Mukhtasar al-Ma'ani by al-Taftazani, Vol. 2 (مختصر المعاني) — Page 55

Line-by-line translation · المعاني

الْفَنُّ الثَّانِي التَّشْبِيهُ

The second art: Simile.

وَقَدْ يُذْكَرُ فِعْلٌ يُنْبِئُ عَنْهُ أَيْ عَنِ التَّشْبِيهِ، كَمَا فِي عَلِمْتُ "زَيْدًا أَسَدًا" إِنْ قَرُبَ التَّشْبِيهُ يَدُلُّ وَادَّعَى كَمَالَ الْمُشَابَهَةِ؛ لِمَا فِي "عَلِمْتُ" مِنْ مَعْنَى التَّحْقِيقِ، وَحَسِبْتُ زَيْدًا أَسَدًا إِنْ بَعُدَ التَّيَقُّنُ التَّشْبِيهُ بِأَدْنَى تَبْعِيدٍ؛ لِمَا فِي الْحُسْبَانِ مِنَ الْإِشْعَارِ بِعَدَمِ التَّحَقُّقِ وَالتَّيَقُّنِ، وَفِي كَوْنِ مِثْلِ هَذِهِ الْأَفْعَالِ مُنْبِئًا عَنِ التَّشْبِيهِ نَوْعُ خَفَاءٍ، وَالْأَظْهَرُ أَنَّ الْفِعْلَ يُنْبِئُ عَنْ حَالِ التَّشْبِيهِ فِي الْقُرْبِ عَلِمْتُ وَ حَسِبْتُ دُونَ نَفْسِ التَّشْبِيهِ وَالْبُعْدِ، وَالْغَرَضُ مِنْهُ أَيْ مِنَ التَّشْبِيهِ فِي الْأَغْلَبِ يَعُودُ إِلَى الْمُشَبَّهِ وَهُوَ أَيِ الْغَرَضُ الْعَائِدُ إِلَى الِاسْتِعْمَالِ الْمُشَبَّهِ بَيَانُ إِمْكَانِهِ أَيِ الْمُشَبَّهِ، وَذَلِكَ إِذَا كَانَ أَمْرًا غَرِيبًا يُمْكِنُ أَنْ يُخَالَفَ فِيهِ وَيُدَّعَى امْتِنَاعُهُ، فِعْلٌ يُنْبِئُ عَنْهُ: أَيْ يَدُلُّ عَلَى التَّشْبِيهِ مِنْ غَيْرِ ذِكْرِ أَدَاتِهِ فَيَكُونُ الْفِعْلُ قَائِمًا مَقَامَهَا، وَالْمُرَادُ فِعْلٌ غَيْرُ الْأَفْعَالِ الْمَوْضُوعَةِ مِنْ أَصْلِهَا لِلدَّلَالَةِ عَلَى التَّشْبِيهِ كَالْأَفْعَالِ الْمُشْتَقَّةِ مِنَ الْمُمَاثَلَةِ وَالْمُشَابَهَةِ [الدَّسُوقِيُّ: ٣٨٩/٣] وَادَّعِي: عَطْفُ تَفْسِيرٍ عَلَى قَوْلِهِ: "قَرُبَ"، وَالْمُرَادُ ادُّعِيَ عَلَى وَجْهِ التَّيَقُّنِ.

A verb may be mentioned that indicates it—that is, the simile—as in 'I knew Zayd to be a lion' if the simile is close, indicating and claiming perfect resemblance, due to the meaning of verification in 'I knew'; and 'I reckoned Zayd to be a lion' if the certainty of the simile is somewhat distant, due to the implication of lack of verification and certainty in 'reckoning'. There is a type of obscurity in the fact that such verbs indicate the simile, and it is more apparent that the verb indicates the state of the simile in terms of closeness—'I knew' and 'I reckoned'—rather than the simile itself and distance. The purpose of it—that is, of the simile—in most cases returns to the subject of the simile (al-mushabbah), and it—that is, the purpose returning to the usage of the subject of the simile—is the clarification of its possibility—that is, the subject of the simile—and that is when it is a strange matter that could be disputed and its impossibility claimed. 'A verb that indicates it': that is, it indicates the simile without mentioning its particle, so the verb stands in its place. The intended meaning is a verb other than those verbs originally coined to indicate the simile, such as verbs derived from 'likeness' and 'resemblance' [Al-Dasuqi: 3/389]. 'And claimed': an explanatory conjunction for his statement 'it is close', and the intended meaning is 'claimed by way of certainty'.

