The Statement of the Belief of the People of the Sunnah and the Community in the Chapter of Names and Attributes (The Issue of Istiwa' and the Refutation of the Evidence of the Opponents)
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The Shaykh : Our belief, which we ask Allah (Mighty and Majestic) to keep us firm upon, to let us die upon, and to meet Him with, is that we affirm the coming of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) as He informed us of it regarding Himself, but we do not ask how He came? We do not ask how this is. It is clear, my brothers. We spoke about istiwa' yesterday; we spoke about it yesterday. A pretentious man came, my brothers, listen. A pretentious man came and said, "Istiwa' means to dominate (istawala)." I will bring you the proof. Go ahead. What is the proof? He said, listen:
"Bishr has taken possession of Iraq *** without a sword or spilled blood"
Bishr ibn Marwan, from the Banu Umayyah, dominated Iraq without a sword or spilled blood. And he said the meaning of istiwa' is istawala (to dominate). How do we answer this claimant?
We answer by first asking: Who is the one who said this verse? Who is he? Prove this with a valid chain of narration. "So-and-so narrated to us, he said, so-and-so narrated to us, he said, so-and-so narrated to us." Who are they? Are they trustworthy? Is the chain connected to the poet? Do we have the right to demand this or not? By Allah, I do not know. Apparently, you will answer according to my mood. Do we have the right to demand that this claimant prove the one who said this verse, or do we not? We have the right. We have the right. Prove this.
Then, if it is established by a sound chain of narration to the specific speaker, we say, "Fine, you have proven that this speaker said this statement before the Arabic language changed. Do we have a right or not? The Arabic language changed from the time of 'Ali ibn Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him), as in the story of Abu al-Aswad al-Du'ali that the grammarians narrate. Do you know the story or not? Yes, the story is that Abu al-Aswad al-Du'ali's daughter said to him, "O my father, how beautiful the sky is". Answer, answer. "How beautiful the sky is". Abu al-Aswad said, "Its stars", because "how beautiful the sky is" means "what is the most beautiful part of the sky?" The most beautiful part of the sky is the stars, as the Mighty and Majestic said:[Al-Mulk 67:5] When she said, "How beautiful the sky is, he said, 'Its stars'", that is a correct answer according to the wording. She said, "O my father, I am not asking you this; I am not asking you. I am marveling at the beauty of the sky". The night is clear and the stars are shining; I am marveling at the beauty of... He said, "O my daughter, open your mouth". And what is "your mouth"? This is a specific question. What is "your mouth"? Yes, that.
The student: ... .
The Shaykh : The "fu" is the mouth. What is it?
The student: ... .
The Shaykh : Leave it. She said, "Just teach me. What does 'mouth' mean?"
The student: The throat.
The Shaykh : The throat opens when speaking? Rest. "Fak" means your mouth. "Fak" means your mouth. Our brother understood the meaning, but he did not know how to express it. "Open your mouth." How do you open your mouth? You say "How beautiful the sky is" with an open fathah. You do not say "How beautiful the sky is" with a dammah. Then he connected with 'Ali ibn Abi Talib, and they agreed to establish a few rules of grammar.
So the language had changed before the Umayyads took over the caliphate. Just as we now need to ask what? In the house, one who is being pretentious said, "Bishr has taken possession of Iraq", meaning "he has seized control." What do we demand first? First, the soundness of the chain of narration to the speaker.
Then, is this one a pure Arab or one whose language has changed, because the language has changed?
Third, if the chain of narration is valid and it is valid that this man is from the pure Arabs, then the meaning of "dominated Iraq" is that he completed his domination over it, because istiwa' means completion, as He (Mighty and Majestic) said:[Al-Qasas 28:14] Meaning, it is completed, just as you say "the fruit has ripened," meaning its ripening is completed. So the meaning of "dominated Iraq" is that he completed his domination over it, and it is not mere domination. That is all. Another thing: "He dominated Iraq" is a conceptual domination, meaning a conceptual elevation, not a physical one. And thus, the argument with this poetry is refuted, and the meaning is as we mentioned last night, and there is no need to repeat it.
