Mukhtasar al-Ma'ani by al-Taftazani, Vol. 2 (مختصر المعاني) — Page 175

Line-by-line translation · المعاني

الْحَقِيقَةُ وَالْمَجَازُ.

Literal and figurative meaning.

وَالْجَوَابُ أَنَّ الْأَمْرَ الَّذِي هُوَ مِنْ خَوَاصِّ الْمُشَبَّهِ بِهِ لَمَّا قُرِنَ فِي التَّخْيِيلِيَّةِ بِالْمُشَبَّهِ كَالْمَنِيَّةِ كَالْأَظْفَارِ لِلسَّبُعِ مَثَلًا جَعَلْنَاهُ مَجَازًا عَنْ أَمْرٍ مُتَوَهَّمٍ يُمْكِنُ إِثْبَاتُهُ لِلْمُشَبَّهِ، وَفِي التَّرْشِيحِ لَمَّا قُرِنَ بِلَفْظِ الْمُشَبَّهِ بِهِ لَمْ يُحْتَجْ إِلَى ذَلِكَ؛ لِأَنَّ الْمُشَبَّهَ بِهِ جُعِلَ كَأَنَّهُ هُوَ هَذَا الْمَعْنِيُّ مُقَارِنًا لِلَوَازِمِهِ وَخَوَاصِّهِ، حَتَّى أَنَّ الْمُشَبَّهَ بِهِ فِي قَوْلِنَا: "رَأَيْتُ أَسَدًا يَفْتَرِسُ أَقْرَانَهُ" هُوَ الْأَسَدُ الْمَوْصُوفُ بِالِافْتِرَاسِ الْحَقِيقِيِّ مِنْ غَيْرِ احْتِيَاجٍ إِلَى تَوَهُّمِ صُورَةٍ وَاعْتِبَارِ مَجَازٍ فِي الِافْتِرَاسِ، بِخِلَافِ مَا إِذَا قُلْنَا: "رَأَيْتُ شُجَاعًا يَفْتَرِسُ أَقْرَانَهُ" فَإِنَّا نَحْتَاجُ إِلَى ذَلِكَ؛ لِيَصِحَّ إِثْبَاتُهُ لِلشُّجَاعِ، فَلْيُتَأَمَّلْ، فَفِي الْكَلَامِ دِقَّةٌ مَا، وَعَنَى بِالْمَكْنِيِّ عَنْهَا أَيْ أَرَادَ السَّكَاكِيُّ بِالِاسْتِعَارَةِ الْمَكْنِيِّ عَنْهَا أَنْ يَكُونَ الطَّرَفُ الْمَذْكُورُ مِنْ طَرَفَيِ التَّشْبِيهِ هُوَ الْمُشَبَّهُ وَيُرَادُ بِهِ الْمُشَبَّهُ بِهِ.

The answer is that when a matter which is among the properties of the 'likened-to' (mushabbah bihi) is conjoined in the 'imaginative' (takhayyiliyyah) with the 'likened' (mushabbah)—such as death being like the claws of a beast, for example—we treat it as a metaphor for an imagined matter that can be affirmed for the 'likened'; whereas in 'reinforcement' (tarshiḥ), when it is conjoined with the word of the 'likened-to', there is no need for that, because the 'likened-to' is made as if it is this intended meaning, accompanied by its concomitants and properties, to the extent that the 'likened-to' in our saying 'I saw a lion devouring its peers' is the lion described by real devouring, without any need to imagine a form or consider a metaphor in the devouring, unlike if we said 'I saw a brave man devouring his peers,' for we would need that in order for it to be valid to affirm it for the brave man; so let it be pondered, for there is some subtlety in the speech, and by 'the implied one' (al-makniyy 'anhā)—that is, al-Sakkaki meant by the 'implied metaphor' (al-isti'ārah al-makniyyah)—he meant that the mentioned side of the two sides of the simile is the 'likened', and the 'likened-to' is intended by it.

وَالْجَوَابُ: أَيْ عَنِ الِاعْتِرَاضِ الْوَارِدِ عَلَى السَّكَاكِيِّ وَحَاصِلُهُ أَنَّ الْمُشَبَّهَ فِي صُورَةِ التَّخْيِيلِيَّةِ لَمَّا عُبِّرَ عَنْهُ بِلَفْظِهِ وَقُرِنَ بِمَا هُوَ مِنْ لَوَازِمِ الْمُشَبَّهِ بِهِ وَكَانَ ذَلِكَ اللَّازِمُ مُنَافِيًا لِلْمُشَبَّهِ وَمُنَافِرًا لِلَفْظِهِ جَعَلْنَا لَفْظَ اللَّازِمِ الْمَقْرُونِ عِبَارَةً عَنْ أَمْرٍ مُتَوَهَّمٍ يُمْكِنُ إِثْبَاتُهُ لِلْمُشَبَّهِ، وَفِي صُورَةِ التَّرْشِيحِ لَمَّا عُبِّرَ عَنِ الْمُشَبَّهِ بِلَفْظِ الْمُشَبَّهِ بِهِ وَقُرِنَ بِمَا هُوَ مِنْ لَوَازِمِ ذَلِكَ الْمُشَبَّهِ بِهِ لَمْ يُحْتَجْ إِلَى اعْتِبَارِ الصُّورَةِ الْوَهْمِيَّةِ لِعَدَمِ الْمُنَافَرَةِ.

The answer: that is, to the objection raised against al-Sakkaki, and its essence is that when the 'likened' in the form of the 'imaginative' is expressed by its own word and conjoined with what is among the concomitants of the 'likened-to', and that concomitant is incompatible with the 'likened' and discordant with its word, we make the word of the conjoined concomitant an expression for an imagined matter that can be affirmed for the 'likened'; whereas in the form of 'reinforcement', when the 'likened' is expressed by the word of the 'likened-to' and conjoined with what is among the concomitants of that 'likened-to', there is no need to consider the imaginary form due to the absence of discordance.

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Vocabulary · المفردات (22 verbs · 52 nouns)

• قَرَنَ — to connect
• جَعَلَ — to make
• أَمْكَنَ — to be possible
• حَقِيقَة — truth
• مَجَاز — metaphor
• جَوَاب — answer