Al-Qawl al-Mufid ala Kitab al-Tawhid — Volume 1 (القول المفيد على كتاب التوحيد) — Page 17

Arabic text · النص

Line-by-line translation · المعاني

الدُّنْيَا حِينَ يَبْقَى ثُلُثُ اللَّيْلِ الْآخِرُ كُلَّ لَيْلَةٍ، فَيَلْزَمُ مِنْ هَذَا أَنْ يَكُونَ كُلُّ اللَّيْلِ فِي السَّمَاءِ الدُّنْيَا لِأَنَّ اللَّيْلَ يَمْشِي عَلَى جَمِيعِ الْأَرْضِ فَالثُّلُثُ يَنْتَقِلُ مِنْ هَذَا الْمَكَانِ إِلَى الْمَكَانِ الْآخَرِ، وَهَذَا لَمْ يَقُلْهُ الصَّحَابَةُ رِضْوَانُ اللَّهِ عَلَيْهِمْ، وَلَوْ كَانَ هَذَا يَرِدُ عَلَى قَلْبِ الْمُؤْمِنِ لَبَيَّنَهُ اللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُ، إِمَّا ابْتِدَاءً، أَوْ يُقَيِّضُ مَنْ يَسْأَلُ عَنْهُ فَيُجَابُ كَمَا سَأَلَ الصَّحَابَةُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ، أَيْنَ كَانَ اللَّهُ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَخْلُقَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ فَأَجَابَهُمْ

the world when the last third of the night remains every night, then it follows from this that the entire night would be in the lowest heaven, because the night moves across the entire earth, so the third moves from this place to another place; this is something the Companions, may God be pleased with them, did not say, and if this were to occur to the heart of a believer, God and His Messenger would have clarified it, either initially or by facilitating someone to ask about it so that it could be answered, just as the Companions asked the Messenger of God (peace be upon him), 'Where was God before He created the heavens and the earth?' and He answered them (1).

فَهَذَا السُّؤَالُ الْعَظِيمُ يَدُلُّ عَلَى أَنَّ كُلَّ مَا يَحْتَاجُ إِلَيْهِ النَّاسُ فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ يُبَيِّنُهُ

This great question indicates that everything people need, God clarifies.

وَالْجَوَابُ عَنِ الْإِشْكَالِ فِي حَدِيثِ النُّزُولِ (٢): أَنْ يُقَالَ: مَا دَامَ ثُلُثُ اللَّيْلِ الْأَخِيرُ فِي هَذِهِ الْجِهَةِ بَاقِيًا، فَالنُّزُولُ فِيهَا مُحَقَّقٌ، وَفِي غَيْرِهَا نَحْنُ لَا نُدْرِكُهُ وَاللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ لَيْسَ كَمِثْلِهِ شَيْءٌ.

The answer to the problem regarding the Hadith of Descent (2) is to say: as long as the last third of the night remains in this region, the descent in it is confirmed, and as for other regions, we do not perceive it, and God, the Almighty and Majestic, has nothing like unto Him.

لَكِنَّ ظَاهِرَ الْحَدِيثِ أَنَّ وَقْتَ النُّزُولِ يَنْتَهِي بِطُلُوعِ الْفَجْرِ.

However, the apparent meaning of the Hadith is that the time of descent ends with the break of dawn.

وَعَلَيْنَا أَنْ نَسْتَسْلِمَ، وَأَنْ نَقُولَ سَمِعْنَا، وَأَطَعْنَا، وَاتَّبَعْنَا، وَآمَنَّا فَهَذِهِ وَظِيفَتُنَا

It is our duty to submit, and to say: we have heard, we have obeyed, we have followed, and we have believed; this is our function.

مِنْ حَدِيثِ عِمْرَانَ بْنِ حُصَيْنٍ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمَا، وَفِيهِ: جِئْنَا نَسْأَلُكَ عَنْ هَذَا الْأَمْرِ قَالَ: كَانَ اللَّهُ وَلَمْ يَكُنْ شَيْءٌ غَيْرُهُ، وَكَانَ عَرْشُهُ عَلَى الْمَاءِ رَوَاهُ الْبُخَارِيُّ، كِتَابُ بَدْءِ الْخَلْقِ / بَابُ مَا جَاءَ فِي قَوْلِ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى: وَهُوَ الَّذِي يَبْدَأُ الْخَلْقَ

(1) From the Hadith of Imran ibn Husayn, may God be pleased with them both, in which it says: 'We came to ask you about this matter.' He said: 'God existed, and there was nothing else besides Him, and His Throne was upon the water.' Narrated by Al-Bukhari, Book of the Beginning of Creation / Chapter on what was said regarding the words of God Almighty: 'And it is He who begins the creation' 418/1.

