْيَوْمَ مَا لَمْ يَكُنْ أَدْرَكَهُ فِي الْقِدَمِ، كَمَا لَا يَجُوزُ أَنْ يَسْتَفِيدَ الْآنَ عِلْمَ مَا لَمْ يَكُنْ عَلِمَهُ فِيمَا لَمْ يَزَلْ، فَيَكُونَ مُتَكَلِّمًا بِمَا لَمْ يَشْهَدْ وَهُوَ مَعْلُومُهُ مُنْطَوٍ فِي عِلْمِهِ. أَوْ يَكُونَ مُسْتَزِيدًا بِمَا أَظْهَرَ حِينَ ظَهَرَ وَهُوَ فِي قَبْضَتِهِ وَغَيْبِهِ، جَلَّ عَنْ ذَلِكَ وَصْفُهُ وَعَلَا عَنْ

kadhālika kāna yashhadu mā qad kāna al-yawma fī qidamihi biʿilmihi bihi wabiqudratihi ʿalayhi waḥīṭatihi bihi, lā yamnaʿuhu ʿadamu kawnihi walā yaḥjubuhu faqdu ẓuhūrihi walā yajūzu ʾan yudrika subḥānahu wataʿālā al-yawma mā lam yakun ʾadrakahu fī al-qidami, kamā lā yajūzu ʾan yastafīda al-ʾāna ʿilma mā lam yakun ʿalimahu fīmā lam yazal, fayakūna mutakalliman bimā lam yashhad wahuwa maʿlūmuhu munṭawin fī ʿilmihi. ʾaw yakūna mustazīdan bimā ʾaẓhara ḥīna ẓahara wahuwa fī qabḍatihi waghaybihi, jalla ʿan dhālika waṣfuhu waʿalā ʿan

Likewise, in His pre-eternity He witnessed what has come to be today, through His knowledge of it, power over it, and encompassing of it. Its nonexistence did not prevent Him, nor its lack of manifestation veil Him. It is impossible that He, glorified and exalted, should apprehend today what He did not apprehend pre-eternally, just as He cannot now acquire knowledge of what He did not always know, so that He would be speaking of what He had not witnessed, though it is known to Him and enfolded in His knowledge. Or that He should gain an addition through what He manifested when it appeared, though it is within His grasp and His unseen realm. His attribute is too majestic for that, and above

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٤٥

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 145

Volume Two, page 145

هَذَا جَلَالُهُ وَعِزُّهُ لِأَنَّ نَظَرَهُ سَعَةُ عِلْمِهِ وَعِلْمَهُ حِيطَةُ نَظَرِهِ، فَهُوَ نَاظِرٌ إِلَى مَا عَلِمَهُ بِوَصْفِهِ لَا يَخْتَلِفُ عَلَيْهِ أَوْصَافُهُ، فَالْكَوْنُ مَوْجُودٌ لَهُ بِعِلْمِهِ لِسَبْقِ عِلْمِهِ بِهِ، وَلَا بَيَانَ لَهُ فِي عِلْمِهِ وَلَا أَثَرَ لَهُ فِي وَصْفِهِ وَلَا وُجُودَ لِلْكَوْنِ فِي وُجُودِ كَيْنُونَتِهِ، وَلَا قِدَمَ لَهُ فِي قِدَمِ أَزَلِيَّتِهِ، لَيْسَ مَحَلًّا لِلْكَوْنِ وَلَا هُوَ حَالٌّ فِيهِ.

hādhā jalāluhu waʿizzuhu liʾanna naẓarahu saʿatu ʿilmihi waʿilmahu ḥīṭatu naẓarihi, fahuwa nāẓirun ʾilā mā ʿalimahu biwaṣfihi lā yakhtalifu ʿalayhi ʾawṣāfuhu, fa-al-kawnu mawjūdun lahu biʿilmihi lisabqi ʿilmihi bihi, walā bayāna lahu fī ʿilmihi walā ʾathara lahu fī waṣfihi walā wujūda li-l-kawni fī wujūdi kaynūnatihi, walā qidama lahu fī qidami ʾazaliyyatihi, laysa maḥallan li-l-kawni walā huwa ḥāllun fīhi.

this are His majesty and might. His gaze is the breadth of His knowledge, and His knowledge the encompassing of His gaze. Through His attribute He looks upon what He knows; His attributes do not differ for Him. Existence is present to Him through His knowledge, since His knowledge of it precedes it. It adds no clarification to His knowledge or effect to His attribute. Existence has no existence within the existence of His being, or pre-eternity within His pre-eternal eternity. He is not a locus for existence, nor does He inhabit it.

وَلِأَنَّ أَوَّلِيَّتَهُ سَبَقَتِ الْكَوْنَ وَالْمَكَانَ فَلَيْسَ لَهُمَا فِي قِدَمِهِ قِدَمٌ، كَمَا أَنَّهُ تَعَالَى يَشْهَدُ الْآنَ مَا يَكُونُ مِنَ الْعَاقِبَةِ وَالْمَآلِ إِلَى آخِرِ الْأَحْوَالِ، لَا يَخْتَلِفُ الْأَوَاخِرُ وَالْأَوَّلُ فِي صِفَاتِهِ وَلَا تَتَفَاوَتُ صِفَاتُهُ عَلَى تَرْتِيبِهَا مِنْ نَظَرٍ وَعِلْمٍ، لِأَنَّهَا مَعْلُومُ عِلْمِهِ وَمَوْجُودُ إِرَادَتِهِ، فَهُوَ سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى وَاجِدُ الْأَشْيَاءِ بِهِ لَا بِهَا، وَنَاظِرٌ إِلَيْهَا فِي عِلْمِهِ لَا بِوُجُودِهَا لِاقْتِدَارِهِ عَلَيْهَا وَإِحَاطَةِ عِلْمِهِ بِهَا.

waliʾanna ʾawwaliyyatahu sabaqati al-kawna wa-al-makāna falaysa lahumā fī qidamihi qidamun, kamā ʾannahu taʿālā yashhadu al-ʾāna mā yakūnu mina al-ʿāqibati wa-al-maʾāli ʾilā ʾākhiri al-ʾaḥwāli, lā yakhtalifu al-ʾawākhiru wa-al-ʾawwalu fī ṣifātihi walā tatafāwatu ṣifātuhu ʿalā tartībihā min naẓarin waʿilmin, liʾannahā maʿlūmu ʿilmihi wamawjūdu ʾirādatihi, fahuwa subḥānahu wataʿālā wājidu al-ʾashyāʾi bihi lā bihā, wanāẓirun ʾilayhā fī ʿilmihi lā biwujūdihā li-qtidārihi ʿalayhā waʾiḥāṭati ʿilmihi bihā.

His firstness precedes existence and place, so neither has any pre-eternity within His pre-eternity. Likewise, the Exalted now witnesses the eventual outcome and return through the final states. Last and first do not differ within His attributes, nor do His attributes diverge through their sequence of looking and knowing, for these things are known in His knowledge and existent through His will. He, glorified and exalted, finds things through Himself, not through them, and looks at them in His knowledge, not through their existence, because of His power over them and His knowledge’s encompassing them.

وَالْكَوْنُ مَعْدُومٌ لِنَفْسِهِ لِتَلَاشِيهِ لِأَنَّهُ سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى خَالِقُ الْعَدَمِ كَمَا هُوَ خَالِقُ الْوُجُودِ، لَيْسَ لِلْعَدَمِ قِدَمٌ مَعَ قِدَمِهِ فَيَكُونَ ثَانِيًا مَعَهُ، وَلَا الْكَوْنُ كَائِنٌ مَوْجُودٌ بِنَفْسِهِ فَيَكُونَ أَوَّلًا مَعَ أَوَّلِيَّتِهِ، جَلَّ الْوَاحِدُ الْمُتَّحِدُ بِنَفْسِهِ عَنْ ثَانٍ مَعَهُ فِي الْأَزَلِ أَوْ شَرِيكٍ لَهُ فِي الْقِدَمِ، ثُمَّ ظَهَرَتِ الْأَشْيَاءُ لِنُفُوسِهَا فَظَهَرَ بَعْضُهَا لِبَعْضٍ بِإِظْهَارِهِ، فَوُجِدَتْ بِإِيجَادِهِ وَظَهَرَ عَلَيْهَا بِإِظْهَارِهِ بِحَدٍّ وَوَقْتٍ.

wa-al-kawnu maʿdūmun linafsihi litalāshīhi liʾannahu subḥānahu wataʿālā khāliqu al-ʿadami kamā huwa khāliqu al-wujūdi, laysa li-l-ʿadami qidamun maʿa qidamihi fayakūna thāniyan maʿahu, walā al-kawnu kāʾinun mawjūdun binafsihi fayakūna ʾawwalan maʿa ʾawwaliyyatihi, jalla al-wāḥidu al-muttaḥidu binafsihi ʿan thānin maʿahu fī al-ʾazali ʾaw sharīkin lahu fī al-qidami, thumma ẓaharati al-ʾashyāʾu linufūsihā faẓahara baʿḍuhā libaʿḍin biʾiẓhārihi, fawujidat biʾījādihi waẓahara ʿalayhā biʾiẓhārihi biḥaddin wawaqtin.

Existence is nonexistent in itself, since it vanishes: He, glorified and exalted, creates nonexistence as He creates existence. Nonexistence has no pre-eternity alongside His, becoming a second beside Him; nor does existence exist through itself, becoming first alongside His firstness. The One, one in Himself, is exalted above a second beside Him in eternity or a partner in pre-eternity. Then things appeared to themselves and to one another through His manifestation. They existed through His bringing them into being, and He appeared over them through His manifestation, with limit and time.

لَا أَوَّلَ لَهَا وَلَا قَبْلَ بَلْ هُوَ الْأَوَّلُ الَّذِي لَمْ يَزَلْ بِلَا أَوَّلٍ، وَالْقَدِيمُ الْأَبَدُ بِلَا وَقْتٍ وَلَا أَمَدٍ قَائِمٌ بِصِفَاتِهِ، وَصِفَاتُهُ مَوْجُودَةٌ لَهُ قَائِمَةٌ بِهِ، فَمَنْ شَهِدَ مَا فَصَّلْنَاهُ بِنُورِ الْيَقِينِ لَمْ يَدْخُلْ عَلَيْهِ قِدَمُ الْعَالَمِ، إِذْ لَا قَدِيمَ مَعَ اللَّهِ فِي كَيْنُونِيَّةِ أَزَلِهِ، وَمَنْ لَمْ يَهْتَدِ بِمَا بَيَّنَّاهُ وَوَقَفَ مَعَ الْعَقْلِ وَدَخَلَتْ عَلَيْهِ شُبْهَةُ قِدَمِ الْعَالَمِ، فَأَلْحَدَ بِرُؤْيَتِهِ قِدَمَ الْحَدَثَانِ أَوْ جَحَدَ قِدَمَ الْعِلْمِ، يَنْفِي وُجُودَ الْحَدَثِ فِيهِ.

lā ʾawwala lahā walā qabla bal huwa al-ʾawwalu alladhī lam yazal bilā ʾawwalin, wa-al-qadīmu al-ʾabadu bilā waqtin walā ʾamadin qāʾimun biṣifātihi, waṣifātuhu mawjūdatun lahu qāʾimatun bihi, faman shahida mā faṣṣalnāhu binūri al-yaqīni lam yadkhul ʿalayhi qidamu al-ʿālami, ʾidh lā qadīma maʿa Allāhi fī kaynūniyyati ʾazalihi, waman lam yahtadi bimā bayyannāhu wawaqafa maʿa al-ʿaqli wadakhalat ʿalayhi shubhatu qidami al-ʿālami, faʾalḥada biruʾyatihi qidama al-ḥadathāni ʾaw jaḥada qidama al-ʿilmi, yanfī wujūda al-ḥadathi fīhi.

They have no firstness or before; He is the First who has always been, without a first, the Pre-eternal, the Everlasting, without time or term, subsisting through His attributes, which exist for Him and subsist in Him. Whoever witnesses our detailed account through certainty’s light is not beset by the world’s pre-eternity, for nothing is pre-eternal with God in His eternal being. Whoever fails to grasp our explanation, stops at intellect, and is beset by doubt concerning the world’s pre-eternity deviates by seeing temporal things as pre-eternal, or denies knowledge’s pre-eternity, denying temporal occurrence within it.

وَهَذَا شِرْكٌ بِالصِّفَاتِ بِتَرْتِيبِهِ إِيَّاهَا بِالْعَقْلِ، وَنَحْنُ بَرِيئُونَ مِنْ شَهَادَتِهِ، مُبْطِلُونَ لِدَعْوَاهُ مُنْكِرُونَ لِشِرْكِهِ فِي الْقِدَمِ، مُوَحِّدُونَ بِالْيَقِينِ مَا أَلْحَدَ بِالْعَقْلِ، لِأَنَّ مَنْ قَالَ: إِنَّ شَيْئًا قَدِيمٌ مَعَ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى أَوْ مَوْجُودٌ بِنَفْسِهِ لِنَفْسِهِ، فَقَدْ أَشْرَكَ فِي الصِّفَاتِ، وَمَنْ قَالَ: إِنَّ اللَّهَ سُبْحَانَهُ نَظَرَ بَعْدَ أَنْ لَمْ يَنْظُرْ أَوْ عَلِمَ بَعْدَ أَنْ لَمْ يَعْلَمْ أَوْ تَكَلَّمَ بَعْدَ أَنْ لَمْ يَتَكَلَّمْ، فَقَدْ قَالَ بِحُدُوثِ الصِّفَاتِ وَقَدَّمَ عَلَيْهَا الْمَعْلُومَاتِ.

wa-hādhā shirkun bi-al-ṣifāti bitartībihi ʾiyyāhā bi-al-ʿaqli, wanaḥnu barīʾūna min shahādatihi, mubṭilūna lidaʿwāhu munkirūna lishirkihi fī al-qidami, muwaḥḥidūna bi-al-yaqīni mā ʾalḥada bi-al-ʿaqli, liʾanna man qāla: ʾinna shayʾan qadīmun maʿa Allāhi taʿālā ʾaw mawjūdun binafsihi linafsihi, faqad ʾashraka fī al-ṣifāti, waman qāla: ʾinna Allāha subḥānahu naẓara baʿda ʾan lam yanẓur ʾaw ʿalima baʿda ʾan lam yaʿlam ʾaw takallama baʿda ʾan lam yatakallam, faqad qāla biḥudūthi al-ṣifāti waqaddama ʿalayhā al-maʿlūmāti.

This associates partners in the attributes by ordering them through intellect. We disavow his testimony, reject his claim, and deny his association of partners in pre-eternity, affirming through certainty the unity concerning which he deviated through intellect. Whoever says anything is pre-eternal with God the Exalted, or exists through and for itself, has associated partners in the attributes. Whoever says God, glorified is He, looked after not looking, knew after not knowing, or spoke after not speaking, has declared the attributes originated and placed the objects of knowledge before them.

بَلِ الْمَعْلُومَاتُ مُنْطَوِيَةٌ فِي الْعِلْمِ لَا أَثَرَ لَهَا فِيهِ، وَاللَّهُ قَدِيمٌ بِعِلْمِهِ وَاجِدٌ لِمَعْلُومِهِ بِنَفْسِهِ عَنْ عِلْمِهِ بِهِ لِقُدْرَتِهِ عَلَيْهِ يَقْهَرُهُ، وَنَاظِرٌ إِلَيْهِ بِعِلْمِهِ لَا بِعَدَمِ مَعْلُومِهِ وَالْمَعْلُومُ مَعْدُومٌ لِنَفْسِهِ غَيْرُ مَوْجُودٍ بِنَفْسِهِ حَتَّى أَحْدَثَهُ وَأَوْجَدَهُ، فَظَهَرَ حِينَ أَظْهَرَهُ لِمَنْ أَظْهَرَهُ بَعْضًا لِبَعْضٍ لَا لِنَفْسِهِ، إِذْ قَدْ فَرَغَ مِنْهُ لِعِلْمِهِ بِهِ لَا أَنَّهُ قَرُبَ لَهُ نَظَرُهُ.

bali al-maʿlūmātu munṭawiyatun fī al-ʿilmi lā ʾathara lahā fīhi, wa-Allāhu qadīmun biʿilmihi wājidun limaʿlūmihi binafsihi ʿan ʿilmihi bihi liqudratihi ʿalayhi yaqharuhu, wanāẓirun ʾilayhi biʿilmihi lā biʿadami maʿlūmihi wa-al-maʿlūmu maʿdūmun linafsihi ghayru mawjūdin binafsihi ḥattā ʾaḥdathahu waʾawjadahu, faẓahara ḥīna ʾaẓharahu liman ʾaẓharahu baʿḍan libaʿḍin lā linafsihi, ʾidh qad faragha minhu liʿilmihi bihi lā ʾannahu qaruba lahu naẓaruhu.

Rather, the objects of knowledge are enfolded within knowledge without affecting it. God is pre-eternal with His knowledge, finding what He knows through Himself, from His knowledge of it; through His power over it He subdues it. He looks upon it through His knowledge, not through its nonexistence. The object of knowledge is nonexistent in itself and does not exist through itself until He originates and brings it into being. When He manifests it, it appears to those for whom He manifests it, some to others, not to Himself: it was already settled through His knowledge of it, not because His gaze drew near it.

كَمَا لَمْ يُحْدِثْ بِهِ عِلْمَهُ لِنَفْسِهِ وَعِلْمُهُ صِفَتُهُ لَمْ يَزَلْ لَهُ وَهُوَ قَائِمٌ بِوَصْفِهِ، وَلَا يَجُوزُ أَنْ يُحْدِثَ لَهُ شَيْئًا لَمْ يَعْلَمْهُ، كَذَلِكَ لَا يَنْبَغِي أَنْ يَفْقِدَ شَيْئًا لَمْ يَجِدْهُ، وَمَنِ اخْتَلَفَ عَلَيْهِ مَا ذَكَرْنَاهُ دَخَلَ عَلَيْهِ مَذْهَبُ الْمُعْتَزِلَةِ وَالْجَهْمِيَّةِ، لِأَنَّ الْمُعْتَزِلَةَ مُجْمِعَةٌ عَلَى اخْتِلَافِهِمْ أَنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى لَا يَرَى الشَّيْءَ حَتَّى يَكُونَ. وَاخْتَلَفُوا فِي الْعِلْمِ فَقَالَتِ الْعَبَّادِيَّةُ مِنَ الْقَدَرِيَّةِ وَهُمْ أَصْحَابُ عَبَّادٍ: إِنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى لَا يَرَى الشَّيْءَ، حَتَّى يَكُونَ،

kamā lam yuḥdith bihi ʿilmahu linafsihi waʿilmuhu ṣifatuhu lam yazal lahu wahuwa qāʾimun biwaṣfihi, walā yajūzu ʾan yuḥditha lahu shayʾan lam yaʿlamhu, kadhālika lā yanbaghī ʾan yafqida shayʾan lam yajidhu, wamani ikhtalafa ʿalayhi mā dhakarnāhu dakhala ʿalayhi madhhabu al-muʿtazilati wa-al-jahmiyyati, liʾanna al-muʿtazilata mujmiʿatun ʿalā ikhtilāfihim ʾanna Allāha taʿālā lā yarā al-shayʾa ḥattā yakūna. wa-khtalafū fī al-ʿilmi faqālati al-ʿabbādiyyatu mina al-qadariyyati wahum ʾaṣḥābu ʿabbādin: ʾinna Allāha taʿālā lā yarā al-shayʾa, ḥattā yakūna,

Just as He did not thereby originate His knowledge for Himself: His knowledge is His attribute, always His, and He subsists through His description. It is impossible that He should originate for Himself something He did not know; likewise, it is unfitting that He should lack something He had not found. Whoever finds inconsistency in what we have mentioned falls under the doctrine of the Muʿtazila and Jahmiyya, for the Muʿtazila, despite their disagreements, agree that God the Exalted does not see a thing until it exists. They disagreed about knowledge. The ʿAbbādiyya among the Qadariyya, the followers of ʿAbbād, said: “God the Exalted does not see a thing until it exists,”

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٤٦

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 146

Volume Two, page 146

يُضَاهُونَ بِذَلِكَ قَوْلَ النَّظَّامِ وَبِشْرٍ الْمَرِيسِيِّ فِي أَنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى لَا يَرَى الْأَشْيَاءَ حَتَّى تَكُونَ، وَالْجَهْمِيَّةُ مُجْمِعَةٌ عَلَى اخْتِلَافِهِمْ أَنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى لَمْ يَتَكَلَّمْ بِالشَّيْءِ حَتَّى كَانَ، ثُمَّ خَلَقَ الْكَلَامَ فَقَدَّمُوا الْكَوْنَ قَبْلَ كَلَامِهِ، كَمَا قَدَّمَهُ أُولَئِكَ قَبْلَ نَظَرِهِ، وَقَالَ الْجَمِيعُ بِحُدُوثِ النَّظَرِ، كَمَا قَالُوا بِحُدُوثِ الْكَلَامِ وَالنَّظَرِ لِأَنَّهُمْ قَالُوا بِحُدُوثِ الْأَسْمَاءِ بَعْدَ حُدُوثِ الْمُسَمَّيَاتِ.

yuḍāhūna bi-dhālika qawla al-naẓẓāmi wabishrin al-marīsiyyi fī ʾanna Allāha taʿālā lā yarā al-ʾashyāʾa ḥattā takūna, wa-al-jahmiyyatu mujmiʿatun ʿalā ikhtilāfihim ʾanna Allāha taʿālā lam yatakallam bi-al-shayʾi ḥattā kāna, thumma khalaqa al-kalāma faqaddamū al-kawna qabla kalāmihi, kamā qaddamahu ʾulāʾika qabla naẓarihi, waqāla al-jamīʿu biḥudūthi al-naẓari, kamā qālū biḥudūthi al-kalāmi wa-al-naẓari liʾannahum qālū biḥudūthi al-ʾasmāʾi baʿda ḥudūthi al-musammayāti.

thus echoing al-Naẓẓām and Bishr al-Marīsī in saying that God the Exalted does not see things until they exist. The Jahmiyya, despite their disagreements, agree that God the Exalted did not speak of a thing until it existed, then created speech. They placed existence before His speech, just as the others placed it before His looking. All affirmed that looking is originated, just as they affirmed that speech and looking are originated, because they maintained that names originate after named things originate.

وَتَقَدُّمِ الِاسْتِطَاعَةِ مِنَ الْخَلْقِ عَلَى الْإِرَادَةِ مِنَ الْخَالِقِ، فَاسْتَوَى بِذَلِكَ شِرْكُهُمْ خَرَجُوا بِهِ مِنَ التَّوْحِيدِ، كَذَلِكَ كَذَبَتِ الْعَبَّادِيَّةُ مِنَ الْقَدَرِيَّةِ أَصْحَابُ عَبَّادٍ يُضَاهُونَ قَوْلَ النَّظَّامِيَّةِ وَالْمَرِيسِيَّةِ، تَشَابَهَتْ قُلُوبُهُمْ فَيَتَّبِعُونَ مَا تَشَابَهَ مِنْهُ، وَالْمُعْتَزِلَةُ أَيْضًا مُجْمِعَةٌ عَلَى نَفْيِ الْعِلْمِ وَالْقُدْرَةِ وَالْمَشِيئَةِ إِلَّا أَنَّهُمْ يَقُولُونَ: عَالِمٌ وَلَكِنْ لَا يَضْطَرُّ عِلْمُهُ إِلَى شَيْءٍ وَلَا يُوجِبُ شَيْئًا، فَجَعَلُوهُ كَالظَّنِّ مِنَ الْخَلْقِ.

wataqaddumi al-istiṭāʿati mina al-khalqi ʿalā al-ʾirādati mina al-khāliqi, fa-stawā bi-dhālika shirkuhum kharajū bihi mina al-tawḥīdi, kadhālika kadhabati al-ʿabbādiyyatu mina al-qadariyyati ʾaṣḥābu ʿabbādin yuḍāhūna qawla al-naẓẓāmiyyati wa-al-marīsiyyati, tashābahat qulūbuhum fayattabiʿūna mā tashābaha minhu, wa-al-muʿtazilatu ʾayḍan mujmiʿatun ʿalā nafyi al-ʿilmi wa-al-qudrati wa-al-mashīʾati ʾillā ʾannahum yaqūlūna: ʿālimun wa-lākin lā yaḍṭarru ʿilmuhu ʾilā shayʾin walā yūjibu shayʾan, fajaʿalūhu ka-al-ẓanni mina al-khalqi.

They also maintained that creatures’ capacity precedes the Creator’s will. Thus their association of partners became alike; through it they departed from divine unity. Likewise, the ʿAbbādiyya among the Qadariyya, ʿAbbād’s followers, spoke falsely, echoing the Naẓẓāmiyya and Marīsiyya. Their hearts resemble one another, and they follow its ambiguous parts. The Muʿtazila also agree in denying knowledge, power, and will, although they say, “Knowing,” but His knowledge compels nothing and necessitates nothing. They thereby make it like creatures’ conjecture.

فَقَالُوا: عَالِمٌ بِلَا عِلْمٍ قَدِيمٍ وَقَادِرٌ بِلَا قُدْرَةٍ وَمُرِيدٌ بِلَا إِرَادَةٍ سَابِقَةٍ، وَقَدَّمُوا الِاسْتِطَاعَةَ مِنَ الْخَلْقِ فَقَالُوا: لِئَلَّا يَلْزَمَهُمْ سَبْقُ الْمَعْلُومَاتِ وَإِنَّ الْإِرَادَةَ وَالْكَلَامَ مِنْ نُعُوتِ الْأَفْعَالِ مَخْلُوقَانِ.

faqālū: ʿālimun bilā ʿilmin qadīmin waqādirun bilā qudratin wamurīdun bilā ʾirādatin sābiqatin, waqaddamū al-istiṭāʿata mina al-khalqi faqālū: liʾallā yalzamahum sabqu al-maʿlūmāti waʾinna al-ʾirādata wa-al-kalāma min nuʿūti al-ʾafʿāli makhlūqāni.

They said: “Knowing without pre-eternal knowledge, powerful without power, and willing without prior will.” They gave precedence to creatures’ capacity, saying, “Lest the precedence of the objects of knowledge become binding upon them.” Will and speech, they said, are descriptions of acts and are created.

وَالْجَهْمِيَّةُ أَيْضًا مُجْمِعَةٌ أَنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى لَا يَتَكَلَّمُ بِوَصْفِهِ أَصْلًا وَإِنَّمَا يَظْهَرُ فِي أَدِيمِ الْقَضَاءِ الْكَلَامُ بِخَلْقِ الْأَعْرَاضِ فِي الْأَجْسَامِ، فَكَانَ هَذَا عِنْدَهُمْ هُوَ التَّوْحِيدَ لِئَلَّا يُثْبِتُوا مَعَ اللَّهِ قَدِيمًا، وَهَذَا عِنْدَ أَهْلِ السُّنَّةِ وَالْجَمَاعَةِ هُوَ الْإِلْحَادُ لِنَفْيِ قِدَمِ الصِّفَاتِ وَالْقَوْلِ بِحُدُوثِهَا وَانْفِصَالِهَا عَنِ الذَّاتِ، وَلَيْسَ يَخْتَلِفُ أَهْلُ الْيَقِينِ بِحَمْدِ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى فِي جَمِيعِ مَا ذَكَرْنَاهُ، كَمَا لَا يَخْتَلِفُونَ فِي صِحَّةِ التَّوْحِيدِ، وَهَذِهِ شَهَادَةُ الْمُوقِنِينَ وَإِيمَانُ الْمُقَرَّبِينَ.

wa-al-jahmiyyatu ʾayḍan mujmiʿatun ʾanna Allāha taʿālā lā yatakallamu biwaṣfihi ʾaṣlan waʾinnamā yaẓharu fī ʾadīmi al-qaḍāʾi al-kalāmu bikhalqi al-ʾaʿrāḍi fī al-ʾajsāmi, fakāna hādhā ʿindahum huwa al-tawḥīda liʾallā yuthbitū maʿa Allāhi qadīman, wa-hādhā ʿinda ʾahli al-sunnati wa-al-jamāʿati huwa al-ʾilḥādu linafyi qidami al-ṣifāti wa-al-qawli biḥudūthihā wa-nfiṣālihā ʿani al-dhāti, walaysa yakhtalifu ʾahlu al-yaqīni biḥamdi Allāhi taʿālā fī jamīʿi mā dhakarnāhu, kamā lā yakhtalifūna fī ṣiḥḥati al-tawḥīdi, wa-hādhihi shahādatu al-mūqinīna waʾīmānu al-muqarrabīna.

The Jahmiyya also agree that God the Exalted does not speak through His attribute at all: speech appears upon the surface of decree through His creating accidents in bodies. For them this is divine unity, lest they affirm something pre-eternal alongside God. For the people of the Sunna and the community, this is deviation, because it denies the attributes’ pre-eternity and declares them originated and separate from the essence. Praise be to God the Exalted, people of certainty disagree in none of what we have mentioned, just as they do not disagree concerning sound divine unity. This is the testimony of the certain and the faith of those brought near.

فَلَا يَتَشَبَّهَنَّ لَكَ الْعَقْلُ بِالْمَعْقُولِ عَنْ شُهُودِ مَا ذَكَرْنَاهُ فَيَعْقِلَكَ عَنِ النَّفَادِ لِلشَّهَادَةِ، فَلَيْسَ يَشْهَدُ مَا ذَكَرْنَاهُ مِنْ صِفَاتِ الشَّهِيدِ بِنُورِ الْعَقْلِ، وَإِنَّمَا يَشْهَدُ بِنُورِ الْيَقِينِ، لِأَنَّ خَالِقًا لَا يُشَبَّهُ بِمَخْلُوقٍ، وَمَنْ لَيْسَ كَمِثْلِهِ شَيْءٌ لَا يُشْهَدُ إِلَّا بِمَا لَيْسَ كَمِثْلِهِ شَيْءٌ، وَهُوَ نُورُ الْيَقِينِ مِنْ نُورِ الْقَادِرِ، وَمَنْ لَمْ يَجْعَلِ اللَّهُ نُورًا لَهُ فَمَا لَهُ مِنْ نُورٍ.

falā yatashabbahanna laka al-ʿaqlu bi-al-maʿqūli ʿan shuhūdi mā dhakarnāhu fayaʿqilaka ʿani al-nafādi li-l-shahādati, falaysa yashhadu mā dhakarnāhu min ṣifāti al-shahīdi binūri al-ʿaqli, waʾinnamā yashhadu binūri al-yaqīni, liʾanna khāliqan lā yushabbahu bimakhlūqin, waman laysa kamithlihi shayʾun lā yushhadu ʾillā bimā laysa kamithlihi shayʾun, wahuwa nūru al-yaqīni min nūri al-qādiri, waman lam yajʿali Allāhu nūran lahu famā lahu min nūrin.

Let intellect not become confused for you with the intelligible, turning you from witnessing what we have mentioned and binding you against reaching testimony. The Witness’s attributes we have described are not witnessed by intellect’s light, but by certainty’s light. A Creator cannot be likened to a creature. The One whom nothing resembles is witnessed only through what nothing resembles: the light of certainty from the Powerful One’s light. Whoever has not been given light by God has no light.

وَمَا ذَكَرْنَاهُ مِنْ وَصْفِهِ تَعَالَى هُوَ ظَاهِرُ التَّوْحِيدِ الْمُتَّصِلُ بِفَرْضِ الشَّهَادَةِ، لَا يَجْرِي عَلَى تَرْتِيبِ الْمَعْقُولِ، وَلَا يُمَثَّلُ بِقِيَاسِ الْعُقُولِ، لِأَنَّ نَفْيَ الصِّفَاتِ وَإِثْبَاتَهَا بِالْمُمَاثَلَاتِ مَوْجُودٌ فِي رَأْيِ الْعُقُولِ، كَمَا أَنَّ الْكُفْرَ وَالضَّلَالَ مَوْجُودٌ فِي طَبَائِعِ النُّفُوسِ لِعَدَمِ شَهَادَةِ الْأَبْصَارِ، وَلِفَقْدِ وُجُودِ مُشَاهَدَةِ الْإِلٰهِيَّةِ فِي تَخَيُّلِ الْأَفْكَارِ، وَلِجَرَيَانِ الْمُعْتَادِ وَالْعُرْفِ فِي ظُهُورِ الْأَسْبَابِ.

wamā dhakarnāhu min waṣfihi taʿālā huwa ẓāhiru al-tawḥīdi al-muttaṣilu bifarḍi al-shahādati, lā yajrī ʿalā tartībi al-maʿqūli, walā yumaththalu biqiyāsi al-ʿuqūli, liʾanna nafya al-ṣifāti waʾithbātahā bi-al-mumāthalāti mawjūdun fī raʾyi al-ʿuqūli, kamā ʾanna al-kufra wa-al-ḍalāla mawjūdun fī ṭabāʾiʿi al-nufūsi liʿadami shahādati al-ʾabṣāri, walifaqdi wujūdi mushāhadati al-ʾilāhiyyati fī takhayyuli al-ʾafkāri, walijarayāni al-muʿtādi wa-al-ʿurfi fī ẓuhūri al-ʾasbābi.

What we have mentioned of His description, exalted is He, is the outward aspect of divine unity connected to obligatory testimony. It follows no ordering of the intelligible and admits no comparison through intellectual analogy. Denial of attributes and their affirmation through likenesses exist within intellectual opinion, just as unbelief and error exist within souls’ dispositions, because eyesight lacks witnessing, contemplation of divinity is absent from thoughts’ imagining, and habitual experience and custom prevail in the appearance of causes.

كَمَا حَدَّثَنَا أَنَّ بَعْضَ الصِّدِّيقِينَ دَعَا إِلَى اللَّهِ سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى بِحَقِيقَةِ التَّوْحِيدِ فَلَمْ يَسْتَجِبْ لَهُ إِلَّا الْوَاحِدُ بَعْدَ الْوَاحِدِ، فَعَجِبَ مِنْ ذَلِكَ فَأَوْحَى اللَّهُ تَبَارَكَ وَتَعَالَى إِلَيْهِ: تُرِيدُ أَنْ تَسْتَجِيبَ لَكَ الْعُقُولُ؟ قَالَ: نَعَمْ، قَالَ: اُحْجُبْنِي عَنْهُمْ قَالَ: كَيْفَ أَحْجُبُكَ وَأَنَا أَدْعُو إِلَيْكَ؟ قَالَ: تَكَلَّمْ فِي الْأَسْبَابِ وَفِي أَسْبَابِ الْأَسْبَابِ قَالَ: فَدَعَا إِلَى اللَّهِ تَعَالَى مِنْ هَذِهِ الطُّرُقِ فَاسْتَجَابَ لَهُ الْجَمُّ الْغَفِيرُ. فَإِنَّمَا صِحَّةُ التَّوْحِيدِ بِإِثْبَاتِ الصِّفَاتِ وَأَوْصَافِ الذَّاتِ

kamā ḥaddathanā ʾanna baʿḍa al-ṣiddīqīna daʿā ʾilā Allāhi subḥānahu wataʿālā biḥaqīqati al-tawḥīdi falam yastajib lahu ʾillā al-wāḥidu baʿda al-wāḥidi, faʿajiba min dhālika faʾawḥā Allāhu tabāraka wataʿālā ʾilayhi: turīdu ʾan tastajība laka al-ʿuqūlu? qāla: naʿam, qāla: uḥjubnī ʿanhum qāla: kayfa ʾaḥjubuka waʾanā ʾadʿū ʾilayka? qāla: takallam fī al-ʾasbābi wafī ʾasbābi al-ʾasbābi qāla: fadaʿā ʾilā Allāhi taʿālā min hādhihi al-ṭuruqi fa-stajāba lahu al-jammu al-ghafīru. faʾinnamā ṣiḥḥatu al-tawḥīdi biʾithbāti al-ṣifāti waʾawṣāfi al-dhāti

As was related to us, one of the utterly truthful called people to God, glorified and exalted, through the reality of divine unity. Only one person after another responded. He was astonished, and God, blessed and exalted, revealed to him: “Do you want intellects to respond to you?” He said: “Yes.” He said: “Veil Me from them.” He asked: “How can I veil You when I am calling to You?” He said: “Speak about causes and the causes of causes.” The narrator said: He called to God the Exalted by these paths, and a great multitude responded. Sound affirmation of divine unity consists in affirming the attributes and descriptions of the essence

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٤٧

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 147

Volume Two, page 147

الَّتِي جَاءَتْ بِهَا السُّنَنُ وَشَرِيعَةُ الرَّسُولِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ مَعَ نَفْيِ الشَّبَهِ وَالْمَاهِيَّةِ وَنَفْيِ الْجِنْسِ وَالْكَيْفِيَّةِ، ثُمَّ سُكُونِ الْقَلْبِ وَطُمَأْنِينَةِ الْعَقْدِ إِلَى الْإِيمَانِ بِهَذَا، وَالتَّسْلِيمِ لَهُ لِأَجْلِ نُورِ الْيَقِينِ الْمَوْهُوبِ لِأَنَّ هَذَا إِنَّمَا يُشْهَدُ بِنُورِ الْيَقِينِ وَعِلْمِهِ، لَا بِعِلْمِ الْعَقْلِ وَنُورِهِ، لِأَنَّ خَالِقًا لَا يُرَى بِمَخْلُوقٍ، فَالْعَقْلُ مِرْآةُ الدُّنْيَا بِنُورِهِ يُشْهَدُ مَا فِيهَا، وَالْإِيمَانُ مِرْآةُ الْآخِرَةِ وَبِهِ يُنْظَرُ إِلَيْهَا فَيُؤْمَنُ بِمَا فِيهَا.

allatī jāʾat bihā al-sunanu washarīʿatu al-rasūli ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama maʿa nafyi al-shabahi wa-al-māhiyyati wanafyi al-jinsi wa-al-kayfiyyati, thumma sukūni al-qalbi waṭumaʾnīnati al-ʿaqdi ʾilā al-ʾīmāni bi-hādhā, wa-al-taslīmi lahu liʾajli nūri al-yaqīni al-mawhūbi liʾanna hādhā ʾinnamā yushhadu binūri al-yaqīni waʿilmihi, lā biʿilmi al-ʿaqli wanūrihi, liʾanna khāliqan lā yurā bimakhlūqin, fa-al-ʿaqlu mirʾātu al-dunyā binūrihi yushhadu mā fīhā, wa-al-ʾīmānu mirʾātu al-ʾākhirati wabihi yunẓaru ʾilayhā fayuʾmanu bimā fīhā.

brought by the transmitted practices and the law of the Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, while denying resemblance and definable quiddity, genus and modality. Then the heart rests and conviction becomes tranquil in believing this and surrendering to it through the bestowed light of certainty. This is witnessed only through certainty’s light and knowledge, not intellect’s knowledge and light: a Creator cannot be seen through a creature. Intellect is this world’s mirror, by whose light its contents are witnessed; faith is the hereafter’s mirror, through which one looks upon it and believes in its contents.

وَاللَّهُ تَعَالَى إِنَّمَا يُرَى بِنُورِ الْيَقِينِ، وَفِي هَذَا النُّورِ مُشَاهَدَةُ الصِّفَاتِ وَهُوَ حَقِيقَةُ الْإِيمَانِ، وَأَعَزُّ مَا نَزَلَ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ وَهُوَ السَّكِينَةُ الْمُنَزَّلَةُ فِي قُلُوبِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ لِمَزِيدِ الْإِيمَانِ وَلِتَعْرِيفِ صِفَاتِهِ الْمُؤْمِنَ مَعَهَا بِتَرْكِ ضَرْبِ الْأَخْبَارِ بَعْضِهَا بِبَعْضٍ، وَمُعَارَضَةِ بَعْضِهَا بَعْضًا أَوْ تَرْتِيبِ بَعْضِهَا عَلَى بَعْضٍ، بَلْ يُؤْمِنُ بِكُلِّ خَبَرٍ وَرَدَ فِي الصِّفَاتِ وَالْقُدْرَةِ عَلَى حِدَتِهِ.

wa-Allāhu taʿālā ʾinnamā yurā binūri al-yaqīni, wafī hādhā al-nūri mushāhadatu al-ṣifāti wahuwa ḥaqīqatu al-ʾīmāni, waʾaʿazzu mā nazala mina al-samāʾi wahuwa al-sakīnatu al-munazzalatu fī qulūbi al-muʾminīna limazīdi al-ʾīmāni walitaʿrīfi ṣifātihi al-muʾmina maʿahā bitarki ḍarbi al-ʾakhbāri baʿḍihā bibaʿḍin, wamuʿāraḍati baʿḍihā baʿḍan ʾaw tartībi baʿḍihā ʿalā baʿḍin, bal yuʾminu bikulli khabarin warada fī al-ṣifāti wa-al-qudrati ʿalā ḥidatihi.

God the Exalted is seen only through certainty’s light. Within this light is contemplation of the attributes; it is the reality of faith and the most precious thing sent down from heaven. It is the tranquility sent into believers’ hearts to increase faith and acquaint the believer with His attributes, along with abandoning the practice of setting reports against one another, opposing one with another, or subordinating one to another. Instead, one believes separately in every report received concerning the attributes and power.

كَمَا يُسَلِّمُ جَمِيعَهَا عَلَى الْجُمْلَةِ بِإِسْلَامِهِ وَإِلَّا أَدَّى ذَلِكَ إِلَى نَفْيِ بَعْضِهَا أَوْ إِبْطَالِ جَمِيعِهَا، لِأَنَّا أَخَذْنَا الْإِيمَانَ بِمِنَّةِ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى وَرَحْمَتِهِ مِنْ قِبَلِ التَّصْدِيقِ وَالْيَقِينِ وَالنَّقْلِ، لَا مِنْ قِبَلِ التَّقْلِيدِ وَحُسْنِ الظَّنِّ وَالْعَقْلِ، وَأَرْبَعَةُ أَشْيَاءَ تُسَلَّمُ وَلَا تُعَارَضُ اعْتِرَاضًا: أَخْبَارُ الصِّفَاتِ وَأُصُولُ الْعِبَادَاتِ وَفَضَائِلُ الْأَصْحَابِ وَفَضَائِلُ الْأَعْمَالِ.

kamā yusallimu jamīʿahā ʿalā al-jumlati biʾislāmihi waʾillā ʾaddā dhālika ʾilā nafyi baʿḍihā ʾaw ʾibṭāli jamīʿihā, liʾannā ʾakhadhnā al-ʾīmāna biminnati Allāhi taʿālā waraḥmatihi min qibali al-taṣdīqi wa-al-yaqīni wa-al-naqli, lā min qibali al-taqlīdi waḥusni al-ẓanni wa-al-ʿaqli, waʾarbaʿatu ʾashyāʾa tusallamu walā tuʿāraḍu iʿtirāḍan: ʾakhbāru al-ṣifāti waʾuṣūlu al-ʿibādāti wafaḍāʾilu al-ʾaṣḥābi wafaḍāʾilu al-ʾaʿmāli.

Likewise, through one’s submission one accepts them all collectively. Otherwise, this leads to denying some or nullifying all of them. By God the Exalted’s favor and mercy we received faith through affirmation, certainty, and transmission, not through imitation, favorable supposition, and intellect. Four things are to be accepted without being opposed through objections: reports concerning the attributes, the foundations of worship, the Companions’ merits, and the merits of deeds.

وَلَوْلَا أَنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى تَوَلَّى قُلُوبَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ فَحَبَّبَ الْإِيمَانَ إِلَيْهَا وَزَيَّنَهُ فِيهَا، وَكَرَّهَ الْكُفْرَ وَشَانَهُ عِنْدَهَا، لَتَاهُوا فِي الظُّلُمَاتِ وَغَرِقُوا فِي بِحَارِ الْهَلَكَاتِ لِظُهُورِ الْأَغْيَارِ وَمُعَايَنَةِ الْأَسْبَابِ، وَلِغَيْبِ الْقُدْرَةِ عَنِ الْعِيَانِ، وَلِمَا ابْتُلُوا بِهِ مِنَ الْحُجُبِ وَالْأَعْيَانِ، وَلَكِنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى سَلَّمَ وَحَبَّبَ الْإِيمَانَ فِي الْقُلُوبِ، وَزَيَّنَ وَكَرَّهَ الْكُفْرَ وَالْعِصْيَانَ وَشَيَّنَ، وَكَذَلِكَ مَدَحَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ بِالْغَيْبِ الْمَسْتُورِ.

walawlā ʾanna Allāha taʿālā tawallā qulūba al-muʾminīna faḥabbaba al-ʾīmāna ʾilayhā wazayyanahu fīhā, wakarraha al-kufra washānahu ʿindahā, latāhū fī al-ẓulumāti waghariqū fī biḥāri al-halakāti liẓuhūri al-ʾaghyāri wamuʿāyanati al-ʾasbābi, walighaybi al-qudrati ʿani al-ʿiyāni, walimā ibtulū bihi mina al-ḥujubi wa-al-ʾaʿyāni, wa-lākinna Allāha taʿālā sallama waḥabbaba al-ʾīmāna fī al-qulūbi, wazayyana wakarraha al-kufra wa-al-ʿiṣyāna washayyana, wa-kadhālika madaḥa al-muʾminīna bi-al-ghaybi al-mastūri.

Had God the Exalted not taken charge of believers’ hearts, making faith beloved and beautiful within them, and unbelief hateful and ugly to them, they would have wandered in darkness and drowned in seas of ruin. Other things appear, causes are directly seen, power is hidden from sight, and they are tried by veils and entities. But God the Exalted preserved them, made faith beloved in hearts and adorned it, and made unbelief and disobedience hateful and ugly. Likewise, He praised those who believe in the concealed unseen.

وَمِنْ ذَلِكَ سَبَقَ الْمُقَرَّبُونَ بِمُشَاهَدَةِ النُّورِ فَقَالَ سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى: (اللَّهُ وَلِيُّ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا يُخْرِجُهُمْ مِنَ الظُّلُمَاتِ إِلَى النُّورِ) الْبَقَرَةُ: 257، فَلَوْلَا أَنَّهُمْ كَانُوا فِي ظُلْمَةِ الطَّبْعِ مَا امْتَنَّ عَلَيْهِمْ مِنْ نُورِ الْيَقِينِ، وَكَذَلِكَ جَاءَ الْخَبَرُ أَنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى خَلَقَ الْخَلْقَ فِي ظُلْمَةٍ، ثُمَّ أَلْقَى عَلَيْهِمْ مِنْ نُورِهِ؛ فَمَنْ أَصَابَهُ اهْتَدَى وَمَنْ أَخْطَأَهُ ضَلَّ.

wamin dhālika sabaqa al-muqarrabūna bimushāhadati al-nūri faqāla subḥānahu wataʿālā: (Allāhu waliyyu alladhīna ʾāmanū yukhrijuhum mina al-ẓulumāti ʾilā al-nūri) al-baqaratu: 257, falawlā ʾannahum kānū fī ẓulmati al-ṭabʿi mā imtanna ʿalayhim min nūri al-yaqīni, wa-kadhālika jāʾa al-khabaru ʾanna Allāha taʿālā khalaqa al-khalqa fī ẓulmatin, thumma ʾalqā ʿalayhim min nūrihi; faman ʾaṣābahu ihtadā waman ʾakhṭaʾahu ḍalla.

Through this those brought near advanced by contemplating the light. He, glorified and exalted, said: “God is the protector of those who believe; He brings them from darkness into light” (al-Baqara 2:257). Had they not been in the darkness of natural disposition, He would not have bestowed certainty’s light upon them. Likewise, the report states that God the Exalted created creation in darkness, then cast upon them some of His light. Whoever it reached was guided; whoever it missed went astray.

وَفِي أَحَدِ الْمَعَانِي مِنْ قَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: يَمْحُو اللَّهُ مَا يَشَاءُ وَيُثْبِتُ وَعِنْدَهُ أُمُّ الْكِتَابِ قَالَ: يَمْحُو الْأَسْبَابَ مِنْ قُلُوبِ الْمُوَحِّدِينَ وَيُثْبِتُ نَفْسَهُ، وَيَمْحُو الْوَحْدَانِيَّةَ مِنْ قُلُوبِ النَّاظِرِينَ وَيُثْبِتُ الْأَسْبَابَ وَلَوْلَا أَنَّ التَّوْحِيدَ لَمْ يَرْسُمْهُ عَارِفٌ قَطُّ فِي كِتَابٍ وَلَا كَشَفَهُ عَلَّامٌ فِي خِطَابٍ، لِعَجْزِ عُلُومِ الْعُمُومِ عَنْ دَرَكِ شَهَادَتِهِ، وَلِسَبْقِ إِنْكَارِهِ الْقَوْلَ لِضَعْفِهَا عَنْ حَمْلِ مُكَاشَفَتِهِ، لَذَكَرْنَا مِنْ ذَلِكَ مَا يَبْهَرُ الْقَوْلَ وَيَبْهَتُ ذَوِي الْمَعْقُولِ.

wafī ʾaḥadi al-maʿānī min qawlihi taʿālā: yamḥū Allāhu mā yashāʾu wayuthbitu waʿindahu ʾummu al-kitābi qāla: yamḥū al-ʾasbāba min qulūbi al-muwaḥḥidīna wayuthbitu nafsahu, wayamḥū al-waḥdāniyyata min qulūbi al-nāẓirīna wayuthbitu al-ʾasbāba walawlā ʾanna al-tawḥīda lam yarsumhu ʿārifun qaṭṭu fī kitābin walā kashafahu ʿallāmun fī khiṭābin, liʿajzi ʿulūmi al-ʿumūmi ʿan daraki shahādatihi, walisabqi ʾinkārihi al-qawla liḍaʿfihā ʿan ḥamli mukāshafatihi, ladhakarnā min dhālika mā yabharu al-qawla wayabhatu dhawī al-maʿqūli.

One interpretation of His saying, exalted is He, “God effaces what He wills and establishes, and with Him is the Mother of the Book,” states: He effaces causes from those affirming unity’s hearts and establishes Himself; He effaces oneness from observers’ hearts and establishes causes. Were it not that no knower has ever set down divine unity in a book, nor any deeply learned person unveiled it in an address, because ordinary knowledge cannot apprehend its witnessing and rejection of it precedes speaking of it, owing to their inability to bear its unveiling, we would mention what overwhelms speech and astonishes rational people.

وَلَكِنَّا كَرِهْنَا أَنْ نَبْتَدِعَ مَا لَمْ نُسْبَقْ إِلَيْهِ، أَنْ نُظْهِرَ مَا يَضْطَرِبُ الْعُقُولُ بِالْحَيْرَةِ فِيهِ، خِفْنَا مِنْ عَدَمِ النَّصِيبِ مِمَّا نَذْكُرُهُ، فَيَعُودَ عَلَى السَّامِعِينَ مِنْ نَفْعِنَا ضَرُورَةٌ، وَحَقِيقَةُ عِلْمِ التَّوْحِيدِ بَاطِنُ الْمَعْرِفَةِ، وَهُوَ سَبْقُ الْمَعْرُوفِ إِلَى مَنْ بِهِ تَعَرَّفَ بِصِفَةٍ مَخْصُوصَةٍ بِحَبِيبٍ مُقَرَّبٍ مَخْصُوصٍ لَا يَسَعُ مَعْرِفَةَ ذَلِكَ الْكَافَّةَ، وَإِفْشَاءُ سِرِّ الرُّبُوبِيَّةِ كُفْرٌ. وَقَالَ بَعْضُ الْعَارِفِينَ: مَنْ صَرَّحَ بِالتَّوْحِيدِ وَأَفْشَى الْوَحْدَانِيَّةَ فَقَتْلُهُ أَفْضَلُ مِنْ إِحْيَاءِ غَيْرِهِ، وَقَالَ بَعْضُهُمْ: لِلرُّبُوبِيَّةِ سِرٌّ لَوْ ظَهَرَ لَبَطَلَتِ النُّبُوَّةُ وَلِلنُّبُوَّةِ سِرٌّ لَوْ كُشِفَ بَطَلَ الْعِلْمُ،

wa-lākinnā karihnā ʾan nabtadiʿa mā lam nusbaq ʾilayhi, ʾan nuẓhira mā yaḍṭaribu al-ʿuqūlu bi-al-ḥayrati fīhi, khifnā min ʿadami al-naṣībi mimmā nadhkuruhu, fayaʿūda ʿalā al-sāmiʿīna min nafʿinā ḍarūratun, waḥaqīqatu ʿilmi al-tawḥīdi bāṭinu al-maʿrifati, wahuwa sabqu al-maʿrūfi ʾilā man bihi taʿarrafa biṣifatin makhṣūṣatin biḥabībin muqarrabin makhṣūṣin lā yasaʿu maʿrifata dhālika al-kāffata, waʾifshāʾu sirri al-rubūbiyyati kufrun. waqāla baʿḍu al-ʿārifīna: man ṣarraḥa bi-al-tawḥīdi waʾafshā al-waḥdāniyyata faqatluhu ʾafḍalu min ʾiḥyāʾi ghayrihi, waqāla baʿḍuhum: li-l-rubūbiyyati sirrun law ẓahara labaṭalati al-nubuwwatu wali-l-nubuwwati sirrun law kushifa baṭala al-ʿilmu,

But we disliked innovating where none preceded us, disclosing something that would throw intellects into bewilderment. We feared that listeners would have no share in what we mention, so that our intended benefit would return upon them as distress. The reality of the knowledge of divine unity is knowledge’s inward dimension: the Known One’s preceding approach to the one who comes to know through Him, through an attribute specially reserved for a beloved, specially favored intimate. Knowledge of this is beyond the multitude’s capacity. Disclosing lordship’s secret is unbelief. One of the knowers said: “Whoever states divine unity openly and divulges oneness, killing him is better than reviving another.” Another said: “Lordship has a secret which, if manifested, would invalidate prophethood; prophethood has a secret which, if unveiled, would invalidate knowledge;

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٤٨

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 148

Volume Two, page 148

وَلِلْعُلَمَاءِ بِاللَّهِ سِرٌّ لَوْ أَظْهَرَهُ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى لَبَطَلَتِ الْأَحْكَامُ، فَقِوَامُ الْإِيمَانِ وَاسْتِقَامَةُ الشَّرْعِ بِكَتْمِ السِّرِّ، بِهِ وَقَعَ التَّدْبِيرُ وَعَلَيْهِ انْتَظَمَ الْأَمْرُ وَالنَّهْيُ، اللَّهُ غَالِبٌ عَلَى أَمْرِهِ، وَفَوْقَ ذَلِكَ عِلْمُ التَّوْحِيدِ وَالِاسْمُ مِنْهُ وَحْدَانِيٌّ، فَالتَّوْحِيدُ وَصْفُهُ وَفَوْقَهُ عِلْمُ الْإِتِّحَادِ، فَالْوَصْفُ مِنْهُ مُتَّحِدٌ وَفَوْقَهُمَا عِلْمُ الْوَحْدَانِيَّةِ، وَالِاسْمُ مِنْهُ وَاحِدٌ، وَفَوْقَ ذَلِكَ عِلْمُ الْأَحَدِيَّةِ وَالْإِسْمُ مِنْهُ أَحَدٌ.

wali-l-ʿulamāʾi bi-Allāhi sirrun law ʾaẓharahu Allāhu taʿālā labaṭalati al-ʾaḥkāmu, faqiwāmu al-ʾīmāni wa-stiqāmatu al-sharʿi bikatmi al-sirri, bihi waqaʿa al-tadbīru waʿalayhi intaẓama al-ʾamru wa-al-nahyu, Allāhu ghālibun ʿalā ʾamrihi, wafawqa dhālika ʿilmu al-tawḥīdi wa-al-ismu minhu waḥdāniyyun, fa-al-tawḥīdu waṣfuhu wafawqahu ʿilmu al-ʾittiḥādi, fa-al-waṣfu minhu muttaḥidun wafawqahumā ʿilmu al-waḥdāniyyati, wa-al-ismu minhu wāḥidun, wafawqa dhālika ʿilmu al-ʾaḥadiyyati wa-al-ʾismu minhu ʾaḥadun.

and those who know God possess a secret which, were God the Exalted to manifest it, would invalidate the rulings.” Faith’s stability and the law’s uprightness depend on concealing the secret. Through it governance occurs, and upon it command and prohibition are ordered. God prevails over His affair. Above this is the knowledge of unification, whose name is “unitary”: unification is its description. Above it is the knowledge of being united, whose description is “united.” Above both is the knowledge of oneness, whose name is “One.” Above this is the knowledge of singularity, whose name is “Unique One.”

وَهَذِهِ أَسْمَاءٌ لَهَا صِفَاتٌ، وَأَوْصَافٌ لَهَا أَنْوَارٌ وَأَنْوَارٌ عَنْهَا عُلُومٌ، وَعُلُومٌ لَهُ مُشَاهَدَاتٌ بَعْضُهَا فَوْقَ بَعْضٍ، فَوْقَ كُلِّ ذِي عِلْمٍ عَلِيمٌ، ثُمَّ عِلْمُ التَّوْحِيدِ أَوَّلُ هَذِهِ الْعُلُومِ وَعُمُومُ هَذِهِ الْمُشَاهَدَاتِ، وَظَاهِرُ هَذِهِ الْأَنْوَارِ وَأَقْرَبُهَا إِلَى الْخَلْقِ، فَالِاسْمُ مِنْهُ مُوَحَّدٌ وَهَهُنَا بَانَ الْخَلْقُ وَظَهَرَ، فَهَذَا تَوْحِيدُهُ الَّذِي وَحَّدَهُ بِهِ الْمُوَحِّدُونَ مِنْ جَمِيعِ خَلِيقَتِهِ، فَعَادَ ذَلِكَ عَلَيْهِمْ بِرَحْمَتِهِ.

wa-hādhihi ʾasmāʾun lahā ṣifātun, waʾawṣāfun lahā ʾanwārun waʾanwārun ʿanhā ʿulūmun, waʿulūmun lahu mushāhadātun baʿḍuhā fawqa baʿḍin, fawqa kulli dhī ʿilmin ʿalīmun, thumma ʿilmu al-tawḥīdi ʾawwalu hādhihi al-ʿulūmi waʿumūmu hādhihi al-mushāhadāti, waẓāhiru hādhihi al-ʾanwāri waʾaqrabuhā ʾilā al-khalqi, fa-al-ismu minhu muwaḥḥadun wa-hāhunā bāna al-khalqu waẓahara, fa-hādhā tawḥīduhu alladhī waḥḥadahu bihi al-muwaḥḥidūna min jamīʿi khalīqatihi, faʿāda dhālika ʿalayhim biraḥmatihi.

These are names with attributes, descriptions with lights, lights from which come sciences, and sciences with contemplations of Him, some above others: above every possessor of knowledge is one who knows. The knowledge of unification is the first of these sciences, the general aspect of these contemplations, the outward aspect of these lights and the nearest to creation. Its name is “the One affirmed as one.” Here creation becomes distinct and appears. This is the affirmation of His unity by which those affirming unity throughout His creation affirm Him; it returns upon them through His mercy.

وَالْمُشَاهَدَاتُ الْأُوَلُ تَوْحِيدُ الرَّبِّ تَعَالَى نَفْسَهُ بِنَفْسِهِ لِنَفْسِهِ، قَبْلَ تَوْحِيدِ خَلْقِهِ، فَتَوْحِيدُهُمْ إِيَّاهُ عَنْ تَوْحِيدِهِ فِيمَا كَتَبْنَا عَنْهُ، وَأَخْفَيْنَا فِيمَا أَظْهَرْنَاهُ، فَهُوَ مَحْجُوبٌ فِي خَزَائِنِ الْغُيُوبِ عَنِ الْبَصَائِرِ وَالْفُهُومِ، قَدْ جَاوَزَ عِلْمَ الْمَلَكُوتِ كُلَّهُ، فَهُوَ مِنْ وَرَائِهَا فِي خَزَائِنِ الْجَبَرُوتِ، وَإِنَّمَا ذَكَرْنَا مِنْ ذَلِكَ قُوتَ الْقُلُوبِ مِنْ عِلْمِ التَّوْحِيدِ، وَمَا لَا بُدَّ لِلْإِيمَانِ مِنْهُ مِنَ الْمَزِيدِ.

wa-al-mushāhadātu al-ʾuwalu tawḥīdu al-rabbi taʿālā nafsahu binafsihi linafsihi, qabla tawḥīdi khalqihi, fatawḥīduhum ʾiyyāhu ʿan tawḥīdihi fīmā katabnā ʿanhu, waʾakhfaynā fīmā ʾaẓharnāhu, fahuwa maḥjūbun fī khazāʾini al-ghuyūbi ʿani al-baṣāʾiri wa-al-fuhūmi, qad jāwaza ʿilma al-malakūti kullahu, fahuwa min warāʾihā fī khazāʾini al-jabarūti, waʾinnamā dhakarnā min dhālika qūta al-qulūbi min ʿilmi al-tawḥīdi, wamā lā budda li-l-ʾīmāni minhu mina al-mazīdi.

