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The Errors of the Murji'ah: Part 1 - Establishing That Eemaan Is Tasdeeq and Inqiyaad
Posted by Abu.Iyaad on Wednesday, July, 06 2011 and filed under Murji'ah
Key topics: Murji'ah

All praise is due to Allaah and prayers and peace be upon His Messenger, to proceed: This is a compilation of some excellent excerpts from Kitaab ul-Eemaan of Shaykh ul-Islaam (and other works), which explain in detail, the errors of the Murji'ah in their understanding of Imaan, as well as giving a thorough understanding of the reality of Imaan itself, and that which opposes it, which is Kufr. The Murji'ah are of various factions and they expel either the external actions of the limbs or the internal actions of the heart from the reality of faith (which in turn leads to expelling the external actions from faith). Ibn Taymiyyah discusses some of the finer issues connected to these matters in his rebuttals of the various factions who erred in this subject.

THE ASL, FOUNDATION OF IMAAN IS NOT MERE TASDEEQ, BUT TASDEEQ WITH INQIYAAD AND KUFR IS MORE GENERAL THAN TAKDHEEB

Shaykh ul-Islaam Ibn Taymiyyah said in as-Saarim al-Maslool (3/966):

Second: that Imaan, even though it [Imaan] comprises tasdeeq (assent of the heart), then it is not mere tasdeeq alone. Rather it is iqraar (affirmation) and tum'aneenah (ease, tranquillity). This is because tasdeeq is only applied to information (khabar). As for command (amr), then, from the point of view that it is a command, there is no tasdeeq applied to it. And the speech of Allaah consists of information (khabr) and command (amr). Hence, the information (khabar) necessitates and requires tasdeeq (belief, assent) of that which has been informed of, and the command (amr) necessitates and requires inqiyaad (compliance) and istislaam (submission) to it. And this is an action of the heart and what brings this together is khudoo' (submission) and inqiyaad (compliance) to the command, even if that which has been commanded is not fulfilled (outwardly).

Hence, when the khabar (information) is accepted with tasdeeq and the amr (command) is accepted with inqiyaad (compliance), then the asl, foundation of Imaan has been attained in the heart. And this is tum'aneenah (ease, tranquillity) and iqraar (affirmation), for its derivative is amn (security, safety), which is actually qaraar (establishment) and tum'aneenah (ease, tranquillity). And this is attained when tasdeeq and inqiyaad settle in the heart.

So when this is the case, then revilement (sabb) is disdainment (ihaanah) and belittlement (istikhfaaf) and [conversely] compliance to the command (inqiyaad lil-amr) is honouring (ikraam) and venerating (i'zaaz).

And it is impossible for the heart to disdain the one to whom it is has complied and submitted and humbled, or that it should belittle him. For when belittlement (istikhfaaf) and disdainment (istihaanah) occurs in the heart, it is prohibited for inqiyaad (compliance) and istislaam (submission) to be in it. Hence, there is no Imaan in it (the heart), and this is the very kufr of Iblees. For he heard the command of Allaah to him, so he did not reject (yukaddhib) a messenger [who brought the command] however he did not comply with the command, and did not submit to it [with inqiyaad and istislaam], but he turned away from obedience in arrogance, hence he became a kaafir.

And this is the point in which a portion from the Khalaf deviated. It was imagined by them that the asl, foundation, of Imaan is nothing but tasdeeq (the assent of the heart), then they consider the likes of Iblees and Fir'aun, those from whom takdheeb (rejection, the opposite of tasdeeq) did not occur, or from whom takdheeb by the tongue did not occur without takdheeb of the heart (meaning, those who were inwardly convinced but rejected upon their tongues due to arrogance), and his kufr was one of the most severe types of kufr. And hence, these people became bewildered (on this subject).

And if only they had been guided to that which the Salaf were guided to, they would have known that Imaan is speech and action. And I mean that in its asl (foundation, basis) Imaan is speech in the heart, and action in the heart. For Imaan is in accordance with the Speech of Allaah and His Risaalah (i.e. the messengership that is sent). And the Speech of Allaah and His Risaalah contain both His information (akhbaar) and also his commands (awaamir)

Hence, the heart believes (yusaddiqu) His information with tasdeeq that necessitates such feelings in the heart that are appropriate and in accordance with that which has been informed about. And tasdeeq is actually a form of knowledge (ilm) and speech (qawl, i.e. of the heart), and then he also complies with His command and submits to it. And this compliance (inqiyaad) and submission (istislaam) is a form of desire (iraadah) and action ('amal, i.e. of the heart). Hence, he cannot be a believer except by the combination of these two matters (i.e. the speech of the heart and its action).

Hence, when he abandons compliance (inqiyaad) he becomes an arrogant one, hence he becomes amongst the Kaafireen. And when he believes (musaddiqan, i.e. has tasdeeq), then kufr is more general and wider than mere takdheeb (rejection). It can be takdheeb (rejection) and jahl (ignorance) and it can also be isktibaar (arrogance) and dhulm (oppression).

And he also said, (as-Saarim al-Maslool 3/864):

As for their saying that he is an apostate and so his repentance is to be sought, just like all the apostates, then the answer is: that this person is an apostate with the meaning that he spoke a word on account of which he became a kaafir, his blood becoming lawful (to be taken) and it being permitted alongside this that he still believes in the truthfulness (musaddiqan) of the Messenger, acknowledging his Prophethood. However, the requirements of tasdeeq are respect in one's words (tawqeer). Hence, when he defames him with his words, then the judgement of that tasdeeq [necessitating submissiveness] is removed (from him), and so he falls to the level of the mere acknowledgement of Iblees of Allaah's Ruboobiyyah. For [tasdeeq] necessitates and requires submission (khudoo') to Him. Hence, when he (Iblees) became arrogant towards His command, the judgement of that acknowledgement (i'tiraaf) was falsified. Hence, Imaan in Allaah and His Messenger is speech (qawl) and action ('amal). I mean by action here, what arises from speech and belief (of the heart) of veneration (ta'dheem) and magnification (ijlaal) (i.e. the action of the heart). So when he does what is opposite to that of arrogance (istikbaar) and belittlement (istikhfaaf), he becomes a kaafir.

In these passages Ibn Taymiyyah explains that since Allaah's revelation consists of both information (khabar) and request (talab, which can be a command or prohibition) then the heart in turn must face all of that with two things, tasdeeq (attestation, belief) with respect to those matters that are information (khabar) and inward compliance (inqiyaad) with respect to those matters which are requests (commands and prohibitions). These two constituents make up the foundations of faith in the heart, which are also tied to the external statements and actions. Faith is not restricted to mere tasdeeq (attestation, belief) but also extends into the actions of the heart, since it is the intrinsic quality of the revealed information (khabar) that it produces actions of the heart (such as inqiyaad).