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 72 · Knowing the Essence without encompassing it
See the print: Damascus 1966, p. 142, Damascus 1966, p. 143, Damascus 1966, p. 144, Cairo, vol. 1, PDF p. 147, Cairo, vol. 1, PDF p. 148, Cairo, vol. 1, PDF p. 149 (archive.org)
قَالَ تَعَالَى: «أَلآ إِنَّهُ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ مُحِيطٌ»،
God, exalted is He, has said: “Truly, He encompasses all things” (Q 41:54),
وَقَالَ: «وَهُوَ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ عَلِيمٌ»،
and He has said: “And He has knowledge of all things” (Q 2:29; 6:101; 57:3).
اعْلَمْ: اَنَّ الْاِحَاطَةَ تَقْتَضِي تَحْدِيدَ الْمُحَاطِ بِهِ مِنْ جَمِيعِ وُجُوهِهِ وَجِهَاتِهِ، وَالْعِلْمُ؟ هُوَ اِدْرَاكُ الْمَعْلُومِ عَلَى مَاهُوَ عَلَيْهِ.
Know that encompassing requires delimiting what is encompassed in all its aspects and directions, whereas knowledge is the perception of the known thing as it is.
فَلِذَا نَقُولُ: الْحَقُّ- تَعَالَى- يَعْلَمُ ذَاتَهُ وَلَا يُحِيطُ بِهَا، لِأَنَّ ذَاتَهُ- تَعَالَى- غَيْرُ مُتَنَاهِيَةٍ،
That is why we say: the Real, exalted is He, knows His Essence but does not encompass it, because His Essence, exalted is He, is not finite.
فَلَوْ قُلْنَا، اِنَّهُ يُحِيطُ بِهَا؟ لَانْقَلَبَ الْعِلْمُ جَهْلاً، تَعَالَى الْحَقُّ عَنْ ذَلِكَ.
For were we to say that He encompasses it, knowledge would turn into ignorance; exalted is the Real above that.
لِأَنَّهُ- حِينَئِذٍ- تَعَلُّقٌ بِهَا، عَلَى خِلَافِ مَا هِيَ عَلَيْهِ مِنْ عَدَمِ التَّنَاهِي.
For it would then be a relation to it contrary to what it is in its non-finitude.
وَلَا نَقْصَ فِي قَوْلِنَا: «يَعْلَمُ ذَاتَهُ وَلَا يُحِيطُ بِهَا».
There is no deficiency in our saying: “He knows His Essence but does not encompass it.”
بَلْ هُوَ الْكَمَالُ.
Rather, that is perfection.
فَالْجَهْلُ عَلَى الْحَقِّ- تَعَالَى- مُحَالٌ، لِأَنَّ الْجَهْلَ اِدْرَاكُ الشَّيْءِ عَلَى غَيْرِ مَا هِيَ عَلَيْهِ حَقِيقَةُ ذَلِكَ الشَّيْءِ،
Ignorance is impossible for the Real, exalted is He, because ignorance is the perception of a thing otherwise than as the reality of that thing is;
وَاِحَاطَتُهُ بِالذَّاتِ الْعَلِيَّةِ مُحَالٌ، لِأَنَّ الْاِحَاطَةَ تَسْتَلْزِمُ التَّنَاهِيَ، وَالتَّنَاهِي عَلَى الْحَقِّ- تَعَالَى- مُحَالٌ.
and His encompassing the exalted Essence is impossible, because encompassing entails finitude, and finitude is impossible for the Real, exalted is He.
لَايُقَالُ: التَّنَاهِي وَعَدَمُ التَّنَاهِي مُشْعِرٌ بِاِمْكَانِ التَّبْعِيضِ وَالتَّجْزِئَةِ وَذَاتُ الْحَقِّ- تَعَالَى- وَاحِدٌ مِنْ كُلِّ وَجْهٍ وَحْدَةً حَقِيقِيَّةً لَيْسَ فِي مُقَابَلَةِ كَثْرَةٍ
It is not to be objected: finitude and non-finitude suggest the possibility of division into portions and parts, whereas the Essence of the Real, exalted is He, is one in every respect, with a real oneness that does not stand over against a multiplicity,
لِأَنَّا نَقُولُ: الْمُرَادُ بِعَدَمِ التَّنَاهِي فِي حَقِّ الذَّاتِ، الْوُجُودِ الْحَقِّ؟ عَدَمُ تَنَاهِي ظُهُورِهِ بِالْمَظَاهِرِ، وَتَعَيُّنِهِ بِالْأَسْمَاءِ وَالصُّوَرِ، الَّتِي هِيَ آثَارُ الْأَسْمَاءِ، أَوْ هِيَ الْأَسْمَاءُ عَيْنُهَا.
for we say: what is meant by non-finitude with regard to the Essence, the Real Existence, is the non-finitude of its manifestation through the loci of manifestation, and of its determination through the names and the forms, which are the traces of the names, or are the names themselves.
وَالظُّهُورُ وَالتَّعَيُّنُ؟ مُمْكِنٌ مِنْ حَيْثُ هُوَ.
Manifestation and determination are possible as such.
وَالْمُمْكِنَاتُ الَّتِي هِيَ مُتَعَلَّقَاتُ الْعِلْمِ وَالْقُدْرَةِ؟ لَانِهَايَةَ لَهَا، بِاِجْمَاعِ الْمُتَكَلِّمِينَ وَالْحُكَمَاءِ وَأَهْلِ اللَّهِ- تَعَالَى-.
And the possible things, which are the objects of knowledge and power, have no end, by the consensus of the theologians, the philosophers and the people of God, exalted is He.