The first contemplations are the Lord the Exalted’s affirmation of Himself as one, through Himself and for Himself, before His creation’s affirmation of unity. Their affirmation of Him derives from His affirmation, concerning which we have written, concealing within what we revealed. It is veiled from insight and understanding within the treasuries of unseen things. It transcends all knowledge of the kingdom, lying beyond it in the treasuries of divine might. Of this we have mentioned only the nourishment of hearts from the knowledge of divine unity and the increase indispensable to faith.

وَقَالَ عَالِمُنَا أَبُو مُحَمَّدٍ سَهْلٌ رَحِمَهُ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى: لِلْعَالِمِ ثَلَاثَةُ عُلُومٍ؛ عِلْمٌ ظَاهِرٌ يَبْذُلُهُ لِأَهْلِ الظَّاهِرِ، وَعِلْمٌ بَاطِنٌ لَا يَسَعُ إِظْهَارَهُ إِلَّا لِأَهْلِهِ، وَعِلْمٌ هُوَ سِرٌّ بَيْنَ اللَّهِ وَبَيْنَ الْعَالِمِ هُوَ حَقِيقَةُ إِيمَانِهِ، لَا يُظْهِرُهُ لِأَهْلِ الظَّاهِرِ وَلَا لِأَهْلِ الْبَاطِنِ، وَقَالَ بَعْضُ السَّلَفِ قَبْلَهُ: مَا مِنْ عَالِمٍ يُحَدِّثُ قَوْمًا بِعِلْمٍ لَا تَبْلُغُهُ عُقُولُهُمْ إِلَّا كَانَ فِتْنَةً عَلَيْهِمْ.

waqāla ʿālimunā ʾabū muḥammadin sahlun raḥimahu Allāhu taʿālā: li-l-ʿālimi thalāthatu ʿulūmin; ʿilmun ẓāhirun yabdhuluhu liʾahli al-ẓāhiri, waʿilmun bāṭinun lā yasaʿu ʾiẓhārahu ʾillā liʾahlihi, waʿilmun huwa sirrun bayna Allāhi wabayna al-ʿālimi huwa ḥaqīqatu ʾīmānihi, lā yuẓhiruhu liʾahli al-ẓāhiri walā liʾahli al-bāṭini, waqāla baʿḍu al-salafi qablahu: mā min ʿālimin yuḥaddithu qawman biʿilmin lā tablughuhu ʿuqūluhum ʾillā kāna fitnatan ʿalayhim.

Our scholar Abū Muḥammad Sahl, may God the Exalted have mercy on him, said: “A scholar has three sciences: outward knowledge, which he offers to people of the outward; inward knowledge, which he may disclose only to its people; and knowledge that is a secret between God and the scholar, the reality of his faith, which he discloses neither to people of the outward nor to people of the inward.” An earlier predecessor said: “No scholar tells people knowledge beyond their intellects’ reach without its becoming a trial for them.”

شَرْحُ ثَانِي مَا بُنِيَ الْإِسْلَامُ عَلَيْهِ مِنَ الْخَمْسِ: وَهُوَ الصَّلَاةُ

sharḥu thānī mā buniya al-ʾislāmu ʿalayhi mina al-khamsi: wahuwa al-ṣalātu

Explanation of the second of the five foundations upon which Islam is built: prayer

وَأَوَّلُ ذَلِكَ وَصْفُ الطَّهَارَةِ، أَوَّلُهَا فَرَائِضُ الِاسْتِنْجَاءِ وَسُنَنُهُ، وَفَرَائِضُ الْوُضُوءِ وَسُنَنُهُ وَفَضَائِلُهُ، وَفَرَائِضُ الصَّلَاةِ وَسُنَنُهَا وَأَحْكَامُ الْمُصَلِّي فِي وَقْتِ الصَّلَاةِ وَإِدْرَاكِهَا، وَمَا يَتَعَلَّقُ بِهَا وَهَيْئَاتُ الصَّلَاةِ وَآدَابُ الْمُصَلِّي.

waʾawwalu dhālika waṣfu al-ṭahārati, ʾawwaluhā farāʾiḍu al-istinjāʾi wasunanuhu, wafarāʾiḍu al-wuḍūʾi wasunanuhu wafaḍāʾiluhu, wafarāʾiḍu al-ṣalāti wasunanuhā waʾaḥkāmu al-muṣallī fī waqti al-ṣalāti waʾidrākihā, wamā yataʿallaqu bihā wahayʾātu al-ṣalāti waʾādābu al-muṣallī.

This begins with a description of purification: first the obligations and recommended practices of cleansing after relieving oneself; the obligations, recommended practices, and merits of ablution; the obligations and recommended practices of prayer; the rulings for the worshipper concerning prayer’s time and catching it, and related matters; prayer’s forms and the worshipper’s proper conduct.

ذِكْرُ فَرَائِضِ الِاسْتِنْجَاءِ

dhikru farāʾiḍi al-istinjāʾi

An account of the obligations of cleansing after relieving oneself

قَالَ اللَّهُ جَلَّ ثَنَاؤُهُ وَصَدَقَتْ أَنْبَاؤُهُ: (فِيهِ رِجَالٌ يُحِبُّونَ أَنْ يَتَطَهَّرُوا وَاللَّهُ يُحِبُّ الْمُطَّهِّرِينَ) التَّوْبَةُ: 108، وَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: لَا يَقْبَلُ اللَّهُ صَلَاةً بِغَيْرِ طُهُورٍ، وَقَالَ عَلَيْهِ الصَّلَاةُ وَالسَّلَامُ: الطُّهُورُ نِصْفُ الْإِيمَانِ، وَقَالَ: مِفْتَاحُ الصَّلَاةِ الطُّهُورُ، فَأَوَّلُ الطَّهَارَةِ الِاسْتِنْجَاءُ وَفِيهِ فَرْضَانِ وَأَرْبَعُ سُنَنٍ.

qāla Allāhu jalla thanāʾuhu waṣadaqat ʾanbāʾuhu: (fīhi rijālun yuḥibbūna ʾan yataṭahharū wa-Allāhu yuḥibbu al-muṭṭahhirīna) al-tawbatu: 108, waqāla rasūlu Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: lā yaqbalu Allāhu ṣalātan bighayri ṭuhūrin, waqāla ʿalayhi al-ṣalātu wa-al-salāmu: al-ṭuhūru niṣfu al-ʾīmāni, waqāla: miftāḥu al-ṣalāti al-ṭuhūru, faʾawwalu al-ṭahārati al-istinjāʾu wafīhi farḍāni waʾarbaʿu sunanin.

God, majestic is His praise and true His tidings, said: “In it are men who love to purify themselves, and God loves those who purify themselves” (al-Tawba 9:108). God’s Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: “God accepts no prayer without purification.” He said, blessings and peace be upon him: “Purification is half of faith.” He also said: “Purification is the key to prayer.” Purification begins with cleansing after relieving oneself, which has two obligations and four recommended practices.

أَحَدُ الْفَرْضَيْنِ إِزَالَةُ الْحَدَثِ، وَالثَّانِي طَهَارَةُ الْمُزِيلِ، وَهُوَ أَنْ لَا يَكُونَ رَجِيعَ دَابَّةٍ وَلَا مُسْتَعْمَلًا مَرَّةً، وَلَا عَظْمَ مَيْتَةٍ، وَيُكْرَهُ لَهُ الِاسْتِنْجَاءُ بِفَحْمَةٍ لِأَثَرٍ فِي ذَلِكَ، وَالسُّنَنُ الْأَرْبَعُ: وِتْرُ الِاسْتِجْمَارِ ثَلَاثًا أَوْ خَمْسًا أَوْ سَبْعًا، وَالِاسْتِنْجَاءُ بِالْمَاءِ، وَمُبَاشَرَةُ الْأَذَى بِالشِّمَالِ، وَمَسْحُ الْيَدِ بِالتُّرَابِ، فَأَمَّا كَيْفِيَّةُ الْإِسْتِنْجَاءِ فَأَنْ يَأْخُذَ الْحَجَرَ بِشِمَالِهِ وَيُمِرَّهُ عَلَى مُقَدَّمَتِهِ مِنْ مُقَدَّمِهَا مَسْحًا إِلَى مُؤَخَّرِهَا، ثُمَّ يَرْمِيَ بِهِ هُنَاكَ ثُمَّ

ʾaḥadu al-farḍayni ʾizālatu al-ḥadathi, wa-al-thānī ṭahāratu al-muzīli, wahuwa ʾan lā yakūna rajīʿa dābbatin walā mustaʿmalan marratan, walā ʿaẓma maytatin, wayukrahu lahu al-istinjāʾu bifaḥmatin liʾatharin fī dhālika, wa-al-sunanu al-ʾarbaʿu: witru al-istijmāri thalāthan ʾaw khamsan ʾaw sabʿan, wa-al-istinjāʾu bi-al-māʾi, wamubāsharatu al-ʾadhā bi-al-shimāli, wamasḥu al-yadi bi-al-turābi, faʾammā kayfiyyatu al-ʾistinjāʾi faʾan yaʾkhudha al-ḥajara bishimālihi wayumirrahu ʿalā muqaddamatihi min muqaddamihā masḥan ʾilā muʾakhkharihā, thumma yarmiya bihi hunāka thumma

The first obligation is removing the impurity; the second is the purity of what removes it: it must not be animal dung, something already used once, or a dead animal’s bone. Cleansing with charcoal is disliked because of a transmitted report. The four recommended practices are an odd number of stone wipes, three, five, or seven; cleansing with water; handling the filth with the left hand; and wiping the hand with earth. The method is to take a stone in the left hand and pass it over one’s forepart, wiping from its front to its rear, then discard it there. Then

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٤٩

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 149

Volume Two, page 149

يَأْخُذُ الْحَجَرَ الثَّانِي فَيَبْتَدِئُ مِنْ مُؤَخَّرِ الْمَقْعَدَةِ فَيَمْسَحُهَا مَدًّا إِلَى مُقَدَّمِهَا، ثُمَّ يَرْمِي بِهِ، ثُمَّ يَأْخُذُ الْحَجَرَ الثَّالِثَ، فَيُدِيرُهُ حَوْلَ الْمَسْرَبَةِ إِدَارَةً فَإِنِ احْتَاجَ إِلَى حَجَرٍ آخَرَ فَلْيَجْعَلْهَا خَمْسًا، وَإِنِ اكْتَفَى بِحَجَرٍ وَاحِدٍ فَلَا بُدَّ مِنْ ثَلَاثٍ، وَإِنِ اسْتَجْمَرَ بِحَجَرٍ كَبِيرٍ ذِي ثَلَاثِ شُعَبٍ أَجْزَأَهُ عَنْ ثَلَاثَةِ أَحْجَارٍ، وَفِي الْخَبَرِ: مَنِ اسْتَجْمَرَ فَلْيُوتِرْ.

yaʾkhudhu al-ḥajara al-thānī fayabtadiʾu min muʾakhkhari al-maqʿadati fayamsaḥuhā maddan ʾilā muqaddamihā, thumma yarmī bihi, thumma yaʾkhudhu al-ḥajara al-thālitha, fayudīruhu ḥawla al-masrabati ʾidāratan faʾini iḥtāja ʾilā ḥajarin ʾākhara falyajʿalhā khamsan, waʾini iktafā biḥajarin wāḥidin falā budda min thalāthin, waʾini istajmara biḥajarin kabīrin dhī thalāthi shuʿabin ʾajzaʾahu ʿan thalāthati ʾaḥjārin, wafī al-khabari: mani istajmara falyūtir.

he takes the second stone, begins behind the anus, wipes forward to its front, and discards it. He takes the third stone and wipes around the anal opening. If he needs another stone, he should make the total five. Even if one stone suffices, three are required. If he wipes with a large stone having three projections, it suffices in place of three stones. The report says: “Whoever cleanses with stones should use an odd number.”

وَكَانَ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ إِذَا أَرَادَ الْحَاجَةَ أَبْعَدَ، وَكَانَ يَتَبَوَّأُ لِحَاجَتِهِ كَمَا يَتَبَوَّأُ الرَّجُلُ الْمَنْزِلَ لِأَنَّهُ كَانَ لَا يَقْعُدُ فِي فَضَاءٍ، بَلْ كَانَ يَنْصِبُ وَرَاءَهُ شَيْئًا أَوْ يَقْعُدُ إِلَى حَائِطٍ، أَوْ نَشَزٍ مِنَ الْأَرْضِ يَسْتُرُهُ أَوْ كَوْمٍ مِنْ حِجَارَةٍ يَحْجُبُهُ، ثُمَّ يَسْتَدْبِرُ ذَلِكَ، وَكَانَ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ لَا يَسْتَقْبِلُ الْقِبْلَةَ أَيْضًا لِغَائِطٍ وَلَا بَوْلٍ، وَلَمْ يَكُنْ يَرْفَعُ ثَوْبَهُ لِلْغَائِطِ حَتَّى يَدْنُوَ مِنَ الْأَرْضِ.

wakāna ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama ʾidhā ʾarāda al-ḥājata ʾabʿada, wakāna yatabawwaʾu liḥājatihi kamā yatabawwaʾu al-rajulu al-manzila liʾannahu kāna lā yaqʿudu fī faḍāʾin, bal kāna yanṣibu warāʾahu shayʾan ʾaw yaqʿudu ʾilā ḥāʾiṭin, ʾaw nashazin mina al-ʾarḍi yasturuhu ʾaw kawmin min ḥijāratin yaḥjubuhu, thumma yastadbiru dhālika, wakāna ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama lā yastaqbilu al-qiblata ʾayḍan lighāʾiṭin walā bawlin, walam yakun yarfaʿu thawbahu li-l-ghāʾiṭi ḥattā yadnuwa mina al-ʾarḍi.

When he wished to relieve himself, may God bless him and grant him peace, he went far away. He selected a place for it as a man selects a dwelling, for he did not sit in the open. He set something behind him or sat beside a wall, a rise in the ground concealing him, or a heap of stones screening him, then turned his back to it. He also did not face the prayer direction when defecating or urinating, may God bless him and grant him peace, and did not raise his garment for defecation until near the ground.

فَأَمَّا مَنْ أَرَادَ أَنْ يَبُولَ قَرِيبًا مِنْ صَاحِبِهِ بِحَيْثُ يَرَاهُ وَيُحِسُّهُ فَلَا بَأْسَ بِذَلِكَ، فَإِنَّهَا رُخْصَةٌ مِنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ رَفَعَ الْحَيَاءَ مِنْهَا بِفِعْلِهِ، لِأَنَّهُ كَانَ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ أَشَدَّ النَّاسِ حَيَاءً، وَكَانَ يَبُولُ وَإِلَى جَانِبِهِ صَاحِبُهُ لِيَسُنَّ التَّوْسِعَةَ فِي ذَلِكَ، وَقَالَ رَجُلٌ لِبَعْضِ الصَّحَابَةِ مِنَ الْأَعْرَابِ وَقَدْ خَاصَمَهُ فَقَالَ: لَا أَحْسَبُكَ تُحْسِنُ الْخِرَاءَةَ فَقَالَ: بَلَى وَأَبِيكَ إِنِّي بِهَا لَحَاذِقٌ.

faʾammā man ʾarāda ʾan yabūla qarīban min ṣāḥibihi biḥaythu yarāhu wayuḥissuhu falā baʾsa bi-dhālika, faʾinnahā rukhṣatun min rasūli Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama rafaʿa al-ḥayāʾa minhā bifiʿlihi, liʾannahu kāna ʿalayhi al-salāmu ʾashadda al-nāsi ḥayāʾan, wakāna yabūlu waʾilā jānibihi ṣāḥibuhu liyasunna al-tawsiʿata fī dhālika, waqāla rajulun libaʿḍi al-ṣaḥābati mina al-ʾaʿrābi waqad khāṣamahu faqāla: lā ʾaḥsabuka tuḥsinu al-khirāʾata faqāla: balā waʾabīka ʾinnī bihā laḥādhiqun.

If someone wishes to urinate near his companion, where the companion can see and perceive him, there is no harm. This is a concession from God’s Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace: by his action he removed embarrassment about it. Although he, peace be upon him, was the most modest of people, he urinated with his companion beside him, establishing latitude in the matter. A man arguing with a Bedouin Companion said: “I do not think you even know how to defecate.” He replied: “Indeed, by your father, I am expert at it.”

قَالَ فَصِفْهَا لِي قَالَ: أَبْعِدِ الْأَثَرَ وَأَعِدَّ الْمَدَرَ وَاسْتَقْبِلِ الشِّيحَ وَاسْتَدْبِرِ الرِّيحَ وَأَقْعِي إِقْعَاءَ الظَّبْيِ وَأَجْفِلْ إِجْفَالَ النَّعَامِ، وَالشِّيحُ نَبْتٌ طَيِّبُ الرَّائِحَةِ يَكُونُ بِالْبَادِيَةِ، وَالْإِقْعَاءُ فِي هَذَا الْمَوْضِعِ أَنْ يَسْتَوْفِزَ عَلَى صُدُورِ قَدَمَيْهِ وَالْأَجْفَالُ أَنْ يَرْفَعَ عَجُزَهُ. وَفِي حَدِيثِ سَلْمَانَ: عَلَّمَنَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ كُلَّ شَيْءٍ حَتَّى الْخِرَاءَةَ، أَمَرَنَا أَنْ لَا نَسْتَجْمِرَ بِعَظْمٍ وَلَا رَوْثٍ.

qāla faṣifhā lī qāla: ʾabʿidi al-ʾathara waʾaʿidda al-madara wa-staqbili al-shīḥa wa-stadbiri al-rīḥa waʾaqʿī ʾiqʿāʾa al-ẓabyi waʾajfil ʾijfāla al-naʿāmi, wa-al-shīḥu nabtun ṭayyibu al-rāʾiḥati yakūnu bi-al-bādiyati, wa-al-ʾiqʿāʾu fī hādhā al-mawḍiʿi ʾan yastawfiza ʿalā ṣudūri qadamayhi wa-al-ʾajfālu ʾan yarfaʿa ʿajuzahu. wafī ḥadīthi salmāna: ʿallamanā rasūlu Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama kulla shayʾin ḥattā al-khirāʾata, ʾamaranā ʾan lā nastajmira biʿaẓmin walā rawthin.

He said: “Describe it to me.” He replied: “Go far from the trail, prepare clods, face the wormwood, turn your back to the wind, crouch like a gazelle, and rise like an ostrich.” Wormwood is a fragrant desert plant. Crouching here means balancing on the balls of the feet; rising means raising one’s buttocks. In Salmān’s report: “God’s Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, taught us everything, even defecation. He commanded us not to cleanse with bone or dung.”

وَنَهَانَا أَنْ لَا نَسْتَقْبِلَ الْقِبْلَةَ لِبَوْلٍ أَوْ غَائِطٍ، وَأَنْ يَجْلِسَ أَحَدُنَا عَلَى رِجْلِهِ الْيُسْرَى وَيَنْصِبَ الْيُمْنَى، فَأَمَّا وَصْفُ الِاسْتِبْرَاءِ فَهُوَ أَنْ يَسْتَفْرِغَ الرَّجُلُ بَوْلَهُ رُوَيْدًا، وَلَا يُحَرِّكَ ذَكَرَهُ فَيَنْتَشِرَ الْبَوْلُ عَلَى الْحَشَفَةِ، فَإِذَا انْقَطَعَ الْبَوْلُ عَلَى مَهَلٍ مَدَّ ذَكَرَهُ ثَلَاثًا مِنْ أَصْلِهِ إِلَى الْحَشَفَةِ مَدًّا رَفِيقًا، لِئَلَّا يَنْتَضِحَ الْبَوْلُ، ثُمَّ يَنْتَثِرُهُ ثَلَاثًا وَيَتَنَحْنَحُ ثَلَاثًا، وَإِنْ فَعَلَ ذَلِكَ سَبْعًا سَبْعًا فَقَدْ بَالَغَ.

wanahānā ʾan lā nastaqbila al-qiblata libawlin ʾaw ghāʾiṭin, waʾan yajlisa ʾaḥadunā ʿalā rijlihi al-yusrā wayanṣiba al-yumnā, faʾammā waṣfu al-istibrāʾi fahuwa ʾan yastafrigha al-rajulu bawlahu ruwaydan, walā yuḥarrika dhakarahu fayantashira al-bawlu ʿalā al-ḥashafati, faʾidhā inqaṭaʿa al-bawlu ʿalā mahalin madda dhakarahu thalāthan min ʾaṣlihi ʾilā al-ḥashafati maddan rafīqan, liʾallā yantaḍiḥa al-bawlu, thumma yantathiruhu thalāthan wayatanaḥnaḥu thalāthan, waʾin faʿala dhālika sabʿan sabʿan faqad bālagha.

“He forbade us not to face the prayer direction when urinating or defecating, and that one of us should sit upon his left foot and raise the right.” As for ensuring that urine has ceased: a man empties his urine slowly without moving his penis, lest urine spread over the glans. When it gradually ceases, he gently draws along his penis three times from its base to the glans, lest urine splash, then shakes it three times and clears his throat three times. Doing each seven times is thoroughgoing.

ثُمَّ يَأْخُذُ الْحَجَرَ بِيَمِينِهِ وَيَأْخُذُ ذَكَرَهُ بِشِمَالِهِ، وَيَمُدُّهُ عَلَيْهِ حَتَّى يَرَى مَوْقِعَهُ جَافًّا، فَهُنَاكَ طَهُرَ حِينَ انْقَطَعَتِ النَّدَاوَةُ، وَمَنْ مَدَّهُ إِلَى الْأَرْضِ أَوْ إِلَى حَائِطٍ حَتَّى يَرَى الْجُفُوفَ عَنْ أَثَرِهِ، فَمِثْلُهُ وَهَذَا كَافِيهِ مِنَ الْمَاءِ مَا لَمْ يَنْتَشِرِ الْبَوْلُ عَلَى الْحَشَفَةِ وَيُسْتَحَبُّ الْبَوْلُ فِي أَرْضٍ دَمِثَةٍ رَخْوَةٍ، وَعَلَى تُرَابٍ مَهِيلٍ.

thumma yaʾkhudhu al-ḥajara biyamīnihi wayaʾkhudhu dhakarahu bishimālihi, wayamudduhu ʿalayhi ḥattā yarā mawqiʿahu jāffan, fahunāka ṭahura ḥīna inqaṭaʿati al-nadāwatu, waman maddahu ʾilā al-ʾarḍi ʾaw ʾilā ḥāʾiṭin ḥattā yarā al-jufūfa ʿan ʾatharihi, famithluhu wa-hādhā kāfīhi mina al-māʾi mā lam yantashiri al-bawlu ʿalā al-ḥashafati wayustaḥabbu al-bawlu fī ʾarḍin damithatin rakhwatin, waʿalā turābin mahīlin.

He then takes the stone in his right hand and his penis in his left, drawing it over the stone until he sees the contact point dry. There he becomes clean when moisture ceases. Drawing it against earth or a wall until its trace appears dry is equivalent. This suffices instead of water so long as urine has not spread over the glans. Urinating on soft, loose ground and crumbling earth is recommended.

وَيُكْرَهُ لَهُ أَنْ يَبُولَ مُسْتَقْبِلَ الرِّيحِ أَوْ عَلَى أَرْضٍ صُلْبَةٍ كَيْلَا يَنْضَحَ الْبَوْلُ عَلَيْهِ، وَقَدْ شَبَّهَ فُقَهَاءُ الْمَدِينَةِ الذَّكَرَ بِالضَّرْعِ، وَقَالَ بَعْضُهُمْ إِنَّهُ لَا يَزَالُ يَخْرُجُ مِنْهُ الشَّيْءُ بَعْدَ الشَّيْءِ مَا دُمْتَ تَمُدُّهُ، وَقِيلَ: إِذَا وَقَعَ الْمَاءُ عَلَى الذَّكَرِ انْقَطَعَ الْبَوْلُ، وَقَدْ كَانَ أَخَفُّهُمُ اسْتِبْرَاءً وَأَقَلُّهُمْ

wayukrahu lahu ʾan yabūla mustaqbila al-rīḥi ʾaw ʿalā ʾarḍin ṣulbatin kaylā yanḍaḥa al-bawlu ʿalayhi, waqad shabbaha fuqahāʾu al-madīnati al-dhakara bi-al-ḍarʿi, waqāla baʿḍuhum ʾinnahu lā yazālu yakhruju minhu al-shayʾu baʿda al-shayʾi mā dumta tamudduhu, waqīla: ʾidhā waqaʿa al-māʾu ʿalā al-dhakari inqaṭaʿa al-bawlu, waqad kāna ʾakhaffuhumu istibrāʾan waʾaqalluhum

Urinating into the wind or on hard ground is disliked, lest urine splash back upon him. Medina’s jurists likened the penis to an udder. One said: “Something keeps coming out of it so long as you keep drawing along it.” It was said: “When water touches the penis, urine ceases.” Among them, the person least insistent on ensuring that urine had ceased and least

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٥٠

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 150

Volume Two, page 150

اسْتِعْمَالًا لِلْمَاءِ فِي الطُّهُورِ، أَفْقَهُهُمْ عِنْدَهُمْ، وَقَدْ يَكُونُ مَا يَظْهَرُ مِنَ النَّدَاوَةِ بَعْدَ غَسْلِ الذَّكَرِ بِالْمَاءِ أَنَّ ذَلِكَ مِنْ مَرْجِعِ الْمَاءِ يَتَرَدَّدُ فِي الْإِحْلِيلِ لِضِيقِ الْمَسْلَكِ وَتَلَاحُمِ انْضِمَامِهِ عَلَيْهِ فَإِذَا خَشِيَ الْوَسْوَاسَ فَلْيَنْضَحْ فَرْجَهُ بَعْدَ وُضُوئِهِ، وَهُوَ أَنْ يَأْخُذَ كَفًّا مِنْ مَاءٍ فَلْيَرُشَّهُ عَلَيْهِ، وَفِي خَبَرٍ أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فَعَلَهُ، وَيُكْرَهُ مَسُّ الذَّكَرِ بِالْيَمِينِ.

istiʿmālan li-l-māʾi fī al-ṭuhūri, ʾafqahuhum ʿindahum, waqad yakūnu mā yaẓharu mina al-nadāwati baʿda ghasli al-dhakari bi-al-māʾi ʾanna dhālika min marjiʿi al-māʾi yataraddadu fī al-ʾiḥlīli liḍīqi al-maslaki watalāḥumi inḍimāmihi ʿalayhi faʾidhā khashiya al-waswāsa falyanḍaḥ farjahu baʿda wuḍūʾihi, wahuwa ʾan yaʾkhudha kaffan min māʾin falyarushshahu ʿalayhi, wafī khabarin ʾanna al-nabiyya ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama faʿalahu, wayukrahu massu al-dhakari bi-al-yamīni.

prodigal in using water for purification was considered the most learned in law. Moisture appearing after washing the penis with water may be returning water moving within the urethra because the passage is narrow and closes tightly upon it. If he fears obsessive doubt, he should sprinkle his private parts after ablution, taking a handful of water and scattering it over them. A report says the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, did this. Touching the penis with the right hand is disliked.

وَيَخْرُجُ مِنَ الذَّكَرِ خَمْسَةُ أَشْيَاءَ؛ الْبَوْلُ وَالْمَذْيُ وَالْوَدْيُ وَهُوَ لُزُوجَةٌ تَتَعَقَّبُ الْبَوْلَ إِذَا طَالَ حَبْسُهُ، وَالرِّيحُ وَالْمَنِيُّ ثُمَّ كُلُّهَا تُوجِبُ الْوُضُوءَ إِلَّا الْمَنِيَّ، وَهُوَ الْمَاءُ الدَّافِقُ الَّذِي يَفْتُرُ عَنْهُ الذَّكَرُ وَتَنْقَطِعُ الشَّهْوَةُ، وَمِنْهُ يُخْلَقُ الْإِنْسَانُ فَإِنَّهُ يُوجِبُ الْغُسْلَ، وَمَا خَرَجَ مِنَ الذَّكَرِ مِنْ غَيْرِ ذَلِكَ مِنْ دُودٍ أَوْ حَصًى فَفِيهِ الْوُضُوءُ، وَقَدْ يَخْفَى الرِّيحُ، فَلِذَلِكَ يُسْتَحَبُّ الْوُضُوءُ عِنْدَ كُلِّ صَلَاةٍ وَهُوَ مِنَ الْمَرْأَةِ أَطْهَرُ.

wayakhruju mina al-dhakari khamsatu ʾashyāʾa; al-bawlu wa-al-madhyu wa-al-wadyu wahuwa luzūjatun tataʿaqqabu al-bawla ʾidhā ṭāla ḥabsuhu, wa-al-rīḥu wa-al-maniyyu thumma kulluhā tūjibu al-wuḍūʾa ʾillā al-maniyya, wahuwa al-māʾu al-dāfiqu alladhī yafturu ʿanhu al-dhakaru watanqaṭiʿu al-shahwatu, waminhu yukhlaqu al-ʾinsānu faʾinnahu yūjibu al-ghusla, wamā kharaja mina al-dhakari min ghayri dhālika min dūdin ʾaw ḥaṣan fafīhi al-wuḍūʾu, waqad yakhfā al-rīḥu, fali-dhālika yustaḥabbu al-wuḍūʾu ʿinda kulli ṣalātin wahuwa mina al-marʾati ʾaṭharu.

Five things emerge from the penis: urine; preseminal fluid; post-urinary fluid, the viscous discharge following urine when it has been retained a long time; wind; and semen. All require ablution except semen, the gushing fluid after which the penis relaxes and desire ceases, from which the human being is created: it requires full washing. Other things emerging from the penis, such as worms or stones, require ablution. Wind may pass unnoticed; therefore ablution at every prayer is recommended, and it is purer from a woman.

ذِكْرُ فَرَائِضِ الْوُضُوءِ

dhikru farāʾiḍi al-wuḍūʾi

An account of the obligations of ablution

قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: مَنْ تَوَضَّأَ كَمَا أُمِرَ، وَفِي لَفْظٍ: مَنْ تَوَضَّأَ فَأَسْبَغَ الْوُضُوءَ وَصَلَّى رَكْعَتَيْنِ وَلَمْ يُحَدِّثْ فِيهِمَا نَفْسَهُ بِشَيْءٍ مِنَ الدُّنْيَا، خَرَجَ مِنْ ذُنُوبِهِ كَيَوْمِ وَلَدَتْهُ أُمُّهُ، وَفِي لَفْظٍ آخَرَ: وَلَمْ يَسْهُ فِيهِمَا غُفِرَ لَهُ مَا تَقَدَّمَ مِنْ ذَنْبِهِ، وَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: أَلَا أُنَبِّئُكُمْ بِمَا يُكَفِّرُ اللَّهُ الْخَطَايَا بِهِ وَيَرْفَعُ بِهِ الدَّرَجَاتِ: إِسْبَاغُ الْوُضُوءِ فِي الْمَكَارِهِ، وَنَقْلُ الْأَقْدَامِ إِلَى الْمَسَاجِدِ وَانْتِظَارُ الصَّلَاةِ بَعْدَ الصَّلَاةِ، فَذَلِكُمُ الرِّبَاطُ.

qāla rasūlu Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: man tawaḍḍaʾa kamā ʾumira, wafī lafẓin: man tawaḍḍaʾa faʾasbagha al-wuḍūʾa waṣallā rakʿatayni walam yuḥaddith fīhimā nafsahu bishayʾin mina al-dunyā, kharaja min dhunūbihi kayawmi waladathu ʾummuhu, wafī lafẓin ʾākhara: walam yas-hu fīhimā ghufira lahu mā taqaddama min dhanbihi, waqāla rasūlu Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: ʾalā ʾunabbiʾukum bimā yukaffiru Allāhu al-khaṭāyā bihi wayarfaʿu bihi al-darajāti: ʾisbāghu al-wuḍūʾi fī al-makārihi, wanaqlu al-ʾaqdāmi ʾilā al-masājidi wa-ntiẓāru al-ṣalāti baʿda al-ṣalāti, fa-dhālikumu al-ribāṭu.

God’s Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: “Whoever performs ablution as commanded,” or in another wording, “performs ablution thoroughly, then prays two cycles without speaking inwardly of anything worldly, emerges from his sins as on the day his mother bore him.” Another wording says: “Without becoming distracted during them, his previous sins are forgiven.” God’s Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: “Shall I tell you what God uses to expiate sins and raise degrees? Thorough ablution amid hardships, walking to mosques, and awaiting prayer after prayer: that is guarding the frontier.”

وَتَوَضَّأَ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ مَرَّةً مَرَّةً وَقَالَ: هَذَا وُضُوءٌ لَا يَقْبَلُ اللَّهُ الصَّلَاةَ إِلَّا بِهِ، ثُمَّ تَوَضَّأَ مَرَّتَيْنِ مَرَّتَيْنِ فَقَالَ: مَنْ تَوَضَّأَ مَرَّتَيْنِ آتَاهُ اللَّهُ أَجْرَهُ مَرَّتَيْنِ، ثُمَّ تَوَضَّأَ ثَلَاثًا ثَلَاثًا فَقَالَ هَذَا وُضُوئِي وَوُضُوءُ الْأَنْبِيَاءِ قَبْلِي وَوُضُوءُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ.

watawaḍḍaʾa ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama marratan marratan waqāla: hādhā wuḍūʾun lā yaqbalu Allāhu al-ṣalāta ʾillā bihi, thumma tawaḍḍaʾa marratayni marratayni faqāla: man tawaḍḍaʾa marratayni ʾātāhu Allāhu ʾajrahu marratayni, thumma tawaḍḍaʾa thalāthan thalāthan faqāla hādhā wuḍūʾī wawuḍūʾu al-ʾanbiyāʾi qablī wawuḍūʾu ʾibrāhīma ʿalayhi al-salāmu.

He performed ablution washing each part once, may God bless him and grant him peace, and said: “This is the ablution without which God does not accept prayer.” Then he washed each part twice and said: “Whoever performs ablution twice, God gives him his reward twice.” Then he washed each part three times and said: “This is my ablution, the ablution of the prophets before me, and the ablution of Abraham, peace be upon him.”

ذِكْرُ فَرَائِضِ الطَّهَارَةِ

dhikru farāʾiḍi al-ṭahārati

An account of the obligations of purification

وَهِيَ ثَمَانِيَةٌ: طَهَارَةُ الْإِنَاءِ ثُمَّ الْمَاءُ الطَّاهِرُ وَالنِّيَّةُ وَالتَّرْتِيبُ عَلَى نَسَقِ الْكِتَابِ وَغَسْلُ الْأَعْضَاءِ الثَّلَاثَةِ الْمَأْمُورِ بِهَا، وَمَسْحُ الرَّأْسِ، وَلَا يَنْفُضُ يَدَيْهِ بِالْمَاءِ عِنْدَ غَسْلِ وَجْهِهِ وَذِرَاعَيْهِ، فَإِنَّ ذَلِكَ يَكُونُ مَسْحًا، وَلَا يَلْطِمُ وَجْهَهُ بِالْمَاءِ لَطْمًا فَإِنَّهُ مَكْرُوهٌ، وَلَكِنْ لِيَحْمِلِ الْمَاءَ بِيَدَيْهِ مَعًا إِلَى وَجْهِهِ ثُمَّ لِيَسُنَّهُ عَلَيْهِ سَنًّا، وَيَغْسِلُ وَجْهَهُ غَسْلًا مِنْ أُصُولِ شَعْرِ رَأْسِهِ إِلَى مَا ظَهَرَ مِنْ لِحْيَتِهِ وَعَلَى مَا اسْتَرْسَلَ مِنْهَا، وَلْيُدْخِلِ الْبَيَاضَ الَّذِي بَيْنَ أُذُنِهِ وَلِحْيَتِهِ فِي

wahiya thamāniyatun: ṭahāratu al-ʾināʾi thumma al-māʾu al-ṭāhiru wa-al-niyyatu wa-al-tartību ʿalā nasaqi al-kitābi waghaslu al-ʾaʿḍāʾi al-thalāthati al-maʾmūri bihā, wamasḥu al-raʾsi, walā yanfuḍu yadayhi bi-al-māʾi ʿinda ghasli wajhihi wadhirāʿayhi, faʾinna dhālika yakūnu masḥan, walā yalṭimu wajhahu bi-al-māʾi laṭman faʾinnahu makrūhun, wa-lākin liyaḥmili al-māʾa biyadayhi maʿan ʾilā wajhihi thumma liyasunnahu ʿalayhi sannan, wayaghsilu wajhahu ghaslan min ʾuṣūli shaʿri raʾsihi ʾilā mā ẓahara min liḥyatihi waʿalā mā istarsala minhā, walyudkhili al-bayāḍa alladhī bayna ʾudhunihi waliḥyatihi fī

They are eight: a clean vessel, pure water, intention, the sequence given in the Book, washing the three prescribed bodily parts, and wiping the head. He should not shake the water from his hands when washing face and forearms, for that becomes wiping. Nor should he slap his face with water, which is disliked. Rather, he should carry water in both hands to his face and pour it gently over it, washing from the hairline to the visible beard and over its hanging portion. He should include the bare skin between ear and beard in

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٥١

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 151

Volume Two, page 151

غَسْلِ وَجْهِهِ، وَلْيُدْخِلْ مِرْفَقَيْهِ فِي غَسْلِ ذِرَاعَيْهِ، وَهَذَا فَرْضٌ وَيَنْبَغِي أَنْ يَقْطُرَ الْمَاءُ مِنْ وَجْهِهِ وَذِرَاعَيْهِ قَطْرًا، وَيَكْفِيهِ فِي مَسْحِ الرَّأْسِ أَنْ يَمْسَحَهُ بِمَاءٍ جَدِيدٍ يَبْتَدِئُ بِمُقَدَّمِ رَأْسِهِ ثُمَّ يَرُدُّ يَدَهُ إِلَى مُؤَخَّرِهِ، ثُمَّ يَرُدُّهَا إِلَى يَافُوخِهِ هَذِهِ مَرَّةٌ، وَلْيَمْسَحْ رَأْسَهُ أَجْمَعَ وَهَذِهِ الْأَرْبَعَةُ الْأَعْضَاءِ هِيَ الْمَنْصُوصُ عَلَيْهَا.

ghasli wajhihi, walyudkhil mirfaqayhi fī ghasli dhirāʿayhi, wa-hādhā farḍun wayanbaghī ʾan yaqṭura al-māʾu min wajhihi wadhirāʿayhi qaṭran, wayakfīhi fī masḥi al-raʾsi ʾan yamsaḥahu bimāʾin jadīdin yabtadiʾu bimuqaddami raʾsihi thumma yaruddu yadahu ʾilā muʾakhkharihi, thumma yarudduhā ʾilā yāfūkhihi hādhihi marratun, walyamsaḥ raʾsahu ʾajmaʿa wa-hādhihi al-ʾarbaʿatu al-ʾaʿḍāʾi hiya al-manṣūṣu ʿalayhā.

washing his face, and his elbows in washing his forearms; this is obligatory. Water should drip from his face and forearms. For wiping the head, fresh water suffices: he begins at the front, moves his hand back to the rear, then returns it to the crown. This counts as once. He should wipe his entire head. These four bodily parts are those explicitly prescribed.

فَأَمَّا ذِكْرُ الْوَاوِ فِي التَّرْتِيبِ، فَإِنِّي سَمِعْتُ بَعْضَ فُقَهَاءِ الْعَرَبِ مِنْ أَهْلِ اللُّغَةِ بِمَكَّةَ يَقُولُ: إِنَّ الْوَاوَ وَإِنْ كَانَتْ لِلْجَمْعِ فَلَا تَقْتَضِي التَّرْتِيبَ فِي الظَّاهِرِ، فَإِنَّهُ إِذَا لَمْ يُرَدْ بِهِ الْجَمْعُ بَيْنَ شَيْئَيْنِ وَاسْتَحَالَ أَنْ يُجْمَعَ بِهَا بَيْنَ اثْنَيْنِ مَعًا فَإِنَّهَا تَقُومُ حِينَئِذٍ مَقَامَ ثُمَّ، تَكُونُ لِلتَّرْتِيبِ لَا غَيْرُ.

faʾammā dhikru al-wāwi fī al-tartībi, faʾinnī samiʿtu baʿḍa fuqahāʾi al-ʿarabi min ʾahli al-lughati bimakkata yaqūlu: ʾinna al-wāwa waʾin kānat li-l-jamʿi falā taqtaḍī al-tartība fī al-ẓāhiri, faʾinnahu ʾidhā lam yurad bihi al-jamʿu bayna shayʾayni wa-staḥāla ʾan yujmaʿa bihā bayna ithnayni maʿan faʾinnahā taqūmu ḥīnaʾidhin maqāma thumma, takūnu li-l-tartībi lā ghayru.

As for the conjunction wāw in indicating sequence, I heard an Arab jurist versed in language say in Mecca: “Although wāw joins things and outwardly does not require sequence, when joining two things is not intended and combining both simultaneously is impossible, it takes the place of thumma, ‘then,’ indicating sequence alone.”

ذِكْرُ سُنَنِ الْوُضُوءِ

dhikru sunani al-wuḍūʾi

An account of the recommended practices of ablution

وَهِيَ عَشَرَةٌ: التَّسْمِيَةُ وَغَسْلُ الْكَفَّيْنِ وَالْمَضْمَضَةُ وَالِاسْتِنْشَاقُ وَالِاسْتِنْثَارُ وَهُوَ إِخْرَاجُ الْمَاءِ مِنَ الْأَنْفِ، وَتَخْلِيلُ اللِّحْيَةِ وَمَسْحُ الْأُذُنَيْنِ وَغَسْلُ كُلِّ عُضْوٍ ثَلَاثًا ثَلَاثًا، وَأَنْ يَبْدَأَ بِالْمَيَامِنِ وَتَخْلِيلُ أَصَابِعِ الْقَدَمَيْنِ.

wahiya ʿasharatun: al-tasmiyatu waghaslu al-kaffayni wa-al-maḍmaḍatu wa-al-istinshāqu wa-al-istinthāru wahuwa ʾikhrāju al-māʾi mina al-ʾanfi, watakhlīlu al-liḥyati wamasḥu al-ʾudhunayni waghaslu kulli ʿuḍwin thalāthan thalāthan, waʾan yabdaʾa bi-al-mayāmini watakhlīlu ʾaṣābiʿi al-qadamayni.

They are ten: invoking God’s name; washing the hands; rinsing the mouth; drawing water into the nose; expelling it from the nose; passing fingers through the beard; wiping the ears; washing each part three times; beginning with the right sides; and passing fingers between the toes.

ذِكْرُ فَضَائِلِ الطَّهَارَةِ وَمَا يُقَالُ عِنْدَ غَسْلِ كُلِّ عُضْوٍ مِنَ الْأَذْكَارِ

dhikru faḍāʾili al-ṭahārati wamā yuqālu ʿinda ghasli kulli ʿuḍwin mina al-ʾadhkāri

An account of the merits of purification and the remembrances recited when washing each bodily part

أَوَّلُ ذَلِكَ أَنْ يَتَوَضَّأَ قَاعِدًا مَسْتُورَ الْعَوْرَةِ، وَأَنْ لَا يَكُونَ الْمَاءُ مُشَمَّسًا، وَقَدْ كُرِهَ ذَلِكَ وَقِيلَ: إِنَّ كَرَاهِيَتَهُ فِي أَرْضِ الْحِجَازِ خَاصَّةً وَإِسْبَاغُ الْوُضُوءِ سِيَّمَا فِي الشِّتَاءِ، فَإِنَّهُ مِنْ عَزَائِمِ الدِّينِ، وَقَالَ بَعْضُ السَّلَفِ: وُضُوءُ الْمُؤْمِنِ فِي الشِّتَاءِ بِالْمَاءِ الْبَارِدِ يَعْدِلُ عِبَادَةَ الرُّهْبَانِ كُلَّهَا، وَأَنْ لَا يَعْتَدِيَ فِي الطُّهُورِ فَقَدْ نُهِيَ عَنْ ذَلِكَ، وَهُوَ أَنْ يَغْسِلَ كُلَّ عُضْوٍ فَوْقَ الثَّلَاثِ.

ʾawwalu dhālika ʾan yatawaḍḍaʾa qāʿidan mastūra al-ʿawrati, waʾan lā yakūna al-māʾu mushammasan, waqad kuriha dhālika waqīla: ʾinna karāhiyatahu fī ʾarḍi al-ḥijāzi khāṣṣatan waʾisbāghu al-wuḍūʾi siyyamā fī al-shitāʾi, faʾinnahu min ʿazāʾimi al-dīni, waqāla baʿḍu al-salafi: wuḍūʾu al-muʾmini fī al-shitāʾi bi-al-māʾi al-bāridi yaʿdilu ʿibādata al-ruhbāni kullahā, waʾan lā yaʿtadiya fī al-ṭuhūri faqad nuhiya ʿan dhālika, wahuwa ʾan yaghsila kulla ʿuḍwin fawqa al-thalāthi.

First, he should perform ablution seated, his private parts covered, and the water should not be sun-heated. This has been disliked; some say the dislike applies specifically to the Hijaz. He should perform ablution thoroughly, especially in winter, for this belongs to religion’s resolute practices. One predecessor said: “A believer’s winter ablution with cold water equals all the monks’ worship.” He should not exceed bounds in purification, which has been forbidden, meaning washing each part more than three times.

وَالْوُضُوءُ عَلَى الْوُضُوءِ نُورٌ، وَهُوَ أَنْ يَتَوَضَّأَ لِكُلِّ صَلَاةٍ عَنْ غَيْرِ حَدَثٍ، فَإِنَّ ذَلِكَ مُسْتَحَبٌّ إِذَا أَمْكَنَ، وَلَهُ بِكُلِّ وُضُوءٍ عَشْرُ حَسَنَاتٍ، وَيَجْزِيهِ أَنْ يُصَلِّيَ الْخَمْسَ بِوُضُوءٍ وَاحِدٍ، فَقَدْ فَعَلَ ذَلِكَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، وَالْوُضُوءُ عَلَى حِدَتِهِ قُرْبَةٌ إِلَى اللَّهِ تَعَالَى، إِذَا نَوَى بِهِ الْعَبْدُ ذَلِكَ مِنْ غَيْرِ أَنْ يُصَلِّيَ بِهِ، وَفِي الْخَبَرِ: إِذَا تَوَضَّأَ الْعَبْدُ خَرَجَتْ ذُنُوبُهُ مِنْ جَمِيعِ أَعْضَائِهِ، وَتَكُونُ الصَّلَاةُ نَافِلَةً.

wa-al-wuḍūʾu ʿalā al-wuḍūʾi nūrun, wahuwa ʾan yatawaḍḍaʾa likulli ṣalātin ʿan ghayri ḥadathin, faʾinna dhālika mustaḥabbun ʾidhā ʾamkana, walahu bikulli wuḍūʾin ʿashru ḥasanātin, wayajzīhi ʾan yuṣalliya al-khamsa biwuḍūʾin wāḥidin, faqad faʿala dhālika rasūlu Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama, wa-al-wuḍūʾu ʿalā ḥidatihi qurbatun ʾilā Allāhi taʿālā, ʾidhā nawā bihi al-ʿabdu dhālika min ghayri ʾan yuṣalliya bihi, wafī al-khabari: ʾidhā tawaḍḍaʾa al-ʿabdu kharajat dhunūbuhu min jamīʿi ʾaʿḍāʾihi, watakūnu al-ṣalātu nāfilatan.

Ablution upon ablution is light: renewing it for every prayer without having invalidated it. This is recommended when possible; each ablution brings ten good deeds. One ablution suffices for all five prayers, as God’s Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, did. Ablution by itself draws one near God the Exalted when intended as such, even without praying afterward. The report says: “When a servant performs ablution, his sins depart from all his bodily parts, and the prayer becomes an additional benefit.”

وَيُسْتَحَبُّ أَنْ يَتَوَضَّأَ الْعَبْدُ كُلَّمَا بَالَ مَا لَمْ يَشُقَّ ذَلِكَ عَلَيْهِ، وَأَنْ يُصَلِّيَ رَكْعَتَيْنِ كُلَّمَا تَوَضَّأَ، ثُمَّ أَنْ لَا يَتَكَلَّمَ فِي الْوُضُوءِ إِلَّا بِذِكْرِ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى، وَأَنْ يَقُولَ عِنْدَ غَسْلِ كُلِّ عُضْوٍ مَا يُسْتَحَبُّ مِنَ الدُّعَاءِ، فَيَقُولُ عِنْدَ الْفَرَاغِ مِنَ الِاسْتِنْجَاءِ: اللَّهُمَّ طَهِّرْ قَلْبِي مِنَ النِّفَاقِ، وَحَسِّنْ فَرْجِي مِنَ الْفَوَاحِشِ، وَيَقُولُ عِنْدَ التَّسْمِيَةِ: أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ هَمَزَاتِ الشَّيَاطِينِ وَأَعُوذُ بِكَ رَبِّ أَنْ يَحْضُرُونِ،

wayustaḥabbu ʾan yatawaḍḍaʾa al-ʿabdu kullamā bāla mā lam yashuqqa dhālika ʿalayhi, waʾan yuṣalliya rakʿatayni kullamā tawaḍḍaʾa, thumma ʾan lā yatakallama fī al-wuḍūʾi ʾillā bidhikri Allāhi taʿālā, waʾan yaqūla ʿinda ghasli kulli ʿuḍwin mā yustaḥabbu mina al-duʿāʾi, fayaqūlu ʿinda al-farāghi mina al-istinjāʾi: Allāhumma ṭahhir qalbī mina al-nifāqi, waḥassin farjī mina al-fawāḥishi, wayaqūlu ʿinda al-tasmiyati: ʾaʿūdhu bika min hamazāti al-shayāṭīni waʾaʿūdhu bika rabbi ʾan yaḥḍurūni,

A servant is advised to perform ablution whenever he urinates, unless this is burdensome, and pray two cycles whenever he performs ablution. During ablution he should speak only in remembrance of God the Exalted, reciting the recommended supplication for washing each part. After cleansing himself he says: “O God, purify my heart from hypocrisy and make my private parts good, away from indecencies.” When invoking God’s name he says: “I seek refuge in You from the incitements of devils, and I seek refuge in You, my Lord, lest they attend me.”

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٥٢

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 152

Volume Two, page 152

وَيَقُولُ عِنْدَ غَسْلِ يَدَيْهِ: اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَسْأَلُكَ الْيُمْنَ وَالْبَرَكَةَ، وَأَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنَ الشُّؤْمِ وَالْهَلَكَةِ، وَيَقُولُ عِنْدَ الْمَضْمَضَةِ: اللَّهُمَّ أَعِنِّي عَلَى تِلَاوَةِ كِتَابِكَ وَكَثْرَةِ الذِّكْرِ لَكَ، وَيَقُولُ عِنْدَ الِاسْتِنْشَاقِ: اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ عَلَى مُحَمَّدٍ وَأَوْجِدْ لِي رَائِحَةَ الْجَنَّةِ، وَأَنْتَ عَنِّي رَاضٍ، وَيَقُولُ عِنْدَ الِاسْتِنْثَارِ: اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ رَوَائِحِ النَّارِ وَمِنْ سُوءِ الدَّارِ.

wayaqūlu ʿinda ghasli yadayhi: Allāhumma ʾinnī ʾasʾaluka al-yumna wa-al-barakata, waʾaʿūdhu bika mina al-shuʾmi wa-al-halakati, wayaqūlu ʿinda al-maḍmaḍati: Allāhumma ʾaʿinnī ʿalā tilāwati kitābika wakathrati al-dhikri laka, wayaqūlu ʿinda al-istinshāqi: Allāhumma ṣalli ʿalā muḥammadin waʾawjid lī rāʾiḥata al-jannati, waʾanta ʿannī rāḍin, wayaqūlu ʿinda al-istinthāri: Allāhumma ʾinnī ʾaʿūdhu bika min rawāʾiḥi al-nāri wamin sūʾi al-dāri.

When washing his hands he says: “O God, I ask You for good fortune and blessing, and seek refuge in You from ill fortune and destruction.” When rinsing his mouth: “O God, help me recite Your Book and remember You often.” When drawing water into his nose: “O God, bless Muḥammad and grant me the scent of Paradise while You are pleased with me.” When expelling it: “O God, I seek refuge in You from the odors of the Fire and from an evil abode.”

وَيَقُولُ عِنْدَ غَسْلِ وَجْهِهِ: اللَّهُمَّ بَيِّضْ وَجْهِي يَوْمَ تَبْيَضُّ فِيهِ وُجُوهُ أَوْلِيَائِكَ، وَلَا تُسَوِّدْ وَجْهِي يَوْمَ تَسْوَدُّ فِيهِ وُجُوهُ أَعْدَائِكَ، وَعِنْدَ غَسْلِ يَمِينِهِ: اللَّهُمَّ آتِنِي كِتَابِي بِيَمِينِي وَحَاسِبْنِي حِسَابًا يَسِيرًا، وَعِنْدَ غَسْلِ الشِّمَالِ: اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ أَنْ تُؤْتِيَنِي كِتَابِي بِشِمَالِي أَوْ مِنْ وَرَاءِ ظَهْرِي، وَعِنْدَ مَسْحِ الرَّأْسِ: اللَّهُمَّ غَشِّنِي بِرَحْمَتِكَ وَأَنْزِلْ عَلَيَّ مِنْ بَرَكَاتِكَ، وَأَظِلَّنِي تَحْتَ عَرْشِكَ يَوْمَ لَا ظِلَّ إِلَّا ظِلُّكَ.

wayaqūlu ʿinda ghasli wajhihi: Allāhumma bayyiḍ wajhī yawma tabyaḍḍu fīhi wujūhu ʾawliyāʾika, walā tusawwid wajhī yawma taswaddu fīhi wujūhu ʾaʿdāʾika, waʿinda ghasli yamīnihi: Allāhumma ʾātinī kitābī biyamīnī waḥāsibnī ḥisāban yasīran, waʿinda ghasli al-shimāli: Allāhumma ʾinnī ʾaʿūdhu bika ʾan tuʾtiyanī kitābī bishimālī ʾaw min warāʾi ẓahrī, waʿinda masḥi al-raʾsi: Allāhumma ghashshinī biraḥmatika waʾanzil ʿalayya min barakātika, waʾaẓillanī taḥta ʿarshika yawma lā ẓilla ʾillā ẓilluka.

When washing his face: “O God, whiten my face on the day Your friends’ faces turn white, and do not blacken my face on the day Your enemies’ faces turn black.” When washing his right arm: “O God, give me my record in my right hand and grant me an easy reckoning.” When washing the left: “O God, I seek refuge in You from being given my record in my left hand or from behind my back.” When wiping his head: “O God, cover me with Your mercy, send Your blessings upon me, and shade me beneath Your Throne on the day when no shade exists but Yours.”

وَيَقُولُ عِنْدَ مَسْحِ الْأُذُنَيْنِ: اللَّهُمَّ اجْعَلْنِي مِمَّنْ يَسْتَمِعُ الْقَوْلَ فَيَتَّبِعُ أَحْسَنَهُ اللَّهُمَّ اَسْمِعْنِي مُنَادِيَ الْجَنَّةِ مَعَ الْأَبْرَارِ، ثُمَّ يَمْسَحُ عُنُقَهُ فَيَقُولُ: اللَّهُمَّ فُكَّ رَقَبَتِي مِنَ النَّارِ، وَأَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنَ السَّلَاسِلِ وَالْأَغْلَالِ، وَيَقُولُ عِنْدَ غَسْلِ قَدَمِهِ الْيُمْنَى: اللَّهُمَّ ثَبِّتْ قَدَمِي عَلَى الصِّرَاطِ مَعَ أَقْدَامِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ، وَيَقُولُ عِنْدَ غَسْلِ الْيُسْرَى: اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ أَنْ تَنْزِلَ قَدَمِي عَنِ الصِّرَاطِ يَوْمَ تَنْزِلُ فِيهِ أَقْدَامُ الْمُنَافِقِينَ.

wayaqūlu ʿinda masḥi al-ʾudhunayni: Allāhumma ijʿalnī mimman yastamiʿu al-qawla fayattabiʿu ʾaḥsanahu Allāhumma ʾasmiʿnī munādiya al-jannati maʿa al-ʾabrāri, thumma yamsaḥu ʿunuqahu fayaqūlu: Allāhumma fukka raqabatī mina al-nāri, waʾaʿūdhu bika mina al-salāsili wa-al-ʾaghlāli, wayaqūlu ʿinda ghasli qadamihi al-yumnā: Allāhumma thabbit qadamī ʿalā al-ṣirāṭi maʿa ʾaqdāmi al-muʾminīna, wayaqūlu ʿinda ghasli al-yusrā: Allāhumma ʾinnī ʾaʿūdhu bika ʾan tanzila qadamī ʿani al-ṣirāṭi yawma tanzilu fīhi ʾaqdāmu al-munāfiqīna.

When wiping his ears: “O God, make me one of those who listen to speech and follow its best. O God, let me hear Paradise’s herald with the righteous.” Then he wipes his neck and says: “O God, free my neck from the Fire. I seek refuge in You from chains and shackles.” When washing his right foot: “O God, make my foot firm upon the bridge with the believers’ feet.” When washing the left: “O God, I seek refuge in You lest my foot fall from the bridge on the day the hypocrites’ feet fall.”

وَأَنْ يَبْتَدِئَ بِغَسْلِ الذِّرَاعَيْنِ مِنْ أَصَابِعِ الْكَفَّيْنِ وَيَقْطَعَ مِنَ الْمِرْفَقَيْنِ كُلَّ غَسْلَةٍ، وَأَنْ يَرْفَعَ فِي غَسْلِ الذِّرَاعَيْنِ إِلَى أَنْصَافِ الْعَضُدَيْنِ، وَأَنْ يَبْتَدِئَ بِغَسْلِ الْقَدَمَيْنِ مِنَ الْأَصَابِعِ وَيُخَلِّلَهُمَا فِي الْمَيَامِنِ وَيَقْطَعَ غَسْلَهُمَا مِنَ الْكَعْبَيْنِ، وَيَرْفَعَ فِي غَسْلِ الرِّجْلَيْنِ إِلَى أَنْصَافِ السَّاقَيْنِ وَيَمِينُ أَصَابِعِ الْيَدِ الْيُمْنَى خِنْصَرُهُمَا، وَيَمِينُ الْيَدِ الْيُسْرَى إِبْهَامُهَا.

waʾan yabtadiʾa bighasli al-dhirāʿayni min ʾaṣābiʿi al-kaffayni wayaqṭaʿa mina al-mirfaqayni kulla ghaslatin, waʾan yarfaʿa fī ghasli al-dhirāʿayni ʾilā ʾanṣāfi al-ʿaḍudayni, waʾan yabtadiʾa bighasli al-qadamayni mina al-ʾaṣābiʿi wayukhallilahumā fī al-mayāmini wayaqṭaʿa ghaslahumā mina al-kaʿbayni, wayarfaʿa fī ghasli al-rijlayni ʾilā ʾanṣāfi al-sāqayni wayamīnu ʾaṣābiʿi al-yadi al-yumnā khinṣaruhumā, wayamīnu al-yadi al-yusrā ʾibhāmuhā.

He should begin washing the forearms at the fingertips and finish each washing at the elbows, extending the forearm washing halfway up the upper arms. He should begin washing the feet at the toes, pass between them starting at the right, and finish at the ankles, extending the washing of the legs halfway up the shins. The rightmost of the right hand’s fingers is their little finger, and the rightmost of the left hand is its thumb.

