Review of the explanation of Ibn Malik’s (may Allah have mercy on him) statement: "The subject is like the two nominatives in: 'Zayd came, bright-faced, what a fine young man.'"
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The Shaykh : In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and his Companions, and upon those who follow them with excellence until the Day of Judgment:
It became clear to me from the author’s statement:
"Like the two nominatives in: 'Zayd came, bright-faced, what a fine young man'"
that he is referring to what is raised by a verb and what is raised by a noun; these are
"Like the two nominatives in: 'Zayd came, bright-faced, his face'"
"and 'what a fine young man'": this completes the explanation of what is raised by a verb, meaning what its operator is a verb, except that a distinction is made between his saying "what a fine young man" and his saying "Zayd came" in that the verb in "what a fine young man" is invariable, while "came" in "Zayd came" is variable; this is the difference. The important point is that the subject is what comes after the verb or what is in the meaning of the verb, by which it is raised. Now, is it possible for the subject to come before the verb?
The student: Yes.
The Shaykh : The answer to the author’s statement is that it is not possible, because he said: "And after a verb comes the subject". It has been said: It is permissible for the subject to precede the verb, and the effect of this appears in the example. If we say it is not permissible, we say: "The two men stood up" (qama al-rijulani). If we say it is not permissible, and if we say it is permissible: "The two men stood" (qama al-rijulani) without the alif, because in the first case, "the two men" is the subject (mubtada') and "stood up" is the verb and subject (fi'l wa fa'il), and the sentence is the predicate (khabar) for the subject. In the second case, "the two men" is the subject (fa'il) placed before, and "stood" is the verb placed after. Yes, and we mentioned that a rule has preceded us, which we consider a great principle in the chapter of grammar, namely: when grammarians differ on something, we take the easier option unless there is a preventer. He said:
"And after a verb comes the subject, if it appears, it is so; otherwise, it is a hidden pronoun"
His saying: "After a verb comes the subject," do I think we explained this?
The student: Yes.
The Shaykh : "If it appears, it is so," meaning: it is the subject, and the matter is clear, such as "the man stood up" or "the lion died"; the subject is the man and the lion. "And if it does not appear, it is a hidden pronoun" means: if it does not appear, it is a hidden pronoun. Is it obligatory or permissible? We say: if its implied meaning is "I" or "we" or "you," then it is hidden obligatorily. If its implied meaning is "he" or "she," then it is hidden permissibly. It has been said: it is hidden obligatorily in all cases, because if you say, for example, "he stood up" and you make the pronoun explicit, this pronoun is not the subject, but an emphatic pronoun. However, the well-known view is what we mentioned, that it is divided into hidden obligatorily and hidden permissibly. What its implied meaning is "I," "we," or "you," its implication is obligatory. What its implied meaning is "he" or "she," it is permissible.
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and his Companions, and upon those who follow them with excellence until the Day of Judgment:
It became clear to me from the author’s statement:
"Like the two nominatives in: 'Zayd came, bright-faced, what a fine young man'"
that he is referring to what is raised by a verb and what is raised by a noun; these are
"Like the two nominatives in: 'Zayd came, bright-faced, his face'"
"and 'what a fine young man'": this completes the explanation of what is raised by a verb, meaning what its operator is a verb, except that a distinction is made between his saying "what a fine young man" and his saying "Zayd came" in that the verb in "what a fine young man" is invariable, while "came" in "Zayd came" is variable; this is the difference. The important point is that the subject is what comes after the verb or what is in the meaning of the verb, by which it is raised. Now, is it possible for the subject to come before the verb?
The student: Yes.
The Shaykh : The answer to the author’s statement is that it is not possible, because he said: "And after a verb comes the subject". It has been said: It is permissible for the subject to precede the verb, and the effect of this appears in the example. If we say it is not permissible, we say: "The two men stood up" (qama al-rijulani). If we say it is not permissible, and if we say it is permissible: "The two men stood" (qama al-rijulani) without the alif, because in the first case, "the two men" is the subject (mubtada') and "stood up" is the verb and subject (fi'l wa fa'il), and the sentence is the predicate (khabar) for the subject. In the second case, "the two men" is the subject (fa'il) placed before, and "stood" is the verb placed after. Yes, and we mentioned that a rule has preceded us, which we consider a great principle in the chapter of grammar, namely: when grammarians differ on something, we take the easier option unless there is a preventer. He said:
"And after a verb comes the subject, if it appears, it is so; otherwise, it is a hidden pronoun"
His saying: "After a verb comes the subject," do I think we explained this?
The student: Yes.
The Shaykh : "If it appears, it is so," meaning: it is the subject, and the matter is clear, such as "the man stood up" or "the lion died"; the subject is the man and the lion. "And if it does not appear, it is a hidden pronoun" means: if it does not appear, it is a hidden pronoun. Is it obligatory or permissible? We say: if its implied meaning is "I" or "we" or "you," then it is hidden obligatorily. If its implied meaning is "he" or "she," then it is hidden permissibly. It has been said: it is hidden obligatorily in all cases, because if you say, for example, "he stood up" and you make the pronoun explicit, this pronoun is not the subject, but an emphatic pronoun. However, the well-known view is what we mentioned, that it is divided into hidden obligatorily and hidden permissibly. What its implied meaning is "I," "we," or "you," its implication is obligatory. What its implied meaning is "he" or "she," it is permissible.