فَلَوْ تَنَاهَى ظُهُورُ الذَّاتِ، بِظُهُورِ الْأَسْمَاءِ وَالصِّفَاتِ، بِظُهُورِ آثَارِهَا فِي الْمُمْكِنَاتِ؟ لَتَنَاهَتِ الْمُمْكِنَاتُ، الْمَعْلُومَاتُ الْمَقْدُورَاتُ، وَهُوَ مُحَالٌ.
So were the manifestation of the Essence, through the manifestation of the names and attributes, through the manifestation of their traces in the possible things, finite, the possible things, the known and the empowered-over, would be finite; and that is impossible.
وَلِذَا يُقَالُ: ذَاتُ الْحَقِّ- تَعَالَى- قَابِلٌ لِلْوُجُوبِ وَالْاِمْكَانِ.
That is why it is said: the Essence of the Real, exalted is He, is receptive of necessity and possibility.
فَالْوُجُوبُ ثَابِتٌ لِلذَّاتِ، الْوُجُودِ الْحَقِّ، مِنْ حَيْثُ هُوَ.
Necessity belongs to the Essence, the Real Existence, as such.
وَالْاِمْكَانُ؟ مِنْ حَيْثُ الظُّهُورُ، وَالتَّعَيُّنُ بِالْمُمْكِنَاتِ.
Possibility belongs to it with respect to manifestation and determination through the possible things.
وَمَا ذَكَرْنَاهُ مِنْ عَدَمِ اِحَاطَةِ الْعِلْمِ بِالذَّاتِ، الْوُجُودِ الْحَقِّ، الْمُرَادُ بِهِ الْعِلْمُ الَّذِي هُوَ شَأْنٌ مِنْ شُئُونِ الذَّاتِ، وَنِسْبَةٌ مِنْ نِسَبِهَا وَصُورَتُهُ.
As for what we mentioned about knowledge not encompassing the Essence, the Real Existence, what is meant by it is the knowledge that is one of the modes of the Essence, one of its relations, and its form.
وَمَظْهَرُهُ الْعَقْلُ الْأَوَّلُ، وَهُوَ الَّذِي يُعَبِّرُ عَنْهُ الْقَوْمُ- رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمْ- بِظَاهِرِ الْعِلْمِ،
Its locus of manifestation is the First Intellect; it is what the Folk, may God be pleased with them, express as “the outward of knowledge”,
وَهُوَ الْمَكْنِيُّ عَنْهُ بِقَابِ قَوْسَيْنِ ، وَهُوَ غَايَةُ مِعْرَاجِ الرُّسُلِ غَيْرِ مُحَمَّدٍ - صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ وَعَلَيْهِمْ - ، فَاِنَّ غَايَةَ مِعْرَاجِهِ أَوْ أَدْنَى «فَاءٌ» وَبِمَعْنَى «الْوَاوِ»
لِأَنَّ تَعَلُّقَ هَذَا الْعِلْمِ ، بِمَا تَعَلَّقَ بِهِ ؟ هُوَ عَيْنُ وُجُودِ الْمَعْلُومِ فِي الْخَارِجِ ، فَلَا يَتَعَلَّقُ بِمَا لَايَتَنَاهَى ، لِأَنَّ كُلَّ مَوْجُودٍ فِي الْخَارِجِ مُتَنَاهٍ .
وَأَمَّا الْعِلْمُ الذَّاتِيُّ الَّذِي هُوَ عَيْنُ الذَّاتِ مِنْ كُلِّ وَجْهٍ ؟ فَهُوَ مُحِيطٌ بِالذَّاتِ ، لِأَنَّهُ عَيْنُهَا ، مَعَ عَدَمِ تَنَاهِيهَا .
بَلْ
لَايُقَالُ فِي الشَّيْءِ : اِنَّهُ مُحِيطٌ بِنَفْسِهِ وَلَا غَيْرُ مُحِيطٍ •
قِيلَ لِي لَيْلَةً بِالْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ: الْحَقُّ - تَعَالَى - مَا عُرِفَ ؟ اِلَاّ لِكَوْنِهِ عَيْنَ الضِّدَّيْنِ •
قُلْتُ : نَعَمْ ، هُوَ كَذَلِكَ •
فَقِيلَ لِي : وَكَذَا هُوَ مُحِيطٌ بِذَاتِهِ مَعَ عَدَمِ تَنَاهِيهَا ، عَلَى مَا يَلِيقُ بِهِ •
وَمَا عَرَفَ اللَّهَ اِلَّا اللَّهُ ،
وَهَذِهِ الْمَسْأَلَةُ كَثُرَ الْخَوْضُ فِيهَا ، وَحَارَتْ فِيهَا أَهْلُ الْعُقُولِ ، وَأَهْلُ الْكَشْفِ ،
وَبِمَا ذَكَرْنَا يَحْصُلُ الْجَمْعُ بَيْنَ قَوْلِ اِمَامِ الْحَرَمَيْنِ : بِالِاسْتِرْسَالِ الَّذِي أَنْكَرَهُ عَلَيْهِ أَهْلُ زَمَانِهِ كَافَّةً ، وَبَيْنَ قَوْلِ الْفَخْرِ الرَّازِيِّ ، بِحُدُوثِ التَّعَلُّقَاتِ
لَوْ كَانَ الْمُتَكَلِّمُونَ يَقُولُونَ بِالْعِلْمِ ، الَّذِي هُوَ عَيْنُ الذَّاتِ ، مِنْ كُلِّ وَجْهٍ ، وَهُوَ غَيْبٌ ،
وَبِالْعِلْمِ الَّذِي هُوَ ظَاهِرُ هَذَا الْغَيْبِ ، وَهُوَ عَيْنُ الْمَوْجُودَاتِ الْخَارِجِيَّةِ ، وَبِهِ تَعَيَّنَتْ وَفِيهِ وَمِنْهُ •

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