وَإِذَا فَرَغَ مِنْ وُضُوئِهِ رَفَعَ رَأْسَهُ إِلَى السَّمَاءِ ثُمَّ قَالَ: أَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ، وَأَشْهَدُ أَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُولُهُ، سُبْحَانَكَ وَبِحَمْدِكَ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا أَنْتَ، عَمِلْتُ سُوءًا وَظَلَمْتُ نَفْسِي، أَسْتَغْفِرُكَ وَأَتُوبُ إِلَيْكَ فَاغْفِرْ لِي وَتُبْ عَلَيَّ إِنَّكَ أَنْتَ التَّوَّابُ الرَّحِيمُ، اللَّهُمَّ اجْعَلْنِي مِنَ التَّوَّابِينَ وَاجْعَلْنِي مِنَ الْمُتَطَهِّرِينَ، وَاجْعَلْنِي شَكُورًا وَاجْعَلْنِي أَذْكُرُكَ كَثِيرًا، وَأُسَبِّحُكَ بُكْرَةً وَأَصِيلًا.

waʾidhā faragha min wuḍūʾihi rafaʿa raʾsahu ʾilā al-samāʾi thumma qāla: ʾashhadu ʾan lā ʾilāha ʾillā Allāhu waḥdahu lā sharīka lahu, waʾashhadu ʾanna muḥammadan ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama ʿabduhu warasūluhu, subḥānaka wabiḥamdika lā ʾilāha ʾillā ʾanta, ʿamiltu sūʾan waẓalamtu nafsī, ʾastaghfiruka waʾatūbu ʾilayka fa-ghfir lī watub ʿalayya ʾinnaka ʾanta al-tawwābu al-raḥīmu, Allāhumma ijʿalnī mina al-tawwābīna wa-jʿalnī mina al-mutaṭahhirīna, wa-jʿalnī shakūran wa-jʿalnī ʾadhkuruka kathīran, waʾusabbiḥuka bukratan waʾaṣīlan.

When he finishes ablution, he raises his head toward heaven and says: “I testify that there is no god but God alone, without partner, and that Muḥammad, may God bless him and grant him peace, is His servant and Messenger. Glory and praise to You; there is no god but You. I have done wrong and wronged myself. I seek Your forgiveness and turn to You: forgive me and turn toward me, for You are the Relenting, the Merciful. O God, make me one who repents, one who purifies himself, and one who is grateful. Make me remember You often and glorify You morning and evening.”

هَذَا جَمِيعُ مَا رُوِيَ مِنَ الْقَوْلِ بَعْدَ الْفَرَاغِ مِنَ الْوُضُوءِ بِآثَارٍ مُتَفَرِّقَةٍ جَمَعْنَاهَا، يُقَالُ إِنَّ مَنْ قَالَ هَذَا بَعْدَ فَرَاغِهِ مِنَ الْوُضُوءِ خُتِمَ عَلَى وُضُوئِهِ بِخَاتَمٍ، وَرُفِعَ لَهُ تَحْتَ الْعَرْشِ، فَلَمْ يَزَلْ يُسَبِّحُ اللَّهَ وَيُقَدِّسُهُ وَيُكْتَبُ لَهُ ثَوَابُ ذَلِكَ إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ، وَأَكْرَهُ الْوُضُوءَ فِي إِنَاءِ صُفْرٍ، سَمِعْتُ أَنَّ الْعَبْدَ إِذَا تَوَضَّأَ احْتَوَشَتْهُ الشَّيَاطِينُ تُوَسْوِسُ إِلَيْهِ، فَإِذَا ذَكَرَ اللَّهَ خَنَسَتْ عَنْهُ وَحَضَرَتْهُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ.

hādhā jamīʿu mā ruwiya mina al-qawli baʿda al-farāghi mina al-wuḍūʾi biʾāthārin mutafarriqatin jamaʿnāhā, yuqālu ʾinna man qāla hādhā baʿda farāghihi mina al-wuḍūʾi khutima ʿalā wuḍūʾihi bikhātamin, warufiʿa lahu taḥta al-ʿarshi, falam yazal yusabbiḥu Allāha wayuqaddisuhu wayuktabu lahu thawābu dhālika ʾilā yawmi al-qiyāmati, waʾakrahu al-wuḍūʾa fī ʾināʾi ṣufrin, samiʿtu ʾanna al-ʿabda ʾidhā tawaḍḍaʾa iḥtawashathu al-shayāṭīnu tuwaswisu ʾilayhi, faʾidhā dhakara Allāha khanasat ʿanhu waḥaḍarathu al-malāʾikatu.

These are all the sayings transmitted for after ablution in separate reports, which we have gathered. It is said that whoever says this after ablution has his ablution sealed and raised beneath the Throne, where it continues glorifying and sanctifying God, its reward recorded for him until Resurrection Day. I dislike ablution from a brass vessel. I heard that when a servant performs ablution, devils surround him, whispering to him. When he remembers God, they withdraw and angels attend him.

فَإِنْ كَانَ وُضُوءُهُ فِي إِنَاءِ صُفْرٍ أَوْ نُحَاسٍ لَمْ تَحْضُرْهُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ. وَرُوِيَ عَنِ ابْنِ عُمَرَ وَأَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ كَرَاهَةُ ذَلِكَ، وَقَالَ بَعْضُهُمْ: سَأَلَنِي شُعْبَةُ أَنْ أُخْرِجَ لَهُ وَضُوءًا، فَأَخْرَجْتُهُ فِي إِنَاءِ صُفْرٍ فَلَمْ يَتَوَضَّأْ بِهِ، وَقَالَ حَدَّثَنِي عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ دِينَارٍ عَنِ ابْنِ عُمَرَ أَنَّهُ كَرِهَ الْوُضُوءَ فِي إِنَاءِ صُفْرٍ، وَتَوَضَّأَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ مِنْ رَكْوَةٍ وَمِنْ إِدَاوَةٍ وَمِنْ مِهْرَاسِ حَجَرٍ. وَقَدْ رَوَيْنَا فِي حَدِيثِ زَيْنَبَ بِنْتِ جَحْشٍ أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ تَوَضَّأَ وَاغْتَسَلَ، فِي

faʾin kāna wuḍūʾuhu fī ʾināʾi ṣufrin ʾaw nuḥāsin lam taḥḍurhu al-malāʾikatu. waruwiya ʿani ibni ʿumara waʾabī hurayrata karāhatu dhālika, waqāla baʿḍuhum: saʾalanī shuʿbatu ʾan ʾukhrija lahu waḍūʾan, faʾakhrajtuhu fī ʾināʾi ṣufrin falam yatawaḍḍaʾ bihi, waqāla ḥaddathanī ʿabdu Allāhi bnu dīnārin ʿani ibni ʿumara ʾannahu kariha al-wuḍūʾa fī ʾināʾi ṣufrin, watawaḍḍaʾa rasūlu Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama min rakwatin wamin ʾidāwatin wamin mihrāsi ḥajarin. waqad rawaynā fī ḥadīthi zaynaba binti jaḥshin ʾanna rasūla Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama tawaḍḍaʾa wa-ghtasala, fī

If his ablution is from a brass or copper vessel, the angels do not attend him. Dislike of this was transmitted from Ibn ʿUmar and Abū Hurayra. Someone said: “Shuʿba asked me to bring him ablution water. I brought it in a brass vessel, and he did not use it. He said: ‘ʿAbd Allāh ibn Dīnār related to me from Ibn ʿUmar that he disliked ablution from a brass vessel.’” God’s Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, performed ablution from a leather bowl, a leather water vessel, and a stone basin. We transmitted in Zaynab bint Jaḥsh’s report that God’s Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, performed ablution and full washing, in

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٥٣

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 153

Volume Two, page 153

حَدِيثٍ آخَرَ مِنْ مِخْضَبٍ لَهَا وَهُوَ نُحَاسٌ وَهَذِهِ رُخْصَةٌ.

ḥadīthin ʾākhara min mikhḍabin lahā wahuwa nuḥāsun wa-hādhihi rukhṣatun.

another report, from a washbasin belonging to her, made of copper. This is a concession.

صِفَةُ الْغُسْلِ مِنَ الْجَنَابَةِ

ṣifatu al-ghusli mina al-janābati

Description of full washing after major ritual impurity

يَضَعُ الْإِنَاءَ عَنْ يَمِينِهِ ثُمَّ يُسَمِّي اللَّهَ تَعَالَى، وَيُفْرِغُ الْمَاءَ عَلَى يَدَيْهِ ثَلَاثًا قَبْلَ إِدْخَالِهِمَا الْإِنَاءَ ثُمَّ يَغْسِلُ ذَكَرَهُ وَيَسْتَنْجِي، ثُمَّ يَتَوَضَّأُ وُضُوءَهُ لِلصَّلَاةِ كَامِلًا إِلَّا غَسْلَ قَدَمَيْهِ، ثُمَّ يُدْخِلُ يَدَيْهِ فِي الْإِنَاءِ بِمَا حَمَلَتَا مِنَ الْمَاءِ فَيَصُبُّ عَلَى شِقِّهِ الْأَيْمَنِ ثَلَاثًا ظَهْرًا وَبَطْنًا إِلَى فَخِذِهِ وَسَاقِهِ، ثُمَّ يَغْسِلُ شِقَّهُ الْأَيْسَرَ كَذَلِكَ ثَلَاثًا ظَهْرَهُ وَبَطْنَهُ إِلَى فَخِذِهِ وَسَاقِهِ، وَيَدْلُكُ مَا أَقْبَلَ مِنْ جَسَدِهِ وَمَا أَدْبَرَ بِيَدَيْهِ مَعًا.

yaḍaʿu al-ʾināʾa ʿan yamīnihi thumma yusammī Allāha taʿālā, wayufrighu al-māʾa ʿalā yadayhi thalāthan qabla ʾidkhālihimā al-ʾināʾa thumma yaghsilu dhakarahu wayastanjī, thumma yatawaḍḍaʾu wuḍūʾahu li-l-ṣalāti kāmilan ʾillā ghasla qadamayhi, thumma yudkhilu yadayhi fī al-ʾināʾi bimā ḥamalatā mina al-māʾi fayaṣubbu ʿalā shiqqihi al-ʾaymani thalāthan ẓahran wabaṭnan ʾilā fakhidhihi wasāqihi, thumma yaghsilu shiqqahu al-ʾaysara kadhālika thalāthan ẓahrahu wabaṭnahu ʾilā fakhidhihi wasāqihi, wayadluku mā ʾaqbala min jasadihi wamā ʾadbara biyadayhi maʿan.

He places the vessel to his right, invokes God the Exalted’s name, and pours water over his hands three times before putting them into the vessel. He washes his penis and cleanses himself, then performs the complete ablution for prayer except for washing his feet. He puts his hands into the vessel and pours the water they hold three times over his right side, back and front, down to thigh and shin. He likewise washes his left side three times, back and front, down to thigh and shin, rubbing the front and back of his body with both hands together.

ثُمَّ يُدْخِلُ يَدَيْهِ بِمَا حَمَلَتَا مِنَ الْمَاءِ فَيُفِيضُ عَلَى رَأْسِهِ ثَلَاثًا وَيُخَلِّلُ شَعْرَ رَأْسِهِ بِأَصَابِعِهِ وَيَبُلُّ الشَّعْرَ وَيُنَقِّي الْبَشَرَةَ، ثُمَّ يَتَنَحَّى مِنْ مَوْضِعِهِ قَلِيلًا فَيَغْسِلُ قَدَمَيْهِ، فَإِنْ فَضَلَ مِنَ الْإِنَاءِ مَاءٌ أَفَاضَهُ عَلَى سَائِرِ جَسَدِهِ، وَأَمَرَّ يَدَيْهِ عَلَى مَا أَدْرَكَتَا مِنْ بَدَنِهِ؛ فَإِنْ قَدَّمَ غَسْلَ رِجْلَيْهِ فَأَدْخَلَهُمَا فِي أَوَّلِ وُضُوئِهِ فَلَا بَأْسَ وَلَا وُضُوءَ عَلَيْهِ بَعْدَ الْغُسْلِ.

thumma yudkhilu yadayhi bimā ḥamalatā mina al-māʾi fayufīḍu ʿalā raʾsihi thalāthan wayukhallilu shaʿra raʾsihi biʾaṣābiʿihi wayabullu al-shaʿra wayunaqqī al-basharata, thumma yatanaḥḥā min mawḍiʿihi qalīlan fayaghsilu qadamayhi, faʾin faḍala mina al-ʾināʾi māʾun ʾafāḍahu ʿalā sāʾiri jasadihi, waʾamarra yadayhi ʿalā mā ʾadrakatā min badanihi; faʾin qaddama ghasla rijlayhi faʾadkhalahumā fī ʾawwali wuḍūʾihi falā baʾsa walā wuḍūʾa ʿalayhi baʿda al-ghusli.

He then inserts his hands, takes the water they hold, and pours it over his head three times, passing his fingers through his hair, wetting the hair and cleaning the skin. He moves slightly away and washes his feet. Any water remaining in the vessel he pours over the rest of his body, passing his hands over whatever they reach. If he washed his feet earlier, including them in his initial ablution, there is no harm. No ablution is required after full washing.

وَلْيَتَّقِ أَنْ يَمَسَّ ذَكَرَهُ فِي تَضَاعِيفِ ذَلِكَ بِيَدَيْهِ، فَإِنْ مَسَّ ذَكَرَهُ فَلْيُعِدْ وُضُوءَهُ وَإِنْ نَسِيَ الْمَضْمَضَةَ وَالِاسْتِنْشَاقَ فِي غُسْلِ الْجَنَابَةِ حَتَّى صَلَّى أَحْبَبْتُ أَنْ يَتَمَضْمَضَ وَيَسْتَنْشِقَ وَيُعِيدَ الصَّلَاةَ، وَإِنْ نَسِيَهُمَا فِي الْوُضُوءِ فَلَا إِعَادَةَ عَلَيْهِ، وَكَيْفَمَا أَتَى بِغَسْلِ جَسَدِهِ مِنَ الْجَنَابَةِ فَجَائِزٌ بَعْدَ أَنْ يَعُمَّ جَمِيعَ بَدَنِهِ غَسْلًا، وَمَنْ لَمْ يَتَوَضَّأْ قَبْلَ الْغُسْلِ أَحْبَبْتُ لَهُ أَنْ يَتَوَضَّأَ بَعْدَهُ، وَمَنِ انْغَمَسَ فِي نَهْرٍ أَجْزَاهُ عَنِ الْغُسْلِ وَأُحِبُّ أَنْ يَتَوَضَّأَ وَفَرْضُ غُسْلِ الْمَيِّتِ كَغُسْلِ الْجَنَابَةِ.

walyattaqi ʾan yamassa dhakarahu fī taḍāʿīfi dhālika biyadayhi, faʾin massa dhakarahu falyuʿid wuḍūʾahu waʾin nasiya al-maḍmaḍata wa-al-istinshāqa fī ghusli al-janābati ḥattā ṣallā ʾaḥbabtu ʾan yatamaḍmaḍa wayastanshiqa wayuʿīda al-ṣalāta, waʾin nasiyahumā fī al-wuḍūʾi falā ʾiʿādata ʿalayhi, wakayfamā ʾatā bighasli jasadihi mina al-janābati fajāʾizun baʿda ʾan yaʿumma jamīʿa badanihi ghaslan, waman lam yatawaḍḍaʾ qabla al-ghusli ʾaḥbabtu lahu ʾan yatawaḍḍaʾa baʿdahu, wamani inghamasa fī nahrin ʾajzāhu ʿani al-ghusli waʾuḥibbu ʾan yatawaḍḍaʾa wafarḍu ghusli al-mayyiti kaghusli al-janābati.

He should avoid touching his penis with his hands during this; if he does, he should repeat ablution. If he forgets mouth-rinsing and drawing water into the nose during washing for major impurity until after praying, I prefer that he do both and repeat the prayer. If he forgets them during ablution, no repetition is required. Any manner of washing for major impurity is valid provided it covers the whole body. For someone who did not perform ablution first, I prefer ablution afterward. Immersion in a river suffices for full washing, though I prefer ablution too. The obligatory washing of a corpse is like washing for major impurity.

كِتَابُ الصَّلَاةِ

kitābu al-ṣalāti

The Book of Prayer

ذِكْرُ فَرَائِضِ الصَّلَاةِ قَبْلَ الدُّخُولِ فِيهَا

dhikru farāʾiḍi al-ṣalāti qabla al-dukhūli fīhā

An account of prayer’s obligations before entering it

وَهِيَ سَبْعٌ: أَوَّلُ ذَلِكَ طَهَارَةُ الْجَسَدِ، وَطَهَارَةُ الثَّوْبِ وَطَهَارَةُ الْبُقْعَةِ، وَسَتْرُ الْعَوْرَةِ وَهِيَ مِنَ السُّرَّةِ إِلَى الرُّكْبَةِ، وَاسْتِقْبَالُ الْقِبْلَةِ وَإِصَابَةُ الْوَقْتِ، وَالْقِيَامُ إِلَّا مِنْ عُذْرٍ، وَفَرَائِضُ الصَّلَاةِ فِي صُلْبِهَا اثْنَتَا عَشْرَةَ خَصْلَةً، رَوَيْنَا عَنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: مِفْتَاحُ الْجَنَّةِ الصَّلَاةُ، وَرُوِيَ عَنْهُ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: تَحْرِيمُهَا التَّكْبِيرُ وَتَحْلِيلُهَا التَّسْلِيمُ.

wahiya sabʿun: ʾawwalu dhālika ṭahāratu al-jasadi, waṭahāratu al-thawbi waṭahāratu al-buqʿati, wasatru al-ʿawrati wahiya mina al-surrati ʾilā al-rukbati, wa-stiqbālu al-qiblati waʾiṣābatu al-waqti, wa-al-qiyāmu ʾillā min ʿudhrin, wafarāʾiḍu al-ṣalāti fī ṣulbihā ithnatā ʿashrata khaṣlatan, rawaynā ʿan rasūli Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: miftāḥu al-jannati al-ṣalātu, waruwiya ʿanhu ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: taḥrīmuhā al-takbīru wataḥlīluhā al-taslīmu.

They are seven: bodily purity, clean clothing, a clean place, covering the private area from navel to knee, facing the prayer direction, observing the proper time, and standing unless excused. Within prayer itself there are twelve obligatory elements. We transmitted from God’s Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace: “Prayer is the key to Paradise.” It was also transmitted from him, may God bless him and grant him peace: “The declaration of God’s greatness makes its prohibitions binding, and the greeting of peace releases them.”

فَأَوَّلُ ذَلِكَ النِّيَّةُ وَتَكْبِيرَةُ الْإِحْرَامِ بِلَفْظِ التَّكْبِيرِ، وَلَيْسَ لِلْعَرَبِ فِي لَفْظِ التَّكْبِيرِ بِمَعْنَى الْإِكْبَارِ إِلَّا وَزْنُ أَفْعَلَ وَالْأَفْعَلِ فَيَقُولُونَ: اللَّهُ أَكْبَرُ وَاللَّهُ الْأَكْبَرُ، وَلَيْسَ يَقُولُونَ: اللَّهُ كَبِيرٌ، وَهُمْ يُرِيدُونَ مَعْنَى أَكْبَرَ مِمَّا سِوَاهُ، إِنَّمَا

faʾawwalu dhālika al-niyyatu watakbīratu al-ʾiḥrāmi bilafẓi al-takbīri, walaysa li-l-ʿarabi fī lafẓi al-takbīri bimaʿnā al-ʾikbāri ʾillā waznu ʾafʿala wa-al-ʾafʿali fayaqūlūna: Allāhu ʾakbaru wa-Allāhu al-ʾakbaru, walaysa yaqūlūna: Allāhu kabīrun, wahum yurīdūna maʿnā ʾakbara mimmā siwāhu, ʾinnamā

First come intention and the opening declaration of consecration using the formula of magnification. For magnification in the sense of declaring greatness, the Arabs have only the patterns afʿal and al-afʿal: they say “God is greater” and “God is the greatest.” They do not say “God is great” while intending “greater than everything else.” They only

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٥٤

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 154

Volume Two, page 154

يَقُولُونَ كَبِيرٌ بِمَعْنَى عَظِيمٍ لِأَنَّ هَذِهِ لَفْظَةٌ أَعْجَمِيَّةٌ عُرِّبَتْ، وَتَقُولُ الْعَرَبُ: اللَّهُ كُبَّارٌ، وَلَيْسَ بِمَعْنَى أَكْبَرَ إِنَّمَا هُوَ بِمَعْنَى كَبِيرٍ، وَالتَّفْخِيمُ لِلتَّعْظِيمِ، ثُمَّ يَقْرَأُ سُورَةَ الْحَمْدِ؛ أَوَّلُهَا بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ، وَالرُّكُوعُ، ثُمَّ الطُّمَأْنِينَةُ فِي السُّجُودِ وَالْجَلْسَةُ بَيْنَ السَّجْدَتَيْنِ وَالتَّشَهُّدُ الْأَخِيرُ، وَالصَّلَاةُ عَلَى مُحَمَّدٍ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ وَالتَّسْلِيمُ الْأَوَّلُ.

yaqūlūna kabīrun bimaʿnā ʿaẓīmin liʾanna hādhihi lafẓatun ʾaʿjamiyyatun ʿurribat, wataqūlu al-ʿarabu: Allāhu kubbārun, walaysa bimaʿnā ʾakbara ʾinnamā huwa bimaʿnā kabīrin, wa-al-tafkhīmu li-l-taʿẓīmi, thumma yaqraʾu sūrata al-ḥamdi; ʾawwaluhā bismi Allāhi al-raḥmāni al-raḥīmi, wa-al-rukūʿu, thumma al-ṭumaʾnīnatu fī al-sujūdi wa-al-jalsatu bayna al-sajdatayni wa-al-tashahhudu al-ʾakhīru, wa-al-ṣalātu ʿalā muḥammadin ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama wa-al-taslīmu al-ʾawwalu.

say kabīr, “great,” meaning ʿaẓīm, “mighty,” because this is a foreign expression made Arabic. Arabs also say “God is exceedingly great,” kubbār, which does not mean “greater,” but “great,” with intensification for magnification. Then he recites the Sura of Praise, beginning “In the name of God, the All-Merciful, the Merciful”; then bowing, tranquility in prostration, sitting between the two prostrations, the final testimony, invoking blessings upon Muḥammad, may God bless him and grant him peace, and the first greeting of peace.

وَرَوَيْنَا عَنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: لَا يَنْظُرُ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى إِلَى مَنْ لَا يُقِيمُ صُلْبَهُ بَيْنَ الرُّكُوعِ وَالسُّجُودِ، وَرُوِيَ عَنْهُ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: لَا تُجْزِئُ صَلَاةٌ لَا يُقِيمُ الرَّجُلُ فِيهَا صُلْبَهُ فِي الرُّكُوعِ وَالسُّجُودِ، وَرَأَى صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ رَجُلًا يُصَلِّي لَا يُقِيمُ ظَهْرَهُ فِي رُكُوعِهِ وَسُجُودِهِ، فَقَالَ لَهُ: ارْجِعْ فَصَلِّ، فَإِنَّكَ لَمْ تُصَلِّ.

warawaynā ʿan rasūli Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: lā yanẓuru Allāhu taʿālā ʾilā man lā yuqīmu ṣulbahu bayna al-rukūʿi wa-al-sujūdi, waruwiya ʿanhu ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: lā tujziʾu ṣalātun lā yuqīmu al-rajulu fīhā ṣulbahu fī al-rukūʿi wa-al-sujūdi, waraʾā ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama rajulan yuṣallī lā yuqīmu ẓahrahu fī rukūʿihi wasujūdihi, faqāla lahu: irjiʿ faṣalli, faʾinnaka lam tuṣalli.

We transmitted from God’s Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace: “God the Exalted does not look upon someone who does not straighten his spine between bowing and prostration.” It was also transmitted from him, may God bless him and grant him peace: “A prayer in which a man does not set his spine properly in bowing and prostration is insufficient.” He saw a man praying without properly setting his back in bowing and prostration, may God bless him and grant him peace, and said: “Go back and pray, for you have not prayed.”

ثُمَّ رَآهُ لَا يَطْمَئِنُّ إِلَى الرُّكُوعِ وَالسُّجُودِ فَأَمَرَهُ أَيْضًا بِإِعَادَةِ الصَّلَاةِ، ثُمَّ عَلَّمَهُ الطُّمَأْنِينَةَ بَيْنَهُمَا وَالْقِيَامَ فِيهِمَا، فَقَالَ: حَتَّى تَطْمَئِنَّ مَفَاصِلُكَ وَتَسْتَرْخِيَ، وَرَأَى حُذَيْفَةُ وَابْنُ مَسْعُودٍ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمَا رَجُلًا يُصَلِّي لَا يُتِمُّ رُكُوعَهُ وَسُجُودَهُ فَقَالَا: لَوْ مَاتَ هَذَا لَمَاتَ عَلَى غَيْرِ فِطْرَةِ أَبِي الْقَاسِمِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، وَفِي حَدِيثِ أَحَدِهِمَا: مُنْذُ كَمْ تُصَلِّي هَذِهِ الصَّلَاةَ؟ فَقَالَ: مُنْذُ أَرْبَعِينَ سَنَةً فَقَالَ: مَا صَلَّيْتَ مُنْذُ أَرْبَعِينَ سَنَةً.

thumma raʾāhu lā yaṭmaʾinnu ʾilā al-rukūʿi wa-al-sujūdi faʾamarahu ʾayḍan biʾiʿādati al-ṣalāti, thumma ʿallamahu al-ṭumaʾnīnata baynahumā wa-al-qiyāma fīhimā, faqāla: ḥattā taṭmaʾinna mafāṣiluka watastarkhiya, waraʾā ḥudhayfatu wa-bnu masʿūdin raḍiya Allāhu ʿanhumā rajulan yuṣallī lā yutimmu rukūʿahu wasujūdahu faqālā: law māta hādhā lamāta ʿalā ghayri fiṭrati ʾabī al-qāsimi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama, wafī ḥadīthi ʾaḥadihimā: mundhu kam tuṣallī hādhihi al-ṣalāta? faqāla: mundhu ʾarbaʿīna sanatan faqāla: mā ṣallayta mundhu ʾarbaʿīna sanatan.

Then he saw him fail to settle in bowing and prostration and again ordered him to repeat the prayer. He taught him tranquility between them and proper posture in them, saying: “Until your joints settle and relax.” Ḥudhayfa and Ibn Masʿūd, may God be pleased with them both, saw a man who did not complete bowing and prostration and said: “Were he to die, he would die outside Abū al-Qāsim’s primordial way, may God bless him and grant him peace.” One of their reports says: “How long have you prayed this way?” He said: “Forty years.” He replied: “You have not prayed for forty years.”

وَعَنْ كَعْبِ الْأَحْبَارِ قُسِّمَتِ الصَّلَاةُ ثَلَاثَةَ أَثْلَاثٍ: ثُلْثٌ طُهُورٌ، وَثُلْثٌ رُكُوعٌ، وَثُلْثٌ سُجُودٌ، فَمَنْ نَقَصَ أَحَدَهُمَا لَمْ يُقْبَلْ مِنْهُ سَائِرُهَا، وَيُقَالُ: مَنْ لَمْ تُقْبَلْ صَلَاتُهُ رُدَّتْ أَعْمَالُهُ كُلُّهَا عَلَيْهِ.

waʿan kaʿbi al-ʾaḥbāri qussimati al-ṣalātu thalāthata ʾathlāthin: thulthun ṭuhūrun, wathulthun rukūʿun, wathulthun sujūdun, faman naqaṣa ʾaḥadahumā lam yuqbal minhu sāʾiruhā, wayuqālu: man lam tuqbal ṣalātuhu ruddat ʾaʿmāluhu kulluhā ʿalayhi.

From Kaʿb al-Aḥbār: “Prayer is divided into three thirds: a third purification, a third bowing, and a third prostration. Whoever diminishes one of the two will not have the rest accepted.” It is said: “Whoever’s prayer is not accepted has all his deeds returned to him.”

ذِكْرُ سُنَنِ الصَّلَاةِ

dhikru sunani al-ṣalāti

An account of the recommended practices of prayer

وَهِيَ اثْنَتَا عَشْرَةَ سُنَّةً: رَفْعُ الْيَدَيْنِ بِتَكْبِيرَةِ الْإِحْرَامِ، وَصُورَةُ الرَّفْعِ أَنْ يَكُونَ كَفَّاهُ مَعَ مَنْكِبَيْهِ وَإِبْهَامُهُ عِنْدَ شَحْمَةِ أُذُنَيْهِ وَأَطْرَافُ أَصَابِعِهِ مَعَ فُرُوعِ أُذُنَيْهِ، فَيَكُونُ بِهَذَا الْوَصْفِ مِنَ الرَّفْعِ مُوَطِّئًا لِلْأَخْبَارِ الثَّلَاثَةِ الْمَرْوِيَّةِ عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، أَنَّهُ كَانَ يَرْفَعُ يَدَيْهِ إِلَى مَنْكِبَيْهِ وَأَنَّهُ كَانَ يَرْفَعُهُمَا إِلَى شَحْمَةِ أُذُنَيْهِ، وَأَنَّهُ رَفَعَ إِلَى فُرُوعِ أُذُنَيْهِ يَعْنِي أَعَالِيهِمَا.

wahiya ithnatā ʿashrata sunnatan: rafʿu al-yadayni bitakbīrati al-ʾiḥrāmi, waṣūratu al-rafʿi ʾan yakūna kaffāhu maʿa mankibayhi waʾibhāmuhu ʿinda shaḥmati ʾudhunayhi waʾaṭrāfu ʾaṣābiʿihi maʿa furūʿi ʾudhunayhi, fayakūnu bi-hādhā al-waṣfi mina al-rafʿi muwaṭṭiʾan li-l-ʾakhbāri al-thalāthati al-marwiyyati ʿani al-nabiyyi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama, ʾannahu kāna yarfaʿu yadayhi ʾilā mankibayhi waʾannahu kāna yarfaʿuhumā ʾilā shaḥmati ʾudhunayhi, waʾannahu rafaʿa ʾilā furūʿi ʾudhunayhi yaʿnī ʾaʿālīhimā.

There are twelve recommended practices: raising the hands with the opening declaration of consecration. The hands should be level with the shoulders, the thumb beside the earlobes, and the fingertips level with the tops of the ears. This manner of raising accommodates the three reports transmitted from the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace: that he raised his hands to his shoulders, that he raised them to his earlobes, and that he raised them to the branches of his ears, meaning their upper parts.

وَلَفْظُ التَّكْبِيرِ أَنْ يَضُمَّ الْهَاءَ مِنَ الِاسْمِ بِتَخْفِيفِ الضَّمَّةِ مِنْ غَيْرِ بُلُوغِ وَاوٍ، وَيَهْمِزَ الْأَلِفَ مِنْ أَكْبَرَ وَلَا يُدْخِلَ بَيْنَ الْبَاءِ وَالرَّاءِ أَلِفًا، وَيَجْزِمَ الرَّاءَ، لَا يَجُوزُ غَيْرُ هَذَا فَيَقُولُ: اللَّهُ أَكْبَرْ، ثُمَّ لَا يَرْفَعُ يَدَيْهِ إِذَا كَبَّرَ إِلَى قُدَّامٍ دَفْعًا، وَلَا يَرُدُّهُمَا إِلَى خَلْفِ مَنْكِبَيْهِ وَتَكُونُ أَصَابِعُهُ تِلْقَاءَ أُذُنَيْهِ. ثُمَّ يُكَبِّرُ وَيُرْسِلُهُمَا إِرْسَالًا خَفِيفًا رَفِيقًا، وَيَكُونُ إِرْسَالُهُ يَدَيْهِ مَعَ آخِرِ التَّكْبِيرِ، لَا يَسُلُّهُمَا قَبْلَ انْقِضَاءِ التَّكْبِيرِ وَلَا يُوقِفُهُمَا بَعْدَ الْفَرَاغِ مِنَ التَّكْبِيرِ، ثُمَّ يَسْتَأْنِفُ وَضْعَ الْيَمِينِ

walafẓu al-takbīri ʾan yaḍumma al-hāʾa mina al-ismi bitakhfīfi al-ḍammati min ghayri bulūghi wāwin, wayahmiza al-ʾalifa min ʾakbara walā yudkhila bayna al-bāʾi wa-al-rāʾi ʾalifan, wayajzima al-rāʾa, lā yajūzu ghayru hādhā fayaqūlu: Allāhu ʾakbar, thumma lā yarfaʿu yadayhi ʾidhā kabbara ʾilā quddāmin dafʿan, walā yarudduhumā ʾilā khalfi mankibayhi watakūnu ʾaṣābiʿuhu tilqāʾa ʾudhunayhi. thumma yukabbiru wayursiluhumā ʾirsālan khafīfan rafīqan, wayakūnu ʾirsāluhu yadayhi maʿa ʾākhiri al-takbīri, lā yasulluhumā qabla inqiḍāʾi al-takbīri walā yūqifuhumā baʿda al-farāghi mina al-takbīri, thumma yastaʾnifu waḍʿa al-yamīni

The declaration is pronounced by giving the hāʾ of the divine name a light short u, without extending it into a wāw, pronouncing the initial hamza of akbar, inserting no alif between bāʾ and rāʾ, and leaving the rāʾ vowelless. Nothing else is permissible: he says “Allāhu akbar.” When declaring it, he should not thrust his hands forward or draw them behind his shoulders; his fingers should face his ears. Then he makes the declaration and lets his hands descend lightly and gently, lowering them as the declaration ends. He should not draw them down before the declaration is finished or hold them up afterward. Then he begins placing the right hand

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٥٥

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 155

Volume Two, page 155

عَلَى الشِّمَالِ بَعْدَ الْإِرْسَالِ، رَوَيْنَا عَنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ أَنَّهُ كَانَ إِذَا كَبَّرَ أَرْسَلَ يَدَيْهِ، فَإِذَا أَرَادَ أَنْ يَقْرَأَ وَضَعَ الْيَمِينَ عَلَى الْيُسْرَى، وَلْيَقْبِضْ عَلَى زَنْدِ كَفِّهِ الشِّمَالِ وَلْيَجْعَلْهُمَا تَحْتَ صَدْرِهِ، ثُمَّ التَّوَجُّهُ فَيَقُولُ: وَجَّهْتُ وَجْهِيَ لِلَّذِي فَطَرَ السَّمٰوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ حَنِيفًا مُسْلِمًا، وَمَا أَنَا مِنَ الْمُشْرِكِينَ.

ʿalā al-shimāli baʿda al-ʾirsāli, rawaynā ʿan rasūli Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama ʾannahu kāna ʾidhā kabbara ʾarsala yadayhi, faʾidhā ʾarāda ʾan yaqraʾa waḍaʿa al-yamīna ʿalā al-yusrā, walyaqbiḍ ʿalā zandi kaffihi al-shimāli walyajʿalhumā taḥta ṣadrihi, thumma al-tawajjuhu fayaqūlu: wajjahtu wajhiya li-lladhī faṭara al-samāwāti wa-al-ʾarḍa ḥanīfan musliman, wamā ʾanā mina al-mushrikīna.

over the left after lowering them. We transmitted from God’s Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, that when he made the declaration he lowered his hands, then when about to recite placed the right over the left. He should grasp the left wrist and place both beneath his chest. Then comes directing oneself toward God, saying: “I have turned my face toward the One who originated the heavens and earth, inclining wholly to truth and submitting, and I am not one of those who associate partners.”

ثُمَّ يَقُولُ: إِنَّ صَلَاتِي وَنُسُكِي وَمَحْيَايَ وَمَمَاتِي لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ، لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ، وَبِذَلِكَ أُمِرْتُ وَأَنَا مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ، وَيَقُولُ: سُبْحَانَكَ اللَّهُمَّ وَبِحَمْدِكَ وَتَبَارَكَ اسْمُكَ وَتَعَالَى جَدُّكَ، وَلَا إِلَهَ غَيْرُكَ، فَقَدْ رُوِيَ جَمِيعُ ذَلِكَ فِي رِوَايَاتٍ مُخْتَلِفَةٍ وَجَمْعُهُ حَسَنٌ، إِلَّا أَنْ يَكُونَ خَلْفَ الْإِمَامِ وَلَا يَكُونَ لِلْإِمَامِ سَكْتَتَانِ، فَلَا يُمْكِنُهُ أَنْ يَأْتِيَ بِهَذَا التَّوَجُّهِ كُلِّهِ مَعَ قِرَاءَةِ الْحَمْدِ.

thumma yaqūlu: ʾinna ṣalātī wanusukī wamaḥyāya wamamātī li-llāhi rabbi al-ʿālamīna, lā sharīka lahu, wabi-dhālika ʾumirtu waʾanā mina al-muslimīna, wayaqūlu: subḥānaka Allāhumma wabiḥamdika watabāraka ismuka wataʿālā jadduka, walā ʾilāha ghayruka, faqad ruwiya jamīʿu dhālika fī riwāyātin mukhtalifatin wajamʿuhu ḥasanun, ʾillā ʾan yakūna khalfa al-ʾimāmi walā yakūna li-l-ʾimāmi saktatāni, falā yumkinuhu ʾan yaʾtiya bi-hādhā al-tawajjuhi kullihi maʿa qirāʾati al-ḥamdi.

Then he says: “My prayer, my sacrifice, my life, and my death belong to God, Lord of all worlds, without partner. This I have been commanded, and I am one of those who submit.” He says: “Glory and praise to You, O God. Blessed is Your name and exalted Your majesty; there is no god other than You.” All this is transmitted in different reports, and combining it is good, unless he is behind an imam who makes no two pauses, leaving insufficient time for all this invocation together with the Sura of Praise.

وَلَا يَشْتَغِلَنَّ حِينَئِذٍ إِلَّا بِقِرَاءَةِ الْحَمْدِ، يَغْتَنِمُ قِرَاءَتَهَا فِي سُكُوتِ الْإِمَامِ، وَاحْذَرْ أَنْ تَقْرَأَ فِي قِرَاءَةِ الْإِمَامِ، أَوْ تَرْكَعَ أَوْ تَسْجُدَ أَوْ تَرْفَعَ رَأْسَكَ قَبْلَهُ، ثُمَّ الِاسْتِعَاذَةُ، ثُمَّ قِرَاءَةُ سُورَةٍ مِنَ الْقُرْآنِ أَوْ ثَلَاثِ آيَاتٍ مِنْ سُورَةٍ بَعْدَ الْحَمْدِ، وَالتَّأْمِينُ بَعْدَ قِرَاءَةِ الْحَمْدِ سُنَّةٌ حَسَنَةٌ، فَعَلَهُ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، ثُمَّ أَمَرَ بِهِ ثُمَّ رَفْعُ الْيَدَيْنِ بِالتَّكْبِيرِ لِلرُّكُوعِ أَيْضًا سُنَّةٌ.

walā yashtaghilanna ḥīnaʾidhin ʾillā biqirāʾati al-ḥamdi, yaghtanimu qirāʾatahā fī sukūti al-ʾimāmi, wa-ḥdhar ʾan taqraʾa fī qirāʾati al-ʾimāmi, ʾaw tarkaʿa ʾaw tasjuda ʾaw tarfaʿa raʾsaka qablahu, thumma al-istiʿādhatu, thumma qirāʾatu sūratin mina al-qurʾāni ʾaw thalāthi ʾāyātin min sūratin baʿda al-ḥamdi, wa-al-taʾmīnu baʿda qirāʾati al-ḥamdi sunnatun ḥasanatun, faʿalahu rasūlu Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama, thumma ʾamara bihi thumma rafʿu al-yadayni bi-al-takbīri li-l-rukūʿi ʾayḍan sunnatun.

In that case he should occupy himself only with reciting the Sura of Praise, taking advantage of the imam’s silence. Beware of reciting while the imam recites, or bowing, prostrating, or raising your head before him. Next comes seeking refuge, then reciting a Qurʾānic sura or three verses of a sura after the Sura of Praise. Saying “Amen” after it is a good recommended practice: God’s Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, did it and then commanded it. Raising the hands with the declaration before bowing is also recommended.

ثُمَّ التَّسْبِيحُ لِلرُّكُوعِ وَإِذَا أَرَدْتَ عَشْرًا أَوْ سَبْعًا وَلَا أَقَلَّ مِنْ ثَلَاثٍ، وَإِنَّمَا قِيلَ: إِنَّ الثَّلَاثَ أَدْنَى الْكَمَالِ لِأَنَّ الْكَمَالَ عَشَرَةٌ، قَالَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى: (تِلْكَ عَشَرَةٌ كَامِلَةٌ) الْبَقَرَةُ: 196، وَلْتَكُنِ الثَّلَاثُ بَعْدَ أَنْ يَضَعَ يَدَيْهِ عَلَى رُكْبَتَيْهِ وَقَبْلَ أَنْ يَرْفَعَهُمَا، لِأَنَّهُ إِذَا لَمْ يَتَحَفَّظْ فِي ذَلِكَ وَيَتَمَهَّلْ فِيهِ حَصَلَ مِنَ التَّسْبِيحِ وَاحِدَةٌ بَعْدَ الرُّكُوعِ، وَتَكُونُ الْأُولَى وَالْأُخْرَى فِي الْإِنْحِطَاطِ وَالرَّفْعِ، وَهَذَا مَكْرُوهٌ.

thumma al-tasbīḥu li-l-rukūʿi waʾidhā ʾaradta ʿashran ʾaw sabʿan walā ʾaqalla min thalāthin, waʾinnamā qīla: ʾinna al-thalātha ʾadnā al-kamāli liʾanna al-kamāla ʿasharatun, qāla Allāhu taʿālā: (tilka ʿasharatun kāmilatun) al-baqaratu: 196, waltakuni al-thalāthu baʿda ʾan yaḍaʿa yadayhi ʿalā rukbatayhi waqabla ʾan yarfaʿahumā, liʾannahu ʾidhā lam yataḥaffaẓ fī dhālika wayatamahhal fīhi ḥaṣala mina al-tasbīḥi wāḥidatun baʿda al-rukūʿi, watakūnu al-ʾūlā wa-al-ʾukhrā fī al-ʾinḥiṭāṭi wa-al-rafʿi, wa-hādhā makrūhun.

Then comes glorification in bowing: if you wish, ten or seven repetitions, but no fewer than three. Three is called the least completeness because completeness is ten; God the Exalted said: “Those are ten complete” (al-Baqara 2:196). The three should occur after placing his hands on his knees and before lifting them. Without care and deliberation, only one glorification occurs after entering the bow; the first and last occur while descending and rising. This is disliked.

وَصُورَةُ الرُّكُوعِ أَنْ يُفَرِّجَ بَيْنَ أَصَابِعِهِ فَيَمْلَأَ بِهَا رُكْبَتَيْهِ، وَيُجَافِيَ عَضُدَيْهِ عَنْ جَنْبَيْهِ وَلَا يَرْفَعَ رَأْسَهُ وَلَا يَخْفِضَهُ، وَلْيَمُدَّ عُنُقَهُ مَعَ ظَهْرِهِ مَدًّا فَيَكُونَ ظَهْرُهُ وَرَأْسُهُ سَوَاءً، وَلَا يَكُونُ مَخْفُوضًا إِلَى أَسْفَلَ وَلَا مَقْبُوًّا إِلَى فَوْقَ، ثُمَّ رَفْعُ الْيَدَيْنِ بِقَوْلِ: سَمِعَ اللَّهُ لِمَنْ حَمِدَهُ، سُنَّةٌ، وَيَقُولُ: اللَّهُمَّ رَبَّنَا، لَكَ الْحَمْدُ مِلْءَ السَّمٰوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَمَا بَيْنَهُمَا، وَمِلْءَ مَا شِئْتَ مِنْ شَيْءٍ بَعْدُ.

waṣūratu al-rukūʿi ʾan yufarrija bayna ʾaṣābiʿihi fayamlaʾa bihā rukbatayhi, wayujāfiya ʿaḍudayhi ʿan janbayhi walā yarfaʿa raʾsahu walā yakhfiḍahu, walyamudda ʿunuqahu maʿa ẓahrihi maddan fayakūna ẓahruhu waraʾsuhu sawāʾan, walā yakūnu makhfūḍan ʾilā ʾasfala walā maqbuwwan ʾilā fawqa, thumma rafʿu al-yadayni biqawli: samiʿa Allāhu liman ḥamidahu, sunnatun, wayaqūlu: Allāhumma rabbanā, laka al-ḥamdu milʾa al-samāwāti wa-al-ʾarḍi wamā baynahumā, wamilʾa mā shiʾta min shayʾin baʿdu.

In bowing he spreads his fingers to cover his knees, keeps his upper arms away from his sides, and neither raises nor lowers his head. He stretches his neck in line with his back so that head and back are level, neither lowered downward nor arched upward. Raising the hands while saying “God hears whoever praises Him” is recommended. He says: “O God, our Lord, praise belongs to You, filling the heavens, earth, and what lies between them, and filling whatever else You will thereafter.”

ثُمَّ التَّسْبِيحُ فِي السُّجُودِ إِنْ شَاءَ عَشْرًا أَوْ سَبْعًا وَأَدْنَاهُ ثَلَاثٌ، وَلْتَكُنِ الثَّلَاثُ بَعْدَ حُصُولِ جَبْهَتِهِ عَلَى الْأَرْضِ وَقَبْلَ رَفْعِهِ إِيَّاهُ، وَإِلَّا كَانَتْ وَاحِدَةً تَذْهَبُ الْأُولَى فِي حَالِ وَضْعِ الْوَجْهِ، وَالْأُخْرَى فِي حَالِ رَفْعِ الرَّأْسِ، فَتَحْصُلُ تَسْبِيحَةٌ وَاحِدَةٌ فِي كُلِّ سَجْدَةٍ، وَهَذَا غَيْرُ مُسْتَحَبٍّ أَنْ يَنْقُصَ مِنْ ثَلَاثٍ، وَقَالَ أَنَسُ بْنُ مَالِكٍ: مَا رَأَيْتُ أَشْبَهَ صَلَاةً بِرَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ مِنْ إِمَامِكُمْ، هَذَا يَعْنِي عُمَرَ بْنَ عَبْدِ الْعَزِيزِ، قَالَ: فَكُنَّا نُسَبِّحُ وَرَاءَهُ عَشْرًا فِي الرُّكُوعِ وَالسُّجُودِ عَشْرًا عَشْرًا،

thumma al-tasbīḥu fī al-sujūdi ʾin shāʾa ʿashran ʾaw sabʿan waʾadnāhu thalāthun, waltakuni al-thalāthu baʿda ḥuṣūli jabhatihi ʿalā al-ʾarḍi waqabla rafʿihi ʾiyyāhu, waʾillā kānat wāḥidatan tadhhabu al-ʾūlā fī ḥāli waḍʿi al-wajhi, wa-al-ʾukhrā fī ḥāli rafʿi al-raʾsi, fataḥṣulu tasbīḥatun wāḥidatun fī kulli sajdatin, wa-hādhā ghayru mustaḥabbin ʾan yanquṣa min thalāthin, waqāla ʾanasu bnu mālikin: mā raʾaytu ʾashbaha ṣalātan birasūli Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama min ʾimāmikum, hādhā yaʿnī ʿumara bna ʿabdi al-ʿazīzi, qāla: fakunnā nusabbiḥu warāʾahu ʿashran fī al-rukūʿi wa-al-sujūdi ʿashran ʿashran,

Then comes glorification in prostration: ten or seven repetitions if he wishes, three at the least. The three should occur after the forehead reaches the ground and before lifting it; otherwise only one remains, the first passing while the face is lowered and the last while the head rises. Only one glorification then occurs in each prostration, and reducing them below three is not recommended. Anas ibn Mālik said: “I have seen no one whose prayer resembles God’s Messenger’s, may God bless him and grant him peace, more than this imam of yours,” meaning ʿUmar ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz. He said: “We would glorify behind him ten times in bowing, and in prostration ten each.”

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٥٦

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 156

Volume Two, page 156

وَيَجْعَلُ رَأْسَهُ بَيْنَ كَفَّيْهِ فِي سُجُودِهِ، فَإِنَّهُمَا يَسْجُدَانِ إِذَا كَانَتَا مَفْتُوحَتَيْنِ فَيُجَافِي عَضُدَيْهِ عَنْ جَنْبَيْهِ، وَيَمُدُّ ظَهْرَهُ وَيَرْفَعُ بَطْنَهُ عَنْ فَخِذَيْهِ، وَيُسْتَحَبُّ أَنْ يُبَاشِرَ الْأَرْضَ بِكَفَّيْهِ، فَإِنَّهُمَا يَسْجُدَانِ مَعَ الْوَجْهِ، ثُمَّ التَّكْبِيرُ لِلسُّجُودِ وَالرَّفْعِ بَيْنَ السَّجْدَتَيْنِ وَلِلْقِيَامِ بَيْنَ السُّجُودِ مِنْ غَيْرِ رَفْعِ يَدَيْهِ، ثُمَّ يَقُولُ: رَبِّ اغْفِرْ لِي وَارْحَمْنِي ثَلَاثًا، رُوِيَ ذَلِكَ عَنِ ابْنِ عُمَرَ.

wayajʿalu raʾsahu bayna kaffayhi fī sujūdihi, faʾinnahumā yasjudāni ʾidhā kānatā maftūḥatayni fayujāfī ʿaḍudayhi ʿan janbayhi, wayamuddu ẓahrahu wayarfaʿu baṭnahu ʿan fakhidhayhi, wayustaḥabbu ʾan yubāshira al-ʾarḍa bikaffayhi, faʾinnahumā yasjudāni maʿa al-wajhi, thumma al-takbīru li-l-sujūdi wa-al-rafʿi bayna al-sajdatayni wali-l-qiyāmi bayna al-sujūdi min ghayri rafʿi yadayhi, thumma yaqūlu: rabbi ighfir lī wa-rḥamnī thalāthan, ruwiya dhālika ʿani ibni ʿumara.

In prostration he places his head between his hands, for they prostrate when open. He keeps his upper arms away from his sides, extends his back, and lifts his abdomen from his thighs. Directly touching the earth with the palms is recommended, for they prostrate with the face. Then come declarations of greatness for prostration, rising between the two prostrations, and standing between prostration, without raising the hands. He says three times: “My Lord, forgive me and have mercy upon me.” This was transmitted from Ibn ʿUmar.

وَإِنْ قَالَ: رَبِّ اغْفِرْ وَارْحَمْ، وَتَجَاوَزْ عَمَّا تَعْلَمُ، فَإِنَّكَ أَنْتَ الْأَعَزُّ الْأَكْرَمُ فَجَائِزٌ، رُوِيَ ذَلِكَ عَنِ ابْنِ مَسْعُودٍ، وَإِنْ قَالَ: رَبِّ اغْفِرْ لِي وَارْحَمْنِي وَاهْدِنِي وَأَجْبِرْنِي وَأَنْعِشْنِي، فَحَسَنٌ قَدْ رُوِيَ ذَلِكَ عَنْ عَلِيٍّ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى عَنْهُ، ثُمَّ التَّشَهُّدُ الْأَوَّلُ ثُمَّ السَّلَامُ الْأَخِيرُ بِالْأَلِفِ وَاللَّامِ وَضَمِّ الْمِيمِ مِنَ السَّلَامِ مِنْ غَيْرِ تَنْوِينٍ، وَمَدِّ الِاسْمِ وَجَزْمِ الْهَاءِ مِنْهُ.

waʾin qāla: rabbi ighfir wa-rḥam, watajāwaz ʿammā taʿlamu, faʾinnaka ʾanta al-ʾaʿazzu al-ʾakramu fajāʾizun, ruwiya dhālika ʿani ibni masʿūdin, waʾin qāla: rabbi ighfir lī wa-rḥamnī wa-hdinī waʾajbirnī waʾanʿishnī, faḥasanun qad ruwiya dhālika ʿan ʿaliyyin raḍiya Allāhu taʿālā ʿanhu, thumma al-tashahhudu al-ʾawwalu thumma al-salāmu al-ʾakhīru bi-al-ʾalifi wa-al-lāmi waḍammi al-mīmi mina al-salāmi min ghayri tanwīnin, wamaddi al-ismi wajazmi al-hāʾi minhu.

Saying “My Lord, forgive and have mercy; overlook what You know, for You are the Mightiest, the Most Generous” is permissible; this was transmitted from Ibn Masʿūd. Saying “My Lord, forgive me, have mercy upon me, guide me, restore me, and revive me” is good; this was transmitted from ʿAlī, may God the Exalted be pleased with him. Then comes the first testimony, then the final greeting, with the definite article al-, a short u on the mīm of salām without nunation, prolonging the divine name and leaving its hāʾ vowelless.

فَيَقُولُ: السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ اللَّهْ حَتَّى يَتَبَيَّنَ خَدَّاهُ لِمَنْ عَنْ يَمِينِهِ وَشِمَالِهِ وَيَلْوِي بِهِ عُنُقَهُ إِلَى مَنْكِبَيْهِ، كَذَلِكَ كَانَ تَسْلِيمُ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ مِنْ غَيْرِ أَنْ يُحَوِّلَ جِسْمَهُ عَنِ الْقِبْلَةِ وَلَا يَرْفَعَ فَخِذَهُ عَنِ الْأَرْضِ.

fayaqūlu: al-salāmu ʿalaykum waraḥmatu Allāh ḥattā yatabayyana khaddāhu liman ʿan yamīnihi washimālihi wayalwī bihi ʿunuqahu ʾilā mankibayhi, kadhālika kāna taslīmu rasūli Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama min ghayri ʾan yuḥawwila jismahu ʿani al-qiblati walā yarfaʿa fakhidhahu ʿani al-ʾarḍi.

He says: “Peace be upon you, and God’s mercy,” until his cheeks are visible to those on his right and left, turning his neck toward his shoulders as he says it. Thus was the greeting of God’s Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, without turning his body away from the prayer direction or lifting his thigh from the ground.

ذِكْرُ أَحْكَامِ الصَّلَاةِ فِي الْإِدْرَاكِ

dhikru ʾaḥkāmi al-ṣalāti fī al-ʾidrāki

An account of the rules of prayer when joining it in progress

وَمَنْ أَدْرَكَ مِنْ صَلَاةٍ رُبَاعِيَّةٍ رَكْعَتَيْنِ أَوِ الثَّالِثَةَ مِنْ صَلَاةِ الْمَغْرِبِ، فَإِنَّ مَا أَدْرَكَ هُوَ أَوَّلُ الصَّلَاةِ فَلْيَبْنِ عَلَى ذَلِكَ. وَمَنْ أَدْرَكَ مَعَ الْإِمَامِ بَعْضَ الْقِيَامِ اِفْتَتَحَ سُورَةَ الْحَمْدِ وَلَمْ يَرْكَعْ حَتَّى يُتِمَّهَا، وَإِنْ رَفَعَ الْإِمَامُ رَأْسَهُ مِنَ الرُّكُوعِ قَبْلَهُ رَفَعَ بَعْدَهُ، وَمَنْ لَمْ يُدْرِكْ مَعَ الْإِمَامِ مِنَ الْقِيَامِ شَيْئًا كَبَّرَ لِلْإِحْرَامِ، ثُمَّ كَبَّرَ وَرَكَعَ وَهِيَ لَهُ رَكْعَةٌ.

waman ʾadraka min ṣalātin rubāʿiyyatin rakʿatayni ʾawi al-thālithata min ṣalāti al-maghribi, faʾinna mā ʾadraka huwa ʾawwalu al-ṣalāti falyabni ʿalā dhālika. waman ʾadraka maʿa al-ʾimāmi baʿḍa al-qiyāmi iftataḥa sūrata al-ḥamdi walam yarkaʿ ḥattā yutimmahā, waʾin rafaʿa al-ʾimāmu raʾsahu mina al-rukūʿi qablahu rafaʿa baʿdahu, waman lam yudrik maʿa al-ʾimāmi mina al-qiyāmi shayʾan kabbara li-l-ʾiḥrāmi, thumma kabbara warakaʿa wahiya lahu rakʿatun.

If someone catches two cycles of a four-cycle prayer, or the third cycle of the sunset prayer, what he catches constitutes the beginning of his prayer, and he should proceed on that basis. If he catches part of the standing with the imam, he should begin the Chapter of Praise and not bow until he completes it. If the imam raises his head from bowing before him, he should rise afterward. If he catches none of the standing with the imam, he should pronounce the opening magnification, then magnify and bow: this counts as a cycle for him.

وَإِنْ رَكَعَ الْإِمَامُ وَهُوَ فِي قِرَاءَةِ سُورَةٍ غَيْرِ الْحَمْدِ فَلْيَقْطَعْ حَيْثُ انْتَهَى وَلْيَرْكَعْ بَعْدَهُ، وَمَنْ أَدْرَكَهُ فِي التَّشَهُّدِ أَوْ فِي السُّجُودِ اِبْتَدَأَ التَّكْبِيرَ لِلْإِحْرَامِ قَائِمًا، ثُمَّ جَلَسَ وَسَجَدَ لِلِاتِّبَاعِ، فَإِذَا سَلَّمَ الْإِمَامُ قَامَ مِنْ غَيْرِ تَكْبِيرٍ يُحْدِثُهُ ثَانِيًا، وَابْتَدَأَ بِقِرَاءَةِ الْحَمْدِ عِنْدَ قِيَامِهِ، وَلَا يَعْتَدُّ بِشَيْءٍ مِمَّا أَدْرَكَ مَعَ الْإِمَامِ إِلَّا بِالرُّكُوعِ، وَهُوَ أَنْ يَكُونَ قَدْ وَضَعَ يَدَيْهِ عَلَى رُكْبَتَيْهِ وَاطْمَأَنَّ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَرْفَعَ الْإِمَامُ رَأْسَهُ، فَهَذِهِ لَهُ رَكْعَةٌ.

waʾin rakaʿa al-ʾimāmu wahuwa fī qirāʾati sūratin ghayri al-ḥamdi falyaqṭaʿ ḥaythu intahā walyarkaʿ baʿdahu, waman ʾadrakahu fī al-tashahhudi ʾaw fī al-sujūdi ibtadaʾa al-takbīra li-l-ʾiḥrāmi qāʾiman, thumma jalasa wasajada li-l-ittibāʿi, faʾidhā sallama al-ʾimāmu qāma min ghayri takbīrin yuḥdithuhu thāniyan, wa-btadaʾa biqirāʾati al-ḥamdi ʿinda qiyāmihi, walā yaʿtaddu bishayʾin mimmā ʾadraka maʿa al-ʾimāmi ʾillā bi-al-rukūʿi, wahuwa ʾan yakūna qad waḍaʿa yadayhi ʿalā rukbatayhi wa-ṭmaʾanna qabla ʾan yarfaʿa al-ʾimāmu raʾsahu, fa-hādhihi lahu rakʿatun.

If the imam bows while he is reciting a chapter other than Praise, he should stop where he has reached and bow after him. If he joins during the testimony or prostration, he should pronounce the opening magnification standing, then sit and prostrate in following him. When the imam gives the salutation, he should stand without introducing another magnification, and begin reciting Praise as he stands. Nothing he catches with the imam counts except bowing: he must have placed his hands on his knees and become still before the imam raises his head. That counts as a cycle for him.

وَمَنْ دَخَلَ فِي صَلَاةٍ مَكْتُوبَةٍ ثُمَّ ذَكَرَ أَنَّ عَلَيْهِ أُخْرَى أَحْبَبْتُ أَنْ يُتِمَّهَا ثُمَّ يُصَلِّيَ الَّتِي ذَكَرَ، ثُمَّ يُعِيدَ هَذِهِ الصَّلَاةَ، وَمَنْ وَافَقَ الْإِمَامَ فِي صَلَاةِ الْعَصْرِ وَلَمْ يَكُنْ صَلَّى الظُّهْرَ صَلَّاهَا مَعَهُ، ثُمَّ يُصَلِّي الظُّهْرَ ثُمَّ أَعَادَ بَعْدَهَا صَلَاةَ الْعَصْرِ، فَعَلَهُ بَعْضُ الصَّحَابَةِ وَهُوَ أَحَبُّ الْوُجُوهِ إِلَيَّ.

waman dakhala fī ṣalātin maktūbatin thumma dhakara ʾanna ʿalayhi ʾukhrā ʾaḥbabtu ʾan yutimmahā thumma yuṣalliya allatī dhakara, thumma yuʿīda hādhihi al-ṣalāta, waman wāfaqa al-ʾimāma fī ṣalāti al-ʿaṣri walam yakun ṣallā al-ẓuhra ṣallāhā maʿahu, thumma yuṣallī al-ẓuhra thumma ʾaʿāda baʿdahā ṣalāta al-ʿaṣri, faʿalahu baʿḍu al-ṣaḥābati wahuwa ʾaḥabbu al-wujūhi ʾilayya.

