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

About this text

Mawqif 174 · The knower’s fear and hope
In briefAI
Starting from Q 16:52-53, “Whatever blessing you have is from God”, the Emir reads the verse as a reproach to those who fear or hope in what they take to be other than God, cry to Him only when harmed, and credit causes once the harm lifts. Since the Reality is one, no “other” exists, and the others are fancies. The knower fears and hopes in God within His loci of manifestation, and his observing of causes shows his perfection and courtesy.
See the print: Damascus 1966, p. 385, Damascus 1966, p. 386, Cairo, vol. 1, PDF p. 365, Cairo, vol. 1, PDF p. 366 (archive.org)
قَالَ تَعَالَى: «أَفَغَيْرَ اللَّهِ تَتَّقُونَ؟ وَمَا بِكُمْ مِنْ نِعْمَةٍ فَمِنَ اللَّهِ» الْآيَةَ.
God Most High says: “Is it then other than God that you are wary of? Whatever blessing you have is from God” (Q 16:52–53), [and the rest of] the verse.
نَفْيٌ وَاِنْكَارٌ عَلَى مَنْ يَتَّقِي وَيَخَافُ غَيْرَ اللَّهِ، وَيَرَى نِعْمَةَ اللَّهِ مِنْ غَيْرِهِ– تَعَالَى– فَيَرْجُو،
This is a negation and a reproach against whoever is wary of and fears other than God, and sees God's blessing as coming from other than Him, Most High, and so hopes [in that other];
وَاِذَا مَسَّهُ الضُّرُّ، جَأَرَ اِلَى اللَّهِ كَمَا يَجْأَرُ لِلْبَعِيدِ مِنَ الْغَائِبِ عَنْهُ،
and when harm touches him, he cries out to God as one cries out to someone far off, of those absent from him;
فَاِذَا كَشَفَ الضُّرَّ عَنْهُ أَشْرَكَ بِهِ، وَنَسَبَ الْكَشْفَ اِلَى غَيْرِهِ– تَعَالَى–•
then when [God] removes the harm from him, he associates [others] with Him and attributes the removal to other than Him, Most High.
وَفِي الْآيَةِ حَذْفٌ مِنَ الْأَوَائِلِ؛ لِدَلَالَةِ الْأَوَاخِرِ، وَحَذْفٌ مِنَ الْأَوَاخِرِ؛ لِدَلَالَةِ الْأَوَائِلِ،
In the verse there is an ellipsis in the first parts, because the last parts point to it, and an ellipsis in the last parts, because the first parts point to it;
فَهِيَ فِي التَّقْدِيرِ: «أَفَغَيْرَ اللَّهِ تَتَّقُونَ» وَمَا بِكُمْ مِنْ خَيْرٍ وَشَرٍّ فَمِنَ اللَّهِ،
so in its implied construction it runs: “Is it then other than God that you are wary of?” (Q 16:52), and whatever good and evil you have is from God;
أَفَغَيْرَ اللَّهِ تَرَوْنَهُ مُنْعِماً فَتَرْجُونَهُ: «وَمَا بِكُمْ مِنْ نِعْمَةٍ فَمِنَ اللَّهِ»
is it then other than God that you see as a bestower of blessing, so that you hope in him? “Whatever blessing you have is from God” (Q 16:53).
أَنْكَرَ عَلَيْهِمْ– تَعَالَى– جَهَالَتَهُمْ وَكَشَفَ لَهُمْ ضَلَالَتَهُمْ، أَنْ يَتَّقُوا وَيَخَافُوا مَخْلُوقاً، مَعَ اعْتِقَادِهِمْ أَنَّهُ غَيْرُ اللَّهِ،
He, Most High, reproached them for their ignorance and laid bare to them their straying: that they should be wary of and fear a created thing while believing that it is other than God;
فَاِنَّ غَيْرَ اللَّهِ لَا يَمْلِكُ ضَرّاً فَلَا يُتَّقَي، مَعَ أَنَّهُمْ فِي نَفْسِ الْأَمْرِ مَااتَّقَوْا اِلاَّ اللَّهَ•
for other than God has no power over harm, and so is not to be feared, while in actual fact they were wary of none but God.
