Mukhtasar al-Ma'ani by al-Taftazani, Vol. 1 (مختصر المعاني) — Page 14

Arabic text · النص

Line-by-line translation · المعاني

تَعْرِيفُ الْحَمْدِ وَالشُّكْرِ.

The definition of praise (hamd) and gratitude (shukr).

إِلَّا النِّعْمَةَ وَمَوْرِدُهُ يَكُونُ اللِّسَانَ، وَغَيْرَهُ فَالْحَمْدُ أَعَمُّ مِنَ الشُّكْرِ بِاعْتِبَارِ الْمُتَعَلِّقِ، مُطْلَقًا.

Except for the blessing, and its source is the tongue, and otherwise, praise is more general than gratitude in terms of the object, absolutely.

الْبَاءُ سَبَبِيَّةٌ، وَأَخَصُّ بِاعْتِبَارِ الْمَوْرِدِ، وَالشُّكْرُ بِالْعَكْسِ، اللَّهُ هُوَ اسْمٌ لِلذَّاتِ الْوَاجِبِ الْوُجُودِ الْمُسْتَحِقِّ مُطْلَقًا الْمَحَامِدَ، وَالْعُدُولُ إِلَى الْجُمْلَةِ الِاسْمِيَّةِ لِلدَّلَالَةِ عَلَى الدَّوَامِ وَالثَّبَاتِ، وَتَقْدِيمُ الْحَمْدِ لِجَمِيعِ بَاعْتِبَارِ أَنَّهُ أَهَمُّ نَظَرًا إِلَى كَوْنِ الْمَقَامِ مَقَامَ الْحَمْدِ كَمَا ذَهَبَ إِلَيْهِ صَاحِبُ الْكَشَّافِ فِي أَيٍّ مِنْ اسْمِ اللَّهِ.

The 'ba' is causal, and it is more specific in terms of the source, while gratitude is the opposite; Allah is a name for the Essence that is Necessary in Existence, absolutely deserving of all praises, and the shift to the nominal sentence is to indicate continuity and stability, and the prioritization of praise for all is because it is more important given that the context is one of praise, as the author of Al-Kashshaf held regarding any of the names of Allah.

تَقْدِيمُ الْفِعْلِ فِي قَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: ﴿اقْرَأْ بِاسْمِ رَبِّكَ﴾ عَلَى مَا سَيَجِيءُ، وَإِنْ كَانَ ذِكْرُ اللَّهِ أَهَمَّ نَظَرًا إِلَى ذَاتِهِ عَلَى مَا أَنْعَمَ أَيْ عَلَى إِنْعَامِهِ وَلَمْ يَتَعَرَّضْ لِلْمُنْعَمِ بِهِ؛ إِيهَامًا لِقُصُورِ الْعِبَارَةِ عَنِ الْإِحَاطَةِ بِهِ، وَلِئَلَّا يُتَوَهَّمَ اخْتِصَاصُهُ بِشَيْءٍ دُونَ شَيْءٍ.

The prioritization of the verb in His saying, the Exalted: 'Read in the name of your Lord' is based on what will come later, even if the mention of Allah is more important in view of His Essence regarding what He has blessed, meaning upon His bestowing of blessings, and he did not specify what was bestowed, to suggest the inability of language to encompass it, and so that it is not imagined that it is restricted to one thing rather than another.

وَمَوْرِدُهُ أَيْ مَا وَرَدَ مِنْهُ الْحَمْدُ لَا مَا وَرَدَ عَلَيْهِ فَلَا يُرَدُّ أَنَّ التَّعْبِيرَ بِالْمَوْرِدِ يَقْتَضِي وُجُودَ الْحَمْدِ مِنْ غَيْرِ اللِّسَانِ قَبْلَ وُرُودٍ عَلَيْهِ مَعَ أَنَّ الْحَمْدَ هُوَ الثَّنَاءُ بِاللِّسَانِ.

And its source, meaning that from which praise originates, not that upon which it falls, so it is not objected that the expression 'source' implies the existence of praise from other than the tongue before it falls upon it, even though praise is the commendation by the tongue.