If someone begins an obligatory prayer, then remembers that he owes another, I prefer that he complete it, then perform the one he remembered, then repeat this prayer. If someone finds the imam performing the afternoon prayer when he has not performed noon prayer, he should pray it with him, then perform noon prayer, and afterward repeat afternoon prayer. Some of the Companions did this, and it is the option I prefer.

وَمَنْ تَكَلَّمَ فِي صَلَاتِهِ نَاسِيًا أَوْ سَلَّمَ مِنْ رَكْعَتَيْنِ مِنْ صَلَاةٍ رُبَاعِيَّةٍ، فَلْيَسْجُدْ سَجْدَتَيِ السَّهْوِ بَعْدَ التَّشَهُّدِ، فَإِنْ كَانَ قَدْ خَرَجَ مِنَ الْمَسْجِدِ وَتَطَاوَلَ ذَلِكَ، ثُمَّ ذَكَرَ أَحْبَبْتُ أَنْ يُعِيدَ الصَّلَاةَ، وَمَنْ تَكَلَّمَ أَوْ سَلَّمَ عَامِدًا أَوِ اسْتَدْبَرَ الْقِبْلَةَ، أَوِ انْكَشَفَتْ عَوْرَتُهُ أَوْ رَعَفَ فِي صَلَاتِهِ أَوْ ذَكَرَ أَنَّهُ نَسِيَ مَسْحَ رَأْسِهِ، أَوْ غَسْلَ عُضْوٍ مِنْ أَعْضَائِهِ، أَعَادَ الصَّلَاةَ.

waman takallama fī ṣalātihi nāsiyan ʾaw sallama min rakʿatayni min ṣalātin rubāʿiyyatin, falyasjud sajdatayi al-sahwi baʿda al-tashahhudi, faʾin kāna qad kharaja mina al-masjidi wataṭāwala dhālika, thumma dhakara ʾaḥbabtu ʾan yuʿīda al-ṣalāta, waman takallama ʾaw sallama ʿāmidan ʾawi istadbara al-qiblata, ʾawi inkashafat ʿawratuhu ʾaw raʿafa fī ṣalātihi ʾaw dhakara ʾannahu nasiya masḥa raʾsihi, ʾaw ghasla ʿuḍwin min ʾaʿḍāʾihi, ʾaʿāda al-ṣalāta.

If someone speaks forgetfully during prayer, or gives the salutation after two cycles of a four-cycle prayer, he should perform the two prostrations for forgetfulness after the testimony. If he has left the mosque and a long interval has passed before he remembers, I prefer that he repeat the prayer. Anyone who deliberately speaks or gives the salutation, turns his back to the prayer direction, exposes his private parts, has a nosebleed during prayer, or remembers having forgotten to wipe his head or wash one of his limbs must repeat the prayer.

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٥٧

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 157

Volume Two, page 157

وَمَنْ فَاتَتْهُ جَمَاعَةٌ فَتَطَوَّعَ رَجُلٌ قَامَ يُصَلِّي مَعَهُ أَحْبَبْتُ أَنْ يَكُونَ هُوَ الْمُصَلِّيَ بِهِ فَرْضَهُ، وَلَا يَخْرُجُ مِنَ الْخِلَافِ وَيَدْخُلُ فِي فَرْضِ الْجَمَاعَةِ، وَلَا أَسْتَحِبُّ أَنْ يُصَلِّيَ فَرْضًا خَلْفَ رَجُلٍ يَتَطَوَّعُ، وَلَا أَكْرَهُ صَلَاةَ النَّوَافِلِ جَمَاعَةً، وَلَا سُجُودَ سَهْوٍ عَلَى الْعَبْدِ فِيمَا جَهَرَ فِيهِ مِمَّا يُخَافِتُ، وَلَا فِيمَا خَافَتَ فِيهِ مِمَّا يَجْهَرُ.

waman fātathu jamāʿatun fataṭawwaʿa rajulun qāma yuṣallī maʿahu ʾaḥbabtu ʾan yakūna huwa al-muṣalliya bihi farḍahu, walā yakhruju mina al-khilāfi wayadkhulu fī farḍi al-jamāʿati, walā ʾastaḥibbu ʾan yuṣalliya farḍan khalfa rajulin yataṭawwaʿu, walā ʾakrahu ṣalāta al-nawāfili jamāʿatan, walā sujūda sahwin ʿalā al-ʿabdi fīmā jahara fīhi mimmā yukhāfitu, walā fīmā khāfata fīhi mimmā yajharu.

If someone misses congregational prayer and another man volunteers to stand and pray with him, I prefer that he himself lead that man while performing his obligatory prayer. He does not thereby escape disagreement, but enters the obligation of congregational prayer. I do not recommend performing an obligatory prayer behind someone praying voluntarily, nor do I disapprove of voluntary prayers in congregation. No prostration for forgetfulness is incumbent upon a servant for reciting aloud where he normally recites quietly, or quietly where he normally recites aloud.

وَمَنْ شَكَّ فِي ثَلَاثِ رَكَعَاتٍ أَوِ اثْنَتَيْنِ فَلْيَجْعَلْهُمَا اثْنَتَيْنِ، وَمَنْ شَكَّ فِي أَرْبَعٍ أَوْ ثَلَاثٍ حَسِبَهَا ثَلَاثًا يَبْنِي أَبَدًا عَلَى الْيَقِينِ، وَهُوَ الْأَقَلُّ، ثُمَّ يَسْجُدُ سَجْدَتَيِ السَّهْوِ قَبْلَ السَّلَامِ، وَعَلَيْهِ أَنْ يَتَشَهَّدَ ثَانِيًا لِسَجْدَتَيِ السَّهْوِ وَصَلَاتُهُ تَامَّةٌ، وَمَنْ سَهَا عَنْ سَجْدَتَيِ السَّهْوِ، فَإِنْ ذَكَرَ قَرِيبًا أَوْ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَخْرُجَ مِنَ الْمَسْجِدِ فَأُحِبُّ أَنْ يَسْجُدَهُمَا ثُمَّ يَتَشَهَّدَ وَيُسَلِّمَ، فَإِنْ تَطَاوَلَ الْوَقْتُ أَوْ كَانَ قَدْ خَرَجَ مِنَ الْمَسْجِدِ سَقَطَ عَنْهُ.

waman shakka fī thalāthi rakaʿātin ʾawi ithnatayni falyajʿalhumā ithnatayni, waman shakka fī ʾarbaʿin ʾaw thalāthin ḥasibahā thalāthan yabnī ʾabadan ʿalā al-yaqīni, wahuwa al-ʾaqallu, thumma yasjudu sajdatayi al-sahwi qabla al-salāmi, waʿalayhi ʾan yatashahhada thāniyan lisajdatayi al-sahwi waṣalātuhu tāmmatun, waman sahā ʿan sajdatayi al-sahwi, faʾin dhakara qarīban ʾaw qabla ʾan yakhruja mina al-masjidi faʾuḥibbu ʾan yasjudahumā thumma yatashahhada wayusallima, faʾin taṭāwala al-waqtu ʾaw kāna qad kharaja mina al-masjidi saqaṭa ʿanhu.

Someone unsure whether he has performed three cycles or two should count them as two; someone unsure whether four or three should count three. He always builds on certainty, which is the lesser number, then performs two prostrations for forgetfulness before the salutation. He must repeat the testimony for those two prostrations, and his prayer is complete. If he forgets the two prostrations, then remembers shortly afterward or before leaving the mosque, I prefer that he perform them, then say the testimony and salutation. If a long time has elapsed or he has left the mosque, they cease to be incumbent upon him.

وَمَنْ شَكَّ فِي الْقِبْلَةِ لِدُخُولِ ظُلْمَةٍ أَوْ فَقْدِ أَدِلَّةٍ تَحَرَّى جَهْدَهُ، فَإِنْ تَبَيَّنَ لَهُ أَنَّ الْقِبْلَةَ بِخِلَافِ ذَلِكَ أَحْبَبْتُ لَهُ أَنْ يُعِيدَ ذَلِكَ، وَأَسْتَحِبُّ سُجُودَ السَّهْوِ فِيمَا زَادَ بَعْدَ التَّسْلِيمِ وَفِيمَا نَقَصَ قَبْلَهُ، فَإِنْ سَجَدَهُمَا فِي الزِّيَادَةِ وَالنُّقْصَانِ قَبْلَ السَّلَامِ فَحَسَنٌ كُلُّ ذَلِكَ، قَدْ رَوَيْنَاهُ عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ.

waman shakka fī al-qiblati lidukhūli ẓulmatin ʾaw faqdi ʾadillatin taḥarrā jahdahu, faʾin tabayyana lahu ʾanna al-qiblata bikhilāfi dhālika ʾaḥbabtu lahu ʾan yuʿīda dhālika, waʾastaḥibbu sujūda al-sahwi fīmā zāda baʿda al-taslīmi wafīmā naqaṣa qablahu, faʾin sajadahumā fī al-ziyādati wa-al-nuqṣāni qabla al-salāmi faḥasanun kullu dhālika, qad rawaynāhu ʿani al-nabiyyi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama.

Someone uncertain of the prayer direction because darkness has fallen or indications are absent should investigate to the best of his ability. If he discovers that the direction was otherwise, I prefer that he repeat the prayer. I recommend prostrating for forgetfulness after the salutation when something was added, and before it when something was omitted. If he performs both prostrations before the salutation in cases of addition or omission, all of that is good: we have transmitted it from the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace.

فَإِنْ لَحِقَهُ وَهْمٌ فِي الصَّلَاةِ لَيْسَ بِشَكٍّ، أَوْ كَثُرَ وَهْمُهُ فِي الصَّلَاةِ أَحْبَبْتُ أَنْ يَجْعَلَ سُجُودَهُ أَبَدًا بَعْدَ السَّلَامِ، وَمَنْ صَلَّى فِي حَالِ ضَرُورَةٍ بِنُقْصَانِ طَهَارَةٍ أَوْ نُقْصَانِ فَرْضٍ مِنْ فَرَائِضِ الصَّلَاةِ أَحْبَبْتُ أَنْ يُعِيدَ مَتَى قَدَرَ عَلَى ذَلِكَ، وَمَنْ صَلَّى فِي ثَوْبٍ ثُمَّ رَأَى فِيهِ نَجَاسَةً بَعْدَ ذَلِكَ أَعَادَ مَا دَامَ فِي الْوَقْتِ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَدْخُلَ وَقْتُ صَلَاةٍ أُخْرَى، فَإِنْ خَرَجَ جَمِيعُ الْوَقْتِ فَلَا إِعَادَةَ عَلَيْهِ.

faʾin laḥiqahu wahmun fī al-ṣalāti laysa bishakkin, ʾaw kathura wahmuhu fī al-ṣalāti ʾaḥbabtu ʾan yajʿala sujūdahu ʾabadan baʿda al-salāmi, waman ṣallā fī ḥāli ḍarūratin binuqṣāni ṭahāratin ʾaw nuqṣāni farḍin min farāʾiḍi al-ṣalāti ʾaḥbabtu ʾan yuʿīda matā qadara ʿalā dhālika, waman ṣallā fī thawbin thumma raʾā fīhi najāsatan baʿda dhālika ʾaʿāda mā dāma fī al-waqti qabla ʾan yadkhula waqtu ṣalātin ʾukhrā, faʾin kharaja jamīʿu al-waqti falā ʾiʿādata ʿalayhi.

If an impression arises during prayer that falls short of doubt, or such impressions become frequent, I prefer that he always prostrate after the salutation. If someone prays under necessity with incomplete purification or an unfulfilled obligatory component of prayer, I prefer that he repeat it whenever able. If someone prays in a garment and afterward finds impurity on it, he should repeat the prayer while its time remains, before the time of another prayer begins. Once the entire time has elapsed, repetition is not incumbent upon him.

وَلَوْ أَعَادَ تِلْكَ الصَّلَاةَ مَتَى رَأَى تِلْكَ النَّجَاسَةَ كَانَ أَحَبَّ إِلَيَّ، وَمَنْ كَانَ عَلَيْهِ صَلَوَاتٌ فَرَّطَ فِيهَا بِإِضَاعَةٍ أَوْ نُقْصَانِ حُدُودٍ صَلَّاهَا أَحَبُّ إِلَيَّ مُتَوَالِيَةً صَلَاةَ يَوْمٍ فِي وَقْتٍ وَاحِدٍ إِنْ أَمْكَنَ، أَوْ فِي أَوْقَاتٍ مُتَفَرِّقَةٍ نَسَقًا، وَأَنْ يَكُونَ ذَلِكَ فِي غَيْرِ الْأَوْقَاتِ الْمَنْهِيِّ فِيهَا عَنِ الصَّلَاةِ أَحَبُّ إِلَيَّ، وَمَنْ عَلِمَ فِي صَلَاتِهِ أَنَّ عَلَيْهِ ثَوْبًا فِيهِ نَجَاسَةٌ وَأَنَّهُ غَيْرُ مُسْتَقْبِلِ الْقِبْلَةِ، فَلْيُلْقِ الثَّوْبَ وَلْيَسْتَقْبِلِ الْقِبْلَةَ وَلْيُتِمَّ صَلَاتَهُ، وَإِنْ أَعَادَ فَهُوَ أَحَبُّ إِلَيَّ.

walaw ʾaʿāda tilka al-ṣalāta matā raʾā tilka al-najāsata kāna ʾaḥabba ʾilayya, waman kāna ʿalayhi ṣalawātun farraṭa fīhā biʾiḍāʿatin ʾaw nuqṣāni ḥudūdin ṣallāhā ʾaḥabbu ʾilayya mutawāliyatan ṣalāta yawmin fī waqtin wāḥidin ʾin ʾamkana, ʾaw fī ʾawqātin mutafarriqatin nasaqan, waʾan yakūna dhālika fī ghayri al-ʾawqāti al-manhiyyi fīhā ʿani al-ṣalāti ʾaḥabbu ʾilayya, waman ʿalima fī ṣalātihi ʾanna ʿalayhi thawban fīhi najāsatun waʾannahu ghayru mustaqbili al-qiblati, falyulqi al-thawba walyastaqbili al-qiblata walyutimma ṣalātahu, waʾin ʾaʿāda fahuwa ʾaḥabbu ʾilayya.

Still, I would prefer that he repeat that prayer whenever he discovers the impurity. If he owes prayers neglected through omission or failure to fulfill their prescribed requirements, I prefer that he perform them consecutively: a day's prayers at one time if possible, or in order at separate times. I prefer that this occur outside the times when prayer is forbidden. If, during prayer, he realizes that his garment bears impurity and that he is not facing the prayer direction, he should cast off the garment, face that direction, and complete his prayer. Repeating it is preferable to me.

ذِكْرُ هَيْئَاتِ الصَّلَاةِ وَآدَابِهَا

dhikru hayʾāti al-ṣalāti waʾādābihā

An account of the forms and courtesies of prayer

السِّوَاكُ قَبْلَ الصَّلَاةِ مِنْ فَضَائِلِهَا، رُوِيَ فِي الْخَبَرِ: صَلَاةٌ بِسِوَاكٍ تَفْضُلُ عَلَى صَلَاةٍ بِغَيْرِ سِوَاكٍ سَبْعِينَ ضِعْفًا، وَأَسْتَحِبُّ لَهُ أَنْ يَقْرَأَ، قُلْ: أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ النَّاسِ، قَبْلَ دُخُولِهِ فِي

al-siwāku qabla al-ṣalāti min faḍāʾilihā, ruwiya fī al-khabari: ṣalātun bisiwākin tafḍulu ʿalā ṣalātin bighayri siwākin sabʿīna ḍiʿfan, waʾastaḥibbu lahu ʾan yaqraʾa, qul: ʾaʿūdhu birabbi al-nāsi, qabla dukhūlihi fī

Using the tooth-stick before prayer is among its meritorious practices. A report relates, “A prayer with a tooth-stick surpasses a prayer without one seventyfold.” I recommend that he recite “Say: I seek refuge in the Lord of humankind” before entering

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٥٨

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 158

Volume Two, page 158

الصَّلَاةِ، فَإِنَّهُ جُنَّةٌ لَهُ مِنَ الْعَدُوِّ، وَأَنْ يَسْتَعِيذَ فِي كُلِّ رَكْعَةٍ قَبْلَ قِرَاءَةِ الْحَمْدِ لِأَنَّهُ يَكُونُ قَارِئًا لِلْقُرْآنِ وَلِأَنَّ كُلَّ رَكْعَةٍ صَلَاةٌ، وَأَنْ يَضُمَّ أَصَابِعَ كَفَّيْهِ فِي التَّكْبِيرِ وَأَنْ يُرَاوِحَ بَيْنَ قَدَمَيْهِ فِي الْقِيَامِ، لَا يَضُمُّ كَعْبَيْهِ وَلَكِنْ يَجْعَلُ بَيْنَ قَدَمَيْهِ مِقْدَارَ أَرْبَعِ أَصَابِعَ، فَإِنَّ ذَلِكَ يُسْتَحَبُّ، قَالَ بَعْضُهُمْ: كَانُوا يَفْتَقِدُونَ الْإِمَامَ إِذَا كَبَّرَ فِي ضَمِّ الْأَصَابِعِ، وَإِذَا قَامَ فِي تَفْرِقَةِ الْأَقْدَامِ، قَالَ: فَيَسْتَدِلُّونَ بِذَلِكَ عَلَى فِقْهِهِ.

al-ṣalāti, faʾinnahu junnatun lahu mina al-ʿaduwwi, waʾan yastaʿīdha fī kulli rakʿatin qabla qirāʾati al-ḥamdi liʾannahu yakūnu qāriʾan li-l-qurʾāni waliʾanna kulla rakʿatin ṣalātun, waʾan yaḍumma ʾaṣābiʿa kaffayhi fī al-takbīri waʾan yurāwiḥa bayna qadamayhi fī al-qiyāmi, lā yaḍummu kaʿbayhi walākin yajʿalu bayna qadamayhi miqdāra ʾarbaʿi ʾaṣābiʿa, faʾinna dhālika yustaḥabbu, qāla baʿḍuhum: kānū yaftaqidūna al-ʾimāma ʾidhā kabbara fī ḍammi al-ʾaṣābiʿi, waʾidhā qāma fī tafriqati al-ʾaqdāmi, qāla: fayastadillūna bi-dhālika ʿalā fiqhihi.

prayer, for it shields him from the enemy. He should seek refuge in every cycle before reciting Praise, because he will be reciting the Qurʾān and because every cycle is a prayer. He should hold the fingers of his hands together when magnifying and leave space between his feet when standing. He should not press his ankles together, but leave four fingers' breadth between his feet; that is recommended. Someone said, “They used to observe whether the imam kept his fingers together when magnifying and his feet apart when standing; from this they inferred his understanding of the law.”

وَنَظَرَ ابْنُ مَسْعُودٍ إِلَى رَجُلٍ قَدْ أَلْزَقَ كَعْبَيْهِ فِي الصَّلَاةِ فَقَالَ: لَوْ رَاوَحَ بَيْنَهُمَا كَانَ قَدْ أَصَابَ السُّنَّةَ. وَقَدْ يُرْوَى فِي خَبَرٍ أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ نَهَى عَنِ الصَّفْنِ وَالصَّفْدِ فِي الصَّلَاةِ، فَأَمَّا الصَّفْنُ فَرَفْعُ إِحْدَى الرِّجْلَيْنِ مِنْ قَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: (الصَّافِنَاتُ الْجِيَادُ) ص: 31، إِذَا عَطَفَ الْفَرَسُ طَرَفَ سُنْبُكِهِ، وَأَمَّا الصَّفْدُ فَهُوَ اقْتِرَانُ الْقَدَمَيْنِ مَعًا وَمِنْهُ قَوْلُهُ تَعَالَى: (مُقَرَّنِينَ فِي الْأَصْفَادِ) إِبْرَاهِيمُ: 49، وَاحِدُهَا صَفَدٌ.

wanaẓara ibnu masʿūdin ʾilā rajulin qad ʾalzaqa kaʿbayhi fī al-ṣalāti faqāla: law rāwaḥa baynahumā kāna qad ʾaṣāba al-sunnata. waqad yurwā fī khabarin ʾanna al-nabiyya ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama nahā ʿani al-ṣafni wa-al-ṣafdi fī al-ṣalāti, faʾammā al-ṣafnu farafʿu ʾiḥdā al-rijlayni min qawlihi taʿālā: (al-ṣāfinātu al-jiyādu) Ṣād: 31, ʾidhā ʿaṭafa al-farasu ṭarafa sunbukihi, waʾammā al-ṣafdu fahuwa iqtirānu al-qadamayni maʿan waminhu qawluhu taʿālā: (muqarranīna fī al-ʾaṣfādi) ʾibrāhīmu: 49, wāḥiduhā ṣafadun.

Ibn Masʿūd saw a man pressing his ankles together in prayer and said, “Had he left space between them, he would have followed the Sunna.” A report relates that the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, forbade ṣafn and ṣafd in prayer. Ṣafn means lifting one foot, as in His exalted saying, “The fine steeds poised on three legs” (Ṣād 38:31), when a horse bends the tip of its hoof. Ṣafd means joining both feet together; from the same root is His exalted saying, “Bound together in fetters” (Ibrāhīm 14:49). The singular of aṣfād is ṣafad.

وَقَدْ رَأَيْتُ بَعْضَ الْعُلَمَاءِ يُفَرِّقُ بَيْنَ أَصَابِعِهِ فِي التَّكْبِيرِ، وَتَأَوَّلَ أَنَّ ذَلِكَ مَعْنَى الْخَبَرِ أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، كَانَ إِذَا كَبَّرَ نَشَرَ أَصَابِعَهُ نَشْرًا، وَذَلِكَ مُحْتَمَلٌ لِتَوْكِيدِهِ بِالْمَصْدَرِ، وَهُوَ قَوْلُهُ نَشْرًا، فَيَصْلُحُ أَنْ يَكُونَ قَوْلُهُ نَشْرًا، يُرِيدُ بِهِ التَّفْرِقَةَ، وَقَدْ تُسَمَّى التَّفْرِقَةُ بَثًّا وَنَشْرًا لِأَنَّ حَقِيقَةَ النَّشْرِ الْبَسْطُ، وَقَدْ قَالَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى: (وَزَرَابِيُّ مَبْثُوثَةٌ) الْغَاشِيَةُ: 16، فَهَذَا هُوَ التَّفْرِقَةُ.

waqad raʾaytu baʿḍa al-ʿulamāʾi yufarriqu bayna ʾaṣābiʿihi fī al-takbīri, wataʾawwala ʾanna dhālika maʿnā al-khabari ʾanna al-nabiyya ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama, kāna ʾidhā kabbara nashara ʾaṣābiʿahu nashran, wa-dhālika muḥtamalun litawkīdihi bi-al-maṣdari, wahuwa qawluhu nashran, fayaṣluḥu ʾan yakūna qawluhu nashran, yurīdu bihi al-tafriqata, waqad tusammā al-tafriqatu baththan wanashran liʾanna ḥaqīqata al-nashri al-basṭu, waqad qāla Allāhu taʿālā: (wazarābiyyu mabthūthatun) al-ghāshiyatu: 16, fa-hādhā huwa al-tafriqatu.

I have seen a scholar separate his fingers when magnifying, interpreting this as the meaning of the report that the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, used to spread his fingers when magnifying. This is possible because the expression is emphasized by its verbal noun, nashran, which could mean separating them. Separation may be called either bathth or nashr, since the fundamental meaning of nashr is spreading out. God Most High has said, “And carpets spread out” (al-Ghāshiya 88:16): this means dispersal.

وَقَالَ فِي مَعْنَى الْبَثِّ كَالْفَرَاشِ الْمَبْثُوثِ، ثُمَّ قَالَ فِي مِثْلِهِ: (كَأَنَّهُمْ جَرَادٌ مُنْتَشِرٌ) الْقَمَرُ: 7، فَإِذَا كَانَ النَّشْرُ مِثْلَ الْبَثِّ، وَكَانَ الْبَثُّ هُوَ التَّفْرِقَةَ، كَانَ قَوْلُهُ نَشْرًا بِمَعْنَى فَرَّقَ، إِلَّا أَنَّ إِسْحَاقَ بْنَ رَاهَوَيْهِ سُئِلَ عَنْ مَعْنَى قَوْلِهِ نَشَرَ أَصَابِعَهُ فِي الصَّلَاةِ نَشْرًا فَقَالَ: هُوَ فَتْحُهَا وَضَمُّهَا، أَرَادَ بِذَلِكَ أَنْ يُعْلَمَ أَنَّهُ لَمْ يَكُنْ يَقْبِضُ كَفَّهُ وَهَذَا وَجْهٌ حَسَنٌ، لِأَنَّ النَّشْرَ ضِدُّ الطَّيِّ فِي الْمَعْنَى، وَالْقَبْضُ طَيٌّ.

waqāla fī maʿnā al-baththi ka-al-farāshi al-mabthūthi, thumma qāla fī mithlihi: (kaʾannahum jarādun muntashirun) al-qamaru: 7, faʾidhā kāna al-nashru mithla al-baththi, wakāna al-baththu huwa al-tafriqata, kāna qawluhu nashran bimaʿnā farraqa, ʾillā ʾanna ʾisḥāqa bna rāhawayhi suʾila ʿan maʿnā qawlihi nashara ʾaṣābiʿahu fī al-ṣalāti nashran faqāla: huwa fatḥuhā waḍammuhā, ʾarāda bi-dhālika ʾan yuʿlama ʾannahu lam yakun yaqbiḍu kaffahu wa-hādhā wajhun ḥasanun, liʾanna al-nashra ḍiddu al-ṭayyi fī al-maʿnā, wa-al-qabḍu ṭayyun.

He speaks of bathth in “like scattered moths,” then says similarly, “As though they were spreading locusts” (al-Qamar 54:7). If nashr resembles bathth, and bathth means separation, nashran means that he separated them. Yet when Isḥāq ibn Rāhawayh was asked about “he spread his fingers in prayer,” he answered, “It means opening them while keeping them together. The intention was to make clear that he did not clench his hand.” This is a good interpretation, since spreading is the opposite of folding, and clenching is a kind of folding.

وَرَأَيْتُ ثَلَاثَةً مِنَ الْعُلَمَاءِ يُفَرِّقُونَ أَصَابِعَهُمْ فِي التَّكْبِيرِ مِنْهُمْ: أَبُو الْحَسَنِ صَاحِبُ الصَّلَاةِ فِي الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ وَكَانَ فَقِيهًا، وَرَأَيْتُ ثَلَاثَةً يَضُمُّونَ أَصَابِعَهُمْ: مِنْهُمْ أَبُو الْحَسَنِ بْنُ سَالِمٍ وَأَبُو بَكْرٍ الْآجُرِّيُّ، وَأَحْسَبُ أَنَّ أَبَا زَيْدٍ الْفَقِيهَ كَانَ يُفَرِّقُ فِي أَكْثَرِ ظَنِّي إِذَا تَذَكَّرْتُ تَكْبِيرَهُ، قَوْلُ: آمِينَ مِنْ فَضَائِلِ الصَّلَاةِ، رُوِيَ عَنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ أَنَّهُ قَالَ: إِذَا قَالَ الْإِمَامُ: وَلَا الضَّالِّينَ فَقُولُوا: آمِينَ، فَإِنَّهُ مَنْ وَافَقَ تَأْمِينُهُ تَأْمِينَ الْمَلَائِكَةِ غُفِرَ لَهُ مَا تَقَدَّمَ مِنْ ذَنْبِهِ.

waraʾaytu thalāthatan mina al-ʿulamāʾi yufarriqūna ʾaṣābiʿahum fī al-takbīri minhum: ʾabū al-ḥasani ṣāḥibu al-ṣalāti fī al-masjidi al-ḥarāmi wakāna faqīhan, waraʾaytu thalāthatan yaḍummūna ʾaṣābiʿahum: minhum ʾabū al-ḥasani bnu sālimin waʾabū bakrin al-ʾājurriyyu, waʾaḥsabu ʾanna ʾabā zaydin al-faqīha kāna yufarriqu fī ʾakthari ẓannī ʾidhā tadhakkartu takbīrahu, qawlu: ʾāmīna min faḍāʾili al-ṣalāti, ruwiya ʿan rasūli Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama ʾannahu qāla: ʾidhā qāla al-ʾimāmu: walā al-ḍāllīna faqūlū: ʾāmīna, faʾinnahu man wāfaqa taʾmīnuhu taʾmīna al-malāʾikati ghufira lahu mā taqaddama min dhanbihi.

I have seen three scholars separate their fingers when magnifying, including Abū al-Ḥasan, who led prayer in the Sacred Mosque and was a jurist. I have seen three keep them together, including Abū al-Ḥasan ibn Sālim and Abū Bakr al-Ājurrī. Recalling Abū Zayd the jurist's magnification, I think it most likely that he separated them. Saying “Amen” is among prayer's meritorious practices. It is related that the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, said, “When the imam says, ‘Nor those who stray,’ say ‘Amen’; whoever says it in agreement with the angels has his previous sins forgiven.”

وَكَانَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ يَرْفَعُ صَوْتَهُ بِآمِينَ، وَفِي لَفْظِ: آمِينَ لُغَتَانِ: الْمَدُّ وَالْقَصْرُ، وَالْمِيمُ فِيهِمَا مُخَفَّفَةٌ لِأَنَّكَ إِذَا شَدَّدْتَ الْمِيمَ أَحَلْتَ الْمَعْنَى، فَيَكُونُ مَعْنَاهُ قَاصِدِينَ مِنْ قَوْلِهِ وَلَا آمِّينَ الْبَيْتَ الْحَرَامَ، وَأَنْ يَتْرُكَ إِحْدَى يَدَيْهِ عَلَى الْأُخْرَى قَابِضًا عَلَى الزَّنْدَيْنِ بَيْنَ السُّرَّةِ وَالصَّدْرِ، فَإِنَّ ذَلِكَ مِنَ الْخُشُوعِ، وَقَالَ بَعْضُ الْعُلَمَاءِ: مَا أَحْسَنَهُ ذُلًّا بَيْنَ يَدَيْ عَزِيزٍ.

wakāna rasūlu Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama yarfaʿu ṣawtahu biʾāmīna, wafī lafẓi: ʾāmīna lughatāni: al-maddu wa-al-qaṣru, wa-al-mīmu fīhimā mukhaffafatun liʾannaka ʾidhā shaddadta al-mīma ʾaḥalta al-maʿnā, fayakūnu maʿnāhu qāṣidīna min qawlihi walā ʾāmmīna al-bayta al-ḥarāma, waʾan yatruka ʾiḥdā yadayhi ʿalā al-ʾukhrā qābiḍan ʿalā al-zandayni bayna al-surrati wa-al-ṣadri, faʾinna dhālika mina al-khushūʿi, waqāla baʿḍu al-ʿulamāʾi: mā ʾaḥsanahu dhullan bayna yaday ʿazīzin.

The Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, used to raise his voice when saying “Amen.” It has two pronunciations, with a long or short initial vowel, but the m is single in both. Doubling it changes the meaning to “those intending,” as in “nor those making for the Sacred House.” He should place one hand upon the other, grasping the wrists between navel and chest, for this expresses humility. One scholar said, “How beautiful it is as an expression of lowliness before One mighty!”

وَرُوِيَ عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ أَنَّهُ مِنْ سُنَنِ الْمُرْسَلِينَ، وَفَسَّرَ عَلِيٌّ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ قَوْلَهُ تَعَالَى: فَصَلِّ لِرَبِّكَ وَانْحَرْ، قَالَ: وَضْعُ الْيَمِينِ عَلَى الشِّمَالِ، وَهَذَا مَوْضِعُ عِلْمِ عَلِيٍّ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى عَنْهُ، وَلَطِيفُ مَعْرِفَتِهِ، لِأَنَّ تَحْتَ الصَّدْرِ عِرْقًا، يُقَالُ لَهُ: النَّاحِرُ لَا يَعْلَمُهُ إِلَّا الْعُلَمَاءُ.

waruwiya ʿani al-nabiyyi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama ʾannahu min sunani al-mursalīna, wafassara ʿaliyyun ʿalayhi al-salāmu qawlahu taʿālā: faṣalli lirabbika wa-nḥar, qāla: waḍʿu al-yamīni ʿalā al-shimāli, wa-hādhā mawḍiʿu ʿilmi ʿaliyyin raḍiya Allāhu taʿālā ʿanhu, walaṭīfu maʿrifatihi, liʾanna taḥta al-ṣadri ʿirqan, yuqālu lahu: al-nāḥiru lā yaʿlamuhu ʾillā al-ʿulamāʾu.

It is related from the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, that this belongs to the practices of the messengers. ʿAlī, peace be upon him, explained His exalted saying, “Pray to your Lord and sacrifice,” as placing the right hand on the left. Here lies an instance of ʿAlī's learning, may God Most High be pleased with him, and his subtle understanding: beneath the chest is a vessel called the nāḥir, known only to scholars.

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٥٩

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 159

Volume Two, page 159

فَاشْتَقَّ عَلِيٌّ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ قَوْلَهُ: وَانْحَرْ مِنْ لَفْظِ النَّاحِرِ: أَيْ ضَعْ يَدَكَ عَلَى النَّاحِرِ، وَهَذَا هُوَ الْعِرْقُ، كَمَا يُقَالُ اِدْمَغْ؛ أَيْ أَصِبِ الدِّمَاغَ وَلَمْ يَحْمِلْهُ عَلَى نَحْرِ الْبُدْنِ، لِأَنَّهُ ذُكِرَ فِي الصَّلَاةِ، وَمِنَ النَّاسِ مَنْ يَظُنُّ اشْتِقَاقَهُ مِنَ النَّحْرِ، وَالنَّحْرُ هُوَ تَحْتَ الْحُلْقُومِ عِنْدَ مُلْتَقَى التَّرَاقِي، وَالْيَدُ لَا تُوضَعُ هُنَاكَ إِلَّا مَنْ قَالَ مِنْ أَهْلِ اللُّغَةِ فِي مَعْنَاهُ: وَانْحَرْ أَيْ وَجِّهِ الْقِبْلَةَ بِنَحْرِكَ، فَهَذَا لَعَمْرِي وَجْهٌ.

fa-shtaqqa ʿaliyyun raḍiya Allāhu ʿanhu qawlahu: wa-nḥar min lafẓi al-nāḥiri: ʾay ḍaʿ yadaka ʿalā al-nāḥiri, wa-hādhā huwa al-ʿirqu, kamā yuqālu idmagh; ʾay ʾaṣibi al-dimāgha walam yaḥmilhu ʿalā naḥri al-budni, liʾannahu dhukira fī al-ṣalāti, wamina al-nāsi man yaẓunnu ishtiqāqahu mina al-naḥri, wa-al-naḥru huwa taḥta al-ḥulqūmi ʿinda multaqā al-tarāqī, wa-al-yadu lā tūḍaʿu hunāka ʾillā man qāla min ʾahli al-lughati fī maʿnāhu: wa-nḥar ʾay wajjihi al-qiblata binaḥrika, fa-hādhā laʿamrī wajhun.

ʿAlī, may God be pleased with him, thus derived “wa-nḥar” from nāḥir: “Place your hand upon the nāḥir,” this vessel, just as idmagh means “strike the brain.” He did not understand it as slaughtering sacrificial camels, because it occurs in the context of prayer. Some suppose it derives from naḥr, the area beneath the throat where the collarbones meet; the hand is not placed there. There is, however, the lexicographers' interpretation: “Face the prayer direction with your chest.” By my life, that is a plausible interpretation.

لَا يُقْعِي فِي الصَّلَاةِ، وَهُوَ أَنْ يَجْلِسَ عَلَى قَدَمَيْهِ وَيَنْصِبَ رُكْبَتَيْهِ، هَذَا مَذْهَبُ أَهْلِ اللُّغَةِ فِي الْإِقْعَاءِ، أَوْ عَلَى رُكْبَتَيْهِ جَاثِيًا وَأَصَابِعُ رِجْلَيْهِ فِي الْأَرْضِ، هَذَا مَذْهَبُ أَهْلِ الْحَدِيثِ، وَلْيَجْتَنِبِ السَّدْلَ وَالْكَفَّ، فَأَمَّا السَّدْلُ فَهُوَ أَنْ يُرْخِيَ أَطْرَافَ ثِيَابِهِ عَلَى الْأَرْضِ وَهُوَ قَائِمٌ، يُقَالُ: سَدَلَ وَسَدَنَ بِمَعْنًى وَاحِدٍ، وَقَدْ تُبْدَلُ اللَّامُ نُونًا لِقُرْبِ الْمَخْرَجَيْنِ إِذَا أَرْسَلَ ثِيَابَهُ.

lā yuqʿī fī al-ṣalāti, wahuwa ʾan yajlisa ʿalā qadamayhi wayanṣiba rukbatayhi, hādhā madhhabu ʾahli al-lughati fī al-ʾiqʿāʾi, ʾaw ʿalā rukbatayhi jāthiyan waʾaṣābiʿu rijlayhi fī al-ʾarḍi, hādhā madhhabu ʾahli al-ḥadīthi, walyajtanibi al-sadla wa-al-kaffa, faʾammā al-sadlu fahuwa ʾan yurkhiya ʾaṭrāfa thiyābihi ʿalā al-ʾarḍi wahuwa qāʾimun, yuqālu: sadala wasadana bimaʿnan wāḥidin, waqad tubdalu al-lāmu nūnan liqurbi al-makhrajayni ʾidhā ʾarsala thiyābahu.

He should not squat in prayer. The lexicographers understand squatting as sitting on the feet with the knees raised; the specialists in hadith understand it as kneeling on the knees with the toes against the ground. He should avoid trailing and gathering up his clothing. Trailing means letting the ends of his garments hang onto the ground while standing. Sadala and sadana have the same meaning when someone lets his garments hang; l may be replaced by n because their places of articulation are close.

وَمِنْهُ قِيلَ: سَدَنَةُ الْكَعْبَةِ أَحَدُهُمْ سَادِنٌ، وَهُمْ قُوَّامُهَا الَّذِينَ يُسْبِلُونَ عَلَيْهَا كِسْوَتَهَا؛ وَسِدَانَةُ الْكَعْبَةِ ثِيَابُهَا الْمُسْبَلَةُ، وَهَذَا قَوْلُ أَهْلِ اللُّغَةِ وَمَذْهَبُ أَهْلِ الْحَدِيثِ فِي السَّدْلِ أَنْ يَلْتَحِفَ بِثَوْبِهِ، وَيُدْخِلَ يَدَيْهِ مِنْ دَاخِلٍ فَيَرْكَعَ وَيَسْجُدَ كَذَلِكَ، وَلِأَنَّ هَذَا فِعْلُ الْيَهُودِ فِي صَلَاتِهِمْ فَنُهُوا عَنِ التَّشَبُّهِ بِهِمْ، وَالْقَمِيصُ فِي مَعْنَاهُ؛ وَلَا يَرْكَعُ وَيَسْجُدُ وَيَدَاهُ فِي بَدَنِ الْقَمِيصِ إِنِ اتَّسَعَ، فَأَمَّا أَنْ يُدْخِلَ يَدَيْهِ فِي جَسَدِ الْقَمِيصِ فِي السُّجُودِ فَمَكْرُوهٌ.

waminhu qīla: sadanatu al-kaʿbati ʾaḥaduhum sādinun, wahum quwwāmuhā alladhīna yusbilūna ʿalayhā kiswatahā; wasidānatu al-kaʿbati thiyābuhā al-musbalatu, wa-hādhā qawlu ʾahli al-lughati wamadhhabu ʾahli al-ḥadīthi fī al-sadli ʾan yaltaḥifa bithawbihi, wayudkhila yadayhi min dākhilin fayarkaʿa wayasjuda kadhālika, waliʾanna hādhā fiʿlu al-yahūdi fī ṣalātihim fanuhū ʿani al-tashabbuhi bihim, wa-al-qamīṣu fī maʿnāhu; walā yarkaʿu wayasjudu wayadāhu fī badani al-qamīṣi ʾini ittasaʿa, faʾammā ʾan yudkhila yadayhi fī jasadi al-qamīṣi fī al-sujūdi famakrūhun.

Hence the expression “custodians of the Kaʿba,” sadana, singular sādin: they are its attendants who drape its covering over it; its sidāna is its hanging fabric. This is the lexicographers' explanation. Hadith specialists understand trailing as wrapping oneself in a garment with the hands inside, then bowing and prostrating that way. Because Jews do this in their prayer, imitation of them was forbidden. A shirt falls under the same rule: he should not bow and prostrate with his hands inside its body, even if roomy. Putting the hands inside the shirt during prostration is disapproved.

وَقَدْ قَالَ بَعْضُ الْفُقَهَاءِ فِي السَّدْلِ قَوْلًا ثَالِثًا قَالَ: هُوَ أَنْ يَضَعَ وَسَطَ إِزَارِهِ عَلَى رَأْسِهِ، وَيُرْسِلَ طَرَفَيْهِ عَنْ يَمِينِهِ وَشِمَالِهِ مِنْ غَيْرِ أَنْ يَجْعَلَهُمَا عَلَى كَتِفَيْهِ، وَهَذَا قَوْلُ بَعْضِ الْمُتَأَخِّرِينَ وَلَيْسَ بِشَيْءٍ عِنْدِي، وَالْأَوَّلَانِ أَعْجَبُ إِلَيَّ، وَهُمَا مَذْهَبُ الْقُدَمَاءِ، وَأَمَّا الْكَفُّ فَقَدْ نُهِيَ عَنْهُ فِي الصَّلَاةِ أَيْضًا، وَهُوَ أَنْ يَرْفَعَ ثِيَابَهُ مِنْ بَيْنِ يَدَيْهِ أَوْ مِنْ خَلْفِهِ إِذَا أَرَادَ السُّجُودَ، وَأَكْرَهُ أَنْ يَأْتَزِرَ فَوْقَ الْقَمِيصِ فَإِنَّهُ مِنَ الْكَفِّ.

waqad qāla baʿḍu al-fuqahāʾi fī al-sadli qawlan thālithan qāla: huwa ʾan yaḍaʿa wasaṭa ʾizārihi ʿalā raʾsihi, wayursila ṭarafayhi ʿan yamīnihi washimālihi min ghayri ʾan yajʿalahumā ʿalā katifayhi, wa-hādhā qawlu baʿḍi al-mutaʾakhkhirīna walaysa bishayʾin ʿindī, wa-al-ʾawwalāni ʾaʿjabu ʾilayya, wahumā madhhabu al-qudamāʾi, waʾammā al-kaffu faqad nuhiya ʿanhu fī al-ṣalāti ʾayḍan, wahuwa ʾan yarfaʿa thiyābahu min bayni yadayhi ʾaw min khalfihi ʾidhā ʾarāda al-sujūda, waʾakrahu ʾan yaʾtazira fawqa al-qamīṣi faʾinnahu mina al-kaffi.

Some jurists offer a third explanation of trailing: placing the middle of one's wrap on the head and letting its ends hang to right and left without putting them over the shoulders. This view belongs to some later scholars and carries no weight with me. I prefer the first two, which represent the earlier authorities' views. Gathering up clothing is also forbidden in prayer: it means lifting one's garments in front or behind when preparing to prostrate. I disapprove of tying a waist-wrap over the shirt, since that counts as gathering up clothing.

وَقَدْ رُوِيَ عَنْ أَحْمَدَ بْنِ حَنْبَلٍ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ كَرَاهِيَةُ ذَلِكَ، وَرَوَيْنَا عَنْ بَعْضِ أَوْلَادِ عُمَرَ بْنِ الْخَطَّابِ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ الرُّخْصَةَ فِي ذَلِكَ، صَلَّى، أَنَّهُ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ مُحْتَزِمًا بِعِمَامَتِهِ فَوْقَ الْقَمِيصِ، وَقَدْ يَكُونُ الْكَفُّ فِي شَعْرِ الرَّأْسِ، فَلَا يُصَلِّيَنَّ وَهُوَ عَاقِصٌ شَعْرَهُ،

waqad ruwiya ʿan ʾaḥmada bni ḥanbalin raḍiya Allāhu ʿanhu karāhiyatu dhālika, warawaynā ʿan baʿḍi ʾawlādi ʿumara bni al-khaṭṭābi raḍiya Allāhu ʿanhu al-rukhṣata fī dhālika, ṣallā, ʾannahu ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama muḥtaziman biʿimāmatihi fawqa al-qamīṣi, waqad yakūnu al-kaffu fī shaʿri al-raʾsi, falā yuṣalliyanna wahuwa ʿāqiṣun shaʿrahu,

Disapproval of this is related from Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal, may God be pleased with him. We have related permission for it from one of the children of ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb, may God be pleased with him: he prayed; that he, may God bless him and grant him peace, was girded with his turban over his shirt. Gathering may also concern head hair: no one should pray with his hair tied up.

وَفِي الْحَدِيثِ: أُمِرْتُ أَنْ أَسْجُدَ عَلَى سَبْعَةِ أَعْضَاءٍ وَلَا أَكُفَّ شَعْرًا وَلَا ثَوْبًا، وَنَهَى رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ عَنِ الِاخْتِصَارِ فِي الصَّلَاةِ وَعَنِ الصَّلْبِ، فَأَمَّا الِاخْتِصَارُ فَأَنْ يَضَعَ يَدَهُ عَلَى خَاصِرَتِهِ، وَأَمَّا الصَّلْبُ فَأَنْ يَضَعَ يَدَيْهِ جَمِيعًا عَلَى خَصْرَيْهِ وَيُجَافِيَ بَيْنَ

wafī al-ḥadīthi: ʾumirtu ʾan ʾasjuda ʿalā sabʿati ʾaʿḍāʾin walā ʾakuffa shaʿran walā thawban, wanahā rasūlu Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama ʿani al-ikhtiṣāri fī al-ṣalāti waʿani al-ṣalbi, faʾammā al-ikhtiṣāru faʾan yaḍaʿa yadahu ʿalā khāṣiratihi, waʾammā al-ṣalbu faʾan yaḍaʿa yadayhi jamīʿan ʿalā khaṣrayhi wayujāfiya bayna

The hadith says, “I was commanded to prostrate on seven limbs and not gather up hair or clothing.” The Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, prohibited resting a hand on the hip and assuming a cross-like posture in prayer. The former means placing one's hand on the flank; the latter means placing both hands on the hips and holding apart

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٦٠

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 160

Volume Two, page 160

عَضُدَيْهِ فِي الْقِيَامِ، وَلْتَقَعْ رُكْبَتَاهُ عَلَى الْأَرْضِ قَبْلَ يَدَيْهِ، وَيَدَاهُ قَبْلَ وَجْهِهِ، وَأَنْ يَسْجُدَ عَلَى جَبْهَتِهِ وَأَنْفِهِ، فَإِنَّهُمَا عُضْوٌ وَاحِدٌ، وَلْيَنْهَضْ عَلَى صُدُورِ قَدَمَيْهِ وَإِنْ ضَعُفَ فَلْيَعْتَمِدْ عَلَى الْأَرْضِ بِيَدَيْهِ، وَأَنْ لَا يَلْتَفِتَ فِي صَلَاتِهِ يَمِينًا وَشِمَالًا وَلَا يَلْحَظَ عَنْ يَمِينٍ وَشِمَالٍ، فَإِنْ لَحَظَ فَهُوَ أَيْسَرُ، وَلْيَرْمِ بِبَصَرِهِ إِلَى مَوْضِعِ سُجُودِهِ، فَإِنْ لَمْ يَفْعَلْ فَلْيُقَابِلْ بِوَجْهِهِ تِلْقَاءَ الْقِبْلَةِ وَلَا يَعْبَثْ بِشَيْءٍ مِنْ بَدَنِهِ فِي الصَّلَاةِ.

ʿaḍudayhi fī al-qiyāmi, waltaqaʿ rukbatāhu ʿalā al-ʾarḍi qabla yadayhi, wayadāhu qabla wajhihi, waʾan yasjuda ʿalā jabhatihi waʾanfihi, faʾinnahumā ʿuḍwun wāḥidun, walyanhaḍ ʿalā ṣudūri qadamayhi waʾin ḍaʿufa falyaʿtamid ʿalā al-ʾarḍi biyadayhi, waʾan lā yaltafita fī ṣalātihi yamīnan washimālan walā yalḥaẓa ʿan yamīnin washimālin, faʾin laḥaẓa fahuwa ʾaysaru, walyarmi bibaṣarihi ʾilā mawḍiʿi sujūdihi, faʾin lam yafʿal falyuqābil biwajhihi tilqāʾa al-qiblati walā yaʿbath bishayʾin min badanihi fī al-ṣalāti.

one's upper arms while standing. His knees should reach the ground before his hands, and his hands before his face. He should prostrate on forehead and nose, since they count as one limb. He should rise on the fronts of his feet; if weak, he may support himself with his hands on the ground. He should neither turn nor glance right and left during prayer, though glancing is less objectionable. He should direct his eyes to the place of prostration; otherwise he should face directly toward the prayer direction. He should not fidget with any part of his body during prayer.

وَرُوِيَ أَنَّ سَعِيدَ بْنَ الْمُسَيِّبِ نَظَرَ إِلَى رَجُلٍ يَعْبَثُ بِلِحْيَتِهِ فِي صَلَاتِهِ، فَقَالَ: لَوْ خَشَعَ قَلْبُ هَذَا لَخَشَعَتْ جَوَارِحُهُ، وَقَدْ رَوَيْنَاهُ عَنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ مِنْ طَرِيقٍ وَنَهَى عَنِ الْمُوَاصَلَةِ فِي الصَّلَاةِ وَهِيَ فِي خَمْسٍ: اثْنَانِ عَلَى الْإِمَامِ أَنْ لَا يَصِلَ قِرَاءَتَهُ بِتَكْبِيرَةِ الْإِحْرَامِ، وَلَا يَصِلَ رُكُوعَهُ بِقِرَاءَتِهِ، وَاثْنَانِ عَلَى الْمَأْمُومِ أَنْ لَا يَصِلَ تَكْبِيرَةَ الْإِحْرَامِ بِتَكْبِيرَةِ الْإِمَامِ وَلَا تَسْلِيمَهُ بِتَسْلِيمِهِ، وَوَاحِدَةٌ بَيْنَهُمَا أَنْ لَا يَصِلَ تَسْلِيمَ الْفَرْضِ بِتَسْلِيمِ التَّطَوُّعِ، وَلْيَفْصِلْ بَيْنَهُمَا.

waruwiya ʾanna saʿīda bna al-musayyibi naẓara ʾilā rajulin yaʿbathu biliḥyatihi fī ṣalātihi, faqāla: law khashaʿa qalbu hādhā lakhashaʿat jawāriḥuhu, waqad rawaynāhu ʿan rasūli Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama min ṭarīqin wanahā ʿani al-muwāṣalati fī al-ṣalāti wahiya fī khamsin: ithnāni ʿalā al-ʾimāmi ʾan lā yaṣila qirāʾatahu bitakbīrati al-ʾiḥrāmi, walā yaṣila rukūʿahu biqirāʾatihi, wa-thnāni ʿalā al-maʾmūmi ʾan lā yaṣila takbīrata al-ʾiḥrāmi bitakbīrati al-ʾimāmi walā taslīmahu bitaslīmihi, wawāḥidatun baynahumā ʾan lā yaṣila taslīma al-farḍi bitaslīmi al-taṭawwuʿi, walyafṣil baynahumā.

It is related that Saʿīd ibn al-Musayyib saw a man playing with his beard in prayer and said, “Had this man's heart become humble, his limbs would have become humble.” Through one chain we have also related this from the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace. He prohibited running prayer's actions together in five respects. Two concern the imam: he should not join recitation directly to the opening magnification, or bowing to recitation. Two concern the follower: he should not join his opening magnification or salutation to the imam's. One concerns both: the salutation of obligatory prayer should be separated from that of voluntary prayer.

وَقَدْ قِيلَ: التَّسْلِيمُ حَزْمٌ وَالتَّكْبِيرُ جَزْمٌ، وَقَدْ جَاءَ فِي الْخَبَرِ: سَبْعَةُ أَشْيَاءَ فِي الصَّلَاةِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ: الرُّعَافُ، وَالنُّعَاسُ، وَالْوَسْوَسَةُ، وَالتَّثَاؤُبُ، وَالْحِكَاكُ، وَالِالْتِفَاتُ، وَالْعَبَثُ بِالشَّيْءِ، وَزَادَ بَعْضُهُمْ: وَالسَّهْوُ، وَالشَّكُّ، وَقَالَ بَعْضُ السَّلَفِ: أَرْبَعَةُ أَشْيَاءَ فِي الصَّلَاةِ مِنَ الْجَفَاءِ: الِالْتِفَاتُ وَمَسْحُ الْوَجْهِ وَتَسْوِيَةُ الْحَصَى وَأَنْ يُصَلِّيَ بِطَرِيقِ مَنْ يَمُرُّ بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ وَزَادَ بَعْضُهُمْ وَأَنْ لَا يُصَلِّيَ فِي الصَّفِّ الثَّانِي، وَفِي الصَّفِّ الْأَوَّلِ فُرْجَةٌ.

waqad qīla: al-taslīmu ḥazmun wa-al-takbīru jazmun, waqad jāʾa fī al-khabari: sabʿatu ʾashyāʾa fī al-ṣalāti mina al-shayṭāni: al-ruʿāfu, wa-al-nuʿāsu, wa-al-waswasatu, wa-al-tathāʾubu, wa-al-ḥikāku, wa-al-iltifātu, wa-al-ʿabathu bi-al-shayʾi, wazāda baʿḍuhum: wa-al-sahwu, wa-al-shakku, waqāla baʿḍu al-salafi: ʾarbaʿatu ʾashyāʾa fī al-ṣalāti mina al-jafāʾi: al-iltifātu wamasḥu al-wajhi wataswiyatu al-ḥaṣā waʾan yuṣalliya biṭarīqi man yamurru bayna yadayhi wazāda baʿḍuhum waʾan lā yuṣalliya fī al-ṣaffi al-thānī, wafī al-ṣaffi al-ʾawwali furjatun.

It has been said, “The salutation should be firm, and the magnification clipped.” A report names seven things in prayer as coming from Satan: nosebleeds, drowsiness, whisperings, yawning, scratching, turning aside, and fiddling with something. Some add forgetfulness and doubt. An early authority said, “Four things in prayer are discourteous: turning aside, wiping the face, leveling the pebbles, and praying in someone's path as he passes in front.” Some added, “And not praying in the second row when there is a gap in the first.”

وَقَدْ نُهِيَ عَنْ صَلَاةِ الْحَاقِنِ، وَالْحَاقِبِ، وَالْحَازِقِ، فَالْحَاقِنُ مِنَ الْبَوْلِ وَالْحَاقِبُ مِنْ وُجُودِ الْغَائِطِ وَالْحَازِقُ صَاحِبُ الْخُفِّ الضَّيِّقِ فَلَا يُصَلِّي مَنْ كُنَّ بِهِ هَذِهِ الثَّلَاثَةُ لِأَنَّهَا تَشْغَلُ الْقَلْبَ، وَأَكْرَهُ صَلَاةَ الْغَضْبَانِ وَالْمُهْتَمِّ بِأَمْرٍ وَمَنْ عَرَضَتْ لَهُ حَاجَةٌ حَتَّى يُسَرَّى عَنْ قُلُوبِهِمْ ذَلِكَ وَيَطْمَئِنَّ الْقَلْبُ وَيَتَفَرَّغُوا لِلصَّلَاةِ

waqad nuhiya ʿan ṣalāti al-ḥāqini, wa-al-ḥāqibi, wa-al-ḥāziqi, fa-al-ḥāqinu mina al-bawli wa-al-ḥāqibu min wujūdi al-ghāʾiṭi wa-al-ḥāziqu ṣāḥibu al-khuffi al-ḍayyiqi falā yuṣallī man kunna bihi hādhihi al-thalāthatu liʾannahā tashghalu al-qalba, waʾakrahu ṣalāta al-ghaḍbāni wa-al-muhtammi biʾamrin waman ʿaraḍat lahu ḥājatun ḥattā yusarrā ʿan qulūbihim dhālika wayaṭmaʾinna al-qalbu wayatafarraghū li-l-ṣalāti

Prayer is forbidden for one restraining urine, one restraining feces, or one wearing tight footwear. These three conditions occupy the heart, so a person affected should not pray. I disapprove of prayer by someone angry, preoccupied, or confronted by a need until that burden is lifted, the heart settles, and they can devote themselves to prayer.

وَمَنْ شَغَلَ قَلْبَهُ حُضُورُ الطَّعَامِ وَكَانَتْ نَفْسُهُ تَائِقَةً إِلَيْهِ فَلْيُقَدِّمِ الْأَكْلَ لِقَوْلِهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ إِذَا حَضَرَ الْعَشَاءُ وَأُقِيمَتِ الصَّلَاةُ فَابْدَؤُوا بِالْعَشَاءِ إِلَّا أَنْ يَضِيقَ الْوَقْتُ أَوْ يَكُونَ سَاكِنَ الْقَلْبِ. وَفِي الْخَبَرِ لَا يَدْخُلَنَّ أَحَدُكُمُ الصَّلَاةَ وَهُوَ مُغْضَبٌ وَلَا يُصَلِّيَنَّ أَحَدُكُمْ وَهُوَ غَضْبَانُ، وَكَانَ الْحَسَنُ يَقُولُ: كُلُّ صَلَاةٍ لَا يَحْضُرُ فِيهَا الْقَلْبُ فَهِيَ إِلَى الْعُقُوبَةِ أَسْرَعُ.

waman shaghala qalbahu ḥuḍūru al-ṭaʿāmi wakānat nafsuhu tāʾiqatan ʾilayhi falyuqaddimi al-ʾakla liqawlihi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama ʾidhā ḥaḍara al-ʿashāʾu waʾuqīmati al-ṣalātu fa-bdaʾū bi-al-ʿashāʾi ʾillā ʾan yaḍīqa al-waqtu ʾaw yakūna sākina al-qalbi. wafī al-khabari lā yadkhulanna ʾaḥadukumu al-ṣalāta wahuwa mughḍabun walā yuṣalliyanna ʾaḥadukum wahuwa ghaḍbānu, wakāna al-ḥasanu yaqūlu: kullu ṣalātin lā yaḥḍuru fīhā al-qalbu fahiya ʾilā al-ʿuqūbati ʾasraʿu.

If the presence of food occupies someone's heart and he longs for it, he should eat first, since he, may God bless him and grant him peace, said, “When dinner is served and prayer begins, start with dinner,” unless time is short or his heart is tranquil. A report says, “Let none of you enter prayer while angered, and let none of you pray while angry.” Al-Ḥasan used to say, “Every prayer in which the heart is absent leads more swiftly to punishment.”

