Mukhtasar al-Ma'ani by al-Taftazani, Vol. 2 (مختصر المعاني) — Page 57

Line-by-line translation · المعاني

الْفَنُّ الثَّانِي التَّشْبِيهُ

The Second Art: Simile.

عَطْفًا عَلَى بَيَانِ إِمْكَانِهِ" أَيْ تَقْرِيرُ حَالِ الْمُشَبَّهِ فِي نَفْسِ السَّامِعِ وَتَقْوِيَةُ شَأْنِهِ، كَمَا فِي تَشْبِيهِ مَنْ عَطْفُ تَفْسِيرٍ لَا يَحْصُلُ مِنْ سَعْيِهِ عَلَى طَائِلٍ بِمَنْ يَرْقُمُ عَلَى الْمَاءِ، فَإِنَّكَ تَجِدُ فِيهِ مِنْ تَقْرِيرِ عَدَمِ فَائِدَةِ تَعْلَمُ فِي هَذَا التَّشْبِيهِ الْفَائِدَةِ وَتَقْوِيَةِ شَأْنِهِ مَا لَا تَجِدُهُ فِي غَيْرِهِ؛ لِأَنَّ الْفِكْرَ بِالْحِسِّيَّاتِ أَتَمُّ مِنْهُ بِالْعَقْلِيَّاتِ؛ لِتَقَدُّمِ شَأْنِ عَدَمِ الْفَائِدَةِ الْحِسِّيَّاتِ وَفَرْطِ إِلْفِ النَّفْسِ بِهَا، وَهَذِهِ الْأَغْرَاضُ الْأَرْبَعَةُ تَقْتَضِي أَنْ يَكُونَ وَجْهُ الشَّبَهِ فِي شِدَّةِ يُوجِبُ الْمُشَبَّهِ بِهِ أَتَمَّ، وَهُوَ بِهِ أَشْهَرُ أَيْ وَأَنْ يَكُونَ الْمُشَبَّهُ بِهِ بِوَجْهِ الشَّبَهِ أَشْهَرَ وَأَعْرَفَ، فَظَاهِرُ أَقْوَى عِنْدَ السَّامِعِ الْعِبَارَةِ أَنَّ كُلًّا مِنَ الْأَرْبَعَةِ تَقْتَضِي الْأَتَمِّيَّةَ وَالْأَشْهَرِيَّةَ، لَكِنَّ التَّحْقِيقَ أَنَّ بَيَانَ الْإِمْكَانِ وَبَيَانَ الْحَالِ لَا يَقْتَضِيَانِ إِلَّا الْأَشْهَرِيَّةَ لِيَصِحَّ الْقِيَاسُ وَيَتِمَّ الِاحْتِجَاجُ فِي الْأَوَّلِ وَيُعْلَمَ الْحَالُ فِي لَا الْأَتَمِّيَّةُ بَيَانِ الْإِمْكَانِ الثَّانِي، وَكَذَا بَيَانُ الْمِقْدَارِ لَا يَقْتَضِي الْأَتَمِّيَّةَ، بَلْ يَقْتَضِي أَنْ يَكُونَ الْمُشَبَّهُ بِهِ عَلَى حَدِّ مِقْدَارِ بَيَانِ الْحَالِ بَيَانُ مِقْدَارِ حَالِ الْمُشَبَّهِ الْمُشَبَّهِ لَا أَزْيَدَ وَلَا أَنْقَصَ لِيَتَعَيَّنَ مِقْدَارُ الْمُشَبَّهِ عَلَى مَا هُوَ عَلَيْهِ وَأَمَّا تَقْرِيرُ الْحَالِ فَيَقْتَضِي عِنْدَ الْمُخَاطَبِ فِي نَفْسِ الْأَمْرِ حَالِ الْمُشَبَّهِ الْأَمْرَيْنِ جَمِيعًا؛ لِأَنَّ النَّفْسَ إِلَى الْأَتَمِّ الْأَشْهَرِ أَمْيَلُ، فَالتَّشْبِيهُ بِهِ لِزِيَادَةِ التَّقْرِيرِ وَالتَّقْوِيَةِ أَجْدَرُ الْأَتَمِّيَّةُ وَالْأَشْهَرِيَّةُ أَلْيَقُ وَأَلْيَقُ، أَوْ تَزْيِينُهُ مَرْفُوعٌ عَطْفًا عَلَى بَيَانِ إِمْكَانِهِ أَيْ تَزْيِينُ الْمُشَبَّهِ فِي عَيْنِ السَّامِعِ، كَمَا فِي: وَذَلِكَ كَأَنْ يُقَالَ: "فُلَانٌ" فِي سَعْيِهِ كَالرَّاقِمِ عَلَى الْمَاءِ" بِجَامِعِ عَدَمِ حُصُولِ الْفَائِدَةِ فِي كُلٍّ، فَهَذَا التَّشْبِيهُ قَرَّرَ وَثَبَّتَ حَالَ "فُلَانٍ"، وَهُوَ عَدَمُ الْفَائِدَةِ فِي ذِهْنِ السَّامِعِ

As a conjunction to 'demonstrating its possibility'—that is, establishing the state of the likened object (musabbah) in the mind of the listener and strengthening its status, as in the simile of one who gains no benefit from his efforts to one who writes upon water; for you find in it a degree of establishing the lack of benefit and strengthening its status that you do not find in others, because thought regarding sensory things is more complete than it is regarding intellectual things, due to the precedence of sensory things and the soul's excessive familiarity with them. These four purposes require that the aspect of resemblance in the object of comparison (musabbah bihi) be more complete and that it be more famous for it—that is, that the object of comparison be more famous and better known for the aspect of resemblance. The apparent meaning of the phrasing is that each of the four requires both completeness and fame, but the critical investigation is that demonstrating possibility and demonstrating the state require only fame, so that the analogy may be valid, the argumentation in the first may be completed, and the state in the second may be known. Likewise, demonstrating the quantity does not require completeness; rather, it requires that the object of comparison be at the limit of the quantity of the likened object, neither more nor less, so that the quantity of the likened object may be determined as it is. As for establishing the state, it requires both matters together, because the soul is more inclined toward the more complete and more famous, so using it for a simile is more worthy and appropriate for increasing establishment and strengthening. Or 'its embellishment' is in the nominative case as a conjunction to 'demonstrating its possibility'—that is, embellishing the likened object in the eye of the listener, as in: 'And that is like saying: "So-and-so" in his effort is like one who writes on water,' with the common factor being the lack of benefit in both. This simile has established and fixed the state of 'so-and-so,' which is the lack of benefit, in the mind of the listener.

الدَّسُوقِيُّ: ٣٩٨/٣] لِتَقَدُّمِ الْحِسِّيَّاتِ: عِلَّةٌ لِلْأَتَمِّيَّةِ أَيْ لِتَقَدُّمِ الْحِسِّيَّاتِ فِي الْحُصُولِ عِنْدَ النَّفْسِ عَلَى الْعَقْلِيَّاتِ

[Al-Dasuqi: 3/398] 'Due to the precedence of sensory things': This is the cause for completeness, meaning the precedence of sensory things in occurring to the soul over intellectual things.

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Vocabulary · المفردات (13 verbs · 38 nouns)

• حَصَلَ — to occur
• رَقَمَ — to write
• وَجَدَ — to find
• فَنٌّ — art
• تَشْبِيهٌ — simile
• بَيَانٌ — explanation