Explanation of the words of Ibn Malik (may Allah have mercy on him): "Two non-declinable verbs *** Nay and Naysay are two that raise two nouns."
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The Shaykh : The author said:
"Two non-declinable verbs *** Nay and Naysay are two that raise two nouns"
His statement: "Two non-declinable verbs" is a predicate placed before the subject, and his statement: "Nay and Naysay" is a subject placed after the predicate. "Nay" is the subject, and "Naysay" is conjoined to it. This means that "Nay" and "Naysay" are two non-declinable verbs, and this is the stronger position among the opinions of the scholars, that they are two non-declinable verbs. The evidence for this is the entry of the feminine "t" into them, so you say: "Naymat al-mar'ah Hind" (Nay is the woman Hind) and "Baysat al-mar'ah Da'd" (Naysay is the woman Da'd). The feminine "t" is a marker of verbs. It was said that they are nouns, and those who said that argued for their position by citing the statement of some Arabs who, when he was told he had a daughter, said: "Ma hiya bi-naym al-walad" (She is not a good child). They said: Prepositions do not enter except upon nouns. Similarly, the statement of some: "Bays al-sayr 'ala bays al-'ayr" (Naysay is the journey on naysay the donkey). Do you know what an "ayr" is?
The student: Yes.
The Shaykh : What is it?
The student: The donkey.
The Shaykh : A donkey. He says: "Naysay is the journey on naysay the donkey," so he entered the preposition "on" before "Naysay."
The student: "Naym al-sayr 'ala" (Nay is the journey on).
The Shaykh : Or "Naym al-sayr 'ala bays al-'ayr" (Nay is the journey on naysay the donkey), so he entered the preposition "on" before "Naysay." Prepositions do not enter except upon nouns. However, the first opinion, which Ibn Malik followed, is more correct. These two statements are interpreted figuratively. The meaning is: "She is not the one who is a good child," meaning the one about whom it is said: "A good child." "She is not the one who is a good child" means she is not the one about whom it is said: "A good child." Similarly, "on naysay the donkey" is interpreted as: "on a mount about which it is said: Naysay the donkey." The author's statement: "non-declinable" means that no present tense comes from them, no imperative comes from them, and no verbal noun comes from them. Rather, they are found in the Arabic language in this form, non-declinable. What is a non-declinable verb called?
The student: It is static.
The Shaykh : It is called "jāmid" (static). He said: "Two that raise two nouns". "Two that raise" is a second predicate for his statement: "Nay and Naysay", meaning: they are two non-declinable verbs, and likewise "two that raise two nouns." And "two that raise" operated on his statement: "two nouns." It operated on what? It operated on the accusative case. So his statement: "two nouns" is the object of "two that raise." And in "two that raise," there is a hidden pronoun referring back to "Nay" and "Naysay." The pronoun is not the "alif" in his statement: "two that raise", because the "alif" in his statement: "two that raise" is a marker of what?
The student: Inflection.
The Shaykh : A marker of grammatical case, not a pronoun. The meaning is that "Nay" and "Naysay" raise two nouns. It is not that each one raises two nouns, but rather each one raises one noun. These two nouns, he says, are "muqārinat al-alif" (comparable to the article "al").
"Two non-declinable verbs *** Nay and Naysay are two that raise two nouns"
His statement: "Two non-declinable verbs" is a predicate placed before the subject, and his statement: "Nay and Naysay" is a subject placed after the predicate. "Nay" is the subject, and "Naysay" is conjoined to it. This means that "Nay" and "Naysay" are two non-declinable verbs, and this is the stronger position among the opinions of the scholars, that they are two non-declinable verbs. The evidence for this is the entry of the feminine "t" into them, so you say: "Naymat al-mar'ah Hind" (Nay is the woman Hind) and "Baysat al-mar'ah Da'd" (Naysay is the woman Da'd). The feminine "t" is a marker of verbs. It was said that they are nouns, and those who said that argued for their position by citing the statement of some Arabs who, when he was told he had a daughter, said: "Ma hiya bi-naym al-walad" (She is not a good child). They said: Prepositions do not enter except upon nouns. Similarly, the statement of some: "Bays al-sayr 'ala bays al-'ayr" (Naysay is the journey on naysay the donkey). Do you know what an "ayr" is?
The student: Yes.
The Shaykh : What is it?
The student: The donkey.
The Shaykh : A donkey. He says: "Naysay is the journey on naysay the donkey," so he entered the preposition "on" before "Naysay."
The student: "Naym al-sayr 'ala" (Nay is the journey on).
The Shaykh : Or "Naym al-sayr 'ala bays al-'ayr" (Nay is the journey on naysay the donkey), so he entered the preposition "on" before "Naysay." Prepositions do not enter except upon nouns. However, the first opinion, which Ibn Malik followed, is more correct. These two statements are interpreted figuratively. The meaning is: "She is not the one who is a good child," meaning the one about whom it is said: "A good child." "She is not the one who is a good child" means she is not the one about whom it is said: "A good child." Similarly, "on naysay the donkey" is interpreted as: "on a mount about which it is said: Naysay the donkey." The author's statement: "non-declinable" means that no present tense comes from them, no imperative comes from them, and no verbal noun comes from them. Rather, they are found in the Arabic language in this form, non-declinable. What is a non-declinable verb called?
The student: It is static.
The Shaykh : It is called "jāmid" (static). He said: "Two that raise two nouns". "Two that raise" is a second predicate for his statement: "Nay and Naysay", meaning: they are two non-declinable verbs, and likewise "two that raise two nouns." And "two that raise" operated on his statement: "two nouns." It operated on what? It operated on the accusative case. So his statement: "two nouns" is the object of "two that raise." And in "two that raise," there is a hidden pronoun referring back to "Nay" and "Naysay." The pronoun is not the "alif" in his statement: "two that raise", because the "alif" in his statement: "two that raise" is a marker of what?
The student: Inflection.
The Shaykh : A marker of grammatical case, not a pronoun. The meaning is that "Nay" and "Naysay" raise two nouns. It is not that each one raises two nouns, but rather each one raises one noun. These two nouns, he says, are "muqārinat al-alif" (comparable to the article "al").