The Book of Stations
المواقف
Context: The soul as one substance that is each of its faculties and acts through their loci is the school's standard analogy for the Real and creatures; critics contest it. The Emir explicitly denies 'familiar' ḥulūl and ittiḥād. His verse from Ibn al-Fāriḍ's Tāʾiyya was attacked as ittiḥād by Ibn Taymiyya and al-Biqāʿī, read as realized unveiling by al-Farghānī and al-Nābulusī.AI
قَالَ تَعَالَى: «إِنَّكُمْ ظَلَمْتُمْ أَنْفُسَكُمْ».
God Most High said: "You have wronged yourselves" (Q 2:54).
In briefAI
The Emir collects verses and ḥadīths that seem to split a person in two: wronger and wronged, forbidder and forbidden, purifier and purified, speaker and hearer, the one who forestalls God and the self he forestalls with. He answers that the rational soul is one indivisible substance. In truth it is itself each faculty and bodily part, though not by indwelling or union in the usual sense. Veils make the faculties distinct and each one bound to its own work. So when the imperfect soul sins through one faculty, it is the wrongdoer, and it is also wronged in the faculties that did not take part. In the perfect, the prophets from their formation and the heirs after wayfaring, the faculties are united, as Ibn al-Fāriḍ says.
See the print: Damascus 1966, p. 1029 ↗, Damascus 1966, p. 1030 ↗, Damascus 1966, p. 1031 ↗ (archive.org)
وَقَالَ: «وَلَٰكِنْ كَانُوا أَنْفُسَهُمْ يَظْلِمُونَ».
And He said: "but it was themselves they used to wrong" (Q 2:57).
وَقَالَ: «وَمَا ظَلَمْنَاهُمْ وَلَٰكِنْ ظَلَمُوا أَنْفُسَهُمْ».
And He said: "We did not wrong them, but they wronged themselves" (Q 11:101).
وَقَالَ: «وَدَخَلَ جَنَّتَهُ وَهُوَ ظَالِمٌ لِنَفْسِهِ».
And He said: "And he entered his garden, wronging himself" (Q 18:35).
وَقَالَ: «فَمِنْهُمْ ظَالِمٌ لِنَفْسِهِ».
And He said: "Among them is one who wrongs himself" (Q 35:32).
وَنَحْوُ هَذَا مِمَّا يُفْهَمُ مِنْهُ أَنَّ فِي جِسْمِ الْاِنْسَانِ ظَالِماً وَمَظْلُوماً
And the like of this is among the verses from which it is understood that in the human body there is a wronger and a wronged.
وَقَالَ: «وَنَهَى النَّفْسَ عَنِ الْهَوَىٰ».
And He said: "and forbade the soul its caprice" (Q 79:40).
فَهَذَا يُفْهِمُ أَنَّ الْاِنْسَانَ مِنْهُ نَاهٍ، وَمِنْهُ مَنْهِيٌّ،
This makes it understood that of man there is one part that forbids and one part that is forbidden.
وَقَالَ: «قَدْ أَفْلَحَ مَنْ زَكَّاهَا، وَقَدْ خَابَ مَنْ دَسَّاهَا».
And He said: "He has prospered who purifies it, and he has failed who buries it" (Q 91:9–10).
وَهَذَا يُفْهِمُ أَنَّ الْاِنْسَانَ مِنْهُ مُزَكٍّ، وَمُزَكًّى، وَمِنْهُ دَاسٌّ وَمَدْسُوسٌ.
And this makes it understood that of man there is one who purifies and one purified, and one who buries and one buried.
وَفِي الصَّحِيحِ: «اِنَّ اللَّهَ تَجَاوَزَ لِاُمَّتِي مَا حَدَّثَتْ بِهِ اَنْفُسُهَا».
Quotes a hadith: Muslim 127a, part of it · in a Ṣaḥīḥ, no separate grade · sunnah.com ↗
And in the Ṣaḥīḥ: "God has passed over for my community what their souls speak to them of."
فَهَذَا يَقْتَضِي: أَنَّ الْاِنْسَانَ مِنْهُ مُحَدِّثٌ وَمِنْهُ سَامِعٌ.
This requires that of man there is one who speaks and one who hears.
وَفِي الصَّحِيحِ أَيْضاً فِي قَاتِلِ نَفْسِهِ: يَقُولُ اللَّهُ: «بَادَرَنِي عَبْدِي بِنَفْسِهِ».
Quotes a hadith: al-Bukhārī 3463 (a divine saying), part of it · in a Ṣaḥīḥ, no separate grade · sunnah.com ↗
And also in the Ṣaḥīḥ, concerning the one who kills himself: God says: "My servant has hastened to Me with his own self."
