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 289 · The secret behind “if He had willed”
Context: the Emir says this point about God’s will is for those ready for it, since a jurist hearing it could take it for unbelief.
See the print: Damascus 1966, p. 882, Damascus 1966, p. 883, Damascus 1966, p. 884 (archive.org)
سَأَلَنِي بَعْضُ الْاِخْوَانِ عَنْ قَوْلِ سَيِّدِنَا فِي بَابِ الْوِلَايَةِ الْمَلَكِيَّةِ: «وَلَا يَنْبَغِي أَنْ يَكُونَ الْاِلَهُ اِلاَّ مَنْ هَذِهِ اَسْمَاؤُهُ، مُضَافٌ اِلَيْهَا مَشِيئَتُهُ وَاِرَادَتُهُ، الْمُقَيَّدَتَانِ بِلَوْ، وَهُوَ حَرْفُ امْتِنَاعٍ، فِيهِ سِرٌّ خَفِيٌّ لِأَهْلِ الْعِلْمِ بِاللَّهِ»،
One of the brethren asked me about the words of our master in the chapter on angelic sainthood: “It is not fitting that the God be any other than the One whose names are these, with His will and His volition attached to them, the two being restricted by ‘law’ (‘if’), which is a particle of impossibility; in it there is a hidden secret for the people of knowledge of God”,
السِّرُّ الَّذِي أَشَارَ اِلَيْهِ– رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ– هُوَ أَنَّهُ تَعَالَى مَا ذَكَرَ أَنَّ لَهُ مَشِيئَةً وَاِرَادَةً وَاخْتِيَاراً؟ اِلاَّ مِنْ أَجْلِ مَنْ يَقُولُ: اِنَّهُ تَعَالَى عِلَّةٌ أَوْ طَبِيعَةٌ، لَا يَفْعَلُ مَا يَفْعَلُ بِمَشِيئَةٍ وَاِرَادَةٍ وَاخْتِيَارٍ•
The secret he alluded to, may God be pleased with him, is that He, Exalted is He, mentioned that He has will, volition and choice only on account of those who say that He, Exalted is He, is a cause or a nature that does not do what it does by will, volition and choice.
اِذِ الْفَاعِلُ عِنْدَ الْحُكَمَاءِ وَبَعْضِ الْمُتَكَلِّمِينَ أَنْوَاعٌ: فَاعِلٌ بِالْعِلِّيَّةِ، وَهُوَ الَّذِي يَكُونُ مِنْهُ الْفِعْلُ دُونَ التَّرْكِ•
For the agent, according to the philosophers and some of the theologians, is of several kinds: an agent by causality, the one from whom the act comes and never its omission;
وَفَاعِلٌ بِالطَّبِيعَةِ، وَهُوَ الَّذِي يَتَوَقَّفُ فِعْلُهُ عَلَى وُجُودِ شَرْطٍ وَانْتِفَاءِ مَانِعٍ•
an agent by nature, the one whose act depends on the presence of a condition and the absence of an impediment;
وَفَاعِلٌ بِالْمَشِيئَةِ وَالْاِرَادَةِ وَالِاخْتِيَارِ•
and an agent by will, volition and choice.
فَأَثْبَتَ لَهُ تَعَالَى الْمَشِيئَةَ وَالْاِرَادَةَ الْمُقَيَّدَتَيْنِ بِـ «لَوْ» الِامْتِنَاعِيَّةِ، وَهِيَ كَمَا قِيلَ: حَرْفٌ مَشْؤُمٌ، لَا يَكُونُ مَا بَعْدَهَا•
So he affirmed for Him, Exalted is He, will and volition restricted by the ‘law’ of impossibility, which is, as has been said, an ill-omened particle: what comes after it does not come to be,
وَاِنْ كَانَتْ لَا تَدْخُلُ فِي اللِّسَانِ اِلاَّ عَلَى مُمْكِنٍ•
even though in the language it is placed only upon something possible.
قَالَ تَعَالَى: «وَلَوْ شِئْنَا لَآتَيْنَا كُلَّ نَفْسٍ هُدَاهَا».
God Most High said: “Had We willed, We would have given every soul its guidance” (Q 32:13).
فَمَا شَاءَ، وَلَا آتَى كُلَّ نَفْسٍ هُدَاهَا•
Yet He did not will, and He did not give every soul its guidance.
وَقَالَ: «فَلَوْ شَاءَ لَهَدَاكُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ».
And He said: “Had He willed, He would have guided you all” (Q 6:149).
فَمَا شَاءَ وَلَا هَدَى الْجَمِيعَ.
Yet He did not will, and He did not guide all.
وَقَالَ: «وَلَوْ شَاءَ رَبُّكَ مَا فَعَلُوهُ».
And He said: “Had your Lord willed, they would not have done it” (Q 6:112).
فَمَا شَاءَ وَفَعَلُوهُ.
Yet He did not will, and they did it.
وَقَالَ: «لَوْ أَرَدْنَا أَنْ نَتَّخِذَ لَهْوًا لَاتَّخَذْنَاهُ مِنْ لَدُنَّا».
And He said: “Had We wanted to take a diversion, We would have taken it from Our own presence” (Q 21:17).
فَمَا أَرَادَ وَلَا اتَّخَذَ لَهْواً.
Yet He did not want, and He did not take a diversion.
وَالْمُرَادُ مِنْ اِثْبَاتِ هَذَا أَنَّهُ تَعَالَى غَيْرُ مُكْرَهٍ وَلَا مَجْبُورٍ لِغَيْرٍ، وَهُوَ كَذَلِكَ.