ذِكْرُ فَضَائِلِ الصَّلَاةِ وَآدَابِهَا وَمَا يَزْكُو بِهِ أَهْلُهَا وَوَصْفِ صَلَاةِ الْخَاشِعِينَ

dhikru faḍāʾili al-ṣalāti waʾādābihā wamā yazkū bihi ʾahluhā wawaṣfi ṣalāti al-khāshiʿīna

An account of prayer's merits and courtesies, what purifies those who perform it, and the prayer of the humble

قَالَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى: (وَأَقِمِ الصَّلَاةَ لِذِكْرِي) طه: 14، وَقَالَ: (وَلَا تَكُنْ مِنَ الْغَافِلِينَ) الْأَعْرَافُ: 205، وَقَالَ تَعَالَى: (لَا تَقْرَبُوا الصَّلَاةَ وَأَنْتُمْ سُكَارَى حَتَّى تَعْلَمُوا مَا تَقُولُونَ) النِّسَاءُ: 43، قِيلَ: سُكَارَى مِنْ حُبِّ الدُّنْيَا وَقِيلَ: مِنَ الِاهْتِمَامِ بِهَا، وَقَالَ جَلَّ ثَنَاؤُهُ: (الَّذِينَ هُمْ عَلَى صَلَاتِهِمْ دَائِمُونَ) الْمَعَارِجُ: 23، وَقَالَ النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: مَنْ صَلَّى رَكْعَتَيْنِ لَمْ يُحَدِّثْ نَفْسَهُ

qāla Allāhu taʿālā: (waʾaqimi al-ṣalāta lidhikrī) Ṭā Hā: 14, waqāla: (walā takun mina al-ghāfilīna) al-ʾaʿrāfu: 205, waqāla taʿālā: (lā taqrabū al-ṣalāta waʾantum sukārā ḥattā taʿlamū mā taqūlūna) al-nisāʾu: 43, qīla: sukārā min ḥubbi al-dunyā waqīla: mina al-ihtimāmi bihā, waqāla jalla thanāʾuhu: (alladhīna hum ʿalā ṣalātihim dāʾimūna) al-maʿāriju: 23, waqāla al-nabiyyu ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: man ṣallā rakʿatayni lam yuḥaddith nafsahu

God Most High said, “Establish prayer for My remembrance” (Ṭā Hā 20:14), and “Do not be among the heedless” (al-Aʿrāf 7:205). The Exalted said, “Do not approach prayer while intoxicated, until you know what you are saying” (al-Nisāʾ 4:43). It has been interpreted as intoxication with love of this world, or with concern for it. He, glorious in praise, said, “Those who persist in their prayer” (al-Maʿārij 70:23). The Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, said, “Whoever prays two cycles without speaking inwardly to himself

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٦١

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 161

Volume Two, page 161

فِيهِمَا بِشَيْءٍ مِنَ الدُّنْيَا غُفِرَ لَهُ مَا تَقَدَّمَ مِنْ ذَنْبِهِ، وَقَالَ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: إِنَّمَا الصَّلَاةُ تَمَسْكُنٌ، وَتَوَاضُعٌ، وَتَضَرُّعٌ وَتَبَاؤُسٌ، وَتَنَادُمٌ، وَتَرْفَعُ يَدَيْكَ وَتَقُولُ: اللَّهُمَّ، فَمَنْ لَمْ يَفْعَلْ فَهِيَ خِدَاجٌ أَيْ نَاقِصَةٌ، رَوَيْنَا عَنِ اللَّهِ سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى فِي الْكُتُبِ السَّالِفَةِ أَنَّهُ قَالَ: لَيْسَ كُلُّ مُصَلٍّ أَتَقَبَّلُ صَلَاتَهُ إِنَّمَا أَقْبَلُ صَلَاةَ مَنْ تَوَاضَعَ لِعَظَمَتِي وَلَمْ يَتَكَبَّرْ عَلَيَّ، وَأَطْعَمَ الْفَقِيرَ الْجَائِعَ لِوَجْهِي.

fīhimā bishayʾin mina al-dunyā ghufira lahu mā taqaddama min dhanbihi, waqāla ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: ʾinnamā al-ṣalātu tamaskunun, watawāḍuʿun, wataḍarruʿun watabāʾusun, watanādumun, watarfaʿu yadayka wataqūlu: Allāhumma, faman lam yafʿal fahiya khidājun ʾay nāqiṣatun, rawaynā ʿani Allāhi subḥānahu wataʿālā fī al-kutubi al-sālifati ʾannahu qāla: laysa kullu muṣallin ʾataqabbalu ṣalātahu ʾinnamā ʾaqbalu ṣalāta man tawāḍaʿa liʿaẓamatī walam yatakabbar ʿalayya, waʾaṭʿama al-faqīra al-jāʾiʿa liwajhī.

about anything worldly during them has his previous sins forgiven.” He, may God bless him and grant him peace, said, “Prayer is expressing need, humility, entreaty, wretchedness, and remorse; you raise your hands and say, ‘O God!’ Whoever fails to do this has a deficient prayer,” meaning an incomplete one. We have transmitted from God, glorified and exalted is He, in the earlier scriptures that He said, “I do not accept every worshipper's prayer. I accept the prayer of one who humbles himself before My greatness, does not behave arrogantly toward Me, and feeds the hungry poor person for My sake.”

فَمِنَ الْإِقْبَالِ عَلَى الصَّلَاةِ أَنْ لَا تَعْرِفَ مَنْ عَلَى يَمِينِكَ وَلَا مَنْ عَلَى شِمَالِكَ مِنْ حُسْنِ الْقِيَامِ بَيْنَ يَدَيِ الْقَائِمِ عَلَى كُلِّ نَفْسٍ بِمَا كَسَبَتْ، وَكَذَلِكَ فَسَّرُوا قَوْلَهُ تَعَالَى: (هُمْ فِي صَلَاتِهِمْ خَاشِعُونَ) الْمُؤْمِنُونَ: 2، وَقَالَ سَعِيدُ بْنُ جُبَيْرٍ: مَا عَرَفْتُ مَنْ عَلَى يَمِينِي وَلَا عَلَى شِمَالِي فِي الصَّلَاةِ مُنْذُ أَرْبَعِينَ سَنَةً، مُنْذُ سَمِعْتُ ابْنَ عَبَّاسٍ يَقُولُ: الْخُشُوعُ فِي الصَّلَاةِ أَنْ لَا يَعْرِفَ الْمُصَلِّي مَنْ عَلَى يَمِينِهِ وَعَنْ شِمَالِهِ.

famina al-ʾiqbāli ʿalā al-ṣalāti ʾan lā taʿrifa man ʿalā yamīnika walā man ʿalā shimālika min ḥusni al-qiyāmi bayna yadayi al-qāʾimi ʿalā kulli nafsin bimā kasabat, wa-kadhālika fassarū qawlahu taʿālā: (hum fī ṣalātihim khāshiʿūna) al-muʾminūna: 2, waqāla saʿīdu bnu jubayrin: mā ʿaraftu man ʿalā yamīnī walā ʿalā shimālī fī al-ṣalāti mundhu ʾarbaʿīna sanatan, mundhu samiʿtu ibna ʿabbāsin yaqūlu: al-khushūʿu fī al-ṣalāti ʾan lā yaʿrifa al-muṣallī man ʿalā yamīnihi waʿan shimālihi.

Devotion to prayer includes being unaware of who stands on your right or left, through standing well before the One who watches over every soul and its earnings. Thus they explained His exalted saying, “They are humble in their prayer” (al-Muʾminūn 23:2). Saʿīd ibn Jubayr said, “For forty years I have not known who was on my right or left in prayer, ever since hearing Ibn ʿAbbās say, ‘Humility in prayer means that the worshipper does not know who is on his right and left.’”

وَرَوَيْنَا عَنْ بِشْرِ بْنِ الْحَارِثِ قَالَ: قَالَ سُفْيَانُ: مَنْ لَمْ يَخْشَعْ فَسَدَتْ صَلَاتُهُ، وَرَوَيْنَا عَنْ مُعَاذِ بْنِ جَبَلٍ، مَنْ عَرَفَ مَنْ عَنْ يَمِينِهِ وَشِمَالِهِ فِي الصَّلَاةِ مُتَعَمِّدًا فَلَا صَلَاةَ لَهُ، وَقَدْ أَسْنَدَهُ إِسْمَاعِيلُ بْنُ أَبِي زِيَادٍ عَنْ بِشْرِ بْنِ الْحَارِثِ وَغَيْرِهِ وَعَنِ الثَّوْرِيِّ أَيْضًا: مَنْ قَرَأَ كَلِمَةً مَكْتُوبَةً فِي حَائِطٍ أَوْ بِسَاطٍ فِي صَلَاتِهِ فَصَلَاتُهُ بَاطِلَةٌ، وَقَالَ بِشْرٌ يَعْنِي بِذَلِكَ لِأَنَّهُ عَمَلٌ فِي الصَّلَاةِ.

warawaynā ʿan bishri bni al-ḥārithi qāla: qāla sufyānu: man lam yakhshaʿ fasadat ṣalātuhu, warawaynā ʿan muʿādhi bni jabalin, man ʿarafa man ʿan yamīnihi washimālihi fī al-ṣalāti mutaʿammidan falā ṣalāta lahu, waqad ʾasnadahu ʾismāʿīlu bnu ʾabī ziyādin ʿan bishri bni al-ḥārithi waghayrihi waʿani al-thawriyyi ʾayḍan: man qaraʾa kalimatan maktūbatan fī ḥāʾiṭin ʾaw bisāṭin fī ṣalātihi faṣalātuhu bāṭilatun, waqāla bishrun yaʿnī bi-dhālika liʾannahu ʿamalun fī al-ṣalāti.

We have related from Bishr ibn al-Ḥārith that Sufyān said, “Whoever lacks humility has spoiled his prayer.” We have related from Muʿādh ibn Jabal, “Whoever deliberately recognizes those on his right and left during prayer has no prayer.” Ismāʿīl ibn Abī Ziyād transmitted this with a chain from Bishr ibn al-Ḥārith and others. Also from al-Thawrī: “Whoever reads a word written on a wall or carpet during his prayer has an invalid prayer.” Bishr explained that this is because it constitutes an extraneous action within prayer.

وَمِنَ الدَّوَامِ فِي الصَّلَاةِ السُّكُونُ فِيهَا، وَعَلَى ذَلِكَ فُسِّرَ قَوْلُهُ تَعَالَى: (الَّذِينَ هُمْ عَلَى صَلَاتِهِمْ دَائِمُونَ) الْمَعَارِجُ: 23، قِيلَ: هُوَ السُّكُونُ وَالطُّمَأْنِينَةُ فِي الصَّلَاةِ مِنْ قَوْلِكَ: مَاءٌ دَائِمٌ إِذَا سَكَنَ، وَقَالَ بَعْضُ الصَّحَابَةِ: يُحْشَرُ النَّاسُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ عَلَى مِثَالِ هَيْئَاتِهِمْ فِي الصَّلَاةِ، مِنَ الطُّمَأْنِينَةِ وَالْهُدُوءِ، وَمِنْ وُجُودِ النَّعِيمِ بِهَا وَاللَّذَّةِ، ثُمَّ إِصْغَاءُ الْقَلْبِ لِلْفَهْمِ وَخُشُوعُهُ لِلتَّوَاضُعِ، وَسُكُونُ الْجَوَارِحِ لِلْهَيْبَةِ، ثُمَّ التَّرْتِيلُ فِي الْقِرَاءَةِ وَالتَّدَبُّرُ لِمَعَانِي الْكَلَامِ.

wamina al-dawāmi fī al-ṣalāti al-sukūnu fīhā, waʿalā dhālika fussira qawluhu taʿālā: (alladhīna hum ʿalā ṣalātihim dāʾimūna) al-maʿāriju: 23, qīla: huwa al-sukūnu wa-al-ṭumaʾnīnatu fī al-ṣalāti min qawlika: māʾun dāʾimun ʾidhā sakana, waqāla baʿḍu al-ṣaḥābati: yuḥsharu al-nāsu yawma al-qiyāmati ʿalā mithāli hayʾātihim fī al-ṣalāti, mina al-ṭumaʾnīnati wa-al-hudūʾi, wamin wujūdi al-naʿīmi bihā wa-al-ladhdhati, thumma ʾiṣghāʾu al-qalbi li-l-fahmi wakhushūʿuhu li-l-tawāḍuʿi, wasukūnu al-jawāriḥi li-l-haybati, thumma al-tartīlu fī al-qirāʾati wa-al-tadabburu limaʿānī al-kalāmi.

Persistence in prayer includes stillness. His exalted saying, “Those who persist in their prayer” (al-Maʿārij 70:23), was explained accordingly: stillness and composure in prayer, as one calls water dāʾim when it is still. A Companion said, “People will be gathered on Resurrection Day in forms resembling their condition in prayer: their composure and calm, and the delight and pleasure they found in it.” Then come the heart's attentive listening to understand, its humbling itself in lowliness, and the limbs' stillness in awe; then measured recitation and reflection on the words' meanings.

وَحُسْنُ الِافْتِقَارِ إِلَى الْمُتَكَلِّمِ فِي الْإِفْهَامِ وَالْإِيقَافِ عَلَى الْمُرَادِ، وَصِدْقُ الرَّغْبَةِ فِي الطَّلَبِ لِلِاطِّلَاعِ عَلَى الْمُطَّلَعِ مِنَ السِّرِّ الْمَكْنُونِ الْمُسْتَوْدَعِ فِي الْكِتَابِ، وَإِنْ مَرَّ بِآيَةِ رَحْمَةٍ سَأَلَ وَرَغِبَ، أَوْ آيَةِ عَذَابٍ فَزِعَ وَاسْتَعَاذَ، أَوْ مَرَّ بِتَسْبِيحٍ أَوْ تَعْظِيمٍ حَمِدَ وَسَبَّحَ وَعَظَّمَ، فَإِنْ قَالَ بِلِسَانِهِ فَحَسَنٌ وَإِنْ أَسَرَّهُ فِي قَلْبِهِ وَرَفَعَ بِهِ هَمَّهُ نَابَهُ قَصْدُهُ عَنِ الْمَقَالِ، وَكَانَ فَقْرُهُ غَايَةَ السُّؤَالِ.

waḥusnu al-iftiqāri ʾilā al-mutakallimi fī al-ʾifhāmi wa-al-ʾīqāfi ʿalā al-murādi, waṣidqu al-raghbati fī al-ṭalabi li-l-iṭṭilāʿi ʿalā al-muṭṭalaʿi mina al-sirri al-maknūni al-mustawdaʿi fī al-kitābi, waʾin marra biʾāyati raḥmatin saʾala waraghiba, ʾaw ʾāyati ʿadhābin faziʿa wa-staʿādha, ʾaw marra bitasbīḥin ʾaw taʿẓīmin ḥamida wasabbaḥa waʿaẓẓama, faʾin qāla bilisānihi faḥasanun waʾin ʾasarrahu fī qalbihi warafaʿa bihi hammahu nābahu qaṣduhu ʿani al-maqāli, wakāna faqruhu ghāyata al-suʾāli.

Also required are a fitting dependence upon the Speaker to grant understanding and disclose His intention, and sincere desire in seeking access to what may be disclosed of the hidden secret entrusted to the Book. On reaching a verse of mercy, he should ask and yearn; a verse of punishment, tremble and seek refuge; glorification or exaltation, praise, glorify, and exalt. Speaking aloud is good. If he keeps it within his heart and raises his aspiration through it, his intention takes the place of speech, and his need becomes the fullest petition.

وَهَذَا أَحَدُ الْوَجْهَيْنِ فِي قَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: (يَتْلُونَهُ حَقَّ تِلَاوَتِهِ أُولَئِكَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِهِ) الْبَقَرَةُ: 121، هَكَذَا كَانَ وَصْفُهُمْ فِي التِّلَاوَةِ، وَيَنْبَغِي أَنْ يَكُونَ قَلْبُهُ بِوَصْفٍ عَلَى رُكْنٍ مِنْ أَرْكَانِ الصَّلَاةِ، وَهَمُّهُ مُعَلَّقٌ بِكُلِّ مَعْنًى مِنْ

wa-hādhā ʾaḥadu al-wajhayni fī qawlihi taʿālā: (yatlūnahu ḥaqqa tilāwatihi ʾulāʾika yuʾminūna bihi) al-baqaratu: 121, hākadhā kāna waṣfuhum fī al-tilāwati, wayanbaghī ʾan yakūna qalbuhu biwaṣfin ʿalā ruknin min ʾarkāni al-ṣalāti, wahammuhu muʿallaqun bikulli maʿnan min

This is one of the two interpretations of His exalted saying, “They recite it as it should be recited; those believe in it” (al-Baqara 2:121). Such was their manner of recitation. His heart should assume an appropriate state at a constituent act of prayer, and his aspiration should attach to every meaning among

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٦٢

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 162

Volume Two, page 162

مَعَانِي الْمُنَاجَاةِ، فَإِذَا قَالَ: اللَّهُ أَكْبَرُ أَيْ مِمَّا سِوَاهُ وَلَا يُقَالُ أَكْبَرُ مِنْ صَغِيرٍ، إِنَّمَا يُقَالُ أَكْبَرُ مِنْ كَبِيرٍ، فَيُقَالُ: هَذَا كَبِيرٌ وَهَذَا أَكْبَرُ، فَإِنْ كَانَ هَمُّهُ الْمُلْكَ الْكَبِيرَ كَانَ ذِكْرُ اللَّهِ أَكْبَرَ فِي قَلْبِهِ فَلْيُوَاطِئْ قَلْبُهُ قَوْلَ مَوْلَاهُ فِي قَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: (وَلَذِكْرُ اللَّهِ أَكْبَرُ) الْعَنْكَبُوتُ: 45، وَيُوَاطِئْ لِسَانُهُ قَلْبَهُ فِي مُشَاهَدَةِ الْأَكْبَرِ فَيَكُونُ يَتْلُو وَيَنْظُرُ، فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى قَدَّمَ الْعَيْنَ عَلَى اللِّسَانِ فِي قَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: (أَلَمْ نَجْعَلْ لَهُ عَيْنَيْنِ وَلِسَانًا وَشَفَتَيْنِ) الْبَلَدُ: 8–9.

maʿānī al-munājāti, faʾidhā qāla: Allāhu ʾakbaru ʾay mimmā siwāhu walā yuqālu ʾakbaru min ṣaghīrin, ʾinnamā yuqālu ʾakbaru min kabīrin, fayuqālu: hādhā kabīrun wa-hādhā ʾakbaru, faʾin kāna hammuhu al-mulka al-kabīra kāna dhikru Allāhi ʾakbara fī qalbihi falyuwāṭiʾ qalbuhu qawla mawlāhu fī qawlihi taʿālā: (waladhikru Allāhi ʾakbaru) al-ʿankabūtu: 45, wayuwāṭiʾ lisānuhu qalbahu fī mushāhadati al-ʾakbari fayakūnu yatlū wayanẓuru, faʾinna Allāha taʿālā qaddama al-ʿayna ʿalā al-lisāni fī qawlihi taʿālā: (ʾalam najʿal lahu ʿaynayni walisānan washafatayni) al-baladu: 8–9.

the meanings of intimate prayer. When he says, “God is greater,” it means greater than everything else. One does not say “greater than something small,” but “greater than something great”: this is great, and this is greater. If his concern is the great dominion, remembrance of God should be greater in his heart. Let his heart accord with his Master's exalted words, “The remembrance of God is greater” (al-ʿAnkabūt 29:45), and his tongue with his heart's contemplation of the Greater, so he both recites and sees. God Most High placed the eye before the tongue in His exalted saying: “Have We not given him two eyes, a tongue, and two lips?” (al-Balad 90:8–9).

فَلَا يُقَدِّمْ لِسَانَهُ وَيُؤَخِّرْ بَصَرَهُ وَيَكُونُ عَقْدُهُ مُحَقِّقًا لِمَقَالِهِ بِالْوَصْفِ حَتَّى يَكُونَ عَامِلًا بِمَا يَقُولُ فِي الْحَالِ، فَقَدْ أُخِذَ عَلَيْهِ ذَلِكَ لِمَا أُمِرَ بِهِ حُجَّةً عَلَيْهِ وَتَنْبِيهًا لَهُ، وَلَا يَكُونُ بِقَوْلِهِ: اللَّهُ أَكْبَرُ، حَاكِيًا؛ ذَلِكَ عَنْ قَوْلِ غَيْرِهِ، وَلَا مُخْبِرًا بِهِ عَنْ سِوَاهُ، بَلْ يَكُونُ هُوَ الْمُتَحَقِّقَ بِالْمَعْنَى الْقَائِمَ بِالشَّهَادَةِ، وَهَذَا عِنْدَ أَهْلِ الْمَعْرِفَةِ وَاجِبٌ لِأَنَّ الْإِيمَانَ قَوْلٌ وَعَمَلٌ فِي كُلِّ شَيْءٍ.

falā yuqaddim lisānahu wayuʾakhkhir baṣarahu wayakūnu ʿaqduhu muḥaqqiqan limaqālihi bi-al-waṣfi ḥattā yakūna ʿāmilan bimā yaqūlu fī al-ḥāli, faqad ʾukhidha ʿalayhi dhālika limā ʾumira bihi ḥujjatan ʿalayhi watanbīhan lahu, walā yakūnu biqawlihi: Allāhu ʾakbaru, ḥākiyan; dhālika ʿan qawli ghayrihi, walā mukhbiran bihi ʿan siwāhu, bal yakūnu huwa al-mutaḥaqqiqa bi-al-maʿnā al-qāʾima bi-al-shahādati, wa-hādhā ʿinda ʾahli al-maʿrifati wājibun liʾanna al-ʾīmāna qawlun waʿamalun fī kulli shayʾin.

He should not put his tongue first and his vision last. His inward conviction should actualize what he says as a lived quality, so that he acts upon his words at that moment. This has been laid upon him through the command, as evidence against him and an admonition. In saying “God is greater,” he should not merely recount another's words or report another's condition. He himself should realize the meaning and uphold the testimony. For the people of knowledge this is obligatory, since faith consists of speech and action in everything.

فَإِذَا قُلْتَ: اللَّهُ أَكْبَرُ فَإِنَّ الْعَمَلَ بِالْقَوْلِ أَنْ يَكُونَ اللَّهُ أَكْبَرَ فِي قَلْبِكَ مِنْ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ، وَهُوَ مِنْ رِعَايَةِ الْعَهْدِ، لِتَدْخُلَ تَحْتَ الثَّنَاءِ وَالْمَدْحِ فِي قَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: (وَالَّذِينَ هُمْ لِأَمَانَاتِهِمْ وَعَهْدِهِمْ رَاعُونَ) الْمَعَارِجُ: 32، فَالْعَهْدُ مَا أَعْطَيْتَ بِلِسَانِكَ، وَالرِّعَايَةُ وَالْوَفَاءُ بِالْقَلْبِ لِيَسْتَحِقَّ الْأَجْرَ الْعَظِيمَ كَمَا قَالَ تَعَالَى: (وَمَنْ أَوْفَى بِمَا عَاهَدَ عَلَيْهِ اللَّهَ فَسَيُؤْتِيهِ أَجْرًا عَظِيمًا) الْفَتْحُ: 1.

faʾidhā qulta: Allāhu ʾakbaru faʾinna al-ʿamala bi-al-qawli ʾan yakūna Allāhu ʾakbara fī qalbika min kulli shayʾin, wahuwa min riʿāyati al-ʿahdi, litadkhula taḥta al-thanāʾi wa-al-madḥi fī qawlihi taʿālā: (wa-alladhīna hum liʾamānātihim waʿahdihim rāʿūna) al-maʿāriju: 32, fa-al-ʿahdu mā ʾaʿṭayta bilisānika, wa-al-riʿāyatu wa-al-wafāʾu bi-al-qalbi liyastaḥiqqa al-ʾajra al-ʿaẓīma kamā qāla taʿālā: (waman ʾawfā bimā ʿāhada ʿalayhi Allāha fasayuʾtīhi ʾajran ʿaẓīman) al-fatḥu: 1.

When you say, “God is greater,” acting upon those words means that God is greater in your heart than everything. This belongs to keeping the covenant, so you enter the praise in His exalted saying, “Those who observe their trusts and covenant” (al-Maʿārij 70:32). The covenant is what you pledge with your tongue; observance and fulfillment occur through the heart, making one worthy of the great reward, as the Exalted said: “Whoever fulfills what he has covenanted with God, He will grant him a great reward” (al-Fatḥ, 1).

وَمَنْ كَانَ فِي قَلْبِهِ الْمُلْكُ الصَّغِيرُ الْفَانِي أَكْبَرَ مِنَ الْمَلِكِ الْأَكْبَرِ فَمَا عَمِلَ بِقَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: اللَّهُ أَكْبَرُ، وَلَيْسَ هَذَا حَقِيقَةَ الْإِيمَانِ لِأَنَّهُ لَمْ يَأْتِ بِعَمَلٍ وَقَوْلٍ، وَإِنَّمَا جَاءَ بِالْقَوْلِ وَهَذَا قَائِمٌ بِنَفْسِ مَنْ مُشَاهَدَتُهُ الْآخِرَةُ، وَكَانَتْ قُرَّةُ عَيْنِهِ الْآخِرَةَ، كَمَا قَالَ تَعَالَى: (مَا عِنْدَكُمْ يَنْفَدُ) النَّحْلُ: 96، يَعْنِي الدُّنْيَا، (وَمَا عِنْدَ اللَّهِ بَاقٍ) النَّحْلُ: 69، يَعْنِي الْآخِرَةَ.

waman kāna fī qalbihi al-mulku al-ṣaghīru al-fānī ʾakbara mina al-maliki al-ʾakbari famā ʿamila biqawlihi taʿālā: Allāhu ʾakbaru, walaysa hādhā ḥaqīqata al-ʾīmāni liʾannahu lam yaʾti biʿamalin waqawlin, waʾinnamā jāʾa bi-al-qawli wa-hādhā qāʾimun binafsi man mushāhadatuhu al-ʾākhiratu, wakānat qurratu ʿaynihi al-ʾākhirata, kamā qāla taʿālā: (mā ʿindakum yanfadu) al-naḥlu: 96, yaʿnī al-dunyā, (wamā ʿinda Allāhi bāqin) al-naḥlu: 69, yaʿnī al-ʾākhirata.

If the small, perishing dominion is greater in someone's heart than the Greatest King, he has not acted upon His exalted words, “God is greater.” This is not the reality of faith, since he has brought speech without action. This is established in the soul of one whose contemplation is the hereafter, and whose delight is the hereafter, as the Exalted said: “What you possess runs out” (al-Naḥl 16:96), meaning this world; “What is with God endures” (al-Naḥl, 69), meaning the hereafter.

وَقَدْ قَالَ: جُعِلَتْ قُرَّةُ عَيْنِي فِي الصَّلَاةِ لِأَنَّهُ كَانَ عِنْدَ رَبِّهِ فَجَعَلَ قُرَّةَ عَيْنِهِ بِهِ، وَقَدْ قَالَ سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى: (وَلَذِكْرُ اللَّهِ أَكْبَرُ) الْعَنْكَبُوتُ: 45، فَالْمَذْكُورُ أَكْبَرُ وَأَكْبَرُ، وَقَدْ أَخْبَرَ تَعَالَى أَنَّ الصَّلَاةَ أُرِيدَ بِهَا الذِّكْرُ فِي قَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: (وَأَقِمِ الصَّلَاةَ لِذِكْرِي) طه: 14، وَرُوِيَ مَعْنَى ذَلِكَ عَنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: إِنَّمَا فُرِضَتِ الصَّلَاةُ وَأُمِرْتُ بِالْحَجِّ وَالطَّوَافِ وَأُشْعِرَتِ الْمَنَاسِكُ لِإِقَامَةِ ذِكْرِ اللَّهِ.

waqad qāla: juʿilat qurratu ʿaynī fī al-ṣalāti liʾannahu kāna ʿinda rabbihi fajaʿala qurrata ʿaynihi bihi, waqad qāla subḥānahu wataʿālā: (waladhikru Allāhi ʾakbaru) al-ʿankabūtu: 45, fa-al-madhkūru ʾakbaru waʾakbaru, waqad ʾakhbara taʿālā ʾanna al-ṣalāta ʾurīda bihā al-dhikru fī qawlihi taʿālā: (waʾaqimi al-ṣalāta lidhikrī) Ṭā Hā: 14, waruwiya maʿnā dhālika ʿan rasūli Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: ʾinnamā furiḍati al-ṣalātu waʾumirtu bi-al-ḥajji wa-al-ṭawāfi waʾushʿirati al-manāsiku liʾiqāmati dhikri Allāhi.

He said, “My delight has been placed in prayer,” because he was with his Lord, who made his delight rest in Him. He, glorified and exalted, said, “The remembrance of God is greater” (al-ʿAnkabūt 29:45): the One remembered is greater and greater. The Exalted has declared that prayer is intended for remembrance in His exalted saying: “Establish prayer for My remembrance” (Ṭā Hā 20:14). The same meaning is related from the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace: “Prayer was prescribed, I was commanded to perform pilgrimage and circumambulation, and the rites were instituted to establish God's remembrance.”

فَإِذَا لَمْ يَكُنْ فِي قَلْبِكَ لِلْمَذْكُورِ الَّذِي هُوَ الْمَقْصُودُ وَالْمُبْتَغَى عَظَمَةٌ وَلَا هَيْبَةٌ فَمَا قِيمَةُ ذِكْرِكَ؟ وَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: لِأَنَسِ بْنِ مَالِكٍ، وَإِذَا صَلَّيْتَ صَلَاةً فَصَلِّ صَلَاةَ مُوَدِّعٍ لِنَفْسِهِ، مُوَدِّعٍ لِهَوَاهُ، مُوَدِّعٍ لِعُمُرِهِ، سَائِرٍ إِلَى مَوْلَاهُ، كَمَا قَالَ: (يَا أَيُّهَا الْإِنْسَانُ إِنَّكَ كَادِحٌ إِلَى رَبِّكَ كَدْحًا) الِانْشِقَاقُ: 6، وَكَقَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: (وَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّكُمْ مُلَاقُوهُ) الْبَقَرَةُ: 223.

faʾidhā lam yakun fī qalbika li-l-madhkūri alladhī huwa al-maqṣūdu wa-al-mubtaghā ʿaẓamatun walā haybatun famā qīmatu dhikrika? waqāla rasūlu Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: liʾanasi bni mālikin, waʾidhā ṣallayta ṣalātan faṣalli ṣalāta muwaddiʿin linafsihi, muwaddiʿin lihawāhu, muwaddiʿin liʿumurihi, sāʾirin ʾilā mawlāhu, kamā qāla: (yā ʾayyuhā al-ʾinsānu ʾinnaka kādiḥun ʾilā rabbika kadḥan) al-inshiqāqu: 6, wakaqawlihi taʿālā: (wa-ttaqū Allāha wa-ʿlamū ʾannakum mulāqūhu) al-baqaratu: 223.

If your heart feels neither greatness nor awe for the One remembered, who is your aim and desire, what is your remembrance worth? The Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, told Anas ibn Mālik, “When you pray, pray as one taking leave of himself, his desire, and his life, journeying to his Master,” as He said, “O human being, you labor toward your Lord with unrelenting labor” (al-Inshiqāq 84:6), and in His exalted saying, “Fear God and know that you will meet Him” (al-Baqara 2:223).

وَقَالَ النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: جُعِلَتْ قُرَّةُ عَيْنِي فِي الصَّلَاةِ، وَكَانَ يَرَى الْأَكْبَرَ فَتَقَرُّ عَيْنُهُ بِهِ، وَقَالَ: مَنْ لَمْ تَنْهَهُ صَلَاتُهُ عَنِ الْفَحْشَاءِ وَالْمُنْكَرِ لَمْ يَزْدَدْ بِهَا مِنَ اللَّهِ

waqāla al-nabiyyu ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: juʿilat qurratu ʿaynī fī al-ṣalāti, wakāna yarā al-ʾakbara fataqarru ʿaynuhu bihi, waqāla: man lam tanhahu ṣalātuhu ʿani al-faḥshāʾi wa-al-munkari lam yazdad bihā mina Allāhi

The Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, said, “My delight has been placed in prayer.” He beheld the Greater, and found his delight in Him. He said, “Whoever is not restrained by his prayer from indecency and wrongdoing gains through it, in relation to God,

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٦٣

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 163

Volume Two, page 163

إِلَّا بُعْدًا، كَمَا قَالَ: مَنْ لَمْ يَتْرُكْ قَوْلَ الزُّورِ وَالْخِيَانَةَ فَلَيْسَ لِلَّهِ تَعَالَى حَاجَةٌ أَنْ يَتْرُكَ طَعَامَهُ وَشَرَابَهُ، فَإِنَّمَا الْمُرَادُ مِنَ الصَّلَاةِ وَالصِّيَامِ الْمُخَالَفَةُ مِنَ الْآثَامِ، وَمِنْ إِقَامَةِ الصَّلَاةِ وَإِتْمَامِهَا الْوُضُوءُ لَهَا قَبْلَ دُخُولِ وَقْتِهَا لِئَلَّا يَشْغَلَهُ عَنْ أَوَّلِ وَقْتٍ غَيْرُهَا، وَيَنْبَغِي أَنْ يَكُونَ قَلْبُهُ فِي هَمِّهِ، وَهَمُّهُ مَعَ رَبِّهِ، وَرَبُّهُ فِي قَلْبِهِ، فَيَنْظُرَ إِلَيْهِ مِنْ كَلَامِهِ، وَيُكَلِّمَهُ بِخِطَابِهِ، وَيَتَمَلَّقَهُ بِمُنَاجَاتِهِ، وَيَعْرِفَهُ مِنْ صِفَاتِهِ.

ʾillā buʿdan, kamā qāla: man lam yatruk qawla al-zūri wa-al-khiyānata falaysa li-llāhi taʿālā ḥājatun ʾan yatruka ṭaʿāmahu washarābahu, faʾinnamā al-murādu mina al-ṣalāti wa-al-ṣiyāmi al-mukhālafatu mina al-ʾāthāmi, wamin ʾiqāmati al-ṣalāti waʾitmāmihā al-wuḍūʾu lahā qabla dukhūli waqtihā liʾallā yashghalahu ʿan ʾawwali waqtin ghayruhā, wayanbaghī ʾan yakūna qalbuhu fī hammihi, wahammuhu maʿa rabbihi, warabbuhu fī qalbihi, fayanẓura ʾilayhi min kalāmihi, wayukallimahu bikhiṭābihi, wayatamallaqahu bimunājātihi, wayaʿrifahu min ṣifātihi.

only greater distance.” Likewise he said, “If someone does not abandon false speech and betrayal, God Most High has no need for him to abandon his food and drink.” Prayer and fasting are intended to turn one away from sins. Establishing and completing prayer includes making ablution before its time begins, so something else does not distract him from its earliest time. His heart should be within his aspiration, his aspiration with his Lord, and his Lord in his heart. He should behold Him through His words, speak to Him through His address, entreat Him through intimate prayer, and know Him through His attributes.

فَإِنَّ كُلَّ كَلِمَةٍ عَنْ مَعْنَى اسْمٍ، أَوْ وَصْفٍ، أَوْ خَلْقٍ، أَوْ حُكْمٍ، أَوْ إِرَادَةٍ، أَوْ فِعْلٍ؛ لِأَنَّ الْكَلِمَ يُنْبِئُ عَنْ مَعَانِي الْأَوْصَافِ، وَيَدُلُّ عَلَى الْمَوْصُوفِ، وَكُلُّ كَلِمَةٍ مِنَ الْخِطَابِ تَتَوَجَّهُ عَشْرَ جِهَاتٍ لِلْعَارِفِ، مِنْ كُلِّ جِهَةٍ مَقَامٌ وَمُشَاهَدَاتٌ؛ أَوَّلُ الْجِهَاتِ الْإِيمَانُ بِهَا، وَالتَّسْلِيمُ لَهَا، وَالتَّوْبَةُ إِلَيْهَا، وَالصَّبْرُ عَلَيْهَا، وَالرِّضَا بِهَا وَالْخَوْفُ مِنْهَا، وَالرَّجَاءُ لَهَا، وَالشُّكْرُ عَلَيْهَا، وَالْمَحَبَّةُ لَهَا، وَالتَّوَكُّلُ فِيهَا، فَهَذِهِ الْمَقَامَاتُ الْعَشْرُ هِيَ مَقَامَاتُ الْيَقِينِ، لِأَنَّ الْكَلِمَةَ هِيَ حَقُّ الْيَقِينِ.

faʾinna kulla kalimatin ʿan maʿnā ismin, ʾaw waṣfin, ʾaw khalqin, ʾaw ḥukmin, ʾaw ʾirādatin, ʾaw fiʿlin; liʾanna al-kalima yunbiʾu ʿan maʿānī al-ʾawṣāfi, wayadullu ʿalā al-mawṣūfi, wakullu kalimatin mina al-khiṭābi tatawajjahu ʿashra jihātin li-l-ʿārifi, min kulli jihatin maqāmun wamushāhadātun; ʾawwalu al-jihāti al-ʾīmānu bihā, wa-al-taslīmu lahā, wa-al-tawbatu ʾilayhā, wa-al-ṣabru ʿalayhā, wa-al-riḍā bihā wa-al-khawfu minhā, wa-al-rajāʾu lahā, wa-al-shukru ʿalayhā, wa-al-maḥabbatu lahā, wa-al-tawakkulu fīhā, fa-hādhihi al-maqāmātu al-ʿashru hiya maqāmātu al-yaqīni, liʾanna al-kalimata hiya ḥaqqu al-yaqīni.

Every word concerns the meaning of a name, attribute, creation, judgment, will, or act, for words convey the meanings of attributes and point to the One described. Each word of the address presents ten aspects to the knower, each yielding a station and contemplations. They begin with believing it, submitting to it, turning penitently toward it, patiently enduring it, being content with it, fearing it, hoping for it, giving thanks for it, loving it, and trusting within it. These ten stations are the stations of certainty, because the word is the very truth of certainty.

وَهَذِهِ الْمَعَانِي كُلُّهَا مُنْطَوِيَةٌ فِي كُلِّ كَلِمَةٍ يَشْهَدُهَا أَهْلُ التَّمَلُّقِ وَالْمُنَاجَاةِ، وَيَعْرِفُهَا أَهْلُ الْعِلْمِ وَالْحَيَاةِ، لِأَنَّ كَلَامَ الْمَحْبُوبِ حَيَاةُ الْقُلُوبِ، لَا يُنْذَرُ بِهِ إِلَّا حَيٌّ وَلَا يَحْيَا بِهِ إِلَّا مُسْتَجِيبٌ، قَالَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى: (إِنْ هُوَ إِلَّا ذِكْرٌ وَقُرْآنٌ مُبِينٌ لِيُنْذِرَ مَنْ كَانَ حَيًّا) يس: 69–7، وَقَالَ سُبْحَانَهُ: (اسْتَجِيبُوا لِلَّهِ وَلِلرَّسُولِ إِذَا دَعَاكُمْ لِمَا يُحْيِيكُمْ) الْأَنْفَالُ: 42.

wa-hādhihi al-maʿānī kulluhā munṭawiyatun fī kulli kalimatin yashhaduhā ʾahlu al-tamalluqi wa-al-munājāti, wayaʿrifuhā ʾahlu al-ʿilmi wa-al-ḥayāti, liʾanna kalāma al-maḥbūbi ḥayātu al-qulūbi, lā yundharu bihi ʾillā ḥayyun walā yaḥyā bihi ʾillā mustajībun, qāla Allāhu taʿālā: (ʾin huwa ʾillā dhikrun waqurʾānun mubīnun liyundhira man kāna ḥayyan) Yā Sīn: 69–7, waqāla subḥānahu: (istajībū li-llāhi wali-l-rasūli ʾidhā daʿākum limā yuḥyīkum) al-ʾanfālu: 42.

All these meanings are enfolded within every word. Those who entreat and commune intimately behold them, and those endowed with knowledge and life recognize them, because the Beloved's speech gives hearts life. Only the living are warned through it, and only those who respond come alive through it. God Most High said, “It is only a reminder and a clear Qurʾān, to warn whoever is alive” (Yā Sīn, 69–7), and, glorified is He, “Respond to God and the Messenger when he calls you to what gives you life” (al-Anfāl, 42).

وَلَا يَشْهَدُ هَذِهِ الْعَشْرَ مُشَاهَدَاتٍ إِلَّا مَنْ نُقِلَ فِي الْعَشْرِ الْمَقَامَاتِ الْمَذْكُورَةِ فِي سُورَةِ الْأَحْزَابِ؛ أَوَّلُهَا مَقَامُ الْمُسْلِمِينَ، وَآخِرُهَا مَقَامُ الذَّاكِرِينَ، وَبَعْدَ مَقَامِ الذِّكْرِ هَذِهِ الْمُشَاهَدَاتُ الْعَشْرُ فَعِنْدَهَا لَا يَمَلُّ الْمُنَاجَاةَ لِوُجُودِ الْمُصَافَاةِ، وَلَا يَثْقُلُ عَلَيْهِ الْقِيَامُ لِلَّذَاذَةِ وَالْإِفْهَامِ، وَيَسْهُلُ عَلَيْهِ الْوُقُوفُ لِدُنُوِّ الْعَطُوفِ، وَيَتَنَعَّمُ بِالْعِتَابِ بِحَلَاوَةِ الِاقْتِرَابِ، هُنَالِكَ يَنْدَرِجُ طُولُ الْقِيَامِ فِي التِّلَاوَةِ فَلَا يَجِدُهُ كَانْدِرَاجِ الْقِبْلَةِ فِي الصَّلَاةِ فَلَا يَشْهَدُهَا، فَيَكُونُ مِنْ وَرَائِهِ الْقِبْلَةُ وَهُوَ أَمَامَهَا، كَذَلِكَ الْقِيَامُ يَحْمِلُهُ وَهُوَ مَعَ حَامِلِهِ.

walā yashhadu hādhihi al-ʿashra mushāhadātin ʾillā man nuqila fī al-ʿashri al-maqāmāti al-madhkūrati fī sūrati al-ʾaḥzābi; ʾawwaluhā maqāmu al-muslimīna, waʾākhiruhā maqāmu al-dhākirīna, wabaʿda maqāmi al-dhikri hādhihi al-mushāhadātu al-ʿashru faʿindahā lā yamallu al-munājāta liwujūdi al-muṣāfāti, walā yathqulu ʿalayhi al-qiyāmu li-l-ladhādhati wa-al-ʾifhāmi, wayashulu ʿalayhi al-wuqūfu lidunuwwi al-ʿaṭūfi, wayatanaʿʿamu bi-al-ʿitābi biḥalāwati al-iqtirābi, hunālika yandariju ṭūlu al-qiyāmi fī al-tilāwati falā yajiduhu ka-ndirāji al-qiblati fī al-ṣalāti falā yashhaduhā, fayakūnu min warāʾihi al-qiblatu wahuwa ʾamāmahā, kadhālika al-qiyāmu yaḥmiluhu wahuwa maʿa ḥāmilihi.

Only someone carried through the ten stations mentioned in al-Aḥzāb beholds these ten contemplations: the first is the station of those who submit, the last that of those who remember. After remembrance come these ten contemplations. Then intimate prayer never wearies him, because he finds pure intimacy; standing is no burden, because of delight and granted understanding. Standing becomes easy through the Tender One's nearness, and even rebuke delights him through the sweetness of drawing close. Prolonged standing becomes absorbed in recitation, unnoticed, just as the prayer direction becomes absorbed in prayer and unseen. The direction lies behind his awareness while he stands before it; likewise standing supports him while he is with his Sustainer.

حُدِّثْتُ أَنَّ الْمُوقِنَ إِذَا تَوَضَّأَ لِلصَّلَاةِ تَبَاعَدَتْ عَنْهُ الشَّيَاطِينُ فِي أَقْطَارِ الْأَرَضِينَ خَوْفًا مِنْهُ، لِأَنَّهُ يَتَأَهَّبُ لِلدُّخُولِ عَلَى الْمَلِكِ، فَإِذَا كَبَّرَ حُجِبَ عَنْهُ إِبْلِيسُ وَضُرِبَ بَيْنَهُ وَبَيْنَهُ سُرَادِقٌ لَا يَنْظُرُ إِلَيْهِ، وَوَاجَهَهُ الْجَبَّارُ بِوَجْهِهِ، فَإِذَا قَالَ: اللَّهُ أَكْبَرُ اطَّلَعَ الْمَلِكُ فِي قَلْبِهِ، فَإِذَا لَيْسَ فِي قَلْبِهِ أَكْبَرُ مِنَ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى فَيَقُولُ: صَدَقْتَ، اللَّهُ تَعَالَى فِي قَلْبِكَ، كَمَا تَقُولُ: قَالَ فَيَتَشَعْشَعُ مِنْ قَلْبِهِ نُورٌ يَلْحَقُ بِمَلَكُوتِ الْعَرْشِ، فَيُكْشَفُ لَهُ بِذَلِكَ النُّورِ مَلَكُوتُ السَّمَٰوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ، وَيُكْتَبُ لَهُ حَشْوُ ذَلِكَ النُّورِ حَسَنَاتٌ.

ḥuddithtu ʾanna al-mūqina ʾidhā tawaḍḍaʾa li-l-ṣalāti tabāʿadat ʿanhu al-shayāṭīnu fī ʾaqṭāri al-ʾaraḍīna khawfan minhu, liʾannahu yataʾahhabu li-l-dukhūli ʿalā al-maliki, faʾidhā kabbara ḥujiba ʿanhu ʾiblīsu waḍuriba baynahu wabaynahu surādiqun lā yanẓuru ʾilayhi, wawājahahu al-jabbāru biwajhihi, faʾidhā qāla: Allāhu ʾakbaru iṭṭalaʿa al-maliku fī qalbihi, faʾidhā laysa fī qalbihi ʾakbaru mina Allāhi taʿālā fayaqūlu: ṣadaqta, Allāhu taʿālā fī qalbika, kamā taqūlu: qāla fayatashaʿshaʿu min qalbihi nūrun yalḥaqu bimalakūti al-ʿarshi, fayukshafu lahu bi-dhālika al-nūri malakūtu al-samāwāti wa-al-ʾarḍi, wayuktabu lahu ḥashwu dhālika al-nūri ḥasanātun.

I was told that when someone possessed of certainty makes ablution for prayer, devils retreat in fear into the earth's far reaches, because he prepares to enter the King's presence. When he magnifies, Iblīs is screened from him by an enclosing curtain and cannot see him, while the Compeller faces him. When he says “God is greater,” the King looks into his heart and finds nothing greater than God Most High. He says, “You have spoken truly: God Most High is in your heart, as you say.” Light then radiates from his heart to the Throne's kingdom; through it heaven's and earth's kingdoms are revealed, and good deeds filling that light are recorded for him.

قَالَ: وَإِنَّ الْغَافِلَ الْجَاهِلَ إِذَا قَامَ لِلْوُضُوءِ احْتَوَشَتْهُ الشَّيَاطِينُ، كَمَا يَحْتَوِشُ الذُّبَابُ عَلَى نُقْطَةِ الْعَسَلِ، وَإِذَا كَبَّرَ اطَّلَعَ الْمَلِكُ فِي قَلْبِهِ، فَإِذَا كُلُّ شَيْءٍ فِي قَلْبِهِ أَكْبَرُ مِنَ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى عِنْدَهُ، فَيَقُولُ لَهُ: كَذَبْتَ لَيْسَ اللَّهُ فِي قَلْبِكَ كَمَا تَقُولُ، قَالَ: فَيَثُورُ فِي قَلْبِهِ دُخَانٌ يَلْحَقُ بِعَنَانِ السَّمَاءِ فَيَكُونُ حِجَابًا لِقَلْبِهِ، قَالَ: فَيَرُدُّ ذَلِكَ

qāla: waʾinna al-ghāfila al-jāhila ʾidhā qāma li-l-wuḍūʾi iḥtawashathu al-shayāṭīnu, kamā yaḥtawishu al-dhubābu ʿalā nuqṭati al-ʿasali, waʾidhā kabbara iṭṭalaʿa al-maliku fī qalbihi, faʾidhā kullu shayʾin fī qalbihi ʾakbaru mina Allāhi taʿālā ʿindahu, fayaqūlu lahu: kadhabta laysa Allāhu fī qalbika kamā taqūlu, qāla: fayathūru fī qalbihi dukhānun yalḥaqu biʿanāni al-samāʾi fayakūnu ḥijāban liqalbihi, qāla: fayaruddu dhālika

He said, “When the heedless, ignorant person rises to make ablution, devils surround him as flies surround a drop of honey. When he magnifies, the King looks into his heart and finds that everything within it is greater to him than God Most High. He tells him, ‘You have lied: God is not in your heart as you say.’” He said, “Smoke then billows in his heart, reaching the clouds of heaven and becoming a veil over his heart.” He said, “That veil turns back

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٦٤

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 164

Volume Two, page 164

الْحِجَابُ صَلَاتَهُ، وَيَلْتَقِمُ الشَّيْطَانُ قَلْبَهُ، فَلَا يَزَالُ يَنْفُخُ فِيهِ، وَيَنْفُثُ وَيُوَسْوِسُ إِلَيْهِ، وَيُزَيِّنُ لَهُ، حَتَّى يَنْصَرِفَ مِنْ صَلَاتِهِ وَلَا يَعْقِلُ مَا كَانَ فِيهِ، وَقَدْ جَاءَ فِي الْخَبَرِ: لَوْلَا أَنَّ الشَّيَاطِينَ يَحُومُونَ حَوْلَ قُلُوبِ بَنِي آدَمَ لَنَظَرُوا إِلَى مَلَكُوتِ السَّمَٰوَاتِ. وَرَوَيْنَا عَنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ أَنَّهُ رَأَى فِي الْقِبْلَةِ نُخَامَةً، فَغَضِبَ غَضَبًا شَدِيدًا، ثُمَّ حَكَّهَا بِعُرْجُونٍ كَانَ فِي يَدِهِ، وَقَالَ: ائْتُونِي بِعَبِيرٍ فَلَطَّخَ أَثَرَهَا بِزَعْفَرَانٍ.

al-ḥijābu ṣalātahu, wayaltaqimu al-shayṭānu qalbahu, falā yazālu yanfukhu fīhi, wayanfuthu wayuwaswisu ʾilayhi, wayuzayyinu lahu, ḥattā yanṣarifa min ṣalātihi walā yaʿqilu mā kāna fīhi, waqad jāʾa fī al-khabari: lawlā ʾanna al-shayāṭīna yaḥūmūna ḥawla qulūbi banī ʾādama lanaẓarū ʾilā malakūti al-samāwāti. warawaynā ʿan rasūli Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama ʾannahu raʾā fī al-qiblati nukhāmatan, faghaḍiba ghaḍaban shadīdan, thumma ḥakkahā biʿurjūnin kāna fī yadihi, waqāla: iʾtūnī biʿabīrin falaṭṭakha ʾatharahā bizaʿfarānin.

his prayer, and Satan engulfs his heart, continually blowing into it, breathing upon it, whispering to him, and making things attractive, until he leaves prayer without understanding what he was engaged in.” A report says, “Were devils not hovering around the hearts of Adam's children, they would behold the kingdom of the heavens.” We have related from the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, that he saw sputum on the prayer-direction wall, became very angry, and scraped it away with a palm stalk he held. He said, “Bring me perfume,” then smeared its trace with saffron.

ثُمَّ اِلْتَفَتَ إِلَيْنَا فَقَالَ: أَيُّكُمْ يُحِبُّ أَنْ يُبْزَقَ فِي وَجْهِهِ؟ قُلْنَا: لَا أَيُّنَا، قَالَ: فَإِنَّ أَحَدَكُمْ إِذَا دَخَلَ فِي صَلَاتِهِ فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ بَيْنَهُ وَبَيْنَ الْقِبْلَةِ، وَفِي لَفْظٍ آخَرَ وَاجَهَهُ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى؛ فَلَا يَبْزُقَنَّ أَحَدُكُمْ تِلْقَاءَ وَجْهِهِ، وَلَا عَنْ يَمِينِهِ، وَلَكِنْ عَنْ شِمَالِهِ، أَوْ تَحْتَ قَدَمِهِ الْيُسْرَى، فَإِنْ بَدَرَتْهُ بَادِرَةٌ فَلْيَبْصُقْ فِي ثَوْبِهِ وَلْيَقُلْ بِهِ هَكَذَا، وَدَلَكَ بَعْضَهُ بِبَعْضٍ.

thumma iltafata ʾilaynā faqāla: ʾayyukum yuḥibbu ʾan yubzaqa fī wajhihi? qulnā: lā ʾayyunā, qāla: faʾinna ʾaḥadakum ʾidhā dakhala fī ṣalātihi faʾinna Allāha ʿazza wajalla baynahu wabayna al-qiblati, wafī lafẓin ʾākhara wājahahu Allāhu taʿālā; falā yabzuqanna ʾaḥadukum tilqāʾa wajhihi, walā ʿan yamīnihi, walākin ʿan shimālihi, ʾaw taḥta qadamihi al-yusrā, faʾin badarathu bādiratun falyabṣuq fī thawbihi walyaqul bihi hākadhā, wadalaka baʿḍahu bibaʿḍin.

Then he turned toward us and said, “Which of you likes to be spat in the face?” We answered, “None of us.” He said, “When any of you begins his prayer, God, mighty and majestic, is between him and the prayer direction,” or, in another wording, “God Most High faces him. Let none of you spit straight ahead or to his right, but to his left or beneath his left foot. If something comes upon him suddenly, let him spit into his garment and do this with it,” and he rubbed one part against another.

وَقَدْ رُوِيَ: إِذَا قَامَ الْعَبْدُ فِي صَلَاتِهِ فَقَالَ: اللَّهُ أَكْبَرُ، قَالَ اللَّهُ لِمَلَائِكَتِهِ: اِرْفَعُوا الْحِجَابَ بَيْنِي وَبَيْنَ عَبْدِي، فَإِذَا اِلْتَفَتَ يَقُولُ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى: عَبْدِي إِلَى مَنْ تَلْتَفِتُ؟ أَنَا خَيْرٌ لَكَ مِمَّنْ تَلْتَفِتُ إِلَيْهِ، ثُمَّ إِذَا قَامَ الْمُقْبِلُ عَلَى صَلَاتِهِ شَهِدَ قَلْبُهُ قِيَامَهُ لِرَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ، فِي يَوْمٍ كَانَ مِقْدَارُهُ خَمْسِينَ أَلْفَ سَنَةٍ، ثُمَّ شَهِدَ وُقُوفَهُ بِالْحَضْرَةِ بَيْنَ يَدَيِ الْمَلِكِ الْجَبَّارِ، إِذْ لَيْسَ مِنَ الْغَافِلِينَ، فَتَأْخُذُهُ غَيْبَةُ الْحُضُورِ، وَيَرْهَقُهُ إِجْلَالُ الْحَاضِرِ، وَيَسْتَوْلِي عَلَيْهِ تَعْظِيمُ الْقَرِيبِ، وَيَجْمَعُهُ خَشْيَةُ الرَّقِيبِ.

waqad ruwiya: ʾidhā qāma al-ʿabdu fī ṣalātihi faqāla: Allāhu ʾakbaru, qāla Allāhu limalāʾikatihi: irfaʿū al-ḥijāba baynī wabayna ʿabdī, faʾidhā iltafata yaqūlu Allāhu taʿālā: ʿabdī ʾilā man taltafitu? ʾanā khayrun laka mimman taltafitu ʾilayhi, thumma ʾidhā qāma al-muqbilu ʿalā ṣalātihi shahida qalbuhu qiyāmahu lirabbi al-ʿālamīna, fī yawmin kāna miqdāruhu khamsīna ʾalfa sanatin, thumma shahida wuqūfahu bi-al-ḥaḍrati bayna yadayi al-maliki al-jabbāri, ʾidh laysa mina al-ghāfilīna, fataʾkhudhuhu ghaybatu al-ḥuḍūri, wayarhaquhu ʾijlālu al-ḥāḍiri, wayastawlī ʿalayhi taʿẓīmu al-qarībi, wayajmaʿuhu khashyatu al-raqībi.

It is related: “When the servant stands in prayer and says, ‘God is greater,’ God tells His angels, ‘Lift the veil between Me and My servant.’ If he turns aside, God Most High says, ‘My servant, toward whom do you turn? I am better for you than whoever you turn toward.’” When one devoted to prayer stands, his heart witnesses his standing before the Lord of all worlds on a day lasting fifty thousand years, then his standing in the presence of the Compelling King, being among the heedful. Absorption in that presence overtakes him; reverence for the Present overwhelms him, exaltation of the Near masters him, and fear of the Watchful gathers him inwardly.

فَإِذَا تَلَا وَقَفَ هَمُّهُ مَعَ الْمُتَكَلِّمِ مَاذَا أَرَادَ، وَاشْتَغَلَ قَلْبُهُ بِالْفَهْمِ عَنْهُ وَالِانْبِسَاطِ مِنْهُ، فَإِنْ رَكَعَ وَقَفَ قَلْبُهُ مَعَ التَّعْظِيمِ لِلْعَظِيمِ، فَلَا يَكُونُ فِي قَلْبِهِ أَعْظَمُ مِنَ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى وَحْدَهُ، فَإِنْ رَفَعَ شَهِدَ الْحَمْدَ لِلْمَحْمُودِ، فَوَقَفَ مَعَ الشُّكْرِ لِلْوَدُودِ، فَاسْتَوْجَبَ مِنْهُ الْمَزِيدَ، وَسَكَنَ قَلْبُهُ بِالرِّضَا، لِأَنَّهُ حَقِيقَةُ الْحَمْدِ، وَإِنْ سَجَدَ سَمَا قَلْبُهُ فِي الْعُلُوِّ فَقَرُبَ مِنَ الْأَعْلَى بِقَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: (وَاسْجُدْ وَاقْتَرِبْ) الْعَلَقُ: 19.

faʾidhā talā waqafa hammuhu maʿa al-mutakallimi mādhā ʾarāda, wa-shtaghala qalbuhu bi-al-fahmi ʿanhu wa-al-inbisāṭi minhu, faʾin rakaʿa waqafa qalbuhu maʿa al-taʿẓīmi li-l-ʿaẓīmi, falā yakūnu fī qalbihi ʾaʿẓamu mina Allāhi taʿālā waḥdahu, faʾin rafaʿa shahida al-ḥamda li-l-maḥmūdi, fawaqafa maʿa al-shukri li-l-wadūdi, fa-stawjaba minhu al-mazīda, wasakana qalbuhu bi-al-riḍā, liʾannahu ḥaqīqatu al-ḥamdi, waʾin sajada samā qalbuhu fī al-ʿuluwwi faqaruba mina al-ʾaʿlā biqawlihi taʿālā: (wa-sjud wa-qtarib) al-ʿalaqu: 19.

When he recites, his aspiration dwells with the Speaker, attending to His intention, and his heart is occupied with understanding Him and finding expansion through Him. When he bows, his heart dwells in magnifying the Magnificent, with nothing greater within it than God Most High alone. When he rises, he witnesses praise belonging to the Praiseworthy and dwells in gratitude to the Loving, deserving increase from Him. His heart rests in contentment, the reality of praise. When he prostrates, his heart ascends and draws near the Most High, according to His saying, “Prostrate and draw near” (al-ʿAlaq 96:19).

