Book of Intellect and Knowledge
Miscellaneous from the Book of Intellect and Knowledge
[3/48] الكافي: محمد بن يحيى، عن أحمد بن محمد بن عيسى، عن الحسن بن علي بن فضال عن ابن بكير، عن عبيد بن زرارة قال: قال أبوعبدالله عليه السلام: احتفظوا بكتبكم فإنكم سوف تحتاجون إليها
3. [3/48] al-Kafi: Muhammad b. Yahya from Ahmad b. Muhammad b. Isa from al-Hasan b. Ali b. Fadhal from Ibn Bukayr from Ubayd b. Zurara who said: Abu Abdillah عليه السلام said: preserve your books for you are going to have need of them.
[4/49] الكافي: محمد بن يحيى، عن أحمد بن محمد بن عيسى، عن أحمد بن محمد بن أبي نصر، عن جميل بن دراج قال: قال أبو عبدالله عليه السلام: أعربوا حديثنا فانا قوم فصحاء
4. [4/49] al-Kafi: Muhammad b. Yahya from Ahmad b. Muhammad b. Isa from Ahmad b. Muhammad b. Abi Nasr from Jamil b. Darraj who said: Abu Abdillah عليه السلام said: Arabize our narrations for we are an eloquent people.
[5/50] الخصال: عن أبيه، عن سعد، عن البرقي، عن الحسن بن علي بن فضال، عن ثعلبة، عن أبي عبد الله عليه السلام قال: الرجال ثلاثة: رجل بماله، ورجل بجاهه، ورجل بلسانه، وهو أفضل الثلاثة
5. [5/50] al-Khisal: From my father from Sa’d from al-Barqi from al-Hasan b. Ali b. Fadhal from Tha’laba from Abi Abdillah عليه السلام who said: men are of three kinds: a man by his wealth, a man by his position, and a man by his tongue (good speaker), and he is the best of the three.
Book of Intellect and Knowledge
Transmitting the Narration Non-Verbatim
[1/51] الكافي: محمد بن يحيى، عن محمد بن الحسين، عن ابن أبي عمير، عن ابن أذينة، عن محمد بن مسلم قال: قلت لابي عبدالله عليه السلام: أسمع الحديث منك فأزيد وأنقص؟ قال: إن كنت تريد معانيه فلا بأس
1. [1/51] al-Kafi: Muhammad b. Yahya from Muhammad b. al-Husayn from Ibn Abi Umayr from Ibn Udhayna from Muhammad b. Muslim who said: I said to Abi Abdillah عليه السلام: I hear the narration from you – am I allowed to add or decrease (some words to/from it)? he said: if you intend to convey the same meaning then there is no harm.
[2/52] الكافي: وعنه، عن أحمد بن محمد ومحمد بن الحسين، عن ابن محبوب، عن عبدالله بن سنان قال: قلت لابي عبدالله عليه السلام: يجيئني القوم فيستمعون مني حديثكم فأضجر ولا أقوى قال: فاقرأ عليهم من أوله حديثا ومن وسطه حديثا ومن آخره حديثا
2. [2/52] al-Kafi: And from him (Muhammad b. Yahya) from Ahmad b. Muhammad and Muhammad b. al-Husayn from Ibn Mahbub from Abdallah b. Sinan who said: I said to Abi Abdillah عليه السلام – a group comes and hears your narrations from me – but I (sometimes) become weary and do not have the strength (to read all that I have to them), he said: then read for them from the beginning of it (the book) a narration and from the middle a narration and from the ending a narration.
Book of Intellect and Knowledge
Prohibition of Blind Following
[1/53] محمد بن إسماعيل، عن الفضل بن شاذان، عن حماد بن عيسى، عن ربعي ابن عبدالله، عن أبي بصير، عن أبي عبدالله عليه السلام في قول الله عزوجل: “اتخذوا أحبارهم ورهبانهم أربابا من دون الله” فقال: والله ما صاموا لهم ولا صلوا لهم ولكن أحلوا لهم حراما وحرموا عليهم حلالا فاتبعوهم
1. [1/53] Muhammad b. Ismail from al-Fadhl b. Shadhan from Hammad b. Isa from Rib’i b. Abdallah from Abi Basir from Abi Abdillah عليه السلام in regards the words of Allāh Mighty and Majestic: “they took their rabbis and monks as lords besides Allāh” (9:31) he said: by Allāh – they did not fast for them nor did they pray to them but they (the rabbis and monks) made permissible for them the prohibited and prohibited for them the permissible so they followed them.
Book of Intellect and Knowledge
Regarding Innovation and Analogical Reasoning
[1/54] الكافي: الحسين بن محمد الاشعري، عن معلى بن محمد، عن الحسن بن علي الوشاء، و عدة من أصحابنا، عن أحمد بن محمد، عن ابن فضال جميعا، عن عاصم بن حميد، عن محمد ابن مسلم، عن أبي جعفر عليه السلام قال: خطب أمير المؤمنين عليه السلام الناس فقال: أيها الناس إنما بدء وقوع الفتن أهواء تتبع، وأحكام تبتدع، يخالف فيها كتاب الله، يتولى فيها رجال رجالا، فلو أن الباطل خلص لم يخف على ذي حجى، ولو أن الحق خلص لم يكن اختلاف ولكن يؤخذ من هذا ضغث ومن هذا ضغث فيمزجان فيجيئان معا فهنالك استحوذ الشيطان على أوليائه ونجا الذين سبقت لهم من الله الحسنى
1. [1/54] al-Kafi: al-Husayn b. Muhammad al-Ash’ari from Mualla b. Muhammad from al-Hasan b. Ali al-Washsha AND a number of our companions from Ahmad b. Muhammad from Ibn Fadhal all together from A’sim b. Humayd from Muhammad b. Muslim from Abi Ja’far عليه السلام who said: the commander of the faithful عليه السلام addressed the people and said: O people – verily the beginning of occurrence of strife is [due to] desires being followed and laws being innovated – in which the book of Allāh is opposed and in which men follow other men, if the falsehood were to be completely distinct it would not be hidden from anyone who possesses intellect, and if the truth were to be completely distinct there would not be any disagreement, but it is taken from this (falsehood) a handful and from that (truth) a handful and then mixed and presented together, this is whence the Satan overwhelms his allies whilst are saved those to whom had preceded grace from Allāh.