فَالْحَمْدُ: ظَهَرَ مِنْ كَلَامِ الشَّارِحِ أَنَّ الْمَوْرِدَيْنِ عُمُومًا وَخُصُوصًا مُطْلَقًا، وَكَذَا بَيْنَ الْمُتَعَلِّقَيْنِ، وَأَنَّ بَيْنَ مَفْهُومِ الْحَمْدِ وَمَفْهُومِ الشُّكْرِ عُمُومًا وَخُصُوصًا وَجْهًا يَجْتَمِعَانِ فِي ثَنَاءٍ بِلِسَانٍ فِي مُقَابَلَةِ إِحْسَانٍ، وَيَتَفَرَّدُ الْحَمْدُ فِي ثَنَاءٍ بِلِسَانٍ لَا فِي مُقَابَلَةِ إِحْسَانٍ، وَيَنْفَرِدُ الشُّكْرُ فِي ثَنَاءٍ بِغَيْرِ لِسَانٍ فِي مُقَابَلَةِ إِحْسَانٍ.

So praise: It appeared from the commentator's words that the two sources are general and specific absolutely, and likewise between the two objects, and that between the concept of praise and the concept of gratitude there is a general and specific aspect; they meet in commendation by the tongue in response to a favor, praise is unique in commendation by the tongue not in response to a favor, and gratitude is unique in commendation by other than the tongue in response to a favor.

بِالْعَكْسِ الْمُرَادُ: الْعَكْسُ الْعُرْفِيُّ وَهُوَ الْمُخَالَفَةُ لَا الْمَنْطِقِيُّ.

By the opposite, it is meant: the conventional opposite, which is contradiction, not the logical one.

اسْمٌ مُرَادُهُ بِالِاسْمِ مَا قَابَلَ الْكُنْيَةَ وَاللَّقَبَ أَوْ مَا قَابَلَ الصِّفَةَ، وَبِهَذَا الْأَخِيرِ يَشْعُرُ كَلَامُهُ فِي الْمُطَوَّلِ، وَهُوَ الْأَنْسَبُ، وَلَيْسَ الْمُرَادُ مِنَ الِاسْمِ مَا قَابَلَ الْفِعْلَ وَالْحَرْفَ.

Name: He means by the name that which is opposed to the kunya (patronymic) and the laqab (title), or that which is opposed to the attribute, and his words in Al-Mutawwal suggest this latter, and it is the most appropriate, and the meaning of the name is not that which is opposed to the verb and the particle.

وَالْعُدُولُ: أَيْ كَانَ الْأَصْلُ: حَمِدْتُ اللَّهَ حَمْدًا، فَحُذِفَ الْفِعْلُ مَعَ الْفَاعِلِ، وَأُقِيمَ الْمَصْدَرُ مَقَامَهُ، وَجُعِلَتِ الْجُمْلَةُ اسْمِيَّةً، فَدَلَالَةُ الِاسْمِيَّةِ عَلَى الدَّوَامِ وَالثَّبَاتِ بِسَبَبِ الْعُدُولِ عَنِ الْفِعْلِيَّةِ، وَإِنَّ الِاسْمِيَّةَ الْإِيجَابِيَّةَ لَا تَدُلُّ عَلَى أَكْثَرَ مِنْ ثُبُوتِ الْمَحْمُولِ لِلْمَوْضُوعِ إِلَّا بِالْقَرِينَةِ وَمِنْهَا الْعُدُولُ.

And the shift: meaning the original was 'I praised Allah with a praise', then the verb and the subject were deleted, the verbal noun was put in its place, and the sentence was made nominal, so the indication of the nominal sentence for continuity and stability is due to the shift from the verbal sentence, and indeed the positive nominal sentence does not indicate more than the establishment of the predicate for the subject except by context, and among them is the shift.

وَتَقْدِيمُ الْحَمْدِ: أَيْ تَقْدِيمُهُ بِاعْتِبَارِ الْمَقَامِ لَا بِاعْتِبَارِ الذَّاتِ وَحَمْدُ الْمُصَنِّفِ لَهُ لَمَّا كَانَ فِي مُقَابَلَةِ الْإِنْعَامِ لَكَانَ حَمْدُهُ حَمْدًا وَشُكْرًا.

And the prioritization of praise: meaning its prioritization in view of the context, not in view of the essence, and since the author's praise of Him was in response to a blessing, his praise was both praise and gratitude.

وَإِنْ كَانَ لِأَنَّ الْأَهَمَّ الْعَرَضِيَّ إِذَا اقْتَضَاهُ الْحَالُ يَكُونُ أَوْلَى بِالرِّعَايَةِ مِنَ الْأَهَمِّ الذَّاتِيِّ.

And if it is because the accidental importance, when the situation requires it, is more worthy of consideration than the essential importance.

