Commentary on the preceding verses, and an explanation of the Mu'tazilah's position on the issue of the speech of Allah and that the Qur'an is created according to them
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The Shaykh : In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
This author, may Allah have mercy on him, when he mentioned the statement of Imam Ahmad and the statement of al-Bukhari, may Allah have mercy on him, said: "And their opponents after them are two groups". The first group claimed that the speech of Allah the Exalted is created, both its words and its meanings. These are the Mu'tazilah and the Jahmiyyah. They say: "Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, did not speak with speech that is His attribute, and He has no speech that is His attribute. Rather, He created speech and attributed this speech to Him, just as He created a she-camel and attributed it to Him, and just as He created a house and attributed it to Him. So the attribution of speech to Allah is not the attribution of an attribute to the one who possesses it, but rather the attribution of a creation to the Creator." These people made the Qur'an, both its words and its meanings, created. This is the group. They followed through with their statement and said that the Qur'an is like all other created things, created for Allah, Mighty and Majestic. They debated on this, and many trials befell them in the time of Imam Ahmad, and after him, and before him. The others rejected this statement and said: "It is not possible that the speech of Allah is one of His attributes, but they made the words created and the meaning the attribute. So the speech of Allah, according to the opinion of these people, is divided into two parts: a created part and an uncreated part. What is the created part? The words. And the uncreated part? The meanings. So they divided the speech and said: The words are created, created by Allah, Mighty and Majestic, in the air, in the atmosphere. Gabriel heard them and brought them down to the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him. As for the meanings, they subsist in the Self of Allah, in His Self. They are not created. In reality, you know that these people contradicted themselves. These people contradicted themselves, making the word have one aspect and the meaning have another aspect. The Mu'tazilah are better than them in following through. How are they better in following through? Because they followed through with the speech and said that the whole thing is created. It is not conceivable that a word can be separated from its meaning, or a meaning from its word. How can we say this meaning is uncreated and the word is created, when the meaning is speech and the word is an occurrence? This is not correct. Rather, the whole thing is an occurrence and the whole thing is created, and we are done. Pay attention: Which is the more established doctrine? The doctrine of the Mu'tazilah is more established because it is consistent. It is not conceivable that speech from one speaker has its word with one aspect and its meaning with another aspect. Look, the calamity returned to what he mentioned. He said:
"They claimed the Qur'an is an expression and a narration *** We said: As they claimed, there are two Qur'ans"
A Qur'an that is a narration and a Qur'an that is speech and an attribute. What is the Qur'an that is the attribute? The meaning. And the Qur'an that is a narration and an expression? The word. So we have two Qur'ans: the Qur'an that is the meaning subsisting in the Self of the Lord, Mighty and Majestic, and the Qur'an that is the heard sound. Yes, for this reason he said: "We said: As they claimed, there are two Qur'ans"
"This which we recite is created". Correct. This doctrine says that what we recite is created, and the meaning subsisting in the Self of Allah is an uncreated attribute. For this reason, some of the precise scholars among them said: "We and the Mu'tazilah are on the same footing". We are all in agreement that what is between the covers of the mushaf is what? Created. They are in agreement on this. But the Asha'irah, who are the holders of this view, who say that the meaning is the speech and the word is created, say: "This is an expression of the speech of Allah." And the Mu'tazilah say: "This is the speech of Allah." Look, glory to Allah. The Mu'tazilah say that what is in the mushaf is the speech of Allah, and these people say: "This is an expression of the speech of Allah, not the speech of Allah." And everyone agreed that it is created. Well, which is more correct? The Mu'tazilah say: "O people, this is the speech of Allah, and it is created." These people say: "This is created and is not the speech of Allah," the Asha'irah. And the truth is that no one pays attention to this meaning. The Asha'irah now say: "This is not the speech of Allah, and it is created." And the Mu'tazilah say: "This is the speech of Allah, and it is created." And we say: "The speech of Allah is not created."
Well, what is it, O Asha'irah? What is this? They said: "This is an expression of the speech of Allah, not the speech of Allah." Well, or a narration? The difference between an expression (ibarah) and a narration (hikayah) is that in an expression, Allah creates sounds that express it, and a narration is a narration of the speech, like an echo. For example, if you speak between mountains, there is an echo that narrates the sound. So they say that Allah the Exalted speaks with speech that is not heard, but it has an echo, a narration of the speech. But what is known among the Asha'irah is that they say it is an expression, and the Kalbiyyah say it is a narration. Well, he says:
"This which we recite is created, as *** al-Walid said"
Who is al-Walid? Al-Walid ibn al-Mughirah, the father of Khalid ibn al-Walid. Al-Walid ibn al-Mughirah said: "This is nothing but the speech of men. This is nothing but magic that is passed on. This is nothing but the speech of men." They say this is the speech of men. So they say it is created, like my speech is created, and the speech of the second person is created, and this is also created.
"As *** al-Walid said, and after him the two groups"
Who are the two groups? The Asha'irah and the Mu'tazilah. Both of them say that this speech that is in our hands, the Qur'an, is created.
"And the other is the meaning". Look, the others rejected it and said: "One part of it is created, and one part subsists in the Most Merciful." The heard sound that is heard and recited, what is this? O brothers, it is created and is not the speech of Allah, but rather it is an expression.