[2/55] الكافي: علي بن إبراهيم، عن محمد بن عيسى بن عبيد، عن يونس بن عبدالرحمن، عن سماعة بن مهران، عن أبي الحسن موسى عليه السلام قال: قلت: أصلحك الله إنا نجتمع فنتذاكر ما عندنا فلا يرد علينا شئ إلا وعندنا فيه شئ مسطر وذلك مما أنعم الله به علينا بكم، ثم يرد علينا الشئ الصغير ليس عندنا فيه شئ فينظر بعضنا إلى بعض، وعندنا ما يشبهه فنقيس على أحسنه؟ فقال: ومالكم وللقياس؟ إنما هلك من هلك من قبلكم بالقياس، ثم قال: إذا جاء كم ما تعلمون، فقولوا به وإن جائكم ما لا تعلمون فها – وأهوى بيده إلى فيه – ثم قال: لعن الله أبا حنيفة كان يقول: قال علي وقلت أنا، وقالت الصحابة وقلت، ثم قال: أكنت تجلس إليه؟ فقلت: لا ولكن هذا كلامه، فقلت: أصلحك الله أتى رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله الناس بما يكتفون به في عهده؟ قال: نعم وما يحتاجون إليه إلى يوم القيامة، فقلت: فضاع من ذلك شئ؟ فقال: لا هو عند أهله
2. [2/55] al-Kafi: Ali b. Ibrahim from Muhammad b. Isa b. Ubayd from Yunus b. Abd al-Rahman from Sima’a b. Mihran from Abi al-Hasan Musa عليه السلام, I said: may Allāh make you prosper – we do gather and discuss what we have (from you), nothing is referred to us (of questions) except that we have in it something (answer) recorded (on your authority), and that is from what Allāh has blessed us with through you, however a small thing may be referred to us in which we have nothing (from you), so we look at one another (in hopelessness), but we do have something similar to it (answers from you about parallel scenarios) – should we analogize it (the question asked) to the most suited (closest scenario)? he said: and what do you have to do with analogical reasoning? verily they were destroyed those who were destroyed before you because of analogical reasoning, then he said: if it comes to you that which you have knowledge of then – say, and if it comes to you that which you do not know then – and he pointed with his hand to his mouth, then he said: may Allāh curse Aba Hanifa he used to say: “Ali said but I say” and “the companions said but I say”, then he said: did you use to sit with him (in his teaching sessions)? I said: no – but these are his words, then I said: may Allāh make you prosper – the messenger of Allāh came with all that which would suffice them (the people) in his time? he said: yes, and even that which they will have need of up to the day of judgment, I said: has anything from that been lost? he said: no, it is with his family.
[3/56] الكافي: علي، عن محمد بن عيسى، عن يونس، عن قتيبة قال: سأل رجل أبا عبدالله عليه السلام عن مسألة فأجابه فيها، فقال الرجل: أرأيت إن كان كذا وكذا ما يكون القول فيها؟ فقال له: مه ما أجبتك فيه من شئ فهو عن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله لسنا من: ” أرأيت” في شئ
3. [3/56] al-Kafi: Ali from Muhammad b. Isa from Yunus from Qutayba who said: a man asked Aba Abdillah عليه السلام about an issue and he answered him in it – so the man said: suppose if it were so and so – what would the answer be in it then? So he said to him: keep silent, whatever I have answered regarding it – then it is on the authority of the messenger of Allāh صلى الله عليه وآله, we have nothing to do with ‘suppose’ whatsoever.
[4/57] الكافي: محمد بن يحيى، عن أحمد بن محمد بن عيسى، عن الحسن بن محبوب، عن معاوية بن وهب قال: سمعت أبا عبدالله عليه السلام يقول: قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله: إن عند كل بدعة تكون من بعدي يكاد بها الايمان وليا من أهل بيتي موكلا به يذب عنه، ينطق بإلهام من الله ويعلن الحق وينوره، ويرد كيد الكائدين، يعبر عن الضعفاء فاعتبروا يا أولي الابصار وتوكلوا على الله
4. [4/57] al-Kafi: Muhammad b. Yahya from Ahmad b. Muhammad b. Isa from al-Hasan b. Mahbub from Muawiya b. Wahb who said: I heard Aba Abdillah عليه السلام saying: the messenger of Allāh صلى الله عليه وآله said: For every innovation that arises after me – by which is sought the weakening of the faith – there will be a guardian from the people of my house in charge of it (faith) who will defend it, he will speak by inspiration from Allāh and will proclaim the truth and illuminate it, he will repulse the plot of the plotters and speak out in defense of the weak ones, so pay heed O possessors of insight and rely upon Allāh.