عَلَى إِنْعَامِهِ: أَشَارَ بِذَلِكَ إِلَى أَنَّ مَا مَصْدَرِيَّةٌ لَا مَوْصُولَةٌ، أَمَّا لَفْظًا فَلِاحْتِيَاجِ الْمَوْصُولِ إِلَى التَّقْدِيرِ أَيْ أَنْعَمَ بِهِ مَعَ تَعَذُّرِهِ فِي الْمَعْطُوفِ عَلَيْهِ، أَعْنِي عَلِمَ لِكَوْنِ مَا لَمْ نَعْلَمْ مَفْعُولَهُ، وَأَمَّا مَعْنًى؛ فَلِأَنَّ الْحَمْدَ عَلَى الْإِنْعَامِ الَّذِي هُوَ مِنْ أَوْصَافِ الْمُنْعِمِ أَمْكَنُ مِنَ الْحَمْدِ عَلَى نَفْسِ النِّعْمَةِ؛ لِأَنَّ الْحَمْدَ عَلَى الْأَوَّلِ بِلَا وَاسِطَةٍ وَعَلَى الثَّانِي بِوَاسِطَةٍ أَنَّ النِّعْمَةَ أَثَرُ الْإِنْعَامِ.

Upon His bestowing of blessings: He indicated by that that 'ma' is a verbal noun particle, not a relative pronoun; as for the wording, it is because the relative pronoun requires an estimation, meaning 'He bestowed it', while it is impossible in what is conjoined to it, I mean 'He knew', because we do not know its object, and as for the meaning, it is because praise for the bestowing of blessings, which is one of the attributes of the Bestower, is more possible than praise for the blessing itself, because praise for the first is without an intermediary, and for the second is with an intermediary, as the blessing is the effect of the bestowing of blessings.

Vocabulary · المفردات (25 verbs · 67 nouns)

• كَانَ — to be
• وَرَدَ — to arrive
• ذَهَبَ — to adopt an opinion
• قَرَأَ — to read
• جَاءَ — to come
• أَنْعَمَ — to bestow favor
• تَعَرَّضَ — to address
• تَوَهَّمَ — to imagine
• عَبَّرَ — to express
• اِقْتَضَى — to require
• ظَهَرَ — to appear
• اِجْتَمَعَ — to gather
• تَفَرَّدَ — to be unique
• اِنْفَرَدَ — to be isolated
• قَابَلَ — to oppose or contrast
• شَعَرَ — to feel
• حَمِدَ — to praise
• حَذَفَ — to delete
• أَقَامَ — to establish
• جَعَلَ — to make
• دَلَّ — to indicate
• ثَبَتَ — to be fixed
• أَشَارَ — to point
• عَلِمَ — to know
• أَمْكَنَ — to be possible
• تَعْرِيف — definition
• حَمْد — praise
• شُكْر — gratitude
• نِعْمَة — blessing
• مَوْرِد — source
• لِسَان — tongue
• اعْتِبَار — consideration
• مُتَعَلِّق — related matter
• بَاء — the letter ba
• سَبَبِيَّة — causality
• اسْم — noun
• ذَات — essence
• وَاجِب — necessary
• وُجُود — existence
• مُسْتَحِق — deserving one
• مَحْمَدَة — praiseworthy act
• عُدُول — deviation
• جُمْلَة — sentence
• دَلَالَة — indication
• دَوَام — permanence
• ثَبَات — stability
• تَقْدِيم — presentation
• جَمِيع — all
• مَقَام — station
• صَاحِب — owner
• فِعْل — verb
• قَوْل — saying
• رَبّ — lord
• ذِكْر — mention
• إِنْعَام — bestowal of favor
• مُنْعِم — bestower of favor
• إِيهَام — suggestion
• قُصُور — shortcoming
• عِبَارَة — expression
• إِحَاطَة — comprehension
• شَيْء — thing
• ثَنَاء — praise
• شَارِح — commentator
• عُمُوم — generality
• خُصُوص — specificity
• مَفْهُوم — concept
• وَجْه — aspect
• إِحْسَان — kindness
• عُرْف — custom
• مُخَالَفَة — contradiction
• مَنْطِق — logic
• كُنْيَة — patronymic
• لَقَب — title
• صِفَة — adjective
• أَنْسَب — most appropriate
• حَرْف — particle
• أَصْل — origin
• فَاعِل — doer
• مَصْدَر — infinitive
• قَرِينَة — contextual evidence
• مُصَنِّف — author
• أَهَمّ — most important
• عَرَض — accident
• حَال — state
• رِعَايَة — regard
• تَقْدِير — estimation
• مَعْطُوف — conjoined
• عِلْم — knowledge
• مَفْعُول — object
• مَعْنًى — meaning
• وَاسِطَة — medium
• أَثَر — effect