Pearl of Wisdom

in the book al-Tabdil, 'Ishaq al-Kindi who was the philosopher of his time in Iraq decided to write about contradictions in the Qur'an, and sat alone at home, preoccupied with it. One of his students visited Imam Hasan al-'Askari (AS) one day, and Abu Muhammad (AS) asked him, 'Is there not a Imam al-Hasan b. 'Ali al-'Askari (AS) rightly-guided man among you who can stop your teacher al-Kindi from this occupation that he has started with the Q]lr'an?' The student replied, 'We are his students; how can we object to him on this or on any other issue?' Abu Muhammad said, 'Will you then convey to him what I am telling him through you?' He said, 'Yes.' He (AS) said, 'Go to him and offer your service to him in his task, as though you want to acquaint yourself with it, and assist him therein. Once the acquaintance has developed, tell him, 'I have a question which I would like to ask you.' Certainly he will allow you. Then ask him, 'If someone who spoke only using [verses of] the Qu'ran was to come to you, would it be possible for his intended speech to be different to what you have understood it to mean?' He will indeed tell you that it is possible, because he is a man who comprehends if he listens. So, if he confirms this , then ask him, 'So that means that that which you have perceived might be different to what he meant, such that you may even be imposing a meaning to a word that is different to its original.' So the student went to al-Kindi, acquainted himself with him and politely mentioned the issue to him. He asked him to repeat the question, which he did. Then he pondered into it and thought it to be possible in language and acceptable conceptually. He then said, 'I swear by you to tell me from where you have learnt this [argument]?' He [the student] replied, 'It is just something that came to my mind so I presented it to you.' He said, 'No way. Someone like you could not have been guided to this kind of argument nor reached this position [in learning], so tell me from where you have come up with this?' He replied, 'Abu Muhammad ordered me to [tell you] this.' He then said, 'Now you have told me. Something like this could only have come from that household.' He then asked for some fire and burnt all that he had written.'

Abu al-Qasim al-Kufi
al-Manaqib li Ibn Shahr Ashub, v. 4, p. 424

Our Partners

Receive Qul Updates

Name:
Email:
Library » The Lantern of the Path » Fear and Hope
Fear and Hope E-mail

Fear is the custodian of the heart, and hope is the intercessor of the self; whoever knows Allah fears Him and sets his hopes in Him. They are the wings of belief with which the true servant flies to Allah's pleasure. They are the eyes of his intellect, with which he sees Allah's promise and threat; fear contemplates the justice of Allah through careful awareness of that threat. Hope calls for Allah's overflowing favour and gives life to the heart, while fear kills the self. The Messenger of Allah said, 'The believer has two kinds of fear: fear of what has passed and fear of what is to come.'

In the death of the self lies the life of the heart, which leads to firmness in practice. Whoever worships Allah with a balance of fear and hope will not be misguided, and will obtain what he hopes for. How can a slave be anything other than fearful when he does not know at what action his record will be closed, while he has to his credit no deed capable of helping him, no power to do anything, nor any place to fly to? How can he fail to hope when he knows that despite his incapacity he is drowned in the seas of Allah's blessings and favours, which cannot be counted or numbered? The lover worships his Lord with hope by contemplating his own state with the eye of wakefulness; and the abstinent worships with fear.

Uways al-Qarani said to Haram ibn Hayyan, 'People act in hope.' 'But you act in fear,' Haram replied. There are two types of fear: permanent and changing. Permanent fear brings about hope, while changing fear brings about permanent fear. Similarly, there are two types of hopes: concealed and open. Concealed hope brings about permanent fear, which strengthens the connection of love; while open hope fulfils a man's expectations regarding his incapacity and shortcomings in the things he has done during his life.

 
Copyright © 2024 Qul. All Rights Reserved.
Developed by B19 Design.