وَلَكِنِ الْتَبَسَ عَلَيْهِمُ الْأَمْرُ، اِذْ لَا غَيْرَ أَصْلاً لِوَحْدَةِ الْحَقِيقَةِ،
But the matter became confused for them, since there is no “other” at all, by reason of the oneness of the Reality;
وَالْغَيْرَانِ أَمْرَانِ وُجُودِيَّانِ، لَا اشْتِرَاكَ بَيْنَهُمَا فِي صِفَةِ النَّفْسِ، وَهَذَا شَيْءٌ لَا وُجُودَ لَهُ فِي مَشْرَبِ التَّحْقِيقِ،
two “others” are two existent things that share nothing in an attribute of the self, and this is something that has no existence in the drinking-place of realisation;
فَالْأَغْيَارُ أَوْهَامٌ وَتَخَيُّلَاتٌ، لِأَنَّ الْوَهْمَ مِنْ حَقِيقَتِهِ أَنْ يُنَزِّلَ النِّسَبَ وَالِاعْتِبَارَاتِ وَالْاِضَافَاتِ الَّتِي لَا وُجُودَ لَهَا، مَنْزِلَةَ الْحَقَائِقِ الْمَعْقُولَةِ وَالْمَحْسُوسَةِ،
So the “others” are fancies and imaginings, for it belongs to the very reality of fancy that it gives relations, aspects and relational attributions that have no existence the rank of intelligible and sensible realities.
فَجَهِلُوا جَهَالَتَيْنِ، جَهَالَتُهُمْ بِاللَّهِ وَعَدَمُ مَعْرِفَتِهِ، وَجَهَالَةُ اتِّقَاءِ الْغَيْرِ مَعَ اعْتِقَادِهِمْ أَنَّهُ غَيْرٌ،
So they were ignorant with two ignorances: their ignorance of God and their not knowing Him, and the ignorance of being wary of the other while believing that it is other.
وَلَوْ عَرَفُوا لَاتَّقَوُا اللَّهَ فِي مَظَاهِرِ أَسْمَائِهِ الِانْتِقَامِيَّةِ، وَهِيَ مُقَدَّرَاتُهُ، وَمُصَوَّرَاتُهُ، وَمُكَوَّنَاتُهُ، الَّتِي جَعَلَهَا مَحَالَّ لِأَنْ يَخْلُقَ الضُّرَّ عِنْدَهَا وَبِهَا: «وَمَا بِكُمْ مِنْ نِعْمَةٍ فَمِنَ اللَّهِ»•
Had they known, they would have been wary of God in the loci of manifestation of His names of vengeance, which are the things He has measured out, formed and brought into being, which He made sites for creating harm at them and by them: “Whatever blessing you have is from God” (Q 16:53).
كَمَا اتَّقَيْتُمْ غَيْرَهُ- تَعَالَى- مَخَافَةَ ضَرِّهِ بِأَوْهَامِكُمُ الْعَاطِلَةِ، كَذَلِكَ رَأَيْتُمْ نِعَمَهُ عَلَيْكُمْ مِنْ غَيْرِهِ فَرَجَوْتُمُوهُ طَمَعاً فِي نِعَمِهِ،
Just as you were wary of other than Him, Most High, for fear of its harm, through your idle fancies, so too you saw His blessings upon you as coming from other than Him, and hoped in that other, coveting His blessings;
وَتَوَهَّمْتُمْ أَنَّ النِّعْمَةَ الْوَاصِلَةَ اِلَيْكُمْ بِوَاسِطَةِ مَظَاهِرِهِ- تَعَالَى- هِيَ مِنْ غَيْرِهِ.
and you fancied that the blessing reaching you by means of His loci of manifestation, Most High, is from other than Him.
كَلَّا وَحَاشَا: «وَمَا بِكُمْ مِنْ نِعْمَةٍ فَمِنَ اللَّهِ» لَا مِنْ غَيْرِهِ،
By no means, God forbid: “Whatever blessing you have is from God” (Q 16:53), not from other than Him;
اِذْ غَيْرُهُ- تَعَالَى- لَا يُعْطِي وَلَا يَمْنَعُ، وَلَا يَضُرُّ وَلَا يَنْفَعُ،
since other than Him, Most High, neither gives nor withholds, neither harms nor benefits.