وَأَهْلُ الْمُشَاهَدَةِ فِي السُّجُودِ عَلَى ثَلَاثِ مَقَامَاتٍ؛ مِنْهُمْ مَنْ إِذَا سَجَدَ كُوشِفَ بِالْجَبَرُوتِ الْأَعْلَى فَيَعْلُو إِلَى الْقَرِيبِ وَيَدْنُو مِنَ الْقَرِيبِ، وَهَذَا مَقَامُ الْمُقَرَّبِينَ مِنَ الْمَحْبُوبِينَ، وَمِنْهُمْ مَنْ إِذَا سَجَدَ كُوشِفَ بِمَلَكُوتِ الْعِزَّةِ، فَيَسْجُدُ عَلَى الثَّرَى الْأَسْفَلِ عِنْدَ

waʾahlu al-mushāhadati fī al-sujūdi ʿalā thalāthi maqāmātin; minhum man ʾidhā sajada kūshifa bi-al-jabarūti al-ʾaʿlā fayaʿlū ʾilā al-qarībi wayadnū mina al-qarībi, wa-hādhā maqāmu al-muqarrabīna mina al-maḥbūbīna, waminhum man ʾidhā sajada kūshifa bimalakūti al-ʿizzati, fayasjudu ʿalā al-tharā al-ʾasfali ʿinda

Those who contemplate during prostration occupy three stations. Some, when they prostrate, have the highest realm of might unveiled to them, ascend toward the Near, and draw close to the Near. This is the station of those beloved who are brought close. Others, when prostrating, have the kingdom of majesty unveiled and prostrate upon the lowest earth before

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٦٥

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 165

Volume Two, page 165

وَصْفٍ مِنْ أَوْصَافِ الْقَادِرِ الْأَجَلِّ، فَيَنْكَسِرُ قَلْبُهُ وَيُخْبِتُ تَوَاضُعًا وَذُلًّا لِلْعَزِيزِ الْأَعْلَى، وَهَذَا مَقَامُ الْخَائِفِينَ مِنَ الْعَابِدِينَ، وَمِنْهُمْ مَنْ إِذَا سَجَدَ جَالَ قَلْبُهُ فِي مَلَكُوتِ السَّمَٰوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ فَآبَ بِظَرَائِفِ الْفَوَائِدِ وَشَهِدَ غَرَائِبَ الزَّوَائِدِ، وَهَذَا مَقَامُ الصَّادِقِينَ مِنَ الطَّالِبِينَ، وَهُنَاكَ قِسْمٌ رَابِعٌ لَا يُذْكَرُ بِشَيْءٍ لَيْسَ لَهُ وَصْفٌ فَيَسْتَحِقَّ الْمَدْحَ، وَهُمُ الَّذِينَ يَجُولُ هَمُّهُمْ فِي أَعْطِيَةِ الْمَلِكِ وَأَنْصِبَةِ الْمَمَالِيكِ، فَهُمْ مَحْجُوبُونَ بِالْهِمَمِ الدَّنِيَّةِ عَنِ الشَّهَادَةِ الْعَلِيَّةِ مَأْسُورُونَ بِالْهَوَى عَنِ السِّيَاحَةِ إِلَى الْإِعْلَامِ.

waṣfin min ʾawṣāfi al-qādiri al-ʾajalli, fayankasiru qalbuhu wayukhbitu tawāḍuʿan wadhullan li-l-ʿazīzi al-ʾaʿlā, wa-hādhā maqāmu al-khāʾifīna mina al-ʿābidīna, waminhum man ʾidhā sajada jāla qalbuhu fī malakūti al-samāwāti wa-al-ʾarḍi faʾāba biẓarāʾifi al-fawāʾidi washahida gharāʾiba al-zawāʾidi, wa-hādhā maqāmu al-ṣādiqīna mina al-ṭālibīna, wahunāka qismun rābiʿun lā yudhkaru bishayʾin laysa lahu waṣfun fayastaḥiqqa al-madḥa, wahumu alladhīna yajūlu hammuhum fī ʾaʿṭiyati al-maliki waʾanṣibati al-mamālīki, fahum maḥjūbūna bi-al-himami al-daniyyati ʿani al-shahādati al-ʿaliyyati maʾsūrūna bi-al-hawā ʿani al-siyāḥati ʾilā al-ʾiʿlāmi.

an attribute of the most majestic All-Powerful. His heart breaks and submits in humility and lowliness to the Mighty Most High. This is the station of fearful worshippers. Others' hearts, in prostration, range through heaven's and earth's kingdoms, returning with exquisite benefits and witnessing wondrous increases. This is the station of truthful seekers. There is a fourth category unworthy of mention, with no quality meriting praise: those whose concerns wander among the King's gifts and the portions allotted to His servants. Low aspirations veil them from lofty witnessing; desire imprisons them, preventing their journey toward disclosure.

فَإِنْ دَعَا هَذَا الْمُصَلِّي نَظَرَ إِلَى الْمَدْعُوِّ فَكَانَ هُوَ الْمَرْجُوَّ فَأَخَذَ فِي التَّمْجِيدِ وَالثَّنَاءِ وَالْحَمْدِ وَالْآلَاءِ، وَنَسِيَ حَاجَتَهُ مِنَ الدُّنْيَا وَاشْتَغَلَ عَنْ نَفْسِهِ بِالْمَوْلَى وَعَنْ مَسْأَلَتِهِ بِحُسْنِ الثَّنَاءِ، وَإِنِ اسْتَغْفَرَ هَذَا الدَّاعِي تَفَكَّرَ فِي أَوْصَافِ التَّوْبَةِ وَأَحْكَامِ التَّائِبِ وَتَفَكَّرَ فِي مَا سَلَفَ مِنَ الذُّنُوبِ فَعَمِلَ فِي تَصْفِيَةِ الِاسْتِغْفَارِ وَإِخْلَاصِ الْإِنَابَةِ وَالِاعْتِذَارِ، وَجَدَّدَ عَقْدَ الِاسْتِقَامَةِ، فَيَكُونُ لَهُ بِهَذَا الِاسْتِغْفَارِ مِنَ اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ تَحِيَّةٌ وَكَرَامَةٌ.

faʾin daʿā hādhā al-muṣallī naẓara ʾilā al-madʿuwwi fakāna huwa al-marjuwwa faʾakhadha fī al-tamjīdi wa-al-thanāʾi wa-al-ḥamdi wa-al-ʾālāʾi, wanasiya ḥājatahu mina al-dunyā wa-shtaghala ʿan nafsihi bi-al-mawlā waʿan masʾalatihi biḥusni al-thanāʾi, waʾini istaghfara hādhā al-dāʿī tafakkara fī ʾawṣāfi al-tawbati waʾaḥkāmi al-tāʾibi watafakkara fī mā salafa mina al-dhunūbi faʿamila fī taṣfiyati al-istighfāri waʾikhlāṣi al-ʾinābati wa-al-iʿtidhāri, wajaddada ʿaqda al-istiqāmati, fayakūnu lahu bi-hādhā al-istighfāri mina Allāhi ʿazza wajalla taḥiyyatun wakarāmatun.

When this worshipper supplicates, he looks toward the One invoked, who becomes the object of his hope. He begins glorifying Him, extolling and praising Him, and recalling His favors. He forgets his worldly need, occupied with his Master instead of himself and with beautiful praise instead of his request. When seeking forgiveness, he reflects on repentance's qualities and the penitent's obligations, and on past sins. He works to purify his plea for forgiveness, make his return and apology sincere, and renew his resolve to remain upright. Through this plea he receives a greeting and honor from God, mighty and majestic.

فَفِي مِثْلِ صَلَاةِ هَذَا الْعَبْدِ وَرَدَتِ الْأَخْبَارُ أَنَّ الْعَبْدَ إِذَا قَامَ إِلَى الصَّلَاةِ رُفِعَ الْحِجَابُ بَيْنَهُ وَبَيْنَهُ وَوَاجَهَهُ بِوَجْهِهِ، وَقَامَتِ الْمَلَائِكَةُ مِنْ لَدُنْ مَنْكِبَيْهِ إِلَى الْهَوَاءِ فَيُصَلُّونَ بِصَلَاتِهِ وَيُؤَمِّنُونَ عَلَى دُعَائِهِ، وَأَنَّ الْمُصَلِّيَ لَيُنْثَرُ عَلَيْهِ الْبِرُّ مِنْ عَنَانِ السَّمَاءِ إِلَى مَفْرِقِ رَأْسِهِ وَيُنَادِيهِ مُنَادٍ لَوْ عَلِمَ الْمُنَاجِي مَنْ يُنَاجِي مَا انْفَتَلَ، وَأَنَّ أَبْوَابَ السَّمَاءِ تُفْتَحُ لِلْمُصَلِّينَ، وَأَنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى يُبَاهِي مَلَائِكَتَهُ بِصُفُوفِ الْمُصَلِّينَ.

fafī mithli ṣalāti hādhā al-ʿabdi waradati al-ʾakhbāru ʾanna al-ʿabda ʾidhā qāma ʾilā al-ṣalāti rufiʿa al-ḥijābu baynahu wabaynahu wawājahahu biwajhihi, waqāmati al-malāʾikatu min ladun mankibayhi ʾilā al-hawāʾi fayuṣallūna biṣalātihi wayuʾamminūna ʿalā duʿāʾihi, waʾanna al-muṣalliya layuntharu ʿalayhi al-birru min ʿanāni al-samāʾi ʾilā mafriqi raʾsihi wayunādīhi munādin law ʿalima al-munājī man yunājī mā infatala, waʾanna ʾabwāba al-samāʾi tuftaḥu li-l-muṣallīna, waʾanna Allāha taʿālā yubāhī malāʾikatahu biṣufūfi al-muṣallīna.

Concerning prayer like this servant's, reports state that when the servant stands to pray, the veil between him and Him is lifted, and He faces him. Angels stand from his shoulders up into the air, praying along with him and saying “Amen” to his supplications. Goodness is showered upon the worshipper from heaven's clouds to the crown of his head, and a caller proclaims, “If the one communing knew whom he communed with, he would never turn away.” Heaven's doors are opened for those who pray, and God Most High boasts to His angels of their ranks.

وَفِي التَّوْرَاةِ مَكْتُوبٌ: يَا ابْنَ آدَمَ لَا تَعْجَزْ أَنْ تَقُومَ بَيْنَ يَدَيَّ مُصَلِّيًا بَاكِيًا فَأَنَا اللَّهُ تَعَالَى الَّذِي اقْتَرَبْتُ مِنْ قَلْبِكَ وَبِالْغَيْبِ رَأَيْتَ نُورِي، قَالَ: وَكُنَّا نَرَى أَنَّ تِلْكَ الرِّقَّةَ وَالْبُكَاءَ وَتِلْكَ الْفُتُوحَ الَّتِي يَجِدُهَا الْمُصَلِّي فِي قَلْبِهِ مِنْ دُنُوِّ الرَّبِّ تَبَارَكَ وَتَعَالَى مِنَ الْقَلْبِ، وَقَالَ رَجُلٌ لِلنَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: اُدْعُ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى أَنْ يَرْزُقَنِي مُرَافَقَتَكَ فِي الْجَنَّةِ، فَقَالَ: أَعِنِّي بِكَثْرَةِ السُّجُودِ.

wafī al-tawrāti maktūbun: yā ibna ʾādama lā taʿjaz ʾan taqūma bayna yadayya muṣalliyan bākiyan faʾanā Allāhu taʿālā alladhī iqtarabtu min qalbika wabi-al-ghaybi raʾayta nūrī, qāla: wakunnā narā ʾanna tilka al-riqqata wa-al-bukāʾa watilka al-futūḥa allatī yajiduhā al-muṣallī fī qalbihi min dunuwwi al-rabbi tabāraka wataʿālā mina al-qalbi, waqāla rajulun li-l-nabiyyi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: udʿu Allāha taʿālā ʾan yarzuqanī murāfaqataka fī al-jannati, faqāla: ʾaʿinnī bikathrati al-sujūdi.

It is written in the Torah: “Child of Adam, do not fail to stand before Me praying and weeping. I am God Most High, who has drawn close to your heart, and through the unseen you have beheld My light.” He said, “We understood the tenderness, tears, and openings the worshipper finds in his heart to arise from the Lord's drawing near the heart, blessed and exalted is He.” A man told the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, “Ask God Most High to grant me your company in Paradise.” He replied, “Help me by prostrating often.”

وَرَوَيْنَا عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: مَا افْتَرَضَ اللَّهُ عَلَى خَلْقِهِ بَعْدَ التَّوْحِيدِ أَحَبَّ إِلَيْهِ مِنَ الصَّلَاةِ، وَلَوْ كَانَ شَيْءٌ أَحَبَّ إِلَيْهِ مِنَ الصَّلَاةِ لَتَعَبَّدَ بِهِ مَلَائِكَتَهُ؛ مِنْهُمْ رَاكِعٌ، وَسَاجِدٌ، وَقَائِمٌ، وَقَاعِدٌ، أَوْ كَمَا قَالَ بَعْضُ الْعُلَمَاءِ: الصَّلَاةُ خِدْمَةُ اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ فِي أَرْضِهِ، وَقَالَ آخَرُ: الْمُصَلُّونَ خُدَّامُ اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ عَلَى بِسَاطِهِ، إِنَّ الْمُصَلِّينَ مِنَ الْمَلَائِكَةِ يُسَمَّوْنَ فِي السَّمَٰوَاتِ خُدَّامَ الرَّحْمَنِ وَيَفْخَرُونَ بِذَلِكَ عَلَى سَائِرِ الْمُرْسَلِينَ مِنَ الْمَلَائِكَةِ.

warawaynā ʿani al-nabiyyi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: mā iftaraḍa Allāhu ʿalā khalqihi baʿda al-tawḥīdi ʾaḥabba ʾilayhi mina al-ṣalāti, walaw kāna shayʾun ʾaḥabba ʾilayhi mina al-ṣalāti lataʿabbada bihi malāʾikatahu; minhum rākiʿun, wasājidun, waqāʾimun, waqāʿidun, ʾaw kamā qāla baʿḍu al-ʿulamāʾi: al-ṣalātu khidmatu Allāhi ʿazza wajalla fī ʾarḍihi, waqāla ʾākharu: al-muṣallūna khuddāmu Allāhi ʿazza wajalla ʿalā bisāṭihi, ʾinna al-muṣallīna mina al-malāʾikati yusammawna fī al-samāwāti khuddāma al-raḥmāni wayafkharūna bi-dhālika ʿalā sāʾiri al-mursalīna mina al-malāʾikati.

We have related from the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace: “After affirming His oneness, God has prescribed nothing for His creatures dearer to Him than prayer. Had anything been dearer, He would have made His angels worship through it: some bow, some prostrate, some stand, and some sit.” Or, as a scholar said, “Prayer is serving God, mighty and majestic, on His earth.” Another said, “Those who pray are God's attendants upon His carpet, mighty and majestic is He.” Praying angels are called “the Merciful's attendants” in the heavens, and take pride in this over the other angels sent on missions.

وَيُقَالُ: إِنَّ الْمُؤْمِنَ إِذَا صَلَّى رَكْعَتَيْنِ عَجِبَ مِنْهُ عَشْرُ صُفُوفٍ مِنَ الْمَلَائِكَةِ؛ كُلُّ صَفٍّ مِنْهُمْ عَشَرَةُ آلَافٍ، وَبَاهَى اللَّهُ تَعَالَى بِهِ مِائَةَ أَلْفِ مَلَكٍ؛ وَذَلِكَ أَنَّ الْعَبْدَ قَدْ جَمَعَ فِيهِ أَرْكَانَ الصَّلَاةِ الْأَرْبَعَةَ؛ مِنَ الْقِيَامِ وَالْقُعُودِ وَالرُّكُوعِ وَالسُّجُودِ، وَفَرَّقَ ذَلِكَ عَلَى أَرْبَعِينَ أَلْفَ مَلَكٍ، وَالْقَائِمُونَ لَا يَرْكَعُونَ إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ، وَالسَّاجِدُونَ لَا يَرْفَعُونَ إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ، وَكَذَلِكَ الرَّاكِعُونَ وَالسَّاجِدُونَ، ثُمَّ قَدْ جَمَعَ اللَّهُ لَهُ أَرْكَانَ الصَّلَاةِ السِّتَّةَ؛ مِنَ التِّلَاوَةِ وَالْحَمْدِ وَالِاسْتِغْفَارِ

wayuqālu: ʾinna al-muʾmina ʾidhā ṣallā rakʿatayni ʿajiba minhu ʿashru ṣufūfin mina al-malāʾikati; kullu ṣaffin minhum ʿasharatu ʾālāfin, wabāhā Allāhu taʿālā bihi miʾata ʾalfi malakin; wa-dhālika ʾanna al-ʿabda qad jamaʿa fīhi ʾarkāna al-ṣalāti al-ʾarbaʿata; mina al-qiyāmi wa-al-quʿūdi wa-al-rukūʿi wa-al-sujūdi, wafarraqa dhālika ʿalā ʾarbaʿīna ʾalfa malakin, wa-al-qāʾimūna lā yarkaʿūna ʾilā yawmi al-qiyāmati, wa-al-sājidūna lā yarfaʿūna ʾilā yawmi al-qiyāmati, wa-kadhālika al-rākiʿūna wa-al-sājidūna, thumma qad jamaʿa Allāhu lahu ʾarkāna al-ṣalāti al-sittata; mina al-tilāwati wa-al-ḥamdi wa-al-istighfāri

It is said that when a believer prays two cycles, ten ranks of angels marvel at him, each rank numbering ten thousand; God Most High boasts of him to a hundred thousand angels. The servant combines prayer's four constituent postures: standing, sitting, bowing, and prostration, which have been distributed among forty thousand angels. Those standing do not bow until Resurrection Day; those prostrating do not rise until then, and likewise those bowing and prostrating. God has further combined for him prayer's six constituent acts: recitation, praise, seeking forgiveness,

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٦٦

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 166

Volume Two, page 166

وَالدُّعَاءِ وَالصَّلَاةِ عَلَى النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، وَفَرَّقَ ذَلِكَ عَلَى سِتِّينَ أَلْفَ مَلَكٍ لِأَنَّ كُلَّ صَفٍّ مِنَ الْمَلَائِكَةِ عِبَادَتُهُ ذِكْرٌ مِنَ الْأَذْكَارِ السِّتَّةِ، فَإِذَا رَأَتِ الْأَمْلَاكُ مَا جُمِعَ فِيهِ مِنَ الْأَرْكَانِ السِّتَّةِ وَالْأَذْكَارِ فِي رَكْعَتَيْنِ عَجِبَتْ مِنْهُ وَبَاهَاهُمُ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى بِهِ، لِأَنَّهُ قَدْ فَرَّقَ تِلْكَ الْأَعْمَالَ وَالْأَرْكَانَ عَلَى مِائَةِ أَلْفِ مَلَكٍ؛ وَبِذَلِكَ فُضِّلَ الْمُؤْمِنُ عَلَى الْمَلَائِكَةِ.

wa-al-duʿāʾi wa-al-ṣalāti ʿalā al-nabiyyi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama, wafarraqa dhālika ʿalā sittīna ʾalfa malakin liʾanna kulla ṣaffin mina al-malāʾikati ʿibādatuhu dhikrun mina al-ʾadhkāri al-sittati, faʾidhā raʾati al-ʾamlāku mā jumiʿa fīhi mina al-ʾarkāni al-sittati wa-al-ʾadhkāri fī rakʿatayni ʿajibat minhu wabāhāhumu Allāhu taʿālā bihi, liʾannahu qad farraqa tilka al-ʾaʿmāla wa-al-ʾarkāna ʿalā miʾati ʾalfi malakin; wabi-dhālika fuḍḍila al-muʾminu ʿalā al-malāʾikati.

supplication, and invoking blessings on the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace. He distributed these among sixty thousand angels, since each angelic rank worships through one of the six forms of remembrance. When the angels see the six constituent acts and forms of remembrance combined in him within two cycles, they marvel, and God Most High boasts of him to them, because He has distributed those acts and constituents among a hundred thousand angels. In this the believer is favored above the angels.

وَكَذَلِكَ فُضِّلَ الْمُوقِنُ أَيْضًا فِي مَقَامَاتِ الْيَقِينِ مِنْ أَعْمَالِ الْقُلُوبِ عَلَى الْأَمْلَاكِ بِالتَّنْقِيلِ فِي الْمَقَامَاتِ بِأَنْ جُمِعَتْ فِيهِ وَرُفِعَ مِنْهَا، وَالْمَلَائِكَةُ لَا يُنْقَلُونَ بَلْ كُلُّ مَلَكٍ مَوْقُوفٌ فِي مَقَامٍ مَعْلُومٍ لَا يُنْقَلُ عَنْهُ إِلَى غَيْرِهِ مِثْلِ: الشُّكْرِ وَالْخَوْفِ وَالرَّجَاءِ وَالشَّوْقِ وَالْأَنِينِ وَالْخَشْيَةِ وَالْمَحَبَّةِ، بَلْ كُلُّ مَلَكٍ لَهُ مَزِيدٌ وَعُلُوٌّ مِنَ الْمَقَامِ الْوَاحِدِ عَلَى قَدْرِ قُوَاهُ، وَجُمِعَ ذَلِكَ كُلُّهُ فِي قَلْبِ الْمُوقِنِ.

wa-kadhālika fuḍḍila al-mūqinu ʾayḍan fī maqāmāti al-yaqīni min ʾaʿmāli al-qulūbi ʿalā al-ʾamlāki bi-al-tanqīli fī al-maqāmāti biʾan jumiʿat fīhi warufiʿa minhā, wa-al-malāʾikatu lā yunqalūna bal kullu malakin mawqūfun fī maqāmin maʿlūmin lā yunqalu ʿanhu ʾilā ghayrihi mithli: al-shukri wa-al-khawfi wa-al-rajāʾi wa-al-shawqi wa-al-ʾanīni wa-al-khashyati wa-al-maḥabbati, bal kullu malakin lahu mazīdun waʿuluwwun mina al-maqāmi al-wāḥidi ʿalā qadri quwāhu, wajumiʿa dhālika kulluhu fī qalbi al-mūqini.

Likewise, in the heart's works at the stations of certainty, the person of certainty is favored above the angels through being moved among stations: they are gathered within him and he is raised through them. Angels are not moved; each is stationed in a known station and does not pass from it to another, such as gratitude, fear, hope, longing, yearning lament, reverent fear, or love. Each angel receives increase and ascent within one station according to his powers, while all these are gathered in the heart of the person of certainty.

قَالَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى، وَهُوَ أَصْدَقُ الْقَائِلِينَ فِي صِفَاتِ أَوْلِيَائِهِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ: (قَدْ أَفْلَحَ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ الَّذِينَ هُمْ فِي صَلَاتِهِمْ خَاشِعُونَ وَالَّذِينَ هُمْ عَنِ اللَّغْوِ مُعْرِضُونَ) الْمُؤْمِنُونَ: 1–2–3، فَمَدَحَهُمْ بِالصَّلَاةِ كَمَا ذَكَرَهُمْ بِالْإِيمَانِ، ثُمَّ مَدَحَ صَلَاتَهُمْ بِالْخُشُوعِ كَمَا افْتَتَحَ بِالصَّلَاةِ أَوْصَافَهُمْ، ثُمَّ قَالَ فِي آخِرِهَا: (وَالَّذِينَ هُمْ عَلَى صَلَوَاتِهِمْ يُحَافِظُونَ) الْمُؤْمِنُونَ: 9، فَخَتَمَ بِهَا نُعُوتَهُمْ وَقَالَ فِي نَعْتِ عِبَادِهِ: الْمُصَلِّينَ الَّذِينَ اسْتَثْنَاهُمْ مِنَ الْجَزُوعِينَ مِنَ الْمَصَائِبِ وَالْفَقْرِ، الْمَانِعِينَ لِلْمَالِ وَالْخَيْرِ، إِلَّا الْمُصَلِّينَ الَّذِينَ هُمْ عَلَى صَلَاتِهِمْ دَائِمُونَ.

qāla Allāhu taʿālā, wahuwa ʾaṣdaqu al-qāʾilīna fī ṣifāti ʾawliyāʾihi al-muʾminīna: (qad ʾaflaḥa al-muʾminūna alladhīna hum fī ṣalātihim khāshiʿūna wa-alladhīna hum ʿani al-laghwi muʿriḍūna) al-muʾminūna: 1–2–3, famadaḥahum bi-al-ṣalāti kamā dhakarahum bi-al-ʾīmāni, thumma madaḥa ṣalātahum bi-al-khushūʿi kamā iftataḥa bi-al-ṣalāti ʾawṣāfahum, thumma qāla fī ʾākhirihā: (wa-alladhīna hum ʿalā ṣalawātihim yuḥāfiẓūna) al-muʾminūna: 9, fakhatama bihā nuʿūtahum waqāla fī naʿti ʿibādihi: al-muṣallīna alladhīna istathnāhum mina al-jazūʿīna mina al-maṣāʾibi wa-al-faqri, al-māniʿīna li-l-māli wa-al-khayri, ʾillā al-muṣallīna alladhīna hum ʿalā ṣalātihim dāʾimūna.

God Most High, the truest of speakers, describes His believing friends: “Successful are the believers, those humble in their prayer, who turn away from idle talk” (al-Muʾminūn 23:1–2–3). He praises their prayer as He names their faith, then praises their prayer's humility, having begun their description with prayer. At its end He says, “Those who safeguard their prayers” (23:9), concluding their qualities with it. Describing His praying servants, whom He exempts from those who panic at calamity and poverty and withhold wealth and goodness, He says, “Except those who pray, who persist in their prayer.”

ثُمَّ نَسَقَ النُّعُوتَ وَقَالَ فِي آخِرِهَا: وَالَّذِينَ هُمْ عَلَى صَلَاتِهِمْ يُحَافِظُونَ، فَلَوْلَا أَنَّهَا أَحَبُّ الْأَعْمَالِ إِلَيْهِ مَا جَعَلَهَا مِفْتَاحَ صِفَاتِ أَحِبَّائِهِ وَخِتَامَهَا، وَلَمَا وَصَفَهُمْ بِالدَّوَامِ وَالْمُحَافَظَةِ عَلَيْهَا، وَمَدَحَهُمْ بِالْخُشُوعِ فِيهَا؛ وَالْخُشُوعُ هُوَ انْكِسَارُ الْقَلْبِ وَإِخْبَاتُهُ وَتَوَاضُعُهُ وَذِلَّتُهُ ثُمَّ لِينُ الْجَانِبِ وَكَفُّ الْجَوَارِحِ وَحُسْنُ سَمْتٍ وَإِقْبَالٍ، وَالْمُدَاوَمَةُ وَالْمُوَاظَبَةُ عَلَيْهَا وَسُكُونُ الْقَلْبِ وَالْجَوَارِحِ فِيهَا؛ وَالْمُحَافَظَةُ هِيَ حُضُورُ الْقَلْبِ وَإِصْغَاؤُهُ وَصَفَاءُ الْفَهْمِ وَإِفْرَادُهُ مِنْ مُرَاعَاةِ الْأَوْقَاتِ وَإِكْمَالِ طَهَارَةِ الْأَدَوَاتِ.

thumma nasaqa al-nuʿūta waqāla fī ʾākhirihā: wa-alladhīna hum ʿalā ṣalātihim yuḥāfiẓūna, falawlā ʾannahā ʾaḥabbu al-ʾaʿmāli ʾilayhi mā jaʿalahā miftāḥa ṣifāti ʾaḥibbāʾihi wakhitāmahā, walamā waṣafahum bi-al-dawāmi wa-al-muḥāfaẓati ʿalayhā, wamadaḥahum bi-al-khushūʿi fīhā; wa-al-khushūʿu huwa inkisāru al-qalbi waʾikhbātuhu watawāḍuʿuhu wadhillatuhu thumma līnu al-jānibi wakaffu al-jawāriḥi waḥusnu samtin waʾiqbālin, wa-al-mudāwamatu wa-al-muwāẓabatu ʿalayhā wasukūnu al-qalbi wa-al-jawāriḥi fīhā; wa-al-muḥāfaẓatu hiya ḥuḍūru al-qalbi waʾiṣghāʾuhu waṣafāʾu al-fahmi waʾifrāduhu min murāʿāti al-ʾawqāti waʾikmāli ṭahārati al-ʾadawāti.

He then lists their qualities, ending with “Those who safeguard their prayer.” Were prayer not His dearest work, He would not make it the beginning and end of His beloveds' qualities, describe their persistence and care for it, and praise their humility within it. Humility is the heart's brokenness, submission, lowliness, and abasement, followed by gentleness, restraint of the limbs, good bearing, and attentiveness; persistence, constancy, and stillness of heart and limbs in prayer. Safeguarding means the heart's presence and attention, clarity of understanding and its exclusive concentration, with observance of the appointed times and complete purification of the means used.

ثُمَّ قَالَ تَعَالَى فِي عَاقِبَةِ الْمُصَلِّينَ: (أُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْوَارِثُونَ الَّذِينَ يَرِثُونَ الْفِرْدَوْسَ هُمْ فِيهَا خَالِدُونَ) الْمُؤْمِنُونَ: 1–11، فَجَعَلَ أَوَّلَ عَطَائِهِمُ الْفَلَاحَ وَهُوَ الظَّفَرُ وَالْبَقَاءُ، وَآخِرَهُ الْفِرْدَوْسَ وَهُوَ خَيْرُ الْمُسْتَقَرِّ وَالْمَأْوَى، وَقَالَ فِي أَضْدَادِهِمْ: مِنْ أَهْلِ النَّارِ مَا سَلَكَكُمْ فِي سَقَرَ، قَالُوا: لَمْ نَكُ مِنَ الْمُصَلِّينَ، وَقَالَ مُوَبِّخًا لِآخَرَ مِنْهُمْ فَلَا صَدَّقَ وَلَا صَلَّى، وَنَهَى رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ عَنْ طَاعَةِ مَنْ نَهَاهُ عَنِ الصَّلَاةِ.

thumma qāla taʿālā fī ʿāqibati al-muṣallīna: (ʾulāʾika humu al-wārithūna alladhīna yarithūna al-firdawsa hum fīhā khālidūna) al-muʾminūna: 1–11, fajaʿala ʾawwala ʿaṭāʾihimu al-falāḥa wahuwa al-ẓafaru wa-al-baqāʾu, waʾākhirahu al-firdawsa wahuwa khayru al-mustaqarri wa-al-maʾwā, waqāla fī ʾaḍdādihim: min ʾahli al-nāri mā salakakum fī saqara, qālū: lam naku mina al-muṣallīna, waqāla muwabbikhan liʾākhara minhum falā ṣaddaqa walā ṣallā, wanahā rasūla Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama ʿan ṭāʿati man nahāhu ʿani al-ṣalāti.

Then the Exalted describes the outcome for those who pray: “Those are the heirs who inherit Paradise, abiding there forever” (al-Muʾminūn, 1–11). He makes their first gift success, meaning attainment and endurance, and their last Paradise, the best dwelling and refuge. Of their opposites among the people of the Fire He says, “What brought you into Saqar? They said: We were not among those who prayed.” Rebuking another, He says, “He neither affirmed the truth nor prayed.” He forbade the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, to obey anyone who forbade him prayer.

ثُمَّ أَمَرَهُ بِهَا وَأَخْبَرَهُ أَنَّ فِيهَا الْقُرْبَ وَالزُّلْفَى فِي قَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: (أَرَأَيْتَ الَّذِينَ يَنْهَى عَبْدًا إِذَا صَلَّى) الْعَلَقُ: 9–1، ثُمَّ قَالَ: (كَلَّا لَا تُطِعْهُ وَاسْجُدْ وَاقْتَرِبْ) الْعَلَقُ: 19، فَالْمُصَلُّونَ بَقِيَّةٌ مِنْ خَلْقِهِ وَوَرَثَةُ جَنَّتِهِ مِنْ عِبَادِهِ وَأَهْلُ النَّجَاةِ مِنْ دَارِ غَضَبِهِ وَإِبْعَادِهِ جَعَلَنَا اللَّهُ مِنْهُمْ بِعَطْفِهِ وَرَحْمَتِهِ.

thumma ʾamarahu bihā waʾakhbarahu ʾanna fīhā al-qurba wa-al-zulfā fī qawlihi taʿālā: (ʾaraʾayta alladhīna yanhā ʿabdan ʾidhā ṣallā) al-ʿalaqu: 9–1, thumma qāla: (kallā lā tuṭiʿhu wa-sjud wa-qtarib) al-ʿalaqu: 19, fa-al-muṣallūna baqiyyatun min khalqihi wawarathatu jannatihi min ʿibādihi waʾahlu al-najāti min dāri ghaḍabihi waʾibʿādihi jaʿalanā Allāhu minhum biʿaṭfihi waraḥmatihi.

Then He commanded him to pray and told him that nearness and intimacy lie within it, in His exalted saying: “Have you seen those who forbid a servant when he prays?” (al-ʿAlaq, 9–1). Then He said, “No! Do not obey him; prostrate and draw near” (96:19). Those who pray are a remnant of His creatures, the heirs of His garden among His servants, and those saved from the abode of His wrath and banishment. May God place us among them through His tenderness and mercy.

ذِكْرُ الْحَثِّ عَلَى الْمُحَافَظَةِ عَلَى الصَّلَاةِ وَطَرِيقَةِ الْمُصَلِّينَ مِنَ الْمُوقِنِينَ

dhikru al-ḥaththi ʿalā al-muḥāfaẓati ʿalā al-ṣalāti waṭarīqati al-muṣallīna mina al-mūqinīna

An account of the encouragement to safeguard prayer and the way of those who pray with certainty

قَالَ اللَّهُ سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى: (مُحَمَّدٌ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ وَالَّذِينَ مَعَهُ أَشِدَّاءُ عَلَى الْكُفَّارِ رُحَمَاءُ بَيْنَهُمْ تَرَاهُمْ رُكَّعًا سُجَّدًا) الْفَتْحُ: 29 الْآيَةَ، فَاخْتَارَ لِنَفْسِهِ أَصْحَابَهُ صَلَوَاتُ اللَّهِ عَلَيْهِ ثُمَّ اخْتَارَ لِأَصْحَابِهِ

qāla Allāhu subḥānahu wataʿālā: (muḥammadun rasūlu Allāhi wa-alladhīna maʿahu ʾashiddāʾu ʿalā al-kuffāri ruḥamāʾu baynahum tarāhum rukkaʿan sujjadan) al-fatḥu: 29 al-ʾāyata, fa-khtāra linafsihi ʾaṣḥābahu ṣalawātu Allāhi ʿalayhi thumma ikhtāra liʾaṣḥābihi

God, glorified and exalted is He, said, “Muḥammad is God's Messenger, and those with him are stern toward unbelievers, merciful among themselves; you see them bowing and prostrating” (al-Fatḥ 48:29), and the rest of the verse. He chose his Companions for Himself, God's blessings be upon him, then chose for his Companions

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٦٧

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Volume Two, page 167

الصَّلَاةَ فَجَعَلَهَا وَصْفَهُمْ فِي الْإِنْجِيلِ وَالتَّوْرَاةِ، فَهَذَا يَدُلُّ أَنَّ الصَّلَاةَ أَفْضَلُ الْأَعْمَالِ لِأَنَّ أَصْحَابَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ أَفْضَلُ الْعُمَّالِ، وَسُئِلَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: أَيُّ الْأَعْمَالِ أَفْضَلُ؟ قَالَ: الصَّلَاةُ لِمَوَاقِيتِهَا، وَعَنْ عُمَرَ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى عَنْهُ: إِذَا رَأَيْتَ الرَّجُلَ حَافِظًا لِصَلَاتِهِ فَظُنَّ بِهِ خَيْرًا وَإِذَا رَأَيْتَهُ مُضَيِّعًا لِصَلَاتِهِ فَهُوَ لِمَا سِوَاهَا أَضْيَعُ، وَكَانَ الْحَسَنُ يَقُولُ: ابْنَ آدَمَ مَاذَا يَعِزُّ عَلَيْكَ مِنْ دِينِكَ إِذَا هَانَتْ عَلَيْكَ صَلَاتُكَ؟ فَهُوَ عَلَى اللَّهِ تَعَالَى أَهْوَنُ.

al-ṣalāta fajaʿalahā waṣfahum fī al-ʾinjīli wa-al-tawrāti, fa-hādhā yadullu ʾanna al-ṣalāta ʾafḍalu al-ʾaʿmāli liʾanna ʾaṣḥāba rasūli Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama ʾafḍalu al-ʿummāli, wasuʾila rasūlu Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: ʾayyu al-ʾaʿmāli ʾafḍalu? qāla: al-ṣalātu limawāqītihā, waʿan ʿumara raḍiya Allāhu taʿālā ʿanhu: ʾidhā raʾayta al-rajula ḥāfiẓan liṣalātihi faẓunna bihi khayran waʾidhā raʾaytahu muḍayyiʿan liṣalātihi fahuwa limā siwāhā ʾaḍyaʿu, wakāna al-ḥasanu yaqūlu: ibna ʾādama mādhā yaʿizzu ʿalayka min dīnika ʾidhā hānat ʿalayka ṣalātuka? fahuwa ʿalā Allāhi taʿālā ʾahwanu.

prayer, making it their description in the Gospel and Torah. This indicates that prayer is the best of works, since the Companions of God's Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, are the best of those who act. Asked which work is best, God's Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, answered, “Prayer at its appointed times.” From ʿUmar, may God Most High be pleased with him: “When you see someone safeguarding his prayer, expect good of him; when you see him neglecting it, he neglects everything else still more.” Al-Ḥasan said, “Child of Adam, what in your religion matters to you if your prayer means little? It means still less to God Most High.”

وَعَنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: الصَّلَاةُ عِمَادُ الدِّينِ مَنْ تَرَكَهَا فَقَدْ كَفَرَ، وَفِي حَدِيثٍ آخَرَ بَيْنَ الْكُفْرِ وَالْإِيمَانِ تَرْكُ الصَّلَاةِ، وَفِي الْخَبَرِ: مَنْ حَافَظَ عَلَى الصَّلَوَاتِ الْخَمْسِ بِإِكْمَالِ طُهُورِهَا وَمَوَاقِيتِهَا، كَانَتْ لَهُ نُورًا وَبُرْهَانًا يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ، وَمَنْ ضَيَّعَهَا حَشَرَهُ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى مَعَ فِرْعَوْنَ وَهَامَانَ، وَفِي تَفْسِيرِ قَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: (لَا يَمْلِكُونَ الشَّفَاعَةَ إِلَّا مَنِ اتَّخَذَ عِنْدَ الرَّحْمَنِ عَهْدًا) مَرْيَمُ: 87، قَالَ الصَّلَوَاتُ الْخَمْسُ.

waʿan rasūli Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: al-ṣalātu ʿimādu al-dīni man tarakahā faqad kafara, wafī ḥadīthin ʾākhara bayna al-kufri wa-al-ʾīmāni tarku al-ṣalāti, wafī al-khabari: man ḥāfaẓa ʿalā al-ṣalawāti al-khamsi biʾikmāli ṭuhūrihā wamawāqītihā, kānat lahu nūran waburhānan yawma al-qiyāmati, waman ḍayyaʿahā ḥasharahu Allāhu taʿālā maʿa firʿawna wahāmāna, wafī tafsīri qawlihi taʿālā: (lā yamlikūna al-shafāʿata ʾillā mani ittakhadha ʿinda al-raḥmāni ʿahdan) maryamu: 87, qāla al-ṣalawātu al-khamsu.

From the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace: “Prayer is religion's supporting pillar; whoever abandons it has disbelieved.” Another hadith says, “Between unbelief and faith lies abandoning prayer.” A report states, “Whoever safeguards the five prayers, completing their purification and observing their times, will find them a light and proof on Resurrection Day. Whoever neglects them, God Most High will gather with Pharaoh and Hāmān.” The explanation of His exalted saying, “They possess no intercession except one who has taken a covenant with the Merciful” (Maryam 19:87), identifies that covenant as the five prayers.

وَعَنْ ابْنِ مَسْعُودٍ وَسَلْمَانَ: الصَّلَاةُ مِكْيَالٌ، فَمَنْ أَوْفَى وُفِّيَ لَهُ، وَمَنْ طَفَّفَ فَقَدْ عَلِمْتُمْ مَا قَالَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى فِي الْمُطَفِّفِينَ، وَفِي الْخَبَرِ: أَسْوَأُ النَّاسِ سَرِقَةً الَّذِي يَسْرِقُ مِنْ صَلَاتِهِ فَلَا يُتِمُّ رُكُوعَهَا وَلَا سُجُودَهَا، وَفِي الْخَبَرِ: إِذَا صَلَّى الْعَبْدُ فِي الْمَلَإِ فَأَحْسَنَ وَأَسَاءَ صَلَاتَهُ فِي الْخَلَا فَتِلْكَ اسْتِهَانَةٌ يَسْتَهِينُ بِهَا رَبَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ، وَفِي الْخَبَرِ: إِذَا أَحْسَنَ الْعَبْدُ صَلَاتَهُ فِي الْعَلَانِيَةِ وَأَحْسَنَهَا فِي السِّرِّ قَالَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى لِمَلَائِكَتِهِ: هَذَا عَبْدِي حَقًّا.

waʿan ibni masʿūdin wasalmāna: al-ṣalātu mikyālun, faman ʾawfā wuffiya lahu, waman ṭaffafa faqad ʿalimtum mā qāla Allāhu taʿālā fī al-muṭaffifīna, wafī al-khabari: ʾaswaʾu al-nāsi sariqatan alladhī yasriqu min ṣalātihi falā yutimmu rukūʿahā walā sujūdahā, wafī al-khabari: ʾidhā ṣallā al-ʿabdu fī al-malaʾi faʾaḥsana waʾasāʾa ṣalātahu fī al-khalā fatilka istihānatun yastahīnu bihā rabbahu ʿazza wajalla, wafī al-khabari: ʾidhā ʾaḥsana al-ʿabdu ṣalātahu fī al-ʿalāniyati waʾaḥsanahā fī al-sirri qāla Allāhu taʿālā limalāʾikatihi: hādhā ʿabdī ḥaqqan.

From Ibn Masʿūd and Salmān: “Prayer is a measure. Whoever gives full measure receives full measure; whoever gives short measure, you know what God Most High has said of defrauders.” A report says, “The worst thief is one who steals from his prayer, failing to complete its bowing and prostration.” Another says, “If a servant prays well in public but badly in private, that is contempt shown toward his Lord, mighty and majestic.” Another says, “If the servant prays well both openly and secretly, God Most High tells His angels, ‘This is truly My servant.’”

وَعَنْ كَعْبٍ وَغَيْرِهِ: مَنْ قُبِلَتْ صَلَاتُهُ قُبِلَتْ أَعْمَالُهُ كُلُّهَا، وَمَنْ رُدَّتْ عَلَيْهِ صَلَاتُهُ رُدَّتْ عَلَيْهِ أَعْمَالُهُ كُلُّهَا، وَيُقَالُ: مَنْ تُقُبِّلَتْ مِنْهُ الصَّلَوَاتُ الْخَمْسُ كُمَّلًا مِنْ غَيْرِ أَنْ تُلَفَّقَ، وَلَا يُرْفَعَ بَعْضُهَا مِنْ بَعْضٍ، أَوْ غَيْرِهَا مِنَ النَّوَافِلِ، أُطْلِعَ عَلَى عِلْمِ الْأَبْدَالِ وَكُتِبَ صِدِّيقًا، وَعَلَامَةُ قَبُولِ الصَّلَوَاتِ أَنْ تَنْهَاهُ فِي تَضَاعِيفِهَا عَنِ الْفَحْشَاءِ وَالْمُنْكَرِ وَالْفَحْشَاءُ الْكَبَائِرُ، وَالْمُنْكَرُ مَا أَنْكَرَهُ الْعُلَمَاءُ، فَمَنِ انْتَهَى رُفِعَتْ صَلَاتُهُ إِلَى سِدْرَةِ الْمُنْتَهَى، وَمَنْ تَخَرَّقَتْهُ الْأَهْوَاءُ فَقَدْ رُدَّتْ صَلَاتُهُ لَمَّا غَوَى فَهَوَى.

waʿan kaʿbin waghayrihi: man qubilat ṣalātuhu qubilat ʾaʿmāluhu kulluhā, waman ruddat ʿalayhi ṣalātuhu ruddat ʿalayhi ʾaʿmāluhu kulluhā, wayuqālu: man tuqubbilat minhu al-ṣalawātu al-khamsu kummalan min ghayri ʾan tulaffaqa, walā yurfaʿa baʿḍuhā min baʿḍin, ʾaw ghayrihā mina al-nawāfili, ʾuṭliʿa ʿalā ʿilmi al-ʾabdāli wakutiba ṣiddīqan, waʿalāmatu qabūli al-ṣalawāti ʾan tanhāhu fī taḍāʿīfihā ʿani al-faḥshāʾi wa-al-munkari wa-al-faḥshāʾu al-kabāʾiru, wa-al-munkaru mā ʾankarahu al-ʿulamāʾu, famani intahā rufiʿat ṣalātuhu ʾilā sidrati al-muntahā, waman takharraqathu al-ʾahwāʾu faqad ruddat ṣalātuhu lammā ghawā fahawā.

From Kaʿb and others: “Whoever's prayer is accepted has all his works accepted; whoever's prayer is rejected has all his works rejected.” It is said that someone whose five prayers are accepted whole, without patching them together or lifting portions from one another or from additional voluntary prayers, is admitted to the knowledge of the abdāl, the substitute saints, and recorded as utterly truthful. Acceptance is shown when the prayers restrain him throughout from indecency and wrongdoing: indecency means major sins, and wrongdoing what scholars condemn. Whoever desists has his prayer raised to the Lote Tree of the Utmost Boundary; whoever is torn apart by desires has his prayer rejected, having strayed and fallen.

وَقَالَ مَالِكُ بْنُ دِينَارٍ وَإِبْرَاهِيمُ بْنُ أَدْهَمَ: إِنِّي لَأَرَى الرَّجُلَ يُسِيءُ صَلَاتَهُ فَأَرْحَمُ عِيَالَهُ، وَقَالَ الْفُضَيْلُ بْنُ عِيَاضٍ: الْفَرَائِضُ رُؤُوسُ الْأَمْوَالِ وَالنَّوَافِلُ الْأَرْبَاحُ، وَلَا يَصِحُّ رِبْحٌ إِلَّا بَعْدَ رَأْسِ الْمَالِ، وَكَانَ ابْنُ عُيَيْنَةَ يَقُولُ: إِنَّمَا حُرِمُوا الْوُصُولَ بِتَضْيِيعِ الْأُصُولِ، وَقَالَ عَلِيُّ بْنُ الْحُسَيْنِ: مَنِ اهْتَمَّ بِالصَّلَوَاتِ الْخَمْسِ فِي مَوَاقِيتِهَا وَإِكْمَالِ طُهُورِهَا لَمْ يَكُنْ لَهُ فِي الدُّنْيَا عَيْشٌ وَكَانَ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ إِذَا تَوَضَّأَ لِلصَّلَاةِ

waqāla māliku bnu dīnārin waʾibrāhīmu bnu ʾadhama: ʾinnī laʾarā al-rajula yusīʾu ṣalātahu faʾarḥamu ʿiyālahu, waqāla al-fuḍaylu bnu ʿiyāḍin: al-farāʾiḍu ruʾūsu al-ʾamwāli wa-al-nawāfilu al-ʾarbāḥu, walā yaṣiḥḥu ribḥun ʾillā baʿda raʾsi al-māli, wakāna ibnu ʿuyaynata yaqūlu: ʾinnamā ḥurimū al-wuṣūla bitaḍyīʿi al-ʾuṣūli, waqāla ʿaliyyu bnu al-ḥusayni: mani ihtamma bi-al-ṣalawāti al-khamsi fī mawāqītihā waʾikmāli ṭuhūrihā lam yakun lahu fī al-dunyā ʿayshun wakāna ʿalayhi al-salāmu ʾidhā tawaḍḍaʾa li-l-ṣalāti

Mālik ibn Dīnār and Ibrāhīm ibn Adham said, “When I see a man praying badly, I pity his dependents.” Al-Fuḍayl ibn ʿIyāḍ said, “Obligatory duties are capital, and voluntary works are profits; no profit is sound before the capital is secured.” Ibn ʿUyayna said, “They were deprived of arrival through neglecting the foundations.” ʿAlī ibn al-Ḥusayn said, “Whoever is concerned with performing the five prayers at their appointed times and completing their purification has no easy life in this world.” When he, peace be upon him, made ablution for prayer,

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٦٨

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 168

Volume Two, page 168

تَغَيَّرَ لَوْنُهُ وَاصْفَرَّ وَأَرْعَدَ، فَقِيلَ لَهُ فِي ذَلِكَ فَقَالَ: تَدْرُونَ بَيْنَ يَدَيْ مَنْ أُرِيدُ أَنْ أَقِفَ وَعَلَى مَنْ أَدْخُلَ وَلِمَنْ أُخَاطِبُ؟ وَقَالَ بَعْضُ الْعَارِفِينَ: لِلصَّلَاةِ أَرْبَعُ فَرَائِضَ؛ إِجْلَالُ الْمَقَامِ، وَإِخْلَاصُ السِّهَامِ، وَيَقِينُ الْمَقَالِ، وَتَسْلِيمُ الْأَمْرِ، وَقَالَ أَبُو الدَّرْدَاءِ: خِيَارُ عِبَادِ اللَّهِ الَّذِينَ يُرَاعُونَ الشَّمْسَ وَالْقَمَرَ وَالْأَظِلَّةَ لِذِكْرِ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى وَكَانَ وَكِيعٌ يَقُولُ: مَنْ لَمْ يَأْخُذْ أُهْبَةَ الصَّلَاةِ قَبْلَ وَقْتِهَا لَمْ يُحَافِظْ عَلَيْهَا وَمَنْ تَهَاوَنَ بِتَكْبِيرَةِ الْإِحْرَامِ فَاغْسِلْ يَدَكَ مِنْهُ.

taghayyara lawnuhu wa-ṣfarra waʾarʿada, faqīla lahu fī dhālika faqāla: tadrūna bayna yaday man ʾurīdu ʾan ʾaqifa waʿalā man ʾadkhula waliman ʾukhāṭibu? waqāla baʿḍu al-ʿārifīna: li-l-ṣalāti ʾarbaʿu farāʾiḍa; ʾijlālu al-maqāmi, waʾikhlāṣu al-sihāmi, wayaqīnu al-maqāli, wataslīmu al-ʾamri, waqāla ʾabū al-dardāʾi: khiyāru ʿibādi Allāhi alladhīna yurāʿūna al-shamsa wa-al-qamara wa-al-ʾaẓillata lidhikri Allāhi taʿālā wakāna wakīʿun yaqūlu: man lam yaʾkhudh ʾuhbata al-ṣalāti qabla waqtihā lam yuḥāfiẓ ʿalayhā waman tahāwana bitakbīrati al-ʾiḥrāmi fa-ghsil yadaka minhu.

his color changed, he turned pale, and trembled. Asked about this, he said, “Do you know before whom I intend to stand, whose presence I enter, and whom I address?” One knower said, “Prayer has four obligations: reverence for the standing-place, sincerity in one's allotted portions, certainty in what one says, and surrendering the matter.” Abū al-Dardāʾ said, “God's finest servants watch the sun, moon, and shadows for remembering God Most High.” Wakīʿ said, “Whoever does not prepare for prayer before its time does not safeguard it; wash your hands of anyone who treats the opening magnification lightly.”

وَرَوَيْنَا فِي تَفْسِيرِ قَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: (سَابِقُوا إِلَى مَغْفِرَةٍ مِنْ رَبِّكُمْ) الْحَدِيدُ: 21، قَالَ: تَكْبِيرَةُ الْإِحْرَامِ، وَفِي حَدِيثِ أَبِي كَاهِلٍ عَنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: مَنْ صَلَّى أَرْبَعِينَ يَوْمًا الصَّلَوَاتِ فِي جَمَاعَةٍ لَا يَفُوتُهُ مِنْهَا تَكْبِيرَةُ الْإِحْرَامِ كُتِبَ لَهُ بَرَاءَتَانِ؛ بَرَاءَةٌ مِنَ النِّفَاقِ، وَبَرَاءَةٌ مِنَ النَّارِ، وَقَالَ سَعِيدُ بْنُ الْمُسَيِّبِ: مُنْذُ أَرْبَعِينَ سَنَةً مَا فَاتَتْنِي تَكْبِيرَةُ الْإِحْرَامِ فِي جَمَاعَةٍ، وَكَانَ يُسَمَّى حَمَامَةَ الْمَسْجِدِ، وَقَالَ عَبْدُ الرَّزَّاقِ: مِنْ عِشْرِينَ سَنَةً مَا سَمِعْتُ الْأَذَانَ إِلَّا فِي الْمَسْجِدِ.

warawaynā fī tafsīri qawlihi taʿālā: (sābiqū ʾilā maghfiratin min rabbikum) al-ḥadīdu: 21, qāla: takbīratu al-ʾiḥrāmi, wafī ḥadīthi ʾabī kāhilin ʿan rasūli Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: man ṣallā ʾarbaʿīna yawman al-ṣalawāti fī jamāʿatin lā yafūtuhu minhā takbīratu al-ʾiḥrāmi kutiba lahu barāʾatāni; barāʾatun mina al-nifāqi, wabarāʾatun mina al-nāri, waqāla saʿīdu bnu al-musayyibi: mundhu ʾarbaʿīna sanatan mā fātatnī takbīratu al-ʾiḥrāmi fī jamāʿatin, wakāna yusammā ḥamāmata al-masjidi, waqāla ʿabdu al-razzāqi: min ʿishrīna sanatan mā samiʿtu al-ʾadhāna ʾillā fī al-masjidi.

We have related that His exalted saying, “Race toward forgiveness from your Lord” (al-Ḥadīd 57:21) refers to the opening magnification. In Abū Kāhil's hadith from the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace: “Whoever performs prayers in congregation for forty days without missing the opening magnification has two immunities recorded: immunity from hypocrisy and immunity from the Fire.” Saʿīd ibn al-Musayyib said, “For forty years I have never missed the opening magnification in congregation.” He was called the mosque's dove. ʿAbd al-Razzāq said, “For twenty years I have heard the call to prayer only while already in the mosque.”

وَيُقَالُ: إِنَّهُ إِذَا كَانَ يَوْمُ الْقِيَامَةِ أُمِرَ بِطَبَقَاتِ الْمُصَلِّينَ إِلَى الْجَنَّةِ زُمَرًا، قَالَ: فَتَأْتِي أَوَّلُ زُمْرَةٍ كَأَنَّ وَجْهَهُمُ الْكَوْكَبُ الدُّرِّيُّ فَتَسْتَقْبِلُهُمُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ فَيَقُولُونَ: مَنْ أَنْتُمْ؟ فَيَقُولُونَ: نَحْنُ الْمُصَلُّونَ مِنْ أُمَّةِ مُحَمَّدٍ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، فَيَقُولُونَ: مَا كَانَتْ أَعْمَالُكُمْ فِي الدُّنْيَا؟ فَيَقُولُونَ: كُنَّا إِذَا سَمِعْنَا الْأَذَانَ قُمْنَا إِلَى الطَّهَارَةِ لَا يَشْغَلُنَا غَيْرُهَا، فَتَقُولُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ: يَحِقُّ لَكُمْ ذَلِكَ.

wayuqālu: ʾinnahu ʾidhā kāna yawmu al-qiyāmati ʾumira biṭabaqāti al-muṣallīna ʾilā al-jannati zumaran, qāla: fataʾtī ʾawwalu zumratin kaʾanna wajhahumu al-kawkabu al-durriyyu fatastaqbiluhumu al-malāʾikatu fayaqūlūna: man ʾantum? fayaqūlūna: naḥnu al-muṣallūna min ʾummati muḥammadin ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama, fayaqūlūna: mā kānat ʾaʿmālukum fī al-dunyā? fayaqūlūna: kunnā ʾidhā samiʿnā al-ʾadhāna qumnā ʾilā al-ṭahārati lā yashghalunā ghayruhā, fataqūlu al-malāʾikatu: yaḥiqqu lakum dhālika.

It is said that on Resurrection Day the different classes of worshippers are ordered into Paradise in groups. The first arrives with faces like a brilliant star. Angels meet them and ask, “Who are you?” They answer, “We are those who prayed from Muḥammad's community, may God bless him and grant him peace.” The angels ask, “What were your deeds in the world?” They answer, “When we heard the call, we rose to purify ourselves, allowing nothing else to occupy us.” The angels say, “You deserve this.”

ثُمَّ تَأْتِي الزُّمْرَةُ الثَّانِيَةُ فَوْقَ أُولَئِكَ فِي الْحُسْنِ وَالْجَمَالِ كَأَنَّ وُجُوهَهُمُ الْأَقْمَارُ فَتَقُولُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ: مَنْ أَنْتُمْ؟ فَيَقُولُونَ: نَحْنُ الْمُصَلُّونَ، فَيَقُولُونَ: وَمَا كَانَتْ صَلَاتُكُمْ؟ فَيَقُولُونَ: كُنَّا نَتَوَضَّأُ لِلصَّلَاةِ قَبْلَ دُخُولِ وَقْتِهَا، فَتَقُولُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ: يَحِقُّ لَكُمْ ذَلِكَ، ثُمَّ تَأْتِي الزُّمْرَةُ الثَّالِثَةُ فَوْقَ هَؤُلَاءِ فِي الْمَنْزِلَةِ وَالْجَمَالِ كَأَنَّ وُجُوهَهُمُ الشَّمْسُ الضَّاحِيَةُ، فَتَقُولُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ: أَنْتُمْ أَحْسَنُ وُجُوهًا وَأَعْلَى مَقَامًا فَمَا أَنْتُمْ؟ فَيَقُولُونَ: نَحْنُ الْمُصَلُّونَ، فَيَقُولُونَ: وَمَا كَانَتْ صَلَاتُكُمْ؟ فَيَقُولُونَ: كُنَّا نَسْمَعُ الْأَذَانَ فِي الْمَسْجِدِ، فَتَقُولُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ: يَحِقُّ لَكُمْ ذَلِكَ.

thumma taʾtī al-zumratu al-thāniyatu fawqa ʾulāʾika fī al-ḥusni wa-al-jamāli kaʾanna wujūhahumu al-ʾaqmāru fataqūlu al-malāʾikatu: man ʾantum? fayaqūlūna: naḥnu al-muṣallūna, fayaqūlūna: wamā kānat ṣalātukum? fayaqūlūna: kunnā natawaḍḍaʾu li-l-ṣalāti qabla dukhūli waqtihā, fataqūlu al-malāʾikatu: yaḥiqqu lakum dhālika, thumma taʾtī al-zumratu al-thālithatu fawqa hāʾulāʾi fī al-manzilati wa-al-jamāli kaʾanna wujūhahumu al-shamsu al-ḍāḥiyatu, fataqūlu al-malāʾikatu: ʾantum ʾaḥsanu wujūhan waʾaʿlā maqāman famā ʾantum? fayaqūlūna: naḥnu al-muṣallūna, fayaqūlūna: wamā kānat ṣalātukum? fayaqūlūna: kunnā nasmaʿu al-ʾadhāna fī al-masjidi, fataqūlu al-malāʾikatu: yaḥiqqu lakum dhālika.

The second group arrives, surpassing the first in beauty, their faces like moons. “Who are you?” the angels ask. “Those who prayed.” “What was your prayer like?” “We made ablution before its time began.” The angels say, “You deserve this.” Then the third arrives, higher in rank and beauty, their faces like the radiant sun. The angels say, “Your faces are more beautiful and your station higher. What are you?” “Those who prayed.” “What was your prayer like?” “We heard the call while in the mosque.” The angels say, “You deserve this.”

وَقَالَ بَعْضُ الْعُلَمَاءِ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمْ: سُمِّيَتِ الصَّلَاةُ صَلَاةً لِأَنَّهَا صِلَةٌ بَيْنَ الْعَبْدِ وَبَيْنَ اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ وَمُوَاصَلَةٌ مِنَ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى لِعَبْدِهِ، وَلَا تَكُونُ الْمُوَاصَلَةُ وَالْمَنَالُ إِلَّا لِتَقِيٍّ، قَالَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى: (لَنْ يَنَالَ اللَّهَ لُحُومُهَا وَلَا دِمَاؤُهَا وَلَكِنْ يَنَالُهُ التَّقْوَى مِنْكُمْ) الْحَجُّ: 37، وَلَا يَكُونُ التَّقِيُّ إِلَّا خَاشِعًا فَعِنْدَهَا لَا يَعْظُمُ عَلَيْهِ طُولُ الْوُقُوفِ وَلَا يَكْثُرُ عَلَيْهِ الِانْتِهَاءُ عَنِ الْمُنْكَرِ وَالِائْتِمَارُ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ، كَمَا قَالَ سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى: (إِنَّ الصَّلَاةَ تَنْهَى عَنِ الْفَحْشَاءِ وَالْمُنْكَرِ) الْعَنْكَبُوتُ: 45.

waqāla baʿḍu al-ʿulamāʾi raḍiya Allāhu ʿanhum: summiyati al-ṣalātu ṣalātan liʾannahā ṣilatun bayna al-ʿabdi wabayna Allāhi ʿazza wajalla wamuwāṣalatun mina Allāhi taʿālā liʿabdihi, walā takūnu al-muwāṣalatu wa-al-manālu ʾillā litaqiyyin, qāla Allāhu taʿālā: (lan yanāla Allāha luḥūmuhā walā dimāʾuhā walākin yanāluhu al-taqwā minkum) al-ḥajju: 37, walā yakūnu al-taqiyyu ʾillā khāshiʿan faʿindahā lā yaʿẓumu ʿalayhi ṭūlu al-wuqūfi walā yakthuru ʿalayhi al-intihāʾu ʿani al-munkari wa-al-iʾtimāru bi-al-maʿrūfi, kamā qāla subḥānahu wataʿālā: (ʾinna al-ṣalāta tanhā ʿani al-faḥshāʾi wa-al-munkari) al-ʿankabūtu: 45.

