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 36 · “Except to be obeyed”
See the print: Damascus 1966, p. 83, Damascus 1966, p. 84, Cairo, vol. 1, PDF p. 92, Cairo, vol. 1, PDF p. 93 (archive.org)
قَالَ تَعَالَى: «وَمَا أَرْسَلْنَا مِنْ رَسُولٍ إِلاَّ لِيُطَاعَ بِإِذْنِ اللَّهِ».
He, exalted is He, said: “And We sent no messenger except to be obeyed by the permission of God” (Q 4:64).
هَذَا اِخْبَارٌ مِنْهُ ـ تَعَالَى ـ أَنَّهُ مَا أَرْسَلَ رَسُولاً مِنْ رُسُلِهِ: اِلاَّ لِيُطَاعَ أَيْ اِلاَّ لِيُطِيعَهُ كُلُّ مَنْ أُرْسِلَ اِلَيْهِمُ الْمُصَدِّقُ وَالْمُكَذِّبُ، وَالْمُهْتَدِي بِهِ وَالضَّالُّ،
This is a statement from Him, exalted is He, that He sent no messenger of His messengers except to be obeyed, that is, except that he be obeyed by everyone to whom he was sent: the one who affirms him and the one who denies him, the one guided by him and the one who goes astray;
وَذَلِكَ اِمَّا طَاعَةُ الْأَمْرِ الظَّاهِرِ، وَاِمَّا طَاعَةُ الْمَشِيئَةِ الْبَاطِنَةِ.
and that is either obedience to the outward command or obedience to the inward will.
وَاِذَا أَرْسَلَ الْحَقُّ ـ تَعَالَى ـ رُسُلَهُ لِيُطَاعُوا فَلَا يَكُونُ غَيْرُ الطَّاعَةِ أَبَداً.
And since the Real, exalted is He, sends His messengers to be obeyed, there is never anything other than obedience.
بَلْ لَايُتَصَوَّرُ خِلَافُ الطَّاعَةِ.
Indeed, the opposite of obedience cannot even be conceived.
وَكُلُّ رَسُولٍ لَابُدَّ أَنْ يَهْتَدِيَ بِهِ بَعْضُ مَنْ أُرْسِلَ اِلَيْهِمْ، وَيَضِلَّ بِهِ بَعْضٌ، فَاِنَّهُ أُرْسِلَ لِبَيَانِ الطَّاعَتَيْنِ مَعاً
With every messenger it must be that some of those to whom he was sent are guided by him and some go astray by him, for he was sent to make both obediences plain together.
قَالَ ـ تَعَالَى ـ فِي حَقِّ الْقُرْآنِ الْعَظِيمِ: «يُضِلُّ بِهِ كَثِيراً وَيَهْدِي بِهِ كَثِيراً».
He, exalted is He, said concerning the mighty Qurʾān: “By it He leads many astray, and by it He guides many” (Q 2:26).
وَمَا أُطِيعَ رَسُولٌ الطَّاعَةَ الظَّاهِرَةَ بِحَيْثُ اهْتَدَى بِهِ كُلُّ مَنْ أُرْسِلَ اِلَيْهِمْ وَلَا عُصِىَ بِحَيْثُ مَا اهْتَدَى بِهِ أَحَدٌ.
No messenger has been obeyed with the outward obedience such that everyone to whom he was sent was guided by him, nor disobeyed such that no one at all was guided by him.
وَلَابُدَّ لِكُلِّ رَسُولٍ مِنْ هَذَيْنِ الْأَمْرَيْنِ، وَلِمَنْ أُرْسِلَ اِلَيْهِمْ مِنَ الطَّاعَةِ بِهَذَيْنِ الْحُكْمَيْنِ، وَظُهُورِ الضَّلَالَةِ وَالْهِدَايَةِ فِيهِمْ.
Every messenger must have these two things, and those to whom he was sent must have obedience according to these two rulings, and the manifestation of misguidance and guidance among them.
فَالْمُهْتَدِي أَطَاعَ الْأَمْرَ الظَّاهِرَ، وَالضَّالُّ أَطَاعَ الْأَمْرَ الْبَاطِنَ.