This author, may Allah have mercy on him, when he mentioned the statement of Imam Ahmad and the statement of al-Bukhari, may Allah have mercy on him, said: "And their opponents after them are two groups". The first group claimed that the speech of Allah the Exalted is created, both its words and its meanings. These are the Mu'tazilah and the Jahmiyyah. They say: "Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, did not speak with speech that is His attribute, and He has no speech that is His attribute. Rather, He created speech and attributed this speech to Him, just as He created a she-camel and attributed it to Him, and just as He created a house and attributed it to Him. So the attribution of speech to Allah is not the attribution of an attribute to the one who possesses it, but rather the attribution of a creation to the Creator." These people made the Qur'an, both its words and its meanings, created. This is the group. They followed through with their statement and said that the Qur'an is like all other created things, created for Allah, Mighty and Majestic. They debated on this, and many trials befell them in the time of Imam Ahmad, and after him, and before him. The others rejected this statement and said: "It is not possible that the speech of Allah is one of His attributes, but they made the words created and the meaning the attribute. So the speech of Allah, according to the opinion of these people, is divided into two parts: a created part and an uncreated part. What is the created part? The words. And the uncreated part? The meanings. So they divided the speech and said: The words are created, created by Allah, Mighty and Majestic, in the air, in the atmosphere. Gabriel heard them and brought them down to the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him. As for the meanings, they subsist in the Self of Allah, in His Self. They are not created. In reality, you know that these people contradicted themselves. These people contradicted themselves, making the word have one aspect and the meaning have another aspect. The Mu'tazilah are better than them in following through. How are they better in following through? Because they followed through with the speech and said that the whole thing is created. It is not conceivable that a word can be separated from its meaning, or a meaning from its word. How can we say this meaning is uncreated and the word is created, when the meaning is speech and the word is an occurrence? This is not correct. Rather, the whole thing is an occurrence and the whole thing is created, and we are done. Pay attention: Which is the more established doctrine? The doctrine of the Mu'tazilah is more established because it is consistent. It is not conceivable that speech from one speaker has its word with one aspect and its meaning with another aspect. Look, the calamity returned to what he mentioned. He said:
"They claimed the Qur'an is an expression and a narration *** We said: As they claimed, there are two Qur'ans"
A Qur'an that is a narration and a Qur'an that is speech and an attribute. What is the Qur'an that is the attribute? The meaning. And the Qur'an that is a narration and an expression? The word. So we have two Qur'ans: the Qur'an that is the meaning subsisting in the Self of the Lord, Mighty and Majestic, and the Qur'an that is the heard sound. Yes, for this reason he said: "We said: As they claimed, there are two Qur'ans"
"This which we recite is created". Correct. This doctrine says that what we recite is created, and the meaning subsisting in the Self of Allah is an uncreated attribute. For this reason, some of the precise scholars among them said: "We and the Mu'tazilah are on the same footing". We are all in agreement that what is between the covers of the mushaf is what? Created. They are in agreement on this. But the Asha'irah, who are the holders of this view, who say that the meaning is the speech and the word is created, say: "This is an expression of the speech of Allah." And the Mu'tazilah say: "This is the speech of Allah." Look, glory to Allah. The Mu'tazilah say that what is in the mushaf is the speech of Allah, and these people say: "This is an expression of the speech of Allah, not the speech of Allah." And everyone agreed that it is created. Well, which is more correct? The Mu'tazilah say: "O people, this is the speech of Allah, and it is created." These people say: "This is created and is not the speech of Allah," the Asha'irah. And the truth is that no one pays attention to this meaning. The Asha'irah now say: "This is not the speech of Allah, and it is created." And the Mu'tazilah say: "This is the speech of Allah, and it is created." And we say: "The speech of Allah is not created."
Well, what is it, O Asha'irah? What is this? They said: "This is an expression of the speech of Allah, not the speech of Allah." Well, or a narration? The difference between an expression (ibarah) and a narration (hikayah) is that in an expression, Allah creates sounds that express it, and a narration is a narration of the speech, like an echo. For example, if you speak between mountains, there is an echo that narrates the sound. So they say that Allah the Exalted speaks with speech that is not heard, but it has an echo, a narration of the speech. But what is known among the Asha'irah is that they say it is an expression, and the Kalbiyyah say it is a narration. Well, he says:
"This which we recite is created, as *** al-Walid said"
Who is al-Walid? Al-Walid ibn al-Mughirah, the father of Khalid ibn al-Walid. Al-Walid ibn al-Mughirah said: "This is nothing but the speech of men. This is nothing but magic that is passed on. This is nothing but the speech of men." They say this is the speech of men. So they say it is created, like my speech is created, and the speech of the second person is created, and this is also created.
"As *** al-Walid said, and after him the two groups"
Who are the two groups? The Asha'irah and the Mu'tazilah. Both of them say that this speech that is in our hands, the Qur'an, is created.
"And the other is the meaning". Look, the others rejected it and said: "One part of it is created, and one part subsists in the Most Merciful." The heard sound that is heard and recited, what is this? O brothers, it is created and is not the speech of Allah, but rather it is an expression.