فَهَذَا يَقْضِي بِأَنَّ الْاِنْسَانَ مِنْهُ مُبَادِرٌ وَمُبَادَرٌ بِهِ.
This decides that of man there is one who hastens and one hastened with.
فَاعْلَمْ أَنَّ نَفْسَ الْاِنْسَانِ النَّاطِقَةَ الْمُسَّمَّاةَ بِاللَّطِيفَةِ الْاِنْسَانِيَّةِ وَالرُّوحِ الْجُزْئِيَّةِ؛ جَوْهَرٌ وَاحِدٌ غَيْرُ مُتَعَدِّدٍ، وَلَا يَقْبَلُ التَّجْزِئَةَ وَالتَّبْعِيضَ
Know, then, that the rational soul of man, called the human subtle reality and the particular spirit, is a single substance, not multiple, and it does not admit of division or partition.
وَهُوَ الْمُدَبِّرُ الْمُتَصَرِّفُ فِي الْجِسْمِ، وَلَهُ قُوًى وَآلَاتٌ جِسْمَانِيَّةٌ، بِهَا يَعْمَلُ وَبِعَمَلِ الْجُزْئِيَّاتِ
It is what governs and disposes in the body, and it has bodily faculties and instruments: through them it acts, and through the working of the particulars.
وَكُلُّ قُوَّةٍ مِنَ الْقُوَى الظَّاهِرَةِ وَالْبَاطِنَةِ تَعْمَلُ بِهَا النَّفْسُ النَّاطِقَةُ جَمِيعَ أَعْمَالِ الْقُوَى الْأُخْرَى فِي الْحَقِيقَةِ وَنَفْسِ الْأَمْرِ،
And every faculty among the outward and inward faculties is one by which the rational soul performs all the works of the other faculties, in reality and in the thing itself;
فَتَسْمَعُ بِمَا بِهِ تُبْصِرُ، بِمَا بِهِ تَشَمُّ، بِمَا بِهِ تَذُوقُ، بِمَا بِهِ تَلْمِسُ، بِمَا بِهِ تَبْطِشُ، بِمَا بِهِ تَسْعَى، بِمَا بِهِ تَتَخَيَّلُ، بِمَا بِهِ تَعْقِلُ وَتُبْصِرُ وَتَسْمَعُ.
so it hears by that by which it sees, by which it smells, by which it tastes, by which it touches, by which it grasps, by which it walks, by which it imagines, by which it reasons and sees and hears.
كَذَلِكَ اِلَى آخِرِ الْقُوَى الْاِنْسَانِيَّةِ.
And so on to the last of the human faculties.
بَلْ كُلُّ جُزْءٍ مِنْ أَجْزَاءِ الْجِسْمِ بِهَذِهِ الْمَثَابَةِ،
Indeed, every part of the parts of the body is of this standing,
فَيَتَحَدَّثُ الْاِنْسَانُ وَيَسْمَعُ حَدِيثَ نَفْسِهِ، وَيَرَى نَفْسَهُ بِنَفْسِهِ، وَيَضْبِطُ نَفْسَهُ بِنَفْسِهِ عَنْ أَشْيَاءَ فَيُزَكِّيهَا، وَيُرْسِلُ نَفْسَهُ فِي أَشْيَاءَ فَيُدَنِّسُهَا وَيَدُسُّهَا، وَيَنْهَي نَفْسَهُ بِنَفْسِهِ عَنْ أَشْيَاءَ.
so a man speaks and hears the speech of his own self, sees himself by himself, restrains himself by himself from things and so purifies it, lets himself loose in things and so defiles and buries it, and forbids himself by himself from things.
فَالْأَصْلُ فِى الْاِنْسَانِ اِيجَادُ الْقُوَى لِوَحْدَةِ الْجَوْهَرِ النَّفْسِ الْمُدَبِّرِ،
The root principle in man is the bringing into being of the faculties through the unity of the substance, the governing soul;
وَمَعَ وَحْدَتِهِ الْحَقِيقِيَّةِ؛ هُوَ عَيْنُ كُلِّ قُوَّةٍ مِنْ قُوَاهُ، وَجُزْءٍ مِنْ أَجْزَاءِ جِسْمِهِ، مِنْ غَيْرِ حُلُولٍ الْحُلُولَ الْمَعْرُوفَ، وَلَا اتِّحَادٍ الِاتِّحَادَ الْمَأْلُوفَ.
and while it is truly one, it is the very self of each of its faculties and of each part of the parts of its body, without indwelling in the manner of the familiar indwelling, and without union in the manner of the customary union.