So the guided one obeyed the outward command, and the one astray obeyed the inward command.
وَكِلَا الْأَمْرَيْنِ أُرْسِلَ الرَّسُولُ بِهِمَا، لِأَنَّ رِسَالَتَهُ لِتَبَيُّنِ الرُّشْدِ مِنَ الْغَيِّ،
And the messenger was sent with both commands, because his message is for right guidance to become distinct from error;
فَحَيْثُ كَانَ ضَلَالُ الضَّالِّ مَسْتُوراً وَتَبَيَّنَ بِسَبَبِ الرَّسُولِ، كَأَنَّ ظُهُورَ ضَلَالِهِ طَاعَةٌ لِلرَّسُولِ مِنْ هَذَا الْوَجْهِ، لِأَنَّهُ لَابُدَّ مِنْ ظُهُورِ الْهُدَى وَالضَّلَالَةِ بِالرَّسُولِ فَكَأَنَّ الرَّسُولَ أُرْسِلَ بِذَلِكَ.
So, since the straying of the one astray was hidden and became manifest by means of the messenger, it is as though the manifestation of his straying were obedience to the messenger in this respect; for guidance and misguidance must become manifest through the messenger, so it is as though the messenger was sent with that.
فَظُهُورُ الضَّلَالَةِ طَاعَةٌ لَهُ،
Thus the manifestation of misguidance is obedience to him.
وَقَوْلُهُ: «بِاِذْنِ اللَّهِ» أَيْ بِعِلْمِهِ، يَعْنِي أَنَّ الْوَاقِعَ مِنْ طَاعَةِ كُلِّ رَسُولٍ بِهَذَيْنِ الْأَمْرَيْنِ، وَظُهُورَ أَثَرِ هَذَيْنِ الِاسْمَيْنِ، الْهَادِى، وَالْمُضِلِّ؛ وَاقِعٌ بِعِلْمِهِ وَاِرَادَتِهِ ـ تَعَالَى ـ
And His words “by the permission of God” mean: by His knowledge. That is, what occurs of obedience to every messenger in these two respects, and the manifestation of the effect of these two names, the Guide and the Misguider, occurs by His knowledge and His will, exalted is He.
وَجَلَّ رَبُّنَا أَنْ يَقَعَ فِي مُلْكِهِ مَا لَا يَعْلَمُهُ وَلَا يُرِيدُهُ،
And our Lord is too exalted for anything to occur in His dominion that He does not know and does not will.
أَوْ مَعْنَى «بِاِذْنِ اللَّهِ» بِأَعْلَامِهِ، أَيْ لَابُدَّ مِنْ طَاعَةِ كُلِّ رَسُولٍ بِاِظْهَارِ الْهُدَى وَالضَّلَالَةِ.
Or the meaning of “by the permission of God” is: by His making known; that is, obedience to every messenger, by the bringing into manifestation of guidance and misguidance, is inevitable.
وَهَذَا بِاِعْلَامِ اللَّهِ وَأَخْبَارِهِ.
And this is by God's making known and His reports.
وَخَبَرُهُ عَلَى وَفْقِ عِلْمِهِ.
And His report accords with His knowledge.
وَالْخَبَرُ عَلَى وَفْقِ الْعِلْمِ؛ لَايَكُونُ اِلاَّ صِدْقاً.
And a report in accordance with knowledge cannot be anything but true.
وَأَمَّا كَوْنُ اللَّامِ فِي «لِيُطَاعَ» لَامَ الْعِلَّةِ أَوْ لَامَ الْعَاقِبَةِ وَالصَّيْرُورَةِ وَكَوْنُ الطَّاعَةِ طَاعَةَ الْأَمْرِ الظَّاهِرِ فَقَطْ؛ فَمِمَّا يَأْبَاهُ التَّحْقِيقُ.
As for the lām in “to be obeyed” being the lām of cause or the lām of outcome and becoming, and obedience being obedience to the outward command only: that is among what verification rejects.

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