Some scholars, may God be pleased with them, said, “Prayer is called ṣalāh because it is a connection, ṣila, between the servant and God, mighty and majestic, and a joining from God Most High to His servant. Connection and attainment belong only to the God-fearing.” God Most High said, “Neither their flesh nor their blood reaches God, but your reverence reaches Him” (al-Ḥajj 22:37). The God-fearing must be humble. Then prolonged standing does not weigh heavily, nor does refraining from wrongdoing and acting on what is right seem excessive, as He said, glorified and exalted, “Prayer restrains indecency and wrongdoing” (al-ʿAnkabūt 29:45).

وَالْخَاشِعُونَ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ هُمُ الْآمِرُونَ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ، وَالنَّاهُونَ عَنِ الْمُنْكَرِ، الْحَافِظُونَ لِحُدُودِ اللَّهِ جَزَاؤُهُمُ الْبُشْرَى، كَمَا قَالَ: (وَبَشِّرِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ) الْأَحْزَابُ: 47 وَالْخَاشِعُونَ أَيْضًا الْخَائِفُونَ، الذَّاكِرُونَ، الصَّابِرُونَ، وَالْمُقِيمُونَ الصَّلَاةَ، فَإِذَا كَمُلَتْ هَذِهِ الْأَوْصَافُ فِيهِمْ كَانُوا مُخْبِتِينَ، وَقَدْ قَالَ سُبْحَانَهُ: (وَبَشِّرِ الْمُخْبِتِينَ) الْحَجُّ: 34، وَكَانَ ابْنُ مَسْعُودٍ إِذَا نَظَرَ إِلَى الرَّبِيعِ بْنِ خَيْثَمٍ يَقُولُ: وَبَشِّرِ الْمُخْبِتِينَ أَمَا وَاللَّهِ لَوْ رَآكَ

wa-al-khāshiʿūna mina al-muʾminīna humu al-ʾāmirūna bi-al-maʿrūfi, wa-al-nāhūna ʿani al-munkari, al-ḥāfiẓūna liḥudūdi Allāhi jazāʾuhumu al-bushrā, kamā qāla: (wabashshiri al-muʾminīna) al-ʾaḥzābu: 47 wa-al-khāshiʿūna ʾayḍan al-khāʾifūna, al-dhākirūna, al-ṣābirūna, wa-al-muqīmūna al-ṣalāta, faʾidhā kamulat hādhihi al-ʾawṣāfu fīhim kānū mukhbitīna, waqad qāla subḥānahu: (wabashshiri al-mukhbitīna) al-ḥajju: 34, wakāna ibnu masʿūdin ʾidhā naẓara ʾilā al-rabīʿi bni khaythamin yaqūlu: wabashshiri al-mukhbitīna ʾamā wa-Allāhi law raʾāka

The humble among believers enjoin what is right, forbid wrongdoing, and guard God's limits. Their reward is glad tidings, as He said, “Give glad tidings to the believers” (al-Aḥzāb 33:47). The humble also fear, remember, persevere, and establish prayer. When these qualities are complete, they are inwardly submissive. He, glorified is He, said, “Give glad tidings to the inwardly submissive” (al-Ḥajj 22:34). When Ibn Masʿūd looked at al-Rabīʿ ibn Khaytham, he would say, “‘Give glad tidings to the inwardly submissive.’ By God, if

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٦٩

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 169

Volume Two, page 169

مُحَمَّدٌ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ لَفَرِحَ بِكَ، وَفِي لَفْظٍ آخَرَ لَأَحَبَّكَ، يُقَالُ: إِنَّهُ كَانَ يَخْتَلِفُ إِلَى مَنْزِلِ ابْنِ مَسْعُودٍ عِشْرِينَ سَنَةً لَا تَحْسَبُ جَارِيَةُ ابْنِ مَسْعُودٍ إِلَّا إِنَّهُ أَعْمَى لِشِدَّةِ غَضِّ بَصَرِهِ وَطُولِ إِطْرَاقِهِ إِلَى الْأَرْضِ بِنَظَرِهِ، وَكَانَ إِذَا دَقَّ الْبَابَ عَلَيْهِ تَخْرُجُ إِلَيْهِ

muḥammadun ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama lafariḥa bika, wafī lafẓin ʾākhara laʾaḥabbaka, yuqālu: ʾinnahu kāna yakhtalifu ʾilā manzili ibni masʿūdin ʿishrīna sanatan lā taḥsabu jāriyatu ibni masʿūdin ʾillā ʾinnahu ʾaʿmā lishiddati ghaḍḍi baṣarihi waṭūli ʾiṭrāqihi ʾilā al-ʾarḍi binaẓarihi, wakāna ʾidhā daqqa al-bāba ʿalayhi takhruju ʾilayhi

Muḥammad, may God bless him and grant him peace, saw you, he would rejoice in you,” or, in another wording, “would love you.” It is said that he visited Ibn Masʿūd's house for twenty years, and Ibn Masʿūd's maid could only think him blind, so firmly did he lower his gaze and so long did he look toward the ground. Whenever he knocked at the door, there came out to him

الْجَارِيَةُ فَإِذَا رَأَتْهُ قَالَتْ لِعَبْدِ اللَّهِ صَدِيقُكَ ذَاكَ الْأَعْمَى قَدْ جَاءَكَ فَكَانَ ابْنُ مَسْعُودٍ يَضْحَكُ وَيَقُولُ: وَيْحَكِ ذَاكَ الرَّبِيعُ، وَمَشَى ذَاتَ يَوْمٍ مَعَ ابْنِ مَسْعُودٍ فِي الْحَدَّادِينَ فَلَمَّا نَظَرَ إِلَى الْأَكْوَارِ تُنْفَخُ وَإِلَى النِّيرَانِ تَلْتَهِبُ، صَعِقَ وَسَقَطَ مَغْشِيًّا عَلَيْهِ، وَقَعَدَ ابْنُ مَسْعُودٍ عِنْدَ رَأْسِهِ إِلَى وَقْتِ الصَّلَاةِ فَلَمْ يُفِقْ فَحَمَلَهُ ابْنُ مَسْعُودٍ عَلَى ظَهْرِهِ إِلَى مَنْزِلِهِ، فَلَمْ يَزَلْ مَغْشِيًّا عَلَيْهِ إِلَى السَّاعَةِ الَّتِي صَعِقَ فِيهَا حَتَّى فَاتَتْهُ خَمْسُ صَلَوَاتٍ، وَابْنُ مَسْعُودٍ عِنْدَ رَأْسِهِ يَقُولُ: هَذَا وَاللَّهِ الْخَوْفُ.

al-jāriyatu faʾidhā raʾathu qālat liʿabdi Allāhi ṣadīquka dhāka al-ʾaʿmā qad jāʾaka fakāna ibnu masʿūdin yaḍḥaku wayaqūlu: wayḥaki dhāka al-rabīʿu, wamashā dhāta yawmin maʿa ibni masʿūdin fī al-ḥaddādīna falammā naẓara ʾilā al-ʾakwāri tunfakhu waʾilā al-nīrāni taltahibu, ṣaʿiqa wasaqaṭa maghshiyyan ʿalayhi, waqaʿada ibnu masʿūdin ʿinda raʾsihi ʾilā waqti al-ṣalāti falam yufiq faḥamalahu ibnu masʿūdin ʿalā ẓahrihi ʾilā manzilihi, falam yazal maghshiyyan ʿalayhi ʾilā al-sāʿati allatī ṣaʿiqa fīhā ḥattā fātathu khamsu ṣalawātin, wa-bnu masʿūdin ʿinda raʾsihi yaqūlu: hādhā wa-Allāhi al-khawfu.

the maid. Seeing him, she told ʿAbd Allāh, “That blind friend of yours has come.” Ibn Masʿūd laughed and said, “Dear woman, that is al-Rabīʿ!” One day he walked with Ibn Masʿūd among the blacksmiths. Seeing the bellows blowing and fires blazing, he collapsed unconscious. Ibn Masʿūd sat beside his head until prayer time, but he did not recover. Ibn Masʿūd carried him home on his back. He remained unconscious until the hour at which he had collapsed, missing five prayers, while Ibn Masʿūd sat beside his head saying, “This, by God, is fear.”

وَكَانَ هَذَا يَقُولُ: مَا دَخَلْتُ فِي صَلَاةٍ قَطُّ فَأَهَمَّنِي فِيهَا إِلَّا مَا أَقُولُ وَمَا يُقَالُ لِي، وَقَدْ كَانَ عَامِرُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ مِنْ خَاشِعِي الْمُصَلِّينَ، كَانَ إِذَا صَلَّى ضَرَبَتِ ابْنَتُهُ بِالدُّفِّ، وَتَحَدَّثَ النِّسَاءُ بِمَا يُرِدْنَ فِي الْبَيْتِ، وَلَمْ يَكُنْ يَعْقِلُ ذَلِكَ وَلَا يَسْمَعُهُ وَقِيلَ لَهُ ذَاتَ يَوْمٍ: هَلْ تُحَدِّثُ نَفْسَكَ فِي الصَّلَاةِ بِشَيْءٍ؟ قَالَ: نَعَمْ بِوُقُوفِي بَيْنَ يَدَيِ اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ وَمُنْصَرَفِي إِلَى إِحْدَى الدَّارَيْنِ.

wakāna hādhā yaqūlu: mā dakhaltu fī ṣalātin qaṭṭu faʾahammanī fīhā ʾillā mā ʾaqūlu wamā yuqālu lī, waqad kāna ʿāmiru bnu ʿabdi Allāhi min khāshiʿī al-muṣallīna, kāna ʾidhā ṣallā ḍarabati ibnatuhu bi-al-duffi, wataḥaddatha al-nisāʾu bimā yuridna fī al-bayti, walam yakun yaʿqilu dhālika walā yasmaʿuhu waqīla lahu dhāta yawmin: hal tuḥaddithu nafsaka fī al-ṣalāti bishayʾin? qāla: naʿam biwuqūfī bayna yadayi Allāhi ʿazza wajalla wamunṣarafī ʾilā ʾiḥdā al-dārayni.

This man used to say, “Never have I entered prayer and been concerned with anything except what I say and what is said to me.” ʿĀmir ibn ʿAbd Allāh was among the humble worshippers. While he prayed, his daughter beat the tambourine and women in the house spoke as they pleased; he neither noticed nor heard. Asked one day, “Do you speak inwardly to yourself about anything in prayer?” he answered, “Yes: about standing before God, mighty and majestic, and departing to one of the two abodes.”

قِيلَ: فَهَلْ تَجِدُ شَيْئًا مِمَّا نَجِدُهُ مِنْ أُمُورِ الدُّنْيَا؟ فَقَالَ: لَأَنْ تَخْتَلِفَ الْأَسِنَّةُ فِيَّ أَحَبُّ إِلَيَّ مِنْ أَنْ أَجِدَ شَيْئًا فِي الصَّلَاةِ مِمَّا تَجِدُونَ، وَكَانَ يَقُولُ: لَوْ كُشِفَ الْغِطَاءُ مَا ازْدَدْتُ يَقِينًا، وَقَدْ كَانَ مُسْلِمُ بْنُ يَسَارٍ مِنَ الزَّاهِدِينَ الْعَامِلِينَ، كَانَ إِذَا دَخَلَ فِي الصَّلَاةِ يَقُولُ لِأَهْلِهِ: تَحَدَّثُوا بِمَا تُرِيدُونَ وَأَفْشُوا سِرَّكُمْ فَإِنِّي لَا أَسْتَمِعُ إِلَيْكُمْ، وَكَانَ يَقُولُ: وَمَا يُدْرِيكُمْ أَيْنَ قَلْبِي.

qīla: fahal tajidu shayʾan mimmā najiduhu min ʾumūri al-dunyā? faqāla: laʾan takhtalifa al-ʾasinnatu fiyya ʾaḥabbu ʾilayya min ʾan ʾajida shayʾan fī al-ṣalāti mimmā tajidūna, wakāna yaqūlu: law kushifa al-ghiṭāʾu mā izdadtu yaqīnan, waqad kāna muslimu bnu yasārin mina al-zāhidīna al-ʿāmilīna, kāna ʾidhā dakhala fī al-ṣalāti yaqūlu liʾahlihi: taḥaddathū bimā turīdūna waʾafshū sirrakum faʾinnī lā ʾastamiʿu ʾilaykum, wakāna yaqūlu: wamā yudrīkum ʾayna qalbī.

He was asked, “Do you experience any of the worldly concerns we experience?” He answered, “I would rather spears pierce me repeatedly than experience in prayer anything you experience.” He used to say, “Were the veil lifted, my certainty would not increase.” Muslim ibn Yasār was among the ascetics devoted to action. On entering prayer he told his family, “Speak as you please and disclose your secrets, for I am not listening to you.” He also said, “How do you know where my heart is?”

وَكَانَ يُصَلِّي ذَاتَ يَوْمٍ فِي مَسْجِدِ الْبَصْرَةِ، فَوَقَعَتْ خَلْفَهُ أُسْطُوَانَةٌ مَعْقُودٌ بِنَاؤُهَا عَلَى أَرْبَعِ طَاقَاتٍ، فَتَسَامَعَ بِهَا أَهْلُ السُّوقِ فَدَخَلُوا الْمَسْجِدَ وَهُوَ يُصَلِّي كَأَنَّهُ وَتِدٌ، وَمَا انْفَتَلَ مِنْ صَلَاتِهِ، فَلَمَّا فَرَغَ جَاءَهُ النَّاسُ يُهَنُّونَهُ فَقَالَ: أَيَّ شَيْءٍ تُهَنُّونِي؟ قَالُوا: وَقَعَتْ هَذِهِ الْأُسْطُوَانَةُ الْعَظِيمَةُ وَرَاءَكَ فَسَلِمْتَ مِنْهَا، قَالَ: مَتَى وَقَعَتْ؟ قِيلَ: وَأَنْتَ تُصَلِّي، قَالَ: مَا شَعَرْتُ بِهَا، وَقَالَ بَعْضُ الْمُصَلِّينَ: الصَّلَاةُ مِنَ الْآخِرَةِ، فَإِذَا دَخَلْتُ فِي الصَّلَاةِ خَرَجْتُ مِنَ الدُّنْيَا.

wakāna yuṣallī dhāta yawmin fī masjidi al-baṣrati, fawaqaʿat khalfahu ʾusṭuwānatun maʿqūdun bināʾuhā ʿalā ʾarbaʿi ṭāqātin, fatasāmaʿa bihā ʾahlu al-sūqi fadakhalū al-masjida wahuwa yuṣallī kaʾannahu watidun, wamā infatala min ṣalātihi, falammā faragha jāʾahu al-nāsu yuhannūnahu faqāla: ʾayya shayʾin tuhannūnī? qālū: waqaʿat hādhihi al-ʾusṭuwānatu al-ʿaẓīmatu warāʾaka fasalimta minhā, qāla: matā waqaʿat? qīla: waʾanta tuṣallī, qāla: mā shaʿartu bihā, waqāla baʿḍu al-muṣallīna: al-ṣalātu mina al-ʾākhirati, faʾidhā dakhaltu fī al-ṣalāti kharajtu mina al-dunyā.

One day he was praying in Basra's mosque when a column whose structure supported four arches fell behind him. The market people heard and entered the mosque, but he kept praying like a fixed stake and did not turn away. When he finished, people came to congratulate him. “What are you congratulating me for?” he asked. “This enormous column fell behind you, and you escaped harm.” “When did it fall?” “While you were praying.” “I did not notice it.” One worshipper said, “Prayer belongs to the hereafter; when I enter prayer, I leave this world.”

وَسُئِلَ بَعْضُهُمْ: هَلْ تَذْكُرُ فِي صَلَاتِكَ شَيْئًا؟ قَالَ: وَهَلْ شَيْءٌ أَحَبُّ إِلَيَّ مِنَ الصَّلَاةِ فَأَذْكُرَهُ فِيهَا؟ وَكَانَ أَبُو الدَّرْدَاءِ يَقُولُ: مِنْ فِقْهِ الرَّجُلِ أَنْ يَبْدَأَ بِحَاجَتِهِ قَبْلَ دُخُولِهِ فِي الصَّلَاةِ لِيَدْخُلَ فِي الصَّلَاةِ وَقَلْبُهُ فَارِغٌ. وَفِي الْخَبَرِ: أَنَّ عَمَّارَ بْنَ يَاسِرٍ صَلَّى صَلَاةً فَخَفَّفَهَا فَقِيلَ لَهُ: خَفَّفْتَ يَا أَبَا الْيَقْظَانِ، فَقَالَ: هَلْ رَأَيْتُمُونِي نَقَصْتُ مِنْ حُدُودِهَا شَيْئًا؟ قَالُوا: لَا قَالَ: لِأَنِّي بَادَرْتُ سَهْوَ الشَّيْطَانِ.

wasuʾila baʿḍuhum: hal tadhkuru fī ṣalātika shayʾan? qāla: wahal shayʾun ʾaḥabbu ʾilayya mina al-ṣalāti faʾadhkurahu fīhā? wakāna ʾabū al-dardāʾi yaqūlu: min fiqhi al-rajuli ʾan yabdaʾa biḥājatihi qabla dukhūlihi fī al-ṣalāti liyadkhula fī al-ṣalāti waqalbuhu fārighun. wafī al-khabari: ʾanna ʿammāra bna yāsirin ṣallā ṣalātan fakhaffafahā faqīla lahu: khaffafta yā ʾabā al-yaqẓāni, faqāla: hal raʾaytumūnī naqaṣtu min ḥudūdihā shayʾan? qālū: lā qāla: liʾannī bādartu sahwa al-shayṭāni.

One of them was asked, “Do you remember anything during your prayer?” He answered, “Is anything dearer to me than prayer, that I should remember it within prayer?” Abū al-Dardāʾ said, “A man's understanding shows in attending to his need before entering prayer, so that he enters it with an unoccupied heart.” A report relates that ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir prayed briefly. Told, “You made it brief, Abū al-Yaqẓān,” he asked, “Did you see me omit any prescribed requirement?” “No.” He said, “Because I hastened to forestall Satan's distraction.”

أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ: إِنَّ الْعَبْدَ لَيُصَلِّي الصَّلَاةَ لَا يُكْتَبُ لَهُ ثُلُثُهَا وَلَا نِصْفُهَا وَلَا رُبُعُهَا وَلَا خُمْسُهَا وَلَا سُدُسُهَا وَلَا عُشْرُهَا، وَكَانَ يَقُولُ: إِنَّمَا يُكْتَبُ لِلْعَبْدِ

ʾanna rasūla Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama qāla: ʾinna al-ʿabda layuṣallī al-ṣalāta lā yuktabu lahu thuluthuhā walā niṣfuhā walā rubuʿuhā walā khumsuhā walā sudusuhā walā ʿushruhā, wakāna yaqūlu: ʾinnamā yuktabu li-l-ʿabdi

For the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, said, “A servant may perform a prayer without having recorded for him a third, a half, a quarter, a fifth, a sixth, or a tenth of it.” He used to say, “Only what the servant

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٧٠

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 170

Volume Two, page 170

مِنْ صَلَاتِهِ مَا عَقَلَ مِنْهَا، وَقَدْ ذَكَرَ هَذَا عَبْدُ الْوَاحِدِ بْنُ زَيْدٍ أَنَّهُ إِجْمَاعٌ، فَرَوَيْنَا عَنْهُ أَنَّهُ قَالَ: أَجْمَعَتِ الْعُلَمَاءُ أَنَّهُ لَيْسَ لِلْعَبْدِ مِنْ صَلَاتِهِ إِلَّا مَا عَقَلَ، وَقَالَ الْحَسَنُ: كُلُّ صَلَاةٍ لَا يَحْضُرُهَا قَلْبُكَ فَهِيَ إِلَى الْعُقُوبَةِ أَسْرَعُ مِنْهَا إِلَى الثَّوَابِ، وَيُقَالُ: إِنَّ أَصْحَابَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، مِنْهُمُ الزُّبَيْرُ وَطَلْحَةُ، كَانُوا أَخَفَّ النَّاسِ صَلَاةً، فَسُئِلُوا عَنْ ذَلِكَ فَقَالُوا: نُبَادِرُ بِهَا وَسْوَسَةَ الْعَدُوِّ.

min ṣalātihi mā ʿaqala minhā, waqad dhakara hādhā ʿabdu al-wāḥidi bnu zaydin ʾannahu ʾijmāʿun, farawaynā ʿanhu ʾannahu qāla: ʾajmaʿati al-ʿulamāʾu ʾannahu laysa li-l-ʿabdi min ṣalātihi ʾillā mā ʿaqala, waqāla al-ḥasanu: kullu ṣalātin lā yaḥḍuruhā qalbuka fahiya ʾilā al-ʿuqūbati ʾasraʿu minhā ʾilā al-thawābi, wayuqālu: ʾinna ʾaṣḥāba rasūli Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama, minhumu al-zubayru waṭalḥatu, kānū ʾakhaffa al-nāsi ṣalātan, fasuʾilū ʿan dhālika faqālū: nubādiru bihā waswasata al-ʿaduwwi.

understands of his prayer is recorded for him.” ʿAbd al-Wāḥid ibn Zayd stated that this was a consensus. We have related that he said, “The scholars unanimously agree that the servant receives from his prayer only what he understands.” Al-Ḥasan said, “Every prayer in which your heart is absent leads more quickly to punishment than to reward.” It is said that the Companions of God's Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, including al-Zubayr and Ṭalḥa, prayed more briefly than anyone. Asked why, they answered, “We hasten through it to forestall the enemy's whispering.”

وَرَوَيْنَا أَنَّ عُمَرَ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى عَنْهُ قَالَ عَلَى الْمِنْبَرِ: إِنَّ الرَّجُلَ لَيَشِيبُ عَارِضَاهُ فِي الْإِسْلَامِ وَمَا أَكْمَلَ لِلَّهِ تَعَالَى صَلَاةً، قِيلَ: وَكَيْفَ ذَاكَ: لَا يُتِمُّ خُشُوعَهَا وَتَوَاضُعَهَا وَإِقْبَالَهُ عَلَى اللَّهِ تَعَالَى فِيهَا؟ وَقَالَ اللَّهُ جَلَّ ذِكْرُهُ: (وَمَنْ أَصْدَقُ مِنَ اللَّهِ حَدِيثًا) النِّسَاءُ: 87، (حَتَّى تَعْلَمُوا مَا تَقُولُونَ) النِّسَاءُ: 43 وَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: مَنْ تَشَعَّبَتْ بِهِ الْهُمُومُ لَمْ يُبَالِ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى فِي أَيِّ أَوْدِيَتِهَا هَلَكَ.

warawaynā ʾanna ʿumara raḍiya Allāhu taʿālā ʿanhu qāla ʿalā al-minbari: ʾinna al-rajula layashību ʿāriḍāhu fī al-ʾislāmi wamā ʾakmala li-llāhi taʿālā ṣalātan, qīla: wakayfa dhāka: lā yutimmu khushūʿahā watawāḍuʿahā waʾiqbālahu ʿalā Allāhi taʿālā fīhā? waqāla Allāhu jalla dhikruhu: (waman ʾaṣdaqu mina Allāhi ḥadīthan) al-nisāʾu: 87, (ḥattā taʿlamū mā taqūlūna) al-nisāʾu: 43 waqāla rasūlu Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: man tashaʿʿabat bihi al-humūmu lam yubāli Allāhu taʿālā fī ʾayyi ʾawdiyatihā halaka.

We have related that ʿUmar, may God Most High be pleased with him, said from the pulpit, “A man may grow gray at the sides of his beard in Islam without completing a prayer for God Most High.” Asked, “How so?” the explanation is: “He does not complete its humility, lowliness, and his turning toward God Most High within it.” God, glorious in remembrance, said, “Who is truer in speech than God?” (al-Nisāʾ 4:87), and “Until you know what you are saying” (4:43). The Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, said, “If concerns scatter someone, God Most High does not care in which of their valleys he perishes.”

وَسُئِلَ أَبُو الْعَالِيَةِ عَنْ قَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: (الَّذِينَ هُمْ عَنْ صَلَاتِهِمْ سَاهُونَ) الْمَاعُونُ: 5، قَالَ: هُوَ الَّذِي يَسْهُو فِي صَلَاتِهِ فَلَا يَدْرِي عَلَى كَمْ يَنْصَرِفُ، عَلَى شَفْعٍ أَمْ عَلَى وِتْرٍ؟ سُئِلَ الْحَسَنُ عَنْ ذَلِكَ فَقَالَ: هُوَ الَّذِي يَسْهُو عَنْ وَقْتِ الصَّلَاةِ حَتَّى يَخْرُجَ وَقْتُهَا، وَكَانَ يَقُولُ: أَمَا وَاللَّهِ لَوْ تَرَكُوهَا لَكَفَرُوا، وَلَكِنْ سَهَوْا عَنِ الْوَقْتِ، وَقَالَ بَعْضُ السَّلَفِ فِيهَا: هُوَ الَّذِي إِنْ صَلَّاهَا فِي أَوَّلِ الْوَقْتِ أَوْ فِي الْجَمَاعَةِ لَمْ يَفْرَحْ وَإِنْ صَلَّاهَا بَعْدَ الْوَقْتِ لَمْ يَحْزَنْ.

wasuʾila ʾabū al-ʿāliyati ʿan qawlihi taʿālā: (alladhīna hum ʿan ṣalātihim sāhūna) al-māʿūnu: 5, qāla: huwa alladhī yashū fī ṣalātihi falā yadrī ʿalā kam yanṣarifu, ʿalā shafʿin ʾam ʿalā witrin? suʾila al-ḥasanu ʿan dhālika faqāla: huwa alladhī yashū ʿan waqti al-ṣalāti ḥattā yakhruja waqtuhā, wakāna yaqūlu: ʾamā wa-Allāhi law tarakūhā lakafarū, walākin sahaw ʿani al-waqti, waqāla baʿḍu al-salafi fīhā: huwa alladhī ʾin ṣallāhā fī ʾawwali al-waqti ʾaw fī al-jamāʿati lam yafraḥ waʾin ṣallāhā baʿda al-waqti lam yaḥzan.

Abū al-ʿĀliya, asked about His exalted saying, “Those heedless of their prayer” (al-Māʿūn 107:5), answered, “Someone distracted during prayer who does not know how many cycles he finishes with, an even or an odd number.” Asked about it, al-Ḥasan said, “Someone heedless of prayer's time until it passes.” He said, “By God, had they abandoned it, they would have disbelieved; they were heedless of its time.” An early authority explained, “Someone who feels no joy if he prays at the earliest time or in congregation, and no sadness if he prays after the time.”

وَقِيلَ: هُوَ الَّذِي لَا يَرَى تَعْجِيلَهَا بِرًّا وَلَا تَأْخِيرَهَا إِثْمًا وَيُقَالُ: إِنَّ الصَّلَوَاتِ الْخَمْسَ يُلَفَّقُ بَعْضُهَا إِلَى بَعْضٍ حَتَّى يَتِمَّ بِهَا لِلْعَبْدِ صَلَاةٌ وَاحِدَةٌ، وَقِيلَ: مِنَ النَّاسِ مَنْ يُصَلِّي خَمْسِينَ صَلَاةً فَيُكْمَلُ لَهُ بِهَا خَمْسُ صَلَوَاتٍ وَإِنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى لَيَسْتَوْفِي مِنَ الْعَبْدِ مَا أَمَرَهُ بِهِ كَمَا فَرَضَهُ عَلَيْهِ وَإِلَّا تَمَّمَهُ مِنْ سَائِرِ أَعْمَالِهِ النَّوَافِلِ لِأَنَّهُ مَا فَرَضَ عَلَى الْعَبْدِ إِلَّا مَا يُطِيقُهُ بِعَوْنِهِ إِذْ لَمْ يُكَلِّفْهُ مَا لَا طَاقَةَ لَهُ بِهِ بِرَحْمَتِهِ.

waqīla: huwa alladhī lā yarā taʿjīlahā birran walā taʾkhīrahā ʾithman wayuqālu: ʾinna al-ṣalawāti al-khamsa yulaffaqu baʿḍuhā ʾilā baʿḍin ḥattā yatimma bihā li-l-ʿabdi ṣalātun wāḥidatun, waqīla: mina al-nāsi man yuṣallī khamsīna ṣalātan fayukmalu lahu bihā khamsu ṣalawātin waʾinna Allāha taʿālā layastawfī mina al-ʿabdi mā ʾamarahu bihi kamā faraḍahu ʿalayhi waʾillā tammamahu min sāʾiri ʾaʿmālihi al-nawāfili liʾannahu mā faraḍa ʿalā al-ʿabdi ʾillā mā yuṭīquhu biʿawnihi ʾidh lam yukallifhu mā lā ṭāqata lahu bihi biraḥmatihi.

It was also said, “Someone who regards neither performing it promptly as goodness nor delaying it as sin.” It is said that the five prayers are patched together until they make one complete prayer for the servant. Some people, it is said, perform fifty prayers from which five complete ones are made. God Most High exacts from the servant what He commanded as He prescribed it; otherwise He completes it from his other voluntary works. He prescribed only what the servant can bear with His help, for in His mercy He did not burden him beyond his ability.

وَرَوَيْنَا عَنْ عِيسَى عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ: يَقُولُ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى: بِالْفَرَائِضِ نَجَا مِنِّي عَبْدِي وَبِالنَّوَافِلِ تَقَرَّبَ إِلَيَّ عَبْدِي وَقَدْ جَاءَ مِثْلُهُ عَنْ نَبِيِّنَا صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: يَقُولُ اللَّهُ: لَا يَنْجُو مِنِّي عَبْدٌ إِلَّا بِأَدَاءِ مَا افْتَرَضْتُهُ عَلَيْهِ، وَفِي الْخَبَرِ الْمُفَسَّرِ: أَوَّلُ مَا يُحَاسَبُ بِهِ الْعَبْدُ الصَّلَاةُ، فَإِنْ وُجِدَتْ كَامِلَةً وَإِلَّا يَقُولُ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى: اُنْظُرُوا هَلْ لِعَبْدِي نَوَافِلُ؟ فَنُتِمَّ فَرَائِضَهُ مِنْ نَوَافِلِهِ؟ ثُمَّ يُعْمَلُ بِسَائِرِ الْفَرَائِضِ، كَذَلِكَ يُوَفَّى كُلُّ فَرْضٍ مِنْ جِنْسِهِ مِنَ النَّفْلِ.

warawaynā ʿan ʿīsā ʿalayhi al-salāmu: yaqūlu Allāhu taʿālā: bi-al-farāʾiḍi najā minnī ʿabdī wabi-al-nawāfili taqarraba ʾilayya ʿabdī waqad jāʾa mithluhu ʿan nabiyyinā ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: yaqūlu Allāhu: lā yanjū minnī ʿabdun ʾillā biʾadāʾi mā iftaraḍtuhu ʿalayhi, wafī al-khabari al-mufassari: ʾawwalu mā yuḥāsabu bihi al-ʿabdu al-ṣalātu, faʾin wujidat kāmilatan waʾillā yaqūlu Allāhu taʿālā: unẓurū hal liʿabdī nawāfilu? fanutimma farāʾiḍahu min nawāfilihi? thumma yuʿmalu bisāʾiri al-farāʾiḍi, kadhālika yuwaffā kullu farḍin min jinsihi mina al-nafli.

We have related from Jesus, peace be upon him: “God Most High says, ‘Through obligations My servant escapes My punishment; through voluntary works he draws near Me.’” Something similar comes from our Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace: “God says, ‘No servant escapes Me except by performing what I have prescribed.’” The explanatory report states, “The first thing for which a servant is called to account is prayer. If it is complete, well; otherwise God Most High says, ‘See whether My servant has voluntary prayers, so We may complete his obligations from them.’” The same applies to the other obligations: each is completed from voluntary works of its own kind.

فَإِذَا كَانَتِ النَّوَافِلُ فِي السَّهْوِ وَالتَّقْصِيرِ كَالْفَرَائِضِ أَوْ لَمْ يُوجَدْ نَوَافِلُ فَكَيْفَ يَكُونُ حَالُهُ فِي الْحِسَابِ؟ وَكَانَ ابْنُ عَبَّاسٍ يُفَسِّرُ قَوْلَهُ تَعَالَى كَلَّا لَمَّا يَقْضِ مَا أَمَرَهُ قَالَ: يَعْنِي بِهِ الْكَافِرَ، لِأَنَّ عِنْدَهُ أَنَّ كُلَّ مَوْضِعٍ فِي الْقُرْآنِ يُذْكَرُ بِهِ الْإِنْسَانُ خَاصَّةً أَنَّهُ يَعْنِي بِهِ الْكَافِرَ، وَقَدْ قَالَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى: (لَا يُكَلِّفُ اللَّهُ نَفْسًا إِلَّا وُسْعَهَا) الْبَقَرَةُ: 286 يَعْنِي طَاقَتَهَا، وَقَالَ سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى مُخْبِرًا عَنِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ: (وَلَا تُحَمِّلْنَا مَا لَا طَاقَةَ لَنَا بِهِ) الْبَقَرَةُ: 286، فِي التَّفْسِيرِ قَدْ فَعَلْتُ.

faʾidhā kānati al-nawāfilu fī al-sahwi wa-al-taqṣīri ka-al-farāʾiḍi ʾaw lam yūjad nawāfilu fakayfa yakūnu ḥāluhu fī al-ḥisābi? wakāna ibnu ʿabbāsin yufassiru qawlahu taʿālā kallā lammā yaqḍi mā ʾamarahu qāla: yaʿnī bihi al-kāfira, liʾanna ʿindahu ʾanna kulla mawḍiʿin fī al-qurʾāni yudhkaru bihi al-ʾinsānu khāṣṣatan ʾannahu yaʿnī bihi al-kāfira, waqad qāla Allāhu taʿālā: (lā yukallifu Allāhu nafsan ʾillā wusʿahā) al-baqaratu: 286 yaʿnī ṭāqatahā, waqāla subḥānahu wataʿālā mukhbiran ʿani al-muʾminīna: (walā tuḥammilnā mā lā ṭāqata lanā bihi) al-baqaratu: 286, fī al-tafsīri qad faʿaltu.

If voluntary works are as distracted and deficient as obligatory ones, or none are found, what will his condition at the reckoning be? Ibn ʿAbbās explained His exalted saying, “No! He has not fulfilled what He commanded him” as referring to the unbeliever. In his view, every Qurʾānic passage specifically mentioning “the human being” means the unbeliever. God Most High said, “God burdens no soul beyond its capacity” (al-Baqara 2:286), meaning its ability. Reporting the believers' words, He, glorified and exalted, said, “Do not burden us with what we cannot bear” (2:286). The commentary gives the response: “I have done so.”

وَفِي هَذِهِ الْمَسْأَلَةِ اخْتِلَافٌ وَشُبْهَةٌ، وَالصَّوَابُ مِنْ ذَلِكَ أَنَّ اللَّهَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ لَا يُكَلِّفُ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ خَاصَّةً مَا لَا طَاقَةَ لَهُمْ بِهِ، فَهُمْ مَخْصُوصُونَ بِذَلِكَ فَضْلًا مِنَ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى وَنِعْمَةً آثَرَهُمْ بِهَا

wafī hādhihi al-masʾalati ikhtilāfun washubhatun, wa-al-ṣawābu min dhālika ʾanna Allāha ʿazza wajalla lā yukallifu al-muʾminīna khāṣṣatan mā lā ṭāqata lahum bihi, fahum makhṣūṣūna bi-dhālika faḍlan mina Allāhi taʿālā waniʿmatan ʾātharahum bihā

This question involves disagreement and ambiguity. The correct position is that God, mighty and majestic, does not burden believers in particular with what they cannot bear. They are singled out for this through favor from God Most High and a blessing by which He has preferred them

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٧١

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 171

Volume Two, page 171

عَلَى الْكَافِرِينَ، إِذْ لَهُ أَنْ يُؤْثِرَ بَعْضَ عِبَادِهِ عَلَى بَعْضٍ لِأَنَّ الْفَضْلَ بِيَدِهِ يُؤْتِيهِ مَنْ يَشَاءُ، وَهَذَا مَفْهُومٌ مِنْ دَلِيلِ الْخِطَابِ مِنْ قَوْلِهِ: لَا تُحَمِّلْنَا مَا لَا طَاقَةَ لَنَا بِهِ أَنَّ لَهُ تَعَالَى أَنْ يُحَمِّلَ الْكَافِرَ مَا لَا طَاقَةَ لَهُ بِهِ عَدْلًا مِنْهُ وَحِكْمَةً، كَمَا قَالَ تَعَالَى: (وَتَمَّتْ كَلِمَتُ رَبِّكَ صِدْقًا وَعَدْلًا لَا مُبَدِّلَ لِكَلِمَاتِهِ) الْأَنْعَامُ: 115، قِيلَ: صِدْقًا لِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَعَدْلًا عَلَى الْكَافِرِينَ.

ʿalā al-kāfirīna, ʾidh lahu ʾan yuʾthira baʿḍa ʿibādihi ʿalā baʿḍin liʾanna al-faḍla biyadihi yuʾtīhi man yashāʾu, wa-hādhā mafhūmun min dalīli al-khiṭābi min qawlihi: lā tuḥammilnā mā lā ṭāqata lanā bihi ʾanna lahu taʿālā ʾan yuḥammila al-kāfira mā lā ṭāqata lahu bihi ʿadlan minhu waḥikmatan, kamā qāla taʿālā: (watammat kalimatu rabbika ṣidqan waʿadlan lā mubaddila likalimātihi) al-ʾanʿāmu: 115, qīla: ṣidqan li-l-muʾminīna waʿadlan ʿalā al-kāfirīna.

over unbelievers. He may prefer some servants over others, since favor lies in His hand and He grants it to whom He wills. The implication of “Do not burden us with what we cannot bear” is that He Most High may, in justice and wisdom, burden an unbeliever beyond his ability. As the Exalted said, “Your Lord's word is fulfilled in truth and justice; none can alter His words” (al-Anʿām 6:115). This was explained as truth toward believers and justice upon unbelievers.

قَالَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى مُخْبِرًا عَنْ إِخْوَةِ يُوسُفَ: (تَاللَّهِ لَقَدْ آثَرَكَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْنَا) يُوسُفُ: 91 فَهَذَا نَصٌّ فِي الْإِيثَارِ لِبَعْضِ خَلْقِهِ عَلَى بَعْضٍ، ثُمَّ رَأَيْتُ تَصْدِيقَ مَا ذَكَرْتُهُ عَنْ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ رَوَاهَا إِسْمَاعِيلُ عَنْ جُوَيْبِرٍ عَنِ الضَّحَّاكِ عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ

qāla Allāhu taʿālā mukhbiran ʿan ʾikhwati yūsufa: (ta-llāhi laqad ʾātharaka Allāhu ʿalaynā) yūsufu: 91 fa-hādhā naṣṣun fī al-ʾīthāri libaʿḍi khalqihi ʿalā baʿḍin, thumma raʾaytu taṣdīqa mā dhakartuhu ʿan ibni ʿabbāsin rawāhā ʾismāʿīlu ʿan juwaybirin ʿani al-ḍaḥḥāki ʿani ibni ʿabbāsin

God Most High reports Joseph's brothers saying, “By God, God has preferred you over us” (Yūsuf 12:91): an explicit statement that He prefers some creatures over others. I later found confirmation of what I cited from Ibn ʿAbbās, transmitted by Ismāʿīl from Juwaybir, from al-Ḍaḥḥāk, from Ibn ʿAbbās.

فِي قَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: (وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّٰلِحَاتِ لَا نُكَلِّفُ نَفْسًا إِلَّا وُسْعَهَا) الْأَعْرَافُ: 42، يَعْنِي إِلَّا طَاقَتَهَا مِنَ الْعَمَلِ لِأَنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى افْتَرَضَ عَلَى الْمُؤْمِنِينَ أَعْمَالًا يُطِيقُونَهَا، وَلَمْ يَفْتَرِضْ عَلَيْهِمْ مَا لَا يُطِيقُونَ، هَذَا نَقْلُ لَفْظِ ابْنِ مَسْعُودٍ فِي تَخْصِيصِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ، كَمَا ذَكَرْنَاهُ آنِفًا.

fī qawlihi taʿālā: (wa-alladhīna ʾāmanū waʿamilū al-ṣāliḥāti lā nukallifu nafsan ʾillā wusʿahā) al-ʾaʿrāfu: 42, yaʿnī ʾillā ṭāqatahā mina al-ʿamali liʾanna Allāha taʿālā iftaraḍa ʿalā al-muʾminīna ʾaʿmālan yuṭīqūnahā, walam yaftariḍ ʿalayhim mā lā yuṭīqūna, hādhā naqlu lafẓi ibni masʿūdin fī takhṣīṣi al-muʾminīna, kamā dhakarnāhu ʾānifan.

Concerning His exalted saying, “Those who believe and do righteous deeds, We burden no soul beyond its capacity” (al-Aʿrāf 7:42), the meaning is its ability to act. God Most High prescribed works believers could perform, not what they could not. These are Ibn Masʿūd's words specifically concerning believers, as we mentioned earlier.

وَيَقُولُ أَيْضًا فِي تَفْصِيلِ هَذِهِ الْمَسْأَلَةِ: لِلزَّائِغِينَ فِيهَا تَعَلُّقٌ ابْتِغَاءَ التَّآوِيلِ أَنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى كَلَّفَ الْعِبَادَ مَا لَا يُطِيقُونَهُ إِلَّا بِهِ لِافْتِقَارِهِمْ إِلَيْهِ وَعَدَمِ اسْتِغْنَائِهِمْ عَنْهُ فِي كُلِّ حَرَكَةٍ وَسُكُونٍ، إِذْ لَا مَشِيئَةَ لَهُمْ دُونَ مَشِيئَتِهِ وَلَا اسْتِطَاعَةَ إِلَّا بِتَوْفِيقِهِ وَلَا حَوْلَ وَلَا قُوَّةَ إِلَّا بِهِ، أَلَمْ تَسْمَعْ إِلَى قَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى فِي وَصْفِ الْكَافِرِينَ: (مَا كَانُوا يَسْتَطِيعُونَ السَّمْعَ وَمَا كَانُوا يُبْصِرُونَ) هُودٌ: 2، وَقَالَ تَعَالَى فِي مِثْلِهِ: (وَكَانُوا لَا يَسْتَطِيعُونَ سَمْعًا) الْكَهْفُ: 1، 1.

wayaqūlu ʾayḍan fī tafṣīli hādhihi al-masʾalati: li-l-zāʾighīna fīhā taʿalluqun ibtighāʾa al-taʾāwīli ʾanna Allāha taʿālā kallafa al-ʿibāda mā lā yuṭīqūnahu ʾillā bihi li-ftiqārihim ʾilayhi waʿadami istighnāʾihim ʿanhu fī kulli ḥarakatin wasukūnin, ʾidh lā mashīʾata lahum dūna mashīʾatihi walā istiṭāʿata ʾillā bitawfīqihi walā ḥawla walā quwwata ʾillā bihi, ʾalam tasmaʿ ʾilā qawlihi taʿālā fī waṣfi al-kāfirīna: (mā kānū yastaṭīʿūna al-samʿa wamā kānū yubṣirūna) hūdun: 2, waqāla taʿālā fī mithlihi: (wakānū lā yastaṭīʿūna samʿan) al-kahfu: 1, 1.

He also explains this question, which those who deviate seize upon in pursuit of interpretations: God Most High charges servants with what they cannot perform except through Him, because they need Him and cannot dispense with Him in any movement or stillness. They have no will apart from His, no ability except through His enabling, no power or strength except through Him. Have you not heard His exalted description of unbelievers: “They could not hear, nor could they see” (Hūd, 2), and similarly the Exalted said, “They were unable to hear” (al-Kahf, 1, 1)?

وَقَالَ فِيمَنِ اسْتَطَاعَ بِهِ إِنْ أُرِيدُ إِلَّا الْإِصْلَاحَ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُ وَمَا تَوْفِيقِي إِلَّا بِاللَّهِ عَلَيْهِ تَوَكَّلْتُ. وَرَوَيْنَا عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: مَنْ صَلَّى كَمَا أُمِرَ غُفِرَ لَهُ مَا تَقَدَّمَ مِنْ ذَنْبِهِ، وَقَدْ يُرْوَى فِي خَبَرٍ: يَقُولُ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى: لَيْسَ كُلُّ مُصَلٍّ أَتَقَبَّلُ صَلَاتَهُ إِنَّمَا أَتَقَبَّلُ صَلَاةَ مَنْ تَوَاضَعَ لِعَظَمَتِي وَخَشَعَ قَلْبُهُ لِجَلَالِي، وَكَفَّ شَهَوَاتِهِ عَنْ مَحَارِمِي، وَقَطَعَ لَيْلَهُ وَنَهَارَهُ بِذِكْرِي، وَلَمْ يُصِرَّ عَلَى مَعْصِيَتِي، وَلَمْ يَتَكَبَّرْ عَلَى خَلْقِي، وَرَحِمَ الضَّعِيفَ، وَوَاسَى الْفَقِيرَ مِنْ أَجْلِي.

waqāla fīmani istaṭāʿa bihi ʾin ʾurīdu ʾillā al-ʾiṣlāḥa mā istaṭaʿtu wamā tawfīqī ʾillā bi-Allāhi ʿalayhi tawakkaltu. warawaynā ʿani al-nabiyyi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: man ṣallā kamā ʾumira ghufira lahu mā taqaddama min dhanbihi, waqad yurwā fī khabarin: yaqūlu Allāhu taʿālā: laysa kullu muṣallin ʾataqabbalu ṣalātahu ʾinnamā ʾataqabbalu ṣalāta man tawāḍaʿa liʿaẓamatī wakhashaʿa qalbuhu lijalālī, wakaffa shahawātihi ʿan maḥārimī, waqaṭaʿa laylahu wanahārahu bidhikrī, walam yuṣirra ʿalā maʿṣiyatī, walam yatakabbar ʿalā khalqī, waraḥima al-ḍaʿīfa, wawāsā al-faqīra min ʾajlī.

Of one empowered through Him, He says, “I desire only to put things right as far as I can. My success is only through God; in Him I trust.” We have related from the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace: “Whoever prays as commanded has his previous sins forgiven.” A report relates that God Most High says, “I do not accept every worshipper's prayer. I accept the prayer of one who humbles himself before My greatness, whose heart submits to My majesty, who restrains his desires from My prohibitions, spends night and day remembering Me, does not persist in disobeying Me or act arrogantly toward My creatures, shows mercy to the weak, and assists the poor for My sake.”

عَلَى أَنْ أَجْعَلَ الْجَهَالَةَ لَهُ حِلْمًا، وَالظُّلَمَ لَهُ نُورًا يَدْعُونِي فَأُلَبِّيهِ، وَيَسْأَلُنِي فَأُعْطِيَهُ، وَيُقْسِمُ عَلَيَّ فَأَبَرَّهُ، أَكْلَؤُهُ بِقُوَّتِي وَأُبَاهِي بِهِ مَلَائِكَتِي، لَوْ قُسِمَ نُورُهُ عِنْدِي عَلَى أَهْلِ الْأَرْضِ لَوَسِعَهُمْ، مَثَلُهُ كَمَثَلِ الْفِرْدَوْسِ لَا يَتَسَنَّى ثَمَرُهَا وَلَمْ يَتَغَيَّرْ حَالُهَا، وَفِي الْخَبَرِ: كَمْ مِنْ قَائِمٍ حَظُّهُ مِنْ قِيَامِهِ السَّهَرُ وَالتَّعَبُ، وَمَنْ صَلَّى صَلَاةً وَرَاءَ إِمَامٍ فَلَمْ يَدْرِ مَاذَا قَرَأَ فَهُوَ نِهَايَةُ السَّهْوِ، فَإِنَّهُ تَارِكُ الْأَمْرِ لِلِاسْتِمَاعِ فَيُخَافُ عَلَيْهِ مُجَانَبَةُ الرَّحْمَةِ.

ʿalā ʾan ʾajʿala al-jahālata lahu ḥilman, wa-al-ẓulama lahu nūran yadʿūnī faʾulabbīhi, wayasʾalunī faʾuʿṭiyahu, wayuqsimu ʿalayya faʾabarrahu, ʾaklaʾuhu biquwwatī waʾubāhī bihi malāʾikatī, law qusima nūruhu ʿindī ʿalā ʾahli al-ʾarḍi lawasiʿahum, mathaluhu kamathali al-firdawsi lā yatasannā thamaruhā walam yataghayyar ḥāluhā, wafī al-khabari: kam min qāʾimin ḥaẓẓuhu min qiyāmihi al-saharu wa-al-taʿabu, waman ṣallā ṣalātan warāʾa ʾimāmin falam yadri mādhā qaraʾa fahuwa nihāyatu al-sahwi, faʾinnahu tāriku al-ʾamri li-l-istimāʿi fayukhāfu ʿalayhi mujānabatu al-raḥmati.

“I undertake to turn ignorance into forbearance for him, and darkness into light. He calls Me and I answer; asks Me and I give; adjures Me and I fulfill his oath. I guard him with My strength and boast of him to My angels. Were his light with Me divided among earth's inhabitants, it would encompass them. He resembles Paradise, whose fruit does not decay and whose condition does not change.” A report says, “How many stand in prayer and gain only sleeplessness and exhaustion!” Praying behind an imam without knowing what he recited is the height of distraction: one neglects the command to listen, and exclusion from mercy is feared for him.

لِأَنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى ضَمِنَ الرَّحْمَةَ بِشَرْطَيْنِ: الِاسْتِمَاعِ وَالْإِنْصَاتِ، وَقَالَ سُبْحَانَهُ فِي الْمَعْنَيَيْنِ: (وَإِذَا قُرِئَ الْقُرْآنُ فَاسْتَمِعُوا لَهُ وَأَنْصِتُوا لَعَلَّكُمْ تُرْحَمُونَ) الْأَعْرَافُ: 204 وَقَالَ تَعَالَى: (فَلَمَّا حَضَرُوهُ قَالُوا أَنْصِتُوا) الْأَحْقَافُ: 29، وَرَوَيْنَا فِي خَبَرٍ: أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ صَلَّى صَلَاةً فَتَرَكَ فِي قِرَاءَتِهِ، فَلَمَّا انْفَتَلَ قَالَ: مَاذَا قَرَأْتُ؟

liʾanna Allāha taʿālā ḍamina al-raḥmata bisharṭayni: al-istimāʿi wa-al-ʾinṣāti, waqāla subḥānahu fī al-maʿnayayni: (waʾidhā quriʾa al-qurʾānu fa-stamiʿū lahu waʾanṣitū laʿallakum turḥamūna) al-ʾaʿrāfu: 204 waqāla taʿālā: (falammā ḥaḍarūhu qālū ʾanṣitū) al-ʾaḥqāfu: 29, warawaynā fī khabarin: ʾanna al-nabiyya ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama ṣallā ṣalātan fataraka fī qirāʾatihi, falammā infatala qāla: mādhā qaraʾtu?

For God Most High has promised mercy on two conditions: attentive listening and silence. Concerning both He, glorified is He, said, “When the Qurʾān is recited, listen and remain silent, that you may receive mercy” (al-Aʿrāf 7:204). The Exalted said, “When they attended it, they said, ‘Be silent’” (al-Aḥqāf 46:29). We have related a report that the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, performed a prayer and omitted something in his recitation. When he finished, he asked, “What did I recite?”

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٧٢

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 172

Volume Two, page 172

فَسَكَتَ الْقَوْمُ، فَسَأَلَ أُبَيَّ بْنَ كَعْبٍ فَقَالَ: قَرَأْتَ سُورَةَ كَذَا وَتَرَكْتَ آيَةَ كَذَا فَمَا أَدْرِي أَنُسِخَتْ أَمْ رُفِعَتْ، فَقَالَ: أَنْتَ لَهَا يَا أُبَيُّ، ثُمَّ أَقْبَلَ عَلَى الْآخَرِينَ فَقَالَ: مَا بَالُ أَقْوَامٍ يَحْضُرُونَ صَلَاتَهُمْ وَيُتِمُّونَ صُفُوفَهُمْ وَنَبِيُّهُمْ بَيْنَ أَيْدِيهِمْ، لَا يَدْرُونَ مَا يَتْلُو عَلَيْهِمْ مِنْ كِتَابِ رَبِّهِمْ أَلَا إِنَّ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ كَذَلِكُمْ فَعَلُوا، فَأَوْحَى اللَّهُ إِلَى نَبِيِّهِمْ أَنْ قُلْ لِقَوْمِكَ تُحْضِرُونِي أَبْدَانَكُمْ وَتُعْطُونِي أَلْسِنَتَكُمْ وَتُغَيِّبُونَ عَنِّي قُلُوبَكُمْ بَاطِلًا مَا تَذْهَبُونَ.

fasakata al-qawmu, fasaʾala ʾubayya bna kaʿbin faqāla: qaraʾta sūrata kadhā watarakta ʾāyata kadhā famā ʾadrī ʾanusikhat ʾam rufiʿat, faqāla: ʾanta lahā yā ʾubayyu, thumma ʾaqbala ʿalā al-ʾākharīna faqāla: mā bālu ʾaqwāmin yaḥḍurūna ṣalātahum wayutimmūna ṣufūfahum wanabiyyuhum bayna ʾaydīhim, lā yadrūna mā yatlū ʿalayhim min kitābi rabbihim ʾalā ʾinna banī ʾisrāʾīla kadhalikum faʿalū, faʾawḥā Allāhu ʾilā nabiyyihim ʾan qul liqawmika tuḥḍirūnī ʾabdānakum watuʿṭūnī ʾalsinatakum watughayyibūna ʿannī qulūbakum bāṭilan mā tadhhabūna.

The people were silent. He asked Ubayy ibn Kaʿb, who said, “You recited such-and-such chapter and omitted such-and-such verse; I do not know whether it was abrogated or withdrawn.” He said, “You are equal to this, Ubayy.” Then he turned to the others: “What is wrong with people who attend prayer and fill their ranks with their prophet before them, yet do not know what he recites from their Lord's Book? Indeed, the Israelites did likewise. God revealed to their prophet: ‘Tell your people: You bring Me your bodies and give Me your tongues, but withhold your hearts. Your course is vain.’”

وَقَالَ بَعْضُ عُلَمَائِنَا: إِنَّ الْعَبْدَ يَسْجُدُ السَّجْدَةَ عِنْدَهُ أَنَّهُ يَتَقَرَّبُ بِهَا إِلَى اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ، وَلَوْ قُسِمَتْ ذُنُوبُهُ فِي سَجْدَتِهِ عَلَى أَهْلِ مَدِينَتِهِ لَهَلَكُوا، قِيلَ: وَكَيْفَ يَكُونُ ذَلِكَ يَا أَبَا مُحَمَّدٍ؟ قَالَ: يَكُونُ سَاجِدًا عِنْدَ اللَّهِ وَقَلْبُهُ مُصْغٍ إِلَى هَوًى، وَمُشَاهِدٌ لِبَاطِلٍ قَدِ اسْتَوْلَى عَلَيْهِ، وَهَذَا كَمَا قَالَ لِأَنَّ فِيهِ انْتِهَاكَ حُرْمَةِ الْقُرْبِ وَسُقُوطَ هَيْبَةِ الرَّبِّ تَعَالَى.

waqāla baʿḍu ʿulamāʾinā: ʾinna al-ʿabda yasjudu al-sajdata ʿindahu ʾannahu yataqarrabu bihā ʾilā Allāhi ʿazza wajalla, walaw qusimat dhunūbuhu fī sajdatihi ʿalā ʾahli madīnatihi lahalakū, qīla: wakayfa yakūnu dhālika yā ʾabā muḥammadin? qāla: yakūnu sājidan ʿinda Allāhi waqalbuhu muṣghin ʾilā hawan, wamushāhidun libāṭilin qadi istawlā ʿalayhi, wa-hādhā kamā qāla liʾanna fīhi intihāka ḥurmati al-qurbi wasuqūṭa haybati al-rabbi taʿālā.

One of our scholars said, “A servant performs a prostration, thinking he draws near God, mighty and majestic, through it; yet were the sins of that prostration divided among his city's inhabitants, they would perish.” He was asked, “How can that be, Abū Muḥammad?” He answered, “He prostrates before God while his heart listens to desire and contemplates a falsehood that has mastered him.” It is as he said: this violates the sanctity of nearness and casts aside awe of the Lord Most High.

وَاعْلَمْ أَنَّ طُولَ الصَّلَاةِ عَلَيْكَ غَفْلَةٌ وَقِصَرَهَا سَهْوٌ لِأَنَّهَا إِذَا طَالَتْ عَلَيْكَ دَلَّ عَلَى عَدَمِ الْحَلَاوَةِ وَوُجُودِ الثِّقَلِ بِهَا وَكِبَرِهَا عَلَى جَوَارِحِكَ، وَإِذَا قَصُرَتْ عَلَيْكَ وَخَفَّتْ دَلَّ عَلَى نُقْصَانِ حُدُودِهَا وَدُخُولِ الْغَفْلَةِ وَالسَّهْوِ فِيهَا، فَالنِّسْيَانُ قَصَّرَهَا، وَالِاسْتِقَامَةُ فِي الصَّلَاةِ أَنْ لَا تَطُولَ عَلَيْكَ لِوُجُودِ الْحَلَاوَةِ، وَلَذَّةِ الْمُنَاجَاةِ، وَحُسْنِ الْفَهْمِ، وَاجْتِمَاعِ الْهَمِّ، وَلَا تَقْصُرَ عَلَيْكَ لِتَيَقُّظِكَ فِيهَا، وَرِعَايَتِكَ حُدُودَهَا، وَحُسْنِ قِيَامِكَ بِهَا؛ وَهَذِهِ مُرَاقَبَةُ الْمُصَلِّينَ وَمُشَاهَدَةُ الْخَاشِعِينَ.

wa-ʿlam ʾanna ṭūla al-ṣalāti ʿalayka ghaflatun waqiṣarahā sahwun liʾannahā ʾidhā ṭālat ʿalayka dalla ʿalā ʿadami al-ḥalāwati wawujūdi al-thiqali bihā wakibarihā ʿalā jawāriḥika, waʾidhā qaṣurat ʿalayka wakhaffat dalla ʿalā nuqṣāni ḥudūdihā wadukhūli al-ghaflati wa-al-sahwi fīhā, fa-al-nisyānu qaṣṣarahā, wa-al-istiqāmatu fī al-ṣalāti ʾan lā taṭūla ʿalayka liwujūdi al-ḥalāwati, waladhdhati al-munājāti, waḥusni al-fahmi, wa-jtimāʿi al-hammi, walā taqṣura ʿalayka litayaqquẓika fīhā, wariʿāyatika ḥudūdahā, waḥusni qiyāmika bihā; wa-hādhihi murāqabatu al-muṣallīna wamushāhadatu al-khāshiʿīna.

Know that finding prayer long indicates heedlessness, and finding it short indicates distraction. When it seems long, sweetness is absent and it weighs heavily upon your limbs. When it seems short and light, its requirements are deficient and heedlessness and distraction have entered it: forgetfulness has shortened it. Uprightness in prayer means that it feels neither long, because of sweetness, delight in intimate communion, sound understanding, and gathered aspiration, nor short, because you remain alert, observe its limits, and perform it well. This is the vigilance of those who pray and the contemplation of the humble.