فَلَمَّا طَرَأَتِ الْحُجُبُ وَحَدَثَتِ الْمَوَانِعُ تَمَايَزَتِ الْقُوَى مَعَ بَعْضِهَا بَعْضاً ، وَتَقَيَّدَتْ كُلُّ قُوَّةٍ بِعَمَلٍ خَاصٍّ وَطَرِيقَةٍ وَاحِدَةٍ .
وَالنَّفْسُ الْاِنْسَانِيَّةُ عَيْنُ كُلِّ قُوَّةٍ بِعَمَلٍ خَاصٍّ وَطَرِيقَةٍ وَاحِدَةٍ .
وَالنَّفْسُ الْاِنْسَانِيَّةُ عَيْنُ كُلِّ قُوَّةٍ .
وَالْعَمَلُ لَهَا .
فَاِنَّ الْأَثَرَ لِلظَّاهِرِ لَا لِلْمَظْهَرِ،
فَلِهَٰذَا كَانَتِ النَّفْسُ النَّاطِقَةُ الْاِنْسَانِيَّةُ غَيْرُ الْكَامِلَةِ ، إِذَا فَعَلَتْ شَيْئاً غَيْرَ مَشْرُوعٍ وَلَا مَعْرُوفٍ ، بِقُوَّةٍ مِنْ قُوَاهَا الْمُتَغَايِرَةِ الْمَخْصُوصَةِ ، كُلُّ قُوَّةٍ مِنْهَا بِفِعْلٍ خَاصٍّ، لِلسَّبَبِ الَّذِي قَدَّمْنَاهُ ، ظَالِمَةً مِنْ حَيْثُ أَنَّهَا عَيْنُ تِلْكَ الْقُوَّةِ الَّتِي ظَهَرَ الْأَثَرُ وَالْفِعْلُ عَنْهَا .
مَظْلُومَةً لِنَفْسِهَا مِنْ حَيْثُ أَنَّهَا عَيْنُ بَاقِي الْقُوَى الَّتِي مَا شَارَكَتْ فِي فِعْلِ ذَٰلِكَ الشَّيْءِ الْمَنْهِيِّ عَنْهُ شَرْعاً أَوْ عُرْفاً ، وَيَلْحَقُهَا شُؤْمُ ذَٰلِكَ الْفِعْلِ وَضَرَرُهُ ،
فَمَا دَامَتِ النَّفْسُ مُنْقَسِمَةً فِي أَحْكَامِ الطَّبِيعَةِ ، مُشْتَغِلَةً بِالْأَغْيَارِ الْمُتَمَايِزَةِ ، لَايَظْهَرُ عَنْهَا أَثَرٌ مِنْ أَحْكَامِ اتِّحَادِ الْقُوَى وَالْأَجْزَاءِ الْجِسْمِيَّةِ .
فَاِذَا بَلَغَ الْاِنْسَانُ مَرْتَبَةَ الْكَمَالِ ، وَتَحَقَّقَ بِمَظْهَرِيَّةِ الْحَضْرَةِ الْمُسَمَّاةِ بِأَحَدِيَّةِ الْجَمْعِ ، مَرْتَبَةِ الْأَنْبِيَاءِ مِنْ أَوَّلِ نَشْأَتِهِمْ ، وَيَتَحَقَّقُ بِهَا الْكُمَّلُ مِنَ الْوَرَثَةِ بَعْدَ سُلُوكِهِمْ ؛ صَارَ بَصَراً كُلُّهُ وَسَمْعاً كُلُّهُ اِلَى سَائِرِ قُوَاهُ وَأَجْزَاءِ بَدَنِهِ ،
وَاِلَى مَرْتَبَةِ اتِّحَادِ الْقُوَى وَالْأَجْزَاءِ الْجِسْمِيَّةِ ، يُشِيرُ الْاِمَامُ ابْنُ الْفَارِضِ ـ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ ـ بِقَوْلِهِ :
هِيَ النَّفْسُ اِنْ أَلْقَتْ هَوَاهَا تَضَاعَفَتْ قُوَاهَا وَأَعْطَتْ فِعْلَهَا كُلَّ ذَرَّةِ
اللَّهُمَّ حَقِّقْنَا بِمَا حَقَّقْتَ بِهِ مَنِ اصْطَنَعْتَهُمْ لِنَفْسِكَ ، وَاصْطَفَيْتَهُمْ.
فَأَنْتَ الْمَلِيءُ بِهِ الْقَادِرُ عَلَيْهِ .
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.