➡️ CLASS: 13 ⬅️

EXPLANATION OF THE LĀMIYYAH OF IBN TAYMIYYAH (https://t.me/madrasatuna) LINE 9: The author, may Allāh have mercy on him, said: قُـبْـحًـا لِـمَـنْ نَـبَـذَ الْـقُـرَانَ وَرَاءَهُ Disgraced is he who throws the Qur'ān behind his back وَإِذَا اسْـتَـدَلَّ يَـقُـولُ قَـالَ الْأَخْـطَـلُ and when evidencing (his claims), says: "Al-Akhṭal said" 1. In this line, Shaykhul Islām rebukes the innovators; namely the Ashā'irah and the Mu'tazilah, who base issues of 'Aqīdah on the sayings of a christian poet known as Al-Akhṭal, rather than what is clearly established in the Qur'ān and Sunnah. 2. Who is Al-Akhṭal? Al-Akhṭal is the nickname of a famous Christian, 'Arab poet who lived in the Ummayyad period. His name is Ghiyāth Ibn Ghawth At-Taghlibī. 3. The Mu'tazilah misinterpreted the attribute of istiwā [ascension] to mean istawlā [conquering]. Their evidence for this innovated misinterpretation is the saying of Al-Akhṭal: قد استوى بشر على العراق - من غير سيف أو دم مهراق Bishr 'istawā' over 'Irāq - without a sword or any bloodshed They said: "Bishr 'istawā' over Iraq," means he conquered Iraq, hence, istawā can come to mean istawlā (to conquer). 3.1: How do we respond to this misconception? The are several responses: Firstly: They have turned away from the authentic evidences affirming the Attribute of Highness (Al-'Uluww) for Allāh, and instead have embraced the saying of a Christian poet; whose words not only contradict the Qur'ān and Sunnah, but also go against the concensus as well as the natural disposition. Secondly: This line of poetry itself is not proven to be from the poetry of the Arabs, nor is it found in Al-Akhṭal's poetry collection (Dīwān) . Thirdly: This particular wording is a distortion of the original line, which reads: بشر قد استولى على العراق Bishr conquered Iraq Fourthly: Supposing he actually said that, how can we base issues of Aqīdah on the statement of a Christian man who is not an authority in the Arabic language?! Fifthly: Even if we assume him to be Muslim, how can you reject authentic Prophetic narration on the pretext that they are Āḥād (solitary narration), yet readily accept the statement of this individual?! Are you not the ones who claim that issues of 'Aqīdah must only be based on Mutawātir Ḥadīth? So why do you base your 'Aqīdah on the statements of some unknown poet?! Sixthly: The meaning of this line is actually incorrect, because no where in the Arabic language does istiwā mean to conquer. Therefore, this is a distortion (taḥrīf) of the texts on the part of these innovators. 4. As for the Ashā'irah, they claim that Allāh's Speech subsists in His Self. Their evidence for this innovated belief is another saying of Al-Akhṭal: إن الكلام لفي الفؤاد وإنما - جعل اللسان عليه دليلا "Verily, speech exists in the heart - and the tongue is merely an indicator of what is in the heart" Based on this line, they claimed that Allāh's speech is not comprised of letters or a voice, but rather, His eternal, uncreated speech subsists in His Self (Kalām Nafsī), and that letters and sound are created by Allāh only as an expression ('ibārah) of the inner Speech of Allāh. 4.1: How do we respond to this misconception? The scholars have likewise mentioned several responses to this: Firstly: They have turned away from the divine texts affirming Allāh's speech in a literal sense; comprising letters and a voice, and instead have embraced a line of poetry 'ascribed' to a Christian poet. Secondly: This line of poetry itself is not proven to be from the poetry of the Arabs, nor is it found in the poetry collection of Al-Akhṭal. Thirdly: It is said that this is a distortion of the original line, which reads: إن البيان لفي الفؤاد ... Expressions emanate from the heart...