al-Amīr ʿAbd al-Qādir b. Muḥyī al-Dīn al-Jazāʾirī · Kitāb al-Mawāqif fī baʿḍ ishārāt al-Qurʾān ilā al-asrār wa-l-maʿārif

المواقف

The Book of Stations

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Mawqif 100 · “Whoever has seen me has seen God”
Context: “whoever has seen me has seen God” is read through Ibn ʿArabī’s teaching on the Muhammadan Reality as the first self-disclosure of the Real. It does not say the Prophet is God.
See the print: Damascus 1966, p. 216, Damascus 1966, p. 217, Damascus 1966, p. 218, Damascus 1966, p. 219, Cairo, vol. 1, PDF p. 216, Cairo, vol. 1, PDF p. 217, Cairo, vol. 1, PDF p. 218 (archive.org)
قَالَ تَعَالَى: «إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يُبَايِعُونَكَ إِنَّمَا يُبَايِعُونَ اللَّهَ يَدُ اللَّهِ فَوْقَ أَيْدِيهِمْ».
He (exalted is He) said: “Those who pledge allegiance to you pledge allegiance only to God; the hand of God is above their hands” (Q 48:10).
انْظُرْ اِلَى هَذَا التَّأْكِيدِ فِي الْآيَةِ، الرَّافِعِ لِكُلِّ تَجَوُّزٍ وَمَجَازٍ،
Look at this emphasis in the verse, which removes every figurative extension and metaphor;
فَالْحَقُّ- تَعَالَى- لَمَّا أَرَادَ الظُّهُورَ لِذَاتِهِ، مِنْ حَيْثُ الْاِطْلَاقِ بِذَاتِهِ، مِنْ حَيْثُ التَّقْيِيدِ وَالْمُطْلَقُ، عَيْنُ الْمُقَيَّدِ جَعَلَ نُوراً بِمَثَابَةِ الْمِرْآةِ،
For the Real (exalted is He), when He willed to become manifest to His Essence, in respect of absoluteness, through His Essence, in respect of delimitation (and the Absolute is the very self of the delimited), made a light that stands as a mirror;
ثُمَّ تَجَلَّى فِي ذَلِكَ النُّورِ، فَانْطَبَعَتِ الصُّورَةُ الْآلَهِيَّةُ فِي ذَلِكَ النُّورِ انْطِبَاعَ الصُّوَرِ فِي الْمَرَايَا: «وَلِلَّهِ الْمَثَلُ الْأَعْلَىٰ».
then He disclosed Himself in that light, and the divine form was imprinted in that light as forms are imprinted in mirrors: “And to God belongs the highest likeness” (Q 16:60).
وَصُورَةُ الشَّيْءِ مَجْمُوعُ أَوْصَافِهِ لَا عَيْنُ ذَاتِهِ،
The form of a thing is the sum of its attributes, not its very essence;
وَالتَّرْتِيبُ حُكْمِيٌّ لَا زَمَانِيٌّ فَاِنَّهُ لَا زَمَانَ هُنَاكَ، وَلَكِنْ لِلتَّفْهِيمِ،
and the sequence is one of order, not of time, for there is no time there; it is only for the sake of making it understood.
وَسَمَّي الْحَقُّ- تَعَالَى- هَذَا النُّورَ وَالْمُنْطَبِعَ فِيهِ حَقِيقَةً مُحَمَّدِيَّةً، وَرُوحاً كُلِّيّاً وَنَحْوَ ذَلِكَ.
The Real (exalted is He) named this light and what is imprinted in it the Muhammadan Reality, the universal Spirit, and the like.