ثُمَّ اِذَا مَسَّكُمُ الضُّرُّ ، حَيْثُ مَا نَفَعَكُمُ اتِّقَاءُ مَنِ اتَّقَيْتُمُوهُ فَأَوْصَلَ اِلَيْكُمْ ضَرَّهُ وَشَرَّهُ ، عَلَى اعْتِقَادِكُمْ .
أَوْ خَابَ رَجَاؤُكُمْ فِيمَنْ رَجَوْتُوهُ فَمَا وَصَلَتْكُمْ مِنْهُ نِعْمَةٌ؟
جَأَرْتُمْ اِلَى اللَّهِ بِالتَّضَرُّعِ وَالدُّعَاءِ جُؤَارَ الْجُهَلَاءِ وَدَعَوْتُمُوهُ بِرَفْعِ أَصْوَاتِكُمْ دَعْوَةَ الْجَفَلَاءِ ،
لِأَنَّكُمْ تَوَهَّمْتُمْ بُعْدَهُ مِنْكُمْ ، وَانْفِصَالَهُ عَنْكُمْ ، وَهُوَ أَقْرَبُ اِلَيْكُمْ مِنْ جُلَسَائِكُمْ ، وَمِنْ حَبْلِ وَرِيدِكُمْ .
بَلْ أَقْرَبُ اِلَيْكُمْ مِنْ أَنْفُسِكُمْ ،
فَاِذَا أَجَابَ دُعَاءَكُمْ وَكَشَفَ الضُّرَّ عَنْكُمْ .
مَعَ هَذِهِ الْجَهَالَاتِ وَالْآدَابِ السَّيِّئَةِ وَالْأَوْهَامِ الْبَاطِلَةِ ؛ اِذَا فَرِيقٌ مِنْكُمْ بِرَبِّهِمْ يُشْرِكُونَ،
فَيَنْسُبُونَ مَا حَصَلَ مِنْ كَشْفِ ضُرٍّ، وَرَفْعِ شَرٍّ ، وَجَلْبِ نِعْمَةٍ ، وَاِفْضَالٍ وَرَحْمَةٍ ، اِلَى الْأَسْبَابِ الْمَعْهُودَةِ ، وَالْوَسَائِطِ الْمَشْهُودَةِ ،
وَنَسِيتُمُ اللَّهَ - تَعَالَى - مُسَبِّبَ الْأَسْبَابِ ، وَخَالِقَ الْوَسَائِطِ ،
فَحَجْبُ الْأَسْبَابِ أَعْظَمُ بَلِيَّةٍ ، وَأَكْبَرُ رَزِيَّةٍ ، عَلَى أَهْلِ الْحِجَابِ ،
وَلَا تَتَوَهَّمْ اِذَا رَأَيْتَ عَارِفاً خَافَ ، أَوْ رَجَا مَخْلُوقاً ، أَوِ اعْتَبَرَ الْأَسْبَابَ فِي ظَاهِرِهِ ، أَنَّهُ مِثْلُ الْمَحْجُوبِ فِي هَذَا ، هَيْهَاتَ !!
فَالْعَارِفُ اِنَّمَا يَخَافُ اللَّهَ فِي مَظَاهِرِهِ ، وَيَرْجُو اللَّهَ مِنْهَا ، اِذْ هُوَ - تَعَالَى - وَضَعَ الْوَسَائِطَ وَالْأَسْبَابَ وَأَمَرَ بِمُرَاعَاتِهَا حِكْمَةً وَعَدْلاً ،
فَشِرْكُ الْعَارِفِ حُكْمٌ لَا حَقِيقَةٌ ، اِذْ هُوَ مُتَحَقِّقٌ بِالْوَحْدَةِ الْحَقِيقِيَّةِ فَهُوَ مُوَحِّدٌ ، خَالِصُ التَّوْحِيدِ ، لَا غَيْرَ بِالذَّاتِ عِنْدَهُ .
فَمُرَاعَاتُهُ لِلْأَسْبَابِ ، عَلَامَةُ كَمَالِهِ ، وَرُسُوخِ قَدَمِهِ فِي الْمَعْرِفَةِ بِرَبِّهِ ، وَالْأَدَبِ مَعَهُ تَعَالَى .

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