What is the meaning of tafwid?
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The questioner : Tafwid means? Have you finished reading it...
The Shaykh : Tafwid?? You say tafwid?? I have not heard this term.
The questioner : Do you mean you read its interpretation that they are to be taken as they came?
The Shaykh : Tafwid has two meanings, my brother. Here, some of the contemporary scholars today resort to half-measures, and they do not have the scholarly capacity to reconcile the correct transmission with the stronger opinion. They speak of tafwid in the sense that we do not understand what our Lord means by such and such a verse and such and such a verse. This is not tafwid. Tafwid is used to mean delegating the understanding of the meaning, and it is used to mean delegating the determination of the nature of the meaning. For example,[Ash-Shuraa 42:11] We believe that Allah is All-Hearing and All-Seeing. It is not that we do not understand what it means to be All-Hearing and All-Seeing. We understand the meaning, as al-Bayhaqi himself said in some of his books, that the attribute of hearing and the attribute of seeing are not the attribute of knowledge. But we do not determine the nature of this attribute, the attribute of sight and the attribute of hearing.
The questioner : What does that mean?
The Shaykh : Do you understand how? So, tafwid is for the "how" (kayfiyyah), not tafwid for the meaning. Otherwise, we would return to the claim that Allah (Mighty and Majestic) has described Himself to His servants with what they do not understand the meaning of—far be it from Him—they understand what He described Himself with, but without burdening them. Even if He had burdened them to understand the "how," they would not have been able to find a way to it because of their incapacity, and He would have burdened them with what they cannot bear. And Allah does not burden a soul beyond what it can bear. In short, in short—remember your question, and I am now going to confirm the speech to others. If you wish, I will say: We say regarding the attributes as we say regarding the Essence. We say regarding the divine attributes as we say regarding the divine Essence, in affirmation and negation. Do we negate the Essence of Allah?
The questioner : No, far from it.
The Shaykh : Far from it, and it is not deviation or disbelief. We affirm it when we affirm the Essence of Allah and His existence. Do we determine the nature of the Essence of Allah? The answer is no. So it is with the attributes.
The questioner : The "how" is negated from Allah (Mighty and Majestic).
The Shaykh : There is none. Is it clear?
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : We say regarding the attributes what we say regarding the Essence. We affirm what He affirmed and we negate what He negated, and sufficient for the believers is fighting. This is the creed of the righteous Salaf in a concise word. We say regarding the attributes what we say regarding the Essence. And whoever deviates from the meaning of this phrase is deviating from the Book and the Sunnah and what the righteous Salaf and the respected and honored scholars of the Muslims were upon. Now, I have finished with what I have regarding "Where is Allah?" whether from the hadith perspective or from the creedal perspective. "Where is Allah" is much more authentic than other narrations: "Who is your Lord?" and "Do you testify that there is no god but Allah?" because the first narration is more authentic in chain, and the scholars' transmission of it for verification of what is in its relationship to another narration. If we wanted to gather those who authenticated the narration "Who is your Lord?" and "Do you testify," we would not find but a small number, perhaps not reaching the number of one hand, as they say. And from the jurisprudential and creedal perspective as well, you understood completely that we believe in what came in the Book and the Sunnah regarding the description of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) of His being above His creation, without likening Him to creation and without figurative interpretation and denial of the divine attributes, and that He is not in a place, because a place is an existent thing. Allah was and there was no place for Him, and He is now, from this perspective, as He was before, not in a place.
The questioner : So, regarding the question.
The Shaykh : What do you want to say? Bring it so we can see.
The questioner : I mean, regarding the issue of tafwid... like this, Allah (Mighty and Majestic) is free from the "how."
The Shaykh : Regarding what?
The questioner : The issue of tafwid that I explained to you. So the "how" is negated from Him.
The Shaykh : Absolutely, there is no "how." And whoever determines the "how" is one who ascribes a body to Allah, and whoever interprets figuratively is one who denies the divine attributes. Do you understand? The Salafi methodology revolves without figurative interpretation or denial of the divine attributes, as one of our true imams said, namely Ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawziyyah: "The one who ascribes a body to Allah worships an idol, and the one who denies the divine attributes worships nothing, and both are in misguidance." And the best word, may Allah reward you, is what is firmly established in the mind without needing to trouble this mind: saying regarding the attributes what you say regarding the Essence.