فَالْمُتَوَجِّهُ عَلَى الْمِرْآةِ هُوَ الْحَقُّ- تَعَالَى-، وَالْمُنْطَبِعُ فِي الْمِرْآةِ حَقِيقَةٌ مُحَمَّدِيَّةٌ، وَصُورَةٌ رَحْمَانِيَّةٌ،
So the one facing the mirror is the Real (exalted is He), and what is imprinted in the mirror is a Muhammadan Reality and an All-Merciful form;
فَالْمُتَوَجِّهُ عَلَى الْمِرْآةِ وَالصُّورَةُ فِي الْمِرْآةِ وَالْمِرْآةُ شَيْءٌ وَاحِدٌ، اِذْ لَيْسَ اِلاّ وُجُودٌ وَاحِدٌ، هُوَ وُجُودُ الْحَقِّ- تَعَالَى-،
so the one facing the mirror, the form in the mirror and the mirror are one thing, since there is nothing but a single existence, which is the existence of the Real (exalted is He);
فَلَيْسَ لِلْمِرْآةِ وَلَا لِلصُّورَةِ فِي الْمِرْآةِ، وُجُودٌ مُغَايِرٌ لِلْوُجُودِ الْحَقِّ الْمُتَوَجِّهِ عَلَى الْمِرْآةِ.
so neither the mirror nor the form in the mirror has an existence other than the existence that is the Real, facing the mirror.
فَمَنْ كَانَ نَظَرُهُ وَاعْتِبَارُهُ اِلَى أَنَّ هَذِهِ الصُّورَةَ ظَهَرَتْ بِهِ بَعْدَ أَنْ لَمْ تَكُنْ ظَاهِرَةً؛ قَالَ بِحُدُوثِهَا،
Whoever looks at and considers the fact that this form became manifest through it after not having been manifest affirms its originatedness;
وَمَنْ كَانَ نَظَرُهُ وَاعْتِبَارُهُ اِلَى أَنَّهُ لَيْسَ هُنَاكَ غَيْرُ الْوُجُودِ الْمُتَوَجِّهِ عَلَى الْمِرْآةِ وَهُوَ الْحَقُّ- تَعَالَى-؛ قَالَ بِقِدَمِهَا.
and whoever looks at and considers the fact that there is nothing there but the existence facing the mirror, which is the Real (exalted is He), affirms its eternity.
فَالْحَقِيقَةُ الْمُحَمَّدِيَّةُ هِيَ تَعَيُّنُ الْحَقِّ لِنَفْسِهِ بِجَمِيعِ مَعْلُومَاتِهِ وَنِسْبَةِ الْاِلَهِيَّةِ وَالْكَوْنِيَّةِ،
So the Muhammadan Reality is the Real's self-determination to Himself with all His objects of knowledge and the relation of divinity and engendered being;
فَهِيَ الْحَقُّ، اِذِ التَّعَيُّنُ أَمْرٌ اعْتِبَارِيٌّ لَا عَيْنَ لَهُ، فَلَيْسَ هُنَاكَ اِلاّ الْمُتَعَيَّنُ،
so it is the Real, since determination is a merely considered matter with no entity of its own; there is nothing there but the Determined.
قَالَ تَعَالَى: «قُلِ الرُّوحُ مِنْ أَمْرِ رَبِّي».
He (exalted is He) said: “Say: the Spirit is of the command of my Lord” (Q 17:85).
هُوَ أَمْرُ رَبِّي الصَّادِرُ بِالْأَمْرِ وَهُوَ «كُنْ» فَهُوَ عَيْنُ «كُنْ» اِذْ كَلَامُهُ عَيْنُ عِلْمِهِ،
It is my Lord's command, issuing forth through the command, which is “Be!”; so it is the very “Be!”, since His speech is the very same as His knowledge,
وَعِلْمُهُ عَيْنُ ذَاتِهِ، فَالْحَقُّ وَاحِدٌ مِنْ كُلِّ وَجْهٍ لَايَتَبَعَّضُ وَلَا يَتَجَزَّأُ،
and His knowledge is the very same as His Essence; so the Real is one in every respect: He is not divided into parts, nor is He fragmented.
وَلِذَا كَانَ الْحَقُّ- تَعَالَى- فِي كَلَامِهِ الْكَرِيمِ، تَارَةً يَجْعَلُ نَفْسَهُ نَائِباً عَنْ مُحَمَّدٍ- صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ- فَيَقُولُ: «وَلَنَبْلُوَنَّكُمْ حَتَّىٰ نَعْلَمَ الْمُجَاهِدِينَ مِنْكُمْ وَالصَّابِرِينَ».