ذِكْرُ أَحْكَامِ الْخَوَاطِرِ فِي الصَّلَاةِ

dhikru ʾaḥkāmi al-khawāṭiri fī al-ṣalāti

An account of the principles governing passing thoughts during prayer

وَمَا ذُكِّرَ بِهِ الْعَبْدُ فِي الصَّلَاةِ مِنَ الْخَيْرِ فَلْيُسَارِعْ إِلَى فِعْلِهِ فَذَلِكَ مِنْ أَحَبِّ الْأَشْيَاءِ إِلَى اللَّهِ تَعَالَى لِأَنَّهُ أَذْكَرَهُ إِيَّاهَا فِي أَحَبِّ الْمَوَاطِنِ إِلَيْهِ، وَمَا ذُكِّرَ بِهِ مِنَ الْمَكْرُوهِ وَالْمَمْقُوتِ إِلَيْهِ مِنَ الْمُعْتَادِ وَالْمُسْتَأْنَفِ فَلْيَجْتَنِبْهُ؛ فَإِنَّهُ هُوَ الَّذِي يُبْعِدُهُ مِنْ قُرْبِ اللَّهِ سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى، وَتَذْكِيرُهُ إِيَّاهُ فِي مَحَلِّ الْقُرْبِ، تَوْبِيخًا لَهُ وَتَقْرِيرًا، وَقَدْ يَكُونُ عَتَبًا وَتَنْبِيهًا، فَتَرْكُ ذَلِكَ مِمَّا يُقَرِّبُ إِلَى اللَّهِ تَعَالَى، وَيَدُلُّ عَلَى حُسْنِ الِاسْتِجَابَةِ لَهُ؛ وَهُوَ مَسْلَكُ طَرِيقِهِ إِلَى اللَّهِ تَعَالَى.

wamā dhukkira bihi al-ʿabdu fī al-ṣalāti mina al-khayri falyusāriʿ ʾilā fiʿlihi fa-dhālika min ʾaḥabbi al-ʾashyāʾi ʾilā Allāhi taʿālā liʾannahu ʾadhkarahu ʾiyyāhā fī ʾaḥabbi al-mawāṭini ʾilayhi, wamā dhukkira bihi mina al-makrūhi wa-al-mamqūti ʾilayhi mina al-muʿtādi wa-al-mustaʾnafi falyajtanibhu; faʾinnahu huwa alladhī yubʿiduhu min qurbi Allāhi subḥānahu wataʿālā, watadhkīruhu ʾiyyāhu fī maḥalli al-qurbi, tawbīkhan lahu wataqrīran, waqad yakūnu ʿataban watanbīhan, fatarku dhālika mimmā yuqarribu ʾilā Allāhi taʿālā, wayadullu ʿalā ḥusni al-istijābati lahu; wahuwa maslaku ṭarīqihi ʾilā Allāhi taʿālā.

Whatever good the servant is reminded of during prayer, he should hasten to perform: it is among the things dearest to God Most High, since He recalled it to him in the place dearest to Him. Whatever disliked or detested practice comes to mind, habitual or new, he should avoid, for it distances him from nearness to God, glorified and exalted. Recalling it in the place of nearness reproaches him and confronts him with it; it may be rebuke and warning. Abandoning it draws him near God Most High and shows a fitting response to Him. This is the course of his path to God Most High.

وَمَا خَطَرَ بِهِ مِنْ خَاطِرِ تَمَنٍّ أَوْ هَوًى أَوْ ذِكْرٍ بِهِمَّةِ مَا يَأْتِي أَوْ مَا قَدْ مَضَى، فَإِنَّ ذَلِكَ وَسْوَسَةٌ إِلَيْهِ مِنْ عَدُوِّهِ حَسَدًا لَهُ لِيَقْطَعَهُ بِذَلِكَ عَنْ وُقُوفِ قَلْبِهِ عِنْدَ كُلِّ رُكْنٍ مِنْ أَرْكَانِ الصَّلَاةِ وَيَشْغَلَ قَلْبَهُ عَنِ الْوُقُوفِ فِي الْمُنَاجَاةِ، بِمَا يَضُرُّهُ عَمَّا يَنْفَعُهُ لِيَحْرِمَهُ بِذَلِكَ أَنْ يَشْهَدَ عِنْدَ كُلِّ ذِكْرٍ مِنْ أَذْكَارِ الصَّلَاةِ مَا يُوجِبُهُ الذِّكْرُ مِنْ تَدْبِيرٍ أَوْ تَعْظِيمٍ أَوْ حَمْدٍ أَوْ دُعَاءٍ أَوِ اسْتِغْفَارٍ.

wamā khaṭara bihi min khāṭiri tamannin ʾaw hawan ʾaw dhikrin bihimmati mā yaʾtī ʾaw mā qad maḍā, faʾinna dhālika waswasatun ʾilayhi min ʿaduwwihi ḥasadan lahu liyaqṭaʿahu bi-dhālika ʿan wuqūfi qalbihi ʿinda kulli ruknin min ʾarkāni al-ṣalāti wayashghala qalbahu ʿani al-wuqūfi fī al-munājāti, bimā yaḍurruhu ʿammā yanfaʿuhu liyaḥrimahu bi-dhālika ʾan yashhada ʿinda kulli dhikrin min ʾadhkāri al-ṣalāti mā yūjibuhu al-dhikru min tadbīrin ʾaw taʿẓīmin ʾaw ḥamdin ʾaw duʿāʾin ʾawi istighfārin.

Any passing wish, desire, or recollection concerned with what is coming or has passed is a whisper from his enemy, born of envy. Through it the enemy seeks to interrupt his heart's abiding with every constituent act of prayer, and occupy it with harmful things instead of beneficial ones, drawing it away from intimate communion. He thereby deprives him, at each remembrance in prayer, of witnessing what that remembrance requires: ordering one's affairs, magnification, praise, supplication, or seeking forgiveness.

وَإِنْ خَطَرَ بِقَلْبِهِ أَمْرُ مَعَاشِهِ وَتَصْرِيفُ أَحْوَالِهِ وَتَدْبِيرُ شَأْنِهِ مِنَ الْمُنَاجَاةِ، فَذَلِكَ مِنْ قِبَلِ النَّفْسِ وَفِكْرِهَا

waʾin khaṭara biqalbihi ʾamru maʿāshihi wataṣrīfu ʾaḥwālihi watadbīru shaʾnihi mina al-munājāti, fa-dhālika min qibali al-nafsi wafikrihā

If matters of livelihood, managing his circumstances, and arranging his affairs enter his heart during intimate communion, that comes from the self and its thinking

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٧٣

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 173

Volume Two, page 173

بِمَا تُوَسْوِسُ بِهِ مِنْ أُمُورِ الدُّنْيَا، فَأَمَّا إِنْ خَطَرَتْ هِمَّةٌ مَحْظُورَةٌ أَوْ فِكْرَةٌ فِي مَعْصِيَةٍ مَأْزُورَةٍ؛ فَهَذَا هُوَ الْهَلَاكُ وَالْبُعْدُ، يَكُونُ عَنْ وَصْفِ النَّفْسِ الْأَمَّارَةِ بِاسْتِحْوَاذِ الْعَدُوِّ الْمُغْوِي؛ فَهُوَ عَلَامَةُ الْإِبْعَادِ، وَالْحِجَابُ دَلِيلُ الْمَقْتِ، وَالْإِبْعَادِ وَالْإِعْرَاضِ، فَإِذَا ابْتُلِيَ فِي صَلَاتِهِ بِهَذِهِ الْمَعَانِي فَقَدِ اخْتُبِرَ بِذَلِكَ فَعَلَيْهِ أَنْ يَعْمَلَ فِي نَفْيِهِ مَعَ نَفْسِ بُدُوِّهِ، وَلَا يُمَكِّنَهُ مِنَ الظُّهُورِ مِنْ قَلْبِهِ فَيَمْلِكَهُ، وَلَا يُصْغِيَ إِلَيْهِ بِعَقْلِهِ فَيَسْتَوْلِيَ عَلَيْهِ.

bimā tuwaswisu bihi min ʾumūri al-dunyā, faʾammā ʾin khaṭarat himmatun maḥẓūratun ʾaw fikratun fī maʿṣiyatin maʾzūratin; fa-hādhā huwa al-halāku wa-al-buʿdu, yakūnu ʿan waṣfi al-nafsi al-ʾammārati bi-stiḥwādhi al-ʿaduwwi al-mughwī; fahuwa ʿalāmatu al-ʾibʿādi, wa-al-ḥijābu dalīlu al-maqti, wa-al-ʾibʿādi wa-al-ʾiʿrāḍi, faʾidhā ibtuliya fī ṣalātihi bi-hādhihi al-maʿānī faqadi ikhtubira bi-dhālika faʿalayhi ʾan yaʿmala fī nafyihi maʿa nafsi buduwwihi, walā yumakkinahu mina al-ẓuhūri min qalbihi fayamlikahu, walā yuṣghiya ʾilayhi biʿaqlihi fayastawliya ʿalayhi.

about the worldly matters it whispers. But if a forbidden intention or thought of culpable disobedience arises, that is ruin and distance. It stems from the commanding self under the misleading enemy's domination. It signals banishment; the veil indicates abhorrence, exclusion, and rejection. If afflicted with such things in prayer, he has been put to the test. He must work to expel the thought at its very emergence, neither allowing it to arise from his heart and master him nor lending it his mind's attention so that it dominates him.

وَلَا يُحَادِثْهُ وَلَا يُطَاوِلْهُ فَيُخْرِجَهُ مِنْ حَدِّ الذِّكْرِ وَالْيَقَظَةِ إِلَى مُسَامَرَةِ الْجَهْلِ وَالْغَفْلَةِ، وَكُلُّ عَمَلٍ مَحْظُورٍ فَالْهِمَّةُ بِهِ مَحْظُورَةٌ وَفِيهِ نَقْصٌ، وَكُلُّ عَمَلٍ مُبَاحٍ فَالْهِمَّةُ بِهِ مُبَاحَةٌ وَنَفْيُهَا فَضِيلَةٌ، وَمَا خَطَرَ عَلَى قَلْبِهِ مِنَ الْخَيْرَاتِ الْمُتَأَخِّرِ فِعْلُهَا فَلْيَعْقِدِ النِّيَّةَ بِذَلِكَ، فَإِنَّهُ قَدْ ذُكِّرَ بِهِ وَأُرِيدَ مِنْهُ، ثُمَّ لِيَمْضِ فِي صَلَاتِهِ وَلَا يَشْتَغِلْ بِتَدْبِيرِهِ؛ كَيْفَ يَكُونُ؟ وَمَتَى يَكُونُ؟ أَوْ كَيْفَ أَكُونُ فِيهِ؟ وَعِنْدَهُ إِذَا كَانَ فَيَفُوتَهُ الْإِقْبَالُ فِي الْحَالِ بِتَدْبِيرِ شَأْنِهِ فِي الْمَآلِ.

walā yuḥādithhu walā yuṭāwilhu fayukhrijahu min ḥaddi al-dhikri wa-al-yaqaẓati ʾilā musāmarati al-jahli wa-al-ghaflati, wakullu ʿamalin maḥẓūrin fa-al-himmatu bihi maḥẓūratun wafīhi naqṣun, wakullu ʿamalin mubāḥin fa-al-himmatu bihi mubāḥatun wanafyuhā faḍīlatun, wamā khaṭara ʿalā qalbihi mina al-khayrāti al-mutaʾakhkhiri fiʿluhā falyaʿqidi al-niyyata bi-dhālika, faʾinnahu qad dhukkira bihi waʾurīda minhu, thumma liyamḍi fī ṣalātihi walā yashtaghil bitadbīrihi; kayfa yakūnu? wamatā yakūnu? ʾaw kayfa ʾakūnu fīhi? waʿindahu ʾidhā kāna fayafūtahu al-ʾiqbālu fī al-ḥāli bitadbīri shaʾnihi fī al-maʾāli.

He should neither converse with the thought nor prolong it, lest it take him from remembrance and wakefulness into companionship with ignorance and heedlessness. Intending any forbidden act is forbidden and constitutes a deficiency; intending a permissible act is permissible, but expelling that intention is meritorious. If a good deed to be done later occurs to him, he should resolve to do it: he has been reminded of it and it is desired of him. Then he should continue praying, without planning how or when it will occur, or how he will be involved when it does, thereby losing present attentiveness through managing a future situation.

وَهَذَا هُوَ اسْتِرَاقٌ مِنَ الْعَدُوِّ عَلَيْهِ وَإِلْقَاءٌ مِنْ خُدُوعِهِ إِلَيْهِ، فَإِنْ جَاهَدَ هَذَا الْمُصَلِّي نَفْسَهُ عَنْ مُسَامَرَةِ الْفِكْرِ وَقَابَلَ عَدُوَّهُ فِي قَطْعِ وَسْوَسَةِ الصَّدْرِ، كَانَ مُجَاهِدًا فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى، مُقَاتِلًا لِمَنْ يَلِيهِ مِنْ أَعْدَاءِ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى، لَهُ أَجْرَانِ: أَجْرُ الصَّلَاةِ لِلتَّقَرُّبِ إِلَى الْكَرِيمِ، وَأَجْرُ الْمُصَارَمَةِ وَالْمُحَارَبَةِ لِعَدُوِّهِ الرَّجِيمِ.

wa-hādhā huwa istirāqun mina al-ʿaduwwi ʿalayhi waʾilqāʾun min khudūʿihi ʾilayhi, faʾin jāhada hādhā al-muṣallī nafsahu ʿan musāmarati al-fikri waqābala ʿaduwwahu fī qaṭʿi waswasati al-ṣadri, kāna mujāhidan fī sabīli Allāhi taʿālā, muqātilan liman yalīhi min ʾaʿdāʾi Allāhi taʿālā, lahu ʾajrāni: ʾajru al-ṣalāti li-l-taqarrubi ʾilā al-karīmi, waʾajru al-muṣāramati wa-al-muḥārabati liʿaduwwihi al-rajīmi.

This is the enemy's stealthy theft from him and an insinuation of his deceptions. If this worshipper struggles against his self's companionship with thought and confronts his enemy by cutting off whisperings in the breast, he strives in the way of God Most High, fighting the enemy of God Most High nearest to him. He receives two rewards: prayer's reward for drawing near the Generous, and the reward for resisting and fighting his accursed enemy.

وَقَدْ كَانَ الْأَقْوِيَاءُ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ، أَهْلُ الْغِلْظَةِ عَلَى الْأَعْدَاءِ وَالتَّمْكِينِ، إِذَا ابْتُلُوا بِدَاخِلٍ يَدْخُلُ عَلَيْهِمْ فِي الصَّلَاةِ مِنَ الْأَسْبَابِ، يُخْرِجُهُمْ عَنِ الْمُشَاهَدَةِ فِيهَا عَمِلُوا فِي قَطْعِ ذَلِكَ الشَّيْءِ وَإِبْعَادِهِ مِنْ أَصْلِهِ، إِذْ كَانَ سَبَبَ قَطْعِهِمْ وَإِبْعَادِهِمْ مِنْ قُرْبِهِمْ، فَيَسْتَخْرِجُ بِإِدْخَالِ ذَلِكَ عَلَيْهِمْ إِخْرَاجَهُمْ مِنَ الدُّنْيَا؛ وَهُوَ الزُّهْدُ فِيهَا، فَيَكُونُ ذَلِكَ إِحْسَانًا مِنَ اللَّهِ إِلَيْهِمْ وَمَزِيدًا مِنْهُ لَهُمْ؛ وَهَذَا أَحَدُ مَا زَهِدَ لِأَجْلِهِ الزَّاهِدُونَ فِي الدُّنْيَا لِتَصْفُوَ قُلُوبُهُمْ مِنَ الْأَسْبَابِ فَتَخْلُصَ أَعْمَالُهُمْ مِنَ الْوَسْوَاسِ بِالِاكْتِسَابِ.

waqad kāna al-ʾaqwiyāʾu mina al-muʾminīna, ʾahlu al-ghilẓati ʿalā al-ʾaʿdāʾi wa-al-tamkīni, ʾidhā ibtulū bidākhilin yadkhulu ʿalayhim fī al-ṣalāti mina al-ʾasbābi, yukhrijuhum ʿani al-mushāhadati fīhā ʿamilū fī qaṭʿi dhālika al-shayʾi waʾibʿādihi min ʾaṣlihi, ʾidh kāna sababa qaṭʿihim waʾibʿādihim min qurbihim, fayastakhriju biʾidkhāli dhālika ʿalayhim ʾikhrājahum mina al-dunyā; wahuwa al-zuhdu fīhā, fayakūnu dhālika ʾiḥsānan mina Allāhi ʾilayhim wamazīdan minhu lahum; wa-hādhā ʾaḥadu mā zahida liʾajlihi al-zāhidūna fī al-dunyā litaṣfuwa qulūbuhum mina al-ʾasbābi fatakhluṣa ʾaʿmāluhum mina al-waswāsi bi-al-iktisābi.

Strong believers, firm against their enemies and securely established, would, when afflicted by an intrusion of worldly means that distracted them from contemplation in prayer, work to cut off and remove that thing at its root. It had interrupted them and distanced them from their nearness. By allowing it to intrude, He brings about their withdrawal from this world, which is renunciation. Thus it becomes divine kindness and increase for them. This is one reason ascetics renounced the world: to clear their hearts of worldly means and free their works from whisperings about acquisition.

وَمِنْ ذَلِكَ مَا بَلَغَنَا عَنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ أَنَّهُ نَزَعَ الْجُبَّةَ الَّتِي كَانَتْ عَلَيْهِ فِي الصَّلَاةِ لَمَّا نَظَرَ إِلَى عَلَمِهَا وَقَالَ: أَلْهَتْنِي هَذِهِ فِي الصَّلَاةِ يَعْنِي شَغَلَتْنِي، وَنَظَرَ إِلَى شِرَاكِ نَعْلِهِ فِي الصَّلَاةِ وَكَانَ جَدِيدًا، فَأَمَرَ أَنْ يُنْزَعَ مِنْهَا وَيُعَادَ لَهَا الشِّرَاكُ الْخَلَقُ، وَكَانَ قَدِ احْتَذَى نَعْلًا فَأَعْجَبَهُ حُسْنُهَا فَسَجَدَ وَقَالَ: تَوَاضَعْتُ لِرَبِّي كَيْلَا يَمْقُتَنِي، ثُمَّ خَرَجَ بِهَا فَدَفَعَهَا إِلَى أَوَّلِ سَائِلٍ لَقِيَهُ، ثُمَّ أَمَرَ عَلِيًّا أَنْ يَشْتَرِيَ لَهُ نَعْلَيْنِ سِبْتِيَّيْنِ جَرْدَاوَيْنِ فَلَبِسَهُمَا.

wamin dhālika mā balaghanā ʿan rasūli Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama ʾannahu nazaʿa al-jubbata allatī kānat ʿalayhi fī al-ṣalāti lammā naẓara ʾilā ʿalamihā waqāla: ʾalhatnī hādhihi fī al-ṣalāti yaʿnī shaghalatnī, wanaẓara ʾilā shirāki naʿlihi fī al-ṣalāti wakāna jadīdan, faʾamara ʾan yunzaʿa minhā wayuʿāda lahā al-shirāku al-khalaqu, wakāna qadi iḥtadhā naʿlan faʾaʿjabahu ḥusnuhā fasajada waqāla: tawāḍaʿtu lirabbī kaylā yamqutanī, thumma kharaja bihā fadafaʿahā ʾilā ʾawwali sāʾilin laqiyahu, thumma ʾamara ʿaliyyan ʾan yashtariya lahu naʿlayni sibtiyyayni jardāwayni falabisahumā.

An example is the report that reached us concerning the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace: he removed the cloak he wore in prayer after looking at its patterned border, saying, “This distracted me during prayer,” meaning occupied him. He noticed his sandal's new strap while praying, and ordered it removed and replaced with the old one. Having put on sandals whose beauty pleased him, he prostrated and said, “I humbled myself before my Lord lest He detest me.” He went out and gave them to the first beggar he met, then ordered ʿAlī to buy him two plain sandals of tanned, hairless leather, which he wore.

وَكَانَ الضُّعَفَاءُ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ يَعْمَلُونَ فِي نَفْيِهِ وَتَرْكِ مُسَاكَنَتِهِ وَمُحَادَثَتِهِ فِي الْحَالِ لِقَوَادِحِ الْيَقِينِ فِي إِيمَانِهِمْ وَلِسُرْعَةِ التَّيَقُّظِ فِي قُلُوبِهِمْ؛ لِأَنَّ الْآفَاتِ تَدْخُلُ مِنْ مَكَانِ الْهَوَى وَتَمَكُّنِ الْأَعْدَاءِ، وَمَكَانُ الْهَوَى وَقُوَّةُ الْعَدُوِّ لِطُولِ الْغَفْلَةِ وَعَدَمِ حَلَاوَةِ الطَّاعَةِ لِاتِّسَاعِ النَّفْسِ فِي الشَّهَوَاتِ وَقُوَّةِ سُلْطَانِهَا عَلَى الصِّفَاتِ وَاتِّسَاعُ النَّفْسِ وَقُوَّةُ صِفَتِهَا لِضِيقِ الْقَلْبِ، وَضَعْفِ الْيَقِينِ إِذْ لَوْ قَوِيَ يَقِينُ الْعَبْدِ لَاِنْشَرَحَ صَدْرُهُ وَلَأَطْفَأَ نُورُ يَقِينِهِ ظُلْمَةَ هَوَاهُ، وَلَاِنْدَرَجَتِ النَّفْسُ فِي الْقَلْبِ انْدِرَاجَ اللَّيْلِ فِي النَّهَارِ، وَلَأَسْقَطَ مَكَانُهُ مِنَ الشَّهَادَةِ تَمَكُّنَ

wakāna al-ḍuʿafāʾu mina al-muʾminīna yaʿmalūna fī nafyihi watarki musākanatihi wamuḥādathatihi fī al-ḥāli liqawādiḥi al-yaqīni fī ʾīmānihim walisurʿati al-tayaqquẓi fī qulūbihim; liʾanna al-ʾāfāti tadkhulu min makāni al-hawā watamakkuni al-ʾaʿdāʾi, wamakānu al-hawā waquwwatu al-ʿaduwwi liṭūli al-ghaflati waʿadami ḥalāwati al-ṭāʿati li-ttisāʿi al-nafsi fī al-shahawāti waquwwati sulṭānihā ʿalā al-ṣifāti wa-ttisāʿu al-nafsi waquwwatu ṣifatihā liḍīqi al-qalbi, waḍaʿfi al-yaqīni ʾidh law qawiya yaqīnu al-ʿabdi la-nsharaḥa ṣadruhu walaʾaṭfaʾa nūru yaqīnihi ẓulmata hawāhu, wa-la-ndarajati al-nafsu fī al-qalbi indirāja al-layli fī al-nahāri, walaʾasqaṭa makānuhu mina al-shahādati tamakkuna

Weaker believers would work to expel the thought immediately, refusing to harbor or converse with it, because certainty struck sparks within their faith and their hearts awakened quickly. Afflictions enter through desire's foothold and the enemies' mastery. Desire's foothold and the enemy's strength arise from prolonged heedlessness and the lack of sweetness in obedience, owing to the self's expansion in appetites and its powerful rule over one's qualities. That expansion and power arise from the heart's constriction and weak certainty. Were certainty strong, the breast would expand, its light extinguish desire's darkness, and the self become absorbed in the heart as night in day. His position in witnessing would overthrow the mastery of

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٧٤

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 174

Volume Two, page 174

أَعْدَائِهِ وَالْعَادَةِ، وَلَعَلِمَ يَقِينًا أَنَّ مَا هُوَ فِيهِ مِنَ الذِّكْرِ وَالصَّلَاةِ أَنْفَعُ لَهُ وَأَحْمَدُ عَاقِبَةً مِمَّا تَفَكَّرَ فِيهِ مِنْ عَاجِلِ دُنْيَاهُ، فَيَشْتَغِلُ حِينَئِذٍ بِمَا هُوَ فِيهِ لَهُ مِنَ الذِّكْرِ عَمَّا هُوَ عَلَيْهِ مِنْ سُوءِ الْفِكْرِ، وَلَيْسَ بَعْدَ هَذَيْنِ الْمَقَامَيْنِ حَالٌ يُنْعَتُ وَلَا يُمْدَحُ بِشَيْءٍ، وَمَا قَدَحَ فِي قَلْبِهِ مِنْ فَهْمِ الْخِطَابِ وَتَدَبُّرِ مَعَانِي الْكَلَامِ وَالْإِيقَافِ عَلَى الْمَقْصِدِ وَالْمُرَادِ فَهُوَ تَعْلِيمٌ مِنَ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى وَتَوْقِيفٌ وَتَنْبِيهٌ مِنْهُ وَتَعْرِيفٌ.

ʾaʿdāʾihi wa-al-ʿādati, walaʿalima yaqīnan ʾanna mā huwa fīhi mina al-dhikri wa-al-ṣalāti ʾanfaʿu lahu waʾaḥmadu ʿāqibatan mimmā tafakkara fīhi min ʿājili dunyāhu, fayashtaghilu ḥīnaʾidhin bimā huwa fīhi lahu mina al-dhikri ʿammā huwa ʿalayhi min sūʾi al-fikri, walaysa baʿda hādhayni al-maqāmayni ḥālun yunʿatu walā yumdaḥu bishayʾin, wamā qadaḥa fī qalbihi min fahmi al-khiṭābi watadabburi maʿānī al-kalāmi wa-al-ʾīqāfi ʿalā al-maqṣidi wa-al-murādi fahuwa taʿlīmun mina Allāhi taʿālā watawqīfun watanbīhun minhu wataʿrīfun.

his enemies and habit. He would know with certainty that his present remembrance and prayer benefit him more and yield a better outcome than the immediate worldly matters he thinks about. He would then occupy himself with remembrance, which works for him, instead of harmful thinking, which works against him. Beyond these two stations there is no state deserving description or praise. Whatever sparks in his heart of understanding the address, reflecting on the words' meanings, and being shown their purpose and intention is teaching from God Most High: His instruction, awakening, and disclosure.

وَهَذَا مَزِيدُ التِّلَاوَةِ وَعَلَامَةُ الْإِخْلَاصِ فِي الْمُعَامَلَةِ وَبَرَكَةُ التَّدَبُّرِ، دَلِيلُ الْقَبُولِ وَالشُّكْرِ لِحُسْنِ الْخِدْمَةِ، فَلْيَأْخُذْ مِنْ ذَلِكَ مَا عَفَا وَيَغْتَرِفْ مِنْهُ مَا صَفَا، وَلَا يَنْتَظِرْهُ وَلَا يَتَمَنَّاهُ وَلَا يَتْبَعْهُ بَعْدَ انْصِرَافِهِ بِالْفِكْرِ فِي مَعْنَاهُ، فَيَسْتَرِقَ الْعَدُوُّ عَلَيْهِ السَّمْعَ وَيُلْقِيَ إِلَيْهِ الْوَسْوَسَةَ وَيَطْمَعَ فِيهِ بِالْغِرَّةِ وَيَدْخُلَ عَلَيْهِ مِنْ بَابِ الْأُمْنِيَّةِ، لِأَنَّهُ قَدْ قَرَنَ الْأَمَانِيَّ بِالْإِضْلَالِ؛ فَهِيَ مَوَاعِيدُ الْكَذِبِ لِلْإِبْطَالِ، أَلَمْ تَسْمَعْ إِلَى رَبِّكَ تَعَالَى كَيْفَ أَخْبَرَكَ عَنْهُ فِي قَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: (وَلَأُضِلَّنَّهُمْ وَلَأُمَنِّيَنَّهُمْ) النِّسَاءُ: 119.

wa-hādhā mazīdu al-tilāwati waʿalāmatu al-ʾikhlāṣi fī al-muʿāmalati wabarakatu al-tadabburi, dalīlu al-qabūli wa-al-shukri liḥusni al-khidmati, falyaʾkhudh min dhālika mā ʿafā wayaghtarif minhu mā ṣafā, walā yantaẓirhu walā yatamannāhu walā yatbaʿhu baʿda inṣirāfihi bi-al-fikri fī maʿnāhu, fayastariqa al-ʿaduwwu ʿalayhi al-samʿa wayulqiya ʾilayhi al-waswasata wayaṭmaʿa fīhi bi-al-ghirrati wayadkhula ʿalayhi min bābi al-ʾumniyyati, liʾannahu qad qarana al-ʾamāniyya bi-al-ʾiḍlāli; fahiya mawāʿīdu al-kadhibi li-l-ʾibṭāli, ʾalam tasmaʿ ʾilā rabbika taʿālā kayfa ʾakhbaraka ʿanhu fī qawlihi taʿālā: (walaʾuḍillannahum walaʾumanniyannahum) al-nisāʾu: 119.

This is recitation's increase, the sign of sincerity in one's dealings, reflection's blessing, and proof of acceptance and gratitude for good service. Let him take what comes readily and draw what is clear. He should neither await nor wish for it, nor pursue its meaning in thought after it departs, lest the enemy steal a hearing, insinuate whispers, exploit his heedlessness, and enter through wishing. The enemy has linked wishes with misguidance: they are false promises intended to nullify. Have you not heard how your Lord Most High reports him in His exalted saying, “I will certainly mislead them and fill them with wishes” (al-Nisāʾ 4:119)?

ثُمَّ قَالَ فِي مِثْلِهِ: (وَعِدْهُمْ وَشَارِكْهُمْ فِي الْأَمْوَالِ وَالْأَوْلَادِ وَمَا يَعِدُهُمُ الشَّيْطَانُ إِلَّا غُرُورًا) الْإِسْرَاءُ: 64، ثُمَّ اسْتَثْنَى عِبَادَهُ الْمُسَلَّطِينَ عَلَيْهِ بِسُلْطَانِهِ، الْغَالِبِينَ لَهُ بِآيَاتِهِ، فَلَمْ يَصِلِ الْعَدُوُّ إِلَيْهِمْ لِمُوَاصَلَتِهِ لَهُمْ وَتَوَكُّلِهِمْ عَلَيْهِ بِوَكَالَتِهِ إِيَّاهُمْ، تَنْتَظِمُ هَذِهِ الْمَعَانِي فِي قَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى:

thumma qāla fī mithlihi: (waʿidhum washārikhum fī al-ʾamwāli wa-al-ʾawlādi wamā yaʿiduhumu al-shayṭānu ʾillā ghurūran) al-ʾisrāʾu: 64, thumma istathnā ʿibādahu al-musallaṭīna ʿalayhi bisulṭānihi, al-ghālibīna lahu biʾāyātihi, falam yaṣili al-ʿaduwwu ʾilayhim limuwāṣalatihi lahum watawakkulihim ʿalayhi biwakālatihi ʾiyyāhum, tantaẓimu hādhihi al-maʿānī fī qawlihi taʿālā:

Similarly He said, “Promise them, and share in their wealth and children; Satan promises them only delusion” (al-Isrāʾ 17:64). He then exempted His servants, empowered over him by His authority and victorious through His signs. The enemy cannot reach them because He remains connected to them and they trust Him as their guardian. These meanings converge in His exalted saying,

(إِنَّ عِبَادِي لَيْسَ لَكَ عَلَيْهِمْ سُلْطَانٌ وَكَفَى بِرَبِّكَ وَكِيلًا) الْإِسْرَاءُ: 65، وَقَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: (وَنَجْعَلُ لَكُمَا سُلْطَانًا فَلَا يَصِلُونَ إِلَيْكُمَا بِآيَاتِنَا أَنْتُمَا وَمَنِ اتَّبَعَكُمَا الْغَالِبُونَ) الْقَصَصُ: 35، مَعَ قَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: (إِنَّهُ لَيْسَ لَهُ سُلْطَانٌ عَلَى الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَلَى رَبِّهِمْ يَتَوَكَّلُونَ) النَّحْلُ: 99.

(ʾinna ʿibādī laysa laka ʿalayhim sulṭānun wakafā birabbika wakīlan) al-ʾisrāʾu: 65, waqawlihi taʿālā: (wanajʿalu lakumā sulṭānan falā yaṣilūna ʾilaykumā biʾāyātinā ʾantumā wamani ittabaʿakumā al-ghālibūna) al-qaṣaṣu: 35, maʿa qawlihi taʿālā: (ʾinnahu laysa lahu sulṭānun ʿalā alladhīna ʾāmanū waʿalā rabbihim yatawakkalūna) al-naḥlu: 99.

“You have no authority over My servants; your Lord suffices as guardian” (17:65), His exalted saying, “We shall grant you both authority, so they cannot reach you; through Our signs, you and your followers will prevail” (al-Qaṣaṣ 28:35), and His exalted saying, “He has no authority over those who believe and trust their Lord” (al-Naḥl 16:99).

وَلِلْعَبْدِ فِي التَّفَكُّرِ وَالتَّدَبُّرِ لِمَا يَسْتَقْبِلُ مِنْ كُلِّ كَلِمَةٍ شُغْلٌ عَمَّا فَاتَ مِمَّا كَانَ عَمَلُهُ، وَلَهُ فِي الشُّغْلِ فِي الْحَالِ اقْتِطَاعٌ بِمَا قَدْ فَهِمَهُ وَمَا فَهِمَهُ مِنْ غَيْرِ مَا يَتْلُوهُ فَاسْتَدَلَّ بِهِ عَلَى مَا سِوَاهُ مِمَّا يُعِينُهُ وَيَحْتَاجُ إِلَيْهِ؛ فَهِيَ أَبْوَابٌ مِنَ الْفِطْنَةِ تُفْتَحُ لَهُ فَيَكُونُ التَّكَلُّمُ مِفْتَاحَهَا، ثُمَّ يَخْرُجُ الْعَبْدُ إِلَى سِوَاهَا مِمَّا هُوَ لَهُ أَصْلَحُ أَوْ عَلَيْهِ أَوْجَبُ، فَلْيَعْرِفْ بِذَلِكَ مَا عُرِّفَ وَلْيَقِفْ مِنْ ذَلِكَ عَلَى مَا عَلَيْهِ وُقِّفَ.

wali-l-ʿabdi fī al-tafakkuri wa-al-tadabburi limā yastaqbilu min kulli kalimatin shughlun ʿammā fāta mimmā kāna ʿamaluhu, walahu fī al-shughli fī al-ḥāli iqtiṭāʿun bimā qad fahimahu wamā fahimahu min ghayri mā yatlūhu fa-stadalla bihi ʿalā mā siwāhu mimmā yuʿīnuhu wayaḥtāju ʾilayhi; fahiya ʾabwābun mina al-fiṭnati tuftaḥu lahu fayakūnu al-takallumu miftāḥahā, thumma yakhruju al-ʿabdu ʾilā siwāhā mimmā huwa lahu ʾaṣlaḥu ʾaw ʿalayhi ʾawjabu, falyaʿrif bi-dhālika mā ʿurrifa walyaqif min dhālika ʿalā mā ʿalayhi wuqqifa.

Reflecting on each word that comes next occupies the servant away from the work already past. Present occupation absorbs him in what he has understood. Whatever he understands beyond what he recites, and uses to infer something else that assists him or that he needs, constitutes doors of insight opened for him, with speech as their key. Then the servant moves beyond them to something more beneficial for him or more obligatory upon him. Let him thereby recognize what he has been shown and attend to what has been disclosed to him.

وَمَا تَفَكَّرَ فِيهِ مِنْ غَيْرِ تَدَبُّرِ التِّلَاوَةِ، أَوْ شُغِلَ بِهِ مِنْ غَيْرِ فَهْمِ الْمَتْلُوِّ فَهُوَ حِجَابٌ لَهُ مِنَ الْفَهْمِ وَقَطْعٌ لَهُ عَنْ خَالِصِ الْعِلْمِ فَلْيَقْطَعْ ذَلِكَ، وَالتَّمَامُ فِي التِّلَاوَةِ أَنْ يَتَدَبَّرَ التَّالِي بَاطِنَ الْكَلَامِ، وَيَتَفَكَّرَ فِي غَوَامِضِ الْخِطَابِ، وَيُوقِفَ قَلْبَهُ عَلَى مَعَانِي الْمُرَادِ، وَيُعْمِلَ فِكْرَهُ فِي تَذَكُّرِ الْمُوَصِّلِ وَالتَّرْدَادِ، فَإِنَّ الْكَلَامَ عَزِيزٌ مِنْ عَزِيزٍ، وَلَطِيفٌ مِنْ لَطِيفٍ، وَحَكِيمٌ مِنْ حَكِيمٍ، وَعَلِيٌّ مِنْ عَلِيٍّ ظَاهِرُهُ سَهْلٌ قَرِيبٌ، وَبَاطِنُهُ بَحْرٌ عَمِيقٌ.

wamā tafakkara fīhi min ghayri tadabburi al-tilāwati, ʾaw shughila bihi min ghayri fahmi al-matluwwi fahuwa ḥijābun lahu mina al-fahmi waqaṭʿun lahu ʿan khāliṣi al-ʿilmi falyaqṭaʿ dhālika, wa-al-tamāmu fī al-tilāwati ʾan yatadabbara al-tālī bāṭina al-kalāmi, wayatafakkara fī ghawāmiḍi al-khiṭābi, wayūqifa qalbahu ʿalā maʿānī al-murādi, wayuʿmila fikrahu fī tadhakkuri al-muwaṣṣili wa-al-tardādi, faʾinna al-kalāma ʿazīzun min ʿazīzin, walaṭīfun min laṭīfin, waḥakīmun min ḥakīmin, waʿaliyyun min ʿaliyyin ẓāhiruhu sahlun qarībun, wabāṭinuhu baḥrun ʿamīqun.

Whatever he thinks about apart from reflecting on recitation, or becomes occupied with apart from understanding the recited text, veils understanding and cuts him off from pure knowledge; he should cut it off. Complete recitation means pondering the words' inward meaning, reflecting on the address's subtleties, holding the heart to the intended meanings, and engaging thought in remembering the One who brings one near and in repeated return. The speech is mighty from One mighty, subtle from One subtle, wise from One wise, lofty from One lofty. Its outward form is easy and accessible; its inward meaning is a deep sea.

يَقُولُ السَّامِعُ إِذَا عَقَلَهُ قَدْ فَهِمْتُهُ، لِتَجَلِّي فَحْوَاهُ، فَإِذَا شَهِدَهُ كَأَنَّهُ مَا سَمِعَهُ لِدَقِيقِ مَعْنَاهُ يَحْسَبُ الْعَاقِلُ أَنَّهُ قَدْ عَرَفَهُ لِظُهُورِ بَيَانِهِ وَتَفْصِيلِ حِكْمَتِهِ، فَإِذَا عَرَفَ الْمُتَكَلِّمَ بِهِ كَأَنَّهُ مَا عَقَلَهُ لِعُمْقِ بِحَارِهِ وَسَعَةِ أَقْطَارِهِ قَدِ اغْتَرَّ بِهِ قَوْمٌ لَمَّا سَمِعُوا بَيَانَهُ فَادَّعَوْا أَنَّهُمْ يُحْسِنُونَهُ، وَخُدِعَ بِهِ آخَرُونَ لَمَّا عَقَلُوا أَمْثَالَهُ فَطَلَبُوا غَيْرَهُ وَسَأَلُوا أَبْدَالَهُ، وَأَصْغَى آخَرُونَ إِلَى سَمْعِهِ فَادَّعَوْا فَهْمَهُ فَأَكْذَبَهُمُ الصَّادِقُ، وَعَزَلَهُمْ عَنْ سَمْعِهِ، ثُمَّ أَخْبَرَنَا بِجَمِيعِ ذَلِكَ عَنْ جَهْلِهِمْ، وَعَجَّبَنَا مِنْ جَرَاءَتِهِمْ، فَقَالَ فِي وَصْفِ الْأَوَّلِينَ:

yaqūlu al-sāmiʿu ʾidhā ʿaqalahu qad fahimtuhu, litajallī faḥwāhu, faʾidhā shahidahu kaʾannahu mā samiʿahu lidaqīqi maʿnāhu yaḥsabu al-ʿāqilu ʾannahu qad ʿarafahu liẓuhūri bayānihi watafṣīli ḥikmatihi, faʾidhā ʿarafa al-mutakallima bihi kaʾannahu mā ʿaqalahu liʿumqi biḥārihi wasaʿati ʾaqṭārihi qadi ightarra bihi qawmun lammā samiʿū bayānahu fa-ddaʿaw ʾannahum yuḥsinūnahu, wakhudiʿa bihi ʾākharūna lammā ʿaqalū ʾamthālahu faṭalabū ghayrahu wasaʾalū ʾabdālahu, waʾaṣghā ʾākharūna ʾilā samʿihi fa-ddaʿaw fahmahu faʾakdhabahumu al-ṣādiqu, waʿazalahum ʿan samʿihi, thumma ʾakhbaranā bijamīʿi dhālika ʿan jahlihim, waʿajjabanā min jarāʾatihim, faqāla fī waṣfi al-ʾawwalīna:

When a listener grasps it, he says, “I understand,” because its import becomes clear. When he witnesses it, its subtle meaning makes him feel he had never heard it. The intelligent person thinks he knows it because its exposition and detailed wisdom are evident; on knowing its Speaker, he feels he had never grasped it, so deep are its seas and vast its expanses. Some, deceived by hearing its exposition, claimed mastery; others, misled by understanding its likenesses, sought something else and requested replacements. Others listened and claimed understanding, but the Truthful declared them liars and excluded them from hearing. He then disclosed their ignorance and made us marvel at their audacity, describing the first group:

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٧٥

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 175

Volume Two, page 175

(وَإِذَا تُتْلَى عَلَيْهِمْ آيَاتُنَا قَالُوا قَدْ سَمِعْنَا لَوْ نَشَاءُ لَقُلْنَا مِثْلَ هَذَا) الْأَنْفَالُ: 31، (وَإِذَا تُتْلَى عَلَيْهِمْ آيَاتُنَا بَيِّنَاتٍ قَالَ الَّذِينَ لَا يَرْجُونَ لِقَاءَنَا ائْتِ بِقُرْآنٍ غَيْرِ هَذَا أَوْ بَدِّلْهُ) يُونُسُ: 15. وَقَالَ فِي نَعْتِ الْآخَرِينَ: (يُلْقُونَ السَّمْعَ وَأَكْثَرُهُمْ كَاذِبُونَ) الشُّعَرَاءُ: 223، (إِنَّهُمْ عَنِ السَّمْعِ لَمَعْزُولُونَ) الشُّعَرَاءُ: 212، (وَلَا تَكُونُوا كَالَّذِينَ قَالُوا سَمِعْنَا وَهُمْ لَا يَسْمَعُونَ) الْأَنْفَالُ: 21.

(waʾidhā tutlā ʿalayhim ʾāyātunā qālū qad samiʿnā law nashāʾu laqulnā mithla hādhā) al-ʾanfālu: 31, (waʾidhā tutlā ʿalayhim ʾāyātunā bayyinātin qāla alladhīna lā yarjūna liqāʾanā iʾti biqurʾānin ghayri hādhā ʾaw baddilhu) yūnusu: 15. waqāla fī naʿti al-ʾākharīna: (yulqūna al-samʿa waʾaktharuhum kādhibūna) al-shuʿarāʾu: 223, (ʾinnahum ʿani al-samʿi lamaʿzūlūna) al-shuʿarāʾu: 212, (walā takūnū ka-alladhīna qālū samiʿnā wahum lā yasmaʿūna) al-ʾanfālu: 21.

“When Our signs are recited to them, they say: We have heard; if we wished, we could say something like this” (al-Anfāl 8:31). “When Our clear signs are recited to them, those who do not expect to meet Us say: Bring a Qurʾān other than this, or change it” (Yūnus 10:15). Of the others He said, “They lend an ear, but most of them are liars” (al-Shuʿarāʾ 26:223), “They are excluded from hearing” (26:212), and “Do not be like those who say, ‘We have heard,’ while they do not hear” (al-Anfāl 8:21).

ثُمَّ وَصَفَ مَنْ أَسْمَعَهُ إِيَّاهُ وَأَفْهَمَهُ مَعْنَاهُ مِنَ الْجِنِّ الَّذِينَ هُمْ أَشَدُّ قُوَّةً مِنَ الْإِنْسِ وَأَعْظَمُهُمْ وَصْفًا فَقَالُوا: (إِنَّا سَمِعْنَا قُرْآنًا عَجَبًا) الْجِنُّ: 1 (يَهْدِي إِلَى الرُّشْدِ) الْجِنُّ: 2، فَهَؤُلَاءِ مِمَّنْ عَقَلَهُ فَمَدَحَهُمْ بِفَهْمِهِ وَأَخْبَرَ عَنْ صَاحِبِ التَّنْزِيلِ بِمِثْلِهِ فَقَالَ: (بَلْ عَجِبْتَ وَيَسْخَرُونَ) الصَّافَّاتُ: 12، أَيْ عَجِبْتَ مِنَ الْقُرْآنِ وَتَفْصِيلِهِ وَتَنْزِيلِهِ، وَيَسْخَرُ مِنْهُ الْجَاهِلُونَ.

thumma waṣafa man ʾasmaʿahu ʾiyyāhu waʾafhamahu maʿnāhu mina al-jinni alladhīna hum ʾashaddu quwwatan mina al-ʾinsi waʾaʿẓamuhum waṣfan faqālū: (ʾinnā samiʿnā qurʾānan ʿajaban) al-jinnu: 1 (yahdī ʾilā al-rushdi) al-jinnu: 2, fa-hāʾulāʾi mimman ʿaqalahu famadaḥahum bifahmihi waʾakhbara ʿan ṣāḥibi al-tanzīli bimithlihi faqāla: (bal ʿajibta wayaskharūna) al-ṣāffātu: 12, ʾay ʿajibta mina al-qurʾāni watafṣīlihi watanzīlihi, wayaskharu minhu al-jāhilūna.

Then He described those jinn whom He enabled to hear it and understand its meaning, who are stronger in power than humans and greater in their qualities. They said, “We have heard a wondrous Qurʾān, guiding to right conduct” (al-Jinn 72:1–2). These are among those who grasped it, and He praised their understanding. He reported something similar of the recipient of revelation: “Rather, you marvel, while they mock” (al-Ṣāffāt 37:12), meaning that you marvel at the Qurʾān, its detailed exposition, and its revelation, while the ignorant mock it.

فَإِنْ فَتَحَ لِلتَّالِي بِالتِّلَاوَةِ عَيْنُ نَفْسِ الْمَتْلُوِّ بَابَ الْفِكْرِ فِي مَعَانِي الْعَظَمَةِ وَالْقُدْرَةِ، وَكُشِفَ لَهُ بِوَاسِطَةِ الْكَلَامِ مُشَاهَدَةُ مَا كَانَ عَلِمَهُ مِنْ وَعْدِ الْآخِرَةِ وَعِيدِهَا فَلَهُ أَجْرَانِ، مِنْ حَيْثُ كَانَ مِنْهُ عَمَلَانِ: الْفِكْرَةُ وَالصَّلَاةُ، وَهَذَا كُلُّهُ لِعُمُومِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ مَزِيدٌ، وَهُوَ بِذَلِكَ لِلْخُصُوصِ مِنَ الْمُقَرَّبِينَ دُونَ ذَلِكَ إِلَّا مَا وُجِّهُوا بِهِ مِنْ طَوَالِعِ الْغُيُوبِ، وَأُطْلِعُوا عَلَيْهِ مِنْ مَطَالِعِ سَرَائِرِ الْمَحْبُوبِ، فَكُوشِفُوا بِهِ مِنْ بَوَادِي الْيَقِينِ مِنَ الْعِزَّةِ وَالْجَبَرُوتِ وَالْإِجْلَالِ وَالرَّهَبُوتِ.

faʾin fataḥa li-l-tālī bi-al-tilāwati ʿaynu nafsi al-matluwwi bāba al-fikri fī maʿānī al-ʿaẓamati wa-al-qudrati, wakushifa lahu biwāsiṭati al-kalāmi mushāhadatu mā kāna ʿalimahu min waʿdi al-ʾākhirati waʿīdihā falahu ʾajrāni, min ḥaythu kāna minhu ʿamalāni: al-fikratu wa-al-ṣalātu, wa-hādhā kulluhu liʿumūmi al-muʾminīna mazīdun, wahuwa bi-dhālika li-l-khuṣūṣi mina al-muqarrabīna dūna dhālika ʾillā mā wujjihū bihi min ṭawāliʿi al-ghuyūbi, waʾuṭliʿū ʿalayhi min maṭāliʿi sarāʾiri al-maḥbūbi, fakūshifū bihi min bawādī al-yaqīni mina al-ʿizzati wa-al-jabarūti wa-al-ʾijlāli wa-al-rahabūti.

If the very recited text, through recitation, opens for the reciter the door of reflection upon greatness and power, and through the words contemplation is unveiled of what he knew of the hereafter's promise and threat, he receives two rewards, having performed two works: reflection and prayer. All this is an increase for believers generally, but for the elect brought near it falls below their station, except for the dawning unseen realities they are directed toward and the rising secrets of the Beloved disclosed to them: first appearances of certainty unveiled in majesty, might, exaltation, and awe.

فَأَهْجَمَ عَلَيْهِمْ مِنْ غَيْرِ تَفَكُّرٍ مِنْهُمْ وَلَا تَدَبُّرٍ مِمَّا اسْتَعْمَلَهُمْ بِهِ، وَاضْطَرَّهُمْ إِلَى مُشَاهَدَتِهِ، الْقَدِيرُ، فَأَخْرَسَ أَلْسِنَتَهُمْ عَنِ الْمَقَالِ، وَعَقَّمَ عُقُولَهُمْ عَنِ الْمَجَالِ، وَأَغْنَى قُلُوبَهُمْ عَنِ الطَّلَبِ، وَلَمْ يُوكَلْ إِلَى فِكْرِهِمْ بِنَظَرٍ إِلَى سَبَبٍ، بَلْ مِنْ غَيْرِ تَعَمُّلٍ مِنْهُمْ لِتَكْيِيفِهِ وَلَا رَوِيَّةٍ وَلَا اخْتِيَارٍ لِمَاهِيَّتِهِ، ثُمَّ يُجَاوِزُونَهُ إِذَا أَخَذَ مِنْهُمْ حَقَّهُ وَأَدْرَكُوا بِهِ نَصِيبَهُمْ إِلَى الْعَالِمِ الْأَكْبَرِ، فَيَقِفُونَ بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ وَيَحُطُّونَ عِنْدَهُ، وَلَا يَقِفُونَ مَعَ الْمُشَاهَدَةِ طَرْفَةَ عَيْنٍ.

faʾahjama ʿalayhim min ghayri tafakkurin minhum walā tadabburin mimmā istaʿmalahum bihi, wa-ḍṭarrahum ʾilā mushāhadatihi, al-qadīru, faʾakhrasa ʾalsinatahum ʿani al-maqāli, waʿaqqama ʿuqūlahum ʿani al-majāli, waʾaghnā qulūbahum ʿani al-ṭalabi, walam yūkal ʾilā fikrihim binaẓarin ʾilā sababin, bal min ghayri taʿammulin minhum litakyīfihi walā rawiyyatin walā ikhtiyārin limāhiyyatihi, thumma yujāwizūnahu ʾidhā ʾakhadha minhum ḥaqqahu waʾadrakū bihi naṣībahum ʾilā al-ʿālimi al-ʾakbari, fayaqifūna bayna yadayhi wayaḥuṭṭūna ʿindahu, walā yaqifūna maʿa al-mushāhadati ṭarfata ʿaynin.

The All-Powerful brings it upon them without their reflection or deliberation, through what He employs them in and compels them to witness. He silences their tongues, renders their minds incapable of ranging, and frees their hearts from seeking. It is not entrusted to their thinking through consideration of a cause; they make no effort to determine its manner, deliberate over it, or choose its nature. Once it has received its due from them and they have attained their portion through it, they pass beyond it to the Greater Knower, standing before Him and alighting with Him, without lingering in contemplation even for an eye's blink.

وَلَا يَسْكُنُونَ إِلَيْهَا خَطْرَةَ قَلْبٍ لِئَلَّا يَقْطَعَهُمُ الْبَيَانُ عَنِ الْمُبِينِ، وَلَا يَشْغَلَهُمُ الْخَبَرُ عَنِ الْيَقِينِ، وَلَا يَحْجُبَهُمُ الشَّهَادَةُ عَنِ الشَّهِيدِ وَلَا يَحْبِسَهُمُ الْبَادِي الْعَائِدُ عَنِ الْمُبْدِئِ الْمُعِيدِ؛ بَلْ قَدْ أَشْرَفَ بِهِمْ عَلَى الْمُرَادِ فَأَسْقَطَ عَنْهُمُ التَّشَرُّفَ وَأَذْهَلَهُمْ عَنِ الِاعْتِرَافِ وَالتَّعْرِيفِ بِمَا نَادَاهُمْ بِهِ مِنَ التَّعَرُّفِ، وَاقْتَطَعَهُمُ الْعِيَانُ فَأَغْنَاهُمْ عَنِ الِانْقِطَاعِ، وَتَقَطَّعُوا بِالْمُفَصِّلِ فَأَنْسَاهُمُ الِانْتِفَاعَ، وَتَوَصَّلُوا بِالْمُوَصِّلِ فَأَطْلَعَهُمْ عَلَيْهِ، وَكَانَ لَهُمْ حَامِلًا إِلَيْهِ وَدَلِيلًا أَمَامَهُمْ مِنْهُ عَلَيْهِ.

walā yaskunūna ʾilayhā khaṭrata qalbin liʾallā yaqṭaʿahumu al-bayānu ʿani al-mubīni, walā yashghalahumu al-khabaru ʿani al-yaqīni, walā yaḥjubahumu al-shahādatu ʿani al-shahīdi walā yaḥbisahumu al-bādī al-ʿāʾidu ʿani al-mubdiʾi al-muʿīdi; bal qad ʾashrafa bihim ʿalā al-murādi faʾasqaṭa ʿanhumu al-tasharrufa waʾadhhalahum ʿani al-iʿtirāfi wa-al-taʿrīfi bimā nādāhum bihi mina al-taʿarrufi, wa-qtaṭaʿahumu al-ʿiyānu faʾaghnāhum ʿani al-inqiṭāʿi, wataqaṭṭaʿū bi-al-mufaṣṣili faʾansāhumu al-intifāʿa, watawaṣṣalū bi-al-muwaṣṣili faʾaṭlaʿahum ʿalayhi, wakāna lahum ḥāmilan ʾilayhi wadalīlan ʾamāmahum minhu ʿalayhi.

They do not rest in it for a heartbeat, lest exposition cut them off from the One who makes clear, report distract them from certainty, witnessing veil the Witness, or the appearing and recurring detain them from the Originator and Restorer. He has raised them to behold the Desired, ending their effort to gain a view, and His call of self-disclosure has made them forget acknowledgment and explanation. Direct vision has claimed them, freeing them from deliberate withdrawal. They are severed through the One who distinguishes, who makes them forget benefit; they attain connection through the One who connects, who reveals Himself and carries them toward Himself, a guide before them, from Him to Him.

وَهَذِهِ صِفَةُ الْأَقْوِيَاءِ بِالْقَوِيِّ، الْأَغْنِيَاءِ بِالْغَنِيِّ، الْوَاجِدِينَ لِلْمُوجِدِ، الْفَاقِدِينَ لِلْمُوجَدِ، الذَّاكِرِينَ بِذَاكِرٍ، الصَّابِرِينَ بِصَابِرٍ وَلَا يَنْبَغِي لِلْمُصَلِّي أَنْ يَدْخُلَ فِي صَلَاتِهِ حَتَّى يَقْضِيَ نَهْمَتَهُ، وَيَفْرُغَ مِنْ حَاجَتِهِ، وَلَا يَبْقَى عَلَيْهِ مَا يُزْعِجُ قَلْبَهُ وَيُفَرِّقُ هَمَّهُ لِيَفْرُغَ قَلْبُهُ فِي صَلَاتِهِ، وَيَجْتَمِعَ هَمُّهُ فِي وُقُوفِهِ، وَيَصْحُوَ عَقْلُهُ لِفَهْمِهِ، وَيُوَاطِئَ قَلْبُهُ قِيلَهُ وَيُقْبِلَ عَلَى الْمُقْبِلِ عَلَيْهِ بِمَعْقُولِهِ؛ وَهَذَا يُؤْمَرُ بِهِ الضُّعَفَاءُ عَنْ مُجَاهَدَةِ الْأَعْدَاءِ وَالْمَرْضَى عَنْ مُسَابَقَةِ الْأَوْلِيَاءِ.

wa-hādhihi ṣifatu al-ʾaqwiyāʾi bi-al-qawiyyi, al-ʾaghniyāʾi bi-al-ghaniyyi, al-wājidīna li-l-mūjidi, al-fāqidīna li-l-mūjadi, al-dhākirīna bidhākirin, al-ṣābirīna biṣābirin walā yanbaghī li-l-muṣallī ʾan yadkhula fī ṣalātihi ḥattā yaqḍiya nahmatahu, wayafrugha min ḥājatihi, walā yabqā ʿalayhi mā yuzʿiju qalbahu wayufarriqu hammahu liyafrugha qalbuhu fī ṣalātihi, wayajtamiʿa hammuhu fī wuqūfihi, wayaṣḥuwa ʿaqluhu lifahmihi, wayuwāṭiʾa qalbuhu qīlahu wayuqbila ʿalā al-muqbili ʿalayhi bimaʿqūlihi; wa-hādhā yuʾmaru bihi al-ḍuʿafāʾu ʿan mujāhadati al-ʾaʿdāʾi wa-al-marḍā ʿan musābaqati al-ʾawliyāʾi.

Such is the quality of those strong through the Strong, rich through the Rich, finding the Giver of existence and losing created existence, remembering through One who remembers, and persevering through One who perseveres. A worshipper should not begin prayer until he has satisfied his urge, finished his need, and left nothing to unsettle his heart or scatter his concern. Then his heart is free in prayer, his aspiration gathered as he stands, his mind clear for understanding, his heart in accord with his words, and his intelligence turned toward the One who turns toward him. This is prescribed for those too weak to struggle against enemies and too ill to race alongside God's friends.

وَقَدْ رُوِيَ عَنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: الْمُؤْمِنُ الْقَوِيُّ أَحَبُّ إِلَى اللَّهِ تَعَالَى مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِ

waqad ruwiya ʿan rasūli Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallama: al-muʾminu al-qawiyyu ʾaḥabbu ʾilā Allāhi taʿālā mina al-muʾmini

It is related from the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace: “The strong believer is dearer to God Most High than the

الْجُزْءُ الثَّانِي، الصَّفْحَةُ ١٧٦

al-juzʾu al-thānī, al-ṣafḥatu 176

Volume Two, page 176

الضَّعِيفِ، وَفِي كُلٍّ خَيْرٌ، وَقَدْ قَالَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى: (لَا يَسْتَوِي الْقَاعِدُونَ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ غَيْرُ أُولِي الضَّرَرِ وَالْمُجَاهِدُونَ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ) النِّسَاءُ: 95، إِلَى قَوْلِهِ: (فَضَّلَ اللَّهُ الْمُجَاهِدِينَ بِأَمْوَالِهِمْ وَأَنْفُسِهِمْ عَلَى الْقَاعِدِينَ دَرَجَةً) النِّسَاءُ: 95، مَعَ قَوْلِهِ: (وَكُلًّا وَعَدَ اللَّهُ الْحُسْنَى) النِّسَاءُ: 95.

al-ḍaʿīfi, wafī kullin khayrun, waqad qāla Allāhu taʿālā: (lā yastawī al-qāʿidūna mina al-muʾminīna ghayru ʾulī al-ḍarari wa-al-mujāhidūna fī sabīli Allāhi) al-nisāʾu: 95, ʾilā qawlihi: (faḍḍala Allāhu al-mujāhidīna biʾamwālihim waʾanfusihim ʿalā al-qāʿidīna darajatan) al-nisāʾu: 95, maʿa qawlihi: (wakullan waʿada Allāhu al-ḥusnā) al-nisāʾu: 95.

weak believer, though there is good in each.” God Most High has said, “Those believers who sit back, apart from those with an impairment, are not equal to those who strive in God's way” (al-Nisāʾ 4:95), through His words, “God has favored those striving with their wealth and lives over those sitting back by a degree” (4:95), together with, “To each God has promised the finest reward” (4:95).