The questioner : If Allah wills.
The Shaykh : So the Essence cannot be determined in nature, and likewise the attributes of this Essence cannot be determined in nature.
The Shaykh : Tafwid?? You say tafwid?? I have not heard this term.
The questioner : Do you mean you read its interpretation that they are to be taken as they came?
The Shaykh : Tafwid has two meanings, my brother. Here, some of the contemporary scholars today resort to half-measures, and they do not have the scholarly capacity to reconcile the correct transmission with the stronger opinion. They speak of tafwid in the sense that we do not understand what our Lord means by such and such a verse and such and such a verse. This is not tafwid. Tafwid is used to mean delegating the understanding of the meaning, and it is used to mean delegating the determination of the nature of the meaning. For example,
There is nothing like unto Him, and He is the Hearing, the Seeing.
ليس كمثله شيء وهو السميع البصيرThe questioner : What does that mean?
The Shaykh : Do you understand how? So, tafwid is for the "how" (kayfiyyah), not tafwid for the meaning. Otherwise, we would return to the claim that Allah (Mighty and Majestic) has described Himself to His servants with what they do not understand the meaning of—far be it from Him—they understand what He described Himself with, but without burdening them. Even if He had burdened them to understand the "how," they would not have been able to find a way to it because of their incapacity, and He would have burdened them with what they cannot bear. And Allah does not burden a soul beyond what it can bear. In short, in short—remember your question, and I am now going to confirm the speech to others. If you wish, I will say: We say regarding the attributes as we say regarding the Essence. We say regarding the divine attributes as we say regarding the divine Essence, in affirmation and negation. Do we negate the Essence of Allah?
The questioner : No, far from it.
The Shaykh : Far from it, and it is not deviation or disbelief. We affirm it when we affirm the Essence of Allah and His existence. Do we determine the nature of the Essence of Allah? The answer is no. So it is with the attributes.
The questioner : The "how" is negated from Allah (Mighty and Majestic).
The Shaykh : There is none. Is it clear?
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : We say regarding the attributes what we say regarding the Essence. We affirm what He affirmed and we negate what He negated, and sufficient for the believers is fighting. This is the creed of the righteous Salaf in a concise word. We say regarding the attributes what we say regarding the Essence. And whoever deviates from the meaning of this phrase is deviating from the Book and the Sunnah and what the righteous Salaf and the respected and honored scholars of the Muslims were upon. Now, I have finished with what I have regarding "Where is Allah?" whether from the hadith perspective or from the creedal perspective. "Where is Allah" is much more authentic than other narrations: "Who is your Lord?" and "Do you testify that there is no god but Allah?" because the first narration is more authentic in chain, and the scholars' transmission of it for verification of what is in its relationship to another narration. If we wanted to gather those who authenticated the narration "Who is your Lord?" and "Do you testify," we would not find but a small number, perhaps not reaching the number of one hand, as they say. And from the jurisprudential and creedal perspective as well, you understood completely that we believe in what came in the Book and the Sunnah regarding the description of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) of His being above His creation, without likening Him to creation and without figurative interpretation and denial of the divine attributes, and that He is not in a place, because a place is an existent thing. Allah was and there was no place for Him, and He is now, from this perspective, as He was before, not in a place.
The questioner : So, regarding the question.
The Shaykh : What do you want to say? Bring it so we can see.
The questioner : I mean, regarding the issue of tafwid... like this, Allah (Mighty and Majestic) is free from the "how."
The Shaykh : Regarding what?
The questioner : The issue of tafwid that I explained to you. So the "how" is negated from Him.
The Shaykh : Absolutely, there is no "how." And whoever determines the "how" is one who ascribes a body to Allah, and whoever interprets figuratively is one who denies the divine attributes. Do you understand? The Salafi methodology revolves without figurative interpretation or denial of the divine attributes, as one of our true imams said, namely Ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawziyyah: "The one who ascribes a body to Allah worships an idol, and the one who denies the divine attributes worships nothing, and both are in misguidance." And the best word, may Allah reward you, is what is firmly established in the mind without needing to trouble this mind: saying regarding the attributes what you say regarding the Essence.
The questioner : If Allah wills.
The Shaykh : So the Essence cannot be determined in nature, and likewise the attributes of this Essence cannot be determined in nature.
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.