That is why the Real (exalted is He), in His noble speech, at times makes Himself a deputy for Muhammad (God bless him and grant him peace) and says: “And We shall surely test you until We know those of you who strive and those who are patient” (Q 47:31).
أَيْ يَعْلَمُ مُحَمَّدٌ
that is, Muḥammad knows;
وَيَقُولُ : « فَلَيَعْلَمَنَّ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ صَدَقُوا وَلَيَعْلَمَنَّ الْكَاذِبِينَ⁽¹⁾ » .
أَيْ يَعْلَمُ مُحَمَّدٌ •
وَتَارَةً يَجْعَلُ مُحَمَّداً نَائِباً عَنْهُ ، فَيَقُولُ : « إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يُبَايِعُونَكَ إِنَّمَا يُبَايِعُونَ اللَّهَ يَدُ اللَّهِ فَوْقَ أَيْدِيهِمْ⁽²⁾ »
وَيَقُولُ : «مَنْ يُطِعِ الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطَاعَ اللَّهَ⁽³⁾» .
وَيَقُولُ : « وَمَا رَمَيْتَ إِذْ رَمَيْتَ وَلَٰكِنَّ اللَّهَ رَمَىٰ⁽⁴⁾ » .
وَقَالَ تَعَالَى : « رَسُولٌ مِنَ اللَّهِ⁽⁵⁾ » .
وَوَرَدَ فِي الْخَبَرِ عَنْهُ ـ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ ـ : « مَنْ رَآنِي فَقَدْ رَأَى اللَّهَ » •
يَعْنِي رُؤْيَةً حَقِيقِيَّةً ـ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ ـ
فَلَا مُغَايَرَةَ اِلاَّ بِالْاِعْتِبَارَاتِ الْعَدَمِيَّةِ ، كَالْاِطْلَاقِ وَالتَّقْيِيدِ ،
وَمِنْ هُنَا قَالَ بَعْضُ الْأَكَابِرِ : « الْوُجُودُ الْحَقُّ ـتَعَالَىـ ، ظَهَرَ فِي الْحَقِيقَةِ الْمُحَمَّدِيَّةِ بِذَاتِهِ،وَظَهَرَ فِي سَائِرِ الْمَخْلُوقَاتِ بِصِفَاتِهِ •
يُرِيدُ أَنَّ الْحَقِيقَةَ الْمُحَمَّدِيَّةَ ظَهَرَتْ بِالتَّجَلِّي الذَّاتِيِّ ، مَوْصُوفَةً بِجَمِيعِ صِفَاتِ الْحَقِّ ـتَعَالَىـ ، وَنِسْبَةِ الْاِلَهِيَّةِ وَالْكَوْنِيَّةِ ، وَفَوَّضَ اِلَيْهَا تَدْبِيرَ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ يُوجَدُ بَعْدَهَا •
فَهِيَ الْمُتَصَرِّفَةُ فِي مَعْلُومَاتِهِ ـتَعَالَىـ ، حَسَبَ اِرَادَتِهِ وَمَشِيئَتِهِ ـتَعَالَىـ ، فَتَسْتَمِدُّ مِنَ الْعِلْمِ وَتُمِدُّ الْخَلْقَ •
فَمَاصَدَرَ عَنِ اللَّهِ ـ تَعَالَى ـ بِغَيْرِ وَاسِطَةٍ؛ اِلاَّ هَذِهِ الْحَقِيقَةُ•
وَكُلُّ مَا عَدَاهَا حَتَّى الْعَقْلُ الْأَوَّلُ ؛ اِنَّمَا كَانَ بِوَاسِطَتِهَا •
وَاِنْ كَانَ الْحَقُّ ــ تَعَالَى ــ لَــهُ الْخَلْقُ وَالْأَمْرُ ؛ فَهِيَ الظَّاهِرَةُ فِي الْأَشْيَاءِ وَهِيَ السَّارِيَةُ فِي الْوُجُودِ •
وَمَنْ شَاهَدَ سَرَيَانَهَا فِي الْمَوْجُودَاتِ قَالَ : « مَنْ قَالَ ، لَوِ احْتَجَبَ عَنِّي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ــ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ ــ طَرْفَةَ عَيْنٍ مَا عَدَدْتُ نَفْسِي مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ » •

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