And whoever suspects a contradiction in the Book of Allah the Exalted, or in the Sunnah of His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), or between the two, that is either due to his lack of knowledge or the deficiency of his understanding, or
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The Shaykh : Good, the author says: "And whoever suspects a contradiction in the Book of Allah the Exalted, or in the Sunnah of his Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), or between the two, that is either due to his lack of knowledge", meaning his knowledge is little; he has not reviewed or grasped the knowledge. And whoever has little knowledge is called ignorant.
"Or the deficiency of his understanding", meaning his knowledge is vast, but what is he? He has deficient understanding. People differ greatly in understanding. Some people understand, for example, ten issues from one verse, while another understands only one issue from it. People differ greatly in their understanding of the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger.
Therefore, when Abu Juhayfah said to Ali ibn Abi Talib: except for understanding. And people differ greatly in understanding.
Look at this precise understanding: what is the minimum duration of pregnancy that a fetus can survive? Six months. Where did we take this from? It is not in the Qur'an nor in the Sunnah; it was taken from two verses. Allah the Exalted said:[Al-Ahqaf 46:15] How many months is that? Two and a half years. And He said: [Luqman 31:14] Subtract two years from thirty months, how much remains? Six months. So the minimum pregnancy is six months, and there are many examples like this.
Yes, also the second point is lack of knowledge and deficient understanding.
Therefore, it is mentioned that some scholars, no, not some scholars, some of the memorizers used to memorize the book *Al-Furu'*. *Al-Furu'* is a book of jurisprudence authored by Muhammad ibn Muflih, one of the students of Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him). He was among the most knowledgeable people regarding the opinions of Shaykh al-Islam in jurisprudence, to the extent that a student of Shaykh al-Islam, Ibn al-Qayyim, would refer to Muhammad ibn Muflih, the author of *Al-Furu'*, regarding the jurisprudence of Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him). He authored the book *Al-Furu'*. And one of the students had memorized the book from its beginning to its end completely, as one memorizes *Al-Fatihah*, but he did not understand anything, he did not understand anything at all. So the students of knowledge would come to him, because books were few at that time, and they would say: What did the author of *Al-Furu'* mention in such-and-such a chapter, for example? He would recite the chapter, the section, and everything to them, until they unfortunately nicknamed him "The Donkey of *Al-Furu'*, the Donkey of *Al-Furu'*, because a donkey carries books but does not understand their meaning. And in reality, he should not have been described with that; he should have been described as the Memorizer of *Al-Furu'*.
But in any case, I tell you: some people have deficient understanding; they memorize but do not understand.
He says: "Or his negligence in reflection". A person may have vast knowledge and sharp understanding, but he does not reflect or contemplate. And when he sits to look at the Qur'an and the Sunnah to reflect, his chest becomes narrow, his chest becomes narrow, and then—may Allah have mercy on you—then he closes the book. And this is found in many students of knowledge today; you find that he does not have the character for review and reflection; he wants knowledge to be served cold without him cooking it and ripening it.
He says: "Let him seek knowledge, and let him strive in reflection until the truth becomes clear to him". He did that and strove in reflection, but the matter did not become clear to him, so what does he do?
He says: "If it does not become clear to him, let he entrust the matter to his scholar, and let him refrain from his suspicion, and let him say as the firmly rooted in knowledge say:[Ali 'Imran 3:7] And let him know that there is no contradiction in the Book and the Sunnah, nor between them, nor any difference". When he reaches this point, he stops.
And among that is what concerns the attributes of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), for this is a narrow battlefield and a tight gate, and many students today want to widen this gate.
"Or the deficiency of his understanding", meaning his knowledge is vast, but what is he? He has deficient understanding. People differ greatly in understanding. Some people understand, for example, ten issues from one verse, while another understands only one issue from it. People differ greatly in their understanding of the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger.
Therefore, when Abu Juhayfah said to Ali ibn Abi Talib:
Did the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) bequeath to you anything? He said: No, by He who splits the seed and creates the fetus, except for understanding which Allah the Exalted grants in His Book.
هل عهد إليكم النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم بشيء؟ قال : لا والذي فلق الحبة وبرأ النسمة إلا فهما يؤتيه الله تعالى في كتابهLook at this precise understanding: what is the minimum duration of pregnancy that a fetus can survive? Six months. Where did we take this from? It is not in the Qur'an nor in the Sunnah; it was taken from two verses. Allah the Exalted said:
and his gestation and weaning [period] is thirty months
وحمله وفصاله ثلاثون شهراand his weaning is in two years
وفصاله في عامينYes, also the second point is lack of knowledge and deficient understanding.
Therefore, it is mentioned that some scholars, no, not some scholars, some of the memorizers used to memorize the book *Al-Furu'*. *Al-Furu'* is a book of jurisprudence authored by Muhammad ibn Muflih, one of the students of Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him). He was among the most knowledgeable people regarding the opinions of Shaykh al-Islam in jurisprudence, to the extent that a student of Shaykh al-Islam, Ibn al-Qayyim, would refer to Muhammad ibn Muflih, the author of *Al-Furu'*, regarding the jurisprudence of Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him). He authored the book *Al-Furu'*. And one of the students had memorized the book from its beginning to its end completely, as one memorizes *Al-Fatihah*, but he did not understand anything, he did not understand anything at all. So the students of knowledge would come to him, because books were few at that time, and they would say: What did the author of *Al-Furu'* mention in such-and-such a chapter, for example? He would recite the chapter, the section, and everything to them, until they unfortunately nicknamed him "The Donkey of *Al-Furu'*, the Donkey of *Al-Furu'*, because a donkey carries books but does not understand their meaning. And in reality, he should not have been described with that; he should have been described as the Memorizer of *Al-Furu'*.
But in any case, I tell you: some people have deficient understanding; they memorize but do not understand.
He says: "Or his negligence in reflection". A person may have vast knowledge and sharp understanding, but he does not reflect or contemplate. And when he sits to look at the Qur'an and the Sunnah to reflect, his chest becomes narrow, his chest becomes narrow, and then—may Allah have mercy on you—then he closes the book. And this is found in many students of knowledge today; you find that he does not have the character for review and reflection; he wants knowledge to be served cold without him cooking it and ripening it.
He says: "Let him seek knowledge, and let him strive in reflection until the truth becomes clear to him". He did that and strove in reflection, but the matter did not become clear to him, so what does he do?
He says: "If it does not become clear to him, let he entrust the matter to his scholar, and let him refrain from his suspicion, and let him say as the firmly rooted in knowledge say:
We believe in it. All [of it] is from our Lord.
آمنا به كل من عند ربناAnd among that is what concerns the attributes of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), for this is a narrow battlefield and a tight gate, and many students today want to widen this gate.