What is meant by affirming this is that He, Exalted is He, is neither constrained nor compelled by another, and so He is.
فَاِنَّهُ يَفْعَلُ مَا شَاءَ، وَشَاءَ مَا عَلِمَ، وَعَلِمَ الْمَعْلُومَ عَلَى مَا هُوَ عَلَيْهِ، فَهُوَ يُوجِدُهُ عَلَى ذَلِكَ.
For He does what He wills, and He wills what He knows, and He knows the known thing as it is in itself, and so He brings it into existence accordingly.
فَمَا تَرَكَ سَبْقُ الْعِلْمِ بِالرُّتْبَةِ الْـ «لَوْ» شَاءَ. وَلَوْ أَرَادَ مَحَلّاً.
So the precedence of knowledge in rank left no room for ‘had He willed’ and ‘had He wanted’.
فَالْمَشِيئَةُ وَالْاِرَادَةُ وَاحِدَةٌ.
So will and volition are one.
قَالَ:
He said:
وَقَالَ: «مَا يُبَدَّلُ ٱلْقَوْلُ لَدَيَّ».
And He said: “The word is not changed with Me” (Q 50:29).
وَقَالَ: «كَذَٰلِكَ حَقَّتْ كَلِمَةُ رَبِّكَ».
And He said: “Thus the word of your Lord has come true” (Q 10:33).
وَقَالَ: «وَلَٰكِنْ حَقَّ ٱلْقَوْلُ مِنِّي».
And He said: “But the word from Me has come true” (Q 32:13).
فَنَفَى بِهَذَا عَنْ نَفْسِهِ: لَوْ شَاءَ، لَوْ أَرَادَ، وَأَثْبَتَ عَيْنَ مَا شَاءَ، مِنْ غَيْرِ تَحَيُّزٍ فِي ذَلِكَ، وَالْوُجُودُ مَحْصُورٌ فِي وَاجِبٍ بِذَاتِهِ، وَوَاجِبٍ بِغَيْرِهِ.
By this He denied of Himself "if He willed" and "if He wanted", and affirmed the very thing He willed, without any taking of sides in that, since existence is confined to what is necessary by its essence and what is necessary through another.
وَلَمَّا انْتَفَى الْاِمْكَانُ انْتَفَى الِاخْتِيَارُ.
And since possibility is negated, choice is negated.
فَلَيْسَ عِنْدَهُ تَعَالَى تَرَدُّدٌ بَيْنَ شَيْئَيْنِ، الَّذِي هُوَ مَعْنَى الِاخْتِيَارِ فِي اللِّسَانِ.
So with Him, exalted is He, there is no wavering between two things, which is the meaning of "choice" in the language.
وَالَّذِي صَحَّحَ هَذَا عِنْدَ النُّظَّارِ مِنَ الْمُتَكَلِّمِينَ هُوَ حَقِيقَةُ الْمُمْكِنِ.
What made this valid for the speculative thinkers among the theologians is the definition of the possible,
فَاِنَّهُ- أَيِ الْمُمْكِنَ- مَا يَصِحُّ وُجُودُهُ وَعَدَمُهُ عَلَى السَّوَاءِ، مَعَ مَا ذَكَرَهُ تَعَالَى مِنَ الْمَشِيئَةِ وَالْاِرَادَةِ الْمَقْرُونَتَيْنِ «بِلَوْ» وَمِنَ الِاخْتِيَارِ، وَمَا تَفَطَّنُوا لِمَا وَرَاءَ ذَلِكَ.
for it, that is, the possible, is that whose existence and non-existence are equally admissible, together with what He, exalted is He, mentioned of will and wanting coupled with "if", and of choice; and they did not perceive what lies beyond that.
وَهَذِهِ الْمَسْأَلَةُ مِنَ الْأَسْرَارِ الَّتِي لَاتُذَاعُ؛ اِلاَّ لِمَنْ غَطَّى نُورُ اِيمَانِهِ نُورَ عَقْلِهِ.
This question is one of the secrets that are not to be divulged, except to one in whom the light of his faith has covered the light of his reason.
وَمَحَقَ التَّسْلِيمُ مَا عَرَفَهُ مِنْ دَرْسِهِ وَنَقْلِهِ.
and in whom submission has effaced what he knew from his study and from transmission.
وَكَانَ كَمَا قِيلَ: السِّرُّ عِنْدِي فِي بَيْتٍ لَهُ غَلَقٌ قَدْ ضَاعَ مِفْتَاحُهُ وَالْبَابُ مَرْدُومُ
And he is as it has been said: "The secret, with me, is in a house that has a bolt; its key is lost and the door walled up."
لِأَنَّهُ اِذَا سَمِعَهُ مِنْهُ عَالِمٌ فَقِيهٌ كَفَّرَهُ وَزَنْدَقَةً، وَقَالَ: اِنَّهُ كَذَّبَ الْقُرْآنَ، وَنَفَى عَنِ اللَّهِ ــ تَعَالَى ــ مَا أَثْبَتَهُ لِنَفْسِهِ، فَتَشَوَّشَ حَالُهُ وَشَوَّشَ غَيْرَهُ، وَمَا كُلُّ مَا يُعْلَمُ يُقَالُ.
For if a learned jurist heard it from him, he would declare him an unbeliever and a heretic, and say: he has given the lie to the Qurʾān and denied of God, exalted is He, what He affirmed of Himself; so his state would be thrown into confusion and he would confuse others. Not everything that is known is said.
وَلَا كُلُّ عَقْلٍ يَجُولُ فِي هَذَا الْمَقَالِ.
Nor does every intellect roam in this discourse.

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