The Book of Stations

1. Mawqif 288 · The messengers’ protection from error

   See the print: Damascus 1966, p. 881, Damascus 1966, p. 882 (archive.org)

   سَأَلَنِي بَعْضُ الْاِخْوَانِ، عَنْ قَوْلِ سَيِّدِنَا فِي الْفُتُوحَاتِ، فِي بَابِ الرِّسَـالَةِ الْبَشَرِيَّةِ: «وَلَاتُشْتَرَطُ الْعِصْمَةُ فِي حَقِّ الرَّسُولِ اِلاَّ فِيمَا يُبَلِّغُّهُ عَنِ اللَّهِ. فَاِنْ عُصِمَ مِنْ غَيْرِ هَذَا فَمِـنْ مَقَامٍ آخَرَ، وَهُوَ أَنْ يُخَاطِبَ الْعِبَادَ الْمُرْسَلَ اِلَيْهِمْ بِالتَّأَسِّي بِهِ...» اِلَخْ،

   One of the brethren asked me about the words of our master in the Futūḥāt, in the chapter on human messengership: «Infallibility is not a condition in the case of the Messenger except in what he conveys from God. If he is kept infallible in anything other than this, that is from another station: namely, that He addresses the servants to whom [the Messenger] is sent with [the call to] take him as their model …», etc.,✦

   ¶ 692

2. يُرِيدُ- رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ-: أَنَّ الْعِصْمَةَ وَاِنْ كَانَتْ ثَابِتَةً لِلرَّسُولِ مُطْلَقاً، فَثُبُوتُهَا مِنْ مَنْزِلَيْنِ مُخْتَلِفَيْنِ، لَا مِـنْ مَنْزِلِ الرِّسَالَةِ وَمَقَامِهَا فَقَطْ،

   He means — may God be pleased with him — that infallibility, even though it is established for the Messenger without restriction, is established from two different abodes, not from the abode and station of messengership alone;✦

   ¶ 693

3. فَمِنْ حَيْثُ أَنَّهُ رَسُولٌ مُبَلِّغٌ مَا أَمَرَهُ رَبُّهُ بِهِ، لَا يَثْبُتُ لِلرَّسُولِ الْعِصْمَةُ اِلاَّ فِيمَا يُبَلِّغُهُ عَنِ اللَّهِ فَقَطْ.

   For inasmuch as he is a messenger conveying what his Lord commanded him [to convey], infallibility is established for the Messenger only in what he conveys from God.✦

   ¶ 694

4. وَثُبُوتُ الْعِصْمَةِ لَهُ فِيمَا عَدَا ذَلِكَ لَيْسَ مِنْ مَنْزِلِ الرِّسَالَةِ وَمَقَامِهَا، وَلَكِنْ مِنْ مَقَامٍ وَمَنْزِلٍ آخَرَ، وَهُوَ أَمْرُ الْحَقِّ- تَعَالَى-، الْمُرْسَلَ اِلَيْهِمْ، بِالتَّأَسِّي بِالرَّسُولِ وَالِاقْتِـدَاءِ بِهِ، فِيمَا لَمْ يَخْتَصَّ بِهِ.

   The establishment of infallibility for him in whatever is other than that is not from the abode and station of messengership, but from another station and abode: namely, the Real's — exalted is He — commanding those to whom he is sent to take the Messenger as their model and to follow him in what is not particular to him.✦

   ¶ 695

5. وَالْحَقُّ- تَعَالَى- اِنَّمَا بَعَثَ الرُّسُلَ- عَلَيْهِمُ الصَّلَاةُ وَالسَّلَامُ- لِيُعَلِّمُوا الْخَلْقَ بِأَقْوَالِهِمْ وَأَفْعَالِهِمْ.

   The Real — exalted is He — sent the messengers — upon them be blessing and peace — only so that they might teach creation through their words and their deeds.✦

   ¶ 696

6. قَالَ تَعَالَى: «لَقَدْ كَانَ لَكُمْ فِي رَسُولِ اللّٰهِ أُسْوَةٌ حَسَنَةٌ».

   He, exalted is He, said: “Truly you have in the Messenger of God a fine example” (Q 33:21).✦

   ¶ 697

7. وَقَالَ: «قُلْ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ تُحِبُّونَ اللّٰهَ فَاتَّبِعُونِي يُحْبِبْكُمُ اللّٰهُ».

   And He said: “Say: if you love God, follow me; God will love you” (Q 3:31).✦

   ¶ 698

8. فَالْعِصْمَةُ ثَابِتَةٌ لِكُلِّ رَسُولٍ مُطْلَقاً، لَكِنْ مِـنْ مَقَامَيْنِ،

   So infallibility is established for every messenger without restriction, but from two stations;✦

   ¶ 699

9. وَلَا تُتَصَوَّرُ عِصْمَةُ الرَّسُولِ فِيمَا يُبَلِّغُهُ عَنِ اللَّهِ فَقَطْ، وَلَا يَكُونُ مَعْصُوماً فِي غَيْرِ ذَلِكَ.

   and it is inconceivable that the Messenger should be infallible only in what he conveys from God and not be infallible in anything else.✦

   ¶ 700

10. فَاِنَّ الْعِصْمَةَ هِيَ الْمَنْعُ مِمَّا نَهَى اللَّهُ عَنْهُ•

    For infallibility is being prevented from what God has forbidden,✦

    ¶ 701

11. وَنَهْيُهُ تَعَالَى لَا يُعْلَمُ اِلاَّ مِنَ الرَّسُولِ، فَاِنَّهُ لَا حُكْمَ اِلاَّ لِلشَّارِعِ•

    and His prohibition — exalted is He — is known only from the Messenger, for ruling belongs to none but the Lawgiver.✦

    ¶ 702

12. فَاحْذَرْ أَنْ تَتَوَهَّمَ أَنَّ سَيِّدَنَا لَا يَقُولُ بِعِصْمَةِ الرُّسُلِ– عَلَيْهِمُ الصَّلَاةُ وَالسَّلَامُ– مُطْلَقاً•

    So beware of imagining that our master does not hold that the messengers — upon them be blessing and peace — are infallible without restriction.✦

    ¶ 703

13. وَلَكِنَّ أَهْلَ هَذِهِ الطَّرِيقَةِ الْعَلِيَّةِ، لَمَّا اَطْلَعَهُمُ الْحَقُّ– تَعَالَى– عَلَى حَقَائِقِ الْأَشْيَاءِ، وَعَرَّفَهُمْ نِسْبَةَ كُلَّ شَيْءٍ فِي الْعَالَمِ، فَهُمْ يُثْبِتُونَ كُلَّ شَيْءٍ مِنْ مَقَامِهِ وَبَابِهِ•

    But the people of this exalted Way, since the Real — exalted is He — has given them sight of the realities of things and made known to them the relation of each thing in the world, establish each thing from its own station and its own door.✦

    ¶ 704

14. لَايَخْلِطُونَ الْحَقَائِقَ، كَمَا يَفْعَلُ مَنْ لَيْسَ لَهُ عِلْمُهُمْ وَلَا ذَوْقُهُمْ•

    They do not mix the realities, as does one who has neither their knowledge nor their tasting.✦

    ¶ 705

Translations, word glosses and term notes are AI-generated (Claude) and marked as such; no published translation is reproduced.Word analysis is automatic (CAMeL Tools), guided by the text's vowelling. How this text was established.