(الدَّسُوقِيُّ) إِنْ بَعُدَ: أُرِيدَ إِفَادَةُ بُعْدِهِ وَضَعْفِهِ بِأَنْ تَكُونَ مُشَابَهَةُ الْمُشَبَّهِ لِلْمُشَبَّهِ بِهِ ضَعِيفَةً؛ لِكَوْنِ وَجْهِ الشَّبَهِ خَفِيًّا عَنِ الْإِدْرَاكِ [الدَّسُوقِيُّ: ٣٩٠/٣] بِعَدَمِ التَّحَقُّقِ: لِأَنَّ الْحُسْبَانَ إِنَّمَا يَدُلُّ عَلَى الظَّنِّ وَالرُّجْحَانِ دُونَ التَّحَقُّقِ وَالتَّيَقُّنِ (الدَّسُوقِيُّ) فِي وَفِي كَوْنِ إِلَخْ: هَذَا اعْتِرَاضٌ وَارِدٌ عَلَى قَوْلِ الْمُصَنِّفِ: وَقَدْ يُذْكَرُ فِعْلٌ يُنْبِئُ عَنْهُ حَاصِلُهُ: أَنَّا لَا نُسَلِّمُ أَنَّ "عَلِمْتُ عَلِمْتُ زَيْدًا أَسَدًا"، وَ"حَسِبْتُ" فِي "حَسِبْتُ زَيْدًا أَسَدًا" يُنْبِئَانِ عَنِ التَّشْبِيهِ؛ لِلْقَطْعِ بِأَنَّهُ لَا دَلَالَةَ لِلْعِلْمِ وَالْحُسْبَانِ عَلَى التَّشْبِيهِ، بَلِ الْمُنْبِئُ عَنْهُ عَدَمُ صِحَّةِ الْحَمْلِ؛ لِأَنَّا نَجْزِمُ أَنَّ الْأَسَدَ لَا يَصِحُّ حَمْلُهُ عَلَى زَيْدٍ، وَأَنَّهُ إِنَّمَا يَكُونُ عَلَى تَقْدِيرِ إِرَادَةِ التَّشْبِيهِ، سَوَاءٌ ذُكِرَ الْفِعْلُ أَوْ لَمْ يُذْكَرْ، كَمَا فِي قَوْلِنَا زَيْدٌ أَسَدٌ.

(Al-Dasuqi) 'If it is distant': the intention is to convey its distance and weakness, such that the resemblance of the subject of the simile to the object of the simile is weak, because the aspect of resemblance is hidden from perception [Al-Dasuqi: 3/390]. 'Due to lack of verification': because 'reckoning' only indicates opinion and probability, not verification and certainty (Al-Dasuqi). 'In' and 'In the fact that, etc.': This is an objection raised against the author's statement: 'And a verb may be mentioned that indicates it.' Its essence is: We do not concede that 'I knew' in 'I knew Zayd to be a lion' and 'I reckoned' in 'I reckoned Zayd to be a lion' indicate the simile, because it is certain that 'knowing' and 'reckoning' have no indication of the simile. Rather, what indicates it is the invalidity of the predication, because we are certain that 'lion' cannot correctly be predicated of 'Zayd', and that it only occurs on the assumption that a simile is intended, whether the verb is mentioned or not, as in our saying 'Zayd is a lion'.

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Vocabulary · المفردات (10 verbs · 31 nouns)

• ذَكَرَ — to mention
• أَنْبَأَ — to indicate
• عَلِمَ — to know
• تَشْبِيهٌ — simile
• فِعْلٌ — verb
• أَسَدٌ — lion