And praise be to Allah that this belief, namely that Allah is above everything, established upon His Throne, is the belief of every Muslim, free from the doubts of the dialecticians. I swear to you, when you prostrate, you say, "Glory to my Lord, the Most High." What do you believe? The Most High means that He is above everyone. He who says "Glory to my Lord, the Most High" in prostration means that Allah is above him. And for this reason, my brothers, look, when a person lowers himself to the lowest point, because your face, which is the most noble part of your body, when you prostrate, will be in the place where feet tread. I said, "Allah, what?" "Glory to my Lord, the Most High," the One free from lowness. Pay attention to this. Okay.
"Bishr has taken possession of Iraq *** without a sword or spilled blood"
Bishr ibn Marwan, from the Banu Umayyah, dominated Iraq without a sword or spilled blood. And he said the meaning of istiwa' is istawala (to dominate). How do we answer this claimant?
We answer by first asking: Who is the one who said this verse? Who is he? Prove this with a valid chain of narration. "So-and-so narrated to us, he said, so-and-so narrated to us, he said, so-and-so narrated to us." Who are they? Are they trustworthy? Is the chain connected to the poet? Do we have the right to demand this or not? By Allah, I do not know. Apparently, you will answer according to my mood. Do we have the right to demand that this claimant prove the one who said this verse, or do we not? We have the right. We have the right. Prove this.
Then, if it is established by a sound chain of narration to the specific speaker, we say, "Fine, you have proven that this speaker said this statement before the Arabic language changed. Do we have a right or not? The Arabic language changed from the time of 'Ali ibn Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him), as in the story of Abu al-Aswad al-Du'ali that the grammarians narrate. Do you know the story or not? Yes, the story is that Abu al-Aswad al-Du'ali's daughter said to him, "O my father, how beautiful the sky is". Answer, answer. "How beautiful the sky is". Abu al-Aswad said, "Its stars", because "how beautiful the sky is" means "what is the most beautiful part of the sky?" The most beautiful part of the sky is the stars, as the Mighty and Majestic said:
And We have certainly beautified the nearest heaven with
ولقد زينا السماء بمصابيحThe student: ... .
The Shaykh : The "fu" is the mouth. What is it?
The student: ... .
The Shaykh : Leave it. She said, "Just teach me. What does 'mouth' mean?"
The student: The throat.
The Shaykh : The throat opens when speaking? Rest. "Fak" means your mouth. "Fak" means your mouth. Our brother understood the meaning, but he did not know how to express it. "Open your mouth." How do you open your mouth? You say "How beautiful the sky is" with an open fathah. You do not say "How beautiful the sky is" with a dammah. Then he connected with 'Ali ibn Abi Talib, and they agreed to establish a few rules of grammar.
So the language had changed before the Umayyads took over the caliphate. Just as we now need to ask what? In the house, one who is being pretentious said, "Bishr has taken possession of Iraq", meaning "he has seized control." What do we demand first? First, the soundness of the chain of narration to the speaker.
Then, is this one a pure Arab or one whose language has changed, because the language has changed?
Third, if the chain of narration is valid and it is valid that this man is from the pure Arabs, then the meaning of "dominated Iraq" is that he completed his domination over it, because istiwa' means completion, as He (Mighty and Majestic) said:
And when he attained his full strength and was [mentally] mature
ولما بلغ أشده واستوىAnd praise be to Allah that this belief, namely that Allah is above everything, established upon His Throne, is the belief of every Muslim, free from the doubts of the dialecticians. I swear to you, when you prostrate, you say, "Glory to my Lord, the Most High." What do you believe? The Most High means that He is above everyone. He who says "Glory to my Lord, the Most High" in prostration means that Allah is above him. And for this reason, my brothers, look, when a person lowers himself to the lowest point, because your face, which is the most noble part of your body, when you prostrate, will be in the place where feet tread. I said, "Allah, what?" "Glory to my Lord, the Most High," the One free from lowness. Pay attention to this. Okay.