وَمِنْ حَدِيثِ أَبِي رَزِينٍ قَالَ: قُلْتُ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ! أَيْنَ رَبُّنَا قَبْلَ أَنْ يَخْلُقَ خَلْقَهُ؟ قَالَ: «كَانَ فِي عَمَاءٍ مَا تَحْتَهُ هَوَاءٌ وَمَا فَوْقَهُ هَوَاءٌ، وَخَلَقَ عَرْشَهُ عَلَى الْمَاءِ». رَوَاهُ التِّرْمِذِيُّ، التَّفْسِيرُ رَقْمُ (٣١٠٨) وَقَالَ: حَسَنٌ، وَابْنُ مَاجَهْ فِي الْمُقَدِّمَةِ رَقْمُ (١٣)، وَأَحْمَدُ فِي الْمُسْنَدِ

And from the Hadith of Abu Razin, who said: 'I said, O Messenger of God! Where was our Lord before He created His creation?' He said: 'He was in a cloud (ama'), with no air below it and no air above it, and He created His Throne upon the water.' Narrated by Al-Tirmidhi, Tafsir, number (3108), and he said: 'Hasan' (good), and Ibn Majah in the Introduction, number (13), and Ahmad in the Musnad 11/4, 12.

مِنْ حَدِيثِ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ أَخْرَجَهُ الْبُخَارِيُّ فِي صَحِيحِهِ كِتَابُ التَّهَجُّدِ / بَابُ الدُّعَاءِ وَالصَّلَاةِ آخِرَ اللَّيْلِ. رَقْمُ ١١٤٥، ٣٦٢١، ٧٤٩٤، وَمُسْلِمٌ كِتَابُ صَلَاةِ الْمُسَافِرِينَ / بَابُ التَّرْغِيبِ فِي الدُّعَاءِ وَالذِّكْرِ آخِرَ اللَّيْلِ

(2) From the Hadith of Abu Hurayrah, recorded by Al-Bukhari in his Sahih, Book of Tahajjud / Chapter on Supplication and Prayer at the end of the night, numbers 1145, 3621, 7494; and Muslim, Book of the Prayer of Travelers / Chapter on Encouragement to Supplicate and Remember God at the end of the night 521/1.

Vocabulary · المفردات (24 verbs · 31 nouns)

• بَقِيَ — to remain
• لَزِمَ — to be necessary
• كَانَ — to be
• مَشَى — to walk
• اِنْتَقَلَ — to move
• قَالَ — to say
• وَرَدَ — to arrive
• بَيَّنَ — to clarify
• قَيَّضَ — to facilitate
• سَأَلَ — to ask
• أَجَابَ — to answer
• خَلَقَ — to create
• دَلَّ — to indicate
• اِحْتَاجَ — to need
• دَامَ — to last
• أَدْرَكَ — to perceive
• عَزَّ — to be mighty
• جَلَّ — to be majestic
• اِنْتَهَى — to end
• اِسْتَسْلَمَ — to submit
• سَمِعَ — to hear
• أَطَاعَ — to obey
• اِتَّبَعَ — to follow
• آمَنَ — to believe
• دُنْيَا — world
• ثُلُث — third
• لَيْل — night
• آخِر — last
• لَيْلَة — night
• سَمَاء — sky
• أَرْض — earth
• مَكَان — place
• صَحَابِيّ — companion
• رِضْوَان — pleasure
• قَلْب — heart
• مُؤْمِن — believer
• رَسُول — messenger
• اِبْتِدَاء — beginning
• سُؤَال — question
• عَظِيم — great
• نَاس — people
• جَوَاب — answer
• إِشْكَال — problem
• حَدِيث — narration
• نُزُول — descent
• جِهَة — direction
• بَاقِي — remaining
• مُحَقَّق — verified
• غَيْر — other
• شَيْء — thing
• ظَاهِر — apparent
• وَقْت — time
• طُلُوع — rising
• فَجْر — dawn
• وَظِيفَة — duty